The Boso Family

Lillian's New Trick!!

2010-09-10T09:30:00.001-04:00

Happy Birthday to ME!!!

2010-08-15T22:39:00.001-04:00

I have started this blog post several times and each time it doesn’t sound quite right, so I delete it. There’s just so much swirling around in my head…and I have no idea how to express it, but I want to try. Someday I want to look back on this day and remember how happy I am. This has been the best birthday EVER!!!

Ed was off today, so he let me sleep in. Oh man, 9:30am has never looked so good :) While I was sleeping, he took the kids to the store and got stuff to make yummy french toast and sausage. Mmmm!! Then (and here’s where my fellow mommies will agree with me that it was beyond wonderful) I got to take a super duper loooong shower with no interruptions. Woot woot!! The rest of the morning and early afternoon were just spent being lazy around the house, playing with the kids (when they weren’t napping of course). We headed to Wilmington to find me a new pair of running shoes. My knees are still hurting from running last week on 8-year old shoes. Oops. After a successful trip to Shoe Carnival (buy one get one 1/2 off….Edwin got a pair of Cars shoes that light up!), it was time for church (PC3)!! Um…have I mentioned how much I love my church? ‘Cause I do. I even convinced Ed to sit up front since it was my birthday and all. After picking the kids up from Grow Zone, we headed to Sam’s Club to pick up diapers. We had already planned on having a low-key dinner at my parent’s house with Katie, Brian & Anthony.

For two weeks, Ed has been telling me all sorts of different things about my gift. A couple of times he said he was worried that he ordered it too late, so I might have to wait until Monday to get it. Then he said that he paid extra to have it delivered, but he had to store it in my parent’s garage. I was convinced at that point that he had gotten me a bike trailer for Lillian. We were on our way to my parent’s house when he called my dad to tell him to bring the present outside. Ed told me I needed to close my eyes and keep them covered until we pulled up. Never one to ruin a gift (I used to wrap my own presents when we were younger…how trustworthy! haha), I complied.

I had Lillian’s (clean) burp rag over my closed eyes when we pulled up to my parent’s house. I thought it was strange when Ed rolled down the window…and then I heard “HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!” Oh my goodness. It was a surprise party!!! As my eyes scanned the crowd, I was completely flabbergasted (I’m 31 now, so I try to use big words). My girls from work were there, friends from church, family….it was so amazing! They had set up the slip-n-slide and sprinkler, and the kids were already taking advantage. We had tons of yummy food and of course CAKE!

The whole time, I was walking around in a bit of a daze. You see, my birthdays growing up were notoriously “blah” in the party department. Having a birthday in August usually meant that friends were either on vacation or just didn’t stay in touch over the summer. There’s one birthday in particular that we all still talk about. Nobody showed up!!!! It was pitiful. But today more than made up for that! My hubby surprised the heck out of me. Mom, Dad, Katie and Brian were also in on it and played a HUGE part in making it all come together. Thank you to everyone!!!! Once Katie gets some pictures to me, I’ll post them on here (if I remember…or you can always check out facebook).

God has been so good to me, even though I don’t deserve it. That’s why He is so amazing!

Psalm 139: 13-16

¹³ For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother's womb.

¹⁴ I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.

¹⁵ My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made in the secret place.
When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,

¹⁶ your eyes saw my unformed body.
       All the days ordained for me
       were written in your book
       before one of them came to be.

Cuteness

2010-06-06T14:53:00.002-04:00

I don't have a lot to say (shocker!)...but I thought I'd share this adorable picture of Edwin and Lillian taken at Pappy and Grandma's house last week. Love it!!!

Lillian Update - 6 months

2010-05-27T21:44:00.001-04:00

On Tuesday, I took Lillian to her 6-month checkup. She now weighs in at a whopping 14lbs. 12 oz (30th percentile) and is 27 1/2 inches long (90th percentile). Her development is on track, she’s perfectly healthy, and oh-so-adorable. And have I mentioned that she’s happy? Yes, Miss Lillian finds life to be quite joyful…she’s always got a smile for the world. Here’s a picture from the doctor’s office…

I still can’t believe she’s already 6 months old. I feel like I was just pregnant!!

Spring-a-ling

2010-05-16T11:32:00.002-04:00

My nephew Anthony plays machine-pitch Little League this year. Unfortunately, since we live so far away, going to games takes a bit of work. The weeknight games would end up getting too late by the time we’d get home (probably close to 9:30), and the weekend games are always on Saturdays (and we try to have at least one day a week that we don’t drive up to Wilmington).

Well yesterday it worked out perfect. The plan was to go to Anthony’s baseball game at 12:30pm and then go to the Spring Fling at his school at 4pm. It was another trip to Wilmington, but we’d be able to spend the whole day with the family.

The game was a lot of fun, but it was HOT!!! I think it was over 90 degrees and we were in direct sunlight. Even with SPF 55, I managed to get a sunburn. Edwin had a blast watching his big cousin play. Everything that Anthony does, Edwin has to do too. He keeps talking about how he wants to get bigger so he can play baseball. So cute!

I was really impressed by all of the kid’s skills this year. They are actually making real plays!! Anthony looked so grown up out there on the field.

Of course, after awhile, Edwin was more concerned with his popcorn than the game, but what do you expect out of a three-year old?

Lillian was happy to hang out in her stroller…and it also kept her out of the sunlight.

A few more pictures with the grandparents - - Edwin loved sitting with Pappy, and Lillian looked adorable in her hat from Grandma.

After the game, Edwin kept trying to give Anthony a hug and told him over and over again “Good game Anthony!” It was super cute. Cousin Anthony is just at that age though that he’d rather hang out with his baseball buddies than his little cousin…so he was less than thrilled :( It was funny though because Mom said it reminded her of me and my big sis when we were little.

We went back to Mom & Dad’s house to cool off and get a bite to eat before the Spring Fling. (Edwin kept calling it the Spring-a-ling!). We got all the way to the school, re-applied the sunblock, had Lillian in her stroller…ready to go. Yeah, this is where the plans fell apart. Edwin caught a glimpse of the Sharks mascot walking around and he FREAKED OUT!!!! I’m talking hysterical crying, shaking, clinging mess. No matter what we tried (and we tried everything), Edwin wasn’t having it….so we left. I was bummed because my sis put a ton of work into this (she was co-chair) and I really wanted to see everything, but there was just no way it was going to work. I think the lack of a nap had a little something to do with the meltdown, because Edwin slept the whole way home. Oh well…maybe next year.

Today we’re enjoying a lazy Sunday. Ed is sleeping in, Edwin is watching Elmo’s Adventures in Grouchland, Lillian is napping, and I’m actually getting a few things done around the house. We’ll head to church for the 4pm service and then back home for a yummy dinner that’s already in the crockpot. What a great weekend! I’ll leave you with a picture of my adorable children from yesterday morning.

Mother’s Day

2010-05-09T07:21:00.001-04:00

I know I don't post on here very often, but I have two very good reasons. Edwin and Lillian. There's very little time to spend with them and frankly, I'd rather spend it with them rather than blogging. But today, I feel I need to say.....I ADORE being a mother. It is the hardest job I've ever had. It can be challenging, frustrating, scary, intense, confusing, overwhelming --- the list goes on and on. However, it is also rewarding, wonderful, fun, exciting, beautiful, precious and amazing. I still marvel at the fact that God chose me to be mommy to Edwin and Lillian.

I tried to upload the video my sister made me for Mother's Day 2007 (a collection of pictures when Edwin was tiny), but it wouldn't work. So here’s the link to the slideshow Katie made me a couple of months ago when Lillian was born. And since there’s nothing as sweet as a sleeping baby, here are pictures of Edwin and Lillian sleeping….at just about the same age. Yes, my children look identical!! haha. I’d also like to say Happy Mother’s Day to my own mom. I love you!!!! And I have a much greater appreciation for the craziness that must have been your life (especially with DJ….hee hee).

Happy Birthday!!!

2010-04-14T11:06:00.002-04:00

Happy Birthday to my wonderful sister Katie!!!!! Yesterday was my brother-in-law Brian's birthday too. So....we're all going out to dinner tonight to celebrate. I thank God for both of them!!!

Checking In

2010-03-27T13:59:00.002-04:00

On Wednesday, we took a trip to the pediatrician's office for Lillian's 4-month checkup and Edwin's 3-year checkup. Goodness time flies!! Here are their stats:

Lillian

Weight: 13lbs 4oz (50th percentile)
Length: 25 1/2 inches (90th percentile)

Edwin

Weight: 36 lbs (90th percentile)
Height: 40 inches (95th percentile)

Apparently we've got some big kids!! Most importantly they are both healthy and it appears that they have both forgiven us for the shots they received :)

Edwin has become such a sweet big brother. He's always concerned about his "Silly Lilly" as he calls her...so sweet! Here's a video from the other day when we were just hanging out at the house. It's not long (less than 40 seconds), but it's super cute.

Hope

2010-03-23T21:03:00.001-04:00

Over a year ago, I started following MckMama’s blog…some of you may have heard of her, or of her little boy Stellan. She recently went to Kenya on a mission trip through Compassion International. Every day, I read her updates and viewed her photos…and every day my heart would start pounding and my mind would race. It’s so easy for me to live my life and forget that there are entire countries out there full of people that live in far worse conditions than my brain can even comprehend. It makes me wonder why God placed me here in Wilmington – why I have a roof over my head, a pantry full of food (even when I arrogantly stand there staring at the shelves thinking “there’s nothing to eat”), a job that allows me to provide for my family. And it makes me even more grateful for those same things.

It’s no secret that we’re trying to sell our house and move closer to town. I admit there are some days that I boo-hoo and whine that our house hasn’t sold, I’m tired of driving so much every day, etc. But more and more I’m reminded that this is a mere inconvenience. I mean, hello?! I’m complaining that I have a functional car that takes me from my good job with great benefits to my nice house where I spend time with my healthy children and husband??!! What is wrong with me??

Ok, I’ve gotten a bit off track. While I was reading MckMama’s posts, I kept getting the feeling in the pit of my stomach that I really wanted to sponsor one of the children in Kenya. I began praying that God would make an opportunity for me to talk about this with Ed. Sure enough, two Sundays ago at church, they showed a video from Hope 127, a project that PC3 has in Kenya. You can go to the website to get all the background, but basically, Pastor Jackson and his wife run Mama Helen’s Rehabilitation Center. I’ve known about this for awhile – in fact, our small group last year decided to sponsor one of the boys from the center. I regret to say that I never took this seriously – the way we collected money was in what we called the “John Jar.” Sure I would throw in a few bucks here and there, but I never let my heart realize the fact that it represented a REAL PERSON who had REAL NEEDS! When I watched the video at church, tears started to fall when I saw the conditions the children were living in, and the hope that they find at Mama Helen’s. I even had the crazy thought that maybe possibly perhaps someday eventually if things fall into place maybe I would want to go on a mission trip over there? Crazy, I KNOW!! I have NEVER thought that, and it’s even strange to type it here. But who knows? So that night after church I asked Ed if he would consider having us sponsor a child from Hope 127 and he agreed. I’ve filled out the paperwork and just need to drop it off at church this Sunday.

God is so amazing. I neglected the “John Jar” and missed an opportunity to help that little boy. Jonah 2:8 says “Those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs.” But God has changed my heart and now we are able to help another child (don’t worry, John is still taken care of). And here’s something really cool – my friend Rebecca and her daughter Hannah are going to Kenya in August. I’m hopeful that they’ll be able to meet the boy or girl that we end up sponsoring…how cool is that??!??

Just as a disclaimer – I’m not writing this post to say oh, aren’t we wonderful for sponsoring a child. That’s not it. I guess I just wanted to show one of the ways that God is working in my life…and maybe encourage someone else to sponsor a child, whether it’s through Compassion International or Hope 127. Just a thought.

HOPE 127 | Kenya Project from PC3 on Vimeo.

Check it OUT!!!

2010-02-26T16:45:00.004-05:00

Unless you've been living under a rock, you know that my wonderful, amazing, talented sister owns her own business - Katie Mathews Photography.

Today is very exciting as she finally launched her beautiful new blog!!! She has a new logo, new information about pricing and different session options...oh, and did I mention the contest worth up to $900!?!?! Go check it out RIGHT NOW!!!

Pretty please leave some comment love too - we (I say we because, well, my sis and I are like Maverick and Goose) would love to hear what you think!!!!

Happy Birthday Pappy!!!

2010-02-23T08:48:00.002-05:00

Happy 60th Birthday Pappy!! I love you so much!!!!!!!!

Top Five

2010-02-11T13:48:00.001-05:00

Maternity leave officially ends tomorrow and I start back to work on Monday. I know I’ve said it before, but I just can’t believe how quickly these last twelve weeks have gone by. Here are the top 5 things I’ll miss about maternity leave.

5. Watching “Ellen” – that show cracks me up!

4. Sleep – That probably sounds strange considering the newborn phase typically doesn’t allow for much sleep. However, even though I get up in the middle of the night with Lillian, I know that I can sleep in if she does. I have a feeling I’ll be a lot more tired after going back to work.

3. Walmart – Ok, this one probably doesn’t make a lot of sense, but a trip to Walmart with a sleeping baby is much easier than a trip to Walmart with a baby and an energetic two (almost three) year old.

2. Comfy clothes – Going back to work also means going back to my work wardrobe.

1. Time - Spending quality one-on-one time with my sweet baby girl. For the most part, we’ve kept Edwin at daycare during the week. He loves it and is actually in a much better mood after a day at “school”. This meant that I had a lot of time to spend getting to know Lillian. I’ll miss being the only one to feed her, the one that knows exactly what she needs if she’s fussy, the one who knows just what to do to get her to sleep… you get the idea.

Even though I have to start leaving Lillian in someone else’s care, at least it will be my sister taking care of her. And that pretty much guarantees I’ll be getting new pics sent to me every day (right Katie??).

Time Flies

2010-02-05T22:40:00.001-05:00

Several times over the past few weeks I’ve had the thought pop in my head that I should do a blog post. Why? Well, there are a couple of reasons I like to write here…(1) So family and friends out of town can catch a little glimpse of what we are up to…(2) A place for me to sort of journal – I love coming back here months or even a year later to remember what life was like. However, once I jumped on the facebook bandwagon, I practically abandoned my little corner of the blog world. Sometimes I forget that not everybody reads my stupid little one or two sentence updates (although certainly not everybody reads my little blog either). All that to say, I’m writing this one more for myself.

My thoughts are so jumbled right now. Everything sounds great in my head, but as soon as I try to type what I’m thinking, it ends up all messy. Anyone else have this problem?

Lillian will be 11 weeks old on Monday. I know, I know, it’s so cliche to say “where has the time gone,” but really….where the heck has it gone? At the end of my pregnancy, time virtually stood still, but now that I have my sweet baby girl to hold in my arms, I can’t slow time down at all…I feel like moments are just slipping through my fingers and I’m helpless to stop them. Maybe it’s because I look at Edwin and know that in the blink of an eye, Lillian will be almost three, talking up a storm, telling me no, testing her limits, giving sweet hugs and kisses, sleeping in a big girl bed….. I’m doing everything I can to soak in the smell of her sweet baby head, cherishing the times when she falls asleep on my chest and doesn’t move for two hours, her little fingers and toes, her oh-so-soft skin. It almost feels cruel that this stage goes by so quickly. Ok, I better stop or I’m going to start crying!

I think I’m finally starting to get over the shock of being a mother of two children. Wait, maybe not. Just reading that sentence again made me shake my head. I’m a MOM to TWO kids!!!! Sometimes I still feel like a kid myself! Weird. Edwin is definitely getting the hang of being a big brother. We had a few sketchy moments in the beginning (um, he tried to step on Lillian once and also bonked her in the noggin once), but now he is extremely gentle and loving. In fact, several times he has looked at me when I’m holding Lillian and said “I just love her.” Melt my heart!!!

People always say that every child will be completely different. While I knew this would be true, there was a part of me that just assumed Lillian would have the same preferences that Edwin did as a baby. I couldn’t have been more wrong! Edwin was 100% in love with his pacifier until about two months ago. Seriously. He LOVED that thing. No matter how hard I try, Lillian won’t take a pacifier – she hates them! When Edwin was nursing, he would take almost an hour and a half to be satisfied. Lillian is done in about twenty minutes. When it was time for bottles, Edwin would take anything – he didn’t care what brand, what shape, nothing…just as long as he could eat. Little miss picky is set on her Medela bottles. (Thanks honey, you had to pick the expensive ones!) It’s fun to learn the differences in their personalities, especially since she looks so much like Edwin did when he was a baby. Guess that’s where the similarities end for now.

I know that there were about a hundred other things I wanted to write tonight, but my brain isn’t cooperating. I’ll go ahead and post a few pictures and call it a night. After all, the rest of the family is already sleeping, I might as well take a hint!

