Mattos Family

Wordless Wednesday

2011-11-02T09:41:00.000-07:00

Words of wisdom from a 5 year old.

2011-09-26T09:39:00.000-07:00

It was a very gloomy, wet and normal day for fall in the Pacific Northwest. However Jillian didn't see it that way. She made two statements as we walked to school this morning that I thought would be fun to share.

1) It is a spoiled day.
2) I don't like it. My shoes are getting wet.

Hope you get a smile from this.

Faithfulness via Provisions

2011-07-01T11:18:00.000-07:00

I told you I would write more about God’s provision in this season of our lives. It's only taken me three weeks to finish what I wanted to say so, here is goes. . .

Recently, in a down moment, I sent a message to a friend. A portion of their (wise) response to me was:

“… in these times and seasons in our life when were wondering what's going on and things don't make sense - we purpose to assess all that the Lord is doing and how he has blessed us in so many ways. We list everything, and write it down so we can see it.”

So, I thought I would do that here. Perhaps it will be an encouragement or admonition to others to do the same. So, where do I begin . . .

Well, I guess first and foremost, we have a (relatively) happy, smiley, healthy, handsome 18 week old baby boy who brings us such joy!

Many of you know about our concern with finances and Joshua being born early. I had enrolled in an AFLAC disability program intentionally for his birth. I was of the impression that I would received 6 months of pay as long as he was born 10 months after my enrollment date, which in this case was March 1st. So I was hoping and praying that he would come on or after March 1st. He did not. I was devastated. We chose to apply for the cash benefit anyway. And two weeks later, we received a check in the mail for a little over half of our monthly living expenses. It seems that I had misunderstood. For OTHER disabilities, you could be awarded UP TO 6 months of pay but for pregnancy, the maximum benefit was only 6 weeks, which we received despite his birth date being early. At this point any money was better than no money at all.

Prior to Joshua’s birth, we had started hearing information about our church’s annual Men’s conference in Ocean Shores. It was scheduled for March 25-27th. Joshua’s due date was March 12th. We determined there was no way Kenton would be able to attend so soon after Joshua’s birth. But then . . . he came early and the conference was no a full month away. I could handle being home alone with a preschooler and a one month old for sure. But then there was a question of finances . . . again. Kenton got in touch with the church to find out if there were any scholarships available. Eventually he was granted a scholarship, accommodations and a small budget for food for the weekend. When he arrived at his room, he also found a gift card from an anonymous member of the ministry Kenton had been volunteering with at church. (Our awesome online campus that you can check out here: http://www.livingwateronline.tv/) From that moment on, God worked amazing things in Kenton’s heart over the course of the weekend. If you’d like to read more about that, you can read Kenton’s account on his blog here: http://betweenpadawanandmaster.blogspot.com/2011/03/weekend-of-men-and-god-march-30-2011.html

At this conference, Kenton was able to make connections with many men from our church. He was invited to attend an informal bi-weekly men’s breakfast on Saturday mornings where he has been able to further grow some of the relationships he began on that weekend away. This has turned out to be an answer to prayer and an encouragement to both of us. Enter Michael Stark. I don’t know that I have ever known anyone like this man. He is a powerhouse of encouragement, energy, hospitality, humor and unbelievable willingness. He’s the kind of guy that you are sure was the class clown in school and would scale the walls if only he had the physically ability to do so but his heart is HUGE!!! He has been encouraging my husband from the moment the park ranger caught them doing donuts on the beach highway in Ocean Shores . . . Woops! And recently, we have had the opportunity to engage with his family and other friends of theirs, which are now friends of ours, through ‘chance meetings’ and an invitation to the small group they host in their home. It was through these interactions that I met April, the friend whose prayer I wrote about in my last post. These friends & their families have been such a great source of joy and encouragement to us over these last few weeks (see http://betweenpadawanandmaster.blogspot.com/2011/05/moment-to-smile-at-05312011.html & http://betweenpadawanandmaster.blogspot.com/2011/06/meant-in-midst-060532011.html) Two week ago we had a game night with them that was an absolute blast!

Another source of great fellowship & encouragement to me was the women I spent 10 weeks with while I was off of work. Because of my leave, I was able to attend the weekly women’s Bible study at my church. We spent two hours a week together learning from God’s word about covenants. These women faithfully listened, encouraged me and loved on me and my little boy (when he would accompany me to the group). It was such a blessing and I look forward to rejoining them in the fall, God willing.

After Joshua’s birth, medical bills started to trickle in. This is to be expected after any birth but since we had been in Olympia for a year and a half and none of us had seen a doctor. Joshua’s birth and well checks were just the catalyst we needed to finally establish care with a local physician’s office. So, in addition to my pre-natal expenses and Joshua’s birth expense we also had standard appts & related follow-ups for all of us. Add to that a pesky visit to the ER after our dear son (a mere 8 days old) busted open his circumsion incision within hours of the surgery and bled profusely. We knew we were covered by my medical insurance but were of the impression that Kenton needed atleast 100 hours a month to qualify for medical insurance through his work. Through a phone call to the insurance company regarding a completely different matter of a cafeteria style plan for out of pocket expenses (which we had NO idea about), Kenton learned that because of his tenure with the company, he was grandfathered in to an 80 hour a month minimum hours and therefore, we had had coverage through his work since January 1st IN ADDITION to the medical insurance from my work. So, ALL of our medical bills would be dual covered by insurance and went into a holding pattern while the secondary insurance is being contacted. Praise God!!

God also provided for us financially & physically. I already mentioned the gift card that Kenton received while on the Men’s Gathering. One of the women in my Bible Study group (who has chosen to remain anonymous) also gifted our family with a gift card to Fred Meyer at our last Bible Study meeting. Another dear couple of friends felt God leading them to share a portion of their monthly giving with us. This thoughtful gave us a little ‘extra’ to cover our vehicle registration renewals for the year which both came due while I was off of work and allowed us a simple night out for a date without the kids. Something, I know the givers would have approved of. Especially since our date led us to a new coffee shop we had heard of and the givers do greatly appreciate their coffee.

Other paths of provision started early on in my pregnancy and have since come to abundant fruition. In the second month of my pregnancy, an old childhood friend that I had re-connected with via Facebook had received notice that her husband was being restationed to the other side of the country. To lightentheir moving load, she started getting rid of things, including a Medela Pump-in-Style backpack style breast pump. She offered it up on FB to any takers. I was the first to respon even though I hoped I wasn't going to be working and wouldn't need such a powerful pump. This dear friend gifted me the pump for free along with a dozen or so accessories. This was the first blessing. With God's help and the assistance of this pump. I have been able to keep my baby on a strict diet of mama's milk only. My first day back to work, I pumped 10+ ounces. The next day it was 12. I have continued to be able to pump enough for Joshua's feedings while I am at work and some days, a little extra. I thank God for my ample milk supply and the ability to provide for my little man in this way. My little man who lost nearly a full pound in the week after his birth and who at last check was nearly 15lbs and 24 inches long, putting him in the 75th percentile for weight and 95th percentile for height for his age. He still doesn't have his sister's cheeks. . . yet. But is developing quite the little rolls on his long legs.

Another tremendous blessing came from one of the member of my first FPU class which happened last fall. This particular woman is the mother of three little boys, I believe. She had some of their old clothes taking up space in her basement. When I ran into her one night after a church function, she asked me if I'd be interested in them. I said sure and we parted ways. A few months later, after Joshua was born she contacted me and let me know she was moving and could I come get the stuff she had, if I still wanted it. Of course I wanted it. Baby shower clothing gift were just about to run out and we hadn't had the means yet (except grandmas) to acquire more clothes. I rushed to her house the next day where her husband loaded up the back of my van with two 32 gallon totes, two large black garbage bags and a few miscellaneous toys and baby items.

When I finally had the opportunity to go through the totes and bags about a week later, I couldn't believe what I found. There are dozens of baby boy outfits from 6 month to 2 or 3T, including some that still had tags on them. There were FIFTEEN pairs of shoes, ranging from size 2 to size 7, including three pairs of converse (which I would NEVER choose to afford but would LOVE to have for either of my kids).

In the very bottom of one of the boxes were 5 cloth diapers. That may not sound like much but it's a savings of about $100 that our family didn't have to spend to increase our diaper stash AND it nearly doubled out current pocket diaper collection. Finally, the pièce de résistance, in the very bottom of one of the garbage bags was a small compact folding travel bed. I had registered for a similar one before Joshua was born but had not received it. All of the sudden, it was as if God was saying to me, "See. I DO see you. I know your desire, even the ones that may seem petty to you. I know what you want and need and I WILL provide for you." I am SO looking forward to using that little bed for Joshua's first camping trip THIS weekend!

Despite the feeling of dryness and God's silence in this season, it is impossible for to deny that God is at work. Daily there is something that reminds me of His constant presence and awareness in our lives. As Pastor Jon pointed out at church a few weeks back, despite the storm that the disciples faced on the sea with Jesus sleeping below deck, Jesus was still WITH them. He had not left them alone in the boat to navigate by themselves. Jesus is always in the boat. And based on the provisions in this post and many other incidences in our lives, it is obvious that Jesus is with us in our boat too! Praise God!

VERY Wordy Wednesday - Lessons

2011-06-08T14:37:00.000-07:00

About three years ago, in the midst of one of my “desert seasons”, God gave me a picture of the back of a jigsaw puzzle. On some of the pieces was written a lesson He was teaching me. I remember wisdom, patience, abundance . . . There was no picture on the puzzle just the brown cardboard backing and the words but I knew that someday, after all the pieces were labeled, I would be able to turn the puzzle over and see the beautiful picture on the other side . . . the masterpiece that God had molded my life to be through all of these little lessons.

The puzzle vision has lied dormant for a while but when I sat down to write this post, I realized that more pieces had been added. Among them are unworthiness, gratefulness, provision, faithfulness and contentment.

Tuesday night on the eve of my return to work, I had intended to have a peaceful and prayerful night out with my husband, sans kids, to prepare me for the next day. What happened instead was the meanest, ugliest, nastiest depiction of the flesh overruling the Spirit. And mere days after Pastor Jon had taught us about these battles and encouraged us to choose to follow the Spirit and not the flesh. I LOST IT! I was so consumed with frustration, disappointment and anger. This WAS NOT the way this chapter was supposed to end and by golly, I was going to let anyone and everyone know it, especially my husband and God. Unfortunately, most of it hit my husband before it ever got to God. (NOT the way it is supposed to happen, I know.) I was mad at God for not giving me what I wanted, like a spoiled child, I threw a doozy of a tantrum. One that I am not proud of.

After my volcano of emotion exploded and I had time to reflect on the desecration I had left in my wake, two things happened . . . 1.) I was made keenly aware of my unworthiness and 2.) I was show God’s faithfulness.

In the moments following my tantrum, as I sobbed in my car, I thought about the way I had felt and spoken about those I love most in my life. At the height of my anger and self pity, I wanted nothing to do with them and as my emotions calmed an unworthiness settled on me. If only they had known how I had felt only moments earlier . . . I was not worthy to be in the presence of my amazing, completely innocent, sweet-spirited children or my gracious, merciful, loving husband. I did not know how I would face my children when I returned home, knowing the ugliness with which I had just responded to life. In that moment I understood more than I ever have, how unworthy I am of what Jesus did for me on the cross.

If I had physically seen the ugliness he endured because of me and my sin and was then called to look in his innocent eyes, how would I have ever faced him? But it is what I am called to do every day, to be in his presence and look upon his face like that of my closest friend. And now, I understood the depths of this even more.

God solidified my lesson and me his abundant grace and faithfulness in the prayer of a friend. I had received a text from Facebook that alerted me to a message I had been sent in the midst of my meltdown. One of my friends, April, had been praying for me for the last few days because she knew my time at home was coming close to an end and that that was not the desire of my heart. Once I had had a chance to compose myself, I read April’s special words of prayer and they struck like a poignant arrow to my very heart . . .

“Dear Lord, I pray that right now you will cover Mandy with your peace. Help her to continue to hope and trust that you are in control . . . I pray that on her first day back, Mandy will feel your presence so strongly that people will stand up and take notice that there is something special in this woman, and that . . . lives will be touched and changed because of her life and her witness . .

Those words that found me in my darkest moment have been words that have brought power to my spirit and sustained me over the course of the last week that I have been back at work. Never in my life have I been lifted up in prayer but so many sweet brothers and sisters than in this season. And God continues to use these prayers and words of encouragement I have been given as a launching point for his faithfulness in my life during this season.

Those of you, who know me, know that contentment has rarely, if ever, been a trait I possess but I believe contentment met me on Wednesday morning as I returned to work. As I sat at the breakfast table with my family uncontrollable tears streamed down my face. My daughter whispered compassionately to me “I’ll always be with you at work, mama.” (wise words she had gleaned from Christopher Robin to Pooh) And as I pulled out of my driveway that morning, I looked back to see my little girl on the front porch, blowing me kisses and signing ‘I love you’ which she had recently learned from the Sprout channel with me at her side. I could not stop the tears and walked into work head down so no one could see my red puffy eyes but I was determined to be the woman April had prayed I would be. The first couple of hours were a challenge but then a fountain of life rose up inside of me and I started to feel . . . good.

I didn’t want to feel good. I wanted to be angry and mad at God. I was afraid that if I have in and allowed myself to feel good and be happy, it would mean that I would be relinquishing my heart’s desires. That I would be giving up the hope of Kenton finding a new job and me being able to stay home with my babies. And then I realized that in order for others to see God in me, I had to be changed. It was God who was giving me this joy and sustaining me because He loves me and He wants me to be happy and content whatever the circumstances. My lifelong discontentment regarding darn near everything was crumbling in these moments and I was powerless to stop it. All I could do was embrace this lightness, this ‘good’ feeling that was rising in side of me, filling every part of my being. I tried to resist but I couldn’t. The Spirit wouldn’t let me. I had to realize that God knows my heart. He didn’t abandon me. He is still RIGHT here in my cubicle with me. And me releasing my negative emotions and embracing the true spirit of his grace does not change my desires and it doesn’t change God’s plan. He still has a plan for our lives that is good. He is working it out in the background, behind the scenes of my everyday life. And because of that, it is easier for me to face every day. I’ve found that things I was most anxious about have been areas where laughter, abundance and provision have reigned. (stay tuned for more about that)

I believe God has given me this time to redeem some things that were last. I believe He’s giving me joy that acts as a light to others so they can see Him through me. I believe He’s working in the heart of my husband and giving my kids precious time with their daddy that they would not have otherwise had. I believe God is continuing daily to grow my trust in Him as I learn little lessons along the way. I believe that my Heavenly Father and His son are being my biggest cheerleaders in this season and I believe this season is serving a purpose. And when that purpose is complete, a new season will begin and dreams will come true!!!

