She waits

She got all her smarts...from me.

My little sis...who I have always looked up to.

You certainly do look sweet tonight!

She has been on a blogging frenzy lately.  She makes me think.  She makes me smarter.  She is the strongest person I have ever known.  She and I have the same sense of humor.  She is fearless.  She is honest (sometimes, brutally so).  She is my sister and she makes me proud.

My thoughts on waiting.

Her thoughts on waiting.

Yeah, chances are we really are related.

Alicia and Gavin and my little furry nieces (Eunice and Iola)

A Meal and a Message

I know this is going to be shocking to most of you that know me, but I, Amber Marie Dunn Gilliam, am beginning to actually "get in" to cooking.  I know, I know...  Several of you have just fainted away.

I am a lot of things...but a cook is NOT one of them.  And it's not because I don't like to eat, but it's because I HATE cleaning.  HATE. IT.  If kitchens cleaned themselves after we cooked, you wouldn't be able to get me out of the kitchen...and I'd be posting about my continuous struggle with weight loss (HAHA).

For Christmas, I requested...no, I BEGGED for a new set of pots and pans.  There really was nothing wrong with the ones I've had for 13 years, other than they were "stainless" steel and not non-stick so cleaning them was even more of a nuisance.  Well, my mom heard my cry and bought me the Paula Dean cookware set!!  :)

I also got a new cookbook.  This is actually my 2nd cookbook.  The first one I got several years ago.  It's for crock pot cooking.  I do not own a crock pot.  Yeah.  The first cookbook is totally useless to me at this point in my life.  Never fear...I do have plans to buy one--I just keep forgetting.

My mom and I made a trip to Ponca City to a book signing.  Not just any book signing.  We met Ree Drummond, the Pioneer Woman!  I follow her blog, follow her on Facebook, on Twitter and Instagram. Yeah, she pretty much intrigues me.  I am fascinated at how this one woman can do SO much!  She home schools her children, cooks and has a cooking show, she blogs, she does photography, she lives on a cattle ranch, writes books and SO MUCH MORE!  I thought I was a busy lady--but compared to her, I am a sloth.

I actually assisted mom with dinner one night and made Pioneer Woman's Mashed Potatoes.  This was my second attempt at preparing a PW recipe.  My sister and I prepared a meal for New Years day that consisted of PW's mashed potatoes, PW's Chicken Fried Steak.  I will say this one thing about her cooking--if you are lactose intolerant, you CANNOT eat this food.  They are loaded with dairy, cream and cream.  L  O  A  D  E  D.  But sooooo delish.

So, 2012 looks to be an adventure into the realms of cooking for me.  Which frightens and excites me.  I am hopeful that some of the new recipes I've discovered can be converted into more Weight Watcher friendly versions--otherwise, I'll be posting whine-fests about how I cannot seem to lose any more weight!  HAHA!

**********

This is just a quick note to say that my brother is awesome.  I've known this for a long while.  Well, probably since we were kids.  Aaron was "the good kid" and the only boy, so he was SUPER special.  Like nauseatingly special.  HA!!  He was also a genius.  His high school GPA was over a 4.0.  He's always been someone I admired and respected because he has always given 110% to anything he has ever attempted and/or accomplished.

Last night, he preached a message titled:  "Move Over Mediocre".  It was awesome.  It was inspiring.  It was challenging!  There is no time to just half-heartedly move through this life and not doing ALL we physically, mentally and spiritually can to survive.  We must be wiling to be the VERY BEST we can be, no matter the cost.

She Resolves...

For the last several New Year's I've just kinda let them go by without any really goal or direction for that year.  And I think it's because I was pregnant, then had a baby...and well, now that Ella is a toddler, I am reclaiming bits and pieces of my life and myself and maybe THIS YEAR it's time to do a little planning.  

There is an old wive's tale or rumor or something or another that states that whatever you are doing on New Year's day is what you will be doing the most of the rest of the year...so, I made a list.

New Years Day Dress

First of all, I crocheted the New Year in.  I know, I am almost ashamed to admit that, but it is true, nonetheless.  Then, I did a little altering to a jacket I bought Ella.  It was a 4T (YIKES, this kid is HUGE) and fit everywhere but the sleeves were a bit long.  So, I borrowed a trick I learned from New Dress A Day (truly, an amazing blogger I follow--she continually inspires me).  The pin and ruche trick:  

New Years day consisted of church, praying with a first time visitor, lunch with friends, hanging with my sister and brother-in-law and cooking (well, really assisting my sister) and baking.  I don't know about you, but my 2012 is going to be AWESOME!!!

