Thank you Aggieland

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aHmYPeaVSY0&feature=share

Proud to be a Fightin' Texas Aggie!

Wake up in the morning feeling like P Diddy...

Ok, so I don't like that song because it is about getting tipsy and partying till the sun comes up, but the first line and beat is the best to get you going.  I want to somehow get it on my phone to be my alarm.  You wouldn't be able to help but pop out of bed and do a little dance diddy. 
What gets you rolling on your good mornings?  Monday was the best day I have had in a long time.  Not that others are bad, but Monday just seemed all together, full of energy, initiative and productivity, and happiness all around.  Why is that?  Because I had good, solid, scheduled time with the Lord!  It was not rushed; I took my time and got it all.  I try everyday to get my quiet time in.  Since Kirby has been waking up pretty much when I do lately, it has not been as good.  I get to it after I put her down for her morning nap, but by then I always feel rushed because my "to-do" list is going through my head.  I loved getting up and getting my coffee and then sneaking back into my bedroom sitting area before Kirby even stired.  I told CR that I would like to start having my quiet time first thing again, so he got Kirby up and let her sit with him/play with him until I came back out.  I heard her call for me a couple of times, but I kept reminding myself that God was first.  It was a blessing all around.  You know what is funny?  Tonight I logged into my blog account from a computer that I had not used in a year and a half.  When I typed in the blogger site, it took me directly to my old blog account that I had before my gmail got hacked into.  The last post I had written was when I was 4 months pregnant and praying that once "Poot got here, I would make sure to purposefully put God first everyday."  I knew it would be hard because babies are so demanding of your attention immediately.  You don't know for sure if that is a cry of wanting you or a cry of pain.  I believe that God knows my heart and that He loves that I try hard to get to His word first, and the fact that I have quiet time at all I know pleases Him.  I just find it such a blessing that when it can happen "right", the rest of the day goes so much better and "it is well with my soul".  I do not feel tired and weary, because my rest is in the Lord.  (Matt 11:28)  I encourage you, my dear friend, if you do not already have a set time to spend with the God who created every hair on your head, to make a point to start that tomorrow.  Even just a few minutes ... your soul will long for more time each moment you meet Him.  Remember, He is already there, we just have to show up. 

"So the LORD must wait for you to come to Him so he can show you his love and compassion. For the LORD is a faithful God."  Is. 30:18

Catching up post

Sorry for the hiatus.  We have been busy, busy, busy!  On the 18th we went up to Montgomery to visit my family and to celebrate Kirby's 1st birthday.  What?  Yes, she is 1!  It was a much needed and long awaited trip up North.  Kirby slept so much better this time!  Praise the Lord - He heard my plea!  Kirby enjoyed visiting with everyone.  I didn't get too many pictures, though.  My sister did, so you can check out her Facebook page for more, but here are some of my favorites from the week:

 This family is so, so special to me.  Oh gosh, here I go tearing up already.  The Liston family has a special place in my heart.  Madison (the beautiful girl between me and Kirby) has such a wonderful heart.  I babysat her when I was in high school.  I started babysitting Madison and her brother Makenzie when he was only 6 months old.  He is a freshman in high school now.  She has graduated and is a proud Fightin' Texas Aggie now, just like her parents.  I promise I had nothing to do with it.  I just honestly told her what I thought about going to another school first and that if in your heart you think you want to be an Aggie, you will end up going there in the long run.  Kim and Ron (their parents) are amazing people.  They were always the nicest people to work for and always took great care of me.  These people were my second family as I was going through all my awkwardness in high school and they encouraged me through college.  They even came to our wedding!  Another special person in this family is Ashley.  Ashley is their aunt, Ron's sister.  She was my student teacher when I was in 4th grade, she moved off to San Antonio with her husband for his dental school, and then when they moved back I got to babysit her Caleb and Laurel, too.  God knew I needed a family like this in my life, and I love how we have stayed connected over the years.  I can not wait to see Madison walk across the stage in Reed arena one day and to have Kirby at her wedding trying to catch her bouquet!

