You've Got a Friend

I have to back up a little bit to last Thursday night because I had the MOST fun girls night I have probably ever had. The girls from our Sunday School class get together once a month at each other's homes and we have kind of a potluck dinner. Then we all sit in a circle around a table or the living room and Laurie will ask us questions like "What is your favorite restaurant in all the world" or "What did you do on your first date with your husband" or "When was the first time you kissed you husband" and we will all share and we have gotten to know each so well that way and I have laughed so hard I have almost peed my pants and Thursday night I was almost afraid I was going into labor I was laughing so hard.

(Amy, Kacy and me)

I know I write a lot about my amazing group of friends and I don't do it to brag about how wonderful I have it. I think it's more of complete AWE that I have been blessed so much. I was lucky to have good friends in high school and college but I have NEVER needed friends like I do in this stage of life.

(Julie, Ginger, Bethany and Elizabeth)

My secret dream is that no one in this group would ever move away and that we would all still be close and living here when our babies are teenagers and we would live those years together and instead of talking about not sleeping because of crying babies or breastfeeding or the challenge of toddlers............we would be talking about not sleeping because our kids are driving or the challenges of dating or letting our kids go! And then I dream we will all be together when our kids leave home and we can experience the Empty Nest together. And we can talk about being alone with our husbands again and crying when our kids call home and paying for weddings. ha!

(Amber, Jessica, Laurie, Beth and Jennifer)

I know the reality is half of our group will move away or life will change. But I would be the happiest girl alive if we just all lived here and stayed friends and did our whole lives together. They are the biggest blessing in my life. I always think I don't know how anyone makes it though life without Jesus or a good group of friends.

I love my friends because in one moment we can be crying we are laughing so hard about stories from high school or early dating or kid experiences and in the next moment we can be talking about the Holy Spirit and His prompting in our lives and reading books like "Crazy Love" and "Radical" and changes we want to make in our spiritual walks and what that looks like. We can talk about being intentional as parents to hope that one day our children are passionate about Jesus when they are grown. We can experience fun times together - but when something bad happens - we know that we will be overwhelmed with giving, meals, visits to the hospital or phone calls from one another.

(Berkli,Vonda, Rachel and Ashley)

I know some of you have written me that you wish you could find a true group of friends. AND it IS so hard when you are grown to do this. Your family has to come first but a girl needs her friends. So I was thinking of ways to suggest finding a group of friends and I'd LOVE if you would share in the comments ways you have connected with a group of soul sisters!

1. My first (and main)suggestion is going to be at church. But it isn't enough (I know this from experience) to just visit a church on Sunday mornings and fill a pew and go home. You HAVE to get involved. The best way I know is to join a small group or Sunday School class. YES - it's intimidating. When Scott and I first started going to our SS class - we were SOOOOOO chawed (embarrassed). Most Sundays we would look at each other and go "Do we have to go?" but we knew we had to press on. And it took a few months for us to really get to know anyone. BUT I'm so glad we did - because they are our LIFELINE! Do it and keep at it - you will never regret it. You may have to visit a few churches or classes or small groups to find the one that fits - but make it a priority! Your husbands will make friends with Godly men too! Is there anything better?
(I want to add - if your husband won't go to church with you - go anyway. Don't nag him to go. Just go. It may be incredibly hard - but visit Sunday School anyway. And then just pray God works on your husband's heart and that he begins to see a change in you. You never know what God can do............................)

2. MOPS groups. There are these in most areas of the country. What a great way to find other moms of small children.

3. Okay - a lot of you AREN'T moms of small children - but of teenagers or school aged kids. Get involved in their activities - find other moms of your kid's friends, classmates, teammates. Smile, introduce yourself, invite them over for play times! (or after school activities for snacks).

4. Junior League or other volunteer organizations. If you have a heart for serving - what better than to find other friends/women who have that same passion!

5. Neighborhoods. Maybe your neighbors have a bunco group or a play group. Investigate and invite yourself if you have to!

6. (I'm adding this..............) Two more things - if you have just One close friend - that is a blessing! You don't have to have 20 friends. One true friend is a gift!
Also - don't worry about ages - sometimes stage of life is the most important thing - whether you are single, divorced, married, whatever.............. because I'm a late bloomer - a lot of my close friends are 25 or 28. A good 10 years younger than me. And there are women at church I love who are maybe just a few years older than me - but they are almost at the empty nest stage so even though I adore them- it might be hard for us to be close friends in this season. Or maybe you are a young mom (23 or 24) and none of your friends are there yet - don't be afraid to hang out with older women like me who have young babies. I promise we can still be fun! :-)

How have you made friends??? I'm going to pray that each person reading this either has this circle or will find a circle in 2011 to enrich your life!

