Near's House

This is what we have been doing over the last two days--Playing with our old "My Little Ponies"

Stickers. Stickers are always a hit in Ada's world.

Taking so many pictures that Ada has learned to clothes her eyes tight when the camera comes out.

Coloring pictures of Elmo in preparation for the 2nd birthday party.
Riding my mother's old rocking horse.
Cooking meals on the toy stove. Little does Ada know that soon she will have a wooden kitchen of her very own.Playing with the original Little People toys. They don't make them like they did when I was a child.
And getting so tired of the constant photography that Ada says, "I've had it, mom."

And after her nap today, the fun moves to Mae-Mae and Pop's house. And I will take advantage of the time away from Ada to head to Huntsville and to Party City to stock up on the last minute Elmo items needed to make the party complete. (Wal-Mart was seriously lacking in the Elmo department).

I don't know if Ada is more excited about seeing Mae-Mae and Pop or cow and horsie that live in the back yard. Every time I say, "we're going to see Mae-Mae and Pop today," Ada says, "and cow and horsie?" And I assure her that yes, she will see cow and horsie. Then she says, "Yea...Mae-Mae and Pop, Yea...cow and horsie," and she claps her hands and cheers.

And then comes the Elmo party. I think Ada slightly knows what is going on because yesterday when I said, "Ada, did you know that your birthday party is on Saturday?" she replied, "Melmo?" And I said, "yes, Elmo will most definitely be there."

From Alabama

I'm checking in from Alabama.

This is the dentist morning. I have a two hour appointment, and then finally, I am done. For the price I am paying for the root canal, I could have gotten that camera I am dreaming of.

Guess who did get the camera I am dreaming of? My sister, Sarah, and I am having so much fun playing with it.

Tomorrow Ada goes to spend the night with "Mae-mae and Pop" (Scott's parents), and then Saturday is the big birthday party.

Of course, I will post pictures and give a full report on that.

Until then...

Weekly grocery post

The couponing continued this week. Publix was a huge success. Kroger was a huge flop. But you live, you learn, right?

Here's how Publix went.

2 bags of Wise potato chips
4 packs of Hefty plates (I feel guilty a/b this purchase b/c I am thinking the styrofoam plates are terrible for the environment, but washing dishes is terrible for my pregnancy exhaustion, so I decided to stock up)
1 bag of hostess powdered donuts (again, I blame this impulse buy on the pregnancy)
4 bottles of Lawry's marinade
4 cans of Bush's baked beans
4 boxes of Starkist Seasations fish (I have never had these, but they were free after coupons, so we are giving them a try)
6 kiwi
1 loaf of Arnold whole grain bread
2 bottles of Mott's apple juice

I paid 25.74 OOP
I saved 59.71

So then we headed to Kroger, and things went very down hill.

Kroger

2 4 packs of Dannon Activia
2 bags of Kraft cheese (part of buy 10, save 5)
1/4 lb of Boars Head White American cheese
1/2 lb of Boars Head honey maple chicken
3 bottles of Juicy Juice apple juice (buy 10, save 5)
1 lb of ground beef
2 bags of Kroger brand frozen chopped onions (I cannot cut up onions. My eyes burn for hours afterwards, so I just buy frozen)
2 cartons of Daisy sour cream (buy 10, save 5)
2 bags of Pepperidge Farm cookies (buy 10, save 5)
1 box of Velveeta shells and cheese
1 box of Kroger brand peanut butter and crackers
1 carton of strawberries
Oatmeal breakfast bars
Jimmy Dean frozen sausage and biscuits (buy 10, save 5)

I paid 41.88 OOP
I saved 15.43

So, 142.76 worth of groceries for 67.62.

Much of what I planned to buy was out of stock, but I needed to buy 10 of the sale items to get the 5.00 off, so I ended buying lots on impulse, which caused my total to sky rocket. Plus Ada was tired at this point, so she was whiny, and I couldn't think. It was some what of a disaster. Luckily I still stayed around my total goal price, but I wanted to spend less than that at Kroger.

Here is what we are eating

Sunday lunch= slow cooked pinto beans, corn casserole
Sunday dinner= BLT's with fresh tomatoes (yum!!)
Monday= spaghetti, bread, salad
Tuesday= chicken and rice in the crock pot, squash

And Wednesday, Ada and I head to Alabama so I can finally finish with the dental work. This also means that I officially begin second trimester on Wednesday--woo-hoo.

We will conclude the weekend with the big 2nd birthday--Elmo birthday cake, balloons, and all. Actually, the celebration will be quite small. I think Ann and I are going to take all the cousins to McDonalds (Ellie, Luke, Andrew, and Ada), and then we are going to eat cake and ice cream at Ann's house afterwards. And since they are all so young, I will be bringing a gift for Ellie and Luke so that everyone can share in the party. I actually never gave either one of them a gift on their actual birthdays, so that's what the gifts are for. And I thought it would be more fun for everyone. One big cousin celebration. Of course I will post pictures.

Ironically, I also spent my second birthday at McDonalds, followed by a Cookie Monster birthday cake (can you confirm that, mom?), so the tradition continues with the new generation. McDonalds and Sesame Street, does it really get any better for a toddler?

Oh, one last thing.

After the grocery trip on Saturday, Scott and I cleaned out and took inventory of the pantry. In doing that, I discovered that I have 13 boxes of pasta and 9 boxes of cake mix. So...does anyone have any good pasta recipes or cake mix recipes? I don't really love to just make a cake, so I am hoping for recipes that use the cake mix. Seriously, please send recipes my way.

This and That

I took lots of pictures last night and today of Ada playing around the house. She is very into "pretend" these days, and I tried to catch that on film. But, alas, when I attempted to download the pictures, the camera battery was declared dead, so I will share the pictures with you later. For now, here are a couple that I took the other day.

Please remember that we are still dreaming of a fabulous camera that takes wonderful photographs, until then, we are using one that friends generously loaned to us. In other words, my pictures just don't turn out too great.

In the picture above, Ada is showing you her new table and chairs from Ikea. She gets to sit there at breakfast and lunch, but she still sits at the regular table for dinner. That same morning I kept asking Ada to take her paci out, so that you could see her face. She did, but with much reluctance. She was not happy about it.And below is a picture of the growing belly. Please excuse how beautiful I look. This was taken after a week spent keeping the nursery during VBS. You can imagine how energized I was feeling;). I planned to not post the picture, just because of how lovely I look in it, but the size of my stomach is rather astonishing to me, so I thought I might share. My friends at church, who are moms to more than one, assure me that you show earlier with the second. I suppose that's true, but really, 9 weeks pregnant? And the belly just keeps on growing.

Other news around here? Hmmmm....

Ada has been sleeping in until 7:30 or even 8:00 some mornings. Compared to her usual 5:30 or 6:00, I am celebrating. It feels so luxurious to roll out of bed at 8 in the morning. I am so thankful. It means that her naps are later and bed time is later, but I will take it.

Her later nap time is giving us more freedom to plan activities during the day. Yesterday we hung out with a dear friend who is back in the US for a short period after doing missions overseas. She is headed back in a few weeks, so I wanted to take advantage of her being nearby. We met for lunch at Atlantic Station, and we didn't get back home until 2:30. That used to be when Ada woke up from her nap.

Then today, we spent a majority of the morning at a local consignment sale. I went hoping to find some cute fall clothes for Ada, but I think it was just too picked through. I didn't buy one article of clothing, but I did pick up a bumbo seat for 5.00!!!! I was thrilled. I am going to give it to Ann's baby Andrew until we have a need for it. With Ada, I borrowed one from a friend, so I am glad to have one of my own. I also bought a copy of A Girlfriend's Guide to Pregnancy and The Essential Guide to Breastfeeding. Both books were only 1.00!! So, I was happy with my purchases. I do hope to have more success in the clothing department at later sales though. I have been searching e-bay for some good buys on fall clothes for Ada, but so far I have had no luck. I have searched for Kelly's Kids and Bailey Boys items, which are all going for way more than I am willing to pay. Any advice on other brands to search for? That gives you an idea of what I am looking for. In particular I would love some fall and Christmas themed stuff. I want a cute smocked outfit for Thanksgiving if possible.

So, that's it with us. Not much to report. I continue to feel better with the occasional sickness thrown in here and there, but things are so much better than they were just a couple of weeks ago. Praise the Lord.

Happy Friday, everyone!

A Favorite Book

When I found out I was pregnant with Ada, Scott and I were very much newlyweds. We were six months into marriage, and we were still figuring out how marriage worked. Let's be honest, we are now working on our fourth year and we don't have it yet, but it sure does seem easier now.

Anyway, it was quite overwhelming for us to face the task of parenting when we felt so young and insecure. How could we, hardly knowing each other yet, learn how to parent together? God has been so very gracious to us, by the way, as Scott and I seem more in harmony than ever before, and I think it is because God has used the parenting of Ada to sanctify our marriage. It has been such an encouraging experience.

So, there we were, dealing with the reality of my first pregnancy, and I was desperate for guidance and instruction and wisdom. So, I did what I always do in desperate situations, I began to read. I didn't know much about what mothering would be like, but I knew that I so wanted this child of ours to know and love the Lord and His gospel above all else. I wanted our family to be about making His kingdom known. And so I bought the book, Raising your children for Christ by Andrew Murray. It's a good one ya'll.

I sat in our tiny, concrete, basement apartment pouring over its pages, desperate to know how to be a parent. And it was as I read this book, that I first began to question what it meant for Ada to be a "covenant child." What did it mean that the Lord allowed Ada to be born into a believing family. And by believing family, I mean she is surrounded by grandparents and aunts and uncles who love the Lord with all of their heart, soul, and mind. She clearly was a blessed child.

So, as I think about Ada's baptism (and this is not that post; that will come in a few days, I think), I return to this favorite book. And now that I am once again carrying a child inside of me, I again think about what it means to parent in such a way as to bring glory to the Lord. This book is chock full of encouraging and practical words, and it opens with this thought, that I want to share with you,

The establishment of a home of love like that in Heaven was to be the highest privilege of man. However, sin came in and brought about man's ruin. The father makes the child a partaker of a sinful nature, and the father himself feels too sinful to be a blessing to the child. Then the homes become too often the path not to heaven, but to hell. But what sin destroys, grace restores! God's grace points back to the restoration of what he intended at creation. It was God's plan for the family with its love and its training of the children to reflect the fellowship of God's home and the love of the Father in Heaven.

Every parent who is aware of his own shortcomings and longs for wisdom and grace must look to the heavenly origin of family life. The God who created it has also redeemed it and makes it new. He watches over each family with tender interest, and gives his own Father-love to every parent who desires to be the minister of His holy purpose.

If this is your desire, begin by making God's thoughts your thoughts. Begin to see the fatherhood and the family on earth as the image and the likeness of the heavenly original. Look to God as the author of your family life and count on him to give you all that is needed to make it what it should be. Let his Father-heart and his Father-love be your security. As you trust in His adoring love, the assurance will grow that He will enable you to make your home the bright reflection of His own.

(Murray, 11-12)

Thoughts on infant baptism from one who doesn't fully understand

As of late, Ada has developed quite the fondness for prayer. I think it's like a fun little game to her, but I, of course, don't discourage "the game." It's been very fulfilling to begin to talk to her about God as creator. Of course she doesn't understand the idea of creator, but I think she is beginning to understand that God is the one we thank. He is the giver of good gifts. So this is how it goes.

We are riding in the car, or playing at the park, or in the middle of dinner, and Ada says, "I want pray." And so we pray. I say, "Dear God..." and she repeats something of that sort, and then she names things that she wants to thank God for. It begins with people, all of the people who are important to her, and the list is long. All of the family on both sides, and then her different little friends, and, of course, Elmo. And I add words, such as, "thank you for Elmo. Thank you for giving us fun things that bring joy and delight to our life." Because I guarantee that Ada truly is very thankful for Elmo. She loves him so. And then we move on to inanimate objects.

We thank God for shoes and for water and balloons, anything that happens to be in sight. And then we start over with the people. God is using this little game in my life. He is using this to show me what a comfortable, easy life I live. I am thankful for shoes. That Ada's feet are protected. She has several pairs to choose from. Ada wants for nothing. Her stomach is not swollen with hunger, she is healthy and well with clean water to drink and money to pay for vaccines and medical bills. She is thankful for cars, she told me today, and I prayed and said that I was thankful for our cars also. That we have money for gasoline and that we have cars that run and take us to where we need to go.

I am thankful for quality care for this baby that is growing inside of me. I am thankful for medication to cut through the sickness and give me relief during this first trimester. The list is long, my friends. Ada has shown me that. There is much to be thankful for.

A while ago, a blogging friend of mine, Rachel, asked me to explain why we chose to baptize Ada, and if we will baptize this little munchkin on the way. That question has led me to re-visit all of the reasons why we chose to baptize Ada because you should know, my background is Baptist, not Presbyterian, so I am a believer in baptism after coming to know Christ personally. And we certainly don't believe that Ada already has a personal relationship with Christ. This new habit of praying together throughout the day, per Ada's request, has really caused me to think about what it meant when we baptized Ada.

Please know that I am no expert. In fact, before we baptized her, I searched the scriptures and I talked to our pastor and another guy on staff. I read lots of books, and I asked lots of questions, and still, questions remained. To be honest, lots of questions remained as Ada was baptized, but I stepped out on faith. I decided that for this season, the Lord has us in this church, and I will trust those in leadership, and we baptized her. In spite of those questions, there are things that I understood the baptism to mean.

I think it means things for us, the parents. It is a public declaration of thanks. We understand that to be parents is a gift, an undeserving one, and we are thankful that God is the author and creator of life. We are thankful that he created Ada's life and that he entrusted us with her. We confess in front of a congregation of God's people that we don't take that responsibility lightly. We confess that we are in no way capable of the task. We are unworthy, and we are only able to do this with Christ working his grace in us. And of course, it is a symbol of our handing Ada back to God. She is his; He is free to do what he wills with her. As her parents we are committed to knowing Him and making Him known above all else.

There is also this idea of obedience; this idea that we are commanded to baptize our children. That is where many of my questions lie. Again, it is not black and white to me. I have a heavy Baptist background, and it is hard for me to see a clear command in the scripture that we are to baptize our children. I understand where this argument comes from, but I am not sure that I 100% agree. Still, we chose to baptize Ada. Because for now, we are in a church that believes this is a command.

Because this post is getting quite long, I will post later about what we believe baptism to mean for Ada. I hope I have been clear. It is hard to write about this subject because it is one that I don't fully understand.

