Memorial Weekend

A weekend to remember for sure, but not in the sense that I would have guessed or imagined...

Saturday was the 5 year anniversary to my wonderful husband. Ryan continues to bless my life on a daily basis. We are by no means perfect but I'm so thankful to have him as my husband and best friend. He prioritizes his family even when his schedule is hectic. He tries hard to leave his work frustrations at work (or in the vet truck). He's a wonderful provider. He loves me. He has a killer smile. He seeks to glorify God with his life. He is so many things but remember that I promised to try to keep it short, I'll say one more thing: I love the man I marred 5 years ago.

Friday night and Saturday we attended a marriage enrichment seminar. And to be honest, I wasn't looking foward to using my 3 day weekend in such a way. I wanted to do other things like place flags and crosses on soldier's graves, go out to eat with my hubby, etc. I'm so glad that I did the marriage enrichment seminar. It was such a good refresher on life. How easily I can get stuck in a rut. I so needed that weekend. My poor husband so needed me to be at that weekend where I would be reminded of how to love him in ways that he needs loved.

Friday was good. Friday night at home was tiring. I was up until 3am with Bethany which made for some serious dry eye issues on Saturday. I'm an emotional person, which most people wouldn't guess. I cry easy. So, to say the least, Saturday afternoon was a bit emotional for me and lacking sleep didn't help. But it was good to fill my cup so to speak. Plus, we had some good meals made by two of my favorite food people.

After things finished on Saturday night, we made a quick stop at the house to get our shopping list and check the mail before heading to supper with my family. In the mailbox, we had a very special card. It was from Hugo and Gladys. They are an older couple who five years before blessed us tremendously by Hugo giving us advice during our wedding ceremony. Their card is extra special because they don't send them to everyone, but we get one since they were part of our wedding. Hugo and his precious bride are 94 years now and don't get out much anymore. I mentioned to Ryan that we really, really needed to stop in for a visit as we usually do so every six months or so. We haven't been there since Bethany was born. I debated on stopping on my way to supper since we had time but opted not to because my kids desperately needed naps.

We got up to Decorah, which is a cute little town in plenty of time. Did a little shopping, stopped at the trout hatchery for a bit so Scott could check out the fish and I could feed Bethany. (sorry, no pictures, of either kid). Eventually we met up with my parents and my aunt and uncle for supper. My sweet uncle wanted to treat us to a meal for our anniversary. He was and still is, very thoughtful.

Sunday morning was a refreshing. I was looking forward to enjoying the day without having to think about going to work on Monday. Sunday came to be a bittersweet morning as well. My good friend, Hugo, passed away Sunday morning. He was an amazing man. He loved God, loved his family, loved people and loved to sing. He was a precious and sweet guy. I'm thankful that we did not stop by on Saturday night and see him as he was very near death. At the same time, I'm feeling a little guilty that I never made the time to stop by in the past 11 months and introduce my beautiful daughter to him. Oh, how precious is our time!

Sunday night was a interesting night in and of itself. As we watched the sky grow dark, we flipped on the news. And I hardly moved from there until I went to bed. We watched as the news flooded every local station reporting of the tornados in our area. Thankfully we weren't in or near the eye of the storm. One storm went north of us and one went south. However, our dear friends (the first friends I found in my church here) live in the town that sustained the most damage. I watched and prayed and watched and prayed some more as reports and pictures began flowing in about the small town of Parkersburg. Fortunately, our friends were out of town when it happened. However, they've lost everything. I just can't imagine what they're experiencing. They have a 4 year old, a 2 1/2 year old and a 5 month old. And nothing to call home. The only thing they've been able to salvage at this point is most of their clothes with the exception of the baby's. They still can't find the baby's dresser. Praise God who gives and who takes away that He chose to give them life and only take their "things". As they continue to deal with the aftermath of their own home, they also play a role in many others' hurt and loss as Ryan is a pastor of a local church there and will be giving a funeral service later this week. Oh, that God would bless them indeed in the coming days!

As the long weekend comes to a close, I am so thankful for:

• my kiddos even if they wake multiple times during the night
• my home even if I can't manage to keep it perfectly clean
• my clothes even if I think I need new ones
• my health, my family, my friends
• and for the little things like toothpaste and deoderant as there are many people that have nothing right now as the tornado flattened 1/3 of the town of 1800.

yes, I am alive!

Man, I can't believe that two weeks have passed since I posted. Yes, I must have a crazy life. And I want to spend a few minutes informing all 3 of my readers about my recent life events. This could get really long as I've had an amazing amount of things in the recent past but I'll try to keep it as short as possible. I write a little about a few things and in no particular order in seperate posts....

Small town

This morning I read a post by Meritt about living in a small town. Once upon a time I considered a town the size of hers as "small" but these days I consider her town to be decent sized. Anyway, I have a small town story of my own to share...

Our town is so small (~600 people) that every 5 years they have a homecoming. And to be honest, I'm not really sure why. The last homecoming was in 2004 and I was sad to miss the festivities but was glad to be celebrating the 60th wedding anniversary of Ryan's grandparents with the whole big family. Anyway, the homecoming is a big deal around here so prior to the event was like a spring cleaning for the community. People were re-painting their houses, fixing up sidewalks, etc. I found it entertaining that they were trying to show off for those who would be coming home. But maybe its more than that, maybe its that the community takes pride in their town, in themselves and wanted to put on their "sunday best".

What was really cute was that my parents had recently moved to town. And everyone knew that the new people were from California, were living in the Reir's house, and were Dr. Ryan's in-laws. So, a day or two before the homecoming event we were at my moms house visiting. It was a beautiful summer day and the windows were wide open. As we were chatting in the house, people were enjoying a leisurely walk. Two older couples were walking by and as they past my mom's house, they paused and one couple pointed to the house and told the visiting couple "... and this is where Dr. Ryan's inlaws live". No more did they finish the sentence and they were on their way again. It was too funny.

Four years later, there are probably many community members that still only know my parents as "Dr. Ryan's inlaws".

Kids are Expensive

According to the USDA News (some of the text removed because it was more boring):
The Cost To Raise A Child:In March USDA released its annual report which details how much it costs to raise a child in America today. The report, titled "Expenditures on Children by Families" and released by USDA's Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion, noted that for middle-income families with a child born in 2007, the costs of providing food, shelter, clothing, and other goods and services will total $204,060 by the child's 18th birthday.

"Since 1960, child-rearing expenses have changed noticeably," he added. Specifically, the cost of providing food decreased from 24 percent to 17 percent of total child-rearing costs, while child care and education expenses increased from 2 percent to 12 percent of total child-rearing costs. "For a middle-income, two-parent, two-child family," he said, "annual expenses for one child ranged from $10,930 to $12,030 depending on the age of the child, with expenditures on teenagers being the highest."

Happy Mother's Day

Yes, its a few days late but still fresh in my mind. I certainly enjoyed a day with my family on Sunday but at the same time my thoughts were filled with other women. We all know someone who longs to have their own baby but for whatever reason hasn't had the opportunity. I thought of two specific people a bunch on Sunday. I do believe that life begins at conception so then it would be perfectly reasonable for them to celebrate Mother's Day as well. Yet, at the same time, I struggle with the realization that I got to hold my babies and they didn't. It blows my mind that without a spoken word, God knows their hurt. So, today I continue to pray for my friends that are hurting. Will you say a prayer for them too?

This Very Moment

If its not my tailbone, it is the muscle in my back is driving me crazy with pain, my contacts are blurry and my body is tired. I had a hard time falling asleep last night and was awake from 1am to 4am. Bethany was awake and crying twice in that time and nothing would console her so I finally, completely against my own will, gave in and breastfed her. That always works.

Thankfully today I spent a few hours out in the field. It was quite peaceful and although I was focused on my work at hand, I thoroughly enjoyed the beauty of some very rural scenery.

My plate is full

A few people have commented or emailed me about my lack of posts lately. I'm totally here but life is a whirl wind right now and my plate is so full. What have I been up to lately...

Food Finally
well we finally bought groceries so my child will have something more to eat than corn dogs. We even have Bethany eating some fruit. She loves real food and spits out the expensive crap you buy in the store. Saturday was spent preparing two weeks worth of meals.

