one from last night...

it looks SO MUCH better! i am so glad now that we got stitches. he's been so great about changing the band-aid. sweet boy....

the story of our day...

from the other day...but about how he looks now...

all done... with his birthday cake pop from sbucks...

could not have been happier... but DRENCHED in sweat from fighting...

sweet face.

and a band-aid... and a messy shirt!

i just realized my post from yesterday said "what a day". maybe that should be today's title!!!

our first er visit...

screaming as he was "burritoed" into the papoose...

after... look at his band-aid.

i just took him upstairs and rocked him to sleep. i sat there, watching my sleeping baby, replaying the morning. thinking about all the things that could have been. not in a morbid way, but a thankful way. thinking about the timing and seeing God's hand in it all.

a few weeks ago, i had to take nora to the urgent care, and i knew where to go so our insurance would cover it. (ironically, my mom didn't even know that er/urgent care existed!!!) my mom was literally walking out the door, so she was able to stay and drive me. thirty seconds later and i would have been on my own. i watched the whole thing happen. jamey running towards me, hitting his chin. i knew there would be blood, just a matter of where.

also, my mom was supposed to be gone for the whole day. yesterday, she decided she couldn't go. so, she was home. and we had driven my brother to work this morning, so there was a car home. with both car seats (that doesn't always happen around here!!).

i was wearing a red t-shirt, so blood stains didn't matter. jamey was wearing a stained white shirt. (i know, but it's the little things...)

the bleeding stopped by the time we got to the er. i have a wonderful phone that entertained my children for the two hours while we waited to be seen. and someone put "veggie tales" on youtube, so my kids were so happy! (i did realize i need good suggestions about kids apps on the droid. there are so many great ones for iphones....)

it was only a cut on the chin. there was no concussion, there was no major injury, no broken bones, etc. just a tiny, one inch cut on his chin. four stitches. a matching scar to daddy's. but daddy had gravel in his that they had to dig out. we had no gravel.

i held that baby boy, so thankful that he was alive and well. that he was the happiest kid on the block once they were finished. he thought going into the papoose was so cool. he was laughing, then realized he wasn't able to move or get out. and it took them FOREVER to get set up. then, they covered his face and eyes with the sterile drape. at one time, it sounded like he was gasping for air as the nurse held his chin still. i asked if we could move the drape a bit, and jamey could look at me. then, his screaming took a new turn... "i'm a good boy, mommy. i'm a good boy". oh, break a mother's heart. of course you are a good boy, my sweet angel. you aren't being punished!!! then he almost passed out from crying. but the second they were done, fortuitously, my mom walked in, the hero! he jumped in her arms and was laughing and talking. and, he has a big band-aid on his chin.

for those of you who saw the fb message, thanks for praying! it was comforting to know people were praying for us!!

what a day...

out on the rocks. did i do these pics already?

sweet, sleepy baby boy. I LOVE THIS KID!!

my new fav thing...

after hearing rave reviews on them, and doing some research and trials, i bit the bullet. i talked my mom into buying them first and she loves them. i wanted the pink (i know, surprise, huh?), so i ordered them online. if you don't know, they are five fingered shoes, designed to help you feel "barefoot". supposed to be better for us! anyway, i love them. my back had been hurting all day. i put them on and... better! (could be a coincidence, but i still love them!) and, i needed new running shoes!
sweet boy... sang the "rainbow" song so sweetly. and then i got the camera. so, here he is! just being a ham!

so, i was filling out preschool applications today. and one of the questions was "what are your child's strengths". then, "what are your child's weaknesses". then, "how do you handle those at home". i felt like a horrible mother filling them out.

i don't want to "label" my child as the "strong-willed child". mostly because she is a different girl at school than she is at home. she's quiet and reserved (or so i have been told).

and then the boy... considered a 2 year old preschool for him. a- not sure how i feel about that. b- feel like i am pawning him off two mornings a week. c- think it could be really good to have those two days, especially after the baby comes. d- not sure if i want to pay for three years of preschool for him. but, for his weakness... "he's two?". i felt like the whole thing was more a judge on my parenting.

so there we go. less than three weeks left here. crazy! my two year old has decided he wants to scream his head off for 30 minutes each night before he goes to bed. fun times! i keep telling my mom she can only go in there and rock him to sleep if she moves to hawaii to do the same.

a giveaway...

so, did i ever really mention that i started my own "shop"? it's online. and i am having fun with it! over the last few weeks, as i talked to some friends here at home, i realized i haven't said much about it.

in october, i got a tax id, and started ordered some designer fabric wholesale. in april, i opened the online shop. it's slow going currently, but that is all i can handle right now. my family has overwhelmingly supported me. and, a friend recently asked if she could do a giveaway of one of my bags on her website.

laura and stef have been friends for as long as i can remember. her parents have a similar story to ours (dad went to the academy, mom was a navy nurse, met in san diego, got married super fast...). they have always been near and dear to my heart.

