their first eggstravaganza

Bethel has this eggstravaganza thing every year. There were bounce houses, obstacle courses, games, face painting, balloon animals, and a big egg hunt. The boys had a blast, and were exhausted by the time we got home. It was a pretty fun day, and the weather was beautiful!

 My little helpers while I helped at the check in desk

 Waiting patiently for the hunt

 Their buckets filled

 I really wish my kids would give real smiles for their pictures! 

 Aiden and Bobby were there for the hunt too!

 Elias wanted Spot (his dog), but I talked him into a bunny

 Raelynn loves being outside

My favorite people, and my favorite nephew, Zeekers

A little cuddle time after such a busy day - I adore these moments

the products of pregnancy

Crying: I cry about everything. Today it was after looking at a concoction of medicine that I take every single day three times a day. I started crying because I didn't want to drink it. I drank it, but I might have cried the entire time I drank it.

Insane, irrational comments such as, "Let's just hire a hit man." Who says that?! Maybe a prego who watches far too many crime shows because she secretly wants to be a detective.

Ridiculous temper. I already have a short fuse, with these extra hormones flying around, I'm completely out of control. It flares up in .0003 seconds, and goes away just as fast once I've realized what I'm doing. Not good. My poor boys have had a few yelling episodes that they should not have had to hear/see. Always followed by apologies...but that does not make up for my craziness.

Exhaustion. I clean up after dinner and just sit on the couch until bed. I don't move (unless food is calling my name).

The frustration of turning my back for half a second to promptly forget what I was doing, or why I was standing there.

The frustration of losing all the baby weight from my prior pregnancy and finally feeling good in all my clothes, to having a bulging belly that doesn't quite look like pregnancy.....more like a little too much snacking!

Disaster of a house. Yup, it's happened again. All I do is sleep, so my house is neglected. Dirty floors, dusty shelves, and piles of laundry (clean and dirty piles).

11 months

Yet again, I did not take pictures of Miss Raelynn. I've been on the tired/lazy side lately. I'm sure I'll regret it later, but she was so sick for most of the month. I just couldn't bring myself to make her pose for me! These are my favorite pictures of the month.

 We need to have another girl - this little one loves to play with balls and trucks, just like her brothers! 

 She is so smiley - all the time. 

And so girly too! I love how she holds her hands. 

~ You started waving, along with this adorable little noise that sounds a lot like "hi"...it's more like "haaaaa" and high pitched. So cute. It's such a princess wave too - you look like you belong in a parade.
~ You love to clap.
~ You pooed a lego. I about had a heart attack when I changed your diaper to find a yellow lego.
~ You finally figured out to get into the sitting position on your own. You think you are hot stuff rolling around everywhere, and then sitting up wherever you want to be....now if only you will learn to crawl!
~ You had such a hard month. You were super stuffed up, had an ear drum burst, had an ear infection, but somehow you still slept though the night through most of it. You were a very easy sick girl.
~ Your fifth tooth popped through! You now have three top teeth, and two bottom teeth. You're still working on your sixth, but it's so close to popping through.
~ We found out you are going to be a big sister soon! You only have 7 more months of being the baby of the family.

 I find it absolutely adorable when she crosses her ankles like this. I'm not sure why, it's just so darn cute to me! 

 This is one of the best ways to entertain her while I get dinner ready. She loves to empty out all the spoons and spatulas. And a side note - she always loses her left sock.

She will get herself in this position, only to lunge forward on her belly. She won't attempt to crawl yet. 

sunshine

We've been seeing sunshine! I love me some sunshine! The sun means more grilling, better attitudes because we get out of the house more, and cute little tan lines. I think that grilling is what I've missed the most! I love to get meat ready and have Bryan grill as soon as he gets home from work. It's so yummy!

Anyway, got distracted by food talk....we've been getting out more because of sunshine and no more sickness. Thankfully, we made it through this nasty season of constant sickness. We've all been symptom free for almost 2 full weeks! That's amazing progress, people!

And here is what we've been up to:

 Tasting grass

 Learning some new basketball tricks

 This boy is absolutely in love with basketball right now

 This boy loves to chase the ball...he really just likes to do whatever Daddy and Isaiah do

 Playing some ball

 We're a high-fivin' kind of family

 Just chillin'

 When there isn't rain, there is grilling!

And we all get cheesy smiles when we get to grill

fear...wisdom...prayer

I've been talking with a naturopathic doctor since the beginning of my pregnancy with Elias. He is a bit crazy, but he changed my life. I have ulcerative colitis, but haven't had one flare up since being on the herbs he's given me. He guided me through getting off my prescription drug, which was rough for a bit, but I'm now completely drug free. I'm only taking herbs.

Which leads to my fear. He is insanely expensive. Now that I am not working, I need to find an alternative. I knew this was coming through conversations I've had with Bryan. He's been wanting this for a long time.

Let me throw this out there - Bryan has been nothing but supportive through my whole quest to heal my body without commercial drugs or steroids. He's not pushing me to do something that will affect my health. I am doing well now. It's time for me to find a cheaper, local doctor.

I'm scared out of my mind. I know this is the wise thing to do for our family. We cannot keep throwing money out because I'm too afraid to try something else. In reality, I probably should have found a local doctor sooner than this, but fear has held me back.

I love the Psalms. I love to read how David cried out to God. I just opened up and started reading some of the previous verses I've underlined throughout my life. Here are just a few that stood out to me, and they'll be my prayers while I work though this.

Psalm 27:1
The Lord is my light and my salvation - whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life - of whom shall I be afraid?

Psalm 27:14
Wait for the Lord: be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.

Psalm 28:6-7
Praise be to the Lord, for he has heard my cry for mercy.
The Lord is my strength and my shield: my heart trusts in him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to him in song.

Psalm 31: 4-5
Free me from the trap that is set for me, for you are my refuge.
Into your hands I commit my spirit; redeem me, O Lord, the God of truth.