Nature Walk

Our loot after a walk home from a friend's house

Normally when we go for walks Jordan rides in the stroller.  She really enjoys it...she really enjoys anything that has to do with the outdoors.  Every once in a great while we will take a little walk either to a friend's house just a block away or sometimes just a little stroll around the block in which Jordan actually gets to walk too.  As I'm sure you can imagine, these walks though short in distance can take nearly as much time as a walk where Jordan rides in the stroller.  Sometimes it is fun to have that change and I can always use this as a reminder to slow down and really appreciate Jordan and life and to discover details of the beauty God has created all around us.

Two days ago Jordan and I were hanging out in the front yard tossing things into the puddle at the curb when we saw a city bus coming down the street.  Jordan LOVES the buses that pass in front of our house (in fact every time we are inside and she hears one she always makes sure to tell me that a bus just drove by) so when she saw it coming she stopped what she was doing and began pointing excitedly at the bus.   To our surprise it stopped right in front of us and the bus driver opened his window and waved to us and said hello.  It was sure an exciting start to our day.  Jordan was thrilled!

Jordan and I planted flowers on Wednesday in the long planter area we've got in the front of our house.  I'm never sure what will and won't come up so I just planted every single seed from every single flower pack I had in the hopes that something will come up!  Jordan was quite the little "helper" digging in the dirt as I planted.  She was digging in the same spot nearly the whole time so I thought I was safe to just go around her until the very end...well...she decided to switch spots after a while...then switched again later.  I might have three bare spots in the planter but I may end up with flowers on the ground right in front of those bare spots!  We've not even had to water our flowers since they've been planted because it has been raining, raining and raining some more.  We are thankful for the rain watering our little seeds!

Jordan in our backyard a couple weeks ago

On another note, I'm beginning to dislike June.  It seems that June is the month that takes all my friends away from me!  Last June my very best friend and her husband and son (who is just a 6 weeks older than Jordan) moved back to Minnesota to be closer to her family.  This June, the military is moving my other very dear friend and her husband and son (who was born on the exact same day as Jordan) to Texas.  I'm very grateful for phones and blogs and Facebook to keep us connected.  My Minnesota friend and I still talk very frequently and follow each other's blogs to keep up with each other but sometimes it really stinks when you just need a friend to call up for any reason such as:  going for a walk together or to swap babysitting so you each have a chance to just sit on your couch and do nothing for a while or to have someone to dog sit when you go out of town or to hug when you are really feeling down and words just aren't enough.  You can't do any of that over the phone.  Ok, I'm sorry to be such a downer and I really need to stop because I'm sitting here with tears in my eyes and wallowing in self pity.  Most of all I am thankful for these friendships and that they are still so strong even with so many miles between us.  I'm so thankful that God has brought these ladies, not just ladies, their families too, into my life!

Reading

I don't have any pictures in this post because I didn't intend on writing but as I've been sitting here doing a few tasks that have needed to be done on the computer Jordan was doing something so sweet I couldn't resist not popping on and sharing the story.

I'm sure I've mentioned on here before that Jordan is quite the bookworm.  I am so thankful she likes books so much!  This morning our roles are reversed; as I sit here on the computer she's been reading ME a story.  I hear her "sniffing" so I look down and she's pointing to the bunny in her book smelling a flower.  I excitedly acknowledge she is correct then go back to my computer tasks only to then hear her "blowing" so I look down and she's pointing to the bunny blowing the dandelion seeds through the air.  "Great job!  That's exactly what the bunny is doing!!" then back to my computer work.  Next I hear her trying to get my attention and when I look down this time she has her hand on the side of her head which is cocked to the side and her other hand points to the bunny who is laying down to sleep.  

I love my little girl!  I have so many more stories about her that I intend to share on here one of these days.  Thanks for listening to my story today!

Sorry I have been absent from the blogging world for a while (even when it comes to commenting on all of your all's blogs).  I've been trying to limit my computer time lately as it can so easily become a time absorber for me and because I've also been reading a lot of books, educating myself on many things but most importantly the effects of food on our body...not just food but the type of food here in the US that has been genetically modified, preservatives and colors added, artificial sweeteners and the like.  I HIGHLY recommend everyone read the book The Unhealthy Truth by Robyn O'Brien...actually I am BEGGING you to read this book, especially all you mommies out there.  I really don't even know where to begin in telling you about this book so I'll just pray you read it to learn all that I have learned.  She writes in a way that is very easy to understand which is very nice since the information provided is so critical for us to know about.

