I sent a version of this to some dear first-time expectant mamas today and just thought I would make a random post of it.
Not that anyone has been clamouring for advice, but I thought I would just throw out my two cents on all the stuff about welcoming a new baby into your family. I remember as an expectant mom lots of decisions about what to buy and register for were a little overwhelming, so if anyone can benefit from our experience, that's great. If not, no problem. This list is also for me, should the Lord bless us with a fourth child.
Baby Stuff We Have Really Appreciated:
- Graco Pack N Play with bassinet - Ours also came with a changing station, but we honestly didn't use that part that much. The bassinet, though, lasted through 6 months for each of our first two children. We also took it to the homes of friends frequently with our firstborn so he could go to bed while we visited. Now Smiley uses it for naptime. Well worth the $80 or so we paid for it. Also handy to have around when children are not babies anymore for when little guests visit.
- The Fisher Price Healthy Chair Booster has dishwasher safe trays and folds up compactly to take to restaurants or on road trips and is SO much less bulky that a full size high chair in your kitchen at home. Your baby needs full head control and be mostly able to sit up before using it, around 6 months. We have also had the First Years Four Stage Feeding Seat and like that, though it doesn't fold up. Both of these options are cheaper than a full size highchair, too.
- Baby Bjorn or some kind of carrier or wrap - These are great in public, for shopping, and for fussy times of the day when you still want to get some housework done. They keep baby close and discourage strangers from poking and prodding your baby so much since they are attached to you which may help your baby not pick up so many germs from random folks.
- A small diaper bag has saved us from lugging tons of stuff around the grocery, store or to church. We have mostly just used a small bag for all outings packed with one outfit, a few diapers and a pouch of wipes, with more supplies in the car if you really need them. Depending on the size of your purse, we have also just used a fabric pouch big enough for two diapers and some wipes. With a caribiner clip, a small bag easily clips to the handle of the stroller, too.
- NOT having a Diaper Genie - We didn't get one because I was too cheap to buy the refills, but I am glad I never had to take out the stinky sausage of diapers out to the trash, either. We just used a small trash can and took it out whenever there was a poo, or bagged the poopy diapers in newspaper or grocery bags which contain the smell as much as a Diaper Genie does.
- For nursing a Boppy pillow (preferably with at least 2 slipcovers), a glider rocker with ottoman, and a good pump were essentials. I've liked the Medela Pump in Style and the Medela hand pump..I think it is called the Harmony. An MP3 player with speakers was a bonus the last time around since you're sitting down for feeding so many hours of the day. Oh, and of course if nursing does not get off to a great start, seek help from a lactation consultant or experienced friend early and often.
- A dresser with a changing pad instead of an open shelf changing table will last long beyond the diapering season when you remove the pad.
- When we have cloth-diapered, our favorite was the MotherEase brand. The covers never leaked, they have snaps for no-pins, adjustable sizing for 8-35 lb babies and are soft. (I'd like to get back to that while potty training Smiley, but it doesn't seem to be a great time to have stinky diapers in the bathroom when we are trying to sell our house. :) Cut up pieces of fleece or old t-shirts work well as wipes when you have a spray bottle of super mild baby soap or plain water at hand. An inexpensive 5 gallon pail with a lid from Walmart or a hardware store has been a our bucket for cloth diapers and the handle makes it easy to bring to the laundry. We prefer the dry method.
What we might have done differently, knowing what we know now:
- Started out with a jogger stroller from the beginning, or one that folds up like an umbrella stroller but has more features. Bulky strollers that are not all-terrain haven't worked that well for us, especially since they take up so much space in the back of the car and leave not much room for the groceries. I would have paid more, looking back, for one all purpose stroller rather than ending up with a fleet of them that all work well in different situations.
- Bought a travel swing or baby papasan instead of full size one, since you gotta store the stuff somewhere after that phase is over.
-See about borrowing and lending equipment that is stage specific. You don't need to have it all and store it all when you aren't using it. We were the first of our friends to have babies so this wasn't as much of an option for us.
- Skipped the full bedding set. Some cute sheets and a bed skirt are all you need. I found the bumpers, while cute, tend to be a pain to work around when changing sheets and were just one more thing to launder when messes happened. I also wonder about how safe they are for newborns and have no doubt if ours weren't removed when our babies could stand would have become a step to help them climb out of the crib.
