I should have posted this a while ago!

Here are some pictures from our first camping trip as a family! We went to Grand Tetons National Park in Wyoming, and we stayed at Jenny Lake. We also made a quick day trip to Yellowstone. Pretty fun stuff, I can't wait to get out camping again!

Life "rolls" on

Oliver is a rolling machine! He is cruising around the house like nobodies business. It seems like just yesterday he was a helpless little ball in my arms. I kind of miss him actually wanting to cuddle with mommy. Now I have to settle for sleepy Oli snuggles. I can totally see why some people have tons of kids. They grow so fast, you feel like all the fun stages are passing before your eyes!  Monday will be Oli's 6 month check up and I'm anxious to find out how big he has gotten. Breast feeding is still going well, I'm so happy that we have made it to the 6 month mark and we are still going strong. Today we even participated in Le Leche league's "Big Latch", an attempt to break the world record for most women breast feeding at the same time. It was pretty cool to be a part of that. I'm thinking in the next month or so, it will be time to start solids. I will definitely have to do a post on here about that one. I keep slacking on updating this, I will have to get better. Maybe once I finally get Oliver back on a regular nap time I will actually have a set time to keep this updated.

 First teeth!

 Favorite ride!

Taste of perspective.

I recently picked up a book that I have had sitting on my shelf for a few months now waiting to be read. It's called "The Good News About Injustice" by Gary A Haugen. Gary Haugen is the founder of International Justice Mission and also served in the investigation by the UN of the Rwanda Genocide. Now, I am not naive to the fact that there is a great amount of suffering in this world, and I am not naive to the fact that God has given us the tremendous responsibility to do something about it,  but this book is pounding new perspective into me. If you consider yourself a christian, you should read this book. Gary Haugen does an incredible job of reminding us God's call for us to "seek justice, rescue the oppressed, defend the orphan, and plead for the widow" (Isaiah 1:17).  A short time ago I was reading the story of Moses and the part the sprung out from the pages and made my heart ache was how the people were commanded by faro to leave their infants exposed so that they would die. I had a vision of tiny babies left out in the streets to die while their parents hear their cries yet can do nothing. I could hear them crying for their mothers, I imagined the horror and helplessness their parents had to have felt. They had no one to stand up for them in that moment, to defend them and stand up for what was right. No one to "rescue the oppressed". As a parent I am haunted by the thought of someone inflicting suffering upon my defenseless child and not being able to do anything about it. That's where this book comes in. Justice is God's idea. The suffering of this world does not go unnoticed. God has charged us with the duty of caring for the least of these. IJM is a wonderful organization, they are the ones speaking for the oppressed and giving us a way to combat injustice in an ever darkening world. I applaud them in their efforts to be the strong arm for the weak of this world and I plan to find out more ways that I can help the ministry. I would expect that in this life of luxury we could all make a little sacrifice so that others don't have to suffer. If you call yourself a christian, you cannot afford to let yourself become desensitized and numb to the suffering of this world.  Christianity is not merely about your salvation after death, it is also very clearly about service to others.  It is so easy to be swept up in the small problems of our days. I am so guilty of ignoring my many blessings. I routinely have major melt downs over things that, honestly, don't matter in the least. I have got to stop worrying about things that are so superficial and worldly, I could donate the money I spend on them and save lives! What could be more important than that? My priorities, like most people in this privileged country, are so very skewed. Now the question is, am I willing to make the sacrifice so that others may have their very basic needs met? I sure hope so, and I sure hope I don't stop feeling burdened for those in need either. I pray that God redirects my focus so that I can see the blessings that I have and show me ways that I may bless others. By the way, if you actually read through my entire, somewhat depressing blurb, and you feel so inclined, please consider donating in my name to Stop Child Trafficking Now. My previous post has all the information you need, any amount of money and prayers will do good, I can promise that! 

I need your help for this important cause!

Human trafficking has always been something that pulls on my heart strings. The thought of innocent children being brutalized day in and day out with no one to come to their rescue honestly has kept me up at night, as it very well should. I have looked into and follow many organizations. Some are centered around the after care of victims, while others go after the perpetrators, helping under funded law enforcement have a fighting chance against this massive  illegal enterprise. Some children as young as 3 and 4 are turned into sex slaves. What kind of sick freak would pray on a toddler?! The images that flooded my head when I heard this statistic made me want to vomit! Imagine the damage that does to these poor children psychologically and physically? They are as dispensable as a Styrofoam cup to their owners, dehumanized and completely helpless. They are bought or kidnapped for cheap and used over and over again generating massive profits for their owners while simultaneously satisfying the most unthinkable and grotesque desires of some sick pervert. And when the child becomes too old or too sick, they are disposed of no differently than a used napkin. Justice needs to be served, children deserve the innocence of childhood and the people who pray upon them need to be punished and taken to a place where they can no longer hurt children. STOP CHILD TRAFFICKING NOW is an organization that focuses on catching the bad guys, helping to eliminate demand which is the driving force behind child trafficking. It is simply the law of supply and demand, take away the demand and there will be no need for supply. On September 24, 2011 SCTNow will be hosting a walk in Las Vegas to raise funds. I have put together a team called "STG for SCT". My goal is to raise $1,000.00, but to be honest I will not be happy unless I can blow that goal out of the water.  It should be easy too, I have 250 friends on facebook, if each one chipped in 4 bucks, my goal would be reached! So please donate or join my team because everyone doing a little does big things!

http://events.sctnow.org/site/TR?team_id=1183&fr_id=1099&pg=team <---A link to my event page where you can either join or donate.

Slacking with good reason.

