Ahhh, pregnant at last

Thank you all so much for all your love, prayers and support. So as you all know now, we got the greatest Christmas present ever this year - a new baby arriving this summer!!
So, Brian bought be a pregnancy test for Christmas. I was like a little kid on Christmas Eve because I was so excited to get up and take the test. I probably only slept 2 1/2 hours total. At 5:45AM I had to pee so bad, but I was trying to wait - you know, the whole patient thing!! So finally at 6:15AM I thought my bladder was going to burst so I got up and went to the bathroom. I peed on the stick and before I even pulled it all the way out of the toilet it had already turned +!!! There was definitely NO QUESTION!! So I run back in the room and announce the news to Brian.
So I am about 6 weeks 3 days today with a due date somewhere around August 20th (my mom's birthday!). I have my first ultrasound and OB appointment set for January 15th. The last two pregnancies I was a nervous wreck at this point. I would worry about all the things that COULD go wrong and the pregnancy would be on my mind 24/7 - not so this time. I have such a since of peace and there are so many times where I just completely forget I'm pregnant! What a huge difference! I can only say that this is because I have such great friends and family who have prayed for me so much and we have an AWESOME GOD!! Please continue to pray for us, we're definitely going to need it and you have all done such a great job so keep it up!
So far the only way I can tell I'm pregnant is that I take 11 pills a day instead of the 5 I was taking with TTC. I have felt wonderful and I really can't complain! My complexion has looked the best it has in over a year. And the best part...no more clomid!!
Thanks again for all your love, support and prayers - you guys are the BEST!!! Thanks for the comments and well wishes and for including Brian - I know that makes him feel like he's a part of it all too - too often the poor guys get left out - I'm so guilty of that.

What was your favorite Chirstmas persent?

This was mine!

Merry Christmas

The other day I printed some coloring pages off the internet about the Christmas story. The bottom of each page told a little bit about the Christmas story. So I read Olivia the Christmas story before she started coloring. Olivia's at that lovely 3 year old age where she has a question about EVERYTHING and follows up each question with WHY? I'm usually really annoyed with all her questions, but this time it was definitely a God thing!
I've heard and read the Christmas story countless times throughout my life, but when I was teaching it to Olivia it took on a whole new meaning. When I think about a lot of stories from the bible I often think back to Sunday school - you know the cutesy little stories - and Jesus was born and they wrapped him in a nice cozy soft blanket and laid him in a little cradle...Never mind that this woman who was 9 month pregnant traveled for days on a donkey! On a donkey!!! I wouldn't do that on a good day, let alone being pregnant! Then when she got where she was going she didn't have a nice little hospital room, she didn't get a doula, she didn't get an epidural....
So as I'm telling Olivia the story I get to the part about Jesus being born in a stable and she asks, "mom, what's a stable?" I told her it was like a barn - I know it was probably more like a cave in the side of a mountain, but I knew she would understand "barn" better. Olivia replies with a tone that only can imply 'you have got to be kidding me' saying, "a barn?!?"
me: Yes, honey, a barn!
Olivia: But why did his mommy have him in a barn?
me: Because that's the only place they had to go, they didn't have any family there, their house was far far away and no one would let them come in their house.
Olivia: Well, if Jesus's mommy came to our house would it be okay if I opened the door? (She got in trouble the other day for trying to open the door for the UPS guy and then opening the door for the neighbor)
me: Only if mommy says it's okay first
I know the answer should have just been yes, but I can't tell her it's okay to open the door to strangers.
So it was this conversation that just made me think a little...
The God of the universe was a helpless baby, in a cold and filthy stable. He was probably wrapped in filthy rags and he was placed in a feed trough! He was surrounded by people so heartless that they wouldn't even give up a bed to a laboring mother. God isn't some made-up super hero - if he were, he would have made a grand entrance, instead he came in to this world in the form of a baby - just like you and me, only under the most horrible circumstances any mother could ever imagine! God had all the power to make this a fairy tale story, but He didn't!
Isn't it amazing how God can use a 3 year old to make you understand and really appreciate something? I can't believe what Olivia taught me in 5 minutes that I had never learned in 29 years - I mean I knew the story, but this little princess brought about a whole new meaning and appreciation for something I just took for granted.

