So that bikini body is going to be harder than I thought...

Whew! I just tried P90X, which is this ultra intense workout. You have probably seen the infomercials on TV. It really does work great-- My sister in law Elizabeth lost a ton of weight using it. BUT she has something I don't have. Willpower. Where the heck do you get willpower? I can't just grab it at the store. Just the stretching alone got me all winded. Maybe when Joe gets home, I'll get him to do it with me. Then it will become sort of a competition to see who can keep up. That's probably what I need.

I'm pretty comfortable with my body as a whole. There are bits and pieces I'd like to work on, definitely. I've always had a flat tummy. Having a baby definitely changes that! So I'd like my belly to be a little flatter, and to shave some junk off of my hips. A muffin top is no joke! I don't know where it all came from, because I don't weigh that much more than I used to, it all must have shifted around during childbirth. To get back to pre-baby weight, I need to lose about 8lbs. I gained almost 35 with the pregnancy. To all of those pregnant moms out there who are concerned about getting back to the weight that they were: BREASTFEED!! I have only worked out a handful of times since I had Emerson, and I definitely haven't been eating differently, so I have to attribute it to breastfeeding. It burns about 300 calories a day. Pretty sweet.

Emerson and I went to the pool today. My parents were having their Sunday school class (ages 7-10) there for a swim party, and everyone had a blast. I remember being their age, swimming at the pool. They played "Shark". It was funny, being the older person on the side of the pool. I always thought adults were being silly when they got nervous about people jumping in on top of others, etc, but I found myself getting nervous when I watched them! I had to push it aside.. I already think I'm becoming my mother in a lot of aspects. I don't want nervousness to be one of them! Watching the kids play, I decided that we're going to teach Emerson to swim as soon as possible. Mostly because it's safer, knowing to swim early, just in case of an accident.

Time for a shower! After swimming and my mini-workout, I feel yucky. Plus, maybe that'll wake me up. I've been feeling sleepy lately. It's probably the lack of exercise, hence the workout that I attempted today. Hopefully it works!

Our house...

In the middle of the street...or however the song goes. Joe named our wireless connection "Our House" so every time my laptop connects to the internet, it says "Connected to Ourhouse" sooo of course like every other time I here something that reminds me of a song, I get that particular verse stuck in my head. So I'm singing it. Right this minute.
SPEAKING of our house. I am proud to say I'm turning this little place into a home after all. I neglected it for quite awhile because I knew we would be out of here soon. But since it's taken longer than we thought for Joe to find a full time job, we're here for a little longer than expected. I am finally okay with that! I really struggle sometimes with desiring material goods, like a big house and a yard, and an extra couple bedrooms, a nicer car, nicer furniture, etc etc. But thankfully God has really helped me see that those are all WANTS and not needs. Eventually, we'll probably need a bigger house, but until then, we're doing just fine.

I've been getting crafty trying to spice the place up. For those of you who don't know, we live in a one bedroom place. It's shotgun style meaning you can walk the entire house from the front to the back.


like so.
So room number 1 used to be our living room, 2: our dining room, 3 is the kitchen, 4 was our bedroom, 5: the hallway, 6: bathroom.
Right before Emmy was born, I got into that "nesting" frenzy and had to have a change. So we moved into the living room, combined living and dining room into room 2, and left the back bedroom (4) for Joe's office and/or dog's room. Since Emmy is starting to get quite big for sweet little bassinet, I've decided it's time for her to move on into her own room. Joe is not too keen on the idea. He loves having her nearby while she's asleep. I'm currently working on him, and he's getting used to the idea. We never got a crib when she was born, so we're looking for a great deal on one right now. Joe wants it to be good solid wood. We're a fan of the sleigh bed-ish design. My requirement is that it turns into a full size bed, so that when there are no more babies, we won't have to get rid of it, since our kids will be able to use it indefinitely! Sooo scouring Craigslist and yard sales is now the new hobby. I have the rest of her furniture, so I don't have to worry about that. I'm working on decorations for the room right now. I can't wait to post pics!! I am so thankful that my sister-in-law Karie has encouraged me to be creative and if I want some sort of decoration, I should try and make it. It's been a blast! Pictures from that soon. Until then,... Joe is desperately trying to hold on to his "office". He has this HUGE desk, which is really great. It's really nice and it holds lots of things.. but it's taking over half of the room! Am I being silly or materialistic, wanting the baby to have the WHOLE room? I certainly don't think so. I'll keep y'all up to date with the office vs. baby room showdown.

Something that has been on my heart recently. As a Christian, we are supposed to love all people, all the time. I want to challenge you right now to examine your life. Are you loving everyone like you should? I have struggled with this many times... when that cashier is unfriendly, or when someone says something mean just to tear you down. There are so many instances in daily life where you could just break down and feel malice, but I encourage you to turn those angry feelings into something more productive. Love that person like crazy! Be kind to them. Show them God's love for them through your actions.

My sweet little girl is asleep right now next to me. She wakes up every now and then to stick those beloved fingers back into her mouth. I tried to get her attached to the paci instead of those fingers, but she will have none of it! Her hair is falling out quite rapidly now. I really hope it stay slightly red. I love being able to see me in her, if only in her hair. I'm sure as she gets older, she'll have more defined characteristics, some of which will be mine, but until then, the hair is all I have. =)

Enough blogging for now. This is quite long due to the lack of internet for the past week and a half or so.

Bible verse for the day:
'So let's not allow ourselves to get fatigued doing good. At the right time we will harvest a good crop if we don't give up, or quit. Right now, therefore, every time we get the chance, let us work for the benefit of all, starting with the people closest to us in the community of faith.'
Galatians 6:9ish The Message




my sweet little girl-- 4th of July!

