A thought and a prayer.

It's Rowan's nap time, but before I take my giant belly on over to the couch for a much-needed nap, I wanted to post something that I was thinking about yesterday.

Yesterday was a bad day. Plain and simple. One of those really cruddy days where you have a ton of stuff to do but no time to do it and all you want is a nap; or you have a billion things that need to be printed and your printer breaks in 5 different ways (including telling you it has a broken pipe....what the heck does that even mean?? Who put a pipe in my printer?); or no matter how hard you try to keep him entertained, a certain little man is not satisfied unless you are either sitting on the floor with him or holding him; unless you want to change his diaper then he kicks you and tries to crawl away. It's especially epic when all of these things are happening at once. You know...."those days." Regardless of what form they take on for you, you all know what kind of days I'm talking about.

Yesterday was my day. John came home and tried to rescue me by picking up after hurricane Rowan, and I ran out of the house crying all the way to Bible study. This I blame on our second child wreaking havoc on my emotions before she has even made her oxygenated debut.

We had gotten a babysitter until 8:30 last night so that I could go to Bible study and John could go to his flag football game. Needless to say, when Bible study ended at 7:30 I took it as a free gift from God to go spend some much-needed time with Him. So, off to PJ's coffee I went. And here is what came to me when I got there.

It is very difficult for me to get time with God at home. I don't just mean open-my-Bible-and-read-a-few-verses time. That I can manage. I mean sit down, focus my mind on enjoying Him, pour out my heart and really listen time. Even if I wait for Rowan's naps, I can't stop my mind from going to all the things that need to be done around the house. Something needs to be cleaned, or organized, or made ready for when Rowan wakes up, or for when his little sister gets here. Something needs to be cooked, or thawed. There's a list that needs to be made. Prayer letters need to be written, emails sent and students encouraged. Friends need to be caught up with, Bible studies need to be made, and events need to be planned. Even when I have time, I don't FEEL like I have time.

So how can I get the totally relaxed, 100% focused, coffee-shop-feel, time in Word without having to sneak an extra hour here and there when we happen to have a babysitter? Is it even possible? Am I destined to a life of falling asleep on top of my Bible, while I'm mentally making to-do lists and listening for the baby? I'm praying for help with this. Maybe it's just the season that I'm in.

There's definitely a life lesson in here somewhere. Now all I have to do is figure it out and learn it.

Goodnight doubloons and Mardis Gras things

Mardis Gras has come and gone and we're moving on to bigger and better things...like adding curtains and babies to our house. But Mardis Gras was a big deal for at least one member of our household. This year was obviously Rowan's first carnival season, and we wanted him to experience it in style. While we didn't have time to put together one of these babies for him

(although it is my dream to have a double ladder seat for our two babies next year), we did however find a special seat for him.

Well, technically my parents found it for John for Christmas. It was originally intended as a hiking accessory for our trip to the Smoky Mountains this summer, but we figured Mardis Gras was an equally worthy occasion to bust it out. Rowan LOVED it! However, the people standing behind us at the Muses parade were not as big of fans. So we lost it for the Thoth parade and decided to go au natural

and just tote him around on our hips. John did his best to teach him the proper bead acquiring techniques.

And he was successful at it for the most part. Rowan caught his first ever bead all by himself! 

Well, actually it hit him in the face and then fell into his hand, but I'm counting it! Please don't mind my slightly scary and disheveled look going on in this picture. I'm blaming it on being 8 mo. preggers. 

He really loved the beads

But definitely preferred the stuffed animals. Which we got a TON of. Well, compared to last year when we were babyless. Apparently John and I don't scream "throw me a stuffed toy" as much as our one year old. I'm ok with that.

All in all, I think it was a successful carnival season; which means we got some good beads, ate some good king cake, and hung out with some good friends. 

Next year on the Mardis Gras to do list......parade ladder, DIY tshirt, vest, and bowtie for Rowan, DIY tutu....not for Rowan. Favorite thing about Mardis Gras this year....post carnival sales at Sam's. 

Hello $3 platters

And hello my beautiful $5 wreath

Too bad they are all going straight into storage for the rest of this year. But NEXT year...oh the places they will go! :)

P90X and Chocolate Cake...seriously, that's what this is about.

This is what I did today.

I made this chocolate cake s'more thing in my microwave and then I unceremoniously scarfed it down in front of Rowan while he drank his lunch-time bottle. 

I. Love. S'mores. I saw this treat on the Sweet Things blog a few days ago (which I highly recommend to anyone who remotely enjoys food), and it has been sitting in my brain, incepting thoughts about creating an ooey gooey, melty, chocolatey, marshmallow masterpiece. 

