Baby 3 update

I am right around five weeks from my due date! I know I can't believe it, this pregnancy has gone by so fast. I have already informed my husband that any more children we have, we must try to have them be born in the winter, because between holidays and birthdays I have barely had time to remember I'm pregnant. Ok that might not be completely true, but you get my point.

I am right around 33 weeks pregnant, and at my last ultra sound baby was a little more than 3 pounds. The baby is very active, so active in fact I'm a little nervous about if it's going to be a hyper toddler. Erik and I were laughing today about how when I was pregnant with Jack he was pretty active, and he is most definitely a busy boy, and Anna was never all that active and she's our little sleepy head. So I'm thinking there are some personality traits you can already see from the womb!

We do not know what we are having, we like to be surprised, and we keep going back and forth on what we think the baby is. I am really excited to see how this baby is received by Jack and Anna, though I have little doubt it will be a somewhat difficult transition. I well remember having to get used to having a thirteen month old and a newborn(since you know it was only a little over a year ago!) and I don't imagine things being any easier this time around. But it will pass, and before long we won't even remember life before we became a family of five. That's one of the benefits of having children so close together, they are pretty adaptable!

Christmas at the Saltsgaver's

Our Christmas Tree on Christmas Eve. We hadn't put any gifts out until the kids went to bed, because we wanted them to be surprised in the morning.




Miss Anna enjoying the stuffed dog she got from Erik's aunt and uncle. It's a battery charged dog that barks, giggles, and rolls over, and Anna is absolutely in love with it. She most certainly gets her love of animals from her daddy!



The kids enjoying their new fish tank. We put a towel over it, and let the kids pull it off on Christmas Morning.



The mini drum set was the gift that trumped all others for Jack. He adores those drums, much to Erik's delight! When he's coloring, which used to be his all time favorite activity, he'll say, "Can I please get down so I can play the drums?"



The face of one very happy and worn out little boy on Christmas. We had such a great day celebrating and relaxing with each other!

The 2 year old, the Grinch, and the Baby Jesus

Hey, everybody, I am working on a Christmas post, but since it will have lots of pictures in it, it is going to be awhile before it's posted. Just thought I'd share an interesting story with you all about my 2 year old.

Erik and I have been together for five years, and every Christmas Eve since we have always went and looked at Christmas lights. This year we were so looking forward to sharing this tradition with Jack and Anna since they are old enough to see the lights and be excited about them. After our dinner on Christmas Eve we bundled them in their Christmas pajamas, cranked up the Christmas music, and set about our way.

We were happily stopping at the many houses lit up, and pointing out the things we figured the kids would love to see. One of the houses had a gigantic Grinch standing out in front of it with an evil grin on his face. We didn't really comment on it, but when Jack saw it he freaked out, and started screaming, "No more!" repeatedly. We moved onto another house, but Jack had his mind made up that there would be no more looking at Christmas lights that night, and to make things even stranger he kept repeating, "No more Baby Jesus! No more Baby Jesus!" Somehow the kid got it in his head that the Grinch was the Baby Jesus! Nevermind the fact that Jack has seen many Nativity scenes throughout this month, never mind the fact that we have a nativity scene in our house, Jack's mind was made up that the Grinch was in fact baby Jesus.

We thought it was weird, but figured he was probably tired, and we would take them out again Christmas night after they'd had a little rest. So Christmas night rolls around, my inlaws are over enjoying some presents and watching the kids play with all their new toys, when we announce that we are going to go look at Christmas lights again. Jack stops what he's doing, gets very serious, and says, "No more. Please no more! No more baby Jesus!" We were very surprised by his reaction, because like I said, it's not as if we haven't been talking with Jack about why we have Christmas, and why we pray, and he's never had an issue before. We quickly changed the subject and told him we were going to go for a drive with Froggie(his beloved stuffed animal.)

Off we went for the second time, Jack was a nervous wreck, but finally he started to calm down, and by the time we were almost done looking at lights he was very excited. We steered clear of any Grinch's we saw at any houses. When we got home and were getting the kids ready for bed, I brought out the Mary figurine that I have that's holding the Baby, and told Jack, "See this is the baby Jesus!" Relief came over Jack's face, and this morning when he woke up, he walked right up to the manger scene and said, "Good morning, Baby Jesus!" Something tells me we'll be asking God for lots of wisdom throughout our kids lives.

For our sakes He became Poor

"Joy to the World! The LORD has come! Let Earth receive her King."

