Don't worry, I didn't just all of a sudden stop blogging! I actually went down to Oklahoma for the weekend and put the surprise on Erik's brother, Brandon and his wife, Karlie at their house warming party! It was SO MUCH FUN to surprise them and the rest of the family!!! I have tons and tons of pictures, but we're not quite home, yet. We have a three hour drive today and then once I'm finally home, I'm sure that I won't have anything else to do, but to post pictures of our trip. :D

Daddy's Boy

While packing up our house, I came across a photo album that Erik's Grandma Viola kept of his childhood. As I was flipping through the pictures, I decided that Skogen looks a lot like Erik. See for yourself!

In these pictures, you can see that they have the same smile... Theses pictures show their similar eyes, chins, and hairlines (and even have the same arm up while they sleep)...

These pictures just reminded me of each other, and shows more of the similarities of their mouths, eyes, chins, and overall appearances...

I just thought these two pictures sort of resembled each other...
That's all I've got for now! Now I can only hope that he continues to look like Erik as he gets older (because Erik's pretty good look'n!).

Prayer Request

Today I have a friend having a baby and I would like to ask for prayers for her. She was originally scheduled to be delivered by C-section last Friday, but when an amniocentesis came back showing baby's lungs weren't developed enough, they put it off until today. I know that "momma," and her four-year-old son, are very anxious for the baby girl to get here. Not only has she had a pregnancy full of complications, but she lost her husband about eight months ago. I can't imagine what all she has gone through, but I know that she deserves to have a smooth delivery today - even without her best friend and life-mate there by her side.


I have been blessed to be able to help this momma out in a unique way by providing some breast milk for the baby. Momma has really low blood sugar and therefore after surgery, while she is in recovery, baby will need something to bring her blood sugar up. Standard procedure is formula, but momma doesn't want to use formula, and recognizes the powerfulness of breast milk, so asked me to donate some. Me donating breast milk is not only an answer to her prayers, but an answer to my prayers, as I have been praying that I would be able to donate to someone in need. God is so good.

Nothing Else Matters

I might have broken two bowls and a plate last night while carrying dishes into the kitchen.

Skogen might have fallen off of my bed and bumped his head when I had to set him down to take away a pair of scissors from Maida that she had climbed on the counter and gotten.

It might be icky weather outside.

But when our mornings start like this:

Nothing else matters.

New Bike!

Last week our Kohl's store provided free bike helmets to any child that came to get one. They had nurses and other staff from the children's hospital there properly fitting the helmets, too. I took Maida to get one. We had to stand in line in the parking lot for about 45 minutes, but it was totally worth it. She got a pink BELL bike helmet with hearts on it. The minute she put it on, she started asking for a bike, which only makes sense - if you have a bike helmet, you should have a bike.

On Saturday morning we found Maida a bike at a garage sale for $7.00. PERFECT! I was so excited because not only was it cheap, but the bike has hearts on it, too. Saturday afternoon we tried to teach Maida how to ride her bike. She's a little young yet, but I'm sure will have the hang of it by the end of the summer.

Church Picnic

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An Experiment in Diet

I decided to try Skogen with cereal this week. It didn't go as well as I had hoped, so I think that we'll hold off for a little while longer, but here are some pictures of the memory, anyway.Skogen was really excited because mom was really excited!

Then mom showed Skogen the food and told him that it was for him and a look of panic went across his face!

The first bite went in and it wasn't too bad until he tried to swallow it.

Then he realized that there was texture to what mom had put in his mouth and he was so miserably grossed out!

This was a totally different experience than what I had with Maida when I started her on cereal. I waited until she was five months old and she couldn't wait to get that food into her mouth. The very first bite she helped me shovel in! Here are some pictures from her big day, October 4, 2007...

Waiting for mom to give her the first bite.

Helping mom give her the first bite! She knew exactly what to do.

Upset that it was all gone! She ate an entire bowl and wanted more!

