We're BACK!

It was amazingly awesome! I loved it. Just for prosperity I want to blog our cruise trip to the Bahamas. The first day Jan 31st we got up super duper early (4am) and got ready for the airport. My dad and step mom came at 4:45am. Roberta stayed with the kids while my dad took us to the airport. We woke the kids up to tell them goodbye, they wanted us too, well except for Peanut we let her sleep. Before our plane took off we called the kids to tell them good morning. We got to the boat at about noon. Us on the bus to the boat!

We ate lunch at the buffet and then went to our rooms. We went with another couple from church who have been on many cruises so they were our guides. We explored the boat, except for Kristy she napped, I was too excited to sleep as I have never been on a boat before and I wanted to see it. We played shuffle board to kill time before dinner and it was actually really fun. Though I was always on the winning team :) The sunset was beautiful and we got a picture with it...

That night I did not feel the greatest. I think the food was not what my body was used to and I was tired from the long day of travel. BUT the food was so yummy. The second day we went to the cruise lines own private beach. It was super nice though the sun kept going behind the clouds and it would be a little cold for swimsuits. Jeff and I got a picture with our feet in the ocean.

Just me in the ocean

The view from our beach chairs
We also found some hammocks to sit in the shade!
Us kissing in the hammock :)
We ate lunch on the island and these were flying so close we could reach our hand up and touch one! Kristy kept screaming when they got too close. Then the guys started feeding them, that's when I exited. They started getting way too close for my comfort!

After we ate we walked around the shops for a little bit and then headed back to the boat for a nap. After the first night of not feeling great because I was tired I decided I should really take a nap. This is us on the tender to get back to our boat. It was so beautiful outside. ALL. THE. TIME.

The guys walked around the boat while the girls slept. That night we went to the show for the boat and it was a comedian who was actually pretty funny! A little crude but not too bad. This is the room where the main entertainment happened.

Then we went to the battle of the sexes in a different room on the boat and I hate to report that the men won. They had so many different activities to do at night that we had to pick and choose. We never did any of the dancing at nights, maybe next time?! The next day (Day 3) we stopped at Nassau, Bahamas and were docked all day long. Jeff and I went parasailing while we were there and it was really quite amazing. Us getting ready to go up...

Us going up and up
Us way up in the sky!

Half way through the ride up there they bring you down and dip your feet in the ocean and then bring you back up high. It was so peaceful up there. This is us right after we came down. Look at our smiles :)

After parasailing we ate lunch just the two of us and then we did our shopping for souvenirs at that port. I also got to lay out at the pool and read my book some more, Kristy and I did this the day before at the beach. This night was my absolute favorite. After the main show, which was a juggler, they did the newlywed game which Jeff and I tried to get on it. And then another game called Quest. That was pretty interesting. We didn't play we just watched. We also did the rock wall before all of that started. No pictures of that though. Then the last day Thursday we cruised all day and night. Since we were on the boat the whole day we just took it easy. After breakfast Kristy and I laid by the pool and read. Then we took a dip in the pool and then read some more. The guys came and got us for lunch. After lunch Kristy took a nap and I went back up to the pool to get some more sun and read. The guys went to see the comedian again, they said he was way worse this time with his jokes. At 4pm we all met and did a flip video scavenger hunt. I am happy to report that we won that scavenger hunt and each got medals. It was actually really fun playing it and then watching it! Then it was the main show, dinner and a little gambling in the casino which I lost all the money I played with :( But it was fun nonetheless and I didn't play with very much money. Then we packed up our bags and went to bed. The next morning it was debarking the boat and heading home. We spent most of our day in the airport. I loved coming home to the kids excited to see us. It took Peanut about an hour after we got home, and the only one who asked, if we got her a present! They all loved the clothes we got them. Here they are all smiling with their new duds. This is also going to have to stand as the first picture of the 4 kids this month!
It was so nice to be away with my husband alone for these last 5 days. I really do enjoy his company. I am thinking we need to make a more conscientious effort to go away together. I highly recommend taking a cruise vacation. It is a great way to travel the world internationally!

