two peas & a pod

5x7 Folded Card

2012-01-16T10:14:00.001-08:00

Happy Banner Teal Birthday Card

Turn your family into a holiday card this season.

View the entire collection of cards.

the lion & the lamb

2010-05-29T13:22:00.000-07:00

josh was fortunate enough to catch a photo of nathan and this lioness at the san diego zoo. there is a thick glass between them, i suppose she would have eaten him for lunch. but there will be one day when he will be able to get this close to her without the glass separating them...

6. The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them. 7. The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox. 8. The infant will play near the hole of the cobra, and the young child put his hand into the viper's nest. 9. They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.

Isaiah 11:6-9

...and i can't wait!

quiz time

2010-05-25T11:28:00.000-07:00

Here is a simple quiz:

What do you think these two pictures are of?

Scroll down for the answer after you try to guess...

This is an embarassing discovery, evidently hair color disquised as auburn is code for orangatun red! When we were at the zoo this quy thought i was his cousin!

and apparently he's giving me the thumbs up for approval.

left behind!

2010-05-16T13:16:00.000-07:00

ahh, weddings are wonderful are they not? especially my bro's wedding, he's waited a long 4o something years for his. his fiance, asked me to open a box of painted lady butterflies as she walks down the isle, what a cool job i got. i'd love to do that, and do a scripture reading from the book of ruth, how sweet, i am honored to do this at the wedding.

weddings never start on time right? and this one was no exception!

on the day of my bro's wedding, this is what happened...

josh, "honey the boys and i are going to set up tables for the wedding, is that o.k."

"great idea honey, why don't you take your wedding cloths, that way you don't have to come back. you can go with papa and change there. Danielle an i will come later, and the boys will have plenty of time to play at the park while you help set up" i reply.

"perfect!" josh exclaims, "except we don't have a place to change, so i'll put our cloths in the van and we will change in there before the wedding."

"sounds good, see ya soon honey"

we're both feeling pretty smug about how efficiently we communicated and convenient our plan is, that is until...

its about time for me to go, better get the van keys and load up Danielle. hmmm, where are those keys? on the dresser? no, coffee table? no, purse? no! panic starts to set in, grab the phone..."josh, i don't have the van keys!" to his suprise, "your right, i do!" "you need to get back here so you and the boys can change." (fyi-me and both the boys are IN the wedding) josh, "my parents are here, i'll have my dad drive me back to the hotel!"

the erdman grandparents to the rescue again, whew, what a relief.

phone ringing, "hello" its my mom calling from the hotel, "are you alright, do you need a ride?" "no mom, josh is on his way" i reply.

waiting, waiting, waiting...

this is taking way too long, i call josh, "honey, where are you?" josh, "i'm in the parking lot", "good, i'm upstairs-" josh interrupts, "next to the playground." (he's already driven back to the park where the wedding is. "what!, i'm still at the hotel!!!!" josh, "i thought you rode with your parents!" "no i was waiting for YOU!" i exclaim.

by this time the wedding is supposed to start. josh, " i'm on my way!"

I wait down at the parking lot, josh picks me up and we show up to the wedding 20 minutes late. we held up the entire wedding!!!

I'm so sorry Kristen and Wendell!

ps-welcome to the family!

san diego zoo

2010-05-14T09:35:00.000-07:00

this wildlife looks strangely familiar!

wild life at the zoo!

san diego or bust!

2010-05-13T09:10:00.000-07:00

we loaded up the van and headed off to San Diego...my bro is getting married this weekend! we decided to turn the trek into a vacation. arrived at comfort suites last night, boys finally fell asleep at 10ish, Josh continued to work on some computer issues for a client. Danielle an i passed out! she didn't wake up to feed til 4am! thanks Lord! it's 9am adn the boys are the first ones in the pool! they mus be related to fish! we are going to the san diego zoo later today...more to come later...

eggs-plotion!

2010-05-03T19:56:00.000-07:00

on monday mornings i teach a home school biology lab at grace bible in arroyo grande. this past monday we were studying birds. being that i'm a learn by doing type of teacher and i have an aviary, i thought i should bring in some quail eggs for examination. i gathered about a dozen and a half eggs from the aviary, knowing that none of them would be viable since the hens were not sitting on them. i get to class, instruct the students to each take an egg and crack it open to examine the inside. little did i know that several of the eggs must have been under pressure so when the students tried to crack them open, they exploded and literally splattered some of the students!!! YuK!!! and the smell was so rancid we had to leave the class to let it air out!
lesson learned...don't bring eggs to class ever again!

scrapbooking reinvented

2010-04-30T18:09:00.001-07:00

ok so in this age of technology i have decided to upgrade my scrapbooking-since i still have yet to finish nathan's baby book and have the pressure of starting danielle's.

i use photoshop to create a 12 x 12 picture page then have it printed at costco for $2.99 a page. then all i have to do is stick on some embellishments for that homemade 3d effect! here's a couple pages i did.

dinner is served

2010-04-27T18:23:00.000-07:00

josh left for vegas today for a computer conference-yeah, that's right vegas! the boys, danielle and i will be solo for the next couple of days. tonight a friend from church brought dinner over-a service our church does for moms with newborns-since danielle is just two weeks now.
i sat the boys down at the table and laid out a scrumptious meal-just got the boys served up and was about to dish up my own plate when...you guessed it...danielle woke up and started crying. i got up from the table left an empty plate and proceeded to feed danielle in the rocking chair. a few moments later, my oldest son came into the living room carrying my plate served up with pasta and bread w/butter! (buttering bread is a big challenge for him) it was so sweet, my heart melted. here is my 6 year old son making sure mom gets dinner too!
what a blessing children are!

billyruben count is down

2010-04-21T17:35:00.000-07:00

doc called the other day to let us know her billyruben numbers have gone down. Praise
God, our little Danielle was turning into a pin cushion. they would poke her heel and milk it for blood. i hated that.

billywhat?

