Weight Loss, Words, and Sprained Ankles

I am so proud of James. He has successfully lost 14 pounds on his trek to a healthier weight. He looks great and I can tell he feels great. Way to go, honey!

Cadence now says about 40-50 words. She surprises us with a new one about each day. The most recent surprise was "Love You!". We have been waiting for that! She also LOVES to pray and as soon as we are done, she says "Men!"...(as in Amen!). It is the cutest thing.

This morning I noticed she was limping a bit and she would point to her foot and say "Owe". So I pressed on it, rubbed it, bent it...and she didn't make much noise. But then she goes to walk and she is limping and crying saying "owe!". I felt so bad for her. Can babies get sprained ankles? I don't know if maybe she got it stuck in her crib slat and twisted it, or maybe it just fell asleep... Needless to say I have Meme on ankle watch today. Here's to hoping it's nothing.

Who Am I?

Do you ever just feel lost? Lost in thought, lost in life? I have a lot of days where I feel that way. Lost as in sitting here thinking of all the things I should be doing, could be doing...or even things I want to do. I don't know where I'm going...

Let me preface this by saying that I KNOW my Lord and Savior, and I KNOW that I will be spending eternity in heaven...that is not what I am talking about. I'm talking about doing my work down here. What does God want of me? What does God desire I do with this life He has given me? I'm not completely sure. All I can do is pray. I pray I'm a good wife to James...and mother to Cadence. I have a hard time understanding God's timing a lot, but really, who doesn't? It's a Great Mystery. But it's funny how once you have made it through a storm, or a trial, or a moment of joy and look back and see what God saw from the beginning. His timing really is perfect, even though we don't understand it.

Sometimes I feel lost at my job; like should I be in college right now? I know I want to go back, but when is the right time? We certainly don't have the finances right now, and I am not sure I want to spend my extra time away from Cadence. All the time I have with her is so precious.

Should we be in the military? Is James meant to join? We don't know that either. It feels like we have been here so many times before. How is this time different? Will God allow him to lose the weight he needs off and be able to join? I have so many unanswered questions, and who knows if they will ever get answered...

I choose to take it all in stride. Keep praying that God's will be done and keep trusting Him.

That's all I have...

Adult Time Is Always Good

James and I got the chance to go out with some of my (our) co-workers on Friday and it was great. Cadence was home sick with my mom, but she was doing OK. Of course our night didn't last too long, but any amount of adult time is great. Had some awesome (not exaggerating) pizza over at Helen Back...I was shocked at how good it was! We will go there again some time. Maybe when Bryan gets back from the desert. He'd like it. It was right on the water and it was an awesome night.

I haven't had much to say the past few days, so sorry for the lack of posts. James is sick with the flu now, that's great. Cadence is getting over her sinus infection. Can I have a break, please? Now my house is a wreck and I don't have an ounce of desire to clean it. Oh well, it can wait.

Been thinking a lot lately about Amber and Brandon moving...it's getting close and I fear I'll be a mess. I'll save the tears for then, though. I love you honey!

Slow Dance

Have you ever watched kids On a merry-go-round?
Or listened to the rain Slapping on the ground?
Ever followed a butterfly's erratic flight?
Or gazed at the sun into the fading night?
You better slow down. Don't dance so fast.
Time is short. The music won't last.
Do you run through each day On the fly?
When you ask How are you?
Do you hear the reply?
When the day is done Do you lie in your bed With the next hundred chores Running through your head?
You'd better slow down Don't dance so fast.
Time is short. The music won't last.
Ever told your child, We'll do it tomorrow?
And in your haste, Not see his sorrow?
Ever lost touch, Let a good friendship die
Cause you never had time To call and say,"Hi"
You'd better slow down. Don't dance so fast.
Time is short. The music won't last.
When you run so fast to get somewhere You miss half the fun of getting there.
When you worry and hurry through your day, It is like an unopened gift.... Thrown away.
Life is not a race. Do take it slower
Hear the music Before the song is over

I have a problem

A shopping problem...seriously, it's an illness. I can't spend money for a month...are you kidding me? This isn't a restriction James put me on, but I self imposed. I handle the finances anyway. It's been two weeks and I have only bought groceries and James and I ate out to dinner on Friday. (Wait, scratch that, I got my hair did...but that was WAY overdue) What a change that is for me. Did you know Target was literally only 4.5 minutes from my office? Too close for comfort if you ask me. I must resist. I need to learn to control my cravings and not give in like usual. The smell of new clothes and shoes and all things baby for Cadence is just too tempting. How will I do it? How will I survive? Wish me luck.

