Andy has been working on this stocking for like three months. Let me say it is AWESOME!!! I hope that it lasts Eli his whole life. My dad still has the one his mom made him and I think that is so cool! Also a picture of duder sleeping in the chair. Sorry that I don't have more pics.
Eli is not in the best of mood today.
Erin said for people to do this and I have been entertained by my blog lately so I figured I would give it a try.
8 TV Shows I Watch:
1) House
2) Sometimes Grey's Anatomy
3) Prison Break
4) I LOVE Army Wives
5) House Hunters
6) The Office because I have no choice
7) HGTV
8) Anything on HGTV
8 Favorite Restaurants:
1) Jalapenos
2) Jose Pepper's
3) Andy's Frozen Custard
4) Chic Fila
5) Dr. Pepper Fountains
6) Taco Bell
7) Wing Stop; however my pregnant self HATES it
8) Sushi Restaurants
8 Things that Happened to Me Today:
1) I got up before the butt crack of dawn.
2) I was almost late to work.
3) I have been asked to write a pass many times.
4) I have searched on the Internet, alot.
5) I have watched part of Elf.
6) I check my email like 100 times.
7) I went to the special ed party!
8) I ate food.
8 Things I Look Forward To:
1) Christmas Vacation!!!! Starts today...
2) Spending tons of time with duder!
3) Go to visit Springfield.
4) Going on a date with my husband tonight.
5) Christmas!
6) More kids!
7) Summer break!
8) Seeing Eli and Andy!
8 Things I Wish For:
1) For Eli to sleep through the night.
2) A permanent teaching position.
3) To graduate with my masters.
4) For my son to thrive in life.
5) No extra pounds to be added to my body during the Holiday season.
6) A bigger back yard for the doggies and a swing set.
7) My friend to be a zoo keeper so I may get private tours!!!!!
8) A trillion dollars?!?!?
So this semester I started a masters degree program to become a teacher. I wanted to invest in young people's lives and really make a difference. Well my first semester of college went great! I got an A in both of my classes. That is really a big deal to me, because I was really worried about doing a masters degree program because, as you can see from reading this blog, I am not the best writer in the world and a masters program is made up of a lot of writing. To continue with my teacher education I also passed my Praxis!!! I'm so excited.... God has really shown me this is the career for me to have...
I've come to the frightening conclusion that I am the decisive element in the classroom. It's my personal approach that creates the climate. It's my daily mood that makes the weather. As a teacher, I possess tremendous power to make a student's life miserable or joyous. I can be a tool of torture or an instrument of inspiration. I can humiliate or humor, hurt or heal. In all situations it is my response that decides whether a crisis will be escalated or de-escalated and a student humanized or de-humanized. Hiam Ginott
It is very interesting that you can sit in a room full of people and still be very lonely. Yesterday our pastor preached on loneliness and how Paul was lonely when he was in prison before he died. The pastor went onto talk about how loneliness is something that everyone deals with. I can definitely relate. In the last year I have had two jobs and we have moved. It is hard to make friends when you move and it is hard to make friends at a new jobs. At my new job people have been a whole lot more inviting but it still seems difficult. Today I just feel like an outsider and no one will tell me what is really going on. I guess you could say it is a lonely feeling...
Hopefully I will get a chance to put up some Christmas pictures later...
Snow is a beautiful thing when you don't have to go to work because of it. When I left high school I never dreamed I would have the pleasure of snow days again. Little did I know!
Disappointing. We had a big weekend of pie making, visiting Santa, and going to see the lights planned; however, we did not get to do any of those things. Eli and I were sick the whole weekend.
The most exciting thing we did was get my mom her bunnies for Christmas. They are gorgeous. They are jersey woolies and their names are Daisy and Iris. I will get a picture of them for everyone. Did you know that you can actually potty box train a rabbit. Pretty crazy. Huh?
We are both feeling much better now. Thank you.
Sorry about the lack of posting... life seems to get in the way.
Today I started a new career. I really hope that it is a career. I would like to find something that I really like and get meaning out of. I think I might have found that thing! Being a teacher! Today I joined my abandoned class of engineers and wood workers. Yes I said wood... like shop teacher!!! Ah I was not expecting that. I was prepared for the engineering side of things, but not the wood working. It will be an awesome challenge and joy. I want to be a blessing to the students. I know that I will not make a difference in all of their lives, but if I can make a difference in one than I can make a difference in generations. What a concept!!! It is such a challenge and gift...
