7 month picture attempt

*The picture attempts began here with Addison falling sideways.

* We then progressed to her grabbing the paper but sitting up.

* This is the look she gave Josh when he tried to take the paper away.

* This is the last attempt when we gave up on having her sit and smile without attacking the sign. Oh well, I can just tell you she is 7 months old. 

-Addie is eating all kinds of foods now and loving it. Connie has been having a bit of trouble getting her to take her bottle during the day but she still nurses just fine most of the time. 

-Her ear infection seems to have really cleared up in the last week. I'm hoping we don't have more of those but since Josh and I both had a bunch of them it's likely. I wouldn't mind putting tubes in her ears if it will save us a lot of the infection drama but we'll see where it goes.

-Just in the past few days she has started scooting around and almost crawling except that she is going backwards. I don't think it will be long until she is all over the place. Josh and I went last week to get more of the safety stuff that we need to put up. Part of me is excited for her to crawl and get more mobile, part of me is not so ready since that means life with a baby is a whole new ball game. 

-Addison frequently gets very calm and quiet. She seems ultra observant and likes to just sit and take it all in.  I think she will be curious little girl who watches everything. 

-I love seeing her smile first thing in the morning. She still wakes up usually twice a night to eat. That's ok with me. What's I'm less ok with is her waking up and 5am and not going back to sleep unless we hold her. Once Josh holds her in our bed she conks back out and will sleep until we wake her up around 7am. Any suggestions and that 5am wake up time? When we wake her up at 7am she loves to play with us while we get ready. She smiles, laughs and is so fun. It's our favorite time of day I think.

That's about it for now. A few more questions from the last week or two:

In a swing at Aunt Connie's house    and   Wearing her Future ACU Leadership Camps Camper Onesie          

Life is like...

Life is like a roller coaster. It goes up and down, makes you scream and costs a lot to ride. - Hannah Cheatem age 6

There have definitely been a lot of ups and down it seems like in the past week or so. Addie had to go back to the doctor because after a week of antibiotics her ear infection was not gone. She wasn't screaming, she just wasn't sleeping or eating well. The doctor gave her a new medication and she has been on that for a week. She seems to be doing well for the most part but still not quite 100%. I am still dealing with this ridiculous exhaustion. I think I'm honestly just adjusting to it (which I'm not sure is a good thing). It really feels like my body is just not getting any rest. To add to that, I think I'm not getting any spiritual rest and renewal either. That's a much longer story though and not one that I have the time or energy to share today.

2 weeks ago, on the same day I first found out that Addie had an ear infection, I also found out that my hours had been cut at work. It was a 10% cut. Not huge, but it's going to be tight around our house. It's kind of a long story but basically, our agency does foster care (where I am) and several types of adoptions - International, Domestic Infant, Waiting Child (adoptions from foster care), Kinship etc. International Adoptions in our agency is projected to lose about $170,000 this year. That is mostly due to the fact that countries are closing to adoptions and so applications are not coming in. We don't even work with Russia - this has been happening for a long time and there has been problems in Int'l Adoptions for a long time. The foreign countries can change laws, demand more fees and other things. 3-5 years is an average wait time to bring your child home. The application numbers and fees are down so we are losing money that way and sometimes we are ending up refunding families money. 
Anyway, instead of laying people off, the agency decided to do a 10% hours cut across the board and re-evaulate in July. The hard part for my Foster Care team is that we are more work than we know what to do with now and we are being asked to increase our workloads to bring in more families and more kids, but with less hours. So, I'm stressed out and working more than I'm actually getting paid for. I still love my job and love my team. Foster care is growing right now - we just hired a new Program Director and we are going to be able to try some great new stuff, it's just challenging at the moment. 


There have been some fun ups lately too. I got to see my Melanie. I took a rather lengthy detour to Cheyenne before playing Bunco on Tuesday (we were playing at a girl's house who lives pretty far north so I decided to take the afternoon off and keep going north to see Mel). It was great to see her. I can't believe that the next time I see her (hopefully soon) she will have a beautiful little daughter! 

