tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-54329871085372593782024-03-20T00:43:59.521-04:00Think Out LoudA safe place to process life.taralynn819http://www.blogger.com/profile/03048501104136348806noreply@blogger.comBlogger114125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5432987108537259378.post-61047593660919862962010-09-14T16:27:00.011-04:002010-09-21T14:36:10.911-04:00"Oh, Great Pumpkin, where are you?"<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj13TvnhV3YSudF6kDC0wnpCeOlNhvMVZY6n4xVwJQHftcw30WYwqoKi9Ihrnrf7UK0Pl3enQZknvoAdf2y663U8zQo3QtlKxLaluj8GHb-l9G1wBD1bm-MBg2ire7wNnxpcF_bdzt1-lM/s1600/apples.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj13TvnhV3YSudF6kDC0wnpCeOlNhvMVZY6n4xVwJQHftcw30WYwqoKi9Ihrnrf7UK0Pl3enQZknvoAdf2y663U8zQo3QtlKxLaluj8GHb-l9G1wBD1bm-MBg2ire7wNnxpcF_bdzt1-lM/s320/apples.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516865002678878834" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Since next Wednesday is the first day of Fall I'd like to throw out a little Autumn anticipation. The leaves have begun to change here in Clarksburg, WV and we've had a few cooler days so as far as I'm concerned, it's already Fall! <br /><br />Ironically enough, next week we will be in Tampa, FL soaking up the sunshine! Ha! Jeromy has a 3-day conference for work and Miles and I are tagging along and are staying a few extra days! Why not? We never, <span style="font-style:italic;">ever</span> get to go on a real vacation. Whenever we travel it's most always to see family. Which is great - but other than our honeymoon in Seattle and first anniversary in NC/VA/TN we've never taken taken a long trip "just because". So we are <span style="font-style:italic;">so</span> excited. The Florida weather is still super nice in September and there are less tourists - win win! And at 5 1/2 months old, it will be Miles' first airplane ride, so pray for us pleeeaasse! :)<br /><br />Then in October Miles and I will be traveling to my home state of Minnesota to meet his family for the first time. Jeromy needs to save up more leave so we can go again in the Spring, but that means we get to stay for 2 weeks. And there is no better place on earth to experience Autumn in all its glory (ok, so maybe New England) than Minnesota! I can already taste the Honeycrisp apples!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggJqKdGLo5hWXin0qZdOb4CNiB1PEOZbjz_XbyH4ErDcqUSiV1xJZ_dpNuse6Zbk1AndP5CtV2SHGhKQINe1jxuCCRoQdksikUYaDsqPYioOnF4lQKNQB0-j8SvdjaGnHaGYReT8520G4/s1600/mpls+fall.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 275px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggJqKdGLo5hWXin0qZdOb4CNiB1PEOZbjz_XbyH4ErDcqUSiV1xJZ_dpNuse6Zbk1AndP5CtV2SHGhKQINe1jxuCCRoQdksikUYaDsqPYioOnF4lQKNQB0-j8SvdjaGnHaGYReT8520G4/s320/mpls+fall.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516862972818551922" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />I <span style="font-style:italic;">so</span> want to be <span style="font-style:italic;">right</span> there <span style="font-style:italic;">right</span> now!<br /><br /><br />Here are a few of the reasons I relish the Fall season (which I'm sure I'll be adding to!):<br /><br />cinnamon/spice scented candles<br />cool weather <br />hot chili and cornbread (and chili cook-offs!)<br />candy corn<br />Autumn store displays<br />warm apple cider w/ cinnamon sticks<br />orange, yellow, and red leaves<br />potlucks and family get-togethers<br />LESS BUGS!!!<br />craft festivals (even if you buy nothing but roasted nuts to eat while browsing!)<br /><a href="http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/downeast-maine-pumpkin-bread/Detail.aspx">pumpkin bread</a><br />waking up to frost<br />apple picking outing<br />anticipating the holiday season (October, November, and December are such festive months!)<br />curling up by the fireplace in Caribou with a latte and a good book (not like I ever get to go but still!)<br />hiking in the woods<br />pressing leaves<br />baking something in the oven to help warm up the house<br />cozy sweaters and sweatshirts (and no more displaying my white legs!)<br />bonfires and s'mores<br />fresh apple crisp<br />crunching in the blanket of fallen leaves<br />creative scarecrows<br />sweet potatoes<br />butternut squash soup<br />crocheting on the couch<br /><a href="http://www.fanpop.com/spots/halloween/articles/5352/title/halloween-treats-big-list-halloween-videos">Halloween cartoon classics</a><br />pumpkin patches (and carving! and seeds! and pie!)<br />oatmeal raisin cookies<br />hayrides<br />stove-top hot chocolate<br />Fall foliage drives<br />making caramel apples at home <br />trick-or-treaters (and getting to dress up and take our baby trick-or-treating this year!)<br />seasoned oven-roasted root veggies<br />sleeping in a comfortably cool house curled up in covers<br />start of Christmas shopping<br />wearing MITTENS!<br />corn mazes<br />browsing Fall magazine issues (chock full of comfort food recipes with tantalizing photos)<br />orange popcorn balls<br />lightweight blankets replaced by heavy comforters and quilts<br />generous table-spreads<br />kids jumping into piles of raked up leaves (can't wait to do this with Miles!)<br />wearing out the crock pot<br /><br />*Feel free to add your own favorites!<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9qTHBS-0gMWx3XIUEnAgQ6uIO9s2JjmQ2ywghXQ4CenvV7tbC_broM2HB609eJT8wcuHRRLEqLtzc0i8QRcZ7OSfqF8SpX8C77UG1EDjCmhXZqwCpFwTIi7Yb1pEtoIXg4a24HP3BV6I/s1600/tara+leaves.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9qTHBS-0gMWx3XIUEnAgQ6uIO9s2JjmQ2ywghXQ4CenvV7tbC_broM2HB609eJT8wcuHRRLEqLtzc0i8QRcZ7OSfqF8SpX8C77UG1EDjCmhXZqwCpFwTIi7Yb1pEtoIXg4a24HP3BV6I/s320/tara+leaves.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516866826717725650" /></a>taralynn819http://www.blogger.com/profile/03048501104136348806noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5432987108537259378.post-14062796827574482662010-08-04T14:48:00.027-04:002010-08-05T10:51:24.810-04:00Behind Good Manners<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-9l89u4fyjuqiO15Ub-GN6c4u_eTfmaBq67yn4WgS5tAErlQmks4ELUgpHrMRub3tTwMFTWW4j4CBgrgD9vNgRO9kTS8-6-BkOBWjeHWEOw-spBM_SV3jlhA14nlduELvZPrxoisKe5U/s1600/Formal_01.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 230px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-9l89u4fyjuqiO15Ub-GN6c4u_eTfmaBq67yn4WgS5tAErlQmks4ELUgpHrMRub3tTwMFTWW4j4CBgrgD9vNgRO9kTS8-6-BkOBWjeHWEOw-spBM_SV3jlhA14nlduELvZPrxoisKe5U/s320/Formal_01.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5501633793955530994" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://www.lovewellblog.com/">Kelly @ Love Well</a> put up a wonderful <a href="http://www.5minutesforparenting.com/731/civilize-the-savages/">post</a> today on <a href="http://www.5minutesforparenting.com/">5 Minutes for Parenting</a> regarding teaching our children manners. Although a helpful article for the purpose it was written, I took something additional away from it in the form of a thought-provoking quote by Emily Post:<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">“Manners are a sensitive awareness of the feelings of others. If you have that awareness, you have good manners, no matter what fork you use.”<br /></span><br />These words instantly reminded me of the time we were in Minnesota for Christmas this past year. I offered to set the table for dinner at my grandma's house. I was about done when she said something like, "Don't you know the forks go on the other side? And the glasses too??" She said there is purpose behind all the order in the world, much like the traffic or other types of laws, such as no speeding. For our safety. For predictability.<br /><br />I admit I thought that reasoning a bit silly. I paused in my task and returned with, "Yes, but nobody is going to get hurt if the fork is on the wrong side of the plate as one might speeding down the highway. And besides, <a href="http://www.etiquettescholar.com/dining_etiquette/table_setting.html">formal place-setting</a> was invented by a personal preference; that doesn't make it the correct way." <br /><br />I was trying to be respectful in my disagreement, but I wanted to speak up. Probably most in my extended family would have simply said, 'Yes, Grandma', no questions asked. In fact, I normally would, too. I dearly love my grandmother but I was simply trying to get her to think outside the box. (Though I should have considered how sturdy and comfortably familiar are the box-walls of grandparents!) Of course, I believe there is nothing wrong with the way she wanted me to set the table. Yet, she dismissed my statement and so I reluctantly complied to her table-setting orders, slightly bitter that my opinion did not count.<br /><br />Is this a generational thing?? I still don't know how to set a table properly. Just so there's a plate, fork, cup, and half a paper towel - and food - at each place we're perfectly happy at our house. That's all the predictability we need.<br /><br />But even though Kelly's post is intended towards parenting, the theme made me reflect anew on the value (not to mention biblical command!) of considering others above myself, even if I still think certain ways of doing things can seem unnecessarily tedious. If Grandma wants her table set a certain way, then it is not going to kill me to please her. For someone whose happiness is important to me, it should have made <span style="font-style:italic;">me</span> happy to do it her preferred way.<br /><br />Because, now that I think of it, if my husband puts my small batter bowl in the <span style="font-style:italic;">wrong</span> cupboard I am tempted to fume! Nevermind that he just emptied the dishwasher for me!!<br /><br />Sorry, Grandma! I love you!taralynn819http://www.blogger.com/profile/03048501104136348806noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5432987108537259378.post-41983075903743424902010-06-29T11:58:00.040-04:002010-07-01T07:36:11.962-04:007 to 12-Week StatsI've been keeping this running list ever since I posted his 6-week stats. And since he's 12 weeks (just a couple days from being 3 months!!) I figured I better get this posted before everything starts to run together.<br /><br />Miles...<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJJN9K2qFaFM8VCjLS8zm2j6dPGwKl4Mf0uuSO9GWFn4ixswMpcb6FQ6PErzvqk3VQoAptXj4fC35-l6jvYphihcggkn5LG2eNpOoy_39EccUY4G9_3gOItX27CYwBKXl0BIBq3TtBYfs/s1600/miles+close+up+car.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJJN9K2qFaFM8VCjLS8zm2j6dPGwKl4Mf0uuSO9GWFn4ixswMpcb6FQ6PErzvqk3VQoAptXj4fC35-l6jvYphihcggkn5LG2eNpOoy_39EccUY4G9_3gOItX27CYwBKXl0BIBq3TtBYfs/s320/miles+close+up+car.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488320085138141394" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />likes being outside. It's a big ol' bright world out there with ever changing scenery, warm breezes, chirping birds and barking doggies! And Miles loves the Baby Jogger stroller! He's perfectly happy and content as long as he's moving!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY6uZXdMlNfJD-_QOJ2GZcmrSryrYM2fi5sOM4X3DvmYkML1DdEowr27Fz4WhO7OyBT_z4LmAN03u2v6Uo_JxUQJTXqZPOV_4q0Zr-I49Zjpb5U816N8xmY5_WTQhyphenhyphenA4eiGuizcVl__FU/s1600/baby+jogger.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY6uZXdMlNfJD-_QOJ2GZcmrSryrYM2fi5sOM4X3DvmYkML1DdEowr27Fz4WhO7OyBT_z4LmAN03u2v6Uo_JxUQJTXqZPOV_4q0Zr-I49Zjpb5U816N8xmY5_WTQhyphenhyphenA4eiGuizcVl__FU/s320/baby+jogger.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488323421400860754" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />lost most of his hair - but it's growing back now!<br /><br />transitioned to size 2 diapers beginning this week! He is not quite 12lbs yet (he's approximately 11lb 10oz on our scale) and I know size 1 diapers can fit up to 14lbs but I didn't want to chance it and buy a big box he might not be able to finish.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9SE2Yq-fwZ7XTi-6W80SQ-gCCZleIZtHGAYYLcprGTuE9U7GBI-iNl0hU_4bvBlUzUqMtVN9up1nHWrnEul_78QAPmkkntOf6KZWtD-0zGpnQWVAW9u1oWwEtHLyXHyzUsYBIQeR0dAA/s1600/gym.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9SE2Yq-fwZ7XTi-6W80SQ-gCCZleIZtHGAYYLcprGTuE9U7GBI-iNl0hU_4bvBlUzUqMtVN9up1nHWrnEul_78QAPmkkntOf6KZWtD-0zGpnQWVAW9u1oWwEtHLyXHyzUsYBIQeR0dAA/s320/gym.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488430040151377362" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />is able to hold teething toys and put them in his mouth. Great substitution for the paci!! I don't know why I didn't think to try these things earlier. I just the other day picked up a pack at the dollar store and he loves them!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJiAy9XyLaqk_uxq-cvcxl4bGYuWemfx93_GMTNEOQiYMhSQ5D1Y4kywIIPrjwmdXJmdLmHWjoKSx8RqRdoSxjVIpCrEL96cpSpShrFfBNxZg7T0R7zW2-xl-nqcahIXZ4rywlt3D6uik/s1600/at+the+doctors.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 238px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJiAy9XyLaqk_uxq-cvcxl4bGYuWemfx93_GMTNEOQiYMhSQ5D1Y4kywIIPrjwmdXJmdLmHWjoKSx8RqRdoSxjVIpCrEL96cpSpShrFfBNxZg7T0R7zW2-xl-nqcahIXZ4rywlt3D6uik/s320/at+the+doctors.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488322391761714018" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />ditched the paci. Actually, we ditched it for him. We had a rough couple days and some slight fussing for about a week thereafter but after that he kind of phased out of his desperate-must-have-the-paci-at-all-times-or-I-shall-scream temperament. We are not anti-pacifier parents. If Miles were able to keep it in his mouth for more than 30 seconds we would have had no problem with letting him get attached to it. However, now that he is broken of the addiction we do give it back to him on occasions such as when I have to pump and he's fussy and needy, in the grocery store check out line when things are taking longer than anticipated, or at church if he didn't nap well at home and needs to settle down. Otherwise, we find other ways to soothe him, such as giving him a burp cloth or our finger to suck for a couple minutes. He can't keep something that is attached to us so this seems to work when he really needs something to help soothe.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3Zhxy9QLBchRgO9cMl9vcETofaG2h3GY-aQNcWkJgV1TNxT7oAhHM9wlJt5yQnJhjWaBMJxdvzE3fDPvUwd7g99caQp0RBUqF5TgySr975TBPrY8xBFfL_ATqfxzDyFhGF_j7d81zpI4/s1600/extra+close+up+car.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3Zhxy9QLBchRgO9cMl9vcETofaG2h3GY-aQNcWkJgV1TNxT7oAhHM9wlJt5yQnJhjWaBMJxdvzE3fDPvUwd7g99caQp0RBUqF5TgySr975TBPrY8xBFfL_ATqfxzDyFhGF_j7d81zpI4/s320/extra+close+up+car.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488321090349495938" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />doesn't sleep (or really eat well) when we're out and about. Total and complete bummer. I guess there are just too many distractions. The hardest part about getting Miles on a schedule has been the distance between our home and town. We are a half hour from everything so you have to take into consideration an hour of driving. Even if we left right after his nap we would never get home in time for his next one. Because we prefer to conserve gas and trips we rarely hit just one store when I take him to town. It's kind of an all-afternoon affair. But when we take our once-a-week trip it messes up any sort of schedule we had worked towards up until then. It's almost not worth it to try. I have been spoiled living a suburban life up until now, and I did not even anticipate what it would be like to live in the country with an infant!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtZyYm2eZfux-h1vhiuCv_e-2O8KSFZgvHyWGkzkrppnJVdaqScG34r3gmNAg8b9aNqSA9eUDhxM4LXTzZ_u_s_oxG6hxAjTD5cZ2hPntx2BgbAxuaZ4foB58nQ2blPeiLPbwNNA0szYI/s1600/daddynme.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 201px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtZyYm2eZfux-h1vhiuCv_e-2O8KSFZgvHyWGkzkrppnJVdaqScG34r3gmNAg8b9aNqSA9eUDhxM4LXTzZ_u_s_oxG6hxAjTD5cZ2hPntx2BgbAxuaZ4foB58nQ2blPeiLPbwNNA0szYI/s320/daddynme.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488324764860197298" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />has been cooing and giggling for a few weeks now. He especially loves to look in the mirror and laugh at himself and stomp his foot hard. It's so funny and entertaining! His expression is like a kid at a theme park! We wonder what he thinks of the "baby on the other side". Does he know it is him? Does he just think this other little person mimics his every move? Though I imagine he is still too developmentally immature to even perceive what his movements look like. But it's loads of fun, nonetheless. He could stand in front of the mirror all day if we let him.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt_ht0XjxDNMGt3I5yFi3eFiOG0mvjcHgSFc_Cwxu3922cwqgpaq8Tr1Xxn8TQ5wwyLBXecllCF6z4vCO4TkqfBd8Rl6yUNeppG3Ro2wx6_2-XXVxZJkwfZVXVWNcXJRxAaU3sOdeiI6M/s1600/burping.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 238px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt_ht0XjxDNMGt3I5yFi3eFiOG0mvjcHgSFc_Cwxu3922cwqgpaq8Tr1Xxn8TQ5wwyLBXecllCF6z4vCO4TkqfBd8Rl6yUNeppG3Ro2wx6_2-XXVxZJkwfZVXVWNcXJRxAaU3sOdeiI6M/s320/burping.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488565027013852978" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />indeed loves to stand! He is at the point now (12 weeks) where he will fuss unless you're holding him in an upright position. He just likes to be upright in general and looking all around the room. Sometimes it's hard to get him to look at you because he's so busy staring at a wall or some light fixture! He doesn't enjoy the swing or bouncy seat near as much as he used to, and I think it's because they are too reclining for his preferences right now. This should make him a perfect candidate for an exersaucer. We will be borrowing one in August from our friends whose baby has outgrown theirs, but we may need to scour Craigslist for one sooner than that because I have a feeling that little piece of baby equipment will save our sanity!!!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl38Jll_Fb_Xt4WwwqopMSqy6HL2CRTUKYYCLO8hybWt9iPJmaJYOh8Ji2Qj70qiWno7MyvH6kGLNJ_inbZXFlNAiTDwpj7jAl-eF3__UEKgBiycgGVAlrscvBQv_mHXE7XI7FVOwpc2g/s1600/on+couch.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl38Jll_Fb_Xt4WwwqopMSqy6HL2CRTUKYYCLO8hybWt9iPJmaJYOh8Ji2Qj70qiWno7MyvH6kGLNJ_inbZXFlNAiTDwpj7jAl-eF3__UEKgBiycgGVAlrscvBQv_mHXE7XI7FVOwpc2g/s320/on+couch.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488323133334879506" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />for some reason, keeps his right index finger always bent. A couple weeks ago I accidentally clipped the tip of that finger while attempting to cut his nails. Poor kid. I don't know if it's a coincidence that he keeps that one down but we're going to bring it up to his doctor because it cracks when you put it up for him. Could it be that he's been babying that finger since I clipped it and developed arthritis?? And that's not all, the other day Jeromy clipped his thumb on the same hand! He didn't cry for his 2-month shots but was pretty distraught when Mommy and Daddy mutilated him at home! (You feel so helpless when you do something like that - we are supposed to protect him!) We're biting them off from now on....<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNJPYhsmsWvT7x1XMRcXHTNB13Mst_cJZdy_-NsqoTWLLQMvQX-_B8TD0Gyrk9d8Mg54jVJReIZZ2Em6iBiuou9dZTEsiEANor1uJHWDKGVSJ6oK_oT76FDIJRTR7z6qcj3i8VzQguQNU/s1600/miles+overalls.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 234px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNJPYhsmsWvT7x1XMRcXHTNB13Mst_cJZdy_-NsqoTWLLQMvQX-_B8TD0Gyrk9d8Mg54jVJReIZZ2Em6iBiuou9dZTEsiEANor1uJHWDKGVSJ6oK_oT76FDIJRTR7z6qcj3i8VzQguQNU/s320/miles+overalls.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488322787690238354" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />has many nichnames already: Monkey, Monkey Muck (?? It's Jeromy's), Little Monk, Bugaboo, Baby Boo, Buddy, Bubba, Bubby, Puppy, Little, Wiggly/Squirmy Worm, Mills (I know, tacky!), Otis (sometimes he acts drunk!), Sneezy (the kid sneezes at least 5-10 times a day!), and I'm sure there are many more to come!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf5xtc_Wv45-1_sho31ny_XOvUPA4gk7dOJ2ki2lOIhkVpziPS3RXQ1ORBIvVw-3aYX_9UUmFMrLqp1veCx47-mSGsbsvpL6fn4DHf9U_BCM5TE6abICSDi_-mtfmZvnoUdY9g08UcmRU/s1600/sneeze.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf5xtc_Wv45-1_sho31ny_XOvUPA4gk7dOJ2ki2lOIhkVpziPS3RXQ1ORBIvVw-3aYX_9UUmFMrLqp1veCx47-mSGsbsvpL6fn4DHf9U_BCM5TE6abICSDi_-mtfmZvnoUdY9g08UcmRU/s320/sneeze.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488428798247967778" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />goes through a periods of not eating very well, maybe 2-3oz at a time and we'd have to really work to get it in him. Other times he's downing 5-7oz at each feeding and I can hardly keep up! Lately though he's been fussing in our arms and wanting to lie down to eat (of course which is <span style="font-style: italic;">great</span> for digestion!). He also prefers to eat the bulk of his meal before a nap instead of after, which irks me to no end, especially if we have to go somewhere and I know he's going to end up hungry and tired at the same time and will surely melt down. I don't know how to train him to eat his whole bottle at wake-up time without starving him until he learns.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8LjBl0q71TVKXkjV39QIdYq7FZrVOWancr8v7bnZLhWFE25Yoe_UIBzmYFfyEhCGeU188-Pa1Ua2ZXBNvmf4ba2ucCvrk0ByjGl37qls0pNd4dFuzQG8EG8eGlpPmooQ1NM-CgqqIvhU/s1600/sleeping.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 238px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8LjBl0q71TVKXkjV39QIdYq7FZrVOWancr8v7bnZLhWFE25Yoe_UIBzmYFfyEhCGeU188-Pa1Ua2ZXBNvmf4ba2ucCvrk0ByjGl37qls0pNd4dFuzQG8EG8eGlpPmooQ1NM-CgqqIvhU/s320/sleeping.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488431168336469234" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />...which brings me to pumping. Not sure how long I will be able to continue nourishing him but I am taking Fenugreek to hopefully keep my supply up. I'm pumping 4 times during the day and 1 to 2 times during the night. It can be a hassle for sure, especially because it kills a lot of spontaneity and keeps outings to town short, but I truly don't mind it all that much. Yet if it starts to create stress in our family I may have to stop. I have no plans to stop but the way I see it, we've made it this far and seeing how nursing didn't work out, this is an accomplishment!<br /><br />*Edited to add: I wrote the above at 10 weeks, and things have changed now at 12 weeks. I have decided to wean myself off the pump. Ever so slowly, of course, and I just might keep one or two sessions so he still gets some breast milk. However, the middle of the night pump has got to go. If we do half formula, half milk we will waste so much formula since you have to use it or discard by 30 days. So I think we will just transition to formula and then I can freeze whatever milk I pump until I have a month or so supply and then he can finish out the year with that stash. I would so totally continue to pump but it's starting to interfere with our family, travel, errands, etc. It's easy on days I'm home, but I've had to pump while driving a few times and I think that's a sign it's time to try something else!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTjM9VxHc8S6FYtzrX9tc_0qbhieEHjGRl4hTh8QZeMKJSrF6FX7qQxIXE3DmohcrLMcg-Thnuygm2seJCOephM85hBaopt5h7gSpMTH34zaSfpr5cBNUCa_Aqbp4IYNRYEbeVzB8_0XE/s1600/mommyme.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTjM9VxHc8S6FYtzrX9tc_0qbhieEHjGRl4hTh8QZeMKJSrF6FX7qQxIXE3DmohcrLMcg-Thnuygm2seJCOephM85hBaopt5h7gSpMTH34zaSfpr5cBNUCa_Aqbp4IYNRYEbeVzB8_0XE/s320/mommyme.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488429683869703442" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />rolled over at 10 weeks 5 days - in his crib, swaddled, in the middle of the night. Scary Mama Moment! Though he hasn't rolled over since, which makes me think he didn't try to roll that night.