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A Little Late

2010-01-03T12:55:00.001-05:00

Here’s our Christmas card that went out just a little late. Thanks to my sis and her design skills!!

11-23-09

2009-11-23T21:58:00.003-05:00

Wow. I don't even know where to begin!!! This post is a way for me to share the events of the day with anyone who is interested, but more than that, it will be a great way to remember Lillian's crazy arrival for years to come. Hang on...I think this will be a lengthy post!

Last night after church I was absolutely worn out, ready for bed at 9pm. After taking my trusty Tylenol PM, I headed off to dreamland, sure that nothing interesting would happen on the baby-front until Tuesday night with the induction. I ended up having a very realistic dream that I'd had Lillian and was holding her...it was so sweet...but clearly just my mind playing tricks on me. At about 6:15am, I woke up and realized I'd had a contraction. Sure that it was just more false labor, I laid there for the next 3 which came about 10 minutes apart. I still didn't think much of it, so I didn't bother to say anything to my parents (I've been staying at their house for the past week because it's much closer to the hospital than our house) and let them head off to work for the day. Slowly but surely the contractions started to come closer together, and they were feeling stronger than any I'd had in the last few weeks. My sister called to see what I was up to and I confessed that I'd been having contractions but hadn't told anyone else yet. She was going to get a few things done around the house and then take a shower a little later and come hang out with me, but I realized things were getting a bit more serious...and told her she should shower now and head over to mom & dad's.

In the meantime, I called Ed at work to give him a head's up just in case this baby stuff was for real. I took the opportunity to have a nice hot shower, and by the time I was getting dressed, the contractions were coming exactly 2 minutes apart. I began to wonder what the heck I was thinking when I sent mom and dad to work leaving me home alone!!! A quick call to Katie assured me that she was on her way - yes, it was time to go to the hospital. We loaded my bags in the car and took off, called Ed to meet us at the hospital, and called Grandma Mary to do the same. I can't remember exactly what time we got there, but maybe it was around 9am? In any case, I got checked in (thankfully had already filled out my paperwork) and was sent to triage. When the nurse did an exam, I was still only 2cm. Seriously?? What the heck was going on? She spoke to my doctor who wanted me to walk around - he really wanted to see some cervical change before actually admitting me to labor & delivery. So at 9:55am, the nurse told me to walk around the halls and come back at 10:45. Well, Ed and I started walking, but the contractions were getting more and more intense and even closer together. I was in so much pain during each one that I had to hang onto the wall rails for dear life. At 10:20 I told him there was no way I could keep going; we needed to get back to that room.

When the triage nurse checked me again, she had this strange, almost terrified look on her face. I was 5cm! Keep in mind that the entire time, I let the whole world know that I fully intended to get an epidural. Suddenly, the activity in my room went nuts. One nurse started the admission process while the other started an IV and drew blood for labwork. Ahhh, the infamous "labs." Over and over again I asked if there would be time for the epidural. My nurse assured me that yes, there was time, she just needed to get the labs back, which should only take 20 minutes. Famous last words.

A lot of the next hour was a blur of pain - crazy painful contractions, trying to breathe, moaning to get through each one, a lot of praying for God to give me strength, and not to mention a few times asking about the epidural. Each time they assured me that it was coming, we're just "waiting for your labs to come back." At some point, I started feeling pressure - the nurse checked me and I was 7cm. In that very moment, I KNEW the epidural was no longer a possibility - and I was NOT happy!!! I didn't think there was any way possible that I could actually give birth to a child without that pain medicine. But God had a different plan for me.

After just a few more contractions, the pressure was so incredibly intense I knew it was time to push. The nurse checked me and yes, I was "complete." She made me lay on my side because she knew that this baby was coming and the doctor hadn't arrived yet. By the time everyone was in place (yes, including the doctor), I was just about out of my mind. According to Ed, there were a ton of people in the room, but I had no idea because my eyes were shut the whole time, just focusing on staying alive. I'm not sure how many times I pushed, but maybe it was only 3 or 4 contractions? I've always been skeptical of this phrase because I didn't understand it, but the whole thing truly felt like an out of body experience. How I didn't split into a million pieces (or at least pass out) is beyond me. The moment Lillian was born was so incredible - I can close my eyes and picture it over and over again.

I don't even want to ruin the memories by trying to put them into words - just an absolute miracle straight from the hand of God.

Miss Lillian Grace Boso was born at 11:31 am, only a little over 5 hours after I had my first contraction. She was 8lbs 11 oz and 20 inches long with a set of lungs that could knock you over. She looks incredibly similar to Edwin when he was born, yet has her own distinct look. My husband was amazing through the whole process - I don't know what I would have done without him (sorry about almost breaking your hand honey!)

There's so much more to say, but I can save that for another post. Thanks to everyone (again) for all the prayers and encouragement. I pray that all who read this blog will stand with me in awe of our amazing Creator. To God ALONE be the glory!!!!

Thankful

2009-11-21T20:57:00.002-05:00

The last few days have been interesting to say the least. I'm sure most people know by now that at 9:30pm Thursday night I started having contractions - again. They were pretty consistent until about 12 hours later when they got further apart. No matter how much walking I did (and I walked A LOT), no matter what else I tried, they eventually got further apart and even more sporadic. At my doctor's appointment at 3:20pm, I still held onto a tiny bit of hope that he would send me over to the hospital to give me a jump-start of pitocin and I'd be meeting my little girl in a matter of hours. Instead, I found out that there had been absolutely no change since Monday. Seriously?? Eighteen hours of contractions resulted in no change??? How could this be? I fought back tears as the scheduler gave me my "walking papers" and instructions to show up at the hospital on Tuesday night to begin a 2-day induction. Once I got in the car though, I couldn't hold back any longer and I just started crying.

Yes, there are waaaay worse things that could have happened. My baby is still healthy, I am still healthy, but I was emotionally and physically worn out. I think I deserved a few moments of crying. Don't judge.

After a much needed night of sleep (thanks to the makers of generic Tylenol PM), today has been much more enjoyable. I never thought I'd make it to my due date with Lillian, especially with three separate occasions of false labor. But here I am. It's after 9pm on November 21st, and she is showing absolutely no signs of wanting to make her appearance.

Like I said, today was much more enjoyable. Mom and I took Edwin to the mall and met Auntie Katie, Uncle Brian, and Anthony. We had lunch, the boys rode the carousel, and we walked around a lot. I was able to take a nap when Edwin did, my husband got off work early (always a bonus!), and my mom & sis kidnapped me for a few hours to get PEDICURES!!!! Seriously, if you are in need of a pick-me-up, a pedicure is the way to go for sure! After a relaxing foot rub and some neon-pink toenail polish, we went over to the fire station to have Lillian's new car seat safely installed in the mini-van. Then it was off to San Felipe for dinner with the whole fam. See? It was a great day!

I'm so thankful for my family and friends. So thankful for the encouraging words, the prayers, the interest in how I'm doing. Just know that if I don't answer your text message, if I don't pick up the phone, it's nothing personal. I'm just not up for talking about this over and over and over again. If and when things finally pick up again (either naturally or from the induction), you can be sure that there will be plenty of facebook updates and blog posts from my sis or my sis-in-law. In fact, Katie will be updating her blog a lot more often than I do, so you might want to head over there for info.

This was the brightest pink polish I could find in the entire place (in honor of my little girl)

Miracle of the Moment

2009-11-18T08:19:00.003-05:00

I'm officially three days away from my due date (Saturday the 21st). I find myself alternating between calm acceptance that I'm still pregnant and frantic wondering of when she'll be here. Last night before bed, I was absolutely certain I would be in labor before the morning. I mean, if someone had wanted to put money on it, I would have jumped all over that bet. However, I woke up at 6:30am still very pregnant, and again wondering when the heck Lillian is going to get here.

On the way to work, I think God was trying to gently remind me who is really in control here. I heard a song on K-Love called "Miracle of the Moment." It was exactly what I needed to put things in perspective. Two years ago today I was baptized and surrendered my life to Jesus Christ. I professed in front of a huge room full of people that I was placing my trust in Jesus for EVERYTHING. Well, that includes pregnancy, doesn't it? So this morning, instead of being cranky and irritable, I'm choosing to be grateful for these last few days of pregnancy when I can have Lillian all to myself.

Here are the lyrics to that song (Miracle of the Moment by Steven Curtis Chapman)- and also a couple of pictures that Katie took of "The Belly" yesterday afternoon. Have a great day :)

It's time for letting go

All of our "if onlies"

Cause we don't have a time machine

And even if we did

Would we really want to use it

Would we really want to go change everything

Cause we are who and where and what we are for now

And this is the only moment we can do anything about

So breathe it in and breathe it out

And listen to your heartbeat

There's a wonder in the here and now

It's right there in front of you

And I don't want you to miss the miracle of the moment

There's only One who knows

What's really out there waiting

And all the moments yet to be

And all we need to know

Is He's out there waiting

To Him the future's history

And He has given us a treasure called right now

And this is the only moment we can do anything about

So breathe it in and breathe it out

And listen to your heartbeat

There's a wonder in the here and now

It's right there in front of you

And I don't want you to miss the miracle of the moment

And if it brings you tears

Then taste them as they fall

Let them soften your heart

And if it brings you laughter

Then throw your head back

And let it go

Let it go, yeah

You gotta let it go

And listen to your heartbeat

And breathe it in and breathe it out

And listen to your heartbeat

There's a wonder in the here and now

It's right there in front of you

And I don't want you to miss the miracle of the moment

And breathe it in and breathe it out
And listen to your heartbeat
There's a wonder in the here and now
It's right there in front of you
And I don't want you to miss the miracle of the moment

Waiting is SO HARD!

2009-11-09T20:20:00.001-05:00

I thought I was doing really well. After the whole bug-bite scare at 34 weeks, I had convinced myself that waiting until 40 weeks would be a piece of cake. I was just fine all the up to 37 weeks… And now, I’m miserable.

**Disclaimer: I am grateful that Lillian and I are healthy and doing well. I am grateful to be pregnant in the first place. I KNOW that she will arrive in God’s time. I get that.**

Yes, I’m miserable. Last Thursday night/Friday morning between 2 and 4am, I had some pretty decent contractions. Enough to wake me up and keep me up for two hours in the middle of the night. But they never got stronger, and eventually stopped.

Last night beginning at 8:30pm, I starting having contractions again. This time they were about 2 –3 minutes apart, strong enough to be uncomfortable, but not strong enough that I had to worry about them being so close together. SIX HOURS LATER, they stopped. I woke up this morning extremely tired, and yes, a bit cranky. There’s just nothing quite like going to work on a Monday morning, hugely pregnant, hearing random people say “Oh, you’re still here?” (It’s one thing if my friends say it, but it’s just downright annoying when it’s someone that doesn’t even know your name!)

I had a doctor’s appointment this morning and found out that I’ve progressed to 1 1/2 cm dilated, and still 70% effaced. What does that mean? Well….nothing really. I’ve heard stories of women walking around 3cm dilated and 100% effaced for two weeks without going into labor. You just never know.

So there you have it. I’m trying to enjoy these last few days (hours???) as a family of three and trying to pull my mood up out of the ditch. Maybe this picture will help :)

Trash + Bug bite = Hospital??

2009-10-11T10:09:00.001-04:00

Last night was definitely one of the weirdest nights of my life.

After Edwin’s bath, the boys were playing in the living room while I cleaned up the dinner dishes in the kitchen. The trash needed to go out, so I bagged it up, and headed outside. After throwing it away, I remembered that I had two gallon jugs of water in the trunk of my car and went to grab them. After popping the trunk, I felt something bite my right foot. Thinking nothing of it, I tried to brush it off with my left foot, but that didn’t work. I actually had to bend down and swipe it off my foot with my hand. Looking back, I guess whatever kind of bug it was felt on the small side.

When I got back in the house my foot stung a little so I rubbed on some Cortisone cream and went back to the dishes. A few minutes later, I noticed an itchy white spot on the pinky of my left hand. Thinking “oh, I must have gotten a mosquito bite outside too,” I put on some more Cortisone cream and again went back to the dishes. Less than 5 minutes later, I saw another spot appear on my left ring finger. Then I looked down at my right foot and realized it was really red and starting to swell. I asked Ed to come into the kitchen to take a look…I was starting to get a little freaked out. While he looked in the medicine cabinet for some Benadryl, I called the nurseline (at his suggestion). While I was on the phone with the nurse, things got progressively worse right before my eyes. The spots were spreading across my left hand, my foot was getting huge, my heart was racing and it was getting hard to breathe (although at that time, I figured it was just anxiety). She told me to go to urgent care or call the OB office. I tried to call my doc but was put on hold by the answering service. In just those two minutes, I developed a ton of spots all over my chest! Ok, time for the hospital.

Ed changed his clothes (he was in pjs) and got Edwin’s shoes on. The whole time we were running around the house, Edwin kept saying “mommy got bug bite? Go see doctor?” Oh yeah, time to see a doctor! We jumped in the car and headed for Brunswick Community Hospital which is thankfully less than 5 minutes away. It was getting really hard to breathe…and yes, I was getting really scared. I just kept praying that God would keep me conscious until we got to the ER. Having been to that ER in the past (always for Edwin or Ed), I knew they had a red phone at the triage window that you’re only supposed to use if you’re having chest pains or difficulty breathing. I IMMEDIATELY headed for the phone, told them I was having an allergic reaction and could barely breathe. Amazing how quickly that door opened! My blood pressure suddenly dropped and I almost passed out just walking to the exam room.

Once in the room, they hooked me up to the monitors, got an IV going (the guy starting the IV asked me if I had a sunburn because my chest was beet red. Nope, all part of the allergic reaction) and the doctor came right in. Unfortunately, I still couldn’t breathe!!! They gave me (by IV) Benadryl, Zantac, and Solu-medrol, a steroid. The nurse said she could see my color getting better almost immediately. I was still having trouble breathing, so someone from Respiratory came down and did an albuterol treatment which made a HUGE difference.

I had called my parents on the way to the hospital to see if they could come get Edwin. So while I was in the ER, mom popped in to see how I was doing. Then she and dad took Edwin home and then Ed was finally able to come back. I’m sure it was a strange site…he’s usually the one in the hospital bed, not me! I also had an oxygen mask on…

Since I’m 34 weeks pregnant, they had someone from the maternity department come hook me up to a fetal monitor. Lillian’s heartbeat was perfectly normal, but sure enough, I was having contractions. At first they were mostly on the the top of my belly and felt more like Braxton-Hicks contractions. But as time went on, they gradually got lower and lower, and felt more like the real thing. I was contracting every 2 1/2 minutes. The ER doc was in constant contact with my OB doc up in Wilmington and they decided to transfer me to New Hanover for additional monitoring.

Did you know that once you’re at a hospital and they want to transfer you to another hospital you have to go via ambulance? Yup. My first ride in an ambulance was thankfully uneventful. The crew was awesome – and since I could finally breathe again, I was in a much better mood! They got me settled in triage at the new Women & Children’s hospital at New Hanover. Not 5 minutes after I arrived, my friend Rebecca showed up. She had just gotten off of work (also works at the hospital), so she kept me company until Ed could get there about 15-20 minutes later.

The nurse hooked me up to the monitors and we just hung out watching Grey’s Anatomy. I was still having contractions every 2 minutes, but they weren’t as strong as they had been earlier. I really don’t remember the timing of everything, but eventually on my doctor’s orders, they gave me Stadol (pain medicine) and Phenergan (in case I got nauseous), turned out the lights and had me rest…they were trying to see if this would stop the contractions. They didn’t stop completely, but enough that we were released from the hospital around 2am.

There you have it. Lillian and I are doing just fine. My fingers and toes are still really tingly this morning (I’m assuming a leftover reaction from all the meds they gave me?) and I’m a little “itchy” but other than that, I feel fine. Edwin was a good boy and loved spending the night at Pappy’s house. Ed is still sleeping – I’m sure the hospital chair wasn’t very comfortable, plus he had to drive us home (45 minute drive) at 2 in the morning. I slept the whole way because that Stadol knocked me out! I took a few pictures with my new camera when Ed first got to New Hanover hospital…I only wish I had had it in the ambulance! haha. Thanks for all of the prayers. I’m grateful that this crazy experience is over and thanking God that I’m still pregnant this morning!

Lillian’s heart rate on the left (132) and the contraction number on the right (23).

JUST LET ME BE MAD!

2009-10-09T15:35:00.003-04:00

This afternoon, I learned of the new policy at New Hanover Regional Medical Center regarding visitors. Because of the stupid H1N1 virus, nobody under the age of 18 is allowed to visit (see their press release here). This means that when I have Lillian in roughly six weeks, Edwin will not be able to visit his brand new baby sister in the hospital.

