Winner!

Congrats to Mandi Miller!

Please send me an email at aosburn86 at gmail.com, with your contact info :)

And a HUGE thanks to Trooppaws for sponsoring this giveaway!
Also, If you are interested follow this link for a discounted Trooppaws!

on a side note..
my "baby" graduated from kinder this morning,
I am sad that time has passed so quickly,
I went from snuggling him to walking him to school,
seriously time needs to slow way down.
Pictures to come!

Army Family

The Lord has been teaching me a lesson about him providing for me and for our family.

 Trust me when I say that I am a slow learner.

That was until Tuesday, I found out my Granny was being put on hospice.

 We were told she had little time and I absolutely knew I had to come home to see her and to say goodbye.

I rushed around getting me and the kiddos packed up thinking I would leave Tuesday night, that was until I took my car to get a quick oil change and the sorta funny noise it has been making on and off for the past few weeks was staying put.

 The man who changed my oil offered no help, so a man in the waiting area offered to take a peak for me, he was a civilian (retired) and working as a mechanic on post now.

 He looked under the hood with my hubby and said he didn't think it was a good idea to be traveling.

 I was so sad knowing I may not get the van fixed in time to see my Granny.

We called a couple rental car agencies and they had nothing big enough, so when my hubby got home from duty on Wednesday morning we drove to several and they also had nothing large enough for all 3 car seats.

My husband and I had really prayed the night before that the Lord would show me how we needed to get home.

 A friend had offered for us to borrow her brand new 2012 Chevy Equinox, no lie.

We told her we felt like we would be taking advantage of her, but when we found out that the rental agencies had nothing we knew that this was what we felt like the Lord was showing us that he was our provider, and that this borrowed car was the way I would be able to get home.

How amazing that it worked out perfectly that she was going on leave for two weeks and it allowed her to offer this amazing gift to us. How amazing that we have made such good friends through the Army, it really is just like a family.

So needless to say, I am home.

My granny is still in hospice but I have seen her and loved on her.

And I made it all because the Lord does provide.

oh also... don't forget to check out my giveaway!

 

Trooppaws: giveaway and review!

A few weeks ago I was contacted by Marlene,the creator of  Trooppaws. 

    Here is what Marlene has to say about her product and our troops: "I understand the importance of giving back, which is why for years now I have been baking cookies for the troops as a sign of support for our servicemen and women.  My passion for our brave troops led me to a factory that manufactures uniforms for the military. It gave me the idea to create a stuffed animal for military families and friends.  The courage of family members left behind is so admirable that my hope is that loved ones find strength and comfort in this personalized keepsake.  A portion of the proceeds will be donated to the Folds of Honor Foundation and Treat The Troops.org."     I was thrilled at the chance to review the product and host a giveaway.We got the Army puppy and it is adorable!We have had other products in the past to help the kids have a reminder of Daddy while he is away,but this is something different.My kids have seriously been having to rotate the "daddy dog" to sleep with,otherwise we are having complete meltdowns.  so sweet giving her pup a ride
There are 4 types of dogs: Army, Marine, Navy and Air Force.The Navy Pup is only sold at the Navy exchange.I love the fact that it is so big and sturdy. It has already had to been wiped down and it looks super clean.I would honestly recommend this over other products, mostly because of the size and the quality.You can just feel the difference in how it is made.
So here's what will happen!One person will win their very own Trooppaws :)And also to support the business, Marlene is going to be offering a special discount code to those of you who don't win but would like to purchase these awesome dogs.
To enter you must:1. Follow me on gfc.2. Like Trooppaws on facebook3. Leave me a comment telling me your most favorite thing about summertime:)4. Leave me a comment telling me which Trooppaws puppy you would choose! That is four different chances to enter and win!The winner will be chose by random.org on Monday May 28.

    

Baby T

Yesterday morning bright and early my sweet baby had his first and hopefully last "surgery"

He had tubes put in his ear because of chronic ear infections he has had since he was 3 months old.

They said his right ear was severely infected and they even had to drain pus out... gross...

But the good news is,  hopefully no more infections after he is all healed up! 

*fingers crossed* 

and they said this will help to improve his hearing loss.

They said he will be in some pain for 24-48 hours, but then back to normal.

 

Isn't he just sooo sweet :) 

Are you MOM enough?

