Make Your Own Laundry Detergent

Today I am sharing a Laundry Detergent recipe.
Original recipe here.

It's ridiculously easy and quick!
Basically you buy your ingredients and pour them into a box or bucket and mix it up!
Pardon the above photo as it is not equivalent to the actual recipe amount, but simply the ingredients!
I was simply filling my bucket back up and this was all I had to re-fill it with!
It hasn't mattered how much I put in of each. It has always worked well for me!

So, here are the ingredients:

1 Box of Pure Baking Soda - 4lb

1 Box of Super Washing Soda - 3lb 7oz

1 Box of Borax - 4lb 12oz

1 Container of Oxy-Clean 1.3lb

3 Bars of Fels-Naptha Shredded - 5.5oz

If you don't want to shred Fels-Naptha bars, you can buy some awesome soap flakes 
called Zote at Wal-Mart. Any and all of these ingredients can be found at Wal-Mart 
or your local grocery store on the laundry aisle.

You only have to use one or two tablespoons per load of laundry. It works really really well! I have heard so many awesome things about this recipe! Because you use such a small amount every load, it lasts F O R E V E R! Okay, maybe not forever, but you get the idea! I can hardly remember the last time I made a batch. I think it might have been a little over a year ago. For real.

Again, the photo below and the photo above show the ingredients and NOT the actual amounts.

Try it out and let me know what you think!

Pine Cone Fall (or Christmas!) Decor DIY

This craft is so easy and I am pretty satisfied with it's turnout! I am like one

 of the many who cannot afford to go out and buy holiday decor, so this craft idea was really fun!

All you need is:

Pine Cones

Spray Paint (I had gold in my stash.)

String

Spare Ribbon

Hot Glue

Hot Glue Gun

Scissors

Step 1. 

Spray your pine cones whatever color you want. I have gold in my stash, so I stuck with that beautiful holiday color!

Step 2.

While they're drying, cut the length of your string. I used twine that I had in my craft box. I ended up doing it the long way, but you can attach a pine cone to each end of your string or attach a pine cone to the end of each separate piece of string. I attached them to separate strings (the long way).

Step 3.

Tie a knot onto the end of each string so that there is more to attach or stick to the pine cone.

Step 4.

Hot glue the knots (on the string) to each pine cone.

Step 5. 

Once completely dry, lay out your pine cones in the way in which you want them to fall. Uneven lengths will look best! If you've cut separate strings, then tie the strings together at the top.

Step 6.

Spare ribbon. Tie it to your string so that there's a loop left at the very top. You want the loop so that you can hook it onto a nail or hook in your home. If you've used separate strings, then fold the excess string under the ribbon. It will not be seen, I promise. Let your ribbon fall and cut it at the desired length.

Step 7.

Hang it up and admire your cute new decor! 

You made it! Be proud of it!

Thankful

Oh man! How could I express how grateful I am? I have no idea!

Let me begin by sharing a photo of my most beautiful little girl!

  (This might be my most favorite photo of my little Hannah right now! Haha! 

She's so adorable eating her apple!)

 

I am grateful for my husband.
He's one of the most amazing men I have ever known. He is so so patient with me. It seems as if he never grows weary of treating me well. I am stubborn but his patience, mercy and grace are far superior. He is always pursuing me even when I don't see it. His heart is HUGE and I'm pretty sure it's made of gold. :)

I am grateful for his incredibly warm hugs.
I am grateful for his kind words.
I am grateful for his joyful spirit.
I am grateful for how well he listens to Christ.
I am grateful for how well he listens to me.
I am grateful for his eagerness to learn more about me.
I am grateful for his eagerness to learn more about God.

I am grateful for my daughter.
She is seriously the most beautiful spirit. She is so innocent and yet so full of curiosity. She's fearless, brave and just straight silly. She's ridiculously smart and she proves it every day.