I am upset. I had visions of Edwin coming to the hospital, maybe having a present with him for the new baby, being a little bit shy at first (yes, it is possible for Edwin to be shy), and then meeting his Lillian. I wish you could hear the sweet way he says her name. I imagined him climbing into the hospital bed with me as I held both of my kids, amazed that I have been blessed with two precious miracles. Katie would get some wonderful pictures that we could share with all of our family and friends…

Now those visions have changed. Yes, I know it will still be special no matter where Edwin is when he meets Lillian for the first time. But I wanted it to be at the hospital!! (Imagine me throwing a mini-tantrum right now…) I also don’t want to go two days without seeing my son and having him wonder where the heck mommy is. Again, go ahead and argue the other side. He’s only 2 and a half – will he really care where mommy is? Will he really care that he’s not stuck in a small hospital room being told you can’t touch that, leave that alone? Probably not. But my very first memory EVER is when my dad brought Katie and I to the hospital to meet David…and I was only 2 ½. Now Edwin won’t have that chance.

So instead of offering me comments like “well, it’s a pandemic” or “it won’t really matter” just be mad with me for a second. Understand that I am having a little pity party and just want a little bit of company… Yes, I’ll get over this. Yes, most likely after Lillian is born I’ll post on here that it wasn’t a big deal to have Edwin meet her at Pappy’s house. But for now, please just let me be mad.

What a Sweet Face!

2009-10-05T12:13:00.003-04:00

This morning I had another ultrasound to make sure my fluid levels are staying in the normal range and Auntie Katie got to tag along for the show. The fluid checked out perfect and Miss Lillian is looking mighty healthy. In fact, she's measuring just ahead of schedule and is already 5 1/2 pounds!!!! That puts her in the 70th percentile for growth. We sure make some hardy kids. Haha. Anyway, I wanted to share the pictures from the 3D portion of the scan...and I included one from the day Edwin was born. I think our children definitely share the same nose and lips. So cute!!!! At my appointment with the doctor, he said my belly is measuring 33cm (perfect for 33 weeks of pregnancy) and Lillian's heartrate was 148. I go back in two weeks for another ultrasound and appointment, so hopefully there will be a few more photos. I am so grateful for a healthy checkup!

Eat More Chikin

2009-09-23T16:19:00.002-04:00

This afternoon (well, late morning since it was 11:30), I decided I wanted Chick-fil-A for lunch. So I drove over to the one by Target and proceeded around the building to get in the drive-thru line. There was a guy in a truck entering the parking lot, so I thought I’d be nice and let him in the line ahead of me. Turns out he was going into the building, so no big deal. However, this rude lady in an SUV whipped through behind the guy in the truck and cut me off to get ahead of me in line. I was on the phone with my sister and even told her how rude the lady was!

(Are you bored yet? Just hang in there…)

I get to the speaker, order my yummy lunch, and the lady tells me it’ll be $5.68. I drove around to the window, and imagine my surprise when she says “you’re the 100^th customer today, so your meal is on us!” She rang a cowbell and all the employees inside started clapping. Um, seriously? I didn’t even know they did this sort of thing!!! So even though I tried to be nice to the guy in the truck and got cut off by a rude lady, my meal was FREE!!!!!!!

Long story for only $5.68, but it made my day!

A Whole Lotta Randomness

2009-09-21T20:48:00.001-04:00

Wow, it’s been a LONG time since I made the effort to post on here. It seems I’ve been saying something to that effect each time I finally drag myself back, but hey…it’s my blog and I can do what I want, right? So if anybody out there (wherever there is) is even slightly interested, here’s some random updates:

Life : Life has been…um…a little crazy lately. Well, crazy isn’t even the right word, but I don’t know how else to describe it. Without going into details (those that need to know already know), the past month+ has probably been one of the most challenging times I’ve ever faced. But you know what? It was (and still is) probably the time of my life that I’ve seen God working SO CLEARLY. There have been moments that have no other explanation than God’s divine plan for my life and the lives around me. It’s like He has spun a miracle right around me. Sorry if all that was vague, but just remember that God sovereignly uses EVERYTHING for His purposes.

Books: Oh. My. Gosh. I recently finished reading a series of books that totally BLEW MY MIND!!!!! It was bittersweet at the end…I couldn’t wait to figure out how the books would end, but I was actually sad that they were done. Now what? The characters were just so real that I wanted to either be them, or at least be their friend!! haha. And the strangest thing? Even though I’m an avid reader, this series was totally not my usual preference for books. I won’t keep you in suspense anymore…

It’s called The Mark of the Lion series by Francine Rivers. The books are set about 40-50 years after Jesus Christ rose from the dead – ancient Rome, slaves, gladiators…redemption, forgiveness, salvation… My simple words can’t even begin to describe the awesomeness!! (see, awesomeness shouldn’t even be allowed in the same blog post..haha) Anyway, if you’re looking for a good read (or three) I can’t recommend these highlyenough.

Sales Pitch: I’m selling my camera on Craigslist…anyone interested? It’s still a great camera, I’m just wanting to upgrade before Lillian arrives.

Funny Stuff: The current series at church is all about humility. Check out this video from The Meek Squad!!

Pregnancy: Today I am 31 weeks, 2 days pregnant. Whew!! For the most part, I’m feeling pretty good, just the standard fatigue of lugging around another person all the time :) Or maybe that has to do with also chasing a 2-year old… In any case, I had a routine checkup today which went very well. I had been concerned about my weight gain (at my previous appt, I had only gained a total of 8 lbs), but no worries. I gained 6 lbs in the last three weeks!!! Praise God for a good (healthy) appetite! My belly is measuring exactly as it should (31cm for 31 weeks) and Lillian’s heartbeat was perfect. At my last ultrasound, my fluid levels were completely normal, but just to be on the safe side, my doc ordered another ultrasound (aw, bummer! haha) to be sure. So this coming Thursday, I get to see my baby girl again!!!! Yes, I’ll post pictures.

On Sunday the 13th, Mom, Jeanie (my mommy-in-law) and my awesome sister threw me a baby shower to celebrate Miss Lillian Grace. If you haven’t already seen it on Katie’s blog, here’s a slideshow she put together of the pictures. Isn’t she great??!!! Click HERE to see the show.

Family: Last week, Jeanie & Glenn came to visit from Ohio!!!!!! They’re only able to make the trip once a year, so we’ve been anxiously awaiting their arrival. Edwin knew that Mamaw Jeanie and Papaw Glenn were coming to see him (the names sound MUCH cuter when he says them) and he was super excited. They arrived last Saturday and stayed for a week at Carolina Beach. And to make things even more fun, Ed’s cousin Wavie (Glenn’s niece) and her man Ron made the trip as well. Unfortunately, I didn’t take a single picture the whole time they were here. But I know Jeanie took a ton, so it’s only a matter of time until she shares with me. We had so much fun just spending quality time with Glenn and Jeanie – now if we could only convince them to move to NC!!!!

The End: I think I was going to add a few more updates, but now that I’m sitting at the computer, I can’t remember anything else! So for now, I think that’s enough.

26 and 30

2009-08-15T12:06:00.001-04:00

What do these two numbers mean? Well, I’m 26 weeks pregnant today and 30 years old.

My day started off at 7am when a sleepy Edwin came wandering into our room. My darling husband got up with him so that I could sleep in. Hooray!! Then at 9am, Edwin came back in with my birthday card…he had to open it for me of course!

We eventually went to Home Depot to get paint for Lillian’s room. I’ll have to post pictures later this week once Ed finishes the project – it’s going to be so cute!! And now, Edwin is taking his nap while I play with my birthday present. My new Dell laptop is a few weeks old, but it’s my birthday and Christmas presents for the next two years :) Later this afternoon after Edwin wakes up, we’ll head over to mom & dad’s house. Katie, Mom, and I are going to get pedicures and we’re having steaks for dinner. YUMMY!! Unfortunately Ed has to work, but at least he’s off tomorrow.

Since I haven’t posted new pictures in awhile, here are some funny ones from last week. Edwin and Ed were playing outside one night after work and somehow they broke out the hose. Check it out!

Catching Up

2009-08-01T20:30:00.001-04:00

Sometimes I feel like there’s just nothing interesting to say on my blog – maybe it’s because I post silly updates on facebook all the time? In any case, I thought I’d share some pictures from the last couple of weeks.

I found this adorable bedding set on Walmart’s website (on CLEARANCE!!) and fell in love with it. I just couldn’t resist putting the whole set together as soon as we brought it home…

We’re probably going to paint the walls a pale lavender and I want my talented hubby to paint some palm trees too. (Sorry the pinks are a little off in the pictures, I took a couple with the flash and some without…clearly I am not the photographer in the family!)

And just because I can…here are some pictures of Lillian’s growing wardrobe. I bought the first two outfits, a friend from work gave me the third, and my aunt Ann (in MN) bought the last two. Aren’t they soooooo cute???!!

I think this post has enough girly stuff in it – time for some boy stuff!!!!

My boys are soooo handsome!!!

Stellan

2009-07-26T17:38:00.001-04:00

Baby Stellan needs more prayers - click HERE to read his mom's blog or to follow her on Twitter.

Yay Daddy!!

2009-07-19T21:05:00.001-04:00

Yay Daddy! That’s what Edwin said today on our way to pick up Ed from the airport. We were both very happy to have him home after he spent a week in Ohio. Even now as I type this, Ed is taking care of bedtime duty which is soooo nice!! I’ve slept on the air mattress all week, but I think we’re making some progress.

Here’s a few pictures of the house that Ed helped build for his brother. It’s eventually going to be a 3 story house with a walk-out basement…looks like they had a great start!

I’ll try anything at this point

2009-07-14T21:26:00.001-04:00

Unless you’re living under a rock, you know (if you’re reading this) that we’ve been struggling with Edwin’s transition to a big boy bed for about 3 1/2 weeks now. And actually, for about two weeks prior to the switch, his sleeping had become erratic. The whole situation has been very frustrating considering he used to be the best sleeper!!

Last night was my breaking point. Ed is out of town visiting his family in Ohio and helping his brother build a house (yes, my husband can build houses). He’s gone for a week and last night was the first night I had to do the bedtime routine on my own. Let’s just say it didn’t go well. It took me more than an hour to get him to sleep…and then I spent the next 45 minutes crying because I felt like a horrible mom – not to mention the raging pregnancy hormones and lack of sleep mixed in…

The rest of the evening didn’t go much better. Edwin fell asleep at 9pm. I went to bed at 10:30, and he was awake by 11:20. It took me another 20 minutes to get him back to sleep….but then he woke up at 1am. This time I just had to put him back in his bed. However…at 2am he woke up yet AGAIN because of the stupid thunderstorm. Since he’s terrified of the rain, I knew it was a losing battle, so I put his fold-out Elmo couch on the floor next to my bed and he slept there….with just a few minor wake-ups the rest of the night.

Let’s just say that there were some more tears on my part this morning at work because I was so tired!!! Finally at my wit’s end, I called the pediatrician’s office. The nurse was so sweet and understanding and encouraging. She told me that we were doing everything right – staying consistent, not letting him sleep with us (or sleeping in his bed either), not giving him attention in the middle of the night…She said that in most cases, it wouldn’t take this long to resolve the problems. However, since he’s gone more than a month without a good night of sleep, he’s ridiculously overtired. That means his body won’t allow him to sleep through the night or take good naps or act like his usual happy self. (He’s also been waaaaay over-the-top cranky). So she prefaced her advice by saying “Usually I wouldn’t recommend this, but in your case….” and then proceeded to tell me what to do. She said in this instance, it might be a good idea to sleep in his room for a few nights. Not in the bed with him, but on an air mattress on the floor next to him. That way if he wakes up, he’ll go right back to sleep because mommy is there. After a few nights, he should get used to sleeping the whole night in his bed again…and eventually, I can return to the comfort of my own bed.

So I went to Target today and purchased my “Addendum to the Big Boy Bed”….also known as a twin size air mattress since that’s all that we have room for. Lovely to think Edwin gets his comfy full-size bed while preggo mommy sleeps on the twin size blow up bed. Ahhh…what I wouldn’t do for my kid.

If you spend any time at all with God, I’m going to ask for prayer – please pray that Edwin will finally get a good night of sleep (me too!) and that his body will adjust once again to sleeping through the night. And please pray that the Holy Spirit will fill me with the gift of self-control because I certainly can’t do it on my own. I’ll let you know how it goes :)

And because all blog posts are better with a picture….

Trying Something New

2009-07-10T21:27:00.001-04:00

Now that I have my own computer (that’s faster than a lazy snail), I downloaded Windows Live Writer. Anyone else use this? Apparently you can make your pictures bigger, you can change stuff around easier…I’m not really sure actually what all it can do. In any case, I’m testing it out tonight.

Here’s a couple of pictures from last week when Edwin was helping Daddy wash the cars in the backyard. He loves having control of the hose!!!

And just because I can…here’s a couple more random pictures (I love the different effects I can choose!!)

Not exactly the most exciting post, but at least it’s something new to read :)

Photo Debut

2009-07-05T21:55:00.003-04:00

Thanks to my wonderful brother-in-law (Brian), here are the pictures from our ultrasound last week. Introducting Lillian Grace Boso!!!

By the way, I forgot to mention that unlike my pregnancy with Edwin, this time around my fluid levels are looking great. Praise God!!

Big News

2009-07-01T10:40:00.004-04:00

I can't believe it!!!! Ed and I both went into the ultrasound this morning absolutely convinced we'd be having another little boy.

As I drove to work after the scan I had all these thoughts swirling around in my head that I wanted to write about on here, but now my brain is a big mushy mess. I'm just so grateful that God has given us the opportunity to be parents again! And I'm also amazed once again at our Creator and His perfect plan. There's no way you could sit through an ultrasound and not wonder at the miracle of life!

I'll try to scan the baby pictures in a little later and post them, but for now just know that Lillian (middle name yet to be decided) Boso is safe and healthy. Please leave me some comment love to share in our excitement!!!!

A Look Back

2009-06-30T13:29:00.003-04:00

When I was pregnant with Edwin, my sister made me a website (this was before blogger) to help keep family and friends in the loop. Just for fun, I looked back at that website today to the entry I wrote the day after we found out we were having a boy. I thought it might be interesting to post my thoughts from November 8, 2006. Enjoy!

I knew it!!! I knew all along that we were going to have a boy. Now I have the ultrasound pictures to prove it!

So yesterday was the big day. The day I had been waiting for. We were finally going to see our little peanut again and maybe find out the sex. Ed took the day off of work so he could come to the appointment with me. The weather was really gloomy--rainy and overcast. But you could have fooled me! I didn't pay attention to any of it. When we got to the doctor's office, we had to wait for about 10-15 minutes. Now I realize that in the grand scheme of things, this is a teeny tiny speck of time. But it seemed to last FOREVER! Finally, our ultrasound technician, Nancy, came to get us. For those of you who know me well, you know I love to read. So ever since I found out I was pregnant, I've been reading every bit of information I can get my hands on. Everything I read about ultrasounds said they make you drink a whole bunch of water so your bladder is full. From what other women have said, this makes the test pretty uncomfortable, as I'm sure you can imagine. So it was to my delight and surprise that Nancy had me go to the bathroom before we started. To a pregnant woman, these are magical words! When I went into the exam room, Ed and Nancy were bonding over pictures of her German Shepherds...he's always on the lookout for another dog!

She had me lay on the table--actually pretty comfortable. I got to lay back and watch a 32-inch television project the ultrasound images...Ed was right next to me. I felt like we were at the most exclusive premiere of our baby's debut. Ok, moment of truth. She squirted about a gallon of gel on my stomach and started the test. First words out of her mouth were along the lines of "well, we may have you come back for more images, because this baby is in the most awkward position!" What?? Did this mean we weren't going to see what we had come to see? Evidently, our little peanut was nice and snug in a corner of my belly....arms and legs extended over the head. Sleeping. Now this shouldn't have come as a big surprise, considering Ed and I LOVE to sleep! But I had even tried the "coke trick". I drank a whole can of coke on the way to Wilmington, hoping to ensure a good show. But no such luck. Also like his parents, this baby was stubborn. It was still amazing to see the images though. We saw the heartbeat, and Nancy turned on the doppler so Ed could hear everything (I had heard this at previous appointments). For the next 30 minutes, we tried everything we could to get peanut to shift around. Nancy said this was one of the most difficult scans she had done in a long time. Guess she earned her paycheck that day! She was very nice though and explained everything in detail. Kidneys were functioning well, spine looked perfect, cute little feet....We got a lot of pictures for the scrapbook too! After about 35 minutes, peanut decided to be a little more cooperative. Nancy told us she "thought" it was probably a boy, but she couldn't say for sure. After a couple more minutes, things were wrapping up. She wanted me to come back in 2 weeks for another ultrasound, just so she could get more specific measurements for my chart. I asked her if we should keep our mouths shut about it being a boy--we didn't know how certain she was. One more quick look....and oh yeah, she said "I'm 100% positive you're having a boy."

