Resurrection Sunday!!!

We have had a whirlwind of a weekend with activities and family..but it has been great! 

Yesterday we had a baby shower at church, I went shopping with Charis (which was great, as we don't get to spend alot of time together) Yesterday was the last day that NY&Co. was open at Shadow Lake=JACKPOT!!! Charis and I got some really cute career clothes for cheap! Everything was $3.99. :) Then all of us girls and some friends went to see "Soul Surfer"...I think we all bawled our eyes out,  but it was fun to chat over appetizers and then go to see a movie together as none of us do that on a normal basis. 

We then spent the evening preparing for today, as it was jam packed full of activities. 

Austin had hid Keira's basket in our closet last night, as he had always grown up with the basket of goodies hidden. She found it quickly once we told her to look for a "pink basket". We then bribed her into getting ready for church quickly by saying she could have a chocolate egg if she was good. If it weren't for the fact that bribery catches up with you, we might do that everyday! She was sooo good at getting ready this morning! I snapped a few quick pictures before church, as I figured I wanted some photos while the outfit was still intact. :) 

We then headed to the Resurrection Breakfast at church. I LOVE this event each year! Although it is WAY too early I love to go as it is a great time to reflect on Jesus rising from the grave early in the morning!! HE IS ALIVE, and I am so thankful for that! If he were not, he would not truly be GOD! Keira thought it was fun as she got to have juice and chocolate donuts. :) 

We then went to church service after that. It was PACKED today! All 4 of my grandparents came into town, which I love! It reminds me of growing up when they would all come into town for Easter. My dad had a great sermon which was challenging to Christians, and also had a great Gospel message in it for anyone who was not saved! During church Keira went to "Toddler Time" which is like Children's Church. One of the boys had brought LIVE CHICKS, and she thought that was the coolest thing ever! She also made a pop-up Easter card, and had lots more candy (you can see that is a recurring theme!!)

After church we went to my parents for our annual Easter dinner. It is so fun to get together now, as we are not all in town all the time. We had a total of 15 family members there, so it was a great time of catching up with Grandparents, siblings, etc. Mom made a HUGE honey baked ham with the bone in...she was a HIT with everyone! :) 

This evening we headed to my in-laws for a dinner with that side of the family, and an Easter egg hunt for Keira and her cousin Kensley, who is 18 months old. Austin's side of the family is WAY different than mine, but we have a great time as well. We had fun just catching up (Kensley's mom is expecting again, so she was fun to catch up with) and the girls were adorable looking for eggs. It was nice just having two and having them both be little. They would sometimes walk right over an egg, then see it and both going running for it...missing 5 others right it front of them. Keira started saying all their colors as she picked them up. "Red, Pink, Blue, Lellow...etc". 

Ama Lea (Austin's mom) got both of the girls Easter baskets. Keira loves to play on the "rocks" at their house. When she says "rocks" she actually means the floor of their shower, which is a pebble bottom. It is the funniest thing, she will play in there forever! So, that was the logical place to hide the baskets. As soon as Ama Lea said she had a surprise on the "rocks" Keira took off for the shower! In her basket she got a "GOOORGE" monkey that makes noises, and some new movies, "Goorge (Curious George), Bonnie (Barney), and Caillou". Those were her favorites out of all the loot she got. :) Kensley is crazy about Elmo, so her whole basket was Elmo themed. At the end of all the festivities Keira wanted to "Help" so she and Papa Teve did all the dishes, so cute!!!

It was a great end to a busy day, celebrating first Christ's death on the cross for our sin's, and next his resurrection from the grave"

My facebook status (that I stole from someone else) sums up Easter perfectly: 

"Easter is not about a cute little bunny that gives you candy, in fact its much better. It's about a Savior who suffered a horrible death for my sins died came back to life and ascended to heaven so someday I can share eternal life with my father who loves me more than anyone ever could. Thank you God for sending your son Jesus Christ to die for my sins."

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Ellie Diehm <elliediehm@gmail.com>
Date: Sun, Apr 24, 2011 at 11:14 PM
Subject: 18 pictures for you
To: ellie.diehm@powerdnn.com


You have been sent 18 pictures.