Surprise

I just pulled off the biggest surprise of my life with tears streaming down my face. About 6 months ago or longer I started planning a cruise for my husband and I to take. There was a lot of mis-truths that were told to get the husband to take off of work. The biggest regret I have is that the kids thought they were going on a trip too. Basically it went down like this. Hey Jeff my dad wants to take us on a vacation to visit my Aunt in Texas. Can you take some time off? He got the time off and I booked the cruise. We got together with my dad a few times to talk about our trip. I felt like such a LIAR this whole time. Well Sunday night I pulled the two oldest kids aside one by one to tell them what was really going on. I wanted to be able to spend some time with them and not have them wake up the next morning with us gone. I told GG first. She was SAD and Upset about it. I thought oh great this is going to go down badly. A few hours later I told Monkey. He seemed to be fine with it and had a huge smile on his face as I was telling him then he got sad and mad. Great. So I called a family meeting and told everyone as I had tears rolling down my face. The kids were so sad and upset about not going on a trip. Jeff was utterly and completely confused as to what I was saying. He thought I was lying! Now that everyone knows what’s going on they are fine but I am freaking out. I am leaving my babies for 5 days for a vacation. I have never left them that long and we are leaving the country! I pray that this anxiety will leave me and that I will be able to enjoy myself on my very first cruise. I really am excited but also scared. I love those kids with all my being and I really want to see them grow up. Please Lord bring me home to them. And help my not feel anxious while I am away. I know they are in great hands with my mom-in-law and my sis-in-law. Thanks for helping make this work!

11 years ago today...

I married my best friend. I don't have the motivation to look at past anniversary posts but I do want to say that I fall in love with my husband more and more each day. He brought tears to my eyes this morning and melted my heart with how great of a heart he has. I hope he doesn't mind if I share this with you. This morning he did Shop with a Cop at Target. He has done this the last several years. Target donates a good amount of money on each gift card and several student gets picked. Most of the time they are students that could really benefit from this program. Each student gets a Cop to shop with hence the name of it. When Jeff came home from his time he was telling me about the little boy he shopped with. I don't want to get into too many details. Jeff said in years past all of the kids he has shopped with spend the most money on themselves. This little boy used the last dollar he had left to buy himself a pack of gum after buying for the rest of his family, FIRST. Jeff asked him what he would want if he could have anything. The boy answered him. While the boy was checking out Jeff went and got that toy, bought it, gave it to his mother and told her to give it to him for Christmas from THEM, not HIM. It brought tears to my eyes because this is my husband's heart. He is such a great man and generous with his time and money. I really do love him. I am so grateful for a godly man who demonstrates the love of Christ in the most simple of ways to others and mostly to his family. The last 11 years though they haven't always been easy or fun I have been blessed by God through them.

Today we took the kids to go bowling which was Peanut's first time and I didn't bring my camera. UGH. But we had a great time and really do love spending time with them. Though I am really looking forward to tonight when Jeff and I get to go out ALONE! :) We don't even know what we are going to do yet...

Now that was relaxation!

My hubby and I went away for the weekend just the two of us! We left Friday at 1ish and headed north. We stayed at a quaint little bed and breakfast with some other couples from our church. I think this year we had about 25 couples there, it was more than last year. It was just so nice to only have to worry about ME for a whole weekend! I was able to take a long bath and shave my legs without rushing. I laid in bed and watched tv with my hubby with no interruptions from little people. We even brought a puzzle with us and were able to put it together together and with other people from church. I could go on but I will just say it was such a nice break from reality. I really enjoyed the social aspect of it and hanging out with other couples our age. I did pretty good with my food while we were there but I know I could of done better as I did have some stomach issues. I owe a huge thanks to my sister, Aunty Becky, for taking care of my crew while we were gone. They had a great time and she did a pretty good job keeping things together. Now I must go make lunches come to the realization that my break is over and real life must go on!

should be...

Right now there so a few things I can be doing other than blogging but I sit here tired and feeling like I got hit with a truck. My sinuses are not my friend today. Yesterday I went to the chiropractor and she adjusted me to help drain the sinuses and I think it is working because they certainly are draining. This weekend my hubs and I are going away and I was really looking forward to it, I still am but I feel like I am going to be doing way more sleeping then I planned so my body can fight this. On one hand it is good we are going to be kidless and free so that I can have rest but on the other it is a bogus time to feel like this. I washed all our clothes yesterday but didn't fold or put them away and that was one of the things I wanted to get done before we leave. I still haven't even started packing yet, it is only 2 days so not much packing needs to be done but still I have to put some thought into it. I guess I shouldn't be too hard on myself as I did, pay a bill, put money in the bank, returned some things at the store, bought some needed things (toilet paper and such) and got gas in the van. This post is so random all to say I have no motivation today!

