Chasing Babies... Growing in Grace: February 2012

Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Wouldn't it be cool...

Only recent pic of Baby Girl

Wouldn't it be cool if I had the baby today? I mean, for a few reasons.

First of all, who doesn't blame me for being ready to hold the baby on the outside... sounds (and from experience, is) way more comfortable!

Second, I really want an Amethyst for my necklace. I already have a March birthstone on there... and while I will gladly take another, the purple would be nice too!

But really, wouldn't it just bee so cool to have a baby on Leap Day? Ok... not everyone thinks so. But I think it would be just dandy! Just think... we could celebrate February 28th and March 1st three out of four years. Who wouldn't want that? :)

In reality though, I am content with however much time I still have with my three littles... and Sweet Pea's birthday quilt is NOT done. In fact, I'm going to go work on that right now. :)

Labels: As it happens..., Pregnancy

Thursday, February 23, 2012

"Never" been like this before

The last days of my wait for Little Man

Three or four (or more?) weeks ago I began having decent contractions. The feel real kind. The kind where I just need to sit down and relax my body to get through it kind. The "don't touch me" kind... or the "I just need a minute" kind. The kind where my tall 5 year old bumping into me in the thrift store during it just about sends me over.

Also, about three or four weeks ago, I began saying something to the affect of: "it's never been like this before... not this early... not this regularly."

And I believed it too. And as far as I can remember... it's still true.

But then today I stumbled on an old blog post. One that I found very encouraging. But also one that showed how very poorly we women carrying babies can remember anything. At. All.

So, now... with only 3ish weeks to go (or 5... whatever), I can know that, yes, indeed, constant contractions for the last couple months of pregnancy are pretty normal. Just one more joy of pregnancy! :)

Click over to see God's grace in it all!

Labels: As it happens..., Life Lessons for Mommy, Pregnancy

Saturday, February 18, 2012

Grace-filled

Covered in children, snot, and germs.

Surrounded by coughs and cries and my precious ones.

Thankfully, I'm still well!

Hope your weekend is as grace-filled as mine is!

Labels: As it happens...

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Dinner... and winners!

No day is a combination of what didn't happen...

nor is it about what didn't go right.

Instead it's the memories of all that did happen...

... and the love our families will remember because of it!

Little Man's fever is still high (though he had some time off thanks to Ibuprofen) and now My Beloved sleeps, sick, in the recliner to my right. But the hours I spent on straightening and dinner were well worth the effort! :)

And now... to make two of you very happy, I have not one, but two copies of Potty Time (and the cute watch) to giveaway. Drum roll please...

And, thanks to Random.org, our winners are:

Kristin, who said...: I love potty trained kids, too!! I only have one in diapers right now and it is too easy. :-) Benjamin potty-trained over the summer and like we did with our other kids, we day and night trained at the same time. I'd love to hear how you potty-trained. Even though I've done it a few times now, I'm always open to new ideas.

and...

Meghan said...

She's two and goes in the potty when she's in a good mood. I've never prayed so much for "potty" days in my life. Hoping a song is the key :)

Congratulations ladies!!! Send me an email (to babychaser (at) gmail (dot) com [please adjust the address to standard format before clicking send]) with your address and I'll get your "Potty Time, You can do it" kit out as soon as I can!

Don't you just love giveaways??? I may have to find a way to do more. I'm just feeling so happy!

Labels: As it happens..., In the Kitchen, Raising Children, With These Hands

A little love... or "what I would have done if..."

I wanted to make these in chocolate chip!

I've been dreaming up Valentine's Day plans for weeks now... and I've been using my new Pinterest account to help me! I knew I wouldn't get to everything, but I thought that maybe if I could do just one or two, it would make the day special for my littles.

Step one was going to be spending time talking about love... God's love, how we are to love one another, etc. Now, we did do some "heart" activities early in the month and we've been memorizing Matthew 22:37-40, so I'm not a total failure, but as for the things below to make today special... not so much.

But, I comfort myself with the reminder that it's been a bit hectic around here lately and I'm feeling pretty good to have gotten dinner on the table most nights. :)

You see, all three of my children have been working through high fevers at their own paces over the last week and a half. :( Poor kids! My 18 month old has it now. Couple that with seemingly constant contractions and reduced (even more than normal) sleep for me... and an OB appointment this morning early, and it's no wonder things didn't happen!

So here are some of my favs from my V-Day board on Pinterest. Click over to see the rest and link through to the originals!

Love the recycling happening here... if only I hadn't eaten all the candy canes!

Was totally going to make these with the kids for grandparents and single ladies at church!

Maybe someday...

I want to make this long one for another season too... maybe with changeable covers!

I ground the flour for these yesterday... do I get partial credit???

Love these!! Maybe for Sweet Pea's birthday instead... in pink!

So there you have it... Woulda coulda shoulda... maybe next time! :) Instead of beating myself up though, I'm moving on to what I may be able to accomplish before tonight gets here... dinner maybe??? And a candle?

In the mean time, we're working to keep that fever lower than 103.8... yep. Poor baby! :(

Labels: As it happens..., Chasing Three, Heart Strings, Home Making, Special Treats

Monday, February 13, 2012

Potty Time Giveaway ends tomorrow!

All three kids are sick with fevers, etc... so, I'm not really here today. Or I should say, I'm all here (at home) today.

Just stopping by to remind you all that tomorrow is the last day to enter the Potty Time Giveaway! Click over and leave a comment. I'll announce a winner tomorrow evening sometime...

And happy early Valentine's Day! :)

Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Being on the receiving end for a while

I was so excited to stumble on Our Simple Country Life a few weeks ago... and more excited to learn that she would be doing a series on Intentional Homemaking. Ahhh...

Let me tell you... with baby number 4 coming, normal busy-ness, and a desire to be intentional myself... I'm going to let Our Simple Country Life feed this Suzy Homemaker meets Proverbs 31 for a while. I'll probably insert a Suzy meets P31 post of my own here and there as I'm led, but in the mean time, join us over at Our Simple Country Life on Wednesdays for inspiration and challenges in being an Intentional Homemaker!

I'll be there!

Labels: Home Making, Keeping My Home, Life Lessons for Mommy, Suzy meets P31

Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Productivity

Tornado's getting more freedom outside. Here he is right at the edge of the {shallow} creek.

I took a personal challenge to be "as productive as possible" today, and while I wouldn't say I was "as productive as possible", I did make some choices that made me more productive than some days.

I took a nap. (Oh, and I burned bread. Not at the same time.)

It's way more productive than reading blogs or wandering the house aimlessly!

Now if only the kids had actually taken their nap while I slept!

Labels: As it happens..., Pregnancy, Raising Children

Monday, February 6, 2012

This weeks plans

When the weather is nice, we try to spend as much time outside as possible!

Time is moving right along here, (Is it there too???) with just over 5 weeks to go.

Just today I've implemented a new schedule. A much looser and hopefully more forgiving one than those I've attempted over the last couple months. It's my hope that I'll get to the house, the homeschooling and the projects without the stress and failure. Hmmm... we'll see. :) And I've deliberately made it so that baby's feedings should fit right in once she's here and we've normalized a bit.

Most of today has been behind. It all came from not starting the week fresh. Nope... instead the day started with a mound of laundry on the couch and dishes in the sink. But I'm not letting it get me down. I trudge forward. (You?)

My girl's treasures!

We missed much of our inside play time and abridged our outside play significantly (but we did go outside!!!) This is the hour I've scheduled for our "discovery" play time (one of these days I'll post our updated and more realistic schooling goals for this year.) We did get to our Disciplined Learning at the table and did most of what I'd hoped, but this was running behind too.

Lunch... late. But don't worry, nap time was right on schedule. At least close enough for me. And now it's quiet in the house (mostly). Though I did get the beans on, they're running a bit late. And the bread didn't get made... again. Oh well. Maybe tomorrow!

On the plus side? I have 5 meals in the freezer for after baby comes (most of them made last week!) My sewing machine is all better, so I've been making progress on the sewing front.


Baby Shower gift this weekend!

I love how it turned out!

This fun quilt (made last year) was a raging success at a baby shower this weekend! Yey!

So this week (the point of my post???) I have a meal plan (exciting for my husband) that will allow me to get another 5-6 meals in the freezer while feeding my family at the same time (exciting for me!!) After that the baby can come any old time she wants to. I'll still work to get things made ahead (breakfasts, treats, additional meals), but I won't worry so much.

Here's what we're eating this week (Lord willing!):

Monday: Ranch Beans (x2 for the freezer!)
Tuesday: Easy Lasagna (divided to put half in the freezer!), garlic bread, and salad
Wednesday: Saucy Broccoli Chicken Bake (x2 for the freezer!) with Cheese Bread (divided to put half in the freezer!) and salad
Thursday: Tacos (1.5 pounds meat divided into thirds... 2 portions for freezer), refried beans (+ some for the freezer!)
Friday: Chicken Pot Pie (x2 for freezer)
Saturday: Cheesy Chicken Vermicelli, salad, texas toast

This is a very assuming menu, I know. Should I fail to make something on a given night, it's bump to next week. And hopefully by then, it'll all be in the freezer!!!

Other plans this week include working on Sweet Pea's quilt (the piecing of the top is completed, I just have the boarder [with some applique] left to do before sandwiching and quilting!), My Beloved's quilt (I'll pick at this one in between others), and starting to look at Sweet Pea's spring/summer wardrobe needs.

Do you have any special plans this week???

Linking up at Menu Plan Monday!

Labels: Getting Ready for Baby, In the Kitchen, Keeping My Home

Thursday, February 2, 2012

Potty Training... review and a Giveaway!

Saying good-bye to big boxes of these!

With February being here, it seems appropriate to touch, here and there, on love. And one particular thing I L.O.V.E. is potty trained children. Not necessarily "potty training"... please understand the difference... but potty trained children. Children that no longer wear diapers. During the month of January I became the mother of only one child in diapers. For the first time in nearly 4 years! That's right... my two older ones are finally out of diapers at night. If you're interested in how we finally did that (at 5 and nearly 4 years old), let me know in the comments and I'll write up a post.

That is not what this post is about... where was I?

Ah yes, love. I love potty trained children. I love not using diapers. And so, it would make sense that I would love any and all tools that would help me to have potty trained children. Right?

Enter Potty Time.

A month or so ago I received word that the makers of Signing Time had come out with a new DVD, one Rachel swore she'd never make. I read about it, and wondered about it... but pretty much decided I was afraid.

Yep... afraid. You see, we try not to expose our children to silly little children's songs. For the most part we omit the traditional kids songs from their learning... including the "Bible" songs that many of us grew up learning. So... I imagined that this would be full of the kinds of things I don't want my children hearing and then repeating.

We certainly don't need more "obnoxious" in this house.

So I let that news go by.

But then I got an email from LeeAnn at Signing Time wondering if I'd be interested in reviewing the new Potty Time. I said sure, so she dropped it in the mail for me. But I still wasn't sure. I was completely prepared to write up a tasteful review that included why it wasn't for our family and to give away a copy to one of you who, perhaps, would still be interested.

It arrived, and I decided immediately that I wanted to watch it first, before the kids saw it. But they knew it was coming. Then they saw it arrive. Still, I told them Mommy was going to watch it first.

Then I caved. Against better judgment, we all sat down together to watch Potty Time.

And what can I say?

Why did I doubt?

When have the makers of Signing Time ever let me down?

I love it!

My children love it!

My {almost} 18 month old loves it!

It's that last one I want to park on for a few minutes as I think it's important for spelling out the wonder of Signing Time in general for you.

My children have all talked late. Tornado was 19 months before he said anything at all. Sweet Pea was 17 months before she said more than MaMa.

Little Man showed real promise when he began saying “Done done”, “tha” (that), and “Da” for daddy by the time he was 1! But with only the addition of one or two other little "words" over the last 5+ months, he's far from talking! That is until this last week or so.

I'll admit, I haven't been as "good" about watching the Signing Time DVDs with them since Little Man came along. To be honest, it's been deliberate. Not because we don't love Signing Time, but because I don't want my older ones used to watching daily TV. They don't need it, and when they aren't used to it, they don't miss it either. What a better way to live! But, alas, that means I've missed out on the great word teaching help I got from Signing Time with those same older ones when they were younger.

As we've been watching Potty Time this week, Little Man has been paying close attention. He loves to say "Uh oh" and even covers his mouth just like they do. He has started doing the sign for "potty" more accurately (than what he was when it was me teaching him alone), and signs and says "eat eat" when he wants food. In the last day or so, I've seen an increase in his vocabulary and signs even more with the addition of the sign and saying of "wipe" when he's done on the potty and "stop" any other time.

And he's just too cute signing wash hands anytime we're near a sink.

I just know I'm forgetting some of the little cute-nesses that have all come thanks to Potty Time!

Now, every good review has to include some sort of cons. So here is the downside to the Potty Time DVD... (not that it's any different than any of the Signing Time or Baby Signing Time DVDs. The songs are catchy! Catchy for the kids... catchy for Mom! Is this all bad? No... it's done on purpose I'm sure. All I'm saying is that I'd much rather be singing just about ANY adult song while washing dishes at the sink than to find myself thinking, humming, or singing the words to the "Accident" song:

When you bump your head
Or when you wet the bed...
Uh oh, it's an accident.
When you fall off a chair
Or go potty in your underwear...
Uh oh, it's an accident.

Not the song you want to get caught singing... that's all I'm sayin.

That said, I do have to say that I am very impressed by the music and lyrics included. They are neither obnoxious nor twaddly in my thinking. Just as I should have expected from all their other wonderful DVDs, the songs are well written and are fabulous at teaching both the signs and whatever other topic being presented. [I find my children learn to talk from them just as much as sign... sometimes more depending on the child! I strongly attribute my oldest son's early vocabulary to Signing Time! (It's just that the talking takes a bit longer sometimes to get started!)]

The songs and topics presented in Potty Time begin with growing up, pass through the steps to going on the potty (telling mommy and daddy, wiping, washing hands), "listening" to your body, and more.

And what's more??? An audio CD of the songs is included!!! As is a cute little watch for your little one to wear that tells them when it's time to go to the potty! Too cute!

All I can say (yes, after this very long post) is good job Signing Time! Potty Time is a raging success in this household and I wish you the best success with it worldwide!

Potty Time preview from Signing Time on Vimeo.

******And now, I have a copy of the DVD and CD, as well as the cute little watch, to give away to one of my readers!!!! All you have to do is leave a comment and tell me about your little Potty Trainee... or soon to be. :) I'll pick a winner on Valentine's Day... because seriously, who doesn't love when their children are finally potty trained???

Linking up:

Disclaimer: I was provided a copy of the "Potty Time You Can Do It Pack" to review and another to give away to one of my readers! All opinions mentioned here are my own!

Labels: Raising Children

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Chasing Babies... Growing in Grace