We also got to enjoy Springfield this weekend. My in laws are always a joy to go see. It is a home away from home except I don't have to do anything! Belinda pours out blessing after blessing after blessing... she has no idea what a relief it is when she comes and when we get to go visit. It is one of the few times I have to just breath in life right now.
We are decorating for Christmas right now... perhaps I will put up some pictures since I will not have to joy of having everyone over. Andy has done an amazing job of working on Christmas and getting the house back up to par after its kitchen renovations. Perhaps I will put pics of the kitchen to....
I hope everyone had a fantastic Thanksgiving....
and to end my post some things I am grateful for!
1. My amazing husband... I could never be thankful enough
2. My child that blesses me day after day and never ceases to amaze me.
4. My family and in laws... I love how our relationship continues to grow with all of them
5. The wonderful friends that we have made since we moved up here.... (Ben, Deanna, and Josiah)
6. The cousin that Matt and Lindsay are having... I hope they can be best friends.
7. The new daycare Eli has joined... Praise the Lord it does not smell bad.
8. The opportunities God continues to provide.
9. The church that we have found and hope to grow in.
10. My sweet dogs... Herc will always be my first boy.
Yesterday evening Andy was not feeling well. He had asked me if I thought he had a fever and I said that it was a possibility so maybe he should take his temperature. He then asked where the thermometer was. I told him he should look in the bathroom cabinet. After a few minutes he said I'm dying my temperature in only 36 degrees. And I thought well that is strange. Then he said I have never saw this thermometer where did it come from. Then it occurred to me that he had used Eli's thermometer from the hospital to take Eil's rectal temperature. He earned the name butt mouth for the rest of the night:)
Today we have failed our child as parents. I picked him up from daycare and he was not wearing any pants. I thought oh how cute he must have been warm. No, he had had a messy diaper and did not have extra clothes to put on. Luckily his other daycare peers did not mind that he was not wearing his pants. Furthermore we forgot his gloves, he was not wearing any socks, and he did not have a hat to wear outside. Then she said Oh yes you also forgot to bring him a blanket. Wow we are lucky we got our kid there. I apologized and asked her kindly to please not take it out on my child we are new at this parenting thing. This is just the beginning of learning and growing with our child. I pray that we may always learn from our mistakes.
Tootles,
Mindy
Andy and I wanted to let everyone know that our family is growing! We are proud to be the parents of Annabelle Grace Ward. She is two years old and weights about twelve pounds. She needs to gain some weight. She is a pure breed Cairn Terrier from a puppy mill. We got her from a rescue and are so glad to have her in our family.
As you all know Andy and I have a weak spot in our hearts for animals. We simply could not say no. Her and Hercules get along beautifully. Also, I can't wait to dress her up in all the little girly outfits I can find!!! We needed some more women it this house!!
This is a picture of her today. She has recently been groomed.
This is what she looked like before she was groomed.
So I hear that kids grow out of shoes quickly. Well they make shoes that grow with kids. How exciting is that. I can guarantee you that my child will have a pair. Check out the website.
www.inchwormshoes.com
Today was Eli's first day of daycare. It was bitter sweet. I was sad, because I like him being home with his parents. However it was exciting, because he loves to see other babies and play with them. It tickles me pink when he cooes and gets excited.
Eli has made a friend!! His name is Josiah. He is a couple months older than Eli, but they seem to like each other quit a lot. I hope as they grow older they are fast friends.
When we moved here we were praying to find godly friends. In April we went to Baskin Robbins for 31cent scoop night and we got in line behind Ben and Deanna. We talked to them for over an hour that night. We went our separate ways and then I saw them again at a restaurant a couple days later. I knew then that God had given us the friends we were asking for we just had to take advantage of it. I exchanged number with them and we have been hanging out since then. It is so exciting how God answers prayer. What a blessing! I look forward to the friendship that will come between us and the friendship our boys will have as they grow up!
The other day we visited Anthropologie, one of my favorite stores, and we saw some pillows that I just loved. They were even on clearance, the only drawback was that they were still $80 a piece. That's when we had the revelation that we could make our own. Andy actually did the sewing, I did the stuffing. We have only made 2 so far, but there are more to come.
This is the pillow before we stuffed it. ( you can click on the first two pictures to make them bigger)
This is the back.
A different of the back.
After I stuffed it.
So apparently, at least accoriding to Chic-Fil-A, today was cow appreciation day. Because of this they were giving away free food. One article of cowness gained you an entree, but if you were dressed from "head to hoof" you hit the jackpot and were awarded an entire meal. Now I don't think of myself as cheap, but why pay $14 when you can look like an idiot in public.
