Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Friday, March 26, 2010
How We Roll
We recently cleaned all the photos off of our cellphones, and found some pretty funny (and some pretty old!) random fun pictures of Kenna. These seemed to have a bit of a theme...
passed out in the stroller (this was in Borders this past summer while Matt was meeting with someone for coffee and I was trying to keep Kenna happy around the store. She had finally passed out!)
feeling pretty hardcore about getting a big girl car seat for her first birthday:
and testing out the car grocery carts at BJ's while we shopped:
passed out in the stroller (this was in Borders this past summer while Matt was meeting with someone for coffee and I was trying to keep Kenna happy around the store. She had finally passed out!)
feeling pretty hardcore about getting a big girl car seat for her first birthday:
and testing out the car grocery carts at BJ's while we shopped:
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
16 Months!
Kenna turned 16 months today, and apparently decided to take it as a chance to meet several new milestones at once! She's been taking a few steps here and there, cruising between furniture, standing alone, and pushing her rolling toys around for several weeks now, but had yet to "take off." We knew when she did, there would be no stopping her (although I still maintain that her walking will be slower for awhile than her crazy-fast crawling)! I went to a women's event at school last night (which was a blast by the way!) and came home not two hours later to find my girl walking all over the house! And to say she was proud of herself was a major understatement!
I told Matt we weren't allowed to call her a toddler until she was officially toddling, and I guess I have to admit that day has come. I'll go ahead and be cheesy and say it feels like just yesterday we were taking little videos of her finally crawling, and it feels like she's officially not a baby anymore. Here is our big girl in action!
She also took us by surprise by learning how to climb the stairs. She climbed up to the third one and got stuck:
As you can see, she wasn't too happy about it. Neither were we when we came around the corner to find her up there!
We also have been going up to Daddy's work to meet him for lunch whenever our schedules match up. Usually we get a little Chick fil A on free kid meal day (Tuesday) and trade our toys for free ice cream!
The other day when the weather was so nice, we brought lunch to him and had a picnic in the car with the windows rolled down. Matt let Kenna sit in the front seat and she had a blast "driving" the car with him. Apparently our not-so-wee-one is 16 months going on 16:
We made the classic parent mistake of letting her play with all the fun buttons on the dashboard, and then when we got back to the car, the battery had died because she had left the lights on without us noticing. Luckily, we were parked right outside of Matt's work and he was able to come save us!
And still further proof that she thinks she is all grown up, here is a photo our friend Jen sent us of Kenna stylin' in her hat at the Thursday night childcare she goes to while we're in class:
What a big, big girl. My little love has not been listening when I tell her to stay little!
I told Matt we weren't allowed to call her a toddler until she was officially toddling, and I guess I have to admit that day has come. I'll go ahead and be cheesy and say it feels like just yesterday we were taking little videos of her finally crawling, and it feels like she's officially not a baby anymore. Here is our big girl in action!
She also took us by surprise by learning how to climb the stairs. She climbed up to the third one and got stuck:
As you can see, she wasn't too happy about it. Neither were we when we came around the corner to find her up there!We also have been going up to Daddy's work to meet him for lunch whenever our schedules match up. Usually we get a little Chick fil A on free kid meal day (Tuesday) and trade our toys for free ice cream!
The other day when the weather was so nice, we brought lunch to him and had a picnic in the car with the windows rolled down. Matt let Kenna sit in the front seat and she had a blast "driving" the car with him. Apparently our not-so-wee-one is 16 months going on 16:
We made the classic parent mistake of letting her play with all the fun buttons on the dashboard, and then when we got back to the car, the battery had died because she had left the lights on without us noticing. Luckily, we were parked right outside of Matt's work and he was able to come save us!And still further proof that she thinks she is all grown up, here is a photo our friend Jen sent us of Kenna stylin' in her hat at the Thursday night childcare she goes to while we're in class:
What a big, big girl. My little love has not been listening when I tell her to stay little!
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Big 'Ol Update
In these precious days of exploration and discovery, it's really easy to let the blog become pretty Kenna-centric, but since so many of you have told us you're praying for us, we wanted to give you a larger update about our family on the whole. I'll try not to get over-detailed, this is definitely the nutshell version!
