Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Merry Christmas!



Hope everyone had a great holiday season. This year me and Michael stayed home and had our very own Christmas morning! We had John's presents set out on the floor so he could find them easier. I put away all his other toys so he wouldn't be tempted to just grab his favorite ball and do his normal thing. He was so cute. Michael helped him open his presents and then we opened ours. We had a sweet morning despite me feeling a little sick. I was coughing a lot and my eyes were hurting really bad. Thankfully, God healed my eye later that morning! :) Michael made Cranberry-Orange muffins from scratch! They were so delicious. John took an almost 3 hour nap that morning and then we headed out to church (a little late due to the long nap) where we celebrated our Savior and King, the Son of God who came to us in the unlikely form as a humble baby.

Christmas Day I was so grateful for my life. So many of my friends were going through some very hard times. I spent most of my day praying for them and thanking God or what I had been given. I am so blessed to have my healthy and super-spunky child, and a sweet husband who loves me despite all my issues. 

After church, we spent the rest of the day with Michael's parents and sister, Hannah. I am also so blessed to have them as in-laws! They are so fun and I really enjoy spending time with them. I got to Skype with my family later that evening. It was a complete and satisfying Christmas :)


Roseman family tradition: Hannukah Game Championship!
Tonight is the last night of Hannukah and I am down 5-2! This means war!
Winners:
2008 Michael
2009 Me and Michael tied
2010 Me!! 
(He might've let me win since I was hugely pregnant)
2011 yet to be decided... it's not looking positive for me.

John and Michael sitting on the couch watching Despicable Me. Michael got it this Christmas from my sister and her hubby. Had to capture this moment: John is sitting on Michael's shoulders while gnawing on his teething toy. I love these guys! I just noticed this morning that we have another tooth that has cut its way through! Up to 5 teeth now!

"What do I do with this thing?"


Cranberry-Orange Muffins with Orange Glaze. I posted the recipe on the "From the Kitchen" page. Enjoy!
May everyone have a safe and Happy New Year! Our days of watching the ball drop are over for a little while. 
Sleep is kinda more important :)



Monday, December 19, 2011

Happy 1st Birthday, John Isaac!

Homemade Cupcakes & Cream Cheese Icing (Michael made the icing)
Why can't I touch the candle??
He hated his hat and bib!
John loves chocolate :) I sneaked some chocolate chips in them
"Mr. One-derful"
An attempted family picture post-cupcake. He was sugar-high and just wanted to walk around outside forever. So getting him still to take a picture wasn't going to happen. We tried.

Wednesday, December 7, 2011

fatness and the end of the story

 Have you ever read a book where you feel yourself getting anxious? You're on the edge of your seat. I tend to play with my hair and scratch my head nervously. And here's the kicker- You know the end of the story! You've read the book before or you've seen the movie. Why is it then that we are so anxious? I suppose it's just because we are caught up in the story. And that's a good thing. It's fun- I enjoy a good book. This was me, about a week ago as I finished reading Lord of the Rings. It was my first time reading it but of course, like most people, I had seen the movies too many times to count. I knew the ending. Frodo lives to tell the tale. Sam marries his sweetheart. Aragorn is crowned King. But I was so engrossed in the story, honestly stressed out as Frodo and Sam climbed the last steps to Mount Doom. I knew the ending but I was anxious. My Heavenly Father whispered...

Monday, December 5, 2011

Melaleuca Monday : Sol-U-Mel

I'll start off by saying this: I wonder if my Attain weight loss shake still counts as such with the whipped cream and chocolate sauce on top. I'm gonna go with No. And yes, it's a little weird that I am "eating" a weight loss milkshake since it's 50 degrees outside AND because I'm so hott just as I am, but it's all I wanted for lunch. Something cold and chocolatey. Probably TMI, but I'm feeling a little crampy today for the first time since John was born and it's helping my stomach feel better. Thank you, breastfeeding for delaying my body's natural "cycle". Need I say more? Okay, now for what you've all been waiting all week for! (sure) Melaleuca Monday! So fun! So exciting! So informative!