WOW! That pretty much sums up my reaction to this Time magazine cover. I am all about feeding nursing your baby. In fact I nursed ALL 3 of my babies.Alijah until he was 9 monthsAubree until she was 16 months, and Tevin until he was 11 months.I stopped nursing them all for various reasons,I didn't love every second of breastfeeding but to me the good outweighed the bad times.I would nurse in public or wherever I was so that I could feed my baby,and of course I did this modestly at all times,out of respect for myself and for my husband.Because I'm sorry but not everyone needs to see your breasts hanging out.  BUT this picture crosses a line.First, think about that child, how old is he?( From what I have read he is almost 4 years old!)What will people think/say when he is older?And this pic is just shoving sexuality down your throat..I doesn't even look like he is nursing it just looks like he has a boob in his mouth,seriously I feel that this is COMPLETELY unacceptable. And really the title?? ARE YOU MOM ENOUGH? give me a break, seriously.gross, just gross.  Do you think this crosses a line?

Milspouse Bloghop!

Welcome to the blog hop brought to you by Household6diva and Riding the Roller Coaster!

Hey y'all, I'm Alia.I'm 25 years young (geesh) I'm married to my amazing hubby Tim, a soldier in the Army.Stationed at "The Great Place" Ft. Hood, TX  

   I am the mama to 3 sweet babies.Alijah is 6, Aubree is 3 and Tevin is 1.I'm a stay at home mama and even though the days are long and hard,I would not trade a single minute.  

 

I have been saved by Jesus' Grace and I strive to live a life that shows that.I hope that I teach my children that very same thing, a life of kindness, compassion, and grace. I have been blogging since 2009 but after I had my third child, I took a very long, unintentional break.I'm getting back into the swing of thingsand I love it.I love blogging, and I love getting to know other bloggers.  So grab a cup of coffee, stay a while, and lets get to know each other :)

A true fan!

  Even though this guy is a Padres fan (I'm a Rangers fan), that is just pure awesome.Now, somebody hook a girl up with a "baseball beer" 

Guest post

  A few weeks ago, I was contacted by Heather, a survivor of Mesothelioma, 

to share her story on my blog.

I gladly accepted because I can not even imagine having to deal

 with such a thing and try to care of my sweet babies.

So you can read her story below and also head to her blog to read further!

The Trials and Triumphs of Raising Lily During Mesothelioma Treatment

Out of all the things I had done in my lifetime, it wasn’t until I had my daughter in August of 2005 that I really felt I had done something miraculous. My pregnancy was mostly uneventful since I had no complications, and once Lily arrived, we had our family – our “village”- to help us through the first few weeks. Our family and friends reminded us of the saying, “it takes a village”, and surely, I couldn’t have asked for a better start to our family.

That was until a wave of misfortune came our way. I had just gone back to work full-time when I started experiencing symptoms of fatigue and breathlessness. Everyone assured me these feelings were normal and all part of being a new mom. Nevertheless, I couldn’t help but think that something more may be going on, so I paid a visit to my doctor. I could never imagine the words I would hear.

Three months after giving birth to my little Lily, I would be diagnosed with malignant pleural mesothelioma, a rare but deadly cancer in the lining of the lung. It is primarily caused by asbestos, which I had been exposed to as a child. Who would have thought it would come back to haunt me, especially during the most significant time in my life.

I knew I couldn’t give up; I had to fight. My diagnosis was grim, and doctors were giving me 15 months to live if I did nothing. I couldn’t imagine Lily growing up without a mother by her side. I immediately booked a flight to Boston so that I could undergo an extrapleural pneumenectomy, which is where my left lung would be removed. I spent 18 days in the hospital and then started chemotherapy and radiation.

If this sounds overwhelming, one can imagine how I felt during this time. Lily stayed with my parents at my childhood home in South Dakota, and my parents emailed us pictures of her accomplishments like rolling over, scooting and trying solids for the first time. She looked happy, and she had so much love and attention back home. My parents, who were in their older years and also kept full-time jobs, also had their own “village” of friends and neighbors that helped watch Lily. It was amazing how everyone came together to give my little girl the love and support she needed.

Seeing the photos made me realize how hard I had to fight. I met people in Boston who were walking the same journey as us, and it was a wonderful feeling to have our own “village” who understood our hardships. As for many of our other friends back home, they simply took the easy way out and removed themselves from the picture.

You never really recover from cancer; it re-shapes you as a person and gives you a different outlook on life. Today, we embrace life and everything it has to offer, good and bad. I’m sure one day Lily will recite my favorite quote: “Life is a banquet and most poor suckers are starving to death.”

I am awesome

Since it's mother's day on Sunday and I'm supposed to be showered with gifts and sappy cards that accurately describe how awesome I am, I decided to show you all the gifts I am expecting :) Ha Ha

1. A Camera Bag- this is not just a want, it's a need. 

ooooh I'm swooning over this one, LOVE ♥

you can see more beautiful bags here :)  Snugglens

2. maxi dresses and oh yeah more maxi dresses, like this one:

From Old Navy

3. Last but certainly not least,  this CAYUTE pair of Toms

you can find them here: solemateshoes

What are you other mama's wanting for your super, special, terrific, awesome, number 1 day!?

oh and p.s I was not compensated in any way for these products, it's just genuinely things I Love :)

On May 5, it was International Bereaved Mother's Day.

