I got a new look!

We are back from the beach and since then we got to hang out with some of our best friends from Boston for the day on Wednesday, Thursday I had a second round of injections, Friday the kids and I spent the night at Nanna’s so we could swim, and now it’s Saturday.

I have been wanting to write a worthy post but my brain is asleep lately! I am sooo tired! And the injections put me in worse pain, so I am waiting for that to wear off.

But, I do have something exciting to share…well, it’s exciting to me! I got a blog makeover! I love my new look! However, I am moving again, back to www.veryunfinishedproduct.blogspot.com.

Check it out! It’s very pretty! The girls from blogalicious designs did a great job! Thank you Staci and Stephanie.

My title has a few meanings to it, one of them being that my blog started very white and plain. I wanted to write, but didn’t have the time to “make it pretty” first. Hence the name, Very Unfinished Product. I have changed it now to Unfinished Product because it’s so pretty now, complete with a blogroll and links! Also, if you read the scripture in my header, you will see that the title also refers to the work God is doing in us on a regular basis.

Pictures from the beach to come soon, when I have the energy to plug my camera into my computer!

It was a great getaway. Thank you to those of you who prayed for me to feel good while we were there. Your prayers were answered. My pain was still there, but it wasn’t as intense and I really, really enjoyed the great weather and the water! I couldn’t believe how weak I am. It’s amazing how much muscle you lose when you are unable to do just normal, everyday things. I got online last night and bought me some yoga stuff so I can try to strengthen my arms and upper body.  I am already doing things on a regular basis for my hips, legs, back, etc, but it’s more like trying to get my joints to hold themselves in place and it relieves some of the pain. I don’t think it is strengthening me much.

Anyways, he kids also had a blast. And although we were there for two nights, it felt so much longer. It was just fantastic! Also, my pallet in the van helped the car ride tremendously! Thank you Jason for taking a seat out of the van and for letting me lay down for the drive!

We are so tired friends. We are so tired of this burden. It is so hard to be in pain all of the time. It effects everything and we are just so tired. Please pray for renewed strength for us and that my body will be healed soon. I want so bad to be able to do things that I used to be able to do.

Alright, now go check out my pretty new blog, please!

Love,

Mindy

Guess where we are going????

The beach!!! Yesterday the boys and I were bored so we went to Jason and our conversation went something like this…

“Daddy, we’re bored.”

“Well, let’s go to the beach.”

“What??”

“Let’s go to the beach.”

“Are you serious?”

“Yes. What are you standing there for? Go pack your bags, let’s go to the beach!”

And then the boys and I ran around the house excitedly screaming and yelling!! With an occasional, “is he serious??” Well, he was!

It turned out there were no rooms open for that night, but we booked a room for Sunday-Tuesday! Our bags are packed and we have been so restless today, anxious to go! So tomorrow morning, I am sure Dylan will wake us up at some crazy hour and we will hit the road!! Yay! I love the beach!

Thank you Jason for being a special treater!! Your the best!

And of course, I will post pictures when we get back!!!!!!!!

Father’s Day

Yesterday was our third preview service and we did a BBQ at the clubhouse where Marty and Lori live. The service was great, Marty taught a great, encouraging message for dad’s, that was applicable to all. The BBQ was great, we had ribeyes! The kids fished, rode on the golf cart, and played in the sand. Marty taught golf lessons and it was a beautiful day.
Satan was at work too though. I just cannot believe him and the lengths that He is going to to make this too overwhelming for our family. I woke up in excruciating pain. It was like someone was stabbing me in the abdomen over and over. It was almost humorous that it was happening THE morning of a big day for The Crossing. I called my doctor’s answering service and took some pain meds to get the pain under control and literally felt like crawling up in a ball on my bed. I also was really concerned that I was going to pass out. So I called my mom and asked her to come over. The pain meds quickly started to do their job and I decided that I should take a shower. Hey, I would either have clean hair for church or for the hospital. That is seriously the thought that went through my mind. I didn’t want to waste time if the pain went away and my doc told me not to go to the ER because I didn’t want to be late for church. But at the same time, I was waiting for the return call where he would tell me what to do. The pain changed into a dull, tolerable pain and the on-call doc told me to call my doc in the morning and that there was no need to go to the ER unless I started to get dizzy. It was scary. (I was also bleeding a lot and though I might be on the verge of hemorrhaging again. So. Not. Fun.)
But God showed up, helped me get through the pain and I was able to make it to The Crossing and the BBQ. My sweet mom helped me so much and I wouldn’t have been able to do it without her. Also, my sweet sister came over and made the kids breakfast. Thanks Shauna. What would I do without my family?

I think I was THE happiest person to be at church bc of the lenghts it took to get there. Thank you Lord.
So, here are some pictures! The boys both caught their first fish! Thanks Dude, Jeff, and Pop!