In April of last year, God started us on a journey. We moved back to Wake Forest for Matt to start his Master of Divinity (MDiv) at Southeastern Seminary at the recommendation of our IMB (International Missions Board) representative- we had at that point already started the application process to become apprentice overseas missionaries (3 years on the field with the option to stay longer). We worked on settling into classes (I started taking some as well) and joined Bayleaf Baptist Church as our home church. Shortly after that, we found out that the program (International Service Corps) we had started applying for had been phased out because of lack of funds in the IMB.
However, in September we found out that it would be a possibility for Matt to finish his MDiv in the "2+2" program through Southeastern- meaning 2 years of classes and 2 years on the field (with 3 years on the field being an option if you wanted to work towards possibly becoming career missionaries, which we definitely wanted to consider!). Matt quickly changed his degree into the 2+3 program, and we were suddenly on the fast track of applying... which meant lots of meetings, lots of paperwork, doctor's check-ups, still both in classes, and working on several things we'd need to have done for medical clearance, which included losing 30-50 pounds for each of us. We decided not to pursue a full-time ministry position job-wise since we were planning to be leaving within the year. We want to have obedient hearts towards God, whether that meant moving overseas or staying in the U.S., and had immediately looked for ministry we could be involved in for the mean time when we had first moved back. We worked with a college and singles outreach to downtown Raleigh, Matt began co-teaching our Sunday School class and guest preached at several churches, and we started teaching an evangelism class together.
In February, we found out that despite financial shortfalls and extreme budget cuts in the program, God had opened a place for us in Germany. We had been praying for a place in Western Europe to serve, and were so excited to have a specific people to pray for and a language to start learning! We had been given theological, mental, and relational clearance and this was the next step. We had already gone through several classes and meetings with our "departure group" of other students, and have met so many precious couples with a true heart for serving God. Within two weeks of finding out there was a spot for us, we also found out that we would not be able to get our medical clearance in time to leave this year. Not leaving this year, with our departure group, affected Matt's enrollment in school and the IMB could not guarantee that there would be jobs available at all in the next year. Knowing that there is still the option to finish the degree here and then re-apply as missionaries afterward, with much prayer and disappointment, we made the difficult choice to remove ourselves from the 2+3 program and release the position to another couple. If we can't go, we desperately want someone else to fill that spot and GO and TELL!
So Lord, what now?
We were still without full-time jobs, and our end-goal had just fallen through. Matt transferred his degree back to the Missiology program and of course, still plans to finish the MDiv. Honestly, I felt like just when my head was finally catching up to my heart being willing to change everything and move overseas, the plan was changing again. People often say "when God closes a door, He will open a window," but we felt like God was clearly saying the door was closed for a reason, and for this time and place we are in right now. Maybe it is not closed forever, but definitely right now.
In addition to the ups and downs of our plans changing, finances had become a major stress. Anyone who has gone through a job loss or other financial struggle knows the stress it can bring. When you don't have any, it's easy for money to become central to your life. Every part of your life and every decision you try to make is affected. Fear takes the place of trust as you worry if bills will be paid, if groceries can be bought, and the stress causes little annoyances to become unnecessary arguments. In the midst of it, God provided (and is providing!) in the most surprising ways... family members hired us to do odd jobs that they could have just as easily hired a stranger to do... Matt was able to work for a construction company owned by a church member and good friend... God provided buyers on craigslist to purchase some of our larger things we weren't using... and some very dear friends of ours, who are also in ministry and have their own wee one to take care of sent us a Target gift card out of the blue that we were able to use on groceries. When God provided a part-time (with health benefits!) job for Matt last week, we had almost gone an entire year on no full-time income at all- yet here we are, with our power on, our water running, and food in our pantry! Not to mention a healthy daughter that is pure joy to raise, a bit of weight loss under our belts, and a family that loves and prays for us through these days of change. Praise God from whom all blessings flow!
