May 2015 Fun

May has been a great month.

Our Anniversary
Steve and I celebrated 8 years of marriage on May 5th.  I feel so blessed to have spent the last 8 years married to this wonderful guy.  He is such a hard worker and an even better daddy.  We celebrated our anniversary with a night out by ourselves.  Anne had a wonderful time at a sleepover at Grandma and Grandpa's.  It was very nice to have a relaxing evening alone.  We went to a bed and breakfast in Syracuse, Indiana.  There wasn't much to do in Syracuse, so before picking up Anne we stopped and saw a movie, The Avengers.  The movie had its entertaining parts.  Personally, I thought it started out a little slow but by the end it was entertaining.

There was a jacuzzi tub right in the room.

Mother's Day
May 10th was Mother's Day.  Mother's Day can be a difficult day for some.  Whether, it's because of loss or infertility for some wonderful ladies the day is not filled with happiness and joy.  I understand this all too well.  I remember dreading the day, avoiding TV and news because everything was about Mother's Day.  Everything was a reminder of the lives we lost.  I know what's it's like to hate going to grocery store or the mall because there were babies and pregnant ladies everywhere.  I'm keenly aware that when I go out with Anne or even without Anne now I'm pregnant again that I may be bringing pain to someone without even meaning to.  That makes Mother's Day all the more special to me.  God has blessed us with two beautiful angels that we will forever be connected to, one little girl that we hold in our arms, and another I hold inside.

Mother’s Day is a celebration of ALL mothers, whether you hold your children in your arms, you hold your children in your hearts because God holds them in Heaven, or you hold them inside expecting them this year.

Our family made a reservation for lunch at Legends at Notre Dame.  It's becoming somewhat of a tradition, I think.  We came here last year too.  The food and atmosphere are very good.  Afterwards, the family enjoys walking around the Notre Dame campus but it was rainy.  I love being a mom to my sweet Anne.  On Mother's Day, I was 23 weeks with our second miracle.  We very much look forward to the arrival of our second rainbow in September.

Of course, I would be wrong to not honor my own mom.  I have learned so much from my mom about being a mom.  I hope that someday I am as good of a mom as she is.  I am extremely blessed that she is able to watch Anne while I work.  It feels good to know that I don't have to worry about her care when I'm away from her.

Memorial Day Weekend
This weekend, Steve's mom visited town on Sunday and since South Bend was celebrated its 150th Anniversary we joined in the festivities.  After lunch, we headed to downtown.  I thought is was actually quite well done.  The entire kid's area was free.  I love free fun.  

On Monday, my parents had their annual Memorial Day picnic. So after the parade, Anne and I worked on making some deviled eggs, which my dad helped me finish at their house.  It rained for about 20 minutes during the parade but turned out to be a beautiful day.

 Anne coloring her "Panda Mask" at the festival.

 She tried her hand at a bouncy slide with her Sister-in-Law, Julieanne and her cousin, Jacob.

 Papa shared his chocolate ice cream cone with me. ~ Anne

 Watching the parade with Grandma.  "Look, there's a doggy." ~Anne

 Anne using Grandma's hat to stay dry in the rain.

 

Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day, Steve.  You are an amazing father to Anne.  I love you! 

Happy Father's Day, Daddy!

---

Happy Father's Day to the great husbands out there who have children in their arms, to those who have lost children, to expectant fathers too and all the fathers in heaven! If you have a friend or family member who has lost a child or lost their father, please don't forget them today.
Father's Day is tough for some.

---

Here are a few pictures of Steve with his daddy's girl. 

 

An Irish Blessing

Celebrating Anne's first St. Patrick's Day.  We love our little Irish blessing.

RAINBOWS MAKE ME SMILE

Happy Valentine's Day

 Anne's first love will always be her, daddy! Happy Valentine's Day!

 If I have to share Steve's love with someone, at least she's cute. 
Happy First Valentine's Day, Pretty Girl.

Anne got her first Valentine from "Auntie" Lizzy in the mail yesterday.

Thanksgiving 2013

I have so much to be thankful for this year.

1. "The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to him in song." Psalm 28:7
   
   I am thankful for a God that loves me unconditionally and provides for all our needs.  I'm thankful that I serve a God that doesn't give up on me, even when I feel like giving up on Him.  I'm thankful for a God that hasn't a perfect plan for each of us, even when I don't understand that plan.  I'm thankful that God is my strength and my comforter.
    