Merry Christmas Eve to anyone who is still reading this! Sorry it's been so long since I've updated, life has been very busy, and there hasn't been much time to get online. Hopefully I'll be updating more now that my husbands finals are over.

Six years ago, when I was eighteen, I became a Christian. That first Christmas as a born again believer was one of the most special Christmas's I've been blessed to have. For some reason, the Lord saved me and gave me a heart for studying and knowing His Word. The last couple of weeks have been filled with lots of activity, and unfortunately time meditating on God coming to Earth hasn't been as frequent as I had hoped it would be, but the last couple of days, the Truth has really been manifesting itself in my life. One thing that has occurred to me is how singing Christmas songs has become such a loved tradition in my life, that I almost forget how true the lyrics are to some of our favorite Christmas Carols(excluding the Santa ones, lol.)

Tonight if you're going to a Christmas Eve service, or tomorrow if your Church has Christmas Church, or if you're just going to be driving around looking at Christmas lights and listening to Christmas Carols, please be encouraged to truly worship the Savior to your favorite songs. And be thankful to God that He loves us so much that 2000 years ago he became poor for our sakes. Not because He owed us any favors, but because He loves us.

Merry Christmas!

Having a Happy Home

I'm not going to lie. Staying home is not something I enjoy doing too much of. I don't like weeks where nothing is going on, and I hate weekends even more that are void of any activity. Call it pregnancy hormones, or maybe it's just the way I am, but I am definitely someone who likes to be busy. One of the reasons I don't like winter is that being on the go is a lot more difficult. Especially with two little ones!

Anyways, I had always heard things like, "You should make your home an exciting place to be," and "One of the best things you can do for kids is staying home more often." I thought these were nice ideas, but I'm not sure I believed them. That is until this week. This week has been crazy busy. Actually, every week since the middle of November has been pretty busy, but this past week has been filled with Moms group, Christmas shopping, doctors appointments for the kids and myself, Church, Bible Studies, and errands. Things were starting to wear on me, but I didn't realize how much things were getting to my kids until Thursday morning when I was bustling them out the door to make yet another doctor appointment. On our way out to the van, my two year old started crying. I asked him what was wrong a little distractedly, and buckled him into his car seat.

The crying continued for a block or two, when finally he says in his little two year old voice, "Mommy, want to stay home with you! Don't want to go bye bye!" How that pierced me! At the stop light, I turned around and told him we did have to go see the doctor that day, but I promised we would stay home and play this weekend. I'm not sure how much he understood,but he did eventually stop crying. And since Thursday afternoon, we have been at home. And when we have left for Church or errands, it's been the four (five?) of us together. So the past few days have been spent coloring, playing with play doh, decorating Christmas cookies, reading stories, wrestling(that's more Erik and the kids, my belly gets in the way), and having family dinners. It might not seem like anything too exciting, but to our kids it's much better this way.

Well we finally accomplished most of what I had planned for the baking and freezing day. I actually got it all done on Thursday, but I haven't had a chance to post our accomplishments. Here is a list of what I was actually able to get done:

1.) Broccoli Cheese Soup
2.) Whole Chicken cut up and packaged
3.) Reeses Peanut Butter Cup Christmas Cookies(That actually never got frozen! What can I say we like cookies around here!)
4.) Chicken Noodle Soup

That pretty much was all I was able to get done on Thursday. We had a lot of fun cooking though. As you can see from the picture, Jack was took his job of helping put sprinkles in the cookie dough very seriously. Unfortunately I was so focused on getting a good picture, I didn't notice when he dumped the entire can of green sprinkles into the dough! So in an attempt to even them out we added more red sprinkles than necessary as well. Let's just say that those cookies are a bit to sugary for someone with gestational diabetes. Oh well Erik, Jack, and Anna like them, so that's what matters.

Having a Baking and Freezing Day

I have always enjoyed making meals ahead and freezing them. When I had Anna, I got the idea to freeze several meals(I wasn't so smart when I had Jack :-)and it served our family really well. Since there is a blog carnival over the next couple of days for people who are having a baking and freezer cooking day, I thought I would participate, and use this experience to prepare me for next month, when I plan on having a really big freezer cooking day, since this baby will be getting close to due by then! So here is a list of things I am hoping to make. It's not nearly as impressive as others on the money saving mom blog, but this is just what has to work for me right now!