I have offically returned to work. It is not to bad right now, because Andy still gets to stay home until July 28th. It has been such a blessing for him to be off. He has helped so much. I'm not sure how I would have done it without him. Working is going alright. It is strange to be here and not be pregnant.
Yesterday, Andy and I took Eli to the library. This was not his first visit. Eli and I picked out some books with bright pages for me to read to him. He likes to look at the pages.
Welp perhaps we will put some more pictures on here soon.
Tootles.
Here are just a few pictures of some scrapbook pages of his first game and a few others I thought you might like.
Eli has watched many a Cardinals game on TV with his dad but tonight we took him to his very first baseball game. The St. Louis Cardinals vs the KC Royals. The Cardinals ended up loosing, but we had fun anyway. Eli was very well behaved the entire game, untill he got hungry on the car ride home. He even got an offical my first time at the ballpark certificate...pretty neat.
Here is the family (I hate handing an expensive camera to a stranger...but he couln't have ran far)
Here is the little dude watching the game
We will get them next time...Go Cards!
As a mother I have come to have a new obsession, poop. When he was first born I would count how many times a day he pooped. One must also pay attention to the color and the amount. It is quit a task .
Eli's bodily functions are also a source of humor. He can fart so loud that you have to question who it came from. If a person video taped it I'm not sure that one would believe that it came from him unless the person was there for the experience. One day he farted and I jumped, because it surprised me.
Yesterday we went on an adventure to our Sunday school teachers house for a bonfire. I was feeding him and he made his sounds and I was like ewww. And then the girl standing next to me said be careful it went up his back. Up his back? Gross... I had not experienced this yet. It was EVERYWHERE!!! And then to make it worse I forgot to pack an extra outfit. I felt like a failure as a mother.
Farting is a subject off humor in my family so I must say we are proud:)
Note that in this picture... right after we gave him a bath... he pooped in the towel... Thank you son for the joy you bring to our life!
PS to Amanda... I have no idea how you handled Jackson putting his hands in his pants. Kudos to you. Lord please help me the day that happens...
Eli Andrew,
On Monday you will already be a month old. I would like to tell you some things that I adore about you so that I might not forget.
1.I love your smiles. They may only be from gas, but they bring lot of joy to my life!
2.Hercules loves you. We did not know how he would take to another person, but he is always sitting by you and protecting you. You don't even mind when he gives you a few licks every now and then, just not on the mouth please!
3. You only get up once at night. We praise God for that, because I am not one to handle lack of sleep well.
4. Everyone thinks your adorable. I promised myself that I would try not to be naive to what you really looked like, but you are the most beautiful child I have ever saw. I'm gonna have to say it is because you are related to me and your father:)
5.Your dad loves your more than I could have imagined. He is great at changing your diaper and he loves to read you your little Bible every night. On most days you spend some amount of times playing video games with him. By this I mean he plays video games while he holds you. Bad habits already. I'm so thankful that your dad has been home to help me. You have an amazing example of a godly man in your life. Always take notes.
6.You like to be held ALOT! And guess what, we love to hold you. I love to kiss your face and give you Eskimo kisses.
7. You have gained a pound for the last two weeks. I never imagined I would be proud of someone for being a good eater, but I am. Good job! You are a big healthy boy.
8. Last Sunday we dedicated you at Springhill. God has given you to us, but we can't raise you without Him. I am so undeserving of you. I pray that we can give you back to God everyday and never try to do this huge task ourselves.
9.You family love you so much. You are the first grand baby and you are everything they hoped for. Your Papaw and Nana think the world of you. Your Memaw, Bops, and Autie Erin love you so much. Everyone always love to come see you and gloat over you.
10.You are starting to make little noises besides crying. I love them. They are the funnies things I have every heard.
I look forward to watching you grow. You will always be my little boy.
They always say the love you have for you child is one that you can't imagine until you have him. Well your dad and I love you more than you will ever imagine. We love you more and more each day. We pray every night that you will love the Lord and become the man He would have you to be.
I'm sorry for the times we are going to fail you, but we will always do our best.
We love you to the moon and back,
Mommy
Yesterday we visited the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. We are a cultured group now, but we mainly visited because it is free (park on the street or you will be robbed of $5 thus making it no longer free). It really was pretty neat. Eli slept the entire time, but he recieved his fair share of culture via osmosis. 
