Merry Christmas!

Our family has been busy growing and learning throughout the holiday season.  We've had some ups and downs, but are thrilled to be exactly where we're supposed to be right now.  We're excited about how God is going to work in our lives over the next year as well.  

From our family to yours, Merry Christmas!

Shopping

I often wonder why everyone doesn't shop this way.

Homemade Marinara (it's cheap too!)

We're on a bit of a tight budget lately, so I'm up to my old tricks in making everything from scratch.  I found this article in Good Housekeeping a few years ago that I clipped and, for some reason, I never used it.  So, as I was digging through my recipe bag (yes, it is a ziplock bag, and no, I don't intend to change my "system" any time soon) this morning looking for a totally different recipe, I pulled out this gem and put it to good use immediately.

Turns out, it is absolutely delicious!  I changed it up a bit and just used the basic idea, so here is the new and improved version.  Most people have their own tomato sauce recipe, but if you feel like changing it up a bit, try this one.  It costs about 47 cents a serving (versus $1.50 per serving of the bottled sauce, on average).

Marinara:

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 small onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, crushed with press

2 Tbsp tomato paste

1 can (28oz) crushed tomatoes in juice (you can also use whole tomatoes)

Salt and pepper

1 tsp dried basil (or 1/2 cup loosely packed fresh basil, chopped)

Five fresh sprigs of thyme (leaves removed, of course)

Dash of marjoram

1/2 tsp oregano

In a 4 quart saucepan, heat oil over medium heat until hot.  Add onion and cook until tender, about 10-12 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Stir in garlic and tomato paste; cook 1 minute.  Stir in tomatoes with their juice, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper; heat to boiling over high heat, breaking up tomatoes with back of spoon if you have used whole tomatoes.  Reduce heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, 15 minutes.  Stir in herbs.  If not using right away, transfer to a container with tight fitting lid and refrigerate up to three days or cool 30 minutes and freeze up to 3 months.  Makes enough to coat 1lb cooked pasta.

Personally, I am letting the flavors mellow in the fridge overnight and we'll have it tomorrow night for dinner with browned meat and some veggies to make a primavera.  I'm sure we could get fancier than canned tomatoes and tomato paste, but this is what I had in the pantry and it is actually quite inexpensive to be so tasty.

(Like my lid?  My aunt bought this one for me, but I've seen it online here.)

Caramel-Pecan Sticky Buns

On special holidays, birthdays, or just a sweet homecoming, I like to make my favorite caramel-pecan sticky buns.  Sure, I could stick to the old cinnamon bun recipe, which is decent in its own way.  But nothing says, "I love you" like these sticky buns.  They're not that much harder to make and if done correctly, they can be delightful.

So, get your favorite cup of java ready, because you're gonna need it when you eat this delectable treat.

Caramel-Pecan Sticky Buns

2 1/4 teaspoon dry yeast

3/4 cup warm water (110F to 115F)

3/4 cup warm milk  (110F to 115F)

1/4 cup sugar

3 T vegetable oil

2 t salt

3-3/4 to 4-1/4 cups all-purpose flour

Filling:

1/4 cup butter, softened

1/4 cup sugar

3 t cinnamon

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 cup heavy or whipping cream

1 cup coarsely chopped pecans

In a mixing bowl, dissolve the yeast in warm water.  Add the milk, sugar, oil, salt and 1-1/4 cups flour.  Beat on medium speed for 2-3 minutes or until smooth (I use a wooden spoon - just make sure you mix everything until smooth).  Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough (not too tacky).  Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes.  Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease the top.  Cover and let rise in warm place until doubled, about one hour.**

Punch down dough.  Turn onto a lightly floured surface.  Roll into an 18-inch by 12-inch rectangle.  Spread butter to within 1/2 inch of edges/  Combine sugar and cinnamon; sprinkle over butter. Roll up, jelly-roll style, starting with a long side; pinch seam to seal.  Cut into 12 slices (I use a three inch piece of thread and wrap it around the dough, pull tightly and that cuts it perfectly without smooshing the dough). 

