Oh My Goodness

Our sweet neighbor let us pick blueberries a couple of days ago and since then I have been looking for blueberry recipes. I found a recipe for oatmeal blueberry cookies and I had to give it a try. The recipe came from All Recipes and I love that sight because of the reviews. One review suggested adding white chocolate chips...and you know I did. These cookies are to die for. Blueberry muffins are next.

Birthday Parties

The last two weekends we've been busy with birthday parties. One of them had a bouncy house. This was Nate's first time in a bouncy house. I know he really liked it because he told me twice during that party "This is a really fun party."





Today we went to another party. This was also a fun party because there was music and dancing...two of Nate's favorites.

Blackberries

We have a bumper crop of blackberries this year. If you have any good recipes, send them my way.

Would you like to buy a super cute hooded towel for your little one?

Our Sunday school class is working on raising money for the Global Orphan Project. Our goal is to raise $20,000.00. This will be enough money to build a home and pay for 3 years of care and support. The home we build will most likely be located in either Haiti or Uganda. The great thing about the Global Orphan Project is that 100% of your money goes to the project. You can read more about it here, if you're interested.

Darren and I have been thinking of ways that we can save money/raise money. I made these towels for birthday presents. Several people at the party told me that I should sell them. They had no idea that I was actually thinking of selling them for our project. I took that as confirmation to give it a try. So, if you would like to purchase one of these super cute hooded towels, please email me at www.darrenandjulie@centurytel.net.

The cost of the towel is $25.00 plus shipping (if applicable). The color options for the actual towel are royal blue, pink and lime green. There a many options for the circle and letter.

I included this picture just to show color options. I would prefer not to make this one. It was a little too tedious. If you LOVE it, I will do it for $35.00. It could also be done with lots of different color combinations.

Black-Eyed Susans

Footloose and Paci Free

Okay, we are really not paci free at this point, but I thought that was a cute title for this post. We are working on being paci free and today was Nate's first nap without a paci! On Monday I decided that it was time to work on getting rid of the paci. Several friends and even our dentist suggested that we cut it. Some suggested cutting it off gradually and some suggesting cutting it in half. We decided to go with the gradual approach. There doesn't seem to be that much of it gone, but it has definitely lost its appeal. I know this process will continue to require work and Nate is still adjusting (it took him over an hour to fall asleep today), but today was a major milestone.

Beach Trip

We went to the beach last week and had a wonderful time. The weather was perfect and the water was beautiful. Nate loves the beach and loves getting in the water, but this year we were surprised at how fearless he was. This is not like him at all since he has always been such a cautious child. He didn't mind being hit in the face with a wave or even being knocked down. The funny thing is that he can't stand to get even the tiniest drop of water in his eyes when he's taking a bath.

Nate is really starting to say some funny things. One night he was trying his best to stay awake even though he was so sleepy and my mom told him good night. He told her "You say good night, but I say good morning." When he is really involved in an activity and we tell him that it's time to do something else he'll say "Hey, wait a minute. Let me play just a few more minutes." He got the "hey, wait a minute" from Mater on Cars. He says it just like Mater and it cracks us up every time. We can also ask him how something tastes or how he likes something and he'll say "Pretty good, huh?" I am pretty sure this came from Cars also. Believe it or not, he doesn't even watch it that often. I guess he's saying so many many things from Cars lately since he watched it on the way and way back from the beach.

I also just want to mention how loving Nate is being right now. He'll go through stages where he's too busy for hugs or kisses, but he is in a loving stage right now. He will give us the best hugs and kisses without us even asking for them. His favorite thing to do is have a group hug with me and Darren. It's sooooo sweet. I love this child so much and I'm so thankful for him.