Oprah's Favorite Things (if she were me)

I have always thought it would be cool to be on Oprah's Favorite Things show because I would walk away some cool things that are, well, Oprah's favorite! Now, if Oprah were me, here are a few of what her audience members would be walking away with:

*Hitachi Bread Maker - This thing makes awesome bread! Since my wonderful mother-in-law gave me it, I have yet to buy a loaf of bread!

*Kawaii Cloth Diapers - Almost exactly like Bumgenius diapers but for half the price! They hold up really well and I rarely have leaking issues.

*Shout - This stuff is like the Jesus of laundry products. It works MIRACLES!!!!

*Diet Dr. Pepper - I have an obsession. I rarely spend money on it but I love it. Let's just say I asked Garrett to get me some for Christmas...

*Cetaphil Facewash - This stuff doesn't smell the greatest but it is the only thing to tame this post-pregnancy face of mine.

*Norwex Cleaning Cloths - I would not spend money on these myself but my lovely mother bought them for me and they work magic in the bathroom and the kitchen. And the best part of all, no chemicals or cleaners of any kind!

*Moby Wrap - All I will say is, I love wearing my babies.

*Cedarmont Kids - They might be from the 90s but their awesome music tames the wildest of toddlers:-)

*Nasal Aspirators - I have about 4 hospital ones. These things will make the snottiest child free of all boogers in 0.2 seconds!

*Shark Steam Mop - I love that I can vacuum and then steam mop my floors. This also means everything is sanitized without the use of any chemicals (I still clean with my floors with pine sol, just not as often).

*Public Library - Who doesn't love reading free books and movies?

*Free Wifi - I still can't believe that you can get on the internet everywhere!

*My Husband's Old T-shirts - These make the best cleaning cloths around!

*Gumdrop Pacifiers - This is s shout out for Eden. She is an addict and couldn't live without her paci, so therefor, it is a favorite of mine:-)

*Swagbucks - I have gotten several gift cards and purchased quite a few items off or amazon and Target.com for free!

*Harry Potter - Thank you Garrett for turning me into a Hogwarts fan!

*This Momentary Marriage by John Piper - This book is recommended to anyone and everyone!

*Free Shipping - Gotta love it!

*Settler's of Catan - Thanks to some wonderful friend's of ours this has been a game we love!

*Speed (the game, not the drug) - This is probably my favorite card game of all time.

*Elbow Grease - There is nothing I love more than getting down on my hands and knees and cleaning.

I am not sure how Oprah would go about giving some of these things away but she is Oprah and I am sure she can do it;-)

Our family's new traditions.

We were at our ABF this morning and we were talking about what we got our kids for Christmas when Garrett proudly announced that we only spent $6 on our kids. Yep, you read it correctly, $6 + tax. And that was for both Eden and Coop. They are the owners of 6 new books!

At first, I was a little embarrassed that we hadn't spent more. But there is a reason why we didn't feel the need to buy our kids everything or more (and trust me, I wanted to badly) and there really is no need for me to be embarrassed because this is what we have chosen for our family. Each family is different and I am sure that each family has traditions and "things" they want to do for their family, so ours is no better or worse than any one else's...we are just...different. And maybe a little quirky, at least my family thinks so:-)

I have been really convicted about the way we have done Christmas. We have always done lots of gifts and had a lot of fun but we lost the meaning of what it really was about. And I want my children's first memories of Christmas to have meaning and not be filled with toys that will get forever lost. I want them to remember "that Christmas" that Coop was Joseph and Eden was Mary and our dog was baby Jesus and how they traveled from afar and our other children were shepherds. And how much fun it was to reenact the nativity story. I want them to remember the awesomeness that was Christ's birth!

This year was a fresh start for Christmas for the Hufford family. We have made it a goal to change our Christmas a little bit every year to hopefully focus more on Christ's birth and life than on the commercial aspect of it.

Here is our plan:

Throw Jesus an awesome birthday party!!! ****raising the roof****

Since we came up with this idea a little on the late side, we are not doing it this year. Next year we plan on having a birthday party on Christmas for Christ. This year, we are settling for a cake. The cake will be red velvet cake with white frosting. We decided this would be the cake because the red symbolizes the blood that was shed for us that now makes us white as snow (that is where the white frosting comes in). We haven't fully decided on all the party plans but we figure we have a year to pull off an awesome party for our King!