2. I'm thankful that we several Bibles in our house because we are blessed to have an abundance of English translations available to us.  I'm thankful for an organization, Wycliffe, that has a goal to bring the Bible to every people group, even those that don't even yet have a written language.
   
3.  I'm thankful for my amazing, loving husband.  We have been through so much in the last few years and have grown stronger together.
   
4. Anne is our rainbow baby and a blessing.  Someday she will understand what that means.  We love her so much.  Words cannot even begin to describe what a miracle she is.  There are days that I just stare at her beautiful face in awe that she is really here.  I'm thankful that I'm able to stay home and take care of her everyday.  I love watching her experience all her "firsts."  The look of awe and wonder on her face when she figures something out or experiences something that first time is so fun to watch.
   
5. I'm thankful for my family.  I'm thankful for parents that are still married after 33 years.  My parents taught me the value of marriage and commitment.  They taught me the value of work and that there was no such things as a free lunch.  I'm thankful for sisters and a brother that love each other.  I'm thankful for an extended family that loves each other.
    
6. I have some of the greatest friends anyone could ask for.  The few years have not been easy for me and one thing you realize when bad things happen is who your friends are.  I'm thankful for their listening ear and their hugs.  I'm thankful for the new friends I made in an incredible online support group.  I don't know how I would have got through it without them.

I have so much more to thankful for.  I could list things forever.  We have a home, food to eat, electricity, jobs that provide for our needs, a ministry that we love, monthly financial partners that believe in us, people that love us that prayer for us regularly, and much more.

Happy 1st Thanksgiving Anne!

Fourth of July Celebration/25 Week Update

We had a great 4th of July.  I spent the morning buying some flowers to plant in our front yard and going for a walk around the Mishawaka Riverwalk with Erin, mom, and dad.  I love the Riverwalk. It's so beautiful and peaceful.  It was a very hot morning, so I made sure to drink a lot of water and wear light clothes.  My sister got a great picture of me in the rock garden.

After our walk, my mom came over and planted the flowers I bought in our garden.  With all the rain we have had, the flowers are growing really big.  Last year, we hardly had any rain by this time.  Most places canceled fireworks because we hadn't had rain in more than a month.  This year it seems to rain every week.
 
We were invited to a cookout at our friend's house, so I cut up a watermelon and ate great food with friends and family.  Steve met us there after work and we watched fireworks along with river in Mishawaka.  It was a great day.  The weather was perfect.

How far along?: 25 weeks, 3 days

How big is baby?:

Your baby's the size of a cauliflower!  During month six, the average fetus measures about 13.6 inches to 14.8 inches and weighs about 1.5 to 2.5 pounds.

Any appointments or updates this week?: Our next regular OB appointment is on Monday.  I can't believe I'm this far along all ready.  100 days left!  I have to schedule my glucose test next week.  Oh goody.

Best moment last week?: I can definitely feel movement more than I could last week.  Hopefully, soon we will be able to feel them on the outside so Steve can feel them too.

What I'm looking forward to?: Feeling kicks on the outside and holding my perfect baby.  The answer to this question will probably be pretty consistent.

Dear 2013

Usually at the end of the year, I like to reflect on the last year and highlights that made this year special. As 2012 comes to close, I'm having trouble coming up with the words to properly describe this year.

I'm going to let my blog tell you the story of 2012.  2012 is going to be year we would love to forget, but never will.

---

January

You're Still God by Kathy Troccoli

Monsters Inc: Fighting the Monsters Within You

February 

We are Officially Wycliffe Members

March

60 days into 2012 

This is what I know

April

I Found a Penny Today 

Orlando

May

Wycliffe Prayer Update!

What a Great Weekend!

June

Goodbye 30...Hello 31

When God Has Another Plan

Good bye Beautiful Tree

July

 Game Night with Friends

August

 Bible Study: "in the course of time..."

 Wycliffe: Reaching the Last Languages

September

I Will Carry You: Michael W Smith

Curb Appeal

Online Recipes Exchange: Pumpkin Spice Pancakes

 October

My Life's Soundtrack

God's Glorious Creation - All Lit Up

November

Divine Appointments

The Butterfly Story

December

Don't Stop Believing
Christmas GTG from Omaha
Merry Christmas from the Pitneys

Merry Christmas from the Pitneys

Black Friday Picture Day with Erin

I had a great Thanksgiving with Steve's family in Michigan.  He has a huge family, so it's always a blast.  Of course, the guys and a few of the ladies went out and shot clay pigeons while I kept an eye on our nieces inside.  I'm not big on shooting guns, but Steve enjoys it.  We had to rush home in the afternoon, so we could get home in time to go to bed early. 

