i'm in need of an adventure...

I know. I know. I have children and they're an adventure in themselves. That's true when looking at the big picture, but day-to-day gets pretty boring. It feels like the days are neverending and there's no adventure in that. I haven't had a real vacation since my honeymoon and James was sick that whole week. I've spent the last 4 years pregnant and raising small children. I'm not complaining. I chose this life and I love my girlies, but I'm ready to DO something and since James doesn't have much vacation time (again...NOT complaining) I think I will have to find the adventure on my own. We have some weddings coming up...Dave will be getting married this summer in Tennessee. Sarah will get married in Green Bay in July, but I'm not sure I can wait that long....we'll see what I figure out. I'm looking at flights to Kansas City, Missouri, in May to visit Jane. It would be me and the girls (yikes!) flying from here to there with (hopefully) only one stop. We would be able to visit the Omaha Zoo and my good friend Kelly Mancuso. I'll let you know how that pans out. James also wants to take a long weekend to go to Virginia to visit friends and eat some good food. yummmm.... Who else has some ideas for me?

my little La-ti-da

My middle little one is 2. It's amazing to me that I have a daughter as sweet and loving and, at the same time, mischievous and teasing as Lydia. She has so much of her father in her. I love that she was my "easy" delivery. I was pleasantly surprised to find that she was such an easy baby as well. She learned quickly to sleep on her own and was content to watch Catie play. Since she was so laid back I was surprised when she began to crawl at 7 months and walk at 10 months. She took a bit longer to do other things. She has only recently (in the past 3 months) learned the joy of talking in complete thoughts. It took her a bit longer than Catie, but she's making up for lost time. Her little "ah-lah-lu, mommy", translated "I love you, mommy", is one of the sweetest sounds I hear in my day. She is a great snuggler even though she refused to give a hug until Miriam was born. She is a great big sister and loves to "help" with "me'am-me'am-me'am". She is ticklish in so many spots, but my favorite is her neck. Her giggle is so loud and addicting that I just HAVE to keep tickling her. She loves carrying dolls around the house. She also has a blanket that I can't get away from her at bedtime. I'm hoping that thing NEVER gets ruined b/c I don't think i could find a replacement. One of the funniest things I've ever seen in my life was the first time she saw Scrat on the television. That's the little rat/squirrel character from Ice Age. I wish I had that moment on video. My little Lydia ADORES that thing and laughs and bounces around the house giggling when he's on the screen. Oh, how I love that beautiful personality-filled redhead. She brings so much joy to our days and so much love to our family.

Lydia, you are so special to me. I pray that as you grow, your little mischievous personality is used as a tool for the Lord. I promise to expect the best from you, knowing that God has you in the palm of His hands. You are thoroughly beautiful.

Lydia's birthday breakfast: donuts from Crystal City Bakery. yumm....

There are so many things about my Lydia that are special and I can't wait to keep finding them.

Birthday dessert at lunch: Mini PB cups.

She bring so much joy and chaos to our lives.

Tinkerbell was the theme of her gathering. She successfully blew out all her candles. :)

2 months? really?

I should apologize. But I won't. These past 2 months have been crazy and chaotic. Most of the stress has been related to James' job situation. Other stress has been child-related. If you've been around on facebook in the past month you might remember a status about this being the most stressed I have ever been. And I don't say that lightly. Andrew's death was stressful, but there was no choice about my direction. Follow God or give up on life. duh..i followed God. I KNEW He wasn't going to just leave me. Well, this past month has seemed to be a greater test of my faith than that. James had some coworkers complain about him being late to work. The time clock showed factual evidence that this was not so, but his boss is a pushover and wrote him up anyway...i guess his coworkers expect him there 30 or 40 minutes (if not more) early. He gets there 10 minutes early as it is. He's not paid to be there any earlier. In addition, someone also claimed they saw him sleeping in his car on night shift. There was no proof that he did this and I believe my husband when he says that it didn't happen. (Seriously...he CAN'T lie. When he does, his face gets a weird smirking smile on it that is a dead give-away to a lie.) He says that he was in his car one night b/c the huge factory was freezing and he wanted to warm up and was probably talking to me. He was written up for this as well even without proof from the individual b/c it was a "salaried" person, he was told. I guess their word carries more weight or something...like they're gods. We were told that these 2 incidents could affect his transfer and might prevent him from leaving his current position for a year. A YEAR. So at that point...instead of waiting for someone to be hired we were waiting for a decision to be made that would effect the rest of our lives. (Since a year in this current job was NOT happening...he can find a different job and would no longer be working for Corning, Inc.)

During those 2 weeks I felt pretty hopeless. I tried to tell myself that God was still in control. He had given James the new job to transfer to in spite of the fact that he didn't have much seniority, so He wasn't going to drop the ball. God finishes what He starts, right?

I wanted to FEEL that God was working things out instead of just having to THINK it. I'm a thinker...normally, thinking/knowing is enough, but for some reason I wanted to have that feeling of peace given to me unexplainably. It was rough that I couldn't get there on my own. I felt like I was fighting against myself to trust. Ugh!! I hate my lack of faith.

After 2 weeks, we got word that his transfer would go through. His boss and the union stood up for him. We appreciate that. I feel like I can breathe again. I feel like I can thank God again. Now we are back to waiting for an electrician to be hired so James can get back on a schedule that works for our family. Please pray that it happens soon. We have heard some good news...sortof. None of it is official. We probably won't hear anything official until the person starts and then James will have 2 weeks left while that person trains on Day shift before he can leave. This has been a long 6 months. We are all ready for some routine.

We are looking forward to having evenings, Saturdays, Sundays, and nighttime together. Seriously....these things should not be taken for granted.