A New Adventure!

I haven't written on this platform in ages. I want to renew it this year because we are attempting a new, grand adventure ... of building our own house! 2021 closed out with the approval to start digging (finally) and after 5 years of planning, the adventure's beginning! 

However, with temperatures headed back into the negatives over the next few days, we won't be starting to dig anytime soon. For now, it's ordering, planning, and packing the house with the goal of moving into the camper by mid-April!

In the meantime, the three kiddos & I keep busy with homeschooling (W is in 4th / 5th grade, J is in 2nd grade, and A is pre-K), Awana on Wednesday nights (I am the Commander of our local Awana), and a homeschool co-op on Friday mornings. Life is full & beautiful! And I can't wait to see what God has in store for this year. 

My 3 sweet boys 💕

    

Bountiful Baskets - again :)

Got another basket, with a mix of onions, pears, and avocados + much more. Priced it out at the IGA for $36.35 although there were no apple pears at the IGA or the Galia melon. Haven't used it all yet but sure hope to!

In other news I have been doing a lot of thinking and praying lately on how to live life - what it looks like to serve God in middle class America. I am reading "Doing Good Without Giving Up" by my college friend Ben Lowe and am finding it to be very helpful and encouraging. I have started volunteering as an advocate at the Domestic & Sexual Violence Services here in town, and I am continuing to *try* and get the MOPS group moving.

My current struggles are with finding the best ways to love people. I have a couple of friends dealing with serious medical issues with their children, and in my fear of somehow misstepping I end up doing nothing, which I realize is not helpful. I just feel so useless in those circumstances. Maybe just a phone call or dropping by is truly enough, and I need to accept that. I just wish there was a way to fix everything - I know God heals all sickness in His time but quite frankly that is often not soon enough for those of us here on Earth. That's where the pull of trusting Him in the midst of everything is required again.

Bountiful Baskets!

I realize I haven't posted in forever. I'll catch up soon. For now, for my own record-keeping ...

I've been on and off getting Bountiful Baskets. For awhile the produce wasn't as good and I felt the value was poor. However, the last two I have gotten have been fantastic! Here's the price breakdown:

Basket received 9/21/14:
7 granny smith apples
5 plums
1 lb carrots
2 bunches kale
2 bunches celery
4 pomegranates
2 x 10.5 oz cherry tomatoes
1 head green leaf lettuce
6 oz blueberries
1 honeydew melon
4 red peppers

Priced out at Beartooth IGA for $41.16 and Walmart for $40.41. Considering I paid $19.50 including the processing fee, this is a great value! Nothing went to waste from this basket either; it was all eaten or frozen rapidly.

Basket received 10/4/14:
1 head green leaf lettuce
5 large tomatoes
1 large cucumber
3 bunches spinach
6 lemons
11 small mandarin oranges
1 canteloupe
3 heads broccoli
2 artichokes
1 package strawberries
4 orange peppers
3 bananas

Priced out at Beartooth IGA for $38.67 and Walmart for $37.76. Again, a great value. Unfortunately I only managed to eat 1/2 of the cucumber before it went bad. The rest of it was eaten or frozen.

I think the most surprising thing I learned was that produce at the Beartooth IGA is actually not a bad value! Considering that I have to drive 45 miles to reach Walmart (each way), I would be spending about $15 in gas in addition to the price of the food. I think that some dairy products and a lot of the canned / boxed food at the IGA tends to be more expensive, but I can also purchase canned/boxed food from Walmart and have it shipped for free if the purchase is over $50. That will be something to consider in the winter especially when the roads are bad.

Overall I am very pleased with the Bountiful Baskets program! Keep it going! I also purchased a 40 lb box of Honeycrisp apples for $32 and made a crisp, a bunch of applesauce, and I plan to split the remaining 20 or so apples into apple chips and frozen sliced apples for pies.  

Lazy Days

 Wyatt and I have had two days to ourselves to enjoy while our neighbor kids spend time with their mom on her days off. I always look forward to these days and seeing what fun we will have together! Yesterday while folding laundry Wyatt decided he wanted to wear his hat, a scarf, and a bib. It made for a cute ensemble :)

There has been so much on my mind lately I am having a hard time getting it to settle. I have been busy trying to engage the kids and find fun things for them to do every day. We spent a lot of time this last week going to the park and playing with play-doh, stickers, and crayons at home.

A few weeks ago we went to the local animal sanctuary to say hello to the bison, wolves, birds, and donkeys. That was a lot of fun!

