Man, am I on a roll with posting or what!? It's like words are spewing out of me and I can't make it stop!
Do you make New Year's Resolutions? Every year the same thing happens with me and one of my best friends. I come up with a bunch of goals I want to tackle for the New Year and she doesn't have any. Not one.single.goal. I'm ambitious and pumped to kick off the year and she's mellow and passive, "Oh, it's another year already?" We always chat January 1st and we both talk about how we're going to hold each other accountable to following a budget this year and we're going to be really frugal and yada-yada-yada...and then by February, the budget is blown. Every.single.year.
This year though...This year was different. My list is through the roof! I keep adding more and more to it and I can't stop myself! I have no clue how many things are really on the list because I don't write them down but I'm sure it's about a mile long (at least). I read in a blog I follow that the woman had three goals for the year and a "Word of the Year'. When I read that, I laughed and thought, "What a joke!? Who actually has a "word" of the year??" And you know what? Now, I do too! Oh my goodness, I'm such a poser. I even copied her word. Is that sad? My word (or, I guess "our" word..) is: CALM. Why not? It sounds good, right? She had no mention of a "Number of the Year" or "Color of the Year" so maybe she's holding out until next year.. I'll keep you posted though because if this is the new trend, I know you will want to be a part of it. I'll just go ahead and declare mine now. Number = 10. Color = Blue.
Speaking of CALM. Is it just me or do you have 3/4 of your friends on Facebook "hidden"? It's weird because I'm only reading like 6 updates daily anymore and I have almost 500 friends?... ha.ha.ha. If it were not for people who lived out of state, Facebook would be history for me. I love how you can classify people on it. "Friend", "Close Friend", "Acquaintance", etc.. I started a new list, "Friend on Facebook but not in real life" and "Friend in real life but not on Facebook". It's been really helpful.
And on that note, I will be signing off. Stay Calm and Carry On...
Thursday, January 17, 2013
Tuesday, January 15, 2013
Neighborhood Living
Hello again. I know you must be shocked to hear from me again and it's still January. I'm a bit surprised myself.
Lots of things floating around in my head and I thought I'd take a quick break from the world to type.
We live smack dab in the middle of suburbia. It is very easy to confuse the street that we live on as Wisteria Lane. Edie lives behind us, Gabby is two houses down, and Lynette is next door. I've never lived in a neighborhood until moving here. We've been in our house for almost 8 years now and I'm still not used to living on a street with so many other homes. I crave the country so bad.
I grew up on about 10 acres of land, surrounded by woods that backed up to a creek. If we wanted to play with our neighbor and we could hear them playing outside also, we'd yell loud enough for them to meet us in the woods halfway between each of our property's. My sister and I built so many forts, I couldn't even count them all nor tell you where all of them had been (and probably still are..). If you followed the creek towards the river and kept going about a mile up there was a cave along the rocks called Devil's Den. We loved treking through the river and climbing the rocks to see if the Devil really lived there. In one set of the woods, we found a 10x10 pile of old stones and rubbish buried under leaves that we called "The Plane Crash" site (obviously). The stories we made up about the things we found could keep us entertained for weeks.
I love being in the woods. I love the sounds. The leaves under your feet. I love trying to find different trails left by the animals. I love the smell.
Kathryn loves to tell me stories she's made up and is often asking me to tell her stories about princesses and fairies, and of course a purple and pink unicorn. One day she'll figure out every story I tell her starts off in Nonni and Papa's woods.
When we moved to NC for Matt's job, we had two weekends to find a house. I think the thrill of buying our first home and moving to a new place took the forefront on our minds and we never really thought about how long we'd actually be here. A dog, two kids and 8 years later, I think we're getting close to moving on. I'll never forgot getting our dog and taking him for a walk around the neighborhood for the first time and after he did his business, Matt handed me a bag. I said, "What's this for?" Matt goes, "To pick up his junk." I crack up laughing and go, "Ha! Yeah right. I'm not touching that." He said, "That's why there are bags throughout the neighborhood. That's what they're for." I told him, "Are you out of your everliving mind? You're picking that junk up, there's no way I'm touching it." Well. You know what? That's reason #983 I don't do well in a neighborhood. That's just ridicoulous.
