Fashion Friday: Ode to Winter

This is by far Emma's cutest winter outfit (courtesy of Uncle Nonny and Auntie Stef), but I held out from making it part of Fashion Friday because it was supposed to be her 18-month picture outfit. However, after 5 cancellations, we never made it in. And now that it's Spring, we had to at least show it off one last time.

Happy Friday everyone!

'Side!

So that crazy warm weather we had here for a few days has really goofed up our little Emma. She really got used to going outside ("side") for playtime and doesn't quite understand why we can't do it EVERY SECOND of the day. Of course, the weather has now turned to cold and gloomy, which she also doesn't understand. Funny that her temper tantrums that drive me nuts are actually pretty representative of how I feel about this whole spring thing. I want it NOW too! For more than 2 days!

So in an effort to keep the sun shining in our world, here's a few photos of us enjoying our few days of warm spring weather!

Pizza Anyone???

I passed the 3-hour (at least for now). Wooooo-hoooooo!!

Do you think it would be strange to place a pizza order for tonight... even thought it's only 12pm???

The Details

So now you all know we have another bun in the oven. :o) It was kind of a surprise, but not completely. Either way, we're pretty darn excited around here. (And thank you all for your kind words. Blogging friends rock!)

I've had two dreams so far that this baby is a boy, but with all the drama we've had in the last 9.5 weeks, I'm thinking it's a girl! ;o)

Not really bad drama, just drama. First, we didn't know my due date because my cycle has been so goofy (hence the new baby!), so we had to have an ultrasound to get a firm due date. For some reason that made me a little nervous...like my OB "knew" something I didn't and wanted to make sure all was well. Plus, when he did my internal, he said I felt a little smaller than the due date on the chart.

The funny part is that I pretty much know when this baby was conceived (sorry, Mom!), so I knew I was later than the "chart," but still, there's always that little voice in your head that makes you nervous.

So the ultrasound went fine. I'm due Oct. 26 -- 3 days after my 30th birthday! This, of course, means I was being totally silly, but it was long 2 weeks of trying to convince myself not to worry. (Does anyone else worry about worrying?)

AND THEN my OB had my sugar levels checked. Yes, that lovely 1-hour test we all hate. I had gestational diabetes (gd) with Emma, so he just wanted to make sure everything was normal. I didn't think anything of it until I got the message that I had very much flunked the 1-hour test. And I had to take the 3-hour test ASAP.

At first I was frustrated that I might have gd so early, which means no fun food (chocolate!), a very firm eat schedule (who has time to eat every 2-3 hours with a busy toddler?), and finger prick 3 times a day. Ugh!

I called him back for more info, but he never returned my call. It was a Friday, so they were gone by 1pm. It was 2pm, and I did the worst thing I could have done: I went to the Internet.

That's when all sorts of statistics started popping up about birth defects and the fact that I may have never gotten rid of the diabetes in the first place, meaning I might have a mild case of type 2 diabetes -- permanently. Unfortunately, it didn't sound too far off base since I've been to the doctor a few times for random bruising. Enough bruising that he even checked my sugar levels, but he never did a glucose test.

I started to think the worst.

Needless to say, it was a long weekend. I was mad at my family doctor for possibly missing the fact that I had developed diabetes. I was mad at my OB for not calling me back. And I was mad at myself for being so "whatever" about this pregnancy. Had I known, we would have been more responsible. This baby deserved a fair chance from the start.

ANYWAY, my OB finally called back on Monday and made me feel much better. He was very casual and didn't seem too worried about it. He just wanted me to get the 3-hour test done, and we'd go from there. Ya know, the rational way of looking at all of this. Even so, I decided to start following the gd diet just in case.

Of course, this all involved a lot of praying (and crying -- pregnancy hormones really mess with you!), and -- as always -- God is so good. I don't have the results back yet, but my test on Saturday couldn't have gone better. For those of you who remember last time, I was beyond sick... as in curled up in the fetal position for the entire 3-hours trying not to pass out and puke.