laura has a foodie blog that i LOVE! her recipes are always fantastic and i love how she always adapts them, and they turn out so well! so, check out her blog and the giveaway...

laura- the good spoon

my blog

my shop

worship...

my sweet boy likes singing at the top of his lungs to "worship". i LOVE it! (okay, he also likes carrie underwood's "undo it". he knows all the words...) it's so sweet...

we went on a little adventure tonight... after dinner, since he slept until 5pm due to a fever, dd and i threw the kids in the car and ran to whole foods. then, treated the kids to ice cream. i have been so thankful for my bro at home. he LOVES my kids. it's so fun to watch his love for them, and their love for him. jamey snuggled with his dd before bed, and it was so sweet.

david moves in to our house in a WEEK! and we move to hawaii in THREE WEEKS! can't wait. he picked up my car yesterday, so we are getting settled.

summer vacay...

off to the pool...

playing with friends!

loved him the inner tube!

look ma... no hands!

wiped out after the pool. i had to wake jamey up so he would go back to sleep (they are going to bed as soon as i finish this post!)

talking to grammie...

fun visitors! aunt lu and jeanie!

how do you not love that face?

she loves her aunt lu!

look who's back!!

we love having byssa back!!!

blowing up the inflatable pool. fun times.

a fun day...

the boys loved riding in the stroller and getting pushed up and down the hill. jamey spent most of the time with his hand clutching will's pants. (not sure why he wasn't hitting and screaming and trying to get out, like he usually does. maybe we need to ride next to will all the time!)

i'll be honest. i played huck finn yesterday. nora really wanted to be outside, and i wanted to finish up a project and help mom get ready for a party. i told nora it would be fun to help pop-pop and dd weed. she did!!

and they said she was a good help. princess shoes and all!!

she loves her pop-pop. and he adores her!

dd and i were wearing the same shirt. aren't we cute!! (i had it on first...) and never to be outdone, nora had to join us!

i was showing jamey a slideshow on foxnews.com of the "cars of summer movies", and there was a picture of vin diesel on a car. jamey said, "daddy!!!" aww...

we got to hang out with good friends and family last night. the kids all played together nicely, and i think my parents did most of the heavy lifting where my kids were concerned! i will miss my live-in caretakers!

we got to ichat with daddy!! it was so nice to see him, and talk to him after a week away. he got to drive the ship and did a fantastic job. so proud of my man!!!

3 d movies...

watching cars 2. of course they moved when i snapped the picture!

loving on his dd. until about halfway through the movie. then, there was too much popcorn on the floor, and he just wanted to clean it up.

rocking the 3d glasses.

today was the last day of vbs. and i learned that nora knew her verses every day. the teachers told me how impressed they were. awesome, cause she never "remembers" them when i ask her!!

oh, and my kids woke up at 4:55 this morning. i put the pillow over my head. thankfully, my mom was getting up at 5 anyway to take stef to the airport. so, i got to sleep in. phew... dodged a bullet on that one!

a princess party...

how is she so OLD???

a gorgeous rainbow across the sky!!! it was so fun!

besties...

princesses...

they had a warrior/princess themed vbs party tonight and the girls loved putting on their pretties. sweet lori stopped at target and raided their dollar bin for swords for the boys. (i debated putting james in his wedding tux, but if it got ruined, i didn't want to buy another!!!)

we are going to see cars2 tomorrow. my kids are pretty stoked about it. that's been the talk of the week...

i have been telling my kids that daddy is our hero. he is on a ship, saving us from pirates (alluding to a favorite movie, "the pirates who don't do anything"- the heros save the prince and princess from the bad pirates. i figured it was a good 2 and 3 year old visual...). so, nora was asking on the drive home tonight where daddy works.

"on a ship. you know, he's our hero."

"but where"

"in the navy"

"but where"

"in hawaii"

"but where"

"pearl harbor"

"but where" (this was getting fun!!!)

"the uss ----"

"oh, i know. so daddy is a hero and a shipwreck!"

"umm........"

later we were talking in bed. devotions happened to be about asking God to make our hearts clean. we talked a lot about what that meant. she told me she had never done that before. i asked if she wanted to. she said she did. i asked if she wanted to do it now, she said no. so, there you have it. it was such a sweet conversation, however. i was so touched by her honesty (sometimes i think she tries to give me the "right" answer, and that's not what i am looking for), and her realization of what that all meant. Jesus to be her savior. to be in Heaven when she dies. that she sins. it's slowly, but surely, seeming to dawn on this girl.

also, several times, especially this week, she has been denied snacks due to ingredients. i am consistently impressed with her response. it's amazing! i didn't expect my almost 4 year old to walk away from the cookie tray, when her friend and brother were eating cookies, and say okay. and then to be promised a gluten free one when we got home, only to ask for it in the morning, because she was tired! i guess her tummy REALLY hurt all last year, and she is enjoying NOT having a tummy ache every day! it's amazing that even SHE sees the difference...

