Growing, growing!

I am loving my time at home with my sweet son. Tomorrow he will be one! I am treasuring these moments of one on one time with him. Especially since we are about halfway to the time we will welcome Baby #2! These are times of growth... as our boy gets bigger, in our family, and in The Lord! I am so excited for this next season that is quickly approaching.

Christmas time is here [photo post]

Thankfulness

I am thankful that I was able to spend 5 days in Indiana visiting my family for Thanksgiving. It was nice to relax. While we were there I was able to start working on my t-shirt quilt with my mom [finally]!

Dinner of course was great! My mom prepared all her usual dishes and I was happy to help by making all the pies and trying out a new recipe for rolls!

{Apple Pie Before going into the oven}

{finished product!}

{rolls setting out to rise}

We drove through the night and arrived back home around noon. It was a long and tiring drive. We were able to bring home lots of left overs! Here is our happy little boy enjoying some turkey!

Also, I have been trying to work on replenishing my Etsy Shop: Kreations by [k] as well as working on Christmas gifts. Here are a couple of items that I listed, thanks to my lovely sister who was willing to model for me. I am excited to be posting more as I finish them! Check them out!

An Update on Life

It is officially winter! We have snow on the ground (that hopefully won't melt), the Christmas tree is lit, and of course our utility bill just increased by $100... yep, winter must be here! I have a love hate relationship with this season. Love the snow and the joy that comes with the Christmas season, but can't stand the windy days that give you chills even when you are bundled, and of course I never actually appreciate paying my heat bill. On the bright side, I am thankful to be living in a home that has heat, even if it can be a struggle to pay.

The past few months have been kind of rough as our income has decreased substantially.  Thankfully we have not fallen behind on any bills.  We have had to put over $100 into each of our cars, which has not been fun. I had a leaking gas line in the engine area (not something to put off fixing) and today we brought Jarrett's car in to get the tires rotated so it's ready for our trip next week and ended up having to put new tires on his car. At least I have been putting extra into savings!

We are also approaching the 3rd trimester... that means Baby will be here in 3 months! We have been working hard to hang sheet rock and get the room painted, now we just need to get the carpet put in. I am hoping to be done at one of my jobs the end of January, this will save us gas money, and since I only work 17 hours a week there, we won't be losing too much income... AND I have been saving up my paid time off that we will be able to get once I'm done! My other job I will be working at through February unless I am told otherwise, but so far it has been a good pregnancy, so we are praying that no complications arise.

After the baby comes I am hoping to be a stay at home mom. We realize that this will be tough, but do not want to have our child in day care. We have been continually sharing Shaklee, as this is how we are hoping to help support our family. Please take a look at our website! I have also taken time over the past month or so to pick up a hobby that had been pushed aside a long time ago.

As I will be taking the spring semester off and finishing my A.A. next fall, I figured I would have more time to have a hobby since I am not going to be studying and working. So I have been knitting and crocheting A LOT! I have mostly been making Christmas gifts, but in between I have also been making some items for the Etsy shop I plan to open sometime after Christmas (hopefully in time for the new year!) I will keep you all posted and let you know when it officially opens. I plan to have several knitted, crocheted, and other handmade items for sale!

Oh, and I also plan to blog more once the new year starts...maybe it will be a resolution :)

Wake Up!

I just wanted to share this. We would love to help you make a difference in your home and the lives of your family. Let me know if you have any further questions or check out our website!

Baby: 20 weeks

We went in for an ultrasound yesterday!
Our baby is 12 oz. and the heartbeat was 148.
Going back in 3 weeks because Baby was uncooperative and would not position to get all measurements needed. That little stinker.

(I'm so in LOVE...)

Announcing...

Yes, I have become a horrible blogger! Between school, work, and stuff to do around the house, I don't seem to find time to update my blog... I haven't felt like I have had much to write about though. I stayed away from my blog for a month or more on purpose to avoid the temptation of the very exciting announcement of BABY SCHOTTMULLER!

(Baby @ 8 wks! I am now about 16 wks!)

We are THRILLED for the arrival of our little blessing in March 2012! The preparation is a little overwhelming as we currently do not have a place to put Baby, but I have faith that it will all be finished in plenty of time. I would LOVE advice from any mothers out there as I prepare to enter into motherhood. 

Oh and by the way, no, we are not going to find out if Baby is a boy or girl :)

weekend wrap-up

Today I returned home from a wonderful 2 days in the cities.  What a blessing this trip was.

