Sleepy

Yesterday all three kids took wonderfully long naps, it was so nice to have that two hours of peace and quite. The odd thing was I wasn't tired at all! Normally i try to sneak in a 30-45 minute nap while they sleep, just to get me through the day. They wake up between 6-6:30 (sometimes earlier) and some days I wake up earlier to go run. Then I'm up till 11 most nights so by nap I'm sleepy.

Today I'm exhausted and could really use a nap, but Lexi is refusing to sleep and Josiah took a nice long nap at coop so there is no rest for me today! I can't even sit on the couch cuz Josiah climbs all over me, or goes and gets into things. guess I'll just be a sleepy momma today!

Camping

As the weather gets warmer I can almost smell the scents of camping. the tent, the bug spray, the dirt, the grass, the pine trees. the air mattress, ok so the air mattress isn't a nice smell, but it's part of camping.  We only have one camping trip scheduled this year, but i really hope we get more than that in. I'm due in the end of July, so it is making this year a little more challenging. Camping with a few week old baby doesn't seem like much fun, and neither does camping while 36 weeks pregnant. Although, I supposed if my brother in law who has had back surgery (not minimally invasive spine surgery either) can camp on an air mattress, someone who is 36 weeks pregnant can camp on one too right? 

Our planned camping trip is our annual Memorial Day weekend camping trip with my family. It's fun to gather together with my sisters, mom, step dad, and some of my aunts and uncles and cousins. I wish we saw them all more than just once a year, but at least we get to see them this much. We keep hoping that more and more family will join us as the years go on, but it's always the same group, maybe one year we'll be blessed with the presence of one of my brothers, or another aunt or uncle.  Some family traditions are nice to have. Especially ones that involve tents, swimming and good camping food!

The Battleground

Last year we, along with a few other people, started a youth outreach called The Battleground. Twice a month we meet at a local youth hang out. We bring in a band or two and open the doors for the youth from around town, just to give them a safe place to hang out and see Jesus.

Not long ago we bought a sound system, just one of the many things that we will need as we grow, and one day get our own place. I was amazed at the expense of the different things we needed for it, even the used one we bought seemed a crazy price to me. A few months into using the sound system and two of our amps blew, so we had to go buy some new ones. We got better ones this time, they might be Pro Audio, I don't remember. but I know they sound a lot better than the old ones.  What is the most amazing to me is that every time we have needed something God has provided either the money for it, or what we needed. It just makes me all the more excited to watch as God keeps his hand in this ministry and furthers his kingdom here in our little town.

Time

Growing up the days seemed so long, a year was like forever. The older I get the faster the days, weeks and years go by.  I feel it is important for mothers/fathers/husbands/wives to spend some time doing the things they enjoy- having time for themselves. 

With me, that thing is running, and my husband is good to help me work out a way that I can run 3-4 times a week. My husband's stress relief time is playing drums. unfortunately, he doesn't get to do that very often.  His drum kit is set up in our room, but in order for him to play i have to take all the kids and go somewhere. I've thought about how nice it would be if we could get him a Pintech electronic drums it would take up less space, plus he could turn the volume down and the kids might not know he was playing.

He really loves music, and i really do want him to be able to have that time to decompress and do what he enjoys.  Maybe some day we can have a room that is a little detached from the rest of the house so he can go in, close (and lock) the door, and have some time to himself!

Supposedly the economy is getting better, try telling that to the people in small towns like the one I live in who are still unemployed, or are working jobs that pay half of what they are used to making. I know people who have been looking for jobs for a long time and can't even seem to get a sears jobs, or walmart job.

I saw a thing on the news the other day that even the fast food restaurants that used to be a place where teens got their first jobs are now a place where adults who have lost their jobs are working more than a place for high school students to start their job experiences. 

I know it's not as bad as it could be, and I'm glad about that, but I'd like to see things really pick up.

Babies

Several new babies have joined the world in the past month. It's so sweet to see the new lives being born, seeing families grow, seeing daddies with their Swisher Sweets  as they celebrate the birth of their sons and daughters.  It makes me so happy to see them, also makes me happy to know that each week that goes by I get closer to holding the new life that's growing in me.

Several of the new babies that have been born lately are to first time mommies and daddies, which makes things all the more exciting to see husbands and wives take on new rolls as mothers and fathers.  It certainly changes your life when you have your first child, of course, every new addition to your family makes life more interesting. I'm wondering how hard it's going to be to go from 3 to 4, guess I'll find out in a few months!

Pregnancy Hormones

I love being pregnant, I am one of the lucky few who has fairly easy pregnancies (when I get pregnant and stay pregnant, I do have a history of miscarriages). There is one thing about pregnancy that I don't know is talked about much, the hormones!  you're happy, you're sad, your angry, you skin breaks out and looks terrible (I have never experienced that "pregnancy glow" that others talk about). The hormones are crazy. I have been told that if you take your prenatal vitamins it's supposed to help, as well as a healthy diet, but neither of which have helped me much. I wonder if you can get bio identical hormone replacement therapy for pregnancy hormones. :) just kidding.

Seriously though, the hormones are interesting. That and being tired. and the weird combinations of foods you want.

Natural living

I'm slowly (and I mean very slowly) working towards a more natural life. I'm trying to avoid processed food,  crazy chemicals and unnecessary  unnatural things. I've been looking at natural deodorants, toothpastes, soaps, even shampoos like seaweed shampoo. I have yet to take the total plunge though, the costs always hold me back.

I'm just seeing the increased amounts of sicknesses, diseases, even things like ADD and Cancer. The rates of those are on the rise and I can't help but associate them with the increased intake of processed foods, chemicals being used on things and junk we are feeding our bodies.   And don't even get me started on all the natural cures for things that other countries are using that are working, but our country refuses to accept.