I'm Watching..

The words "I watch you, mommy" were heard in the car on the way to church the other Sunday morning.. "Oh really?" was my reply to my beautiful 6 year-old in the backseat.
"Yes, you rubbed daddy's arm, then you checked your teeth, put on lotion, and then put on some chapstick.. I saw you. You look so pretty, mommy."
I thanked her and sat for a minute thinking to myself what else has she seen?? Maybe times when I was grumpy, selfish?? I hope not.

Another reminder was the other day, my 2 year-old and I were in the car, and someone cut me off so I had so swerve and slam on the brakes!!! She yelled out "THERE ARE BABIES IN THIS CAR, SIR!!!!"
It made me glad that I don't use profanity and was also a nice little reminder to calm my temper because my children are watching...

I want my children to grow up happy and healthy. I want them to think that their mother did her best, and okay in full honesty maybe be want to be a little like her.. :) I want them to make good lifestyle choices, and eat healthy food. That is a big reason I am trying to get healthy myself with healthy eating and exercise.

 I have to say that most of all I want my girls to see Jesus. I want them to see that there is happy and joyful life in living for God, and peace in a relationship with our Heavenly Father. I want them to know that He loves them...
I want them to see that...in ME.

~The Story Of A Box~

 So on this Martin Luther King Jr. Day my kids enjoyed having the day off school... 

I have been wanting to do more activities with the girls as for one of my goals listed here: CLICKY

So I thought this was a good time to teach them The Story Of A Box. 
So for that we started with, well a box! I cut a door and some windows..

We talked about how the box was nice, but not all kids could play in the box. I didn't say why..
Then we painted the box...we made a dream of how we wanted the box to look....

 We used lots of different colors... We talked about people...they are different and beautiful, too!

We talked about how it is the different colors that make the box really special...

We all made our special mark on the box... Everyone leaves their mark on the world. 

Then we talked about what would it be like if only certain kids could play in the box??? 

Then I explained that that is how the world used to be...how some kids couldn't play together, and go to school together. Our country was like the first box.. and then someone had a dream! 

Now we can all play.. We can dream... We can hope... and most all of we can all play in box... 

I know this seems like a very simple lesson...because it is. My kids are very young and I am sure they will learn more later, but for now they are just happy to know that everyone is welcome to play in the box! 

I am sure I didn't post everything I said, but I think I got my point across.  ...at least I hope. 

When the Healing Doesn't Come....

I don't own this song. I just love it.

For printed lyrics- go full screen. 

This song came on the radio on our way home this afternoon...
I listened to it over the happy sounds ofmy girls giggling while showing each other pictures from their books. I thought back to all of that time I spent praying that God would heal me, but the healing never came...
The healing just didn't come...

I couldn't bring life into the world, and I was lifeless in my soul. I had faith for the eternal, but desolate in my mortality. I felt alone~ few will ever struggle with this and only those that have ever understand. I was hopeless. It affected everything around me. I even pushed friends and loved ones away.
Life fell apart... 

The years that we struggled with trying to have a baby were some of the darkest days I have ever endured... Even as I write this I have a light fluttering in my heart of shame and sadness. The pain of each loss mixed with the hope of one day seeing our babies that I never held on earth.
Dreams remained undone...

As I said the healing never came. Instead, another healing came with a phone call and a choice. You see a healing did come after some time; it just wasn't mine. God used me, my husband, and our pain to heal three little girls that were hurting and lost in the foster-care system. Believe me, I am in no way anything special, but I have arms that can hold, ears that can listen, and hands that can sign...those simple things~ God uses to help my girls heal.
He is good~ forever Faithful One, even when the healing doesn't come...

So, no, God didn't heal me; not like I thought He would....
He instead did the miraculous~
He changed~ He changed me. He changed my heart. He changed my mind.
He simply took my pain away when I first heard that simple, yet miraculous word~ "Mommy."

Cloth Diapering Made Super Easy...

Okay so I did a lot of research about cloth diapering before my baby came home. There is so much info...really it can just be too much!
One of my best friends just had a BEAUTIFUL baby girl and has been asking about cloth so I thought I would just put the info here so if any other friends needed, well, I will be able to find it! :)

You will need:
Diapers
Wipes
Wet Bag (great for wet clothes when going swimming, etc!)
Laundry
Bac-Out (Okay not a true "need" but really nice to have!)

That's it... See... You have got this! Now I will break it down...

Diapers
How many you buy depends on how often you want to do laundry.. Let's be honest, with a new baby you are not going to want to do laundry often... I would say get 3 days worth if you can afford it.
There are many different kinds of diapers out there, but my favorite are the One Size Pocket Diapers! I can add some links later for some great priced ones!

Wipes
I made my own wipes..didn't even hem them! :)  I used some old receiving blankets for pee-pees, and some old baby wash cloths for poo-poos. I also used one of hubby's old flannel shirts for some... Anyway, I just stuck them in a wipe container dry... Then I put some water in a spray bottle and would spray each wipe before use. It sounds weird, but it becomes so normal, I promise! I then found THESE little bits you add to the water..fabulous!!!

Wet Bag
This is a bag that you store the dirty diapers and wipes in till wash day!
Planet Wise is my favorite!!!! You can find it HERE. Did I mention these links are to Dearest Diapers?!? Love them!

Laundry Detergent
I must confess, this one was hard for me!! I was like I am not buying special soap~then I got build up, and stinkies, and a diaper rash! Then I bought the soap!!! I really like Rock'n Green and Liquid Soap Nuts!


