Life In a Nutshell

My Uncle came home from the hospital Wednesday night! Praise the Lord!!!

Ella got sick for the first time! She started running a fever Wednesday. It was always around 100-101 but it did spike to 104 in the early morning of Thursday!!! Called the doc...said I was doing everything I should be and to bring her to the office in the a.m. She had/has no other symptoms so just wait for it to pass. I'm pretty sure I see FOUR...count them FOUR...upper teeth coming through. But the doc says a teething fever won't get as high as 104...so the poor kid got hit with some little virus AND four new teeth at the same time. Gotta say, she handles it like a champ. Sure she was a little fussy and only wanted to be with mama...but I can't say that it really bothered me :)

Yesterday I found out that I got the per-diem job I wanted! I fill out paperwork on Thursday and have oriention on Monday! I'm not gonna lie, my ideal would be to stay at home with Ella 100% and not add anything else to complicate life. But we need the money, it's good to keep my foot in the field, and it's the best situation if I have to work outside the home at all.

After my sewing maching broke, a friend's I borrowed wasn't in working order, and finally finding another friend to lend me hers (which by the way was the nicest machine I've ever sewed on....it probably cost a little more than my car...and I prayed the entire time I used it that I would not hurt it....) Last night I finally got to finish up four sewing projects that I had on hold. All but one are gifts. I can't wait to give them away!

Today I entered my apple pie in my first pie contest at our town's "Harvest Daze". I'm not expecting much as the edge protector stuck to my not-so-beautiful anymore crust and the lattice top got a little darker in a few places than I would have liked. But we'll see.

I'm looking forward to heading down to the cute little festival when Ella wakes up from her nap. It's a perfect fall day. Can't wait to see people drop pumpkins from airplanes trying to hit a target in the lake below!!! And can't wait to see the Giant Pumpkin Regatta also!!!

This evening Ella and I will be off to my mom's until Tuesday. I'm helping her clean out the last few rooms in her house in order to get it on the market. I'm also looking forward to going to my old church and visiting friends. Should be a full few days.

Jason will be heading to Rangley area to satisfy his fall fishing hankerin'. Poor guy hasn't done as much since moving down here so I'm glad he's going to learn some new fishin' holes. He informs me that after the rain Sunday, "the fish will be screamin' up the rivers" on Monday. I could explain why, but that would take to long. Go get 'em honey!

And that's life in a nutshell for us!

Hiking Mt. Major!

We're trying to cram in every bit of fun we can while this beautiful fall weather lasts. We got back to hiking two weeks ago and it felt great. The last time we hiked before that was when I was 7 months pregnant. Then we had a newborn in the winter, then the she was too small for the backpack in the spring, then we moved, then it was raining, then it was too hot to take her...oh how life changes with a little one! But we're back at it and loving it now!

Sunday after church we booked it over to Mt. Major in NH. I found out I'm in even better shape than I thought.We decided that we think we're doing great as doggie parents if our 9 year old Golden can hike this rocky trail.We're pretty sure that we've discovered that Ella likes hiking up more than she likes hiking down. And we're certain that she likes it better when Mommy backpack's her because she can play with my hair and bandanna!It was a fabulous day!!!

McDougals Orchard!

Saturday afternoon was bright and sunny, but there was also a crips breeze in the air. Perfect fall weather! We headed over to the FABULOUS McDougals Apple Orchard just a 2 minute drive from our house. They have huge, delicious apples of many varieties I've never even heard of, apple cider donuts, baby farm animals, home grown mums, pumpkins, corn maze, and FREE tractor hay rides! (FYI, they're cider...not so good...a little disappointed there.) Not to mention that the owner gave Jason permission on the spot to bow and rifle hunt the whole dang orchard. Made my sweet hubby's whole fall!Well, let me tel you, this girl LOVES her some apples. Whenever she sees one she wants to get her little gums on it and suck the life out of it. She even tries to eat them when she sees picture of them in books! I feed her little pieces and she gets quite upset when it's all gone.She also loved the tractor ride. We sat right up front and faced forward. He mouth gaped open in amazement her little arms and legs frequently kicked with delight.