I am grateful for her many many smiles.
I am grateful for her laughter.
I am grateful for her gentle hugs and her sweet kisses.
I am grateful for how much love she has for me. I see it daily.
I am grateful for her eager and brave spirit.
I am grateful for her heart. She has so much love.
I am grateful for how happy she is.
I am grateful for her eagerness to learn.

I am grateful for my family.
Both mine and my husbands. They each teach us how to give generously and how to love unconditionally. They teach us how to work hard and be healthy.

I am grateful for their patience.
I am grateful for their generosity.
I am grateful for their many words advice.
I am grateful for how well they listen.
I am grateful for all the love they show to my husband and my daughter.

I am grateful for my friends.
I have such wonderful friends. They are so caring and loving. They are great listeners and they don't expect much in return (if anything at all).

I am grateful for their many hours of conversation.
I am grateful for their company on lonely days.
I am grateful for their encouragement and joyful speech.
I am grateful for their laughter and their humor.
I am grateful for their understanding.

I am grateful for Christ.
I would not be who I am today without Him, without His many years of molding my heart.

I am grateful for His never ending patience and grace.
I am grateful for His faithfulness.
I am grateful for His Word, so that I may learn about Him every day.
I am grateful for His unconditional love.
I am grateful for His wisdom and for His peace.
I am grateful for His provision. I never have to worry.
I am grateful for His convictions. I never have to be shameful of anything, ever again, if only I listen to HIM.
I am grateful for His joy. It overflows in my heart when I'm with Him. 

So,what are you thankful for?

Stove Top Hot Chocolate

Ya know, I found this recipe on Pinterest (such a wonderful place) and it was meant for a crock pot, but low and behold, my crock pot is huge and I really didn't want to make this into a huge pot. I wanted just enough for me, or for the day. This preggo lady can't handle too much coffee, and hot chocolate just seems to be on this baby's mind lately!

 

Here's the recipe!

1/2 Cup Dry Baking Cocoa

 12 Oz Can Sweetened Condensed Milk

1/8 Teaspoon Salt

7 1/2 Cups Water

1 1/2 Teaspoon Vanilla

 Marshmallows

Directions:

In pot combine Condensed Milk, Water and Vanilla.

Add the cocoa and salt and stir until smooth.

Cover and cook on medium heat until hot.

(And of course...) Top each cup with a handful of marshmallows!

Original Recipe found at: Creating Through Life

Mmm! Delicious!

So grab yourself a big mug and cozy up to your loved one with a cup of this hot chocolate! And don't forget a handful of marshmallows on top!
It's definitely the weather for it! :)

When Anger Gets the Best of You

Let's get personal!

It seems as if everything I have on my mind lately is simply that...personal. 

My deepest thoughts, concerns and struggles. Not that that's a bad thing, but it definitely makes it hard to share it with people, especially over the world wide web!

But hey! If I can share these thoughts with close friends and strangers that I meet while on a coffee date, then I guess I can share it with more than just the one or two!

 

Getting angry is a really easy trap to fall into. It really is. Let's be real.
How often do YOU get angry? Once a month? Once a week? Once a day? 

I don't know about you, but I'm raising my hand!

...and if you aren't raising yours, you're lying!

Anger is seriously...

a dangerous trap

that we fall into

weekly, if not, daily.

It can cause us to do things that we wouldn't "normally" do...
Like throwing a hair brush or kicking a hole in the wall! 
Thinking about my middle school and high school days right there! Oops. Sorry mom. Sorry dad.

As I started writing this post, the Lord re-directed my thoughts. I was going to share how anger can and does affect the people in your life and how you can choose to overcome that anger. I still might talk a little bit about it at some point. However, I think God has a different message for me tonight.

"The LORD is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy."
Psalms 145:8

I was researching Scripture about anger and I came across this precious piece of the Word. I was dumb-founded. I literally had nothing to say about this. All I thought was, okay wow, so I have A LOT to work on if I am to ever become like Christ! A lot!

The LORD is slow to anger. As in He is patient and humble. I'm pretty sure He 

doesn't lash out just 'cause. 