On Christmas Eve He was fully God; on Christmas Day He was a baby! This Christmas season appreciate the miracle of Christmas by trying to imagine the extreme contrast from the night before.

Merry Christmas

Brian's company Christmas party

On Sunday we went to Gamba in Merrillville for Brian's company Christmas party. We had so much fun!

They had a room set up just for the kids - they ate dinner in there, watched movies and did crafts. Would you look at this picture - look at all the children lined up getting ready to be served their dinner - I just thought this was so funny to see them all sitting at this formal dining table with napkins on their laps.

Santa showed and each of the kids sat on his lap and got a present.

Then the dancing began! Olivia just let loose - it took her about 2 minutes to get warmed up and then there was no stopping her until 9:30 PM - she had a blast with her new best friend in the green dress. I have better pics of her, but I know some parents don't like their kids posted on the Internet so I'm only posting the pics of her where you can't see her face. Then, the lady in the black dress taught Olivia how to do the chicken dance. Would you believe that this lady has 7 kids? Ages 12, 10, 9, 8, 7, 4, and 1! The kids were so well behaved and they actually got two pictures in front of the Christmas tree where EVERYONE was looking at the camera! I envy them so much - it was so nice to see them interact with their kids and to see that they are just as excited about their 7th child as they were their first...it just gave me goosebumps to watch them - I would love to be like them one day, but I'd be bald and in the whack-o house!

I took some video of Olivia dancing which was absolutely hilarious. The room was kind of dark so the video doesn't look too great and it's sideways and I can't figure out how to change that - if you know please clue me in! I know the video is long, but if you can get through it I promise you will be rewarded in the end - that's all I'm gonna say so that Brian doesn't kill me. I kind of got distracted and captured some other people dancing - there would have been more, but of course my battery died. Enjoy!

Patience

I've always said, 'don't pray for patience!' I feel like if I pray for patience then God will actually present me with a situation in which I need to be patient and quite frankly, I don't want to be patient! Yah, well that doesn't matter, because if there's something God wants us to learn then He's going to teach it to us!
This is what I've been dealing with! 25 months ago, Brian and I decided to ttc child #2, 25 months later we still have empty arms! We've been blessed with 3 children in that 25 months, but all have been taken far too early.
Did I mention that I'm not a patient person? Doesn't matter!! It's out of my control. But, I might be finally getting it! You see, I'm 6 days late with my period and I'm just being patient! I could have taken a pt almost 2 weeks ago, but I haven't taken one and I'm not going to for a couple of reasons.
For one, my body has been so screwed up for several months now and although my periods were becoming regular, I'm still not convinced that everything is right. I mean I feel like it is, but I don't want to get my hopes up. Well, my hopes are up, but I'm just trying to be realistic here.
Secondly, if God is trying to teach me patience then I want to show Him that I can be patient. Psalms 46:10 "Be still and know that I am God." He's the one in control! It doesn't matter if I'm on clomid if God wants to breath life into my womb He will do it with or without Clomid!! Everything is in His timing and I have to learn to be patient and know that He is in control and that He has a perfect plan - one far better than I could ever think of. So, I'm being patient and I'm waiting! If I have not started by Christmas then on Christmas Day I will take a pt - if I am pregnant could you think of a better gift on Christmas? Money can't buy these kind of gifts!
So, I'm learning patience and it's hard! Please pray for Brian and I as we grow in our faith and put all of this in God's hands.

Thank you God for always being in control. Thank you for always having my best interest in mind. Thank you for loving me and choosing me, little old me, to be your daughter. Thank you for all the people and things I have been blessed with and continue to pour your blessings on me. Thank you for never giving up on me, even in my stubbornness, you don't give up. Please bless Brian and I with the desires of our hearts - we want to be blessed with another child so much and we are just asking that you bless us with this. Give us understanding when we don't always get what we want. Help us on this path towards patience and help us to truly believe that You are who You say You are and that we just need to BE STILL!! In your precious name, Amen

Christmas cards

I had the most perfect Christmas card photo picked out - actually two! But when they were printed I didn't really care for them. I loved our 2006 Christmas cards and was trying to top them






But as you can see, the pics were just too stinkin' cute to top!





