Noe News is Good News

What do I do now?

Kids are at my in-laws and I am home "de-stressing".  Usually when I send my kids off it's because I have a photo shoot or something else pressing to do... but this time I feel like I'm cheating. I told myself I wasn't going to do anything, at least for today, that could be considered stress inducing. No work, no cleaning, no worrying about anything. So I get to do what I want today. Funny that I find myself in front of the computer. It could partly be the fact that Adam is home and he is in the office working so I wanted his company. But I also think it hints at what I *think* makes me happy, and it makes me laugh. Can anyone guess what I am doing online right now? It's an awful obsession... looking at cute valentines day stuff, cute kids clothes and rooms. I promise I won't be on long... and that I will take some time to read a favorite magazine or start a book. Or even watch a movie that I want to watch.

I Don't really feel like taking a nap, which is something a lot of people would recommend, I'm sure, but I went to bed at 9pm last night. That's SOOOO early for me and I ended up waking again at 3am to my side hurting again, my lymph nodes swollen and my back tingling. I got my iPad out and starting reading about shingles and came to the conclusion that I never had a pulled muscle. I think it was all shingles to start with. I read that sometimes the pain, depending on where it is, can be mistaken for pulled muscles or even heart attacks. It would explain why it was so so tender to the touch when Adam tried to massage it out. It would also explain why it is starting to tingle again. Everything I read started bothering me and I couldn't go back to sleep so I woke Adam up and he gave me a blessing. I seriously love that man. He was able to calm me down and help me feel better. I was then able to go back to sleep and wake up at 7:30am- which I consider sleeping in.

It's actually nice to start thinking about Valentines Day. I love the holiday that celebrates love and I love the combination of red and pink. Wanna see what has been making me happy today- and helping me de-stress?

The following bedding and clothes from Room Seven- a clothing line I stumbled on this morning. CUTE.

 



Martha Stewart

 









From here and there- can't remember where.

I started an anti-viral today that is supposed to help with the pain and hopefully heal things sooner. But that's another story in itself... we've had a little bit of bad luck with our new insurance coverage. Like, it doesn't exist. No stress today so I won't talk about it right now. I'd rather look at pretty things!

My Daughter is Just like me...

I used to love it when my mom would tell us stories about what we used to do when we were little. One of my favorite stories she's told me is about the time she found me organizing shoes in pairs in her closet. I've always had this thing for organization... I'll be the first to admit I don't have the most organized house, but I love to line things up and have some order when I put things away. So I just about melted when I walked into Joselyn's room and saw this:

Funny thing is, I don't even know when she did this! It just makes me smile so big.

I must mention the fact that Joselyn will NOT go to sleep until her room is SPIC and SPAN. She pretty much points out a little piece of dirt and says I need to pick it up before she will go to sleep. At first I thought it was a tactic of keeping me in her room a little bit longer so she wouldn't have to go to sleep, but I've learned otherwise. Now she helps me clean up her room to her liking before she goes to bed.

On a side note, Landen slept in his crib last night for the VERY FIRST TIME in his LIFE! Poor little guy has been stuck in his pack n' play his whole life because there was never enough room in our townhome for another crib or his own room. We let him continue to sleep in it when we moved here so that he would grow accustomed to his new room, and then to the crib being in his room. When we finally made the move I was a little bit nervous... but it all worked out just fine. It's like he'd been sleeping in that thing since the day he was born! I'm sure it's MUCH more comfortable!

Speaking of sleeping... the kids have routinely started sleeping until 7:30-8:30 am (compared to the 6:30am from before). Man have I been loving it... looks like it's not just the rain after all!

I love the rain and a few other things...

Like most of you here in central Kentucky, I woke up to loud thunder and pouring rain this morning. It was around 7am that I really "woke up" and realized that the kids were still asleep. They usually wake up around 6:30am. I laid in bed just listening to the storm outside enjoying the peacefulness of actually just laying in my own bed and snuggling under my covers... and I didn't get out of bed until 8:30am! I must say that it was such a nice way to start my day. I'm in a much better mood if I can just start my day at my own pace. 

I got a lot done- cleaned a lot, got some much needed unpacking done (though I still have a LOOONG way to go) and most exciting- planted some flowers in the front of our house! (pictures coming later)

A few pictures from our life these past few weeks from my iphone...

