Happy New Birthday

Christmas was wonderful with Olivia. She slept until about 9:30 am which was a Christmas gift I think she gave to me! Sleeping in!

She seems to like her new toys - but always would prefer to have Mommy's cellphone or Daddy's keys instead. She protests when we take things away from her that aren't for babies - like cords, strings, pieces of paper and the kitty.

Her birthday is just days away and I'm so excited to have a 1-year-old. She still doesn't say Mama, but I know it will come eventually. She's taken one or two unassisted steps, but still prefers to crawl.

I'm sitting here typing this, and remembering what it was like exactly one year ago on my due date... waiting for contractions to start... so tired of being pregnant and so anxious to meet Olivia. And now here I am, exactly one year later, typing at the keyboard with the whole year behind me.

It's been wonderful and difficult and full of joy and sorrow. The beginning weeks with Olivia were some of the hardest times I've ever known. I was so overwhelmed and scared - and God gave me such support through my family and friends. Now, looking back, I can only remember the good parts. The bad parts are such a distant memory that I almost forget they even existed. I wonder what it will be like when we decide to have another baby. I wonder when that will be... :-)

For now, I'm enjoying my days at Spirit and the comfort of knowing that Olivia is having a blast at Grandmas. She's so happy there. And I'm so thankful that God made a way that I could work and be a mom at the same time. I know it's not for everyone, but it's really working well for me and my family for this season. And I feel blessed.

So here we go - off on another adventure for Olivia's second year of life. So far, so good. Thank you for taking the journey with me. I appreciate every email and comment more than you could know. You've helped me transition into motherhood - you've helped me learn how to get her to take a bottle when I'm away, and how to get her to sleep through the night, and how to cherish all the moments because they do go by quickly. So thank you.

Sarah

I do by self.

When I was a little girl, my mom said I had a favorite saying: "Do by self, Mama. I do by self."

Enter Olivia. She's the same. She only wants to feed herself; no help accepted. I try and spoon food into her mouth and she waves her little hands and shakes her head. She can't talk yet, but I know in her mind she's saying "No Mama. I can do by self."

I'm going to start reading that book, something about a strong willed child. :-)

- oh and by the way - less than three weeks until she turns one!!!!!!!!

Wheres the remote?

Thanks to Dana for writing and telling me to update! I figured since I was updating my blog, I'd update my Netflix queue as well. And that made me laugh - because I found myself looking for all these Holiday classics that I've *gulp* never seen.

Like: It's a Wonderful Life. I've never seen it. How can this be? It's on TV every year! And I've only ever caught a few bits and pieces. And Gone With the Wind. Never seen that. Or Singing in the Rain. What's wrong with me?

I thought that'd be a fun topic: Confessions of popular movies we've never actually seen.

I think the biggest one is that I've never seen Star Wars. Seriously. And I have no desire to. Booooring. My husband thinks I'm nuts - and he always tries to get me to watch it. That and Lord of the Rings. Also never seen it.

Although I have seen The Notebook and Pride & Prejudice about 1000 times. I guess I just like what I like.

Although these days, all that seems to be on in my house is Playhouse Disney. Olivia loves Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Handy Manny.

We've got ears, say cheers!

Sarah

Photoshoot

Fall Photoshoot

Our family had some fun in the park the other day. My friend Angie was there to snap some pictures.

www.onethousandwordsphotography.com

Electrical Engineer?

My little explorer.

Ferdinand Magellan. Christopher Colombus. Lewis....Clark....Olivia.

Shes getting so big and so curious. I try and keep her in the baby cage (background of pictures) but she pushes against the gate and prys it open. She loves to be free.

My girl is 10 months old now. She cracks me up with her four-toothed smile. Last night, I was on the floor and she was behind me - and she crawled right up to my back and bit it! I was like "EXCUSE ME? DID YOU JUST BITE MAMA?" and she laughed and laughed.

Her favorite time of day is when she sees daddy and they dance in the living room. She likes to be chased - she squeels. She would play with outlets all day if we let her (we don't) and she'd torment the kitty all night if we kept them in the same room (we don't).

