Goebbert's Farm

This is a tradition for us each fall. We love going & for all the times we wish we could have kids with us in years past, it's crazy to see Blake & Iris running around the place enjoying themselves. We met up with our dear friends Kristi & Gavin (and Henry, their son) and got to see her parents after a couple of years. What a fun reunion!

We stayed a while and ran into some other families we knew and hadn't seen in a couple of years. It was a nice reunion! The kids had a blast running around & although I'm pretty certain it was the first time Iris has seen pumpkins she seemed quite enthralled with the whole scene. She wanted to touch each and every one and I've never heard so many compliments on her cuteness in one afternoon which was nice. Here we are!

Unfortunately this year they had a large area roped off that you had to pay in order to go walk around in. This was the first time we couldn't just stroll through the grass & have them sit in the little train, climb up on the ginormous rocker & just run around but oh well, we still had a great time. We skipped the animal land for today and just watched our two munchkins run in circles. Here a few pics:

 

I was happy to grab up pretty corn to hang on my front door, a cute green cinderella pumkin & mini white pumpkins for a small entry display. I'll have to take a pic once it's daylight. How's everyone else enjoying their fall???

Navy Bathroom!

This is how I envisioned my navy bathroom looking. Of course I have the boring builder grade mirror & cheap lighting that really can't be fixed (lack of skill & $) but I gave it a shot anyway. Sort of guessed on color because  I was in a hurry to "fix" what I had destroyed.
I got tired of my pale yellow walls that was left over from the nursery & tried to do one accent wall with paint I had lying around. I did not like it! Then I tried another paint I had around. Oops. Hated it more. I ran to the mistint section @ Ace & tried to correct it. Not good. Then I went to the mistint section @ Lowes once and for all and got white paint/primer in one. This still didn't work. I needed a dark color to fix all the paint that had gooped up the wall. Now thankfully so far the whole mess only cost me 3.00 in mistake paint.

So Sunday night I ran to my scary walmart down the street, out of patience and money & wanting to just make it work so I could stand being in there. I found their cheapest paint & saw "Rich Navy" & immediately loved it. I almost changed my mind and went for a charcoal gray but decided that I have enough gray around and navy is a great pop with yellow and gray (the rest of the house). Now on pinterest I had seen another color which was almost black but it was Benjamin Moore & although I know it's great stuff, it's a bit pricey.
I only got a quarter of a gallon which come to find out was not enough and in time I have to get more so the walls look saturated. However, I'm so tired of painting that will have to wait (and no money anyway for these upgrades when we are moving anyway).
Here she is, in all her glory:

Sorry for the cheap quality, my camera is not great & I need practice taking better photos.
Now  I know what a terrible painter I am, also quite impatient & with those ugly floors & bad trim it's hard to make this look decent. Trying to bring as much white in as possible. Thankfully that rug gives it a nice punch & the art is my beautiful grandma kreloff, done by my Uncle Marty who is oh so talented. I love seeing her each day & remembering my dad's side of the family in that way. 
The small white frames are from the flea market and although I love them they are a bit small for that wall, so they might move. I had the holes though & so it works for now. It's not perfect but better than before I think.
Joe says he's glad he's not depressed or he would be each time he goes in there. Thanks for the comforting words honey :)
Okay am I crazy or does it look ok? My first reaction was spaceship/galaxy theme in a boy's bedroom, which I don't like that idea - I want sophisticated & modern space that has some depth :) Hopefully we'll move soon and it will just be a fun memory!
Here are a few other pics I've taken recently that capture some cute smiles!

Happy Weekend to you all!

It is not always easy to feel this way! Took the kids on some errands this morning & was humbled with their behavior in public, especially Iris. She seems to turn into a different child when we are out and about. At home she comes when I call & knows she will not get away with hurting Blake or screaming in protest. That all goes out the window in a store though & I find myself struggling with how to deal with it. Obviously I can't do discipline in public of any kind & I feel like when we get home she won't understand what we are talking about since it's so removed from the situation. I don't know the best steps to take in the privacy of our home to train her for being in public and showing obedience instead of screaming / arching her back / not listening to me when I speak.

Lately she loves to scratch her nails on anything she can touch : walls, chairs, doors, my car...you name it. Now she knows to not do this and gets in trouble each time she reacts this way. It really only happens when she's upset or told something she doesn't like , she quickly finds something to scratch and then looks at me like well, are you going to do anything about it? Today I tried to show her that the only surface she can scratch is my back. I'm hoping she gets the hang of that soon and the screeching nail madness ends soon.