Here is where the present side of Christmas in our family came in. Before we had kids (like the three months we were married before we got pregnant - lol) we had made the decision not to do santa. Both of us had grown up with santa and reindeer and presents galore. But for us and our new family, we felt uneasy about telling our kids about a man who has essentially the same characteristics as Christ (kind, loving, giving, etc...) comes and gives gifts and then tell them he wasn't real and expect them to understand that Christ is real (I want to make it clear, that we do not think doing santa is a bad thing, it just isn't something for us). Anywho, here is an article by a pastor we love about our approach to santa: http://onfaith.washingtonpost.com/onfaith/panelists/mark_driscoll/2010/12/what_we_tell_our_kids_about_santa.html

Our plan is to do one or two small gifts for our kids. As they get older, the gifts will naturally be more expensive and we will be spending more than $6. But we want our gifts to encourage learning and the love of Jesus. We also want to just give. We want to give gifts to the needy and the poor. We want to love on others as Jesus has loved on us. We are not completely sure what this will look like each year. My guess is that it will change to fit the needs we see in our community near and far.

I randomly stumbled upon a blog that was talking about the blog below and I loved how they do Christmas and while I don't want to do Christmas exactly the same way, I love the fact that they have not given gifts in almost 10 years!!! And their Christmas sounds awesome in my opinion! http://www.christmaschange.com/wordpress/2010/12/03/ten-things-to-do-on-christmas-morning-when-all-the-gifts-are-for-him/

I love how each family is unique and do things differently because we were not all meant to be alike! Christmas is a wonderful time to focus on Christ and family, no matter how your family chooses to do it!

Christ's Birth

I was listening to the song "The Night Before Christmas" by Brandon Heath and it got me thinking about Mary delivering baby Jesus.

Anyone who has been in labor knows it is not an easy task. It hurts and the pain is so intense that you can't breath and can't move. But you know it will end, so you eagerly endure it.

Can you imagine Mary? She is about to give birth to the Savior of the world. This is not an ordinary labor. It is probably the greatest birth story ever! And it is such a lowly birth story and yet, so great and perfect of a humble entrance into the world it was.

When I gave birth to both Eden and Coop, I was in a hospital surrounded by supportive people who had helped hundreds of women deliver babies. I was in capable hands. Mary only had Joseph, who I am pretty sure never delivered a child in his life. I don't even know if Mary gave birth all by herself while Joseph waited outside or if he was right there with her. I am sure she was terrified. This was her first child. This was God coming as Man and she was His mother. The pain you feel is terrifying when it's not exactly what you expected (and honestly, you never know what to expect). Plus she had the added pressure of birthing the Promised One.

I remember being worried that I was going to deliver Coop on a small hospital gurney and yet Mary gave birth on the floor of a barn.

After my children were born they were carried off to be cleaned and wrapped in a nice new blanket and get one of those little hats stuck on their cute little heads. After Jesus was born there was no one to carry him off and clean him and wrap him in a nice, warm blanket. He was wrapped in some random linens. It's humbling beyond words to think of how our Savior came into this world.

What a brave woman Mary was. What an awesome man Joseph must have been. What an amazing way to bring the King to save us all!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jCitZPr2oD0

This is how we play grocery store.

Eden loves to go shopping, so what better way to get her to "play" with her brother? Get him to go shopping too! Cooper didn't seem to mind sitting in the cart and despite the look on his face, he actually laughed and smiled:-)

***Note - I was right beside them the whole time. I don't want any of you to think I just put Coop in the cart and walk off;)

Eden and Coop are cute to boot!

Line Drying

Line drying is not a thing of the past! I started hang drying clothes shortly after I started cloth diapering (cloth diapers are suppose to air dry so the elastic doesn't go bad and because of the fibers they are made out of). When I was hanging up cloth diapers to dry I thought, I bet I could shave off a couple of dollars from our energy bill every month by not running my dryer as often. Garrett was kind enough to install clothes lines in our basement near the washer and dryer so I could have easy access to the line and even hang dry clothes during the winter and rain. I started doing just clothes but then it spread to everything. I haven't completely sworn off using my dryer because I don't like how stiff your clothes get when they hang dry. To solve this problem I throw the clothes in the dryer for about 5 to 15 minutes with a damp sock and vola! You have soft and wrinkle free clothes!!!

Not only does this save money on your energy bill but it helps extend the life of your clothes and who doesn't want their favorite pair of jeans to last???

I will have to be honest that when laundry gets backed up or we have sickness in our house the dryer gets fired up:-)

1500 oz

I am a milk machine! So far I have pumped at least 1500 oz of milk since Coop was born!!! Wohoo!!! This is very exciting considering around this time last year I was crying because I didn't produce enough for Eden (that is Coop's fault). Anywho, it is true what they say about breastfeeding going better with your second than your first. I am not in love with breastfeeding but will keep trucking along!

More vomit than one mama can handle...

So, the sickness in our house continues (sort of) and it all can be found in one little girl. I am pretty sure I have figured out what she has - a urinary tract infection. She threw up on Wednesday at the dinner table and has just been a little off since with no huge red flags of illness (no fever or vomiting). Eden has been a little sluggish and hasn't been eating well at all (and when you only weigh 21 lbs, not eating or drinking much fluid is not a good thing) and has had some other random discomforts that I am sure she will one day be glad that I did not share. But on the other hand she is playing like crazy and for the most part in a good mood!