Lonely

Tonight is the second night in a row I have been left home alone with the kids while the hubby goes out and has fun. You know what he says to me??? Get this. He says, "You can get on facebook or blog or read or do whatever you want." Um I would rather have you home than have those options but whatever! He is supporting a friends band so I really don't mind I just wasn't prepared to be left again tonight. But since I am on here I thought I would share a few funnies from today.

The kids and I were playing monopoly jr and Monkey says, "I'm SOOOO thirsty can I have a beer?" I just looked at him. J and I don't drink EVER around the kids or really anywhere else, so it was just weird to hear him say that. I was too shocked to even ask him why he said it. I just realized that might sound really judgmental about drinking. I used to have a drink every now and again but because alcohol usually has brewers yeast in it I can't have it because it will just feed the mold already in my body. Then I'm not sure if I have mentioned this on here and I really don't feel up to looking through old posts to check so if you have heard this already please forgive me! At bedtime tonight Peanut says, "I want to sleep in your arms." Then she points to my shoulder and says, "I lay my head on your shoulder." It was just the cutest thing. Speaking of her I think she is out of this fighting the nap stage at least for the last few days she has not fought them. She really truly does need a nap. Red still does but he never gets them.

10 years...

J and I finally made it into the double digits of being married. As I sit here thinking of all the things I want to write about I smile and I tear up. We have been through SO MUCH stuff. But I would venture to say that most married people go through good and bad things. In fact people in general go through that kind of stuff. Though looking through the years I wouldn't take any of it back even the really bad and ugly things that have transpired. It has made us who we are as a couple and has strengthened us. God has been so good to protect us from things that could have happened in different situations. If you have read this blog for any length of time you know that I was sick with an unknown something for the last two years and over the last 3 months have started to recover and get better. There were seriously days I thought I was going to die and I'm pretty sure that J thought the same thing. That is only a fraction of our married life. We have celebrated many things through the years. The birth of each of our four beautiful children, J getting his first job, buying our first home and going on fun family vacations just to name a few of the big ones. But I would have to say the day to day happenings are probably the best memories I have, playing games with the kids, doing family devotions, or just chilling at home together as a family. God is so good ALL. THE. TIME.

Tonight J and I are going out on the town. We are going out to eat and then walking around the Mall I am hoping to get some new clothes but just being with J one on one is really good enough for me. I want to end this with 10 of my favorite things about J.
1. His priorities: God 1st, Me 2nd, Kids 3rd and then everything else.
2. How he provides for the family with a good attitude. (Attitude is so important to me)
3. How he makes me feel special.
4. How loving he is with the kids but firm when needed. They love their daddy.
5. When he plays the guitar at home or at church. Giving God all the glory.
6. That he is a leader in the church, not just as a Deacon but in the children's ministries.
7. How handsome he is, he still makes my heart skip a beat when I see him.
8. How playful he is, even when he jumps out at me when I come out of the bathroom and freak me out.
9. How helpful he is around the house and therefore teaching our children to serve others by helping.
10. Basically I love everything about him even his little quirks! I can't wait to spend many more years with you, J.

What the kids did...

Saturday J had all the kids until dinner time and he made a video of some of the fun things they did together. He is such a good daddy and husband. Here is the link to the video, don't forget to pause his music.

Other than that I'm still trying to process the doctor's appointment yesterday. He asked if I was going to have any more kids because this is a dangerous disease, not sure if disease is what you would call it, to have kids with. It can cause heart problems and such. I know that we are done and I'm completely fine with that but to hear from a doctor that you shouldn't have more kids is a bit hard to swallow, I'm only 30 years old. I feel extremely blessed to have these 4 beautiful healthy kids but I can't seem to stop my brain thinking about the what if's. Thank you Jesus for giving me healthy kids to love and take care of for you. And thinking about how GG and Monkey were surprise pregnancies it makes me see how much God was in control of our family from the very beginning. He knew this was my future and he gave us children before the illness came out.

The best!

