Learning to sew...

Look what I did!

And here's a close up of one square:

Part of Kris's birthday present to me was enrollment in a beginner's quilting class, primarily to teach me HOW to sew. I am having so much fun! This week's homework was to finish 12 of these squares (we completed one in class on Monday). While Emmalyn naps, I have found time to finish them, and feel pretty proud of myself. :)

A Day at the Park

Emmalyn and I were left as golf widows this past Saturday while Kris went with some friends to play in the church golf tournament. We also had with us our friends' daughter, Kristalin, so we headed to the park here in town. She had never been to this park just to sit and play (She's been there in the stroller while Daddy was doing some evangelism.), and she loved it! There is a pond in the middle, complete with a fountain and ducks to feed. It was a beautiful day here in Southeast Texas, one of the first in MONTHS cool enough to spend some time outside, comfortably. Here are a few pics, but please go to http://picasaweb.google.com/MammaSpell to see them all! There is also a link on the right called "family online photo album" if you ever want to check it out! :)
OH...and if you click on the first photo to make it nice and big...you will notice her first 2 TEETH!!! :) :) :)

HaHa!!!

The Washington Post's Mensa Invitational once again asked readers to take any word from the dictionary, alter it by adding, subtracting or changing of one letter and supply a new definition.

1. Cashtration (n.): The act of buying a house, which renders the subject financially impotent for an indefinite period.

2. Ignoranus: A person who's both stupid and a jerk.

3. Intaxication: Euphoria at getting a tax refund, which lasts until you realize that it was your money to start with.

4. Reintarnation: Coming back to life as a hillbilly.

5. Bozone (n.): The substance surrounding stupid people that stops bright ideas from penetrating. The bozone layer, unfortunately, shows little sign of breaking down in the near future.

7. Giraffiti: Vandalism spray-painted very, very high.

8. Sarchasm: The gulf between the author of sarcastic wit and the person who doesn't get it.

9. Inoculatte: To take coffee intravenously when you are running late.

10. Hipatitis: Terminal coolness.

11. Osteopornosis: A degenerate disease. (This one got extra credit.)

12. Karmageddon: It's like, when everybody is sending off all these really bad vibes, right? And then, like, the Earth explodes and it's like, a serious bummer.

13. Decafalon (n.): The grueling event of getting through the day consuming only things that are good you.

14. Glibido: All talk and no action.

15. Dopeler effect: The tendency of stupid ideas to seem smarter when they come at you rapidly.

16. Arachnoleptic fit (n.): The frantic dance performed just after you've accidentally walked through a spider web.

17. Beelzebug (n.): Satan in the form of a mosquito, that gets into your bedroom at three in the morning and cannot be cast out.

18. Caterpallor (n.): The color you turn after finding half a worm in the fruit you're eating.

This is too funny!

I don't usually spend much time on YouTube, but came across this and thought it was too funny! I used to LOVE that dancing baby on Ally McBeal and it reminded me of that...

A photo to add for your "reading pleasure"

Not that my last post had lots of opportunities for photos, I thought I would at least add a photo of our pups! They get so little time in the limelight since Emmalyn arrived! The afflicted pooch it the one on the right, the uh...brown one cleverly named Mocha. :)
This is rare to find them all in one spot at the same time, but since we added hardwood floors, they spend more time on their beds.:)
Aren't they adorable?!

Quite a week for a hurricane...

I'm sorry this is a lengthy one...but it has been a crazy week!

Well, this week has been eventful, long, and well, pretty terrible.

It started out with the dog having to go to the vet. Mocha managed to pull her entire nail off the nail bed, it looked pretty bad. She is pretty tough and never whines, so we knew she had to go. Poor baby, it was pretty pathetic. So on Tuesday, off I go to take this 55 pound mutt to the friendly small-town vet we go to. She managed through the appointment, and $125 later I was on my way with a dog who was of course now up to date on all shots and junk the vet always seems to think necessary when he sees us coming! And he cut off her nail, hoping it won't grow back to funky, and she is now on anti-inflammatory and antibiotics. Again, very pathetic.

So, then, I wake up on Wednesday morning to very fearfully discover I can't walk because my back hurts so bad. It has been hurting for a couple of months, whereas most of my flare-ups only last a few days. But this was AWEFUL! I called Kris and he told me to get his parents to come take care of the baby while my friend Krissy drives me to the hospital. I ended up there for the day, being admitted. I was at this point just praying for some answers...I am 29 and my back hurts all the time! Very frustrating! Well, God is again, as always and forever, faithful, and he gives us answers. I had a MRI that revealed I have bone on bone inflammation from the disc removal surgery I had 4 years ago. I will eventually have to have surgery again, but the neurosurgeon on the case said I can probably hold off for about 10 years or so....Praise God! I DO NOT want another surgery!!!!!!!!!

So, we wait around all day on Thursday for an epidural steroid injection (that was a much harrier deal than I anticipated, might I add!), and the doc finally comes in at 6:00PM to get me down to day-surgery. So, I have the procedure, and I think I am going to be on my merry way in a few hours. He tells me to lay flat for 4 hours, and I do (not that I have many options with a nurse practitioner husband taking care of me). I go to get up, thinking I am just a little sore, nope... I can't walk! And this doc had just stuck a 5 inch needle in my spine!!! I have NEVER been so scared in my life! Long story short, my AMAZING, WONDERFUL, CARING husband managed to get me home by about midnight on Thursday night. Mostly via wheel chair and he and his dad helping me into the house.

But,...I wake up on Friday morning able to walk...painfully, but I am walking! And now, just 72 hours later, I was able to climb a set of stairs to get to our Sunday school class this morning! God is sooooo GOOD!

