new year. new list.

all things are new in the new year! okay, not really, but it's always a perfect place to start anew. with two-thousand-thirteen just days away, i thought it best to knock out my lists, or rather my do's and re-do's.

i'll call these "goals", because this particular list isn't a traditional list of "resolutions" (but that list is to follow!).

1. learning lullabies on our piano. it really is my number one. baby is 19 weeks yesterday and can hear my voice and the sounds around us. and i can't think of anything more endearing than her mommy and daddy and big brother playing her tunes, right now and when she's here - lulling her into slumber.   
2. sew more. i'm starting to get the hang of it. i've branched out from more than just throw pillows! plus there are so many many ideas to steal off pinerest & etsy to 1) spruce up the house 2) make for baby 3) make as gifies 4) fix up that favorite hole-y shirt or pair of pants 5) alterations - additions to old clothes to fancy them up. the sky is the limit really and this past holiday has revived my sewing inspirations. 
3. family vacation. i think next christmas, instead of spending our funds on presents under the tree we should save to spring for a family vacation, maybe a winter wonderland? memories to keep in our hearts forever, instead of toys that end up in next years garage sale.
4. king me. we use to fit into henry's twin at story time. it was a bit of a squish, but we managed. now we do bed time stories in our bed. it isn't much of an improvement as it's only a full, but at least we fit (barely). and now that our family is growing (as am i), we will save left and right, nickle and dime to get ourselves that dream king bed. it may sound silly, but i already have the bedding for it, that's how much i will it so. then the four of us can snuggle comfortably: story time and bed picnics and no worry of mush-pot middle and falling into our soup bowl of a mattress. 

and now for the resolutions, my re-do's. 

1. pray. "have you prayed about it as much as you've talked about it?" boy does that simple question bring great conviction. there are a couple areas in my life that could use less gossip and more prayer. but not only that, it's my alone time with God, it's where i feel His presence, where i am constantly re-discovering His peace, where my pride is humbled and my heart is softened. pray, more. 
2. be a better spender. nuff said - you all know the drill. i have a plan. husband is on board. plus, we can save without feeling like we always go without. the perfect balance. and i'm determined we find it!
3. cook more. i tend to stick to my list of favorites, my list of perfected meals. i should branch out more. i'm not saying i need to get all fancy in the kitchen, but i can certainly stand to branch out of my chicken & rice and spaghetti nights. plus, santa brought me an awesome new cook book. so really, i have no excuses! 
4. explore. now, there is absolutely NOTHING wrong with being a home-body. i quite enjoy it. until i've had too much. until all i do is melt into the sofa. there are times to give my home-body a break and stretch my legs. more hikes, more walks, more exploring our back-yard - there are so many things to go and do and see right here in our neighboring towns. time to get off the tush and get out in the world. time to explore more, time for more family adventures. 
5. exercise. that's right, it'll never leave the resolution list. it will pop up year after year after year. lucky for me i get to slide a bit. but 15 minutes a day i will dedicate to strengthening my muscles. this baby weight is already got me struggling and i'm only almost half way there. time to do some squats, walk some laps around the building at lunch time, time to dust off that shake weight. 
6. time. making better use of it. my closest friends and family are scattered. like some 50-75 miles away scattered. and i am determined to make more of an effort to travel to them. and if i can't make it that far, then i will face time them - tis' the time of technology and smart phones. bottom line is, we're gonna see each other more, i'll make sure of it. 

these are ALL tangible. the only thing they require is effort and discipline. which, okay, is sorta a big feat for my lazy tenancies. so i guess i have my work cut out for me. but the rewards to be reaped are more than worth it. 