Last weekend was busy with the Ladies Tea at church. I was helping put it together so that was stressful (another "down").  My friend Michelle was able to come. I worked with Michelle's son when I was at Tennyson Center and we have remained close. It was great to see her. That evening Josh and I were able to have dinner with Addie's Grandma Joan and Grandpa Thayne. This couple has been so very special to us for several years. Thayne recently stepped down as one of the elders at University so they could have more time to travel and do other things. Joan and I have a very close relationship. Their son and daughter in law lost a baby right after Josh and I did so Joan and I  formed a unique bond. We had been trying to get together for several weeks and it finally worked out. Josh tried and new steak marinade and it was delicious. I made twice baked potatoes to go with the steaks and Joan brought a great salad and dessert. Yum!

So, life is going up and down. I'm trying to enjoy the ride instead of just holding on, closing  my eyes and screaming.  

Q- Quallity Time

I am going to finish this alphabet. I keep forgetting about it. But I will finish it!

We are now up to the letter Q. There are a surprising number of words that start with Q that I thought about using: Questions, Quirky, Quiet, but I settled on Quality time.

I think that sometimes we mistake time with people for quality time. At least for me they aren't always the same thing. I know that Josh and I can be home together all day but barely talk if we are both doing separate things in separate rooms. I find this happens in my time with God. I know He is always with me but I don't stop and just be with Him nearly as often as my heart desires to. One of the things I love about summer is that I can take more walks. That is when I do my best praying - on walks by myself, there is no cell phone or tv, no chores to do etc. I need to spend more quality time with God.

I am a so thankful for the quality time I have with Josh. Lately I have found that I have to make a conscious effort to have our breakfast dates be time together instead of planning our weeks or talking about money and other mundane stuff like that.

My quality time with Jackie Beth is via text messages and phone calls. It's amazing how a few text messages can reaffirm a 10 year friendship. We talked on Saturday for about 20 minutes and it was wonderful. Time with her is wonderful.

I've been thinking more and more about how we can have quality time with grandparents as Addie gets older. I want her, and all of her subsequent siblings, to know -really know- her grandparents. I want them to have a close relationship and not just visit on holidays or birthdays.

Quality time is so important! (I'm getting more and more excited as I write this by the way)

God, thank you for creating us to be in relationship with each other. Thank you for giving us hearts that love, hope, hurt, grieve and connect. I pray that we make it a priority to relate to each other, listen to each other, pray and love in truth.

Addie's 1st Easter

We had a pretty busy weekend. On Friday we took Addison to take 6th month/Easter pictures. They were great! Then Addison and I headed up to Cheyenne to see my dear friend Melanie at her baby shower. She is having a baby girl, Julia Grace maybe any day now. Her actual due day is towards the very end of April. We had a wonderful time meeting her friends and seeing all of the gifts for Julia. I gave Melanie an ACU shirt for Julia and she absolutely loved it. Mel and I have been friends for a long time (since freshman year of college). Moving to Colorado was rough on both of us. I am so glad that Melanie first found a wonderful husband Matt, and then, after moving to Cheyenne, found a godly group of women to support and love her. Anyway, we had a great time at the shower. One of Mel's sweet friends put Addie and I up for the night so we didn't have to drive back to Denver so late. Addison was a hit and was so good even staying out late. She also loved Matt and Mel's dog Abby.

Saturday morning we woke up early and drove straight to church to go to the church Easter Egg hunt. Josh started this as a community out reach 3 years ago and it has grown every year. This year we collected, filled and hid over 2,600 eggs in the park across the street from the church. This year we had more "visitor" children than member children. The first year we did this Josh was the Easter Bunny but the past two years he was had one of the high school boys do it. Tons of fun!

Sunday morning a new friend I met at the baby shower on Friday came to church with us and one of the youth group girls was baptized - Hallelujah! That was a great start to Easter morning. Addison looked beautiful in her dress from Gigi and tried to chew on everything in her basket. She got a soft lamb, a touch and feel Peter Rabbit book and a fuzzy baby Bible book. I am amazed at how big she is getting and how much she is learning. She looked so sweet and pretty.

I'm pretty much rambling now so I should get back to work.

