P.S. Because I have absolutely no self control, chips and oreo's rarely make an appearance in this house. My mother and mother-in-law went shopping and that's what happened. I just felt the need to explain that. Thanks for reading!
Josh and Jenn
Est. July 21, 2007
Friday, September 16, 2011
The Booby Trap
Also know as my pantry. I go in there to get something and things come flying out at me. I want to get this thing permanently organized once and for all without having to spend money. Any advice?
P.S. Because I have absolutely no self control, chips and oreo's rarely make an appearance in this house. My mother and mother-in-law went shopping and that's what happened. I just felt the need to explain that. Thanks for reading!
P.S. Because I have absolutely no self control, chips and oreo's rarely make an appearance in this house. My mother and mother-in-law went shopping and that's what happened. I just felt the need to explain that. Thanks for reading!
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Pudding Painting
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| Step 1- Take the clothes off! |
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| Step 2- Prepare the materials. Food color pudding and paper taped to the floor |
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| Before Picture |
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| Dig in! I had to show her what to do |
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| YUM! |
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| Getting the hang of it. |
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| Distracted |
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| Getting back on task |
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| After Picture |
Alexis Kate's Story- Part Eight
What I'm about to say is going to sound really dramatic...
The best part of each day alone was first thing in the morning when I woke up and knew I was alive.
We lived in Sandy Springs, GA between a really dangerous neighborhood and a very wealthy neighborhood. The SUV had been broken into a year prior, so naturally, one of my biggest fears was someone breaking in the house.
Our ultra-sensitive security system gave me some relief, although, once I knew someone was in the house I had just two options. One was to shoot them with a very long gun I knew nothing about. The other was to jump out the bedroom window. I didn't like either one.
This is what I thought about before bed each night. Many nights I prayed myself to sleep. I was so happy to see the morning light on Sunday April 11th. I had survived my first night of many alone!!
The next couple of weeks were busy as I had planned. I was juggling work (I just add that for dramatic effect. I looked forward to nearly every day of work), getting the dog out of the house for all the house viewings, and surprise! Another repair on the SUV.
This repair would be yet another costly one to the tune of $2600.00. Yes I typed that correctly. A new transmission. We were planning to use some of the sale of the motorcycle to pay for it, but another surprise. The buyer shows up to test drive the bike with cash in hand and it won't start! And Josh is not there. No Sale. Frustration!
So the repair comes out of our used-to-be plentiful savings account. And I begin to see how God is working now. Money is important to me and he is taking away part of the financial security we had built. Teaching me to trust in Him.
Knowing there would be no way for Josh to attend anymore doctor appointments, I invited my Mom and Mother in Law to the big one. This previous post will give you the details of the 20 week appointment
http://mrsrizzer.blogspot.com/2011/04/one-year-ago-today.html
To Be Continued...
The best part of each day alone was first thing in the morning when I woke up and knew I was alive.
We lived in Sandy Springs, GA between a really dangerous neighborhood and a very wealthy neighborhood. The SUV had been broken into a year prior, so naturally, one of my biggest fears was someone breaking in the house.
Our ultra-sensitive security system gave me some relief, although, once I knew someone was in the house I had just two options. One was to shoot them with a very long gun I knew nothing about. The other was to jump out the bedroom window. I didn't like either one.
This is what I thought about before bed each night. Many nights I prayed myself to sleep. I was so happy to see the morning light on Sunday April 11th. I had survived my first night of many alone!!
The next couple of weeks were busy as I had planned. I was juggling work (I just add that for dramatic effect. I looked forward to nearly every day of work), getting the dog out of the house for all the house viewings, and surprise! Another repair on the SUV.
This repair would be yet another costly one to the tune of $2600.00. Yes I typed that correctly. A new transmission. We were planning to use some of the sale of the motorcycle to pay for it, but another surprise. The buyer shows up to test drive the bike with cash in hand and it won't start! And Josh is not there. No Sale. Frustration!
So the repair comes out of our used-to-be plentiful savings account. And I begin to see how God is working now. Money is important to me and he is taking away part of the financial security we had built. Teaching me to trust in Him.
