47 weeks!  I really couldn't tell you much of what has happened this past week-- its gone by so fast!  Gia is finally working on some more teeth.  I can't tell exactly which ones, but the past couple of days she has been just miserable.  Though she did sleep all night last night!  :)  Easter is just a little more than a week away, and we are thoroughly enjoying the nicer weather.  Oh one fun thing that happened this week is that we started giving Gia her baths in the big bathtub.  Prior to this week, we've still been bathing her in the sink.  But after I bought a bath mat at IKEA last week, we figured she'd like the big tub to splash around in.  We were certainly right!  She LOVES bath time.  She splashed and plays with her little rubber ducky and cups and really enjoys it.  I think she will like swimming this summer, too.  She's done great at the YMCA child watch this week.  When I went to pick her up one day, a worker commented "She's so active!"  I said "Yeah, you're tellin' me!"  She's not walking yet but is getting closer and closer, especially in just the past couple of days!

I suppose the supporting tagline for this title should be: "P-Dub, Pit Stains and Internet Friends."

Have you ever heard of momvanity?  It might be a word I just made up but its basically the desire of baby mamas to look cute, fashionable and together, all while venturing out into public, grocery shopping, errand running and balancing a baby on your hip.  Not a bad thing to try for- who doesn't like to look together rather than disheveled?  Well I'm here to tell you, its a myth.  And much like catching the elusive tooth fairy in action or searching after the pot o' gold at the end of a rainbow, efforts in chasing such momvanity are futile.  Utterly futile.  Allow me to explain.

Ree Drummond, aka The Pioneer Woman was in town for a cookbook signing yesterday.  Ever since she announced her book tour months ago, I've been counting down the days (and planning my outfit) to it.  I had hoped to go with some friends, or that Sean could go with me, but at the last minute I wound up going with just Gia.  But that was ok by me... She was the whole reason I really wanted to go in the first place... to make a fun memory with her.  Even though I knew she wouldn't remember the day, I would, and could tell her all about it.

The day before, I made Gia this Oklahoma onesie in honor of P-Dub's home state.  I think it turned out so cute! Even better than the first one I made for her several months ago.  I experimented with the machine stitching and LOVE the way it looks!  (I'll post a close-up later.)  And since Gia refuses to wear bows in her head, I also experimented with making her a cute little matching baby ruffle bracelet.  It turned out even cuter than I thought!!  So before we left, Sean came home for lunch and I was able to spend a little extra time on my hair and makeup.  Then, I put on my carefully planned outfit, hurriedly touched up my painted my toenails (gasp! how did I forget to do that last night?!), went back and forth on what jewelry to wear, spritzed myself Victoria's Secret Romantic Wish and called it good.  We had an hour drive to the book signing, so I'd put my lipgloss on in the car when we got closer.  Finally it was time to get Gia dressed.  I put her onesie and skirt on and she looked UH-DORABLE!  The I tried the bracelet on her... and this is what happened:




Homegirl was not happy with the bracelet.  Oh, well.  I'd try again later.  So, my babygirl and I headed out on an adventure to meet Pioneer Woman. 

The drive went fast and Gia was fantastic- slept most of the way. We got there an hour early and there was already a pretty big line outside the Kroger store.  I was armed with a bag FULL of snacks and toys.  But the one thing I didn't anticipate? The brutal sun!  I had sunscreen in the car for Gia but didn't put it on her, and giving the growing crowd, I didn't want to lose my place in line to go back to the car and get it. So, I attempted to keep Gia within the confines of her shaded stroller.  For the most part, she did great but she wanted to stand and crawl all in the stroller... and she's still not walking so I couldn't let her crawl around on the glass-covered side walk.  As the afternoon went on, I could feel the sunburn starting and the pit stains growing.  Oh no!  And did I mention my hair was frizzing?  And that make up I spent a little extra time applying?  M..e...l....t.....i......n........g.  But Gia still looked cute in her OKonesie and skirt.  That is, until I broke out the banana for the sake of peace.  Somehow it wound up ground into her shirt.  Oh, and I forgot to mention the cherry limeaid that Gia spilled ALLOVER the stroller.  Sticky mess! But despite all of this, Gia was an awesome trooper.  She let me pour water over her hair to keep her cool and didn't protest too much about having to stay in the stroller.

