Going home today after an amazing week at WSSB

I've showered, my things are packed in my car & I am ready to hit the road! I would leave now if I didn't think I might miss something in today's last session from 8am to Noon.

This has been an absolutely amazing experience!! I am so thankful I pushed myself to come & very thankful my work paid my way. I learned so much while at the Summer Institute here at the Washington State school for the blind and met a lot of incredible people! I learned more about my student's vision impairment, learned about tools & technology for blind & low vision, learned about the extended core curriculum, learned about Orientation and Mobility, and heard first hand experiences from students, adults and teachers in this community. One of the most important things I am taking away is that I MUST raise the expectations for my student. We will never know how far he can go unless we step back so he can step up! I also learned if he's going to be a successful adult we must start to help him be independent, and develop good social skills. We can't think of him as the adorable 8 year old that he is because he will be an adult before we know it. We need to start NOW to help him be the very best he can be. I have taken lots of notes, I have questions and actions plans to take to each of his specialists when school starts. His IEP is due to be reviewed the end of October and that would be a perfect time to meet with all specialists & his family. I am ready to go back and be an advocate for my student! I love teaching my student!

One of our experiences this week gave me a whole new outlook and appreciation for what my student experiences. We wore night shades to walk around the campus guided first and then on our own. Then all 50 of us went to dinner wearing night shades! It was a wild experience. The NOISE was unreal! I was trying to hear every ting going on around me and this was overwhelming. Oh so many smells I thought I was going to be sick. It was very hard to carry on a conversation, I think because I was concentrating so hard. It was difficult to know when to talk, to not interrupt, and you couldn't really tell if there person you were talking to cared about what you were saying. Eating was nuts! I didn't like not knowing what I was going to bite into. I bit into the lime for my salad three times (ICKY)! I can't tell you how many times I came up with an empty fork. Cutting the chicken on my salad was not easy, nor was buttering my bread. I wasn't too much of a mess but had spilled a bit on my shirt. I dropped my napkin and left it on the floor. It was very hard to orient myself and the stuff around me. I was exhausted by the end of the night!

LeAnne did marvelous with Grandma Marcia & daddy! My mama said she one afternoon she carried my picture around, saying "mama" and then kissing the picture. I talked to her on the phone a few times. It was nice to hear her say "mama" but made me cry too cause I missed her. It has been ROUGH being away from her! I can't wait to give her a big hug and kiss when I get home! I know Grandma and daddy can't wait to have me home either. John said it's boring without me and he's definitely not cut out to be a stay at home dad. I know Grandma is exhausted! Thank-you two tons!

The other great thing that happen this week was on Wednesday we got out at noon so I took a trip down to Corvallis and met Amanda. We had lunch at Subway, got a Jamba juice, and window shopped for a few hours. It was a lot of fun! She's doing great! The conversation was a lot of fun, she missed her dad & lil sister. This was my first time to see her driving and she did awesome!! She's such a beautiful young lady! We are hoping we can afford to fly her to our house for Christmas!!

Have I mentioned I am ready to go home? Well I am definitely ready to go home! I miss my family so much! I'm praying these next few hours fly by FAST!

I'll be outa touch for a week

The time has come for this mama bear to leave her den for a week. I will be attending a class for work at the state school for the blind. This class will help me to better understand my student's vision impairment, give me the opportunity to better understand what life is like with no or little sight, meet people in the same line of work and hopefully answer some questions I have about how to better equip my student to be successful. I really really hope to find out where I can buy large print children's books that are in color. It will be a great experience!

The toughest part is leaving my little girl. I have only ever left her overnight once, that was last summer. It's been a heart wrenching few days. I've been all over the map. One second I've found peace to cope, then I am so anxious I have to practice some deep breathing to catch my breath and then I am crying. I know she's in good hands. My mama will have her a lot because my husband is working nights. She loves her grandma so much and has spent a lot of time with her so I know she'll feel comfortable. It's just hard knowing I will be so far outa touch (5 hr drive) and outa control.