- Skipped the expensive Dreft detergent with our firstborn and just used All Free & Clear or other dye free, fragrance free detergent which works well for everyone's clothes. Do have OxiClean on hand for those blowouts and spit up accidents.
- Have had more of "Less is More" approach. Laundry will need to be done daily anyway, so no need to have so much in the way of clothes and blankets. Though I do recommend 3 crib sheets and 2 waterproof mattress pads, since leaks and spit-up seem to happen a lot in the night and you don't want to keep the baby up because you are waiting for laundry to cycle through. They grow so quickly so then you have the storage issue to deal with again. We could have also used more gender neutral pieces of clothing for home use and just had a few cute outfits which were gender specific to simplify dressing, laundry and storage.
- Skipped baby food and made more of our own and started them on finger or food suitable for babies. There are some great books out there on making your baby great healthful baby food.
- Been more eco-consious when we began,. Lots of time the "greener" options are also the most frugal, too.
- I would have loved to have had one of those cool nursing covers that are widely available now, though I guess I got by with a receiving blanket. Sometimes a clothespin comes in handy to keep the blanket attached to your shirt, instead of falling down for the world to see your chest.
Well, that is all I can think of today. Happy Weekend! And remember, this is just my two cents. Do what works for your situation.
Friday, July 11, 2008
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
Moving Forward...But Maybe Staying Put
Late last fall, after many months of living in a very financially vulnerable position we enrolled in Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University Online. (It would have been great to be part of a small group doing the course, but with childcare and limited time, the online version was our best bet.) We were living very close to the $0 mark and although sometimes we were paying our mortgage off faster than required, we had almost no emergency savings. We had some bigger expenses last summer to improve our front and back yards and repair our van which brought us to this point.
As a background, we have been married now 9 years and have never carried any credit card debt and only had a car loan for a short amount of time, though we did seem to be living some months about one month ahead of our means, meaning payday would come and we would have enough to pay off the visa charges for the month and not much left over after the mortgage. While we have been financially okay and have always been very aware of our bank account balances, we have not had a real "on paper, on purpose" budget until we started FPU Online. Now 7 months later we are loving the budget (most of the time) and telling our money where it is going, getting out of the discouraging Visa cycle (i.e. we rarely use it except for travel bookings and online purchases) and feel like we have a plan of action for the months and years ahead. Looking back now and seeing the current state of the economy, I am so glad we started budgeting when we did!
By God's grace and provision, we have been able to:
- Achieve Dave's "baby step #1" - save $1000 in the bank.
- Skip step #2 since we did not have any debt beyond the mortgage to contend with.
- Complete our will, finally! It was in the works a very long time and not because it is a complicated situation, just because we didn't take the time to finish off the process.
- Move on to "baby step #3" - save the equivalent of 6 months of expenses. For us, this fully funded emergency fund was also doubling as a van replacement savings fund. Living on one non-profit income did not allow us to save quickly for both the van and the emergency fund simultaneously, so we needed to accept that after the van purchase we would be starting over to fund the full emergency fund. Even so, thanks to my hard-working husband taking any available extra project at work, me trying to shrink our household expenses as much as possible and our tax return, we were able to buy a van with cash at the end of April, just 5 months after beginning our "gazelle intensity". We were able to get a good deal on a 2002 Honda Odyssey with higher miles, but we like Hondas and plan to keep it for a long time. Buying this nice of a vehicle outright was a true victory for us and something we could not have imagined just 6 months earlier.
- Continue on with funding my husband's work-sponsored and matched retirement fund which he has had for the last 7+ years. Continue on with our kids' educational investment accounts. Though the education accounts are small per month/per child amounts, something is better than nothing and halting those would not make sense with the fees and penalties involved at this point. (So, yes, we are deviating from Dave's program at this point, but feel this is the right decision for our family.)
- Continue with charitable giving to our church and other individuals and organizations.
- Begin again on funding the full emergency fund. This is slower going now. Although our consumption of goods and services in not being upgraded or increasing, the same amount is costing a lot more (gasoline, food, etc.). We have also been able to purchase tickets for our Christmas travel to visit family. With five tickets now to buy and the need to get our own rental car, this is not an inexpensive affair, but this is the joy of financial planning, namely to do what matters. We are often speaking with our children about the two most important things in life: God and people. These visits are very important to our immediate and extended family and are worth every penny to spend time with the people we love.