Combine brown sugar and cream; pour into a greased 13-inch by 9-inch by 2-inch baking pan.  If you are in a high altitude, do not use glass.  Sprinkle with pecans.  Place rolls, cut side down, over pecans.  Cover and let rise until doubled, about one hour.  Or, you can cover and place in the fridge overnight, but make sure you take them out half an hour before baking to bring to room temperature.

Bake at 350F for 30-35 minutes or until well browned.  Cool for one minute before inverting onto a serving platter.  Yield:  1 dozen

Caution:  these are addictive, if done right.

**I learned a little trick from America's Test Kitchen that I use with all my dough.  Preheat the oven to its lowest setting (mine is 175F) then turn it off.  Use a glass bowl, like Pyrex makes, to put the dough into.  Once the dough is in the bowl and greased well, cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and place in the warmed oven.  It cuts the rise time in half and makes for a very light and airy bread.  You can use this secret with pizza dough, bread, sweet breads, rolls, etc.  

Roseola

It has been quite a week at our house.  Hudson, only 11 months-old, was diagnosed with Roseola after three days of high fevers.  The President actually visited our little town during the worst of his fever and I was so nervous that I might not be able to get Hudson to the hospital or pediatrician's office when he hit 103.8F and stayed there for THREE hours despite medicine!  Fortunately, his heart was able to withstand the high fever with no issues that I could detect.  Unfortunately, his high fever lasted for a little over three days and never went below 101.5F until today, minus three hours of low-grade yesterday morning.  

He has not slept much in his pack-n-play - mostly just in my arms, on the couch, in my bed, in the Ergo Baby, etc.  I snapped a few shots of my sick little baby in different sleeping positions.  

I think the worst of it is over, except that he appears to have gotten a cold.  His heart is strong and despite getting checkups every six months to make sure it is okay, we are encouraged by this week's experience.  He does have a 50/50 chance of having Brugada Syndrome, like his brother, and it appears that he does not have it.  He has not been given the all-clear by the cardiologist yet, but his heart appears to be healthy.  

What a blessing this little surprise has been to our lives.  

Medical Tidbit for Kids

In light of a high fever that has occurred at our home this evening, I wanted to share a piece of information that my husband and I find invaluable in times of sickness.

When Sam was first diagnosed with his heart condition, we had to give him so much Tylenol and Motrin in order to keep his fevers down (fevers for him are life threatening) that we began to become concerned that we might over medicate him.  Thus, the chart was born:

Name of Child	Med & Dose	Time Given	Parent

Not the sick one this time

We keep this printed chart (with many more cells) on our bathroom counter with a pen close by.  Now that we have more than one child, we have had to add the "Name of Child" cell, because, inevitably, more than one child will get sick at a time.  Oftentimes, if the fever is extra high or stubborn, we will add another row entitled "Temperature" or just scribble it in somewhere on the chart.  The cell that you can't see completely on the right says "Parent."

When it comes time to see the pediatrician, this little chart comes in mighty handy.  We know exactly when the fever occurred, how often we medicated (even breaks or gaps in between) and which parent was doing the medicating.  Generally speaking, I am the medicine caregiver in our family.  However, on the off-chance that I am tending to another child or sitting in a dark room holding a sick baby, my husband will get the medication prepared and hand it to me.  He signs the chart as though he has given the medicine on those occasions.

So, just another small tidbit from a mom with a special needs kiddo - something that might make any family move a little more functionally during sickness.  I hope it helps.

Homemade Deodorant

I've been wrestling with myself for a long time about the antiperspirant I use.  I kept reading about the aluminum in antiperspirant being linked to breast cancer.  Although no conclusive data has been found (according to this website and a few others).  But I kept hearing my friends who have recovered from breast cancer tell me that their oncologists have told them two things - no more processed foods and no more antiperspirants.

