REIing it...

we were up and at 'em early this morning (but i guess not early enough), threw on some clothes, ate breakfast, grabbed the kid & headed out the door and into the car to REI. Eli ate his breakfast on the way. Before we even pulled up, we knew we should have gotten a move on things earlier :(. We were 45 mins early but still...really? So REI was having their garage sale (for members...totally worth it) where their returned items are 40 to 80 % off.

We pulled up and daniel bolted out the door to hop in line, while eli and i made our way (as quick as we could). It was chilly out there!

what we were greeted with...a long line :(

standing in the cold attempting a family photo (which doesn't happen very often any more!)

still waiting...we were moving though. about to walk through the doors!
thankfully that line got in very quick. basically they gave you a ticket and let you roam around their store (probably so you would find something else you liked and would buy it too...pretty cleaver!) until your time was called. we were in the 8:30 group. there was an 8:00 group & an 8:15 group ahead of us. when your time was called you raced to the line. then they would show you to their warehouse. you had exactly 15 minutes to find what you wanted to purchase & get out! we were told by a lady in line to just grab things that you might want, take them out and then try them on. if you didn't end up purchasing them you could put them in the bend where they would then reshelve them in the warehouse.

they called our time (finally!) we sprinted toward the door, got inside & began grabbing...it felt like total chaos. things had definitely been picked over, but we ended up with a few good finds!

we purchased 2 pairs of shoes for daniel--side note: you see daniel has BIG feet...size 14 to 15 (depending on the shoe) so any time we find something that fits and he likes i am okay with buying them because most stores don't carry his size. and back to what i was saying... I couldn't believe we found 2 pair (boots & sandals) in his size. I got some UGG's and then we also purchased a sweet water bottle. We were very pleased with our outcome. what's funny is we went in look for running stuff but they really didn't have any worth getting. i also found 2 pair of adorable shoes for eli we decided not to get because well...they were definitely worn (not just once but almost worn out). sorry eli...we still love you :)

after our trip to REI we headed home, cleaned & stuffed easter eggs for the children at church & the headed off for our run!

mae

Love and Submission

The thought struck me today that how much we submit ourselves to God and His authority in our lives is directly linked to how we view His love for us. If we truly believe and trust that He loves us unconditionally and at all times has what is best in mind for us then we would have no problems submitting to whatever he might be leading us to do. We would know that He would never lead us into something that was going to be "bad" for us. In contrast if we don't believe He has what is best for us in mind then we will find ourselves constantly seeking to modify His plan to suit what we think is best for us. We will find ourselves only doing the things that seem reasonable. Bottom line is we must meditate on God's love and ask ourselves what we really believe practically about God's love for us. Saying, "yes, I know God loves me" is easily said, but is not so easily lived out.

- daniel

super excited!!!

we get to see FAMILY & FRIENDS in a little over a week!!!! WHOOO HOOO!!!!!

okay now for a video that has no relation to this post but thought was cute of eli :) poor guy got so excited he feel over!

mae

wordless weekend

(well we had a WONDERFUL weekend with family & friends in downtown :)).













mae

7 miles!

go here for more updates!
mae

Happy 6 Months Eli!

*disclaimer...i can always remember my mom saying "oh my baby (referring to me) is growing up WAY to fast!" I would roll my eyes (sorry mom) and shrug it off going on with my business. I use to think...i am not growing up fast. Middle and High school seem soooooooo long and then i have to go to college? BUT i get it now. Becoming a mom has proved what my mom was not only saying but feeling.

So. let me say it...MY BABY IS GROWING UP WAY TO FAST! I want to freeze time and suck up every single minute of this little guys life. Even though he has only been around a few short months, I can't remember what life was like without him. What did I do at 7:00am, 11:00am, 3:00pm & 7:00pm (feeding times in case you didn't catch that). Our little guy has brought so much joy to our family. and not only does this little boy have mommy all goo goo and ga ga...daddy is too :) there is nothing like that toothless (well he has 2 teeth now) smile and oh that giggle. ahh!