Lots of things floating around in my head and I thought I'd take a quick break from the world to type.
We live smack dab in the middle of suburbia. It is very easy to confuse the street that we live on as Wisteria Lane. Edie lives behind us, Gabby is two houses down, and Lynette is next door. I've never lived in a neighborhood until moving here. We've been in our house for almost 8 years now and I'm still not used to living on a street with so many other homes. I crave the country so bad.
I grew up on about 10 acres of land, surrounded by woods that backed up to a creek. If we wanted to play with our neighbor and we could hear them playing outside also, we'd yell loud enough for them to meet us in the woods halfway between each of our property's. My sister and I built so many forts, I couldn't even count them all nor tell you where all of them had been (and probably still are..). If you followed the creek towards the river and kept going about a mile up there was a cave along the rocks called Devil's Den. We loved treking through the river and climbing the rocks to see if the Devil really lived there. In one set of the woods, we found a 10x10 pile of old stones and rubbish buried under leaves that we called "The Plane Crash" site (obviously). The stories we made up about the things we found could keep us entertained for weeks.
I love being in the woods. I love the sounds. The leaves under your feet. I love trying to find different trails left by the animals. I love the smell.
Kathryn loves to tell me stories she's made up and is often asking me to tell her stories about princesses and fairies, and of course a purple and pink unicorn. One day she'll figure out every story I tell her starts off in Nonni and Papa's woods.
When we moved to NC for Matt's job, we had two weekends to find a house. I think the thrill of buying our first home and moving to a new place took the forefront on our minds and we never really thought about how long we'd actually be here. A dog, two kids and 8 years later, I think we're getting close to moving on. I'll never forgot getting our dog and taking him for a walk around the neighborhood for the first time and after he did his business, Matt handed me a bag. I said, "What's this for?" Matt goes, "To pick up his junk." I crack up laughing and go, "Ha! Yeah right. I'm not touching that." He said, "That's why there are bags throughout the neighborhood. That's what they're for." I told him, "Are you out of your everliving mind? You're picking that junk up, there's no way I'm touching it." Well. You know what? That's reason #983 I don't do well in a neighborhood. That's just ridicoulous.
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Translations
A few funnies lately...
The other day I was chasing a fly with the fly swatter and finally got it. Kathryn thought I was "really super fast! Even faster than the fly!" And I told her, "the fly is going downtown!" And she goes, "to BUGTOWN!". Cracked me up.
The same day, she asked me something about Eeyore and "Shampoo"...
She calls The Teenage Mutant Ninga Turtles, "Teen Na-minga Turtles".
Yellow is "lellow"
Ninga is "inga"
For Jake-man, translations are below:
"Down" - means for me to pick him UP
"Carry-oh" - means to carry him
"Love-lou" - love you
"Help you" - means he needs help
"Pweeeeese" - please
Pretty much, all the boy needs to do is say Mama and I'm wrapped around his little finger. He is the most tender-hearted boy on the planet. They say so many things that are just too darn cute to correct. I let Kathryn call a window, "lindo" for over a year because it was the cutest thing EVER. Her preschool teacher corrected her this past year. I suppose they do have to grow up but they're growing so fast. I'm perfectly fine having a word or two linger in their sweet language for as long as possible...
The other day I was chasing a fly with the fly swatter and finally got it. Kathryn thought I was "really super fast! Even faster than the fly!" And I told her, "the fly is going downtown!" And she goes, "to BUGTOWN!". Cracked me up.
The same day, she asked me something about Eeyore and "Shampoo"...
She calls The Teenage Mutant Ninga Turtles, "Teen Na-minga Turtles".
