prettyfunnyhappyreal (Third week - so fun!)

Pretty

Will my husband kill me for labeling this picture pretty? I hope not!
He plays the piano and I love watching and listening to him play. I hope our children will play as well!

Happy

Josie is always happy.

 Funny

Um. So this is our nephew enthusiastically blowing out his mama's birthday candles.
It was hilarious how he jumped right in and did that for her :) I can't believe I got this shot because as it was happening I was laughing so hard.

Real

Just a sweet little cloud floating in the sky.
We are waiting patiently for there to be a week of sun.
That would be most welcomed sight.
So, go away little cloud. I don't care how cute you are :)

the view

I will miss this view when we move.... 

*sigh* I do love living so close to the water. It's okay, we won't be moving too far away. Soon, we'll have a different view, a view of the mountains. But this is pretty stunning, no?

Happy Easter!

Family Easter baskets full of goodies waiting to be blessed by Father 

Pretty floras. Now we just need more warm, sunny weather!

I love them!

Our basket. We included our pascha bread, bacon, salt, treats, paskanki eggs...but we forgot the wine!

The fact that this Lent was a struggle (in a good way) made Easter so much more enjoyable this year. It really, really did. The excitement was tangible in the morning as we got ready and then got to sing "Christ is Risen!" The tune was stuck in my head all day - which was a good thing! Then all the foods we had abstained from tasted all the more delicious. Now I have a kitchen full of goodies to enjoy over Bright week (what we call the week after Easter) What a beautiful day of celebration. The tomb is empty! Christ is Risen! I truly hope yours was as enjoyable as mine was!

prettyfunnyhappyreal

Pretty

willow branches and palm branches from Sunday

Happy

Walkin along with my big girl and my baby girl.
Hubby gets the photo credit.

Funny

Here is my big girl again, a full blown toddler mind you, asking to go 'nigh nigh' in her baby sister's bassinet. What a silly goose ;)

Real

That, my friends, is the first box I packed today in preparation for the move.
I just cannot believe we are there.
It is a small box that I put the little kitchen trinkets...including some candles, decorative pitchers and vases, and other stuffs. One small step in a long process....whew!

I'm posting this now because I already had the pictures in mind, and tomorrow will be a very busy day. Early morning dentist appointment (finally finishing that blasted crown!), pascha baking with my s.i.l's, Holy Thursday evening liturgy...well, it's just going to be a full day with no time for blogging. But I'm really in to this new Thursday post idea from one of my new favorite blogs, Like Mother, Like Daughter. So hop on over and share your delightful pics. I like, no love, her explanation of why they started this. It rings so true to my life. Having a camera to document the littlest things in my day not only helps me to remember the lovely details that I tend to easily forget, it also validates the beauty of what I'm doing here (namely, raising my children and running the household) even if others do not see my life as that significant. God sees everything I do, which is the number one most important thing. But we all need encouragement and validation at times, especially from those people who you really respect and care about.

The face of excitement

Knock Knock

...

 who's there?

Nobel.

Nobel who?

No bell, 
that's why I knocked!

har har har....

Wow, I know that was super cheesy...
...but anyway, I just wanted tell you that we are getting a house! Our first house! The deal is still in the works but we should be closing by next week. Please pray everything from here on out goes smoothly, that we can pack and unpack without stressing ourselves out to the max, and that God takes care of us! Thank you.

We have asked Saint Jude, Saint Joseph, and the Blessed Mother for their prayers throughout this process. Ahh...this is so exciting!

Holy Week

And so it begins.....

Holy week began yesterday, Palm Sunday, where we commemorated Jesus' triumphant entry into Jerusalem. In the bible it describes how the people lay down palms in front of him to walk over as he enters the city. I think Palm Sunday is fascinating. It gives me chills to think about what it would be like to be a person in the crowd that greeted Jesus. To lay down my cloak, or branches, for him to walk over and watch with awe and wonder at the man who claimed to be God. More chilling, would I be one of the people shouting, 'crucify him!' just a few days later? I don't know, but it's during this week that I reflect on it more than any other time of the year. This is when the most important events of a Christian's life unfold...the events that form the very foundation of our faith. The joy of Easter is just a week away, but the events of this week are somber, reflective, exciting, and life changing.

At our Byzantine church, we do a procession around the building, carrying palm branches along with willows (because willows are the first spring plant to blossom.) It is a beautiful sight, especially since processions are such foreign things to American's. I just love it so much. I love being part of a tradition that goes back two thousand years.

7 Quick Takes Friday - 7 Blessings

So as I was reflecting on my week - thinking about what I would put for my Quick Takes Post - I realized that this week has been pretty stressful. There are just some things that have been going on that have taken a toll on our peace. It would have been really easy to get discouraged and down on myself this week. But, by the grace of God, there have also been blessings sprinkled into each day that have kept me going. The more I think about them, the more I am in awe of God's Providence. So I think I will go ahead and make my Quick Takes a list of 7 Blessings that I have received this week that have meant so much to me. Oh, of course there are many more blessings that I wouldn't be able to list (heat, water, food, my health, babies all come to mind) but these are the ones that stood out this week; the good amidst the bad.

