The Bragg Family

Just Some Pictures...

2010-08-24T20:17:00.006-04:00

One sweet boy!!! First day of 4year old preschool! She was so excitied!
First time playing putt putt!

Silly girl!!!

Happy boy!!!

Loss

2010-07-24T00:34:00.002-04:00

Well, it is 12:40am and I am still awake. I can't sleep. All I can think about is my sweet baby that I will not get to meet until the day we are united in Heaven. This is not how I pictured this pregnancy, I thought something was wrong for awhile but I did not know what is was, I was prepared for something, not for this. Why do these things happen, I will never know. I completely understand and believe that God always knows what He is doing but I can't wrap my brain around this one. I went to the dr for my 2nd ultrasound because the baby was in an odd position and they wanted to watch me very close - an ultrasound every week. The baby had a heartbeat the first ultrasound and I fully expected to hear one the second time around but I was wrong. Our sweet baby had no heartbeat and was measuring a week smaller than what was expected. We are really in a state of disbelief and shock. I know it will get easier but for the here and now it is not. I just keep holding on to God's plan and know something great will come out of something terrible. Please keep us in your prayers.

Pictures

2010-04-05T22:26:00.005-04:00

Easter was GREAT this year (as it is every year). The kids had a blast with the Easter egg hunt and spending time will all of their cousins. We had a day of fun with family, it was really a great way to celebrate and remember God's ultimate gift for us, his Son!

I know these are my kids so I realize that I am partial but really, they are wonderful in every way! We love them so much and feel so blessed everyday. God gave us these 2 perfect gifts to love and raise for Him! What an honor, seriously! Don't get me wrong, we have our challenges but it so rewarding when I take a step back and acknowledge that God is at work through me for my kids and God is at work through my kids for me! What a blessing it is!

I am very excited about spring break this week. We are going to be busy playing outside, going to the zoo, going to Ohio, and just being together! I am so ready, spring break here we come!

Jacob's 5th haircut!

2010-02-13T21:03:00.004-05:00

I just love this boy! His hair is great and he is so handsome. This is the before picture. Remember this is the 5th haircut and he will be a year old in just a few weeks.

During. He did great, I guess he is used to this by now. He is so laid back that he does not get upset about much, except maybe being told 'no no'.

After. How handsome! I do wish we did not cut off so much because I do love the wild hair, it is kind of his trademark but either way he is just adorable and as sweet as ever!

This is the life...

2010-01-23T12:55:00.007-05:00

...I have always wanted! It is a wonderful feeling to wake up and realize I am living my dream with the best husband and children that God could have ever provided.

I sure do love this boy and those sweet chubby cheeks!

I love this girl too! She is so funny. She comes up with the craziest stories. I am bummed that she is on an antibiotic but thankful that she is 3 1/2 and this is her first antibiotic ever! Amazing!

The happiest boy EVER! This is his face pretty much all the time. It is wonderful to have such a smiley boy.

You just never know what she is going to come down the stairs in. I woke her up the other morning and she was wearing a dress-up dress, tiara and dress-up shoes. She really did go to bed in pajamas so at some point in the night she changed. I wish I would have taken a picture!

Yummy spaghetti!

Oh the Christmas Card...

2009-12-14T21:04:00.006-05:00

So many choices! Addie is in a stage where she does not like to have her picture taken, which drives me crazy! I think after a bunch of pictures we were finally able to get one that would work for our Christmas cards. I love the Christmas season and I love to hear Addie explain what it is all about. We are so blessed!

Fall Fun!

2009-11-10T21:20:00.005-05:00

Happy boy! I can't believe that he is already 8 1/2 months old. He is sitting up and moving around but not crawling yet. I remember with Addie, I could not wait for her to start crawling she was so calm and quiet. This little man is going to be all over the place! I am enjoying this non-mobile stage right now! I don't think it is going to last much longer! :)

All of my nieces and nephews! This was a hard picture to get but they are so great.

The babies (Isaac, Emma, Jacob) So sweet!

Just too cute!

Loves the bitter biscuit! What a mess.

She hunted for a very long time to find the perfect pumpkin! Notice how far out she is, the very back of the pumpkin patch, it was a lot of work to find the perfect little pumpkin!

He is so happy! I love that sweet face.

My sweet boy is so much fun!

I love that they are starting to play together. It is so fun to watch them interact, play and laugh!

My little princess, Cinderella!

Spot the dalmatian. This is about as happy as he was in this outfit. I don't think he appreciated it much! We thought is was pretty funny though.

All the babies again, their first Halloween Good times! We love every minute of it, so blessed! Sorry for all the pictures I just could not decide which ones to post! :-) God is so good to our family. He provides for us and takes care of us everyday. I am so thankful for the blessings in my life, especially ALL of my family and friends! I love you all!

Lately...

2009-10-01T20:34:00.004-04:00

Addie tried a smore for the first time, I guess she did not like it! :)

Loving every minute in the swing. He is so happy! He is just so much fun, I think we are going to have our hands full with this little guy. I can't believe that he is already 7 months old! He looks like a little man.

Sweet baby feet!

Addie loves to swing too! I think we go to playground just to swing but I guess if that is what she likes that is what we'll do. She is growing up and saying all kinds of funny things. It is amazing to watch them grow and learn.

Addie's first day of school! She was GREAT! Not even a tear. She loves school, I just wish she would talk to me about it. She says "I don't want to talk about it right now", everyday after school. What is that all about?

She does not look to sure about it but once we got in the room she was good.

This time of year is always crazy. Know that I am back to work, Addie is in school and Jacob is here we have had to do a lot of adjusting! Jacob is finally sleeping better (only waking up once) so that makes me feel better and not so tired. Addie is back in OT which was a bummer but it is going well and hopefully she won't have to stay in it too long. Jason is still working like crazy and doing free lance on the side, which helps! I have been slacking on the blog lately but I hope to get back into it soon and update it more frequently. Overall, we are doing well and loving every minute of our two kiddos! They are such blessings!

It has been a while....

2009-07-11T22:13:00.006-04:00

It has been a while since I blogged but we have been very busy. Since I am off for the summer, I am trying to enjoy every minute of being home with the kids. They are so so so much fun! I love every minute of it, even the rough days. I am just so thankful for both of them and my wonderful husband.

Addie is saying all kinds of hilarious statements like "I will be right back, I need to go check my email". She is going to be 3 this next month and starting preschool. I have started planning her birthday party and she has requested princesses (her new favorite thing). I will be attempting to make a princess cake, we will see how that goes. She is growing up so fast.

Jacob is already 4 months old and the happiest baby I have ever seen! He loves to laugh which is just adorable. I need to try to get it on tape soon. He is teething all 4 lateral incisors (poor boy) but seems to be doing okay with occasional Tylenol.

Jason is leaving this next weekend with the Seekers, so please say a prayer for the team, their ministry and their safety.

I have been pretty busy with the kids and I started boot camp this past week. I really enjoy it and I am already seeing results which makes it worth it.

The summer is flying by and here are a few pictures of what we have been up to lately.

Emma Rose Kaufer (my sisters baby) was born a few weeks ago. She is adorable!

My dad with Emma and Jacob.

Jacob waiting patiently in the hospital while Emma was being born, such a trooper!

We took Addie to her first Riverbats game on Father's Day. She had a great time and loved the playground. It was crazy hot but we still enjoyed it.