1. Make whole Chicken in crockpot, and shred meat for various meals throughout the month
2. Whole Wheat Waffles(my kids are obsessed with these, and I'm thinking the whole wheat makes them decently healthy.)
3. Sugar Cookie Dough
4. Reeses Peanut Butter Cookies
5. 2 pans of chicken enchiladas
6. Broccoli Cheese Soup
7. Chicken Noodle Soup
8. Chicken Broccoli Cheese Casserole

We will see how much of this I am actually able to accomplish, but all the times I have done this has been a huge blessing since we are able to avoid eating out on busy nights, or nights when I'm too tired to cook. I will be updating later today or tomorrow to let you know what actually got done!

To participate in this freezer cooking day, or to follow others who are participating check out Money Saving Mom's blog!

Starting new Traditions

Traditions. The memories we have and hold dear for our whole lives. This last week has brought up much talk of traditions between my husband and I. My husband and I grew up with different traditions, for example when I was growing up most holidays were easy going days, there wasn't a lot of travel involved, usually it was just the four of us, or we would go up to my aunt's family's and celebrate. Occasionally we'd go see a movie. My husband, on the other hand, grew up with getting up really early and going up to his grandma's house and spending the entire holiday with almost every member of his extended family. To me thanksgiving is cooking and relaxing in my sweats all day with a few people, but to my husband thanksgiving is meant to be spent with your entire family, the men watching the game, the women hanging out in the kitchen.

Since we've been married, and most definitely since we've had kids, holidays have become rather busy affairs. We're blessed to have both sides of grandparents who want to be involved, so thanksgiving and especially Christmas can turn into a very busy time, trying to uphold everyone's long standing traditions. This year since our oldest is almost two and a half, we also want to start our own family traditions. A lot of questions have presented themselves to us in the last few weeks. Should we do Santa Clause, or should we not do Santa Clause? How big a deal should we make out of gifts? Especially as our kids get older? How do we keep the main focus on Christmas being about Christ's birth? These are all questions that every family has to answer for themselves, and we certainly have no idea if some of our ideas are going to achieve the results we are hoping for. Of course I guess we'll just learn from the mistakes we made with Jack and Anna, and by the time our family is complete we'll have it all figured out, right? Just kidding.

So this month will be filled with an Advent Calendar, cookie baking, and cozy nights watching Christmas movies as a family. I think one of the nicest traditions we've hopefully started is cutting down our tree, decorating it, and then watching a Christmas movie with some pizza. Simple, but hopefully something our children will look forward to every weekend after thanksgiving. However, when the kids are excited about the pretty Christmas tree or the gifts they have been given, we will be quick to remind them that the only reason they are able to enjoy these things is because of the Perfect Gift God gave to us two thousand years ago.

So what traditions do you and your family have, and what ways do you strive to keep the focus on Jesus?

Merry Frugal Christmas!

Did I get your attention with the words frugal and Christmas put together? I thought so! Have you guys heard of Swagbucks? If you haven't they are seriously awesome! I use it instead of google, and use it to get to my usual websites I go to everyday!

Anyways everyday you are guaranteed to win at least one swagbuck, but more than likely you'll earn more than that, it just depends on how often you use it. After you win 45 swagbucks, you can cash it in for a 5 dollar amazon gift card. And now as a special bonus for Christmas swagbucks is marking down the amount needed to redeem gift cards by a significant amount! You get three swagbucks just for signing up. There are Macy's gift cards, Barnes and Noble gift cards, Target gift cards, and Starbucks gift cards. I have been saving mine since July, and have began cashing them in for amazon cards. I will have at least 30 dollars in swagbucks to buy Christmas presents. It might not seem like much, but they really add up! And all you have to do is use it as a search engine.

Then after you redeem your swagbucks, you should get an account with ebates. Ebates is a website that allows you to get a certain percentage back on your online purchases. It's usually between 3-6 % back, but that's money going right back to you, and after you've earned $5.01, you'll be eligible to get your check. So if you are going to be doing any online shopping this holiday season, this would be a very wise website to order through.

These are two tips I have for stretching your Christmas budget a little further. You can sign up for both of these companies by clicking here for swagbucks and here for Ebates. You can also click the link for swagbucks on the side of this page. It doesn't cost anything, and it will save you a little bit of money this holiday season! Soon, you will probably begin to sound like my friends and I by saying things like, "How many swagbucks did you earn today?" or "I just won 10 swagbucks!"

*Disclaimer: When you sign up for these sites I will get credit for referring you if you click on the above links.

