Amy Scott's Thoughts

Sharing the thoughts that bounce around in my brain!

Yes, I am still here. March 27, 2015

Filed under: Children's Ministry,Family Time,Parenthood — Amy Scott @ 11:49 am

March has been a crazy month for the Scott family. It’s hard to believe the month is almost over and I’ve posted almost nothing about our happenings. I’m sad to say that after our trip to Canada, all three of us came down with colds. Jeremy was getting one while we were in Vancouver and it settled into his chest. He is still coughing and his voice is about to go… Which is kind of a bummer because we have a big event this weekend. March has been non-stop and the only rest we have gotten is because we just couldn’t move. I came down with a bad bug on St. Patrick’s day. That night I started to feel my head filling up with snot. The next three days I battled a cold/sinus infection along with a fever. I never get fevers, so it was kind of a big deal. Jeremy had to help me as much as possible with Owen. I honestly felt like dying. It was terrible. Owen managed to get a runny nose out of the whole deal, but for the most part, he has be been the healthiest Scott this month… Until today… When we spewed pink vomit all over our white couch. I’m impressed that at a year and half, this will be Owen’s first time staining our white couch. It was a hand-me-down. I know white and kids don’t go together, but it was free and we like free. Anyway, Jeremy took Owen to puke more in the bathroom and then take a bath while I attacked our couch with every cleaning product I could think of. I got up more than expected, but I don’t think our couch will ever be the same. It’s been marked for life. Poor thing. Poor Owen. Our whole morning has been a bit of a mess as we’ve battled ants in our living room and Jeremy thinks our hot water tank might have an element out. Yep, I’m pretty sure there is a black cloud parked over our house. Tomorrow is our big day of two giant Easter egg hunts and 70,000 eggs filled with candy and prizes. I spent yesterday afternoon at the church helping Jeremy get ready and I was so excited for Owen to actually be able to hunt this year. Oh and yes, we are doing Easter Eggstravaganza a week early this year. It’s a new thing and I’m excited about it. It should spread out the busyness of Easter. Our Easter weekends in the past have been pretty crazy with two egg hunts, three church services and two family events. I’m hoping that Easter this year will be calmer for us. However, it looks like Owen might not be up for kicking the Easter celebrations off with the egg hunts tomorrow. We’ll see how the rest of the day goes. Jeremy is about to take off for a full afternoon and possibly evening of Easter Eggstravaganza preparations, so soon it will just be me and the sicko. Right now, Owen is down for a nap and I hope it’s a good restorative sleep that gets him back on his feet.

Well, that’s our fun…. Busy, busy, busy, germy, germy, germy. That about sums up our lives! Oh, and Wednesday was my hubby’s birthday. I tried to not let his birthday get lost in all the zaniness that is Easter Eggstravaganza week. On Tuesday, we went to dinner at Outback Steakhouse and got chocolate coconut cream pie from Costco. On Wednesday, we had seafood stuffed salmon for dinner and yesterday we had my family over pizza and ice cream cake. We’ll celebrate with Jeremy’s parents next week, so it will keep the party going for a week. That’s the best way to do a birthday in my opinion. Make it last as long as possible!

Now for the random pictures of March!

That doesn't look like a comfortable way to sleep!

That doesn’t look like a comfortable way to sleep!

Coloring at Red Robin

Coloring at Red Robin

Remote control boat in the backyard pond

Remote control boat in the backyard pond

Owen loves pizza!

Owen loves pizza!

Watching a bunny while eating breakfast

Watching a bunny while eating breakfast

Jeremy opening his many birthday packages from Amazon

Jeremy opening his many birthday packages from Amazon

Birthday lunch

Birthday lunch

Helping Dad set up for Easter Eggstravaganza

Helping Dad set up for Easter Eggstravaganza

Just a few hundred Easter baskets for Saturday

Just a few hundred Easter baskets for Saturday

Ice cream cake and fire! Good combo!

Ice cream cake and fire! Good combo!

 

Off to Canada – Our Home Away from Home! March 16, 2015

Filed under: Family Time,Travels — Amy Scott @ 12:43 pm

It’s crazy the amount of times that we’ve been to Canada. In a little over a year, we’ve been to the Vancouver BC area three times! Owen has been quite the international traveler. Now, I realized that we are half way through March and I haven’t posted any thing until now. Today’s update will be about our weekend up north and then hopefully my next post will be everything between now and my last February post.

I guess I should start of by saying that this trip was sort of a business trip for Jeremy. It developed very quickly. Jeremy came home from work on Wednesday at 5:00pm and asked if I would like to go to Vancouver to purchase an inflatable for our church the next day. Of course, it was Wednesday so we had church that night, but it was also the Pinewood Derby, so it was a big night, full of lots of action. It also meant a slightly later night for Jeremy since after the races he would stay to take the track apart and load it up into the van for return. I agreed to this crazy adventure. Before church, I got Owen packed and booked our hotel. After church, Jeremy and I packed for ourselves. We decided that since we would be up in the area, we would stay two nights to get the most out of the trip.