His adorable smile!

Addie loves to bake (mostly just mix whatever it is I am cooking). We do this a lot especially on really hot days or rainy days.

We mostly spend time outside. She loves her baby pool and sprinkler.

Jacob is just hanging out while Addie is playing outside. He is so content, it is great!

Rice = A Little More Sleep!

2009-06-15T14:47:00.002-04:00

Yes, I started cereal. Yes, he was only 3 months old. Yes, he is now only waking up 1-2 times a night!!!! YEAH! We are getting there. These are a few pictures of his first time eating cereal and might I add he did great! It was so hard to get Addie to eat (and still is) but he loved it. As you can see by these crazy smiles!

Addie sleeping. She is wearing pajamas with a second pair around her ankles, laying on her blanket nit under it and has her pillow propped up on the railing. I guess I should just be thankful she is sleeping! This is my neice, Kaitlyn. She was baptized this past Sunday! YEAH! We are very happy for her. That is my brother-in-law baptizing her.
We have been doing well. Very busy. This is my first week off for the summer and I am very excited about that. There is still not much sleep going on at my house so I am pretty tired but other than that we are doing great. Addie is adjusting well and is a great big sister. I am so thankful, she loves Jacob so much. It is very fun to watch them together. I can't believe how big he is getting, time flies. We had baby dedication at church a few weekends ago, it turned out nice. We had family over after the service. Addie thought that it was his birthday since we had cake. She cracks me up, if there is cake it must be a birthday. We had a cake for my niece yesterday and Addie started singing the happy birthday song! We are having fun and loving every minute of it! We are soooo blessed!

P.S. Does anyone know how to get rid of the underlined text? It drives me crazy. Sometimes its there and sometimes its not. Thanks. :-)

For Sale...

2009-05-26T22:20:00.006-04:00

2002 Nissan Altima
$8,600

We are selling our car and moving on to bigger things (yes, a van!). We are very excited but need to sell our car first. Please pass the word around if you know of anyone looking for a used car. It is a great car, no accidents and well maintained. I actually love this car but we are just ready for something a little bigger. It is posted on www.autotrader.com if you are interested in more details.

Happy Mother's Day

2009-05-12T15:00:00.005-04:00

I love my family! I have a wonderful husband and two fabulous children. God is good!

2009-05-01T17:31:00.011-04:00

Hey everyone this is Jason.
I don't think I ever posted on here before, but I thought I would give it a shot.

I just wanted to tell everyone how great of a mother Jackie is. She does so many things for our family (things I could never do). I'm glad she gets to stay home during the summer. She always manages to have the house clean, dinner on the table and still able to show the kids enough attention throughout the day.

What she does at home is worth six figures. I love her so much and I am a very proud husband. I don't know how she does it, but she is unbelievable. She has the patience and loving care that I didn't think was possible. I love her so much and just wanted to thank and brag(g) about her.

Here are some pictures from this last month ... I thought everyone might enjoy (sorry if I mess this up Jackie) lol

Sweet Boy!

2009-03-31T16:07:00.003-04:00

I love having two kids at home! It is very busy and it can get a little crazy but oh my goodness, it is wonderful! They are such blessings in our lives, never a dull moment. Jacob rolled over yesterday, crazy. I can't believe he is old enough to do that, I was shocked! He is doing great. We had him tested for acid reflux and sure enough he has it. He has been on prevacid and doing much better. He is such a joy and a great baby. I thought we were in for it because Addie was such a wonderful baby but we have been blessed with a second. He rarely cries and is just content wherever he is. I am very thankful. Addie is an awesome big sister. She loves to take care of Jacob and help do whatever he may need. She is getting so big and that was even more clear when we brought Jacob home. It felt like she grew up while we were at the hospital. She will start preschool this August which is crazy to believe. We are doing great and enjoying every minute of our precious babies. Here are just a few new pictures.

Proud big sister, they are so sweet!
He fell asleep during tummy time.
Happy boy!
Silly boy!
Cute boy!Serious boy!

Where is Addie?????

2009-03-17T20:28:00.002-04:00

This was right before tubby time, she decided to play hide and seek. She is so funny!
She is so cute! We love her soooo much. She is such a great big sister and adjusting wonderfully to Baby Jacob. He is so tiny. Look at him in his crib. He sleeps great, most of the time. He sleeps at night from feeding to feeding (usually) so about 3-4 hour stretches. Not to bad for a 3 week old. He is so sweet. I love that precious little face.

Well, we have been home for a while and we are trying to get into a routine. Things are going great so far and we are loving every minute with our new baby and Addie. They are so cute together. Addie does a great job with him. She wants to help give him bathes, get diapers, help feed him and anything else he might need.

Jason and I feel so blessed. We have two perfect and healthy babies! What special gifts from God.

Jacob Alexander Bragg 2/26/09

2009-03-03T14:52:00.004-05:00

He is here and we are so glad! He is doing well and measuring smaller than we thought! He weighed 8 pounds and was 20 inches long. We took him for his first well baby check up today and he weighed 7lbs 6 ounces (I am not sure what to do with such a tiny little guy). All is well and Addie is adjusting very well. She misses her mommy more than anything but hopefully I will recover soon and be back to normal. Here is a video Jason made of our new baby.

More pictures and details to come. I am first going to try to sneak a nap in...try!

Baby Webb

2009-02-08T13:38:00.004-05:00

My sister had an adorable baby boy on January 27th, 2009! Hear are a few pictures of the new addition. Nikki and Baby Issac are doing well and we are so thankful. Baby Issac was 5 weeks early (we were due a day apart) weighing in at 5lbs 8oz. He had to stay a few extra days but he is doing wonderful! We love you guys.

Big Sister Kaitlyn with Baby Issac

Big Brother Conner with Baby Issac Big Brother Brandon with Baby Issac

On the way home from the hospital. Yeah!

Sweet Songs!

2009-01-17T20:07:00.003-05:00

A book worth reading....

2009-01-13T09:52:00.003-05:00

"Crazy Love" by: Francis Chan

http://crazylovebook.com/

If you have time to sit down and read a book, this is the one to read! It is a book to challenge you to love God with everything in you. I have been challenged in all aspects of my life, it opened my eyes to being truly in LOVE with Christ. I have been encouraged to do something for Christ and to live life (everyday) for Him and not for myself (still working on that one). I hope you enjoy the awakening as much as I did! Happy reading.

Christmas Celebrations!

2009-01-03T12:04:00.005-05:00

We had a wonderful Christmas and Addie was especially fun this year. She was very excited about Santa and all the festivities leading up to his arrival. We celebrated Christmas for about a week straight it seemed, but it was a blast and we were able to visit almost all of our family. We spent Christmas Eve with Jason's family, Christmas day at home and with my family and then Friday we headed out to Ohio for two Christmases! One Saturday and one on Sunday, we drove back Sunday night. Our Christmas was packed full of visiting with family and we loved every minute of it. Here are a few pictures of our celebrations.

* This picture is my sisters and grandpa. Nikki, Grandpa, Jessie, Me (all of us are pregnant, we are so excited about that) Nikki is due March 4th, Jessie July 5th, Jackie March 3rd.

* This is one of the Christmas celebrations in Ohio, at my Aunt Bev's house.
* This is Aunt Bev with Addie
* This is Grandpa John with some of the grandkids.
* Christmas morning at home. Addie loves to play music so Santa brought her a keyboard with a microphone (she loves it).

