A Jarred Meat Juice Kind of Day.

A few days ago, E and I ventured to my Mom's house a few hours away for a quick overnight visit. I was on the hunt for a cheap hutch to repaint and put in my "dining nook" as we are in dire need of more storage, and I was looking forward to a nice day of hanging out with my sister. I had just read this post by my lovely friend, and I was already mentally preparing myself for lots of travel coming our way this week and next. My scripture reading that morning also happened to center on peace and choosing to live in peace with one's circumstances. I was going to have and maintain a good attitude despite the exhaustion of travel (and being 7 months pregnant...in the summer), I was going to put myself in my little daughter's shoes and try to make her comfortable and happy and secure despite this week of being constantly on the move, and I was going to not let myself stress out. Not sure about you, but I've learned that the more I stress about the "off-ness" of a travel schedule, the less fun I end up having.

Anyway, so that was my plan.

And...sometimes I think God just really likes to see how committed we are to our plans...

E and I were supposed to hop in the car and go as soon as she woke up that morning, but the night before, my Mom called to say that her A/C was not working in the house. No bueno. Did I mention I've taken to sweating like a man-beast as I gestate under a relentless and unmerciful summer sun? No? Well. There you go.

As I was saying, we had to sort of play it by ear and see if the air conditioner could get fixed in time. The next morning, I was given the go-ahead to make the two-hour trip, and we headed off....

....right into torrential rains. On the Interstate. Just me and my baby(ies). SCARY! I'm NOT a fan of driving in any kind of weather involving precipitation, and I was a nervous wreck the entire way. I kept my cool, however, remembering to just go with the flow, Erin, just go with the flow.

Once we made it to my Mom's, the hutch search proved successful...except that I couldn't fit it in the car to come back home. Enter my sister's gracious, truck-owning boyfriend. Hooray! I might not get to have my new-to-me hutch right away, but at least I found one, right?! Look at that good attitude, thankyouverymuch. :)

And then...in the middle of the night...a giant storm rolled through, thusly waking my daughter and scaring the poop out of her. Literally. So, I scooped her into my bed, and we fitfully slept on and off for an hour or so...until...the power went out. We are a family addicted to sleeping with fans blaring their glorious white noise, and now, nothing. Oh yes, and the A/C was out again, too.

Again, I told myself to find the positives. I was able to snuggle up in bed with my baby girl, something I rarely ever get to do. And we were safe. And fine. And it would be just fine. She fell back to sleep for a few hours, while I tried my best to doze. The snuggles made that part of the trip totally worth it.

The next day's forecast called for a high of 107 degrees, so I decided to hit the road early in the morning before it became too hot (you know, just in case of an accident or flat tire, etc. And because my hubby told me to get home before it got too hot. He's bossy that way.) ;) We hit the road, and my sweet cherub of a daughter screamed and wailed almost the entire two hours in the car. Want to know why? Because her paci clip was ever so slightly tangled around her bear. HEAVEN FORBID. You'd think she was dying back there or something. UGH. Stressful two hours.

And yet, I remained upbeat, willing myself to understand that she was exhausted from little sleep the night before and probably just pretty darn sick of being in the car for hours on end. I could do this. I could do this. Yes.

When we made it back home, she was ravenously hungry, so I got her lunch ready in a hurry. I was slicing strawberries and pouring milk like a mad woman, and then I reached for the only source of meat she will eat at this point: those disgusting chicken-sticks-in-a-jar. Gag me. When I was newly PG, I couldn't even be in the same room with an open jar of that nasty smelling stuff, but, of course, she and her barely-four-teeth love them. :) Well, as I was hurrying along to feed the beast, I accidentally dropped the jar of chicken sticks on the counter, resulting in a spray of congealed packing juices that landed all in my hair, on my face, down my arms and all over my new shirt. I. Smelled. Like. Meat. Juice.

And my dog came over to lick me.

I lost it.

Right there in the kitchen, covered in meat juice, I had a full-fledged meltdown. I was mad at myself for not being able to keep it together like I'd wanted. I was mad at all of the weird and unpredictable and inconvenient situations that seemed to be attacking my efforts at a positive attitude. And, to be honest, I was mad at God a little. As trivial as these trials seem now that I type them out, at the time I was really trying to do what I thought He'd called me to do: live a peaceful life with a good attitude. And He was seemingly making it as hard as possible for me to do just that!