Mugs and Muffins

 I have had such a fun weekend but I am WORN OUT! I believe I will spend the next few weeks doing NOTHING until Hollis comes! ha!  Friday we spent almost all day making muffins for our "Mugs and Muffins" today.  There were 6 of us who made the muffins and we had a great time but it was HARD work! Here are Laurie and Bethany working hard!

 I have no idea how many muffins we made - but I think it was close to 500.  I have no desire to work in a bakery. ha!

 Friday afternoon I picked up Angie from the airport.  She brought her middle daughter Kate and I LOVED that she did because she is so fun! Laurie and I took her them out to eat Friday night at Mimi's. Our women's director, Lorrel, joined us! We had such a good time and stayed at the restaurant forever just talking!

 I'm a little mortified by all pictures taken this weekend because I am CLEARLY looking 9 months pregnant. My face has caught up with me. Whoooo!  This was us this morning before Angie spoke.  She did such an amazing job.  Angie has such a great testimony and has the biggest heart for sharing Christ. She is also so funny and just so easy to be around.  She's one of those people I think I could talk to for hours and not run out of things to say.  I was so excited to get to spend time with her this weekend!

 We were so excited to have a big crowd and Angie signed books and was able to visit with a lot of them afterwards.  We had groups drive in from Memphis and Dallas and other places to see her.  I told them - any excuse for a girls trip away was a great one!!!

 Yes Angie is Godly, pretty, a wonderful writer............and she also sews. Isn't this dress adorable she made Kate. I kept laughing because I'm fairly certain Kate is Harper in 3 more years.  She is a BIG personality and a busy girl.  We talked about how they both don't sleep. They just have too much going on.  Angie said she knew Kate was going to be an amazing women for God one day and that's how I feel about Harper.

 Angie signing books!  She had an early flight so we had to rush off very quickly and get her to the airport on time.  I wish it could have lasted longer but I hope we will see each other again. I'm just so glad she was able to come and share with us.  She is touring with Women of Faith so you need to find out if she is coming near you and GO!!!

My parents came yesterday and helped with Harper while I was busy doing everything and then my mom came today (and took most of these pictures).  They stopped by to see Harper again before they left.  She was SO excited! I guess the next time they see her it will be the day the she becomes a big sister.  They won't just have one baby girl to spoil - there will be two!

Show Us Your life - WHAT DO YOU MAKE???? (and come shop!!!)

I'm a BIG fan of etsy and other shops of custom outfits or bows or baby/little kid things. I have NO talent when it comes to sewing or being creative so I'm thankful there are people out there who do and I can buy things from them. PLUS I love supporting "mom" businesses!

We do this every few months and I love it! I wish I could just write about all of you individually but it's just not possible so this is the best way I know how to!

If you make anything - you have an etsy shop or a facebook shop - please leave a link and share it with us.  And for all the rest of you like me.......................browse away!!!!!

Making my list and checking it twice

So while my friend Sydney is off having her sweet baby Emerson - I'm filling in for her and blogging for the local news. Part of that includes skyping in to the morning news once a week.  I did it today and was so nervous. 
http://nwahomepage.com/blog-fulltext/?nxd_id=219276

You can watch it at that link.  I have to be honest and say I got up and put on makeup and fixed my hair and a sweater but I was wearing Scott's shorts on the bottom. ha! Scott was horrified - he was worried they might make me stand up. ha! I realized last night I had to start sleeping in Scott's shorts because I no longer can fit into any PJ pants.  I hardly sleep at night anymore and I think half of it is the pants kept cutting off my circulation. ha!

 I got tickled because I DVR'd the news and Harper watched it with me and she kept looking at it and smiling and looking at me and saying "MOMMA!" and then she would say "Daddy - MOMMA!" and point to the TV! I think she thought for just a minute I was almost as cool as Elmo! :-)

 I think I've gone into nesting mode - not so much in a cleaning way but I'm trying to get everything done before Hollis comes. Today I went to the eye doctor AND the dentist.  Not two of my favorite things but they are done for a while. I'm almost blind and had to wear braces forever and Scott has superman vision and perfect teeth so I'm praying hard that the girls will take after him!

