Out of town and look what happens.

We went on a wonderful family vacation, which I am going to blog about next after this, but first I just had to say this.... We don't buy all organic stuff because it is too expensive, and with Aaron being a farmer, we have learned that "organic" isn't what it use to be :) but we do buy organic milk. With the big amount of growth hormones that are injected in cows, we feel it's important to at least buy organic milk for the girls. I won't go into all the details of the what the research says, but that's not my point. The point is that when we got home from our vacation last night, I went to Wal Mart to purchase some standard things such as milk and bread. I went to grab a gallon of the organic milk that we usually buy and it had gone up to $7.50 a gallon. I about fell over. It was already high! I couldn't bring myself to buy the whole gallon. I just paid the $3.50 for the half gallon :( I guess I will be making my way over to Braums. I was informed by a friend that Braum's wholesome milk is less than half the price of organic, and it isn't certified organic milk, but it is "all natural with no hormones added. I just wish there was a Braums a little closer....wait a minute...no I don't. That would be dangerous :) I LOVE Braums!

Little sweetheart

Although my little Aubrey is super super busy, she is also the sweetest little person in the entire world. This morning at about six o'clock, she and Alyssa both came and crawled in bed with me. I was laying on my side and I felt this tiny little hand start to rub my face. Then she started to very gently rub my lips with her finger. My eyes were shut and I was thinking to myself how sweet is this! Then I feel little bitty lips touch mine and she whispered..."I wuv oo." It really can't get any sweeter or better than that! This was the second time she had said I love you to me first. So I know she knows what it means now. She LOVES to cuddle and kiss more than any child I have ever known. We will be laying in bed and she will grab my face and bear hug it and fall to sleep that way. Of course I have a hard time breathing, but it's just so precious I try to endure. She also can say her full name now, which is so very sweet.."Auby Fayf, Weez"...Aubrey Faith Reeves. So busy, but so much fun! I have my hard days, but being a mom is the most wonderful and most fulfilling thing I have ever been given the priviledge to do. I am thankful everyday that God gave me the family he did! I love my sweet sweet husband and my precious girls so very much!

Something's Up!

What's the matter? That's the question I have been asking myself lately. Summers come and farming starts and Aaron and I always get disconnected from each other, from the Lord and from people, which is not what we want, but by now things are usually coming together again, but not this year. This is the first time we have actually questioned whether or not the Lord even wants us to farm. There has to be a better balance. We HAVE to do it in a way that is honoring to Jesus or it just won't work. We feel that more than ever now.
I think our focuses have to change. For me lately I have been on this slim 4 life diet and have been so very self focused, trying to reach my goal weight. God has given me discipline with my eating, but I need discipline in other areas of my life now. I focus all my energy in losing weight and in my girls. Focusing my energy in my girls is a good thing, but I still need a balance of other things. My first ministry in life is with my husband and then my children. I can't be a great parent if I'm not a great wife first, and I can't be a great wife if I'm not connected with Jesus. I really want to model that for my girls.
I have just been on edge lately, and I know that it's because my relationship isn't right with God right now. Really ever since New Rivers split up things haven't been the same for us. We aren't in a home team, we have no accountability, we're not involved in any outside ministries. We so desperately need that, and it's time to get plugged back in somehow. I can feel God tugging at my heart pulling me back towards Him. Why do I keep resisting? I can name all the excuses...too busy, not wanting to commit, have too much on my plate, don't want to feel overwhelmed, can't fit anything else in, don't feel like I am in a place to lead anyone right now, don't want to burden anyone by reaching out to them for help, don't fit in, feel uncomfortable talking to people....all stupid excuses that come from the enemy. Please Lord may your voice be louder than his.
Really I don't want to hold my husband back either. I feel like I do this in ministry a lot. Such an amazing heart Aaron has! He genuinely loves the Lord and cares for others, and I hold him back. The truth hurts, but that's it. It all comes down to fear. Fear of adding new things in life, fear of making the wrong move, fear of letting people down, fear of my husband taking off in ministry without me. I will be in church and feel so very moved and inspired by a message, and I will be thinking of all the things I can do to get involved and make a difference. Then I go home, and it all kind of fades away and gets pushed down with my daily to-dos. Please Lord pull me out. I want to see your face. I want to live my life for you, because you are ALL that matters.
You gave me this life, chose me, and adopted me as your daughter and I want to honor you. I want to live bringing glory to you. Draw me near and hold me tight. I need a big hug from you. I keep thinking of the time I first came to know you. I always think of how I felt....so very full of joy. I describe it as being in a protective euphoric bubble. Everything was fresh and looked new and people were beautiful, your creation was miraculous to me. That's because I had your eyes. Give me your eyes again. Help me to see the world through your eyes. Give me your heart Lord.

