Musings Of Mom Girl

Stepping Out Of The Cave

noreply@blogger.com (Stacy) — Fri, 22 May 2009 07:44:00 +0000

NOTE: If you haven't read "Living In A Cave In Antartica" below, scroll down and start there first! :)

If we lived in a cave in Antartica, and God asked me to step out of that cave in faith, what would I say??

“God, I can’t – it’s COLD out there!”

“What if my jacket isn’t warm enough?”

Or would I run outside into the snow, eager to embrace the cold, frolic with the penguins, and leave footprints in the ice as I walk with the Lord?

I’d like to think I’d be the latter, but truthfully, most days I feel like a little of both.

Our house is most likely selling (nothing is for sure, especially in THIS market, until the dotted line has been signed), and we are looking at moving to Oklahoma this summer.

So what about jobs?

Good question.

A few months ago, I found out about an online job opportunity through some very dear friends of mine. With their help (and recommendations), I have found myself going thru not one, but TWO different interviews with this wonderful company.

I hesitate to say very much about this. Although both interviews have been absolutely wonderful experiences for me, I don’t know, and won’t know, for a little while longer if I will be offered a position at this company or not.

I will tell you this – I could work fully from home, and utilize many odd hours (such as early at morning or late at night) to get some of the work done. I can also do the work from anywhere – making it a great job to have in Oklahoma.

It would be, in short….a blessing. I feel as though the position I have been interviewed for is perfect for me – a perfect fit with my talents and personality.

I have prayed my way through every step of this, and have experienced such wonderful peace about God’s plan and provision. As a matter of fact, just last night, as I was doing some of my Bible reading, a verse in Proverbs caught my heart.

Proverbs 19:21 – “Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand.” (ESV)

God’s purpose will stand – no matter what. That means that even if I face the disappointment of not being accepted for this job, that God knows.

I want to glorify Him. I truly do. I want Him to take my heart, my hands, and my life. I want to be a Godly wife, and a Godly mother.

God is also moving to possibly have our daughter K-Bug attend a very special Kindergarten called Veritas. It is a part-time private Christian school and part-time homeschool situation. Again, perfect for our family. A spot is held for her there, even though I do not currently know if that is where she will be this fall.

My dear hubby, for his part, is also walking by faith – and flying by faith – out to Oklahoma the first week of June. His father has decided to take some time off and go with him, a true father-son trip. No matter what happens, both men are excited to have this time together!

My hubby’s resume’ is prepared and he will be looking for both ministry positions and possible contracts for re-starting his own music business in Oklahoma (just like what he does here right now).

For now, we wait, we prepare to the best of our ability, and we pray and stay rooted in Scripture as much as we possibly can!

So, there you have it, as much as can possibly be told in a nutshell, what is going on for the Smith family.

The day-to-day dealings with all of these BIG decisions can make our days seem almost chaotic at times. We have tried to keep things even keel for the kids as much as for ourselves, but we believe that God has asked us to step forth out of the cave and see what He has for us.

With jackets on (and maybe a good set of snow skis) we grasp the hand of the Father, and say one word.

“Yes”

Living In A Cave In Antartica

noreply@blogger.com (Stacy) — Fri, 22 May 2009 07:37:00 +0000

One of my closest friends growing up had a saying that she would call upon any time a random piece of information used to catch me off guard. With a huge smile on her face, she would always ask, “Where have you been? Living in a cave in Antartica?”

Well, this desert is about as far from Antartica as you can get, but I have indeed been “leaking” small amounts of news that have caught everyone, including me, a little bit off guard.

To my amazing friends credit, if all I had told you was that I WAS living in a cave in Antactica, you would have responded with something like, “We will pray that you keep warm!” and then asked me “WHAT in the WORLD are you doing in Antartica??”

I have given out small pieces of information, mostly thru Facebook, in the last few weeks. I have told you that we put our house on the market, I have told you that we have an active offer on the house (which we’ve accepted), and just a few days ago, I asked for prayer for a job interview (which happened yesterday).

And in the most loving ways possible, you responded with, “We will pray for you, but WHAT in the WORLD are you talking about?”

I apologize right now for doing that to you, my dear friends. It isn’t really very fair to ask you for prayers about which I have been willing to share little.

It’s not that I don’t want to share, it’s more about waiting to see what it is that I really have to share. So much is unknown right now.

No matter though – it’s time for the box to be opened, and to spill out the jumbled contents inside. God is making ALL things beautiful, weaving every part of the jumbled into something that will bring Him glory.

It isn’t any secret that for the last several years, my husband and I have talked, prayed, and talked some more about making a move out of Phoenix. It is not an easy or flippant decision, I assure you. My husband’s family is all local, and my parents have lived next door for almost the past two years – all in all, an awesome situation. My parents have wanted to move out-of-state for a while themselves (they rent the house next door), but have waited here to see what we were going to do – they didn’t want to be far from their beloved grandchildren. 

A few years ago, we visited my sister and her husband in Norman, Oklahoma and fell in love with the place. My sis and her hubby had asked us to consider moving there, so we got a realtor to show us around during that first trip. While there, we found “it” – THE house – our “dream house”. We came back all fired up to try and make a sudden move.

But God had other plans.

