Christmas

Not Only Does She Clean Her Own Belly Button...

...She even cleans her sister's belly button.

Never Get in the Bath Without Your Pearls...

Snow Day

With all the snow we've gotten this week, we brought Sophia out for her first sledding adventure!

Riding to the hill

Sleddin with Dad
Taking on the hill alone!

Sleddin with Mom
That was fun!
Riding home in style

Yoda Sighting

A Full Sink is a Happy Sink

Trust Me

God has been graciously teaching me a lot about trust lately. He taught me to trust in a very visible way this week, and I was very excited this morning to see it.

Once again, my milk supply was dwindling (I have always had issues with this). I began to worry. I started nursing and pumping more often, hoping to give it a boost. The more I tried, the less milk my body made. I got increasingly frustrated as the days passed and I was seeing no results for my efforts. I started guzzling water. Still, my supply only depleted further. Yesterday was the culmination of my frustration, as I was only making about 1/4 ounce TOTAL from both sides in the course of 2 hours. I began to wallow in my frustration, and self pity at not being able to supply nourishment for my baby. Then, the Holy Spirit must have intervened. In the midst of my tears, I realized I had not been trusting God at all in this situation. I began to pray.

Father, I am going to trust you to supply just enough milk for Jazlyn as she needs it.

This morning I woke up and pumped 4 ounces. Two hours later, I pumped 4 more ounces. And so it has gone all day. I not only have enough to feed Jazlyn, there is extra in the fridge.

Wow.

Yum Yum

Can you guess what "flavors" of marker she ate?

Miss Independance

Me: "Sophie, go bathe yourself please."

Soph: "No problem, Mom."
Me: "Wash your hair, and scrub your body. Oh, and make sure you get your belly button too."

Safe in Daddy's Arms

Re-Creating

"Every time God speaks into our cold, dead hearts, He's recreating again... Don't be afraid to speak, because God is going to use your misplaced words to awaken another person's heart." Tim Porter

It has been my prayer over the last month (well, last year to be honest), that God would awaken my heart and grow me as a Christian. I have tried again and again to pursue God wholeheartedly. But have failed again and again. My heart often felt hard. Dead. But as Tim recently taught, God is the ONLY one capable of changing our hearts. My heart.

This month must have been God's perfect timing, to awaken my heart and make it alive. I have felt more spiritually stretched over the past month than I have over the past year. And it is not easy. I have had to remind myself daily that God did not promise it would be easy. In fact, He promises it won't be easy. But, I am finally at the point where I am glad for the difficulty. Without pain and trials, there could be no growth. No dependency on God to get me through.

"See, the point is not to put it ourselves out there and pretend like we have it all together. The point is to say that we don't have it all together, but we know Someone who does." -Porter

I have never been in prayer so much as I am now. I finally know what it means to "pray without ceasing." The world around me is crumbling. I am finally realizing that I have been too. I do not have it all together. I am good at pretending that I do. But a sweet relief comes with the realization that it's okay that I don't have it all together. That is why Christ went to the cross.

Though many difficulties lay waiting in the road ahead, I'm finally learning that I was never meant to get through them alone.

Consolidating

I have been consolidating a lot lately. Cutting down the bulk. Doing anything to make our busy, overly-detailed, hectic life a little more simple.

So.

I decided I am going to consolidate my blogs too. I am (obviously) no longer able to keep up with posting on three seperate blogs. And rather than not blogging at all, I am going to only post on this blog from now on. So check here for updates on the family, the babies, my thoughts, exciting news, trials we face, and any other tidbits I find time to write about.

Baby Wearing

My first project on my new sewing machine was to make a pouch-style baby sling. This is hopefully the first of many. I'm hoping to create and sell a full line of trendy, reversible slings for the baby-toting fashionista mom. Baby slings are so versatile, and can be used from infancy to toddlerhood. Its a hands-free way to keep your baby close, and promotes bonding. There are several ways to position baby, and you can even nurse your baby in the sling. I am a huge fan of baby slings, and am already putting this one to good use!

Sewing Anyone?

I was extremely excited to get a fan-dangled new sewing machine for my birthday this year. Let me tell ya, I have never had a modern sewing machine and this thing can do things I never imagined! It can do it all!

Anyways, I have a very sturdy Montgomery Ward sewing machine that I would love to gift to anyone who is in need. It was gifted to me a few years ago. I am by no means an excellent sewer, but it served my purposes. I'm not going to lie, using this machine is not a walk in the park all the time. The stitch selector is very sticky and difficult to adjust. That is the main frustration. Perhaps it is something that could be easily repaired, I don't know. It is never something I had the time or money to look in to. But other than that, it sews well, and is VERY sturdy. It is one of those old style-powerhouse-metal frame machines that can power through thick layers of fabric.
It comes with a hard carrying case, several foots that I would never hope to identify, seam ripper, cleaning brush, 3 bobbins, extra needles, mini screwdriver, and attachments case.

If you are in need of a sewing machine, or know someone who is, please let me know! I will keep it for a week (November 17th), and if I have no takers, I'm getting rid of it.

My Crew

Jared was in a friend's wedding last weekend. We actually all looked nice at the same time. It was nearly unbelievable ;)

The fam

Me and my honey

Walking with Daddy

Hi!

Ten Amazing Truths No Matter Who Wins the Election

1. The Bible will still have all of the answers.
2. Prayer will still work.
3. The Holy Spirit will still move.
4. God will still inhabit the praises of His people.
5. There will still be God-anointed preaching.
6. There will still be singing of praise to God.
7. God will still pour out blessing upon His people.
8. There will still be room at the cross.
9. Jesus will still love you.
10. Jesus will still save the lost when they come to Him.

Isn't it great to know who is really in charge?

(Snagged from Carla's blog.)

The Flintstones Go to Wonderland

We went to a party in the "Halloween Capitol of the World*" on Saturday night, with our friends Chris and Emily. F-U-N!!! Haven't had that much fun out for a long time.

Wilma and Fred

Alice and the Mad Hatter
Party time in Wonderland

*If anyone can tell me what city the Halloween Capital of the World is, I will give them a free piece of candy of their choosing. Stop by my house this Friday night to claim it!

Dear Jared,

You are an amazing man, husband and father. Thank you for serving me wholeheartedly this past week. Thank you for spending so much time with me at home, and for all the help around the house. Thank you for dedicating yourself to playing with Sophia, and making sure she felt loved, while I cared for Jazlyn. Thank you for staying optimistic when I was stressed out. Thank you for working so hard for your family. Love you Babe.

Love,
Naomi

Orchard

We packed up the girls and went to the orchard today. The sun was shining, but the air was crisp. It was a perfect orchard day. We picked a peck of apples, which will soon be made into a pie (my first attempt!), caramelled apples, and some just for snacking. Sophia enjoyed herself, and Jazlyn was happy and warm snuggled against Mama.