After wallowing in self-pity (and, lest we forget, meat juices) for a few minutes, I looked up to see my daughter happily covered in strawberries, smiling up at me and waving. I shuffled my nasty self over to her, when she pulled my face down for a kiss and afterwards patted my greasy arms as if to comfort me.

Sigh.

So, I cleaned myself up, dried my tears, changed out of my congealed juice shirt, and we both took a nice long nap.

And I woke up to this sleepy head:

Again. Sigh.

This is somewhat of a disjointed post and story, but I guess what I'm trying to process is that God calls us to CHOOSE peace in the midst of chaos. Peace is easy when things are going well. It is easy when the power is on, the A/C is blowing, the children cooperate, and the meat juice stays in its jar. Those are the easy days.

I think the point is to always worship God through choosing to live a disciplined life, and, in this case, the act of discipline I was miserably failing at exemplifying was living at peace amidst chaos.

I tried.

I kinda stunk it up (literally and figuratively).

But I'll try again tomorrow.

And the day after that. And the day after that.

You know, after all, I did get to snuggle my baby girl all night long. I think that made it all okay in the end.

:)

27 Weeks: A Letter.

My Little Baby D,

As each week passes, your arrival gets closer and closer...and we are getting so excited to meet you! We kind of can't believe how fast this pregnancy is going, and we've so enjoyed this experience. It feels seamless and right and peaceful. Just lovely, I say. :)

Here are a few things that have happened over the past few weeks as we await your arrival:

--Your Dad and I scooted off for a quick trip to Kansas City just the two of us. We called it "Babymoon #2," and we ended up just chatting and dreaming about you most of the time. We snatched up a few things for you along the way, and just relaxed together knowing you were actually along on the trip with us, too. A sweet little trip for the three of us. :)

--Speaking of your Daddy, he has been working SO hard to get your room ready. He's been repainting furniture, painting the walls, preparing light fixtures, and just generally going along with all of the projects I conjure up! He works so hard for us, Baby. You'll see. And you'll love him for it, just like I do. We can't wait to see you in your special nursery. It is turning into the sweetest little place, and you will be the cherry on top.

--As far as Mommy goes, you are just growing along nicely in my ever-expanding belly. I've started feeling you hiccup an hour or so after I eat, and I absolutely LOVE this. You are pretty active in the evenings, and my belly just quakes and shakes all the time when you get going. It is so neat to see you moving in there, and your Dad loves to feel your kicks, too. Your big sister keeps pointing at my growing tummy, and we are practicing saying "baby."

(23.5 weeks)

You have measured BIG at your doctor's appointments, and the specialist we went to see was pretty confident in moving your due date up a little over a week. He said you had long legs already. :) You seem healthy and happy all snuggled up in my belly, and, as long as Mommy can survive the heat this summer, we should be good to go!

(26.5 weeks)

--We also had some maternity pictures taken to mark this stage of your little life. What precious pictures these are to me...I just love hosting you in my belly, sweet girl!

Baby Girl, we are just so excited for you to join our family. Again, this whole thing just feels so natural and like it couldn't be any other way. You are meant to be with us, and I just can't explain this feeling of peacefulness I have about everything. God is truly watching over us all, and we are so blessed that He's given us the opportunity to bring you into this world.

We love you so,

Mommy

Bump, Baby, and Family Pics!

Recently, the lovely and talented Katie Baskins braved the wind and heat to take our family pictures (with a few bump and baby pics thrown in for good measure!). It was so much fun to run around trying to keep up with E in an effort to snap just a few pics before she took off again, and our photographer was such a good sport. ;) We LOVE the pictures so much!!

I couldn't pick just a few, so please enjoy them as much as we did!

(P.S.-Click here to check out more of Katie's awesome photography!)

When Good Crafts Go Awry.

Knowing that I had family pictures coming up (which I'll post soon!), my lovely friend and I decided it was high time to delve into a crafty project we'd both been wanting to try. We'd seen the cutest tulle dresses on Etsy.com, and we thought out a whole plan of how we were going to make them, who was going to watch our kids whilst we crafted, and just exactly what kind of coffee we'd drink during the whole ordeal. You know. Important things like that. ;)

So, off we went (kidless--GLORY!) to Hobby Lobby to pick out our tulle, etc. We had so much fun gabbing and drinking coffee while we made big, long, poofy tulle dresses for our little ladies. Our family pics were going to be in my friend's large front yard by a pond and some trees and some tall grass, so I thought the poofy tulle skirt would be so adorable for the setting. That's what I get for thinking.

