Self- Discipline

I lack self-discipline. That is all there is to it. You can see it in our fianaces, my health and weight, and many other areas of life. So if I need just two quick words to sum up my goals for the coming year it would have to be... self-discipline. I am sitting here, watching DH clean the carpets and I am thinking about the long day we have had together and there is still a whole week. Today a situation occured and while it was not my husband's fault or mine, I retaliated. I am stubborn and I was hurt and the situation has torn me down to nothing. I am upset at myself for letting this person get to me like this. So as I look forward to the New Year I am going to work on self-discipline. So here is a quick list of my "goals" for the coming New Year.

Spiritual:
1) Read a chapter of the Bible every morning before rising.
2) Take EVERYTHING to the Lord. So often I just came to him when I need something or I am in despair. I need to pray about everything.
3) Be slow to anger.

Personal:
1) I am really enjoying my new Child Care business so I am wanting to get that going more.
2) Be more patient.
3) Be outside more.
4) Use blogging as an outlet more.

Financial:
1) Stick to the budget.
2) No more eating out "just because".
3) Take better care of what we have.
4) Be content
5) Send $1000 extra towards debt/ month. This may be hard but we will scrimp and save and cut the budget if we have to.

Marriage:
1) Go on a little or big date once a week.

Health:
1) Exercise daily somehow.
2) More water
3) Stick to weight watchers.

Kids:
1) Read with them more.
2) Get back to using cloth diapers at home.
3) More outdoors and play instead of TV
4) Make the kids eat at the table.

So there it is. I would appreciate your prayers ahead of time. I am not very good with N.Y's goals but I want to make a goal of it. It also gets back to the two words I began with.. Self-control.

Proverbs 25:28: "Whoever has no rule over his own spirit is like a city broken down, without walls."

Sincerely Fro Me to You -- Jet Ski Incident

We met our good friends down at the Lake. I had just had Lincoln a few weeks prior and my good friend "S" with 9 months pregnant. The Lake was windy and bumpy but "S" decided she wanted to go jet skiing to try to go into labor. They have one of those concrete things and not an actual dock. So this is my friend "S" and I trying to get on the jet ski. *Disclaimer* This isn't pretty people!


We were trying to get on the jet ski without our husbands knowing.

Here comes "S" husband and he holds it so I can get on.

Okay! We're both on!!


Now we're both off.. We were laughing so hard we had to swim away from each other.. :)

"S" husband was not a real happy guy.

So probably not the smartest thing we could have done. We eventually, after a lot of hard work, made it on. "S" didn't go into labor, but I think there was a better chance of us laughing her into labor than her jet skiing.. :)

For more fun we pictures go to http://wearethatfamily.com/.

My Prayer

Today I am praying for patience. I am soo tired. The kids have aggrivated me from minute one of today. I love my kids so much but some days are just bad. We have all been stuck in the house and are going stir crazy due to sickness. Last night I got my first "good" nights sleep in a week (due to some heavy medication). This morning I awake to our 3 yo kicking me in the back, "trying" to get his feet warm. So innocent- yet so annoying...

Now I reflect on what my best friend is going through. Her little 3 pound- 1 mo baby son is fighting for his life. Every breath is a struggle for him and every minute is devastating for her. I cannot fathom what she is going through. As I reflect on this, I begin to think about our loss...

Five sweet little babies gone to Heaven now... Oh sweet Lord how I yearn for them... How my life seems incomplete... I search and seek for contentment but the pain is agonizing some days... The prayer is continual - Lord please touch and heal my broken body.... And as I reflect on this I begin to think of the questions my dear sweet son will have soon. They have already began...

"Mama- why am I different?"

Lord help me find the answers to give me sweet sweet little boy and Lord give me the patience to love my children even during the hard days such as today.... Amen.

Menu Plan Monday

We are still sick around here but here is the menu plan for this week- if all goes well.

Monday- Chicken Pot Pie with applesauce

Tuesday- Vegetable soup and grilled cheese

Wednesday- Church Fellowship Meal

Thursday- Quick take-out bite due to running to Ikea with my in-laws

Friday- Yankee Pot Roast with fruit

Saturday- Chicken and Dumplings

Sunday- Breakfast for lunch- scrambled eggs, pancakes, sausage, and hashbrowns

For more menus, head on over to Organizing Junkie, who hosts Menu Plan Monday.