But I do have share some things that I have learned about toddlers and vomit.

1) Leather furniture is a must and we will one day own some.

2) I love my Bissle Little Green more than I ever thought possible.

3) Fabric covered kitchen chairs might look pretty but they are not fun to clean.

4) Some things are not worth cleaning and it is okay to just throw them away.

5) Soaking a booster chair in the bath tub for half a day in detergent gets the vomit smell out of the straps.

6) Never assume your child is done throwing up - ever.

7) Laugh because life with children is crazy.

8) And even though your child is covered in puke, it is okay to go ahead and hold them close and comfort them even though you are getting their grossness all over you in the process.

Long overdue!

We have had a house full of random sickness the past couple of weeks, so my motivation to write a post had dwindled. But alas, here I am!

I said I was going to post about ways our family saves money. So here I go full force:-)

One of the ways we saved money was by cutting our internet and cable package. We decided to do this when we got a bill from Mediacom that was twice as much as we expected (our one-year fee was up and since we were not "new" clients we got charged full price). This was just not in the budget.

At first we decided that we would just cut our cable down to basic cable since that HAD to be cheaper than even the introductory price. WRONG! It was actually going to cost us more than we had been paying before to get 20 channels. I then called and cancelled our cable with them all together but we were still paying a lot for internet. So I did some research and we decided to go with Qwest (I think that is what it was) and lower our MBPS. I called Mediacom back up and explained that we found cheaper internet and would no longer need their service. They asked me the price I would be paying through the other service and I told them $35/month. Some how magically they said they could lower our price to match that for as long as we are clients of theirs (this also meant no hassle for me to have some guy come and set up the internet).

I was always told to call places like these because they WANT you to stay with their service and WILL lower their prices. Lo and behold, that really is the truth. We did have to still lower our MBPS but we honestly did not notice a difference in how fast our internet works. And instead of paying $65/month for internet we are now paying $35/month. We don't have cable but that is a personal choice of ours that has actually been a good thing. There is a lot less mindless tv watching in the evenings and a lot more quality time spent together after Eden and Cooper are in bed. I do miss the Food Network but hey, you can find most of that online anyway...

I am a frugalista!

Since marrying my husband it has been my life's goal to save us money. Well, maybe not my life's goal but it is something that I felt like I should do since we want to be responsible stewards of the riches God has provided. I have been asked by a couple of people what I do to save money and I thought that my blog would be a great way to start sharing those crazy ideas I have tried and since today is a sick day at our house, why put off 'til tomorrow what can be done today.

One thing I have learned since marrying my best friend is that we are rich! We truly are! I am talking about being rich in Jesus' love and God's grace AND also financially rich. Now, some of you might say that that is a pretty bold statement and pretty arrogant but it has to be said because it is true. We learned in church a few weeks ago that we (Americans) really, truly are some of the richest people in the world and we, personally, have never made millions. This has humbled us and as we look around our house and see all the "stuff" we have and the fact that we have multiple rooms in our home and clothes that fill our closet and a car we can drive and groceries to eat, we realize just how rich we are.

Once we realized just how rich we are, we decided that a goal for our family would be to try and save money so we can give it away and help those who really are financially poor and struggling. It hasn't always been easy but I am always up for trying new ways to stretch a dollar and I figure why not share them with others?

Frugal abundant living is our motto and I hope that this can be a reminder to myself of the blessings that have been bestowed upon us.

Sincerely,

Frugie - The frugalicious mama:-)

Trick or Treat!

What's in a name (or nickname)?

We were out with some people from our Marriage Matters ABF (Adult Bible Fellowship) and both Garrett and I used nicknames for our kids...and then we realized just how stupid they must sound to outsiders. So, here is a list of our nicknames for our kids!

Eden: Eden Grace (not really a nickname but her full name), Nugget, The Nug, Nugget Jo, Nugget Joseph, Nugget Josephine, Joseph, Eden Nugget, Sister and a few others that I can't remember right now.

Cooper: Coop, Coop-dawg, Coop-daloop, Nug Boy, Nugget Broseph, Broseph, Little Dude, Mr. Man, Brother and a couple others as well.

If you hear us say one of these names, we are just referring to one of our lovely children:-)

Why having cute kids is not always a good thing...

Well, that is a lie. Having cute kids is always great, even when it costs you $6:-)

Here is the story:

I went to Target with both kids this afternoon. Both were being very good - Eden smiling and waving at anyone who would look her way and Cooper just being cute by sleeping. Well, I was finished with my shopping and had a total of three coupons which is a small amount for me and it was going to be an easy checking-out experience for all to be had. I even had my debit card ready to swipe and my PIN was at the tip of my fingers.