I would just like to say thank you to my amazing husband who has redesigned my blog. He did a very good job I think.
You never cease to amaze me my darling.... Thank you.
As we have began our parent adventure we have also been looking for new jobs. I stongly desire to stay home with Eli. Andy and I are currently looking for jobs so that I can stay home part time.
Today I had a job interview for a job that would work out pefectly. We should know something on Tuesday if I am going to have a second interview. So please pray for us that I might be able to get this job. It would make it so Eli would not have to go to daycare. What a blessing!!!
Also Andy has a phone interview on Monday so please pray that that goes well!!!
Eli is doing wonderful!!! He is only waking up once at night. Priase the Lord and he is doing much better with his feedings and as all good babies he does well making sure we change that diaper! He looks forward to meeting many of his friends next week in Springfield!
Praise the Lord, our little baby boy has made his grand entrance into the world!!!!
On Thursday when we went to the doctor my prayer was answered and she said it was time to induce me. Well she did not mess around, I was in the hospital that evening at eight o'clock. If you don't want details now is the time to stop reading..... They inserted a thing with medicine on it to help my cervix soften so that I would dilate easier. I had hopes that that would help me go into labor so that I would not have to have Pitocin, but I was not that fortunate.
They put in my IV at about 8:30 and we did not get to sleep until about 1 o'clock that morning and even then I did not sleep well at all. I started having little contractions at 4:30, but nothing worth while.
At 6:00 they came in and started the Pitocin. Oh boy we were excited. And let me add that I really thought, key word thought, that I wanted to have him naturally. Well the Pitocin started working IMMEDIATELY. A normal person starts by having little contractions about 30-90 seconds long and they get strong as you go. Well they put the Pitocin in and within a couple of minutes I started having a contraction and what I mean by contraction is that it lasted FIVE minutes!!!! I kept telling Andy it was not supposed to last that long and he was like OH your fine! Then the nurse came in and said we better turn this down. GOOD IDEA!!! Well we turned it down but I was still having contractions every 3 or 4 minutes.
My nurse go me a birthing ball and I was sooo grateful. If a person is going to go natural I encourage you to have a birthing ball. It is from the Lord let me tell you. Well at 9:30 my doctor came in and took a look at me and I was at 4 cm. We were doing good and while she was at it she broke my water. EEWWWWW!!! I was appalled by it. I also did not realize that water keeps coming out through the entire experience. So after my water broke I continued to have very Strong contractions constantly and then I started throwing up. At that point I knew I could take NO more. I said get me some drugs I've had enough.
Dr.Ellis got there very quickly. Thank you! We discussed the risks and he assured me that in the 30 years he had been practicing medicine he had never had much go wrong with an epidural. So I said okay. Well let me tell ya it hurt less than having my IV put in. Dr.Ellis and I were immediately best friends. He may have not felt the same way, but I will forever be grateful! And anyone who is having a baby, get an epidural. It is a gift from the Lord!!!!
Well after that it was a good time. I had some problems talking, but I remember everything. Everyone came back in and I was able to enjoy the next seven hours or so. I had to have a catheter put in, because I could not feel that I had to go to the bathroom so it was hindering the labor process. After that we were ready to push in about 3 hours. We pushed for almost exactly an hour and we had our beautiful baby boy. It was a wonderful experience and my husband was AMAZING! He cut the umbilical cord and he did a great job through the entire experience. God is truly amazing.
I'm ready to do it again... okay maybe not right now, but it was truly an awesome experience. My child is truly fearfully and wonderfully made. I pray that Eli will know the Lord and be a man that follows the Lord with all his heart.
Thank you Jesus!
So know I am Officially overdue. I'm not sure how much more of this I can take. I'm trying to hang in there, but I am miserable. I figure Eli must still think it is nice and cozy in there so we will just wait a little while longer. And what I mean by a little while is that I have an appointment in an hour and I'm going to beg to make him come out. I have a feeling that my wishes will be turned down though. I suppose as long has he is happy and healthy and as long as I am healthy we shall wait... I asked the Lord to make me a patient parent. This is my first test I suppose.
On a brighter note we received a bassinet from Andy's boss at work and it is sooo cool!!! I'm so excited to keep it next to our bed and have Eli in it. We have been given so much for him and I am truly grateful.
Now I just gotta get him to come out... like NOW!
I'm ready to have my baby now. He is due in the next week or so. I go on walks ALOT. Any suggestions on how to coax him out?