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I am Leading a Double Life

Hello Friends!
I have been meaning to post each evening, but have been too tired after a full day. Right now Keira is napping, so I am taking the opportunity to post quick! :)

We are getting into a new routine this week with me being at the office every other day, and then home on Tues/ Thurs. It is definitely a change of pace for us! You will laugh, but I almost feel like I did when I was on maternity leave...everything is a bit out of the norm, we are trying to establish a schedule, and it will take a bit for things to settle down. I am really enjoying the new schedule, but it is stressful for me, just because it is different. I am establishing new routines, finding out what is expected of me, and learning a new job.

It is a weird feeling for me because I feel like I have a "normal" life every other day- when I get up, put on a business outfit, grab my coffee, drop Keira off, and head to the office. That is our routine, and I have it down so well. I like being home, but the "being a business woman" one day, and the "being a sweat pant wearing mom" the next day is going to take some getting used to for it to feel "normal".

I learned after about a day of being home that I NEED to have a schedule! Otherwise I end up wasting alot of time. I am naturally someone who loves to have a gameplan, but can roll with the punches and be flexible, as long as I had a plan to start out with.
SO...that is what we have been doing. I have been making a schedule each evening before bed of things that need done, activities, and work for the next day. Then I try to loosely hold to that schedule. It helps out so much, and makes for a much more productive day, and a calmer/happier mommy!

Our typical schedule is shaping up like this:

8:00/8:30-Get up and get going for the day. Keira eat breakfast and watch Curious George while I do devos and check work email for anything that has come in overnight (as I usually check it right before bed).

I usually try to plan a morning activity to motivate us to get up and going. It also gets us out of the house, we get to see friends, and do new things! This week we went to the Bounce House with friends. Keira had a great time playing with her playmates, and I had a great time chatting and spending time with a close Christian friend who is such an encouragement to me!

I plan to do trips to the library, zoo, Omaha Children's Museum, park, and friends houses. I usually try to plan our outings for the week by Sunday, so that we have it planned out in advance.

Then usually after our morning activity we do a quick lunch. Keira then naps from around 2:00-5:00 and I usually do work for my actual job while she sleeps. It allows me to catch up on stuff that at the office I get interrupted too much to focus on.

Austin is usually home by 5 and we make dinner, and do whatever activity we have planned for the evening!

Thus far I am REALLY enjoying being "home" because we are not just sitting at home, but rather doing things with others. I do have less time than I thought I would though, as I am usually doing a Keira activity, or working from home. That is ok though. Austin and I both agree that I am staying home more not to be caught up on all the chores, but to spend quality time with Keira, so that is really what I am focusing on....although that mountain of clean laundry in my family room REALLY does need to get folded (one of these days!)

Today we tried multi-tasking a bit: I spent the morning around the house, playing with Keira and doing housework. I then had a business lunch, and then went back and picked Keira up for naptime. It worked very well, I liked having a bit of both worlds in one day. :)

Tonight we are planning to make Easter Egg Rice Krispy Treats. I will let you know how they turn out, I think it will be a fun activity to do with Keira and Austin...we all really like to cook/bake together, so it should be a good family evening. :)

My Mini- Me

Well...this is what Keira looked like this morning. ADORABLE! She insisted on wearing her hat to show "Ama Nane"

First though, she wanted to put her shoes on "my a self" Not only did she need to put them on herself, she wanted me to leave the room. With attitude that is hilarious she sweeps her hand and says, "Go Away Mom, Go Away" She then follows me to shut the door so I can't be in her "Woom". I wait about 30 seconds and then knock...as I am ALREADY running late, like always. I crack open the door and she says, "HANG ON mom! 2 minutes" all the while having the attitude of a 16 year old cheerleader and raising her fingers to show me what "2 minutes" means, with huge eyes that show she is "serious".

Wow. My mini-me has arrived. :)

A Great Day!

This post will be short...as I am trying very hard to stay on task and be disciplined about going to bed early (which for me is anytime before 1 AM). :)

I have a bunch of different things that I want to blog about including:

1) What Keira has been up to lately....she is now 26 months old and FULL of ATTITUDE! However, that will wait for another post.

