Making a house a home in a year!

A year ago TODAY, my husband and I finished packing up, and moved our humble little belongings a quarter of a mile down the street to our new home .. (link to the post 1 year ago). http://thewilsons3.blogspot.com/2010/10/were-moving.html

(The year before we had spent living in dorm rooms, the first one was a half dorm room, the size of, or smaller than most peoples master BATHrooms. It had a bed ,one dresser, and a small restroom. That is all it fit, and at the time it was ALL we needed.)

October 6th of last year, was a new start for us, as I wobbled my way up the stairs with a growing pregnant belly, to the wonderful smell of fresh paint. I checked out an empty bedroom that would soon be occupied by the gymnast inside my belly, and never could have imagined how my life would have transformed in just one year.

Now, that once empty house is furnished and lived in, and filled with so many baby toys, that most days its hard to see the ground. The Lord never fails us, no matter how dire the situation may have seemed. Truly, we didn't deserve to be blessed with a condo, we still don't deserve it.

My view from the deck this morning! The house was a little too messy to snap pictures.

Fashion what??? A northwest girl in a So Cal world. (Baby fashion)

I must admit something, I am NOT a fan of shopping. Seriously. I have hated it since I was very young and malls have always made me sick, even before I was chronically ill. When I was young I often found myself having to leave shopping trips early because the wide array of smells and chaos at malls made my stomach churn, literally. Yes, I know, so odd for a girl to say, but it is just how I have always been. Don't get me wrong I like new clothes like rest of the female world, if someone gave me a shopping spree I would totally take it, and think that those that CAN pull off the latest fashion trends definitely have a GIFT, but I haven't a clue about fashion. No clue whats in, or whats out, or what is up and coming. My husband often makes fun of me for the fact that I chose what I'm wearing everyday based soley on its "comfort level. Maybe I have that mentality because I'm from Oregon and their style is more columbia sportswear/Northface hiking type clothes, (though I have many portland friends who are fashionistas and dress so cal) Or perhaps it's because I grew up playing soccer everyday, or spending my summers rafting, seeing as my family are river guides. Whatever it is. Southern California is the wrong place for me to be, when it comes to fashion. Its just really not something that is important to me. I will always be a t-shirt, jeans and hooded sweatshirt type of girl, with an occational out of the box clothing option, usually picked out by my husband. (I do love jackets though. That is my one clothing obsession, shout out to Jeremey's dad, who also is jacket obsessed!). At the end of the day though, When all the new fashions come sweeping through, I often find myself saying "I could never pull that off" and end up just sticking to what I know. The interesting thing is how one of my favorite shows to watch is Project Runway, hahaha. weird.

BUT ... wanna know what the funny thing is ... I Love dressing my daughter ...

Even funnier. I had always dreaded having to dress a girl someday ... I didn't dread the girl, I Love my GIRL, but the clothes ...

... Pink, frills, bows, tutus, loud colorful dresses, with animal chararters, or hearts or stars on every corner, oh my. I have found though, that it is possible to dress a girl cute without it making your eyes hurt. Neutral/ earth tones, solid colors, soft pinks, tastefull design, and no cartoony side art. This is all just a basis of opinion, so if you like these things, please don't be offended. You may not like elements that I like, and that is perfectly fine. Now, not that we have a lot of money to buy super nice clothes for a baby, but for us the more simple the better, and simple usually means cheaper, "usually", while still allowing her to look like a girl of course, and making sure she is comfortable ;) Really, we are just thankful that the Lord has provided for us to provide for our daughter, and have a little fun with it. I may not know anything about fashion but I do know that there is just something so fun about dressing a little girl in skinny jeans. A statement that I thought I would NEVER live to say. I hope I don't ruin Tatums sense of style because of my lack of it, but it will only be a matter of time before she can choose to wear whatever she wants, modestly of course ...

Here are a few pictures of items Tatum has, or the type of things I like.

Got these jeans for her receantly, and am in love with them. I want a pair for myself. Love the belt.

Dont have this but i think it is so pretty and muted and simple.

Got a jacket similiar to this for her, but without the fur. Love it. Bought it with a pen mark on the front, so we got it for cheap. We don't really care as long as she is warm in the oregon snow.

Love the softness of this pink, and the style. Maybe I'll get it on clearance someday.

Tatum has these boots and Loves them. They never fall off and keep her nice and cozy!

Tatum has several of these little shirts. They are so simple, colorful and clean and go with anything. My type of style!

Baby Jeggings. One of my favorite buys so far. They slip on so easily and look great!

I use to have a little obsession with hats and beanies. Hope Tatum like them too. Beanies are the cutest on babies! If they can manage to keep them on.

A simple sandle, that stays on for the most part and is super cute. Tatum is a fan.

We have this sweatshirt, and really love it. I am a huge fan of anything that has a hood, for myself or for my baby.

little gal in her jeans and sandles.

View of the belt. Love.

It's good to be feeling good: An update on my health.

I realized, as I look back on many past blogposts, that I have forgotten to let you guys know how it is that I have being doing health wise lately. You may be asking ...

"Are you healed? cuz it sure looks like you have been doing a lot of "up and about" activities lately." The answer: No, I'm not healed.

or you may be asking. "Have you been exaggerating in the past as to how sick you are?" The answer: No, no exaggeration.

or, you may be thinking "Has anything changed at all?" The answer: Yes, it has, let me tell you about it.

In the past 5 months or so, I have been feeling BETTER. All Glory to the Lord, it was nothing I did. At the beginning of the summer, I started to feel like the the physical pressure that constantly wracks my head with dizziness and disorientation began to lighten a bit. I no longer consistantly feel like I have been drugged and beaten over the head while traveling on a small boat in the ocean while sitting on a marry-go-round. Sounds drastic, but this was an everyday, every moment type of feeling. In this new season I have been more capable and able to go out and do "normal" people things. This is something I have prayed for for years! There have even been moments or days where my sickness was not even thought about. THAT IS HUGE!!! I am rarely in my wheelchair anymore, I take a lot more walks, am able to hold normal to semi normal conversations with people, haha, and don't ALWAYS have to be sitting down to ensure I don't fall over. Most importantly, I am am able to spend time with my family doing more fun activities outside the house, I can play with daughter, go on dates with my husband, and you get the picture. It really has been a very VERY blessed and cherished season. Jeremey and I have to remind ourselfs daily to thank the Lord for each moment that I am feeling well. Believe it or not, it is EASY to forget how bad things really were.

Now before you get ahead of yourself and think that everything is all fine and dandy over here, I must tell you, that I am still very much sick. I can do the above mentioned activities, yes, for the most part, BUT I still take medication daily, and still have to take things very slow. My days are very OFF and ON. Some will be great, and the next day I will feel like I need to be in the hospital. And somedays I just have to take it hour by hour. My symptoms can change THAT fast. But all things considered, having good days AND bad days is better than just always having BAD days, right? If this is just a season, then praise the Lord for the season of good/better health, but if it is a definite turning point in my illness towards an overall healthier body, then praise the Lord for that too. No matter what happens, I want to remain thankful.