Celebrate!!

My little guy turned 1 last week. It’s hard to believe that it’s been a year already! I don’t know where the time goes. We had a little family party with just us to celebrate and we’re having a super-bowl/birthday celebration with friends this coming weekend. I wanted to share some pictures from our family celebration. If I remember to take pictures this weekend I'll post some more nexty week.

He wasn't quite sure what to think of the giant cupcake that sat before him. He kept looking at us and then back to the cupcake like to say "Can I really eat this??"

Then he dove right in. He found it pretty tasty too. He likes to close his eyes like that when his picture is being taken. He's kinda a cheese-ball and likes to tease me.

Eliza decided she needed to show Jackson exactly how to eat the cupcake....the RIGHT way.

                         So with dinner and dessert all over his face this little guy was pretty happy!!

There's nothing quite like celebrating a kids birthday.  It's really true that when your kids are happy so are you, even if they got that way because of chocolate cupcakes. :)

When “Because I Said So” Just Doesn’t Cut It

“Mommy, can I have a cupcake for breakfast?”

         “No Eliza.”

“Mommy, can I have fruit snacks for breakfast?”

        “No Eliza.”

“But whyyyyyy??”

            “Because those are not healthy things to eat for breakfast.”

“But mommy I really like them.”

          “Let’s pick something else.”

“But whyyyyy??”


This exchange could go on for pages. Two year olds and their constant asking of why to every thing you say. It doesn’t even matter what it is that you are talking about, it’s almost as if it’s an automatic response to you speaking. When my little sister asked me why Eliza asked so many questions I told her because that’s the way she learns. I truly believe that the more questions a kid asks the smarter they will get. It’s an awesome trait to be curious about the world around you. However, two year olds can ask a heck of a lot of questions and sometimes I try out the old “because I said so”, that all parents have used at one time or another.


Does it work with your kids?? I remember it working just fine on me when I was little. It got to a point where I didn’t bother testing my parents by asking why. I just knew that what they said is what was going to happen so why bother.


“Because I said so” doesn’t seem to work with Eliza. She can keep up the asking “why?” game all day. No seriously, it’s impossible to ignore her. So lately I’ve decided to take my husbands tact and just answer her with some really ridiculous answer. Amazingly it works!


“Mommy, why can’t I have a cupcake for breakfast?”

           “Because if you eat a cupcake a big green monster will come and take you away.”

“No, I don’t want a monster to come.”

          “Ok, so let’s pick something else for breakfast then.”

“Ok, mommy.”


I know this isn’t what all those parenting books and magazines would say. Most of them say you should answer all your kids questions so they can learn. Clearly they forget what it’s like to be around two year olds!!


So if “Because I said so” isn’t cutting it for you, try being outrageous. For some reason kids ears turn on when you are outrageous.


What’s your favorite answer to the question why?

My 4am Wake Up Call(s)

I love sleep. So when I heard a little girl rocking in the family room at 4 o’clock this morning I grunted, drug myself out of bed and went to see what was going on. Sure enough there was little Eliza sitting on the couch rocking away. As I walked out of my room she smiled and said “hi mommy, I’m not tired anymore it’s morning time”. As I quietly picked her up and brought her back to her room I explained that in fact it was still night time (pointing out how dark it was outside) and mommy and Eliza needed more sleep so that we could have fun the next day. She didn’t exactly see it the same way. She began screaming “I’m not tired, I’m not tired”. So I flipped her music on, squeezed myself onto her little toddler bed, laid down beside her, and rubbed her back so she’d calm down. As I trudged back to my bed she began rocking in her bed (it’s a weird little thing that Eliza does) and I thought for sure she’d be out in a few minutes. It wasn’t until about 5am that she finally fell back asleep.

 I laid down on my pillow and just about the time my head hit it I hear my little man cry out. I think to myself, “ok, he’s going to go right back to sleep it was just a little yell”. Well sure enough he decided 4am was a good time to start the day as well. Luckily with him all I had to do was make him a bottle, he sleepily drank it (keeping his eyes closed the entire time) tossed it aside when he was done and was snoring before I could put him back in his bed.


(As I lay him down I hear Eliza rocking away in her room, quietly singing to herself…but refusing to fall asleep)


I don’t think my kids could be more opposite.


