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4.29.2011

Five Question Friday

 

1. If you could buy any car, money not an option, what would it be?
Honestly? I just want a really nice van... that might sound crazy, but we're planning on having 4 kids, and we drive cars until you can't drive them anymore. Might as well get something practical right? LOL!
2. What was your worst first date ever?

Worst first date? Went out for Frosties after going to my high school choral concert w/Jeremy... came home and went to bed and woke up vomiting... yea. Not fun.

3. How old were you when you fell in love for the first time?
REAL love? I was 17, and I've never looked back :)
4. When was the last time you reconciled your checkbook?
Justin is in charge of all that now... so it's been a while! I got TIRED of doing it!
5. If you were going to fashion a "Wanted" Ad for a best friend, how would you word it?
Wanted: Best Friend who is willing to come over and just sit and watch a movie, hold a crying baby, or cook dinner... someone who understands when I can't go out or stay out late... and isn't embarrassed when I nurse my child. :)





 
 

4.28.2011

4 Months

Boogie is 4 months old today! Tomorrow is her 4 month checkup, I look forward to finding out how tall she is, and if her weight is what we weighed her as (12.1 lbs). She can't decide what her sleep cycles are going to consist of... a couple of days she sleeps wonderfully, and then next thing you know it she doesn't sleep at all! Little booger! She's currently asleep on a blanket in the floor, she has been for about.... 10 minutes? She's already starting to stir however, so most likely I'm going to get her, change her, nurse her, and head to bed. I'm not going to get done what I hope to tonight anyways! Goodnight!

4.25.2011

A Little Bit of This... A Little Bit of That...

Can you believe it? I sure can't! I never thought I'd get to the end of this semester! I was so sure I could handle taking 4 classes online AND being a SAHM to my Boogie... little did I know how high maintenance Boogie would be! I guess I should have known though right? LOL! She really is a wonderful baby, but it's hard to get things done, especially homework, when this little girl refuses to be put down and wants your undivided attention ALL the time. I started out taking Principles of Biology, Sociology of the Family, Social Psychology, and Critical Thinking. What was I thinking when I signed up for Biology? I mean REALLY? That was a horrible mistake. The other three weren't as bad, however Social Psychology was ridiculous... the way the instructor set it all up was crazy and confusing. It's not her fault that I did poorly, I just had a horrible time trying to figure everything out and missed several due dates and therefore did very poorly on her tests. So in the end I dropped those two classes and am now acing my last two classes and ENJOYING them. That's what matters right? So instead of graduating this Fall, I will be graduating in the Spring. It might be taking me 3 years to get my AA, but this little girl is totally worth the extra time :)


This week Elah turns 4 months old... yikes. Didn't I just write about her turning 3 months old? She's starting to grab things, hold things, and put things in her mouth (yea....). She's definately teething, and that "4 Month Sleep Regression" I've heard and read other momma's talk about... we're experiencing it. NOT fun. Vacation was definately a sleep vacation... one night she slept close to 9 hours! Now I'm lucky to get 3 or 4 out of her. I shouldn't complain though, it could be much worse!

I've been practicing putting Elah on my back in the woven wrap... it's much more difficult than wearing her on my chest, and not only are my arms short, but Elah is so little it's hard to reach behind me and her to wrap her appropriately LOL! Here's a few photos to show you how I've done:



I look ROUGH in the second picture... but that's because Elah and I... well I walked from our apartment to my mom's house. That's approximately 1.5 miles with a child on my back, a diaper bag, and it quickly went from a nice cool morning to HOT. It was worth it though! I can't seem to get Elah as high up on my back as I would like... but like I said, I'm still working on it. What kills me is how people seem to think she's uncomfortable or she's in danger... so let me just say... babywearing is safe if you do it correctly. I wouldn't wear Elah if I didn't believe with my whole heart that it was safe. Sure, it's a little harder to get her on my back, but I would never put her in danger. I seriously wish I could have photographed some of the looks I got walking that day... how do you think people in Jesus' day carried their children? I bet a lot of them did this! Ok... off my soap box. But seriously, babywearing is AWESOME!