I love her. She's everything I ever hoped for and more!

Sarah

when grandpa visits me

I get so excited to see Grandpa that I smile big enough to see all the teeth!

Pumpkin Patch

Grandma (aka the "Granny Nanny" aka GranNan) took me to the Trader Joes and I saw more orange than I’ve ever seen. GranNan called those round balls Pumpkins. What’s a Pumpkin, Mama? She said she could make a pie out of them, but I don’t believe her.
Luv, Liv

Seen these before? They're called "Baby Safe Feeders." It's a little mesh bag with a handle that allows little ones to get the goodness of fresh foods, while reducing the risk of choking.

So I thought we'd give it a whirl. Thats fresh banana mashed up in there.

A little too ripe, Olivia?

Oh, what to do on a Saturday?

Free time, anyone?

My brother-in-law Jason built this stunning cardboard robot for his son, Griffin.

It's a true work of art.

Getting To Know You

So I'm super excited about the new season of "The Office."

You feel me?

What show are you loving right now?

Here Comes Fall

I'm such a fan of changing seasons. God really knew what He was doing when he created all four of 'em. Just when I'm starting to grow tired of one, we ease into another. And I think it's one of the reasons I love the Pacific Northwest so much, because we really get EACH season. Right now, I'm loving these brisk days with sweaters and leaves and soccer games.

Olivia likes the soccer games, too. Here she is all bundled up in polar fleece watching Uncle Andrew play in his High School Varsity game. She gets to stay all cozy even when it's chilly. She says Uncle Andrew is the best soccer player she's ever seen. I told her he's a close second to one Mr. David Beckham.

*grin.

So Sunday is the first official day of Autumn! Before you know it, you'll be on a bumpy hayride, balancing a gallon of cider, the remains of a powdered doughnut, and a baby who's trying to put hay in her mouth. (source: Parenting Magazine.)

I climb. I crawl. I'm everywhere.

Hi, it's me, Olivia.

In the past week, I learned to crawl and pull myself up. Yeah, I'm awesome.

I still don't sleep through the night.

Ok, not so awesome.

Pass the Purel

I'm on the Dayquil.

*sniff.

It's working well.

*sniff.

Watch out for my germs.

*Achooooo!

Sarah

Turn it up!

I turn up the music and I hear my Mama.

I opened my email this morning and found this:

Sarah

I was just looking at the calendar and noticed National Grandparents Day is fast approaching. This email is to inform you that I am already registered at the following stores for the following items:

Home Depot - Any power tools that don’t bite back during operator error
Boaters World - Possible floatation devices for glasses, hearing aids and hats
Frys Electronics - See if they have a high tech movie camera for a low tech mind

If anything else comes to mind please do not hesitate to call at your earliest convenience.

Kevin (My Step Dad)

What a nut. This email made me laugh out loud. I guess I need to go get him something now! :-) National Grandparents Day is Sunday, Sept. 9th.

I LOVE My Granny Nanny

Hi, it's me, Olivia!

My Granny is teaching me how to type, 'cause her's is a keyboard teacher and her's says dat it's back-to-school's time. Her's is a good "Granny Nanny." Her's takes good care of a little Olivia-baby like me. We's play on da floor wiff blocks and books and her's is teaching me how to crawl when my Mama is at da radio. I listen to my Mama on da radio wiff Uncle Tom. My Granny Nanny says dat Uncle Tom needs typing lessons, too. Granny Nanny says dat Keyboarding is an important skill to learn. I tells her dat my wittle fingers can't reach da keys, and her's says dats Ok and dat they will someday.

Granny Nanny needs to teach me about da spell check.

Love,
Olivia

It's not easy eating Greens

Assignment: Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to get your baby to eat her Gerber Vegetable Medley.

Hooray for Grandma, who has achieved success.

Welcome, Ava Kate

Well, here she is! All 7 lbs, 4 oz of her! Ava Kate was born at 4:16 pm on Monday, August 27th.

Get this. Emily pushed only three times. Yes, three. As in "One, Two, Three...Baby." I tried not to be too jealous - but part of me is like "No fair! You didn't even scream!" But she deserves it though, I mean, this is her third kid. Third kid deserves three pushes.