We still know that God's plan for every believer is to help others become worshipers of Him, from your next-door-neighbor to the far-flung reaches of places on the map that you can't even pronounce. We don't know what God has for us from here, but we believe and trust in His plan, and we are praying that he will reveal it to us quickly. This has been such a time of learning patience and humility, painful at times, as He breaks down our pride and selfishness to become willing servants. I want to prove myself as faithful to Him as he has been to me. I hope that we will learn these lessons and that in His perfect timing, He will use us in full-time ministry again.
What will that look like? Where will that be? We don't know right now, but we are so thankful that our Heavenly Father, who loves us and desires good things for us, definitely does! Thank you all for your prayers, and for continuing to pray for us that God would lead us not according to our own wishes, but right where He wants us to be!
In April of last year, God started us on a journey. We moved back to Wake Forest for Matt to start his Master of Divinity (MDiv) at Southeastern Seminary at the recommendation of our IMB (International Missions Board) representative- we had at that point already started the application process to become apprentice overseas missionaries (3 years on the field with the option to stay longer). We worked on settling into classes (I started taking some as well) and joined Bayleaf Baptist Church as our home church. Shortly after that, we found out that the program (International Service Corps) we had started applying for had been phased out because of lack of funds in the IMB.
However, in September we found out that it would be a possibility for Matt to finish his MDiv in the "2+2" program through Southeastern- meaning 2 years of classes and 2 years on the field (with 3 years on the field being an option if you wanted to work towards possibly becoming career missionaries, which we definitely wanted to consider!). Matt quickly changed his degree into the 2+3 program, and we were suddenly on the fast track of applying... which meant lots of meetings, lots of paperwork, doctor's check-ups, still both in classes, and working on several things we'd need to have done for medical clearance, which included losing 30-50 pounds for each of us. We decided not to pursue a full-time ministry position job-wise since we were planning to be leaving within the year. We want to have obedient hearts towards God, whether that meant moving overseas or staying in the U.S., and had immediately looked for ministry we could be involved in for the mean time when we had first moved back. We worked with a college and singles outreach to downtown Raleigh, Matt began co-teaching our Sunday School class and guest preached at several churches, and we started teaching an evangelism class together.
Family pic after church on a Sunday when Matt had guest preached:
In February, we found out that despite financial shortfalls and extreme budget cuts in the program, God had opened a place for us in Germany. We had been praying for a place in Western Europe to serve, and were so excited to have a specific people to pray for and a language to start learning! We had been given theological, mental, and relational clearance and this was the next step. We had already gone through several classes and meetings with our "departure group" of other students, and have met so many precious couples with a true heart for serving God. Within two weeks of finding out there was a spot for us, we also found out that we would not be able to get our medical clearance in time to leave this year. Not leaving this year, with our departure group, affected Matt's enrollment in school and the IMB could not guarantee that there would be jobs available at all in the next year. Knowing that there is still the option to finish the degree here and then re-apply as missionaries afterward, with much prayer and disappointment, we made the difficult choice to remove ourselves from the 2+3 program and release the position to another couple. If we can't go, we desperately want someone else to fill that spot and GO and TELL!So Lord, what now?
We were still without full-time jobs, and our end-goal had just fallen through. Matt transferred his degree back to the Missiology program and of course, still plans to finish the MDiv. Honestly, I felt like just when my head was finally catching up to my heart being willing to change everything and move overseas, the plan was changing again. People often say "when God closes a door, He will open a window," but we felt like God was clearly saying the door was closed for a reason, and for this time and place we are in right now. Maybe it is not closed forever, but definitely right now.
In addition to the ups and downs of our plans changing, finances had become a major stress. Anyone who has gone through a job loss or other financial struggle knows the stress it can bring. When you don't have any, it's easy for money to become central to your life. Every part of your life and every decision you try to make is affected. Fear takes the place of trust as you worry if bills will be paid, if groceries can be bought, and the stress causes little annoyances to become unnecessary arguments. In the midst of it, God provided (and is providing!) in the most surprising ways... family members hired us to do odd jobs that they could have just as easily hired a stranger to do... Matt was able to work for a construction company owned by a church member and good friend... God provided buyers on craigslist to purchase some of our larger things we weren't using... and some very dear friends of ours, who are also in ministry and have their own wee one to take care of sent us a Target gift card out of the blue that we were able to use on groceries. When God provided a part-time (with health benefits!) job for Matt last week, we had almost gone an entire year on no full-time income at all- yet here we are, with our power on, our water running, and food in our pantry! Not to mention a healthy daughter that is pure joy to raise, a bit of weight loss under our belts, and a family that loves and prays for us through these days of change. Praise God from whom all blessings flow!
