I am so excited about...

okay, maybe excited isn't the word. Amazed. Overjoyed. Bursting at the seams. Ready.
Oh, yeah. About what?
THE TREC/AMRBC TRIP NOV 6-NOV 14!

I am beside myself with joy about what God is going to do and that He has put this trip into my life. I will continue to pray that He wants me to go, to be a part of what He is already doing in that country.

And the best news is, we need MORE people, especially people like me who know nothing about medicine! Seriously, at this point I am wondering why it took me so long to do this. Can you go? Will you come? What else could be more right or more safe than to know you are going to do God's work where He's at work?!!

If you want to know more, ask me! I'd love to talk to you about it and I'll be posting a video soon, as soon as I figure out how that works.

Two Years of Emily

It was a struggle to become pregnant the first time but not the second, and just as we were celebrating Hannah's first birthday we learned I was pregnant with Emily. We were overjoyed, of course, but just a bit suprised to be having a second so soon after the first! The only child in me had to adjust to a lot of emotions...how could I ever love anyone like I loved Hannah? What do you do with two at once? And, heavens, what if they fought? I would not know what to do!
Unlike her sister, who came four weeks early, Emily took her sweet time. Three days past my due date, I went to see Dr. Gabe for some pressure point encouragement. That night, at midnight on April 20th, I had my first contraction. However, having had contractions for five months at this point I did not panic, took my shower, called my mother, woke Daniel, etc. And then things began to intensify. Remembering the 16 hours of labor with Hannah, I tried to remain calm. We woke her, dressed her, and headed to my friend Laurel's house. By the time we arrived, though, I was in some major pain and began to feel the urge to push. :) When I got to labor and delivery, they calmly found me a bed. Nothing was calm after they found out I was 9cm dialated. I have never seen nurses run and things happen so quickly at a hospital. All my pleas for an epidural (even when I let the receptionist know as soon as we arrived!) fell on deaf ears because it was too late. Emily was no longer taking her sweet time and my body underwent what I call the Emily makeover. :) She was delivered by the nurses around 4am, several minutes before Dr. Nichols arrived.
I remember seeing her for the first time and whispering, "Emily Grace" because the name we had picked seemed to fit her so perfectly. She was so adorable and immediately I felt this love for her well up inside of me, so different from my love for Hannah and yet somehow the same. She graciously made things a lot easier on me the second time around, eating well, sleeping pretty well, and being a content baby girl most of the time. I think the moment she came home she fell in love with this little person that studied her and wanted to touch her eyes and nose so badly. She adored Hannah from the moment they met and her aspiration in life has been to catch up. The week after she learned to sit up, she began crawling (no blanket time for Mommy!). She walked just after the ten month mark, she began potty training herself around sixteen months, and she has recently begun to speak in full paragraphs.
I love you, Emily. I love that you look like your Daddy and that you want to grow up so fast but you want to do it your way. I love that you want to play your own way on your own time and that your stubborn strength will be used of the Lord one day. I love your repentant heart and your little apologies, and I love that you love to "nuggle." I love saying prayers with you and watching you sleep, listening to you sing, and hearing you laugh. You are my sweet baby girl, my "Mimi."

Home Sweet Home

I am so happy to be home where I have my very own bed and my children sleep in their own rooms, an entire floor away from me! Haha! Actually, we had a lovely Easter weekend. I am so thankful to be a redeemed child of God and to be at home raising my children. I am also thankful that we have a home so I don't have to raise them in a car because I have learned I have my limits. The girls have both grown up so much and they handled the 15 or so hours in the car VERY well but I am pretty sure I answered about 697 questions between here and Alabama. But we got to see our precious family and we had safe travel and got to worship in my home church, and my best friend from high school made a trip down just to visit us! She has a 3 year old as well, and Hannah, Emily, and Vivi played like long-time friends for hours at my parents' house while Julia and I had adult conversation. Good times.

Thank you for the cross, Lord. Thank you for the nail-pierced hands.

Favorite Sister Conversations

Today, my girls each came home from an activity with a bag of Easter eggs. Wisely, the adult had taken the candies out of Emily's, assuming I was picky about which candies I allowed her to eat. I found some acceptable candy and put half in one of Emily's egg and half in one of Hannah's egg. I put Hannah in charge of passing one to Mimi and got in the driver's seat.

This conversation ensued:
Hannah: Pick a hand Mimi (holding both eggs tauntingly beyond Emily's reach).
Emily: My hand, Hannah!
Hannah: No, Mimi, pick a hand.
Emily: My hand, Hannah!
Hannah: No, Mimi, which one?
Emily: Ah!
Hannah: Point, Mimi.
Emily: Point, Hannah! (thinking this must be the new word for egg).
Hannah: Point, Mimi!
Emily: Poooinnnttt! (gesturing at the eggs)
Hannah: Which one, Mimi?
Emily: My mouth Hannah!
Hannah: Mimi!
Emily: Hannah!
At this point, I don't remember what happened next because I was laughing too hard. But everyone got candy in the end.

Zoo!

It's just fun to drink out of lion's mouth!

A Good Week and Good Deals

It's been a good week. The thought of no scheduled activities for the week frightened me, I'll admit it. But there's something refreshing about not rushing around (because I don't care how much time you have to get ready something happens when you try to get your kids out the door that makes you have to rush) all week. We've read and played and tickled and laughed. I feel closer to both of my girls, which is odd to say since I spend every waking moment with them except when I am at church. But it's been good. God is good.

Oh, and the coupon shopping we've done! You have to go do these:
Publix:
Get some free and/or make a penny Kraft dressing. (Use your 1.50 SS coupon, they're bogo for 2.99) I heart the Asian Toasted Sesame Reduced Fat.
Get some 20 cents-ish chex mix. (Use your SS coupon, they're bogo for 2.29)
Buy some Quakes (tiny cheesy or ranchy rice cakes that actually DO taste good, my girls gobble them up). Use your $1 off coupon and grab a bag of the Publix knockoffs for their "buy theirs, get ours free" special. Makes them each less than $1.

Bi-Lo
Emerald Snack Mix. Don't use your 1.50/2 coupon on the big cans of nuts--you will end up still paying upwards of $5. Use it on the BOGO snack mixes, which run about $2-$3. The breakfast blend is rocking my socks off right now. Yummy!
Wash it down with some free powerade using your Valpack coupon. They're 4/$3 at Bi-Lo. They'll double your .50 off coupon and pay you to take it home!

JuicyJuice
Join their JJ club. They'll send you a free sippy (never have enough of those) and a printable for $1 off 2. Hold onto it because Bi-Lo and Publix run those BOGO a lot.

Another Favorite Conversation

Emily walks into my bedroom with two grocery bags full of imaginary groceries.
Emily: "Hey Mommy!"
Me: "Hey Mimi!"
Emily: "Bye, bye Mommy!"
Me: "Where are you going?"
Emily: "I go car."
She sits down and backs herself up to my dresser with a huge grin on her face.
Me: "Is that your car Mimi?"
Emily: Nods, big grin.
Me: "Is it a big, big truck?"
Emily: More smiles.
Me: "Bye, bye Mimi! Vroom, vroom, errrrrk. Vroom, vroom." (doing a pretty awesome big truck impression, I think.)
Emily: "Mommy, Simon says stop."