New Mexico

I have to admit- I was not too excited about going to New Mexico at first. I mean, only get one week off work, and I was giving it up. But, I have to say, it was fun. And most of the time, it was pretty relaxing.

Ryleigh had her first airplane ride. We anticipated a very busy toddler running up and down the aisles, so naturally, I brought some Benadryl to knock her out. But, the plane ride was during her nap time, and so within 5 minutes of us boarding the plane, she fell asleep on my lap- all on her own. Nice!

Once we arrived in New Mexico, we heard weather reports that they were expecting snow. Sure enough, Saturday morning, we woke up to a white wonderland. We headed to Ruidosa for the day, and spent the afternoon shopping the small town (I bought a LOT of homemade fudge- YUM!) and playing in the snow.

Sunday, we met up with Justin & Jenn's gang and went snow tubing! It was hysterical. Ryleigh definitely got the most bang for her buck, insisting that we go "a-gin?" every time she reached the bottom. Jesse and I took turns hauling her up the small slope. Poor Gina waited in the long lines, got all the way to top, they 'pushed' her down, and ended up flipping her completely over. She was embarrassed and slightly hurt, but kept a good face. The kids all loved it, though I think we were all frozen in the end. We are from Texas, ya know!

Monday, we laid around the hotel for awhile, relaxing. JD and Carol had to go finish up funeral arrangements, so the rest of us thought we would go explore. We had originally tried to go to White Sands, but they were closed. So, we went to the space museum. Carol's Dad was in the space program and actually holds the rights to some technology, so it was cool to see his work. While the gang went to the IMAX, Jesse, Ryleigh, and I enjoyed some family time in the museum.

Tuesday was the funeral. I'll dedicate another post to it.

Wednesday morning, Jesse, Ryleigh, and I came home. It was a nice trip, but we were happy to sleep in our own beds.

More pictures to enjoy!

Headed to New Mexico!

Just a typical travel day in the Shulse family...Ryleigh loves to take the wheel and give her parents a rest.

...not really. But, I thought you would enjoy!

Merry Christmas!

Christmas was celebrated with family...just a little different than normal.

My parents came over on Monday night to exchange presents with us. I cooked lasagna and bread, nothing special, and we celebrated Christmas together. My mom's present still had not arrived (yeah, I don't think I mentioned that yet-- I messed up everyone's presents this year. Micah and Sarah's Christmas present, Susan's birthday present, Mom's Christmas present, Jeremy and Gina's Christmas present-- ALL late. That's what I get for ordering online and procrastinating getting to the post office!!) so I ended up wrapping my own pampered chef stone to show her what she was getting. Classy, huh? She was a good sport, and we had a good evening. The highlight, of course, was watching Ryleigh with her presents. A new pink piano from "Gaga and Go" (don't ask me how that equates to Grandma and Grandad; I have no idea), a mermaid barbie for the bath, a jack-n-the-box, new clothes, and more! Again, she was not too thrilled to open the presents, but once they were open, she had a blast.

Christmas morning, Jesse and I got up and waited for Ryleigh to wake up. Finally, we woke her up! Then we kept her corralled in the kitchen and bedroom long enough to finish preparing the breakfast casserole and kolaches. We let her loose. And she walked right into the living room, and straight to her new table. She climbed right up in her new chair, and immediately wanted to open her stocking. We side-tracked her long enough to show her a few new toys. She kept going back to play with her pink piano! Ha! Eventually, we all opened our stockings. Ironically, Jesse and I each got one another the same Ray Lamontagne CD-- it was the only one left that we did not own, so I guess we both figured we needed it in our collection. =)

A little later, Jesse's parents came over. We had gotten them small stockings and we gave them our presents: Elfa drawers. Not too exciting, but since they want to re-do their closets, we figured we would help them out with a few drawers (especially since they were on sale!) We opened presents, ate breakfast and Ryleigh played her heart out. Jesse and I got her a potty, thinking we would slowly start to introduce the concept. Well, she sat on it right away! And tried to flush! A little later, she got a present from Aunt Susan that had a baby doll in it, and the first thing she did was sit that baby doll on the potty! Ha! She pushed the baby around in her new stroller and carried it in the baby carrier. Then would go back to the piano. Toys are fun! After awhile, JD and Carol left to head back to their house and begin cooking dinner. We stayed home and NAPPED. For AWHILE.