I would appreciate your prayers:

1. I pray that LeAnne is safe & well (her tummy has been icky today, not handling grapes well again, she's sensitive to sugars)

2. I pray that LeAnne rolls with the punches as her routine may change.

3. I pray that she gets good rest during naps & bedtime.

4. I pray that for stamina for my mama as she tries to keep up with our busy lil bee.

5. I pray for patience for my dear husband when he has LeAnne. He's a great daddy!

6. I pray that I would find peace, know God is in control ALL the time, that I will have a safe drive & not get lost, that I would relax, not worry, learn a lot, meet a lot of people and ENJOY this opportunity.

Thank-you very much! Oh yeah the other thing is that I will have no Internet access unless the school has one I can use. YIKES I might shrivel up. LOL! If you need to get a hold of me, call me on my cell or e-mail my hubby.

Have an amazing week!!

Mama-bear

Flashback Friday - NKOTB

Yes I was one of those teenage girls who was madly in love with New Kids On The Block! My walls & ceiling were covered in posters from teen magazines. I had all their albums, new all their lyrics, had a few NKOTB video cassets, shirts, and buttons. hee hee! I remember my best friend (then) Kari & I trying to see how many times we could sing the Right Stuff on our car ride from Seattle to Graham. I am pretty sure it was the longest trip her mom had ever made. We couldn't have been more excited when a security guard at the Washington state fair let us into the NKOTB concert without a ticket! It was near the end of the concert, we had been hanging around the gate for him to please please please let us in and then he did! We got to see them perform a few songs! I loved all the boyz but I believe my favorite was Jordan Knight! My oldest niece actually went to go see them in concert a few weeks ago. She said it was awesome. They were in the 13th row and the boyz kept walking by them. See when she was little I had her wear this tee-shirt and we had photo shoots of her and all my NKOTB stuff. Ha ha! I have those pictures around here somewhere. This picture was taken in the kitchen of my childhood home.

Now that I've thoroughly embarrassed myself I would love to have you join in the fun of Flashback Friday. I hope to organize a blog carnival soon but for now I am busy getting ready to head out of town on Sunday. If you would like to join in the fun, please leave me a comment to check out your flashback on your blog. Happy Friday!!

Bloghop 09 Introduction

Time to join in the fun of Mommy blogging. I've been blogging since 2007 to give our loved ones a glimpse into our everyday life, and document our life. I love blogging, reading other peoples blogs, learning through blogs and I've recently been bit by the giveaway bug (entering them) and am thinking it would be fun to get involved in reviewing products for companies and being on the giving end of giveaways. Here are some facts facts about me:

33 years old (wow how did that happen?)

I love Jesus & our family looks to Him to guide our life.

Wife to an amazing man (May 2010 will be our 9th anniversary)

Mama to Amanda (John's daughter, 16) and LeAnne (our daughter, 21 months)

I am a Special Education Para-Professional at a teeny tiny elementary school

We live in a small farming town

Sleep deprivation almost kicked my butt then thank God she started to sleep.

I love: being a wife (I never knew marriage could be this good)
being a mama
taking pictures
scrap booking
listening to music
blogging
babbling (see random thoughts from mama bear posts) :-)

Their is a little bit about me. Please leave a comment because I'd love to meet new people. Have an amazing night! Happy blog hopping.

Thankful Thursday

I think most people have been affected by the recession in some way or another. We've made some major life changes in the last 2 years that have turned our lives upside down and we are still learning to live our new reality. In a nut shell our daughter was born 10/11/07, my husband got a new job, I quit my job as a project manager for Boeing, We bought our first home, moved across the state, moved from a big city to a small farming town, and on 10/31/08 I started a new career as a special education para-professional at small elementary school. I started writing Thankful Thursday because our family is very blessed and I want to always remember no matter how we may struggle we have a lot to be thankful for.

Since Thursday is drawing to a close I am going to write a short list, then next week I will be out of town so the next Thankful Thursday will be the first week in August. Without further rambling here's my list;


I am very thankful we took a huge LEAP of faith. I love our house. I love the peacefulness that surrounds us. I love being off this summer with my daughter & husband, I love my job, and I am happy my husband is happy with his job & our new home. (I guess you could say I am thankful for all of those things too).