So, when my antiperspirant ran out, I decided to make my own.  And you know what?  It was not only cheap, it actually works.  I put the mixture in a mason jar and use clean fingers to apply.

Here's the recipe, if you dare:

1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 cup baking soda
4 Tbsp coconut oil

I mixed it with my fingers, since coconut oil actually becomes liquid at 76 degrees F (25C).

You can add 10 drops of your favorite essential oil if you like too.  I think the next time I make it I will add Tea Tree Oil, since it not only smells clean, it also neutralizes odors naturally.  So well, in fact, that I use it when washing my cloth diapers.

Am I preventing breast cancer?  I don't know the answer to that, but I do know that I just saved my wallet a little extra money and my conscience is clean, as well as my personal scent.

The Cascades

The KlearLife Kids on the Cascades Hike

We are thoroughly enjoying the Fall season here in the High Country.  The beauty of the colors this weekend reminds me how much I missed all of this when I was living overseas.  I think we've hit the peak of the season though, as we are experiencing a lot of wind and even this afternoon there are more bare trees than there were this time yesterday.  

We are ready to paint our pumpkins, eat more pumpkin treats (like those delicious muffins), have apple pie and start canning raw pears (I still have two huge bags full and they are absolutely delicious this year!).  

Check out those enormous leaves Carolina is hanging on to.  I have never seen a Chestnut Oak leaf as big as the one she found this morning on our hike.  We like to identify all the leaves as we walk through the forest and Carolina hit the jackpot with big ones today.  I felt like we were in some prehistoric jungle!  The Tulip Poplar leaf on the top of her pile is just one example.  

Everyone is having birthdays this month - Sam just turned five, Carolina turned four and Hudson hits the big ONE in two weeks.  I can't believe how quickly everyone is growing.  It's a bit different this year because Sam is being homeschooled and Carolina is taking ballet classes - I feel like we're finally hitting some sort of "American family" standard or something. 

Oh, and Hudson is walking.  *Deep sigh*

I'm off to enjoy them some more before the afternoon fades too quickly.

More Food!

Need I say more?

Happy Birthday, Baby Girl!

Four years ago on October 11th, a baby girl was found in front of the steel doors behind a clinic in Guangzhou, China.  The doctors who found her took note of everything she was wearing, weighed her, photographed her, checked her over and called the police to report an abandoned baby.

Her birth mother will never be known to her, nor will the circumstances of her abandonment.

I have read the book Message From an Unknown Chinese Mother by Xue Xinran and I think it is safe to say it is anyone's guess as to why my daughter was abandoned.

What I do know is this - Carolina was born healthy, abandoned within hours of her birth, clothed well with plenty of blankets for warmth and placed in a very public spot.  The person who left her there, in front of those doors, wasn't doing something cold and unfeeling.  It was obviously a very well thought-out decision - I stood in that alley and looked around it to see if I could find a spot where someone might hide, watching and waiting to see when she might be found.  There were so many hiding places I lost count.

I am sure that the decision to leave her, to give her up, was a difficult one.  Maybe it was for protection from a family who demanded a boy.  Maybe it was because she already had another sibling and her birth family wanted more for her than to be a second child with no rights.  Maybe they couldn't afford to keep her.  Maybe her birth mother was too young to care for her.

Whatever the case, Carolina wasn't aborted.  Her birth mother carried her for close to nine months, based on her birth weight.  She felt Carolina's first kick.  She knew when Carolina was active and when she was asleep inside her womb.  She felt birth pangs.  She delivered my child.  She had the rush of hormones after the baby was born - the hormones that God blessed mothers with so that they will feel love and attachment to their children.  And still, this mother was unable to raise her child - or even keep her.  Perhaps she was unable to even lay eyes on her.