Thursday morning, we loaded up and took off up north. On the way, we stopped by the church that lent us their Pinewood Derby track and returned it. After that quick stop, I met up with my forever friend, Maggie, to have lunch with her and her daughter, Summer. Lunch turned into a bit of drama when Summer got freaked out by the people seated next to us and our waiter. We ended up leaving the restaurant and taking our food to go into the mall food court near by. Jeremy and Owen were eating lunch there so we joined them. I joked with Maggie that Summer and Owen were having a lunch date. We walked the mall and let Owen run out some energy before loading up and finishing the rest of the venture up north. I always get a little nervous at the border. It seems like the border patrol are trained in integration. However, our lady cracked a smile when we told her the grocery products we had the car where cheerios and graham crackers. Gotta love snacks for a one year old! We made good time into the country and met up with the inflatable guy. He pulled it out and Jeremy and Owen gave it good test. We were able to purchase to it and load it up. Oh, I should mention that yes, we drove around in a 15 passenger van for this whole trip! How else do you transport a derby track and an inflatable? Thursday night, we checked into our hotel room and then took off for Steveston Village for dinner. Steveston is one of my favorite places in the world and the location where they film my favorite show Once Upon A Time. As we drove into town we noticed a sign about filming happening and how there might be delays. The town as completely decked out as Storybrooke. All the signs and storefronts were set up. It turns out that OUAT had been filming there that afternoon and we missed them by just a few hours. Even though the cast wasn’t there, it was still cool to see the town all set up. We enjoyed dinner and walk on the boardwalk before heading back to the hotel. Bed time with Owen was a bit crazy. Owen isn’t fond of the Pack’n’Play, so we got a king bed knowing that he would bunk with us. He did this on our last vacation and it worked okay. This time, Owen was more mobile in the bed and treated me like a giant stuff animal. Sleeping with a hot, sweaty one year old breathing on you isn’t the best sleep, let me tell you.

Friday morning we took back off to Steveston to see if they might come back for more filming. Sadly, when we arrived, they were taking the signs down. We grabbed some breakfast and made a quick stop by Waves Coffee House. This was our favorite coffee place when we last visited and it didn’t disappoint this time as well. After Waves, we drove out to Fort Langley to check out another OUAT filming spot. From there, we drove into downtown to have lunch at Go Fish and enjoyed their yummy fish and chips. Then we wondered the children’s area of Granville Island and fed the birds by the pond. Owen was only getting short naps here and there, so his mood was a bit precarious and he wasn’t super interested in all the car time. We stopped by Costco and then back to our hotel to make a plan for the evening. We walked around a local mall and then took off looking for dinner. We ended up going through the A&W drive thru because Owen finally fell into a deep sleep and we didn’t want to wake him up. Once Owen woke up, we went to Safeway to get dessert as well as we stocked up on some our favorite Canadian foods.

Saturday morning, we made a breakfast stop at Waves and took off for the USA border. Jeremy was worried about getting stopped at the border because of the inflatable. The man who chatted with us at the border thought it was such a great idea for us to buy an inflatable and how practical it was since churches like ours use them at so many events. The border patrol thought that the inflatable was super cool and we had no hassle getting across the border! By far, we had the friendliest border patrol experiences on this trip. Once we were back in the states, we stopped at the Seattle Premium Outlets and had lunch at Olive Garden. From there it was back to the church to drop of our new investment and then head home! It was a great trip and a lot of fun. I love the Vancouver BC area and each time I visit I really enjoy my time there. It was a random, spur of the moment trip, but I’m glad we went. It was a blast!

Lunch with Maggie

Lunch with Maggie

Testing the bounce house

Testing the bounce house

Enjoying Steveston being set up like Storybrooke

Enjoying Steveston being set up like Storybrooke

Leading the way on the board walk

Leading the way on the board walk

Hanging at Waves

Hanging at Waves

Fish & Chips at Go Fish - Owen loved their french fries and the dog that sat near us.

Fish & Chips at Go Fish – Owen loved their french fries and the dog that sat near us.

Feeding the birds at Granville Island

Feeding the birds at Granville Island

Saying "Later Gator" to Canada

Saying “Later Gator” to Canada

Coloring fun at Olive Garden

Coloring fun at Olive Garden

 

Finishing up February with a Family Day February 27, 2015

Filed under: Family Time — Amy Scott @ 7:33 pm

It’s crazy to believe that tomorrow is the last day of February! March is just around the bend and it’s going to be insane! We have Jeremy’s birthday, two giant Easter egg hunts, the Pinewood Derby for our Wednesday night kiddos, we are leading a Growth Group for young families, a big launch of our Downtown Centralia campus at church, the regular stuff and a few more things that I’m not thinking of at the moment (and no, that list is not in any order)! Life is full steam ahead. Because of the pace of our schedule, days like today mean a lot to me! We spent the morning visiting a local farm where Owen got to talk to chickens and pet goats! The animals were a fringe experience. Really we just went for the hot apple fritters, fresh doughnuts and apple cider! It was a fun and tasty stop. We have been to this farm in the fall during their apple season. It’s usually busy with next to no parking. Today it was calm and quiet. I might never go again during busy season since the farm is open year around. I like avoiding crowds!