Blake continues to be obsessed with cars, Thomas the train & bees. He thinks every thing in the sky is a bee, when he looks out the window he says bee, everywhere we go "bee". The boy is terrified to swing b/c I think that's where he got stung, so he plays with mulch at the playground instead. It's so sad to see his fear control him and stop him from doing something he used to love.

 

Tomorrow we are all going to bible study fellowship for the first time - last week I had the pleasure of going without the kiddos. I'd appreciate any prayers as Blake is not a big fan of nurseries or leaving me & I feel that Iris will not react well in that nursery type setting. I'm truly hoping they both enjoy their time and it's not a nightmare or battle.

September

Kind of crazy about this month. I love all the pumpkin stuff, love getting back into somewhat of a routine, love the cooler temperatures & the excitement of what is to come with the holidays.
I turned 33 yesterday, which I also kind of like (not the number, just the birthday part).

Joe made it a special day by taking off work so I could relax a bit more. Bible study fellowship started and I'm glad to be back for the second time. It's going to be a really good year & I can't wait to be back into the habit of doing a bible study all week to keep me accountable.

The kids are healthy, but I've been so burdened for my sister and all the sickness she's dealing with - that's one of the hardest parts of being so far away....my inability to be a help to her when she's dealing with so much (Drew's new vegan lifestyle due to severe allergies, Jack having pneumonia & bronchitis, Lyla being very sick, trying to get the kids to school, missing sleep...on top of the craziness already with 4 kids that are 5 and under.) They could use prayer!!!

Joe continues to follow some leads about various job openings & slowly but surely we hear the short sale is progressing with our home. We are truly hoping to get down there this fall, but it's completely out of our hands & we await good news with each passing day.

Blake & Iris are adorable as always - Blake is completely obsessed with cars & Iris has a shoe fetish that won't quit. I love being their mom.

Contentment grows in the soil of selflessness

I've realized how much lately I'm struggling with being content. Not only with where I am, but with what I have. It's so easy to focus on all the things I want and not look at what I've been blessed with already.  It's so natural in today's world to surround yourself with wanting more (blogs, stores, pinterest & I'm guilty of loving all of those!) I don't want a new purchase to make me more excited than God's Word or my walk with Him...Or thinking that if I just had this one thing I'll be satisfied & life will be so much better.  What makes me truly happy / joyful? Some wonderful thoughts from John MacArthur on contentment:

The Lord is my Shepherd ( a great boy's name by the way...)  I shall not want

Discontent or disastisfaction is self destructive.

What I have is enough. With it I am content and satisfied. I will accept what God has given me and be satisfied.

Brooding discontent in the provision God has given to us is sin.
I Tim 6:6 Godliness is means of great gain when accompanied by contentment. If you want to pursue something - make it godliness!

Heb 13:5 Let your character be free from the love of $ being content with what you have. Find contentment in promises of His provision

Phil 4>I've LEARNED to be content and it has nothing to do with circumstances! IT'S NOT ABOUT WHAT I HAVE BUT WHO HAS ME!

Discontentment >Denies the right of God to do with us as He will & it fails to believe that this is God's best for us. Whatever He does in this life is for the purpose of making us spiritually mature.

Joy & peace which rides above all the trouble around us. Some ways to be content:

 Cultivate a love for others
 Cultivate the practice of rejoicing (told 70x's to do this in NT)  
 Obey the Lord!
 Learn to accept less than you are due (willingness to be mistreated and not demanding health or   wealth...contentment belongs to people who are willing to take less than they are due, you don't expect anything) 
Confident faith in the Lord. (He is near so be anxious for nothing, He is your true security, not your money or house or anything, it could be all gone in a flash, what is there to worry about - The Lord is near!)

Hope this encourages someone today - Have a great weekend everyone! If you want to hear his sermon on this go to gty.org & it's under Free Sermons, Phil 4: Contentment (He also has a 3 part series on the secret of contentment)

It was such a nice long weekend! We took the kiddos to the splash park this morning. They both still are fighting coughs / runny noses but on the mend. Wish I could say the same for Joe. He cannot stop coughing and has been sick since late June for the most part. He's tried everything (natural, steroid, medicine, vitamins, dr. visits....) and it's quite discouraging for him and I.

One early morning I indulged myself in a coffee shop stop while working on a grocery list & journaling. I have not done that alone in years and it was wonderful.

If anyone is reading this knows of a good dermatologist in the area, I'm 99% sure I have another spot of skin cancer on my face and I really don't love the guy I've seen in the past. It's a little scary when he's cross eyed and going at your face to slice off skin. I'd love a good recommendation!

 

Spent way too much time on Pinterest this weekend - that place is addicting. Still trying to sell our dresser & media unit on craigslist if anyone is interested :)