Much Love,
Mindy
Oh, by the way, my pain is not near as bad today. Well, it’s the normal bad, not the ” I am going to pass out bad.” Geez Louise.

edited to add…We had 3 baptism’s!! I left the BBQ a little early and didn’t get to be there. By the time Jason got home Sunday evening, we were both so tired that we just went through the motions and didn’t talk much. It wasn’t until today that I found out about it! How Cool! The Crossing’s first 3 baptism’s!

Steel Magnolias

This scene made me cry buckets last night. I just had to give my girlfriends a blast from the past. Such a great, real scene.

Sarah is seven months!

tiny, soft, feet

rolly, polly arms

achew!

happy girl

pretty eyes

pretty smile

“you’re getting pretty close with that camera mom…”

” I think I am going to grab it…”

“what? why can’t I hold it?”

“this grass feels so soft. I like it. but what’s that smell?” “that would be dog and cat poop.” “but we don’t have animals.” “I know, trust me, I know.”

And this one I took just for me. My husband did an amazing job when he picked out my ring. I love it so much, it still makes me smile when I look at it. Thank you Jason!

These are the moments…

“Hey Dylan, will you feed Sarah for me please while I do a couple of things?”

Look Who’s Talking Too

I watched Look Who’s Talking Too today. Cute movie. However, their marital problems  were so blazingly obvious, I felt like I could help them in a 5 minute counseling session! (If only it were that easy!)

1. John Travolta is content with his job, but Kristy however, is not. In an attempt to “help” him, she asks her mom and dad to call in a favor and get him a better job.  Now they are in debt to the parents, ( the mom makes clearly known), and when John tells Kristy that the whole thing makes him feel like less of a man,(in other words), and that he doesn’t want the job, she…
2. uses crying as a way to manipulate him into agreeing with her!!
3. John and the little boy, Mickey, have made a decision about that particular nights bedtime. Kristy comes in and completely undermines him by telling Mickey he must go to bed and she doesn’t care what John and him already agreed on. When John explains to her that the decision had been made, she ignores him and makes him look like he has no authority whatsoever to the kid. Obviously, this ticks John off!
4. Kristy lets her little brother(mid-twenties) move in and live on their couch! John is unhappy with this from the start, but he really gets annoyed, (like most people would), with all the things the brother does around the house. ie. leaving one sip of milk left in the container, borrowing John’s clothes, carrying a gun, etc.  Kristy completely disregards Johns wishes and refuses to kick the brother out, (who is a capable, grown man) . Ouch!
5. Kristy gets all dressed up in seductive clothing when she realizes she wants John back (oh yeah, he got tired of it all and left), and tries to talk to him, but she gets frustrated when all he can focus on is her cleavage! She calls him a dog or something like that! Really, what do you expect from a man who loves you when you are dressed like that??
6. They play the “I will take credit for everything,  and always try to one-up you game.” There is a fire in the kitchen and their conversation goes a little something like this.. “good thing I bought a fire hydrant.” “I bought the fire hydrant.” “No, I did, you told me I was being overly cautious.” “Well, who left the kids with your brother anyways?” Oh geez, pride, pride, pride…it’s ugly! Enough already!

As I was watching the movie, I couldn’t help but wonder if the producer was making all of these things so obvious on purpose, or if that’s really just the way a lot of marriages are??

What are some ways that you are guilty of doing things like the above? I know that I have been a little too quick to disagree with Jason about the kids lately in front of them.

What is one thing you can do to commit to building up your marriage instead of tearing it down?  I am going to look for ways to trust Jason instead of thinking I know best.

Disclaimer. I am not saying it is bad to work for your in-laws. Or to live with them. Or to cry. Or to disagree about parenting. Every example above is specific to the movie. What I am saying is that our motives and approach matters.

“Mom, can we take our clothes off because we are so hot??”

I wrote a status update about the boys today on facebook. They were so hot as we were leaving church, as was I, that they asked me if they could take off their clothes and ride home in their underwear. I laughed and said, “sure.” So they did.

I once had someone tell me that we have to tell our kids “no” so many times in life that her goal was to say “yes” as often as possible. I thought it was a great idea, so I have tried to adopt the philosophy as well.

When my kids ask me if they can do something that is a total “kid” thing to ask, seems silly to me, but will cause no-one any harm or break any rules, I try to say “yes!” So I just went through my phone and found some pictures of things we say “yes” to.

Enjoy…

“Mom, can we wear costumes all year round to restaurants, stores,  play outside, and pretty much anytime we want?”

“Mom, can we gather every pillow in the house and make a fortress?”

“Mom, can I wear my favorite jersey over and over until I am four even though it is a size 2T? And can I wear mismatched shoes everyday just because I want to?”

“Can I wear this sweet hat and necklace to your doctor’s appointment?”

“Dad, will you please take us to the store and buy us some glasses like yours so that we can look JUST LIKE YOU?”

“Will you take a nap with us?”

“Can I mix water, food coloring, sand, leaves, salt and pepper, fruit snacks, and ice together??” “Ummm….sure.” “Can we freeze a rubber band, a piece of candy, a piece of paper, a lincoln log, and some lemonade to see what happens?”

“Can we walk from here (five houses down the street from us), to our house while you drive beside us?”