Yellow is "lellow"
Ninga is "inga"
For Jake-man, translations are below:
"Down" - means for me to pick him UP
"Carry-oh" - means to carry him
"Love-lou" - love you
"Help you" - means he needs help
"Pweeeeese" - please
Pretty much, all the boy needs to do is say Mama and I'm wrapped around his little finger. He is the most tender-hearted boy on the planet. They say so many things that are just too darn cute to correct. I let Kathryn call a window, "lindo" for over a year because it was the cutest thing EVER. Her preschool teacher corrected her this past year. I suppose they do have to grow up but they're growing so fast. I'm perfectly fine having a word or two linger in their sweet language for as long as possible...
Monday, August 20, 2012
Goodbyes & Hellos
Our neighbors just moved away yesterday. They've grown to be one of our closest friends over the last 5 years. More than just being one of my closest friends "away from home", they've seen Kathryn and Jacob grow up since the day they were born. That part is probably what makes me sad the most. The kids adore "Miss Brandy and Mr. Jason." It's one thing to have good neighbors; it's another to have good neighbors that are good friends. That's precious. There are many, many things I will miss but probably the most is knowing that any day, any time, we could walk across the street and get a much needed hug or know we have a friend who cares to listen. When you have good friends and they move away, it's not 'goodbye' but 'see you soon'. I hope it's really soon.
I made this for the family moving in. We've been told they're moving in from out of state - I sure know that feeling! I'll never forget meeting Jeff and Heather (our other neighbors who also moved away) the first day we moved in and her welcoming us with some baked bread from a local bakery. She won me over at day one. I hope our new neighbors feel just as welcomed as we did.
I made this for the family moving in. We've been told they're moving in from out of state - I sure know that feeling! I'll never forget meeting Jeff and Heather (our other neighbors who also moved away) the first day we moved in and her welcoming us with some baked bread from a local bakery. She won me over at day one. I hope our new neighbors feel just as welcomed as we did.
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
8 Year Anniversary
Today we are celebrating 8 years of marriage. EIGHT years. Isn't that incredible? I told Matt the other day that we were celebrating 8 years but I was thankful for 7.. ;) I really am thankful for each year even though of course it isn't always fun or "easy". The hard year actually makes the celebrating more meaningful. I know when we first got married I had a very different perspective on marriage than I do now. I imagine that perspective is ever-evolving as each year brings new things, lessons, twists and turns. Someone told me when we were celebrating our 6th year "oh, it's not a big year like 5th or 10th, etc..." Well, in my opinion, every year is a BIG year in my book. These days, that is not common anymore. I can say with absolute confidence and certainty that we are celebrating today, and each year, because of the grace of God. How blessed am I!?
We got to celebrate in Atlanta two weekends ago just the two of us. It was such a great weekend! Tonight, I'm making one of our favorite meals - actually something Matt cooked me on our "anniversary" while we were dating. And the best part, it's called Anniversary Chicken! Haha. Seriously. It's delicious though.
Here's the recipe:
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
6 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
We got to celebrate in Atlanta two weekends ago just the two of us. It was such a great weekend! Tonight, I'm making one of our favorite meals - actually something Matt cooked me on our "anniversary" while we were dating. And the best part, it's called Anniversary Chicken! Haha. Seriously. It's delicious though.
Here's the recipe:
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
6 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1/2 cup teriyaki basting sauce
1/2 cup Ranch-style salad dressing
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
3 green onions, chopped
1/2 (3 ounce) can bacon bits
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley, for garnish
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
- In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add chicken breasts, and saute 4 to 5 minutes each side, until lightly browned.
- Place browned chicken breasts in a 9x13 inch baking dish. Brush with teriyaki sauce, then spoon on salad dressing. Sprinkle with cheese, green onions and bacon bits.
- Bake for 25 to 35 minutes, or until chicken is no longer pink and juices run clear. Garnish with parsley and serve.
Monday, August 6, 2012
The Hiatus
Hello Blog World!
It has embarrassingly been nearly TWO years since my last post. What in the world!? It's like I've been 37 weeks preggo for forever now. You'll be happy to know that we now have a handsome little man, Jacob, who melts my heart as much as his big sister Kathryn does. He is my tender-hearted, full of smiles, sweet boy. Blessed beyond measure doesn't even come close to how thankful I am for my family. This is a big month of celebration for us. August 14th will be our 8 year anniversary!! Also, August 27th will be sweet Jacob's 2nd birthday! How do I stop time again?