2010-04-12T16:08:00.000-07:00

after the fast and furious labor and delivery we moved to the post delivery room longing for some rest after being up for almost 24 hours. finally we got to nap a couple of hours together on the bed.

several hours later the nurses came in to tell us that her cooms test came out positive...and that her billyrubin levels were too high and she needed to be put in the nursery under the billy lights. so after about half a day with our little girl she was wheeled off to go suntan in the nursery so she could have that perfect california girl look. what do you think? nice sun glasses danielle.

what did this all mean? how did it happen? not totally sure, but the just of it, i am blood type O+ she is A- and somehow during delivery my blood mixed with hers and her little body is trying it's hardest to clean it out. The lights help her to do this...so she spent the next two days in the nursery as our "blue light special" which was difficult for us, but best for her.

welcome Danielle Joscelyn Erdman

2010-04-12T16:04:00.000-07:00

Danielle Joscelyn Erdman
April 10, 2010
6 lbs 15 ozs
19 inches

At 1:53 am she blessed us with her arrival. will post pics when able.
she's so precious!

i need to push!

2010-04-12T13:31:00.000-07:00

contractions are intense...lots of pressure...i feel like pushing...nurse checks, she says something i can't understand...what did she say...i'm what? josh, "your complete"...i thought she said to push so i did, doc walks in and tells me to stop pushing!!! what..stop!!! no @#$% way. Doc stops baby by holding babies head in with one gloved hand while the nurse gloves her other hand! gave two small pushes and she was out!

Wel

in the midst of heavy showers

2010-04-11T21:56:00.000-07:00

so back in bed i go...i have lots of back labor so i am able to lay on my side and have Josh push on my lower back. he was a real trooper, we were able to talk and relax between contractions. i try really hard to keep my wits about me and not panic like i did with the birth of Nathan.
doc comes in to do a check...80% effaced! major progress, still 4cm. she ok's the ITN (a shot in the spine to numb a local region. similar to an epidural but no catheter and lasts only a couple hours). anesthesiologist is home, but on his way. i pray that he doesn't live in SLO!

here comes the storm!

2010-04-11T21:45:00.000-07:00

OK definitely active labor...i try walking, sitting, standing, and lots of breathing. by 11pm i request some narcotics. it's an IV that comes with a button! when ever you want a dose you just push the button. pretty cool, but very short lived the button only administers the meds every 7 minutes of course so you don't OD.

10:45 pm

2010-04-11T21:42:00.000-07:00

time for the fourth and final capsule, then pitocin will be given, so far nothing to serious, some small contractions that i can walk and talk through.

1:45 pm

2010-04-09T14:31:00.000-07:00

no change, second capsule of misoprostol (supposed to soften cervix) will update/check again in 4 hours.

9:15 am induction capsule

2010-04-09T10:03:00.000-07:00

checked into hospital 6:30am had 2 nursing students try to put an IV in 2 times each. i had front row seats to the manipulation, collapsing and swelling of my veins. what a show! my right forearm is already black and blue. after 2 hours of signing papers and answering all the same questions i did when i pre-regisgter and a parade of medical staff coming and going...i am finally checked...only 2 cm and not effaced at all. Could be here as long as two days...
nurses are preparing for a tsunami when my water breaks. We'll let you know if anyone drowns! had first dose of induction meds @ 9:15, no contractions as of now to be continued...

No baby yet!

2010-04-08T22:03:00.001-07:00

This is Josh. We are scheduled to be induced tomorrow morning at 6AM. My prediction says we will have the baby by 4pm tomorrow!

I will be actively posting updates as things happen to my blog: http://josherdman.blogspot.com/

Keep us in your prayers!

It's my birthday

2010-03-17T08:33:00.000-07:00

OK, so here is the low-down - this is Josh, I snuck on Christine's blog. Today is her birthday and it has been a very fun St. Patrick's Day so far! Anyway, please post your birthday greetings. We love to hear from our friends.

vodka & marijuana

2010-03-11T04:54:00.000-08:00

no these are not the cravings of my pregnancy nor the desires of a mother of boys (tempting sometimes!), but some items my oldest son pulled out of his backpack after school...yep, this needs some explaining...

i pick up the boys after school everyday, but today was umm, special.

Jacob was so excited to show me what he collected on his 'nature walk' today. it wasn't really a nature walk, but a walking feild trip to a nearby presbitarian church where all the kids in the school are going to reherse for friday nights big poetry recital. it's all quite innocent really, after all they were walking to church!

"mom! mom! can i show you what i found on my nature walk today!" "Sure" i replied, with matched enthusiasm, thinking how cleaver it was of the teachers to add such an eductional twist on the walk to the church. Jacob runs to retrieve his backpack, he doesn't even throw it over his shoulder as he approaches he tosses it on the ground in front of me eagerly unzipping it to grab his special collected treasures. you can imagine what's going through my mind, maybe he found a feather, an owl pellet, or a snake skin...this kid was really excited!

jacob reaches into his compartment and pulls out...an empty vodka bottle! and a tiny tin (empty) of altoids. "i'm gonna use these for an experiment!" jacob exclaims. in my shock i explain to him how he should not pick up things he doesn't know...he couldn't read nor understand the word 'vodka' to him it was just a cool container and the altoids well, 'this smells funny' he tells me. after smelling it there was no doubt what it was used for...do we had a talk about drugs.

all in all i guess it was still quite educational, but just not the education i was ready to grapple with my 6 year old yet. oh well

g....d....?!