After the farm, we used a coupon that we’ve been sitting on for a few months. This fall, Jeremy was given a coupon for free entrance to a local children’s museum. We have talked about going and made plans in the past that never panned out. I was determined to make it happen this month and we just squeaked it in! The museum was full of all kinds of interesting stuff for Owen to play with. He especially loved the things that involved water, balls, and steering wheels. After our exciting morning of exploration, we spent the rest of the afternoon running errands for our Downtown Centralia campus. The big launch is Sunday so Jeremy wanted to outfit the nursery with some new items. It was fun to shop with Jeremy and be along for the ride as he prepared for this weekend. Overall, it was a great day full of fun family time. While we were shopping, we picked up a slide of Owen to use inside since he obsessed with slides right now. The nice thing is this slide easily folds up and can live in the garage when we don’t want it to be focal point of our living room. Owen has been going nuts all evening – up and down, up and down! Hopefully when we combine the lack of nap time today with the extreme running off of energy, we’ll have a kid that sleeps long and hard tonight! Maybe he’ll even let me sleep in tomorrow! I doubt it, but one can hope! Here are some photos from our adventures today!

Chickens

Chickens

Petting the goat

Petting the goat

He could have stayed here for hours!

He could have stayed here for hours!

What does this water taste like

What does this water taste like?

Hanging in the police car

Hanging in the police car

Big boy going down the slide

Big boy going down the slide

Driving the dump truck

Driving the dump truck

Center stage

Center stage

Running off his energy

Running off his energy

 

Happy Valentine’s Day February 22, 2015

Filed under: Family Time — Amy Scott @ 6:55 pm

Okay, so we really didn’t celebrate Valentine’s day in a traditional way. On Friday the 13th, we went to the Valentine’s dinner at our church and Jeremy got had the opportunity to lip sync “As Long As You Love Me” by the Backstreet Boys with some of the other staff members. I’m pretty sure that he felt like this was a Friday-the-13th kind of experience. I got to sit in on their multiple practices before the big gig. It was too funny. My face hurt from smiling and trying not to laugh. Of course, it wasn’t just lip syncing. There was dancing at as well. Truly, a night to remember! Valentine’s Day was spent moving my sister and her husband into their new home. My job was to keep Owen out of the way and Jeremy was the one for the heavy lifting. My family loves the addition of Jeremy and Andrew because now we actually have people with muscles who can do stuff like move heavy objects. It’s great.

This week has been a bit of this and that. Thursday was a grand adventure… I had just put Owen down for his afternoon nap when I got a phone call from a random number. I didn’t answer but they left a voice mail. I found out it was Jeremy calling from Cash’N’Carry where he had locked his keys and phone in the car. He had a very important meeting in an hour and he needed me to drive him his spare key. He already knew the meeting needed to pushed back for him to make it time. I drove with a lead foot up to Olympia and I had to keep reminding myself that this meeting wasn’t worth me getting a speeding ticket over. I got to the parking lot and gave him his key with enough time for him to make it back for the newly rescheduled time. On the way home, I got another call from a random number and this time the voice mail was Jeremy saying he had only made it few exits before he truck overheated and he was pulled over in a parking lot trying to fix it. His cell phone was dead for some reason so I had no way of calling him back. After waiting a while to hear from him, I left Owen with my parents and went back up north to find my husband. I got to him just in time for him to finish up adding coolant to his truck and he was ready to ride. I followed him home just to make sure no more drama occurred. It was a totally crazy day and no, Jeremy didn’t make it to his important meeting. But things can be rescheduled and despite our best efforts, getting to the church just wasn’t an option. Other than the zany travels and car troubles of Thursday, the week has been pretty normal. Here are a few highlight photos.

Practicing for big dance number!

Practicing for big dance number!

Helping Auntie and Uncle move

Helping Auntie and Uncle move

Hanging at Home Depot

Hanging at Home Depot

Going for a ride in his red wagon

Going for a ride in his red wagon

Owen's new obsession is the slide

Owen’s new obsession is the slide

I see you

I see you

Playing in mud puddles

Playing in mud puddles

 

Flying through February February 13, 2015

Filed under: Family Time,Parenthood — Amy Scott @ 12:06 pm

Crazy to think that tomorrow is the halfway point for the month of February! We are flying through the month. Things have been good. Nothing too over the top crazy these days, just enjoying life. Owen’s nose stopped running for about a week and now the facet is back on. I know lots of kiddos have a off and on runny nose, but Owen hasn’t been that type of kid until now, so I’m adapting to this new snotty phase. Oh well. As long as he is well enough to go into the nursery at church, I’m cool. Here are some of the highlights of the month so far.

One of my favorite people in the world, Miss Jessica, came to visit for a few days after moving to Virginia this summer. I got to see her two nights in a row and I was in absolute heaven. However, I’ve been going through Jessica withdrawals ever since she left. I love this girl and it was fantastic to catch up with her in person about her very exciting life on the east coast.

