02.29.08
A heartfelt plea
Dear Missy,
Do you ever feel like you have the weight of the world on your shoulders? That’s how I feel today. In fact I’ve been feeling this way for quite some time. I’ve been very burdened with this feeling and I don’t know how to get out of the rut. I feel like I have no purpose in life. Do you ever feel that way?
Deep down inside I know I do have a purpose. I just know it. But my purpose is now buried underneath the weight of these burdens. This stuff that follows me wherever I go. I just can’t shake it.
I’ve tried to talk to your husband about my feelings. I’ve tried to be honest with him. But he just ignores me. Either he doesn’t hear my cries for help or he just doesn’t care.
My purpose is gone and my heart is heavy. I long to run and be free. To live with purpose and to help people. But all I can do is sit here and wait for this burden to be lifted. I just don’t know what to do anymore.
Can you hear me? Can you help me?
Your friend,
Treadmill
(Yes, that is a rocking chair on our treadmill. Don’t say a word. I know.)
02.27.08
Please do not smash my face in the snow
Awhile back I shared how I have a major snow phobia . I promised I would share why and I realized I have not made good on my promise. So here goes. Prepare yourself for life changing stuff folks!
It was 1986. I was a 6th grader. I looked like a college student. (pause)
You may wonder what in the world that has to do with snow. Hang with me. (resume)
Because the Lord decided to make me look like a college student when I was 12 you could say I had a little more attention from the boys than most 12 year olds. I was the tallest person in my class, on the heavy side and very blessed up yonder. Staring, name calling, you name it…I endured it.
On this particular day in 1986 I was happily on my way to religion class, aka CCD. I didn’t actually enjoy CCD so I guess I probably wasn’t happily on my way but I was on my way no less. It was cold. It was snowy. I’m a warm weather type girl so I was doing what I could to hurry inside without falling on my face.
I was almost to the doors when it happened. Coming towards me were 6-8 creepy, horrible, no-good boys. To these boys, snow meant white washing. And they were always on the lookout for another victim and if they could embarrass the big freaky girl that’s even better. I believe they were just jealous that I could beat them in kick ball and although I was the size of Goliath I wasn’t a match for 6-8 boys. To this day I still don’t know why no one came to my rescue. I screamed like there was no tomorrow. I kicked and scratched and screamed some more but unfortunately my face was destined to meet the snow.
Not only did they put my face in the snow. They smashed my face in the snow. And put snow down my coat and shirt. Did I say they smashed my face in the snow? They did that too. And put snow down my shirt. It was cold. C. O. L. D.
I was quite the trooper though. After feeling like I was on my way to meet my Maker I realized that I’d survived the attack. I picked myself up, brushed all the snow away and went into the church for CCD. Again, I wonder why no one even asked me what was wrong. Here comes the big chick bawling like a baby and covered in snow. I suppose those teachers had to deal with the boys themselves so were in a constant daze or something.
Because of this tragic experience to this day I am fearful of getting my face smashed into the snow. And than I decided to marry a guy who is a crazy snow ball fighter. Who has a daughter who loves to smash peoples faces in the snow. All for fun mind you but it’s smashing just the same.
The moral of the story:
I have bungee jumped and I have ridden a canoe through the jungles of Costa Rica. I have ran a 1/2 marathon and traveled through 8 countries in Europe. Before I really do meet my Maker I would love to sky dive, bungee jump off one of the highest bridges in the world (like my brother just did) and go deep sea fishing.
But please, do not smash my face in the snow.
Works for me Wednesday
We’d been hoping to add to our family through adoption for quite some time. So when I finally got around to getting the nursery ready I didn’t know if we’d be having a boy or a girl. In addition to that I’m not really a wallpaper fan so we struggled to know how to decorate the nursery.
We decided to go with Winnie the Pooh. I had to do a little begging for Hubby to agree. I love Pooh but he wasn’t all that fond at first. I almost had him convinced to paint a large mural on one of the walls (he’s an amazing artist). Like I said, almost. No worries though, we were able to find these great decoration stickers. We found ours at Wally World but I’m sure there are many other options. Here’s a few pictures from Angel’s room:
This is right above her changing table. Some days it keeps her from wriggling!
This is of course above her crib. Cute, huh!