My Saturday
Well, Ryan did the cooking while I slept in for a bit before working on my own projects. I finished up Bethany's quilt top that I started last year. Whoopie! Made a few cards for Mother's Day with Scott which took way longer than it should but that's okay. Did dishes while Ryan cooked and played with the kiddos. I would have liked to get my basement cleaned up so my father in law could have his trailer back but that didn't happen.

High School Reunion
I'm really looking forward to this. There are a few classmates that I keep in contact with but not many. I would love to see friends, hear about their families, etc. A few of us girls have been working hard to contact all our old classmates which has become increasingly difficult. We're hoping for an August reunion and that month is fast approaching. Ahh, lots to do with that.

Service Saturday
Our small group tries to do one service project a month. Nothing to pat our backs, in fact, we usually get more out of serving than they get out of being served. Anyway, one of our big projects didn't have someone to take the lead. I sat on my hands for a long while but I was afraid the project would get dropped and it was such a rewarding event last year so I raised my hand. As if I don't have enough other things going on in my life. The past few days have been busy but fun trying to get some details taken care of. Our group voted for a May 31 date... yeah just over 3 weeks to plan. Good thing my friends had already laid the foundation for the project. Our group has some fun connections so its actually fun to plan.

Aunt Janie
My Aunt Janie is here. Yup, she just got here after lunch today. I'm super excited about that. She'll be here for several weeks and I'd love to take every other day off while she's here. Unfortunately that won't work. Currently I haven't even picked time off to hang out with her but I hope to nail that down soon. I also would like to find someone to keep my kiddos a few days while she's here so that she and my mom can run around and do their thing without lugging kids around. Ick, I always dread asking others to keep my kids.

Work
Oh yes, still doing that too. I enjoyed a few days in the field recently but now I'm back to my desk chair. Hating that at the moment and not so much because of work but rather because of that nagging tail bone. Ryan and I have talked and even prayed some about my work situation. I enjoy what I do but I'd rather be home with my kiddos... at least some of the time. I wish it was simple to figure out but unfortunately there are many strings attached to this one. Just finished a plan today that has taken way too much time. It had 95 waterways on it which is a ton of work but at least its done.

Life
I've been exhausted lately. Serious friends, I'm just plain tired. I know one of my friends suggested having my thyroid checked but I'd rather think its just the simple fact that I'm going a hundred miles a minute. When I crash, I crash! I've had fussy kiddos the last few days and they've really shown me how much patience they require. Scott was whiny, didn't want to eat what he'd been given, wanted a hair cut, didn't want a haircut, that kind of thing. He had to be in my lap much of Sunday. Bethany is a trooper but she too has her issues. She continues to have a hard time being "regular" and even though I've explained to the doctor that we've tried suppositories, apple juice, watered down bottles, fruit, veggies, dark karo syrup and even a laxative, nothing works. Not even combinations of all those things. They don't get it. They go through the list and I tell them I've tried each thing and then they go through it again. HELLO, are you listening nurse? Tried it! So, that's frustrating. Plus she's raw in the diaper area and as soon as the diaper comes off, she starts to scratch. I've recently been sitting on the floor to change her and have to hold her arms down with my legs while I change her so she doesn't irritate her area even more. It's a fun task, especially when you're whipped. We've tried all kinds of things for that too, A&D ointment, plain vaseline, butt paste, etc. Tonight I'm going to try the L&D and bacitracin mixture again and see if that works. Grr.

Okay, I think that's it. I should upload a picture of the kiddos but I'm lazy right now so I won't. Off to the parlor I go...

Good and Bad Mommy Moments

Good Mommy Moment = I played outside with Scott with his t-ball set that he got for Christmas from our cousin.
Bad Mommy Moment = I busted his lip open slightly while helping him swing.

Good Mommy Moment = I raced Scott and Grammy home from church on Sunday.
Bad Mommy Moment = He fell and scraped his arm on the sidewalk while running.

Good Mommy Moment = We had a lot of fun playing this weekend (flying the kite, playing with dominoes and rummikub, sewing together)
Bad Mommy Moment = I didn't get his hair cut and its getting a little shabby around the ears.

Good Mommy Moment = We had a picnic outside for supper.
Bad Mommy Moment = It was the second consecutive meal that he had a hot dog.

My Grandma is Famous

Yesterday my grandma had open heart surgery to replace a faulty valve. I didn't have a chance to talk to her before the surgery. In fact, I didn't even know where she was living or how to contact her. Yeah, I'm a bad grand daughter.

In years past I was actually really close with my grandma. She is an amazing woman and would give you the meal in front of her even if it meant her going hungry. She's a humble woman. She raised 8 children. She loved and respected my grandpa even after he past away. She opened her home and her kitchen to anyone who walked through the door. I have a deep respect for my grandma. But since I moved to Iowa, I've not had the opportunity to stop by once a week like I use to. I haven't taken the time to pick up the phone either. And we've drifted apart. But she is my grandma. I could have cried on Wednesday when I realized I didn't bring home the email from my aunt with my grandma's phone number.

What if the surgery doesn't go as planned? What if I never have a chance to say "adios". I planned to call her the night before her surgery to pray with her and tell her I love her. But the phone number was at my office, 25 miles down the road. I was home for the day and many times throughout the morning thought about my grandma and prayed for her. Finally I called my dad for an update. She was on bypass but still in surgery. It would be approximately an hour more. Later the phone rang, it was my dad. The valve was replaced, she was off bypass, everything went wonderfully! Thank you God! They still had to close up her checst, etc.

God, I know that if you know about every sparrow, you also know the number of hairs on my head and also know when my grandma will breathe her last breath. It is my prayer that she understand that she is a sinner, she deserves death but you conquered death and offer her eternity with you instead.

Oh, and the famous part... my Aunt Carol called me last night to give me an update. My Aunt Carol is a gem of a woman as well. Anyway, she gave me the update, shared the events of the past few days (which are super cool) and told me that they aired her surgery live to the medical students on one of the Univ. of CA campuses. My grandma was on TV, she's famous!

May Day

Where I come from, May Day is not celebrated. However, I grew up in a swedish community and they held the Swedish Festival which included dancing around a May Pole. The early May celebration that I recall is Cinco De Mayo but people here aren't cultured in that arena. Regardless, people around here celebrate May Day and take May Baskets to people. It was fun to see kids out scrambling around giving May baskets to neighbors and friends. For us transplants to this area, we had no clue what May Day was all about. So I searched it today on my favorite website. And I found out that it actually has pagan connections and isn't overly popular in the US. It was interesting to read, check it out here. Happy May Day!

p.s. thanks to my dear friends who brought each of us a May basket tonight. I loved that Bethany's "basket" was specifically for her with baby food and crackers. You Schmitt's are too thoughtful!

Happy Birthday Cori!

I'm sorry we didn't get a card in the mail to you for your special day. I had it on my list of things to do to make you a card and have Scott help decorate it but we were busy last weekend with cleaning up water, going to birthday celebration, etc. I hope you enjoy your day!

Kids Questions

In the midst of a million questions this morning while Scott was in the kitchen with Ryan, I overheard this:
S: Daddy, can you play with me?
R: After breakfast I can.
S: Daddy, can DJ (our dalmation) play with me?
R: Yes Scott.
S: No, DJ can't play with me Daddy.
R: Why not?
S: Because he doesn't have hands!
R: Oh, okay

And because curious little boys ask a million questions, the conversation continued while Ryan fixed his breakfast. Scott wanted to know why/how DJ got on his legs and the answer "God made him that way" wasn't enough so he asked more and more questions until he was either satisfied with the answer or distracted with something else.

Murphy

When we took the Dave Ramsey course, one thing we recall being mentioned was Murphy's Law. As soon as you begin to save some cash for an emergency, Murphy's Law will test you. Well, we had just that right away. Car in the shop 2 or 3 times, etc. But recently Murphy has moved into our spare bedroom. With all the water in our basement last week and the need for a sump pump forced us to make some purchases. That meant either moving funds around in our budget as the month is almost over and we've got some wiggle room and then dipping into the emergency account. Yesterday Ryan found water standing in our basement. Oh, the sump pump is working great, we just have 3 other rooms in our basement with low spots. And when water is coming up through the concrete floor, its running to the low spot of each room and ponding. Sounds like Murphy got us again and Ryan will spend the afternoon trying to tile low spots to the sump pump. We're not excited about digging a hole in our floor but how long do we pump water out?

--------------------------
Dearest Murphy, we have an open door policy at our house. But you have joined the ranks of prohibited guests. If you need a friend, we've also prohibited Satan from our home and you may find him somewhere nearby.