Some of our dearest friends had asked us to help them start a church plant, and eagerly awaited our return from Oklahoma to see what we would decide. On our knees before the Lord, my hubby and I both felt that the Lord told us “not yet”. We believed He was leading us to start this church plant, and so we said “No” to Oklahoma and “Yes” to obedience.

Many of you know about all that has followed. It has been almost two years of growth in the Lord – challenging at times (especially for me), but full of so much joy in our obedience. I got pregnant and we were blessed to add J-Boy to the family. The friendships I have here are so deep and so amazing – women that are my sisters in Christ – now and forever.

During that time, my sis and her hubby have moved away from Oklahoma. After a year in South Carolina, they are back in the East Texas area, living in Dallas.

But that call to Norman, Oklahoma has remained in our hearts, and over the last few months, we begin to hear the Lord prompting us to move forward in obedience to Him.

This time the move just might involve moving vans and a brand new state.

Soo….April Fools Day found our house on the market (gulp), and a little over a month later, we had an active offer (double gulp).

We’ve gone thru mountains of paperwork, a home inspection, and yesterday – the appraiser. If all continues to go well, our close date will be June 19th.

Less than a month away….

Where will we live?

I – don’t – know – exactly

There is talk of putting all we can in storage and gutting it out for a month over at my parent’s house – saving as much money as we can.

There is talk of us moving to Norman by August……August???

What about jobs, you ask?? Well, that brings me to the next part of this whirlwind. Read on..

Let's Go Fly A Kite (& Feed Fish)

noreply@blogger.com (Stacy) — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 23:29:00 +0000

The first weekend in April found our family looking at sunny skies, windy weather, and a brand-new kite. What to do??

How about a kite festival at the Japanese Friendship Garden?

Some of you know of my dear hubby's love of the Japanese culture. He recently acquired a membership to this small, Japanese garden, located in the downtown Phoenix area. It has become a special place for him to go and spend time with the Lord.

As a "member", he gets updates via e-mail about the various going-ons at the garden. That's how we found out about this small kite festival - celebrated in Japan as Children's Day. We loaded up the kiddos and enjoyed a wonderfully windy day together!

The girlies were immediately drawn to the large, blue tubs of koi fish that were being sold at the festival. Fish of all shapes, sizes, and colors swam in the long row of tubs.

The girlies (and J-Boy) also all had the chance to take to the stage to play a real Japanese taiko drum!! A troupe of young boys performed for everyone too.

Then it was kite time! For a few dollars, the girlies made a small kite (to go with the one that we had already brought with us). Then it was up, up, and away!!

After a little bit of kite-flying fun, we headed over to the garden to feed the large koi fish that live in the pond at the garden. The girls loved how close they could get to the fish and how BIG they opened up their mouths to devour the food!
J-Boy loved the fish too - except he was interested in trying to swim with them - hence the reason he is not in the pictures.

Here are some pictures of the garden - it is a lovely and peaceful place.

Our family was truly blessed to spend this windy day out enjoying God's creation!

House For Sale

noreply@blogger.com (Stacy) — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 21:42:00 +0000

Dreams

Faith

And…..a house…..

For those of you who know me, you know that one of my greatest desires in the last few years has been to abandon Phoenix like a rat from a burning ship (and on a hot, summer day in Arizona, you really do feel like you’re burning…)

Abandon to where, you might ask?? That’s another blog post.

And yet, whenever I would approach my dear hubby about this “burning” desire, he wasn’t ready to take the leap.

So I’ve waited….and prayed….and waited....and whined…and prayed some more

True confession: some of the praying was actually whining too….you know…”But God, this is what I WANT….waaahh”

And then – it happened. One night in March, while my dear hubby and I were praying together, he looked at me and said, “Ok, let’s do it.”

A few weeks later, we listed our house on April 1st - April Fools Day.

I know, God has a sense of humor… :)

So, here it is – our house on the market

Quite possibly the worst market that Arizona has seen in my lifetime.

We’ve had one…count it…one person come to look at our house since we put it on the market just a little over a week ago. Our realtor has not given us much hope to expect many more at this point.

And yet, as I hit my knees in prayer, and approach my heavenly Father with the “Why didn’t you give both me AND my hubby peace about this before now??” question….I am filled with a strange reassurance.

Reassurance that HIS way is always best, that HIS timing is worth the wait, and that HE, and HE alone, will work things out together for the “good of those who love Him”.

So I wait…and pray….and wait some more….

J-Boy Is One!!

noreply@blogger.com (Stacy) — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 04:42:00 +0000

J-Boy is understandably older (funny how kids do that). He had his first birthday at the end of February. Well….kind-of anyway. Being a leap year kiddo, he didn’t have his actual “date” of birth on the calendar.

We celebrated with a small first birthday party at a local park. He had started to pull up on things and decided to take some of his first “real” steps the day of the party.

He also had a good time eating…i.e. smearing… his own version of dump truck cake (chocolate soy pudding with animal crackers crumbled on top). Mmmmmmm……

He still doesn’t have a lot of hair (seems to be a pattern with my kids), but I sometimes spike what little he does have –so he’s still stylin! I love that boy’s punkin head…

He has since learned how to run everywhere on his chubby legs, and I spend most of my days running after him. He is into EVERYTHING!! For example, about a week ago, I found him in our bathroom. He had managed to somehow get the Listerine bottle out and take off the child safety cap. Thankfully, he had decided to NOT drink the liquid, but was delightedly shaking it and causing large amounts of minty freshness to rain down on his clothes, his stuffed animal, and a pile of clean laundry.