I really feel that God gave me the best husband for me. I think that there are many wonderful/best husbands out there but that each one is prefect for their own wife, does that make sense? Yesterday after church we went out to eat with some friends and then headed to the mall to look for some new shoes for Red. While we were there we checked out the jewelry store across the way, the lady who sold J my engagement ring works there and we wanted to see if she was working. She likes when we pop in with the kidlets. She wasn't working but while we were there I spotted a pearl necklace on sale. It was a really good price cheaper than the pearl earrings that I got for Christmas. I asked J if I could get them so that I had something nice to wear with the earrings he said YES. I was so excited. Now he just needs to take me on a date so that I can get all fancy! Well this morning at 7am J rolled over gave me a kiss and asked, "Do you want to sleep in? I'll take the kids to school". I said, "Don't you have to work?" He told me. "I took the day off so we could spend it together." Awesome! The only thing was that I didn't get all my errands done until later than normal but I got to do most of them with HIM. It was great. The only one I did without him was going to the Market Day store to get some food. I wish he would of been with me as Peanut and I almost got creamed by a UPS driver. I was driving straight and they were turning out of the parking lot and almost hit me. I swerved so far to the right that I almost ended up on the sidewalk. Peanut sits behind the drivers side and if I wouldn't of done that she could of gotten majorly hurt. I was so shaken up but so thankful we weren't hurt. I was only going about 5 miles an hour but those UPS trucks are much bigger than my van. After that errand I was so happy that I didn't have to drive the rest of the day. When Peanut wakes up from her nap we are going to go to Sam Ash and then get the kids from school. We are also going to register them for next year!

The Love of my Life!

***Warning this may be mushy, not really sure where I'm going with this yet***

Today marks 9 years of marriage for J and I. This will be our last year in the single digits so exciting. I've always felt if you can make it to the double digits you are on the right path! Over these past 9 years we have gone through many good times (the births of our children to name a few) and many hard times (loss of baby and other junk). We (I) are currently struggling through my health issues, J has been my rock. When I'm hurting he just takes over doing what needs to get done without complaint. I know he wants me back completely healthy and we are working on getting to the problem but it is just taking SO long and I'm getting frustrated, it's been a year now. I've learned to cope with the pain but I don't want to just get by, you know. I can honestly say he is not the same person I married 9 years ago he is a better, stronger, wiser version of him! God truly blessed me the day I got married to J he knew we were the right person for each other. But like I said earlier we've had our downs and they were really down but the ups have far outweighed those bad times. I look forward to many more fun and exciting years ahead with this man, Lord willing!

Oh yeah we went out to lunch yesterday to celebrate and we got a joint gift of a new video recorder. The one we had was 8 years old...we bought it right before our first was born!

Want to SCREAM!

Do you remember me talking about the collection agency that has been calling us? Well things came to a head today with them. The guy I talked to today was a complete JERK and refused to send me documentation of the so called outstanding bill we owe. A bit shady if you ask me. I had told him on the phone that we have start consulting with a lawyer to which he says, "Fine then by the end of this week you will have a credit mark on your credit report." The JERK tried to intimidate me. Last Friday I had gotten a called from the collection agency and after I got off the phone called the hospital who said they don't show any delinquency on my account but to call the Radiologist department to which they gave me the number. I call them and same thing. No outstanding balance on either account. Making everything seem even more shady. I have to give great props to my hubby for standing up for me today. I called him after I got off the phone with said JERK and he immediately called them and talked to his supervisor and then wrote a letter to her about the whole situation. Oh yeah, and his callings with different people today he was told that the Radiologist department had called the agency and resolved my account. Hmmm? Interesting. Now we are armed with tons more information so we'll see where this leads.

Saturday Night...

Well guys remember how I said that we were getting together with a couple from church to hang out? Yeah well there was more than that couple when we opened the door. We pulled up and there were no other cars in sight. But when we walked through the door there were people from church blowing those obnoxious noise makers and screaming Happy Birthday! I was so embarrassed. I don't like when all eyes are on me. Once the surprise and the shock of what was going on we had a great time. We didn't even get home until midnight, and we gained an hour but it really didn't help because I was exhausted this morning for church. We had so much fun and my sides hurt from laughing so hard. We played two games one I think was called Celebrity and the other Mafia. There was a lot of pictures taken but I don't have any because I didn't bring my camera...didn't think I was going to need it :) My hubby set the whole thing up with the help of this couple. They are the greatest! I have such a great husband and friends. Bring on the 30s!!!

