sister – Page 2 – The Bless Your Heart Blog

Random Rambles

Today was one of those tough mom days where I didn’t really enjoy my job. Wryder is in a definite boundary testing phase…again. My apologies ahead of time to the wonderful sitter I have lined up for tomorrow. *ahem*

There just seemed to be an overload of disobedience and nasty tones (some of them mine, unfortunately)…unkind gestures and more housework than I could juggle. I just felt defeated come nap time.

We made it through the afternoon – praise the Lord for short sales and daddy’s who come home quick – and the evening ended decently well.

Sawyer is learning to read and doing a fantastic job! Our plan is to home school (for multiple reasons) and there are days when I wonder if that will ever work. Sawyer is an incredible student but we have a few little distractions running around…and I’ve never taught school before…and I don’t remember how to teach someone to read…and I’m not the most patient soul on the planet…and days like today, where it feels like we barely survive the normal daily activities, I wonder how I can add one more thing…and the thought of trying to teach Wryder to read…well…that’s just scary.

Some days I just wonder if I’m gonna be able to finish this mom thing and finish it well…

And then…Sawyer read new words she struggled with just this morning…and I came across a blog that was saying exactly what I was saying…and I learned of families fighting far bigger battles than ours…and my world got a little broader and my self-pity a little smaller.

I have no doubt that HE wants me to finish this mom thing and finish it well and thus He will encourage me and refresh me and renew me and strengthen me and grace me and give me the wisdom I need to do such a thing.

Bring it, Friday…

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The last two nights, Wrex and I have grabbed a blanket, killed the power to the mercury light and laid out on the trampoline to watch the meteor shower. The sky has been cloudless and our prairie view has allowed for an awesome window in which to watch.

I was thinking of how majestic the Lord truly is and how He blessed us through His creativity. I mean what if He chose not to make stars? What if the night sky was just black? What if instead of a blue sky during the day, He chose olive green instead? What if there were no such thing as animals or what if every human looked exactly the same? What if birds didn’t make sounds or what if food had no taste? What if…

His creation speaks of His wonder and goodness and glory…

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The other day, the kids had gone out to play and I had to change Sayble’s diaper before I went out with them. I got that done, grabbed my shoes and headed over towards the tree, right where they were playing when out of the corner of my eye, I saw an orange streak slither quickly in their direction.

It was a long, nasty garter snake and he was headed right towards them. I told them to move and then cornered him while Sawyer got me a shovel. (The only good snake is a dead snake around these parts)…

I chopped him up and threw him in the ditch…and then had the willies the rest of the day… But it was a good reminder of how the enemy is doing just that – heading for my kids. He’s on the prowl, folks. He’s real and he’s looking for someone to devour.

Pray for your kids! Cover them and intercede for them and demand satan to flee in the name of Jesus. You’ve got no authority here, you creep.

The snake. I know it doesn't look that big, but it was. *ahem* — The snake. I know it doesn’t look that big, but it was. *ahem*

Sawyer holding Sayble so I could do my thing... — Sawyer holding Sayble so I could do my thing…

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On a brighter note, I saw this the other day in Sterling…

It made me feel so at home. Only a few more days until the start of football season and I’m sure hoping for a mildly successful one to say the least. Now, to get Wrex agree to cable for the winter…

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I’m headed to a consult with the orthopedic surgeon tomorrow. I hurt my foot/ankle/leg back in February and it’s gotten increasingly worse. I’m sure they’ll want to do an MRI and all of that (expensive) jazz. If you would join me in prayer that it could be healed without surgery, I’d much appreciate it.

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Praying your Friday is fun and that the presence of the Lord is thick with you this weekend. Praying that for me, too…

Worth 1,000 Words: Summer Fun

So, let’s just get straight to the point…I’m WAAAAAAAAY behind on posting pics of our {spectacular} summer so far. Here’s a tiny recap of what we’ve been up to!

