Scarlett Grace was born five weeks after Monkey, on October 16. At her two-month check-up, it was discovered that she had developed a massive, and extremely rare, brain tumor. You can read her story at her parents' blog, called Butterflies.
Today, little Scarlett is having surgery to remove every little bit of that tumor; it is so large that there would be no point in attempting radiation or chemotherapy without her first undergoing this surgery. Her doctors expect to be done at midnight, but will stop then no matter what, even if that means returning in a few days to complete the procedure. Her surgery will begin in just a few minutes.
In support of Scarlett, and her parents Brandi and Chris, Monkey and I, and hundreds of other people, will be wearing red today. Even if it's just a red hair bow or earrings, it's going to be in support of Scarlett. This little girl needs all the prayer she can get, for healing and for strength, and her parents need prayer as well, also for strength, but for grace and peace while they see their little girl, who is fully dependent upon them, through the toughest journey she will ever face.
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Learning to be Good Stewards of the Gifts We've Been Given (Or, How to Spend Wisely at a Club Store)
This is a hard one for me. My whole life, I'm realizing, I've been extremely ungrateful for the blessings in my life, whether it was gifts, or money, or food, or simply time spent with loved ones.
HubbyButt and I are almost flat broke. There have been other times in my life when I had little or nothing to live off of, and I made it through; I realize now that I only made it through because God put certain people and situations in my life when I needed them the most. For example, when I moved to Sacramento, I had $20 to my name. I lived with a few friends of mine and was hired within a week of moving there at a sandwich shop, where I got a free meal every day I worked. Some days, that was all the food I got. I would cut my sandwich into thirds. One third to eat on my break, one third for dinner, and one third for breakfast the next morning. But, it was food, and I was eating. I lost a lot of weight, which I needed to do, and I made it through.
This time is different because now I'm married and have a little girl to take care of. This time, I have to think about health insurance, car insurance, how we're going to put gas in the car. Thankfully, we haven't yet had to steal from Peter to pay Paul, but we've come close. Somehow, we have been able to squirm our budget around to pay the people that need to be paid, and to take care of ourselves.
Like yesterday. Man, am I proud of the decisions we made yesterday. We were recently blessed with a vehicle from some friends (again, right when we needed it. There was no way I'd be able to go back to work with just one vehicle; someone has to take Monkey to daycare and pick her up at the end of the day), but it wouldn't pass smog. We had it tested 8 times, and every time it failed in nox levels. Like, majorly failed. The levels it was testing at were double the limit to pass. Finally, HubbyButt's dad took it to a test and repair shop, and they were able to get it to pass. Yay!
Anywho, we can register my vehicle now. It's going to be $15 (it's a 1993 Explorer) to register, which we can afford. However, we live in California, meaning that we have to have insurance in order to legally drive it (I wouldn't drive it without insurance, anyway). It's going to be a little over $100 to insure. Okay. This is where the budget squirming comes in.
We were also blessed, as a Christmas gift, with a membership to Sam's Club. Yay!! HubbyButt wanted to register the Explorer yesterday, but I convinced him that having food in the house is a bit more important than having a second vehicle just yet, since I'm not back to work for a few more weeks. Now, if you've ever been in Sam's or Costco, you know just how easy it is to waaaay overspend, right?
Between us, we still had $100 left over from Christmas money. Before we got out of the car at Sam's, we set a limit of $75 for ourselves. I plugged that into the calculator on my phone, and off we went. Every time we set something in the basket, I rounded up to the next dollar and subtracted it from our limit. This caused us to be very intent on the things that we needed and to keep away from the impulse buys. We ended up spending $68 on enough food to last the two of us until HubbyButt gets paid again next Friday, and hopefully a little longer, if I use our purchases correctly.
We got 5 pounds of ground chuck (which I browned and froze last night), 2 fresh chickens (one of which we'll be having for dinner tonight, and will be able to get at least 2 more meals out of), a case of canned peas, a case of canned corn, some fresh mushrooms, cheese, two loaves of bread (now in the freezer), milk, a box of cereal, and a tub of sourdough pretzels.
Later today, I'll start working on a menu plan to best utilize what we bought yesterday. I know I'll be freezing a lot of what we got, and a lot of what we make, so that it's available to us when we're ready for it.
I'd greatly appreciate any tips or recipes, so leave them in the comments!
HubbyButt and I are almost flat broke. There have been other times in my life when I had little or nothing to live off of, and I made it through; I realize now that I only made it through because God put certain people and situations in my life when I needed them the most. For example, when I moved to Sacramento, I had $20 to my name. I lived with a few friends of mine and was hired within a week of moving there at a sandwich shop, where I got a free meal every day I worked. Some days, that was all the food I got. I would cut my sandwich into thirds. One third to eat on my break, one third for dinner, and one third for breakfast the next morning. But, it was food, and I was eating. I lost a lot of weight, which I needed to do, and I made it through.
