Currently Inactive

I wanted to let anyone visiting know that this blog is currently inactive. I am keeping lovejoelr.blogspot.com up-to-date. It is just too much to keep two blogs going right now...so everything is condensed into one. Love ya guys.

All About Big Bear...And Prayer Requests

To read the post I wrote about Big Bear (I wrote it on Joel's Blog) click here. Thank you for checking in.

Wordless Wednesday: Our weekend in Big Bear

Wordless Wednesday: on Thursday

I love this picture! I had it planned for Wordless Wednesday, so even though I missed Wednesday, I couldn't help but still posting it. Middle of Winter and barefoot/shorts...I love it!

I Love: Wordless Wednesday

My three bikers!

Crash Course in Bunny 101

Last Thursday Isaac brought a surprise home from work. When we heard he had a surprise the kids were elated asking over and over "Daddy, what is it?" I was thinking it was like other surprises (or treats) he has brought home before, like pan, chips or something sweet. It wasn't. I was in the kitchen cooking dinner when I heard a commotion in the other room. I dropped what I was doing to see what was going on. As I entered the room I heard Jonny say "Daddy, this is THE BEST SURPRISE EVER!" I started thinking "Uh-oh" but didn't have time to finish my thought because there before my eyes was a bunny. A cute little white fluffy bunny.

Welcome to the family, Snowball!

Now, before I go any further, I have to let you all in on my little secret (or not such a big secret)...I'm not really an animal person. Don't get me wrong, I like animals, but with the exception of horses I rather prefer liking them from a distance. This feeling has probably been perpetuated by the fact that I am allergic to a lot of animals...the worst being cats, followed by dogs and anything else that has fur. Isaac, on the other hand, along with my kids LOVE animals...especially pets. (The favorite being dogs...I think he is working up to that starting with a bunny.)

Well, OK. We've never owned a bunny. In fact, we've never had any pet. So, what do we do now? A crash course in Bunny 101. We did research, we took Snowball to a pet store where they told us he was a boy, and we started trying to track down a cage. We did find a friend who had an unused bunny hutch, but it needs some repair work and we are going to have to remodel it to make it safe for the outdoor elements. The boys LOVE Snowball and are great with him. We have a bunny leash and today they exercised him. It's so cute to watch how tender and loving they are with him. And, as I told Isaac the other night, it's a good thing Snowball is just sooo cute because how could I resist him. I have decided I might like pets after all...as long as I don't have to hold him (sharp claws!)

I have no idea how long it is going to take Isaac to finish the hutch, and in the meantime Snowball is in a crate in the garage. I was wondering if anyone reading this blog who lives in Southern CA (I know it's a long shot) might have a rabbit hutch already made for outdoors that we might either borrow or buy (the price would have to be pretty low since Isaac has been out of work so much).

I have learned so much about bunnies but still have a lot to learn. So my question for you tonight is: do you have any bunny advice?

Valentine's Day '08

Happy Valentine's Day!
We should love one another. ~ 1 John 4:11

To our family, Valentine's Day isn't just about romance. It's about love. And we love each other a whole lot. So we have a tradition that we spend Valentine's Day evening together as a family. My parents come over and we have a special dinner and dessert while we enjoy spending time all together. Tonight, my brother and sister-in-law were able to join us for dessert. How blessed we are to be able to spend time together. There is no shortage of love in our family!

I love kisses!

This picture was taken by my 4 year old, Jason.

My sweet husband brought me roses when he came home from work.
It was totally unexpected since he's been out of work for 4 weeks and
he doesn't usually get me anything on holidays. (I think this is the third
time he has gotten me roses in seven years of marriage. But who's counting?)
He couldn't have picked better timing. I was having a very difficult day and
when I saw the roses I got tears in my eyes. Suddenly my day was better.
Aren't they pretty?!

My boys love each other and sure have fun together!

"Mama, it's a heart pretzel!"

Grammy and Grampy sure are fun!

Wordless Wednesday

The Best of Mike Huckabee

Conservatives need to unite.

With Romney out of the picture, I hope that conservatives will rally behind Mike Huckabee. I know it will be a fight till the end to win and I also know it's an uphill climb, but I am hoping with all my heart that when all is said and done we will have a candidate in the Presidential Race that will uphold family values; that man is Huckabee. Huckabee's largest hurdle is lack of funding. He has refused to take money from corporations because he didn't want to owe any "favors". That alone shows his character. Wouldn't it be great to have a president who did what he thought was right for our country regardless of what is best for large corporations? I would like to urge you to contribute any amount you can today. Also, I would like to challenge anybody who has said "I don't want McCain!" to donate or volunteer for Huckabee. THE TIME IS NOW! Please donate with Donor code R17266 so it will count towards my goal (or click here) . THANK YOU!