<br /><br />still seems to sleep the best if he is swaddled. We have put him in a Carters sleep sack a few times and noticed he tends to wake up sooner and/or can't put himself back to sleep while unswaddled. Which is fine, though sometimes he really fights getting into the swaddle in the middle of the night and it can be a pain to get him all wrapped up! I don't have the best patience in the middle of the night - especially since I need to go pump after that feeding!<br /><br />*Edited to add: I also wrote the above at 10 weeks. However, the last couple days I've kept him unswaddled and let him sleep in a Carter's sleep sack. Naps have been fine, he seems to like the freedom. Nights have not been as good. He'd been waking up once per night for a brisk feed but unswaddled it's twice, and I think it's just because he's not used to it yet. Hopefully we'll start sleeping through the night sometime this century!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBEdhgHYIDrx4HnAVUwZ-OZDNXbuXIsKuD7U_8vG8cWUsGIHbjnH4Zg0Y-nytNjPDKl21drcMzwPmS6ke0TMAyy6Xtoo0GpUBeldDMdJRQRsFHBqPd05LptsSehK9L-ASAFOMKwfY2kPk/s1600/lion.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBEdhgHYIDrx4HnAVUwZ-OZDNXbuXIsKuD7U_8vG8cWUsGIHbjnH4Zg0Y-nytNjPDKl21drcMzwPmS6ke0TMAyy6Xtoo0GpUBeldDMdJRQRsFHBqPd05LptsSehK9L-ASAFOMKwfY2kPk/s320/lion.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488430738043724450" /></a>taralynn819http://www.blogger.com/profile/03048501104136348806noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5432987108537259378.post-52250253073533205062010-06-19T09:31:00.019-04:002010-06-21T13:21:10.207-04:00Do skinny people have better summers?Somebody posed this question on Facebook today. Interesting question, is it not? Of course, I could wax about state of mind and healthy vs. skinny and all that, but I currently have a specific opinion on the topic. <br /><br />From someone who was at her thinnest this time last summer (I got way into running) to now just having had a baby two months ago and still up 15lbs, I have mixed feelings.<br /><br />For sure this summer is absolutely so much richer with a little one to share it with. You just can't top that!<br /><br />On the other hand, getting dressed in the morning is none too fun due to the fact I don't fit into most of the outfits I wore last summer. I never used to have to think about what to wear, I'd just throw something on and feel great. This year, I change clothes at least twice (trying my best to resist the easy maternity jean) before finally feeling comfortable. Ugh. So in that respect I wish it were fall or winter so I could hide behind sweaters and not have to show as much leg!<br /><br />All I can say is I can't wait until my baby is 6mo so I can start jogging with him in the jogging stroller!!! I do weights and squats at home but that just doesn't burn fat like running does!<br /><br />Oh, and I <span style="font-style:italic;">definitely</span> enjoyed eating more last summer because I could eat whatever I wanted without thinking! Not the case this summer - ha!<br /><br />So do skinny people have better summers? Overall, I would say no. More comfortable, carefree summers? In my opinion, yes! Come quickly, cool, Autumn breezes, <span style="font-style:italic;">come</span>!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcGFYy0A99L-wdwPT6_U57Uhw5oUTObojZdpAPxWmuLpbp_24uNxM5Pz2WhNafkTsn1thfLEKUVV-UQwfsQf9WziXmC9Ugc4irCREBWesU0I7UybwzjKyjbyhUswuVYW3ybnq-yK7t16o/s1600/fishing+Tara.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcGFYy0A99L-wdwPT6_U57Uhw5oUTObojZdpAPxWmuLpbp_24uNxM5Pz2WhNafkTsn1thfLEKUVV-UQwfsQf9WziXmC9Ugc4irCREBWesU0I7UybwzjKyjbyhUswuVYW3ybnq-yK7t16o/s320/fishing+Tara.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5484479014759552034" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />This is mid-June last year, almost to the day. My general goal is to fit back into those shorts before short season is over.taralynn819http://www.blogger.com/profile/03048501104136348806noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5432987108537259378.post-44594247426781303112010-05-31T07:58:00.010-04:002010-05-31T08:45:23.476-04:00Questioning MotivesMy friend Naomi posted a <a href="http://naomilynnwilliams.blogspot.com/2010/05/scared.html">blog</a> that got me thinking this morning.<br /><br />I often wonder if I sin constantly in my motives. I was just reading the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kssN4mqiE5w"><span style="font-style:italic;">Hiding Place</span></a> where Corrie ten Boom confessed a realization of her own selfishness. Striving to reach the middle of the crowd during roll call so she wouldn't be as cold as those on the outside. Hoarding vitamin water for her ill sister Betsie, only administering it to her at night so no one else would see and want some. Defending her actions by thinking how they were ministering in the camp and sharing the gospel to the prisoners so they needed to be in fair physical condition because God was using them. <br /><br />But how far do you take it? Were they sinning in their motives? Or was Corrie just being unreasonable and her actions actually just? I don't know. Am I sinning in my motives when I feel the least I am entitled to is a shower every day? I mean, Corrie didn't get to shower for months!! What about when I feel entitled to a clean kitchen floor? Or the opportunity to get out of the house because I am stir crazy? I think that by taking care of myself and maintaining a pleasant environment I can better take care of and minister to my family. Happy wife, happy life - right?<br /><br />Is the fact that I question this an evidence that it is sin? Or is Satan whispering tiny lies, trying to distract me from the main thing by getting me to walk on eggshells around my relationship with God? If "eating and drinking to the glory of God" is a biblical concept, when does this turn inward and selfish? Are we as Christians even capable of truly honoring God with our choices or is there within even the most pure thought and action always this slight bent toward preserving self? <br /><br />Do I just not trust God enough to provide for my needs, even the lesser visible emotional and social ones? Or do I simply invent "needs" for myself when my vision of Jehovah Jireh becomes blurred? The phrase "God is enough" implies such an abstract concept that I think most of the time I don't realize that my needs are even met. How very basic are my needs and how spoiled I have become! <br /><br />Still, could there be folly in worrying so much about whether my motive is right that it prohibits me from just living and enjoying God's gifts and blessings? Where is that fine line? I wish He would have spelled all that out so we could know. But I suppose that's the Pharisee in me. <br /><br />These things I constantly wonder...taralynn819http://www.blogger.com/profile/03048501104136348806noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5432987108537259378.post-42431597177802571182010-05-30T13:16:00.007-04:002010-06-02T04:30:01.835-04:00Raindrops on Roses and Whiskers on KittensI love endearing memes like this. <a href="http://www.kellyskornerblog.com/">Kelly</a> posted about the <a href="http://www.kellyskornerblog.com/2010/02/simple-pleasures.html">simple pleasures</a> in life and I am going to add my list. At least the list of today. Things change, and pleasures change, but it will be fun to record what brings a smile to my face at this stage of life. Hopefully it will bring out more gratitude in me.<br /><br />I started writing this on 2/3/10 but never published it because I just kept adding to it! I am a list freak so you know I could continue this post for days and days! However, it was written pre-baby so of course now I have a whole slew of new favorite things...little coos, smiles, soft skin, tiny fingers, onesies and pacis.... Definitely another list for another day!!!<br /><br />But here is my list of favorite things from back in February (in no particular order and certainly non-exhaustive). Oh, and somebody else used this title but it was my original title so I'm keeping it.<br /><br /><br />a completely clean house, especially the floors (ahhhhh...)<br /><br />the first sip of a Caribou Lite White Raspberry latte that instantly warms up your insides<br /><br />spending a couple good hours (at least!) in a used bookstore<br /><br />the anticipatory scent of brownies baking<br /><br />watching big, wet flakes of snow fall in the evening<br /><br />new color of paint on the walls<br /><br />opening a new CD<br /><br />spontaneous back rubs from my husband at just the right time!<br /><br />feeling my baby boy kick and move around and wondering what it will be like to hold him and look into his tiny face<br /><br />...and when Jeromy feels the baby kick! (SO fun to see him connect!)<br /><br />holiday candy clearance (I am a total sweets junkie)<br /><br />leftover night! (AA-double-MEN!)<br /><br />looking at my wedding ring and still not believing the life God has given me with such a wonderful companion!<br /><br />washing my face!!! (I love feeling fresh after a long day)<br /><br />reading Woman's Day or other wholesome chick mag<br /><br />looking at pictures (or watching videos) over and over on Facebook of my sweet little 2-year-old niece Scarlett. Minnesota is too far away! :(<br /><br />occasional bowls of kid cereal!<br /><br />list memes like this (I enjoy introspection)<br /><br />post-workout endorphins<br /><br />opening a fresh bag of coffee beans and grinding them at home<br /><br />shopping at quick and easy Aldi after traipsing around huge, overly crowded, and always dirty Walmart<br /><br />perusing Craigslist for baby stuff (a new simple pleasure for me but oh. the. deals!)<br /><br />along those lines...garage sale season and leaving your house bright and early with cash in your pocket, not knowing what you might find<br /><br />eating chips & salsa at a Mexican restaurant (who needs real food anyway??)<br /><br />sitting in bed with Jeromy at night reading books (together or separately)<br /><br />reading "mommy" blogs<br /><br />combining a sale with a coupon!<br /><br />an evening thunderstorm<br /><br />Dunkin' Donut's French crullers (maybe a guilty pleasure? I rarely have them so it's a treat!)<br /><br />real homemade pizza (except for the sauce, we cheat)<br /><br />a tall glass of chocolate milk (if I were to have a pregnancy craving, this is it!)<br /><br />buying a new skein or two of yarn, even when I don't need any<br /><br />grating fresh Parmesan cheese<br /><br />laughing at The Office with Jeromy<br /><br />looking for new recipes<br /><br />a good long replenishing drink of ice water (I carry my Nalgene bottle everywhere!)<br /><br />letting myself watch Rachel Ray, Regis & Kelly, or Andy Griffith (whichever is on) while running on the treadmill (the only time the TV is on during the day)<br /><br />...or watching HGTV or Supernanny episodes on the laptop while ironing (ok, so the puter is always on!)<br /><br />and to follow, how nice Jeromy looks wearing a shirt & pants I iron for him<br /><br />going out to eat after church (isn't that always the best?)<br /><br />updating my Facebook status with something fun or clever that I know I will get a million comments on<br /><br />the smell of someone in the neighborhood burning leaves<br /><br />looking into Jeromy's "droopy" eyes (as I call them)<br /><br />Reese's Pieces, my current favorite candy munchy....<span style="font-style:italic;">and</span> malted milk balls...<span style="font-style:italic;">and</span> Twizzlers...<span style="font-style:italic;">and</span> Twix...<span style="font-style:italic;">and</span> Junior Mints...<span style="font-style:italic;">and</span> Skittles! <br /><br />getting goosebumps in the shower when the water is extra luxuriously warm<br /><br />breakfast for dinner<br /><br />when I find a new Netflix DVD in the mailbox<br /><br />the evening before a non work day<br /><br />getting an early start to the morning<br /><br />a big ol' fat Honeycrisp apple!<br /><br />drooling over <a href="http://foodgawker.com/">this</a> site. Oh, and <a href="http://www.cookiemadness.net/">this</a> one, too.<br /><br />classic children's books (dare I admit one of the books I'm reading is a Little House book??)<br /><br />finishing a to-do list<br /><br />bologna and cheese sandwich (mostly yuck, but which I haven't had for months since you're not supposed to eat nitrates during pregnancy - you want what you can't have!)<br /><br />returning home from work to the smell of crock pot chicken<br /><br />sending a card to someone<br /><br />a fresh haircut<br /><br />crisp Autumn air<br /><br />wearing Mabelline Define-a-Lash mascara (lime green tube). I've gotten compliments!<br /><br />the process of making cookies (especially the licking the bowl part!)<br /><br />wearing my fleece around the house (I prefer dressing in layers to blasting the heat)<br /><br />driving with a full tank of gas<br /><br />chocolate soft serve (oooooh. Baaaaaby.)<br /><br />browsing around Target with no shopping list (this is *dangerous*!)taralynn819http://www.blogger.com/profile/03048501104136348806noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5432987108537259378.post-75608882321552306362010-05-26T12:43:00.000-04:002010-05-26T12:48:32.260-04:00Happy Baby!Wordless Wednesday<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy0EyEYRset_TVBh9Vk2VNb4CUy_b2NCR2qATJIpOIVAAO5JTz5RDpJHiMY3jUhl4lRHRogoXD7b4ZdLL7mLDPymLhD0AaVIAAONzKoikswg30hsmfZ8iUL1ViGg5xn8vOKnhulssY2b0/s1600/28109_394201038172_511918172_4321390_6408438_n.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy0EyEYRset_TVBh9Vk2VNb4CUy_b2NCR2qATJIpOIVAAO5JTz5RDpJHiMY3jUhl4lRHRogoXD7b4ZdLL7mLDPymLhD0AaVIAAONzKoikswg30hsmfZ8iUL1ViGg5xn8vOKnhulssY2b0/s320/28109_394201038172_511918172_4321390_6408438_n.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5475621373782995090" /></a>taralynn819http://www.blogger.com/profile/03048501104136348806noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5432987108537259378.post-60444009196426949522010-05-15T13:16:00.034-04:002010-05-16T12:30:53.232-04:006 Weeks Already??I'm still finishing up the birth story but I thought I'd post some 5 to 6 week stats on my Little Monkey.<br /><br /><br />Miles...<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr7LTmXJiCGsif4u2ErAXnvNYMQQ1htEBA28tvVnNWntW60eWtQWWAZqIzese4wGmZgsKf8RAzE4fPALA92tpX-kWrw-GO_4Uf4eJPL7g9LTx-WqMz0Zp4TTiJXOBwqwvIUMh9hhvFJoo/s1600/Miles2.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr7LTmXJiCGsif4u2ErAXnvNYMQQ1htEBA28tvVnNWntW60eWtQWWAZqIzese4wGmZgsKf8RAzE4fPALA92tpX-kWrw-GO_4Uf4eJPL7g9LTx-WqMz0Zp4TTiJXOBwqwvIUMh9hhvFJoo/s320/Miles2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5471550335438043410" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Is alert more, crying less (yay!), and is even starting to coo! I thought we would never get anything out of him but a blank stare but he is starting to interact and that’s such a great payoff for all the hard work! Now I can’t wait to get full-up laughter out of him!<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDgWcSfFTcOy6K0XPc53kytkbWzaSS6D_ypCIgGWrirLow_m6lfTACsg_YJtqiQ-Wb_tI1Tq_mHektwYiehaw6TGrHpOgwZaDluDi5GJ05HyGprzso0X5bFarHFXNtpEDIPl6bswdJEDk/s1600/miles10.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDgWcSfFTcOy6K0XPc53kytkbWzaSS6D_ypCIgGWrirLow_m6lfTACsg_YJtqiQ-Wb_tI1Tq_mHektwYiehaw6TGrHpOgwZaDluDi5GJ05HyGprzso0X5bFarHFXNtpEDIPl6bswdJEDk/s320/miles10.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5471553096338102114" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Is eating an average of 3.5-4oz at each feeding. Although he has drained a few 5-oz bottles in the last couple days so maybe he's moving up!<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Loves</span> his MAM paci! We use the 6mo+ variety as suggested by a friend that it would stay in better than the 0-3mo and we couldn’t agree more! Miles doesn’t even like the smaller one anymore. The paci thing can be a pain but also a life saver. Hoping to drop it by 6 months, preferably sooner.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXjrZnnDWxqmzCnS4WWV3iXOltolPCeGj61PEFpW9gEAi1yzfNdpgVRKKWVDGnHQIYuHNu5YHFDk59inv3bIEqpJmCwFos5E34j5Hle4wAn73Vqgck8seikqZYvxCgCbTGJnIZ81MICbM/s1600/miles9.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXjrZnnDWxqmzCnS4WWV3iXOltolPCeGj61PEFpW9gEAi1yzfNdpgVRKKWVDGnHQIYuHNu5YHFDk59inv3bIEqpJmCwFos5E34j5Hle4wAn73Vqgck8seikqZYvxCgCbTGJnIZ81MICbM/s320/miles9.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5471552645055860162" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Slept for a 5-hour stretch one recent night. He's gone 4 hours a few times lately but tends to stick to 3 to 3.5-hour stretches during the night.<br /><br />Has tons of clothes but not too many things that fit him yet! He's long but still a skinny little thing! So he tends to wear lots of sleepers for now. I'm trying not to rush his growth but there are some really cute outfits I can't wait to put him in!<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXuXapBmAX5oLjVMY0r35ldp98DKnmXrUuu2MARSMzZ3_OcObDl6tzN5baOjVl093k4oPnJ85Im15g-FkhksRfKIgUXfMiY0KBmKuV5b3Jr4WbpKjAyBEZdTQqKv3NzirMEoUGL7g1v0g/s1600/miles8.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 234px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXuXapBmAX5oLjVMY0r35ldp98DKnmXrUuu2MARSMzZ3_OcObDl6tzN5baOjVl093k4oPnJ85Im15g-FkhksRfKIgUXfMiY0KBmKuV5b3Jr4WbpKjAyBEZdTQqKv3NzirMEoUGL7g1v0g/s320/miles8.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5471552162679777618" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Is an excellent traveler, although is starting to not sleep when we are out-and-about. Too interested in the outside world I guess!<br /><br />Is just now starting to like the swing. Correction: love the swing. It’s great for when I’m preparing dinner or dusting and have to bend over too often to wear him. His little eyes try to follow the mobile above the swing and he always looks like he's in another world!<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrCLcJbKazDMFsJDl0bIA4FjjnxRl-4YYvtuUTpK0H3VNkgySiERw7HVjogIYJHExA1EbAwJyMeVneQ49AUCL4yuoirosxywvi8WjCOn6suu7HcomOVAlyFKrttZ3E4GzpNegjwg4PCDE/s1600/miles7.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrCLcJbKazDMFsJDl0bIA4FjjnxRl-4YYvtuUTpK0H3VNkgySiERw7HVjogIYJHExA1EbAwJyMeVneQ49AUCL4yuoirosxywvi8WjCOn6suu7HcomOVAlyFKrttZ3E4GzpNegjwg4PCDE/s320/miles7.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5471551852855394786" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Is starting to hold his head up really well!<br /><br />Still needs swaddled but is outgrowing his Kiddopotomous Swaddle Me blanket in length. We just ordered a <a href="http://www.thewoombie.com/">Woombie</a> and hope he will sleep even better in it as it is less restrictive.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx20WuGMBVTDyGZ9oJFQVTMuG18Yes7xK2WyNzRhXSwqIUkKBOSPr65eLidbHhBbTSfSJPUO-BN1jP7n86x4iPrjb2mc3RVhszl8GL3ttlCtlR9D0pe8Wk9MTMrhySlC4paSaBlHxsb18/s1600/miles6.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx20WuGMBVTDyGZ9oJFQVTMuG18Yes7xK2WyNzRhXSwqIUkKBOSPr65eLidbHhBbTSfSJPUO-BN1jP7n86x4iPrjb2mc3RVhszl8GL3ttlCtlR9D0pe8Wk9MTMrhySlC4paSaBlHxsb18/s320/miles6.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5471551661961268642" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Poor kid, has a flat head on his preferred right side; working on tummy time to even things out. Our pediatrician isn’t worried about it and says it is common and should take care of itself when he learns how to roll over.<br /><br />Is a super cuddle bug. He loves to be chest to chest with anyone. And I love this about him!<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEju8DP1-xsgKc_CWki5WsLb5cd3f4RaFVbZMl579zZeKiET7WJz6ToJ61X5mzVTaBIrFo444Yjkz1rj99npUIlh3OuHev6avf5AOn0qPtWIiOBz-f_uVpXXU5GpAp0V9ZImJdhdGmtyNIc/s1600/miles5.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEju8DP1-xsgKc_CWki5WsLb5cd3f4RaFVbZMl579zZeKiET7WJz6ToJ61X5mzVTaBIrFo444Yjkz1rj99npUIlh3OuHev6avf5AOn0qPtWIiOBz-f_uVpXXU5GpAp0V9ZImJdhdGmtyNIc/s320/miles5.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5471551380179478306" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Enjoys the mei tai around the house, just not at first when I put him in, but he settles right down once he gets comfortable. Walked around Target for an hour with him in it a couple weeks ago and he was golden. However, he tends to fall asleep while in the carrier, even if I put him in just after a nap. I try to constantly talk to him and keep moving around doing things around the house to keep him awake but he still nods off. I think it's way cute, but he's slept only in his crib from day 1 and I don't want to mess that up. If I put him in his swing or bouncy seat he'll stay awake for up to an hour. Silly boy!<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY1zpB1_y3S3mqxQ_RPV_Ji4nE7ki3umIsyvsYum9-9mM9RXzsHRamxbwkMlmvr0BYnk0GQHsR1UfYPcAISrjk0eiODKyn_RvrGJI8yA7K7cfbYU1tJUIuEsL0kmDPGl-H8QR21P-vw-w/s1600/miles4.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY1zpB1_y3S3mqxQ_RPV_Ji4nE7ki3umIsyvsYum9-9mM9RXzsHRamxbwkMlmvr0BYnk0GQHsR1UfYPcAISrjk0eiODKyn_RvrGJI8yA7K7cfbYU1tJUIuEsL0kmDPGl-H8QR21P-vw-w/s320/miles4.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5471551147550052706" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Has a receding hairline and looks like an old man! I would love for his hair to grow back bright red like his Auntie Elizabeth’s. I think at best we may either get strawberry blond or sandy brown like Daddy’s with red tints.<br /><br />Mostly takes bottles of breast milk but still desires to nurse even though it lasts 5 minutes when he doesn’t want to work for the milk. I love that he at least still tries to nurse even though he prefers the faster flow of the bottle. I know he does it for comfort and I love the bonding. Just not when he wants to nurse when we are already late for his doctor’s appointment, Mister!<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPAZaKXj5GTMPi0cGPeY4gMZ8B3SEiOkyNTfZJoEQ5RzRyQ0rVeLL-IkJhHyf9xrZpzT5vv1OQumsnR5mIHTUz1LrVf1FDsgbxesTuO7nZ4byu5jJUnvvdwj7kucZGizVRauSqYV5CCuQ/s1600/milesmom.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 234px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPAZaKXj5GTMPi0cGPeY4gMZ8B3SEiOkyNTfZJoEQ5RzRyQ0rVeLL-IkJhHyf9xrZpzT5vv1OQumsnR5mIHTUz1LrVf1FDsgbxesTuO7nZ4byu5jJUnvvdwj7kucZGizVRauSqYV5CCuQ/s320/milesmom.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5471550752804771298" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Had trouble gaining weight in the first two to three weeks. Started pumping and supplementing with formula, which was a hard decision but we wanted him to gain so we followed orders. I have started to pump around the clock and, while a lot of work I love it because: I know how much he is getting, feedings now take less time (though you have to account for pumping time afterward), my “control freak” nature is satisfied, Jeromy gets to help feed (hallelujah!), running errands has become a lot less stressful and hurried, breast milk stays longer at room temperature than formula, and I feel good that he is getting primarily breast milk now (maybe 2oz of formula every other day, if that). I only fear my supply dwindling. So far it has only increased as my pumping sessions have increased, so I continue to take it one day at a time and hope to offer him breast milk for as long as this keeps working.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvp1MxNtZiT7JuAFNvci1dv_peeZSjpkRxqCW5CEjvUXtttu2NIKHUcYGoCQo8u0eAZgNVsmV78MVpH1SwgZtqlCIrV4rnRpv8hFrpxBgaKMhS2V8X0xbBb60WX0D3pzPZcPTMAJPa3Rs/s1600/miles11.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvp1MxNtZiT7JuAFNvci1dv_peeZSjpkRxqCW5CEjvUXtttu2NIKHUcYGoCQo8u0eAZgNVsmV78MVpH1SwgZtqlCIrV4rnRpv8hFrpxBgaKMhS2V8X0xbBb60WX0D3pzPZcPTMAJPa3Rs/s320/miles11.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5471553397296446418" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /> <br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Current weight as of 5/12 is 8lbs 12 oz, up almost a whole pound from his 7lbs 13oz he weighed two weeks ago! An ounce a day is what we’re looking for and what he’s finally pulling off! He’s even starting to get a little belly!<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj921aKywilSp_v7SWlhrLIvsWq8MNvAYktedPn5aQdpp-D6ImTtaxBK7-4FG9tD5B7btrPo8mgqRGgwVIDR3e2smUDLT7DdTEFTy-Seq-KJa1oIwrkU1JlHuph_Cg3-zaEmGFjTbACBvg/s1600/miles1.