Last 2 weeks

Aubrey somehow got on our computer and started pushing buttons and severely messed up our computer...so for the last 2 weeks we have been without a computer and I haven't had any source of communication with the internet world, which has been good, but I have also missed it. $300.00 later I am back and a little less addicted to facebook. Aaron thinks it was a God thing that we were without it for 2 weeks. It was a forced fast from the computer that we both really needed.
Also for the past 2 weeks, Aubrey has become a little more difficult to handle. She is soooo very independent and wants to do everything herself. She is starting to REALLY test her boundaries what seems to be every 2 minutes she is awake. There are times when I want to cry and I have definitely needed some alone time a little more often. Alone time right now isn't a luxury anymore, it is a must if I want to keep my sanity. To say that she is busy would be an understatement. She isn't a bad girl, she is just so very busy and into EVERTHING. I think the newest of her talents these past 2 weeks has made my life a lot harder. She has learned to move the chair over to where she wants something. She will scoot the chair where she wants to go and use it as a ladder to get her to where it is she desires to go at that time.....the kitchen sink or bathroom sink and then proceeds to either eat lipgloss, or toothpaste, or she also enjoys trying on mascara for lipstick or dumping soap out all over her hands. It is a constant battle to keep her off the chair and off the countertops and kitchen table....I MEAN CONSTANT BATTLE....no breaks. She gets in trouble in one spot and then moves onto the next. She has this incredible talent of being mischievious and super sweet at the same time. I will be headed towards her to punish her and she will poke out her lips for a kiss and say "I love you," which immediately softens my heart. She knows exactly what she is doing...little stinker :)
Here lately I have noticed that she understands pretty much everything I am saying. So when she got in trouble the other day I was explaining to her why she was in trouble. She started crying and I told her you have to be a good listener to momma, and be obedient. She stopped crying and I said are you a good girl? and she said "Uh-huh." I asked her 'Are you going to be obedient now?' and she said "I bedient."
She totally knows what she is doing and what she shouldn't be, she is just seeing what she can get by with. It's all a matter of me and Aaron being consistent. Oh my goodness....this is only the beginning :)

So sweet

Tonight Alyssa and I were at Wal Mart and she had dressed herself before we left. She had on a tank top knit shorts and flipflops with hoodie over it. When we got inside she took off her jacket and said here mom hold my jacket. I told her that it was cold outside and to put it back on before someone thinks that I am a bad mother for letting my kid out in tanktop and shorts on a cold Fall night. She looked at me with surprise and said," Mom, don't say that." I said 'don't say what?' and she said..."Don't say that people will think you are a bad mom, because you are a really sweet mom."
It was my best compliment I had ever received in my life! Such a sweetheart. I am so glad that my little girl thinks that I am a "sweet mom."

