The Life of A Stay at Home Mom

Last year when Tim and I made the decision to trust God and have me stay at home I had some idea of what my new life would be.  The cooking and cleaning were a given.  I knew there would be library trips, play dates, and grocery shopping.  Usually my days are a juggle just cleaning up spills and spit up, diffusing tantrums, playing dress-up and pretend, dancing with my girls to music.  Today something dawned on me.  Today was one of the days I was watching Jordyn, the most adorable 5 month old who is SO EASY.  Today, shortly after I woke up, I put a whole chicken in the crock pot to roast for dinner.  I stuffed the cavity with orange slices because I didn't have any onion, but I really didn't have any idea what I was doing.  Guess what...when I looked up how long to cook the chicken I came across a recipe putting oranges in the cavity!  I just did it hoping it would work.  Today my child came down with a fever...and not a low one- nearly 103.  I made her comfy, gave her medicine and a popsicle and went on with my day.  If I were working I probably could have pulled off the chicken thanks to the wonderful crock pot, but I would not have been the one to give my girl the first snuggles when she didn't feel good.  Today while all three kids napped (thank you, naps!!) I made cookies so my big girl could have a yummy treat when she feels better.  Today I watched my baby girl reach another small milestone on her way to crawling...going from a sitting position to crawling position.  I know it's not a big thing but I was there to see it.  Today I am beyond thankful.  I look around at my tiny, less-than-perfect, toys everywhere house and know that there is NOTHING else I would rather be doing with my days, especially while my babies are still babies.  

A long time ago...

I have wanted to do this post for a long time.  If nothing else, I want to archive our story for the future and for the girls.  Almost 5 years ago, Tim and I made a major lifestyle change.  I felt God was telling us we needed to get rid of our rent in order to get some things in order and save money.  The solution to this was purchasing a 1982 31 foot travel trailer and put it on Tim's grandparents' property in Loomis.  Thirty one feet long by nine feet wide.  Three hundred square feet of living space.  I know people with master bedrooms bigger than that.  Finding a trailer was pretty easy but this trailer was in HORRIBLE shape on the inside.  The bones were good though, and no leaks...so we could see potential.  A  good thing was the guy we bought it from left two large boxes of chapter books in the back- SCORE!  I was teaching 4th grade at the time and they were perfect for my classroom.  This didn't make up for the fact that he had back registration fees we ended up having to pay to the DMV...jerk.  Besides being a jerk, he was a pig.  We spent several days gutting the thing.  First came cleaning everything out...including the family of mice living under the bathroom sink!  Next was cutting out a wall in the back to make one space for a bedroom.  It started out with 3 bunk beds and a full size platform bed.  We tore out an upper bunk over the platform as well as a half wall to create our room.  The remaining bunks served as storage and a living area for our two cats (since this lifestyle change included our cats and 90 pound lab!) Then came buying a new bathtub, building a corner bench/couch, and installing carpet and linolium (we found remnant linolium that looked like hardwood floor!).  Finally, I was able to re-cover the dining room bench pads and decorate. 

We lived in the trailer for 9 months.  There were moments of frustration, and many more moments of laughter and fun.  We have stories from these months we will remember forever.  We each celebrated a birthday and we also celebrated our first anniversary.  So here are pictures from our trailer adventure...these have been seen by very few eyes until now!

BEFORE

 Looking down from the front to the back...kitchen on the left with horrible 80s wallpaper we painted over.

 The "couch"

The "dining area" and a bunch of junk mid-clean!

AFTER

 The couch/bench we had Tony build.  There was a cool ledge all around it for lamps, pictures, candles, etc.

 The "dining area" The benches had storage under them for our large appliances!  The storage above held food/dishes/etc

 A view from the middle of the trailer.  The couch was L-shape and the "skirt" was an old bedskirt I used a staple gun to attach!  We hung a shelf and curtains.  The cupboards above the couch were perfect for movies and games.

 Looking at the "great room" :)  Kitchen on the right with stove, oven, and sink and counter...new flooring...

 My little curtain above the sink.  We had the most beautiful view every morning along with birds chirping.

 Teeny tiny bathroom.  We used an Ikea lamp that plugged in!  We had a teeny toilet, teeny sink, and teeny tub!

Our room.  We separated the bedroom from the rest of the trailer with a curtain for a little privacy.  Our bed was next to a window overlooking the field. 

Highlights of our time in the trailer:
-Living on 5 acres in beautiful Loomis.
-Paying off several bills
-Learning to live with less, and in turn, appreciate the 1100 sq ft we live in now (and especially our dishwasher!)
-Getting to be in such close proximity at all times to my best friend aka my husband :)
-We did a lot of housesitting which gave us lots of time in a "real" house.

Lowlights:
-There were some very cold nights, and the little space heater didn't always help. 
-There were some very HOT days, and even with A/C (yes we had it!) it couldn't keep up.
-Laundry- Tim's grandparents were nice enough to let us use theirs in the house.
-No dishwasher
-An oven with awkward temps...we burned many cookies :(

God gave us many lessons on humility.  Here are some funny stories:
~One day in May it was VERY hot when I came home from work.  My grandfather had called and I was telling him how hot it was and the A/C wasn't helping.  He told me to get my sprinkler and throw it on the roof and turn it on.  I did what he said and when Tim got home the big long trailer looked like it was a whale with a spout!  But it worked!

~My best description of taking a bath in the trailer?  It's like taking a bath in a bucket! 

~We went to Pam and Bob's wedding and were staying with Nicholas and Amanda after for a couple days.  We needed to get some stuff and went by the trailer after the wedding.  Amanda asked where Tim went and I told her he was in our house and pointed to the trailer...she said "That's not a house...that's a shoebox!"

