Aquiring a Chirtmas Tree

We love Christmas in our house.  It’s one of our favorite times of the year and even though we’ve only been married for three years, we already have some traditions.  One of those is getting our Christmas tree the weekend after Thanksgiving.  We were so excited to take Munchkin with us. Christmas is so much more fun and meaningful with a baby!

When I was growing up, my parents didn’t decorate for Christmas until the middle of the month.  My birthday is in December and my mom always waited until it was over to decorate.  That way I got my time and didn’t get overshadowed by Christmas.  It took until I was in middle school that I was able to convince my parents that we could decorate earlier.  We usually got a real tree and we would go around to all the tree sellers and pick one.  It was hard trying to agree! It was also hard to see exactly what the tree looked like since it had been all tied up.  We would get it home and have to wait for it to fall.  I was always so impatient to decorate it! (The picture is of Munchkin ready to go hunting for our tree!)

So when we were first married and The Man said he wanted to go and cut down our tree, I was all for it!  I love this tradition.  We go to a tree farm about 3 miles from our house.  We got there around 4 and had about 20 minutes to find our tree.  Not so good on the planning side but the good news is that we managed to find the perfect tree!  We were just walking around and as we were leaving I just couldn’t!  I told The Man I felt like we were leaving the perfect tree.  So he cut it down for us and it’s now sitting prettily in our living room.

Do you have your tree up yet?

What are your Christmas tree traditions?

Late to the Party

 

I had seen a blogger mention this link up and I thought, I want to do that!  Then I spaced on it.  Then I remembered and here I am.  I’m late to the party but at least I’m here!

If you’re new to Many Waters, welcome!  If you’re an old friend, welcome back!  I’m Poekitten and I have a wonderful husband, The Man and an adorable little girl, Munchkin.  I started this blog two years ago to connect with other milspouses and made some great friends along the way.  My husband was a submariner in the US Navy.  He separated from the Navy in July about two weeks after our little girl was born. 

The Navy moved us to the Pacific Northwest.  The Man grew up here and I fell in love with the area so we decided to stay even though we don’t have to anymore.  The rain doesn’t bother me to much and I actually missed it during our 83 rainless days in a row earlier this year.  I’m blessed to live in a beautiful part of the country.  We can see Sinclair inlet (part of Puget Sound) from our house and we are surrounded by the Olympic and Cascade mountains.  It’s gorgeous and I never tire of the mountains or ocean.

Since having Munchkin the blog has taken on more of a mommy tone.  I don’t blog as much as I used to because baby girl keeps me pretty busy.  I’m a breastfeeding, cloth diapering, babywearing, cosleeping mama.  I consider myself crunchy around the edges.  You probably expected it cause I live in the PNW.  We do it because it all works for us.  If you don’t do those things, I don’t think any less of you as mom.  I firmly believe that each mom had to figure out what works for them, their baby and their family.  I am passionate about many of them and enjoy sharing what I’ve learned with others. 

I want to do is help educate other moms while still encouraging them, no matter what their choices are (well, within reason of course.  I don’t support child abuse!)  I don’t think there needs to be any kind of competition between moms.  We’re all trying to do our best to raise our children.  Encouraging each other is so much better!  It sets a better example for our children and helps all of us to reach our potential. 

I don’t comment as much as I used to on blogs I read but I’m trying.  I often read blogs while I’m nursing and commenting one handed is hard!  I’m hoping to find some new mommy blogs to read.  Please let me know if you have one.  Thanks for visiting!

Thanksgiving

We were thankful to be able to spend Thanksgiving with family!  We drove down to Oregon to The Man’s hometown.  We spent the day with two of his three brothers, his parents, three nieces, two boyfriends, his brother’s girlfriend, her mom, step dad, brother and my SIL’s brother, wife and son.  Yeah, so there were a lot of us.  It was a little crazy and a lot of fun.

It was different from Thanksgivings I’m used to but different is not bad.  I enjoyed spending time with The Man’s family and letting them all meet Munchkin.  At one point Grammy pointed out that her oldest daughter was making martini’s while the youngest slept in her arms.  That’s quite the age difference!  We don’t get to see the three nieces all that often and all together even less often so that was special. 

When we were first married it took me awhile to get used to the fact that The Man’s family was now my family.  I really enjoy spending time with them and am so glad that they are my family!  I’m thankful that we are close enough that we can spend holidays with them and see them a few times during the year.

Hanging with the family before dinner.