When we woke up, it was much later than we expected. We hurried and cleaned up and went to his parent's house. Jeremy, Gina, and Eli were already there. I must say: it was quiet. Without Grandma Gertie, Justin, Jenn, & their kids, no family friends, no aunts or uncles-- it was very untraditional Shulse holiday. We exchanged presents and the kids played some more. Carol gave each of us daughter-in-laws a spa day! Massages, facials, manicures, and haircuts/hairdos! A fun girls day at the galleria is on the horizon, for sure. Dinner was good, though everyone again was quiet. After the meal, we stayed for a little bit, but seeing as how we were leaving town for New Mexico the very next morning, everyone was quick to leave.

So, we were home early, and I began laundry and took down the incredibly dead Christmas tree. Jesse and I packed while Ryleigh played, played, played!

It was a different Christmas all around this year. Not bad, just different. I was tired. So, honestly I was thankful for the slower change of pace. I missed a lot of the skipped traditions.

• We never made it to see Santa this year-- I took Ryleigh twice, and both times the line was over 2 hours long...anyone with a toddler knows that there was NO way she was going to sit in her stroller for that long.
• I completely forgot to make cookies and milk for Santa. Completely. Forgot.
• My house was not AS decorated as usual.
• I never made it around to give goodies to all my friends.

But you know what? I survived. I'm no less of a Mom. Or a wife. Or a daughter. Or a sister. Yes, I'm too busy. But I did my best. And it still was a sweet Christmas. And you know what else? My "mess ups" this year did not alter the meaning of my Christmas at all. Because those things are not what this season is about. I still like them- I still hope to do better next year- but I'll be okay if, once again, I cant manage it all.

Alright, alright. Enough of my thoughts. I know you're ready for pictures! Enjoy!

Christmas Eve

Christmas Eve is always a good night. A night to dress up. A night to be with family. A night to go to church and celebrate our Savior's birthday. A night to anticipate. A night to....I could go on and on.

This year, Christmas has been a little different. I have felt more like our own little family this year, which has been good, and weird. So, in keeping with the weirdness, I asked Jesse if we should attend church a day early, allowing more space on Christmas Eve for visitors. He looked at me like I was crazy, and said, "no! It just wouldnt feel like Christmas if we didnt go to church on Christmas Eve." And truthfully, he was right.

So we did. We dressed up in our new clothes from my parents, and kept Ryleigh up a little later than normal to go to church. And since she was with Daddy, she did not mind.
Did you know that Jesse proposed to me on Christmas Eve? Yep. Six years ago, after we left the church service, with both families in tow, he pulled me into the chapel of the church, gave me a bible with my "new" name on it, got down on his knee, and asked me to be his wife.

So Christmas Eve is kind of special to us.

And Ryleigh likes it too.

We got home from church, bathed little miss and put her in her Christmas pajamas. Then I finished wrapping presents and Santa put together Ryleigh's gifts. We were having fun until the instructions got confusing and then Santa was ready for bed. =)

But, by the end of the night, the tree was full of presents, the stockings were stuffed, breakfast was ready to be put together, and the night was at peace.

(Please do not notice how incredibly dead my tree was this year. Apparently, they need water, and I never stopped long enough to water it. My bad.)

The night, as a whole, was quiet. We were not with family. There were not kids running around, excited about Santa. No big celebrations. It was just us. And ya know what? I really enjoyed it.

Fun with flash

Without flash...
With flash...

Who knew a little light could make such a huge difference?

Merry Christmas Melody!

I came home from Dallas, and walked into a different living room!! Seriously! My husband surprised me early with my Christmas present already installed over the fireplace. Our previous tv was okay, but the sound was going in and out, and I had casually mentioned how nice it would be to catch up to the times and get a nice flat screen for the wall. Never did I think he would actually do it! Much less sooooo big!

Merry Christmas to me!!

We are in the process of updating everything to high definition, and still waiting on the longer high-def cables, so we can run the cables behind the wall and remove the old tv armoir from the room all together. I'll update soon!

A Dallas weekend

Ryleigh and I went to Dallas this weekend for our annual Family Christmas. The bonus this year was that it fell on Sarah's birthday too, so we had a double celebration.

We stayed at Micah and Sarah's new apartment, and it was lovely! They have it decorated very nice, and our guest room was quite homey. I slept like a champ. It was nice to spend some time with the two of them, and I only wish Jesse has been there to hang out as well.