Last weekend, we spent a day helping my sister and brother-in-law tidy up their new rental home. They will be moving tomorrow, but we wanted to make sure the house to was in tip-top shape before we got all their stuff inside. It was a fun day of being able to explore their new area and help set them up in their new space. Owen loved running around the empty rooms, especially the mud room.

One of my bigger projects this last week has been packing up Owen’s size 12 month clothes and pulling out the next sizes. Owen has been in 12 month clothes for over 5 months now. It’s exciting to have a change in the wardrobe especially as we move toward more spring type outfits, but at the same time, it’s always a little sad when I’m boxing up little shirts and pants. So many good memories in those clothes. He wore these through the holidays and through many adventures. It’s strange how attached to them I feel as I pack up the boxes. Yesterday, we went out and did some clothing shopping to fill in the gaps in his wardrobe. The best part was Owen joined us for the first store and then he spent the evening with Grandma & Grandpa. Jeremy and I shopped in Olympia with no kiddo. It was so much fun!!! Owen likes to roam the stores like a maniac or he wants to be held. Riding the cart isn’t his favorite thing (at least when I’m around, Jeremy says he does great in the cart if he and Owen are out on a daddy/son outing). Anyway, it was a fun treat to shop without Owen in the mix.

Tonight we have a Valentine’s Day dinner at church. Jeremy got roped into lip syncing and dancing to a Backstreet Boys song with the staff. I promise photos and videos of that to come! Tomorrow we move April and April into their new home so that will make for a big day and a not very romantic Valentine’s Day, but that is okay. We don’t usually make a fuss out Valentine’s Day anyway. Plus, spending Valentine’s Day with family, helping them move seems like a very loving thing to do.  That’s the new news for now! I’m sure I’ll have lots of fun to share after this big holiday weekend!

Jessica visited from Virginia

Jessica visited from Virginia

Helping clean Uncle & Auntie's new house. We move the in tomorrow!

Helping clean Uncle & Auntie’s new house. We move them in tomorrow!

Toby finally got a haircut since he couldn't see out of his eyes anymore. Now he looks like a rat dog!

Toby finally got a haircut since he couldn’t see out of his eyes anymore. Now he looks like a rat dog!

Making forts and playing with a lantern

Making forts and playing with a lantern

He has discovered the white board thanks to the kiddos are church

He has discovered the white board thanks to the kiddos at church

Owen got his first Valentine in the mail! Good thing it's from his cousin, Carson, and not a girl!

Owen got his first Valentine in the mail! Good thing it’s from his cousin, Carson, and not a girl!

While clothing shopping for some new size 18 month outfits, Jeremy felt that Owen needed a pair of sunglasses. Now they are a pair of cool dudes!

While clothing shopping for some new size 18 month outfits, Jeremy felt that Owen needed a pair of sunglasses. Now they are a pair of cool dudes!

 

An Endless Runny Nose February 2, 2015

Filed under: Family Time,Parenthood — Amy Scott @ 12:13 pm
Lunch date with Maggie!

Lunch date with Maggie!

My last post talked about how we were finally coming out of the haze of sickness and my plan to end January was a busy one. Well… That didn’t pan like I thought. The weekend was fine. Last Friday, I drove up to Tukwila for a lunch date with two of my favorite ladies – Maggie and Summer. Jeremy had a busy weekend with a work party and a Frozen movie showing at our church. Monday, Jeremy and I had a ministers dinner for work, so we went to that while Owen hung out with Nana & Papa. I was super excited because the next morning, I was going to take Owen swimming with our MOPs group, but Owen woke up with a runny nose and a random cough. I would say that Owen was right on the fence of being sick and I didn’t want swimming to tip the scale to the side of sick. We ended up stayed home. Luckily, Owen doesn’t know all the fun he missed out on, but I know he loves to swim and play in the water. It was definitely a hard opportunity to pass up. Despite the snot, I had a student come over and hang out on Tuesday night for a few hours. It was great to catch up with her. She let Owen text on her phone and make phone calls to her friends. Owen that was a blast and has been disappointed that I won’t let him do the same thing on my phone now.

Enjoying the sunshine on Monday

Enjoying the sunshine on Monday

Wednesday was supposed to be a lunch date with a good friend, but she came down with a bug, so those plans got postponed until this week. Owen’s nose was still running pretty good on Wednesday. Jeremy stayed home from church with Owen since we weren’t sure if he should be in the nursery. Wednesday night was pajama night with my class. We were going to watch a movie and have root beer floats. In the middle of pouring the root beer floats, the power went out to the two back classrooms that the girls use. My mom’s class next door was doing a pancake night and they had plugged in too many griddles thus blowing a fuse. I had to run out to the foyer to find someone who could help us. The security jumped right into helping us and soon the power was back on. Of course, I got comments from many adults on my pajamas. I was unfazed when I walked down there because I’m so used to wearing pajamas, I forgot that the rest of the world would find my outfit weird. I had to explain that our class was doing something special that night. When I finally got to playing the video I wanted on my laptop, I realized that my new laptop didn’t have the internet access code plugged into it. It’s a 40-key code with lots of letters and numbers. I had to call Jeremy for the 2nd time (after the fuse fiasco) and get the code. Once we got that to work, the internet signal wasn’t strong enough in our classroom so we had to relocate to another room closer to the router. As you can tell, it’s quite the night. Very crazy.

Texting with Lacey on Tuesday

Texting with Lacey on Tuesday

Thursday and Friday, I had plans that also got canceled due to Owen’s nose and the illness of other kiddos he was going to hang out with. This week was supposed to be ultra busy, but the germs had other plans for my family and friends. It was still a fun week though. I don’t mind things being quieter than expected. Then Friday and Saturday were around the house days.

Sunday, of course, was the Super Bowl. My parents had invited us up to watch the Super Bowl at their house. My dad has a media room with a huge TV and a large sound system that makes watching the game up close and personal. My sister and brother-in-law came as well as two other families from our church. The parents all went upstairs to watch the game and that left my mom, sister and I down stairs with 7 kids ages ranging from 1 to almost 10. It was a bit chaotic to stay the least. I munched on way too much snack food and April and I kept up with the game on mute in the background. My dad had the game time-delayed upstairs so April and I always knew what was going on before the main group of football fans. While the Seahawks were winning this power felt awesome, but toward the end of the game, we were sad to know that they had lost before the group did. We heard them cheering upstairs and we knew it wasn’t going to end well. Then things got quiet upstairs… and we knew that they knew it too. Despite the sad and dramatic ending to the Super Bowl, we had a great time and a lot fun.

Now you are all caught up on the happenings of the Scott family. Apparently Owen will be sick about every two weeks and his runny nose runs our lives. I’ve talked to so many moms with older kids that say that they remember these always sick days. It’s good to know that this isn’t odd. Also, Owen wasn’t deathly ill, but I’m always cautious when it comes to sharing germs. I would hate for our germs to infect another family. Despite the change of plans and the slower pace, I would say that we had a fun and zany week.

New backpack! We are going to use this as his diaper bag now, so Owen can carry around his own stuff.

New backpack! We are going to use this as his diaper bag now, so Owen can carry around his own stuff.

Goofing around with pillows and blankets

Goofing around with pillows and blankets

Helping Dad install more cabinet latches

Helping Dad install more cabinet latches

Super Bowl Sunday

Super Bowl Sunday

Super Bowl Sunday

Super Bowl Sunday

 

Getting Back to Life January 22, 2015

Filed under: Family Time,Parenthood,Simply Me — Amy Scott @ 3:14 pm

Only now do I feel like I’m coming out of the haze of the last month of illness in our house. I’ve been slow to re-enter our routine and our commitments. It’s amazing to me how we are nearing the end of January and I just now feel like I’m fully entering into the new year. It’s taken me a while to get back on my feet. Now that Owen is out of the woods, we are back to life and moving full steam ahead. Because there were a couple really slow weeks at the beginning of January, it seems like the end of January is trying to make up for entire month. I tend to do that. Unintentionally, I feel weird about not having commitments or not being able to keep them, so I flip everything over into the second half of the month and make that part super busy. It’s all good stuff, though, so I’m excited for some social time and hanging with friends and family, but I guess I will share more about that later – after it actually happens.

Over the last two weeks, Owen’s sleep schedule has changed. My kid who dependably slept till 9:00-9:30am is now waking up before 8:00am most morning.  You are probably thinking “no big deal”. 8:00am isn’t all that early to most of the world. Well, I am a late sleeper by nature and I was really enjoying sleeping until 9:00am most morning. I would wake up before Owen and have some time to pull myself together before he got up. Now Owen is awake before me and I’m pulling myself out of bed when I would rather keep snoozing. We’ve had a couple super late nights in the last week and I hoped that Owen would go back to his normal schedule, but no. Despite what time we put him down, he is up early. This looks like our new routine. For the first time ever, I think I’m looking forward to “springing ahead” with daylight savings time. Maybe that will rewire him to sleep a little later. So anyway, I’m tired. I’ve been staying up late like usual, but getting up earlier. I haven’t adjusted yet to the lost hour of sleep. In the grand scheme of things, this is a positive change. Owen is sleeping more solidly through the night and not waking in the early morning hours. I’m just going to have get used to the new wake up time.

In other Owen news, we were finally able to get him a haircut. It was on our “January To-Do List”, but with all the buggies, it took us a while to get it checked off. On Saturday, we took him back to the kid’s salon for his second haircut. This time it was more of a big boy haircut and not a trim. He looks like a big boy in a little body now! I miss a lot of things now that his hair is short. I miss the spunky personality of his hair – it still has some, but it’s not as crazy. I miss his hair being able to cover up bonks on his forehead. Most of all, I miss playing with his hair when he sits on my lap. I never thought I would be a mom who was emotionally attached to her kids hair and I’m trying not to be. I just happen to like it long and crazy because it seems to be a part of him and his personality. Owen is a handsome kid no matter what hairstyle he has. I am lucky that he likes going to the hair salon and does very well while he sits in the chair… I mean, the go-cart! I’m grateful that he views getting haircut as a happy experience.