Memorable Memorial Day *FREE* Hotel Stay

Erik got a free hotel room in the month of May because it was his birthday. We decided to use it on Memorial Day night because Erik didn't have school the next day. The thought of spending a night alone without the kids was intriguing - all I have wanted for the past two months is to have one night away from the kids - just one measly little night where I don't have to be responsible for anyone else but myself. Well, I couldn't convince my mom that she should come take care of them overnight, so we had to got to bring them with us.

I had high hopes of leisurely sitting in the hot tub, playing some quarter machines at the hotel casino (which I've never EVER done before), eating a nice, relaxed dinner, and then staying up late to watch movies with Erik. Well, we arrived at 4:00, checked in, unpacked the car, took Barkley! for a pee (yes, we had to bring him, too), swam for a half hour, showered ourselves and the kids, ate waaaaay too much at the hotel/casino buffet (with Skogen tied to my abdomen while he slept - making eating a challenge), and then had to put the kids to bed. After an hour of getting them ready for bed and in bed, they eventually fell asleep, but only after we shut all the lights and the TV off. So, there we sat at 10:00 at night, in a dark hotel room, unable to talk in fear of waking the kids. It was a loooooong night in which I just kept thinking of everything I could be doing at home, instead of just sitting there in the dark...

We all slept in until 9:30 the next morning and between waking up, and checking out at 11:00, we scrambled to try to get everyone dressed, ready, packed, and fed. I made oatmeal for breakfast in the coffee pot that was in our room because there was no continental breakfast.

Needless to say, a one-night hotel stay with the kids is a hassle. All in all, next time I think it will just be easier to stay home (unless we can talk Nana into coming up from Oklahoma to stay with the kids!!). I will admit, though, that it was a nice vacation from needing to have Erik study all the time. It was fun to be with him and the kids, laughing and having fun.

We did manage to take some pictures of our memorable Memorial Day hotel stay...

Best Friends

It's an amazing thing that God just happened to lead us to this duplex two years ago when looking for a place to live before moving. Little did we know that next door was Maida's new best friend. Bergen and Maida have grown up together over the past two years, only being two months apart in age, they are pretty good playmates! Bergen came over the other day for ice cream and I snapped some pictures of the girls playing outside.

Favorite Videos of the Week

Here are my two favorite videos of the week.

#1: Skogen loves to scream. He screams all the time! This video was taken when we were at the park and Skogen was playing in his stroller.

#2: Maida loves to imitate her Bible School teachers. I videoed her out the window when she was outside playing one day and she had no idea that I was videoing her!

Skogen's First Haircut

Last week I had finally had enough of the bald spot on Skogen's head. I always said pre-baby days that I would never let my child have a bald spot. Well, time got away from me and for a couple of weeks, Skogen sported a bald spot. On Saturday night, I convinced Erik to help me shave it. Now it looks so cute!

The only picture I could find of before:

We shaved the tuffs of hair off the back, trying to match the length to the bald spot, but left it long on the top and in the front. The after pictures:

Notice how bad Skog's cheeks are? I am just sick to my stomach every time I think about it. He is so tough. They look so painful. The rash actually goes on his eyelids and back into his scalp. Also down his shoulders on on his chest, too. We are going to try to convince the dermatologist tomorrow that he needs to see Skogen sooner rather than later. Our plan is to by-pass our family doctor since she is so hesitant to treat anything.

Chester Park

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Short (but cute!) Videos of Maida

Maida playing "This Little Piggy" with Skogie Man

Maida vacuuming the kitchen after she shaved Daddy's head

Just For Fun

I always thought that naming a baby would be one of the best things about having a baby- boy was I wrong! I struggled with this when we were pregnant with Maida. I didn't like anything we found, and if I did like it one day, I hated it the next! And if I happened to like something for more than a day, someone else would tell me how much they hated it and we'd be back at square one. Anyway, a friend sent me this website and I thought it was fun to look up our names and see how common they are and how many there are in the US with the same name. The website is: http://www.howmanyofme.com/ and I have no idea how accurate it is, but here's what I found out.

