More scrapbooking

I have really been loving scrapbooking recently, since I have this wonderful source of inspiration! Here are some of my recent favorite pages.

Collages are fun and make photos even more exciting.=!

Vary your pages up with circles.

I love these big stickers from "Me and My Big Ideas".  They are great for decorating my album.

Just too cute.

Would you read a blog with scrapbooking information? Inspiration? And other crafts?
Sometimes blogging about motherhood feels the same with every post "I love it, but it's hard." And I think I would have more to write about this way, and enjoy writing it even more! So would you read it?

A Year Ago

A Year Ago...

I was 3 months pregnant.
I was in the middle of my worst all-day sickness.
I was waiting anxiously for the day when we would have an ultrasound to know the baby was healthy.
I was still getting used to living in New Hampshire.
I was unpacking boxes in our new apartment.
I was laying around and sleeping all day.
I was letting the housework slip.
I was missing my family.


How is my life different now?

I have an almost 7 month old!
I haven't been sick all year.
I still worry about my son being healthy, but at least now I can see him.
I enjoy living in New Hampshire and it has become our home.
All our boxes are unpacked.
I wish I was laying around sleeping all day, or even at night.
I still let the housework slip, but I'm trying to do better.
I still miss my family, but I have so many friends and church family covering me with love.


It has been a crazy, amazing, year. I cannot believe how much has changed.  What an adventure!

Studying Parenting

I wish everyone would get on the same page with parenting advice.  I’m the kind of person who, when I haven’t done something before, wants instructions on how to do it.  I don’t like doing things incorrectly, so not having instruction is hard for me.

When it comes to parenting, there is plenty of advice to be found on how to parent.  My problem is that it’s all different!  Sometimes it seems that everyone I talk to has different opinions.  All the books say different things, and even all the pediatricians!  What the heck?

Nathanael isn’t the greatest sleeper right now, so I’ve been seeking advice on what I could be doing better.  Every book has a different technique.  Every parent has a different trick.  And every pediatrician has their own advice to give.  These are the things I have been told or read:

·         Don’t let him nap in his crib, the crib is only for bedtime

·         Don’t let him sleep anywhere but the crib

·         Make him cry it out

·         Nurse him to sleep

·         Rock him to sleep

·         Never nurse him to sleep

·         Put him to bed earlier

·         Put him to bed later

·         Swaddle him

·         Don’t swaddle him

·         Try a pacifier

·         Don’t give him anything that he can’t give himself

Ahh!! It makes my head spin!  Will someone please just tell me the right way to do this??

It’s times like these where I wish the Bible gave more practical, step by step instructions on how to be a parent.  Recently I have found myself asking: What does the Bible say about parenting?  What does God expect me to do as a parent?

Here is what I have learned through my own study.

1.    God wants parents to guide their children in the right direction and teach them about Him and His commandments.  One way that he wants us to do this is by showing them by the way we live.  They will learn from our example.

Point your kids in the right direction—when they’re old they won’t be lost.—Proverbs 22:6 *

…By looking at them, the younger women will know how to love their husbands and children, be virtuous and pure, keep a good house, be good wives.  We don’t want anyone looking down on God’s Message because of their behavior.  Also, guide the young men to live disciplined lives.  But mostly, show them all this by doing it yourself, incorruptible in your teaching, your words solid and sane.  Then anyone who is dead set against us, when he finds nothing weird or misguided, might eventually come around. –Titus 2:1-8

Write these commandments that I’ve given you today on your hearts.  Get them inside of you and then get them inside your children.  Talk about them wherever you are, sitting at home or walking in the street; talk about them from the time you get up in the morning to when you fall into bed at night.  Tie them on your hands and foreheads as a reminder; inscribe them on the doorposts of your homes and on your city gates. –Deuteronomy 6:6-9

See also: 2 Corinthians 12:14

2.       God wants us to discipline our children.  A majority of what the Bible says about parenting is along these lines.