Elah's dedication is coming up soon as well! We haven't set a date yet, but we are really excited to finally publicly dedicate our daughter to the One who blessed us with her. We're going to be doing things a little differently, but it will be just as special. Her godparents are going to lead the dedication, I couldn't choose a better couple to be her godparents and who better to dedicate her than them?

After all that rambling... I really have no idea how to end this.... so.... I'll leave you with this:
"Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward." Psalm 127:3.


4.24.2011

He has RISEN!

Our little family had a wonderful Easter Sunday... and guess what?!?!? Jesus has RISEN! Hallelujah! :) Boogie and I started off our morning by sleeping in. By sleeping in I mean, we started at 7am and I pretty much nursed her everytime she woke up so that she fell asleep again... is that awful? LOL! We got up at 10am and started our morning by reading the Easter Story from one of her kid's bible story books and then we read an Easter book by Mercer Mayer (LOOOVE those books!) Then we were basically lazy all day... I did manage to get the diapers washed, and Justin made steaks for dinner... other than that, we just hung out, played, and Elah refused to nap! Ha! She's actually finally asleep... I got her down at 9pm and she stayed asleep for about 45 minutes, long enough for me to get half of an assignment done for school. I just got her back down, however she's in my lap, and I can't move. Yay me!

Anyways, I wanted to share Elah's Easter pics... or atleast a few of them. Mom took the one's outside, I took the one's inside... enjoy!










4.23.2011

Boogie's First Easter

Tomorrow is Boogie's first Easter! Not that she cares, but Justin and I made her a little Easter basket with a few goodies for her. I didn't pack it, and she's already played with the toys we bought... but we just wanted to get her something for her first Easter! J has to work tomorrow of course, and mom is sick... so chances are we won't make it to church tomorrow, but that's OK. Elah loves to read... she LOVES books (and mommy is very ecstatic about that) so we will probably read the Easter story together in the morning and just play! I want to teach her what Easter is really about, of course I'm sure she'll believe in the Easter bunny... that was so much fun as a child... but she needs to know why we celebrate this holiday.

I've never not believed in my Savior, and this holiday I believe in Him more now than I ever have before. I have Boogie to thank for that. I love my husband, and he is the love of my life, but nothing compares to the love I have for my daughter...except of the love I have for my Christ. It's incredible how different, but how similar my love is for Boogie and for Jesus. I wonder what God goes through when we fall in our footsteps, or how excited He becomes when we have accomplished something victorious. My heart leaps when Elah just smiles at me, it's a love so intense that you can't understand it until you hold your own child in your arms.

Something else I've been thinking about this Easter holiday is how my brother has fallen in his footsteps this past few years. My baby brother doesn't "believe" in God anymore, atleast that's what he claims right now. He's having a hard time with... well just life in general. I pray for him all the time, I try to reach out to him when I can... but I'm not going to lie. It's difficult, especially when some of the things he does and says hurt me, and could potentially hurt my daughter. When we picked out a name for our daughter, we chose a name that meant something... in the valley of Elah, a tiny little boy named David picked up a stone and flung it at a giant, evil man named Goliath... and saved his people. I'm hoping that my tiny little girl can be my brother's David and defeat all the Goliath's in his life... I know that God is already working through her, I've seen it with my own eyes... until I see a major change though, I'll continue to pray!

This has been a little random, but these are all things I've been thinking about this week, leading up to one of the most victorious holidays there are. Jesus RISES tomorrow, he defeats death and Satan and washed my sins away on this day sooo many years ago. I am blessed to know Him in my heart, I am blessed to be washed by the blood of the Lamb. Am I worthy? No. Do I deserve it? No... but does He think so? YES. I can't decide how the rest of my life will go, or what my children will choose to believe, but I hope and believe with my whole heart that someday Boogie, and her siblings, will know Christ as I do someday...

Happy Easter Boogie... tomorrow is going to be a beautiful day!

4.22.2011

I Miss Sleep...

