Where am I??
I know. I’m a slacker. I’ve watched as most of my consistant reader-ship has dwindled since I’ve moved because my writing hasn’t been consistent. And now I haven’t even written in weeks. Sorry, bloggy friends. 
I’ve been in a funk. A writing funk. An energy funk. A creative funk.
I’m going to do my best to return to the blog- not promising I’ll get to it every day. But anything is better than nothing- and it is something I enjoy!
So stay tuned…
Value
“Not a single sparrow can fall to the ground without your Father knowing it. So don’t be afraid; you are more valuable to God than a whole flock of sparrows.” Matthew 10: 29, 31
Great deal day!
Had a banner trip to CVS (aka: my new love!) today and just had to share!
Today I got 16 rolls of Charmen toilet paper, 2 bottles of Dawn dish soap, a fancy Gilette men’s razor with 2 blades, and a bottle of Tide laundry detergent for just over $3 ( after sales, coupons, and “CVS Extra Bucks”) AND got 7 more Extra Bucks towards my next deal there!!! Yay!
Then I had to return a bathroom rug to Target because it completey fell apart after washing it PER it’s instructions. Found another rug in my same colors and a batter quality that was on clearance for LESS than the destroyed one! Ended up getting a nicer, newer, prettier rug AND got cash back!!!!
LOVE days like this! 
3 year old logic
Jace looking into Daddy’s tired and bloodshot eyes before bed…
“Daddy, your eyes are broken.”
“Standing lizard”
Jace has dubbed his sister a “standing lizard”. This came after playing with many toy lizards and chasing live ones outside here in Florida. But now I think I really know why. CLICK Note skinny legs and round tummy!
Sweet conversation
My sweet boy has been sick this week. When checking on him while he was sleeping I leaned over him in his bed and told him, “You’re so special buddy.”
Then he whispered, “You’re…so…special…too.”
Mmmmmmm. True love.
Want to save a buck? Or 100?
So several of you have asked me for my secrets in regards to saving money or couponing. While I’m NOT an expert on this topic, I’d be happy to share with you what I do know. There are many others out there who have so much more expertise and I continually look to them for more ideas and inspiration.
“Where do you get coupons?”- Every weekend I get a paper. One thing to note is to NOT buy the paper on a holiday weekend (if coupons are your only reason for buying ) because they do NOT put coupons in on holiday weekends. I also get coupons online from site like coupons.com or redplum.com. You may need to download something in order for your printer to be able to print the barcode- it’s safe so just do it.
Another (slightly more time consuming) way is to make a list of specific brands you tend to buy or brands that are often on sale and go to their website and see if they offer any coupons on the site. If not, WRITE THEM! I can’t tell you HOW MANY coupons- even for FREE items- that I have gotten this way. Some will write you back and say they do not offer any. But the majority of the companies I have written have given me fantastic savings!
I have also signed up with a company called Vocal Point.When you sign up you will receive great coupons in the mail about once a month for you and your friends.
Get a subscription to All You magazine. If you subscribe rather than buy it at the stands (at WalMart I believe) it will pay for itself almost instantaneously!
“What sites do you like for advice on savings?” – Look to the right hand column on this page where it says “Bargain blogs/sites/forums”. These are what I live by!
“Where do you use coupons?” – Well, for my Florida readers I’ve found outstanding deals at Super Target and Publix when combining sales with coupons. And for my Ohio readers, I mainly used them at Giant Eagle because they doubled. Yes, in general Giant Eagle is more expensive than a place like Wal-Mart but Giant Eagle doubles coupons so that was my first stop. I’ll explain more about which stores to go to down below.
“Are you brand loyal?” -Not unless it is a health issue for me. I am pretty strict about all-natural/etc. So, for example, if I have a coupon that matches up with a good sale for a juice full of sugar, I will not purchase it. I usually just leave my coupon on the shelf to bless someone who wants it. I will then go buy the 100% juice. I figure I can afford to do this because of my tremendous savings on other products. If you would rather go for the juice that’s on sale and you have a coupon for, then go for it!
When shopping, you have to be observant enough to know if your coupon combined with a sale on a name brand item is cheaper than a generic store-brand item. I’ve been finding that usually it is. But not in all cases. If you’re thinking, “There’s no way to know the prices!” this will come with time. Just be observent each time you’re at a store and you’ll soon be able to tell what the “normal” prices are for each store.
“Is this really practical savings?” – YES! You can do it! If you can just save about 33% on your grocery bill (which I’ve noticed to be my average when I’m not even really trying very had- just simply bringing my coupons with me to the store), then you’re still getting FREE food! Good trips can mean WAY more in savings!!