2010-03-11T04:36:00.000-08:00

gestational diabetes?! yep, that's correct i have gestational diabetes. unfortunately my age, weight and family history all made me an elected candidate for such condition. life with gd is getting a little easier, adjusting to an 'Atkins' style diet is a dream for josh. but i do prefer the, 'carbstine' (carbs and christine) style diet. my hope and prayer is that i will revert to my normal status after pregnancy...Lord willing...

the effects of untreated/uncontrolled gd on baby girl-E: 'football' or(fat) baby quite unattractive especially for a girl; could lead to complications during delivery and possible early induction/c-section; hypoglycemia, along with intravenous intervention after birth (sugar withdrawals).

well, life continues to be an adventure...stay tuned

2009 was sublime

2009-12-31T18:24:00.000-08:00

..ok it was the first word i thought of that rhymed with nine! Well, looking back, i blogged twice as much as the year before! ha, ha, what was sublime though was finding out about having a girl-josh is working extra hard these days. we traded in the explorer for a sienna, yep, that's right a van family...so much for the 'soccer mom' stigma.

josh's business is going well, still growing, what a blessing during these times. i'm still teaching a bio lab for home schoolers, i love it. thinking this could be a fun outlet for me in the future (Lord willing).

boys are going to a great charter school in Orcutt-they absolutely thrive in it. jacob in first grade and nathan in preschool.

feeling very pregnant these days, craving lots of chocolate! hopefully this will subside (the cravings)! little girl E is wiggling away, very active especially around 3am!

had a great reflective christmas in shaver lake giving all thanks to our Lord for His blessings, provisions, and sacrifice.

welp,
happy new year!

it's a...

2009-12-08T10:09:00.000-08:00

girl! the boys are gonna have a sister! josh get's his girl. we picked out a name a long time ago...poly ester erdman. drop me a comment and let me know what ya think! we are all doing well.

what starts with a pea and ends with a nut?

2009-09-21T13:42:00.000-07:00

If you haven't yet heard, we are PregnanT. So here's the answers to all those general questions. Due April 20th, we will find out if it's a boy or a girl. I am extra tired 24/7, nausea, headaches, insomnia, comes and goes but overall very healthy. Pregnancy looks healthy, peanut looks healthy.
Lord willing this will be our LAST pregnancy, we still want to adopt someday.
And yes it was a suprise...well, it wasn't a suprise to the Lord. When i told Josh, he was so amused that he laughed his head off for about 5 minutes.

Oh, my sister-in-law is due April 24th with her first.

Here's the pics: the nursed descibes the baby as a 'gummy bear' if you imagine that, you can sort of see a tiny little body.

on back legs poking up

babys front, on side

babys back, on side

hurry up and wait...

2009-08-05T09:35:00.000-07:00

On the train to San Diego
alarm went off at 5:30am, too early especially since jacob crawled into bed with us. sometime in the middle of the night. get dressed, make coffee, feed dog, feed birds, make coffee, wake boys up @ 6, get them dressed, get coffee (don't forget to take a drink), make pb & j sandwiches, pack food, load car, leave house by 6:15
and i thought i was supposed to be the helpmate! hubby you are awesome!
drive to grover, go to MD's drive through, eat egg mc muffin en route to train station, arrive on schedule(amazing), unload car, boys, & luggage, excitement is high....the train broke down.
disappointment, boys r bummed, take amtrak bus to LA?-NO WAY! cancel tickets, drive to SLO, go to station, get new tickets, free upgrade to business class-yeah-now leaving at 10:35, bus to Santa Barbara, pass our house on bus(11:45, good thing the alarm went off at 5:30, lol), oh the bus stopped 2 minutes away from our house, who woulda thunk?
get to santa barbara, 20 minutes early, train shows up on time, board on business class, 4 extra inches each seat, complementary drink, wine you say! better not, free snacks, whoo-hoow, i could get used to this!
5:30 (12 hours later) still enroute to San Diego, dinner, puzzles, parenting...
8:00 yippee we finally made it! Picked up by Uncle Wendell, he made dinner and brought it with him, had dinner on the water front, right next to the Star of India immigrant ship, used the bathroom on a steamboat, made friends with kids from New York, fed ants sunflower seeds, drive to my friend Carrie's house in Poway, boys crash in car, arrive at 10:00, put them to bed, visit for about 45 min, shower, jammies, bed, 11:45pm, nite-nite.

another day, another bird!

2009-07-12T14:39:00.000-07:00

o.k. so i'm walking out of the church gym when i hear, "there's a bird at your feet", sure enough there flutters a sparrow, a fledgling. amidst a sea of feet. the little guy was terrified, but we managed to catch him. i offered him some drops of water and he accepted. this little guy left his nest a bit too early-so i put him in a coffee cup with a napkin and drove home.

he has a nice cage in my secret garden which is frequented by many resident birds. i'm hoping he will be ale to go out on his own in a few days.

another avian adventure

2009-07-11T13:55:00.000-07:00

my neighbor sally and Jr, a little boy from the appartments behind our house, came over to ask if we could help them catch his escaped parrot 'paco'. hmmm, this sounds familiar...

the boys and i grabbed a couple bird nets and a stick.
we headed to sally's house to see where paco landed, yep, way up there in a tree. another boy offered to scale the tree which was quite a sight since the trunk was straight up for about 12 feet. He was able to scare paco out of that tree, but he flew a few houses down to a much lower tree. the boys stayed in the alley, nets in hand, while i went into the back yard where paco was. i shook the branches a few times causing paco to lose his grip and get him lower in the tree. a few shakes and he was on the lawn, with my net over him.