Sol-U-Mel stain remover
 So this last week I cleaned all nine coffee pots from church. You know, the kind that you pour the hot coffee into and then it just pumps out into your mug of choice. Well, I cleaned them and I had to remove our old labels from them. Elizabeth from church provided me with Goo Gone. I was thinking, "Okay great. That'll probably work fine. Plus it's free and I won't have to use any of my precious Melaleuca stuff." Wellllll, Goo Gone was stupid. It didn't work very well even when I scrubbed and scrubbed. AND I didn't have any gloves so I could feel my skin burning while I used it. So I of course got out my Sol-U-Mel. Well, of course it was awesome! It took off all the goo without all the scrubbing. Not to mention the fact that it smelled so much better than Goo Gone. It just worked! My hands were so grateful.

Sol-U-Mel has the highest concentrate of Melaleuca Oil in it than any other cleaning product. It is also made of biodegradable ingredients and contains no bleach, ammonia, or phosphates. It doesn't harm your skin or the surface your dealing with. Like most of Melaleuca's cleaning products, it comes in a concentration so that if you want to use it as the concentrate, you can! Like I did with the coffee pots. OR you can buy a spray bottle and mix your own water with it and use it as a deodorizer and multi-purpose cleaner. Store brands charge you for watered down cleaning products. The folks at Melaleuca figure you're smart enough to add your own water. It's a family favorite! And I'm so glad I didn't have to scrub for hours this last week.

Thursday, December 1, 2011

Thanksgiving and such


 Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving! We did! We had the "traditional" Thanksgiving breakfast at Michael's grandparents house with the whole family. Homemade waffles, fresh coffee, and deer sausage. It is always the BEST! And then later on we had dinner with our very good friends, basically family, Don and Brenda, and their two kids, and our other friends/family Jeremy and Jessica Vess:

Here's a video of all of us (The Roseman's and Vess') during a warm-up  We ended up having to put Michael in the back of the room during the recording because his voice carries so well.
He's a human-trumpet in so many ways. :)

Anywho, we all hung out and watched the Thanksgiving Charlie Brown Special, which I had never seen! It was pretty great. It was so nice to be around my closest friends again. I have kinda lived in a hole since John was born. But for crying out loud, he's going to be a year old later this month! AHHH! Time for me to get out of the freakin' house! :) I'm workin' on it

In other news, the Jar Buddy is officially patent-pending! We are now in the process of marketing to different companies. Hopefully somebody will be interested within the year. A year from now, we have to front a bunch of money to get it actually patented. But, it's all in God's fully-capable hands, so I'm not sweatin' it.

Here's a few shots of Michael's homecoming (from work) yesterday evening.
And a couple from Thanksgiving, too :)
Enjoy! Thanks for stopping by!


Daddy's Home!
Hi Dad!
John's loves his Daddy


John actually wasn't interested in Thanksgiving food!
Me and my sister-friend Brenda Sue! She is due at the end of January :)

Monday, November 28, 2011

Melaleuca Monday : Cellwise


Antioxidants are our friends! I had no idea how important they are until I started reading into some of the amazing products at Melaleuca. I'd heard about free radicals and antioxidants but I honestly didn't know anything about them. But free radicals are bad-news-bears (ooh can you tell I'm a mom?) Basically, they attack the cell and can cause some pretty major damage (premature aging and even cancer) if you don't provide your body with the antioxidants it needs to counteract them. Cellwise helps give your body what it needs to live a long healthy happy life. They contain important antioxidants like Vitamin C, mixed Carotenoids, mixed tochopherols (like Vitamin E), lycopene, olive extract, and grape seed extract.

We keep these in stock at our house! It's one of those things that you might not feel like it's making a difference (not like the Vitality for Life vitamins) but you know, in the long run, it'll definitely pay off.

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Joy Ride

John got a front facing car seat, thanks to Aunt Sarah! Sorry- there seems to be no audio. :(
But you can tell, he reacts in true John-style. He took it all in and was inspecting his new chair and pondering the impact that this new chair will have on his life's perspective. Very serious little boy. Me and my mom-in-law, Wendy, drove around the block. She's the one driving so that I could get a video without crashing. It's a little long and mostly boring if you don't LOVE John! :)

In other news, my invention, the Jar Buddy, is finished being made into a virtual prototype and is ready to be marketed to potential buyers/manufacturers. Now, it's totally out of my hands and totally in God's hands. I'm just praying for favor with the companies that will be shown this earth-shatteringly-genius invention! :)

Monday, November 21, 2011

Melaleuca Monday : Luminex

My Monday's have usually consisted of cleaning the house and watching Once Upon A Time on ABC's website. Love that show. We don't have cable so that's the only show that I follow. But I am adding another fun thing to my Monday regimen: Melaleuca Mondays! I figured it would be an easy way to remember to blog about my favorite products, available exclusively at Melaleuca!