He has started to say a few words – “Dad-dee!!”, “Dogg-ie!” (he loves my parents dog), and his favorite “WOW! He points and uses sign language as well. Despite this cuteness, he doesn’t always get what he wants (isn’t life so unfair?) and he uses his newly developed sense of attitude to tell the world what he thinks about that.

He is a solid chunk, who would rather be outside playing in the rocks, dirt, water, and mud than just about anything else. He would also rather play with his sister’s toys or his Daddy’s guitar than any of his own age-appropriate toddler toys. He tries to play in the trashcan, the cat water, and the toilet on a near-constant basis, and has to be watched constantly when he is awake and moving.

He is...a whirlwind. And he whirls each of my days in a most wonderful way! Here are few pics of him for you to enjoy...

Playing on the computer (a used laptop that Daddy lets his sisters play with) He loves ANYTHING with buttons!

My little sweetheart!!

And...the whirlwind in motion!

Cooking Up Christmas Fun

noreply@blogger.com (Stacy) — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 18:56:00 +0000

We did do lots of fun things during the Christmas season. One of those things was making Gingerbread cookies! One of my best memories growing up was making lots of Gingerbread men every year to give out to family and friends.
So, of course, I asked my Mom if we could all do it as a family this year.
Miss K-Bug LOVES to cook, so she was super excited about the day. Lorelin had fun, but I think she was ready to quit waaay before her sister was.
We put J-Boy down for a nap and got started making Gingerbread. We sure did make a lot of cookies!
Thanks Mom!

K-Bug put the flour on her nose because she had seen it in a book somewhere. She wanted to keep it on there the whole time! Too cute!

Mmmm....yummy...well, not yet..BUT

Soon enough we had lots of yummy gingerbread men. Lorelin DID like the eating part!!!

Merry POST Christmas!

noreply@blogger.com (Stacy) — Sun, 28 Dec 2008 23:09:00 +0000

Ahhh….Christmas…..that blessedly busy season.

Can I make a confession??

I really DO like Christmas (honest, Scott, I do!!) ……….buuut

I am always glad when it’s over.

I am one of those people that is ready, ready, ready to take down the tree and lights the day after Christmas is over, and secretly get annoyed if I hear Christmas carols playing at church or on the radio after Christmas Day.

Sorry…I know that sounds really grinchy of me….

I do like Christmas…I do….and this year it was more fun than ever with three children under the age of five. K-Bug, by the way, says that she wishes it could be Christmas “EVERY DAY always, always always!!”

Sorry I haven’t been blogging much. I think I will make more consistent blogging one of my New Year’s resolutions (right behind reading the Bible thru in a year and getting in the best shape of my life…but more about that later)

Anyway, I hope you enjoy some of these cute Christmas pictures and a recap of the true Christmas fun we were able to have!!  Merry Post Christmas everyone!!!

And on to Valentines Day!!!!!!!!!

Miss Kertchoo

noreply@blogger.com (Stacy) — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 05:25:00 +0000

Last night was one of the first FULL nights of good sleep I feel that I've gotten in weeks!
Next to K-Bug's sinus infection (and ensuing drama), we've also had a bout of croup with Miss Lorelin (she's fine now...but still on some temporary medicine to help her breathe at night), and a round of stomach flu with my hubby (he's OK today...but the last few days have been rough).
My throat has been slightly soar, and J-Boy has had some sniffles, but thankfully nothing else (I've been putting special baby acidophilus in his food, and giving him some special organic probiotic oatmeal).

Oh yeah...and I think I'm having PMS.

I had my breakdown yesterday - lots of boo-hooing and generally feeling sorry for myself since the last few weeks have been a little rough. I called my Mom and told her "I need my Mommy". She came and got all three kids for at least half an hour so that I could take a shower and change my clothes.

Today I slowly feel my sanity returning. In an effort to be light-hearted about the "sickies" that we've experienced these last few weeks, I wrote this poem last night...enjoy!

Me, You, And Miss Kertchoo

We’ve all heard of the Easter Bunny
And the Tooth Fairy too
But little know about the one
Simply known as Miss Kertchoo
She keeps Kleenex in her purse
And her wand is full of bluckies
That make little children everywhere
Green and gooey with the yuckies
Each cold season she awakes
From a long summer’s nap
She takes her germs and infections
And gives her hands a clap
As she giggles with delight about all the sickies she will spread
On each little boy and girl as they are lying in their bed
And who pays the price for Miss Kertchoo – her mischief and her fun?
It’s the parents – the parents I tell you – each and every one
We’ll wake like zombies to the tone of our children whining
“Mom, I can’t sleep. I don’t feel good.”
Their voices will bring
An end to our sleep
Our peace
Our sanity
And what I want to know is why no-one did tell me
About the stress and strain that these germs can cause
And yet I am SO thankful
This is because
I know that these bodies are just temporary
And sometimes germs infect
But ONE DAY our Heavenly Father
Will give us bodies that are oh-so-
PERFECT!!!

So, Miss Kertchoo, how do you do, with your wand of yuckies?
I will use the power of Tylenol (and prayer) to beat back the bluckies!!

So there!!

