O Christmas Tree...

Our Christmas tree looks a little different this year......

With a baby on the go, this is how we opted to handle the situation! And yes, that is our little Charlie Brown tree...we used to live in a small house, so we have a small tree. I just haven't felt the need to upgrade, maybe someday. :)

My Thankful List!

So much to be thankful for...

God/Jesus – how blessed I am to have a Heavenly Father that loves, cares, and blesses me beyond my expectations. Praise Him!

Shane – I’m absolutely blessed with a wonderful husband. He is my best friend and I can’t imagine my life without him!

Zay – This little guy shot up to #3 on my list this year! Probably was there last year too, but this year he’s undeniably a little person to be thankful for! He brings so much joy to my life – it’s beyond words!

Parents/Siblings/Extended Family – Shane and I are so blessed to have family that lives close and loves us. We also have some family farther away that we miss like crazy, but we consistently feel their love too! We love our families!

Small Group – We have a tight knit group of friends called our “small group”. We’ve been so blessed to live life with them…basically meaning growing our families and going through the stages of life. I really appreciate the women in our small group – we’re able to exchange emails often and learning to be wives and mothers together. Love that.

Church – Orchard Hill…great church, great people, super mission!

Jobs – Sometimes we can overlook our jobs and only complain about things that we wish were different…but I’m thankful for my job and Shane’s job. They provide much stability and there are so many people that wish for such security.

Home – We are blessed to have a home that is comfortable and cozy. I love our home, not because of the house it is enclosed in, but because of the people inside and the love that fills the rooms!

Doctors – I’m convinced we’ve met some of the best doctors around. We are so blessed to have people watching out for Zay that truly care about him and do their job so well. Because of them we have a happy boy and haven’t had to deal with any concerns on his development!

Cars – sounds silly, but I’m thankful for our cars. We recently traded in our old Passat for a minivan. (yep – you read that correctly). Although I’m still a little embarrassed to say I drive a minivan, I’m thankful for the convenience and it is COMFORTABLE! We are actually looking forward to packing up for the holidays this year…when you have 2 dogs, a baby, a stroller, lots of baby stuff and will be picking people up from the airport…extra room is something to be thankful for!

Dogs – it’s been awhile since I’ve mentioned our pups and for awhile with a new baby I wasn’t sure how much I loved all their energy, but I can honestly say I’m thankful for them. They bring a lot of joy into our family and they are super friends to Zay.

And so many more things that I don’t have time to list! Regardless if they are listed here, this Thanksgiving I am very thankful for all my blessings!

Happy Thanksgiving, Everyone!

I will praise God’s name in song, and glorify him with thanksgiving.
Psalm 69:30

about the flowers...

I have never heard so many comments made about flowers!!!

Here are the remarks I got about my flowers today...

1. "Is it your anniversary? ...What did he do? He FORGOT your anniversary, didn't he!"
2. "Can I please take a picture of your flowers, and send it to my husband. Maybe he will get the hint."
3. "What's the flowers for...are you having another baby?"
4. "What did you do...?"

Wow...the day really did get better and more entertaining after the flowers arrived!

flowers....

Today has been a bad day, although it’s starting to get better…

This morning I felt the need to 'unload' all my fears, failures, and frustrations on my dear husband…poor thing. Some days even I feel sorry for him! I’m not the worst wife in the world, but some days I am far from the best… ;)

I believe that basically this morning was in direct correlation with the fact that my oh-so-cute son has been consistently waking up in the 4:00 hour every morning. Now, this isn’t THAT big of a deal. However the snowball effect that it can have is huge in “my world”.

Lack of sleep results in me having no motivation to exercise.
Lack of motivation to exercise results in lack of energy.
Lack of energy results in a disorganized/messy house.
A disorganized house results in poor meal making and planning.
Poor meal planning results in expensive, unhealthy meals.
Unhealthy meals results in feeling ‘yucky’.
Feeling ‘yucky’ results in a bad attitude and ‘unloading’ on my husband.
Unloading on my husband results in....FLOWERS?

Hmmm…I guess “my world” isn’t so bad after all. :)

Thank you, Honey!

One year ago....

I was this pregnant! So hard to believe our little guy is closing in on being ONE! My oh my how things can change in a year... :)

...I'm not sure I remember what it's like having just one man in my life - my little boy captured my heart just as quickly as his daddy did! :)

Sorry to those of you who don't like "bare belly" pictures. I'm still torn if I even like them or not...however this picture that Bailey took still amazes me. Wow - a belly really can stretch, huh!? Truly a gift from God!

One Proud Wife!

Well it is official - Shane is going back to school to get his MBA!

Yea! I'm so excited for him!

I chuckle, because school is not something Shane likes...and many of you that know him, know this, however school is something that has always come extremely easy to him! He graduated in the top 10% of his class at UNI, while working full time and going to school full time!

I was a little nervous when he told me a couple months ago that he was going to take his GMATs one week before the test! A lot of people spend months studying for the GMATs! However, with hardly any studying at all, my smarty-pants husband ranked better than 75% of people who take the GMATs! Man...I wish I had his brains sometimes! :)

Anyway, Shane is officially accepted and signed up for his first class at University of Wisconsin Whitewater! After doing some research, Shane decided on an online program that has the same accreditation as UNI's MBA program. He wanted to have a little more flexibility with his classes, since he has a family to take care of too. :)

Like I said before - I'm soooo excited for him. I know he will do great!!

A Weekend Trip

This weekend Shane, Isaiah, and I went up to Minneapolis with our small group! It was a great time to just getaway for a couple days with some great friends and do a little shopping!

Shane, Zay and I at the Mall of America

We had a minor problem with Zay's stroller (if you call a wheel falling off minor), so Zay got to hang out with Mia in the Clark's stroller. Thankfully we had some handy husbands to fix the wheel, because Zay really doesn't understand the word gentle and was ready to play rough with Mia. Either way - they look so adorable sitting next to each other! :)

Happy Thursday!

He just knows how to bring a smile to you face...:)