Good Riddens,
Brick House Owners

The Sky is Falling

Okay, so maybe the sky isn't really falling but it is flooding around here. The rivers are running wild, claiming the crop fields and some residences. The creeks have become raging rivers and the road ditches are like the canals I grew up with - full and running swiftly. Fields are ponded, bottom land is flooded and mini ditches have formed in all the crop fields where there should be waterways (hmm, I wonder if that will increase my work load any). Life is good though amidst all that. God provides all of our needs and then some!

What's that Word?

I'm so drawing a blank right now on a specific word that I want to use... I'll type my post anyway and maybe I'll remember while I type.

Several times this week I've seen/read something and then later that day something happened directly related to what I saw/read earlier... dangit, its hard to explain without that word. I thought it would be fun to share those two events.

1. Friday night as I drove home from work, I saw a place where a spring was flowing out of the hill side. It's not uncommon around here to see that but the fact that I'd not seen it in that location before caught my attention. So, I turned around, pulled out my camera and snapped a few photos of it. Water flowing in an uncommon place, hmm. Imagine my surprise when I got home to see water flowing in my basement. Unlike Ryan, I found it amusing and quickly found myself singing songs pushing the broom. God, you're funny like that!

I didn't actually take a picture of the flooded basement but you get the idea. 1.5 to 2" of standing water... do you really need a picture?

2. The second "God, you're funny" moment came Monday ish. I was reading Merritt's blog about snake bites. No doubt, I was intrigued by her post as I know not to feed a snake in a tank but didn't know how to get one to release once it bites. Later that night while I was putting the kids to bed, the phone rang. It was my mom telling me that my cousin, Corey, had been bit by a rattlesnake and was in the hospital. Not a fun experience I'm sure. Here's a picture of his finger post bite:

Spring Cleaning

scroll down to read the update I just posted

3 days of sweeping, pumping, sucking
+
$140+ out of our emergency fund
=
A long & tiring weekend!

Friday morning all was well in our lovely home and we headed off to our work days. Friday night, I arrived home and headed down stairs for something (can't even remember what it was now) to find water in our basement. Thanks to God for giving me children that play well together and entertain themselves because we spent the next 4 hours getting the 1.5" deep water out of our basement. I started with a push broom near the drain in the floor. Ryan joined me in the basement and brought his pump that he uses on cattle stomachs. It was slow going but we were making progress. We eventually got smart and started using the wet/dry vaccuum. Ryan has it plumbed into a 55 gallon trash can (thanks for that idea Eric) to use for sawdust. My did that thing come in handy. We dumped it way too many times before we had the water cleaned up. We went upstairs at 11pm to eat supper before showering and heading to bed.

It was no surprise in the morning when it had filled right back up. This is a basement that doesn't get water in it, at least as far as Ryan was told when he purchased the house. And maybe it never had before but we could have floated through the rooms that day. Ryan went to work and I decided to call for help. My folks were feeling under the weather so I called Ryan's parents (who actually had plans on coming down to bring some stuff anyway). They brought the enclosed trailer so that I, against my husbands desire, could unload all the crap from the basement and get it cleaned up. This caused a little bit of a disagreement with Ryan who's not a neat-freak organizer like me. Saturday we once again sucked up the water as we perfected the the vaccuum system. Ryan cleaned up water, I hauled crap out of the basement (think: Ryan's woodshop, storage, area that his wife doesn't touch or organize for him), Ryan's dad loaded it to the trailer to keep it dry should it rain, and Ryan's mom watched the kiddos.

...more to come, my tummy is hungry...

*updated April 23rd:

We eventually found a spot where the water was pouring in between bricks where the mortar was gone. It was as if someone had turned on a drinking fountain and let it flow. It was also coming up through the concrete floor. Mark (ryan's dad) worked and worked to keep the floor free of water hoping that it would slow down the flow. And it did slow some but never stopped. Tired and sore, we eventually left the basement. We went to bed that night and while we were praying together, I specifically prayed that God would either stop the flow of water for us OR that we would connect with someone that could help us out with a sump pump that they weren't using.

Sunday morning we woke to more water, but not as much is the morning before. Ryan stated that he would be watching baseball that afternoon and not be working in the basement. We do believe in the day of rest but in this situation, we needed to get it cleaned up. Our morning was filled with phone calls before we headed to church. Between my car and the church, I ran into our friend Chris who lives across the street. I told him what we'd been up to over the weekend and he told me that he had a sump pump in his basement that he wasn't using and we were welcome to use it. I was floored! I specifically prayed for that very thing and it was so cool to see how God divinely intervened on our behalf. That is not a coincidence! Anyway, Ryan spent Sunday afternoon working rather than resting. He ended up buying a new pump (they were on sale) when he bought the other items needed. Our friend Rhett had a concrete saw that helped tremendously. Our little buddy entertained the kiddos while I cleaned up water and Mark came down and helped Ryan put in a new sump pump. Oh the joys of spending money on "maintenance" type of stuff rather than fun stuff. As of this morning, the basement is still drying out...

Here's a few pictures for a quick review:

This was day 3, sucking out water, busting concrete and digging a hole all while water continued to poor in. Sounds like fun doesn't it?

My kiddos loved being outside. I couldn't get Scott to stay still long enough to get a decent picture of him.

More Cleaning

With the spring cleaning comes a new face to my blog. I have work left to do on it, mostly adding links back in. And if I get brave enough, I'll figure out how to put a picture of my family at the top instead of the tiny one on the side.

Grandma M

I wish I had more time today to write a post about a wonderful woman I call abuela (or grandma). She is such an amazing woman with all kinds of qualities that I wish I had. But, for lack of time, I'll just share the important stuff.

My grandma is having open heart surgery next Friday. She goes in early Thursday morning for tests. She's not ancient but she no spring chicken either. Please pray for my Grandma. Even a perfectly successful surgery will mean a long road to recovery.

Conversation with Scott

I had two young friends with me last night when I picked up Scott. They adore him and he adores them. On the way home, I hear the following

T: Scott, what did you do at Grammy's today?
S: I fell down the stairs, but it didn't hurt.

Yes, my son is two and when asked about his day he talks about the stairs. Maybe it was because mom had just told me about it when I picked him up. She said he got right up. Told her it didn't hurt. Then rubbed his chin and said that hurt a little. Funny kid.

Music to My Ears

When I got home last night (at 10pm, long day), the sounds of frogs were music to my ears as I drove past the pond. I just love that. Hammock weather is here! If it weren't so late and so windy last night, I would've climbed in the hammock and listened to the outside critters.

Spring, are you here yet?

Two Fridays ago I took the kids for a walk after work. It was gorgeous out. And by gorgeous, I'm talking 50's and a light breeze. It obviously wasn't the high 80's and having margaritas by the pool like my sister is enjoying but we had fun together. Instead of the typical stop for ice-cream, we stopped and bought a twinkie to share on the main street step. Bethany demanded her fair share of the twinkie too.

Our little stroll though town didn't start out well when Scott thought he had to be in his stroller. I even so much as let him try to get in the basket below just to let him find out that he was better off walking. It worked and we went on our merry little way. We walked for a while, partly to kill time before heading to a friends for supper. It worked out perfectly. As we were walking past their house, Vanessa was pulling in the driveway for work. So, we continued on our walk with our friends. The kids wanted to stop at the park so we played there for a little bit. The picture above was taken there. I know, its not a pretty picture but WE WERE OUTSIDE and weren't in winter coats. Yipee!

Tomorrow we expect to get into the 60's. Yes, Aimee, you can continue sipping your margarita by the pool and although I'll be jealous, I'll be tickled pink that its warming up here!

Simply Adorable!

This is my precious little girl. I have loved before before she was conceived. Funny how that works. She has been a joy to have, even at 2am. This weekend was a tough one for her. She had a bit of a cold and was/is constipated. Poor thing, she just wasn't happy. Fun for me though, she was super clingy and liked to snuggle. Not fun for me though when I wanted to set her down. Last night at church, I pawned her off on a new friend (he has a grandbaby her age) and he joyfully held her for the remainder of the program. At one point, he looked over and asked "is she always this good?" Yes, I replied, a little grumpy today but always a good baby. Thank you Lord for giving us such an angel!

