Not Me Monday

While watching Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve show on Friday night I knew all of the artists who sang their songs.

Josh and I did not keep looking at each other saying, "I've NEVER heard of him/her/them!"

Nope, not us!

We totally keep up with the times, and the artists, and the styles...

The styles...

Man, we are on top of the styles lately.  So, there's no way that we kept giving each other the, "What in the world is she wearing?!" look.

Nope, not us!

You can call me with any fashion advice you have.

And speaking of keeping up with the times...

We totally did not have to open up the Urban Dictionary just to figure out what the artists were saying.

Nope, not us!

I mean, everybody knows that a slizzard is "a 'dirty south' term for intoxicated" or "a very slutty lizzard".
Come on!  Who doesn't know that!

And I already had the recipe for sizzurp in my recipe box in the kitchen.  But for those of you out there who may have lost your copy, here it is:  Promethazine w/Codeine syrup, Any fruit flavored soda and A jolly rancher.  There ya go, now you're good to go flying in your G6.  Oh, you don't know what that is?  It's "slang for the Gulfstream G650".  You should really keep up with your aviation makes and models...


We are SO going to be those hip parents who our kids talk about to their friends!

____________________________________________________

Have you ever looked at the Urban dictionary?  It  is SO funny.

For example, you can search the meaning of your name and see what comes up.

Tasha means "lookin good, very stunning and always glowing. a tasha is a beautiful creature who gets alot of unknown attention"


Josh means "He is a fun loving guy really funny and can make anyone laugh.He is very quiet at first and seems shy but when you get to know him you will fall in love.He has very good style and always looks handsome.He also always smells really good :)"

I'd say that those are pretty accurate, wouldn't you:)

But I wouldn't know that because we weren't just on there the other night.

BUT

Just for my enjoyment, since I am still technically on bed rest, would you do something for me?

Stop reading this and go search your name and come back and tell me what it says.  It'll be"off the chain"!

Looking Forward - 2011

Just like every year around this time, Josh and I have been talking a lot about what we hope the New Year has in store for us.  You know, what we want to accomplish, what we want to work on, who we want to become...little things like that.

It's so funny that we feel like we need to wait until the turn of a New Year to begin things!  For example, this October I felt like I wanted to dive deeper into the Word so I decided that I wanted to read through the entire Bible in one year.  I thought, "Perfect, I'll start on January 1st."  How silly, to wait 3 months to start something that the Lord had laid on my heart to do THEN.  So, I went ahead and began, against all OCD tendencies to begin tasks in an orderly manner. *sigh*  I could of at least waited until the first of a month instead of beginning in the middle of one, ha!

So, I wanted to evaluate how 2010 went and then go from there.

2010 - How Did I do?
1-Getting up early - I can honestly say that 6:30am has become my new best friend.  I can get so much done before the kids get up and it helps with #5 and #6.
2-Getting to bed on time - This was kind of hit and miss.  We did pretty good until this fall.
3-Grow in my prayer life - What a year!  I feel like I have learned so much.  The learning never ends though!  As a matter of fact, you can start your year off right by coming to Journey Church on Saturday, January 1, 2011 from 12-2pm to pray, sing, worship and rest in the presence of the Lord.  Come join us for Set APart!
4-Date Nights - We have mastered the "At-Home Date Nights".
5-More time with the kids - I am learning how to be a better mommy more and more as time goes on.
6-Limiting computer time - I could still use some work on this one, but I'd say I've gotten MUCH better! You'll really have to ask Josh to get a true answer I suppose.  Hey, I even gave it up for a whole week last spring!
7-Start homeschooling - Yup!  We're doing it.  Areyna is reading great so far and Zeke, well he's a sweet boy:)
8-Exercise - ...see what had happened was...
9-Bless my husband - again, you'll have to ask Josh about this one;)
10-Write a family devotional - Check!  It'll be here in just a few short weeks!
11-Try something new - I've gotten much better at doing things out of order and differently.  For example, I have actually looked at menus in a restaurant instead of getting the exact same thing every time.  That counts right?!
12-Give more - Yup
13-Run this race strong - Hopefully I can say that each year I have held strong to the race the Lord has laid before me.