I'm hopeful that my lack of reaction means I don't have gd (at least yet), but that will mean I have to take it again in 15 weeks. Oh well. That's what this whole parenting thing is about, right? Emma is concrete evidence that it's all worth it. Yes, even the lack of chocolate!

So that's the scoop. I'll keep you posted once I get the results -- hopefully by Wednesday!

Fashion Friday: All About the Label

Scratch That

Doesn't look like Roseola anymore. Temp. came back yesterday around 3pm, went back to the doctor, and went home with the earlier "mystery virus" diagnosis. No major temp. yet today, but this rash is growing like wildfire. Our poor baby. She's so tired and cranky. Hoping this ends soon! Say a prayer for us!!!!!

Virus Revealed

So Emma has officially finished up her first (and hopefully only) case of Roseola. Temps of 102-104 for 4 days have NOT been fun. And neither is the rash that broke out this morning. The good news is that the rash means the fever is gone and she's not contagious anymore. Good thing, considering we didn't even know what she had until today!

It's funny how I always question whether or not I'm too overprotective of Emma. My family and friends will tell you I'm ultra-protective of Emma's sleep schedule, and I tend to keep her home if she even shows a slight sign of a cold. It makes life more difficult, yes, but I kinda feel like that's what you do when you decide to have children. It's not about you anymore. It's about the kids and the sacrifices that come along with that. In other words, that trip to Target will just have to wait. Plus, it's not fair to other children or parents. No one wants a sick kid, and I certainly don't want to be the cause of some child's misery.

When Emma's low-grade temp started to rise on Friday, I wondered if I was being silly when I decided to skip our morning play date and small group that night. I wondered if we were being lazy and making excuses when we stayed home from church on Sunday morning. Were we overreacting? In this case, I think we made the right choices. Otherwise there would be a lot of sick kids, and it would be our fault.

Granted, we did take a trip to Sam's Club on Saturday when her temp seemed to be stable. But wouldn't you know it—the second we got home; it shot up. Lesson learned. We shouldn't have gone.

So what's my point? Not really sure, but I guess all of this has reaffirmed that being a good parent comes first, even if it means putting a few things off. Even if it means having people think you are a little nutty or (gasp!) that you put your child first.

I know so many people that run their kids around, even if they are tired, sick, etc. I don't think I'll ever be that kind of parent. Sometimes you have to do what you have to do, but most of the time, it can wait.

Fashion Friday: Hat Parade

Emma has a cold (or more teeth... whatever!), so we've been kinda laying low. However, never to disappoint, I decided this was the perfect opportunity to model some of her hat collection. Now there are several more we could have shown you -- like a great cowgirl hat from her awesome aunt and uncle -- but Miss Runny Nose wasn't quite in the mood. I don't really blame her.

Here's what I managed to snap:
(And let's just call these "cool photo angles," not me chopping out part of the photo, 'k?)

Not Crazy. Well, Not Totally.

Want a sure-fire way to find out if your child truly has a food allergy? Well, simply buy soy milk instead of rice milk, give said poison to your unsuspecting toddler, and watch as the reaction unfolds. Even better, don't realize it until after you have given her three 6-oz servings of it and she has developed the most horrible diaper rash on the planet -- and the smelliest diapers in all the land.

Yes, we now officially have confirmation that Emma does indeed react to soy milk. And I even have my Mom to verify this, especially the smelly diaper part. Oh and that poor, poor little butt was so very sore. My mom said Desitin almost wouldn't stick to it. Ouch!

I remember during one visit to the GI, Dr. N jokingly told Jeff to give Emma something I thought she reacted to without telling me. In other words, a lot of this may be in my head. While I feel there may be some truth to this little theory, I can now officially say that in this case, I saw the reaction BEFORE I even knew what I did. So ha, Dr. N! I'm not crazy!!!

Oh wait, I did buy the wrong milk, didn't I...

Nevermind.

Perspective

As you all know by now, this blog isn't about me. It's about Emma and for Emma. There are several reasons for that -- but that's an entirely different post.