So here's the pics I was going to use this year, but instead I'm just going for a head shot with a fake smile :-)

Girls-only Christmas party

L to R: Cory, Trisha, Heather, Amy, me & Courtney

On Saturday I went to my girlfriend Heather's house in the city for our annual girls-only Christmas party. I met Heather when I lived in the city - her and her boyfriend were our neighbors and we were together all the time. One of our most favorite things to do was go to Wal-mart in the suburbs - pathetic, I know. But we were two broke girls living in the city and we just loved the bargains at Wal-mart. Heather has been throwing a Christmas party every year since then and it's always so much fun. The first couple of years Heather did a sit-down dinner, but the last few years it has just been wine and appetizers. Heather always gives us huge bags of stuff. Most of the stuff is homemade goodies - she is the one that taught me everything I know about my decorated sugar cookies!!
Heather finally got engaged to her boyfriend of 7 years and they are planning their wedding for Labor Day Weekend.
On a side note - the blond in the black dress is 5 months pregnant with her third kid - doesn't that make you sick?
Like always I had a great time.

Small group Christmas party - part 1

The small group Christmas party was hosted by the O'Neills this year. They were fabulous hosts and did an amazing job. We had filets and chicken, with lots of veggies, bread, fondue sauces, appetizers and the chocolate fountain. The only thing missing was potatoes - that would be my fault - I completely forgot to make them!


We had a great time! We played Catch Phrase - music edition and just hung out. Looking forward to next year!

Small Group Christmas party - part 2

At the first annual small group Christmas party Dawn was wearing a very cute hair piece. After I had a few drinks I pulled her hair piece out - not a huge deal, but her husband did not know it was fake and was pretty shocked. I decided to come to this years Christmas party with a hair piece of my own - it was awful!! but hilarious!

Small group Christmas party - part 3

It wouldn't be the small group Christmas party without drinks!

Small Group Christmas Party - part 4

Huck is that you?

No, it's just Tim - okay now this is two years in a row that you have ended up looking like Huck. Here's the pick from last year.

So, do you always do this, or just when you've been drinking at the small group Christmas party?

Small Group Christmas Party - Part 5

A lotta boobs!





The expectant mothers - what are they doing?



Who knows, but let's all join in!



Now isn't this fun!



What is this?



It's all air!

PARTY!!!

Tonight is our annual small group Christmas party. If you need a reminder of last year, check it out at Jen's blog. I am so excited!! It's going to be great fun. Stay tuned for some great stories and pictures - you might want to check Meg's and Leenie's blogs too - I'm sure they'll have great pics and stories.

Then Saturday night I have my annual girlfriends in the city party with my friends that live in Chicago. It's always a great time too - I'll be sure to post pics of it as well once I am able to type straight :-)

I'm off to get some much needed rest for the parties!!

Not exactly a proud mommy moment

Set the scene - Me and Olivia in the living room last night. Brian upstairs. TV on. I just got off the phone with Leenie.
me: Olivia, did you know that memaw and papaw Rees are coming to your house in 2 days?!?!
Olivia: YOU-HAVE-GOT-TO-BE-SHHHITTING- ME!!!!!!
I tried to tell her that she can't say that, but I was laughing so hard. I laughed so hard I was crying. I did manage to say to her, "Olivia, you can't say that." but it was between laughs when I could catch my breath, so I'm really not sure how much she got out of it. I finally had to yell for Brian to step in and be a parent.
I have been known to say this on occasion, but I truly can't recall when I said it last - it's not like it comes out of my mouth all the time. But I don't think I have ever heard Brian say it, so I guess I'm taking the blame on this one!
So much for bragging on her a few posts back when she talked about God! Mommy's going to have to make up for this big. I think we'll talk about the true meaning of Christmas today.

Brrrrrr

It was very cold out, but we got all bundled up and played in the snow anyway!!

Here's some pics of Miss O enjoying the snow.



Here's some pics of her building her first snowman.



Here's some pics of her demolishing her first snowman.



Here's some pics of her first snow angel - doesn't she make the cutest little snow angel?



We had lots of fun. She spent most of the time falling and trying to get back up. Here's the last pic - her cheeks are so red!!

