Family jam session

Being with family in AZ this weekend is food for my soul! Love is in the air.... I cannot wait for the wedding tommorw!



-- Post From My iPhone

Soothing

Hunter is working of his 5th and 6th teeth....and this icy cold, sweet treat did the trick to take the edge off the process of cutting those teeth. Through motherhood I have began to really understand the importance of soothing aches and pains.

More often than not just a touch can heal. I will forever find comfort in a long tight hug from my mother and I will always be able to easily fall asleep with my father's voice holding a conversation in the back ground. When we first brought Hunter home there were some moments I just couldn't calm him and would need Wade to take a stab at it....He would walk outside and sit on our front porch and they would both listen to the wind chimes...Wade would always walk back in the house with a sleeping baby.

We are all soothers and need to be soothed. We all also need God because there is not a greater soother for our sinful selves than the forgiveness, grace, truth and mercy of Christ.

Whose Your Boss?

Being a boss is not a walk in the park....In fact the longer I am a boss the more I realize the true burden of trying to shape and guide employees while holding them accountable to certain boundaries and expectations.

I work hard at being a good boss...meaning that I pay attention, I am grateful for those that work hard, I understand what tasks are assigned and how to do them, I am fair, caring and compassionate....But the truth is that I may think I am a GREAT boss (the best out there) and others may think I suck.

I put a great deal of effort and energy into preparing and planning in order to avoid misunderstandings and confrontations....however they are unavoidable when you are a boss. People always want to be paid more money and are looking for any job out there that will pay them more than I am paying. Perhaps that is the nature of the working world....but I will no longer be held hostage to increasing pay!

What really makes a good boss? What do you wish your boss did or did not do?

I wanna be a winner!

I am at the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation dinner and hope to win my first gun! Wish me luck!




-- Post From My iPhone

The Sun is Setting

Well it appears as though the end of Sun Mircosystems has arrived....and the beginning of a new day for IBM and possibly our family as well. In the coming days we will learn more about the sale of Sun to IBM and what that means for Wade's job.

I have many mixed feelings about this crossroads. I am sad for Wade. He has given 11 years of his life, his loyalty and his intelligence to Sun...I believe that he wanted to see Sun return to their glory days and that he wanted to be one of the proud soldiers fighting for what he believed in. On the flip side I have such a sense of peace and excitement about the possibility of change and of freedom from this battle he has been fighting for so long. The next months will be a journey full of challenges, drama, difficult choices and new endeavors. I have faith that this journey will lead us to the perfect place that God has for us in this period of our lives.

Please pray with us. Pray for all of the families that will be affected by this change. Pray for the leadership of IBM and SUN...that they make wise choices and that they are kind and grateful to all of the employees for their service and loyalty. Pray for Wade, that he will fear nothing at all because we are safe in the arms of our father, that he will have the clarity and strength to make the right choices and endure the path ahead and that he will rise to the challenge and help lead these companies onto a path of success....our family, the tech industry, the economy need it now more than ever.

Packing Time

The almond market has picked up and therefore I have had to pick up the pace in packing! With the market as volatile as it is...I want to be sure that Dan in sales can sell at every good opportunity.

I love almonds.....not to eat or enjoy the taste....but because of the significance this crop has played in my life. Above Nestor is holding the highest quality graded raw almonds in his hands. He is the hardest worker here....by a mile. He is always walking at a brisk pace, he is the first to pick up a broom when there is a mess, he is flexible when the weather or schedule changes, he is always ready to learn, he is never afraid to stop and respectfully question things that do not seem right and he is kind. I have learned many things from Nestor and this picture of his rough, hard working hands holding the fruits of our labor sums it up for me.

Happy Birthday Brother!

I have always wanted a big brother and now I have one....an AWESOME one! Happy Birthday Rick. Many many more!!

Wade and I both HATE the distance from California to Canada....know that we think of you, Bobbie, Emily and Ava every single day. We wish we were there to see you blow out your candles and toast another year with an ice cold beer!

Up and Down

A whole Saturday afternoon easily disappeared as Monica and I enjoyed time at the mall with the kids! After lunch we took the kids on the carousel! About half way through the ride Hunter reached out and let me know he was done. There is something about this moment that made me feel like a mother....a good mother. He wanted me. He trusted me. I could fix the problem for him. I never want this feeling to stop....never.

I know that I am a mother...there is no doubt that he came from inside my body. However I do not believe that creation and birth made me mother. Unconditional love, sacrifice, selflessness and joy in moments like these is where I have found the right to call myself Hunter's mom. I desperately want to do right by this precious boy and my incredible husband. I think I am on the right track...but there is always more work to be done.

XO

One Year...I love you Wade

One year ago I signed the most important piece of paper in my life....my marriage license. This piece of paper...this marriage...is the foundation I have and will continue to build my life upon. The past year has brought many laughs, big blessings and powerful lessons. I will count them for you.

10. Splitting the household responsibilities. I am responsible for Laundry (even though I am incapable of putting it away), food and cleaning the house. Wade's duties include the trash, mail, insurance, bills and the maintenance of the house and cars. Fair right?...

