Katie is 3 months old!

Happy Three Months Birthday to our little baby girl!

Oh no!

We have been wanting Katie to find her thumb, but look what she has decided to suck instead! I think she also might have been showing us what she thought of her photo shoot that I decided to do yesterday. :)

Yeah, the Martins got to meet Katie!

This is the Martin Clan. Sean who is holding Katie ran CC for me last year. He is an hard worker and a great runner! I also got to teach him in 5th grade. He really took to holding Katie. :) Justin who is hugging his mom is a 5th grader and quite a character! And Beth, the mommy, worked with me at FA as a writing specialist teacher. She is so creative! She actually is not teaching anymore, but has opened up a creative arts business in WF. She writes and directs plays for kids! I think I might sign Katie up one day! Thanks Martins for coming over and loving on our Katie!
PS We LOVED the outfit and shoes you brought too. Thank you for the blessings! :)

My bimbo....I mean bumbo seat...

Funny story...We just tried Katie out in our Bumbo seat for our friends Robin and Hunter to see when Robin began to tell a story. She said that she was at a baby shower and was telling this women what a neat thing "bimbo" seats were. She went on and on about their creative design...As she finished her story, Justin proceeded to look at Robin and say it is called a bumbo seat...not a bimbo seat! Robin the entire time had been calling it a bimbo! So needless to say here is Katie with her bimbo! :) Hope it made you chuckle like it did us...........................
And for those of you that don't know what a bumbo seat is, it is a thick foam seat that is designed for kids about Katie's age to sit in. It supports their backs and they can look around at everything in this position. The only thing I am learning that I don't like, is that there really isn't anything for her to do while she sits in this. Her arms can't grasp many toys and she can't lean over to pick anything up. I think I might instead look into an exersaucer. I think that with Katie and all the moving she does she might enjoy that more! But it sure is a cute seat!

My wiggle worm

This is one of Katie's favorite things to do right now. She can grasp all of the toys that dangle off of her worm and be content for 15-20 minutes! I am so thankful that the Lord is working on contentment with Katie right now. It is so much for to watch her play!
Oh and right now these types of dresses are Justin's favorites. :) Thanks Tiffany for blessing our Katie!

Capturing some of our little ones expressions!

I think these speak for themselves! Chuckle, Chuckle, Chuckle, hehe, hehe, hehe...

katie's favorite person is..........

This is what Katie and I have been up to lately...looking in mirrors. It seems that Katie's favorite person is herself! She loves to look in the mirror smile, laugh and then look away shyly like she is flirting with someone :) --This picture was taken looking at the mirror which is why it is blurry where the flash bounced off. She definitely brings many smiles to our home!

One talented -right on guy-singing a song!

Some of you may have already seen this, but it is really good. Thanks to Hollie for passing on the smiles it created this morning!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uISuvTiTYJA

Enjoy!

Help fellow bloggers...

Does anyone know why sometimes the pictures will not show up after a day? Is it something in my settings on blog spot? Or is it something on my picture file on my computer?
If you a have the answer or know of something to try, please let me know!
Enjoy the day :)

Papa and all my Peeps out there!

Hey Fellow hoodlums!
Big Mama bought this for me on clearance at Target and even though it for me when I turn one year old, mama and pops decided to use it when we were outside today hanging with the breeze. Don't I look radical? Keeping it real.
:) Katie

A nutrition Moment by Gi

Last week I went to a wonderful talk on why we should care about what we eat. I found it fascinating how the women started the talk by directing us to Proverbs 31. Let me try to explain.
First, take a moment to read Proverbs 31 10-31. I know that this passage has been used to teach on the virtuous
woman (literally translated, "woman of great strength"). And we all
know that there isn't such a thing(apart from Ruth in the Bible, but
that's a different study), this woman is superwoman. She can do it all
and I bet she never sleeps! But this passage does inspire us to look
well to the ways of our house. It calls us to strive after the things
God has placed before us and to care for our families with grace, love
andperseverance. And this passage is intensely practical. It can be read again and again and it never ceases in its encouragement of us to be Godly women/wives.
There are a few verses that she focused on...she started in verse 11.

"The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he will have no lack of gain".

Have
you ever considered how the heart of your husband trust you as you plan
meals, purchase groceries, and prepare your daily
breakfast/lunch/dinner? As I was thinking this through I realized that
it is not often that Justin gives much consideration to the food he
eats...he often simply enjoys the meals that I have placed before him
for dinner. I am sure some meals have been less than great, but he
doesn't normally question the nutritional content of his dinner, and he
lovingly never questions the taste of it :). Thus, I was challenged
during our time to consider how his trust and my responsibility and
calling necessarily apply even when I consider the food we eat. Even in
this, preparing our menu/meals, the husband's heart trusts what he is
eating and as a result he has no lack of gain. It made me consider
deeply, do I take seriously God's call to care for my house in this
way? If my husband is to trust in me in order that he not have any lack
of gain..shouldn't I be thinking through what I'm making and putting
before him? This talk that I attended has reinvigorated my desire to
learn about nutrition, food choices, and other such things. If I want
my husband to have no lack of gain (weight gain??...I don't know if
that fits in there :), shouldn't I work to make healthy meals? He needs
to be able to be fit and healthy so that he can provide for our family,
so he can play with our kid(s), and so he can pursue the Lord in anyway
that the Lord calls him to. The scripture says this and I am going to
take note that not all food is created equal. I need to think before I
cook.