Saturday we headed to Aunt Kathy's for Christmas. It was a fun morning, as usual, with the three little girls putting on quite a show for everyone. Ryleigh wanted nothing to do with opening presents, which was kind of a shock to me. I figured she would tear into the packages, regardless of name tag, but I ended up opening all of her presents. Maybe next year! She never took a nap, so she was pretty tired and fussy towards the end of the day.

We headed back to Micah and Sarah's and celebrated Christmas with them at their apartment, since we are all apart on Christmas day this year. It was fun, though Ryleigh was definitely over it by the end of the night.

Sunday was Sarah's birthday. Mom and Dad came back over to have her birthday party that morning, and then we met those who were able, for lunch to celebrate. It was nice to be with her on her birthday-- and I'm sure Susan enjoyed having Julie with her on her birthday as well. One of these days we're going to get them both in the same place for their birthday and it will be great! Can't believe they are already 24...it feels like yesterday we were all playing Barbies in the playroom, then going through the awkward makeup and hair days, riding to high school together, dressing for dances....time has flown. I love all of my sisters and cannot imagine my life without each one of them.

So, I got lazy and just put all the pictures from the weekend into one slideshow. Hope it works for you!

Wordless Wednesday

Bath time is fun time!! Especially when Daddy pours the bubble bath...

I finally updated my blog; sorry for the delay! There has been a lot going on, and still more I want to share with you. One day at a time though. There are several new posts below, so keep reading!

Only in Houston...

...is it 75 degrees one day, and snowing the next!

Ryleigh had fun playing in her first snow...well, first time to experience it outside of the womb. Remember this post? Snow on Easter! We did not stay outside too long, because we did not want to worsen her bronchitis or anything, but it was fun while we were out there!! I have a funny video I will try to remember to upload later.

My poor sick, sick baby!

So Sunday afternoon, Ryleigh developed a bit of a cough. Considering she had an ear infection two weeks ago and had been on antibiotics for ten days, frankly, I was irritated by this. In fact, I was even more irritated by the fact that my observant husband kept asking me if I planned to take her to the doctor Monday morning to check out the cough.

Jesse: "Honey, do you think Ryleigh should see the doctor tomorrow? That cough is pretty bad."
Me: "I took her to the doctor THREE times in November. No, I'm not taking her for a cough."

(Pause)

Jesse: "If you call and schedule it, I will take her to see the doctor. She might need more antibiotics."
Me: (Sigh) "Fine"

Well you cant call and schedule appointments on Sundays, so I figured he would forget and she would be better in the morning anyway. I would set up her humidifier and all would be right in the world.

Yeah, so around 5:00, Ryleigh started coughing. I mean, coughing. Non-stop. For about an hour and a half. I called the doctor, expecting to leave a message or something. Sure enough, they have a 24-hour nurses hotline, so I was able to talk to one of the nurses. A few suggestions later, I felt better, and had a plan to stop the cough. (Honey is a natural cough suppressant- did anyone know that? Oh, and apparently you are not really supposed to use those vaporizer things for babies, like Vicks vapor rub or the stuff for the bath. Go figure.) I also noticed she was starting to feel warm, and with a grimace, agreed that I would go ahead and call the doctor Monday morning just to check.

We calmed the cough, gave Ryleigh her bath and milk, turned on the humidifier, and put her to bed. Jesse stayed up a little bit, but then was ready for bed. For some reason, I just did not feel like going to bed. I was tired, but just didn't want to go to sleep.

Around 9:15, I started hearing a really weird noise from Ryleigh's room. It was something between a grunt and a moan. I muted the TV (I was watching the original Polyanna- a goodie!) and listened some more- she kept making the funny sound. I went to go check on her, and noticed that she was breathing incredibly fast. When I say fast, I mean like her chest was moving like that of a sprinter. Or a dog panting. I picked her up and brought her with me to the couch. I thought perhaps it might be a night where she just needed to sleep sitting up, allowing her to breathe easier. But her breathing never slowed. And she was visibly uncomfortable, shifting every few minutes, trying to find a comfortable position. Around midnight, I decided there was not much more I could do and she clearly was not comfortable sleeping on me, so I put her back in her bed, and headed to my own bed, turning the monitor way up.