As I think about the two situations that played out in the wee hours of the morning I keep thinking about life as a whole. Don’t we all have days like each. We have days where we pop right out of bed with our crazy bed head and all and we are ready to attack the day. Then we have days where we can’t hit the snooze button enough. When we finally drag ourselves out of bed we can barely open our eyes and the entire morning we are wishing we could just roll over and go back to sleep.


Think about those days that you pop right out of bed. What is it that makes you so chipper on those particular mornings?


Whatever it is that makes us wake up with a smile on our face and the attitude that the day belongs to us is something we should hold on to.


I’m probably one of the worst morning people. I’d do it the same way Jackson does if I had a choice. I’d wake up a little hungry, eat while laying down, then roll over and go back to sleep. Luckily, I have my little Eliza that always wakes up happy. She usually starts the day by singing some song to me as she dances away.


I like to think of her as my peppy alarm clock, but one that I want to join in singing, not one that I want to throw across the room. Even when she woke up at 4am it was hard to be angry with her.


The fact that I get to wake up and spend each and every day with my kids is one of the reasons I can pop out of bed. I’ve always said God blessed mothers with this crazy ability to function happily on very little sleep. (Did I mention Brian was snoring away as the crazy 4am wake-up took place??)


God bless you peppy morning people! I wouldn’t have near as much fun with out one in my life. J And God bless you sleepy morning people! I love being able to get just a few more moments of sleep--especially at 4am. As for you snorers-- I love you too, and I’m glad you can sleep so you can work hard during the day and come home to our wildness at night (even if you sleep through some of the really fun times).

Kitchen Rock Out

We were rockin out in the kitchen tonight. As I made dinner I turned on Pandora to a Christian station and the kids and I danced around as I made stuffed peppers. We had a blast! So much better than the sickness that has plagued us the last week or so.


I thought I’d share the delicious stuffed pepper recipe that I made. My kids aren’t huge fans of them, but Brian and I love them. I made up the recipe--which would have been scary a couple years ago, but I’ve learned quite a bit since being a stay-at-home mom. Cooking is part of the job description after all. Enjoy.


Ingredients
4-6 Green Peppers (parboiled)
1 lb ground beef
1 onion diced
1 shredded zucchini
1-2 shredded large carrots
1 can tomato sauce (8 oz)
1 can diced tomatoes
4 oz cream cheese
½ pkg. mild taco seasoning
½ pkg. hot taco seasoning
2/3 cup water
1 pkg. shredded taco cheese


Parboil the green peppers first.


Brown the ground beef. Add diced onion. Add seasoning and water. Let simmer for about 5 minutes. Add the cream cheese, melt completely. Add the rest of the veggies. Let this mixture simmer for 10-12 minutes.
Stick the mixture into the green peppers and add a bit of shredded cheese to the top.

Pop that in the oven at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes. Yummy!! J

I Choose To Give My All

I will choose Christ.

I will choose love.

I choose to serve.

I give my heart.

I give my life.

I give my all to you.

Sitting in Mass yesterday “I Will Choose Christ” began at the beginning of communion. It’s interesting that with today being the 39^th anniversary of Roe vs. Wade (over 50 million babies have been killed) the first thought that popped into my head while listening to this song was my babies. I think it was some sign from God for me to write about choosing in today’s blog.


The thing that keeps running through my mind is how mom’s are similar to Christ. When Jesus came to this earth as a man He gave His all to each and every one of us. He gave His life so that we can live. Although I am not claiming to be anywhere near as wonderful and great as Christ, I relate giving my all to my children.


From the moment I knew they existed I chose to love my children, I chose to serve them, I chose to give them my heart, my life, and my all. This is not some super-mom trait. These choices are what each and every mom are called to make. It can be damn hard some days to remember that we chose them too. But, would I change any of those choices today? Absolutely not!


Some days I wake up and think, why did God give me this awesome task of raising these children? What is it that deems me worthy to have them in my life? How am I going to give them my all and not royally screw them up?


I’m not sure that I have every really come up with an answer to those questions. But I sure am glad that God gave me the chance to screw them up. And I know that with God’s grace I can be just what they need.
There was a time not too long ago that I thought I wouldn’t get the chance to give my all to any child. The memory of losing a child is something that propels me through each and every day. I always looked at children as miracles, but now I can say that I TRULY understand those miracles. As I watch my children learn and grow I thank God. I thank God for helping me choose.


　
In my eyes the choice seems simple. To love or to hate? To create or to destroy? To serve God or the devil? To give my all or not?