I have been wanting to get out sledding or cross country skiing, but I am not sure about the logistics of taking all 3 kids out at once, especially since the two little ones may not be ready for sledding and I would have to haul all 3 in the sled for skiing. The lack of good snow and the right temperature has also held me back, although maybe I shouldn't let it. It suddenly became a lot more challenging when I added 2 children to my daily life!

As it is, we enjoy our days playing and learning, and I can see in little bits and pieces the progress we are making together in learning to share, learning new letters, and learning new words. God is good and I am so grateful for His many blessings!

Snow = busy!

The last month has absolutely FLOWN by due to a change in our daily routine ....

My neighbor got a job at the ski hill and that means I have taken over full time childcare for her two kids, B (almost 3 years old) and M (1 1/2 years old). I originally had thought it would only be part time child care ... and there have been a LOT of challenges involved ... but God's grace is covering this whole thing and He gives me the strength to make it through every day!

Our Christmas was nice and a little chaotic with Wyatt and the 2 additional children running around. My neighbor is a single mom and her job required her to work straight from mid-December through the New Year. Fortunately I got to have a few days off from watching the kids since she had a high school babysitter provide relief. 9 days in a row of 8-10 hour days was more than enough! Finally her schedule seems to be more routine with Tuesdays and Wednesdays off every week.

It will continue to be busy through the spring & snow season, and then summer will return again! I am excited what the year ahead has in store for us as a family, and I am eager to see how God will direct our lives.

Fellowship

Day 3:
I am thankful for friends and fellowship. Wyatt and I enjoyed a pizza lunch with our friends from the Benbow area today, and it was a wonderful time of hanging out, chatting, and generally relaxing. Although my closest friends live in other states and countries, I am blessed to have met people already here in Montana that have been willing to reach out and be friendly.

Glad for the mountains!

Day 2 of the thankful challenge...

I am incredibly thankful to live near the mountains and to have the opportunity and ability to go out hiking, fishing, and exploring! I always feel closest to God when I am able to go outdoors, and living in a place like Red Lodge makes that possible daily :)

Wyatt and I went out yesterday, fishing and wood gathering, and that just made my day and week a thousand times better. There is nothing like fresh mountain air! Here is a picture from earlier this year from a place only about 15 minutes away from our home. I am so blessed to be living here! And incredibly thankful :)

Daily Thanksgiving

This year I will post daily in the month of November as a way to get me to remember what I am thankful for. What a great way to celebrate a whole month of Thanksgiving!

Today, I am thankful for plentiful wood that keeps our home cozy and warm. This is the first year I have ever had a woodstove, and Josh & I have been working hard to stock up on wood for the winter. I have gone out several times with Wyatt to gather wood and I have also been busy sawing it up.

I am also thankful for a chainsaw to cut all that wood. Hand sawing would be miserable, can you imagine how long that would take to build up a winter stash? Yikes. I would be out there sawing all day, every day! Instead I spend a few hours here and there, leaving plenty of time for other endeavors, like baking and building towers :)

Judging by the looks of things, my two guys also enjoy the woodstove. Father/son bonding at its best.

This should be fun to see all the different things I find to be thankful for over the course of a month :) Hope you enjoy!

Wyatt is 1!

A full year has passed since the birth of my precious baby boy, and toddlerhood is arriving in full force. We celebrated with an after church potluck in our backyard, complete with a fish shaped carrot cake.

Although Wyatt isn't walking yet, he is crawling everywhere and pulling himself up on everything in sight. Already his personality seems to be of the more studious type. He is the experimenter and the engineer, carefully arranging his toys and sorting them "just so". His bright smile is a joy to see every day and it fills my heart with gratitude.

A year has come and gone, and it's hard to imagine what the next year will bring as Wyatt goes from babyhood to a running, talking child. Excitement and nervousness collide, but I wouldn't have it any other way.

Wyatt, you light up my life with your smile, giggles, and your careful way of exploring and testing out your world. You are a wonderful gift and I am so privileged to be your mama. I love you, kiddo!

Settled in Red Lodge :)

Life has gotten strangely busy over the last few months. Josh successfully defended his thesis and graduated from SDSM&T. He interviewed in Texas and Montana and was offered a position with Stillwater Mine in Montana, which he accepted. Together we packed and moved with the help of our friends at Project Church and now are in Red Lodge, Montana.

