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A gluten-free and kitten-filled Thanksgiving

December 11, 2010 in Animals, Brittany, Celiac, Food, Jacob, Jarvis, Justice, Paige, Recipes, Thanksgiving by Petra | 2 comments

I know I’m a little late in getting this post up, but I wanted to share my menu with my gluten-free readers, and photos with all of you…

Jarvis’ cat, Chili, had kittens the day before Thanksgiving.  They are so adorable!  Kittens = perfection.

This was on my camera when I downloaded the Thanksgiving photos.  Jacob told me Jarvis took it and that he is sitting on the ceiling.  He thought it was hilarious.  :)

Ah, the beautifully moist stuffed turkey.  Yum!

Counter full of food (menu at the end of the photos)…

Mmmmm…

I love Thanksgiving.

An intense (and long) game of chess. lol

Paige the maniac

Tired party-goers.  They were up early helping me cook. 

It was a great day full of delicious food and wonderful friends and family!  More photos of some of the party-goers shall appear on facebook in the near future, but there’s only photos of about half of them.  I gave Jarvis the camera and told him to take pictures of everyone, but he missed some people.  Oh well, without his efforts there would only have been photos of the food!  :)

The Thanksgiving menu:

Roast turkey (I used a Trader Joe’s kosher turkey… I’ll post how I do the turkey sometime, it turns out flavorful and moist every time)

Stuffing and dressing (I used this recipe, and it was amazingly delicious – at least *I* thought so [for the GF bread, I used Whole Foods brand sandwich bread])

Ham (I love the hams from Trader Joe’s, and my awesome glaze is a trade secret… ;) )

Deviled eggs (I only mix mayo/mustard/onion powder/salt/pepper into my eggs, and they are normally to-die-for, but this turned out to be the worst batch I’ve ever made (it was late the night before and I was being careless with the amounts of salt, apparently)… however, they still got gobbled up, so I guess that goes to show how good they NORMALLY are… lol!)

Mashed potatoes (I went out on a limb and used a new recipe this year.  It was really good, but I think it needed a little more butter and salt than what I added. Oh, and I didn’t use leeks. I will definitely use this recipe again though… :) )

Homemade gravy (from the juices of the turkey, a bit of chicken broth, rice flour, and salt and pepper.  So good! And there was not enough of it.)

Two kinds of sweet potatoes (simply sliced and roasted.  One with olive oil and salt, one with butter and brown sugar.  Pretty good, but I think they needed to cook a bit longer as they weren’t *quite* soft enough.)

Green beans

Steamed carrots with butter and brown sugar

Corn on the cob

Steamed zucchini with butter and salt (Josh made this for me – so good)

Steamed squash with butter and salt (Josh made this too – yum)

Fruit salad (brought by Lisa, and oh-so-delicious!!!)

Pumpkin bread (I adapted a recipe to be gluten-free.  I got it from my sister-in-law, Carolyn, several years ago.  It was really good!  I didn’t try it on Thanksgiving because it didn’t look delicious, but then the next morning Andy was like “that pumpkin bread ROCKS!” and I tried some and oh my goodness – it was so good (especially for being gluten-free)!  I’ll be making it again!)

Banana bread (I got the recipe from our friend, Jeff, when they were visiting last year and I’ve made it a million times since – so good! [recipe shared at the end of this post since so many people have requested it])

Gluten-filled yeast rolls (brought by Lisa, and thankfully received by all of the gluten-eating peeps :) )

Desserts (of which there were no photos – sorry)…

Two apple pies(gluten-free and adapted on the fly from a recipe online that my mom gave me.  I used a pre-made crust from Whole Foods.  They were good, but I’ll try another recipe next time.)

Snickerdoodle cookies (using a GF sugar cookie mix we get at Lowe’s Foods, Brittany makes these and rolls the cookies in cinnamon and sugar to turn them into snickerdoodles.  I love them.)

Chocolate-oatmeal no-bake cookies (I eat way too many of these whenever I make them!)