Snow

♪♪♪♪♪♪Outside the snow is falling and friends are calling "Yoo hoo"♪♪♪♪♪♪
♪♪♪♪♪♪Come on, it's lovely weather for a sleigh ride together with you. ♪♪♪♪♪♪

If you live in the Chicagoland area you are probably digging out this morning. I can't believe all the snow we got! Here is a picture of Brian walking home early this morning when his truck got stuck. Can you believe all the snow?!?

Just kidding! I wish this was us! I love snow, the more the merrier - especially when I don't have anything going on. I like it when it first falls, before anyone has had a chance to disturb it. It's cold here today, but I'm hoping to go outside so Olivia and I can enjoy the snow together. I would love to build a snowman with her - our first one!! But, I don't know what kind of snow we got and how long she will be able to tolerate the cold. She'll probably be in so many layers that she won't be able to move.

If you're in the area I hope you are enjoying the snow as much as we are!

Favorite Quotes

Here's some of my favorite quotes.
"I've learned that no matter what happens, or how bad it seems today, life does go on, and it will be better tomorrow." ~Maya Angelou

"Never eat more than you can lift." ~ Miss Piggy

"Happiness is like peeing your pants: Everyone can see it, but only you can feel it's warmth." ~Unknown

"Although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of the overcoming of it." ~Helen Keller

"Never deprive someone of hope -- it may be all they have." ~Unknown

"See, the problem is that God gives men a brain and a penis, and only enough blood to run one at a time." ~Robin Williams

Share your favorite quote(s)

Another Christmas Tree

This time of year is really difficult for anyone who has lost someone dear to them, especially when that someone is a child. I thought this Christmas was a little easier than last Christmas, but I'm finding it a little harder as it gets closer. I'm imagining how Jesse would be this Christmas - he would have been so much fun at a year and a half. He'd be walking all around and ripping presents open. None of this holds a candle to what he'll experience with the Great I am though. Could you imagine the celebration in heaven on Jesus's birthday? I bet it is awesome!! Is there a theme? You know I love themed parties!!

Today, Olivia and I visited Jesse in babyland and put up his own tree.

MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM HEAVEN

I still hear the songs

I still see the lights

I still feel your love

on cold wintery nights

I still share your hopes

and all of your cares

I'll even remind you

to please say your prayers

I just want to tell you

you still make me proud

You stand head and shoulders

above all the crowd

Keep trying each momemt

to stay in His grace

I came here before you

to help set your place

You don't have to be

perfect all of the time

He forgives you the slip

If you continue the climb

To my family and friends

please be thankful today

I'm still close beside you

In a new special way

I love you all dearly

now don't shed a tear

Cause I'm spending my

Christmas with Jesus this year

Copyright 1990 John Wm. Mooney. Jr.

Merry Christmas in Heaven Jesse - Mommy loves you!

My poor pathetic tree!

You guys didn't believe me when I said how pathetic my tree looked, did you? Well, I had some friends over for dinner tonight and I overhear a conversation where Megan's son is saying something like the tree is nice, but it's so tiny....I came a little closer and holding back the tears I said, "What did you say?"
Reece: (holding up his hands really close together to imply small) well, it's weally small!
me: (sobbing)
My tree is even small to a 5 year old! I know, I should be thankful that I even have tree. I am, I'm thankful that it's beautifully decorated and that I have a house to put it in and that I have electricity to run the lights...I am thankful for my pathetic tree! (Sigh)

First dance wedding video

This is the most hilarious first dance video I have ever seen - I totally would have done this at my wedding - why didn't I think of this?

We've been elfed

This is the most hilarious thing I have ever seen. My aunt sent this to me this morning and I about wet myself.
Click here to see our family elf dance.
At the same time I was doing ours Aimee also did one with her kids - check it out too.