P.S. Lord, I am still one tired Mommy, so health visited upon our family very soon would be GREAT!!!

Thanksgiving Adventure

noreply@blogger.com (Stacy) — Sat, 29 Nov 2008 05:09:00 +0000

The holiday season has roared down upon us again, and we spent a wonderful day-after Thanksgiving putting up our Christmas tree and decorations (I practically just supervised while the girlies put up all the ornaments and decorations). They LOVED making the house “look SO pretty!” as K-Bug said over and over.

I spent some early morning hours shopping with my Mom (we were insane enough to venture out to Wal-Mart), and the rest of my day was spent cleaning the house. I even squeaked in a nap…..ahhh!!

So, now, here I am, sitting at the end of my day – tired and unbelievably thankful for all that I am blessed with.

God gave our family an extra special reminder about how blessed we are and how HE is always in control this past week. Last Sunday morning, as we were getting ready to go to church, K-Bug started to complain of a scratchy throat. I didn’t think much about until I felt her head and she was burning up with fever.

Poor girl! Later that day, Miss Lorelin started in with her own fever, and we all spent a very long night nursing fevers and not getting much sleep.

On Monday afternoon, my dear hubby took both girls into our pediatrician where it was discovered that K-Bug had a sinus infection and ear infection BOTH (how do these things come on so suddenly?!), while Miss Lorelin was deemed a viral infection.
We started K-Bug on her antibiotics and spent ANOTHER long night of being awake, this time largely due to K-Bug’s nasal passages being virtually swollen shut and her not being able to breathe. We gave her Vick’s vapor rub, put the Vaporizer right in front of her bed, and finally ended up with both her and I on the couch, with me holding her upright most of the night.

By Tuesday, although the fevers were all gone (and Miss Lorelin was acting like she felt significantly better), Miss K-Bug was wiped out from the complete lack of good rest and sleep.

On Tuesday night, we all braced ourselves for another looong night, and sure enough, K-Bug began to sound very much like a eighteen wheeler on steroids as she nodded off, only to wake up crying as her body tried to catch a good breathe. Around 11:00 p.m. my dear hubby and I finally nodded off as K-Bug headed off to bed. At midnight, I woke up and went to check on K-Bug.

I found her with the same VERY noisy breathing, but she also seemed to be tossing, turning, and even thrashing on her bed. I picked her up and moved her to the couch, where I noticed that drool was coming profusely from her mouth and bubbles of spit were popping up. I tried to wake K-Bug to get her to breathe from her mouth, but I COULD NOT WAKE HER UP. No matter what I tried, either. No response.

I went and woke up my dear hubby, and after he had tried unsuccessfully to rouse K-Bug for a few minutes, he asked me to call 911. She had a complete lack of muscle response - she felt completely limp like a noodle in our arms.

Dialing 911 for what was the first time in my life (and I’d be fine if it was my last) will go down as one of the scariest moments of my life to date. I sounded much calmer on the phone than I felt, as I relayed the situation to the dispatcher and gave him all of the necessary information.

With MUCH relief, my hubby was finally able to successfully rouse a very congested and scared K-Bug by putting some water on her face, and we all waited the final few minutes out front as the paramedics pulled up.

Coming inside the house, the paramedics took a blood pressure (it was fine) and a blood oxygen level (it was also fine – 98%) on K-Bug, who by this time was shaking with fright, while seeming very dazed at the same time.

The paramedics gave us the recommendation that we take K-Bug directly on to an Urgent Care to be checked out, but also gave us their full OK for us to drive her ourselves. My brave and amazing hubby took K-Bug on to the pediatric urgent care (called Good Night Pediatrics)

Once there, however, the doctors sent him and K-Bug on to Phoenix Children’s Hospital, stating that our description indicated that there could have been a possible seizure.

According to my dear hubby, the nurses and doctors at Phoenix Children's all treated K-Bug like a little princess, and the attending ER doc was very calm and reassuring that K-Bug’s current seemed normal and healthy, despite the fact that she also felt that a seizure might have occurred.

The ER doctor gave K-Bug an oral steroid to open up her nose, and K-Bug and my dear hubby arrived home around 5:30 a.m., where K-Bug proceeded to sleep straight (and breathing easy, thanks to the steroid…thank you Lord!!) through for five hours.
My dear hubby slept for an hour and then got up to work his morning shift of work.

In talking our pediatrician the next day, she felt that several things could have happened:

1.K-Bug could have had a reaction to the medicine that she was taking, as it was a brand-new antibiotic for her.
2.K-Bug could have been made drowsy by the prescribed Claritan she was taking, and that made it very difficult for us to rouse her OR
3.Her nose could have been blocked to the point that she didn’t receive air for a short time, causing her body to react with a seizure.

So, long story made shorter, her pediatrician
1.Switched her to an antibiotic that she has had before (with no side effects!) and took her off of the Claritin.
2.Will be scheduling K-Bug to get an EEG just so that we know whether or not she had a seizure or was simply in a state of very deep sleep brought about by her complete exhaustion

K-Bug has slept in our bed for the last two nights, as we have wanted to keep her a little closer than normal. Kaelyn is doing MUCH better – sleeping through the night, doing well on her new antibiotics, and being her sweet, cheerful self.

Tonight she is back in her own room and own bed, and I am thankful beyond words for the sparkling eyes of my little girl.

