Valentine's Day Cookies for Daddy

Every year (I think) since we've been married, I have made David heart-shaped sugar cookies for Valentine's Day. There are a few reasons. I started mainly because we didn't have a lot of money our 1st year of marriage and this was something I knew he would love that didn't cost a lot. Plus, he LOVES cookies, especially of the sugar variety! :) And, we're just not too into buying into the commercialism of Valentine's Day and spending MORE for something that last week was less (i.e. flowers, candy, dinner out). I have been excited to one day have our kids help me with this little gift and this year Cora got to help! It was a two-day process getting the dough done the 1st day and then the rolling, cutting, icing the next. She had a BLAST and I did too! :) And, well, David has enjoyed eating the cookies of our (love) labor! :) I had to chuckle at my little girl (for she's no longer a baby!) as her personality shines through when we do stuff like this. Her DISLIKE of being dirty, especially her hands. She absolutely REFUSED to try the cookie dough. I tried and tried but NO WAY was it going to happen! She also freaked out if any of the dough go on her hands--she D.E.T.E.S.T.S. having her hands dirty! I love this child and can't wait to see if this is something that lasts or goes away over the years. Anyway, feast your eyes on the cuteness that was our cookie-making adventure!

Can't you see the pure GLEE in her eyes???

VERY carefully cutting out without getting her fingers near the dough!

She LOVED using the rolling pin! :) 

Sprinkles EVERYWHERE!!!!

Mmmm! Frosting!

Nom, nom, nom!

So, I didn't have enough powdered sugar and found this can of electric blue in the cupboard. Not ideal for Valentine's Day, but oh well! :) Don't you love all the sprinkles? :)

David LOVES redhots with his sugar cookies! It's a good thing due to not having enough frosting anyway!

Happy Valentine's Day from the Hardin's!

Angels

"He's got His angels watchin' over me, every step I take! Angels watchin' over meeeeeeee!!" There's some old school Amy Grant for ya! :) How true this song is! Yesterday, I was doing laundry, in the basement, when I hear a thud, thud, thud and see Squiggy, Cora's singing seahorse, come down the stairs followed by CORA!!!!!!!!! I dropped what I was doing and ran the few steps to her, scooped her up and somehow flew up the stairs. I was terrified! This all took a few seconds and in those seconds I computed the following: She's screaming--good; she's not bleeding--good; she's not passing out--good; nothing seems to be broken, we'll assess that in a minute--good. I called David to come home right away (we only have 1 vehicle), got ice because she kept holding her chin and then called my sister to see if I should take her to the dr. I have no idea how much time all of this took--probably less than 10 minutes--but it felt like an eternity. What I found out was Cora was/is perfectly fine. She tumbled down the stairs and her chin is a little skinned, didn't even bleed. Within the first 10 minutes of it all I was able to assess that nothing was broken because she wanted to walk around and gather up some toys. I think we were both very frightened and we just hugged and hung on to each other for a while. I am PRAISING the Lord she is OK! I'm PRAISING the Lord she landed feet first on the concrete basement floor and not on her head. I'm PRAISING the Lord nothing is broken, there was no blood, and that she didn't pass out. I'm still shaking some because I keep thinking of the "what ifs" but I'm just so thankful for the Lord's protection on Cora. My MIL and her husband came to visit us too yesterday (arriving about 15 min after it all happened) and she reminded me that this sort of thing will happen again. I then had the thought, "yep, it sure will! We're having a boy!" :) Lord, give me the strength!!!!!

20 Weeks!

I'm 1/2 way as of today! Can you believe it??? I can't either! In all actuality this pregnancy is zipping right along, and I really hope it continues that way! There's not a whole lot to share right now, but I wanted to be sure to document that today I'm 1/2 way through! :) I don't even have a photo to share right now because, well, the camera is upstairs, I'm downstairs, and well, I guess I'm lazy! :) I will be more than happy though to have the next 20 weeks go just as fast! The sciatic nerve is still there, but it's manageable at this point. I pray daily it stays manageable. My nightly routine is heat, ice and Tylenol and we've now added a long body pillow to the bed to keep behind my back so I don't roll over onto my right side (which just causes baby boy to slide that way and kick my nerve!). My left side is NOT appreciating all the extra sleep being done on it, but what can you do? My poor father is suffering from the same sciatic pain, although his is not from pregnancy! :) :) :) HA! HA! But, we can co-miserate and offer suggestions to each other. Thankfully, I have not had the paralyzing pain as I experienced with Cora. I'm really praying that doesn't come back! However, I know if it does, I survived the 1st time around and can survive this time--please remind me of this later...