* This picture is a picture of Jason's cousin, Lisa. She is also pregnant and due in May. Yes, we had to take pictures of all the pregnant ladies this Christmas - I don't expect it to happen again!

* A birthday cake for Jesus! Don't those sprinkles look yummy!

* Decorating cookies for Santa.

Busy Times...

2008-12-09T13:12:00.012-05:00

I have been slacking on the blog but we have been up to tons of fun! We are trying to be creative with in door activities so hear are a bunch (probably too many) of pictures showing what we have been up to lately!

Christmas card pictures: As you can see Addie did not think this was a good idea at first. She eventually decided it was not so bad! It was too funny.
Chuckie Cheese: Addie thought this was great. This was her first time that she was old enough to play games. She loved the pizza and all the games - she did great. Every time we drive by there now she asks to go play. She loved the horse ride, we had to do that several times.
Gymnastics: The Friday after Thanksgiving, Jason and I were able to take Addie to gymnastics (since we were both off). I tried to get some pictures but they did not turn out very well. Addie loves gymnastics! Just plain silliness 1:The first picture is what I found when I went to get her up from her nap (I guess she did not sleep as long as I thought! Stinker! She put her shoes on and was attempting her shirt - over her pajamas.
Just plain silliness 2: I don't even know what to say about this picture! She is so crazy. Winter hat and a pull-up. Newport Aquarium: Addie thought this was great. She loves anything to do with animals.

Making, baking, and icing cupcakes: This is one of Addies new favorite things to do, helping mommy cook. She loves to help stir and have her hands in anything. I think eating the finished product might have been a little more fun! Just too cute!
I hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas!

TAG & Thankfulness!

2008-11-25T14:01:00.004-05:00

I have been tagged by my friend, Blair. Here's what I have to do....

1. choose the 4th picture folder on my computer.
2. choose the 4th picture.
3. explain the picture.

4. tag at least 4 people to do the same.

So here it is....

I love this picture because this was Addie's favorite pass time. She would stand or sit just looking out the front door it made her so happy (if it was only that easy now!) She would watch for birds, squirrels, cars, whatever she could see. I took this particular picture to capture the ponytail. She, for some reason, does not like to have her hair pulled back. I think it looks adorable but I guess she does not like how it feels. She looks so little. I know she is still young but I can't believe how fast she is growing up. She will be starting preschool this coming August, which is just crazy!

I TAG:

Kate
Erin
Suzanne
Kelly

We are headed to Newport Aquarium with Addie on Wednesday morning so I will be posting some hopefully cute pictures of our trip!

Thinking about this time of year and Thanksgiving being right around the corner I thought I would share with you what I am thankful for, so here it goes

I am thankful for my wonderful husband. He holds our family together and supports me through everything. He is such a blessing in my life and Addie's. He is a wonderful husband, father and friend. We have been working really hard at setting goals for Christ and he is such a great example for our family. He pushes me and himself to be better everyday - what a special thing to experience with your spouse. I am so blessed to have such a wonderful husband.
I am thankful for our precious daughter, Addie. She has taught me so many things and she has only been in my life for two years. Going into parenthood, I really believed that it was going to be a certain way and that I could control our day to day things just on my own. She has shown me that is not so true. I can not control anything, I am not the one in charge but God is in charge. The ability to understand Addie and her individual personality - by the grace of God, is what has really changed my life. God has given me the tools I need to be a successful mom for Addie (though I may not always feel that way, it is true). God gave me this precious gift, He will also give me the wisdom I need to raise her. It has taken me some time to accept that truth. But because of Addie I have grown in my faith and understanding of Christ, for that I am thankful.
I am thankful for baby #2! Jacob is such a blessing. I was talking last night with Jason about how excited I am to meet him. I can't hardly stand it. I remember being excited to meet Addie for the first time but not like this. I believe the second child is that much more exciting because you know the love that comes with it. I had no idea how much you could love this little person until he or she arrives. Since we have Addie and have had that experience, I feel like I have a better understanding of what is to come! What a gift to be blessed with 2 children.
I am thankful for my family. I am surrounded by a group of people who love me no matter what! Thank the Lord! I am sure that I can be hard to get along with sometimes. They are a great support and I can't imagine life without them. I am very excited to spend the day with most of my family on thanksgiving - we are going to have such a great time together.
I am thankful for my 2 current Bible Study groups. It is so nice to be apart of groups of Christians that have the same desires that I do. Our goals are not to glorify ourselves but to glorify God. It is such a blessing to have friends that understand where I am coming from, friends to pray with, friends to support each other, and friends to challenge me and help keep me accountable. Over the last few years I have done a lot of growing in my faith and these two bible studies have been a great wake up call for me. I have been challenged in more ways than I can mention, for that I am thankful.

I am sorry for the ridiculously long blog! I challenge you to think about what you are thankful for and really think about the meaning of Thanksgiving. I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving and I hope you take the time to think about life and what it should really be about.

Addie Singing the ABCs

2008-10-27T13:47:00.002-04:00

It took about 4 months to get Addie to do this for the camera! Jason bribed her with candy, I guess whatever works. You will need to turn the music down at the bottom of the blog to be able to hear her!

Addie's First Sleep Over!

2008-10-18T14:09:00.005-04:00

Jason and I were very excited to attend our friends wedding last night. I decided to be a little less wimpy and let Addie sleep over at my sister's house. Thank you, Jessie! All was well, we went to a beautiful wedding, eat wonderful food, and enjoyed being out of the house. We got home about 11:30pm and I was off to bed! I felt so weird to not have my baby at home (the first time ever). Jessie said that Addie was doing great and talking up a storm. They went to bed around 9:00 (my nephew, who is five, Jessie and Addie all slept in the same bed - I wish I could have seen this!) Addie woke Jessie up because she was tossing and turning in the bed. Jessie thought she felt warm so she woke Addie up and took her temp., which was 103. Oh my gosh! I got the call about 4 in the morning that she was in our driveway. What a great sister! She drove 30 minutes to my house and did not call until she was there. So much for sleeping in! :-) Addie was fever free this morning but it has continued to rise as the day goes on. She has done this to us before (this is the 3rd or 4th time) she runs a high fever with no other symptoms. I am not sure what the deal is. Last time it go to 104.5, I hope it does not get that high - that was scary. Other than the fever, she is pretty happy and eating so I am not sure what to do.

On a more fun note, we had a wonderful time with Addie last weekend. We went to the Zoo for some trick-or-treating, she got her first haircut and we went to Huber's Farm. Jason was off on Saturday so we took advantage of the extra time together. Here are a few pictures of all the fun!

Addie's First Haircut~

She did very well but if you look closely she is eating a bunch on M&Ms in that yellow box. Once she got those she was very happy! Thank you MeMa for a great new haircut. We love it.

This picture was taken before the candy. She was not too thrilled. These are pictures for Huber's Farm. She had a great time. It was well worth the drive! This is Addie with her Papa Dave. Addie's first hay ride. I think this was her favorite part of the day. She did not want to get off the tractor. May the hunt begin for the perfect pumpkin. She looked forever - it had to be round she told us. Are you kidding me - a perfectly round pumpkin - we did our best.

The winning pumpkin and proud Addie.