He is of great mercy. I think this hit me the most. Mercy. Do I show mercy? Have I shown mercy? Hm...I'm really not sure I want to answer that. Nooo...[slowly backing away now]

He is of GREAT MERCY!!!

I'm going to let you in on a little secret. Some of the greatest times I have had reading the Word of God is when I sit down and define every single word until I can explain that one verse like nobody's business! So with that said...

Let's define mercy! Let's dumb it down to toddler level! 

Bear with me as this might just be one of the most boring posts I will ever write! ;) 

Just kidding, hopefully not!

MERCY
According to Dictionary.com, mercy means...
1. compassionate or kindly forbearance shown toward an offender, an enemy, or 

 other person in one's power; compassion, pity, or benevolence:

  2. the disposition to be compassionate or forbearing: 

3. the discretionary power of a judge to pardon someone or to mitigate punishment,  

especially to send to prison rather than invoke the death penalty.

4. an act of kindness, compassion, or favor:  

5.  something that gives evidence of divine favor; blessing:

Ooh! I was pretty sure I understood the word mercy until I read out the definition. Am I alone in this? What in the world does all of this really mean??? Did anyone catch that last one? 
"Something that gives evidence of divine favor; blessing." 

Wow! Conviction.

I would stop here and leave it at that, but honestly, I need to dumb it down a little more. Or maybe a lot more! I have highlighted some words to define so I can further simplify the word mercy, but here we have the "short" version. If you want to see what words I researched and if you're a word dork like me, I've listed everything at the very end of the post! Otherwise, let's just continue on to the "short" version!

Okay...

MERCY
According to Stephanie's hours spent researching definitions and 
those definitions' definitions, mercy means...

1. Understanding another person's suffering and kindly abstaining from all the bad things you want to say and do, even though that person is really irritating, annoying and possibly trying to make you more upset by the minute! Understanding the hardships that they go through and genuinely having the desire to alleviate them of their pain and suffering. Having a real desire to do good to them.

2. Naturally showing sympathy and withholding your own judgement 
and punishment towards a person.

3. You might be angry and you might have a right to be angry, but you choose to forgive them and release them of their penalty or release them of what they owe you. You might be angry, but you choose to lessen your wrath or harshness towards them.

4. Choosing to show acts of kindness rather than act with justice.

5. Your acts should show your devotion to God, making others as better than yourself.

Hm. Does anyone else just feel like they need to be soaking this in??? I honestly feel like I just need to sit in this for a while. Seriously. 
"Having a real desire to do good to them." 
"Naturally showing sympathy." 
"Making others as better than yourself." 
"Your acts should show your devotion to God."  
Conviction.

I'll be honest. I've gotten into some serious fights over the years with my hubby. My sweet sweet hubby. We're not the only ones! Don't look at me with those judgmental eyes! :) Every single one of our fights, no matter the cause, ended up being just straight embarrassing. We did so much stupid stuff and for what reason??? Selfishness most likely. I was humiliated in so many instances. He was humiliated in so many instances. It was a mess! A real big huge stinky awful mess!

We all get into fights with those we love (as ironic as that is). It's human nature to be selfish. It's in our flesh. I could honestly go on and on about this for hours, but to sum it up...

How did we resolve it? How did we ever make up? I guarantee you that there were 

instances where we second guessed ourselves and thought of how much easier it would be if we weren't together anymore! How did we recover? Heal? Forgive? Love again?

Well...

One of us chose to pursue sympathy and understanding. 

One of us chose to forgive and forget. 

One of us chose to show acts of kindness. 

One of us chose to humble ourselves and show honor to the other person. 

One of us chose to show our devotion to God. 

One of us chose to relieve the other person from their pain and suffering. 

One of us chose to lessen the intensity and harshness. 

One of us chose to act out of kindness rather than in judgement.  

One of us showed great mercy. 

...and oh. my. gosh.