Just a few weeks ago my Boogie was sleeping between 6-9 hours EVERY night... yea... that's a lot of sleep! Now? Not so much. She used to go down between 8 or 9pm and sleep til 2ish or longer... all of a sudden, she fights it until 9 or 10, goes down, and wakes up 30 minutes later! I get her down again... and she's up 30 minutes later! I cherished these few hours before I went to bed, I used it as my own time to myself! I got homework done, did laundry, or just watched a movie and fooled around on facebook... but it was MY time no matter what I did. At the moment, I'm typing this with one hand, and shaking a rattle over Elah who is giggling hysterically... and it's almost 11pm. WAY past Boogies' bedtime.

Since about 10 weeks, she's been a horrible napper... she has to be worn or held to get a good nap in, I'm still trying to accept that, which isn't going so well. I need to get things done, and I can't do that if I have to hold her, and she doesn't like it when I bend over with her in the wrap, so I can't get quite a few things done when I wear her either! (When I'm more comfortable wrapping her on my back, this may be resolved, for the moment though... we're not there yet). RARELY, she will fall sleep in the swing, bouncer, or carseat, but does it last long? NO. I think we got about 30 minutes when we go to my inlaws house tonight... and that was AFTER riding in the car for about 20 minutes running errands! She sleeps great in the car, but since Justin uses the car during the day, I can't just drive her around for a nap... which would still defeat the purpose of her napping so I could get some stuff done!

I guess the point of all this is to just say I'm tired... yesterday was rough. And all of this could be because of a growth spurt and/or teething... but I haven't had much rest since about, oh, Wednesday? And after so many wonderful nights of GOOD sleeping, it's hard to feel like I have a newborn all over again. Not to mention that she was basically permanently attached to my boob yesterday, which made for a cranky mommy and a happy baby as long as I was within her piranha mouth!

I love you Boogie... but mommy needs a Boogie break... even for just an hour, please?


Five Question Friday



1. What is your favorite Easter tradition?
I always loved the Easter egg hunts and the sunrise service at church. I have some great pictures of Dylan and I hunting eggs at Granny & Papaw's house.

2. Are you a "shower" or a "long, hot bath" kind of person?
Depends.... if I have time and someone to care for Elah, I love hot bubble baths, otherwise it's either a quick jump in the shower or a long, not hot shower with Elah LOL!

3. Can you parallel park and if so when is the last time you did it?
No! Pretty sure the last time I tried was during Driver's Ed!

4. What is your favorite Easter candy?
Reese's Eggs... they have more peanut butter!

5. Easter: do you go all out with the Easter Bunny or focus on the religious part of the holiday?
We will do Easter baskets and egg hunts, but our primary focus will be about what Easter is really about!





************** I haven't had time to revamp the blog... forgive my blurry pictures and blah look at the moment!*******************


4.21.2011

Time Flies...

Every now and then my emotions get the best of me. Every night, during the first 5 hour stretch that Elah sleeps, I lay her on the floor ontop of her blankets and I work on laundry, waste time on facebook, or blog (like I am now, lol). And then other times, I just watch her sleep... that might sound boring to you, but I LOVE just lying next to her and watching her sleep. She is growing so quickly, and I know that in just a week's time she'll start looking different... EVERY week. My little girl will be 4 months old next week, we had her 4 month pictures and her dedication pictures done at the Picture People, and mom and I took pictures of her in her little Easter dress. But seriously, I cannot believe that it's been 4 months. It's unreal... and I cried tonight thinking about that! I'm already dreaming about being pregnant again and having a little sister or brother for my Boogie... but then again, I want time to slow down and for Elah to be my itty bitty bug forever! She's laughing so much more now, and rolling from her belly to back more often... she can scoot on her back WHEREVER she wants to go... slow down girl! I spent this week working on packing up all her NB and 0-3 months clothing... I cried... now everything in those sizes but her dresses and t-shirts are packed up and stacked in a corner in her room.

