It's a Crazy Life!

So much of this post will be copy and pasted from my other blog (http://welcomedchaos.blogspot.com) since I REALLY have no time to write two blog posts right now. I promise to write more blogs in the future for our dear family and friends to read.

So time has come and gone since I last was able to blog. Things have been insane around here. I read a quote a few weeks back that sums up the very thing that we have been trying to learn for about a month: Patience is more than endurance. A saint's life is in the hands of God like a bow and arrow in the hands of an archer. God is aiming at something the saint cannot see, and He stretches and strains, and every now and again the saint says--'I cannot stand anymore.' God does not heed, He goes on stretching till His purpose is in sight, then He lets fly. Trust yourself in God's hands. Maintain your relationship to Jesus Christ by the patience of faith. 'Though He slay me, yet will I trust in Him,' -Oswald Chambers.

For a few years, we have been praying for Jeremy to find a new job. At first his search was just in the area and then, when he couldn't find a job, we broadened the search to Florida. After the birth of our son, we decided to search in North Carolina and Indiana where our families live.

Jeremy almost had a job in Raleigh, NC and we were so close to moving there but that didn't work out. When Raleigh didn't work out, we tried to find a larger apartment to rent in Clearwater. We found the perfect place. A quiet condo with 24 hour security. We would feel safe enough to have Jack there. We were so excited and made plans to move and sign paper work and everything. A couple of weeks before we were supposed to move, Jeremy found out that his job would be giving pay cuts. We were devastated. What was God trying to do??

Little did we know, God was working out every detail according to His plan--not ours. A few weeks went by and we were told about a job up in Indiana near where my family lives. We were sure that it would not work out. Jeremy went through many interviews with the company in a period of weeks. Each one seemed to be getting better and better. Finally, on Monday (March 5th), they told Jeremy that they wanted to hire him. Jeremy said that he would like to visit the company before officially saying he'd take the job. So, we were Indiana bound that following Wednesday. He had an on-site interview on that Thursday and agreed to take the position. So, we will be moving to Indiana in a week and a few days!

We are excited about this adventure that the Lord is taking us on and thrilled that we get to do it together! It will be wonderful to see our families more often. We will miss the friends that we have made in Florida and are very thankful that we have Facebook to keep in touch! We might even take vacations to Clearwater! We know our way around . . . why not?? :o)

Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers as we scurry about these next few weeks. When we get settled, I promise to blog more often. Since we'll be in a bigger place, I will be doing more crafts that I find on Pinterest. I will share as often as I can. See you in Indiana!!

Making great strides!

I just had to share all of the things that our sweet boy is doing now. Yes, it's time to brag! First of all (thank goodness!), his teeth are almost through and his cries of pain are almost non-existent now. Whew. He is reaching for things that I try to hand over to him. The other day, I went to pick him up in the nursery at our church and he reached out to me. Melted my heart. The thing that shocked me the most was that, yesterday, he actually enjoyed eating his cereal for the first time and opened his mouth for the spoon. So, silly faces and noises no more! Finally!

Oh! I cannot forget this! Jackson celebrated his first Halloween this week. Instead of trick-or-treating, we help out at our church for the kids carnival that we call Candyland. We wanted to have more fun with it this year so we decided to dress our little guy up. We have been working on his costume for, well, since he was a month old. We were trying to think of cute and fun ideas that you haven't really seen before. So, we present to you, our lumberJACK:

No, the ax is not real.

Wanting some of that candy!

Started another blog!

I started another blog to welcome the new chaos is our lives. Don't worry! This is still going to be our family blog but I have started this blog about my life as a wife and mother. I will be posting a lot of things that have helped (or not helped) me. You may see some similar posts (like recipes and things) but that's okay.

I'm so excited about it because I will post any giveaways that I find. I am also going to post product reviews. These will just be things that I (Jack or Jeremy) have personally used that I love. Not necessarily for the company itself--although, if they want, I'd be happy to do so! The blog is mostly to be helpful or an encouragement to wives and mothers but those who aren't (wives or mothers) can certainly read it!!! Just go check it out by clicking on the title above. Welcome to my chaos!

