101?

So apparently I have written 100 blog posts! Wow! That's the most I think I've ever written in anything. A journal or xanga! haha! Anyone remember xanga? Yeah, I don't even remember what I wrote on there. Mostly dramatic stuff since I had it when I was young! LOL So happy 101 post to me! :)

Just Piggy Backing.....

So I have a new friend who just posted a blog praising her husband. (http://agonzalez1010.blogspot.com/2013/03/bragging-on-my-man.html) After reading her post I realized I do not give my husband enough verbal credit. I sure do appreciate the things he does in my head but I don't think I say OUT LOUD enough, how much I actually DO appreciate him! So I'm going to piggy back off my new friend Arielle's idea and dedicate a blog post to him! :) Hope you don't mind Arielle!


My husband is amazing. Bottom line. When I think about all his qualities and personality traits it all comes back to him just overall being awesome sauce. Does he have flaws? Why yes! Of course! He wouldn't be human otherwise. But overall he is one of the best men I've ever known in my entire life.

He and I grew up together. He used to be so weird and sheltered. Which really wasn't his fault. His parents chose to raise him a certain way (which happened to be near complete opposite of how I was raised) and as a result he came off almost like an un-known creature to me. Even as a young child I didn't hate him or anything, I just didn't understand him. haha! Anyways, once we started talking through text I had an instant connection. We had to text because he was stationed in Maryland and I was still living in good 'ol Virginia. We talked about him being in the Coast Guard. And how surprised I was that he even owned a cell phone and knew what texting was! haha! Hey! If you knew their family growing up, you'd know EXACTLY why I'd be so surprised. LOL Anyways, he was definitely someone who was more sensitive than I was. I tend to be more hard (never crying) and have a "just deal with it" attitude. He was definitely more sensitive and had a very caring type friendship with me. Of course it didn't take very long for me to fall in love with that and appreciate how much he was always there for me even though he lived in a different state. And that's how it all began. Him being there for me (even from far away) and just caring in a way no other guy and hardly any friend had. I had a best friend who knew and understood me like no one else...but she's about the only one. LOL Anyways, so that's where it all started.


Since being married (4 years this June) he and have been through a few things. I'd say we have it pretty good because so far we've had nothing extreme to deal with. But since marriage we've had 2 boys. Our first year of marriage I got pregnant right away and we had some ups and downs with that....in regards to our marriage. I was NOT the same person during pregnancy #1. My hormones were sent on a crazy roller coaster ride, meanwhile EVERYTHING on my body was changing. We both shared such excitement over the pregnancy and joy of starting a family but I will admit I started stupid arguments frequently for no good reason besides my hormone's were making me crazy. haha! He took it like a champ! He also spoils the heck out of me! I've never been spoiled. I mean, sure I got treats...but no one's ever cared/treated me like I was THE most important person in the world. It's done wonders for my self-esteem. My self-esteem isn't where he'd like it to be but it's grown in leaps since 4-5 years ago when we first got together. And that's because he's always so sweet to me. If he could, he'd give me any little thing I wanted. Of course money is always an issue....but besides "things" he feeds my soul emotionally and spiritually. Which is really the more important things in life.


In regards to his children, this man always goes above and beyond. He got up just as much as I did when we had newborns. Not as much when I was nursing but he was always awake and ready to help if I needed anything. I appreciate his equal participation in raising/caring for our children. We both wanted a family and my stance on the whole father role is that because they equally participated in making the baby they can equally participate in helping raise/care for the child. Thankfully I don't even have to tell Theo this. I mean we talked about it before we got married but he's on his own gone above and beyond. Of course he doesn't exactly "equally" care for the children. Because I am home with them all day every day. But he does more than his fair share when he's away working and providing for his family. He absolutely HATES his job. And yes, I hear constant complaints about it etc.....but he still does it because he knows he has a family he needs to financially provide for. He always seems to make wise decisions concerning his job. For example....he is in law enforcement in the Coast Guard. In Detroit, Michigan! Dangerous area. So his life is on the line quite frequently. But he always thinks about his family and making wise decisions to protect himself because he knows that he doesn't want to leave his family without husband/father. Like I just found out the other day, when they do ice rescue training, they're not required to wear their bullet proof vests. Apparently he chooses to wear them because he knows there area they are at is a dangerous area and he doesn't want to risk his life if someone decides to drive by and shoot at them. That made me so happy to hear. I didn't know that but it makes me so proud to know that he makes these decisions for his family! He doesn't hesitate to change a diaper. Poopy or wet. He doesn't hesitate to get up at night when one of the kids has a nightmare or is just crying. He is a crazy great father.


I know I've already talked about how great of a husband he is, but I feel the need to emphasize that despite hating his job and staying busy being a father (cause we have little one's and there's hardly EVER any free time) he ALWAYS makes time for me. It amazes me because he WANTS to spend time and be there for me. It's not like he's doing it because it's his duty. He needs me as much as I need him and that in and of itself is amazing to me. Having someone who loves me as much as I love them.

