A Few Words on What’s Been Going On

There’s this little detail about having things to share with you…it means I actually have to do things. For the past few weeks, I’ve been working on a baby quilt, but honestly I’ve just been exhausted. Fortunately, we figured out one of the reasons why I’m exhausted. Besides growing a person, I’m severely Vitamin D deficient. Normal is between 30-100, I’m a 17. Yea. Not good. I was trying to figure out how the heck I could be Vitamin D deficient, when I realized that for almost 2 years I haven’t been out of my house.

Now, before you think I’m some weirdo that never goes outside….We went from last winter, which was long and cold, to living in my in-laws basement, to moving back into our home {and working on projects INSIDE}, to this winter, which is long and cold. The last time I was outside with any regularity was the summer of 2013. Pathetic. Fortunately, my mom also has issues with her Vitamin D, so she gave me what I need to take.

Interestingly enough, one of the side effects of Vitamin D deficient, besides tiredness, is that your body pretty much needs it to do anything. Great! So the cold I wasn’t able to really kick for almost 2 months {a slightly scratchy throat lingered}, is now finally gone. I’m getting things done around the house: Trying to completely some of the bigger to-dos on our list, before baby arrives.

I did finish that baby quilt, the first one I’ve stitched in over a year, we’ve been working on our mudroom and master bathroom, and I’ve got the fabric lined up for another baby quilt. I feel productive. Now, mind you, I’m still rather tired, but I at least feel like starting projects…which is a good thing. I actually had the motivation to reorganize our pantry!

I have to say though…I love winter. I love snow. I love the cold….it’s the only time of the year that I can literally breath freely {heat and humidity do not agree with me} and I feel like there’s a good reason to be curled up with a book. After this whole Vitamin D thing, I’m honestly ready to have some sunshine on a regular basis!

Despite the “norm” of life for us, we also have several other projects in the works, that are taking up some of my brain power. I’m hoping I’ll be able to share more on them in the next month or so. Right now, we’re just trying to get through most days without the kids going completely batty, which I think may be a lost cause at this point.

How have you been managing this winter?
FYI: If you feel a lack of energy and like you’re unable to get/stay healthy, give your doctor a call about having your Vitamin D levels checked.

Looking back, while moving forward

It was a crazy year to say the least, and 2015 isn’t looking any less crazy! I’ve written and re-written this post about a dozen times {I’m not joking} trying to put this past year to words. I keep thinking there was more, but really there were only a few things that just happened to be HUGE things!

January through March it was pretty normal, but by mid-March, the insanity that would mark the entire year began: We started boxing up our house and moved it into a trailer, while moving ourselves into the in-law’s  basement {which had more square footage than our entire house}. We moved out on April 1st {the joke was on me}, I had hoped it would be for only 6-8 weeks, we moved back home almost 4 months later.

The kitchen was gutted, demolished, and the work began.

There is still work to be done. All of those little projects are still looking at me…a final coat of paint on the moldings, touching up paint, and other nonsense work. We’re jumping back into it soon, too. We’re hoping to finish the basement this year {so the kids have a place to play in the house} and redo the front porch on the house. It’s not a ton of work, but it’s big work. Throw in getting all the kids rooms rearranged and some other building projects {kitchen table, bunk beds etc} and we’ll be non-stop again.

Oh yea, and a new baby! Now, we have a date by which many of these projects have to be done…June 2015. I guess 2014 was the year of the house renovations {you can find all the posts and pictures here}.

I loved the amount of time that the kids and I got to spend with each other this past year. Living in someone else’s home and being out of sorts, you kind of do what you have to with 4 kids under 5 to survive. We spent a lot of time just together, watching TV. I admit it, we watched a LOT of TV this past year, more than I would’ve liked, but I wouldn’t give up the time that I spent on the couch cuddling my crew for anything.

Matt and I are good, better than good. 2015 will be 15 years that we’ve been together and 10 years we’ve been married. In 15 years there’s been a lot, but we pull close together and we get through it. This past year we didn’t even do anything for our anniversary, most of our time together was spent working on the house {good thing we work well together!}. I have informed Matt that we need to do SOMETHING before the newest addition makes their debut, because no one is going to let us go away and leave 5 kids behind!

Thanks to our awesome family, I was able to go do a few things with friends that I was really looking forward to. In March I went to Raising Generations Today with some special ladies for an overnight {and I can’t wait to go again this year, in October, with Baby in tow!} In June a friend and I managed to sneak out to Philly for an evening for a book signing, and managed to have quite the adventure together.

August was fair season, which we survived pretty well. I managed to make it to Friday of the last week before having my crying-fit. I had told Matt next year {2015} I’d probably be able to make it the whole week {before knowing that we will have a 2 month old next year during fair season} without crying. We will of course be desperately in need of prayers again, but who isn’t in desperate need of prayer all the time.

We transitioned smoothly into Fall, rejoiced in our being done with busy and able to be home in our own house. We celebrated Ave’s 5th birthday, Thanksgiving then moved right into the December birthdays {we have 4 of them!} and Christmas, and here we are, the 2nd day of 2015 already.

One of my biggest hopes for 2015, is that I’m actually able to get a few quilts put together, it’s killing me! I haven’t sat at a sewing machine since February and I have about 7 quilts that I have to make, between gifts for babies already born, soon to be born, and my own girls’ quilts. I really miss sewing.

It’s proving that 2015 will be another banner year in the White House! We have no less than 7 major milestones to celebrate this year, between my parents, my brother, and my nephew having big birthdays, our’s and my parents’ anniversaries, a new baby of our own, and a couple of vacations. I’m hopeful for 2015.