Scott Doing Dishes

Will They Survive

Monday Scott came in the kitchen, grabbed my hand and drug me to the living room while saying "come look mommy, I can roll over Bethany." Yes, my son was steam rolling his 9 month old sister. It looked a little painful as he rolled over her face and she neither laugh nor cried. I allowed him to roll on her so long as he stayed off her face and she didn't cry. After several rolls, he went to the kitchen to grab his daddy. Ryan, protective of his little girl, told Scott not to role but I assured him that they were fine. Indeed they were. Bethany typically laughs at his the things he does like knocking her over, rolling her over, etc. Maybe they will survive.

Scott is recently becoming more of a climber, jumper, physical little boy. Bethany was still laying on the ground and Scott was standing at her side. I was enjoying their interaction. That is, until Scott looked at me and said "look mommy, I can jump". He jumped straight up in the air and landed on Bethany's back. She was on her tummy and pushing up to her knees when one of his feet dug right in. I gasped long and loud and Ryan came right back in to assess the situation. I can't even remember if Bethany cried. We spent the next few minutes trying to explain that he could hurt her (like a two year old understands that). Will they survive? The cute part of it was when we asked if he wanted Bethany to go away like Mocha (the dog that got hit on the driveway) and at first he said yes. But at the next second, he said "no, I love Bethany, I don't want her to go away". Yes, he truly does love and adore her... so far

"get it off mommy"

The other day I met my folks at the local drive-in burger joint to grab a bite to eat and pick up Scott. My son loves to eat at this place and his grammy and papa love to take him so it was a perfect place to meet up after Bethany's doctor appointment and grocery shopping. Of course, as soon as we got on the road, my plugged up baby started pushing something out. Sometimes she's not at all successful and sometimes she gets a little something out. When I met up with my folks, we hopped into their Tahoe and I brought along with me a diaper and wipes.

So, a quick change of the stinky diaper in the backseat isn't easy or simple to do. I got her changed and moved the stinky diaper into the middle seat while I finished dressing Bethany. Meanwhile, Scott was on the other side telling me about his day. I grabbed the diaper and wrapped it up while Scott began showing me his toys that were also in the middle seat. He showed me his shovel, then he grabbed his rake. Then he saw something else and grabbed it up. As he held the poop in the air, with a puzzled look on his face, he asked "mommy, what's this" as he squished it between his fingers. I soon realized that the poop from Bethany's diaper must have rolled out into the middle carseat and Scott found it. The squish got his attention real quick and he threw it down and then proceeded to rub his fingers together (all of the same hand fortunatley) while repeatedly saying "get it off mommy". It was stinkin' hilarious! He had it all over his hand before I could get a wipe out. I was trying to keep Bethany in my lap while at the same time trying to keep him from touching anything else. I tried my best to scrub his hand clean before his hamburger came.

It's probably a good thing he found it or it would have been a stinky mess in my parents Tahoe.

Fun Website

My coworker seems to think I can find a website for anything. She must not realize that google is my most frequented site. With that said, I stumble onto a lot of sites through friends. Here's a recent fun one. Iowa Courts Search can entertain you for hours, if you let it.

The reason for checking out this website is one of the guys who comes in our building. Short story is that he's a snake in the grass. Someone commented that he was a felon and I immediately recalled Rhett telling us about this website. So, we hopped on and looked up the guys criminal history in Iowa. It was lengthy. Doesn't it make you wonder who's living next door?

The Three Sue's

He Has Risen!

He has risen indeed!

A few pictures from Easter Sunday. I know that Easter is not about eggs or even the bunny rabbit. However, I thought it would be fun for Scott to hunt for eggs.

It was chilly outside. There was even a light snow falling. With no jacket on (I was determined for it to be spring) I froze.

We also enjoyed the company of a few friends. Naraa, is our newest friend. She's a Mongolian student studying at the nearby university for her bachelor's degree. We have a soft spot for Naraa because Ryan has been to Mongolia several times on missions trips. It's fun to spend time talking with her about Mongolia and looking at the maps with her, etc. We were blessed to have her join us for the Easter service at church and then lunch with my family.

[hmm, guess I didn't download that picture from my camera...]

Bethany Easter Pictures

Of course, the cute little spring dress should have been long sleeved and lined with flannel! I didn't want to stay inside and miss out on Scott hunting for eggs so I put Scott's pj's on over her dress, wrapped her up and took her outside. These pictures are after we came in and warmed up a bit.

Happy Daddy

Happy Birthday Daddy. Sorry I was crying for the picture. If you would have let me keep your cell phone, I would have smiled for the picture. I adore you Dad!

love, your little girl

Remote Control

Little Miss Bethany really likes the remote and the phone. Unfortunately, she also knows the difference between the real thing and the toy. The toy does entertain her for a while though:

Yes, she's dressed in neutral clothing... she's wearing Scott's Cardinals outfit and looks cute in it!

See you soon!

Grandpa & Grandma, we're really looking forward to seeing you. It's been forever since we've played with you.

Scott & Bethany

...and its gone!

I had something good to post about this morning. But now, when I'm done with work and able to post, I can't remember. Crap!

*********** edited at 6:05 when my memory came back*********
So, these contacts... [I must be in a witchy mood lately].... have become a thorn in my side. Last week I somehow got a tiny problem in my contact. Friday, I had to take them out because it was irritating my eye, their touric lenses and rotate when I blink but that must have not worked with this little problem. No big deal since I had recently left a message at the optometrist telling I liked this second set and could order these. Because my optometrist is 40 miles away and I don't have the time or gas money to drive up there, I called a friend for help. They were headed up that way and would pick up my new lenses. Let me remind you that I've NEVER ordered them before so I'm not sure what all this entails. So, I call the office and ask them if my friend could pick them up. I explained that the situation and she said it was no problem. When I got to their house last night to get them, they let me know that Nick had to pay for them. I was ticked. Why didn't they tell me that they would need to be paid for first. Yes, I understand that we pay for things but usually they bill me for everything else so why not this time? So, I cut them a check for the $128 they paid. Yeah, that wasn't in the budget either. So, now we have two non budgeted items totalling $170 in a few days not to mention the baby gift that Ryan's making. This morning I go to put my new contacts in and they're not labeled. Well, they're labeled with the Rx but I don't know which eye is which. So, I get the paper with the Rx on it and it fortunately tells me. Only, it says "OS" and "OD". What the heck does that mean? Maybe I'm a moron but having not piddled with this crap before, I had no clue. You would think they'd do a little educating. And my coworker, said this morning that her people label her contacts and she's worn them for years. Yes, I had to carry my contacts to work, jump on webMD and find out which eye was which. Now I know.

So let me recap:
1. No education for a new user.
2. No follow up phone call about the order (price, time frame, etc)
3. Didn't inform me that my friend would have to front $128 for my crap
4. Didn't bother to charge me like they do everything else.

How's that for customer service?

Working Mom

For a while now I've thought about this whole working mom issue. I continue to struggle in my own head with all the benefits of both. And then I listen to family related podcasts and it only makes me have more doubt. People who stay at home with their children don't understand the working mom issues. Working mom's don't understand stay at home mom issues. Its not just a matter of 'the grass is greener on the other side'. Its an issue of watching my kids grow up. Of being at home to greet my husband when he comes home from work. Of having energy and time to give to my kids when all they want is to read a book or wrestle on the floor. Of being there when they reach different milestones in their young lives. But on the other hand, I have a good job. Good benefits. Decent pay. Flexibility. An understanding boss. And lately the question has become "do I truly enjoy my job?" I think I do. I love to do things I do at work when I randomly meet a landowner at a golf course. But is it simply my attitude? Who of us likes to do something when we have to do it? Why am I not motivated right now? Is it the weather? Will it ever warm up?

I'm gone from the house about 11 hours a day. Usually 45 minutes of that is spent at my mom's feeding Bethany and chatting with them. By time I get home, I don't have time to cook a meal, clean up, play with the kids, clean up after them, bathe the kids, get them in bed, do laundry or anything else that comes up. Thankfully I have a husband who does most of the cooking, plays with the kids, helps with bath time and I'm not left with doing everything by myself. But then throw into the mix that Wednesday and Thursday nights we're committed to outside activities. So what, that's only two days a week, right. Still, it seems never ending sometimes. Funny thing is that when we slow down, we feel like we don't know what to do with ourselves.

