Weekend Book Review

I love reading, and I LOVE sharing what I read.  I find so many good books, since I am in a library around 12 hours a week, and I thought that doing a review of the books I read every once in awhile would be a good way to spread some good (and sometimes not so good) literature around.  So, I am going to start doing a Weekend Book Review every couple of weekends...or however long it takes me to finish the book in the side bar to the right!

 

Title: The Unfinished Angel

Author: Sharon Creech

I have liked previous books written by Sharon Creech, such as Love That Dog, and this one is entertaining too.  It is a young adult book (I kind of have a habit of reading those...) but it is a great, short, easy read for an adult as well.  :)

It is about an angel (or so s/he thinks) that lives in a tower in a small Swiss village.  This angel does not seem to know his purpose...yet.  A new family from America moves into town and the daughter, Zola, can see the angel. And so begins their friendship, with lots of acts of kindness along the way.

I recommend you read this book if you are looking for a light read that is creatively written and funny.  Here is an excerpt from the author's website:

I am a little hesitant to admit it, but many scenes in this book make me laugh and laugh. Here are three of my favorites:

From the chapter, 'My Territory,' when Zola asks the angel if the angel has wings.

From the chapter, 'Lizards,' when Rosetta confesses to eating a lizard's tail.

From the chapter, 'Pigeons,' when the angel reacts to Zola's pigeon story.

I have to agree! 

Let me know what you think if you choose to read this book!

Thanksgiving 2009

Thanksgiving this year was a blast!  Ted and I had so much fun with family and every year it gets a little more crazy as our neices are growing older...we LOVE it!  Especially now with Eloise thrown into the mix.  

Maddy; and (crazy) Uncle Dan

Mom Polleys made a fantastic dinner as usual, and there were three different desserts to choose from, thanks to Kelli and Ted.  Also, there was an AMAZING vegetable dish with lots of root vegetables and maple syrup.

Dad Polleys, Bailey, Aunt Julie; and Bailey dancing with Aunt Kelli

But, before dinner, Mom Polleys, Kelli and I all went to the Spa at Boyne Mountain.  It was so refereshing to be able to work out in a gym-type atmosphere and then lounge around in a hot tub afterward...with lots and lots of chatting.  :)

Ted and I, waiting for dinner

Maddy playing with Eloise and her hippo-friend.

The guys stayed home and watched football (But do I really need to tell you that?? It's kind of obvious in our family.) and Eloise hung out with them.  Will, Julie, Maddy and Bailey came over during that time, so it was great to be able to come home from the Spa and hang out with all of them.  Maddy and Bailey are getting so big and so, so cute.  (For the Gratitude Bowl, one of the things Maddy was thankful for was her ribs and bottom! So precious!)

Uncle Ted with Maddy and Eloise

Throughout the whole day there was dancing, laughing, talking, story telling, and a discussion of everyone's favorite Christmas memory growing up.  Mine pale in comparison to the Polleys' family Christmas, Dad Polleys always went above and beyond when it came to Santa Claus.  Oh, and there was lots of eating going on too, but once again that is an obvious occurence at Polleys Family get-togethers.  :)

Bailey reading Jan Brett.

Ted and I are so thankful for our family.  We do not know what we would do without it. 

And, now...it is on to CHRISTMAS!!

Forever Changed

Over the past couple of days I have been working on an article for our church's In Touch newsletter. I was asked to write about anything I wanted when it comes to the verse of Psalm 126:3. (The Lord has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy.)

It didn't take me long to think of what great and amazing things God has done for me, but it did take me a while to really consider whether I was filled with joy or not from these things. Am I really joyful? Do I take the time to recognize what God has given me and has done for me? Because if I did, I would be filled with joy.

So, here is my article, which shows my thought process on that. Enjoy! It will be in the January Newsletter.

When I was asked to write this article, I began thinking: God has done great things for me…but am I filled with joy?

Ted and I have been blessed beyond belief with Eloise. Her ear to ear smiles and pleasant personality just add to how amazing she really is. Before she arrived, Ted and I always tried to imagine what life would be like with a third little person in the house, but we never could have believed how our lives would change. Who would have thought that we would both become teary-eyed after the movie Up because we feared losing each other and how that would affect Eloise. And, we never, ever could have imagined the feeling you get when you look into her little blue eyes and your heart swells with so much love that you feel like it might explode, because you have never felt that much love for anyone or anything in the whole world.