The cashier talked to me about my cute kids and waved at Eden and scanned my items and she acknowledged my coupons - all three of them. I had done my debit business and was loading up the cart and turned to hand her the coupons as she scanned the last item. She looked at me and asked me about bagging and then turned around (my hand was extended with the coupons) looking right at me and hit a button which finalized the transaction...all without my coupons.

Normally this would not have bothered me that much but my three coupons would have saved me $9! The cashier said she could give me cash for the value of my coupons and I was okay with this because money is money in my book. But here is where the tricky-sticky part came in (I am not totally sure it was legit for her to do what she was going to try in the first place). The line behind me was growing bigger and bigger and the thing she was doing only worked for one coupon. The other two she kept trying to scan and give me cash for but it wouldn't work. Cooper was starting to stir because it was time for us to go and him to eat. Eden was starting to melt because she had had enough of sitting in the cart. I was starting to sweat as the line was growing and all eyes were on me because I was that "crazy coupon lady" probably trying to get my 50 cents back.

After this had gone on for about 3 minutes she looks at me and says, "Well, you will just have to save these coupons for next time." The thing is there won't be a next time because these were due to expire and it is not something I buy on even a monthly basis. And it totaled $6 worth of savings. If I had been in my right state of calm-mom-of-two-little-ones mind I would have just went to customer service, explained the situation and returned and repurchased the items with the coupons in hand. But I looked her straight in the eye and smiled and said thanks and practically ran out of Target not looking at the poor souls who stood in line behind me.

I am proud to be a couponing mom but when it comes to making the line grow and people angry, it is just not me. I almost felt like apologizing for the two coupons that she was struggling with and buying them each a card (they make Hallmark cards for situations like this don't they?).

Anyway, my cute kids are too blame...and I am out $6...but at least my kids are cute, right?

Two Month Stats - Cooper Style:-)

Cooper had his 2 month check-up this past week and.........(drum roll please).....

He is the biggest 2 month old in our house! He weighs 11 lbs 11 oz and is 23.5 inches tall!!!! He is already 25% bigger than Eden was at that age and the doctor was surprised that he was so big considering he has pretty bad reflux and is a spit-up machine. We love him despite his sour smell that he sports most of the time even with daily baths:-)

My Mini-Me

Eden is going through a stage where she mimics whatever I am doing. I love it! She is a little homemaker - frying stuff in her pans, stirring her pots, reading her books, caring for Minnie Mouse, trying (not in the most gentle ways) to soothe Cooper, carrying a purse around, and even carrying around my bottle of body splash and hair spray (she gets those two things out and brings them to me - she must think I look disheveled and I smell bad - LOL). But it made me realize that she does take note of everything that I do and how I need to be a good role model for her.

Garrett and I have talked about our responsibilities as parents and how important they are. Our children are our greatest ministry and we want them to love Jesus and serve Him. If we tell them to love Jesus but our actions don't speak that, we are sending a mixed message. We pray daily that God would teach us how to parent them with the love of Christ and how we can show them Christ daily - even Cooper.

Garrett has the huge responsibility of teaching Cooper to be a man who follows Jesus and who is a warrior-poet (both soft and strong). He also has the responsibility of showing Eden how a woman should be treated by a man and the kind of man we want her to marry. I have the responsibility of showing Eden the type of young lady we want her to be and to show Cooper what type of woman we want him to marry and cherish. This is our biggest challenge as parents and as a husband and wife.

Our children see everything we do...and most children want to be just like their mom or dad. We need to make sure that we are the type of people that we want them to be like.

Carefree:-)

So, I am officially a stay-at-home mom to my two beautiful gifts from God!!!!! This has relieved a lot of stress off of me. So much so, yesterday I wore my underwear inside out just for fun. Well, I didn't actually do it on purpose but at least when I noticed I took the time to thoughtfully decide that it really didn't matter and go on with my day:-)

That is what I get...

For having two babies so close in age. What did I get? A van? A high-five? A hernia? We will be getting a van and I am sure I have gotten a high-five from someone for having babies. What I was not expecting to get was a hernia. I had my postpartum check-up on Tuesday and everything checked out good. I made a comment to my doctor that I hoped one day my stomach and specifically my belly button would look normal. He then dropped the H-Bomb - HERNIA! Wha-What?

I have a small hernia in my belly button. There is a fancy term for it but I am too lazy right now to swagbuck it. The doctor said that most likely it will go away on its own and that it really isn't that bad. But still, it wasn't what I wanted to hear. So I am working on strengthening these abs like it is going out of style. I am doing 75 sit-ups a day - I guess I am not as motivated as I was when I did all those squats. Maybe I will start doing some more. Who knows!

I am weighing less than I was with Eden at this time but still not quite to my postpartum weight. I think I would like to lose 3 more pounds or so. If I could lose them just in my tummy area that would be fantastic!