Cherry cheesecake (brought by Lisa, full of gluten, and LOVED by my gluten-eating men!!!)  :)

Apple pie (brought by Alison, also full of gluten, and it looked SO pretty and I’m sure it tasted a million and four times better than my gluten-free ones. lol.)

Organic whipped topping (bought from Whole Foods and it was DELICIOUS) and Vanilla ice-cream to top the desserts

Recipe share:

Jeff’s banana bread turned gluten-free (just use regular flour to make this gluten-filled)…

Banana Bread
(Approximately 2 medium loaves)
Ingredients:
1 ¼ c. organic cane sugar (I use Domino brand usually)
1 stick real butter
2 lg. cage-free eggs (preferably brown and organic ;) )
3-4 ripe bananas (the riper the better)
1 tsp. vanilla (I use Trader Joe’s organic alcohol-free vanilla)
½ c. organic 2% milk
2 ½ c. all-purpose flour (I use Bob’s Red Mill gluten-free)
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Put sugar in bowl.
3. Melt butter. Add, mix together with spoon.
4. Add eggs. Mix with spoon.
5. Add bananas. Mix with electric mixer.
6. Add vanilla and milk. Mix with mixer.
7. Add flour, slowly fold in with mixer.
8. Add salt and baking soda. Mix again with mixer.
9. Bake for approx 30-45 minutes, depending on your oven, until fork comes out clean.
10. Top of pan should be in middle of oven for even baking.

“Send me, I’ll go…”

November 19, 2010 in Andrew, Brittany, Darby, Jacob, Jarvis, Justice, Paige by Petra | 5 comments

15 days since my last post?!?!  Man – I am failing at this blogging thing.  Well, here is a photo-filled update, and then I am going to do a series of posts using this writing prompt site.  (Does anyone want to do it with me?  I’m going to take a question from the first section on the first day, the second section on the second day, etc.)  But for now, our weekend update with, well, me…

Since my last post…

  • Kendra, her three girls, and Aunt Cherry came for a visit.  Good times were had, lots of laughing was done, and we can’t wait to see them again!!   On one night, Kendra and I performed a spontaneous concert for Aunt Cherry and some of the kids.  They were awed, amazed, and inspired.  Our talent for singing along with 80′s videos on youtube is unreachable by any other.  Kyra videotaped some of our singing and dancing, but alas, Kendra, the technology guru, accidentally deleted all but two of them.  It might be a good thing. :)  Aaaaaand, I did not take ONE photo the entire time they were here.  Brittany did snap a few photos after her and Justice added some things to our wardrobe (we had been performing in pajamas), but um… I won’t be sharing those.  ;)
  • Jarvis had his soccer tournament.  His team only won one of the three games, so they are done for the fall season.  The spring season (he’ll be on the same challenge team) starts practices in February. 

  • Darby starts gymnastics in a couple of weeks – I signed her up yesterday.  She’s excited.  She’s been asking to take gymnastics and/or dance for years, but it has just never worked out.  So yay.

  • I have had appointments, errands or something going on EVERY day for the last two weeks or more.  Today?  I am not leaving the house (Lord willing).  Oh wait – I’m taking the kids to the church tonight and picking them up – they are going to a Lecrae concert with the youth group… that’s no big deal though… and maybe Andrew will take them.  But I may have just dashed my own hopes and dreams of staying in my cave for an entire day.  *sigh*
  • Justice finished the driving portion of drivers ed and went to get his permit yesterday.  He, uh, didn’t pass.  So… we’ll go back Monday and try again. 

  • Andrew has been working lots, getting ready to deploy in several weeks.  :(   I’d really rather he was here 24/7.  I know some couples talk about how they need their space from one another or they get on each others nerves, etc… but Andrew and I would love to be together all the time.  Absence does make the heart grow fonder, though – or rather, it makes us appreciate one another even more – so we’ll make it through and be excited to be reunited next summer!