When I thought back through this past year, there really isn't anything more important to me than my spiritual life, my marriage, my children...

So, when Josh asked me what my goals for 2011 were I didn't even have to hesitate.  Here is exactly what I said:

"I want to do exactly what I've been doing, only better."

That's it.  I don't have a TOP 10 LIST of things I want to accomplish this year.  All I want to do is be a better vessel.  I want to be exactly who the Lord has created me to be and get better at it as I get closer to Him!

Which is why I want to - 

 continue to get up to meet with my Lord early in the morning

which means getting to bed at a decent hour

so I can grow in my prayer life

so I have enough energy to get creative on our date nights

in order to love and get to know my kids more

which means staying off of my computer more.

I want to get better at a structured school time for the kids

which will include exercising and being active with them

which will, in turn, give me energy and motivation to bless my husband

and be more in tune to know where the Lord is leading us

in giving and life direction.

Hey, and maybe there's another family devotional around the corner?!

Oh, there is one other little thing I'd like to add to my list...bring our little girl home from Uganda!

Set A Part - From All Else, To God, For His Glory

THIS WEEKEND AT JOURNEY CHURCH

Join us this weekend as we close out 2010 and enter into 2011.  

Three days, three opportunities to end right and start right. 

FRIDAY NIGHT - 6:00pm to 8:00pm and SATURDAY AFTERNOON - 12:00pm to 2:00pm 

A flexible free floating opportunity to close out 2010 and open 2011 with prayer, music, communion, and the reading of selected passages of Scripture. Come to both or come to one. Come by yourself, with your family, friends or small group. Come whenever you choose and stay for ten minutes or two hours, it is totally up to you.

 SUNDAY MORNING - Both Services: 9:15am and 11:00am 

Join us at one of the two services for a unique worship experience 

as we set ourselves apart in 2011 from all else - to God - for His  glory.

Josh and I will be leading in worship.  

Come join us as we strive to bring this new year in the right way!

A Look Back At 2010

I thought it would be fun to look at the TOP 10 POSTS that were viewed on my blog from 2010 to recap.

Here they are from most viewed to least:

Foreshadowing Of My Little Preteen - I think this one is about to be deleted so all the perverts searching for "Preteen" images and links will stop looking at my little girl!

And Then There Were 4!!!!

How Can You Afford To Adopt?

The Lord Gives and The Lord Takes Away

Not Me Monday

"...and then he told me my note was cheesy." - A Note To The Worship Team

"BIGGER Than The Bunny" - PreOrder Today

Traveling With Cloth Diapers

It's OK For Christians To Say "No"

Because I Now Know It's Value

What We're Having - Roasted Red Pepper and Walnut Pesto Over Whole Wheat Pasta

Last night we tried a new recipe and it was so DELICIOUS and healthy that I just had to share!

Roasted Red Pepper and Walnut Pesto over Whole Wheat Pasta

Yield:  6 Servings

• 2 (16-ounce) jars of roasted red peppers (without salt), drained
• 1/2 cup of your favorite salsa
• 3/4 cup walnuts, toasted
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 teaspoon pepper
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 12 ounces whole wheat pasta

Toast walnuts in a 375 degree Fahrenheit oven for about 5 minutes.

Pulse until fairly smooth.  Slowly drizzle in olive oil until well blended.  Cook whole wheat pasta (2 ounces dried per serving) in boiling water for approximately 10-12 minutes.  Drain reserving 2 tablespoons of the cooking water.  Stir pasta and water into warmed sauce and serve.

Note:  Always save a little of the cooking water to mix with the pasta as the starch in the water will allow the sauce to stick better to the pasta.

You can find other yummy healthy recipes at AccentHealth.com/recipes!

