observations

Spending time with my number two guy, basking in a the late afternoon sun with a good book. He's a mover. He doesn't sit still, even when reading.

His left dimple is more apparent when he's reading. Not sure if it's his dimple doing anything different or me just noticing every little thing about him when I'm quietly focused on just him. I tried a billion times to catch it with the camera. I couldn't. Just something I'll have to tuck away in my memory, should he ever outgrow his dimples.

This one truly enjoys reading. I love that! He retains what he reads, he keeps up with the storyline. He thinks ahead to try and solve the mystery on his own. I love it.

I'm going to miss this stage. I know Encyclopedia Brown will pass and something new will fill this kid's brain. For now, I'll take the little boy simplicity.

 Man, I love this kid.

10TUE

1. My niece is eleven today. I remember all too clearly driving 90mph the entire way to Spartanburg to make it in time for her arrival. I remember the way her bald, little head smelled on the day of my wedding. I see her in that pale pink dress, brows drawn, lips pursed as she rides with us in the carriage. I feel the weight of her in my arms during the pictures. I remember thinking, I hope future generations don't look at these pictures of me holding a two month old in my wedding dress and think she's mine.

I'll have to do a whole post about her once I get some birthday pictures. I have a fun shoot in mind if her mama will let me put make up on her. :)

2. My littlest has officially entered his last month of being two. He has been saying, "My birt-days co-meen soon. I have a pane party," for about a week. He's right. A plane party is in the works.

3. The house I wanted is gone. Not meant to be, I s'pose.

4. I have 13 other houses on the list to look at. So excited about our trip to MD to househunt! Wish Sean could come.

5. More people than ever are reading ye olde blog; less people than ever are commenting. My friends that read usually communicate with me outside of my blog. It's all the unknown readers I wonder about...

6. I need March to scootch on by. This has been a rough week already and it's only Tuesday. Just tired of being out of control of so many things. I actually dream about the way I'll organize my countertops when I live in a big girl house again.

7. I am currently reading The Ultimate OMEGA Advantage. Sean tried to explain Omega 3 & Omega 6 fatty acids to me one day. Have I mentioned that I married up? Dude is way too smart for me & I tend to zone out when he smart talks. This book is breaking it down for me. It is AMAZING! God's design is mind-boggling. It is fascinating to understand how our bodies work.

It's nothing I could put into a blog post, don't worry. I will say, knowledge is power. This book makes me go, "Oh." It explains a lot about why we are so freaking unhealthy.

8. My middle one is the lovey one. The littlest is a bit of porcupine. When the two collide in harmony, I can only sigh.

9. Speaking of F&T...I bought the Small Paul Genius Academy shirt when I was pregnant with T. I got it at a surf shop in Huntington Beach, CA. I can't believe it's been over three years since that trip. Girlfriend, it is time for another trip!

10. One more, because I'm out of things to talk about and because I just made myself sad thinking about how long it's been since I've seen the aforementioned Girlfriend.

Happy Tuesday!

12on12

Taking twelve pictures of my day turned into taking 400+ pictures of my day. I tend to get carried away when a camera is handy. Like right now. Felix fell asleep in my bed and he looks so, so sweet. Even though it's 1:15 in the morning and pitch black in my room, I'll still attempt a photo.
This one started the day off by grabbing the drawstring of my pajama pants and saying, "C'mon, horsey." My non-chalant cowboy. :)

 Photos 2-3...anyone care to guess how our school day went?

Dancing like a monkey. The animal references are about as frequent as bodily function references around here.

I said, "Give me a thumbs up."
Grandpa said, "That's about as cliche as telling a cheerleader to ra-ra."

 A quick game of Nab-it with Simon while Feefs was in the shower.

 A chapter of Encyclopedia with Feefs while Simon was in the shower. I'm a little impressed that my "Kindergartner" can read Encyclopedia. Flawlessly. And with emotion!

I said, "Hey, Felix. Let me tell you something."
He asked, "Is it a secret?"
I said, "Kinda. I just want you to know that when Simon was your age, he was still reading level readers."

Homeschool mamas, is it okay to instigate a little competition amongst siblings like that? It didn't make him boastful, it made him proud(in a good way).

He said, "Well, Simon is the smartest person I know!"

good reads

*Mew(As in moo+eww). Funny, right? I came up with that.

*I guess protecting animals isn't all the rage anymore? I'm not one of those activists that pushes for the murder of children who wear animal prints(like this nutjob). However, I see a correlation between people who treat animals poorly and people who treat humans poorly. When the bottom line is always the dollar, what kind of ethics do these people have when it comes to food production? Luckily, the government is now on their side, not ours.

Yet, that same gov't wants to tax us for all those drowning polar bears b/c we caused "global warming." Right. They care about the polar bears. Seems to me the bottom line is always money.

*"Food, as far as I'm concerned kills more people than all drugs on Earth combined!" "We're eating about 150lbs of sugar per year... each person. 79lbs of High Fructose Corn Syrup per year. That's about 22 teaspoons of sugar.... a day. There is nothing moderate about that!" Kris Carr - www.hungryforchange.tv

*But I like sugar...

*SALT, who knew?

on my mind

Building a pantry. A real, no kidding, should the need arise to feed my family + a few neighbors pantry.

Simplifying. A journey we've been on for a little over a year. I love the results. LOVE the results. I want to continue to cut out the excess. Financially, spiritually, eating, living.

Fernando Ortega. I Will Sing of My Redeemer.

School. I'm thinking about going year round with the kiddos. It just makes sense to keep truckin'. Obviously, we'll need a break for the move, but why stop when we've got a good thing going?

Obedience. Mine. I know what I need to do, but so many times I don't do it. Romans 7:15-20.

Adoption. When Sean is done with school. Two. I'm feeling the call. Crazy amounts of coincidences, just this week. From Africa to Korea and some places closer to home. I'm thinking there are a lot of kiddos right here that need a family. Why not us?

Connections. Old ones. New ones. Reaching out. Saying yes. Saying no. Making memories. Building bonds that will last, despite the miles.

Exodus. I'm going through it with the boys and on my own. I read a blog post by an atheist several months ago talking about how cruel the God of the O.T. was. Obviously, she hasn't read the Book. What I see, over and over and over again in the Old Testament is the overwhelming amount of patience God had with His people and with the enemies of His people. So many chances to get their act together. So many great displays of His awesome power. If anything, reading through the O.T. shows me just how magnificent God is. And the consequences of leading a lifestyle of sin with no repentance.

Mostly, though, it shows me just how wonderful the plan of salvation is. How He worked everything together in Jesus Christ. I am so very thankful that He gave sinful people a chance at redemption through laying aside our sin, turning from it and placing our faith in His Son.

I am thankful I get a chance at a personal relationship with the Creator of the Universe through His son. I am thankful I get an opportunity to spend an eternity with a God who loves me enough to give me a chance. Despite my failures every single day. I get to repent and keep trying. I get redemption by simply placing my faith in the work done on the cross. Not good works. Not paying a certain amount of money or thinking the right thoughts or being a good person. But because of HIM. To God be the glory!

Bit of a tangent there. Off to prepare for springing forward. Yay for that. :)

Peak 8

Sean mentioned Peak 8 a while ago. I mean, many whiles ago. As in, he was doing Peak 8 when we were still in a house in San Antonio.

I, being the hater of all things exercise, mostly ignored him. I did hold a stop watch for him once.

A year-ish later, here I am. I caught an infomercial at some point in my insomnia this morning. It happened to be about some Brazilian butt workout. O-o There's some uplifting television, lemme tell ya.

As of late, I've been consuming obnoxious amounts of bread. Loaves. Loaves of bread are eaten by me. That may be a slight exaggeration, but given the Artisan bread baking going on 'round here + my new found love of scones...it ain't hot.

I've never felt guilt over eating. It's just not something I've ever really worried about. I don't say that in a way that should make anyone want to hurt me, but I just have some freakish metabolism that I can only attribute to the good Lord above. He figured I'd be a lazy one and gave me almost 30 years of good metabolism.

That special favor from Heaven must've come with an expiration date. That, or I've never eaten so many carbs in such a short period of time. Either way, I decided today was the day I'd try Peak 8.