This week's product is Luminex
Luminex is a St. John's Wort supplement that also has Griffonia seed, Vitamin B12, and folate that help to support the neurotransmitter, serotonin, which helps regulate your mood. So, instead of resorting to chemicals or hormones to get your mood under control, Melaleuca developed this patented blend of natural ingredients that helps your body gently regulate itself naturally. How great is that?? That's a fancy way of saying that it gave me my sanity back! :)

I have been taking it for about a month now and I can definitely feel a difference! I give glory first and foremost to God for giving me such abundant grace for every day, for helping me deal with my emotions, and helping me respond to challenges with love and patience. I would not make it without Him. Absolutely.

But I do believe that God knows what we need- He knew that I needed this! :) Me and my family have benefited from me being less like an emotional roller coaster these last few weeks. :) So, Thank You God and thank you Melaleuca for making Luminex! :)

Saturday, November 19, 2011

Look Who's Walking!

John is officially walking! This was taken just a little bit ago at Tastebuds in Salisbury, NC. If he gets any cuter, his face might be kissed into smithereens! :)

Friday, November 18, 2011

morning sun

The path of the righteous is like the morning sun,
shining ever brighter until the full light of day.
Proverbs 4:18
*acrylic on cardboard... yup... I'm fancy...


Wednesday, November 9, 2011

generations of beauty

I think I have finally found a blog background that I will keep! Sorry for the design whiplash some of you may be suffering from. This one here totally fits me! I love quilts. They make me smile. They make me think about generations. I know, quite a jump. Think about it though.
So many women (do men quilt? I think not.) have handed down their lovely quilts from generation to generation. I can remember the quilt my own mother has in her house that was made by several women, all in community with one another. Each one stitched their signature in a piece of white fabric with the date "1932" underneath and then artfully joined them all together amidst happy scraps of fabric to form this beautiful heirloom. From one generation to another, the art, whether the artwork itself and/or the artisan skill, is passed on. Ah, quilting... It's just a beautiful tradition.

Monday, October 31, 2011

through the fire

Here's what we've been up to:

Michael is waiting on an interview with the City of Charlotte for a job that would help our family A TON. And it would be doing what he enjoys and is good at (well, he's good at pretty much anything he does... besides putting up his clothes in his closet.. :) .. besides that... )  But he seems to be enjoying his new and improved "steady" job batching together chemicals to make creams and lotions at a lab close-by. I say "steady" because he gets 40+ hours a week which is GOOD, a vast improvement from the other contractor type job. But he's been pulling 12 hour days a lot lately. It's a good job... but it would be really nice to get that job in Charlotte. Pray that he'll hear something this week.


 I have been hanging out with John-John and I've also been reading Lord of the Rings in my spare time. And yes, with just one child, I still have some time to spare :) I was always daunted by the size of the LOTR, but I'm totally hooked now.  It's a reeeaallllyy good read! Puts Twilight to shame, even though I have to admit that I really enjoyed reading those books too. It was like Teenie-bopper soap opera in book form. But LOTR is infinitely better written. I'm kinda at a good pausing point in the book though. I think this week I will spend more time going over "The Healing Path" by Robin Pasley. Isn't that a grand idea?? Inner healing vs. leisure reading... I know, it's a no-brainer.

Lastly, John burnt his hand on Saturday!! We built a fire. (photos below)  I was making breakfast when we heard a scream that I would rather not hear again. He had climbed up on the hearth and placed his hand on the glass. Thankfully, we had only just closed the doors so the glass wasn't hot enough to cause more than a minor burn, probably less than the heat of an iron. He only has a couple red spots on his hand. I freaked out though (in a not good way, at Michael, who said he would watch him... we have two slightly different parenting styles, we are finding out.... this whole parenting thing is a hard learning process. It has definitely put our marriage through the fire) So anyway, John is fine. He took a nap later that morning and he woke up and seemed to not even remember anything.

So that's the scoop! Later Taters!