Christmas tree

Four years ago we had a pretty bad experience with a real Christmas tree and decided we would stay away from the real thing for awhile. We go to Indy for Christmas - usually for about 5 or 6 nights. When we came home we walked into the biggest mess. At some point while we were gone the tree tipped over...including the water bucket. The water had soaked into the carpet and the tree had left sap all over the carpet. At the time we had 2 cats and they had a wonderful time with it while we were gone because there were ornaments all over the house...even upstairs! Yes, they actually dragged ornaments upstairs to play with. I would have loved to have been a fly on the wall watching them have the time of their lives. So the following year we wanted to get a fake tree but really didn't have the money to spend on it. My mother-in-law had just bought a new tree and was throwing her old tree away so we thought we would just take it and it would have to do for a year until we could buy a new one. It's not that it's an ugly tree, but it's small and a little sparse. There's a few branches that are broken and have to be wired on each year and the needles fall off all over the place - my neighbor Dan was over last night and asked, "Is it a real tree?"
me: no
Dan: then why are there needles all over the floor
The tree was good for a year being that we didn't have the money to buy one and I'm very thankful for it, but it kind of reminds me of the Charlie Brown Christmas Tree. Okay, it's not that bad, but it's clearly time to get a new tree.
So sometime between Halloween and Thanksgiving I found a beautiful tree at JoAnn's - I was so excited because it was pre-lit and only $149. I told Brian about it and he said no, so I pouted for a couple of weeks. Not just pouted though - I was pissed!
On Thanksgiving Brian's mom and I finally got to Brian that we needed to get a tree. So I planned on getting to JoAnn's first thing on black Friday. As I was looking in the ads I found a better tree at JCPenny's - it was a $350 tree that was on sale for $108. It was 7.5' tall and pre-lit with 1000 lights. So my mom and I show up there bright and early and got the tree. They offered to load it in our vehicle, but we had gotten a pretty good parking spot and didn't want to move the car to the door so we decided we'd lug it through the parking lot to the car and load it ourselves. Well, we had my mom's car which is a Dodge Charger and the only place the box was going to fit was in the back seat, but we couldn't get it to go in because of the cars on both sides of her car. So we had to back the car out into the middle of the aisle to get it in - we of course had people flocking to our parking spot only to see us pull back in to the parking spot and get out of the car.
So we came back from Indy Friday night and Saturday morning we started decorating the house for Christmas - Brian outside, me inside. I was so excited - I had the Christmas music blaring and I was putting together my beautiful tree. I got it all put together and I plugged it in and it had multi-colored lights - I like clear lights on my Christmas tree. I could have cried! I put the tree back in the box and begged Brian to come down from the roof so we could return it and look for another one. When he was finally finished with what he was doing we took the tree back and went all over trying to find a tree that I liked and Brian was willing to pay for - that didn't happen - we went to Lowes, Menards, JoAnn's, Target, K-mart and Old Time Pottery and came home empty handed!
I finally just decided to give up - we just weren't going to have a tree this year. But on Sunday we went to our usual place for Sunday dinner - Leenie's and they were putting up their tree. I decided that if I couldn't have a new tree this year then I was going to get new ornaments and then buy a new tree either after Christmas this year or next year, but this would be the last year for this pathetic hand-me-down (no offense Linda - my MIL).
So on Tuesday I shopped for my new ornaments and I was on cloud-9, it was awesome picking out all new ornaments. I have had red and silver for about 4 years and before that it was purple and silver. I have never liked gold - I would always wonder why anyone would want to use gold, but this year I am REALLY in to gold with red and green, but not just any green - I'm liking the lime green - something I started liking when we did our candy cane craft at MOPS.
So my decorations look beautiful! Notice I didn't say tree? My decorations will look much better next year on my NEW Christmas tree - right honey? But until then, here's some pics.

Wordless Wednesday

For more wordless Wednesday visit 5 minutes for mom.

What exactly does that mean?

me: Olivia, I love you with all of my heart
Olivia: well, I love you with my bottom

It might not have been exactly what I was looking for, but I laughed my ass off!!

Angel on earth

What did I ever do to be blessed with such a great little girl? Miss O is my angel on earth! She is so brilliant and she amazes us with her intelligence every day. Not only is she smart, but she's such a caring little girl. Brian has decided to take the job he was offered and he turned in his letter of resignation today. The resignation went better than expected, but Brian just really feels bad about leaving and he's scared to death of where he's going - not that it's a scary place, but it's entirely different then what he is used to and is not where he saw his path going. He came home from work today and was just talking about how scared he was. He picked Olivia up and she said, "what's wrong daddy?"
daddy: daddy's just scared about his new job
Miss O: But God's with you, right?...and he will help you not be scared.
Brian and I just stood there crying. She can make you feel better in a split second. When I was in labor for 3 days with Jesse a lot of my friends and family offered to take Olivia to their house to watch her, but we insisted on keeping her at the hospital because she made us smile - at that time, it was like she was the only thing worth living for and we needed her there with us.
I just don't know what we ever did to deserve such a wonderful little girl - Thank you God for my angels in heaven, but thank you so much for trusting me with this very very special angel on earth!