Tackling Kroger

Yesterday instead of our usual library trip, Ada and I decided to head to Kroger to stock up on meat for the next few weeks. I was feeling good, was showered, had eaten breakfast, had my list and coupons, and we were ready. So we pull into the parking lot, find our spot, and all of a sudden I am violently ill. Luckily I have a very messy car, so there was a leftover Sonic bag to quickly grab. So there we sat, me sick and Ada crying in her car seat, saying, "all done, Mommy, all done." I think it scares her when I get sick. The worst part was that there was a poor older women loading her car with groceries right next to me. At one point we made eye contact as I got sick. I felt so bad that she was having to witness that.

I was not to be deterred however. Once I knew my body was through getting sick, I gathered my strength, my list, and Ada, and into Kroger we went. I laughed at myself because just when I am feeling energized and not so pregnant, my body reminds me that I am not even through with first trimester yet.

But, we made it through the rest of the grocery shop uneventfully, and Ada even cooperated once she got her free balloon. Here are the numbers.

2 4 packs of Dannon Activia
1/2 lb Boars Head honey maple chicken
4 packs of Tyson split chicken breast
2 packs of Kroger bacon (BOGO + coupon)
4 cases of Diet Coke
1 carton of eggs (on sale for .59!!!)
and I forgot to buy strawberries and the ground turkey (thanks for the tip, Bethany!!!), so we will probably have to go back today.

I spent 30.15
I saved 32.18

But my fridge is good and stocked with meat for the next few weeks. It will make for some low numbers during the next few grocery shops.

And by the way, last night's "chicken pot pie" meal was a huge hit with everyone, and it was super easy.

Here is the recipe

Chicken Pot Pie Ingredients:

About a cup of pre-cooked diced chicken breast (I used cooked chicken from my freezer, leftover from the rotisserie chickens I bought last week)
1 tsp butter, margarine or olive oil
1 medium onion-chopped
2 cans of cream of chicken soup
Bag of frozen mixed vegetables (peas, carrots, etc…)
1 boiled egg -chopped (optional--I did not use)
1 -2 tsp. Tarragon (I did not add this)
salt and pepper to taste
1 box refrigerated pie crusts (2 crusts are in each box)
Saute the onion in the butter until translucent

Directions:

Add all other ingredients (except crusts) and cook until the veggies are heated and no longer frozen (approx. 5 minutes)
Place one pie crust in your pie plate (press to the sides of the pie plate leaving the top hanging over the edge of the pie plate)
Pour the filling into the prepared pie crust.
Top with the second crust and press the two pie crust edges together
Use a fork to make a few air holes in the top crust.
Bake at 375 degrees for 30-40 minutes (or until top crust is nice and golden)

We all had seconds, and there are leftovers for lunch today. This will be something I make again and again. So easy, so good.

Here is where I got the recipe.

Still Couponing, Still feeling like a newbie

I really feel like I am starting the whole couponing thing over. I am clipping and sorting and matching, but I am missing out on lots of deals because of the weeks that I just couldn't find the strength to care.

But...a miracle has happened over the past week, and I feel like a new person. I am re energized, and nausea, what's that? Thank you, Lord. I have never appreciated feeling normal so much in my life. And I am still two weeks away from second trimester. It truly is a gift from the Lord.

However, with the nausea gone, my appetite has arrived full force, and I have gained my first pound of the pregnancy. If nothing else, I am thankful that the sickness stopped the scale from rising before now. With Ada, I gained ten pounds!!!! first trimester, so things are looking much better this time around. I am channeling all of this new found energy by walking and jogging on a nearby, very shaded, walking trail. I will exercise and not feel so yuck with this second pregnancy. I am determined. (and by jogging, I mean so slowly that a normal person could walk beside me, but jogging I am)

Anyway...I really logged on to tell you about how I am doing with the coupons and the meal planning. Just to keep myself accountable and excited about the deal finding.

Dinner this week looks like this

Monday--"cheater" chicken pie, broccoli
Tuesday--Cheeseburger Pie, a veggie from the local farmer's market (I will buy on Tuesday)
Wednesday--chicken salad sandwiches, fruit, chips
Thursday--jambalaya, black beans
Friday--frozen pizza, salad

And of course the usuals for breakfast, snacks, lunches--eggs, blueberries, strawberries, peanut butter toast, turkey sandwiches, etc. etc. etc. and the always Ada favorite, Activia yogurt

So here is the how the grocery trips went

I started at Kroger where they are having the buy 10, save 5.00 sale. I can't remember all of the price/coupon details, but here is what I bought

2 juicy juice
4 carolina pride smoked sausage
1 box of rice krispies (for rice krispy treats!! my favorite!!)
1 box of fruit loops
4 Tombstone frozen pizzas (for 2.50 each. you can't beat a meal that feeds the whole family for 2.50!!!)
1 bag of marshmallows
1 pack of blueberries
1 loaf of Sara Lee honey wheat bread
5 bottles of Loreal Pro-vive shampoo (1.00 each after coupon)
4 bottles of Loreal kids shampoo (.75 each after coupon)
4 bottles of Garnier Fructis shampoo (1.00 each after coupon--my stockpile of shampoo was non-existent, and now it is re-stocked!!)