About 45 minutes later, I woke up to Jesse bringing Ryleigh in our bed. He said he heard her moaning over the monitor and was freaking out about how fast she was breathing. Also, her fever had totally spiked in the 45 minutes I had put her to bed. So after many deliberations, we decided to see if she would rest easier with us and at least let us wait until the morning to make any decisions.

30 minutes later, Ryleigh woke up screaming. Uncontrollably. And coughing. And the panting continued. By this point, I was panicked. Something was clearly wrong. We debated going to the ER, but we were hesitant. Remember last Christmas when we took Ryleigh to the ER? Yeah, we JUST finished fighting the insurance company and paying off that visit last week. Literally. So, obviously we were hesitant to open a new can of worms.

We got online and tried to do some research to figure out what it could be and if there was anything we could do.

Nothing calmed her down though. So finally, I turned on The Wiggles (at 2:30 in the morning) and settled on the couch with a very uncomfortable, feverish, panting, coughing baby in my lap. Needless to say, we did not get much sleep.

Monday morning finally came, and I was on the phone with the doctor's office at 7 am. We were the first to arrive to the doctor's office, and they sent us straight back. We did not see Ryleigh's normal doctor, but the same doctor who diagnosed her ear infection a few weeks back. Ryleigh immediately starting freaking out when the doctor and nurses started trying to do their exams. Her breathing was out of control (breathing approximately 80 breaths-per-minute with an oxygen level of 97%) and the doctor finally said that we could not do anything more until they gave her a breathing treatment to calm her down and try to get a handle on her ability to breathe.

So, we did the first breathing treatment. After about 15 minutes, the doctor came back in to test Ryleigh's levels again. This time it was about 60 breaths-per-minute, but her oxygen level dropped down to 96%. The doctor asked us to do another breathing treatment. Again, she came back, and tested her levels. Her breaths-per-minute dropped to about 50 breaths-per-minute, but her oxygen level dropped again to 95%. So essentially, she was breathing slower, but her body was not absorbing as much oxygen.

The doctor said she thought that Ryleigh had pneumonia, and was borderline for being admitted to the hospital. I asked what she meant by "borderline," and she said, "if her oxygen level drops below 95%, she is going to the hospital. Period." She told us that there were only two reasons to be admitted to the hospital with pneumonia and the inability to breathe is the main reason. She also told us we would have been completely justified in taking Ryleigh to the ER the night before...geez. Stubborn Mama screwed up.

The doctor ordered a chest x-ray to confirm the pneumonia, and sent us to the other office to get the x-ray taken. Jesse and I had to literally hold her down on the table while she screamed her head off and cried "Da-da!" over and over. Talk about a heart-breaker.

As it turns out, Ryleigh did NOT have pneumonia (whew!) and she did not have to be admitted to the hospital, thank the Lord. We were sent home with a nebulizer, breathing treatments every 4 hours, antibiotics, and steroids. A second trip to the doctor on Tuesday confirmed that her breathing had slowed and her oxygen levels had jumped back up to 99%. Her official diagnosis was bronchitis, but we are supposed to watch her closely to make sure it was not the start of asthma or wheezing episodes.

All in all, it was a very scary experience. A word of advice to all you moms out there: trust your gut. Even at 2 in the morning. Don't let your mind reason your way out of a situation you know feels wrong. If your baby is struggling to breathe for any reason, you get your butt to the ER!!

Here we are, four days later, and Ryleigh is still pretty puny. She wants her teddy bear and Mama all the time. The cough remains and I'm supposed to continue the breathing treatments for the next week.

Never again will I claim that a cough is insignificant. Never again.

Christmastime

It is already mid-December, and I'm having a hard time getting into the Christmas spirit this year. For some reason, it just really does not seem like Christmas to me. Normally, I am ready to go by mid-November; ready for Christmas music, lights & decorations, Christmas cards, shopping, and exciting plans for the holiday. I'm dragging my feet this year. I have not put in a Christmas CD yet. I finally put up a tree and few decorations in my house, but have not jumped to put lights outside. I am debating about even sending out Christmas cards. We have made plans for the holiday, but frankly, I'm not very thrilled with them.

Life kind of got in the way of my Christmas spirit this year. But, I am trying really hard to rekindle the spirit, for Ryleigh's sake.

So, we went and got our Christmas tree, and let her "pick it out."
Daddy made it extra fun, playing with Ryleigh amongst the trees and making her giggle all the way.

Mommy stepped out from behind the camera to get a picture with my baby.