A refusal to correct is a refusal to love; love your children by disciplining them. –Proverbs 13:24

Discipline your children; you’ll be glad you did, –they’ll turn out delightful to live with. –Proverbs 29:17

See also: Proverbs 29:15, Proverbs 23:13-14, and Proverbs 19:18

3.       God wants us to show our children grace.

Fathers, don’t exasperate your children by coming down hard on them.  Take them by the hand and lead them in the way of the Master. –Ephesians 6:4

See also: Colossians 3:21

Ultimately, God wants us to parent our children as he parents us.  Part of the Bible is the story of God parenting us. 

…He is treating you as dear children.  This trouble you’re in isn’t punishment; it’s training, the normal experience of children.  Only irresponsible parents leave children to fend for themselves.  Would you prefer an irresponsible God?  We respect our own parents for training and not spoiling us, so why not embrace God’s training so we can truly live?  While we were children, our parents did what seemed best to them.  But God is doing what is best for us, training us to live God’s holy best.  At the time, discipline isn’t much fun.  It always feels like it’s going against the grain.  Later, of course, it pays off handsomely, for it’s the well-trained who find themselves mature in their relationship with God. –Hebrews 12:4-11

So how does God parent us?

He gives us guidelines for a full-life.  He told Adam and Eve not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.  He gave the Israelites the Ten Commandments.  We will have everlasting life if we accept Jesus as our Savior. 

See also: John 10:10

He allows us free-will. He allows us to make our own decisions.  He didn’t put a fence around the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and Eve made the choice to eat the fruit from it.  He didn’t make the Israelites follow the Ten Commandments.  We have the choice whether or not we will accept Jesus’ sacrifice for our sins.

He disciplines us.  Adam and Eve were kicked out of the garden for disobeying.  The Israelites had to wander in the desert because they did not trust him.  If we don’t accept Christ, then we don’t get to go to heaven.

He extends grace to us.  Adam and Eve, the Israelites, and their future generations were given a second chance.  God gives us a way out of our sin, through his Son.

Those are the things that God cares about when it comes to our parenting.  Ultimately I remember what one of my good friends told me.  I am the mother of my child.  No one else can be Nathanael’s mother.  Only I have that title.  God gives me wisdom and guidance to parent Nathanael.  Every parent and every child is different and only God knows best how to parent each and every one of us.  He created us and he is the perfect parent.

* All text is taken from The Message

When He Finally Falls Asleep

When Nathanael finally falls asleep I do one of the following things:
1. Take a nap myself
2. Get some work done
3. Scrapbook

I really enjoy scrapbooking.  I like the actually act of putting together layouts and designs and then being able to look back on them.  Nathanael was born in January and my second scrapbook is almost full.  Yeah, I take a lot of pictures of this boy, and I want to save them all in my scrapbook!  However, I have come to realize that I will probably need to start picking my absolute favorites to scrapbook because if I keep this up, before the year is done, I will have filled 5 scrapbooks!

Before Nathanael was born, I had quite a few crafty things that I liked to keep up with.  But I have found that I cannot keep up with all of those things, so if I am keeping one steady, crafty, hobby, it would have to be scrapbooking.  I have looked into the digital scrapbooks that shutterfly and snapfish offer, but there is something about holding the photos in my hands, cutting the paper, and placing the stickers, that I just love. 

Here are some of my favorite layouts that I have done this year:  

I wish I could have a job where I could just stay home and scrapbook.  My mom had me organize her photos and put them in scrapbooks because she got behind.  Anyone else want to pay me to do that?

#reallife

One of my favorite things that we do in our MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) Group is we post photos of our real life.  Even the worst of it.  So often the images we see on social media are people’s perfect self, their perfect life.  We control what we put on social media and we only want to put our best self out there.  We won’t post a selfie when we are having a bad hair day, we try not to show our house when it is not perfectly clean.  We only post pictures of our happy children.  But let’s be honest, that’s not real life.  This is real life:

Sometimes your child spits up on you while you are laying on the couch and then rubs his face in it.  Then, since there is no one at home to help you, you have to sit up, letting it all run down your shirt, in order to get you both cleaned up.  Gross!

Sometimes you just can't get to the laundry and when you finally do, it looks like this.

Sometimes you have to eat dinner on the floor in front of the TV because you can't eat at the table.

Sometimes the dishes don't get done, you can't take a shower, you can't get out of your pajamas.  Sometimes life is just too crazy to be perfect.  Sometimes you spend your whole day rocking your teething child.  Some days you just need to sit on the couch, eat a whole row of Oreos, and watch some TV and neglect the housework.  And that's okay!  It happens to everyone.  Our lives aren't perfect, they are REAL.

Haven't showered since yesterday, still in my PJ's, wearing a sweater that I've worn for the past 3 days, and a crying child who just won't take a nap.  This is my life, it's real, and I wouldn't trade it for anything. 

 
Comment with pictures of your #reallife!

Parenting involves a lot of but(t)s

Where has the time gone?!

I have sat down at this desk so many times over the past month to pay bills, look at pictures, and work, and only a handful of times have I thought, "I'd really like to blog."  When those times did hit, something would happen to pull me away and with my new mommy brain I would forget what I wanted to say.  

At this very moment Nathanael is taking a nap and I'm not able to fall asleep, so I guess I will blog.
So I guess the first thing to update you on is that I have a son (guess that means I have to stop writing in pink)!  He was born on January 21st, so this Sunday he will be five months old!  I cannot believe it.

One of the reasons that it has been so hard to sit down and write is because if I'm going to write about being a mom, then I want to be honest with you, and if I'm being honest with you, then I need you to know that being a parent is hard work.  It is harder than I ever imagined it would be.  Because of this when I sit down and write about what my life looks like right now, it seems to come off like a list of complaints, which is not what I want to communicate at all!  Therefore, I have decided that if I'm being honest, parenting involves a lot of but(t)s.

Yes, there is the obvious butt that you are all thinking about, and yes, that stinks, but I wanted to talk about some other buts with parenting.

Being a mom is a very hard job, BUT it's the best job I have ever had!
Nathanael demands a lot of attention BUT I'm glad that it's me that he wants.
My son doesn't like to go to sleep, even when he is exhausted, and this causes him to cry a lot, BUT when he does fall asleep it makes me so much more thankful that he is getting his rest.
It hurts my heart and makes me frustrated when Nathanael cries and is inconsolable, BUT one smile and I forget all of that.
I am exhausted, overwhelmed, sleep-deprived, drowning is housework, BUT Nathanael makes it all worth it.

What else is there to say?  Parenting is hard, challenging, frustrating, BUT it is also amazing, exciting, fulfilling, and brings me so much joy.  And I just need to remember that this is just the season.  He won't cry forever and he won't want to snuggle with me forever, so I just need to take the crying and the snuggles together because before long everything will be different.

Please Don't Tell Me

Encouragement and advice can be great things.  I know that people care, but please stop telling me:

1. That most first babies come late.
That’s not what I want to hear right now.  I’m hoping every day that the baby comes.

2. That I need to stock pile my sleep now.
I’m having trouble sleeping, so telling me to sleep more just makes me frustrated.

3. That my life is about to change forever. 
I know and I’m excited about that!

4. All the crazy labor stories that you’ve heard or have had happen to you.
I don’t need to be thinking about everything that can go wrong!  And every pregnancy and labor is different.

5. It’s all worth it.
It’s great to hear this, but I’m excited to figure this out for myself.

6. That I look great.
That’s very nice to hear, but I don’t feel great.  I feel huge and uncomfortable

If you have said any of these things to me, don't worry, I'm not mad at you, but Adam says I'm starting to get snippy, so this is advice for the future ;)


Coming Soon:  Final Pictures of the Completed Nursery!!
 