We still know that God's plan for every believer is to help others become worshipers of Him, from your next-door-neighbor to the far-flung reaches of places on the map that you can't even pronounce. We don't know what God has for us from here, but we believe and trust in His plan, and we are praying that he will reveal it to us quickly. This has been such a time of learning patience and humility, painful at times, as He breaks down our pride and selfishness to become willing servants. I want to prove myself as faithful to Him as he has been to me. I hope that we will learn these lessons and that in His perfect timing, He will use us in full-time ministry again.
What will that look like? Where will that be? We don't know right now, but we are so thankful that our Heavenly Father, who loves us and desires good things for us, definitely does! Thank you all for your prayers, and for continuing to pray for us that God would lead us not according to our own wishes, but right where He wants us to be!
Monday, March 15, 2010
Adventures in Couponing.
Last week, I was so excited to take a coupon class with Su Soutter at Bayleaf. She feeds a family of six, including their toiletries/tylenol/TP/paper towels, etc. for $100 a week... and that also includes one child in diapers! She writes a blog with TONS of useful information about using coupons, building a stockpile, meal planning and freezing, and home decorating.
The Intentional Home
I have only been couponing since this past summer, and knew I could use some help to step up my game. The class was an intense, high-energy 2 hours full of how to stack coupons, how to use double/triple coupons to your advantage, and how to benefit from store rebate and register rewards programs. It was a lot of fun, and Su's very encouraging motto was, "you can so do this!"
When she told me she never pays more than $4.50 for a pack of diapers, I was sold. That equates to about 16 cents per diaper (she has gotten as low as 8 cents per diaper), and the best I've been able to find was about 21 cents at BJs or Sam's. I was excited and anxious to try out some of her ideas, so I used one of her exact examples to try it out on my own. My results proved that this would take a lot of practice to get it just right.
This was the plan:
Regular price of jumbo diapers at Rite Aid:
$11.99 each (approx. 52 cents per diaper)
Sale price at Rite Aid: $9.99 each
I bought 3 making it$29.97 (down to 43c/diaper)
Coupon printed from online: $5 off a $25 purchase
Print and use as many as you want!
$24.97 (down to 36c/diaper)
3 normal coupons from the Sunday paper, 1 per pack of diapers
$1, $1.75, and $2 off... $20.22 (down to 29c/diaper)
Rite Aid was offering a $10 gift card with any $30 PG purchase (Pampers qualified)
making the total $10.22
which is $3.30 per pack
and down to 14 cents per diaper!
Not too bad! So I went on Saturday and they were out of Kenna's size, so I remembered to get a rain check and was so proud of myself. I went back today and they were still out of size 4s, but I didn't want to have to come back a bunch of times, so I got size 5s instead. When I got to the check out, one of my coupons was only good for swim diapers. So that's $1 added back on. And, since the drug stores start their sales over on Sundays, I didn't realize the gift card option had expired.
So I ended up actually getting the diapers for 28 cents each... not the best deal. Live, learn, try again.
Here's another one I'm excited to try:
CVS has Raisin Bran on sale 4 for $10 ($2.50 per box) and you also earn $5 in Extra Care Bucks (ECBs)- store credit that prints out from the register after your transaction.
So that is like getting them for ($1.25 per box).
Then from the Sunday paper I have 2 coupons for $1 off two boxes
I can use both since I'm buying 4 boxes anyway (.75 cents per box!!!)
That's already a great deal, but I happen to have a $3 ECB from another purchase, so really I'm getting 4 boxes of cereal for free!