As a result of living on a budget these past several months we are realizing how our housing cost is really disproportional to our earnings and we are looking for ways to reduce that cost. Which brought us to the decision to put our home on the market in the middle of May after lots of effort in staging and decluttering. The goal would be to move to a lower cost property that would be nearer to my husband's work, thus saving on commuting costs as well as the mortgage. This would/will likely mean a substantial downsizing or downgrading in the size or quality of home we are able to purchase. But, after nearly 60 days on the market, one price decrease and only a handful of showings, we are looking for ways to make staying put a good option, too. Since we are not in a desperate situation to sell, we are not resorting to desperation pricing, either. So although it feels like we are moving forward with our financial stability, there is some uncertainly about life in general in our home right now. We are really feeling the effects of the rising costs of essentials, or at least the things that are the essential expectations of life in North America.
So in the meantime, we continue on with working faithfully on our budget, being very careful about how we spend our money and trusting the Lord for His provision and timing for our family.
P.S. - Over the past several months I have greatly benefited from the Money Saving Mom blog with tons of frugal tips, articles on personal finance and coupon links which have helped me stretch our household dollars. Check out how others are working on their financial situations here.
As a background, we have been married now 9 years and have never carried any credit card debt and only had a car loan for a short amount of time, though we did seem to be living some months about one month ahead of our means, meaning payday would come and we would have enough to pay off the visa charges for the month and not much left over after the mortgage. While we have been financially okay and have always been very aware of our bank account balances, we have not had a real "on paper, on purpose" budget until we started FPU Online. Now 7 months later we are loving the budget (most of the time) and telling our money where it is going, getting out of the discouraging Visa cycle (i.e. we rarely use it except for travel bookings and online purchases) and feel like we have a plan of action for the months and years ahead. Looking back now and seeing the current state of the economy, I am so glad we started budgeting when we did!
By God's grace and provision, we have been able to:
- Achieve Dave's "baby step #1" - save $1000 in the bank.
- Skip step #2 since we did not have any debt beyond the mortgage to contend with.
- Complete our will, finally! It was in the works a very long time and not because it is a complicated situation, just because we didn't take the time to finish off the process.
- Move on to "baby step #3" - save the equivalent of 6 months of expenses. For us, this fully funded emergency fund was also doubling as a van replacement savings fund. Living on one non-profit income did not allow us to save quickly for both the van and the emergency fund simultaneously, so we needed to accept that after the van purchase we would be starting over to fund the full emergency fund. Even so, thanks to my hard-working husband taking any available extra project at work, me trying to shrink our household expenses as much as possible and our tax return, we were able to buy a van with cash at the end of April, just 5 months after beginning our "gazelle intensity". We were able to get a good deal on a 2002 Honda Odyssey with higher miles, but we like Hondas and plan to keep it for a long time. Buying this nice of a vehicle outright was a true victory for us and something we could not have imagined just 6 months earlier.
- Continue on with funding my husband's work-sponsored and matched retirement fund which he has had for the last 7+ years. Continue on with our kids' educational investment accounts. Though the education accounts are small per month/per child amounts, something is better than nothing and halting those would not make sense with the fees and penalties involved at this point. (So, yes, we are deviating from Dave's program at this point, but feel this is the right decision for our family.)
- Continue with charitable giving to our church and other individuals and organizations.
- Begin again on funding the full emergency fund. This is slower going now. Although our consumption of goods and services in not being upgraded or increasing, the same amount is costing a lot more (gasoline, food, etc.). We have also been able to purchase tickets for our Christmas travel to visit family. With five tickets now to buy and the need to get our own rental car, this is not an inexpensive affair, but this is the joy of financial planning, namely to do what matters. We are often speaking with our children about the two most important things in life: God and people. These visits are very important to our immediate and extended family and are worth every penny to spend time with the people we love.
As a result of living on a budget these past several months we are realizing how our housing cost is really disproportional to our earnings and we are looking for ways to reduce that cost. Which brought us to the decision to put our home on the market in the middle of May after lots of effort in staging and decluttering. The goal would be to move to a lower cost property that would be nearer to my husband's work, thus saving on commuting costs as well as the mortgage. This would/will likely mean a substantial downsizing or downgrading in the size or quality of home we are able to purchase. But, after nearly 60 days on the market, one price decrease and only a handful of showings, we are looking for ways to make staying put a good option, too. Since we are not in a desperate situation to sell, we are not resorting to desperation pricing, either. So although it feels like we are moving forward with our financial stability, there is some uncertainly about life in general in our home right now. We are really feeling the effects of the rising costs of essentials, or at least the things that are the essential expectations of life in North America.
