Keepin' It Real Wednesday

My boyfriend is really the cutest guy around.

When people see his teasing smile, with his big brown eyes crinkling in the corner,
they swoon and I have to smile too. Yep, he is all mine.

All mine.

He rushes to my arms every morning, and falls asleep breathing into my neck every night.

He has a great sense of humor and can always cheer me up.

We spend almost every waking moment together.

I love him. SO MUCH.


And he loves me. I cherish that love.

Sometimes though,

when he screams with jealousy if my husband hugs me,

or sits outside the shower door until I finish,

or squeals when I turn a corner without him, yelling, "I come!"

or I don't feel like having help with the dishes,

or he bawls in nursery at church, even though his granny works in there...

Sometimes

I think,

It would nice if he loved me

just a little bit less.

Neighborhood Easter Egg Hunt

All of the candy in the 0-3 area ended up being Life-Saver gummies, which I thought was weird. Those seem more choke -able to me than tootsie rolls. What do you think?

Either way, I let Ollie it eat. But then later Ollie's whole bag was empty and Colin laughed and said he ate it all, so now Ollie has complete access to Colin's.

Gotta love siblings.

Can you believe that...

.....this gorgeous tulip...

is even more gorgeous inside?


I am lovin' spring....

even more than I love my new skirts.....

...which is a whole lot.

Building a Ship

I was thinking about Nephi the other day - about how the Lord asked him to build a ship and he did.

I have heard this story so many times that its significance in my life was a little lost to me. It is told in such a matter-of-fact manner, I never thought about the fits of anxiety that brave Nephi might have felt when he thought of the enormous task that lay before him.

I also didn't think about how many times - over and over again! - Nephi showed faith and trust in his Heavenly Father. It wasn't just, "You want me to build a ship, okay, then I must be able to do it. Tra-la! There is it!"

Time and again, he asks the Lord to show him what to do, where to get materials, how to shape the boat, and time and again, the Lord answers his prayers. Every step is a submission, and every step is met with further understanding.

This is why I have been thinking about Nephi: Heavenly Father asks things of me that I am not qualified for. Things that bring me great anxiety and keep me awake some nights. Things that I could attempt halfheartedly and then when I fail say, "Well, I tried. Didn't work."

Things that are no where near as difficult as building a boat that will have to carry my family across a huge body of water.

The blessing I have found, as Nephi did, is that if I am sure I have been commanded of the Lord (and I am), all I have to do is take one step at a time. I can do that.

One step,
pray for direction,
listen for direction,
act on direction (and see that it actually works! what a reward for faith!),
and onto the next step
until the task is completed despite my inadequacies.

I am a much smaller character in the building of the kingdom than Nephi was and my tasks are much more insignificant than his were, yet the Lord fulfills His promise to me with the same dedication that He did with Nephi.

"And it came to pass that I Nephi, said unto my father, I will go and do the things which the Lord has commanded, for I know the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they many accomplish the things which he commandeth them."

( and this weak child of man is so grateful for that)

"New Moon" $1 (DVD) - "Astroboy" (Blu-Ray) $4 - Guest Post - Chad

*Coupon not longer up. Sorry guys!*

So before I begin, I should mention that I am currently watching "New Moon", and I haven't rolled my eyes this many times since the last "State of the Union Address." (Sorry Olivia - I know I'm attacking both New Moon and Obama in one sentence...:).

So, this is the deal. Below is a link for a $16 coupon off of "New Moon" or "Astroboy". "New Moon" is $17 on DVD at Walmart right now, so you end up paying about $2 after taxes. "Astroboy" on Blu-Ray is $19.99 right now, so it comes out to around $5 after taxes. These can be redeemed at Target (I believe it's around $7 for the Blu-Ray) or any other retailer. The intent of the coupon was to purchase all 4 movies to get $16, but the coupon doesn't spell that out and it doesn't prevent you from buying just one. If there is gray area, I will find it. I have used this coupon...ummm...several times without a hitch. If you do use it, let me know what your experience was like!!! Be persistent - It's a valid coupon and will go through!!!

Check back tomorrow for another sweet DVD/Blu-Ray Deal!!!

Linky:

Summer of the Skirt

So, this is my fashion goal for the spring/summer:

Wear more skirts.