This time next year she'll most likely be walking, even running, everywhere... eating meals with us, learning new words, causing trouble, and driving me bananas... and as excited as I am for that, I will miss the itty bitty little girl she is right now, and even the itty bitty baby she is already leaving behind. I try to take a ton of pictures, and if you are on my facebook... you are a witness to that... because I don't want to forget a minute! When Elah was born, my dad made the comment that he couldn't remember me being so small, so I'm trying to document as much of this stage in her life as possible... the coo's, the laughter, the smiles... I don't want to forget a moment! And who knows... a couple years from now I may be saying the same thing about another itty bitty Massey baby!

4.16.2011

Five Question Friday... a day late!

1. What is your favorite sign of spring?

I love the little buds sprouting out on trees... the tulips blooming, and finally hearing birds chirp again!

2. What was your best birthday ever?
Hmmmm... Probably my first birthday I spent with Justin. I don't remember what we did, or what he gave me, but I got to be with him and have every birthday since then. 6 birthdays so far... and going strong :)

3. What is your favorite dessert?
CHEEEEEESECAKE!

4. What is the best excuse you've ever used to get out of a ticket?
I've never had to make an excuse, because I've never been pulled over for a ticket... just for a broken headlight lol!

5. Do you wake up before your alarm, with your alarm, or after hitting snooze several times?
My alarm's name is Elah... so it depends on what kinds of noises, and tossing and turning that she does!




Please Excuse The Mess

I am under construction... so please ignore the banners, random backgrounds, fonts, colors... I haven't totally decided what I want it to look like again, so bear with me! Thanks!

4.14.2011

Getting Back to Normal

Coming home from vacation sucks, not gonna lie! I hate unpacking... I hate putting things away... and I hate that Elah's schedule is SO MESSED UP. I've just now gotten around to catching up on diaper laundry... just haven't put them away... and our laundry is so piled up it's ridiculous! I've also avoided tackling all of these things by walking to my mom's house w/Elah everyday (mom is on Spring Break). Saturday, this is going to change... it HAS to change! I have stuck to our menu plan though! We aren't necessarily going in order, but we are cooking dinner every night!

On top of all the housework that needs to be done, I'm working on several crafty projects! Well... technically mom will be helping me with a lot of them, because I'm still learning some how to do some sewing projects. But here is my list:
  • Summer Dresses for Elah (maybe 3 to start with)
  • Baby legs or I call my version "Leggies"
  • Cloth Wipes
  • Cloth Breast Pads
  • Tutu... yes... and it's sparkly. Really.
  • Felt Flower Clips
  • Flower Clips
  • Nursing Cover
  • And..... I might be adding a homemade woven wrap into the mix!

Yea... that's a lot of stuff ontop of everything else, but it will get done! And did I mention that I'm about oh... 9 months behind in Elah's scrapbook(s)? I haven't even started on the pages with pictures of HER... I'm just now on the pages of my belly pictures!

Now... I must finish diaper laundry, hang the wet ones to dry, and start on the regular laundry while I have a few minutes of "mommy alone time" before Elah wakes to nurse and be changed before starting her long sleep stretch! Night!

4.11.2011

Beautiful Chaos

I've been absent for the past week or so... with the exception of a boredom post on Friday... I've been on vacation! It was amazing! Some days were stressful, but those are to be expected with a little one in the family, right?! This post may end up a little long, so I will apologize in advance, but I have much to update on!

Before we left on vacation we had to take Elah to a doctor's appointment, we didn't mention it to many people because we wanted to find out exactly what was going on, and what it meant for Elah. At her last checkup one of her pediatricians mentioned that she had a heart murmur, but she couldn't tell if it was innocent or not. She recommended that we see a cardiologist to get it checked out to be sure it was OK. So a few weeks ago we took her in for an echocardiogram, and Elah was a champ! She only fussed a little because of exhaustion, otherwise she was happy and cooing the entire time! They discovered that Elah has an atrial septal defect, which is essentially a type of hole in her heart that allows blood to flow back and forth into her heart chambers (if you read my friend Christa's blog, you may have read about her son Tyler having the same defect). According to Elah's cardiologist, it is small, and should heal on it's own and he has no worries that it won't. We will take her back when she is two to see if it's closing. So that's that, and all is well!