So in the meantime, we continue on with working faithfully on our budget, being very careful about how we spend our money and trusting the Lord for His provision and timing for our family.
P.S. - Over the past several months I have greatly benefited from the Money Saving Mom blog with tons of frugal tips, articles on personal finance and coupon links which have helped me stretch our household dollars. Check out how others are working on their financial situations here.
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Wonderful Giveaway!
Monica over at The Homespun Heart is doing an amazing Lands' End giveaway. They have great modest swimwear that works for real bodies (not just models) and THE BEST customer service I have ever experienced. While I usually shop the Overstocks and get good deals that way, winning this gift card would be so much fun. Head on over there to get yourself entered!
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Change 1 Thing: Bye-Bye Soda
I've been thinking in recent months that although life is going well, I could certainly stand to be more disciplined and intentional with time, relationships, homemaking, money and the stuff I put into my body. With the birth of our son two years ago and mothering then three children all age three and under I sort of went into survival mode and unfortunately got stuck there. Things have normalized, as much as they ever will, many months ago and it is time to get back to looking at the big picture and not just the day to day. When I think of all the changes I want to make I do get overwhelmed so I've decided that I'll add one thing per month that I really want to work on and go from there. Maybe by blogging about it I will feel more accountability to myself and to others.
So, without further adieu (ado? which is it?), I say goodbye to my daily relationship with soda. It's been a long time coming, but I've got to stop pretending I am a teenager and that this is okay for a thirty-something woman to be drinking this on such a frequent basis. Since I stopped nursing I've really not been taking care of my hydration needs (i.e. pure water), but instead making sure I've had plenty of sugar water. Well, I've had enough!
Wish me luck! Is there anything you'd like to change during the month of July? Join me!
So, without further adieu (ado? which is it?), I say goodbye to my daily relationship with soda. It's been a long time coming, but I've got to stop pretending I am a teenager and that this is okay for a thirty-something woman to be drinking this on such a frequent basis. Since I stopped nursing I've really not been taking care of my hydration needs (i.e. pure water), but instead making sure I've had plenty of sugar water. Well, I've had enough!
Wish me luck! Is there anything you'd like to change during the month of July? Join me!
Thursday, June 26, 2008
So Very 2
Our baby turned 2 years old this month. He is truly a delight to our family. He loves life and holds nothing back. He sees life as an adventure and loves to explore the limits. He loves generously, feels deeply and moves swiftly. He is all boy in two-year-old glory!
We thank God for this precious and lively gift! And we pray God will protect this little guy for all of his days!
He's recently been sporting a buzz cut. For a boy who is nearly always happy, this boy HATES haircuts so the clippers are the fastest, and safest, way to go for now. 
We knew the day was coming, but it was time to take the crib down and transition to a big bed for him. He climbed out of the pack and play a few days before.
Yep, here's the proof the crib's days were numbered.
We just a had a little family party at home this year, complete with grilled hot dogs and cupcakes and gifts from near and far after dinner. The kids thought it was great.
True to form, found on top of the coffee table.
And here he is checking out the big boy bed.
And a shot from the beginning. We love him more today than we could even imagine then.
Thursday, May 29, 2008
You & Me
Just because I am curious I would love to know about some of the people who read this blog, or rather if anyone does besides the 4-5 family members and friends who make reference to it in everyday conversations. So, if you would be so kind, please leave a comment with your name and as little or as much information about yourself as you would like. I'd love to meet you!
And because I'm feeling random and haven't done something like this before, I'll include many things about myself...big and small stuff. It may get boring, so if you zone out, just leave your name comment below. Thanks for reading!
1. My favorite colors are blue and deep red, but I am easily swayed by popular home fashion color schemes.
2. I grew up on a farm and had pigs for 4-H but I wouldn't say I'm an animal lover.
3. My first kiss was with my husband. His first kiss was with me. And I'm thankful for that.
4. I'm the second born of four children in my family.
5. I was the valedictorian of my high school graduating class, though my graduating class only had 17 students.
6. My high school years were rather calm and uneventful. A typical weekend looked like this: Friday night - participate in sports, Saturday - sleep in, Saturday night - babysitting, Sunday - church and a nap. I wouldn't describe those years as my glory days.