Finally, after about 2 hours we got to go inside the store. I was able to let Gia get down and walk, then finally gave in and let her (gasp!) crawl on the Kroger floor. I know, gross.  But at this point, my frizzy haired self cared more about keeping the bean happy than ungermy.  So for another hour, she was great while we waited in the little cafe area of the grocery store.  Everyone around us was oohing and aaahing at how good she was being, and I have to say, I was impressed too.  Next, we moved to the cereal aisle, where we waited for another hour.  She did so good crawling around and looking at all the cartoon characters on the cereal boxes.  Really, even though she was so squirmy and exhausting, she was such a cutie.  She had the ladies all around us thoroughly entertained.  So finally, after 4 hours of waiting, we were told it was almost our turn!!  I had to laugh at the state Gia and I were in:  Me with frizzy hair and raccoon eyes.  My jeans were now saggy from moving around SO much and I'd had to take my earrings off because Gia wanted to eat them.  Lip gloss? LONG gone.  Gia was now skirtless and had a buffet of applesauce, bananas, Baby Mumums and Sweet potato puffs on her shirt.  I did manage to put the skirt, shoes and bracelet back on her before we met PDub.  We walked up to her, had our picture taken, got our cookbook signed (Love to Gianna!) showed off her custom onesie, then headed home.  6 hours for 10 seconds.  Was it worth it?  I think so... I plan on cooking delicious meals from this cookbook, and telling Gia about that one time we waited forever to have Ree sign it. And some day, when Gia is heading out on her own, I'll give her the cookbook with the picture of us in it.  She may not remember it, but I will.  Frizzy hair and applesauce tops, it was worth it.  Because really it was not so much about meeting Pioneer Woman (though I love her and she's awesome and every bit as adorable in person) as it was making memories with my sweet daughter.  And this was definitely something I won't soon forget (or do again anytime soon)!




While I was there, I also got to meet ANOTHER sweet, sweet internet friend, Erin.  She is a baby loss mom, too.  Her sweet boy Christian passed away last year, and I did the birth announcements for him.  We've exchanged many emails and it was so good to finally get to hug her in person after all the (((hugs))) we've exchanged over the past year.



 So back to momvanity.  I still enjoy taking extra time to dress up a little bit, and I appreciate an outfit that makes me feel put-together rather than dowdy.  I'll still paint my nails and dress my baby up in cute outfits, but please don't mistake me-- its not for the purpose of putting on a show or pretending to be something I'm not.  Its so I'll feel and look more human, and less zombie-mom.  Because as any parent can probably tell you, its just a matter of time before you get applesauce on your shirt or pit stains under your arms from chasing around an active baby!  The memory of a moment is so much more valuable than what we were wearing or the time we spent getting ready! 


 

What? A photo post actually up on a Thursday? Crazy, I know!  We've been pretty busy this past week and Gia has been such a great trooper, just along for the ride.  On Thursday last week, we headed to Cincinnati to see Sean's dad and step mom and sister.  Its March madness so lots of basketball was watched.  :)  Gia loved playing with Pop Pop & Gran's kitties... and they didn't seem to mind her TOO much.  Gia especially enjoyed chasing Buddy up the stairs.  This girl is a pro at climbing stairs!  On Friday, some of my friends from Indy came up to Cinci for a marathon shopping day.  We started off at the Gap Clearance center (Sean watched Gia for that) then headed to IKEA and Jungle Jim's.  Except for a few momentary meltdowns (one major one in IKEA), Gia was so great!  We had a good time shopping.  Saturday was St. Patrick's Day and we had Kyle & Anne and our friends Caitlin & Luke over for some corned beef & veggies.  It was a lot of fun!  Gia has been so sweet this week... she's been a bit cuddly and one morning when Sean went in to pick her up, she greeted him with a kiss!! We also joined the YMCA this week.  It has been great so far!  They have fantastic child care, and Gia has done pretty good going there every day. She only cries for a few minutes and by the time I pick her up, she's happy and playing.  I love the look on her face when I pick her up and she first sees me!  So sweet!  Today we are heading out to see The Pioneer Woman at her cookbook signing!  I made Gia another Oklahoma onesie and can't wait to see PW!

Spring is here! It has been absolutely beautiful in our part of the world this week! Gia and I have spent a lot of time at the parks... we have two great parks really close to our house.  She likes the swing and even tried crawling through the tunnel!  I was so proud of her for trying something new!  We went for a walk after Sean got home from work one day and she loved it!  She truly is an outdoor baby!  This week, we also put Gia in the nursery at church for the first time. She did really great and only cried a teeny bit when Sean first dropped her off.  It was so nice to sit in church with Sean without having to wrangle Gia!  Gia has so much fun personality blooming.  This is such a fun age! Except for one teeny thing.... she's started this screeching whenever she gets mad... isn't it too early for temper tantrums to start?  :)  Gia is on the go all the time, from the moment she wakes up! This week's photo shoot is no exception... here are some outtakes from our shoot today:

I interrupt your regularly scheduled Tuesday morning to bring you this dose of Gia cuteness.   
Oh, those eyes.

I've always been a reader.  I love all kinds of books- fiction, non-fiction, historical, adventure, young adult, children's... I love 'em all.  (Well, most all.  I don't have much patience for sappy romance novels.  Never could get through a single one of those.)  I remember the feeling of awe that would come over me as I entered the school library at Darnaby Elementary.  So many books in one place!  So many possibilities.  One year (2nd grade maybe?) my class read all the Caldecott medal winners, and because of that I still have a strong affection for those award-winning books.  So it is no surprise that I want to instill this love for books in my daughter, too.

Since she's only 10 months, we're still in the board book stage.  Little Pilgrim's Progress and The Doll in the Garden will have to wait a few more years.  For the most part, Gia loves her books... she's a baby genius, really.  Practically reading them to me.   Ok, who am I kidding?  She's more interested in eating the books than in me reading them to her.  And with her new little teeth, they almost all have teeth marks all over them.  Some of her favorites look like they went for a swim in the Amazon and were nibbled to bits by piranhas.  Enter these:





Have you heard of the books called "Indestructibles"?  They are quite literally, indestructible.  They have the feel of a strong paper or cardstock, but they are 100% BABY PROOF!  You can tear them, bite them, drop them, teethe on them, etc and they will not tear!  Gia absolutely loves these books.  And the best part?  They are washable.  Its no secret I am a bit of a germaphobe (though motherhood is making me a bit less so) so anything washable earns an extra 10 points automatically.  We take at least one of these books with us everywhere.  After lunch at our favorite Mexican spot where Gia dropped this book on the floor more than a dozen times, I decided it was time to test the waters and wash the book (pun totally intended).  Here's how it turned out:

I dropped it in the sink with soapy hot water and the rest of her toys I was washing that day.  I let it soak a few minutes.

The I ran hot (HOT) water over it to rinse.

then I just set it up to dry in the drying rack.

I am so happy to report that the book washed up beautifully!  They do get pretty wrinkled from all the chewing and crumpling that Gia does with them, but that's part of what makes them so great... they are pliable and bendable in little hands.  The colors stay beautiful, wash after wash; the binding stays in tact and best of all- they are clean!  The books don't really have a story in them, rather each page is a beautiful picture.  I like that, because it gives me an opportunity to make up a different story each time we "read" it, or to just talk about the picture.  So far, we have 3 of these books.  In addition to "Hey Diddle Diddle" we have:



They are less than $5 each and qualify for free Super Saver shipping on Amazon.  Sometimes if you're lucky you can even find them at Target!  These books are a must have for babies, toddlers, and mommies alike!  Gia loves to read her Indestructibles while we're in the car.  The other day we were driving and I looked in my rear-view mirror and could see her just looking at all the pictures!  So cute!  What about you?  Have you seen these books before?

I follow a great blog called Kelly's Korner.  She has a feature where each week she highlights a different group of people who can link up on her blog.  This week its ministry wives/women in ministry.  Hey! I fit that category!  So I'm linking up!

If you've found our blog through KK, welcome!  My husband is a youth minister at a non-denominational Christian church in Indiana, and I am a stay at home mom to a 10-month old little girl, Gianna.  We've been married 8 years and in the ministry for 10 years.  We are both grads of Ozark Christian College in Joplin, MO (where we met and fell in love, awwww!) and have a passion for seeing young people serve Christ and seek Him.  In addition to living in Missouri, we've lived in North Carolina and California... but we're planning to stay where we are now for a long time!



One of the greatest defining chapters of our life/marriage/ministry so far happened two years ago, when our first daughter Whitney was diagnosed with triploidy.  Triploidy is a fatal chromosomal condition that is incompatible with life.  Whitney was born at 31 weeks, when she went to Heaven.  You can read more about that season of our life and the impact that her short life still has on us today on her blog HERE.  (www.whitneyjill.com)

For now, this blog is a mix of our daily lives, chronicling the growth of our daughter and other tidbits along the way.  Being the wife of a minister can be lonely.  We've been in great churches and we've been in not-so-great churches.  (For the record, the church we are at now is AWESOME!)  We've been extremely hurt by people in the church and we've seen how encouraging and amazing God's hands and feet of the Church can be, too.  I'd love to link up with other ministry wives, so if that's you, leave me a note!  I'm hoping to write more about some of our ministry experiences and how God has brought us to where we are at.  His faithfulness prevails and never ceases to amaze me. 

44 weeks!  I can't believe there are only 8 weeks left of this fun little photo project.  I am working on several crafty projects to wrap it up, that I will detail a bit later.  This week's fabric is in honor of Super Tuesday!  What an interesting Republican nomination primary season this has been!  This week has flown by... I really can't believe its already Thursday (or Friday) again.  Last Friday night, we had our small group and Gia was so great.  She just crawled around the living room while we all talked.  She is definitely coming out of her shell more and more. Last week, Gia also had her hearing checked.  We are so blessed with amazing friends here, and one of our friends is an audiologist.  She is the one who was very instrumental in helping Sean get his hearing aids.  Since Sean's hearing loss is genetic, she said that we should be regularly having Gia's hearing checked, so she did the first set of tests for us last week.  Gia did great for the most part... she sat very still and only squirmed and cried a little bit.  The tests were pretty good, but one of them she completely failed.  It could have been because she was congested, but they still should have gotten some kind of response.  So we are going to check that again in a month or so.  Then we will just keep checking her hearing every 6 months or so.  This is such a blessing that I never expected nor probably thought of on my own!

Saturday night, Kyle and Anne came over to watch the Duke basketball game with us.  Gia is warming up to them, too, which I am so thankful for!  I think Gia is hitting a growth spurt because the past couple of days she has been eating a TON.  She's over her little blueberry kick, though.  She doesn't even want to touch them now!  On Wednesday, we went shopping with Gia's best, Ella and my friend Heather.  I think the girls had fun riding in the carts while we checked out Target.  :)  Sleep again was hit and miss this week... we got two nights of Gia sleeping 12 hours (we slept about 8 hours), but its back to waking up.  Though I'm hoping that's just because of the growth spurt!

 

43 weeks!  Gia has been sleeping amazingly well this week!  One night, she slept for 14 hours straight!  And the next two nights she slept for 7 hours.  Of course, she's had a really runny nose and congestion so I think most of that sleep was because she wasn't feel well.  Whatever- I'll take it!  Once she was feeling better towards the end of the week, she went back to waking up in the middle of the night.  She still has some congestion and a cough... if she still isn't better after the weekend I think I will take her to the doctor.  Its been 3 weeks that she's been battling this crud.  Poor babe.  Sean was sick over the weekend, so I quarantined him in the bedroom for 3 days.  He took the Jr Hi group to a youth conference in Cincinnati and came home puking.  So far, Gia and I have averted that plague.  But, its made for a really long week doing everything on my own.  Thankfully, Sean is feeling better so we're looking forward to a good weekend together.  The rest of this month is craziness with Sean again working every weekend and us not getting much family time.  Just getting us ready for an even crazier summer!  If my parents still lived in the States, I'm pretty sure Gia and I would go stay with them for a month or two at a time this summer.  Oh, well... guess we'll have to figure out how to make do!  I'm hoping to go stay in Cincinnati with Sean's parents while he is in Baltimore for a week. 

Today is a special anniversary, of sorts.  Not exactly cake and champagne-worthy, but definitely notable.  On February 28 last year, Sean and I left behind our lives in California for good.  We took a red-eye flight out of San Francisco, bound for Cincinnati.  I was 30 weeks pregnant AND we were flying with our two lovely kitties.  Looking back, I can only laugh at the sight we must have been.  Duke had chewed through not one, but TWO carriers on the drive up to San Fran.  Seal was beside himself with anxiety, and I was through the roof nervous about all of it.  Oh, what a sight we must have been at the airport check-in desk!  I think the lady was a little bit worried I might go into labor during the 6 hour overnight flight.  Thankfully, we all made it in one piece with a largely uneventful flight.

Our new temporary home?  Sean's Dad's basement.  To say that this was a humbling move would be an understatement.  We are eternally grateful to Dad & Roxanne for taking us in and being so supportive of us in a time when we needed family the most.  However, after 7 years of marriage and being on our own 100% that entire time, it felt like we were newlyweds again- and not in a "can't keep our hands off each other" good way, but more of a "we're broke what are we going to do" way.  After Sean lost his job in October of 2010, I never imagined that we would still be looking for a job when his severance pay ended in February.  I never really even thought we'd have to leave California.  I guess you could say I was in denial about it all.  I was so relieved, overjoyed and grateful that God had finally taken us out of such a toxic church environment, but there was still a bit of sadness over the good stuff we had to leave behind.  And there was still a bad taste in our mouths over the hurtful things that were done to us by the pastors in leadership in Fresno.  Thankfully, God was in control the whole time (duh).  Though we could not see the bigger picture, God could.  Like only God can do, he worked in spite of the sin of others to bring about good in the lives of us who were constantly seeking Him.  Once we were settled into our new home, Sean would look for jobs every single day.  He had many interviews, but nothing that really felt right.  We both just had a feeling that this was a time when God was telling us to just rest in Him.  Man, that was tough.  Rest?  We had a baby coming in less than 2 months.  Rest?  We don't have a job!  Rest?  At almost 30 years old, we're living in Dad's basement.  With our two cats.  :)  Sounds like a good joke, right?

But in all our praying and seeking, the answer we kept receiving was rest.  So we really did try to do just that.  Even though Sean continued to diligently seek a new ministry, we took time to enjoy the season of rest we had been blessed with.  And looking back, we can now say it was one of the best times of our lives.  We'd never lived so close to family before.  It was wonderful to be a part of everyday life with Dad & Roxanne.  Sure, we got on each others' nerves every now and then, but I appreciate them on a level that I never did before.  We got to share so much of my pregnancy with them- something that would have never happened had we still lived in California.  We attended church just as regular church-goers... no other duties on Sunday but to simply worship.  (And eat Skyline after.)  It was wonderful.  Sean sought counsel from a pastor there, and had good meetings with him.  It was a time of restoration for both of us.  Sean was with me 24/7 those last days of my pregnancy and for the first few months of Gia's life.  That is amazing to me.  Literally every hour of every day for months, we were together.  It was wonderful and perhaps one of the greatest blessings of our lives.  When Gia was born, it was so incredible to be able to have family there in the waiting room!  And we had even more family visit the next couple days we were in the hospital.  So much fun!  I never thought that would happen.  The day we took Gia home from the hospital, Dad & Roxanne had prepared a delicious dinner and had the family over to celebrate.  It was so great. 

Of course, the weight of "reality" was always in the back of our minds...we needed a job, a home, etc.  We kept praying that God would make it clear and that it would be worth it all.  To make a long story short, the place where we are now was most definitely worth it.  It feels like home already, and we are so blessed to be in ministry with such awesome students and other ministers.  Despite the difficulty of the past year, we can look back at it all and whole-heartedly say "IT WAS WORTH GOING THROUGH ALL THAT!"  Though Sean is working harder than he ever has, he is growing and thriving, and I am thankful for the men that are coming alongside of him to encourage him.  He has people who are lifting him up, challenging him and just doing life with him.  A stark contrast from the way things were in the previous job.  God has brought me a fantastic group of girlfriends, something I have always longed and prayed for.  We have weekly Girls' Nights, just us grown-ups and it is amazing.  They ask me about Whitney, we talk about movies, compare stretch marks and well... the rest is confidential.  :)  God is doing great things in the hearts of our students and we are just in awe every day that we get to be a part of a place where God is truly moving. 

So, in just a year, we've come a long way.  From being 30 weeks pregnant and living in Dad's basement with our x-box and two cats to now getting settled into a great new town and wonderful church family, we are so incredibly blessed.  A few weeks ago, Sean said that he was thinking about the past year and he felt that the entire season that we were without a job, just waiting on the Lord, He was saying to us "I love you."  At first, that was really odd to me.  I didn't see how Sean was able to get God saying "I love you" out of that trial.  But he's right... the time we had together as a couple, the time we had alone with God, the time we had as a new family, undistracted from so many things was truly God saying "I love you."

What about you?  Have you ever had a season of life that was difficult, but in retrospect can see that all along, God was saying "I love you"?