FIRST HALF OF APRIL IN REVIEW

April 2010...the month that never seams to end. First I want to say I am not complaining in this post, just simply confessing that this month has been 1 thing after another. You can say, it's been "One of those months." I would love to say it was full of blooming flowers...but really, it has been piles of cow manure that needs shoveld.

It all started out on April 3rd with the stomach flu. Mattie was the first to get it. Then I got it. It cycled through the whole house in 48 hour increments. This means not only do you have a sick family, but your daily duties still go on...lovely.
Halfway through the stomach flu, the week long cold decides to join the party...uninvited. Andy was the first to get this one. This was hard because I needed his help and he could barely make it to work. I remember going to bed at night myself, not wanting to wake up the next morning. It was the cold that punched you in the face and then kept beating you down.

April 8th-The weather was sunny and hailing, all at the same time.
April 9th- Found out someone had been using my credit card in Las Vegas. They got their hair done, went to Jack in the box, and Pizza Hut. I hope they had a fun time...actually, I hope they rot in Jail.

April 10th- I got the cold. The treacherous, knockout, blackout... cold. Being 32 weeks pregnant and not being able to breath or sleep was hard. I definitely didn't want to get up in the morning because I basically didn't sleep at night. Thank goodness Andy was home on his long change from the mine (AKA-1 week off of work).

April 14th-I went to the doctor for my 32 week OB check-up and failed my 1 hour glucose test...lovely. That meant I had to go back, spend 3 hours drawing blood (starving), just for them to say I'm fine. I was getting over the cold for the most part, but I started to notice this little pain in my left chest. Every time I took a breath, I felt this little pain that made me say "ooohh, that kinda hurts."

April 15th-Started watching 3-4 daycare kids for the neighbor while she enjoyed a vacation with her family to Hawaii!! (spoiled brat...)
They are all girls between the ages of 3-5. More like a playgroup for Mattie. (It was a blessing that they are all good kids. I actually love this group of girls.)

2 days later...APRIL 17TH-THE DAY I THOUGHT I WAS HAVING A HEART ATTACK
That little pain in my left chest had grown over 3 days. It now hurt to lay on my left side and move freely. It felt like when you swallow a chip that goes down the wrong way and you can't get it dissolved. It really hurt to the point that I knew I needed to get it checked out right away. So around 2pm, I went to the ER....

(To be continued)
Oh, this is just the beginning. This month gets better...Your just getting to the meat of the story.

On the Front Porch

Every year, I have taken a picture of Mattie on her birthday...on the front porch. I didn't do this intentionally at first, but now it has become a traditional backdrop.

1 year old.

2 year old.

3 year old.

HAPPY 3RD BIRTHDAY MATTIE

Today, April 17th, Mattie turned 3 years old. She is so excited about her birthday.

And even more excited about her party...to be continued...

BICYCLE GANG

Our family has been in the same neighborhood for 4 years now. Our neighborhood is full of boys. Outdoorsy, adventurous... bike riding boys.
It is a safe neighborhood and the kids are all good kids. I call them "the Bicycle Gang" because every time the weather is good, I see them outside whizzing by on dirt bikes, skateboards, dune buggies...and the traditional bike. They even find old ditched bikes and rebuilt them to ride on the road.


These boys have grown from riding tricylcles to now jumping over ditches. They are over 10 years old and there skills have improved. Heres some pictures of jumps over 12 feet. These jumps were supervised.

APRIL

I love April in Juneau. Just when you think you can't take another day of rain and clouds, April shows up. The sun shines through the windows and warms up the house. I love to open doors and let in fresh air. And everyone and everything comes to life from the long hibernation of winter.

The next 3 months are my favorite as the temperature rises and you get to see the changing of the season. Yesterday, Andy and I took the girls for a hike behind our house. It is a short, easy trail, that has a waterfall with fresh drinking water running.

Morgan brought the map. Dora the explorers map.




s...