Wyatt & I spent the month of May traveling: 1 1/2 weeks in Texas to visit his paternal grandparents, and 1 1/2 weeks in Alabama / Florida for a family reunion with my side of the family. It was his first time plane traveling and he did very well! All our traveling companions commented on how well-behaved he was and how relaxed even during take-off and landing. I think Wyatt is just a laid back little guy. He is also a charmer, and wows all the women he meets with an incredibly cute smile :)

Since returning to Red Lodge we have been busy unpacking, taking care of a friend who visited for 3 1/2 weeks, taking lots of walks to the post office, and occasionally hanging out in the community pool!

6 months old!

Wyatt has made it to the half a year point! Hard to believe this much time has passed since he was born.
A quick rundown on Wyatt:

• He got his first tooth on March 9th (my birthday) and is happily chewing on his arm right now
• He can roll both directions but usually back to stomach
• He likes to sleep on his stomach and will sleep up to 4 hour stretches there (hooray!)
• He still loves being held and carried but at 19 lbs it is starting to get challenging!
• He seems to have a bit of a shy personality and takes a while to warm up to new people

Motherhood has continued to be a bit of a challenge for me. I wonder where the last 6 months went! I am trying to figure out now whether I should find part-time work or return to school, but all of these things depend upon where Josh finds a job. So I remain in a state of waiting at least for the time being. Right now we are looking at possibilities in Montana, Texas, and Alaska. I can't wait to see where we end up next!

Windy South Dakota! and a cute baby :)

It is another cold day in South Dakota - it's going to be tough to get out this winter with Wyatt if the wind continues like this! 20 degrees and dropping ... colder than Fairbanks, which is unusual for this time of the year!

Grandpa Z holding Wyatt at the Firehouse

In recent news, life has been going pretty well! My parents flew out from Washington the week before Thanksgiving to spend quality time with their new grandson; they treated us to dinner at the Firehouse Brewery, where Wyatt tried out a Fireman's hat.

We had a good first Thanksgiving with Wyatt; we potlucked with the other graduate students in Rapid Valley and lounged around, watching football and playing games. Wyatt just kind of took it all in. He likes to observe, eat, and sleep. He does have a cute smile that he has started showing more regularly! Here is a picture I snapped this morning of his smile :)

Gold flakes in the bottom of a gold pan :)

In other news, Josh continues to work on his thesis. We have had some fun going out and gold panning in areas near Rapid Creek - I take Wyatt up with me and he sleeps in the car seat near us as I help Josh fill buckets with gold bearing dirt! We have had success although it may not look like much at the moment. Wyatt seems to enjoy the outdoors as he stares up at the trees we walk past.

Josh also recently acquired a part time job working a security position at a building on Ellsworth AFB. A man we met at church offered him the position and he works weekends day or night shifts, from 4 - 4. It is a blessing as we currently have no other income! And the other great part about it is that he has Christmas & New Year's weekends off, so we will be driving back to Washington once again for Christmas! It will be interesting attempting that trip with a baby!

It's amazing how much of my life has changed in a few short months since Wyatt was born. At first I struggled with the transition from a busy / hectic work / study life to the new routine of feed baby, diapers, sleep when you can ... but as time has gone on I am beginning to really enjoy this time with Wyatt at home. I don't know that it will be like this always, so I am very glad for the opportunity now. I am trying to take the extra time I have to focus on what God has for us next in life, as we will likely be moving to wherever Josh is able to find work. My hope and earnest desire is that I honor God with whatever I am doing and find satisfaction in Him alone, as I have always struggled in being valued for what I do, not who I am in Christ. Today our pastor spoke about life and death, and living out the passions and dreams that God has given us. Strangely I never had the desire to be a stay at home mom, but that is where I am currently at. So I am praying that God shows me how I can encourage and love other people from my home while supporting my husband and raising my beautiful boy. I am not even close to being there yet, but I trust He will open the doors and show me the way! And if He has something else in mind, I trust He will show me what the next steps are to take. I can't imagine what the next few months will bring ... we are truly at a crossroads in our life.

Time to catch up!

Obviously I have been slacking on the blogger front .... but I think that I will try now to catch up although my blogging will have a different focus than before! And the reason for that is my wonderful son who was born September 15th, 2011, at 1:16 PM. I will give a shortened version of the birth story for those interested :)

I had been working at Casey Peterson & Associates since I returned from Nevada, filling in for the front desk receptionist since Josh & I decided it would be best for me to hold off on returning to school. I had been enrolled in graduate studies in Geological Engineering at South Dakota School of Mines & Technology. Anyway, working was going good, pregnancy wasn't too bad at this point, and I was only a little swollen and uncomfortable. I hadn't even packed my bag for the hospital or had the final consult with our doula even though the date was set. September 14th was nothing noteworthy at work although I did end up staying late and was planning to come in early the next day to help process tax returns for the September 15th corporation filing extended deadline. But alas, it wasn't to be.