total spent=41.97
total saved=52.74

And today I went to Publix

2 New York brand frozen breadsticks
2 Quaker chewy granola bars
4 packs of Women's quattro disposable razors (16 razors total!! It was a great deal)
4 cans of Bush's black beans
Publix frozen pie shells
New York brand croutons
2 bags of goldfish (free b/c they were on sale BOGO, and I had a BOGO coupon)
3 boxes of crayola crayons (.33 each!!)
2 bags of Cape Cod potato chips
1 bottle of flintstone gummies
Publix frozen peas and carrots
1 gallon of Publix milk (on sale for 2.00, and I had a coupon for 1.00 off, so I paid 1.00 for a gallon of milk!!!!)
1 lb of ground beef

total=38.04
total saved=42.10

so far this week I bought 174.85 worth of groceries for 80.00

my friend Bethany blows my numbers out of the water, but I am happy with these numbers while I am getting back on track. What I have learned from Bethany (and Tutti for that matter) is to concentrate on overage and that really gets your numbers low, but I will talk more about that as I figure it out myself.

I still plan to go back to Kroger for a few more items, mainly Tyson split chicken breasts. They are on sale for .99/lb, and I have 4 1.00 off fresh Tyson chicken coupons. I am hoping that combined with a store coupon will equal free chicken. I'll let you know.

Sites worth checking out

I know that many of you who read this blog, are in the same stage of life as me, and that means lots of lots of friends who are having babies. And here in the south, we can appreciate a good smocked or monogrammed outfit or gift. Can we not?

I can't help but get excited over a cute monogrammed item, and that is where the following websites come in. Please check them out.

The first belongs to a friend of mine whose husband works with Scott. Her little boy is a few months younger than Ada, and though it's not often enough, we like to get together for the occasional adult conversation disguised as a play date. She has made Ada several things throughout the past months, and I love them all. She now has a website and etsy shop where you can order your very own items. Check it out. It is all so very cute. I promise you will not be disappointed!!

The second site belongs to a friend's mom, who is a gifted seamstress. Her stuff is beautiful and also worth checking out. And right now, if you sign up for the website's e-mail list, you will receive 10% off your order of 50.00 or more, so go sign up!!

Really, both sites are perfect for shower, birthday, or any time gifts. Trust me.

Purely for the Grandmothers

I was sitting down to e-mail my mother what I am about to blog, and then I thought I would blog in case other family members were interested. Everyone else, trust me, you will not be interested.

I am so happy tonight because Ada has eaten so well today. Because she is so little and she has trouble going to the bathroom, I am always thinking about what she eats. I am excited if she eats one full meal a day.

Bless her heart, she starts the day with a mixture of apple juice and prune juice. Then she had Activia yogurt and peanut butter toast (whole grain and natural peanut butter) for breakfast. She didn't eat a great lunch, but when she woke up from her nap, she ate tons and tons of blueberries. She only stopped eating them because I thought her tummy might hurt if she ate even more. Then she ate lots of chicken casserole for dinner and lots of broccoli. She loved the broccoli. I couldn't believe it. She scarfed it down and asked for more. And Scott said that later she ate an apple.

And while I was at VBS (more on that later), she had a dirty diaper--woo-hoo!!! I was so excited to get that news when I got home.

What really made feel good, though, was that I put her on the scale, and she weighs 23 lbs. I feel like that is more of a normal weight. I was afraid that she was still only weighing 20 lbs, but 23 is fairly good, I think.

Anyway, there is a quick update on Ada's digestive system. Regularly scheduled blogging will resume tomorrow.

Ada's "Big Girl" Room

Scott and I have stumbled upon a deal on a twin mattress and box spring, and just like that, my vision for Ada's future room is coming together.

See the plan is this--if this growing baby is a girl, she will move right into what is now Ada's nursery, and we won't change a thing. I will buy some wooden letters to spell out her (yet to be decided) name, so there will be a personal touch. If it's a boy, I am hoping to switch my bedding with my mom, who still has the original bedding we bought for Ada--green with white elephants, and we will paint the walls, probably a brown. Everything else will stay the same. But more on that later.

The big deal will be Ada's room, mainly because it will stay her room as long as we are in this house.

Here is my vision

this bed from Ikea (with a rail on the side, which will hopefully contain Ada--wishful thinking)

I want this bedding from The Land of Nod, and I love the creamy yellow walls, so I will most likely go with that. I think her red kitchen will look just perfect with all of this.

And that is the plan.

I also dream of buying a very comfy glider for the baby's room, where I will nurse and rock and even sleep if needed, but that may not make its way into the budget.