Jacob is moving up a storm. He kicks all day long! It is funny how quickly you forget about this kind of stuff. It is so fun and exciting to feel him moving in there all the time. I am feeling like he might be a soccer player! :-) Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Jacob Alexander Bragg!!!!

2008-09-22T17:37:00.004-04:00

Jason and I are proud to announce that we are having a BOY! We could not be more excited. Baby Jacob is looking great! They pushed back my due date to March 5, 2009 - bummer! It actually works out great because of the school year. I may not have to come back at all once Baby Jacob arrives. In two of the three pictures he has his hand by/in his mouth - just like Addie. We have several ultrasound pictures of her sucking her thumb. I keep thinking about my life and where we are, WE ARE SO BLESSED! We have a perfect little girl and a perfect baby boy on the way. I am just amazed at God's grace and love for us. Please pray that Baby Jacob will continue to be healthy and that Addie will adjust well to being a big sister. I know that they are going to be great siblings and friends. We can not wait to welcome our new addition!

The Wind Storm!

2008-09-19T15:03:00.003-04:00

Oh, how thankful I am to have power again! We were out of power for 5 days. I really can't complain because it was not too bad - until we ran out of hot water. Then we headed to my moms for warm showers and tubby time for Addie. The next street over is still without electricity so we are counting our blessings. We spent tons of time outside, going to the park and zoo. It has been nice having the extra time off from work - schools were closed all week.

We were lucky because we did not have any damage to our house. All over our neighborhood were trees on houses and fences, along with wind damage to gutters, siding and roofs. We were pretty fortunate. We did have a branch from a tree in our front yard land on our power lines - connected to our house. We called LG&E and it stayed like this until yesterday afternoon. I am sure our neighbors were thrilled because we had to drive through their yard to get out of the driveway. The fire department came by several times and closed off the street. It is hard to see but one of the lines is down so low that only small cars could make it under.

What a storm! Addie did well and only asked to turn a light on about 50 times! We tried to lay her down early so she would fall asleep before it got too dark. She loved spending the extra time outside and loved all the chicken nuggets from McDonald's! We are a little tired of going out to eat and are looking forward to a home cooked meal tonight, after I go to the grocery! I will keep you posted, we are off to the doctor on Monday. It is already time for the ultrasound. We are so excited and can hardly wait to find out what this precious baby is going to be!

Busy, Busy, Busy.....

2008-08-24T20:16:00.003-04:00

We have been very busy! I started back to work, which has been an adjustment on all of us. Addie, however, has taken it pretty hard. She actually started climbing (falling) out of her crib the second day I was back to work. She cried in bed "more mommy, more mommy". That about killed me! Since her new discovery of being able to get out of the crib we headed to the store for a toddler bed. Needless to say we had some rough nights. She told us that she did not like her new bed and then slept on the floor the first night, poor baby :( This has been going on for a couple weeks and Jason and I thought it was getting better but the last two nights have not gone so well. I am not sure why but she gets up, runs to the gate - as if she is looking for us, then runs back to bed (she did this pretty much all night last night). What a stinker! I am sure she will adjust soon. Here is a picture of her cute little bed. She received many new toys for her birthday and she loves playing with them. The first picture is a motorized jeep - which she loves! She drives all over the place and laughs the whole time. This is a dress-up outfit that she was given and she loves this too. She puts it on and then checks herself out in the mirror. Too funny!
We also signed Addie up for gymnastics. Jason takes her on Fridays - when I am at work. I hate to miss it but it has turned out to be a great activity for them to do together. She tells me that she gets to jump high, swing high and tumble! What fun.

I want to say thank you to everyone who said a prayer for me regarding my job this year. I really appreciate it. 2nd grade is a huge improvement and I am so thankful for the change! I have a couple stinkers but that just comes with the job. :) I hope everyone has a great week!

Thank You!

2008-08-10T11:50:00.002-04:00

I just wanted to say thank you to two of my good friends, Jennifer and Abby. They both nominated me for The Smile Award! We are in a playgroup together and have become great friends because of it. I have really enjoyed the time we get to talk and enjoy each others company and children. I appreciate all of the kind words and encouragement. I am so blessed to have a great circle of Christian friends and moms. They both love their children to pieces, it is fun to experience that with other people. Thanks girls!

I realize that I have not blogged since Addie's birthday but as many of you know, we are approaching the first week of school! Busy, busy! I am looking forward to this year because I have been placed in 2nd grade - really looking forward to the grade change. My kids were sooo excited at our open house, which is a big change from years past. Please keep me in your prayers! I am trying very hard to start this year with a positive attitude. I had a very frustrating year last year and I just pray that this year will be better. I have done a lot of growing, spiritually, over the last few years and I am so thankful for all the amazing things that are going on in my life. I am working very hard at not sweating the small stuff and relying more on God and not myself. What a blessing to really grasp all of God's love for us, it is much easier to let things go when you truly believe that God is in control!

I also want to say thank you to my wonderful husband. As you all know, I do not mix well with pregnancy! The person who came up with the phrase morning sickness, is crazy! I do not get just morning sickness - mine is all day sickness - literally. Jason has stepped up to the plate and has helped me so much. He comes home from work and takes over. Feeds Addie dinner (I am not cooking right now), plays with her outside, does the laundry, picks up around the house, and he even headed to Walgreen's at 10:00pm to get my nausea medication! I wanted to try to make it with out taking anything I did not have to but it was time. I am down 7 pounds and counting (it was 18 with Addie and I know that is where it is headed if I don't start taking it). He has been a saving grace, I am so thankful that he is so helpful and understanding! I love him dearly!

Addie is doing great! We are so thrilled to announce that Addie is going to be discharged from OT in about 2 weeks. She has been in OT for over a year and she has made such great progress. When we started therapy she could not eat solid food without choking on it - very scary! She eats great now - like a typical 2 year old. She had the best OT ever, Shelly was great! Very patient and informative. She was a blessing to our family and we are so thankful that God choose her to work with Addie. It is going to be bitter sweet because we are going to miss our weekly visits with Shelly but we are so thankful for that Addie is doing so much better.

I hope everyone has a great week!

Birthday Party Fun!

2008-08-05T17:11:00.005-04:00

We had a wonderful birthday party on Saturday, August 2 (Addie's actual birthday). We had about 40 people (all family, except a few). We have such a close family! My dad, Grandpa John, Aunt Bev and Uncle Dan, and Uncle John and Aunt Sheila drove all the way from Columbus, Ohio (four hours one way), just to celebrate with us. A lot of family lives about a half hour away and they all came in too, how great is that! We set up a little water park in the backyard (3 baby pools, a sprinkler, a slip n' slide and water guns). This was great because all the kids were entertained the entire time (12 kids to be exact)! Addie had a ball and kept saying "Addie's party". I guess she wanted to make sure we all knew that this crazyness was all for her (like we could forget!). Jason and I took her to the store and let her pick out the theme for the party and with no surprise, Dora was the winner! So we had a Dora cake, Dora hats, Dora plates and a Dora table cloth (we are crazy, we know). As I was preparing for the party I kept telling myself that next year I am going to tame this down because it gets pretty expensive and overwhelming but once the party started it was so much fun! Addie had such a great time and it was all worth it. So needless to say, next year will be just as crazy and fun! The new baby is due in February so I have to start being creative for entertainment because there will be not water park in my backyard in February! Bummer! Here are a few pictures of the party.