We spent Thanksgiving largely at home, sleeping and recovering. (we spent about two hours at my parents eating lunch too).

I have cherished every sound of her sweet voice, laughed at all of her silly jokes, and soaked in every song that she has showered us with in the last day or two.

My children are so precious, so incredibly precious to me.

I am thankful…..so incredibly thankful.

Catching Up..Pt 4 - The Women's Retreat

noreply@blogger.com (Stacy) — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 05:57:00 +0000

Every year, one of my very best friends, Christy, and myself head up to the North Phoenix Women's Retreat. We both attended North Phoenix Baptist Church in our high school and college days, and Christy's Mom and Dad are still active members there. When her Mom invited us to the very first Women's Retreat FIVE YEARS AGO :), we were both new Mommies in need of a break from our babies (her son was seven months and K-Bug was just five months old).

It was at that first retreat that we laughed, cried, and experienced God in new ways together.

Now, five retreats later, I've got my three kiddos and Christy is expecting her third baby next March.Awwww....I think she looks so beautiful with her baby belly! :)

We tease each other because there has only been one year that at least one of us wasn't pregant at the retreat. (we've both decided we're done with pregnancy and babies:)

Truly, this retreat is a special and sacred time for me and my friend. There are SO many highlights at the retreat. One of our favorites is the Saturday night party! Each year, the retreat team for North Phoenix Baptist puts together a HUGE theme party for the second night of the retreat. There are ALWAYS outrageous costumes, games, music, and more.

It's a blast! :) They have done fun themes like a Fifties Party, A Western Hoedown, and last year, a Princess Party!

This year they decided to do something a little bit different and put together a talent show. The theme of the retreat was "God's Precious Jewels" - so they decided to do a Saturday Night "Sparkle Show"

When they first announced the talent show, my friend Christy called me and said, "I KNOW what we are doing for the talent show! Have you seen Evolution of Dance on You Tube??"

Yes, people, WE did the entire evolution of dance. And yes, my friend Christy was almost six months pregnant while we did it. We rehearsed pretty hard for about a week, and when the time came we were ready.....

We ended up being the last act of the night, and yes, WE-ROCKED-THE-HOUSE! (and had a BLAST doing it!!!)

Who said that Baptists don't dance???

I have some video of us doing the dance, so maybe I'll get brave and post it on my blog so everyone can see...

Here is Christy and I posing with the lady who was the Emcee for the night's talent show events.

And here is Christy and I just posing for the camera with all of our "sparkly bling" on...I am pointing to her preg-o belly!

Catching Up..Pt 3 - The Chili Party

noreply@blogger.com (Stacy) — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 21:20:00 +0000

Every year, on Halloween Day, our family has had the privelage of attending a Chili Party hosted by one of my best friend's mother. :) She is so generous to include us in this family event (thanks Jan!) Fred and Jan have a BIG backyard, and lots of toys for the kiddos to play with. After a big dinner of homemade chili and other fixins', the kids decorate their own treat bags and walk through the neighborhood collecting candy from all of Fred and Jan's neighbors.
The entire block participates in their own family/friend party events at their houses, and most of the neighbors wait out in front of their houses with big bowls of candy. This year we took
ONE PINK PIG, ONE FANCY-NANCY BUTTERFLY, AND ONE EYEORE....:) Our camera was really, really low on batteries, so these are the few pictures that we got before our camera completely died..

It was a very wonderful and even relaxing night. ALl the children that have come to this even the last few years are growing up, and this year they played mostly among themselves, giving us adults a chance to sit and visit with each other.

Catching Up..Pt 2 - The Farm

noreply@blogger.com (Stacy) — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 20:51:00 +0000

Every year since our K-Bug was just a baby, our family has traveled to the "farm in the city" - Tolmachoff Farms - for their annual Pumpkin Days. K-Bug is now old enough to ask to go the farm, and so she asked, and asked, and asked again...
It's always a lot of fun!!

Here is our little pumpkin, sitting with the pumpkins (and trying to eat the grass on the gound!)

They have a BIG corn pit for the kiddos to play in at the farm. It's filled with a ton of dried corn kernels....can you imagine how much pop corn that would be?? :)

It was SUPER hard to get all three kids to pose together, but we did get this adorable shot of our two sweet girlies posing with the pumpkins (it was a little less wiggly then their baby brother).

A new addition to the farm this year was a hand-built duck run. It was a row of long wooden tracks that received water from old-fashioned pumps. Tiny plastic ducks were placed inside the track, and you could "race" your duck against others beside you. We all spent a lot of time racing our ducks up and down the tracks.

My dear hubby's duck beat everyone else's every time...but that hardly seems fair, huh?? :)

Catching Up..Pt 1 - The Zoo

noreply@blogger.com (Stacy) — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 20:17:00 +0000

Part of enjoying the super nice weather here in Arizona right now is getting outdoors to those venues that are really too hot to be at during the summer. We had a few months left on our membership card at The Phoenix Zoo, so we made an effort to go as often as possible in the last two months (our membership JUST expired...bummer! :( And although it was a good deal, we've decided to not renew given the very real possiblity that we might move before we could fully use it.
Anyway....here are some pictures from one of our trips.

This is as close as I EVER, EVER want to be to an alligator!