Which brings up another thought. One of my buddies commented on how well I do taking time out to spend with just Ryan. I don't think that we do well at that. Honestly, if we make time to talk, then we're asking Scott to be quiet while we talk. If we wait till the kids go to bed, we do a quick run down of our day, ask for prayer requests, pray together and fall asleep. So, put the kids to bed earlier, right? Remember, I don't get home till 630 and I need some time in there to spend with them.

okay, sorry for the rant... I'm tired and grumpy today.

PS, thank you Ryan for staying up last night and paying bills and working on our budget while I crashed!

Weekend

Another wild weekend for us. Only this was prefaced with two quiet days so I really enjoyed my weekend. My house was already clean (and kept that way for a week straight which is a miracle) so I was able to piddle around with other odds and ends in the morning. I spent the afternoon at the church decorating with some of our international stuff for our "missions Sunday" which went over really well.

Left there and headed home to make a meal for our friends who are new parents. Thanks to my husband who started a meal for me while I was at the church. We finished it up and headed over to their house and I held the baby while they ate. He was so little.

Sunday we had a few old and new friends over for lunch after church. We were hungry but the meal seemed to fill everyone up. We followed that with a game of Mexican Dominoe Train which was fun and as we finished that, Ryan served us all chocolate peanut butter milk shakes which were over the top. Later that afternoon, with an over tired child who needed another hour to his nap, Mom came over with a present for Scott. He was pretty excited about the kite she bought him and said "grammy, thank you for the kite. I just love it so much". Yes, he's good with words that little schmoozer. So, we flew the kite for a while and then went in for some hot chocolate. Scott went home with Grammy and Ryan and hung out and played with Bethany for the evening. It was a nice, quiet night at home!

Trip to Galena

Life is typical for me... super busy. However, I spent a few days last week atthe Eagle Ridge Golf Resort in Galena, IL. It was a good time to hang out with my hubby on someone elses dime. A few thoughts from that trip:

1. When you leave the breastfed baby at home, you MUST take your pump with you.



2. When you forget your pump, you MUST go buy a new one.



3. When you buy a new one, you MUST go outside of your budget.



4. When I forget my pump, have to buy a new one and go outside of my budget, I am not a happy camper.

With that said, I have a rock star husband who drove back to town to make the purchase while I showered and got ready for lunch. What guy do you know would make that purchase? Yes, reason 4 million that I love him!

It was a quick and quiet few days. I mostly played on the internet and listened to my ipod while Ryan was in class. We had a fancy meal Thursday night and sat with two other couples that were fun to chat with. Friday we ventured through Galena but it was cold and we didn't stick around long. We headed home to see our little ones instead which was a lot of fun.

What a Day!

I'm pasting an excerpt of an email to my friend Cori. After she made mention of her day, I thought I'd share a little of mine:

if you're having a rough day, just be glad that you weren't in the bathroom pumping, not at all paying attention, but rather, reading the book the land that was everything when all of a sudden, I felt wetness on my leg. Immediately, I moved the bottle to the side then looked down to see the damage. Only two drops of home brewed milk on my slacks. But it continued to spew over as I quickly unplugged one of the lines (think dairy cow milking set up) but there was still a little suction to the full bottle. There was a tiny little puddle of stuff (which seemed huge at the time) on the floor when I got it stopped. Bummer, I didn't get through the epilogue before the drama. Got it all cleaned up and went to put the milk in the fridge. Helped Sheri clean out the fridge quick as it smelled like something nasty. While doing that, my boss hunted me down because we needed to leave for a meeting. Yeah, that was after I already got "the look" earlier for chatting with Connie. The good part, the drops weren't obvious when I walked into my meeting!

He's Too Good with Words

Scott had several funny moments last night. I'll try to recap them real quick:
1. When B informed him that C was coming over, he started doing circles while hopping in the air and very excitedly hollering "C is coming over. Oh, I love her. I just love C". It was stinkin' adorable.
2. Later while C read Scott his bed time story, there were comments back and forth about Scott stealing B's woman. B looked seriously at Scott and said "She's my woman". And Scott looked right at B and said "no, she's my woman, B". We about died of laughter and Ben got up from where he was sitting with Scott and C and came over and sat by me.

Yes, not even 3 years old and already knows how to schmooze the ladies.

Treasure Hunt Revisited

Do you remember my post about the Iowa Treasure Hunt [march 10th]? I mentioned in that post that Ryan's cousin had $28.86 in unclaimed money. I emailed her about it that day. Yesterday she emailed me back with an interesting reply:

[tam4buit], You'll be happy to know that I checked out the Iowa Treasure Hunt site my 28.86 is actually almost $2,000 of a mutual fund that I had forgotten I had. Thanks for the information this will help with our retirement. It is getting rolled into my 401K. [ryan's cousin]

How 'bout that? Maybe you are rich. Go check out the Iowa Treasure Hunt to see if you have some money out there...

Fly

There were two flies trying to attack the light bulb on our ceiling fan last night. It was annoying to hear them. But more than that, those little pests were knocking all the dust off the fan and it was dusting down on me as I tried to read. Dangit pests, I know I need to dust up there but you don't have to remind me.

One of the flies landed (probably couldn't breathe from dust inhalation) on my blanket and I gave him a good flick. Not more than 20 seconds later, the little bugger flew right into my hair. I'm not kidding. It was like he was in attack mode. I'm serious. I flailed around like a wild woman trying to get the fly out of my hair while Ryan laughed and laughed at me.

Now, who says living in the sticks can't be fun!

PS

Happy early Birthday my dear Ryan.

love,
me

ps: I love you

________
Yes, I finished the book and was surprised by the ending. Definitely a good read! Thanks girls for sharing with me. Now, I'm waiting for her to write a sequel.

Babbling Bethany

My sweet little thing is totally expanding her vocabulary. Not that she really says any purposeful words except "dada", but she's babbling a lot more this past week. We've heard her mock several words in the last few days. She's so cute!

Aren't they adorable?!?!?! If you pay close attention, you'll notice that Scott is laying in Bethany's lap. I'm glad my kids like each other... so far!

merritt

I love reading your comments but hate that I don't have your email to write you back. Girlfriend, I need your email address.

PS: I Love You

Cori recently needed a new book to read. I had nothing to suggest as the reading I do wouldn't interest Cori. I left the suggestions up to others who read lots more. A dear friend, Renae, sent Cori a copy of the book PS I love you. Their conversations really had me curious about the book. And let me just point out for the record that I don't do a ton of reading. I prioritize my time other places. And if there's a movie version, you can bet that I'll watch the movie instead (duh, 90 minutes of my time versus how long to read a book???) However, it sounded so sweet and lured me right in. Cori, upon finishing the book dropped it in the mail to me.

I got it Monday night. I opened the package to find the book wasn't an 80 page read, its a novel. Remember, I don't have much time to read, my life is full of other things. Holy cow, when am I going to get this read? However, somehow I've managed to read through 130-some pages already. Yeah, with a busy last two days, I'm not sure how that happened. Well, maybe it was that I put my kids to bed at a decent time and stayed up to read for a while, I read instead of listening to my ipod while I pumped at work and today I plan on reading during my lunch. Hmm, funny how things can grab your attention so well.

I've had a few books that have pulled me right in. I'm not one for love stories (what I call "girl porn") that presents the perfect love story that will never be my love story but this is the second one I've read. The first one is called "learning to breathe again" by Tammy Trent. It was amazing. The book is about Tammy Trent's experience of suddenly losing her husband and learning to breathe again. Amazing. I remember thinking prior to the book (because I heard her talk on the radio) that I would be fine if put in that situation because at the time I didn't have kids, have a career, etc. And then when I read and felt her emotion, I began begging God to not ever test me in that situation. Good read.

Anyway, off to read the book. Thanks Cori and Renae for sharing with me!

A lot on my plate...

1. Plans for a class reunion this summer. Have contact 43 of ~230 classmates. Eek, lots to contact yet.
2. Girls Night Out activity for some friends and bible study buddies for March 28th ish
3. Soup cook-off at the office on March 25th
4. Junior High Girls Mom and Daughter Dessert: tentatively April12th
5. Meals for N&M who are expecting a baby any day now

I think I'm missing something...

Other things in the very near future include Ryan's birthday and Easter. Ryan is on call for Easter AGAIN this year so that will at least be local. But that also means that we need to plan a trip to see his grandparents as they've not seen my kiddos since Christmas. Ahh, when will I be finished planning?

I wish I could get paid to do this kind of stuff full time. I love doing it but don't have the hours in the day to get it done after my work day.

