Remember the brother who's birthday I featured this past Sunday?  Well, there is nobody in the world that I can imagine who is more perfect and completely compatible to his quirky personality than his amazing wife, Lisa.  I mean, come on, check out how well she rocks the ugly Christmas sweater:






P.S. I'm a slacker and have yet to mail both your and Tory's presents.  I will get to that as soon as I feel the motivation to do so! :)

Do you ever feel like you have something you really want to talk about, and you want to do so on your blog, but yet you just can't because you're uncertain of the feedback that you're going to receive?  For me, this incident comes up quite a bit regarding an acquaintance of mine and their family (if you're reading this and you think it's you, there's a 99.9% chance that it's not ... I'm almost completely certain they don't read my blog).  My issue with this problem is the fact that I have put myself on the line in voicing my opinion on certain situations, and that opinion was one that was in agreement with them.  The problem comes with the fact that my opinion regarding these situations has changed dramatically.  It's almost like there's a whole 'nother aspect of this person that had never been shown to me that has now opened up.  I'm frustrated that I am out there, that people associate me as someone who agrees with this person, when in reality, I'm feeling more and more like they've gone off the deep end and taken a lot of people with them.

And I can't talk about it.  At least not on here.

Know what else I can't talk about on here?  I can't talk about the friend who walks into our home as if they own it (I realize I'm just talking about one person, but I'm not even going to determine if it's a he or a she!) ..  and I can't talk about it when my family is just driving me dang crazy (because most of them read my blog, too)!!

However, to look at the flip side, I do appreciate that I can use my blog to share the happiness of my life with all of you!  I love that I can share photos (I promise that there will be a belly photo soon .. it's just hard to take one when I am 14 weeks and still don't look pregnant!!) and share stories of the fun things my kids are doing.  I love that I can tell you about the projects going on in our home (Jolaine, you would be so proud, I'm weeding those darn flower gardens!) and the great accomplishments my children have ... well, accomplished!

I suppose my blog is not such a terrible thing, after all. :)

I recently began reading the book "crazy love" (intentionally uncapitalized) by Francis Chan.  To say that this book made me think is an understatement.  Though I haven't gotten very far in the book, the one thing that I can say it has pointed out to me is the fact that my relationship with God is not anything like it is intended to be.  It amazes me that what God desires of me and what I give to God in return are so completely different that it's surreal.  I've often heard ministers describe our relationship with God as that of being the bride of Christ.  When I think about being a bride, it makes me wonder where I've gone wrong in my relationship with God.  The thing about this book that struck me is that Francis talks about how, for so long, he believed Christianity was just not doing the "really" bad stuff, i.e. swearing, premarital sex, drinking too much, etc., almost as if being a Christian meant that there is a list of bad stuff that we have to avoid doing, and we'll make God happy.

Translate that to the marriage I'm in and realize that having that perception is WAY off kilter.  You know what?  Sometimes I do treat my relationship with God just like that - almost as if I just have to make sure to do all the right things and He's happy.  If I really look deep into being the bride of Christ, I have to admit that I am really not upholding my end of the relationship.  I guarantee you that, if I were to have a list of do's and don'ts that I followed in my marriage, but rarely had communication with my husband beyond that, it would drive Monte crazy!  That's not a relationship!!

Monte and I have a loving, passionate and caring relationship.  We are extremely communicative ... in fact, we probably talk on the phone at least a handful of times during the day while he's at work (though it's not always deep communication because, come on, he's at work and he's working .. but we are still communicating all day long).  We have a set bedtime of 8:30pm for all of our children, even if the older kids aren't going right to sleep, they have to be in their rooms and having down-time by then, entirely so that Monte and I have time to unwind and spend time together.

What if I devoted that kind of time and energy to my relationship with God?  What if I truly poured all of my heart and soul into knowing Him on a more intimate level?  My prayer is that this book will help me open the doors in my heart and in my life to doing just that, and that my husband and I can grow closer together as we go through this book together.

I'll keep you updated on the progress.  :)

Remember the story I told about the brother who put me inside a refrigerator box in our garage, stood it upright and walked away?  Well, that brother is the same one who put me in the dryer and turned it on, as well as sent me down our laundry chute when we were kids.  The brother who beat me up, tortured me and scared me half to death with the crazy way he drove his car .. that's the brother that I'm celebrating today.  You see, today, this stud muffin (and yes, it is appropriate to call your sibling a stud muffin) turns 30!

(FYI: I had just picked a booger out of Colin's nose and was on my way to wipe it on a tissue when Tory decided to try and make me eat it instead).

Being an expectant mother who has never gone through pregnancy before, I figured it was a good idea to do a little reading to get myself up-to-speed on the goings on of my baby.  So, naturally, when I saw the book, "What to Expect When You're Expecting" at a garage sale for 50 cents, I snatched it up.  I skimmed through the first parts of the book, as I am already starting my second trimester and kind of believe that the first-trimester information doesn't so strongly apply anymore.  However, as I began skimming the subtitles in the book, I realized that this book, in fact, is likely NOT the one I want to read.  The beginning was telling me all about how I am worried about the fact that my baby will have a deformity or that my baby will be born with a handicap (physical or mental) or that I'm not growing like I should or ..... the list went on and on!