 

From top left: 1. Landen hiding under his blanket 2. Joselyn posing with her star sunglasses 3. Gatti Town 4. Jos and Melanie cuddling 5. Our gallery wall- pictures still needing to be replaced 6. Joselyn greeting daddy (she is actually singing "I'm so glad when daddy comes home") 7.Joselyn holding some mannequins hands (on her own accord- hilarious by the way) 8. Jos and Landen playing in their "boats" 9. Jos playing with a puppy 10.Jos playing dress up 11.Jos, Melanie and Landen cuddling on the couch 12. dressed in all pink 13. Jos and Landen getting into the fridge 14. Joselyn holding some mannequins hands again 15. Autumn with zhu zhu pets 16. Jos looking in her purse 17. Adam as a teenager (so cool) 18. Rainbow last night from our front porch

Life is so good lately. I'm enjoying every minute with my kids although I sometimes struggle with patience. I'm just having a hard time understanding why they can't get along sometimes... Most of the time they play GREAT together, but I just don't get where kids learn to be mean to each other. But most of the time Joselyn and Landen are so sweet to each other. And honestly, neither one likes to be without the other and they say it. If Joselyn wakes up before Landen (which she often does) she asks for him over and over again, or sometimes tries to tell me he's awake when he's really not. Having two children this close together definitely has it's challenges here and there, but I love how they are best friends now. Love it SOOO much!

 

Landen is saying some awful cute things lately... he definitely doesn't talk as much as Joselyn did at this age, but he can definitely communicate. Today he was trying to tell me he wanted to brush his teeth. He first pointed to his teeth and said "teet" and I admired them and thought he was telling me his teeth hurt. Then he pulled me up and took me to his bathroom and I thought well maybe he said "drink" but then it hit me he wanted to brush his teeth! And sure enough, that was it. He was very satisfied that he got his point across.

He calls his paci "bobby" for some reason and his blankie "ki ki" so we've kind of nick-named them that too. I think it's adorable. I love this little dude.

 

Landen is very much a momma's boy. He LOVE LOVE LOVES to cuddle- which I love and he lets me pinch his very pinch-able cheeks and pulls his shirt up in the back and lets me "tickle" it. I just had to write down those few things because I remember- they grow quickly and change so fast. I'm so lucky to be Landen and Joselyn's mommy and to have such a great caring and sweet husband. I'm just blessed- what can I say? And I am feeling grateful today.

I have the BEST mom

When I am having a bad day, I call my mom. Always. Maybe it's because she knows me better than anyone else in this respect, but she always knows just what to say or do when I am stressed out, worried or sad. Today was a rough day for me filled with a lot of crying and worrying... and as always, my mom knew exactly what to say to bring me comfort... while being straight-forward and honest. But a tradition I simply love was started about a year ago when she brought me a delicious tart from Fresh Market after I had a rough day. It was an instant favorite of mine... something I crave often but never buy because they are so expensive for something so small. The shortbread crust is just the right amount of crunchy, topped with a very thin layer of chocolate, lots of whipped cream and HEAPED with blueberries, raspberries and strawberries. (it is a terrible picture which doesn't do the real thing justice, but I had a very bad lighting situation... and yet I wanted to capture a photo... Adam made fun of me when I was taking the picture saying "only YOU would take a picture of that..." lol)

Ever since that day, my mom brings me this delicious tart when I've had a bad day... although it still always manages to be a sweet surprise. And of course with the tart comes the treat of her visit and company which I enjoy even more. I just feel so blessed to have her as my mother... I always know she cares when I have a bad day and I appreciate all she does to cheer me up. Seriously... who could ask for a better mother/friend?

Thanks to everyone else who also made today bearable... I have the best friends and family in the whole entire world. I don't know how many people really understood just how rough this day was for me even though I knew that Joselyn would eventually be ok. All the comments, e-mails, chats and phone calls were very much appreciated.

Thought you would all want to know that Joselyn went down peacefully tonight with a nice normal temperature of 98.9 degrees... a big relief to Adam and I especially after her fever of 104 earlier on in the day. We now feel at peace that she's going to be just fine and back to herself in no time!