7. My physical feature I'm most at peace with is my nose.
8. I went away to university in Canada about 1700 miles from home, but not because I was trying to escape my parents.
9. When travelling by car, I would rather make fewer stops and get there sooner than to really take in the sights along the way.
10. I was married at 22, bought our first home at 24 and became a mother at 25.
11. My real haircolor is blond.
12. I desire to live simply and with contentment, but sometimes life gets messy.
13. I like quick projects that can be completed in an hour or less.
14. I have an amazing group of girlfriends from our university days. I desire that kind of community again, but realize that is a unique time of life when you are available to really forge deeper friendships than perhaps at any other time of your life.
15. I like recycling, but find it odd that so few people here seem to do it, unless they are closet recyclers or something.
16. I started doing laundry at age 8.
17. I started cooking about that time, too.
18. I once won a purple ribbon at the fair for an apple pie I made. I rarely make pie now.
19. My favorite desserts are blueberry pie and brownies.
20. I don't much care for ice cream.
21. I feel like I used to be adventurous but seem to be playing it safe as I age...guess it is time for a new challenge or adventure.
22. I love going to the Y and working out and getting renewed for mothering.
23. Weight and size issues have always been a struggle for me.
24. I have given birth once with pain relieving drugs and twice without, though all have been induced labors. My earliest child was born a week after his due date and my latest child was born 15 days after his due date. I know some are opposed to any interventions, but I really believe it would not be to the benefit of my babies to stay in the womb longer than they have and with no signs of progress on my part.
25. I've tried all sorts of things to induce labor and nothing worked for me.
26. I'm looking for a meaningful hobby.
27. You could describe me as practical. I often choose function and efficiency over other factors.
28. You could also describe me as being more moderate than extreme.
29. I like to cook, especially for people who enjoy my cooking.
30. I like to sew, but rarely use a pattern and I don't usually make clothes.
31. I was frugal even before I needed to be.
32. My most unusual summer job was mowing and weed-eating a cemetery. I had a great tan that summer.
33. I love to walk in the country, not so much on suburban streets.
34. As a junior in high school I went on a trip to France, Switzerland and Italy. I haven't been off the continent since.
35. I'd love to have a fruitful garden.
36. I dislike confrontation.
37. My favorite way to redecorate and is to rearrange furniture and I like to do that often.
38. If I'm given a choice between chocolates or fruity candies I will always choose the fruity ones.
39. I am a regular soda drinker...though I know I need to change this.
40. When I think of our newlywed basement suite I laugh. We didn't have good furniture and it was really cold so the warmest and most comfortable place to be was in our bed.
41. With my kids I want to play more and yell less.
42. Motherhood is the toughest job I've ever had.
43. I don't mind loading the dishwasher, but I'm not too fond of unloading it.
44. I bought my first computer when I graduated from high school. It cost about $2000! Times have changed and thankfully prices on some things have come down.
45. All of my car accidents happened before I had my license.
46. It took me a few tries to get my school permit.
47. I'm currently torn between sending our son to a public charter school and homeschooling.
48. Ironically, our honeymoon was in Colorado, the state where we now live.
49. We drove my husband's car through the west to arrive home after our honeymoon in July...in a heat wave...without air conditioning. We really enjoyed our stops so we could talk to each other again.
50. I'm not a collector of anything, unless you count my ribbon stash. Some women have shoes, I have ribbon.
51. When we moved to Colorado Springs we had no friends.
52. We moved without ever visiting Colorado Springs and found our apartment on the internet. We were young and stupid, no, carefree, but unloading our moving truck into our dumpy apartment was a rude awakening.
53. It melts my heart when my kids say thank you for an ordinary thing I have done for them.
54. I love my two-yearold's belly laughs.
55. If we could do it over again, we would probably have taken a big tropical or European vacation sometime before having children.
56. My favorite kitchen appliance is my Bosch Kitchen Machine, followed closely by my Nutrimill and our Cuisinart waffle iron.
57. My favorite kitchen tools are my Pampered Chef batter bowl, avocado knife and spatulas. Did you know the avocado knife works well for getting the shells off hard boiled eggs? No, I don't sell P.C. and don't plan to go to more parties. I think I'm set.
58. One thing I would prefer not to live without would be our Dustbuster. We've used it multiple times per day since we've had kids eating.
59. I am not detail-oriented.
60. I don't follow strict rules for doing laundry. I've even been know to throw whites and colored items together into the washer just to get them off the floor.