After Elah's appointment we headed off for vacation! We took our car and the Flint's volvo... we had a LOT of stuff to take between the two families (we packed lots of food as well). Miss JoyAnn rode with Elah and me, and J drove the volvo... we made pretty good time and got settled into the cabin while we waited for the Flints to arrive. Here are a few pictures of our cabin:


This was the tub in our room... wish we could have enjoyed it more, but it was LOUD, and usually by the time we could enjoy it, Elah was asleep! LOL!


Vanity w/shower and bathroom to the right


Elah hardly slept in that pack n play, so we stripped off the comforter and all 3 of us slept on the bed w/a sheet. And as you can tell, we went shopping before this picture was taken LOL


Living Room... that's Elah and myself in the chair, and Jesse on the couch.


Kitchen... the upstairs that you can see at the top of the picture was where the kid's room was located. Our room was to the left of the fridge.


Front of the cabin... there were rocking chairs and a porch swing on the front. On the back deck was the grill and a huge hot tub.

Ugh. These stairs. These stairs led downstairs... and they were steep, narrow, and a pain in the butt. The game room was down there, along w/Janelle and Nathan's room... and the boys slept outside their room. The laundry was also down there... THAT was fun!

I think we all busted our butts on those stairs atleast once, and Nathan busted his butt (and shoulder and side...) on the stairs up to the kids room.... would have been nice to have more details about the stairs of death befor reserving this cabin! BUT, we had fun, injuries and all LOL. We went to the aquarium, to the Chattanooga Choo Choo, putt-putting, the Titanic Museum, Gatlinburg, Knoxville, and bowling... and even took Elah swimming for the first time (however that trip was not so fun, the kids weren't allowed to do ANYTHING because of pool rules... ugh). I could go into more detail, but I'd rather share a ton more pictures!

My little chunky man... he's gonna be a heartbreaker for sure!


Elah was so good... even despite teething, and being a little gassy! LOL!


Monkey man is such a serious little man... but I got a few pictures of him kind of smiling!


JoyAnn cheesing... she was SOOO excited!


Sweet sweet Jesse boy... he just lights up my life... he is so kind and gentle with Elah, and he can make her laugh like NO one else!


All the kids, all 6 of them, enjoyed Ripley's Aquarium!


Me w/Boogie and the 2 smallest Flint Monsters


The long drive to Chattanooga was TOTALLY worth seeing Joseph's face when he saw the trains!


Elah slep the entire ride!

There are many more pictures, but I haven't uploaded them yet... I'm sure I'll share more soon!






4.08.2011

Five Question Friday

1. If you could change one thing about yourself what would it be? At this time in my life, there is NOTHING I would change. I am PROUD to be who I am today, I am loving my life and my little family... and honestly, I wouldn't change a thing!

2. Write about a time when you got lost.
Ha! Last April, shortly after Justin and I got our Droids, we decided to go to Knoxville and try out the GPS on our phones. We got to the mall pretty easily, and then decided to try and find the Super Target... btw, we need a Super Target at home... it ROCKS! So we're following the GPS... and we end up in this neighborhood... we're thinking, OK, maybe this is a wierd back way to get to Target. I'm driving around this neighborhood, and when we get to our "destination" its infront of a random house... and BEHIND the house is the back of Target. Obviously, our GPS failed us that day :( LOL

3. Camping or 5 star hotel?
Hmmmm... ya know, that really depends on the situation. With Elah at the age she is, a 5 Star Hotel would probably be a better choice... and sometimes you just want to be able to relax and order room service. Other times, camping is a blast... laying under the stars, hearing the crickets chirping, and the birds singing early in the morning... yea. Love them both!

4. Have you donated blood?
That would be a negative. Until I was pregnant, I was horribly terrified of needles. Obviously, after the many sticks and needles I endured during my pregnancy and my labor... I am over my fear. I may decide to donate blood in the future... we will see!

5. Do you have a budget or do you 'fly by' most months?
Ugh. This is something we are working on. Normally we 'fly by', but I am working on putting us on a budget and FOLLOWING through with it... which is really hard when you have a precious little girl to spoil!