Thorns

For some of you this will be a repeat from MOPS, but it's always good to hear it again.

Sandra felt as low as the heels of her shoes when she pulled open the florist shop door, against a November gust of wind. Her life had been as sweet as a spring breeze and then, in the fourth month of her second pregnancy, a "minor" automobile accident stole her joy. This was Thanksgiving week and the time she should have delivered their infant son. She grieved over their loss.
Troubles had multiplied.
Her husband's company "threatened" to transfer his job to a new location. Her sister had called to say that she could not come for her long awaited holiday visit. What's worse, Sandra's friend suggested that Sandra's grief was a God-given path to maturity that would allow her to empathize with others who suffer. "She has no idea what I'm feeling," thought Sandra with a shudder. "Thanksgiving? Thankful for what?" she wondered. "For a careless driver whose truck was hardly scratched when he rear-ended her? For an airbag that saved her life, but took her child's?"
"Good afternoon, can I help you?"
Sandra was startled by the approach of the shop clerk. "I . . . I need an arrangement," stammered Sandra.
"For Thanksgiving? I'm convinced that flowers tell stories," she continued. "Are you looking for something that conveys 'gratitude' this Thanksgiving?"
"Not exactly!" Sandra blurted out. "In the last five months, everything that could go wrong has gone wrong."
Sandra regretted her outburst, and was surprised when the clerk said, "I have the perfect arrangement for you."
Then the bell on the door rang, and the clerk greeted the new customer,
"Hi, Barbara, let me get your order." She excused herself and walked back to a small workroom, then quickly reappeared, carrying an arrangement of greenery, bows, and what appeared to be long-stemmed thorny roses. Except the ends of the rose stems were neatly snipped: there were no flowers.
"Do you want these in a box?" asked the clerk. Sandra watched - was this a joke? Who would want rose stems with no flowers! She waited for laughter, but neither woman laughed.
"Yes, please," Barbara replied with an appreciative smile. "You'd think after three years of getting the special, I wouldn't be so moved by its significance, but I can feel it right here, all over again," she said, as she gently tapped her chest.
Sandra stammered, "Ah, that lady just left with . . . uh . . . she left with no flowers!"
"That's right," said the clerk. "I cut off the flowers. That's the 'Special'. I call it the Thanksgiving Thorns Bouquet. Barbara came into the shop three years ago, feeling much as you do today," explained the clerk. "She thought she had very little to be thankful for. She had just lost her father to cancer; the family business was failing; her son had gotten into drugs; and she was facing major surgery. That same year I had lost my husband," continued the clerk. "For the first time in my life, I had to spend the holidays alone. I had no children, no husband, no family nearby, and too much debt to allow any travel."
"So what did you do?" asked Sandra.
"I learned to be thankful for thorns," answered the clerk quietly. "I've always thanked God for the good things in my life and I never questioned Him why those good things happened to me, but when the bad stuff hit, I cried out, 'Why? Why me?!' It took time for me to learn that the dark times are important to our faith! I have always enjoyed the 'flowers' of my life, but it took the thorns to show me the beauty of God's comfort! You know, the Bible says that God comforts us when we're afflicted, and from His consolation we learn to comfort others."
Sandra sucked in her breath, as she thought about what her friend had tried to tell her. "I guess the truth is I don't want comfort. I've lost a baby and I'm angry with God."
Just then someone else walked in the shop.
"Hey, Phil!" the clerk greeted the balding, rotund man.
"My wife sent me in to get our usual Thanksgiving arrangement . . twelve thorny, long-stemmed stems!" laughed Phil as the clerk handed him a tissue wrapped arrangement from the refrigerator.
"Those are for your wife?" asked Sandra incredulously. "Do you mind telling me why she wants a bouquet that looks like that?"
"Four years ago, my wife and I nearly divorced," Phil replied. "After forty years, we were in a real mess, but with the Lord's grace and guidance, we trudged through problem after problem, the Lord rescued our marriage. Jenny here (the clerk) told me she kept a vase of rose stems to remind her of what she had learned from "thorny" times. That was good enough for me. I took home some of those stems. My wife and I decided to label each one for a specific "problem" and give thanks for what that problem taught us."
As Phil paid the clerk, he said to Sandra, "I highly recommend the Special!"
"I don't know if I can be thankful for the thorns in my life" Sandra said to the clerk. "It's all too . . . fresh."
"Well," the clerk replied carefully, "my experience has shown me that the thorns make the roses more precious. We treasure God's providential care more during trouble than at any other time. Remember that it was a crown of thorns that Jesus wore so we might know His love. Don't resent the thorns."
Tears rolled down Sandra's cheeks. For the first time since the accident, she loosened her grip on her resentment. "I'll take those twelve long-stemmed thorns, please," she managed to choke out.
"I hoped you would," said the clerk gently. "I'll have them ready in a minute."
"Thank you. What do I owe you?"
"Nothing. Nothing but a promise to allow God to heal your heart The first year's arrangement is always on me."
The clerk smiled and handed a card to Sandra. "I'll attach this card to your arrangement, but maybe you would like to read it first."
It read:
"My God, I have never thanked You for my thorns. I have thanked You a thousand times for my roses, but never once for my thorns. Teach me the glory of the cross I bear; teach me the value of my thorns. Show me that I have climbed closer to You along the path of pain. Show me that, through my tears, the colors of Your rainbow look much more brilliant."
Praise Him for the roses; thank Him for the thorns.
God Bless all of you. Be thankful for all that the Lord does for you.
"Live simply, love generously, care deeply, speak kindly, and leave the
rest to God."
We often try to fix problems with WD-40 and Duct tape. God did it with nails.

