Merry Christmas!

The angel said to them, "Do not be afraid; for behold, I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For today, in the city of David, a Savior has been born for you Who is Messiah and Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger."
(Luke 2: 10-12)

Great little One!
Whose all-embracing birth
Lifts Earth to Heaven,
Stoops Heaven to Earth.
(Richard Crashaw)

I will honor Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year.
(Charles Dickens)

Wishing you a very merry and most blessed Christmas.

Happy Birthday, Baby!

Today is Gil's birthday. I love these pictures taken when we were little kids... so much orange and pattern!


I love you, Babe. You are simply the best. I am so grateful to be able to celebrate your life on this day and how special that life is to all who know you. Happy Birthday.

A Blessed Thanksgiving

I am blessed. I am thankful. I am grateful to a God Who has given me everything I need and so much of what I want.

I am blessed.

I am thankful.

I am grateful to have a husband who loves me more than any other human could love another. He loves me when I feel unlovable and he loves me when I act unlovable.

I am grateful to have three beautiful children who bless my every day with their inquisitiveness and hearts overflowing with love. I am grateful to finally hear the word "Mommy" and have it mean ME!

I am grateful to have parents who have always been there for me and will always be there for me and who have taught me what true, unconditional love is all about.

I am grateful for a brother who makes me laugh, who supports me and is there for me and mine in times of need and even in times we don't need (which are way better times, anyway!).

I am grateful for in-laws who love and accept me as one of their own.

I am grateful for a house that has become a home.

I am grateful for all the food I am able to make today (even though I wasn't planning on making anything).

I am grateful for all the men and women who sign up to sacrifice their lives to protect mine. Without them, I wouldn't have much of what I've listed above. I'm honored to be able to say my husband and my father are among them.

I am blessed.

I am thankful.

I am grateful.

And I never forget to pray for those who don't have a fraction of what I do. I ask you to take a moment to lift them in prayer right now, too.

Happy Thanksgiving.

7 Years

Seven years ago, I went out on my very first date with Gil. We went to the Te.xas Roa.dhouse. I had a chicken critter salad and he had steak kabobs... nothing that should have warranted a three-hour dinner! We just couldn't stop talking with each other so we continued the talking for an additional three hours afterward.

That first year of dating brought many happy moments, followed by some very drastic not-so-happy moments. Three days after our first date anniversary, he asked for a second chance. I have to say how very thankful I am that I so totally believe in second chances. It's been nothing but heaven ever since.

Here's a picture taken 3 weeks after we started dating, our first picture taken as a "couple".


Seven years... and no signs of an itch!!

Halfway to Seventy

Now that I've updated the events of August, a month of just being "present" and doing a bunch of fun things, I can start September, an emotional month with many high and lows and much more serious content.

The month began with my birthday which, for the past 4 years, has increasingly become more difficult. I don't mind aging, in and of itself, but it is still a reminder to me of so many things in our lives. This past year of my life brought about my first cavities and receding gumlines, my first pair of reading glasses, and my doctor's serious recommendation for a baseline mammogram. Yay! Can a person be any more excited to have any of those issues to deal with and then have them all come up the same year?! So... I have to heat my soft-bristle toothbrush with hot water prior to brushing, I have to wear my glasses as I look at a computer all day, and I got the girls squished.

But the real difficulty on my birthday is in realizing yet another year of potential fertility has passed us by. It's been over five and a half years of trying to get pregnant. I'm now in the "high risk" and "advanced maternal age" categories if I do, miraculously, become pregnant. My birthday brings with it another year of loved and cherished moments but also takes away another year of availability to try and achieve what most people take for granted. It's always a very bittersweet day and I was so thankful my husband respects my feelings and keeps things relatively subdued for me. I had a great dinner the night before my actual birthday with my parents and some really good friends... a GREAT dinner! But when I awoke the next morning, all I wanted to do was lay in bed and cry. And I did, for a bit. But then I had to wake up and make breakfast, clean, make lunch, clean, make dinner, clean... all in a day's work!

Birthday Girl

We had Miss B's birthday while we were out camping because, well, definitely NOT because of the gorgeous weather that day! It turned out kind of cloudy and cool. And our poor little girl... she's blessed with a birthday right during back-to-school time and we had her party on a weekend when people were still shopping, getting in last-of-the-summer outings, reunions, etc., etc. So she had a pretty small turn-out for her "pony party" but it was good and she had fun. We had Italian sodas and cupcake cones (cupcakes baked in ice cream cones), which were a huge hit with the kids and one of my younger cousins who crashed the party.