Hot off the press!

I took some pictures of Peanut today and wanted to get them on here on time! She is wearing one of GG outfits when she was a baby! The whole time I was trying to take her picture she was smiling but as soon as it flashed she stopped smiling.




One more thing I wanted to document...hehehe. J made me breakfast in bed. And there was no special occasion! Now I just have to get him to write me a song...hmmm. He has written each of the kids a song and our friend Olivia but not me. I can't be too upset he has written me poetry.

Christmas Time!

The kids have been off of school this whole week so we have been busy with playdates and Thanksgiving things. I have to say that yesterday was probably my favorite day of the week. We got up and had a nice pancake breakfast. I finished Peanut's blanket for Christmas now I just have to do Red's, that is a great feeling. Then two older kids and I played tons of games while the two little ones slept. When they woke up we went out to eat. When we got home is when all the real fun happened. We listened to Mercy Me's Christmas Album while we put up the Christmas tree, put all the decorations out, and hung the stockings by the fireplace. We need to get a stocking for Peanut then everything will be complete. Our house is so ready for Christmas! Oh yeah and J got up real every to go shopping on Black Friday, he was home before anyone else woke up. I think he is CRAZY! He said he got some great deals and the presents where all for me, well except one for Peanut. He always gets me the best presents I am excited about opening them, but with him getting them he always wants to give them to me right away. He was wanting me to open them last night before we went to bed. This month is going to kill him waiting! I also have pictures from the decorating but I haven't had time to put them on the computer. If I get a chance I will put them on here if it isn't too late.

Busy-ness/Stress

**Update**
J figured out what was wrong with the washer. I guess there is a little tube that attaches to the basin and then triggers the water to stop once it fills up to the level it is set at. That little tube broke and so when the water filled to the level it started going through the tube to stop the water instead the water just ran down the machine and on to the floor and the water didn't stop. I almost always do large loads, kind of have to with 6 people, so the water was already close to the top when the water started leaking which is why the water was coming out of the top, too! Needless to say, J was able to fix it for now until we can go get a longer tube. I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving. We have tons to be thankful for here.
**End Update**

I think our busy life caught up with us yesterday. The last two days had been non-stop action. Monkey had his Thanksgiving program Friday and it got over an hour before GG got out of school so we hung around school and went to the pep assembly. That was tons of fun. The school for the first time has a drum line and they rocked! We got home and had a few hours of down time until we packed everyone back up and took them to the basketball game at school. We certainly have school spirit :) When we got there two girls were doing face paints. Of course, all the kids got there faces painted...even Peanut. I wish I would of gotten a picture of her though. She had CLA written across her forehead. It was cute! Then yesterday was insanely busy. In the morning J and I split the kids. He took GG to church for her Ark practice and he and Red went to his parents house the practice was 2 hours long. I took Monkey and Peanut we went to the store and then to Monkey's gymnastics. Came home and made lunch and J and GG got home. He had left Red at his parents to take a nap and I was bringing the other two over in about an hour or so anyway. Then back in the car to grandma and grandpa's. Dropped them off and Peanut and I went to a baby shower. After that we picked up all the kids and headed to my dad's house for Thanksgiving dinner. When we got home it was 9pm. Poor Red hadn't been home since 9:30am he was almost gone for 12 hours. The kids went to bed and I got myself and baby girl ready. I was hoping the day was over for us but it wasn't. I lay in bed nursing my baby and all of a sudden she makes a funny noise. I jump in time to catch the spit up. I lay her back down and more comes out all over the bed. So I pick her up and she does it 4 more times on the floor. I strip the bed and her and start a load of laundry. I try and sooth her while I am cleaning and making the bed. Which brings us to today. As I was typing this the baby was sleeping on the bed and the kids were playing in their rooms and I had a load of laundry in. I started to hear and strange noise in the bathroom where the laundry is and decided to investigate. Something is wrong with the washing machine. Water is all over the floor. Make a call to hubby and start cleaning the floor. I really hope nothing is really wrong with the machine. I need to do laundry. Now I wait for him to come home and take a look at it mind you he is working right now. So all he can really do is look at it he can't fix it.