So, 20 weeks done and about 20 more to go! :) I'll do my best to get a photo up at some point soon!

It's a...

...BOY!!!!! That's right, we'll be having a boy join our family come end of June/early July! We are so excited!!!! To be honest we weren't all that surprised. For some reason David and I have BOTH thought this baby was a boy. On Tues. we had the "big" ultra sound done and our suspicions were confirmed! We will not be sharing our name until he is born. But, WE think we have a good, solid name picked out for this boy. In all truth I'm relieved we're having a boy as we just couldn't think of a girl's name. Phew! Dodged that bullet! :)

So, how is pregnancy going thus far? Well...it's going! :) I'll be 1/2 way on Tuesday and can't help but think how quickly the time has gone. Sure, when I was so sick and in my "weeks of death" (as I fondly call them), I thought time couldn't go any slower, but to be 1/2 way there, wow!!! David and I keep saying we can't believe how fast this pregnancy is going and well, we get a little panicked at the thought! Are we ready for 2? Are we ready for a boy? I know nothing about boys, how to raise them, or anything! I mean, I HATE bugs, lizards, snakes and spiders! How can I have a boy???? I guess I'll just figure it out as we go along. David assures me boys are so much easier--we'll see.

I am now eating anything and everything, for the most part. Garlic still tends to turn me off, as do bread crusts, though not as badly as during the 1st trimester. I have been eating a lot of cereal (Froot Loops and Corn Pops are the current favs) and loving iced tea! During my pregnancy with Cora I couldn't get enough McDonald's during the 2nd trimester. Thankfully, I have not had any fast food cravings this time and in fact quite the opposite! Do you hear my arteries rejoicing? :)

My sciatic nerve pain seems to be returning. :( NOT happy about this, but what can you do? As I was told by the midwife the only cure is delivery and well, that's not for a while yet. However, having already gone through it with Cora I know what to expect and know ways to help it. So far it's not as bad as it was with Cora. I think the main reason being I'm not sitting at a desk for 8 hrs every day and am more active. I'm also trying not to hold Cora on my right side, or sleep much on that side and if possible just put as little pressure as possible on my right hip. The heating pad is working and helping lots and I've started taking Tylenol before bed to also help. I continue to pray it won't get as bad as it did with Cora, and I'm hopeful it won't! Only time will tell.

Many have asked if Cora is excited to have a brother. Truth be told, I think she has NO CLUE whatsoever about what we're talking about! She's only 22 months and well, she just doesn't get it. She understands what babies are (her dolls and cousin Hadassah), but beyond this to comprehend that we'll have a real live baby in this house and it'll be a boy, no, I don't think she gets it! :) It'll be fun to watch as she learns what it is to be a big sister and teach her how to be gentle, loving and kind with her baby brother (remind me of this when I'm pulling my hair out!!!).

Well, that's the pregnancy thus far, at least the bits I care to share without giving you the dreaded TMI! :)

Stop Trying!

I am 19 weeks pregnant and feeling so much better!!!!! I am also better from whatever respiratory thing I was sick with 2 weeks ago and well, I haven't felt this good in a long time. My dear husband mentioned the other night he's looking forward to having me back. That made me really sad--for him, for Cora, for me. I guess I didn't realize how "off" I've been since moving, being pregnant, etc. It never ceases to amaze me with all the change and moving in my life (being a missionary kid and all) I still seem to have issues when it comes to change and moving, etc. Will I never learn to just take change gracefully? In any case, I hope I'm back to my normal self, whatever that is! :)

These last several months have been hard. Just plain hard. I have found that everything we went through during our time in MI, especially the last 2-3 years has finally been piling up on me and coming to a head--which is an ugly head. I have been angry, lashing out at my family, sullen, etc. Being newly pregnant (and not being able to take my prozac) didn't help the situation as that just added feeling horrible to the pile. I have finally been able to admit I need counseling. Eek! I just mentioned a very taboo thing, especially in the Christian world, but who cares???? I need help! I need someone (other than my loving husband) to talk to, to get things off my chest, to give me a new perspective on life, to offer suggestions, etc. My husband has been wonderful, but we have talked and talked, and I think we're both too close to the situation. I need an unbiased, fresh set of ears and someone who is trained. I have been resisting for many reasons, mainly the cost. Counseling is expensive, unfortunately. However, God works on our behalf anyway, and he has lead me to a great place that will accept my insurance! For 12 sessions I can talk to this woman (who happens to be a pastor's wife herself!) for free. God is good, no?  I look forward to starting my sessions with her and have been praying, already, that God would use our time together to bring me to total healing and forgiveness.