I have prayed for Carolina's birth mother from the moment we decided to adopt a child.  I am praying for her today, as I do every year around Carolina's birthday.  I pray she will come to know Christ.  I pray she will be blessed with Christian friends.  I pray God will confirm to her that her decision, or maybe her circumstances in giving Carolina up, was not in vain.  And I pray that she will somehow know that Carolina is loved and enjoying freedom that most Chinese people do not enjoy.  Freedom that comes with her rights as a citizen of the United States of America.

Four years ago on October 11th, a child was born.  She struggled for twenty months in a Social Welfare Institute.  Struggled for life, for food, to develop and even to live.  Twenty months - that's how long it took before she met her mother and her father.

She was my first.  First in our hearts.  We prayed for her before we even knew we could conceive a child biologically.

Happy birthday, Sweet Child.  We love you dearly and we will never stop praying for you and ourselves as we try to parent you in the best way possible.  I am so blessed to know you, despite our butting heads most days, and so blessed that you are a fighter.  Your personality is boisterous and infectious.  Even with the long nights you have given us, some of the most difficult days (and nights) of our lives, we will love you with an unyielding love always and forever.  I am so grateful God knit you for our family in another mother's womb.  Happy birthday.

Pumpkin Spice Latte Cupcakes

Looking for something to warm up your otherwise cool Fall mornings?  Around here, we don't have Starbucks, so we have to get a bit creative (well, also because we are frugal as well).  When I saw a friend of mine had made these muffins, I immediately asked for the recipe.  We have had two birthday parties in two weekends and dedicated Hudson to the Lord today, so with all the family and friends visiting, this was a must!


Here it is (don't let the ingredients list fool you - it may seem like a lot, but it's really just basic stuff):


Makes about 2 dozen muffins

Dry Ingredients:
2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
3 tbsp. espresso powder (or 6 tbsp. instant coffee granules)
2 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp. grated nutmeg
1/8 tsp. ground cloves
1 tsp. salt

Wet ingredients:
1 (15 oz.) can pumpkin puree
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup canola or vegetable oil
4 large eggs
½ cup coffee or espresso, for brushing

For the whipped cream:
2¼ cups heavy cream, chilled
¼ cup confectioners' sugar

For garnish:
Ground cinnamon
Caramel sauce


Directions:
To make the cupcakes, preheat the oven to 350°F. Line cupcake pans with paper liners or grease the tin. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, espresso powder, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and salt. Stir together and set aside. 


In a separate bowl use an electric mixer, to blend together the pumpkin, granulated sugar, brown sugar and oil. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. With the mixture on low speed, add the flour mixture in two additions, mixing just until incorporated.


Fill the cupcake liners about three-quarters full. Bake until the cupcakes are golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 18-20 minutes. Transfer the pans to a wire rack and let cool for 10 minutes, then remove the cupcakes from the pans. While the cupcakes are still warm, brush them two or three times with the coffee or espresso, allowing the first coat to soak in before repeating. Let cool completely.
To make the frosting, place the heavy cream in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Whip on medium-low speed at first, gradually increasing to high speed. Blend in the confectioners' sugar gradually. Whip until stiff peaks form, being careful not to over-beat. Use a pastry bag fitted with a decorative tip to frost the cooled cupcakes. Sprinkle with ground cinnamon and drizzle with caramel sauce. Enjoy!

IF you have any left, store in an airtight container and refrigerate.

Special thanks to April L. for her contribution of the recipe.  

Storybook Walk

The Tale of the Three Trees

Yesterday I was given the privilege to participate in something I have never done before and yet, at the same time, I've done it millions of times in my life.  I read a book - but this time I read it on a walk.  Thirty six people participated on our Storybook Walk.  I initially read the idea in a Disney Family Fun magazine and after speaking to the local librarian about doing in downtown in the storefront windows (I'm still lobbying for it), I decided to stop waiting and just do it myself. 

Actually, it wasn't "myself" at all - I bet a total of 50+ people helped make this event the success that it was. If only there hadn't been an ASU football game at the same time, I bet we would have had even more participants.  