A family photo

A HUGE Qwirkle game.  We mixed 3 games together and it lasted 3 hours.  Fun times, friends, fun times!

The oldest and youngest granddaughters.

Grampa time!

Getting Grammy snuggles

How was your Thanksgiving?

Giving Thanlks

Dear Heavenly Father,
Thank you Lord for all of the blessings you have given me.  There are too many to name; your love knows no bounds. Thank you for Jesus, for his blood that removes my sin. Thank you Jesus, for replacing my sin with your righteousness.  I am not worthy, thank you for loving me. You are an amazing God and I give you honor and glory and praise for all you have done and are doing!

Father, thank for the good gifts you give. Thank you for my husband. Thank you for two years of sobriety and for the growth I see in him. Thank you for his desire to lead our family and grow in your word. Please give him wisdom and discernment. Thank you for his job and providing for all our needs. Thank you for taking care of us and meeting our needs while he has been out of work. Thank you for having a start date!

Thank you for Munchkin. She is the most amazing gift and we are so, so thankful. She is my sunshine girl and I can't imagine life without her. Please help us to show her you. Thank you Father, for this child.

Thank you for family, near and far. Thank you for family we won't see today. Please bless their day. Thank you for family we will see today and help us to enjoy each other and make memories for the future.

Thank you Father, for warm shelter, food, and clothes. Thank you that all our needs and many of our wants are met. Thank you for the luxury of choice.

Father, thank you for your protection and safety.  Thank you that even when I fear, you are my strong tower. Thank you, Lord, that your victory is assured. Help me not too lose sight of the end goal. Help me to stay strong in you.

Thank you for your Word and the wisdom and knowledge it contains.  Help us to cherish it and allow it to direct our lives.

Lord, I have barely scratched the surface the the good gifts you have blessed me with. Thank you is not enough for all you have done. You alone are worthy of thanks.

Amen.

4 Months

Munchkin is four months old!  Time is flying and she is growing and learning.  At her 3 1/2 month checkup about 2 weeks ago she was 14 lb, 15 oz and 25 inches long.  I know she’s over 15 pounds now!  She’s been sleeping and eating more so I do believe we’re in the middle of a growth spurt.  She’s solidly in 6 month clothing though some of the larger 3-6 month items still fit.  Some of her pants are 9 months and they fit just fine, thanks to a fluffy butt.  They are a little long but that just means we’ll get more wear out of them, right?!?  I’m just hoping that the Christmas clothing I bought last year on clearance will still fit her in the coming month!  Nana bought her the cutest dress for Christmas and I can’t wait for her to wear it!  Christmas is going to be so much fun with her even though she’ll have no clue what’s going on. 

Munchkin has absolutely no interest in rolling over.  She’ll roll up on her side and start to tilt over, look at me, grin and roll back to her back.  Sometimes she’ll hang out on her side.  She knows I want her to roll!  She much prefers to have us help her sit or stand.  If it wasn’t for balance she’d be sitting on her own by now.  She likes the bumbo for the most part.  Her favorite toys at the moment are her two paw teethers.  They are perfect for her to hold on too and get to her mouth.  She’s teething and she LOVES chewing on them.  I’m thinking about getting two more for her (or hoping that Santa gets them for her stocking!)  I totally recommend then if you have a teething or soon to be teething little one!  They are worth every penny.  And back to the rolling, I know she will roll in her own time, when she’s ready.  I’m not worried about it, I’m just excited to see her master a new skill!  Especially since her latest skill is drooling all over everything!

We think she’s just too cute! 

Cleaning the Closet

I cleaned out my closet & dresser on Saturday.  I went through everything including underwear, bras and socks (I usually skip them!)  It shouldn’t have been that big of a deal but it was.  I was pretty emotional at times and it was hard for me to get rid of some of the clothes.

I was trying to figure out why while I was doing it.  At one point I actually had tears running down my face.  That’s when I figured it out.  I was attached to these clothes because they were from my before life.  My life before Munchkin and The Man, back when I worked full time and was single.  Don’t get me wrong, I love my life and I wouldn’t change it for anything.  I have now what I wanted then.  I think back nostalgically about when I did work full time,  got to wear cute clothes, made a decent salary, and spent it on whatever I wanted.  I also had nice clothing then.  Most of it was from Ann Taylor Loft.  Clothing from Talbots, New York & Co., and Gap also made appearances. 