Although I never got to hold my baby,

meet my baby,

feel my baby growing and kicking,

to know if my baby was a sweet little boy or girl,

I am still the mama to that very sweet baby!

Since the miscarriage (read about it here),

our lives have so dramatically changed!

We have so much unknown territory in our future.

But I often wonder the what ifs?

What if I was 4& 1/2 months pregnant today?

How would our lives be?

What would be going on?

Would I get to have a home birth?

So many unanswered questions.

I do feel that everything happens for a reason.

 but sometimes it feels like a cruel joke. Surprise a new baby! Then it was just taken away.

I'm thankful for the sweet babies I do have. I'm also hopeful for a another baby in the future.

and I know one day we will meet our baby in heaven!

The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.” Job 1:21

 

Happy Sunday :)

 Happy Sunday folks,Today has consisted of:T. Sloan rubbing poop all over his crib, pillow, sheetsand a super cute stuffed horse.Awesome :)Then while playing with the wii:my super sweet 6 year oldhas a  few brand new phrases.."oh snap"or"ooh skills, skills"whaaa? when did 6 year olds start talking like that?Then my sweet little woman,while jumping on the trampoline with the sprinkler underneath,decides to take her top off like brother.sigh. good times my friends, good times.  

National Day of Prayer

It's National Day Of Prayer today.

I was thinking of all the things I have been praying about

 and the things I need to be praying for more often.

I sure do a good job asking God for things I need.

I also do a good job about telling the Lord about what I think should be going on in my life.

I don't do a very good job about praying for my children and for my husband. I usually do something pretty basic, short and sweet about each one of them. Also maybe a little generic, but I know this prayer time is so very important for my children. It's also so important I think for my hubby especially. To pray for him to lead our family strongly and to also be an encouraging wife for the man who provides for our family.

For friends and family asking for prayer, I try to take time out of my day immediately to pray for them. I don't feel like your prayer has to be very long to be effective, just heart felt and genuine.

So that's my goal to pray over my children more and for each one of them specifically and for each of their needs.

Also to pray for my husband more specifically, more for ways I can be helpful and supportive.

For all my words to be kind, to be filled with grace, and for patience to be overflowing from me.

Trust me I am not good with these things.

I try to not judge.

I try to always speak kindly.

I try to show patience even though I may have none, but I fail big time!

That's where praying comes in!

1 Thessalonians 5:17 "Pray without ceasing"

If you have something you would like me to pray about, please feel free to email me or leave a comment :)

 

Gluten Free

For a while now, I have been having horrible stomach pains and some pretty intense side effects along with it. I was finally referred to a GI doc after several months of run around.

After several tests, like a colonoscopy and endoscopy,

the GI gave me just a "catch all" of IBS.

so very annoying.

basically meaning she had absolutely no idea why my small intestine was very swollen and inflamed.

So after more appointments,

she decide to put me on a gluten free diet.

I'm supposed to completely cut out gluten, then dairy along with it.

Then I will slowly add it back into my diet to see what is causing the discomfort.

I am positive I have a gluten sensitivity and the dairy I'm pretty sure doesn't bother me.

and oh man has it been difficult.

feeding a family and also trying to eat with some pretty harsh restrictions has been hard.

All of our main dishes are gluten free,

but snacks and lunches for the kids are not.

You have no idea how much gluten you eat until you have to cut it out of your diet.

So what I'm wondering is if y'all have any awesome gluten free recipes?

gluten free snacks?

also that may be kid friendly,

It would be so helpful!

    

"Don't worry about anything: instead pray about everything." Philippians 6:4

This is my motto for life right now.

Don't worry.

Do not worry.

 It's pretty powerful.

It kind of smacks you in the face.

I wonder about our future often.

I lay in bed at night unable to sleep, just so overwhelmed with the unknown.

I'm a huge planner, I like to be in charge,

and for the first time I'm really learning to let God be in charge.
It's honestly hard work.

I don't want to leave my future in someone else's hands,

but then I'm reminded of the might hands my future is in.

The hands of a redeemer,

The hands of the Almighty.

I have been praying so much for the future, for hubby's job,

hopefully for another baby, for a move.

We have been discussing switching to the US Coast Guard.

EEK..

It scares me and makes me excited all at the same time

I'm really not sure how our future is going to be or what it holds,

but I do know whose in control.

And I am comforted by that.

oh p.s. keep a look out for my giveaway! It will be going up here in a few days!