Escape from Alcatraz Bumboland

Let me just say I LOVE the Bumbo seat. I do. My aunt got it for Blake and I love the blue/turquoise color she picked out...I would have picked the same color had I gone and got it myself. As soon as Blake could hold his head steady, he could sit in it. It makes for great photo opportunities..because a newborn is precious just laying there or however you want to adjust them, and then once they can sit up, well they can sit up. But, for all the in between times, you are propping them up against the back of the couch or they are laying down...and don't get me wrong, those are super cute photos, too...I just love how the Bumbo holds him and I've gotten some cute photos. Also, I am the WORST at making a decision, and I still can't decide on a highchair. I know, I'm horrible. Blake has started solids, and since we don't have a highchair yet, I purchased the tray for the Bumbo seat. Fabulous idea, I thought, just fabulous! Except. He has started this thing...he wiggles until his right leg is pulled back into the seat with him, giving him more leverage to reach his left leg/foot down to push off the floor. Then he pushes himself out of the Bumbo. Well, I'm always close so he hasn't come totally out of it, but still. There have even been a few times he has flung the tray off. Then, a couple times he arched his back so high that both feet were pushing off the floor and he looked as if he was going to fall out, backwards. Scary. Especially on our tile floor. So, we are still using it, I am just sure to stay close by. Here is the picture I snapped of our little escape artist...

What Katy Eats

So, recently I've been refreshed in the fact that I need to be making healthier choices. Notice, I didn't say I was yet, I said "need to be". I know one way of "facing reality" is to write down everything you eat, for accountability, so there is NO fooling yourself. As I was thinking about that, I decided to do it via blog. I'm not real sure where this is leading, except, like I said, to keep a record of what I eat...maybe I'll come across some great info, health wise, to share...and maybe someone else will share helpful stuff with me. The point, is God blessed me with this one body, and I know I haven't been treating it right. I know it won't be an overnight change...but I have to start somewhere. I also was going to do this "anonymously" at first, but then decided "what the hey"...I'm for real about this, so why should there be any secrets?!? Exactly! Here's the link for those interested...

http://whatkatyeats.blogspot.com/

Where I tell you about my palette issues...

Why is that eye palette so messy you ask? Well, I asked the same thing! I'm not big into makeup...at all. But, my friend, Amber over @ Olive Gypsy has been doing lots of makeup posts, and kind of planted a seed with me! So, I ordered a few things after deciding I am finally old enough to play in makeup. hehe. Anyway, I was waiting, waiting, waiting for my package (you know how that goes). Then, I was on my way out the door to pick up the kids at school and saw it on my porch. I grabbed it and took it with me in the car, deciding I couldn't wait until I got back home to open it, and would do so in the parent pick up line. I opened the box, and immediately saw powder, residue, or whatever the correct term is for broken makeup (help me out here, Amber!) all over the box. Just great! I knew something had to be damaged. My other two items were fine but my Too Faced Palette looked like, well, like it does in the picture. I was SO annoyed. Granted, I wasn't really "mad" since it's just makeup, and I knew Sephora would fix it. I called them immediately and they quickly pulled up my info and said they would be sending a new one right out to me. Fabulous! Then, I got a shipment notification in my inbox. Normally I wouldn't even have clicked on it, I already knew what it was and that it was coming, but for kicks I opened the link. Aghhhh! They had shipped it to my OLD address from 6 years ago. What? How? So, I called them again and explained the situation. They were able to "reroute the package". I seriously had NO clue they could do that. I thought once it was shipped, that was that. Anyway, I haven't got my new palette yet, but I am thinking it will be here today or tomorrow. Hopefully. I will add that I really really love Sephora. I love their selection and in my opinion their customer service is great (and I'm referring to more than just this time)! I love that you also get samples with every order. I'm allergic to most perfumes, so I really don't ever buy it. I love that I can get mini perfumes for free when I order something else, just to try and see if I am able to wear them (usually not, but then I can pass them onto my Mom or a friend). Anyway, that's my story about my makeup palette...it was blog worthy, don't you think?