Huckabee

I truly believe Huckabee can win. There is a lot of talk about how Huckabee is taking votes away from Romney. They are pretty even in the race. How about the thought that Romney is taking votes away from Huckabee. I have heard way too many times from people I know that they agree with what Huckabee stands for...BUT he can't possibly win so we have to vote for Romney so McCain won't win. My goodness, if everyone who said that would vote for who they actually want (instead of voting out of fear) Huckabee would be way ahead of Romney. AND the other thing I keep hearing is how Huckabee supporters are just voting for him because they are anti-Mormon. Just to be clear, I do not agree with Mormonism, but I do have an aunt who is Mormon and she would tell you I am not a hateful anti-Mormon person. When I am considering who to vote for I do not make a decision based on their faith. I DO, however, make a decision based on their stance on the issues that are important to me and how they have backed up their talk. Romney is wishy-washy in my opinion. Huckabee has taken a firm position on the issues important to me and I LIKE WHAT HE STANDS FOR! Huckabee had a great day yesterday. Way to go Huckabee!

Out of the mouths of babes

I pray with the boys every night. My sweet 4-year-old, Jason, has been making me smile, cry or smile and cry with almost every prayer. His heart is so tender and loving ~ mostly towards God and me. I wish I could capture every prayer and remember every single word. He always prays "Keep Mama safe and Daddy safe" at the beginning of every prayer (since he was old enough to talk/pray). Lately he has been feeling very protective of me praying "If Mommy is lost, I will find her" and tonight praying "If someone tries to hurt Mommy, I will protect her." It's so sweet to see his manly, protective side coming out.

THANK GOD FOR LITTLE BOYS!

What was I supposed to be?

I just had to share this. I saw it on another site and it touched my heart. I can not tell you how saddened by abortion I am. Someone once told us how his sister had been pregnant with a baby that the tests showed had Tuberous Sclerosis (what Joel has). She had an abortion. I wept when I heard that because Joel has been such a blessing to us and I can't imagine our lives without him. It breaks my heart that that mom is missing out on her blessing and her child is missing out on life.

Hello again!

Oh boy, have I been busy. Between the San Diego fires, evacuation, my parents and grandparents homes burning and all the aftermath that comes with that, starting a new business, helping plan my parents 40th wedding anniversary party, Isaac changing jobs, Christmas, the New Year starting, my husbands and my 7th anniversary, having 5 nieces and nephews live with us for 3 weeks and 2 days (8 kids in a 1000 sq. ft. home is something else), my grandma breaking her hip, me having Shingles, Joel with all his therapists, the kids school, and everyone being sick with severe colds I haven't had time to blog. So please forgive me, not only for that run-on sentence, but also for not being here and not giving updates to all you wonderful people who are praying for us.

Other than being busy and sick, we are doing great. Even though Isaac's work has not been the greatest this month, we are doing great. Joel is making great progress. Jonny and Jason are wonderful. Isaac and I are making plans to try and pull ourselves out of debt (all his time laid off from work has piled up some pretty deep credit card debt.) It's hard to figure out a way to start paying some off when you can't make it from week to week. Isaac is going to try to get a second job on the weekends. We have been trying to make it without because family time is so important to both of us, but we can't put off the inevitable any more. It's kinda funny, I've had a song floating around in my head all evening (don't know who sings it or the name of the song...if you know please comment)...I'm a survivor...I'm gonna make it! Seems to be the theme to my life.

And on a different note, I don't just want to survive. I want to thrive. I want to make a change in the world. Isaac and I just finished watching Freedom Writers. A great movie! I have decided that 4 and 7 is not too young to learn to make a difference in this world. Starting this week, we are going to do something good for someone every week. Even if it's small, it'll make a difference to the person the kind act is bestowed upon and it'll also make a difference in us. I want my children to learn to do good. My dream for them is that it would be second nature as they get older. If they can learn this...it will change their future. I don't think there is anything more valuable I could give them. Please pray for us as we start this journey and if anyone would like to join us, please share. We would love to hear your stories.

Our Homes and the Fire

Here is an email I just sent out to friends and family:

Hello to all,

I just wanted to send out an update. We found out this morning that my parents and grandparents homes have burned to the ground. There is video of it at http://video.knbc.com/player/?id=170532. Our home is still in grave danger. The fire is headed right for it. The good thing for us is that we are so close to downtown Fallbrook. The firefighters are going to do their best to save downtown. My brother is a reporter and he has stayed in Fallbrook at the command center. He said it is concievable that the entire town could burn today. Please pray that our home is spared so that we can help my parents and friends affected by the fire. Also, please pray for his safety and for my parents and grandparents (for peace). My parents have had a great attitude about the whole thing, that it is just stuff and we are all together and safe. (It is sad, though, to lose my great-grandma's china and my other great-grandma's dolls, heirlooms, etc.)

