to drink or not to drink...

I know, I know....you have your own opinions already and you probably don't care about mine. Well, to that I say: Don't read my blog then. I have been thinking about this b/c James and I are becoming members of the Wesleyan Church (as soon as he finishes filling out some information). The Wesleyan Denomination is one that is close to my heart and when we participated in the membership classes recently it was confirmed to me that I actually DO believe the same things the Wesleyans believe. I always thought so, I had just never read the Wesleyan Statments of Faith (or whatever it's called).

James and I both grew up in this denomination, but we took very different paths in life. He took the path of alcohol and spent years in bars. I, on the other hand, have tasted alcohol a total of 6 times and have not enjoyed one drop. It tastes like cough medicine. I think it goes without saying that my husband no longer drinks*, but I said it anyway. We talk of this often in light of the fact that so many friends and family members drink on occasion. And some, like those buddy's he used to drink with, consume alcohol much more than occasionally. Here is an article he found recently that makes some good points.

I guess if you want to drink, no amount of logic/reasoning/arm-twisting is going to convince you to do otherwise. This does not mean I love you any less or that I think God loves you any less. That's for Him to decide. And, besides, I'm not posting this to convince you that my opinion is right or that you should change. It's simply for the sake of discussion and thought.



*the drinking that i am referring to is the consumption of alcohol, lest you believe that my husband is significantly dehydrated.

i miss us too.

i'm still alive. I didn't fall off the face of the earth (yet). I miss blogging, but it takes FOREVER and a day to upload pictures onto this thing and I don't have that kind of time anymore. Between Thanksgiving, 3 kids, getting ready for Christmas, 3 kids, James's random schedule, and did I mention 3 kids yet? well, with all that going on I've been absent from blogger. I'll be back soon. In the meantime, if you need a Catie/Lydia fix, so to my sister's new blog. i'll update pictures soon. i promise.










Ok, nevermind. you convinced me. i'm awake anyway.



this is how the girls like to watch tv.

my first blessing is 3

3 years ago on November 3rd I gave birth to my first baby girl. She has brought so much joy to my days since then. I have loved watching her learn and grow. I was surprised when she began walking at 9 months and even more surprised when she was talking in sentences at 20 months. She has always been an intelligent little girl with a sweet, sensitive spirit. She is a great big sister and a big helper to mommy. She is tempermental and frustrating, but when she looks at me and says "mommy I love you THIS MUCH", with her arms stretched as far apart as she can possibly get them, it melts my heart. I love her when she flashes that cute little girl smile after saying something unexpected and then laughs b/c she knows she's cute. I love her when she asks for "Power", wanting me to play the song "Power In The Blood" by Selah. I love her when she tries out a new word and messes it up just a little bit. ("Mommy, I need something to contain [entertain] me.") I love her when she sings "the deer song" ("Doe, a deer, a female deer...."). I love her when she prays before meals, thanking God for the food and asking Him to "bless it to our bodies". I love to hear her pray at bedtime and thank Jesus for "all of us". And i love when she has to tell us (every night) that "today is friday and daddy doesn't have to go to work and I love my room/windows/bed/music and we never painted my butterflies and I love you. mwah. bye."

My sweet Boogie, you bring joy to my life daily and I thank God for you. Thank you for your sweetness and your love of life. My prayer is that I will be the mommy that you need and you would grow into a beautiful, independent daughter of the King. I love you THIS MUCH!!!!!

Breakfast fit for a birthday girl. It's no worse than donuts (according to daddy). James also brought home a bouquet of Gerber Daisies.

This was dessert at lunchtime. 3 candles made it a birthday dessert. :)

yep...My Little Pony was the theme of her birthday party.

This was the real birthday cake, although I think we may have stumbled onto a good birthday tradition...candles at every meal. It just seemed to make the day (all day) a little more special.

I made this:

It's potpie and it's delicious!!! And because I'm a generous person I'm going to share this recipe with you...all 3 of you. I hope you make it too.

2 cups cubed meat. I used ham, but the recipe calls for chicken and also suggests turkey.

2 cups frozen mixed vegetables, thawed

1 can (18 1/2 oz) ready-to-serve cream of potato soup

1 refrigerated pie pastry.

In a bowl combine the meat, veggies, and soup. pour into a pie pan. roll out pastry on top; trim, seal and flute edges.

Bake at 400 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown.