God gets all the glory for this. And how awesome my husband is! Of course he's not perfect and there are areas in which he could improve....but that's all of us. Because we're all human and we all have sin. But I wouldn't trade a single minute I've had him in my life. I wouldn't want anyone else. He is so loving and I hope I never have to be without him.

Thanks for all you do babe! Sorry I just now realized I don't praise you enough! Love you!

Three and Counting........

Well today's the big day for Collin! He is transitioning from a crib to a toddler bed. I was very reluctant to switch him, however, he was DESTROYING my crib. He'd pulled plastic off (don't ask me how cause I have NO clue, I couldn't do it if I tried), both the boys will go under it and push up the grate which in turn scratched my crib up. It was just starting to take too much wear. So in preservation for the hopeful arrival of the next child, I had to make the leap. I say "I" because it's really me. He honestly will be fine. Although right now we're at 3x's and counting. That's THREE times of me getting up to spank him because he's gotten out of his bed. I knew that was going to happen. (Make that 4 times...just had to get up again)He's a wild child which is why I've kept him "caged" for so long. But lemme tell you, he's taking this better than I am. While I was taking down the crib I was near bawling my eyes out. It was ridiculous. Why? Because I've never had to take down my crib without knowing it would go right back up. We took it down for our move from Maryland to Michigan. I knew it'd be going right back up in preparation for Collin's arrival. Now?! It's just going down to the basement. I'm not pregnant, I'm not sure when I will be again and it just makes me so sad that MY baby is growing up. I know (at least hopefully) it'll go back up eventually....but I'm not ready to be done having babies and it just makes me so sad. So, things have seemed to quiet down. Maybe it will only take 4 times?! Psht! Yeah right! I'm sure even if this is it for tonight it'll probably start again tomorrow. LOL So, here are some pictures. But I just had to do a quick blog and record this. Because this is by far a milestone for Collin Henry! :)

Better Late Than Never......

So I'd been meaning to write this in my blog so I wouldn't forget it. Here it is almost Valentine's Day and this happened on Christmas day! hahaha! Oh well!


So it was Christmas morning. Isaiah was playing on the new scooter he got. I wish we could remember what Theo said to him. Neither of us could remember directly after Isaiah's response. But anyways, Theo told Isaiah something to do. Isaiah turned right around, looked Theo straight and the eye and said "First of all! Don't speak to me like that!" OH.MY.GOODNESS.....WHAT?!?!?! I spent my time trying to hold in the huge fit of laughter. Theo on the other hand jumped right up and disciplined Isaiah. The thing that makes it so funny is that quite frequently I say to Isaiah "First of all! You don't speak to me like that!" and then I'll continue with the second of all. So he was directly quoting me! Which made it SOOOOO funny! My Mom joked saying "He didn't even get to make it to the second of all!" hahaha! Oh man....it was SUCH a good laugh, and I'd been meaning to blog it so I can remember it forever. So now I finally have. Good times! Kids are parrots man! Watch what you say! :)

Welcoming a New Family Member

So last night we welcomed a new family member into our household! His name is P.J and he is a 5 year old yellow Labrador! We are re-naming him Pajamas! :) He is THE sweetest thing I've ever met! Last night was a bit rough. We didn't get him until 8pm and so when we came home and wanted to go to bed, he was not okay with that. He whined quite a bit and paced ALLLLL night! Eventually around 2a.m. I closed our bedroom door and I think he got the hint. It was fairly quiet until around 6a.m. when we woke up to get him ready to go to the vet. We wanted to get his shots up to date asap and get him spayed. So he'll probably hate me when I pick him up this afternoon. But we gotta make sure he's healthy and up to date on shots just in case something happens! The only issue thus far? My allergies. I have lived with Labs and Golden Retrievers....so I can't figure out why my eyes are itching so badly and I'm sneezing like crazy. OH! And the itchy throat. NOT cool! However, I was having some allergies BEFORE he came here. Also, his previous owner said she bathed him the night before...so maybe it's the shampoo she used. Plus she was a smoker...so maybe all of that is just on him and I'm having issues with that. I'm PRAYING that's it! Because I'd hate to have to give him up. :( Hopefully I'm not really allergic to him and we'll get to keep him. The boys are pretty excited. Well, Isaiah. Collin really doesn't have a clue. They've met him already but they have yet to see him in their own home. They were asleep when we came home with him, and I had to leave before they were up this morning to take him to the vet. So we'll see how things go tonight! But so far....so good! :) Also, I want to make note that I was SOOOOO impressed at his behavior at the vet. There were a TON of cats and other dogs and he sat when I told him too and didn't bark and really was the best behaved dog there! Hooray for that! :)

Spare the rod....spoil the child....