We just love these stickers. I’ve already removed half of them and re-stuck them because of course I’ve already rearranged her furniture.
Need some easy and cute decorating ideas? Check out wall stickers. It works for me!
Go to Shannon’s for more Works for Me Wednesday.
Two months home, four months old
Belle baby is four months old and has been home just a little over two months. I’m sure I said this in our one month update, but I just can’t believe it’s only been two months. It’s seems like she’s just been here forever.
As you read about here and here , I’m back to work now. I’m sure you’ve heard plenty about that so I won’t say anything more!
Ok, I lied 
… Our schedule is going good. Although it’s very different not working a full 8-9 hour day and trying to get my 40 hours fit in nights, weekends, etc, it has been great to have that extra time with Belle. Wednesdays are my favorite. I don’t go into work until 4:00 pm so I basically have the whole day for some good Belle time, cleaning time and sometimes a little work time. It really breaks up my week and that’s nice. I’ve also dedicated that day to making a real nice lunch for Hubby and Princess since I don’t get to have supper with them. That’s been fun too.
I suppose the point of this post is an update on Belle so I’ll get to that!
She’s really talking now. Singing, having complete conversations with her toys. It’s quite interesting. I’m still struggling with knowing what to talk to her about. I know I should just talk about anything and everything but I’ve struggled to do that. But I’m working on it. I’d much rather just sing to her all day and I do alot of that too but have been trying to just talk as much as I can too.
Belle is close to rolling over. She hates her tummy time but that’s getting better too. Now that she’s figured out she can almost scoot herself.
We’ve been trying some rice cereal and it’s not going so good. It’s still pretty early so I’m not worried about it. We’ll just keep plugging away. Her tongue reflex seems to be gone sometimes and then the next feeding she just keeps pushing that food out. Of course she does alot better for daddy than mommy. Silly girl!
Here’s proof…daddy feeding her (sorry I can’t get the picture bigger):
And her’s mommy feeding her:
Don’t you love the bib. Please don’t report me.
Let’s see… mommy and daddy are her favorites and she’s still not quite warmed up to strangers. If it’s just after feeding she’s very happy and then she’s ok. Although the other day Grandpa Al was here and she was so scared of him! 
We know that will get better with time. Her big sister Princess is also a favorite. The other day Princess watched Belle for me while I ran an errand and I come home to see Belle on Princess’s lap in front of Princess’s laptop. It was cute. And then the other day Princess had come home from being gone for a few days and she was talking to Belle. Belle started laughing out loud. Every time Princess would say something Belle would laugh…a big belly laugh. It was so funny, she had us all crying. We got it on videotape but now can’t figure out how to get it on youtube. We have a pretty cheap camera so we’ll see if it’s even possible. Here is Belle and her big sister:
She loves to be tickled and kissed. She’ll laugh out loud and sometimes scream (in a good way) when we’re playing. It’s so fun to see her playing with us. I do believe she is going to have quite the temper (I guess the red hair may have gave that away). When she’s playing with a toy and can’t get it in her mouth she gets so mad! Needless to say Belle gets to hear the “Patience Song” alot throughout the day…and she’s only four months old! Yikes!
We are so blessed and we know Belle is blessed to. God’s timing is so amazing. Let me just tell you if you’re struggling with God’s timing He really does have it under control. That’s so hard to see when you’re in the middle of something. But He’s walking through with you and in the end you’ll get to see a glimpse of the big picture.
Thanks for checking in! We appreciate your continued prayers for us and Belle, specifically that she would remain healthy and strong and continue to have good bonding and attachment. Here’s a few more pictures of our girl.
02.25.08
Menu Plan Monday
This week is a pretty busy week so we’re having some simple meals. I thought I’d also share some recipes from last week. And don’t forget to check out Organized Junkie for some more great menu plans!
So this is our plan this week:
Monday: Ravioli
Tuesday: Soup and sandwiches
Wednesday: Church night. Every Wednesday night a meal is offered at church. It’s always yummy and very inexpensive (free will offering).
Thursday: Homemade pizza
Friday: Angel and I are going to see my parents, sister and brother. Hopefully that means we’ll be going out for steak!
