Due to a series of fortuitous events, I managed to get the baby quilt top that I was working on DONE! Yay! It just so happened that on Sunday night 2 of the kids stayed at my parents and the other 2 at Matthew’s parents, then we had a good dumping of snow {12” +}…so no one wanted to venture out, which mean I had the WHOLE day home…ALONE! Woot! Woot!
I got up, and got to work! One of my favorite kind of days: Snow and sewing!
I had spent the night before cutting apart all of my HSTs, so at least that was done. I ironed them all, got them all laid out and then the dog laid on them and made a mess of my organization: GAH!
I got them all figured out again and then it was piecing the columns and stitching the rows together!
I’m glad the top is done, at least now I can work on the hand tying sitting on the couch in the evening. The hardest thing about quilting is that I can’t do it during the day, because of the kids, but I don’t want to sit in a room alone at night, when my husband is home in the evening. At least now there’s handwork.
I’m rather pleased with the top…I’m loving the turquoise and the orange together. Not sure what color I’ll bind it with, but I’ll figure it out!
“Sending your kids to public school is like sending them to a cult.”
“Homeschooling your kids is like being part of a cult.”
“Parents who don’t pay for their kids’ college education are selfish.”
“Parents who pay for their kids’ college education are ridiculous.”
Lovely statements, aren’t these? That’s what I see on Facebook, what I hear in groups of moms: People expressing their opinions without any consideration as to what choices others have made in their life, or why, without any consideration as to how they may be hurting others.
Motherhood is hard. Parenting is hard. It is the hardest thing we will ever do. We have been given a little person for whom we have to make EVERY decision, to the best of OUR knowledge, regarding their daily well being and the things that will affect them for the rest of their lives.
The majority of parents don’t take the responsibility of parenthood lightly. Vast amounts of time is spent researching, considering, thinking, researching again, questioning, and seeking guidance. Decisions are not made haphazardly.
The hardest thing I’ve faced in motherhood is other MOTHERS: The cattiness, the comments, the judging, they hurt {no matter what the topic}. This mothering thing…it’s tough! We’re so quick to bash those who do differently than us, so quick to put hurtful words in the ears of other moms, moms who are struggling just as much as the next mom with doing what they think is right for their children.
“For in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, practice the very same things.” Romans 2:1
I can’t help but think that the ONLY reason why anyone does it is because they don’t realize how hurtful it is, because I would hate to think it’s because they believe that cutting comments are OK to make or will somehow get people to change. If our children behaved in this manner we would not accept their behavior, they would be called what they are…bullies.
Rather than assuming, especially while in a group, that everyone there shares the same opinions take the road of humility: Keep ones mouth closed! Fingers off the keyboard! No one wants to be beaten over the head, repeatedly, by those they come in contact with, that the decisions they’ve made for their children are wrong {based on the opinions of others} and that they are horrible parents who should have their children absconded by Big Brother. Honestly, whatever is being said isn’t going to change anyone’s mind, but it can and will hurt them.
“A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” Proverbs 15:1
I don’t care whether the topic is education, vaccines, daily care, food, or anything else; there is NEVER a reason to be NASTY to other women. There is NEVER a time that it is acceptable to berate other women as being trend following idiots or uneducated. There is ALWAYS a time to extend grace and love and knowledge to our sisters {and brothers}, from a place of mutual respect and humility. There is ALWAYS a time to remember that we’re ALL just trying to make the best decisions we can.
If you’re speaking out of pride, rather than humility, it’s nothing good. If you’re speaking intentionally to hurt others, it’s nothing good. Let’s lift each other up, keep matters of opinion {because, lets be honest…all topics are a matter of opinion} to ourselves in mixed company and social media, instead of hurting people with, what I will assume to be, careless words.
Motherhood is hard. We’re all doing the best that we can with the best that we have. Let’s rise up together and support one and other, instead of hurting and bringing each other down.
*I found this video the other day, which sums it all up perfectly! Yes, it is a commercial for Si.milac {and no I don’t agree with the breastfeeding bashing} but the premise is the same. It’s not a Hate-Debate….it’s motherhood and none of us are qualified for the job.
