Week 40

STILL HERE!!

Week 39

Final stretch...

Week 38

So cold!!!

Week 37.

Blast from the past. HA!

Week 36

Week 35

This one is super late because I had a yucky cold over the weekend and Jadyn had a short-lived puking bug as well. Didn't get much rest until Monday when my wonderful husband took a half a day off to let me sleep in and help with the kids. When taking these pictures I literally felt like falling asleep, so I brought out a pillow and chair and went with it. At this point, I think I have 31 days officially left till the due date. Here's to hoping it's more like 15 or 20!

Week 34

I almost forgot to put this one up this week.

Pictures taken by K on my Iphone because I had sent the camera with Jim over the weekend since he was deer hunting. He got two deer by the way...a buck on Saturday and a doe on Sunday. Woo hoo!

Week 33

Week 32

Week 31

Week 30!

As of today, I am only 67 days away fro the due date!! Woo hoo!

Week 29

Week 28

Week 27

Family Photos 2010

Our latest pictures by Laura Stern Photography.

The last one is a belly pic of Laura and I and the new babes about to join the family tribe. We are due less than 3 weeks apart, and her son will be the first cousin on Jim's side of the fam! Woo hoo!

Week 26

Week 25

Week 24

click photo to be able to read text.

Walk to 40 Weeks

I know it has been FOREVER since I have blogged. I suppose the burning passion to write has dimmed quite a bit and with how full life is, sometimes I just can't justify spending any time blogging. I kind of have to choose between that and other hobbies or relaxation time.

Speaking of hobbies, you all know I digital scrapbook, and when I came across this idea off a friend's blog of a way to document a pregnancy, I thought I would really like it. It's called the Walk to 40 Weeks, with the main focus to take a front and side picture of the growing belly and to write the little nugget a note every week. I have added a few "scrapbooking elements" to my final compositions. I didn't start until after week 20 because prior to that, there's not really much belly to document. :)

Here are the first three weeks of pics I took. I wish I had a nice camera or a talented photographer, or both perhaps, that could capture us every week, but alas, the little Cybershot point-and-shoot will have to suffice. Thank God for photoshop.

What's that? You're expecting?

As I sit here finishing my late night taco bell, I just had to post about our big news. I figured since Jim announced it this weekend at church, most people know now, but even if you didn't, you'd probably know soon by looking at me because the weight gain has begun. Thanks in part, I'm sure, to more than a few late night Taco Bell runs....and Hostess Cherry Pies....and cheesy rotel dip....and donuts....

So anyway, baby # 4 is on the way, expected to make their arrival on none other than Christmas Day. Can you believe that? My kids are something with these due dates, I tell you! M was born on her due date (June 25th), and J was due and born on 9/11. E, of course, had to make her own special entrance into the world 12 days late, but now this 4th one is seriously Dec. 25. I hope they don't hate us too much for forever ruining their birthday (I hear from December birthday people that it's the worst). Oh well, they will be loved and cared for and that's all that matters. We always find ways to make our kiddos feel special.

So yeah, that's our news. I'm officially 9 weeks, 1 day, along today (I think). I really didn't even feel any symptoms for the first 6 weeks, and then have had some nausea since then (but usually only from 3-9 pm). I've also been taking regular afternoon naps to keep up my energy. It truly is amazing how the woman's body starts to change pretty much immediately after conception. You haven't even gained a pound yet, but somehow your shape changes and you feel fat. I still had about 10 pounds that I wanted to lose after having J that I will have to contend with after this pregnancy. Hopefully, I will keep the promise I made to myself to really get in shape after this one...I will need to be in peak performance to keep up with this brood of mine!

In other news, I can not WAIT for the kids' school to be done with and to have some fun family time this summer. I'm ready for blueberries, and summer nights, fireworks, late night ice cream, dips in the pool, etc. We have some weekend events planned with the kids, and a stay-cation, and Jim and I will get away for almost a week in July (before I get too enormous) and have a summer respite together. Bring on the lemonade!

Now all I need is a white painted porch and a lazy-day swing!

Free Giveaway

My sis-in-law is doing an Arbonne give-away on her blog. If you leave a comment on her blog, tweet or facebook about it, or write about it your blog you get entered into the drawing. So stop by and check it out! It's an awesome collection of stuff! We need a minimum of 20 comments for the give-away to happen. GO NOW!

http://lauradstern.blogspot.com/2010/05/first-arbonne-giveaway-ever.html

In a time crunch for dinner?