**Side note on washing.. If your baby is exclusively breast-fed you don't have to rinse, swish, or spray your diapers. Breast milk poop is water soluble so it easily washes out. 
If your LO is not EBF you will need to shake off that doodle into the potty right before you put in the washer...  
***Only use hot and I mean HOT water to wash your diapers!! 
****If you have front loader (I don't, but I have seen online) you can add a towel in with the wash to make the machine use more water. I know someone that uses a family members top-loader~much better. 
*****No fabric softener and no dryer sheets!!!! They can cause build up! 
This is my way of washing: 
1. Hot soak~then turn to pre-wash to give them a good scubbing before spin cycle.
2.  Hot wash with soap. with second rinse. ~ This seems to work for me...you can play with your machine. 

Bac-Out
Now this is some that is nice to have, but like I said before...not something you HAVE to use. It basically starts...well, eating the yuck! You just spray it on the poopy diaper and toss in the wet bag and it will lesson the smell.. Like I said nice to have, but I didn't always use it.


I really hope this helps...and no pressure just relax it will just become natural.
 We did cloth at home and sposies out of the house till we were comfortable...
There were weekends that I used sposies...as well as weeks, but it was so nice to come back to my cloth diapers!! I loved knowing that there were no chemicals, and that after buying them at the beginning I was saving my family money!
If you have anymore questions, please let me know!

A Little Crazy On The Journey!!!

I am just plain crazy.... It's okay, I have accepted it.
I am crazy about my husband~ Crazy about my kids~ I am even crazy about my two cats~
Don't believe me?? I have a a detailed form on my fridge including when to give the cats their hairball cream and to only give filtered water to my fur-babies just in case something terrible happens to me and no one can remember the name of the vet's office! :)

Then there is another thing that  makes me appear crazy~ signing in the car!!!
I can't tell you how many times I have been chatting with my girl at a stoplight only to look over at someone staring not able to see my deaf three year old in the back (thanks a lot tinted mini-van windows!) which is  followed by the head shake of pity at my diminished mental capacity.

When hubby is driving I really get to show off my "crazy side" as I sign to everyone in the car.. ASL is not only my daughter's language; it is our family's language. So I guess that means we are all a little crazy, right?!?

You know, after writing this all out I guess I am crazy about ASL, too!
I love that I can chat with my little girl. I love knowing what is on her little mind....I love being a part of her world.
Communication is so powerful!!! 
 I love the craziness~ the excitement over the latest thing that she has learned!!! I love when she comes home from preschool and wants to tell me all about her day~ her teachers are so awesome!!! I just love the excitement of talking about what we are going to do that day...which is usually her wanting to ride her bike!

So yeah, I am crazy~ crazy in love!!! 

It's About That Time...

POTTY TIME!!!

My baby girl is starting to show signs that she is ready to go potty. She has some sensory issues so it is going to be a bit of a challenge. Her pediatrician and physical therapist have told us not to expect too much, too soon. So we are going to take our time, but we just can't let her fall further behind...not without trying.
We believe in her and she will do it~ in her own time.
So here we go...

I wanted to start the same way my good friend April did with her precious princess: brainwashing...uuuummm I mean learning. So we bought a few movies & books and our potty watch.

Potty Time Training Pack: A Friendly Reassuring Way to Help Your Child (Google Affiliate Ad)

Then we got our little living room potty corner ready... 

The froggy potty goes in the bathroom, but he is just so cute...memories, huh Tiff?  I have the little movies & books, potty, wipes, training pants, cloth "pull-ups" for nap and babylegs for easy ups! I also put some little toys out but changed them for puzzles and therapy toys. We now do our therapy play during potty time to save time.

I am just in love with cloth diapers!!! You can see plenty of that on this blog, but new favorite thing?? Cloth training pants and cloth pullups!!! They are so cute!!! We use trainers during the day and leak-proof clothies-ups for night and nap. 

Like I said, too cute, right?!? 

I almost forgot our hot pink travel potty seen below in blue!!!! I love this thing!!! It has a nice bag, folds up small and fits in my bag. No more TP lining public toilet seats! Even the big kids need it when we travel...

We also have our babydoll that goes potty and we sing our little songs. We enjoy lots of time playing potty, and trying to earn stickers!  We have also learned to flush.. Now if we can just get it all together.

  Please feel free to comment your potty training tricks in the comments below. :) 

Another Year On The Journey...

Happy New Year!!! 

Yep, it is a new year...let's have a toast! 

 Our New Year's Eve Toast~ Apple Juice!!!

A year of hope and promise... 

As many of you I made a few goals. I want to get healthier!!! Healthier in my heart, my mind, and of course my body. 

So here are a few...

1.  Spend More Time With My Heavenly Father.

 I grew up right~ saying my bedtime prayers every night!

Sadly I confess that in some ways...I haven't grown up much. I love talking to God during the day the same way I would call up my daddy(yep, in my 30's and it's still daddy) and tell him about my day, stresses, and the kids...He is always there for me. :) 

2.  Learn To Treasure My Health.

 I have so much weight to lose and a lifetime of eating issues.  I also need the energy to workout, the time, and the determination. It is so easy to get overwhelmed and give up the way I have so many times. This time the stakes are so much higher...I have three little girls watching. 

3.  Nourish My Marriage. 

 I am so in love with amazing man!!!! I want to show and not just feel him a little more respect. It is so easy to get so busy and exhausted trying to be a good mom...forgetting to also be a good wife. He deserves so much... He is the love of my life!

4. Enjoy My Daughters' Childhood.
I get so busy with three different types of therapy, homework, school, potty training, and everything else that comes with being a mom that sometimes forget to have fun...  I want to paint, draw, play, and create! I want to build memories.. Giggle... Play...

5. Blog More. 

 I am going to try to blog at least once a week! Yep, I said try! ;)