Heaviness, Highlights & Hope

2011-05-31T23:08:00.000-07:00

My journey as a 'working mom' has often been a challenge for me. When Jillian was born and I had to return to work, I struggled with guilt. I felt judged because I had to work and could not stay home with her. It almost felt as if I was a bad mom because I wasn't home with my little girl. But Kenton and I arranged our schedules so that I could work during the day, and he would work a swing shift and be home with Jillian during the day. A year later, when I was let go from my position, Kenton and I had a discussion. By then I had, for the most part, gotten over my guilt and had my first true desires to be a stay-at-home mom and he agreed that would be the ultimate outcome. Alas, plans did not work out that way and financially, I needed to return to work. Fortunately God was gracious to me and allowed me to work for a cause I was passionate about (for a short season) and to work for a dear friend and mentor at her Child Safety store. I worked for Kay for over a year and a half and was so blessed in my time there. We knew when we moved to WA that I would work full-time so Kenton could finish his schooling and still work at Fred Meyer. We also knew that we wanted to expand our family. I hoped and prayed that the timing would work out perfectly for us to get pregnant and have all of the pieces fit into place for me to be able to stay home with both of my kids.

We have spent the last 13 weeks, since Joshua's birth, hoping, praying, seeking, applying, interviewing and believing for a new, full-time job for Kenton. He's had three interviews, with two nos and one we're still waiting on. He's sent introductory letters to businesses in the IT field and the coffee industry in an attempt to network. He's prayed, fasted and continually check in for the job we're still waiting to hear a final decision from. But today ends a faith-building season for us. Tomorrow, I return hesitantly and with faith to my job with the state. This outcome has made both of our hearts heavy. We have cried out to God many times asking "Why?" and holding on to hope that the situation would change, even if it meant coming down the wire, the 11th hour of our wait but as of yet, we have not received the answer we had so been hoping for.

I don't mean to be dramatic, I just want to tell the truth. I feel as if I could cry at the drop of a hat today for shattered dreams. But, my new mantra is . . . fake it 'til you make it. And for me, that will be the faith that an answer that will bring provision and abundances that we so desire with come SOON. It's hard to stand on faith like that in the midst of what I'm facing but stand is what I will do.

Despite the end of this chapter not being written the way we would have hoped. I have been encouraged and challenged to reflect on the blessings of this season. The highlights if you will.

We smiled

We slept

We spent time with friends & family

We went to Anderson Island

And to the beach

And we celebrated Easter as a family

And most importantly, we loved on each other!

So, despite the fact that our 13 weeks of my leave have come to an end, the time was indeed well spent and I will choose to be grateful for it. We have experience financial provision, spiritual provision and provision of fellowship with new friends. I will also choose to face my cubicle and co-workers tomorrow with faith and hope, which I know will be a little bit harder to come by. So, if you think of me tomorrow, say a prayer. God is the only thing that will get me through to the next page of the story and I am more convinced now than ever that the story is a good one! (Romans 8:28)

4 going on 16

2011-04-27T01:00:00.000-07:00

A scary thing happened tonight. A moment that stopped me dead in my tracks and nearly took my breath away. Everyone said that life with two kids was harder than life with one was. And I venture to say that our #2 is not quite as easy going as his sister was or maybe that's just hindsight talking (or four years of aging, who knows). Thankfully, despite my concerns and the 4 1/2 years that Jillian spent as an only child, she has taken to big sisterhood with not apparent jealousy issues.

She is almost always willing to help out with her little brother. She ~~reads~~ recites stories to him, sings him all kinds of original (made-up) songs, shooshes him when he's fussy, volunteers to feed him if ever there is a need, and even jumps at the opportunity to change his diapers. But, she IS four and like her mother, appears to be in love with the sound of her own voice (and thinks everyone else should love it too). It feels like she talks and asks questions incessantly (many of which she already knows the answer to) and with no concern whatsoever that her brother (or the dishes, or the laundry, or the grocery shopping) is also ~~screaming~~ vying for our attention. Needless to say, this high level of over stimulation and a decent amount of sleep deprivation have been taking a pretty major toll on Kenton and I (probably more me than him as he was actually in attendance the day they taught patience in 'life school' and I was not). Especially the last couple of weeks.

It was a challenging moment like this tonight that reality took advantage of and slapped me right across the face. Joshua was hungry and had been none to shy to let me know (as it should be. He's only 8 weeks old for goodness sake). As I sat on my bed, nursing my newborn son. My 4 (going on 20) year old daughter who was talking up another ~~annoying~~ storm and was dressed like modern day popstar (as her father had pointed out earlier in the day). She was staring out my bedroom window and something about the adhesive style earrings she had recently unearthed from her sticker box, the 'Daddy's Angel' t-shirt that's just a little bit too small & the baggy, hot pink fleece sweatpants that are 4 inches to long (not helped by how low they were sitting on her tilted hips in that moment) flashed my mind forward twelve years. And for a moment, I saw her at 16 with attitude abounding and me wishing I was still looking into the eyes of my innocent, adorable, clever, spunky, energetic, beautiful 4-year old girl.

In that moment, I was convicted regarding the tone I too often take with her and the frustration that comes FAR too easily to my spirit these days when she is around. I desperately want to treasure these moments with her more than I do because to the best I know, these moments DO NOT LAST. I do not want to feel so pushed to the limit so often that all I do is curtly say her name with an ever apparent irkedness (like that?) in my voice. I'm not sure how I'm going to get there but I'm sure it has to be one moment, one hour, one day at a time. And hopefully, this brief glimpse into the future that I had tonight, will alter my perspective just enough to not snap at her the next time when all she wants in the world is my attention . . . and a new pet shop friend. ;-)

FAIL!!!

2011-04-26T23:53:00.000-07:00

For those few (and faithful) readers of my blog, you probably already noticed that I did not do too well with the April blogging challenge I issued myself. And really, unfortunately, I have no good excuse as to why I did not blog. I suppose I was just a little over zealous or over ambitious. I did have wonderful intentions (as usual) to write all kinds of posts and have them scheduled to post for every day in the month of April. Thus the random shower shots post. It was supposed to be amongst many other posts but alas, there were none, or atleast few. That is not to say that there was nothing to write about however. There were plenty of things I could have written about. Like the trip we took this month to the 'Big D' (and I DO mean Dallas, Oregon that is) so that Joshua could meet his Great Grandma Freisen or GG as we like to call her in our family. Or the awkward spring torrential hail storm we had that threw Jilly into fits and giggles. Or our trip to Oregon to introduce Joshua to good friends there who had yet to meet him. Or the impromptu trip we took to Ocean Shores the weekend before Easter. And of course, there IS Easter. All of these things I might still post about. But tonight there is something else spurring me to post . . . .

Shower Shots

2011-04-15T10:00:00.000-07:00

In the fall of 1997, me and three other young ladies rented a brand spankin' new duplex in North Ellensburg. When we came over to sign our lease papers, construction had just finished and our new home still smelled of fresh drywall and paint. As we reveled in the newness of it all, we enjoyed some taking some pictures around the place and thus, the shower shot was born. From that point on, my best friend Tammi and I got into the habit of taking pictures in the shower for special occasions and it has become a wonderful tradition. Here are a few of our shower shots, including the very first one. . . .


Tammi, Sandy, Emily & me


On my wedding day


At the Evening of Elegance

Mid-construction on my first house

Both of us pregnant, at Tammi's baby shower for Tori

Before the wedding of our friends, Nichole & Aaron

The Wild Pacific Northwest

2011-04-02T10:00:00.001-07:00

Last spring we decided to splurge a little and purchase our family a joint membership to the Pt. Defiance Zoo & Aquarium and Northwest Trek. For those of you who do not know what Northwest Trek is, it is a 725 acre park located northeast of Olympia in Eatonville. The park consists of lakes, trails and more then 200 North American animals call it home. They offer a free tram to tour the park. While on the tram tour you are likely to see bighorn sheep, deer, Roosevelt elk, woodland caribou, mountain goats, bison and more.

Our membership was set to expire at the end of last month and we still had not made it to NW Trek so we intentioned to do it atleast once before the membership ran out. The day was perfect for the trip and we set out with sack lunches for the drive, picked Jillian up from preschool and headed out with (mostly) blue sky overhead.

By the time we arrived, there was a chill in the air but our excitement held the chill at bay. The park is absolutely beautiful and extremely tranquil. We boarded a 2:00 tram with our tour guide, George and headed out into the wild.

The first animal we found, aside from some ducks that were swimming in the lake was a bison:

Then we moved on to Elk, Moose and Black tail dear

We also so Big horn sheep and Mountain goats on our journey:

The tour ended with a glimpse of the "bonus animal", a friendly, lake dwelling turtle:

After de-boarding the tram we headed on to the walking exhibits where we saw Eagles, Bears, Foxes, Bobcats, Lynx, Cougars, Racoons, Wolverines, River Otters and Beavers:

We had a great time admiring all of the wildlife in the park and left at closing to head home. Jilly and I appeared to have had enough excitement for the day as we both promptly fell asleep on the trip back to Olympia.

Mandy A to Z

2011-04-01T10:00:00.000-07:00

I saw someone else do this recently and thought it would be a great way to start out my 30-day blog post challenge. So here's a bit about me . . . from A to Z.

A. Age: 33 until September

B. Bed size: King, a big bed for big people

C. Chore you dislike: most of them, but dusting is the one I do least

D. Dogs: unfortunately, no, atleast not yet!

E. Essential start to your day: a shower

F. Favorite color: Purple

G. Gold or silver: Silver

H. Height: 5' 7"ish

I. Instruments you play(ed): Piano when I was a kid and flute for 2 years in junior high

J. Job title: fiscal technician & technically, business owner of From Milestones to Memories

K. Kids: Two, Jillian 4 years and Joshua, 4 weeks

L. Live: Washington

M. Mom’s name: Patricia

N. Nicknames: So many to list . . . currently "Beautiful" is the most common as that is what hubby calls me. In the past I've been known by Manderific, Mandy Sue (NOT my middle name so it qualifies), Baby Hugs, Mandofsky, Moogs, Moogymouse, Matt . . . I'm sure there are more

O. Overnight hospital stays: None!

P. Pet peeves: Oh, there are so many . . . highest on my list at the moment is probably hubby not wiping off the counters or stove after he cooks. I thank God that he cooks but he is MESSY!

Q. Quote from a movie: "I'm exactly the way you made me: do it this way, do it that way, do it MY way - until I don't even know how to do it without you. "

S. Siblings: Oh goodness, where do I start. . . raised an only child. Four 'step' siblings (two brothers, two sisters) one that I claim. Atleast 5 biological half-siblings, maybe more. Two sister-in-laws and one brother-in-law that I claim.

T. Time you wake up: It varies

U. Underwear: Yes

V. Vegetables you don’t like: Don't know that there are any

W. What makes you run late: Darn near everything unfortunately.

X. X-rays you’ve had: Teeth, pinky finger on my right hand. I think that's it.

Y. Yummy food you make: Smoothies and omelets

Z. Zoo animal favorites: Koala bear

Stay Tuned

2011-03-26T13:49:00.000-07:00

I am seriously considering issuing myself a blog challenge for the month of April. So much is (and has been) going on that I have not blogged about and really want to. So, keep your eyes open for a 30 day challenge next month. It should be fun.

Welcome Joshua

2011-02-28T08:10:00.000-08:00

Our little man entered the world at 7:14pm on Saturday, February 26th at exactly 38 weeks gestation. He came in about 2 hours of labor and the midwife made it through the door about 5 minutes before his head delivered. Everything has been perfect from the beginning. He weighed 8lbs, 11oz, just like his sister and was between 20.5 and 21 inches long. He is a little talker, mostly in his sleep (which is does very well) and his big sister adores him!!! Yay!!!

Welcome to the family, baby man!!

On a very important side note. . . because Joshua was born early, I only have 15 days of paid leave from work (aside from the 6 months of partially paid leave I was hoping to get via Aflac had he been born on or after March 1st). I can not imagine having to return to work so quickly and at this point in time, we can not afford for me to not work so needless to say, we are feeling a little bit desperate, despite the tremendous joy. So, we would ask you for whatever prayers, positive thoughts, encouragement, ideas, etc... you can offer for us to find a way to elongate my leave. We need divine provision for sure and peace in our hearts amidst it all. We know that we are blessed and we are trying to trust the God we believe in to be our hope, our strength, our rest and our provider.

A Healthier Mattos Family in 2011- 01/02/2011

2011-01-02T15:12:00.000-08:00

There has been much talk in this branch of the Mattos Family about how we can become healthier as a family and as individuals. So I thought as part of the spirit of the new year celebration I would write about some of our goals and plans to make 2011 a year of improved health.

We want to be healthier for ourselves but also for our children. We want to be able to raise them in ways that are healthy and we can't do that if we are not being healthy ourselves. So we have come up with some goals and some plans to be put into place for this year. I think the goals and plans can be broken down into four areas of health that we are going to be working on.

Physical Health
Spiritual Health
Mental Health
Financial Health

Physical Health is a big one for both Mandy and I and particularly the area of our weight. We have tried many diets and plans together and individual through out our lives. Most but not all have worked in a fashion at causing us to drop weight. But the results where limited and have always ended up being short lived. This year is not about another diet or simple weight loss. We are trying to make it about life changes and being healthier. We don't know all that this entails or all of the steps we are going to take to attain this. We do know we need to deal with the junk food, work on our portion control, and work on increasing our activity levels.

A couple goals we have already come up with for the area of improving our Physical Health are as follows.

