Did you know?

If you google "show and tell letter u" my post is #2 on the list? I only discovered that because that is the top google search to bring people to my blog. Crazy! Here's the post it takes you to:

Too Much Show and Tell

Bryan and Sarah

I've mentioned these great friends before. We've just found out that Bryan's dad has passed away unexpectedly. They've updated their blog here with all the information. Please keep them in your prayers this week as they deal with all the logistics.

Well look at that...

I'm back! I took a very long blogging break without warning but I have a very good reason why. I've still been reading other blogs daily and commenting now and then but I had a secret I wanted to keep and I knew if I blogged I'd give it away.

Back when I first begin blogging I gave a mini explanation as to why. On December 17, 2004 I had a miscarriage at 11 weeks. This fall we discovered we are expecting our third child! We are thrilled! However, the due date was the same as the baby we lost three years ago (I think I have the year wrong in the post I linked to). Yesterday was the big day- and we made it! I've had my first appointment already and everything looks good. So baby #3 is coming with much fanfare and a lots of fireworks- July 4!

I'm feeling great- just very sleepy. And very emotional! An old friend sent me an email with this video in it and I completely lost it this morning. Join me in my hormonal mess:

Good Links...

I am a penny pincher...a saver...a bargain shopper. I love a great deal and I really love a great tip. This month at MomAdvice Amy is doing a "Month of Savings". Each day she is posting money saving tips and the total amounts you can save. This website is full of great articles and blog entries. It's one of my favorites!

I know a lot of my readers come from The Homespun Heart but if you haven't been there yet you really need to stop by! Monica and her sister, Carrie from With All That I've Been Given, are doing a Sister Swap. I've never done a swap before and I'm really excited to join in the fun!

I'd love to hear about some fun links from the rest of you. Leave me a comment so I can stop by!

Five Things

Carrie at With All That I've Been Given tagged me for this "Five Things I love about Jesus" meme a little while ago. I haven't forgotten about it - in fact, I've been overthinking it for the past few days. It's hard to narrow it down and hard to put into words. I've decided that if I tried to be too descriptive or wordy I'd just mess things up. So instead I thought I'd list the five verses that talk about Jesus that I love the most. I'll let the Word speak for me!

II Corinthians 1:20 For all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen, unto the glory of God by us.

Romans 10:4 For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.

Luke 7:13 And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her, and said unto her, Weep not.

Hebrews 13:6 So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.

Romans 9:16 So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.

Want to know why I picked a particular verse? Feel free to ask me in the comments. And I would love to hear some verses that you all love (and why)! Consider that my tag since all of you have already participated in this I think!

Home, Home, Home

Laundry, laundry, laundry. At least I cleaned before I left!

We had such a great time. Over the weekend we went to a 15 year reunion for Encounter Revival Ministries (we were involved there for 7 years). We caught up with old friends, encouraged each other and ate lots of good food. Throughout the 72 hours we were there I think I slept 11! One night at 2:30 I was still up giggling in a room full of girls when I realized I HAD to get to bed! My husband "outed me" with the blog so now I'm writing with a twinge of embarrassment instead of the freedom of writing for complete strangers. Yikes!

Every time we get together as a group there is a new "fad". Last time, everyone had ipods. This time everyone is on facebook. I assumed those things were for teenagers but after I got the "every one's doing it" speech I decided to succumb to the peer pressure. Oh. my. word. I can't stop with facebook!! I am forever linking to and looking for people. This morning I talked to someone who I haven't talked to in 6 years! I can't stop! I finally ran a virus scan on my computer just to force myself to walk away. It's an addiction.

We are running to the bookstore to pick up some supplies for VBS. Hopefully a trip away from the computer will allow for the lure of facebook to wear off. Good grief.

My random post...

I have been missing in action on the internet but definately not in my non-computer life. It's been nothing BUT action around there! I'm apologizing ahead of time for a very boring post filled with lots of exclamation points. The next post will be better, I hope!

