Ok, I've yet to transfer pictures to my newly fixed computer so your still stuck with just me. :) I thought I'd share with you a quick yummy recipe I discovered while making b'fast yesterday. I don't often cook bfast. If I do it's for dinner. But I felt awake yesterday and in the mood for some pancakes. So... I busted out my Bisquick and got a mixin'. Now, I'm sure I am not the ONLY person that has ever made Bisquick pancakes before. So don't ooh and ahh yet. I made 3 different kinds of pancakes. I had some blueberries added to a few for my little blueberry princess and some plain for Joseph the picky eater. Them - and here it is - I added mashed banana to some batter! I'll pause for the applause




I know, it was delicious! It tasted like little bites of banana bread, warm bread, covered in syrup. :) Yum!!! Now, if you have tried this before and already know it is amazing or have tried and and thought it was gross... don't burst my bubble. I liked it and I invented it! ;)
Just thought I would pass on my yummy idea to you. B'fast for dinner anyone?

Night 3...

...if anyone cares! :)

Joseph is fighting it tonight. Not sure why. We keep forgetting to get a new bulb for the nightlight though. So we had to turn on a lamp in his room and it's pretty bright. (Because sleeping with NO light is just not going to happen) Nehemiah screamed for a minute and caved. He's sound asleep. Hannah is downstairs with Roger. I had to run down and nurse her quick b/c she was screaming so hard and Roger just couldn't get her to relax. (Not that he didn't try hard enough, he just doesn't have that milk producing ability!) So I got her to sleep and handed her back over to Roger so I could come back up and deal with Joseph. The hand off didn't go so well. She's screaming again. At least this time I know she isn't hungry - just cranky. So... I thought night #3 was supposed to be the magical night where everyone settled into the new routine and all was well. Apparently my kids didn't read whatever crazy book I got that from. I so do not like bedtime. I long for the lovely cuddling times of reading books and rubbing backs a little prayer and I love you hugs and off the adults go to finish our evening while the children quietly drift off to sleep. That is so not anywhere in my future! Hannah is still screaming her tired little head off... time to trade again. Goodnight. maybe :/

New Rooms ~ Night 2

Well, Joseph did rather well last night. He got up only to use the bathroom. He was proud to be big in his new room. We are proud too.
Fast Forward to nap time today... Joseph was in bed with a pile of books and Daddy's travel alarm clock (so he knew when he could get up). Great! He didn't even complain when the rest of us when down the hall to other rooms. Very proud of him. Nehemiah got tucked in.... without his lovey because it is missing in action. (By the way, his lovey is a Cars "The King" matchbox style car) :) He screamed. A lot. I tried to nurse Hannah into a milk coma while sitting in Nehemiah's room but it wasn't working. She's too old for the milk coma anymore. (I'm sure you nursing Mom's out there know what I"m talking about.) Nehemiah was mad that he was in bed, in a new room, without The King. After a few stressful noisy minutes I decided this wasn't worth it and we all got up and went back downstairs for some more play time. Sanity saved.
Bedtime tonight.... Joseph was pushing his luck a little bit with getting out of bed but he wasn't being bad. He used the bathroom twice and "had a little question" twice. I'll take it. Nehemiah did better too. He still wasn't loving the new room but I did find one of his other favorite things to bring to bed... his sheriff car from Cars. :) He fussed some but it was more of a normal bedtime protest, instead of being scared of a new place. So... I'm liking the new rooms. So far so good. :)



PS
Roger fixed the other computer tonight... so maybe I'll get some new pics up SOON. I have SO MANY to share with you!

Calgon take me away!

Well, we switched bedrooms around like crazy. We all have a new room. Joseph went to bed rather effortlessly... Nehemiah isn't enjoying his new room. He has what was Hannah's room. Not the best idea on our part but it was the only option. Our bed won't fit in that room. Yeah, it's tiny. I made it all "un-girlie" for him but he's not liking it. Hopefully he'll settle down and enjoy having his own room once again. This is the same room he had before Hannah came along. ugh. We'll see what happens. Roger's been up there with him for the past 45 minutes. That is so not Nehemiah. I hope we're not just trading one horrible bedtime routine for another. God, help us!!

Super Nanny, please come quick!

I write this through a sleepy haze. Joseph was up practically all night. No, he isn't sick. No, he didn't have a bad dream. He just didn't want to go to bed. He went to bed ok. Asleep by 9:30 (that is good for our kids, no complaining there). Then at 2:00am he woke up. Roger went to bring him back to bed and Joseph refused to walk to his room. He pitched a ROYAL fit. LONG story short... we let him get up... at 3:00am he was downstairs doing schoolwork. Roger and I tag teamed so we could both at least get a little sleep. At 6:00am Roger brought Hannah to me, she wanted to be nursed. Joseph was SOOOOO tired. I sat in the rocking chair and nursed Hannah while he Finally fell asleep in his bed. I woke him up at 8:30 this morning. No sleeping in after that!
Anyone have any amazing sleep tips for me???? Please?! He gets so worked up about things. He pannicks if we close the bedroom door. He won't stay in bed if we leave the room. He wants one of us to sit there - in his room - and watch him fall asleep. Should he awake during the night (he always does) we need to start all over again. It has by far been worse the past 3ish days than it's ever been. He shares a room with Nehemiah. I think it's bothering him. He's not getting the sleep he needs because Joseph his so loud. Help. Super Nanny, are you out there?! :)