 

My Tricky Husband



Garza Photography

My husband spent the first 2.5 years of our marriage tricking me.  All along I have never thought that Adam liked babies.  He would never really hold one and didn’t really seem to like them all that much, which is fine.  Some people just aren’t baby people, and I thought that Adam was one of those people.  Come to find out, since being pregnant, that my husband loves babies. 

 

I have found it funny that since being pregnant Adam smiles at all the babies at church and small group and holds them and plays with them.  I thought it was just because I was pregnant and he was getting excited, but no, he actually loves babies!  I mentioned this to him the other day and he said, “I always have loved babies I just couldn’t let you know that because then you would have wanted one even more.”  I was shocked!  He’s pretty tricky. 

 

To be honest, seeing how he loves babies has really shown me a different side of him and it is so sweet.  Adam is an amazing, loving guy, but I have gotten to see a sweet and tender side that I hadn’t seen very much before.  He’s so excited to be a dad and he talks to my belly almost every day.  I am so excited to see what fatherhood will bring out of him.

Big Belly

 My belly is so big.  I've actually been bumping it on things because I forget that I have this big belly sticking out.  My winter coat, which I bought 3 sizes too big, doesn't hardly zip any more.  I think my big belly is beautiful but I'll be happy to give it up at any time.  Check out this photo:

 

Now that's what I call growth.  Now you can see the whole owl.  Lately I have had this feeling that the baby just does not have enough room in my already big belly.  It's like my skin isn't stretchy enough.  And sometimes the baby will stretch and it hurts so bad.  It feels like the baby is going to punch through my skin.  This is what I'm visualizing:

 

Only three weeks to go!  Here's a funny video that's getting me through (caution: one bad word at the very beginning).  Enjoy!

Public Puddle

One of my biggest fear is my water breaking and going into labor in public.  I mean, how embarrassing! 

 

Adam and I had our first scare yesterday at the mall.  We were walking around the mall and suddenly I had this severe pain in my lower back.  It caused me to keel over.  Currently our baby is positioned face up and I was warned that this means I could have a lot of back labor.  So suddenly Adam and I were wondering if I was in labor.  The pain was coming every few minutes, but then would be further apart.  It was very irregular, but we decided to time them anyway.  They were everywhere from 2 minutes apart to 9 minutes apart.  We put in a call to the midwife and waited for her to call back.  The pain started to shoot down my leg.  We decided to go home because we didn’t know what was going on and Adam was afraid that I was going to start scaring people in the mall.  I mean, here is a pregnant woman, walking around the mall, keeling over and gasping in pain every so often.  We got home and eventually got a call back from the midwife, and it was only the baby sitting on my sciatic nerve, not labor.  It was a relief, but still not fun.  I am definitely ready for this baby to come, but I’m really hoping I’m not in public for the next time I think I’m in labor.  It is stressful.  Here is a link from The Bump of some of the craziest places women have gone into labor.  Enjoy the laugh, and please hope with me that I’m not in any of these situations.

Wide Load

Beep..Beep..Beep..wide load coming through.

This is one of the biggest things about being at the end of my pregnancy.  I feel, and I am, huge. 

 

 

The elastic on my maternity pants no longer fits over my belly, so now I rely on leggings, yoga pants, and sweatpants.

Rolling over in bed is not so simple anymore, and neither is getting out of bed.

I cannot bend over.  Drop something?  It stays on the ground.  Shoelaces untied? Beg husband to tie them, or switch to slip-ons.

Trying to squeeze through a space that would have been no problem before?  Problem now.

Only getting my winter coat zipped if I don’t have a lot of layers on and can stretch it just far enough.

Wearing husbands t-shirts so that I don’t show my mid-drift in public.

For a few more weeks, until baby Tomlinson arrives, this will be my daily struggle, but at the end there will be a beautiful baby and I’m sure it will all be worth it!

One more month!