A General Blah-ness

Today's Monday...woo hoo. The weekend was pretty depressing. Found out that a friend kind of screwed us over and it's going to cost us $400. That bites a big one. But, luckily we will be getting that tax rebate (Lord willing) and it should cover us. I just need to learn to be thankful. At least it's not coming directly out of our pocket, right?

James' alarm went off 3 different times this morning, so basically I got up at 5am when my alarm wouldn't go off until 6am. Thanks honey...

Please pray for us...James is really working hard at exercising and eating right to lose enough weight to join the Air Force. We have been praying about this since before we got married, and it never seemed like the right time. Is the right time now? I don't know. Only God does. I think it would be really good for our little family. Don't get me wrong, depending on our parents and having them nearby is great, but we have gotten very comfortable here. I think we need some real world experience...

Until next time, America...

Can't Hold It In

I realize 3 posts in 1 day is a lot, but I have a lot in my head. I constantly feel the need to talk about Cadence. Yeah, yeah...I know it's natural when you are a parent, but I have a different need. It's like a sickness. I HAVE to tell people how much I love her. I HAVE to tell people that the love you take on when you have a child is so indescribable. I guess it has to do with reading about so many sick children and reading about people who have lost their babies or never gotten a chance to even meet them. I don't know why I read it...I guess to remind myself just how lucky I am and just how short life is.

Cadence is my world. I cannot imagine breathing if she weren't here. I make it a point to tell her every day how much I love her...and get in as many hugs and kisses as possible. I find myself constantly smelling her hair, kissing her little hands and feet, and just staring at her. I want to take it all in. What if there were no tomorrow with her? I want to be able to rest in knowing that I loved her to the innermost depths of my heart and soul. She IS my heart and soul. No doubt about it.

Not a day goes by that I am not asked the question "So, when are you having more?". I'm only 21 people! Lord willing, I have a lot of time! Yes, James and I want more babies. When? I don't know. If we had more money, we might just have one tomorrow, but that isn't the case. I also have that "Can I love another like I love her?" question constantly in my head. I know that I will take on a whole new love with another child, but for now I am being selfish because I only want Cadence to have it. Just for now...

Thanks for letting me share. :) Thank you, Lord, for letting me be Cadence's mom...what a blessing you have given me.

Losing Great Friends

The military really bites sometimes...especially where we live. You run the risk of befriending military folk and then they get stationed a thousand miles away. Not fair. Don't get me wrong, I love the military, but I hate losing friends to it.

Amber and I have been best friends for a while. Since high school. I don't know what it was, but one day I just realized how alike we were. I can tell her anything and not be judged, and I hope she feels she can do the same.

She and Brandon are leaving me soon...all the way to Maryland. Boo on Maryland. Now who am I going to e-mail all day while I act like I'm working? Who am I going to shop with? Who am I going to meet for lunch, and secretly go shopping? I am going to miss her. It really sucks. "She's only a plane ride away"...not when you can't afford that plane ride. Bah Humbug.

Not to mention, James and I also just recently lost a great couple that we loved hanging out with. James and Nathan kind of forced me and Mary to hang out for the first time. We knew them from church, and they lived literally two blocks from us. I let James know that I didn't need any new friends, and that I enjoyed being a homebody. :) Plus, they had a newborn, and we had none, so I wasn't used to friends with kids yet. After numerous times of Nathan and James prodding and telling us we were so alike, we caved. We were like old friends in an instant! Three years later I consider them great friends and miss them terribly. Mary was always a great friend and so easy to talk to. She always had great Godly guidance to share. Nathan could always push James to do something physical...James loved that. :) God Bless you, Robertson's!

Hopefully the first of many

After a failed attempt (on my part) to keep our other website going, I promise to do my best with this one. :)

Where we are right now:

I (Brittany) am still working for what was AIC and just passed my 3 year anniversary. It was actually pretty exciting for me. You don't see many 21 year olds with no degree holding a great job like mine, so I am very thankful.

James started working with my company's sister company, MTI, back in October. He is doing very well there. They depend on him a lot, and that is always important. We are still praying about whether or not the military is right for us, so please keep us in your thoughts.

Cadence is definitely the light of our lives these days. She now has about 30 or so words that she says consistently and it is the cutest thing. Her favorite word is Popsicle, which she interprets as "Padah". Just yesterday she had tubes put in her ears. She had 10 ear infections before this, so we are hoping this solves that problem. Other than being weirded out from the anesthesia, she was back to herself in no time. Lets hope that money was well spent. :)