Not Much of an Extreme Makeover

It's a snowy day here in NW Arkansas! It's been snowing all day long!

Left: Before Right: After

I am cursed with having 100% gray hair - thanks to family genes. Therefore I have been blond for about 10 years (my hair is naturally VERY dark) and I have to get my hair colored every 4 weeks. Well - I stretched this time out to 8 weeks and it was getting rough. I got desperate and put some Clairol roots touch up on my hair but it had a twinge of orange. :-) (Hello BOZO the clown!)
I got to get out and get my hair done today. I've had the same hairdresser for 12 years and I love her but she's 30 minutes away so add a 2 1/2 hour appt, plus an hour drive - it just wouldn't work to be gone that long. So I went to a new place in town. And it went fine - but it's kind of sad that I took a before and after and they look almost exactly the same. Sigh.

I think Scott had a stressful afternoon keeping Harper. My appointment was at 1:45 and Harper's bad hours of the day are 2-5. She has gotten to where mornings are good (this picture was taken this morning) but like clockwork - at 2 - she is sooooo unhappy until about 6 when she goes to sleep.
Secretly - I was glad Scott got a little glimpse of what my afternoons are like! ha!
(I hope ya'll know that I don't care if she cries 24 hours a day - I'm so thankful to have her. There is not a MINUTE that goes by that I'm not counting my blessings)

I'm just glad he is sweet to keep her so I can do things like get my hair done. Yeay for helpful husbands!!!

Last night, our friend Mary Avery brought us our Sunday School meal (Scott thinks we should offer to pay our class to bring us meals every week - we have loved it so much! ha!) She made Shrimp and Wild rice casserole. I've had this recipe printed off for a long time and have yet to make it but it was SOOOOO good so I know I'll be making it soon - here is the recipe. (We ate it too fast and I forgot to take a picture)

SHRIMP AND WILD RICE CASSEROLE

Ingredients: 1 package wild rice 1 lb medium shrimp, peeled and divined 2 tablespoon butter 1/2 green bell pepper chopped 1/2 onion, chopped 1 10 3/4 ounce can condensed cream of mushroom soup 2 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese Salt and pepper
Directions:
Cook the rice according to package directions minus 1/4 cup water. Let cool. Bring 2 cups water and 1/2 tablespoon salt to a boil in a medium saucepan and cook the shrimp for 1 minute. Drain immediately and set aside. Heat the butter in saucepan and saute the pepper and onion until soft, about 5 minutes. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In a large bowl, combine the rice, soup, 1 1/2 cups of cheese, shrimp and vegetables. Add salt and pepper to taste. Mix well. Spray a 9 inch square aluminum cake pan or an 11 by 7 inch glass casserole dish with vegetable spray. Place the mixture in the pan and top with remaining 1/2 cup cheese. Bake for 30 minutes, until bubbly.

PRAYER REQUESTS:
(I've been sent these lately and these families really need to be lifted up)

Rare chromosone disease -
http://prayingformakenna.blogspot.com/

Little baby needs a heart transplant and family can't afford it and insurance won't cover it:
http://laithdougherty.info/

Patrice lost a son at 37 weeks last year and just delivered a son today that has a rare skin disease:
http://patriceandmattwilliams.blogspot.com/

Little Katie has severe brain damage from Group B strep and a number of strokes:
http://leeleenews.blogspot.com/

Owen was born with half a heart and is waiting on a transplant
simmonsfamilyupdate.blogspot.com

It's Friday!!!!!

Do you see this picture???? This is my bit of happiness today!

I have to be honest - we have had a ROUGH week. Harper sleeps pretty good at night and I'm so thankful for that but there are NO naps during the day and if I'm not nursing her - she's SCREAMING. It's been wearing me out.
So I am doing a couple of experiments. First off - I think she's been hot and miserable so I'm not bundling her up as much and I also took her off her reflux medicine last night and today. My pediatrician said I could wean her and from some things I've read - that could be what's making her fussy.
Now I don't know if that's why or not - but she slept SOO good last night and then she took a nap this morning. I just had to take a picture. (She has aquaphor on her head - that's why it's shiny - I'm taking another suggestion). ha!