we headed back to the house to clip paco's wings so he hopefully doesn't escape again, and Em worked with hand taming him. Jr. hung out and worked with paco as well as he was pumped full of advise from both me and Em about birds.

paco turned out to be an orange fronted conure, a really sweet bird and Jr. is a really sweet kid. i look forward to seeing him more.

five point seven seconds

2009-07-04T13:45:00.000-07:00

our fourth of july celebration began with a patriotic rodeo parade in downtown Collbran, the boys and i leaped out of the truck just in time to catch the the opening ride. Collbran, a quaint small one sheriff town; as a boy Josh recalls this parade as being the best ever and after the first 30 seconds the boys unanimously agreed as candy rained down all over the place. by the time it was over i think they had 5 pounds of candy between them both!
we stayed back after the parade to do some of the carnival activities-one of which was meeting Justin Clark-a bone-a-fide bull rider/fighter, yep, that wasn't a typo, it's fighter. the layman term for this is rodeo clown. but after seeing the bulls at the rodeo there really is no 'clownin' around' in the arena. These bulls are two thousand pounds plus and really miffed. he told us that the junior rodeo was still open for mutton bustin' sign ups, so Josh dashed around making all the necessary arrangements and before i knew it, Jacob was signed up to mutton bust-in 30 minutes!

josh and john escorted Jacob to the shoots while we went to the stands to wait for his ride. Nathan made lots of friends at the bottom of the stands, there little cow folk were running around everywhere. it was absolutely adorable, a real down home 4th of july with kids dashing to 'n fro, streaks of red, white and blue painting the canvas of the rodeo. patriotism united the hearts of all the spectators and riders. it was great to participate in some of the roots of our heritage and enjoy the anticipation of the opening of the shoot. jacob was suited up, and climbing down into the shoot, josh was at the top of the shoot while uncle john was helping jacob cowboy up on the mutton. the shoot opens and the mutton burst out making as sharp left sprinting across the arena. jacob clung to the mutton with all his might for 50 yards, 5.7 seconds. the crowd was hoopin' and holllerin'. He took second place and got a check for $55.20! (we're considering joining the circuit!) unfortunately my video skills do not coincide with watching the ride:

my first fish!

2009-07-03T13:32:00.000-07:00

alrighty then, we make it to the ranch, as we get there it starts to rain, but grandpa and uncle john already set up camp for us. the boys are running around like chickens with their heads cut off since they've been 'couped' up in the truck for two days. mom and dad are exhausted, but happy to be at base camp. the first thing the boys wanted to do is go fishin' so dad and the boys set off to the pond, poles in hand to catch dinner. an hour or two later...

Nathan comes running into camp holding a wiggling rainbow trout on a line shouting, "i got my first fish! I got my first fish!" He proudly paraded through camp with his trophy getting all sorts of affirmation from others. it took me a while to convince him that his fish was actually a fish and not a playmate and that it needed cleaning. we finally tromped off to the pond and gutted the trout--we had so much fish for dinner and it was yummy.

it's been a blast to see the first time accomplishments of boyhood!

collbran, co or bust...part two

2009-07-02T14:19:00.000-07:00

yesterday was a full day of driving the boys did a great job keeping themselves entertained. last night was a fun filled pool tossing time. Josh must of threw jacob 50 times or so over his head into the water while nathan jumped on me just the same. it wasn't til the next morning that josh realized that he pulled somthing in his left shoulder. bummer. just before heading out, the boys got some of their energy out by torpedoing their bodies across the beds. (yep, we let 'em).

the drive was noneventfull until we drove through some massive canyons-wow, what majesty the Lord has displayed. when He says that even the rocks will cry out i always imagined a boulder, now i can see huge rock cliffs that intertwine with the skyline...what splendor, glory and power all to God.

wooo, whoo, grand junction, collbran, then up to the orman hawkins sugar loaf ranch. over 900 acres of fishing, hiking, hunting, ATVing, swimming in the pond, or just plain ol' lounging around.

josh and the boys went fishing this morning and caught 6 trout, guess whats for dinner! While the boys were fishin' i went for a hike. it started through the meadow full of asters, lupine, yarrow and indian paint brush, just to name a few. as i gained in elevation the quaking aspens greated me with a soft rustling. i stopped to find the tapping and weet, weet of an acorn woodpecker. more gain in elevation exposed the scrub oak and black oak with the chattering of several blacked capped chickadees. walking next to the creek i noticed a red velvet ant and a soft baby blue eggshell from a robin. rounding the corner i had to stop and take in the view of rugged green covered mountains, exposed rocky precipes, the cleanest blue sky peeking through giant cotton candy clouds. How great is our Lord.

colbran, co or bust...part one

2009-07-01T20:19:00.000-07:00

On the road to Colorado! Wednesday July 1st we drove through my old stomping grounds. The house on 8316 Wharton Ave where i experienced most of my favorite childhood memories all in a little farming town called Lamont. The house has a huge 2 story add-on. It is the house where my love for the outdoors and animals was nurtured. I acquired my first horse "Cookie" there. An adorable little palomino shetland pony. I think i started begging my parents at age 4 for a horse (the same age Jacob started) and got her at 8 years old.

i could write a book titled, 'a girl and her horse' but i'm sure it's already taken!