Enough Baby talk for now!

This morning I started a new Bible study at my church. It is about the inner lives of men and how they think and act differently then us women. I am really excited about getting to know the women in the study better and learning more about how my hubby thinks and feels about things I say and do. The best part is it is biblically based.

I also wanted to get on here and say that the kids start school in 3 days! I can't believe how fast this summer has gone by. Also GlamorGirl starts her ice skating on Saturday while Monkey is in gymnastics. She is super excited about learning how to ice skate. But now I have to go dig out some pants for her to wear on the ice!

As for Red he has started this new thing that I remember GG doing when she was about his age. When he gets in trouble for doing something with daddy he comes running to me crying, "Daddy yell at me. Go scream at him." I then ask if he was naughty to which he replies, "yes" still sobbing. Then I explain if he was naughty then he should of gotten in trouble. It's just so funny they think I'm going to go scold their daddy for discipling them. I look at him and just can't believe how big he has gotten. He is completely potty trained during the day and does pretty well at night but still is wet some mornings but dry for the most of them.

Wonderful Friday!

We had a great day together celebrating J's Golden birthday. He wanted to go to Rain Forest Cafe for his birthday lunch but we didn't end up getting to go there because the kids and I had a dentist appointment at 1:15 and it was taking too long to get seated. We ate at a different restaurant in the Mall instead. Then it was to the dentist...not my favorite place to go while pregnant because my teeth and gums are really sensitive and I end up bleeding A LOT. When we got home J wanted to go to the store to get paint and other things needed to do our bathroom. He has the whole week off so it is a prefect time to get it done! This evening my dad and step mom came over and we finished off the brownie cake I had made. I got a video of Red and I reading his favorite book but I have to do something to the size of it first which I hope to get done tomorrow but for tonight I want to leave you with 32 week belly shots!

Only 3 more days...

I really don't know if I will be able to survive. I NEED MY HUBBY. Ok I'm done complaining. This morning Amy came over and took GG and Red to the pool. Monkey didn't want to go. He came with me to get my hair cut. I have before and after pictures but I am too tired/lazy to upload them and show you. Maybe when I have my support system back aka J. I will put pictures up. We bummed around the house most of the afternoon because it was super hot outside. Then it was off to Chuck E Cheese to celebrate Monkey's birthday with his friend Noah before they leave for the summer and head to Hawaii. Their dad is stationed there but their house is here so they come for the school year and then go there for the summer. Tomorrow my dad wants me to go boating with them but I really don't feel up to it. As of right now I have told him we were going to pass but that if I woke up in the morning feeling super good we would come. Please pray for me to make it these last 3 days. I am seriously struggling with the single parent-ness.

Oh yeah and after I updated last night I realized that my baby ticker is in the 2 digits! I am so excited.

Exhausted to the EXTREME!

My night ended late because when J got home he worked in our room and it kept me awake. Then this morning the furniture came at 8am. The kids didn't wake up until 8:30am. Oh well. I put my clothes away in my new dresser and went outside to help J with the wood chips. I am so completely sore I have a feeling I will not be able to move tomorrow morning. I worked for 2 hours and probably shoveled at least 20 wheel barrels full of wood chips. My 76 yr old neighbor got mad at me for working. I didn't do anything that was hurting me, physically but I am feeling it now. I felt the baby kicking while working so I knew she was fine. I did stop and drink lots of water though. My legs are what are sore right now. But I have been having problems with my legs and getting charlie horses during the night plus the pain from my sciatic nerve. I think I should eat more bananas. We have a much smaller pile of wood chips though! Tomorrow I think we can finish them off and we will accomplish what J wanted. This evening my dad and step mom came over and we went out for dinner and DQ. YUMMY. Dairy Queen was a treat for the kids for being such big helps today with working on the yard. Monkey shoveled almost as much as I did and GlamorGirl was helping weed and shovel. They both helped play with Red. We have such great kids and I love them so much.

Beautiful!

It was absolutely beautiful outside today. After the kids gymnastics we played outside until dinner. J rented a stump grinder and now we have no more stumps. Very cool. Now we have to level the built up landscaping around the border of our property then we can get the cool swing set from our neighbors who's kids are too big for it now. I'm really not in an updating mood. So that is all you get for now.