The kids got to go to the Denver Aquarium with Uncle Warner…

I think it's safe to say Wryder liked the mermaids. *ahem* — I think it’s safe to say Wryder liked the mermaids. *ahem*

We checked out the Kearney Children’s Museum with some friends…We checked out the Sutherland Rodeo on July 4th…We’ve played in the water…a lot!We’ve played hide and seek…I loved Wryder’s hiding place. Sister couldn’t find him and he was more than content with that!We’ve enjoyed daddy being home for a week or two…We’ve had pop surprises and yummy desserts…We’ve gone on adventures, decked out in our finest, no less!We had missionaries come for lunch, whom the kids did NOT want to leave!We’ve taken our chickens out for strolls…Totally kidding. Just seeing if you were still with me. Isn’t that picture hilarious!?

All-in-all, we’ve been having a blast together! The next big thing (besides local county fairs and more summer fun) is gearing up for someone’s 5th birthday. How in the world did that get here so quick?!

The little lady asked for a county fair party so we’re hoping people are too county-faired out to come – she’s SOOOOO excited!

I hope your summer is going just as well. It’s a hot one here today and we’re headed out to throw some water balloons! YAY!

Soaking Up Summer

This time of year, most sale barns in this area take a week or so off for wheat harvest and such so daddy gets 10 or so days of built in vacation time. Are we blessed or what?!

Since we went to Texas last month, we’re opting for more of a stay-cation – with a few day trips thrown in for good measure. We’ve already been to Nebraska to see the grandparents and Oklahoma cousins. We got to go to Cody Park and feed animals and ride the rides…we stopped in at the Children’s Museum in Kearney with good friends and today we had really great company come to the house for lunch! The kids were stoked to have visitors and we loved every minute with them! (More on that later).

Last night, daddy took us to supper and we stopped at the fireworks stand on the way home. Tonight, Wrexy lit some up and the kids had a BLAST!

They stood on the edge of the yard, holding hands waiting for the bang and the flash of lights. Their little eyes were wide with excitement and anticipation. Wryder jumped nearly every time but then would squeal with glee and run around asking daddy for more.

I love their excitement and zeal over all kinds of things…from fireworks to new swimsuits to meeting real live missionaries to eating Mexican food to watching a DVD in the car to seeing new baby chicks to spotting the moon in the sky before it’s even dark…the world around them is new and exciting and ready for them to explore…..AND? As their parents, we get the pleasure of taking that journey with them.

Friends of wee ones, we are living in the best days of our lives, I am convinced! Wrex and I were married for 5 years before we started having babies and those 5 years were really sweet. We did that {horrible, awful, ridiculous, no good} long distance dating thing for 3 years before we were married so it was so nice to have some “us” time. It allowed us to really solidify our marriage and prepare ourselves for raising children.

As good as that time was, we love this time of our lives even more. To be able to see and feel and interact with the product of our love is such a treasure. Oh yes, there are some hours and days that may feel long but oh – the joy far outweighs the work and the blood, sweat and tears that go into this parenting thing.

There’s a chance that you’ll never be this loved, this exciting, this worthy of emulation in their eyes ever again. Revel in it.

Friends, I encourage you to soak up those kiddos of yours this summer…

Say yes a little more often…

Go swimming more than you want to and get in that swimsuit and jump in with them…

Eat at McDonalds (or Mickey Don-dalds) even if you just drink a Dr. Pepper…

Blow bubbles and jump on trampolines and go on nature walks…

Look for ways to show them grace…

Get messy and muddy and eat popsicles to beat the band…

Take lots of pictures and capture those smiles and squeals and ingrain them in your mind’s eye for days to come…

These are the best days of our lives. Soak them up.

Road Trip Funnies

During a 2,000 mile road trip, funny stuff is bound to happen! (Especially if you have two adorable kiddos who are observant of their surroundings and have stories and ideas they want to share). Here are a few of my favorites…

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EVERY time Wryder saw a deer crossing sign (and there were a few in that part of the country), he would excitedly scream, “John Deere!” and look around for the green machines. Thankfully, he only woke the baby a couple of times…

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On the tractor note… We were talking about Sawyer’s show cow named Cindy. When Sawyer turned four, we bought Cindy as a starter project and investment. All of the income would be hers, as well as the debt and when she was old enough, the work.