  • Paige’s eye teeth finally all came through!!!  This is huge, people.  She has been so much happier, less fussy, is sleeping better, and her mouth isn’t in pain.  I know one of my other kiddos had major trouble with those dreaded eye teeth too, but I can’t remember which kid it was. 

  • Paige has also been saying more and more words.  She understands all the basic commands we give her (“give this to Justice”, “throw this in the trash”, etc.), she nods her head for yes, shakes it for no, she does the signs for ‘eat’, ‘baby’, and ‘bird’ – and says all those words, along with lots of others.  She loves the word “shoe” and asks all the time for us to put various shoes on her (which is funny because she HATED shoes up until a few months ago).  She dances up a storm and has a ton of awesome moves.  She is adorable.  :)

  • When Britta had braces, I spent much of my life at the dentist and orthodontist offices.  She got them off a couple of weeks before we moved here to NC, and I just never found a new dentist.  Then Jarvis knocked one of his teeth out a couple of weeks ago (he was holding a stick, tripped over a rock, and the stick hit his face), so we called a couple of dentists recommended by friends and went with the one that answered their phone.  It turned out to be a baby tooth that Jarvis lost (whew!), and we liked the new dentist so I made appointments for the other kids (Jarvis had to be the guinea pig to test out the new dentist).  Darby and Jacob go on Monday for an exam and cleaning, and it will be Jacob’s first dental visit.  He’s nervous and excited.  Jarvis did have a small cavity on a permanent tooth he had to get filled the next day, and we have to get an orthodontist exam for him.  Looks like my days of dental waiting rooms are back.  It was a nice year or so though.  lol
  • Britta dyed her hair pink and it looks really cute!  Too bad that hair dye doesn’t last very long, but it’s still pretty bright after a week.  Oh, and a large family of tiny blonde children stared at her for a long period of time in Qdoba yesterday.  It was hilarious.  She was scared.  There were 7 little kids turned in their seat just STARING at her.  I was like “wave at them?”  So she did and finally made a couple of them smile/laugh.  Then the mom came back to the table (they were all just sitting there being still and quiet while she ordered) and they all finally turned around to eat their food.  THEN, we went to Trader Joe’s and two more little blonde children started staring at her.  It was so funny.  And Britta told me that pale kids with really blonde hair scare her, because they look ghostly or something.  Ohhhh, good times. 

  • Okay, look for my first prompted post (see top of post) later today.  ;)

Little bunny foo foo, hopping through the forest…

November 4, 2010 in Brittany, Fibromyalgia, Jarvis, Pets by Petra | 4 comments

I’m pretty sure our cat got knocked up (her belly is suddenly very round!).  So promiscuous.  We don’t even know who the father is (but the kids have said a big black cat was hanging around our porch a while back).  We aren’t inviting her back in to be an indoor cat, so I’m off to find a cat house today.  The kids are excited and are already asking to keep the kittens.  {sigh}

My most favorite cousin is visiting this weekend, with three of her ten kids and my aunt.  I’m so excited!  I haven’t seen Kendra and her kids since we lived in Texas (about five years ago), and I haven’t seen Aunt Cherry since Washington (about a year and a half ago).  Good times will be had, and I will try to remember to take some photos.  :)

Facebook… I usually glaze over controversial posts because I don’t want to get sucked into the drama.  Once in a while, however, I comment on a post that ends up sucking me in and then I have to put way too much thought and energy into keeping up with the debate.  I did this today, and it has taken about 20 minutes of my precious time.  And I wonder if I’m just wasting energy.  It’s not like the people on the other side of the argument are listening to anything I have to say, and I am firm in  my beliefs so they aren’t going to sway me with their liberal “tolerance and acceptance” speeches.  I believe that sin is sin and no matter how tempted anyone is to commit those sins, the Bible isn’t going to change what it says about those sins.  Period.  If we were debating something in a ‘gray’ area, such as “is that chair charcoal or smoke colored?”, then they might be able to pull me over to their side.  But those are not the debates I choose to jump in on.  Unfortunately.  lol