What do you get Paid?

While searching for something else, I came across 3 websites with some interesting information:

1. This random Iowa Treasure Hunt site allows you to search for unclaimed property. I was hoping it would be like a winning lotto ticket for me so I searched my last name. And what did I find? I found that Ryan's cousin has $28.86 in unclaimed property. Fantastagirl, if you were living in Washington, you would have some money too. Iowa Geek, I looked for you but no luck. I was hoping you would have an unknown large sum of cash too. It's a fun site, check it out.
2. So, onto what I was actually searching for: the state of Iowa has a searchable database (by name) for the salary of state of Iowa employees. Do you want to know what your old prof gets paid? You can look it up here. Do you want to know what that DNR guy get paid. You can also look it up on this site. I had a fun few minutes looking up the salary of some friends I know that are state employees.
3. And that got me curious. As a federal employee, I know that my salary is public information. But, I wondered, can it be searched my my name. And you bet, with a little help of google, I found an old one. You can look up salaries from 2006 for federal employees. My old boss at the Forest Service, yep, found his income. Ryan's uncle who does amazing things with "communities" of plaque, yep, his can be found too.

I was amazed at the wealth of information I could find on these 3 sites! Happy Hunting!

DEBT FREE

Okay, so I'm a fan of Dave Ramsey and I thought I was doing his plan for getting out of debt. But, the other day on his radio show, he clarified with another caller that if the guy wasn't exactly doing his plan, than he wasn't doing Dave's plan at all. Hmm, okay. So, I really like Dave Ramsey and would recommend him to everyone but I'm not doing his plan. In Dave's Get out of Debt plan, you would stop investing in retirement until you get out of debt. Because I understand compounding interest and because our debt load was pretty minor, I didn't stop putting money in my Roth. With that said,

WE'RE DEBT FREE

except our home

Yes, that's right, we don't owe any one anything with the exception of our mortgage which we're working to pay down faster than normal. And not only that, but after taking the daveRamsey class, I am much more informed about finances, insurance, real estate, etc.

Church Potluck

Sunday church potlucks are always fun. We typically sit with the same group of people, pass our kids around, eat too much food and have a good time. This past Sunday I decided to sit with Scott's family (Scott, his new fiance, her son and her son's friend). As I walked by the little boys to set my plate down I saw that one of them had his hands cupped together and full of food. My initial thought was that he was playing with his food and trying to gross out his friend. After taking a quick look at the childs plate, I realized that his hands were holding puke. Yup, you got it, puke! I quickly sat my plate down, grabbed the kid's napkin and scraped the nastiness into my own hands. Took my napkin and wiped the liquids off his hands. Ah, the warm feeling of someone else's puke in your hands. How's that for the 'ol appetite. By now the fiance asks what's going on and the friend replies "i threw up in my hands". All the better. I discarded the brat piecess, liquid and other fun stuff into the trash, washed my hands and went back to the table. Good thing the fiance was done eating because she pushed her plate away as it ruined her appetite. Nope, not me. I sat right down and started in on my tasty meal. And when it came time to need a napkin, I stole Shane's since mine had already been used!

Happy Friday!

Pants

Nope, not writing about the brown ones today. Although I guess I can update you and let you know that I wore them once since then and didn't bother to color the string and it really didn't bother me at all. With that said, the real post...

Lately, my pants are too big. This is good and bad. I'm habitual and have gotten very used to my jeans, belts, etc. However, I recently opened a storage tote of jeans. These were the jeans pre Scott that I knew I couldn't wear anymore because of those darn hips. I've been able to wear the pre-scott jeans that were loose fitting but this tote had regular, fitted jeans with a normal waist. I pulled out a pair and told Ryan that it would be nothing short of a miracle if I could get them on. He cheered me on when I had my legs in them but I informed him that I had yet to get them up over my hips. However, I was amazed when I pulled them right up and didn't even have to suck in my gut to zip them up. Gasp. They fit! I've appreciated the low rise jeans that allow my flab to hang over and not get noticed. These jeans worked even though they weren't low rise. My tummy was a little more noticeable but they worked.

Today, I have on a pair of khakis in the original size. Yee-flippin-haw! Now, I just have to get used to jeans that have a waist. Yipee! Its like having new clothes again!

Cookies

A while back at Sarah's (a wonderful cook/baker), I had these awesome german chocolate cookies. Made very simply (my kind of recipe) and with wonderful taste, I had to have the recipe. Made them last week with Scott and shared a few Ryan, my folks and Chris (a bachelor buddy of Ryan's). They were gone, almost instantly. We started with 3 dozen and you would have never known they were in the house except the left over frosting. Anyway, I'm eager to make some more. I love me some good cookies. Girl Scout cookies are out and although not at all what I need if I want to keep my figure, I shouldn't be eating a box of cookies in two days. I really like those things. My favorites truly are the caramel delite and the mint chocolate ones. Umm, I have found that the little elves make both of those however I can only find the mint ones on a consistent basis. My mouth is now watering for some cookies. I NEED COOKIES. Okay, anyway, I read that Merritt has some recipes to make those cookies. Meritt, I would love to have those recipes. Will you put them on your blog or email them to me, please.

Gas Money

The last few weeks I've been picking up a coworker on my way. She's a fun lady and I like sharing half of my drive with her. With soaring gas prices (I know, $3.04 is low for you Cali people), my gas budget has also increased. Well, mid morning, my coworker came over and handed me cash and said it was for gas money for the last two weeks. I was way excited.

Hmm, what should I do with it? Put it towards my next scrapping toy (a dicut tool), towards my summer trip to CA, or something else? We're doing the budget thing and it will likely go right back into the general account, maybe even towards gas money for March, which would then free up some of our budget for vacation, etc.

Butt Kicking

Last night was a bad night, all around. I was supposed to be in the capitol city for work but the roads were bad (Jody, I so wanted to call you but opted to take the kids to see the great g's) and I opted to play it safe and stay home. Ryan's plans for a very quiet evening were a little disturbed and he was a little piturbed. Trying to focus on the reason for this post, I'll skip all the details even though I'd really like to get it off my chest. All these little things that were no big deal by themselves kept happening one right after another. And finally I'd had enough and stormed upstairs and crawled in bed. Knowing that my life in general has been stressed and also knowing full well that it has been my lack of time in the Word and being quiet before God, I avoided the light switch and grabbed my bible. Not even knowing where to begin, I opened it up and decided I would read whatever page I opened to. It was 2 Chronicles 14 and 15. Immediately my mood brightened when I read the subtitle and realized it was about king Asa. Curious, because I have a buddy that named his child Asa, I started right in reading. Now, I was reading The Message version which is a paraphrase but a little light reading was good considering my attitude. I started with chapter 15 first and here's a few things I read:

• God will stick with you as long as you stick with him. If you look for him he will let himself be found
• when they were in trouble and got serious, and decided to seek God, the God of Israel, God let himself be found
• Asa...took a deep breath, then rolled up his sleeves, and went to work
• they bound themselves in a covenant to seek God, the God of their fathers, wholeheartedly, holding nothing back

And then I went back and read chapter 14 because it also pertained to Asa:

• Asa was a good king. He did things right in God's eyes
• God kept the peace
• [asa said:] We have this peaceful land because we sought God; he has given us rest from all troubles

And then on to chapter 16 to get the rest of the story of Asa

• "Because you went for help to the king of Aram and didn't ask God for help, you've lost a victory over the army of the king of Aram. Didn't the Ethiopians and Libyans come against you with superior forces, completely outclassing you with their chariots and cavalry? But you asked God for help and he gave you the victory. God is always on the alert, constantly on the lookout for people who are totally committed to him. You were foolish to go for human help when you could have had God's help. Now you're in trouble—one round of war after another."

How much am I like Asa? Thinking I can do it on my own? I can't, I know I can't. I know that things work out best when I let God be in control. So, what am I doing? God is always on the alert, constantly looking out for people who are totally committed to him! Yeah God, I'm sorry for being the foolish one and trying to do it on my own when I could have your help. Please help. Like my mom said when I was growing up, I need an attitude adjustment!

Sunset

This is a view of the sunset last night just down the road from my house on my way home:

Habits

Bethany has this funny habit. When she seemingly gets nervous, she'll tuck her head down and roll her eyes up to look at you. Now, she does this with an added smile.
Scott has this habit too. He always likes to be holding Bethany's hand. It doesn't matter if she's in her carseat, her jumparoo or asleep in bed, he likes to hold her hand. Its very cute.