moving on...sailed right through mohave desert-and then Lost Wages. Made a longer pit stop gawked at the sights as we drove down the strip landed at treasure island to walk around and get some lunch. Ended up walking from Ti to Ceasars Palace looking for a cheap lunch. Where did all the 'cheap' go in Vegas? As we walked to ceasars Nathan looks up at me with a beat red face and informs me that he is out of gas, the kids where melting away. by 1:00pm we finally caved and walked into a not so cheap restaurant, planet hollywood out of sheer hunger. I felt terrible as we walked in and right up front is a life size arnie figure from the terminator- hope the boys don't have nightmares--oh, yeah i have boys even at ages 4 & 5 they couldn't wait to run around and see what other gory characters where there...of course no anne of green gables or sandra bullock paraphernalia

next stop mesquite, NV for fuel-opened the door and wondered who in the halibut turned on the fan to the heater as hot air blew right through the truck, thank you Lord for AC! my knee pits were sweaty (tmi). can't even imagine what h-e-double hockey sticks is like! pushing on to st. george utah and checked in at quality suites-free wi-fi and a pool just the right size for the boys, ahhh.

on the road to recovery

2009-06-30T20:31:00.000-07:00

the boys and i went to visit Myrna today. she is doing so much better- when we walked in the door she greeted us with a wonderful smile and an enthusiasm i haven't seen since she was admitted. it was so nice to see her so happy and alert and even make a lunch request for taco bell!

we stayed for about twenty minutes just long enough for the boys to start getting too antsy. I updated her on the neighborhood news, which wasn't much, and told her about jacob finishing kindergarten and nathan turning 4. she can't wait to get home, but i'm not sure when that will be she's in therapy and a recovery center.

thanks for all the prayers-He is the ultimate physician

advocate

2009-06-10T05:48:00.000-07:00

my neighbor Myrna is still in the hospital because she has a family that is fighting for her. less than one week after she was admitted, she could not eat on her own, walk on her own and was still mostly incoherent. the boys and i went to go see her she was in her room with her dinner tray sitting by her untouched. evidently the nurses bring the food, leave it, and then come back by to take it. the hospital wanted to discharged her days ago after stabilizing her sodium levels even though something was still clearly awry. Myna's family had to call in an attorney to contact the hospital administration to keep Myrna's discharge from happening and to have more tests done. the doctor had seen her when she came in and had not been in to see her for 5 days since then. her niece showed up with a cell phone and demanded to have the doctors phone number, to which the nurses could not find until she mentioned that the attorney will take it up with the doctor. surprisingly they were able to find the doctor's number.

after the shenanigan was overcome, the doctor getting back in the game and more tests where done it was discovered that the underlying cause of Myrna's sodium deficiency was an intestinal blockage. she was wheeled into surgery, after 6 hours they were able to remove the blockage. now she is in ICU a week after her surgery.

had the hospital succeeded in sending Myrna home, she probably would have died there. thank God she has an advocate. just as we do in Jesus Christ, our advocate for the the forgiveness of our sin. we don't have to call a lawyer or go through surgery, but only turn from our 'blockage' (living for our self, by our self) and embracing the love of our heavenly Father through our Lord Jesus Christ. without Christ we would be left to die alone in our sins separated from the love of God for eternity.

what an amazing love He has lavished on us.

'how precious'

2009-05-29T22:17:00.000-07:00

the boys and i busied ourselves this morning making cards for Myrna. we were able to visit her the day before and she was awake, but unable to speak. i have yet to run into any family members since the dreaded day so i really have no official word on what happened. it is my best guess that she had a stroke, the symptoms seem consistent. she was not able to talk and seemed to drift in and out of awareness.

however, today she was VERY coherent. we walked in with our cards and she had the biggest smile for the boys. Jacob spent a good amount of time making a card out of pink paper and Christmas stamps. he wrote, 'Dear Myrna, get helty son so you can play wit me' translation get healthy soon so you can play with me. i was so touched by him he was so gentle and explained all the details of the card to her. as she studied the card intently for about 5 minutes she exclaimed, "how precious!" in her wonderful Myrna way. it was so encouraging.

as we visited i could she her working hard to get the words from her thoughts to vocalization. what a tremendous leap from the day before. Lord be glorified! How precious is Your name in all the earth! how precious Myrna is to you Lord, and me as well.

please keep praying...God will be glorified!

the light is on but no one is home

2009-05-27T22:05:00.000-07:00

as i sit here on the couch looking out the window i see my neighbors house across the street. the night is dark except for the lamp turned on inside her front room and the curtains are still open. Myrna is a dear nieghbor, she is a sweet eldery lady that looks after us and says a prayer for us everyday she opens her curtains. She spoiles the boys with big bags of candy at halloween and gave Jacob a flat of strawberries because she new he liked them. on one of the occasions that our family went out of town, she phoned us to let us know we left our front door wide open. She came across the street and closed it for us. we have only known Myrna for a year, but it feels like so much longer.

her house remains empty tonight because Myrna is in the hospital. today at nap time, i heard the paramedics pull up, then the police and lastly the ambulance. while my son was sleeping i headed over there with a deep ache in my heart. Myrna was found outside in her back yard consious but not coherent, by one of her many friends that stop by to see her on a regular basis.

i made a small attempt at comforting her, then the urge to help, to just do something kicked in. i asked Debbie, Myrna's friend if she had contacted any relatives yet. she hadn't so we went inside to look for a number. as i walked by Myrna i looked right at her and said, "we are here to help you Myrna" even in her in-coherent state she managed to give one of her beloved 'thank you' calls as she usually does from across the street. my heart jumped with a surge of hope.

i don't yet know what the outcome of this situation is going to be, but i send out my prayers for her and i hope you will send her a prayer to.