This is a picture of Jeffrey (my nephew), my dad and Addie.
Jeffrey, Jessie (my sister) and AddieThe backyard!Addie opening gifts...Look at those nice silver shoes! They have been worn everyday since. :)Eating birthday cake. Yummy!Addie was a little concerned because a sprinkle (from the cake) was on the ground. Why can't I eat that?
These pictures were not taken on her birthday - I just think they are adorable!

Thank you so much to all our family for everything. We are so blessed to have such a loving and supportive family. We are thankful for each and everyone of you. I hope everyone has a great rest of the week. Love you.

Happy 2nd Birthday, Addie!!!

2008-08-03T15:29:00.003-04:00

More birthday pictures to come...this one is just too cute! We are headed to another 2nd birthday party for a little girl born the same day as Addie. We are very thankful to our family - thanks for coming and celebrating a wonderful 2 years with Addie!

California Adventures

2008-07-19T21:09:00.006-04:00

Overall, I would say that Addie did a pretty good job on our trip. We had a great time! The flights went rather smooth (thank you Lord!) We took Addie to Sea World, Palm Springs Zoo, the pool and mostly visited with family. Here are a few (not really, a lot) pictures of our trip. The first picture is at the zoo, it was soooo hot - look at Addie's pink cheeks! This is a picture by the pool. Jason's grandparents live in a condo in Palm Springs so we took advantage of the pool one day. Addie loves to swim and look at the view.
Sea World. I think this was Addie's favorite day (mine too!) We spent the entire day there (minus her nap). This first picture is Addie and I trying to pet the sting rays (they don't sting). I think she would have stayed here all day. She loves playing in water.

Addie with her grandpa (Jason's dad).
This is a moving sidewalk - one of the exhibits. She was more excited about that than the exhibit!

Waiting in line to eat breakfast with Elmo! This was wonderful! She had a great time as long as the characters kept their distance. The whole crew was there - Elmo, Zoe, Cookie Monster, Bert, Ernie, and Big Bird. What a great way to start the day! Thank you grandpa and grandma. The sunglasses, purse and shoes were a gift from Addie's great grandparents (Jason's grandparents). It came with coordinating outfits but this is as far as she got!
Out to eat to celebrate Jason's grandpa's 75th birthday.

We had a great time! We are so thankful for a nice time with family and a safe trip! I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend.

Guess what time it is....

2008-07-16T14:18:00.002-04:00

That's right! It is baby time, again! Addie is going to be a big sister. Jason and I could not be more excited! I have not been to the doctor yet bet I think I am about 9 weeks - due sometime in February. I go to the doctor next Thursday the 24th. I am excited to hear the heartbeat and to have confirmation that everything is okay! I am feel the beginning signs of pregnancy, so I am sure that everything is going well. Please say a prayer for a smooth pregnancy and a healthy baby.

Fun in the Sun!

2008-06-30T13:12:00.005-04:00

We just got back a few days ago from vacation at the lake. We went to The Land Between the Lakes - Kentucky Lake. My family does this once a year and we always have a great time. There are 14 of us and we rent a cabin and all of us stay together (9 adults and 5 kids). We played games, corn hole and softball. We also went to a water park (the first time we have done that) and it was wonderful. It had a huge play area for younger kids that was in about maybe a foot of water. They had small water slides and sprinklers, Addie loved this area. She was very brave (brave for Addie). We also rented a boat and headed out on the lake for some tubing and swimming. Addie actually got in a tube with Jason but quickly decided that being on the boat was much better than being off and in the water. We had wonderful weather, no rain, just plenty of sun. We had a great time and it was wonderful being able to spend it with family. It was so nice to have Jason around for an entire week. Here are a few pictures of our vacation. What fun!

Addie is hanging out with 2 of her cousins, they are taking a break from all the activities.Playing at the playground. I don't think we can go anywhere without a stop to the playground. Addie tells us now that she wants to go and actually says "playground mommy". To funny, she thinks she has it all figured out! The swimming pool was a big hit. She does not get to go to a real pool very often - so she was really excited about it. We have a baby pool in out backyard but it is just not the same. Yes, that is an Elmo bathing suite and she is holding an Elmo pool toy. What can I say, she loves Elmo. :-)Addie decided to take a break and have a snack. She then felt the need to feed her crackers to everyone in the baby pool (I am glad it was just our family!). On the other side of the fence is the lake. If you look closely you can see a lot of pretty boats. This was the view from the swimming pool.Addie is her life-jacket (which she hated) and don't you just love that hat! We were getting ready to head out onto the water. She was so excited about all the water, she just held onto the rail as we were driving around trying to see everything. She is too cute!This is a picture of my brother Joey and Addie, he let her drive the boat. She loved it! She thought she was big stuff.

Down by the lake they have what I like to call a fake beach! They just put some sand on the edge of the water and call it a beach. This year we thought Addie might like it so we were off to the 'beach'. We were wrong, Addie did not like it at all. She kept telling us her feet were dirty (she does not like to be dirty!). This picture was literally as far as it got. She did not even put her toe in it. Jason turned around and walked right back out - we ended up at the pool! :-)

I am so thankful to have a great family. We had a wonderful time and I am already looking forward to next year!

Please Watch!!!!

2008-06-12T13:40:00.003-04:00

Please click on the link below and watch this video about Obama. It is a little long but I think it is important to watch. It is scary to think he might be our next president. I know that our choices for president are pretty crapy but lets think about the lesser of two evils. He will NOT be getting my vote!

http://www.eyeblast.tv/Public/Video.aspx?rsrcID=2036

Fun Times!

2008-06-09T14:46:00.007-04:00

We have been sooo busy but we are having sooo much fun! Our Sweet Adeline is a precious gift and she brings such joy to our lives! Since I have been off work we have been all over doing fun things and enjoying evey minute of it! We have been to the zoo, to the Splash Park in the zoo, Papa Johns to feed the ducks, Bowman Field to watch the airplanes, swimming in her pool in the backyard, the pet store to watch the fish, Jason's softball games (she loves being outside) and more. We are having a blast this summer, I just wish it was not so hot (and the secadas would leave)! Here are some recent pictures of our adventures. How sweet is that face?!?!?! I love those cheeks. She loves the water, I think she would stay out there all day if I let her.
She was watching Clifford and reading a Clifford book. Clifford is coming close to being her new favorite character.
Sleepy, time for bed!
Papa John's Corporate office on Blankenbaker. It is such a nice place to feed the ducks. Addie likes to explore (as long as mommy and daddy are close by).

Feeding the ducks.

One of the ducks nipped at her fingers and this was her response (after the crying stopped). It was hysterical! No more bread for the ducks.

We bought this pool toy at a garage sale for $.25. She liked it so much that it was a required bath toy that night.
What fun we are having with our sweet girl! We hope that everyone is doing well and enjoying everyday.

"Command those who are rich in this present world not the be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth , which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment."

1 Timothy 6:17

I do NOT like bugs!!!!

2008-06-01T20:35:00.003-04:00

I know this is a random post but really all of these bugs are different and they are all in our back yard. This was by far the biggest moth I have ever seen (there was another one on the ground). What in the world is going on?!?!?! We were playing outside and came in because the secadas were literally falling out of the trees. I have never seen so many bugs in my life. There are so many secadas that I can hear them from inside our house. These guys were on the side of our garage (how disgusting!). Jason was mowing the grass this afternoon and I looked out the window to see him swatting the secadas away from him (I could see them swarming around. Jason assures me that they will not be around for long but until they are gone we will be playing inside or somewhere else!