Like Father, Like Son?

Lately my little boy has been a little parrot. Everything Erik or I say, Jack says- which has caused us to really think before we speak at times! Everything Erik or I do, Jack wants to do. Anything from parenting his stuffed animals to sitting with his Bible, looking up at us when we ask him a question and going, "Hush," is in many ways mimicking the things we do. And just as an aside we do not hush Jack at home when we are reading our Bible, it stems from a Family Bible study we go to on Sunday nights where Jack has to sit quietly for an hour. Just to clarify.

So I suppose it should not have come as a huge surprise when Jack started coming up to me while I was making dinner, and wrapping himself around my leg and saying, "Hewwo Cwazy." That's Jack speak for, "Hello, Crazy." Yep, that's right, Erik oftentimes will come up to me while I'm making dinner and give me a kiss and say, "Hello, crazy." From the time we went on our third or fourth date, Erik has always affectionately called me crazy. And yes it is affectionately and yes there is a reason behind it, that I will spare you the details of at this time, lest you also think I'm crazy.

When Jack first started doing this I wasn't entirely sure how to handle it. I tried explaining to him that this is not a nice thing to say to others, but it was hard to reprimand him to sternly since he is usually nuzzled against my leg or resting his head on my shoulder when he does this. It also doesn't help matters that my husband thinks this is hilarious. When I was discussing this with Erik a few days ago, he reminded me that when Jack does this or when he does this, it isn't an insult in any way shape or form, in fact its the equivalent of being called honey or sweetie. At least in this house.

So if you see a little boy running around and he runs up to give you a hug and calls you crazy, please do not be insulted. Instead, think of it as if he just said, "Hey, sweetheart!" Because, after all, he is just mimicking the sweet moments he witnesses between his mommy and daddy.

Letter to my kiddos

Dear Jack, Anna, and Baby,

Jack, you are almost 28 months old! Which, since I never hear anyone describe their 2 year old in month terms anymore, I guess you are officially a big boy! You have one of the sweetest dispositions of any toddler I have ever been around. You are very friendly to just about everyone you meet and also very funny. You're such a good daddy to your "Froggie", even though sometimes just as any good daddy has to do, when you feel froggie has disobeyed, you must discipline him. But you are always quick to remind him you love him. Watching you interact with froggie can either give your daddy and I some encouragement with how we are raising you, or sometimes it convicts us to make sure we're watching our tone of voice with you!

Jack, you also love to listen to music! One of your favorite things to do is listen to Mighty to Save by Hillsong on You Tube. You are constantly requesting the " Cross Jesus song." There have even been times when you've been on the verge of throwing a fit because you couldn't listen to it as soon as you wanted, which I have to admit puts me in quite an awkward position because I'm not normally inclined to give into you when you're whining, but when you're whining and saying, "Please, sing song to Jesus!" I can't very well discourage that, now can I? You are also a good helper. You actually like to help Mommy put away dishes, you love to sort laundry, and you're pretty good about picking up your toys! You are also an awesome older brother to Anna. When she is crying, you'll oftentimes bring her a toy, give her a(rather forceful) hug and tell her not to cry. Not that there aren't times when you feel the need to parent her and say sternly," Anna, no fits. That's a no no!"

Anna, you are almost 15 months! You are still teeny tiny, and most people don't believe me when I say you're several months past being a 9 month old! But you are, and while you might be small, you are very sharp and are saying quite a few words already such as, Mama, Dada, Ball, Thank You, Bub, and No no(that's one you just picked up last night!)You're getting pretty close to walking, probably still have a month or two more before it becomes your primary transportation, but you get around really well. Everyone comments to me that they think you have the cutest little jibber jabber. Oftentimes you'll randomly point at something and have an entire conversation with us about it!

Your personality is what your daddy and I like to call all or nothing. There is rarely middle ground with you. I will say most of the time you are very happy and funny, but if you are tired, hungry, or just plain don't want to do something there is very little we can do about it except give you what you want. You are definently a mama's girl, though in the last month or so I think your daddy and I are now on equal footing with you, it's just I'm with you more. But when your daddy walks through the door at the end of the day you're the first one scrambling to get to his arms for a hug and kiss. With your big eyes and curly hair, I think it's safe to say that all the men in your life (Daddy and both your grandpa's) are wrapped around your finger.

