We've got fuzzibunz!

In an effort to save our family thousands of dollars (literally!), we've decided to start cloth diapering! I wish we would have done this sooner, but it's never too late! MK will be in diapers for at least another year,maybe even two... and these diapers will be used for our future Vogelaar babies. So, out with the disposables and in with the cloth.

I have so many wonderful mommy friends who cloth diaper and they have given me a wealth of information to sort through. I researched which diaper I wanted and how I was going to buy them literally for weeks! We decided on the Fuzzibunz One Size pocket diaper. It fits babies from 8 to 35lb with adjustable elastic waist and leg holes (like adjustable maternity pants!). They are lined with super soft fleece that wicks away the moisture and come with two inserts that you stuff into the diaper to soak up the wet mess. We got a roll of thin paper liners (like a dryer sheet) to put in the diaper to catch number twos (you just flush both the liner and the waste in the toilet!) and even though we've only had one number two, it's been awesome... no touching poop!

Look at these pretty colors! They are so adorable... so much cuter than disposables!

Excited about this new normal in our house!

Happy August!

I can't believe it's already August 1st! August is a big month for us. We celebrate two very monumental milestones in our little family.

On August 16th, three years ago, Mike and I did this...

8-16-08... the start of the Vogelaar family!

and one year ago we did this...

8-16-10... the second generation of the Vogelaar family arrives!

So, we are doing a LOT of celebrating this month! Mike and I are going on an anniversary trip to Austin the last weekend in August. We celebrated our 1 year in Austin and it was so much fun! We're staying at the same hotel, and going to the same restaurant for dinner... but we're adding a trip to the San Marcos outlet mall (hello Pottery Barn outlet!) and a couples massage! I can't wait to spend the weekend with Mike alone... we are in desperate need of some "mommy-daddy" time! MK will be in very capable hands, but I will miss her terribly!

We're celebrating MK's birthday on the 20th with a party for our close friends, family and a few of MK's too! I've been working on her party for a couple months now, and I can't wait to see how it turns out.

Thinking about having a one year old is so bittersweet. I am excited that she's growing strong, reaching all of her milestones and getting more precious by the day! But, I wish I could go back to those first few months. Everyone told me "treasure these times, cause they fly by" and I wish I would have heeded their warning! The first 6 month of MK's life I was trying to get to the next milestone... sleeping through the night, taking consistent naps, turing over, starting solids... I don't think I really savored those precious newborn times. I am kicking myself now! But, I can't go back, and can't dwell on it! I've got to take my new found revelation and apply it to now. I've got to remind myself not to get excited about getting rid of the bottles, turning her car seat around, first words, big girl beds and siblings... I need to REST in this stage and savor EVERY minute of it! She's only going to be a wobbly walking giggly one year old once!

While we were in Florida...

We had a wonderful, magical time visiting my family in Florida. Maddie loved being with her Gigi and Poppy and especially aunt Vicky and uncle Matt!

She loved the ocean and the pool... I think she is quite the Florida girl, see, she loves Florida oranges! :)

Maddie learned how to fly!

She lover her daddy!

and Poppy's beak tastes good!

I love her in a bathing suit! check out those rolls! :)

We are sad to be home and back to reality! Can't wait to visit you again Gigi and Poppy! We love you!

I am just a stay at home mom, and I love it!

Our little family at the wedding

This weekend we went to a wedding in Houston for Mike’s best friend. It was quite the adventure traveling 4 hours in a car with a 10.5 month old! But, she was a trooper and the wedding a beautiful! I came home from the trip still pondering some of the conversations I had with several well meaning party guests: “You don’t work?” “You are just a stay at home mom?” “Can’t you work like 3 days as a nurse?” While I welcome those questions, it was so shocking to me that it seemed like I was not the norm.

I loved being a nurse. I made a tangible difference in someone’s life every day I was at work…I helped them recover from open heart surgery, I took away their pain, I comforted their fears, I helped them get used to the new heart or lungs so lovingly gifted to them so they could start a new life, sometimes I helped hold them on this earth as they teetered between life and death, and sometimes I helped them pass into eternity gracefully. Who wouldn’t love that? Nursing was also my mission field. I had so many awesome spiritual conversations with patients, I prayed with them when they asked, I was at times the hands and feet of Christ.