Cookie time...

I was searching on the web for a chocolate chip cookie recipe, and came across one I wanted to try. I'm tired of the spoon and bake ones...borrring. These were really good, and yielded about 4 dozen for me (though the last batch didn't make it out of the oven alive, I forgot all about them...yikes!). The only difference was that I used milk chocolate chips, because that's all I had in the house. They were a bit on the rich side for me with those, so next time I'll probably make sure I have regular choc chips. They were really good today on the second day though :)

1 cup butter, softened
1 cup white sugar
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons hot water
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350.
Cream together the butter, white sugar, and brown sugar until smooth.
Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the vanilla.
Dissolve baking soda in hot water. Add to batter along with salt. Stir in flour, chocolate chips, and nuts. Drop by large spoonfuls onto ungreased pans.
Bake for about 10 minutes in the preheated oven, or until edges are nicely browned.



My middle two kiddos and I shared them outside on the picnic table with some cold milk. Fun AND Yum...doesn't get much better! :)

Kind of random...and a review

I've tried to avoid admitting this, but it's true...I have a drooler. My first three children were NOT bad droolers. Blake, however, is a bird of a different feather. Around 2 months, he started drooling. Bad. An early teether? Nope. He is now just over 5 months and still drooling away. Still no teeth. I love that boy, but not his drool, it's disgusting. Anyway, others have told me I need to keep a bib on him. I don't. He gets his clothes wet and nasty and I just change his clothes. But, I decided that was silly and started searching for bibs that weren't huge or tiny, that were soft yet absorbent. I found some I LOVE, reasonably priced and fabulous colors. They are by Green Sprouts. I got them from Amazon.com. I'm hoping they make other sizes and styles, too...for later. I haven't yet tried the other ones in the picture, the printed ones,by Bumkins.


Also, I had to throw in a picture of my scrumptious little Blake, who is over 5 months now!

And a picture of Isabel's doll, simply because I walked in her room and thought it was so cute that Is had her all tucked in...she LOVES dolls. If she didn't have any other toys but dolls,she would be A-OK.


That's all folks!

A few things...

I wanted to share a few things I either learned, or was refreshed in during the past day or so...
Let me say, I am saved. I have accepted Christ as my Savior long ago. We "belong" to a church (that we love). But, lately, I have let stress take over my life. I have only been to church when it's convenient for me. I have only been in the Word, occasionally. Right now, I won't get into all the specifics of what is going on, what happened, and what led me to this point. But, I was at a point, THIS WEEK, where something had to give. I called on someone, who I believe to be an awesome woman of God, and I feel her words came straight from God. I also spent some time on my own...looking up some answers in the Bible to things I had been thinking about. These are just a few of those important things I feel God calls us on...

Should we be in church regularly?
Hebrew 10:25 says "Let us not give up on meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another- and all the more as you see the Day approaching"
Yes, we should be in church regularly.

Should we be in the word?
I know, the answer should be obvious...again, just some things I was struggling in that brought me to this...
The Bible is a LIVING BOOK "Behold, I have put My words in your mouth" Jeremiah 1:9

Someone wise shared this with me...
If you get married and take vows, then go out and live as if you aren't married...what good were those vows? What was the reason for them? What did it mean?
Therefore, If we confess we believe Jesus was sent to Earth, died on the cross, and rose again for our sins. If we accept Him as our Savior...then go on living a regular life, just like we always have, making choices that are not concurrent with what God has planned for us...what good was that commitment? If we are in church, and in the Word...we are more accountable...we are learning, growing, we are refreshed to walk with Him. In other words, you HAVE to walk the walk, not just talk the talk.

I also wondered about being around those that cause you (me) to stumble.
Or, what if WE are the ones causing someone to stumble?
Matthew 18 talks about how "woe" will come to those who aid in stumbling others.
By this you don't serve God, but your own instincts.