Working to gain new vision...Love,
Gi

Katie looks like.....?

Just for fun I thought I would post a post to see who people thought Katie was starting to look like more. Most people around us and strangers have commented that she is looking like Justin's twin! Right now, personally, I think she is looking like her daddy (even when he is tired) :) All in all she is her own unique little person... Cast your vote!

Taking a nap with moo moo

When I went up to get Katie up from her nap yesterday this is what I found! This is not how she was before she went down for her nap. Here's what happened (I think.)

Because this cow is black and white she has taken to it really well. Black, white and red are what she sees best, though I know her vision is getting better every day. I had originally stuffed the cow in the corner where its tail is now sitting up, so she could see it as she went to sleep. She was facing the cow in the middle of the crib. Needless to say by the end of her nap she was in this corner and had somehow dragged moo moo the cow over to her as well. I thought it was a really cute moment.
And I promise I did not set this picture up! :)

A thought about nutrition moments...

Hey all,
I woke up at 3 am this morning to feed Katie and this came to mind...please take any of the nutrition moments as encouragement, not as me saying my way of cooking/eating is better then yours. I truly have a joy for learning about these things and thought the blog would be a good way to share.
:)

Gi

A Nutrition Moment by Gi

Okay....so I am so excited to share with you all "nutrition moments by Gi". I have decided to post things I am learning about regarding health and nutrition. Most of you all know that after Justin had this last surgery in January of 07' we decided that we had to make some changes. We DO NOT want Justin to continue to have these issues with his stomach and so I am on a mission to research about foods because we both believe poor food choices have contributed to his issues. I also taught Home Ec for a year and LOVE to learn about food. Plus who wouldn't want to be healthier, have more energy and be sick less! :0)

So today's "nmbg" is about wheat.
Most of you know that I try to make homemade bread around our house. It is so much fun to have delicious bread that is warm out of the oven with butter and honey. Plus, it is fantastically healthier for us. Who also wouldn't want a home smelling like fresh bread? As I have search sources to find out why homemade bread is better I have come to the conclusion that what makes it healthier is the fact that I grind my own wheat. Yep, I very easily take wheat grains, put them into a small mill, push the button and out comes fresh flour!

Here is why it is healthier to grind your wheat then buy it from the store.
"Wheat has 26 essential vitamins, iron for blood, potassium and Vitamin E for heart, vitamin B for the nervous system" and others. Did you know that "within 24 hours after it is ground, it loses 45% of all its nutrients and within 72 hours, it loses 80-90% of its nutrients"? And "white flour has been processed to remove ALL of the nutrients, bleached to be absolutely sure that all the life is destroyed". So bread that is bought from the store has very little nutrients left. (but does have a great shelf life) The air has zapped them all out! But bread that is made from wheat that is freshly ground is still filled with goodness!
That is why I choose to grind my own flour and make our bread. I don't always have the time and do buy some bread from the store. But since I want to make healthy choices for our family I try to spend the time to make bread. It takes me about 30 minutes plus rising and cooking every time I make it.
In conclusion, who wouldn't want to eat something rich in vitamins and minerals. After all these vitamins and minerals keep us trucking on the road to a long life with our families and friends, Lord willing!
:) Gi

Watch Her Grow...and Roll Over!!

We were wondering how much Katie has grown and wanted to do a side by side comparison to see. We thought that maybe you all would like to see her as well. The first picture is at 2 days old and the other is about 10 weeks old. It is quite amazing to see how time flies. We had an older lady come up to us at the grocery story one day and said she was the baby patrol. :) She smiled and wisely said, "Just remember the days are long, but the years are short!" (She must have noticed our tired and frazzled looks.) We now know, if even a little bit, how true that is. We can't believe that she is going on 12 weeks this Friday. Watching Katie grow is easy.....helping and teaching her how to grow into a woman of grace and gentleness, well that is and probably will be much more difficult (we know that holiness is a daily struggle, even for us!) I look forward to each minute that we get to play together, watch her great smile develop, and listen to her super cute laugh.
Oh, by the way she rolled over Thursday August 9th in her crib. We didn't get it on video, but are determined to catch it sometime soon!

God Bless,
Justin

Time Stands Still!

Gi and I were just noticing that this little calendar that sits on our kitchen sink was a stuck on a special day. It seems we have not had a chance to flip it to August and it has remained on the day Katie was born. It seems as if we had a few more important things to do...We know this a wonderful day to remember. Just thought it was an interesting thing to post.

