my youngest

Asher has always been able to self entertain. It's probably the characteristic that I love the most about him. This morning I woke up and went to check on the boys before heading into the shower. Asher was already awake, but I decided to leave him in there and take my shower anyways. So, when I got out of the shower, I expected that he would be out of bed and have woken up his brother. Sorry the pictures are bad but I was trying to be sneaky...this is how I found him:


He hadn't moved. He hadn't woken his brother. He was playing w/his stuffed animals and being SO GOOD!!

phone interview

I just wanted to let everyone know that I had my phone interview w/National City. Now I'm just waiting to hear back when they have availability to do an actual sit down interview. So, we'll see!

Shedd's Aquarium

Yesterday, the boys and I made a trip to Shedd's Aquarium in Chicago. I was afraid it wouldn't happen bc Jaden got sick the day b4, but I'd reserved a van and was determined to make it. Jaden was feeling better though so it was all good :) I'd decided to rent a van bc my sisters were coming w/me, that and the fact that I don't trust my car to make it all the way to Chicago..lol. Getting the van was a whole story in and of itselt, luckily Brian was there to save the day...my hero :) The boys ask the whole way "are we going to see the fishes" which of course got really old, but I was happy that they were excited. Jaden's favorite part was the penguins. Asher fell asleep shortly into the dolphin show. But, all in all, I think they had a great time, and I'm glad we were able to make memories b4 summer was out.

love my church

I can't believe it's been a little over a year at Resurrection Life (soon to be renamed), and I'm absolutely in love w/it still. I don't feel as I personally know many people, but that's more my fault bc I haven't been able to get envolved in anything since the divorce classes that I took. But, I love going to church and learning something new each week. I felt before like pretty much I'd heard every sermon before except maybe it had some new little twist to make it seem different. I didn't really feel like I was growing in my knowledge of the Bible or in the person of God. But, after reflecting on my time at RLC, I can no longer say that. I really am blessed to have found a church that not only has extremely friendly people, but that can preach the Word so that it's new and fresh and spoken to me not at me. And, I just want to preference that the people at my old church were friendly. Infact, if it weren't for the few friends I had at my old church, I wouldn't have stayed there as long as I did. But, I am not regretting my decision to leave bc I've learned so much since last June when I left my comfort zone to see if there was more to Christianity than what I was finding. I can't wait to see what another year holds!

Held by Natalie Grant

new job?

I like TruGreeen, and I like the fact that they work around my babysitter needs. But, even though my kids are always w/family, I feel like I never see them anymore. Actually, I've felt that way for a while, and now that their dad has them on wkends, I really feel it. So, I have a friend that works at National City who submitted a resume for me bc you can only get in w/a reference. The hourly pay would be more plus I would get bonuses from $100-$700 a month. So, hopefully I will have an interview here soon. Something could come from this or it could be absolutely nothing. I would be nervous to change jobs, but National City has an onsite daycare so the boys would be w/me. We'll see. I'm just praying God will show me what to do.

Strikes Again

The gastro virus has struck our house again. This time Asher has it, has had it since Friday. I'm hoping it passes soon bc it's putting a damper on potty training. He was doing pretty good w/going potty, even stays dry at nights on occassion, but still refuses to poop on the potty. What makes pooping such a big deal to little ones? I must say I will be thrilled to be done w/diapers!

Back to School

I FINALLY got the letter saying that my FAFSA was approved. Now, I have to see if there's any online classes left that I can take for my Associates. And, then of course the decision of how many courses I think I can handle. I know I should be able to do at least 2, but I'm thinking I might want to start w/1 since I haven't been to school in.....well, at least 5yrs if not 6yrs. I'm nervous and excited all in one.
Oh, I read the fine print, and I have to be considered PT. My brother is going for the same degree as me, and looks like we'll be taking 2 of the same classes this semester. So that's cool!!

I lost you!

Ok, when I redid my page, I realize that I lost all of the links to my friend's blogs. So, if you do happen to come by and read this....please leave a comment or link so I can get back to your page :P

stuck

God our Father

So, most of my life I've asked the question, "God what more can I take? What is it that I need to learn that you keep throwing hardships in my life?" It really just felt like I never seemed to catch a break in my life. And, I always assumed it was bc God was trying to teach me something, and me in my stubborn self just wasn't getting the message. In fact, I had just got done talking to my friend Kirsten about it on Saturday at the beach. But, it's amazing how God can have the pastor preach a message that seems to be written just for you, and that's what Sunday's message was, written just for me! My pastor will be starting a sermon series on how to pray bc he says most Christians know they need to pray but don't know how to for one reason or another. Now, he's not going to teach us a 5 step program on how to get God to hear your prayers bc he says formality is one of the reasons Christians don't have a good prayer life. No, he wants to teach us how to really talk to God and have a relationship w/him in our prayers as a Father should have w/His child. I personally can't wait for the sermon series bc I struggle w/praying as well and maybe for the reason which this post is all about. In all of this, he said something that was just for me bc it was just what I needed to hear. He was talking about a lot of people feel just like I was feeling, that God throws trials into our life to teach us something. His response to that was, no father worth their salt would say, "you need to learn a lesson so here's a case of cancer", right? God can work through the tough things in our life bc the Bible says so, but He doesn't put trials in our life to teach us a lesson. That wouldn't be very loving of a Father. And, to have that mindset of Him, we harden our hearts toward Him, sometimes w/out even knowing it. Bc how can you feel loved and cared for by someone you hold personally responsible for hardships in your life? The Bible promises there will be hardships in our life, but also promises that we don't have to walk through them alone. God wants to be there to walk us through, but how can He do that if we're blaming Him for having to go through it in the first place? I was telling this to one of the ladies at my work whom is as close to a saint as I've ever met, and she told me how her husband responds to people who have that mindset. He likes to say, "and what makes you so special that you would not have to struggle through life like the rest of us?" He's right of course. We all have struggles bc we live in an imperfect world. So why would I expect that just bc I'm a Christian that my life would somehow be easier than others? Messages like last week just remind me why I go to church every Sunday even though some Sundays I wish I could just sleep in, especially on the wkends I don't have the boys.