“Describe what you do before you go shopping?” – Well, before that I make sure all of my coupons are cut and organized (some choose to not cut them and to save the inserts but I find I just have too many papers laying around then- up to you). Then I go to couponmom.com- sign up it’s free! Click on “deals by state” and find your state and your store of choice. She will list all of the current sales (make sure you know when those sales end!) and which coupons correspond with them. She also tells you what percentage of savings you will have on that item. I made a rule for myself that I don’t go after any items where the savings is less than 70% unless I NEED that item right now. Then I go through my coupons to find the right ones and make a list for each store I need to go to and put the list and the correct coupons in a baggie for each store. I’m sure there is a better way to organize that but that’s my way! some other sites I check are : Cherry Picker (mostly Ohio stores), I heart Wags and I heart CVS for any MUST HAVE deals while I’m out. Cherry Picker will give you a lot of links to online coupons and where to buy the item on sale. Then I head to the stores! Not THAT much work, right?
While you’re at the store, see if they offer store discount cards, baby clubs, kid clubs, etc. that may lead to MORE coupons in the mail- even for some more FREE items!!! (Hint, hint, Publix shoppers with kids!!!!)
“It’s just too much work!” – NO NO NO! Don’t say that! I’ve figured that when I spend just an hour or two prep time a week, I’m making MORE money than I was in my last job- just in savings! For example, last week- in total- I probably saved somewhere around $90. And I only “prepped” for about an hour and a half (including interruptions). Would you tell your boss “It’s too much work” if they offered you $60/hour? NO NO NO!
“What’s the big the thrill of it all?” – Ok, so seriously if you’re a woman who gets a rush out of shopping and getting good bargains, but yet can’t really afford for that shopping to be frivelous and on such things as clothes, then GET COUPONING!!!! You WILL get a rush when you leave the store with FREE stuff! I promise!
Meet Four!
Four is Jace’s friend (2nd from left on the top row). Jace invented her over a year ago.
This is what we know about her:
Just turned 6 on April 11th.
Has a baby sister named AB.
Has black hair.
Likes green beans, corn, and chicken.
Eats purple cake.
Has a pink rubberband in her hair.
Moved to Fl from Montana.
Lives down the street from us.
Dad is named Kelsie.
Mom is named Raredin.
She’s a regular in our household and we learn more about her every day!
Memorial Day
I may not agree with the overuse of the saying “God Bless America” b/c I believe He has. I may not agree with some of the good ol’ “Amercian” songs that portray a nation above all other nations. And I may not agree that a previous church I attended had their American flag hung higher than the Christian flag.
BUT. This weekend I encourage all Christians- whether they feel the church is the appropriate place to celebrate something that has to do with the nation we live in or not, whether they voted for the people in governments offices or not, whether they agree with the reasons we’re in a war or not- to just leave those feelings aside. I encourage ALL Christians to thank someone for their service for our country. As Christians I think people look at/to us to see how we handle times in our lives where we may disagree with how someone else is handling something that we’re a part of. Is it ok to challenge it? Sure. But when and where and how are the key components of doing so. Just as we are called to be loving and respectful to our spouse- I feel we are called to be the same to the Church- the body of Christ. So I ask that we as Christians be respectful and loving- even if we disagree with certain issues- big or small. I think we can all agree that people have sacrificed so much for the way we live today in this country. And it’s the PEOPLE- God’s own creations- that need to see our love. To see that we do honor the choice they made to sacrifice comfort, money, time, health, and life.
Whether you feel the cause they fight for is right or wrong, these servants fought because they feel it is right- because they are trying to leave the world a better place. And that alone deserves respect.
To those servants- thank you.
First time being “featured”!
Received an email from TodaysMama.com today stating the following:
“Hi Amber, For the month of May, I will be writing an article entitled “Posts of Note” for TodaysMama.com. Our theme for the month is “Birth.” I checked out my favorite “Mama” blogs and I am planning to feature some of my favorite posts all in one place for our readers.
After scanning through you and your husband’s blog, I would love to feature his post “Newborn Babies & Morning Breath.” It will run for the next few weeks in our Expand Your Perspective section of the website.
If you would like, you can post the attached “TodaysMama Featured Blog” badge on your blog– to show your readers that you’re one of our favorites!
Thanks for being such a fantastic blogger and writer. We really appreciate you!”
So even though I’m excited that she gave ME the featured blogger badge- technically it’s my husband’s blog that the post is written on! Hahaha! My hubby is “today’s mama”!! Way to go, babe!
Long lost FREEdom…
Remember my journey to FREEdom?? I barely do! Seems like since the moment we found out we were moving it kind of flew out the window- at a time when I am desperate for it the most! So much for my “schedule“! Haha!
Well I’ve been struggling with it lately for sure. During a time that has been such a MAJOR God-calling in our lives, Satan has attacked us in many tiny ways that have accumulated to just create enough stress to make me crazy. I praise God that nothing major has happened but lately it seems that every little thing that could go wrong will. Aside from the one bigger thing of our home not selling yet, there are just the daily things like both cell phones breaking, foot pain from plantar faciitis, ants all over the house, temper tantrums from a 3 year old, the clingy-ness of a 1 year old, people not returning my important calls, wasting gas driving somewhere far only to have my son have an accident and Mommy forget to bring a change of clothes, and coupons for free dinners not being accepted. All things that just seem stupid and menial if they happened on occasion. But when all of those things and more happen all in one week it can make you lose your focus (Satan’s plan).
