The news is finally out!

Well, our big news was made official Sunday and Monday. We announced to everyone that we are in fact expecting our 3rd and LAST baby! I am thrilled, but must admit a little scared as well. As a mom of two very active little boys it is a little overwhelming to think about being outnumbered in the near future. I have no strong feelings either way on the sex of this baby. Most everyone we tell automatically assumes that we had to "try for that girl". Simply not the case. I had always said that I wanted three children. It does not matter one bit whether this is another little boy or a little girl. Sometimes I think that I would not know how to handle a little girl or know what to do with one. Boys are my comfort zone. They are familiar and I love everything about them!

Speaking of the boys, it has been so fun to see the pregnancy through their eyes. Since Lawson in 4 1/2 he really thinks about things and has begun asking a lot of questions. Sweet questions. He told us for a several months that he did not want a new baby at our house. Well, only if it could be our cousin Tucker but I think his mom and dad intend on keeping him for a while. :-) I finally explained to Lawson and Jagger that it was really too late--that the baby was already safe in mommy's tummy and was ours to keep. Lawson being rather insightful at times asked if that was the reason I had been so sick and I told him that, "Yes, sometimes when babies are in mommies' tummies they make the mommy sick." He doesn't like the baby for that. He is rather protective of me and has realized that this baby is the cause of my feeling bad. We quickly changed the subject and he wanted to know how the baby would get out. How thankful am I that I have always had C-sections and could easily explain that the doctor will take the baby out at the hospital! Later Lawson informed me that he guessed he would like to have a baby brother so he could play baseball with him. I tried to explain that the baby would be very small and unable to play for a while. He told me in his "Duh Mom" voice, "But MOM...the baby will GROW!" How foolish I was to believe that my new baby would stay a baby forever. Ha. Later he had changed his mind again saying he just wanted a boy AND a girl. I quickly told him he could only have one and he said that Ms. Becky has a boy and a girl and we should have one too. It is so interesting to see things from their eyes.

The look of wonder and amazement in Jagger's eyes and face when he tries to wrap his mind around the fact that there is a baby in mommy's belly always amuses me. He can't figure out why he can't actually see the baby yet. The other day he told me he wanted to "pet" the baby. I told him the baby was still inside and had to stay there and grow. He said, "I'll be real gentle!" Sweet boy!

I can't wait to see what this journey holds for all of us, but especially them. This should be an interesting 6 more months!

Until next time...

One step forward, two steps back

We were so thrilled with the closing of our house! Then we got the call... The lady that bought our house was threatening to sue us for misrepresentation of the home. I was devastated! I could not believe this. What could we have possibly "misrepresented"??? Turns out the fridge that we sold with the house was not working. We had NO idea! We used the fridge right up until the day we moved out. When we moved out we unplugged it and later came back and gave it a good cleaning but never dreamed it wouldn't work when plugged back in. To make matters worse the buyer was complaining about little cosmetic things that we never tried to cover up. Chipped paint on one small spot in the living room, a piece of wallpaper that was coming unglued in the bedroom, a storm door that didn't catch exactly right when shut. All of these things were in plain view when you walk into the house and on top of that, she had done a final walk through and signed off on it! We decided that we did need to make the fridge problem right. We never meant to leave her with a fridge that didn't work. After calling a repairman he suggested we buy a new fridge as it had a freon leak and those can be hard to repair. So, Thursday afternoon my dad and I set out to find the cheapest side by side white fridge we could find. Let me tell you, those are not as easy to come by as it may sound! It this age of stainless steel, white was hard to find! We finally found one, ended up paying WAY more than we anticipated but wanted to make her happy and fix the wrong we had unknowingly done.

In the process of all of this, I came down with a migraine AND stomach virus! As the title says...one step forward, two steps back. Guess that is just the way life goes. I realized the next morning how very lucky I am that I have my mom here in town. She came over, took care of my kids and took care of me (in only the way a mother can) until Brandon got home from work.

I get so overwhelmed with my "problems" at times that I overlook the many blessings. Today, after the dust is settled and a brand new fridge has been delivered (and delivered us from a law suit) I can see how blessed I am. You see, I have a wonderful family, a more than comfortable home, a great job, means to pay my bills and a husband that loves me unconditionally. What more could I ask for?? In the grand scheme of things, the issues I dealt with last week were nothing compared to some of the things others deal with on a daily basis. Makes me ashamed of myself how I can get so self-involved. I wish I was better able to realize that in the midst of what is happening rather than looking back on it. That is one lesson that is hard for me to learn.

A verse that is very close to my heart lately (preached to me over and over by a very good and dear friend) is Phil 4:5-7. It says "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." He truly does listen and hear us. Our time lines may not always be the same as His, but He always provides for us and gives us what is best.

Today I am thankful for family. For a husband that takes care of me like a child when I am sick, for a mom that comes over to take care of me until my husband can get home, and for two little boys that stopped every few minutes to ask "Mommy are you feeling better now?"

Family catch-up

Perhaps our biggest news right now is that we just closed on our house!! It had been for sale since last March and we had been making two mortgages since this past September. Man is that a relief!! We had prayed so much about it and I think both Brandon and I had faith that it would eventually sell; however, we were beginning to question just how long we were going to have to wait on it. The story of selling our house is a long one and I'll spare you all the boring details, but basically we had a contract on the house since this past October but due to different reasons with the buyer's loan restrictions, something always stood in the way of that closing date. Well, no more! We signed the papers Tuesday and no longer own two houses (and two mortgages!). We feel very blessed to be in our new home which we moved in to back in September. We had to do some work to the old house before it sold and each time we went back Lawson would inform us that he did not want to go back to his old house--he liked his new one.

