oh the places you go.

it's kind of amazing thinking about all the places you've been and will go.  so much diversity, from the people to the landscape, from city to city, state to state, country to country.  i'm no world traveller, but out of the few places i've been, there's one that has always captured my heart.

bodega bay, california raw, unedited, unwatermarked photos.... don't steal them.  : )

growing up, it was our beach and just miles from our house.  the air is cooler there.  the wind is sweeter.  when the sky is blue, it's the prettiest of blues.  when the sky is grey it's even prettier.  the waves kiss the sand and the cliffs touch the sky.  God's creation at its best...

i know i've shared it's beauty before, and i'm certain to share it a hundred times over.  : )  it's my favorite place.  although maybe i'm just biased.  after all, i celebrated my 9th birthday there, which happened to be the last year my dad was alive.  so yeah, i'm certain i'm biased.   

i can't wait to be there again.

miscellany monday

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1.  i hit the jackpot.  every single day, as hunter is finishing his lunch he lays his head on his shoulder and says, “nap, nap.”  yes, my child asks for a nap.  don’t hate me.  i’m enjoying this while it lasts.

2.  meet mrs. bruBAKEr.  jocelyn’s her name, baking’s her game...  i was lucky enough to almost meet her in real life.  and with the last name of “brubaker” she’s destined to open a bakery.  she’s so creative in the kitchen… it will blow your mind and possibly add a few pounds to your thighs or make you all the more eager to burn some calories.  ; ) she created the mini pumpkin oreo cheesecakes, perfect for any festive fall occasion.  if you need a good idea, visit her.

so my cheesecakes didn't look as perfect as jocelyn's, but i tried.  we took them to a pumpkin party last weekend.

3.  death by chocolate.  we try not to eat dessert too often.  my unsaid rule is once/week.  usually that once falls sometime during the weekend, which happened to be last night.  i didn’t have a whole lot to work with.  i made cupcake style brownies (from a box - just made brownies "cake style" and plopped them in a cupcake pan) topped with a chocolate butter cream frosting (recipe from the back of nestle cocoa).  yes, death by chocolate in its purest form.  good thing it was too sweet to finish even one.  : )  my diet was about to murder me.  (julie, i'm bringing some over for you, whether you like chocolate or not.  he he.)

 notice the euphoric cloud surrounding it : )

4. a mama mishap that will make you laugh.  my sister-in-law, becky is a hoot.  this was her facebook status the other day (taylor is her daughter): “broke the news to taylor that one of her frogs died yesterday.  then she ran into her room to find both frogs swimming.  oops!  my bad!”

5.  pumpkin picking.  all hunter could do the whole time while visiting the patch was say “wow” continuosly.  life’s way more fun when kids are around. 

he picked out a baby pumpkin to bring home.  made mom happy... it was only $1!

 adoring his baby pumpkin!

even sage had fun... just as long as she was right next to me the whole time.

p.s. #1 - thank you for all of your sweet prayers for my sister-in-law's adoption that i shared about in the previous post...  the Lord hears our cries and is faithful!

 p.s. #2 - if you want to win some gorgeous "faith-full" art, click to enter blair's giveaway from studio jru.

shadows turned to sunshine.

"in a thousand ways the Lord is picking up the pieces of brokenness."  here and there, all over the earth, through His people.  when we look at the world and all it's darkness it's overwhelming and hard to see the light.  we desire to reach out, help others, bring sunshine to shadows, but often don't know where to begin.  thank goodness we serve a mighty God who orchestrates all things and uses His people as His hands extended.  

i was at ladies bible study when i heard about how the Lord is picking up the pieces.  it's a quote from someone that i can't place, but it's resonated in my mind ever since.  

i think as a mom, staying home, raising children, i am helping (or at least it's my hope and prayer!) to pick up the pieces by training little hearts to love and honor Jesus.  although i can't go to africa and help fight the aids crisis, i'm doing what i can, what the Lord has required of me, for this point in time.

i think about my sister-in-law and her husband.  they have two adopted daughters, one from china, one from ethiopia and are in the process of adopting a daughter from haiti (i've mentioned them before).  they are picking up the pieces... giving these girls a home, a family, love, the Gospel, hope.  today they are traveling to haiti to visit their daughter.  the adoption process there is difficult, especially since the earthquake, and it would make my heart glad if you join with me in praying that they will be able to finalize the process soon.  i'm thankful for the hope that is being realized in this little girl's life.  and i'm thankful that she's my niece!  : )

thank you, Jesus, for picking up the pieces in a thousand ways!  

cindy visiting haiti in june, embracing her haitian princess.  precious.

miscellany monday

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1.  call me a tweeny bopper... i tried on a pair of jeggings (jeans + leggings) and was awed by their comfort.  they didn't highlight my fat like i thought they would.  i want a pair.  