Life is going well here at the Hufford house! Cooper has been getting up at 2am, and then 6am to eat. I need to just start staying up after his last feeding but I crawl back into bed with just enough time to fall asleep before being woken up by a jibber-jabbering little one year old:-) He also is going to sleep around 7:30 but I wake him up at 8:30 for one last feeding before laying him down for the night. Tomorrow we are going to try and have him sleep up in his and Eden's bedroom. He sleep in his car seat so I am not sure if I will just put the car seat in the crib or not yet (he sleeps in his car seat because of reflux issues).

Anywho, Eden is waking up and then we are off to look for a van!!!! Woohoo!!! I am going to be a soccer mom! Now I just need to get the cute outfit to fit job;-)

Who unrolled the toilet paper???

I think we have a cat loose in our house because the toilet paper seems to be getting unrolled quite a bit as of late. Either that or Garrett has a new fascination with unrolling the entire roll all over the bathroom floor because he thinks I like picking it up. There is no way that Eden Grace would do something like that...she is just too sweet and loving and kind:-)

Cooper, Eden, and I are loving spending time together during the day! Cooper is growing and gave us his first real smile two days ago!!! If that doesn't make your heart melt, nothing will. He is also only getting up twice at night and since I have cut out most dairy (sometimes I forget) his tummy aches have been less frequent. Eden is growing like a weed and is walking full time and running around the house like she is practicing for a race. She also says "Hi, dada!" daily when Garrett comes home from work and says the words: this, yes, yeah, more, all done, mama, and of course dada. I am her translator as it isn't the clearest English in the world. She also got her toe nails painted today because she was a good girl and it is the cutest thing in the world!!

Hmm...in other news...I got a bread machine!!!! Garrett's mom gave me her's and I have fallen in love. Since they visited I have made a total of loaves of different kinds of bread. My favorite so far is applesauce cinnamon bread:-) I really enjoy making fresh bread and I am becoming quite the cook - if I do say so myself! There is something about preparing each part of the meal from scratch that makes me appreciate food more and also it tastes way better.

Well, I need to go and hang out with my hubby because I kinda like the fella!

PS - We are selling our 2005 Altima because our family has outgrown it (carseats take up lots of space). So if you would like a really great car (fully loaded) or know of someone who is in the market for a car and doesn't want to deal with a dealership, let me know! We will miss our car but I am looking forward to having a van!

Life with two

Here is a sample of my days right now:

6:30am/7am - Eden gets up -I give her a sippy of milk and get the coffee started.
7:30am - I get in the shower and Garrett plays with Eden.
7:45am - Cooper gets up and I feed him.
8am - I get breakfast for Eden and myself (if I can actually get any food in my own mouth).
8:30am - Eden gets a bath if she didn't get one the night before or we just get ready for the day.
9am - We play in their bedroom and read our Bible story of the day and a coup.
9:30am/10am - Nap time (both Cooper and Eden sleep at the same time in the morning - this makes mama very happy!!!).
*During nap time I finish getting myself ready for the day and look at my list of things I would like to accomplish during the week. I usually clean and do laundry during their morning nap and I also read my Bible and listen to sermons online.
11am/11:30am - Eden gets up and I get lunch ready.
12pm - We eat lunch and Cooper gets up and I feed him.
1pm - 3pm - We either play or we run an errand during this time and Cooper eats again.
2:30pm/3pm - Nap time!
4:30pm/5pm - Eden gets up from her nap and Cooper eats.
5pm - I start dinner and Eden plays in the kitchen with me. Daddy also comes home during this time!!!
6pm - Dinner:-) And then family time afterward (we go for walks or we Eden comes with one of us to do something alone with her).
7:30pm - Off to bed for Eden!
After Eden goes to bed Garrett and I spend time with each other (right now since Cooper is so little and doesn't have a set bed time yet, he joins in the fun by being held and eating).
10:30pm - We go to bed!

Cooper gets up two or three times a night depending on when he goes to sleep (and very soon he will go to bed at a set time). I also pump after every time I feed him (even in the middle of the night) to create a stash of breast milk and also because that is what we are giving Eden instead of Lactaid (she doesn't tolerate regular milk well yet and Lactaid is $4 for a half gallon - plus they recommend breast milk until the age of 2). Cooper is on a 3 hour eating schedule that he actually got himself on during the day, so he is pretty predictable. I do spend a lot of time changing diapers and cleaning up spit up and holding children but I wouldn't change it for the world!!

A new toy

"Here, why don't you play with this - mama's breast pad."

My breast pads are Eden's new toys that she plays with while I am feeding Cooper. She usually just gives them to me eagerly and then asks for them back. This is her new game with her new toy:-)

Things I have found myself saying lately...

"Eden, do not touch the Bible." and "You know you are not supposed to touch the Bible."

"You need to eat your macaroni before you get anymore carrots."

"Please don't poop in the bath tub again."

"Please don't grab your brother's face."

"Eden, if you walk to mommy you will get a treat!"

Here are some funny pictures that I thought I would share!

Girl kisses make me want to throw up...hey, wait...I just did.


Mom, I am not too big for the swing!

Cloth Diapering 2 Children - Day One - FAIL

We have been cloth diapering Eden at home for quite a few months. Her bottom is so sensitive and she was getting rashes left and right and the smell of disposable diapers was getting to this mom, so we decided to give cloth diapers a try. We love it! It really is no harder than disposable diapering and only 2 or 3 extra loads of laundry a week. The poopy diapers leave a lot to be desired as far as ease of cleaning but this mama will do what she has to do for her baby's behind.

Well, since Cooper has arrived we have wanted to cloth diaper both of them. It is sooooo much cheaper than buying huggies every week (even with some awesome coupons). That meant that we had to dive right in and try it out...

It was a HUGE fail! Eden was fine being in cloth because she already had been. But Cooper was another story. First of all, it is hard to cloth diaper a newborn who weighs less than 8 lbs. Secondly, when I bought two of my cloth diapers I should have read the descriptions instead of buying on the cute factor (little giraffes were just too cute to pass up). Thirdly, the umbilical cord issue was something I failed to remember from having Eden.

Here is what went down...

After Cooper's little man parts had healed from his circumcision I put him in a cute little giraffe diaper. No more than two minutes after I put it on he was soaking wet and I was perplexed. I thought this was an AIO (all in one) diaper - I seriously felt ripped off. I then changed him into a cute little monster diaper while I went back to look at my order. Well, his legs are still a bit scrawny and he peed and pooped out the leg holes. I change the diaper again and made sure that it was extra tight around the legs. Next thing I know he has peed and pooped out it again!!! And the only way to keep the diapers where they needed to be was to put them over his healing belly button. Back into disposables he went.

I was sooo frustrated with all of this that I was literally about to cry. What I learned was that I bought two diapers that are fitteds (these need a diaper cover) - hence the peeing through it and that little bitty babies need either time to chunk up a little or you should just stick to disposables until the umbilical cord fall off. We are sticking with the latter.

I know this is probably not the most interesting post ever but I want to highly recommend trying cloth diapering to anyone and also to share my frustrations and what I learn a long the way. I hope this helps! And I won't leave you all without a picture to share:-)

Happy Birthday Cooper!!!

So, I really wasn't expecting to have a baby last week but Cooper had different plans! I honestly thought for sure that he would be born some time this week since I made it to 39 weeks with Eden. But here is how his birth story goes...

Tuesday I was feeling kind of off all day and my stomach just wasn't feeling good. I had taken milk of magnesia that the doctor told me to take to help deal with a few ailments (sparing you all the details) I was having. I chalked it all up to that. The tummy issues did cause me to have more than my normal 6 to 8 Braxton Hicks an hour but that seemed very logical as well. When I got home from work Eden was a little off her game - a combination of being tired and having a light fever from teething, so it was a looong evening to say the least. I did manage to get some cleaning done and actually packed our hospital bag because I was bored. Garrett and I went to bed as normal.

Then at midnight I woke up to go to the bathroom and I was having some very mildly painful Braxton Hicks (they were contactions but how was I supposed to know) but I had had these before at night, so I just drank a ton of water and crawled back into bed. I woke up on and off to go to the bathroom and to try and get comfortable. Finally at 5am, I woke up and after a few of what I believed to be true contractions, I decided that it would be a good idea to go to the hospital. I woke Garrett up and told him that I thought I was in labor and to call my parents. He called them and I decided to do some laundry while Garrett hopped through the shower. Shortly after 5:30am my mom arrived to stay with Eden and we were off. In the car my contractions started to get pretty painful and I was having trouble talking through them but they were still very manageable. BUT the kicker is I had made up my mind that I WAS going to get an epidural this time because I didn't think I could stand the pain of them getting worse or more frequent for the next 5 hours.

We get to the hospital at 5:45 and the parking lot was empty. Garrett was like, "We can get an awesome parking spot!" I told him that I really didn't want to walk that far, so we pulled up to the front but the doors to the women's center wouldn't open because it wasn't 6am yet. I am now bending over having a contraction and saying you have to be kidding me. Garrett picks up the phone on the building and tells the lady in the most chipper voice, "We're having a baby!" and we get let in. We get let into a triage room where they make sure you are actually in labor. I don't think the nurse believed me because she asked if I had been timing the contractions and I said no but that they really hurt so I decided to come in and that they seemed to be getting more frequent fairly quickly. She hooks me up to monitors and after 5 minutes of being monitored she calls someone on the speaker phone and tells them to get a room ready for me because she was keeping me (apparently 4 contractions in 5 minutes means you are in fact in labor). She asks me if I would like any pain meds and by this time with the contractions coming so fast and the pain intensifying I tell her I would like an epidural (I still think I am experiencing normal labor and that I have 5 hours to go). She checks to see how dilated I am and says, "You're at 9.5 cm...I am sorry but you aren't going to get that epidural." This is when things went crazy!

She gets back on the speaker phone and is practically yelling, "We are having a baby...NOW!" The first thing that goes through my mind is that there will be no doctor and that I will be giving birth on this little bed. Thankfully they get a room for me very quickly (the exact room I delivered Eden in) and I am now thinking that they are going to want me to walk there but of course they just wheeled me to the room and I get on a much bigger bed designed to have a baby on. I swear that it took the doctor forever to get there (maybe 10 minutes) and the whole time I am thinking that I can't believe this is happening again. The doctor finally gets there (not my OB but another one in his practice who is all muscle and bald), he then breaks my water - this was the only thing keeping him from coming at this point - and starts chatting with me. Then about 10 minutes later Cooper arrives! I pushed 5 to 6 times and he was born at 6:33am!!! He was 7 lbs 2 oz and 20 inches long (exact same measurements as Eden - I make very average sized babies:-)).

God answered my prayers for a fast delivery and for the fact that I never got my epidural. I wanted a short delivery so there wouldn't be an option and I was given that (although at the time I was wondering what I was thinking). Garrett was so wonderful through the whole thing! I couldn't have asked for a better man to be by my side!!!

Praise the Lord for short labors and short births!!! But I am wondering if next time I should just check into the hospital as soon as I feel slightly different...

DMDD

On Friday we had our last DMDD (daddy, mommy, daughter date) before brother comes. Garrett sure likes to date his girls! We had a good time browsing Old Navy and TJ Maxx even if we didn't buy a single item. Then we went to Biaggi's where Eden decided she had enough as soon as we sat down at our table. That meant a quick shovel of food in our mouths and off we went back home to get her to bed. It was a great time even if it wasn't one of Eden's finest moments. The three of us love spending time together and Garrett always seems to have the patience to deal with a cranky nugget!

Yesterday we made our way up to Janesville to see our two friends. We had a wonderful time relaxing and grilling and even getting a little wet. We will miss them so much as they start a new adventure in their lives out in California. We are trying to savor each moment we get to spend with them because soon the visits will be fewer but no less special! May God bless the two of them as they follow His leading!!!

I had a doctor's appointment on Friday and nothing special to report. Cooper is an active little boy (I keep having weird dreams that he comes out a she). No cervical checks yet, so I have no clue if the squats are doing anything. I guess we will have to wait and see next Friday!!!

Here are a few pictures from this weekend:

Pink frosting was a bad idea...

On July 13th Eden turned one!!!! Can you believe that time has gone that fast? I can't! I am amazed at her daily as she learns new things and what all she can remember. This past year has truly been a blessing. God has given Garrett and I a new perspective on His love for us through parenthood. We love her dearly and we cherish each day we have with her.

I had planned on having an elaborate duck-themed party for Eden and was going to make her a rainbow cake. I wish I could say I pulled it off being 9 months pregnant and all and get some sort of metal for being the best mom in the world but it didn't happen. Garrett and I decided to have a little family party and I broke down and bought a cupcake cake. Eden didn't seem to mind that there were no streamers or confetti or party hats, so I think she will forgive me for this one. We had a great time celebrating with family and her new little cousin Christopher! She got a new kitchen that left me drooling over how cool it was and making me wish that I was little again and could play house. She also got lots of Sesame Street stuff - she loves her Elmo!

The party turned out perfect and I wasn't stressed about a single detail. Eden loved her some cake, although I do suggest going with a white or chocolate frosting because the pink dye made everything that came out the other end a nice hot pink color for days:-)

I am still in shock that she is now one and has been apart of our family for a year. She has grown and changed in ways I would have never guessed and I get sentimental just thinking about it so I am going to have to stop!

Here are a few pictures of her big day:

In case any of you were wondering her 12 month stats: 29" for height, 19lbs 14oz for weight, and 44.5cm for head circumfrence. She is now not so long and skinny but she still is a petite little gal!

Oh and I am still baking this little guy (on Monday I will be 38 weeks)...and yes, I do about 80 to 100 squats a day...and yes, I am going to have buns of steel. We are praying for a delivery much like Eden's and are anticipating his arrival any day now:-)

Happy Anniversary!!!

Today marks a very important day - 2 wonderful, crazy years with a man who loves me beyond what I deserve!

