Before I Forget :)

Looking out of our room

My cup of tea! ;)

Six Months :P

Here are some pictures of our room here on base. The hotel was so nice and *comfortable* ;) Two screen t.v.s a nice bathroom, two walk in closets, a sitting room and a lovely little kitchen. :) The beach is just on the other side of the parking lot. It has been so lovely.................. :) Just a couple more days with my baby! :( Notice my silly preggo photo! Benjamin thought I looked pretty nice Military! I think he looks much better in it then I do :P

Happy.....

Well, I am delighted to say that I am still in Pensacola! We ended up extending my traveling plans a little longer ;) I will be back in Ohio next week. Benjamin has an important meeting up in Alabama this weekend and he wanted me to be able to go with him. So the best thing to do was stay on at the base hotel for the week and then drive up with him to Alabama! Here are some of our photos of this last weekend. (Meredith your right, it is really nice here!)The weather has been beautiful and the water perfect! The only bummer, were the huge Jelly Fish swimming around with us. They thought I was pretty tasty and managed a huge sting down my whole leg and my hand! That didn't get us out of the water though ;) After another hour and a few more stings on the arms for us both we decided to call it a day! We still have some welts leftover! :) I hope to capture some more photos and I am so glad I remembered to get a belly picture on the beach. I am six months this week! :)

Recent Reads....

A couple of weeks ago Marie and I saw that her library was having a book sale and we popped in and had a look. We both found some nice children's books and I found this book of Winston Churchill written by his Granddaughter. I am always careful to read history books by people, I want to make sure they are legitimate authors and really know what they are talking about. So when I saw that it was Churchill's granddaughter who wrote this book, I didn't hold back ;) I showed Marie and she was excited that I had found it, she and Jon had watched a documentary a little while ago called, "Chasing Churchill in Search of My Grandfather". His Granddaughter is Celia Sandys. And she has written several books about her Granddad and I was so pleased to own one! I have just started it and I also rented her documentary, which is a glorious three hours long ;) Winston Churchill has always been important to me and I have longed to know more about him. When I finish the book which is called "Churchill Wanted Dead or Alive", I will let everyone know how it was!

Hebrews

³⁵So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded.

³⁶ You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised.

³⁷ For in just a very little while,

"He who is coming will come and will not delay.

³⁸But my righteous one will live by faith.

And if he shrinks back,

I will not be pleased with him."

³⁹ But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who believe and are saved.

Hebrews 10:35-39

Visiting My Man!

~On our beautiful day

I will be visiting my Man this weekend! I can't sleep at night because I am so excited! He has a three day weekend off, so he is flying me down and we will be enjoying the city of Pensacola and hopefully the beach! I am wondering if the water will be warm enough. I found the picture above after looking at as many pictures that I could online of Pensacola. Three and a half long months since we have been apart. (One day at the airport doesn't quite count) :P

The nice thing about going on a trip is all the dreaming ahead of time :P

Week 22

I thought I would post about what's happening with our little Itty Bitty right now during week 22! I get a week by week update from Welcome Home Baby Its fun and exciting to read all thats happening with our developing baby.

So this is what I was sent for this week.

~Your baby now weighs about 12 oz (350g) and is over 7 inches long (19cm). Baby continues to grow, eyelids and eyebrows are developed, and nails are also visible. The amniotic fluid is replenished on a daily basis; in fact about a third of the fluid is exchanged every hour. Your baby swallows the fluid and some of this fluid is absorbed back into your body via the umbilical cord and placenta. The rest is simply urinated back into the amniotic fluid. Baby uses its 'bathwater' as its drinking water. While some of its nutrients are provided by the amniotic fluid, bulk of the nutrients comes from the placenta.~

With Fondness....

I have not forgotten about you my cake decorating world! I miss you and can't wait to be reunited with you again soon. I plan on many holiday cakes this year. But considering that I may be settling into a new house in a new state may be a little tricky. I packed all of my tools and will take great pleasure in pulling you out and playing with you all again! :)

Happy Birthday Baby.......

Happy Birthday to my very special and loved husband....... I miss you like crazy! May the Lord bless you this day and this year to come. I know he blessed me especially on this day. For this is the day he brought you into this world and I will forever cherish it......

Bay Episodes.....

Bay has managed to fit in well at Marie and Jon's house. :) Here he is enjoying all of Zane's stuffed safari animals. I found him here one afternoon sleeping. I think he thinks he fits right in!

Fun Filled Business.....

Today it is delightfully windy out...... I can see all the fallen leaves blowing about.

Marie and I had a neighbor friend come over on Saturday so we could test our makeup foundation on her face. She was very pleased with the outcome ;) She already uses Bare Minerals and is pretty happy with it, but she has promised to send ALL her friends to us :P Today we have another lady coming over and then another one tomorrow. We are having a delightful time with our new business! Luckily this foundation sells itself. It does the sales work for us ;)

Virgin Coconut Oil

When I was visiting my mom and dad in Colorado, my mom showed me the benefits of Coconut Oil. Many people (I found out online) believe it is a bad oil and will make everyone fat! I don't think that is the case ;) After reading so much information about it, I am excited and happy!

Its meant to be eaten and applied topically. So I have started using it in my tea in the mornings, which tastes really nice and then at night I use it all over my face and skin and of course the protruding belly, (it diminishes stretch marks.) But my favorite, is that I use it as eye makeup remover. I use a cotton ball and then dip it into the oil and take off all of my eye makeup with it. It comes off so nicely! And it hydrates my eyes and skin at the same time.

I found it in the health food store and Whole Foods. It was better priced at Whole Foods. :) Virgin Coconut Oil is right up there with mother's milk. So if that helps give you a clue on all the benefits I hope everyone will check it out. From skin irritations, rashes, its anti viral, anti bacterial and anti fungal. Its good for the heart, and great for the metabolism, and many many more that I can't remember! But check it out and see what you think. :)

But Where Can Wisdom Be Found?

¹² "But where can wisdom be found?
Where does understanding dwell?

¹³ Man does not comprehend its worth;
it cannot be found in the land of the living.

¹⁴ The deep says, 'It is not in me';
the sea says, 'It is not with me.'

¹⁵ It cannot be bought with the finest gold,
nor can its price be weighed in silver.

¹⁶ It cannot be bought with the gold of Ophir,
with precious onyx or sapphires.

¹⁷ Neither gold nor crystal can compare with it,
nor can it be had for jewels of gold.

¹⁸ Coral and jasper are not worthy of mention;
the price of wisdom is beyond rubies.

¹⁹ The topaz of Cush cannot compare with it;
it cannot be bought with pure gold.

²⁰ "Where then does wisdom come from?
Where does understanding dwell?

²¹ It is hidden from the eyes of every living thing,
concealed even from the birds of the air.

²² Destruction and Death say,
'Only a rumor of it has reached our ears.'

²³ God understands the way to it
and he alone knows where it dwells,

²⁴ for he views the ends of the earth
and sees everything under the heavens.

²⁵ When he established the force of the wind
and measured out the waters,

²⁶ when he made a decree for the rain
and a path for the thunderstorm,

²⁷ then he looked at wisdom and appraised it;
he confirmed it and tested it.

²⁸ And he said to man,
'The fear of the Lord—that is wisdom,
and to shun evil is understanding.' "

Job 28

20 Weeks

Finally here is a picture of me and our Itty Bitty. I still look itty bitty for five months! :) Sorry the quality isn't as I would want it, so I promise to do another one soon. :) I wanted to post one of my favorite passages from Psalms. God is so good and I feel his love and peace.

Psalm 91

¹ He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.

² I will say of the LORD, "He is my refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust."

³ Surely he will save you from the fowler's snare
and from the deadly pestilence.

⁴ He will cover you with his feathers,
and under his wings you will find refuge;
his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.

⁵ You will not fear the terror of night,
nor the arrow that flies by day,

⁶ nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness,
nor the plague that destroys at midday.

⁷ A thousand may fall at your side,
ten thousand at your right hand,
but it will not come near you.

⁸ You will only observe with your eyes
and see the punishment of the wicked.

⁹ If you make the Most High your dwelling—
even the LORD, who is my refuge-

¹⁰ then no harm will befall you,
no disaster will come near your tent.

¹¹ For he will command his angels concerning you
to guard you in all your ways;

¹² they will lift you up in their hands,
so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.

¹³ You will tread upon the lion and the cobra;
you will trample the great lion and the serpent.

¹⁴ "Because he loves me," says the LORD, "I will rescue him;
I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.

¹⁵ He will call upon me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble,
I will deliver him and honor him.

¹⁶ With long life will I satisfy him
and show him my salvation."

Girls Weekend Training.....