I got to spend hours with my dear friend Catlin - what an encouragement she is! I have really been struggling lately with how I view myself.  I looked in the mirror and truly struggled to see BEAUTIFUL.  It was so saddening to me with how much I struggled to believe this with all my heart.  On our drive down to Bethany Church, she challenged me to come up with 3 things I love about myself. Man was this hard!  I was wonderful to spend time with a girlfriend and actually talk about things.  On Monday morning she and I went to Forever21 at the MOA and I bought a new wardrobe for very little money.  This is the first time in a LONG time that I have tried on clothes and actually felt good and excited about buying them, actually, this is the first time I have bought clothes for myself in a long time because I struggle so much with how I look.  God really opened my eyes and changed my heart in SOOOOO many ways.

Bethany Church was amazing, as usual.  Pastor Matt challenged us on helping the poor. Another eye opener and something laid on my heart. Check out his sermon!  I love how he is speaking to himself as well as the congregation.

We spent the afternoon at Ryan and Noelle's home sharing fellowship.  There were so many young married couples there, many of which are starting families.  We were able to talk about marriage, home buying, parenthood, and adoption.  What a rich time!

I ended my time in the cities with my sister-in-law, Raschelle.  It was nice to just relax and enjoy some time laughing and eating pizza and fro yo.

Praise the Lord for a beautiful time [despite the temperatures and humidity] and safe travels.

FAB Friday!!

So excited to have the day off my my hubby today! We are getting caught up on cleaning our house. LONG OVERDUE! Laundry, dishes, bathroom, etc! I am so excited to use all my Shaklee cleaning supplies in full force! They are WONDERFUL! 

I am hoping once the rain passes we can run to the driving range. I am learning to golf this summer! It is coming along pretty well I think. Then we are off to the fish fry! In northern Minnesota, every Friday night at every restaurant, there is a fish fry. I love to go to the Wilbert in Cotton. My mother-in-law works here and it is delicious!! 

Also this weekend I get to spend with my dear friend Catlin. She was in my core and was one of my room mates at the Honor Academy.  She was here for my wedding in August to do the reading and be my personal attendant and I was able to see her at another good friend's wedding in October! So excited to see her for a third time in less than a year :) We are heading to the cities to go to church at Bethany on Sunday and then hanging out with friends. It is going to be a wonderful girls weekend out :)

(pic by Laurel Lee)

I am also looking forward to getting coffee with Steph @ Sharing the Pages of Life. This will be the first "blog friend" that I have met!! I am also excited to hang out with my sister-in-law, Raschelle!!

This is definitely going to be a FABULOUS weekend! Hope you all have a fabulous Friday :)

I got my blog made over by Kelly's Avenue Designs! Check out her page - she is offering 20% off a full blog design through June 15th!! She is AWESOME to work with!

House Update: On Wednesday I helped install another new window in our home! The glass is so clear, and we can actually open them! 5 down; 2 to go... it is coming along! 

house project & other things

Well... it has been over 2 weeks since I last blogged! YIKES... Please bare with the long entry.

Nothing eventful has really happened over the past 2 weeks. I have not been going to school and only work 2 or 3 evening per week. I have been trying to clean my house, which I don't necessarily feel motivated to do most days... so I just putts around doing laundry and washing dishes.

We have been making progress on our home! This summer project is replacing all our windows and residing. We currently have 10 windows in our tiny home. One was replaced in October after a golfball went through it in August. We order 7 new windows - 2 of them are going to make more space for future cabinets in the kitchen an a coat rack in the entry way. 3 down; 4 to go!! And 2 sides of our house are torn down to the tar paper, leaving a LARGE pile of cedar shake siding piled on a tarp in the corner of our yard until we get a dumpster. So excited to get this all done!

We have lots of remodeling plans with our home and it is quite the adventure. I try to be patient through the whole thing, but it is not something I can do on my own! The flooring is missing in some places, we do not have dry wall up in many spots, my kitchen is a horrible use of space, and my oven only works half the time. This is frustrating to me, especially the kitchen because I LOVE to cook... so thankful to be getting a NEW kitchen next spring!

