Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Helmet Update #2

Evelyn had a "check-up" today with the helmet doctor and we got some great news. The two areas with the most asymetry have decreased to 4.5mm and 3mm (they originally were off by 7mm and 6mm)... a huge change for only 4 weeks into this process. We are so pleased.

Evelyn is still being a little trooper with the helmet. Getting it off her is a breeze now. She really enjoys her "breaks", rubbing her little head with her little hands and wanting me to blow on her face to get some breeze thru her hair. Its really cute.

Getting it on... well, its hit and miss. On both our parts. Sometimes we don't get it on just right and have to adjust it which she doesn't care for. Sometimes, she just has a fit when it goes on. Eventually she gets over it and is fine.

Thanks so much for your continued prayers for our little bug. We know God is at work and will fix her head.

"Blessed is the man who makes the Lord his trust" Psalm 40:4


Here are some cute shots of Evelyn checking out her helmet. She is very curious about everything, the helmet is no exception!!




Here is a pic from today. I don't think she could get much cuter... but she always does!! She is a joy!!



Friday, August 24, 2007

Too tired to be creative, so..... here's my "8"

Evelyn didn't sleep well last night , was up at 5am this morning and hasn't napped much today. Needless to say I am tired. I have a lot I could blog about but am too tired to think about being creative. So.... many blogs I read have been posting 8 things that people might not know about them. I haven't been officially "tagged", but my 8 are pretty easy to come up with , so I will just blog them today. More creative and more meaningful posts later...

My "8"....

1. I am a die hard Barry Mannilow fan. I wanted him to sing at my
wedding.... he wasn't available. That's okay, my dear friend Terry Goldman sang...
it was amazing!

2. My kitchen is my haven. I love to bake. I like to cook, but not as much as baking. It is always the place I keep the cleanest.

2. I am a huge NASCAR fan. Doug and I have been to three races (Sonoma, Phoenix, Vegas)... it is amazing. I hope to go to more someday.

3. In 9th grade, I wrote to "Casey Kasem's Top 40" to do a "Long Distance Dedication" (remember that?) to someone. I am too embarrassed to say whom i wrote it for... I never sent it, tho. I found the letter in a box of my stuff a few years ago. I read it and laughed to hard I about wet myself.

4. I had a fake ID when I was 18.. and used it A LOT! Let's just say I have a past. I didn't find Jesus until I was 22. Please don't judge!

5. I am DEATHLY afraid of bees. Hate'em. I have never been stung... and never want to be. I often wonnder why God made such evil creatures. I know, I know. Pollination.. blah, blah, blah.. .still hate them.

6. I am a germaphobe.... its the nurse in me. I am addicted to Purell. And soap.

7. I still watch Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood. He was a great man and I love his show.

8. I got Typhoid fever while I was a nurse in Mexico with NW Medical teams in 1997. Wouldn't wish it on ANYONE!!

There... that took all of 15 minutes. That's all I have energy for. Time to go play with my absolultely adorable daughter. She makes being tired worth it!!

Happy Weekend!!

Monday, August 20, 2007

Crazy Lady in the Church Nursery? ME!

Evelyn went into the nursery at church for the first time yesterday. Yes, I know, she is 8 months old, but up until the past couple of weeks, she has sat thru "big" church just fine and has LOVED worship. The past two weeks, however, I have had to take her out because her joyful outbursts were getting a bit too frequent. So...... it was time.

I was nervous. I was sad. I was a freak. I cried when I left her. OK... sobbed is a better word. Apparently, I was the talk of the morning in the children's wing.... awesome! I watched the reader board like a lion watching his next kill. (Maybe I should increase my zoloft? Hmmm...) I really did enjoy Barb's message, tho. Really, I did. I will blog about that later.

After service, I mowed over innocent bystanders and raced to the infant room, only to find my sweet daughter having the time of her life. She did GREAT. Only fussed a little, but was easily calmed with her pony( I'll post about her pony later, too). She was excited to see me and Doug.

Overall, I am feeling better about it now that the first time is over. I hope I can relax a bit. I hope I can be more focused during service without her. Maybe I should start by keeping my eyes closed during prayer instead of looking up at the "your kid is crying" board...

I will still miss her, tho!

"Train your child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it" Prov 22:6

Training my daughter to love God, love others, and to know that mommy and daddy need to put God before her.... and do so with joy!

Monday, August 13, 2007

Happy Birthday, Sweetie!!


Today is Doug's birthday. He doesn't like to make a big deal about it.. that's just the way he is. I, however, want to give him props on his special day!!

Thank you, Doug, for being my best friend and "life partner" (heehee... that's for you, babe!). You amaze me daily with your love and patience, and your faith in me. You are such a strong spiritual leader in our home. Your ability and willingness to do SO MUCH for us is such a gift to me. You are so smart and talented, more than you give yourself credit for. Thanks for working so hard to I can stay home to raise our family. It brings tears of joy to my eyes to see our baby girl absolutely beam and sqeal when you enter the room. What an amazing dad you are... I am so thankful!


I pray that this year God blesses your socks off, that He will challenge you and grow you into more than you could ever dream of. I will do my best to love, honor and cherish you daily. I also promise to help you get the shop put together so you can FINALLY work on the Mustang this year..... it's been too long!

I love you, Doug. You complete me. Cheesy, but so true. Happy Birthday!

Oldie but Goodie....

I met Jen in the summer of 1980 when my family moved to McMinnville. For the next 2 years we were inseparable, the best of friends. The kind that only come along once or twice in your life, if that. We did everything together. Wore the same clothes, had holloween costumes together (we were dice one year), did gymnastics together (she was better.. but we had fun), even won grand prize in a talent show for our duet of "My Favorite Things" from The Sound of Music. Pretty cool stuff back then.

