before & after

one more step on the way to being ready to head to Florida ::
the summer haircut!

multitude monday

Here's my continuing Multitude Monday post, which all started a while back, right here on a wonderful, amazing blog that I read each day.

"One Thousand Gifts":

1414. the sound of frogs and crickets while out for a walk by myself in the evening
1415. the smell of fresh-cut grass
1416. kindergarten field day! {complete with a tug-o-fun}
1417. a great band concert {for Jacob}
1418. a great orchestra concert {for Rebekah}
1419. excited kindergarteners over duck eggs hatching
1420. flowers
1421. a long weekend
1422. grilled hotdogs
1423. street sweepers
1424. birthday parties
1425. slow, steady rain on new grass seed
1426. caring people
1427. men and women who have fought to keep me {and my loved ones} free and safe.

Alrighty, that's it's for now. Tune in next Monday for the next installment.

{There weren't many guesses on last weeks "Flashback Friday", but it would seem it wasn't much of a challenge. It was Lydia. Great job!}

flashback friday

do you know which 6-month-old Stoll kiddo this is?
give it a guess!

thrifty thursday

First of all, if you aren't a female, you might want to step away from the blog and come back tomorrow . . . trust me.

Ok ladies, here's my {slightly more personal than usual} thrifty Thursday tip for the week :: The Diva Cup. Have you heard of Diva Cup? If not, I won't explain it when the info is on the webiste, just check it out. A Diva Cup can save you TONS of money over its lifetime! And {as a bonus} it saves on waste and the environment as well. I love mine! But here's the thing :: you either love it or you hate it, there's not really any in between. So, there you have it, the Diva Cup. Just think about it.

multitude monday

Here's my continuing Multitude Monday post, which all started a while back, right here on a wonderful, amazing blog that I read each day.

"One Thousand Gifts":

1403. lilacs
1404. great platelet numbers at my 3-month check
1405. the Falcon Heights Elementary School staff
1406. people who are good sports and are willing to look silly to express gratitude and bring joy to others
1407. having my parents home again
1408. little sharp, bumpy white peaks . . . new teeth erupting through toothless gums
1409. watching Rebekah run
1410. family game of Farkle
1411. Charlie & Lola
1412. a good friend
1413. SAFETY for my brother and his family after a tornado ripped through his neighborhood and damaged their house.

Alrighty, that's it's for now. Tune in next Monday for the next installment.

changes

My parents were gone for 9 days. They got home Thursday night. On Friday morning they came over to see us. In the week they were gone many things stayed the same, but a few other {significant} things didn't. While they were gone Sara changed quite a bit ::

• she mastered crawling {and is VERY quick!}
• she pulled herself to standing in her crib {and the mattress hadn't yet been lowered all the way, because where in the world did that skill come from? Thankfully, she didn't headplant onto the floor}
• she got her first 2 teeth
• she mastered going from laying to sitting to crawling in every possible combination
• she decided she's not as fond of sleep as she once was
• she's further refined her amazing ability to have all 7 of the other people in her family wrapped around her chubby little finger!

What a week! Welcome home Ama & BopBop! {we missed you!}

flashback friday

may 2007

verse 10 {let's pretend it's the 15th, shall we?}

It's time for verse #10 already. Rebekah and I are taking part in Beth Moore's Scripture Memory Challenge this year. We are doing the same verse again this time around {it's nicer and easier that way}::

Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." {John 14.6 NKJ}

If you want to join us in memorizing 24 verses in 2011, that's great! You can "register" the fact that you are taking part in it on Beth's blog. That's where you can log your verses each month and just generally be encouraged by all the other people resolving to do something so beneficial along with you. Blessings on you!

multitude monday {the evening edition}

Here's my continuing Multitude Monday post, which all started a while back, right here. {I'm happy to report that two of my blogging sisters-in-law have joined in the fun of counting all the way to 1000 -- and beyond!}

"One Thousand Gifts":

1393. the quiet and calm of the early morning hours
1394. baby cheeks
1395. baby giggles
1396. baby babbles
1397. friends, treats and chatting about books . . . bookclub. i LOVE it!
1398. wrapping things up, one by one, for another year
1399. hanging out the laundry
1400. the birth of a grandma {and the cute little man who made it possible . . . oh, and credit should also go to his parents, I suppose, since they had a little something to do with it all}
1401. a safe drive to the east coast for my parents
1402. the return of sunshine!

Alrighty, that's it's for now. Tune in next Monday for the next installment.

flashback friday

i've always loved this one ::
how cute is that little face?
october 2005

thrifty thursday

I'm no extreme couponer, but I do what I can! Did you know {if you're local, that is} that Rainbow has double coupon days on Wednesdays and Saturdays. They will double up to 5 coupons at values up to $1. Plus, they'll take a store coupon and a manufacturers coupon for the same item. Target doesn't have double coupon days, but they also will take 1 store coupon and 1 manufacturer coupon per item. They can really add up. The other day I needed something that was on sale at Target that week, plus I had a store and manufacturer coupon and Target ended up paying me to buy it. I don't remember the exact numbers, but the regular price was $7 or so and it was on sale {clearance, actually, if I remember right} for just under $4 and my store and manufacturer coupons added up to $5, so I got the item for free and they took just over $1 off the rest of my bill . . . don't worry, I'm sure I still spent a significant amount of money in total, but it's fun to get such great deals. I only actually buy things that I know I'll use, no matter how good the deal is, but I know people who are major couponers {and have less than 6 kids, I might add} that scour the deals and often get things for free, or very nearly free and then donate the items they won't use to a food shelf or something. Isn't that great? I'm not that hard-core, but I do often save at least $50 off my total bill {although the total bill for a family of 8 is, most likely, more than your bill}. The other day at Target, the bottom of my receipt told me that I'd save $89 something. I was super pumped. Plus most places {around here, at least} give you 5 cents off whenever you use your own bag . . . which I nearly always do! And also I have a Target card, which saves me 5% off every transaction when I use it. Cha-ching, it all adds up!