My due date is exactly one month from today.  I cannot believe that it is finally here, but at the same time, I am ready for this baby to be here.  Adam and I are so excited we cannot wait for our baby to arrive.  We are pretty well prepared.  We have everything that we need and almost all of it is washed and ready to go.  We just need to get the crib and get it set up and then everything will be ready for the baby.  The hospital bags need to be packed, and the car seat needs to be installed, but I feel pretty good with the fact that those are the only two things that I have to do.  I’m just so excited that I almost don’t know what to do with myself.  Everything is organized.  The nursery is decorated.  There is nothing left to do but sit around and wait.  And I’m not good at waiting or being patient so this could be a long month.  I’m selfishly hoping that the baby doesn’t make it to the due date because I’m impatient and because I’m ready for him or her to stop kicking me in the ribs!

 

 Any suggestions of what I can do to keep myself from going crazy this month?

The Times are a Changin'

Well it is the start of a brand new year.  Usually I would be using this time to think of some goals for the next year, but I think that my goal for this year is just going to be: survive.

Things are going to change dramatically for Adam and I in the next month and we don't really know what that will look like.  So I do not want to set goals that are going to be impossible in a month. 

In a month we will be parents.
In a month our parents will be grandparents.  Our siblings will be aunts and uncles.  When we go to a restaurant we will need an extra seat.  When we travel we'll have extra luggage.  A helpless baby will be relying on us to take care of them, feed them, and give up sleep for them.

The year may be changing, but there are even bigger changes to come!

2 Days Until Christmas!

I had a rough night last night.  It’s actually been a rough couple weeks.  I go to the midwife today for my 34 week appointment.  I cannot believe that my due date is only 6 weeks away!  I have developed carpal tunnel, heartburn, and general soreness.  The baby likes to play in my ribs, and I get up around four times a night.  I am ready for this baby to come!  In terms of discomfort I know that I don’t really have it that bad.  I know it could be worse.  And all together I am really enjoying being pregnant.  I’m just so excited to see our baby!  I am pretty worn out and while I am thankful to not have the stress of traveling for the holidays, I kinda wish we were.  This is going to be our first Christmas without seeing our families.  They have sent gifts for us to put under our little Christmas tree, but it’s not the same.  And knowing they’re all together makes me sad

because I just want to be part of that party.  I’m really going to focus on relaxing and enjoying the holidays with Adam.  We are pretty busy these next couple nights with responsibilities at church, and the house is a wreck and needs to be cleaned but after that, I just want to rest.  I am going to take the rest of the year off from blogging.  Just so I can focus on spending time with my husband and friends in the area.  I will start writing again in January for the home stretch!  I hope you all have a very Merry Christmas!

Family Traditions

Every family has some sort of tradition during the holidays.  Even if your tradition is to not have traditions, that’s a tradition.  Depending on which side of the family we are with determines what our Christmas will look like.  Thinking about the holidays and our families I wonder what our family traditions will be.  Will we open gifts on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day?  Will we have a certain menu for Christmas that we have every year?  Will we have a tree decorating tradition?  As I think about all the traditions that are out there it makes me excited to think about what I want to do with our children.  My sister and I always take a picture in front of the tree, which is fun to look back on. 

 Another one of my favorite traditions was to make and decorate cookies with my mom and sister.  One of Adam’s favorite traditions is on Christmas Eve he would exchange gifts with his other brothers.  I remember one year we made a birthday cake for Jesus on Christmas.  I think traditions are good, but also adding in new traditions can also be fun.  This will be Adam and I’s last Christmas “just the two of us.”  And since our families are so far and I am so pregnant, we will be staying home and celebrating in our own home.  Maybe we’ll even imagine what our future Christmases will look like.

What is your favorite Christmas tradition?

Blessed

I am so incredibly blessed.  This pregnancy has taught me to wait patiently for God because he has a plan and he is taking care of us.  I had been having a lot of stress and anxiety about all the things that the baby was going to need right away.  Whenever I saw a sale on something we needed, I wanted to run right out and get it so I could be sure we got a good deal on it, even though it was something on our registry and I hadn't had a shower yet.