Anyway, once in a while I do like to throw in a little Mommyland entry so that Emma knows a little something about me: What I was like at this point in my life and what brought me here. It's fun writing about our nutty little adventures and showing off her cute smile, but at the end of the day, I want Emma to know that I wanted more for her... so much more.

One of the greatest joys I have experienced with her recently is hearing her say two words she has practically taught herself: Amen ("Ahhman") and Jesus. She's also started folding her hands in prayer like some of the children in her books. I cannot tell you how much happiness this brings me. My heart runneth over.

Seeing her do these things certainly puts things in perspective. I recently attended a MOPS meeting at church, and the speaker talked about not sweating the small stuff and keeping perspective. And while I definitely need to learn how to let go of the small stuff, I also realized that it's nice to take a step back and focus on the big stuff every now and then. I need to do that.

As I look over this blog, I enjoy its light-hearted nature, but I also see it may be lacking a bit of substance. I don't like fluff, yet I often feel I don't have time to really get into some of the topics I want to write about, so I don't. Today I am vowing to change that... when I can.

I'm starting out by sharing my testimony. If the greatest thing I want for Emma is salvation, then I need to start by sharing my story. Or at least part of it. I plan on having many conversations with her about my walk with the Lord, but I have a feeling the story will change as I get older and as I experience more as a mother, a wife and a woman.

So here is my story. It's actually from a short article I wrote for our "Meet a Leader" section of our youth group newsletter, so it isn't perfect, but it is accurate. I certainly could have spent more time on it, but then I remembered—it's not about me. It's not about my writing or how I tell the story. It's about God.

And that is one thing I want Emma to know first and foremost.


A writer by trade, I feel I should warn you that this little testimony of mine might get long. I'll do my best to stick to the "good stuff," but editing God's work down to a few paragraphs is not an easy task.

I'll start by saying that I've been going to church my whole life. However, I have certainly not been a Christian my whole life. In fact, it's really only been about 8 years since I gave my life to Jesus.

Growing up, I was raised Methodist. My Mom's entire family was raised with that religion and since my Dad really didn't "practice" his Catholic religion, Methodism was the winner. My mom was very adamant about us going to church EVERY Sunday morning, and I remember being very irritated by that. I hated getting up in the morning, especially when I had a sleepover with my girlfriends. All of my friends attended Catholic churches and only went to Saturday services, so I was the only one who had to get up at the crack of dawn after a night of no sleep. Basically, church was just an annoying "thing" I had to do on Sunday.

The particular church I went to was what I like to call a "Good News" church. In other words, there was not a whole lot of talk about sin or Satan. And I don't remember learning anything about a personal relationship with Jesus. In fact, we talked a lot about God, but not Jesus. The focus was on good works. If you were a good person, went to church, and did the "right" things, you went to Heaven. It all sounded good to me, and I did just that. I followed the rules. I was honest. And I tried to be responsible. Simple enough.

But then my Mom changed everything. She left our church because she didn't like some of the political stances the church was starting to take. At first, I was happy we didn't have a church anymore—I could sleep in! But then she started to attend Bible studies and told us she was "born again." She talked about her faith ALL THE TIME and tried to "sell" it to us every opportunity she had. I thought she was a religious nut case.

As the years went by, I started to jump on the "politically correct" bandwagon. I didn't think any one religion was correct, and I embraced the freedoms of our country. I felt no one had a right to tell me what was right and wrong, especially as a woman. In high school, I even went on a talk show as a pro-choice advocate. Although I wouldn't admit it at the time, this was the probably the first time I can remember God revealing Himself to me. Believe it or not, the entire audience was filled with youth groups. And yes, they were all pro-life. Needless to say, I was the minority in that room, and they let me know it.

From that point on, I really started to see God in my life. During college, I swear I was approached at least 20 times to join campus Bible studies. It felt like there was a blinking target on my forehead that said, "Bug me, please!" But then two more events happened that changed my life forever.

The first was a textbook in my History of Economics class. Yes, this class was as boring as it sounds. History AND Economics molded into one very long class given by a very old professor that could barely move his mouth to speak. Anyway, the opening line to this textbook was this: "Ever since man came down from the trees…."

