Lily

On days that are rainy or snowy I seem to get into the moods of reading, journal and just contemplating in general. I was reading my friend Eva's blog and was encouraged by her thoughts. Her blog is called "The lily awakens" and it's named after the story below. Take a minute to read and ponder. Enjoy this season and remember who you were made to worship.

The Lily

A story is told of a little girl many years ago in the slums who saw an object lesson using a beautiful white lily.The children gazed upon and touched the lovely lily.One little girl then looked upon herself and immediately fled to her garret home. She used soap she could find, and did her best to make herself more presentable. The lily had awakened her desire for cleanliness. So to look upon our great and holy God awakens within the child of God the desire to be more like Him.

thoughts on a wednesday...

I'm making a second attempt at reading through the entire Bible. Sad that this is only my second time going through it begining to end in my 24 years of knowing our Savior personally, but happy that He has brought me to this point of knowing him more than I did at age 5, 10 or even 28!

So, today I was reading in Deuteronomy, chapter 4, and came across this verse (v.20)..."But the Lord has taken you and brought you out of the iron furnace, from Egypt, to be a people for His own possession, as today."

I couldn't help but stop and think for a minute about my life, my family's lives, my friend's lives, and so many more. He has taken us from whatever circumstances we've faced in the past and helped us to recover, grow, mature, gain understanding...all because we are His possession and it brings Him glory to do so. What a great God we know and serve! How fabulous that He cares so deeply for us not to leave us there in our "iron pit" but will take and bring us out!

Thank you, God, for taking and bringing me out of the "iron pit", the person that I once was, the place where I felt most alone, the circumstance where I turned my back. Thank you for loving me so much that you sent your One and Only Son to pay the price of my sin. Thank you that no matter how dark it may seem to get that you are always God at the end of the day.

Catching up with a very dear friend...

So, I'm not only catching up on time with a dear friend but also catching up on my blogging. It's been quite awhile now, a month, since our time with Kris and Natalie and their beautiful kids Taylor and Joselyn. They came and stayed with us a weekend while they were in Lincoln visiting supporters. We had a great time hanging out with their kiddos while Kris and Natalie enjoyed a Husker game in real life. We watched in on t.v. and I tried explaining to Taylor that that's where his mom and dad were. He looked and me and asked if Taylor was there too? :) It's a little difficult explaining live t.v. to a 3 year old I guess...or maybe it was the teacher.

Anyway, Natalie and I stayed up way too late both nights talking about anything and everything. I haven't been that encouraged spiritually by a friend in so long. It was, and always has been, amazing to hear her wisdom, insight, and passionate love for her Lord and family pour out in our talks. We have so much in common and were able to pick up right where we left off 3 years ago when our ways parted. I'm very excited to see them again when we spend the night with them on our way home from vacation in Denver/Vail.

What an amazing gift the Cheeks are to Boulder and to us!

You can check out what they're doing in Boulder here.

coffee love

My love of coffee is more than just the taste. It's the whole experience, the memories, the time spent drinking. My sister and I were talking the other day that even if we could only drink decaf for the rest of our lives we'd still do it because there is a sense of comfort in the cup. The routine of waking up, making coffee, sitting down with a hot cup topped with silk creamer and your Bible is an experience that can't be duplicated. And how many great conversations and memories made have you had over a simple cup of coffee?

So in honor of the dark brew...here's a sample from Folgers.

Now, go call a friend and sip on some coffee!

(Picture compliments of my bestest friend Sara. Miss you darling!)

thrifty

So, lately I've really gotten into being thrifty and looking for the bargains. Some of you could spend hours reading blogs about the environment and political views...me, I could spend hours looking for coupons and reading others ideas on being thrifty! LOL

Anyway, leading up to and having our first child has caused me to try and be even more economical and thrifty; especially since I'm staying home now with Ryan. Even though I'll be working PRN at the hospital and doing resumes from home we're still loosing my income which is never easy but it CAN be done! I've really enjoyed reading BabyCheapskate since I first became pregnant. They provide specific sales in their area but also list online sales and coupons specifically related to babies and children. Oh, and they have great ideas for entertaining your children; both places to go and ideas to get off the internet.

So, in honor of their site and my own desire to share the wealth...here's a coupon to use at Target for Luvs diapers...$2OFFLuvs!