 On the morning of Kirby's actual birthday she did not want to wake up.  She was in there talking a little bit and we had to get going because she had her 12 month check up.  Usually when we walk in she is standing up saying, "Dadda, dadda, dadda!"  That morning when we walked in, she tried to bury herself into her bed. 

 And did not want to open her eyes.  I guess age is already getting to her and wearing her out!

 She is so smart ... she found a bottle in the cabinet and a sippy cup lid.  She knew where the lid went and was bound and determined to put it on ....

 and then she found a different sippy cup to try it on.

 We got Kirby a little tractor from John Deere (tomboy in the making, I know) that has farm animals that live inside the seat.  When you open the seat there is a barn.  She can walk behind it and push it, but she usually pushes it from the side.  She likes to think outside the box already!

 This Saturday we had a second birthday party at our house for the Patrick side of the family.  Eva and Rob got to come!!!  Kirby loved, loved, loved Eva.  And Eva loved, loved, loved Kirby Rose!

 This time around we gave her a spoon to try to eat the cake with ... she was a little more successful with it, but still didn't go crazy.  That's my girl ... knows moderation already!

 8-27-2011

 At her 12 month check up ...
She weighed 21.4 lbs
She was 29" long ... she grew an entire foot her first year of life!
They said she was in the 50th percentile, even though I really have never looked into that or given that much concern.
Has 4 teeth all the way through on top, 2 eye teeth trying to come in and 2 teeth on the bottom, with one other pushing through.
Says: Dadda, Momma, Duck, Moo, -oww (for cow), go, dat, eee
When we sing Head and shoulders, points to her head and somewhere between neck and shoulders and then jumps to her eyes, ears, and nose
Laughs all the time
Walks along the couch, chairs, tables, and anything else she can hold on to.
Bounces while she sits so much that she gets to one knee and almost all the way to standing up.  One day I think she is going to bounce all the way to her feet and not have a clue what to do!
Is loved so much by her God, Dad and Mom, Granny and Daddy Ray, Grammy and Paw-Paw and all of her other friends and family.  We could not be more blessed with such a wonderful, loving family and group of friends.  Thank you all for making her 1st year such a great one!

 8-20-2011

 Today we went to Granny and Dat's because they could not make the drive out to our house yesterday.  Instead of another cake, we just went with a cupcake.  I guess you could say by the 3rd party, she knew how to eat the goods ....

8-28-2011

Madison, we wish you all the best of luck as an Aggie.  You will have your highest highs and your lowest lows while in college, but always remember to call on Him.  Stick to your roots, but allow them to let you bloom into who He wants you to be.  Love you and we are so proud of you!!  Hold this promise close to your heart and you can not go wrong:

"For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope." Jeremiah 29:11

Successful Saturday

As I said earlier this week, Kirby has started talking up a storm and developing in cognitive ways on an amazing level. I know that this is when they learn and soak up the most (the first 3 years of their life they learn more than ever), but it is just amazing to me. When my mom came to visit a few weeks ago, she tried to teach Kirby that she was "so, so, so big". As mom said this, imagine her hands going up and getting higher and higher as she did it. Every once in awhile I will do it, but not much. Yesterday afternoon CR was playing with Kirby in his big, hideous chair while I was at the sink washing bottles. He was asking her how big she was and this is what I witnessed:

To make sure she was intentionally doing this, I asked her how big she was:

 This morning after she woke up they were playing peek-a-boo.  She loves to do this with daddy and lately she has been putting his hands over his eyes and pulling them off.  This morning when she did it, she said .....

 ..."a-boo".

Some other interesting things she is doing more of:
-When I say, "Hello, hello Kirby" she puts her hand or whatever she has in her hand up to her right ear and says "i".  Sometimes she says something else, but usually it is in the form of "hi" or "hello".
-When you say "bye", even if you are on the phone or not even talking to Kirby, she starts waving.
-When you are talking to Kirby and telling her "bye-bye", she waves both hands as fast as she can and almost jumps out of our arms she is so excited about it.
-Walking down the table, chair, couch, walls ... basically anything she can "balance" against.
-Sitting with daddy in his chair in the morning to watch the morning news.  She never relaxes any other time.
-Talking/playing with anyone we meet or see, and most of the time reaching out to go to them.
-We have been Skyping with my parents the last few weeks pretty regularly, so when we walk by the computer she starts waving "hi" to it.