Mercy. It is a beautiful thing!

How wonderful it is to receive mercy! Especially when you've been so stupid, foolish, crazy; whatever you'd call yourself in those moments! We were humbled and made vulnerable once again when we showed each other mercy, when we purposefully forgave and started to show kindness once again. 

To show mercy is to be selfless. Therefore, let's slow down a bit and have compassion on each other. This goes for both the married folk and unmarried folk alike! Be understanding. Be kind. 

Act in such a way the people see your devotion to God!

Our marriage isn't perfect, but I can honestly say that God has changed us and renewed us! He is continuously working on us with a specific purpose in mind! I love my husband ten times more today than I did the day I married him and it's all because of God's work within us! Through the good times and the bad, He has taught us so much more about ourselves and each other. We have grown in our understanding of each other and grown in our wisdom of Christ. Two very essential things in marriage. 

May I encourage you, especially if you're in a fight right now, to humble yourself and serve him or her. Gift your loved one (or enemy) with the release from their penalty. Relieve them of their stress or suffering. Show kindness to them. Choose to lessen the harshness of your voice. Choose to lessen the intensity of your frustration. I am speaking to myself when I say this, but choose to forgive and forget. Choose sympathy and understanding. Choose to show them great mercy!

Proverbs 14:29 | "He that is slow to wrath is of great understanding: but he that is hasty of spirit exalts folly."

Proverbs 29:11 | "A fool gives full vent to his anger, but a wise man keeps himself under control."

Proverbs 19:11 | "A man's wisdom gives him patience; it is to his glory to overlook an offense."


Psalm 37:8-9 | "Refrain from anger and turn from wrath; do not fret--it leads only to evil.  For evil men will be cut off, but those who hope in the LORD will inherit the land."


Colossians 3:8 | "But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips."


James 1:20 | "For man's anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires."


Galations 5:22-25 | "But the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with it's passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit."


May God bless you with wisdom and insight into His marvelous Word and may He teach you the ways of becoming a peace-maker!

Photo by Strasburger Photography

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Here are the words I want to define further:

I am sharing this entire process with you because I want you to be able to see for yourself where I got to where I'm going!

(Bear with me here. If you want to skip this all the way to the part where I re-write out the 

definition of mercy, be my guest! I won't be offended!)

Compassion|A feeling of deep sympathy and sorrow for another who is stricken by misfortune, accompanied by a strong desire to alleviate the suffering.

Sympathy|The harmony of agreement in feeling, as between persons or on the part of one person with respect to another.

Forbear|To refrain or abstain from. To keep back; withhold.

Offender|Someone who irritates, annoys or angers; causes resentful displeasure in.

Enemy|A person who feels hatred for, fosters harmful designs against, or engages in antagonistic activities against another; an adversary or opponent.An armed foe; an opposing military force.

Pity|Sympathetic or kindly sorrow evoked by the suffering, distress, or misfortune of another, often leading one to give relief or aid or to show mercy.

Benevolence|Desire to do good to others; goodwill; charitableness. An act of kindness; a charitable gift.

Disposition|Natural mental or emotional outlook or mood; characteristic attitude. State of mind regarding something.

Discretion|The power or right to decide or act according to one's own judgement or choice.

Power|The capability of doing or accomplishing something.

Pardon|Kind indulgence, as in forgiveness of an offense or discourtesy or in tolerance of a distraction or inconvenience. A release from the penalty of an offense.

Mitigate|To lessen in force or intensity, as wrath, grief, harshness, or pain. To make less severe.

Favor|Something done or granted out of goodwill, rather than from justice or for remuneration; a kind act.

Divine|Devoted to God. Religious. Sacred.

Blessing|The act or words of a person who blesses. A special favor, mercy, or benefit.

Bless(verb)|To make or pronounce holy.

 

How to Whiten Your Yellowed Pillows

Hey there! This is a super duper simple tutorial about properly bleaching your yellowed pillows! I don't even remember how I found this tutorial. I guess just during one of my random Pinterest afternoons! :)

I put two large pillows into the wash during this adventure and it turns out they were a bit big, so I had to wash them twice. The second time, I flipped the pillows around so that the still-yellow sides were facing inward. So, I guess depending on your pillows and your washing machine, you might only be able to wash one pillow at a time! At least I had to!

Here's your magic recipe:

HOT HOT HOT Water

1 Cup Laundry Detergent

1 Cup Bleach

1 Cup Powdered Dishwasher Detergent

1/2 Cup Borax

Original Tutorial found at: One Good Thing by Jullee

 

These photos were hardly edited and I was seriously surprised by 

how WHITE my pillows are now compared to the horrendous condition they were in before!

I hope this works as well for you just as well as it worked for me! 

I can't wait to do this on the rest of the pillows in my house!

I've got to replenish my laundry detergent soon so be on the lookout 

for my laundry detergent recipe! Coming soon! Yay!

To my Best Friend on Her Anniversary

To my best friend and her sweet husband, Happy Anniversary!!!

Let me preface this by saying that this bride has been a sister to me for so many years. She and I have had some major up and downs but I do not regret a moment! I consider her family. Seriously. She's even on my Christmas budget! Her husband, even though I do not know him as much as I know I will in the years to come, I hear nothing but wonderful and beautiful things about him! He's a great man and the RIGHT man for my wonderful friend! God is using him daily to minister to his wife's heart and soul! He has now entered into our non-blood adopted-family relationship thing we have going on. Just as Rachel is my family, so is Jonathan. He's now a brother in our eyes...and I am so excited to get to know him more!

Marriage is a beautiful thing. It's seriously beautiful! I love Chris FAR MORE today than I did when we got married, and it is through hard times, good times and God's love and mercy that has brought us to where we are today. Cling to God's Truth! Stand firm to the faith He has given you. Do all that you can to GROW and remember that marriage is a union. You are here, together, to pursue God in the greatest sense!

It is very easy to hurt each other in the process of growth, but remember it is just that! GROWTH!!! Your spouse will see things about you and in you that you sometimes may not see...and many times the changes, convictions and confrontations are painful, but it is all for the glory of God! You are united now so that you can join together and spread the Gospel, for two are far stronger than one (Ecclesiastes 4:9-12)!

God has brought you two together for a purpose. I have no doubt. You are going to do WONDERFUL things in the name of Jesus Christ. You already are, whether you feel like it or not.


There is SO MUCH that I want to share with you but I know that if I did, this post would be ridiculously long and probably too serious for the liking of most readers. So I will make it short!

I simply encourage you both to remember that you are ONE. You affect each other 

in everything you do, even if it's something you've done in secret. Even if it's 

something you thought you let go of a long time ago, but really haven't. I spoke 

about this in my letter to my brother (post here).

It is best just to recognize that your spouse is human. This means that they sin and that they are very capable of hurting your feelings more often than you'd like. It's a sad truth, but we just need to drop our pride and get over this little fact. USE THE HARD TIMES to learn more about your spouse and yourself. USE THE HARD TIMES to learn more about Christ. Getting into fights (even silent ones) can be so painful and challenging, but God uses some of our darkest moments to teach us about HIM! REMEMBER THAT!

HAVE HOPE AND REMEMBER THAT LIFE IS ABOUT GOD!!! IT'S ABOUT BECOMING MORE LIKE CHRIST AND SHARING HIS GLORIOUS STORY!!!

Your marriage is just a tool that God uses. Don't get me wrong! God blesses us so much in marriage, with joy, pleasure, excitement, and thrilling adventures, but His will for us is so much BIGGER!!!

 

God comes first, but your spouse should come second.

Jonathan,
Rachel should be first priority. Learn how to listen to her. 

You may think you know how to listen to her and that you hear her well, but you will find years from now that she's not as easy to read as you think. Her heart and mind are far more complex than you know! It's a good thing, but be patient and try to listen as best you know how. Pursue her even if it seems that she doesn't want it. You will know if she truly needs her space. Remind her (and yourself) of all the reasons to wanted to marry her and of all the reasons you thought she was attractive when you first met her and got to know her. Just like men, women deal a lot with guilt. We often feel as if we are not enough or that we're not doing enough. Constantly show her that you recognize all that she's done, even if it's below your standards. Even if it doesn't matter to you, compliment her hard work and beauty and compassion for others. Make it your goal to know her heart and soul. More than anything, pursue God. She NEEDS you to pursue God! God gives SO MUCH WISDOM in the most simplest of things and in the grandest of schemes!

Rachel, 

Jonathan should be first priority (other than Christ). Learn how to listen to him.
He will be hard to open up on many occasions, but keep trying. Learn how to ask the right questions and he will be like an open book! Keep pursuing him even if it doesn't seem like he's interested. We never know what may be on someone's heart and mind. Men have a lot of pressure on them when they get married. It's almost instant. Remember that he has the weight of the world on his shoulders! Do all that you can to ease his heart and mind! (Even if it's something that comes unnatural to you!) Be patient with him. He's learning how to love you. Pursue God. He NEEDS you to pursue God! God can tell you exactly what to do or say to your husband and just at the right time! Do all that you can to help your husband grow closer to God! Do all that you can to show that he is the respected head of the household, especially when around friends AND family! (There are ways to share the truth about your marriage without making him look bad, but you know this!)

You are each learning so much right now. You are learning about yourself and about the other person. It takes a lifetime if not longer to really know a person, so don't expect this to be an easy journey. So be humble and patient. Serve each other and remember that sometimes, giving your spouse what they need may mean putting yourself last. Learn each others love language! This is amazingly important!!! Put yourself around encouraging and godly friends. Even if it's awkward at first (and trust me, it can be), it's worth it!

Jonathan, make sure you have good godly male friends that you can go to and confide in. Rachel, make sure you have good godly female friends that you can go to and confide in. You might have to seek out those relationships, but they are worth it.

This is a new phase of life. Embrace it and make the most of it!

You are both in my prayers daily. I am so excited to see what all God does 

in your lives now that you are so greatly united with Him! 

God is good and ALL good things come from Him (James 1:17)!

Yes, of course there are lots of photos... :)

Currently

Listening to: Oh my goodness, I've been killing me some:

Hillsong's SCANDAL OF GRACE

YOU MAKE ME BRAVE sung by Amanda Cook (My favorite right now!)

FOREVER sung by Kari Jobe

GLORIOUS UNFOLDING by Steven Curtis Chapman

and COME TO ME sung by Jenn Johnson!

Worship has seriously been surrounding our house lately. It's been GOOD!

Reading: I would still love to be reading more books, but right now, the Bible is good enough for me! No, seriously. It sounds to corny and clique saying it that way, but, it has been far too long since I've spent some for real quality time in the Word. I shared in a recent post (you can read all about it right here) about my convictions; one of them being to wake up early to dive into the Word. Well, I've been doing just that! Or trying to!

It's getting cold, though. For reals yo.

Thinking about: Let me tell you...I am SO EXCITED about fixing up Hannah's room into a girl's room, especially now that the little one in my belly has turned out to be another girl! I have so many ideas!!! I could ramble on about how I want to paint their room gray and possibly put white or gold polk-a-dots on the back wall and make Hannah a tent slash reading nook area...but that might bore you! ;) Instead, let me share with you my inspiration for the moment!!!

Wishing: I am truly say that I am not wishing for much right now. I am content. Of course I'd love to go pick out a couple of new little girl outfits but that can wait! :)

Thankful for: This cooler weather, these windy days, good friends, great husband, my adventurous little girl and this new little princess on the way!

 

 

Where you can find me this week: No where! Haha! One) I have been so stinkin' tired lately that I've been falling asleep at eight every night and Two) We're on a spending freeze! I don't want to get out and tempt myself to spend any money, haha!