Justin

Anymore takers for book blogging?

Hey all, if you are interested in reading a great book and want a copy, read the post about "book blog". For those that already responded I am sending the books in a few days!
Happy reading. Gi

That's What I Love About Sunday!

These are just a few pictures from our Sunday home together. I'm so glad for a two day weekend to be together with my girls, to play, laugh, work a little, and make some precious memories. Enjoy the album and special note: Thanks Davis family for the cute outfit...we love our little bundle of flower power!

A book blog

To all the wonderful women out there that want to be encouraged. :)

I have been reading this book and it is wonderful! It is a quick read, but one that has me thinking about the attitude I have of our home and the atmosphere that is exhibited. I really enjoy Ginger Plowman as an author (also authored Don't Make Me Count to Three and Wise Words for Moms). A few topics that she visits in this book are, 'Home is Heavenly When the Women is Happy, When Unity Prevails, When Relationships are Right, When Children Obey, and When it Serves as a Haven'.

And after praying about this I wanted to see if anyone was interested in starting "book blogs". Here is what I will do to get it started. If you would like to read this book, leave a comment or email me and I will send you a copy for free. I will send/give you a copy as long as you, after you finish it, either blog about it or at least email me your thoughts. I am completely serious about this. Please, if you want to read it let me know!!

I would love this to take off and lots of people read her book and even offer a book on their blog someday if they find one that has encouraged you like this one has encouraged me. But if in the end nothing happens from this post, oh well. I just wanted to give "book blogs" a try!

Have a blessed day! Gi

What fun we have with the Wilberding clan!

Meet our friends Gabi, Grace and Lucia (Gus-4th grader and Kevin-dad are not pictured, but were here as well) Wilberding. They are a terrific family that Loves the Lord. We have gotten to know them because of me coaching Cross Country at Franklin Academy last year.

Gabi in the pink, is an 8th grader and a superb runner. She kept me pushing myself many times during practice and because of her and two other runners we had a fantastic year! You can do even better this year, Gabi!

Grace in the gray, is in 11th grade and loves to share her books with me. I think we are in a mini book club! She also is turning 16 in about a month...be ware drivers! :)

And Lucia is a wonderful mommy and sold out follower of Jesus. She is from Venezuela in South America and is constantly helping Spanish speakers here (in her business of translating) as well as going on mission trips back to S. America to help so many people. The entire family is wonderful. Thanks for coming to see our Katie, I am sure there will be many more times to hang out! And thanks for the gifts, oh what blessings!

Katie is holding her head up!

Tug at your heart

This is Katies new expression. She can really tug at our heart strings when she does this. I just want to pick her up, cuddle with her and never put her down!

Our new friends!

Meet Joey and Page Craft. They just moved here from GA and we have enjoyed getting to know them. Joey and Justin work together and Page is a Kindergarten teacher (my hat is off to K teachers). We have really enjoyed their company and hope to have great conversations and dinners in the future! You guys are the cutest...thanks for hanging out with us!

For those that think Katie is close to Perfect...

Yes this is a explosion from Katie's rump! The blue shirt I am holding was over the tank top. The very full diaper soaked through two shirts and her outfit. It happened in a matter of seconds. Oh, the joys of motherhood! :)

This is her "flower girls" dress from my sisters wedding. Yes, about 10 minutes before the wedding she exploded! My mom and I used about 10 wet wipes to try and clean it up- it worked pretty well. There wasn't time for her to change as I was the matron of honor , needed her in it for pictures etc. My mom and I decided since there was about 4 layers of fabric that we could leave her in this and change her as soon as the ceremony was over. She didn't seem to mind and at least there are a few clean pictures with her in it! :)

Simple Easy Cheap Chocolate Cake...

To all my peeps that like to cook...
I have been on the search for recipes that are easy to cook and don't have dairy in them as Katie is still off them and therefore I am as well. After chatting with my friend Robin I investigated www. allrecipes.com which I highly endorse. During my search for dairy free desserts this chocolate cake recipes popped up. Yum, I thought, I'm going to try it.....and it was definitely delicious! It turned out to be very cake like, not brownie like and it tasted even better the second day...though there wasn't much left to eat on the second day. :)

Here is the recipe-

simple, easy, cheap CHOCOLATE CAKE.

1 1/2 cups flour
1 cup sugar (though with 3/4 cup it still is plenty sweet)
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1 tea. baking soda
1/2 tea. salt
1/3 cup canola oil
1 tea. vanilla
1 tea. distilled white vinegar (*this leavens the baking soda)
1 cup water (one variation is to add 1 cup of coffee instead of water, sounds yummy though I haven't tried this version yet)

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Mix everything together until smooth and put into greased 8 in. round pan or greased 9x5 inch loaf pan
3. Bake for 35 minutes in round pan or 45 minutes in loaf pan *check with toothpick to make sure done*
4. Remove from oven and allow to cool before eating (if eating before cool it falls apart!)

Enjoy this chocolate cake!