As for resolutions, I'm still hammering out the details.  But I spent 2011 losing weight which I've been able to keep off (sorta) and this year I want to get in shape.  This is where I need more details...I'm not sure HOW I plan on going about this.  I'd like to start running, but I am afraid the wear and tear on my "old lady" knees might be too much.  So, I'm considering Pilates--but I am kinda scared of that too.

I'd also like to get more organized in 2012.  I mean, like really and truly ORGANIZED.  I want all my closets to be "working closets" (thank you Kendi Everyday) and all my cabinets to be FUNCTIONAL.

I'd am also going to try to be more creative.  And I don't mean more daydreaming...I mean DOING something creative.  I'm thinking along the lines of sewing (Lord have mercy...) and probably more crocheting (definitely more of that!!) and perhaps even teach myself to knit.

Blogging.  Yeah, I've been taking quite a bit of a hiatus.  Perhaps I've just not had a lot to say.  Or maybe I am STILL trying to find that niche that all bloggers eventually gravitate to.  I'm not sure.  But this year, I want to put more direction and FOCUS on this blog.  If anyone has any suggestions, I'd be glad to know them.

And, probably MOST important, I'd like to start a Bible Study--with myself.  Does that seem strange?  I picked up a book on being content a few weeks ago.  I FEEL like I'm a pretty content gal, but there are times I get frustrated with people and things and life...and I wonder--is it possible to really and truly be CONTENT in all things...ALL THE TIME?  I don't know if that's even humanly possible, but I'd like to try.  What's the worse thing that could come out of that?  Perhaps having more patience?  Drawing closer to God?  Finding peace?  Those sound like decent side effects, if you ask me.  

Ultimately, I am most excited about 2012 because it will mean getting back to traveling with Pookie.  I've spent the last 5 years more or less sitting on the sidelines (due to my full time job--which has been a blessing) and now that I am no longer employed, I get to do what I was born to do.  Yes, indeed...2012 is going to be an awesome year and I am so thankful for all the things God has in store for my family.

The Best Gift...EVER!

Tis the Season!!!  

The holidays are a special time of year for most of us...and for each of us for a different reason.  For some, it is the joy of giving and receiving, for others it is the time we get to spend with family and friends.  And yet, for others it is the one time of year we can eat whatever we want with little to no guilt.  

My holiday season changed forever 2 years ago.  My little Ella Holidae Marie was born on Dec. 4th.  She was due on Christmas Eve and due to my bout with pancreatitis, the doc and I agreed she should get here sooner.

So, December 4th is a special day...but this past December 4th, it became even more special.

Ella Holidae Marie celebrates her 2nd Birthday!

Ella Holidae Marie aka Tiny Little Angel Lumps, received the most precious gift anyone could ever give or receive.  She received the gift of the Holy Ghost!!  

Her big brother Jon was praying in the altar and I asked Ella if she wanted to go pray with Jon.  She said: "uh huh" and took my hand.

I led her to kneel beside him and figured she'd stay there maybe 20 seconds and then be off to do something else.  Boy, was I wrong.  She knelt down and began crying...like really crying.  I picked her up to move her back some and at that point, I could tell she was sobbing!!  I handed her to Trent who was kneeling nearby and he held her.  She covered her eyes with her hands, still sobbing and it was then I noticed she had stammering lips!  I began to talk to her like I would anyone else trying to receive the Holy Ghost and told her to just "tell God how much you love him" and although she is not able to actually speak those words, in seconds she was speaking in other tongues!!

She went around to various people who were standing by and asked to be held, put her head in their neck, sobbed and would speak in tongues over and over.  She literally could not stop!  It was the wildest thing I have ever seen!!!

So, as we all celebrate the season, let us not forget the best gift ever given, the gift of the Holy Ghost!!  

Merry Christmas to you all!

We are anticipating miracles, signs and wonders for the New Year!

She Sleep Trains...in a week!!!

Whew.  Here it is, nearly two weeks after the dreaded "Sleep Training Week" and my life could not be any better!!

WOO HOO for me!!!

I am a co-sleeper parent.  Was with Jon.  Was with Ella.  With Jon, it was because I was nursing and I was SO exhausted (he was colicky) that I just could NOT get out of bed to feed him.  With Ella, it was my huge (self-inflicted) guilt trip of being gone all day (at work), that led me to believe our "only" time to be together was at night.  *sigh* 

Ella is not a friendly sleeper.  She thrashes, she flops, she spins, she kicks and much more.  She is SUCH a busy girl even when she is awake...that she must be reliving all the good times she had that day...in her sleep.