I discovered this SUPER SIMPLE and fast chicken recipe online a couple weeks ago and am making it for the 2nd time already. Our whole family loved it! It's a Honey Baked Chicken dish and you probably have all the ingredients already at home (as long as you keep chicken in your freezer). The lengthiest part of prepping this dish is defrosting the chicken in the microwave! HA!

Side note: we buy our hormone-free frozen chicken breasts from Costco. With raising all girls, I can't stomach feeding them meat chocked full of hormones...no wonder girls these days are "becoming women" at 9 years old! Sheesh! I was 16!

Anyway, you will need:

1 pound of chicken
1/4 cup of butter/margarine
1/4 cup of honey
1/8 cup of mustard (just from the bottle in your fridge)
1/2 teaspoon of curry
1 teaspoon of salt

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Cut up chicken into "tender" size pieces and sprinkle with some salt to liking. Arrange flat in a casserole dish. Mix melted butter, honey, mustard, curry, and salt in a bowl. Pour mixture over chicken. Bake for 30 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. It will look a lot like the picture if you cook it for longer (and the honey starts carmelizing a bit--yummo!)

SO EASY! This dish is easily and quickly paired with baked potato wedges (lightly drizzle with olive oil, garlic salt and maybe a little Italian seasoning and you can throw them in the oven with the chicken). With 5 minutes to go on the chicken, you can microwave one of those steamfresh bags of frozen broccoli, and BAM! A whole meal.

Your tastebuds can thank me later. ;)

Haiti in review

I think I'm now resettled back into life after coming back from Haiti. It's always an adjustment when returning from a 3rd world country. It was an amazing time, as most missions trips are. As an investigative trip to find out more about how we can help in Haiti, we made some great contacts down there.

Our initiation into the country at the Port-au-Prince airport was crazy. The luggage was being dispersed in a hot, dirty hanger in a most disorderly fashion. The seven of us traveling had brought some 20+ suitcases full of donations and supplies with us, so trying to wrangle all of them was no small feat. After leaving customs, and exiting the airport we were greeted by the roar of people shouting and haggling outside the gate. Desperate to "help" us with our luggage in hope of receiving tips, people were constantly touching our bags and trying to push our carts. People were following us and begging for money. The shouting of "Blancs!" was heard frequently, as they call white people. The roads and rubble made it extremely difficult to get the carts of luggage to our awaiting contact. I had a flash of concern that the entire trip would be this way, but after leaving the airport area, things got better.

We spent a few days at God's Littlest Angels orphanage in the mountain village of Petionville (about 20 mi from Port-au-Prince) where we helped do a few projects around their base and loved on the babies and kids for hours. Haiti in general has upwards of 500,000 orphans and another 300,000 in slavery of some kind. Those babies can melt your heart like nothing else, I'll tell ya! They are so happy though and are being well care for at GLA. The house we stayed in was the location of their morning preschool class where they are teaching Kreyol, English, and Bible, so every morning at 8 am we were greeted by a dozen shining faces scrambling up the steps to come throw themselves into our arms, all of them saying, "Hiyeeeeee, hiyeeeee." It was awesome! The children all over Haiti were so affectionate and loving, always holding our hands or climbing on us. One of our team members, Gloria, actually is of Haitian descent and speaks Kreyol, so she was able to lead a little program that we did for kids there and at a couple other locations as we traveled around. I even learned a song in Kreyol that I would sing during the kids' mediation time. It was great!

At GLA we also helped take extra donations of clothing, food, shoes, etc and put together bags for the surrounding mountain community. While the city of Port-au-Prince sustained the most damage in the earthquake, there were still many homes and buildings in the rural areas that were lost. We traveled further up in the mountain to hand out the almost 200 donation bags we put together. This was a very interesting day. We encountered many, many widows and also children who lost at least one parent. Several college-aged people who spoke some English would strike up conversations with us. After the earthquake, all schooling was on hiatus, so they literally had nothing to do. Unemployment in rural areas in Haiti is at 90%. People are unskilled and untrained, and many are completely illiterate. The mayor of the village took us around to view the most devastated homes and families so they could be put on a list to receive the first of the bags. Then whatever bags were left would be handed out to other families. The "listed" people formed a line and received their bags without incident, but when the list was done, chaos ensued. People were crowding the trucks, desperate for the handouts--young men shoving older women around, people fighting over the contents of a broken bag spilled on the ground. This part was hard to see. We had to stay inside the trucks as we moved locations two different times to try and reestablish order. Unfortunately, respect for fellow man goes out the window in Haiti when "free" stuff is being handed out (unless you are an armed military operation I suppose).