As of last Saturday, this bun is officially “Half-Baked”! We had our anatomy scan yesterday and all looked good. Baby is right on track, weighing approximately 12 ounces and measuring 20 weeks 1 day {I was 20 weeks 2 days at the U/S}. They did confirm what I’d pretty much figured out myself, I do have an anterior placenta…which explains why I am feeling nowhere the amount of movement I should or have in the past. It’s a low lying placenta, so it will have to be watched. I’m sure I’ll end up having another U/S just before my due date to make sure there is no placental previa {pray that it stays out of the way: I do NOT want a c-section.}
We didn’t find out the gender, which was practically killing me during the whole thing. I behaved though and didn’t sneak any peaks or anything. Of course, that doesn’t prevent me from playing with online gender predictors, which we all know have a 50-50 chance of being right ;-) Both a Chinese one and one they base off of heart rate said boy…we’ll find out in 5 months!
Hard to believe that in just 5 months this little one will be here: It’s not that long.
For the 20 week stats:
I’m holding steady, weight-wise, right around 187lbs or so. No real cravings. No aversions. A little bit of heartburn when I eat spicy stuff. Things are starting to stretch and grow a bit, which at this point I was starting to wonder if it ever would. I figure in the next few weeks my tummy will start rounding out.
Finding a heartbeat and feeling movement are still a bit limited, but understandable with the anterior placenta. It’s getting a bit easier to find and feel over the past week or so.
I did get my maternity clothes back and realized that the nicest clothes I own are in fact maternity clothes {my mom was impressed, as she keeps threatening to burn most of my regular clothes}. I have a couple of nice tunic dresses, nice jeans and cords, skirts, and several cute tops! Most of my regular t-shirts are getting a bit short in the front now. I always love wearing my maternity clothes…they’re attractive and comfy and always flattering ;-)
I think that’s about all the news going on for now. I’m not planning on doing weekly posts, but I will definitely update again at 25, 30 and 35 weeks.
Ave has gotten such a kick out of getting new books to review. I couldn’t deny her the thrill when I saw a new Berenstain Bears book was available: The Berenstain Bears and the Biggest Brag. Brother and Sister are getting into it on a fairly regular basis about who is the best at pretty much everything, until Grandpa catches wind of it and puts an end to it.
The book follows right along with the Berenstain Bears Living Light series, with lots of good topics of discussion and a solid biblical basis for the story, for a child’s perspective. It's a simple and excellent story to explain the importance of humility and the trouble with being prideful.
Ave gave it 2 thumbs up and has requested it several times. While we’re not to the competition stage of siblinghood…I know it will come inevitable, and I’m grateful to have this book in our library.
*I received this book for free from the BookLookBloggers.com program; however the opinions expressed here are my own. You can find my disclosure policy here.
You can purchase this book on Amazon or any other book retailer.
It’s been a long time since I’ve done a W.I.P. Wednesday! I’ve been going through withdrawal, and now I’m at the point that I really wanted to start again, but feel like I have no idea where to begin. This fabric sat on my table for over a week before I actually decide to maybe, possibly, do something with it!
It’s definitely hard to get back into something, when it’s been over a YEAR since you’ve actually worked on a project. I also have so many quilts that I need to make in the next 4 months, that is a bit overwhelming. It’s kind of like walking into the room that catches-all and not knowing where you’re supposed to start to make order of it. You’re faced with making a choice: Soldier-on and do the job OR close the door and forget about it.
I decided to soldier-on…
The pattern is from Camille Roskelley’sbook Simply Retro, the “Fresh” quilt block. I’ve loved the quilts in that book, but this is the first that I’m actually doing, and of course I’ve changed it….I wanted smaller blocks, and only 4 of them, so it took a bit of math {gah! I don’t like math!}. Fortunately, I can figure out the dimensions with my EQ6 program, the only problem is, that it always messes up the count of how much you need to cut…I always end with extras of some and short of others.
I did have a little helper yesterday afternoon, James: He decided he wanted to try his hand at rotary cutting {which put my heart in my throat}, but he did pretty good with it. After the kids were in bed I worked for a bit longer on the blocks, but I wasn’t making myself crazy about it.
Our Christmas Eve service was about a question the speaker had asked his son, about what is the most important thing to be taken away from Christmas. It isn’t getting the shopping or baking done, it’s not about the presents or anything else; it’s not even about a birth. It’s about what that birth meant, what that birth gave to the world. It gave us HOPE.
Hope of salvation, hope for the future, hope in all things. Without that birth, there would be no hope in the world. We would exist in a superficial and cyclical life, without any hope for something better or a purpose.
