My Way :)!

Did you know that sometimes, just sometimes, whining can pay off? Well, perhaps it wasn't whining, perhaps I just have an incredibly awesome husband! Either way, I GOT MY WAY! :) YEAH, YEAH, YEAH!

Forgive me, but being the youngest of 5, marrying a "dutch" man & living in Northwest Iowa, I have not gotten my way very often in my life. But it has finally happened & I am thrilled, no make that ECSTATIC!
I have been begging & pleading for months now (well, for sure since October) that we move our master bedroom upstairs to the now newly redone bedroom that has a HUGE (okay its average for most of the world) size closet & is directly across the hall from my daughter's room & has the bathroom with the shower that I use in-between the two rooms. Let me explain...I live a beautiful (in my opinion) but OLD house.

The main floor has an awesome kitchen & then a room that used to be the dining room but we found it was too small so we moved our dinning room to the other half of our living room & made the dining room just the entry room/ extension of our kitchen area ... and then it has one decent size room (9x12) and a dinky, teeny-tiny, itsy-bitsy little closet under the stairs. Certainly not enough room for my clothes let alone Micah's as well. The bathroom on the main floor is really nice & cute but it just has a tub & I am more of a shower person than a bath person in the mornings. Plus you have to walk past the front doors to get at the bathroom so its not so nice for getting up in the middle of the night. (I know I'm lame but I get scared of what's outside & who might be staring in at me!)

So anyway, when we bought the house the upstairs bedrooms both had no real closets - only the "crawl-space" areas of the slants where the roof meets the house...if that makes any sense - I'm not big on the real/technical terms or anything! Back when we found out we were pregnant, we started gutting, insulating, and building a closet in the one room upstairs to make it the nursery. When Alexa was about three months old we moved her upstairs to her new room & she's been sleeping up there ever since. This is great except on weekends when we just really don't want to get up in the morning & yet we have to go all the way upstairs to pull her out of bed & bring her to us. So I decided to rip apart the other upstairs room. We spent most of October, November & December tearing everything out & insulating it all. Then we built a closet & finished the room off. This was all done by sometime in February.

So naturally I wanted to move upstairs to be closer to Alexa. Micah, who's not a fan of change, didn't want to go all the way upstairs every night & back down again every morning. He thought we should stay on the main floor. I begged, I pleaded, I threw probably every type of "tantrum" I could think of. I tried every reason I could come up with and explored pretty much every angle to convince Micah we should move our room. Nothing seemed to work. Finally I just decided to call his "bluff" so to speak & moved all my clothes & stuff upstairs. And it sort of worked. He'd come sleep in my room for a few nights & then he'd convince me to go back to our old room. After trying to fit our king bed upstairs with no success, we found a reasonably priced queen bed and bought & moved that up there. By this point Micah had pretty much given up on where we slept. His stuff, however, remained down on the main floor as did our king bed.

One would think I should have been satisfied with that right? After all, I got my bedroom to be upstairs, I had a real closet & a great new bed. However, I wasn't done yet. I had a bunch of toys (Alexa's of course) in my living room making it look very cluttered & messy. I do not like clutter & I certainly don't like things to be messy. My solution? To move the King bed to the room downstairs (which used to have my parents furniture in it for when they visited) and to make the main floor bedroom into a toy room! :) I again begged & pleaded & tried to show Micah all the reasons my idea was completely brilliant. He was convinced it wasn't necessary & things were just fine as they were. But then after unloading a U-haul full of stuff into my mom's house & helping my sister & her husband move some of their stuff into their new house he finally agreed. We picked up the monster of a mattress (NEVER buy a pillow top king size bed by the way) and carried it out the garage, around the front of the house & down through the walk-out entrance of our basement (the beast wouldn't find down the stairs inside the house!) A few hours later we had the house exactly as I wanted it...at least for now! :) Here's a few pictures of the new toy room & the new guest bedroom.

What price did I have to pay for getting my way? Simple...I just had to agree that the dog could sleep on our bed...good thing she's really small! I'm probably going to regret that but oh well, right now all I care about is the fact that I finally got to have something my way - it sure feels great! :)

Canada & back again!