They say two of the most painful things in life are child birth and kiddney stone. Well I am going to experience both in one month. Pretty exciting huh? I went to the hospital yetserday morning, not really thinking I was in labor, but I knew something was wrong and they informed me that I had a kiddney stone. I was priveladged to stay in the hospital yesterday and this morning and I get to take Tylenol for the pain. How exciting...
Eli's room is pretty much finished... All it is missing is him.
We are counting down the weeks now.
Here are a few pictures.
Go Cardinals...
The Bob Gibson picture is autographed and Dad was nice enough to let Eli have it in his room.
The hat is amazingly signed by Alber Pujols, Jim Edmonds and Larry Walker. Very Cool!
The belly is getting bigger and BIGGER!!! 6 more weeks or so!!!
Hercules was grazing on the grass.... he had a momentary memory lapse and thought he was a cow!
We go on lots of walks. Loose park is one of our favorite places to go, It's about a 5 min walk from our house. Here are some pictures of our latest journey.
I got this from the best sister-in-law in the world. Erin.
What I was doing 5 years ago - Spring of 2003
1. Driving to fast in my cool ZX2. Her name was Bessy.
2. Picking out my beautiful prom dress to go with all my friends.
3. Playing lots and lots of softball.
4. Getting ready for a summer that would change my life.
5. Living at home where my mom and dad still payed for everything!!!
Five things on my to-do list today
1. Wash clothes.
2. Clean the kitchen.
3. Go on a walk at Loose park.
4. Bring more stuff to our house.
5. Wait for Andy to come home from work.
Five snacks I enjoy
1. Hershey kisses.
2. Pretzels.
3. Gummies.
4. Juice, cranapple.
5. Pineapple.
Five things I would do if I were a billionaire
1. My off my debt and our families.
2. Give lots.
3. Stay home with my baby and adopts some babies.
4. Only work at home the rest of my life.
5. Buy a house big enough for me and both sets of parents. Perhaps Erin too. And I would buy Roy a Mustang and my dad a Porche Cheyenne.
Five of my bad habits
1. Sleeping too much.
2. Not washing clothes enough.
3. Eating what I don't need to eat.
4. Waiting for time to pass so I can leave work.
5. Not visiting my grandma enough.
Five places I have lived
1. Raymore, MO
2. Aurora, MO
3. Springfield, MO
4. Kansas City, MO
5. Carmel, IN
Five jobs I’ve had
1. Braum's.... or would you call that a hobby?
2. Subway... perhaps another hobby.
3. Shoe Carnival
4. Bank of America
5. Americo
We are going to Springfield this weekend for our baby shower!!! We are so excited. I will let ya'll know about it when I get back!
WoW... sorry that it has been so long. I have just been so busy I have neglected my blog.
The house is going great!!! We just have to finish painting the ceilings and we can start putting stuff in there. We are so excietd. Andrew has does a GREAT job of working on everything. It's so exciting to learn how to do some of this stuff and then we will be able to say we did it ourselves.
Eli is getting BIG!!! He gets the hickups on a regular basis. It is very amusing. He twirls around in my belly all the time. The girl that sits behind me at work just knows that he is working up his escape route and that he is about to head out. :) The docotor said everything is looking good. Our friend is going to take mine and Andy's pictures on Sunday so that we have some pics of the family. Also we are having our baby shower on Sunday!!!! I am so excited!!! My sister-in-law and cousin have worked very hard on it and I'm just sure that it will be WONDERFUL!!!! I'm so excited.
Work has been okay. Today has been a really rough day. The wonderful thing is tomorrow is a new day. I am really struggling with the thought of coming back to work after I have the baby. We are blessed that Andy gets to stay home for eight weeks with Eli and I when he comes. But I really want to be able to stay home after that. Right now it is just not possible. I am really glad God is bigger than our check book though. If any wants to pray for us. It would be great if God would provide a way for me to be able to stay home or atleast work part time. It would also be great if my job would just let me work at home.
Hopefully I will have pictures of the house soon!! And pray that the baby stays in there about 5 more weeks atleast so that we can have a plump (hopefully not to plump)and healthy little boy!
This is a very exciting time for us as we take the giant leap into home ownership. I think I am looking to most forward to the backyard (as small as it may be) and the ability to LET (opposed to take) the dog out! Casa Del Ward is a 95 year old beauty that sits only three blocks south of Kansas City's Country Club Plaza. We have an extra bedroom so guests are encouraged. We will also be having a painting party the first weeks that we own it and all are welcome...Bring Your Own Brush.