WHEN WE BUY A HOUSE

WHEN WILL THE DAY BE THAT WE WILL BE OWNERS OF OUR DREAM HOME? Is this a question you find yourself asking? I think of this all the time. The things I want:

1. acres of land. This would be nice if it was acres of land with a couple close neighbors. I love acres because then you can run on your own property, ride 4-wheelers around, and at night, beable to sit outside and go pee in your front yard if you wanted... (ok, I personally would never do the last one, but you get the point)

2. Not an oversized house (because that means more cleaning), but a house large enough that my family has room to relax. Probably close to 2000 square feet is a good size.

3. A den for all of Andys trophies. And when I mean trophies, I mean the stuffed animals that now reside in 3 areas of the house. The den would be perfect for him to bring his friends and family over and talk about all the hunting stories, adventures, and future dream hunts. A testosterone driven room with little to no estrogen....but that means, I get the rest of the house.

4. THIS SHOULD BE #1, BUT I WILL PUT IT HERE. A hot tub. A hot tub, outside. Plain and simple. This should be an easy one...

5. OPEN FLOOR PLAN. To let in ALOT of light. I can't stand houses that are all closed in and dark.

6. A PLACE FOR OTHER FAMILY. This is important IF I want people to come visit. They won't if you don't have somewhere for them to fit. Even if it is a small room, this is important. It could be substituted for RV parking, OR a place for a tent.

7. A GARAGE OR A SHOP. I love to have organization and a little bit of storage. This would be really nice.

Hopefully someday we find what we want. It's interesting to look at all options and find the exact pair for our family. Every family is different, and ours...? sophisticated country I think.

MINING ACCIDENT IN WEST VIRGINIA

In case you didn't know, Yesterday around 3pm, there was a mining accident in a West Virginia coal mine. There are currently 25 miners found deceased, and still hope to find more alive in a safety chamber underground.

This is not the mine Andy works at, but it really hits home when you are in the mining industry. We all know how hard it is to live in the mining industry, and dread to hear the news of a mining accident. Every night, I think about it, and just wait until he returns home from work. If he is even minutes late, I start to worry. To me...a mining accident is worse than hurricane Katrina, or a tsunami hitting. Even though they are all tragic events, a little piece of me gets saddened for every single family impacted by these mining accident.

Pray for the Mine Rescue teams that are going underground to rescue missing miners. That they will be safe and be able to use there training. This is what Andy does. He is the Captain of one of the Mine Rescue Teams here in Juneau. I know all too well the pressure and the training these men go through to be part of this volunteer team.

The Mine Rescue Team plays a very important role in Mining. A Rescue team in a mine rescue can only be underground for 2 hours. At that point they are replaced by another team. Last I heard, there were 9 teams for the West Virginia coal mine accident.

GO HERE FOR MORE ON THE STORY

MAGIC MIRROR

This mirror image is a reflection from the trees in my back yard, reminding me spring is on it's way. It is reflecting off of egg dye cups, used to color Easter eggs, that resemble a new birth.

Enjoy the simple beauty of your Easter.

And remember Jesus Christ. The one that died for us. And rose again...

ART GALLERY WALK

It was good Friday...literally. The sun was shining and the temperatures were in the 40's or so. I finished up organizing my clothes (finally), my neighbor watched Mattie for me pretty much all day, AND she even provided my family with dinner. (LETS JUST SAY SHE IS THE BEST!) Which all freed me up to take the 2 older kids to the Art Gallery Walk called "First Friday."

Gallery walks are very popular in an Art community. Like Seattle and Chicago, Juneau has a great appreciation for the arts. With that being said, I never knew or got involved in this part of Juneau.
Art Galleries are each unique and include photography, sculptures, paintings,..even a big ball of paper the size of -3 people holding hands in a circle.-...if you know what I'm talking about. Every venue was different in their prospective.


With the kids going.. I was really nervous...I mean, WHAT IF they broke something?? But I had to trust them, and surprisingly, they were really good!

Trey was really into this statue of a miners that got struck in the head by a falling rebar.

And then I turn the corner and morgan is having "Tea" with some other girls. She looked so cute in her dress and the red flower in her hair.



I asked the kids if they wanted to go with me again... and they said yes! Wow. I'm so glad because it was a different side to see.

GREAT LIGHT

There is nothing better than great light coming through your kitchen windows. This is the best place to sit and photograph.



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