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj921aKywilSp_v7SWlhrLIvsWq8MNvAYktedPn5aQdpp-D6ImTtaxBK7-4FG9tD5B7btrPo8mgqRGgwVIDR3e2smUDLT7DdTEFTy-Seq-KJa1oIwrkU1JlHuph_Cg3-zaEmGFjTbACBvg/s320/miles1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5471549991778552706" /></a>taralynn819http://www.blogger.com/profile/03048501104136348806noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5432987108537259378.post-40633657011422063992010-05-07T16:16:00.002-04:002010-05-07T16:29:05.875-04:00Coming SoonBirth story in the works!<br /><br />In the meantime...<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRN-H4ft3kGfMakk7LXxz2e2YjFQPy5OiFJcSExOLmvPkjEBGiqDiFARUGPiueIU-C4wHQuxCZJpLvqtwibJA3D_MQ7hbWfrUs29KExt0R9NholJEOBgJ3r2Q8UUeql0UwAyZiJsAA-kU/s1600/miles.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRN-H4ft3kGfMakk7LXxz2e2YjFQPy5OiFJcSExOLmvPkjEBGiqDiFARUGPiueIU-C4wHQuxCZJpLvqtwibJA3D_MQ7hbWfrUs29KExt0R9NholJEOBgJ3r2Q8UUeql0UwAyZiJsAA-kU/s320/miles.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5468627754452439106" /></a>taralynn819http://www.blogger.com/profile/03048501104136348806noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5432987108537259378.post-88217898581809951902010-04-16T10:35:00.009-04:002010-05-07T19:38:24.778-04:00First Two Weeks of Motherhood<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpiZn47FZTe6IMgzZwHSWXqAdkhI14KcSTWgH0UqZojR4anPCrhd-I5TrwT_47x_S-k0TCIEJtA2i2rdG6HeZFxGoxNYlOH1D09AbOpYnRP8FB6W86EQ4pbrNZglOFX_knYjGXxQE1goI/s1600/Miles+onsie.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpiZn47FZTe6IMgzZwHSWXqAdkhI14KcSTWgH0UqZojR4anPCrhd-I5TrwT_47x_S-k0TCIEJtA2i2rdG6HeZFxGoxNYlOH1D09AbOpYnRP8FB6W86EQ4pbrNZglOFX_knYjGXxQE1goI/s320/Miles+onsie.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5464797335683136530" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />My baby boy is finally here. It’s been a surreal last couple of weeks that is for sure! It’s like you know there is a baby in your belly. You feel all the little kicks, jabs, and other such Taekwondo maneuvers. You hear the heartbeat at each OB visit. And of course your bladder is constantly reminding you that something (or someone) is leaning against it like a pillow! <br /><br />But then he comes out and you see him for the first time and you sort of freak out a little in your head. “Woa, that’s a human! You mean to tell me that a little person just came out of me?!” <br /><br />Yes he did and he’s here to stay. His name is <span style="font-weight:bold;">Miles Garrison<span style="font-style:italic;"></span></span> and he weighed 7lbs 7oz and measured 19 ¼ in long. He came right on time – April 4th at 1:10am, Easter Sunday 2010. Needless to say we didn’t make the Sunrise Service! <br /><br />Miles is the only name hubby and I could agree on. We both had a couple names on our separate lists - they just weren't the same names! And truth be told, I was still looking at name websites while in labor! But I was pretty certain that unless another name jumped out at us that Miles it was going to be! <br /><br />Boy names are <span style="font-style:italic;">hard</span>! Either all the good ones are taken (Noah, Cohen, Jacob, etc.) or mothers of girls everywhere have stolen them and made them sound pansy. (Taylor, Avery, Addison, etc.) There really wasn't much to choose from. Girl names I would have had no problem with. Oh well.<br /><br />I had a few stipulations. First, I didn't want an ultra popular name like Aiden or Brayden (any of the "den" names I guess!). I would have felt bad if he had to endure five kids in his kindergarten class with his same name. I also didn't want too cutsy of a name. I wanted something that would carry into adulthood. Speaking of Brayden, can you imagine a 45-year-old with that name? I can't really. And third, I didn't want my son to hate me for giving him a totally obscure or weird name, nor something difficult to spell or pronounce. I wanted a classic, yet cool name. And I think we found one!<br /><br />Garrison is after my dad, <a href="http://taralynn819.blogspot.com/2008/04/well-done-good-and-faithful-servant.html">Gary</a>. I wish he could still be here to meet his little grandson. The surprising thing is, Miles has a lot of my dad's features. Others have made similar comments about this and that makes his middle name even more of a perfect fit. And what's special is that Miles was born in April, the month my dad passed away two years ago.<br /><br />We have fallen in love hard and fast with our little guy. He was perfectly healthy at birth and we are so grateful to the Lord for this heavenly treasure He has chosen to loan to us! We look forward to watching Miles grow and learn and become part of our family. <br /><br />His little face is more adorable than I could have imagined. It is quite tempting to just hold him in my arms and just stare at him all day. Although that would not be good for either of us in the long run, as Jeromy needs clean underwear, Mama needs to shower!, and Miles needs to get comfortable sleeping in the nursery. But sometimes I just can’t help it. He’s so soft and cuddly I hate to relinquish him to his crib.<br /><br />Of course, Jeromy and I are the classic novice parents. Wow, these first few weeks are really hard! The first two or three nights, however, were the worst. I don’t think I had gotten more than 6 hours of sleep total in the five days since the day before he was born. You get to the point of delirium where you start asking crazy questions like, “What were we thinking?!”, “Are you sure we can’t send him back?” and, “Can we switch to formula – please???”<br /><br />We quickly set up camp on the floor of the nursery and that helped a lot. I tried sleeping in our bedroom but my ears were always perked up and that made falling asleep difficult. Every time I heard Jeromy breathe or move I thought it was the baby. But I could sleep better knowing Miles was just a few feet away and that I could tend to him at a moment’s notice. We also have a pack-n-play set up in our own bedroom but have never put Miles down to sleep in it. Mostly because I just want to make sure Jeromy, who is a light sleeper, gets plenty of rest for work the next day. And it doesn’t hurt for Miles to get used to sleeping in one place so he begins to associate his crib with sleep. So, it’s worked out well.<br /><br />Miles is 12 days old now and I no longer sleep in his room. It is amazing the difference a week makes! He seems to wake up pretty consistently every three hours during the night, which is definitely doable for me. As long as I can get 1.5 to 2-hour stretches of sleep at a time, I’m feeling pretty good by morning. In fact, I’m starting to wake up just before he does, as if I’m on his feeding schedule now!<br /> <br />I’m normally a morning person, but I think it’s going to be a long time before you will once again see me bright-eyed and bushy-tailed before 8 or even 9am – ha! And that is ok. Life has become so very basic these days, just as, I’m sure, it’s supposed to be. The first week home I let everything go but this week I’ve cleaned a little here and there to keep myself sane. And I’ve tried to keep up with laundry since, as I told someone recently, there’s either yellow poop or milk stains on every article of clothing and I am just not that crunchy! But other than that, we’re not doing much else except feeding and changing diapers around here. <br /><br />And oh my goodness, newborns go through a lot of diapers! I mean, I knew this going in but we have gone through more packs (which were labeled “jumbo” even) in the last two weeks than I counted going through in the first month or more! The frugal in me is truly struggling, especially when having to toss three diapers in five minutes because he just wasn’t “done”. Or the diapers with contents Jeromy refers to as “wet fart”. Oh, and I can’t forget the diapers he pees on before you flip the front and find the tabs. It’s hard not to think of each diaper in the trash as “another 16 cents”. But you love your baby and the money you have to spend on him suddenly doesn’t matter anymore. (Especially when he has diaper rash, poor kid!)<br /><br />I’m not for sure, but I think I may have endured a bout with the Baby Blues. After the first couple nights, extreme fatigue threw me into an emotional mess. It’s not that I didn’t expect to be sore, tired, hormonal, and stir-crazy with a newborn at home. I knew life would turn upside down after having a baby. But when you’re in the middle of it, it feels like this is the way it’s always going to be. You think you’ll never get to sleep again, you’ll never get out of the house again, you’ll never get to give your spouse the time you know he needs, even you’ll never get to take a long shower or step on a clean floor again, etc., etc. <br /><br />I would feel fine in the morning. I think once the sun came out I would feel like I’d been victorious over the hard night. Though foggy, I had conquered something difficult and was rewarded with another day where things might get better. Well by evening, just before supper, I started to feel down. Just glum. Lonely. Irritable. Weepy. Needy. Anxious. Stretched thin. I would hurry up and eat and clean up after the meal, then quick change into my pj’s and wash my face. I don’t know if what I felt was simply dread of what the night would bring or what but I hated the evenings. And I felt a sudden desire to be close to Jeromy, I guess for emotional support and mental reassurance. To obtain some sort of regaining of my sanity before I lost it again! And I didn’t want to feel lost to Baby World, unable to give to other aspects of my life, my husband especially. Whatever it was, I resented the sun for leaving me at the end of the day.<br /><br />They say the Baby Blues lasts up until about Day 10 post-partum. I am encouraged to say that I think I have made it beyond that phase. I still welcome morning more than evening (though I have always been a morning person so that could be part of it) but I think we are going to make it – ha! Jeromy and I have gotten to know Miles and his ways a little bit more, and I think Miles has started to get the idea of how things in his world function. Diaper and clothing changes, bedtime and feeding sessions, a sense of daytime vs. night, etc. It’s amazing what a newborn can pick up in just a couple of weeks! You can really tell, as he becomes more alert, how his brain is starting to register things that are becoming routine. He knows that once he wakes up he’s going to get fed. He is fussing less and less at each diaper change. And he knows when he gets swaddled that it’s time to sleep. It’s really amazing to see him adapt before our eyes like that! And I know it will only get more fun (and easier all around) as he becomes more aware of his surroundings and interactive with us. <br /><br />For the most part Miles just eats and sleeps. We can hardly keep him awake between feedings (and often during!). <br /><br />When he chooses to keep his eyes open for more than a few seconds we stop and take advantage of the moment. I don’t know if he is an unusually sleepy baby or just not quite yet ready for all the sights and sounds around him, but he’d just rather not stay awake longer than it takes to eat. He also tends to get over stimulated quickly, and we are learning to stay within the limits of what he can handle right now. (Unless we want an inconsolable screaming banshee on our hands for the next hour!) Thank goodness for the swaddle blanket!! That and the MAM pacifier are the only things (well, and the breast, always the breast) that seem to bring him down from an out-of-control fit. When his arms start flailing with jerky motions you know he has become over stimulated and needs some help. <br /><br />He doesn’t like new things (bouncer, swing, Boppy tummy time, wrap/sling, bath) so we are trying to reintroduce these things for just a couple minutes each day so he can hopefully get used to them. Yesterday I decided to experiment with the vacuum. Mainly because the bedroom floors need it, but also to see how Miles would respond to the noise. I had just changed him and, lying on the changing table, he appeared to be contentedly looking around. Yet I still didn’t know what to expect. I cringed as I touched the foot pedal to start the vacuum and of course he jumped as it revved up. But surprisingly he didn’t mind the loud noise at all! I don’t know if it’s due to the white noise or if he remembers from en utero the sound of me vacuuming once a week, but he was just as calm as ever. Which is a good thing because I had been wondering when in the world I would be able to vacuum with him either sleeping or eating. No worries!<br /><br />I am so all-over-the-board with this! How do you sum up 2 weeks as a new mom in a single blog post?? The best part? I'm lying on my BELLY typing this! Never felt so good - ha!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdZfV3zNc-tG7yutnjZHF5u0eDN5AL4ie0K-PXPLdcE7-nN00CCGi9gT57ZRP9QgvTARs0z8W6v5ZDj2dE53yzWazhu6N6qvAvGYIgCpevQq5zIwfUh6Hyfpo5Rw62PZ0CazmdZX9k1M4/s1600/milesfroggy.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdZfV3zNc-tG7yutnjZHF5u0eDN5AL4ie0K-PXPLdcE7-nN00CCGi9gT57ZRP9QgvTARs0z8W6v5ZDj2dE53yzWazhu6N6qvAvGYIgCpevQq5zIwfUh6Hyfpo5Rw62PZ0CazmdZX9k1M4/s320/milesfroggy.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5468628365390824050" /></a>taralynn819http://www.blogger.com/profile/03048501104136348806noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5432987108537259378.post-54757683337574984952010-02-26T11:46:00.031-05:002010-05-15T05:27:33.567-04:00Children's Classic Books and Vintage Basic Readers<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpNONr4w9OX2mDPRvVedawArl9LnDXfaeqI90jJKUzNo_ZuEXh75PmgB04NFyrAU9xRcx_wYpwMHQ1ZFjLDVk2g36mfOzr_oARo8co_xsCCssPbMLKy825-9ZySlGHgtpuqp2kKhQjs7c/s1600-h/KellyShowUs.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpNONr4w9OX2mDPRvVedawArl9LnDXfaeqI90jJKUzNo_ZuEXh75PmgB04NFyrAU9xRcx_wYpwMHQ1ZFjLDVk2g36mfOzr_oARo8co_xsCCssPbMLKy825-9ZySlGHgtpuqp2kKhQjs7c/s320/KellyShowUs.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5442597344010545954" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;"><br />COLLECTIONS!</span><br /><br /><a href="http://www.kellyskornerblog.com/">Kelly's Korner</a> is hosting a carnival for <a href="http://www.kellyskornerblog.com/2010/02/show-us-your-life-collections.html">personal collections</a> and it has compelled me to chime in. As a kid I collected <a href="http://outofthegarden.files.wordpress.com/2007/05/agates.jpg">agate rocks</a> with ruby bands from our stone driveway (I would sit out there for hours with an ice cream bucket!) I also collected stickers. What 6-year-old girl growing up in the 1980's did <span style="font-style:italic;">not</span> collect stickers? It was the thing to do! Collect and trade...although my mom hardly ever let me actually trade any of my stickers with my friends. I'm grateful now because I have successfully kept both collections of agates and <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW8b4367RDglZbZ-OCWgTddvEhoeYRbzPkaBDUniLg6_jl7mx0g85cq4nrbGvmiGVml-0eiw7HoTiLhmw-iohQ0hwpK_ze-JSuDmF-u3b-VNuPR-M4rCb6vNGZJnUbZlWHC7Id4Ojjndc/s400/puff.jpg">sticker books</a> to this day, a few things leftover from my carefree childhood. <br /><br />My mom also held onto several of my favorite children's books, which are even more precious to me! Shortly after we moved into our house last Spring I couldn't resist setting up a children's bookshelf in our spare room (now our <span style="font-style:italic;">very</span> soon to be nursery! *squeal*). I had to split my <span style="font-style:italic;">Little Golden Book</span> collection with my brother but all of my old favorites are on this bookshelf! <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidDyoJOkUF-DK_0BSqgtrGEIy_ZXeQ5sxDpsCFWnWjBApppvsgno59OgP93P91IYhpFlbtVIz-iKY3HFiW-dHDM60H7SE1BDl0e1MzDMSQlrYqxa4R8HbHpx_UYJc4UCqwiaAY-zYp6Ss/s1600-h/IMG_7608.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidDyoJOkUF-DK_0BSqgtrGEIy_ZXeQ5sxDpsCFWnWjBApppvsgno59OgP93P91IYhpFlbtVIz-iKY3HFiW-dHDM60H7SE1BDl0e1MzDMSQlrYqxa4R8HbHpx_UYJc4UCqwiaAY-zYp6Ss/s320/IMG_7608.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5442596847470233522" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />I have a likely suspicion this one little shelf isn't going to cut it! One thing I've always said is that I won't spoil my kids with toys, but I will happily spoil them with books! One of my favorite places to shop is a used bookstore. Can I get an "Amen"?! Although I usually peruse all sections the first place I run (and if you're talking library book sales, I mean <span style="font-style:italic;">run literally!</span>) is to the children's corner. <br /><br />I don't have too large of a picture book collection, but I have recently started picking up Newberry and other classic chapter books that I loved as a child. <span style="font-style:italic;">Old Yeller</span>, <span style="font-style:italic;"><span style="font-style:italic;">The Secret Garden</span></span>, <span style="font-style:italic;">Little Men</span>, <span style="font-style:italic;">Huckleberry Finn</span>, <span style="font-style:italic;">Hatchet</span>, <span style="font-style:italic;">Christy</span>, <span style="font-style:italic;">The Yearling</span>, <span style="font-style:italic;">Brighty of the Grand Canyon</span>, <span style="font-style:italic;">Five Little Peppers</span>, and series' like Little House and Betsy Tacy, etc. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixQo-oXZ0EPfUgzg8wbtQGhIo9CRTSwsYlJ8SIY6KImti9WWaJBEZJ-5PW1U-wF2hZN7ZUEhb29nuaWHSRt41kj0okmzzKwJTpZORYrWAYkLF4gWKpjE-JHVg8M3KatEUsX64F7w_ygY8/s1600-h/IMG_7706.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixQo-oXZ0EPfUgzg8wbtQGhIo9CRTSwsYlJ8SIY6KImti9WWaJBEZJ-5PW1U-wF2hZN7ZUEhb29nuaWHSRt41kj0okmzzKwJTpZORYrWAYkLF4gWKpjE-JHVg8M3KatEUsX64F7w_ygY8/s320/IMG_7706.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5442596168917783554" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />One children's book collection I sort of "fell into" is old schoolhouse readers from the 1950's and 1960's. My great aunt Goldie used to teach in the Minneapolis school district and had a bunch of them saved in her basement. When she heard I was learning to read she gave me a few from her stash. I fell in love with them, especially the <span style="font-style:italic;">Ginn Basic Reader</span> and <span style="font-style:italic;">New Basic Reader</span> collections. They are filled with stories made up of simple, ordinary life mixed with timeless morals and a little imagination. No scary villains or over-the-top quirky characters. No dumbed down vocabulary to accommodate this society's ill-educated generation of American kids, myself included. (Sorry, it's true.) And no sarcasm or slangy disrespect like pollute so many children's book offerings today. (<span style="font-style:italic;">Captain Underpants</span>, anyone??) <br /><br />I just want to instill in my kids an appreciation for all the great classic books! They don't need a shiny cartoon cover to prove they are interesting! I used to read some of these stories to my former nanny charges and it warmed my heart to hear, a year or so later, that they had grown to love to read. So even before officially a parent I am a huge advocate of reading to your children - and at any age. Read often and choose your selections with meaningful care! <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbm5JIxoOprBrq7y7qnXJah-6WWK4haq1lZYdodR5qH3vLuSX43ibPfTJN0nplj578IEa0ursWKOo0o6kFEfHDxEZkQCMREpsFLw79Z24n211hNAxjBL1_SZSztOVlKVHAlTkRQr_khOo/s1600-h/IMG_7708.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbm5JIxoOprBrq7y7qnXJah-6WWK4haq1lZYdodR5qH3vLuSX43ibPfTJN0nplj578IEa0ursWKOo0o6kFEfHDxEZkQCMREpsFLw79Z24n211hNAxjBL1_SZSztOVlKVHAlTkRQr_khOo/s320/IMG_7708.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5442596026995376706" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />One of my favorite memories as a nanny is reading through <span style="font-style:italic;">The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe</span> with an 8-year-old boy. This was before there was any rumor of a movie. I purposely did not preface the story with any of the Christian undertones or symbolism with which C.S. Lewis filled this book. I first wanted him to get wrapped up in the well-developed characters and climaxing drama. We got to the part where Aslan was going to sacrifice himself for Edmond and I asked my charge if this scene reminded him of anything. Something from even his Lutheran Sunday School perhaps? And I'll never forget watching his eyes perk up as the light bulb went on! It was a wonderful teachable moment that I look forward to repeating with my own children someday.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1OQp6YUNlmUWilmKVSvQ44BVe3-8YUEOMPSFJ-W4i2sa07JED4i6JvVT83dM59xyo7uyvFke3slML7t5Cke16EUmjDt10PkrgAR-bfnz6heTG7M_Bvwbseq3Anp44_a_qbGR58WgDXig/s1600-h/IMG_7711.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1OQp6YUNlmUWilmKVSvQ44BVe3-8YUEOMPSFJ-W4i2sa07JED4i6JvVT83dM59xyo7uyvFke3slML7t5Cke16EUmjDt10PkrgAR-bfnz6heTG7M_Bvwbseq3Anp44_a_qbGR58WgDXig/s320/IMG_7711.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5442595676478515522" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />As I became an adult I couldn't shake my endearment of these old readers. In fact, if I see one anywhere, be it a yard sale or antique shop, I <span style="font-style:italic;">must</span> buy it. I cannot wait to share this collection with my own children in hopes that they will grow to love these same stories. In many ways they let the reader transport back to 1962 homelife, and despite the lack of our modern day technology and other conveniences, I think it would have been a terrific age in which to grow up! A time when parents actually believed in the philosophy of the public school system - imagine that!! Were it not for the turbulence of the late '60s and horrible fashion and music in the 70's (sorry to offend those of you born a decade or two before me - ha!) I wouldn't have minded growing up in the latter half of the baby boomer era myself! So maybe it is because of the wholesome nostalgia of these stories I am so fond of them. <br /><br />I mean, is the following passage adorable or what!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBl-Qcz7KA2DPQuWtwFd7aDxiMqYAw5WSNzoYS8rgFpVaRVTtJEMauINMeTIYMgWxsxae_SD9e7exfyRkWCw4QKPVCK-JjPKluF9szyWKuWBiT-0FuwLNjBrrMVK546t57cVCm91RiU9I/s1600-h/IMG_7710.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBl-Qcz7KA2DPQuWtwFd7aDxiMqYAw5WSNzoYS8rgFpVaRVTtJEMauINMeTIYMgWxsxae_SD9e7exfyRkWCw4QKPVCK-JjPKluF9szyWKuWBiT-0FuwLNjBrrMVK546t57cVCm91RiU9I/s320/IMG_7710.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5442595844680594194" /></a>taralynn819http://www.blogger.com/profile/03048501104136348806noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5432987108537259378.post-56582307887404777572009-10-26T09:33:00.011-04:002009-10-26T10:32:46.673-04:00On Simplicity: A Piggy-Back Post Off Another's Piggy-Backed Post<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh16DLLnROwLRxA-YCicLDp2hyJGbKZhc6u4Pn7supWMkwf3djTqfqNEht7Vdxb47PACfQxZqbGz1toDY3p2VNgLnrtR0tlUyV_PBksbjKNMGVVIlWoT4uTiPH9y1XpKtgysuREEjgqARI/s1600-h/clothesline2.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh16DLLnROwLRxA-YCicLDp2hyJGbKZhc6u4Pn7supWMkwf3djTqfqNEht7Vdxb47PACfQxZqbGz1toDY3p2VNgLnrtR0tlUyV_PBksbjKNMGVVIlWoT4uTiPH9y1XpKtgysuREEjgqARI/s320/clothesline2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396913747173595458" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />I probably shouldn't mention that the following (not all) was originally intended as a blog comment. However, I get a little embarrassed when I overtake someone's post by writing a "book" on theirs, so I decided it would be better to post this on my own blog. <br /><br />In a recent <a href="http://minnesotamom.wordpress.com/2009/10/25/sunday-sunshine-10-25-09/">post</a> Heidi @ <a href="http://minnesotamom.wordpress.com/">Minnesota Mom</a> referenced <a href="http://smallnotebook.org/2009/10/14/simple-living-myth-diy-is-always-best/">this</a> post regarding simple living and how several in this society have seemed to redefine simplicity as something that doesn't feel all that simple anymore. <br /><br />Sure, the "olden days" are often referenced as simpler times, and in many ways it was. Lack of media, advanced technology, and ready transportation probably accounted for most of it. But every day tasks were anything <span style="font-style:italic;">but</span> simple! Hey, I love my washer and dryer and have no desire whatsoever to start using a wash board to do laundry. Especially my hubby's pit-stained T-shirts - are you kidding me?!