You also love to play peek a boo with us, but you haven't quite figured out how to cover your eyes, oftentimes you cover your ears and then pop your arms open! You and Jack both love to play peek a boo in our curtains, and at night before bed you two will usually play that will chasing each other around our ottoman. For a long time you thought that Jack could do no wrong. If he'd take a toy from you, you'd laugh at him, as if to say, "Bubby can do no wrong!" However, now that you're a little older you definently love your Jack, but you certainly won't stand for it if Jack takes one of your toys!

Lastly, to my baby, I'm so excited to meet you in a few months! I can't wait to see how Jack and Anna take to you! Heck, I'm excited to find out what you are! You are very active, especially at night where you seemingly have endless dance parties. February will be here before we know it! I hope you're ready for the crazy family you're about to be born into!

God doesn't need a Savings Account

It's probably no secret to anyone who reads this blog and certainly to anyone who knows me personally that currently my husband and I have nothing in savings. Do I think this is wise? No. Do I think this is irresponsible of us? No, in our particular season of life I do not think it is irresponsible of us to not have a savings account. Would it be nice? Absolutely. Would it be a lot less stressful if we did? Of course it would be! However, once again I am forced to remind myself that in this stage of life we are trying to survive, not pay off debt, put money in our children's college funds, or save for retirement.

You see, earlier this year my husband was laid off after several months of little or no work. We did have savings, unfortunately we did not have going on 12 months of living expenses in a savings account, so it was only a few months before our savings account was gone. When it appeared my husband had his job back, he broke his thumb, but since it didn't happen at work not only did we not have unemployment coming in, we also had no insurance. Making things a bit more interesting is the fact that during this time I unexpectedly found myself pregnant for the third time in less than two years! Just to make things a little more interesting, you should also know that our house has been sitting on the market for well over a year now.

However, even though these circumstances seem crazy and stressful, these were the events that God used to allow my husband to finally go back to college. Going back to college to complete a 2 year program that would make for a better life for us in the long run is something my husband and I have been wanting to happen for at least two years, but we were never sure how to make it work. And we certainly never foresaw that he would be going back to school before we sold our house. Thankfully, God has other plans. I don't pretend to understand why God hasn't provided a buyer for our home before allowing Erik to go back to college. In fact, there have been many times that I have cried out to the Lord and asked Him what's going on.

During this difficult season of life, it has been very easy for me to give into the temptation to grow anxious. There have been many times I have felt like a bad person when I read other peoples blogs about how financially savy they are, or talk to someone who seems to have it all together. I even hesitated to put on my blogs header the verse, "Seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be added to you," because I didn't want anyone reading this blog to think I was some sort of feel good Christian, someone who thinks that the only agenda God has is for us to be happy. Because I certainly am not. However, this verse has been one of my constant go to verses. Jesus promises that we NEVER have to worry about what we will eat or what we will wear, even the sparrows will have their needs met- how much more will we have our needs met? What a peace! What a blessing to know that God promises to never leave us or forsake us. As it says in Hebrews 13, we are not to love money, but instead be content with what we have, because He promises to NEVER leave us!

When I am tempted to grow weary and anxious, when I am tempted to think, "Ok, God, we only have this much left in checking, and this bill is due next week!" I am quickly reminded of Hebrews 13 and those verses in Matthew. God promises to meet our needs RIGHT NOW, so I'm constantly just reminding myself that obviously God isn't worried about it, and He knows what's best for us always, so I certainly don' t need to worry. Instead I can meditate on the principle that God is who He says He is, and in His lovingkindness has allowed us to have His Word to read, study, be comforted by, and encourage others with all for His Glory!

Obviously, I hope one day things will be different for us, though I am careful not to make an idol out of that hope, because I am certain each season brings its own unique trials and blessings. So for right now, I'm holding fast to the promise that even though all I see now is potentially worrisome situations, God is the only one who knows the future and the only One who truly knows what is best for us, and will give us the Grace to get through any situation.

The Babies are Sleeping

"I seldom feel like an adventurer- standing in this kitchen, pouring cereal into bowls, refilling them, handing out paper towels when the inevitable cry come, 'Uh oh I spilled.' But sometimes at night the thought will strike me: There are {two} little people here, breathing sweetly in their beds, whose lives are for a moment in our hands. I might as well be at the controls of a moon shot, the mission is so grave and vast." taken from Domestic Affairs

No matter how the day goes with my littles. No matter how often I've grown frustrated with my childrens lack of obedience or felt like screaming because the monotony of my day gets to me. Every night- and I mean every night- before my husband and I go to bed, we sneak into Jack and Anna's bedroom, cover them back up, gently rub their backs, and maybe lean down to give them one last kiss. Nothing warms my mama heart more than seeing my sweet little girl peacefully sleeping sucking contetedly on her hands and seeing my silly son with one arm draped around his beloved stuffed frog and the other one protectively holding his stuffed Mickey Mouse(Yes he has two security objects!)