2. I am thankful for our daughters! I miss Amanda a lot! I think about her many times a day. I got a message from her today saying she missed us and can't wait to come see us again. We pray we can afford to fly her up for Christmas. I pray for her daily! LeAnne your parents love you so much little girl.

3. I am incredibly thankful LeAnne's nap time/bed time routine! After 16 months of sleep deprivation, 21 months of fighting to get her to go to bed and stay asleep the last few weeks have been a welcome yet bitter sweet blessing. She has been running to her crib, can't wait to get in to read her books, and she is taking 1 1/2 to 2 hr naps and sleeping through the night. I say it's bittersweet because I loved our cuddle time, I loved kissing her many times as she fell asleep, and it shows our girl is growing up. I'll miss those times and yep this is my first of many lessons in doing what is right for her! I am also very proud of her! She's one dynamic little girl!

4. I am thankful for the cabinets my husband recently acquired through a remodeling project. His shop is looking awesome and that makes him happy. I like a happy husband!

5. Oh so thankful to be able to experience being a mama! PCOS had me thinkin I may never be a mama but PRAISE God for our daughter. It's been a wild ride for sure, I am learning, I am relaxing, and loving it.

6. Thankful for the amazing skills hypnosis techniques I learned from Nancy. I know its why I had such an amazing labor/delivery, I use these skills frequently to cope with pain, and to relax.

7. Very thankful LeAnne will be well cared for while mama goes out of town to take a class for work.

8. Thankful Stellan is doing okay tonight & praying for him and the family as they have changes coming their way. In the midst of those changes Stellan is having more SVT, the Dr's are talking. Thankful God is with them every step of the way.

9. Thankful oh so thankful God is providing for our family!

10. On that thankful note...thankful my work is providing a credit card for me to pay for gas when I attend a week long class 5 hours away from home.

11. Thankful for the love, the prayers and support that surrounds this precious family on their journey of love.

12. Thankful for these adorable clothes we got from cousin Emma! Thank-you Uncle Matt & Aunt Pam. I can't believe the shirt is 24 month and the Capri jeans are 2T. The belt is definitely holding her pants up.


13. Thankful ya'll understand I must sign off for now because my brain is mush and know I am thankful for a lot more. I hope in the near future to set up a blog carnival so others may join me in sharing what they are thankful for. I am learning all about McLinky's so stay tune. In the mean time please feel free to write a comment sharing what you are thankful for.

We are a blessed family indeed!

almost Wordless Wednesday

This Winnie the Pooh ride on toy was our $5 garage sale find on Sunday. LeAnne loves it! With no volume control or on and off switch it's definitely an outside toy though.

Shhh I'm quitely shouting from the roof top!

I am smiling from ear to ear! I am breathing easy and I am giddy! So this is what it feels like when your child goes to sleep without a fight. I love it! I have to blog about it in case, heaven forbid it's just another phase and the torture returns. Oh but I won't think like that, I am just going to stick my head in the sand and enjoy every blissful second of peace & quiet.

From the day we brought dear LeAnne home from the hospital sleep has been an ongoing mystery for us. She didn't sleep through the night until she was 16 months old,though she still woke up a few times a night but my times of getting up with her far fewer. She's always been a pretty restless sleeper. I don't think I helped matters by jumping at her ever whimper from day 1. It didn't seem right to let her cry and I wanted to know what she needed. Yep she's my first child. I tell ya after 16 months of 2-4 hours of sleep a night I was a wreck. I was on the verge of a break down when our lil princess began to sleep so mama started getting a decent nights rest. Although we were still prepared for a fight when it came to nap time and bed time. Then she started waking up when we laid her down & let the screaming begin. Oh my the torture! The painful time spent listening to her cry, crying myself while reading online what to do. Nothing seemed to fit our girl. Then she got better and then it got much much worse. The time I've spent with my stomach in knots thinking I've screwed up with her,and how do I teach her how to sleep. Our vacation was a train wreck, co-sleeping is not for me and I was never so glad to be home. That first week or two that we were home was a nightmare. I was at my wits end, and I ordered a few books. One of which that hasn't come yet. tee hee! I'll browse through it in case the torture returns. So what changed you ask?