<br /><br />Of course, people aren't going to such an extreme, but a recent trend for many homemakers has turned towards sewing one's own clothes, planting lavish gardens for canning, baking from-scratch bread, etc. All of these projects save money and for the most part, enhance quality (though I suppose it depends on skill level!). Yet while I dearly love to make homemade bread on certain occasions, most of the time I happily purchase store-bought loaves. Nothing retains a status of special anymore when everything must be placed into the homemade or perfect category. I make boxed brownies more often than homemade, though I enjoy homemade much more. But then when I do make homemade, somehow they taste even better.<br /><br />Some women today are feeling the pressure to do everything themselves, myself not exempt. I have not tried making my own laundry detergent or multi-purpose cleaner before, although the thought keeps nagging at me that I should. Why not? But time is money, and the generic stuff we use seems to take the stains out just fine, albeit with more chemicals. Perhaps one day I'll feel like trying my hand at the homemade stuff, but right now that would just make life more hectic.<br /><br />I can't tell you how much pressure I get to scrapbook. Yes I am creative and yes I have made one scrapbook and a few other scrapping projects in the past. But I have seen too many women become consumed and/or overwhelmed by the never ending project. Not to mention the outrageous cost of all the materials! Hobbies are supposed to be stress relieving and leisurely, not pressured and burdensome. <br /><br />And most recently, since I've mentioned the pregnancy, people have begun advising me to start scrapping the baby book now. I still haven't decided if there will even <span style="font-style:italic;">be</span> a baby book. Who ever looks at those things anyway? And when the baby (and future kids) come along, I will only have less time to even think about scrapbooking, yet it will forever hang over my head if I start now. Why torture myself? <br /><br />I think a lot of women start scrapping and then because they have invested all this time and money into it they feel guilty if ever they plainly gave it up. Or guilty that the second and third child will feel cheated because big brother or sister got this elaborate memory book and they didn't. Plus, isn't recounting events and memories a reason I blog in the first place? I would rather write a story about my child than arrange pictures of him/her on a page. <br /><br />I recall this time last year when a lot of my friends declared they had decided to sew or knit all of their Christmas gifts. Talk about a money saver! Inexpensive yet love-invested gifts that mail for just ounces! I grew a little envious because I had just learned to crochet, yet there was no way I'd be able to work up a project for everybody on my list, and certainly not in time for Christmas! Then December rolled around, and my friends began to sound anxious as they furiously worked on their presents, it seemed, at every free second of the day and night. To me it sounded like simplicity turned quickly into nightmare! <br /><br />In a perfect world with no distractions or interruptions, homemade everything sounds so much more valuable and wholesome, doesn't it? But to hang an inflexible deadline over your head and say, "I <span style="font-style:italic;">must</span> do this!" just doesn't sound very gracious to self nor others who must then deal with our hurried pursuits. <br /><br />I like small projects that have a clear beginning and an end. I don't want to fear taking pictures just because I don't want to have to add them to the "to scrap" list. Ha! But if I get the itch to scrapbook I will perhaps, as I have before, scrap my Christmas cards. But I think this year we'll just purchase them. :)<br /><br />I'm sure some women can and do scrap without the pressure, but I know myself. I mostly think on a smaller scale. I'll paint a room, I'll crochet a hat (but not 20!), I'll make freezer jam instead of stove top. Easy, quick, over and done with. To me that is homemade simplicity.taralynn819http://www.blogger.com/profile/03048501104136348806noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5432987108537259378.post-51179735275612213492009-10-16T09:51:00.017-04:002009-10-16T17:11:35.709-04:00The BFP<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1-VuPJWpZV23PExv2ganWXQgog5dHfmns1Yn6csnxC0fkjNPlOsoFlU8yKPytH6FZRZPq7Qq0Y_sDzTXVaapkp8s33VJ_BcYP4VnlKn87W3mjBHyv7XJ0Z1Ci4ULdoxZMkR5bezbkE9U/s1600-h/IMG_6584.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1-VuPJWpZV23PExv2ganWXQgog5dHfmns1Yn6csnxC0fkjNPlOsoFlU8yKPytH6FZRZPq7Qq0Y_sDzTXVaapkp8s33VJ_BcYP4VnlKn87W3mjBHyv7XJ0Z1Ci4ULdoxZMkR5bezbkE9U/s320/IMG_6584.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5393308052317088738" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />(Um, can it be a little more obvious???)<br /><br /><br /><br />Indulge me as I share my initial thoughts upon sight of those two infamous sticks above:<br /><br />***<br /><br />August 4, 2009<br /><br />How can the pull to keep something a secret and to shout it from rooftops be so equally strong? The first thing I wanted to do when I saw that pink line was to call my family and update my Facebook status with an ecstatic announcement. The dialogue in my head went something like this:<br /><br />Oh what the hay, tell the world! <br /><br />No, don’t – you’ll regret it. <br /><br />Maybe I could just tell my brother. My SIL is just 3 or 4 weeks ahead of me and I am dying with anticipation to share some First Trimester-banter with her. <br /><br />Uh, better not. It’s safer. <br /><br />Can’t let Mom find out just yet. Don't want to torture her by forcing her to keep the news to herself. Because we all know she just can't. :)<br /><br />All I can say is, thank the good o’ Internet for the forums. Oh, the message boards! The one safe place outside your hubby to blab and squeal and openly rave about your newly-discovered “condition”. Jumping around on the boards lets you relieve a lot of that stored up excitement, at least enough to satiate your threatening-to-burst-at-any-moment-baby-bump-bubble. It’s not the same as telling your family and friends, of course. Not even close. None of the ladies on the boards are all that excited for you, not like your aunt or your best friend would be. Nevertheless, they are in the same boat as you, and soak up the giving and receiving of congratulations all around. <br /><br />I’m actually sort of puzzled as to why women like to keep their secret under wraps for the first few weeks or even months. After all, the enthusiastic support of loved ones during most other new life ventures is normally appreciated. I gather one reason is most likely that a woman has to first get used to the idea that she is pregnant. Believe it, even. Allow for time to get used to the idea and let it sink in.<br /><br />We had been trying since June, and after one month of no take, I wasn’t super optimistic about July. I went off the Ring and began taking pre-natal vitamins all the way back in November, and I was surprised that we were able to successfully prevent for the seven months before we started trying to conceive (TTC). The natural methods of birth control always intrigued me but I had a hard time trusting my body because my cycles are so irregular. And while I still don’t fully trust the results of my daily basal temperature (since I get up at least once or twice per night and the thermometer relies on a consistent, restful sleep), I was still able to make at least some heads or tails of the time of ovulation. I am not 100% confident about tracking my cycles, but at this point I don’t think I could ever go back to BC. <br /><br />I was certain I would get pregnant the month we started trying, so when I didn’t I became slightly concerned that we might have to deal with infertility problems. So ridiculous, I know, after just one month. But what girl doesn’t think about these things? I hear just about as many stories about couples struggling with infertility and miscarriage as I do stories of uneventful, healthy, to-term pregnancies. I don’t know if infertility is actually more common in this generation or that people these days are just more candid and open about talking about these kinds of issues than in generations past. Probably the latter. But you don’t really think about it until it’s relevant. And if it happens to so many others, why could it not happen to you? <br /><br />Two different brands of home pregnancy tests (HPT) later and you have to take a moment or two to realize:<br /><br />“I’m pregnant!”<br /><br />“My body can actually do this!”<br /><br />“I’ve officially joined the Baby Mama’s Club!”<br /> <br />“Am I seriously going to have to clean up after projectile vomit and diaper blow-outs in just another eight or so months?!”<br /><br />And if this has never happened to you before, planned or not, it’s a little freaky to think about. Surreal. Life-changing. Instant perspective-gaining. And if for the hormones alone, you really don’t care to have all your Facebook friends bombarding you with a million questions and advice. Not just yet. For as long as you decide (and don’t yet show!), these secret-harboring moments are all yours. An intimate time mixed with realization and disbelief. Sober gratitude and outright giddiness between you, your husband, and the God who created this brand new eternal soul. You can never get this time back. <br /><br />So, we are going to enjoy it. As much as it absolutely kills me. Ha!<br /><br />Another reason, I think, women like to keep their baby news to themselves is the wait to get beyond the risk of an early miscarriage. I guess this is so to prevent any awkward interaction between family and friends who don’t know how to comfort the grieving parents and the grieving parents who don’t know what kind of comfort they need. Maybe a cop-out, but a reason, nonetheless. Some women adamantly believe in spreading the word about their bun-in-the-oven for the immediate prayer support. Especially those who have previously miscarried and/or are considered a high-risk pregnancy. I don’t blame them. <br /><br />I think I stand somewhere in between the two extremes. I could never wait 5 months tell everyone we’re expecting, though I know some who have. However, living 1000 miles away from most of my family and friends does give us an advantage. Since I don’t see these people on a regular or even occasionally doesn’t put me in moments of temptation where I might reveal the existence of our Little Peanut earlier than I would like. Keeping the secret from Jeromy’s family, however, will prove a little bit more difficult, as we’ll be seeing them for Grandma Roxie’s 75th birthday in just a couple weeks! It will not be easy to mums the word (especially if the birthday bash becomes a puke fest!), but hopefully we will stay strong.<br /><br />I would like to wait until maybe I’ve reached the 12-week mark. As of today I am at 5 weeks and 2 days, thanks to my handy dandy cycle chart. I have an appointment this Friday morning for blood work to determine gestational age more accurately. But I still think I’m right, so we will see! At any rate, I don’t think I could wait much longer than another 8 weeks before blabbing. If I end up even waiting that long. But something about exclusively knowing about something is sort of fun, too!<br /><br />So I had this super great way to tell Jeromy about the pregnancy. Of course, he knew I was having a longer cycle this month, but I’ve had a 34-day cycle before, so he was still pretty nonchalant. I had thought of taking a test on Tuesday (today) morning, but I got a sudden bout of unshakable curiosity Sunday night and took two tests within an hour of the other around 11pm-12am (while Hubby, unbeknownst to him, was sleeping the night away). <br /><br />After I got my BFP (which is board talk for "big fat positive") I devised how my plan would go down the next morning. I had purchased a “Baby on Board” sign for $2 at Target back in April (just in case we “oopsed” before officially TTC. (There were a couple months I thought for sure we were pregnant, so I had to be ready!) Since I always wake up before Jeromy I knew it would be easy to sneak out the door and attach the sign to either the driver’s or passenger’s side window. He would either notice it when he got in the truck or a couple miles down the road, depending on where I would have placed it. At which time I would have promptly received a phone call, and I’m sure he would have turned around and gone back to the house to freak out with me. Genius, I know.<br /><br />But, sadly, that’s not how it worked out. Though I’m sure we’ll still get plenty of use out of the “Baby on Board” sign. <br /><br />After the BFP you couldn’t pay me to sleep. I laid down and could feel my heart beating hard at what felt like a million times a minute. I remember the progression of my very first reactions while holding the two sticks after they had turned positive: <br /><br />“Nuh uh!"<br /><br />“Scary!”<br /><br />“Unbelievable!”<br /><br />“I am so freaking scared!”<br /><br />Wait…<br /><br />“I am so freaking excited!!!”<br /><br />And from there on out, it was pretty much elation. I have not been scared or shocked since those first few seconds. Maybe if we were still in our first year of marriage I might have been initially devastated, but this Little Thing is/was planned and that made for a quicker transition from “I don’t know if I’m ready for this?” to “I’m a mommy – yay!”<br /><br />And I couldn’t stop thinking about the BFP, try as I might to turn off the brain and get some sleep. So I figured it would be more productive – and fun – to hop online and check out all the pregnancy websites I’d been anxious to have a reason to visit than to lie in bed and listen to Husband saw logs until dawn. Plus I didn’t want to wake him with my tossing and turning because I didn’t want to be tempted to tell him before I could carry out my plan!<br /><br />Around 3am I got off the couch to hit the restroom in the hallway. Afterward I peeked into the bedroom and noticed that Jeromy wasn’t in bed. And then I saw the sliver of light in the doorway of the master bathroom. <br /><br />Oh the horror! I ran to the door and opened it just in time to see Jeromy leaning over the sink right in front of – you guessed it – both HPTs. My fun little “Baby on Board” plan shattered to pieces as realization came over my sleepy hubby. As soon as he noticed the results of the tests, I bent over and looked in his face and said, “Hi.” <br /><br />Jeromy wrapped me up in a big hug. For a moment neither of us mouthed a word. Then Jeromy said, “I’m happy!” I don’t recall what else we said but I think I told him that he wasn’t supposed to find out until the morning. But it was kind of fun how it happened because it turned out to be a special moment. I just didn’t want Jeromy to be up for the rest of the night and as sleepy as me the next day. <br /><br />We laid in bed and talked – marveled – for the next hour. We prayed together and thanked God for this little life, for the privilege to become parents, and for a healthy and safe pregnancy. What an unforgettable time! I remember thinking that the last time I couldn’t sleep like this was the night before my wedding, and now it was the night I discover I’m carrying my first child! I finally drifted off to sweet dreams around 4am, thankful I was not scheduled to work in the morning!<br /><br />I haven’t been experiencing a ton of symptoms so far. I guess they are supposed to intensify around the 6-7 week mark. Maybe I will beat the odds, who knows! But apparently, a lot of women like morning sickness and all that because it signifies that there is still a baby growing inside them. When the symptoms wane some women get scared something is wrong. My chest has been sore for a little more than a week, though at first I suspected it was due to an imminent menstrual period like normal. <br /><br />Strangely, I’ve endured two evenings of pretty severe nausea, but none since. The first time, the waves started coming on while I was reading in bed at about 9:30 pm. It just kept getting worse and worse. I usually eat dinner pretty early, so by about 10:15 or so I thought I was just hungry like I sometimes get before bed. But I was too lazy to get up, eat something, and have to brush my teeth again before turning in. <br /><br />The nausea wouldn’t let up, though, so I went to the kitchen spice cabinet, grabbed the bottle of peppermint extract, dabbed a drop under my nose (I heard peppermint soothes an upset tummy). That brought temporary relief but I soon got up again. This time I sliced some Havarti cheese on a multigrain baguette, but felt that wasn’t enough so poured half a bowl of Frosted Mini Wheats. I gulped that stuff down like I’d never eaten before! <br /><br />I’m not sure if I just needed food or what, but after then taking a couple Tums I laid back down and fell asleep soon after, when the nausea subsided. (And without brushing!)<br /><br />That was early, too, at least a week and a half ago, if not two. Perhaps there was a surge of hormones when the little bean implanted in my uterus that night? Who’s to say, but if that night was any hint at what’s to come, I’m about to become a physically worthless mama-to-be in a few weeks! But hopefully not. I usually eat every couple hours anyway, and I hear that helps a lot. <br /><br />***<br /><br />August 25, 2009<br /><br />I am 8 or so weeks along. My first OB appointment is the day after tomorrow (yay!) and I’ve heard lots of stories of women whose doctors measure their babies a week behind. I don’t want to go backwards. 2nd Tri, here I come!<br /><br />During the first 5 full weeks of this pregnancy I felt invincible. Not really tired or sick or bloated. Then week 6 hit and I learned really quickly what morning sickness is all about! I was hoping I’d be a lucky one and avoid getting nausea. Or at least that I’d be able to rise above it and function at 100% as usual. However, that’s not how things have gone down. This baby is kicking my butt!! Or rather, the hormones are! <br /><br />I don’t know if I should be grateful or not, but I have not actually thrown up yet. I have found that eating every couple of hours keeps nausea somewhat at bay. It doesn’t make it go away, but at least it becomes tolerable so that I actually feel well enough to shower and go to work and maybe clean the bathrooms or something. The only trouble is, the “cure” is the enemy. Nausea is so frustrating because you know that eating will help but you can’t bear the thought of putting something in your mouth, chewing and, even worse, swallowing. Everything is revolting. Yes, everything. Yet you force down some form of substantial calories because it allows you to find some relief and perhaps even sleep a few hours. <br /><br />I have to admit that I’m not bent-over-can’t-get-out-of-bed sick entirely 24/7. There is usually a little window around 4-7pm or so when I feel relatively fine. Thankfully, that has afforded me the ability to eat fairly decent dinners. My worst moments come between 2am and 10am. Such a long stretch of YUCK!!<br /><br />***<br /><br />And thus, no more words until week 15. The weeks in between include just more of that last entry. A <span style="font-style:italic;">lot</span> more.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuSMmNJoSYSEJxpLZQcUsX1OcaavTzXlkye3YOlSBfXvLsr_ZdMgjDUqIwdZAidSyCmLFSBvpV_BZftQT4e79qPnZ_NWFbfnA99uQ66PUQ_cuAhiT0W-knNpdPJWNGIE6USqYVrRQ2a4I/s1600-h/IMG_6834.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuSMmNJoSYSEJxpLZQcUsX1OcaavTzXlkye3YOlSBfXvLsr_ZdMgjDUqIwdZAidSyCmLFSBvpV_BZftQT4e79qPnZ_NWFbfnA99uQ66PUQ_cuAhiT0W-knNpdPJWNGIE6USqYVrRQ2a4I/s400/IMG_6834.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5393198261302946386" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />In Pittsburgh on our 3rd anniversary and one week into hiding our little secret! And let me say, <a href="http://www.meltingpot.com/">The Melting Pot</a> never tasted so good!taralynn819http://www.blogger.com/profile/03048501104136348806noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5432987108537259378.post-32432873943387991292009-10-16T08:00:00.030-04:002009-10-16T12:04:01.135-04:00Happy Easter To Us!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgquArOjbfO7U-SDrcl4iWcxHiyRJF9I8LPZnVJDu4Zu9L8oUzhJncAulGNp7oFDz6Tpbb46T9eG0J12Veoad_ELLXfAJ87OAzp_ohevOTBFQVlUCTjnFXVmbwhQouc493Dk1eFbnEmeuo/s1600-h/anne_geddes_preview_2.png"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgquArOjbfO7U-SDrcl4iWcxHiyRJF9I8LPZnVJDu4Zu9L8oUzhJncAulGNp7oFDz6Tpbb46T9eG0J12Veoad_ELLXfAJ87OAzp_ohevOTBFQVlUCTjnFXVmbwhQouc493Dk1eFbnEmeuo/s400/anne_geddes_preview_2.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5393169809708994882" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Now if that doesn't make you go back to the question of 'which came first'?!<br /><br />That's right, this brand new Mama Hen is incubating her ever first baby chick, estimated hatching on Easter Sunday! Specifically, April 4, 2010.<br /><br />Though my posts are usually few and far in between, lately they have been extra sparse as, with tape to our mouths and mitts on our typing fingers, we impatiently waited out the first trimester. But once we saw our Chicken Little via sonogram last week, it was secret no more! Everyone I've ever (and never) known found out our news within a matter of hours. <br /><br />This Age of Facebook made keeping things under wraps much more difficult than I'm sure it was for our parents' generation. It killed me to not be able to tell my closest family members and friends during those first few weeks. I just knew that if any of them found out the whole world would find out. Just like in this moment I know about a certain someone's pregnancy, though I am not supposed to know, except for another person (who, by the way, was also not supposed to know) decided to tell me. FYI: If you're asked to keep a secret, <span style="font-style:italic;">please</span> honor that request! These people thought they could trust you! Needless to say, that did it for me, and our baby news became one secret I decided to keep to myself!<br /><br />However, there are huge benefits to sharing such exciting, once-in-a-lifetime news with your extended family and friends on Facebook. Of course, we phoned or told in person each V.I.P. in our lives (parents, siblings, a few friends) who ought to know before your 1st grade Sunday School teacher finds out via the Internet! But after that, how. Much. Fun. is it to receive such an <span style="font-style:italic;">overwhelming</span> response of congratulations all in one place?! Especially since we live so far away from many of my friends and family members, receiving so much support from everyone made it seem like I was at a reunion or something! It felt kind of like it does reading your wedding guest book over and over. So precious! Which reminds me, I need to copy and paste all of those well-wishes for the baby book! <br /><br />Of course, nobody could be more happy about this baby than we are! I cannot wait for every milestone in this pregnancy (well, now that the worst of the morning sickness is behind me *knock on wood*) and all of the joys and fun challenges ahead with getting used to a newborn and raising our very own little person! As every expectant parent knows, this is one time that is both ultra exciting and ultra scary! Yet we have confidence that God will meet the unique needs of each day and that by Him we will become thriving parents. The result of our parenting is ultimately in His hands, as is our child.