I was very fickle in my decision to stay at home… those who know me well, know that I changed my mind every second! Eventually, I chose the more difficult of the two options for me. It was painful leaving my job, my significance, my calling since I was a child, a source of income that added some “security.” Don’t get me wrong, I think working moms are amazing, they hold two jobs, they are superheroes! But, if I am honest, sometimes I would love to escape to work. It would be easier to let someone else raise my child for 8 hours during the day! There are days when I would rather take bratty doctors, adult blowouts, and 12 hours on my feet than be at home. That’s just my fleshly honesty.

I LOVE staying at home with MK, but it has been a journey to get here. I had to start telling myself that what I did was important. I had to realize that being called to be a mom is just (maybe even more) as important as being a nurse or any other job I could have. Motherhood is my mission field and I am embracing it with all that I have! It was so empowering for me to come to that realization. I now see every day as a opportunity to love on MK and Mike, not of my own power, because in my core I am selfish and prideful, but with Christ’s power in me! Isaiah 40:10 “He tends his flock like a shepherd, he carries them in his arms and gathers them close to his heart. He gently leads those with young.”

If you are a stay at home mom, you’re not just a “stay at home mom,” you are a: cook, maid, chauffeur, party and event planner, secretary, nurse, teacher, youth pastor, personal shopper, trash man, accountant, sales man (trying to get kids to eat green veggies is a sales pitch!), and most importantly a wife and mom. You don’t get a pay check, a bonus, raise or PTO. But, you do get the satisfaction of feeding, clothing, cleaning up for and loving on your family every day and hopefully one day, leading your little ones to know the Lord. There is no greater accomplishment then that!

If you know any moms whether they go to work or stay at home, go give them a high five, a hug, an encouraging word, or a helping hand! They don’t get told enough what an important job they do for the next generation.

Maddie's word lessons for today...

Today, we are learning words for our trip to Flordia... and by learning words, I mean that I have an excuse to draw a silly picture and label it, hoping that it is benefiting my daughter in some way! (I know a 10 month old can't learn how to spell!!)

Her favorite was "Poppy on a surfboard"... she laughed when I drew and said this one, probably because she thinks the way I say "Poppy" is really funny, or just because she thinks her Poppy is silly!

We can't wait to see you all in 9 days!

What we've been up to...

Maddie and I have had some fun Mommy & Maddie time lately...

We've been swimming up a storm at our friend's neighborhood pool. Maddie is a fish, she LOVES to swim! Can't wait to spend a week in Florida with her in a few weeks. We are going to be brown little pool babes by the end of the summer... don't worry, we don't plan on burning, just a healthy glow!

There is a running joke with the girls in our playgroup that we end up unitentionally dressing our girls in similar clothes in the morning to us just because that's what we picked out to wear... Maddie and I matched one day, and I loved it! Don't worry though, I am not going to be one of those moms!

Maddie and I celebrated her wonderful daddy and my amazing hubs last sunday on Fathers day. She loves her daddy and he is so sweet with her. I knew Mike would be a fabulous dad to MK before she was born, but he has gone way beyond my expectations. MK is such a lucky girl!

Lastly, and the most time consuming thing, I've been busy planning for MK's 1 year birthday party... yes peeps, she will be a year old in less than 8 weeks!!! We are gone for almost half of July, so I needed to get a head start on all of the birthday stuff. Can you guess the theme from her invites?

Why a "Very Hungry Caterpillar" birthday theme? 1. She loves books 2. She loves Eric Carle Books and 3. This girl loves to eat!

It has been so emotional planning for her birthday. It is so hard to believe that she is only 8 weeks away from being one, it seems like last week I was 8 weeks pregnant, two days ago that I was 8 weeks away from my due date, and yesterday that she was 8 weeks old! Does time ever slow down? I wish I could freeze time just for 1 day... but I can't so I've got to make the most out of every day! I can't get enough kisses, cuddles, giggles and tickles with my gooby girl! Gosh I adore her!

The last big thing in our lives is our new bible study. We are doing Beth Moore's study on the Tabernacle called "A Womans Heart" and it is awesome! We are two weeks in and the Lord is revealing so much of himself to me already. He is breaking me open and showing me where I am a self-relient control freak... it's not fun, but I know that He is working in me and I am SO thankful that He never stops pursuing and refining me!

