Another Vintage Pearl Giveaway

Again Vintage Pearl is my favorite site for name necklaces & bracelets. Ladies tell your husband to buy your baby necklaces from them! They are awesome. Check them out, The Vintage Pearl!!!

11 Things I Will No Longer Be Needing...Who wants them....

Prompt: 11 Things. What are 11 things your life doesn't need in 2011? How will you go about eliminating them? How will getting rid of these 11 things change your life? 


1. Fear - To trust the Lord 100%, I can control NOTHING! Except how i respond to situations (thanks mom:) )


2. Negativity - Be Gone :) 


3. Unhappy People - People that just seem to bring you down instead of build you up. 


4. Self Doubt - I actually for the first time have a hold of this one. I love who i am, thats all! 


5. Over booked schedules - I need understand that the world doesn't have to be concurred in 1 day. I need to learn how to relax and just play with my babies. They won't be this age for long! 


6. Selfishness - I need to make sure i look around me more often for things i can do for others and stop concentrating on things "I" want. "I" is such a bad word. There are too many people out there that need so much. Whether it is simply a smile or a shoulder to cry on. I am defiantly going to keep my eyes open for opportunities to change others lives for the better.


7. Less Sleep - Defiantly need more of this. I need to start going to bed earlier and not staying up late to write on my blog. Also with W sleeping through the night i plan i getting a whole lot more sleep in 2011. 


8. Bad Food - Organic is the way to go in 2011! Lots of fruits and grains. A whole lot of running and working out. 


9. Throwing my back out - I did this twice since i have had baby W. I need to work my core everyday so that it doesn't keep happening. 


10. Unnecessary spending - Plain and simple. My children don't need tutus in every color, maybe just 3:) 


11.  Being Judgmental - I think i have gotten much better at this, but you can always improve.


2010 has been a great year. I am excited for 2011 and all the ways i can improve my life for myself and all around me. Lets ring in the New Year!

Appreciate...

Prompt: Appreciate. What's the one thing you have come to appreciate most in the past year? How do you express gratitude for it?

My Parents, who i appreciate the most in 2010

      The one thing that i appreciated the most in the last year were my parents!!! B lost his job as a Trader the same day we found out we were pregnant with baby W. It was a day filled with stress and then total happiness! The lord certainly blessed us with the happiest news ever that day. He clearly knew what he was doing November 2nd. Anyways now that you have the background here is where the appreciation came in.  My parents live around the corner from us and have been one of our biggest supporters. Its amazing how much they can give. My mom is the best listener and is totally my sounding board. She is MY BIGGEST FAN! I only hope one day i can be for my daughters what she has been for me. Not only was she a great ear to unload on, but she babysat for us. Whether it be so i could get to work by 4 or if we just needed a night out alone, she was there. Our babies just adore her! 
     When Brad found out he was being laid off, we immediately turned to the Lord. We new he would provide for us in every way possible. Of course we were scared and worried and had no idea what we would do. We were use to living pretty nicely and then this happened. We started living a lot more conservatively. I picked up a job and worked until the week before i had her (waiting tables, which surprisingly was a cash cow). We defiantly thought B would be employed by the time baby W would be here, but that to came and passed without a JOB. Still we were trying to stay positive because we knew something would come through (thats what my wonderful mom kept reassuring me). B had been on a number of trading interviews, some that he turned down thinking there certainly would be a better offer out there. To our surprise at this point in the economy and our lives God was not leading him towards trading. In fact he was leading him in the complete other direction. 
     My Dad was a huge help to B. He was a publisher of a magazine before he started his own company a number of years ago. He is super smart when it comes to business. He has a ton of great ideas and really got B to think about some other jobs that would make him really happy. He helped B put together an unbelievable resume, he was there for him/us in every way possible and we appreciated it so much. Alas, B got a great offer from a Corrugated Box & Paper company. Talk about a change in careers. He LOVES it and is excited to just go to work every day. It makes me so happy he is happy and i am so proud of him. I ended up keeping my job (i only work dinners) because i like brining home the extra money to stick in the bank. 
    My parents are so incredible and i/we feel so blessed by them. B sometimes turns to me asks me if they are really real. He is just so surprised at the unconditional love and kindness they exude all that time, no matter what. I think i have taken there love for granted all my life. Not in a bad way. They have just always been there for me and my siblings and their siblings and anyone that needs there help, i think i was ignorant to think that not everyones parents were like them. I am more appreciative of my parents now that i/we am a parent and can't even explain how much i love them! So 2010 is defiantly dedicated to them and their hearts! 

Wisdom...