61. I don't like folding laundry anywhere but the laundry room. Our laundry room is small but if we haul it out to the kitchen, living room or bedrooms to fold it the chance of it getting put away in a timely manner are slim to none. At least in the laundry room I can just keep adding to everyone's small basket until I have no choice but to put it away.
62. I spend too much time on the computer and hope this summer to drastically reduce that time to focus on my kids more.
63. I love to cook in a clean kitchen but if the kitchen is messy I feel overwhelmed.
64. I graduated university with a business degree. I don't see how that knowledge is being applied to my current life, but I am thankful for all the lessons I learned in pursuit of that degree and the friends I made along the way.
65. I miss the rain of B.C. while still loving the sunshine of Colorado.
66. When moving to Colorado Springs we went to return our U-Haul and did not have our car in town at that point. The U-Haul rep said one particular drop-off location would be walking distance to our apartment. Um...not so much. If you are local, think Black Forest Road to Academy along Woodmen road before there was any development (or sidwalks!) along half of the journey, more than 6 miles with temps in the 90s and the two of us sharing one 8 oz. bottle of water. We had a lot to learn!
67. In our Colorado Springs apartment we lived under a couple who had an alcohol problem. This would lead to many fights and glasses thrown at the fireplace above us and greatly encouraged us to pursue home ownership!
68. I did not grow up in a family who camped, but I enjoy camping now.
69. I met my husband on a ski lift on a spring break trip.
70. I love having boys and a girl!
71. I need to eat more vegetables.
72. I mourned a little over the coming of our second child because I knew it would never be the same with me and the firstborn.
73. I cried on the way to the hospital for our third child, though I wasn't in labor. I knew another big change was around the corner and for the first few hours of being at the hospital my husband couldn't be there because he was getting our children settled with friends.
74. With our firstborn I felt like a huge failure because nursing did not work. We tried lots of stuff and he just didn't catch on and so I pumped for a long time. (At this point some of you are thinking this is TMI...sorry). Looking back, it was crazy to think that.
75. Our second child also had nursing problems, but 4-5 weeks into the process caught on. Our third child did well from day one. My advice to new moms on this is to do all you can do to make it work and if it doesn't not to take this as a reflection on you or the bond you are making with your child. Like so many other issues of life, nursing is not one of the black and white things, even if La Leche would have you believe it is the only way.
76. I grew up one mile from one set of my grandparents and have many fond memories of times with them and wonder if we are robbing our kids by not living close to either set of grandparents.
77. Since beginning the frugal lifestyle in earnest I am often amazed and appalled at how people throw their money away. I know this sounds judgmental, and sometimes it is, but most of the time I just find it very intriguing.
78. Though we have always tried to be careful with our finances, we were greatly challenged in our spending, planning, and view of money by taking Financial Peace University Online in the last 6 months. It has been amazing, not fun, but really good!
79. I am thankful that my parents took us on some wonderful trips in our years at home. Now seeing and understanding how much work it is to take a family on a trip I am all the more thankful.
80. I love Friday night date nights with my husband and the delicious guacamole he makes!
81. I love organizing and decluttering, even if our house doesn't look like I apply those techniques nearly enough.
82. I played fast-pitch softball into high school and I do not "throw like a girl."
83. I like to stay up late and get up late, my husband likes to turn in early and get up early.
84. I accepted Jesus into my heart when I was preschool age, triggered largely by my sister (probably 6 or 7 at the time) telling me if I didn't believe in Jesus I was going to go to hell. My memory is fading, but I know it happened when we were getting ready to go to a Sunday evening service. Thankfully that is not the extent of my faith and I thank God that He continues to reveal Himself to me and that it really isn't about fearing hell that you accept a Savior, as I must have thought when I was preschool age.
85. The grace of God is amazing! The more I know Him, the more I see my sin and the more I need grace and the power of the gospel to transform me.
And because I'm feeling random and haven't done something like this before, I'll include many things about myself...big and small stuff. It may get boring, so if you zone out, just leave your name comment below. Thanks for reading!
1. My favorite colors are blue and deep red, but I am easily swayed by popular home fashion color schemes.
2. I grew up on a farm and had pigs for 4-H but I wouldn't say I'm an animal lover.
3. My first kiss was with my husband. His first kiss was with me. And I'm thankful for that.
4. I'm the second born of four children in my family.
5. I was the valedictorian of my high school graduating class, though my graduating class only had 17 students.
6. My high school years were rather calm and uneventful. A typical weekend looked like this: Friday night - participate in sports, Saturday - sleep in, Saturday night - babysitting, Sunday - church and a nap. I wouldn't describe those years as my glory days.