Last weekend, we went to my sister-in-law's house. My brother-in-law, Justin, helped Ryleigh dress up like a pirate- I think it ties in well with her cute new reindeer outfit, don't you?

My niece, Mekenzie, was dragged into making chocolate Oreo balls with Jenn and I. What was supposed to be a short lesson in ball-making, turned into a 6 hour ball-making marathon. In the end, I think we made 11 batches-- which is a lot of Oreo balls. Hopefully Jenn will have plenty to give friends for Christmas!

I have been struggling lately, feeling like so often, I go through the motions in life, without finding joy in the actions. Almost like I do things out of obligation to myself, to fulfill some unspoken responsibility to my perfectionism.

This season, I did not want to do that. I have prayed asking God to really shift my focus to Him and remember the real reason for the season. I think maybe He is answering my prayers in giving me an apathy for all the traditional things of our cultural Christmas. I have been a whole lot more internally focused than externally, if that makes sense. I have watched people more. Slowed down while driving, and truly not felt rushed or irritated in traffic. I have talked to and smiled at the people checking me out at the grocery store. I have thanked God for every little part of my life, including the "bad" me, and my appreciation for the gift of His son.

So, I might not get lights on the outside of the house. I might not be silly and goofy, singing Christmas music at the top of my lungs, and "laughing all the way." I might not get my Christmas cards sent on time, or perhaps, at all. I might not give as many gifts, simply because I'm being conservative with our money and not really in the mood to shop anyway. It might not be a picture perfect Christmas. But I hope that at the end of this season, I can say honestly, that I have a fuller and more appreciative view of the true meaning of Christmas. My savior, Jesus Christ.

Happy Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving came and went pretty quickly this year. The week was pretty full, with family in town due to Grandma Gertie's passing, Thomas and Lindsey's wedding festivities, my sisters in town for Thanksgiving, my parents out of the country and me watching their puppies, and Ryleigh getting sick and being diagnosed with an ear infection. Whew. Did you catch all that? It was a full week.

Thanksgiving day, I was hoping to wake up early and get over to my parents house to help cook. But my body refused. I had a rough time waking up, and finally called my mom to tell her we would be over later. Jesse, Ryleigh, and I spent the morning in bed, cuddling, talking, snoozing, and reflecting on all we are thankful for. Family. Friends. Health. Our home. Our jobs. Our freedoms. And most of all, our gracious heavenly Father. I could go on and on, but truly, words fail. We are blessed. That's all I can say. We are blessed.

A little later, we cleaned up and headed over to my parent's house. I helped cook a bit, and had a good time in the kitchen with my mom and sisters (though we missed Susan this year!) We also got to see all of my parents goodies, pictures, and memorabilia from their spur-of-the-moment trip to London to celebrate their 30th anniversary. 30 years...tell me that is not an amazing example of marriage! Way to go, Mom and Dad! I'm thankful for your love for each other and our family.

So, yeah, back to Thanksgiving. Jesse and I were pretty puny most of the day, as you can tell from our exhausted picture. Not too tired to watch the Aggies get creamed by the Longhorns though. Dang it. That is one thing we would be most thankful for next year; a decent football team. Ha! Here's to hoping, anyway.
Oh yeah- a post on Thanksgiving is not complete without a picture of the food spread! Turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, croissants, cranberry sauce- you name it. A good meal was had by all. Well, except Ryleigh. She lasted with us at the table for about five minutes before her meltdown, which then prompted me to set her in front of The Wiggles while we finished our meal. That's another thing I'm thankful for...The Wiggles. Sad, isn't it? But desperate times call for desperate measures. Trust me.

All in all, it was a nice day. I'm learning as I get older to let go of some of the perfectionist expectations I place on myself all the time. They can be exhausting, and sometimes, it is nice to just enjoy a relaxing holiday instead of a stressful one. This year, that is exactly what we had- a nice, enjoyable, relaxing Thanksgiving with family. And I am thankful for that.

Mr. and Mrs. Ashworth

November was an exciting month for Thomas and Lindsey-- they finally became husband and wife! The month was full of fun activities, and Jesse and I were so blessed to be a part of this special time in their lives.