Update on my Uncle

THANK-YOU, THANK-YOU, THANK-YOU for all of your prayers! My uncle's situation has been a heavy weight on my heart and while I'm still not breathing easy, things are definitely better!

The short story is...He is out of ICU and seems to be getting better! Praise the Lord!

The details are....After he "crashed" they put an arterial line in and were able to get him stabalized but he still had a rough night. They scoped him again and found no futher bleeding but did clip (kind of like staple shut) more of his bleeding ulcers. They checked his blood flow again and found no leaks. However, he had still been given 9 units of blood in 3 days.

However, he has continued to stabalize, and the bleeding seems to be decreasing. He was able to be moved out of the ICU. All he is hooked up to right now is a glucose/saline drip. That means all the other lines, including the ones giving him blood transfusions have been removed!

Here's praying that he can be well and home with his family very soon!!! Thank-you again for all your prayers! Please continue to pray him on to restored health and to get home to his family!

My Uncle Needs You!

Yes you! These are not cliched, idle words. I believe in the power of prayer. I believe in a God that can heal miraculously. My uncle needs you to pray! The short story is he is in ICU with internal bleeding that the docs cannot figure out where it's coming from. The details are below.

This is Kirsten and Rich, my aunt and uncle. They have two kids age 8 and 5. Early Thursday morning Rich went to the local hospital for sudden, unexplained internal bleeding. He was to be transferred to a larger hospital by ambulance when his vitals started dropping and they then life flighted him.During the day Thursday they found his stomach riddled with ulcers and thought that was the problem. He was admitted to ICU because his internal bleeding was not stopped.

Friday his internal bleeding continued and they do not know what is going on. It appears to be much more than just ulcers. At 5:14pm his b/p crashed to 40/21 and they called a code blue. They put an "line" in his artery and were able to get his vitals back to stable. But they still don't know what's going on!!!

Please pray for God to heal him! Pray now, pray often, pray whenever you think about it, pray continuously, ask others to pray. I'm in Maine, they're in Michigan...getting the word out and praying is all I know to do!!!

9 Month Photo Shoot

Well, I wasn't planning on doing a 9month photo shoot buuut...this afternoon as we were playing in the grass waiting for daddy to get home, the lighting was great and she just looked so cute! I had to start snapping away. Then J got home and was sitting there playing with her and Hunter was in the background... how could I resist!? Then he turned the camera on us and he got some great shots! Thanks hon! There are so few shots of Ella and I together because I'm always on the other end of the camera...so these are beyond precious to me! There are also very few shots of us as family and none that are professional looking....but we're going to remedy that in October when our friend Renee does a session for us!!!

Ella's 9month Update

Took Ella to her 9 month check-up. Not sure about our new Doc down here. But that's another story, perhaps I'll post on that to get some feedback from you all later. She's 17 1/2 lbs and 27inches long. Right on target for everything...height, weight, head circumference, fine and gross motor skills, language etc. etc. Along the way are some recent pics of her first hiking trip and Hunter tolerating her :)

What She's Eating:
Well, everything. It's easier to say what she's not eating...cows milk, meat, berries and anything containing nut products....doc advises waiting 'till 12mos for all those.

What She's Saying:
Lots of babbling, yayaya, gagag, mamam, dadada, nanana, hihihi. On a few ocasions I have gotten her to obviously repeat sounds. The first one she did was "hi-ya!" yes, like the karate sound. It was adorable. The second one was "dada", melts my heart!Her Choice form of Mobility:
She wants to be on the floor where she can roll. Yup. She gets on her belly, pushes her self up with her hands and spinse herself 360 degrees until she is aimed at what she wants and then she rolls to it. It's pretty great. She also enjoys standing while being supported and is getting quite good at it.