My sister and I went away for the weekend up to Columbus Ohio, and had a blast learning about customized liquid and mineral foundation. The foundation is made personally for an individual. And we had to learn how to customize it for all different skin types. All the makeup is made from the best ingredients, to keep the skin healthy and protected. Our trainer was a lot of fun and after spending 14 hours in a banquet room with sixteen women, I am overwhelmed and excited to play on girls faces!!!! :) Marie was finally able to make me some foundation and I am glowing! I have never been so happy with my foundation. My skin feels lush and moist with all of my natural color coming out. I want her to post on her blog some before and after photos of my face :) Happy Monday everyone and God bless you all this week.

So sweet....

~Marie and Jon's little guy (my little nephew) on our way back from Colorado. He has found his fingers very soothing lately. He makes the cutest suckling noises I have ever heard!

Pound Plus...

I found this lovely chocolate the other day at Trader Joe's. It is so nice and rich. Perfect for baking, stashing or with a wee cup of tea! :) Good chocolate is expensive and you don't get much for the price. But this Pound Plus of chocolate is beautiful! Here is what the label says, ~Pound Plus Dark Chocolate Bars are imported direct from Belgium. They are made exclusively for Trader Joe's in a small town outside of Antwerp by confectionery artisans known for producing perhaps the finest chocolate in the world. Each bar weighs 500 grams, 1.6 ounces more than a pound-hence the name Pound Plus.~

$3.99 for over a pound of dark rich chocolate is a steal! :)

The Best of Friends

I wanted to do a post dedicated to all of my dear blogging friends! This is really for me, because I find so much satisfaction in all of your lives! You all bring me such joy and encouragement just by simply living your life and giving me a glimpse of who you are. My dear friend Meredith, Davene, Lisa, Mama Jill, Katheryn, Lizzy, Holly, Jodi, Roxy, Sharon, Melissa. And my sisters Marie, Himilce and Olga. And of course my mom! I love you all and love reading about your lives! And all of you who are reading and haven't left a comment I appreciate your reading and hope to hear from you!!!

In Ohio For Awhile....

~My Benjamin and I waiting at the airport for his flight

~Didn't want to say goodbye

~Benjamin seeing his nephew for the first time

~My sweet sister and I

~Marie, Jon and Sleeping Zane

While Benjamin is finishing his schooling in Florida and has to stay on base we both decided it would be best for me to stay in Ohio with my sister and brother. I also wanted to use my sister's Midwife so it all worked out so well! Marie and I are having a ball! From sharing each other's closet to talking without ceasing, Jon has been very patient! :) I have been in Ohio now for four days and before that I had been to Chicago, Nevada, Arizona and Colorado. It feels so good to be here and settled. Marie flew down to help me make the long drive back with our car from Az to Ohio. It was wonderful to have her help and company. Here are a few pictures of the last couple weeks. :)

19 Weeks

Since I haven't done a baby update in a looong time, I decided to do that first! I don't have a good bump picture yet, but my brother took some while I was in Arizona and I hope to get ahold of those pictures soon! I felt the baby kick for the first time exactly on my 18th week! I was laying in bed trying to fall asleep and then just a tiny little kick! I didn't think it was the baby at first but then I felt a second sensation and new right away it was our Itty Bitty! We have decided to wait to find out the sex of the baby. We do have our names decided, YAY! But I don't think I will share until the baby is born :P I promise to post a picture soon of my little belly. Its still really little and I am almost Five months! I don't know if anyone will be able to see a big enough bump yet. It just looks like I'm getting a little chubby belly or something! :)

Im still here! Its been a very busy three weeks or should I say Summer! :) As I write I can't help but write of the goodness of my God. His peace is always near and so comforting. He had every portion of this unsure time for me all planned out. He has guided my every step! I have many catch up posts to post with pictures. And a picture of my sweet Benjamin when I was able to see him two weeks ago. Hope everyone has a great weekend!

My Mom's Baking...

Here are the rest of the photos I wanted to post. My mom and I made some beautiful homemade bread last week and it was great fun. I should say my mom made the bread, I watched! She even ground the wheat in their wheat grinder. The bread was so light and fluffy and melted in your mouth. The cinnamon rolls were amazing!

I am in beautiful Ohio now visiting my sister and her husband and my adorable nephew! Looking forward to having our mom join us later this week! :)

Books and Benjamin......

