God Is Good Even When Life Isn't

There haven't been any recent posts because they simply would have been way too depressing. The first 3 weeks of 2012 were rough. Josh and I kept looking at eachother and saying "what else? let's just get this all over with." It started out with a few irritating events such as the electrical cable getting snipped so that the electricity kept surging and fried our microwave, baby monitor, fan, and a light fixture. Ok, a little irritating but nothing to get upset over. A few days later, I went running with my mom-in-law and we came back to her car to discover the back window was broken and my purse, that I had placed under the seat, was gone. Thankfully I had my phone with me on the run so I was able to call right away and cancel every card and so the damage was minimal. Driving back from the DMV a day later, I was thankful to have a temporary license and to have all of my cards re-ordered. I thought "that really sucked but it's over now, thank you, Lord." That night my husband receives a phone call and we are faced with the possibility that he might not have a job the following week. I sat there trying to encourage him, but we are both overcome with fear and anxiety. We prayed together and then we had to just wait. The next couple days were filled with ups and downs and they were down right grueling on my husband. The Lord answered our prayers and Josh still has a job but it definitely got both of us thinking and it made us realize that God is leading us, specifically my husband, in a different direction. A few days later, Josh got a flat tire on the way to work but after the previous week, neither one of us were shocked and I watched my husband fork out the money we didn't have without so much as batting an eye. This month taught us TOTAL dependence on our Savior. He has daily provided for us. Another door of opportunity was closed this week for us and so we are waiting again, wondering what is around the bend in this crazy, unpredictable life. I am just waiting in the comfort that God has a much better plan for us.
Our two little girls have been blissfully unaware of what has happened over the past few weeks. They have been playing as hard as ever and brightening our days with their funny little antics. No matter how many times I tell Allie how to say licorice she can only seem to call it lipstick (which I think is ever so cute). On our way to AWANAS last night Allie declared to me "I am going to have SO much fun at AWANAS, mommy!" I am so glad she loves it.

Today while I was grocery shopping Josh sent me this picture. Allie had taken out the beautiful braid her aunt had done and was now VERY upset at the end result. I could laugh because I was not there to hear her fit. As soon as I got home she asked me to fix it :)
I thought I'd end on a fun note :)

Janelle

Some Highlights of 2011

December is such a crazy month and we make it even crazier with the celebration of Josh's birthday and Allie's birthday on the 19 and 21 of December respectively. With all of the hustle and bustle it was impossible for me to post. Any spare time I had was spent wrapping presents and studying for my medical transcription program.

It was fun going through some of our photos from the past year and I decided to share a few...

january

One of our family days in Coronado.

february

It snowed in Ramona! So then we made a trip to Julian to play in it...(below)

march

Our baby girl turned 1... and now I can't believe how much she has changed since then.

april

Our lil' punk

may

Katie's little personality definitely revealed itself to us this year!

And she finally started walking at 14-months-old!

june

Josh and I celebrated 5 years of marriage. I love how our love deepens with each passing year.



We attended one of the most enjoyable and fun weddings ever with some amazing friends (the photobooth at their reception just rocked!)

july

The Husband practiced, practiced, and practiced. He has become an impressive golfer and he is hoping to play in some tournaments this year (lovin' the look of his muscles in this pic!).

august

We welcomed our new addition to the family, Ginger.

september

Josh and I went to New York City. An entire week without the kiddos :)

october

Two precious ladybugs

november

A new bedroom.

december

Knott's Berry Farm

Our Allie girl turned 4!

We had a really nice Christmas spending time with both of our families.

Allie was proud to be an angel in the children's production at our church on Christmas Eve.

I am looking forward to a somewhat normal routine and having a healthy family again. I thought we had luckily missed out on the sickness surrounding us this season but this week Josh came down with a really bad cold and Katie has a double-ear infection. I can't wait to have a decent night's sleep. Looking back I see how much God blessed and provided for us during 2011. I am hopeful for this coming year and certain that my faith rests in a loving and faithful Father.

Happy New Years!

Our Christmas Tree!

Today was the day! We got our Christmas tree! If you live in Washington or Oregon, picking out your Christmas tree may be quite an event but here in SoCal you can just buy it and load it onto your car along with the diapers and other Costco items. I had to hold my hubby up when the total came up on the cash register; $94 for 2 perishable items. Poor hubby, the money goes so fast especially during this time of year.

I love that Allie is old enough to really enjoy all of the Christmas festivities this year. She, with some help from her daddy, placed the star on top of our tree.

Her triumphant grin.

I lost track of the amount of times that I had to tell Katie "no touch," and I know I'm not done yet.

O I just love those little faces!

She smiles so big when she is about to do something she knows she is not supposed to...

And a picture of the 5 of us :)

Tomorrow we are off to Knott's Berry Farm! It will be fun but also a lot of work since Katie thinks she is in charge of our every destination. Next week I am planning on baking my first batch of buckeyes so if you'd like to stop by and help me dip them in chocolate I would very much appreciate the help :)



Two Ladybugs at Sea World

Last Sunday we made the trip down the hill to Sea World with some pretty cool friends of ours.

Allie was super excited and she told everyone who asked that she is a "ladybug princess" because she couldn't be just any ordinary ladybug :)

Katie had no clue as to what we were about to do but she made it quite clear that she would not wear her antenna or wings, and that she didn't think the dress was comfortable.

Here is the group of kiddos with some pretty outrageous fish.