2013 will be full of new chapters and new experiences. lot's of "new" in our family and we are so very excited and blessed to take you along on our journey of new. 

it's that time of year

when the world falls in love

every song you hear seems to say 

merry christmas

may your new year dreams come true

and this song of mine

in three quarter time

wishes you and yours 

the same thing, too

post christmas.

i'm a procrastinator at heart. i'm also a planner at heart. it's a never-ending battle.

i had our hand-made / home-made gifts (it's become tradition) all laid out in my head. planned. but it was the execution that stole my sleep. sometimes most times, i just don't think to incorporate "re-work" time. you know, because how often does the first go around actually turn out perfectly? or match up precisely with the directions on the crafty blog site you found? i'll save you the guessing. it rarely ever works out the first time. or even the second. and so i spent countless late night hours at my sewing machine (i learned to top stitch!). and even more blankly pacing the aisles of craft stores.

we did it though, with survivor man episodes or teen mom (don't judge.) playing in the background, well after our sweet bug was fast asleep. we widdled our fingers for endless hours, in and out of days until everyone's gift was as perfect as it could be. seriously felt like santa's elf ;)

and christmas eve and christmas day were so very very perfect. full of family, turkey with trimmings, thai dishes that made your face sweat, a late night church service, lit up eyes and expressions of disbelief, fires burning, matching pjs, homemade cookies, music humming, just an all around happiness that warmed you up from the inside.

it really is the best time of year.

i can still feel the buzz, there are toys littering our living room and colorful bags laying around the house waiting for us to unpack them. i can also feel my body slowly but surely wilting with exhaustion. i've got that 2:30 feeling that no snickers bar can cure. i'm day dreaming about my bed and planning out a weekend of NOTHING and ample naps! i love the holidays, and i wouldn't take back one minute of lost sleep or stretching my energy thin. it was worth every second. but now that it's post christmas, i'm am so overly excited to do nothing, no to-do lists, no places to go, no projects to complete, no presents to wrap. nope, nothing but snuggling, cuddling and napping. i'll even take it as far as not cleaning. those legos can stay there, that laundry can pile up, the tree and decorations can stay right where they are. yep. because this mama is pooped, so everything slides ;)

*sings* all i want for christmas...

how rare is it to loose BOTH front teeth right at christmas time?! okay, okay, i suppose it can't be too rare, considering there's a song just for it. i just remember as a child, wanting to sing that song about myself. i, however, did not get that stroke of luck. BUT i'm so very very giddy for henry! it was just two days ago that i sang "all i want for christmas is my one front tooth" all throughout dinner. it may or may-not have been a tad obnoxious ;) i just can't help my excitement for such a lucky line up. and now! today at school, that last little wiggle, and we can officially sing non-stop for the next five days. it's so classic. and when he grows older and looks back he'll have this silly and sweet memory of the christmas where we literally (lovingly)wore-out the song, signing it night and day to him. priceless. i love it!

a time of need.

this post isn't to air my own dirty laundry (although i certainly have my fair share), but just to express this overwhelming appreciation for the much needed help that has come our way lately.

it was maybe a month ago that my husband grabbed my hand, knelt down and led us in a prayer that had me crying out my nose, a prayer to meet our needs. and maybe i shouldn't be amazed, because i should just know HIS power, but every time, EVERY TIME, i am. i am so amazed to witness His handy work. i weep.

now, now with a baby on the way. now with the holidays under way. now is a very taxing time to be struggling. and though i can't recall a time when things were so tough, when money was so tight, i also can't remember a time when there was more joy in our hearts and love in our home.

and what a season to experience such contentment from within, a deeper gratitude for the gifts bestowed upon us, for the spirit of a giving heart and the celebration of our family and friends. i can't help but feel God at work in our hearts.

our time of need has also brought us great joy. and i just want to say a very heartfelt thank you to the family and friends who have given from a place of selflessness, of helpfulness, of love... your priceless gifts (whether you knew how needed they were or not) have helped keep us afloat, helped fulfill future needs for our bun in the oven, and helped meet basic daily needs, but mostly; touch our hearts in the most humblest of ways. you have shed light on our darkness, you have been the sweet souls God used to answers our prayers.

i'm a blubbering mess writing of our gratitude for you. you all know who you are. thank you, from the very bottom of our hearts for making our season merry and bright. we have been greatly blessed by you.

bows and curls and every shade of pink!