Are you kidding me???? I was right!!! It was such an amazing feeling to actually know that this little creature (who could still fit in the palm of my hand) is our son. Even typing that sounds a bit strange. We're going to have a son. Edwin Dewey Boso, II. And to top it all off, I get to go back in two weeks to see him again! For anyone who doesn't believe in a Creator, just think about the miracle of a baby. There's no way mere humans came up with this. God truly is amazing and we are so blessed to be having this child. I'll keep everyone posted as things progress.....

Last Chance!!

2009-06-29T16:31:00.002-04:00

On Wednesday, July 1st, (as long as baby cooperates) Ed and I will find out if we're having a boy or a girl!!!! A lot of people have asked me if I have a "feeling" one way or the other, but clearly even my subconscious is conflicted. On Saturday night I had two separate ultrasound dreams. In one, the baby was a boy, in the other, the baby was a girl. Gee, that clears things right up :) When I was pregnant with Edwin, I kept having dreams that it was a boy...

Anyway, take the poll on the right side of the screen and leave me a comment with your predictions. I'll be letting the entire world know the results on Wednesday!!!!!

Haircuts and Bedtime Battles

2009-06-24T16:45:00.003-04:00

Last night after work, Mom (Grandma) and I took Edwin to get his hair cut. As you can see from my previous post, his locks were getting might luscious indeed. It took forever to get the shampoo rinsed out and it was making him sweat like crazy!! So it took some finesse on the stylists part, but he came out looking even more handsome than ever. Isn't my baby adorable??

Yes, I just called my baby adorable. And now I will discuss the not-so-adorable side of him. Ahh, the bedtime battles have begun at our house. Sunday was his first night in the big boy bed...and I think Round 1 goes to the little man. But Rounds 2 and 3 definitely go to the parents. YAY!! Monday and Tuesday nights were a "interesting" and involved more than a little crying on Edwin's part, but both nights he slept straight through until morning. Hooray!!!! Now that I know he's capable (again) of sleeping through the night in his BBB, consider this GAME ON. He's just testing us to see if we'll cave to his demands, but we're standing strong. A couple of co-workers have applauded our efforts considering they had children around the age of 5 that still wouldn't go to sleep without mommy or daddy in the bed. NO WAY JOSE!!!!

Anyway, I know that this is for Edwin's own good - I'm not just being the sleep police for my own enjoyment. Trust me, I can think of many other ways to spend my evenings. So with that said, pray that Round 4 also goes to the parents tonight. Good luck, Ed. You get to put the little man to bed all by yourself (I have small group tonight). I'll keep you posted :)

Oh (Big) Boy!

2009-06-22T15:18:00.004-04:00

Well, it seems to be the season for toddlers graduating from cribs to big boy (or girl) beds. A couple of weeks ago, Edwin figured out that he's agile enough to climb out of his crib, open his door, and "escape" the confines of his formerly safe bedroom. We knew it was time to upgrade to the BBB (Big Boy Bed), but some logistical issues delayed the move. So for the past two weeks, Edwin has steadily been training his parents to show up on demand in the middle of the night whenever he cries. (Hey, don't judge. I just didn't want him to fall and break his neck) This child used to be the best sleeper!!! After settling down for the evening, we'd say nigh-night to Daddy, snuggle in the rocking chair while we said our prayers, then it was kisses & squeezes and off he went to dreamland, not to be heard from until at least 7am. But not lately. Lately, he's been struggling to fall asleep and stay asleep for the whole night. And of course, since we were terrified he'd get hurt climbing out of the crib, he cried and we answered. Now we're paying the price.

Yesterday, Edwin got his BBB, complete with new sheets & comforter, and Daddy's pillow (he's always loved that thing). All evening he kept running around talking about his "big boy bed! big boy bed!" I was cautiously optimistic and very hopeful that things would go smoothly. Boy was I wrong!!!! Once we finished our nightly routine, he laid down on the bed all snuggled up with his blankie and stuffed doggie. But as soon as I left the room, he freaked out and wanted nothing to do with his Big Boy Bed.

I won't go into the ensuing chaos, but let's just say it was a long night. Part of the issue is that Edwin has two parents (duh!). One parent wants to snuggle with Edwin in the bed in hopes of getting him to fall asleep easier, and the other parent says no way, just let him cry, he'll get used to it. Ahhh...the joys (and compromises) of parenting. Hopefully tonight will go better!!!

Beanie Baby

2009-06-16T10:44:00.003-04:00

One of my most anticipated emails each week comes from Parents.com. It's a cute newsletter with updates on how this little baby is growing, what changes the pregnant mama typically experiences, etc. The best part is they always compare the developing baby to some sort of ordinary object. This week, we're the size of a beanie baby!! Of course, it's all just estimation, but it's still nice to have a visual reference. Happy Tuesday :)

Week 17
Baby's Length: 4.5-5 in
Baby's Weight: 3-5 oz.

Happy Edsmas!

2009-06-09T09:08:00.006-04:00

This morning Edwin woke up in the craziest mood...I'm still not convinced his milk didn't contain some extra sugar!!! Or maybe he knew that it's Daddy's Birthday!!! That's right - Ed's birthday is also referred to as "Edsmas" in our house. A couple of years ago he was telling some co-workers that his birthday is so special, it's like his very own holiday (yes, I'm talking about my husband). So of course I went out and bought one of those make-your-own banner kits and spelled out HAPPY EDSMAS. I usually hang it up every year, but since our house is all packed up (still hoping and praying to move closer to Wilmington) I couldn't find it. This blog post will have to do :)

In baby news, I had my 16 week checkup yesterday. The heartrate was strong at 154bpm. Of course, this is now making me think maybe we're having a second boy because that's pretty close to what Edwin's heartrate was. We still have to hold out a few more weeks because the big ultrasound is scheduled for July 1st. And yes, I'll be sure to tell the whole world as soon as we find out (whether you care or not!).

That's all I've got today. Hopefully I'll remember to take some pictures tonight - the whole fam is going to dinner at San Felipe. If you live in town, I HIGHLY recommend it!!

We'll Miss Your Cookies!

2009-06-04T21:23:00.004-04:00

I can't imagine there's anyone who actually reads my blog that doesn't already know that my Grandma died last Thursday (May 28th). We just got back from MN after an exhausting week. We spent a lot of time with family and were there for the wake, funeral, and burial. I don't think I can say much more than that without dissolving into tears, and frankly, I'm sick of crying. It hurts. I'm going to miss her so much.

Pretty neat thing though...my aunt Ann sent home a bag of cookies for both Anthony and Edwin. In each bag were three homemade cookies from the last batch their Great Grandma ever made. I gave them to Edwin as soon as we got home and he couldn't stop smiling!!!

I love you Grandma...

Happy Birthday Jenny!!

2009-05-07T09:54:00.002-04:00

Today is my sister-in-law's birthday!!!!! Happy Birthday Jenny. I hope you have a fantastic day (and I hope my brother gets you something great!). Hopefully someday soon, we can celebrate your birthday together....you know, when you and David move down here???!!! I love you!!

Go Vote!!

2009-05-06T15:17:00.002-04:00

Go to my sister's photography blog and vote in her FREE WEDDING contest!! Both stories are fantastic...

oh yeah, and tell everyone you know to go vote...pretty please :)

To Those of You Born Between 1930 - 1985

2009-04-30T16:37:00.002-04:00

**I got this as an email forward today and just had to share!**

TO ALL THE KIDS WHO SURVIVED THE 1930's, 40's, 50's, 60's, 70's, and 80's!!

First, we survived being born to mothers who smoked and/or drank while they were pregnant.

They took aspirin, ate blue cheese dressing, tuna from a can and didn't get tested for diabetes.

Then after that trauma, we were put to sleep on our tummies in baby cribs covered with bright colored lead-base paints.

We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, locks on doors or cabinets and when we rode our bikes, we had baseball caps not helmets on our heads.

As infants & children, we would ride in cars with no car seats, no booster seats, no seat belts, no air bags, bald tires and sometimes no brakes

Riding in the back of a pick- up truck on a warm day was always a special treat.

We drank water from the garden hose and not from a bottle.

We shared one soft drink with four friends, from one bottle and no one actually died from this.

We ate cupcakes, white bread, real butter and bacon. We drank Kool-Aid made with real white sugar. And, we weren't overweight. WHY?

Because we were always outside playing...that's why!

We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were back when the streetlights came on.

We would spend hours building our go-carts out of scraps and then ride them down the hill, only to find out we forgot the brakes. After running into the bushes a few times,we learned to solve the problem.

We did not have Playstations, Nintendo's and X-boxes. There were no video games, no 150 channels on cable, no video movies or DVD's, no surround-sound or CD's, no cell phones, no personal computers, no Internet and no chat rooms. WE HAD FRIENDS and we went outside and found them!

We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth and there were no lawsuits from these accidents.

We ate worms and mud pies made from dirt, and the worms did not live in us forever.

We were given BB guns for our 10th birthdays, made up games with sticks and tennis balls and, although we were told it would happen, we did not put out very many eyes.

We rode bikes or walked to a friend's house and knocked on the door or rang the bell, or just walked in and talked to them.

Little League had tryouts and not everyone made the team. Those who didn't had to learn to deal with disappointment.

Imagine that!!

The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke the law was unheard of They actually sided with the law!

These generations have produced some of the best risk-takers, problem solvers and inventors ever. The past 50 years have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas.

We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility, and we learned how to deal with it all.

If YOU are one of them? CONGRATULATIONS!

Hi Tom & Lauren!

2009-04-29T16:18:00.005-04:00

Taken a couple of weeks ago on a Wednesday night (usually reserved for Daddy & Edwin as mommy is at Bible Study). Yes, he has ravioli all over his face, and yes the shirt was RUINED!!!

Last night after Edwin's bathtime, I realized I hadn't taken many pictures of him lately. After some thought, I came up with a reason - He's always moving!!!! Haha. Anyway, Ed asked me when I was going to update my blog because evidently our friend Tom wanted to know.

Tom, his wife Lauren, and their two boys Chase and Cole live in Cleveland, Ohio. The guys used to work together, and I became friends with Lauren when I lived up in OH a couple of years ago. I hate that they're so far away - especially now that we have kids the same age. But it's always fun to see them when we head up north for a visit...we usually pick up as if no time has passed. So Tom and Lauren, this post is for you :)

I haven't updated much about Baby #2 for several reasons. One being that I'm so exhausted all the time, it's hard to put together a coherent blog post! So here's a few sentences to catch you up on what's going on. As of today, I'm 10 weeks and 4 days along. For a couple of weeks, I had some pretty nasty nausea (but nothing compared to another friend of mine who is almost 16 weeks and STILL THROWING UP!!). I didn't want to eat anything and even food commercials on tv made me want to give up old reruns of Friends. But for the past three days, I've felt relatively good. The tummy is still finicky but I see clear days ahead. The one thing I remember vividly from my pregnancy with Edwin is the exhaustion, and it seems to be true this time around as well. I've been feeling guilty lately because when I get home from work, it's all I can do not to stare at the clock and wait for bedtime. I really don't want to wish away the time with Ed and Edwin...I am just SO TIRED!!!! Again, I know it'll go away sometime in the 2nd trimester, so I'm just hanging on for the next few weeks. One thing that's very different during this pregnancy is the belly. At less than 11 weeks, I'm already wearing maternity clothes. Yup. For a few weeks, I was able to use a belly band and just wear regular clothes, but even that became uncomfortable after awhile. I splurged the other day and ordered a couple of things from oldnavy.com and I can't wait for them to arrive!!

So there you have it...an update on Baby #2. I was trying to come up with a cute nickname...for Edwin it was Peanut. I thought possibly "Olive" because at the time, baby was the size of (you guessed it) an olive. Somehow that's not working for me anymore. Guess I'll just have to hold on until 19 weeks when I can find out if it's a boy or girl and actually give this baby a name!!

I'll leave you with some pictures from last night and a dance video. For Christmas, we got Edwin an Elmo Live. Now before anyone starts a nasty email or comment wondering how the heck I could pay $59.99 for one toy, hold your horses. I got a killer deal at Kohl's and paid less than 35 bucks for the thing. And once you see the video, you'll realize it was worth it. Enjoy!!

So Sleepy

2009-04-22T10:51:00.002-04:00

I guess Edwin definitely gets all his energy out at daycare these days...

Last night around 7:30 pm, Edwin comes over to me and says "Nigh-night?" I told him that he could go to bed in a little while (bedtime is usually 8pm) and he started crying!!! Over and over again he said "Nigh-night!" and pulled me towards his bedroom. So sure enough, I put him to bed and he went to sleep right away. At 7:05 this morning, I had to WAKE HIM UP! Sheesh...how many two year olds ask to go to bed??

Orange for Stellan

2009-04-21T08:20:00.002-04:00

If you click on the "Praying for Stellan" button on the right, you can read all about this sweet 5 month old boy who is going through a lot of medical issues. In fact, he might be in surgery as I'm typing this. Anyway, a lot of the followers of his mom's blog are wearing orange today in support of this surgery. Since I own absolutely nothing orange in my closet...I decided to dress my blog in orange instead!!

Click on the link...you won't be disappointed. And please please please pray for Stellan and his entire family.

Yard Work

2009-04-17T15:55:00.003-04:00

I haven't been posting on here very often, but I found this picture on my computer today and thought you (whoever "you" are) might enjoy it. Edwin LOVES to be outside, and he especially enjoys helping Daddy with yard work.

Have a great weekend! I plan to sleep - well, I plan to sleep as much as one can when there's a two-year-old in the house...

Quick Two Year Stats

2009-04-06T16:44:00.005-04:00

Friday afternoon I took Edwin for his two year checkup. I knew he was a big boy, but this just confirmed it!

37 1/2 inches tall (off the charts)
30 lbs (75th percentile)
I can't remember his exact head circumfrence, but just as I suspected, still off the charts

I'll admit I had some of my fears dismissed when the doc assured me that Edwin's crazy behavior is completely normal for a two year old. You should have seen him in the exam room...in just a diaper, running around as if I had just fed him handfuls of sugar and a coke! Quite funny actually...

Anyway, it was reassuring to know that we are doing all the right things. Timeouts when his behavior is either dangerous or deliberately disobedient, ignoring the tantrums, etc. His vocabulary is right on track, his gross and fine motor skills all on track. Good to know! Our healthy boy barely even flinched when he had his finger pricked to test for hemoglobin and when he got his shot. What a champ!!

This is a little unrelated, but I forgot to post the video last week. Here's Edwin when we called Grandma Jeanie and Grandpa Glenn on his birthday. As soon as Ed handed him the phone, he went NUTS!!!!

Happy Birthday Edwin! (a day late…)

2009-03-31T15:01:00.012-04:00

This was literally the first picture ever taken of Edwin. He was cute even when he was just seconds old!!

My reaction - pure awe!

A little male bonding time...

Yesterday (March 30, 2009) was Edwin’s second birthday!!! Since we don’t have internet at home, this post is a day late, but it just means we can extend the celebration, right?

It’s so cliché to say “time flies” or “they grow up so fast,” but clichés make it into our vocabulary for a reason. These past two years truly have gone by in a flash. I can remember the moment when I realized I was in labor; I can remember stopping for a protein shake at Gold’s Gym on the way to the hospital (I couldn’t stomach anything else!); I can remember the exact instant when I laid eyes on my baby for the very first time. It’s like it JUST HAPPENED! So how is it that two years have already passed?

For those of you who don’t have the pleasure of being around my little man on a daily basis, let me just tell you a little bit about him. Edwin has a TON of energy and keeps Ed & I on our toes. He loves to play outside, especially now that daddy lets him help with yard work. He also loves to help vacuum and “fold” laundry. Hmm, do you think those traits will stick around into the teen years? Elmo is still Edwin’s favorite character which is evidenced by the explosion of all things Elmo in our house. (Elmo couch, Elmo kitchen, Elmo flashlight, Elmo books, etc.) When he isn’t busy getting into everything, Edwin loves to read – or at least have mommy read to him. I actually have Hippos Go Berserk memorized! One hippo all alone, calls two hippos on the phone….sorry, I’ll stop. Edwin loves his big cousin Anthony, also pronounced An-na-nee and cries when he can’t see him. My boy loves to sleep and is usually very good about bedtime. His vocabulary is always expanding and he’s recently started the two-word sentences. I think he follows the typical boy pattern and excels at the gross motor skills and is now starting to catch up in the talking arena.

I could go on and on! I think I’ll just sum it up by saying that Edwin Dewey Boso II is a very special, unique, crazy, sweetheart of a little boy and I’m so grateful that God felt Ed & I were worthy of taking care of him. I saw a book title the other day that said “I was a really good mom before I had kids,” and that’s how I feel most days. It’s hard to figure out if you’re doing the right thing, if you’re teaching them at the appropriate age level, if you’re too hard on them, too soft on them, etc. But I’ll never doubt my love for Edwin and I think that’s a great place to start.