Sure, there have been challenges with preparing for and raising Eloise. Which “method” of parenting is best? Do we let her sleep with us? When should we start giving her some solid food? But, one challenge I wrestled with a lot is whether or not we should put Eloise in daycare. Being a stay-at-home-mom seemed quite appealing to me, once we had Eloise all settled in.

When Eloise was born, I was blessed enough not to have to worry about that question. She was born in June, so even if I found a job, it wouldn’t start until the following fall. I worked part time at the library, but the hours were always manageable enough and a family member could babysit.

But, recently on a weekend trip, Ted and I came to the realization that that one job would not hold us afloat for much longer. We talked and prayed about it a lot those few days. The Monday after that weekend I received a phone call, which ended up developing into a job opportunity. Had God answered our prayers that fast? Of course. Had God known all along that we would eventually need something more? Of course.

Looking back, I see that God gave me those five months to spend with my baby; to raise her and stay home with her. Many families never have that opportunity and I am eternally grateful. Naturally, it is extremely hard to leave her at someone else’s house while I go off and “make a living,” but I think, or rather, I know, that this is what God has for us now. Eloise is going to be perfectly fine spending six hours a day away from home, and so will I. And, God knew that. That is why he provided us with this financial blessing.

I never used to fully acknowledge all of these things that God does and how thankful I am for them. But, now something has changed inside of me. We were right! Eloise has changed our lives in a way we never could have suspected…she helped us see.

The Lord always does amazing things for us—for me. If I can’t find the true joy in that, then I am crazy. God is putting it right in front of my face like a bright shining light yelling, “Sarah! I am here for you. I will always take care of you, do not worry. I am your provider. Rejoice in Me!” It would be extremely hard for me not to see and feel that joy, I would have to deliberately look away. But, why would I want to do that?

Happy Thanksgiving!

Give Thanks!

Our family is starting a new tradition this year: A Gratitude Bowl.

I read about it in my Mothering Magazine.  You place an empty glass bowl in the center of your table, as the centerpiece.  All day before dinner, right up to before dinner is served, whenever you think of something that you are thankful for, you write it on a piece of paper, fold it in half and place it in the bowl.

All throughout dinner you can see all the blessings and the thankfulness in the bowl.  Then, before dessert is served you pass the bowl around and each person takes a turn pulling out a slip of paper and reading what someone is thankful for.

I think it's a great way to remember to give thanks and count your blessings from God.  I hope it is a success!

Have a blessed day, wherever you are, whatever you are doing.

Weekly Cheese #5

Eloise's first exposure to the Christmas season--lights! And this is just the beginning! (And yes, though some choose to criticize, we put up our lights 2 days before Thanksgiving this year.) :)

Dinner Time!

This week was the official kick off to my new job. I only worked Monday and Tuesday because of the Thanksgiving Holiday, but it was a great glimpse into what my job is going to entail. When I was talking about it to Ted I came up with three main 'duties' that I have.

1. Crowd control (this is my least favorite, but when you have 26 second graders in a classroom it is inevitable.)

2. Small Groups (This is my favorite!) I love working with children (obviously) and R. (the lead teacher) is going to give me a couple groups to work with. One will be during reading, with the on-level readers, to start a book club. The other will be different students each day depending on who needs help with writing, math, etc.

and (just for laughs)

3. Coordinating...mmm-hmm...pumping schedules. R. is the mother of a 6 and a half month old and I am the mother of a 5 and a half month old. (We were in the same baby classes at the hospital!!) And, we both nurse. So...yea. Let's just say there aren't that many private places in an elementary school.

Needless to say, I have been so busy these past couple weeks. With the library on the weekend and school during the week. Whew.

Luckily, Ted and I still made time for some quality dinners on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. (Tonight, we will be eating late because I work till 8.) And, the dinner on Monday night was especially delicious...so I wanted to take the time to share it.

We had Grilled Chicken and Spinach Quesadillas.