I love babies. I love babies. I love babies.

And along comes another one

My sister-in-law Emily is at the hospital, having her baby as we speak!

Woohoo!!!

I tried to tell her to hold on until I'm off air, so I can get there... I don't know if she thought that was funny or not...

I can just do traffic reports in actual traffic on my way to the hospital, right?

Or I can record a traffic report, like "Everywhere is slow" and just loop it over and over all afternoon, yes?

I'm super excited about seeing a newborn in the hospital again. Especially since I'm not the one giving birth. Phew! :-)

I just visited her on my lunch break. She's got the swanky suite - the best one in the whole ward. Must be a slow baby day at the hospital. The room is HUGE with a big jacuzzi tub. Except for a little plastic baby bassinet, it looks like a hotel. You can tell this is their third kid, too, because all the nurses remember them. And they notice things in the room, like, "Did you guys get new couches?" and the doctor is like "Yeah, we did!"

It's a day of ice chips, crossword puzzles and contractions. Emily makes labor look so easy. She's smiling, talkative and oh-so-cute. I just left the hospital, and already I want to go back and be with her. I'm just watching the clock go tick tick tick.

I'll ask Emily if I can post a picture of her new baby girl once she's born. If she says it's ok, then I'll put it up here with the details as soon as I get them.

Until then, "cleansing breath.... and breathe....breath...chin to chest....breathe!" Good!

Sarah

Wakin' up is hard to do

Lets all sing now...

Don't take my nap away from me
Just leave me in my crib, that's my plea
If if you wake me then I'll be blue
'Cause wakin' up his hard to do

Bleh

I love Wikipedia.

I do not love teething.

I went to Wikipedia and typed in "teething."

I got this:

During teething, the new teeth are breaking through the surface of the gums. Signs of teething may include

Poor mood
Loss of appetite
Chewing of objects
Bruises/swelling in gums
Excess salivation

Um....DUH! This is my life right now. Poor little Olivia is miserable. That picture I posted a week ago? She was in a good mood. The picture you'd see now? A crying, drooling mess. I'm just doing my best to comfort her. All night long. And I mean, Alllllll night long.

Please. Someone. Anyone. Tell me how long this lasts? (Be gentle.)

--Sarah

Car Seat Safety

(Pictured: The car that hit my mom)

I rushed out of the studio yesterday around 3:30 after receiving a call from my mom. She and Olivia had been involved in a car accident.

They were stopped at a light on Highway 99 and got rear-ended by a car going too fast, not paying attention.

After hearing my mom repeat "She's ok, she's ok...we're ok..." I instantly remembered two weeks ago when we were at the Police Department getting our car seats checked.

Yep. Two weeks ago exactly we made appointments because I had some sort of feeling inside that said "It's probably a good idea to see if we actually installed these things correctly..." so my mom made an appointment.

Do you know how glad I am that we took a few minutes out of our day to show up and have our car seats inspected? I don't know if words can explain it. See, it turns out we DIDN'T have then installed right. Go figure. All those instructions can be tricky, plus, every car is different. So the two women who volunteer their time to keep kids safe helped us re-install the seat properly.

Did you know that 7 out of 10 kids in child safety seats are not properly buckled in? Mine was one of them.

So.... I'll be you can guess what I am now a STRONG advocate of. Yep. Car seat safety. I've done a little research for you, and I found this website: www.seatcheck.org

You can find a place right near your house. It's free. It's so simple. And it's so very important.

And at the very least, you can check the website out and make sure all your seats are up to code and have not had a recall placed on them.

And to the women who volunteer their time at the police station I visited, I thank you so so so much. From one mother to another, thank you.

Sarah

Back in the day

My mom sent this picture in my email today. It must be from 1981 or 1982 - that's me lookin' over her shoulder when we were on some sort of a hike.

I'm lovin' her Guess jeans. So fashionable, Mama!

Learning to Crawl...Seattle Style

Olivia is SO close to crawling. She just needs that added...push.

So here's what I came up with.