(alligators are one of my biggest monster-fears. When I have nightmares, they usually involve giant alligators eating people)

Here are the girls riding some exotic animals..on the merry-go-round, of course!

The zoo has a big farm (yup, we city folks have to go the zoo to see a real farm!) and the girls were perfecting their riding skills on these wooden horses!

Here is proof that Daddy was there, taking pictures most of the day. He snapped this shot of himself and K-Bug being silly!

It's ONLY been a month...:)

noreply@blogger.com (Stacy) — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 19:51:00 +0000

I mean, in the grand scheme of things...what's a month?

Thirty days, seven hundred twenty hours, and um.... a LOT of minutes.... :)

AND... a lot of the Smith family that I haven't been able to share with all of you!

Have you ever fallen so behind on balancing your finances?? AND….. because you are so tired that particular night, you decide that “catching up” is going to be a lot of work and decide to go have a bowl of ice cream and read a good book instead??

Yup, I really, really don’t like having to play the “catch-up” game. It’s so much nicer, I think, when I’ve just been nice and consistent all along.

And, although I could throw out a lot of really good and very valid excuses about why I haven’t blogged lately….such as…

1. The weather is SO nice in Arizona right now (although still a little too warm for my tastes). Still, we are outside every chance we get. We still do not have a backyard put in at our home, so getting outside sometimes requires packing up the ol’ family and traveling to our nearest park or biking trail. I’ll have some pictures of our outdoor adventures coming soon! 
2. If my son is awake, he is pretty much my full-time employer. My job, you ask?? It would be to watch him EVERY SINGLE SECOND to make sure that he is not trying to destroy something in the house or trying to hurt himself by playing with things that are NOT toys (cords that plug into the wall, brushes, cat food, etc). He is a speed crawler, and LOVES to explore!!
3. I have SOO tired in the evenings, and my time during the day that is truly and really my own is SUPER limited (for example, my son just started crying…he is supposed to be sleeping)
4. My schedule is full and blessed.

STILL………….I LOVE my friend’s blogs…they give me a window into their hearts and minds even though they might be far away or not in a place where I can directly connect with them

And so, although I’ll be honest and say sometimes I’m un-sure that my little ol’ blog matters so much to anyone, I think in a way it does matter to me. So, I’m back….and like so many other things in my life that are truly important, I’ll be striving for some more consistency.

3-2-1 - We Have Lift Off!!

noreply@blogger.com (Stacy) — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 23:09:00 +0000

Yup, J-Boy has successfully lifted off of his bum and is now crawling!!

It started out as a slow crawl, but he gets faster every day, and yes, he is now trying to get into everything!

I mean, why play with your toys when you can crawl over and chew on your sister’s shoe??

He is the earliest crawler out of all three of our kiddos, so I’m not sure what this means for walking….

I do know that if that boy is awake, he is on the go, and so is Mom!

I Will Make Them Read This Post Out-Loud…

noreply@blogger.com (Stacy) — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 23:09:00 +0000

When they are teenagers, K-Bug and Lorelin will undoubtedly have their sisterly “moments” when they would rather not be the bestest of friends.

It is at this time that I will pull out this post and have them read “OUT-LOUD” (oh yes, I will!!) to each other their words of sweetness and kindness recorded here for all of time and history.

At nighttime, after we have said our evening prayers, we go around the girls bedroom and each say what we are thankful for.

Here is what Lorelin said the other night – “I’m thankful for my sister K-Bug. She is my very best friend and I love her!”

K-Bug sweetly acquiesced to that comment with “I know.” (hee, hee)

However, then she got out of her bed, went over to Lorelin’s bed, and pulled her sissy into a great big hug and said, “You’re my best friend too Lorelin.”

AWWWWWW……….it was so awesome!!!

And so, yes, my dear sweet daughters, I deeply pray that you will ALWAYS be the best of friends. And when you are not, I will make sure you read these words out loud to each other.

P.S. Other sweet things they have said they are thankful for –
K-Bug – “I am thankful for my Daddy playing with me. He is so fun!”
Lorelin – “I am thankful for hugging my Mommy!”
K-Bug – “I am thankful for dancing and cats”
Lorelin – “I am thankful for my Grandad and playing in his car.”

J-Boy - Seventh Month Update

noreply@blogger.com (Stacy) — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 06:08:00 +0000

Seeing as how I have completely skipped over his six month update (and how time still marches on), I just wanted to give everyone the update on our not-so-little boy.

At his six month appointment, J-Boy weighed in at 19 pounds, which my pediatrician told me that that is the weight of the average eleventh month old that she sees.

“He’s a big boy!” she told me in her wonderful, lilting Nigerian accent.

He is indeed a big, happy boy. He is not yet crawling on his own, but will get up on his hands and knees and rock back and forth. He will also scoot himself backwards halfway across the room, which ends up with his being VERY frustrated that he is getting farther away from his toys (or the cat, or a book, or whatever) instead of getting closer.

He now has two pearlie white chompers on his bottom gum, and can use said chompers to gnaw and chew on his favorite snack – Puffs! Fruit puffs, veggie puffs – any kind will do – as long as he can keep them going in his mouth!

What is it about boys and food anyway?? :)

J-Boy has also started to use his little lips and mouth for various sounds like “Ma, Ma, Ma”, “Da,Da, Da” – he also likes to make couging noises (which always make me check to make sure he’s not actually choking), and guttural sounds in his throat that make him sound like a dinosaur.