Lord in heaven, thank you for neighbors, thank you for friends.
Father be glorified in what outcome you have ordained for Myrna.
give her and her family peace and comfort. May Your name be known among us all.
especially comfort Debbie who discovered Myrna, thank you for her presence.
Your will be done.
Amen.

in memory of...

2009-05-19T22:13:00.000-07:00

it is a sad day, Scruffy didn't make it. I only new him for three days and the little guy stole my heart. He fought till the very end. In his last hours he got to see his 'mom' Janet, ate one of the best meals i had attempted to feed him, and even spent some time on my bedroom window seal where another scrub jay had been coming around. all in all it was one of the best ways he could go-knowing that he was loved and cared for. Janet came by the next day to give him his forever resting place in the home he's always known.

the best thing in life is to know

that you loved me much

and made me a home

you watched and waited for me everyday

you gave me food, shelter and a safe place to stay

thank you for caring and being my friend

for hoping and fighting for me till the end

-Scruffy

moral is up

2009-05-18T09:56:00.000-07:00

this morning Scruffy was alert and energetic! this is very encouraging after his tough day yesterday. his beak is still not functional, hopefully over time this will change. He is hoping around in the carrier and trying to eat. bad news is i haven't seem him actually get of the soft food into his mouth. good news, he can drink water on his own! very encouraging!

if Scruffy is to eat on his own, he will have to learn to eat by scooping food from the side of his beak since he is unable to grab anything with his beak at this point (hopefully that will change). he will still require hand feedings but at least now they are much less intrusive and stressful for him.

good view of his beak, but it still doesn't move

Scruffy is making every attempt to feed himself

Scruffy's second surgery

2009-05-17T14:54:00.000-07:00

Sunday morning i checked on Scruffy and he was pretty rambunctious for the morning. the small amount of food i managed to get into him seemed to have rejuvenated him. but unfortunately the surgery from the night before didn't take, his beak was hanging down again.

scruffy's beak

now plan b was put into action. Clara met with me in SLO to try again. after getting a small breakfast into Scruffy we were on our way. with crazy glue, toothpicks, tissue, tape and water we made attempt number 2. with the dexterity of a heart surgeon Clara was able to set the beak and painstakingly glue it back together with a tooth pick tip of super glue and the patience of an elephant. I was the nurse assistant handing over the tools as requested.
clara setting scruffy's beak

Scruffy was a real trooper. We worked for over an hour on the little guy, he was in shock for quite sometime and we had to monitor him closely for the next 30 minutes until he came out of it.
clara cleaning broken edges of beak

his beak is still open, but it's not hanging down totally useless anymore. he is still not able to use it and i am continuing to hand feed him often. the prognosis is still not great, the next couple of days will probably tell us in what direction he may go.

Scruffy is not out of the woods yet; i'll be posting updates and more pictures soon.

beak has been set

Scruffy's first surgery

2009-05-16T21:36:00.000-07:00

after bringing Scruffy home, i called my good friend Clara Gontereo who is a bird expert. She has worked on sick and/or injured birds for over 40 years. after talking to her, it was imperative to get some food down this little guy to get him through the night. Clara suggested i boil some egg, mix up some Kaytee formula, and some soft food, such as cooked barley, wheat berries and couscous with a small dab of peanut butter. Scrub jays love peanuts so i new peanut butter would be well accepted.

so the food is ready and now comes the actual task. since his bottom break was hanging down and not useful to him, i got a small paint brush and dabbed small amounts on his tongue with a drop of water to help it go down. success! this process takes about 15-20 minutes before he is too stressed out to continue. he will have several small meals like this a day.

feeding with a paint brush

now as for the broken beak. Clara informed me that birds beaks grow continuously and if the break wasn't too precarious we could actually super glue it back together and potentially have it grow out over time. now it was time to try our hand of putting this little guys beak back together. Josh made a valiant effort to do this, but we were only able to get one side put together then it was time to let him sleep for the night and hope he makes it through the night.

Josh, setting the beak

'Scruffy' an injured scrub jay

2009-05-16T17:38:00.001-07:00

My neighbors cousin Janet was devestated to find out that their resident backyard scrub jay was found today with a broken beak. she called me to see if there is anything we could do to help. the little guy is so friendly that i was able to walk right up to him and catch him with my hand. They named him Scruffy because he has been hanging around their backyard for 4 or 5 years now.

stay tuned for updates on his progress.

Here's the devestating pictures:

'twas the night before christmas

2008-12-25T05:10:00.000-08:00

twas the night before christmas and all through our house,
jacob could be heard stirring, what a large noisy mouse!
He anxiously lay in his bed hoping santa would come,
as he hollered, "hurry up mom and dad, could you please be done!'
Mom and dad were exhausted from the events of the day,
but still had chores to finish and things to put away.
Jacob was amped and could not fall asleep,
dad took a shower while mom crawled under the sheets.
Nathan was out as deep as could be,
the cookies and milk sat placed by the tree.
Dad finished his shower with a reconnaisance plan
as he snuck out of the room presents in hand;
his cheeks were like roses, his nose could not smell,
yet he still did his duty or he new there be hail!
He placed all the presents far under the tree
and brought back the cookies to share with me.
Sleep finally came to our weary bed,
but it didn't last very long when a child's voice said,
"Mom, Santa was here there are presents under the tree!
The milk and cookies are gone and a note he left me."
A glance at the clock revealed early morning
too early to say, i was in mourning.
So i sit at the desk blogging to my surmise,
till morning light comes and the sun will arise.

Merry Christmas!

seasons greetings everyone....please click on our christmas letter for a readable version

2008-12-24T10:05:00.001-08:00

what will you do with your freedom?