But regardless of what may come, God’s got it. Just as this past year could have been absolute chaos and hell, He’s got it. Our house didn’t implode when we did demolition, there were no major nightmares with rebuilding {a few headaches yes, but no nightmares}, the kids were all healthy, there was good memories and fun. I think that THAT is the best thing we can ask for from a year, that despite the hard and the struggles that we’re still able to see God and the good that happened.

What are you looking forward to this year?

News from the White House

December is a crazy time in our house, I know it is for everyone, but throw in a plethora of birthdays and it adds to the bedlam. Last weekend we celebrated my grandfather’s 95th birthday {12/6} and Monday was Matt’s 32nd birthday {12/8}. Avelyn decided to add to the excitement by allowing us to yank her first loose tooth during Matthew’s birthday festivities!

Then during the week we got some really crappy weather that put a damper {literally} on any fun time outside, but resulted in snow days for friends, so we had an impromptu play date…which was wonderful, especially since we hadn’t seen these friends in months {I’m not kidding}. Another evening I spent 2.5 hours on the phone with an old friend, sharing memories and her exciting news.

Throughout it all I was trying to get Christmas cards finished and mailed, bake cookies {some have been dough in my fridge for 2 or 3 days and are still in there}, and keep the house functioning {what is it with laundry and cooking?! They never end!}. It’s been crazy! I’ve had every intention of getting a few posts up, but it just didn’t happen.

But there was one thing in particular that we wanted to share with you.

That’s right! Come the middle of June there’s going to be another White kid to terrorize the world {I’m 14 weeks today}. The kids are a lot more excited than they appear to be in this picture. We do know that we are adding only ONE new kiddo to the family {there was a bit of a question in the beginning}, but we’re leaving gender to be a surprise this time {since we already have ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING we could possibly need and with #5 there needs to be some element of anticipation}.

I think that brings all of the big news up to date in the White House!

O’ Christmas Tree

This past weekend we headed into the woods at our friend’s family tree farm to pick this year’s Christmas’ tree: It took us all of about 5 minutes, which is a record. We usually spend a good half-hour walking around trying to find the tree that is just right. Matt chopped it down, and we dragged it out. We, of course, had to get our family Christmas-Tree-Getting picture. It just struck me how incredible this picture is, particularly compared to the last few years.

My how the kids have grown in the past few years…and every year there’s been more and more snow: Which I love! Maybe one of these years everyone will look at the camera and smile nicely.

Do you do a real tree or no? Cut it down yourself?

Halloween 2014

Happy Halloween from Jessie the Cowgirl, Buzz Lightyear, Strawberry Shortcake and Sheriff Woody!This was the first year since before Avelyn was born that it was actually decent weather to be outside for trick or treating: It’s always been cold, rainy and miserable! The kids had an absolute BLAST running around in the dark and knocking on doors, and they were surprisingly well behaved.

Our Favorite Books for Autumn Enjoyment

You can find this post on my new site, JessicaMWhite.com: Click HERE.

Summer Stories {Part 4}

This past weekend we headed out of town, albeit only 1 night, to Hershey Park, for Matt’s family’s annual get together. We don’t go every year, because it would just be too much, but when we do we always have fun. The first year we went with all 4 kids we decided that instead of buying them a t-shirt every year or some such thing, we would buy 1 t-shirt in a bigger size and take pictures every year. Here’s the picture from 2 years ago…

For those of you that follow me on Instagram, you’ll already have seen this gem.

We did have a few side stops on the way down, the biggest one was for Daddy to go to Cabela’s, which was fine with me because the kids were quite enamored with all of the animals and the live aquarium they now have.

After Cabela’s it was onward to Hershey Park! We got to the campground, setup our tent, and…hold up, tent?! Yep, we slept the night we were there in a tent…6 of us. It wasn’t as bad as it sounds, but it wasn’t that great either. Matt, Ave and I were on the floor, the kids in the pack n play {they stayed some of the night in there}.

In the evening we went with tradition: Chocolate World, followed by ice cream.

The awesome t-shirts they got from Aunt Meggie and Uncle Matt.Finding out how they measure up!Henry was a bit overwhelmed by the busy, but Daddy didn’t mind.Riding the Chocolate World ride: I think James was impressed.Then it was time for ice cream!Back to the campground it was, and baths in Baba’Sunday morning we got up bright and early {not that we needed any help with that, since the kids were up at 3:30, until 5:30, then woke up at 6:30am}. Off to Hershey we went! They were a bit excited. See how much they’ve grown in those shirts?!James on his first ever ride: He loved it!Ellie wasn’t too keen on the whole bit of nonsense.Then it was time for Mommy to take the crazies on the Tilt-a-Whirl….one of my favorite rides. They LOVED it!Ellie didn’t like it at first, but by the end she loved it!Henry finally found a ride he liked, the cars {and Mater!}…that was the only way we could get him on it.Interestingly enough all of the kids went on their first big-kid roller coaster and LOVED it! After that we were all so hot it was time for the water rides.Soon after, it was lunch, meltdowns and time to go home, but not before one last ride.In the car and ready to roll.Literally 5 minutes later.We stopped about halfway home at Cracker Barrel, our first time taking all the kids out to eat since they’re more than 6 months old. It went surprisingly well, given the exhausted and meltdown conditions.We came home, put the kids in bed and mommy crashed with an exhaustion induced migraine. It was a great time though, it was so much fun seeing the kids with cousins and family, and riding all the rides.