Ekubo Ministries Prints

After reading yesterday's post, I hope you ran over to Christie's blog and got started reading through her posts. What a fantastic love story she has!  

Well, the creative bug bit me after I read through her blog and I got busy making these two print for my Etsy shop. If you are interested in purchasing either one, please know that all profits will be going straight to Ekubo Ministries to help these great people. :)  Happy Thursday y'all!

My Struggles are Nothing

Yesterday was a difficult and stressful day in mommyland. I normally write my posts the night before they are to go up - after the kids are asleep and I have a little time just to myself. But yesterday, well, yesterday I just didn't have it in me to turn the gears in my brain. Instead, I warmed up my coffee from the afternoon (for the fourth time) and decided to read a few posts from this blog starting from the beginning.   

Three hours later, my coffee was gone, and I was halfway through Christie's posts written over the last 3 years. I found myself unable to stop reading, but Winsley was due for another feeding, so I dragged myself off to bed. Like reading a good novel or watching a favorite TV drama, I couldn't get Christie's story out of my head and I had to know what happened next. I pulled out my iPhone and read her posts in bed until my eyes would no longer stay open.

This morning, I finished reading through every blog post that Christie had written about her incredible journey. And what a truly inspiring journey it is. Unlike a novel or television show, Christie's stories are about real people. This is her real life and her journey is nowhere near complete. If you have the time, I encourage you to read through her blog, starting from the beginning, and keep updated with the progress Ekubo Ministries is making through their Facebook page and website. 

My struggles of motherhood in the US are nothing compared to what the mothers and children are facing in Uganda. Reading through all of the struggles that Christie and her family have witnessed and experienced makes me want to hug every child in their care, but I am far away from Africa and a hug wouldn't help to fill their bellies with nutritious food nor treat their illnesses. 

There is hope. You can help by donating to Ekubo Ministries on their website and, of course, pray. This is such an incredible couple and they are doing amazing work on their faith in God alone, surviving and moving forward with their big dreams for Uganda solely through donations. Incredible. 

  Ekubo Ministries Vision from BB Media on Vimeo. UPDATE: You can also help support Ekubo Ministries and the community in Uganda that they serve by purchasing these beautiful products that the people in the village make by hand (Jewelry + Crafts)!

          "We want to encourage you to shop for gifts that GIVE and not only bless the one receiving it but also blesses a family in Uganda, East Africa. Ekubo Ministries exists to provide sustainable jobs to the men and women we serve so that they can generate income to provide for their families. The worst thing you can do to someone trapped in poverty is something they can do for themselves. AID creates dependence while teaching and giving them a TRADE restores their dignity. We are inviting you to shop for gifts from us that GIVE. GIVE life. GIVE love. GIVE hope." - Ekubo Ministries

NC Zoo Review

This past weekend we visited the NC Zoo in Asheboro.  One word sums up our visit: disappointment.

Yes, we saw cute animals and I give the zoo credit for making the exhibits very animal friendly.  However, the zoo was not very kid friendly.  Half of the exhibits and the playground were closed for renovations.  Shouldn't they have advertised this or, at least, discounted our entry price because of this?

Another disappointment was all of the walking involved.  I knew the park was large and I was prepared for a lot of walking, but the walking got exhausting when we came upon closed exhibit after closed exhibit.  They had a handful of 'resting spaces' where children could play for a bit, but those spaces were small and crowded with older kids (not a space for toddlers).

Maybe I was spoiled by the Birmingham Zoo (which is INCREDIBLE!) or maybe I had high expectations because of our own little Museum of Life and Science here in Durham.  Regardless, the NC Zoo was just a big disappointment.  There were no zookeepers around to answer questions from inquisitive kids or training programs to help teach kids (and adults) the importance of preserving animal habitats and saving these great animals.

Needless to say, we will probably not be taking a trip back to the NC Zoo.  We'll stick to the museum in Durham and I think it might even be worth it to fly back to Birmingham just for a visit to the zoo.

Introducing Dr. Yi

I can begin to describe how proud I am of John for graduating. Getting your PhD at 26 is no easy task. We made the trip down to Birmingham for the last time to watch John walk across the stage at UAB. It was really touching to see his parents tear up as they saw their son achieve everything that they had hoped he would achieve when they moved to America 20 years ago.