Being glutened three times in the past month (after avoiding any crumbs for months!), along with an extra busy schedule, and the change in weather has pushed my fibromyalgia into overdrive.  Lots of tension headaches, and lots of pain all over but especially in my jaw, neck, and back, and much fogginess of the brain  have made my day to day life a bit more challenging.  With God’s strength, though, I am pushing through.  He gives me energy when I need it, and also rest when I need it.  I do long for the sunny days of summer, though, as the extra sunshine helps with all of the above.  God has also blessed me with a very helpful husband and some very helpful children who don’t complain about having a few extra chores on the days my body isn’t moving as well as it should. 

Brittany messed her big toe up two days ago.  She stubbed it really hard and her toenail was sticking straight up only attached at the base.  It was bleeding a lot, and I managed to push the toenail back down and place a chunk of skin back in place and get it gauzed and taped up.  I gave her ibuprofen, had her ice it and keep it propped up.  Then yesterday, we went to check on it and change the dressing, and found that when I was concentrating so hard on getting part of her toe back in it’s proper place, that I missed something – part of the base of the toenail that should be under the skin is on the outside of the skin – ugh.  She obviously will lose the whole thing, but she’d probably be more comfortable in the meantime if that piece of nail was where it belonged.  Oh well.  Too much information?  Eh.  ;)   Hopefully she won’t be in too much pain as it heals.  It’s going to take a while though. 

Jarvis a.k.a. Pele

Darby and Paige with some newfound friends during the soccer game.

Jarvis hustles toward the ball.

:)

And, to brighten your day (or not)…

…where music and passion are always in fashion…

October 12, 2010 in Andrew, answered prayer, Brittany, Darby, Home & Garden, Homeschooling, Jacob, Jarvis, Justice, Lists, Paige, Parenting by Petra | 5 comments

Quick update…

  • Paige went to the doctor this morning for her 18 month old checkup, and according to her doctor (who we love, by the way!) Paige is perfect.  We already knew that though.  She had to get one shot today, but the nurse was fast, so while she did scream for a minute, she was soon fine.  She weighs 21 pounds (10th %), and is 29 1/2″ tall (5th %).  Her head?  It’s still large.  It’s 19 or 19 1/2″ (I can’t remember which) and that, my friends, is in the 90th %.  Tiny body, huge head. For that big brain, I presume.
  • Britta Cait started babysitting for a local MOPS group.  Today was her first day, and they meet once a month.  She had a great time.  She loves little kids, and she loves making money = a great combo. 
  • Britta also turned 17 last week.  More to come on that (and also I have photos from Justice’s birthday celebration last month.  Patience, young padawans, patience).
  • Have I mentioned how much I love my kids?  Yes?  Well, I’m saying it again.  God has blessed us so much with six amazing kiddos, I just can’t believe it most of the time.  They all show me and Andy such love and respect (absolutely no slamming doors or “I hate you”‘s in this house), they all want to serve God, and they all love spending time with us.  That may sound ‘normal’ to some of you, but I know a lot of people who struggle with their teenagers (and a lot of people who struggle with their pre-teens and toddlers too), and it just makes me so thankful to have loving, well-behaved kids.  They are not perfect, of course (no one is), but they are an enormous blessing to me and I thank God for them all.
  • Homeschooling is going swimmingly (pretty sure that’s the first time I’ve ever used that word).  I’m enjoying it, the kids are enjoying it – so awesome.  The kids are all learning (which is more than I can say for their previous public school educations), and our schedule is going great.  Total answer to prayer – all of it!!!
  • Construction is still ongoing.  Andrew finished building the walls in the main room of the basement (school room/office/craft area), and just needs to do one more round of mudding and sanding – then we paint and put a new floor in.  We decided on a laminate floor for that room and Brittany’s room after looking at cost, where it was in the house, how much wear it would get, etc… but we’ll put a tiled area by the back door since rumor has it that laminate flooring does not do well when it gets wet. 
  • We have gotten more involved in our church and are loving it.  The people are wonderful, the kids love it, and we just know it’s exactly where God wants us to be.  Awesome.
  • Britta is going on a missions trip with some people from our church at the end of this month.  They are heading to New York City to do some ministering to others.  Please be prayingn for them.
  • Jacob has turned into a social butterfly!  He used to be SO shy and just wanted to be with me all the time, but he has changed SO much in the past 6 months or so.  He just wants to play with his friends, invite them over, go see them, go to church, and of course… marry Katie, my friend Robyn’s daughter.
  • Aaaaand since I’ve been interrupted no less than 47 times since the start of this post, I’ll go ahead and close with a couple of photos from my brother Matt’s house… :)