You will need:

1 2- to 2 1/2-pound rotisserie chicken, meat shredded
4 cups baby spinach (about 3 ounces)
1 1/2 cups grated Monterey Jack (6 ounces)
4 large flour tortillas
1 avocado, diced
1/2 cup store-bought fresh salsa
1/4 cup sour cream

First, heat grill (or a grilling skillet) to medium. In a large bowl, combine the chicken, spinach, and cheese. Dividing evenly, place the mixture on one half of each tortilla. Fold the other half over to cover.
Then, grill the quesadillas until the cheese has melted and the tortillas are crisp, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Serve with the avocado, salsa, and sour cream.

Ta-da! So easy! And, so, so tasty. In the words of my husband, "Seriously, these are restaurant quality. This is awesome."

My avocado/salsa/sour cream placement preference is above. Ted's is below.

(Thanks Real Simple. You've done it again!)

And of course, Eloise was there to witness it all!

Day 8

So, I have been working for 8 days straight.

4 more work days to go! Then it's Thanksgiving!

When I think about it, it is not as hard as I thought it was going to be. Last Sunday I was worrying like crazy about Eloise.

What of she doesn't have enough to eat?
What if she hates daycare?
What if she cries all day?
What if she gets sick?
What if I can't physically let go of her when trying to drop her off at daycare?

What if I cry all day?

Ted was amazing at reassuring me, and so was Eloise. She was all smiles whenever I went to pick her up from daycare, and she didn't seem to hold anything against us for leaving her all day. :)

Nevertheless, I broke down once.

It was Tuesday night. After my second day of subbing (I didn't actually start my "real" job this week because I was subbing for the teacher I was supposed to be working with because her daughter was sick) in Boyne City, and my second day of picking up Eloise from daycare and seeing her fall asleep at 5pm (for the night!) because she was so worn out (all the extra kids around at daycare, playing outside, new environment, etc.)....I started to cry.

"I don't think I am ever going to see Squeezy ever again. We get home, I feed her and she falls asleep till morning!" (Except to eat.)

"I miss her! I feel like all I'm ever going to do is wash bottles, make more food, and wash dirty diapers."

As I was being a slobbery mess into Ted's shoulder, he told me it was going to be okay and that the next week would be better, because I would only work 5 hours instead of seven. (and it was Thanksgiving!)

I knew he was right. But, I still missed my baby.

Ted offered to wake her up so we could play. But, we had a dilemma. If we woke her up, she would want to eat sooner. If she wanted to eat sooner, I would not have enough time (or milk) to pump for the next day. I was forced to keep Eloise sleeping so she would have food for the next day. :(

Happily, I now have the whole food thing worked out. It takes a couple days to get the supply kicked up for the extra demand. And, now I am always a couple of bottles ahead. :)

Next week will be better. Plus, I got to hang out with Chewy (Eloise) all morning before I went to work today at noon. We had the best time just laying and looking at each other...and occasionally making conversation.

Also, in my defense, Ted said he almost lost it when he dropped off Eloise to daycare for the 1st time, too. So, I am not crazy and/or overreacting!

Sunday..Monday..Tuesday..Wednesday...then a whole day with The Cheese!

Frankenmuth 2009!

Despite our Subaru overheating when we were 20 miles down the road and a couple of hotel mishaps, our annual trip to Frankenmuth was a success!

(C'mon it wouldn't be a real vacation if something didn't happen to our car...i.e. Florida)

It was the best trip yet because this year Eloise was along for the ride. We think she loved every minute of Little Bavaria!

..................

..Mom..Dad..Dan..Kelli..Anne..Nathan..Ted..Sarah..Eloise..

(We were all there except for Will, Julie, Maddie and Bailey...the girls had come down with the flu. We missed them a lot.)

..................

We started the weekend off with a little shopping at Birch Run and dinner at The Frankenmuth Brewery on Friday. And, then Saturday is the whole Polleys clan got together for our yearly trip to Bronner's. Ted and I chose the cutest 1st ornament for Relly and we got it personalized.

After Bronner's, there were downtown strolls and naps in hotel rooms. Then, at 5pm we met at the Bavarian Inn for the Family Style Chicken Dinner. Eloise enjoyed some sweet potatoes.