Words for Wednesday

I get daily thought emails. Most of them I read and delete. The ones I really like go into an email folder. There have been several focused on love and marriage lately that I have really liked so I thought I would share them. By the way, I also have the best husband ever.

"A happy marriage is a long conversation that always seems to short. " Andre Maurois


"A successful marriage requires falling in love many times, always with the same person." Mignon McLaughlin


"Kissing is a means of getting two people so close together that they can't see anything wrong with the other." Rene Yasenek


" Love recognizes no barriers. It jumps hurdles, leaps fences and penetrates walls to arrive at its destination, full of hope." Maya Angelou

Life in my world lately

Ok here we go:

* My baby turned 6 months old on Tuesday (3/23). We celebrated by having all of the youth group seniors over the house for dinner. Unfortunately there was a snowstorm and the brave ones who made it out got stuck and ended up spending the night. Josh had made a delicious brisket, potatoes, corn and rolls and we had cobbler for dessert. We played games and watched The Blind Side (my new movie). Snow sleepovers and being a youth minister's wife are so fun! I love this senior class and am really going to miss them next year. They were just little 7th graders when we came to Denver and we have all grown up together. 

*At Addison's check up on Thursday she was 16 lbs, 3 oz and was 26 inches long. Wow! She did the best yet with her shots. I got to hold her while she got poked and then her Daddy got to cuddle her afterwards. Mom gets to be the bad guy. She is so, so fun right now! We like to play in bed in the mornings before we have to finally get up and go to work. She laughs, tries to grab our faces, loves to grab her toes, etc. She can roll both ways and tries so hard to crawl. She is making the sweetest babbling noises all day long. Oh, I just love it!


*Work is busy but good. We hired a new foster care director who will start the end of April. I'm excited for her to start. 


*I could not be more blessed to have Connie watching Addie during the days. Really. God knew exactly what I needed. 


* My mom has been really sick so add her to your prayer list. It started with what she thought was a cold that turned into a sinus infection. About 2 weeks ago she ended up in the ER with pretty bad ear pain and after the Dr. did a CT scan they discovered that her ear infection had gone into a pocket in her skull that I don't know the name of. So she has a severe inner and middle ear infections. She has been on intense meds for 2 weeks and nothing has happened. So, a doctor put a tube in her ear and apparently it fell out so they put in another one today. Hopefully this will finally help relieve the pressure and pain. Mom and Larry are currently in Austin. I guess it's good that they are in a place she lived for a long time and is familiar with while all this is going on. I told her that Addie and I may have to fly out there to take care of her. Or, maybe just take care of Larry since he is getting tired of all the cooking and cleaning....

*I am trying to figure out a way to meet up with my mom when she is in Tennesse to see my brother Sean. That way the last sibling can meet Addison. The problem is Sean is in grad school and his wife Ashley is a teacher and doesn't get out until June. I guess we will see if it works out or not. 

*And lastly, I am exhausted. I am actually going to my doctor on Thursday because something doesn't feel right - like this is beyond tired. I described it to Josh as feeling like I am drugged all the time. It's not a good feeling. I'm getting enough sleep, eating right, still exercising etc but I am just pooped. There have been a few night that I wake up to feed Addie and honestly have no idea what is happening or what I should be doing.  I could just be wimpy but I have a feeling that something is going on and it's beyond just mommy exhaustion. Anyway, my appointment is Thursday. 


I will end with one of my favorite quote that I have above my desk:
"We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are conscious of our treasures. " 

— Thornton Wilder

James 3:9

James 3:9 "With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God's likeness."

I have heard and read a lot of this lately. I am guilty of it too, don't get me wrong. But I have really noticed it recently. This health care debate has everyone on both sides of the issue up in arms. Whether you agree or disagree doesn't really matter to me. We were all given brains and free will and are entitled to our own opinions. But, I get frustrated when I hear things like "Our nation is ruined", "We have failed our Christian calling" or "The only people who are for this plan want to destroy our country.". There are also negative and hurtful things being said on the other side of the issue. I am tired of hearing people who profess to be Christians dragging people through the mud just because they don't believe in the same things. People are being spit on, cursed at, hit with signs and threatened. What about that is Christ-like?