So last week Friday morning my husband, my daughter, and I left on a "vacation" to my mother's house in Lethbridge, AB Canada. The purpose of our trip (at its origin) was to help her pack up as much as possible of her home so that it can be decluttered & shown to potential buyers.

Approximately a week before arrival, my mother decided she would rent a U-haul, pack up a load of stuff, drive the truck to Sioux Center and fly back home. All simple enough in theory. Right? - - WRONG! Oh well, life's full of "fun"-filled non-vacation vacations isn't it?

But anyway, back to the story. So we packed up our little family and headed west. We made excellent time, Alexa was a perfect child, happy & enjoyable the entire way. We arrived in Billings (our stop for the first day) around 4pm their time. We checked into our hotel and decided to find dinner. In hind-sight this would probably be when the trip began its downhill slope but who knows for sure! After searching all over the city for the restaurant Micah had chosen (when in fact it was on the same exit as the hotel) we finally ended up eating a quick meal at a Denny's (not so great) and heading back to our room. Since there was a pool and Alexa loves bath-time we decided to give her the first "pool/swimming" experience of her young life and it was GREAT! :) She was totally confused by the whole thing but had a good time anyway & didn't cry at all! After drying off, we heading back up to the room for bed-time (she typically goes to sleep at 7pm & it was about 7pm in Billings (8pm our time) We put her in her pack-n-play & shut off all the lights...normally she just lays down & goes to sleep - no effort necessary at all- she has been that way since she was about 2 weeks old...9 months later she decides she's had enough! She figured out how to stand up in the pack-n-play & thought that would just be the most fun ever! After almost 2 hours of crying, giggling, talking & screaming the child finally fell asleep! - - Mind you no great naps took place in the car - - she typically takes two 2 hour naps during a day - - but in the car there were about an hour worth of naps taken...and still the child didn't want to sleep. Apparently there was way too much to see & do in this new place!

On Saturday morning we headed for the border & although encountering tons & tons of deer alongside the road & one deer ON the road we made it to the border, got through it, & to my mother's house slick as could be. We immediately put Alexa down for a real nap & went to work on the house.

After three days of packing, lively "discussions" (known as many other names and described as statements of different opinions between interested parties, usually at very loud decibals in heated manners) and many numerous problems solved we were read to load up the now 17ft Uhaul & head to Iowa. (Apparently the 14ft truck we'd originally reserved can only hold 3,000 some lbs -- and when you're packing up a minister's library - - well lets just say that was NOT going to cut it!)

The border went really well - - I think the officer at the border said it best when we told him that we'd been visiting my mother to help her pack her house up & he said "Oh that lady in the Uhaul in front of you?" - -"Yes Sir the crazy lady in the Uhaul" I answered to which he replied "Yeah I noticed no one was willing to ride with her!" :)

We had left my mother's house around 1:30pm & had at first been planning to get as far as Great Falls, MT. When we got there so quickly we decided it was best to keep going since the forecast called for snow from Tuesday night through Thursday in the area. We quickly discovered however, that the snow/rain mixture was already blanketing the area. After traveling on several treacherous roads we finally reached Billings, MT at around 8pm on Tuesday night. The snow had turned to rain when we reached I-90 & the rain had even started to let up. We figured that no matter what the night would bring we wanted to get some sleep so we checked into the motel. After a tense evening involving several "supper option debates" and people just walking off on their own, we all tucked in for bed. This time it only took about an hour of Alexa babbling before she gave up & got some sleep! (Yeah for the small victories!)

The next morning we had some light snow around the Billings area but once we got on Hwy 212 (the awesome short-cut road) the snow was gone and the roads were great. Other than some light rain off & on we had a smooth trip back arriving in Sioux Center around 9pm so Mom could go see her house.

Despite several stressful situations & heated "discusions" we all made it back in one peace thankfully. What have I learned from the last six days? SEVERAL lessons. I have learned that different people have VERY strong opinions about things and this can cause many heated debates. Every family has their own way or method to their madness. If you don't understand someone else's method do NOT assume its wrong, just respect that its not your own & DO NOT tell them to change to your way - - accept the difference & live your own life. Do not judge what you do not know or understand. I have found that I do not handle very well having my way of life critiqued and criticised by those who do not understand it. I have also learned that certain people simply feel that they have to state their opinion frequently & bluntly & if you don't agree with it or do it, they feel you've hurt their feelings.

I have also found that events in life can dramatically alter a person. This alteration can affect not only daily activities, habits, and situations, but also personalities. For those around the people undergoing the alteration a word to the wise - tread carefully, everything & anything can cause conflict.

I have also found that when people do not take the 100% open mind approach to hearing each other out things can easily get misunderstood & blown way out of proportion. I have also found that stating the way YOU feel can cause many hurt feelings & animosity. Beware!

Please do not misunderstand me. I LOVE my family & my mother. I truly do. I guess its just hard to see the difference in how things are now & how they used to be. It truly shows how much influence one person can have over other people's lives. It honestly makes the relationships in life that are left behind change drastically & sometimes the easiest & most open of relationships can become the most stressful & difficult ones to maintain. Thankfully we have the grace of God to see us through. Truly amazing!

That's probably enough for tonight - - its been an exhausting week & its still not even over yet...

When it rains, it pours...or should I say snows?

Wow this was an interesting weekend to say the least! Of course typically when I have a great & totally fun weekend planned things usually fall through or change or inevitably everything else falls on the same weekend & we end up missing out on one fun thing to do another. That all I could deal with. This weekend however, it was one fiasco after another!

First of all was the snow storm. Fabulous! -- Wasn't the first day of spring on March 21st? I do believe it was...shouldn't that mean NO MORE SNOW? Of course not, we live in Iowa after all...where it snows any day of the year! So between blowing snow, rain, and sleet, we made the wise choice not to go to the hockey night in Sioux City on Saturday night. Total bummer. In an effort to salvage the night we invited our friends to come to our house because of course I love to play hostess & what better way to spend a wintery Saturday night than spending time with friends?
The spur of the moment planning ended up being okay as most people's other plans were cancelled as well so we had a pretty good turnout. We of course played a game called Settlers. (Technically Settlers of Catan I believe but who really cares right?)
Apparently we can not play this game with competitive people...or at least those who I would call "game crazy" fanatics. They seem to take it oh so literally and totally just play to win, not have fun! UGH! I myself can be competitive, especially when its in a game with family members, but when you're playing with friends isn't the point just to have a good time? Why on earth is it always about picking on the person in the lead or picking on the same people EVERY move just because? Enough already! And why, oh why do people fee the need to explain their every move? We don't care, after all - ITS JUST A GAME - if they want to justify it that is more than fine but how about doing it in their head instead of out loud...okay? :) Its like putting a rotten vegetable or fruit in with a bunch of perfectly good ones, it spoils the whole group! - - When one does it the rest feel like they have to & because this competitive vicious cycle & it stops being any fun! Oh well, we all survived and thanks to good friends we were able to still have some fun that night.