What She Plays With:
She in increasingly becoming bored with the toys she has. We have one Baby Einstein cube that has different shapes on each side. it has doors to open, zippers to zip, things to pull, push and turn and it sings songs. She loves this. She really likes anything where she has to "discover things." She often rolls over to the baskets in our living room, tips them over and rifles through the contents, discovering treasures!
What She Likes:
She still loves water of any kind. She used to like to try to catch pouring water in her hands. Now she likes close her eyes, open her mouth and try to drink it. It's funny! She still likes to read but it doesn't keep her attention for quite as long these days. She loves to be outside and loves going for stroller rides. She likes music and often "dances" a.k.a. wiggles about in my arms when we're singing worship at church or listening to music at home. She loves her animals and loves to grab their fur and nuzzle in. We are constantly teaching her "gentle". But she hasn't gotten the hang of it yet and so the animals don't love her quite so much! She loves to eat! And she still likes sleeping. Two solid naps a day. Always asleep by 6:30 or 7pm and wakes anywhere between 7am and 8am.

Oh man, I forgot to mention two of her funniest likes. Ella likes to try to eat the floor...any floor...muckles right onto it. And she LOVES watching me flush the poop from her cloth diapers down the toilet. Get's a huge smile, giggle and flailing limb reaction every time!

What She Dislikes:
She doesn't love going in her car seat and fusses when you first put her in. But with a pacifier rides just find still. She's not content being contained for long in her jumper or exersaucer b/c she'd rather be rolling free! She doesn't like being changed and fusses until you give her a tube of lotion to play with and then she's happy as a clam. She's still not a big fan of being held by others...especially when mom or dad are in sight. But she's usually fine withing mintues if we disapear. She's getting better with it all the time.So that's our little girl these days. Such a joy!

My Sister, the Triathlete!!!

My sister would never brag about herself. So I'll do it for her!!! You see, today we had the pleasure of watching her compete in her first triathlon! She did the Pumpkinman Triathlon in South Berwick, just a short jaunt from where we live!

Jen and her friend stayed with us last night...a good thing becuse the venue is about 3 1/2 hours from where she lives and they wanted to get there at 6am!!! It was fun to have them with us and I got to feed them a nutritious, yummy meal for dinner (that my friend Amy recommended for pre-race eats). Jason and I got up early this morning as well and packed one adorable - still sleeping in her footy pajamas - miss Ella into the car and went to cheer them on/be their official race photographer!

So here's the bragging part....This was Jen's first triathlon. She has been sick all week, and is still sick. She couldn't breath very well on the run course and after the race was done was quoted as saying, "That wasn't bad at all. I really didn't push myself." And this is how she finished:

4th in her age group (only 2min. 25sec. off the 2nd place finishers time)
44th out of all the women
146th overall (out of 431 finishers)

Here's the photo montage for you!!!

The venue, Spring Hill Event Center in South Berwick, Maine:
The crowd gathered at the swim start:
The lovely hill that awaited the athletes as they exited the swim portion. Whoever sprinted up this hill the fasted won a special prize!Miss Ella showing Jen who's her #1 fan!Jen, pre-race, getting ready in the transition area:Auntie Jen with her #1 fan! (Ella appeared quite puzzled by Auntie Jen's funny outfit!)Exiting the swim (1/3 mile), running up the hill about the pass that lady in front of her that looks like she's fixin' to keel over! (By the way, Jen's swim time posted 95th overall out of 431 athletes!)Coming in on the bike (14.2 miles). (She said she passed a lot of people on the bike portion.)
Lookin' cool as a cucumber, waving and smiling for the camera, headed out for the run (5k). (She said she didn't even push it on the run. She soon passed that lady in front of her.)Coming down the homestretch, looking strong!And there she goes, sprinting past the lady in pink and crossing the finish line!
Congratulations Jen! YOU ROCK!!!

The Saga of the Little Hoodlums

'Twas a peaceful night last night as we lay in bed. A crisp breeze was blowing through the open windows and we had some good chats as we wound down and then drifted off into a dreamy sleep....

....then at about 11pm we were startled awake by loud yelling, whistling back and forth and some fabulously colorful language. It turned out to be a small group of little hoodlum teenagers trapsing down our street. (Oh if only they were as dedicated to homework as they are to figuring how many expletives they can string together in one phrase!)