Here is us in 1981 hanging out on the cross bars... one of our favorite activities. Click on the picture to get a better view... I had to scan these old ones in!


One of the saddest days of my life was in May of 1982, the day my parents told us we were moving from McMinnville to Eugene. I had to leave Jenny. My best friend in the world. It was awful for both of us. I didn't know how I was going to make it. I actually had a horrible time in the 3 years I lived in Eugene... but that's a story for another day.

After I moved away, Jen and I kept in touch and our parents would arrange for us to spend a weekends together here and there, but not as much as I wished. I missed my friend. Over the years we kind of went on with our lives, keeping in touch as much as we could going thru our teenage years and college days. The cool thing was, whenever we did talk, it was always so easy to catch up. It was like hardly any time had passed. That hasn't changed.

Now, 27 years since we first met, we are both married and have families of our own. Despite living only 30-45 minutes apart, we keep in touch mostly by Christmas cards and key events in our lives. Jen and Jason married in 1995 and have 2 adorable kids, Vivian and William. Vivian was born 8 weeks before my wedding.. Jen missed alot of the ceremony because she had to feed her!! Jenn couldn't be at my dad's funeral, but her parents came and I know she would have come if she was able.

Since Evelyn was born in December, I have thought a lot about Jen and the friend she was and is. I hope and pray for Evelyn to have a lifelong friend like Jenn. It made me want to try harder to keep in touch. We FINALLY got together last weekend at Jaquith Park in Newberg and had a great time catching up and letting the kids play. Here are some pics....




I am so thankful for my friend. She brings joy into my life. Let's get together again soon, Jen!

Wednesday, August 8, 2007

Helmet Update

(For those who have stumbled onto my blog and/or don't know the story... here's a quick rundown. Evelyn has preferred to sleep on her left side since birth, maybe even inutero. We have tried unsuccessfully to change her ways. Therefore she has managed to misshape her head so much that we have to have her in a corrective helmet to get it symmetrical again.)

Well... its been one week with our sweet girl in her pretty pink helmet. Bless her heart, she is doing so good and such a trooper. It brings me to tears to see her sqealing joyfully and playing happily as if she hasn't a care in the world. She isn't letting it get her down. Once the helmet is on, she goes about her business. She continues to slither around the floor, getting faster and more agile daily. She bonks her head a lot... so I guess the helmet does have its advantages!! Here she is doing her new thing... posing! She likes to get into this pose often.... then get a big grin on her face. She even has jazz hands... I am so proud!!


.... of course, she's not smiling in this one.... I need to work on my photog skills!

Mommy and daddy are having a harder time with the helmet than she is. It is really hard to get the helmet on and off, and we have to do it often to give her skin a break. She has had some redness that we need to watch. She is such a little monkey and won't sit still for long, so its a chore to get right on the first pass. She only gets upset when we put it on and take it off, mostly cuz its still awkward for us to do and so we end up prying it off her head (or so it seems). It will get easier with time, I'm sure. Let's hope sooner than later!
"Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverence." James 1:2,3
As my friend Janet wisely told me, there will be many "Pink Helmet" moments (ie: trials) with Evelyn. Moments that will test my faith and probably my patience, too. This is a chance to practice being joyfull and thankful for troubles ... and trusting the Lord to carry us through. We didnt plan to have her in a helmet.. but we know God will use it for good... and to fix her sweet head. I pray I can be like Evelyn and find the joy even in a "pink helmet moment".




Praying you find joy in your hard times today.....

Friday, August 3, 2007

When babies sleep....

My daughter's mornings have been interesting lately. She awakens between 5:45 and6:30 (FUN!) and usually is a good mood. For 45 minutes. Then she gets cranky and nothing is fun for her, not even the standby's that I usually can pull out and entertain her with. So, I put her to bed... and she is OUT... no fussing, straight to sleep. She is tired. She will usually sleep for two hours and wake up happy and ready to go. Two hours of sleep after being up for maybe one? For some of you seasoned moms, this might a normal thing and not surprising. To me, a newbee in the mom department, I find this a bit odd. I am also envious.

Many times, even pre-baby, I have gotten up and have been in a pretty good mood... even without coffee! But... about an hour or so later... I am grumpy and tired. Bad news comes, Evelyn is clingy, the dishes from last night are still staring at me, nothing good comes in the mail... you name it. Life happens. If only I could be like my daughter and just GO TO SLEEP for a couple of hours... man, that would be so nice!

Thankfully God keeps his promises. Jesus said, "Come to me all you who are burdened and heavy laden (ie TIRED!) and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentile and humble in heart and you will find REST for your souls." Matt 11:28,29 (italics and capitals mine).

By laying at the feet of Jesus and surrendering all of my worries and negative stuff to him who will gently and humbly care for me, I can feel as refreshed as though I have taken that two hour nap I was craving. Burdens lifted, rest and joy received. God is good. Now... if I can just remember to do this DAILY!!

I ironically need to sign off because my daughter who sleeps for two hours after being up for one is now awake in her crib.... after only a 45 minute nap!! Hmmm... could be an interesting day.

Find rest, friends... and you will find joy!!

Thursday, August 2, 2007

So... I guess I should blog... or something....

I am a follower. Not that I can't lead or haven't led effectively, but I am a more of a follower than a leader. Sometimes its a good thing, sometimes not. When it comes to blogging, I am definitely a follower, as many have gone before me in this whole thing. I hope to be as creative and funny as others are on their blogs, but that is for you to decide. Enjoy my musings....