Lawson is now four and just seems he gets smarter and sweeter every day. He is now going to pre-school two days a week and has just blown me away with all that he has learned already. He makes me smile daily and while he's never been the most affectionate child, that is certainly changing--especially when it comes to me and his dad. I've struggled with Lawson at times as he is a very strong willed child and a very loud child. :) We work on things daily and I've learned that the things that I think are so bad at the time turn out to not be as big a deal as I make them be at times. Lawson is shaping up to be a very good and protective big brother. It certainly was not always like that. Matter of fact, it is just recently that they have begun to peacefully co-exist. :) But we are learning manners and that a "please" will get you much farther than screaming will! Actually screaming gets you nowhere in our house but time out.

Jagger is two and hates it every day Lawson goes to pre-school. Sometimes I think it's just because he has no one to pester. He seems to be the typical little brother--does anything he can to get a rise out of his big brother. Jagger is fearless! I cannot think of one thing that he is afraid of. Animals? Certainly not! Heights? Certainly not! The number one? Maybe. He knows when I start to count that if I make it to three he's in big trouble so he usually shapes up pretty quickly after the number one. Ha. We have three short term goals for Jagger. Two have already been accomplished. The first was to get him out of the crib and into a "big boy bed". We decided the transition might be a little easier if we put one full bed in the boys' room and let them share. The first two nights they were so excited and we heard talking and giggling up until around 11:00, I think. However, each following night gets a little easier. And they are closer because of it. The second goal was to get rid of the passy. Mom took the boys to Greenfield for the night last weekend and they only had one passy and it got lost. Tough way to break him I suppose but it worked. He did ask for it last night as he climbed into bed but when I reminded him it was lost he laughed and said "Oh, yeah." We are now one day away from being a whole week without the beloved "passy". Our third goal is the potty. Seems like our Mount Everest. Lawson was TOUGH to train so I'm preparing for the worst again. Jagger is already making some strides but is nowhere consistent. We're still working, though and won't give up until our goal is met.

Brandon and I are doing very well. I feel that he deserves a post all to himself, though so maybe tomorrow.

Until next time...

Thought I'd give it a try...

For many months now I have viewed and read others' blogs. They always have an effect on me. It is such a privilage to be invited into someone's life. So many families are separated by many miles and this avenue has been such a blessing for me to keep up with so many that are so far away. The posts bring laughter, sadness, happiness, moments where I am truly uplifted and encouraged. I admire those that blog about spiritual things. There is always some insightful story that really makes me think or re-evaluate the way I think or do things. I feel like I often stay in a state of re-evaluation--constantly questioning whether I am doing things as I should? Am I raising my children in a way that will lead them through a life of happiness and then on to an eternal life with Christ?

As a mother of two very special, but very active little boys I question just about every decision I make when it comes to them (I can hear the "Amens" from all of you that know me all too well! :)). If you know me at all, you know that my boys are my life! I agonize over every decision that I make with regard to them. I agonize over each time they get into trouble. Was it something I did or didn't do that caused them to behave inappropriately? Now keep in mind they are 4 and 2! I am just a worrier by nature. I have to tell myself daily that if they don't make the insignificant mistakes that ultimately turn out to be learning opportunities then how can I teach them to avoid the "biggies" in the future and how to handle mistakes that they will inevitabley make in the future. Just a side note as I am thinking about mistakes, children, forgiveness, etc. : I don't think I fully understood forgiveness until I had children. I always thought I understood, but realized that I didn't grasp the vastness of it until I had children of my own. You see, I started thinking one day about them growing to be young men (something I try to avoid! Ha!) knowing that there will be mistakes and disappointments. I know without a doubt that there is NOTHING and I mean NOTHING that they could do that I couldn't forgive them for when they realized what they had done. I would take them right back in and love them all the more. If it were something that they continued to struggle with I would always love them and pray for their hearts to be right and pray that they would soon have a change of heart. You see, mistakes cannot take away a mother's love. I think that our Father in Heaven is even more like that than I can imagine. He forgives us each and every time we say we are sorry and loves us even more when we confess to Him and repent. He also never gives up on us and longs for our change of heart when we are in the wrong. He always waits for us to come home to Him as we live our lives full of sin. I think being a mom has helped me to understand that better and also to really let go of the daily downfalls I make after I've asked for forgiveness. I can now realize that He truly forgives and doesn't want to dwell on the imperfectness that I display at times.

If you read very many of my posts you will soon learn that I am very scatterbrained and I feel confident that that will more than rear it's ugly head in my postings. I will probably skip from one topic to another and these may not make any sense at all! I promise I'll try to keep my ramblings to a minimum and not waste anyone's time! :)

I don't know, yet, the true purpose of my new "blog". I don't know if it will be my therapy, a way to stay connected to family and friends, an attempt to uplift or just share funny, happy, or sad moments that our family is dealing with at the time. I feel quite certain that all of those elements will pop up from time to time. I would say it will deal largely with me and what is on my heart that day. 

You know, time with little ones goes by so very quickly. I think this may be my effort to journal some of those things that I think now I'll never forget but know all too well that one day will be wondering, "Now what happened with that, again?" It's happened to me already! I am not a very faithful scrapbooker. I vowed to make each child a scrapbook for at least the first year. Lawson's was completed I think the day before he turned 1. Ha. Jagger is another story...I think I am on month three (where I have been for the last year and a half) and he is now 2!! I keep promising to get better. One day I'll get there.

I'll try to post a family update tomorrow. I know this first entry didn't give much insight on our family and all that is going on with us. Moderation, you know!

'Till next time...