Good Friday

This song came to mind as I started to reflect on Christ's sacrifice.

"When I survey the wondrous cross
On which the Prince of Glory died
My richest gain I count but loss
And pour contempt on all my pride
See from his head, his hands, his feet
Sorrow and love flow mingled down
Did ever such love and sorrow meet
Or thorns compose so rich a crown

O the wonderful cross, O the wonderful cross
Bids me come and die and find that I may truly live
O the wonderful cross, O the wonderful cross
All who gather here by grace draw near and bless Your name

Were the whole realm of nature mine
That were an offering far too small
Love so amazing, so divine
Demands my soul, my life, my all"

The Wonderful Cross by Chris Tomlin

Mixed Feelings

Today marks the first day of a huge change in my relationship with my son. It was my first day not nursing Gideon. I have been trying to speed up the weaning process since I found out I was pregnant. It was very much my choice and not Gideon's, which has been giving me feelings of guilt often. It has been increasingly painful to nurse him and I have been anxious for it to end for a while. I am so glad that I made the decision to breastfeed, but sometimes I feel/felt like a bad mom for wanting it to be over. Maybe because he nursed every 2-3 hours during the night until he was 12 months old, maybe because he seems to be such a needy boy, or maybe because I am selfish? I even felt relief that I got pregnant thinking it was a "good excuse" to wean early. I am not sure if breastfeeding is completely over yet, but today marked a big step. The funny thing is...now I just feel so sad. Gideon has never been big on snuggling and cuddling, and nursing was "our time." It was the only time he would let me snuggle with him. Maybe it's also because Byron has been working so much overtime and I haven't had much a husband lately. Maybe it's that and whole bunch of different reasons. Whatever it is...all I want to do now is cry...

Fat Head

If you have seen the movie, "Super Size Me" (or not) my husband and I recommend another movie to add to your Netflix Queue. Tom Naughton reveils in his documentary, "Fat Head" that what we have been told about saturated fat and cholesterol has been a bunch of "bologna". Laced with humor, full of facts, and "busting" myths, this film may leave you never looking a cheeseburger the same again...and not the way you might think :).

I heard this film can also be watched on Hulu :)

If You Haven't Already Heard...

...by the end of 2011 we will have a new addition to the family! We are only about 7 weeks along, but I was having hard time keeping it a secret this time. The morning/all day sickness has taken over and when people start getting suspicious I just can't lie! If my calculations are correct, we should be having another October baby. I was very shocked to see all three of the pregnancy tests I took come out positive. I have only had one cycle since I was pregnant with G and I thought it would take a lot longer than it did to get pregnant again.

Heavenly Father, thank you for this little one growing inside of me.

Here are some pictures of Gideon these days and video of him dancing:

Gideon and Dad sporting their free hats from Home Depot

Haha!




Watching Wheel of Fortune with Dad

Gideon Dancing

Blizzard of 2011

I am sure I am the last one on the planet blogging about this one. You know all the details. It's all over the news. We spent Byron's 'snow day' taking turns shoveling. With snow drifts at almost 4ft in some areas of our driveway (which yesterday it seemed to be the longest driveway in the world) we managed to dig ourselves free. Well, my strong and handsome hubby did most of the work. Good thing we didn't have a storm door (broke a year back or so and never replaced it) or we wouldn't have been able to leave our house. Unfortunately the little guy didn't want any part of the snow.

A few pictures...

What we opened our front door to that morning.

Byron beginning the 'big dig' out of our home.

Our creepy lawn child (*wink* Mish)


Our family. Can you tell that we all just woke up? And that G wants to go inside?

Experiencing the snow from a safer, warmer distance.

Goals 2011

Here are few of mine...

#1. Be in the Word and have quiet time with God AT LEAST 5 days a week
#2. Be more giving of my time and finances
#3. Live more in tune with the Lord
#4. Be a more Christ-Like mother
#5. Grow a manageable organic vegetable garden
#6. Cook one vegetarian meal a week
#7. Make one "raw" vegan meal a week
#8. Have a 51% raw diet by year-end

.............

Four Years and Going Strong

Can't believe we have been married FOUR YEARS! Time is flying, but I wouldn't have picked anyone else to spend it with.

We enjoyed a quiet dinner at the Bangkok House & Shanghai Restarante in Elgin. We dropped the little man off at my sister and bro-in-law's place and walked over. I guess this place has been around forever. It was very Gluten free friendly and they were careful to make sure what I ordered was completely wheat free. The service was great and friendly. We were also only one of two couples in the place. They have two menus-Chinese and a Thai. We had a combonation of both and it was fantastic! We started off with a seasoned beef and lettuce appetizer with a zesty dipping sauce. Byron had a ginger/shrimp dish, I had Scheswan chicken (spicey just how I love it) and we also shared an order of beef fried rice. Byron also enjoyed some Thai iced coffee, which he really loved. One thing I couldn't stop laughing about was that they had this 80's sounding Chinese/Thai music softly playing in the background. Hilarious. Would highly recommend this place...but maybe not. I think I want to keep this our little secret.

We ended the night with a brisk walk to Al's Cafe for dessert. Had a fun evening with the hubs. Love you, Babe!