So something happened today. Recently I moved the boys bedroom to the guest room. Basically switching the rooms around. And by recently I mean, yesterday. Anyways, the boys now have a WAY bigger bedroom that's attached to the sunroom (which is their playroom). Besides their beds I basically only added a toy organizing shelf structure. Well both boys have happily played today either in the sunroom or the bedroom. Which-as a side note....I have enjoyed immensely! LOL Anyways, at one point I heard the bucket of cars being poured onto the carpet! Eh, whatever. They were giggling and happy...no worries. Eventually things seemed a bit TOO quiet...so I ventured to the "Great UnKnown!" hahahahahaha! Anyways, I open their door and find the buckets to the organizing structure all over the place, every content dumped onto the floor and the structure itself? On the floor with BOTH boys on top of it! Seriously?! So the very first thing out of my mouth? "What do you think you're doing?!" Of course Collin scampers off like he was never a part of the situation (Theo and I frequently die of laughter at the fact that Collin is forever stirring things up/initiating things and then just scurrying away like he was never a part of it....it's funny now cause he's barely 1yr....but eventually that's gonna get old! LOL) and Isaiah immediately looks guilty. Here's how the conversation goes.


Hannah: You knew you were doing something you weren't supposed to, didn't you?
Isaiah:*extremely guilty look and slight nod of the head*
Hannah:Isaiah Brent. I am not happy with your decisions. I'm very dissapointed in you.
Isaiah: *lowers his head in sadness*

*We then start to clean up and organize the toys (which I am VERY proud to say, Isaiah at a little over 2.5 can organize toys and sort them and put them in the right buckets-as long as I leave 1 example in each one)*

Isaiah:I'm sorry Momma! I didn't want to make bad decisions. I'm sorry Momma! I don't wanna disappoint you anymore!"


So sweet right? The point of me recording this is because I wanted to record my parenting style. As most of you who read this (as few of you as there is)know I try my HARDEST to parent according to how God says we should. I use the Bible as my guideline. Which brings me to the verse in Proverbs 13:24 (KJV) "He that spareth his rod hateth his son: but he that loveth him chasteneth him betimes." The Bible is VERY clear that you are to spank your child. VERY clear! However, people have different interpretations of how that should be done. My parents philosophy? Spank for every offence....period. Okay, maybe I exaggerate...but my parents were definitely heavy on the spanking. VERY heavy. Being the oldest, I received the full on brunt of "how do we go about disciplining and raising our children?" All oldest children know EXACTLY what I'm talking about! I was spanked WELL into my teens...my youngest siblings last spanking was probably when he was 9! LOL Anyways, my point is....I'm not my parents. I believe that God tells us in the Bible TOOLS to teach and raise our children. I do believe things like the above quoted verse are very clear that you should spank and that it's good for your child. Anyone ever notice that he didn't say "But" afterwards? Or "Certain children shouldn't be spanked because of disabilities etc"? I find it interesting! He gave a blanket rule to raise a child. Period end of story. But I've found through reading the whole Bible over and over that sometimes we as Children of God need a "spanking" so to speak. We have hard trails that feel like we'll never survive. That's what I call the spankings. But have you ever been through life and gone over a slight pump and the whole time you just feel God speaking to your heart: teaching you, loving you, encouraging you. I believe that should be mirrored in raising my children. I was very happy today when I made the conscious decision to not yell at my child, not spank him, not assume things upon him (something that happened to me FREQUENTLY in my childhood....being the oldest of 4 my parents were quick to jump on me and discipline me and not ask me/listen to me etc as to what really happened...but that's another story in itself) and simply speak to my child. And guess what? I feel he learned his lesson FAR more than he would've had I spanked him etc. So it made me happy that a conscious decision I made in my mind right then and there was really the right thing to do! Some may see this as criticizing my parents or being disrespectful to them or someone else's beliefs. That's not why I'm blogging about this. I am blogging about MY experiences and what God has convicted of MY heart. What you choose to do with your children is your own thing. My parents chose to raise my siblings and I a certain way...that was their choice. And as their child, I saw things I didn't agree with and wanted to change when raising my children. So that's my whole point in this blog. Simply to record my dealings/raising/beliefs of my children! :)

To Continue Cribbing or Toddler Bed It!

So I've decided to upgrade the boys room a bit. I've always had it as their sleeping quarters and that's about it. I kept things simple and breakables out of their room because Isaiah has been in the toddler bed since we moved here. He was about 15mo when we moved here. He was so past ready for his toddler bed. Ever since he slept in it he's loved it to death! Well now Collin is expressing interest of Isaiah's toddler bed. Which is awesome. So now the question is whether to keep him in his crib or move to the toddler bed? Honestly, he might be ready for the toddler bed if I "baby proof" their room a bit more. But I'm not so sure my heart can take it. Besides the move here....it'll be the first time the crib will be taken down. :( Until goodness knows when. At least when I took it down for the move I knew it was going back up for another baby. Now? It'll just be taken down for goodness knows how long and I'm not so sure my heart can take it. Plus do I honestly want a wild child free to roam around his room any time of night? haha! I don't think so. So for my hearts sake...and probably more sanity's sake.....cribbing it will stay! :)