Then Sunday came. The weather was still nasty out so almost all area churches cancelled. That meant being cooped up at home even longer! At least we'd invited a few couples over for Sunday dinner. That at least came with no fiascos. However, Sunday night was a different story. I was on the schedule to bring juice & cookies for the after church refreshment line. No big deal right? Wrong! So I remembered & the other lady forgot. Again not a big deal, the kids just can't go grab like 4 cookies as they typically do. :) - - Before church starts I can't find any coffee grounds which I need to make coffee (which needs to be started before the service to be ready in time) Well, thankfully that arrived just a few minutes before the service started so another "crisis" avoided. (Don't want those avid coffee drinkers upset!) :).
Then the fun began. Alexa, having a nasty cold, was not willing to sit quietly in church (not a shock, I know). So instead she'd every once in a while let out a sort of scream/grunt thing that was shrill & loud! After two of those during the first song of the song service we had had enough & I needed to take her out. My husband seemed to think she could just go in nursery, but hello, she has a nasty cold & that's just not right nor nice to let her get the other kids sick! So I just sat in the entryway with her. At first this was fine with her. Plenty to see, Mom's right there, fun fun...but then she got bored & tired, after all it was almost bedtime. So I give her her bottle & her blanket & cuddle & rock her while she eats, hoping she'd fall asleep. She was super tired at this point & kept rubbing her eyes but no sleep would come & she's had enough. She's barely able to breathe through her stuffy nose, she's cranky & tired, and she's teething. Not a good combination. Bawl-fest here we come! After walking all over & finally getting her calmed down, church was almost over & it was time to get the coffee, juice & cookies ready. I set Alexa on the floor of the kitchenette playing with the lid to the cookie container (she couldn't have been happier). The other lady joins me, opens the serving curtain, & takes the cookies & napkins out front to set on the table. I, trying to hurriedly poor the juice & get cups out accidentally hit the closed & still sealed gallon of apple juice with my elbow sending it plummeting to the floor below (maybe a whole 4 feet). It creates a large THUD and both the top & bottom of the container burst open. A gallon of apple juice is now a lake on the floor of the kitchenette & my daughter is screaming at the top of her lungs, partly due to the scary loud noise it made & partly due to the fact that she is now covered in apple juice. Where is Daddy when you need him? Talking away with friends, oblivious to the fact that perhaps his wife & daughter could use his help despite the fact that half the church can hear her crying! Thankfully our church has a lot of kind & generous people, & while one gal grabbed Alexa & helped her, another rushed to get paper towels & help soak up the mess...because of course there aren't any towels around when you need them! Eventually the mess was cleaned, the juice was all poured & the kitchen was returned to normal. We all seemed to survive. I joined the rest of the people standing around visiting only to find that my husband still was not holding my daughter but had let a couple little girls take her to go play - - again I apologize to their mothers if they get the nasty cold in their house! Silly man doesn't seem to realize that when a child has a nasty cold its best to not let her give it to others!

Eventually she of course started crying & they brought her to me, after all at this point she's about an hour past bedtime, and not only is she still she's teething, cranky, & tired, but she's also sticky as can be from the apple juice. Home to a bath & bed time we go! So much for having a relaxing, easy-going, fun-filled weekend, instead we got one of DRAMA DRAMA DRAMA! Lets just hope next weekend goes much better, after all we have an 18 hour drive ahead of us. Alberta here we come! Are we crazy? Perhaps!

Babies, babies, and more babies..

Wow does life seem like its all about babies right now. And I'm not just talking about the cute & cuddly ones either.

Everywhere I look around me there are babies. A dear friend of mine and my daughter's babysitter, had a baby girl 3 weeks ago. Another dear friend just had a baby boy this week. My sister is expecting her third child & first baby boy in about two months.

My own little baby thinks she's big stuff now & she tries to convince her mom that she's growing up & is a big girl at only 9 months old! Silly girl learned how to crawl only about 3 weeks ago & already wants to stand on her own, walk around furniture, & attempts to walk with just one of my fingers instead of two! She has also learned, however, how to turn on the water works when she doesn't want to do something or have something done to her. Oh how smart such small children can be! Anyway - here are a few pictures of my baby...

Then of course, there are the adults who act like babies. I have several of these in my life but I probably better not name them! Lets just say when they don't hear things they like, the walk away or do a really good job of using their selective hearing ability. But then again, if we're honest, lets face it, we all do act like a baby from time to time. After all isn't it tempting to think if we just throw a big old hissy fit that we might just get what we want or get things our way? If only. I would love for life to be that simple. Unfortanetly, or perhaps quite fortunately, we can't just stomp our feet or cry our eyes out or do any other child-like tendency & pitch a fit to get our way. We have to accept that first all things might not ever go "our" way - - unless of course "our" way is the Lord's way.

One of the hardest lessons in life and one I struggle with almost daily is that truth - unless we align ourselves with His will for our lives we will never get things "our" way. For those of you planners out there like me, how often do we figure everything out perfectly, make this neat pretty plan only to have "life" throw us a curve ball? If you're me, FREQUENTLY! :) And that's okay. I've learned that some of the best things if life were the curve balls thrown into my perfect little plans.

If I have learned anything the last year it is that no matter what happens in our lives, good or bad, the only thing we can plan on & count on is that the Lord is in control and that nothing, I repeat NOTHING, happens apart from His will. Amazing & completely calming thought isn't it?

Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."