Recipes from last week:
Greek Turkey Burgers. They were so yummy! I didn’t really use a recipe. I had seen an episode of Rachel Ray and so modified that some.
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 lb ground turkey
1 container nonfat plain yogurt
1/4 cup seasoned dry break crumbs
1 egg white
2 garlic cloves, pressed
1 tsp dried oregano leaves
salt and pepper
2 tomatoes, sliced
1 cucumber
pita bread rounds
lettuce leaves
Mix ground turkey, 1/4 cup onion, 1/4 cup yogurt, bread crumbs, egg white, 1 garlic clove, 3/4 tsp oregano, and salt and pepper. Form turkey mixture into 6 patties. Lightly cover skillet with olive oil. Heat over medium heat until hot. Cook patties 10-12 minutes or until meat is no longer pink in the center, turning once.
For the sauce I used remaining onion, 1/4 tsp oregano, remaining yogurt, 1 garlic clove and about 1/4 of cucumber finely chopped.
Slice rest of cucumber and tomatoes. Cut off top of pita bread. Fill each one with turkey burger, cucumber, tomato, lettuce and sauce.
Roast Chicken. I was a little worried about this one because I have to admit I’d never roasted a chicken before. I KNOW! Crazy, huh. Anyway, it turned out fabulous. And I had leftovers for lunch for the next two days.
1 roasting chicken, approximately 4-5 lbs
1 head garlic, unpeeled
salt, pepper, paprika, poultry seasoning
1 medium carrot
1 stalk celery
Do everything you need to do with chicken…Remove and discard giblets, if necessary, rinse, pat dry, trim excess fat, etc.
Slice off top quarter of garlic head to expose garlic cloves. Separate cloves and discard papery skin but do not peel cloves. Place 1/2 the cloves in cavity of chicken. Tie ends of legs together with string. Rub outside of chicken with seasoning. I kind of experienced here.
Coarsely chop carrot and celery. Place in roasting pan. Place chicken on top of veggies. Put remaining garlic cloves around chicken. Put lid on.
Bake in 400 degree oven for 1 hour 15 minutes. Take off lid and bake another 15-30 minutes or until chicken is temperature of 180 degrees. Remove chicken and tent with foil, let stand 10 minutes before carving. I didn’t use the garlic. I made rice instead of mashed potatoes but the garlic would be perfect for making garlic mashed potatoes. The meat was so tender. It’d be great for soup the next day or like I did just eat it cold.
Kielbasa Sandwiches. This is one of Hubby’s favorites. And he usually makes it because it always turns out better when he makes it! Now I am not a sauerkraut lover. In fact you could call me a sauerkraut hater! But I love this. I don’t put sauerkraut on my sandwich but I do have to admit the flavor of the kielbasa is just amazing.
1 pkg kielbasa sausage
1 can sauerkraut
1 tbls Tabasco sauce or more depending on taste
1 tomato, cut in half and then thinly sliced
1 onion, sliced
1 pkg brat buns
Slice kielbasa into 4 pieces and then slic again the long way so you have 8 think short pieces. Cook in skillet over medium-high heat for approximately 8-10 minutes, turning every couple minutes. Add can of sauerkraut and Tabasco sauce. Turn heat to medium-low. Cook and stir periodically for approximately 10 minutes or until heated through and most of liquid is evaporated. Smother bun with mustard. Put in 2 kielbasa pieces, sauerkraut (or not!), tomato and onion.
02.24.08
There’s no such thing as a dumb question
I know I said I’d post a question every Sunday. Obviously that hasn’t happened but recently I’ve been thinking about one.
Devotions. With wee ones. How do you do it?
Right now we do devotions with Princess every night. We rotate through different books. We have a teen devotion and one about martyrs of the faith and sometimes we read out of the Bible.
Now that we have Angel I’ve been wondering how and when to get her involved with devotions. Or even just a nighttime ritual. At 4 months I’m assuming that’s a little too young to start with devotions. What age is a good age to start. Is it when she turns 2 or 3? And obviously the devotions we do with Princess are not going to be appropriate for Angel, although Princess will be heading off to school in a year and 1/2.
Can you help us out? We’d love to hear what has worked for your family. What does your family do for devotions? What night time rituals do you have? Any suggestions for little ones?
