My parents are in town to visit. Read: I have not changed a diaper all week because my mom finds it enjoyable. Totally Huck-Finned her on that one.

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I reached 100 likes on Facebook. I am pretty excited about it. Thanks to all my wonderful fans :)

Newsflash: Catholics are super in favor of all Americans having affordable and fantastic healthcare. We love that idea! It saves lives and keeps people healthy…something everyone deserves.

Newsflash: We do not support healthcare that also kills unborn children and forces people to participate in activity that they find morally objective.

Let’s get those things straight. Ok? Thanks.

Oh, and I have a serious question for some of you: Why do you feel it is ok to support a healthcare plan that tramples on another’s beliefs? When you fight so hard for equal rights, why does that not extend to Catholics? Like I said, this is a serious question I am looking for answers to. Leave a comment, please.

 

This week I made two blankets, a scrapbook kit, party invitations, three shirts and painted my toenails. Big thanks to Mama and Papa Parker on that. Those activities would take me approximately one year and 360 days without your help. Crawlsy keeps me busy.

Sorry these aren’t incredibly interesting this week. I have been a lazy piece this week because I have been dumping all parental responsibilities onto my parentals and not feeling guilty one iota. Nope.

For more Quick Takes, visit Jen!

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I’m typing this on my new Mac Book Air. Yup. We have been saving up for one for some time now, and a wonderful man named my husband took me to get one on Wednesday. I am so loving it. It is light. It is fast. It is beautiful. It is mine. I will be blogging so much more because of it. That means I will need to free up some time by ignoring Ellen or something. Just kidding…but I am excited for nap time.

Our birdies on the balcony hatched. So adorable. I keep checking on them. I don’t want them to grow up and turn into scary birds.

I walked around all morning looking like this the other day. I must have rubbed by eyes right after putting mascara on. Ellen didn’t even say anything. How rude.

I passed the MN written driving test. It was pretty hard, no joke. A friend told me to study, so I did, and it totally paid off. You’ll be glad to know that you’re only allowed to miss eight questions and I did just that. I am a rule-follower. And, I did all of this while wrangling a squirmy, hungry baby. Also, after I passed, I realized I forgot my marriage license so I couldn’t apply for one of the driving variety. Egahhhh! Mike met me there with the docs and was my hero. Thanks, dear.

I haven’t read this entire blog series called The Biblical Response to Feminism, but I can’t wait to finish it. I have a feeling I’m going to like it.

 

I’m attempting to teach myself how to create digital scrapbook elements. Does anyone have any good resources (print or online) with tutorials and what not?

I made my own breaded cheese sticks yesterday. They turned out nothing like the pretty Pinterest picture (so it goes) and ended up being little pools of cheese with breading mixed in. It all tastes the same going down though, right? So, if you are looking for a recipe for cheese puddles, please let me know. I’d be glad to send you my culinary genius.

For more Quick Takes, visit Jen!

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Nothing. Nothing. Nothing gets me more upset than trouble at the DMV. Nothing, I say! Mike and I finally went to get our MN driver’s licenses today only to find out that the 468 different types of documentation I brought weren’t good enough. It took every ounce of my energy and slowly counting to ten to convince myself that it was not this poor guy behind the counter’s fault. Then, when he said, “Oh, don’t worry. It’s not a big deal!” (with a smile. jerk-ish), it took my generator back up Catholic goodness energy to not scream, “Yes! Yes it is a big deal!” If this was not an election year, this would not be happening. I would have happily put it off until we moved again. Happily.

To top it off, I’m not all that sure I’m going to pass the written driving test. I took the practice one online and failed…a lot. All of the questions have to do with distance and times, and well, I just don’t think about how many extra seconds it takes to pass a semi-truck on the freeway. The answer is 3-5, not 5-8 as I kept guessing out of forgetfulness.

Ok. On to more upbeat things. I made homemade tortilla chips yesterday. They were garlic city – just the way I like them. I would love to learn how to make more of my favorite snack foods. Does anyone know of a good website or book?

Ellen started a summer “school” class on Tuesday. She is the oldest one in the class by about 9 months. She looks like a GIANT. Also, now I am the mom who has to keep saying things like, “gentle,” “nice baby,” “that is not your toy,” “that is not your bottle,” “those are not your toes,” “please don’t lick her.” You know, the youshe.

Do they make flexible walls (not baby gates) that you can set up in your apartment/house to contain your baby to a certain area? You know, like a cage, but more socially acceptable.

Mike and I just finished watching the entire series of The Big Bang Theory. We hated it. Bazinga! We loved it.

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I think I might actually start meal planning. I put it off because I thought it was not for me. It was too restrictive. And it is. I’d rather just go up and down each isle and buy what looks good, then make whatever I’m feeling for dinner. But, turns out that’s a little pricier than we would like it to be. I may have spent almost $800 on groceries this month :/

Do you know what my biggest dream right now is? To be a famous blogger. That’s kind of embarrassing, but I really love this little space I have.

Ellen has decided that I am a regular old standup comedian. She thinks it is particularly funny when I tell her “no”. This should be fun.

