embrace the camera: may 26th

amy is hosting again for me...

head over there to link up!

looking hot.

i am alive.

11 weeks pregnant.

this is the only picture i've taken in like the last ummmmmmm 4 weeks.

i dunno, a long time.

if you've never seen me pregnant, then surprise, i grow a watermelon under my shirt.

cute, yes.

uncomfortable, very.

have you ever carried a watermelon under your shirt?  not easy.

you can see the watermelon forming (in that picture).  complete with my belly button poking out already.

actually, when i was like 2 weeks pregnant, my belly button started poking out.

i should have known i was pregnant when i saw that happening.

ahhhh, let's see.  other random things happening?

you can barely see my hair in that picture.

i am rocking roots like no other.

approximately 8 inches of roots (i kid. a little).

let's just say that when hadley was asked what color her moms hair is she responded with "white with black on top".

lovely.

she is honest though.

so listen, i apologize for the lack of blogging, but who wants to hear about me puking?

i thought so.

and to everyone who has commented or emailed, yes i am taking zofran.  and i've tried about 80 other medicines too.  my body just doesn't really respond to these anti-nausea drugs for some reason.

and, can i say that i hate taking drugs?

i am kind of a hippy when it comes to things like that (did i even spell hippie right?).

so yah.

i'm just ready to be done with this stage.

praying hard it ends at 12 weeks, it usually never does but i'm hoping.

so, we are surviving.

thanks for your thoughts and prayers...

embrace the camera - may 19th

for embrace the camera head to amy's blog.

i'm sick.sick.sick. and loopy i might add so sorry if this is all typed funky.

spent the night at the hospital yet again.

10 weeks pregnant today.  longest 10 weeks of my life.

go embrace the camera with amy.

from mr. anderson.

Hello Family, Friends and Anderson Family Crew Blog Lovers,

I, Mr. Anderson, have an opportunity this summer to get some much needed personal development at Campus Crusade for Christ’s bi-annual staff conference in Fort Collins this summer. While there I will get to hear from some great teachers of God’s Word and get time to focus on what the Lord is doing around the world and personally. I imagine I’ll get time to focus on what the Lord has for the Anderson Family Crew and probably give Emily some good writing material for the future (a benefit to us all). I’ll most likely come back a refreshed and changed man, all in preparation for the next bambino.

As some of you know these conferences don’t come cheap. However, due to a generous double match from those that really want me to attend this conference, the total cost of $2250 is just going to be $750. So I write to ask, in faith, for prayerful and financial support from all of you that I know already care and support us in life. We could use some prayer for Em and the kids as well while I am away.

I know! Some of you are thinking “you’re going to leave 5 children with your nauseous wife to take care of for a week. I DO NOT support that.” Rest assured everyone, she will be taken well care of by family and she was part of the decision making. And by part of the decision making, I really mean this:

I walk in to the bathroom early in the morning when Emily is “taking care of her pregnancy business,” grab my toothbrush, swish around some mouthwash, pause, and soak in the shouts of kids screaming for more cereal and proceed to relay to her what is on my mind and then ask the question in between sick moments, “What do you think about me learning how to be a better husband and dad by leaving you with the kids for a week or so for a conference”. Then the words I’ve been anticipating, “Whatever, just get out of the bathroom,” on my way out I mention, “You might want to call your family to get some help.”

It’s all in the timing gentlemen.

So if you are feeling that tug on your heart to prayerfully and financially support me in my development as a better husband and dad then I would love to hear from you. So many of you support us through prayer almost daily and we are so thankful; recognizing that our sanity as a family is due to your selfless prayers for us. We enjoy, most of the time, sacrificing for the Lord and all of you to show everyone, “See, there must be a God who is loving and humorous to keep a family like the Anderson Crew together and sane.”