I haven't figured out how I want to go forward with this blog. I'm not sure if I want to keep up with family updates; which clearly, I am awesome at doing. Or if I want to use it as an outlet to encourage others. Or for "lessons learned" as those seem to happen to me every single day! Whatever the case, I'm excited to be back and looking forward to blogging on a much more regular basis!
Goodnight for now!
It has embarrassingly been nearly TWO years since my last post. What in the world!? It's like I've been 37 weeks preggo for forever now. You'll be happy to know that we now have a handsome little man, Jacob, who melts my heart as much as his big sister Kathryn does. He is my tender-hearted, full of smiles, sweet boy. Blessed beyond measure doesn't even come close to how thankful I am for my family. This is a big month of celebration for us. August 14th will be our 8 year anniversary!! Also, August 27th will be sweet Jacob's 2nd birthday! How do I stop time again?
I haven't figured out how I want to go forward with this blog. I'm not sure if I want to keep up with family updates; which clearly, I am awesome at doing. Or if I want to use it as an outlet to encourage others. Or for "lessons learned" as those seem to happen to me every single day! Whatever the case, I'm excited to be back and looking forward to blogging on a much more regular basis!
Goodnight for now!
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
37 Weeks
How far along? 37 weeks, 1 day!!!!!
Total weight gain/loss: 25ish pounds
Maternity clothes? Nope! Ok, just kidding..
Sleep: GOOD. I've been sleeping so well the past week. Thank the Lord!
Movement: He's still practicing his ninja skills. I'm so excited to check them out and see what he's learned! ;)
Best moment this week: Being able to be at WEEK 37!!!
Cravings: Sweet tea. Sweet tea. Sweet tea.
Belly Button: still out - or "not" if I'm having a contraction!
What I miss: sweet tea daily - go figure. And turkey sandwiches (COLD). Yum. That sounds so good right now. I am not changing this section either. I miss not being able to "easily" shave my legs. I miss not having as much energy although lately I have had some good bursts of energy! I capitalize on those moments :) Soon enough though, soon enough!
What I am looking forward to: Kathryn being the coolest big sister EVER and meeting our little man!!
Total weight gain/loss: 25ish pounds
Maternity clothes? Nope! Ok, just kidding..
Sleep: GOOD. I've been sleeping so well the past week. Thank the Lord!
Movement: He's still practicing his ninja skills. I'm so excited to check them out and see what he's learned! ;)
Best moment this week: Being able to be at WEEK 37!!!
Cravings: Sweet tea. Sweet tea. Sweet tea.
Belly Button: still out - or "not" if I'm having a contraction!
What I miss: sweet tea daily - go figure. And turkey sandwiches (COLD). Yum. That sounds so good right now. I am not changing this section either. I miss not being able to "easily" shave my legs. I miss not having as much energy although lately I have had some good bursts of energy! I capitalize on those moments :) Soon enough though, soon enough!
What I am looking forward to: Kathryn being the coolest big sister EVER and meeting our little man!!
Let's just say I'm a little over-the-moon right now. It's exciting to know that sooner than later we'll be holding our little man and I will be WELL 'over-the-moon'!!! But for now, I'm just so excited and THANKFUL to be so far along!! I have my next dr's appointment tomorrow morning so we'll see!
Oh and here's something comical for you... Last Wednesday when I told Matt and my family about already being 3cm dilated/etc.. see if you can find the common thread between their comments...and believe me, we ALL have laughed over these!! :)
Matt: "Really!? Does that mean he might come tonight? What about tomorrow? I have a huge meeting on Thursday at 10am so anytime after 11am would be great!"
Mom: "Wow! So he could come any day now! My conferences won't be over until Tuesday of next week so next Wednesday would be the best!"
Kirsten: "Of course he'd decide to come when school starts up again and not during the 3 weeks I have off! I don't have classes on Thursdays or Fridays so..."