This time is different because now I'm married and have a little girl to take care of. This time, I have to think about health insurance, car insurance, how we're going to put gas in the car. Thankfully, we haven't yet had to steal from Peter to pay Paul, but we've come close. Somehow, we have been able to squirm our budget around to pay the people that need to be paid, and to take care of ourselves.
Like yesterday. Man, am I proud of the decisions we made yesterday. We were recently blessed with a vehicle from some friends (again, right when we needed it. There was no way I'd be able to go back to work with just one vehicle; someone has to take Monkey to daycare and pick her up at the end of the day), but it wouldn't pass smog. We had it tested 8 times, and every time it failed in nox levels. Like, majorly failed. The levels it was testing at were double the limit to pass. Finally, HubbyButt's dad took it to a test and repair shop, and they were able to get it to pass. Yay!
Anywho, we can register my vehicle now. It's going to be $15 (it's a 1993 Explorer) to register, which we can afford. However, we live in California, meaning that we have to have insurance in order to legally drive it (I wouldn't drive it without insurance, anyway). It's going to be a little over $100 to insure. Okay. This is where the budget squirming comes in.
We were also blessed, as a Christmas gift, with a membership to Sam's Club. Yay!! HubbyButt wanted to register the Explorer yesterday, but I convinced him that having food in the house is a bit more important than having a second vehicle just yet, since I'm not back to work for a few more weeks. Now, if you've ever been in Sam's or Costco, you know just how easy it is to waaaay overspend, right?
Between us, we still had $100 left over from Christmas money. Before we got out of the car at Sam's, we set a limit of $75 for ourselves. I plugged that into the calculator on my phone, and off we went. Every time we set something in the basket, I rounded up to the next dollar and subtracted it from our limit. This caused us to be very intent on the things that we needed and to keep away from the impulse buys. We ended up spending $68 on enough food to last the two of us until HubbyButt gets paid again next Friday, and hopefully a little longer, if I use our purchases correctly.
We got 5 pounds of ground chuck (which I browned and froze last night), 2 fresh chickens (one of which we'll be having for dinner tonight, and will be able to get at least 2 more meals out of), a case of canned peas, a case of canned corn, some fresh mushrooms, cheese, two loaves of bread (now in the freezer), milk, a box of cereal, and a tub of sourdough pretzels.
Later today, I'll start working on a menu plan to best utilize what we bought yesterday. I know I'll be freezing a lot of what we got, and a lot of what we make, so that it's available to us when we're ready for it.
I'd greatly appreciate any tips or recipes, so leave them in the comments!
Sunday, January 2, 2011
How to make a Cloth Diaper....Or waste an afternoon
I set out today to sew a diaper using this pattern and the brand spankin' new sewing machine my mom got me for Christmas. I had bought my fabric and elastic a few weeks before Christmas, knowing I would probably get a machine as a gift. So this morning, I threw my flannel in the wash, thinking I would be able to knock out the diaper in the half hour the instructions say it takes to make.
Mind you, I haven't sewn since junior high school, and that was an apron and a surfboard pillow.
Thank God for snow! My aunt, the same one that bought all the pumpkins, decided to come down into the valley this afternoon, as a blizzard was expected in her hometown, and she didn't think she'd be able to make it down the mountain in the morning to get to work. She came over to visit (read: to see the baby) and saw what I was doing. At that point, I had the sewing machine set up on the dining room table and was attempting to figure out what the heck I was doing. She immediately asked where my thread was.
Oops.
So we made a trip to JoAnn's for some thread, and ended up getting some pins, a marking pencil, and a ruler as well. We also got one of those tomato pin-cushions. I named him Bob.
As soon as we got back to the house, we set to work. She started taping the pattern together (it's a PDF that prints on 4 pages) and cutting the fabric, while I got the bobbin and needle threaded. As I type this, we have the sewing machine and fabric ready to go, and we're hoping the snow continues tomorrow, so that she can come over and we can attempt to finish the diaper!
Mind you, I haven't sewn since junior high school, and that was an apron and a surfboard pillow.
Thank God for snow! My aunt, the same one that bought all the pumpkins, decided to come down into the valley this afternoon, as a blizzard was expected in her hometown, and she didn't think she'd be able to make it down the mountain in the morning to get to work. She came over to visit (read: to see the baby) and saw what I was doing. At that point, I had the sewing machine set up on the dining room table and was attempting to figure out what the heck I was doing. She immediately asked where my thread was.