The quote I posted is so true. Some days it doesn't feel like I'm doing anything significant, in fact most days feel like an endless whirl wind of diaper changes, correction, and peanut butter jelly sandwiches. But when I truly put things in perspective, not only realizing that the time I have with my children is so short, but beginning to get my head around the fact that God has given us these little souls to train up for His Glory, I feel beyond blessed and humbled by this astronomical challenge that has been given to me. When I look back on my life and think about my plans I had back when I first started college, my life now doesn't seem all that important as compared to all the plans I had for myself. However when I remember that my husband and I are solely responsible for these little lives, absolutely nothing could be a greater mission.

Kissing my sweet children's sleepy faces and realizing I've been given the greatest job in the world? That is certainly a finer thing!

For more encouraging posts on the Finer things in Life check out Amy's blog!

Menu Plan Monday

Well we finally made it back to the grocery store, and I now have a menu in place for the week. It isn't too exciting since my brain cannot seem to remember what foods my family likes(see what a week off from cooking does to someone??!) However for this week, this is as good as it gets..nice simple meals..

Monday: Stromboli and Carrots

Tuesday: Chicken Legs, Chicken Soup(?), Bread

Wednesday: Bbq Chicken Pizza

Thursday: Breakfast- Biscuits and Gravy, Waffles

Friday: Tacos and Chips and Cheese

Saturday: Potato Cheese Soup and Whole Chicken

Breakfasts for us are usually fruit and cereal, with pancakes thrown in every once in awhile( Depends on how tired I am in the morning). Lunch is usually leftovers, Peanut Butter and Jelly with some fruit and crackers, or some soup. For Desserts this week I am planning on making a cheesecake, peanut butter pie, and possibly some pumpkin bread(My husband has a sweet tooth you wouldn't believe!!)

For more awesome menus, check out the Organizing Junkies Menu Plan Monday at http://orgjunkie.comhttp://s109.photobucket.com/albums/n75/Orgjunkie/?action=view&current=mpmhappy.jpg

Frugal Friday?...mmm not so much

Usually I consider myself to be a fairly frugal person. However, Friday was not a typical day for me. See, I have been sick all week and we were out of town last weekend so I had not been to the store in almost a week and a half. Which wouldn't have been so bad since I'm usually pretty good about keeping our house stocked with food, but that was not the case this week. Between my husband eating out almost every night this week and my kids only eating peanut butter and jelly for both lunch and dinner(I love that they are not old enough to ask for the fast food!) Everyone- including myself- was excited for me to hit the grocery store.

Friday was to be THE DAY. I was feeling better, it was gorgeous outside, and the sales looked really good for the week. I loaded up the kids, menu in hand, and I was ready to SHOP. On the way over to the store, our realtor called me wanting to know if someone could come look at our house that evening at 4 o'clock. It was 11:30 and I was about a half hour away from our house. I hadn't started shopping yet and since I had been sick all week our house was a disaster. My response to our real estate agent? "Of course they can!" I called my husband and told him of the plan and needless to say he was less than thrilled about the idea of his pregnant wife who was getting over the flu spending the day frantically cleaning. He decided he could come home early and help, but we still needed cleaning supplies and FOOD.

At the store I became one of those crazy mommies you see from time to time. I was muttering to myself, getting exasperated with my kids, and just throwing things I was pretty sure we needed into the grocery cart. In what was quite possibly the quickest shopping trip for a weeks worth of groceries and cleaning supplies, I awaited my total. I figured it would be around 30 dollars. All of it rang up to about 52 dollars, seven dollars over our weekly budget. To make matters worse when my husband asked that evening what I wanted to do about dinner I was faced with the realization that not only had I gone over our budget, but I hadn't bought actual ingredients to prepare dinner with. I ended making our families favorite Broccoli Cheese Soup- seriously the ONLY thing I had ingredients to make- and Erik ran out and got a rotisserie chicken from the store. Unfortunately, today I have to run back out and get the rest of the stuff I meant to get yesterday. Oh well. I guess there's always next week.