Problem #1: I thought it was called Peak 9.
Problem #2: I didn't take the time to look it up before I pulled the treadmill out.
Problem #3: Pandora crapped out while I was running. Brett Dennen just quit 30 seconds in to song number 2. Exercising with no music?!
Problem #4: relating to Problem #1, I couldn't remember how long to run/walk, so I just went with my jiggly gut.
Problem #5: My gut was wrong. I was running for too long and not walking long enough to catch my breath. That said, I stuck with it. I succeeded. I intially thought I'd failed as I couldn't run another segment, but considering I thought it was Peak 9, hearing the magic 8 made me feel pretty rad.

According to Dr. Mercola:

It will be relatively hard to breathe and talk because you are in oxygen debt(cHECK, yeah)

You will start to sweat profusely. Typically this occurs in the second or third repetition unless you have a thyroid issue and don't sweat much normally. (Oh, good. It's normal.)

Your body temperature will rise(I thought I'd jump started menopause with all the hot flashes)

Lactic acid increases and you will feel a muscle "burn"(Does not being able to walk count?)

I try to get this form of exercise in by simply playing with the kids every day. The only problem with that is someone inevitably interrupts. Whether it be a light, brotherly tackle; someone getting hit in the face by a swinging sibling; or sour sports that require a chat...a full workout ain't happenin'.

In this article, the doctor also recommends:

Get a good night's sleep (that hasn't happened in about, oh, 4 months or so. I bought tea today...).

Avoid a high fat meal prior to exercising (I ate salad!)

Drink plenty of water (check)

Eat healthy carbs (think vegetables) and high quality protein (I ate salad! With raw walnuts, boiled egg, just a tiny splash of balsamic vinegrette and a pinch of good cheese, so...check, check, checkcheckcheck).

Optimize your vitamin D levels (oooh, I'm out of my D3. Sean said Sprouts in S.A. has been out of our go-to D3 for over a month. Need some now and MUST stock pile once we're settled).

Avoid sugar, especially fructose (The one that gets me. I am just a teensy bit in love with sugar. Who isn't? I mean, at least I'm not consuming HFCS in any way, shape, or form, but I am still consuming sugar. Not sure how to combat this one. I plan to start using honey more often, but as far as kicking sugar, it's just not going to happen. I do a pretty good job of staying in the recommended 25-30grams/day, but that's tough. I used to drink half of that in my first cup of coffee! I now do just a tiny little teaspoon of cane sugar+half&half instead of flavored creamer.).

Any advice on how you have reduced sugar intake??

fly

Ingredients:

    a fan, exercise bungee, pinwheel, 3lb weight, remote, coaster, calculator

 a rocking chair, pillows, Buzz Lightyear jams, and a 2 year old

Completely missed the focus, but gotta love the face.

 No focus, cute face combo again...

 Showing Grandma his plane.

 Concerned/outraged that I was standing in front of his plane.

 Recipe variations: add in a brother for sweetness.

 Or tartness. This photo was an accident.

It pretty much sums up the attitude of involving a brother in our game.

I was telling him to let Feefs have a turn.

 You see who won that one, though we did have to swap out the pillows for tray table wings.

 Titus retaliated with a terrorist attack on our airplane.

 Luckily, the pilot was able to save the wing...

 and resume flying, complete with engine noises.

 Thanks for flying Faker Airlines.

Good times, good times.

Complex

I have so many thoughts running through my head right now.
I miss my husband.
I miss my friends.
I even miss the simplicity of living in Mack(say what?).
I'm eating too much bread. Seriously. It's alarming.
I have to figure out what I'm using for school next year.
Where do I buy it?
When do I buy it?
Trulia.
Kensington.
Silver Spring.
Gaithersburg.
Germantown.
Househunting trip.
This week or next?
I'm gonna lose the house I want.
I'm not gonna want it when I see it.
Gas prices are outrageous.
Grocery prices are outrageous.
My van is paid off!
My gas gauge disappeared.
Car insurance will be lower!
My odometer disappeared.
No more car payment!
My STARS this thing guzzles gas.
I'm a crappy long distance friend.
I need to make calls.
I need time to make calls.
What will school really be like?
Will I ever see Sean?
Will I make friends with his classmates spouses?
Will we find a church?
A real church?
Why can't I sleep?
That girl at Walmart eight months ago.
Why didn't I open my mouth?
Why wasn't I obedient?
Why can't I get over it?
I love line dancing.
My baby is almost three.
Oh crap, I want another one.
Stupid thought, heck no.
I am not qualified.
March 31 is coming.
Yay, the budget is working.
I love the budget.
I hate the freaking budget.
I am addicted to coffee.
Everybody is tired of me.
My stupid food facts.
I broke my mom's lamp.
My boys want to kill each other.
Daily.
Why can't I make them love each other like the Jonas Brothers?
I need to find a church in Maryland.
What's wrong with this country?
Why are people not outraged?
How many more rights can they take?
When will the Church finally take a stand?
Will it be too late?
I need to find food in Maryland.
I need to find a co-op in Maryland.
Why is time dragging?
Why is time flying?
I have no time for anything.
I have too much time!