But tonight after another long and frustrating day I had a minor breakthrough. I was making a list of everything I need to get accomplished this week and slowly my pen trailed off the paper as I realized some of these things do not NEED to get done. They are things that if I had time to handle I would, but they are by no means NECESSARY! The thing that really made me realize this was the last on my list of traumatic moments (at least I thought so at the time!!). A few days ago I had 4 coupons for free dinners at a fast food restaurant (for healthy meals mind you) that was doing a special promotion. This lovely institution shall remain nameless. We had our evening all planned to go out as a family for a fun dinner that we could not otherwise afford right now. Told Jace, he got all excited, went inside to order only to be told that not only are they not accepting the coupons anymore (PRIOR TO THE EXPIRATION DATE) but that they were no longer issuing rain checks either. You had to go online to do so. Left the restaurant with a crying 3 year old. Mommy=not happy since it was then past dinner time with no dinner ready at home and an upset child. So today I woke up with a mission to get these rain checks online. Went to the site. Not there. Figured I’d call after the kids were in bed and let them know what I thought about that and how they’d traumatized my son (hey- I was going for the effect!). So just now I put Elle to bed (Jace is with Daddy at a HS event) and the thought came to me- why? Why am I making this a priority? Are the 4 free meals REALLY worth it at this point? Why am I just making more work for myself? Now at this point I’m realizing that in the time it’s taken me to write this post I could have possibly spoken to someone and gotten my coupons in the mail to me but that’s beside the point! This realization that I oftentimes make more work for myself is more important than chicken (… oops- have I let the cat out of the bag?? Haha!). How FREEing it is to just say- w h a t e v e r! I’m done making more work for myself. I’m done letting Satan get that foothold. And just like that I can cross something off of my list!!
Just need to breathe
Well, right now there’s a multitude of clean clothes on my bed to be folded, rain-soaked garage sale items on my porch needing to be dried off, a grease-covered Foreman on my counter, and dead ant carcasses all over my bathroom that need to be wiped up. But, the kids just went to bed and I need a moment to breathe.
*deep breath*
Today is one of those days where I’ve just been waiting all day for this moment. I hate that. I hate days in which I wish away the moments until my kids are in bed and I can sit down for 5 minutes before getting to work again with cleaning, laundry, dishes (ok, who am I kidding- my lovely husband does the dishes for me), bills, etc. But I guess we all have these days.
Things have just been building up lately- stress upon stress upon stress and I’m just about to crumble under it all. I hate talking about it ever b/c then I feel like it just brings it all to the forefront again and that’s not where I want it to be. I even hesitate to share these feelings right now just because of the risk I’m taking with opening myself up. There are certain people who may rejoice a little inside when they see that things aren’t just 100% peachy in our lives right now and that bothers me. But I guess that is between themselves and God and I shouldn’t worry about it. But it’s not a matter of wanting life to be perfect. That’s not what God has promised us. Life is hard and following Him is even harder. And we are still 1000% confident that we are where we have been called to be so that gives us peace.
So I guess I am just asking for your prayers. And to those who have been praying for us since the day we knew we were moving, we value you so much
As I was contemplating writing this, I received an forwarded email from a wise friend with a devotional from our pastor. Guess what it said?
“Psalm 30:5:b Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning.”
Cake fun!
I had a little burst of creative energy in regards to Elle’s birthday cake!
I really wanted to bake the cake mix in the baby food jars but I didn’t think the glass was tempered so I didn’t want to try it and end up with shattered glass in my oven! So here’s what I did:
Dear Tyler Frost,
Dear Tyler Frost,
I’m sorry. On behalf of Christians everywhere, I’m sorry that your school chose to care more about it’s image than loving you. I’m sorry that they spent more time considering possibly how their school would “look” than they did how a teenager would feel. I’m sorry that they have portrayed an image to you and to the world that to be a Christian you must be boring, stuck up, and strict. I’m sorry if they have caused you to doubt your faith.
I pray that those people who felt the need to suspend you from your school would be humbled by Christ and made to realize the spirit of a young man may have been/could have been crushed. I pray that you would use this experience to grow in your faith and not run from it. That you can help others learn that being a Christian is not about “rules”. That it is about FREEdom in Christ.
I wish you the best of blessings in your future endeavors- be a light to a dark world (even the Christian world!)
Much love- your sister in Christ,
Amber
The story behind the pictures
So in case you’re thinking- “oh wow- look at how her kids just sit so still for pictures!” here are some behind the scenes shots:
Things aren’t always pretty!! Haha! In reality it takes about 100 bad shots to get 10 good ones! Don’t think we have models in this family- Jace, maybe. Elle, no way!
Paycheck for mom?
3/4/09 NBC Nightly News:
According to a new study done by salary.com, stay-at-home moms should be making $123,000 a year doing what we do as moms.