 Jesus was not a Republican or a Democrat. Christians don't have to have a certain political affiliation, they just need to love, serve and commit to Christ. Health care is not (in my opinion) a salvation issue. People are not going to heaven or hell based on if they think government run health care is a good idea. I have had life long health issues. For me, I am thankful that my husband will never have to decided to take or reject a job based on if they have a group plan. I am thankful that my little sister (who is somewhat irresponsible at times) can stay on my parents' plan to receive care if she gets sick. I know its bad for some people but it's not the downfall of America.

I work in an environment that is not very immersed with Christians. All of this debating and negativity has not done anything to encourage people to turn towards Christ. If we profess to be Christ-followers we need to show it with our words and actions! Please prayerful consider your facebook statuses, words, emails, actions etc. Be aware of what image you are portraying and who we are representing.

P-Pictures

I have been putting off doing this post because I had a great idea. I really wanted to scan some of my favorite pictures from various times in my life and share them. But, that obviously didn't happen. I know where the pictures are but never could find the time to go through and pull them out the ones I wanted, then I would have to go use someone's scanner etc. It just seemed like a lot of work for one blog post.

The purpose of this alphabet that I have been doing off and on (and maybe will eventually finish) is not just things that I like, but things that I am thankful for. I have always loved pictures. I am so thankful that I am able to look back at other times in my life -  my baby pictures, family portraits, being silly with my siblings, my pooh bear, my pets, grade school friends,family vacations, Christmases, youth group times, camps and retreats, Africa, wonderful college memories, pictures when Josh and I were dating or engaged, wedding pictures, pregnancy pictures and now pictures with Addison. I am thankful for all of those experiences and thankful that I am able to continually look at at them and enjoy the memories. I am also thankful for all the new pictures and memories I will have in the future.

So, you don't get to see some of my favorite old pictures - maybe I will find some time someday because I really would like to post some- but, I will share some recent pictures of Addie (which you are all probably more interested in anyway).

*Daddy got her this shirt on one of his trips.

*She only stayed standing like for about about 3 seconds....

Favorite Things Friday - Cookbooks

Today's theme is cookbooks. I don't use a ton of cookbooks most of the time. I mostly use recipes I have written down or printed off that I keep in a box on my counter. Most of the time if I need dinner quick the things in the cookbooks are too complicated, take to long or require ingredients I don't have on hand. But they all sound yummy so I probably should use some of my million cookbooks more.

I have a few basic favorites - first is Better Homes and Garden's Cook Books. This is a classic. It has everything in it. It's nothing fancy typically but it's things that real people make on a daily basis.

The second is one that Josh had in his bachelor days that I have loved. It's called the 4 Ingredient Cookbook. Everything in it has 4 ingredients and there is a whole section that is all lowfat recipes. There are sections for appetizers, salads, veggies, main dishes, breads, desserts etc.  Some things have one ingredient that is ready made like a boxed cake mix for a dessert. It is easy and most of the things are really yummy, although some just sound like gross bachelor food- think bacon and cheese wrapped hotdogs.

I have several Rachel Ray cookbooks that I like when I take the time to use them. I also have some small $1.00 cookbooks that are breads and pasteries that are really, really awesome that I got at JoAnn fabrics.

I'm excited to see what other people's favorites are!

P.S. - Ashley, I like the theme's but I know it's work for you....I can help out coming up with them if you want, or we can take a break for awhile.

Favorite Things Friday - Health and Fitness

I am excited about this week's topic. I LOVE  to work out. It's not really about being a certain size, it's about feeling good, being strong, being healthy, and being in shape. 

My 1st favorite thing is water. Everyone should love this and drink lots of it. 

A

Another thing that I love is my foam roller. I use this especially on my outer thighs and back. It feels like a hard massage and is great after a good work out. It's also a great tool for balance or core work. 

My yoga mat is always in my car. I love it. Yoga is not for weaklings - at least not my class. It's hard. I sweat. But, it's awesome and it feels so good to rest and relax at the end. 

One more work out favorite - weights - these make my muscles feel so strong and really you don't get bulky unless you try, just toned. 

I have lots of other health and fitness favorites but we'll stop there for now.

Have a great weekend!