~One of the joys of staying in a trailer is having to empty the "waste".  We had a special box on wheels designed for this joyous task (a task that was reserved for Tim only!) and he would have to fill it, roll it to the other side of the property to empty it in the sewer (his grandparents had one put in for their motorhome)  Well the box-thing is blue so you couldn't see when it was full and one day when he was filling it, it overflowed and the "waste" was spilling out all over the place!  Needless to say after that day we looked up a company and paid for it to be done!

We are thankful for the time we spent here...however, we are even more thankful for our house we now call home and have for the last 4+ years!

My Mom and the "Big C"

Many people have asked me more details about my mom and her recent diagnosis.  It all started a couple months ago when she started experiencing some symptoms which she told her GP about.  She referred her to a gynecologist.  Of course I wanted her to see Dr. Phelan because he is so amazing.  She went to him after having an ultrasound and he recommended a procedure to check what was causing her symptoms.  She had that procedure on Friday, and Dr. Phelan said they would have biopsy results in about a week, and he would see her in three weeks for post-op check up.  When he came to talk to me in the waiting room his comment was "It went pretty well" and he continued by telling me what he took out...then ended up chatting about my babies.  I went home not so comfortable with the words "pretty well".  Don't they usually say "it went great" or at least "good"?  Then, over the weekend, my grandma died, which really threw my emotions even more.  On Tuesday my mom got a call that Dr. Phelan's office wanted her to make an appointment to come in and discuss results.  She made the appointment for the first thing the next day (Wed.) I went with her that morning and had called her best friend of almost 52 years, Nikki.  I just had a feeling it was going to be bad news, and I didn't know how well I would do staying strong.  Nikki offered right away to come to the appt, and she waited in the waiting room.  Dr. Phelan delivered the news gently that what they tested is in fact, cancer.  At that point they went and got Nikki while I started to fall apart.  My mom stayed cool as a cucumber the rest of the time.  Dr. Phelan gave her a referral to a gynocological oncologist and recommended a total hysterectomy ASAP, and if all goes well that would take care of it.  Then he gave hugs and went on to happier appointments.  She got in to the specialist for a consult yesterday, and both of us got a good feeling about him.  He felt positive about what he saw in the ultrasounds and pathology reports.  She has Endometrial Adenocarcinoma and it has a high success rate of being "cured" with surgery.  She will have it in a couple weeks (still waiting on an exact date) and has AMAZING friends who have already offered her help with whatever she needs.  She is staying positive about the whole thing and just wants it to be over with.  I am thankful for everyone who has reached out to me as well, especially those who have walked in my shoes being the child of a parent diagnosed with cancer.  The advice I have been given has helped tremendously.  She is just glad that the timing worked out with being able to still attend my grandma's services next weekend and support my dad's family.  Again, thank you, for thoughts, prayers, hugs, phone calls, and everything else. 

Grandma

I am thirty years old and until today still had all four grandparents (plus two bonus grandparents!)...and today I lost my first.

Grandma Gail was my Dad's mom, and she lived at "the ranch".  As a kid when we would go visit (which was only a couple to a few times per year) she was down on the floor playing Pick-Up Sticks or Tiddliwinks with us, or she was on the couch reading us a book. 

We were still able to make trips up there one or two times a year in the last few years.  I am thankful my Grandma was at my wedding.  I am grateful she held Gracie as a baby and played tea party with her as a little girl.  She may not have been able to play games down on the floor, but she was still able to cuddle on the couch and read to her.  We were just there in November, and she met and held Charlotte for the first time and the last time.  We had THE BEST visit.  This is another thing I am grateful for. 

She would have been 87 on February 5th.  She passed away early this morning in her bed with my Grandpa at her side.  I will miss her terribly...her voice reading to my kids, seeing her in the kitchen cooking a wonderful meal for her family, and I will miss the sweet cards in the mail and phone calls that ALWAYS ended with "I love you Chels, give those girls a kiss for me". 

Now, she is in Heaven, reunited with her Daddy she spoke so highly of, her daughter (my Auntie Dearest) and many other family and friends who went before her. 

Out and About

Running errands on a gorgeous day

The lion at the park

Puzzles at the library

Gracie at dance before anyone else showed up

Seeing "Cinderella" with my mom at the neatest old theater

After the library- she LOVES books, and goes to her nap every day with them. 

Charlotte's first time on a swing- she loved it

"Castle Park"

Isn't it amazing?!

 

Now that we have not had as much rain, the girls and I have been getting out more.  I know the times at the Library for story time, music time, and toy time, Gracie has started dance class, and I have been finding better and cooler parks close by.  We tend to gravitate to Folsom, which has grown a lot.  I like their libraries, shopping, and parks.  If you have never been there, they also have the BEST "old" part of town.

Where Did Time Go?

Tiffani and I have been friends since childhood...dance, swim team, sleepovers, first cars...
Then in each other's weddings...and all of a sudden we are "grown-ups"

We both have daughters...and they are only 11 days apart in age!  Now that they are almost 3, it's the perfect time to get them together for play dates.  They both love dress-up and music.  Today was our first play date, and Tiffani and I had a chance to catch up too.  I look forward to many more get-togethers with our little princesses!  Thanks for having us over!

Snow Day

We missed Tim so much when we were gone!  He was happy to have us home, and had planned a snow day for his day off (which thankfully was the next day!).  We got up and started with Starbucks, and headed up to a snow park just past Blue Canyon.  Gracie has been to the snow but not that she can remember...so she was pretty excited.  We made a small snowman, and even did some sledding which she LOVED. 

Little snow bunny all bundled and warm

Gracie's snowman

Sledding with Daddy

She loves him!

My baby and I watched from the side lines- though I did go down with Gracie a few times!

Taking a break

Our family time is the best!