GREAT giveaway!!!

Enter to win a new HP touchsmart all in one computer here: http://mckgiveaways.blogspot.com/2009/12/hp-touchsmart-giveaway.html

such a great giveaway, I would love to be the winner of course :)

Full Circle

wow, isn't it cool when you can look back on things in your life and just say wow, God really knows what He is doing. Well, obviously, He's God, OF COURSE He knows what He is doing, so really its more that its cool, when I REALIZE what God is doing lol...

Today is Infant and Pregnancy Loss awareness day, 4 years ago,almost to the day, we were grieving our first loss, a year ago today we were grieving another loss, but this year...this year is different. Don't get me wrong, I remember our losses, but I no longer dwell in them, wondering why God has allowed us to experience so much pain. As most of you know, we are becoming foster parents and last night at our class we were talking about loss, specifically in the lives of foster children, when they are taken from their parents and everything they know. In the handbook it showed a diagram of how we, as humans, process loss. From shock and anger to bargaining and depression to managing and coping. As I sat there and looked at that chart, I could remember those stages with each miscarriage. The shock, the anger, the bargaining, and with the 2nd loss, even the depression. It sorta hit me like a ton of bricks, but I realized that maybe(plus many other reasons too) God allowed me to feel that pain, so that I will be more equipped to understand what our foster children will be going through!

Tom and I knew God was calling us to be foster parents awhile ago, but then we started letting our human ways take over. Saying things like, "oh maybe it would be 'easier' if we adopted through an agency from infants, or these kids might have special needs, or have 'issues'." Then one day it hit me and I felt so bad, I went running back to God and asked for His forgiveness. First of all, knowingly diverting from what we know God wants us to do, because it might be "easier" is selfish and wrong! Also who am I to say its "easier" it may appear so from the outside, but i've never experienced that either, so what do I know. And lastly, I felt so ashamed that for a split second I thought twice because foster kids have special needs, HELLO, we all have special needs of some sort, and besides God gave His ONLY son, for me, who is flawed and has needs and issues, who am I to judge a CHILD on things he had no part in?! anyways, my point is that now that we are where God wants us, its just so exciting to see things come together, down to the itty bitty things like a couple weeks ago we had to turn in some papers, and went to the office, and the front desk was closed. hundreds of people work in that building and lo and behold, tom turned around to leave, and the one person we know, our licensing worker,was walking through the door. I just love seeing how God brings the pieces together, and think how great is our God, really! last year I was recovering from another miscarriage and grieving a loss of our 2nd child, and doubting God's plan for our life, and felt hopeless, but this year, is different. God is bringing us full circle and we can feel the excitement in our home right now. Part of that is because we love fall, part of that is that we are excited that we will have all the joys of having children in our home soon...but mostly the excitement is seeing God at work in our lives. The excitement is knowing God is doing great things and will be bringing us our family soon. Knowing that in a few weeks(or more) we will have kids in our home! They may be here 6 months, 1 year, or here to stay. Either way we embrace whatever God has for us, knowing He ALWAYS knows best!!

check out this great giveaway!

My mom sent me the link to this giveaway the other day, and it is a great one, especially since we are in need of a car seat like this soon! :) the giveaway is for a Britax car seat that retails for over $300!! anyways, check it out here at www.gograhamgo.com.

I'm still alive...

Ok, wow, I knew it had been awhile since I last blogged, but didn't realize its been THAT long...sheesh! well I just thought I would stop by and update those of you who are still reading this blog lol...Well I haven't been blogging lately for a reason. we have been super busy because we have started the foster parenting process! YAY! we are super excited. Most of you already know this, but oh well. So we have our first home visit on Tuesday and start classes in October. We have gotten almost everything we need except for a convertible car seat for a toddler and maybe some sippy cups and kids dishes, but thats about it...We also need to paint the bedroom and get it set up w/the toddler bed and crib we have(the crib was $10 and the toddler bed was free) love deals like that...anyways, really excited,and really busy...otherwise, nothing else is new, just finishing up some projects around the house and getting things ready for kiddos! :) Hopefully it won't be as long till the next time I blog. :)

Addicted to Sewing lately...