 I made Pioneer Woman's Chicken Spaghetti to take to a family at church tonight. Oh MY WORD - it looked so good. I'm going to double it and make two pans to freeze later this week! You have to try it!

All I really have left to do is pack my bag and get the pack and play, swing, bouncy seat all set up! I can do that in the next week or two! I can't believe I'm so close.

Oh and over on the KNWA blog - I'm asking for advice for getting a toddler to do independent play if you have any suggestions............................................(or need some yourself!)

36 weeks

I'm 36 weeks!

Pregnancy Highlights:

How Far Along: 36 Weeks

Size of baby: Hollis is around 6 lbs - about the size of a crenshaw melon

Total Weight Gain/Loss: Gained 17 lbs

Maternity Clothes: I wear maternity jeans and pants but everything else is regular. I'm down to just a few things I can still fit into. ha!

Gender: It's a girl!!! Hollis Barrett Stamps

Movement: She is VERY active - especially in the afternoon and at night

Sleep: I'm sleeping pretty good!

What I miss: Nothing really - maybe sleeping on my stomach? Or bending over? ha!

Cravings: I've lost my appetite lately - I think maybe my stomach has run out of room?

Symptoms: Lately I've been having a lot of pressure - mostly because she is low and it's the second pregnancy. I have a hard time walking or moving period. ha!
I also have terrible insomnia.

Best Moment this week: Going to the doctor and knowing everything is great and feeling Hollis REALLY move -she's not just kicking anymore - it's like I can feel her entire body moving around. So weird and wonderful at the same time!

I feel like this picture is an optical illusion. For one thing - I am SO much lower this time but I think you just can't tell in this outfit I'm wearing how big I am. I feel like I look a lot smaller and I know that's not true. I think we took it at a weird angle.

Isn't life with a toddler fun? One minute she is completely wearing me out - running through the house, getting into everything and the next she will just hug me and kiss me and say "I love you Momma" and I feel like my heart might explode. I have been saying I think the reason I haven't gained much weight is simply from trying to get her dressed and change her diapers every day. I always end up sweating like I've run a marathon by the time we are done. We have moments where I lose my patience so quickly - like every morning when I try to get ready with her in the bathroom with me. As in this morning when I went in the closet to put on clothes and came out and she had been in the toilet with the toilet brush and was splashing toilet water everywhere. We were already running late and I nearly lost it.

But then I hold her and she just grabs my neck and hugs me so tight or I walk in her room after nap and she jumps up and smiles and says "Hi Momma" in the sweetest, happiest voice. I'll never get over the fact that she's MINE! That I get to be her mom! I feel like I blow it 1000 times a day. There are moments that I yell at her and think "well surely now she is going to be scarred for life" but luckily those moments are followed by grace moments where we just smile at each other and cuddle and I know she feels secure in how much I love her. This is the hardest job I've ever had and I wouldn't trade it for the world.

Surprise Shower

I had some friends suggest we all get together for a "girls night" dinner tonight a few weeks ago. I was excited to go tonight and get out and see some of my friends. We met at a restaurant in Fayetteville and I rode with my neighbor/friend Melissa.

I was SUPER surprised when I got there and found out it was a shower for Hollis! They had the cutest cake made for me in her nursery colors! :-)  I had requested my Sunday School class NOT to have a shower for me because I feel like we have so much and I just didn't need a shower. So I felt bad that these friends did this - but it was SO nice and it was fun to get some cute things for Hollis. 

Melissa and Jennifer

Melissa is due with her second baby in a few months!

Kate, Ashley and Amy

Julee, Jill and Melissa

Laurie, Amanda and Whitney

When the girls put the dinner together - I had thought about inviting Laurie and Amanda and then knew they had both been out of town or were going out of town and probably wouldn't have time so I just didn't. When we pulled up - I was pretty sure Laurie's car was parked next to us and I thought - "maybe someone invited Laurie?" and felt pretty bad it hadn't been me. I was excited they got to come! That was a surprise too!

All the girls. I would have dressed up a little more or fixed my hair a little better if I knew it was my shower. ha! ha! I just thought I was out for a little dinner! I'm so blessed with so many sweet friends and Hollis is lucky to be so loved! And now she has a few cute outfits that weren't worn by her big sister. ha! ha!

(I should add that I met almost all these girls through my blog. And I'm so thankful! I'll say it 1000 times - if you told me 10 years ago some friends I met on the internet threw me a shower - I would think you were CRAZY!) ha! 

This Saturday!

Just a reminder that if you live ANYWHERE near me..........................you won't want to miss this!!!