With all this feeling better and the prospect of being able to talk to someone I have been feeling very convicted to get myself under control as far as being productive on a daily basis. When you feel horrible (for me during the 1st trimester of pregnancy) it's so easy to become lazy. I have become lazy. But, I resolved starting this week things would be different. I am getting up before Cora, getting a shower and having my quiet time with the Lord. This is helping tremendously! I have also set up a chore chart for myself! :) I have found with a toddler it's very easy to allow the caring for her to take over basic household chores that really should get done. I'm not going to give myself stickers (though it's not a horrible idea! :) ) but this will help keep me organized and feel more accomplished when the week is done! With being a SAHM (stay at home mom) I have noticed I find it hard to look back and see what I've been able to accomplish for the week. When I worked at a paid job it was easy to say I had accomplished this and that.

I really do hope and pray all of these things will help me get back to being me and will help me be better than ever. Only with the Lord's help will it happen, but I'm determined to stop trying and just do it!

Linking Verbs and Prepositions

Cora is talking like CRAZY!!!! It seems everyday her vocabulary is being added to and she is connecting things/concepts daily as well. Case in point: Sunday she threw a royal fit because she saw me getting a snack ready for her to eat during church. I told her it was for church and she could have it when we got to church. Thus ensued ANOTHER royal fit with her telling us, "bye bye!" over and over again. We finally figured out that she wanted us to leave for church so she could have her snack. She is so stinkin' smart!!! She is also trying so hard to get her point across. Though she lacks the usage of linking verbs and propositions in her sentences she is successful in telling us what she wants. Sometimes it takes us a bit to "get it" but we do. We're all learning how to communicate with each other! We have noticed in the last week, really, her wanting and trying to communicate concepts and have actual conversations--you know, as much as a 22 month old can have! Again, she is so stinkin' smart! I have been telling David almost daily now, that I just don't know if I'm smart enough to keep up with her! She's so observant and we have long since realized that if she says something is there (bird, dog, balloon, etc) then she is right! She has eagle eyes and ears that anyone should be envious! :) No hearing aid for this one! Monday I asked David to bring the laundry down for me so I could get going on that. Cora proceeds to say something (we couldn't figure out what) and so we finally asked her to show us. She confidently went to the basement door and said the word again. She was telling us that the laundry is done in the basement. Good gracious! I sure hope we can keep up with her!

Give, Don't Keep!

NOTE:**** This is not all of this post, but for some reason what I had written before all of this is gone. So, apparently, what I thought was important isn't. However, the below is VERY important and I hope at least makes you think!***

David read this to us on Sunday and it literally brought me to tears. It's from the book The Hole in Our Gospel.

* The total annual income of American churchgoers: $5.2 trillion

* Amount available if each of them gave 10% of their salary: $520 billion

* Estimated annual cost to eliminate extreme poverty in the world: $65 billion

* Annual cost for universal primary education for ALL children in the world: $6 billion

* Annual cost to bring clean water to most of the world: $9 billion

* Annual cost to bring basic health and nutrition for the world: $13 billion

* Total to eradicate the world's greatest problems: $93 billion (1.8% of American Christian's income)

Did that not make the hair on the back of your neck stand on end? Do you read what this   is saying? If AMERICAN (not the world) Christians simply gave 2% (even though we're to give 10%) of their income all of the world's greatest problems would be  ERADICATED!!!!!!!!!! How can that not make you stop and think? How can you read that and not be changed? How can you read that and not start tithing your required 10%????? 

I want to leave you with this. Read these words from Acts and don't just read them, but read them and be changed! Read them and ask the Lord how to make them applicable in your life. Read them and ask the Lord how you need to change so you too can be filled with His grace. Acts 4:32-35 (NIV) says this, "All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of their possessions was their own, but they shared everything they had. ³³ With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And God’s grace was so powerfully at work in them all ³⁴ that there were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned land or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales ³⁵ and put it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to anyone who had need."

May God forgive us for our selfishness and not truly giving. May he forgive us for keeping back too much for ourselves.