We were serenaded by Linda the accordion player. She played some Christmas tunes and some Frank Sinatra. (She even played Happy Birthday for me!)

After dinner was served our ornaments (that each couple chose for the ornament contest) were judged, and congrats to Anne and Nathan who won this year! Ted and I have had a little dry spell, but we are coming back strong next year!! This was ours:

Every year there is a clue:
"Check the weather azure
driving to Frankenmuth,
to see if it is light enough"

Ted and I did not catch the play on words.

Check=Czech, as in Czechoslovakia. So you needed to buy an ornament that was made in that country.

..AND..

azure=blue. So it needed to have blue in it.
Plus, azure=as your, as in "Check the weather as your driving to Frankenmuth."
That got a little too cheesy for me!

Our ornament had blue in it, but it was made in Russia. We focused more on the "traveling" part.

Last, we got to eat a DELICIOUS peanut putter cheesecake that I picked out from the bakery across the street for my birthday. Yum-Yum!




We all ended the night with a brisk walk up and down Frankenmuth's main street (to help burn off some calories!) and to have lots and lots of conversation. Ted and I realized that we miss hanging out with Dan and Kelli, and we need to make an effort to see them more...especially since they only live 15 miles away!

can you spot Eloise??

Oh! and of course we didn't forget to take Eloise by the Cheese Haus!

Look at that face...I can only imagine what she is thinking!

There couldn't be a more perfect kick-off to the Christmas season. :D

Weekly Cheese #4

Eloise is happy to be home all day with Mama...but she likes a little adventure too.

She will like seeing her Nana and having extra time with her Daddy once Mama goes to work!

Mama got a J-O-B

Right now I am sitting in a living room with a contently full-bellied Eloise sleeping peacefully on my lap. I just told her that I am extremely sorry, but mornings like these are soon going to come to an end.

Why?

Because I just took a job that will pull me from Eloise's little clutches for 6 hours a day. I may be sounding sad, but trust me, I am not. If anything, it is bittersweet. I have had 5 solid months at home with my little sweet baby...more than a lot of mom's can get. And, my new job will only leave me away from Eloise from 9:00 to 3:00. That's less than a whole school day. No sweat. She will be perfectly fine. The real question is: will I?

:) Yes, I think I can handle it. Millions of moms do it, so I can too. I have been blessed to be able to stay home this long. God brought me this job opportunity at the exactly right time; just when we were hitting a breaking point finance-wise. 24 hours after Ted and I had a very long conversation about his career options and my lack of anything in the immediate area, I had a job offer in my lap. Praise God, from whom all blessings flow!

25 hours a week I will be assisting a 2nd grade teacher in a team teaching style. It is a couple less dollars an hour than the library, but I will be working three times as much. (I am keeping the library job as well... at least through the holidays.) I also got vision insurance at n0 cost to me, so that will supplement the vision we already have through Ted. I also have retirement benefits...although it is minuscule.

Ted and I can barely comprehend what an extra $800 dollars a month is going to do for us! We feel as though we are going to rolling in money (if that doesn't tell you how tight it has been around here, I don't know what will).

So, now on to the plans for Cheesy:

2 days a week she will ride to Boyne City with me, and I will drop her off at Nana Polleys'.

1.5 days a week she will stay home with her Daddy (he doesn't work Fridays or Wednesday morning.

and...

1.5 days a week she will go to a day care.

I have called about 5 in-home day cares in Charlevoix and they range from $20 to $35 a day. All of them said they would have to get back to me (today hopefully) because of infant limits and timing issues, etc. So, hopefully, God will help us get this part figured out too!

I start Monday!! Yay!

More Please!

Last Monday (Oct. 26th) we fed Eloise her first little bit of food!

Earlier that day, at Relly's doctor appointment, Dr. Tinney said that it might be a good time to start trying out the process. Ted and I were excited to try this out. I thought I might have waited until around Thanksgiving, but if the doctor said we could try, we were ready to!

Eating at this stage is merely for practice, and it is just for fun. She gets all of her nutrition from me. As the months go on, she will eat more food and have less milk. I hope I can keep nursing until she is a year old. We will see..