02.22.08
Jump
As soon as I wrote the title the song Jump came to mind. Arrgghh. Fortunately for you this is not a post about David Lee Roth. I may be desperate for blog material but I’m not that desperate. Anyway…
I try my hardest not to be envious. I don’t think that is a trait the Lord would want me to have. But some days I can’t help it. It’s not my fault I have the coolest brother in the world. Who does amazing and cool things. And lives to tell about it.
I think I was a junior or senior in high school when I got to experience the exhilaration of jumping off things with Jim (my brother). We were on a family vacation in Wisconsin Dells and saw the sign for bungee jumping. Sweet! Only I don’t think that word was used in that context back then so we probably said cool.
Jim would have been like a 6th or 7th grader but he has nerves of steel. What a maniac! After signing all the documents indicating that we will probably die we climbed to the top of the 400 foot high thing-a-ma-giggy that we would soon be jumping off of.
I don’t remember alot of the actual experience. I’m pretty sure it was amazing though. I do remember that I wouldn’t jump at first. You stand backwards on the edge of death’s door and they said “3, 2, 1, bungee!”. And when they say “bungee” you are suppose to fall back. Only I didn’t fall back. I think they had to say it three times before they finally just pushed me (just kidding).
Quite a few years later Jim decided to continue with his death defying acts and sky dive. WITHOUT ME! I was traumatized. I have yet to sky dive but it’s definitely something I plan to do before I die. Hopefully not right before I die.
Well then just a few weeks ago Jim traveled to South Africa (yes, South Africa) to visit his girlfriend. And along the way he bungee jumped off one of the highest bridges in the world. On purpose!
A part of me is so jealous. But another part of me is so glad I wasn’t there so I wouldn’t have to look like a chicken when I refused to plunge off this crazy big bridge. The tough part of me would like to convince the world that I would have jumped. But the honest part of me is a little doubtful. Thankfully this bridge is in South Africa so I won’t have to worry about proving my toughness anytime soon.
Here is Jim’s hand. In case he plummets to the earth and smashes to the ground they will still be able to know who he is. #75/J1 = Jim.
Here’s Jim getting hooked up. Hope you tie a good knot fella!
This one is my favorite. Can you not see the nervousness on his face!
On the edge of death
AAAHHHHHHHH
He survived!
Here’s to you Jim! You are amazing! And I suppose I forgive you for jumping without me!
Thank You Jesus
Is it ok to thank the Lord for things that are very very wonderful but probably not wonderful for you?
For example, Sonic.
Yum. Yum. Yum.
We have had a Sonic in our town for a year or two but it’s way on the other side of the city and we really try to stay away from those people over there (east side for life!) Every once in awhile a craving for Sonic causes us to venture over to the west side but it always leaves us with horrible indigestion. Although some would say otherwise I’m pretty sure it’s the west side that is causing this indigestion, not Sonic.
But now, the venturing is over. Sonic is coming to our side of town.
And I do believe it is ok to say THANK YOU JESUS!
02.21.08
Thankful Thursday
The little things.
I was thinking today that often it’s the little things that I take for granted. For example, kleenex. Can you imagine how sore our noses would be without kleenex? I probably think that especially now because I have a cold but still we are very fortunate to not have to blow our noses with leaves or our shirt.
Ok, that was a little gross.
Anyway. I decided that today I would be thankful for the little things. Things I use almost every day. Things I always expect to be there. Things that I could do just fine without. Things that make my life a little easier. Things that hopefully don’t make me spoiled rotten and cause me to forget that everything is from the Lord and I’ve got it pretty darn good.
Here’s a very very very small list of some of the little things I’m thankful for today:
Hand sanitizer
Towels
Steaming hot water…whenever I want it
Sticky notes
Tape
Shoes
Refrigerator
Crock pot
Glasses, the kind you drink out of and the kind you use to see
Straws (they help me drink water)
Christian music stations
Radio to listen to Christian music stations
Grocery stores
Spoons
Rubberbands
Tupperware
Chocolate (saved the best for last!)
Lord, help me to remember and be thankful for the little things you have provided for me. Help me to never be wasteful of my time or resources and use everything for Your glory.
What little things are you thankful for today? Visit Sting My Heart for more thankfulness.