Even though it is not encouraged, we were able to discreetly hand out some $1 & $5 bills to some children and mothers and young people that we had connected with. American dollars are worth seven Haitian dollars, which can go a long way there. The average income per individual in Haiti is $2 a week. I got to thinking about it and realized that the price of my airfare to that country is some people's entire yearly wages. The poverty truly is staggering.

After saying goodbye to GLA, we had plans to see more of Port-au-Prince on our way to a hotel that we would stay at for one night as we tried to make contact with two other orphanages. I say "tried" because with one of them, we arrived at the address to find no orphanage existed there and the neighbors all confirmed that it was a guest house, not a residence for older girls as we thought. This was disappointing, but unfortunately a common story in Haiti. There are many organization down there that are corrupt, and it's just sickening that the cause of helping children is being used to pad people's pockets. The 2nd orphanage we thought we would see that day because their office had a Port-au-Prince address ended up being four hours away and the director came to see us at our hotel, probably hoping that we would give her lots of money. We had red flags going off about it, but sat down to talk with her. We believed that she truly ran an orphanage based on her knowledge and pictures, but something did not sit right with us about it, so we thanked her for her time, gave her a little gas money, and sent her on her way. Even though the day seemed like kind of a bust, it was good that we were finding out who we would NOT be able to trust there for future endeavors, and our tour through Port-au-Prince was appreciated too. When you hear that the city was utterly destroyed, it's no joke.

Place after place--homes, churches, businesses, government facilities--were completely flattened. We learned from our drivers that in order to cut corners financially, most Haitians mix their concrete with too much water and sand, thereby making it very susceptible to crumbling. You could tell the structures that were build by outsiders (especially Americans) and were still standing. The sad part is that we saw many people beginning to rebuild but they were using the same mixing ratios and methods with the concrete as before the quake. I can't tell you the amount of devastation we saw. It will take them decades to recover. The sheer amount of rubble is unfathomable. We saw small groups of workers in yellow shirts that the government hired to help clean up, but they only had shovels and buckets. We saw very little construction grade equipment--they really need large earth movers and diggers and bulldozers. I don't know how they will do it without them?

Seeing the tent cities was especially hard. Entire families are living under a tarp. Some are fortunate enough to find tin for roofs, or to receive a nicer tent from a relief organization. The number of people now fighting infection from terrible wounds or living with a disability or amputation is also staggering. Because of religious beliefs, voodoo, and superstition, Haitians have by-in-large ostracized anyone with a handicap or disability, forcing them into life-time poverty and to begging in the streets. They are not allowed to work and often abandoned by family and friends. Hopefully, Haiti will change because of this catastrophe and begin accommodating the now hundreds of thousands of people who are disabled.

Leaving Port-au-Prince for our next destination (two hours up the coastline), we encountered more tent cities. People have fled the city and are "starting over" in the middle of a field or the base of a remote mountain. They literally have nothing. The stark contrast between the poverty of this nation and the beauty of it mountains, coastline, and water is striking.

The last part of our trip was at a ministry called GAP (Go and Produce) which helps people with agricultural learning and farming and also has a medical clinic (in conjunction with Project Help which has a team of doctors from the U.S. come in for a week at a time, do surgeries and see major cases). GAP also started a youth ministry, and these young people we got to meet are AMAZING--so filled with the love of God and wanting to start a youth revolution in Haiti. And I think they can do it!

Since the earthquake they had been traveling into the city handing out food, water and whatever supplies they could get their hands on to help people in the tent cities. They started forming some relationships with many people there and felt to rescue 250 refugees who truly were left with nothing--many widows and families with young children. A doctor had donated a piece of land to GAP and the youth ministry has been, by hand, building homes on it for these refugees whom they moved from the city temporarily to a school house near GAP until the homes are done. The youth organized the whole thing with a fantastic plan to develop the property with septic and shower solutions, compost area for a garden, and more. We visited the site and were blown away by their compassion, work ethic, and desire for young people to raise up in Haiti and be a better future for the country. Traditionally youth are looked down upon there, not valued, and not expected to do much of anything. The leader, and oldest member of this ministry, is 26 years old. His name is Jasmen and to hear him speak is truly remarkable. They are propelled by their passion for God and believe that Haitians need to be the ones to help their country and raise the standard for themselves. When we arrived there, Jasmen said they had raised enough money/resources to build 22 out of the 50 homes they planned to put on the property. So between the money that my church raised and the money other members of our team brought with them or raised, we were able to give them the funds right there to finished the other 28 homes. I left there with a zeal to help them however I could. Another team from The States that's going in May will visit them again. I'm excited to see pictures of the progress.