After a couple of hours of less-than-intense labor (but labor, nonetheless!), we finished our baby girls' dresses. I went home, eager to see my frothy creation on my little lady in all it's glory.

And...

...she hated it.

I mean, HATED IT. Screamed at the top of her lungs, wouldn't stand up and walk in it, pulled and pulled at it for me to take it off of her, and just generally let me know that she would, in fact, NOT be taking her pictures in this so-called adorable concoction.

Ugh. Figures.

So, now there is a lovely, useless tulle dress hanging from her closet.

And when she sees it, she still whines and flails her arms at it.

She remembers....!!! ;)

At least we tried! Now come on. Help a girl out. Any highly anticipated crafts gone awry for any of you? Please tell me I'm not alone! :)

Baby Daddy.

Today is our six year wedding anniversary.

For so many reasons,

I am grateful beyond belief to have this man raise my daughters.

Seriously.

He's the best person that I know of all the people,

not to mention he loves us on the bad days and the ugly days and the hard days.

He would do and does anything for his girls,

and it gives him joy to be home with us, helping us, hugging on us.

What an example of a Godly man my little ladies will grow up with,

and we are all so blessed to have Russell as ours.

Happy anniversary to my love.

Happy DADDY's day to my hero.

You're the best man I know.

:)

A Day in the Life: Potty-Related Snippets.

~While running errands, it became quite evident that I was going to have to visit a public restroom at some point or risk bladder explosion. However, going to the restroom in a store is next to impossible with a toddler in tow. But the baby in my six-month pregnant belly had no mercy on me, and continued to kick my bladder with gusto. So, into the bathroom we went. I consider it a personal victory that I was able to balance my toddler on my hip, keep my diaper bag on my shoulder (no hooks, what the heck?!), and make it out with clean hands and not having toppled into the toilet. Hurrah. I think this feat of amazingness deserves chocolate of some sort. Or lots of sorts. Either/or. ;)

~After E's lunch, I try to keep her awake long enough for her to have a little baby BM. (TMI? Eh, that bridge has been crossed and burned by now!). I find that she naps longer if she's done the deed before instead of during, so we read books, sing songs, learn letters on the computer (www.starfall.com, anyone? Old school, and I love it. Thanks to those who recommended it!). Today, however, my tiny tot's tunneling wasn't on the move, and, after reading countless books and pushing nap time farther and farther back, she eventually hopped out of my lap and laid down on the floor of her nursery. She grabbed her bunny and paci, rolled to her side, closed her eyes, and assumed 'sleep position.' On the floor. MOTHER OF THE YEAR. Anyway, she ended up sleeping a good, long time, and all is well in various other departments, as well. Ahem. ;)

~It is so dang hot outside. Have you noticed? Thus, after naptime, the two of us usually venture outside to E's little splash pool. I'm sure she is highly embarrassed by her whale of a Mom who basically steals all available real estate inside said splash pool. She'll come up to the edge and look at me all sprawled out with a glare of disdain. I'm invading her space, after all. Geesh. ;) Anyway, we came inside after an hour or so of splashing, plucking blades of grass, and chasing Milly around the yard. I had my swimsuited yet dried-off baby on my hip when a package was delivered to the front door. I proceeded to carry her around the house for awhile, opening the package, grabbing a lemonade, etc. Finally, I noticed a little trail of wetness following behind me all throughout the living room. Yep, she was peeing. Everywhere. And, to make it all the more comical, Milly was following close behind and licking it all up. Hey, at least she was being helpful.

;)

Hope you enjoyed that little snippet from this Mommy and crew! Never a dull day, that's for sure. :)

Juicy Penningtons.

I would like to introduce to you someone.

Her name is Juicy Penningtons.

Here she is:

I shall explain.

When E was about 6 months old, she was playing around with a discarded Sunday paper at my Mom's house, and she made her way over to the J.C. Penney's catalogue. All of a sudden, her face and arms tensed up, hands splayed out, and she held this vibrating tension for a few seconds all while beaming up at us! It was one of the funnier things I'd seen in awhile! We all started imitating her while saying, "J.C. Penney's! J.C. Penney's!" all the while cracking up laughing as she continued to do the tense face/arms thing.