Meal Planning -
The goal here is to be more consistent in creating and following through on a meal plan for each week. Reducing the "What should we do for dinner tonight?" crisis situation that so often ends in a trip to a fast food restaurant or even less healthy an all you can eat restaurant.
The other goal for meal planning is to work on establishing and planning for healthier meal options. Working on making meals more balanced and increasing our daily intake of vegetables and lean proteins while reducing the simple carbohydrates and fatty proteins.
Meal planning needs to also include healthy breakfast, lunch and snack options not just dinners. This is another area where the "What should we eat?" crisis situations occur and often result in turning to the fast/quick alternatives such as fast food and junk food.

Planned Activities -
Each of us individually needs to come up with a plan on how to increase our physical activity levels. We already have a membership to the YMCA which sadly over the fall and winter has become less and less used. So this is a good place for us all to start. By planning trips to the YMCA as individuals and as a family we have great opportunity to increase our physical activity.
The YMCA can be especially valuable in helping Jillian develop a more active and less sedentary life style which both of her parents have regretfully developed. One tool which we are going to strive this year to use is the classes which are offered for young children at the YMCA such as martial arts, swimming and other sports.
Another activity which we have often talked about doing is walking. We have been blessed with a quaint community with a elementary school close by. Great for walking, biking or just playing together. What we need to do is plan for it and make it happen on a regular basis.

By finding ways which we more consistently eat better and become more active we each will see the results of being physically healthier. Being physically healthier doesn't only benefit us physically either and this is another thing we have to keep in mind as we work towards our goals and build and work through specific plans. As we fell better physically it can impact the other areas of health in our lives. This of course is whole purpose we are trying to make this year about becoming healthy.

Mandy and I have chosen Christianity as our spiritual walk. We however find ourselves often feeling weak and less than adequate in the current state of our walk. We are well aware that our walk and spiritual life is not healthy. We feel it, we see it, we know it. With God's working in our hearts and minds and some very big changes regarding work, school and physical location in 2009 we have grown and now desire more than ever for more growth. Spiritual healthy people are people who are growing. We just know that there is far more growth we need so spiritual health is another focus for 2011.

Spiritual Routines -
One of the biggest goals for improving our spiritual health is developing routines in our lives that focus on our spiritual growth and relationship with God. We are wanting to be more intentional in devotion, reading, meditation and prayer. This means planning and striving for a regular preferably daily time for these to happen. Not just trying to fit it in when we can. This doesn't work so well as our past attempts show us. We need this individually but have been reminded more and more that we need to plan for time as a family also.

Community -
The other area of spiritual health that we can and will be working on is connection with the body of believers we have chosen to participate with. There are two areas we have been made well aware of and have already began to put some steps and plans into place.
One is a place to serve God and the Church. Mandy has recently gotten involved with the financial peace ministry at church and I have started working with the newly established online church at Living Water.
Lastly we need to find a more localized friendship and support base. In moving to Washington from Oregon we moved ourselves away from our friendship base and our sphere of social influences. Admittedly most of the relationships over the past few years had become less spiritually focused and beneficial but now we have nothing but people who are hours away. This is a hard one to plan for with my current occupational schedule. To face this challenge and be able to find and develop relationships here that will build us up and help us to grow in our walk we need to do two things initiate and be intentional about finding relationships.

Spiritual health has been on the back burner for way to long in our lives and we know more than ever that it is a key to the life we want to live. We know that as we grow and improve our spiritual health that the whole health package will be improved and our lives changed like we could never have expected. As we improve both our physical and spiritual health, with out a doubt, our Mental Health will be greatly improved.

Mental health often is associated with just emotional health this will be the primary focus of our goals for the 2011 focus. There is also the intellectual aspect on mental health and the goal is not to allow this to be forgotten. With a new found love for Sudoko puzzles in 2010 and multiple books in the house from our Christmas presents, I think this is a great place for us to start. Add this to our Spiritual Health goal of reading and meditation I think intellectual health is being handled. So with that said emotional health is a target and I think reducing stress and removing chaos are the keys at this time.

Goals and Planning-
There has been a lack of goal setting and planning through out the life of this branch of the Mattos family. This blog post is a start in this healthier position with setting goals and working on having a plan for our lives and future. There is a saying that goes like this if you fail to plan then you are planning to fail. There is a lot of stress and chaos in our lives because there is not a goal to strive for or a plan for us to follow. Sadly I must say that lack of goals and planning has been more of my issue than anyone else. God has been working hard in my heart and mind using all of his tools including my wife to help me see the importance of goals and plans.

Develop Routines -
The development of routines for all of us is the greatest step we see in both reducing stress and removing in chaos. Routines are also a key in the daily striving and following of plans and goals. Having routines will help create structure and put guidelines in our lives which are both important tools to battling the self imposed chaos and stress we often find ourselves being faced with day to day.
Routines we develop now will be part of forming the healthy habit and lifestyle we want for us and our children. The routines specific to our physical, spiritual and financial health are all combatants to the chaos and stress that can grow and develop in those areas and attack our emotional state.

By setting goals in the different areas of our life and then developing a plan and putting into place the routines we need to follow the plan and reach the goals we move ourselves away from chaos and develop patterns that can reduce stress. Less chaos and less stress equal better emotional health. The lack of stress and chaos coupled with a growing spiritual walk will hopefully help us find more joy, peace and hope in our life. Improved emotional health will improve our mental health as individuals and as a family. Another thing goals, planning and routines can do for us is to allow us to be more directed and confident. Living life as if we have a purpose and are intentioned this is something our growth in our financial health over the last few years has taught us.

Our financial health has been growing rapidly over the last few years. Going through Financial Peace University has been one of the greatest things for us. It has been one of the places where we have seen the greatest impact of intentional living and planning in our lives. At the same time it is the area where we can most easily see where our lack of consistency needs improved. So that being said you can guess the area of focus for our financial health and that is consistency in doing and following the plan.

The less obvious financial goal unless you have spoken with us is finding of employment for myself and working out the details that will allow us to transition ourselves into a place where we can financially accomplish the goal of having Mandy stay at home after Joshua is born. There is a lot of work to do but even more of God's working that needs to be done. But there is a part we must figure out and learn so we can do our part in working towards our goal and desire. This is a hard place for us and a goal for our financial health.

Financial Plan -
The goal here is to continue the growth of our financial health through consistent application of the steps and tools we have learned. Be intentional about budgeting and diligent about living it out so we can see our own financial health grow stronger and be able to help others in theirs.

Income Transition -
Ask, seek and knock. Our Goal here is to be asking, seeking and knocking on the doors of heaven and this world. Part of the asking, seeking and knocking is addressed in growing healthier in our spiritual life. Still another part will be working towards and working out as we walk through developing goals, plans and routines. There are more parts to this goal to be developed.

As the year 2011 begins we are placing before all our desire to become healthier. We desire to be healthier in our physical bodies, in our spiritual walk, our mental states and our financial patterns. In this post we have laid out a broad picture of some of what we know we need to be attentive to by developing defined goals and the plans and routines to accomplish them. As we find it out these things for ourselves we will strive to share them with others if not on this blog then somewhere else and we will let you know.

Here is looking forward to a healthier Mattos Family in 2011.

Mattos Family 2010 Year in Review

2010-12-28T19:19:00.000-08:00

We hope this letter finds you and your family doing well and reveling in the joy of the Christmas season. As we look back on the past year, we realize that there were significant moments and many memories made. It was a pretty eventful year for the Mattos family. Please allow us to highlight it for you here.

January: Settled into our new home in Olympia and flew to the Bay Area, CA for Kenton’s cousin Anna’s wedding (and a trip to the Jelly Belly factory).

February: Attended Mandy’s father’s wedding to a wonderful woman named Jodi.

March: The sale of our house in Cornelius closed, so we could finally breathe a sigh of relief. Jillian started attending preschool. Kenton’s family came up from Oregon for a visit and we all went to the zoo.

April: Easter was celebrated at our new church, Church of Living Water in Olympia. Jillian came down with an ear infection while visiting family for the holiday. That was a bummer.

May: Celebrated Mother’s Day on Anderson Island with Mandy’s mom and celebrated Father’s Day early with a fishing trip in Oregon with Kenton’s dad & nephew.

June: Took our second trip to California for Jillian’s first trip to Disneyland (plus Universal Studios & Hollywood)!!!

July: Kenton and Mandy celebrated 8 years of wedded bliss and found out we were going to have a baby. As well as a camping trip to Oregon with Kenton’s Dad, step-mom, sisters and nephew. We picked (and ate) fresh blackberries . . . delicious!

August: Jillian celebrated her 4^th birthday with a grandiose day at the Pt. Defiance Zoo with her best friend, Tori and a picnic later at Pt. Defiance Park with many family members in attendance. Too bad it rained, but we still had a good time!

September: Mandy celebrated another birthday. We announced our pregnancy to the “world” via Facebook & our blog. We took our 6^th annual Seattle Road Trip and Mariner’s game with our dear friends the Ratliffs. And we rejoiced in the safe (albeit early) birth of our nieces and nephew, Natalie, Riley and Avery, born to Mandy’s (step) sister Katrena and brother-in-law, Joel!

October: Found out that our baby is going to be a boy . . . can not wait to meet Joshua Caleb Mattos. Went apple picking at the Anderson Island Apple Squeeze. Took our 4^th annual trip to the Pumpkin Patch with the Ratliffs and did the customary Trick-or-Treating and Harvest Party festivities.

November: Celebrated Kenton’s birthday and had a wonderful Thanksgiving celebration with Mandy’s family.

December: Surprised Kenton’s mom at the Annual Salem Carousel party for her work. We made graham cracker houses with friends. Jillian performed in our family’s annual Talent (or not so much) show by telling a story and singing the Squirrel song, so cute!!! We made graham cracker houses with friends, attended Zoo lights with Grandma and Grandpa Kennish and hosted multiple Christmas celebrations.

Throughout our year, we have been blessed by our amazing church and the inspired teachings of the Pastors there. We have become more aware of the everyday blessings in our lives which so many people go without. We are thankful for our jobs, each other, a wonderful place to live, full cupboards, warm beds and the love of our family and friends.

Especially in this season, we want to acknowledge the source from whom all of our blessings flow. May the birth of our Savior and the hope that He brings, bless you and keep you in this season and throughout the coming year!

Tuesday Tidbits

2010-11-30T22:17:00.000-08:00

I wanted to find a really cool graphic to usher in my first (and maybe only) Tuesday Tidbits but could not find one and am not yet of the caliber to create my own, although I tried. Maybe next time . . . if there is a next time.

Tonight's post is inspired by the plethora of little things I have had on my mind today and this past week. And the fact that I was feeling a little guilty for not being a 'better blogger'. I aspire to have interesting content on my blog like many of the blogs that I read and maybe someday I will get there. But for now, for my few (fabulous) followers, I give my (random) thoughts.

-I am still struck by something that happened at church the Sunday before Thanksgiving. Our Senior Pastor spoke about Thanksgiving and asked us what we think Jesus thinks about when He thinks about what we think about the poor and the needy. We learned things about the miracle of feeding 5,000 that I had never known. And then, we took an additional offering above the standard church offering. The offering plates were passed once around the church and collected. Then they were passed a second time so anyone who was in need could take money OUT of the offering. It was beyond humbling to witness this simple but profound act of servant hood and stewardship.And to know that despite all of my many wants, my needs are nowhere near so great, that I needed to take money out of that offering. My "need" was put into a phenomenal perspective in that moment and I don't know that I will ever forget the way it touched the core of my being.

-I just went in to my daughter's room to scream and yell at her and I am paralyzed with guilt. She had interrupted me for the fifth time since I put her to bed and I am so tired of it. This kind of thing has been going on for weeks, if not longer and I just don't know what to do. I have so few hours for her after I get home from work and even fewer minutes to myself after I put her to bed. I know that a mother's call is selflessness and I don't come anywhere near to measuring up to that. I want to be able to give her so much more of me and all she ever gets is whatever is left over after my job has had it's way with me. I pray so often for God to heal any wounds that my words, impatience and selfishness may cause her and that somehow she will know how much I love her and how hard I try even thought I am so quick tempered way too often. So many times, I want nothing more than to crawl into bed with her once she is asleep (she won't fall asleep if I do it before then) and wrap my arms around her in hopes that that comfort will erase any harsh words I had inflicted earlier in the night.

(Please excuse me for a minute while I go apologize to my beautiful baby girl and try to explain to her, yet again, that mommy made a bad choice, tell her that I love her and ask for her forgiveness.)

- My Financial Peace University lesson last night was a combination of "Working in Your Strengths" and "Real Estates and Mortgages". The last time I sat through these lessons, I was unemployed and stuck in a REALLY bad mortgage. This time, I could see that I was the poster child for BOTH lessons of the things Dave Ramsey says NOT to do. And in a strange way, it was encouraging to me. In a sense, it gave me permission to start again with a clean slate and that is a hopeful place to be. The more time goes on, the more I realize, I should probably never have been an accountant or if I should have been, I wish I would have had more guidance into what KIND of accountant I should have become. I've learned that I like people too much and I care about people too much to sit behind a desk in a cubicle all day long, yet that is what I have done for the majority of my adult life and I hate it! It's time for a change.

- I am beginning to wonder if I have spent too much of my life living for someone else and not for myself. Living in fear because it was how I was conditioned to live instead of living a life of vibrancy.

- There is a big change coming, more than one actually. But one that causes me more anxiety and questions than most other changes in my life. I am preparing, yet again, to go against the grain. To turn my nose up at the 'American Dream' (and my mother) and do something that has no logical explanation and no guarantee of success. And I am scared! There are so many unanswered questions and I may fall flat on my face but I have to try. We are preparing to take a HUGE step of faith and praying that God will provide when we do.

- I have not been doing something that I KNOW I need to do. And tonight, I am going to start doing it. For the month of December, I am committing to reading my Bible EVERY day. It is, in a way, my Christmas gift to God. I want Him to know how much I love Him, how much I need Him, how much I truly do want to spend time with Him.

- The Christmas budget is small this year and I really wish I didn't feel such obligation in the giving of gifts for some people. The spoiled, only child, in me also wishes that the budget was much bigger so I could have a dozen gifts of my own under the tree. But in light of my first tidbit and the offering at church I realized that I truly have all I NEED and I am trusting that to carry me through this season. After all, when the food has been eaten, the boxes recycled, the tree disassembled . . . what really matters? That we are loved and that we love others . . . We love because he first loved us. John 4:19 And I am DEEPLY loved! Thank you God!!!