7. My physical feature I'm most at peace with is my nose.
8. I went away to university in Canada about 1700 miles from home, but not because I was trying to escape my parents.
9. When travelling by car, I would rather make fewer stops and get there sooner than to really take in the sights along the way.
10. I was married at 22, bought our first home at 24 and became a mother at 25.
11. My real haircolor is blond.
12. I desire to live simply and with contentment, but sometimes life gets messy.
13. I like quick projects that can be completed in an hour or less.
14. I have an amazing group of girlfriends from our university days. I desire that kind of community again, but realize that is a unique time of life when you are available to really forge deeper friendships than perhaps at any other time of your life.
15. I like recycling, but find it odd that so few people here seem to do it, unless they are closet recyclers or something.
16. I started doing laundry at age 8.
17. I started cooking about that time, too.
18. I once won a purple ribbon at the fair for an apple pie I made. I rarely make pie now.
19. My favorite desserts are blueberry pie and brownies.
20. I don't much care for ice cream.
21. I feel like I used to be adventurous but seem to be playing it safe as I age...guess it is time for a new challenge or adventure.
22. I love going to the Y and working out and getting renewed for mothering.
23. Weight and size issues have always been a struggle for me.
24. I have given birth once with pain relieving drugs and twice without, though all have been induced labors. My earliest child was born a week after his due date and my latest child was born 15 days after his due date. I know some are opposed to any interventions, but I really believe it would not be to the benefit of my babies to stay in the womb longer than they have and with no signs of progress on my part.
25. I've tried all sorts of things to induce labor and nothing worked for me.
26. I'm looking for a meaningful hobby.
27. You could describe me as practical. I often choose function and efficiency over other factors.
28. You could also describe me as being more moderate than extreme.
29. I like to cook, especially for people who enjoy my cooking.
30. I like to sew, but rarely use a pattern and I don't usually make clothes.
31. I was frugal even before I needed to be.
32. My most unusual summer job was mowing and weed-eating a cemetery. I had a great tan that summer.
33. I love to walk in the country, not so much on suburban streets.
34. As a junior in high school I went on a trip to France, Switzerland and Italy. I haven't been off the continent since.
35. I'd love to have a fruitful garden.
36. I dislike confrontation.
37. My favorite way to redecorate and is to rearrange furniture and I like to do that often.
38. If I'm given a choice between chocolates or fruity candies I will always choose the fruity ones.
39. I am a regular soda drinker...though I know I need to change this.
40. When I think of our newlywed basement suite I laugh. We didn't have good furniture and it was really cold so the warmest and most comfortable place to be was in our bed.
41. With my kids I want to play more and yell less.
42. Motherhood is the toughest job I've ever had.
43. I don't mind loading the dishwasher, but I'm not too fond of unloading it.
44. I bought my first computer when I graduated from high school. It cost about $2000! Times have changed and thankfully prices on some things have come down.
45. All of my car accidents happened before I had my license.
46. It took me a few tries to get my school permit.
47. I'm currently torn between sending our son to a public charter school and homeschooling.
48. Ironically, our honeymoon was in Colorado, the state where we now live.
49. We drove my husband's car through the west to arrive home after our honeymoon in July...in a heat wave...without air conditioning. We really enjoyed our stops so we could talk to each other again.
50. I'm not a collector of anything, unless you count my ribbon stash. Some women have shoes, I have ribbon.
51. When we moved to Colorado Springs we had no friends.
52. We moved without ever visiting Colorado Springs and found our apartment on the internet. We were young and stupid, no, carefree, but unloading our moving truck into our dumpy apartment was a rude awakening.
53. It melts my heart when my kids say thank you for an ordinary thing I have done for them.
54. I love my two-yearold's belly laughs.
55. If we could do it over again, we would probably have taken a big tropical or European vacation sometime before having children.
56. My favorite kitchen appliance is my Bosch Kitchen Machine, followed closely by my Nutrimill and our Cuisinart waffle iron.
57. My favorite kitchen tools are my Pampered Chef batter bowl, avocado knife and spatulas. Did you know the avocado knife works well for getting the shells off hard boiled eggs? No, I don't sell P.C. and don't plan to go to more parties. I think I'm set.