The $5 in ECB that prints out from the purchase I can use on anything else I want in the store- I'd probably get milk or paper towels, things we are using up daily. It really is like a game with CVS because each transation links to another- you earn ECBs on one purchase, then use them with coupons for the next and start getting things free.
If you're thinking as you read this, "yeah, but that's a lot of work," you're right it totally is. It's a lot to keep track of, getting rain checks, making sure things don't expire on you, etc. I feel like I'm doing a middle school math/economics project, to be honest. But when I think about it as Su put it... she reduced her family's monthly budget from $1000 to $400 by using coupons. That's a savings of $600 by doing 8 hours of work a month (about 2 hours a week). It's like having a $75 an hour part time job (that you can do in your pajamas at any time of day you prefer!).
And even though I'm still not convinced that "couponing" is an actual word, the thrill of a bargain probably transcends all languages! The big thing for me will be to not be a perfectionist about it, and remember that sometimes your time is worth more than driving all over town using up a whole tank of gas just to save 50 cents on some paper towels!
Here are some basic and really helpful tips from Su's blog:
List of restaurants' Kids Eat Free days
How to start a stockpile
List of target prices (how much is a "good price" for something)
What are your favorite coupon tips or the best bargain you ever found?
The Intentional Home
I have only been couponing since this past summer, and knew I could use some help to step up my game. The class was an intense, high-energy 2 hours full of how to stack coupons, how to use double/triple coupons to your advantage, and how to benefit from store rebate and register rewards programs. It was a lot of fun, and Su's very encouraging motto was, "you can so do this!"
When she told me she never pays more than $4.50 for a pack of diapers, I was sold. That equates to about 16 cents per diaper (she has gotten as low as 8 cents per diaper), and the best I've been able to find was about 21 cents at BJs or Sam's. I was excited and anxious to try out some of her ideas, so I used one of her exact examples to try it out on my own. My results proved that this would take a lot of practice to get it just right.
This was the plan:Regular price of jumbo diapers at Rite Aid:
$11.99 each (approx. 52 cents per diaper)
Sale price at Rite Aid: $9.99 each
I bought 3 making it$29.97 (down to 43c/diaper)
Coupon printed from online: $5 off a $25 purchase
Print and use as many as you want!
$24.97 (down to 36c/diaper)
3 normal coupons from the Sunday paper, 1 per pack of diapers
$1, $1.75, and $2 off... $20.22 (down to 29c/diaper)
Rite Aid was offering a $10 gift card with any $30 PG purchase (Pampers qualified)
making the total $10.22
which is $3.30 per pack
and down to 14 cents per diaper!
Not too bad! So I went on Saturday and they were out of Kenna's size, so I remembered to get a rain check and was so proud of myself. I went back today and they were still out of size 4s, but I didn't want to have to come back a bunch of times, so I got size 5s instead. When I got to the check out, one of my coupons was only good for swim diapers. So that's $1 added back on. And, since the drug stores start their sales over on Sundays, I didn't realize the gift card option had expired.
So I ended up actually getting the diapers for 28 cents each... not the best deal. Live, learn, try again.
Here's another one I'm excited to try:
CVS has Raisin Bran on sale 4 for $10 ($2.50 per box) and you also earn $5 in Extra Care Bucks (ECBs)- store credit that prints out from the register after your transaction.
So that is like getting them for ($1.25 per box).
Then from the Sunday paper I have 2 coupons for $1 off two boxes
I can use both since I'm buying 4 boxes anyway (.75 cents per box!!!)
That's already a great deal, but I happen to have a $3 ECB from another purchase, so really I'm getting 4 boxes of cereal for free!
The $5 in ECB that prints out from the purchase I can use on anything else I want in the store- I'd probably get milk or paper towels, things we are using up daily. It really is like a game with CVS because each transation links to another- you earn ECBs on one purchase, then use them with coupons for the next and start getting things free.
If you're thinking as you read this, "yeah, but that's a lot of work," you're right it totally is. It's a lot to keep track of, getting rain checks, making sure things don't expire on you, etc. I feel like I'm doing a middle school math/economics project, to be honest. But when I think about it as Su put it... she reduced her family's monthly budget from $1000 to $400 by using coupons. That's a savings of $600 by doing 8 hours of work a month (about 2 hours a week). It's like having a $75 an hour part time job (that you can do in your pajamas at any time of day you prefer!).