<br /><br />Good intentions, good intentions! I had hoped to document in writing more of these first few weeks of pregnancy. But as alluded to above, the Big, Bad Nausea Monster came a-knocking at about week six. Even now, at almost 16 weeks, I have days where I feel better than others. But UGH! I was <span style="font-style:italic;">not</span> a fan of pregnancy the duration of the last couple of months! You simply don't want to do anything when you feel that horrible. I went over a whole month without touching my house with a dust mop or cleaning rag. And for me to not care about a clean house meant this sickness was whipping my tail!<br /><br />The first few weeks of the Crud I lived off chicken noodle soup and Sprite, though I knew my body needed more substance to get through the day (and night). So I tried incorporating more protein into my meals, chowing down lots of cottage cheese, gnawing on beef jerky, and over time scrambling more than a few dozen eggs. I also found that pasta/chicken casseroles did my tummy good, as did (and still does!) mashed potatoes. I do have to say, I miss my cold deli meat sandwiches! I frequently make grilled ham and cheese with tomato soup just so I can have shaved ham! (Besides, of course, the given yumminess factor of that entire meal!) I've tried nuking the meat to kill any possible bacteria and it's just not the same. But I know all this is for a good cause!<br /><br />Just don't give me a banana, especially if it's the least bit overripe. I can't stand the smell, nor do I have any desire whatsoever to indulge. Which is actually a self-fulfilled prophesy. For more than 4 years I had been eating for breakfast a toasted English muffin spread with peanut butter (couldn't keep enough jars in the house!), a drizzle of honey, and sliced bananas over the top. In fact, I actually preferred the banana a little on the ripe side. One day, long before I got pregnant, I told Jeromy that once I'm pregnant I will probably repulse at the thought of this breakfast. Oh how true that remains! I still remember the last time I ate that for breakfast, around the time I started really feeling sick. I could barely eat a bite or two, though I fought it. I love this stuff, remember?! I think if I made that breakfast today, I could stomach everything but the sliced banana on top. Although I really don't have the desire to make or eat it at the moment. Hmm, maybe God's preparing me for a peanut-allergic child and is making it easier to wean me off my formerly beloved peanut butter. Who knows?<br /><br />As for actually throwing up, I hadn't looked the Porcelain Throne in the face (except to clean it!) for years and years until week 12. I threw up 4 days that week, and then one day in week 13. What's up with that? Just when I thought the nausea was starting to taper off, WHAM! Usually I had found ways to ease the nausea if I felt like throwing up. For a while sniffing peppermint extract until I obtained a palatable calorie source seemed to work. But those days I threw up I quickly came to the realization that nothing was going to stop the floodgates this time! I think possibly I let too much time pass before eating something. Maybe I had been starting to feel overly confident that the nausea would go away by the end of the first trimester that I let my eating slide. That's my guess, anyway. Since then I've tried not being so stupid and keep snacks with me everywhere. Although I still gag/heave on my toothbrush most mornings, which is highly annoying...<br /><br />At almost 16 weeks, I think I am finally beginning to show. Or at least I can't suck in as much as I used to! I think it's a combination of the growing uterus and my lack of exercise as of late. Some of that belly I'm seeing is more than likely <span style="font-style:italic;">real</span> fat! Unfortunately, since being sick, I have happily gotten used to not working out. It's actually decreased stress in my life to not always have to be on the treadmill. The angel on my other shoulder, however, tells me I've turned into a lazy butt and that I need to at least get in <span style="font-style:italic;">some</span> form of cardio. I am not used to becoming out of breath so quickly! And I don't like watching my buns and thighs grow along with my belly. I'm not used to this. Hopefully I will get back on the horse, but it's not looking like anytime soon. I really have become lazy! (Or maybe my priorities have shifted, I don't know.) I just don't want to become the woman who hides behind her baby, and now that everything is all about the baby, she lets herself completely go. I don't want to become her! Hear this, Blogworld: I refuse to wear <a href="http://www.hulu.com/watch/10333/saturday-night-live-mom-jeans">Mom Jeans</a>!!<br /><br />Well, on that note :) I'll just take my place behind my adorable little peanut's first baby pictures and gush over his/her already-prominent cuteness! Of course we are biased, but even the ultrasound technician commented on how crisp and clear the images turned out. I wish they weren't copies of copies, but I could still stare at them for hours!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEyz2vFerIce1eRWAdj4FkKqCeKe6s0C3HXQech5dYkf9jnhdqBdKUgMz6GrNdv4KAlFLrslOkRIKig1bfYX9s0bfpQ87PSuO6qZnDY_57u2rzC690cCqkfIt3LJYalRATnGIHb4QHoLw/s1600-h/ultra.hand.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 288px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEyz2vFerIce1eRWAdj4FkKqCeKe6s0C3HXQech5dYkf9jnhdqBdKUgMz6GrNdv4KAlFLrslOkRIKig1bfYX9s0bfpQ87PSuO6qZnDY_57u2rzC690cCqkfIt3LJYalRATnGIHb4QHoLw/s400/ultra.hand.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5393169693098700338" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />I love how you can almost count the fingers on that little hand! (This sonogram was taken at 14 weeks 1 day.) We call him/her our Squirmy Worm. The baby wouldn't keep his/her arms and legs still. It would cross and uncross its legs, and even flipped over several times during the ultrasound. (Jeromy said it reminded him of how he flips over at night!) Wonder if this is a hint of what's to come! We might want to stock up on baby gates!!!<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn5FVijZtu3INPWWTqx5uSFvXZ49hUOHtlePQFKlJ6QunZQZfhYOHVj8bWMW0exEfP1CvAPPUKeHuze-BhNOFQ6XBpDYC-IXVD3YgoWQEeOwxAXX37CVx41L3T_-bH-Rh-EwKp0Y9sk7g/s1600-h/ultra.thumb.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 289px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn5FVijZtu3INPWWTqx5uSFvXZ49hUOHtlePQFKlJ6QunZQZfhYOHVj8bWMW0exEfP1CvAPPUKeHuze-BhNOFQ6XBpDYC-IXVD3YgoWQEeOwxAXX37CVx41L3T_-bH-Rh-EwKp0Y9sk7g/s400/ultra.thumb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5393169466936644946" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />In this image the little one appears to be sucking his/her thumb. We're not sure if that is actually the case, but we saw this a lot! It's too bad you have to retain such a full bladder during the sonogram because part of you overwhelmingly wants to be done so you can go pee, but mostly you just want to lie there and enjoy watching this miraculous life hang out inside your uterus! I had to keep restraining myself from laughing because it made the screen bounce, but it was so surreal I couldn't help it!<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl-_LjpGWjmf6R4nMy_hu7ZMbJ7GEcuOEAPj_Pslzgdne_6CX-71DHODDicfby48F_Rq1ZauvEHh5OgpQSbjStnUOYxj6-S_-wU8ahL6WdvAuE6HElJsBhxWEvEC7I4rffL_wfRENPhBs/s1600-h/ultra.profile.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 287px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl-_LjpGWjmf6R4nMy_hu7ZMbJ7GEcuOEAPj_Pslzgdne_6CX-71DHODDicfby48F_Rq1ZauvEHh5OgpQSbjStnUOYxj6-S_-wU8ahL6WdvAuE6HElJsBhxWEvEC7I4rffL_wfRENPhBs/s400/ultra.profile.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5393196815913343186" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />I <span style="font-style:italic;">looooove</span> this profile shot. You can see the outline of his/her tiny button nose and lips. In this picture he/she looks like it's giving the "hang ten" sign! It was so unbelievable to watch the baby move around so much and not be able to feel a thing. They say you normally start to feel movement anywhere between 18-20 weeks, though some have said they've felt it earlier. <br /><br />My next appointment is on October 30, two weeks from today, at which time the doctor will schedule the next ultrasound - where we should hopefully be able to find out the sex! My brother and his wife are about a month ahead of me on their 2nd pregnancy. They found out just yesterday that they are having a <span style="font-style:italic;">BOY</span>. So the pressure is on because Jeromy wants a boy. I'll happily take either, but I really think it's a girl. We'll see in the next few weeks!!<br /><br />Thanks for sharing our joy with us! I'll go back and post the initial thoughts I typed up the day after I found out I was pregnant and how I told my husband and all that fun stuff. And hopefully I won't continue to be such a stranger on the blog now that the secret's out! You were probably wondering if all this girl is ever going to post is recipes! Well, I can't promise no more recipes since we are, after all, in midst comfort food season! But I'll also try my hardest to write about other things besides just the baby!taralynn819http://www.blogger.com/profile/03048501104136348806noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5432987108537259378.post-41020874616834907142009-09-25T10:16:00.018-04:002009-09-25T11:10:35.979-04:00Got Ice Cream?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6f-DOuIT9WNziU5OpNg9Ch7o_Q7QnHB4Z7h4jOfVUHWfq7Bsbp9l4Z7VNloz3W6BkbJHh8s1QCalh270cVnbPoW58oH3ihElHlm7EvOt50xtyiMelmPTtE1iFf6ntUFuYQgHmsiGOmaQ/s1600-h/KellyShowUs.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6f-DOuIT9WNziU5OpNg9Ch7o_Q7QnHB4Z7h4jOfVUHWfq7Bsbp9l4Z7VNloz3W6BkbJHh8s1QCalh270cVnbPoW58oH3ihElHlm7EvOt50xtyiMelmPTtE1iFf6ntUFuYQgHmsiGOmaQ/s400/KellyShowUs.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5385422256798680418" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Then you will <span style="font-style:italic;">love</span> this super easy topping recipe. It is my go-to/master recipe for chocolate sauce/glaze and it is <span style="font-style:italic;">so</span> amazing and <span style="font-style:italic;">so</span> delicious you just might throw away your bottle of Hershey's! (Well, or at least keep it around for the occasional chocolate shot mouth-squirt.) <br /><br />It's <span style="font-style:italic;">smooth</span>....<span style="font-style:italic;">glossy</span>....<span style="font-style:italic;">thick</span>....<span style="font-style:italic;">buttery</span>....and oh, so <span style="font-style:italic;">rich</span>!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivH-z461qgJWXOgpb6oVABzdf4UeeBUnab-zvT7e0DDMwu0gkzPeX4Mg68UIUc5DKJk5a_ISu0eaEiWy1RNLWPwuBAswXiryVpPuZvN7bvSEh8M5KjH3a41VDITTtkhg3ZJ67pOQLFk8w/s1600-h/choc-sauce2.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 267px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivH-z461qgJWXOgpb6oVABzdf4UeeBUnab-zvT7e0DDMwu0gkzPeX4Mg68UIUc5DKJk5a_ISu0eaEiWy1RNLWPwuBAswXiryVpPuZvN7bvSEh8M5KjH3a41VDITTtkhg3ZJ67pOQLFk8w/s400/choc-sauce2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5385418928471828466" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Need I say more??<br /><br />It is absolutely terrific warm but I love it after it's been refrigerated a few minutes (I don't like soupy, melty ice cream).<br /><br />Try it! And, you might as well add a few copies to your files now because it won't be long before your recipe card gets all yummy-smudgy!<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">A VERMONTER'S CHOCOLATE SAUCE<br /><br />3 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder</span> (I used dutch process this time and oh. My. Word.)<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">1 Tbsp oil<br />1/4 cup unsalted butter</span> (no pre-melting necessary)<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">1 cup powdered sugar<br />1/2 to 1 tsp salt<br />1/4 cup milk<br /><br />Whisk all ingredients together and bring to a boil slowly until thick. When thickened, remove from heat and add 1 tsp vanilla.</span><br /><br />Serve over ice cream, pour over brownies, glaze a bundt cake (I've tried all three!), or devour by spoonfuls (I mean four!).<br /><br /><br />Note: May wish to double recipe if serving more than 2 or 3. You <span style="font-style:italic;">will</span> want seconds!<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPI3r07kGN-kzxVTS9F3WL1BVcakVxTRD-txVUGWrQi3T7mVEnrBEsJt3LReUlAw7RbejOUeVCzSeyMJ03OTEJAmbHBvpqo95Yp5JozhX592v9L1zuSyAY16PBzsHRzCnCrPnE3rsSVdQ/s1600-h/chocolate+sauce.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPI3r07kGN-kzxVTS9F3WL1BVcakVxTRD-txVUGWrQi3T7mVEnrBEsJt3LReUlAw7RbejOUeVCzSeyMJ03OTEJAmbHBvpqo95Yp5JozhX592v9L1zuSyAY16PBzsHRzCnCrPnE3rsSVdQ/s400/chocolate+sauce.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5385409696613910562" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />*Created, developed, and perfected in Vermont by Mr. Bruce Nyquist. I am forever indebted to your "culinary" genius! <br /><br /><a href="http://www.kellyskornerblog.com/"><br />Kelly's Korner</a> is whipping up a triple batch of <a href="http://www.kellyskornerblog.com/2009/09/show-us-your-life-desserts.html">dessert recipes</a> today. Check it out and tempt that sweet tooth!taralynn819http://www.blogger.com/profile/03048501104136348806noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5432987108537259378.post-50794949103588669232009-09-11T17:21:00.007-04:002009-09-11T17:50:06.313-04:00Scarlett Gives Hugs to GrampaI realize that this is a totally super-spiritualized thought (or at least entirely un-Baptist) but I believe that he at least knows what's going on in our lives and perhaps that God even lets him glimpse his <a href="http://taralynn819.blogspot.com/2008/04/storytime.html">oh-so-loved-and-missed granddaughter</a> growing up. In any case, we are most certainly on his mind as he continues to wait for us.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDWmPzDN8C_3t9lLjrEGSXylcC91FG-JoD9wpve9CaXPMEbKfmFiGMjH2_W5gz38lBNmvnNJ9OfKlx9PKeBLKB0Xe99wMElYqLfL81uRgmq4sL2ez_XgJU2UvLn01NMzmml1KJ3fHIl0g/s1600-h/scarlettdad.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 332px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDWmPzDN8C_3t9lLjrEGSXylcC91FG-JoD9wpve9CaXPMEbKfmFiGMjH2_W5gz38lBNmvnNJ9OfKlx9PKeBLKB0Xe99wMElYqLfL81uRgmq4sL2ez_XgJU2UvLn01NMzmml1KJ3fHIl0g/s400/scarlettdad.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5380323319047607634" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Closer to me You're in the laughter and the tears<br />Of the ones I leave behind me<br />Who have prayed me through the years<br />Closer to You<br />And I know it won't be long<br />Till You're running down the pathway<br />Just to take me in Your arms<br /><br />-Mark Schultztaralynn819http://www.blogger.com/profile/03048501104136348806noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5432987108537259378.post-40408489547280440362009-09-04T13:29:00.009-04:002009-09-04T14:04:51.762-04:00Not Your Ordinary Fruit Dip<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyT7pHAOMrWgNZ6fqWEpOi3JtxysBcGuSzFy-APnH8KkO1NdDevpDKFP1TyVM_HaTr4eVwfY-NfKbCwPBT7k2A9CVJpb7uBGNU32xji7pU2rZtKDeei6hp0DK8yVl8fUcwxI3kFhJlD-k/s1600-h/dipbutton.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 150px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyT7pHAOMrWgNZ6fqWEpOi3JtxysBcGuSzFy-APnH8KkO1NdDevpDKFP1TyVM_HaTr4eVwfY-NfKbCwPBT7k2A9CVJpb7uBGNU32xji7pU2rZtKDeei6hp0DK8yVl8fUcwxI3kFhJlD-k/s400/dipbutton.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5377669922656231970" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />It's <a href="http://boomama.net">Boo Mama</a>'s <a href="http://boomama.net/2009/09/04/diptacular-2009/">DipTacular 2009</a>, and I thought I'd participate. At first I didn't think I had anything worthwhile to share. I am all about from-scratch cooking and baking, but my dips usually consist of some or other Tastefully Simple seasoning blend or Hidden Valley Ranch powder. <span style="font-style:italic;">If you have not already mixed ranch dressing powder in your cottage cheese and eaten over Ritz crackers, you have not lived!</span><br /><br />My dip to share involves an unusual and at first disturbingly disgusting-sounding ingredient for a sweet fruit dip: Velveeta Cheese. <br /><br />Don't click the back button - stay with me!<br /><br />I promise you, the Velveeta is used solely for texture. In fact, Velveeta is not even real cheese; the box says "pasteurized cheese product". So it is absolutely nothing like eating sliced cheddar on apple pie, a concept I find completely revolting. <br /><br />This is <span style="font-style:italic;">the</span> best fruit dip you will ever, ever consume. Try it before you say you hate it. And if you bring this dip to a potluck function, be prepared with ready-made recipe cards to hand out to all the ravers. They will be skeptical at first, too. (Let's face it, I was!) But like you, they'll also get over it when they taste the yumminess in all it's non-cheese-tasting glory. <br /><br />Tastes more like coconut because, hey, it's got a can of cream of coconut in it! Try it with strawberries and pineapple. Apples and grapes are good too. Pineapple is my favorite. Can you say, <span style="font-style:italic;">Piña Colada</span>?!?!? <br /><br />Let me know if you've tried it!<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />VELVEETA CHEESE FRUIT DIP<br /><br />8 oz Velveeta, cubed<br />8 oz cream of coconut (usually comes in cans in the drink mix isle)<br />8 oz Cool Whip<br /><br />Blend cubed Velveeta cheese and cream of coconut in blender until smooth. Add cool whip. Chill. Serve with fresh fruit for dipping.</span>taralynn819http://www.blogger.com/profile/03048501104136348806noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5432987108537259378.post-64856831128395797172009-07-24T08:27:00.045-04:002009-07-28T16:38:15.977-04:00Celebrating THREE amazing years on August 12th!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaHa_FwJuqI3DT0BHieishYshEPTiLQ6SaSNYh2bAM7GbTdJyyx5vzjCDdm-OlBwjQjuRE6IE_dfNFJvqQ044JTRSb8t5W3X4gJu3_9bHrZUakEAGDgFvrGFXsQhlF2Akm0D8Mb9CPFOc/s1600-h/jertarwedding.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaHa_FwJuqI3DT0BHieishYshEPTiLQ6SaSNYh2bAM7GbTdJyyx5vzjCDdm-OlBwjQjuRE6IE_dfNFJvqQ044JTRSb8t5W3X4gJu3_9bHrZUakEAGDgFvrGFXsQhlF2Akm0D8Mb9CPFOc/s400/jertarwedding.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5363609715148902050" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />This <a href="http://www.kellyskornerblog.com/2009/07/show-us-your-life-wedding-dress.html">Show Us Your Life - Wedding Dress</a> Blog Hop is probably one of the most fun of all Blog Hops/Carnivals! What girl (married or otherwise) doesn't love to drool over other girls' wedding gowns?! Thanks, <a href="http://www.kellyskornerblog.com/">Kelly</a>, for a chance to share and yet another great way to end the week in the blogosphere! <br /><br />(Note: The photos are less blurry if clicked on to enlarge.)<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">1) <span style="font-weight:bold;">When was your wedding day?</span> August 12, 2006<br /><br />2) <span style="font-weight:bold;">What day of the week was it?</span> Saturday<br /><br />3) <span style="font-weight:bold;">Did you get married in a church?</span> Yes, <a href="http://www.leonardtownbaptist.org/">Leonardtown Baptist</a>!</span><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZGOgztGoSQ6pEZFZC2riL1QFICyTb1Hm2Ra-TPDlJ8_-yQ-4fgOfutnsj2bQeVud5DfOCgv4lM7NViK0ijO2K2HMhR0G8oSPG35K-6-88dZyMj_rQZO4w2Xhl6Zj71x0Gz9jsLNQnbTc/s1600-h/IMG_1127.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZGOgztGoSQ6pEZFZC2riL1QFICyTb1Hm2Ra-TPDlJ8_-yQ-4fgOfutnsj2bQeVud5DfOCgv4lM7NViK0ijO2K2HMhR0G8oSPG35K-6-88dZyMj_rQZO4w2Xhl6Zj71x0Gz9jsLNQnbTc/s400/IMG_1127.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5362010790656669106" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Here my beautiful bridesmaids are helping me get situated into my dress. This was an <a href="http://www.edenbridals.com/">Eden</a> gown. Very reasonable prices with great variety of styles to choose from and stunning quality! <br /><br />I originally thought I was going to go with a ball gown (and tried on several), but when I saw this dress online, I knew it was more me. We didn't have an absolutely huge wedding since neither of our families lived in Maryland (my family in MN and Jeromy's in WV), plus it was mid August so I thought the more A-line option might be a little cooler than a poofy Cinderella dress. And of course it turned out to be 70 degrees with no humidity. In Southern Maryland, that's pretty much a miracle!!<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">4) <span style="font-weight:bold;">How many in your wedding party?</span> three bridesmaids (Jenni, Christina, and Elizabeth), four groomsmen (Brad, Dan, Matt, Chad), and my flower girl (Ally)<br /><br />5) <span style="font-weight:bold;">Where was your reception?</span> Bryant Avenue Baptist Church in MN (a week later) and Webster/Bolair, WV (two more weeks after that). Everyone who attended the wedding was invited to the Coffee Quarter after our wedding for a dutch lunch. Things would have been different if we didn't have a far-away wedding!<br /><br />6) <span style="font-style:italic;"><span style="font-weight:bold;">How many guests were invited to your wedding?</span><span style="font-style:italic;"><span style="font-weight:bold;"></span></span></span> Whoever wanted to attend! The whole church! </span><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIxs5KAivmWtQ-gyzxK1gju0VuxOJtzrnNwVZZFEgQsX7x_YSnCGUzlpnd002l6n94tmX3Abo4zkRkIRG7ph1qCSYm6cHSOL9BJmgFl2CGc55jKEm4ICfjfydFEpLjZPpqqeHB-mYUNIk/s1600-h/129_2919.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIxs5KAivmWtQ-gyzxK1gju0VuxOJtzrnNwVZZFEgQsX7x_YSnCGUzlpnd002l6n94tmX3Abo4zkRkIRG7ph1qCSYm6cHSOL9BJmgFl2CGc55jKEm4ICfjfydFEpLjZPpqqeHB-mYUNIk/s400/129_2919.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5362009428009525522" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />For some reason, the sanctuary shots turned out kind of yellow. Maybe playing around with Photoshop would help but we haven't tried yet. <br /><span style="font-style:italic;"><br />7) <span style="font-weight:bold;">How long did you wait to Tie The Knot after your proposal?</span> 5 months exactly. March 12th to August 12th<br /><br />8) <span style="font-weight:bold;">Who did you hire as your photographer?</span> Joe Pelletier<br /><br />9) <span style="font-weight:bold;">Did you have a DJ or a band?</span> we didn't have a traditional reception</span><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixmppeJqp-ZT4uWHkc1tdwWuoT80J7wDngODv_6H1prXXQ7pC8st3r6BlTXH-9XTfJ83RqsvJ_VgzmYHp_KVz07LmOHTm_e8vb0332uUlpcZC9Ei9L8_W88T9rR_j2i__ITcFD1dLkJ5M/s1600-h/128_2810.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixmppeJqp-ZT4uWHkc1tdwWuoT80J7wDngODv_6H1prXXQ7pC8st3r6BlTXH-9XTfJ83RqsvJ_VgzmYHp_KVz07LmOHTm_e8vb0332uUlpcZC9Ei9L8_W88T9rR_j2i__ITcFD1dLkJ5M/s400/128_2810.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5362005476224214626" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Sort of blurry shot of a dad giving away his daughter. (He could sleep through literally anything - ha!) <br /><br />These next couple photos are very special to me, especially now that my dad has <a href="http://taralynn819.blogspot.com/2008/04/time-to-breathe.html">passed away</a>. I am so very grateful he lived to see both of his children married and well taken care of.<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">10) <span style="font-weight:bold;">Did your father walk you down the aisle?</span> YES! Thank you Jesus!<br /><br />11) <span style="font-weight:bold;">What color were the bridesmaid dresses & groomsmen vests?</span> cute strapless black cocktail dresses with a few big periwinkle flowers from Ann Taylor Loft. I though they were SO adorable!<br /><br />12) <span style="font-weight:bold;">What was your first song?</span> The congregation sang "How Great Is Our God" and "In Christ Alone (My Hope is Found)", and Dan, a groomsman played and sang an amazing song he wrote just for us!!! Called, "All the While".