"But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen." 2 Peter 3:18

Freedom Friday ... insurance malarky

I don't like for my blog to end up being a place where I rant and rage all the time, but today is Freedom Friday so that is what I am going to do.  What in the world has this country come to with insurance?  For those who do not know, (because I sure did not until it came across to me) since we have such wonderful elected officials in congress there is no longer maternity coverage with individual insurance.  CR is self employed.  We do not have a group to get group insurance.  Group insurance is your only option for maternity coverage.  So I thought, well, maybe I will just check and see how much it would be if we paid cash to the doctor and hospital next time around.  Since I would have health insurance, you can get a "discounted rate".  Kirby was born via emergency C-section, so from now on I have to have them.  There is a slim chance you can deliver after C-sections, but in my case I think I will have to have them from now on.  Something about after a certain point the baby could not progress anymore.  Anyhow, I knew in the back of my head about how much it would cost because I remember the bills that we got before all the insurance had kicked in.  Are you sitting down?  The doctor side of things wasn't too bad - your looking at close to $5000.00 between office visits, labs, minimal sonograms/ultrasounds, and a normal pregnancy and C-section.  Now the hospital side of things will make you vomit.  Remember there has to be an anestesiologist, assistant surgeons, nurses, all the meds they use, you staying there, etc.  If everything goes "normal", $20,000.00!  Total it would cost no less than $25,000.00!  What?  MALARKY, MALARKY, MALARKY!  Thankfully I have an awesome sister (go see her at Freedom Insurance if you need anything) who researched some plans and helped us come up with a good choice.  I did not know, but you can stay on the school's insurance through Cobra and pay your own premium for up to 18 months.  That gives us 18 months to get all this together and figure out how Patrick Farms can be a group.  Either that or we over turn Obamacare and get it back to the way it used to be.  I vote the later.  Now I'm done (Dad, that's for you!)

Poor precious has been sick the last 2 days.  Wednesday I noticed when she was asleep she had a dry cough, then yesterday she was sneezing out of control all day long with a runny nose, last night we were up a lot with coughing, stuffy nose, and earache.  She kept holding her ear today and was so fussy, so we decided to take her in.  Allergies more than likely, but she did have drainage in her ear and the start of an ear infection.  We caught it before it was bad, though (just like last time).  Like I told the doctor, I know when she feels bad because she never fusses and the whole hand on the ear thing was new.  It was kind of confusing because lately she has been putting all her toys up to her ears and pretending they were phones.  It is so cute - she doesn't say "hey" or "hello", just starts jabbering away.  I think she is around many people who are always on the phone! 

"Beloved, I pray that in all respects you may prosper and be in good health, just as your soul prospers." 3 John 1:2 

Thankful that these are the days of my life

I am so thankful that this is how we start everyday.  Well, mine and Kirby's day.  This is after we have had breakfast with Daddy and he is off in the field.  We walk every morning.  There have been a handful of mornings that we have not gotten to have our walk for one reason on another, and it seems to change the whole day.  This is more of a walk for seeing things and enjoying all that God has to offer us out here, not really exercises.  Speaking of which, I am finally getting into a routine of that again - thankfully!  She doesn't always keep the shades on, but it is a good habit to try to form!

 When we get back from our walk, she usually is relaxed and ready for her morning nap, which lasts anywhere from 1-2 hours ... usually closer to 2.  During that time I get to have my quiet time, start laundry or that day's chores, catch up on emails or phone calls, and workout.  As soon as nap time is over, it is time to play.  No time to snuggle for a minute, put her down to play.  She loves to discover new things.  This is a wheel off of a plastic storage unit in my Mary Kay closet.  She found it today while I was putting together some Loaded Look Books.  She looked at it for a few  minutes just like this, then held it up to me, then pulled it back, and so on and so forth.  I love this age - so curious.  I am so thankful that I get to be home to see her discovering.  