Thankfulness

Lately I've been thinking a lot about being thankful for what I have. Perhaps it's the month of November what with Thanksgiving being at the end of the month and all, but I feel like it is more of a conviction. Unfortunately I tend to be one of those people who sees one prayer get answered, and then my mind quickly goes to, "Great, Lord. Ok so when are you going to answer my next prayer? Or how exactly are You going to work this situation out?" So recently I have been trying to meditate on all the good the Lord has done for me and my little family instead of worrying over when some of my bigger prayers that I haven't seen answered yet are going to be answered.

First, there's the obvious blessings, that I absolutely never want to take for granted, my husband and my children. My husband desires to take care of his family, lead his family, and he loves us very much. I'm thankful for my 2 year old's infectious giggle and my daughter's cuddly personality. I'm thankful they are healthy and safe. I'm thankful that the Lord has blessed us with another child on the way, even if it wasn't in our "plans" to have another baby quite this soon. I am thankful I can be home with them.

Then there is some of the more specific things I am thankful for. I'm thankful for feeling better after a week long illness. I'm thankful for bills being paid when we aren't always sure how exactly we are going to make ends meet. I'm thankful for God's Word and having the peace of knowing we are walking in His Will. I'm thankful that even when it seems like there just aren't enough hours in the day, the things that need to get done are accomplished. I'm so thankful for godly friends who desire to raise up their children in the Lord. I'm thankful my husband is able to go back to school after we have spent several years wondering what direction we should be heading.

Are things in my life perfect? Absolutely not. There are plenty of trials in my life that keep me clinging to Jesus with everything I have. We are waiting for our house to sell and for jobs to come available. I have a slightly high risk pregnancy that keeps us all anxious occasionally. I definently do not always react the way I should in many situations. But when I remember all the good- all the pleasant places the lines have fallen- that has been given to me I remember that anything that is given to me isn't because of anything good I have done, but because I have a Heavenly Father who loves and knows what's best for me. When I think of things that way what more could I possibly be thankful for?

Welcome to my Blog!

Welcome to my little corner of the internet! It is my desire that this will be a place for encouragement and laughter. I am a 20 something stay- at - home mom to Jack, who is 2(July 2007), Anna who is 1 (August 2008), and Baby number 3- who will be joining our family sometime in early February. I have been married for almost 4 wonderful years to my husband, Erik. Together, we desire to raise and train up our children to the Glory of God.

My husband is currently attending a local college, after 3 years of praying for direction on how to accomplish this, the Lord opened the doors to make it happen, although I will admit it wasn't necesesarily the plan we had made. However, His ways are ALWAYS better than ours, and we are holding onto that promise every day. Trust me, there will be plenty of posts in the near future about this crazy season of life we are in! So thanks for stopping by my little blog!

Thursdays at the Saltsgavers

Thursday morning greets me with the sound we all dread first thing in the morning. My alarm goes off around 6 AM, and I quickly hit snooze, unconvinced morning has gotten here so quickly. After a the alarm goes off a second time, I start to become a little more conscious and begin talking myself into getting out of bed saying,"If you don't get up now the kids will be up , there will be no quiet time and possibly no shower until this afternoon." So with a longing look at my husband who is still sound asleep, and with that thought in mind I roll out of bed, ready to begin my day.

After heating up a cup of hot chocolate and checking my morning blood sugar-I'm currently six months pregnant, and have gestational diabetes- and getting some breakfast warmed up I head to my couch, turn on our electric blanket, and cozy up with my Bible, Journal, and Bible Study. About 10 minutes into it, I hear the coos and gurgles of my dear 14 month old, Anna. I'm hoping she'll go back to sleep since it's a little early still for her to be up, but lo and behold this is not to be. So I quietly tip toe into her room that she shares with my two year old, Jack, hoping that I can get away with not waking him up while I retrieve Anna from her bed. However, Anna's happy squeals of seeing Mommy wake up Jack and now they are both up ready to start the day. So after some hugs and kisses, I head to the kitchen to get them some Cheerios and a Banana.

While they're eating, I alternate from finishing my breakfast to unloading our dishwasher. I am also mentally planning our day. We have been gone for the last 2 days, so there is laundry to be done and the house is in desperate need of a clean up, however it is also a fairly nice fall day so I am hoping to take the kids out to play in the leaves. So I put on a Veggie Tales DVD for my kids and rush around picking up all the clothes to take to the laundry room, after I throw the clothes in the washer, I do a quick clean of our bathroom then it's time to turn off the Veggie Tales and have some lessons in helping mommy clean up.