One weekend, the boys headed off to Austin for a bachelor weekend of poker, paintball, and goofy boy games (of which I will not go into details, but I'm sure you can assume...). Meanwhile, the girls stayed home and had our own bachelorette weekend for Lindsey. Friday night we had a potluck dinner at Thomas and Lindsey's new apartment. It was great to see their new home, slowly filling with new wedding gifts, and just hang out and chat. Saturday evening was the lingerie shower and then drinks and dancing downtown. The lingerie shower was a lot of fun, and we enjoyed getting to see the pretty, sexy, and downright silly things Lindsey received to wear for her hubby. Good times!
Wednesday night before Thanksgiving, we all gathered to rehearse for the big day. It was the first time Jesse and I had been to the church, and wow, was it beautiful. I had a little trouble getting my camera adjusted to the lighting, so pardon the dark pictures. Nevertheless, it was a fun night, and dinner at Buca de Beppo was fabulous. I had never been there before, and watching them bring out platter after platter of delicious Italian food made my mouth water!

Are they sweet, or what??

Friday night was the beautiful wedding. I did not take pictures during the ceremony, because honestly, my eyes were too wet to see! I know I say this a lot, but it truly was one of the sweetest ceremonies I have ever had the joy of witnessing. Thomas and Lindsey were visibly excited and emotional, and every single person in that church felt the sheer joy of the moment when Thomas was able to kiss his bride. (On a side note, the music was PHENOMENAL. Boy, do they have some talented friends! They walked out to the song, "Oh Happy Day...." can we say, perfect?!)

The reception was quite a party. The location was beautiful and intimate, the food was good, and the dancing was a blast! Unfortunately, I did not get too many good pictures of the bride and groom, but hopefully you can see how absolutely stunning Lindsey looked. She was literally beaming, and I caught Thomas staring at her several times throughout the night with a goofy grin on his face. Gotta love newlyweds!!

Jesse and I had a great time throughout it all. Jesse was very honored to be one of Thomas' groomsmen and I had the privilege of being in Lindsey's house party. We are so excited for the two of them and look forward to many more memories in the future with the Ashworths.

Congrats Thomas and Lindsey- we love you guys!

** For more pictures from all the festivities, click on this link: Thomas and Lindsey

Grandma Gertie

It is with a sad heart that I tell you Jesse's grandmother lost her battle with cancer this afternoon.

Grandma Gertie was 88 years old, but up until about seven months ago, you would never have known it. She went on an African safari only five years ago...para-sailing in Hawaii four years ago. You might remember I told you about her special birthday party only three months ago.

When she was originally diagnosed, we were all nervous. But she never was. She fought until the end. Even when she was admitted to the hospital in September, we all thought it was over. She fought tooth and nail through hours of endless rehab to get strong enough to go back to her home at the retirement community. Always strong. Always a fighter.

Once home again, she did well for about a week. Last week, her strength greatly declined, and she was confined again to her wheelchair. On Wednesday of last week, she visited her doctor and oncologist. They told us her time was short- called hospice and told the family to prepare for maybe three more weeks.

Thursday, we spent a great deal of time with Grandma Gertie. She spoke to us about what the doctor had told her, and told us that "this was it. They just want to keep me comfortable now." She was still sitting up in her chair, eating a few bites of soup (though she said it was gross), and sipping her iced tea.

Friday, I went back up with some wonton soup- she loves that stuff. When I got there, the lights were all out and she was in bed. I sat beside her and talked with her for awhile, and then one of the nurses helped me, help her, to walk to her chair and eat some more soup. Her speech was much harder to understand and she was visibly weaker.

This afternoon, we got a call from Jesse's dad encouraging us to come up and see her. She was on oxygen and morphine and no longer responsive, but we were there. We both held her hands and told her again how much she meant to us. Jesse did not leave her side. He watched as her breathing grew slower, and he held her hand until she took her last breath.

Most of the family was there, and the rest came shortly afterwards. We spent some time saying goodbye and a priest came and had a Last Rites ceremony for the family to share in some time to pray and remember the good times. Grandma Gertie was a strict Catholic, so it is how she would have wanted.

It has been an emotionally draining week. When you are told three weeks and only get three days, it is quite a shock. Once the body begins to shutdown, it does not take long. I am thankful that her body is at rest and the cancer is no longer hurting her. I'm hopeful that her soul is with Christ and she has been reunited with her husband who died over thirty years ago.