<br /></span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIO4WUCNdTQZ5HhN2ZHjNS_s4WxJpQS6OjuK6QkpqQYo4RMlj5Opl0LvYmwRjCffAwwWweR3co3n2tipqu2QThd8oaJzvFck0WDZGUPivilPQQvvleGjQ5WHZqUhFNwqfTrZ5kVmqCFJY/s1600-h/128_2843.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIO4WUCNdTQZ5HhN2ZHjNS_s4WxJpQS6OjuK6QkpqQYo4RMlj5Opl0LvYmwRjCffAwwWweR3co3n2tipqu2QThd8oaJzvFck0WDZGUPivilPQQvvleGjQ5WHZqUhFNwqfTrZ5kVmqCFJY/s400/128_2843.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5362006996906187378" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;"><br />13) <span style="font-weight:bold;">How long did it take to plan the wedding?</span> 5 months<br /><br />14) <span style="font-weight:bold;">What type of limo did you get?</span> how about a rental SUV<br /><br />15) <span style="font-weight:bold;">Where did you go for your Bachelorette/Bachelor Party?</span> Jenni planned a fun little girl party the night before the wedding. We had yummy food and some crazy gifts! Jeromy and the guys went out for dessert and hung out at his place.</span><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS9cZmCyL1RLgI1OpJj5qmphImjVdDVozwUxXh4T8cbvLqHFHdJmy2QG6h46T51BpuDklqWCgYa5ukh2PMq7wQOkL3p5rCJokOJejgYg2UJ1JKHYoF-0JcpZZhgYYXyp-NBf8rw3mgplI/s1600-h/128_2842.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS9cZmCyL1RLgI1OpJj5qmphImjVdDVozwUxXh4T8cbvLqHFHdJmy2QG6h46T51BpuDklqWCgYa5ukh2PMq7wQOkL3p5rCJokOJejgYg2UJ1JKHYoF-0JcpZZhgYYXyp-NBf8rw3mgplI/s400/128_2842.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5362006479953179490" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">16) <span style="font-weight:bold;">What type of wedding gown/tux did you two wear?</span> Eden A-line strapless, not quite empire waist, light embellishment down the front and an extra half overlay with lace trim. You'd have to see the picture, I'm not great on dress terminology! :)<br /><br />17) <span style="font-weight:bold;">How was the weather?</span> Can you believe it was a cloudless 70 degrees, NO humidity, in Southern Maryland IN AUGUST!!! That never, ever happens!<br /><br />18) <span style="font-weight:bold;">Where did you go on your Honeymoon?</span> Sunny Seattle! (we actually got sunburned!) We spent a night in a Victorian B&B in Annapolis first<br /><br />19) <span style="font-weight:bold;">What was your favorite part of your wedding day?</span> wearing the gown, saying the <a href="http://taralynn819.blogspot.com/2007/12/october-27-2007-our-wedding-vows.html">vows</a> we had written ourselves<br /><br />20) <span style="font-weight:bold;">How long have you been married?</span> It will be three years next month!</span><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn91wPFkDOnR548IpZX9t5zuy1ubnpEsL3px3CE11PFw-Q-ANM8LGbUv568PGLiJJa9QeUI5uHO8eiG_rGzku2N8h9-yZLnV-CNvbslS41GPmoZFQ0lYUdYjJ-0urHwVUx3CqM9uECH58/s1600-h/128_2866.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn91wPFkDOnR548IpZX9t5zuy1ubnpEsL3px3CE11PFw-Q-ANM8LGbUv568PGLiJJa9QeUI5uHO8eiG_rGzku2N8h9-yZLnV-CNvbslS41GPmoZFQ0lYUdYjJ-0urHwVUx3CqM9uECH58/s400/128_2866.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5362007760017861138" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">21 <span style="font-weight:bold;">What was the worst part of your wedding day?</span> my literally ghetto up do. I wish I had chosen someone else to do my hair. I could have even done it myself! <br /><br />22. <span style="font-weight:bold;">Did you see your husband before the ceremony?</span> No, I was hiding in the nursery. We did pictures after the ceremony.<br /><br />23. <span style="font-weight:bold;">What kind of flowers were in your bouquet?</span> blue hydrangeas and white roses. The girls carried calla lilies.<br /><br />24. <span style="font-weight:bold;">What were your "something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue?</span> Didn't really care about this but...<br />Old -- Diamond earings from my great aunt<br />New -- everything else I was wearing!<br />Borrowed -- Sandi Riggleman's tiara - thanks again!<br />Blue -- bouquet :)</span><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzUI0I_XsdJjWUsy2fB_F5R-NKm33AwIP5RQqUXZuugbC5LR82GIWGVk_afIcnyADc-Q86Ar1Li_OucNoDjgj1P4a71LzJkVYmVw_wRgjm1KhCOE6q7ThLqcnmYsL-LamUDfpdaBYK17o/s1600-h/13+(Large).JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzUI0I_XsdJjWUsy2fB_F5R-NKm33AwIP5RQqUXZuugbC5LR82GIWGVk_afIcnyADc-Q86Ar1Li_OucNoDjgj1P4a71LzJkVYmVw_wRgjm1KhCOE6q7ThLqcnmYsL-LamUDfpdaBYK17o/s400/13+(Large).JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5362011584621609266" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />White roses and blue hydrangeas. Perfect. Nail polish color choice, not so much....<br /><span style="font-style:italic;"><br />25. <span style="font-weight:bold;">Did you light a unity candle?</span> Yep, while Dan sang. We made our own. Tip: Try to buy the least amount of wedding "things" as you can. Most of them, you can find a way to craft them yourself.<br /><br />26. <span style="font-weight:bold;">Did you cry during your wedding?</span> No, but I cry at everyone else's wedding! It's the adrenaline. You're in "go" mode.<br /><br />27. <span style="font-weight:bold;">Where did you buy your wedding gown?</span> At a small bridal shop in Vienna, VA<br /><br />28. <span style="font-weight:bold;">What flavor was your wedding cake?</span> We had three different kinds at our Minnesota reception. I think two white and one chocolate, all with different fillings like almond, raspberry, and I think lemon. Cake was our one big splurge. We went with <a href="http://queen-of-cakes.com/_wsn/page3.html">Queen of Cakes</a> in Edina, who is spectacular! She's been featured in Brides magazine for a spice cake before.<br /><br />29. <span style="font-weight:bold;">Did you smash cake in each other's face or were you "nice"?</span> I think we tried. It wasn't our actual wedding day so there wasn't as much pressure surrounding the day, but we were wearing our wedding attire so we were careful. I LOVED getting to dress up twice!!!</span><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIelYoPBBUFGYnwbOMY-fazLQ1FsBQXFOH3fYE8l6uSSWCk659GGZyGbjJlU9jmdsDCeo_KfoSFkdblSQXZMf821PNGAFE35lc4I8KVxiP9BI144Jq9YMi1VYg8VyrciJMdlHGAuWyysQ/s1600-h/Bride___Groom___Jeromy___Tara.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 297px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIelYoPBBUFGYnwbOMY-fazLQ1FsBQXFOH3fYE8l6uSSWCk659GGZyGbjJlU9jmdsDCeo_KfoSFkdblSQXZMf821PNGAFE35lc4I8KVxiP9BI144Jq9YMi1VYg8VyrciJMdlHGAuWyysQ/s400/Bride___Groom___Jeromy___Tara.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5362002864469448178" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;"><span style="font-weight:bold;">30. Did you freeze the top layer of your cake and eat it on your first wedding anniversary?</span> Yes we did! We didn't even take it out of the box, just threw it in my parents' chest freezer and then ate it when we flew home about ten months later. It's not like we could have taken it with us on the plane!<br /><br />31. <span style="font-weight:bold;">When did you open your wedding gifts?</span> When we got back from our honeymoon and reception. And absentminded-me left my little notebook with our "thank you list" in it on an obscure shelf in Target! I was so mortified and I hope our relatives are over the generic thank you's they received. DON'T DO THIS!<br /><br />32. <span style="font-weight:bold;">Did you have a bridal shower?</span> Yes, at The Tea Room in La Plata, MD with Heather Lanham, Danielle Fields, Amy Morris, and Barb Darden. I wish I had known more people at the time!!!</span><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinuYhRYfOyT_E1Bxme0OxLr0ZsQ6DcL-_RYwPwbSgh-1L9FR8EY_ZdnOqmUCQy2ewU2O3OnYOdBgmx6hUdFjOklDXwe3g07VB5n1zmBVXWFqsjmTPPAuRjeTnIaj1B7PBMzJsYARryMaQ/s1600-h/reception2.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 299px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinuYhRYfOyT_E1Bxme0OxLr0ZsQ6DcL-_RYwPwbSgh-1L9FR8EY_ZdnOqmUCQy2ewU2O3OnYOdBgmx6hUdFjOklDXwe3g07VB5n1zmBVXWFqsjmTPPAuRjeTnIaj1B7PBMzJsYARryMaQ/s400/reception2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5362011919007260018" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />A week after the wedding we hosted reception in Minneapolis, MN in a stuffy church gym with no A/C. Of course <span style="font-style:italic;">that</span> day it was muggy as all get out. But still a wonderful day, and free of pressure since the ceremony had been the previous week. The reception also happened to fall on my 26th birthday, which made the event even more special. I'd never had such a big to-do birthday party in my life! And I probably won't again until I'm over the hill! :)<br /><br />The best perk of the day was that I got to wear my dress a second time. Not many girls get to do that! Plus I did my own hair that day and I liked it better. Go figure!<br /><br />This is us and my best friend from my childhood, Jamila (who just married this past February, I might add!). She and her parents lived two houses down from my house, and we met when we were two years old! My mom just sold her house on that street not two weeks ago, or our parents would all still be living "two doors down"!<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">33. <span style="font-weight:bold;">The night before your wedding, did you sleep much?</span> Not really. I would have taken a sleep aid if I had one!<br /><br />34. <span style="font-weight:bold;">Did your bridal party deck out the get away car?</span> Couldn't, since we were driving a rental up to Annapolis that afternoon!</span><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWma1fo9JA7TobfgC-Cjuqymz7bmB3m4KwJLW-ev1YYYaARduRhBynfaEttTgQ8UMklV_gnXd8sZxBETgN2Ihq9mmqt5xjNxrLYQLd1-J9K5ZkIhqPO5_-utAaWaYt9AouMmKeclrxgAc/s1600-h/reception1.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 299px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWma1fo9JA7TobfgC-Cjuqymz7bmB3m4KwJLW-ev1YYYaARduRhBynfaEttTgQ8UMklV_gnXd8sZxBETgN2Ihq9mmqt5xjNxrLYQLd1-J9K5ZkIhqPO5_-utAaWaYt9AouMmKeclrxgAc/s400/reception1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5362011162127419330" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">35. <span style="font-weight:bold;">Anything special about the day/time of year you were married?</span> We originally planned on an October 21st wedding - exactly 1 year after we met. But circumstances changed (like my host family moving and Jeromy's 6 month lease expiring) where it was better to move up the wedding. So August it was! I had loved the idea of a Fall wedding and since I am not a lover of summer, so God was extra gracious to give us perfect weather! Our anniversary is a week before my birthday, so I have mixed feelings about that!<br /><br />36. <span style="font-weight:bold;">Words of wisdom?</span> A. Always give your spouse the benefit of the doubt. You know who they are. B. Budget monthly/weekly personal spending money for each of you. No questions asked!</span><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihJajYamyicN8dDXlygiCmK6HbUYwOlCqBuKNUXy3CL6Z3lKNl6owg1cQOd2OBoYTaPg7jRK8d9mAzqlOjMMfjqPWD_ZZSAw0b54tVzbfvCokPpjlG_mMDw78Oe7J1VP6RHpbR_nOPCpc/s1600-h/128_2817.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihJajYamyicN8dDXlygiCmK6HbUYwOlCqBuKNUXy3CL6Z3lKNl6owg1cQOd2OBoYTaPg7jRK8d9mAzqlOjMMfjqPWD_ZZSAw0b54tVzbfvCokPpjlG_mMDw78Oe7J1VP6RHpbR_nOPCpc/s400/128_2817.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5362029779491877394" /></a>taralynn819http://www.blogger.com/profile/03048501104136348806noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5432987108537259378.post-42390316767547775482009-07-20T11:27:00.029-04:002009-07-22T20:22:05.405-04:00What I Learned in Kindergarten<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVTcJ4bJoKYrd2cp1GH3okEMvQcuT1CESQ6gW1kao__nLdyJ0m8C7oan4Q1vWWIyQd8ozFS8AzGPj9YHMIkuAw1oLSZ_pdT92Cj8hO8dw_NG5KN03YR3Q6enPNTTFDHRd0_heR-0Eu9qQ/s1600-h/tara.bmp"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 189px; height: 221px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVTcJ4bJoKYrd2cp1GH3okEMvQcuT1CESQ6gW1kao__nLdyJ0m8C7oan4Q1vWWIyQd8ozFS8AzGPj9YHMIkuAw1oLSZ_pdT92Cj8hO8dw_NG5KN03YR3Q6enPNTTFDHRd0_heR-0Eu9qQ/s400/tara.bmp" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5360590017617368354" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />The other day I was thinking of a funny kid story of mine from kindergarten. Hubby and I had been watching America's Funniest Videos when one of the clips prompted the memory. Just the whole idea of laughing at someone's expense. <br /><br />Why do we get so much glee from the sweetly ignorant things little kids say and do? They never seem to run out of ways to entertain adults with their quirky antics. (Unless, of course, the antic falls into the "naughty" category. But even then it tends to attain a few laughs after the fact. Or, at least, after the mess is all cleaned up.)<br /><br />If there ever lived an ignorant child, I was her. I always seemed to ask questions none of my other peers had, which often made me feel foolish and dense. Nevertheless, my lack of common knowledge as a child certainly must have afforded my family and teachers many a chuckle in my expense. <br /><br />Now that I am an aunt, however, I realize a lot of it is provoked, because Jeromy and I frequently provoke our 4-year-old ultra-gullible nephew, Isaac, for a few laughs! Poor kid, he has no idea!<br /><br />It was Springtime in Minnesota. Spring is always a big deal in the barren tundra land that is my home state. The buds are popping. The air is warming up so that you can safely put away your winter coat in favor of the glorious windbreaker. (Well, almost safely. I have experienced many a late-April blizzard in my day.) The birds are returning with bleached feathers and Southern accents, the lakes are crowded with runners and rollerbladers sweating out their Spring Fever on the paths, and the school year is quickly vanishing along with the last traces of dirty snow. <br /><br />During the long-awaited Spring Thaw, Minnesotans are ever in a collectively unshakable good mood, even on Mondays.<br /><br />If you cannot tell, I have been <a href="http://dir.salon.com/topics/garrison_keillor/">reading Garrison Keillor</a>. Forgive me. :)<br /><br />This such Spring of 1987 was much like any other. Except that the Twins would actually play an amazing season that year, but that's irrelevant to this story. Ha!<br /><br />As Spring is given to the theme of "new life", our teacher decided to teach us about the life cycle of the butterfly. We learned about how a butterfly begins as an unsightly caterpillar, then perches on a leaf and hides in a cocoon until he develops wings and breaks out and flies away. What a perfect Spring unit for kindergarten!<br /><br />For an object lesson, Mrs. Provart had us each craft our own little cocoons to display around the classroom, using what resembled (and probably was) homemade play dough. We were excited! First, we threw on our jackets and headed outdoors to find a twig, on which to attach our makeshift cocoons. Getting to go outside during non-recess time was always the best treat! <br /><br />I have to say, I probably would never have remembered this project at all, since I was only 6 years old, if not for the incident that ensued. <br /><br />I don't know if I thought I would recognize a twig when I saw one, but I looked and looked all over the school yard and found not one little twig. All my classmates didn't seem to have the same problem as I, snatching up their finding from the ground and promptly running back to get in line at the door. I was too busy looking for my own twig that I never bothered to look at what the other kids were picking up.<br /><br />Finally, every last student had found a twig and was lined up to go back inside. Except for me. My child mind simply did not know what a "twig" was. A slight desperation came over me. My teacher noticed me, head down, nervously pacing under the big tree in the yard and came over to see what the trouble was. <br /><br />"Did you find a twig? We need to go back into the classroom now."<br /><br />I felt like crying, I was so embarrassed. I didn't know why I couldn't figure this out but that all the other kids could. Not wanting to admit my uncertainty, I exclaimed, "I can't find a twig!"<br /><br />Mrs. Provart furrowed her brow. Of course, there were twigs <span style="font-style:italic;">everywhere</span> underfoot, but I didn't know it. I have no idea what she was thinking when I told her I couldn't find one, but she bent down to pick up the first twig lying in front of her, handed it to me, and said, "Ok, let's go - it's chilly out here!"<br /><br />Was I ever dumbfounded, holding what was, apparently, a twig, in front of my face. I clearly remember thinking, 'Why didn't she just say she wanted us to find a <span style="font-style:italic;">stick</span>?'<br /><br />After getting inside I noticed that my twig was smaller than everyone else's. It also was broken, barely holding together in the middle. But it was too late to go back out to find a different one. If only I had known, I could have found the best twig for my cocoon! <br /><br />This was probably one of the first times in my life I recall feeling ridiculous and being resentful about it. 'How come I didn't know a small stick was a twig? Why didn't anyone ever tell me? Why didn't Mrs. Provart show us what a twig was before making us find one by ourselves?' Though apparently, I was the only one in my class in the dark. How silly! I remember feeling bothered at the thought.<br /><br />That day I learned what a twig is. I also discovered that there was much to know in this big, wide world, and that the learning might not always come easily or naturally. I learned that sometimes you will even feel foolish in the process, but that those are the lessons you never forget.taralynn819http://www.blogger.com/profile/03048501104136348806noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5432987108537259378.post-32664625178749694912009-06-08T14:22:00.027-04:002009-06-08T20:11:21.448-04:00When Cell Phones Gets Wet<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyARhQnP2gRMAAL53ugipCckFovXwLUzhY90tpBe6mdiiCTb1q7DVfaLk4i8jkzjyiGQ_kFef7AgPd37mOgyS3X5MahyyeNT3McvVQuSthsJsQtFrjtNlb98wFr8GKXCuyHfKqAkcR59I/s1600-h/hiking.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyARhQnP2gRMAAL53ugipCckFovXwLUzhY90tpBe6mdiiCTb1q7DVfaLk4i8jkzjyiGQ_kFef7AgPd37mOgyS3X5MahyyeNT3McvVQuSthsJsQtFrjtNlb98wFr8GKXCuyHfKqAkcR59I/s400/hiking.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5345050199661866690" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://mandigirl-muses.blogspot.com/">Amanda</a> at Mandi Girl Muses recently lamented an incident where their <a href="http://mandigirl-muses.blogspot.com/2009/05/how-i-wish-i-believed-in-karma.html">dog ate her husband's Blackberry</a>. Chewed it all up, and right before a business trip! The post reminded me of the time something somewhat similar happened to me...<br /><br />Still a nanny up to a week before we got married, I helped my host family move from North Carolina to Kansas while finishing up planning for our wedding. I took the family's 1.5-year-old on lots of afternoon walks around the neighborhood, always drawn to the lake around the corner (being the MN girl I am!). <br /><br />On one such outing we parked ourselves on the dock and I placed my cell on top of the stroller (stupid, stupid me!!) while I went to sit down. Not 5 seconds later I heard a "plop" and it took a moment to register that something fell into the lake. Immediately I was like, "What was that?!" and I looked to see my poor cell phone sink to the muddy bottom of the lake.<br /><br />My only connection to my directory, quick access to my groom-to-be and everyone involved in the wedding planning -- in just <span style="font-style:italic;">two weeks</span>! Though I was no bridezilla, a girl has only one wedding and she relies on being able to coordinate at a moment's notice.<br /><br />Lets just say the next few minutes (or maybe hours) were not my most shining moments. Yeah, major freak-out.<br /><br />Turns out the neighbor across the street (an engineer - glad I married one myself!) attached a magnet to a long stick, retrieved my phone (I have no idea how he found it!), then took it apart and air pressured it so that I could use the first two columns of numbers and access my directory. When does <span style="font-style:italic;">that</span> happen to a drenched cell phone?!<br /><br />I could have hugged him!<br /><br />The whole thing was innocent enough. Samantha was simply wiggling in the stroller because she, the little fish, would have dived into the water head first if she could. With her shaking in the seat, my phone must have fallen into her lap. And since she couldn't go for a swim, I'm certain she thought it would be fun to at least throw something into the lake, and so she did. All in a matter of seconds. Poor girl didn't know any better and I was unwise for taking along my phone in the first place!<br /><br />Since the incident I've been trying to take things in better stride and act instead of react to my circumstances. As much as I would like to control every detail of my (and, what the hay, everybody else's) life, I can't. And what's more, God won't let me. (Well, and how else would I have anything to blog about??) These frustrating little happenings prove that over and over.<br /> <br />So I'm screaming like banshee (figuratively speaking!) and He's like, "Woa, it's really ok! Breathe! See? You're not dying. The sky is blue. And you'll get through this just like every other time." <br /><br />Thank His goodness God didn't matter-of-factly state, "It is still very possible to plan a wedding 1000 miles away without a cell phone." Although, He very well could have! I'd have burst into tears!<br /><br />I had this little saying I would often whisper in my head while stressing over some or other college deadline:"If I can get through this, I can get through anything."<br /><br />For some reason that little phrase seemed to help carry me through the task (possibly all-nighter). And then with a sigh of relief I would look back over the difficulty and thank God for His help and pat myself on the back for my sticktoitiveness (as my dad would say).<br /><br />Sometimes I still motivate myself with those same words; for instance, when I'm on the treadmill and feel like quitting. Although, more often I tell myself, "Just two more minutes." And when the two minutes are up I say it again. "Two more minutes." Sounds better than reality, which is usually 46 more minutes!<br /><br />I think, in circumstances where I feel most helpless and desperate I need to remember the verse in Lamentations 3 where it says that God's "compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness". Just wait for it. There's always something around the bend to lift us up, whether after the slightest drizzle or a swirling hurricane. It won't always mean complete restoration of what we've lost or broken, but God will find a way to somehow encourage our heart.<br /><br />Even be it a mere reminder of how fortunate we are in this country to own a cell phone. Or to wear a beautiful white dress on a wedding day we for so long planned. Or how much more meaningful it is to dwell on what really matters in life rather than the "stuff" that often clogs our lives. Getting to be someone's bride, someone's nanny, and perhaps someone's good example of what calm, sustaining trust in a faithful God looks like.taralynn819http://www.blogger.com/profile/03048501104136348806noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5432987108537259378.post-26238628407396757342009-05-18T14:14:00.006-04:002009-05-18T14:56:26.414-04:00Things to Consciously Work OnUnpacking, though tedious, can be surprisingly fun. Especially the digging through boxes that have long been in storage and finding places for each item. Over the course of the last week since we closed on our house, some aspects of the unpacking has even felt like Christmas! <br /><br />"I totally forgot about that!"<br /><br />"I didn't know I still had this!"<br /><br />"I don't even remember writing this!"