jamey is having his moments. he is getting so big, and so much better at obeying. we ran errands and had breakfast this morning while sissy was at school. he really did a great job of obeying and listening. tonight was not as exemplary. but, he has come such a long way. he's been so good, so much of the week! unfortunately our larry boy vhs tape broke, and i can't find it in any store. going to have to search online, but he wants it so bad!!!

also, this morning, he brought me in an earring. one of the pair that david brought back from russia. it matches my promise ring that my parents gave to me when i turned 16. which my grandparents had given to my mom when she turned 16. just one earring. i was beside myself. i didn't even know i had brought them with me. when nora got up, she showed me where they had been. (i guess this one was found in the middle of the floor in their room- as seen by coco.) so, i told the kids that if they found the other one, they got a treat. no one helped me look. but, as i searched again tonight, praying, i FOUND it!! not sure how, other than the grace of God! but, one of those fun moments...

not to be outdone...

a girls night out. so much fun.

ice cream at sams club. should have heard the screaming until we got that!! someone thought it would be fun if we all went!!!

jamey climbed in the plastic container and just laid there until dd came and "threw him away". (this kid LOVES his dd) he was so cute... (and i made sure there was an air vent!)

took jamey to a movie ($1 at cinemark) the other day. he lost interest in "megamind" when his popcorn ran out. but, LOVED the arcade!

such a big kid!!

she just looked so cute! and grown up. and, yes, we are back to pull ups. only because i forgot to bring the plastic mattress pads.

reading with mom-mom.
my sweet boy, singing his song!!!

let's see. tonight, jamey wanted dd to sing to him, and rock him. then, me to put him in bed. so, i listened as dd sang jamey the same song i sang to dd when he was a baby. it was so sweet and precious. (the song, however, is ridiculous. i told stef tonight and she wanted to know why on earth i would choose that song. but, i did, and david loves it. good memories for us!!) it was so precious to hear him sing it to my baby.

i went out with some girlfriends tonight. a blast. had such a fun evening. THEN, i got to come home and chat online with my best friend. (actually two!!!- dy and cus!!) it was such a treat. we sent emails back and forth for awhile, just chatting. ahh, the little joys in life.

i was telling my sister this weekend how tough marriage can be. i realized that might not come out sounding like i love it. i LOVE being married to david. (and am constantly surprised that he wants to stay married to me!!!) but, it's tough work... putting two selfish people in a house and expecting them to coexist peacefully. it's hard putting someone's wants and needs above your own. and david does it SO. WELL. i am so thankful for him.

did i mention that nora is at vbs this week. she's loving "school" again. can't wait for her to get started in hawaii. randomly

fun times...

ice cream last night... kid likes his dairy queen!!!

visiting my dear college roomie, kate! it was so fun to catch up after not seeing each other for a few years. they have a new house, two kids, and so much fun! it was a joy to spend the evening with them in chicago!

my little songstress...

she is so cute... trying to play "good" music, since she has EVERY line memorized!

future american idol..

LOVE watching this girl sing. of course, i turn on the cam, and she isn't NEAR as animated as usual...

so last week...

my cute new house... not sure i would have chosen the color, but i love it regardless!!! (random small world connection... the girl who babysits for us here, her dad is super high up in the company that will rent us our house! crazy...it's based out of cleveland... how random!)

on the "boat" at pop-pop's ho-towel...

of course, jamey had to try!

talking to daddy! we love and miss him!!

a new find last week at a garage sale. nora is very concerned about how we will get it to hawaii....

he likes to sit on it, but not ride...

so many choices.

"making" me a shake...

her "tattoos". not sure how she even KNOWS that word!!! scary...

still loves boxes!

i wanted to find a pic of me here when i was young. we used to LOVE playing on these rocks. the second i took this pic, the sky OPENED up and poured on us...

so, my dad heard that if you put out dry oatmeal when you see ants, they will take it back to the queen and she will explode. we've been seeing less ants... not sure if it's related to the oatmeal. well, nora saw my mom sprinkle the oatmeal for the ants the other day, and loves doing it now.

today, she saw ants, and asked if she could feed them the oatmeal. this is her calling to the ants, "oh ants, come eat your dinner. i have food for you." sweet girl thought she was helping them, not trying to kill them. i didn't really have the heart to tell her.

jamey stayed in his jammies all day. there's no harm in that, right? we did go out for a walk. i also broke down and bought two new pacis. i know, he's rid of them in 5 weeks, but we were down to one. and it was old. and i wanted to have a spare.

also, went to an AWESOME sale tonight. the only shame was that most stuff wouldn't fit on the airplane with me. it was by homegirl. she is awesome. i LOVED, LOVED, LOVED her stuff. i wish i could have bought it last year and shipped it to hawaii. but, i only bought an old mirror (or something similar) painted with chalkboard paint. it's oval and the prettiest detail on the border. i'll take a pic. it should fit in a suitcase... also, i got a lot of inspiration for new sewing projects!

and off to chicago in the morning. an impromptu roadtrip to take wedding gifts to a sister and bring back couches for a brother. saves two trips later in the summer. and, i get to go to chicago. without kids.