Dad: "Next Thursday would be the best for me; plus you'll be at 37 weeks.. I let the staff have half a day on Friday's so we'd have the whole weekend!"
So being the "people-pleaser" that I have been known to be.. Please note the following (you know, because I have total control of what they're asking for...)
Matt's request: CHECK.
Mom's request: CHECK.
Kirsten's request: Pending...
Dad's request: Pending...
I'll keep you posted!!! :)
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
36 Weeks
How far along? 36 weeks, 2 days
Total weight gain/loss: +24-25 pounds
Maternity clothes? you bet!
Sleep: Not too shabby - getting used to these 11pm/2am/4am/5:30am breaks..
Movement: He's getting strong! I think he's seeing how far out he can stretch his legs!
Best moment this week: The ladies from SS class gave me a 'Diapers and Wipes' shower!! It was perfect! We had lunch together, they had balloons and a cake and it was just so thoughtful. I was very touched by the girls and so thankful for such an awesome group of ladies.
Cravings: Sweet tea. Sweet tea. Sweet tea.
Belly Button: still out
What I miss: sweet tea daily - go figure. And turkey sandwiches (COLD). Yum. That sounds so good right now. I am not changing this section either. I miss not being able to "easily" shave my legs. I miss not having as much energy although lately I have had some good bursts of energy! I capitalize on those moments :)
What I am looking forward to: Kathryn being the coolest big sister EVER and meeting our little man!!
Total weight gain/loss: +24-25 pounds
Maternity clothes? you bet!
Sleep: Not too shabby - getting used to these 11pm/2am/4am/5:30am breaks..
Movement: He's getting strong! I think he's seeing how far out he can stretch his legs!
Best moment this week: The ladies from SS class gave me a 'Diapers and Wipes' shower!! It was perfect! We had lunch together, they had balloons and a cake and it was just so thoughtful. I was very touched by the girls and so thankful for such an awesome group of ladies.
Cravings: Sweet tea. Sweet tea. Sweet tea.
Belly Button: still out
What I miss: sweet tea daily - go figure. And turkey sandwiches (COLD). Yum. That sounds so good right now. I am not changing this section either. I miss not being able to "easily" shave my legs. I miss not having as much energy although lately I have had some good bursts of energy! I capitalize on those moments :)
What I am looking forward to: Kathryn being the coolest big sister EVER and meeting our little man!!
I had my 36 week check up this morning. Turns out, I'm 3cm dilated and 80% effaced (hope that's not too much info for anyone!). WHOA. This is uncharted territory for me as by this point, Kathryn was already BORN. Hopefully we can make it to 37 weeks -- full term! I'm very excited though. I'm confident in Christ taking care of us and our little boy and we all know His timing is perfect. "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your understanding"... Prov. 3:5 has always been a favorite for a reason.
Thursday, August 12, 2010
35 Weeks
How far along? 35 weeks, 3 days
Total weight gain/loss: +23ish pounds maybe??
Maternity clothes? yeppers and not really planning on that changing overnight!
Sleep: On a scale of 1 to 10, I'd say about a 5 or 6. Definetly could be worse and I'm so grateful it really isn't 'that bad'. Those darn bathroom breaks get the best of me!
Movement: Moving like a ninja!!
Best moment this week: Being able to say that I'm 35 weeks and 3 days along! I'm so thankful that the Lord is keeping our boy safe and sound. And not that this isn't a 'best moment' everyday, but spending my days with sweet Kathryn. She just amazes me daily and I'm so excited to see you as a big sister!
Cravings: Sweet tea. I'm soo tired of drinking water all the time! ;)
Belly Button: still out
What I miss: sweet tea daily - go figure. And turkey sandwiches (COLD). Yum. That sounds so good right now. I am not changing this section either. I miss not being able to "easily" shave my legs. I miss not having as much energy. Today I missed not being able to 'jump up' and run and grab the mail lady before she drove off!!
What I am looking forward to: Kathryn being the coolest big sister EVER and meeting our little man!!
Total weight gain/loss: +23ish pounds maybe??
Maternity clothes? yeppers and not really planning on that changing overnight!