I am not a fan of any kind of bug but this is tooooo much! I suppose we will be headed for some indoor activities this week!

Spring Dresses

2008-05-24T21:09:00.006-04:00

I love all the adorable dresses that there are for little girls! We did not put Addie in dresses when she was a baby (except for Easter and Baby Dedication) because I just did not think they would be very comfortable. We stuck to the cotton dresses that were not very frilly. Now that she can walk, we put her in a dress every Sunday for church. Here are a couple of my favorites. She is sooo happy, she cracks us up! This next picture was taken while we were trying to take her picture in one of her dresses. I took it off so it would not get wet and dirty - this is what happened next.... Lovely outfit, don't you think?!?!?!
Addie is into doing her own hair! She has a Dora headband that she puts on all by herself! Isn't it lovely!
I think this stroller is a little to small! But it is okay, I have my headband on.
We are all about the zoo. We have a zoo pass (thank you Aunt Bev) and we go all the time. We have been to the zoo three times this week (Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday). I know it sounds crazy but Addie loves every minute of it. She asks me all the time, "animals mommy animals". Since it is free (minus the initial cost) we are taking advantage of it. Today we experienced the water park at the zoo and Addie did suprisingly well. It was very crowded and kids were everywhere but she still had fun. The next few pictures are of Addie at the zoo earlier this week. We went with my nephew Jeffrey and my mom. We had a great time.

She was exhausted at this point! But yet, she still wants to walk. She walks pretty much the whole way around the zoo.

Addie is so much fun! We are so blessed to have her apart of our lives. What a joy! Have a great LONG weekend!

Off to the dentist...

2008-05-13T13:06:00.004-04:00

Poor Addie has had a rough couple of weeks and this one did not start off much better! Yesterday, she slipped on the hard wood floors and landed right on her face :-( She was very upset for a long time (we had to watch Clifford again!). When she fell she bumped her chin, mouth and tooth. Her lip was bleeding and she chipped her front tooth. I did not even realize her tooth was chipped until Jason pointed it out to me (I felt terrible). So we headed off to the dentist this morning for x-rays. I must say I was very thankful because Addie was a real trooper. We had to hold her down but it was not as bad as taking her to the doctor (she starts crying when we pull into the parking lot saying "bye bye mommy bye bye". She did not fracture the root, which is a blessing but there is still a possibility of infection. So we will be keeping an eye on that tooth for awhile. Here are a few pictures of her traumatic experience.

For any of you out there looking for a dentist ours is great! I would highly recommend her to anyone. She talks very sweet and sang to Addie the entire time she was looking in her mouth (trying to calm her down). It helped alot and they were very understanding of toddlers. Her name is Heidi Yang, pediatric dentist and her office is off of Herr Lane - right next to Ballard High School.

Wonderful Husband...

2008-05-12T12:59:00.003-04:00

Okay, I have a little bragging to do on my husband. He made me feel extra special this past weekend. I came home Friday from work to balloons and flowers all over the house. Each vase of flowers had sweet messages attached. Jason let Addie pick out balloons with him and she of couse picked out a Happy Birthday Dora balloon (Friday was my birthday). On Mother's Day, he let me sleep in and then he made a wonderful breakfast (all by himself) and he cleaned it up. Then he gave me pearl earrings with a matching necklace, along with a card decorated by Addie. We went to my moms and he was in charge of making the vegetables for my family (14 of us). He made green bean casserole and corn on the cob (both were very tasty). I was impressed (he is not usually into cooking).

I am very thankful to have a husband that would go so far out of his way to make this past weekend so special. I am so blessed to have such a wonderful family!

I hope all of you had a special day too!

Addie update: she is feeling much better but she is still fussy. She has had a virus since last Tuesday running a fever that hit 104 several days in a row. It was pretty scary but the doctor assured us that she was okay. We spent a lot of time taking baths and watching Clifford - her new favorite cartoon. At one point, she had a very high fever and we needed to put her in the bath but she was so fussy all she wanted to do was watch Clifford. We have a smaller TV out in the garage so Jason brought it inside and she literally watched Clifford while she was taking a bath. It was quite entertaining but it worked.

I am down to 5 working days left! Yeah! I am still not sure about next year but hopefully I will hear something soon. Have a great week.

Happy Mother's Day!

2008-05-08T23:22:00.002-04:00

I realize that Mother's Day is still several days away but I just wanted to wish all of you a wonderful day. May all of the mother's out there find peace and quiet, relaxation and sleep. However, I understand that is not usually possible. But what a blessing we all have in our wonderful children, what a gift from God! Enjoy the one day set aside to celebrate what we love, our job as a mom. Happy Mother's Day!

The Countdown begins...

2008-05-02T13:28:00.008-04:00

There are only three weeks left until summer break!!!! Which equals to 7 working days for me :-). I am so excited. I have not decided what we are going to do all summer long but I am sure we will stay busy. Addie loves the Zoo and the pet store so I am sure we will spend a lot of time at both of those places. We have been very busy so I have not posted anything in a while but I have tons of pictures. These next few pictures are of Addie while we were at the Zoo. Her favorite animal is the giraffe (at least for today, who knows what tomorrow will bring).

We got Addie a sand and water table (that she loves). This is a great outside toy, I would recommend it to anyone with little kids. She loves to splash, pour, and spill the water everywhere. I am looking forward to warm summer days so she can play with it even more.

We were given this adorable playhouse by one of my good friends (thanks Geralyn!) As you can see, Addie loves this too. Basically, anything outside she loves.
Addie is playing hide and go seek from the dog, yes I said dog! She hides from the dog on a regular basis. The funny thing is that he will actually try to find her! These next few pictures are of us at The Great Balloon Tour at E.P. Tom Sawyer State Park. I am not quite sure why she has her fingers in her ears! I think these next few pictures are adorable. She is sooo much fun . I don't even remember what I did for entertainment before she came along!

Well, sorry for all the pictures, it is too hard to pick only a few. Addie is doing great and she is talking up a storm now a days. She can actually say 4 word phrases, which is hysterical. She will repeat just about everything. She handed me a toy and said "here you go, mommy". She can count to ten, I did not even know she could do this. She was playing hide and go seek and just started counting, I was amazed. She has brought tons of joy to our family and we are so thankful for her. What a gift from God!

I am still not sure about my job situation for next year so please keep praying that I will be where God wants me to be. Thanks and hope to see everyone soon. Happy Derby!

Wet Pants...

2008-04-19T09:46:00.006-04:00

I received this adorable email from my mom and thought I would share it with all of you. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
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Come with me to a third grade classroom..... There is a nine-year-old kid sitting at his desk and all of a sudden, there is a puddle between his feet and the front of his pants are wet. He thinks his heart is going to stop because he cannot possibly imagine how this has happened. It's never happened before, and he knows that when the boys find out he will never hear the end of it. When the girls find out, they'll never speak to him again as long as he lives.

The boy believes his heart is going to stop; he puts his head down and prays this prayer, 'Dear God, this is an emergency! I need help now! Five minutes from now I'm dead meat.'