More on discovery.  Like I said, I have been able to get a workout routine going again.  Tuesday I started p90X over - whew ... and what better place to workout then on the extra cushy mat that we have for Kirby to play on.  Don't worry, I wipe it down with the super safe toy cleaner when I am finished.  Anyhow, today (after 2 days) she discovered my workout band.  She loved this thing.  It kept her entertained long enough for me to empty the dishwasher and snap some shots. 

 I am thankful for the Mary Kay opportunity.  I do not use my time as wisely as I might should to do this business better, but right now it is fun.  Right now I have a few handfuls of faithful customers that I get to take care of.  Right now, I feel that is all I can have on my plate while I soak up Kirby time.  I think that since I missed so much the first 9 months, I do not want to be apart from her much.  I have a hard time leaving her and missing out on her day when I run errands, so I am not ready to start having appointments all the time without her.  I took her to one and that was more work than I expected.  For now, though, I am thankful that I get to help women with the #1 skin care, I get to help them feel empowered when they open their own shop, and I am helping my skin by using the product.  She takes another nap around 1 and that lasts from an hour to two as well.  Sometimes I get a cat nap in there, but usually it is just a little down time for me and then back to paying bills, returning calls, selling skin care, etc.  When she gets up we play some more (hide and seek, chasing around the house, dance around the living room, swing on the porch, look at Boots) and then head up to feed the dogs who are, sadly, still up at the old house.  Sometimes we go visit Grinny and Daddy Ray some more.  While I fix dinner she will play by herself or watch Baby Einstein.  I was a little unsure about how much TV ... everything I have read says NO TV until after 2.  Well, that was abandoned when I had to go back to school.  The TV stays off all day around here except for music, and then I put on one of her learning videos.  Since I have been doing this, her vocabulary and babbling has quadrupled.  I know this is the age that it gets better and starts to come out more anyway, but I believe it has so much to do with these brilliant videos.  There are words in there that we have been working on for awhile before, and within this last week I can clearly hear her say them, such as "duck", "go", "head".  She tries to do Head and Shoulders, Knees and Toes and tries to say some of the words as I sing it.  I don't want an ADD child from watching too much TV, but the more vocabulary they hear and from different sources is beneficial, that I know from my good education at Texas A&M.

This is how we end our day.  Happy on all accounts.   I am so thankful that these are our normal days.  I am so thankful that I get to make these memories with Kirby.  Today we had a full blown tickle fight with big, huge belly laughs.  She was tearing up she was laughing so hard.  Thank you Lord for giving me this opportunity, no matter how much we have to sacrifice to keep it. 

"Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good!  For His mercy endures forever."

1 Chron. 16:34

Busy and blessed!

My Views of Kirby on Wordless Wednesday

"...to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so that no one will malign the word of God." Titus 2:5