Before we left town, we dropped Cindy off to be AI’d and then turned out with a bull since we’d be gone during her heat cycle. Sawyer was asking if we were going to sell her calf and so Wrex and I were talking about needing to set up a livestock account just for Sawyer to keep that money separate. I then reminded him that we’d need to be on the lookout for a heifer or cow for Wryder who then piped up and said, “When I four, I want tractor. No cow.” The boy is serious about his tractors…

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When we arrived in Booker, the kids unbuckled and Wrex went around to their door to let them out. What he didn’t know was that Wryder was leaning against the door and as soon as he opened it, poor WD toppled right onto the concrete parking lot.

He skinned his arm and head and had a bit of a black eye. We finally got him calmed down and took him inside to meet some of Wrex’s co-workers.

When he met Roger, the CEO and Wrexy’s big boss, he was showing him his owies. Roger asked what happened and Wryder said, “Mommy hurt me.” WHAT?!?!?!?

We told him what happened and that if ANYBODY hurt him it was daddy and Wryder just kept saying, “Mommy hurt me.” How kind. Dad’s got him brainwashed, apparently… 😉

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The night of the rehearsal dinner, we forgot to take the kids’ cups to the wedding site and drinking out of water bottles is still a little hard for Wryder. He tends to put his entire mouth around the opening and always lets a little water back into the bottle.

By the end of supper, his water looked a little murky. I think at least an 1/8 of his dinner was floating around the bottom of the bottle. I was overly careful not to accidentally grab his by mistake and I even ended up putting a wedding favor koozie on it so I knew which one it was.

Fast forward two days later. We’re driving along in the car and Wrex is on the phone. He’d been eating trail mix and was a little parched and reached into the back seat to grab a bottle of water. He found one that was about half full (not a big surprise after that many days of traveling) and took a big ole chug…and then proceeded to spit and gag.

Yep, he found Wryder’s bottle.

See that murky goodness?? Go ahead and enlarge the pic and really take note. You’ll dry heave before ya know it…there was a whole Cherrio in there, folks. Still gagging…

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The kids were pretty hot in Texas. Sawyer’s a little like me when it comes to heat; she much prefers 70 degrees and drier climates. There was a bit of complaining a few times but we gently reminded them that we had talked about the heat before we came and that we all agreed to tough it out.

As soon as we got home on Tuesday, we let the kids out to run around and we started carrying stuff in. As we were making our first trip into the mudroom, they both came out of the mudroom looking like this:

Apparently, 82 degrees in Colorado warranted sweatshirts after their quick acclimation to 95 degrees and 97% humidity in Texas. Hysterical!

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I’m sure I’m forgetting things that I’ll have to add later, but these were some of my faves. Sure do love this (funny) family of mine…

One of Those Weeks

It’s been one of those weeks.

Nothing horrid. Nothing to cry about. Nothing to shake your fist at the Lord about. Nothing remotely as bad as the majority of the world probably deals with. Just one of those weeks were some things have just felt off and we’ve had a lot going on and Wryder’s in another “testing the boundaries phase” and we’ve been at the mercy of a couple of people who weren’t people of their word and that?! Oh, that’s a tough pill to swallow for me.

Despite all of that, these little guys make my world SO worthwhile. They bring us such joy…unimaginable joy! Watching them play or seeing their smiles or hearing their sweet voices just ignite my heart with such love…

These are just a few of my favorite pics of our week!

I love momma's dish towel, apparently! — I love momma’s dish towel, apparently!

Holding daddy's hand — Holding daddy’s hand

Cowgirling it in her shorts... — Cowgirling it in her shorts…

Riding our newest gift, "Stubbs" — Riding our newest gift, “Stubbs”

Handsome boy with a tractor in his mouth... — Handsome boy with a tractor in his mouth…

Baby feet - who doesn't love baby feet?! — Baby feet – who doesn’t love baby feet?!