This was annoying to say the least, but we figured they'd walk by and we'd be back to sleep soon. And then...out of no where...there was a LOUD BANG like the sound of someone striking a metal object. I thought they were vandalizing the mailbox on our house. I bolted up in bed and ran to the window and yelled, "HEY!!!". The girls screeched, the boys swore and they bolted off.

Satisfied that I had scared the snot out of them and made them pee in their pants a little, I was glad they were the kind of kids that ran off scared, instead of the kind that stayed there beneath out window and yelled back...or worse. I figured that was the end of that.

NOPE. They stuck around, wandering around further down the street and continued their highly intellectual conversations. I had had enough. I wanted to call the police, but Jason did instead. They said they would, "Send a car by in a while." Gee thanks.

The evening culminated like this...By now it was 11:30 and we heard them walking back up the street. We over heard their conversations daring each other to "hit the stop sign again!" (That was the loud banging noise.) That solidified in my mind that these kids are idiot punks who have absolutely no respect for anyone...including themselves. Jason waited by the window (and saw a car coming up the street)....some little thug banged the sign again....Jason HOLLARED at them...they freaked and ran....

...and that car coming up the street just happened to be the police (oh sweet satisfaction!). He saw everything, pulled over and wrangled the little hoodlums. While they hadn't really done anything illegal, he couldn't arrest them, but I think he scared 'em a little. He took their names and addresses and asked a lot of questions. They were being punks and at one point he hollared at them at the top of his lungs, "I CAN DO WHATEVER I WANT AND IF YOU'RE GONNA GET MOUTHY WITH ME WE'LL HANDLE THIS ANOTHER WAY!" After that they were all, "Yes sir," and went on their way. I don't understand why he didn't load them in his car and deliver them home to their parents, but we didn't hear another peep out of them.

And now for my soap box. WHERE ARE THESE KIDS PARENTS!?!? WHY ARE THEY WANDERING THE STREETS AT 11:30 ON A SCHOOL NIGHT CAUSING TROUBLE!?!? It all starts with the parents. Poor parenting is why we have so many little hoodlums. C'mon people...do your job as a parent!!! It's not easy. It takes a lot of work. YOU signed up for it! And now I'm done.

Job Hunting With God

I have been job hunting for a while now. I'm looking for a position because, while we can make it on what Jason is bringing in it's SUPER DUPER tight. It would be nice to have a little extra cash to help pay down debt more aggressively, save, and perhaps buy some desperately needed new clothes and some gifts for people this Christmas.

However, I still struggle with wondering if I'm trying to control the situation and take matters in to my own hands by looking for a job. And while I do pray a lot about it, I still wonder if God wants me to just stay home and concentrate on Jason and Ella and increase my faith by trusting Him for finances. On the other hand I wonder if He has some great plans to continue to use me and teach me and grow me working with people. I've got no clear cut answers. I just keep putting one foot in front of the other, following His voice as best I can hear and Believing (capital B) that He will work it all out. So really, I can't go wrong.

The process has been interesting to say the least. I need to find something that is nights or weekends so we don't have to do childcare because that would just cancel out the extra money if we had to pay for that! I want something that is only a few nights a week. And I want something in the social services field, preferably working with adults with mental illnesses because that is where my heart is and I'd like to keep my foot in the field. Needless to say, there's not a lot out there and (shocker) they don't pay well.

I hadn't found opportunities to work with adults with mental illnesses. So I have taken two interviews for working with the elderly, gotten offered both jobs, and turned the first one down and have been agonizing over the second.

Just tonight as I prayed about whether or not to take the second offer, I pleaded that God give me a clear answer. Hearing nothing but silence, I went looking for more jobs. And low and behold...there were FIVE new listings for jobs working with adults with mental illnesses, all per-diem. PERFECT. Just finished applying for all five. God is good.

The Weekend

My nasty flu/cold lingered through the weekend so that was no fun. But I drugged myself up enough to go to our friend's Jeff&Noelle's house warming party Sunday afternoon. It was great to visit with quite a few familiar faces and Ella was wonderful! Here we are... Ella in her adorable outfit and standing, something she's getting quite adept at. Of course, with some adult support...not on her own yet.