Knowing there would be no way for Josh to attend anymore doctor appointments, I invited my Mom and Mother in Law to the big one. This previous post will give you the details of the 20 week appointment
http://mrsrizzer.blogspot.com/2011/04/one-year-ago-today.html
To Be Continued...
Alexis Kate's Story- Part Seven
At almost 18 weeks pregnant I got in the car with Josh ready to drive eight hours to Wilmington, NC for Kate (my sister) and Jason's wedding. Thankfully, that gave us plenty of uninterrupted to plan our last week together and process through what was happening.
The house and motorcycle needed to be sold and Josh's Honda needed a LOT of work before the 12 hour journey to VA. Those were the most immediate issues.
Then there was the thought that we'd be apart for five months. I would tell myself- "It's only five months" and then think- I better keep myself really busy!
We participated in a busy, fun wedding weekend. On Easter Sunday we began our journey back to Altanta for our last week together there.
I blocked that week out of my memory. Looking back at the calendar I see that it was Kristen's spring break but other than that it's blank and I do not remember what was happening!
On April 10th, 2010 at 6:30 am Josh packed up the 1995 Honda civic and pulled out while Will (our dog) and I watched and waved good bye. We would see each other in a month. In that moment I remember saying to myself- "I will not cry, I will not melt-down...not this early on" I made a promise to myself that I was going to make at least half way and then if I needed to flip, I could.
That day I had no time to pity myself. I made breakfast and read my daily devotion. It was all about Christ satisfying my deepest needs. Good timing. Feeling lonely already, I needed that reminder.
In that empty-feeling house I got myself ready for the weekly prenatal massage (pretty sure that will never happen again!) After the massage I ran, grocery shopped, decorated for the baby shower, got myself showerd again, and greeted the guests. All that before 1pm...told you I was feeling better!!
I hosted the shower. The shower ended. The people left.
Alone again. Not, really.
To Be Continued...
The house and motorcycle needed to be sold and Josh's Honda needed a LOT of work before the 12 hour journey to VA. Those were the most immediate issues.
Then there was the thought that we'd be apart for five months. I would tell myself- "It's only five months" and then think- I better keep myself really busy!
We participated in a busy, fun wedding weekend. On Easter Sunday we began our journey back to Altanta for our last week together there.
I blocked that week out of my memory. Looking back at the calendar I see that it was Kristen's spring break but other than that it's blank and I do not remember what was happening!
On April 10th, 2010 at 6:30 am Josh packed up the 1995 Honda civic and pulled out while Will (our dog) and I watched and waved good bye. We would see each other in a month. In that moment I remember saying to myself- "I will not cry, I will not melt-down...not this early on" I made a promise to myself that I was going to make at least half way and then if I needed to flip, I could.
That day I had no time to pity myself. I made breakfast and read my daily devotion. It was all about Christ satisfying my deepest needs. Good timing. Feeling lonely already, I needed that reminder.
In that empty-feeling house I got myself ready for the weekly prenatal massage (pretty sure that will never happen again!) After the massage I ran, grocery shopped, decorated for the baby shower, got myself showerd again, and greeted the guests. All that before 1pm...told you I was feeling better!!
I hosted the shower. The shower ended. The people left.
Alone again. Not, really.
To Be Continued...
Monday, September 12, 2011
Lexie Signing Update
I love, love, love Sign Language!!! We've been busy teaching Alexis American Sign Language for the past 12 months.
According to the book we have an average 12 month old speaks 2-3 words, while a signing 12 month old knows 25 signs and speaks 16 words. Alexis is flip-flopped she speaks 23 words and signs 18.
Here's what she knows:
fish, baby, milk, mommy, daddy, more, eat, dog, done, up, change diaper, book, bathtime, bird, cat, please, ball, duck, water, hi, bye, no, and bubble.
Some signs are more helpful than others. I'm hoping and praying all this signing will bypass the terrible three temper tantrums. Trust me they are terrible (the tantrums). I have experience on that one!
We're currently working on:
Help, Thank you , Play, Drink, Sleep, Down, Shoes, and Socks.