Well my mommy memory is already a little foggy already but I believe she just starting crying less at and less and night, then our nap time routine took a shocking turn and bedtime routine was soon to follow. Night time routine: Dinner, bath, PJ's, play a little more, snack, change diaper, read 3 books and rock to sleep, lay down in her bed. That was the normal routine UNTIL a few weeks ago when I'd get the reading 3 books, then I would say okay that's it lets rock for a bit now she would start to fight me so I said okay lets just go to bed. I'd lay her down, walk out and she'd put herself to sleep. Even better she'd been sleeping the whole night without waking up whimpering! The nap time routine is slightly different because I put her glow worm in her bed, along with 3 books. I figure I don't mind if she looks at a few books during nap time and then puts herself to sleep. It's working! It was so funny today we got done reading our 3 books and I said are you read to take a nap and she said "yeah" and was happy about it. PRAISE GOD! I am so thankful, so much more relaxed and less stressed already!

I tell ya parenting is one big experiment. Reading the books, surfing online for answers, talking to others with similar experiences can be helpful but also frustrating because every child is different to some degree. When LeAnne was young I was given a piece of advice that I really appreciate. She said something to the effect that what ever decision we make about raising our child has to be what works for our child & for our family. There is no one right answer.

On that note I am still smiling from ear to ear and silently shouting from the roof top!

Oh Rufflebutts!!

Remember this precious outfit LeAnne got from my good friend Laura? Who could forget these pictures! I loved this outfit. She looked so darn cute in all those ruffles. My only regret is that she only wore the outfit once, for these pictures, because she was a growing girl. Oh Rufflebutts!! :-)

I was so excited when I Two of a Kind, Working on a Full House tweeted review & giveaway for Rufflebutts. They have so many adorable outfits, it was so hard to choose just one I'd like to win for the give away. My top choices are:

The white tee that says so blessed with the fushia rufflebutts

Simply Elegant Sundress - Bright Floral with RuffleButt Woven Aqua Floral Fun

Feel free to click on all these links to check out the Rufflebutts clothing line. Be warned though, you will want to add many items to your cart, I know I did!



Oh Rufflebutts, they have some amazing sales right now but times are lean in our neck the woods so unless I find that long searched for money trees I am hoping I win the giveaway.

Summer time fun at home

Our darling little princess sure keeps her parents on their toes! I am so proud of how well she is going to sleep these days. I turn down the lights, close the blinds, turn on the easy listening station, and we read 3 books together. Then I rock her (if she'll let me) for a few minutes and I lay her down awake. During nap time she plays with her glow worm, reads a few more books in her crib and goes to sleep. At bed time she lays down and goes to sleep. It's amazing! I love it and pray it lasts.

Here are some pictures I've take of her in the last few days. I am so thankful I am able to be home this summer to watch her change. I am a blessed mama for sure!!

Yummy apple!



Weeeeeeeee!


Ta da! I climb up my turtle lid! :-)


Reading her fave book these days; 5 Little Ladybugs. She loves to count the ladybugs. :-)



Coloring at the table like a big girl while mama tweets!


Yahooo!! Nana got her this oufit, it looks adorable. It's a 2T - a little big but not bad. She has other 2T clothes that are HUGE on her and even some 24 month outfits that are too big too.


Why so serious?


mmmmm!!

Flashback Friday

Good Morning! Happy Friday family & friends! I am a very sentimental person and love traveling down memory lane. On that note I am going to start posting something called Flashback Friday. Every Friday (time permitting) I am going to upload a picture or two from a different time. I don't want to necessarily limit it to just personal pictures. I was thinking it might be fun to flash back to historical facts, or trends from the past. Please feel free to join in the fun.


This is my me being held by my Grandpa Fran. (My mom's dad) I adored my grandpa! I wish I would have had more time with him. (He passed away quite some time ago). He loved to play rough & be ornery with us grand kids. Oh man the whisker burns, pulling my fingers outa socket, the Indian burns and I remember him being funny. Thinking about him I can almost remember how he smelled and the hats he wore. I have one of those hats and a ring that was his that I cherish.




