Thomas' Green Thumb

Remember back in March when Thomas decided he wanted to be an urban farmer?

Well, his work has paid off. We had the greenest lawn in the whole neighborhood.

I decided to plant some Fuchsia from little starts. And my goal is to winter them. We will see if they come back next year!

This is the evidence that Thomas is outside working.

We started our garden from seed and at least half of it is growing!

Strawberries in the hanging baskets.

My very own kiwi vine!

And that my friends is a kiwi!

These buddies came back from last Easter.

And this is our apple tree.

You have to have words of encouragement right?

Rhubarb, that I think I have now killed. I need to figure out something better for this stuff. I LOVE rhubarb!

My 1 asparagus fern in all my herbs.

The sunflower just didn't quite want to give up his seed.

Need a little help here. Grow budies! Grow!

My oregano has survived for 2 years now! And this poinsettia is left over from Christmas! What!?!?!

I only have 3 aloe plants now, but they are going strong!

And this is what it looks like 2 months later in July.

Green onions, spinach, carrots, lettuce, parsley, and way at the end, brussel sprouts.

Sunflowers, green beans, sweet peas, radishes, onions, turnips, and our little bit of color, marigolds.

Cucumbers, squash, tomatoes, rosemary, cilantro, and a whole barrel full of herbs with an asparagus fern.

I just love these bulbs! I only had them on half of the bricks last year, so I added them in the spring. And they attract bees for the veggies!

Grape time!

My favorite little hiding place in my backyard. And yes, we inherited a palm tree.

It is a good thing Thomas is around, because let me tell you how often I remember to water. This garden would not survive with out that man and his green thumb.

And by the way, can someone please get it in my head that I need to thin out my garden? I have a really hard time with that concept. I seriously need it hammered in my head.

Urban Farmer Thomas

This is my husband Thomas.

He decided in a day that our front yard needed to be tilled. 

After hand tilling about 1/16th of the yard, he borrowed this beast from a friend.

I kinda want to photoshop 2 oxen in front of him. 

It would just be so perfect.

And then we came home to this...

My neighbor's idea of a good time.

I honestly could not stop laughing. I almost wet myself.

They even put a potato beside the sign.

And they kept yelling at people to stop and dig.

Oh buddy. These guys are the best.

Our yard is fully put together again now. 

After a week of being "those" neighbors.

And hopefully we will have grass in a few weeks instead of moss. 

Or the dead yard we had for the last 5 years.

And another good note. 

The sprinkler system works now for the first time in 5 years.

It is the little things in life.

And it is officially spring. These beautiful blues hold the beautiful yellows.

And as much as I would like to say it is just the reflections.... 

It is really just my dirty windows. Spring. Guess it is time to clean those bad boys.

Infertility - Just a Little Longer

As I walked home from the Dr’s office and reviewed everything that was said about the In Vitro process, my stomach hurt. Up until that time, everything the nurses told me was good. Your hormones levels are good, you have lots of follicles (early stage eggs), the follicles are progressing well, you ovulated! Yay! All affirmations that things were going well.

And then during this last appointment, I heard:
You have too many follicles.
Your progesterone levels were low.
It was very matter of fact to me, not really meaning anything.

And then he started to explain. During the In Vitro Process, there are shots.

Ok… I can do that.

And we have to be careful with the excess number of follicles.

Ok… lets be careful. Not a big deal.

And then you and Thomas won’t be able to be together because you will both be having a different procedure done at the same time, miles apart.

Well that’s lame. But ok. We can do that.

And then once the procedure is done, you will have to take progesterone for the first 12 weeks of pregnancy.

Ok… I can take a pill for 12 weeks.

No, they will either be injections or suppositories.

Wait. What?

Really? 12 weeks? Is there no other way?

Maybe we should adopt. And not embryo adopt like we had planned through this whole process, because I would still have to go through all this In Vitro process if we did that.

But adopt a living child. One that doesn’t include 12 weeks of injections or suppositories.

But no, that is not where we feel God is calling us at this moment.

So we go forward. We wait another 2 months for healing and we pray. We pray that God works a miracle and our bodies work how they are created to work. And that my progesterone levels heal themselves and increase to normal standards so I don't miscarry. For the 3rd time.

Pray.
Because we believe in a God of miracles.

Seven Years

Sometimes it just hits me. Six and a half years. Just months away from the seven year mark. I don’t know why, but for some reason knowing Thomas and I have been married for almost seven years seems like a really long time to me. There are times in my life when it certain things suddenly hit me. And this is one of those. I have been married almost 7 years. 