Prompt: Wisdom. What was the wisest decision you made this year, and how did it play out?
       I think my wisest decision for 2010 was to have an all natural labor. When i say all natural i mean i had no medication, no IVs of any kind, no Pitocin after the birth, no pain meds and i wouldn't let them start my labor early by breaking my water. I wanted EVERYTHING to happen on its own, the way it should be if you are having a normal healthy pregnancy. 
      With baby number 1 i had the works (Pit, epidural, water broken for me, IVs and Pit after the birth). Don't get me wrong i loved loved loved my first birth. I think epidurals are lifesavers:) I just really wanted to do this and see how the all natural method would go. 
       My water broke while i was walking my daughter down the block to my parents house. Literally right in the middle of the block. It was the 3rd of July so everyone was out and came running over to make sure i was ok. Of course i was OK, my water just broke:) i was so excited inside i couldn't believe i was about to meet my little lady. My husband was just getting back from costco and we jumped in the car and to the hospital we went. The Dr. on call that night was fantastic. He was cool with whatever i wanted to do. He walked in while my nurse (best friend from college/doola. Yeah she is the coolest and had three very important jobs that day:) ) was helping me slip into much more comfortable clothing and he told me i need to stimulate my nipples and my contractions would come much quicker. We looked at each other and burst out laughing. He was like "i bet you never thought you girls would be doing this together back when you first met freshman year", we were peeing in our pants laughing. So nipple stimulation began and in 1.5 hours i went from 4 to 9.5 and couldn't believe it. I was in the shower most of the time (this really acted as a narcotic for me). Spent some time on all fours (mostly throwing up), rolling on the ball and walking around. At one point my complete ability to be decrete flew out the window and i was totally naked and could care less. Dana described me as an amazon women (this doesnt sound like a compliment and sounds very scary. I'm pretty sure i freaked a lot of people out:) ) 
       Once that baby entered the birthing canal i became a totally different person. I became super women. It was AMAZING! As much pain as it was it was literally the most amazing thing i have ever been through. Once they told me to open my eyes her head was out, adrenaline just rushed my whole body. One more push and she popped. They placed her on me right away and it was one of the most beautiful moment of my life.
       I felt every single pain there was to feel. I felt every single emotion. The high from a natural birth could never be matched. It can't even be explained. It was so incredible. Not only was it amazing, but i recovered SOOO much faster then i did with O. I felt so much better and breast feeding was automatic. I felt accomplished and very proud of myself. My hubby couldn't stop telling me how incredible i was and how proud he was of me. He was such a fantastic supporter, so loving, calm and gentle. Oh i just can't stop smiling as i relive this amazing night with you all. 5 hours start to finish and 3 pushes later, my second little lady came into this world screaming her head off, by far the BEST decision i made this year!!!

Those first amazing moments together, the bond was unreal! 

Beautifully Different....

Prompt: Beautifully different. Think about what makes you different and what you do that lights people up. Reflect on all the things that make you different - you'll find they're what make you beautiful.
      Its hard to talk about myself. I feel kind of shy when it comes to things like that. For those of you that know me, i feel like i'm a better talker then listener (working on this one). I ask a lot of questions because i need to know all the details. I think i am pretty truthful and some of my friends would describe me as being too honest or brutal at times, but it's all in good fun:) My husband often tells me when we leave a party, "people around you are always smiling (probably thinking what a spaz i am) and listening to you and people are always telling me how much fun you are and how kind you are. I love being your husband." He's a pretty amazing man, husband, father and has helped mold me into the women, wife and mother i am today. I'm not sure how that sets me apart from other people. I know plenty of people who are fun and kind.
      Maybe i'm different because as mad as i can get at someone I always always always can forgive them. I may even initiate it. I feel like that could be a weakness, but i hear it is a talent. My heart is just too big to stay mad at anyone. Could it be because i think the most beautiful thing is the world are those last three days of being pregnant and the day you go into the hospital and give birth to the miricle you have made from love. I LOVE labor and delivery. I love the moment you know you are going into labor and how you can't control one thing you body does from that point on. I love everything about it. I love when the doctor tells you they can see the head. It's such a rush of excitement. Its such an amazing moment. I don't know a lot of people who enjoy that. That defiantly makes me different. I guess its my heart. I don't know. All i know is i love who i am (its taken a long time to actually admit that), whoever that is and i hope that makes me a beautiful person, a kind person and a good friend. To me real beauty is ....

These baby girls and the love that made them! There is nothing better. 

A December To Reflect....

I am so excited to have joined this new group called Reverb 10, check it out! It is a group of people who have gotten together to reflect of the last year and to talk about the year to come. They prompt you with a question everyday until the last day of December. You blog about it and then at the end you are able to look back and reflect on what you have done and what you are looking forward to doing. I thought it was such a great idea! Obviously i don't have a ton of time on my hand with my two little munchkins running around, but i think i can commit to writing a little each day. Thanks Dana for introducing me to it! So my first question is.....


Prompt: Community. Where have you discovered community, online or otherwise, in 2010? What community would you like to join, create or more deeply connect with in 2011?

The community that i have connected with in a HUGE way this year was God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit. They showed me themselves in a big way. I have learned so much and connected with so many amazing people. God has brought truly wonderful people into my (our) lives this year. I have conquered so many hills and valleys in my life and it all because if the Lord. I have never felt him as much as i have this year. There is no better feeling in the world. I can do absolutely anything because he is on my side. I have done things this year that i would never have imagined myself doing. My soul seems to have been quieted and i feel so incredibly humbled. There is always work to do, but i truly feel like a new, different (in a great way) and confident person. I thank the Lord everyday for opening my eyes (finally) and using me to his utmost advantage. 

I also joined a great group of people all over the world in the Organic food movement and studied (thank you Jill) the effects that the American food industry has on our health and the health of our children. The importance of healthy eating effects everything you do and feel. It is a lot to take in and a lot to understand, but totally worth every bit of time spent. Not only are we eating healthier, but our children are learning to eat the correct way. I know lots of people still don't believe in it (i was the biggest anti organic before i did my research), but its worth every single penny and all your time, if not for you then at least for your children. Hey my mom has even jumped on, once she started researching it. Another fantastic group! 

As far a which community i would like to join in the coming year and become more involved in, i want to dive deeper in my faith, bible study and our couples small group. I plan on volunteering in a women's shelter. God has really blessed my family and i feel like we need to pay that forward and volunteer as much of our time as we can trying to make others lives a little easier. I want my girls to always know that serving others is one of the greatest gifts you can give. Lastly i would love to join a women's running group! I have been a runner for years now and i think it is so much easier to run when you have people supporting you. I have to start researching some groups in my area. 


What a fantastic way to reflect and get some writing in:)