On Sunday, we had a party for Edwin at Simply Play. It was simply amazing!!! Basically, it’s one giant play room where the kids can do whatever they want! We all liked it so much that I’ll probably have his 3^rd birthday party there too. It was so nice to have everything in one place and best of all I didn’t have to chase after Edwin telling him NO every two minutes. I have the bestest sister in the whole wide world and she graciously took pictures for me. You can go over to her blog or you can email me and I’ll send you the password for her website.

FYI

2009-03-23T14:01:00.001-04:00

FYI:

A corporate enviornment with only cube walls to separate smells is not the ideal place for a preggo lady to be. Especially when the heightened sense of smell just kicked in. Come on people, let's consider something a little less disgusting for lunch tomorrow. Mm K?

New Addition

2009-03-16T13:45:00.003-04:00

For those of you who aren't on Facebook...and don't work with me....I have big news...

We are PREGNANT!!!! I just took the test yesterday and had it confirmed by my doctor this morning...but we are due November 21st with Baby #2!!!!!!!!

(I'll post more later, just wanted to throw this out there!)

Marriage Vows - another look?

2009-03-04T14:48:00.003-05:00

Every week, I tune in to New Spring Church for the latest sermon, usually delivered by Perry Noble. For the past few weeks, they've been doing a series on marriage called iwantanewmarriage.com. You can go to their website and either listen or watch the series...I guarantee it will be more beneficial to your marriage than watching Sex in the City or The Bachelor! Anyway, on the first day of the series, they showed this video clip - it's only a few minutes long....take a look and let me know what you think :)

Farewell Tico

2009-02-27T13:03:00.003-05:00

Yesterday was a very sad day. Tico, our 12-year old German Shepherd, died. I can't even remember when we first noticed it, but he had a tumor on his back leg that eventually got the best of him. By the end, he was only walking on 3 legs, and the 4th leg was just a mess (for lack of a better term).

I don't even know what to say. Before yesterday, I heard about people losing pets and how upset they got, but I never understood why. Well that's because I've never lost one before. I was shocked at how much I cried...and how much I still want to cry even now just typing this. Being almost 100 lbs, Tico was a huge presence in our household, both physically and otherwise. He was Ed's dog long before I came into the picture, so to imagine one without the other is really strange. When I lived in Ohio, there were plenty of nights that Ed was working when I only had "my boys" as company (we also have another huge dog named Goliath). When we brought Edwin home from the hospital, Tico was the big brother protector trying to figure out who this little creature was making strange noises. I always felt safe with him around.

So as hard as this is for me, I can't even fathom what it's like for Ed. When you hear the phrase "a man and his dog", that's Ed & Tico for sure. Tico was the one constant in Ed's life...and I know they loved each other very much.

Speaking of love...I just have to think that God gives us dogs (and other pets) as tiny glimpses into His love for us. No matter what we do, no matter what we look like, no matter what we screw up...that love remains constant. Maybe that's why this is so hard...because a tangible daily reminder of perfect love has been taken away. Not that I can't see or feel God's love in so many other ways...this was just so sweet. Tico was so sweet...

Katie came down to our house on February 15th to take some pictures of Ed & Tico. We knew he didn't have long and wanted to capture his sweet face. So thank you Katie for taking these - we'll treasure them always.

Bestest Video EVER!!

2009-02-18T11:20:00.003-05:00

I took this short video last night...and the more I watch it, the more I love it!! Enjoy :)

Moving?!?!?!

2009-02-09T16:53:00.001-05:00

When Ed and I first moved back to North Carolina from Ohio, we bought a house halfway between Wilmington (where I work) and Myrtle Beach (where he used to work). Most of you know this…but I feel it’s a good way to start this post…so bear with me.

Last spring, Ed decided to change careers…he was tired of never being home, working late hours, etc…so he quit cooking in Myrtle Beach and became a manager in the Fresh Foods dept at Harris Teeter in Leland. Immediately after he started the new position, images of moving closer to Wilmington started swimming in my head. I started talking about it, I started selling our house in my head...I even asked people if they knew anyone that wanted to buy in our area! But Ed wasn’t as thrilled about this prospect and essentially told me to cool it. So I did. I stopped wishing for something else, and instead was content with the home we had, and resigned myself to driving 45 minutes to and from work (and church) all week long. It wasn’t so bad.

Last week, however, Ed and I were talking about grown-up stuff. You know…money, babies…stuff like that (and no, I’m not pregnant Ashley!). Suddenly he says, we need to sell our house and move to Leland. I thought he was messing with me, but nope! He’s ready to move!!!!!!!!! Can I get an amen??!!!

So…now images of moving closer to Wilmington are once again swimming in my head, but this time, it might actually happen! We want to move to Leland mainly because Ed works there, Edwin goes to daycare there, and I work just minutes from there. Plus, the taxes are way lower than New Hanover County. Anybody want to buy a house?? Or know someone who might? Here’s my little attempt at a sales pitch:

It's a 4bedroom/2bath house on 0.67 acres with a fenced in back-yard. It's bugging me because I can't remember the exact sq feet, but I think around 1500? We have a small front porch, but the back deck extends the length of the house. The master bedroom has a big walk-in closet, the master bath has double sinks, a stand-up shower, and a garden tub. The living room, dining room, and kitchen are all open....there's tons of counter space and a big pantry (for all of our grocery game winnings! haha). There's a laundry room, sliding doors leading out to the back deck.... We have central air/heat…um…what else?

I’ve already talked to a few people about realtor referrals…I’ve gotten quite a few names actually. Our first step is to sell a bunch of stuff that is taking up too much room in our house. And I think all of my tv-watching might finally pay off! When we still had cable, I loved watching the shows on HGTV or TLC or Discovery where they’d set up the home for selling (I think it’s called staging?). Anyway, I know that we need to take down all personal stuff, re-paint the rooms to look more neutral, basically detach ourselves from the home. I think I’ve already done that. Hee hee. Don’t get me wrong…I truly love our house. If it were possible (and not expensive), I’d just as soon pick the darn thing up and plop in down in Leland. But that’s not an option here, and I don’t feel like going all Wizard of Oz or anything.

Whew! Ok, here’s where you, my two or three blog readers, come in. Do you have any tips, hints, recommendations for selling a home? This is our first house, so we don’t have any experience in this crazy real estate world. Also, please pray for us. I want to keep a level head about all this…and I want to do God’s will. (I’ll admit, I’m hoping His will includes us in a new home in short order!) But I have a feeling I’m going to be learning some patience!

Better late than never

2009-01-30T16:38:00.005-05:00

I had intended to write a big long blog post about the past week's events....but now I just don't want to go into everything.

Here's the bullet-point version:

Wednesday 21st: Ed found out his dad, Larry, had a heart attack and was in ICU
Thursday 22nd: Ed, Edwin, and I left our house headed for Ohio at 8pm
Found out at 11pm that his dad had passed away
Arrived in Ohio at 8am Friday 23rd - Ed was able to go to the hospital to say his goodbyes

I hate that it all sounds so cold, but a blog for me isn't the place to talk about something like this. I personally didn't know his dad all that well, but I know that if it weren't for him, I wouldn't have my husband or my son. For that, I'm eternally grateful. And I'm sad that Ed is sad.

One thing I will say though is this: If you ever doubted why Ed & I decided to do Financial Peace University, if you ever wondered why it's a big deal to budget, if you ever thought it was a waste of time...let me just tell you something. When we made the decision to drop everything and go to Ohio, we weren't sure what that would mean. Ed could possibly miss out on several days' pay. A hotel could get expensive, gas could cost a lot, who knew how long we'd be gone? But you know what? We were able to drop everything with no financial worries. We used our emergency fund to reserve a hotel (got a great deal on Priceline by the way!), we paid cash for everything...and when we got back, we replenished the emergency fund. No additional credit card debt, no wondering how we'd pay for everything. It wasn't an easy trip, but at least the money part was "easy".

On another note, it was soooooooooooooo nice to see Jeanie and Glenn! Obviously the circumstances of our trip weren't the best, but we made it work. They were thrilled to see Edwin, and it was even more fun because he remembered them this time. Edwin also got to play in the snow for the first time. Yes, we got some in Wilmington last week, but that doesn't count...we barely had a dusting at our house. I have much more that I could say... but again, this doesn't seem to be the right place for it... Enjoy a couple of videos instead :) Oh yeah, and if you want to see pictures, you can check me out on facebook!

Mighty to Save...Hillsong

2009-01-21T16:42:00.003-05:00

...lyrics to a song that I love...and I'm trying to remind myself of this...

Everyone needs compassion
A love that's never failing
Let mercy fall on me

Everyone needs forgiveness
The kindness of a Savior
The hope of nations

My Savior
He can move the mountains
My God is mighty to save
He is mighty to save
Forever
Author of Salvation
He rose & conquered the grave
Jesus conquered the grave

So take me as
You find me
All my fears & failures
Fill my life again
I give my life to follow
Everything I believe in
Now I surrender (I surrender)

My Savior
He can move the mountains
My God is mighty to save
He is mighty to save
Forever
Author of Salvation
He rose & conquered the grave
Jesus conquered the grave

Shine Your light &
Let the whole world see
We're singing
For the glory
Of the risen King
Jesus

You're the Savior
You can move the mountains
Lord
You are mighty to save
You are mighty to save
Forever
Author of Salvation
You rose & conquered the grave
Yes You conquered the grave

God's Hand

2009-01-15T16:58:00.003-05:00

A miracle.

I'm sure by now most people have heard about the US Airways flight that went down this afternoon in the Hudson River. There's still a lot of chaos surrounding the crash, and I'm sure they'll be investigating it for a long time to come. All I have to say is that God's hand must have been all over that plane today. It's an absolute miracle that every person got off that plane safely.

Thank you Jesus. Thank you for being merciful, thank you that those people have another day on this earth. I pray that all of us will take this chance to realize how fleeting this life is - and we need to know what eternity holds for us...

A miracle!

The Baby Mullet Had to Go!

2009-01-06T16:56:00.004-05:00

Business in the front

Party in the back!!

After the haircut, dinner, bathtime, and new pj's. SOOOO Cute!

I don't have time to write much, but the pictures should say it all. Edwin was in desperate need of a haircut....so last night we took him to this super cute place called Cuttin' Up. They had tons of stuff to keep him occupied while we waited, including a table & chairs for coloring, and a huge pirate ship that was also a slide! For the actual cut, Edwin sat in a car that made noise...Pappy & Ed kept him distracted (the lollipop didn't hurt either) because it took awhile. He had so much hair!!!!! Anyway, my baby looks so much older now....and I'm in love with the cut!! They did a great job and I'll definitely be taking him back there in the future. Enjoy the pics!

In No Particular Order

2009-01-02T16:40:00.006-05:00

As I've mentioned before, I get mighty frustrated with posting pics on blogger. So....I tried my hardest to get these in some sort of order... Enjoy!

Isn't this mug great? My friend Misty made it for me. She owns "Stuck on Words". You should definitely click on the link and check out her website. We also had customized ornaments made this year (but I can't figure out how to get a good picture of them).

Edwin was helping daddy with the tree

Experimenting with new textures :)

Waiting patiently for daddy...

Yes, we're busted. We have a boxed, pre-lit tree. But let me tell you, this thing is a breeze to put up and take down!! And as you can see, it's not too heavy. Edwin felt the need to push the box around the living room. (This was a couple of weeks before Christmas).

I took this picture first thing on Christmas morning. My baby is so cute!!

Every time I tried to get a picture of him in his santa hat, he crouched down to mimic me!

The day after Christmas...Edwin was wearing his new superman pjs from Auntie Katie, sitting on his new Elmo couch from mommy & daddy. He insisted on sitting on his couch to have his bottle...such a big boy!

Here is is looking dapper in his new clothes

My boys make me so happy :)

When my brother David & his wife Jenny were here, we took Edwin & Anthony to Monkey Joes. Unfortunately, they've changed the rules since the last time we were there. The only way an adult can "jump" is if they're supervising a child under 4. So Ed & my brother took turns supervising Edwin. My little guy loved this slide!!!

He wasn't so sure about the toddler area though...

Anthony & Edwin

Can I get a smile...please???

Uncle Dave & Edwin

These were just a few pictures I took on my own camera. I admit, I got a little lazy this year and just enjoyed the moments instead of feeling compelled to snap pics every five seconds. But hopefully Katie will post some of her awesome photography skills soon :)

For Your Viewing Pleasure

2008-12-31T14:46:00.003-05:00

I haven't had a chance to crank out a really good blog post in awhile, but this video will just have to tide you over. This is pretty much the scene at our house every night...the toys are all over the living room, and Edwin attacks daddy on the floor...oh yeah, and I laugh the whole time! Happy New Year everybody!!

2008-12-26T16:49:00.003-05:00

Edwin Singing

It's Almost Here!

2008-12-23T16:16:00.002-05:00

It's almost Christmas!!!! I have so many thoughts swirling around in my head right now, it's hard to make them cooperate so you'll have something coherent to read. I'm just so excited for Christmas....for so many different reasons. Some of the more obvious reasons include watching my son unwrap his presents, spending time with family, getting to see David (my little bro) and Jenny (his wife)....they're flying in from freezing MN tomorrow!, umm..what else? Oh yeah, the food...definitely looking forward to the tasty treats we'll have. But I keep going back to a cd...some of you are familiar with Todd Agnew's Christmas cd....he goes through the whole christmas story and tries to imagine what it was like for all those involved...what was going through their minds? How could they know what was happening? Did they understand the magnitude of a tiny child being born? My favorite song on the album relates to the angels. At his concert, Todd explains his thinking behind the song. When the angels were in heaven, they must have been looking down on the earth, knowing what was about to happen...they must have been so excited - can't you just imagine it? Like a kid on Christmas morning waking up knowing that Santa brought them presents...only this was real!! The angels must have had all they could do to hold back their excitement - "Can we sing yet? Can we shout yet? "...and then the song erupts as they sing "Glory, glory to God. Glory in the Highest!!" I know I'm not doing it justice. But that's how I feel lately. Like I know this secret and can't wait to yell it at the top of my lungs! I just want everyone to know how truly miraculous it is that GOD sent His ONLY SON to DIE for US!!! It's not enough to just go to church, to know intellectually who God is, or who Jesus is....but you have to know Jesus, have a real relationship with him. And since that finally happened for me, I just want it so bad for the rest of the world! I listened to a sermon from Perry Noble today...it was from the Christmas service at New Spring church in south carolina....it was probably one of the most powerful messages I've ever heard. It was definitely not your typical Christmas isn't-it-nice-that-sweet-baby-was-born kind of story. It was in your face, it asked the tough question - what is it going to take for God to get your attention? It looked at Christmas from King Herod's perspective. God did so many things to get his attention....Jesus was born mere miles from where he was, but Herod eventually died never knowing Jesus. And he'll spend eternity in hell because of it. God was merciful and gave Herod chance after chance after chance...but he never got it. I pray all the time for people I know (and people I don't know) that don't know Jesus. I pray that they'll stop putting Him to the side, stop putting Him off until "later"....

....see I told you I had all these thoughts in my head. I could go on and on, but maybe I'll save it for another time. I found the Todd Agnew song I was talking about and added it on the right. Check it out :)

Merry Christmas everybody!!!!

Games anyone??

2008-12-12T16:58:00.002-05:00

This is going to be a quick post (I'm trying to get out of work and go get my baby!!), but since I can't access internet again until Monday, I have to get it out there.

My darling little brother David (now that he's a grown up he has people call him Dave, but I just can't bring myself to change) and his wife Jenny are coming to NC for Christmas!!! They'll be here for a week. Since we're cutting waaaay back on the gifts this year, we're trying to find different ways to spend time together and just enjoy each other's company. So....I'm on a mission to find board games (or something similar) that we can borrow. We have Scattergories and Cranium....but are open to new games. Does anyone have something we can borrow? I promise we'll take really good care of your stuff and it'll only be for a week.

Thanks!!!!!!!

Many Thanks

2008-12-10T13:17:00.004-05:00

You guys rock! Thank you sooooo much to all of you who commented on my last post. I've gotten a lot of great ideas for our date nights and I'm excited to give some of them a try. I have to admit I cracked up at the thought of going roller-skating with Ed, but hey, he lived through the 80's, I'm sure he's an old pro!

One other update on a recent post....the Operation Pretty Things deadline has been extended to next Wednesday, December 17th. So if anybody has something to donate, let me know and I'd be more than happy to include it in the giant stash of stuff I've collected so far.

Tonight is our final class in the Financial Peace University series. Ed & I talked about this a little last night and we both agreed that it was the best $90 ever spent. We're communicating about money, we're sticking to our budget, we're slowly but surely climbing out of debt...it's such a wonderful feeling! God has truly blessed our family - and I'm grateful for the kick in the butt it took for me to realize that!

