if you really knew me...

you might know that i have a very slight bossy streak. and if you really knew me, you'd know there's more to say than that. let me explain.

i have a younger brother. he's nearly 20 now. before we know it, he'll be off to the MTC and then to the mission field (yes, I realize I'm referring to SLC as the mission field, but too bad, Utah! you're part of it too!) to learn about what it means to be self-sufficient, to realize how much he really values his personal space and time alone, to come to understand what it really means to work to the point of exhaustion, to draw closer to Heavenly Father than ever before, to rely on the Spirit for everything, to realize there's still so much to learn. now i'm faced with the realization that my little baby brother isn't so little anymore. i remember constantly ragging on him, not in the playful way an older sister would, but really just being bossy and kind of mean. i resented him for making me be the one to mow the lawn with this mentality that the able-bodied male should do it. i was annoyed that i was still the gopher even though he was the youngest. maybe i was just more of a pushover.

then there was that week in Kentucky where together we endured the nearly 10 hour car drive to a session of EFY (Especially for Youth), to be a part of my spiritual (and social) high. forced to be friends, at least for a week. now don't get me wrong, we always had our moments, though they were often heavily shadowed by my motherly attitude of "you should do what i say" or "you should feel bad for not doing what i say."

eventually i got over myself (some), got married and moved out and now we can actually talk on the phone, talk as peers, talk as brother and sister. i tease him about girls, impress him with my vast growing NBA knowledge, and watch him play with my little girl as I realize she'll be nearly 3 when she gets to play with her uncle Eric again.

but it really is worth it.

Eric, i am so excited for you. we won't be too far away and you'll constantly be in our prayers, that your time will be well-spent, not just for you, but also for the people in Salt Lake City (I guess you ARE going to a foreign land afterall, hee hee). Good luck and don't be surprised if Mom cleans your room while you're gone!

And I hope you'll forgive me in advance for my poor pen pal skills, but we'll do our best!

Love, your youngest big sister, Heidi.

craigslist

I love looking at antiques and random stuff on craigslist and came across this:

life is so good when you choose to be an active part of it.

i got up this morning determined -- determined to do something more than i did yesterday, specifically to start the day more active and involved in the outside world. so, i went to the grocery store. :) i loaded up adelle in the stroller and walked down the long street to hy-vee, where we browsed a little while, got some things we needed, and walked back home again. this is one of the nicer days we've had in a few weeks, so it was really great to be out in it. adelle fell asleep on the walk home and i was just trying to keep her legs shaded (i'm sure i looked silly walking to the side of the stroller, pulling it rather than pushing it from behind).

this has been a really busy week and i've really enjoyed it:

on thursday evening, i got off some time from work and went with my sister kelly to the mormon tabernacle choir in kansas city at the sprint center. we had a lot of fun and even got there a bit early. we were playing games on her iphone watching people running in at the last minute (this is one of the most embarrassing things for me about the LDS culture... always late! ... and i am guilty of this at times as well, but not for something like this -- there were lines of people walking in through the first song). i probably wouldn't have gone if it wasn't for my friend Greg who is in the choir and sent me 2 tickets, but i am glad i got the opportunity to be there. it reminded me of some goals/desires i once had that got pushed to the backburners while life happened... more on that later.

friday after we worked half a day, luke, adelle and i packed up the car and drove to st. louis to my brother Craig's house. we stayed there overnight and then went to the St. Louis Temple on Saturday early afternoon to go with my brother Eric and my sister Kelly, both of them going for the first time. my brother Eric is preparing to leave for the Mission Training Center to train to be a missionary in the Salt Lake City South mission. it was a really great experience to be in the temple with so many family members... i just wish that everyone could've gone. i am definitely grateful to Craig and Vanessa for being willing to stay and watch the kids. it was a really great trip and just reminded me of how Luke and I need to be making a better effort to go often. there are always reasons not to go... it's so easy to say you're too busy or that you can't get off work, but when it's really important to you, you make it the priority and honestly, when we told our boss how important it was for us to go, she found people to be on call for us herself and made sure we got to go. that was such a huge blessing and definitely not something that always happens.

i'm tempted to start rambling, so instead i'll just end with a super cute Adelle picture from today.

Adelle pic of the week:

I hope you will overlook the messy sweet potatoes on her face and notice how stinking cute Adelle is in her daddy's KU hat. What's funny is that she kept it on for a really long time... it didn't even bother her. Then of course Luke put it over her eyes and she tore it off and threw it on the ground.