Today let us all say an extra prayer for all the unborn babies out there. Let us also pray for their mothers, that they will be open to God’s grace as they choose to love.

Check out the song that inspired me:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SKVDvEH4exU

Mom Guilt

It took about a day and a half into vacation and I was ready to be home with my kids again. I missed them so much. I missed their smiles and giggles, I missed their noises in general, I even missed the crying and whining. It took about a day and a half into being home and I wanted to be back on vacation!! Not to mention I felt like I really needed to change my name….mommy was really getting old.


The question that kept crossing my mind was, “Should I feel guilty for wanting to be far, far away?”


Growing up I was blessed with that great Catholic guilt. I honestly mean BLESSED. I think a big reason for me being who I am today is that wonderful Catholic guilt that was just a part of growing up. It kept me on the straight and narrow. I didn’t really go through that rebellion stage. (You can ask my mother) To this day I have this amazing voice inside my head that keeps me doing the right thing. As I said above, it truly is a grace that I have received from God and I am glad that I have it.


That brings me back to what I call “mom guilt”. I’m sure all you mothers know what I’m talking about. We really are expected to do it all AND do it all with a smiling face AND love every second of it. That’s what the great vocation of motherhood is, right? Well, I’m here to tell you that it’s not. There are days that are imperfect. Heck, aren’t most days imperfect? It’s ok to have grouchy days. It’s ok to have days where you do absolutely no housework. It’s even ok to have days where you can’t wait for bedtime. That’s all part of being a mom.


I like to tell my husband that I am superwoman. I can do it all. Some days I really can do it all, and I LOVE it, every second of it. Most days I’m just doing my best not to really screw something or someone up. However, when I sit back and think about the REALLY bad days (those days that I HATE as they are going on) I have to appreciate those too. I may have some serious mom guilt when I put my head on the pillow those nights, but I don’t think I could LOVE the good days without the bad ones.


I’m growing up as I raise my kids. That’s not to say that I’m an immature person and I’m a child raising children. What I’m trying to say is that I am learning and evolving just like my kids are. Sometimes I have those “awww” moments and I try to hold on to those moments the best I can. I also have those “oh crap” (or worse) moments where I know I’ve messed up-- that mom guilt really gets me then. Wishing that I was far, far away though, not a mom guilt moment. Just a moment to show myself that I’m not superwoman, I’m just a mom trying to do the very best that I can everyday. As for changing my name-- I think hearing “mommy” a million times a day is a great reminder of the blessings that God has given me.


Don’t forget to count your blessings--especially the small ones!! J

A Much Needed Vacation

My brain is on vacation already. My mom is flying in from Indiana in just about an hour and Brian and I are leaving for Florida tomorrow morning. I am really excited!! It’ll be weird having my mom in Oklahoma and me not being here, but I know my kids are going to have a blast with her. They don’t get much one-on-one time with Mimi back in Indiana so this will be a real treat!


With all the craziness last week I wasn’t sure if this vacation was actually going to happen. Brian and I haven’t been away together since our honeymoon. We’ve used all our vacation time to travel back to Indiana or somewhere else with the entire extended family. We’ve been so fortunate with the amount of time that we get to see our families so I am not complaining at all…but certainly looking forward to some time together not in Oklahoma and not in Indiana!


I doubt I’ll have much time to get on and blog over the next few days. I’ll be thinking of all of you as I enjoy some quiet time. Brian asked me what I wanted to do most over vacation and I said “I just want to sleep in one day, no kids waking me up”. Probably not the answer he was looking for, but sleep is always top on my list. J


A BIG thank you to my mom for taking time out of her busy schedule to watch my kiddos, and a BIG thank you to my dad and sister-in-law for holding down the fort while mom is gone.

Please say some prayers for us as we travel.


Don’t forget to count your blessings--especially the small ones!! J

Who Needs Perfect?

Over Christmas Break I was fortunate enough to catch up with a lot of friends and family. One of the family members that I miss the most living out in Oklahoma is my Aunt Jennie. I used to baby sit for her kids when I was in high school and we would have the best talks. We have pretty similar personalities and we both strive to live life the best we can.


It was really wild when I was pregnant with Eliza and she was pregnant with her youngest, Georgia. Eliza and Georgia are only 3 weeks apart. It was a really special thing to share with her, not to mention we had very similar pregnancy experiences so we could share our woe’s together.