Until next time!
KT and MK

Natural Family Planning

"You knit me together in my mothers womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Your works are wonderful"-Psalm:139 13-14

When I studied birth control in nursing school, NFP was a joke. In fact, my professor told us about it in joke “What do you call people who use NFP for birth control? Parents!” Before September 2008, I thought NFP was irresponsible and definitely not ever an option for Mike and I. So, two months before our marriage I went to Dr. C and got on the pill. I can remember how excited I was to be starting the pill. It was like a huge milestone in my life, and also meant that it was only a few months away before I could have sex (Mike and I were both virgins when we got married, something we both value and want to instill in MK.). Fast forward three months and I was 1 month into marriage and feeling gross. The pill made me bloated, nauseated and moody (Once I was off the pill Mike said to me “I am so glad to have you back Katy”… yikes! I didn’t know I was that bad!). I had contemplated calling Dr. C to get on something else, but I was so busy with nursing school that I didn’t. Then, one day I lost my pills. They were the last pack in my initial prescription and I couldn’t find them ANYWHERE! After panicking mildly and running to the store for a box of condoms (come on guys, we were newlyweds, it wasn’t like we were going to be abstinent till we figured this thing out!) I picked up my phone and texted my new friend Sallie. She had some crazy experiences on the pill and had just decided to start NFP. She told me about a book she got at Half Price Books and I rush out to get it. I think I read the entire book that night and was hooked. It was empowering to know that with practice and getting to know my body, I could tell when I was ovulating and thus prevent pregnancy (or achieve it eventually!).

It is amazing how God designed our bodies to produce children…all of the hormones that have to be working in sink, how our temperatures go up after ovulation to provide a warm environment for a potential fertilized egg, how our cervical secretions are designed to change during ovulation to be the perfect medium for sperm, how the progesterone secreted from the corpus luteum in our luteal phase (post-ovulation) prevent menstruation for 12-16 days (depending on your cycle, but most likely doesn’t vary for a reproductively health individual) just the right amount of time for a fertilized egg to travel down from the fallopian tubes and into the uterus to implant in the lining of the uterus … it is just amazing!

After a few months of charting, I realized that I am pretty much like clock work… I have a 28 day cycle and I ovulate on day 14… so by knowing that an egg can live for 24-48 hours and sperm can live up to 5 days, I know that Mike and I have to be extra careful from day 10 to 17. And guess what, it worked! Mike and I successfully practiced NFP for a year and a half, and then when we thought the time was right, successfully got pregnant the first time we tried. I can attribute our first time success majorly to the Lord, but also a little bit to the knowledge that NFP has given me. We are still using NFP and I was so shocked that after 10 months of pregnancy and 7 months of breastfeeding, my cycle has returned just as regular as ever!

It wasn’t until I was pregnant that I really got informed about how the Pill and other chemical forms of birth control work. My dear friend Sallie did a whole bunch of research on exactly how the pill works and told us about it one day. I did my own research also, looking specifically from a medical perspective (I would be happy to share my findings and some of Sallie’s research with you if you would like). I won’t go into a whole lot of details here, but I would highly encourage you to do your due diligence before you start on any birth control regimen. For me, the Pill/patch/ring/IUD conflicts with my views on life beginning at conception. I do not judge anyone for using any of those forms of birth control, just urging you to do some research and see if those forms fit into your value/moral system, especially if you are a Christ follower!

If you want to start using NFP here is what you will need:

-A copy of “Taking Charge of your Fertility” by Toni Weschler ( I found mine at HPB for less than 10 dollars)

-A thermometer

-A chart (the book gives you one, but you can also find them online if you search for NFP charting)

-Patience and discipline the first couple months to chart

-A willing husband who will be abstinent for your fertile week, or ok with using a barrier method during that time to prevent pregnancy.

NFP is not for everyone. You have to be disciplined to taking your temperature every day when you wake up (I don’t do that anymore since I am so regular). You also have to be ok with the possibility of an “opps!” All forms of birth control have some risk to them… I know SEVERAL people who have gotten pregnant while on the pill! You simply have to trust in the Lord, give the control up to Him! But, I will guarantee you that if you try NFP you will feel so in tune with your body, so empowered, so amazed at the body that the Lord created you to have!

Happy Charting!