Oops.
So we made a trip to JoAnn's for some thread, and ended up getting some pins, a marking pencil, and a ruler as well. We also got one of those tomato pin-cushions. I named him Bob.
As soon as we got back to the house, we set to work. She started taping the pattern together (it's a PDF that prints on 4 pages) and cutting the fabric, while I got the bobbin and needle threaded. As I type this, we have the sewing machine and fabric ready to go, and we're hoping the snow continues tomorrow, so that she can come over and we can attempt to finish the diaper!
Saturday, January 1, 2011
Happy New Year!
I'm jumping on the resolution band-wagon! 2010 was a year of huge changes in my body, my faith, in my family, and in my financial situation. 2011 will also be a huge year of changes. This morning, I'm setting 2 goals for myself, which I believe will impact my entire little world.
First off, I will be setting out time each and every day to exercise, whether it be dancing with the baby, strapping her on and taking a walk, or leaving her with HubbyButt so I can go out and run. My body is a wreck from having a baby; I gained a ton of weight and if I wasn't squishy before, I sure am now. I know I love running, it's just a challenge for me to get out and do it.
Secondly, I will set aside time every day to spend in prayer, just talking to my Father. I will use that time to sit quietly, reading my Bible and being open to what He lays on my heart. 2010 taught me that I can do all things through Christ, and that He does make all things work together for the good of His children.
I strongly believe that those two goals will leave a strong and lasting impact on my whole world. By purposing to become active, I will be able to become a happier person, since exercise releases serotonin in the brain, and since I will actually start feeling better about myself, I will be able to treat HubbyButt better (2010 was the year of the bad wife).
By purposing to build a strong relationship with Christ, I believe that He will give me guidance in the big stuff, as well as the little, everyday trials we all go through. It is my belief that tithing is a very important part of a Christ relationship, and that has been proven to us in the last year (we tithe in April, we're blessed with a house in May; we tithe in October, we're blessed with new friends and a car in November; see a pattern?); I will do my best to put at least something in the offering plate on a weekly basis, even when I have little or nothing to give.
What are your goals for 2011?
First off, I will be setting out time each and every day to exercise, whether it be dancing with the baby, strapping her on and taking a walk, or leaving her with HubbyButt so I can go out and run. My body is a wreck from having a baby; I gained a ton of weight and if I wasn't squishy before, I sure am now. I know I love running, it's just a challenge for me to get out and do it.
Secondly, I will set aside time every day to spend in prayer, just talking to my Father. I will use that time to sit quietly, reading my Bible and being open to what He lays on my heart. 2010 taught me that I can do all things through Christ, and that He does make all things work together for the good of His children.
I strongly believe that those two goals will leave a strong and lasting impact on my whole world. By purposing to become active, I will be able to become a happier person, since exercise releases serotonin in the brain, and since I will actually start feeling better about myself, I will be able to treat HubbyButt better (2010 was the year of the bad wife).
By purposing to build a strong relationship with Christ, I believe that He will give me guidance in the big stuff, as well as the little, everyday trials we all go through. It is my belief that tithing is a very important part of a Christ relationship, and that has been proven to us in the last year (we tithe in April, we're blessed with a house in May; we tithe in October, we're blessed with new friends and a car in November; see a pattern?); I will do my best to put at least something in the offering plate on a weekly basis, even when I have little or nothing to give.
What are your goals for 2011?
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Holy moly, have we been busy! The last week has just been soooo full of activities outside of the house, yet our house is a disaster, how does that happen?!
Last Tuesday, we got Monkey's baby pictures done at the JCPenney Portrait studio and we picked up the prints and birth announcements we picked today. I am so pleased with how they came out; they're excellent quality and they really captured Monkey's personality (except she refused to smile the whole time). I was also very happy with the price; when we scheduled our appointment, they told us to check out their website before we came in, and to print off the coupons. We did and we saved SO much! Not only was Monkey's sitting free, we got an 8x10 free AND half off the ENTIRE ORDER. We ended up getting I think 5 8x10s, 4 5x7s, some 4x6s and wallets and we paid under a hundred dollars.
On Thursday, we had our first playdate ever. It was so much fun that we planned another one for just yesterday, hehe. There are 3 baby babies, a 1 year old, a 2 year old, a 4 year old, and a 10 year old in our group, so we've got a good range of ages. It's so fun to meet new people and I'm really enjoying getting to know the ladies and their kiddos. I've really hit it off with one of the moms, she's from overseas and her daughter is just a doll! Monkey adores both of them as well, and is even beginning to recognize their names and faces.