I'm pretty sure I'm going to need to try it again because it came out significantly less melty than I wanted and a little dry. Don't worry, I'm not one to give up on chocolate and marshmallows. 

In other news, this is what John did today.

The stark contrast between our afternoon activities hit me while I was removing my molten chocolate cake from the microwave. And it really didn't seem to bother me.

My dear sweet hubby has jumped on the P90X bandwagon. Actually, it's more like a fully armored tank,  complete with rockets and nuclear weapons than it is a wagon. It is intense, and I couldn't be prouder of him. I literally had an asthma attack yesterday watching him do the workout. Ok, well maybe not literally, but in my mind, I was definitely having trouble keeping up.

Now, I am 100% on board with playing the supportive wife role as John journeys through 90 days with his torture machine. I'm cooking healthy, not eating junk food in front of him unnecessarily, keeping Rowan from getting trampled by weights and flying limbs etc. But, sometimes, pregnant Ashley absolutely dominates supportive wife Ashley and today was one of those days. So I didn't feel too bad standing in the kitchen, eating my mug full of chocolate cake s'more, watching John suck wind through the last grueling minutes of his workout (just so we're clear, John was "sucking wind" after like an hour of a workout that I'm pretty sure would kill me....literally....someone would have to pick me up off the floor and resuscitate me.....probably using those paddle thingies......(shudder) I always forget how much those things creep me out). Anywho, I fell in love with my husband all over again when I heard him yell from the other room, "No Tony, YOU pick up the pace." I just smiled and enjoyed another bite of cake. 

Ahhhh the things I love about Saturdays at home. :)

T-Minus 5 weeks!

We are getting so close to baby #2 making her big debut that I can almost smell the baby powder and Boudreaux's Butt Paste. Or I forgot to wash my hands after changing Rowan. Let's be real, that's probably likely. Whose idea was it to have back to back babies??

I drift in and out of the nesting phase (yes that is a real thing), which pretty much means I go back and forth between preemptively cleaning our house, and just trying to keep up with the mess of the four people currently living here. Tiring? Some days yes, some days not so much. Today is a not so much day. You know, one of those very rare days in which I'm motivated by the thought of organizing the baking shelf in our cabinet. That's right, baking shelf. Bet you never thought I'd have one of those, huh? Anyway, it's one of those days where it feels good to get stuff done.

So I've been thinking a lot about our babies' rooms. We'll be able to start setting up and decorating this weekend which I'm super excited about! I feel like we have some fun ideas, it will just be a matter of making them happen....and finding a cost effective way of doing that. Thrift store anyone? Here are some thoughts we've had so far:

1. We love yellow.

Which means it will probably end up on a wall or two.

2. We love this tree.

Bought the shelves awhile back, now we just need to figure out how to get it from this picture to our wall.

3. I have some of these laying (lying?) around...why not put them to good use?

But yellow (obviously). :)

When we had Rowan we were living in a tiny one bedroom apartment. Needless to say, he didn't get any kind of fanfare when it came to getting his room ready. Mainly because "his room" consisted of a pack 'n play set up next to our bed. Ahhh the good ole days. :) Anywho, my point is, it seems incredibly unfair for baby girl to have her own decorating scheme and Rowan to have no such thing. Therefore we are currently on the look out for baby boy inspiration. I can feel my little interior designer bones tingling (all two them). Best laid plans, people, best laid plans.

Dear John

Dear John,

I don't think it's bad to say that I was surprised at how much I missed you this weekend. I loved getting away with the ladies, but I realized all over again that your are indeed the other half of me. You are the rock in our marriage; you keep me grounded. You are a source of courage and confidence. You get me :) Thank you for taking the time to know me like no one else, to love me like you need me, and to snuggle with me at 5:30 am when your alarm goes off and you don't want to get up yet. I'll be praying for you as I wash your pink football jersey today. I know you are tired at work after a long weekend, but I am so thankful that God has given you a heart to serve and a desire to pour into other men. Thank you for being a man and driving over an hour everyday to provide for our family (even though I try to tempt you to stay home with me). I pray that you are energized today and that He gives you some sweet opportunities to represent Him at work. Thank you for being my partner, especially in ministry and ESPECIALLY in the ministry of parenthood. I hope you know how much your son missed you this weekend. He's only 11 months, and it's already obvious that he looks up to you. You already hold a special place in his heart. He must take after his mama. Thank you for being such a good daddy. Thank you my sweet blessing of a husband for being just that. I can't wait to see you tonight. In case you miss us, Rowan and I will be the loners in the stands cheering on our favorite man in pink. One of us will probably have applesauce on our face.

Love,
Ashley