Happy Thanksgiving

I pray that you will be surrounded with all the blessings in your life this Thanksgiving and that you will be thankful for the thorns - as bad as they hurt sometimes.

Monday's suck and I'm in a funk!

Mondays Suck - Watch more free videos

Ever feel like this on Monday? Things are going great here! I'm a hormonal BITCH! I haven't been sleeping at night, the hot flashes and night sweats are enough to make you want to pull your hair out, the mood swings and irritability suck! I know I'm a bitch, but it's like there is nothing I can do about it. AND I DON'T CARE!!

You have got to be kidding me!

I was thumbing through my latest edition of In Style Magazine - AKA magazine of ads! and came across this ad...I couldn't believe my eyes!

It's Juicy Crittoure - The First Couture Fragrance for Dogs (Pawfum)
The bottle shown in the ad is a 1 ounce bottle and cost $60!

Does anyone else find this COMPLETELY ridiculous?

Here's an add I found on You Tube for it

Throwback Thursday - High School Sweetheart

As you all know I married my high school sweetheart. This is one of my senior pictures taken in '96 with him.

Awesome perm, huh?

Aw, the simple times! Can you remember things that happened in HS where you thought you were gonna die? Like when your boyfriend would break up with you or your BFF wasn't talking to you? Seemed like the worst thing in the world, right? Life was so simple then.

New haircut

My friend Megan was at my house Saturday. Her son and Miss O were playing and being pretty good...meaning they were quiet (but not too quiet) and kept themselves entertained. It wasn't until Sunday when Brian found a chunk of red hair on the carpet that Saturday's events began to unfold. Not only did Ariel get a haircut, but Miss O did too! After talking to Olivia about what happened I knew that I had to tell Megs - I mean, I would want to know if my child had done this. I felt bad telling on him, mostly because I knew she'd be upset and also because she's been having a hard time lately with being pregnant, going to school, working and her husband being out of town for several weeks. So after telling her I had a talk with Reece - it was quite funny!

me: Did you cut my little girl's hair?

Reece: Well, she asked me to. And why does she keep telling you? She was like, 'shhhh, don't tell my mom' but she keeps telling you! Besides, the scissors weren't sharp and it was really hard to cut her hair!

Here's the end result. How much do we owe you Reece?

