She's three!!!

Happy Birthday to our 3 year old....Janessa Faith.

 Her life started with my most horrendous pregnancy yet, followed by a pretty terrible delivery. (labor was fine...delivery....not so much). 

She was born on my cousin David's 14th Birthday and he was so happy about that, he even came to see her in the hospital! We still do big family parties for the kids so here the "then and now" picture.

Shortly after she was born it was discovered that she had a cleft palate which was repaired right before she turned one...at which point she also had ear tubes put in because until that point, she could barely hear due to fluid.

He life started in kind of a whirlwind and although she was our easiest baby for the first year...she has since become a very....um....energetic?  young lady! We should have known by her hair as a baby!!

She only naps a couple of times a week for me now (despite my NEED for her to nap every day!!) Recently...I put her down for a nap in Keira's bed (because she shares a room with Levi, I separate them at nap time)...I went to check on her a while later and she wasn't there. I searched the house top to bottom and couldn't find her anywhere. I finally found her on my bed behind a huge pillow and pile of laundry I inteded to fold later. Keep in mind we took the pacifier away months ago so I am now sure where she found one! 

When she woke up, she said "ha ha ha ha ha...I twicked you and moved to mommy's bed!" She keeps me on my toes even when she's sleeping.The thought did cross my mind that if I let her have the binky back, she might take more naps!!

For anyone out there that has seen the Despicable Me movies, we liken Janessa to being our little minion....and oh how she loves the minions!

Janessa is the first one to get up every morning...she seems to sense when I am about to get up "early" to have some alone mommy quiet time and manages to wake up 5 minutes prior to that every. single.day. haha. We have already had two family parties for her and so this morning when I said. "Happy Bithday sweetie!" she replied, "My Birfday Again?" haha. I love her.

Here is the cake from one of her family parties this weekend (a friend made it...she makes awesome cakes!! check out her facebook page here!)

It really depicts who Janessa is right now....her "minion" personality...always busy...always looking for something to do or get into...not always choosing the best way to do it....mixed with her girly princess side. She loves to act out the movie Frozen and does so on a daily basis. 

She so wants to be like her sisters but doesn't always know the right way to get their attention if you know what I mean! Same goes for her little brother. 

She is smart and funny and mischeivous and sweet. She is my most exhausting child but brings me so much laughter and joy at the same time. She wants to "help" me with EVERYTHING which in the future I think will be awesome....right now...well...I'm learning patience.

Her laugh is contagious.

Her immediate future could include more surgeries...more ear tubes, possilbe removal of adenoids....possible other cleft palate anomalies stuff....we shall see! 

I cannot wait to see what the Lord has in store for this little girl.

Have a happy year being 3 my baby girl!

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Setting Goals

A few weeks ago, I didn't complete my Community Bible Study lesson so I decided to catch up this morning and complete it. God's timing is always perfect and I know that He wanted me to read this lesson today. We are studying the book of Mark and it has been amazing to read the same things that I have read so many times throughout my life and see them in a new light.

Today, one verse in particular stuck out to me.

I am someone who is constantly setting goals for myself...sometimes unrealistic ones...but always things that I really want to be successful with.

When struggling, I often think of a verse that my dad had me memorize when he was my Sunday School teacher in elementary school.

It has always been a great reminder that God gives us that nothing is impossible with him. but this morning, I was reminded that it isn't just that we can do all things with Him....we really can't do anything without Him. The verse from Mark 11 reminds me that these "goals" or "plans" that I have for myself need to be committed to Him in prayer before I even start. They need to be the things that God wants me to be working on, not things that I think I should be working on.

How often do we turn to Jesus when we are in times of need, rather than trusting Him with the situation before we even start?

As I begin my year of Simplify, one thing I have changed already is trying to let God lead my goals. I already am sure of a couple of areas that he wants my heart to be changed and I already feel more successful knowing that they are from His leading, rather than my own.

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Simplify

Happy New Year! I guess I've taken a bit of a hiatus...for several reasons...but mostly just because life was busy. Well...here we are...in a new year and with that always brings thoughts of what kinds of things we want to change or do differently.

As I look back at 2014, It was a great year. A busy year. A complicated year. We moved.....twice. Tom Graduated and started a new job. There were so many unknowns. I feel very much like it was a year that ended 5 years of chaos! Good chaos...but chaos none the less.

So, I decided to join the bandwagon and coin a term that I hope will define my 2015. Simplify. It looks like we will stay in our current home for a while....or at least until sometime in 2016 (though....I guess you never know). With Tom done with homework and classes, we have a little more time to spend as a family and work on projects that we have been putting off.

I hope that this year allows us to rid ourselves of clutter, organize the basement, get rid of things we don't use or need, keep our schedules manageable, spend good quality time with our children and most importantly, put the Lord first in everything we are doing.

So, to put some numbers on my hopes, my goal for this year is to get rid of at least  10 items a week from my house. So...by this time next year, we will be down at least 520 things!

It is a simple goal....one that Tom can help with. One that is realistic and that I believe I can be successful at. One that my children will take part in and benefit from. One that will make my house simpler to keep up with.

If there are times that I feel anxious or stressed, it is my goal to really try to simplify the situation that is making it that way.

All in all, I feel like as a society we are encouraged to basically stress out our families, whether it be too many commitments, financial stressors or expectations. And really...what is the point of this life that God gave us, if we are not enjoying the many blessings that God has given us.

I am not going to commit to posting about this on a certain schedule (because that would not be simplifying) but I do hope to keep you updated on my progress.

So, I encourage you to jump on board and simplify with me....or find something that can define your year! Share in the comments what your "word" is this year...I would love to hear it!

Many blessings to you and your family in this New Year!

Photo Credit

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I Couldn't Protect Them

We are a homeschooling family. Some of you might think that means we shelter them. In some ways I agree. For us, it is a matter of letting them experience life as we feel they are ready to experience certain situations.

THAT IS NOT TO JUDGE HOW YOU RAISE YOUR FAMILY.

This is what we feel is right for our family.

But, as much as we try to protect them, we can't always...especially because we choose to be involved in many various activities each week where Tom and I are not with our kids....though we know who is!

This week, at one of the places that we go weekly (that I LOVE LOVE LOVE), Libby was playing with a friend who told her about a monster that lives in her friends basement. She apparently went into a lot of detail and I am not entirely sure how they even had time to have this conversation. I was not in her class with her.

She was terrified.

She asked me about it all day long. I tried to brush it off and not make a big deal out of it in hopes that she wouldn't make to big of a deal out of it.

But then bedtime came....and there was a lot of crying and screaming. She was so scared and I have never felt so bad in my life.

We prayed. We sang songs. She started to calm down but was NOT going to let me leave her room.

And then her sweet sister (who fights with her daily, I might add), invited her to sleep in her bed.

Instant cure. Instant cuteness.

I've never been so happy that my kids have siblings. I have never been so glad that they share a room.

This might be permanent and I don't even care.

Its so cute. I am not sure how a twin bed looks so roomy.

As a mother, I want so badly to protect my children and the reality is that sometimes I can't. So, when we can't protect them, we need to do our best to make them feel safe.

I feel like we had just recovered from The Shed incident and now it will start over.

Isn't it supposed to be the baby that keeps me awake at night?

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