1. Flowers - So back in the fall I planted these bulbs that were give to me by our real-estate agent. I forgot about them. A little while ago I saw that they were sprouting through the dirt. Pretty daffodils. Then, I noticed that a little guy had managed to sprout over in the 'junk' pile. I must have forgotten about one and threw it over there thinking I would have thrown it away. I thought it was neat how it grew despite being in a non-ideal location. A very fitting analogy for many things in life, no?

2. Rice - A friend had done this for her 3 year old...all she did was pour a bunch of un-cooked rice into a bin and threw in some measuring spoons and cups and viola! A fun little tactile project for little hands. I did the same yesterday and Lou was kept busy for a full 25 minutes. It was great! It was totally worth the mess, that I do still have to go vacuum up :)

3. Saints - Oh so I just found this little statue of Saint Francis at Value Village (it's approximately 2ft tall.) I think it is a great find. I love Saint Francis'. I asked Mike if he liked the name Francine. I think its so sweet, perhaps we will get to use that name for a little girl one day....we shall see. But I was really pleased when I found this, it will be enjoyed by our family for a long time, I'm sure.

4. Laughter - Through the stressful process of us *potentially* purchasing our first house, it has been tempting to get upset and take it out on Mike. I did this a lot throughout the past year, but lately we have been really united on this front. We have been blessed this week by the grace to come together and encourage each other to be optimistic and positive. We have shared a lot of laughs this week over silly things. I am so appreciative that we are able to stay calm amidst everything and focus on living in the moment.

5. Grandmas - Thinking back on this week - I realized that my girls have gotten to see all THREE of their grandma's. Grandma C watched Louisa one night, Grandma O came over another night, and Great Gramma came up and took Louisa to play at her place one morning. Could they be any more blessed? Louisa adores each one of her 'nana's' and gets excited when they come give her attention and love. As a result of their kindness, we got to go to a baseball game, I got to clean my kitchen and take a shower, and got to make my husband a delicious dinner while Louisa got to play. I can't imagine our lives without them...there is just nothing better than family.

6. Naps - This week I have been in awe of the free time I have been allowed in the afternoons. Louisa has been sleeping better this week and I believe every day she has taken 2 hours or more for her afternoon nap. I have been able to relax, nap myself, and nurse a bad headache that I had on Monday. Josie has, for the most part, followed suit, settling in with me to be nursed. It has been lovely. I really need that time to myself and I feel so sorry for women who don't have this opportunity. There are days when I don't get it and I am completely frazzled. Mike also watched the girls last Sunday so I could enjoy a friend's bridal shower. He took both girls for a drive so I could nurse Josie right before I left. That was so nice.

7. Hand-me-downs. Louisa and Josie both received hand me downs this week. This is an answer to a need that we have had - as summer is coming up (though you would not know it looking outside) I have been looking at Lou's closet thinking that she needs more appropriate clothes. Viola! I get a bag of items from a friend, new dresses from nana and papa, and more new clothes from great grandma. Wow. Generosity has been running rampant around here! I just hope I can be as generous with others as my family and friends have been to me.

Annnnnd....that's all! Like I said, there is no way I could get to all the blessings in my life. This week was just full of real, tangible, prayed-for blessings. I don't know what next week will bring. I don't know how certain things will be resolved. But I do know without a doubt in my mind, that God loves me and is looking out for me. Yes, He allows me to be challenged, to experience the consequences of my sins. But I know whatever He does, he does out of the love a Father has for his daughter. He has surrounded me with loving, giving people. He has made my life as a mother do-able for my temperament and strengths. He has not given me anything I can't handle, though I know that at any time I could be challenged with something I might not be able to cope with well. I will try my best to continue to live a grace-filled existence, so that my life can give glory to God!

***

{PrettyHappyFunnyReal}

Pretty

lovely pizzelles made for a friend's bridal shower

Happy

Just a happy mama here, nothing new :)

Funny

This is my hunnie's silly picture pose. Sorry dear...ily!

Real 

real-ly tasty fingers, that is! :)

Go Here to join in on the fun!

Take me out to the Ballgame....