Sickness

Sickness has been looming over the Blessed house... Tuesday Dylan didn't even get to go to his Thanksgiving Party at preschool. I dropped him off and no longer than 20 mins. had passed when I got the call to come and get him. So puked on all Tuesday... Wednesday morning Lincoln woke up in a funny mood. I put him down for a nap and he screamed and screamed and screamed. So- I picked him up and what do you know?!? Puked on all Wednesday... Wednesday evening Andy came in not feeling well. Thanksgiving was eventful. Dylan began the other end issue and Lincoln was still puking everywhere. So we ended up coming home for a while. Friday- boys still acting weird. Lincoln other end issues now... I got my Christmas shopping done and we went out to my Grandparent's farm for dinner. Boys still acting funny. At 10:30 I went to bed. 12:30 -- I woke up and ran to the bathroom. I was up every hour looking at how disgusting my toilet is. So I lost 7 pounds over night. Not a great diet but hey- it was a painful one. So as we began today- I am able to sit up on the couch without running to the bathroom. We still have a really busy weekend and coming up week so I am hoping to relax this afternoon and knock this sickness out! The kids are still acting tired and whinny but that is the young children attitude during the Holidays. Ready or not here we come! So here is a quick run down of the weekend and week ahead- actually maybe all the way to Christmas so I can see how crazy it is beginning...

This Evening- Thanksgiving at Andy's Family Farm (Before this we really need to take naps, decorate a third tree, and clean up a little)

Tomorrow (30)- Church and Hanging of the Greens at Church

Monday (1) - Out to dinner for Andy's birthday

Tuesday (2) - Women's Party at Church/ Andy going to his parents

Wednesday (3) - Fellowship Dinner and Church

Thursday (4) - I think an open night!

Friday (5) - Tastefully Simple Party

Saturday (6) - AM going to Ikea to pick out a Christmas gift with in-laws
PM Birthday Party

Sunday (7) - Lincoln being dedicated at church in the AM
Christmas dinner at Church in the evening

Okay I am already overwhelmed so I am going to stop! Hope y'all have a great upcoming week!

Winding up a Hectic Weekend

This past weekend and the few days before have been hectic. We are getting ready to get into a hectic time of year. I have THREE days to get things together and things are really starting to add up. To top it all off- I feel pretty bad. There are also a few things that just popped up as things always do. So here is a quick list of things I will try to get down each day. It looks like a boring week because I will be at home most of the time but it will not be boring with all the things I need to get done. So here begins the list....

* Make Thanksgiving sugar cookies to 3 yo's preschool party on Tuesday
* CLEAN UP kitchen -mop
* CLEAN UP dining room -mop
* CLEAN UP our bedroom
* CLEAN UP boys bedroom
* Go through Christmas gifts
* CLEAN UP living room
* CLEAN UP toy room
* CLEAN lower level bath
* laundry/ laundry room -- Tuesday and Friday
* Mop the Rest of tile
* Clean carpets
* Master bathroom
* boys bathroom
* Get down Christmas decorations

Dinner Plans:

Monday) Chicken and Noodles with mashed potatoes
Tuesday) Tacos
Wednesday) Bourbon Chicken with rice
Thursday) Thanksgiving dinner
Friday) Breakfast for dinner
Saturday) Marinated chicken in sauce with pasta

Just a quick look at what I am going to be doing during the early days of next week... I am also planning to try and get to the gym Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. The husband wants to run on Tuesday so we will be doing that.

Looking Towards My Weekend...

My weekend looks like it is going to be jammed packed! Tomorrow I have to run some errands. I am going to pick up some food. A local church does the Angel Ministry and they were doing - buy one unit and they will give one away. So... I bought one unit. Therefore, I have a set time I have to and get my unit. Then I need to help my husband find our Christmas decorations so we can put them up next Friday. I need to clean because I refuse for my house to be a mess over Thanksgiving. I need to clean out my car there was a Pepsi incident. Then I need to get a gift wrapped for a Birthday Party at 11A. Then I am coming home and finishing whatever of my list I didn't get done. After that we are having some friends over for a potato and chili soup bar and watching Lord of the Rings 1.

Then we get into Sunday and that's church, a birthday party, and church again!

Sincerely Fro Me to You - The Birth of Lincoln

This is Dylan and me right the night before we went in to have Owen. It was so hard to part from Dylan- I was so nervous. We had a crazy day. I was trying to get my house cleaned up and we had given our dog away because I am not a "pet" person and that is a whole different story.