He looks up from his prayer and here comes the teacher with a look in her eyes that says he has been discovered.

As the teacher is walking toward him, a classmate named Susie is carrying a goldfish bowl that is filled with water. Susie trips in front of the teacher and inexplicably dumps the bowl of water in the boy's lap.

The boy pretends to be angry, but all the while is saying to himself, 'Thank you, Lord! Thank you, Lord!'

Now all of a sudden, instead of being the object of ridicule, the boy is the object of sympathy. The teacher rushes him downstairs and gives him gym shorts to put on while his pants dry out. All the other children are on their hands and knees cleaning up around his desk. The sympathy is wonderful. But as life would have it, the ridicule that should have been his has been transferred to someone else - Susie.

She tries to help, but they tell her to get out. You've done enough, you klutz!'

Finally, at the end of the day, as they are waiting for the bus, the boy walks over to Susie and whispers, 'You did that on purpose, didn't you?' Susie whispers back, 'I wet my pants once too.'

May God help us see the opportunities that are always around us to do good...

Remember.....Just going to church doesn't make you a Christian any more than standing in your garage makes you a car.

Each and everyone one of us is going through tough times right now, but God is getting ready to bless you in a way that only He can. Keep the faith.

This prayer is powerful, and prayer is one of the best gifts we receive. There is no cost but a lot of rewards. Let's continue to pray for one another.

The Prayer:

Father, I ask You to bless my friends, relatives and those that I care deeply for, who are reading this right now. Show them a new revelation of Your love and power. Holy Spirit, I ask You to minister to their spirit at this very moment. Where there is pain, give them Your peace and mercy. Where there is self-doubt, release a renewed confidence through Your grace. Where there is need, I ask you to fulfill their needs. Bless their homes, families, finances, their goings and their comings. Amen.

Oprah

2008-04-17T21:22:00.006-04:00

Okay so I have decided to copy a friends blog because I thought the message was so important that I wanted as many people to hear/see it as possible. The message is about Oprah and her new so called 'Religion'. Please take the time to read the entire blog and to watch the video at the end. I hope you will take it to heart and band Oprah from your T.V. too.

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2 Timothy 4:3-4
For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.

No, I'm not saying goodbye to blogging, nor am I dying of an incurable disease (not that I know about!). I'm saying goodbye to Oprah. Sound weird? Well, her recent political ties only hurt my opinion of her, but recently she's been focusing tons of her time on the new book "A New Earth". Not only is she pushing the book, but she's doing e-classes on it with the books author, Eckhart Tolle. I see this as one of the biggest dangers in our society today, especially with women who think of Oprah as someone who can do no wrong.I think it's about time for Christians to stop turning a deaf ear to what Oprah says. I think it's time to turn off the TV. I'm not saying ALL TV (although I'm sure that's a good idea). I'm mainly talking about the Oprah show itself, but even Oprah's Big Give. I have a feeling that Christian stay at home moms make up over 50% of her viewing audience. If we would stand up for what we believe in we would have a HUGE impact on her market. We ARE her market! Watch this and see what you think. It's pretty incredible!
http://youtube.com/watch?v=JW4LLwkgmqA

Spring Break Fun!!!

2008-04-14T07:45:00.007-04:00

We had a very busy week! We went to the Zoo, my sister and her son spent the night at our house one evening, we went to the park, we also went to Bass Pro Shop (Addie loves fish), my dad came in town and he stayed for three days and because I was off all week Jason was able to be home on Saturday. We had so much fun, I am bummed that it is over!

On Tuesday, over Spring Break, I was able to take Addie to the Zoo with some friends from work. She loved all the animals and unlike last year (every animal was a dog) she was able to name a few of them (correctly). These next few pictures are of Addie showing off her dance moves to her favorite Elmo song "Down, Down Baby" (yes, we were at the Zoo!). I wish I had the video camera. Addie is playing on the playground at the Zoo. She went down this slide all by herself!Addie loves to be on the computer and push all the buttons. She thinks she is a 'Big Girl'.
The other thing we started this past week was potty training. The first day was great! She went potty every time I put her on it (I never imagined being excited about this, but I was!). The next day she refused to sit on it and would cry every time I put her on the potty, so I finally stopped asking her. Then last night she showed some interest again and she started using the potty. I am hoping that this continues but we shall see. I know she is able to do it (she has been showing signs for a while) but Addie has always been on her own time schedule, I sure hope the time is now!

We also bought Addie a Betta. She loves fish and so we thought this would be fun for her. His name is Fish and sometimes Red. :-) How creative, but this is what Addie calls him so that is what we are going with. Here is a picture of her new fish that she picked out.

I hope eveyone has a great week.

Hide and Seek

2008-03-28T19:22:00.002-04:00

"Oh no, I can't find Addie." She is such a great hider!"Oh, there she is." I had a hard time finding her this time! :-) She was so proud of her hiding spot.
Hide and seek is her new favorite game!

Easter Egg Hunt...

2008-03-26T20:00:00.003-04:00

I know I just posted earlier today (during Addie's nap) but Jason made this video today that I want to share. I hope you enjoy! I love it! This is her first Easter Egg Hunt, last year she was not even crawling yet. My goodness, how life changes in just a year.

Happy Easter!!!!

2008-03-26T13:18:00.008-04:00

Addie had a great time going through her Easter Basket to see all the fun stuff the Easter Bunny brought her. In this picture she is holding a Dora coloring book and paint to go with it. In the picture below she is looking at a new Veggie Tales CD, she loves Bob and Larry!

This is a picture of Addie with her Great-Grandpa Del, Kaitlyn (her cousin) and Copper.She loves to wear mommy's shoes!
Our little Piano Prodigy!
I hope all of you had a wonderful Easter. We had a great time, Addie really enjoyed the Easter Egg Hunt. Jason and I went to the Easter Pageant at Southeast Christian Church last night, what a great performance. They changed it this year with new music and scenes but it was very moving. I am so thankful for a forgiving and loving God! What a blessing! Please keep praying for my job situation next year, I have a few possibilities but I am not sure what the best option is for our family. Thanks. Happy Wednesday!

Can you believe this weather?!?!

2008-03-08T09:26:00.007-05:00

I have been slacking on our blog but I guess better late than never. We have been very busy lately with work and taking care of Addie. Addie is hilarious and comes up with something new every day. One of her favorite things to do is play outside and with the decent weather we had last week, we were able to take her outside. She loved it. Take a look at these crazy pictures, this is what it looked like when we got up this morning. If you look at the pictures closely, they are not blurry, it is actually snow still coming down! I think we will be staying inside today. One extreme to the other, last week it was in the sixties and we played outside without even a jacket! Here are a few pictures of Addie enjoying the nice weather. Addie loves to take as many bows as possible and put them in her hair. Here a few pictures of her new favorite pass time, especially when we are stuck inside. I hope everyone is doing well. I would like to ask all of you for a favor. My job situation is up in the air for next year and I would like to ask you to say a prayer that God will direct me to the place that is best for me and my family. I am trying not to stress about it because I know it will happen sooner or later, I am just hoping I know something soon. I will keep you posted and thanks for the prayers. Stay warm.

Thank You Great-Grandma Rose!