Paige walking around Uncle Matt's house like she owned the place. :)

Justice and Tanner in the 'mud pit' at Uncle Matt's house - the boys had a BLAST!

Canyon, Justice, Tanner, and Chance

Poor Jarvis was sick on the mud pit day. :(

Jacob LOVED the swimming pool and hot tub!

Darby and Taylor :)

Taking turns on each other's shoulders in the pool :)

Taylor's turn on Darby's shoulders... so fun to have a cousin so close in age!

Britta apparently beating up Canyon. lol

More mud pit fun (that's Canyon and Britta if you can't tell)

Well I won’t back down, no I won’t back down…

October 7, 2010 in Andrew, Brittany, Darby, Jacob, Jarvis, Justice, Paige by Petra | 4 comments

Airborne and Special Operations Museum (we went a couple of weeks ago after Andrew’s PSYOP graduation)…

At the museum...

Jarvis' long lost friend?

Darby is a nut!

Imitating the mannequins

I don't even know.

Excuse me mister, can I have your gun?

Jacob's cheese grin is hilarious!

More reenactments from the drama queen... :)

My sweet Jacob

Britta reading stuff :)

She's outta control

 

Hello? Hello!!??

Roger Roger

Paige was SO done after getting up early, going to the graduation, lunch and now the museum. She was like "WHEN IS MY NAP!!?!?"

"Where did you get that scarf? It's so last year."

"This map is so confusing."

I was there too.

"Take me home! Waaaahhhh!"

So deliriously sleepy. lol

Squishy little arms and legs

Doesn't get any spunkier.

Sweet Sassy Spunky mess

Cute Britta. I love her individuality!!

pretty girl :)

We finally let her run around - little cutie patootie :)

Really fun family day, but it was time to go home.

Over hill, over dale, we have hit the dusty trail…

October 4, 2010 in Andrew, Brittany, Jacob, Military, Paige by Petra | 8 comments

I’m finally posting some photos from Andrew’s PSYOP, er MISO, graduation.  He’s so awesome. He learned Russian, won the Leadership Award in school, and all while still being the perfect husband and father.  I love him.

Jacob waiting for the graduation to begin.

The plaque and certificate table (Andrew got a plaque for the Leadership Award, a graduation certificate, and an Army Commendation medal/certificate)

Ze podium.

Getting his medal

Yes, I realize all these photos are incredibly blurry - it's a long story, and I don't want to talk about it. Okay? Okay.

My wondrously awesome husband!

The Darbster in Daddy's beret.

Paige enjoying the spoils of the reception table.

Beautiful Britta.

More cuteness (and she picked out her pink cowgirl boots - seriously - at Target, she refused to buy any shoes other than these.)

Next up, photos from our trip to the museum after the graduation. Tomorrow?  Perhaps.

I love Adobe.

October 1, 2010 in Brittany, Fibromyalgia, Paige by Petra | 3 comments

So yesterday I had a major fibromyalgia flare-up.  If you don’t know what that is, here’s a link that somewhat describes what yesterday was like for me. 