Anyway, while we were visiting we were discussing blogs. She pointed out how she couldn’t stand reading those “picture perfect” blogs. You know the one’s she’s talking about. Those people who only show you the good side of their lives. They claim to not have a single problem. Those same people who have time to scrapbook, make dinner, help with homework, workout, and look beautiful all at the same time. (or something like that)


I’ve thought about that conversation frequently since being back in Oklahoma. It’s amazing what people look at as perfect.


As my Aunt Jennie sat there talking about these perfect women I couldn’t help but think, she’s pretty amazing herself. She might not be perfect, as those blogs would have us all believe they are, but she’s a faithful follower of Jesus that does her best each and every day.


Jennie and Rob have 7 biological children that range in ages 16-2 ½. Two years ago they decided to start the journey of adoption. Just before Christmas they welcomed 4 Ethiopian children into their home and into their family. Those kids range in age from 12-3. Not only do they now have 11 children, but Jennie home schools all the kids. They are just beginning their wild journey. They will inevitably have struggles along the way, but the love that they have for ALL their kids is inspiring. They have an amazing will to make it all work.


My whole point in sharing about my Aunt Jennie is that she will be the first to tell you that she is far from perfect. However, that doesn’t stop her from striving to be Christ-like each and every single day. If we were all perfect like those picture perfect blogs then Christ never would have come and died for us.
So as my Aunt Jennie juggles loving, disciplining, cooking, laughing, crying, screaming, cleaning, chauffeuring, playing, praying, and living with her perfect family I hope the thought of her can bring you some inspiration today and every day like it does for me.


I encourage you to pray for Jennie and her family as they face this journey.


Remember to count all your blessings--especially the small ones!! J

God Is Listening, Are You?

God’s love is amazing. As I sit here watching my kids still struggle to get over their sickness from last week all I can think is how amazing God’s love is. I sent up many prayers over the last week and I can tell that God was truly listening. They certainly aren’t back to normal yet, but they are both definitely on the mend.


Today is the first day in a week that Eliza has felt like doing anything other than sit and watch cartoons. She’s not constantly coughing or licking snot that has run down from her nose to her mouth. (eww!) Jackson didn’t officially get diagnosed with pneumonia like Eliza but he is trying to fight something off. He was put on antibiotics and steroids to help his little body fight. Today he is climbing on everything and chasing me around the house as I vacuum. It’s wonderful to see their spirits back.


All I could think last week was that nothing was going according to plan. There’s that word you don’t dare use when God is listening--PLAN. God has this way of showing us what life is all about just about the time we think we have our own plan all figured out. No mother plans for her kids to get sick, but it was yet another reminder how we moms need God in our daily life.


I really try my best to pray each and every day, even if it’s only little prayers throughout the day. On the good days it seems like I pray less than on the bad days. Why do we do that? Do you ever notice that people tend to pray more for their wants rather than the things they are thankful for? It’s not that it’s bad to pray for your sick kid--but did you remember to thank God on all those days he/she is healthy? It’s pretty easy to forget.


A long time ago a priest gave me a suggestion that I want to share with everyone. Maybe it will help you, maybe you don’t need the help, but nonetheless it’s a suggestion that I took many years ago and it changed the way I pray. Each time you begin a prayer start by listing everything you are thankful for that day. (When we say our night prayers Eliza even thanks God for her comfy pillow.) It may sound weird, but starting your prayers out in thanksgiving changes the way you pray. Thank God first and then share with him your desires. Sometimes I don’t even get to my wants during my prayers because the list of things I’m thankful for is so large!


Remember that God’s love is absolutely amazing. He knows our innermost desires even better than we do. Don’t ever underestimate His amazing power. As for that PLAN of yours… good luck, let me know how that goes for you. J


Remember to count your blessings--especially the small ones!! J

Where's My Magic Wand God?

I am a control freak. How did I not notice this before now? I guess I was so busy that I didn’t have time to think that I am one of “those” people. The people that everyone wants to yell at saying “just relax, let it go, there’s nothing you can do about it”. Seriously, there’s nothing I can do about it? Nothing?


Unfortunately, I am learning that there is nothing I can do about a lot of things. Part of me thinks if I could control everyone and everything around me this world would be such a good place and then there’s the other part of me (the part that I should just listen to) that knows God is in control and he has a purpose behind everything and more times than not I’m not going to understand that purpose.