When Ada was a newborn, there was a double bed in her room, and I could just crawl in that bed during our late night, early morning, around the clock feeding/comforting sessions. This baby will not have a bed in his/her room, so I dream of a glider so comfy I can sleep in it--and nurse and rock the baby all at the same time. We'll see what happens.

In the mean time, Scott and I still need to purchase a queen mattress and box spring, as we continue to sleep on a double mattress on a queen bed. We have a double bed sitting in the garage that we will use in the office/guest room if we ever buy the queen set. Are you following me? I want all the extra sleeping space possible to entice the grandmothers to come and stay with me after the baby is born. I welcome any and all help during the first month (or two or three). The nesting is kicking in--big time--and I get a little overwhelmed by it all. Will it all come together? We'll see. Thankfully, we have until February. Stay tuned.

Headed to CVS

Well, I am going to CVS today, still trying to get back into the swing of things. I do feel remnants of normalcy returning to my life, and I am thankful. I think that I will look back on this summer, and it will be a fog in my mind because I have spent most of it just "getting by."

But with phenigran in my system and many first trimester weeks behind me, I am attempting to get our budget back on track.

Last week I spent 30.00 out of pocket at CVS to give myself a jump start, and as a result I have 12.00 in ECBs to spend.

Here is my plan

Lots of school supplies because our church collects school supplies in the fall for local children

2 notebooks @ .99 each
3 packs of pens @ .99 each
2 pairs of scissors @ 2.99 each
2 things of glue @ .99 each

12.91 total
-12.00 ECBs
=.91 oop (plus tax)

I will get back 12.00 in ECBs

then I am going to buy

1 Gillette Fusion Razor @ 7.99-3.00 coupon=4.99
1 bottle of Gain detergent @ 6.00
4 boxes of Electrasol Power dishwashing tabs @ 3.99 -4 2.50 coupons=1.49 each

total=16.95
-12.00 ECBs
=4.95 OOP

and I should walk away with 6.00 in ECBs from the Gain and the razor.

Comforting Words

Last night I couldn't sleep. I do this often. Last night was especially strange, however, because I had taken half a phenigran. I should have slept soundly.

My heart was very burdened for other people and difficult situations. I felt strongly that the Lord wanted me awake. He wanted me to pray. So pray I did. From 1:30 am to 5:30 am. Don't get me wrong, I wanted to go to sleep. At times I prayed for sleep. But when sleep didn't come, I continued to pray for those things that were burdening me. Finally, around 6 am, when Scott woke up with Ada, I slept very soundly for two hours until it was time to get ready for church. And surprisingly, the Lord has given me much energy today. After all of that praying I did, I loved reading the following words. I just want to soak them in, and cling to them.

“Imagine that your prayer is a poorly dressed beggar reeking of alcohol and body odor, stumbling toward the palace of the great king. You have become your prayer. As you shuffle toward the barred gate, the guards stiffen. Your smell has preceded you. You stammer out a message for the great king: ‘I want to see the king.’

Your words are barely intelligible, but you whisper one final word, ‘Jesus, I come in the name of Jesus.’ At the name of Jesus, as if by magic, the palace comes alive. The guards snap to attention, bowing low in front of you. Lights come on, and the door flies open. You are ushered into the palace and down a long hallway into the throne room of the great king, who comes running to you and wraps you in his arms.

The name of Jesus gives my prayers royal access. They get through. Jesus isn’t just the Savior of my soul. He’s also the Savior of my prayers. My prayers come before the throne of God as the prayers of Jesus. ‘Asking in Jesus’ name’ isn’t another thing I have to get right so my prayers are perfect. Is it one more gift of God because my prayers are so imperfect.”

—Paul Miller, A Praying Life (Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress 2009), 135

From, Of First Importance.

Attempting to coupon again

It has been weeks since I've looked at a coupon. Since I've even attempted to plan a meal. Since I have saved any money at all. Instead, our budget has suffered through first trimester with me, and we are starting to feel the effects. It's bad, ya'll.

Scott has been gracious to me as I have been oh so sick (for good reason, since it equals a healthy baby growing away), and luckily some tutoring money is still coming in to compensate. We would prefer, however, for that extra money to be going towards the debt snowball, so I am trying to plan some meals this week based on sales and coupons. I feel like a newbie.

Here is my plan

spaghetti, pork chops and rice in the crockpot, Stouffer's lasagna, frozen pizza, and another stouffer's frozen meal, and I am going to buy some baked potatoes to fall back on.

I am also planning on buying two rotisserie chickens from Publix because they are on sale and I have a coupon. I think I will take that chicken off the bone and freeze it to use later in casseroles. That way I don't have to deal with the raw meat. Too much for me to stomach right now, you know?

Okay, lunches will be roast beef sandwiches (it's what I have craved lately), peanut butter and banana sandwiches (another craving), and good old pb & J. I am also purchasing blueberries and watermelon for a "side dish" at lunch. Ada will most likely eat leftovers from dinner because I am always trying to get a significant meal in her. She's not a big eater, hence her tiny size.