The blessedness of a good book! Since Benjamin has been away I have a lot more time to read! I had several books that I had started but never finished and I finally did! I also read a couple at my mom and dad's house. And then I reread a new favorite. I read it a long time ago. Bel Lamington is the title, the author is D.E. Stevenson. I have mentioned her before. She has to be my very favorite author. Most of her books take place prior to WWII and some during. Usually in London or all around England and Scotland. D.E. Stevenson is the girl version of Charles Dickens. She has a great talent of portraying characters and real life situations. :) I have also been reading a book about my Pastor's wife, Marja Barnett. Very encouraging book to read. She was born in Finland and then because of circumstances with the war was placed into an orphanage in Sweden. Adopted by a kind family and then in her twenties moved to the United States where she was saved and met and married her husband Pastor Tommy Barnett. Her book talks about the difficulties of marriage being a brand new Christian and married to a pastor and learning a new language. I am enjoying it and excited to tell Benjamin about it!

Benjamin is doing really well. He was promoted already! So proud of him! I new he was made for this! :) I was able to talk to him yesterday for about 45 min! He earned the phone call by running the fastest in one of their tests :P We have been corresponding mainly through the mail. It has been very difficult getting used to not talking to him and having to communicate through pen and paper! Something very satisfying though about writing for an hour and being able to express myself to him. I think he is enjoying it! Its funny even though we were with each other constantly before, how much we weren't able to communicate because of the craziness of our schedules. So this experience has been enriching and we have enjoyed it. :) I love receiving a letter from him and tying to capture and picture what he has been doing. I get to see him in a little less then two weeks! Then he will be off to Pensacola for Avionics School. I will be sure to post a picture! :)

~Olechka and I :)

~Our Cupcakes! I had a bunch more pictures to upload, but having such a hard time getting them up! I'll upload them when I get to Ohio :)

This week has been a whirl wind! I cannot believe my visit has almost come to an end. I have been able to visit many friends and catch up. My friend Holly (here is her blog address,) who my sister and I grew up with since we were babies had a little baby girl and I was able to meet her! And delighted in how much she looks like Holly. :) Holly was the sweetest hostess, she spoiled me by feeding me and serving me lovely cups of tea. Their home was so charming and cozy. I still have not been able to meet her husband since every time we see each other he is always hard away at work! :) But we promised to meet through Skype pretty soon!

Last week my mom and I went out and visited my mom's very dear friend Roxy. It was so nice for me to be apart of the fun. Roxy fed us a delicious meal and I am still thinking of it! (The second trimester has started. I have been so hungry lately.) Then I was able to help her start a blog! Here is her blog link, Living From Glory To Glory.

I have been able to spend a lot of time with my parents. We have been talking, sharing, laughing and praying together.

The house here is always abuzz! With the phone ringing off the hook, people stopping by and all the activities my siblings are busy doing. Russell has joined the Navy and will be leaving next year for Boot Camp. Olga has one more year of High School and Eddie will be starting this school year as new homeschooler! :) My older brothers and my sister and I never were involved in the Public School System. After my parents adopted Russ, Olga and Eddie, they went into public school here and we are so thankful that the schools have been so great. Their standards are much higher and most of the teachers are christians including the principal. What a difference from the big city! The middle school is not so good. And so Eddie will be home schooled this year. And maybe even through high school. :) I am enjoying talking about his curriculum with my mom! He is a bright little guy and happens to love history which is one of my favorite subjects.

I am glad I was able to come right before the school season starts. Its nice to enjoy the seasons again. Fall is in the air and I love it! :) My mom and I made some cupcakes the other day for some friends and we did some beautiful Sun Flowers using Gum Paste and little bit of frosting for the middle of the Sun Flower.

I was able to finally finish a couple of books while I have been here. My new favorite, "Mornings on Horseback" by David Mccullough. Its about Theodore Roosevelt and his family. His family were just amazing and wonderful people. I just loved every page! :)

I know this post was pretty long, I jammed a bunch of posts into one! :)

Colorado

~One of the family dogs named Toby Mac

My mom has a beautiful garden growing. Here are some of the things she has growing off the top of my head. Carrots, Chili Peppers, Beets, Scallop Squash, Yellow Squash, Spaghetti Squash, Green Onions, Sunflowers, Sage, Mint, Peas, Lettuce, Bell Peppers, Zucchini, Cucumbers and Egg Plant all growing right now! I only posted a part of the garden! It took me two days to upload these pictures because of the slower internet:) I am visiting everyone's blog, it just takes a little while for me to get all your pages up! Happy August everyone :)