Even Mommy liked baking the cupcakes... no cake to slice and serve, and no messy cupcake wrappers to peel and throw away. The whole thing was edible! And no comments on the pink party hat... I love my daughter enough to look silly and wear my most-hated color... which my home now has entirely too much of but thankfully most is confined to Miss B's bedroom!

I think D-man ate about 10 cupcakes!! Growing, basketball-playing college boys and their appetites... and talk about skinny! Dang him and his metabolism all to heck, anyway!

Even my parents' dog got in on the festivities... bless her good-natured heart. Such a good dog.

Miss B got some new clothes, some local university-themed gear from her uncle (who is actually a fan of the rival university!), a brand new play kitchen and a bunch of dishes and food to stock it, a new baby doll (who's dark-skinned, just like her), a Mr. Pot.ato Head and Family, in addition to other little toys. She absolutely loves her kitchen and plays with it every day.

And best of all? She gets to be the same age as her older brother for two months!

Idaho's Hot Curves

Hot Curves = Long and windy roads in the one week of sweltering temps this summer! Gil and I sent the kids camping with my parents and took a little get-away bike trip to celebrate our anniversary. We packed up the bikes - okay, packed up my bike! - and rode through a good portion of central Idaho to experience a piece of the country I've never seen before. Most of the posted speed limits never went above 55 mph, for which, I have to say, I was very grateful! I think we only had about 10 miles of straight or even somewhat curvy road as we followed twisty rivers for most of our 3 days... it was testing my still-amateur riding skills but it was so totally awesome! And besides... my amateur skills took me over the Bea.rtooth Highway and then to Stu.rgis the very first summer I had my bike!!

The best way to ride... The sign like this on a portion of our trip was for 77 miles and completely surrounded by forest but I didn't turn back to get a picture so this one will have to do:

Here's Gil at one of the overlooks we stopped at:

And at another road-side pull-out, we saw this little thing... an Inuksuk! We first saw Inuksuks (of Inuit origin) on our honeymoon in Canada so it was very fitting we see one on our wedding anniversary! Granted, it was a bit out of its cultural locale but we were excited to see it.

This is another portion of the trip... an old highway where the speed limit is only about 35, but it's so twisty and the switchbacks are so sharp, I was maybe only going 20-25. This is a "retired" highway as a new highway was built that went straight up the mountain (you can see it in the top left of the picture). We had stopped at one of the higher spots on this road and looked over... we both thought of the movie Cars because of the new bypass. We might've taken the longer route but it was by far more interesting.

The hotel we stayed in our 2nd night... we followed rivers for the majority of our 3-day ride, there were about 3 main ones, and this hotel was right on the edge of 1 of them.

We had an absolute blast getting away and spending some time on the bikes. We treasure every moment on 2 wheels now. We knew we were losing a majority of riding season when we moved to a different climate last summer but we lost even more when we brought the kids home this winter. Not that we regret either the move or the kids (!!) but we sure enjoy our bike time all the more now. And we seem to be getting in the habit of making a bike trip during our anniversary time... what better way to celebrate!

3:14 p.m.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BABY BROTHER!

Here he is when he was so cute and tiny, smelling that wonderful baby smell, and I was able to hold him and rock him and cuddle him and call him George... oops, I never called him George! I think this picture was taken within his first week or two at home when I was just over a month shy of being a four-year-old.


This picture was taken at my wedding a few short years ago... my, how he's grown! But he's still cute and loveable (most of the time!).

I love you, S. And though you say this is just another day to you, it's the day for those of us who love you to celebrate your birth into this earthly world and your physical entrance into our lives.

Happy Mother's Day!

In honor of the most beautiful and loving Mom in the whole wide world...


This picture shows her as a high school senior. She IS one of the most beautiful people I know, and she honestly only continues to get younger. We'll be sisters pretty soon. I don't know how she does it but I hope it's genetic because I need to stop this aging thing!

I love you, Mom... and I loved you first!

A Family Blessing

We are unable to baptize our children until they're legally adopted but my mom suggested having a "blessing" ceremony and a "welcome to the family celebration". So that's what we did today. The priest who married Gil and I was even the one to lead the blessing. It was such a treasure to walk into the church where I've received every Sacrament of my life and see our family and friends there to welcome our children into our family. We had a "baby shower" and luncheon afterward. There was a lot of visiting, which I had to cut short because I was being ordered to start opening gifts! It was a wonderfully blessed and beautiful day... my mom sure knows how to throw a party!

Here's our family photo in front of the alter, sans kids:

Z entertained himself by learning about the order of the Mass:

My dad explaining The Last Supper to L and B:

B showing off her fancy new tie-dye dress one of my friends made her. She absolutely loves it!

