When the going gets tough...

When Truett was a baby I had my ideas of "tough". Getting him to go back to sleep when he woke up early from a nap, eating table food exclusively, or just getting the concept of "no-no". These days there is a whole new realm of "tough". Issues like: obeying immediately, not arguing or "talking back", or just being unkind to his younger brother. Don't get me wrong he is great when it comes to helping me cleanup or checking on his brother. Sometimes he is an angel that can do "no" wrong. BUT... there are days when I'm asking him not to whine more than I should or asking him not to push his brother, or saying "don't ask why, just obey". I feel like a failure on those days, but I know I am a mother, who's not perfect, saved by grace and wanting and striving to bring my children up in the ways of the Lord. This is not my excuse to be lazy in doing those things, it's me being honest with you.

Many months ago my mother-in-law told me of a book she's reading called Boundaries, she went on and on about how great it was. I looked it up and found Boundaries With Kids; after reading the reviews and reading an excerpt I put it on my wish-list. Within a week or two my sweet mother-in-law picked it up and gave me an early Christmas gift! I started reading it yesterday and became greatly intrigued and enlightened.

I have only read the first chapter and started on the second. I probably won't agree with everything they say or teach but these guys seem very wise and biblical (so far). I feel like everything (so far) lines up with God's Word and is very beneficial. I thought I might share a little through my blog on the highlights and lessons that help me the most.

Right now I struggle with doing the right thing v/s the easy thing. Before me is the biggest challenge of my life (parenting) and without God, and his Word, I know this will be an insurmountable task. Wayne is both my biggest cheerleader and worst critic (I need both). God, please give me the strength to do the right thing more than the easy thing. It's not all about Truett, but Jett and this (no named) itty bitty are still going through the "other" tough times.

8 months!

Move over mommy, Jett is making his presence known! Jett is getting so very big. I'm shocked and a little ready that we have 6-8 weeks left. Shocked because it's gone by so fast already. I'm not ready for him to be here. We don't have his room set up. We are supposed to move in the next 2-3 weeks. Which gives me 3-5 weeks to get things in order and most of that time I will be as big as a house! A little ready because I'm getting BIG and cumbersome. My nights have been filled with potty breaks ranging from ever 1.5 - 4 hours, errrrhhh! I am not overly uncomfortable but definitely moaning and belly aching a good deal. My baby shower is less than 2 weeks away and I have to Christmas shop and decorate and move and set up the nursery before he gets here. A little overwhelming, but maybe it will give me something to do. Since I'm not exercising as much these days I've cut back to 2-3 days a week, due to the strength of the contractions. I don't want the exercise to do too much work on my body and help me dilate before time to deliver. BUT I have a feeling he will not make it to his due date, Thanksgiving week! I think I've grown since I took these pictures. :) Maybe I will post a 8 1/2 month picture.

Oh, my aching feet!

30 weeks

I haven't been to workout in nearly 2 weeks, Truett had the flu and then a lingering cough, so, we stayed in as much as possible. I took it easy (okay, so, not really). I went at it like a mad woman, it felt so good to be hitting the elliptical and getting my heartrate up a little. I felt really good after working out and then came the grocery trip. We headed to the dreaded WAL-MART, was today a holiday? It's not that packed unless it's a holiday or Christmas time. We ran into a few people and then seemed to walk forever and ever. My right foot had a stabbing pain in the bottom of it and my legs started aching as soon as we walked in. I have never been more ready to leave a store than I was today. I got home as quickly as I could, gave Truett a quick lunch and sat down with a bowl of cereal for lunch! I was too tired to fix my yummy avocado, tomato, cucumber, spinach and balsamic vinegarette like usual. I was too tired. I headed for a nap as soon as Truett was down for his nap and woke up to do sink full of dishes (we don't have a dishwasher). I find my legs are still throbbing. I guess I really over did it today. I don't remember getting so worn out with Truett but maybe having a sweet and busy 2 year old might add a little to my plate ;) It may seem like I'm complaining, but believe me, there is NOTHING I would rather be doing right now than to be bringing my 2 year old to the potty and watching this new little man wiggle around in a cramped tummy! I love my life, just want to moan and belly ache, now back to paradise!

11 weeks...

I definitly feel bigger this go round! It's like my body remembers and kind of gives to the memory. I'm not complaining, I actually felt the little one this past week and remember this feeling although it becomes more pronounced and stronger. It is reassuring although it is few and far between right now. I can't wait until I feel the hiccups and the rolling around. I have been trying not to say this, but I've been nauseated. I was NOT nauseated with Truett, unless you count the hunger pangs that turned into nausea. I just started about 10 weeks along and it has been coming and going. Now, I haven't thrown up or anything, but it's a come and go feeling. I don't know why I would have it this time and not the last, but like people say "each pregnancy is different". Hopefully this pregnancy will be as smooth as my last one. Last pregnancy I had some spotting at 8 and a half weeks and none this time.

3 reasons I want a VBAC...

Many think I'm a little silly to want to try a vbac (vaginal birth after cesarean). It would be nice to go ahead and schedule this little one's birthdate. I would even have the baby a week or two earlier perhaps then if I just waited on him/her.