Sermon Sunday .. on Wordless Wednesday

Thankfully we were able to make it to Sunday evening service.  I wasn't going to post anything, but the Lord has really been placing sharing this on my heart.  This is a really hard subject for me to grasp and to talk about it, because part of it breaks my heart, so I will not be able to pour much into this post.  But, I am going to share what I feel is most important.  Bill preached on the First and Second Resurrection.  Right now, before we get too deep, understand this: YOU WANT TO BE A PART OF THE FIRST RESURRECTION.  How do you get to be a part of that?  Ask the Lord to be your personal Lord and Saviour.  "That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved." Romans 10:9  You can do it right there where you are.  Stop reading and pray.  If you want someone to talk to you more about this, call me now.  I have an entire outline we can walk through for you to understand.  Back to the resurrections.  The first one is for God's select.  This is for His saved people.  Those who are "Dead in Christ" 1 Thes. 4 will rise first.  You will reign with Christ for eternity.  (Col. 3:4; Matt. 25:21)
The second resurrection is for those people that are lost.  You do not want to be here for this.  (Dan. 12:2; John 5:29; Matt. 10:28) You want to be long gone and reignin' with Him.  This is what breaks my heart.  I know way too many people that are in that second resurrection.  It breaks me.  It should break me more often than when I hear messages like this.  I always cry when Bill preaches on this subject matter.  I do not want some of my own family and my friends and my students and .... to not be with me in Heaven.  Here is where I really get tingly and numb: if you die without Christ, whatever you die "with" will be with you forever.  If you die with cancer, you will always have that cancer pain and never have the medicine to cure it or help the pain go away.  If you die as a sexual predator, you will have that desire forever without any way to fulfill it.  If you die as an addict to drugs or alcohol, you will constantly want one more hit or one more drink, and never be able to fulfill that desire.  Ever.  For all of eternity.  While being pretty darn hot if I can imagine. 
Here is a great way to sum it up: If you are born twice (once from your mother, then once born again in Christ), then you will only die once (your physical death).  If you are only born once, then you will die twice.  Where do you fall?  What resurrection will you be a part of?  If you can not say with 100% certainty in your heart that your going with the first, do something about it now.  Call me, call a pastor, just drive to a church and tell them you want to pray with them ... call on the Lord is all you have to do.  Just do it, don't put it off.
"For I know that my Redeemer lives, and He shall stand last on the earth; and after my skin is destroyed, this I know, that in my flesh I shall see God..." Job 19:25-26

Weekend update ... ha, like SNL

We got busy Friday and Saturday... well, not busy actually.  CR was off, so I was busy being not busy with him.  We just enjoyed him being home with us most of the days.  So instead of a long, drawn out freedom of speech, I am just going to share some cute updates about Kirby. She is trying very hard to walk on her own and she talks to everyone, everything, every non thing in sight.  It is such a fun activity to make up what she is saying.  She has a fascination with bags: 

 She really likes to wave now that she has it down.  Yesterday I asked her where her daddy was (he had to go spray for a couple of hours):

 She pointed towards the door as she said, "dadda, dadda, dadda" ....

 and then started waving sporadically.  I think she was basically saying, "dadda, bye bye"

 At Home Depot Friday night she was visiting with a little girl and then the little girl told her bye-bye.  She waved, and waved, and waved ...

even long after the little girl was gone.

CR and I had to miss out on the church service this morning.  When we got finished teaching Sunday School, our nursery pager was going off.  Kirby was super tired and very fussy.  So we hoped in the Patrick's car and decided to take her for a ride to fall asleep.  She got her morning nap in and was ready for Sunday lunch with the usual crowd.  We did, thankfully, get to teach our Juniors Sunday School class again and we really enjoyed it.  The students are starting to open up more and share so that we aren't just up there "preaching".  They are getting involved, we worked through some real life applications of our message last week and this week, and I even talked to them about applying what we hear Bill preach every Sunday.  It is totally different, they say, then what they used to do, but they seem to be enjoying it and participating well.  I told CR, "This is what the Lord has placed on our hearts to do, and we have to do His work, not our own."  It would be much easier just to sit and visit the whole time like they claim they do, but that is not our "job".  Their eyes and hearts told me they were craving what we were doing, so we went with it even more this time and had a great response.  Thank you Lord for this opportunity for CR and I to share and grow right along side with these kiddos.

"Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Matt. 28:19-20

Thankful Thursday

Today I have been reminded about how thankful I am for my salvation.  I am so thankful that I know God as my personal Lord and Saviour.  I am so thankful that He gives me what I don't deserve and doesn't give me what I do deserve.  I can not imagine going through life without Him.  There are so many things that I know I fall short of, but just to know that I am saved and walk with Him daily is so refreshing.  I can not imagine a world of darkness, uncertainty, and despair.  Because of Him, I have hope(Jer.17:7-8)  Because of Him, I know I am going to spend my life in Heaven for eternity.  (John 3:16)  Because of Him, we had the faith to keep going when we were longing so much for her:

Because of Him, we know that we will make it through without me teaching.  Our hope and salvation is in Him, not this world and the temporal things that make it.  Because of Him, I can face tomorrow, no matter what is in store.  I owe my life, to you my Lord ... here I am.

"How can I repay the Lord for all His goodness to me."  Psalm 116:12