What is it about boys and dinosaurs anyway?? :)

Speaking of dinosaurs, his favorite security item for sleeping is a big, stuffed alligator. He reaches for it when you lay him in his crib. Here he is all cuddled up to Mr. Alligator……

Awwwww……I just want to eat him up, he's SOOO cute!!!!!!!!!!!

Here are a few other seven month shots:
J-BOY IN THE TUB (don't worry - both of us parents were very close by)

WHY WON'T THIS HORSE GO ANYWHERE?? (at the Phoenix Zoo)

HANGING OUT WITH GRANDAD (he can hold his upper body straight just like you see in this pic for a looong time..so strong!)

Surrender

noreply@blogger.com (Stacy) — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 06:00:00 +0000

I’m always at a vulnerable place when I’m sick (aren’t we all?)

I tend to cry more easily, and I actually have some amount of time to be “on my back” and think and pray about life.

So what did God show me in three days of illness and no food?? (last Friday was the first day that I was able to eat three square meals…it was pure WONDERFUL-NESS!!!)

He showed me some things that I’ve been holding on to, clinging to even – trying to make them fufill me.

And through all of my reading and praying, He spoke a beautiful and wonderful word to my heart.

“Surrender”

“OK, Lord”

Make The Yuckies Stop

noreply@blogger.com (Stacy) — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 05:39:00 +0000

So this entire past week has felt like a wash. About halfway through my morning at work on Tuesday (I teach music at a preschool one day a week), I started feeling sick to my stomach and having REALLY horrible stomach cramps.

I managed to make it through my morning and headed home to take a nap when the kiddos went down. By the time I woke up though, it was sure and certain that this was a virus that was not going to go anywhere.

My hubby spent the rest of the evening earning his “I’m-a-saint-of-a-husband-and-father” merit badge as he simultaneously took care of the kids AND me. I spent a lot of time becoming very familiar with all of the porclein in the bathroom. To cap off the evening, Lorelin started to run a mild fever and complain of yup… a tummy ache.

By the next morning, I was still in the grips of yuckiness, although now I had to also deal with my sick child (who had diarrhea all day and then threw up all evening), and my well children too (who I really wanted to stay that way).

Again, my husband was so incredible and pitched in and helped out however he could… thanks honey….I TRULY don’t know what I would have done without you. Thanks also to my parents, who helped with the healthy children when and where they could (and also made a late night trip to CVS pharmacy for Pedialtye!)

At one point on Wednesday evening, right after Miss Lorelin had thrown up what seemed to be everything she-ever-ate, and was dry heaving in the bathroom, she looked at me with the most pitiful face and said those words that would twist any Mommy’s heart –

“You’re de Mom…..”

“Yes, I’m the Mom, sweetie”

“Make the yuckies stop!”

Sweet peaches, how I WANTED to make the yuckies stop right then and there, but mother and daughter limped through the evening together.

Thankfully, we are all on the well-and-good list today, although a little drained from our bodies dealing with illness.

New Finds...

noreply@blogger.com (Stacy) — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 06:11:00 +0000

Hey there...I love it when my friends share new products or things they love with me. So, I just wanted to share a new blog that I found that I love! :) Simple Mom may sound like SuperMom, but I'm sure she has her own share of prayer requests!
She doesn't share a lot on her public site, but I think that she and her husband are somehow involved with missions in a country that she can't mention openly.

Anyhoo...her site is fabulous and has tons of great information and organizationanal ideas! Check it out...

A Date For Tonight....

noreply@blogger.com (Stacy) — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 16:29:00 +0000

Tonight my dear hubby is going out with his Mom, sister, and aunts to a Neil Diamond concert (his Mom bought him the ticket as a gift). :) She actually offered to let me go too, but I'm not even really that familiar with Neil Diamond or his music, so I opted to stay home and be with the kiddos. :)
I am praying for a quiet night, kiddos that go to bed on time, and a nice, long stretch of time in which to blog my heart out.
Lots of silly, serious, and fun stuff to share! :)

The Great Debate Of '08

noreply@blogger.com (Stacy) — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 03:10:00 +0000

Ok, ok….so I have completely resisted posting about politics, even though I am a self-avowed conservative political talk-show junkie…..

My favorites are Dennis Prager, Laura Ingraham, and Hugh Hewitt (for those of you who aren’t altogether political, Dennis Prager is a GREAT listen…he talks about everything in life)

This year though, I am……weary…..

Weary I think partly due to the fact that I have three children under the age of five (which leaves me with a LOT less energy to devote to politics), but also weary of the media circus that has surrounded this current election.

For the record, I am a HUGE Sarah Palin fan.

I think that the attacks against her and her family have been vile and insidious. Not that I think that Barak Obama’s family deserves any smears either, but I am mildly disgusted by the almost “worship” of Barak as a person.

I have had to handle ALL of my politics this year in small chunks…here a little…there a little….

I voted originally for Mit Romney (after a lot of debate within myself), and McCain was far and away my LAST choice. But, as I mentioned above, I truly respect Sarah Palin and feel I can vote for McCain/Palin if only because she is on the ticket (I’m sure many echo my sentiments).