ARE YOU KIDDING? If you can’t find me tomorrow I’ll be the one waiting by the mailbox…
Another fun conversation with the boy…
After leaving church Saturday night, Dan and I asked Jace what he learned about in class.
Jace: We don’t learn about Jesus on Saturdays!
Nice. Not too sure we’ve done a good job teaching him that we’re “everday Christians”! Haha!
I will rise
You may have heard this song called I Will Rise from Chris Tomlin’s newest album. Man oh man does this song just sink into my soul further and further each time I hear it. Not only does it make me think about the moment that Jesus will “call my name” but it makes me think about the peace I that I just pray our teens would come to know. That they can just live in that peace of knowing that victory is won and let that be the anchor of their soul through the hard times. I feel like in my very short time as a Youth Pastor’s wife that I’ve seen it all (well almost, and I don’t care to see any more). Death of several parents, divorce, death of a leader, abuse, addiction, unrealistic expectations from parents, death of more than one baby, rape, self-mutilation, death of a best friend and more. Their lives are so much more than we can imagine at their age. The battles they are facing are more than just who is going to win the game on Friday night. They are Spiritual battles.
I guess I’ve really been thinking about this today because this month we are coming up on the would-be-1st-birthday of a little boy (nephew of a student) who died suddenly. The same birthday as my daughter. And the same age. As well as the anniversary of the death of a great leader in Dan’s ministry and devoted husband and father of 4. So I’ve just been pondering having to deal with a loss of that magnitude at that age.
Please join me in prayer for all of our teens who face larger than life battles every day of their young lives. That they can feel the peace that only Jesus can provide- and the hope. And I challenge you to do what you can to touch the life of a teen you may know. You may think they’re crazy or that they just don’t care, but they may be dealing with a lot more than you could ever know.
“I Will Rise”
There’s a peace I’ve come to know
Though my heart and flesh may fail
There’s an anchor for my soul
I can say “It is well”
Jesus has overcome
And the grave is overwhelmed
The victory is won
He is risen from the dead
[Chorus:]
And I will rise when He calls my name
No more sorrow, no more pain
I will rise on eagles’ wings
Before my God fall on my knees
And rise
I will rise
There’s a day that’s drawing near
When this darkness breaks to light
And the shadows disappear
And my faith shall be my eyes
Jesus has overcome
And the grave is overwhelmed
The victory is won
He is risen from the dead
[Chorus:]
And I will rise when He calls my name
No more sorrow, no more pain
I will rise on eagles’ wings
Before my God fall on my knees
And rise
I will rise
And I hear the voice of many angels sing,
“Worthy is the Lamb”
And I hear the cry of every longing heart,
“Worthy is the Lamb”
[x2]
[Chorus:]
And I will rise when He calls my name
No more sorrow, no more pain
I will rise on eagles’ wings
Before my God fall on my knees
And rise
I will rise
When I was tiny…
I used to DEMAND that my mother let me wear my underwear backwards. I could not wrap my brain around WHY on earth the ruffles would be in the BACK where I couldn’t see them for myself!
Well, apparently this is a genetic thing. Jace asks me everyday if he can put his underwear on backwards so he can see the football helmet, baseball, Spiderman, etc.
THAT’S my boy! BRILLIANT! 
Before and after: part two
Simple white vase from the Re-Store for $.79
UGLY mirror for $2 (definitely overpaid but I got some other stuff WAY cheaper for I figured it balanced out!)
Ribbon, faux plants, scrapbook paper, etc. and POOF!
(Can’t see in pic, but there is a black ribbon with a bow hanging the used-to-be-mirror) Thanks, SUSAN, for this idea!
Used-to-be-my-style French wall hangings made of wood:
…painted over with black chalkboard paint I already had! Wrote an excerpt from Walt Whitman’s Leaves of Grass, although it’s hard to see in this picture for FREE artwork!
And please note my FREE chairs that I spray-painted black and recovered with some awesome black and white houndstooth fabric!
YAY! Being cheap is fun!
Disney Trip 2009
Well our little Jace turned a not-so-little THREE YEARS OLD on Friday! REALLY hard to believe! My how time flies!
We were extremely blessed to have some friends of ours from Ohio offer us their Aunt and Uncle’s guest passes for Disney (they work there) to get us in to celebrate the big day! We started off the morning with our tradition of breakfast in bed for the birthday boy- and then told him his big surprise! we hurried and got everyone ready to go and hopped in the van and headed to Orlando! We let him open presents in the car since we knew we wouldn’t be back home until very late that night. So he thought that was a lot of fun in it’s own right!
Our Disney day:
* 1st stop- Animal Kingdom to see the Nemo show (OUTSTANDING!) and go on the safari ride for which we were given a priority pass which meant NO waiting! THANK YOU! We also packed our own lunch and ate it there as we watched the “plant lady” (yes, a lady dressed as a plant walking around on stilts pretty much hugging trees… ok you had to be there).
