Heart Matters

He's here!

2009-07-30T13:25:00.004-04:00

Samuel Stewart arrived at 11:07pm on July 16th

weighing in at 7lbs. 7ozs.

and measuring 19 inches long!

Samuel is a remarkably good baby, sleeping during the night for 5 hour shifts some times! He's pretty content throughout the day and it's really made adjusting to three little ones a piece of cake! The girls both absolutely adore him, even Sarah has been so sweet and gentle. It's a wonderful feeling to be a mom of three and it is such a joy to watch the children interact with one another.

And now for the winner of the baby guessing game:

~Kathy was the closest to the time of delivery guessing July 17th at 12am. She also had the inches right on and was the closest on weight. However, she guessed girl on the gender.

~My cousin-in-law Sarah was another contender guessing July 15th at 319am, right on with the inches, right on with gender and close on the weight.

~My Aunt Joan was the last contender guessing July 15th at 515am, right on with gender, and inch off on length, and close on the weight. SO, what I did was write these three ladies names on separate pieces of paper and randomly drew a winner, and the winner is my Aunt Joan. Congrats and good guessing!

Count down

2009-07-15T17:20:00.003-04:00

Just wanted to let everyone know that I am set to be induced tomorrow at 730AM. SO, we should be welcoming a new member into our family, a SON!, by tomorrow evening! Hooray! Will post info and pictures as soon as we are back from the hospital.

Here are the people still in the running in the baby guessing game (although technically my cousin Rebekah voted girl for the gender):

Rebekah (my cousin) 8 lbs 7 ozs, 21 in, Jul 16, 5:08 am

Joan (my aunt) 8 lbs 2 ozs, 20 in, Jul 15, 5:15 am

Sarah (Stew's cousin)8 lbs 1 ozs, 19 in, Jul 15, 3:19 am

Also, we are all moved into our new home and will have pictures of that coming soon as well. Until then.....

Summer Recess

2009-06-09T15:53:00.002-04:00

Hi all. Just wanted to pop on to let you know that I'm going to take a summer blogging break. There is just TOO much going on right now and I really don't have any extra time to spare for this. I will however post some photos of the new house once we are moved in. We are set to close on June 23rd. And of course I will update when baby boy makes his arrival. Not sure yet if I'll be back after the summer or if I'll just decided to shut it down. I guess I'll have to see what it's like juggling three children before I can make that decision. So happy summer everyone!

On second thought...

2009-05-26T13:46:00.001-04:00

I guess I won't be back this week. I need to cut out the computer for a while. Life is getting pretty overwhelming right now and I need to focus on basics.

A quick hello

2009-05-23T20:08:00.002-04:00

Hello all. I didn't intend on taking a blogging break this past week, but amidst the chaos it just turned out that way. So I just popped in to say I'll be back at it next week. I've got a meal plan ready to post as well as a book review and some great photos of the kids. For now, I'm just going to post a link to a new blog that I found today via The Stay at Home Missionary. It's Divine Calling and she has a great post taken from the book A Woman's Mission that I really enjoyed. If you're looking for a new read, she's a mom of three little ones and shares on topics such as: child training, femininity, frugality, motherhood, being a keeper at home, etc. Anyway, that's about it, hope you all have a great Memorial Day weekend!

Thankful Thursday

2009-05-14T13:16:00.002-04:00

~I am so thankful and blessed to be Emily and Sarah's mom. These girls are the most beautiful, brightest children I know (of course I am biased). I just am beyond blessed every day by their presence in my life. This past mother's day I just found myself taking a step back and studying their faces and just enjoying the great privilege it is to be a mom. Sure it comes with great responsibility and sure it comes with great sacrifice some times, but it's the greatest 'job title' I will ever hold and I am SO lucky. Girls, you are the apple of mommy's eye.

~I am so thankful for a husband who seeks after God. I am so blessed to have him to follow after and to serve.
~I'm thankful for being 30 weeks pregnant!

I am so excited to meet our son. Along those lines, I have had no idea what to do for his room. The decor, etc. was just coming up blank in my mind, it was driving me crazy. Until now! The other day while out shopping I browsed through Home Goods and found this lamp (below). I left the store to finish my shopping but just could not get the lamp out of my head. SO, I decided to go back and pick it up and this is what I'll be basing my son's room off of. The colors will be brown, cream and red (that match the lamp) and we'll be doing a football theme (which is just perfect because my husband was captain of his football team in high school AND football pretty much rocks). Hooray!

~Notice the difference between the top photo of the lamp and the bottom one? Yup, that's the clarity difference between my old camera and my new Cannon Rebel! I am so thankful to finally own this camera in which we spent SO much time researching and pricing! Yay!

Cannon Rebel

2009-05-13T08:33:00.004-04:00

Last week we purchased the Cannon Rebel digital camera and oh oh oh how I love it. I just got it up and running yesterday and the clarity is amazing. I still love my little hand-held Kodak digital too, it's definitely better for on the go and capturing video. BUT since I don't scrap book, I really wanted a camera that would take some clear close ups and have the ability to zoom in from far away (I'm thinking kids' soccer/football/etc. games) and also have the ability to take multiple photos quickly. Anyway, so I'm finding so far that the Rebel is VERY easy to use and I just love the quality of the photos. I have a post set to go tomorrow that shows the clarity difference between the two cameras. For now, here's our first shots:

Weekly Meal Plan

2009-05-11T13:39:00.003-04:00

Breakfasts

Cereal and fruit

Eggs and toast

Oatmeal and raisins

Muffins and fruit

Granola and yogurt

French toast w/strawberries

Lunches

Macaroni and cheese w/green pepper

Super Salad

Tuna sandwiches w/salad

PB+J w/apples

Spaghetti w/broccoli

Take-out

Dinners

Impossible cheeseburger pie w/corn

Hamburgers, potato wedges and veggies

Marinated pork ribs, carrots, homemade bread

Chicken on the grill, salad, rice

Pizza

Snacks

Humus and veggies/chips

Breakstone cottage cheese doubles

Pretzels

PB and apple slices

Popsicles

P.S. Last week we tried Ranch Potato Wedges, a recipe from Heavenly Homemaker, and it was unbelievably delicious! A great side dish for grilled meats or fish sticks or pretty much anything, just wanted to pass that recipe along.

For more yummy meal plans, visit http://www.orgjunkie.com/.

Children's book review

2009-05-08T06:05:00.001-04:00

Anyone who has known me for long probably knows that Elizabeth George is one of my favorite authors. She picks basic life principles to write about and does so in a way that is simply stated and easy to apply. I was SO excited a few years back to learn she had written a children's book applying the Proverbs 31 principles. If you have little girls at home I would highly recommend this book.

I found an excerpt here:

"God's Little Girl is Diligent

Can you think of something that give you delight?

That makes you feel good in your bed at night?

That brings you a feeling compared to none?

The pleasure of knowing a job's been well done!"

It's beautifully illustrated and teaches little girls biblical principles, what could be better? It's also great to build lessons on. We like to chose one page (each page has one principle/verse) to look at per week and seek to apply it.

If you have a little boy, she's also written God's Wisdom for Little Boys, and I am so looking forward to reading it to my son in just a few short months!

Wordless Wednesday

2009-05-06T06:20:00.001-04:00

(WOW, these were shot way back in October and I guess I forgot to pass them along!)

Entertainment vs. Education

2009-05-05T06:15:00.000-04:00

Recently, I came across a great article entitled Ten Things to Do with Your Child Before Age Ten. I was really encouraged by the section devoted to play and exploration. I've been finding it hard lately to balance what I know is good for my children, and what they might enjoy. Some weeks I look back and it seems like all we did was 'entertain' the children and lost out on the 'training' of our children. The world today is a busy place and there are lots of things that are readily accessible to chose from, but not all of those things are necessarily beneficial to our children's well being. Not to say that trips to the Aquarium, library, parks, watching movies, having computer time, etc. are all bad things, they can be useful and educational in small doses. But, it seems that because there are so many things to chose from every day, it can be easy to overlook the fact that my sole purpose is not to entertain my children. God instructs us in Proverbs to 'train up a child in the way he/she should go'. Many days it seems so much easier to pop in a video or pack up and head to the park, but I need to not lose sight of the precious time I have been given to be with them and train them in the ways of the Lord. It's easy to become overwhelmed in this stage of life, and with so many easy 'fixes' it would be convenient to fall into the pit of entertaining my children rather than educating them. Here's a little excerpt from the article that I thought was right on.

"Give the child plenty of time to explore and play. Do not buy "toystore" toys — they are expensive and are usually forgotten after the newness wears off. Invest in real things. Garage sales and auctions are an unending source for things like sewing machines, small tools for working in the garden, hammers, nails, and things for building, some wooden blocks, and dress-up clothes. Buy tools for exploring (a good microscope, telescope, binoculars, dissecting equipment, basic chemistry equipment, etc.), not toys for adoring. Teach your children how to use them responsibly (safe, neat, and orderly — clean up when you are done), and make them readily available for when they want to use them.

It is not only important that you do some things, it is important that you not do some things. It always seems like there are more do not’s than there are do’s. Do not set your child in front of a television screen. Television is bad. We mean the screen itself. It is unhealthy for the body, and especially for the eyes. Visual strain is the number-one problem of frequent computer users. Studies estimate that anywhere from fifty to ninety percent of regular computer users experience visual deterioration.

The material on the screen is also bad. The entertainment method of learning creates a sort of entertainment addiction — the child wants to be entertained all of the time — he wants his visual and auditory senses stimulated (overstimulated). Every child needs to learn to spell through touch and taste and smell, and through interaction with real human beings who smile and answer back. He needs to learn in submission to the authority of real parents, not the authority of glamorized, always-happy, limitlessly-resourceful, never-tired substitutes who have absolutely no accountability. Need we say more?"

I certainly needed the encouragement this article provided and even the little wrist slap to refocus my energies on where they truly need to be.

Weekly Meal Plan

2009-05-04T06:45:00.001-04:00

Breakfasts:
Homemade granola (recipe below)
Oatmeal
Apple Bread (didn't get to this last week)
Waffles/strawberries
Egg sandwiches
Cereal
Lunches:
Chicken nuggets
PB+J
Grilled cheese
Chicken tacos
Macaroni and cheese
Mini pizzas
Dinners:
Tacos
Pork chops, corn, potatoes
Beef stew
Steak, rice-a-roni and veggie
Fish sticks, salad
Eggs, sausage and homemade hash browns

~Homemade granola~
4 cups oats (I use regular, but sometimes I substitute out 2 cups with the quick rolled oats for a different texture)
1/2 cup mixed nuts
1/2 cup craisins
1/4 cup raisins
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup oil
1/2 cup brown sugar

Bring oil, honey and sugar to a simmer on the stove. Mix dry ingredients together in a bowl. (I throw in all sorts of things that I have on hand, so the ingredients I listed above are just a guideline.) Mix the mixture from the stove into the dry ingredients and then pour into a greased 13X9 pan. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes. Cut into bars when cooled.

For more yummy meal plans, visit http://www.orgjunkie.com/.

A new tradition

2009-05-01T13:33:00.005-04:00

Today we decided to participate in May Day and deliver baskets of goodies to our friends, neighbors and family. I LOVE traditions and now that I feel like I'm getting a hold on the basics of being a wife/mom it's been nice to add on little by little and to get some started in our family. We had a really great time putting everything together, we'll definitely be continuing this year after year. It's a great way to teach the girls about serving others and a great way to reach out and get to know your neighbors (if they catch you that is) . Em had such a fun time running up to the houses trying to be sneaky and not get caught. She also helped me decorate the bags this morning and make the cookies last night. Anyway, here are some photos from the day:

Thanks to Kathy, who also participates in May Day with her two girls, I had a tag to put on the baskets.

The bags were filled with flowers, oatmeal craisin cookies, and honey lemon ginseng green tea.

After all the running around was complete, we made a 'fort' in the living room and rewarded ourselves with some tea and crackers and some reading time. We started Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder today. My Nana bought me the series when I was a child and now I get to read them to my girls! Anyway, it was a great day, a new tradition started for sure. :-)

Thankful Thursday

2009-04-30T06:30:00.000-04:00

~I am thankful for my husband's diligence at work and his ability to balance that with his commitment to his family.

~I am thankful that I am almost 30 weeks pregnant and very soon we will be meeting our little one.

~I am thankful for my children and the joy they bring me every day. I am also thankful for their health!

~ I am thankful for the wonderful church that we have and the new women's bible study I am able to be a part of every Tuesday morning. What an encouragement to be surrounded by so many wonderful women all seeking to follow Christ.

~I am thankful for my parents and their willingness to help us out by watching our girls.

~I am thankful that it looks like we have finally sold our home and that we will be purchasing a new one in June.

~ I am thankful that it is finally Spring and we can enjoy the wonderful outdoors and air out our house!

For more Thankful Thursday participants, visit Grace Alone.

Wordless Wednesday

2009-04-29T06:30:00.001-04:00

For more Wordless Wednesday participants, visit here.

Give me Jesus

2009-04-28T07:35:00.001-04:00

A simple song that's been speaking to me lately:

In the morning, when I rise
In the morning, when I rise
In the morning, when I rise

Give me Jesus.
Give me Jesus,
Give me Jesus.
You can have all this world,
Just give me Jesus.

When I am alone,
When I am alone,
When I am alone,
Give me Jesus.

Give me Jesus.
Give me Jesus,
Give me Jesus.
You can have all this world,
Just give me Jesus.

When I come to die,
When I come to die,
When I come to die,
Give me Jesus.

Give me Jesus.
Give me Jesus,
Give me Jesus.
You can have all this world,
Just give me Jesus.

Give me Jesus.
Give me Jesus,
Give me Jesus.
You can have all this world,
You can have all this world,
You can have all this world,
Just give me Jesus.

Weekly Meal Plan

2009-04-27T06:28:00.000-04:00

Monday
B: Raisin toast and orange juice
L: Grilled cheese
D: Tacos
Tuesday
B: Yogurt and granola
L: PB+J
D: Steak, salad, broccoli
Wednesday
B: Waffles
L: Chicken nuggets
D: Stir fry
Thursday
B: Cranberry apple muffins
L: Lunch out
D: Fish
Friday
B: Egg sandwich
L: Chicken nuggets
D: Meat loaf and salad
Saturday
B: Pancakes, fruit
L: Chicken tortillas
D: Beef Stew
Sunday
B: Apple bread, scrambled eggs
L: Leftovers
D: Chili

For more yummy meal plans, visit http://www.orgjunkie.com/.

A new home!

2009-04-23T06:11:00.000-04:00

On Sunday we made our final offer on the property we were hoping to purchase and it was accepted! Hooray! We are set to close on June 22nd (I'm due on July 19th!) and still have the inspections to get through and all of that. Our current home was just inspected today but we don't really expect anything to cause a glitch with that seeing that we've replaced pretty much everything that had caused a major problem over the last few years. It appears as though the current buyers on our house have secured financing so if all still goes according to plan we seem to be free and clear. Below are a few pictures of our new house that I copied from the MLS site. When we actually get moved into the house and what not I'll be posting many more, but for now here's just a peek at our new home! I'm particularly excited about my new kitchen, it's got a window above the sink!! YAY!

Wordless (almost) Wednesday

2009-04-22T06:30:00.000-04:00

(this is Emily's "goon" face, see: Little Bunny Foo Foo)

(yes, those would be my high heels Sarah is playing in)

The Worn out Woman

2009-04-21T06:52:00.000-04:00

For the month of February I completed the book, The Worn out Woman by Dr. Steve Stephens and Alice Gray. First thing I want to mention is the layout of this book. Each chapter is individual so that you don't have to read it from front to back, you can skip around and it doesn't take anything away from it's integrity. I found that very useful since there were some things I knew I was struggling with right now so I jumped ahead to read those specific chapters first. The author offers some good insight into what causes this worn out tendency in women and has some real practical suggestions on how to combat it. The main theme was that positive thinking and planning, and a right relationship with the Lord, really go a long way to peace and tranquility. This book is chalk full of inspirational/uplifting quotes, here are some of my favorite:

"I cannot give you the formula for success,
but I can give you the formula for failure....
which is : Try to please everyone."
- Herbert Bayard Swope (pg 41)

"It's never too late to be what you might have been."
- Mary Ann Evans (pg 65)

"Kind words can be
short and easy to speak,
but their echoes are truly endless."
- Mother Teresa (pg 103)

"He who cannot forgive another
breaks the bridge over which he must pass himself."
- George Herbert (pg 155)

"Worry is like a rocking chair.
It will give you something to do,
but it won't get you anywhere."
- Author Unknown (pg 167)

"God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can;
and the wisdom to know the difference.
Living one day at a time;
enjoying one moment at a time;
accepting hardship as the pathway to peace;
taking, as He did, this sinful world as it is, not as I would have it;
trusting that He will make all things right, if I surrender to His will;
that I may be reasonably happy in this life,
and supremely happy with Him forever in the next. Amen. "
- Reinhold Niebuhr (pg 171)

"From now on I am going to grab the good times with both arms.
I am going to walk outside and feel the sun on my face and
learn to laugh, really laugh again.
Most of all, I'm going to take the love that comes my way
and hold on to it for dear life. Sometimes we don't need
new scenery, just new eyes."
- Dawn Miller (pg 18)

My favorite chapter is where they address adjusting your focus. If we dwell on the negative, we become negative, which leads us down the road to the worn out syndrome. Here are the strategies they list to combat negative thinking:

~Filter your input. What we watch on TV, read on the Internet, listen to on the radio affect the way that we think and feel
~Feel your feelings, but don't depend on them. Feelings are important, but often inaccurate.
~ Put away negative thoughts. Stop dwelling on those thoughts that pop into our heads.
~Meditate on truth and beauty. Memorize positive scripture.
~Limit your complaining. Continually talking about the negatives just reinforces them in your head.
~Cultivate positive friends. Beware of the tendency to feed your misery by spending too much time with miserable people.

It's so easy as a mom of little ones to get worn out because this job requires a lot of sacrifices and very little thanks at times. I found this book to be tremendously encouraging. We definitely hold the key within ourselves (and with the Lord's help) to break out of the worn out cycle. A recommended read indeed.

Weekly Meal Plan

2009-04-20T06:49:00.000-04:00

I made it through the week last week just using up what was in our pantry and fridge. I'm going to challenge myself to get through one more week with just heading out to the store for some bare essentials. Here's what our menu looks like for this week:

Monday
B: Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins
L: Macaroni and cheese/veggie
D: Ham and cheese pie
Tuesday
B: Waffles and apple slices
L: PB+J w/veggie
D: Flat bread snadwiches
Wednesday
B: Yogurt and granola
L: Sandwiches
D: Burgers and sweet potato fries
Thursday
B: Egg sandwiches
L: Chicken nuggets
D: Homemade macaroni and cheese
Friday
B: Oatmeal and fruit
L: Grilled cheese
D: Italian chicken in the crockpot
Saturday
B: Eggs and Ham
L: leftovers
D: Hot dogs and red potatoes
Sunday
B: Cereal
L: leftovers
D: Freezer meal

For more yummy meal plans, visit www.orgjunkie.com

Encouragement

2009-04-18T12:28:00.002-04:00

I was really encouraged by this post this morning so I thought I would pass it along:

Sober-Minded Women from A Wise Woman Builds Her Home

Happy Saturday everyone!

2009-04-16T09:50:00.007-04:00

This past Friday Stew had off from work so we all headed up to the Roger Williams Park Zoo. It was a beautiful day and was such a fun time with the girls. It was nice to relax and have a family day. Here are some photos from our trip:

Sarah's highlights from the zoo were things like wooden displays and climbing stairs.

The girls even got to pet a sheep this visit. It was pretty neat to watch. Good thing their daddy isn't afraid to get his hands dirty.

Our all time favorite thing about this zoo: a little enclosure that has a bird that will peck at your fingers when you tap on the glass. Definitely the highlight for our four year old!

Overwhelmed

2009-04-13T20:45:00.001-04:00

Jesus......I am overwhelmed

Psalm 139

1 O LORD, you have searched me
and you know me.
2 You know when I sit and when I rise;
you perceive my thoughts from afar.
3 You discern my going out and my lying down;
you are familiar with all my ways.
4 Before a word is on my tongue
you know it completely, O LORD.
5 You hem me in—behind and before;
you have laid your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
too lofty for me to attain.
7 Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, [a] you are there.
9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,
10 even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.
11 If I say, "Surely the darkness will hide me
and the light become night around me,"
12 even the darkness will not be dark to you;
the night will shine like the day,
for darkness is as light to you.
13 For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother's womb.
14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.
15 My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made in the secret place.
When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,
16 your eyes saw my unformed body.
All the days ordained for me
were written in your book
before one of them came to be.
17 How precious to [b] me are your thoughts, O God!
How vast is the sum of them!
18 Were I to count them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand.
When I awake,
I am still with you.
19 If only you would slay the wicked, O God!
Away from me, you bloodthirsty men!
20 They speak of you with evil intent;
your adversaries misuse your name.
21 Do I not hate those who hate you, O LORD,
and abhor those who rise up against you?
22 I have nothing but hatred for them;
I count them my enemies.
23 Search me, O God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.
24 See if there is any offensive way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting.

Weekly Meal Plan

2009-04-13T06:04:00.000-04:00

I went a little crazy on grocery deals over the last two weeks, so this week I am challenging myself to living off the leftovers in our pantry, fridge, and freezer. I'll be heading out today to get milk, but that's it for the week. I have quite a bit stocked up, so I may even be able to stretch this to another week. We'll see!

Monday
B: Granola w/oranges
L: Chicken Nuggets
D: Left over ham dinner from Easter Sunday
Tuesday
B: Cereal
L: PB+J w/green beans
D: Honey chicken w/rice in the crockpot
Wednesday
B: Waffles
L: Ground beef, rice and gravy
D: Homemade macaroni and cheese
Thursday
B: Oatmeal
L: Grilled cheese
D: Parmesan chicken with veggies
Friday
B: Muffins
L: Ham steaks and veggies
D: Pizza
Saturday
B: Sausage and eggs
L: TBD
D: Hot dogs and sweet potato fries
Sunday
B: Ham steaks and biscuits
L: Left overs
D: Chili

Desserts: Jello jigglers and the left over easter candy

For more menu ideas, visit www.orgjunkie.com.