Eating: Huh. Such a good question. I've been eating a lot of grilled cheese and bean burritos. French toast has definitely been on my breakfast menu a few times this week, which is possibly one of the simplest breakfast treats ever! Hannah has been eating peas and beans, eggs, peanut butter sandwiches and leftover chicken and dumplings! Today she had boiled eggs for breakfast and she loved them!!

Photographing: It's picking up the pace once again, but a mommy's schedule is forever changing! I have many more sessions coming up this month and next, so hopefully you all will be seeing more from Strasburger Photography in the near future!

Until next time!

I'm a Myth Buster!!!

I am a myth buster!!! It's official!

For those of you who don't know...we're having a girl!!! Another little princess will be running around our home by this time next year and we've decided to name her Charlotte! We are so thrilled that Hannah gets to have a little sister! We were so sure it was a boy, but God has a good sense of humor (as we like to say sometimes)! This pregnancy was so different than with Hannah. I guess that just threw us for a loop!

When your pregnancy is like, the complete opposite, it's supposed to mean 

you're having the opposite gender, right??? WRONG.

When I got pregnant with my first, Hannah, I joined so many mom forums and pregnancy apps. I had so many questions and all the time! Questions that ranged from "Are my cravings weird?" to "I haven't felt my baby move much in the past two days, what do I do?"

One thing that moms seem to talk about a lot is how different each pregnancy is, because it's a mystery! It really is! People tend to think that their girl pregnancies are really different than their boy pregnancies. I don't really know.

From everything that I've read, all pregnancies are different and not just because of gender. But mom-to-be's have very hopeful and wishful speech almost always! We love to day dream about the things we don't know just yet! Is this little wiggle worm a boy or a girl? What is she going to look like? Like her daddy? Like me? Like her sister/brother? What will her personality be like? So many mysteries that are yet to be unraveled!

Simply because I just found this whole ordeal rather silly, I thought I'd share 

why my pregnancies have been so different!

For all you pregnant beauties, here are my symptoms for my two very different pregnancies!

Hannah vs. Charlotte

 No Morning Sickness --- All Day Every Day Sickness

             Mood Swings --- Not So Many Mood Swings

Craved OJ & Chicken  --- Craving Chicken & Cheese

Craved Sweets --- Not Liking Sweet

Exhausted 24/7 --- Energy 24/7

Happy Go Lucky --- Depressed (For A Bit)

Hated Smells --- Hate Smells

 Hair Growth --- No Hair Growth

Leg Hairs Stopped Growing --- Leg Hair Growth The Same

Gained Lots of Weight Quickly --- 20 Weeks & I haven't Gained 1 Lb.

No Weird Cravings --- Craving Beer & Pork

Lots of Random Strong Movement --- Lots of Constant Gentle Movement

Acid Reflux at The End --- Acid Reflux/Heart Burn

Leg Cramps at Random --- Leg Cramps Almost Every Night

HOT HOT HOT!!! --- Reacting to Cold Weather Appropriately 

Restless Sleep --- Normal Sleep

Vivid Dreams --- Nightmares & Vivid Dreams

See? They are each different! Very different for this momma-to-be!
So what are your symptoms mama??? Are they crazy? Out of control? Just plain weird?
Haha! I'm just kidding! Or am I???

Okay, I need to go to sleep now. This mama's going a little crazy! ;)

So the Secret's Out

Yep. We finally announced what we've been waiting F O R E V E R to announce! Okay, we only waited one week to share the news, but still! One week can seem like F O R E V E R when you're excited!

If you saw my post Pink or Blue? you know that we have been waiting to find out the gender of our little one. Well...you're just going to have to watch this video to find out!!! :) :) :)

OFFICIALLY...

We are pleased to announce that we will be welcoming another 

little princess into the world come March!!!

Meet little miss Charlotte Iva! I might be in love! Who am I kidding??? I AM in love!!!