June 1985, trip to the llama farm in Coupeville, Washington, which is on Whidbey Island. Upon looking closer at the picture today I noticed the guy looking at my grandpa like um please take the picture soon. Not many Polaroid camera's around today, eh?

Thankful Thursday

Here I am again, bring you another edition of Thankful Thursday from our little place in the country. Yesterday was such a beautiful drive into town. The wheat fields are so beautiful this time of year! It is going to be another amazingly beautiful day here! 92 F today, 93 F Friday, 95 Sat, 89 Sun, 89 Mon, and 90 Tues. I am loving it! LeAnne & I will be playing in her pool & wagon a lot. Without further babbling here's a list of what I am most thankful for this week, in no particular order and not all inclusive.

These are pictures I took in 2005 while visiting my sister, before we lived here.








1. Thankful I had just enough cash on me to get the groceries we needed. (actually had 94 cents extra that went in out coin cup)

2. Thankful my husband is so very productive on his days off. He's a man on a mission, gets out there and gets it done!

3. Thankful LeAnne is sleeping much better! We've found a nap time & bed time routine that works for her, for now anyway.

4. Thankful for the birds that have found our bird feeder. It's so much fun to watch them.

5. Thankful for our resident hummingbird (Flash) and the other intruders who stop by to eat. We have more fun watching them!

6. Thankful my man is great with money, bills, budget and all that jazz. I know what's going on but he handles the details on a day to day basis. For that I am very thankful, because other wise I'd be a stressed out wreck all the time.

7. Thankful to have a summer vacation! It is amazing being a SAHM during the summer. I LOVE spending so much time with LeAnne & John. I love having time to do things. I love having time to keep the house up without being stressed. I love being able to work on my scrapbooks. I just plain LOVE it!

8. Thankful my mom & John have agreed to do whatever is necessary to take care of LeAnne while I go to Vancouver, Washington for a week. I am very nervous about leaving her and making the drive alone but this is important so I must push forward. I will be taking a week long class at the Washington State School for the Blind to help me better understand my students sight impairment, learn new method for teaching him, hopefully tap into a resource to get him some large print books and make some connections within the education community. It will be good for me to get away too. I just have to not spend the week dwelling on the fact that I am not home with my girl. I'd appreciate your prayers!

9. Thankful for farmers! I have a lot of admiration for farmers. They have some very tough jobs. I love how they use their land wisely!

10. Thankful LeAnne is so hungry to learn new things. Most recently she's taken an interest in counting, singing the ABC's (I sing it 10-20 times a day) and singing head, shoulders, knees, & toes (quite the workout when ya do it enough times).

11. Thankful we have enough. God's provisions are amazing!

12. Thankful for the 55 minute phone conversation I had with my little brother last week. It was so much fun talking to him. He's very excited and nervous about becoming a daddy in January.

13. Thankful for my health & my families health! We are blessed.

14. Thankful for the guide I have in Jesus. I almost jumped at an opportunity this week but I researched it more and it felt funny, like not quite right so I prayed about it and He gave me peace in knowing it wasn't quite right so I let it go.

15. Thankful for my online friends. I hope to meet them all in person one day.

16. Thankful for my marriage. I love being married to my husband. He's a wonderful man!

17. Thankful for surprises. I like being caught off guard by an act of kindness. Random acts of kindness rock! What can you do today to bring joy to someone else?

18. Thankful for mail other than bills & junk mail. Brighten some one's day by sending them a card just to say hello.

19. Thankful for my mom! She's an awesome woman & very appreciated!!

20. Thankful LeAnne is now saying "mama"! Ecstatic is a better description!

21. Thankful for our walks to the park.

22. Thankful for the sweet ceiling fan my husband installed this week.

23. Thankful for the new patio table top he made because our glass table top was broken by our umbrella that came out due to wind last week. You're the man!

24. Thankful for the phone conversation I had with my dad this week. Prayin he has a great trip this next week & prayin for Uncle Al who's going in for back surgery.

25. Thankful for blogs, twitter, and facebook. I love being connected, learning new things, trying to win cool stuff but I am a little to addicted so I'll be trying to pull away some.