These two years have been anything but what we thought they would...they have been better! But I would like to say thanks to my husband for these past 2 years. In two years, I have been pregnant more than I have not been (almost a total of 18 months out of 24) and my husband still finds me attractive. I have had morning sickness up the wazoo but he still rubs my back and cleans my face and even cleans the toilet after I am done. He also runs to the store in the middle of the evening because I NEED a turtle sundae two minutes ago. He makes the bed almost every morning and will even make it just minutes before we go to bed if it has been a crazy day because he knows how much I love getting into a made bed. He sends me encouraging messages throughout my day and even just calls to chat to see what I am up to and just to hear my voice. He looks forward to coming home after a long day at work just to be with his girls and to take care of them. He goes to all of my doctor's appointments that he can and even goes when I am just sick because he genuinely cares. He will pick up any medication and at any time for me because he just wants me to feel better. He always listens to my crazy rants and is quick to let me know when I just need to not say something. He also listens to my ideas for our family and crazy ways to cut costs and be kinder to the earth God has given us. He kisses me goodnight and always tells me he loves me and how beautiful he thinks I am. He gives me compliments even when I am most undeserving. He loves me more than I can describe and still looks at me with eyes that say I am the only one for him. He trusts me whole-heartedly.

I honestly could not be in love with a man more suited for me! Garrett displays Christ's undeserving love each day. I've been listening to a lot of Matt Chandler sermons and one thing he said is that unless you know Christ's love for you, you cannot truly love your spouse. I am so glad that my husband knows Christ and pursues Him before me because I know that he truly understands how to love me and that it is more than just this emotion that he feels.

Thank you Garrett for being my husband, my lover, my companion, my best friend! And thank you Jesus for consuming Garrett's heart with a desire to be more like You daily!

And the little girl in this picture loves you too!

Hopefully no more of this...

These above pictures are of Eden when she had a nasty yeast infection rash and we were letting her bottom air out. But she normally doesn't like to cuddle like this unless she is sick. Last Tuesday we took her into have tubes put into her ears in hopes that we won't have more pictures like the above. Poor little thing would probably be at the doctor's this week since the Monday before she already had fluid building up in them again. She had some hearing loss due to the consistent fluid but are quite optimistic that she will be able to hear low tones well soon!

Right now I am trying to teach Eden the sign for baby but she isn't quite catching on. I think that she just thinks that my belly is a big pillow for her to lay on:-)

This pregnancy is flying by and little Cooper seems to be relaxing in my belly. I have a feeling he likes his home in there very much and that his only complaint is that his sister likes to use him as a nice little perch. I can't believe I am 33 weeks!!!! Wahoo!!!!!!

Anyway, can you believe that this little cutie in the picture below will be one in about a month and be a big sister shortly after???

God bless my OB!

I had my 30 week appointment today and little Cooper is growing perfectly:-) He is starting to hurt my pubic bone though, which is a weird pain since I didn't really feel like this with Eden. My doctor said it was normal and wrote me a prescription for a support belt thingy. I am not sure if I will get it or not. We will see.

I have gained a total of one and a half Edens right now (I am referring to her last weight at the pediatrician's office, so I will keep you wondering how much that is since only Eden, Garrett, and I know this disclosed amount). Even though everyone tells me that they can't tell I'm pregnant from behind, I know it has gotten bigger. Let's just say, when I get pregnant my face gets pregnant, my double chin gets pregnant, my arms and thighs get pregnant, and maybe even my ears get a little pregnant. I am not really complaining though, it is a fact with both of my pregnancies, I gain weight everywhere. But my kind, sweet doctor said the sweetest thing a pregnant woman who has gained one and a half Edens...he called me skinny:-) When you have cankles, being called skinny is like butter on popcorn! I about hugged the man, that was how sweet of a thing it was! LOL

We also discussed the possibility of me being induced at 39 weeks. Eden was a very fast, unexpected labor, so I am just concerned with Garrett's new job that he won't make it to the hospital in time. We are going to think about this as an option but after briefly discussing this with Garrett, I highly doubt it is one we will choose. I like the thought of my body going into labor naturally, when it wants it too and when it is ready. So, if you read my blog and would like to be my back-up labor coach - I am taking applications. Please send a resume with a cover letter and your photograph plus $20 for processing. Job requirements are as follows:

Must be funny.

Must make me laugh.

Must laugh at my jokes.

In other news, we just got back from our trip to Ohio to see Garrett's family. It really was a wonderful trip and we are glad Eden was a good little passenger even though she pooped out her diaper an hour into the trip on the way home. Pictures will come once Garrett downloads them to the computer.

What Goes Up, Usually Comes Down

That is Eden's new saying. And she is sporting her first bruised bump on her cute little head:-) This was bound to happen since she likes to stand up by herself (with the assistance of something to crawl up) and usually she slowly lowers herself to her bottom but not today! She decided to see just how hard her head was. Don't worry, she is fine and dandy.

Garrett and I are taking the plunge into cloth diapers. I found a great deal on some one-size pocket diapers and decided to try them out. So far I have no real complaints but I do dread the poopy ones. I guess I dread them in disposable as well. She now has a badonkadonka behind on Saturday and Sunday.

I am now 27 weeks along and for the most part feeling pretty good. I sometimes get some kidney pain and my back hurts but hey, there is a baby growing inside of me! The picture of me is from 3 weeks ago but it is the most recent one we have.

Funny Faces with Eden