Adam one day just looked at me and said, you are not allowed to buy anything for the baby until after the shower.  Good advice, but stressful for me.  What if we didn't get something we really needed and then there were no good deals on it and we had to pay an arm and a leg for it.  I should have just taken a deep breath and waited on God.  He had a plan to provide and I just didn't see it.

In the last few weeks, gifts from family and friends started showing up at our door, and then last weekend one of my best friends threw me an amazing shower.  (You can see photos from the shower here on her blog).  It was an amazing event and I was so incredibly blessed by all the ladies who came from church and gave me such generous gifts.  I was overwhelmed by their love, affection, and advice.  God provided a loving and giving church family to shower me with gifts and support.  I am so blessed that we moved here to be a part of the CrossWay family.  It has been such a blessing already and God is providing a loving family for us to be a part of right here in Nashua.  How amazing!

After the shower, I got in super planning mode.  God provided someone who had a crib, almost brand new, that they were giving away!  He also provided a cheap changing table on craigslist.  I was just in awe as I saw God take care of everything.  We were able to get lots of things the baby would need with the gift cards that we were given and we only have one thing to purchase.  We are so blessed.  Sometimes it is hard to wait on God, but when you do, he will show you his amazing provisions.

Advent should be another season of sitting and waiting.  Adam and I have been doing an advent devotional (by Ann Voskamp) and these ideas of advent really stood out to me.

•  Advent comes from the Latin which means "coming".  Throughout the month of advent we are waiting for God to come. 
• An infinite God becomes infant.
• The Giver becomes the Gift.
• Wait for the coming of the God in the manger who makes Himself bread for us near starved.

We should be actively waiting for God to show up during advent.  Oftentimes my waiting becomes saturated in the gifts and the flash of Christmas.  But Christ coming to Earth was a simple, beautiful gift. 

During this month I have been thinking a lot about Christmas and how to focus on the gift that it is.  I'm taking a deep breath, and I am waiting to see what God is going to do.  I am being intentional in waiting for the baby in the manger.  And I know that in my waiting I will see God show up in amazing ways and with beautiful blessings.

Here is a link to a song that has been on my mind during this season.  I hope you enjoy it.

DIY Alphabet Wall

If you do a Google or Pinterest search for a nursery alphabet wall, you will find so many cute ideas.

In my search for ways to decorate the nursery, I stumbled across this and was inspired.  I just loved all the cute ideas for an alphabet wall.  I did not realize however, until a few days ago, how expensive it would be to do.

The problem is not finding the wooden letters.  Many craft stores sell a variety of unfinished wooden letters in various fonts that are perfect for this, but they're just so expensive.  Going into it I thought I could just buy an alphabet pack of letters and go from there.  It was nearly impossible to find anything like that.  Almost everywhere I looked, in stores, and online, made you buy the letters individually.  Then, depending on the size you wanted for each letter, they could range from $1.50 to $5 each.  That shocked me.  I never thought they would be so expensive! 

After realizing I would not be able to do the project as I originally had intended I decided to try and figure out a different way to achieve the same outcome.  So here for you, is my DIY version of an alphabet wall.  And all I spent was $4.

Supplies
Cardboard
Scissors
Sharpie
Pencil
Paper
Crayons
Paint
Paint brushes

Luckily I have been getting lots of baby goodies so I had tons of cardboard boxes piled up.  The first thing that I did was cut up 26 cardboard squares.  I chose to make mine different sizes, but you could just as easily make them all the same size.

 

Next, I brainstormed what I wanted my letters to look like.  You can make just plain letters in various fonts, but I decided it would be fun to make the letters look like something that started with that letter (for example: A for Alligator).

 

Next, I sketched the letters out on the cardboard in pencil, and then outlined in sharpie. 

 

Then I painted all of the letters.  This was time consuming and space consuming because I did it one color at a time.  I didn't worry too much about staying inside the lines because after the painting was finished, I went back over the letters with a sharpie getting all the edges and details to stand out.