We need to continue to remember Haiti in our prayers. The government is still a mad mess, and aid is still having distribution issues. Many people are still recovering from injuries or learning how to live again with them. We can't forget that rainy season is almost upon them, and the tent cities will be in for it--disease, malnutrition, unsanitary conditions, etc. Currently the government is rounding up orphans in the tent cities and is not releasing them into orphanages that have been evacuated are now awaiting and have room for them. It's heartbreaking, really. Please pray with me for this nation and the millions of people whose lives hang in the balance every day.

STATS & FIGURES ON HAITI
80% of people lived below the poverty line before the earthquake. Now matters are worse.

More than two-thirds of the labor force do not have formal, consistent or distinguishable jobs.

The national income per capita is only $560 per year.

Life expectancy at birth is only 61%.

Only 50% of males are literate.

1 in 20 Haitians is infected with HIV.

The death toll from the 2010 earthquake is over 200,000, with tens of thousands more crippled or injured.

Parents in such situations will most likely never be able to care for their children again.

Unemployment in the city is above 50%, but exceeds 90% in rural Haiti.

1/2 the population of Port-au-Prince is now homeless. Currently "tent cities" number the thousands.

Rainy season is from May-July, and hurricane season July-October. Imagine
living in a tent during that.

Very few children in Haiti receive vaccinations of any kind.

Medical clinics exist but it is almost impossible to get a sterile work environment. Keeping wounds from getting infected after treatment is equally as challenging.

74% of school-aged girls are NOT in school.

Nearly half the population of Haiti is under 18.

Approximately 1 out of 8 children will die before the age of five.

Haitian babies are small and frail, suffering from low birth weight, as most mothers do not receive proper nutrition and care during pregnancy.

Every year thousands of children are freely given away into human trafficking by family members for as little as $25-$50.

Estimated number of Orphans in Haiti is upwards of 500,000, with an additional 300,000+ in slavery.

Widows have grown in number exponentially.

A relatively unknown fact about and connection between Haiti to America is that Haiti's revolution from French rule in 1791 paved the way for us to make the Louisiana purchase because France could not financially afford to keep it. So Haiti aided the U.S. in establishing our territory. Isn't that interesting?

The video I put together is really just a sampling of photos and video our team took. The song underneath it was written by a young man in my church named Josh Golden and co-written by Jim, inspired by Haiti. Josh performed the song at a Disney Haiti benefit concert in L.A a few weeks ago.

2 days and counting...

On Friday my family leaves for our annual Florida trip with Jim's side of the fam. We'll be down there for a week. And then, about 30 hours after I get back from Florida, I turn around and leave for my Haiti trip. Things have been NUTS this week, but I just wanted to update real quick before I leave. I'll be posting pics for sure when I get back from these destinations, and possibly while I'm gone if I find wi-fi.

Check out this sweet little gadget that I ordered the other day. I can' wait to try to out...it seems so much more user friendly than a bulky video camera. It will be great for Haiti too.

Also, if you haven't donated towards relief aid in Haiti, there is still one week left to give via my church so I can personally deliver the money to orphanages. Give HERE, and put "Haiti trip" in the description. Thanks!!

Why the hours just melt away in a mom's day...

6:45 am - Awaken to light from bathroom window in my eyes because the door was not shut. Hear hubby readying to leave the house. Roll over to try and catch a few more zzzz's before the babe is up.

7:00 am - Finally fall back asleep

7:05 am - Phone buzzes with a text from someone asking about my Haiti trip. Think to self: Remember to answer that later. Continue trying to sleep knowing that I'm probably going to be late this morning.

7:14 am - Bladder and baby crying at the same time. Which call to answer first? Bladder wins.

7:18 am - Answer text because I know I'll forget later. Answer another one that came in the night before but that I didn't receive because the previous night I forgot to charge my phone and it was dead all day yesterday.

7:19 am - Retrieve baby girl from crib. Morning cuddles are THE BEST! And I love to see that face in the morning...even with a nasty yellow-green bruise and knot still in the middle of her forehead from a mid-week, mommy-heart-stopping accident. Thank Jesus that she's okay and continue hugging. Realize diaper stinks. Lay her down for a change. Try to shush her crying so as to let big sisters sleep a little more after previous late night meeting at our house.

