Simply Sara

There's nothing like projectile vomit to bring two people together. Aunt Skye has been officially brought into the family.

I really loved this post today on Vanessa's blog. I have been challenged so much lately in my role as a stay at home mom. It isn't as easy as it looks. There are days when I feel frustrated, overwhelmed, under-appreciated, and ready to throw in the towel. I know "this too shall pass", but I'm trying hard to balance that mindset while savoring each moment while my babies are so young. When you click on the link in the post, it will take you to Amazon. com where you can read an excerpt from what looks like a really great book. I usually don't read "mommy" books, but I think I will be ordering it tonight.

My husband loves to tease me because I'm a bookworm. Like Meg , I love to read. I've been this way since elementary school. Back then, you could find me devouring every book in the Sweet Valley High series or in the Babysitter's Club . I read while I was brushing my teeth, soaking in the bathtub (I probably dropped at least 10 books in the water), and eating dinner, if my parents would let me get away with reading at the table. And I always had a book with me at school. I was obsessed with the Christy Miller Series. This christian, fiction series influenced my view of myself as a teen girl who loved Jesus and was kind of boycrazy. Okay, I was really boy-crazy! This main character, Christy, was only crazy about one boy, but the lessons she learned developed her heart for God and her desire to wait on Him. Good stuff! I highly recommend these books to moms with preteen/early teenage daughters. I think they have a new edition out with less cheesy covers. Also, I may be wrong ...

Here's why my heart is very full today. I am a very blessed Mommy!

Why is it that strangers love to offer baby/parenting advice? It's more than just a friendly gesture; it's like a compulsion or a need to impart wisdom to young, unsuspecting mothers. I encounter this alot when I'm out with my two little ones, especially at the grocery store. Usually I just smile and say something like "Oh, they're so wonderful" or "I'm so blessed" while I quickly push my cart, desperate to get away from the "parenting sage". But the advice I got the other day at the grocery store ranks as the top WORST baby advice I've ever heard. I was discussing Ava (one of my favorite topics) with the ladies behind me at the check-out counter. I was saying something like "She's a really great baby, always happy and a great sleeper" when the cashier decides to put her two-cents in. Here's what she asked: "Want to know now to get your baby to sleep through the night?" I'm thinking, "hey lady, d...

Can you guess what this is? This was our dinner last night - Paula Deen's Stir Fry Chicken! Yum! Ava was a little less enthusiastic about her dinner. Apparantely the homemade greenbeans I made for Ava aren't very tasty.

I have a lot to say, but my mind is running on auto pilot. Complete sentences are becoming a challenge for me. I think the exhaustion of this week has caught up with me in a big way. And the weekend is only going to be busier! Yikes! Pray that my boy takes a nap today. It appears that the benadryl is causing hyper-activity overload. He's currently jumping off the coffee table onto the couch. Over and over and over. But seriously, please pray for my friend Courtney . She's pregnant with multiples and lost one over the weekend. She's 20 weeks and the babies need to stay in for a little while longer. Pray for comfort as they mourn, peace as they wait and strength for the days ahead. As you read, you will see that they love Jesus. He's already getting the glory.

Lucas woke up yesterday from his afternoon nap (yes, he is napping every day now!!) with a puffy eye. He had no other symptoms (no red eye or drainage), so I didn't think much of it. This morning however, the swelling increased, so we took a trip to see Dr. Stone. A box of eye drops, some Benedryl, and a diagnosis of "eye allergies" later, we are back home. I thought Benedryl was supposed to make your kid sleepy. My kid has been dancing to old school Plankeye and Bleach for the past hour. I kid you not. He figured out how to use my Ipod docking station, so the music is cranked up and the boy barely even stopped long enough to eat. He likes the fast songs with drums. He doesn't even care if I'm watching him or not. He just wants to dance. "Do you want to play outside, Buddy?" "Nope, I just want to dance!" Oh boy, I hear some techno music getting started. Someone tell me how to upload a video on my blog. This stuff is hysterical!

I've always hated bows. Wearing them, tying them, seeing them on babies. As a little girl, I wore bows in my hair for a while, but by my early teens, I was so against anything frilly and "over the top", like bows, lace, and ruffles. My poor Mom hated it when I entered this phase! I was so adament that I was not going to look too girlie! I wasn't a tom-boy by any means. Or sporty either. But to me, bows were too childish and not sophisticated for all of my 13 years. We laugh about it now, because in my "old age" I feel quite comfortable with a ruffle or lace on my shirt. When I found out I was pregnant with a girl (and when I finally believed it), I ordered at least 10 handmade and adorable bows off of Etsy . (If you haven't discovered Etsy yet, go there right now and look around! You will be amazed at all of the gorgeous, fantastic handmade items for sale! My current favorite seller is Risky Beads ) I was so excited to finally have a little girl to be...

Here's Lucas's explanation as to why we no longer have heat/air in my car: "There's no more fire in the engine to make it hot, Mommy." (With a look of DUH Mommy! on his sweet face) My explanation: "I drive a 13 year old SUV" At three and a half, Lucas has entered into the phase of emulating his daddy. No longer does he grab my makeup brushes and swirl them around his face (thank goodness). Instead, I often find him, screwdriver in hand, trying to replace a dead battery or fix a broken train. He has learned how to maneuver the computer mouse when his he watching his beloved "Airplanes" on Hulu . This real-to-life movie of Air Force pilots to Lucas's all time favorite thing to watch. I thought we had seen all of it with him (giving our approval), but apparantly we missed the part in the movie when the pilots clink their "glasses" together at dinner. Something Lucas insisits we now do - raising his sippy cup of milk to our sweet tea...

Well it's been an exciting day to say the least! Lucas has been begging for snow since Christmas, so he was overjoyed when I told him the forecast this morning. Even though it was raining like crazy, I took the kids out this morning to church; I needed some Newspring. And I am so glad I did. It was a really great service. They usually post the sermons by Tuesday, so you should check it out! Matt and I got out tonight after the kids fell asleep to walk around our yard and marvel at the snow! Lucas and I had played in it for a little bit before dinner. We are so not prepared for snowy weather. Lucas had to wear my gloves and Matt's hat because I couldn't find his. And of course neither one of us had snow-worthy boots. We both got soaked, but the joy of romping through the snow with L makes it totally worth it! Our neighbors got a scary surprise tonight when a pine tree fell on their house! We were outside when we heard the load crash. Thankfully they had decided to eat in th...