After spending about 30 minutes skimming through the subjects in the beginning of the book, I couldn't help but feel that I had paid a fair price and likely would not invest more than 50 cents into this book.  You see, I truly am not worried about my baby's growth, about whether or not (s)he will be healthy or the different things that will happen as (s)he grows.  I truly am not concerned even one bit!  I'm eating right, I am still doing light exercise and I take care of myself ... why worry over things that are beyond my control?

Is it just me, or does this book seem to take a spin that others felt didn't really apply to them?  I think I need to search out a faith-based pregnancy book to take a look at the facts I need to know along the way, without filling my mind with the garbage that I'm "supposed to be worrying about".

Any recommendations would be helpful!


P.S. Anybody who is following my sister and her family on their journey to China to pick up their adopted daughter, Khloe - unfortunately I have no new news!  I haven't heard from Tanya since the first update, but the second she emails another update to me, I will be sure to get it posted on her blog ASAP.  You can follow her journey here.

I think my son may be right ... at least a little bit right.  You see, earlier today, my four-year-old Colin was having the millionth fit he's had since Sunday, and I was at my wit's end.  So, I look at him and ask, "Just where did you get such a bad attitude from, little man?!"  His response:

"From YOU, Kami!"

Oh boy .. maybe we need to work on our attitudes together! :)

Good morning!  Or shall I say, "Happy greasy Friday morning!"?!  Confused by that?  Let me explain.  You see, we've been having issues with our water heater all week long.  We've gone from having fluctuating temperatures (see the meaning of freezing cold to scalding hot) when we shower to having a water heater that randomly shuts off all the time.  What does this mean?  Well, for one, it means that we just have enough hot water to warm it up before it shuts off.  For two, it means that I haven't showered in four days.  Gross, I know!  So, this morning, Colin and I will be traveling up to my sister's house (about an hour away) to give him a bath and for me to take a shower!  Crazy to travel that far, I know ... but when you've gone so long without a shower, you'll go anywhere to get one!  At some time today, we will have our plumber out as he is replacing our water heater with a new unit (due to the fact that we purchased this tankless water heater less than a year ago and it has never worked properly, the company that manufactures them is replacing it for us) ... but due to the fact that I don't know what time he will be here, I don't think I can sit all greased up and wait for him to get here and complete the job!  So it's off to Tanya's house we go (and, considering her family is in China, it's a good time to stop by and check on the house, anyway!).

Many of you have asked how I'm feeling and how this pregnancy is going ... and I'm more than happy to update you!  I am 12 weeks along right now, finally feel like I'm escaping the sickness part of it (I'm still a little nauseous in the morning, but it's very mild).  I'm still tired a lot and feel like I could nap twice a day and still have no problem sleeping at night .. but hopefully that wears down soon as well!  I don't have much of a bump .. just a tiny little one, but I will do my best to get a picture of it soon (you know, after I shower and get cleaned up!).  Overall, everything is going great!

Beyond that, we have been wrapped up in the kids' sports, in trying to have family dinners together (sports interferes with this quite a bit!), spending time with extended family and just having fun.  Life is good and we are not complaining even a little bit!

Here is the story that aired on Fox 9 News last night, written by the lovely and talented Trish Van Pilsum, starring my lovely family!

It's off to China they go!  That's right, today I dropped my sister and her family off at the airport where they have started the last leg of their journey to their beautiful daughter, Khloe.  We can't wait for them to arrive home .. but we definitely have to, as they will be gone almost three weeks.  However, I'm thrilled to say that we won't be without report, as Tanya will be emailing me continual updates which I will be posting to her blog, so it's almost like we're there .... right?! :)  I am also thrilled to say that I get to be the one who welcomes them home from the airport and brings them home (though with Memorial Day weekend traffic, I think it's going to be a LONG ride home!).  It's going to be perfect, just perfect!

Beyond that, I don't have much time for an update, but wanted to tell you to make sure to be tuned to Fox 9 News tomorrow evening (Wednesday, May 12th) at 9pm as a very familiar family will be featured in a story by the most lovely, talented and completely wonderful Trish Van Pilsum.  Check it out! :)  If you don't get a chance to see it, I will do my best to get a link posted when I can.

Hoping you're all staying dry in this crazy rain!

Dear Energy and Motivation,

It had already been explained to me that, during my first trimester of pregnancy, you were likely to slip away and not be near.  I guess I expected it a little bit.  What I didn't expect is just how far away you would go.  Can I confess that I miss you dearly?  I miss waking up and being ready to start my day at 6:30am, as opposed to having to drag my tired butt out of bed at the very last minute in the morning.  I miss playing alongside my kids and not feeling like I have to take a rest.  I miss my afternoons when Colin would nap and I would be productive and get stuff done!  Guess what?  Now, in the afternoon, I take naps while Colin sits on the couch by me and watches "Gospel Bill" on DVD.  I understand that I'm almost through my first trimester, and rumor has it that you will be finding your way back soon.  So I write this letter to ask that you please please PLEASE don't hesitate to come back - you will be welcomed with open arms!

Love,