Friday, Monkey was a holy terror! She screamed all day, but stopped as soon as we got to the bowling alley, so I'm pretty sure she was just lonely; we'd been around big groups of people all week and suddenly it was just the two of us again. Monkey ended up spending the night with grandma and grandpa on Friday, so that Mommy and Daddy could get some sleep. She did really well and only woke up one time. I had a hard time falling asleep, though, since my sweet baby wasn't near me. I'm so used to hearing the sound of her sleeping that the house seemed too quiet for me.
Yesterday was Monkey's 2 month birthday! I really can't believe it's been so long already, and how big she's gotten so quickly. She's holding her head up and looking around a lot, and she started rolling over last Wednesday, the day she was 8 weeks old. She's only done it twice, once Wednesday morning and once this morning, but she can do it!
So that's a quick update on us. I just felt like I needed to post something, since it's been quite awhile.
 |
| Yeah, that's spit-up on my shoulder. |
On Thursday, we had our first playdate ever. It was so much fun that we planned another one for just yesterday, hehe. There are 3 baby babies, a 1 year old, a 2 year old, a 4 year old, and a 10 year old in our group, so we've got a good range of ages. It's so fun to meet new people and I'm really enjoying getting to know the ladies and their kiddos. I've really hit it off with one of the moms, she's from overseas and her daughter is just a doll! Monkey adores both of them as well, and is even beginning to recognize their names and faces.
Friday, Monkey was a holy terror! She screamed all day, but stopped as soon as we got to the bowling alley, so I'm pretty sure she was just lonely; we'd been around big groups of people all week and suddenly it was just the two of us again. Monkey ended up spending the night with grandma and grandpa on Friday, so that Mommy and Daddy could get some sleep. She did really well and only woke up one time. I had a hard time falling asleep, though, since my sweet baby wasn't near me. I'm so used to hearing the sound of her sleeping that the house seemed too quiet for me.
Yesterday was Monkey's 2 month birthday! I really can't believe it's been so long already, and how big she's gotten so quickly. She's holding her head up and looking around a lot, and she started rolling over last Wednesday, the day she was 8 weeks old. She's only done it twice, once Wednesday morning and once this morning, but she can do it!
So that's a quick update on us. I just felt like I needed to post something, since it's been quite awhile.
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
I Love Laundry!
Seriously. I know it sounds insane, but one thing that I'm really enjoying about being home is being able to do laundry every day. It doesn't always (ok, ever) get put away, but it's clean and organized. I especially love doing diaper laundry. There's just a nice pattern to it all and I love that. My diaper laundry routine is the most labor and time intensive of all my laundry. First, I do a cold rinse without detergent, followed by a hot wash with detergent, and finally two cold rinses. I use 1/4 scoop of Country Save
during the hot wash. All that is followed by a run in the dryer. Once everything is dry, I stuff my pocket diapers (I'm using BumGenius 4.0
s and minkys), fold my Flips inserts, and put everything in the diaper basket, all ready to go.
Thrilling, right? I love my fluff, and it deserves to be take care of.
during the hot wash. All that is followed by a run in the dryer. Once everything is dry, I stuff my pocket diapers (I'm using BumGenius 4.0s and minkys), fold my Flips inserts, and put everything in the diaper basket, all ready to go.Thrilling, right? I love my fluff, and it deserves to be take care of.
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
You Know You're A Momma When
You're frantically washing bottles and diapers and baby clothes at 11:30 at night.
You go to put the diaper laundry in the dryer and realize you never even closed or started the dryer with the baby clothes for first pictures inside.
Your living room looks like a playground and a bedroom rolled into one because the baby will only sleep in her carseat or her swing so you have to relocate to the couch.
You realize that it IS possible to survive on 5 hours of sleep and not become homicidal.
All you really REALLY want for Christmas is more diapers.
You have no problem whatsoever with begging your baby to burp while you're waiting for your car at EZ-Lube.
You go to Knott's Berry Farm without the baby, and all you can think about is how cute she's gonna look in her new hat.
You get excited about Old McDonald because your 8-week old starts to dance when it comes on.
You have 20 $5 off coupons for baby formula stuck to your fridge.
You go to put the diaper laundry in the dryer and realize you never even closed or started the dryer with the baby clothes for first pictures inside.
Your living room looks like a playground and a bedroom rolled into one because the baby will only sleep in her carseat or her swing so you have to relocate to the couch.
You realize that it IS possible to survive on 5 hours of sleep and not become homicidal.
All you really REALLY want for Christmas is more diapers.
You go to Knott's Berry Farm without the baby, and all you can think about is how cute she's gonna look in her new hat.
You get excited about Old McDonald because your 8-week old starts to dance when it comes on.
You have 20 $5 off coupons for baby formula stuck to your fridge.
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