Now just how important is hope? Without hope, we have nothing to strive for in life, because without hope there’s no point. It is a life filled with heart-ache, difficulties and pain. We wouldn’t have hope that things can be better, that people can heal from sickness, that what we’re doing means anything.
Hope is such an important part of human nature that entire industries have been built upon it: Books, movies, clothing, cars, careers…you name it and it is probably founded upon the idea that people are hoping for something.
Obviously not everyone places their hope in Jesus and salvation; but even those self-serving hopes, that we all have, would no longer exist if it were not for His life and death. The world would already be cast into darkness, Satan would already be at the helm, and we would be bound for the fiery pit.
By now I’m sure most people have heard of The Lord of the Rings, written by J.R.R. Tolkien, and most have realized that Tolkien was a Christian, that the entire series of books is written on the premise of Hope.
Frodo is sent on a “fool’s hope” to destroy the ring and ultimately Sauron. There is a part at the end of movie, in which Samwise is asking Frodo, if he remembers the taste of food, and Frodo responds:
“I can't recall the taste of food... Nor the sound of water or touch of grass... I'm naked in the dark, with nothing. No veil between me and the ring of fire.”
That is life without hope: A life without any joy or pleasures at all. Before His birth there was the hope of His coming, after His resurrection there is hope without ceasing. Hope can be fleeting, for those who put their hope in things and circumstances, but there is nothing that can happen in this world that can remove our hope if we trust in Jesus and His truth.
“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.” John 10:10
The room won’t be DONE-Done until the end of the summer. We have to build the bunk beds, but we’re not doing that until the newest one is born; One of the rooms will get a double bunk, the other a triple. The other thing that’s needed for the girls’ room is their quilts, which I’m hoping to finish sometime before Christmas…seriously.
The cream walls we left what they were {Martha Steward Heavy Cream} and the red wall is Behr’s Pomegranate Red…I had it color matched from one of the fabrics in the girls’ quilts. The carpet I bought at HomeGoods for our living room, but it is too light and the weight is too little {every time I tried to vacuum it it would move}, the color does match a color in the quilts.
I had wanted to change out the curtains and all that nonsense, but I might just leave them, they work in the space. I bought the mirror above the dresser at the World’s Largest Lawn Sale last summer, for $10. I had planned on painting it to match the dresser, but I’m kind of liking the black as an accent in the room. It will help balance the quilts.
There is still some work that needs to get done. Obviously bunk beds, but we also need to put a piece of crown molding up on the red well, with some rope lighting behind it. When they had to cut the house apart, to tear down the back piece, they cut into the sheetrock in the corner {wall-ceiling} and it was going to be a nightmare to fix, I decided not to fix it and just cover it up. The close is still filled with Matt and my clothes, so that’s another project {but we need a closet first in our room}.
I’ve always loved this room {and was actually sad to leave it}! The sunlight in the afternoons are glorious, there is a huge tree right outside the two side windows {there are 3 windows in the room}, and it’s just such a magical place relax and read.
*Sorry the pictures are kind of wonky….it was a bright sunny day and hard to get a good picture.
While this next post wasn’t from 2014, it was the most popular post of all time on my blog from this year. I recently re-did the entire post, due to its popularity, with better graphics.
Have you read this post yet, by Tsh Oxenreider of The Art of Simple….go read it, it’s awesome, but stay here and read this first. Blogging is changing. Has been changing for quite some time. I noticed it myself, especially this past year. People don’t read blogs anymore and if they do, they’re reading from a phone or tablet, that doesn’t make commenting all that easy. Then there is the whole thing with Instagram and micro-blogging: Why spend hours looking at blogs when you can just take a gander at a convenient feed to find out what people are up to?! I get it. I’m guilty of this myself.
See, something happened in Blog-World: It became very commercial. There was a lot less of life and stories and a lot more of how-tos, do this, and don’t do that, from people who didn’t give you a glimpse into what their reality was, because it became a business. I got enough guilt in my life without seeing everything I should be doing or not doing, without knowing just what someone else is not doing to tell me what I need to do {Phew! Got all that?!}
All of this is because of the endless list of things that bloggers get “told” that they have to do…I’m not even sure by whom. Last year I kissed social media goodbye for several months, this year I’ve had enough of it again. Facebook is a losing battle, there is no way to win at it, because I don’t have the time to dedicate to keeping a page updated AND keep on top of the games that they play. I still love Pinterest and Instagram, and that’s what I want to do this year….WHAT I LOVE. You can see there’s already been some changes around the blog this past weekend: There’s no more links for the social media I don’t like to use.