Today has been a quiet, but productive day. I’ve been busy but I enjoy setting my own pace. While Owen napped this morning, I cleaned the house. I’ve spent part of the afternoon updating pictures around my house. I hadn’t changed any of the photos since July. It was time to showcase some of our fall and holiday pictures. I love looking at my pictures and it can be so hard to pick which of the many get to be the one on display! The next thing on my to-do is to change my Scentsy scents around the house. I know, I am a wild woman! Cleaning, photo organizing, fiddling with my Scentsy! What a life… Oh there is a kid that I take care of too. He is pretty hands on so it’s hard to get much done while he is awake. Yesterday, he let me make cookies in the morning, but even still he was tugging on my leg asking for me to hold him. Holding a toddler and making cookies can be a complicated endeavor. I must lack talent in the multitasking department. These days I don’t try to multitask when Owen is up. I work on a few things, but mostly, it’s just hanging out with him and playing around. I really enjoy getting to be his buddy throughout the day. I don’t mind stopping my own agenda to goof off. The way I see it is these days are numbered. Days around the house just playing won’t always be our stage of life so I better soak it up while I can. I remind myself that school days are coming when my free time will come back (I daydream about this phase a lot). I remind myself that he’ll be a teenager some day and playing with Duplos on the floor won’t be his favorite thing. I got to make these moments count, right now. It’s such a blessing even though this time at home does come with it’s fair share of meltdowns, temper tantrums and fighting naps. I’ll take both the good and the bad. Keeps like interesting, right?

Right after the big haircut! Looking dapper!

Right after the big haircut! Looking dapper!

Owen loves sitting in the big chair. He feels like such a big boy!

Owen loves sitting in the big chair. He feels like such a big boy!

All movement! He is quite the ball of energy!

All movement! He is quite the ball of energy!

Supporting the Seahawks with Papa & Nana

Supporting the Seahawks with Papa & Nana

Say Cheese

Say Cheese

This ball pit no longer contains round balls thanks to our dog, Toby. Good thing Owen doesn't seem to mind!

This ball pit no longer contains round balls thanks to our dog, Toby. Good thing Owen doesn’t seem to mind!

 

Some Days are a Prayer January 20, 2015

Filed under: Bible,Simply Me — Amy Scott @ 1:22 pm

The Bible tells us to pray without ceasing in 1 Thessalonians 5:17. When I was a kid that verse freaked me out because I thought that it meant I needed to be on bended knee beside my bed 24/7. How in the world was anyone supposed to pull that off? It seemed impossible so I pushed it aside from my thoughts. However, I finally mastered the concept of praying without ceasing in high school. It might not shock you, but I have a bit of nervous personality. High school overwhelmed me in a lot of ways. I had good friends, but I also had crazy friends that did wild and stupid things. Like all youth group kids, I was told to be a light in my school, but that meant I actually had to talk to people I didn’t know all that well. I lived on edge walking from class to class. I prayed a lot. I can go through each season of my life and tell you why it called for extra prayer. There has never been a time in my life where I have had this thing handled. I’ve never once told God, “Thanks, but I’ll things from here.” Nope, I think my prayers are more like, “Seriously, God? Why this? Why now? HELP!” Over the last few months, I’ve tried to take the quieter moments and use them for intercession (praying for the needs of others). I can get so focused on my own life that intercession pulls me out of myself. It reminds me that others struggle and need help too. We’re all human. It softens my heart and helps me to feel more content with my situations because I know that things could worse, so I should be grateful and thankful despite my own difficulties. There are reasons, but today I feel the weight of needing to pray. For my family. For others. There is a tension in my soul with the unknown, the uncertain, the unanswered prayers that surround me. It weighs on me. I feel unsettled. So today feels like a prayer. One big giant prayer. I might repeat it often to myself in conscience thought. It might run in the background of my mind as I go about my tasks. But today needs prayer. Tomorrow will probably need it too. This is the thing – it’s the one thing I can do. I can’t solve my own problems, let alone the problems of my family and friends. I can’t make things better. If I could, I would. Also, not all prayers are about sadness and the complications of life. Some are just for encouragement, hope for the future, and an expectation of things to come. It’s not all doom and gloom. But most of the time, prayer is one way I can be a part of the solution without making a mess of myself. It’s good to pray. It matters. The one verse I turn to the most in my Bible is Philippians 4:6, “Don’t worry about anything; instead pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.” This sums up it up for me. This is what I need to do. The next verse talks about how doing this brings peace and it’s true. I know that I don’t have this all figured out and that’s okay. God does. He has my situations and my loved ones in his hands. He values their hearts and he knows their fears. He is their comfort, their strength, their joy. And he is mine. I go into prayer with a worried mind and if I truly let go and hand these needs over to God, I finish with a quiet spirit and a calm mind. I need that today. I need that deep, rich peace that passes understanding. I remember that God can use all things for his good. He is in this. And I am thankful. It’s amazing how prayer turns anxiety into praise. I’ll be honest; my prayers are very rarely ever answered in an instant. I have to continue to live that unsettled feeling, but I will not let it bend my belief that God has got this covered. He knows. And that concludes this rambling blog. I hope that maybe it encourages you to stop in the middle of the crazy moments and send up a prayer. Keep doing that. Keep praying. It’s worth it. It’s a sweet fragrance to God. He loves to hear his kiddos talking to him. I also need to live with the silence and listen for his response. It’s a two way street this relationship with God. It’s about talking and it’s about listening. So, since I’ve been really good at talking today, maybe it’s time to quiet down and listen now.