There are 490 people in the U.S. with the last name Scharrer.

There are 62,827 people in the U.S. with the first name Kara.
There is 1 person in the U.S. named Kara Scharrer.

There are 104,200 people in the U.S. with the first name Erik.

There is 1 person in the U.S. named Erik Scharrer.

There are 3,065 people in the U.S. with the first name Maida.
There is 1 person in the U.S. named Maida Scharrer.

There are FEWER than 1,532 people in the U.S. with the first name Skogen.
The estimate for the name Skogen Scharrer is not absolute. There may be fewer people with this name, or none at all.

Last month I had a short blog entry about a baby named Stellan. Stellan is the baby of a fellow Minnesotan, who had a very risky heart ablation, in which Maida, Skogen, and I all wore orange on surgery day to remember to pray for Stellan. I was surprised that not only did the orange remind me to pray for Stellan that day, but it also had complete strangers asking me why we were all wearing orange. That gave me a chance to share the prayer request, and my faith, with others, which was a cool thing to experience. This week one of our local news stations had a follow-up story with baby Stellan's family. If you are interested in watching or reading about the story, the articles are here.

I'm posting these articles, not because I'm an avid reader of MckMama's blog, or because I think everyone needs to hear Stellan's story. I'm posting this article because I think MckMama is a great example of how we can share our faith with others. Talking about God to complete strangers is a hard thing to do, and often a surprise when someone else talks to us about God in public. I think of our good friend Scott, who is going through cancer treatments in Philadelphia, who just wrote last night on his Caring Bridge site, "One of the blessings that Bonita and I have encountered here at CTCA is that PEOPLE TALK ABOUT GOD. Isn't that amazing? They aren't embarrassed to share their faith. We get to see God working every day and being glorified. God is acknowledged here as a part of the healing process. It is refreshing and uplifting!"

It is my prayer that I can get the courage to talk to more people about God - even if it is just one of my siblings, or even one of my best friends - that I can talk about God and not be ashamed, embarrassed, or afraid; and that I can teach my kids to do the same. Just today my friend, Hannah, blogged about her little girl sharing Jesus with one of her friends and it showed me how our children can actually be an encouragement to us! Hannah wrote, "It was a little lesson to me. If only I could be so bold, I could enjoy heaven with more people. No wonder Jesus loves the little children. They are so innocent and pure of heart and have no ulterior motives for what they are doing. They just simply want good for others." That was a lesson to me, too! Go read her post here, it's cute - and encouraging!

Skogen's First Campfire

Weekend Highlights + a Public Letter

first house inspection

We had our first house inspection on Friday afternoon. It was a blast to see the house again. Erik and I get so caught up in our dreams of what we want to make this house into, that we forget that it isn't quite ours yet. There is so much paperwork to be done! We continue to pray that we will be blessed with this house and we will keep you updated as things progress.

skogen in his "hot tub"

He loves to kick back and relax in the dish washing pan! It's so funny how he'll put his feet up. If I move them down into the water, he puts them right back up there! What a silly boy!

Notice how good his cheeks look? I did some research in one of Erik's books ("Clinical Dermatology") for school and came up with my own little treatment plan. I mixed hydrocortisone cream with some vanicream and applied it twice yesterday. After the first application, he already looked a TON better. This morning when he woke up, I hardly recognized him without the flaming-red and bumpy cheeks! He looks like a whole new baby. I just hope this continues to work!

maida singing her ABC's and Jesus Loves Me

Maida has started to sing us real songs now. For about two months she has been able to sing tunes, but the words weren't there. Now she's put the words with the tunes. I tried to get her to sing for the camera last night, but she gets so silly when the camera is on her. She is also very easily distracted and has to remember to focus on what she's doing!

to the person got into erik's car and went through the glove box:

I have been praying for you. I have no idea what compels a person to do something like that. I can't imagine what you found in that glove box besides some sunflower seeds and maybe a tube of chapstick, but what you really need to find is Jesus, and I'm not sure you'll find Him by going through cars that aren't yours, in the middle of the night. I will continue to pray for you. Oh, and just so you know - don't try to break into my house. Barkley! will make you regret it.