Menu Plan Monday

Monday ~ b'fast burritos

Tuesday ~ meatloaf w. mashed pot. and veggies

Wednesday ~ pierogies w/ fried onions and leftover meatloaf

Thursday ~ quesidillas w/ tomato soup

Friday ~ spaghetti w/ veggies

Saturday ~ cheeseburger subs w/ veggies and dip

Sunday ~ chicken pie (recipe from the Bisquick box) w/ cheese cubes and applesauce

Adoption Video

I was surfing the web and came across this adoption video - the story of 1 family's adoption. It's a little long (4 min) but oh how it tugged at my heart strings. I so hope to be able to adopt. It's been on my heart ever since I went to Brazil for the first time. My husband gets more and more used to the idea when I talk so passionately about it... and when he sees video's like this. The Lord is surely working on his heart to prepare him for such a time. I can't wait for the day when God says it is time to go and begin the pursuit of adoption. Video's like this one give me that "itch" :)

Computer Crashed

If you notice the lack of blogs... and specifically the lack of pictures it's because our computer crashed. We have the lap top (which I'm on right now) but it's more of Roger's baby than it is mine. Using it is one thing but bogging it down with pictures is another. (I take A LOT of pictures) So all of my pictures are in limbo on 3 or 4 SD cards waiting for Roger to restore the main computer. Hopefully that can happen this weekend. I feel special using the Mac but I miss all of my pictures on my computer. :)
So... until everything is fixed you can enjoy my babble. And maybe an old picture or two. :)



This is an old one of Joseph. He fell asleep waiting for someone to bring him to back to bed in the middle of the night. The top of the stairs is the perfect place to sleep, isn't it?

11 months old!

Wow, the past 11 months have gone by so quickly! Plans for Hannah's first birthday party are in full swing. She is getting so big. She's chatty. She's naughty. She's walking. :) She'd adorable. We love her and can't wait to celebrate the big "1"!

Hannah's first step's

About 1 or 2 weeks ago Hannah started taking some steps. Yesterday she was being brave and trying to walk around while she played (as opposed to the set up of Daddy on one side of the room and Mommy on the other) She is getting pretty good! By her first birthday she will be walking like a pro! :)



OK, SORRY THE VIDEO ISN'T WORKING. I'LL TRY AGAIN LATER. :(

Menu Monday

Ok, never done this before but I am always looking for something new to make for dinner. Get tired of mac n cheese! So here we go - MY meal plan for the week. What's yours?

Monday ~ chicken parm with veggies and mashed potatoes

Tuesday ~ cheeseburger pie w/ veggies and applesauce

Wednesday ~ homemade pizza with salad

Thursday ~ chicken nuggets w/ mac n' cheese, salad, and applesauce

Friday ~ spaghetti w/ veggies and garlic bread

Saturday ~ Lunch ~ grilled turkey and cheese w/??? Dinner ~ leftovers or hot dogs if not enough left over for a meal.

Sunday ~ whatever I can scrape together. We usually have sandwiches or something quick after church. Dinner isn't always well planned either. Sometimes we end up at my parents house... we eat, just not in the plan :)

People watching

I'm a people watcher. I love to watch people and how they handle situations. How they go about daily living. I have seen Mother's handle their routy children with such love and patience that I just can't ignore my urge to go over and tell her what a good job she's doing. I've seen Mothers that have handled situations with their children so poorly that I just can't resist the urge to go over and say something to lighten the mood so the poor kids didn't get into any more trouble. It's not just Mom's that I watch though. Anyone in my line of vision will do. :) I was at a traffic light the other day (an insanely long red) when I noticed a somewhat older (50 years MAX)and heavier woman struggling down the 2 steps from her house to the sidewalk below. Now, my first reaction was not a nice reaction. Thought of her weight and her very difficult waddle over to her flower bed were flying around in my head. Then this flood of compassion? hit me... and I felt so sad for this woman. After all, what if she was struck with a horrible case of arthritis and it was taking all she had to walk down the stairs to her flower bed? What if she has cancer? What if she...? How bold of her to go out on such a public road and let the rest of us see her struggle... that she was determined to win! My heart turned to prayer for this woman... the light turned green and I drove on. I don't think my people watching will ever be the same. Thank you Lord. Thank you for opening my eyes.

Fun in the Swing

This was just too cute! Nehemiah was having so much fun pushing Hannah in the swing! He was doing this for awhile and I was torn between just watching and enjoying the moment and running for the camera. After a few minutes of their laughter I ran for the camera. :) Nehemiah spied me though - you see him at the end of the video looking at me and running away. (he came back when I put the camera away)

A Day At The Park

We visited a "new" park the other day. It's a huge park with a creek-ish thing running through it. There are 2 areas to play - 1 for younger children and 1 for the older kids. There's a big field seperating the two. It's nice - we don't usually go to that one because we have a few others that are closer. We made a special trip with a friend and everyone had a lot of fun. Thanks for playing with us Sara!