2) I also want to post about our CRUISE that we just got back from this week. It was a wonderful time with my hubby and friends, and I would love to take another one soon! :) However, I left my camera at my moms...so I will wait to blog about that until I can post pictures as well. :)

However:
Today was a great day and what I am hoping is the start of a great new schedule. :) This week I started my new position for work and have consequently switched over to being home Tues/ Thurs (although this week I will be at the office on Thursday). At the end of Monday I had a pile of stuff to do and I almost broke down and said that I would just come in on Tuesday. However, I was originally supposed to switch to this schedule 2 YEARS AGO...when I first had Keira. I kept feeling guilty for not being at the office, so I switched back to full time at the office voluntarily after about a month. Now (2 years older and wiser) I have realize how quickly my little Keira is growing up, and where I want priorities to be, and I realized I needed to just not go into the office today, no matter how much I felt like I should. So...today I stayed home! We had a great morning, Keira ate breakfast and watched Curious George and I checked my work email ( I HAD to do that at least). Then we ran to the mall to return some things, and then fixed a lunch and took a picnic to the park with Austin over his lunch hour. I told him that I felt less stress than ever before when I wasn't at the office because I just didn't worry about know every little thing that was going on. It was GREAT!! Then I put Keira down for a nap and work for a couple of hours while she slept. I honestly think it was a fairly productive day all around! :) I honestly feel so blessed right now. This is the schedule I have wanted for over two years...where I could work and be a vital player in the company, but still get to stay home some too. I know that it will be alot of work as I have to manage my time carefully, but I feel that I can do it...with God's help of course! This is honestly probably the first weekday where I have been home since Keira was born and NOT felt guilty. It is a great feeling, and I am hoping the sign of contentment and that this is the right thing for me and my family currently.

Tonight we met with our small group and then us girls went to share the gospel with a lady who we have been serving for about the past 6 months. We were anonymously given her name, as she had cancer and no family around to help her. We have been taking her meals/ doing yardwork etc. We always had the goal of sharing the gospel with her, but had never really had a chance to do that, so we set up a time tonight to go and share with her. I was REALLY nervous as it was definitely out of my comfort zone. It was someone we knew, but not very well, and we were going to talk to her about the most important thing in the world. I am usually very willing to talk about anything but I was nervous about this as I wanted to make sure I did a good job, and said the right thing. I have always heard from other people about how it is amazing how God works when you just step out in faith and share. It was SO cool to see this for myself tonight. God totally opened up the door and we were able to share briefly with her, leave some Gospel information, and also invite her to church...and I think she is going to come as she is LOOKING! It was amazing to see how God answered. Please pray for her, as we plan to follow up with her via email, and also have a cookout with her in July. This was a great personal growing experience for me as well, as I now already feel less awkward about sharing in the future! :)

Well...that is all for now, sleep tight friends!

Now I am updating my blog via my phone! :)

Test Blog Post from my Email

I am messing around to see how I can post from my email so I hopefully post more often!

A Keira Update...LONG overdue

Hi All-
Just to warn you, this post is going to be a bit lengthy...I have been wanting to catch up on Keira updates, and finally got around to it. This part of my blog is mainly so I can go back and look at the things she has done, as I know I will forget, so please don't feel obligated to read this whole post. I am sure that you all do not think my child is quite as smart and charming as I do! :)

To start with:
Keira's 2nd birthday party (which occurred 2 months ago) was a great success! :) The theme was Pink and Puppies, and was alot less expense and stress than the first party. Austin made her cake, and Leighanne and I spent ALOT of time working on a puppy jello mold that turned out adorable. She had a lot of fun playing with her little friends, and got spoiled rotten with lots of new toys. One of her favorite being the Barbie ATV that Ama Lea and Papa Steve bought for her. She calls it her "bike" and loves to ride it in the bank parking lot across the street!

Another thing that Keira and I love is our cuddle time at night. We have made a habit of sitting and rocking, reading books, etc. for about a half hour before she goes to bed. I LOVE this time, as I get to relax at the end of the day, and pretend she is a little baby again. She always looks up me and pleads to rock by saying, "Mommy...gock a bit" :) She loves to read "GOORGE monkey" books (Curious George)....I think 1/2 the reason she likes these is because they are some of the longest ones that we have! haha!

She also likes to practice her songs at night. We have been teaching her Sunday School songs that I learned when I was little...it is funny how those things come back years later! Her two favorites right now are "Who's the King of the Jungle" (because she LOVES to act like a monkey and blow bubbles), and "My GOD is so Big"....which she also loves for the actions!

She has also been learning to "obey" which is a term that Ama Nane (my mom) uses with her quite frequently! I normally say "listen" but she has picked up on "obey" from Grandma Jane. If you ask her about obeying, she normally begins her list of people that she should obey...starting with mommy, daddy, Ama and Papa, and usually ending up with friends such as Thomas and Levi. She has quite the list of people to obey!