Lincoln is born after a horrible delivery. He was born at 10:54P. He was 6 lbs. 12 oz. and 21 inches. They induced me at 6A and at 10:30 P- I got an infection and had to have an emergency C-section. It was horrible and I was horribly drugged. I do not remember anything from the first night and second morning.

This is a picture of me holding him and remembering him for the first time.

Andy was such a proud daddy!

Quick Menu Plan for the Rest of the Week

Here is a quick menu plan for the rest of the week:

Wednesday Dinner -- Tex Mex Mexican Dip with corn chips and salsa
Thursday:
Breakfast- Cinnamon Bread
Dinner- Bourbon Chicken with steamed white rice

Friday:
Breakfast- Left- over cinnamon bread with bananas
Dinner- Hot ham and cheese sandwiches made with homemade bread and seasoned potato slices

Saturday:
Breakfast- Cold Cereal- we are having a lot of food today so I do not want a big mess or a lot of food
Lunch: Cousin's Birthday Party
Dinner: Potato bar (includes sweet potatoes, baked potatoes, and potatoes skins) and Chili bar with includes white chicken chili and regular chili

Sunday:
Breakfast: Pancakes
Lunch: Chicken and noodles with mashed potatoes made from leftover potatoes and potato filling from potatoes skins
Dinner: Leftovers

We're Weird...

We are considered weird by a lot of people we know. We believe in loving discipline and having family duties which are jobs that everyone does to contribute to the family. I started really teaching Dylan to help out when he turned 3. So here are some darling pictures of him doing one of his family duties.

Learning to Crawl

My little baby is trying to learn to crawl. It is too cute. He scoots and gets his legs underneath him but will not lift his head off the ground so by the end of the day he has rug burn on the sides of his face. He is getting so big so quick!

Batman Visits...

Batman helps do laundry.....

Batman helps do dishes...

We tame Alligators around this house...

Like I said- both boys have been sick. Yesterday while we were at home trying to knock these colds out, Dylan found the "Grow with water" Alligator my mom and dad had brought him back from a trip they were on. We didn't grow the alligator very long but had a great time with it. Now Luke tells everyone that he has a pet alligator. It is too cute! :)

It's a rough life...

This was taken last night while I was trying to make dinner- isn't it pathetic? It must be so hard to be almost 8 months. Poor Lincoln has been really sick the past couple days. I am sure you can see it in his eyes. AND he is teething. Poor thing is so unconsolable but yet so darn cute! I am so glad that God healed whatever was wrong with him and helped him to gain weight. I would be freaking out right now if he was so chunky! :)

Sick....

Today I am really sick.. All the sick kiddos were nice little girls and boys and shared their germs with me last night. I have no voice, a montrous ear ache, headache, runny nose, fever, and cough. Andy said that he is going to go into work for the morning but will probably come home to help take care of the boys. I am lucky to have such a caring husband who will come but after recent lay-offs from his company, it worries me when he takes anytime off. So with that said I am going to lay on the couch watch Blues Clues and catch my blog up as I was sitting here downloading pictures I saw how many cute posts I wanted to share with you. Happy Wednesday everyone!

Works For Me Wednesday

Toy Organization Totes-
Down in our downstairs toy room I just had a HUGE toy box. Now I have small individual totes with labels (puzzles, cars/transportation). I only allow one tote out at time. This cuts down on clutter, tripping over toys and constant clean-up. So on WFMW- I am suggesting individual toy totes.

For other helpful tips and great ideas go to Rocks In My Dryer.

As the end of my day nears...

As today is nearing an end- I am beginning to look toward the beginning of my next day. So I'm beginning to run through things which I want to get done tomorrow. So here is my tentative list. I am very guilty of always make large lists and not getting things done- leaving me feeling unaccomplished...
So here I go...

1.) I would really like to get up and have a hot breakfast ready for my husband. He does so much for our family that I feel it is the least I can do for him.
2.) Read my Bible and a Devotional/Spiritual Book
3.) Laundry- wash, dry, fold and put away
4.) All laundry that is on the floors needs to be washed or put in its place.
5.) Pick up Living Room and Toy Room
6.) Clean the kitchen and the dining room
7.) Clean Lower Level bathroom
8.) Clean boys bedroom and bathroom
9.) Dinner -- I am planning on having Tex Mex Dip with nacho chips and salsa
10.) Dinner Clean up
11.) Andy wants to run
12.) I am considering going to church. It depends on how the kiddos are feeling and if there is still green snot everywhere.