Making old things New

I recently dug out our easel from the depths of the spidery basement. The boys thought it was Christmas. They played with that thing for EVER. I didn't even put paper on it. I just let them use dry erase markers and chalk. We'll save the paper and painting for another day. New all over again!

Joseph was practicing his numbers. They aren't in order but they are all there! :) We are also studying the Fruits of the Spirit so the easel was the perfect place to post his memory verse!

Nehemiah probably didn't even remember that we ever owned this thing so he was really interested in it. He did a great job with the chalk - and for the first time EVER he didn't try to eat it! Yes, I know odd thing to be so proud of... but in the world of Nehemiah that is a HUGE accomplishment. :) He also did a wonderful job sharing with Hannah. Another biggie for my little Nehemiah! I'm thinking he's not so little anymore. :(


Everyone had so much fun. Hannah is taking over where Nehemiah left off... she's eating the chalk. Very girlie though - she favors the pink one.

Just a little something to make you smile

Confession's of a Blueberry Addict

While I myself have discovered a love for blueberry's that I didn't know I had... HANNAH has taken the joy of the sweet blue berry to a whole other level. I didn't think that it was a big deal for her to chow down... blueberries are good for you, right? Well, eating a pint+ in 24 hours isn't really ideal. Her bottom was stained blue... I'm sure you can figure out why. I guess what they say is true "everything is good in moderation" If not everything, at least blueberries.

Applebee's

We did it!! We went out to eat...as a family...and had a good time! The children were all well behaved (Thank you Lord!) and our waitress was wonderful (she is somehow related... though the details would make this a long post). Applebee's is my favorite place to go out to eat. Last year? we got one right here in town. Yum! They have the best Santa Fe chicken salad! If I'm in the burger and fries kinda mood nothing beets a Cowboy burger. You just can't go wrong with Applebee's. :) Thank you everyone who gave Roger money for his birthday... you treated us to a very memorable meal. :)

Hannah's Dedication

Apparently I'm out of the loop on this one - I have no pictures. I just had to post because Sylvia AND Christin both had their girls dedicated recently so I thought I should share our dedication story too. I should start by saying I called church on Friday and tried to cancel but I didn't get a hold of anyone. I was sick. yay.

So we all got ready and Hannah looked cute, though she wasn't wearing what I had planned because I was sick and didn't get laundry done. We went to church and were early for the first time in 2 years! I had to take Hannah out during worship because she was cranky... now taking Hannah out of the service is nothing new... Her being cranky IS. She is usually just so happy and loud that we have to relocate. Not this Sunday though - no this Sunday she had the cranks. So we were in the hall watching the service on tv waiting for our turn up front. The boys were both in with Roger because I didn't want them to make kids in their class sick. We are called front (along with 5ish other families and babies) My hopes were that Hannah would see the 800 people staring at her and bury her head into me and hush... not a chance. She looked around and decided this was a great place to run. She wanted DOWN and we ALL knew it. The Pastor was talking and I knew there was a part where we were supposed to respond with "I will" but I couldn't hear him. So I put Hannah down and held her hands... she stood in one spot but I swear she ran a mile her feet were going so fast. They changed how they do baby dedications at my church. The Pastor used to come around and pray for each child but now.. probably due to the baby boom... we have prayer partners? I think thats what they called them. They had to give Hannah a little toy to keep her quiet. She threw it on the floor... repeatedly. I kept on thinking about Christin's blog and her dedication saga. *insert an additional heap of my sympathy for you here* Hannah is normally so quiet... or at least loud with delight. We finished up grabbed our bags and went home. That was way too much of a morning for me. Luckily I have in writing what all was prayed over Hannah. So there you go... 3 little girls all dedicated (not MY 3 girls I mean Sylvia's, Christin's and mine) Sylvia, hopefully yours went better? :)

My Brilliant Idea

We live in a duplex, half house, semi... whatever you want to call it. Dividing our house and the neighbors is a firewall. I learned this soon after moving in. I tried to hang a picture and broke my nail. So for over a year we lived with one HUGE blank WHITE wall. I don't like white. It bugs me. So the other day as I was grumbling to myself about my white walls I came up with a plan. Not only did I solve my white wall issues I also solved my "what to do with Joseph's school stuff" issues as well. I'm so smart. :)




And yes, I know the alphabet isn't hung in proper order. That was intentional. Those are the letters that Joseph doesn't always get right. See... I'm always thinking :)

Nehemiah and the fish

Not much to say here... just a little boy loving his new pet. He wants to actually pet them so bad!

Bride and Groom

We have this silly tradition on our anniversary. I put on my veil and Roger puts on his top hat (yes, he wore a top hat at our wedding) and we take a picture. I don't know why we started doing that but we did. We have a picture for every year. Once kids were added they dressed up for some cute pictures too. I was so excited for Hannah to wear my veil... she wasn't as enthusiastic about it as I was. Still cute though.