T is for Two Teeth!

When Jackson started getting some teething symptoms a few weeks ago, I thought, "Boy, this is it!" It was crazy! I ended up doing a little research. It turns out that my husband and I both were early teethers. I also read somewhere that it's quite possible for your baby to have all the symptoms of teething and not actually get his teeth for a few months. That is certainly not what I wanted to hear . . . although, it did explain why Jack was being so "rotten."

Last night, Jeremy came home from work and spent a little time with Jack right away (which he always does after work). Jack reached out and grabbed his daddy's fingers and put them in his mouth (which he always does after work). That is when Jeremy realized that Jack's two bottom teeth were finally breaking through! Needless to say, I am one proud momma! I keep check the poor kids mouth every hour to see if those pearly whites are popping up yet. He probably thinks I'm crazy.

Trials, Triumphs and Teething

It has been a while since I've written a post. Things have been crazy around here. We have been super busy and not just with Jackson. One thing for sure, I have been embracing my new role as a mom. Sometimes it's a little bit difficult to keep up with the other things that I need to do.

As I have mentioned before, we are fortunate enough to have help in our responsibilities at church so we have managed to cut back with some of our teaching. With that is still some level of worry. Not to mention, I miss teaching the kids full time. It's just not the same. Now when I see them, I wonder how they grow so fast--even when I see them every week!

We have been going through many trials since our new little guy came into our lives. Trials with him and trials with life in general. Our families have gone through struggles and our friends have gone through struggles. One thing for sure, God has been there for me, to help me in my struggles. He continues to show me the areas that I need to work on. I try to live my life in a way that is pleasing to the Lord. So often I fail. It seems like that has been happening a lot in my life lately. I often wonder if the things that are crashing down around me are a result of something that I have done wrong in my life. If not, at least the Lord is using it to cause me to reevaluate my life or the people that I let in my life. Now that I have Jack, I need to keep my focus on God and what He wants for my life. I want my son to grow up knowing the God that I grew up knowing. I want him to learn to love the things that makes God happy and hate the things that God hates. It is my responsibility to teach Jack and raise him up in a way that would bring glory to God.

Alright, so (now that I am a mom) my posts will probably consist of writing about Jack. He is our life and I can't stop looking at him every single minute of every day. He is growing so fast. He just turned 4 months old yesterday. I wonder where the time went.

Along with Jack growing like a weed, he has also started the process of teething. It has been so crazy and I here that it could be a long time before any teeth even pop up. Oh, great. Jack is normally a pretty good baby. He only cries when he's hungry, sleepy or has a dirty diaper. Now that he's teething, I feel like I gave birth to a monster. I call him my teeny tiny teething monster. It really isn't all that bad now that we have figured out different ways to keep him occupied and different things for him to chew on at different times. I have discovered that he loves Finding Nemo and chewing on his burp cloths.

We just started Jack on rice cereal once a day. At times it seems like he enjoys it and then there are times where he looks like he might be sick. He's pretty comical at times. Every time we feed him it is a messy experience but I love it. The look on his face is always priceless.

A mom's work is never finished and the little guy needs me. He desperately wants to be moving but can't figure out the whole crawling thing yet. Until next time, if you're having trouble, find something to chew on!

Adam and Eve had many advantages, but the principal one was that they escaped teething.

-Mark Twain

Where'd the time go??

August 18

Wow! We have not made a post for over a month! Sorry about that. We have been a little busy. But I promise to try to post more often. I figure that I will be able to post a little more since I am getting more sleep now than I have for the last 11 months! Jack just turned 2 months last Thursday and he has been sleeping through the night for a whole week. We are thrilled . . . and much more rested! Not to mention, we are finally making it to Sunday School again!!