Thankfully, today I am feeling MUCH better (aside from some awful jaw pain) and am on the road to getting my energy back (I love that my immune system is improving and it doesn’t take me two weeks to get over a 24-hour flu anymore… however, it does still take me longer than the average person and I generally have a day or two like yesterday after being ill and/or pushing myself). 

So yesterday, since I was so foggy and unable to function for the most part, I worked on my blog.  Did you see the new banner?  It goes along with my main menu page at petracarden.com, which I also created yesterday.  Only “blog” is clickable as of yet (eta: and now the ‘me’ and ‘health’ pages), but the other pages are coming as I get time.  I’m excited.  I’ve been wanting to add things to my website for a long time.  The photo in the center of the circle is by my favorite photographer, Ali McLaughlin.  (If you are in the VA/D.C. area – hire her for a shoot – she rocks!)

More photos to come on the next post.  Check back later.  For now, I’ve got lesson plans to do!

(but one photo to hold you over…)

~sisters~

Petra is back with my brand new invention…

September 30, 2010 in Brittany, Darby, Homeschooling, Jacob, Jarvis, Justice, Lists, Paige, Travel by Petra | 6 comments

I know it’s been a while, but diving into new schedules, full-force homeschooling, a road trip, and a stomach bug have kept me away from the blog.  I should be around for a while though, so expect more frequent posts.  {here is where you jump up and down and cheer}

For today, I have a list update followed by a bunch of party photos (more photos ready to share over the next several days too)… hopefully tomorrow I’ll think of something that will be inspirational and blow your mind.  Let’s play that one by ear though, okay? Okay.

  • We love our new homeschool schedule.  We get up in time to have two hours for breakfast, exercising, Bible study, and getting ready for the day before our schoolwork begins.  We did a week-long test run, then interrupted for a trip, but will get back to it this coming Monday.
  • We had a great trip to Atlanta visiting my siblings and nieces and nephews.  Wonderful times were had by all.  My kids LOVE hanging out with their cousins – we wish we lived closer so they could see them more often.
  • We stayed with my brother and sister-in-law (Matt & Carolyn).  They are so nice and hospitable, and my kids love their kids, their house, their animals, their pool, etc… :) [Thanks for letting us stay guys!]
  • Gideon (my great-nephew) is SO adorable.  His first birthday party was the reason for the trip, and he just couldn’t be cuter.
  • Isn’t it funny how traveling makes you appreciate your own bed/pillow/blankets?  I have slept like a rock the past two nights!!! :)
  • Andrew is finished with school and is at his new job now.  My prayer is that he loves it!  He’ll be deployed a lot, but that’s part of the downside to being in the military.
  • The kids (the five oldest) started their Wednesday night programs at church last night.  Britta and Jarvis missed it because they weren’t feeling well, but the other three kids had a great time!
  • We passed around a stomach bug.  It was kind of brutal for some of us, but short-lived.  I’ll take super painful/gross for a day over less ill for a week though.  I prefer just getting it all out of the way at once.
  • Andrew got a lot of work done in the office/school room while the kids and I were in Atlanta.  He rocks! 
  • Now there’s a lot of sanding to do and then we prime.  Andrew had to build some walls, and then drywall and he got all that done plus mudding.
  • I was sick the day I was supposed to shop at the Atlanta IKEA with friends/family, but on the way back home Tuesday, I stopped at the Charlotte IKEA and was able to do about an hour and a half of shopping.  It was fabulous.  I LOVE that store!! I didn’t spend too much (although if I HAD more to spend, I certainly WOULD have – lol), but I got some much needed items for the kitchen (glasses, kids dishes, mixing bowls, can opener, platter, cute napkins – yes cute napkins were much needed – haha), and I got toilet bowl brushes (hey – they are only 99 cents and are much cuter than the 3 dollar ones at Walmart or Target!) and I got some $20 desks for my three oldest kids to use for their schoolwork.  So score!
  • While at IKEA, it was kind of late (we were there from 7:30 to 9:00 pm), and when I let Paige out of the cart in the kid’s section, she climbed into the toddler beds and took her shoes off, laid down and tried to sleep.  She got mad when we wouldn’t let her go to sleep.  She was like “hey – I haven’t seen my own bed in weeks” (it was only 5 days, but that’s a long time to a baby)… “I’m tired, and this bed is comfy – why can’t I sleep here?!”  She’s so adorable.  AND I found the toddler bed I want to get for her – as soon as I have the extra cash, I’m going to head back to IKEA and get it!  It will go perfectly in her newly painted room!!  AND it stretches out to a twin bed for when she grows, so it’ll be a good investment.  :)
  • I have a few things I want to sell on craigslist or ebay, but it is SUCH a hassle to do that type of thing anymore.  Does anyone want to do it for me?  I’ll probably just end up giving those items away – so much easier. lol
  • I really love our house – have I mentioned that?  I’m so thankful to have a house of our own (I mean, it belongs to the bank currently – but we are not renting for the first time ever).  I love being able to paint it, I love having all this space (we’ve lived in some pretty cramped places in the past), I love our neighborhood for the most part… it’s just nice.  :)
  • I need to make my meal plan and grocery list for this pay period.  Any suggestions for cheap and easy meals that will feed 8 and are gluten-free?  Please post them. 