So if you interested in supporting me in my development this summer through a tax-deductible gift you can send us an email at andersonfamilycrew(@)gmail(.)com and we can guide you in the process. Or you can head over to https://give.ccci.org/give and enter in the code 2834930 (for FSG Missions), if online is your preference. Either way we would love to hear from you by email. I know this is an unorthodox way of doing things, but if you’ve read about our lives long enough you outta know by now. My next update shall be when the Lord has provided the necessities. If this fails, I’ll have to revert to cold calling.

Thanks!

The one and only, Mr. Anderson.

embrace the camera: may 12th

i actually ventured out of the house yesterday.

even though i wanted to vomit the entire time, i'm glad i got out.

my friend, jessica, had me and our 3 other friends over.

we've all adopted from ethiopia--all from the same agency, all from the same orphanage.

it was the first time that elsa got to see some of the big girls, since leaving addis ababa.

she hugged them...it was a sweet moment.

here's us embracing the camera:

us 5 mamas, with all of our bazillion of kids.  (minus 4 who weren't there---caedmon included, PLUS 2 more babies who are in our bellies)



seriously.

we could have a circus show on our hands with the amount of kids we've got here.

so, are you ready to embrace the camera?

here's the nitty gritty:

1.  take a picture with you and your kids/spouse/family member/friend/whatever.

2.  blog about that picture and include a link to our blog, or grab our button.

3.  link your blog post up on mr. linky below.

4.  visit the other embracers...give each other lots of compliments about how good we look with our greasy hair and sweatpants velour jogging suits on.  cause yah, we need a little boost when it's been days since our last shower.

5.  have fun!

don't forget to link your embrace the camera post, not just your blog. 

this is really important---and really easy.

this is random.

first up.

winner of the sponsor give-a-way is:

kassie!

if your name is kassie and that's your blog i've linked too, then shoot me an email, kass-inator.

secondly, thanks to mr. anderson for my amazing videos.

the second one was, of course, my favorite.

nothing beats watching my 2 boys scream and yell at each other.

PLUS, in case you didn't notice, my kids were about to serenade me with PM Dawn "die without you".

classic.

and, i can't forget the "happy mothers day woohoo" written on a pizza box, torn in half.

and of course, kohen holding said pizza box, saying cheese, all while hadley and elsa are putting on a show for the camera...and my boys are beating each other up in the background.

welcome to my life, people.

oh and p.s...i had just been at a girlfriends house for about an hour, but apparently the kids really missed me.  they made it sound like i've been gone for weeks.

well, i have been camped out in my room for weeks, but still.

and last order of business...i did elsa's hair.

please ignore the ridiculously horrible parting of her hair, and the fact that the style slightly resembles coolio, but yah.

i tried.

Happy Mother's Day

And now for the Original Take, which resulted in a busted lip.

sponsor highlight/give-a-way day.

i know i say this every time, but i really do have the best sponsors out there.

they've allowed me to neglect them these past few weeks (months) as my life has been way hectic.

and yet, they stick around.

y'all are the best.

so, without further ado, our sponsor highlight/give-a-way day shall begin!

**********************************************************************

first up is tweet baby designs:

Hi Ya'll! My name is Ashlee and I am a mama to 6.5 kiddos and wife to one amazing man. I started tweet baby designs in Sept of 2008 as a way to sell things I loved to make. It has since turned into a wonderful addition to our large family.

I specialize in teething accessories for babies and toddlers and amber jewelry for adults with inflammatory issues.

ashlee is giving away a lemon amber teething necklace!

check out her:

shop

blog

thanks ashlee!

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next up is wild olive:

I'm Mollie, a graphic designer who loves to create. Making doodles into crafty projects is a favorite pastime, and I love sharing them with others!

mollie is giving away a PDF to her embroidery class:  The Embroidery Project (a $35 value)!  here's a few pics:

check out her:

shop

blog



thanks mollie!

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up next is the vintage pearl:

The Vintage Pearl creates unique and meaningful handstamped jewelry and keepsakes. Each piece is handcrafted from start to finish with care in our studio in Tulsa, Oklahoma. We use raw sterling silver, freshwater pearls and birthstone crystals in our creations.