So yesterday morning I got a text from Mike saying, 'I'm going to the Mariner game tonight.' Luckily, he intended to bring me too, as he had gotten two free tickets from work. I thought it was a fun surprise! Free tickets are always nice! We decided to just bring Josephine and let Louisa stay home with a babysitter (thank you nana!) We had a grand time! It was technically Josie's second ballgame :) We also got a free parking pass along with the tickets so that was super nice (I am sometimes rather lazy and don't like to walk long distances to places)

We beat those Blue Jays 3-2 (even though at the end of the game I was confused because I thought it was still 2-2 so I was wondering why everyone was celebrating at the end of the 9th inning :) I blame it on the fact that I was tending to Josie so I missed that we had scored 3 runs in the 3rd, not 2. Speaking of tending to baby Josie, I discovered that Safeco field is truly family friendly. They had an excellent nursing lounge where I could go to have a quiet, warm place to sit and still see the game on a t.v.! I was very pleased and have already sent Safeco an email thanking them for this consideration. I told them I would be telling my friends and would be going to more ballgames.

So, last night was very fun. Thanks Mike's work, thanks nana, thanks Safeco - for the surprisingly enjoyable evening with my hubby!

Josie's second ballgame!

For it's one....two...three strikes your out at the old ball game!!!

4 months

MY JOSIE PIE

If you've been wondering how that little 4 month old of ours is doing, this is the post for you!

To start; Josie is a charmer. She passed charm school with flying colors. Well, baby charm school. You see, even when she's spitting up her meal all over you, or letting out a huge baby toot, she's still the cutest, sweetest girl you could ask for.

Developmentally and socially she is right on track. She is doing funny things with her tongue (as seen in the photo) She is beginning to reach out and grab objects and your face if you hold her close enough. Actually, I noted that she was starting to do this about 2-3 weeks ago, and she is fine tuning that skill remarkably fast! I always make a big deal out of when she successfully grabs a toy so now Louisa will yell "JOSIE GOT DA TOY!!" She is a talker. She will start babbling at you as soon as you make eye contact with her - right after she flashes you her adorable smile. She is fascinated with Louisa, of course, and just loves it when Lou takes a moment to stop by and greet and kiss her. Bath time is a hit - especially when I let her take it with big sis (though I prefer taking her in the shower with me or giving her a bath in the sink just cause it's easier. When I hold her in the tub with Louisa my arm gets numb really fast) She is also giggling now! I don't remember Louisa giggling that much as an infant. Josie loves to be tickled and having you bring your face very near her so your hair tickles her face. I mentioned earlier about her spitting up. My oh my this girl has a sensitive tummy! She spits up a lot. I admit sometimes I get a little exasperated with her for this, even though of course it's not her fault. The funny thing is usually when she is spitting up milk like crazy, she will have a big grin on her face. She likes to sleep and has nights pretty well established. Lately she's been waking up at 6 or 6:30 which isn't so desirable, but she does go many hours at night without waking up. I usually only nurse her twice a night now (sometimes I even wish she'd wake up more because I keep waking up myself wondering if she needs me!) Naps are still frequent throughout the day, but wake times are getting increasingly longer.

The Mohawk! I also admit to getting a little exasperated with the fact that her hair gets greasy after just one day. It needs to be washed daily if I want it to look fluffy like this. She wears little bows alot which can hide a crazy hair day, but still the grease is easy to detect. But of course I love her hair and am glad that I have had the chance to experience both kinds of heads. :)

She has only cried a few times out of fright...I would say she has had a few moments of stranger danger but they are rare. She likes other people and enjoys the attention she gets. She has started to prefer being face out when I put her in the baby Bjorn. I like to use the mei tai and the moby wrap for when she's tired, but I'm thinking it won't be much longer where she will tolerate being in those when she isn't sleepy. She likes to see the action, especially when we are around other kids.

So Josie - as you can tell - is a good natured, easy going gal. She loves to smile and charm and we couldn't be happier having her around. So far having two children has actually been very do-able. Once the pregnancy hormones wore off, I have been doing really great.  I had a much harder time adjusting when become a mom for the first time. Now I just pack them both up and we head out places without too much trouble (it just takes more time, of course) and when we are hanging around the house I either have her in a sling or playing in the infant chair or laying on a blanket. Louisa goes about her business, stopping from time to time to kiss Josie or talk to her and Josie barely ever gets fussy unless she is hungry or tired. She will start to talk to herself if she hasn't had attention in a while. The most difficult part is....actually I don't know. Really Louisa is the challenging child right now - it's just where she is and her age - but Josephine May is easy-peasy so far!

Let nothing trouble you

Let nothing trouble you, let nothing make you afraid. All things pass away. God never changes.

 Patience obtains everything. God alone is enough.... Saint Teresa of Avila

Read more.

Boy that's good to remember when you have a toddler going through a difficult, fussy, willful stage. She's not sleeping well and tiring out easily which leads to tantrums any time of the day! *sigh* Saint Teresa (my patron saint) pray for me!

(she dumped baby powder all over on her face and neck)

a walk in the park...

first, to the playground.

then down to the lake...

To catch the sun getting ready to set

There were angels...

and signs of spring...

and Lou tried not to smile too much for the camera 

in the park of my childhood.