• Today was Charlie's last day of preschool. There was a little ceremony and picnic to celebrate. I always thought preschool graduations were so silly...it's just preschool. Until it was my son's preschool graduation. I was actually a little teary! His teacher was just phenomenal. She was my first impression of the public school system in our town and I am impressed. She is coming for a wrap-up home visit at the end of the month and I'll probably gush all over her.
• Henry has a horrid ear infection. Charlie never had one and Henry has only had two. This one is killer. The last two nights he'll wake up in his bed and scream. The only thing that soothes him is The Wiggles. I've had enough of the midnight visits from The Wiggles! I was singing "Wiggly Party" while I drove to work this morning. Please, ear infection, go away!
• Chad and I are off to Mayo again next week. He has a minor surgery that will have major results. We are excited (for the results- not for the actual surgery)! But the last few days have been about getting the boys routines together, getting my house ready (my parents are staying with the boys), and PACKING. Packing is tricky this time. We qualified for a flight from Wings of Mercy, a non-profit organization that flies patients to far away hospitals for free. It may have something to do with the fact we have been to Minnesota 8 times in the last year! The flight is a small private plane so we are limited to 15lbs each. That's about the size of a carry on each...and we'll be there a week. A week! Any packing tips would be greatly appreciated!
• I pre-shopped two garage sales this week and got TONS of clothes for Henry and Charlie. Honestly, I spent $30 and got them enough clothes to last a year (or more depending on how fast they grow!). I was thrilled. One of my friends told me "I just want to get rid of it all- everything is a quarter..." Some of the stuff was like new! Woohoo! With boys, I'm all about garage sale clothes. Boys are destructive! I also sold some things on consignment and was able to pick up some summer clothes for myself at the shop. My prize? A red Ann Taylor dress for $15. I've never had a red dress and I love it!
• My mother in law is in charge of the annual hospice auction tomorrow night. We, of course, are automatic workers since we are relatives and all. I love the auction! It's so much fun! And it's awesome to see the hard work she puts into it come to fruition in one big bang! We look forward to it every year and I can't wait to go. It's like a really fun date night only Chad works one of the silent auction tables and I'm on the tear down crew. So technically we aren't anywhere near each other...but it's still lots of fun!
• Last but not least...we have the scariest ant hill ever in our front yard. Just thinking about it makes me itch. Chad told me not to go near it but I wanted to see for myself. It's huge! Honestly, it's as big around as a table top and the holes are mini m&m size. There are massive armies of ants crawling all over each other in and out of holes. Gag. I'm so grossed out I can hardly stand it. The ant killers are coming today (some men from the church) and I'm praying those ants go away. Honestly, someone told Chad to dig up the anthill...can you imagine? I'm envisioning ants swarming the shovel and overtaking Chad, dragging him down into their ant village underground. Blech!! Ants!!!

I'll be updating while we are away next week. There are no distractions out there... just me and Chad hanging out in the hospital room! Have a great weekend!

Blog Design Giveaway

I realize my blog is very typical and ordinary. People stop by and say "Beginner. Look at that sorry template." When I read blogs and like the design I always look to see who designed it. The majority of the time it's Jules at EveryDay Mommy! I've set a goal for myself...if I blog a certain number of blogs my reward is a new template by Jules. But, oh!! To win a FREE design for Mother's Day? How wonderful would that be? I'm dreaming of a shiny new template already... Click the button and stop by Everday Mommy and enter!

Teach Me!!!

Okay, someone out there has added me to her Google Reader. How did you do that? I read quite a few blogs and would love to use reader of some kind. Teach me!

Also, someone found me through Technorati. How? What is that?

I would appreciate lots of tips! I can blog (sort of- I currently struggle with adding a button) and I can READ blogs but that's about my extent of blog knowledge.

Thanks!

Have a Good Morning

I am not a morning person. It's not that I like to sleep (I don't nap for fear I may miss something important) I just don't like to get up. I have a very cozy bed, soft sheets, and heavy, toasty blankets. Not to mention my bed is usually full of snuggly kids which makes me want to stay in there even longer.

This morning I woke up at 5:45...my alarm doesn't go off until 6:30. I was wide awake so I got up. Oh, why don't I do that more often? The house was quiet and I was able to drink my coffee and read a little more of a new book I got in the mail the other day. The book is called The Contemplative Mom by Ann Kroeker. I've been reading her blog regularly and I was curious about the subject of her book. I struggle so much with finding time alone with the Lord. What kind of Christian am I if I'm living on my past experiences? I'm reading the book very slowly and savoring it. There are tips, verses to "contemplate", and quotes from real moms. It's refreshing.