On a completely different note I thought I'd share some pictures from a few weeks ago when we had some terrific weather...then we got some cold and snow for a couple of weeks and finally as of this weekend things have started to warm up again (we've even fired up the central air!) and I'm really hoping this time it is here to stay.  Last time we were so spoiled going to the park nearly every day and when not at the park we were in the backyard so much that when that snow and cold came back we had no idea what to do with ourselves!  I noticed a difference in all our attitudes when we were cooped up in the house after that week of freedom and warmth not to mention that the gloominess can sure make a difference in mood as well.  So we had to figure out how to keep busy and distracted from the aweful weather.  We did so by going to the library's story hour, attending a Bible study at church, reading educating books, playing chase around the house, having another once a month cooking day and many other things.  But we are SO glad the sun is shining again so we can slap on the sunscreen and play outside all day long!  Speaking of sunscreen, if you plan to be outside a lot this summer you'll want to check out Healthy by Choices that tells you all you need to know about sunscreens that are safe to put on your and your kiddo's body and why most are NOT safe, you may be surprised!

She loves wearing her sunglasses!  I consider them our instant ticket to a huge smile.  Sometimes after a while of wearing them the correct way though she decides to switch it up and wear them on the back of her head for something different.

Favorite outfit...already?????

I didn't know that kids developed an opinion on clothes this early but Jordan has definitely decided that she has a favorite "outfit" already!  

We have been VERY blessed by a friend of the family who has been loaning us her daughter's clothes (her daughter was born one year and one month before Jordan so the sizes are perfect for each season!) since Jordan was first born.  Such a huge blessing as we have not had to buy ANY clothes or shoes for Jordan (except for a couple of completely irresistible outfits here and there).  Anyway, we just did a swap this past Friday (me giving her back the clothes Jordan has outgrown and she giving me clothes that her daughter has outgrown).  I know I'm getting into too many details here but those of you who know me well enough know that's exactly what I do...I tend to repeat myself and get into way too many details that are probably completely unnecessary for a story but somehow in my mind seem necessary.

But, anyway, this bright pink fuzzy vest was in the new supply along with these cute brown fuzzy boots and Jordan has sure taken a liking to them!  She wore them three days straight and she even insisted on wearing the boots with her red Pooh skirt...it was quite the combination...big boots with a little skirt; she was quite the site running around the back yard!  She still wants to wear them all the time.  I find them both laying around the house all the time!  In fact I found the vest in the bathroom today and her boots in her new cardboard box fort that she's been loving too!

I included the picture above because she just cracks me up in this picture!  I can't look at it and not laugh!  And it has her box in the background, her new "fort."  The dog bed came in it and she's been loving it up ever since, putting all her stuffed dog toys in it and crawling in herself.  It's very cute how entertained she is by it!  And YES I did say dog bed.  Jordan has an obsession with dogs.  Whenever she sees or hears a dog, be it real or stuffed or a simply a picture, she will start panting like a dog and gets super excited.  We took her to McDonalds for the first time yesterday and in the play place there was a picture of a dog and ever time she went past it to go down the slide she had to touch it and when other kids were there she had to tell them about it.  We printed off a couple pictures and hung them on the wall in her room right by her crib; she loves reminding us they are there whenever we go in to get her after a nap.  It's a pretty cute obsession and we made the decision to get her a dog.  We thought a lot about it, slept on it and thought some more and we decided to go with a harlequin Great Dane.  The mommy dog won't be impregnated until June so we've got a little bit of waiting to do before our doggie actually arrives and we are trying to wait patiently but it's so hard!  The dog is in Washington so we get to take a little trip at the end of the summer to go pick it up so that'll be a ton of fun!  If you want to see the mommy and daddy of our to-be puppy check it out here.

By the way, I just want to add that I've been working on this post for almost two weeks now (started it on April 21st) and I was having major problems adding pictures...well it turns out it was my own fault, I was trying to upload pictures in the wrong format.  It was definitely a learning experience but I apologize to all you readers out there having to wait and wait simply because of my own silly error.