26. Thankful for relaxing days at home.

27. Thankful for trips to town. Feeling a bit isolated at times.

28. Thankful I have time to experiment with new meals and healthy snacks.

29. Thankful for our adorable pups Gracie & Bella.

30. Thankful for the LOVE I feel from my family!!

Well they're ya have it, the short list for the week. I would sure love to hear what you're thankful for?

Fun in the sand!

I found this adorable sandbox turtle at a garage sales last weekend for $3. LeAnne thought it was a pretty cool score!



See the sand mama!


Playing in the sand is serious business! :-)

"not me "Monday

Are you feeling guilty for not changing your children's bedsheets for weeks on end? Feel trashy taking your trash to the curb with no bra on? Overcome with embarrassment after your child wets his pants in public? We'll don't be! Not Me! Monday was born out MckMama's desire to admit some of her imperfections and reveal a few moments she'd rather forget. You may find it therapeutic to join in and do the same thing! Head on over to her My Charming Kids blog to read more Not Me Monday entries.

I certainly did not let LeAnne try a piece of onion this week while preparing dinner because she was hanging on my leg saying "me, me, me, please". Oh no that would be just cruel to give her a piece of raw uncooked onion.

I most certainly did not encourage LeAnne to take a big old drink of lime juice this week because every time I open the fridge she grabs the bottle. Daddy most certainly wasn't their encouraging her too because he wanted to see the look on her face. We were not both disappointed when she wouldn't take a big drink but thoroughly enjoyed licking on the lid.

I did not wear my bathing suit under my clothes yesterday because I had no clean over the shoulder boulder holders downstairs. Nope not me!

I did not let my 21 month old daughter draw on a piece of paper on the floor so I could finish doing something. No I am very strict about making sure only colors with crayons while sitting in her high chair.

I did not let LeAnne sit in at the kitchen table this week to eat a snack or watch toons. No I have been adamant about not letting her sit at the big person table because she just gets into things.

This first time mama is most certainly not relaxing a bit, is she?

I am not thinking LeAnne please sleep a little bit longer so mama can finish up "not me" Monday and post a blog of you saying mama. What mama would wish their daughter would sleep longer, especially when she's slept through the night and went to bed without screaming her head off.

I most certainly don't think about being pregnant again at least once a week if not more. Not me! I don't constantly try to plan it out in my head, timing wise, when it would be best to get pregnant again. Not me because I learned my lesson about planning when it took me over 5 years to get pregnant with LeAnne.

I didn't have the oddest dream about having a baby last night. The odd part wasn't the fact that family brought to our attention the baby was not ours and it wasn't odd that the babies were in cages. I don't have strange dreams like that and who would ever think of putting a baby in a cage.

I have not been waiting a long time to have some good material for not me Monday so I could be apart of MckMama's blog just, that would be silly.

I have definitely not thought a lot about making a to do list of things I need to do and not made the list just thought about it. Not me because before LeAnne was born I was queen list maker. What happen? I don't constantly think I must get more organized.

I don't secretly hope my husband bought tickets to the Kenny Chesney concert in August, even though I know he hasn't because we can't afford them. A surprise like that wouldn't make my year! I wouldn't be thrilled to attend an amazing concert with my husband.

I don't miss my old job simply because I made darn good money. No I don't miss making good money because I miss finding deals on ebay or craigslist and I could go buy them without thinking about having the money.

I most certainly would not love a date night with my husband because I crave adult conversation! not me! I realize were broke & family time at home is all I need.

I don't dream of a vacation to some fancy place with my husband once day while seriously thinking about having another baby in our future. Not me because I know having another baby will make us even more broke. I don't think that if we get a big jar to save our coins in that we'd have the money by our 15th wedding anniversary to take a cruise some place tropical. It would be a big big jar.

This has been fun but I gotta run. It's time for our morning routine; banana & Cheerios while watching some toons, breakfast, and then get dressed for the day. LeAnne isn't waking up saying "no no, no, oh no, oh man", those are not our little doomsayer's favorite words.

LeAnne finally said Mama!

Updated to add one long video that finally uploaded, I warn you it's long, just randomness before bedtime with LeAnne & mama...