2.  speaking of tweens, if you saw my face you'd think i was going through puberty.  i have the "gift" of oily skin.  my grandma says it's a gift because when i'm 70 i won't have nearly as many wrinkles as a result... i hope she's right.  anyways, maybe it's the weather change or just wacky hormones, but i have zits that will not resolve.  until... i found an angel disguised in a $3 bottle of oxy face wash.  this stuff trumps proactiv and clinique.  i love it when cheap things actually work really well.

3.  free highlights.  i would love to get my hair highlighted, but that costs money, and babies cost money.  obviously, the babies win every time.  : )  but, i've discovered another use for oxy face wash.  if it touches any hair while i'm washing my face it bleaches it.  hello free highlights.  (annie is my hairdresser.  i hope annie's not reading.  gasp.)

4.  sick of sickness.  i love church.  i love having fellowship with a body of believers.  i'm sad when i miss it, especially since that means hubby goes alone (he's the worship leader) and i've been sad a whole lot lately because my babies have been sick for so long.  we had an entire week of wellness.  we went to church last sunday and then, on behalf of nursery germs, were sick by wednesday.  i don't like having to choose between sick babies or going to church.  what do i do?!?

5.  bring on the prunes.  our poor baby girl has a pooping problem.  she went 12 whole days without a dump.  can you imagine how that must have felt?!  so now she gets miralax in her bottle and prunes for breakfast.  instead of starting her on rice cereal or veggies, the doc said to go with prunes.  i didn't think she'd ever want to eat solids for the rest of her life since her first taste of them tasted like prunes... so i balanced it off with rice cereal.  that went just as well as the prunes; nowhere:

6.  to be fair, i need to show you this cuteness.  because he's been sick, there's been a lack of hunter pictures.  i'm trying to change that.  i told him to smile for the camera:

   

7.  playing pretend.  hunter's learning the art of pretending.  he pretends that i feed him like a mama bird feeds her baby.  here he is pretending to eat off of a mixer attachment.  it's cute how little minds work.  : )

diet diary (extended edition)

first, let me just confess that i feel a bit shallow writing about weight loss and exercise.  after being completely engrossed in the mine rescue, it changes your perspective a bit on life... how quickly it passes, what is most important and how the way that you live matters for eternity... i know those miners had a chance to reflect, re-examine and re-evaluate; i'm guessing they'll never be the same.  for seventeen whole days those men wondered if they'd be brought back to life.  and now sixty-nine days later they were; what a miracle!

now on to lesser things.  i'm no fitness expert.  i've lost baby weight one time around, now i'm working on it the second time around.  some of you have asked what i'm doing.  well, i don't really know what i'm doing... you could say making it up as i go and simply trying to figure out what gets results.  

as far as dieting, since i'm nursing, i haven't been able to do a full fledge diet.  but, i am focusing on eating completely healthy, with a few desserts thrown in for good measure. -  sage likes them; it's her fault.  ; )  my favorite healthy meals are fajitas (chicken, loads of bell peppers and whole wheat tortillas), anything involving spinach, and turkey sandwiches on sandwich thins.  i try to keep a mental weight watchers point count of 15-20.

my new favorite salad... spinach, rapsberries, mozzarella cheese, all topped with a raspberry vinaigrette.  i'm sure it's on some menu somewhere, but i like to pretend i invented it.  

exercising.  i'm a bit addicted.  you release the same endorphins exercising as you do eating chocolate.  i tell myself i'll feel like i just ate chocolate if i go and run for an hour.  most of the time i do my beloved workout videos. - they are so convenient and i have them memorized (to some people that would be a negative, but i like to know what's coming and even more, i like everything to be planned and planned some more!).  i have "slim in 6" and "30 day shred." i prefer a 30 minute workout;  i find that if i am going to exercise longer than 30 minutes, it's easier to come up with excuses not to do it.  if i know it will only take 30 minutes, then it doesn't seem like such a time eater upper.  i would love to do more, but after all, it's more important that i take care of my family.

the results:  i've lost 20 pounds in the last 11 weeks.  i have 5 more to lose to be back to my original weight.  finally my clothes fit again and it's nice... i was getting tired of wearing the same outfit everyday.  : )  it's definitely harder losing weight after baby #2, and harder since i had two babies within 16 months, but all way more than worth it!

i'm a much more pleasant person if i'm well rested, eating well and exercising... honey appreciates that.  but most of all, feasting on the Word makes all the difference.

miscellany monday

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1. lost and found.  yesterday i lost my cell phone (my 5 year old nokia, so i wasn't too sad and thought it'd be the perfect occasion for an iphone).  we don't have a land line so i felt pretty much helpless.  not to mention i was going to have a panic attack if i lost all my phone numbers.  however, the side of me that wants to declare bankruptcy on time was kind of relieved.  : )  but, alas, i found it.  my budget was especially glad.  