*Next stop- Magic Kingdom. There, we watched the afternoon parade where we saw our very own NORTH CANTON HOOVER MARCHING BAND (did NOT know they would be there until the night before and didn’t know which park!)- Yay! Then we went on the It’s A Small World ride, went to Mickey’s Toontown where we got to meet and greet Mickey and Minnie, played on the playground there, rode the train, ate a much-needed-at-that-point-in-the-day-dinner, rode the carousel, rode DUMBO (YAY, Jace wasn’t scared!!!), went on the boat safari ride, watched the Country Bears Jamboree, and then got some ice cream while we watched the light parade. The kids loved every single part of it! We made sure to not do too much and only pick out things that didn’t require long waits. It didn’t really matter to us how much we got “done” there since it was all about the birthday boy having a good time! This made life a LOT easier for Mom and Dad too! After the light parade we made our way to the front gate where we could watch the fireworks and exit quickly afterward but the kids didn’t make it- they both fell asleep in the stroller on the walk to the gate! People were oo-ing and ahh-ing at them and we’re like, what’s going on? I mean, we know they’re cute, but GEEZ! Finally we peeked at them and both their little heads were bobbing with each step. At the gate, we attempted to wake up Jace to see the fireworks but he wanted nothing of the sort and flopped his head back down. So we then decided to go ahead and return the stroller and head for the car. It was a picture perfect ending if you ask me- two little babes (well one not so little!!) fast asleep in our arms after a magical day at Disney!!
It was an extra special (and sometimes emotional) day for me- since I used to work there- to have my own husband and children there with me. I have such fantastic memories of that place and it holds a very special place in my heart. So to see my own children get so much joy out of being there really meant a lot!
We will never forget that trip!!!! And to my big boy- HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
See more pictures HERE!
4 years
The celebration in a nutshell:
4*16
babysitter
beautiful weather
gorgeous drive
restaurant on the beach
seagulls walking around our feet
yummy food
walk on the beach
Love you babe!
Before and after- part one
So I’ve been the biggest slacker in blogland lately but I’ve finally been able to download some more pictures and show you some projects that I’ve been working on while setting up the house! I’ll show you what I can tonight and will reveal more soon!
Before: antique trivets (I believe) that were .50 at the Re-Store
and a weird wall hanging with a missing piece for .25
Now spray a little black spray paint, add some old frames that were just in storage and scrapbook paper, and here’s what we’ve got!
A pretty little dish from the Re-Store for $1
No touch ups needed!
A chipped candle stand for .25 from the Re-Store
Got a silver tree topper from the $ store for 1/2 off after Christmas and sprayed it to match for a pretty obelisk!
That’s all for tonight! I’ll try to add more soon!
Elle vs. bottle
If you’re on Facebook then you’ve probably seen my comments in regards to this on-going “bottle battle”. I have nursed Elle for almost a year, and although I would give her to occasional bottle as an infant, I kind of got out of it as I was always home with the kids all winter and didn’t really have a need to use one. So that leads into moving to a new place where there is gorgeous weather and we’re out and about a LOT more. I would like to not always have to schedule our outings around her feedings at this age now, so I’ve been trying to get her to take a bottle and SHE IS NOT HAVING ANY PART OF IT. The best I’ve gotten her to do is take 4 ounces the other day but nothing since then.
Yesterday afternoon she hit her breaking point with the whole idea when it came time for Jace and her to eat lunch. I let Jace got to the table to eat his lunch and did not let her go until she ate her bottle first (this girl could live on solid food alone but I’m trying to teach her that she needs to drink still). So she and I sat on the couch with bottle in hand. What followed was nothing short of hilarious (for me. not her.)
Poor thing would look over the couch at her brother eating and then would just scream cry and throw herself on me and start sucking her thumb and growling. This happened repeatedly for about a half hour. All the while she had the “you’re the worst mother on the whole planet” look on her face.
BUT- the funniest part of this story was that during one of her screaming fits, she was looking back and forth and Jace and me and in between she caught a glimpse of the tv that was on. There was a commercial with a dog on it and she took a millisecond pause to say “Duh” (Elle for dog) before she continued on her tirade.
Silly girl.
And of course I had to fullfill my duty as the “worst mother on the whole planet” by taking a picture of her mean face. Seriously, every child should have one good crying picture.
Feels like home…
Finally- pictures of our new home are ready for you! Thanks for being patient!!! Click HERE!
Easter dinner!
So this was our family’s first holiday away from close reletives which means my first time cooking a holiday meal! I was a little nervous since we had friends over for dinner too and I was trying all new recipes (which I know you’re not “supposed” to do- haha). But it turned out great and we had a great time eating dinner on the porch and capped off the evening with taking all of the kids for a swim!
I made chicken cordon bleu, broccoli casserole, carrot salad, rolls, sweet tea, and lemonade.
Thank You Jesus Party!