Good times

We have been having some good times here in the Reeves household here lately. Again, it's the freedom thing. This past weekend me and my 2 girls had the honor of being in Kendra's wedding. I am so very proud of this girl. She has chased her dreams, reached successful goals, traveled, fearlessly lived life to the fullest, and now has married the one God has made just for her. I admire her so very much and couldn't be more proud to see how happy she is now. I really don't know if I have ever seen her this happy. It's all so good!
And to see Matt look at her the way he does, you just know that is a man in complete love....so sweet!
Her wedding was amazingly beautiful, just perfect and not a thing went wrong! The weather was a little cool out, but other than that, it was wonderful! And the party was a blast! Justin Clemons took her pictures and did an AMAZING job! I can't wait to see them.
The next day we were all so pooped out that we didn't get out of our PJs. We slept off and on all day and it was GREAT! We hadn't done that since I don't know when. Then Monday was fair day. We met the Gilbert's and the Pai's up there and watched the kids have a blast. Me, Aaron and the girls stayed from about 10:00-5:00. Oprah was there filming her show, but we didn't see her and surprisingly it wasn't that crowded. I'm not a huge Oprah fan. I think I would've rather run into Gail, than Oprah.
It was just such a wonderful fun-filled and restful weekend. Then Aaron took me on a date to the movies! We are really enjoying being together. I LOVE my life and am so grateful for ALL my wonderful family members.....muaahhh XXXOO!

What's new???

You may have been asking yourself...what's new with that Reeves bunch...then again, you may have not been, but I will tell you anyhow.
It's been a couple of weeks since my last entry and since then farming has ended. It was a challenging year at times, but a great year! God is taking care of us in more ways than one!
To wind it all down, Aaron had to call some of his customers and explain that we were ending the season for this year. A lot of our customers are Asian. Some of them are hard to understand and Aaron has to talk slow so they can understand him sometimes. As I was listening to him talk, I got tickled because he started talking with a spanish accent real slow. When he got off the phone, I asked him if it helped at all for his Asian customers to understand him better if he talked with a Spanish accent. He started laughing and said he didn't realize he was doing it. So funny! I think working with all his workers who are Mexican, he has developed a habit of speaking with a spanish accent when he talks to anyone who has trouble speaking English! Cracks me up!
Anyhow....things have been great since the season has ended. We are together more often, and starting to get close again and laugh more as a family. Don't misunderstand me, farming doesn't make us miserable, it just takes away a lot of freedom, especially since Aaron has another job as well, and it is so good to have that freedom back!
Aaron at times has a hard time letting go. He had planted a late patch of squash, that we aren't needing to harvest anymore, and at totally random times like in the middle of watching a movie or 2 minutes before dinner, he will say.."I think I am going to go pick some squash."
I have to remind him to let it go for now. That's where his passion is and he loves it, and he doesn't really know how to sit still. One of these days soon, I think he will be a full time farmer. We just need to find some land and build a house on it, so we can be right there!
Also new...I have lost 24 pounds now doing Slim 4 Life! I weigh less now that I have in 5 years and feel so free. Trying so hard to lose that weight and working out as hard as I was, was consuming my every thought and my emotions....poor Aaron! I was miserable, which in turn made him miserable. Now all I can say is that I am thankful to be free from those feelings and Aaron feels like he got a new wife.
Monday was mine and Aaron's 7 year anniversary. He totally surprised me and had a bouquest of bright colored Gerber daisies delievered to the door. They were so beautiful! They are my absolute favorite flower...so colorful and perfect looking...just a happy little flower! He also took me out last night to the Neuhaus cafe. If you don't know what Neuhaus is, it is the WORLD's BEST chocolate. I haven't indulged in any since I worked at Neimans and was pregnant with Alyssa, so he decided I deserved to indulge. The very sad part was that they didn't have my favorite chocolate in yet, because it isn't cold enough outside here. They are Belgian shipped and contain real cream and in order for them to be so delicious and wonderfully blissful, it has to be a certain temperature here to carry them....BUMMER! My favorite by the way is a white chocolate truffle that is filled with light walnut cream with a dark chocolate "N" on the top of it! I can't think of the name, but it should be called " Little piece of Heaven and worth every single calorie truffle." It is the BEST thing I have ever put in my mouth, and I am not a HUGE chocolate person. Anyway, it was a wonderful night, and I am so very blessed to have such a sweet sweet sweet and wonderful husband! How did I ever get so lucky!