So for two hours while she slept this morning, I zipped around cleaning as much of my house as I could. It felt SO good to get some things done. I've been watching a LOT of TV lately and I saw a commercial for this pledge multi surface cleaner - so I got some and tried it today (I promise I'm not doing a commercial for them) and it was great because instead of carrying around a bunch of cleaners - I used this to dust and clean glass surfaces too. Do ya'll have any cleaning secrets when you only have a very limited time to clean????

I've been watching so much TV that I'm close to ordering a lot of things off of infomercials. Like the snuggli blanket or these "bump its". They just might me the secret to good hair - what do you think??? ha!
Do you know what this is??? An EMPTY laundry basket! Praise the LORD I have caught up for the first time since Harper was born! It's a GREAT day! (Can you believe I took a picture of that? ) ha!
And here is the happy baby! She has been SO sweet today - smiling, no screaming! She is SIX weeks old today and I love her more than I ever imagined I could!

Have a good weekend everyone!!! Love all of you!

Too Hot to handle

Yesterday Harper and I went on our first walk.
Go ahead and add that to the list of things Harper doesn't like. Don't all babies like walks in the stroller?????
We walked for about 20 minutes and for the last 10 minutes she was screaming her head off. I think half of the problem was I had her bundled up like there was a snowstorm outside and it was in the 70's and she got hot. She is very hot natured. If I put her on her bouncy seat and cover her up - she always kicks her covers off. She can't stand to be hot or to have a dirty diaper.
I think she gets that from her Aunt Laurie. (not that Laurie has dirty diapers but she doesn't like to be hot or dirty). (Now that I think about it - who does?)

So today we went to the doctor for the RSV shot. She wore one of my favorite outfits - "Daddy's little monkey". My BFF Laurie got that for her.

How cute are the socks and the pants? The monkey on her pants match the painting in her nursery. ha!

She was really good at the doctor. She screamed when she got the shot but calmed down quickly. They DID have to weigh her and my big girl weighs 11 pounds now!!! She really is a chunky monkey! I was sitting in the waiting room and a lady came in with her daughter and looked at me and said "So I read your blog........" ha! I told Scott I better start acting nice wherever I go because you never know who is watching. ha!

This sweet girl, Jessica, reads my blog and always send me the nicest comments and e-mails. Who would know I would have a friend in South Dakota?!? She sent Harper this today! I cried when I opened it Jessica!!!
Just FYI - 1 Peter 2:9 says "But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light." Aren't you glad to be called out of the darkness into the light??? Oh, I am.
And last but CERTAINLY not least - before Harper was born - I ordered some girl scout cookies and today my friend Jennie brought them over to me. SAMOAS!!! The best kind ever. I had to immediately hide them because I could eat them all in one setting and I will NEVER lose this baby weight. What is your favorite kind of girl scout cookie??? And how many boxes do you normally buy a year???

Card, Go Hogs, and Good News!

I wanted to share our birth announcement with you! I wish I could send one to every blog friend out there but once again - recession and stamps aren't cheap. ha! I loved how it turned out - we had it made here. She also did our Christmas Card this year.

Well - it's almost march madness and Arkansas will not be making the tourney and football season is a LONG way away and the Stamps can't STAND baseball (no offense) but I thought it would be fun to break out a little Razorback spirit today!

It may have been inspired by some awesome razorback bows I got in the mail yesterday!! (Thanks Shannon - they are SOOOOOOOOOOOO great!)

I decided to try and take a picture of me and Harper in our Hog outfits. Obviously - the quality is not great because I'm using our Mac photobooth instead of our camera (we have a Canon 5D for everyone that has asked - it takes amazing pictures).

I wanted you to see the back of her onesie! Go hogs!

I have two bits of good news today -
1. It is going to be almost 70 degrees and sunny today (hello spring - we've missed you!) so I may get Harper out for a very short walk today. (goodbye cabin fever)

2. There is a RSV shot for kids like Harper who were born preemies or had lung issues. It is EXTREMELY expensive. (Like blow your mind expensive) They are supposed to have 5 - one for each month of RSV season. She got one in the hospital but we had to get insurance to approve for the next one. Our dr's office called today and we were approved and she will get it tomorrow. This is a huge blessing because it will keep her well and we were NOT expecting to get it covered. I'm hoping while we are at the dr's office to sneak her on the scales and see how much she weighs. I want to make sure she is gaining now that we are home.
Hopefully one day - they can come up with a RSV shot that all kids can afford and get.