2008-12-21T12:12:00.000-08:00

last thursday grandma had Nathan for the day, she blesses us by spending quality time with Nathan and giving me opportunity to work in Jacob’s kindergarten class. I finished my morning chores…got out the last of the Christmas cards then it was time to take Jacob to school. His class begins at 11:00 and goes till 3:00pm, I told the teacher I would be there at 1:30 to help out. As I went to the truck I realized I had 2.5 hours to MYSELF…freedom rang in my head. I thought, ' what I would like to do without the boys'. I decided to go to the goodwill and browse endlessly through racks hunting for the best deal (this is usually how I like to relax, weird I know). After an 1.5hour browsing session I realized I forgot to eat breakfast and I was famished. I didn’t have much time left so I decided to get fast food…so I could get back to browsing, this time at Ross. Then the Lord planted an idea in my head…order more food so I could bless someone else with it. Hmmm, great idea Lord, thanks, so I ordered more food. I quickly scarfed down my food after all I hadn’t eaten since well, the night before and proceeded to drive to Ross praying and keeping my eyes open for someone holding up a sign. I reached the parking lot of Ross and hadn’t seen anyone…i new that the Lord wanted me to bless someone with this food, I just figured I would have seen them en route. So I went into Ross and started browsing again. As I was I thought to myself (more like the Holy Spirit convicting me) here I am doing nothing of value while someone out there is waiting for the food I have that is sitting in my car…how selfish of me…now it was already 1:30 and I had to get to Jacobs class…hopefully I would see someone in route then. Nope, no one.

After Jacobs class I had to go the grocery store, then stop by the library to pick up some books I had on hold. It was now 4pm. I pulled up to the library and right in front sat a traveler, with a large duffle bag, a backpack and a dog(a really cute boxer). I looked at him with dread…Lord, please anyone but him…I left the food in the truck and went into the library struggling, the Holy Spirit placed another thought into my heart:

Let brotherly love continue. Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some have unwittingly entertained angels.
Hebrews 13:1-2

When I left the library he was still there. I got into the truck still struggling with obeying the Lord (as if it wasn’t obvious what I was to do). I continued to rationalize why I shouldn’t go to him, ‘Lord, I didn’t want to walk up to someone, I really just wanted to drive by and stick my arm out with the bag of food’, ‘maybe he isn’t really homeless but just traveling through and my offer of food would insult him’, I felt so uncomfortable, now I really did not want to do it…I started the truck and pulled out of the parking spot as I did, I told myself ‘do it!’ I pulled into another drive, grabbed the bag and got out of the truck…as soon as I did he picked up his bag and started walking away. By now I nearly had to chase him down to offer the food. When I called out to him the second or third time he turned around and I started petting his dog. all of the sudden, the uncomfortableness was forgotten. He had a cute, bouncy boxer puppy; while I was petting her, I was able to offer the food, he took it, turned and walked away. I was done, I did it, I obeyed. I didn’t want to, it wasn’t pleasant or heartfelt. It was a test, a test of my obedience, of giving up my time, of being humbled. No wonder I fought so hard against doing it.

Lord, thanks that you love me enough to test me, humble me and show me my selfishness. I know you have begun a good work in me and You will complete it no matter how I bulk, complain or protest. It is you who works in me to will to do good, may I always walk in obedience to your works that you have called me to do.

good news/bad news

2008-12-14T14:17:00.000-08:00

the boys took part in the Christmas story this Sunday, it's always fun to see all the adorable kids on stage. but what i liked best was Pastor Tim's message on not 'missing it', the good news so here it is:

"i bring you GOOD NEWS

of GREAT JOY

for ALL PEOPLE

today there is born to you a SAVIOR

who is CHRIST the LORD"

luke 2:10-11

this tied in quiet nicely with our sunday school class 2:42 which is going over the apostles creed. today we looked at article 10 the forgiveness of sin which tells us the BAD NEWS that we are all sinners that fall short of the glory of God, rom. 3:23. i know i sure fall into this category. rom 5:8 says that while we were still sinners Christ died for us...wow, how immense is the love of God! That he gave His only Son so we do not have to perish (john 3:16)

as the common saying goes we have to take the good news with the bad news, "otherwise, it's just news"

just wanted to share the blessings of our fellowship this morning

shave the same leg twice?

2008-12-09T21:20:00.000-08:00

have you recently had one of those days where everything seems to happen with no particular order or organization...such as: you start folding laundry, walk into your sons room as he's beckoning you and help him finish writing his letter then you go to put the dishes away (completely forgetting about your previous laundry chore)...then start to feel yucky and realize 'Aunt Flow' came to visit (and brought all her baggage!) yep this was one of those days. my mind gets in a fog, have trouble thinking, focusing, doing, well for that matter existing. it's the infamous 'brain cloud' that affects everything you do. my favorite part of the day is at the end when i get to take my shower (dad's home) well, i won't bog ya'll down with all the details but as i stepped into the hot, beckoning shower and let the heat melt away the day i realized i had been a little lax on my hygiene (it is after all winter, no shorts or sleeveless tops lately) so i go about my business of getting clean the usual soap up, shave and rinse. when i got out (especially during this time of the month) i lather myself in my collection of bath and body lotions. started with one leg, now nice and smooth went to the other leg nice and--prickly? wait didn't i just shave i know i shaved twice-then it hit me i shaved the same leg twice!!!!

what an appropriate ending for such an off day...

anyone else have stories like this?

moral-just because you shave the same leg twice doesn't mean you'renot clean

jacob lost his first tooth!