Not just to church...to the store, to the park, everywhere! Why not? You can dress them up, you can dress them down. They are cute, they are feminine, and I feel more like ME in them.

Not to mention they are so much more comfortable than jeans, and so much more flattering than capris. So I am making the attempt.

With that in mind, I went a little crazy at Old Navy and bought four of the same skirt, all in different fabrics, with shirts/sweaters and accessories to match. More shopping for myself than I have done in a year - no kidding. I am in love with their whirly skirt (it hits just the right spot on my knee), which is on sale for $15 for now, and have you seen their new jewelry? Love it.

The best news is - Old Navy has a coupon you can sign up for that gets you 30% off anything you buy (in store only) through the 21st! They even give the coupon back to you when you check out so you can use it over and over again.

Go buy some skirts! Or jewelry, or flip-flops, or cardigans...or kids clothes!

Fabric

I was browsing through fabric on Fat Quarter Shop recently, looking for something for a home project I am working on (which will be revealed soon), and I realized that there was a common theme to the fabrics I was drawn to: ALL FLORAL

Not surprising, I guess, considering my love affair with flowers. I also lean towards green, as evidenced by the green that shows up all over my house - again, I think it is the nature thing. I love earthy colors.

What about you? Do you find yourself choosing the same type of colors over and over again in your home? Or even your clothing?

And does anyone know of a great place to buy modern looking fabric online? Charlotte has NO good fabric stores (unless, that is, you live in Charlotte and know of one! please share!)

Keepin' It Real Wednesday

Dear Ashley,

About two and a half weeks ago, we took a special trip to Dollar Tree with you and your kids in mind. We wanted to send them a St. Patrick's Day package, so we got some cute headbands, a shiny spiral decoration, some necklaces, Mike and Ike's, and Sour Patch Kids. Gabe and Colin were quite excited to send the treats off to their cousins.

Didn't get that package, did you?

I realized on Monday that time had run out. We ate the candy.

The kids wore the St. Patrick's Day gear today. Yep, that is it in the picture.

It's the thought that counts, right?

With Love,
Katie and kids

PS.Chad in charge of shipping around here. Not to pass the blame, but he is the one with a UPS account. Just sayin.'
PPS. Chad's parents never got the handmade Valentines the kids made them either.

Colin's Mystery Illness -pictures added

Those of you on facebook heard a little about this, but here is the full story:

• Last Wednesday: I pick Colin up from school to find him limping and crying. As I carry him to the car, he tells me that his left knee really really hurts. When we get home, I see that it is swollen. No redness or warmness, just very puffy. He says he didn't fall or hurt it at school. Soon he starts complaining that his stomach hurts. At around 5 pm he throws up. He has no fever. I start googling and of course fear something like bone cancer. He goes to bed but is awake off and on from 10-2 saying his stomach really hurts. When Chad gives him ibuprofen it seems to help and he sleeps better.
  
  
• Thursday: When he wakes up in the morning, Colin is no longer in pain and the swelling in his knee is gone. I curse myself for not taking a picture (c'mon Katie!!) - I have nothing to show the doctor! His pediatrician isn't in the office, so we see another one. Like I said, there is nothing to show him. The Dr. does a strep test, which, not surprisingly, comes back negative, and sends us on our merry way. That night, I notice a rash on his legs, below the knees. It looks like red pin-pricks. I now have something new to google.
  

• I come across information about Henoch–Schönlein purpura or HSP "Classically, HSP causes skin rash, pain in the abdomen, and joint inflammation (arthritis). Not all features need be present for the diagnosis. The rash of skin lesions appears in gravity-dependent areas, such as the legs. The joints most frequently affected with pain and swelling are the ankles and the knees" This sounds exactly like what Colin is experiencing.

• Friday: The rash is barely noticeable in the morning. I don't want to go back to the same Dr, and Colin is feeling fine, so he goes back to school. When he comes home, he periodically complains of stomach pains, headaches, and backaches, especially at night.

• Same Saturday and Sunday. Lots of aches. The rash remains but is much more mild than any pictures I have seen of Henoch–Schönlein purpura. I think to take a picture this time.

• Today: Take him to his pediatrician, Dr. Smoak. I LOVE him. He diagnoses it as Henoch–Schönlein purpura without me ever mentioning it. I am so relieved. The mystery is solved. The Dr. orders some blood work (which almost makes Colin faint. Who knew my boy was queasy about that stuff?) and a urine sample to make sure it isn't something else, and both come back clean.