I like her.

blog surfing.

i really don't blog surf very often. i stick to the blogs i know and have been invited to read... most of the time. but every once in a while i'll do a little blog surfing and come across something that looks kind of like this:

This blog is open to invited readers only

http://{insert clever blog title here}.blogspot.com/

It doesn't look like you have been invited to read this blog. If you think this is a mistake, you might want to contact the blog author and request an invitation.

Makes me feel like a total stalker.

{insert awkward scream here}

quick update!

I'm sorry I've been away for so long, but I just wanted to do a quick update and let everyone know that all is well. I took this picture of Adelle today and just wanted to let everyone know that she's just as cute as ever :) She's a really good eater and we're slowly working in the puffs and soon she'll start meat (at the end of the week when she turns SEVEN MONTHS on the 19th!). She babbles pretty much constantly and is playing with different sounds. She thinks the 'p' sound is hilarious and does it a lot, as well as the 'b.' She's growing up too fast!!!!

In other news, my little brother Eric got his mission call last month and will be serving in the SLC South mission. He goes into the MTC on July 22nd and we're all really excited for him! Very soon, we will go to the temple with Eric as well as with my sister Kelly. I haven't been to the temple since before I was pregnant, so I am REALLY looking forward to that. And I'm really grateful to our boss who is so understanding and said she'd be the backup so we can be gone on the weekend.

Unfortunately, this is all I have time for at the moment, but I'm going to try and play a little catch up here soon. If not, I'll at least be blogging more frequently than once a month. And in the meantime, check out my craft blog!

life, milestone, and other junk.

It's been a while since I really blogged about my life. Even now I don't have much to say, but wow have we been busy and exhausted... almost all the time. Our only day off in the past week was Saturday because of weekend staff participating in KU's graduation (and the fact that many subs were unavailable also because of graduation).

Luke and I have decided to change up our work schedule... we work together and it's a little bit flexible during the day, so now Luke has decided to take on the brunt of the work instead of us working equal amounts. We're in our second week of doing this and it already is working so much better. This way I'm available during the day to do the paperwork that needs to get done, as well as taking care of Adelle in her own home and having some time to pursue some of my own personal interests (I don't know if I mentioned that I'm working on a graphic design website). I already can feel this change helping our marriage so much and I'm so glad that Luke is willing to take on the extra responsibility. If you've never tried it, it is really challenging working with your spouse, especially this kind of job where it so easily spills into our personal relationship. This new schedule has really helped a lot though. We're not around each other ALL day long, so then we can appreciate the evenings/weekends more.

In other news, ADELLE IS 6 MONTHS OLD TODAY!!!! That is such a milestone that I can't believe she's there already! My sister Lori took some pics of her yesterday and I can't wait to see the best shots! maybe i'll post a pic of her before bed from ON her birthday. I'm going to write her a letter tonight and also write down the things she can do/almost can do right at this moment.

That's all for now!

Lori George Photography

As I've mentioned a few times before on here, my sister Lori has started a photography business. This weekend she officially launched her website/blog and she's included a drawing for a free session! If you live near Lawrence, check it out and leave a comment (by Monday, May 17th!). You could win a free session plus a $25 ordering credit! Also, even if you don't win, she is offering 50% off session fees if you book a session before May 31st (which makes the individual person session only $12.50!).

I'm taking a small part in her business in designing custom announcements/invites/etc. for her clients. Depending on how many opportunities I get through this, I plan to also start my own website where others can order from me as well... maybe other photographers offering to their clients as well as people who just want to order. Anyway, check it out!

my first order...

I have been working a bit with my sister Lori on her budding photography business and have had fun looking at pictures and helping her make editing decisions, etc. Along with that, I have also been working on various announcements/invitations, etc that she can offer to her clients for babies, holidays, etc. Well I got my first order! I took off last names and changed the birthdate to protect a little privacy at least, but here it is! I created that butterfly pattern myself and used a color scheme the mom wanted. It was a lot of fun making this! And of course the photo was taken by Lori! Click on her name to check out her website if you want some great child/family photos taken! And her rates are pretty low so far since she's just starting out.

yay!

adelle is cutting her first teeth! it's the 2 front bottom teeth. no wonder she's been sticking her tongue out so much the past couple of days. i would too if some foreign sensation started breaking through my gums...

yay! they grow up TOO fast.