I really can't believe this is happening. So many friends affected. Where is everyone going to go? We love you all and are thankful for all your prayers and calls of support.

Please Pray

We are surrounded by fire. There have been strong Santa Ana winds that are making everything crazy. Two of my aunts and at least one friend have been evacuated. Our whole town may be evacuated. So we are preparing right now just in case. Also, our huge 50+ year old Chinese Elm has had two of the main branches (more like trunk) break off and they are hanging. So please pray that when they fall that they miss our house and the guest house where my brother and his wife live.

This just in...my parents and grandma have been told to evacuate. They live about ten minutes from us. I'll post updates as I can (and hopefully pictures...my camera decided to act up just today) :(

PS The crazy thing is that I met someone yesterday who said there is a white out blizzard going on in CO. Fire and blizzards...all on the same day and in the same country. If you life in CO please comment and let me know about the blizzard. Thanks.

Shoes

Jonny just tied his shoes all by himself for the first time! He got new shoes and they aren't Velcro. They are laced shoes, so we figured it was time to teach him how to tie his shoes. I have to admit I've kinda been dreading and putting off teaching him. I don't know why. It wasn't so bad when we actually did it. Joel's speech therapist was here yesterday and when she heard him ask me to tie his shoes she was surprised he didn't know how. So she taught him. I did join in on the teaching but it made me feel guilty that I hadn't found time to teach my (barely) 7-year-old. Part of the problem is I just got caught up in life and used to the routine of tying his shoes. The other part of the problem is all the shoes with Velcro. He could do that by himself and his play shoes have always had Velcro so I just don't think much about tying shoes. One kid down, two to go. :)

Storybooks

Would you like an easy way to get your photos into beautiful, quality, hardback books? I am now an independent consultant for Heritage Makers.

The heart and soul of a family is in their stories. - Leah Gutierrez
Whether they're happy or sad, old or new, we all have stories. Now we have an easy way to get our photos and stories into books, preserving our memories for future generations. How many people don’t know their grandparents or great-grandparents stories? How did they grow up? What was life like for them when they were young? What were their most treasured memories? Or, how many of you have sat there looking at pictures and wondering who they were of? Don’t let that be your family. You now have an easy way to enjoy, save and share your family’s stories. Make memories last with Heritage Makers. Heritage Makers offers a fast, affordable way to actually do something with your photos and stories. Storybooks are high quality and will last for generations to come. And, I am here to guide and support you. If you have questions or need anything please contact me. I would love to help you start sharing your stories! If you'd like to host a Celebration in Southern California for your friends, family, church, or community group, need help on your own books, or would like more information on the exciting and rewarding opportunity of being a consultant, please e-mail me or give me a call.

We sell Storybooks, cards, Family Folds, posters, and calendars. You create them on-line (kinda like on-line scrap-booking) and then when you are done you click publish, pay for them, and they will be delivered to you approximately 10 days later. You can create a free account at www.save-your-stories.com. Once you have an account you can watch tutorials, upload photos from your computer or you can scan in non-digital photos (at a high dpi), upload them and start your project. You don't have to pay anything until you are ready to publish your project. Book prices range from $34.95-$129.95. Cards range from $1.75-$5.99. If you would like access to over $2,000,000 worth of premier art provided through a partnership with Scrap Girls, then that is only $24.95 for the first month renewing each month at $19.95. Ask me about specials. My e-mail is saveyourstories@gmail.com

Why?

My oldest son just asked me "Why is Daddy gone two days in a row?" I explained to him, while trying to hold back a chuckle, that Daddy is going to be gone Monday-Friday and home on Saturday and Sunday. To little minds three months was a LONG time ago. Hard to remember what it was like for Daddy to work full-time. ;) Besides, the boys have become really close to Daddy since he's been home a lot. All three of my boys are Daddy's boys now!

We have work!

Isaac started work yesterday! It went well and he likes the people he's working with. Thank you, Lord, for providing for us. Hopefully now we can start to climb out of the hole we fell further and further into with him being out of work for so long. The interesting thing is that I got used to him being around all day long and now I miss him. I am also having to get re-adjusted to parenting all by myself during the day. I am not complaining...I am VERY happy we have work, I just have to get used to him working again. You know how having a man home from work disrupts your schedule. Well, Isaac was home so long that our schedule had changed permanently, now I have to re-adjust it. The kids are going to have to get used to not having daddy around all day too. I am praying for a smooth transition and so far everything has gone well. Thank you for all your prayers that Isaac would get work. God answered with a "Yes."