Other fun habits that they'd be embarrassed if they knew I shared:

1. They are habitual about when they poop. Scott is a morning pooper and boy am I dissapointed when I don't get him to daycare in time :) Bethany likes to poop when she's in her high chair at the supper table. Its lovely to be chewing on a piece of meat and hear her passing gas, grunting and pushing it out

2. Bethany likes to grab at her genital area when her diaper comes off. Makes for a lot of fun when I'm trying to apply diaper rash cream!

3. Scott will avoid the "big boy potty" at all costs, even if a fresh cookie or dish of change (he loves both) are placed in front of him.

Dear Grandpa and Grandma

We're sure glad you're near. We love being able to see you more often so that we can read books, make houses, go see Arthur, eat at McD's and watch Veggie Tales. We love you!

Scott & Bethany

She likes to Eat

Tracy thought this would be a funny picture to sneak on my camera. Tracy took a bite out of a cookie and handed it to Bethany for the photo op. But, before Tracy could take the picture, Bethany had the cookie in her mouth. Atta girl Bethany. This child doesn't mess around when it comes to food. We can no longer sit down for a meal without her letting us know that she wants to be fed too. Yes, she also continues to think that she needs the home brewed milk as soon as she sees me after work, regardless of the fact that she may have had a bottle an hour earlier. No way this kid will be starved!

She's Mine

Yes, she's adorable! Yes, she's mine! Happy 8 month birthday Bethany!

Old Man Winter

Is it ever going to end? They say spring is just around the corner but it doesn't look like it. Although it is sunny out, its also snowing again. It's supposed to get up above freezing again tomorrow which will make for some snow melt (aka slush).

This picture was taken Dec 31st but the only difference now is deeper snow, shorter fence posts and big snow drifts.

Thank you God

I wish I had enough time to write the details of this story but not today.

Last night, after almost 4 hours of being gone on a (in my mind) 2 hour emergency call, Ryan still wasn't home. I would have been asleep and not really noticed (yes, I'm a good wife like that) except SCott woke and came in the room asking for his daddy who didn't put him to bed and hadn't kissed him goodnight. Fear came over me. I called and called. And in between calls I begged God to bring Ryan home safely. Watching the clock and knowing that Ryan would have usually called, I prayed some more and decided to call one more time before calling the other doctor and asking him to find Ryan. Needless to say, Ryan answered the phone and was safe. I didn't know to be glad he was safe or mad that he didn't call. But at that point, my prayers changed from begging to thanking God that he was safe and I continued to ask God to bring him home safely.

Oh thank you God... I really do like my husband, even if he doesn't take out the trash when I think he should!

Where is He?

We're trying to teach Scott to give. He knows the phrase "give back to God what he gave us" and likes to put his offerring in the plate. However yesterday when I dug out some change for him to take to church while driving down the road, the following conversation occurred:

me: Scott, did you take any money out of your piggy bank to give to God?
S: nope
[knowing the answer, I'm already digging in my change dish]
me: here Scott, you can give this to God
S: who's God, mommy?
me: umm
[not knowing how to explain to a 2 year old, I think I just repeated the phrase mentioned above]

a few minutes later as we're getting to church:
s: where's God? I want to give him my money? Mommy, where's God at?
[again, not a clue what to say. who prepares you for these moments... what should I say?]

in church when the plate was passed, we dug out his change from his pocket and thankfully he didn't ask the question. Thank you God - wherever you were at that moment ;)

Birthday

I was a little misleading last week - my birthday is tomorrow. And I don't say that now to get any birthday wishes or anything like that but rather to preface a my thoughts this morning. I got an email from a dear friend wishing me a happy birthday week. The following is our email conversation:
from me:
thanks Kel! Ryan and I are supposed to be going out for my birthday. Only, I'm not so excited about it for several reasons:
1. I don't feel cute today as I didn't get make up on my stressed out face.
2. I have an optometrist appt at 5pm and we have to stop at Fare.way and Wallyworld while we're out.
3. Ryan happened to share a conversation that he had with me in which he said "that doesn't work for me. My wife TOLD ME that I would be taking her to supper". Yep, that pretty much ruined it.
4. He's commented about being or not being able to get a free meal at chinese for my birthday. It's not about the freaking free meal. its about celebrating with your wife.

My crappy attitude will improve throughout the day. But, I'm lacking sleep, the roads were crap and I put too much chocolate in my hot chocolate... could be a long day :)

from kelly:
Ouch! That stings a bit and while I’m sure it was stressing it to get the joke out, it still doesn’t feel that great. I just got done reading a book called “For Women Only” about guys and how they really feel- I think all the girl’s in our small group should read it- but what really interests me is the companion book called “For Guys Only” that is supposed to explain us better to the guys in our life. I want to read it first and see if I think it’s accurate. Not all girl’s are the same, and I’m wondering if it really pegs us well.

The bright side- dinner out with your hubby- NO kids, right?

and my reply:
yeah, I'm sure he meant no harm but like he tells me, its not always what you say but how you say it. However, now that I think about it, it was both in this case.

I have that book too. I've read maybe 30 pages of it. Ryan has read both and thinks its spot on for what guys think. However, I've told him not to read to exact on the one about women, rather let me write one specifically about me. And then, I'd probably have to write 3, one for different moods, feeling sick, etc :) They also have one for young men and one for young women that are good. Right now I'm reading a book called Love & Respect, Love what she needs most, Respect what he needs most. Its been good but difficult to swallow. It talks about respecting him regardless of him deserving it. I'm trying but have a LONG way to go.

Night out with one kid. The B's are taking Scott to some Arthur (the cartoon) thing. We'll have Bethany. We thought about the new place but they're closed on Tuesday. And to be honest, unless hubby gets dressed up or there's something different about the night, then its just like every other time we stop and eat in Decorah. know what I mean?

All that to say that I'm being a whiner like my son. I want a special time to celebrate me. And I know that tonight will be rushed. Sure, I could request that we get all dressed up but that would require me leaving work even earlier to go home and put some make up on. Still not a bad idea but I did the ride-share thing this morning (betcha didn't know that was even possible in rural Iowa) and can't really leave any earlier. My boss is much more flexible with my time off requests. And even then, we would just be rushed to get to all the places we need to be before Scott's done and we need to get the kids home and in bed. They've each had colds lately and are whiny, fussy little ones.

Sweetheart Supper

I've been emailing with a friend about the Sweetheart supper and thought it would be fun to share what I wrote to her about the details of last night:

Thanks Diane. We, I think, were more blessed than the ladies. Because of the business of life, I had forgotten about the ladies until recently. Mom has taken on the food prep and other issues in the past but is busy as well. Ryan didn't want to miss out on the opportunity to minister to those ladies (reason #240 that I love him) so he asked our small group if they wanted to help me out. To be quite honest, I was a bit irritated because that then committed me to doing it. But now, I'm so thankful that he did (reason #241). We got invitations put together real quick and got them in the mail last minute. Of course, my generation wouldn't have worked so well with that turn around time on RSVP's but my ladies were wonderfully appreciative of the invitation and called right away. Anyway, we had help from most of our smaller small group and then Nick and Meg joined in the fun as well.

So, just because it was fun and I'm still excited about it, I'll share some details:
- Decided January 31st to do the Sweetheart Supper
- Tina (editor/owner of a local paper) and I designed invitation. I printed out invitations and Vanessa and I stuffed them and got them in the mail on Feb 9th.
- Had RSVP's by the 11th
- Sarah planned the meal (and nothing she cooks/bakes is simple) and had a grocery list to us on Tuesday night.
- Wed night at 7pm, Vanessa and I headed to Dtown for groceries. Dropped them off at Sarah's and was home by 11pm
- Thursday morning called the 12 that RSVP'd and changed the location due to threatening weather.
- Thursday Sarah and Kristy helped sarah assemble lasagnas. My mom cooked up the green beans.
- 430 pm I decorated while Ryan shoveled all the walk out front of the church. A very thoughtful couple heard what we were doing and donated a single rose with greenery and a vase for every lady. Vanessa brought those to the church.
- between 5 and 6 was stir crazy. We had lasagnas in 3 different locations, kids running around and not quite finished setting up when ladies started showing up 15 minutes early (so unlike my generation). Nick and Chris were chauffers.
- The meal was served, the ladies loved it. Nick was a hit with the ladies. Spenser (he's 9 by the way) was a great server and helped the ladies out the door, etc. The kitchen crew had dishes done, dried, put away while I gabbed with the ladies and dealt with a fussy child who, for a while, was only content if she was latched on.

