vintage this's &delicious thats.

Lots of lovely vintage goin' on over here at JB drive. My house is turning into a step back in time.

So delightful!

And Jude is getting so big and strong. Standing up, walking across things, even standing up all by myself for a few seconds at a time! He did a crunch and sat up all by himself today, too. He is such a joy.

Our beautiful couch! They are perfect.

Checkin out the garden :) 

Our beautiful varigated ground elder.

Dan needed a little brain break so he whipped up some delicious caramel corn. Sooo good!

Dan fed Jude some prune juice just to have some lovey, sweet, cuddley eye contact moments. It was beyond precious.

Hit up a yard sale this morning and stumbled upon some vintage games. So excited about them!

Jude loves his blood pressure cuff. :) Now he can be just like Daddy.

lake break.

There is a sweet couple in the ward who let us come visit them at their lakehouse and swim at the lake! Dan was in dire need of a break from school so we took a couple hours and swam, jumped off the dock, and went on a couple paddle boat rides! The evening was perfect, along with the water temperature!

my best friend

I love my little best friend, Jude. He is so much fun to be around and it doesn't hurt that he is the most gorgeously adorable little creature ever. 

I love how every time he is on our bed and sees Dan's cowboy hat on the bedpost he gets this big smile and his face and starts bookin' it over to grab it. 

I love how he cuddles up to me like a little kangaroo baby when he's eating. 

I love how he grabs my face and teeth and caresses my skin when he's eating.

I love how he loves to shower with me and gets the biggest smile when the water sprays him in the face.

I love how he chills in his car seat and I know he hates it but he is so patient and just plays with the little strap. 

I love how every stranger in the upstate area stops and carries on a full one-sided conversation with him trying to get him to smile. It always makes me so happy. 

I love how he is all I need (besides my Danny, of course). I could go to any party, outing, or event with just him and be happy. I ask him questions about what he thinks and talk to him like he's an adult (or will talk back) and everyone around always looks at me a little funny. 

I love to give him to make scenes giving him big kisses all over his face and holding him up in the air and confessing my love to him over and over.

I love how he plays with the same "toys" over and over again is always amused (altoid mints, costco coupon book, rocky molasses, baby monitor, vitamin D bottle, Occe, infant head rest for car seat, vitamin bottle with popcorn kernels in it, spartanburg city visitors guide, measuring cups, scott's red frisbee). 

I love when he sees something that interests him and he scurries across the floor so fast and then once he grabs it and sits down and plays so contently. 

I love how when he wants me he crawls over to me and tries to climb up my legs. 

I love how he still loves to breastfeed more than anything at least ten times a day. 

I love how he laughs every time he sees his sweet Daddy and love more than anything when Dan plays the guitar for him.

I love him so much. More and more every day!

TIPS: Pumping at work for the nursing mother

Pumping at work can be daunting and nerve-racking and make the transition back to work that much harder. I had worked at a little hospital in Northport, AL for a couple years before I had to pump at work so I wasn't really worried about it. I knew everyone so well. We were like a little family and they were all supportive. I knew they would cover for me and be supportive of me pumping. But it did get harder. Here are a few tips that helped me and I hope can help you, too!

1. Don't be awkward about it. Be open!

I'm naturally a very open person so it wasn't too hard for me to be open about it, but I felt like that was very helpful. I would tell all my coworkers what I was doing (mostly all women, which helped). I would don my little black backpack and off I went. Someone would ask, "Are you leaving?" or "Where are you going?" I'd say, "Just makin some milk for baby..." or something like that. The conversation usually ended there because most people feel awkward about it. I want to overcome that awkward stigma so I felt like it was important to be open about it so more people would feel comfortable doing it if that time came for them.

2. Double check that you have all your supplies before work!

There is nothing worse than getting all set up to pump in the bathroom or little room with a lock, wherever it may be, only to find out you are missing a bottle or some other vital part to pumping. Then it calls for some major improvisation, which doesn't always work. I would bring my freezer bags with me along with a brown paper sack and put the milk directly in the freezer bags after pumping, in the paper sack, and then right in the freezer. (You are not supposed to "upgrade" milk, like go from fridge to freezer, so that way it would last longer if frozen.) You may want to think about purchasing some breast pump wipes if you are unable to access a sink. I am cheap so I would just rinse them off, wrap them in paper towels and stick them back into my backpack and wash them thoroughly when I got home.

3. Make arrangements beforehand, if possible.

Contact your supervisor, boss, or whoever and make sure there is a private, locked room with a plug (unless you bring batteries) that you can use. Be sure they are aware you will have to take one or two (or however many you need) 20 minute (or however long it takes you) breaks during the day. It is against the law for them to not let you pump or not have a private place for you to pump, so you've got the law on your side if they give you any trouble. That way you can plan someone to cover for you, if necessary, and you will decrease the anxiety of going back to work! It will be hard enough leaving your baby, so anything you can do to make the transition smoother will be a great help!

4. Bring an extra shirt, just in case.

We all hope it won't happen, but it might. I always tried to wear a pretty tight-fitting sports bra, a tank top, and a darker colored or patterned top. I also wore nursing pads when I first returned to work and my supply was a lot higher. One time a friend was asking me about the baby and we were talking about his eating and pumping and before I knew it my shirt was wet and milk was dripping on my shoes. We were good friends so I just laughed about it and said, "Speaking of pumping, I better go do it right now!" Luckily I worked at a hospital so I borrowed a top from the OR because the spot didn't come out, but most workplaces don't have conveniences like that!

5. Most importantly, be committed!

Be committed that you will pump and continue to breastfeed no matter how hard or inconvenient it may be, and it will be worth it. This is the most important step! It may be hard. And if your job is anything like mine was, there will be nights or days you will not be able to pump. I once went over twelve hours without pumping! But me, my baby, and my milk supply survived. Research breastfeeding and pumping and how it all works as much as possible so you are committed to it because you have an understanding of how important it is for you and your baby.