Colin will probably be dealing with this for the next three or four weeks. He will most likely just continue to have the rash and aches and pains. He is not contagious. It can occasionally cause more serious problems if the kidneys become inflammed, so we will be bringing urine samples in weekly. We will just be praying that it follows the more typical path and doesn't become serious.

I have been so worried about figuring this out for the last few days that until it was diagnosed today, I confess that I hadn't thought much about how hard it must be for Colin to experience it all. I know that when I am in pain and not feeling physically well, well...it's just hard to be cheerful and everything that goes wrong is much harder to deal with. He has remained pretty happy and active and Colin-like. He is such a good kid.

March 12 in the evening - day 2 of the rash



March 16


March 17, almost a week after his knee first became swollen


Very appetizing right above pictures of the cake, huh?

Cookie Crown Cake

We had a Relief Society birthday party last night, and there was a cake decorating contest. When it was first announced, I knew right away that I wanted to make a cake with my incredibly creative mom. Since I don't really have cake decorating skills (really, none), I searched online to find something fun and different that just about anyone could do. This is the cake I found. My mom made the cake itself (which was a scrumptious carrot cake) and then brought it over to decorate together. We found the template provided in the recipe was a little too small, so we enlarged it. I also used this cookie icing for the designs on the cookies and to hold the candy on. In all other ways, we followed the instructions. The whole time we were making the cookies to go around the cake, we were thinking they looked kind of sloppy, but once they were decorated and on the cake, you really couldn't tell. It took a long time to make, but if I ever have a daughter who wants a princess party, I would do it again. It could also easily be color-coordinated to match a themed party - I can picture a cake with all pink candy on it.

We titled our cake "Daughters of a King." It got a lot of "ooohs" and "ahhs" when we brought it to Relief Society, and we ended up getting first place for appearance!

It must be mentioned that my boys had a good time decorating and eating the cast-off cookies. Ollie especially liked the steady supply of M&M's that I gave him to keep him busy while we decorated.

More Sunshine

It got up to 70 today. Now I am just bragging, huh? Weather this nice means a trip to the Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden. There was very little blooming (outside of the orchids), but every single blossom was appreciated by my mom and me. Welcome Spring!

The Games We Play

"Hey Mom! Guess where I am!"

A Day Worth Remembering

It was 66 degrees here today. After picking Gabe up from preschool, our day was devoted to the backyard. For two hours, we basked in the sun. I never thought the 60's could feel so warm to me.

I planted the two blueberry bushes I got for my birthday (Thanks Mom and Dad! Thanks boys!), some butterfly bushes (thanks neigbhor!), and divided and replanted my Black-eyed Susans.

I was a happy woman, and Oliver was the happiest he has been for weeks. That boy needs to be outside as much as I do.

I like to save the little tags that come on my plants to remind me of exactly what variety they are, but I always end up losing them. Today when I was taking a picture of my new blueberries (which I like to do so I can look back in later years and see the progress), an idea popped into my head - take a picture of the tagse! Of course! Pictures, I don't lose, especially if I post them on my blog. Here you go...Jersey Blueberry and Rabbiteye Blueberry....never to be forgotten.

Helping me sleep tonight

As I put Oliver to sleep tonight, my endless list of parental worries went through my head:

How can we get the boys to be reverent during prayers?

Do the boys yell too much because I yell too much?

Why in the world does Oliver have to lay still for an hour before he falls asleep?

Am I slacking as a parent?

And so on...

Feeling a little defeated, the questions dropped off, and some images took their place.

Chad and I feeding the kids together every night, giving them baths, helping Colin with homework, reading books together, wrestling and playing hide and go seek, making sure they get tucked in at a good time.

From after-work 'til bedtime, parenting is our number one focus. It really and truly is. No doubt about it.

Regardless of my un-unanswered questions (that will likely remained unanswered for awhile), that's got be to worth something! Worth quite a bit actually.

When it comes to focus, we rock.

Oliver Pretends

Colin said he didn't feel well the other day, and asked for a bowl. As soon as we brought the bowl over, Ollie leaned over it and started making barfing noises. He must remember that bowl well! He toned it down for the camera.