Turning away from those that cause you to stumble does not mean hatred or judgement-but cautionary stances-and when they are ready to repent, we must be ready to forgive.
To me, this says that if someone causing you to stumble, call them on it. Then, if they are ready to change, be there to help them. If not, let them know you need to step away, but will be ready to forgive and help them when they get ready. This also applies to fellow Christians who are trapped in sin. Call them on it. As Christians, they know better and need to be held accountable. Don't let them bring you down. But, when they are ready to repent, be there for them.

James 5:16 "Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for each other so that you may be healed-the prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective".

It's kind of all over the place I know, but, that's where I was..."all over the place".
I feel refreshed and refocused. I feel recommitted to living the life HE wants for me. I feel awesome.

Birthday girl...

John 16:21
A woman, when she is in labor, has sorrow because her hour has come; but as soon as she has given birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world.




I am finally getting around to doing my sweet Isabel Grace's birthday post! I cannot believe my precious baby girl just turned 6 years old. Wow.
Before getting pregnant with her, I had been on the patch for birth control. I am used to getting migraines, but they got very bad while on the patch. My doctor told me I should take the patch off and see if my headaches got better. I was afraid to be off birth control, so I said no to his suggestion. That night, my patch fell off in the shower, I took it as a sign since it had never fallen off before. I decided since it fell off on it's own, I would wait before putting another one on and see how my headaches were. They improved, so almost a month later I went to get on another form of birth control. Not only did I think the patch was still in my system, but I also though my hubby and I were being extra safe (without too many details). So, I decided on the shot, but had to take a p.t. test first. I wasn't' even concerned about it being positive, until the nurse said, "You're pregnant". I seriously felt immediately dizzy. I was 25 and we already had two boys. I did NOT want to be pregnant. I remember them asking me, "Mam? Mam? Are you ok?" They said I turned completely white. It took a bit for the shock to wear off, but it did, and I got excited about our new little one to be. I had never wanted a baby girl...when I got pregnant with Andrew I wanted a boy, that's what I got. When I got pregnant with Joseph, I wanted a boy and got my wish again. I was going to get my tubes tied after Joseph, but David talked me out of it somehow. Though I never wanted a girl previously, when I got pregnant this time, I almost immediately had the desire in my heart for a girl. I'm ashamed to say that I had never prayed about anything else so fervently, "God, The most important thing is this baby's health. I pray it is completely healthy. I know the sex of this baby is not important, but Please, PLEASE let it be a girl, Please, Lord. Unless you know a reason that this HAS to be a boy, Please give me a baby girl." I prayed THAT prayer every single day, sometimes more, until we found out the sex. I remember the day our doctor said, "I'm 93 percent sure it's a girl". I told him I was going to pretend he didn't say that, that I didn't want to hear it until he said it was 100 percent. So, on our next sono appt, he said he was 99 percent sure, I decided I would take it. I was so amazed that God cared about not only what I needed, but about what I desired. I know it could only be a boy or girl, my chances were 50/50, either way, but I have NO doubt God gave me the desires of my heart with Isabel. Psalm 37:4 says "Take delight in the Lord,and he will give you your heart’s desires." So, on February 9th I went in for an induction. My labor was so short with baby girl, that I ALMOST didn't get my epidural. She arrived with a head full of silky black hair, that never fell out, and has continued to grow at the speed of light to this day! She had the most beautiful complexion...she looked like a tiny angel. I will say, her ears and forehead were covered in hair, which kind of freaked me out, but thankfully, that hair DID fall out. And, I can't lie, I definitely see eyebrow waxing in her future. But, she is the most beautiful, sweet spirit. She is very shy. She adores her brothers. She is my lone ally in a house FULL of boys. I pray her father and I raise her, along with her brothers, according to God's will. I can't wait to see the future He has planned for her, well...I can wait a little while.


