I wish being an adult wasn't so monotonously busy. My brain is too full for this stuff.

ten

1. I have a new love. It's a dangerous love. It's a love I should not indulge in nearly as often as I do. It's such good, good lovin', though. *sigh* Scones.

We lived in England for a time. My dad totally busted my chops about how nasty scones are. How they were actually pronounced "stones" until someone got cute. He's wrong. The scones I am in love with, thanks to a certain Davis family, are wonderful, light and fluffy.

2. After catching a news story or two on the radio today, accidentally watching a few minutes of the news with my dad and then passing back through at the beginning of Benjamin Netanyahu's speech, I wonder how there can be atheists.

3. I also wonder how on earth there can still be people who would vote for Obama. That's right, I said it.

4. A friend sent me Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day. I just mixed up my second batch of dough. This time, with rosemary.

5. This is how I know it's not a phase. <VIDEO> So the video is crap. Just envision Simon at the dinner table jamming his little heart out and sounding amazing while doing so. I had to stop from scone prep to take a little phone video. Unfortunately, I don't have a fancy phone that takes even half way decent video.

I don't have to ask him to practice. He squirrels himself away several times a day and just jams. He doesn't do a whole lot with his practice book, yet he manages to learn the songs he's taught. As in, he can read chords or notes or whatever the word may be when it comes to guitar, but he does more by ear. It's talent! I didn't recognize it at first(not having a single talent myself). It's not a pain to him. He loves it. And I love that he loves it. As predicted, he now knows "Ring of Fire." :)

6. House hunting is going okay. There's one house that is just perfect. It'll either work out or it won't. I have a back up list, but the one I have my heart set on is just...it's the one I want. My trip to MD is set, now I just need the house to wait on me to get there.

7. According to my Pandora Shuffle, I like Jadon Lavik and Josh Radin and Ray LaMontagne and Downhere and Brett Dennen and Jack Johnson(always). I'm not big on music, I never know who the it person is in music land. I listen to sermons and talk radio and children whining(mostly!) when in the car. I listen to Pandora when I'm blogging, project lifing or pinning recipes.

8. My heart stopped a little bit when I saw this one.

9. This guy likes the idea of flying.

10. :)

three years later

Simon hands out flowers because he's a stud. He doesn't know it yet, but he's the type that's going to schmooze the ladies. He's pretty chill with the dopiness of love. He tries so hard not to be obvious with his cool cat-ness. In his trying not to be obvious, he's so obvious. He loves with his whole heart & he wants love back.

Felix, well, Felix runs after the object of his love. Felix yells, "WAAAAAIT!" while sprinting to catch up. Felix arrives out of breath and hands over a flower with just a smile. His message comes across pretty clearly in that smile. His dimpled face, smirking, proud. The love radiates from him, even as he turns on his heel and bolts. Felix loves to his very core and he doesn't expect anything back.

Titus is just a turd. He plays games. He refuses affection if it isn't his idea. He's probably rebelling against all the loving he gets. Everybody wants to squish the baby. Everybody wants his kissys, especially when he's saying, "No kissys," while laughing his little head off. It just makes it all the more special when he puts his not-so-chubby little paws on my cheeks and turns my face towards his to tell me something important.

I've been doing lots of reminiscing lately. Looking back through pictures. Remembering. Wondering.

When I dropped Sean off at the airport a few weeks ago, I took my time coming home. I stopped in at a Marshalls we once lived across the street from. Charlotte is pretty non-existent in my memories. We only lived there long enough for Titus to come along. As I was stooped down, checking out something on a low shelf, noticing all the Easter decor, I was hit with a tidal wave of deja vu.

If I hadn't blogged about it back then, I probably never would've remembered. And here we are almost three years later. Crazy. I mean, seriously, Cadbury Creme Eggs? :)