I feel it! I feel it!

Ok, so I know you can't technically SEE it, but I promise you its there. I promise!

Olivia's FIRST tooth has poked through. She's been cutting it for a while now, and it's finally broken through her little gums! She's had a low-grade fever for the past few days, but she's handling it well.

I've been waiting for this little tooth to make it's appearance for so long now. And now that it's finally here, I'm like, "Noooooo! You're growing up too fast!"

Tom and I were talking about the Tooth Fairy, and wondering what the going rate is these days. Tom chimes in with "I got a lousy dime." Ah, Tom.

I remember I'd alwasy get little notes from the Tooth Fairy - reminding me to brush and floss. Pffft. I also remember one night the Tooth Fairy "forgot" to visit. I went to my mom in tears, asking why, and my mom goes: "Uh...uh...I think she's in Mexico. She'll probably be back tomorrow."

:-) Sarah

Hyperventilating

I am so excited right now.

I just got an email from my best friend Amy. She said: Who wants to camp outside of the store with me???

She's talking about H & M.

H & M is super trendy clothing at super super cheap prices.

Think IKEA for clothes.

And it's coming to Seattle's University Village!!!

Too bad I have to wait until fall of 2008.

Now I understand how my dad felt when they started building Safeco Field.

H & M is my Safeco. Yessssssssssssssss.

When God shows up at lunch

I had an impromptu lunch with a friend today.

Thai food. We barely ate any of it because we were talking so much. Ever have one of those lunches?

I heard the other day that "When you open up to people, people open up to God." Well, today, my friend opened up to me about something in her life. I was left with so much compassion, because I've been in the exact same spot. I told her this. I guess you can say we bonded.

Then, after we prayed about her situation, I decided to open up to her about an even deeper issue that I had faced. I won't go into details, but lets just say it was one of those deep, dark "skeletons-in-the-closet" type things that you think you'd just die if someone found out about you. It was years ago, but it still haunts me. And although I know I have been forgiven, well, I still have to check in with God every now and then. I ask Him "Still forgiven?" and He says "Yes" and I can almost feel Him smile at my unbelief. Almost.

So there I was, at lunch, telling my friend something I thought I'd never say out loud.

And I felt God. I felt God so strongly inside of me that my hands were trembling and my stomach was turning and I was sweating. Tears welled up. I knew that God was at my side as I started to speak. Even now as I type this, my hands are cold and I still feel nervous.

I'll admit: I thought about staying silent this afternoon. I thought about chalking it all up to indigestion and a poor nights sleep. I thought about keeping my story to myself.

But God had different plans, and I opened my mouth.

It was one of the most difficult things I've ever done.

When I began my story, as the two of us sat in my car, my friend put her hand on mine. She looked into my eyes and listened. I searched her face for judgement. I watched her body language. Would she ever see me the same again?

I have one word for you: Freedom. There is freedom in following through on what God is asking you to do - no matter how scared you are. There is a reason that God wanted me to talk to my friend today. I'm not sure what it was - maybe it was even more for my benefit than hers, but whatever the case, I know that God was asking me to take a giant leap of faith... and I did it. Freedom.

I'm reminded, again and again: there is nothing like living a life centered around what God has for you. There is nothing like saying "Here I am. All of me." A warning though... When you say that to God, you'd better believe He's going to respond with "OK! Here We Go!"

Today was a big day. And it's only one o'clock. I'm sort of exhausted.

Sincere love,
Sarah

More, Please!

Please keep adding your "Best Of" lists to the comments (post below.)

I'm going to share as many of them as I can on-air.

Here are a few from my weekend:

**When Grandma watches Olivia so I can get some errands done!

**When my husband wakes up early on Sunday morning and watches the little one so I can sleep in!

**When you think you're getting a bad cold, but the next day it turns out not to be too bad!

**Payday.

**When your dad calls just to say hi.

**When the kitty sneaks into the bedroom and curls up at your feet

**When theres no line at Starbucks, and they make your drink JUST right.

**When theres a great movie on TV and you get to vege out on the couch.

**When your sister-in-law is 8 1/2 months pregnant and you can't wait for a new baby in the family!

**When the weather is not to hot or too cold - and you get to be outdoors

**When you have energy to clean the house and admire all your work... and your husband helps!

And all of those are just from this weekend!!!

We sure have a lot to be thankful for. I love forcing myself to take a few minutes to write these down, because I always feel so blessed when I read back over them.

Although, I have one negative comment: Right now, at this very moment, my husband is screaming "Sarrrrah! The baby smells! Go change her!" and I'm like "I'm on the computer, you do it!" and he's like "Noooooooo. it smells too bad!"

Gotta go. :-)

Sarah

Best of...

I love lists.

This is a list of things that make me smile.

Here we go:

**Accidentally overhearing someone say something nice about you

**Waking up and realizing you still have a few hours left to sleep

**Coming home to a clean house with dinner already on the stove

**Song lyrics printed inside your new CD so you can sing along without feeling stupid

**Watching the expression on someone's face as they open a much desired present from you

**An unexpected hand-written note in the mail

**A blank day on an overflowing calendar

**Finding a twenty in your jeans pocket before you put them in the wash

Feel free to add some of YOUR own in the comments section!

Squash

Welcome to the land of solid foods.

Here you will find strained carrots, squash, prunes and peas.

More updates to follow.

And the truth shall set you free

It's been a while since I posted my true feelings.

And since I'm in a very honest mood today, well.... here we go.

I'm so exhausted. I just am. It's a season in my life where I'm tired when I wake up and I'm tired when I go to sleep.

I've been sitting here at the keyboard trying to think of something uplifting and encouraging to type to you...and falling asleep as I do it. I'm asking God "Please help me come up with something to write!" and God says "Just be honest. Be you."

So here I am.

Sometimes, it's hard for me to be on the radio, day in and day out. There are days (like today) where I'm barely able to put a sentence together. I just looked at Tom and said "I have nothing left to give" and he smiled at me. That's our little song we made up a while ago. We sing it to each other when we're at the end of our rope.

You know the ironic thing? On days like today, when I'm just feeling low, those are the days I rely on music about God the most. Those are the days that I hang on every word in every song, and usually pray my heart out.

So in a way, its days like today that remind me of why I love what I do so much. I'm able to play music to bless you - and in the same way, I'm listening right along with you and being blessed myself.

Sarah

Chris Rice drops by

So it's my new favorite thing to do when Spirit artists roll into town.

Today, Chris Rice stopped by.

So I made him hold Olivia.

Hee Hee.

Perspective

Exhausted from the day? Overwhelmed with kids?

I thought I was yesterday. Until I went home and sat on the couch and flipped on the television to my very favorite show: Jon and Kate plus 8.

I'm in love with this family. Have you seen this show yet? Click here for details. http://health.discovery.com/convergence/gosselins/gosselins.html

Tuesdays at 10 pm.

:-) Sarah

PS I want more kids. Joel, you hear that? More kids, please.

Olivia Curtis Chapman

When Olivia was about a month old, I put her in her carseat and we drove off to do some errands. I was listening to Spirit 105.3 in the car, and on came "Fingerprints Of God" by Steven Curtis Chapman. I've heard the song at least 100 times - but for some reason, I listened with new ears as I looked in my rearview mirror and saw a sleeping baby in the backseat.

Never has there been and never again
Will there be another you
Fashioned by Gods hand
And perfectly planned
To be just who you are
And what hes been creating
Since the first beat of your heart
Is a living breathing priceless work of art...
and your covered with the fingerprints of God

So today, when Mr. Steven Curtis Chapman stopped by, I attacked him like the Paparazzi and made him hold Olivia. He graciously smiled for my camera - and you better believe I'm off to one-hour-photo to get that thing printed up and slapped in a baby book.

By the way, you can see the webcam interview from this mornings broadcast - it's somewhere on the Spirit website: www.spirit1053.com

I'm divin' in,
Sarah

Is that a fan or a heater?