One more thing and then I've got some online shopping to do before my lunch break is over. A friend of mine (from Financial Peace) emailed me this morning to tell me about this awesome deal at Chick-fil-A (the Mayfaire location only). Check this out!!

Ideas Anyone??

2008-12-02T16:59:00.003-05:00

Okay people, I need your help. Put on your thinking caps and let's get creative!!!!

I'm trying to come up with some new ideas for date-night with the hubby. Yes, there's the standard dinner & a movie, or even bowling. Those nights have their place, but I don't want to always do the same thing. Our budget is somewhat limited, but thanks to Grandparents (seriously, what would we do without you??) we don't have to worry about child-care costs in general.

Any thoughts? Really, throw them out there...be bold...leave a comment!! Do you have any funny stories of places you've gone, activities you've tried? Now that Ed isn't working a billion hours a week and we actually have time to spend together, I'm trying to inject a little more fun and adventure into our rare evenings out.

Come on people!!!

Operation Pretty Things

2008-11-24T13:15:00.002-05:00

I received this email last week from a friend of mine...her small group is doing something pretty amazing this holiday season. Read on:

hello ladies!!

so, in the spirit of the holidays (and tradition)...my small group is doing our 2nd annual "operation pretty things" (OPT) - we collect all the "pretty things" that we have poking around our medicine cabinets (the never-been-used/un-opened things), make little gift bags and bring them to a woman's shelter here in town. last year was our first time doing this. the bags were received with so much gratitude and appreciation. it was awesome!! so, we are at it again...

this year we wanted to give our friends and families an opportunity to join us!
Ps 9:9-10 says..."The LORD is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. Those who know your name will trust in you, for you, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek you." another version says... "God is a safe-house for the battered, a sanctuary during bad times."

some of these women are facing some pretty bad times. our hope is that we can show the love of Jesus, by simply reminding these ladies that they are beautiful in God's eyes, and worth every drop of His unfailing love. In each bag, we place our favorite verses from the Bible, to encourage them with truth.

along with your favorite verses, we are looking to fill these bags with the usual cosmetic fare (make-up, lotions, nail polish, cosmetics, etc)...
things that you are not using and wouldn't mind giving to these woman - some of whom have had to leave all their pretty things behind.

this year, we are gonna kick it up a notch, too!! if anyone has jewelry they are not wearing, or little accessories and/or extras (like scarves or hair brushes or, I don't know...extras) that you are not using/have never been used/new!...let's collect those too!! and feel free to purchase pretty things too...no one is gonna stop you :) the more pretty things, the better! and if you have little gift bags or tissue paper you want to donate as well, that would be awesome!!

if you have any questions, please shoot me an email. i need to collect everything by Thursday, December 10th...which will give my small group time to assemble, and deliver the bags before Christmas! if you've got "pretty things" bring them to church or let's set up a time to rendezvous!! just collect what you can, and email me or call!

also, please pass this on to anyone that might be interested in joining us.
I don't have a lot of email addresses, so maybe you all can help me on that front. ok, that's it for me!
Missy Boneske

If you'd like to help out, you can either email Missy directly (missy@abbafirst.com), or you can email me (sunshinegrl243@aol.com). I just think this is an awesome way to help in a way that is often overlooked. Happy hunting!!

Marking a Moment

2008-11-18T11:10:00.005-05:00

One year ago today I was baptized as a Christian. That night was absolutely incredible. I was excited, I was a little bit nervous, and I was thrilled that so many people had come to share the moment with me. I wish I had words to describe it, but I could just feel God’s presence so clearly…it was a moment that I specifically recall wanting to tuck away…for those days when things don’t seem so clear.

Right before everything got started, Mike met with all of us (12 or 13 I think) that were going to be baptized. He made sure we understood what would happen, and then we all prayed together. One by one, we made our way to the edge of the pool. I took off my glasses and waded into the water where Mike was waiting. My wonderful friend Cindy read the testimony that I had prepared ahead of time. She started crying just a few sentences in, so of course I was crying! As she finished, Mike said “it is upon your declaration of faith that I now baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit”. With that, he leaned me back and dunked me under the water. As I came up out of the water, everyone in the room was clapping and cheering (my small group was the loudest!!!)

For the rest of the night I swear it didn’t feel like my feet even hit the ground. The whole thing was just so powerful – publicly declaring as an adult the fact that my life belongs to Jesus Christ. A bunch of us went to O’Charleys afterwards to continue the celebration and even Edwin joined in the festivities.

A couple of weeks ago I was listening to a sermon given by Perry Noble (pastor of New Spring Church in Greenville, SC) about baptism. He was saying that adult baptism is not a denial of your past, not a denial of any ceremony during your childhood. It’s affirming what your parents prayed for when you were sprinkled as an infant. Then he said this (and it was so good I listened a couple of times to get the quote right). “Baptism comes after salvation. It doesn’t matter how many times you got baptized before you became a Christian – all you were was a wet sinner.” I totally agree. That night was not me denying how I was raised…in fact, I’m grateful for growing up knowing about God. However, it wasn’t until the past few years that I’ve had a personal relationship with Jesus, and that’s why I got baptized.

Happy November 18th!!

Something New

2008-11-12T12:58:00.002-05:00

I was sick of looking at the picture of random coupons, so I decided it was time for a new post.

I went to the dentist yesterday. I haven't gone since before Edwin was born. I have 8 cavities. If that's not incentive enough to go brush and floss your teeth right now...you're hopeless! (in my feeble defense, let me just say that I never used to go to the dentist. I can't remember having a filling past the age of about 6. So this is a big number yes, but that's considerably better than it could have been when you take into account that I obviously neglect my dental health).

I brushed and flossed this morning!!! (don't worry, I always brush my teeth..just not so much on the flossing)

Ok, I have surprisingly little to say right now. Hope everyone's having a great day :)

Harris Teeter Triple Coupons!

2008-11-06T13:36:00.003-05:00

This was just a quick trip to get a few things that we'll need around the house....

4 cans Swanson broth (14oz each)
3 boxes Fiber One chewy bars (5 ct each)
3 bags Domino sugar (5lb each)
1 can Folgers coffee (the normal size, not the cheapo size)
1 Crisco Extra Virgin Olive Oil (16.9 oz)
3 pkgs Keebler Sandies cookies
3 Reynolds cut-rite wax paper (75 sq ft)
1 Always pads (18 ct)
1 Always pantiliners (60 ct)
1 Mr Clean Magic Eraser (2 ct)
2 Colgate Total Toothpaste

Total # of items: 23
Original Total: $77.20
Paid: $28.44

Savings: $48.76

I'll admit, this trip wasn't as exciting as my trip to Lowe's for their triple coupons a few weeks back, but it's still nothing to complain about. After all, one can never have too much free toothpaste, right?

God's Word

2008-11-05T13:03:00.000-05:00

Romans 13: 1-7

1Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. 2Consequently, he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. 3For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and he will commend you. 4For he is God's servant to do you good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword for nothing. He is God's servant, an agent of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. 5Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also because of conscience. 6This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God's servants, who give their full time to governing. 7Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor.

1 Timothy 2: 1-4

1 I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone— 2for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. 3This is good, and pleases God our Savior, 4who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.

Does It Really Need to be Said?

2008-11-03T22:43:00.002-05:00

VOTE!!!

(Duh).

Having said that, I also want to share a scripture that Mike (pastor at PC3) referenced on Sunday. It's Proverbs 21:1 "The king's heart is like channels of water in the hand of the LORD; He turns it wherever He wishes. "

Basically, we all need to remember that God is in charge here. Yes, we have been given an amazing opportunity and privilege to vote...and I believe we should take full advantage of that. Ultimately, God is the One who decides which man will become the next president. And once that decision has been made, God also is the one who has absolute control over that man's heart. Keep that in mind as you're watching the results come in...

Happy Voting!!

Trunk-or-Treat 2008

2008-10-31T21:53:00.004-04:00

As I mentioned earlier, tonight was the annual Trunk-or-Treat put on by Port City Community Church. Here are some pics from the evening (in no particular order because I can't figure out how the heck to do it on blogger!!). Enjoy :)

Aren't my boys the cutest?

(Thanks to my friend Amber for letting us borrow her son's monkey costume!)

Rebecca & Cindy decorated one of the "trunks". Rebecca's Mazda was transformed into a beautiful fishy! Aren't they gorgeous?

Edwin had a blast!

My friend Brittany was there with her man Brad and their super sweet daughter Ella. What an adorable pumpkin!! This was actually Brittany's costume when she was little :)

Edwin and Ella are so cute together!

We just thought this guy was soooo cool. Can you say Pirates of the Carribbean??

Rebecca and her lovely daughter Maggie

Look closely at his eyes...can you tell this was taken moments before we left? The paci was in, the blanket was being snuggled...Edwin fell asleep halfway to mom & dad's house. He wore himself out!

Ok, this was the funniest costume idea in my opinion. "Sarah Palin" had two dog leashes...one held "Bark Obama" and the other held "John McCanine". Awesome!!

Another clever trunk (and its designers)

I wish you could see this better, but they even had the Bat Mobile! I can't remember which number for sure, but I know they took either 2nd or 3rd in the contest.

I'm telling you...people go all out for this event!

Ed enjoyed the trunks so much that he decided we need to decorate one next year. Should be interesting! I hope everybody had a great Halloween.

(P.S. I have no idea why our internet is still working. The cable and phone have both been cut off. Oh well...I'm not complaining! I just don't want to see it on our bill! haha)

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

2008-10-31T08:43:00.000-04:00

We're going to Trunk-or-Treat tonight with the whole fam. Hopefully I'll have some great pictures to post here in a couple of days. My little monkey is going to be so cute!!!

Strange

2008-10-29T22:28:00.004-04:00

This is weird. I called ATMC today and dropped our house phone, our internet, and our fancy cable...we now get 13 channels (only about 5 of them are "real" channels).

I knew this day was coming. In fact, I've felt for a couple of months that this is something I needed to do....sort of 'unplug' from the television and spend my time doing other things. Ed & I both agreed that this was the best decision for our family. We're working on getting out of debt, and by cancelling all of this, we'll be throwing an extra $100 a month on our debt snowball. That's $1200 a year!!

I'm almost embarassed to admit how dependent I've become on tv...I'd venture to say probably to the point of being sinful. I have been making the television my idol and the Bible clearly states we are to have no other gods besides God.

So like I've said before, my blog posts will slow down a bit. I can still post from work (on my lunch hour of course) so that's not a big deal. If anyone reading this is also friends with me on Facebook, most likely I won't be on there very much at all. It's blocked from work (with very good reason), so I'll have to settle for checking stuff at mom & dad's house...which is actually where I am now.

Anyway, after the initial shock wore off, and I got some great tips from a fabulous friend (you know who you are!), I am looking forward to this change in my life. I'm looking forward to spending more quality time with my husband and my son, I'm looking forward to reading more, I'm looking forward to having more intentional quiet time with God.

I'll let you know how it goes :)

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Exodus 20: 1-4

1 And God spoke all these words:
2 "I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.
3 "You shall have no other gods before me.
4 "You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. 5 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but showing love to a thousand {generations} of those who love me and keep my commandments.

Camera Happy

2008-10-29T12:57:00.004-04:00

I didn't realize how much I missed having my camera...or how much I take it for granted...until I left it with Katie for about a week. Suddenly I have the urge to take pictures of anything and everything! Lucky for you, right?

I took this one this morning...just before we left the house...he still has bed-head! (and yes, I still give my child a bottle in the morning. I love our snuggle time!)

He did NOT want to get up this morning!

Self portraits are so much fun, don't you think? (although I must say, my head looks HUGE in this picture!)

Grandma Jeanie sent a package to "Dewey" yesterday, and I couldn't resist putting him in the pj's she sent. He wasn't being as cooperative with pics as he was the other night, but you get the idea.

He's Gotta Work For It!

2008-10-27T22:02:00.003-04:00

Since our son eats more than the average 6 year old, we've decided that he needs to earn his keep. So we've put him to work doing some light housekeeping.

Check out this video of him using the vaccuum (he gets soooo mad when we turn it off!! It's quite amusing actually).

Thoughts?

2008-10-27T09:12:00.003-04:00

Please click HERE to read a very interesting article. It may make some of you angry, it may make some of you roll your eyes... What I do hope though is that it makes everyone who reads it think.

I know how I'm voting.

Here's the link again. Any thoughts?

Stylin'

2008-10-26T22:22:00.002-04:00

I just had to share these adorable pictures with you. I found some cute new pj's for Edwin today...and he actually cooperated for the camera!!

Angels

2008-10-25T20:46:00.004-04:00

Today was the first time we picked up food from Angel Food Ministries. I talked about it in a previous post, but basically, we got all of this food pictured for only $30!!!! I'm not sure if you can see everything...but there's spaghetti, meatballs, sauce, frozen veggies, steaks, pork chops, hot dogs, chicken, tortillas, eggs, milk, Hawaiian punch, cookies... That's a TON of food! I think they have their November menu posted, so go check it out. Only $30 for a whole box of food that can last quite awhile.

I finally got around to posting some more pictures of Edwin. Sorry it's been so long. This afternoon when Ed got home from work (and Edwin got up from his nap) we were hanging out in the living room. Edwin kept trying to climb on top of his toy "bin", so to solve that, I dumped all the toys out so he'd have nothing to stand on. Anyway, he discovered (not for the first time) how much he loves to just play in the empty tub. That kid cracks me up!

The other night at Mom's bday celebration, Katie took some adorable pictures of Edwin. You can check them out on her blog. We also went to Hugh McRae park last night for our official photo shoot with her. However, my son decided that he wanted to go IN THE POND. Thankfully I kept him from diving head-first in the water, but let's just say his toddler temper flared big time. He threw an absolute fit because I wouldn't let him run free...but silly me...I didn't want my child to drown. Anyway, I think she eventually got some more pics of him, so as soon as she sends them to me, I'll post them here. We also went to the pumpkin patch, but it wasn't so successful. Everyone was hungry, a little tired, and on the verge of a meltdown. We'll just have to see how those pics turn out.

Ok, so the more I type, the more I realize this is pretty boring. Sorry 'bout that. I haven't quite felt myself the last couple of days...just really tired. I'm looking forward to church tomorrow morning, and a hopefully relaxing afternoon with Edwin.

Oh yeah, I forgot. This morning was the JDRF walk!! The weather was less than stellar, but thanks to Pappy, we (mom, Janet, and I) stayed dry and stylish in our bright yellow rain gear. I exceeded my fundraising goal, so thank you again to all who donated!!!

I Can't Resist!

2008-10-21T16:35:00.001-04:00

This picture was sent to me in a forward...if you don't laugh, you have absolutely NO SENSE OF HUMOR!!! Enjoy. (P.S. Please see the post from yesterday about JDRF)

Getting Closer...

2008-10-20T16:46:00.001-04:00

This Saturday, October 25th is the JDRF Walk (Juvenile Diabetes). I know I posted about this once before (see here), but since this is my blog…I’m posting about it again!

Thank you SO MUCH to those of you who have donated $$ to help me reach my goal of at least $100. I’m getting close, but I still need a few more people to help!

I’m asking you to consider donating $5.00. That’s it. Just five bucks. If you’ve been reading this blog lately, you know that I’ve been talking a lot about saving money and I hope you’ve been using some of my tips! That’s why I’m only asking for $5.00. Hopefully this wouldn’t break your budget (although there have been times when I swear it would have messed mine up!!) and it always feels good doing something nice for others.

Remember, I’m not collecting money for me…it’s going to help children who are affected by this disease. So please, go to my donation page (HERE) to use a debit card or you can contact me if you’d rather do a check. (I definitely don’t advocate using a credit card. No more debt!!!)

Anyway, like I said before, thank you to those of you who have already contributed either electronically or otherwise. I truly appreciate it!

My Baby!

2008-10-17T10:50:00.001-04:00

Every day at Edwin’s daycare, they fill out a little report with what he’s done…what he ate…how long his nap was, etc.

It’s usually pretty standard – in fact, you can tell most of the time they photocopy the activities and just customize the food/nap portion for each kid.

Well yesterday, they added a note about Edwin. I just now had a chance to read it…and it was so sweet I had to share.

“Edwin is a very smart kid, he’s always smiling! He’s talking a lot more and he’s just a joy to our classroom.”

I think our decision to switch daycares was a wise one. If I can’t be the one taking care of him all day, I’m so thrilled that he’s having a good time.

How to Be Rich

2008-10-16T16:43:00.002-04:00

Yesterday, I stumbled across a sermon series that Andy Stanley did last year. It's called How to Be Rich. I've only listened to the first part (there are four), but it completely blew me away.