I have been neglecting this blog but with good reason. A lot has been going on, feeling like one whirl wind after another. I finally decided to take this Sunday and truly make it a day of rest. No work outs, no trips out of state, no laundry, no dishes even! I spent the entire day with my boys, being lazy, going to church, and soaking up some real family time. It has been absolutely marvelous, and much over due! The past two weeks have been spent on trips out of state and while they were fun they were also exhausting, hauling a baby and all of baby's things around is no joke. Our first adventure was to Dan's cousin Sterling's wedding in Arizona. This trip was Oli and I's first solo adventure without the help and company of Dan. It was a little nerve racking because my mother in law basically made all the arrangements for me; leaving me with my husband's cousin's who I hardly new in a place where I had never been, without a GPS device. It turned out far better than I was expecting tho. Dan has the most loving and fun family, and they seemed to welcome me with open arms. I really enjoyed my trip and got to see a place I had never been which was a bonus. Oli also got to spend some time with his grandma Kim and got to meet his cousin's for the first time. I was sad that Dan couldn't be with me but grateful to make the best of the last of my maternity leave. Arizona is beautiful too, especially the part of the drive between Flagstaff and Phoenix. The Saguaro cactus and Arizona sunsets were worth the drive alone. That trip was rough though, we had to stay at a different place every night which ment packing up all of Oli's stuff every day and unpacking every night. I also had a small encounter with mastitis and Oliver was definitely sensing a change in surroundings that he didn't appreciate very much. After we got home from AZ it was time to load up again for a trip to Vegas to visit with my mom and sister. Oli and I stayed through Easter which happened to be my middle nephew's birthday. It was a great visit minus the fact that Dan couldn't be there and Oli and I were both fighting colds. It was a good last hoorah before having to return to work. I could right and entirely new post just on that. I think I just might too.

**No AZ pics because I forgot my Camera :(**

Side Walk Art

This weekend was pretty awesome. I went down to Vegas on Friday and had some much needed sister time. I was also able to return some things to Babies R Us and got a breast pump so I can start pumping for work. To add to my weekend accomplishments I totally scored at a community garage sale on Saturday. I got a huge garbage bag of nice clothes for Oli and a high chair for only $40. Woo hoo! Sunday was the icing on the cake though. Dan had the day off so we went to church together. It was a great service and I felt like I got a lot out of it and was refreshed. After church we enjoyed a fabulous lunch with good company at this little restaurant called Bishop's. We headed out to Kayenta that afternoon for a sidewalk chalk festival. Kayenta is a small desert community out in Ivins Utah. It is comprised of mostly wealthy, 50 something granola folk, who probably relocated from California or Bainbridge Island. The festival was really interesting. Apparently the artists use pastels instead of chalk and as you can see from the pictures, it makes the artwork much more bright and detailed. It made me want to come home and draw all over my drive way!

Feeling blue

I haven't wanted to use my blog as a place to vent but I'm feeling pretty blue today. I have less than 4 weeks of maternity leave left and we had the rug pulled out from under us with the whole day care thing. Oliver was supposed to be going to the daycare my work provides. It was going to be perfect; it's just down stairs from the lab where I work and I could go nurse and visit him when ever I wanted. If he needed me, I could be there in a millisecond! Dan would take him and I would pick him up. Everything was perfect until we went in to finalize all the details and they told us they had unexpectedly boomed in march and that it didn't matter that we were on the waiting list before those people. They told us they had no room until august or later. I couldn't even talk after she said that, I was on the verge of tears. The second we stepped outside the tears were coming like Niagara Falls. My first reaction was panic followed immediately by anger. I was angry that they made us think we were all set only to let us down at the last second, I was angry that we didn't have a back up plan, I was angry that we have no family or help to rely on, and more than anything I was angry that I have to go back to work at all. I felt mad at my husband for not having a better job, I don't want to be the bread winner, I want that to be his job. I never thought I would struggle so much with the idea of being a working mom. My mom never stayed home with me, as long as I can remember I was in day care. I love my job, I love contributing to my family financially and having that security. It made me feel, for lack of a better word, powerful! Now that my little boy is here, work feels like a massive weight hanging over my head ready to fall onto my shoulders in just under 4 weeks. I feel like in the corner of my brain there is a count down timer, ticking away and still no plan of action. I'm relying on my husband to figure out a way to only work after 1, when I get off. His work doesn't allow set schedules, esp for managers. He either has to quit or be demoted. I'm fine with either, I just want the security of having a plan in place. He doesn't seem nearly as freaked out as I am and it bothers me. If we can work it out, Oli will always be with one of us, and not in day care. Time seems like it's slipping away though. This may seem like a silly dilemma to some, just put the kid in day care and get over it, right? Millions of mom's do it every day, right? Wrong! Those millions of mom's aren't me and those kids are not my son. No one could possibly take care of my son the way I would want them too, except maybe family. Family is out of the question though because the nearest family, my sister, is 2.5 hours away. So Dan is filling out his application for the air force and we are both holding our breath. I feel like I'm having to choose between my husband and my child. I feel like the Air Force would be so amazing for Dan. Not just because it's a steady pay check, a way for me to be home with Oli, and a way to pay for college. It will be amazing for Dan because it's a source of confidence and direction, two things my husband desperately needs. I worry about what the sacrifice will be though. The military life is not for the faint of heart. It will demand a lot of strength from all of us, and I pray that we have that kind of strength. This is if Dan can even get in. His history of depression could be an automatic dis-qualifier, that and his weight. The poor guy has to gain 10 lbs... What I would give to have to gain 10 lbs! Anyways... I'm trying not to eat my feelings, the last thing I need is to be the one who gains weight here. I'm trying to see God's plan in this, find the positive and focus on his promise in Jeremiah; "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, TO GIVE YOU A FUTURE AND HOPE".