All this to say that I need to simplify my own life. I love blogging. I love sharing pictures and ideas and words with you, but honestly I don’t even know who you are anymore; there’s certainly not much traffic coming here every day or comments. And I think I’m ok with that…I’m going to HAVE to be ok with that, because nothing I’ve tried over the past year to grow my blog has helped :-)
Going forward…
I may or may not be changing my domain url this year. At the end of 2014 I made it a point to get my URL out of google’s control {still using blogger though}, and at the same time I purchased JessicaMWhite.com {I purchased both through namecheap.com}. I’d love to move to wordpress and self host my blog, but I do not have the extra money to do that.
I may or may not be blogging on a regular schedule. For the past few years I’ve tried to do a rotating schedule of MWF/TTh, but that just hasn’t happened lately. I’m not going to be choking up your email inboxes with posts, but I am going to try and be a bit more regular {I’m shooting for 2 posts a week}.
Now I have some questions for you, and I really want you to take them to heart and share with me. I started a blog because of infertility, obviously I don’t come across as a legit infertile anymore {something about having 4 kids}, but I’ve refrained from blogging more about parenting for several reasons. One being that the few readers I do have were/are infertile and I don’t want to alienate them, two being that I feel nowhere near qualified to write anything about having kids. So I’ve avoided it, other than updates on the kids {which I do for myself}.
I have several book ideas rambling around in my head, from a parenting book {yea, I know what I just said} to a freebie Christmas cookie recipe book to some fiction to I don’t know what. I highly doubt I’ll get any of those written this year, but maybe I can start with some series posts.
Here are the questions:
*Do you like giveaways? What kind of giveaways? {I have a ton of ebooks that I have in a stash to give away}.
*What things would you like me to blog about? {Any topics in particular, questions you have, post topics you’ve enjoyed over the years, product reviews from our kitchen renovations, source posts etc…anything?}
*Would you be interested in a private Facebook group over a Facebook page? {I’d love to build a community with you, but I know that blogs are limited…especially in regards to creating a conversation}.
*What is your preferred social media form? {Do you prefer things to be in your inbox or through instagram, pinterest etc? Can I follow you?}
*What can I do to better serve and bless you? {I don’t want this to be a place you stop in occasionally, I truly want us to be friends. I want to meet you where you are, with what you need.}
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.
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.
I’ve been keeping track of what I have read for the past 5 years, which is awesome! It gives you such a great list of books to recommend to friends! Not to mention it’s a great pat-on-the-back to accomplish something. My List of Accomplished Reads for 2015
*No Longer a Slum-dog: Bringing Hope to Children in Crisis by KP Yohannan
*Little Princes by Conor Grennan
*The 5 Love Languages by Gary Chapman
*My Life in Paris by Julia Child
*Who Are These Children and Why Are They Calling Me Mom? by Faith Bogdan
I’ve been slacking with this pregnancy: Keeping track of each week, belly pictures etc. I guess what’s true for most people’s 3rd child is true for my 5th. I just haven’t done it. I think about it, but I seem incapable of actually doing. This is going to be attempt at something {and encompassing the entire pregnancy in one post, thus far}.
Maternity Clothes: Umm…I don’t think I stopped wearing them after the triplets, except pants. I did go back to regular jeans and dress slacks/skirts/dresses. I have yet to go out and buy new every day clothes, because they all get trashed. Between me {I’m not particularly gentle on my clothes} and kids, they’re all falling apart. I promised my mother after this one I will go buy some decent clothes {she’s threatened to abscond and destroy several items in my dresser}.
Weight Gain: I started this pregnancy at 194lbs, a whopping 10lbs less than I ended the triplets {yea, there was no magical weightloss from that pregnancy}. I have lost 10lbs from nausea etc, but for the most part I’m holding steady {of course I haven’t gotten on a scale since before Christmas}.
Stretch Marks: They’re my tiger claws, as Matt calls them. I’ve resigned myself to them and honestly, they really don’t bother me, but I haven’t had a bikini-body since I was 12.
Sleep: Well, the kids aren’t entirely to blame for my getting up. I’ve been having INSANE dreams, which wake me up and freak me out! I do find that if I lay too long on one side or the other my stomach muscles hurt. Also, I drink a TON of water during the night…a ton.