Well, remembering a friend’s blog post about something her family did to celebrate what God was doing in their lives inspired me to celebrate our own recent calling to Florida. So we had our own “Thank You Jesus Party”! There were balloons and streamers and a handmade sign by Jace. We cranked up the music and danced and celebrated what God has done in our lives. And of course what kind of party would it be without cake!!?!?!
For more pictures, click HERE!
Amidst the chaos of moving…
who taught my kid how to stay in the lines when coloring???????? Wasn’t me!!!
Prepare yourself… (if I have any readers left!)
Well if I have any faithful readers left after my hiatus I LOVE YOU! I have plans of returning to my blog-world this week so CONSIDER YOURSELF WARNED!
The call: setting up home
Nope, still no camera wires. Still no pictures. Still boxes everywhere. But I’m forcing myself to write. I’m overwhelmed with all there is to do and the only way I know how to clear my head and my heart is to write. Dan just got home and took the kids for a walk for me. It’s been a hard day. The kids have adjusted awesomely as far as sleeping and stuff goes but they’ve been moody. Not like I can’t understand why, it’s just hard. Elle fusses all the time (I think she’s hitting a growth spurt and just wants food alll day long) and I feel like I tell Jace no 1,000 times a day as he’s learning our new house and what he is and is not allowed to touch. This combined with interrupted or shortened naps due to the smaller layout of our new place just makes for a frustrating time right now. Dan and I are exhausted and have yet to recover from the several moving days of no sleep and are trying to get as much done when the kids go to bed as we can but we’re just plain tired. MOSTLY tired of tripping over boxes which is where our hurry comes from.
So here I am. No crying in the background (just a little from me as I write this b/c I’m so exhausted). Just the sound of the keyboard and Charlie Hall. He’s been a huge help through this process, have I mentioned that?? “…sweet Jesus Christ my sanity…” Wow, what timing that line was sung as the typing stopped between sentences. I feel like I’ve lost a little sanity this week. I’m an organized person so to be living in an un-organized mess just does me in. To not be able to respond to emails from caring friends immediately makes my heart ache. To not be able to find bills makes my head ache.
Anyway- enough venting. I am SO happy to be here in our new home in sunny Florida updating you all on the journey that our awesome Lord is taking us on. This has been the craziest most amazing time in our lives and we’re so awe-struck each day as God reveals more and more signs of why He brought us here.
The trip down was long but good. The kids were AMAZING! They ate/slept/played according to their normal schedule- just in the VAN! What troopers!! Dan’s brother, Tim, came with us as a third driver and was a LIFE SAVER!!!! There were too many times to count that Dan and I said to each other that if Tim hadn’t come there was no way we would have made it down in one day. Yes, we did it in one day. Just UNDER one day in fact…haha! The 18 hour trip (we took the long way to avoid mountains) took about 23 due to feedings and a minor mishap on the highways of Atlanta (created by SATAN!). A semi clipped the moving truck’s mirror just enough to keep Tim from being able to switch lanes in crazy traffic. Thank the LORD that we brought walkie-talkies and we were able to guide him through the city and get off at an exit where we were able to adjust it. At that stop someone pulling out of the gas station backed into our van. Nice man- just didn’t see us. Got his information and went on our way.
Arrived VERY early Wednesday morning and crashed in our new place on some mattresses for about 3 hours before getting up to shower and welcome all of our “un-loaders”. They were FANTASTIC! The staff from our new church helped un-load the truck in no time!
We had a great Sunday at church this weekend and enjoyed meeting new people- both adults and teens. Dan and I really felt at ease there and knew that it was confirmation that we are supposed to be here.
We’re excited to finish getting our home set up so we can relax and not have to worry about that anymore. I will try to get online a little more often working my way back to my daily posts as the house gets set up. It’s so hard for me to justify being online when there are still boxes I need to unpack so bear with me!!!!
Many thanks to you all for your love and support and most of all your prayers! You all mean SO much to our family and we can’t wait to have you come down to visit!!!!
We’re here!!!!!
Well we’ve made it to Florida and found all of the computer wires but have yet to find the camera cable so that I can download pictures! I am ATTEMPTING to sort through the piles- a LOT harder in a new place that is a ton smaller than our old house, and will write an actual update asap!!!! Love to you all and thanks for your prayers!!!!
I am alive and I will return to blogging…
when we get to Florida, but in the mean-time check out our current dining situation!
I needed this again today…
and thought you might too. My family is being spiritually attacked and could use your prayers for this journey we’re on. Love to you all.
“I search for You God of strength
I bow to You in my brokenness
And no other King could have so humbly come
To save my soul and heal my heart
I have nothing more than all You offer me
There is nothing else that’s of worth to me
And I love You Lord
You rescued me
You are all that I want
You’re all that I need
I pray to You God of peace
I rest in You my cares released
I have nothing more than all You offer me
There is nothing else that’s of worth to me
And I love You Lord
You rescued me
You are all that I want
You’re all that I need
In Your freedom I will live
In Your freedom I will live
I offer devotion, I offer devotion”
The call- Part 1
***Ok, so those of you whom are my regulars know that I’m never away from my blog for more than a day or two so I really appreciate the concerned emails I’ve received! Love you guys! To those of you who are new to my life or my blog- welcome to the craziness!! Here is a run-down of what has been going on:
Friends, family, FCC staff/elders/leaders/members, students, football players, blogosphere friends, PW forum ladies-
We’re moving. To Florida. In 3 weeks.