Hope to see you there!

Harper's First Haircut

I have been debating on when to get Harper's hair cut for the first time but it has grown so much lately and is just kind of out of control. I call it the "Carol Brady" hairdo. Or kind of a shaggy mullet. I've heard once you get their hair cut - it will grow back thicker and better so I decided it was time to take the plunge!

My friend Julee cut it for her. I'm glad I had someone I know do it for the first time because that's special to me - she even saved the hair in a tiny envelope for me! Harper did pretty good. I was so worried but I handed her some animal crackers and that kept her still. Julee did a great job - it's not a dramatic change but she evened it up in the back and I think she looks so cute!

After her haircut Harper and I had a little "Girl's morning". Scott had some "guy stuff" going on this morning so it was fun to just have a little girl's day. I use "fun" loosely when it involves shopping and eating with a two year old but I have to admit I was thinking about how much fun it will be one day when my girls are older and Daddy goes hunting or does something with guys and we can just have a Girl's day or even a girl's weekend. I don't want to look ahead too much and miss these sweet days but I do know I have soooo much to look forward to!

And yes - I could just die I think this outfit is so adorable. Especially with her matching Zebra shoes. This picture is kind of blurry because she was in action - but that's how a lot of our pictures turn out. We ate lunch at Jason's Deli and I took her to the bathroom and she was holding my hand and waving at every table as we walked by. I'm glad I'm not raising a wallflower. The child is not shy.

This is a little picture of the back of her head. The first one is from a month ago so it was even longer today but you can tell in the second picture it's been evened out into more of a bob. As her sides grow - we can get it into more of a bob. I can't believe how fast my little baby is growing. She's so much more of a "girl" every day!

I guess I can now check "Getting Harper groomed" off my to do list before Hollis comes. ha ha !

Show Us your Life - ALMA MATERS

 NOTE:   I added on my left sidebar the SUYL schedule for the next few months!!!!


I thought it would be fun if we all shared about our Alma Maters today. When you link up - PLEASE put the name of your college in the link instead of your blog. I thought it would be REALLY fun if we bloggers could connect to maybe other alumni from our schools!!!!

I went to Ouachita Baptist (pronounced "wash-i-taw") in Arkadelphia, AR. Some famous alumni include the Christian group Point of Grace and Mike Huckabee (a possible future presidential candidate!)

I chose OBU because I wanted to go to a small school and I wanted a Christian school. And it turned out to be one of the best decisions of my life! I made amazing friends - a lot of who are still my best friends and I got a wonderful education.

When I think about OBU - I remember the classes and the great professors but mostly my memories are of :

Tiger Tunes
(tri chi won in 1993!)

Tiger Traks
(which I never won but had a lot of fun trying)

Intramurals

Rush, Bid Day, and Pledge week

and so many fun times with friends

OBU also is such a neat "family". I love meeting other OBU grads because it's just a special bond. One of the things I love about my church is it is filled with OBU grads including our pastor who is also on the board of trustees. I get so excited every time some of our graduating seniors go to OBU. We had 4 go this year and I am so happy knowing they will have the best four years of their lives there too! I've also met SO many OBU friends through blogging in the last couple of years - some a lot younger and some older. It's like an immediate friendship!

And of course I'm hoping my kids will choose to follow in my footsteps and go to OBU also!

I hope to read lots of OBU posts today!!! And I hope you connect with bloggers from YOUR school!!!

Books with a purpose

I want to tell you about two very special books that two friends of mine have recently published that are also for a great cause!

Jaimi is one of of my sweetest friends from church and she recently published this precious children's book to help raise money for Arkansas Children's Hospital.  Her nephew was born at 25 weeks and weighed less than a pound and spent several months at ACH.  (Read Logan's story here on Jaimi's blog) In his honor - she is hoping to raise money to help ACH by giving 50% from each book sold to them! This is the cutest book any child would love and it's for a wonderful cause.  http://www.sillysockbook.com/  You can order the book from this website or you can also choose to donate one to a child at ACH.  Something small like that could be a huge lift to a child and their family who are having to spend time in the hospital!

Last year I went to El Salvador with Compassion International.  Dan Woolley was on that trip with me. He works for Compassion and has the HUGEST heart to help kids in poverty.  Last January he was on a trip with Compassion with one other guy in Haiti when the earthquake happened.  They were staying at the Hotel Montana and had just came back to the hotel when it collapsed.  His friend David Hames unfortunately did not survive and Dan was trapped in an elevator shaft for days.  He has an AMAZING story of how he stayed alive using his iPhone for light and information. He has an amazing testimony of faith and survival and you will be SO blessed to read this! Go here to order the book. http://danwoolley.net/unshaken-book/
And I'm so excited to say that a portion of each book sold is going to Compassion International's work in Haiti!