 

29 January 16, 2015

Filed under: Family Time,Parenthood,Recollections,Simply Me — Amy Scott @ 10:25 pm

This week, I turned 29. This year seems like a landmark year for me. It’s the last year in my 20’s. It’s crazy how fast they went. It’s also crazy that the next decade that is right around the corner will probably go just as fast or even faster. How does time fly by so quickly? A lot has happened in my 20’s. I got married at age 20, graduated from college at 22, bought at house at age 23, had a baby at 27. Talk about a lot of life change in a 10 year span of time.  I also got to travel a lot more than I expect I would. I visited Nashville (x2), Atlanta, Chicago, Southern California (LA, Anaheim, San Diego, etc.), road tripped to San Francisco and through the Redwood forests, Washington DC, Vancouver BC, Hawaii, road tripped to South Dakota, road tripped to Kansas. That list isn’t in order and I probably missed a few cities, but the point is I’ve travelled. I love traveling. I love exploring new places. I love Disneyland. My one regret is that I’ve only been to Disneyland once in the last decade. That is truly sad. But there is always hope in my heart that Disneyland will be the next trip I take. It might be unrealistic hope, but it is hope nonetheless.

Back to my 20’s, Disneyland can complete derail my train of thought. While I know that life won’t end when I turn 30, I feel fully awake going into 29. I want to make it count. Not in big ways, I don’t have major plans. I just want it to be worth something. I want to end my 20’s the best way possible. In a recent conversation with a friend, she told me that she loved her 30’s way more than her 20’s. I can see her reasons for loving her 30’s already coming into play in my life. She said in her 30’s she really started to own who she is and care less and less about what other people think of her. She also mentioned that she loved watching the world through her kids’ eyes. I totally agree. I think 29 is so important to me because I want to embrace who I am. I don’t want to feel obligated to be anyone but me. I’m also starting to care less about the opinions of others. Not everyone will like me. I can be kind and I can be Christ-like, but I am not in control of what other’s think. Even if it’s about me. Also, having Owen in my life has been so enriching. I love being his mom and getting to watch him grow. I am a stay at home mom who volunteers at her church and mentors young girls a couple times a month. I am an avid reader. I watch way too much television. I love spending time with my family. I am blessed with great friendships. My life isn’t glamorous, but I love it. I wouldn’t trade it for the world.

On the eve of my birthday, I was thinking about my friends. Relationships change a lot in your 20’s. I went from dorm life to living in Lewis County (with my friends all away at college). I went from having friends nearby to having friends scattered around the country. I gained a mother-in-law and two sisters-in-law. I gained friends of many ages. No longer was my core group all my age. As I was thinking about the ladies in my life who I consider dear friends, I realized how blessed I was to be walking this road of life with so many fantastic people who I know love and support me. My family and friends have made life so meaningful and I look forward to many adventures with them in the future.

Also, I look at how much Jeremy and I have changed in 10 years. I sometimes wonder why Jeremy ever felt compelled to marry the 20-year-old version of me. I was so young. I was still a kid in so many ways. I grew up a lot in 20’s and I have become who I am through hard work and rocky roads. There has been joy and there as has been pain. Jeremy has been by my side the entire time. We are a team and his love has held me together when I thought I was unraveling. We celebrate 9 years of marriage this coming summer. Marrying Jeremy is without a doubt the best thing I did in my 20’s and paved the way for many other wonderful things – like our home and our family of three. I am truly blessed.

As I said before, I have no major plans for 2015 and 29. I just know it’s going to be a big year. I know it will continue to grow me and stretch me and change me. I know I have an opportunity live each day as it comes. I am so glad for where I have been and I am even more exited for what is to come.

For those who are the wondering, I spent my birthday in a two day celebration.  I spent the afternoon watching my movie with my sister while my mom watched Owen. It was nice to watch a movie without interruptions from my little man. My birthday was on a Wednesday and I teach 5th/6th grade girls at my church on Wednesdays, so I made the evening into a birthday party for me. We played Pin the Tail on the Donkey and Disney Scene It. There were party hats and noise makers. I made a Kit Kat cake with Reeces Pieces on top. It turned out great and tasted fabulous. (Note: This is not a cheap cake. Lots of candy is an investment. The bummer part is the candy only stays crunchy and fresh for a little while before the moisture of the cake affects it. By day 3, the candy has lost its crunch). On Thursday, we had my family over for dinner since that wasn’t an option on Wednesday. We had pizza and more cake (my favorite Safeway chocolate cake this time). Owen was the center of attention and it was a fun night to hang out with a few of my very favorite people. Overall, I would say the 29 kicked off to a great start. Now the slow march to 30… Just kidding. I mean, now for the epic journey that awaits before a new decade begins!

The Kit Kat cake I made for my birthday and shared with my Wednesday night class

The Kit Kat cake I made for my birthday and shared with my Wednesday night class

 

Partying with some of my favorite ladies!