And even though I'm still not convinced that "couponing" is an actual word, the thrill of a bargain probably transcends all languages! The big thing for me will be to not be a perfectionist about it, and remember that sometimes your time is worth more than driving all over town using up a whole tank of gas just to save 50 cents on some paper towels!
Here are some basic and really helpful tips from Su's blog:
List of restaurants' Kids Eat Free days
How to start a stockpile
List of target prices (how much is a "good price" for something)
What are your favorite coupon tips or the best bargain you ever found?
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Our Morning Routine
Kenna and I have gotten our mornings down to a little routine, and it is one of the sweetest parts of my day. I really treasure this time at home with her, especially first thing in the mornings and as I rock her to sleep a little bit right before bed.
Unless we have to get up super early, we usually wake to the sounds of Kenna from her crib across the hall- laughing, talking to her bears, and singing. It is so sweet and pretty funny, and usually starts our day with laughter, both hers and ours.
We typically have fruit together for breakfast, and she always puts her little feet up on the high chair tray like this:
She does it every single time she's in her high chair. I think it's adorable, and will be so sad when she (quickly!) becomes to tall to do it anymore. If Matt has class or work later in the day, often he is there in the mornings with us! We are so grateful that the Lord has given us some time together as a family, even though the stresses of little income have been high. When she's done, I let her down to play while I drink my coffee and catch up on blogs. She has one drawer in the kitchen that is hers that holds her plates/cups/bibs that she is allowed to play in:
She also knows she is allowed to play in the tupperware cabinet and the cookie sheets/cupcake pans cabinet. Occasionally she'll look over to me to make sure I'm watching, or bring a shoe or toy or random object (today it was a paper towel) over to show me that she found it. Mostly she and Pontouf chase each other, pushing her push toy, and explore the house until morning nap time.
Here are some other various fun pictures of her morning playtime. She loves to sit at her own little cafe table, a birthday present from Nana B. and Granddaddy! (We are in the process of painting it and it's turning out so cute!)
Inspecting the outside world through the little Kenna-sized windows beside our front door.
Some sort of theatrical production with the shoe basket and couch blankets... Moses maybe? Very dramatic.
Coming to tell me something where I'm sitting at the table. That sweet little face gets my attention every time:
And this face is when we know it's getting to be naptime:
Unless we have to get up super early, we usually wake to the sounds of Kenna from her crib across the hall- laughing, talking to her bears, and singing. It is so sweet and pretty funny, and usually starts our day with laughter, both hers and ours.
We typically have fruit together for breakfast, and she always puts her little feet up on the high chair tray like this:
She does it every single time she's in her high chair. I think it's adorable, and will be so sad when she (quickly!) becomes to tall to do it anymore. If Matt has class or work later in the day, often he is there in the mornings with us! We are so grateful that the Lord has given us some time together as a family, even though the stresses of little income have been high. When she's done, I let her down to play while I drink my coffee and catch up on blogs. She has one drawer in the kitchen that is hers that holds her plates/cups/bibs that she is allowed to play in:
She also knows she is allowed to play in the tupperware cabinet and the cookie sheets/cupcake pans cabinet. Occasionally she'll look over to me to make sure I'm watching, or bring a shoe or toy or random object (today it was a paper towel) over to show me that she found it. Mostly she and Pontouf chase each other, pushing her push toy, and explore the house until morning nap time.Here are some other various fun pictures of her morning playtime. She loves to sit at her own little cafe table, a birthday present from Nana B. and Granddaddy! (We are in the process of painting it and it's turning out so cute!)
Inspecting the outside world through the little Kenna-sized windows beside our front door.
Some sort of theatrical production with the shoe basket and couch blankets... Moses maybe? Very dramatic.
Coming to tell me something where I'm sitting at the table. That sweet little face gets my attention every time:
And this face is when we know it's getting to be naptime:
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Monday, March 8, 2010
Happy Birthday, Matt!
***Edited to add: I forgot to mention it originally, but according to our little "ticker" in our side column, on Matt's birthday we had been married for 5 years, 5 months, and 5 days! How cool is that? Praise the Lord for a happy marriage!***
Yesterday was Matt's birthday, and we had a really good day celebrating him! We knew that with his birthday falling on a Sunday this year that it would be a really busy day, but we made some time for a little fun too. We started out the morning at Sunday school and church, and then headed out to Red Hot and Blue for some good barbeque for lunch with Matt's family (I got busy feeding Kenna and myself and forgot to take a picture). After lunch, we had a quick pit stop at home for some birthday cake!
I had asked Matt at the last second if he wanted his cake "in the shape of something" and he answered Pilot Mountain. Now, we have made some strange and interesting cakes for each other over the years, but this was a bit of a strange request to me. But I was ready for the challenge! I found this beautiful picture of Pilot Mountain to work from:
It's one of Matt's favorite places because it holds fun memories of his rock climbing days. I love when people discover this photo of Matt hanging upside down off the mountain at Pilot (it's hanging among some other photos in our dining room). I think it's so cool that someone was able to catch this photo of him in action.
We've also been to Pilot together a couple of times. This was in 2006 on our way to some good friends' wedding:
And here's how the cake turned out... unfortunately, I thought it looked a little like a leprechaun hat, but Matt loved it and it tasted delicious! We'll call that a win.
We treated ourselves to a little Starbucks on the way back to church for the evangelism class Matt has been teaching. Kenna seemed to be a fan of the Strawberries and Cream frappuchino!
(PS- terrible picture of us, but apparently I had just said something funny! The big red thing on Kenna is one of my scarves that I wore at Christmas, and it has been her absolute favorite thing to play with in the car ever since, so we just left it in there. It seriously can entertain her for hours!)
We were tired after church and decided to take home some take-out... and Matt made the good call to get a pizza from Mellow Mushroom. Who am I to argue with the birthday boy? Mellow Mushroom is the most delicious pizza, and they opened up right down the street in Wake Forest, so we don't even have to drive downtown anymore.
We ended the evening with a great movie (of course!) and a little more birthday cake (of course!). Happy Birthday, Babe! We love you Daddy!
Yesterday was Matt's birthday, and we had a really good day celebrating him! We knew that with his birthday falling on a Sunday this year that it would be a really busy day, but we made some time for a little fun too. We started out the morning at Sunday school and church, and then headed out to Red Hot and Blue for some good barbeque for lunch with Matt's family (I got busy feeding Kenna and myself and forgot to take a picture). After lunch, we had a quick pit stop at home for some birthday cake!
I had asked Matt at the last second if he wanted his cake "in the shape of something" and he answered Pilot Mountain. Now, we have made some strange and interesting cakes for each other over the years, but this was a bit of a strange request to me. But I was ready for the challenge! I found this beautiful picture of Pilot Mountain to work from:
It's one of Matt's favorite places because it holds fun memories of his rock climbing days. I love when people discover this photo of Matt hanging upside down off the mountain at Pilot (it's hanging among some other photos in our dining room). I think it's so cool that someone was able to catch this photo of him in action.
We've also been to Pilot together a couple of times. This was in 2006 on our way to some good friends' wedding:
And here's how the cake turned out... unfortunately, I thought it looked a little like a leprechaun hat, but Matt loved it and it tasted delicious! We'll call that a win.
We treated ourselves to a little Starbucks on the way back to church for the evangelism class Matt has been teaching. Kenna seemed to be a fan of the Strawberries and Cream frappuchino!
(PS- terrible picture of us, but apparently I had just said something funny! The big red thing on Kenna is one of my scarves that I wore at Christmas, and it has been her absolute favorite thing to play with in the car ever since, so we just left it in there. It seriously can entertain her for hours!)We were tired after church and decided to take home some take-out... and Matt made the good call to get a pizza from Mellow Mushroom. Who am I to argue with the birthday boy? Mellow Mushroom is the most delicious pizza, and they opened up right down the street in Wake Forest, so we don't even have to drive downtown anymore.