What is it about being in control that makes me think life would be “easier”? It’s not necessarily that I want life to be easier, it’s more about being prepared. I’m sure you’ve all heard the old saying “By failing to prepare, you’re preparing to fail.” I’m not good with failure(really who likes to fail??) so that control freak side of my brain tries to convince me that by being prepared I won’t fail.


So what do you do in your life when something happens that you can’t prepare for or do anything about? No, seriously--I’m asking you. I know all the common sense answers, pray, let it go, give it to God, etc.. Ok, then what?


Let me give you a bit of background without going into too many details. Someone very near and dear to my heart is making some very bad decisions, however, this person is thrilled with those decisions. This person doesn’t listen to common sense and when faced with a confrontational situation just pretends like it isn’t going on. Now the situation has grown even worse and if poor decisions before didn’t change their life, poor decisions now are going to.


Control.


How about this situation. The future. Enough said? All you planners out there have to sympathize with me on this one. I can have my future all planned out in my head, but not really. I only have control of a select few things that happen, everything else is left up to God. Leave it up to God…that should be enough, right?


Control.


And then we have what my life revolves around-- my kids. I can control a lot of what happens to them and what goes on in their lives. Yet, there are still things I can’t control, like sickness. Eliza was diagnosed with pneumonia today. I know this isn’t the end of the world, but I’d love to control the situation and all I am doing is listening to her cough harder and harder. All you moms know, if we could take the pain from our kids we wouldn’t hesitate--give it hear God.


Control.


I discuss working out a lot in my blogs. It’s not only because I love to do it. Today as I was working out I realized that a big part of it is control. I have complete control over what I do while I’m working out. My mind totally clears of all the uncontrollable things and I have a short time of freedom. I’d love to feel that free all day every day.


Luckily, as I grow up I continue to learn that our perspective on situations changes every day. As we get older we look at situations differently. Maybe that’s what I need to do--get a little older. I guess for now that’s all I can do, unless God sends me a magic wand sometime soon my lack of control is going to be just that--lacking.


Don’t forget to count your blessings--especially the small ones!! J

Let's Be Loving in 2012...

It seems like it’s been a year since I’ve had a chance to get on here and write. We were so busy at home over the holidays that I really didn’t get a free few minutes to write about all that was going on. Today I’m just going to do a recap of the holidays and tomorrow I’ll get back into the regular blogging.


We had a fantastic trip to Indiana which included fun, family, friends, and of course conflict.


I think it is inevitable that when you stay with family away from your home for over a week some conflict will arise. The great thing about family is that the conflict usually gets resolved quickly and the day goes on.


One thing that seemed to come up more than once while I was home was the judgment of others. I think this is a pretty common thing when you get family together, whether you’re judging each other quietly or judging others out loud, judgment is something that seems to surround us. I attempt to refrain from getting in conversations that are all about how someone else is doing it “wrong”. I learned a long time ago that I am no one to judge how someone else raises their kids or handles their husband or lives their own life.


I’ve seen a lot happen in my family in the past two years and some of it really made me take a step back and think about the people involved. Instead of thinking the worst about the people I’ve tried to take the optimistic approach. Don’t get me wrong, I still have my complaints and sometimes I openly share them, but for the most part I try to bring a positive attitude to the negative situation.


It would be so easy to take the high and mighty road and think that everyone else is doing it wrong and I’m doing it right, but if there’s one thing Jesus taught us with His own life it’s that we have to give the little guy a chance. So I’ve decided to use this attitude in the coming year. I’m not really one for resolutions, I honestly don’t see much point to them. But I’m all for making a promise for the upcoming year that will hopefully transition into routine for the rest of my life. My promise for the upcoming year is to bring the positive to conversations. When those inevitable judgment discussions begin I’m going to do my best to divert the conversation to something more positive, or get out of the conversation all together. I challenge you to be positive this upcoming year too. It’s much harder than it sounds and I bet that with some effort you can bring smiles to people’s faces rather than egging on their bad attitude.


Isn’t there an old saying that goes something like: “Don’t judge someone until you’ve walked a mile in their shoes.”


Remember that no one knows everything about anyone, you may not agree with their decisions but you can try to look at them with a positive attitude. It’s much easier to help someone that truly needs it by being kind rather than insulting. Remember that some of Jesus' best friends were grave sinners-- he helped them see the error of their ways, he didn't talk about them behind their back or complain about them. He ACTED with love.