Watchin' a little baseball with Mr. Zach — Watchin’ a little baseball with Mr. Zach

Getting some love from Miss Jen and Miss P

These guys just have a way of redeeming all that’s wrong in the world…my world, at least…

Ready

I feel like I’m to the point that I am READY.

I’m ready to meet sweet Sayble.

I’m ready to labor and push and bring her outside of my body.

I’m ready to snuggle her and swaddle her and get to know her outside of the womb.

I was scared to death of the whole labor process with both Sawyer and Wryder and I don’t feel that way this time…and I pray I don’t pass that point of readiness.

I feel like I’m perched on the diving board and I’m READY to take that leap into the deep end…the house is cleaned and organized and bags are packed and the ‘big brother/big sister’ shirts are made and we have diapers and wipes and formula and bottles and the carseat is in the truck…but labor hasn’t commenced so I can’t take that leap just yet.

I don’t want the longer I wait to increase anxiety, because that happens sometimes doesn’t it? When you feel SOOOO ready and you just wanna jump in feet first but you have to wait and then the enemy starts whispering fears into your ears…general anxiety sets in…and you’re a blubbering mess. Don’t ask me how I know.

I would LOVE to go into labor on my own this time. I haven’t had that luxury with either kid prior…apparently my womb is quite comfy. 😉 I keep telling the Lord that He knows the desires of my heart, but I trust that He’s knows best as well. He has been so faithful this pregnancy, friends.

I had so many fears going into this one. My heart so longs to be obedient to Him and I wasn’t certain that He was ok with us having a third one. I was reminded that He views children as blessings…He wants us to fill our quivers! We have the means and the ability to create more warriors for the Kingdom and He would bless this addition. He is the giver of life so even despite our efforts, if Sayble wasn’t meant to be, she wouldn’t have been. But she IS.

Her story has looked different than the other two, but no less full of His goodness and grace. After watching momma’s go through tough pregnancies and walk beside some as they lost babies and after having a bout of pre-eclampsia the day I was induced with Wryder, I have been so scared that I wouldn’t make it with this one. I didn’t want her to be born early and spend time in the NICU in a different city…I didn’t want to be scared to death and have my life threatened with pre-e…I didn’t know how I would carry her to term when I already felt so huge…

But? We’ve made it…and none of that has come to pass. He has showed me that He is trustworthy…again and again and again… Lest we forget…

We go in for another checkup tomorrow…and until He’s ready for her to make her debut, we will wait expectantly for her arrival. I will savor these kicks and stretches and countless bathroom breaks and never-ending house cleanings and day dreams about her sweet face and the last happenings as a family of four.

Pray for our family in this time…that we would wait well and that we would savor these days together…that labor would come in His time and that all would be safe and well and healthy…that we would honor Him with our story of Sayble’s life…all of our lives…He is most worthy.

The Birthday Boys

Happiest of birthdays to two of the biggest miracles I know!

My sweet nephews are one today! ONE!

A year ago today, they were born via c-section at 26 weeks gestation. They weighed in a 1 pound 1 ounce and 1 pound 4 ounces. They’ve come a looooooooong way, they have!

Our first meeting... — Our first meeting…

The Lord has been so faithful to their family. My sister-~~in-law~~ reflected back on the past year and I encourage you to check out her story here.

Happy birthday, boys! We love you sooooooo very much! We have been honored to be able to watch the Lord’s hand on your lives and to stand by your family as we prayed for you and over you. You are alive and thriving for a reason, little warriors! We have seen His favor on you and we pray that you will follow Him all the days of your lives!

I hope you get to eat lots of cake and ice cream…and that your momma sends me a picture when you do! 😉 We love you!

Sissy, Bubba and Sacrificial Love

One of the prayers Wrex and I are constantly speaking over our kiddos is that they will always love each other and be one of each others’ best friends. Right now, that’s a pretty easy thing for them.