Once Katie found out that people were putting treats in her bucket she was all on board! (Notice that I was able to sneak her wings on for a little bit).

Allie and her friend Molly

This is what happens when our little bug doesn't get a nap.

But she perked up on the ride.

Allie was thrilled to be able to have a picture with a mermaid princess.

We had such a wonderful time with our family and friends. Allie has been asking everyday to wear her costume and can't wait for me to finally allow it tomorrow. We are looking forward to attending the Fall Festival at our church and spending time with our little ladies.



A New Bedroom...

Josh and I have been married over five years now and our bedroom set has consisted of a mismatched array of Ikea furniture, most of it given to us. About a year ago, I saw my ideal bedroom set in a Crate and Barrel catalogue. I knew this set would normally be way out of my price range but with my sister's work discount, I would soon have enough money to buy it. Well, about two weeks before I planned to buy the furniture, my sister got a new job. I was really disappointed but I found an ad on Craig's list for a really nice set that would cost a lot less. Two weeks later, Josh took me to the warehouse on Miramar Rd. and we made the long awaited purchase. A week passed and the company never called to schedule the delivery so Josh called them and found out that the entire set was on backorder so we would be waiting three more weeks. Waiting seems to be the story of my life lately. After all of that, my furniture was delivered yesterday! I absolutely love it!

Before pics....

And after pics....

I still have a few more things I would like to add and change; a new computer desk, one more bookshelf, a mirror for over my dresser, and some decorative pillows for the bed. Everytime I walk by my doorway I just stop and stare. My bedroom is my favorite spot in our house now :)
Other than the new furniture, my life has been pretty routine lately, hence the lack of posts over the past month.
Allie started Awanas last month and she is absolutely loving it. She comes home so excited that it takes an hour to settle her in bed. She has been doing really well with her scripture memorization.

Here she is sporting her Awana vest...

I can't believe she will be 4 years old in just a couple months.

It seems like every day the girls play more and more with eachother. Tuesday, they were in Allie's room sitting on her bed playing, giggling, and snuggling, it was so precious. Motherhood has seemed less demanding and I find myself enjoying it more with each passing day.

The girls having a tea party.

One huge blessing over this past year has been meeting more friends at church and getting more involved. Meeting with my girlfriends during the week has been such an encouragement. So thank you, Ladies, for the playdates, coffee dates, and just living life together. :)

Little Katie Kat has been busy with her toddler mischief. Here she is doing what she loves most, stealing daddy's phone, eating snacks, and having a golf date with daddy. While I'm getting ready in the morning, Katie loves to stand on her stool by the bathroom sink and stick her toothbrush in the water and then into her mouth. Well Tuesday she was doing this exact same routine and then all of the sudden she said "where diditgo?" (I love how she talks) and I see that the end of her tooth brush is barely visible down the bathroom sink drain. When Josh went to retrieve it later he found not 1 but 3 toothbrushes. So needless to say, I have had to find a different routine for her in the morning.

Two peas in a pod...

I am looking forward to more Fall festivities this month accompanied with pictures and another blog post!

Janelle





New York!

Josh and I were able to fly to New York for a week, from September 5-12. We had such a great time! This was the first time we had a week to ourselves with no work and no kids. We stayed right outside of the city in New Jersey.

This was the view from our hotel room at the Sheraton in the Meadowlands.

The hotel provided a shuttle to the train station nearby and then it was about a 10-15 minute train ride into Penn Station in the city.

The day we arrived, we just relaxed and had a nice long dinner, used the hot tub, and watched a movie in our room. The next day we went into the city and started with Times Square.

My Hubby's first look at Times Square :)

It was sprinkling when we first arrived but as we walked to Central Park it started pouring. Our shoes and pants were soaked in minutes so we decided to return to the hotel and pray for better weather. The forecast looked grim that night so we went to a nearby Walmart and purchased rain boots and a large umbrella.

We were determined to see some sites the following day so we set out despite the rain.

We went to Battery Park to catch the ferry over to the Statue of Liberty. As we were walking through the park, we saw flags being driven into the ground. Each flag represented someone who died in the 9/11 attacks and the names of each person were printed on the flag. Josh and I were each able to put one in the ground.

(I really like my rainboots)

After that we were off to see Lady Liberty!

Thursday was finally sunny so we spent time in Central Park!

Josh eating his hot dog :)

The Bull (he also posed with the other end)

I really wanted these 8 oz Reese's Cups but they were $22! O well, a girl can dream.

In the middle of Times Square. We also saw the Naked Cowboy here but I think I'll pass on his picture :)

A picture of the ferris wheel inside the 3-story Toys R Us. We had fun shopping for the girls here!

Little Italy

Some mouthwatering pizza...o yeah!

We saw and did so much over the week that it would probably take 5 posts to describe everything and I will be making a photobook from Costco to contain ALL of the pictures we took!

It was beyond amazing to spend such quality time with my man. The girls behaved wonderfully for both sets of grandparents (which was such a relief for me). Allie squealed with delight when we got home and has been showering me with hugs, kisses, and "I love you"s; Katie just stared at us with a blank expression on her face so I'm not sure what she thought of the whole experience. Katie will cuddle me one minute and then throw a tantrum the next so I think she is a little upset with me for leaving her for so long.

Back to reality, though. The laundry is finally finished for the week, the house has once again been cleaned, playdates resumed, and the Husband worked last night *sigh*

I am dreaming of a more tropical location for our next vacation :)

Janelle