Starbucks Java Chip Ice Cream

My friend Natalie posted THIS to her blog awhile ago with some adorable pics of her daughter and Java Chip Ice Cream. I decided to dedicate this post in honor of her! For those of you that don't know her she is one of the kindest, most unique and beautiful people you will ever meet. She has a heart of gold and a love for the Lord that is contagious. One of the things I LOVE about her is her desire to celebrate the everyday and to make big the things that most of us would pass over. She savors everything and is teaching her children to do the same thing (hence the blog).

So, here's to you Natalie...I couldn't let it go to waste! LOL Love ya!

Succulents!

This is my new succulent garden thanks to my mom for such a great birthday present!I love them all but think that the string of pearls may be my favorite. They're all so unique and not poisonous so that's a plus since Ryan will be crawling before we know it. Plus, they're all soft and touchable so no worries with that part of Ryan crawling too.

- String of Pearls -

- Baby's Toes -
-Don't remember all their names but love the baby's butt looking one! -

little masterpiece!

God really does know what He's doing when he creates these beautiful masterpieces inside of us! I cannot get over how perfect Ryan is and how perfect he is for us!

My sister took this photo...you can see more of her work here!

P.S. Click here for Ryan's new blog.

New life, new love!

This is the newest addition to the Mayo family...Ryan Michael was born June 13th at 5:03am.

He is a perfect baby and we're enjoying every moment of our new life with him. Labor and delivery went very smoothly and quite enjoyably as well. The doctor allowed me to reach down and deliver Ryan the up onto my chest after his little head and shoulders were out! Simply indescribably! He's grown a bit since then...almost 3 weeks old now.

Here's a pic from today.

You can check out more pics here. I'm hoping to have a blog just for him very soon as well.

Heritage

I am blessed with grandparents who love the Lord and will leave, and are already leaving, a wonderful heritage.

This past Sunday we celebrated Mother's Day at my grandparent's where we often gather for special celebrations. As always they opened their home up to people they'd never met. My friend Erin and her cute little Brynn ate with us and we all enjoyed sweet fellowship. My grandparents know no strangers, and if we truly do entertain angels unaware they never have to worry about turning them away. Lord willing my son will get some time with his great-grandparents before the Lord takes them home.

What a blessing they are!

Family love...or something!

My brother made a quick visit from AZ when he helped move my cousins to there new job in Omaha at Boys Town. He may have only been here for a short while but we still had a lot of fun. The above photo is a classic pose of Nikki, my sister, and Dave. We decided to see who's belly was the biggest. I don't want to hurt anyone's feelings so you can be the judge. :)

I've added a few more prego pics here.

Cutest idea ever!

Everyone needs to check out this post on the Purl Bee. It's the cutest idea ever! And what a clever way to use those small pieces of fabric that you just love but don't know what to do with them because they're so small. I can think of two already. You could even paint the "frames" different colors to add more of a splash of color. They could store needles of different sizes too.

I guess March is craft month, according to a sign in a local craft shop here, so get crafting! :)

Thoughts...

So, I'm loving what I've been reading and learning and thinking lately about using what I have for other purposes and just using what I have, in general, before I go buy a bunch of new stuff. One of my goals right now is to use all of the mosturizers, shampoos, conditioners and hair products before I go get anything new. This means my hair may not react the same way I think it does when I use the really expensive curly shampoos and such but I'm wondering how much they really do anyway. And for me, I don't do a whole lot with my hair so how much can it really do? Who knows? For now I am enjoying not buying new chapsticks and shampoo and mosturizers and etc, etc, etc.

Also, I've been thinking of ways that I can use what I already have to cover a window or two in my house that still has towels on it! :) As I was thinking the other night I remembered two white pillow cases that I really don't use that I could take apart and make into curtains. I'll make sure and post a pic of the before and after.

I have another goal of converting a pair of jeans I have now into prego jeans. I know that I can't change them back after the baby but they fit perfectly and would be great for my next several months. I've tried on so many jeans and can never find ones that don't cost an arm and a leg or that just fit right. So, I'll keep you updated on that project as well.

Oh, and I'm planning to take my first load of recycling to the bins tomorrow. I'm so excited. I have to sort all the paper/cardboard stuff because we just throw it all in one bin. I can already tell a difference in the amount of garbage that I take out per week to our big garbage can. Hooray for recycling.

A lot of my thoughts and readings have come from here, here, here, here, and of course my friend Sara. Thanks to all of you for sharing your thoughts, feelings and lives with the rest of us!