Wordless Wednesday - Old habits . . . .

2010-11-17T07:27:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday, Handsome!!

2010-11-03T08:51:00.000-07:00

I am so grateful that 34 years ago, God blessed the earth with this amazing man. He is faithful, full of intergrity, compassionate and kind, patient, loving, fun, and an amazing father. Better than I ever could have asked for!

For the nine years we have been together, I have had the honor and pleasure of watching him grow beyond his circumstances and his past. I've seen him grow into the role of a husband and help me grow into my role as a wife. He is a loving son, brother, nephew, cousin, uncle and friend!

Despite the challenges we have had, I am so grateful that God gave me exactly what I needed in this man and I look forward to celebrating many, many, many more birthdays with him!!

I love you, Handsome! Thanks for choosing to love me and for loving our kid(s) SOOOOO well! May your day be blessed and the year ahead bring more happiness and joy than you have ever known!!

Love,
Beautiful (& the Bean)

Wordless Wednesday - The New Addition

2010-10-20T21:18:00.000-07:00

Worldess Wednedsday - First Apple Picking

2010-10-13T08:22:00.001-07:00

In Honor of Mandy's Birthday

2010-09-16T10:00:00.000-07:00

I haven't even known my wife for more than a third of my life. But the time I have known her has been some of the greatest memories a man can have. So to honor the most beautiful and intelligent woman I know I am posting some pictures picked out by the most beautiful and intelligent 4 year old I know.

Okay so I did most of the picture picking. Jilly just said okay when I asked. However Jilly got very excited when she saw the Tinker Bell Format. So we choose it for Mandy from here Jillybean.

I love you Mandy Lea Mattos. Your birth is a day I will always hold as a day of celebration and joy. I am very glad that 33 years ago God had a future family in his mind so he created you. I am blessed to be a part of that family and and grateful that God decided to create you.

Love You,

Kenton J Mattos

Wordless Wednesday - Pure Joy!

2010-09-08T08:50:00.001-07:00

Telling the World

2010-09-02T10:52:00.000-07:00

So we have officially let the baby out of the bag so to speak. Yes the Mattos Family is expecting another baby. Estimated arrival is March 12th, 2011.

All is going well so far. We got to hear a strong heart beat at our appointment on 8/27 between bouts of laughter from Mandy... It was a great relief to us both to hear the turbo speed washing machine swishing sound coming through the speaker. We will be trying to determine the sex of the baby, Mandy doesn't like surprises, ultrasound should be in about 8 weeks. We will hope this baby is a little more cooperative than Jilly. I took 3 ultrasounds to get here to reveal her gender to us.

Wordless Wednesday - Wackiness

2010-08-25T10:57:00.001-07:00

Wordless Wednesday - Best Friends

2010-08-11T07:33:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Jilly Bean

2010-08-04T07:29:00.000-07:00

Four years ago today, a beautiful, vibrant life entered the world. It was a moment of complete awe . . .

Through the years, we have experienced so my life. Joy, laughter, frustration, elation, frustration

But the journey had been unlike any other we've ever taken and SO worth the ride . . .

Watching this little person we created grow into an inquisitive, articulate, funny, dramatic little girl has been such a blessing.

We have never laughed as much, prayed as much, hoped as much or loved as much.

Here's to many, many, many more birthdays celebrating this little girl who has already taught us so much!! We love you, Jilly Bean!!

Love,

Mommy and Daddy

Eight Year Anniversary

2010-07-20T00:54:00.000-07:00

Eight years ago today this branch of the Mattos Family began our journey after a ceremony on a hot July day in Keizer, OR.

Our life has had many ups and downs, lows and highs and a few changes. Through it all we have loved each other by choice. The grace of God and our commit to love each other is the only reason that we are able to celebrate our eighth anniversary. It is also the only thing that will allow us to see ten times as many more.

Mandy, I choose to love you and say I do today just as I did eight years ago. It was one of the greatest days of my life and the start of a partnership that has brought me all of the greatest events in my life since then and probably since I was born.

This is 3.

Wordless Wednesday

2010-07-07T07:14:00.000-07:00

A Friendly Face . . . in Downtown L.A.

2010-06-25T07:32:00.000-07:00

Upon entrance to Disneyland Resort on our vacation last week, there was an 'All-Star' clad Mickey Mouse on display in honor of the upcoming All-Star Game. It seems that scattered throughout the city were other Mickey's displaying pride for all of the teams in the MLB club. It just so happens that to kill some time before our plane departed to bring us home, we decided to make a stop on Hollywood Blvd in downtown LA. As we headed to lunch at the Kodak Theatre shopping center, we stumbled upon this handsome fellow. It was a sweet surprise for all of us and we couldn't resist getting a picture with the best-dressed mouse in town.

Wordless Wednesday - Disneyland Here We Come

2010-06-09T07:12:00.000-07:00

Wordless Wednesday - First Fishing Trip

2010-06-02T07:23:00.001-07:00

My life today . . .

2010-06-01T22:45:00.000-07:00

I would like to warn you before you go any further that this is a VERY LONG and not a particularly touchy, feely, sunshiney post about the joys of motherhood or how much I love this wonderful Northwest weather we're having or even how much fun I had this weekend. What follows is a nitty-gritty, down and dirty, ugly and honest truth about my day today. If you're not in the mood to hear my sob story, stop here. However, if you are interested in my honest to goodness, unpretty, non-foofooed, emotional reality, I would appreciate it if you would read ahead, keep me and my family in your prayers and comment with any encouragement or honestly with which you feel lead to respond. ~Mandy

I'm not going to lie, today has been a rough day emotionally. Call it PMS, seasonal affective disorder or plain ol' stress. It doesn't really matter, the tears have felt almost non-stop all day. Most days in our new surroundings are manageable but some days, the crazy pace of life and the loneliness gets the better of me and I overflow seemingly at the drop of a hat. Today was one of those days.

Now, I am aware that in the grand scheme of life, things are pretty good. I have a job, a roof over my head, money in the bank, a husband, family and friends that love and support me and a beautiful, charismatic daughter. But like many of us, I also have dreams and desires that are unfulfilled. I feel guilty sometimes because I know there are others out there with challenges much greater than my own. Those who are without jobs and have been for many months, or even years. Those who have lost husbands, who are battling sever disease or walking through life with someone who is. Those who have lost precious children. The list goes on, I know. But as a wise woman (who lost her husband suddenly at a very young age to a brain aneurysm) once told me. . . the size of anyone's pain is really irrelevant. To compare yourself to others and make admissions for your own hurt is basically useless (thought I don't think she would EVER use that word specifically) because to each of us, our pain is unique and no matter how great or small it may seem, it still hurts and that hurt is very really to you.
So please bare with me as I invite you to be a witness to my "pity party". I ask that you would extend grace and prayers to a woman who is just trying to find her way most days.
As many of you already know, Kenton and I felt lead last fall to leave behind our (large) home, our friends, two church families and a great deal of security for new opportunities in Olympia, WA. We felt very strongly that the Lord laid out step-by-step the path to take. He opened many doors for us, making it impossible for us to deny that He was at the heart of the plan. However once we reached what we incorrectly thought to be our final destination, we lost sight of the path, Possibly, it was our own fleshly understanding of what the path was going to look like or perhaps we began making our own plans, rather than letting the Lord reveal HIS plans to us. Whatever the reason, thing have not been as easy or freeing as we had hoped.
We expected for me to take a full time job with the state in order to allow Kenton to cut back to part time work (or not work at all) in order for him to focus more time on his schooling and become a full time (as opposed to part-time) student. We expected to have enough money to add a few necessities to our budget that we were not able to have in Oregon (like clothes, co-pays and car maintenance) and to have enough money to save for the future (a fully funded emergency fund, down payment on a house someday, etc . . .). We expected to have more and consistent time together as a family, with both of us being home in the evenings. And we expected to find great childcare for Jilly similar to the options we had been blessed with in Oregon. But . . . none of these plans came to full fruition.
I work 40 hours a week, M-F, outside of the home in a job that has proven itself to be extremely frustrating and discouraging for a forward-aspiring, technologically advanced, big picture thinker like myself. The people, for the most part are friendly and kind but the work is mostly, mundane, tedious, and significantly lacking in efficiency.
I arrive home at 5:15 to a often delicious dinner. prepared by my adoring husband (for which I am very grateful). We sit down immediately so that we are able to eat dinner together as a family and most days Kenton is out the door at 5:45 for his swing shift at Fred Meyer. When he arrives home around 11:30 (on a good night), I am sound asleep and he does not want to wake me, just in case I am preparing to fulfill my desires of going to the gym before work in the morning (at 5:30 am). My alarm goes off in the morning, loud enough to wake me, but quietly enough to allow hubby to stay asleep. On a good day, I get dressed and head to the gym (it's a 50/50 shot as to whether this happens or not) which usually depends on whether or not I have given in to my natural night owl tendencies the night before. I return home to shower and get ready for my work day. Usually by this time, the Bean has crawled in bed with Daddy and they've both fallen back to sleep. Most days, Jilly wakes up as I'm walking out the door (usually in a mad rush to get to work on time). It's sad to say, but I prefer the days when I am able to sneak out unnoticed, only because I am not bear the sleepy eyes, outstretched arms and longing desire for mommy to give her cuddles.
Now, if you know my girl at all, you know that she has never been a cuddler so when she comes to me on my way out the door wanting nothing more than for me to sit down and hold her, and I can't, it is heart wrenching. And so my day begins again . . . .
Though we are grateful that cutting back to part-time work has allowed Kenton to limit his availability and thus give us Saturdays and Sundays (until 5:45pm) to have quality time together as a family.It means just enough money to get by (and not nearly as much as many people we know need to live). Even now, nearly four years into our journey, I wonder how single income families do it. And more often than not, I am envious of them no matter how they manage to accomplish this. I know it is not right and I do love my SAHM friends dearly, but it is still a challenge I face most days.
Kenton's schedule and not having someone at home in the evenings to watch Jilly has made it very difficult for me to get involved in any small groups or Bibles studies as I have yet to find on in the evenings that offers childcare. Once in a while, I might be able to schedule a sitter but the budget really does not allow for that to be a regular occurrence. And so far we have found no opportunities for a married's group or Bible study the we can attend together because of the childcare issue &/or Kenton's work schedule. So aside from my walking buddies at work (who are old enough to be my mother and have grown children of their own), my mother and Facebook, I have yet to establish any other relationships that can offer me any support, encouragement, or just female interaction. This simple (and very HUGE) fact makes for significant loneliness most of the time. And especially on days like today where I just want to have someone understand the challenges of being a Christian mom who works outside of the home full time.
When you add to that, the fact that Kenton is taking full-time classes online through PCC in order to obtain an associates degree in Computer Science (which we hope will allow him to get a job that gives us opportunity to turn the tables on our current situation) and taking care of Jillian during the day, squeezing in studying during nap or TV time, it is hard for either of us to keep up on the daily duties of maintaining our home. I can't tell you the last time the bathroom floors were scrubbed or the mirrors were cleaned. There's currently about 4-5 loads of laundry waiting patiently in a pile in the living room waiting to be folded and we're extremely lucky if any of us can find clean underwear or socks on a given day, much less that they be in the appropriate drawers or shelves.
All of this while raising a temperamental toddler who takes after her mother (and is having bedtime battles of will MOST nights) and the gloomy whether outside, I am tired with little to no time or energy to keep my composure all the time. And with dreams that seem so unreachable given current circumstances. Dreams of being self-employed, owning a home of our own again someday and expanding our family. Most days, if I think about them too much, I get tear eyed. And some days, I am strong enough to let go, lay them at the foot of the cross and say . . . "Father, YOUR will be done." On days like that I am grateful and rejoice in faith, but on days like today, I just cry.

Wordless Wednesday

2010-05-26T18:36:00.000-07:00

Our New Home

2010-05-13T21:01:00.000-07:00

I've been meaning to write this post for a long time and I'm sure there are some of you out in the blog world who have been waiting very patiently to read it as very few of you have actually had the pleasure of seeing our new home. Eventually I realized that the house is never going to look perfect so I might as well just post what I can and be okay with that so, here you go. Welcome to our new home:

The exterior front

The first glance at the kitchen

The sink and front window

The Dining Room

Living Room from the Dining Room

Looking towards the fireplace, from the garage.

The entryway behind the front door, leading upstairs

The bed half of our room, a bookcase has been added to the left of the bed and opposite the foot of the bed is a desk and another bookcase.

Jilly's Room

I swear this kid has the coolest room . . . ever!

Jilly's alcove which now sports a pretty pink curtain with small white daisies on it.

"Tori's Room"

Since before we moved in, Jillian has referred to this closet as Tori's room. I figured what better to do with it than fill it with books and hang a picture of Jilly and Tori in it. When this whole thing was MY room, I had a twin mattress on the floor of this closet and Bop and Big Bopper 8x10s covering the ceiling. It was a wonderful place for some teenage privacy. Here's to hoping that we've moved to a new house before Jilly's a teenager!

So, there's the short tour. For something more extensive . . . I guess you'll have to come visit! We don't have a ton of room for guests but we'd love to have them. There is a significant lack of familiar faces around here (except for my parents and one dear college friend). We have a membership to the local 'Y' for free swimming and a membership to the Pt. Defiance Zoo and Northwest Trek as well. So come on up and we'll show you a good time for sure!