And that is weird. 

Not a bad weird. Just weird. And long. Again, not a bad long. Just long. I have loved every second of it. There have been hard times and amazing times. 

And it all comes back to almost seven years. A lot of life in seven years. Just the other day Thomas said he liked our random dates. We had just gone to Boathouse 19. And I have to admit. I love them too. And he also said he loves to just hang out with me. Ditto. We truly have a blast together.

There are still moments when I just want wrap my arms around him and just curl up next to him. Just be next to him. Even when I am sitting 3 feet from him. It just isn’t close enough at times. So I scoot on over.

I look back on the past nine years of knowing Thomas. A year of friendship. A year of dating and engagement. Four years of the military. A year of unemployment. Two years of trying to grow our family. Wow. That is my adult life summed up.  

And yet it is so much more. I wouldn’t change it for anything. Because sprinkled in those major life events are the games of cribbage, farkle, and settlers. The movies we cuddled up next to each other and watched. The places we have camped. The meals we have eaten together. The friendships we have cultivated. All the countries we have explored. The letters we have written. The dreams we have dreamed. We are so blessed. So dearly blessed. 

Seven years. The more I think about it, the more I am excited for the next seven. What on earth could I imagine them to hold? More games, more friends, more dreams, more exploring, more life lived. 

Together. Happy.

Content.

 

The day after Thomas proposed. Seven years ago.

 

5k Is Finished!

And we did it!

Another check off of the Bucket List.

After weeks and weeks of "training" we did a little 5k running action. 

My training consisted of running a total of 6 times over 5 weeks, a 5 mile hike, 4 over 3 mile walks, a 2 mile bike ride, and tons of little 1 mile walks. The training schedule that Emily made for me did not happen. The moral is I didn't really train. But I had committed, so I ran.

This is our motley crew.

Emily, Nick, Me, Erin, Larry, Thomas, and DJ

 The starting line was right behind all of us. The first half of the race is down hill, which naturally means that the second half of the race is all up hill.

And 3.1 miles later....

 The finish line.

Everyone was an awesome help.

At work I would have conversations with Emily and DJ about when we would work out. 

Thomas and Erin ran with me and pushed me by talking and keeping me distracted the whole time I ran although it literately hurt Thomas to run as slow as I do.

After crossing the finish line, the first thing I said was...

"Yeah, I am never doing this again."

Although I enjoyed the experience, maybe if I had different events through out the run I would be more encouraged. However just plain running is not my thing.

I was never inspired by the "race" and all the "hype" of the day. 

After mile 2, it never got fun.

I am not "hooked" and have not already signed up for my next 5k. 

Although a few positive things did happen. I am excited to be back in shape some what. At least to be working out multiple days a week. 

I know that I love walking and can walk 3-4 miles without a moment of hesitation. In fact I do that twice a week. I don't need to run to prove anything.

I am thankful that although Thomas loves running, he could care less about races. Less money we spend on that.

Post race with Courtney who ran the 5k before us.

And now I need to figure out what I am going to check off of my bucket list next.

Thomas' Cooking Adventures

Over the years, Thomas has started to cook and bake a little more. Actually, he has started baking a ton more. The difference between him and I, is I will follow the recipe to the T and if it doesn't turn out, I go in search for a better one. For instance, I am still looking for a quinoa salad (similar to a pasta salad) that I like. Just not there yet. But I digress.

Thomas on the other hand takes one recipe he loves and changes it. He found a bread recipe that he loves. To date, he has changed out the liquid for beer, added bacon, changed the flour ratios by adding wheat flour, almond flour, and oat flour. I do admit he is adventurous. My hesitation is the fact that he will often waste bread that had he followed the recipe, would have been perfectly good.

But I love his desire to explore. So I keep my mouth shut. With the exception of this post. :) Oh well.

So here are a few things he has made.

Tortillas from scratch.

3cups of flour

1tsp salt

1/3 cup oil

1 cup warm water

Mix it all together and cook it on the griddle until they are browned. They were good, but a little thick. I am excited to run it through our pasta maker that we are hopefully getting soon!! A late birthday present for me!

And duck. He decided he wanted to make duck. So he did! We had some co-workers over and we ate a little bit of duck.

And with the leftovers, we made stir fry. And it was also delicious!