I am going to buy a few snack items to use as fillers throughout the day when the nausea hits--packaged peanut butter and crackers and cereal bars of some sort.

On Ada's menu are eggs for breakfast and Activia yogurt. The blueberries are also for her, and we will have whole grain bread with lunch. We have to keep things moving;)

I am sure that ya'll are not interested in my grocery list, but it helps me to plan the grocery trip, so thanks for letting me share it with the world. Now I am off to match coupons. Happy saving, everyone!

Quick Update

I just had to share this really quickly because I have talked so much about my sickness.

I think the phenegran is going to do the trick!! Though it absolutely knocked me out, I have not yet felt nauseous today!!! I mean, even during Ada's pregnancy when I was not very sick, the day always started with sickness. How could it not? So, this might be the miracle drug if I can just figure out the best time of night to take it so that I am not so groggy the next day. It is 10:40 now, and I am just feeling like I can get up and about without passing out. Jenny, thanks for the tip of cutting it in half. I am hoping that will work because this seems to be the one thing that will cut through the sickness. Hallelujah!! And only three more weeks of first trimester. Maybe the end is in sight.

By the way, our quilt was oh so comfortable last night. In my drowsy state this morning, I still felt a little Christmas morning thrill when I remembered that I was sleeping under my brand new quilt from West Elm. I love it just as much as I thought I would. I will post pictures soon. And then it will be time for paint color suggestions from the readers. I want something very soothing and calming--maybe a gray? I can't decide if gray goes with the quilt, though. We'll see. Until then, I am hitting the road to pick up my little mess of a girl, Ada. I can't wait. And for those interested, she has had a dirty diaper for three days in a row--woo-hoo!!

Exhausted

Well, we saw him (him representing her and him here, in a pre-feminism way), all curled up and happy as a lark inside my uterus. It sort of made me laugh seeing the little blob of a baby without a care in the world. He is certainly not worried about how sick I am. It also made me get a bit choked up because there was that heart pumping away, evidence of this life inside me. It's nothing short of a miracle.

Scott was with me at this appointment, and he gets so fidgety in situations like that--waiting situations, feminine situations. So, there we sat--me lying on the table, sick as a dog, and him in the chair, waiting on the midwife to make her entrance. Well, as I lay with my eyes shut praying that I wouldn't get sick, I hear Scott get up and begin to fiddle. Next thing I know, he is pulling out plastic gloves--to try on? I'm not sure. I, not so patiently, requested that he sit back down and to please not touch anything. I just knew the midwife was going to walk in to find me asleep on the table and Scott with plastic gloves on both hands. It would be so awkward.

After much pleading, Scott stuck the glove in his pocket.

The midwife did give me a prescription for phenigran (sp?) to get me through until I can refill the zofran. She said that most moms are sicker with the second one, and she thinks it's from lack of rest. Maybe so. The phenigran will guarantee that I rest, I suppose. She was really nice and calmed my fears about my baby's lack of nutrition. When I do choke down a meal it usually involves a McDonald's hamburger or saltines with peanut butter. She also told me to set aside the pre-natal for now and to take two flintstone vitamins and a folic acid every day. She really was the most calming woman. I was thankful.

After that was over, Scott and I headed to Atlantic Station, our old stomping ground, to eat dinner and stroll around a bit. I was so happy and relieved to eat my very favorite salad from CPK, knowing that the baby was getting a bit of nutrition on this night. It was so yummy. The CPK cobb, minus the eggs. Yum. It hit the spot.

Then the night got even better.

With a full tummy, I felt less sick, so we headed into West Elm, and there we found this quilt that I have had my eye on forever.

It was marked down from 150.00 to 27.00!!!!!!!!! Please be shocked with me. And the euro shams were marked down from 30.00 each to 9.99 each!!!! So, what should have been a 210.00 purchase was about 50.00!!!!!!!! I am so excited and motivated to keep my bed made and room clean. I am so thankful. Honestly, it felt like a God thing to stumble upon this deal.

So, it's been a great day. I am absolutely worn out, though. And I am dying to see Ada tomorrow. If I think about it too much, I get emotional, so I just can't think about it. This is the longest I have been away from her, and it has been wonderful to rest, but I need that little girl in my life!!

p.s. thanks for the sweet belly comments. Ya'll may be singing a different tune later in the game;)

The Belly

9 weeks pregnant.

I am thinking things are going to be rather gigantic when we hit 9 months.

Coupons and other ramblings

hey ya'll.

Good news is that I am feeling much better today. The past two days were the worst days of the pregnancy yet, and I prayed for relief. Relief is here. It is an absolute God thing that Ada was with my mom yesterday. Otherwise, we both would have been up a creek. And the report from home is that she hasn't even mentioned me. Who needs mom and dad when you have cousins and aunts and a huge fenced in backyard to play with?