We were able to invite more ladies this year (this is my 3rd year doing a meal for those older ladies who have either never married or are widowed) as those involved knew more ladies than mom and I know. We were quite blessed. I had several emails this morning from folks who helped. The S's who are experiencing bible study, God in general, and now serving others and doing so in partnership with their son, were very excited about last night. Nick was the ladies man but he and Meg thought it was heart warming. Ryan and I were glad to have many hands to help. I think we're all excited to see how we can serve next time!

Letter to RC

Dear Contact, how could I lose you. I understand you don't like being in my eyes and I'm sorry that Wednesday was such a long day. You irritate me so bad, I'm not sure why I allow you to be part of my life. Wednesday night when I got home, my eyes were dry and when I slipped out your twin, LC came out just fine. But I couldn't find you. I looked and looked for you. Even had hubby down on the ground looking for you. I'm committed to you, even at 11pm. But you were no where to be found. Did you sneak out some time during the day? Do you run away that morning and never join me for the day? Sometimes you try that but I'm persistent and take you along. What happened to you? Yesterday I had to wear my glasses. Today I forgot my glasses and life at work is a blur.

Oh, so you think its funny my dearest RC. I think not. And the joke is on you. You're being replaced on Tuesday with another pair. You, my dear friend, are disposable and I didn't really like you're attitude anyway. I hope this next trial pair will be better looking!

Happy Birthday to Me

Last night I saw a box on the coffee table but forgot to ask hubby what it was. While eating supper I mentioned that I forgot to pick up the mail on my way in. He was okay with that since the mail man brought it up to the door. Oh yeah, that's right, a box on the cofee table. So, I asked what it was. It was my Valentine's/Birthday present. He asked if I wanted it early. Now, I was curious so of course, I answered yes even though I really, really want a gift on my birthday. So, I asked him if he would re-wrap it so I could open it on my birthday. He said yes. Reason #239 that I love him.

He's a wonderful listener and heard me say at one point that I wanted a magnifying mirror. So, that's what a got - reason #240. Very cute and dainty looking. So cute, I think I'll put next to the antique mirror on my dresser that has perfume bottles on it.

It was a very thoughtful and wonderful gift. I'm thankful that he listens and gets me what I want. However, next time, I would love to have one gift for Valentine's Day (like a hand written love note like you wrote before we were married) and a seperate gift for my birthday. Thanks for listening!

I love you Ryan

You may frustrate me with the little things but I love you for a million reasons. Thank you for being my husband and best friend.

reason #236 that I love you: you stayed home with the sick babies yesterday and played Mr. Mom.

reason #237 that I love you: you were home with Scott who is quite the whiner and most definitely a mama's boy when he's sick.

reason #238 that I love you: I had a nice meal when I did finally get home.

flip flops

yup, its flip flop weather here today. In the 20's and a little snow melt in the parking lot.

Letter from Red

I once was lost... but now I'm found! I may be well insulated but I have been freezing my plastic off. Fortunately, I didn't get lost in the snow drifts or shattered on the driveway. I've been chillin' in the cup holder of Dave's work truck. Today my twin joined me bright and early only he was nice and warm. I will be home tonight and am ready to be useful once again.

Red
The travel mug

[Ryan and have become accustomed to hot chocolate each morning. We have several of the travel coffee mugs. I got two from an organization I'm in as a thank you. One is green and one is red. We also have two from a drug company rep that Ryan works with. I gave away my drug company one to a friend who needed one. So, we typically use the red and green ones. And because I like my hot chocolate with a different twist to it, we decided that I would use the red one and Ryan would use the green and we wouldn't get our cups mixed up. Well, good 'ol Red has been missing. Ryan was sure that I set it on the hood of my trunk and drove off and left it. I was sure that I hadn't because I would have seen it in my mirror when I backed out and I would have wondered that morning where my hot chocolate went when my hands were freezing. On Saturday I proved to Ryan that he was correct. I left a small diaper bag on the outside of the car and someone found it on our driveway and returned it. However, I did wonder what happened to it when I got to my destination but figured I left it by the door. So that solidified that I had to have lost the mug the same way. Only today, when I got in my bosses truck to head to a meeting, there was my red cup. Finally, I won't have to keep stealing Ryan's mugs each morning! Whew.]

Quickie

1. Today is day #4 of Scott's cold. No fun.
2. Saturday us girls (MIL, mom, bethany and I) had a girls afternoon out. Quilt show at the conservation center. Bethany was curious about quilt colors and animals.
3. The Sweetheart Supper is just around the corner. We have invited 29 women. I'm glad my small group offerred to help. My last planned activity for a bit.
4. Ryan had truck drama this weekend. It was zero degrees outside and the wind was howling like mad (we live on the top of a hill and always have wind). He was out changing a tire. His spare was frozen up underneath, etc. I offerred to help but was told to stay inside where it was warm. I made him hot chocolate and was COLD just standing outside long enough to put the hot chocolate in his truck.
5. No church for me Sunday. It was -40 with the wind chill. If something were to happen, it would be very difficult to keep them warm. We stayed home.
6. This week is going to fly by.

February 5th

It will forever be ingrained in my mind. The start of February comes and it hits me like a box of rocks. I miss my friend. It has been 12 years. The pain has subsided but the memories live on. I often wonder what life would be like if he was still around. Would Scott and I have stayed friends? Would my decision to commit my life to Christ have played out like it has? What a wonderful guy who lived a short life.

Like it was yesterday, I remember the details: the phone call about his accident. No brain activity, hearing that he died. The drive to the funeral, bawling like a baby when I saw his things on the stage. Visiting his parents afterwards, smelling his pillow, snooping through his desk with his dad. Wow. I miss my friend.

Reason #237 that I love Marriott

I had a reservation to stay at one of my favorite Marriott Hotels recently. I made the reservation for Wednesday night as I planned on scrapping with Jody and then attending a meeting in our state office. Then Tuesday night we got gobs of snow. I enjoyed a day home with my kiddos and cancelled plans to the capitol city. All day I kept telling myself that I needed to call Thursday to cancel my hotel reservations. Only, this morning while showering, I realized that I should have called yesterday. I instantly freaked out and then settled down realizing that I would just have to pay the fee for not cancelling. However, I called this morning and explained that I was confused on the date. After being on hold for two minutes, the Marriott employee let me know that she would cancel my reservation with no fee. Thank you Marriott, you will definitely keep my business.

Snow = Chains

Where I grew up, if you were going to the snow [you had to drive there because it didn't snow in the valley], you put chains on your tires. The highway patrol would sit on the side of the road and if you didn't have chains, you turned around and went back home. But out here in the midwest, people don't do that. It was so odd to me at first. The only time you see chains is when you drive past the tractor thats out in the field feeding cattle. Some people have studded tired though but no chains. Odd!

Ah, how sweet

yes, my husband is a stud muffin! Today at 4pm, the bell at the front desk rang as our secretary was gone already. Okay, farmers never hit the bell so that was odd in itself. Knowing it was a guy I'd just talked to at the counter, I jumped right up. Only, to my surprise it was Ryan with a pleasant surprise on his face. I jokingly asked him if he was here to bring me lunch as he unzipped his jacket and pulled out a red rose. Yup, a red rose, for no particular reason. It was so sweet. He was a few miles down the road on a call and went out of his way to come to town, buy a rose and bring it to me. It was perfect. And so sweet. I took a picture of it on my desk. I wish I would have taken a picture of him getting it out of his jacket or one of him giving it to me.

Cross Country Skiing

In the more recent years, my justification for doing things has changed [from exercise] to it being all about the photo op. Well, this day was a day of exercise but I did get a cool picture as well.

This was my photo op picture. It was difficult to get as my camera didn't like the cold! The next picture is of us girls. Three of us from work decided to have fun for a day. It was a ton of fun and now I have lots of bruising to prove it. Cross country skiing wasn't difficult but when I tried to make it become downhill skiing, it didn't go over so well. Its really hard for me to make corners with those big long skis. Oh what fun it was. It really works your hips, I found out. And by the end of the morning, I was using my arms to compensate for my naturally sore hips. My muscles were surprised to be used again :)