So, it became necessary to get her to sleep in her own bed.  A "big girl" toddler bed.  I dreaded it.  I agonized over it.  I researched it. 

In fact, I googled everything I could on sleep training (there is really not much, unless you want to pay for advice) and I went to the library and checked out all three (3?!) books on sleep training.  Hmm.  The "sleep training" books each had ONE chapter that was semi-useful.  Google was much more helpful.  I stumbled onto Super Nanny.

No kidding, this website has TONS of useful information regarding child rearing.  AND it's actually practical and applicable.

Here's what I did:  First of all, I went to eBay...  What?  You don't immediately go to eBay when you have a big project???  You are doing it wrong.

I went to eBay and bought a HUGE lot of PJs for Ella.  I think I got 10 pair for less than $20 (including shipping).  This was crucial because I had NO EXCUSE to not put her in warm PJs each and every single night.

Did my research and marked my calendar for September 12.  Told the family..."this is it". and waited (dreading) this week to arrive.

Night one:  PJs on and say "night night" to the boys.  I take her to her room.  Tell her it's "night night" time, hug her, kiss her and lay her down.  Then I moved to the center of the room and faced the door (she could see my profile) and waited.  Cue the wailing and gnashing of teeth.  She got down several times that night and Trent (who stayed in Jon's bed in the same room to help) had to put her back to bed several times after she fell asleep and woke back up.  I never heard a peep, so I assumed all went VERY well.

Night two:  PJs on and same routine as night one.  However, I did make a few changes to her bed.  I added her two biggest stuffed animals to her bed.  I had put on a recently worn shirt of Trent's on one...and a recently worn shirt of mine on the other.  I also switched out her pillow to one Trent had recently used.  She was virtually SURROUNDED and she could "smell us".  I laid her down and she tried to escape ONE time.  Fell asleep faster, but flopped around a lot.  Trent stayed in that room again and at some point she had got up and was standing next to his bed and he let her crawl in with him.  I was devastated.  :(   I thought:  "We have FAILED!!!  It.  is.  over.  But I was determined to make this happen...no matter HOW LONG it took.

Night three:  Same "night night" routine.  Lay her down and no escape attempts.  She fell asleep much quicker and stayed in bed the whole night.

Night four:  (Here's where it gets crazy).  Same "night night" routine.  Lay her down and I left the room.  After about 2 minutes, here she came....running for all she was worth.  I picked her up, hugged her, kissed her told her (again) it was "night night" time and laid her down.  She cried and whimpered a bit, but was asleep in less than 15 min.  I was BEAMING with pride.

Night five:  Same routine.  Lay her down and leave the room.  5 minutes and she was OUT. 

Yes, in 5 nights, my daughter learned how to sleep in her own bed and no one got hurt!

My BEST advice:

1.  Establish a routine that WORKS FOR YOU. 

2.  No matter what (even how tired or wore out you are), be consistent and DO NOT STOP. 

3.  Do your homework.  Make plans and be REALISTIC.

4.  Do NOT underestimate your child.  9 times out 10 they will surprise you.

Oh Be Careful Little Ears

There is nothing like a reality check from your kids.  You know the kind I'm talking about...there they are playing, when all of a sudden, they get upset and start yelling and pointing with angry eyes and mouth to their toy or worse...their playmate.  Where did they learn that behavior??

Well, sadly, they probably learned it from you.  You don't think so?  Check yourself.  Next time you are upset or angry...watch your words, your actions, your facial expressions.  Bingo.  They are a perfect mirror image of what they see at home.

I didn't believe this was true for the longest time, until my son came along.  I learned very quickly to watch what I said or how I reacted to things when he was young...because I was/am a lazy parent.  LOL!  I don't want to have to fix something later down the road--I'd rather it never become a problem! 

Your children also have the distinct ability to copy the positive behavior too.  Jon used to love to "preach" when he was less than 2 years old.  He had a stuffed chair that he'd flip over and use as a pulpit and he'd bang away and raise his voice and "preach" to me and Trent.  He was copying his daddy.  Ella is the same way.  She has this habit of walking on her tiptoes.  I think she is copying me wearing heels.  HAHA! 