On Black Friday, I had to be at work at 4am until 2pm and Steve had to work at 6am.  He is supposed to get off at 7, so he should be home soon.  We shall see if he gets off on time.  After work, I drove up Sears to see Steve and bought some presents for my Elfster exchange buddy.  I think she is really going to like them.  Now, Steve needs to decide what he wants to get her husband, so we can go shopping.  Then I went upstairs to the Photo Studio to see my sister.  She was bored and didn't have any appointments, so she took my picture.  I really like how they turned out.  I got a free 8 X 10 collage, no purchase necessary!  It was a win-win for both of us.  I got great fun pictures and my sister got a photo sit.

Easter Weekend

I think Easter is my favorite holiday.  Easter is about celebrating the resurrection of Christ.  Without the resurrection, we have no Christianity.  If the story ended on Good Friday with Jesus on the cross, then Jesus was just a great teacher.  But the story didn't end there. 
Matthew 28:1-10
After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.
The angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: 'He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you."
So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them. "Greetings," he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, "Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me." (NIV)

 Steve and I both had to work on Saturday, but after work we had dinner with some friends.  It was nice to leave the house and spend time with people outside of work.  Overall, it was a good Saturday.  Sunday, we got up for church like we always do.  There is always something special for me about Easter Sunday at church.  After church, we ate some lunch and cleaned the house to get it ready for our visitors.  Then we went over to my parent's for some Easter dinner.  I really do have the greatest family on the planet.

Monday was my dad's birthday, so after work we met for dinner at Buffalo Wild Wings and went bowling.  It's probably years since I've been bowling.  I scored 93.  I was nice to get out of the house again.  Third time since I've left the house for something other than work or grocery shopping in week or maybe months.  I'm looking forward to a hopefully relaxing and healing vacation next week. Overall, it was a great weekend.

Christmas 2011

Oh, how I love Christmas.  There is just something special about getting together with family and friends to celebrate the birth of Jesus.  I love the spirit of giving that comes out this time of year.  If you look hard enough, you can find the joy in the season.  I know I'm slightly biased, but I think I have to best family ever.

Breath of Heaven by Amy Grant
I have traveled
Many moonless night
Cold and Weary
With a babe inside
And I wonder
What I've done
Holy Father
You have come
Chosen me now
To carry your son

I am waiting
in a silent prayer
I am frightened
by the load i bear
In a world as cold as stone
Must I walk this path alone
Be with me now
Be with me now
[chorus:]
-----------------------------------
Breath of Heaven
Hold me together
Be forever near me
Breath of Heaven

Breath of Heaven
Lighten my darkness
Pour over me, your holyness
For your holy Breath of Heaven
-----------------------------------
Do you wonder
As you watch my face
If a wiser one, should of had my place
But I offer-all I am
For the mercy-of your plan
Help me be strong
Help me be
Help me

Happy St. Patrick's Day: The Prayer of St. Patrick

The Prayer of St. Patrick

I arise today

Through the strength of heaven;

Light of the sun,

Splendor of fire,

Speed of lightning,

Swiftness of the wind,

Depth of the sea,

Stability of the earth,

Firmness of the rock.

I arise today

Through God's strength to pilot me;

God's might to uphold me,

God's wisdom to guide me,

God's eye to look before me,

God's ear to hear me,

God's word to speak for me,

God's hand to guard me,

God's way to lie before me,

God's shield to protect me,

God's hosts to save me

Afar and anear,

Alone or in a mulitude.

Christ shield me today

Against wounding

Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me,

Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me,

Christ on my right, Christ on my left,

Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down,

Christ in the heart of everyone who thinks of me,

Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me,

Christ in the eye that sees me,

Christ in the ear that hears me.

I arise today

Through the mighty strength

Of the Lord of creation

2010 Pitney Family Christmas Weekend



Me with our newest niece, Heiress.