Cover Girl

Harper and I have something exciting to share with you today!

A couple of weeks ago - someone from the Arkansas Baptist State News Magazine e-mailed me and said they would like to do a feature article on our story. It came out today and look who is on the cover!

All of you who prayed for us are included in this story so you have to go read about it here!!!
I thought they did a great job telling our story - it made me cry to go back and re-visit it all!

Harper is crying for two reasons today:

1. It's Fat Tuesday (mardi gras) and she thinks someone is making fun of her weight ha!

2. She has had beautiful skin until this weekend and now her little face is all red and broken out. I know it's normal to get baby acne but hers is pretty bad. Does anyone have anything that helps that??? Bless her heart.

It's just a LINKY day

This picture is for all of you out there!!!
My blog friend Jenna sent this to me when I was pregnant with Harper. SO FUN!

Yesterday we broke out our Monkey activity mat

Harper loved it - she laid under there for a long time just looking at everything and touching all the toys. I have a feeling it will be making a daily appearance!

Today is going to be a day of links - I have been bombarded with e-mails and prayer requests lately. Because the little girl above keeps me VERY busy - it's almost impossible for me to reply to many ( if any) of the e-mails but I'm reading them! And when you send me prayer requests - I stop and pray right then for each one - because I do KNOW that prayer is so powerful. I want to link to as many as I can but understand I can't put all requests on here because it would overwhelm me and I would need to hire a secretary. And well - you know we are in a recession so hiring assistants or buying diapers - I have to choose. ha!
I know right now it seems like we are overwhelmed with bad news or things that need prayer and God WANTS US to ask Him for things SO that he can answer. But it's also SO important to spend just as much time THANKING Him for the good that we each have been given. And Praise Him for who He is not just for what He is doing or for what we hope He will do for us.
It's amazing how much your perspective will change when you start to be thankful for what you DO have instead of sad/mad/angry/bitter about what you DON'T have (I speak from experience).

1. laurensblog.greenfamily.net - Pray for this couple - they were pregnant with quads and as of today have lost them all.
2. andiegrace.blogspot.com - This little girl was just born on the 19th and now is going to require heart surgery.
3. dynamicmikelsduo.blogspot.com - This little 4 year old was just diagnosed with leukemia for the 2nd time.
4. Remember I had you pray for Cora's family? They found out she had cancer and 3 weeks later she died - she was 10 months old? They are raising money to build a playground in her memory and there are a ton of vendors on ETSY who are giving part of their profits to this. You know how much I love etsy - there is a ton of cute stuff that will help build this fund - go check it out here.
5. addieand alex.blogspot.com - this family is a March of Dimes ambassador family for Alabama - go here to see how you can help support them.
6. Also - I'm still trying to get names on the prayer blog. I've continued to get praises as well!!! Please keep all of these women in your prayer. We want the baby boom to continue!!!!! (and we'd like to see some engagements from the single girls soon too - this takes time but there are mr. rights out there for each of you!)

The Girl Knows How to Work It

We were lucky to have Harper's Papaw and JiJi here this weekend. They loved holding Harper all weekend and we loved being able to do a few other things while they helped!
HOWEVER - I have figured something out about my sweet girl. She knows how to work it. Friday - she spent the ENTIRE day screaming at the top of her lungs. I finally spent about 90 minutes dancing around the living room holding her and dancing to Phil Wickham and David Crowder (she seemed to like Phil better - not sure how I feel about that) and that calmed her down a little. But on Saturday - when she was with her grandparents - she was an ANGEL. Didn't cry once - just smiled and slept almost all day. WHAT? She did the same thing when my parents were here last week. She is totally working the grandparents. She is going to have herself a car AND a pony by the time she is 14 if she keeps this up (and not from us).