2008-11-26T22:11:00.000-08:00

jacob's tooth has been wiggly for days and he can't stop playing with it, wiggling it and constantly asking when it's going to come out...i REALLY didn't want to do it myself, but we went to my mom's for a week before thanksgiving and he was driving me crazy asking so this is what we tried...

ok so the taffy didn't work, he was terrified of trying to use some thread to pull it out so this is what he opted for instead:

yep needle nose pliers, i didn't have the nerve to try so i gave him the pliers...low and behold his tooth was too slippery to grab with the tool.

he finally agreed to trying the thread, but mom wasn't about to pull it...if he wanted it out he would have to do it himself (bummer of a time to go out of town, i'm sure dad would have had no problem extracting the tooth!). after several attempts to pull it out using the thread and satisfied that it wasn't coming out he gave in to just wiggling and playing with it himself.

so he decided to have a little snack:

yep a squirmy handful of fresh worms!

ok no cause for alarm, he didn't really eat them.

later that night as he was wiggling away at that tooth it finally came out! and he got a visit from the toothfairy.

moral-worms could be a good source of protein when needed!

keep out of reach of children...

2008-08-29T21:16:00.000-07:00

so i'm sure everyone has seen the label 'keep out of reach of children' right.

let me fill you in on some history. since we moved to our house in santa maria we have been battling fleas. a pair of feral cats lived under our house and had a litter of kittens there-we were able to trap them and send them to rescue thanks to catalyst for cats rescue organization. we thought our troubles were over, but the house/yard was infested with fleas. my dog Walker is very sensitive to flea bites and chemical flea products such as frontline so you can see my delimma, "how am i going to get rid of these fleas?" well to make a long story short (or an expensive story cheaper!) after bathing my dog nearly every three days, flea combing him every night and using every 'natural' (diatomaceous earth) means possible to rid these pests of my home and pets I finally broke down. by now your wonder what the topic has to do with this subject, i decided it's time to suck it up and just do it sooo, i purchased some flea foggers for the house and we are going to spray the yard. i bought them today while Jacob was at school and placed them on the kitchen bar, after all this was high enough for Nathan to be out of harms way. then i forgot about them. i pick Jacob up from school as usual came home and went to check up on some emails i sent...shortly after Jacob comes back in the house with his hands covered in smelly liquid with guess what- a can of flea fogger in his other hand! i immediately grab the can and ask if he's alright and he said, "yes, mommy but i'm 5 now and i am a big boy so i can handle poisons. i sprayed your plants for you". i sent him off to wash his hands and give me a moment to prepare my response to his manly statement. in the mean time i noticed the top had popped off and that i could try to replace it so i would not have to buy more. as i popped the top on the can immediately started spraying out all it's contents, in the kitchen! as the house with my kids and dog started filling up with this chemical i panicked and quickly figured out that there was no way i could disarm it so i ran to the garage and let it finish it's fogging. then i quickly opened all the windows and turned on the ceiling fans.

as for Jacobs perspective on being 'big enough to handle poisons' well he thinks since he didn't die he's ok!

moral-heed the warning on the label

-kids grow up way to fast

lesson-keep poison control number in visual sight

-thank the Lord that it wasn't worse

"thanks mom for taking care of me too" Walker

treehouse update w-photos

2008-08-27T14:12:00.000-07:00

ok here's those pictures i promised

this is the platform, notice in the background the 6ft high brick fence

this is the suspension mechanism holding up the entire 70sq ft structure, it's plumbers tape (i was assured it would be strong enough to hold it)

the trap door with the rope ladder i made

so josh and i are on the hunt for a used tennis court net to make a saftey barrier on the sides of the platform.

platform treehouse controversy

2008-08-22T16:08:00.000-07:00

so josh and i decided that since we know have a house with a huge tree in the back yard, the boys need a tree house. if you have ever watched 'home improvement' with 'tim the tool man' his motto was always 'bigger is better' well, that's my husband-in one weekend josh built a 70 sq ft suspension tree platform (that's right, no nails in the tree whatsoever) around the middle of the tree and 8 ft high! complete with a trap door and rope ladder. now keep in mind that my boys are 3 & 5 yrs old. josh thinks it's awesome, mom thinks wow, that's really high for these busy guys to fall. we also have yet to put any type of railing system in (yikes!) hopefully soon that will happen. but for all you parents of young children out there, if you were to come over, would you let your kid play up there? I'll post pics soon.

wood stain & sealer

2007-08-16T21:42:00.000-07:00

today's adventure started at 10:00am, rather late for my guys, when I heard Nathan crying at my bedroom door. Jacob runs into my room exclaiming, "mommy, Nathan made a mess! it didn't really catch me off guard since, messes are to be expected, they are after all boys--until i see Nathan's face completely covered and dripping with wood sealer! the adrenaline kicked in and my first thought is to 'call the poison control center' (wouldn't be the first time) but instead i find myself sweeping Nathan up running to the bathroom while yelling for Jacob to bring me the phone. i was fearful that it was in his eyes, angry that i left the newly purchased can on the counter in the living room, and upset at Jacob for opening the newly sealed can!
well, if you're a mom like me you probably didn't realize that water doesn't remove wood sealer (after all it is used to keep water from the wood!) so that didn't help much, by this time i am on the phone talking to my husband about what to do-panicked, but managing to remain in control. the solution, a bath with dish detergent and acetone, yuk. Nathan managed to tolerate the cleaning, crying in between wipes to his face with a washcloth soaked in acetone a.k.a. fingernail polish remover.
he seemed no worse for the wear, but mom was sure frazzled so a trip to the park was a wonderful reprieve for us all.

lesson-
don't leave wood sealer lying around
acetone works great for removing wax/sticky goo even on little boy faces
repeate to self, 'children are a blessing from the Lord'