This can also be frozen. I haven't tried to do this, but I will include those instructions and you can let me know how it goes when you do it. ;)

Remove frozen pie from freezer (or the cabinet if that's where you keep your frozen foods....doesn't it seem strange that the instructions would actually tell you where to get it from?) anyway.....Remover frozen pie from the freezer 30 minutes before baking...do not thaw. cover edges of crust loosely with foil; place on a baking sheet. Bake at 425 degrees for 30 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 degrees (I don't know how to make that little circle symbol so i have to type out "degrees".); remove foil. Bake 60-65 minutes longer or until golden.

mmmm....ENJOY!!!

Things I plan to do to keep my family healthy.

Last winter we spent a LOT of time being sick. Well, I'm sick and tired of it. I've always been fairly healthy (except when I was a small child) so these past few winters have been rough on me. I can't figure out why we are always getting sick. So here is a list of things that I plan to do to help (hopefully) keep my family on the healthier side of life this winter.

These things may seem like common sense to a lot of people, but this mommy things doesn't come easy to me. On the other hand, I'm a nurse by profession and SHOULD know these things already. Well, I'm kindof a slow learner and I've been focused on being a mom, so the nurse in me is off duty. And that's a good thing, b/c when she does come around she starts freaking out about all the sickness and such. Seriously...she's not welcome here very often.


So....here's my list:

Sleep: I plan to get the girls in bed at a reasonable time every night and down for naps every day.

activities: When we are out, we will try to get back to the house to get good sleep instead of returning at 8 or 9pm and then putting them down for bed late. (see "sleep").

eating: I plan to make healthy meals every night (except maybe one) instead of eating out. This will require planning and some good recipes, but I have a new oven that I am loving so maybe I'll cook more often.

Vitamins: I bought vitamins for the girls to eat. We'll see. I don't have a lot of faith in things like that, but I should b/c I'm a nurse. sheesh!

Cleanliness: I plan to bath my girls more often. haha...that sounds funny. Their hair takes so long to dry, but that needs to be something I learn to deal with. I also plan to clean my house more often and better. I'm not much of a cleaner. My house is not gross, but it's certainly not disinfected regularly like it should be. I will also require them to wash their hands WAY more often, even when just around the house and we will use hand sanitizer when out of the house.

fresh air: since I don't plan to go places much, I will allow the girls time outside regularly. This will be difficult if James doesn't have the time to take them out b/c I can't take Miriam out, but I will allow them to put on coats and boots and run around the porch for 15 minutes.

Laughter: Since this is the best medicine, I plan to tickle my girls and wrestle with them on a regular basis. They are craving one on one time with me, especially in these past few months with Miriam requiring so much of my attention and James' schedule being so screwed up. I will give that to them daily.

Prayer: I will pray that the Great Healer will keep us all away from sickness and protect my little ones when they do get sick, b/c, let's face it....it will happen and I just need to be prepared for it.

I will do these things b/c I love them. I mean, really, who couldn't love these faces?!

Evenings are rough.

A few good things have happened recently.

My girls are healthy. Lydia's nose is still a bit runny, but not constantly.

Miriam is sleeping most of the night. She goes to sleep around 9:30pm and wakes b/w 4 and 5 am then back to sleep until 8 or 9 which gives me some time with the big girls in the morning. I'm also figuring out her daytime schedule and today got a 3 1/2 hour nap while the older girls slept for 2 hours.

2 jobs were posted that James has requested. One is M-F Days at Headquarters. The other is M-F Days at the Diesel Plant. We heard about the job at headquarters a month ago and I have been praying specifically for that job since. Please pray with me.

The girls seem to be noticing James NOT being home at times he USED to be home. They miss him. I miss consistency. We need a change.

a new life

While James was home helping me after Miriam's birth he got a call from Corning, Inc. letting him know that when he returned to work he would no longer be working day shift at the Big Flats plant. Instead he would work relief shift at the Erwin plant. I have to say...we are thankful he has a job. There have been a lot of layoffs throughout Corning as well as the other companies in the area, so I won't complain too much, but let me give you a taste of what his schedule will be like.



day, day, eve, off, off, night, night, night, night, day, eve, eve, off, off, off, off, night, day, day, eve, eve, eve, eve, off, night, night, day, day, day, day....and repeat ad nauseum.


He is checking the Corning job postings daily and has been informed of 2 positions that should be posted soon. Please pray with me that he gets the M-F Day job at headquarters by the end of the year. I am praying specifically for this. We have not b/c we ask not, right?

Until that happens, I am trying to step up and make the most of this schedule. It's currently very difficult since all 3 girls and myself are sick. Sleep is necessary in my life for me to stay healthy and 8 hours straight doesn't happen with a 2 months old (although she sleeps from 9:30 pm until 5 am most nights).

Speaking of sleep...Miriam seems to be sleeping now so I need to get to bed.