ten smile tuesday

another week has blown by without warning! as i was standing in line to get my fabric cut at jo-ann's this morning a gal asked what the date was. when i heard the answer of the 25th it simply wouldn't register in my head. surely it isn't november 25 already...one month from Christmas. friends, i am still back in october...i've barely come to grips with the reality that it is the beginning of november, much less the end! then i came home and realized that not only is it the end of november, but it is also tuesday...and time for ten smiles. once the girls were safely tucked away for nap-time i headed to the office, sat down, popped the camera card into the computer to download this weeks pictures...and was greeted with the reality that i had no pictures to load. not even one. an entire week passed by without one snap of the camera. mind you, there were plenty of things i would have liked to take pictures of...but apparently the camera wasn't within grasp in those moments. oh well...i'll simply share without photographic proof!

1. health. elizabeth was completely healthy tuesday...no sign of the sickies...and then poof...she was up every hour that night, punctuating the sleepless evening by "spitting" in her bed (her polite term for throwing up!). she spent the next couple of days on the couch...but foretunately everyone else in the household managed to escape the bug, and she was back at it by friday.

2. a dear, sweet, kind husband who took thursday morning off to stay home with a sick elizabeth (and kate...lest she should catch whatever was going around or spread any germs she picked up from sissy in the nursery) while mommy enjoyed a much needed morning out at MOPS.

3. orchid the octopus...elizabeth and my creation for "o" week. i had the best intentions of snapping a picture of this sweet creature...made from a skein of purplish yarn...with googly eyeballs and braided tentacles with yellow ribbons)...but alas, right now miss orchid is snuggled in bed with a sleeping elizabeth. perhaps i'll share later!

4. meeting with our dear flock group from church....due to lots of crazy stuff we hadn't seen them in somewhere around two months! the highlight of the meeting for me was definitely getting my hands on the newest member of the group...sweet 2 month old breanna...who rewarded me with huge grins and giggles...PRECIOUS!

5. one on one times with my girls. elizabeth accompanied me to do some grocering on saturday morning and kate and i went for other errands on sunday. i must admit, i often cherish the ability to leave the house A-L-O-N-E....no straps to buckle on car-seats, no helping hands to scoop things into the cart, no need to chat....and yet, i must tell you how i enjoyed taking them along....not being distracted by the other, and so thoroughly able to savor all the cute little moments and their distinct little personalities.

6. elizabeth's constant use of the words "actually" and "probably"....as in "mommy, i think i ACTUALLY really need one of those"--in reference to the chocolate at the cash register. she likes to emphasize the word actually...and i promise, she manages to fit this word in at least three times an hour throughout the day. OR "mommy, kate says she is PROBABLY tired"--this phrase comes just about everyday a half an hour or so before kate's naptime when elizabeth really starts anticipating and itching for school and snacktime with mommy. again...she manages to fit this one in ALL the time as well.

7. celebrating sweet lora's birthday with a surprise party at our mostest favorite mexican restaurant. a fun time to catch up with dear friends we don't get to see nearly enough (and some that we do get to see regularly too!). elizabeth's highlight of the party was getting to sit on the birthday girl's lap (right next to her oh so favorite "uncle" keith) and enjoy a few bites of "crunchy ice cream" (as she called it).

8. carrots. yep...carrots. why am i smiling about carrots? because dear friends...kate...our sweet, loveable, adorable, funny, stubborn little kater gator has decided she HATES vegetables...among many other foods. BUT on sunday night she ate carrots...6 of them...without any sauce or cheese to disguise them. mind you...monday she looked at them like they were evil, but at least i can say my child ate one veggie this week!

9. edamame hummus. i found this at trader joe's when i was grabbing some pizza dough...but after tasting one delectable bite i realized i simply must figure out how to make this....here's a recipe i found. i'll let you know once i try it...but if you have a trader joe's nearby, you really oughta try this.

10. grabbing a whole bunch of games for miss elizabeth at target. they were on sale for $4 a piece...i can't wait until she unwraps them at Christmas and we have something new to enjoy doing together. we picked up the ladybug game; duck, duck, 1-2-3; puppy dog bingo; and let's go fishing (which we are going to let poppy give her). i have a raincheck and hope to eventually picke up polar bear abc's for $4 as well.

11. putting the finishing touches on a couple Christmas presents for our celebration with Mike's family this weekend. we'll be heading out tomorrow afternoon to celebrate Thanksgiving with them thursday and then Christmas on friday. that means i really should be putting the finishing touches on packing as opposed to blogging...but what's a girl to do...it is tuesday after all.

12. feeding my freezer--just as soon as i finish this post i will be updating that post with links for all the recipes...which i just posted over at good stuff maynard. if you are interested in trying a freezer cooking day i am more than willing to give you some tips of what has worked when i've done it. it took us 6 hours, and i now have 13 meals (well...actually more than that because the 16 chimis are more like 5 or 6 meals for our fam) + 4 more i made over the weekend. well worth the time. elizabeth was able to help...the little ones (a 5 month old, 6 month old, and kate--16 months) napped and played...no need to find a sitter. i would suggest starting with just one or two friends...NOT a huge group. e-mail me if you want info (and i promise to get back to you by the beginning of the week..i'll be off-line while we are with mike's fam from tomorrow on)...theyakmom AT yahoo.com

13. the reality that it is the end of november. i must be honest...back at the end of september and beginning of october...when i was on bedrest...and then after the miscarriage, i seriously wondered whether i could continue putting one foot in front of the other. there were days where i felt like life would never move on. but how merciful and good is our God. almost two months out i can say with assurance that it still hurts...somedays much more than others...somedays not much at all. i still feel as though i am a bit out of whack...i am still exhausted and feel like i am not yet caught up around the house (then again...will i ever be!). i see friends who are pregnant and due in may and realize that i too would just be getting into maternity clothes...that i too would be out of the first trimester....that i too would be wondering boy or girl and dreaming of names...and on an on....and yet, my life didn't stop or end. i have been blessed with eight-ish weeks of incredible smiles and blessings. i have come to know God in a much more intimate way. my husband and i have been drawn together in such a deep and real way...i feel as though we lost a baby but regained one another--having never known we were lost. and so i leave you with that...a smile the i didn't truly know i was going to type about or share...a smile that quite honestly has tears brimming over my eyes and dripping down my cheeks...bittersweet...and yet, a smile still. friends...there is always hope. God will never leave us or forsake us....He truly does work all things together for our good...to make us more like His Son...to mold us into His image, refining us and ridding us of impurity. and that is most definitely something to be thankful for.