Thursday, October 13, 2011

and the journey began

I'm up and at 'em before 6am and I don't care. John has been sleeping like a champ the last few nights and I have finally had time for myself. It's a wondrous thing. I even got to see Michael off to work this morning. It's always nice to have a few minutes alone together (contradiction in terms? eh.) in the morning. Somethin' about it really rejuvenates our marriage... It's the little things, I guess.
My coffee this morning is half.caf with pumpkin pie spices added to the brew basket. It's pretty yummy.
Since last week, God has really started me on a journey of self-discovery and inner healing.

Saturday, October 1, 2011

mercy triumphs!

I've got the afternoon off!
My wonderful mother-in-law has whisked away my child for a few hours and I am loving it!
I had a Melaleuca party and now I'm just sitting at the computer, the windows are open (it's a BEAUTIFUL Fall day!) and my heart is humming with excitement and gratitude of what the Lord is doing in my life.

Firstly, any time I am getting ready for my parties, I get so excited about Melaleuca products! I know it sounds totally lame, but this stuff is seriously awesome. [ notice the new page for my business partners! ] And then the actual party comes and I get to talk about how this stuff totally rocks... It's not a bad part-time gig. :)

Secondly, I am really grateful that God is working in me and changing me.

Friday, September 23, 2011

abide.

Just a quick word today:

I've been really trying lately to remind myself of God's love for me and others. This morning I had to run a quick errand for my wonderful hubby and I was praising the Lord (My spirit told my flesh to praise). I was finishing my errand and this lady totally offended me over something super tiny. I got irritated and said a few of my favorite choice words. Not to her. I did tell her to "Chill" though :-/ Anyway, I got back in the car and was stewing over it all. Then I realized how ridiculous it all was. That's what happens a lot to me when I'm trying to kill the flesh to let my spirit live (lose your life to find it...) the old man who loves sin and darkness and offense stands up and says, "Not so fast!" So what did I do? I laughed at myself. And repented for being willing to worship God but unwilling to humble myself and truly remain in a place of gratitude for what Jesus has done for me (and for that lady, though she might not know it!)

Saturday, September 17, 2011

welcome Fall! (I think...)



Happy Saturday!
Michael is working so I'm flyin' it solo today. I miss him. But it's good money when he has to work on Saturday so at least there's ONE good thing coming out of it! :) He's my bud, though, so I'll be super glad when he's home. :)

It's getting fall-ish outside and I'm not sure if I'm totally thrilled. Yes, it means hot tea, warm sweaters, fuzzy-slippers, fires in the fireplace, holidays right around the corner, pumpkin pie... BUT it also means that John and I will be couped up inside. I didn't realize how much I rely on our outdoor adventures for those trying moments when John is totally bored and yelling at me to do something about it! I'm going to have to buy him socks (we only have one pair that fits him) and maybe even some warm baby-boots. That means... shopping... which means.... going out... in the cold.... wearing... SHOES! Like... real shoes. No more sandals... :( Oh well. We will deal.

Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Birthday fun!!

Here's the scoop:


Our beloved "Afro-bushes" are getting a MUCH needed trim/hacking! One down, one to go! :) Thanks Michael!!
John turned 8 months old on the 18th! I can't believe how fast time flies by!! He's graduated to climbing the stairs and feeding himself (not altogether successfully... but he wields the spoon like a champion spoon-fighter, often lifting it up in determination and triumph)

Tomorrow is a big day!

Friday, August 12, 2011

Pickles!

Mine and Michael's first attempt at making pickles! John spent most of the time asleep on my back in our Boba carrier. So! It was a family effort!


Don't cook me! I'm too cute to eat!!

Monday, August 1, 2011

Movin' on up!

Well, the time has come for our little John to have his own room. We rearranged our rooms yesterday and last night wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. I still had to get up and check on him a few times but from 3-6 there were a few times I heard him fuss and I just waited a few minutes and he was quiet again. So all in all... I think it was a good call. He had gotten to the point where he would wake up and see us laying there, he'd stand up and wait for us (me) to come "play" with him. :) It was very cute... but we all need some sleep! So now, he's got his own room and Michael and I are upstairs in our loft. I didn't take pictures of THAT because it's not very cute right now. :)


Friday, July 15, 2011

Jack in the Box!