"feed me please!"

During AppleFest, at the beginning of October, I bought some apples for applesauce making. I steamed the apples (cored, quartered, and skins left on) and then peeled off the skin before pureeing it to the smoothest applesauce ever. I then froze it in 1 ounce portions in our ice cube trays (covered with Saran wrap). After they were frozen I popped them out and stored them in a labeled freezer bag. Who knew that 3 weeks later I would be using them already! (Frozen baby food is good up to 3 months!)

In the title picture of the blog, Eloise is eating acorn squash that we had baked that night, right after we got home from the doctor. The next night I made butternut squash and froze about 6 portions for Relly to enjoy. And, boy, does she!

It is so easy to feed her too! All we have to do, is pull a cube out of the freezer, put in in a ramekin and then put it in the microwave for 45 seconds on the defrost setting. It comes out still cool, but completely thawed out. The hardest part is making sure the food actually gets into Eloise's mouth! :)

This is Eloise eating this morning...she loves when her Daddy feeds her!

Too Early?

My sister, Samantha, called me today and asked, "What does Cheesy want for Christmas? I am trying to get all of my shopping done now."


Whoa.


Christmas shopping already?


"What day is it? Wasn't it just Halloween?" I asked.


But, then I realized that before Eloise, I too would have been thinking about Christmas and all the goodies I want to buy for people.


So...what does Cheesy wasnt for Christmas? Since she will only be 6 months old at Christmas, the question slowly morphed into, "What does Mama Cheese (me) want for Eloise for Christmas?"


The following are things that I L-O-V-E, that I hope Eloise will have someday. Some of these things she is way too young for. But, maybe this will give you some ideas Sis. :)

An all natural, wooden teether in the shape of an E...perhaps.

A berry stained, wooden stacker...maybe.

A wooden shape sorter....hmmm.

All good options, but in reality...Eloise would be happy with a stick, if it came right down to it. That would not be safe, but the point being that Relly really doesn't want or need anything, except her Mama, Daddy and lots of love. But it is sooo fun to look anyway!

And these are for when Eloise is a tad bit older. (Ted and I want these for ourselves!)

Super fun!

AMAZING!

Yay for toys! Someday our house is going to be bombarded with them, I'm sure. :)

No Tricks...Just Treats!

Eloise says...

Happy Halloween!

Eloise made it until about 7pm..so she got to see a handful of kids in costumes coming up to our door. :) Then it was lights out.

...she even had matching socks!

Last Weekend

I have some Cutie-pa-Tootie pictures that will show up throughout this post! I can't wait!

The first thing I want to share is our family's trip downstate. And, when I say downstate, I basically mean the whole greater region of SE/SW Michigan. It was A LOT of time in the car, but Relly handled it well. :)

On Friday (this was October 23rd), we went and picked up Olivia and Izabella in Spring Lake. Then we drove a couple of hours to get to my Mom's (Nana) in Marshall. We had dinner there and saw my Grandpa and his friend Ginny. Then we went to my Dad's for the next couple of days.

Ted and Izabella @ Nana's

Olivia and Eloise @ Nana's

Izabella and I (she is so photogenic!)

Eloise with her great grandpa (Grandpa Grape)

On Saturday, we hung out at my Dad's in Battle Creek. My Uncle Jim gave Ted and I a great antique cedar chest that was my great grandma's. So, that is proudly sitting in our basement now. Then, we went to the Michigan/Penn St. football game, where we got soaked but freezing rain and watched our team lose...great fun...haha. Grandma Tami got to babysit Eloise during that time, and they had lots of fun watching the game on TV, reading books, and paying bills. :)

On Sunday, before we went home we went to my Grandpa's in Ceresco and had brunch. My brother met up with us there with his girlfriend, Alison. (Who is really nice!)

Eloise with her Uncle Nicky

We got back home around 5:30pm on Sunday, but decided to go have dinner with the Polleys Parents (because they called and invited us). And Mom Polleys had happened to make the potato soup that I talked about in this post.

Finally, we were REALLY home around 8pm. It was fun to travel, but it was so good to be home too. Eloise and I had a very relaxing week this past week after so much traveling. I think Daddy did too, but he was at work!