Wryder was so lost last week when sister was sick. She didn’t feel like playing and we wouldn’t let him close enough to hardly hug or kiss her and he was definitely missing his “sissy.”

Every week when it’s time to drop her off for Cubbies, he’s usually ok for about five minutes or so and then the constant questioning of, “Momma, Sissy?” begins. He absolutely can not wait for 7:45 to roll around so that he can go with us to pick her up.

Last night was no different. He even asked daddy to move her carseat next to his so they could sit right next to each other. Melt. My. Heart.

During the day yesterday, we ran into Ogallala to run a few errands and let the kids hang out at the sale barn with daddy for a little bit. They had a ball, of course. Once it was time to head home, we had two vehicles and Wrex offered for one of them to ride with him (in hopes *ahem* they’d both take naps on the way home without the other to distract them). Well, obviously they both wanted to ride. How do ya pick???

We decided to let Sawyer go with daddy and as he went to get her out of her seat, brother started crying. After a second or two of thought, she piped up and said, “Daddy, I’ll stay with momma so that Wryder can go with you. I think he’d really like that.”

I was a puddle. I was so proud of her sweet sacrifice. There is no bigger daddy’s girl on the planet than this girl. She even picked out a “ranchy” outfit this morning and put bidding cards in her pocket before we ever walked out the door so she could be like him. It was a REALLY big deal for her to choose Wryder to have that privilege over herself…

We told her how proud we were of her and then daddy loaded up Wryder while I pulled ahead to get some fuel. The boys drove by us and stopped to wave…and sweet Sawyer just lost it. She was crying so hard.

I think there were a lot of factors; she’s still not 100%, she was tired and I think her decision probably hurt a little. Isn’t that how it is with sacrifices? They’re not usually painless. Learning to die to self in order to give to something else is a process and it’s not easy.

Dating someone? Gotta learn to die to yourself in some areas. Marry someone? You really gotta learn to die to yourself. Have kiddos? You really, REALLY have to learn to die to yourself. And oh, it’s a good thing…it really is…but it’s not easy.

I opened her back door and hugged on her and talked to her about sacrificial love and she just kept saying, “I love Bubba so much! I just love him so much!”

I love their hearts for each other and we do our darnedest to foster that relationship. Just yesterday, I came across this post and saved it to my phone…

Today renewed that vigor. Here’s to raising future best friends and leaving a legacy of relationship and family with them…

To my bubba – I love you dearly, too! We’ve had our share of ups and downs but I tend to only remember the ups. You’re a keeper!

And to my siblings I got when I married my Wrexy – you guys have my heart. I love you oodles! I couldn’t have picked better ones myself…

Worth 1,000 Words: Our Weekend

We woke up Saturday morning and noticed that Sawyer was awake and wasn’t crying. We KNEW that was a good sign because that hadn’t been the case for the past week. Poor girl has some serious strep (and most likely some other virus to boot) going on and had not felt well. At. All.

I got up to use the restroom (surprise, surprise) and I saw that she had left us a note on our dresser. Soon after, she came downstairs and told us that it said Sawyer feels better and wants to feed her goats. We knew she’d turned a corner!

The babies happy to be back with their momma... — The babies happy to be back with their momma…

She’s still not 100% and is still building back strength, but she’s SIGNIFICANTLY better than all of last week. I even lost my mind a little in the midst of her healing and let her snuggle the barn cat…in the house.

Wrex tried to burn our house down on Saturday. Thankfully, it just got the yard.

Everyone keeps saying that that section will come in really nice and green. I’m wondering if we need to do the other sections. I know a guy…

He totally redeemed himself by scoring these:

Aren’t they divine?? I don’t have any immediate plans with them and may just store them until the “dream house” comes along. Regardless, I LOVE them.

Oh, and he asked me on a date…

THAT covers a multitude of sins. Love. Him.

We worked on some decorations for Wryder’s second birthday that is rapidly approaching.