He talks about a survey that was done…asking people what they thought it takes to be rich. If you ask someone who makes $20,000 a year what it means to be rich, they might say you have to earn $50,000 a year. Well ask someone who makes $50,000 if they are rich and the answer is usually no. That person might say if they made $75,000 a year, they’d be rich. Again, ask someone who makes $75,000 if they are rich and you’ll probably hear no. On average, if you ask most Americans what they think it means to be rich, they’ll say you need to make $120,000 per year. Once again, ask the person who makes $120,000…are you rich? Generally they say no.

On and on this goes. Even the person who makes a million dollars might not think they are rich! So what’s his point? His point is that “rich” is a moving target. There’s no line that you cross one day and suddenly say I’M RICH!! I can finally stop worrying about money!! That doesn’t happen. So instead of trying to figure out how to GET rich, let’s try to figure out how to BE rich. All the books and gurus and tape sets tell you is how to get more money, how to get rich. They don’t tell you how to behave once you are rich.

Let me just pause here and say I realize I’m not doing this message justice. But it was so powerful when I listened to it that I couldn’t help but share. Just this one time, take a chance…click on the link…listen to the message. It’s only about 45 minutes-it’s free! Listen.

Okay, moving on. Did you know that if you make over $30,000 per year you are in the top 4% of earners in the world???!! FOUR PERCENT.

If you can go to your closet and stare at a rack of clothes trying to decide what to wear….

If you can go to your cupboards or your refrigerator and make an actual decision about what to eat…

If you have to plan what to do with your leftover money…

If you have a house for your car…(yes, this is called a garage)…

I’m sure you see where this is going. Andy Stanley had everyone repeat this phrase. “I have more than I need. I’m rich.” Then he took it a step further for the Christians. “God has blessed me with more than I need. I’m rich.”

Try it for yourself. Actually say the words out loud. Yes our country is going through an economic “crisis”. But we are rich beyond measure. You don’t have to feel guilty about it either. God has placed you where you are, God has given you opportunities, talents, etc. God has blessed me with more than I need. I am rich. Now my goal is to learn how to be rich the way God wants me to be.

The Sunday Soup

2008-10-12T19:48:00.005-04:00

You might be thinking...what's with the title? Well, I read (okay, stalk) quite a few blogs. One of them does a "Sunday Sound-Out" and another does "Miscellaneous Monday". They're just posts to dump a whole lot of information. So here's my version. The Sunday Soup.

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Ed has to take Edwin to the doctor tomorrow. According to the nurse-line, we've done everything we can do at home. His diaper rash (from the antibiotics to help cure the double ear infection) has morphed into something completely immune to balmex. Perhaps a yeast infection? By the way, I had NO idea little boys could get yeast infections. Anyway, we've tried everything. We haven't used wipes (they can leave a film of bacteria on the hiney), we've washed him with mild soap, changed his diapers as frequently as possible, soaked him in a tub of warm water and baking soda...and the list goes on. Nothing is budging the super red presence on his little butt. I feel so bad for him. So please pray that the docs can figure out how the heck to fix it!!
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On Friday, I gave a presentation at work based on the info we've learned at Financial Peace University. Oh my gosh, what a RUSH!!! I don't mind getting up in front of groups to give a presentation...at the beginning of the year, I presented info about Time Management to about 5 groups at work. No biggie. But this one....oh man. I guess it's because I've become so passionate about getting out of debt...I had a blast! And I received a TON of great feedback from everyone. In fact, it might become something even bigger at work...we'll see. I even brought a visual aid from my grocery game "winnings". The night before, Ed, Edwin & I went to Lowe's foods for triple coupon sales. My original total was $83.20, but we only paid $13.98!!! So I packed up all the food, brought it to the presentation, and made the point that you CAN save a lot of money just by clipping coupons. Very effective.
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I feel bad about this next one... I meant to write about it sooner, but just kept putting off the whole blogging thing. It's called Angel Food Ministries. It's a non-profit organization dedicated to helping families stretch their grocery dollars. You can go to their website to get all the details, but here's the main idea. They take orders several weeks in advance, and are able to get fantastic prices from vendors. You order a standard box of food for $30 which has enough food to feed a family of four for a week!! And this is top-quality food! We learned about it at Financial Peace University...one of the couples told everyone about it. They said the food was fantastic and they couldn't believe how easy the process was. There's no financial qualification, and you're not taking from others who need the service. In fact, their hope is that you'll save so much on your own grocery bill, that eventually you can buy boxes of food for other families in need. Trust me, check out their website! Ed & I ordered the standard box this month (there are add-on boxes, but we're just trying it out first)...I'll let you know how it turns out. Delivery date is October 25th.
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Here's another website you might want to check out. It's called StuckOnWords. I just think it's such a cute idea!! It's vinyl lettering that you can have customized for your walls, your car, gifts, etc. Check out the photo gallery. They have super cute ideas for nurseries, for bathrooms...really for any room in your house. I'd love to do this in our dining room. Currently, we have a giant pic of Edwin hanging up...but we need something else. Anyway, thought I'd pass this one along.
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Have I mentioned Financial Peace University?? Haha! Well, in case you haven't noticed, we are LOVING IT!! This past week, the lesson was all about "Credit Sharks in Suits"...how to handle credit collectors and other related topics. Wow. Listening to the stories of people's experiences with collectors was intense. I've had plenty of my own run-ins with these folks and it is not fun. It's embarassing, it's depressing, it's all kinds of awful things. But we don't have to worry about that anymore. We're current on everything, and actually making quite a bit of progress towards getting rid of all debt for good!!!!!
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One thing I found most interesting in this week's lesson was about the FICO score. Everybody thinks it's your "credit" score, but I think Dave Ramsey has it right. It's your "I love debt score." It's totally based on how much debt you carry, how long you've carried it, etc. In fact, since he (Dave Ramsey) has no debt and hasn't for a looooong time, he no longer has a FICO score. That's my goal!!!
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Halloween is coming!!!! And this means Trunk-or-Treat is coming too. Every year, Port City Community Church has a trunk-or-treat down at Veterans Park (near Ashley High School). Last year was the first time I went...and oh my gosh. I could not believe how much work went into the whole production. It was HUGE! There were giant inflatables for the kids to play on, and the trunks. Um...insane? Yes, that's a good word. I swear, they looked like movie sets!!! I'm looking forward to going again this year. And I'm especially excited because all the fam is coming along for the fun! Edwin is going to be....Wait. Maybe I should make people guess. What do you think Edwin will be this year? (For those of you who know...keep your traps shut. haha)
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Facebook. I've actually enjoyed "running into" old friends on Facebook. But tonight, I got requests from two people that I either don't know, or don't remember. Even after looking at their pictures, I have NO IDEA who the heck they are. Is it rude to decline the friend request?
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Drumroll please........................
Here's my biggest announcement in The Sunday Soup. WE'RE GETTING RID OF CABLE, PHONE, AND INTERNET!!!! Yes people, you read that correctly. In an effort to put an extra $100 towards our debt snowball every month, Ed and I have agreed to ditch the technology. Well, almost ditch it. We're keeping the $12 cable. But other than that....zip, zero, nada. WOO HOO!!!! There are several reasons I'm so excited, but I don't need to go into all of that. But let this be a lesson to all of you out there. Okay, not a lesson. But let it be a giant sign to all of you that we are SERIOUS about getting out of debt!!!!!! This also means that the blogs will slow down. If I want to blog, I'll either have to go somewhere with free wi-fi, or fit it in on my lunchbreak. Either way, there's a good reason for me to go M-I-A. Once we get out of debt, we can have all the luxury items back...but for now, we're going old-school. (sort of)
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Okay, I think that's enough for this Sunday. Have a great week! I'll try my hardest to not be lazy with my blog this week. I'll at least try to keep you updated on Edwin's butt. (Okay that sounded weird)

Time Marches On

2008-10-06T21:18:00.002-04:00

Last night, I had a super long blog post rolling around in my head. I was going to write about our crazy weekend, about Edwin being sick, about all the little things that piled up making me feel like a giant ball of stress. But I was too tired to write.

This morning, I realized that it doesn't matter. Time keeps moving. We made it through the weekend. Edwin still isn't 100% healthy, but it's ok. We're getting through. I was reminded many many times over just a couple of days how I can't rely on my own strength. I NEED GOD. For those of you who are walking with God, do you notice that we go through seasons of explosive growth, and seasons of just getting by? Just a few weeks ago, I'd say I was in the former category. I was in the Word daily, I was journaling, I was focused on Jesus. But lately, I've felt myself slip. It's easier to turn off the light early and go to sleep rather than spend time reading my bible. It's easier to just pray in the car rather than have intentional quiet time (there's nothing wrong with praying in the car...but that can't be the only time I spend with God). I realize that doing or not doing these things doesn't make me a better or worse person. But I have noticed how I react to the world is a lot different when I forget why I'm here.

Wow...this isn't how I intended this post to go at all. But I guess it needed to get out...Anyway, Edwin is on the road to recovery from a double ear infection, my husband's back is causing him a lot of pain, and I think I'm going to go read my bible. I hope everyone has a great night. I'll be praying for you and if you think of us, please pray for our family as well.

Love,
Diana

JDRF

2008-09-30T16:34:00.003-04:00

Today at work, we had the kickoff meeting for the JDRF Walk to Cure Diabetes. A co-worker of mine is leading one of the teams, so Mom & I decided to participate. The walk will take place on Saturday, October 25th at Greenfield Lake/Legion Stadium.

If you didn’t already know, JDRF stands for Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. I’ll admit, I didn’t think diabetes was that big of a deal. When I was in elementary school, one of my classmates had diabetes—I just thought it meant he had to test his blood sugar, and make sure to always have a snack. But it’s so much more than that. Jon Evans (local TV anchor) spoke to us about his father’s fight with diabetes, which eventually took his life. My grandmother has diabetes. A friend of mine in Ohio has diabetes. One of the ladies that I work with has a daughter with diabetes. It’s almost a “common” disease…one that I personally don’t think about because I’m not affected by it. But a LOT of people deal with this day by day, minute by minute and it is a big deal.

There was a little boy, 9 years old, that spoke to our group. He was diagnosed with Type I diabetes when he was just five years old. That really hit home for me because my sweet nephew is only five. This little boy talked about his parents having to learn to give him insulin shots, pricking his own finger to test his blood sugar, having to stop playing with his friends when his sugar drops because he gets weak, having an insulin pump attached to his body. Then of course, I started thinking of Edwin. What would I do if he got diagnosed with diabetes? I had tears in my eyes and a lump in my throat as I heard this 9 year old talk about his dream of going to college with no insulin pump and no more diabetes. We also watched a video with several children explaining how it affects their lives. (Seriously, I think they were trying to make us cry the whole time!!!).

What’s my point? I’m participating in this walk in just a few weeks. I’m asking anyone and everyone that reads this post to please consider donating just $10. That’s the cost of two cups of coffee…a movie ticket…lunch at a restaurant… You may not know someone with diabetes, you may not be directly affected by it. But imagine if your child got sick. Again, please consider donating $10. You can go online and use a debit card, or you can contact me about a cash or check donation. If you are unable to donate, I understand. Regardless, please keep this cause in your prayers.

Here’s a direct link to my donation page. Thank you :)
http://walk.jdrf.org/walker.cfm?id=87112989

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Some Facts About Diabetes

Today more than 24 million Americans (adults and children) live with diabetes in the U.S. That's 7% of the population
Diabetes kills one American every 3 minutes and is the sixth leading cause of death reported in the U.S.
One of every three Americans born in the year 2000 is predicted to devlop some form of diabetes during his/her lifetime
Insulin is not a cure for diabetes
Kids with juvenile diabetes must take daily insulin injections, frequent blood sugar tests (as many as six per day) by pricking a finger, and maintain a strictly controlled diet
Juvenile diabetes often produces serious, even life-threatening complications, such as blindness, vascular damage, and kidney failure
You cannot outgrow the disease. On average, diabetes will shorten life spans by 15 years

Teeter Totter

2008-09-23T16:47:00.004-04:00

Tomorrow at 8am, the new Harris Teeter store in Leland, NC opens its doors for the first time to the public!! Ed doesn't have to work until 10am so I guess he'll miss all the hoopla, or whatever else happens during a new store opening...

Last night they had an open house for the employees, family & friends. It was actually quite nice. The weather was gorgeous, they had a huge tent in the parking lot with tables & chairs, food catered by Parchi's, TONS of doorprizes, a DJ, and a clown for the kids. Edwin even got a balloon sword! (Yes, mommy had something to do with the selection). Grandma took a couple of pics including this one of my adorable baby and his Pappy:

So go check out the new store. We got a sneak peek at all the sales, and let me tell you...I can't wait to bust out my coupon organizer and go to town!! haha.

Craigslist

2008-09-22T16:54:00.002-04:00

****EDITED*****

The art sold!!!! Woo hoo!! Now if I can just get rid of that tv stand....

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Last night was my first attempt at Craigslist. We're trying to sell a few things around the house (Dave Ramsey says everything goes!)... If you know anyone in the market for a tv stand or some art for the house...send 'em our way

http://wilmington.craigslist.org/fuo/849923525.html

http://wilmington.craigslist.org/hsh/849929462.html

Thanks!

Another FPU Update

2008-09-20T21:06:00.003-04:00

Wednesday night we had our third week of Financial Peace University. This week's lesson was called Relating with Money: Nerds & Free Spirits Unite! Basically, Dave talked about the differences between not only men & women (that could take hours! haha) but also between "nerds" and "free spirits". What does it all come down to? If you're married, no matter which one of you is the nerd or free spirit, you BOTH are responsible for financial decision-making. The nerd tends to try to take over, control things with spreadsheets and budgets. The free spirit tends to say "whatever you want to do honey" assuming that if they don't actually participate in the decision-making process, they don't have to be held accountable. WRONG!!

One thing Dave recommends is called the Budget Committee Meeting. Without going into too many details, the nerd prepares the budget for the meeting. The free spirit has to show up!! When the nerd passes the budget to the free-spirit, he/she needs to shut up and allow the free spirit to make some changes (they must make some changes). Once both parties agree to the budget, they pinkie swear and STICK TO THE BUDGET!!! If something comes up which requires a change to that budget, they call an emergency meeting.

This whole concept sounds so simple, but in our household, it's a new one. I've decided I'm the nerd (anyone object to that?). I love a good spreadsheet, and I definitely try to take control. My darling hubby is more along the lines of the free spirit, at least when it comes to the finances. I think it was just easier to let me take care of things when he was a chef. Poor guy never had time to sleep, let alone deal with the checking account. But that is all changing. Ed's new job has allowed him to be home more (yay!!!) and going through FPU together has forced us to communicate about our finances. I can already tell a difference in our relationship.

During the class, we also learned some stuff for singles, but since I'm no longer in that category, I'll skip it. Finally, we talked about Kids & Money. There were some really great suggestions for how to teach our children to be responsible with their money. Here are a couple from the video:

Be age appropriate

Pay commissions, not allowance. This helps them develop the connection between work and money. It takes work to make money! (Certain chores are done just because you're part of the family, but it also helps to have specific tasks associated with a dollar amount. It doesn't have to be a lot.)

Teach by example! Show them how you live debt free, how saving works, etc.

For kids age 5-12: Use three envelopes. Giving, Saving and Spending. (If they earn $5 a week, put $1 in the giving envelope and $2 each in the others. Kids' attitudes towards money will change dramatically if they are spending their own!)

"Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it. The rich rules over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender." -Proverbs 22:6-7 (NKJV)

This week's lesson was extremely helpful. Ed and I already have a basic budget in place for October. I think this coming Wednesday the lesson involves doing a more detailed budget. The nerd in me is so excited! Haha. But seriously, I cannot believe how much my attitude toward money has changed over the past few weeks. I realize that I was being lazy about how I handled our finances. Yes, I made sure our bills were paid, but I never told our money where to go...I just sort of floated along, hoping everything worked out. NO MORE!!! We're developing a specific plan to get out from under all of our debt...slowly (it didn't happen overnight), but God willing, it'll get done.

Remember, you can always go to Dave Ramsey's website for more info and free budgeting forms. He also has a show on at 8pm every night on the Fox Business channel. Enjoy the rest of the weekend!! And leave comments if you have any additional suggestions on cutting down the budget.

She got PAID TO SHOP!!!

2008-09-16T16:49:00.002-04:00

Since Ed & I have started Financial Peace University, I’ve been looking for ways to save money. Well, I looked for ways to save money before, but never did much about it. Anyway, there’s this site called TheGroceryGame that totally rocks! Without going into details (because you can look up the specifics on the site or Katie’s blog--she even has pictures) it is a way to save a ton of money at the grocery store. You can save not only on food items, but paper products and toiletries as well.

This weekend was my first attempt. I went to Food Lion on Sunday and when everything was scanned, the total came to $120. I only paid $67!!! Yesterday, I went to Harris Teeter. The original total was $109, but I only paid $54!!! I never realized shopping for groceries could be so exciting. Even the checkout people are thrilled when you save that kind of money!