The last, and hardest part of the project was cutting the letters out.  Especially if there were a lot of little details to cut out.  These Octopus legs were a challenge.  Luckily, my wonderful husband offered to help.  So I cut out the big chunks with scissors and he did the more challenging parts with an exacto knife.  We finally got it finished, even though by the end our hands were very sore.  Then, I got to have the joy of hanging them on the wall and seeing the finished product.  I just used 3M to hang them. 

 

 

Things I Need to Remember

This is a list of things that I am learning about being pregnant that I need to remember for the remainder of my pregnancy.

1. I'm pregnant.  I can't do things the way that my non-pregnant 24 year old self would do things.

2. I am slower than I want to realize.  Yesterday I decided to run errands in the afternoon before picking up Adam.  I went 6 places and it took me three and a half hours.  Non-pregnant 24 year old me could have done it in 2.  But now I'm slower and have to find the bathrooms more frequently.

3. I need to go to the bathroom when a bathroom is available, not when I have to go.  It can be hard to find a bathroom when you are running errands.

4. I can't sit on the ground crafting all evening.  Well, I can, but the next day I will feel it (like today).

5. I can't trust my brain.  I need to write things down.

6. I can't be the sleeper I once was.  I used to never have any trouble sleeping unless something was wrong.  Now when I lay down, I never know what I am going to get, except for multiple trips to the bathroom.

7. I can't bend and lift as I once did.  I need to ask for help.

8. I can take a deep breath and not get everything done.

9. I can just sit and enjoy the baby moving.

10. I can cherish these days because there aren't many left.

11. I can eat whatever I want.

12. I can wait excitedly for a little baby to arrive.

Sleepless night for new reasons

I've talked about sleepless nights before, but now I have new things plaguing me that are keeping me from sleeping.  Fatigue has come back at me full force, but now I cannot get a good night's sleep.  And this time, it's not because I'm uncomfortable.

I had been sleeping great ever since getting that awesome pillow, but now, even though I am comfortable I cannot sleep! I'm so tired and yet I wake up every few hours in the night to roll over, go to the bathroom, rub my hands (because of carpal tunnel), or just lay there wide awake.  Is my body just preparing me for sleepless nights?

I'm always so tired when I wake up.  The only time I can get some good sleep is with the return of my afternoon nap.  I think I'm going to have to start scheduling 2 naps a day into my routine just to try and get me back to a good amount of sleep.

Do you have any tricks for sleeping at night during these last few weeks?

Christmas is Coming

 

Today is the first Sunday of advent.  I had posted a few days ago that being pregnant is making me think and evaluate everything.  We had a great sermon today at church and it really convicted me and Christmas has already been on my mind.

 

In his sermon, Ron talked about the things that we have allowed to steal our joy this Christmas.  The first thing being overcrowded calendars and the second stuff.  I was really convicted by the stuff part.  I have slowly but surely let stuff wiggle in and steal my joy in Christmas. 

 

One of Adam and mine's favorite things to do at Christmastime is buy gifts for our family members.  We like to plan and find the perfect gift for each person.  This year we are really watching our money and we will not be able to buy Christmas gifts this year.  I have found myself really saddened by this.  I love showing people I love them by giving them gifts.  And I have found myself wondering: how do I celebrate Christmas this year without being able to give gifts?

 

But that's not the point!! I have been having my Christmas joy in stuff and I  hate that and I don't know how it happened.  So that had led to some good conversations between Adam and I about celebrating Christmas and also how we will celebrate Christmas with our child.

 

One thing that really stood out to me from the sermon was this quote from Ron: "Christmas has become the time of the year when we tell our children that it is ok to covet."

 

Woah.  That gave me a lot to think about.  I definitely don't have the answers, but now my eyes have been opened to the questions I should be asking.

 

What have you done during the holidays to direct the joy to Jesus and not to gifts?