58. One thing I would prefer not to live without would be our Dustbuster. We've used it multiple times per day since we've had kids eating.
59. I am not detail-oriented.
60. I don't follow strict rules for doing laundry. I've even been know to throw whites and colored items together into the washer just to get them off the floor.
61. I don't like folding laundry anywhere but the laundry room. Our laundry room is small but if we haul it out to the kitchen, living room or bedrooms to fold it the chance of it getting put away in a timely manner are slim to none. At least in the laundry room I can just keep adding to everyone's small basket until I have no choice but to put it away.
62. I spend too much time on the computer and hope this summer to drastically reduce that time to focus on my kids more.
63. I love to cook in a clean kitchen but if the kitchen is messy I feel overwhelmed.
64. I graduated university with a business degree. I don't see how that knowledge is being applied to my current life, but I am thankful for all the lessons I learned in pursuit of that degree and the friends I made along the way.
65. I miss the rain of B.C. while still loving the sunshine of Colorado.
66. When moving to Colorado Springs we went to return our U-Haul and did not have our car in town at that point. The U-Haul rep said one particular drop-off location would be walking distance to our apartment. Um...not so much. If you are local, think Black Forest Road to Academy along Woodmen road before there was any development (or sidwalks!) along half of the journey, more than 6 miles with temps in the 90s and the two of us sharing one 8 oz. bottle of water. We had a lot to learn!
67. In our Colorado Springs apartment we lived under a couple who had an alcohol problem. This would lead to many fights and glasses thrown at the fireplace above us and greatly encouraged us to pursue home ownership!
68. I did not grow up in a family who camped, but I enjoy camping now.
69. I met my husband on a ski lift on a spring break trip.
70. I love having boys and a girl!
71. I need to eat more vegetables.
72. I mourned a little over the coming of our second child because I knew it would never be the same with me and the firstborn.
73. I cried on the way to the hospital for our third child, though I wasn't in labor. I knew another big change was around the corner and for the first few hours of being at the hospital my husband couldn't be there because he was getting our children settled with friends.
74. With our firstborn I felt like a huge failure because nursing did not work. We tried lots of stuff and he just didn't catch on and so I pumped for a long time. (At this point some of you are thinking this is TMI...sorry). Looking back, it was crazy to think that.
75. Our second child also had nursing problems, but 4-5 weeks into the process caught on. Our third child did well from day one. My advice to new moms on this is to do all you can do to make it work and if it doesn't not to take this as a reflection on you or the bond you are making with your child. Like so many other issues of life, nursing is not one of the black and white things, even if La Leche would have you believe it is the only way.
76. I grew up one mile from one set of my grandparents and have many fond memories of times with them and wonder if we are robbing our kids by not living close to either set of grandparents.
77. Since beginning the frugal lifestyle in earnest I am often amazed and appalled at how people throw their money away. I know this sounds judgmental, and sometimes it is, but most of the time I just find it very intriguing.
78. Though we have always tried to be careful with our finances, we were greatly challenged in our spending, planning, and view of money by taking Financial Peace University Online in the last 6 months. It has been amazing, not fun, but really good!
79. I am thankful that my parents took us on some wonderful trips in our years at home. Now seeing and understanding how much work it is to take a family on a trip I am all the more thankful.
80. I love Friday night date nights with my husband and the delicious guacamole he makes!
81. I love organizing and decluttering, even if our house doesn't look like I apply those techniques nearly enough.
82. I played fast-pitch softball into high school and I do not "throw like a girl."
83. I like to stay up late and get up late, my husband likes to turn in early and get up early.
84. I accepted Jesus into my heart when I was preschool age, triggered largely by my sister (probably 6 or 7 at the time) telling me if I didn't believe in Jesus I was going to go to hell. My memory is fading, but I know it happened when we were getting ready to go to a Sunday evening service. Thankfully that is not the extent of my faith and I thank God that He continues to reveal Himself to me and that it really isn't about fearing hell that you accept a Savior, as I must have thought when I was preschool age.
85. The grace of God is amazing! The more I know Him, the more I see my sin and the more I need grace and the power of the gospel to transform me.
And the Winner Is....
Thanks to all who participated in the giveaway. Sister did the random drawing just now and the winner is Rebecca of That's What It's All About. I have the pleasure of knowing Rebecca in real life and appreciate her sweetness. We met at water aerobics at the Y while pregnant with our little boys and later realized that we were each the friend of a friend.
Have a happy day!
Have a happy day!
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