1. It's the natural way. Natural birth is the best birth for you and for your baby. Despite what you might be told all medication (including epidural) has an affect on your baby. The medications used during birth cross to your baby and change the way your body responds to labor. Pain medications can affect your labor — your blood pressure may drop, your labor may slow down or speed up, you may become nauseous, and you may feel a sense of confusion and lack of control. With Truett I read "Childbirth without fear" and "The Birth Book", they both had lots of great information. With this one I'm reading "The Silent Knife", lots of information, I do take the information that seems to pertain to me and keep an open mind.

2. It's safer than a repeat cesarean. Women who have cesareans suffer from more infertility than women who have vaginal births. This infertility is related directly to the physical effects of the surgery. There is a higher risk of blot clots following a c-section than a vaginal birth. The severity and length of pain after a cesarean is much greater than after a vaginal birth.
The risk of maternal death is higher. 4 times more likely to die after having a c-section than after giving birth naturally.

3. Recovery is faster. Typically days (1-7) with vaginal birth v/s 4-6 weeks with Cesarean.


These are a few of my reasons to want to go naturally this time. Last time I wanted to do it naturally and did not get the opportunity, I'm really looking forward to working with midwives and Lord-willing I will go naturally this time.

More to come on natural childbirth. I hope to let you guys kind of in on my thoughts and plans throughout my pregnancy. Like I said, MY plans, goals, thoughts, they are not set in stone and might not be what God wills for me. I pray God makes me pliable and able to be molded for his will and most importantly his Glory!

Surprise...

I don't know how else to tell you, but I'm....



I can't believe Truett is going to be a big brother and I'm really going to have another little boy or girl! God is so good!

Love is as strong as death...

Song of Solomon 8:6-7
Place me like a seal over your heart, like a seal on your arm; for love is as strong as death, its jealousy unyielding as the grave. It burns like blazing fire, like a mighty flame. Many waters cannot quench love; rivers cannot wash it away. If one were to give all the wealth of his house for love, it would be utterly scorned.

What does Truett mean?

I've searched for Truett's name many times and there is very little known about where this name originated. One site says, Truett is of English origin and means: little, honest and another site says his name means Truth!

My mission field

I happened upon this blog not too long ago and loved this post! Of course I am not a mother of five and not everything in the post applies but this is my heart and how I feel about my "mission work".



A Strange Dissapearance

Truett's 2nd Birthday Party was a hit!

We had so much fun, I don't know who had more fun Truett, his friends, his parents, or his friends parents! If anyone was wondering about Jump N Jive, they are well worth there money! They were a tremendous help, not pushy, very directive, very helpful, and very accommodating, and they bagged everything up and cleaned up after us.... nothing for me to do other than enjoy Truett's party with him! Wayne was such a big help, I know why it takes two parents and not just one! More pictures to come!

3...2...1... We have LIFT OFF........

*****Update******

Truett used his big boy potty 7 times today! SEVEN!!! He did have about 2 really wet diapers but now I have to remind myself to ask him!! Maybe it should be called mommy potty training. :)


Well, not quite, but Truett has had his first "official" PEE PEE! Truett loves to concentrate when we take his diaper off and then try to "get" us. Mommy and Daddy are on to this and almost always take precautionary measures. But, on more than one occasion he has SURPRISED someone else. I will occassionally take him to the potty and say "okay, if you need to tee tee on the changing table then you can tee tee in your potty", as he sits and stares at me, then announces "All through, I poo pooed" translated I pee peed, BUT nothing really. One day he seemed to have to go bad enough, he did tee tee. So here is to many more times!!

The price of staying at home... part 1

I'm told often that I'm "lucky" to get to stay at home with my child(ren). I would say yes, I am, but it is way more than just THAT. I knew before having a family that my goal was to stay at home with my children. I wanted a safe, secure, healthy environment for my family. I knew that God created a family to be his picture of Christ and his Church. Wayne, being in a sense, Christ and me in a sense, the Church.



Our children are to be molded into their roles. I can not imagine handing that responsibility over to anyone else, ANYONE else! Not my mom, not my home church, daycare, or nanny. My secondary goal was their education. I am a byproduct of "public" school education and while many would say "See, you didn't turn out THAT bad", I know it has taken me many of years to undo what has been twisted into my brain as correct and fact.



With that being said, we didn't win the lottery or somehow save a lifetime's savings overnight. We knew we wanted to start our family and made necessary adjustments in the process. We were use to 2 brand new vehicles, a nice home, nice vacations, nice clothes and some would say a pretty good status for two young married twenty somethings. We were in a sizable amount of debt. We were living the American Dream!

Wayne and I sold both brand new vehicles and bought 2 used (10 year old) good conditioned vehicles. We stopped our shopping sprees and sold our home. Radical you say, NOT REALLY. Not when you value one thing over another. Whatever it took for us to get out of debt and allow me to be at home with our children was what we would do.

My pride hurt more than anyone will ever know but I am learning more and more about Christ likeness and humility. I'm being broken and poured out. I'm home with my little arrow and my cup runneth over.

