We are all waiting. Holding our breath. The bag is in the car. The floors are mopped. The prayers go up.
40 weeks, 3 days today. I know, in my heart of hearts, that she’ll be here right on time.
what we eat for breakfast
April 9, 2012 By 100 Comments
The four of us sit around our hard wood kitchen table. It’s 8:30am, late for many families, just right for us.
On most mornings, the girls request granola or “cereal” (which means Kashi’s 7 Whole Grain HoneyPuffs).
If we haven’t already eaten every last bit of fresh fruit in our house (how does it go so quickly?), we devour bananas, blackberries, sliced strawberries, peaches, or raspberries.
Other times, we whip up one of our favorite breakfast recipes:
- Waffles with Blueberry Breakfast Sauce
- Cinnamon-Cottage Cheese Pancakes
- Blueberry Streusel Muffins
- Easy Granola Bars
When we have juice, you’ll most often find Tropicana’s 100% Pure Premium Florida Orange Juice in our fridge. The ingredient list? 100% pure & natural orange juice. Plus, all of the oranges are grown and picked right here in the U.S. Love that.Tim recently put freshly washed (not peeled) carrots, Tropicana OJ, and ice into the blender – and made some awesome carrot juice. I enjoyed every sip of the thick carroty goodness.
What does your family typically eat for breakfast? Share your favorite recipes, please!
WIN IT! One winner will receive a $100 gift card to TARGET to stock up on nutritious breakfast items! To enter, leave any topic-related comment on this post prior to Monday, April 16 at 11:59 p.m. All generic comments like “Enter me!” or “Love it” will be disqualified. Winner must provide a US mailing address.
*** You can also enter Tropicana’s Perfect Pick Sweepstakes on the brand’s Facebook page. 99 people will win a year’s supply of OJ and 1 grand prize winner will receive a trip for FOUR to Florida to tour a Tropicana orange grove! Enter once per day through April 20.
Disclosure: I have a formal relationship with Tropicana Pure Premium as a “TropiMomma” blogger. I was compensated for this post. All opinions remain 100% my own.
5 1/2
April 4, 2012 By 13 Comments
Can it be that you’re really 5 1/2?
You make yourself toast and clean your room, state your opinions and take showers, spell out words and select your own outfits, leave voicemails and sleep through the night.
You dream up imaginative art projects – kites and pop-up cards and animals out of branches. You take your creations and wrap them in wrapping paper, with scissors and tape…always thinking of who needs a gift most.
You ask questions. Questions that force me to think and explain: Is hail or snow cleaner? What is the government? Can I have an allowance? Have you ever met a bad guy?
You love to cook, leaning over the counter and stovetop, perched on a wooden dining chair.
When you play dress-up with your sister, you’re usually “the queen.” Or you’re a hotel owner or a boat owner.
You like frozen yogurt and baby back ribs, noodles and fancy cheeses, fresh-from-the-garden berries and cupcakes. You like to spend time with your family, do anything with friends, jump in rain puddles, and listen to chapter books.
You want to be a nurse and a doctor and a midwife and an owner of a library. And a storyteller. Notice the AND, not OR.
Oh, and you are just like your daddy. That go-anywhere, do-anything, stick-your-toe-right-on-the-edge risk-taker. When we go on family hikes, you lead the way and scramble up to the very top of boulders (my heart, skipping a beat). When you are scolded or there is an injustice, you don’t back down – blue eyes blazing, forming an argument. Forever a firstborn.
Tim was talking about adoption and you shouted out, “Let’s adopt a whole orphanage. 100 kids!”
Later that night, you were whispering to him about how you don’t want him to get a job like other daddies. Also – you sometimes call him “Tim” (and occasionally you call me “Steph”)…which may be alarming to some, but we don’t mind.
You’re not yet 6, but I can plainly see: You are inquisitive, imaginative, a dreamer, a doer, someone who sees things in your mind before anyone else can even feel the pulse of the vision. Don’t ever question this: we are forever and eternally proud of you.
GIVEAWAY: Uniform Advantage
March 30, 2012 By 53 Comments
One of my closest friends is a nurse. She is exactly the kind of person you would want to have around in any kind of crisis – competent, capable, calm, and compassionate.
Fortunately for her, there are a lot of fun scrub options available in 2012. Gone are the days of baggy, solid blue sets – designed with the male physique in mind. Scrubs are now super versatile – in colors, patterns, and figure-flattering styles.
For example, take a look at this pretty number from UniformAdvantage.com:
And how’s this for an updated doctor’s coat? So feminine and modern.
UniformAdvantage.com offers scrubs for men and women in a wide variety of colors and designs. Also – check out the “Sale” section with tops and bottoms starting at $6.99.