Mother's Day Weekend

2010-05-11T22:10:00.000-07:00

This year, I had the brilliant idea to head out to Anderson Island in the Puget Sound for Mother's Day to spend some time at my parents' weekend home there. I know it is a place that my mother goes, to escape the rest of the world so when I suggested it to her, she jumped at the chance.Jilly and I headed over with my mom and step-dad on Friday night (Kenton had to work). Upon our arrival, we noticed a few oddities about the house. Some kitchen cabinets were wide open, there was a set of decorative pewter measuring spoons on the counter . . . my step-dad took a closer look in the back of the house and found that someone had removed the guest bedroom window and invited themselves in. It had been a few months since my parents had been out to the island so they weren't sure when the break-in occurred. Fortunately, the house was pretty much in order except for a few things strewn around in the back bedrooms and some open cabinets and drawers. My parents don't leave too many valuables out there (probably for this very reason) and the things that were taken were slightly odd anyway . . . an air mattress and pump, a few bottles of wine, a jar of change and possibly a pair of binoculars. Interestingly, the most expensive thing was the increased electric bills because the culprits were not kind enough to return the window they had removed to its rightful place, therefore extra heat was needed to keep the house at the set temperature.
Once we took a trip to the local market to report the break-in and learn that this house was one of many. We went back, picked up and settled in for the night. The next morning, we had a delicious breakfast of cinnamon swirl toast, eggs and bacon, a member of the Pierce County Sheriff's office stopped by to make his report about the break-in and to his joy and surprise, found not one, but two FULL handprints on the back window which he would later send a forensics team out to properly retrieve for the investigation. We found out then, that 'our' house was one of 25-30 break-ins on the island that had occured of the last 5 months. WOW!!! Makes you feel glad that you're not the only one, but a little scared that someone is causing that much trouble to so many of the homes. Apparently ours was mild compared to others. In some of the cases, the culprits spent the night in the houses they broke into and even worse, hosted parties in the houses and left them trashed,
Kenton joined us mid-morning, not long after the office left. We enjoyed the beautiful weather as a family by blowing bubbles and throwing and skipping rocks off the beach into the Puget Sound. I even got a few blissful minutes of sun bathing on the shore with my sleeves and jeans rolled up. Unfortunately, I didn't get any pictures of our time on the 'beach' but I can assure that both Kenton and Jilly had a wonderful time throwing rocks together.
Kenton and I made dinner as a special treat for my mom. Butter and garlic noodles with chicken and asparagus, garlic bread and salad. After dinner, we headed outside to roast S'mores. An island tradition. And then, I got the most wonderful Mother's Day gift of all time . . . my daughter (who frequently fights bed time at home) put herself to bed. We brushed her teeth and she climbed into bed without any prompting. We read a story and before I could even come back to check on her, she was asleep. And the best part about it was, she was asleep in another room of the house apart from where Kenton and I would be sleeping AND she slept in their ALL night long . . .BY HERSELF! All of these things were enough to have me beside myself for most of the next morning. It was amazing and Kenton and I took full advantage of it by playing cards together until almost 1am. What a treat!!
Sunday morning brought hand painted decorations from Jilly to both me and my mom. I got a butterfly, she got a turtle. Breakfast was a spread waffles, eggs, sausage, bacon and coffee. Num. Not long after, my step-dad's brother and mother arrived to join us for our mother's day celebration. I treated my mom to a pedicure and painted my step dad's mom's toes as a small pampering in honor of Mother's Day. We lunched on Salmon, steaks, garlic bread and fresh fruit before heading home on the ferry for Kenton to go to work. All-in-all, it was a beautiful weekend celebrating the gift of mother's and motherhood.
Here are some pictures from our weekend:

Wordless Wednesday - There are worse ways to fall asleep

2010-05-05T22:21:00.000-07:00

Our Easter Experience

2010-04-15T21:46:00.000-07:00

So I'm having a little bit of trouble with the slide.com slideshows, not reading my edited images correctly. Mostly in terms of ones that I've rotated, so I'm going to try to pick out my best pictures from the weekend and post them individually here.

Our Easter festivities started on Thursday when we went to grandma and grandpa's house to color Easter eggs. Grandma had bought a special glitter decorating kit and Jilly had a great time shaking the glitter onto the eggs:

On Friday night, we headed over to my Dad's house to visit with him and his wife, Jodi. It had been far too long since we had seen them. A death in the family had kept them from feeling up to company for a while as they mourned the loss of Jodi's dog Piko whom she had had for 12 years and raised from a puppy. Piko was her one and only until my dad came around and even then you had to wonder who was really the 'top dog'.

On Saturday, the church we have been attending held an Easter Egg Hunt and Charlie's Safari. A local kid-focused restaurant here in town. The place was packed. When we got there, they were setting up inside for the second wave of patrons so there was no one in the building and the line outside wrapped around the side of the building and was probably 150 kids deep. They began passing out tickets to the people in line and eventually ended up having to turn people away because they just did not have enough room or time for everyone to be able to come in.

Jillan had a wonderful time, climbing in the tube tower, sliding on the inflatables, seeing Mr. & Mrs. Easter Bunny and getting her face painted. I can't even begin to tell you how much candy she came home with that day from all of the eggs that she found. Needless to say, most all of it went to work with me that week so that it wasn't sitting around our house. Lord knows none of us needed it. :-)

You can see that even Daddy had a good time at the Easter Egg Hunt.

After the Easter egg hunt and a nap, we headed over to grandma and grandpa's house for a delicious Turkey dinner (thanks to Chef Kenton), more Easter egg hunting and Jilly's first Easter basket of the year. Unfortunately, Jilly moved to fast for me to get any very good pictures of this hunt.

Sunday, we had made arrangements to go to church with my aunt and uncle in Auburn, about 45 minutes north of our home. Jillian had been complaining the day before of her ears hurting so we had bought some ear drops and had been trying to keep her pain levels and the fever she had developed over night down with some Tylenol. Any wise parents, would have canceled our Sunday plans and allowed her to stay home and rest but both of us were eager to see my extended family and attend their church with them so we pushed ahead. Bad idea!!! No sooner did we turn into the parking lot, did Jilly lose her breakfast smoothie all over herself. Eeeek! Thank goodness she wasn't wearing a fancy Easter dress and we had a decent looking change of clothes in the car. Not that it mattered, once she got cleaned up and changed, she was wrapped in blanket and held in one of our arms on our lap, sleeping through the ENTIRE Easter service. I was amazed! And selfishly, being as I do not have a cuddling child, I savored these sickly moments with her still on my lap. Please, don't hate me for this confession.

After church, we returned to my aunt and uncle's house for a delicious lunch of Tomato Ravioli soup, homemade bread, jicama and grapes. Funny, the spell checker doesn't recognize jicama. Of course, I don't know that my husband did either, but I digress. :-) Nearly as soon as we arrived, Jillian asked to watch a movie and given her condition, I didn't argue. She chose Tarzan and sat quietly mesmerized on the bed upstairs while we adults ate and chatted downstairs and within an hour, she was out cold! Our poor baby girl slept for nearly 3 hours straight.

When she finally woke up, we tried to get her to open her three remaining Easter baskets (one from her Grandma in Oregon, one from her Papa & Jodi and one from us). She wasn't too into it and we probably should have pushed it but it was Easter and time was running out. She muddled her way through the baskets and we made our way home. Finally, half way home, she was starting to get back to her old self and the next day, she had a great time playing with Daddy and some of her new Easter gifts.

A Saturday in the Sun

2010-04-11T18:28:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago, Kenton's family came up for a visit. They arrived mid-afternoon on Friday and stayed through the weekend. They had rented a room at a local hotel so we all took advantage of the pool on site for a little family swim time.

Lucky for all of us, the weather on Saturday was beautiful. So we did what any wise family with young children would do on a sunny Pacific Northwest day . . . we went to the zoo. Well, us and nearly everyone else who lives in the Puget Sound area. But it didn't seem to matter. Yeah, the aquariums were a little packed with people and the windows of the polar bear exhibit where one of the employees of the zoo was giving a talk. But other than that, you couldn't tell that everyone and their brother had decided that that day was a great day to go to the zoo.

For those of you that do not live in the area, one of the most amazing things about the Pt. Defiance Zoo (& Aquarium) is it's location. As you approach the stairs that lead down a small hill to the zoo entrance and look out towards the horizon, you see water, sky and if you're lucky this picturesque view of Mt. Rainer:

You can no longer tell that you are virtually in the middle of the city. It seems that no matter which direction you look from inside the zoo, you see either water, trees or mountains. AMAZING!

So, we packed a picnic lunch, bought our cursory zoo membership (which includes 3 free guest if anyone wants to come visit) and made a full day of it!

Jillian's favorite part was the penguins and the polar bears and trying to race her very tired cousin down the slid at the end of our day. My favorite part was the swinging monkey and the horse-playing camels. And Kenton liked the tigers. He has a thing for big cats. Don't know what it is.

And the best part of the whole weekend . . . Jillian wanted to stay at the hotel with Grandma Mattos, Aunt Tia and Cousin Joel and they wanted her to stay too! So, mommy and daddy, got not just one but two nights of uninterrupted quality sleep and quiet time. It was pure bliss!

Welcome (back) Home

2010-02-22T19:36:00.000-08:00

I have hoped many times to fill in the gaps between the last post and today’s post but after a few futile attempts, I think I’m just going to have to come to terms with the fact that none of you are probably going to know the details of our lives between August and December. Sorry for that. Things have been a little crazy.

The title of my post can be interpreted a couple of different ways. If could be welcoming me the writer, or you the reader back to the blog after my nearly 7 month absence or it could be referring to the fact that I, Mandy, have essentially moved back home. Mind you, I am not living WITH parents (praise God) but I am living in my parent’s house. With my family, of course.

As most of you know, sometime around the end of September, God laid an opportunity on our hearts to relocate to Olympia, WA where my parents had a vacant home. Now, it has always been my desire to return to my home state, but my husband was never really keen on the idea. So imagine my surprise (and his) when it was through him that God revealed the plan. We weren’t sure how it was all going to pan out but we agreed that we would take steps forward to test the validity of what we thought we had received. We sought counsel and requested prayer from trusted, seasoned, Christian mentors in our lives and we started doing our research.

As we ventured out in faith, God met us at each step in the journey and revealed more of his plan. By the end of November, our house was on the market, I had accepted a job in Washington and Kenton had been approved for a transfer with Fred Meyer, to a store only minutes from our home. It appeared we HAD heard God correctly and this was the direction we were to go. So, on December 7^th, I started my new job and on December 12^th, “Mattos Family Moving Day” commenced. We had some great friends send us on our way, and some even joined us for the journey to our “new” home.

We celebrated Christmas in our new two bedroom townhouse (a bit of a downsize) and later with my parents, whom I am now only a three mile drive from. I have come to treasure this fact, especially on the days when I feel the need for someone else to have the privilege of listening to the nearly constant chatter and imaginings of a 3 year old after I’ve been at work all day.

It’s taken a couple of months, but we are finally starting to get settled in. All of the boxes that were in the house have been unpacked, though the garage is a different story. We’ve had dinner guests, overnight guests (with more on the way) and some great time with family, including my father’s wedding on Super Bowl Sunday (WHAT were they thinking?!?!?!)

Everyone seems to be adjusting well to the new surroundings. As in most cases, some days are harder than others. Especially in the area of friendships. All of us have struggled with our own levels of loneliness, including Jillian who is still a little too young fully grasp the distance that is now between her and all of the friends she left behind in Oregon. But, we have started attending a local church and Jillian has taken well to her new Sunday School class. If all goes well, she will be attending part-time pre-school there two days a week, starting next month.

Kenton and I made what will quite possibly be MY last trip to the house in Cornelius this past weekend to finish getting it cleaned out, in preparation for the house cleaners to come this week and the sale expected to close next month. This was the last piece of the puzzle that we needed God to complete for THIS chapter and it is truly bittersweet. We are sad to be leaving behind our first home, one that we saw built from a tilled, empty lot. But as we reminisced, we looked back with joy on the parts of us that will always be there, from the prayers that we wrote on the studs of the framework, to the structural changes we asked the builder to make that are unique only to our house, to the rose bush we planted after we brought Jillian home from the birth center and the memories we have of raising her there. Not to mention, all of the amazing times spent there with friends over the years. We’ve hosted birthday parties, baby showers, New Year’s Eve parties and impromptu get togethers with some of the best friends in the world. The house will surely be missed, but the memories made there will be treasured for MANY years to come.

Thanks to all of you who supported us, loved us, and encouraged us through this transition. You are rarely far from our thoughts and we miss you VERY much. As we move forward, we are trusting that God has placed us here for a reason and has GREAT plans for us in the future. I cannot wait to be able to look back and see just what God was preparing us for in bringing us here, but in the mean time . . . I am trying hard to learn contentment, practice discipline and live with hope and expectation of whatever the future holds!!

Three years ago today . . .

2009-08-04T15:36:00.000-07:00

Three years ago today, we welcomed a beautiful new life into the world.

There are days when it seems like she's been here forever, it's so hard to imagine life without her. And there are other days where the surrealness of her arrival seems only moments behind us.

In the face of the tiny baby, we could never have imagined all of the joys that would lie ahead of us.We couldn't yet see her smile, her dimple, her laugh, the glimmer in her eye, how smart she would be, how creative she would become, how well she would remember things and how much fun we would have watching her grow.

The awe we felt when we first met her as replaced itself with awe of her independence. The most precious gift we could have been given is turning three today.

Thank you Lord for three beautiful, exciting, frustrating, fun, tiring, joy-filled years with our Beautiful Baby Girl!!!

Happy Birthday Jilly Bean!!!

'New' Chairs. Thanks, Mom!

2009-07-14T22:48:00.000-07:00

This past weekend, my mom and step-dad came for a visit. It was a really nice weekend and I'm so glad they were willing to make the trip down to see us. While they were here, my mother mentioned for the umpteenth time, that we should really re-cover our dining room chairs. And she's right. The small dining set we have I bought before I was married and certainly before there was a messy toddler in my house. The cushions were an off-white linenish color and after 7+ years, a husband and a toddler, those chairs were looking pretty, well . . . gross.

Somehow, through all of the other times my mother had previously mentioned recovering these chairs, the idea always sounded good but we just never got around to doing it. Until tonight! Somehow, mom's suggestion struck a deep enough chord this time that I made my way down to the fabric store after work yesterday and picked out a nice striped fabric that tied together to two main colors of my downstairs great room. And tonight, after the Bean went to bed, we stapled and hammered and screw-drived and Voila!!! Like new dining room chairs. Well, two of them at least. I committed the cardinal sin of home projects and did not measure the chair seats before I went to buy the fabric and I came up a couple of inches short. Darn!! But we managed to finish two of the four chairs and the room is already brighter. Really. :)

And can I just say, I LOVE doing projects with my husband. We rarely have opportunity or means to accomplish them, but when we do, it is always so much fun! My husband is such a handy guy and I love that about him. And he let's me use his tools which is pretty fun too.

All in all, we make a pretty good team, hubby and I. I think I'll keep him around for a while!