I stopped by one blog this morning. I was so thankful I did! Please read the prayer my friend Monica posted...it's just what I needed.

Oh, to learn more stuff...

Okay, I'm really frustrated. I've read about bloggers who have lost a post and I just lost my first one. I worked really hard on it and it had lots of links. I was very proud of myself and well, pride cometh before the fall. I wasn't that proud...my hand slipped and however these things happen this thing happened. So here is my second attempt at my post about "Things I want to learn..." (and losing a post isn't one of them).

I've been a blog reader for about 5 months and like most readers my list of favorites varies greatly (they aren't all on my blogroll yet!). There are the mom's of young kids, the pastor's wives, the frugal ones, the ones that make me think, and the one's that make me want to learn. Because reading blogs is fun but learning something new is so much better!

Lately I've been reading different posts about books bloggers are reading, going to read, or recommend. When I go to the library it generally consists of thirty minutes in the kids section and a quick glance at the new books for me. I blindly grab one and hope it's good. I don't have that much time to read so I really don't have time to read something that isn't very good. So tonight I went on a solo trip to the library. And I was armed with a list! Here are the books I brought back and the blogs where I found them:

1. Eats, Shoots & Leaves by Lynne Truss - Saw it mentioned here.
2. Reading like a Writer by Francine Prose - Read about it at this blog I think but I can't find where. I may have seen it somewhere else but this blog is still pretty great.
3. Survival for Busy Women by Emilie Barnes - Read about her here (June 23, 2005 entry) but our library didn't have that book only this one.

The good thing is I'm really excited about these books. That means I'll read them every chance I get! Although, I'm thinking book #3 should be first....

A Dyson??

Considering my profile at the top left of the main page of my blog says "I don't love vacuuming..." you are probably wondering why I would enter this contest at Five Minutes for Mom. Maybe if I had a Dyson I wouldn't hate vacuuming so much? I'm willing to try anything to become a better vacuumer. I read about the contest when it was first posted and there were only 6 people listed. But now....I think I'm 562. Hmmmm. Still, the chances are better than a contest at the grocery store! Stop by and enter!

I used to write...

A lot, actually. I would list it as a hobby whenever that question would come up. Mostly just letters and journaling. I started writing letters to my summer camp friends when I was 10. As time went on and I met different people (college, summer jobs, old friends who moved) my letter writing circle increased. I would even write the mom of one of my college friends- mostly because I loved hearing back from her. She says the most beautiful things in her letters. My senior year in high school I started journaling...daily. I remember thinking that I wouldn't make it another minute without my head exploding when I was 17. I found a notebook and discovered that if I could empty all those things swirling around in my head onto that paper I could breathe again. Journaling was my escape. I would journal so much that I'd go through a journal or two a year from start to finish. Who actually fills a journal? I have stacks of journals spanning a ten year period of my life. High school, college, marriage, moves, my first child...

But then I stopped. It didn't fade out like some hobbies do- I know the exact day I stopped. I had a miscarriage in December of 2005 and I didn't know what to write after that. I wanted to write. I wanted to send letters to my friends and tell them I was okay and I wanted to write in my journal and tell God I wasn't mad. Holding the pen over the paper and staring at the blank page seemed daunting instead of refreshing. There were no words to write what I was feeling and I felt like if I actually wrote about the miscarriage that would confirm that it was true. If I didn't write it down it would be like it never happened.

The truth is I was okay and I wasn't mad. I was in a lot of pain. I've never felt that broken in my life. But, like any major life changing event, it re-shaped my heart and strengthened my faith. The trouble was I couldn't get back into my writing. It took awhile to work through some of my fears. I've bought two journals since and they are still bare. I sporadically send a note card every now and then but they are brief. I'm not sure why. I think it has something to do with getting out of the habit and developing some new ones. I miss writing. My husband and my mom have been asking when I'll write again and I usually shrug my shoulders and change the subject. I miss it but what if I'm no good at it anymore? What if I've become one of those "how are you? I am fine," letter writers? Sometimes I feel like I don't have words in me anymore.

I've decided to jump in with this blog. There is accountability here. I love to read blogs but I especially like to check in with the blogs that I know are updated frequently. I'm going to write and maybe it will be great reading and maybe it will be pretty terrible. But at least I'm writing. And accountable. And it already feels pretty good.