Please take a second to pass this giveaway along to a nurse or doctor you appreciate – or enter to win on their behalf.
WIN IT! One winner will receive a $50 gift certificate to UniformAdvantage.com! To enter, leave any topic-related comment on this post prior to Friday, April 6 at 11:59 p.m. All generic comments like “Enter me!” or “Love it” will be disqualified. Winner must provide a US mailing address.
* I received compensation for this featured post.
*UPDATE* The winner is #33 Gina. Congratulations!
pregnancy update (any day now)
March 26, 2012 By 74 Comments
There are 14 days until my due date. Tick. Tick. Tock.
The prospect of going into labor is always a little scary, but I’m trusting in God’s strength and in my body’s ability to do the work ahead. We’ll be delivering at the local birth center, a place that brings me great peace.
14 days to go
In other news, I won a contest yesterday. The prize? A labor & delivery shoot with a local photographer. I was initially elated…but then shy. I’m pretty sure I’m going to turn down the prize. Tim said, “Are you sure you want someone to have photos of you naked forever?” And I was all, ” Um. No.” So that pretty much settles things.
People keep asking if we are “ready” and if there is anything we “need.” Well, we’re certainly ready to greet our little girl (and, as for me, I am more-than-ready to not be pregnant anymore). I have a bag packed, but we have yet to buy newborn diapers. I have an itty bitty wish list on Pinterest too. But, we mostly yearn for your prayers and maybe a hot meal or a loaf of bread afterward?
We don’t have a name yet. Tim & I are notorious for waiting until the last second to pick one. With Kayla, we decided on the drive to the hospital. With Liv, we decided in the tub, about 30 minutes before she arrived. Our list currently includes 8 names, but we’d love to hear your suggestions. Go.
Children’s Book Giveaway: Little Color Fairies
March 23, 2012 By 44 Comments
New in 2012, Mara Van Fleet creates a magical world of colors and sparkles for toddlers to enjoy.
The fun begins with the front cover, which features three childlike fairies and a pull-out handle that makes the wings flap. Each page then spotlights one color (eleven colors in all). Rhyming text makes for a read-aloud that slips off the tongue. Little ones will also appreciate the interactive nature of the book – fabrics to feel, arrows to pull, etc.
The “plot” of the story revolves around the fairies dressing a princess for a rainbow ball. All of the characters are refreshingly not grown-up. There are no tiny waists or low-cut dresses – only cheerful faces.
WIN IT! One winner will receive a copy of Little Color Fairies, written and illustrated by Mara Van Fleet! To enter, leave any topic-related comment on this post prior to Friday, March 30 at 11:59 p.m. All generic comments like “Enter me!” or “Love it” will be disqualified. Winner must provide a US mailing address.
* Thanks to Simon & Schuster for providing two copies of the books – one for review and one for this giveaway.
*UPDATE* The winner is #38 Melanie C. Congratulations!
No. Never. — Maybe.
March 21, 2012 By 10 Comments
That summer in Bangladesh? I chose that specific project, from a missions catalog that came in the mail. There were other trips, to more glamorous places: England or France or New Zealand.
That year in the RV? We chose it – to give up our jobs, our health insurance, our upscale grocer, the comforts of security and routine.
Those kind of choices don’t really make sense. They’re hard to explain. (Some people shake their heads). (Some people are even a little bit angry). Why not spend your high school summers lifeguarding and singing along with the radio? Why not stay on a safe career track with retirement plans?
It’s the same reason why runners will sign up for marathons. In the moment, it is pure agony. At intervals, you feel defeated, unable to put one foot in front of the other. Afraid. Your mind must fight for courage, your lungs must force another breath. But the end result is humbling, glorious, powerful. You learn you can do it. Those miles of misery are overshadowed by triumph. Even as you nurse your wounds, you look around at the other runners, a shared sense of camaraderie and pride at being brave enough to take the challenge.
In the middle of difficult seasons, we shout: “I never ever ever want to go through this again.”
But then you realize that “hard” is a good teacher. That If you take big risks, there are also big gains. It’s good to step out into the unknown, into the arena of dreams and possibilities. You push your brain, mind, and body to new limits – and then realize you can go still further.
Most of all, it is beneficial to experience suffering so that we can feel compassion. As others hurt, we understand the pain of sacrifice. We dare not judge, but instead lift a hand of mercy as others falter on the course.
Will I ever step back on Bengali soil? Will we ever do another RV experiment? Perhaps not. (I sort of hope not). But maybe we will – and there’s a part of me that looks forward to that. Because I know that, with God’s help, we can do most anything.
THIS IS PART 3 of a 3-PART SERIES. Read Part I and Part II.
