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Weekend Recap

What a great 3 day weekend! My parents came to visit for the weekend.

We started off Friday outside playing in the sprinklers and eating popsicles.

Saturday was spent at the aquarium and walking around downtown. The last few times my parents have been here, it has been raining. So this was the first time I was able to show them around and spend some time outside.

Sunday we went to the local farmers market. 

We finished off our weekend with a Memorial Day cookout with some new friends! 

Good food and good times were had all weekend!!

5 of my favorite blogs

Day 19, Sunday: Five of your favorite blogs and what you love about them

1. Katie Did What

I just recently started following Katie's blog. I love it because she is super cute and funny. She also wears some really fun things.

2. Enjoying the small things
This was the first blog I started to read and follow on a regular basis. She has a wonderful story and beautiful pictures.

3. Love & Such

This girl is hilarious! She puts up some pretty funny videos and stories about herself.

4. Joy the Baker

Joy is a quirky food blogger. She makes some really yummy looking things, has pretty pictures to look at, and funny stories to read!

5. Casey Leigh

Casey has a beautiful blog about her family and life. Her post of wonderful and inspiring. 

10 things that make me really happy right now

Day 14, Tuesday: Ten things that make you really happy

1. This girl.

 2. This guy.

3. Headbands. I am loving headbands right now! I have recently bought 3 and wear them all the time. Matthew isn't sure he likes them yet, but I do!

 headband c/o Lemons and Lace - Breakfast at Tiffany's (http://www.lemonsandlace.com/)

4. Fun painted nails.

5. Diet cokes.

6. Our trip to Nepal.

I think this is Nepal... it may be India, but I'm pretty sure it is Nepal.

7. Fresh Flowers.

8. This city.

Chattanooga, TN.

9. Sweets.

10. Fun clothes.

Blog everyday catch up

Day 11, Saturday: Sell yourself in 10 words or less

Happy

Honest

Funny

Organized

Creative

Sweet

Compassionate

Witty (sometimes...)

Loving

Committed

Day 12, Sunday: What do you miss? (a person, a thing, a place, a time of your life...)

I miss being pregnant and the first few months after Finley was born. 

I loved being pregnant. I had a very easy pregnancy and loved every minute of it. I do wish I could go back and savor it a bit more. I think because it was my first pregnancy and I didn't know what to expect, I worried about things. Normal things I guess, that all women worry about. Would there be a heart beat at the doctors visit? Is this spotting normal? Is the cramping normal? I didn't feel her move much today, should I call the doctor? If I could go back, I wouldn't worry so much. Hind sight is 20/20 right... Also I would enjoy Finley's first few months more. Our first few months (like the first 4...) were hard. She cried, A LOT. I also suffered from a case of the baby blues.We were in survival mode. All I could think about was getting her to eat and then getting her to sleep so I could sleep. There were days Matthew would come home for lunch and find Finley in her swing crying and me in the rocking chair crying. I also had a hard time nursing. I felt very isolated because I would have to leave the room to nurse her and it would take at least 45 minutes. This didn't help with the baby blues I was feeling. If I could go back to that time I would be more confidant in myself and abilities. I would also not stress about the guilt I had about deciding to bottle feed. I would listen to my body and baby and KNOW that I was making the right decisions for Finley and me. 

Day 13, Monday: Issue a public apology. This can be as funny or as serious or as creative as you want it to be.

Dear Mom,

I would like to take a few minutes to issue an apology for my preteen and teenage years. After having a child, especially a daughter,  I have come to realize that I was a moron. The screaming and crying over everything was really uncalled for. I would also like to say I am sorry for some of the things I wore out in public. They were not appropriate, and I would kill Finley if she ever dressed like that. You were right. I now know what it is like to worry constantly about someone you love so much. I am so very sorry for all the junk I put you through. I love you.

Catching up...

This past week has been a hard one for me. I'm not sure why, but I can't seem to get any traction under my feet to move forward. I feel like I have been spinning my wheels all week. It seems like every time I turn around there is another load of laundry that needs to be washed (I think I have washed 3 loads of whites this week) or dishes in the sink that need to be cleaned. So I have kind of fallen behind on the blog every day in May challenge... so here are the days I am missing....

Day 8, Wednesday: A piece of advice you have for others. Anything at all.