Paige wasn't so sure about the ball pit at first, but she liked it later.

Sweet Taylor. Darby had a blast playing with her all weekend!

The uncooperative duo. Marci was trying to get them to re-create their old "fight stance" photos, but they refused. Oh well.

Adam and Andrea.

Gideon and his Grandma.

Paige getting cupcake all over Aunt Marci's shirt.

Canyon, Jarvis, and Nathaniel.

The Van Meters. Some of my favorite people in the wide world.

Me & Andrea dressed alike. Again. Never planned. (because why on earth would be plan to match? that would be weird.)

Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday dear Gideon. Happy birthday to you. (whew. so glad to get that out. only Andrea understands.)

Paige and Andrea. Paige was kind of a grumpypants that day.

Me and four of my six siblings.

A lot of Goodling cousins. Missing Tori, Cory, Tim, Matt, Lauren, Olivia, & Alia.

The LaMontagnes and Van Meters.

Matt and Carolyn. My wonderful brother and his sweet wife. I just love them!

My sister, Marci, and one of my best friends in the world.

Paige liked the ball pit with Darby and Taylor in there playing too.

The Joshinator. Looking forward to his Thanksgiving visit!

Jacob. I mean, Wolverine. I didn't get a better photo of the sticks. I mean, claws.

She was absolutely filthy (and SO sweaty) by the time the party was over!

They did not allow me to get a good photo of them together. Next time, next time.

Back at Gideon's house - he's such a rock star, he loved the drum sticks one of his little baby friends gave him for his birthday.

Another attempt at a photo of the two of them, but Paige is just looking at Gideon like "why are you on my mommy?!?!" lol

Rollin’, rollin’, rollin’ down the river…

September 16, 2010 in Brittany, Darby, Jacob, Jarvis, Paige, Random, Uncategorized by Petra | 6 comments

Another round of  ”what I find when I upload pics from my camera”…  the kids were at it again!

I found this photo of Jacob making a crazy face! And yeah, his hair has been cut since this... lol

There were about 10 very blurry photos of Paige, but this one was too cute... did Jacob take these? Who knows!

Following this and a few other silly photos of Jarvis (in our now-lavender guest bathroom, even though it looks pink in this photo - it's a pale lavender), were several close-ups of his hair? I don't know.

And then after he got whomever (Brittany?) to take the previous photos, there were some self-portraits in the mirror.

I do recall Darby being INCREDIBLY dirty a couple of weeks ago, but I didn't take this crazy-looking photo. lol!

Paige as a 'who' (as in 'horton hears a...'). And Jarvis in the background.

Cuteness all around!

Too much cuteness!

Paige playing with the Wii Fit. And wearing Jacob's shirt. Where was I? Who knows?!