I guess I should fill everyone in on what has been going on in our lives since our last post. We have had family visitors. My parents were here for the birth of Jack and then my mom came back a week later to help out until I was fully recovered from the hemorrhaging. It was so nice to have them help and to see how they reacted to their 3rd grandchild. Every grandchild is as big of an excitement as the first! :o) At the end of July, Jeremy's mom and sister came to visit. It was Jeremy's sisters first time visiting us and we were glad to show off Jackson as well as where we live. Megan, you need to come back now that we have our schedule all figured out with Jack! :o)

Okay, now it's time to go back to bragging about our baby. Ever since he turned 2 months, he has been so much more fun! Not that he wasn't before--but he is smiling more and laughing. We can actually play with him now. It's a lot of fun. Last Saturday, he actually rolled over from front to back! We were so proud of him--he was terrified. It was kind of funny. Anyway, needless to say, we are having a blast with our little boy. We love him dearly.

We are gradually going into the time of year that I love the most: Fall. However, I wish so much that I could have the pretty Fall colors that are up North. I miss that most of all. I can't believe that we have already gone a whole year. It will be Christmas before we know it! (Another favorite time of year!)

It's also hard to believe that we have made it one year without my Grandma Martin. I still think of her often. Every time I look at Jack, I can hear her excited voice about her great-grandson. I know she would have loved him. She never knew about him because we found out we were pregnant a month after her passing. I still miss her very much.

Sorry it's taking me so long to post this. Jeremy came home for lunch and then I had to feed Jackson. I just wanted to ask you all to pray for Jeremy. While he was home, he received an email informing him that a friend, and former co-worker, passed away. Jeremy had the opportunity to witness to this man on many occasions. He was loved by our family greatly. We will certainly miss him. We covet your prayers during this time.

To finish what I started about Fall almost being here, reminds me that I need to let you know that our schedules at church are winding down! After much prayer, we have decided that we will be giving up being the Directors of our Wednesday evening kids club: The Winner's Circle. We have somewhat mixed emotions. We certainly have loved teaching the children in our church and we have done so every almost Sunday and Wednesday evening since we have been members. Finally, after 5 years, our church family is growing and we now have the help that we have prayed and waited for so long. We are truly blessed and grateful that there are others who are willing to step up and take over some of our responsibilities. We will, however, continue to be the Directors of Children's Church. We figured because of Jeremy's work schedule (and our new family member), this will be the best option for us.

Well, I suppose that is all for now. I will try to post more regularly. As mentioned before, please keep us in your prayers.

Welcome, Jack!

Well, it's taken me almost two weeks to be able to write about this. We have been a little sleep deprived here and trying to adjust to our new schedule. I just wanted to take this opportunity to let you all know exactly what went on in the days surrounding Jack's birth.

Thursday, June 16, we had our final prenatal appointment. It was a normal appointment and then our midwife talked to us about being induced. It turned out that our options were to either be induced or go back the following day or to the hospital on the weekend to get some testing done (including a stress test) to see why I wasn't progressing anymore. Jeremy and I discussed it with our midwife and really trusted her opinion. We decided to be induced.

Friday, June 17 (our 5-year anniversary) at 5:30 am, we went to the hospital to be induced. I was hooked up to the IV's (and Pitocin) by 6 am. Things were going really well and the contractions didn't seem to bother me as much as I had feared they would. Apparently I was supposed to be in much more pain than I thought I was feeling. Around 3 pm, my water broke. By 7 pm, I still wasn't progressing any more so I asked for an epidural. At 10:30 pm, my midwife came in and said I was 10cm and ready to push! I watched the clock start ticking down the hours with every push, wondering if he was going to make it for our anniversary.

Finally, on Saturday, June 18, at 1:07 am, Jackson had arrived! Thankfully, I had him as a distraction because I started hemorrhaging. I really had no clue what was going on around me. I am so thankful that I had gotten an epidural because they needed to give me shots in my leg to help stop the bleeding. (Of course, I am a wimp when it comes to needles, but I couldn't feel a thing.) The last shot that they could possibly give actually stopped the bleeding. I was that close to needing to have a blood transfusion. We thank God that it didn't come to that and I thank God that I had my little man to distract me and the epidural so I couldn't feel what was happening.

At our hospital, they move you to a different room after you have your baby. Because of all that went on, we didn't make it to the room until around 5 or 5:30 am. We were so tired but didn't get much sleep. The nurses had to keep coming in every hour to check my temperature, blood pressure, and stitches.

