A week with my parents!

Well my parents left this morning after 6.25 days with us! Thank goodness for Skype, because although we will miss them terribly, it really makes it so much easier being able to SEE them about once a week! We did SO many fun things while they were here. Here are some of the pictures we got. (They got out of order, so excuse the randomness)

 Fernview campsite where we stopped and at our lunch.

On our (long) drive to Redmond!

 What's wrong with this picture??

 Smith Rock

 All of us explaining to Saylor that she should not be standing on wobbly fences that are right above a 50 foot drop.

 Sleeping lynx

 Bobcat

 We visited the High Desert Museum while Mom was attending a saddle fitting seminar. They had an abundance of cool stuff. Some animals (like the bobcat and lynx pictured above) We got there at 11 am, and stayed until they closed at 4, and they had to usher us out around 4:15!

 They had a butterfly and hummingbird room.

 And a lot of exhibits about the native americans and settlers

 But best of all, they had TONS of activities to keep kids interest! Saylor had a BLAST

 Diggin for potatoes

 Playing an old fashioned game

 Goof

 Our view for most of the time in Redmond

Saylor having a good time meeting the horses at Mom's saddle fitting seminar













Joe caught a quick picture of a yawning bobcat

 Mom taught me how to french braid on Saylor's hair

It was a GREAT trip. Sad that I'll have to wait until July to see them again. They treated us to delicious meals, and wonderful company! We got to bowl, climb, go to wacky bounce, go to the beach, and more. They even made it possible for Saylor to start gymnastics, AND for Joe to join an indoor soccer team! I couldn't ask for more generous parents! So inspiring! We don't take it for granted, guys! We love you and miss you already!!!

Picture Updates!

Fresh brushed teefs!

Saylor planted, and has been taking care of her plants ALL by herself!! She is currently growing spinach and chard!

Right after she watered them, she swore up and down that she saw her plants grow even bigger :)

Spring is approaching!

Hello everyone!

Well, I deleted my Facebook once and for all. No turning back now! I've been taking a lot of pictures with my Canon to put in my blog, but I cannot find my connector cable. So until then, I'll leave you with my fuzzy Android camera pictures...

 We are enjoying using our local co-op, still. We strive to eat vegan, and succeed about 75% of the time. Joe isn't eating meat, and I am eating it much less (once a week) and striving to cut it out entirely. Our rock climbing is improving. Finally starting to wake those muscles up!

Saylor is growing up too fast. She'll be FOUR next month. She is such a sweet girl, and has a very keen eye for particularities.

 I cut a good 4 inches off my hair, and it feels great. (P.S. I was not doing the duck face. This was a picture I sent to Joe sending him a virtual kiss.)

My parents will be arriving here next Wednesday, so we are really really looking forward to that! Joe and I are getting ready to start our garden back up, and are going to expand this year. My neighbor (and best friend) Summer and I just started talking today about sharing a CSA (Community Sustained Agriculture), which is where local farms send you weekly boxes of fruits and veggies from their crops! So we are both very excited about that. Work is going very well. Just living and loving life day by day!!!

Love to you all!

No freedom till we're equal. Damn right I support it.

Even if you don't agree with gay marriage, or being gay at all, I urge you to watch this video. I believe in equality with every fiber of my being. 

Love is patient

Love is kind

A new year...

Well we are back in Oregon after a 2 week (too short) visit to Georgia. Personally, this was the best trip I've had back home. We split up time between both my and Joe's family evenly, and even got some time to visit with old friends. Coming back home every 6 months has some interesting, unexpected bonuses. I feel like I REALLY get to see how people/things change in a more dramatic way. Usually when you see something every day, it's not as noticeable when it slightly changes. Joe's little brother is about to turn 14, and he changes SO much every time I see him. He's such a neat person- so logical and understanding, but fun and free spirited. Joe's little sister Anna has always been a great sister in law AND friend to me, but at 17 and a half, I am getting excited to see the woman she's growing into. My brother and I got some wonderful hang out time, and I got to hang out with his new girlfriend Leah a bunch as well. She fits right in with our family, and I feel like I'm catching up with an old friend, rather than getting to know my brother's girlfriend.

Things here in Oregon are going well. I'm SO tired, though. Probably because both my and Joe's parents spoiled me and allowed us to sleep in while they tended to Saylor in the mornings + getting the house back in order after Luna was here for 2 weeks. Our awesome neighbor/friend took great care of her while we were gone. So appreciative of that!

Our resolutions are going well. I'm super hairy and proud! Joe and I went to his gym on campus yesterday and he forced me into running and entire mile without stopping- I know, I'm weak, but I've been out of the exercising loop for a few months, so I was super proud of myself. They have a rock climbing wall in the gym as well so we attempted to do a little bouldering (that's climbing small walls without harnesses). We are going to take a belay class next week though, so we'll be able to start climbing the real walls with harnesses. I can really feel a big shift in my thinking recently. I'm no longer focusing on how I look, but how I feel. Not the calories in what I eat, but the nutrition. I seriously feel my confidence getting stronger and stronger every day, and it is both liberating and relieving.

I have also gotten another cleaning job at a local church and the church's book store. It is a small job in comparison to the school I clean daily, but will still be a great little added income.

Now I just have to come back down from the clouds that our families put us on, and get back to doing the nitty gritty every day work of a wife and mom!