But there's so much more...let me tell you how God has just covered us and protected us this week!

For starters, my in-laws are wonderful and stepped in without missing a beat. They took great care of Emmalyn, I didn't have to worry about her at all. Don't misunderstand, I missed her terribly, but didn't worry. Praise God!

I also didn't have to wean her from the breastfeeding because we got a pump in the hospital, and she was eating plenty of cereal and fruits and vegetables with the little formula she would take to sustain her. (I had to pump because the drugs they gave me and the MRI contrast stuff can't be in breast milk, obviously.) She didn't want to have much to do with the bottle, but we got through it. By Friday morning I was nursing her like we never skipped a beat! Again, Praise God!

Then, there were lots of things in the hospital...it is VERY beneficial to have Kris on my side. Because he works at this hospital, we were able to see the MRI, he was able to interpret it and explain it to me probably a week sooner that most patients get results.
We also don't have insurance at this point (his new job...insurance not effective until November 1st). So, I was freaking out about how to pay for all of this. Well...again, why do we worry? Matthew 6:25-34 tells us that worrying is for the pagans...we do not have to worry as sons and daughters of the King! And in comes the neurosurgeon to tell us he is not going to bill us for the consult!!! Then...even better...the anesthesiologist tells us that he is not going to bill us for the procedure he did!!! Together, this saved us about $4,000!!! (They did this because of the relationship Kris and his practice have with them and the hospital.) Oh my gosh! I cried when Kris told me all of this! Could God reveal Himself in a more upfront way?! Again Praise GOD!!!!!

Oh...and did I mention, we had a hurricane this week?! Yep, while I was clueless and in the hospital, a "tropical storm" coming in Wednesday night decided to "become a big boy" as my friend Jana put it and become a hurricane as it entered our fine city! But...again, God protected us. We apparently didn't even lose power here at the house (125,000 people in the area did), and nothing was badly damaged. Kris' greenhouse suffered a few slats torn off, but nothing major. It even closed schools for Thursday, which allowed for my great sister-in-law to have the day off to help care for Emmalyn! (Kelli's a teacher.) And honestly, I think my family here really enjoyed all the time they spent with our little angel!

Well, it is getting late, this post is WAY TOO LONG, and I am starting to lose my train of thought. I just thought you may all want an "update", and I needed to let the world know how God has taken such amazing care of us this week!

Just when I think she can't get any cuter...

Emmalyn has a new "trick" she has been doing lately that is just TOO CUTE! She has decided it is great fun to grab you on either side of the face and dive-bomb with her mouth wide open to give you a "kiss." She puts her whole mouth on your face, getting slimy baby juices all over you, but we laugh hysterically every time. And your laughter along with everyone else's in the room lets her know how adorable she is, and she decides to do it over and over again...only coming up to give you a HUGE smile in between kisses. It is really sweet! I didn't realize at first exactly what she was really trying to do, but now she frequently does it in response to you giving her kisses. In the last few days, she even does it when asked for kisses...if you put your face near hers and she is in the right mood. :) It is SO MUCH FUN watching this little baby girl learn new skills and "tricks!" Here are some pictures of her attacking daddy:

I am blessed!

Well, yesterday was my 29th birthday. Yep, I am now 29...and holding. And let me tell you why I feel so blessed...
Friday, Kris and I asked his sister Kelli watch Emmalyn (thank you, Kelli!), and we went to dinner with our good friends James and Kristin. We went to one of my favortie restaraunts, hung out at LifeWay Christian store, and then went to a great local bakery/coffee shop. We had a great time...we really appreciate them and their friendship, and had a great night out with them! (Kristin also gave me a beautiful candle and pillar candle holder to match my new bedroom.)
Now I want to brag on my amazing husband...
On the morning of my birthday, Kris surprised me with breakfast in bed. Delicious cinnamon apple pancakes...wonderful being married to a great cook! :) He also brought my presents in with him. It looked like Christmas! I have been wanting a sewing machine for a while, I really want to learn! So, not only did he get me a very nice Bernina sewing machine, but he also enrolled me in some classes! I get some Mommy time all by myself for a hobby...woohoo!!! He also bought me Ice Age I and II. (Yep, I love kid movies!:) And to top it off...he got me a label maker I have been harassing him about for months. This was fun!
He also presented a gift from my sister that she had him hide when she was here 3 weeks ago! What a fun surprise, thank you Kim! It was a beautiful clipboard she had decorated with decopage (is that the right term/spelling?) and a book about the year I was born with a very sweet card. Thank you, Kim!
We then spent the afternoon at his parent's plant nursery with a friend who has an 8 month old baby boy...very cute! Emmalyn LOVED being with another baby! :) Mike and Cheryl's nursery is a great place to get to sit and visit...we love spending time there with them!
Later in the evening, my family here in Nederland took me to dinner at another favorite, Caraba's Italian Grill. His mom, dad, and sister are very sweet, very generous folks that I am lucky to call family! The dinner was wonderful, and they then showered me with an awesome picture printer/copier and Grey's Annatomy, Season 2. :) All in all...it was an awesome birthday!
As I look back at the post...it seems like it was about the presents...but not really so. It was partly about how perfect the presents were for me, how much thought had gone into just what I would like. It makes me feel really special that this much time and effort would be put into the gifts. The greatness of the day was also about the time I got to spend with family and friends...precious time to be cherished! Kris and I also got to spend this afternoon together, just hanging out. I try to thank God every day for how blessed I am, and today I not only want to thank Him, but shout to the world how grateful I am to have these wonderful people in my life. Especially my dear, sweet husband. He is a wonderful, attentive, God-fearing man that I am soooo very lucky to have. I truly believe he is a gift from God every day! Here is a picture of our little family. :)