7:24 am - Bring baby downstairs for breakfast. Strap her into chair and give a half banana and some cereal to tide her over until I can scrounge up some clothes for big sister #2 out of the clean clothes that are still sitting in the basket since doing laundry last week.

7:30 am - Grab a bottle of water for myself from garage. Grab child #2's backpack out of the car to empty it before today's school day.

7:32 am - Glance at the clock to notice I have 30 minutes to get everyone ready and out of the house for school. Set down water bottle. Run upstairs to dress child #2. Quietly get eye-rubbing, yawning child #2 out of bed whilst trying not to wake child #1. Try to ignore pangs of guilt reminding me that it was stupid to have them up so late the night before. Get child #2 half undressed when she has to go potty. Gently try waking child #1 in the meantime and realize that Ms. Grumpy has paid a visit. Commence operation Keep Daughter Smiling and Positive.

7:45 am - Both older children are dressed and heading downstairs. I take quick minute to throw jeans, sweater, and HAT on, vowing to shower later.

7:48 am - Arrive back downstairs to find the girls having donettes donuts. At this point, I don't care. I take 2 and give them to the baby. Realizing none of them have anything to drink, I get cups out and fill with water.

7:50 am - Tell child #1 to practice piano one last time before her after-school lesson. While she practices, I brush her hair.

7:55 am - Strongly encourage baby to stay out of trash.

8:00 am - Go on the hunt for matching socks for all three girls. This laundry thing is getting out of control.

8:05 am - Child #1 begins to pack backpack. I realize child #2 did not color a picture of her and the class stuffed animal pet Rufus as directed in the take-home folder from Friday that I'm just now emptying. Break out the paper and crayons!

8:15 am - Why is putting shoes on always such an ordeal?

8:25 am - Pack up child #1's lunch. Get snack together for child #2. Do child #2's hair.

8:30 am - Yeah. We're not making the 8:30 Pre-K start time.

8:33 am - Begin telling kids to hurry and get coats on. Start trying to find car keys.

8:37 am - Scoot baby out of the bathroom....not a good place to play.

8:40 am - Scoot kids out to the car. Let's go! Clap, clap, clap. Return to get baby only to see she doesn't have sock, shoes, or coat on. Remedy the problem.

8:45 am - Locate keys, strap baby in the car.

8:46 am - Realize my driver's license is in the pocket of my coat that I didn't put on. Back inside to find it. Grab water bottle that has yet to be opened.

8:50 am - Realize my driver's license is in the car where I left it the day before. LOL!

8:51 am - Pulling out of garage, come to terms with the fact that child #1 is not making her 9 am start time. Oh well, there are worse things in life.

8:53 am - Notice that autopilot brain has directed the vehicle towards Grandmas house, not Pre-K school. 2 minute detour.

9:00 am - Drop off Pre-K child.

9:04 am - Back on the road to child #1's school 20 minutes away.

9:25 am - Drop off child # 1. Get registration forms for next school year from the front desk and begin filling out. At regular intervals, stop to corral baby from entering classrooms or destroying copy machine.

9:35 am - Receive important phone call on cell phone during which constipated baby shows signs of needing to go and begins screaming. Hang up phone and rush to bathroom to avoid making a scene.

9:40 am - It was a no-go. Maybe later.

9:50 am - Turn in forms and payment and leave school.

10:05 am - Pop into Smoothie King to get some breakfast. Baby loves them too!

10:15 am -Back in the car, headed to Sam's Club to pick up a few grocery items and diapers.

10:25 am - Clean up smoothie spill in baby's carseat. Gotta love strawberry, pineapple, and papaya in every nook and cranny of the buckle. Visit to Sam's goes fairly well.

10:59 am - Head into Walmart to return something. Need to grab a few things for my Haiti trip. Stock up on travel size hand sanitizer, amongst other things.

11:10 am - Remember that I need max strength bug spray for the trip and attempt to make my way to the OPPOSITE side of Super Walmart where the camping gear is. Pick up off the floor the mini hand sanitizers that baby is dropping along the way. At least I'm getting a workout in today.

11:15 am - After perusing the camping aisle and now imagining all sorts of scenarios in Haiti in which I will most certainly need one of everything in that aisle, Baby's face turns red and eyes start watering. The scream is coming. Dropping the multi-purpose all-in-one knife/water purifier/whistle/poncho (wouldn't that be cool?!!), we head straight to the bathroom again for attempt #2 at #2. And where is the bathroom? You guessed it--on the other side of the store.