WE'RE HAVING A BABY GIRL!!! for now... let me explain. but first...

this thanksgiving was super extra special for me. i had all my parents and all my siblings all the long weekend while. since this almost never happens, i really wanted to take advantage of the opportunity and create something special. 

i just happened to be in my 14th week while everyone was in town and as it turns out, your 14th week is the absolute earliest an ultrasound can detect the gender. so with a giddiness, i made an appointment at one of those places our families could cozy up on the couch at and watch our little beh-beh on the big screen. i truly didn't expect to find out the sex, we really only made the appointment to share a moment with the dear souls we love most in this world. it was something my heart very much desired; to be surrounded by our loved ones and glimpse the new life we're bringing into this world. 

and i'll tell you, i'll never forget the tears *tearing up* that streamed down my face as i held my husband's hand and saw the most beautiful thing we could create bouncing and dancing around inside me. to look on and see my family oo-ing and aw-ing and baby sofie squealing with henry on the floor up front. those feelings, those images, those are the exact moments my heart hoped to treasure. 

*sigh* i'm so thankful for my family indulging us in such sentiments. their support and love and excitement fill me up with such a grateful and humble disposition. 

okay, so i said "for now" because, well, let's just say it was a hard call. our modest little babe would NOT uncross her (i'm calling her her, unless we hear differently) legs... stubborn and shy, sounds like a little lady to me! well, the way she was sitting on her feet, legs crossed so that feet AND knees blocked the goods, made it exceptionally challenging for the technician to get a clear view. and boy did that lady pull out all her tricks to get baby to comply (at the protest of my bladder!), she called in the other tech for a second opinion and they both concluded... BABY GIRL!

i called out to hens, who had told us on the drive over what he wanted:

me: what do you think henry? are you hoping for a baby brother or baby sister?
henry: brother!!
henry: wait! i want a baby sister, so i can beat up her boyfriends if they aren't nice...

joey and i couldn't stop smiling and laughing at his adorableness.

where was i? oh! so i called out to him... "henry, you're getting a baby sister!!" and forever ingrained in my heart is his smile and fist pump to the sky haha, he's going to be the apple of her eye. 

hugging, kissing, belly rubbing and many many tears followed... a baby girl... we're having a **baby girl!!! 

**for now. 

she has already stolen our hearts. you wanna see her?!

she totally has the "rock" nose!

a nice strong heart beat. 

she's so funny, she was just a wiggly-jiggly in there.

and when the lady poked her one too many times, she turned and looked right at us! *creepy* haha!

so they say... we have our anatomy scan with our dr. on the 21st to confirm.

p.s. if our baby girl magically turns into a baby boy, we'd be super-duper happy too. just praying for the blessing of a healthy baby; boy or girl. 

it's an extra magical season this year for our little family. add the holiday cheer and twinkly lights and i'm just bursting at the seams with joy, even more so now that morning sickness isn't plaguing me every hour of every day ;) 

spreading the news.

it was a sunday afternoon (september 16th to be exact) when we returned home from camping for the weekend and went straight to baby-test-taking-time! and that quickly turned to a second annnnddd third test and then to tears of joy and well, shock too! it had been less than a month since joey returned home from deployment; i swear he stepped off the plane, waved, and BAM! i had a baby in my belly! truth be told, we had planned to wait it out another year. but we all know how easily those "life-type" plans get rearranged. and truly, what an amazing blessing to rearrange those silly flimsy plans for.

after the tears died down and the shock wore off (scratch that! i'm still in shock EVERY DAY at the miracle growing inside me) we thought about how to share the special news with our family, after all they had been patiently waiting for years for this particular kind of news. 

first we told our henry. and since he is learning to read, we made him a little story, sat him down and had him read it to us. those sweet moments of anticipation as he realized what we were telling him... and the verdict?! a big thumbs up and then right back to a sword fight with daddy. ha! boys. :)

we invited joey's parents over for dinner and we surprised them with the news when joey prayed for our baby during grace. something extra sweet hearing your husband pray for the most precious gift.

for my mom, since she lives outta state, we mailed a picture of our positive test with a note saying we work extra fast ;) and congrats to being a grammy again! when she got it in the post, we had quite the cry-fest over the phone. 

for my parents we made a little onesie, put it in an unmarked bag and told them we brought them back something from vacation, hehe. 

we really enjoyed spreading the news, talking baby names, admitting fears and just sharing in the wonder to come.