I read this quote today from a friend of a friend (you never do that right?...just start blog hoping and the next thing you know your enthralled with this family you have NO idea who they are but their story is really quiet enjoyable and you just can't help but read on...trying not to be a stalker. okay you get it) back to the quote:

"a baby will make love stronger, days shorter, nights longer, bankroll smaller, home happier, clothes shabbier, the past forgotten, and the future worth living for"

I have never been more tired in my life (or that i can remember) being up around the clock nursing eli the first few weeks of his life. but as i think back...it was just a phase and it too shall pass.

it seems like yesterday we were recording this video...

so here we are! 6 months later and so in love with our little boy :)

things eli loves:

• daddy & mommy
• his puppy dog madie...one day i will get him giggling at her. he thinks she is just sooo funny!
• seeing his grandparents, uncles & aunts on ichat and skype
• sitting up to play
• trying so so hard to crawl. he hasn't quiet figured it out and i am NOT rushing it :)
• riding in his stroller while mommy & daddy run.
• daddy throwing him high in the air...a little too high for mommy's comfort
• jumping, jumping & more jumping in his jumper!
• toys
• eating food :)
• putting EVERYTHING in reaching distance & in site in that mouth of his!

thank you Lord for this blessing in our lives. i was reading this blog a while back and began to weep as i read this joyous post & couldn't help to rejoice with them! daniel and i pray daily that our little fella will one day come to know & serve the Lord! I desire nothing greater for our little guys life than for him to put his faith and trust in the Lord and to walk daily with Him!

and we can't have a post about this boy of our without some pictures. enjoy :)

eli in my tummy just hours before he joined us

coming home from the hospital

1 month

2 months

3 months

4 months

5 months

6 months

Happy Half Birthday sweet boy!!

mae

reflecting

as I reflect over the past two months in this new city, i am reminded of God's faithfulness in our lives. we had no jobs, no friends (up here), no church, and no fellowship with other believers. now i am joyous in saying the Lord has provided! as we seek direction about support raising, i rest in the assurance that our Lord knows & He cares. thank you to those for your love, friendship, words of encouragement, & faithful prayers as our journey continues. God is good!

mae

in case you were wondering...

this is why i coupon! deals like this get me soooo excited! saving money...ahh you got to love it :)

eli & i headed to walgreens today to see if this deal was for real. i questioned it at first, but decided to head out early to try it. as i got to the counter with 12 bottles of Purex laundry detergent, diapers & wipes, I got a strange look from the cashier. I asked her if she could just ring up 2 bottles to see if this deal works. As she rang it up she realized why I asked. It wasn't long after that that she was asking a manager...and then another manager. By that time the manager who was there tried the deal & it worked! they were all surprised (as I was too even though i had read online about people doing it already). What's the deal you ask?

Right now Walgreens has the Purex (50-oz/32 load) for $5.99 plus a Buy on get one free!! If you have the coupon from last weeks Red Plum (it's on the back) then this is a sweet deal! The coupon is a B1G1 free also, so this makes 2 bottles free plus tax! Here is what I did:

bought 12 purex laundry detergents @ 5.99 B1G1

2 jumbo packs of Huggies diapers @ 8.99

1 (216 count) Huggies wipes @ 5.99

used 6 B1G1 from the RP

2 $2/1 Huggies diapers

1 .75/1 Huggies wipes

& 5.00 in RR

TOTAL : 20.21 & got back 5.00 in RR

savings :$87.63

Some have asked what a register reward looks like. here is the one i got today:

you can do it! i started out very small. collecting coupons each week from the sunday paper. then i began following many blogs that kept up with all the great deals out there. please email me or leave a comment below with any questions. I want to not only be frugal and wise with the money I have, but also to help others do the same with theres :)

mae