Bad Houseguests

Aunt Flo rolled in like a gangsta bitch all loud and proud about 3pm today...uninvited as always! I mean, who does she think she is just showing up in my uterus?!? I've had a sit down talk with her and she is well aware that she is not invited back here because she is a horrible house guest - like the kind that leaves shit all over your house and is really noisy at 5AM....she's just annoying! I will send her packing next week. I have given her directions to a nice unsuspecting china woman and told her to not bother with calling or writing. Hopefully she'll be leaving just before Thanksgiving.
Silliness aside, I did start my period today, but on a positive side (I'm really working on being positive) this is the most normal cycle I have had - 28 days baby!! I have gone from 57 days in June down to a normal 28 day cycle which tells me that something is working - that's something to be happy about, right? Months ago I had to take something to start my period, but I have started on my own for 4 months in a row! Something else to be happy about.
So, same shit, different cycle! I'll start 150 mg of Clomid on Saturday and should be a hormonal raging lunatic right in time for Thanksgiving - this could be a very interesting year for shopping the day after Thanksgiving - Mom, I hope you're ready! Watch out bitches here we come!!!

Tea for two

Miss O and my mom had a tea party last week while Brian and I were with our small group. Here's some pics of the two little ladies enjoying their tea!

Olivia told me later that when you have tea with your friends you call your friends "dear". You have to say, "would you like some more tea dear?"
She also informed me that when you "sip" your tea you have to stick your finger up, only when she showed me she was sticking her index finger up, not her little finger!

I love my mom so much. I'm glad that she does things like this with all her grandchildren...it's priceless!

1st official cookie order

I've made sugar cookies for years now for friends and family. I've made them for about every holiday and different parties like baby showers, bridal showers, etc. A couple months ago I was asked if I'd be interested in making them to sell. A friend of mine was interested in purchasing some for a baby shower she was throwing. Here are the cookies I made for the baby shower.

Wordless Wednesday - look closely!

For more Wordless Wednesdays check out 5 Minutes for Mom

Introducing...

Leenie (Kathleen) has joined the blogging world. Check her out - I know it will be good!

A sign

So Brian switched jobs less than a month ago and went to work for another Insurance company. He has worked in the insurance industry since graduating from college. He does computer stuff - don't ask for details, it's complicated so I just say "computer stuff"...but he's bored with the insurance stuff - I mean how much fun can it be to program for an insurance company? His dreams have always been to work with cutting edge technology - the geeky stuff! He's a techy Geek!!
So before he switched jobs less than a month ago, he was approached by someone he used to work with about working for a small company in Valpo but he didn't give it much thought because he isn't a risk-taker when it comes to his family and providing for it. He prefers the comfort of large companies in corporate America because it provides a since of stability.
He has been approached again about working for this company, only this time he has given it a lot of thought. He is really drawn to this company because of their cutting edge technology and the fact that it is close to home. He spends about 2 1/2 hours a day traveling to and from work in the city.
So we have been praying for clarity with this decision. Brian has been praying that God would just give him a sign that he should follow his dreams rather then stay where he's comfortable and secure. So Brian was walking down Michigan Avenue today which he has done every day since he graduated from college and went to work in the city. He passes a building and something catches his eye...a sign! Not a plastic sign, not a wood sign...it wasn't painted on, but on a side of an old brick building was a white film in the shape of a rectangle with writing on it. He had never noticed it before and no one else was noticing it. Everyone was running around in every different direction, but this sign had him stopped in his tracks and focusing entirely on it...like he was drawn to it. He took a picture of it....

"As it turns out, I really don't care at all about your professional success. What I want to know is, when you are asleep at night, what do your dreams look like?"

Goosebumps?

Wicked

Thanks mom, mom-in-law, Leenie, ReRe, Megs, Natalie, Jen, Dawn and Denise for an awesome time in Chicago on Saturday. We went to see Wicked at the Oriental Theatre in Chicago. This was my second time seeing the show and it is AMAZING!!! I sat there with chills the entire time.

Wicked Trailer

Wicked - Popular

Wicked - Defying Gravity

After the show we went to Wildfire in Chicago for dinner and racked up a $500 bill! Here's some pics of us at dinner.

So what exactly was in my mother's crotch? Denise kept dropping her food in my moms lap, first her buttered piece of bread and then her raspberry - it was quite hilarious!!

What an incredible time! Thanks to all my girlies who made the day extra special!!

AND a huge thanks to my mom who went in with me on a Wicked poster signed by the entire cast!! It was $100, but it went to charity. Once I get a frame for it, it will go in Olivia's room - probably a Christmas present - she loves Wicked!!