Story In Pictures - It's In His Blood

 Music just runs in Zeke's blood

 He loves to write music with his daddy

 He'll make anything into a guitar...

 whether it's his new sword he got for Christmas...

his electric guitar...

 a box (because we forgot his on this particular trip:)...

 his acoustic on stage with his daddy...

 or a land peg from the ground.

He's raising the Via family band and doesn't even know it!

This, That and The Other

I'm sitting here in my chair peering outside as I watch my husband cut firewood outside.  It's his new addiction lately.  I sure don't mind the warmness of the fire throughout the house.  Besides there's just something kind of sexy about a man chopping wood:)

Oh...um...anyway...

I deemed today a "Mandatory Nap Day".  You may remember, right before the surgery we were playing in Charlotte and before that was my Nanna's funeral in CO so my kids had been on the road for weeks.  When their bodies let down, the tears flow continuously and the attitudes scream out.  So, in order to keep my sanity, I am sitting in the quiet, once again, while their little bodies rejuvenate while they sleep.

We got home yesterday afternoon from the Via Christmas up in Roanoke, VA.  I know we always give numbers, but if you could only imagine this house full of people and children.  Just because I can, here are the numbers again...17 adults, 12 kids - 5 and under, at least 2 preggers and 2 dogs...sheesh.  It was a lot of fun, but after being home alone with Josh for 10 days on bed rest, to say that it was overwhelming is an understatement.  My emotions were kickin' in high gear...

This week is "First-Time Obedience Boot Camp".  After being away from Josh and I, the kids are having a horrendous bit of a hard time obeying.  I'll tell you more about the creative way we are bribing our kids trying to help our kids learn to be kind to each other and obey mommy and daddy right away.

I had my follow-up appointment this morning from my surgery.  My pregnancy test came back negative, which is a good thing.  I didn't think I'd ever say that.  That just means that my pregnancy hormones have gone down to at least 2000 and I am out of any more danger.  They did tell me that I am at a higher risk of another Ectopic Pregnancy the next time around, so if/when we ever get another positive pregnancy test I need to be seen immediately and monitored closely throughout the pregnancy.

As I sat there in the waiting room this morning, watching all the pregnant bellies coming and going, I couldn't help but feel jealous.  But at the same time, relieved.  Jealous that I no longer had our baby in my belly, relieved that I don't have to start all over with the baby stage,  jealous that everybody else is getting pregnant around me...and on the first try (or so it seems), relieved that I don't have to be uncomfortable and nauseous for the next 9 months.  Sad that I'm not pregnant...relieved that I'm not pregnant...  I am trying to remember that our story is different than everyone else's story.  We are just using this to press us on in our adoption and just work toward the little girl whom we are waiting to hold in our arms soon.

On a happier note...we had our family Christmas today.  I racked up on the kids gifts at this summer's Kid's Exchange.  They loved each of their presents.  Josh got me the most awesome gift ever.  He made my blog into a book!!!  Well, actually just 2010...we'll have to start saving to get the other years printed.  If only I didn't write so stinkin' much, ha!  It is so neat to look through it, though.  It was the PERFECT gift:)

What was your favorite Christmas gift?

From Us To You

We are in Virginia enjoying, the snow with our three kids, my jammies, lots of naps, family and food!

Today it is Christmas Eve here at the Via house as we wait for the last couple of families to trickle in so we can celebrate Christmas all together.  All 17 adults, 12 kids and 2 in-the-belly kids:)

Josh and I got here on Friday night around 11:30pm after the awesome Christmas Eve services at Journey! It was wonderful to cuddle up next to our kids as they slept quietly.  They have all been pretty clingy, seeing as it had been 10 days since we'd seen them.  *sigh*

I just wanted to wish you all a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS!

We all have so much to be thankful for...

It's Christmas Eve!

Come on out and join us at Journey Church

3500 Spring Forest Rd.

Raleigh, NC  27616

December 24, 2010

4pm and 6pm

My doctor has cleared me to play 3 songs:)

So, I'll see you there!

Let's celebrate the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ!