Hey Stranger December 2012

these we wrapped up and gave to our sweet friend who is goign to enjoy them! :)

mumma was soooo nervous to put this here! i slid right into the dollar tree, and left it right on the toys so a little one could get a toy :)

eeeeeeeeh! went to the hospital and left these little presents in every vending station i could find!

it took forever to scour the hospital!

this one will help someone eat a healthier organic snack :) 

in the end, we left these on about 5 different vending stations, in one washing machine at the laundromat, a few baggies on newspaper stands for those wanting a paper, and left little upliftingloving notes in every magazine we could find at the hospital. 

so so so rewarding. at one point, mumma accidentaly left the purse she carried all of the goodies in, AT the ER where we were last, so we returned about 30 minutes later and luckily someone had found and turned in the bag, and we could resume the goody giving! 

mumma had a big headache and had to go home to pump for maya, but tomorrow i will venture out with some treats for kids on candy machines and more vending/newspaper goody bags, and i will also add in a recent idea: leaving uplifting notes in the big blue mailboxes and UPS drop boxes for the postmen to find when they collect and sort the mail! :) 

squeeeee i am SO excited!

a little about "Hey Stranger"

on Sunday I will be venturing out into the world and onto the town with a mission: to spread some love to some unsuspecting strangers. its something done regularly and will have some differences each time. I call it "hey Stranger" and it is all about random acts of love for strangers :)

this project cost me under 20$ total :) some of the pictures flipped...and i have NO idea how to rotate them!

is it going to change someones life? no.
will it reinstill hope that there are good people who love others? heck yes :)

i hope to do this with you as you get older and understand :)

all of it as a group

This will be taped on a machine at the laundromat :)

this will go on a rack at the dollar tree :)

these are going to be taped to gumball machines, sticker machines, mechanical kid rides at the supermarket...things like that!

these will be taped on 8 different vending machines at the local hospital :)

these notes will be left under peoples windshield wipers :)

the yellow posters will be on telephone poles and the notes left on windshield wipers :)

these are a pile of 45 notes in teensy envelopes i carry in my purse...i drop them in tip jars, in grocery bags the next person in line will use, in library books or books in book stores...just random places knowing that they will, by Divine Intervention, end up in the right hands. different messages on each :)

It always comes back :)

this is a story i will LOVE telling you as you get older. so forgive me in advance! 

so the other day uncle gave us his christmas gift, it was 80$. 40 for each of us. he wanted us to have some spare cash around the rough holidays and honestly, its much welcomed. as ive said before its a bit tight around here until my next check comes in for financial aid. so i gave jamie 40 and took my 40. I decided to go to the store and buy some things for our Adventures in Giving this month. 

(ive been creating these little things for a project i am calling "Hey Stranger" and these projects include leaving change on vending machines, exact change on a washing machine in a laundromat, change for kids to rde rides or get stickers from the supermarket machines and also on Christmas Day Brother Julian and I will be going out on the town and hitting up the firehouses around town and giving homemade cookies to the firemen who are volunteering to work on christmas day. giving them a litle love! also hopefully giving some sugar free treats to Red Gramma and Boppa's senior condos. so many of them have no family and would love a little pick-me-up!)

so we headed to the store and i spent *gulp* 41$, 1$ more than allotted on these things. 

The way i look at it, we werent banking on that money Uncle gave us, and maybe we should use it for others. 

so i spent it. all of it. and i had a very shortlived pang of worry "i could have used that on something else" i thought. but i shook it away. NEVER feel bad about doing something for others. it will come back to you. 

Adventures in Giving is something i do as a "tithe". its my commitment that my family and household will use the funds that we get, no matter how small, and give some to others...no matter how big or little. it all helps.

and so i came back home and realized the bottoms of my pants were wet from the rain. i ran to the bedroom and looked for a pair of pants, and found one. i put them on, went to adjust the pockets and pulled out a big wad of cash. 

i counted it. 

$52.00. 

I know the money came from somewhere. i know i must have had it before. but the bottom line here little ones, is that the process of me putting the money there, and forgetting about it...and not finding these pants for God knows how long, it was not accident. 

its reassurance!

it comes back even more than before.

i spent 41$ on others...and i was given 52$ for my family. i had not budgeted with that 52$. i didnt even know it was missing! but it came to me today...immediately following our trip for giving, and i am so so thankful. and so so faithful. 

giving is such a big part of this life we lead. and no matter how small or large the giving...it means the WORLD to some people. 

anyhow. ill post more about Hey Stranger in a bit. 

:) 

love you babies!

:) handsome.

Mahmee blanket :)

Brother.Sister.

this basically sums you guys up :)

Sometimes I can't sleep

Sometimes it is late and dark and the world is sleeping. And I am up thinking about you both.
Yesterday it was the day I met you both. Each day played through so quickly in my mind and the rush I felt came back clear as can be. I haven't stopped since that day. And you know, age doesn't determine the amount of time I've loved you. From the moment daddy and I decided to make a family together, we dreamed you, imagined you. We didn't know who would come first. But we knew there was an all consuming unconditional love for the children we wanted and needed to have together. I've loved you since the first moment daddy and I decided to throw out the contraception. Before I knew you...I loved you.
Both of you.

The Bible has a verse, and I hope anyone who reads this blog doesn't take offense if I mess it up "before you were formed in your mothers womb I knew you." The passage talks about gods love for us, and how before we came to be, He knew and loved us.
I subscribe to the same notion.
and I am so so thankful that you have come to us.
You found me, and id be lost without you.
Today julian and I sang a song "home" by phillip phillips. I say to daddy a lot "hold onto me as we go" and the chorus, as brother learns it, will be sung a lot. Hope sister doesn't mind :)
Ill bring the lyrics here in the morning or so. Just know...this song and the song "I will wait" (I think by mumford and sons) are some I hold dear.

I just love everything about you, on such a deep level.
I'm so so happy to be your mumma.

Love you mayanarae. Love you "judith".
Thank you!