So my day looks a little crazy but nothing more than usual... I cannot wait to blog my list of to-dos for Saturday... Happy dreams!

Lincoln

Lincoln is 7 1/2 months old. He is so adorable. He is proof that God gives us miracles. Starting out we had a lot of problems with weight gain but by gally he is back on the wagon. He so fun and I cannot wait until the day when he can talk. I know that is crazy but I just love hearing their little voices. I am so excited that Christmas is coming and he will be crawling into all the action.

Dylan

This is Dylan and he is 3 1/2 years old. He attends preschool 2 days a week in the morning. He is the reason that I am alive and I tell him that every day. He makes me smile with his sly sense of humor. He is so much fun and adventurous. You never know what you are going to get into when he is around. His new favorite thing is dressing up and acting like super-heroes. I pray everyday for the courage and guidance to be the mom I am called by God to be.

My Better Half

This is my better half- Andy. We grew up together and never actually talked. One day I met him through his sister and we have been inseparable since. He is the greatest man I have ever known and everyday I think God for placing us together. Andy is seven years older than I am so we are a good match. He puts up with me and all my idiosyncrasies which is a huge blessing (not that I have that many :) ) I try and tell him just how much he means to be. He completes me.

The Beginning of the Blogging...

I read tons of blogs but I have never written one about my family. I think this will be a good venting mechanism for me. I also want to give all my family and friends a little window into our crazy life.

So the beginning....

I am Jodi. I am 24 years old. I am married to Andy and he is going to be 31 years old in two weeks. We have been married 2 1/2 years. We have two young boys- Dylan who is 3 1/2 years old and Lincoln who is 7 1/2 months old. We live in the Midwest and are blessed with snow already on the ground...

Blogroll

Here are sites that I visit on a regular basis. Some blogs appear in multiple categories due to more then one focus.

Gardening/Preserving:
Heavenly Homemakers
Keeper of the Home
Life in Small Town, Wyoming
Naturally Knocked Up
The Happy Housewife

Homemaking:
5 Minutes for Moms
Cheaper By The Half Dozen
Diaper Diaries
Fancy Farm
Five Mom & A Blog
Heavenly Homemakers
Keeper of the Home
Life As Mom
MckMama
Moms In Need of Mercy
Momstheword
Naturally Knocked Up
Passionate Homemaking
Simple Mom
The Finer Things in Life
The Happy Housewife
We Are THAT Family

Faith/Daily Walk:
At the Well... In Pursuit of Titus 2

Whole Foods:
Heavenly Homemakers
Keeper of the Home
Life in Small Town, Wyoming
MckMama
Naturally Knocked Up
Passionate Homemaking
The Finer Things in Life
The Happy Housewife

PCOS Resources:
Keeper of the Home
Naturally Knocked Up

My Best Friend: :)
A Dash of Life

Recipes

Breakfast
Egg Burrito Casserole


Appetizers/Beverages


Soups/Sandwiches
Yummy Cheesy Potato Soup
White Chicken Chili

Main Dishes
BBQ Chicken Pizza
Crock-Pot Brown Sugar "candy" Chicken
Parmesan-Dijon Chicken
Penne Pasta Bake
Tex Mex Dip


Side Dishes



Desserts
Yummy Apples

Other
Cooking Down Tomatoes for Salsa, Pizza Sauce, etc.
Mama's Yummy Trail Mix

About Our Family...

I am a Jesus lovin', Bible Readin', family lovin', Real food eatin', home cookin', money savin', homemakin', cloth diaperin', home schoolin', Earth protectin', gardenin' mama of two boys! I a.b.s.o.l.u.t.e.l.y. love staying at home with my boys, taking care of our home, and being the help-meet of a wonderful man. I strive to be the mother and wife the Lord calls me to be. I yearn to live under His direction and to be on His path and follow His ways. I pray that this blog not only shares my journey but glorifies and praises the Lord.

Yes, I'm a little crazy goofy!

Our Family

This is Andy. He is an incredible man. To read our love story click here.

This is Dylan (4 yo). He is one incredible kid. He is truly a gift from above.

This is Lincoln (18 mo). He is such a joy. He truly is a reminder that God is faithful.

I really appreciate your stopping buy and would love to hear from you!

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To contact me please email me at: jodi(at)woh(dot)rr(dot)com.