Our Little Hula Girl

2009-06-12T20:41:00.000-07:00

One of the first times that Jillian met my Dad's girlfriend. Jodi, she became fascinated with "Happy Feet" and "Lilo & Stitch". Jodi owned them both, we didn't own either. For Christmas she got Happy Feet and "danced Mumble" everywhere she could. For Easter, she got "Lilo & Stitch" and later she got a grass skirt from grandma as a gift from a recent trip to Hawaii. She has always enjoyed dancing but recently, it has become so much more of an interest. She will often as for her Hula skirt and to hula with Lilo. And that is exactly what she will do!

It's a nice day for WET campout!

2009-06-06T17:46:00.000-07:00

For the first time ever, Kenton took an entire week off from work this past week. He spent the first half of the week working tirelessly on our backyard's fence. He repaired and replaced all of the boards that were too short, broken or warped. Then he power washed (with a little help) and started staining.

As a reward for all of his hard work . . . . we headed to the coast for a MUCH NEEDED family vacation. Three days and two nights on the beautiful Oregon Coast. Only one problem . . . we didn't know there was a storm a'comin'. Apparently we missed the REALLY GOOD storm that hit inland the night we left for the coast. But unfortunately, the rain didn't stay inland. And we spent most of our time amidst ocean mists and wind. We managed to have a good time (some of us managed better than others) despite the weather but ended up letting the rain drive us home a few hours earlier than we had planned.

I must say, Jillian was a trooper. She didn't quite understand the concept of rest & relaxation and was going a mile a minute from the time we arrived at camp. At first, she was scared of the fire daddy made to keep up all warm. And she didn't understand what was soooo bad about plopping down in the rain soaked sand to play, despite soaking through all of her layers of pants. She found fascination in the many puddles that dotted the campground and in the local wildlife, squirrels and seagulls included. But I can't complain, she slept AMAZINGLY (Praise God) and managed to keep warm both nights in her own bed at the head of ours. I have a funny feeling that our little girl will probably be ready to camp again before we are all dried out from this trip. :)

Sunshine Day

2009-05-09T14:39:00.001-07:00

For the last few months, it has not been uncommon to hear our little Jilly, while in the van, randomly say " the market it closed", to which daddy or I will repeat, "yes, Jilly, the market is closed." That was, until last weekend when the Hillsboro Saturday Farmer's Market opened for the season. Since Saturday mornings are one of our rare opportunities to spend more than an hour together as a family, we started the tradition last year of taking in the market most Saturday mornings. If we're in town and without plans, it is likely this is where you will find us.
Last weekend was gloomy but we chanced it. And spent a good majority of the time explaining to Jilly why she couldn't put her "soup" on and play in the water fountain. Which is by far her most popular feature at the market, right after the "puppies". Due to the weather last week, the patrons and puppies were scarce but we managed to find a few. Here are a couple pictures from opening weekend:

This weekend however, the weather was beautiful, the market was packed and we were with friends. Today, we got to be a part of a very momentous occasion . . . Baby Kayla's first Hillsboro Saturday Farmer's Market. Yay!!! I got a baby fix, the big girls got to dance, and play together and we all got some much needed sunshine.

Look who's got a Big Girl bed!

2009-04-23T12:49:00.000-07:00

We've been toying with the idea for months of getting Jillian a "big girl bed". Up until now she's been sleeping in her convertible crib's, toddler bed which, as a side note, has been recalled. Wooops! So for safety reasons and in hopes that a new, bigger, softer bed would help her to stay IN her bed all night long,we found a steal of a deal at Shopko on a Mates bed. (thanks, Mom for the heads up)
We finally got the bed assembled this week and she could not be more excited about her new bed. Finishing touches on her room and extra special bedding will probably take a little while longer but for now, this change is enough. And it seems to be working well (knock on wood).

Fun Times with Stitch

2009-04-17T23:21:00.000-07:00

Sometime last spring, Jillian was introduced to the movie Lilo & Stitch by my Dad's girlfriend, Jodi who happens to be Japanese Hawaiian. She has often recalled the movie and asked about it on random occasions despite the fact that we did not own it. Recently, I noticed the questions, or whatever reason, becoming more frequent so Kenton and I decided that it would be one of the things in Jillian's Easter basket this year. We hid it in her new Dora lunch bag to draw out the surprise. :) And that girl has watched Lilo & Stitch every day (atleast once) since Easter Sunday.
So, today, when I was at the local Pass It On consignment sale and saw a stuffed Stitch with his head sticking out of a bin there, I felt like I had won the jackpot! I swooped it up and headed home with virtually no will to hold on to it for a good bribe like the lady that checked me out of the sale suggested. I did keep it in the van long enough for Kenton to get home for dinner so we could both enjoy Jillian's reaction when I gave it to her.
Needless to say, Stitch has not been far behind us all night and we even got the opportunity to take him for a walk. Here are some pictures from our evening with the newest member of our family.

A little girl and her alien.

Reading to Stitch (the insert from the Lilo & Stitch DVD)

Going for a walk

Cutting across the field

HAPPY EASTER!

2009-04-12T07:22:00.000-07:00

Witches, Old Friends and Fishes . . . OH MY!

2009-04-11T21:57:00.000-07:00

I figured before this weekend gets away from me, I should blog about last weekend first!
Friday night, my hubby and I went to see "Wicked" downtown . . . AMAZING!!! I missed it last time it was in town and really wanted to go this time. Thanks for Uncle Sam, it was possible. My husband seemed a little hesitant at first but there was just enough humor in the production that I think warmed up to it. For those of you who don't know, Wicked is basically the pre-quel to "The Wizard of Oz". It tells the story of Glinda, the good witch and Elphaba, the wicked witch of the west as they were school girls growing up. For a girl like me, who watched her share of "The Wizard of Oz" growing up, this storyline added some never before contemplated explanations to why Oz was the way Oz was. Anyway, I HIGHLY recommend it to any Wizard of Oz fans out there.
Saturday morning, as hubby worked, Jilly and I drove up to WA to spend some time with grandma and grandpa Kennish before heading to Seattle on Sunday. We rode on the ferry boat to Anderson Island. . .

read stories with grandma . . .

and played the piano with Piglet . . .

But the most exciting part of the weekend was still ahead of us.
We woke up bright and early Sunday morning to catch a ferry boat back to the mainland and head up to Seattle. We were to meet up with some very special people there.
I found a convenient parking spot along the waterfront and we ventured over to the aquarium where we were to meet our guests. Not long after we arrived, I hear my name, exuberantly yelled from the OTHER side of Alaskan Way. It was my "Pookie". My dear friend Erin, from college and her beautiful baby girl Evelyn had arranged this date as they were visiting from Montana. Erin and I hadn't seen each other since I graduated from college, almost 9 years ago. We smiled, embraced and then Erin announced . . . "we have babies!!!" Leave it to her to announce the obvious with gusto. But when you part ways in your early 20's and meet up again, nearly a decade later, even the obvious life changes sometimes seem sureal. :)
We took the girls down to look at the water, while waited for our third visitor. Meghan joined us not much later, and native of the Seattle area and another college friend of ours, and we headed into the Aquarium. The day was BEAUTIFUL to say the least, with blue skies, virtually no clouds and GREAT company!!!
Jillian absolutely loved the aquarium. She got to touch Starfish in the tide pools . . .

Dress up like a diver . . .

And visit some good friends . . .

I literally had to PRY her away from this tank. Only to move on to the tank with the "Sheldons" in it. (ie Seahorses, also from Nemo)

After the aquarium, we broke some bread on the waterfront and ran off some steam on Pier 62/63. We then said good-bye to our friends and agreed that it would not be nine years until we met up again!!

Yes, I am alive.

2009-04-08T23:17:00.000-07:00

Though barely it has felt the last few days due to allergies/cold/unknown yukiness. I do sincerely apologize for my blogging absence. I'm sure I've been greatly missed. Heh heh heh!
I could probably explain where the last week or two went but certainly can not make up for a two MONTH absence. So, I will just need to ask your forgiveness and move on. :)
There is not a whole lot to report on the family front. Spring break has passed and hubby is back in classes at PCC. This time it's two computer classes. Woo-Hoo.
Despite some major personnel changes at my work (www.mypreciouskid.com) the job is going well and business has been good. The boss keeps saying that God has promised increase, not decrease and for that I am grateful the job security had been a tremendous blessing in the current economy.
Jillian in growing and changing daily. Her fascination latey has been with puzzles. She has two favorites, a Care Bear puzzle and Whinnie the Pooh puzzle, that she has been taking apart and putting back together multiple times a day ALL BY HERSELF. It is so rewarding and fun to watch.
And since my best friend, Tammi, who had been watching Jilly for us while we worked, gave birth to a beautiful, healthy, baby girl two weeks ago, we had to find Jilly someplace else to go play. Fortunately, one of the ladies in our church runs a daycare and was willing to take us on. And I am pleased to report it is going well. Jilly has really taken to having other kids around and enjoys going to "play with her friends". What a relief for this mom who dreaded having to take her ANYWHERE outside of my dear friend's comfortable, loving, home.
So, to get you caught up, here are some pictures from the last few months since we've been absent from the blogosphere.

For Roo . . .

2009-02-25T20:21:00.000-08:00

So, my college buddy Ruhiyyih thought that it had been too long since I had posted and she was right. So, in an effort to remedy that, she tagged me in a post on her blog. As to not disappoint my loyal fan base and to get SOMETHING new posted to my blog, here are my 6 random things.

THE RULES:
1- Post the rules on your blog
2- List 6 random things about yourself.
3- Tag 6 people at the end of your post.
4- Let each person know they have been tagged and leave a comment on their blog.
5- Let the tagger know when your entry is up.

1. My first car was a 1975 Silve Dodge Colt, 5-speed that I bought for $300. It died on Prom Night while my date and his friend were on the way back from getting pictures taken. So they were standing next to this little old car in tuxes, when the cops stopped by to see what was wrong. The result was a call to my house, where the local police asked my mom if she knew my best friend. As my prom date (& best friend at the time) and I were well known for getting into trouble, my mom was pretty leary when she received a call from the cops asking if she knew him. :)

2. When I was 16, I dated a 23 year old Mormon guy who was in the Army because my best friend wanted to go to the movies with her older, military boyfriend and telling this guy that I wanted to meet him was the only way her boyfriend would be able to get a ride there.

3. When I was 9, I was in Heathrow airport in London with my parents and saw Rod Stewart walking by. We flew out of London on the day that Sarah Ferguson and Prince Andrew were getting married and I still have a local tabloid from that day with their pictures on the cover. On this trip, we also stayed in a bed and breakfast that was directly across the street from the race track that was used in the movie Chariots of Fire. (I have yet to see the movie.)

4. When my aunt Jackie got married to my Uncle Steve, I was about 10 and I refused to dance at their wedding reception until all of the guests were gone. I finally got out on the dance floor to the song "Celebration" and regretted not dancing sooner. To this day, I can't hear that song without thinking about that day. And my mother STILL reminds me of it when I face a situation that I don't want to do but that she knows I will enjoy in the end.

5. The attendants at my wedding held lightsabers up like swords over mine and my husband's head to begin our recessional and we walked out to the Star Wars theme song. (no, not the Vader theme) It is probably still the highlight moment of the day.

6. When I was in junior high, I was a member of the Style Board at our local mall. I got to model in fashion shows, have my own photo shoot and pretend to be a silent mannequin in the middle of the mall. It was my one opporunity I got to live out my dream of being a model and I loved every minute of it!! :)

I tag:
Tammi
Emily
Kristen
Melissa
Katie
Alicia

Big Shoes to Fill

2009-01-13T22:23:00.000-08:00

It's not easy to fill Daddy's shoes. Especially when your Daddy wears a 15 wide shoe. :)

But someday, I hope my Jillian, realizes what an amazing Daddy she has. For over two years, my husband has played Mr. Mom nearly every morning while I worked. And then he's gone to his job, working the swing shift so Jillian wouldn't be in day care. It has been the greatest blessing to me to see the relationship these two have because of all of their time together.

Even though I sometimes cringe at the thought that my daughter's favorite games to play are "tackle" and "wrestle", I smile because her Daddy taught her those things and I take great pride in the fact that he has never been afraid to get down on the floor and wrestle with her.

He's not afraid to let her be a little girl too. When she gets dressed up for church or let's me do her hair, he is always the first to gush over how pretty she looks. He spends time coloring with her and making sure she knows every Star Wars character by name. :)

And now, in addition to taking care of Jillian during the day and working at night, he's decided to become a college student. In hopes to enhance our family's future, Kenton has enrolled in PCC with intentions of receiving a degree in computer networking.

When I stop to think about all he does every single day for our family, I see how full his plate really is. And I appreciate even more his faithfulness, his diligence and the selflessness he has shown me every day since we met. His are certainly BIG shoes to fill!!!

2008-12-24T23:52:00.001-08:00

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Let it Snow! Let is Snow! Let it Snow!

2008-12-21T06:03:00.000-08:00

In an effort to keep my spirits up after I helped my husband, unsuccessfully, get our van out of the driveway this morning at 5:30 so he could get to work 4 hours earlier than he was scheduled, I decided to share some winter joy with you.
As most of you know, and some have experienced first hand, we in the Portland metro area have seen our fair share of snow this week. Yesterday was by far THE BEST snowfall and we took full advantage of the cold white stuff. Since Jilly refused to wear the new snow pants that daddy insisted she have, we bundled her the best we could and headed outside. The following slideshow is the result of the weeks snowy adventures.
I am intersted to see what today brings as right now, my car is burried under about 10 inches of snow and does not appear to be going anywhere any time soon. Eeek!!!

A Succesful Hunt

2008-12-11T21:02:00.000-08:00

This past weekend we embarked on another Mat/Rat tradition, our annual Christmas Tree Hunt. The girls were much more mobile this year so it took some extra energy to keep them close and safe while we maneuvered the hills in search a our perfect tree. But in the end, a great time was had by all and we did not leave empty handed.
Here are some pictures from start to finish.

And for Miss Em'y, please pay special attention to the last picture, notice anything familiar? She lacking in starch but hasn't stopped gracing the top of my tree since 1997. :)

Happy Holidays everyone!! May your Christmas celebrations be truly blessed by the reason we celebrate this magnificent season!!