How'd you do in the sun yesterday? Yikes. My house was an oven. We have a three-story townhouse - so you can imagine what happens when it's time to go to bed: heat rises. We had three fans in our room, and Olivia sleeps in a cradle next to the bed - and it seriously felt like we were turning heaters on. I had a squirt bottle of water - which made our kitty nervous, she kept thinking she was in trouble. Poor thing! I'm so glad it's cooling down a bit today. Too much heat yesterday. Too much. Bleh.

Olivia says: "Today I discovered grass for the first time! It's very interesting. It's soft, and very green, but feels kinda soggy and prickly against my skin. I tried to put some in my mouth, and Mama said 'No No!'"

Day by Day

My mom watches Olivia during the daytime while I'm here at Spirit. It's such a gift. I'm really really really thankful that I can still be here, and really really REALLY thankful that Olivia is in such good hands. In fact, I often joke with my mom that Olivia spends the day at "Spa Grandma." Leisurely stroller rides, long naps on Grandma's chest, and an outdoor swing with a soft blanket to stay comfortable!

Today, Grandma set up these stacking cups for Olivia - a new toy! She sent me these pictures in an email today. And she always makes me smile, because she words the email as if Olivia were writing in baby talk:

Mama,

Hi's Mama! Look! Granny hides the yellow ball and I find it! I am so smart! I always find it Mama! I likes the Hide n Seek with the color cups game. Plus I laugh cuz Granny has to pick up all the cups off the floor. It’s a funny game.

Love you, Mama!

Isn't that sweet?

Remember when?

Can you even see this picture? It was taken with a cell phone camera the day we brought Olivia home from the hospital. I was just looking at it on my phone, hardly believing that she's six months old now. Is this how fast time goes?

Thanks to Auntie Ellen who knit the amazing hat. I think she should start a business.

You guessed it. Swinging.

It's all she does.

Random Thoughts

Everyone here at Spirit has been saying "Post that laundry picture!"

So here it is.

Oh, and in unrelated news, I'm hungry. Starving, actually. It's about 5:20 as I type this. Tom and I are on-air, talking about food that we want to eat. We're both trying to eat healthier (i.e. not so much junk food) and all we can think about is pizza. And ice cream.

I wish I craved healthy foods. Some people are so lucky - they actually want to eat vegetables and fish and omega-whatevers. I want those tastebuds. I wish that was me. Why did I get the tastebuds that only like plain things and food that is bad for me? I wish there was such a thing as a taste-bud transplant.

I am NOT eating pizza tonight. I'm not. I'm not. I'm not.

Rollover Champion

Look at her on her tummy! My big girl! I can't believe it's been almost six months since we brought her home from the hospital. She's growing before my eyes. She rolls over all the time, and almost can sit up by herself! And.... drumroll please... I will be posting a picture soon of her eating rice cereal! It's super cute. The little plastic covered spoon, the soggy bib, and the big grin!

And oh yeah... Tom and I talked today on-air about the fact that he started a blog but doesn't update it. He's such a nut. You should click the link (to your right) that says "Tom's Blog" and leave him a message to update! Sheesh!

:-)
Sarah

Ruth Bell Graham 1920-2007

When I heard today that Ruth Bell Graham passed away, I instantly remembered one particular poem. When I was a teenager, my mom handed me a piece of paper with this prayer.

Dear God, I prayed, all unafraid
(as we're inclined to do)
I do not need a handsome man
but let him be like you;

I do not need one big and strong
nor yet so very tall,
nor need he be some genius
or wealthy, Lord, at all;
but let his head be high, dear God,
and let his eye be clear,
his shoulders straight,
whate'er his state,
whate'er his earthly sphere;
and let his face have character,
a ruggedness of soul,
and let his whole life show,
dear God,
a singleness of goal;
then when he comes
(as he will come)
with quiet eyes aglow
I'll understand that he's the man
I prayed for long ago."*

Ruth Bell wrote this poem about her future husband when she was just 19 years old. Before she even met Billy Graham.

The Great Outdoors

I'm glad Olivia gets outdoor time at Grandma's house. I'm a homebody; an indoor girl. Grandma is the opposite - which is why Olivia is thrilled to have this outdoor swing. She loves it!