Our jewelry is customized with any names, dates or words of inspiration, and we have several fonts and charm shapes to choose from. We want your piece to be meaningful to you.

Each letter is individually stamped by hand, we do not use a machine, making every piece a true one-of-a-kind!

erin is giving away a $50 gift certificate to her shop!

check out her:

shop

blog

thanks erin!

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up next is lillypie accessories:

Hi there! My name is Laura and I am the creator and designer of all things lillypie. Like many women, I wear bunches of hats {mine just have ruffle flowers all over em'}. I'm a wife, mother, teacher, creator, designer, dreamer, schemer, friend, daughter, and small business owner.
I began Lillypie Accessories in July 2010 and truly love the opportunities and experiences that have come with joining the handmade movement.

laura is giving away a mommy and me combo--a headband and coordinating hair pins!

she is also offering my readers a 20% discount, till tuesday, may 10th.  use code WELCOMEHOME20.

check out her:

shop

blog

thanks laura!

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next up is love is rising:

Hi there, I'm Rachel.  I specialize in lovely handmade accessories...earrings, headbands, necklaces, rings and ear warmers.  All proceeds from my shop go towards our adoption fund!

rachel is giving away a set of her adorable earrings!

check out her:

shop

blog

thanks rachel!

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 and last but certainly not least, our newest sponsor, in his grace:

Hi! My name is Chrissie Grace and I am the author of four books, all published by Northlight, and have been an artist all my life.

After years of selling a variety of items, including mosaics, paintings, and quilted items, I was told by those in the business that I needed to specialize in one area to ever really succeed.

I had started to believe them until I had a revelation one day. As long as I was honoring the word of God, I was already "successful". God would not give me a love and talent for many different types of art if he did not intend for me to use them all!

So, "in His grace..." was born. My husband and I have been blessed with 5 beautiful and healthy children, and I feel compelled to give back in some small way. 25% of all my etsy shop proceeds go directly to CBC Seminole, a local foster and adoption agency.

My hope is that "in His grace..." will help inspire and connect you to the beauty of Christ's love. :)

chrissie is giving away a $20 gift certificate to her shop!

she is also offering my readers a 20% discount in her shop (till next friday, may 13th).  use code EMILY20.

check out her:

shop

blog

thanks chrissie!

**********************************************************************

so let's re-cap, shall we?

1 lucky winner will receive:
amber teething necklace - tweet baby designs
pdf of embroidery class - wild olive
$50 shop credit - the vintage pearl
headband and matching hair pins - lillypie accessories
set of earrings - love is rising
$20 shop credit - in his grace

so how do you win?
leave me a comment on this post (1 per person, please).

give-a-way closes at 11:00 pm, monday---may 9th.
winner will be announced tuesday.
have fun, playas.

embrace the camera: may 5th

my life these days...

cuddled up on the couch with a little or 2 (or none at all because they are really smelly and my super sensitive smell can't handle it right then)...watching a movie.

i'm thanking the lord we have a t.v.

so, are you ready to embrace the camera?

here's the nitty gritty:

1.  take a picture with you and your kids/spouse/family member/friend/whatever.

2.  blog about that picture and include a link to our blog, or grab our button.

3.  link your blog post up on mr. linky below.

4.  visit the other embracers...give each other lots of compliments about how good we look with our greasy hair and sweatpants velour jogging suits on.  cause yah, we need a little boost when it's been days since our last shower.

5.  have fun!

don't forget to link your embrace the camera post, not just your blog. 

this is really important---and really easy.

telling the kids.

we sat the kids down last night and told them the big news (caedmon already knew, plus he was having an attitude which means he did not want to partake in the video).
scroll all the way to the bottom of my page to turn my music off, so you can hear their reaction.
and really, you need to watch it once for each kid...each of their reactions are so great.

.

leave it to milo to tell me my belly is fat.
and leave it to elsa to not really understand what is going on, but act excited because everyone else is.
and leave it to hadley to shed some tears of excitement.
and leave it to kohen to have no clue what is happening (his face his hilarious) and then proceed to master his front roll.