Pt. Defiance Zoo & Aquarium

2008-12-03T23:39:00.000-08:00

So the weekend of the New Kids on the Block concert was a busy one. We headed up to Washington Friday afternoon with virtually no plans except where we were going to stay and that I was going to the concert. Saturday morning, we woke up, had a leisurely breakfast with my Dad and his girlfriend, Jodi and they suggested that we make use of their new zoo membership and take a trip to the zoo. That sounded like great fun and as it had been over a year since Jillian had been to any zoo, we thought a trip to the zoo would be a great idea. Despite the chilly weather and no one in our family being prepared enough to bring a coat, it turned out to be a beautiful day and we got some great pictures. Enjoy!

After the concert that night, I crashed around 1am, only to wake up at 7 the next morning because I had made plans to get together with my girls and scrapbook. Unfortunately, I still had quite a drive ahead of me, so the girls got a much earlier start than I was able to. But I joined them around 1 for some pizza and other goodies. And got a few good hours of scrapping in before we had decided to call it a night. I don't think any pictures were taken of our time together but here's a couple from our last scrapbooking extravaganza!!

2008-11-23T20:49:00.000-08:00

Last night, I gratefully left my husband in charge of my daughter, and joined thousands of other 30-something women reliving their girlhood dreams! Last night, the world outside of the walls of the Tacoma Dome did not exist. Last night, I was part of a sisterhood. Last night, is a night I will NEVER forget!!!

Photo courtesy of NKOTB

I arrived a little after 6pm, bought my ticket and stood in line, in the cold night air with hundreds of other grown women waiting for the doors to open to a night we've hoped would happen for years! I had floor seats, 25th row from the stage, 8th row from the platform . . . AMAZING!!

I can't even begin to describe how unbelievable the concert was! The guys were in rare form. Despite being in their late 30's, they performed like no time has passed since the last time they visited the Pacific Northwest. In fact, I would venture to say they were even better than they were the first time I saw them 18 long years ago.

The highlight of the evening, was when during a memorial number honoring people who have been lost, the guys unknowingly moved to a small revolving stage in the middle of the stadium. I turned around and they were not more then 10-15 feet away from me. Wow!!!

The concert was a perfect mix of new hits and old favorites. There were lots of lights, screen shows and even fireworks! The evening ended with a sensational encore, including a reminiscent rendition of Hangin' Tough in which the entire crowd joined in. Let me hear you now . . . Oh Oh Oh Oh Oh . . . Hangin' Tough!!

Pumpkin Progression

2008-10-18T13:42:00.000-07:00

We took our annual trip to the Pumpkin Patch this morning. Like our trip to Seattle, this marks year number 4. This year, though, the Wells' were FINALLY able to join us. Because there were four couples and four cameras . . . there are A LOT of pictures to weed through so, for now, I thought you might enjoy a look at our little pumpkins through the years!! Enjoy!!!

Seattle or Bust!

2008-09-30T21:29:00.000-07:00

I learned from experience many years ago not to write a phrase like the one I've used to title my blog on a vehicle in which you are traveling. But I figured it was safe to use it here. As promised, here is the play-by-play and pictures chronicling our annual Mat/Rat Seattle road trip.

Really, it wasn't an extremely eventful weekend. We got a pretty late start out of town on Friday, en route to Gig Harbor to stay with my Dad. Saturday morning we were all treated to a delicious breakfast of Portugese sausage (imported from Hawaii by Jodi's parents), french toast and watermelon. We all got ready and headed into the Emerald City. After driving around in circles for about 20 minutes, we finally decided we'd risk parking next to a makeshift shack (complete with cardboard roof) in order to secure a free and relatively close parking spot under the viaduct. We got into Safeco just in time and were treated to six runs scored by the Mariner's in the FIRST inning alone. Much to our joy we prooved to be good luck charms this year and we watched the Mariner's beat the Oakland Athletics, 7-3. We made a stop at Pike's Place market after the game to take in some of the local scene, including flying fish. After grabbing a quick coffee treat, and manuvering my way out of a well earned, backed-in on a very steep hill in a minivan parking space (see picture), we headed back to Dad's place for dinner. All of us girls crashed early while the boys (Dad included) enjoyed their tradition of scotch, cigars and meaningful conversation on the back porch. Sunday was a lazy day. Another delicious breakfast and some football on tv and we were on the road again headed home. The girls were crashed out in the back seat within 1/2 an hour and slept until we stopped for a potty break and to switch drivers. By the time we made it back to Hillsboro, we were all noticeably exhausted. But! The trip was a great success and gave us all the chance at a little R & R that we wouldn't have gotten at home. Tammi and I agree, breakfast is much more pleasant when you are not the one planning, preparing and cleaning!! :)

The Joy of Traditions Shared

2008-09-28T20:54:00.000-07:00

When I was a kid, I remember one tradition very distinctly, each year at New Year's my parents and I would drive to the Oregon Coast (Lincoln City to be exact) from Eastern Washington and ring in the New Year overlooking the beach. Some years I'd stay awake, most years I couldn't keep my eyes open and then there was the last year, I spent the entire holiday weekend listening to Casey's top 40 review of the closing year and for some unknown reason, writing down every song in the order they had placed. That being said, I'm sure there were other traditions we had that I just can't remember but now that I am a parent, I've been fortunate enough to make some traditions of my own. This weekend celebrated one such tradition. . .
Growing up in WA, I was born and raised a Mariners fan. I started cheering them on in the Kingdome before my first birthday and have returned every season since. It was very important to me that this tradition continue with my daughter and thus, the annual Seattle trip with the Rats was born. This year was year number 4. The girls have been around for 3. Here's a look back through the last three years and how the girls have grown.

Stay tuned for scenes from the entire trip, including Pike's Place Market, Piko the wonder dog, story telling and backseat buddies.

Birthday Celebrations

2008-09-21T23:51:00.001-07:00

My husband is notorious for throwing the most thoughtful (often secretive) parties for me for my birthday. Over the year's he's gathered my friends at the beach without my knowledge, at a friend's house and last year, he arranged an entire weekend of surprises in Seattle for me and my best friend (whose birthday just happens to be two days after mine). This year I told him I didn't want any fanfare so do you know what he did???? Absolutely nothing! Well, not nothing, he did send me roses at work (which scored major "gold stars" with all 4 of my co-workers) and accompanied me to dinner at Red Lobster! And do you know what . . . it was one of the best birthdays ever! Now don't get me wrong, the fanfare is great and I do LOVE to be surrounded by friends but this year, there were NO expectations, NO anxiety and NO big surprises (well except for the Fed Ex guy (who delivered my flowers) telling me Happy Birthday when I came out of the bathroom at work).

The birthday festivities started on Monday when we had a simple dinner of nachos with the Rats and small heart shaped cakes Kenton & Jillian had made. Three of which were adorned with lit candles for EJ, Tammi & I to blow out since we all have September birthdays.

The girls helped us to blow out our candles.

EJ reading to the girls.

On Tuesday, we had a small celebration at work. Sommer brought me sunflowers, Mona brought me coffee and Melissa made me special cupcakes. She's been taking a cake decorating class so my cupcakes were professionally decorated. And they were delicious to boot!!!

I was SO blessed by my very thoughtful co-workers who showered me with love all day!

Then Tuesday night, The Rats were gracious enough to watch Jillian so Kenton and I could go out to a nice quiet dinner. Thank you, Rats!!!

Thank you also, to all who sent cards and well wishes via MySpace and Facebook. It was a truly wonderful birthday this year!!!

Our Growing Girl

2008-09-21T23:34:00.000-07:00

For those of you who only follow this blog for the pictures of Jillian . . . here is a post especially for you. Because a.) I like to show her off and b.) there's really not much to say about the circumstances. Here's some recent pictures of our 2+ year old treasure.

Jilly is fascinated with whatever is happening in the field next to our house. Usually it's a soccer game being played. She will sit contentedly and watch whatever is taking place. Every once in a while she will cheer. This particular night it was three teenage girls hitting a volleyball around. Watching the girls reminded me of when I was their age and my best friend Nicole and I would hit the volleyball of the roof of my house.

"Where'd it go???"

Some fountain fun from one of our family trips to the farmer's market.

She looks so grown-up to me in this picture with her buddy bear, Pooh.

We did pigtails this past week. I can't believe how long her hair is, I have yet to cut it.

CRC or bust

2008-09-21T22:54:00.000-07:00

As I mentioned in my last post, we spent the weekend after Labor Day with my in-laws at CRC (www.christianrenewalcenter.org) in the Silver Falls area. I highly recommend to anyone wanting to get away from the world and reconnect with Our Creator that you make a trip to visit Allan and Eunice amongst the trees. I can not even begin to tell you how filled with God this place is. Given first its secluded nature, then the hearts of its' leaders you can not deny that God is there as soon as you step foot on the grounds. All stays are suggested donation based and are customizeable based on your own desires for your time away. They have a wonderful kitchen staff that prepares three meals a day, you can partake in all three, only one or none at all. So, there is my 'plug' for CRC . . . but I digress.

My mother-in-law started planning last year for a getaway for her and her kids (and grandkids) and after looking at many different options, she decided that CRC would best meet our needs so to the mountains we went. I must say, the drive was longer than I had rememberd (but I had my newly purchased NKOTB cd to help pass the time (and a husband that agreed to listen to it. How's that for preparing for a weekend in serenity. Hee hee.). Anyway, the drive was worth it and we arrived as the sun was setting on Friday. We spent some time together with the family, Jillian was eccstatic to see her "COUSIN!!!!!" and the two of them had a great time getting reacquainted.

Saturday we had breakfast, the kids played a TON outside on the toys that were there and tackling each other (with Daddy/Uncle Kenton's help) betweent naps and meals. We played games, the kids watched movies and I got to do some reading & resting too.

On Saturday afternoon, we took the kids to Silver Falls with the intention of doing some swimming. The weather had been very nice but the water turned out to be ICE cold. So, we took Joel and Jillian to see the waterfalls instead. As a mother, I was terrified that somehow my daughter was going to manuever herself around or through the cautiously placed fences and barriers and plummet to the tidepool below. She, on the other hand, could not figure out why she couldn't touch the cascade of water from above despite the fact that it was oh 10, 15, 20 feet in front of us with nothing to venture out on between us and the water. I swear sometimes the child thinks we have go-go-gadget arms hidden in our sleeves or something. :) Either way, it was a great day for a small hike and we got some pretty good photo ops. Unfortunately, Aunt Tia wasn't feeling well so she stayed in the van and grandma missed out too, napping back at the cabin.

On Sunday I was reminded of one of God's greatest gifts . . . maple butter!!! I had forgotten this CRC treasure. If I had to make a guess, I would say it's a combination of butter, maple and brown sugar and it is to die for. This particular day, it was served to us with our french toast and it was melt in your mouth heaven!! Delicious!!! After breakfast and packing up on Sunday, we all headed into Woodburn together and had lunch before parting ways and getting Kenton back to work. It was a wonderful weekend with family and we are already looking forward to next years' Mattos family getaway.

Group shot with our cabin in the background.

Nemo, Boat Coats, Jilly Driving, Oh My!

2008-09-11T20:09:00.000-07:00

A few years ago, my mom and step dad purchased some property on an island in Puget Sound. It is a beautiful place with a small store, one restaurant, a golf course and three lakes. It's completely secluded and the people are very friendly. About a year ago, the "parentals" as my sister and I call them, purchased a two bedroom "cabin" on the island.

A couple weeks ago. I told my mom all I wanted for my upcoming birthday was to spend time with her and my step dad, at "the island" and go out in the boat. So she invited us to come that weekend to celebrate my birthday. So Jillian and I headed up to WA (Kenton had to work) and spent Labor Day weekend with my mom and David.

While waiting to board the (very crowded) ferry over to the island, Jillian decided that every person she came in contact with was her cousin. Because I had told her that we would be seeing her cousin, Joel, the NEXT weekend. To our great surprise as we were walking back to the car from using the potty, Jillian stopped next to an unknown vehicle where a young boy was standing. She excitedly approached the boy, arms outstretched and yelled "Cousin!" with immense joy. It was absolutely hysterical. I had to remind her all night long that everyone she saw was NOT her cousin. :-D

The weekend started with a parade on the island where Jilly collected a ton of candy. A small carnival followed at the community center where Jilly got to jump in a bounce house, got a tattoo (temporary, of course) and got to sit in a real fire truck (unfortunately the cameraman was getting a soda when this happened so we don't have any pictures of it).

The above picture was taken because I (Mandy) made the mistake of telling Jillian that we were going to ride on a boat like the one Nemo touched (Nemo's a pretty big thing in our house). So Jillian spent the ENTIRE weekend looking for Nemo. While we were on the ferry, out the back sliding glass door of the cabin, while we went on a walk, out on the boat. Everywhere, all we heard was "Nemo." "Nemo" "Nemo" The picture above was the closest Jillian got to anything even remotely Nemo like.

Back at the cabin, we enjoyed grandma's delicious cooking, played tackle with grandpa, saw two families of deer crossing the back yard and celebrated my birthday with a delicious birthday cake.

The weather was beautiful all weekend and we were able to go out on the boat both days. While we were out on the boat Saturday and Sunday, we saw seals, seagulls and even an otter. Jillian got to wear her brand new "boat coat" in the boat. She didn't like it so much at first but she got used to it and even now after being home for two weeks, when she sees pictures of her self wearing her life jacket she will still say "Jilly Boat Coat."

Grandpa let Jillian help him drive the boat.

She did great. She loved sticking her hands in the water over the back of the boat and she especially liked the "up and down" when we ended up going over other boats' wakes.

Buy me some peanuts and cracker jacks . . . .