(notice Drew’s shoes!)

“Can I take some pictures with your camera?” “Will you wear these glasses for one of the pictures?”

And now my favorites…

“Mom, can I hold Sarah?” “Can I feed Sarah?”

I saved the best for last. “Mom, can we take a bath with Sarah?”

You silly boys! They thought taking a bath in the sink was THE coolest thing ever!

Update Number 5

These updates might be read by some of you who really want to know, and it might just be more therapeutic for me. Either way, this is update number 5:)

I had a laparoscopy on June 4 to look for endometreiosis. As I have said before, my pain doctor is convinced the my SI issues are secondary to something else, we just can’t find what that “something else” is.

My SI joint hurts worse on my right side, but the pain down my leg is worse on my left leg. Go figure. It’s very unusual to have BOTH SI Joints inflamed.

So I had surgery and they found a significant amount of endometreosis. Removing it may or may not help with the healing of my joint, either way it’s gone and we are praying that it will help.

My stomach is almost completely healed from the surgery. It’s pretty amazing how minimally invasive the whole thing was.

My back still hurts though. My doctor said it could take up to a month before my pain completely goes away IF endometreosis was a factor.

A month ago or so, I had an injection to my joint.

While the joint was numb, my pain was significantly less. This was good for diagnostic purposes, but the pain came back as soon as the antisthetic wore off.

So now, since we have diagnostic proof that my joints are the problem, my doctor is going to burn the nerves around my joints so I will not feel the pain and hopefully by the time my nerves grow back, my joint will be healed. This is a HUGE prayer request. Huge, huge, huge.

1. That my body will respond to the treatment.

2. That my joints will be healed by the time the nerves are self-healed.

(sidenote- can you tell by these pictures why walking, twisting, bending, would aggravate things? It does. And it stinks.)

These nerves that you see are the ones that will be treated. The frustrating part is that you have to have two “diagnostic” joint injections before they can do the burning of the nerves. So, I still have to have another set of injections, which makes me extremely sore for three days afterwards. Like “can barely walk sore.” And THEN, we can do the burning.

Doctors have hundreds of patients, not just me, unfortunately, so all of this stuff takes so.much.time.  Please pray with us that this process will move along smoothly and QUICKLY!

I have completely weened Sarah so I am able to take Naproxen now, which is working really great for my joint pain. I am taking other medications also for the pain that helps me to be active, but after my window of grace passes by, I get so tired and nauseous. And the pain comes back in full force, especially if I have been too active. It is a constant, daily roller coaster. Please pray for us with that as well. I am really ready for this to be over.

God has been so kind to our family and I feel like we are just having blessings from Him POURED down on us. And He is using His people. Thank you.

Also, I have been so overwhelmed with the pain that screams at me that I have neglected asking for prayer for The Crossing.

Please pray for our family and for the Mosher’s as we are diligently working to be a blessing and to minister to the community of Spring Branch/Bulverde Community. We have a few things coming up that I am particularly excited about. One being a Father’s Day service followed by a BBQ, a putting green, family time, and a fishing pond. You do not have to attend the service to attend the BBQ. We just want people to come and enjoy themselves and we are hoping that it will be a fun, cool thing for families to do together. (also, it’s free!)

We have soccer camp coming up in July for children. It’s also free and we are trying to get the word out through fliers, etc. Please pray for these two things to be successful and to be GREATLY blessed by God. If you know any children in that area who might be interested in going to soccer camp, or families who might want to come on Father’s Day, let us know!

We start weekly services in September!!! YAY!!

One more thing, please pray for God’s perfect timing on the sell of our house and our move as well! It would be great to live IN the area and not 25 miles down the road! But we trust that God knows best and that our family couldn’t have survived the last few months without all the help we have received from loved ones.

Thanks for taking the time to read this and thanks for your love, support,  and prayers.

To God be the glory, GREAT things HE has done.

Love,

Mindy

one more thing…if all else fails, this is on our radar…

stream of consciousness

I ordered some really pretty hair clips for Sarah the other day. I just LOVE them. Isn’t this one adorable?

Do you like the Star Wars sticker that the boy’s put on her??

And speaking of pretty things, a friend of mine, Alyssa, made me this awesome camera strap…

I LOVE it!

This is the family checking out the new iPad. I think it’s a hit for the whole family.

When I said to Jason that I couldn’t believe he was letting the kids play on it, his response was, “there is less of a chance of them breaking it than if you had it.” Ouch! Will he ever let it down that I have broken numerous electronic devices?? I have done so good lately. I can’t even remember the last thing I broke!

The boy’s were at my mom’s the other day and this is what they were doing when I picked them up…

(this is a face where the joy is just spilling out…)

(this is Drew sitting on a chair just a little bit over it…)

Dylan remembers how to swim and he still would swim all day if we let him, well, I guess my mom did let them for quite a while and then both of them had fevers and threw up. Woops. I guess moderation is a good thing. 🙂 Love you mom!

Look at this t-shirt quilt…there is so much potential for the graduation present I am so excited about giving the kids!!