I am still amazed by my husband and his family every day. They moved here with nothing and have managed to start 2 businesses and raise 2 amazing children. They are living the American dream.

PS. John has decided that he will not answer me unless I call him Dr. Yi from now on... I guess he deserves to be called Dr. Yi (for at least a few days).

Mini-Vacay to Destin

This past weekend John surprised me with a weekend trip to Destin, Florida. It was my first trip to the gulf coast and I naively assumed that it would be like any other beach. However, the beaches on the gulf are so much prettier than the Carolina beaches where I spent my summers as a child.

The white sand beaches and clear blue sea was just what we both needed. A combination celebration of my birthday and John's completion of his dissertation. We spent a few hours on the beach, a few hours at the outlets, and some prego-friendly nighttime activity... gone are the days of partying until 2 am with the locals.

After a day on the beach, my heart started to call out for the shores of the Carolinas. Destin just doesn't compare to Wrightsville Beach. There were no seashells, which was nice at first because you didn't hurt your feet trying to find a spot to sit. Most of all, I couldn't smell the beach... does that make sense? There was no thick salty smell in the air that let you know you had arrived at the beach.

Destin was very relaxing and beautiful, but I can't wait to get back to the Carolinas and spend at least one weekend at the beach next summer.

Working at Home, Hopefully

I have been trying to figure out how I can bring in some extra income while I am at home with the baby in February. I've been thinking about writing online for a few different sites, but none of them pay particularly well. Until I actually take the leap and go for it, I have been asking everyone for advice. Fortunately, I got great advice about Examiner.com from an old Myers Park Mustang - Katy Orell. She is a great writer and is trying to make here mark in California right now. Please check out her examiner.com articles.

Any work-at-home parents have any advice or suggestions for a soon to be mom?

No bites on the house :(

I know it has only been a week and the housing market is rough right now, but I expected at least one person to show some interest. If things don't start happening soon, it looks like we might have to consider keeping this place and finding some renters. Anybody want to buy OR rent our Birmingham condo?

Anyone want to buy a condo?

With John graduating in December, it is time to put the condo up for sale. If you know anyone who wants to live in a loft style condo near UAB with a gym & roof top deck, let us know. PRICE: $139,900 It's a deal :)

That's his LIFE!

Before I left this morning, I reminded John to close the shades so that Kogi wouldn't go crazy when the window washers cleaned the outside of our building's windows. Well, I came home to the shades up and a extra dirty window (where Kogi had slobbered all over the window in order to try to get to the window washers).

John's response was, "I couldn't do it. Looking out that window is his whole life!" Sad. :( Is that what my dog looks forward to everyday? We really need to move closer to home. I'm sure Kogi misses his cousin Harrison (Malone's dog) and his grandma.

HOT! HOT! HOT!

I am glad I live in Alabama! What?!?! Did I just say that? If you live in the Northeast, you know exactly why I'm glad to be down here this week. It is HOT up there! Seriously, who decided that it is allowed to be over 100 degrees ever? My heart goes out to the people up north who don't have an air conditioner. This heat wave is insane. It's 97 degrees down here, but I'm not complaining one bit because it is 101 degrees in Charlotte (and that's before the heat index is factored in). Stay cool ya'll!

When the Husband's Away...

...The wife will work? That doesn't sound right. John is in Boston at a science conference where he is giving his first speech to the science community. While he is in Boston, Kogi and I are at home getting the condo ready to put up for sale. We spent most of the weekend running errands and found a little time to finish painting the bathroom. I would usually be complaining about doing all of this work by myself (Kogi didn't help much), but it gave me an excuse to stay indoors instead of venturing outside in this rediculous heat.

Lions at the Zoo

The Birmingham Zoo has a great new exhibit where you can watch zookeepers train the lions. They are amazing animals. I know that they are dangerous, but watching them roar from safely behind three barrier fences makes me want to take one home. They are so cute.

This video was taken with my iPhone, so the quality is not great. Enjoy!

Lazy Sunday

Cupcakes make me Smile :)

The other day I wrote a post about groupon.com & today I used my first groupon at a local cupcake bakery. The cupcakes were a perfect way to celebrate my husband's graduation (he just found out that he will be graduating on December 18th). I am so proud of him! I'll write more about all of the graduation details at a later date.