2. a fat cat.  no offense to cat lovers everywhere, but i'm not that interested in them.  except when they're pink, soft, cuddly, and chubby with a big dimply smile.  

3.  cooky caillou.  if you're a mom, you may be familiar with caillou... the bald headed lil' boy on pbs.  is it just me, or do you, too, wonder why he's bald?  we had it on the other day for a minute and i was just completely confused when he had a girl sleepover.  and they slept right next to each other.  hello weird.  

4.  taste buds had a terrible treat.  we tried out a new froyo place.  it was sick.  nasty.  and expensive.  the absolute worst combination.  you serve yourself... fill the cup with frozen yogurt, add whatever toppings you so desire and then weigh and pay.  it is 49 cents/ounce.  ounces add up.  avoid this place if it's near you.

5.  allergy annoyance.  speaking of the said yogurt shop, we asked for an ingredient list to make sure hunter could eat it (he has a severe egg allergy).  the manager checked and said something like, "well we don't have an ingredient list... i don't think it has eggs, but i can't be sure."  ahhhhhhh!  that is useless.  useless, i tell you.  (right, beth?!) 

6.  beautiful babies.  we watched the documentary on babies and it was quite fascinating to see how different places and cultures raise babies.  you see a baby in america, where we parents are addicted to parenting formulas, magazines, all while being completely scared that there must be something wrong with our child because they're aren't developing just like they "should" be (or maybe that's just me?) versus a baby born in namibia that has no toys and roams around outside in the dirt while getting a spit bath from mama.  the namibia baby developed far more quickly than misses america.  imagine that.  

sailing the bvi.

since i've been meaning to scrapbook this trip for almost five years now and it's a mile away from being at the bottom of my never-ending "to do" list, i figured i'd pseudo-scrap it here...  that way we can all drift away to dreamland and imagine being on an island somewhere in the atlantic, or the pacific, whatever suits your fancy...

in january of 2006, my step-dad and mom treated us to something sweet.  and i'm not talking ice cream.  think vacation of a lifetime... something they saved and saved forever for.  we flew to the british virgin islands and hopped aboard a 36 foot sailboat.  it seemed spacious and comfy, but needless to say, by the end of the week with seven of us it felt like we were goliaths crammed in a ford fiesta.  but that just added to the fun (somewhat).

below was our living quarters for the week.  we ate breakfast and lunch on the boat.  we ate dinner out on the islands and enjoyed the local fare.  conch was often on the menu... it sounds about as good as it tastes.   the locals that served us had hearts as warm as the food; they were so friendly.

we spent our days island hopping; sailing to a different island as often as we could.  each island was so different.  some were desert like, others were lush, all were beautiful.

it was tough not showering for seven days, just letting my hair go, and basking in the sun until it set...  

my mom and sister living it up and letting their hair go, too.

i highly recommend the bvi.  : )

miscellany monday.

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1. the boy who cried wolf.  hunter's new favorite word is "ouch."  he's noticed that it's a great way to get our attention.  boo boo or not, ouch is the word. we've taught him to say "please" if he wants something so now he says "please" constantly and thinks it's a one-way ticket to get any and everything he wants. oh boy, he's cute.

2. a friend of fonts.  i could spend hours looking at free fonts.  dafont.com is pretty fab, right along with fonts by kevin and amanda.  happy fonting to you.  if there's a fantastic font that i need to know about, do tell.  by the way, can papyrus do us a favor and fall off the face of the earth?  

3. diet diary.  so, i've lost 15 lbs in the last 10 weeks and i want to lose 10 more to be where i was before babies.  i'm notoriously unrealistic when it comes to my weight loss goals. so in an effort to be more reasonable and less hard on myself, i'm writing a few notes for the future (like when baby #3 arrives which will be many many years from now).  

• note #1:  slow and steady wins the race.
• note #2:  when people say that breastfeeding makes the weight fall off, they don't mean that you'll drop 10 lbs/week.
• note #3:  as tired as you may be, working out always gives you more energy.
• note #4: not eating doesn't work.  eating a variety of foods is always best... everything is fine in moderation.

4.  freshberry.  my friend introduced me to it's creamy goodness and i'm hooked.  freshberry serves the best froyo (that's trendytalk for frozen yogurt, i learned) and you can choose three toppings to go with it.  it's low cal, full of the health benefits of normal yogurt and it actually tastes like a dessert instead of diet food.  it's become my guilty pleasure. i can only hope there's a freshberry near you.  

 5.  i fell for fall... a long, long time ago.  the colors of autumn, the changing leaves, the cooling temperatures, the feeling of holiday's just around the corner are all so lovely to me.  and although the temps have been in the 70's here in the south, it's fall enough. the lessening humidity does wonders for my hair and the pumpkin spiced lattes are good, too.  oh, and not to mention cute little kiddies in costumes.  last year we took a dinosaur to our church's fall festival... this year we get to take a giraffe and a "mommy still hasn't decided what else yet."