 This weekend was great.  Friday night, Steve went to the YWCA Christmas party and I had to work, so I couldn't go. :o(

Saturday, we both had the day off from Sears because it was the day of Steve's family Christmas.  Steve's family never has Christmas on Christmas and that's nice since my family always have Christmas on Christmas.  It was such a relaxing day of just hanging out with family.  The party was at Steve's brother's house in Bourbon, IN.  He lives out in the country, so he has a lot of space for playing for the kids and the guys had room to shoot guns at targets.  There was only a few minor injuries, so I guess they were successful.  The weather was a little rainy, so we did have to stay inside a lot.  On Steve's side of the family, there are ten kids between all of his brothers, so there were kids playing all over.  The kids range in age from school age to 3 months.  The little cutie in the picture above is our newest niece that was born in August.  It was a great day of family fun and eating really good food.  Steve's brother, Randy and his family stayed the night with us on Saturday night.  When we returned home, it was bedtime for the kiddos.

Sunday, we got up a little early for a normal Sunday.  We woke up and ate some breakfast.  Cheerios with banana was a big hit with the kids.  Steve and I wanted to give his bro and family the gift of Christmas family pictures this year and we were going to have Erin take them.  She had to work on Sunday, so packed up the family and headed to Sears.  Our adorable little nieces and nephew had fun meeting some of our co-workers.  Erin took some great pictures.  Casey kept looking at my funny when I was holding her. I'm not sure she knew what to do with two Aunt Bridget's.  Steve and I even got to get in one with the kids.  They love their Aunt Bridget and Uncle Steve.
They had to leave after we ate lunch in the food court.  It was a great weekend. :o)
We didn't do much else for the rest of the day since mother nature decided to dump tons of tons on us over the weekend.  Steve did rent a movie from Red Box, so we watched G-Force (which is a very cute movie) and ate some popcorn.
Red Box Movies - $1; Kroger Popcorn = $1 for a box; Not having to pay more than $20 for the movie and popcorn at the theater=Priceless. :o)

Give Thanks!

GIVE THANKS

WITH A GRATEFUL HEART

GIVE THANKS

TO THE HOLY ONE

GIVE THANKS

FOR HE'S GIVEN

JESUS CHRIST, HIS SON

AND NOW LET THE WEAK SAY

I AM STRONG

LET THE POOR SAY

I AM RICH

BECAUSE OF WHAT

THE LORD HAS DONE

FOR US

GIVE THANKS...

Thanksgiving is Not About Turkey!

Psalm 100
Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the lands!
Serve the Lord with gladness! Come into God's presence with singing!
Know that the Lord is God! It is he that made us, and we are his;
we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise!
Give thanks to him, bless his name!
For the Lord is good;
his steadfast love endures for ever,
and his faithfulness to all generations.

Thanksgiving
For each new morning with its light,
For rest and shelter of the night,
For health and food,
For love and friends,
For everything Thy goodness sends.
- Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882)

Join a Special Group of Women!

I love this time of year. The leaves are changing into beautiful colors and there is such a spirit of giving everywhere.  People wake up every year between Thanksgiving and Christmas and seem to realize there are poor and hurting around us.  They will go out of their way and give and I love it.  I sometimes wonder though, if those people realize that the poor and hurting are with us in this community the other ten months of the year, as well.
I would like to suggest that this year be different.  Become a Women of Vision for the YWCA North Central Indiana.  Join a select group of women who are changing the world one family at a time. YWCA Women of Vision help provide the resources needed to care for women and children in need in our community.   You can give a one time lump sum donation or you can spread your pledge monthly throughout the year.  If you can't give much, that's ok because every little bit helps to provide a safe shelter and resources for the 1300 women and children we serve every year.

If you have any questions, please contact Peggy King at 574-231-9491 X307 or email her at pking@ywcancin.org.

You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.
2 Corinthians 9:11

4th of July Weekend

Wow!  I had such a great weekend.  Steve's brother called him on Wednesday night and told us that they were going to visit us for the weekend.  My first thought was, "AHH...my house is not child proof and clean at all."  Steve's brother and his wife have three precious kids.  They are 4, 18 months, and 10 days old.  So Thursday night, I ran around the house cleaning up, doing laundry, dishes and such.  Then our vacuum stopped working so we had to borrow my parents fancy expensive vacuum.  They have one of those Rainbow vacuums and I have to admit it was pretty neat and it did a pretty good job.  I'm not sure I could be convinced to spend 2 grand on it though.  We did get the house looking pretty good by the time they got here though.  They arrived on Saturday afternoon. I had to work at Sears until 9, so I had to wait until I got home to see them.  I so excited though knowing that I would be meeting our newest niece, Casey.  Look at that picture.  Isn't she precious?  She really likes Eskimo Kisses.  I think she slept most of the time we were awake.