Ok, Ok...a tad bit of picture overload...it's ok, It's her birthday! :)

pray for Kate

Today is my sweet Isabel's 6th birthday. I had planned to blog about her today, but to be honest, my heart is (kind of) somewhere else today. It doesn't help that I had a migraine for a big part of today (thankfully it's gone now!). See, I got an update notice on little Kate McRae's Caring Bridge site today, and so I went to read it. Heart wrenching. I didn't want to click on the link, I didn't want to be made to feel sad when I was finally feeling better after my migraine had left. But, the fact is I have followed this little girl, and I feel like my heart is invested. I want to know what's going on with her, and what to specifically pray for. I will never understand why innocent children have to endure such horrible things, but I am thankful for the promise of Heaven. So, I will save Isabel's post for tomorrow or the next day, but for today I'm just going to love on Isabel and praise God for her health and my other children's health as well. Please lift this sweet family up, I cannot even begin to fathom the hurt in their hearts, their torment, the helplessness that her sweet parents feel...Jesus, I beg you to come quickly...I long for the sweet day when everyone is in Heaven, worshiping our Holy God together, never to have to deal another day with sickness, pain, or hurt....
http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/mcraekate

Candy from Jesus...

Isabel went with her Grandpa the other day, and when she came home, she had a Pez dispenser she was eating candy from. I looked to see what character the Pez was, and all I could tell was that it was a man. I asked Isabel who it was (since she opened it before she got home I never saw the packaging), and she said, "Jesus". "Honey, are you sure it isn't someone else, I don't think they make Jesus Pezs". "It's Jesus, Mom". I still have no clue who it is, or if they even make a Jesus Pez dispenser, which I can't decide if I like or don't like. Odd. So, I watched her eat candy from Jesus' head until it was empty.
Here's what it looks like, what do you think?

Prayer request...

This post isn't very "fun", but I feel a tug in my heart to post about it. Even if only one person reads and prays for this little girl, it's worth it. I've been following this CaringBridge site since they found out their little girl was sick, the link was originally shared from another blog I read. The truth is, sometimes I read it and sometimes I don't...sometimes it's just too hard to read...it's too easy to imagine my own child in this little girl's spot, and it's simply heart wrenching. I usually do read and pray for little Kate and her family though, because if it was one of my loved ones suffering through this, I would want as much prayer as possible on their behalf. Every time I read their journal updates, or someone else's who is going through a similar situation, I am reminded to praise GOD for my healthy children. Sure, it's annoying to deal with strep, a virus, a cold, especially as much as sickness has gone through our house this season, but that is NOTHING compared to what this family has/is enduring. Please take a moment to pray for this little girl and her family, even if you aren't able to read her journal. Then, take a moment to thank Jesus for the healthy children in your life!
All things are possible with God, including complete healing for this sweet child.

http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/mcraekate

Stir crazy

So, in NE Texas we got a wee bit of ice. Seriously, a wee bit. School has been cancelled for three days because of it. It's freeeeeezing here. To be fair, it wasn't cancelled each day because of the ice, but also because of the power outages. Still, the weather is horrible. It's cold. We can't play outside. We can't really get out even for fresh air. The kids and I have been stuck in the house together for days, and to be honest, I'm about to go INSANE! I have been trying really hard to parent with love...it's been a heavy conviction for me lately. Even when I discipline I want to do it out of love...before, I have done it out of impatience, frustration, or anger. I've been doing a decent job. But today was my breaking point. I'm about ready to LOOSE it. I didn't "yell", but did raise my voice a couple times today out of total frustration. Days like today make me wonder why I would ever even CONSIDER homeschooling. I love being with my kids, I love my kids..period...but, I just need to work on my patience and loving skills. I feel guilty because I rarely feel like this, and these feelings make me feel like a terrible parent. But it's just how I feel right now...like a trapped rat. Tomorrow school is supposed to be in session. We are also supposed to get some snow. I think Mother Nature is just trying to see how far she can push me. Either way, come hell or high water, I Am getting out of this house tomorrow. So, stay tuned to find out if I loose my mind, or am able to keep it in tact...