Happy shopping . . . maybe there are umbrellas on sale somewhere since it just keeps raining. I'm not really the umbrella type though. It's kinda hard to hold a baby and the hand of a toddler while holding an umbrella . . . although I wasn't the umbrella type pre-kids either, truth be told! I haven't melted yet, nor do I do anything significant to my hair that would get ruined, so I'll just take my chances in getting wet!

seven

somehow our little sara is 7 months old already. man, time flies!

lately you can find her scooting, rolling, crawling, drooling, smiling, laughing, sitting up, hanging out, being carted around by older siblings, getting into things, drooling some more and playing the tambourine {practicing to be a percussionist . . . since we could use a little more noise around here}.

we love her lots and lots and are thrilled to have our in our family::

multitude monday {the evening edition}

Here's my continuing Multitude Monday post, which all started a while back, right here. {I'm happy to report that two of my blogging sisters-in-law have joined in the fun of counting all the way to 1000 -- and beyond!}

"One Thousand Gifts":

1376. celebrations in triplicate {Rebekah's long-overdue birthday party, my mom's retirement and Mother's Day}
1377. sunshine
1378. love spanning generations {and relationships that start with the word "great"}::
1379. sleeping under sheets fresh from the line and smelling of outdoors
1380. sweet, humbling words written in a card
1381. mothers
1382. a slab for our new basketball hoop {thanks Dad!} and all the shots taken in the driveway already
1383. witnessing baptism :: a father and his 2 sons
1384. when my friend, Shawna {yes, in fact, we do get teased for being "Shana & Shawna"} preaches. always a blessing!
1385. kids singing "Jesus Loves Me" in church on Mother's Day -- and all the better having them accompanied by my grandma!
1386. 7 months of Sara
1387. the sound of thunder and sleeping to the steady pounding of a good spring rain
1388. giving gifts
1389. the ache after a good workout
1390. my wonderful, adorable, generous, encouraging, helpful, kind parents::1391. mother's day love from my favorite half-dozen little people and their wonderful dad
1392. a long nap for a normally non-napping 3-year-old who needed it

Alrighty, that's it's for now. Tune in next Monday for the next installment.

may 2008

thrifty thursday :: entertainment

We use the library LOTS :: storytime during the week, books, movies, wii games, audio books, music. It's the best! And with the exception of the rare overdue fine, it's free! {I do realize that it isn't really free, our taxes pay for it. But we pay for it whether we use it or not, so you might as well use it, don't you think?} We don't have cable or Netflix or anything and we very rarely rent movies {redbox is a genius idea though, amen?}. We get 99% of our movies from the library. Sometimes you have to get in line, so to speak, for new or popular movies, but we don't mind the wait . . . the delayed gratification makes it all the more exciting when it finally comes in. So, visit your local library today! {or, I guess you could visit my local library. Everyone else does! It's the busiest library in the state, you know. Yup, it's true.}

happy hoppy spring

the spring-like weather has to arrive some time, right?
our little bunnies hope it's soon::

the adorable bunny hats were made by my sister-in-law. if you, too, want some bunny ears {or other fun knit stuff} you can get your own right here.

multitude monday

Here's my continuing Multitude Monday post, which all started a while back, right here.

"One Thousand Gifts":

1358. a cluster of daffodils trumpeting spring
1359. pink buds
1360. funky rain boots
1361. fog hovering over a pond in the early morning
1362. peeking at a sleeping baby
1363. birds in flight
1364. a glorious weekend {winter-ish weather excepted}
1365. making something cute out of garbage
1366. cinnamon roll french toast {yum!}
1367. hugs from my 7 favorite people on the face of the earth after 48-hours away {Sara laughed so hard she cried when she saw me -- so sweet!}
1368. friends
1369. Dottie Haugen! {what a blessing!}
1370. the hilarious sign I saw hanging in a cafe bathroom which read :: "I laughed so hard I had tears running down my legs" Isn't that great? {it's even funnier after having given birth 6 times!}
1371. soul spa
1372. labyrinth walk
1373. tears . . . from laughter and from a welling up of emotion {gratitude, worship, love, sorrow, friendship, passion . . . it all hits me and spills out from my eyes}
1374. cold medicine
1375. unexpected inspiration

Alrighty, that's it's for now. Tune in next Monday for the next installment.

verse 9

Happy May Day {snow and all!}. That must mean it's time for verse #9 already. Rebekah and I are taking part in Beth Moore's Scripture Memory Challenge this year. Rebekah and I are doing the same verse again this time around::

So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. {Isaiah 41.10 niv}

If you want to join us in memorizing 24 verses in 2011, that's great! You can "register" the fact that you are taking part in it on Beth's blog. That's where you can log your verses each month and just generally be encouraged by all the other people resolving to do something so beneficial along with you. Blessings on you!