Apparently I'm a bit crunchy.

I would like to preface this blog by saying that anything stated in it is simply my opinion. I created a blog not that people would read it necessarily, but so that I could have an outlet to express what I was feeling about certain topics. That being said, let's begin.

I'm now a big advocate of natural childbirth. But this isn't like a religious decision. I don't think that people who did it another way were wrong. This was just the best method for me. In making the decision to give birth without the use of medication, I simply weighed the pros and cons, and to me, the cons outweighed the pros when it came to getting an epidural. Most women think that they couldn't possibly do it, but you are stronger than you think! I am the world's biggest baby about pain and being sick, and I am empowered to know that I can make it through what seems like the world's worst pain. I hate that I'm afraid to say more about the subject, for fear of being lashed out at by readers. I don't think posting on my blog is pushing it in peoples faces. Again, this was *what was best for ME*. If anyone ever wanted to talk about it and what they thought or even how they could explore this process, I would absolutely discuss it with them.

Next, I just worked a shift at B&N last night, and PARENTS, we need to discuss something. How in the world do you expect your children to learn to clean up after themselves if you yourself do not clean up your own mess? I speak, in particular, about parents who gather piles of magazines or books and then leave them in the seating area after they are ready to leave. Most argue that it is the employee's job to clean up after customers. Incorrect. It is my job to help the customer find the correct book that they are looking for or to offer book suggestions. You make my job SO much harder if you leave piles and piles for us to have to go through and organize and shelve. I would understand if you're looking through the books and gather a few and then are suddenly called away by an emergency, but we have several families that show up about once a week and proceed to destroy the children's section.
A word on the children's section: The bookstore is NOT a babysitter! Do not leave your child alone in the kid's section while you browse the entire store, even grab yourself a drink. Not only is it NOT safe since no one is watching them, but the responsibility falls on us to make sure they don't climb a stack of books and harm themselves, etc.
Since working retail, I always try and put myself into the worker's shoes, wherever I am, to try and see their point of view, so I encourage you to think it through before you bring your child somewhere and let them run around all crazy like. =) I know when Emerson is up and moving and I'm having to chase her around, it may be a different story, but until then, WATCH your children! I have a family who takes every single stuffed animal off of the shelves and lines them up in a line across the floor of the kid's section. People are supposed to purchase these animals, and yet parents let their children throw, pull, chew on, and handle these animals until a lot are not sell-able. Just a little rant that I had to get off of my chest.

Today, we are going to visit Karie, Joe's sister and the rest of the family at Joe's grandparents. Karie is going to take pictures of Emerson and Savanna together which should be SO cute! I'll post some pics when I get the chance. Ahh, it's so nice having an ultra-talented photographer as a sister-in-law!

Peace.

Slightly underwhelmed.

Blaaaaaaaa.

That's how I feel right now, like I could go to sleep, or I could get up and start cleaning. I need to clean,... badly.

Joe's mom, Lynda, came in on Sunday, along with Savannah (Beth's daughter) and James Jr. (Lynda's stepson). It's been good seeing them but I definitely need to ask you guys to pray for Lynda. She pulled a weed out of the ground before she left and it turned out to be poison ivy. Her face is swollen up like a balloon and almost every day she has been here, she has woken up with her eye swollen shut. The doctor gave her some medicine to help calm the blisters down, but it makes her feel lethargic and she is unable to drive while on it. She doesn't get to come out here too often, and so it is quite unfortunate that she feels so badly while seeing Emmy and her parents. Please pray that she will be well enough to drive when she needs to leave on Sunday.

Emmy is starting to be a talker! Of course, there aren't any words coming out yet, but she certainly is babbling. She gets stuck on a sound like "oohhh" and just keeps saying it over and over again. Quite funny to us, probably slightly annoying to the random person in the restaurant next to us... But it's amazing to me how different life is now, and how I feel about it! I was probably that person being annoyed in a restaurant by a babbling baby, but now I know that it's a part of her learning to talk, and it's so awesome to be able to see that growth in my understanding of life!

So Joe went to his MEPS at Fort Jackson last week. For those who don't know, that is where you get your hardcore physical to see if you can make it into the military. He passed with flying colors (of course), but he said he was definitely one of the oldest guys there. He is taking the AFOQT (Air Force Officer's Qualifying Test) next week, turning in his letters of recommendation, and then we wait until September to see if he gets in Officer School. I wish that we could know sooner, but unfortunately that is when the board meets to decide. He's still trying to look for a full time job here with benefits so that we can be financially sound, but no luck so far. I've taken to applying for him if I see a job posting that looks like something he can do. Darn economy! But I know that we will be taken care of and the Lord won't let us starve. We have a wonderful support system of family that would help us out if we needed and that is SUCH a blessing!! Please pray for Joe, as he is getting quite discouraged about finding a job. Pray that his spirits are lifted and for the knowledge that there is no need to worry. This verse from the book of Matthew always comes to me when I see someone drowning in unnecessary worry:

" ²⁵"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? ²⁶Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? ²⁷Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life^{b]" style="font-size: 0.75em; line-height: 0.5em; ">[b]}?

²⁸"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. ²⁹Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. ³⁰If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? ³¹So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' ³²For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. ³³But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. ³⁴Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."

Love it! And now I don't know how to get my old font back:-) Oh well.

This was my catch-up blog to remind myself that I need to keep writing. I've been thinking a lot about natural childbirth and medicine and I really need to unload on that soon. I have to get to work right now. I'm working one day a week still which makes my job so much more likeable! I'll write more later tonight. Byeee.

not looking at the camera... but here's a recent family shot!