Saturday morning - I left Scott and his parents in charge of Harper and I went to help with a baby shower. We had my favorite petit fours!

Our Sunday School class is having a small baby boom. In about 6 months time, there are going to be 8 new babies (3 are here, 5 more to come). They are going to have to start expanding the children's buildings.

Vonda is the expectant mother in the middle in the black and white. The hostesses were Jeanine, Mary Avery, Kacy, Erin, (Vonda), Lisa, Monica, Michelle, ME, and Berkli.

Vonda is having a little boy named Brandon. She had a huge shower and got a ton of nice things. It was fun to see this big table of blue things since I've been looking at so much pink for the last few months.

Speaking of pink...........here is the little grandparent charmer herself.

All fixed up and nowhere to go.
Since I had free arms yesterday - I made us dinner and cooked Paula Deen's chocolate pecan pie. So many of you have asked if I will be updating my recipe blog. I will - I promise - but since I haven't been cooking lately - I'm out of the loop. But more things to come. Start with this!

CHOCOLATE PECAN PIE

Ingredients

• 1 (9-inch) unbaked pie shell
• 2 cups pecan halves
• 3 large eggs, beaten
• 3 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1/2 cup dark corn syrup
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Cover bottom of pie crust with pecans.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs and melted butter. Add the corn syrup, sugar, and the chopped chocolate. Stir until all ingredients are combined. Pour mixture into the pie shell over the pecans and place on a heavy-duty cookie sheet.

Bake for 10 minutes. Lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees F and continue to bake for an additional 25 minutes or until pie is set. Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack.

Q & A

Okay - here a few answers to your questions with some pictures of a cutie in between!

1. Several of you wanted to know about my infertility and announcing I was pregnant.

We started trying in fall of 2005. I got pregnant in July 2006 but miscarried pretty quickly. We kept trying and then in fall 2007 started fertility treatments. I did Clomid (still trying to lose the 20 lbs I gained on that) and several IUI's. Then God did a miracle in April 2008. You can read more here. I'm also 35 so I was no spring chicken trying to get pregnant.


2. You wanted to know about my pregnancy and delivery and more about what happened to Harper.

I had a great pregnancy. I was very sick for about 15 weeks and I had a lot of back pain and heartburn and towards the end I could barely move.........but I loved every minute. :-)
My labor and delivery were actually great until we found out something was wrong with Harper. I was induced and I got my epidural before I ever felt a thing. It was GLORIOUS! I recommend it to everyone. It was a great day - all of our family was there and we were enjoying hanging out. I pushed for an hour and little Miss H just wasn't coming out. So they had to do a forceps delivery. When she came out - she was blue, wasn't crying or breathing. I didn't panic at first because I thought it was just a hard delivery and she would be okay. A bunch of nurses and NICU nurses came running in and were working on her. I started to get nervous but still didn't think it was serious. A couple of hours later the NICU doctor came in to tell us that she was VERY, VERY critically ill and there was nothing he could do for her there - he had to get her air lifted and basically he didn't know if she would make it. I'll never forget how I felt at that moment. Time just stood still.
Harper had pneumonia in her lungs. It was never determined exactly why - I had a fever towards the end of my delivery and it's possible I passed on an infection to her. I don't spend a lot of time worrying about HOW this happened. God has used this whole story for His glory and Harper is home and healthy and that's all that matters.

3. I laugh REALLY hard at this one but several of you wanted to know where I shop.

First of all - I have never felt MORE un-stylish and frumpy than I have in the last year. I'm old and out of style and I know it. I love clothes but I'm tight. I get most of my clothes (SERIOUSLY) at Wal-Mart. Or Forever 21 or T J Maxx. If I'm feeling crazy and want to spend a little more - my favorite store lately has been Gap. So it doesn't take a lot of money to look cute. I'm also totally a dress girl. I rarely wear pants or jeans. (except for right now and I rarely wear anything but pj's and yoga pants). ha!