Getting ready

Harper came home yesterday. She had a great time with my parents. They even took her for Chinese food. She had SUCH a great time that she was not thrilled to see me or Scott. She only wanted "Nonny". I'm just glad she loves her grandparents so much so it's easy for them to keep her.

I have had a lot of emotions lately about being so close to having Hollis. On one hand - I've been struggling with a ton of worry and anxiety about something going wrong with the delivery or something being wrong with Hollis. I'm trying so hard to turn that fear over to God. On Sunday we sang a song I love and the words say this :

I will sing praise, I will lift my voice,
I will sing praise, I’ve made my choice.
I will sing praise in all I do.
I will sing praise to you.

No matter the storms that come my way,
No matter the trials I may face,
You promised that you would see me through.
So, I will trust in You.

Wow - I sang those words with big tears coming down my face because I want so badly to mean each one. Something that has stuck with me this year is Kay Arthur talking about bad things happening and asking "Why" of God and she said it comes down to a choice - "Are you going to trust God or not?" If I trust Him - I have to believe HE is God and He sees the big picture and I just have to trust. So I trust that everything will be fine and I also know if it's not - God will equip us to deal with it.

I also am aware that I only have a few weeks left where Harper is my only baby. I know that soon I will be sharing my time with her. She may never know or remember but I will. I just want to treasure our last few days. I picked her up from MDO today and took her to get some ice cream and play at chick-fil-a. I love our special times together! I know I will love Hollis just as much as Harper and I can't wait for them to love each other.

On a totally different note - I started blogging for our local new station, KNWA, today so you'll have to click over and read! Especially if you live in NWA! I'll post a link on my blog so you can join in reading for the next few weeks while I blog there! :-) http://nwahomepage.com/specialseries/blog

Kelly

35 Weeks and Nursery Tour

I'm 35 weeks!

Pregnancy Highlights:

How Far Along: 35 Weeks

Size of baby: Hollis is around 5.25 lbs - about the size of a honeydew melon

Total Weight Gain/Loss: Gained 16 lbs

Maternity Clothes: I wear maternity jeans and pants but everything else is regular. I'm down to just a few things I can still fit into. ha!

Gender: It's a girl!!! Hollis Barrett Stamps

Movement: She is VERY active - especially in the afternoon and at night

Sleep: I'm sleeping pretty good!

What I miss: Nothing really - maybe sleeping on my stomach? Or bending over? ha!

Cravings: I've lost my appetite lately - I think maybe my stomach has run out of room?

Symptoms: Lately I've been having a lot of pressure - mostly because she is low and it's the second pregnancy. I have a hard time walking or moving period. ha!

Best Moment this week: Getting rest and things done while my parents kept Harper - such a blessing!

I've reached the point where strangers are commenting on how big I am. ha! I went a few places yesterday and several people walked up to me and said "Wow - you are ready to pop" or "Whoa - you've gotten big since the last time I saw you (said the T J Maxx girl) ha!" I told Scott that when people ask me when I'm due out in public - I'm SOOOOO tempted to say "What do you mean? I'm not pregnant?" ha ha ha ha! Just to enforce the rule that you NEVER ask unless you know for sure! ha! ha!


I've shared bits and pieces but as of last night Hollis' nursery is finally finished! So I thought I would share!

Looking in the room from the outside - I know these aren't typical girl colors but I LOVE how it turned out.

The day bed and the mirror with her monogram hanging above it

Her dresser and the frame I had made special from http://www.prairielaneboutique.com/

My friend Amanda made the cornice board that is hanging above the drapes. I love how it turned out!!!

I had her bedding made at www.polkatotdesigns.com and I think it's just perfect. Harper thinks so too - she climbs up in this bed at least 100 times a day. I can't keep her out of it. ha!

One side of her closet with her 0-3 months clothes hanging. Almost all of these were Harper's but I have bought a few new things for Hollis. (Several with her name on them - how could I resist?) ha! I want her to have a few things that were just her own!

Hollis' room is completely different than Harper's room and I had so much fun putting together both rooms. I wonder if this is a foreshadowing of how completely different my two girls just might be? :-)

Kelly