Partying with some of my favorite ladies!

29 Candles

29 Candles

Another day, another cake!

Another day, another cake!

Owen enjoyed my birthday cake! This kid loves chocolate!

Owen enjoyed my birthday cake! This kid loves chocolate!

 

Little Boy January 13, 2015

Filed under: Parenthood — Amy Scott @ 11:13 am
Mom accidentally over filled the tub! Owen thought it was great!

Mom accidentally over filled the tub! Owen thought it was great!

It’s been a few months since I wrote a blog totally dedicated to Owen. Yesterday was his 15 month well check appointment, so I figured now would be a great time to share his stats and what Owen has been into lately. Even though yesterday was a “well check” appointment, we went with lots of questions about the bugs that Owen has been batting. He still has a runny nose, but other than that he seems to be improving. He has been fever free since Thursday, but then over the weekend he developed a rash, so honestly, it seems like every day there was a new twist to Owen’s ailments. It turns out that Owen does have an ear infection. The new procedure is no antibiotics until the symptoms have been happening for 10 days. Owen was right around that 10 day mark, but since things are clearing up, our doctor said to just let the bug run it’s course. The nice thing is she told us that Owen isn’t contagious. He can finally go back into the nursery at church and we can re-enter the real world!

Since Owen’s last appointment at 12 months, he hasn’t gained a pound. He is still under 21lbs. This puts him at 7% for weight. He is at 31% for length and his head at 73%. I’m sure no one is shocked by his head size. It continues to be the one thing that he lands above 50% with. I would love it if Owen would chunk up a bit more, but our doctor isn’t concerned so I have decided not to worry about it. He is a small boy and that’s okay. Whenever I talk about how small Owen is people always mention how small I am. At this point and time, he is taking after me. I guess that is a good thing. I’m a bit of a wimp. Lugging around a lightweight kid is probably better for my back in the long run.

Supporting his team on game day

Supporting his team on game day

Owen is a good eater, despite what you might think from his weight. I can’t get him to drink whole milk, but he eats so much diary that it’s okay. Owen loves yogurt, cheese and cottage cheese. He eats those items daily so he is getting what he needs in the dairy department. Owen loves to try to whatever we’re eating. So far, turkey and ham seem to be big winners. Rice meals are also a favorite for him – that makes Chinese and Mexican meals a hit. Owen has also shown that he prefers chocolate over vanilla. There are some things like pancakes that I can’t get him to touch at all. Weird, huh? He certainly has his expectations when it comes to food. He now goes to the pantry or fridge door and hits them until we pull something out. It’s neat that he can tell us when he is hungry. Owen has a pretty toothy grin these days. He now has 4 teeth on top, 4 on bottom and molars coming in on both sides – top and bottom. These chompers have come in handy as Owen has explored new foods.  He has also started to master the art of the spoon. He will spoon feed himself cottage cheese. It’s a slow and messy process but he is always so proud of himself.

It’s been fun to watch Owen’s vocabulary start to take off. While he doesn’t say all these words in a day, he has said things like mom, dad, hot, light, deer, out, dog, duck, star, blue, ball. Sometimes he says something and I’m shocked that he knows that word – like when I put on his star jammies and he started to point at all the stars and say star. I had no clue he know that word or shape until that moment. During play time, all the farm animals “baa”. He has two new farm puzzles and he got a tractor for Christmas that he loves. He also got a few dinosaurs from his cousin, Carson. He makes the dinosaurs roar. Also, he knows that lions and bears roar too.

Grandpa & Grandma brought Owen some cheer with a giant Mickey balloon. Makes the days at home more fun!

Grandpa & Grandma brought Owen some cheer with a giant Mickey balloon. Makes the days at home more fun!

As you can guess, Owen is still in 12 month clothes and size 3 diapers. If he was over 22lbs, I was going to upgrade him to size 4 diapers, but he isn’t there yet. The nice thing is we get our use out of clothing. He doesn’t out grow his clothes all that quickly. I’m totally fine with that since I like his 12 month selection and I haven’t built up his 18 month wardrobe yet. Maybe he’ll start wearing 18 month clothes by 18 months. We’ll just have to wait and see.

Owen is super fast these days. It seems like once he could walk, he could also run. At the doctor’s appointment yesterday, our doctor marveled at Owen’s balance and movements. I guess he is ahead of the game when it comes to balance. I’m guessing that the lack of baby chunk makes him agile. Maybe he’ll be our little track star. All I know is that he keeps me on my toes. For a while he was rushing to the oven door whenever I wanted to open it and remove an item. He has finally grasped the concept of hot and now he keeps his distance while repeating the word “hot” over and over again. I was so scared that he was going to move faster than me and end up with a burn. If I want to put something away or open something up, you can bet that Owen will running towards me, ready to get into whatever he can.

Our little boy maybe be small, but he is such a sweetie. Throughout this bug, he has been a cuddler. I have spent my days holding this sweet, little boy and snuggling with him. He loves to give hugs and they usually end with him wiping his snot on my shoulder. What can I say, that’s true love, right?