I signed up for a travel nursing job when Jude was six months old and I had to work at different hospitals I had never been to with different people I had never met every night and work shifts that ranged from twelve to over fourteen hours. I also had to attend a couple training meetings where they only gave us a few short breaks. I would sprint into the bathroom and pump for five minutes. I was so nervous about having to pump once I started my job... asking strangers to watch my patients for me, finding a room and everything else to make it work. I knew I would do it no matter what and I am so glad I stuck with it and was committed. There were times when I would eat a couple bites of my food while I was pumping because that was my lunch break. There were times I left to pump and thought someone was covering for me and I came back and all heck had broken loose (we're talking patient safety!) to a misunderstanding. If I can pump in a situation like that then we can all make it work! How wonderful to be able to come home from work and breastfeed our sweet baby after missing them so much! 

The more we breastfeed in public and pump in the workplace, the more accepted it will become. Unite, mothers, to make the world a more breastfeeding friendly place!

this very moment...

weedwacking, wall decor planning, church-cleaning, dancing honky-tonk to dixie land delight in the kitchen, kisses from our boy, and cookies for breakfast.

(heaven)

kickick.

yard work is very entertaining.

and a sneak peek of our craigslist beauties!!! well worth the wait. :)

THE BEST TACOS EN EL MUNDO (in the world...)

Seriously. The best tacos in the world. I say that boldly with no reservation. You want to really impress you friends for dinner, make your husband the happiest ever, or just eat the most delectable meal? Make these. They are the real deal. The kind you would eat if you went down to Mexico and ate off the streets...

You will need:

al pastor pork (must be purchased from a mexican grocery store or carniceria)

onions

rice tortillas (the kind you cook up on the skillet at home)

pineapple chunks

cilantro

limes

Here goes...

uno. Finely chop the onions into little peices. They are eaten raw. 

dos. Cut the pineapple into chunks.

tres. Wash and cut the cilantro.

quatro. Quarter the limes.

cinco. Cook the meat. It is already marinated to perfection.

seis. Heat up the tortillas.

siete. Compile ingredients onto tortilla.

ocho. Devour.

That blue color is painted on our kitchen wall! And I secured the most gorgeous, could-pass-for-Anthropologie sofa and loveseat that I love. Pictures to come!

blessings to the UMPTH degree.

I have no insurance right now and BYU-Idaho requires it so I was going to have to buy really expensive insurance to register for my last semester of school. My mom called me yesterday and out of the blue says, "I got her to waive it for you..."

I replied, "Got who to waive what?"

"Your insurance for school. I talked to Ruth Clark, I don't know if that's President Clark's wife or whatever. But I talked to her and she waived it so you don't have to get insurance anymore."

UMmm... hello!! Thank you! I hadn't even asked my mom to do that. And what a relief. What a blessing.

//////////

So I was all scheduled for my last semester of school... a Biostatistics class and two religion classes. I called today to confirm that I was all set up for graduation before I registered....

"Oh, I can substitute this math class you took when you were 17 at community college for the stats class so you don't have to take it...." (I have been trying to do that for years, literally, and they have never been able to.)

UMMMMmmmm...

"And no, you don't need three religion credits. You only need one."

UmmmmmmMMM... I went from having to take three classes (including stats, yuck) to

one precious little D&C class next semester. My last semester of my undergraduate to be exact.

HELLO! I most certainly call that a blessing.

//////////

I was on a walk with my sweet neighbor yesterday morning and I mentioned that we had no food and were living off baked potatoes and quesadillas in our lives of frugality. That night she dropped off a hot casserole dish full of homemade chicken and dumplings on our front porch.

Sweetest. Southern hospitality. What a blessing!

//////////

I had my SNAP (food stamps) interview the other day and was all nervous and hopeful hoping we would qualify and the lady I talked to was soo sweet. I would answer her questions and she would say, "Oh, I won't put that... I'll just put this. I want to do everything I can to help you." Then at the end I said, "So, do you think we'll qualify?"

"Oh yeah..." (so nonchalantly). I so appreciate the assistance so I can stay home with my sweet baby. And no, I don't feel embarrassed or shy about it. We are paying thousands of dollars to the government in interest alone for our unsubsidized loans (thank you, Obama), on top of our thousands of thousands of dollars of student loans. The government can pay for my food with a big grin on their insatiable faces.

Oh yeah, back to my point.... that is what I call a blessing!

That's not all.

//////////

Dan did good on his test yesterday. He needed it so bad. He deserved it all plus a hundred more times. I love him so much forever.

Oh yeah, one more thing that you must know... Jude is unconstipated as of yesterday. YAY! We were dancing and singing around the kitchen.

//////////

The point of it all is that Heavenly Father watches out for me and my little family. Along with every other person on this earth. He is aware of our needs and takes us in the palms of His hands and carries us.

That's a blessing. :)

this very moment...

I am thankful for the mini moments I get with both of my babies together, however fleeting they may be. Earlier Dan practiced his newly acquired pulse and blood pressure skills on Jude and I. Jude was very patient and understood it was for educational purposes. My BP was healthy... phew. Thanks Dr. Dan, you're the best.

waterfalls &flowers

We went on the most marvelous family outing to the Hatcher Garden & Woodland Preserve in Spartanburg. It started out because one sweet woman who wanted somewhere for her grandchildren to be able to run around and learn about nature and animal life in the area. Her and her husband started planted a few flowers and trees here and there and before she knew it she can created a breathtaking garden with ponds, rivers, streams, flowers, trees, and waterfalls. We loved exploring and can't wait to go back!