So, prior to John's birth in December, we were wanting to call him Jack.
I figured it would be the perfect nickname for him! John Isaac -J. Isaac - Jaac - JACK!
But when he entered our lives, forever changing it, he was a John.
However, for the purposes of this post, he will be Jack once again...

Jack in the Box!


No, he didn't crawl in there himself. But he is standing up on his own! He had a blast hanging out in there :) Kids and boxes... they make a good pair!

Thursday, July 14, 2011

social injustice

I haven't written in a little while because I haven't had anything to say.... nothing besides, "Yay! John is crawling and pulling up on stuff already!" ... that's the baby update... now for a little bit of my heart and a prayer request.


I just finished watching God Grew Tired of Us about the Lost Boys in Sudan.
It was a really great documentary.
I love documentaries.
Ones about social injustices are especially moving. I cried.
Then I thought, I can get upset about stuff like that all day long but what GOOD is it if it doesn't move me enough to actually do anything!? I know I know... you can get really depressed if all you do is think about how screwed up everything is....but I didn't even pray for Sudan. I got a prophetic word for the nation back in 07 and I prayed for them then but the point is: am I making a special effort to acquaint myself with the suffering of other people so that I am stirred to pray (because I truly believe that's the BEST thing I can do... prayer warriors are world changers) or am I that content with my blinders that I will live my life every day and not give a damn about anybody else. Yes, I said Damn. And yes, I'm afraid that's where I have lived for the last few years.

Thursday, June 23, 2011

the news 6.23.11

If this is hard to follow, please excuse me. I just woke up from a nap with John... He woke me up with his little hand on my face... so sweet.... of course then he head-butted me... but still... so I'm a little groggy...
What's new... John is growing of course! He is in his Tigger stage and he just wants to bounce all the time! Which is cute... and exhausting... so we bought a bouncy chair for a whopping $12 at a local consignment store. Sweet!


Here's some more cuteness--

Wednesday, June 8, 2011

Jelly Fish Donuts??

Hello friends! As I write this, my loving husband is making me bacon and an omelet. Is he a good man, or what?! So amazing... here's the scoop:


Here's John fighting a nap and his mobile :) We're giving cloth diapers another try since he doesn't seem to be getting as many diaper rashes lately. Which is exciting because cloth diapers are fun!! and best of all, they are reusable! I feel so green :) He's been sleeping 6/7 hours at night and I'm starting to feel alive again :)

Saturday, May 28, 2011

Salisbury Saturday

We spent most of our day today in Salisbury. It was a beautiful day! We started out going by Tastebuds Coffee, because sister-friend here needed some coffee! Even if it was decaf, it seemed to help wake me up! :) And then, we were off to the Farmer's Market!

Our spoils! Challah bread, Whole Wheat bread from nice Mennonite people, Banana Bread (okay, we like bread...) Maple Almond granola, Zucchini relish, and Inferno Salsa! Yummmm!

Michael sportin' our new Boba Carrier! We love it!

Cutie-pie... he loves being outside and being around fun happenings! So many things to see!

I love this lady! She is my good friend, Neta Monroe. She makes cute bags and homemade laundry soaps. She's also got lots of cute chickens and super cute gardens. In case you missed it, she's just cute!!!

She gave me one of her bags for free! Yeah! Should I say it? It's super CUTE!

I'll say it again.... I love this lady! We had lunch with her and her husband, Rob.

I got these at an antique store. Vintage children's books for 50% off! Sweet!! I'm gonna make children's artwork hopefully with these and maybe rent a booth of my own at the market. Maybe in the fall. I'll keep y'all posted :)

Then we came home and crashed! Family naptimes are so sweet. :)

**update on baby bunny- he likes living here and he's popping around quite a bit as I write this blog. So cute! He's grown a little but he's still super little. I'll try to get a picture of him :)
We live in a Disney movie.

Thursday, May 26, 2011

the news 5.26.11

Fact:
Cinnamon Raisin bagels really stink up a pantry.
Fact:
I wanted a big bowl of my homemade gumbo last night at about 2am. A nursing mom is worse than a teenage boy... I could eat us out of house-and-home, for real!


GUMBO!! Yummy!!!!

Fact:
The garden is planted! I can't wait to sink my teeth into some fresh watermelon and make my own pickles! I've never done that before and I'm curious to see if I'm any good at it! I know they probably won't be shimmering gold and sing and dance for me, but they might be alright. :)