My Gram made L and Z ribbon shirts and B a ribbon dress. They'll wear these at their first powwow this next Friday.

And people were bringing children to Him that He might touch them, but the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw this He became indignant and said to them, "Let the children come to me; do not prevent them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Amen, I say to you, whoever does not accept the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it." Then He embraced them and blessed them, placing His hands on them. (Mark 10:13-16 NAB)

Easter Blessings

The Easter Bunny was good to us this year. We have 3 kids! Yay! But EB was good to the kids, too. We had a busy weekend...

One of my cousins decided to get married on the 10-year anniversary of the first date to his sweetheart... that day just happened to fall on Easter (and his brother's birthday!). Due to this, our first holiday celebration with the kiddos was a bit messed up. Instead of the big Church and Feast day on Easter, we celebrated Saturday.

We went to Good Friday services and, truth be told, it was our first Church venture with the children. Our Sundays in the month leading up to this were busy with visits to the children, bringing the children home, letting them adjust a bit, rushing to visit Gil's uncle, etc. So we start 'em off good with a 2-hour service on Good Friday. And you know what? They were excellent! We got so many compliments on how well-behaved our children are! And Mass was right at noon so it was during their typical lunch and nap times. There were a couple of kids behind us talking and carrying on through the whole service but not ours. We were so proud. I only wish we could take the credit!

The Easter Bunny made his first appearance Friday night while we were dying Easter eggs... a little black bunny was in our front yard, just a few feet from our porch. The wind was howling and rain was falling so he was in a little ball and you could see the wind blowing his fur up from behind. I wish I would've thought to take pictures; the kids were ecstatic! They were even more ecstatic when they saw what that cute little ball of fluff left for them the next morning:

Yes, I figured out a way to post pictures of my children without posting pictures of my children! Their baskets each had the typical eggs and candy, of course, but they each got new spring jackets, a Berns.stein Bears book, and a movie.

We had a quick breakfast and then got our butts in gear to get out the door so we could make the drive to my parents and be there in time for lunch. Man oh man, I tell ya... trying to leave takes 3 times as long now with the kids... 3 hours instead of the 1 it used to take from start to finish. Yikes! I'm hoping to halve that time, at least.

After lunch, the kids opened their Easter baskets from my parents. While they were exclaiming and rejoicing in all that egg-stra fun, the Easter bunny called and said he left some surprises out in the yard! Imagine that... tracking us down all the way at my parents! The kids went berserk... especially after L spied an egg out the patio doors.

We rushed to get jackets on and the kids dumped the loot from their 2nd Easter baskets so they could use them to gather eggs. It actually started snowing while we were outside.

We spent the rest of the day relaxing and enjoying each others' company. Gil and Dad took the young'uns for a ride in the Mu.le up the hill. My brother came up and we enjoyed a nice Easter dinner (and really full bellies). We camped overnight and woke up to get ready for Church. We attended Mass with my parents and, again, the kids were fabulously well-behaved through a 1-1/2 hour long service. They got to meet a LOT of people who have prayed for us through this entire journey and shared the excitement when we found out about the kids. We took a few family photos after Mass before rushing off to my cousin's wedding... on the lake shore... where it was freezing!

But oh-so-nice. Weddings always make me happy and teary. J and C have been together for 10 years... they have 2 girls... and they are now officially married. It was a beautifully sunny day despite the chilly wind and thankfully, none of the snow from the previous day was evident.



It was a great Easter weekend.

Monday's Musings

I am thankful for... others who love me enough to pray for me when I'm unable to pray for myself.

Outside my window... slush and mud. Our winter thus far has consisted of a day or two of snowing, not accumulating more than an inch or two, followed by a week of sunshine and melting. Yuck. I just want some snow to pile on and be cold enough to stick with us for a month or so.

I am going... insane from stress and worry. I am not fearful of what my future holds but I do worry about loving the future God has planned for me.

I am reading... I'm still trying to get through Adopting the Hurt Child but honestly haven't read much else than medical records over the past week.

I am hoping... for some good news this week.

I am hearing... the tv. Mondays just aren't very exciting in my life.

One of my favorite things... hosting get-togethers... and I'm looking forward to having some family and friends over for the Su.per Bo.wl this coming weekend. We're going to have Indian tacos (mmm!). I'm also going to make spinach artichoke dip with toasted baguettes, mini weenie wraps, lots of fresh veggies. And we can't have football without beer.

Here is a picture I'm sharing... our friend and sister-by-choice. It's her birthday today. Happy Birthday, L!