Movement: I’ve been very thankful for my doppler this pregnancy. I remember feeling a lot more movement with the triplets, which was a given, but I can’t remember from Avie’s how much I felt {it was almost 6 years ago}. I keep thinking I should be feeling more or stronger, but I don’t. The doppler at least keeps me from freaking out that something is wrong {usually right around 150-155}.
Symptoms: I seem to be past a lot of the exhaustion and nausea/food aversions: They were pretty nasty for a while. Fortunately I only threw up once and it was from being in the car way too many hours in one day. I noticed a lot of the time how I felt was linked to how tired I was. I could pretty much set a clock by when the nausea started, 3pm…right when I started to lag for the day. There were quite a few days that I climbed in bed with Avie for nap time.
Anxiety. I’ve been having a lot of anxiety this pregnancy. Second guessing and question and wondering if everything is all right with the baby. I honestly think I’ve been having more than I ever did with any other pregnancy. I believe that’s partly because this is the last hurrah; there will be no other pregnancies after this one {gotta love infertility} and if something happens there is no other opportunity to try again.
Food Cravings: I honestly don’t know. This is such a tough time of year: There’s no more fresh produce from the garden, there’s tons of holiday food around, it’s been tough figuring out what’s a real craving and what’s knowing that it’s food that’s seasonal. I will say that I think it’s been more salty foods, with the occasional veggie craving. In the beginning it was sweets {cookie dough}, but lately the things that I used to love to have almost every night {microwave desserts} are completely unappealing…there are times when a cookie and milk is awesome!
We go back to the midwife in a few weeks, and then we’ll have our big anatomy scan. Hard to believe I’m almost halfway there….I’m not ready for being pregnant to end. I am one of those women who THOROUGHLY ENJOYS being pregnant.
*Weighing in at 36lbs {Born at 4lbs 13 ounces} *Standing tall at 39” *Wearing a size 4T in clothes and an 10 in shoes *The speech therapy did wonders these past 10 months. He is speaking full sentences, and most of the time you can understand what he’s saying. *Doing better with his colors, able to count to 10. *Loves being an absolute goof {he has an infectious laugh} and will do anything to get you to laugh. *Loves Cars and Mater *Loves dinosaurs and cars and planes and trains…and is such an absolute boy when it comes to anything with an engine *Loves eggs, usually has 2 or 3 at breakfast, and oatmeal. LOVES smoked ham. *Will occasionally ask to go potty, and will go #1, and sometimes #2s *He’s been doing so much better about sleeping at night and naps. *”You not you!” his favorite thing to yell at you when you’re doing something he doesn’t like. *He will play with the rest of the kids, but definitely likes being on his own, doing his own thing…I’m really hoping that he bonds strongly with the new baby.
James
*Weighing in at 38 lbs {Born at 5lbs 3 ounces} *Standing tall at 41.5” *Wearing a size 4T/5T in clothes and an 11 in shoes {almost the same as Avelyn}..I think he’s going to pass her sometime this year. *Doing so much better with his speech: When he really wants something or wants you to know something, he’s crystal-clear, sometimes it’s still tough to understand him. *Such a lovey boy…always loves holding my hand *Still a gadget kid….he always wants to figure out how things work. *Loves fruit *Goes on the potty and will wake up dry in the morning and after naps, but prefers his diapers. *Loves picking up toys and cleaning {I’m not sure where this kid came from, but I’ll enjoy it while it lasts} *His favorite color is orange, and he can count to 10. *He can’t keep a straight face. *He has an incredible temper, but is able to calm down and knows himself well enough to be able to remove himself from the situation {sometimes}. *The other day, James was getting water from the door of the fridge, and started shouting “I have an emergency!” because the cup was wedged and the water kept coming out. *GAVE UP HIS GEORGIE! {Pacifier} He flushed it down the toilet and thought it would come out of the sink {I certainly hope not!}, he was weepy at bedtime the first night, but has been fine since. *He and Avie can play House for HOURS!