Martha Stewart Baby

Long before I had children... actually, long before I was even MARRIED, my obsession with Martha Stewart started. I started getting the Martha Stewart Living magazines, the Martha Stewart Wedding magazines, and yes, the Martha Stewart Kids and Martha Stewart Baby magazines. I LOVED the Kids and Baby issues. They had so many sweet ideas and were just beautiful to look at! Unfortunately, they have discontinued Martha Stewart Baby and more recently Martha Stewart Kids. I never had a chance to get them all, and so was really sad that I had missed out on such great issues... especially the baby ones, because there were only about 5 or 6 issues that ever came out. I'll even admit to searching for them on e-bay!!

Well... as I was reading through all my favorite blogs tonight, I came across something that made me SOOO excited on the Tangled and True blog!!! I don't know why I didn't think of this before, but there is a number you can call to order the back issues of ALL her magazines! So you know what I did... I called the number to see if they had some Martha Stewart Baby left! I know, I know... I am so obsessive. But guess what? They have them! Now I just need to save up some money so I can order the issues I don't have... (they are about $4.50-4.75 each)

If you are as obsessive as I am, here is the number to call: 1-800-274-6800

A few of my favorite things...

I was a little nostalgic today and started reading some entries from my OLD blog from about 3 years ago... when I had to come up with things to write about on my own because I didn't have a child or pregnancy to write about. I started it around November 2005 a little after I got married. I found a list of my 'goals' and 'favorite things' back then and was surprised that they were almost all STILL my favorite things... and that some of my dreams and goals listed have started to become a reality. I thought I would list them here again, just for fun, and so some of you can get to know me a little better! (you might be surprised how much you DON'T know about me!) This must come with a warning though... it's a LONG list!