I was also holding onto the clothes because like most women, I want to lose weight and fit into them again.  If I’m completely honest, there’s a very good chance I’ll never fit into them again.  I’m working with being ok with that.  I’d rather have my flabby belly and stretch marks as a result of having a baby instead of not having them and not having a baby.  As I was thinking about my weight, I realized that I’m down 20 lbs from where I was right before I got pregnant and 30 lbs down from my heaviest pregnancy weight.  That’s not too bad!  I’m not in a smaller size though and I blame my c-section scare and the belly that flops over it.  If not for that I would be at least one size down. 

At the end of the day, I had 9 bags of clothes and shoes to bring to Goodwill.  It’s insane that I had that much clothing.  What do I need that much clothing for?   I could have clothed several families in the developing world! 

I did keep one bin of some of my favorite clothes.  I kept the items I had tailored for me in Viet Nam and my favorite skirts and pants along with a few tops.  In the bin is my favorite pair of jeans and capris just in case I’m ever that small again.  If I do lose the weight, I now have a good reason to go shopping!

How often do you clean out your closet?

The Difference A Year Makes

Right around this time last year we found out we were pregnant.  I vividly remember the emotions. There was disbelief at first, as I didn’t want to get my hopes up and then be wrong.  Once the pregnancy was confirmed by my doctor, there was excitement and joy at the thought of our baby, relief that I didn’t need any more infertility treatment, nervousness at the thought of actually being parents, some anxiety at the unknown and some sadness that my dad would never hold my baby.  That’s just scratching the surface.  It was the start of an incredible roller coaster ride. 

Now that we have our baby girl and she’s three months old, I can’t imagine life without her!  The Man and I were saying the other night that we weren’t sure what we did before we had her.  She’s amazing and incredible and we are so very much in love with her.  She’s a daddy’s girl and loves it when he holds her.  She loves to watch football with him and life is good when he’s around.  She also love mommy lots.  I love seeing her face light up when I come into the room after being gone for a little bit.  She’ll follow me with her eyes if someone else is holding her.  She also sleeps better when she’s touching me. 

When you’re expecting, you have these images of what motherhood will look like.  For me it was snuggling with a sleepy baby, talking to a smiling baby, watching Munchkin ride her bike for the first time, taking her to Disney.  While I knew that babies cried, sometimes a lot, it was not something I pictured.   There have been nights when she has done nothing but fuss and cry.  Thankfully they are few and far between but the ones we have had have been enough to hurt my mommy heart.  I hate hearing my child cry.  I hate not being able to figure out what’s wrong.  Those times have been enough to make me extremely thankful for my happy baby girl.  The hard times make the other times sweeter.  Without the difficult times I wouldn’t be able to appreciate the good.

We love being parents. Even with the fussiness and exhaustion, it’s wonderful. Well, The Man might not think it’s wonderful when I snap at him because I’m exhausted. It’s been an opportunity for me to grow in asking for and receiving forgiveness. I’m thankful that my husband loves even when I’m cranky! He’s also blessed me by allowing me to sleep in and in allowing me to nap without the baby. He’s a dad that loves his daughter and enjoys spending time with her.

I think I’m rambling now so I’ll leave you with one more adorable photo of Munchkin.  I get to see this cuteness everyday and  I love it!

Election Day

Even though I don’t enjoy politics, I do enjoy Election day. I enjoy watching the news and the electoral college map as they call states for the candidates.  The year I lived in overseas my teammates and I got lunch and camped out in front of the TV and watched the election coverage. 

Today feels kinda anticlimactic though.   The Man and I voted last week and mailed in our ballots.  The Man and I sat down and filled them out with Munchkin supervising.  She wasn’t too impressed!  It still boggles my mind that I can vote before election day and mail in my ballot.  I grew up in MA, where you go to the polls on election day.  Yes, you fight traffic and people and you might even have to stand in line and wait.  But election day was the day you voted.  On your way out, you got an I voted! sticker.  I feel gyped of my sticker.  I hate to admit it but I wasn’t even aware that you could vote early in so many places! 

I am watching with interest a few different items. The presidential election tops the list, along with the governor’s race here in WA.  I’m also interested in  WA’s Referendum 74 (redefining marriage) and the Initiative 502 (legalizing marijuana).  It’s going to be an interesting evening folks.  If you’re not conservative, it’s probably good that you’re not going to be at my house tonight. 

As for the outcome, it will affect my life at some point.  I’m not too worried because I know that nothing that happens today surprises my God.  He already knew what was going to happen and He still has everything under control.  Regardless of what happens, Jesus is still King.  Nothing can change that.  Because that is true, I have nothing to fear.