Our stay at the hospital seemed very long and we were glad that we finally had the okay to leave on Monday at 6 pm. It was so good to be home!

Casting All Your Care

I suppose I haven't written in a while. Has it really been 2 months?? Time sure is flying by these days. There are times that I lay in bed wondering where all of the hours in my day went. I guess that's why I'm writing this post at one o'clock in the morning. I have just been thinking about what life is going to be like with a third person living with us.

Oh! This reminds me to update you all on a few things first. At the end of January, we found out that we are going to have a BOY!!!! We are very excited and have been preparing for him ever since. That is one of the many reasons why our posts have been non-existent. Anyway, we cannot wait for Jackson Carter to arrive in June!

So, it has been a few days since I even started this post and I think I am finally ready to finish it. This brings me to why I started writing this post. So much has been going on these last few months. It seems like every time I think that I am finally content where God has me, He shows me another area in my life where I need to be more content. "And be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee" Hebrews 13:5.

In a few months, our lives are about to change forever. We will be adding another member to our family. No longer will I only be focused on making my husband happy but my child as well. I have been reading a book by Elizabeth George called Life Management for Busy Women. In one of the chapters, she discusses managing your children. She shares the "guidelines" that she used when raising her own children. It has been very encouraging these last few weeks as well as a nice reminder of what God requires of parents. "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also" Matthew 6:21.

Casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. I Peter 5:7

Satisfaction

I had my first opportunity to say "no" last night. It was a struggle at first. I wasn't sure if my voice was going to work. My brain was screaming, "Say no! Say no!!" I started to feel faint and my palms were beginning to sweat. I thought my heart would thump out of my chest. I almost gave in and then I heard one simple word come out of my mouth. No. I couldn't believe my ears! That little word came out of MY mouth? Then, the minute I said it, I regretted it. I was worried about what the person might think of me. It was okay though and so I just breathed a small sigh of relief.

However, the night was not over. I was again asked the same question by another member of that family. I thought that I was going to fail this time. I politely replied, "Well, I already talked to --- about that." The person replied, "So is that a 'yes'?" Oh, no! Here I go. I'm going to end up saying yes anyway. "Actually, it's a no." Whew! I breathed another sigh of relief. I thought that would have been the end of the conversation but the person kept at it trying to get me to crack. I couldn't believe it! I almost gave in. I said, "Actually, I won't be here very much in the summer." Then the person said, "Well, maybe when you get back." I stuck to my guns and said, "No, probably not." 

When I got home last night. I was so relieved. I had actually said no! It felt so good. It was like the weight was starting to come off my shoulders. The weight that I have been carrying for so long was starting to get lighter. I felt a deep sense of satisfaction. I was so proud of myself. I will no longer feel bad for saying no when I really don't want to do something.

Just say "no!"

I am starting a new phase of my life today!!!! I'm so excited. Are you ready for this? When someone asks me to do something that I really don't want to do . . . I'm going to say NO! I have been so busy lately because I don't want to hurt people's feelings by not doing something. Well, not anymore. If I don't want to teach an extra class or don't want to go to an extra activity, I am going to tell people. If someone calls me up to babysit or go somewhere and I don't want to do it, I'm going to say no. If they don't like it, well, that will be their problem, not mine. I don't mean to sound rude, but I am only one person. Just because I don't have kids, doesn't mean that I'm not a busy person. 

My responsibility first in life is to God. If I feel that my life isn't glorifying God because I have too much going on, then I am going to make some changes. My second responsibility is to my family, not my church. WAIT! What?! Yes, that's what I said. God, first. Family, second. Church, last. I don't have to go to EVERY church function. That's not what is important in life. My personal relationship with God is important, but the activity after church just isn't as important to me. I would rather spend time with just my husband. I hardly get to spend time with him very much because there is always something else that people say we have to do.

So, from now on, I am in charge of MY life. No one else is going to tell me what I "need" to do. If I feel like I can't do something, I am going to say so and people will just have to be okay with that. Boy, are they in for a surprise!!