This book promises by 18 months Alexis will know 79 sings and 105 spoken words with some sentence development. That amazes me.
The book we follow is Baby Signing 123 by Nancy Cadjan. It teaches the real American Sign Language.
According to the book we have an average 12 month old speaks 2-3 words, while a signing 12 month old knows 25 signs and speaks 16 words. Alexis is flip-flopped she speaks 23 words and signs 18.
Here's what she knows:
fish, baby, milk, mommy, daddy, more, eat, dog, done, up, change diaper, book, bathtime, bird, cat, please, ball, duck, water, hi, bye, no, and bubble.
Some signs are more helpful than others. I'm hoping and praying all this signing will bypass the terrible three temper tantrums. Trust me they are terrible (the tantrums). I have experience on that one!
We're currently working on:
Help, Thank you , Play, Drink, Sleep, Down, Shoes, and Socks.
This book promises by 18 months Alexis will know 79 sings and 105 spoken words with some sentence development. That amazes me.
The book we follow is Baby Signing 123 by Nancy Cadjan. It teaches the real American Sign Language.
Thursday, September 1, 2011
Alexis Kate's Story- Part Six
The weather was warming up and I felt as good as a pregnant girl could feel.
I began to schedule all the things I should have been keeping up with while I was in hibernation...hair, nail, and waxing appointments, weekly massages, vaccine and bath appointments for William, a meeting with our accountant, ordering invites for a baby shower, purchasing late b-day gifts...and the list goes on. I have to take a minute to tell you how simple our life now seems in comparison to that list!
I felt great. Accomplishing all these things made me feel even better. There was the nagging thought that it's now March, the baby is due in September, and we still don't know what the heck our lives will look like.
I had my moments of freaking out. I would call Josh and tell him things he already knew. (You have to go through FIVE months of training. You DON'T even have a training date! We're having a BABY in September) I would beg him for things that were out of his control. And then I'd go back to what God tells us about difficult situations:
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, shall guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
It's true that when I took all of this to God his peace would fill me and then we'd repeat the entire process. Crazy, I know. We probably repeated this 10-15 times throughout, but I learned a lot, and isn't it about the journey anyway?
The glorious day of relief came sometime in late March around my 16th week.
Cheyenne and I were supervising an Easter Egg Hunt themed playdate out on the back porch. I got the call from Josh checking to see if April 11th was a good day for him to begin training. YES, Yes! You're KIDDING?!?!? You're not? Yes!!!!!! I was excited to know a little of what was to come. Five months of training beginning at April 11th meant a return date of August 31st. I thought-"O, MY, GOSH. God are you serious?!?!? You're bringing Josh back just in time!"
Then I began to process through the fact that he would be gone through the end of the pregnancy and I would be left with a huge responsibility of selling our first house, moving us, and whatever else came up.
Thankfully, my two pre-marriage/post-college years had prepared me to handle life without a man. Please don't get me wrong- I love Josh and most defiantly prefer to have his guidance, help, and humor. All I'm saying is- I felt prepared and confidence can take a person pretty far.
To Be Continued....
I began to schedule all the things I should have been keeping up with while I was in hibernation...hair, nail, and waxing appointments, weekly massages, vaccine and bath appointments for William, a meeting with our accountant, ordering invites for a baby shower, purchasing late b-day gifts...and the list goes on. I have to take a minute to tell you how simple our life now seems in comparison to that list!
I felt great. Accomplishing all these things made me feel even better. There was the nagging thought that it's now March, the baby is due in September, and we still don't know what the heck our lives will look like.
I had my moments of freaking out. I would call Josh and tell him things he already knew. (You have to go through FIVE months of training. You DON'T even have a training date! We're having a BABY in September) I would beg him for things that were out of his control. And then I'd go back to what God tells us about difficult situations:
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, shall guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
It's true that when I took all of this to God his peace would fill me and then we'd repeat the entire process. Crazy, I know. We probably repeated this 10-15 times throughout, but I learned a lot, and isn't it about the journey anyway?
The glorious day of relief came sometime in late March around my 16th week.