(my multicolored house - the back was red and white)

I have also become a Shaklee distributor. My mom thinks I'm trying to see how many companies I can become a distributor for... Mary Kay, Herbalife, Shaklee... I know, I know, its a little extensive. Mary Kay is something I am still trying to work at after over a year, but am just not very successful with. Herbalife I am only a distributor so I can get the 35% discount to buy my products. And this new Shaklee thing...I am VERY excited about! I started using the cleaning supplies last month to support a friend who has recently become a distributor. If you spend $30 you can become a member for FREE...so I did. Now I absolutely LOVE the cleaning supplies and was able to become a distributor with out paying a fee. How wonderful! I am excited to see where this goes. I am passionate about making my home a healthier and safer place for my family and I want to share it with others!!! Praying for the business to grow and help support our family that will be expanding someday in the future while being a stay-at-home mom.

Friday!

It is FINALLY here... This has been such a long and stressful week of VERY little sleep for me.  First week of clinical in long term care, an endocrine exam on diabetes melitus, a 3 pages paper to finish up, fixing my errors on my prep from this week...and today starting my prep for next week! It is a never ending cycle!! But it is now April and that means only 6 more weeks of school then its SUMMER!!

This afternoon I will be spending time at the nursing home making my assignments since I am team leader this week. Then off to a long shift at work.

Thankfully I have the weekend off :) Spending some much needed time with my hubby is on the agenda as well as cleaning my house! Saturday evening we are going to our friends' house (Seth & Renee) for dinner and hang out time! Sunday is church and then time with my in-laws; my sister-in-law will be in town too!! So, it will be a pretty laid back weekend, hopefully a bit less stressful. 

I have decided what April's give away is...

(Satin Hands in Vanilla Sugar!)

Also, 15% off all month. Stock up on anything you might be needing, or get a new "look" for Spring and Summer. 

Here is how to enter:

-follow my blog

-and leave a comment saying why you want it!

Pretty simple :) I will be doing my drawing on April 15th! And MAYBE there will be a second give away...we will see what the response is and if sales are good. Help support me and my husband as we are remodeling our house...I hope to make some extra money so we can do more with our house this summer. I am also wanting to take up one of my passions as a part time business from home, but right now finances and resources are the major problem! Praying for guidance 

busy, busy, busy

This week has been VERY busy for me with school. So I have not had a chance to blog. And tonight I have to study... so this will be a short one.

I spent the weekend with my brother-in-law, sister-in-law, niece, and nephew since they were here from MD for a wedding. I miss this already and hope they can move back to MN soon :) 

(pic of niece & nephew from my phone)

School has been crazy and stressful so far this semester. I am hoping to do better on my tests and bring my grade up because right now it is just discouraging. I could use some prayer and encouragement in this area if you think of it :)

I got the last 2 books in the mail from the series by Karen Kingsbury that I am reading. So excited to finish them!!

I also ordered more MK stuff that just came out this season. I am excited about the new products, and building my business. If you want to hear more about the opportunity or are interested in supporting me and pampering yourself - email me! 

Well, on a note of getting things in the mail... Today I got my copy of "It Started With a Blog" by Steph Page. I would recommend checking out her blog. She is a new blog friend of mine and the sister-in-law of a dear friend from the Honor Academy. She is so encouraging and I cannot wait to meet her in person!!

(click here to check out her blog & devotional)

Well, I'm gonna hit the books till my wonderful, handsome hubby gets home from work.

Fabulous Friday & the Weekend

I'm joining my dear friend Ria @ Life as a Wife! for FABULOUS FRIDAY!!

Today my to do list consists of:

-washing dishes/cleaning my kitchen

-laundry

-trip to Target :)

-grocery shopping

-lunch w/ Jarrett at the Mexican restaurant

-making dinner (might have company, but hubby works)

-painting my nails! something for ME

-oh...and reading my book 

Tomorrow: I get to watch my niece and nephew! I am so excited to see them... I haven't since our wedding back in August. My brother-in-law and sister-in-law are coming up tonight for a wedding that he is in tomorrow. Everyone else works, so I get the kids to myself for a couple hours until my hubby and father-in-law get off work and join me. I am excited for the time to spend with family :)

(Justin & Annie and their kids)

(me & my niece at the wedding...she was ADORABLE)

(one of my favorites of my niece & nephew)

Sunday: We plan to go to church and then I am going to do some studying and hopefully have a Skype date with my sister while Jarrett is at work. Then we are heading to my in-laws again for the evening. Maybe I will bring groceries and cook dinner since my mother-in-law unfortunately has to work.

YAY for weekends off work and NO school :)