One of the greatest blessings of raising your kids in the church is the fact that they learn how to praise without one single solitarty lesson or Sunday School class.  Jon received the Holy Ghost when he was 2 1/2 years old.  He got it at my parent's home in Claremore, OK.  Trent was studying in a spare bedroom and heard Jon repeating over and over: "I praise you Jesus, I praise you Jesus".  It took us a while to figure out where he learned that...but it was from me!  I say that all the time and didn't realize it!  It wasn't long before he was crying.  And as real as anyone has ever received it, leaning over my mother's vacuum cleaner, Jon began speaking in tongues.  He had no idea what had happened or how important it was, but God, just could not let the praise go unnoticed...and so, He gave Jon a gift that will never grow old, be out of style, or lose it's value. 

Not to be outdone, Ella has taken on worship as well.  Quite frequently, she can be seen raising her hands, clapping, saying "amen" and jumping up and down at church.  I encourage this as much as possible.  Recently, at a Home Missions church, Ella noticed a saint speaking in tongues.  She stared, transfixed on the posture of this lady and the sounds coming out of her mouth...and there, she began copying what this lady was doing.  Since then, she has "spoke in tongues" several times and I am thinking she is trying to one up her brother by receiving the Holy Ghost before he did!  Won't that be something?!  And if, you happen to get lucky enough to sit with Ella during church...look out, if she "feels led", she is likely to lay hands on you and pray for you!

This photo was taken last week during our church prayer time. 

But by faith...

Nervous

Excited

Confused

Overwhelmed

Hopeful

Courageous

All of these words (and many more!!) describe my feelings and emotions about the decision to Home School.  I had only done a teeny tiny bit of research into it.  Had only asked a couple friends about what they did or what program they used.  I was so CLUELESS about how big of a subject Homeschooling is, that I just closed my eyes and jumped in...and starting swimming for dear life!

We made the decision to home school for various personal reasons.  One of which, is that being a Preacher's Kid, my son is subject to the most bizarre random schedule and "a bed time" is more of a general idea rather than rule of thumb.  Jon attended public school from Kindergarten until 2nd grade.  Like a brave soldier, he'd endure the ride home from church, arriving as late as 2 am (or later!!!) and getting up the next morning and going to school.  I felt like a dog.  My brave little guy would get up, go to class, come home, play hard, and never made a big scene about being "too tired" to go.  Some days, we would keep him home if the trip had been especially long or tiring...but usually, he went.

Now, before you all assume that we attend church 30 minutes from our home, and just like to party and chat and wile away the hours fellowshipping while our kids grow more and more tired, weary and cranky...you have to understand that my husband is no ordinary preacher.  He not only pastors a church in South San Francisco, he evangelizes full time.  This means that he travels to various churches for different services, sometimes several nights in a row (but mostly on weekends--Sunday is our "big day").  Some of these churches are as far away as 4 hours--ONE WAY!  And like a good daddy, my husband would get there, get the job done and then get on the road ASAP so that Jon could get up and go to school.  On occasion, we (me, Jon and Ella) would stay home and still, Trent would make the drive home in order to be able to get up and take Jon to school the next morning since I still work a full time job.  Truly, if you knew how much my husband sacrifices for his kids...you'd give him a hug...and a medal.  He is an amazing daddy. 

So, we begin our journey into home schooling.  This means, a more laid back schedule for Jon.  Doing school work in his PJs with messed up hair and being able to spend the day with dad. 

We are on week 2 and so far, I feel GREAT about this decision.  Jon is breezing through all the review work they do at the beginning of the year and has nearly memorized the entire portion of scripture (Hebrews 11:7-10) that is required for them to learn the month of September (and we are only 5 lessons into the month!!!).  I am super proud of him and so thankful that we are giving this a chance.  I think the biggest advantage so far is that he seems to have increased self-confidence.  Had I known that would be a perk, I would have had MUCH less hesistation about making the change.

Oh, and little Ella is getting home schooled too.  I have been working with Ella in the evenings with phonics.  So far, she's learned the "E" sound: "eh".  Everytime she sees "E", she says "eh, eh, eh".  She is learning to count to 5, number recognition and ASL.  And...she is only 21 months old.  It is QUITE possible that I will have a little reader on my hands BEFORE Kindergarten.

So, we began this endevour, unsure, unaware, and unknowing...and, as Jon's memory verse states..."But by faith...", we are going to succeed. 

If you are a homeschooling parent, and on Facebook, please join our home school group! 

Hug Me, I'm Homeschooling