2 birthdays, 1 great time!

Happy birthday to my sisters Lauren (nov. 13th) and Katelyn (nov. 14th) !

You girls always make it a great time!

2 months!

Remember this fabric I posted a while ago? Well a blanket has been made! Not by me though. Thanks to Grandma Brink, it is finished. I would have gotten around to it by next year...maybe! Such a procrastinator, I know.

And, Kensie is 2 months now! Crazy. Here she is sporting her new blanket, and big chair...

What Kensie can do these days...

~smile :)

~sleep at night!! (8-9 hours)

~wiggle

~more alert during the day

~sleep with her mouth open (mommy trait)

~loves to stare people down with furled eyebrows (her daddy's no doubt)

~twitch while falling asleep (also a daddy trait)

~enjoys lights of any kind

~favorite place to poop - in her bouncey seat. every time. not even kidding.

'tis the season!

I know. I'm already so excited for Christmas. Pathetic right? I usually get the Christmas jitters around Thanksgiving, but this year I was ready before Halloween! It might have something to do with having a new addition to the family. Makes it so much more fun!

Anyway, I've been browsing my favorite catalogues to find some Christmas inspiration. I want ev.er.y.thing out of Ballard Designs, Pottery Barn, and Williams & Sonoma....but so darn expensive. Soooooo.....I'm totally copying this tree button garland I saw out of Ballard's.

Here's how I pulled off the same look for MUCH cheaper...

Vintage buttons from Hobby Lobby.

$2.50 for one container.

Purchased two of them.

Found some raffia laying around the house, to use to string the buttons together...

what I've finished so far!

Ballard Designs charges $30 for three strands. Mine cost $5! And I'm biased, but mine's got personality. I love the random shaped sizes, and shiny gold ones spaced between them. And it matches my other homemade ornaments. Can't wait to see how it looks on the tree!

A truly inspiring story...

Our pastor is wrapping up a 5 week series on the story of Hadassah (Esther), the inspiring woman from ancient times who risked her life to stand up for herself, her people, and most importantly her God. The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The God who uses normal, everyday people to save nations. Esther was no different than you or I. Just a teenage girl trying to make the best of her daily routine...albeit mundane at times. But she loved the Lord, and was willing to let Him use her in any way possible.

Now, if you are like me, you will understand my struggle with the Old Testament. I have read and heard the stories countless times. And they very often seem like just that. Stories. It's hard to imagine these goofy sounding names as REAL people. People who took on unknown futures, unknown risks like Esther, and lived out what it means to follow God. But, I have gained a new appreciation for the story of Esther through this movie. One Night with the King (2006). FANTASTIC. It perfectly mirrors the Bible chronologically. And I LOVE the way Esther is portrayed. Now, don't get me wrong. Movies can very often be misleading, and alter what the scriptures say. But for me...I am a visual person. And this helps make it real for me. And wow. Truly inspiring.

1 month

I can't believe 4 weeks have flown by....well sorta. The first week of bringing Kensie home from the hospital felt like for-e-ver. Between recovery, and the night feedings every three hours, I was definitely at my wits end at times. But then time began to fly, and here it is one month later already!

Above: 4 days old

Below: 1 month old

Things I LOVE so far....

~ snuggling as a family

~ picking out a cute outfit for Kensie every day

~ watching her sleep

~ staring at each and every feature on her precious face

~ the addicting baby smell that lingers after bath time

~ bows


Things I DON'T LOVE so far...

~ backaches...thought they would go away after being pregnant. Wrong. So much strain from holding, feeding, bathing and rocking a baby all day. And not to mention toting around a car seat.

~ NOT sleeping. I really get annoyed between the 1am and 4am feedings....killer.

~ hearing her scream until almost breathless

~ not enough alone time with the hubby. It's been really hard to connect for more than 10 minutes at a time

~ not being able to enjoy a meal without interruption

~ in-between maternity clothes and normal clothes. Annoying.

Sweetness

Meltdown

Did I see it coming?...not really. Was I warned? Yes. Everyone has told me that a new mother can be very emotional and overwhelmed the first week after delivery. 'But, not me' I thought.

I had been cruising on adrenaline all week. Everything new and exciting. A sweet new baby to ga ga over, and an excuse to use the phrase 'family time' on a daily basis. Well, Saturday night came. Greg had a hard week at work just coming off Labor Day, and seemed like he was in the office for most of it. He did what he could....kept up on the laundry, changed Kensie's diaper for midnight feedings, and helped clean up after dinners. But, I wanted more. I wanted him there a lot more. So, needless to say....things started pouring out of my mouth at dinner Saturday night, and they didn't stop. Soon, "liquid hormones" (as I like to call them) were streaming down my face, and I just couldn't control myself. I excused myself from the table and proceeded to the bedroom where I cried for about a half hour. I didn't know if I was more mad at Greg, or at how I was letting myself get so worked up about it...but either way, I said a lot of things I still regret. My dear husband could not have handled it better. He didn't say a word. He kept my dinner warm in the oven, came in the room to rub my back, and said I could take all the time I needed to recuperate. When I came back out, most of the house was picked up, and he was holding Kensie on his chest by the fireplace.

To end on a positive note, Sunday afternoon was GORGEOUS! Here are some pics from our walk to the park. And yes....some much needed 'family time'....