Winter's Officially Here

Today's the first day of winter. I haven't blogged since my Musings last week. There will be no Musings today. Life's been busy. Super busy. It's had its ups and it's had its downs... some major ups and downs in the past week alone. That's all I'll say about that.

Christmas is this week. We'll be celebrating with my family. Christmas Eve at my parents and then Christmas Day at our home. I guess I'm officially an adult now; I've started assuming some holiday hosting for the family dinners and get-togethers. I spent tonight baking 5 different treats and cookies, though my molasses cookies didn't turn out. I used a friend's recipe and it turned out nothing like the way she makes them. I was so frustrated I just threw away all the batter/dough. I haven't had a lot of gift wrapping to do because we really scaled back on the gifts we bought and money we spent this year, but I've got everything wrapped and under the tree.

Besides, Christmas isn't about the treats and money spent on gifts. Christmas is about CHRIST. And as distant and angry as I've been with Him over the past few years, I still love Him and still honor the way He came down from heaven in the form of a lowly human to give His life for us... for me.

Christmas Can [Still] Change the World

The story of Christ's birth is a story of promise, hope, and revolutionary love.

So what happened?

What was once a time to celebrate the birth of a Savior has somehow turned into a season of stress, traffic jams, and shopping lists.

And when it's all over, many of us are left with presents to return, looming debt that will take months to pay off, and this empty feeling of missed purpose.

Is this what we really want out of Christmas?

What if Christmas became a world-changing event again?

Welcome to Adv.ent Cons.piracy.

(Text copied from Adv.ent Cons.piracy's website because I couldn't have said it any better myself.)

Can you tell me how to get...

... how to get to Sesame Street?

I just want to give a quick shout out to something that was very instrumental in my early life... HAPPY 40th ANNIVERSARY, SESAME STREET!!! Count 'em... 40, 40 beautiful years, ah ah ah! I love the Count!


I have to admit, I'll still watch an episode if I happen to catch one while I'm flipping through channels on a sick day. There are a few new characters since I was a kid but it's still the same ol' comforting Sesame Street.

Sunny days... chasin' the clouds away...

(Now I've got ya singing, don't I?!!)

Birthday Shout-Out

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, B!!!

Today is my goddaughter's birthday. I haven't sent a card or even got my gift together yet because this has been the year that I have forgotten to do that for just about everyone in my life. It's been a crazy rollercoaster ride of a summer and my mind is spacier than I ever thought it could be. It's so out of character for me and I hate that. However, I have not forgotten the people who are special to me and their special days.

B is 6 years old today. She is 5 1/2 years cancer free. She is a special little girl to so many people but for me, she's special for different reasons. It may help that her mom and I have been friends since day care but, also, B came at a time in my life where it was hard to be around babies and small children. My diagnosis of PCOS came 7 1/2 years ago and Gil and I met almost 6 years ago. I've been infertile all of B's life (yikes!) but it has never been difficult for me to be around B (and now her little brother) as it has been for me to be around other littles. I don't know why. It's definitely a God thing.

B - it's been a pleasure to be a part of your life and to watch you growing up. Happy Birthday, Sun Spot!

4 years ago, at my engagement party.

3 years ago as my flowergirl in our wedding.

This summer watching a parade, after playing dress-up with another friend's girls that morning.

Happy Anniversary

Three wonderfully blessed and happy years as husband and wife.
I love you, Baby.

It's Ours

Well... after six weeks and filling out all this paperwork...


... and signing even more paperwork...


... it's finally ours! Our new home!


Now comes the unpacking and trying to settle in amidst two months packed chock full of plans and activities. We may not have gotten much of a summer but coming home makes it all worth it.

July 18th, Part 1 of 3

The Parade...

This weekend, my hometown had its annual celebration. I took some pictures of the parade that Gil and I took time to attend. We didn't go to any of the other festivities (BBQ, concert, street "dance", 3-on-3 tourney, or the other fun and games) because we were trying to get some last minute things done before moving this weekend. We have an appointment at the title company to sign and close on our new home this coming Thursday, which means we get to spend Friday moving, and Gil's out of town this week and I have an overnight trip out of town tomorrow, and and and... it's just gonna be crazy! We did take time to enjoy a nice breakfast with friends Saturday morning and then go to the parade afterward. We had a great time.

Always honor the Honor Guard and all our service men and women.

Gotta include pictures of the old military Jeeps!

The local Methodist church put Noah's Ark together.

A great way to honor our local volunteers.

This was animated and smoke blowing and everything...
pretty high class for our little town parade.

The Big Three Oh!

Happy Birthday to my baby, ahem... I mean, younger brother today!