4 Months Old

Dear Little Skogen,

Changes...

I've always thought that the changes that happen in a baby between birth and the one year mark are just amazing, but I didn't realize just how amazing they really were until I had your sister and you. Watching these changes happen daily has been so fun for me. As I type this, you are sitting in your exersaucer, holding a toy in each hand, and talking at the top of your lungs. You are also watching your sister prance around the room - you have always found her fascinating to watch - and now as she approaches you every-so-often, it's different than four months ago when she approached you. Now as she gets close enough, you reach out and grab a hand full of her hair and pull as hard as you can, while sticking out your tongue with a grin, and spitting all over the place. As your sister yells, "Yuck! Gross!" and tries to pull away from you, you giggle as your grip on her hair is too strong for her to get away and I have to come fish your hand out of her hair.

Changes...

Here are some other things that have changed in the past month...

- You can sit up by yourself for short periods of time, as long as we have some pillows to catch your fall.

- The eczema on your cheeks is SO BAD and I'm so sorry about this. I'm trying to find the right combination of creams and medications and I'm also trying to get you into a dermatologist since our family doctor doesn't want to be too concerned about it.

- You never cry. However, you threw a temper tantrum the other day for the first time. For no reason. You cried and screamed and kicked and arched your back, for no reason at all.

- You are experiencing many firsts! You went house shopping with us (it was our first time, too!), you were with us when we put in an offer (and counter offer) on our first house, you went swinging with your sister at the park, you had a picnic, you tasted an apple (which you hated), you rolled over, you went to your first softball game and your first Just For Kicks show, you took a shower, you put your toes in a hotel swimming pool, you watched one of Daddy's soccer games (which you loved and didn't take your eyes off the ball once!)... I'm sure there are more that I'm forgetting to document. You are growing and changing way too fast. In fact, your feet are almost as big as your sister's feet. You are one BIG guy, Skogen.

Here's to many more changes!

I love you, my Skogie Bear,

Mommy

Mother's Day 2009

I have really enjoyed reading all about what other blogger mothers got for Mother's Day and what their husbands and children did to make it so special. It is fun to see how mothers are honored on that day and neat to share in their smiles.

This year, my Mother's Day was unforgettable.
I didn't get flowers for Mother's Day, or even chocolate.
Instead, I got my very first HOUSE!!!

It's still in the works, but we found and started to make an offer on a house on Mother's Day (which was counter offered the next day, and ended with our counter offer the day after) and after we have a few inspections and complete some a lot of paper work, we hope to be home owners!
Of course I'll share more information about the house later, once we know more about whether or not it's actually ours, but in the meantime maybe you could help us pray that everything goes through okay, that we are able to move at a good time, and all that good stuff.

Needless to say, this Mother's Day was one of the best ever!

Speaking of Mother's Day and how special being a mommy is, today I was presented with a neat opportunity to help other mothers.

(>>>WARNING: Please stop reading here if you are uncomfortable with me writing about breast feeding.<<<)

I was asked by a good friend of mine if I would be willing to donate some breast milk to one of the local midwives here in town. She keeps a stash of it for mothers and babies, and I am so excited and honored to serve others in this way. This has been a dream of mine since I was breast feeding Maida, because I have always had so much milk (and healthy milk, too!). I feel so good knowing that I'm going to be helping these moms who aren't able to produce any milk and plumping up some babies, too! :)

Describes her perfectly...

Another mother at ECFE today told me that Maida is so "self expressed" and that "she has this look on her face, and carries herself around, like she always has this inside joke with herself."

That totally describes her.

She's always up to something within that head of hers.

I just wish that I could tell what she is thinking...

Or maybe I'm glad I don't know...