Things to be Thankful For

Well, I have tried unsuccessfully to get my text above the photos, so see the photos and then you can read the text at the bottom! Sigh...technology...

Our new car--2003 Nissan Altima!

Cora, being extra cute in Daddy's hat!

She's ready for the Marshall game! Go Herd!

It seems natural when life isn't going the way you want it to just get grumpy, unthankful, and full of complaints. However, David and I find we have much to be thankful for! We have a beautiful, healthy, thriving baby (who will be 6 months on Sunday!) who brings us much joy! She has yet to get sick and is learning and growing every day! We have also been blessed by another great used car!

When my accident happened in December and totaled my car and then when the girl ran into our Honda we thought, what more? But, God is faithful. In both instances he provided a vehicle to replace the one that was lost and it was a vehicle that better suited our needs! Wow! What an awesome God, huh?

We have a roof over our head, clothes, more food than we need and God still provides. It's so easy to see only the bad, isn't it? I challenge you today to stop looking at only the bad and start making a mental (or physical if need be) list of the blessings. You might find your blessings list is much longer! Here are some photos of our blessings!

You Know You're a Redneck When...

David and I went for a walk this afternoon in our little neighborhood. There is one house we hate walking by for a few reasons. Their yapper dog has decided that it should chase us when we walk by; their other dog is much larger and scarier and tied to a shaky shed. When we walk by we always wonder if today is the day dog and shed will be chasing us down the street; and, last but not least, the owners of the house have a flag on before-mentioned shed that says, "kill them all, let God sort them out!" So, you know, they're the real friendly sort! All that to say we hate going by this house. Well, today we were getting close and saw said yapper dog wrestling around in the yard with what we thought was another dog, a puppy perhaps? Well, the closer we got we could see it was NOT a dog. A cat, maybe? No, not a cat. What could it be? Just as we were asking each other what was in the yard with the dog we saw the big, bushy, striped tail--A RACCOON!!!!!!!!!! That's right, folks. The dog was wrestling around with a raccoon! As we past the house we saw that the raccoon was not only in the yard, but had a collar on and was chained up!!!!!!!!!!!! What in the world?????? We picked up our pace and passed quickly. When we got back to our house I mentioned again how strange and then realized the raccoon wasn't in the yard on our way back. David asked, "Was it a pet, or dinner?" We're afraid to ask!

Rollin', rollin', rollin'...

...Cora is a rollin'! Keep that baby rollin'! Rawhide! :) OK, I don't know how the "rawhide" fits with my version of the song, but whatever! The point is, that Cora rolled over twice this morning!!!!!! I had her on her back, on the blanket, on the floor this morning and went to fix a bowl of cereal. I come out to see her on her tummy just looking around, giggling! What did I do? I said, loudly, "YOU ROLLED OVER!" and promptly ran to the bathroom and yelled at David, who was showering, "Cora rolled over!!!" I ate my breakfast, put her back on her back and went to the kitchen to take my pills. I come out to the living room again and SHE ROLLED AGAIN!!!!! The little stinker rolled over twice w/out either of us there to see it! And, wouldn't you know, as we were both in the living room with her she refused to roll! BUT! She can do it and that is MOST exciting! :)

Labor Day Weekend

Our Labor Day weekend was spent in Akron with my family. We celebrated Riley's 1st birthday on Saturday and spent the rest of the weekend with family and friends. It was a great time! I thought I'd let the photos do the rest of the talking!

Sophia--4 1/2

My sister, Ruthie, with Sophia, Riley and Baby Bean inside!

Well, it's obvious he loves chocolate cake!

I love my nephew!

My parents have this swing and it was Cora's 1st time trying it out--she LOVED it!

Finally got a photo of the teeth!!

A Bit of News

Today marks two years that I've been working at my current job. This job has provided for us in so many ways. When we were still at Bankers it really helped us build our savings and pay for the taxes from David's job. Little did we know when I took this job it would also be providing our health insurance and now our only source of income while David searches for a job. It's been a good job, for many reasons, and we are even more thankful for it now!

I'm finally able to say that my sister is pregnant!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We are so excited for them!!!!!! This will be #7, but only the 3rd one that has made it this far. My sister and brother-in-law have 4 babies in heaven, one of which is the twin of our nephew, Riley. Like me, my sister gets horribly sick in the first trimester. The barfing has commenced, and so she continues to feel like doo-doo. I feel for her. I love that I have been pregnant and can now understand more fully what she is going through! We pray for this little one to grow big and strong. The ultrasounds so far show that he/she is! My sister doesn't have tiny babies (despite she and Jamie not being big people!) so I'm sure this one will give his/her brother and sister a run for their money! :) And, to make this even more fun, Ruthie's due date is March 30, which was Cora's due date!!!!! How fun it will be that these 2 will be a year apart--maybe even exactly a year! :) Christmases will be loads of fun, that's for sure!!!!!!!

We're heading down to Akron this weekend. It'll be nice to be out of Hillsdale/Osseo for a few days. David and I have been very down and depressed so it'll be good to have a change of scenery and remember there is life outside of our little world. I'm looking forward to being with family. Our weekend includes: a massage for me by one of my friends, 1st birthday party for Riley, hanging out with the parents, hopefully seeing "Julie & Julia," and who knows what else! :) We'll be back Monday...

Well, I shall go for now. Nothing too profound in this blog, just a bit of news...

Have Times REALLY Changed?

Today marks the start of classes here at Hillsdale College. I had to run to the bookstore to get a few things for the department and saw a lot of the students wandering around. They seemed to have an excited, yet dumb-founded look on their face as if to say, "is summer really over?" I couldn't help but notice again the way the students here dress. I don't know about you, but when I was in college my wardrobe consisted of jeans and shirts that didn't need ironing. I had dress clothes, but they were for church and the occasional presentation I had to give. But, Monday through Saturday I was not dressed up unless I had to be. However, here at Hillsdale the kids dress much differently. It is not uncommon to see the men walking around in suits, dress pants, button down shirts and ties and for the girls to be in dresses/skirts and stiletto heels (yes, even in the dead of winter with snow a foot high on the ground. Silly girls!!). I find this so interesting and funny all at the same time. Yes, you have the students who dress "down" as I did, but it is very common for the majority (or so it seems) of the students to be dressed up. Have times really changed that much? Am I just getting old? I don't seem to remember people dressing up at my college like they do here. I went to a college similar to Hillsdale, small, private, not many students. I feel a little old today. I'm 31 and have been out of school for 9 years. Where has the time gone? Oh well. I say YEAH for jeans and shirts that don't need ironed! :) I like to be comfy, don't you?

Gift of Gab

It would appear that our daughter has received my "gift" of gab! :) So sorry for all of you out there! :) David and I get much pleasure and laughter when we hear Cora gabbing away at the TV, on her blanket, in her car seat, when we're holding her... :) She's so hilarious and quite vocal. It will be interesting to see what all she has to say (when we can understand her) as she gets older! :) She's so darn cute...