There is so much more I could say in detail about what I think and feel politically. I have voted proudly since the time I was eighteen, and can see myself getting more involved in the realm of politics (especially in the defense of life) in my older years.

To sum up, I would say this: to those out there who are also weary of this season of politics, even for those who might HATE politics…don’t lose heart.

God is still in control, even when the rest of the world thinks the sky is falling, and no matter how dark this world may be, we as Christians can stand for what God’s word says is right and true, in whatever way He calls us to do that.

Thank you, Lord, for being the God over all….my heart finds rest in You

Is This For REALS?? :)

noreply@blogger.com (Stacy) — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 04:09:00 +0000

A friend of my hubby sent this to him a few days ago, and we love it! :) Words can't express - you just have to experience it for yourself...so go ahead...

My favorite part?

"ZAP!"

I'm Still Here....I've Just Been....

noreply@blogger.com (Stacy) — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 04:28:00 +0000

1. Changing LOTS of poopy diapers - J-Boy is a very healthy eater - and pooper!! :) I'm glad his system works so well, but I am very busy keeping his pants clean.
2. Feeding Children - If I'm not feeding my girlies breakfast, lunch, dinner, or snacks, I am feeding J-Boy a bottle or baby food. I have a new appreciation for not only what my own Mom did over the years, but also those Mommies who have even more mouths to feed at one time than I do. Go Moms!
3. Getting Back Outside - Slowly, but surely, the weather is changing here. That means we've started to get back outside in the mornings to let the girlies ride their tricyles (and K-Bug has a new/used bicylce with training wheels) and going for walks in the evenings after dinner. J-Boy LOVES to be outside in his stroller - it really helps when he is being fussy in the evenings. In a few weeks, the girlies, J-Boy and I will all start to go the park on at least a weekly basis to spend some extended time outdoors with friends. I am SOO thankful! I feel like we all deserve a T-shirt or other memento that says "We survived ANOTHER Phoenix summer!"
4. Holding/Rocking A Teething Baby - J-Boy's FIRST tooth finally popped thru the gum on the bottom, and he doesn't seem to be too thrilled about it! He's got another on the way, and the poor kiddo has been uncomfortable and a little a fussy. I do have some great natural teething tablets (thanks Coral!)as well as cold teething rings...they do help some. :) In the meantime, we hope for the teethies to come quickly...
5. Fighting Headaches & Dealing with Allergies....The headaches have been mine. I've had a few in the last week or so. They are a combination of sinus pain and migraine throbbing. YUCK!! The allergies I've had to deal with haven't been my own - my dear hubbies allergies have flared on him in the last few weeks as well - poor guy!!! He's been absolutley miserable - sneezing until his eyes are puffy and his nose is swollen. He hasn't really had to deal with serious allergies for at least a few years, so this spell of ickies caught him totally off-guard.
6. Starting the girlies in a dance/gmynastics class - My generous mom-in-law gave us a gift to help the girlies get started in a dance/gymnastics class that meets once a week. At this point, it's only four weeks long. After that time, we should be able to determine if we will continue with this combined gym and dance class or just switch to gymnastics. We had our first class this week, and both K-Bug and Lorelin had a LOT of fun! I took the camera, but the pictures were really lousy...Sorry :(
7. Playing with my parent's new puppy... TODAY my parents picked up their new puppy - a seven week old female chocolate labrador that they named Moxy (it means "smart") She is a TOTAL cutie, and the girls just LOVED playing with her....and she loved playing with them. They wore each other out - my girlies are fast asleep, and I know that Moxy is probably sleeping away on her new special doggie pillow. It will be lots of fun for the girls (and the rest of us) to watch this puppy grow - and my parents are the ones who get to feed and clean up after it! We all win!
8. Signing Up For The Gym...yup, I did it. I signed up for a gym that will open in just a few weeks. It's called Fitness Works. For $25 a month, I get access to the gym as well as free reign to choose from over 80 different aerobics classes. I haven't really told a lot of people about this, because I know that the proof is when I start going to the gym, but I am READY!!!
9. Sleeping & Reading.... I do try to get some sleep at night, although I continue to be a night owl, and I've been trying to keep up with my Bible reading, as well as a few other books. I've also been trying to pray each night with my dear hubby....

Well, that's a little bit of what's going on for us Smiths....I pray that all is going well with YOU!

Look Ma - No Hands!!

noreply@blogger.com (Stacy) — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 04:18:00 +0000

I haven't gotten around to writing J-Boy's six month update yet, but here is our BIG boy proudly showing off his newest accomplishment! SITTING UP!!
He's been sitting up for a few weeks now, but he's always needed his hands propped in front of him, and if he tried to turn his head or shift his weight, he'd fall over like a tiny sack of taters'. :)
But not anymore.....
LOOK AT ME!!

He's even gotten to the point that he can "correct" himself when he gets off-balance. He can also lean over to grab things and then pull himself back up.
Sometimes he still falls....

Then he smiles a cute smile for the camera about 20 seconds before he starts scooting around on the floor like a mad-man on a mission. A crawling mission that is! This boy is bound and determined to go places - I wouldn't be surprised if he starts crawling very soon. Then it's watch out world - and Mommy too!
When he's not sitting around looking cute, J-Boy can be found in his exer-saucer twirling, jumping, and chewing away. :)

Go, big boy, go!!!