I woke up around 5 AM on Sept. 15 to get a drink of water after feeling kind of a funny "pop" in my abdomen. Turns out my water had broken! I told Josh, who decided to lay down for a little bit longer as he had just gone to bed from working on his thesis. I didn't feel too bad right away, so I proceeded to eat breakfast, take a shower, and do my normal work preparations. I figured I would go to work until my dr's appt at 10 AM. I know, I'm a little crazy. We decided to call my doula first to see what she thought - she was concerned since it was 3 weeks early and said I should call my dr. We called the dr's office where the on-call dr was shocked we weren't already at Labor & Delivery. Hmm. Josh at this point had gotten back out of bed and the contractions had started to strengthen. We talked it over and decided to go to the hospital although we had planned to labor at home for some time. So we called our doula and told her to meet us at the hospital. We had to make a quick run over to the school to print off our birth plan prior to going to the hospital, and ended up checking in around 8:30 AM.

I wasn't in triage for long - just long enough to check that indeed, my water had broken and I was getting ready to have this baby! Our doula met us there and we got moved to a delivery room where we worked through the contractions walking, slow-dancing, and generally moving. However when it got close to transition I headed for the bed and didn't leave it! I can't remember when I started pushing or really even how long it took, maybe 1 - 2 hours? The funniest part was that my OB doc showed up and was heading out the door to get suited up when Wyatt came out - he ran over and caught him with his bare hands! I guess he came quick!

Wyatt was 6 lbs 1.8 oz at birth, 19 inches long. There was a little concern at the start about his breathing and jaundice, but the NICU nurses came to check him out and said he was just fine! We ended up staying two nights at the hospital before we were both discharged and sent home.

There are a lot more details to the story of course, but many I am not comfortable posting online for the whole world to see! So call me if you want to hear them or send me an email :) All in all, it was totally unexpected for Wyatt to show up early, but I ended up with the natural, med-free birth I had hoped for and recovered pretty well. 8 weeks out I am finally feeling well adjusted to being a stay at home mom with a wonderful newborn son!

The picture at the top is a photo of Wyatt Richard Brewer at 1 week of age in the "Boys Rule" onesie that was the first thing Josh picked up to dress him in. Here is another more recent photo of Wyatt from yesterday when I was getting ready to take him out for a walk in the stroller - didn't happen because the wind was too cold, but he sure looked cute!

Baby Shower!!

Yesterday I was blessed by the ladies of Lighthouse Christian Fellowship with a baby shower! Very first time for me to be the center of such attention! And it was a lot of fun to open all of the gifts with all of the baby clothes and other such things.

Here's a picture of all those wonderful women (and a few of their lovely daughters too). Baby Brewer is going to be a well-dressed little fella, I can tell you that for sure. Only 9 1/2 weeks 'til the due date, and as we all know that means the baby could show up anywhere from 7-11 weeks from now! Exciting and hard to believe the time is drawing so close. At least now I have a few diapers, baby wipes, clothes, and even a bouncy chair & bassinet. Hooray!

Angel Lake Hike

For my Sunday off this week I decided to go to Angel Lake for a hike and just to enjoy the afternoon. Lara came along with me and we drove out to Wells, then up a sketchy, skinny road to the lake. No guardrails and a drop off made for a bit of a nervous drive for me, since I still have a little of that fear of heights.

We decided to hike up one of the many trails in the area, this one leading to Smith Lake. As you can see, there was a bit of snow on the trail yet, which made it slightly treacherous. At the second snow patch we turned back since it was getting late and because we didn't want to risk sliding off the side of the mountain! Plus I was hiking in sandals... yeah not the best idea. Too hot for boots though.

It was a beautiful, warm, sunny afternoon, and the bugs weren't even out. I was glad to see the renowned Angel Lake and had fun looking at the cool rocks. Yes, once a nerdy geologist, always a nerdy geologist. By the time we got back in town, it was time for bed!

Gallivanting around Twin Falls!

For the Fourth of July weekend I took some time off work to travel north to Twin Falls, ID! I left after hitting the pool for the midday swim on Friday. It was a nice drive, a little on the warm side but not bad!

I enjoyed myself and pampered myself on Friday night by going to the mall and watching a movie, Monte Carlo, which was a great fun comedy to watch (and admittedly a bit of a chick flick). I was amazed at how happy I felt when I arrived in Twin Falls to discover stores galore, especially one of my favorites (Target!) which was part of the plan anyway. After my evening I bedded down for the night and got at least a little rest - I wanted to hit the trails early in the morning before it got too hot!