Georgia On My Mind

Four days until my feet are in Georgia! Before I had Saylor, I was always pretty stoic when it came to "lovey dovey" emotions. Now, however, I find myself being 'touched' by things all the time. Both times I've visited Georgia since I've moved to Oregon, when I see the plane start descending into Atlanta, I can't hold back tears! It's like this big, momentous moment that I look forward to is happening, and I get to look at all of the familiar buildings and streets from above. It's one of the purest moments of nostalgia that I've ever felt.

One time, when I was younger, I was asking my Mom if she ever missed her child hood home; or was it so cool having a house that's YOURS that it outweighs her old home? She told me that it's exciting to have your own house, with your own family- BUT you never really feel that feeling of 'home' like you do when it's your parents house. I TOTALLY get that now. When I come 'home' to my house in Oregon, I feel that 'ah' sigh of relief. I feel relaxed and happy. When I go to my parents house, though, it's just different. It's like... I could be gone for 10 years, but I come back and start right back off where I left in Georgia.

Joe is getting excited too, and surprisingly really getting into the holiday spirit. He does this ADORABLE thing when he gets excited. It's really like a 'tick' almost, because he doesn't realize he's done it until I mention it. He will rub his hands together really fast. It looks almost like he's trying to warm them up, and that's what I thought he was doing when we first got married. I had never noticed it before. I finally asked him one day if his circulation was bad, and if he was having trouble keeping his hands warm (which he does have a problem with sometimes). He looked confused and said, "hm, I think I do that when I get excited about something." So now it warms my heart EVERY time I see him do it. It's this little indicator of 'my man is happy' and he doesn't even consciously realize that he's telling me that. I guess what I'm trying to say is, he's been rubbing his hands together a lot lately, and usually when there's talk of our trip to Georgia. I love it.

I woke up this morning to find 2 wrapped presents of me in the living room. He said I can't open them yet, obviously. So I went ahead and put Luna's and Joe's presents out there as well. We still haven't gotten Saylor's stuff yet! Tsk. We didn't get a Christmas tree this year. You know us, eco-OCD. There are Christmas trees that come in potted plants, that you can reuse, and then when you're ready for a new one, you get to go plant your tree in the ground, so it won't just die. Maybe we'll invest in one of those next year. But where are we going to store an all year Christmas tree? No idea.

Now's the time to start thinking about New Year's resolutions! I usually do weight loss ones. Pretty unoriginal. I am literally the exact same weight I was last New Year. Hahaha. So, I'll be doing something different and much more productive and positive this year. I have actually already started. My intention will be to go a full year without wearing any make up, dyeing my hair, or shaving my underarms and legs! 'Why?' is probably the question you're asking yourself, or maybe you're just rolling your eyes thinking 'she WOULD be doing this' hahaha. Both of those are acceptable responses! So, the reason WHY is this- I (like so many women today) focus WAY too much on my outward beauty. I've come to, personally, notice that the more I focus on how other's view me outwardly, the more ugly I feel on the inside. I'm done hiding behind the facade and mask of make up. I'm tired of giving in to the cultural and societal pressures to be a hairless mole rat. Yeah, okay sure, it looks pretty to have clean shaven underarms. But that's only because that is what we've become accustomed to. I'm letting nature do its thing, the way evolution (or God, if you so believe) intended. Plus, it is super sexist that women have this burden to be the one who has to work really hard in order to appear attractive to the opposite sex (or partner). Now this is all I'm going to say on the subject. Obviously if you're interested and have questions or criticisms alike, I'm open ears, heart, and mind. I really just wanted to put it out there for friends and family (because it shouldn't be a big deal, but... to some people it will be, and that's okay!) in case you get a flash of leg hair, you'll be informed as to why it's there, and it's not because I'm having a mental breakdown.

This affirmation is also proving to be a wonderful addition to my journey of loving oneself.

"I accept myself, unconditionally, right now." Seems so simple, but it's so powerful (and should be true all of the time!)

Sick Girl

On a usual morning, Joe wakes up at 5 am, leaves around 6:30. Saylor will come crawl into bed with me anywhere from 6:50 to 7:30, tap me on the shoulder gently, or just wiggle around until I'm forced to get up too (I'm addicted to our bed, especially in the winter). This morning was the same until it came time for my Saylor Wake-Up Call. She came in around 8, which is late for her, and laid next to me and started to quietly cry to herself. I roused from a deep sleep and asked what was wrong. She told me that her tummy hurt. I asked her if she needed to use the restroom, to which she responded 'yes'. So a couple minute go by and I decide to go check on her. She was laying on the bathroom mat in front of the shower. I said 'what are you doing, honey?' and she said that she was still tired (VERY unlike her). I said she could lay down in my bed while I made breakfast. Our favorite breakfast is to split a bagel, and (since I've started weight training, I made my egg whites as well.) When the bagels were done I asked her to come sit at her seat. When she entered the dining room and I got a look at her face I literally couldn't stop a 'whoa' from coming out of my mouth. She was as white as a ghost. Her lips were the same color as her face. It was actually a pretty jarring sight. On a side note, Saylor eats a lot in the morning, a normal amount for lunch, and we're lucky if we can get her to take 2 bites of dinner. Last night she didn't eat ANYTHING, so I thought she was feeling nauseous from hunger, because that happens to me. I told her that she should eat a bite of her bagel or take a sip of milk. When I handed her the bagel she literally threw it down and ran to the bathroom, where she vomited. My heart was broken for her. This happened a couple times. Finally I got her settled on the couch (where she is right now) watching Finding Nemo and got her to eat some raisins and walnuts, and drink her milk. All her color has come back, so hopefully we're moving forward now. She had such a sad look on her face, but as soon as I pointed the camera at her, her face lit up with that cheeeeese smile. Sweet baby girl.