2008-02-14T20:12:00.012-05:00

I bought this little chair at a garage sale this past fall and just thought it was adorable (except that it needed to be cleaned). Once I brought it home and the more I thought about it I really wanted it recovered so I asked my grandma (Addie's great-grandma) and she was thrilled! My grandma has been wallpappering, recovering furniture and fixing things since before I was born, she loves that kind of stuff. She did a great job on the chair and Addie loves it. She especially likes sitting in her chair and watching Elmo. How cute is this! Thanks grandma.These next few pictures are of Addie and her first few times playing in the snow. We took her out Tuesday and Wednesday and she loved it. She also threw a ridiculous fit when we had to come inside.

I think this next picture is just cute!
I am not sure what she is doing in this picture, but it is pretty funny. My mom got her the backpack for Christmas and she loves playing with it. There is never a dull moment around our house anymore. Addie is very entertaining and always doing something funny

(sometimes not so funny).

I took Addie to the doctor for her 18 month check-up on Tuesday and it was a complete disaster. She can not stand anyone, she does not know, to invade her personal space (again, that must come from her dad). She, literally, buried her face into my shoulder and would not even talk to the doctor. She would not even play with the doctors toys, it was crazy. I had to hold her down for everything, she even cried when I put her on the scale to be weighed. I knew it was potential for disaster but I was not prepared for that. However, she is progressing developmentally and physically very well. She weighed 23 pounds which puts her in the 35th percentile and she was 33 inches long which puts her in the 95th percentile (not quite sure who she gets that from). Over all she is doing well and officially out of the baby stage, it is sad to say that my baby is a toddler! Everyday is new and exciting and we love her so much!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Elmo!?!?!

2008-02-07T21:10:00.001-05:00

Last Friday, we got a call from my sister, she told us that Elmo was going to make an apperance at Barnes & Noble. So Jason and I thought it would be hilarious for Addie to get to meet the big red monster! Once I got off work we grabbed a bite to eat and headed to Barnes & Noble, we were very excited (you know that life has changed when you get excited to meet Elmo on a Friday night!). We wait and wait and wait and wait and wait some more. A lady came out and read Elmo books and read and read and read! By this point Addie was going a little stir crazy, she can only sit for so long. After about an hour another parent asks where Elmo was and Elmo was a no show. Apparently all of us crazy parents read the ad wrong and he was not coming. One mom told her little boy that Elmo was in a car accident (can you imagine telling that to a 3 year old, how odd is that?) We were just thankful that Addie had no idea what was really going on so she was not disappointed. This is a picture of Addie waiting for Elmo! When it was all said and done she at least got an Elmo coloring book that she loves. Elmo is her favorite and she can even sing the 'Elmo's World' theme song, it is hilarious.

These are just a few pictures that we have taken lately that I think are adorable.
In this picture, I had taken the cushions off of the couch and she was jumping all over the place, she loved it!
For Christmas, Santa brought Addie a play kitchen and for some reason she loves chewing on the celery stick.
Addie's hair is just getting long enough to put up in a ponytail. She was a little unsure about me doing something different to her hair but now she likes it and will check her hair out in the mirror.

She is at such a fun age, it seems like she does something new every day. I am so excited because Addie's OT is starting to finally decrease her sessions. Please pray that Addie adjusts to the changes and continues to progress and eat well. She has had such wonderful improvements, I am so thankful!

18 Months Old!!!!

2008-02-02T13:18:00.001-05:00

I can not believe that my baby is a year and a half old. Time flys! This past year and a half has been so much fun with our Sweet Adeline.

Here are a few pictures to recap the last 18 months of our bundle of joy! God is so good! What a blessing she is.

Addie was just two days old in this picture.

3 weeks old. How sweet is she?

This was her first time in the exercauser. She was almost 3 months.

This was her first Halloween. I don't think she much cared for the costume!

This picture was taken when Addie was 4 months old.

This was Addie's first Christmas. She was almost five months old. I love that face. she is sitting in her new Bumbo seat, she thought she was a big girl!

January 0f 2007. Addie was 5 months old and she still loves the Bumbo seat!

She loved her exercauser! She was six and a half months old in this picture.

This was Addie's first Easter. Look at those cheeks! She was 8 months old in this picture.

Addie was 11 months old. This was her first time at the zoo. She had a lot of fun and really liked the monkeys!

Happy first birthday!

15 months and she loves to be outside.

These two pictures are Addie's first time to Newport Aquarium. She loved it! 15 months old.

Addie was 16 months old. Her second Christmas.

17 months old

18 months old. She has changed so much! I love that smile, she will even say "cheese" when I pull out the camera.

Thank you to eveyone who actully looked at every picture! We love showing her off. Everyone has been so great in helping us with Addie and all of the advice has been wonderful. Jason and I are so blessed to have such a wonderful group of family and friends. We hope you are all doing well. God bless!

Wild Sleeping!

2008-01-28T14:09:00.000-05:00

I am a very paranoid mom (imagine that)! I used mesh bumpers for Addie's crib to prevent SIDS, but I finally decided to put the cute one in her crib since that risk is pretty much gone. The following pictures show what she thought about the new bumpers! There was no sleeping during this nap.

She threw everything out of her crib!

She finally gave in to the idea of sleeping with the new bumper!

10 Years!!!!

2008-01-19T13:27:00.000-05:00

The Lord God said, "It is not good for man to be alone, I will make a helper suitable for him."
Genesis 1:18

Okay, so most of you know that Jason and I did not get married in January. However, we started dating on January 19, 1998! We were Sophomores in high school at Christian Academy. I can't believe that we have been together for ten years. How time flys and changes. We have come so far and we have both changed a lot in the process. I must say life is never boring when Jason is around, he is always doing something crazy (some things never change). I am very blessed that God put the two of us together. We are very different but we work well together.

My sister has aggreed to watch Addie for us, so we are actually going out on a date tonight! This does not happen very often, we ususally decide to just take Addie with us.

I hope everyone is doing well and that you enjoy your weekend.

This picture was taken in November 2006.

Bottle Free!

2008-01-14T13:27:00.000-05:00

I am pleased to announce that Addie is officially off the bottle. Jason and I got the okay from Addie's Occupational Therapist to start weaning her off right before Christmas. She was finally getting enough nutrition from table food to sustain her weight. We decided to wait until after Christmas because we did not want to make any more changes than necessary (she does not deal well with change, she must get that from her daddy) so we waited until after the New Year. I am so glad I do not have to wash bottles anymore!

Our next bit of exciting news, Addie is doing so well eating table food that her O.T. is going to start decreasing her sessions. What a blessing! I have been so worried about our Sweet Adeline. I need to work on worrying less and relying on God more! His plan ALWAYS work out better than mine.

These are a few pictures of Addie playing outside, it is her favorite thing to do. She would play outside all day if let her.

I finally gave in...

2008-01-03T22:08:00.000-05:00

I have been slacking on the whole blogging thing and I finally caved! I am, however, pretty excited about it because Jason and I have a lot of out of town family who we think will really enjoy this. Jason started a blog when Addie was first born but only posted a few times, hopefully I will be more diligent!

Addie is our pride and joy and this Christmas was wonderful. It was so exciting watching her open all of her gifts and the big smiles that followed. I believe that I was more excited about it than she was. Her first gift was a toy vacuum cleaner (she loves pushing things around). She did not want to open anything after that, she held the vacuum cleaner with one hand and opened other gifts with the other. She has changed my whole perspective on Christmas and life. She is such a blessing that is impossible to describe.