So, here's what happened:  We chose a children's storybook (the Children's Council at my church and I) and then I had the pages laminated.  I attached them to fence posts around our church property and we set up a few important props at the climax of the tale. We began the walk by facing the three large trees on our church property and moved around to different "stations" or pages until I had read the whole book.  I asked questions throughout and allowed the children to talk a little about what was going on as well.  Honestly, I've never done anything like it and even today the excitement hasn't faded.

 

 

The last two pages of the book were read on top of a small hill.  As I stood there with the headstones behind me (rumored to be the children of slaves) and the cross in front of me, I was in awe.  There I was openly telling people about Jesus Christ - through a book, through my prayer, through my actions - some of whom already believe in Jesus, but some do not.  I looked around at the open sky, the public place where we stood - the freedom was not lost on me.  How is it that I have become so privileged that THIS is my job now.  Besides raising my own beautiful children and sharing Christ with them, I am also blessed to share Christ (openly, I might add) with children in our community.  And their parents.  I don't know of any greater gift God could have given me yesterday. 

Oh wait, I do.  A church body that supports the children's ministry and makes something like this possible.

Blessed I am.  What a beautiful Storybook Walk.  The first of its kind in Boone, but not the last.  Certainly not if I have anything to do with it.

Basket Making

Ever tried making a basket on your own? I love making baskets. My aunt and uncle are basket weavers and they taught me from a young age how to weave some beautiful reeds. I never did as well as they do, but I have a few creations that I use all the time around my house. I'll post a picture when Sam is done with his first official basket!

Scripture, Skype and Socks

Check this out. I love my friend Athalia's blog. She does such an amazing job at capturing life in the High Country. I'm glad she asked me to guest write.

Passion

I realized tonight that I left my blog readers hanging. The BIG announcement...what was it? Hmmm...I know exactly what it was and it still affecting our lives. But it's not as big as everyone thought it was.

We have decided to officially homeschool Sam. In the process, both Bill and I prayed about it and we separately came to the same decision. I love that about marriage - we have built-in confirmation. We contacted a local school and asked them about sending Sam (a year early). It's sort of a homeschool supplemental - they will teach him two days a week and I will re-teach him the other days. I think it will be perfect for our family and the adjustments we have adding a third. Plus I'll get to spend more time with this little one:

And her:

Who IS this child? She is so amazing, I can't even begin to describe.

Finally Getting It

After I blew the figurative dust off of my blog, I discovered I need to continue sharing. Even if it's just for my own sanity and nobody reads it, I still need to share.

Summer has been a welcome relief to the cold winter we experienced. I was so afraid, at times, that I wasn't ever going to get to leave the house again because there was so much snow I couldn't get my car out of the driveway. But Summer...ah, Summer. I love it here in the mountains. Even at its hottest, it's still not hot (relatively speaking) and we don't even have air conditioning.

We've spent the Summer at different camps and enjoying different activities here in the High Country. Sam learned to play soccer (which surprised me a little, admittedly), Carolina learned some ballet (which thrilled me) and Hudson is learning to walk. Yes, at seven months he started pulling up on things and walking alongside tables and such, and now, at eight months he is standing up against walls and walking alongside them.

Just to recap:

Sam at camp

Carolina at dance camp

Hudson just being cute

If you're still reading, and I hope you are, I plan on sharing some more about family life in the High Country over the next few weeks. Some of that includes getting Sam ready for Kindergarten (unbelievable, I know), Hudson's first steps (it's totally going to happen soon!) and Carolina just being lovely. Are you in?

May

Things I can't wait to do in May:

• Enjoy the warmer weather...finally!
• Introduce my youngest to my big brother in California
• Have fresh flowers in my home again
• Start Couch to 5K (seriously can't wait for this, but I need shoes first)
• Get new sneakers, sandals and heels (why does everything wear out all at once?)
• Get the title to my car in the mail from my bank - we are DEBT free now!!

I'm really pumped about Spring being here full-on! No more snow...

Happy Birthday, Bill!