Sunday: On Sunday, we woke up and went to the church that Steve's dad preaches at down in Wakarusa.  He spoke up how the road to Christ is a narrow road and the road to destruction is a wide road.  The wide road is easily and often more inviting in the short run, but it leads to death.  The narrow road to Christ is hard to stay on if you don't keep eyes straight ahead, but it always leads to better life. After church and some family time, we headed back home.  Steve put together a new toy for Keegan and Kyleigh to play with.  Keegan "helped" Uncle Steve put it together.  For lunch, Steve made some ribs and I made corn and mashed potatoes.  My sis came over and brought some cake and ice cream.  Keegan even helped me shuck the corn.  He was a very good helper.  Kyleigh helped a little too.  The ribs turned out perfect.
After dinner, we decided to take the kids to the St. Joseph County Fair for fireworks.  We got there with a little bit of time for Keegan to go on some rides and to see some animals.  We ran into some strangers...I'm mean the Radabaughs while we were there.  It's been way to long since we've seen each other.   Cadence and Keegan are only 21 days apart so I think they enjoyed seeing someone that was just their size.  The fireworks were great, of course.  Kyleigh enjoyed watching them from high up being held by Uncle Steve.  When we got home, it was bedtime.  Keegan was excited to get to sleep in the Ohio State room.
Monday:  On Monday, we actually had the day off from both jobs, because it was our Holiday from the YWCA since the 4th was on Sunday.  Steve got up and made breakfast for everyone.  Before lunch, Randy and Alexis and the cleaned headed home.  It was so fun having them visit for the weekend.  They should visit more often.  The rest of the day was not really planned, except for lunch.  We met a missionary couple that we met in Dallas for lunch.  They are actually from Mishawaka so they were in town.  We actually had a pretty productive rest of the day.  Steve cleaned out and vacuumed his truck and I got some garage sale stuff ready for our sale next week.  Then I cleaned out and vacuumed my car and Steve installed my new back seat.  My car looks so clean, at least on the inside, right now.  Now the next task is to re-clean up the house.  We gave Kyleigh some Cheerios for snack, so now we have de-Cheerio our house, put the toys away, wash all the sheets, etc.  It was a tiring weekend, but I loved every minute of it.

Bring on 2010!

I can't believe this year is almost over. It seemed like it went so fast. It definetly was a great year though. I don't think there is any part of the year that I would change.

It started out with us getting settled in our new house.  Having a house is a lot of work.  I had no idea how much work went into fixing up a house. It's been exciting though.  The biggest thing we did this year on the house was new windows.  We saved up the money and got bids from different companies and with the help of some great friends and my dad, Steve put in the new windows. I love them.  The house seems much brighter with the new windows and our electric bill is definitely happier.

We celebrated our 2nd wedding anniversary this year in May.  We also made the final payments on our vehicles this Spring. It feels so good knowing the cars are paid for. It's just one less debt to worry about.  The next task is to tackle the student loans. Besides the house, the student loans are all we have left.
This summer, my High School class celebrated our 10 Year Reunion.  Liz traveled up from Tulsa to spend the week with us, so I was happy about that.  It was good to see some friends I hadn't seen in awhile and catch up with others I see all the time.
This summer, Steve, our friend Damian, and I took a road trip to Philadephia to visit Steve's cousin, Meredith.  We spent a day walking around Philly, then we went to the a Phillies baseball game.  We also visited Delaware and spent a day in New York City.  I think in total we visited 5 different states.  The trip was pretty fun.  I rode on a train and a city bus for the first time. I love history, so walking around all the sites in Philly was really exciting.
God blessed us at every turn this year.  It seemed like everytime we felt discouraged or stressed, He had something for us right around the corner.
We are back working a second part time job at Sears for Christmas.  We are both hoping they keep us after the season is over. 

We ended the year with a trip to Chicago with some amazing friends.  It was a bit on the chilly side, but great fun anyway.  These two have been two of my best friends for almost 20 years. I would not trade them for the world.  Our husbands all get along too, so that's great.
I made a New Years Goal last year of reading one non-fiction book a month, for a total of 12.  As of today, I'm working on number 11.  I didn't reach my goal, but I figure 11 books is more than I read last year. 
I can't wait to see what God has in store for us in the next year.  Bring it on.