Oh boy...

Today, the girls and I met my mom and a friend of hers at McDonald's in McPherson. We've used this mid-way point as a drop off/pick up zone many times.

Hopefully the "Gracelyn + ??" doesn't come
for a really long time...

This time, it was a drop off zone for me. (Side note: can anyone explain why I ALWAYS have a head cold when my parents have my girls?)

We generally pick this location so the girls can play at the playland (or whatever it's called...) 

Today was no exception. EXCEPT, for the first time ever, Gracelyn ventured to the third and highest level of the play equipment. When I commented to her about it she said:

"I'm up here because there are boys up here."

Oh boy...

There's nothing like it

Let me tell you, there's nothing like the agony that comes from preparing and waiting for your child's upcoming surgery. We found that out nearly 2 years ago when Gracelyn underwent surgery to remove her spleen.


This morning, another little girl from our church, 6-year-old Lindsey, is having her first surgery of the summer. Yes, her FIRST surgery of the summer.


Lindsey was born with bad kidneys. And while there is still no clear-cut diagnosis for her condition, her kidneys are failing. So, she is scheduled to have a transplant over the summer. This morning is the first step toward that goal.


Please join me in praying for Lindsey, her mom Krista, dad Pete and little sis Riley. To follow little Lindsey's progress, keep an eye on http://richertscountitalljoy.wordpress.com/.

Today is the Day

Well, today is the day. 
No, it's not moving day. 
It's downsizing day.


Our moving sale begins this afternoon at 3 p.m. It's been a long week of prep...and I'm amazed at the vast amount of stuff we've marked to sell.



Some of the things have been easier to place on one of the eight 8-foot tables than other things...mostly because of who gave them to us. Many of the toys we are selling have been gifts...gifts that were appreciated very much! Some of the items were even suggested by us, but have been very under-used and take up space. Those are the things I have seller's guilt about. 


It's not really the item I'm having a hard time parting with...it's the fact that I might hurt someone's feelings in the process.


But as I have been praying over the sale, not only have I prayed for turn-out & for trust (as I have been wallowing in anxiousness the last couple days!), but I have also been praying for the hearts of those we love. That they will not only be accepting of our choice to downsize & live differently, but that they will also see purpose and value to it.

A move to downsize

Apparently, thanks to some of my vague Facebook status updates & moving sale photos & comments, I've made some of you pretty curious as to our family's plans...


Well, yes, it's true...we are moving! But not far away...back to our beloved Hillsboro. We've learned much over the last 15 or 16 months. Like, even though Brad and I both grew up in the country, it's not really a good fit right now...instead it's a financial drain...gas money, eating out, etc. That, coupled with an *interesting* rental arrangement, and we feel a move back to town is the best option for our family at this point in time.


BUT, the amazing part is what God is doing through this whole situation. Even though the last year has been trying and stressful at times, God is bringing a great thing to fruition right under our feet!


Brad & I both feel convicted to downsize...greatly.

One of the items we will be selling.

Looking back, I think God has been stirring our hearts for 4-5 years, but we are finally at a place to accept His call on our lives. We always felt overwhelmed by the "stuff" in our lives, but we never quite knew what to do with that...I mean, the American dream is full of owning stuff. Gaining stuff. Living surrounded by stuff. We were always unsettled by it, especially after we were overrun by baby stuff.


In the last 1-2 years, I read both "Crazy Love" & "Forgotten God" (both by Francis Chan & both great reads by the way!)...very challenging! I read those books thinking "WOW", but not knowing exactly what to do.


Now we know.


But it took God bringing us to a home (a very nice home)...but one that doesn't feel like home to us. We've tried to make it that way, but every time I spent money on something to transform or fill the space, I would cringe. Turns out, the reason it didn't feel like home was because God was transforming our hearts to want something different. Something much smaller, where our family will use the house in its entirety instead of having a whole level of extra stuff and extra space.


That all said, I know most won't understand our reasoning. I mean, we are leaving a lovely 2000 sq. ft.  plus home in the "idealistic" country setting, and we are headed back to a home with about 1300 sq. ft., all while expecting baby #3...But I can't even describe how excited Brad and I are. And how comforting it is to know that we are right where God wants us to be...it's not often I can always say that!


Every time we pack a box of marked stuff for our moving sale (May 24 & 25), we feel freedom! Every time we realize that next month our heart's call will come to be, we are filled with anticipation. There's just something wonderful that happens when we follow God's prompting...even when things get difficult or don't seem logical...because ultimately there's blessing in the end!


If you have questions about our faith or about our move, please feel free to ask! (justsblogs @ gmail . com)

Little Miss is 2!

Miss Jemma turned 2 Saturday!

On her big day, we had toast and "magels" (aka scrambled eggs...a favorite of J's):

Then she opened presents from Daddy, Mommy & Gracelyn. Gracelyn gave her a tractor cup, which she hasn't let out of sight since: 

On Sunday we celebrated with the family...tractor-style:

Her haul (note the cup):

Tried to get a nice Mother's Day photo as well. A rabbit in the garden prohibited that notion. Again note the cup...also, my necklace was courtesy of lovely Gracelyn:

A new shirt from Aunt Monica:

She got a tool set from Aunt Lauren/Uncle Ben. She is fixing her tractor which was "broken" (aka, assembly required) when pulled from the box:

Having fun: 

A final shot of Miss Birthday Girl: 

Can't believe my sweet Jems is two already! 

She has brought much joy (and spice) to our lives! 

We love you!

Pinterest inspired

I found this cute little tractor shirt on Pinterest:

http://pinterest.com/pin/175288610466817607/

This is my version for Miss Jemma. She turns 2 tomorrow, and we party Sunday. Any guesses what our theme will be?

My friend Sara encouraged me to try making this, and I had fun! Next up for the sewing machine, baby crib bedding...though it might be another month or two...

Revisiting Ferber

I didn't sleep last night. Basically at all. Miss Jemma was awake from 1:30 a.m. to 4:15 a.m. for unexplained reasons. It was terrible.


And during that time, this is the verse that kept coming to mind: "Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself." (Matthew 6:34)

I guess that particular verse might seem odd...I should have been saying, "I will lie down and sleep in peace..."

Sweet Jemma at 2 weeks old, sleeping soundly :)

But I know exactly what God was getting at.


Every time Jemma doesn't sleep through the night (which has been basically every night for a couple months lately), my mind goes here:


"I can't believe she's doing this. Again. We already trained her, and now she's not sleeping. Again. Arrgh. How will I ever survive when the new baby gets here & I have to be up with him too? I can't do it. I can't do it...."


The Holy Spirit knew I needed those words, and they were strangely comforting in the early morning hours. And when I awoke this morning, I knew what today was going to bring.


Sleep training, toddler style.


I pulled good ole Ferber off the shelf. And what do you know? He had a suggestion for a toddler recently sprung from the crib (though the problems started before moving her to a different bed). He suggested "cribbing" their whole room with a baby gate, because their little brains can't resist the temptation of escaping, even if they are tired. Ummm...yep. That would be Jemma!


So tonight I will bring out the baby gate (because we only have problems at night, not at naps). And we will again do interval sleep training, just as I did when she was a baby. 


Wish me well, because if I don't sleep soon, my brain is going to piddle away into a pile of mush...

Updating my method

I've had several people ask how my newfound curly girl method is going.
And I have to say,
GREAT!


My hair is totally going (the right) places now.
It's not perfect, but when I'm happy with it most days of the week, that says something!


It's been some trial and error, but these are a few main things that seem to help:


* I haven't used a brush or comb in well over a month! No heat tools either...except an occasional diffusing with my blow dryer.


* I tried using Bert's Bees sulfate-free shampoo, but decided it wasn't for me. It's great for my girls' hair though! Instead, I use two different conditioners...one to cleanse my scalp. One to leave in. I have an itchy scalp, so I use the aloe vera conditioner for my scalp cleanse. I use the jojoba for my leave in. I also treat my scalp with raw aloe vera (not the gel...liquid form! I found mine at Prairie Harvest in Newton) the night before I plan to wash. It helps with the itch.

Purchased from soap.com

Purchased from soap.com

* The longer I do this, the less I have to wash. Right now, I wash 2-3 times a week!

* Wearing a super high ponytail at night preserves my curl for the next day, aided only by a spray of water and some leave-in conditioner. 

* Plopping works wonders! I wasn't satisfied with the curly girl method for wash-day hair. Basically you just don't touch it until it dries. Well, that takes FOREVER for my hair, and so I'm stuck with crusty gel hair for the majority of the day. But, I found the plopping technique and have used it the last couple times I've washed my hair & I loved the results!

How to plop

You can also find how-to videos on Youtube.

Happy Plopping :)

Parenting lesson #1468...

...you can check my math, but I'm pretty sure 1468 is the number of days I've been a parent. Really, I have no idea if that's an exact count of lessons, as some days there are multiple things to learn, but hey, who really needs exact anyway?


My point here is, NEVER, EVER dump & wash or you might find this in your "clean" laundry:

Curious?
That nice little film isn't really film.
It's gel.
From this:

No idea if it was new or used when we started, but it's clean now.
And it's about the only thing clean.
The rest has to be re-washed.

Oh happy day...

The results are in...

We had our mid-point sono yesterday...and YES, we found out what we are having.


We are having what looks to be a


HEALTHY

 

BABY

BOY!