4. You want to know about my faith and testimony (and hopefully this answers the question of if my parents are as great as they seem):
I was raised in a Christian home. My dad actually wasn't a Christian when I was born. My mom was. She would beg him to go to church and he told her "she should have married a preacher if she wanted someone to go to church with her"........(God SO has a sense of humor). When I was probably 3 or 4 - my dad got saved. And he has lived his life for Christ ever since. He went to seminary when I was 9 and has been a pastor for almost 25 years. My parents are two of the most Godly people I know which is one reason my faith is so strong.
I was saved when I was 6 years old (January 13 (my due date), 1980). (I hadn't thought about that until just now - how those dates matched up). ha! I spent my whole life in church but when I went to college (and I went to a Baptist college) ......I think I kind of started to drift away. I didn't go wild but I only went to church on Sunday mornings, really didn't have a quiet time, I was just a laid back Christian. That carried on through my single years. I felt like I didn't belong at church when I was single. (I'm sure a lot of you feel that way). I hated Singles Sunday School so I dropped out and I was actually pretty mad at God during those years. I was a spoiled brat who wanted a husband. Sometimes I think if my faith would have been stronger then.....He would have brought me a husband sooner.
But in the last few years - God has been working in my life. Scott realized he wasn't saved a few years ago and after he accepted Christ - that started a big change in our lives. And God just keeps building my faith. He has NEVER left me. Everything that happens ......just prepares me for what is next. I could go on and on and on about this subject but maybe I'll elaborate more later. I will say that all that I've been through - I've never loved Jesus more. If you want to know more on this subject - e-mail me - I'd love to share more with you.

4. What about Dawson?

Dawson is still with my parents. He is SOOOO happy there. We miss him and he will be coming home soon. I just wanted to get in a groove with Harper before I brought Dawson into the mix. I'm finally feeling comfortable with taking care of H by myself and we have a schedule so Dawson will probably come home soon. He may not want to - the country is WAY more fun than here.

5. Will we have more kids?
Right now - my answer would be no. I'm so happy to have Harper and we went through so much to get her. I never thought I would have an only child but most of my close friends are only children and are very happy. We'll wait until Harper is at least a year and then make a decision. I'm just so thankful for one beautiful daughter.

6. How do I find time for blogging/facebook/e-mail?

Right now - I'm nursing a lot and we spend a lot of time on the couch and I have my laptop next to me and I do a lot of one hand typing. It gives me something to do while I'm feeding her. Also I want to try hard to keep up with it because I will NEVER scrapbook (just don't have it in me) so this is the way I can keep a record of our lives. I also take advantage of her naptimes to clean, do laundry, put on lipstick (I used Merle Norman spice sachet lip pencil - best color ever), or use the computer.

7. How did I get "Blog Famous" and what's the deal with ads?
I hate this question because I am NOT famous. It's really bizarre to me why anyone would want to read my blog. I started it about 3 years ago because I wanted a way to scrapbook our lives and I thought MAYBE our parents would want to read it. For the first 2 years or so - I never had any comments and I probably had 50-100 hits a day.
I've been thinking a lot lately about the prayer of Jabez. In 1 Chronicles 4:10, Jabez prayed "Oh, that you would bless me and enlarge my territory! Let your hand be with me, and keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain." And God granted his request. That kind of sums up my blog to me.
For the last year - I have prayed that God would let me be a light for Him and that He would give me away to share about Him. Out of no where - I started having more and more people on my blog. I have no idea how it happened. Before I had Harper - I had about 5000 hits a day on my blog. I honestly believe God knew it would help me to have people praying for me through a trial and that I would try to use it for his glory..........so the day after Harper was born - out of NOWHERE - I had 100,000 hits in one day. And it's been incredible ever since. I have heard from people all over the world. It is NOT about me or even Harper. God just has been able to use our story to show his Love. He likes to use (VERY) ordinary people to do extraordinary things. And I'm as ordinary as they come. :-)
A few months ago - I thought I would try out BlogHer and see what would happen. I would blog every day no matter what and if I could make a little money because of it - why not? If they take off the ads - I'll still keep blogging every day so it's just extra. I filled out an application (I think they aren't taking applicants any more right now but keep watching) and basically it is based off of your traffic. I'm not getting rich by any means but it's just a little extra money to shop for clothes at Wal-Mart with. ha! It's a great program if you get the chance to use it!