Tractors, of course... — Tractors, of course…

He found these in the mudroom today and I about had to tackle him as he tried to ride them. Ahem. Boy loves his tractors.

He’s also really been into his hat lately. For whatever reason, he wanted to wear it backwards. I’m not totally sure how I feel about this long term, but he sure looked cute for a little while!

The kids played in one of their favorite toys for a bit on Sunday…a box.

And I even got to sneak inside after my walking workout and take a bubble bath. It’s one of my happy places.

A little piece of heaven... — A little piece of heaven…

If you had to lug this thing around you’d want one, too…

She’s a growing! I have yet to NOT have to be induced to have my babies…but I’m hoping I get to labor at home for a bit with this one. We’ll see.

It’s now Monday, daddy is already home and we got some new Jamberry’s in the mail for Sawyer! It’s bound to be a good night!

Random Rambles

So, last Friday, I wrote this lovely post about how excited I was about the weekend. Wrex and I were scheduled to go on a weekend babymoon and the kids were going to stay with some good friends of ours in Denver. We were all OVER THE MOON excited! Just as I hit post, my good friend from Denver called and one of her kiddos had gotten quite sick at school that day. I felt so bad for them and didn’t want her to feel bad about not being able to keep the kids that I deleted my post.

After a lot of discussion and prayer, we decided that based upon our schedule the next 6 weeks and just the need for some items from the big city, that we’d turn it into a family-moon instead!

We ate well, swam at the hotel, shopped til I almost dropped and just had a fun time together. It wasn’t quite the weekend I originally had in mind, but it was a good one regardless. We were just blessed that we were able to go…

He gave Sawyer a dollar and she was fired up!!

Wryder's side of the table at BWWs. That boy is HANDSY! — Wryder’s side of the table at BWWs. That boy is HANDSY!

A portion of Wrexy's paycheck sitting in the mudroom... — A portion of Wrexy’s paycheck sitting in the mudroom…

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Before we left, Sawyer had a bit of a cough and wasn’t 100% but she didn’t have fever and still had her spunk. She seemed a little off on Sunday but we thought she might just be exhausted from all of the festivities like the rest of us.

Yesterday, she told me her mouth (throat) hurt. She woke up crying in the night and my incredibly awesome hubby left me in bed and went to check on her. Her throat was hurting pretty bad and she was a miserable mess.

He gave her some Tylenol and got her some juice and ate popsicles with her at 10:30 last night. Honestly, you guys, he’s the dad we all wished we had.

She woke up this morning in BAD shape. I had a baby checkup so I took her in with me; poor girl has a nasty case of strep. We picked up some antibiotics, a lot of different fluids and “How to Train Your Dragon” on DVD. Here’s to hoping she’s 100% soon…and that it steers clear of the rest of us!

Sweet girl still insisted on a green mustache and bows in her hair before we left.

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Yesterday, we talked about St. Patrick and the REAL meaning/reason behind St. Patrick’s day. I was telling the kids that he was a christian missionary in Ireland and I asked Sawyer if she knew what “christian” meant. She said a christian was someone who had Jesus in their heart and she told me that she and I and daddy had Jesus in our hearts.

Little brother piped up saying, “Jesus me heart! Jesus me heart!” Mine about melted…

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Speaking of Wryder, he has been absolutely ravenous lately! The boy ate all weekend until I didn’t think he could stomach another bite. Yesterday at supper, he ate half of a ribeye, a cup of applesauce, corn on the cob, sweet potato fries, two pickles and then BEGGED for a piece of cake! The funny part? There was no cake anywhere around…apparently he just had a craving?!

Today, he charmed his way around the doctor’s office and hospital and scored a fruit by the foot and two suckers. Yes, that was while he was with daddy while mom was with Sawyer. *ahem*

How could you NOT shower him with goodies?!

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Tonight, we’re planning on taking it easy and doing a little rearranging in the baby room while the kids watch their movie. All of that stuff in the mudroom photo above needs to fit in the nursery or nursery closet…wish us luck! 😉