Sleep: On a scale of 1 to 10, I'd say about a 5 or 6. Definetly could be worse and I'm so grateful it really isn't 'that bad'. Those darn bathroom breaks get the best of me!
Movement: Moving like a ninja!!
Best moment this week: Being able to say that I'm 35 weeks and 3 days along! I'm so thankful that the Lord is keeping our boy safe and sound. And not that this isn't a 'best moment' everyday, but spending my days with sweet Kathryn. She just amazes me daily and I'm so excited to see you as a big sister!
Cravings: Sweet tea. I'm soo tired of drinking water all the time! ;)
Belly Button: still out
What I miss: sweet tea daily - go figure. And turkey sandwiches (COLD). Yum. That sounds so good right now. I am not changing this section either. I miss not being able to "easily" shave my legs. I miss not having as much energy. Today I missed not being able to 'jump up' and run and grab the mail lady before she drove off!!
What I am looking forward to: Kathryn being the coolest big sister EVER and meeting our little man!!
This has been another great week! I'm really excited and grateful to be so close to "36 weeks"!! A friend the other day said I was probably one of the few to be excited 'near the end of pregnancy'. We just have so much to be thankful for and are just praying that he camps out as long as need be! Although, Kathryn almost every other day now keeps asking me when we're going to see Baby Brother...or she'll say, "I want to see Baby Brother tomorrow..and we'll feed him, and change his diaper, and he'll sleep, and play with my blocks, and watch me dance, and..." And every time I tell her she's getting to be such a big girl, she always replys, "and Baby Brother is growing big too!"
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
34 Weeks
How far along? 34 weeks, 2 days
Total weight gain/loss: +21 pounds
Maternity clothes? yeppers and not really planning on that changing overnight!
Sleep: Not too bad - praise God! Still not a fan of the bathroom breaks but I'll live :) I did get up this morning around 4am for a bowl of cereal and good solid quiet time but other than that, sleep has been decent.
Movement: Moving around like a champ. He's strong!
Best moment this week: We had our 34 week check up yesterday and had an ultrasound - of course it was WONDERFUL getting to see our little man. He's approx. 5 pounds, 1 oz and in the 40th percentile. WooHoo!! He's measuring perfectly and fluids and all look great. Thank you Lord!!
Cravings: Food.
Belly Button: still out
What I miss: sweet tea daily - go figure. And turkey sandwiches (COLD). Yum. That sounds so good right now. I am not changing this section either. I miss not being able to "easily" shave my legs. I miss not having as much energy.
What I am looking forward to: Kathryn being the coolest big sister EVER and meeting our little man!!
Maternity clothes? yeppers and not really planning on that changing overnight!
Sleep: Not too bad - praise God! Still not a fan of the bathroom breaks but I'll live :) I did get up this morning around 4am for a bowl of cereal and good solid quiet time but other than that, sleep has been decent.
Movement: Moving around like a champ. He's strong!
Best moment this week: We had our 34 week check up yesterday and had an ultrasound - of course it was WONDERFUL getting to see our little man. He's approx. 5 pounds, 1 oz and in the 40th percentile. WooHoo!! He's measuring perfectly and fluids and all look great. Thank you Lord!!
Cravings: Food.
Belly Button: still out
What I miss: sweet tea daily - go figure. And turkey sandwiches (COLD). Yum. That sounds so good right now. I am not changing this section either. I miss not being able to "easily" shave my legs. I miss not having as much energy.
What I am looking forward to: Kathryn being the coolest big sister EVER and meeting our little man!!
It's been another great week! I'm so thankful he's doing so well measurement/size-wise. I'm just so excited for him to actually get here!! I told mom last week I thought I had mastered the art of "nesting". I don't think there's anything left on my list left to do - except continue to be thrilled and excited!! :) I actually have my hospital bag packed and kept thinking, "so this is what it feels like to pack a bag in advance!" We didn't really have that luxury with Kathryn. I don't think I'll ever forget the day she was born and seeing Matt run around the house throwing anything he saw into a bag! The thought makes me smile every time I think about it.
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