8. Last one for now............ How did we get Harper's name and where do I get all of her monogrammed stuff?

Go back to this post to read about the names. I get all of her monogrammed stuff off ebay or etsy. I don't have a "favorite" place to get them. I usually look for inexpensive custom things. A lot of what she has were gifts. Since we may only have one child - hand me downs aren't that big of an issue. I'll find a few lucky people who name their babies Harper and they can hit the jackpot. ha!

I'm sorry if I didn't answer your question but this was getting long. I'll maybe do another question post soon!!!!

P.S. There is a blogger Rachel and she and her husband are unable to get pregnant so they are planning to adopt from South Korea. Her husband is in seminary and adoption is VERY expensive so she is doing some fundraising to help pay for it. As a PK and someone who struggled with infertility - the least I can do is tell you to go and sign up - she is doing some GREAT giveaways!!!!! The link is here.

Picture-less Post

I'm doing something I NEVER do - a post with no pictures! GASP!

Today was a day where Harper just didn't sleep at all and I was trying to get a lot done around the house so there was just no time for posting. I promise I'll be back tomorrow with lots of pictures.

In the meantime - a lot of you have been asking me questions in your comments and I'm not good about getting around to each of you to answer them but I thought I would open up one post to any question you might have. About where I get Harper's bows and clothes to blogging questions to spiritual questions - whatever you have. And then I'll take the top 10-20 questions and answer them for you.

So fire away.

Short and Sweet

Really this is what we do every day - Harper is sleeping a lot these days. She eats, we change diapers, I sing songs and read books and I dress her up and take pictures. I can't take her anywhere or show her off and she has a closet full of clothes. I need someone to see her cuteness people!!! Thanks for indulging me. (If nothing else - the grandparents enjoy it).

Harper looks so much like me in my baby pictures but she has Scott's eyes. I'm so thankful. I have small, dark beady eyes and I prayed that Harper would have big eyes. Yes - that is the most shallow prayer I've ever prayed. But God cares about the details. (I would have loved her just as dearly if she got my beady eyes).

We just got our dinner delivered and I'm laughing because everyone was instructed just to drop it off on our doorstep and ring the doorbell and leave like the UPS man. It's funny to open my door at night and see food sitting there.

We have only watched part of American Idol so far. All I really have to say so far is :

WHAT IS UP WITH THE SHOES??????

Please tell me this is not a new trend!!! I'm getting old and out of style and I'm trying to at least not wear MOM jeans. But when I get back in the real world - will I be wearing Air Jordans unlaced????? HELP! If they bring back big hair - I'm OUT!

Are you watching and who do you like so far????

You gotta have friends

Here is Harper's dress up of the day. ha! (I don't let her wear those headbands and hats around the house - just a few minutes for pictures). She slept a good part of the day today! We had a good day.
It was also a good day because Scott kept Harper for a couple of hours tonight so I could go to a baby shower!!! I was SOOOOOO happy to see all of my friends. I could only stay for a very short time because it took me a while to get there and back but I was just thrilled to see everyone. I feel like it's been MONTHS since I last saw everyone. There are a bunch of cute pregnant girls in our Sunday School class and I feel like they all grew cute bellies while I've been gone.

Ginger, Elizabeth and Mary Avery

Our friend Robin made the cute cookies yesterday and then delivered her baby today!!! Congrats Robin and Jake on baby Caleb.

Michelle, Leah and Kacy

This is my friend Amy. She is having twin girls, Molly and Ruby. She also has a one year old named Ella Kate that is beautiful! I asked you earlier to pray for Amy - she has been having contractions and started dilating. She is 30 weeks - she needs at least 5-6 more weeks. I want her to avoid the NICU! Molly and Ruby will be in Harper's class - I'm excited for her to have sweet friends!
When I was little, my family lived in New Orleans. We lived there for about 3 years. Our neighbors, Shirley and her daughter Rachel sent Harper this precious smocked Razorback dress! I love it! She will wear it for the first game hopefully! I know ya'll are reading this - thank you so much! I remember as a little girl eating King Cake at their house during Mardi Gras. This time of year always makes me think about it. It's still one of my favorite things - I always try to buy one each year.