Bill's birthday, from start to finish:

"Nothing like a keg of root beer to wash down those Pop Rocks!"

"Oh nooooooooooo!"

"I hope this orange juice doesn't interfere with my medication!"

"Oh nooooooooooo!"

"I hope this jacuzzi isn't too hot!"

"Oh nooooooooooo!"

"I hope this pie doesn't affect my diabetes!"

"Oh noooooooo!"

Cloth Diapering

Parenting in the High Country has always been a thrill. Everyone seems to have a different way to do pretty much everything. I have met moms who make their own laundry detergent, coupon to the extreme (by saving 80% or more on their grocery bills), homeschool, raise their own chickens (even in residential areas), take the bus, don't use microwaves and, of course, use cloth diapers.

Since I am now a HighCountryMommie(s), I feel like I have now embraced a few of the "crunchy" lifestyle changes other mommies have led me to. One of those changes (among others) is cloth diapering.

If you've never done it before or you're thinking, "eeeeww", I have news for you: it's not that hard and it's not that gross.

Getting set up for cloth diapering has never been easier. There are so many blogs dedicated to the how-to's of cloth diapering (CD) and many many websites that sell a huge variety of CDs and accessories.

The benefits of CDing are that you are helping the environment by not throwing yet another disposable diaper in a landfill, you're not exposing your child to the toxic chemicals in disposables, and it will save you upwards of $2000 a year, depending on the disposable diaper you use. Here's a link that provides facts about cloth diapering benefits. Here's a calculator that you can use to quickly add up how much you'll save by using cloth.

It's true that the initial setup fees for cloth are high, but it's a real investment. If you will check out that calculator, you'll see that disposables actually cost more in the long-run. Also, the resale value of CDs are very high. You'll see it on websites like diaperswappers.com or even your localmommiesnetwork site (buy/sell/trade).

If you ever want to find out about cloth, ask a mommy you know who uses cloth - I've never met one who wasn't open and willing to share about every aspect. Be careful though, we can be pretty passionate about CDing and take over the conversation!

Over the next few weeks, I'll be discussing cloth and the benefits, as well as systems for washing and caring for cloth. Please leave a comment if you have any questions and I'll try to address those.

I only began using cloth when my first son was 18 months-old. It's never too late! Stay tuned for more posts on the how-tos of cloth.

Sam

In light of the post before the last one, I feel I need to share something. Something big. Something so huge that it has changed our lives forever.

Before I do that, I'll review. I pray for my children. I pray for them to receive Christ. I pray for them to grow into godly men and a godly woman. I pray for them to change other people's lives throughout their own. I know they already have - each of them.

So, here goes. You can choose not to believe it. You can choose to say it's too early. But only time will tell. And in the two weeks since it's happened, we have seen proof. As much as you can in a four and a half year old.

If you ask me, I'll share more details privately. But for now, I find it important to just share this: Sam is a believer.

My goofball.

Oddly Silent

I suppose adding the third child to our family has been what is keeping me away from posting on the blog. Figuring out a balance has been the biggest hurdle to overcome, but I believe I am just about there. Unfortunately, the blog falls at the lowest priority, with other blogs that I write for coming even before my own.

Mothers and wives ask me all the time for my schedule - they just want to know how I manage making meals, cleaning, homeschooling (Sam), and living life in general. I can't say that I have any secret that other mothers don't have, but I will say that God weaved into me a personality trait that comes in handy with all these responsibilities. Organization.

I make a plan and generally stick to it (flexibility is the key though). Everything has a box or a basket it goes in, every day has a purpose, and I have a list of five things that I need to get done daily in order to know I have been productive.

Do I get overwhelmed? Absolutely. Do things NOT get done sometimes? Yep. Do I become so tunnel-visioned (is that a word?) that I ignore the more important things to fulfill the task at-hand? You betcha. I think all of those are just part of life with kids or without kids.