9. Joint Checking. Together we have learned how to communicate about where and how we are spending our money. Through different management tools and budgets we are balancing our needs and wants as well as how to kindly communicate where we are. Thank God for the IPhone budget application!!

8. Putting each other first. WOW this has been powerful for me. The more I respect my husband and put his wants and needs first the more he gives me what I need....LOVE.

7. Joining families. I love the Little family. They have accepted me and loved me from day one. I thought I have an amazing family before but it has only gotten bigger and better with the addition of all the Canadians! I also have had the opportunity to watch my parents prayers be answered through Wade as he became a son-in-law to them and a husband to their daughter. I have watched them love and respect my husband as their friendship grows. I cannot wait for each new memory with my entire family.

6. Meeting new friends. Wade and I both had some great friends before we were married...friends that are family. How GREAT it has been to be blessed through all our friends and to share our lives as we love each other and watch our families grow.

5. Sex. It is great to be able to have sex and not feel guilty about it!

4. Acceptance. I am wanted. I am loved. I have a home that is warm and welcoming. I have people that love me and want to be with me. And I want to be with them...more than anything else I want to be with them.

3. A new name. Changing my name was a challenge...but it was the best gift Wade has ever given me. We are a family and our names, actions and love reflect it.

2. The birth of Hunter Neil Little. This is one of the BIGGEST and BEST moments of our marriage. This is the beginning of the legacy of our love.

1. Companionship. No more good byes! We are together forever. We are able to share the best and worst of each day. We get to challenge each other, love each other and walk together.

Wade I love you. I love us. I love me....the wife in me, the mother in me, the you in me. I cannot wait to see what the next year brings. I promise forever. I promise to try my best. I promise to love you and only you. I promise to grow with you and closer to you. I am more in love with you today than ever before.

XO

Grandma Julie

Watching my mom and Hunter play brings me more joy than my heart can handle....I end up in tears or with a smile I cannot wipe off or laughing so hard I cry. I feel like I am watching her love him the way she loved me. I cannot remember her when I was this young....but now that I watch her with Hunter I feel more loved than ever. She spoils him. She protects him. She teaches him. She laughs with him. She lights up when she holds him in her arms. She loves him liked she loved me....unconditionally.

I love you mom....more.

Bloom

Bloom is a powerful time of year. This window of 14 days is make or break for the almond crop. During this period of time the bees must have nice weather (55+degrees and little to no wind) to fly about and pollinate the crop. The mornings cannot dip below 28 degrees or frost will defeat the pink bud. The market stops in anticipation of what bloom will bring, farmers do not sleep and we all wait and watch.

Besides all of these effects, the billions of pink blossoms changes the scenery. Spring is upon us as we burst into bloom! Then as the delicate petals fall they cover the ground in a pink snow.

I have learned such a great deal about farming almonds that Wade and I planted our own orchard over a year ago. We are in our second bloom this year! Almost every day we were out admiring our tiny trees and their brilliant soft pink flowers. Here are a few clips of our trees.

Hunter is also a huge fan of Bloom. It has gotten us out into the garden and given him a chance to play in the grass with his puppy. From our family to yours Happy Spring......Enjoy the Bloom. In the weeks to come I promise to share the results of the bloom....

Waiting

I am in the Starbucks drive through with my mom and Hunter. There is a line.... A long line.... And my mom is counting the minutes we are waiting.

How do you react to long lines?

I think I tend to complain... But I am trying to relax and enjoy the downtime today!


-- Post From My iPhone

Hunter likes to share

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Good morning!

A hot shower
Wake up, change, feed Hunter
A few minutes of family time in bed
Hunter's back alseep
Drive 50 miles
A hot cup of tea and email




How do you start your morning?

So


-- Post From My iPhone

Pease Pray with Me

Please pray for sweet little Gavin.

You can his website by clicking here.

Pray for healing.

Pray that the pain will subside.

Pray that GOD gives Karen his strength, wisdom and clarity.

Torture...are you OK with it?

What a great show! This week 24 held a 2 hour episode and it was thrilling as well as thought provoking. This episode in particular left Wade and I thinking about torture and if we are OK with certain individuals being tortured in order to obtain information to stop terrorist attacks on our country. I am still divided.....

Half of me hates the idea that people are being physically harmed in order to persuade them to talk. And what if they really do not know anything...?? There is always that shred of doubt that makes me wonder if you are harming someone in order to get them to talk and they really do not know anything....

The other half of me wants to protect this great nation at any cost...I want to believe that the only people being tortured are those we know have information about eminent attacks on the United States. I want to protect and prevent harm to the people and leaders of this country. I want those who intend to harm us to be harmed.

SO which half wins?? Last night if I was President Taylor I would have let Jack Brouwer get the information he needed....but hind sight is always 20/20 right.

What do you think?

Is it edible?

Hunter's check arrived in the mail yesterday! Clink Clink into the piggy bank for college!! I think he would rather eat the check though...hehe

Thanks again Grandma Sherry for entering Hunter into that fun hockey raffle! He has Wade's good luck!

Hunter was in the best mood yesterday! He is sounding consistently better...and the nebulizer treatments seem to be keeping the wheeze at bay. We will wait and watch to see what the next step is....for now it is nice to just be well and in a good mood!!

Sleeping in on Sunday

-- Post From My iPhone