Valentines Day Is Coming

So it's that time again. Valentines day! You either love it or hate it.
This year I decided to do the 14 days of Valentine. I folded up little boxes and inserted tickets of "I owe yous" into them for my husband to use at his leisure. So far they are working wonderfully. He is enjoying it the tickets and is eager for the next ones to come. I get to show my love to my husband each day and not just on Valentine. I figure that it will be good thing to do outside of Valentines day in the future too.

Here is the link to making the box
Box tutorial
...and the link to the tickets
Tickets of love

I've been back and forth on the day and now that I have someone it is definitely exciting to show how much you love them. I also started to realize that  it doesn't have to always be just because you have a significant other for you to participate. You can definitely show love to your friends, family, and acquaintances on this holiday. Not only your love but also the love of Christ. Christ loves us so much that he gave us the gift of his son taking our place and bearing the burden of our sin. To really know what love is and how to give it to others we need to take a look at Jesus' life and what he did for us. I pray that I can always show that love to my friends, family, and especially to the people around me.

Welcome 2014

Another year has passed and we are ready to get going for 2014 as a family. Its so exciting to go into this new year with our beautiful baby boy and only a year left of school for me. 2013 had wrapped up with quite a few things that has shaken us financially, but no worries! God has got everything under control. Both David and I made resolutions to become more committed to our devotion time with God individually and together as a couple. I have a bible app that has many devotions to choose from. For the new year I decided to go through the chronological bible devotional. It should be an interesting way to read through God's word.
Julien is growing so big and fast. He is cooing a lot more often now which is so rewarding to see him interact with me. I am trying my hardest to love everything I am experiencing right now in these moments, but I am totally looking forward to seeing start to move around more on his own and develop that cute, hearty baby laugh. Overall I am thankful for all 2013 and look forward to 2014.

Date night

Last night was date night. Our first night out without baby Julien. It was nice to spend time with each other. Of course, immediately after we left the first topic that comes out of my mouth is Julien. David had to remind me that we should talk about us.
It's so important for couples to spend some time together away from their kids to strengthen their own bond. I've been told stories of friends that didn't take time with each other and regret it. One couple said they love their children to death, but their relationship has dwindled a little. We see it in movies all the time where the kids have grown and started lives of their own and the parents no longer love each other or even know each other anymore. David and I discussed before getting married that we would love each other first and then our kids. It's so important to love each other first. You tighten the bond with each other and show your children what love is, especially when they begin to get into relationships of their own. David and I want to be able to show Julien that we love each other and that he can be secure in knowing that that is one thing he doesn't have to worry about.

Christmas Decor

Everyone has their own personal preference on when they want to begin celebrating the Christmas season. My sister and I discussed and agreed that we think it's best to put our decorations up on the first of December. I feel like many people just forget about thanksgiving. Let me rephrase that. Many big corporations drive through the Thanksgiving festivities to get ahead in the materialism of Christmas. Recently my husband has made me see that Christmas is only for a short month ( not even the full month) and for the people who love Christmas, that is way too short for a season that comes once a year.

This year I am giving in a little and started to listen to Christmas music and watch Christmas movies a day after Thanksgiving. We also wanted to start some traditions for our family such as reading scripture pertaining to Jesus' birth and doing advent. I never heard of advent before and I am so excited to start it. I have been looking on Pinterest for inspiration and attained some ideas to work off of. Most people listed fun activities to do with their families. They are nice, but don't really touch any spiritual aspects. There is one person who listed scripture for each day of advent which is awesome. Somehow I want to put little bit of everything together and tweak it as our kids grow older.
I love the holiday season (when treated correctly) and spending time with family, but most of all it reminds me how much God has blessed me.

An attitude of gratitude

Thanksgiving is the time to be thankful and I certainly have a lot to be thankful for this year. A beautiful baby, a wonderful husband, and good family and friends...what more could I ask for?  I've been trying to catch up with my devotional app and went back a couple months for a devotion that is actually quite perfect for the season. I was taken to Psalms 100 and was reminded that there are many things that we can complain about on a daily basis such as long lines and bad traffic. What we need to remember is that we need to be thankful for the little things and carry that spirit around with us instead of the spirit of complaining. Instead of being upset of the traffic be thankful for the vehicle that you have to help you get from point A to B. Also when praying, we should thank God for the little things too. Things such as being able to wake up that day or being able to get ready for work.

I am thankful for a husband that is doing work and school to better himself and the family. I am also thankful for a beautiful baby boy that we have been blessed with. On top of that, I am thankful for the abundance of family and friends that have been a big helping hand at every life milestone David and I have been through. It makes me ponder about the many others that don't have friends and family or that have lost a loved one. I am blessed beyond measure and give God praise!

Time Is Going By Fast!

I can't believe its already been a month since Julien came into the world. In my head I keep singing the song "Sunrise, Sunset". "...wasn't it yesterday when they ..were.. small...". I love that movie! Seriously though! My little man is getting so big. I can literally see changes happening over night.  For instance, his fingers keep getting fuller and bigger every time I look at them. On thursday night he actually started interacting with David and was smiling at the game they were playing together. His first (real) smile! Things are actually getting better now with feedings and sleeping. Last night was one of the best nights we've had. I didn't have to struggle at all to get Julien fed, changed, burped, and then back to bed in about half an hour. He did so well. We still have a hard time understanding some of his cries sometimes. David and I interpret some of his cries differently and that makes for a frustrating time for everyone, especially for Julien. Despite the struggle things are getting better.
We had our first outing with Julien last week on Sunday and a lot of people got to see him. Of course, for our first outing I forget the diaper bag. Luckily, Julien slept through the whole service and we got to go straight home afterwards. We took cute family pictures when we got home and had nice family time. Life is good and God has blessed us so much!

Welcome to a whole new world!

Having a baby is not all its cracked up to be. Don't get me wrong. I love Julien with all my heart. I just didn't see all the other things attached to having babies coming.Sleepless nights, crying, dirty, diapers, and even a little paranoia (worried that the baby will stop breathing). I think I remember encountering these topics before baby maybe a couple times from others, but it never really hit me until I was in the middle of it.  Even though its been hard I am learning a few things for now and the future. Through this I am learning to have more patience. Patience through feeding, making sure he is for sure asleep before putting him in the crib, waking up every couple hours, and especially in burping him. It will definitely resonate to handling patience with different things in the future. Everything listed here is normally what u. but when you are sleep deprived its seems more intense.  David has been a trooper. He has been willing to get up and help out with Julien. I feel bad though cause it is a struggle for him to do this while he still required to go to work and school. He sacrifices so much for us and I am really thankful.