We start with picking up toys, which turns out to be great fun for my 2 year old, but Anna is already feeling the effects of getting up too early this morning and is clinging to me for dear life, so toy pick up takes a lot longer than it should. By this point Jack is begging to get out the Play Doh and make shapes and Anna is need of a morning nap, so we scrap the original plans of having the house cleaned from top to bottom and sit down and enjoy some quality art time. Anna is quite mesmerized by the play doh and isn't quite ready to go to bed afterall:-).

Soon, the best part of the morning arrives, and my husband is up and getting ready to go to school. He was laid off last spring from the job he had from the first 3 years of our marriage, and thankfully the Lord opened up doors for him to go back to college this year. But that's a different post for a different day! The kids are thrilled to see daddy and are each vying for his undivided attention while we try to discuss what the days plans are. Shortly after that it is time for him to leave. So with a kiss and bear hugs to the children, Erik is out the door for the rest of the day and it's back to being just me with the two crazies..

Since I've given up on cleaning the house as deeply as I had planned, I decide to take the kids outside to play in the leaves until lunch time arrives. On the way out the backyard I remember a bill that's due, so I quickly grab my checkbook and keys and decide we will eat a later lunch and go pay it after we're done playing. Things were going really well... Anna especially loved to play with the leaves, and Jack was having a blast picking up sticks. Just about the time I was reveling in how smoothly this leave adventure was going, Jack starts screaming. I rush over to see what the problem is and I discover that his diaper had not been latched properly and we have an accident on our hands. So I scoop up Anna, try to console Jack and lead them into the bathroom to get them cleaned up. By this point both kids are crying since it's past lunch time. So, bill forgotten, I fix some pb&j sandwiches and some bananas for them, hoping they will have nice full bellies and take a long nap today.

When lunch is over the kids are chasing each other around the house while I fold some clothes, when all of a sudden I hear another sound followed by some crying. I look over at my 2 year old who has thrown up all over himself and his sister! Frantically I strip them both down try to console both of them, and throw them in the bath tub AGAIN- the second time in an HOUR- and grab some clean clothes from my laundry pile. Meanwhile, sickness is forgotten, and Jack and Anna are having a fantastic time splashing in the bathtub for a second time today. I get them out of the bathtub and ready for their naps, and put Anna down with her pink blanky. Then I put Jack down, who is not apparently sick thankfully, and lay him down with his beloved stuffed frog and stuffed Mickey Mouse. After a prayer and a quick kiss, both of them are sound asleep as soon as I leave their room.

Nap times are usually a time in the day that I use to rest. I would love the say I get a lot accomplished while my kids are sleeping, but since we're suppose to be real that is not usually the case. I plop on the couch with some of my lunch, sigh at the events of the last hour, and try to relax for a little bit. Pretty soon Erik is calling to tell me he's coming home early. When he asks how my days has been going I inform him of the events in the last couple of hours, and he starts cracking up. So then I start cracking up. Since Jack is not actually sick and it was just some weird fluke, I have to admit that while disgusting, it is kind of funny.

By the time Erik arrives home it's around 4 o' clock. The kids are just waking up, and are thrilled to see their daddy. Tonight we are just hanging out at home, which is very nice after several days of being busy. For dinner we had some Roasted Chicken, potatoes, gravy, carrots, and some stuffing. We don't usually have such hearty dinners, but on this chilly October evening, this really hits the spot. After dinner, the kids play and read some books with daddy while I clean up the kitchen. Then we are all wrestling around and tickling each other, just enjoying being together. After that it's Jack and Anna's bedtime, so we get them dressed- but don't give them another bath!- brush their teeth, read them a Bible Story, and pray with them, then it is lights out.

Erik and I collapse onto the couch, Erik gets on the computer to check his email, and I curl up with the book Don't Make me Count to Three by Ginger Plowman. Tonight is just a quiet, almost boring kind of night, but we're just enjoying the quiet for a little bit. Soon it's time to head to bed, so after I take a shower I am ready to call it a day.

Today was not an overly exciting kind of day. I was not able to accomplish half of what I had planned for the day, but I was able to enjoy my little family, and that is much more important than anything on a to do list.

The YLCF is hosting a blog carnival this weekend about taking a peek into your day. Check out their website at www. ylcf.org!!
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