2008-09-11T19:39:00.000-07:00

For those of you who don't know, I have the honor of working for a wonderful lady named Kay Green. Kay owns a business called My Precious Kid (www.mypreciouskid.com) which she started 7 years ago, in her home. Until June, she was almost exclusively an online merchant selling child safety and baby gear products. But business was picking up and we were significantly outgrowing our space in her home's basement so she decided to take the leap into renting an office space. We now have a storefront in downtown Hillsboro where we see multiple customer's a week face-to-face while still shipping out 30+ orders a day.
The perks of my job go far beyond the normal employee benefits package. I work with all Christian women. All of them mom's. I get to have the fellowship and support at work that I've always longed for but never been able to have. It has been a joy to watch this wise woman at work, making decisions that benefit her family, her employees, her business AND the Kingdom of God. I am learning so much from watching the other mom's as well. It has been a great time of healing and growth for me in so many ways.
Anyways, my whole point in writing this post is not only to introduce you to this great business that strives to protect our kids, but also to share with you some pictures from our most recent employee outting. Miss Kay, as we call her, was kind enough to purchase tickets for all of the employees and their families to take in a Portland Beaver's baseball game together, she even treated us to dinner. So, here are some pictures of my work, my co-workers and our fun night out at the Beaver's game. Enjoy!!

2008-09-11T13:00:00.000-07:00

Got this idea from Roo. It looked like fun.
I DO have a bunch of stuff that I need to update with but that all takes thought and this didn't so, I'll do this first and hopefully tonight I can get the other stuff taken care of.

The Questions:
1. What is your first name? Mandy
2. What is your favorite food? Marshmallows
3. What high school did you go to? Olympia High School
4. What is your favorite color? Purple
5. Who is your celebrity crush? New Kids on the Block
6. Favorite drink? Grape Kool-aid
7. Dream vacation? Fiji (my love to Pookie)
8. Favorite dessert? Grasshopper Pie
9. What you want to be when you grow up? Business Owner
10. What do you love most in life? My Family
11. One Word to describe you? Waiting
12. Your flickr name? moogymouse (nothing came up so I chose white space)
13. What do you want most out of life? Peace (of Mind)

1. In Memory Of Mandy..., 2. marshmallow, 3. High School Girls Room - 2/22/08, 4. Purple fingers, 5. new kids on the block, 6. Invisible Grape Kool Aid, 7. Fiji, 8. grasshopper pie, 9. 365 Answers About Human Resources for the Small Business Owner, 10. My family, 11. Waiting for the Sun, 12. White silence ..., 13. Peace of mind...

Let's Hear it for the Boys . . .

2008-09-08T22:22:00.000-07:00

The five hardest working 'kids' in show business are back! And life is good!!

God's View of Abundance . . .

2008-08-17T21:05:00.001-07:00

A few months ago, probably in the midst of one of my many pity parties, feeling sorry for myself because money was tight, I came across John 10:10:

10 The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows). (Amplified)

My mind caught on that word . . . abundance. And the Lord revealed to me in that moment, that abundance did not (necessarily) mean having great deal of resources (i.e. money) or a bunch of material things, or even a wealth of anything tangible. I began to meditate on this passage and asked the Lord a question. God, what does YOUR abundance look like? I knew it probably didn't look like mine, but I wasn't quite sure what it did/could mean until tonight.

The last couple of days, I've been throwing another pity party for myself. Money is tight, family time is significantly limited, there just doesn't seem to be enough of anything I want and then . . .
last night, my daughter and I were playing in the water in the backyard. I let her have the hose to help fill her turtle pool. That held her interest for a little bit but then . . . my darling little girl got a glimmer in her eye and do you know what she did?

She turned that hose, right on her mom! And do you know what happened next? I laughed! I laughed a huge belly laugh and I smiled from ear to ear. Of course, that got her going, so she did it again, and again and again. After about 20 minutes of this, I was soaked from head to toe and filled to overflowing with joy and laughter in my heart.

Though I am grateful for the moment, it was what happened tonight that actually brought John 10:10 to my mind again and reminded me of my question to the Lord. Jillian was taking a bath after yet another encounter with her Crayola paints. And lately she has been fascinated with bubbles. Tonight, I caught a glimpse of her putting bubbles on her head and I ran downstairs to get the camera. When I came back up, this is what I saw:

But it was what followed the reminded me of God's view of abundance:

And again . . . I laughed. I was struck with so much joy. To hear my little girl's laughter, absolutely filled my heart! The Lord knew. My Father in Heaven knew how much I needed that laughter. And I imagine, it filled His heart to see me smile so genuinely as it did mine, to see my little girl smile too. Once again, God proved Himself faithful by meeting me exactly where I was at.

If I were being honest, I would have to admit that I have spent many hours in recent weeks, wrestling with God, overlooking many of His provisions because they did not fit precisely into the mold I have been trying to make for Him, yelling at Him for not doing SOMETHING! And then, in the simplest of acts, taking a bath, He showed up. He reminded me that though my life is not full of all of the things I want, it IS full of the things that matter!!

Sometimes I think I talk a pretty good game. I don't always walk it out like I should. But tonight, as I share this encouragement with you, I fear that tomorrow, as most days, even what I've said tonight will be a forgotten moment. So, please pray with me that this lesson on abundance will be anchored in my heart. I so desperately want to live in the here and now, know contentment that I have never known, bless my family with peace and faith that I have never had. And I pray for you too, that this word will be an encouragement to you to find what God's abundance means in YOUR life and ENJOY it!!!

Heavenly Father, THANK YOU for your many gifts!! Thank you for providing for all of our needs, even when we are ungrateful and lose sight of what you have done. Thank you that you overlook my spoiled, selfish, prideful requests and you reach out to touch my heart anyway. Lord, I continue to say as the Father of the demon possessed boy did, "I do believe; help my unbelief." (Mark 9:24) Help me to rely on and trust in You at ALL times. Help me to remember and have faith in what you promised me, that you have a plan. And help me to live my life in such a way that this faith is evident to others, especially my family. I love you, Lord. (yee haw)

Priceless. . .

2008-08-15T23:47:00.001-07:00

So, I'll admit I'm pretty biased but I just love this picture of my little bean.

Big Girls do Big Girl Things

2008-08-15T23:05:00.000-07:00

It has been amazing to me , the changes in my Jilly Bean since she turned 2. It's like she grew up over night. She prefers a 'real' cup with no lid to her sippy cup. She has started to walk up the stairs instead of crawl. She is fascinated with driving our van and she loves to help me cook. Some of her grown up acts have been prompted by mom and dad and some have not. Like her choice this week to start laying down in the bathtub. I was so fascinated that I had to take pictures!!! You can see that and other big girl changes below.

Playing in her big girl bed! So far, we have had no problems since her bed was converted from a crib.She is sleeping soundly through the night and at nap time.

Here's the start of potty training. . .
she's doing well, though taking longer than I had hoped. But at almost a whole week, we're at equal (or more) successes than accidents. So, I really can't complain. Luckily, I have a really good support system! You know who you are.
(MPK employees, Mrs. Rat and Mr. Matt)

The sun is shining, the sky is blue . . .

2008-08-07T20:15:00.000-07:00

Our little girl has now turned TWO!!!

I meant to get this update updated a lot sooner but . . . well, I don't really have any excuse. Just apologies to those of you out there that were waiting in agony to hear all about Jilly Bean's birthday party. You know who you are (MM)! :)

So, the celebration started on Friday night with an impromptu dinner out with Grandma and Grandpa Kennish at Macaroni Grill. Somehow the waiter misunderstood and thought that it was MY birthday so when the hostess showed up with a huge piece of rich chocolate cake ready to serenade the Birthday Girl, she was a little taken aback when I told her it was actually the little one sitting beside me who was having a birthday. She graciously put the cake in front of Jilly (much to Jilly's delight) and proceeded with her Happy Birthday song in Italian. It was beautiful and Jillian was in awe. However, to all of our disappointments . . . NONE of us had a camera on hand. Remember, I said this was an impromptu dinner. So . . . we have only our memories to serve us (and some VERY blurry camera phone shots).

Saturday we woke up and shared tea and donuts with grandma and grandpa and prepared for lunch with "the boys" as Jilly calls them. There are three guys in particular at Kenton's work that have really taken a liking to Jillian. Since Kenton had the night off, all of these guys had to work so we threw an "extra" party for them to celebrate with Jillian. We all had pizza and brownies then Jillian opened presents.

Kenton and I worked feverishly through nap time for the big party and when Jillian woke up, guests began to arrive. As usual, there was a HUGE spread of food, including make your own quesadillas which Kenton heated up on the barbecue, a special Jilly mix of raisins, cheerios, pretzel sticks and popcorn, and Goldfish centerpieces for guests to munch. When everyone was done eating, we moved inside for presents and cupcakes. We ended the evening with Aunt Tia, Aunt Sarah, Cousin Joel and Vovo who weren't able to make it the party earlier in the day. It was a GREAT day of celebration for all.

Love is in the Air

2008-07-27T01:41:00.001-07:00

Last weekend Kenton and I had the honor of attending a beautiful beach wedding outside of Seaside. Many of our old college group friends were there and we had a ton of fun. We also took advantage of this invitation (and a gift of provision from the Lord) to celebrate our 6th wedding anniversary with a weekend away without The Bean. My mom was gracious enough to come down and watch Jillian while we were gone.
Our accommodations were not the greatest but the weather was amazing but we made the best of it with some help from Fred Meyer (a reed diffuser for the musty smell, a mini rose bush to add some much needed color and some good munchies). We took multiple walks on the beach and Kenton FINALLY convinced me to play Risk with him . . . Star Wars Risk of all things. After a slow start, I finally won and I was forced to admit that I enjoyed myself much more than I expected (but please don't remind him of that). :)

Miss Jilly, How does your garden grow??

2008-07-22T22:13:00.000-07:00

Kenton was re potting a strawberry plant that we had and Jilly had to help.

Home Sweet Home

2008-07-22T20:50:00.000-07:00

Early this year, Jillian received the most amazing cedar playhouse as a gift. It sat in the garage for many months waiting for some finishing touches to take place in our back yard. A couple weeks ago, Kenton and his friend Casey got to work. Before the house was even done, Jillian was ready and rearing to go, looking through all of the windows, and cooking up a storm. First she made bacon, then quesadillas, then soup. It has been so much fun watching her imagination flourish.

There are few better ways to spend a Saturday morning. . .

2008-07-13T15:12:00.000-07:00

. . . . than with good friends, good food, sunshine and laughter.
Saturday we met the Rats (including g-ma Rat) at the Hillsboro Farmer's Market. We had wanted the girls to get to play together in the fountain when the weather was nice. We grabbed some fresh berries first, than some lunch and then some rays (along with some unwanted splashing). It took Jilly a little while to warm up to the water, she needed some help from daddy but once she got in, she had a great time!!! And the berries . . . . well, uh, they didn't last very long!! DELICIOUS!

Stickers . . . Stickers . . . and MORE stickers . . . .

2008-07-13T14:47:00.000-07:00

Most of you know, I LOVE to scrapbook. I don't get as much time to do it as I would like sometimes but when I do, I really enjoy it. Well, it has been an honor over the last year or so, to share my desire and talent with my daughter. :)

Lately, she has been absolutely obsessed with stickers, as I can remember myself once being. Though I was a few years older than her when I remember my obsession beginning. Obviously, my obsession hasn't ended, now I can just use scrapbooking as my excuse to feed it. :)

Anyway, here are a couple of pictures of Jilly "scrapbooking" with mommy the other night.

The Final Product

Somehow, this whole sticker thing started by Jilly putting stickers on her belly. She continues that tradition even now as evidenced by some left over garage sale stickers that mommy so kindly put in Jilly's scrapbooking box, not knowing they would ALL be used at once to decorate Jilly's belly AND THEN the ottoman! :)

I'm afraid we've created some monsters

2008-07-06T19:23:00.000-07:00

After the parade on the 4th of July, we headed to Starbucks for a little pick-me-up. Miss Jilly made a bee-line for the table in the very back by the window. I took a picture of her right underneath the Starbucks sign because I thought it would make a cute ad for the company!

We decided to give the girls a treat, their own hot chocolates. They obviously enjoyed them!! Here's to many more coffee breaks for these girlfriends in the future! God knows their mother's have had a few over the years!!

Independence Day

2008-07-06T18:58:00.000-07:00

Last year, a tradition began for our family . . . attending the annual Hillsboro 4th of July Parade, accompanied by breakfast with our friends, the Rats. I was a little worried about the parade this year because this year, both of our girls are mobile, last year the really weren't. But I am happy to report that aside from a very not nice parade attendant that we sat behind, all parties thoroughly enjoyed themselves. The girls (and their daddies) enjoyed catching (and eating) the candy that was being thrown by the parade participants, the horses were a big hit and so were the fire trucks. Of course, Kenton's favorite part was the Star Wars themed truck, complete with Storm Troopers! Do they ever grow up!?!?!?
So, here is a slideshow with some off the highlights from our day at the parade. ENJOY!!!

Priceless

2008-07-01T20:36:00.000-07:00

Tammi by some amazing twist of fate (or she's just unbelievably talented) managed to get Jillian's hair in pig tails today. I almost died when I came to pick her up and she came running out of Tori's room with the most adorable pig tails. Then Tammi gave Tori pig tails too. The girls were so cute with their hair all done and pulled up. It's amazing to me how much older it makes them look. :)

Anyway, I was able to snap this shot which I find absolutely priceless. Of course, I'm probably a little biased. :) Enjoy!

Visiting Grandma and Grandpa

2008-07-01T20:18:00.000-07:00

This past weekend, Jillian and I took a long overdue trip to visit her Grandma and Grandpa Kennish is Olympia. Grandpa had to work most of the weekend so we spent most of our time with just grandma. We went to the Farmer's Market and shopping at the mall. Here are some pictures from our trip.

Helping Grandpa water the flowers. :)

A New Addition to the Mattos Family

2008-06-26T22:44:00.000-07:00

During our garage sale last week, we had intended to sell both of our rat cages. In a completely impromptu decision, we decided to bring the smaller of the two BACK into the garage and fill it.

So, in lieu of a dog (since out backyard fence is not yet complete), we got a new rat to tied us over. Her name is Coco and she is a black hooded rat.

Jillian in absolutely enthralled by her and it is nice to have a pet again. :)

Leave it to me . . .

2008-06-03T23:13:00.000-07:00

If you can believe it, this blog was created in March 2007. Since then, I have been inspired many times to get it off the ground so to speak. I LOVE keeping informed on my friends' lives via their blogs, so it would only make sense that I have one of my own. That along with the fact, that I LOVE to write (and show off my little girl). So, here it is; my first blog post. As most bloggers, I will try to keep this blog updated to keep you all informed about what the Mattos family is up to.