These are a few of my favorite things and why:
Written November 23rd, 2005

• Mugs... I don't know... they are just cute. I always imagined having a collection of them in a hutch in my dining room or displayed in my kitchen somehow
• Elephants... I started loving them in Thailand. Elephants would walk around on the streets (with the cars) and had little lights attached to their tails so that cars would not run over them. You could feed them and they would do tricks for you. I bought a bunch of things there with elephants on it because they hold them sacred there. But I really think I started loving them most after Adam sent me a stuffed Elephant for Christmas that he stuffed himself at some teddy-bear shop they have in the mall. That little stuffed animal made me so happy and every time I would miss Adam I would just hug it at night.
• Anything little... Adam always makes fun of me because if I see anything miniature it is automatically 'cute'. This will explain a lot of my favorites
• Baby clothes... my friends used to make fun of me for this one because when we would go to the mall, I would always want to stop by Baby Gap and Gymboree instead of Abercrombie and Fitch and American Eagle which were some of my favorite stores when I was in High School. I actually even worked at Gymboree for quite some time. I still hold that up high as one of my most favorite jobs ever!! I would love it when the new lines would come out and I would be the first to see all the cute little outfits.
• Hearing someone say they love me
• When someone forgives me for something that I did
• Going to church and feeling all good inside
• Frozen Grapes... well any kind of frozen fruit for that matter. SOOO delicious and a healthy snack too!
• KENTUCKY!!! I love it here... the rolling hills, the seasons, the horses... it's beautiful here. When I was flying back from Utah after attending BYU for a while, I promised myself to never leave here again unless absolutely necessary after seeing the beautiful green horse farms from the air. (except when I am traveling of course!)
• Traveling... I love seeing new places and meeting new people.
• Road Trips
• Babies... this one is probably obvious because I am so obsessed with talking about my new niece! They are just precious gifts from Heavenly Father
• Snow... not so much playing in it although that is fun sometimes... I just like sitting next to a huge window and watching it fall so peacefully
• Big Windows that stretch from floor to ceiling.(I sit next to one where I work and hope I will have lots of these in my future dream house!)
• Fireplaces... one of the best dreams I ever had was when I was in Thailand. In my dream I was married to Adam and we had a little baby girl... probably about 1 year old. She had on a fuzzy white sweater, little blue jeans, little shoes and her short brown hair were in little pigtails. We were all playing together in front of a beautiful stone fireplace, smiling and laughing, next to a huge window while the snow was falling. I woke up so happy and content.
• hoops and yoyo... they are these characters on Hallmark.com that always make me smile
• Stickers... I have collected these for a long time now.
• Stationery... I have collected a lot over the years. Writing letters is something I love to do but hardly find time to do. But I love cute and creative stationery sets or note cards.
• Interior Design... when I was little I used to make floor plans and put furniture in them. It was my favorite thing to do.
• Nature Walks... there is nothing more peaceful than taking a walk through the woods and enjoying God's creations.
• Fall... everything about it. Sweaters, the falling leaves, the colorful trees, football games, Thanksgiving, pumpkin pies, cuddling, the smell, EVERYTHING!!! It's a VERY romantic time of the year.
• Spring... the flowers in bloom, the colorful trees here in Kentucky and the warm afternoon sun just help bring a smile to my face!
• Sunsets and Sunrises
• Martha Stewart magazines... they may not be all original ideas by Martha, but I love all the ideas! I have some of her kids, wedding and baby issues as well.
• The Ocean... nothing beats sitting at the edge of the water and hearing those waves crash to the shore... and collecting seashells and looking out to the horizon to see how small you are compared to the never ending ocean.
• Taking Pictures... one of my dreams is to become a photographer. I have always loved to take pictures
• Picture Albums and Picture frames... I love looking at pictures because for me they are such a good way of capturing a feeling or moment. So I take as many pictures as I can and stick them in picture frames and albums so I can look at them often
• Cardio Theatre... every morning when I go to the gym, this is where I go. It's so cook because I can get on my elliptical machine and it's dark... so no one has to see me sweat, and at the same time I have something to watch so time goes by quickly. Usually, I listen to home-made CD's as well.
• Eyes... they are the window to the soul and one of the most beautiful things God has created. I could study someone's eyes forever. They are SO interesting!
• Dashboard Confessionals... I love every kind of music that you can imagine, but no one has more talent than this group of guys right here!!! Their lyrics are so thought-provoking and full of emotion. You can relate to every song that they sing
• Smallville... hardly do I miss an episode. I think my favorite part about it is that it's Adam's favorite too so it's a for sure date for us to cuddle up on the couch together.
• Extreme Home Makeover... I would love to be a part of this show... not only do they get to help people in need, they get to buy lots of cool furniture and design some amazing rooms! I always cry... because the design team is so full of great and giving people
• Shopping... I don't care if you don't believe me, but it really does make me feel better!
• Joseph Beth Booksellers... you'll never know a neater bookstore. There are lots of places to cuddle on leather sofas not to mention a cute little cafe with the best steamed cows and cheesecake and the neatest little trinkets!
• Christmas Trees... Even now, I still love to fall asleep next to the Christmas tree and watch lights as they chase eachother around. To me, the feelings I get as I watch the tree symbolize the peace and happiness we feel during the Christmas Season
• Hot Chocolate with marshmallows... makes me feel all warm inside! I love coming to work with a mug of hot chocolate to start my cold winter days
• Glow in the dark stars
• Dove Chocolate... THE BEST
• Fire and Ice roses... the white ones with the red fringe, or the yellow ones with the red fringe. Adam used to bring me roses all the time when I worked at Lowe's. He would also bring a bottle of water for me to use as a vase. How sweet!
• pillow fights... I always lose to Adam but I've never laughed harder in my life!
• Kisses on the forehead from Adam... I can't explain how sweet this is...
• My mom's pumpkin pie
• First kisses... there's no feeling that can match this! I got to have two with Adam... one when we first met, and the second when I came back from my mission...
• Singing along to my favorite songs in the car... my favorite sing along song is "Stay" by Lisa Loeb and "Head Over Feet" by Alanis Morrisette
• Getting mail or packages from friends in the mail
• A long soak in the bathtub filled with bubbles with candles and soothing music... (I hardly EVER get to do this)
• Going Driving down pretty roads or looking at houses decorated with Christmas lights (a family favorite)
• Laying in bed under the covers listening to the rain outside
• Warm clothes out of the dryer on a cold day
• A good conversation
• Finding money in my pocket that I didn't know was there!
• Inside Jokes... Adam and I have so many... a lot of people would think we are weird but I love out inside jokes and sayings... they make me smile more than anything else!
• Girls night out!!
• Someone playing with my hair
• Wrapping presents for people and seeing them open them and loving the gift you gave!
• Making cookies and eating some cookie dough
• Hearing my husband play the guitar and singing me songs... especially the ones he wrote for me
• The feeling you get after a really good workout
• Hugs from Adam... I always feel so loved!
• Knowing what each other is thinking just by a glance
• My family... our memories that we've shared and the memories to come
• Stories told by my mother about when I was young
• Watching Home Videos
• Catalogs... I order as many as I can and keep every single one of them (some of my favorites... Pottery Barn and West Elm)
• Christmas... the spirit of it... Almost everyone is in a good mood and are more thoughtful
• blankets... even when it's hot I love having a blanket
• Seeing a smile on my husband's face and knowing I did something that made him smile
• Playing with a puppy or kitten
• Finding something I love on sale
• Keeping a journal
• Drawing picture
• making lists... I made a lot of these on my mission
• Surfing the web and finding cool websites... I love Keri Smith and Sabrina Ward Harrison.
• Getting e-mails that have cute pictures in them
• Zebra pens... they write the best
• Making a goal and accomplishing that goal
• A Clean House (all the dishes are done, the floors are swept and everything is organized... it's such a good feeling!)
• Scrapbooking... (and looking at scrapbooking ideas online)
• Making homemade cards for Christmas, Birthdays etc...
• The smell of shampoo in my hair :^)
• A good movie
• Getting over a cold... (I appreciate my health so much more!)
• Scented Candles... TONS of them... lit all over the house with all the lights out.
• Christmas Songs
• Cool pens... any kind of pen that has a neat effect or color... my favorites are the Sakura pens
• Going Christmas Caroling... when I was younger (in AZ), the whole Bateman clan would climb on a trailer pulled by a tractor and we would sit on bales of hay and sing Christmas songs together. We would ride through a grove of orange trees until we got to a certain place where we would drink hot chocolate with marshmallows and we would also roast marshmallows and hotdogs and bananna boats. That was so much fun!
• Carriage rides. When I was in High School we would go to Louisville for either Choir or Beta club and that's one thing we would do at night when we had free time. Adam and I have also went for a ride in downtown Lexington. They give you a little tour of all the historic sites... it's so neat!
• Opal stones. They are so pretty. I could stare at one all day.
• Sappy love songs... Delila on 96.9 KISS FM