One night I was rocking her to bed and she just kept saying the cutest things!!! First of she said, "Ama Nane...My naughty!" (which is her way of saying that she was naughty for Grandma Jane). She is SO honest, it is hilarious! She now has a habit of telling people "My naughty" even when she hasn't been. At least we know she has a sensitive conscience! :) She then went on to talk about Daddy who was at class that night. She looked up at me while putting her hands on both my cheeks and said, "Daddy at Tass....my miss him!" It was the most precious thing, and just about melted my heart. Needless to say, I couldn't resist, and let her stay up to see Daddy a bit when he got home that night! :)

She is also very big on saying her prayers at night. She will remind me by hollering, "PAY MOMMMY!!!" if I start to walk out before saying them with her. I have made a habit recently of not only praying with her, but asking her who she wants to pray for each night. It is so fun how she always comes up with a different person/ group of people. I can tell what she is thinking about, based on who she picks. It is normally someone who we have seen recently, and the people that she categorizes with them. For example, last night I asked her and she said, "Nennon, Mia, and Mia Mommy"...which are some of the people in our small group. None of them had been at our house, but another couple from our small group had been at our house that same night. She is great at knowing what people are together, and who their kids are. :)

Keira recently is very interested in what Mommy and Daddy do in the day when she goes to Grandma's house. She knows that Daddy work at the "Nank" (bank) and that she gets "Huckers" (suckers) when she goes to visit. She even knows which branch is his, and that the other one in town is his bank, but not the one he works at. She also knows that Daddy normally wears a tie to work each day. One Friday she was up early, and saw Austin getting ready to walk out the door. She noticed he didn't have a tie, and went frantically running to the bedroom saying, "Daddy! Wait, a tie for Bork!!" He tried to explain to her that he didn't have to wear a tie on Friday, but ended up just taking it with him, and she was having a breakdown that he would not take it to work. TOO FUNNY!

A week or so ago, she got to come to work with Mommy for a little bit one morning. She was so funny as she walked right behind me, and did exactly what I did. She was SO excited to come to the "ossice" (office). I walked in and leaned around the corner to the conference room where some of the guys were meeting. I said, "Morning!" and kept walking. She preceded to do the SAME thing...including leaning her head in, saying "Mooring" and keep walking. They all busted up laughing, as she seemed to think that she was the newest employee on payroll! :)


She does a VERY good job of talking now, saying 4-5 word sentences all the time. She can say pretty much everything, however her name still sounds like, "Tia". Austin and I have actually made the mistake of calling her Tia instead of Keira because she calls herself that SO much! She also says, My, instead of I/me when she is talking. She only uses one tense, and that is "my". :)

She likes to watch sports with Daddy, but thinks that all teams are "Huckers" (Huskers). No matter what sport is on/ who is playing she will stand and scream at the top of her lungs, "GO HUCKERS!!!"

Her favorite drink right now is "Bah-berry milk" (strawberry milk). Most days she thinks she is TOO big to drink out of a sippy cup, so she insists of sipping it out of a normal cup, or on some days a plastic wine glass! She is quite particular in picking out her eating utensils! :)

She is getting better at playing with other kids and sharing, although her favorite phrase is "My HURN!" (my turn)...I say that we are making progress, at least she know what a "turn" is! :)

We are noticing just how BIG and non-baby she is getting, as we are slowing getting rid of all her baby type habits/ things. She has not had a Paci since November!!! I thought we would never get rid of that darn thing, but Austin was an AMAZING dad and broke her of it when I was gone for a week in November for work. It is so nice not having to keep track of one of those things! :)

We are also working on potty training, but not vigorously. I have decided that I am not really a fan of the whole process, so we are going to take it slow, as I really do not feel like having potty training horror stories, if at ALL POSSIBLE! So far, she is doing really good for how little time we put into it. She will tell me sometimes if she has to go, and we will put her on there. She will also usually go anytime you set her on the potty, as she gets two M&M's...and likes to work to get those as often as possible. :) We just need to work on being more consistent, so that she not only is going on the potty, but also NOT going in her diaper! :)

Well, I was going to post one more thing about her 2 year old appointment, but it is late, so we will save that for another night! :)