Sipping Sweet Cinnamon Spice Tea

I'm sipping some wonderful Sweet Cinnamon Spice Tea from Tazo. I love Tazo teas...Passion tea is very, very excellent! But do you know what I love more than Tazo Tea? Good friends!

Yesterday I got two letters/packages in the mail with sweet goodies inside. I received a wonderful handmade card from my friend Natalie who, even though I haven't seen her in probably 3 years, I still consider a soul mate because of how God has used her in my life and how we seem to just connect. She included some Sweet Cinnamon Spice Tea along with a cute little sticker from her son, Tay. I just love knowing that somewhere in Boulder there are people that I know and connect with, who love God and love me!

Second I got another handmade card from another wonderful friend, Sara. She also included some tea but this was a Mint flavor from Numi. I shall sip that wonderfulness later. Sara also included a little star thingy that I don't really know how to explain but you can see pics of bigger ones here. Sara recently moved to Bozeman and now I have people who understand and love me in Bozeman! And she loves Jesus lots too so that makes it even more special.

So, today, I challenge you to send a little goodie to someone you love. It'll make them feel so loved and special!

Well, it's been such a long time since I've written anything here. I suppose it's because I keep waiting to put a pic with the story or something really cool to happen. Well, a lot of great stuff has been happening so I'm just going to share some tid bits of it all.

First off...Tuesday we found out that this cute little baby growing inside of me is a BOY! We are definitely excited for that. It's so crazy because you all know we would have been happy either way and I'm sure some of you have experienced the exact same thing but it's just incredibly fun to know who this little person is inside you. I just stared at the monitor and kept thinking, "I'm his mommy! No one knows this baby like me (except for God of course!)." It's just an incredible thing that a mother can't even begin to explain and those that aren't mothers can't really, fully understand. I know I never could wrap my brains around the love of a parent for a child but even now I'm beginning to understand. It's a wonderful gift from God...all pointing right back to Him in order for us to long to know Him more!

In other news, Paul has started work. Yes he passed his boards...no surprise! But he is loving his job and just happy to have something that he enjoys to fill his days. He's not one to be able to sit for long and not do anything. The two weeks after he took his test were killing him with boredom. We are very blessed to have him where he's at.

We sat down the other Saturday and talked about goals for now and for the future. Little things like learning to recycle and reading out loud once night a week to paying off school loans in 3-4 years all the while saving for a down payment on a house. It was good for me to remind myself that these things are temporary and having a house that we "own" is not a measure of status for us. We are very well off and our wonderful little house fits us very nicely. We can do without and do without new things all the time. We also decided to keep both our cars and just trade so that I have the 4-door and he has my 2-door when the baby comes. Both are cars are still reliable and it just fits into our financial goals to keep them versus buying a "new" one.

All-in-all this has been an amazing year full of God's wonderful blessings. I visited Starbucks this morning because I haven't had a Soy, halfcalf caramel Machiato and a Lemon Raspberry Coffee Cake since I've been pregnant. But they don't have that kind of coffee cake in Lincoln! Sad! I drove away thinking, "If that's the kind of disappointments that I go through then I am truly spoiled!" We are such a blessed nation...take time to enjoy what God has truly blessed you with, and don't be afraid to share it!

4111 Place

We moved into our house in Lincoln on December 18th and are loving it so far. It has it's quirks because it's an older house but it fits our needs quite nicely with tons of room to spare. The best part is we got to paint the main floor rooms whatever colors we wanted. Of course I had to paint something red and something green. The baby's room is the only room that nothing really has been done yet but hopefully that will all change on Feb. 6th when I get my next ultrasound. :) The dogs love the huge fenced in backyard...squirel watching is a favorite. I love the extra little room downstairs where I can leave all my creative stuff out for when I get an itch. Ahhh...the good life! :)

Check out more detailed photos here. And if you're in the neighborhood, stop on in!

16 1/2 weeks!

Well, I am not at 16 1/2 weeks of my pregnancy and loving every minute. We just had an ultrasound with our new doctor in Lincoln and everything looks great. I can't believe how fast they grow!

All of you that have been pregnant before know that sometimes, at least when you're earlier along like me, your belly seems to stick out more and other days not as much. We took this last night and it is pretty much this size all the time now. I still laugh sometimes when I look in the mirror at how my belly keeps growing. It's just funny sometimes...I don't know...it's probably just me. :)

I'll let you all know as soon as that 20 week mark hits and we get to hopefully find out what we'll be having! Can't wait!