I will try to make the story as brief as possible and just bullet point the major points.
*About 2 years ago Dan felt a call from God to “spread his wings”. We didn’t know what this meant so he took a lot of time to pray about it.
*About a year after that he and I both started feeling lead to the Central Florida area (particularly Tampa) for no particular reason. Again- unsure of what that meant we took a lot of time to pray about it.
*We looked into a couple of churches in that area who were hiring but none were a good fit for Dan’s strengths and gifts. One of those churches recommended another church that he knew of down the street that was looking to hire.
*We decided that if this was indeed something God was calling our family to, that He would provide the path and that we wanted to not look any farther for ourselves.
*The man got back to us about the other church that was hiring and said that they weren’t taking any more resumes anyway b/c they decided to go with a national search agency. We were very content in this because of our desire to not pursue any more churches.
*A couple weeks later a national search agency calls Dan wondering if he would ever consider opportunities at other churches. Unsure how we felt about this we decided to just talk to them because it wasn’t really us pursuing anything- it was them. We didn’t think anything would come of it.
*A couple more weeks- the agency calls and says that a church in Tampa would like to talk to him. It was the same church that was recommended to him by the other church in the area!
*A couple of days later Dan talked with an Executive Pastor at that church.
*A week later Dan talked with the Senior Pastor there.
*A few weeks later they brought us down there to meet in person.
*We came home with a job offer and accepted it.
Amidst all of this we were praying for what we call “billboard signs” from God. We asked Him with all of our hearts to show us His plan for us. Day after day, He did so. I have documented them and they equal 5 pages right now. It’s been incredible. And thus we have never been so sure about anything since God revealed His plans for us to be married. Truly God-breathed. How amazing it is to know with 100% certainty God’s path for our family. Very FREEing to say the least. You would think I would be stressed- but I’m not at all. I’m perhaps the most calm I’ve ever been!
This has been an amazing journey this past year and we look forward to much more of it as we begin a new chapter in our lives in Tampa. We will, of course, miss everyone here terribly. We have spent the past 2 weeks talking to family, friends, staff, students, and everyone else we could possibly squeeze in (the weather hasn’t helped us to do all of this in person unfortunately!) and now that the word is out at church we just wanted to let anyone else who hasn’t heard know what’s happening. We look forward to maintaining these relationships with the utmost intentionality. But it only works if it comes from both sides. So PLEASE keep in touch with us. We will always have this blog (alittlemorecrazythancool.com), the phone, emails, facebook, myspace, etc, and soon we will even be getting a web cam so we can communicate via Skype. And of course, we welcome visitors to our new home anytime!
We love all of you more than you know and thank you with all of our hearts for your prayers and support!
This is not “goodbye”. This is just a new chapter and we hope you all will continue to be a part of our lives!
Love to everyone and to God be the glory!
25 random things…
…for all of you who tagged me on Facebook!
1. 10 years ago I thought I would be in California doing celebrity weddings right now.
2. I’m very happy that didn’t happen b/c I LOVE my husband and my children more than ANY wedding design I’ve done. (Well, maybe that one wedding…. oh, I mean…nevermind)
3. In high school I came home to a cougar on my porch. No, not a 40 something woman who wanted to date me, a real live cougar.
4. You can slow my breathing and de-stress my brain by showing me a tree with Spanish moss covering it.
5. Mickey Mouse was my boss at one time.
6. I have a passion for ripping off Pottery Barn designs on the CHEAP!
7. I frequently can’t fall asleep b/c I have Veggie Tale songs running in my head.
8. I struggle with thinking on my feet (and thus I’m pretty stuck here on #8- do I really have to do 25?) and have a HORRIBLE memory.
9. I have been to apx. 36 states. (See, APPROXIMATELY! I really don’t remember!)
10. After meeting him, I turned down offers to go on a date with my husband 3 times (although he’ll point out that 6 months later I came to HIM).
11. I don’t believe in paying lots of money for furniture. Or dishes. Or clothes. Or pretty much anything. I bought my wedding dress on ebay and my car on Craigslist.
12. I prefer my husband’s sweats rather than my pajamas (lucky him).
13. I used to have a good voice but was terrified to sing in front of people. Now it’s gone. See what happens when you don’t use a talent?
14. I am a home-body.
15. I appear in a movie. I’m not going to tell you the name so don’t ask.
16. I cry at anything- Biggest Loser, the Friends finale, the Olympics (yes, really), even one episode of Deal Or No Deal.