My husband, who had missed the whole episode while in the other room, came running in to see what all the commotion was about. He asked, "Who's Juicy Penningtons?"

We all burst out laughing once again as E tensed up and beamed at her Daddy to show him her newest trick...

...and thus, Juicy Penningtons was born.

She doesn't do it as often anymore (probably because we kept coaxing her to Juicy over and over and over and over...), but every once and awhile, it is a Juicy Penningtons kind of moment.

I hope I'm not making my kid weird.

But it is really funny...at least to her deranged parents anyway!

;)

This is Why My Back Hurts.

But...I kind of don't care.

Snuggling both of my girls.

Priceless.

:)

Whirlwind Wedding Cake Weekend: Cake #1.

Stop by the Caked blog for pics of the first wedding cake from this past weekend!

Thoughts in the Midst of Wedding Cakes.

1. Best investment ever:

Bought the display at Target for $90 four years ago.

This baby has DEFINITELY earned its keep.

2. I never want to see fondant again:

After making over 200 sticks/rolls/tubes of white fondant for one of the wedding cakes, my poor, crampy fingers have asked me to never do that again.

The cake will be cool.

No doubt.

But my fingers, I suspect, will never forgive me.

:)

What's Up.

Busy.

Busy.

Busy.

That pretty much sums up my life these days. Between traveling, E's tubes, vacation, husband's finals week, and two wedding cakes this weekend, I barely have time for breath! Oh yeah, and that other matter of being all kinds of knocked up. That'll take the wind outta your sails in no time. ;)

Anyway, I can't seem to put two thoughts together today, so here's a quick look at our recent comings and goings, courtesy of my phone camera. (Thank goodness for that, by the way. Seems my entire life is documented most fully on my phone.) ;)

(Firstly, the hubs and I ventured off to Kansas City for a MUCH NEEDED getaway not long ago. We were celebrating the end of the classwork part of pharmacy school, and we also tagged this trip as Babymoon #2. I'll post about the lovely and quick getaway later...highly recommend KC!)

Zoo day!

Russell and I took E to the zoo on a breezy, cool morning, and I must say that this is the first time I've noticed her noticing the animals. It was pretty cute.

(Not to worry. This is merely a tortoise statue.)

(First attempt at the petting zoo. Took her awhile to get warmed up. Also, have you ever noticed how FREAKY goats' eyes actually look up close?! I'd be a bit wary of petting one, too. Or maybe she was just nervous about the perilous height of my teased pouf that looks as though it could topple over onto her head at the slightest gust of wind. Could be that.) ;)

(At long last, baby and goat become friends.)

That night, we took shelter from the impending storms that hit our area. A gracious friend-of-a-friend took pity on us and let us squeeze into their storm shelter for the better part of the evening.

Let's just say that five children ages three and under cooped up in a hot room for HOURS past their bedtime was quite interesting...! The newly-wed couple sheltering with us was probably scared out of their minds at the thought of ever having children--ha! ;) Anyway, we were so thankful to make it through safe and sound, and we were grateful for the safe place to ride out the storms.

The next day, I got a rare morning off from Mom Duty, and I hit the road with my dear friend for some coffee, lunch, and antique (aka: cheap, used stuff that we can paint and repurpose) shopping!

We scored quite a few steals and deals, and we went home feeling refreshed and rejuvenated. I love my baby girl, but every Mom needs a couple of hours off now and again. Amen!?!?!? ;)

This weekend, we hit the road again and headed to OKC to visit my fam for Memorial Day weekend. Our tradition is to attend the Paseo Arts Festival, and, despite the heat, we perused the tents full of art, jewelry, pottery and the like. Italian ice and lemonade helped beat the heat, too. :)

And that about does it for us! I hope you all had a lovely Memorial Day weekend with family and friends. So thankful to live in this country, and we're even more thankful for the men and women who serve it.

Now...on to the TWO wedding cakes due this weekend. If you can't find me, I'm probably buried alive under mounds of butter cream icing and red velvet cake.

Please.

Come look for me.

Otherwise, I'll have to eat my way to freedom!

;)