Mike bought be some hanging plants for Mother’s Day. I got a Mexican Heather and a Verbena plant. Some unidentified birds have taken up residence in the Mexican Heather and built the most perfect nest. I do NOT enjoy birds all that much, but their nests are so cool. (And, for the record, it’s not the birds themselves I hate. It is more the possibility that they are going to get stuck in my hair. Is that weird?)

I’m on the hunt for more blog readin’. If you have any faves, would you be a dear and let me know? Thanks.

Mike and I are going to a homeschooling conference tonight and tomorrow. I don’t know if homeschooling is going to be the right fit for us or not, but we want to start checking it out now before it is the Tuesday after Labor Day 2016.

For more Quick Takes, visit Jen.

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I don’t do these enough anymore. I have too much other stuff to talk about on Fridays. I feel like I just wasted a wish with that one. Sorry.

In case you are waiting with bated breath for the response to this post, rest assured, it is coming soon. I am waiting for a phone call from Fr. John Riccardo who, if you are not familiar with him, is kind of a Catholic rock star. No big deal.

Ellen had her first taste of sorbet the other day. I had every intention of waiting until her birthday, but she had other plans. We went to Jamba Juice after people-watching at the lake on Saturday. I turned my head to grab a napkin and somebody decided she knew how to use a straw now. Hm. Convenient when it’s something you want. Inconvenient when you would rather mom just held a bottle for you so you could drink like a gerbil.

Ellen also went to her first park on Wednesday. Gasp! Oh, please. It’s not that big of a deal, right? She was too little last year, and this year she can’t really do anything but get sunburned and eat wood chips. But, I was feeling social, so we made our way out there.

I am in the market for a big stick. While we were at the park, I was pushing Ellen in the bucket swing. I am not kidding when I say that there were 5-year-old BOYS lined up asking if they could take turns pushing her in the swing. They just thought she was so cute..which she is…when she’s 30. This also happened at the library the other day. Sub boys wanting to push her in swing for boys wanting to touch her hair for that one.

I still haven’t found a good thrift store in this area. I don’t want to go all the way into the city to thrift. Besides, all the good stuff is already taken by the cool kids.

I CANNOT figure out why this is happening to all of my shirts. This is just a sample of, let me assure you, many. It’s right below the belly button region. If you have any textile knowledge that you can share with me, please do. And, here’s a hint, the holes are up too high to be caused by a zipper.

(Sidenote: I just reread all of these because I like to proofread and stuff. I didn’t mean to sound so ultra-snarky. Maybe I’m just in a snarky mood.)

For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!

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Baby Girl started teething last week. She is drooling like crazy over everything we own. Good news is, she likes when I wipe her mouth; she thinks it’s hilarious. Bad news is, she is getting older! I guess it had to happen sometime.

Ridiculous trip to the grocery store earlier this week. I had a doctor’s appointment first, and then Ellen got hungry. So, before we went to the store, I decided to stop by Mike’s office to feed and change her. It is right across the street from the doctor after all. When I get there, I learn they now have a policy that family members cannot visit, so I got to feed Ellen sitting in the backseat of my Buick. Fine. Whatever. Then, off to the grocery store where I always lose track of time. It is weirdly fun for me. Ellen starts to get hungry again so I rush through the checkout so I can get home to feed her. No rushing through check out. No going home. Instead, I waited in line for 20 minutes while the guy behind me talked about how much Michigan (the state) sucks, and then went to go to my car only to find it was pouring. Now I am wet and I have a crying baby. I ditch the groceries and just jump in the car with my soaking wet baby and proceed to feed her. As I am doing this, a man tried to steal my groceries. I gave him the stink eye and he walked away. As I am feeding Ellen, I realize I am the worst. mom. ever. I forgot to change her at Mike’s office/my car. She has literally peed through her reusable mega diaper and her pants onto my pants. Poor girl was sitting in pee all.day. Kill me now. But, she got her revenge when she was done eating. Ya’ll know she puked all over my favorite blazer. Luckily, my husband called and said he was coming home from work early. My knight in shining armor met us in the parking lot, loaded the groceries in the rain and saved the day. Grocery shopping fail. Husband win.

I am completely in love with this video. You will be too.

This past week, I took a photography class. It was the best instruction I have ever received in taking photos. I plan on taking the more advanced classes in weeks to come. Hopefully this will mean better photography for the blog. If you have any good photo tips, please let me know in the comment section!

Mike and I had our first night out without Ellen. My parents invited us to a Tigers playoff game. I did a really good job, too. I only cried a squirt, and I only talked about her from the first inning through the eighth. I think Mike about had it when I asked him how many times he thought Ellen had tooted while we were gone. I’ll get better, I promise. Keeping our marriage strong is really important to me. That’s why…

I am joining a moms’ group at church. I believe we are meeting just moms at first, but then we are deciding on what times would work best for our husbands. The point of the group is not just to meet as moms for a break, but also to grow spiritually as mothers as well as wives (with our husbands there!). I am very excited about this, and I only wish it would have happened sooner!

For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!

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