Prego, or Ragu?

Warning: This post is a little bit deep for me. It's not something I would normally write but in my mind, it makes sense and maybe it will to you as well.

Anyway,




When my mom was pregnant with my baby sister, we started calling her (my mom), Ragu. It made sense to us a teenager and a tween that we would call her that because the night she told us she was pregnant she made spaghetti for dinner. And, well, as you can imagine, prego sounds like Preggo but NO one would ever figure out our clever nickname of ragu. And just so you don't think I'm completely crazy, I'll prove to you that I'm not the ONLY person who has ever made this analogy...





I don't know why I was thinking about this. Maybe it's the fact that my baby sister is going to be 13 this week and part of me is sad. Ok, really, I was buying her a birthday card and started crying! This is what being a mother does to you!

But either way, I was thinking about it and here is what I decided. Sometimes, life is like "prego" and sometimes, life is like "ragu." I remember those days when I wanted to be "prego" so badly and I felt like my life would end if I didn't get pregnant or have a baby. I remember having the same feelings when I wanted to be married and I felt like I was getting SO old and I would never find anyone (I got married at 23!) Now, I have these feelings when I think about buying our next house, paying off debt, and having money to spare. These times in my life, I could refer to as "ragu." I know it really does sound silly to compare your life to a spaghetti sauce but then I started thinking (of course, remember it was like 11 PM and I couldn't sleep) this isn't so silly at all. If you peeled the labels off and made 2 pots of spaghetti, chances are you wouldn't be able to tell the difference between the 2 sauces. Now, "imagine" with me a little bit here. Obviously, some people definitely prefer one over the other, but just go with it for a minute, if you will. If I could have "peeled the label" off of my life during those times of sadness, I still would have been the same person. I was still me. I had a purpose, God had a plan for me. I just couldn't see past my "ragu life" to get to it. I think it is important to remember that each day is special. God has a plan for your life no matter what you are going through. Whether you are living in the "prego" world, or the "ragu" world. Your "prego desire" might be different than mine but it's still there. You all know what I'm talking about. So, I just want you all to remember that no matter what is happening whether you are living in the "prego" moment or the "ragu" moment, you are still beautiful, wonderful, and you are STILL you! God has a plan for your life and eventually, the "prego" will come through. You just might have to eat several pots of ragu before it happens. Keep praying for your "prego" life!

Love,
Melody

A lot of this, a little of that

Well, I went back to work today. 5 days off does a body good! Zach and I house hunted most of the break. We actually made an offer on a house but the deal didn't work out and I think we are both ok with that. It is a beautiful house though, 2500 square feet with TWO master suites! No, I'm not making this stuff up! It's in our price range too. So, maybe after they make a couple more house payments they will be willing to take our offer. However, I have been looking at other houses and found a few more that I like. So, we are focusing on putting some money in the bank and I am patiently waiting for that perfect little (or not so little, actually) house.

In other news... I am not naive to the fact that children make messes, get into things, drive people crazy, and so on. However, you never expect YOUR child to do some of the things they do. For example, yesterday, I got to the toilet JUST as Bailey was saying "Uh Oh" to the quarter she had just flushed. And, the day before that, it was a clothes pin! I did coax her away from sticking her hand in to fish it out (YUCK). We are potty training (not HARD CORE but working on it). The other day, I put her on the potty and just like a big girl she went and was so proud (and so was her mama). Then, a few minutes later (while I was getting dressed) she said "Mama, I pee pee on the floor." Sure enough... I got to clean up a puddle, haha. But, I would not trade this kid for millions!

A LOT OF THIS! We went to Sam's Saturday. I bought some Asiago Pepper cheese. Can you say YUM? OMG! I LOVE cheese, almost any kind! It is SOOOO good! I don't know if all of you have a Sam's (it's like a wal-mart only in warehouse form and they sell everything in bulk) however, I think it's the same as Costco. So, look for the counisseour brand. It's expensive but I DO NOT care! It was a treat to myself and I have loved all that I have eaten so far!

Ok, one more thing...

My Oklahoma~Born baby sporting her Razorback gear. Enjoy...

Fall Break Has (almost) Arrived!!!!

We spent the weekend in Arkansas with my family. My mom said they would buy Bailey a coat as part of her Christmas present since we currently reside in ONE bedroom and don't have a lot of space. This is the coat we picked out and Bailey ABSOLUTELY LOVES it! And, since my VERY favorite color is green, I LOOOOOOOOOVE it too :).
You can't tell from the picture but it has little bows on the sleeves and a bow in the back. She looks like a little eskimo in it. I'll have to post pictures of her in it soon!

As the title says: "Fall Break is (Almost) Here!" I am SO excited for fall break! In Arkansas, we didn't get fall break. We plan to spend Wednesday with our realtor looking at houses. We don't plan to buy yet but we want to see what's out there. The plan is to take Bailey to the pumpkin patch on Thursday or Friday. I'm sure she will look SO much more grown up than she did last year. I can't wait to get new pumpkin patch pictures of her!

Sweet as pie... Or cake!

Sunday, while Bailey and I were napping, Bailey's daddy was busy doing this:





So, when Bailey woke up she had her very own "pincess" cake. Pink cake with purple icing! It was the sweetest thing. Zach used food coloring to color it for her. She was VERY excited.

Now, C'mon girls! How many of your husbands would do this? (Besides you Tiff, we all know your husband is perfect) :)

FOREVER!

It only took FOREVER, but I finally made a new blog header and gave my blog a fresh look. What do you think?

At least it's not the flu...

Our poor baby girl was sick all weekend! It started Friday evening about 7 when I noticed that Bailey felt warm. I, being the "NON-Freak-outish" (yeah, you like how we English teachers are allowed to make up new words, lol) was not too concerned. Zach and I left her with his mom while we went out for a couple hours and asked her to give her some tylenol if the fever went up. It was only about 99 so of course I thought nothing of it. We got a phone call a couple hours later that her fever had continued to go up and she was SCREAMING for me so we came back home. ALL night she had fever and chills. EVERY 2 hours we gave her tylenol or motrin. Saturday morning I called the triage nurse and she said we HAD to take Bailey to the ER because having chills for more than an hour MUST be checked out. SIX, YES SIX hours later, we had determined it was not the flu OR a urinary tract infection. But, let me just say having to cath a toddler is TRAUMATIZING. Not only for her, but her mommy as well. I felt so bad for my little bug. Then, as things always happen, I wound up sick as well. So, I stayed home with her yesterday. I am feeling a little better and sweet Bailey is doing much better. But, I will admit I was QUITE scared for a while. Her fever never got past 102.5 but I can't imagine what it would have been without the medicine. It really makes me think about how much I love her and that I would do ANYTHING to protect her.

Please don't feed her oranges and grandpa's fried rice

Last night, MeMaw and Papa (Bailey's given names to grandma and grandpa) were having some ice cream. They asked if she could have some. "I don't care." I said. FATAL mistake. I didn't realize that they were going to give her orange sherbet (which I THOUGHT everyone knew she was allergic t0). Last time she had it she went COMPLETELY nuts and wouldn't go to bed. She was bouncing off the walls. Not to mention, the red rash that seems to appear all over her little face (much like the rash she gets from ketchup). I know, my poor baby has ultra-sensitive skin thanks to her mommy's side of the family. Anyway, around bed time we were reading a book and I noticed that Bailey was starting to act more hyped up than calmed down. "Did Bailey eat orange sherbet?" I asked Zach's mom.
"Yes, you said she could have ice cream."
OH DEAR!
Long story short...
Bailey went COMPLETELY nuts. She started head butting me, and I have quite the black eye this morning because of it.
Please don't feed her orange stuff!

I also wanted to pay a little tribute to my grandpa Carter. He always used to make fried rice for me. It's one of my very favorite things. EVERY birthday or holiday he would make it just for me. I decided to make some last night and I was thinking just how blessed we all were for having him in our lives. He was the most kind-hearted, gentle man I have ever known. I miss him so much since he passed away last December. He wasn't supposed to die and I really don't think my life will ever be quite the same without him. I love you grandpa! I hope you and grandma are having fun in Heaven! I wish Bailey could have gotten to know you! You really were a special person.