So I think Blogger might have been thinking someone was trying to break into my blog when I just signed in since its been so long since I've been here...so it's possible they will sign me out any time...(just kidding of course) anyways, so we went to a baby shower today for my sister in law who is due with our new neice in about 3 weeks or so...I had been thinking about a gift, and of course, I can't do the simple thing and go buy something nice off a registry...I decide to get in way too deep into some sewing projects a week before the shower or so...and what started out as making bibs and burp cloths then became bibs, burp cloths and a blanket, then into bibs, burp cloths, a blanket, and a diaper case....well you get the idea, but lets just say I decided to not stop there either...lol...if you have a diaper case you need a travel wipe case, and if you have a cute travel wipe case, why not have a cute home wipe case...LOL...and I had also planned on making baby shoes, but those didn't happen right now...key words "right now"...gotta stop somewhere...So to say the least, I have been busy, but its been fun, and addicting...I love sewing now, and especially baby stuff with such cute fabrics! :) So here are the pictures...

This is the final basket(before I wrapped it up) there are 2 small baskes inside the big basket that can be used for storage in the baby's room...

blanket with soft minky dot fabric on the back side...

set of 8 burp cloths...

set of 4 bibs...

diaper case...

travel wipe case...

home wipe case...

My Husband Rocks Birthday Bash!!

My husband rocks at my wonderful, amazing sister in law Katy's blog is celebrating their first birthday. Go visit her and enter the great giveaways!!

Finally, pictures!!

Ok, I am alive lol it has been so crazy around here, and I apologize for promising pictures and then taking forever...but here they are!! We are loving the carpet and all the new changes we have made. Oh and please excuse all the spots or weird things in the pictures...its my camera...grrr...

These are the beautiful peonies that Tom cut outside for me :) Just had to add a picture of them!

Up close picture of the carpet and railing, and this was taken over the weekend before the carpet was in downstairs thats why you still see bare floors in the bottom of the picture lol
Going down the hallway from our bedroom to our bathroom....
Our bedroom...
Another of our bedroom...this was also taken before the door was back on...
end table in our bedroom...
Stairway from the foyer...where that panelling is, used to be the doorway into the middle room, wow how things have changed! 
Here is what the foyer looks like now, carpet and laminte flooring by the front door...
We were finally able to hang up some decorations we got from a family friend for CHRISTMAS! seriously, its about time...lol...these are hung in the foyer....
our name doile that we got as a wedding gift, hanging in the foyer as well...
This says "Live by faith, one day at a time" got that on clearance at a craft store...also hanging in the foyer...
This is from the middle room into the living room(Hi Tom) disregard the spots...grrr...
Our new ceiling fan...
One side of the middle room/sitting room, and yes thats a coffee table with no top lol...I am going to paint it, it has a lot cool detail to it and we got it at a garage sale for $5, and we are going to put cool tile in the top or something...oh and that desk, has really cool handles on it and stuff, got that on freecycle, also going to paint that too...
Another Christmas gift decoration...
Bigger overview of the middle room/sitting room...
Our buffet thing we got from Tom's parents, we love this thing!...also the cross in the middle we got for $1.50 at hobby lobby in their Christmas clearance because it was a stocking holder and the hook was broken, but Tom ground the hook off, and wa-la! :) I have a beautiful quilt that was also a Christmas gift that will hang above here when we get something made to hold it up there...
Another(brighter) view...
the other side of the same room...
new stairway to the basement, and those are bookshelves that will have shelves in the eventually...
My new closet :)
Another Christmas gift decoration...love it!
looking up the basement stairs....
looking up, just from further down...
looking down the stairs....
This shows the first set of stairs before the landing, and also the cute baskets I also got for Christmas, love it all so much!!...

There ya have it...finally! lol...whatcha think? I love it, and hope you all do as well!!