Back to the cupcakes... I ended up getting 'simply strawberry', 'curious george', and 'over the moon' cupcakes. My favorite was the 'curious george', a banana cake with peanut butter icing. Pure deliciousness! The 'over the moon' cupcake satisfied my sweet tooth with white velvet cake, buttercream filling, blue vanilla bean frosting and white chocolate curls. Mmmmmm. And the strawberry cupcake was a perfect light dessert on a very hot Alabama day.

Is your mouth watering yet? The Dreamcakes bakery also sales unique cupcakes like Pina Colada, Orange Pineapple, Caramel Sea Salt Mocha, and Maple Bacon.

Mercedes-Benz Marathon

For Valentine's Day, I decided it would be a great idea to run 13 miles in the cold weather. What was I thinking?! I had a few crazy people with me to complete the race. My mom, my best friend Kristen, and Kristen's mom all drove to Birmingham to run the Mercedes-Benz Half-Marathon. Malone and John showed up to cheer us on at the finish line. It was tough, but we all finished with great times & no injuries.

Our 1st Christmas Tree Hunt

'You Know that I Could Use Somebody'

Thanks to a very generous friend (Thank you Sean!), John & I were able to go to the Kings of Leon concert on Thursday night. I can't remember the last time that I went to a concert that big... it was probably close to 3 years ago. The concert and the seats were amazing. Please enjoy the very unprofessional video I took of their hit song 'Use Somebody' & just ignore John's singing in the background.

Package Stores Don't Sell Packages

I may be a little out of the loop, but I really did not know that the 'Package Stores' in Birmingham do not sell packages. I always thought that they sold boxes and... well, packages. I only found out what they really sold when I was stopped in traffic in front of one of the many package stores around Birmingham... they are LIQUOR stores! How deceiving? Apparently I am the only one who didn't know about this false advertisement.

I guess ABC stores in North Carolina are no better... they have nothing to do with the alphabet or elementary school education. Why can't they just call them 'Liquor Stores'?!

My Quest to Find a Job

After many weeks of job searching, I think I have found my dream job! I am usually pretty hush hush about exciting opportunities in my life because I don't want to get my hopes up or jinx myself. However, I really really want this job and I want everyone to know it. I think that this is the most excited I have ever been about a job opportunity.

Last week I had almost given up and excepted the fact that I would have to get a job at a daycare or at the mall. By chance, I searched the internet one last time and put in a few resumes for positions that looked interesting. I got a call back to interview for the Activities Director in the assisted living wing of Danberry (a retirement village).

The interview went extremely well! The position involves planning activities (art, music, community outreach, weekly outings) for the residents at Danberry. I LOVE talking with people and listening to the stories of their past. Sitting on the porch and listening to my Papa tell stories was one of my favorite things to do in Charlotte! I also LOVE planning activities (especially art projects). Ask Kristen... that was one of my favorite things to do during church child care! I would be PERFECT for this job!

I should know whether or not I get the position by next week. Pray for me! I know that God will lead me in the right direction (and hopefully it is to be the Activities Director at Danberry)!

Sweet Home Alabama!

This weekend I went back to North Carolina to see family & friends for the first time in about three months and I have finally given in to the fact that Alabama is now my home.

I guess I had this romanticised idea that I would come home (to Charlotte) to hugs and kisses, get a few updates, and reminisce about past adventures. However, this was not in God's plan. Friends had to squeeze me in their busy schedules and family seemed just as busy with life's unexpected predicaments. I felt more like an inconvenient chore than a welcomed surprise.

I have to believe that this is God's way of saying I have to move on. Life keeps moving and people change. There certainly is no pause button for life that will allow me to pick up where I left off a few months back. I have realized that I have been clinging on so tightly to my life in Charlotte that I really have not given Birmingham much of a chance.

I think it's time to put my big girl pants on and take a little advise from my Aunt Shelia. I am switching everything to Alabama (driver's licence, voter registration, phone number?). I am now a Birminghamian or Alabamian or Alabaman! I have to figure out just how you say that one.

It is sad to close this chapter of my life, but I am excited to start the next. I can now move on with my whole heart invested in my new life in Birmingham. Pretty soon, you may hear me say that 'Birmingham is the best city in the world!' ... Let's not get ahead of ourselves though.