<br /><br />I have been rediscovering <em>so </em> many papers and journals of my past that I have been enjoying coming across. I love having record of so many little pieces of my past. They've all shaped me. I am no longer the person who wrote in the moment (just as I am not the person I was last month or even last week) but, compiled, they make up my biography. <br /><br />One such interesting find was a list I made one night back in December of 2003. I believe I was reading the <em>Purpose Driven Life</em> by Rick Warren at the time, and for whatever reason, I felt I needed some personal, visible accountability in my life. I recall thinking I would scribble up a list of 10 things to work on, and I just kept writing, and writing, until I covered an entire notebook sheet front and back! And I know I could certainly add to the list!<br /><br />I wanted to type up this list before I lose it one way or another because, if not a standard, it is a good guidline and reminder. I let Jeromy read the list the other day and he said it sounded like a list for anyone. <br /><br />Many aspirations in this list sound lofty and unreachable (and they are), and a couple of them even contradict one another(!), but I remember being absolutely serious when I wrote out each one. It reveals how God was working in my heart during that time. And maybe once again, now that I've stumbled upon it!<br /><br /><br /><br />The list is entitled, "Things to Consciously Work On"<br /><br /><br />-telling the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but<br /><br />-selflessness/others-minded<br /><br />-thinking rationally, logically, and thoroughly before acting or speaking<br /><br />-honoring my parents<br /><br />-speaking my faith to believers and non-believers alike<br /><br />-community with God through prayer consistently<br /><br />-having a good attitude<br /><br />-patience and trust when in a hurry or when disappointed<br /><br />-contentment<br /><br />-dependence on God - not feeling like I have to seek what I want, knowing God does what is best in His timing<br /><br />-uplifting and encouraging others in various forms<br /><br />-dedicating each day to God and living the day in light of that prayer<br /><br />-Bible study - quantity and quality<br /><br />-doing everything and living every moment for the glory of God; doing my best with whatever task God has given me to do - any time and any size<br /><br />-loving others unconditionally when annoyed or rejected<br /><br />-good stewaredship with my money<br /><br />-good stewardship with my time - focus on what is really important; don't waste a moment<br /><br />-stop and reflect on blessings with gratitude<br /><br />-work on social/conversational skills<br /><br />-drive safely and aware always of surroundings (ha ha! love this one!)<br /><br />-not being envious of another's gifts, such as: singing or writing skills and exposure, connections with famous people, spiritual walk, relationship, career, family, friends, motivation, etc.; I need to be thankful for the provision and portion God has graciously given me<br /><br />-budgeting time and energy (balance); don't get consumed with just one thing, even if it is a good thing<br /><br />-give full attention and devotion to responsibilities<br /><br />-stewardship of my body the Temple, including healthy eating habits, exercise, sleep, loud music, etc.; I can't be used by God with a broken body<br /><br />-stop worrying; give God my fears and concerns instead<br /><br />-think on Philippians 4:8 things, especially what is real and true; don't dwell on the past or daydream about bad things that could happen in the future, even good things that may or may never happen, as none of these things are true <em>now</em>; focus on the present and take opportunities God provides daily - preparing for future responsibilities, ministry opportunities, etc.<br /><br />-memorize Scripture, especially reviewing salvation verses so that I am equipped when I need them<br /><br />-don't allow even good Christian music to run my life - is it becoming a god?<br /><br />-live so that Christ <em>is</em> my Lord. Seek His will upon decision making<br /><br />-trust God to help me do something I don't want to do or don't feel qualified to do<br /><br />-learn how to cook, take care of a car, sew simple things, use a check book properly; education myself about insurance, simle plumbing and housekeeping strategies, equipment, and products so that I am well prepared to live on my own or become an adequate helper for a husband someday (yeah, I was lame for not knowing how to do these things!)<br /><br />-don't be afraid to fall in love<br /><br />-don't write to impress others, but because I mean it<br /><br />-stop being a perfectionist <br /><br />-obey right away when God directs<br /><br />-let others know they are loved and appreciated<br /><br />-don't get distracted easily - stay focused<br /><br />-go the extra mile in everything (ha! but don't be a perfectionist, how does that work??)<br /><br />-live above reproach; Christ is the example and goal <br /><br />-sacrifice and surrender what I want for the good of others<br /><br />-live for Eternity; don't get caught up even in good things, as this world is not my home. God is my prize.taralynn819http://www.blogger.com/profile/03048501104136348806noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5432987108537259378.post-87392509074785645492009-05-06T14:02:00.008-04:002009-05-08T09:06:43.982-04:00Little Owl House in the Country<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij_2FUDA6GrTw2-V9UkHpO-Oxddn6QaxMhu_INWVbbdeNZbe3BiBLKw_A9AIcVrnSNy1zaq1wYQtYTKsa7sh9ZryZnODMttqJmrkOSLDqMDMx5kvSv_plRSAaUiEwHlI31Bq0Vm73GsUA/s1600-h/whereyoulivebutton.png"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 184px; height: 166px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij_2FUDA6GrTw2-V9UkHpO-Oxddn6QaxMhu_INWVbbdeNZbe3BiBLKw_A9AIcVrnSNy1zaq1wYQtYTKsa7sh9ZryZnODMttqJmrkOSLDqMDMx5kvSv_plRSAaUiEwHlI31Bq0Vm73GsUA/s400/whereyoulivebutton.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5333428554578506450" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />I'm participating in <a href="http://www.kellyskornerblog.com/">Kelly's</a> home tour this week to cover all rooms because we're just moving into our house and we haven't really made it "our own" yet. But the carnival was just too fun not to participate in at least once! :)<br /><br />BTW, I am looking for inspiration wherever I can find it - especially for the living room - so I am especially excited to to sneak a peek at everyone's photos this go around! <span style="font-style:italic;">So</span> fun!<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-FxBCDEAaFdS-7nswTThxuJIIu_ALvTj0uA9KBWCt-YF4mR0bogsL6sUWSMxtVLMBHFB8iR-KS9txK7BF1E21Clgno-EA8oEovIKiOkI_q3IicRuMU6rK9XDS5asRBogdH3sL7unI7v0/s1600-h/IMG_6016.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-FxBCDEAaFdS-7nswTThxuJIIu_ALvTj0uA9KBWCt-YF4mR0bogsL6sUWSMxtVLMBHFB8iR-KS9txK7BF1E21Clgno-EA8oEovIKiOkI_q3IicRuMU6rK9XDS5asRBogdH3sL7unI7v0/s400/IMG_6016.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332706907410594722" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />I have yet to write a single post about our new adventure, so I'm sitting here until it's done!<br /><br /> After 2 1/2 years of married life in Southern Maryland, we have just packed up and moved six hours West. (Still, closer to Minnesota!) In March, Jeromy accepted a job in his home state of West Virginia, and we are now finally closing on a house <span style="font-style:italic;">this</span> Friday! For several months Jeromy had been looking into jobs in several states, with no success. We would never have thought to consider West Virginia, what with engineering jobs (or much of any other job, for that matter) normally so sparse out here. Then, lo and behold, a friend from church steered us to a tiny branch of the large company he works for, and here we are. <br /><br />In the middle of relocation mayhem!<br /><br />I have to say, it will take some getting used to the slower pace of life in West Virginia. As in the snail. The turtle. A lot of businesses are still considerably old fashioned in their methods and practices. I sense that patience just might become my life lesson from now on!<br /><br />For instance, today I walked into the post office (which, by the way, <span style="font-style:italic;">reeked</span> of smoke) to get a money order. Once I whipped out my credit/debit card to pay, the little old post lady was like, "Oh, no. We don't take anything but cash or check. We're not computerized." <br /><br />I was like, "Wha?" And then she pointed to the huge neon colored poster boards on the wall in back of her. (I have no idea how I missed them!) <br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">"Cash/Check Only" <br /><br />"NO CREDIT CARDS"</span><br /><br />"Sorry," she said. We're old fashioned." Those exact words, my friends!<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Really.</span><br /><br />However, the interstate is not bumper-to-bumper traffic at 6am as is the norm in the DC area. And strangers actually take the time to chit chat! I like that!<br /><br />And of course, I absolutely love living among rolling hills and distant mountain views! It is annoying to have to pop my ears every day, but that's a small price compared to living along such gorgeous countryside! And the air! The air is <span style="font-style:italic;">so</span> <span style="font-style:italic;">much drier</span> than Southern-Maryland-sticky-peninsula-steam. Can you believe I am actually looking forward to summer weather this year?! I might be the only West Virginia resident ever to dislike sweet tea (don't hate), but be certain I'll be sitting on our back porch sipping a sweet <span style="font-style:italic;">some</span>thing!<br /><br />For the last month we have been staying in a hotel in Morgantown, approximately a 45-minute drive to Clarksburg. <span style="font-style:italic;">Not fun.</span> And that's all I'm going to say about that.<br /><br />We have attended a couple of churches here in town, but the church hunt has really yet to begin in Clarksburg. We look forward to getting involved in a great work and connecting with other believers. The sooner the better!<br /><br />A couple of weekends ago our hotel got smoked out by a cigarette fire that started outside on the landscaping. Evacuated from our room, we hit up Starbucks to pass the time. As we sat down I noticed a girl crocheting in the seat across from us. I asked her about her project, and throughout the flow of conversation found out we are both Christians. Her husband attends WVU in Morgantown as a law student, although they are from the Clarksburg area. And it turns out the couple is part of a church plant in Fairmont, another neighboring city. <a href="http://renovatecommunity.blogspot.com/">Renovate Church</a> meets every other Saturday night, and we are hoping to catch up with them at their next service. What an interesting encounter! <br /><br />Jeromy is getting situated in his job, but I have yet to find work. There are a few full time positions within Jeromy's company network, but I would really prefer 30 hours or less. And the majority of part time jobs around here involve retail, which I have long proclaimed I would avoid like the plague. <br /><br />I applied to one position to work with autistic children, which sounded extremely promising! Yet the hourly pay was less than I what made in high school, and included a 25-minute commute to boot. Husband calculated that after fuel and taxes, I would bring home a measly $49 check each week. As neat as the position sounded, there are easier and less time consuming ways to <span style="font-style:italic;">save</span> $49!<br /><br />So the search continues. We really do live in Podunk, so prospects look grim. But maybe it will just take a little time. Meanwhile, all things "new house" will surely keep my hands from becoming the least bit idle.<br /><br />So with all that said, welcome to our new home! After seeing more than 25 houses in the Clarksburg/Fairmont areas of West Virginia, we decided to put an offer on the very last one! As first time home buyers, we had no idea what we wanted at the start. If we had purchased a couple years ago we may have considered more of a fixer-upper, but we realized we would really just like to move in and get settled right away. Especially in this buyers market and a state with a cheaper cost of living! But by the time we found this home we had realized what specific things we were looking for - and what we were <span style="font-style:italic;">not</span> looking for.<br /><br />We looked at several different styles of houses, but we absolutely love our final choice. The only complaint is the lack of a basement. I suppose if that becomes a problem, then it's time to pare down the "stuff"! As for practical storage, we will hopefully add some custom shelving in the future. (Any organization tips are more than welcomed!) This is a new construction, so we are starting from scratch. But for the time being it's more than enough space for us.<br /><br />We think the front of the house looks like an owl.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQCUHcSVSAmfLC0ydjZwQn5Pxdh3_X26EI_0u1G3ly32f_wYcGedvYtrcuhWX0_Nl1TmZRWHZhxtAucgS4onPY355P1a0DDAJUjEWII8ExcBsFgrS7o4Eoet7nu6DJ2clu5vVN98yOlFw/s1600-h/IMG_6019.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQCUHcSVSAmfLC0ydjZwQn5Pxdh3_X26EI_0u1G3ly32f_wYcGedvYtrcuhWX0_Nl1TmZRWHZhxtAucgS4onPY355P1a0DDAJUjEWII8ExcBsFgrS7o4Eoet7nu6DJ2clu5vVN98yOlFw/s400/IMG_6019.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332706836203444226" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />C'mon, you know you know it does. Hoo hoo....<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8Z9Xfx9adLI2ecDxGZiTHc6uPZxg_kEFhgOVW7TKhw5GWGeb3eSJJgQ4dstccW2n-nUD6xho8rZOCkKxFhh6o8fzTR9QjKbpnUs3vXJY1oYm8bga9lJjgkESlWd_sTzrN1y7Epm79ICw/s1600-h/IMG_6051.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8Z9Xfx9adLI2ecDxGZiTHc6uPZxg_kEFhgOVW7TKhw5GWGeb3eSJJgQ4dstccW2n-nUD6xho8rZOCkKxFhh6o8fzTR9QjKbpnUs3vXJY1oYm8bga9lJjgkESlWd_sTzrN1y7Epm79ICw/s400/IMG_6051.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332710246815927970" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifq5ZXb_EVROi-ykYkiGI43sdgFYp0ekGcfPaoYscDvyBtM7ryHCIDgijgW2xqirZMYUCBBJJxYQcq7xF2WIKmQR4umxfrXVCsLirbvYnfbMQiZXy323_9Zv4KIMrBpHBPGieRTFZvF_0/s1600-h/IMG_6052.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifq5ZXb_EVROi-ykYkiGI43sdgFYp0ekGcfPaoYscDvyBtM7ryHCIDgijgW2xqirZMYUCBBJJxYQcq7xF2WIKmQR4umxfrXVCsLirbvYnfbMQiZXy323_9Zv4KIMrBpHBPGieRTFZvF_0/s400/IMG_6052.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332710504145287650" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Some views of our front yard. This really is the country! Especially for this city girl!<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj69TiA-PUlEciQhLgsttBN44ASSm3JVKCSDV2jlal9wwqQY-FyrOVJU4Jj-RGHNAJIbFhuGcFHNKzCbCS_ewv2a78z_kGWG92OidbQtUoha9PnMUQN77G6X-S8rIxqqPUaEjL4N7smcmY/s1600-h/IMG_6018.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj69TiA-PUlEciQhLgsttBN44ASSm3JVKCSDV2jlal9wwqQY-FyrOVJU4Jj-RGHNAJIbFhuGcFHNKzCbCS_ewv2a78z_kGWG92OidbQtUoha9PnMUQN77G6X-S8rIxqqPUaEjL4N7smcmY/s400/IMG_6018.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332710075581232162" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5-gWbKCVbVqdvx3hOaeudZBzQxqYnCACDBkc_gtVOISCLiQnne7bHsXvcSRvOMHOsZs0TKhO8OhS7fKrppl6X_F80MSmPk21kBp0AvNhW4LKds8O-4dTbqZHrvjhejMAqRfJSBtLQOCQ/s1600-h/IMG_6054.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5-gWbKCVbVqdvx3hOaeudZBzQxqYnCACDBkc_gtVOISCLiQnne7bHsXvcSRvOMHOsZs0TKhO8OhS7fKrppl6X_F80MSmPk21kBp0AvNhW4LKds8O-4dTbqZHrvjhejMAqRfJSBtLQOCQ/s400/IMG_6054.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332710747884955762" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Love, love, love the neighborhood! It's funny, our Realtor actually lives just around the block! We had no idea where she lived until we asked to see this house! I don't know if this will be a good thing or a bad thing, but all in all, she is pretty nice lady!<br /><br />Also, there is this bluegrass-singing family in our neighborhood - The Vaughns! Check out their tunes on their <a href="http://www.thevaughnsbluegrass.com/home.cfm?mpf=frame&">website</a>! I can't wait to hear them live!<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0bXZToTrhQw9jai0JG23HUKoYNnVSSfvmh4cyBMYp9BmZ44yBYU7DtMqVDr2-ruzXbKiDXiFCkl-OpQSJjsTKcGJJAtcQxvNaPWCMJs__9lFcuOVrbrrpA8Qits4nXb1W09N1CrJEh0I/s1600-h/IMG_6053.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0bXZToTrhQw9jai0JG23HUKoYNnVSSfvmh4cyBMYp9BmZ44yBYU7DtMqVDr2-ruzXbKiDXiFCkl-OpQSJjsTKcGJJAtcQxvNaPWCMJs__9lFcuOVrbrrpA8Qits4nXb1W09N1CrJEh0I/s400/IMG_6053.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332710882658136290" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCzu8xhujPyxXbZPwE3ZOzj35xIcx98CmUo7a06Jzp8pg4makH3MKd2fOCXWOqdR3SUSCs9KL2vq-Qg5ydWLdrbPRadr6mpSYGVTmwznvwOLfBlrHeA7iM1fgFD8JjqSv9Q7wBUW5xELY/s1600-h/IMG_6022.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCzu8xhujPyxXbZPwE3ZOzj35xIcx98CmUo7a06Jzp8pg4makH3MKd2fOCXWOqdR3SUSCs9KL2vq-Qg5ydWLdrbPRadr6mpSYGVTmwznvwOLfBlrHeA7iM1fgFD8JjqSv9Q7wBUW5xELY/s400/IMG_6022.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5331339902303644802" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />The foyer and dining room. None of the furniture in this house belongs to us. The contractor staged it with his MIL's stuff. It's going to take some time for us to nicely furnish and decorate this place after living in a simple 2-bedroom apartment for almost 3 years! But we are looking forward to the process...slowly but surely. <br /><br />At first I wanted to paint right away, but I think now we will wait until we purchase big furniture items like a nicer couch and dining table, to figure out our color palate. <br /><br />So, I'll be on Craigslist if you need me. :) <br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxjmSyEgVCAUvuYsOdfSPKnUX87SccJOUKQY9XV7EmnSqqnjOqjMOpK5O2yQNb5tuMhyhQKeFmOKd4kY-dGEwWr_v7yrDHp5rZomtVHPi-mcoIisZzyvvQQG7X3kf1E-4ggWQOZQzzNV0/s1600-h/IMG_6020.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxjmSyEgVCAUvuYsOdfSPKnUX87SccJOUKQY9XV7EmnSqqnjOqjMOpK5O2yQNb5tuMhyhQKeFmOKd4kY-dGEwWr_v7yrDHp5rZomtVHPi-mcoIisZzyvvQQG7X3kf1E-4ggWQOZQzzNV0/s400/IMG_6020.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5331339979866381634" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />I would like to get a cute bistro table like this one, or perhaps an island with a couple stools. This corner off the kitchen needs <span style="font-style:italic;">something</span>.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiggehi3iO6aHS3dzNnHt4KSOdCcygqwZ5BZvadwze7LoaoXUBj5mnXXdk5GvT8_yMiEu0alY9fKbs2Vfkr9tlkuC01l84PQTbM41KC-C9NGPWd3k_o_lQ7IlaK5E2SD4eyOsYM_e9Wa9Q/s1600-h/IMG_6021.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiggehi3iO6aHS3dzNnHt4KSOdCcygqwZ5BZvadwze7LoaoXUBj5mnXXdk5GvT8_yMiEu0alY9fKbs2Vfkr9tlkuC01l84PQTbM41KC-C9NGPWd3k_o_lQ7IlaK5E2SD4eyOsYM_e9Wa9Q/s400/IMG_6021.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5331340209337490578" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Voila, our galley kitchen! We have ordered black appliances, which are being installed as I type! We thought about stainless steel (or even the stainless "look") but didn't want to have to deal with dents and finger prints. And there are flecks of black in our counter top, so it was just the best choice. Plus, our contractor only gave us $2500 for appliances, and we had none but a microwave, so it saved us from having to spend too much out of our own pocket.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcIFXBnE1AEvJccwnAe-Lx3mLQwVFMhlbqeZdX4dIYZfsA4mJBLMjQLzgwQnpfXoSx9ufuOkh9HjLfSk_XahljDhGjjSPB3py9uubRWegdXwYcY94UwEErWGO39hu36b6pg7Tb7iJm4Dw/s1600-h/IMG_6023.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcIFXBnE1AEvJccwnAe-Lx3mLQwVFMhlbqeZdX4dIYZfsA4mJBLMjQLzgwQnpfXoSx9ufuOkh9HjLfSk_XahljDhGjjSPB3py9uubRWegdXwYcY94UwEErWGO39hu36b6pg7Tb7iJm4Dw/s400/IMG_6023.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5331340124058183666" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigrGeSNQm3K_R6nGHMlHX7NWNmT0teOs61GTT9PwAwCF5NVZZ-Oc6Z5tg2RFY9LxqqSGCo74PybWqXkPxhv6i6g7DI0eA5e8-DBMPx8YAu-tMNeA0KHW5duzYnoMUj9oygn8xp8a5v-nk/s1600-h/IMG_6024.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigrGeSNQm3K_R6nGHMlHX7NWNmT0teOs61GTT9PwAwCF5NVZZ-Oc6Z5tg2RFY9LxqqSGCo74PybWqXkPxhv6i6g7DI0eA5e8-DBMPx8YAu-tMNeA0KHW5duzYnoMUj9oygn8xp8a5v-nk/s400/IMG_6024.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332707411187383250" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />This is the laundry room, and in the distance you can see the utility room. Additional shelving would be nice here eventually.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8wLZ9RpzWCQtzQPI_WrSYgxzdWBiP_WI8ksGNn3xRMDFOJ6MDTPfXKfIks68h2eZQlLbUmuRrapDImaYVMbo_TyvV7S_YFDBEFAAZJXGT3m150V6QRL4ADDEMPP1mHRxY9TkLLH4mi34/s1600-h/IMG_6026.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8wLZ9RpzWCQtzQPI_WrSYgxzdWBiP_WI8ksGNn3xRMDFOJ6MDTPfXKfIks68h2eZQlLbUmuRrapDImaYVMbo_TyvV7S_YFDBEFAAZJXGT3m150V6QRL4ADDEMPP1mHRxY9TkLLH4mi34/s400/IMG_6026.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332707553144243314" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />And the living room. I'm definitely not a fan of the furniture choices or placement here. I would like to get a nice couch to divide the room horizontally so there's not as much dead space. At first I thought, we <span style="font-style:italic;">must</span> cover the living room with carpet (it's all I know), but after many comments and opinions of others, I have softened to the prospect of using area rugs. I will need a fairly large area rug to satisfy my preference for coziness, but I'm gaining confidence that this living room will turn out lovely one day.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC5fA7eBwBUVdqNQdMUR6PoD-nTitc58DR44eZibzc7GCpJI2zKp6_nHuvLmYwYIFMO0NuZValz4S9BDy-MI91MtMOqpitp2xD5Sy1f5Ribx3rapImn6BUxnhDgG9YidG7t6fTv7C0rY8/s1600-h/IMG_6027.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC5fA7eBwBUVdqNQdMUR6PoD-nTitc58DR44eZibzc7GCpJI2zKp6_nHuvLmYwYIFMO0NuZValz4S9BDy-MI91MtMOqpitp2xD5Sy1f5Ribx3rapImn6BUxnhDgG9YidG7t6fTv7C0rY8/s400/IMG_6027.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332707677596233122" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfmoVi_O1nqmuIhKZys8zfJ_rnekJWOO1l-DtxQkRl4IyVCO7AYi1TipGeHoW8XRRLvHrv1f-3Gx-cSD93_MYOmQ0FQAyGGnPSmSqJCBP2EZMfkRC2xcHd3zzK-NHPWkMKlqVAU1a_0Sc/s1600-h/IMG_6029.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfmoVi_O1nqmuIhKZys8zfJ_rnekJWOO1l-DtxQkRl4IyVCO7AYi1TipGeHoW8XRRLvHrv1f-3Gx-cSD93_MYOmQ0FQAyGGnPSmSqJCBP2EZMfkRC2xcHd3zzK-NHPWkMKlqVAU1a_0Sc/s400/IMG_6029.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332707837525460098" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />I wish I could keep that desk! <br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhegXUr4CtkqFyWC5SMjlc_Av2GXqIg8PAC-LKKDqmwMGXizoImGa9Qbbi6mYwHrg8kplfMjBcy1mPhziqfKT16A3oF1GU6igLu-HFZTTHIU-e9aSU0sBn9GbVb0zrhqvWk7NJGpsatjKg/s1600-h/IMG_6025.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhegXUr4CtkqFyWC5SMjlc_Av2GXqIg8PAC-LKKDqmwMGXizoImGa9Qbbi6mYwHrg8kplfMjBcy1mPhziqfKT16A3oF1GU6igLu-HFZTTHIU-e9aSU0sBn9GbVb0zrhqvWk7NJGpsatjKg/s400/IMG_6025.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332733311157997906" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeZGEirMYr7fp5JhiqSju8UAKrYqx-53lQDey6h4p6DZTLrZ7Lx8rgtMGNSXiEZZttvkr2JRHyC_LDstyi235zy_yBh2MI6SYi2F1PtNdBGqcf2sN-sn2VBjRyiiMFpXxsNvTvG-3UVa4/s1600-h/IMG_6030.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeZGEirMYr7fp5JhiqSju8UAKrYqx-53lQDey6h4p6DZTLrZ7Lx8rgtMGNSXiEZZttvkr2JRHyC_LDstyi235zy_yBh2MI6SYi2F1PtNdBGqcf2sN-sn2VBjRyiiMFpXxsNvTvG-3UVa4/s400/IMG_6030.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332707961801088882" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />And, of course, the master bedroom. We are ok with the carpet, although we wish we could have picked it out ourselves as we did the appliances. We'll work with it. Owning a matching bedroom suite like this would be so nice, but it's definitely not in our budget!