Cheyenne and I were supervising an Easter Egg Hunt themed playdate out on the back porch. I got the call from Josh checking to see if April 11th was a good day for him to begin training. YES, Yes! You're KIDDING?!?!? You're not? Yes!!!!!! I was excited to know a little of what was to come. Five months of training beginning at April 11th meant a return date of August 31st. I thought-"O, MY, GOSH. God are you serious?!?!? You're bringing Josh back just in time!"
Then I began to process through the fact that he would be gone through the end of the pregnancy and I would be left with a huge responsibility of selling our first house, moving us, and whatever else came up.
Thankfully, my two pre-marriage/post-college years had prepared me to handle life without a man. Please don't get me wrong- I love Josh and most defiantly prefer to have his guidance, help, and humor. All I'm saying is- I felt prepared and confidence can take a person pretty far.
To Be Continued....
Alexis Kate's Story- Part Five
Exhaustion.
I wonder if there's a better word to describe the first trimester?
I was feeling it big time. Good thing my job was nanny (stay at home mom in training) to Kristen, a spunky four year old.
I spent most of those early pregnant days on the couch. Playdates were my friend. So was the cold weather that forced us to stay inside, watch Disney movies, and play the Wii. I have never loved a couch so much. I have never felt more tired in my life. My exercise hobby was quickly being replaced with sleep.
Our bathroom was so dirty that Josh cleaned it.
If you know my husband, then you understand why that one sentence gets it's own paragraph...Anyway- The days were dragging on and on. At 10 weeks Josh and I went to a lovely marriage conference in Helen, GA. Josh took notes and said it was great. I didn't learn anything. I slept.
11 weeks in I returned the beautiful tiny size 4 dress I was planning to wear to Kate's (my sister) wedding. In it's place I bought a much larger and different style dress. With the new dress I also had to wear that really uncomfortable body-sucking in material that hides all the fat.
The 12 week appointment arrived. Josh was still with us (we still didn't know when he was leaving) so he met me there. At this appointment the doctor (with the help of his high tech lying machine) guessed the sex of the baby. He guessed a boy and he was 90% sure. Had it been the other way around I would have never believed it. I believed him. I'm just going to be honest with you. I was crushed, I wanted a girl. Really bad.
At the end of the appointment the doctor asked how I'd been feeling. After thinking about it, I answered "You know, I have been feeling more like myself these last couple of days" The doctor assured me that I would begin feeling more energetic and told me to have fun with the second trimester.
Hope- a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen, is what I was filled with.
To Be Continued...
I wonder if there's a better word to describe the first trimester?
I was feeling it big time. Good thing my job was nanny (stay at home mom in training) to Kristen, a spunky four year old.
I spent most of those early pregnant days on the couch. Playdates were my friend. So was the cold weather that forced us to stay inside, watch Disney movies, and play the Wii. I have never loved a couch so much. I have never felt more tired in my life. My exercise hobby was quickly being replaced with sleep.
Our bathroom was so dirty that Josh cleaned it.
If you know my husband, then you understand why that one sentence gets it's own paragraph...Anyway- The days were dragging on and on. At 10 weeks Josh and I went to a lovely marriage conference in Helen, GA. Josh took notes and said it was great. I didn't learn anything. I slept.
11 weeks in I returned the beautiful tiny size 4 dress I was planning to wear to Kate's (my sister) wedding. In it's place I bought a much larger and different style dress. With the new dress I also had to wear that really uncomfortable body-sucking in material that hides all the fat.
The 12 week appointment arrived. Josh was still with us (we still didn't know when he was leaving) so he met me there. At this appointment the doctor (with the help of his high tech lying machine) guessed the sex of the baby. He guessed a boy and he was 90% sure. Had it been the other way around I would have never believed it. I believed him. I'm just going to be honest with you. I was crushed, I wanted a girl. Really bad.
At the end of the appointment the doctor asked how I'd been feeling. After thinking about it, I answered "You know, I have been feeling more like myself these last couple of days" The doctor assured me that I would begin feeling more energetic and told me to have fun with the second trimester.
Hope- a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen, is what I was filled with.
To Be Continued...
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