Still, I have a lot of room for improvement. While I hone my skills at balancing Christian, wife, mother of three, children's minister, friend, daughter, sister, and all the other responsibilities I have, I can enjoy the little things. At least, they're little for now.

Priorities

When we had our first child, I realized all my priorities were going to have to change, and fast. We could still be very flexible with the trips we took and people we visited, but life somehow revolved around naps and mealtimes.

Then we had our second child and life changed a little more. Both children were on the same napping schedule, so everything seriously revolved around naps and mealtimes.

Now we have our third child. I am officially chained to the house every day for the same hours. I shouldn't say "chained" - it's actually a very refreshing time, a time to get a little rest before the action begins again.

But my priorities have shifted, yet again. I have been homeschooling Sam, and that requires a good amount of planning and preparation (not too much, as he is still pre-K). Between taking care of the children, teaching the children, cleaning the house, a (limited) social life and various other activities, we are busy busy busy.

This is the best kind of busy I could ever ask for. Ever. I love going over school stuff with Sam. I thrive on the reaction Carolina makes when she recognizes she's learning something new. And I cherish the moments in between where I can snuggle up to my cozy littlest one, nurse him and know that I am providing everything he needs to grow strong and healthy. And my favorite time is when I'm praying for each of the children individually. I woke up about five times last night with one of them on my heart. I prayed that God would call them into His Kingdom. I prayed for their health. I prayed for our parenting to be pleasing to Him. I prayed and prayed and prayed. And then I fell asleep, content in knowing my prayers will be answered.

Train up a child in the way he should go,

even when he is old he will not depart from it.

Proverbs 22:6

Time Keeps on Slipping...

Two months have passed since Hudson was born and our lives will never be the same. We have had our ups and downs, as every new parent does, and I feel I can safely say we are now working at about 90% of our efficiency level. That is to say, we're still in survival mode, but we're almost out!

The good news is that it's winter, so I probably wouldn't have taken the kids out anyway with all this snow. The bad news, it's winter, so we have experienced a bit of cabin fever with all this snow.

I have a few gems I want to pass on via this blog, but I guess first I should say, Happy New Year! Along those lines, my best friend really challenged me with this post to think and pray about a word that might be the theme for the year 2011.

At first I thought it was just another one of those super mom things she does - she thinks of resolutions, teaches her children amazing things everyday, cloth diapers, stays at home with her children, puts her family first in every way - the list could go on, but suffice it to say, I wasn't sure I wanted to add something new to my list. But immediately after thinking this might be a burden, God laid a word on my heart. Then another. Then He led me to really pray about it and bring it up with Bill. By the end of the second day, Bill and I had both prayed over our children and our own lives and all of us had been assigned a word for 2011 by the Lord. It wasn't so hard and it even made a lot of sense.

So, I want to share the words the Lord gave us and what He told us they mean for each of us. Maybe by the end of the year these words will be assigned different meanings, but for now:

Sam: Obey. Sam is a very intelligent young man and with that intelligence comes pride. He believes he knows more than his own parents do (I seriously thought this didn't come until the teenage years. Boy was I wrong.). We hope he will learn was obedience is this year, not just to us, but to the Lord.

Carolina: Love. Unconditional love. She has recently shown her insecurities (Mama, am I pretty? Mama, do you love me? Mama, pweeze don't leave me.) and we want her to know the Lord's unconditional love through us and our own unconditional love. No matter what she does, how she disappoints, how bad her bed head is or how stinky her breath smells - we love her. Hopefully the Lord will show us how to prove that to her in 2011.

Hudson: Grow. This one's obvious.

Teesa: Listen. I need to listen. Period. To God and to those around me, including my children and my husband.

Bill: Pray. This one's obvious too.

So hopefully in the year 2011, God will show us what these words He has laid on our hearts mean. I can't wait to see what's in store!

I have more to write, but I'll save it for my next post.

In conclusion...here's our beautiful new addition from 2010 - including his beautiful dimples and already showing his love for his big brother: