The mundane details of my life

What have we been up to? Well, last weekend was pretty quiet - we ended up going to Bass Pro Shop because we’d never been there before (it just opened in our area maybe a year or so ago?) So in the midst of much snow falling last Saturday, we packed up the kids and ventured out in it. It was great. I kinda’ felt like we were on vacation. haha. The girls had a blast. There is an awesome waterfall and it leads into a huge aquarium full of giant fish - they could’ve watched those fish forever I think! There’s also some neat elevators you can take to the 2nd floor and they’re see-through so the girls could’ve ridden those all night as well. We happened to go right around dinner time and they even had a little café where we ordered some really good sandwiches which were really big and it was much fun. :) So that was our weekend - not much else exciting happened.

So we return to our Cleansing Stream class tomorrow night - it’s our 3rd week now. Last Thursday went really well - we actually got there a little late so we had to sit in the only 2 seats left which were front & center - but I think that was probably good in the end since it helped me pay attention to the guy talking on the DVD. :) You have your workbook which goes right along with the points/topics in the video, so you can take notes while you watch, which I like cuz it helps me pay attention much more. But since we only have 1 workbook, Chris just sat there and let his mind wander. I’m having a hard time just focusing on myself and my own spiritual growth, since I know Chris really needs this, too, I really want him to pay attention and do his homework and try, but I realize that instead of getting mad at him for not doing those things, I just have to know that I’m not going to be held accountable for my husband’s walk. I can work on my own spiritual growth and I cannot be upset or whatever about what Chris wants to do/not do. I just need to pray and let God do the work in him! :) So anyway, the homework I was dreading has not been that bad at all - I know there is more Bible reading I should be doing - but it’s a big deal for me to just make time each night to read & pray and do this homework - so I am trying not to overwhelm myself by having really high expectations of what I should be doing. I am already learning a lot and God has let situations occur in my life this week where I have been forced to apply the truths I’ve learned so far and it’s a good thing -- though it seems whenever it comes to God and Him teaching us, it is never easy!

I am very thankful that my sister has been able to watch the girls every Thursday while Chris & I can go to this study at Church… She is so wonderful with the girls and she even brings a new activity for them/something crafty or fun, to do each week which they love. I know they have so much fun with her and that means a lot.

It seems we are leaning toward Mackinaw Island for our vacation. Chris’ mom is going to call the couple this week and see if their house is available the last week of June, which is exactly when we went last year. We were even thinking of going to North Carolina in the past week, but the drive there would be SUPER long and to rent a house on the ocean (which is want Chris’ mom wants) it would be pretty expensive and we could only really afford it if Joe & Merin went too, and they don’t want to or wouldn’t be able to. So that idea was erased and we were left with Mackinaw. Still, I’m happy with wherever we go - just take me somewhere - away from the stress of everyday life. :)

So it’s been fun lately at our house cuz Maya has been learning new words at a rapid rate these days - I truly believe Chloe was the same way... right before the 2nd b-day - the vocab. just increases amazingly! I think most people wouldn’t understand what she’s saying, but we do… cuz nothing really comes out super clearly. :) She says “dooty” a lot which means “dirty” and as of late, also means “cookie.” haha. She said “dote” the other day when looking for the remote for the TV. She pointed at the light switch and said “light.” Everyday I am excited to hear another new word outta’ her mouth. It’s fun. She always calls Chloe “see see” as in “sissy” - but that makes Chloe mad now and she yells at Maya “No!! Chloe!!” So Maya complies and tries to say her name and it usually comes out “low-ee” which is enough to make Chloe happy. :) It’s so cute to watch them together - they love playing together - especially chasing each other around the house and stuff - and Chloe, who rarely gives a good belly laugh, has been laughing hysterically all because of Maya doing something silly when she’s playing with her. It’s such a blessing to watch. I just sit there with the biggest smile on my face & take it all in.

Well, back to the topic of the war of

VS.

So the weaning from the bottle may have been successful - but now we’re onto the next struggle with Maya. She is now addicted to juice and after a check-up on Monday with the pediatrician, the Dr. said Maya should only drink 8 oz. of juice a day and 16 oz. of milk. Well, now that milk is out the window, we live on juice, so she’s now taking in WAY too much juice. UGH. Is there no happy medium with this girl? Goodness. Chris said to me the other day, you know you really haven’t gotten anywhere with Maya, since now in the middle of the night instead of saying “ba ba” she’s saying juice. UGH. Yes. The first few nights she did really much better - not getting up as often, and even come Thursday night, she actually slept in her own bed all night long and only had some juice once!! I was praising Jesus big time on Friday morning when I woke up. :) So things were looking up I thought... But now we’re back to wanting juice frequently through the night and she’s sleeping with us part of the night as well. My problem is that I have no energy in the middle of the night and it’s easier to just bring her to our bed at 1 am rather than try to put her back to sleep in her own bed. I know how this all can stop though, or so I believe. :) The first answer is to get Maya to fall asleep on her own right off the bat. When I tuck her in bed at night, I lay down with her which I shouldn’t do. And answer # 2 is to get her to eat more during the day, and especially in the evening. Her food intake increased A LOT last week and that helped get her through the night without waking up hungry & wanting to drink. This week, she is still eating much better but she’s getting pickier at what she eats and she’s also so active it’s hard to get her to sit still long enough to finish something! So the challenges continue. At least when the Dr. measured & weighed her, there was no concern there. I think she was in the 50th percentile for her weight and 75th for her height. :) Chloe is still just hanging on the growth chart. At least no one is worried, though.

Well, I guess this update is long enough. Hope you’ve enjoyed hearing about the mundane details of my life.