We ended the evening with a great movie (of course!) and a little more birthday cake (of course!). Happy Birthday, Babe! We love you Daddy!
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Sort-of First Words!
This week Kenna has said a few things that I guess could technically count as her first words? Every time we go get her out of her crib in the morning or after a nap, Pontouf (our dog) is close at my heels to come check on Kenna- and she is the first thing Kenna looks for when we pick her up. Many times Kenna has said "dah" when looking at or playing with Pontouf, but you never know if she's really trying to say dog or if it's just a babble of excitement. Well, our neighbors have this large beautiful weimaraner named Ash that we see all the time, and today when we walked by her, Kenna pointed right at her and said "dah!" very excitedly. So I think she is trying to say the word dog since she associated it with a dog other than Pontouf.
Also, she really surprised us the other day when she accidentally dropped her paci and said "oh no!" clear as day. It was so cute. Now I try to get her to say it all the time, not just when something has happened. She also has started shaking her head no when she doesn't want something, usually when she doesn't want to eat something we're handing her, or when she knows her diaper is about to get changed. I know the "no!" years can't be far behind!
Now she says or sings it at totally random times and it cracks us up. I was so excited that I was able to get a little video of her saying it after her nap today!
Another funny story... we found our little trickster in her crib like this after one of her bumper ties had gotten just the tiniest little tear in it that I didn't think would be a big deal (my mistake!):
She had torn three of the ties completely off, so she slept for a few days bumperless while I looked for an inexpensive bumper online (which are expensive even if you don't want the whole bedding set!). She's into wrapping things around her shoulders like a cape/scarf... I promise she's not suffocating, I check constantly! When her feet were actually sticking out between the rails I figured I needed to hurry things up (didn't get a picture of that one!).
That same week, God totally blessed us with the exact bumper I had bookmarked online thinking we would get a little bit later when we could afford a new one. I just happened to see it at the end of the aisle at Target, the only one they had, brand new in the package, on clearance for $8 instead of the regular $40 price! Apparently the only reason it was on clearance was because it had been purchased online and then returned, or they are not carrying just the bumpers anymore, only the full bedding sets. So now Kenna is sleeping in style in this cute brown bumper:
It might not seem like a big deal, but God has blessed us so much recently in those completely unexpected ways, big and small! He is such a generous Father! I had this verse on my heart today when thinking about the many ways he provides:
"Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever!" -Ephesians 4:20-21
Also, she really surprised us the other day when she accidentally dropped her paci and said "oh no!" clear as day. It was so cute. Now I try to get her to say it all the time, not just when something has happened. She also has started shaking her head no when she doesn't want something, usually when she doesn't want to eat something we're handing her, or when she knows her diaper is about to get changed. I know the "no!" years can't be far behind!
Now she says or sings it at totally random times and it cracks us up. I was so excited that I was able to get a little video of her saying it after her nap today!
Another funny story... we found our little trickster in her crib like this after one of her bumper ties had gotten just the tiniest little tear in it that I didn't think would be a big deal (my mistake!):
She had torn three of the ties completely off, so she slept for a few days bumperless while I looked for an inexpensive bumper online (which are expensive even if you don't want the whole bedding set!). She's into wrapping things around her shoulders like a cape/scarf... I promise she's not suffocating, I check constantly! When her feet were actually sticking out between the rails I figured I needed to hurry things up (didn't get a picture of that one!).
That same week, God totally blessed us with the exact bumper I had bookmarked online thinking we would get a little bit later when we could afford a new one. I just happened to see it at the end of the aisle at Target, the only one they had, brand new in the package, on clearance for $8 instead of the regular $40 price! Apparently the only reason it was on clearance was because it had been purchased online and then returned, or they are not carrying just the bumpers anymore, only the full bedding sets. So now Kenna is sleeping in style in this cute brown bumper:
It might not seem like a big deal, but God has blessed us so much recently in those completely unexpected ways, big and small! He is such a generous Father! I had this verse on my heart today when thinking about the many ways he provides:"Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever!" -Ephesians 4:20-21
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
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