I ask that you please pray for the family. Pray for Jesse's parents and his aunts. They are all having a really hard time letting go of their mother and uniting in their grief. Pray for her grandsons, who are struggling to see their parents in pain. Pray for the funeral plans, as no one really knows what to do right now or where to hold services (she is from New Mexico). Pray for the weary souls of those who have helped her fight this disease. Please just pray.

We love you, Grandma Gertie and we will miss you. God Bless.

Tearful prayers

Please be praying for Adrienne and her family. I was told to read her blog and just visited for the first time, only to cry and cry and cry. This beautiful family was supposed to be adopting a precious baby girl; the nursery is ready, the car seat is assembled, and the family has lovingly welcomed this baby into their arms and their hearts. One day before the hand-off was supposed to be finalized, the birth mother has changed her mind. I cannot imagine all of the emotions the mother must be feelings or how incredibly hard it would be to hand over your baby to another family. The situation is hard all around. It's just hard.

I don't know what is the right answer. All I know to do is pray hard that God's will be done, and that whichever mother is left with empty and aching arms feels God's peace and comfort. I just can not imagine.

Take a minute to visit their site, read their story, say a prayer (or two!), and leave an encouraging comment.

Sweet baby

I still love my sweet sleeping baby. Can't get enough of those chubby cheeks and teddy bear cuddles.

Oops...Mommy stayed a little too long and flashed the camera one too many times. So much for nap time. (How is that for a "deer in the headlights" face?)

I could not resist

I officially set up a recipe blog. Ha!!

Yum Yum Supper Time (click to link)

I always enjoy trying new recipes, and the recipes I have received from people are normally pretty good! I'm hoping that you all enjoy the site and share your own recipes with the rest of us as well. Not only that, but think how we could 'perfect' dishes! If I post a recipe, but perhaps you make some adjustments and changes, maybe it only gets better. Can't hurt to try, anyway.

So, there you have it. My latest project. I sent out an email inviting you to participate, so if you did not receive it, I don't have your email address or did not know if you wanted to participate. If you do, let me know and I'll get you added.

I hope the idea takes off and you all enjoy participating, or at least having a place to go and get a fun new recipe when you feel like it. Enjoy!

Changing it up

When you work from home, you rarely get to leave home. Lunch breaks are typically a time to catch up on housework or chores, grab a quick bite, and get back to work. However, eating the same sandwich day after day after day gets old. Fast. Even trying to change up the sandwich does not always work. Turkey and cheese, peanut butter and jelly, grilled cheese...it all gets old after awhile.

So, I have been looking for new ways to 'spice up my lunch,' if you will. My sister gave me a panini maker for my birthday- and it sure does make my sandwich yummy! I have tried roast beef and jalapeno jack cheese, turkey and swiss, turkey and cheddar, roast beef with mushrooms, onions, and mozzarella...all have been awesome. Especially when you change the bread too- italian, cheesy italian, and sun-dried tomato basil have been my favorites. Who doesn't like a melty sandwich??
I have also started buying mini croissants, and making mini chicken salad sandwiches. Obviously, I cant do this too often because of the calorie count in those croissants, but man are they good!

Last week I decided I was "over" the sandwiches all together. So, I bought some pita bread and hummus, and went to town. I cut up the pita bread, sprinkled it with olive oil, garlic salt, and pepper, and then baked it in the oven for about 15 minutes. It came out warm and crispy, and definitely filled me up.

And last but not least, a dinner change up! What do you think of when you think of chili? Beef? Tomato base? Well, my friend Stacey sent me an excellent recipe for Smoky Chicken Chili and I tried it last week. The flavors were really awesome, and as you can see, the recipe made a ton! Jesse made some cornbread to go with, and said the recipe was definitely a keeper.

(Would you believe that the recipe called for two kinds of beans, and I ATE them both?? I was so proud of myself. They actually were not that bad...)

So there you have. Yet another "food post" from Melody.

I'm seriously considering starting a recipe blog. Would anyone else out there participate with me and share recipes?? It could be beneficial for us all...!! Never hurts to change it up a bit. =)

Time flies

Sometimes, a picture is worth a thousand words.

I could tell you just how much our Ryleigh has grown and changed in a year. I could tell you all the things she has learned to do, or how many words she can say, or how big she has gotten. It is remarkable to see how much she has changed. Seriously, you cant even begin to comprehend. When I think of where we were this time last year, its unreal to think where we are now.

Just one example.

Halloween 2008

Halloween 2007
My baby is growing. FAST. And it is a little sad.

Happy Halloween!