We have been working with LeAnne for what seems like forever to get her to say "mama". She knows who I am, and where to go when she needs something but she wouldn't say "mama" for anything. She'd look at daddy and say "da, da, daddy". I know you're a daddy's girl but come on sweetie say "mama". Nope she'd find every picture of him in the house and say "da, da, daddy". Then yesterday outa the blue she points at me and says "ma, ma, mama"! Ahh, awww music to my ears! She said it all day yesterday. I love it! Here are a few short videos I took yesterday before bedtime. I apologize for the poor lighting and I hope you don't get dizzy. It was very hard to get her on camera because she wanted to see the baby (her) on the camera so we had to do quick extreme close up videos so she could see herself. LOL!! I love listening to her little sweet voice! It's far better than listening to her SCREAM as she goes to sleep or oh boy can our 21 month old throw doozie of a temper tantrum. Thanks mama for helping this mama get through Saturday's tantrum. It's all part of growing up, all part of learning how to be a mama and as this silly little bear on Disney Channel says "It's all part of the plan, more or less".

Summer fun & a classic picture

LeAnne sleeping in her high chair during dinner at 6pm yesterday. She didn't have a good nap, she's a screamer. Mama says to daddy "now what to I do?" Daddy says "wake her up & go from there". Mama says "Nope, not until I clean the kitchen".



So she slept & I cleaned the kitchen. She woke up, I put her in her PJ's & wiped the carrots off her face, attempted to put her in her bed where she screamed for 1/2 hour before I said "no more". Got her up, gave her a bath & she was up until 10:30pm.



New morning routine (sans bottle)
Wake up happy (parents preference)
change diaper
Stagger around, watch a min or two of cartoons
go into kitchen saying "me, me, me" which means I want snack # 1 for the day
This morning I had her morning snack (grapes & Cherrios) already to go
Take snack, drink along with blankets, sit in daddy's chair to watch cartoons for 1/2 hour then mama has breakfast in the works.



Daddy's little helper girl!




Playing at the park in town. She loves to go up & down these stairs!





Hanging on the bar in back of the jeep at the park. She's strong! I was freaking when she started doing this!



Driving the jeep at the park.



Going across the suspension bridge on the play set at the park. She loves this a lot!

Eagle Crest vacation; The good, bad & ugly

We were at Eagle Crest Oregon World Mark/Trendwest resort from June 28th until July 3rd, checked out around Noon, headed up to Salem, spent the night with Grammy & Grampy and headed home July 4th. Our vacation was quite the experience to say the least.

The Good...

The drive was non eventful and beautiful. I've never seen so many breath taking views of so many different mountains at the same time. We stayed at Eagle Crest resort near Bend, Oregon. Spending time with John's brother and his family was a lot of fun! Emma & Cash are too cute! We enjoyed having dinner with them, watching the kids swim in the Spray park kiddiepool and play at the park in the Old Mill district. While at the Old Mill district I was excited when Emma started to warm up to me by taking and Aunt Pam boughtLeAnne her first ice cream cone which she absolutely loved. We hope they are able to come up and visit us one day. It was a lot of fun watchingLeAnne play in the water & she played on a big kids toy set for the first time. She is one very brave little girl! We enjoy seeing the sights which included a visit to lava lands, drove around Sun River resort/city (John's family use to vacation their a lot way back when so he was excited to see it again), and we visited the High Dessert Museum. It was a neat look back in history through some well put together exhibits. While there LeAnne felt sand for the first time. Another highlight of our was running into a cousin of John's mom and her family. From the sounds of it these families use to spend A LOT of time together during their childhood, so it was a fun reunion. Their is talks of a camping reunion trip next year.

The Bad...

A stomach bug or food poisoning of some sorts found all of us to some degree. I think it could have been from something in the spaghetti I cooked Monday night. I was somiserable I could do nothing but puke then lay down and this went on for at least 12 hours. Thank God LeAnne only threw up a few times and really Thank God that John was well enough to take care of both of us. Thank-you honey! We spent all day Monday in our room and I was ready to go home. Thankfully I felt better enough the next day to continue our vacation so we could see the sights.