And if you need a good fish recipe, Thomas made an amazing lemon caper white fish recipe. And then we ate it too quickly to get a picture. But the recipe is here!

We Said "I Do" Not Once But Twice

When I said, "I will marry you!" to Thomas in August of 2006 I had no idea the adventure we were about to enjoy. I definitely did not expect to get to marry him twice.

Although I may forever be ruining one of my answers for the game 2 truths and a lie, here is the story of why we said "I do" not once but twice. 

When I was in high school during a different time of my life, God promised that the man I married and how I got married would be both different, special, and an adventure. So fast forward 4 years and here I am in the middle of a street (Lundy lane to be exact) in Los Altos, CA on a beautiful starry night saying yes to a man on benden knee. I was thrilled, excited and 3 days later we said good bye as he took off for bootcamp. Over the course of the next months as I tried to plan a wedding all by myself (although let's be realistic that was a dream come true for my planning self) we had a few unknowns.

The 2 biggest obstacles for us, were settling on a date, due to the unknown of when Thomas would graduate his medic training and where we would live after we said "I do". When we found out that Thomaswould graduate on April 13th, we quickly set a date for April 15th. there was no postponing this shindig if I had anything to say about it. 

i cannot tell you where the idea came from, but when we started talking about where the army would send us after the wedding we realized that the army wouldn't be sending "us" any where. According to their eyes, there was only Thomas. So we decided to get married in the courthouse so that I would be on Thomas's orders and move as it turns out, to the great state of WA.

So on Dec 20th 2006 Thomas got off the plane at 11 am and by 2 pm, we were at our appointment in the courthouse. my sister Alyssa flew up to San Jose, and Thomas's brother Christian took a few hours off of work, and they stood by us and witnesses our first round of "I do's". 

So now we have the joy of celebrating not 1 but 2 anniversaries every year. So today is the first of our 2 sixth anniversaries. 

Here's to twice as many anniversaries over the next 51 years Thomas Allen!

Day 11 - My Country

Day 11 - My Country – So thankful to live in a country where I am safe. So thankful for all the Soldiers who have put their lives on the line to give me the freedom and safety to live how I do. Thankful for Thomas, my Dad, Keith, and all four of our grandfathers, who fought for the freedom of their country. I love that we have a day to be thankful for and remember our soldiers who fight so that we can be free. 

Thankful.

Thomas 09-10 Tour

Thomas 09-10 Tour

Day 10 - Marriage

Day 10 - Marriage – I love being married. There is nothing better then the beauty of the permanent sleep over with your best friend. I love that no matter what, I have someone who loves me and is committed to sticking with me through thick or thin. Sticking with me no matter how cranky or delightful I am to be around. In yesterday's thankfulness of laughter, I said it was one of the top three things you need in marriage. Laughter as well as commitment and Christ-likeness (selflessness) are the 3 things that will keep you together. Marriage is hard work. It can be a struggle, but it also is one of the best things in life. The joy of waking up to my best friend every moment for the past (almost) 6 years is priceless.

2012 Month of Thankfuls - Day 1 - Thomas

Thomas and I have a tradition that we started last year where every day up until Thanksgiving, we write down what we are thankful for. So I thought that in the spirit of the season, for the next 22 days, I would post those things daily. So here goes...

Nov 1: I am the most thankful for Thomas. I cannot put into words what he means to me. Although I often try :). He has so many amazing qualities that make me smile because they are qualities that I did not even know I wanted in a husband and yet God knew. I love that he is my best friend and that we love to do things together. I love that we still have moments where we learn things about each other even 6 years later. I love that he has such a soft heart and yet he is my protector. I love his heart for Jesus and his desire to live the life He has laid out for us. I love his creativity in his model tanks and his love to take care of the house and yard. Most of all, I love how much he adores me. He makes me feel beautiful and loved on a daily basis. So thankful for you Thomas Allen!

Our first Thanksgiving feast

Lumberjack Thomas

Thomas and I have wanted to cut down our apple tree that has given us about a dozen apples a year since we moved into the house 3 years ago. Of those dozen apples we have managed to finangle about 1 per year away from the birds who get to then before us.

So when my dad came up last November, he wanted to take the wood home so he could turn some bowls with the wood, because apparently apple wood makes beautiful bowls.

So with a little eye protection, a helmet, a chain saw, and a ladder.... Thomas went after the tree.

A picture for a calendar perhaps?

Minus an arm.

Cut off at the knees.

And defeated!!! Proud and dusty.