Paige loves remotes! She points them at whatever she's trying to control and gets really giddy whenever something actually happens!

Britta doing Wii Yoga. I'm guessing Jarvis took this photo. lol

I got out of the shower one day to find Risk pieces EVERYWHERE! *sigh*

When I saw THIS photo, I knew why they were everywhere!!!!

What evidence will the kids leave for me next time???

I see trees of green, red roses too…

September 3, 2010 in Brittany, Darby, Jacob, Jarvis, Justice, Paige, Random by Petra | 10 comments

Another random list… cause that’s how I roll…

  • Justice has a job!  He is helping with the filming of the local high school football games.  This was his 2nd week, and he loves it!
  • Speaking of Justice, he’ll be 15 in 5 days. Crazy town!
  • I finally caught up with my bcf, the Kendster! We chatted for 2 1/2 hours the other day and could have gone on for another 12!  That’s what happens when we only talk once every six months.  We really need to chat more often, but between my 6 kids and her 10 kids – finding time to chat on the phone is challenging. :)
  • I need help. I Timothy 2:15 says “Nevertheless she will be saved in childbearing if they continue in faith, love, and holiness, with self-control.” (NKJV) and I can’t figure out what it means. I’ve read three commentaries, and they all said different things, and they were all pure conjecture. I’ve worn out my concordance.  I have a couple of ideas of what it might mean, but I’m not satisfied yet.  So please, if you have insight to offer, please do. I need to move on. lol (I won’t share what I think it might mean with you yet, so it doesn’t cloud your opinions on the verse.)
  • We are on day 2 of a 10 day field exercise wherein the hubster can’t even call.  *sad face*
  • I forgot to get laundry detergent the last two times I went to the store, and now I’m completely out.  I’ve been out for two days. Which means I have an ever-growing pile of laundry.  Must go to the store tomorrow!  (I don’t think I’ve ever actually run out before – it’s so unlike me.)
  • Paige’s eye teeth need to just hurry up and cut through the gums.  She was sleeping so well, but the last couple of nights she’s been up fussing.  She usually gets a runny nose and a fever when she’s teething, but this time she has diarrhea which means diaper rash (which we are keeping under control, but still – it’s no fun)… and this has gone on for nearly two weeks.  I just don’t function properly on interrupted sleep!  Here’s hoping she sleeps all night tonight!!  I gave her Tylenol before bed, but she usually wakes up around the time it wears off, and even if I give her more, she is up for a while – last night? from 1 am to after 3 am… *sigh* (eta 9/4/10: Paige slept from 7:30 last night until 9:20 this morning!! Hallelujah!!) :)
  • Paige has been talking more – it’s SO cute. I LOVE this age. (aside from the teething – ha!) She’s so playful and giggles when we tickle her or chase her. She gives the sweetest little hugs and kisses (and I can’t get enough of those).  Now she says “eat” as she does the sign for it.  She’s walking a little bit.  She’s still nervous about it though. 
  • Jarvis is loving his soccer team – games start pretty soon.
  • Jacob went on his first “friend” outing without any of us.  He went with a friend’s family to the children’s museum in Raleigh on Wednesday.  He left at 8:00 am and came home in the early afternoon. He had a BLAST and has been talking about it ever since.  :)
  • Brittany has been researching colleges and has a list pretty narrowed down.  She wants to major in Anthropology (and possibly minor or double major in Art or Linguistics).  She’s all signed up to take her SAT’s in October, and I need to get her signed up for the ACT’s.  All the fun ‘senior’ stuff. :)
  • Darby doesn’t really have much going on lately – just being busy being 9.  I’d like to get her in a gymnastics class or something of the sort so she has an extracurricular activity.  I missed the fall sign-ups (no funding was available – lol), but the winter classes start in November, so hopefully she’ll be able to do those.
  • I think I’m going to start doing crossfit again.  I want to get in shape and walking and yoga are great, but I want results FAST!  I’ll let you know how it goes. 

That’s all I got for now…

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