Last summer I had a "mommy makeover" and I have to say it is top 5 best decisions we have made. If this is something you are thinking about doing, DO IT! After nursing our daughter, I was left.... looking different.... to say it nicely. So shortly after she turned 2, we started to shop doctors. We are mostly sure we are done having kids, but if we decide to have a second baby I should still be able to nurse. If not, I wont be devastated. I didn't enjoy nursing at all. I have not met a woman that regrets this decision. Also, go bigger. Go bigger then you think you want, and then go bigger again. I'm not kidding... The doctor we used said most of her patients that are getting "tune ups" are because they didn't go big enough. This is the one thing I wish I had done, and I went bigger then I thought I wanted and I wish I had gone bigger. The first 2 weeks you will think "Oh no! What did I do?!" and then the swelling starts to go down and you start to look a bit more normal. Then you get to a day where you think "OK, this is a good size..." and then the swelling goes down some more and you realize you should have gone bigger. 

Day 9, Thursday: A moment in your day (this can be just a photo or both a photo and words)

We love spending time outside letting Finley and Ish (the dog) run around and let their energy out. Especially when it isn't raining!

Day 10, Friday: Most embarrassing moment (s). Spill.

Oh man, where do I start with this one? I have had so many...

I have fallen many times while in heels and skirts.

I fell asleep one time at the end of a yoga class and they had to clap to wake me up.

I say embarrassing things all the time.

These are not my worst ones, but I ain't sharin' those. They will go with me to the grave.

Happy Friday y'all! I am waiting for a delivery today and I hope I will be able to get up a high 5 post later this afternoon!

Things I am most afraid of...

Ooops... I missed the last 2 days of the blog everyday in May challenge! The last few days have been super crazy! We finally had our first preview service for our church. Everything went really well!! There are always going to be bumps in the road on any adventure, and this was no exception. But we were able to handle everything that came at us, and it turned out great! 

You want to know what is not fun to wake up to? Your child with blood all over their face. We had some family and friends spend the night with us on Saturday so they could help with the service the next day. So Finley slept in our bed. The next morning as I am waking up and opening my eyes, I see Finley looking at  me and she has blood every where!! It is on Matt's pillowcase (which we just bought new sheets...), on Matt's shoulder and her face is covered! While Matthew is still sleeping I start pulling his pillow out from under him and scramble for some baby wipes. I threw them at him as I ran to spot treat the pillowcase yelling "She's got blood all over her! Here clean her up!" Thankfully the blood came out of the pillowcase and she seemed to be OK. I think her sinuses are just really dry from being congested. Poor thing :(

Anyways.... on to days topic....

Day 7, Tuesday: The thing(s) you're most afraid of

* Spider and snakes. They give the willies...

* Leaving my child motherless. This fear has really started to surface recently with the decision to go to Nepal and being away from her for 3 weeks.

* Being a single parent. Matthew is an adrenaline junkie. He likes to go do things he calls "fun" and I call "deadly." He is very smart and normally makes good decisions... except that one time he broke his face... Every time he goes out on the river I am on edge until I get a phone call from him saying he is off the river and headed home.

* Car accidents.

* Finley getting sick, and I mean SICK. Not the "oh it is just the flu..." kind of sick. But like cancer kind of sick. I can't even imagine what it is like to have a sick child and my heart breaks for those parents that have to live that. I just can't...

* Coming home to our house being broken into or burned from a fire.

So yeah... those are the things I am most afraid of... 

I have to say that topic is a bit of a downer...

So to leave on an up note... We took Finley for Hibachi for the first time this past weekend and she loved it! The fire freaked her out for just a second, but once it was over she was entranced by the chef and watched him the whole time.

Have a great Tuesday!

Do small things...

Day 4, Saturday: Favorite quote (from a person, from a book, etc) and why you love it

I think this is a great reminder that it is the small things that can make the most impact. I have walked past people at stores that have a sour look on their face and without hesitation Finley starts beaming and in her sweetest voice says one simple word "Hi!" They can't help but look at her and respond. Then I watch as a smile starts to spread across their face. I'd like think that she made their day a little better with her simple action. I hope that I can make a small impact on others lives the way she does.

Things that make me uncomfortable....

Day 3, Friday: Things that make you uncomfortable

- Close talkers.

- Mouth breathers.

- Watching some stick their foot in their mouth. When I worked at a bank, I watched a customer say to another teller "When are you due?" The teller told the customer she wasn't pregnant. Then instead of apologizing the customer said "Well then maybe you shouldn't wear that jacket any more. It makes you look pregnant." I think my jaw hit the floor. I couldn't believe I had just witnessed that.

- Feet. Eww.

- Super short skirts,short, or dresses and low cut tops. I think some people look awesome in short things. They have the body for it. I do not. Also, wearing an outfit where all my stuff is hanging out does not work well for chasing a toddler around. I always end up pulling it down or up, and worrying about if I am giving a "free show" to the people behind me.