Anyway...as I am feeling more normal today, I am straightening the house a bit, and I ran across some formula coupons that I received in the mail last week. One is for eleven dollars off of Nestle Good Start. Ann would you want this? I probably should have called you first before typing this;) Anyway, if anyone wants this, please e-mail me, laura_rhodes@hotmail.com, and I will send it your way. I would buy it for myself and the munchkin on the way, but I am fully trusting the Lord that this baby is going to be a champion nurser and we won't even need formula. I'm not kidding. I have a peace about it. I may be wrong, and we will cross that bridge when we get there, but for now, I am assuming that we will spend most of that first year nursing away. No five months of struggling for us--I am praying that this baby latches on like a champ right from the start, that my body produces milk like it's my job (because it is!!!), and that there is minimal pain. Sorry if that is too much nursing info. for anyone, but I am praying my little heart out about this on a daily basis. Again, the Lord may say no, and that's okay, but I am moving forward with confidence!!

In the mean time, an 11.00 coupon is too good to go to waste, so please, e-mail me, and I will send it to you. For now, I am getting off the couch, getting in the shower, and I am getting out of the house. I joked with Scott that I was going to have bed sores after staying all. day. long on the couch yesterday, so I am out of here. And tomorrow is the big ultrasound day, followed by a dinner date with Scott. That is, if I am not too sick to eat;)

Funny Ada

It's been a very sick day. I have only left the couch a handful of times, and when I did leave the couch, my Target bag went with me. I am so very thankful that Ada is safe and sound with my mom. I don't feel sick this very second, though, and I think that is a good sign for tomorrow.

Anyway...because I can only blog so much about how sick I am, I thought I would tell an Ada story. Ada is still having bathroom issues. It is her thorn in the flesh (and mine), so I have been talking to my mom through out the day so that I could get updates on how things are going in that department. I was incredibly relieved to get word that Ada did, indeed, have a dirty diaper.

Well, mom has been focusing on fiber-rich snacks. She has given Ada prune juice (which apparently she likes), Activia yogurt, and Ada's newest favorite is Total cereal. Mom sent dad to the store this morning for eggs, juice, and yogurt, and he also picked up Total while there. When Ada saw the unopened box, she said, "I want some." So mom decided to try it. Mom handed her a flake at a time, and Ada kept asking for more. I am not sure if I have these details right, but at some point Ada began asking for "chips," but she meant Total. So when I talked to mom, Ada was walking around the backyard with her cup of "chips," and we aren't correcting her. I say, keep thinking that, Ada, keep thinking that. Total, chips, one in the same, right?

Home

We've been in Alabama for the weekend celebrating the fourth, so I will be back tomorrow to update on our life. I just felt the need to check in.

My stomach decided to pop out over the weekend, as well--yes at 8 weeks--I am telling you, my stomach gets giant, so I will probably post a picture tomorrow. I want to document the growth this time.

I hope everyone had a relaxing 4th. I spent much time lounging on my mom's back porch, and it was wonderful. In fact one night, I just curled up on a bench out there and wished that it was a sleeping porch as I dozed in and out and listened to other people chat. I think something about my pregnancy hormones make home even more desirable. I haven't felt that relieved to be at home since Ada was three weeks old and my mom "rescued" me by bringing me to Scottsboro for some much needed help. Home was a haven for me this weekend, and it was a bit hard to come back to Georgia. However, we left Ada in Scottsboro with my mom, and I will return on Thursday to pick her up. It was a last minute decision that my mom suggested so that I could get some much needed rest this week. It was hard to leave little Ada behind (though Ada didn't seem to care at all), but I am looking forward to sleep, sleep, sleep.

Speaking of, I am headed to bed. It's been a constant nausea day, and I am thinking sleep will be the only thing to bring relief.

Good night, everyone, and Happy Fourth!!

Manageable

I know that some of you (my mother mainly) are wondering how the day is going sans Zofran. And surprisingly, it's going fairly well. Do I wish I could stay under the covers all day sleeping away the nausea? Sure, but I felt that way yesterday when Zofran was in my system.

In fact, Monday was a much more difficult day than this one has been. I am so thankful. The Lord continues to take care of me. He knows what I can handle, and this day, I can handle.

The main thing I dread? Tutoring. It is so hard for me to muster up the enthusiasm needed to walk students through the hard task of learning to read, when I don't have a lot of care in me right now. But, it's just an hour at a time, and I will get through that as well.

Even my high school English student is not something I am looking forward to today. It makes me thankful that I am facing two hours of tutoring, rather than six hours of teaching rather unruly students. The Lord knew that I couldn't have been this sick while pregnant with Ada, and I wasn't!! I can't even remember how I managed to teach during first trimester. I think I have blocked it out.

All of that to say, we are alive and well, and I appreciate all of the advice, in case things do take a turn for the worse. I predict that we are on the downhill side of this thing. I am making my way through week eight, and I can even imagine what it will be like to make it to week twelve and beyond.

And next week we are headed to the doctor for an ultrasound, and I can't wait for that. I am ready to see this little person who is causing such a ruckus in my life. I told Scott this baby is already causing more trouble than Ada did--that can't be a good sign;)