Free time

I wish I had more free time on my hands to do the things I loved... I know that in order to appreciate life we need to make sacrifices but there are so many things I would love to do that I just feel I don't have enough time to do! I'm thinking that when I have children I will have more time to do those things that I love, but most people would probably think that I am naive in thinking that. As for now, I have to work so that Adam and I can pay our bills etc...

I would love to stay at home at write letters to my friends that I have not heard from in forever...
I would love to write in my journal more...
I would love to type up all the letters that Adam and I wrote to eachother when I was in Thailand...
I would love to be able to finish my Thailand scrapbook...
I would love to finish the 2 quilts that I started!
I would love to be out in the nature more and take more walks...
I would love to spend more time with my niece, Autumn...
I would love to spend more time with my Sister, Chelsea...
I would love to go out to lunch with my parents more...
I would love to support my brothers more in their separate endeavors...
I would love to be able to wake up in the morning and just sip on some hot chocolate and watch Martha Stewart, Clean Sweep, and a Baby Story...
I would love to be able to be in more control of what I eat...
I want to be more active!!!
I would love to be able to go to the library and check out all these wonderful books...
I would absolutely love to start taking some online classes!!!
I would love to curl up on the couch and actually finish a book for once...
I would love to be able to take out my art supplies and just have some fun...
I would love to be able to write some songs...
I would love to create my own website and update it every day...
I want to explore websites and blogs of interesting people...
I would love to find out more about my ancestors and learn about their lives...
I would love to be able to make my husband breakfast, lunch and dinner everyday... he SOOOOO deserves it!!
I want to be a better friend... and have time to go visit them and invite them over...

Oh, the things I would do if I had more time!! As for now, I just need to learn how to manage my time so that I can accomplish the MOST IMPORTANT things... which are to make sure my husband knows that I love him and that I do the things that my Heavenly Father would have me do.