- Driving next to semi-trucks on the highway.

- Driving on the highway.

- When people come to my house and it is messy.

- When I get compliments. For some reason this makes me really uncomfortable. Most people beam at compliments. I just say thank you and try to change the subject.

- Speaking in front of people.

- Meeting new people. I am actually very shy and tend to keep quite and to myself or stick to someone I already know. This comes off the wrong way sometimes. I've been told I come off stuck up or not friendly, but really I am just scared. I don't want to be rejected.

- Watching other people fight or make snide comments to each other. 

Day 2.... Blog about something I am good at...

Day 2, Thursday: Educate us on something you know a lot about or are good at.

 

I don't know if I can say that I am really good at anything.... there are things that I can do, some of them turn out pretty cool.... others not so much.... and most of them have directions that you can find and follow.

This was my first attempt at making homemade bread. It didn't turn out looking quite like the picture, but it still tasted good!

1.) I like to cook/bake.

When Matthew and I got married there was a joke about the fact that we would be eating fast food every night because I had no idea how to cook anything! Once we were out on our own I had to feed us... so I started to look for recipes and just kind of jumped in and started to cook. We have been married almost 7 years now and I think I can count on one hand the number of time we have had to go out to eat because of a cooking fail. I have several friends that don't really cook and they say it is because they are scared to. And I'm all like "What!? There is nothing to be scared of!" All you need to do is find a recipe for something that looks yummy and follow the directions. It is that easy! Now... I do have to say I am a pretty ridged recipe follower. I very rarely stray from what the recipe says and I still use the recipe card for just about everything I make... I like knowing I am following the directions even though I know what I am doing.

2.) I like to do crafts.

I am a very visual person. I can look at most things and figure out how to make it. (Who needs directions!? Not this girl!) And if I can't figure it out by look at a picture, I buy it and take it apart and then figure out how to make it that way. (My husband calls this reverse engineering... he's so smart!) Again this is one of those things that you can find directions on how to make just about anything you want and then follow them.

One more thing I like to do and am pretty good at....

Being a mom

This is probably my favorite thing that I am good at. At least I hope I am good at it. I think I am doing a pretty good job.... I guess I wont know if I did a good job until she lives through her teenage years and early 20's... right? 

Finley is one of the most amazing little girls in the world! She is so super smart and is always keeping me on my toes! Every day is a new adventure and I love watching her grow and change and learn. Some days I look at her and think about how lucky I am to have her. I hope that some day she can look back at our relationship and have wonderful memories of us together.

My life story in 250 or less...

So I came across a blog that has issued a challenge to blog every day in May. Each day has a different topic. Today is day one and the first topic is My life story....

I was born in Texas, then my family moved to Georgia when I was about 18 months old. (Side note: I was a surprise... my sister is 16 years older then I am and my brother is 11 years older then me.) I live in the same area all through school. I graduated high school with pretty much the same people I started kindergarten with. I met my husband the fall of my senior year, but we didn't start dating until the next year, 2002. That same year I was diagnosed with Arnold Chiari Malformation type 2 (ACM). In 2004 I had brain surgery to help relieve pressure around my brain and help with headaches. In 2005 Matthew and I got engaged, and married a little over a year later. In July 2006, a month and a half before we got married, we lost Matthew's younger brother in a car accident. On August 4th, Matthew graduated from college. On August 19th, we were married. Then September we closed on our first home. Needless to say... it was a very emotional 3 months. Shortly after moving to Newnan, we started to attend a local church and I started a new job at a bank. I worked there for 2 years. Shortly after I left I started to work for the church we were going to in the kids program. This is where I found what I really loved to do, which is work with younger kids. The summer of 2009 we found out we were expecting our first baby. I really wanted a girl... and when we found out the gender I was super excited to know that I was getting my girl!! I had a pretty easy pregnancy  only small concerns due to my ACM and then later there was concern about her size. She was born at full term and 1 day at 6 lbs 6oz. During our time at our church we made some amazing friendships and were pushed outside our comfort zone. Matthew went on his first mission trip in 2010, which lead to a growing friendship that would eventually bring us to Chattanooga to help start a church. Finley has been an amazing addition to our family. I can't imagine our life without her. The last 3 years have been a beautiful mess of ups and downs. Not knowing what is going to happen and where God wanted us. It is funny to look back and see how God's hand was in all of our situations leading us to where we are now. This is just a short summary of our story, but for me to be able to see how one decision lead to another that lead to another that ultimately ended us up here. I can't wait to see what else is in store for us in the future. We are helping with a church plant and can't wait to see how God uses us in this. We are also planning a mission trip to Nepal! What that is crazy!