Ok, so I just had to share this with you (this is the whole reason for my post). Here is an instance when the grocery game will REALLY pay off.

My friend Rebecca has been "playing" the grocery game forever...in fact, I'm pretty sure that's how Katie found out about it. Anyway, Rebecca has a family of 5 (she actually has another son, but he's grown & doesn't live at home). Anyway, she's an awesome steward of her money and is not frivolous when it comes to buying groceries. However, she'll give you everything in her fridge if you needed it.

So…back to my point. She buys 4 Raleigh papers each week just to get the coupons. Today, she headed to Harris Teeter just to pick up a few things she had coupons for and would also use. She bought:

4 16oz Nestle smoothies (essentially, they are just bottles of chocolate milk)
4 boxes of popcorn
2 boxes of toaster strudels
4 boxes of fruit roll-ups (her daughter takes one with her lunch every day)

Grand total???

Negative $1.16!!!!

Yes people, the store PAID HER to shop!! Obviously this isn’t going to feed her family of 5 for the month, but it certainly is a good way to stock up on things! Isn’t that amazing?? Let me know if you've used this site or if you have any other tips for saving money on food!

****Edited to add****

My bad. Apparently Katie told Rebecca about The Grocery Game...not the other way around. Sorry sis!!

It's Gonna Be Awhile

2008-09-13T21:39:00.002-04:00

For the past week, I've wanted to sit down and write a "real" blog post, but things have been a little hectic to say the least. So, this might take awhile :)

Last Saturday: Glenn and Jeanie (Ed's parents) arrived from Ohio (see this post). We spent the evening at their condo on Carolina Beach. Lots of fun, but we got home pretty late

Sunday: Edwin & I went to church while Ed stayed home. Jeanie was going to meet me at church, but unfortunately she overslept. Bummer!! Ed eventually joined us in Wilmington and we spent the majority of the day at mom & dad's house. Ed wanted to watch the Nascar race, so mom and I took Edwin and went shopping at Kohl's. That evening, the whole clan (Ed, Edwin, myself, Mom, Dad, Katie, Brian & Anthony) headed down to Carolina Beach. After a yummy dinner, Katie broke out the photog equipment for a family photo shoot!! Hopefully she'll post some of the pics on her blog because they turned out awesome!

Monday: After work, Ed & his parents picked me up so we could go to dinner at San Felipe. YUMMY Mexican food! Edwin was such a good boy at the restaurant...a huge relief considering when we tried to go to dinner on my birthday, he was having none of it (we had to take our food to go).

Tuesday: I took the day off work, so after spending a morning alone (Edwin was at daycare), I picked up my boy and we went to Carolina Beach to see Grandma and Grandpa. They wanted to go to the NC Aquarium, so that's what we did. I haven't been there since my friend Jeri's wedding last year...It was a slow day which meant no crowds. Whew! Edwin loved seeing all the fish and was very vocal about everything! I brought my camera, but unfortunately, the batteries died after only two pictures! Bummer... Just imagine Glenn & Jeanie holding Edwin in front of a fish tank. Nice picture, huh? After the aquarium, we picked Ed up from work and had dinner with the rest of the fam at Mom & Dad's house.

Wednesday: A second day off work for me...so Edwin and I spent the day with Grandma Jeanie & Grandpa Glenn. The weather in Wilmington was not so nice...very rainy in fact. So we basically just spent the day running errands, but it was fun just to spend time together. That night, Ed and I had our second week of Financial Peace University at church (I'll post more about that at the end). AWESOME!

Thursday: Back to work for both of us. We had everyone over to our house for dinner that night, and gave Jeanie her belated bday present: Pictures from our official KMP photo shoot!!

Friday: After work, Edwin and I went down to Carolina Beach for the final night of Glenn & Jeanie's visit. We enjoyed a nice dinner out on the balcony and basically watched Edwin for entertainment. That child is hillarious! I've posted a couple of pics from that night. It sprinkled for a few minutes and I worried that we'd have to take our dinner inside, but the rain stopped and we saw a huge rainbow!!! It was so amazing...and you could see the entire thing! It was a nice way to end their vacation. As always, it was extremely hard to say goodbye to them. After living across the street from Glenn & Jeanie for three years, I got used to seeing them every day. Some of my favorite times were spent chatting with Jeanie as she did her gardening or cooked dinner. We keep trying to convince them to move to NC, but progress is very slow (guess it has something to do with the rest of their family in OH?). Hopefully we'll be able to see them soon.

Today: RELAXATION! After a loooong night last night trying to get Edwin to sleep, today was a welcome day of sitting around doing absolutely nothing. Ed had to work, so Edwin and I played...he took a 3 1/2 hour nap...and enjoyed having nowhere to be.

So there you have it. As I was typing everything, it didn't sound super exciting, but just know that we had a great week with Glenn & Jeanie. Edwin loved seeing his grandparents...even when Jeanie gave him millions of kisses!! :)

My darling son's dinner consisted of Grandpa's french fries, watermelon, and chicken. Yum.

Playing with Grandpa Glenn

The rainbow was gorgeous!

This is what Edwin looks like when he's saying Please. Only, it comes out as "Pleeth"

Chillin' at the beach

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FPU Update

As promised, here's a little update on Financial Peace University. As a reminder, FPU is a 13-week course being held at church. Each week on Wednesday, we all meet together (70+ people) and watch the hour-long DVD taught by Dave Ramsey. Then, we break into small groups for more discussion. This week's lesson was titled "Super Saving". The first step in Dave Ramsey's plan is $1000 in an emergency fund. This is not an all-inclusive fund, but a baby emergency fund. It might seem strange to save money before you attack debt, but the more we learned, the more it made sense. If you have no emergency fund, as soon as you have something happen (car breaks down, A/C unit goes out, someone gets sick, etc), you end up going back into debt! According to Dave, this is the easiest step (as far as getting the $$ together), but it's also the hardest (because you have to commit to living differently...and recognizing that there is a problem). A lot of us in the group were thinking, yeah, right...it's not easy to come up with $1000. But if you take a look around your house, there's lots of stuff that probably has dust on it that can be sold. Use ebay, craigslist, etc. Sell your cds, dvds, collections, whatever!...if you're serious about changing the way you handle finances, you'll start looking at possessions a lot differently. I personally plan to sell all of our cds (it's all on my ipod anyway), dvds, bridesmaid dresses, we have an entertainment stand we don't use, I'm even thinking of selling my wedding dress (I don't need it anymore! haha).

Think of it another way (this example was used in the video): If your child was terminally ill, but there was a cure that cost $5000, would you be able to save the money? The answer for any parent would be YES. You would do whatever it takes to save that money to save your child. Well, getting out of debt and changing the way you handle finances is that serious. Dave talks about changing your family tree...and that's what Ed & I intend to do. It's not going to be easy. It's going to take years to fix some of this stuff. But our goal is to get out of debt (including the house!), save for Edwin's college so he doesn't leave with thousands of dollars in loans, and save for retirement. We plan to stick to a budget, use cash whenever possible, and STOP using credit cards. The slogan on the front of our workbook is "If you will live like no one else, later you can live like no one else!"

I could go on and on about all of this, but I'm sure most of you (whoever "you" are) have stopped reading by now. But I'm just so excited! Ed and I are going to sit down tomorrow afternoon and go over our very first budget together. Key word here is together. Yes, we're communicating better about money already...and that in itself is worth going through this program! Next week's lesson is titled: Relating with Money. Stay tuned!

1 Timothy 6:10

10For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.

Proverbs 21:20

20 In the house of the wise are stores of choice food and oil, but a foolish man devours all he has.

Official

2008-09-12T16:53:00.002-04:00

It's official!! Ed passed his final test at Harris Teeter to become a manager. Yay!!!!! This means his transfer to the Leland store can go through....double-yay!!!! This test was a very big deal and he spent a lot of time studying & preparing for it. Great job honey!! Edwin & I are very proud of you :)

Politics

2008-09-09T13:22:00.003-04:00

I'm going to make this a quick post because I'm off to the NC Aquarium with Edwin & His grandparents (Glenn & Jeanie).

Basically, there's obviously a lot in the news right now regarding the presidential race. Yes, I've got an opinion...as does everybody else. But check out this link for a really interesting take on the whole thing. I tend to agree.

More later!!

Yes, I'm Spoiled

2008-09-06T21:52:00.002-04:00

Around 4am today, we lost power due to Tropical Storm Hanna. At first, it didn't seem like a huge deal...after all, it was nighttime and was supposed to be dark!! But then Edwin woke up at 5:45am absolutely terrified. Usually, if he wakes up in the middle of the night (or super early morning), he can get himself back to sleep. But I think the lack of a nightlight totally freaked him out. He was crying so hard he was shaking by the time I got to him!! It was quite a production to get him back to sleep...I even had to enlist the help of my very sleepy husband. When Edwin woke up again at 8:30am, our day officially began. However, we still didn't have any power. And since we live in the boonies and have well-water, that meant no running water in the house...and consequently, no toilet flushes!! As the morning progressed, the house gradually started heating up. Yuck.

And now we get to the title of the post. I know I'm spoiled. I know that I would NOT do well in a time/place with no modern utilities. I LIKE air conditioning. I LIKE ceiling fans. I LIKE being able to flush the toilet!! I LIKE having a refrigerator that actually works. Then I started to feel guilty thinking about all of those people in the world that don't have things I would consider basic. I know I'm blessed and I am so grateful for these conveniences. I absolutely don't deserve them, but boy do I enjoy them!!!

Ed had to work at noon today, so Edwin & I decided to escape the stuffy house and drive up to Wilmington with him. We spent the day hanging out at Mom & Dad's house...it was such a relief! (I told you I'm spoiled!). Here's the best part of the day though. Glenn & Jeanie are here!!!! Yup, Ed's parents came down from Ohio today. Even a tropical storm wasn't enough to keep them from their adorable grandson that they haven't seen since LAST OCTOBER! They're staying in a condo on Carolina Beach and we hung out there this evening. It was so much fun to watch them with Edwin. They were surprised at how much energy he has! The entire drive home tonight, I kept wondering if the power would be back on. I ran through different scenarios in my head of what we'd do if it was still out. Thank GOD it was on!!!!!!!!!!! So here we are, back in our nice cool house, Edwin is asleep (with the nightlight on), Ed is watching tv, and I'm on the computer. I am so spoiled.

Hurricane

2008-09-02T13:06:00.004-04:00

I received this email today regarding any possible hurricane closures/procedures for work:

Office Procedures Concerning Storm and Office Closings

As we watch the progress of the storm, the following are the firm's guidelines based upon the hurricane's intensity:

Hurricane Category #1

No excuse for being late. Leave earlier to give extra time to avoid fallen trees and limbs.

Hurricane Category #2

Due to the horizontal rain, you may wear jeans.

Hurricane Category #3

Whereas most of the area will be flooded we suggest you avoid wearing open toe sandals when coming to work. Canoes will be provided to get to the building safely without getting wet.

Hurricane Category #4

More than likely there will be no electricity. Given that, we will have manual typewriters available to all staff members. Please take extra caution and wear water-proof make-up if Category 4 or above.

Hurricane Category #5

Velcro will be provided to keep you attached to your chairs when the windows blow out. For those that survive, we will have chocolatecake at 3:00 pm in the kitchen.

Word

2008-08-27T22:41:00.002-04:00

I love Wednesday nights. That's the night I have my small group. Some of you out there in blog world (like I have sooo many people reading this blog) might not know what a small group is, but basically, it's a group of us that meet on a regular basis for Bible study. This is the only small group I've been a part of, and we've been meeting for about 2 1/2 years!! It hasn't all been sunshine & roses...in fact, there were several times I just needed a break. But these last 13 weeks have been so fantastic, I don't really have an adequate way to describe it. There's just something so special about getting together with friends to learn about Jesus. When you have a relationship with people that is rooted in Christ, somehow it feels stronger than any other friendship. I am just so grateful for each and every one of them and all the things we've gone through together.

Tonight we finished up our study on the book of Daniel. Wow. Have you read it? This was the first time for me and I was blown away. Did you know that every piece of prophecy in the Bible fits into Daniel? Incredible!! I think the major thing I took away from this study (there were several big lessons) is about God's sovereignty. He has absolute control over everything at all times...and it doesn't matter when "the end" comes. Our job right now is to prepare and to walk with Jesus.

To celebrate tonight, we went to one of our favorite restaurants, Indochine. It's a mix of Thai and Vietnamese and heaven!! Haha. Delicious. We sat out back in the garden area. They have little huts that you can sit in...and ours had a much-needed ceiling fan to help with the humidity and bugs. And boy was that food delicious!! My favorite part of the night was when we prayed. It wasn't formal...in fact, we all had our eyes open and took turns speaking our prayers aloud. Thank you God for my small group, and thank You that we are still meeting after 2 1/2 years.

Susan, Rebecca, Me, Cat, Cindy

Cat & David

Me & Rebecca (she was trying to get the menu out of the way, that's why her hand looks so weird!)

Susan & Her hubby James (who decided to tag along for dinner)

Announcement & Dangerous Weapons

2008-08-26T21:18:00.003-04:00

I can't believe I forgot to make this announcement on here the other day...but better late than never, right? Here goes: When the new store opens at the end of September, Ed will be transferring to the Leland Harris Teeter!!!!!!! Yup, that's right. He'll be about 2 minutes from Edwin's daycare and about 10 minutes from where I work. We should be able to carpool more (hello, gas is still ridiculously expensive) and hopefully sometime in the next year or two, move closer to Wilmington!!!! Thank You God for another answer to prayer!

Okay, here's the Dangerous Weapons part of the post. Did you know fingernails on a toddler can cause a LOT of damage?? When I picked Edwin up from daycare today, the computer (where I check him in/out) said there was an accident report at the front desk. No biggie, right? It stated that he had been scratched by another child. So I sign the thing, go into his room to pick him up, and am a little shocked....he wasn't just scratched...his poor face was gouged by some crazed toddler!!! As you can see from the pictures, he's not particularly bothered by it now, but at the time, I guess he was crying pretty bad. My poor baby. Now, I understand that kids will be kids and things like this are going to happen. But it doesn't help the fact that I already don't like having to drop him off for 9 hours a day...

Don't Let the Monkeys Pull You Down!

2008-08-26T12:53:00.003-04:00

I'm sure that seems like a strange title, but hang in there. A couple posts ago, I wrote about a book called "The Total Money Makeover" by Dave Ramsey. I got the book on a Thursday afternoon, and by Friday at 10:30pm, I had already read it cover-to-cover. Well then I let another friend of mine borrow it, and she happened to have it with her at work today. Since I didn't have anything else to do on my lunch break, I decided to take another look at it...I knew that I blew through it so fast the first time in my excitement that I probably missed a few things. Long story short, I wanted to share this piece about Debt (taken directly from the book):

"Debt has been sold to us so aggressively, so loudly, and so often that to imagine living without debt requires myth-busting. We have to systematically destroy the inner workings of the myths. Debt is so ingrained into our culture that most Americans can't even envision a car without a payment, a house without a mortgage, a student without a loan, and credit without a card. We have been sold debt with such repetition and with such fervor that most folks cannot conceive what it would be like to have no payments."

Is that not so true??? Up until a couple of weeks ago, I was the same way....thinking that I'd forever be in debt in one form or another. But God is showing me that that is a lie. I'm not going through all of this in order to get rich. That's not the point. Jesus was poor and that's ok. But I am trying to learn how to be a better steward of everything God has entrusted to me...not just my finances, but my time, spiritual gifts, etc.

Next week, Ed & I are going to the orientation at church for Financial Peace University. It's a 13 week class taught by Dave Ramsey via video. Then we break up into small groups for more detailed learning and discussion. I am ridiculously excited about this!! Since my lunch break is almost over, I don't have time right now to explain the whole story, but the way this has worked out shows that God had His hands all over this! Now I'm just praying that Ed's schedule will allow him to join me every Wednesday night for the classes.

Okay, enough yammering. But seriously, I highly recommend Total Money Makeover...or any of Dave Ramsey's other materials. Even if you just check out his website, you'll find tons of information and free budgeting forms.

Have a great day :)

Phases

2008-08-24T21:14:00.003-04:00

My desire to blog definitely goes in phases. I guess currently, I'm in a phase where I feel like there's just not a whole lot to say. Either that, or I'm being too lazy to think of anything worth reading. So for now, you can enjoy these pictures of my boy. They're pretty self-explanatory.

Can't Get Enough

2008-08-18T08:47:00.001-04:00

I just love the olympics!!!!!!!!!! I mean, seriously.....have you been watching this stuff?? It's amazing!! I'm sure I'll say more about it later, but I have to work :(

Not Afraid to Tell People

2008-08-15T08:19:00.001-04:00

It's my birthday!!!!!! Yes, I'm 29 years old today, and I'm not afraid to tell people :)