So much has happen since I blogged last!  As you know we are expecting our 3rd child in early April 2012 :)  We are beyond thrilled about having our first baby boy!  We thought about names forever and finally decided on 3 names, Raymond Philip Eli!  I truly can't wait to hold him and love him!  We often wonder who he will look like... maybe he will look like Xavier or Me, or even Xaviers Grand Father Raymond or My Dad Philip! I know one thing for sure, his ultrasound pictures do him no justice, LOL!

Raymond Philip Eli  Nov 2011 ultrasound photo!

Well I guess I can tell everyone now!?!

Xavier, the girls and I are going to have a baby!  I think its pretty safe to say now!  We heard the heart beat and all seems well!  I have a few question still but ultrasound looked great and now I'm praying for health pregnancy/baby!  OH YEAH and ENERGY and to stop feeling sick!!!  :)  Due Date: 4-11-2012

Gods Teaching and Understanding!?!

God is the best Teacher and he has all the understanding of the world... Teachers are suppose to lead their children in to understanding.  By letting them learn and if they don't get it the teacher has the option of teaching on a personal level.  Putting it in terms that the individual child can understand!  I'm really needing a sit down with the Trinity!  That's right not just not One but with "the ONE" lol!!!  Xavier has always said that "It's crazy how in tune I am with my body" Sunday I stepped in to the bathroom and sometime after sitting in there and thinking to myself... "OK so now I know what was wrong with me the last two weeks, What was his problem!?! LOL!"  I came out grabbed my wallet and said in a semi-evil voice, "I'm going to the Wal-Mart"  Any way!  I was pregnant again!  I was happy but I kept it to my self.  I didn't want to get excited about it.  Last year I had two miscarriages one ending in an Emergency D&C!  Almost bleeding to death can make you want to wait before running out the door and screaming to the heavens!  "WEE!!!"  "THANK YOU GOD!!!"  This morning I went back to bathroom and found out that once again I'm losing this baby also!  Anyway I guess the sit down with the Trinity is Prayer and that's what I'm asking for.  PRAYERS... for understanding and the strength to try, try, again!  ;)  There is nothing wrong, that we know of.  I have Madalyn and Emma!  Emma is proof that we work together!?!  Maybe!  :)  It has to be STRESS!?!

One Dove

My Great Aunt Martha and Great Uncle Fred would sit on their front porch, in their white rocking chairs, and would look out on the world around them! Aunt Martha would always point out the Dove's, LOVE BIRDS!  Always in twos!  Just as they were!  You never saw one without the other!  On Sunday June 12, 2011 Aunt Martha met our maker and is in peace!  At the graveside, on June 15th, the preacher was praying... O.K. so I'll admit it!?!  I don't close my eyes when I pray!  I'll explain why a little later :)  I was looking around, mostly just looking at my Granny, when I saw some birds to my left.  I bumped my cousin and said look over there!  On a Gravestone about three rows over there was a Dove, ONE Dove!  Watching us!  I believe the preacher then made a comment about God putting his arms around Martha, or something to that effect, and like Magic the gentle touch of God and Martha came under the tent in a peaceful breeze!  It really was an "AH" moment... ;)  The dove flew off alone and  I found peace in knowing that Aunt Martha is with God. 

For Your Journey Home

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.

Where there is hatred, let me sow love.

Where there is injury, pardon.

Where there is doubt, faith.

Where there is despair, hope.

Where there is darkness, light.

Where there is sadness, joy.

O Divine Master,

grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled, as to console;

to be understood, as to understand;

to be loved, as to love.

For it is in giving that we receive.

It is in pardoning that we are pardoned,

and it is in dying that we are born to Eternal Life.

Amen.

 French publication La Clochette in 1912.

Seigneur, faites de moi un instrument de votre paix.

Là où il y a de la haine, que je mette l'amour.

Là où il y a l'offense, que je mette le pardon.

Là où il y a la discorde, que je mette l'union.

Là où il y a l'erreur, que je mette la vérité.

Là où il y a le doute, que je mette la foi.

Là où il y a le désespoir, que je mette l'espérance.

Là où il y a les ténèbres, que je mette votre lumière.

Là où il y a la tristesse, que je mette la joie.

Ô Maître, que je ne cherche pas tant à être consolé qu'à consoler,

à être compris qu'à comprendre,

à être aimé qu'à aimer,

car c'est en donnant qu'on reçoit,

c'est en s'oubliant qu'on trouve, c'est en pardonnant qu'on est pardonné,

c'est en mourant qu'on ressuscite à l'éternelle vie.

There's a few things I've learned in life :)

 always throw salt over your left shoulder, keep rosemary by your garden gate, plant lavender for good luck, and fall in love whenever you can :)

We had a GREAT weekend! 

The girls and Xavier planted a small garden in front of the porch!  Its wonderful!  The only thing around here that's nice looking is the Oats horses next door, but even that view is gone since Xavier put up the tent thingy!?!  So It's kind of nice to stand on the porch and see some PRETTY, LOL!!!  Yes as I'm sure you know we don't have a Garden Gate but I'm thinking the porch steps may stand in as a substitute :)  So we now have one Mint, three Rosemary, and three Lavender! 

Maddy is losing her first and second tooth, YAY!!! 

Madalyn would like to say that she is sorry for the spit in her mouth but she had to share this with you all, LOL!!!

O.K.  Maddy didn't really understand the process of loosing her baby teeth, so after an hour of her crying about how things didn't need to change... I took this picture to show her this wonderful change in life!  Oh I hope the "Birds and Bees" talk, twenty years from now, will go as smooth as this talk did!  Long story short in the middle of another melt down, Xavier told her that the "Tooth Fairy" gave $20 for the first tooth!  Yes well as you can imagine this stopped her fear and I swear you could see the toys zooming by in her head, LOL!  Later that day she told us the other tooth was loose and she wanted to know if they both fell out at the same time, did that mean she got $40 since it would be two First tooth!?!   

Ok so I've been knitting a lot lately! 

Just finding my groove with the needles and yarn!  I've been knitting a few projects!  One of them is a simple scarf for my Mommy!

Sorry about the leg :)

knit 3, pearl 3... over and over!  I really am enjoying this!  Its very theropeutic and extremely aggravating when you make a mistake, of which I'm hoping my LOVING Mother in Law will help me fix today :)  When Maddy's tooth started to get loose I decided to knit her a tooth fairy pillow!  I love to do things and push myself to accomplish new things but one look at the pattern and I knew she would be 50 and possibly loosing her adult teeth before I would finish it... I decided to just make a little tooth purse!

I wanted a Tooth button but couldn't find one.  So I got a little fairy and sewed it to the back and made the button, not shown, out of the yellow yarn!  Yes I know the yarns are different but I think it gave it a good little shape!  She loves it and that all that matters, really!  :)

I've recently been following The Pioneer Woman ! 

 Looking at her website/blog I realized that this woman does everything!  One of my favorite parts of the website/blog is the cooking section!  She post different, step by step, recipes and so far they are pretty good!  This weekend I made the Zesty Dr. Pepper Pork!  

Xavier added nothing to his and for me I loved the spice in the meat and really just how clean it taste!  Emma ate a lot of the meat and Maddy, well she had Mac and Cheese with chicken nuggets :)   Oh yeah the salt went over the left shoulder a few times.  I kept on dropping it, lol!  I may be doomed in the luck but if spilling the salt is what made this so good, I'm fine with the DOOMED!!!  

As for the rest of the pictures above...

Just enjoy!!!! 

xoxox

P.S. I've already fallen in love and really don't plan on doing it again... Oh but how I love it when he reminds me of why!?!

My First Knitted Mouse!!!

Our First Web Cam Pictures!!! LOL!!!

Day One of Lent

Well this day went by in a flash!  Father Greg said that Lent begins with ashes and that's a good thing... I must not lie, I didn't do exactly what I was suppose to do today, OK excuse #1 The phone rang #2 it rang right at the half way point of my morning coffee!?!  I was railroaded!!!  After that everything was fine until my loving husband decided to make me his punching bag!  He told me I didn't care and that I didn't want to help him!  I'm all about support.  I'm a back bone.. bend me!  I do love him and I'm proud of him.  Unlike myself, day one for him went smooth!  I did however knit a little bitty bookmark from green yarn.  Its kind of cute!  It gave my rectangle knits a purpose and it put a smile on my face :) now its time for bed, I'm going to Greenville in the morning with my Mom and I'm super excited :)

LENT :)

By the time I finish this post it will be Ash Wednesday, which means the beginning of Lent! I love the thought of it but choosing one thing to "give up" is hard for me. So for my first Lent giving up something for 40 days and 40 nights isn't enough, I'm going stop this nasty little habit of mine and nip it in the bud. Knowing that this may be an issue for me, considering Xavier is quiting also, I plan on filling my days with knitting, tea, and prayer. Lots of prayer! I'm pretty sure I'll have carpal tunnel by week two and NO fuse left to deal with simple things in life; Really I'm only working with half a fuse now :) So why is giving up this habit so hard for my mind to grasp. I've done this kind of thing before... and that was with something a lot worse!?! Its not the quiting that I have a problem with, Its the things associated with it! Like talking on the phone, drinking coffee and well its a stress tamer!?! So I guess 22 minutes ago I quit! I pray to learn from this and grow... and hoping to fill this void, if there is one, with a hobby not another habit!!!




HAPPY LENT!!! ;)

WCOCB!?!

I can't believe this!  I've totally got a case of blogger block!  Its driving me crazy!  I have 10 different post waiting to be finished and posted.  I can't seem to focus on one subject long enough to complete a thought.  I have a great thought process for writing, or at least that's what all my teachers have said in the past and I can't get in to that groove!  I can't seem to find any of my past grooves!  I feel somewhat lost in my life.  I feel that having children makes me dumb, or just exhausted!  LOL!!!  All the things I used to be good at have faded and/or I can't get the thoughts to my hands.  I tried to make Oreo cookie balls dipped in white chocolate and well they just didn't look as pretty as wanted them to.  Really good but not pretty.  I did teach myself to do a long tail cast-on for knitting.  It only took me 5mins to learn and 10 mins to get it right!  I guess all my creativity went to that and not the cookie balls :)  The bad part is that I've always been good at stuff.  The first time was a charm for me.  I guess I'll try and push my personal expectation back a little and say "3rd times a charm" :)  I'm extremely hard on myself with things like that.  I don't like to fail but when I do, I love to learn from it and share it with other people.  I think I'll go buy a chocolate fountain this week!  I love the old way of doing things but I'm not going to be defeated by white chocolate Oreo cookie balls!!!   

Phoebe's Sweater for Two!!!!



I think I've enjoyed them more than the girls!  :)

For Emma's Birthday Louise (Mamie) knitted her a wonderful little mouse doll, the one in pink, from a children's book called Phoebe's Sweater by Joanna Johnson!  Emma received the great honer of having her photos on the books blog, http://phoebeontheroad.blogspot.com/!  On Madalyn's Birthday she to received a wonderful mouse doll, the one in purple, from Louise (Mamie) and a few days after she received the sweater for her mouse doll!  Emma's mouse doll is called Phoebe and Madalyn's is called Phoebe-kins!!!!  Oh sisters!  I know they love each other deep down  :)






I Love Lucy "Pioneer Women"

Just For Fun and to make you all SMILE!!!

A Prayer Good For Any Occasion!



 Quebec City
'05

 The Serenity Prayer
 

 God grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference.
Living one day at a time;
Enjoying one moment at a time;
Accepting hardships 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.

To my Gazelle!

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY MY LOVE

You are my Heart and Soul!  For ever I'm yours and for ever you are mine!

Song of Songs 2:8-10, 16a; 8:6-7a

Hark! my lover–here he comes

     springing across the mountains,

     leaping across the hills.

My lover is like a gazelle

     or a young stag.

Here he stands behind our wall,

     gazing through the windows,

     peering through the lattices.

My lover speaks; he says to me,

     “Arise, my beloved, my dove, my beautiful one, and come!

“O my dove in the clefts of the rock,

     in the secret recesses of the cliff,

Let me see you,

     let me hear your voice,

For your voice is sweet,

     and you are lovely.”

My lover belongs to me and I to him.

The gazelle leaps six chapters and delivers to his bride a serious charge, setting aside the playful infatuation:

     He says to me:

“Set me as a seal on your heart,

     as a seal on your arm;

For stern as death is love,

     relentless as the nether world is devotion;

     its flames are a blazing fire.

Deep waters cannot quench love,

     nor floods sweep it away.

We were told that not many couples choose this option for their weddings. But I'm snicker for the outdated love imagery!  We were and still are a playful couple, if that sense of attraction and play is tempered with the awareness that true love is a difficult path, I'm not too worried. Besides to all that know Xavier, this was fitting for his personality!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MADALYN!!!

It seems like yesterday that you were born and in a blink you are six years old!  My heart fills with happiness and eyes fill with tears! 





It's a bitter sweet joy to see you grow but no matter, you will always be "My Baby Girl"  May all your dreams come true little princess!!!  I LOVE YOU!

Why "lily of the valley"

My 28th Birthday flew by way to fast, and a few days after while feeling down and somewhat selfish because I didn't get what I wanted... it happened!  My Mother in Law, an extremely talented woman, for my gift knitted me a beautiful scarf and the pattern was called Lily of the Valley!  So I turned to google, LOL!  The first was pictures of the flower and then pages and pages of information about its "historical/ biblical" meanings followed.  The picture in the background of my blog kept popping up everywhere so I took this as a sign.  I studied the picture for hours and then it accrued to me that in certain ways the flower reminded me of myself.  Its steams sprigs up into the world only to curve down with a bud placing itself at the tip never seeing the world around it just the ground it came from.  I bend over backwards for other people, giving up so much of myself.  Giving good advice to others but not doing it myself.  Always worrying about what people are going to say or do.  Trying to be something I'm not.  Picking up projects and never finishing them, give, give, give, and give but how do you do all this with out really loosing yourself... not real sure but the next time I raise my head for understanding, I think I'll hang it down and take the form of the lily and pray!  Pray that one day the people around me as good as they are will stop putting me though the pain and pressure that I feel to please them and also to give me the strength to learn to deal with it and release it!!!