17. I’m turning into a health-nut.
18. I go through about a bottle of bbq sauce a week. Or more. Guess that’s still my biggest weakness in regards to #17.
19. I was born in Florida. Lived in Texas and Ohio.
20. I won’t be your friend if you’re fake.
21. I love ripping (literally) ideas out of magazines and adding them to my files of inspiration.
22. I have only had one job outside of my profession. I taught preschool for a year. That was about all I could handle.
23. I pretty much hate talking on the phone. I especially despise if I email someone a question and they CALL me with the answer.
24. I like to think “outside” the box when given creative instruction (namely when I was in school).
25. (Wow- I made it to #25!) Hmmmm…. well maybe… ok- I guess I could live on Chipotle alone for every meal, every day.
Hard at work
(I was attempting to download a bunch of videos but was only able to get the photos off the video camera for some reason. (I’m actually quite computer/tech illiterate for someone who has a blog!) When I have my husband help me figure it out I’ll post videos soon!)
So here’s Jace hard at work building his snowman this weekend!
My millenium boy
It’s funny what today’s kids don’t know-
Jace saw a stack of VHS tapes upstairs that I played for him when he was sick. He said, “Mommy those are the boxes for my DVDs”.
He was playing with his little toy laptop that he got for Christmas and saw the letter “T” with a picture of a land-line telephone. He asked me what it was and when I told him it was a phone he had the most confused look on his face and told me it was not. (We don’t have a land line and all he’s ever seen are cell phones.)
I know, I know…
SEVEN whole days without a single post. What IS this world coming to?! It’s been quite a week and I PROMISE I will get back into the swing of things shortly. I had all hopes of doing so yesterday but the boy got a stomach bug which had me scrubbing vomit off of an ottoman, the living room carpet, and bathroom floor. Yeah, I know- FUN! Try not to be jealous! Will write more later!
Do you see what I see?
(this post is to be sung)
…a child, a child, playing with his toys, and he matched up the girls and the boys. Yes he matched up the girls and the boys. (And Elmo and Grover. And a man with his cat. You get the point.)
A new way to look at our kids
Since I’m becoming FREE this year, I’m evaluating all areas in my life to see what’s not working- including my parenting skills. If you have kids then you’ve been frustrated with them. I most certainly have! It’s sooooo easy to fall into traps of having too-high expectations for them, “more important” things to work on when they want to play, etc. I have struggled with this since my son started really talking well. So often I find myself expecting a lot more of him than he is even capable of at his age. my new mantra in regards to that (as I think I’ve said on here before) is… “he’s two”.
I’ve also struggled with something I think every parent has done as well- talking down to him (ie: “Just let me do it- you can’t”, etc.) and creating self-fulfilling prophecies (ie: saying “Aren’t you just Mr. Grumpy-pants” when he’s sleepy after nap).
In response to this, I recently heard something that struck me. Read the rest of this entry »
Cold but NOT cool…
Yes this picture was taken from behind the wheel. Not reccomending this be done on streets where you’re the only car on the road besides a truck with a plow on it…
I went out in this madness on Saturday because a fave store was closing and I got 5 LARGE bags of clothes for $37 (AND all their fancy schmancy hangers too!)!
WORTH IT!
Time flies!
Wow- a friend had me look at my photo history to see what was going on a year ago and then two years ago…. what happened???
Here was Jace Christmas morning last year not wanting to eat my fancy breakfast I made for him.
And here is Jace just before Christmas 2 years ago- what a little doll! Where did my little baby boy go?
Lessons from kid shows
Well since my area of focus this month FREEing myself from jealousy and competition, I found it very interesting that when I sat down to watch Veggie Tales with my son on Friday, the show was about Madame Blueberry. I had never seen it before and it really hit the nail on the head! What a great lesson for this month!
You can fast forward through the theme song and intro and start it at about 4 minutes in. Enjoy!
If you don’t watch the video past the “Blue” song (it’s a great one!) it’s ok. I’ll summarize it for you. “Stuff-Mart” moves in down the road from Madame Blueberry. Needless to say she goes crazy and STUFFS her tree house with STUFF until it fell out of the tree and all of her STUFF was ruined! Luckily for her she had some great friends who still loved her even when she didn’t have a thing. She learned that being greedy makes you grumpy but a thankful heart is a happy heart.
Has this ever been you? It’s been me for sure! There have so many times in my life where I just look at my “pictures on the mantel” (figuratively) and decide that my life isn’t good enough and that I would JUST be happier if I had what someone else had or what I’m TOLD I should have by our media (ie: Satan… haha!). How do we fall for this lie OVER AND OVER again? Who are we to disagree with the blessings that God has given us? Do we think we know something that He doesn’t? Maybe if we spent more time thanking God for what He has blessed us with we wouldn’t find ourselves so dissatisfied with what we DON’T have. For example, in my life I am so blessed with love. Love from my God, my husband, my children, and my family and friends. I find that the more I focus on that gift in my life, the more I am more loving to them and to others!
What are some things you are blessed with? How can focusing on them help you view your life? I’d love to hear some more examples!
(Oh, and thank you Madame Blueberry for a great lesson!!)