<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzgMT1G29qaa_mOp-lgIio6YTi9HT_MgqCLdjjAOT0sT4fDaT4NaMQfPn9GlQW5bvmbobjOFTFDAmlxyCErPVR6HOtxv16o3qKdwN_sa3yZiWM1jj0TLIlG1ACTNls8Cxz7AR_gGljr2s/s1600-h/IMG_6031.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzgMT1G29qaa_mOp-lgIio6YTi9HT_MgqCLdjjAOT0sT4fDaT4NaMQfPn9GlQW5bvmbobjOFTFDAmlxyCErPVR6HOtxv16o3qKdwN_sa3yZiWM1jj0TLIlG1ACTNls8Cxz7AR_gGljr2s/s400/IMG_6031.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332708087936327730" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHcV9h9_FB4Q4LHjLcbX5TlnwtvkuM1cxmj0_uBXEVjdnMp-jqk6NOEe6R1uRXMrlUcyMv5MVzWw_xDI5EXAriTR08x3H6uN2T5f-bGxJYtxhpdUrYljovgynwm098lXId7Ifqx9N_UKQ/s1600-h/IMG_6033.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHcV9h9_FB4Q4LHjLcbX5TlnwtvkuM1cxmj0_uBXEVjdnMp-jqk6NOEe6R1uRXMrlUcyMv5MVzWw_xDI5EXAriTR08x3H6uN2T5f-bGxJYtxhpdUrYljovgynwm098lXId7Ifqx9N_UKQ/s400/IMG_6033.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332708278191476034" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVf9XriUzT4GVOBnB1ntCwvA5gOajPUUDr564PAhqTp0U-T110_WB75wa2-Apq3FkZxaim91Lf93QewR-4M9w0Omg3Bwkr6bF4pkh_5cvWhGT8o59mOkwQdRDpRLQ4lOrnOeKBRXvEdnQ/s1600-h/IMG_6034.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVf9XriUzT4GVOBnB1ntCwvA5gOajPUUDr564PAhqTp0U-T110_WB75wa2-Apq3FkZxaim91Lf93QewR-4M9w0Omg3Bwkr6bF4pkh_5cvWhGT8o59mOkwQdRDpRLQ4lOrnOeKBRXvEdnQ/s400/IMG_6034.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332708394036913106" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />One of two closets in the master, but this one is a walk-in. Definitely could use more shelving here! How in the world am I going to organize shoes and belts until then??<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEju9VfsR1jiEH5_cUQCaUkDCVrDKp3QA1fcJcDHFn8PLJhaJeJfFrmwdyiKFKWujCIa7HuTxeWfYB_rLupC3BkPtQYsvRi0g0UgePl4aEQ_0HXnNjV_NVmBLOTpln3woV9ZGv1NDWraKeo/s1600-h/IMG_6035.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEju9VfsR1jiEH5_cUQCaUkDCVrDKp3QA1fcJcDHFn8PLJhaJeJfFrmwdyiKFKWujCIa7HuTxeWfYB_rLupC3BkPtQYsvRi0g0UgePl4aEQ_0HXnNjV_NVmBLOTpln3woV9ZGv1NDWraKeo/s400/IMG_6035.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332708514603343298" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Master bath with jacuzzi tub. It doesn't have heated jets though.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDkDZapOMOiEy4gxPT08atu1F4VJXWeaQBsYRgTgtwMlNSHyKCaC21_H2TTWJpP5zLDTpojKyz_GOGYWtf5YII6kS2AIY2betrMUwVPu6ITEtX5Nrz6YN57oV7TLu3Ef95B551pUqM5Bg/s1600-h/IMG_6036.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDkDZapOMOiEy4gxPT08atu1F4VJXWeaQBsYRgTgtwMlNSHyKCaC21_H2TTWJpP5zLDTpojKyz_GOGYWtf5YII6kS2AIY2betrMUwVPu6ITEtX5Nrz6YN57oV7TLu3Ef95B551pUqM5Bg/s400/IMG_6036.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332708642434613282" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlRGV8Ty-4MIdCfzDtJjgKqpumCUB-uRzax7YghLLCHtBqJhrK1UKQo-7xbdx5SZ3z1LBSiQC7ubx8zDs7YHPtI_e2K-F0QPUaFMvDJTEptNH0b-Eq8p8ZeW9paJ-qmD5rZCVhyuuM-50/s1600-h/IMG_6037.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlRGV8Ty-4MIdCfzDtJjgKqpumCUB-uRzax7YghLLCHtBqJhrK1UKQo-7xbdx5SZ3z1LBSiQC7ubx8zDs7YHPtI_e2K-F0QPUaFMvDJTEptNH0b-Eq8p8ZeW9paJ-qmD5rZCVhyuuM-50/s400/IMG_6037.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332708810052909682" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Bedrooms 2 and 3.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsqfUShF90c6fWef4ObSZw5I8lfiPfLGV1ybcFtpJofHcUWQW5El9Dz9v5BKGtTHbL-hlzO_BmaQBkJLYom_wIJfblPiCBBBs3PshuZD0iljiCLp2D89_q6Fsj8_ipxeG9eGHkRGqf1mI/s1600-h/IMG_6038.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsqfUShF90c6fWef4ObSZw5I8lfiPfLGV1ybcFtpJofHcUWQW5El9Dz9v5BKGtTHbL-hlzO_BmaQBkJLYom_wIJfblPiCBBBs3PshuZD0iljiCLp2D89_q6Fsj8_ipxeG9eGHkRGqf1mI/s400/IMG_6038.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332708973194658930" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp3sfSINOdktbFX0XTfpGWX9obMZXEuzU0v8Iknywno1x0FViHYrJ2xhYuCqc_nMIhWvZj6wyDJisUR3vGv_lt4-KJaGqhORQkufG28ejSGVWABcin4N4qmlPlyxAKdR3cx5Zn9ktco7o/s1600-h/IMG_6039.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp3sfSINOdktbFX0XTfpGWX9obMZXEuzU0v8Iknywno1x0FViHYrJ2xhYuCqc_nMIhWvZj6wyDJisUR3vGv_lt4-KJaGqhORQkufG28ejSGVWABcin4N4qmlPlyxAKdR3cx5Zn9ktco7o/s400/IMG_6039.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332709088451655122" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Hallway with Jeromy and the inspector. Just outside full bathroom #2.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy9QqJDOCA1V6u-xV3j4-v3abKvtyHWu7ZFf5M1BZrPurQvl_PLRC9Mbtgz4ja99w8zN9nphHdWTo-pxWvPAXkIqDrBBjpVizcTQriYf0RCPwZnEPWKob4o42MOerhPvSu809QGq1H33k/s1600-h/IMG_6043.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy9QqJDOCA1V6u-xV3j4-v3abKvtyHWu7ZFf5M1BZrPurQvl_PLRC9Mbtgz4ja99w8zN9nphHdWTo-pxWvPAXkIqDrBBjpVizcTQriYf0RCPwZnEPWKob4o42MOerhPvSu809QGq1H33k/s400/IMG_6043.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332709247366577746" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Not huge, but it's got everything you'll need! :)<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2SSZ4tVV9S0_hJx85qigQZWkaFdjD-lYW77iyyRjiDV_sl3ejRVHlFm7RNCe05WHseNveNaZrNsFBAAMbYW2qH8S1qenQeV113N-5JqD0o113lXXO3M0O6gc1n9Psmo1hg5JIcuDgrKE/s1600-h/IMG_6044.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2SSZ4tVV9S0_hJx85qigQZWkaFdjD-lYW77iyyRjiDV_sl3ejRVHlFm7RNCe05WHseNveNaZrNsFBAAMbYW2qH8S1qenQeV113N-5JqD0o113lXXO3M0O6gc1n9Psmo1hg5JIcuDgrKE/s400/IMG_6044.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332709371773030546" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCb2posUCvcIWRIvNiD8QZbabhrJ-2ug9XZpiRyIYhVxwJ5gGajImkHMTNU7tR9IQJJRULwzKEGA4-ExyvhesqvfHriLeUqf-_bto-dhf6IvRAcwTqUjF28Tbztl6oTTNvmEXknoneK4Q/s1600-h/IMG_6045.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCb2posUCvcIWRIvNiD8QZbabhrJ-2ug9XZpiRyIYhVxwJ5gGajImkHMTNU7tR9IQJJRULwzKEGA4-ExyvhesqvfHriLeUqf-_bto-dhf6IvRAcwTqUjF28Tbztl6oTTNvmEXknoneK4Q/s400/IMG_6045.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332709880570774194" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir8_Up-oIdz1ko-S-vX0_kf64AsIDxsrDvkyXiXYF2ozoT_ccG9ydFbO5ZgEGvVGKCIiU0Y12AuR6vn8JRgMNM2-uZ0hqHH1CDppCnmgLr1BUOx2k3JnttB1XlVFbtKIlDnLA7O8G2R9s/s1600-h/IMG_6040.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir8_Up-oIdz1ko-S-vX0_kf64AsIDxsrDvkyXiXYF2ozoT_ccG9ydFbO5ZgEGvVGKCIiU0Y12AuR6vn8JRgMNM2-uZ0hqHH1CDppCnmgLr1BUOx2k3JnttB1XlVFbtKIlDnLA7O8G2R9s/s400/IMG_6040.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332709509482431762" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />A couple views outside the master bedroom window. One of our neighbors has horses!!<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNsV4w79t7HoaOd2brH-wa7y4woLTLphH58C0rRLR3ClCJ-9qz-YMYtwxj3E587Qyca5ljf4CMRQKXg0e-gGa6K-ZacGZYxtlDtP1R4ixLhEiz88bEnVP6fHtLYKlu5ZhaFeCXZelZ5jc/s1600-h/IMG_6041.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNsV4w79t7HoaOd2brH-wa7y4woLTLphH58C0rRLR3ClCJ-9qz-YMYtwxj3E587Qyca5ljf4CMRQKXg0e-gGa6K-ZacGZYxtlDtP1R4ixLhEiz88bEnVP6fHtLYKlu5ZhaFeCXZelZ5jc/s400/IMG_6041.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332709638942867538" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLs5pQzweW56W43v5VMWAz43SpmCS7rRygI_KKxi63aBvzC8L-2c-z_A0O4tUzdmyPeGWFk5zC50WndXZIzgXIMurD9s-fA2dbi219xG49LtOM69i-iqJggklbcsp3yURl6CK_Cq1M7-E/s1600-h/IMG_6042.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLs5pQzweW56W43v5VMWAz43SpmCS7rRygI_KKxi63aBvzC8L-2c-z_A0O4tUzdmyPeGWFk5zC50WndXZIzgXIMurD9s-fA2dbi219xG49LtOM69i-iqJggklbcsp3yURl6CK_Cq1M7-E/s400/IMG_6042.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332709747109719106" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />See???<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzRE3ISqMGSef_VbqcLGKzPBc5vV_GIRdZFg1z0UtS_6KGmQgSkFxQxtC0c0DxrT1smTM0X2HHgD2q5Ka6nfymAdysBdyt0osbrq_fLWhyj2LOBV1scl6dPuKaG2nR-qRMwMwfB8wWfWk/s1600-h/IMG_6046.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzRE3ISqMGSef_VbqcLGKzPBc5vV_GIRdZFg1z0UtS_6KGmQgSkFxQxtC0c0DxrT1smTM0X2HHgD2q5Ka6nfymAdysBdyt0osbrq_fLWhyj2LOBV1scl6dPuKaG2nR-qRMwMwfB8wWfWk/s400/IMG_6046.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332711395084329698" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Backside of the house. The contractor has since built a white railing around the entire porch, which looks beautiful!<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLdLPI43FgMhBjIyGE1kXmTiQ0wPeMZ_oqEo4SP6KjnHfMgA_eYfsf0vtydtpdH4cKsbd2lZ8d4pAhDraakYpnmWOaXQy1y6tNv0lMAGbkRkGC6GCMfep3FLetnDX44c2nxlCIhbXcrJ0/s1600-h/IMG_6047.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLdLPI43FgMhBjIyGE1kXmTiQ0wPeMZ_oqEo4SP6KjnHfMgA_eYfsf0vtydtpdH4cKsbd2lZ8d4pAhDraakYpnmWOaXQy1y6tNv0lMAGbkRkGC6GCMfep3FLetnDX44c2nxlCIhbXcrJ0/s400/IMG_6047.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332711531782746466" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Backyard.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHWc25tR_1rZGQJhLgfjazadcw5BWDSV86S4_BRGqCjZGe9ioJ-INisDBS4smZLpM7hLVhop3XVNYN9bhinW96qR8pvYoZ5_4sbE9uiZIMwu7ODixiJIh0vt06AU4D_AOTs1js4Z8w6Kc/s1600-h/IMG_6049.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHWc25tR_1rZGQJhLgfjazadcw5BWDSV86S4_BRGqCjZGe9ioJ-INisDBS4smZLpM7hLVhop3XVNYN9bhinW96qR8pvYoZ5_4sbE9uiZIMwu7ODixiJIh0vt06AU4D_AOTs1js4Z8w6Kc/s400/IMG_6049.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332711677205213266" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />0.5 acres front and back combined. And it's a FLAT LOT. In West Virginia. That is nearly impossible! We looked at a lot of places with 1-2 acres, but most of the land was a steep grade so we are grateful for this!<br /><br />However, I will miss living 2 blocks from the nearest (non-convenience) store! Try 15-20 minutes!<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6NkzkFslRRoDdowf6H6eMTvsuRekiLmev0BEb5yka6t1NSjBzFbf1eFPkdg9nmt59ZShVPGLkkglb9mm0hZ8rodlwYxKBNmXGxcmddr60_JISi_qTMO_zvKPSjMNAQE_304wozcFxGsY/s1600-h/IMG_6050.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6NkzkFslRRoDdowf6H6eMTvsuRekiLmev0BEb5yka6t1NSjBzFbf1eFPkdg9nmt59ZShVPGLkkglb9mm0hZ8rodlwYxKBNmXGxcmddr60_JISi_qTMO_zvKPSjMNAQE_304wozcFxGsY/s400/IMG_6050.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332711790186902994" /></a><br /><br />I will post updates as we personalize our home. I'm hoping we'll still get a garden going this Spring. There's certainly enough space for one! We're excited to be home owners, even with the maintenance that comes along with it. We can't wait to have people over, so if we know you are you're in the area, let us know! We promise you won't have to sleep on the <span style="font-style:italic;">hard</span> wood floor!taralynn819http://www.blogger.com/profile/03048501104136348806noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5432987108537259378.post-88234671882034814232009-04-20T05:00:00.008-04:002009-04-21T18:11:43.583-04:00through the yearsHard to believe we lost you one year ago today. But what is time to you anymore? Keep on singing in that signature off-key way of yours, and be sure we will drown you out on the second verse!<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhER1JMDfff6GFiTzS21DpPbal46kI6W9AuP-4hSFKhVLHJMc5UWNtnpesuIECGKznrw8du18sh5QUu1_pxRPXqNctx6yJccBAIe0R7OF9huButwZBHKQIvPQD_M_oiPwCh81Id0TE7dpw/s1600-h/dadfortsnelling.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhER1JMDfff6GFiTzS21DpPbal46kI6W9AuP-4hSFKhVLHJMc5UWNtnpesuIECGKznrw8du18sh5QUu1_pxRPXqNctx6yJccBAIe0R7OF9huButwZBHKQIvPQD_M_oiPwCh81Id0TE7dpw/s400/dadfortsnelling.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5327270705851635554" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />"Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen." (Ephesians 3:20-21, ESV).<br /><br /><br />*turn on the volume*<br /><br /><embed src="http://www.jumpcut.com/media/flash/jump.swf?id=67E895761D0C11DDA599000423CF385C&asset_type=clip&asset_id=67E895761D0C11DDA599000423CF385C&asset_url=/media/dyn/95/1820/bf6360029da3d0be4be0436a71/lq.flv&eb=1" width="408" height="324" type="application/x-shockwave-flash"></embed>taralynn819http://www.blogger.com/profile/03048501104136348806noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5432987108537259378.post-92119228945916988292009-04-18T11:25:00.095-04:002009-05-05T07:56:18.070-04:00Did I mention I am sentimental? (Feel free to add your own!)Oh the little joys of childhood!<br /><br />I'm adding a few of mine to <a href="http://twentytwowords.com/2009/04/17/22-things-i-wish-carried-over-from-childhood-into-adulthood/">the list</a> (disclaimer - they are pretty 80's and 90's driven but not all):<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1En6wvpEc6QkYm4Uz8oNVHSJvnpxlohuOdlWMMxnhLoFQu8L6PjV5zghmRcvD0NPerv0cJmT_slputhLsxnVdjBCGyHJmMVmdiraSRKKVUmQqEBtdxUf5xO89WiLkxoi7mpJaJ0BP56c/s1600-h/tarajustin.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 318px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1En6wvpEc6QkYm4Uz8oNVHSJvnpxlohuOdlWMMxnhLoFQu8L6PjV5zghmRcvD0NPerv0cJmT_slputhLsxnVdjBCGyHJmMVmdiraSRKKVUmQqEBtdxUf5xO89WiLkxoi7mpJaJ0BP56c/s400/tarajustin.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326073376492815810" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />-scoring tokens at Circus Pizza (even though you cheated and let your little brother help you smack all those crocodiles!)<br /><br />-digging large holes in the backyard<br /><br />-riding your bike down a steep grade with no hands<br /><br />-learning how to french braid on Barbie<br /><br />-jumping through the sprinkler and getting grass stuck all the way up your legs<br /><br />-hanging upside down on the monkey bars<br /><br />-"markering" in paint-with-water books<br /><br />-playing school<br /><br />-camping out in the backyard with your friends and staying up all night drinking <a href="http://farm1.static.flickr.com/37/110345832_ed12624ce8.jpg">Jolt</a> and telling ghost stories<br /><br />-sleeping on the bus on the way to school (oh to not have to drive in morning traffic!!!)<br /><br />-buying mood rings at Claire's<br /><br />-making <a href="http://cache.daylife.com/imageserve/00nQaWmeKo9pq/340x.jpg">sweet jumps</a> at the sledding hill<br /><br />-spinning the crap out of your friends on the <a href="http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=38387843">tire swing</a><br /><br />-<a href="http://www.theamssite.com/images/viewfinder.jpg">view finders</a>!<br /><br />-getting treated to a box of <a href="http://www.laaker.com/micah/wpcontent/uploads/2008/06/animalcrackerlies1.png">Barnum's Animal Crackers</a> for going grocery shopping with Mom<br /><br />-trading stickers!!! (At 28, I still have my old <a href="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3271/2464869793_8459caa4e6.jpg?v=0">sticker books</a>!)<br /><br />-setting up a lemonade stand in front of your house (and being tickled when when the mailman says all he's got on him is a buck - oh for JOY!)<br /><br />-still playing out in the fresh snow well after dark (because the snow makes the sky look <a href="http://blog.fagstein.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/11/snowsky.jpg">bright and red</a>)<br /><br />-library book sales, especially on "bag day"<br /><br />-collecting <a href="http://snarc.files.wordpress.com/2008/08/pogs002.jpg">pogs</a>!<br /><br />-sucking on giant candy cane sticks or gnawing till your tongue is raw on huge layered <a href="http://www.candylandstore.com/prodimage/ca00054-lg.jpg">jawbreakers</a><br /><br />-requesting <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aDSh5wUtXt4">Bette Midler songs</a> on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radio_AAHS">Radio Aahs</a> (only Minnesota children will recall this!)<br /><br />-<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bA3CsIlVIWU">Four Square</a>, jump rope, and Hopscotch!<br /><br />-making sweet forts out of blankets, pillows, and chairs<br /><br />-spending hours ice skating and then wobbling back into the warming house to play <a href="http://www.furnitureplans.com/product_images/medium/7600_medium.jpg">knock hockey</a> during drink breaks<br /><br />-writing stories and drawing pictures with friends (maybe a girl thing!)<br /><br />-going to see the <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ewestenberg/2645354196/">Teddy Bear Band</a> with your family (or Club Fun TV)<br /><br />-carrying <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TpTWcxqfCm8">Pez</a> dispensers around in your pocket like it was gold<br /><br />-drawing pictures on the bulletin during church service (although, my brother still does this!)<br /><br />-or how about getting away with sleeping in church - ha!<br /><br />-finding a comfortable tree limb on which to sit and read<br /><br />-wearing cheap, plastic costumes to go Trick or Treating<br /><br />-mastering the game "<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KVzZVYtt64I">Simon</a>"<br /><br />-spinning in circles as fast as you can to feel dizzy<br /><br />-tape recording you and your friends being silly (<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW-MFuBEeDTWqsK25c4tNWl4kpEnk69hxTHrEwKTm_LzY_mJ23UB6tWpDnW2g4wadrN210MWfUw3YgM4PfXTgXNwQYh4q6LlzhvvUTjjzyHRhEli-nQSL4d312ANAg_s6xtjPe4rkat-Q/s320/FP+tape+recorder.jpg">this</a> is the one I had)<br /><br />-dumping your <a href="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2187/1580132179_e76675911b.jpg">bulk stash of Legos</a> on the floor - the sky's the limit!<br /><br />-getting a <a href="http://farm1.static.flickr.com/155/401221998_d6ebaba7ae.jpg">PINK PANTHER POP</a> with bubble gum eyes (and <a href="http://whoorl.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/10/icecream1.jpg">other treats</a>) from the ice cream man!<br /><br />-singing the entire <a href="http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=4504257">Animaniacs</a> song on the top of your lungs with your sibling(s)<br /><br />-feeling like you're in heaven when you walk into KB Toy store<br /><br />-playing neighborhood games like "Annie Annie Over", "London Bridge", "Hide and Seek", and "TV Tag"<br /><br />-standing at the kiosk for over an hour at Target, playing the new Super Nintendo (and begging your mom to get it for Christmas!)<br /><br />-sneaking around the house in December and finding said NES, feeling guilty and ecstatic at the same time <br /><br />-riding on your dad's shoulders and shivering with a fear of heights, yet laughing with glee that you can touch the ceiling<br /><br />-school supply shopping (I swear this will be the reason I have kids!) There is nothing better than a fresh box of Crans! (Crayons, for all you non-Midwesterners!)<br /><br />-chewing an entire pack of Hubba Bubba at one time (or half a pack of Bubble Tape)<br /><br />-<a href="http://www.bookitprogram.com/">BOOK IT</a>!! (and scoring personal pan pizzas from Pizza Hut, plus a Land Before Time puppet!)<br /><br />-lying under the Christmas tree and staring up at the lights<br /><br />-playing Candy Land with the family (with real candy for the prize) on Sunday nights and eating stove-top-popped popcorn<br /><br />-having tea parties using water and saltine crackers, and feeling it was pretty real since you didn't have to pretend to swallow<br /><br />-sweeping under a large pine tree to make a "house"<br /><br />-getting to lick the batter bowl (ok, so that's not <span style="font-style:italic;">exclusive </span>to childhood...but being given the <span style="font-style:italic;">privilege </span>to lick the bowl is!)<br /><br />-flying my <a href="http://www.rainbowbrite.tv/images/collect/kite.jpg">Rainbow Brite kite</a> at the park<br /><br />-saving the <a href="http://curlywurlygurly.files.wordpress.com/2008/06/charms1.jpg">cereal</a> marshmallows for last so that they get squishy and sweeten the milk <br /><br />-earning AWANA bucks/shares and bringing home a bag full of bouncy balls, plastic bracelets, and tootsie rolls<br /><br />-getting your mom to let you ride the carousel outside Red Owl grocery store <br /><br />-being scared to tear the tag off the pillow after watching <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJk6vfD-Y2U">this</a><br /><br />-rolling down a steep, grassy hill (and running back up to do it again!)<br /><br />-devouring a 9-piece Chicken McNugget drenched in BBQ sauce (I can almost taste them - but am sadly done with them forever)<br /><br />-Getting to "play Santa" by passing out all the presents at Christmas. Such an important job!<br /><br />-laughing at everything, no holding back<br /><br />-having <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sWnff376PEI">Big Wheel races</a> with the neighbor kids<br /><br />-listening to Wee Sing tapes on your Walkman<br /><br />-making intricate friendship bracelets and feeling so accomplished!<br /><br />-fighting over the middle back seat and "round spoon" (this one's for you, Justin!)<br /><br />-NO CABLE OR INTERNET!!! (love/hate of the worst kind)<br /><br />-experimenting with baking and making up recipes with your friends (Oh, so cake needs <span style="font-style:italic;">leavening</span>!)<br /><br />-twirling unabashedly in a dress<br /><br />-making (and wearing) <a href="http://www.prodigalgardens.info/Images/Herb%20Pics%20May/Dandelion/Dandelion%20Darlings.jpg">dandelion crowns</a><br /><br />-kiddie pools!!<br /><br />-getting to bring a toy/stuffed animal everywhere you go<br /><br />-having somebody cut up your pork chop/pancake/baked potato for you<br /><br />-Pin the Tail on the Donkey<br /><br />-playing "Don't Touch the Ground" in the basement, in the dark<br /><br />-getting your hair braided at night so it's crimped in the morning<br /><br />-cartoon lunch boxes, backpacks, notebooks, and folders<br /><br />-library storytime<br /><br />-getting to "eat over" at a friend's house (or a friend eating at your house)<br /><br />-watching <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YYHQWFFWisE">CBS Storybreak</a><br /><br />-footy pajamas<br /><br />-showering every other day (or every few days...)<br /><br />-inviting your whole class to your birthday party<br /><br />-playing dress-up and getting into your friend's mom's makeup<br /><br />-coming home dirty every summer night<br /><br />-being amazed by card tricks<br /><br />-when a year seemed to last forever<br /><br />-eating Spaghetti-O's for lunch and Pop Tarts for snacks<br /><br />-wearing pigtails and ribbons<br /><br />-writing <span style="font-style:italic;">real letters</span> to pen pals who live all across the country<br /><br />-being blissfully ignorant your family never had much money<br /><br />-getting measured and seeing how much you've grown by comparing it to the last marking on the wall<br /><br />-wearing clip-on ties or hook belts<br /><br />-being so excited to go to the park that you skip the whole way there<br /><br />-going on field trips to the nature center or science museum (especially when your mom chaperoned!)<br /><br />-finding "secret passage ways" through your neighbors' yardstaralynn819http://www.blogger.com/profile/03048501104136348806noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5432987108537259378.post-35862177318501923032009-04-13T08:11:00.006-04:002009-04-13T08:20:27.615-04:00Spring Has Sprung in Southern Maryland!<left><a href="http://www.iheartfaces.com/"><img src="http://www.livinglocurto.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/12/smallbutton.jpg"/></a></left><br /><br />Truth be told, Sammie could <span style="font-style:italic;">live</span> outside.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV3FPC7lTjhnCR6ICPe2zQL_V-Z53OQW8CPKVDpjAI4qQfzBZObpjkSIBz9mtSI4-okugbAujZwegf5wCokZAO8G1DNuvJ-L_UdH50yj3kVhdWbgjdGhdYUWtHAHWD_vzqzmLDOvQk_Uk/s1600-h/Sammieflowers.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV3FPC7lTjhnCR6ICPe2zQL_V-Z53OQW8CPKVDpjAI4qQfzBZObpjkSIBz9mtSI4-okugbAujZwegf5wCokZAO8G1DNuvJ-L_UdH50yj3kVhdWbgjdGhdYUWtHAHWD_vzqzmLDOvQk_Uk/s400/Sammieflowers.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5324148863104276898" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />(Go check out the other entries for the <a href="http://iheartfaces.blogspot.com/">I Heart Faces</a> contest this week! Theme: "Easter/Spring")taralynn819http://www.blogger.com/profile/03048501104136348806noreply@blogger.com7