THE UGLY...

This is was our first vacation with LeAnne and our high maintenance 20 month old made the week anything but relaxing! This was really not how we had pictured the week going. In her defense she was away from the comforts of home, had no routine and might have been teething. That being said she refused to sleep on her own, we couldn't let her scream after 10pm, so all but one night we slept together either in the bedroom or the hide-a-bed in the living room. Co-sleeping isdefinitely NOT for me!! LeAnne is a wild, wild sleeper. I lost count how many times I got kicked in the head. I didn't sleep soundly at all because I was afraid she was going to fall off the bed, or she'd wake up screaming and I'd sooth her back to sleep. She also refused to eat much of anything so she'd get hungry and then scream because she washungry but wouldn't eat. The worst screaming fit happen when she woke up hungry as we were taking a drive to Sisters,Oregon while she was napping in the car. Oh man their was nothing I could do to make her stop screaming, John was looking for a tree to drive into and I was crying too. We felt like the worse parents ever when we stopped at a rest stop near Salem, Oregon. She woke up again screaming. John got her out while I fixed her a PB&Jsandwich, she wanted nothing to do with the sandwich , water or other snacks so I thought maybe its her teeth, so I gave her some Tylenol and she continued to scream. We were trying everything and she just kept screaming so we finally got back in the car and drove. She was a really good girl while we were sight seeing and visiting family but boy she had her rough moments. Lets just say we don't plan on taking her on anymore vacations until she's 5!

We were never so glad to be home in our lives!! We could tell LeAnne was happy to be home too. She immediately started to relax. She ate a little bit better that night but has definitely turned into a grazer which I've read is common in toddlers so I giving her a bunch of small healthy snacks through out the day instead of 3 meals. She is still struggling with sleeping. She goes to sleep as I rock her, wakes up as I walk into her room, then screams for a while until she falls to sleep. It's rough but at least we can deal with it at home a whole lot better than on the road.

There ya have it the good, the bad and the ugly of our vacation. I am very thankful we were able to see family, thankful for my ever patient husband, and oh so VERY thankful to be HOME! HOME SWEET HOME!! Here are a few more vacation pictures;

Checking out sand for the 1st time EVER!


Oh she LOVED her ice cream! Thank-you Aunt Pam!!



Eating her ice cream with a spoon. :-)


lava lands, Bend,Oregon



Sunset view from our room

Thankful Thursday through pictures

Good Morning! Another Thankful Thursday coming to ya from Eagle Crest Oregon. I am very thankful we didn't have to cut our vacation short due to LeAnne & I getting a not so fun stomach bug. LeAnne is doing well & I am on the mend. I thought I'd share some vacation pictures & incorporate what I am thankful for through the pictures. We are going to explore the Old Mill district today then tomorrow afternoon we check out of here and drive up to Salem, Oregon to visit Grammy, Grampy, Carrie & her kids. We will be on our way home this weekend.

I would appreciate your prayers for safe travel for us as well as Amanda & her mom. They are heading up to Seattle today to attend the Green Day concert Friday & then have a girls weekend. I'd also appreciate prayers for their mother/daughter time together. Without further babbling I give you thankful Thursday! What are you thankful for?

Already to go swimming mama! I am thankful for her cute lil button nose!



Look at me swimming in the kiddie pool at the Spray Park at Eagle Crest! She LOVED it! I am thankful that she was brave, she went out of her way to interact with other kids and she had such a great time.



Here's LeAnne & Daddy at the High Dessert Museum! I am thankful LeAnne was on her best behavior so we could enjoy the museum. LeAnne had fun seeing the animals & she got to feel sand for the first time EVER.



Our brave girl floating on her back all by herself! I was close by of course.



We explored the Lava Lands in Bend Oregon. It was amazing to see where the lava had been. Thankful to have had this experience!



Beautiful mountain views are all OVER this place! Thankful God made the earth so beautiful!


Thankful for these two awesome people getting a COLD shock at the Spray park at Eagle Crest Oregon. Thank-you honey for taking care of LeAnne & I when we were not feeling so hot. You're an amazing friend, husband and daddy!!