Being the independent woman that I was, I got completely ticked off that this book assumed evolution was truth. Many arguments with my mother revealed to me that it was a theory, just like creation. So when the time came to pick a topic for my first college term paper, I chose to argue that creationism should be taught as a theory in public schools. The interesting part of this was that my English professor was a very outspoken atheist. This made me even more determined to heavily research the topic to make sure I had all my bases covered. God is certainly clever. I got an A+ on that paper.

And then I met Jeff—an extremely good-looking guy that also happened to be one of the sweetest men I ever met. He wasn't like the other guys I knew. There was something different about him. He loved his family more than anything, and I admired that. Sure, he had his faults, but he was "cool" AND believed in God. He drove a white sports car AND he went to church. He hung out with his friends AND spent Sundays with his family. And he wasn't embarrassed to tell me about his faith. He was proud of it.

A few weeks after we started dating, Jeff invited me to Calvary. At first, I was hesitant, but after a few deep talks, I decided to go. And that's when I got hooked.

Slowly but surely, I became more interested in this relationship with Jesus I heard Pastor Howard talk about. I longed for the warmth I felt around Jeff and his family. I wanted to KNOW I was going to Heaven some day.

But it was a hard road for me. Pride tried really hard to get in the way, and it took me a long time to understand and accept the idea of God's grace. To receive love simply because I trusted—not because of anything I did or achieved—was not easy.

My biggest question was how did you know you really were "saved"? Jeff would tell me it was this "feeling." I wanted this feeling, but I couldn't grasp how to get it. I can remember many nights of asking God what I needed to do.

As I waited for my answer, I did what I thought was right—I volunteered at church, I prayed, and I talked to Jeff and my Mom about it. After a few years, I gradually began to accept God's grace. There wasn’t a magic light bulb moment or anything; it was just a long, gradual process.

Looking back, I now know that the answer I was searching for was actually right in front of me the whole time. The fact is, once I gave my heart to Christ, I was "in." Nothing else I did or said would change that. I am called to act like Christ and do good works in His name, but I can't earn His love. I have come to accept that the gift of salvation is free. You simply need to ask for it.

Fashion Friday: Vogue

Something about this photo makes me giggle. Maybe it's because I have to go through an hour-long process of chasing Emma around with the camera every week just to get one decent shot -- yet here, she looks as if she is totally posing. If you only knew!

Anyway, I have to say our little miss is looking quite "purty" for church. I just love her chunky little legs in tights, and the skirt is so adorable in person -- the colors look so rich against the black background. Now, if I could only think of something else to with her hair. Any ideas?

Tag: You're Pregnant!

My ever-fun blogging friend Stephanie has asked us blogging moms to post our favorite belly photos. It was so much fun looking back -- and so crazy to see how much our bodies change. God is so creative!

The first photo is me and the hubby at our first shower, given by my mom and sister.


This second shot is the last belly shot I have. I was 37 weeks and 2-cm dialated -- and very excited to be so close to meeting our baby. About 10 days later, I gave birth to our 7-lb, 2-oz daughter!

Fashion Friday: Fashion in Action

Who says active wear can't be fashionable? Although I do have to admit to Jen that this outfit does indeed say "Baby Guess" on the butt. I know it's a pet peeve of yours, but it was a gift, and well, I admit it does look pretty cute -- especially in a saggy diaper! :)

And the hair was in an adorabable pony tail but someone wasn't quite in the mood for that this morning...

TGIF!

The Magic Words

Bouncing off of the last post, I wanted to share that Emma has also discovered a way to put a stop to anything she doesn't like. Or at least she thinks she has.

If she doesn't want her face washed off after lunch, she simply tells me BEFORE I do it that she's a "good gurl." If she doesn't want me to clear the boogies in her nose, she reminds me that she is a "good gurl." And if she doesn't want the doctor to stick that wooden thing in her mouth, she informs her that she is indeed a "good gurl."

Hey, life's all about being proactive and confident. I think this "good gurl" may be on to something...