Elanor
*Weighing in at 29 lbs {Born at 4lbs 9.5 ounces} *Standing tall at 37.5” *Wearing a size 3T in clothes and an 7-8 in shoes *Back to being our best eater! *I think if we could focus on just her for potty training it would go very quickly. *Thoroughly enjoys being the “baby” *The quote “Though she be but little, she is fierce”, fits Elanor absolutely perfectly. *ABHORS having her hair brushed…we have to promise to do Anna braids to get her to let us brush it. *”I’s a princess!” and loves wearing princess costumes all the time. *Knows some of her colors and counts to 10. *Loves saying her prayers, at dinner and bed time, and can say them all. *Finally spent the night at Oma’s house. *Loves seeing how far she can get you to go, doing what SHE wants. *Loves pal’in out with Avie and James. *She’s going to be moving in with Avie in their big girl room! Not sure how it’s going to go, as she is rarely ever away from her brothers.
There are so many more things about these kiddos, but I of course can’t remember them all right now. They are incredible. As a trio, as their own people. Their personalities are coming out so much more and it is so much fun to see the dynamics in our family changing, depend on who is home. The boys are definitely becoming more “boy” with each other, head-butting, wrestling and such. The kids have actually started playing with each other, whether it’s just running around like crazy, or actual playing.
Honestly, they’re amazing! Matt and I feel beyond blessed to have these 3 little urchins, and can’t imagine life without any one of them, or them not being part of a trio. It’s an incredible experience to get to be mommy and daddy to these 3 precious gifts!
One of our goals over Christmas {since Matt is off for the week} is to get the girls transitioned to their Big-Girl room; which means we have to get it all touched up after the de-construction damage. There’s not much damage, but enough to make it a hassle…I think it would be easier if there were a lot of damage.
Most of the work consists of touching up the sheetrock that was damaged when the other part of the house collapsed, and then repainting one wall. It always seems to me that the projects that take the least amount of time are the ones that take the longest.
I’ve kind of wanted to do an English/Fairy Garden themed bedroom for the girls. I’ve been pinning whenever I see anything on Pinterest.
I found fabric a while ago that I loved, but never bought it…then it became impossible to find. Fortunately I did, on ebay, of all places, and some random other websites, I was able to piece together what I would need to make the quilts.
I’ve really been loving sampler quilts this past year, so decided that was my best bet. This quilt is what I decided to do…it’s a bit small, but I can easily add another border to make it what I need.
Here’s where the work, and your opinions come in. The room is already the same shade of cream that’s in the fabric and the floor is painted Martha Stewart Brook Trout, which is very close to the gray/brown fabric. There’s one wall that is currently green, that is going to get repainted, but I just can’t decide on the color.
Here’s what I’ve narrowed it down to:
A) Pear
B) Raspberry
C) Persimmon
D) Pond
E) Soft Peach {the light pink in the roses}
See the problem! The quilt is going to be bordered in the pond and backed in the brown/gray. I just can’t decide how brave I want to be, in regards to the persimmon and raspberry. Which would you choose? That’s my question.
The other thing I’m debating is stenciling a few big flowers on the floor…something along these lines. Not a ton of them just a few…to kind of make the floor stand out a bit.
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!
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I recently read the book Forever Christmas by Robert Tate Miller, which is the story of a man, Andrew, who has gotten things a little mixed up in his life…his priorities being top. It’s just before Christmas and through a series of events his wife ends up getting hit by a car on Christmas Eve, fortunately the story doesn’t end there, because that’s just depressing at Christmas. He’s given a second chance at how he’s been directing his life, and that is what this story is about.
At first I really did not like this book or the character Andrew. He was just the type of character that I wanted to give a swift kick in the pants, but that’s the point: We aren’t supposed to like him. Just as he’s given a second chance at how he’s living his life, we get a second chance to see him as he should be.
I found the story to be a quick read, enjoyable {once you get over the initial nastiness of Andrew’s story line}, and an all around good story. I also happened to love the cover of the book!
*I received this book for free from LookBookBloggers.com as part of their blogger review program. The thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.
much figured out myself, I do have an anterior placenta…which explains why I am feeling nowhere the amount of movement I should or have in the past. It’s a low lying placenta, so it will have to be watched. I’m sure I’ll end up having another U/S just before my due date to make sure there is no placental previa {pray that it stays out of the way: I do NOT want a c-section.}
For the 20 week stats:
and cyclical life, without any hope for something better or a purpose. 
but I haven’t had a bikini-body since I was 12. 
Avelyn decided to add to the excitement by allowing us to yank her first loose tooth during Matthew’s birthday festivities!
on Christmas Eve, fortunately the story doesn’t end there, because that’s just depressing at Christmas. He’s given a second chance at how he’s been directing his life, and that is what this story is about.