11: 30 am - One measly excrement later, I decide to head to the checkout. Child #2 needs to be picked up at Noon.

11:32 am - WAIT! I forgot, I need rubber boots for my trip. It will be rainy season. Why are all the rubber boots here so hard to get on?

11:45 am - Ok, I really need to check out now. Head for the shortest line.

11:55 am - Should have known the shortest line wouldn't necessarily be the fastest. I love you, dear older woman with lots of coupons who needs a price check and who's form of payment is check.

12:00 am - Finally swiping my card. I should only be like 7 minutes late to pick up child #2

12:08 am - Pick up is done. Now home to make lunch. Is it nap time yet??????


I LOVE MONDAYS!

Forty Day Fast: Days 11-20

Forty Day Fast: Day 11--Proverbs 12:18, "Reckless words pierce like a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing." God, please take control of my mouth. I do not want to be one who inflicts pain with my words. Help me to be wise!

Day 12--Isaiah 11:7, "The LORD will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail." This is why I fast God...to hear your guidance and be strengthened by you. Water me, God, and I will receive to be fertile ground for you. May I never run dry!

Day 13--Acts 2:1, "When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting." Father would you come and move in our gatherings like this again? We are pressing into You more than ever. Be high and lifted up! Let your spirit blow in like a rushing wind!

Day 14--Job 8:3-6, "Does God pervert justice? Does the Almighty pervert what is right? When your children sinned against him, he gave them over to the penalty of their sin. But if you will look to God and plead with the Almighty, if you are pure and upright, even now he will rouse himself on your behalf and restore you to your rightful place." God I repent on behalf of the sins of my nation. Release a movement of purity and righteousness in America, that we might turn to you and not be given over to all the penalties of our sins that we deserve. Restore us, oh God, as only You can do!

Day 15--Psalm 5:7, "But I, by your great mercy, will come into your house; in reverence will I bow down toward your holy temple." Father thank You for Your mercy and for the gift of worshipping in your presence, in Your house. I forever sing of your holiness! Let the church today realize what gifts we have!

Day 16--Jeremiah 31:3, " The LORD appeared to us saying: "I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness." Thank you God for your Love that is unending. How sweet it is to be drawn to You with your kindness. You are beautiful!

Day 17--Deuteronomy 32:4, "He is the Rock, his works are perfect, and all his ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is he." Wow, what words! You are my rock! Everything you do is just and upright and perfect. I will meditate on your good works and be encouraged by your perfection! Help me to see where I need to fall on the Rock!

Day 18--Psalm 25:21, "May integrity and uprightness protect me, because my hope is in you." God, may Your integrity be seen throughout my life. Make me upright! My hope will forever remain in You!

Day 19--Psalm 18:2, "The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge. He is my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold." Lord, help to run to You and not other things or people for You are my only refuge and salvation. What a blessing is it to have You as a fortress and stronghold--impenetrable by my enemies!

Day 20-- Psalm142;1-3, "I cry aloud to the LORD; I lift up my voice to the LORD for mercy. I pour out my complaint before him; before him I tell my trouble. When my spirit grows faint within me, it is you who know my way." Lord, my household has been ill a lot lately and we need your mercy and strength. Hear my cry for health Lord. You know our ways!

One of the reasons I disappeared in December...

I thought I would post a slideshow of a digital wedding scrapbook album that I created for my bro & sis-in-law, WIll & Laura, as a Christmas present this past year (their wedding was in Nov of 08, just two months after J was born, and our whole fam was in it). This book took up a lot of my spare time (which was already at a premium) in December. They hadn't even printed any photos from the wedding, much less put together an album archiving the story, so this gift was very special. I had them all printed and slid them into a nice linen-covered album. You can click on the slideshow to go to my Photobucket and see the individual pics a little bigger if you want. I am trying to add a song to my blog so that music plays while you watch it, so be sure to have your volume up in case I figure that out. :)



The pages are 12x12, so if the text looks too small to read on here, it's not in person when you see it. I kept things in their color scheme...brown, green, gold, and of course, black and white. Their photos were taken by the infamous Tom Warwick (color), assisted by Dave Boesch (B&W). So good!

If you are a scrapper and want the credits for the scrapbook materials I used, message me and I can get them to you. Since this album is over 45 pages long, that was too much info to put in this post.