So Saturday after a fabulous breakfast at Idaho Joe's, I made my way to Shoshone Falls, which was certainly beautiful. I made a morning of it by biking around on all the trails on the canyon rim and down to the nearby lake. It was a lovely day to be out on the bike! I did manage to wear myself out a little bit with the sun and the heat, so I was only too glad to get back to town and treat myself to a cherry limeade at Sonic ... mmm... wish they had one of those in Elko, though it's probably a good thing they don't!

Resting on the day off :)

I'm taking it easy for my day off today ... I actually skipped work Monday because I was so dizzy that I could hardly get out of bed. I went to the doctor and discovered that I was dehydrated, so I am making a big effort to drink plenty of water! Have to take care of this baby! Today is my only "day off" before I work the next 6 days straight, then I will have 4 days off for the 4th of July. I am planning a trip to Twin Falls and Pocatello, ID, to do some shopping at "real" stores and to visit Wheaton friends! I am excited for the weekend, I think it will be a great mini vacation from work. After I get back, there will be only 6 weeks left of my internship. Crazy how time flies!

Is this where it gets hard?

No new pictures, sorry everyone :) It's been one of those weeks that I am only too grateful to make it through. I had food stolen from me twice, and today at church a woman was kind enough to tell me that "you look awfully large for only being 6 months along". Thanks a lot, lady. That is the last thing you tell a pregnant woman!

It isn't that things are so bad ... the sun is shining and life is good. I just find myself missing my husband and my friends back in Rapid City terribly. And I know that I cannot complain because I have chosen this for myself. I just keep telling myself that it's for the better that I'm here to give Josh space to work on his thesis. I keep believing that this must be where God wants me, otherwise why would He put me here? But then the doubts start creeping in, and I can't help but wonder ... did I hear God right? Or did I just talk myself into this? Am I completely crazy to spend my summer pregnant with our first child in a completely random, lonely Nevada town? Is this REALLY God? Or is it me? I don't know. And at this point I can't turn around and go back, I'm in for the long haul. So all that I can say now is that I will be spending the summer in prayer, on those long bus rides at 4:30 am when I'm trying desperately to sleep but my mind won't stop churning...

Life is so strange. It doesn't often end up where I expect it to be, in fact it is usually very different. And as much as I long to settle I almost wonder if God will just keep us moving from community to community. Whatever He's got in store, I've got to keep remembering that He knows best. Sometimes, it's just hard.

Enjoying Sunshine and Flowers :)

I thought it might be nice to give my picture an explanation ... I spent my Sunday (only "day off") at church, the laundromat, and I also went up on the hillsides for a little bike & hike.

I got a nice sunburn from my time enjoying the sun, but it was well worth it! The mountain flowers were blooming and the weather was picture perfect. I hiked when I got to some steep sections that I could no longer bike up. Behind me is the "city" of Elko laying in the valley. A typical day in Nevada, and a good way to spend a day off!

Week 2 Disappointment

My second week of work started off Monday with the expectation on my part that I would receive underground induction training. However, that plan was quickly halted as my supervisor and the head geologist pulled me aside. I am officially banned from the underground mine, due to the fact that mercury exists in vapor form underground and I am pregnant. I was hugely disappointed and also felt excessively guilty that I did not forewarn my supervisor of the pregnancy part, but they were extremely nice about the whole thing. I had no idea it would be such a big deal ... I guess that Barrick is playing on the side of caution. Even if there is not imminent danger, the possibility exists for mercury exposure and they would rather not have the possibility of it harming me or more specifically the baby.

So while everyone else trained, I hung around the office and read some geology papers. The week rapidly improved towards the end, when I was shown how to log chips. At least I could feel semi-productive! And I will get open pit hydrology / geology exposure throughout the summer, so I won't miss out on everything. It's still hard to be left behind when everyone else is going underground!

All in all, I am thankful I still have a job, excellent coworkers, and a great learning opportunity. I worked Tuesday - Saturday, so I even got an extra 10 hours this week. And my supervisor is happy to let me work as much as I want to, so that will be good for the bank account, especially considering our current financial circumstances! There are blessings even in the disappointments, and I think it will be a good summer after all.

I went up to Lamoille Canyon again to visit and found lots of snow and sunshine, so I hiked up next to a waterfall and hung out for a little bit reading my book. It was a beautiful afternoon!