Outsource Parenting... it's really not as bad as you think!

This is not too far from reality...

Why I stay at home... Part 2

There has been a process ever since Truett was born, a slow but steady process. I've had a lingering conviction that continues to weigh on my mind more and more. I am to be at home, I need to be at home... I'm reminded of a Bible verse "Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, So are the children of one's youth." Psalm 127:4. The warrior keeps the arrows close, and so I am to keep Truett close.

I have been called to remind Truett of God's commandments " You shall put these words of mine in your heart and soul, and you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and fix them as an emblem on your forehead. Teach them to your children, talking about them when you are at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you rise." ,






I (Wayne is included here) am who my children will learn from, spiritually, educationally, morally. It is our God-given responsibility to govern them as God governs our lives. In a sense we are to be our child's view of Christ. Some can overlook this task, but I feel it to be a very high and serious calling.

Why I stay at home... Part 1

Let me preface this blog with the fact that since I was very small I knew I wanted to be a stay at home mommy. I had a mom who stayed at home and thought this was the best possible situation. I always felt a peace at my home that I didn't with my friends with working moms. This is not to say my home was a peaceful place, but there was a "peaceful" atmosphere. Mom wasn't rushing us to and fro, sending us to a before school program or running us ragged with "things", I appreciate that. I felt a sense of security that I can't explain to you.

Now let me say, as I have grown to a wife and a mommy I look at motherhood differently. It is no longer just a convenient thing, something with status or because it was what I wanted to do. I now feel compelled to be at home, because it is my mission field. God has called me home, literally. I have found a couple other blogs that say what I wish I could say, so eloquently.


This is a wonderful article that can better describe how I see my position:

http://www.boundless.org/2005/articles/a0001697.cfm
This sums it up:

"In considering that question, I found guidance in much of Scripture, but I remember finding it one place I didn't expect — in Matthew 15, the account of the Canaanite Woman whose daughter was possessed by demons. Desperately, the mother cries out for help from Jesus.

"It is not right to take the children's bread and toss it to their dogs," Jesus tells her.

"Yes, Lord," she says, "but even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters' table."

Jesus commends her faith and heals her daughter.

Hardly a commentary on today's motherhood issues, huh? After all, Jesus is making the point that the gospel was to be given first to the Jews. But I was struck by two things. The first was the mother's tenacity to do what her daughter needed, no matter the cost. The second was Jesus' phrase: "It is not right to take the children's bread and toss it to their dogs."

Jesus is talking about priorities. In His analogy, the child is understood unquestionably to be more important than the dog. The child gets the best and the first. That led me to question my own priorities. Would my child get the best and the first or would my job?

As a Christian, I knew that not only would my children be little human beings, they would be eternal souls. Their bodies would have physical needs. Their minds would have emotional and intellectual needs. But their souls would need much more: an introduction to our Lord and instruction in His Word."

100!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

WOW... 100 posts and hopefully lots more to go!

I wanted to post this video of Dr. Voddie Baucham. My next few posts will be about my passion: staying home with my children. I want you all to know my heart and where I come from. I hope to share with you some scripture and lessons I've learned that challenge me to become the mother I am to be. This video is a shake of the shoulders for some and some it is a sad reminder of just how much of our parenting is outsourced (more of the outsourced parenting to come).

When do children matter?

Don't Shred the Constitution this July 4th: Oppose Telecom Immunity!

What Every American Needs to Know (and Do) About FISA Before Tuesday, July 8th from Tim Ferriss on Vimeo.



You can go to eff.org click on the "take action" link and follow the script (there is not a lot of hard thinking involved). Please for our constitution sake and the sake of our country's future. For our children and their children!

Schedules: why are they so good for you?

After watching an episode of wife swap (portions of it), I thought about our schedule and wondered if we were too strict or too lenient in our daily schedule. As you probably know, the show matches up two families that are complete opposites in this case there was a family who schedule so much into their day that they spent little to no time together and were bombarded with activities during the summer that would make anyone complain. Yet, on the other hand there was a family that spent all day doing nothing. Such extremes, but definitely a point worth making.

We are a family of schedules. We were so "scheduled" that when Truett arrived it threw us into a 180 whirlwind. He was demanding and whiny, we didn't know what to expect and hated not knowing even more. So, to the precious advice of many a dear friends we bought a book called BABYWISE. Yea, yea, I know I've "mentioned" it many a times, but, let me let you in on a little secret. The very first night I began reading the book (I hadn't completed but a few chapters), I went to bed with an assurance that things would get better and I had a game plan. Once we implemented this simple schedule, we noticed a huge improvement of disposition and noticed that we seemed much more calm.

Fast forward to now, over a year later and my day is full of schedules: breakfast time, awake time, workout time, nap time, lunch time, alone time, play times, nap time, supper time, family time, and finally bed time! This is everyday and is only changed for special occasions (family comes in to visit, church, vacations). I enjoy the flexibility and security of a schedule, and think he does even better than I do.

There is definitely a risk of going overboard but I believe having a schedule sets you up for a balance, full, successful life.

Stay tuned, Easter pictures to follow......

Who robbed your freedom?