Happy 2nd Birthday Owen!

Our little guy turns TWO today.  

Where is the time going? 

Its so hard to believe that two years ago Owen and I were going through so much medically.  I remember being so scared of all that we were dealing with. I will never forget the feeling at 8:19am Feb. 23rd 2009...the minute he was born I felt such a huge relief, not just because I no longer had a 9 pound 3 oz baby out of me...but that God had brought us through all of the medical scares and blessed our family with a MIRACLE.  

He almost always has a smile on his face. 

Owen enjoyed the big picture window at our house in Utah.  He loved to look outside and keep and "eye" on the neighborhood. 

Over the past year Owen has formed his own opinions...likes & dislikes. 

His favorite Toy Story! He loves Buzz

Loves being outside

loved the trampoline! 

My favorite picture. 

Owen cuddling with Daddy...and Buzz. 

Rotten! Sweet tooth boy! 

Happy Birthday sweet baby! 

We love you. 

Moving on...

I feel very blessed for the adventures that our little family has been able to do in the past five to six years.  The one of many things that it has brought us has been great friends.  While in Iowa we met the Fife family.  If you remember over a year ago Dena donated her kidney to her Mother, which was truly an inspiration to me.  I am happy to report that both Dena and her Mom are doing very well.   Yesterday, I was reading Dena's blog and she had a very interesting quote that really hits home at this moment and I wanted to share.  

"Letting go doesn't mean giving up... it means moving on. It is one of the hardest things a person can do. Starting at birth, we grasp on to anything we can get our hands on, and hold on as if we will cease to exist when we let go. We feel that letting go is giving up, quitting, and that as we all know is cowardly. But as we grow older we are forced to change our way of thinking. We are forced to realize that letting go means accepting things that cannot be. It means maturing and moving on, no matter how hard you have to fight yourself to do so." - Unknown

My first 5k

Warning: LOTS OF PHOTOS! 

At the Start line...Fitness & Fashion 5k!

On Sunday I participated in my first 5k with my mother in law, sister in law, 2 adorable nieces and even Carter joined in on the fun.  It was great for all of us to be able to join in together on the fun. 

I enjoyed the time catching up with Amanda. At the beginning of the race we got a little silly 

stretching...I think we may have embarrassed Brooke & Khadijha..or maybe it was Mom we were 

embarrassing; nevertheless, we had a great time together. 

Finish Line...we did it!

Carter with Mommy at the end of the race.  He hated and cried the first half of the race. 

I am looking forward to more races this year with the girls! 

It was a great day. 

Camping out...

So it maybe too cold to camp outside but the boys in our house sure are "itching" to get outside now that the snow is melted.  Last night we had a campout....in door style.  The boys LOVED it.

#1 Daddy Award for setting up everything

Sick boys..still play!

The boys were sick what felt like the entire month of January.   

One night we pulled out the sleeper on our chair and draped blankets over the bed. 

The boys enjoyed their fort. 

Even though they were sick they LOVED being able to play in a new place, even 

Carter enjoyed crawling in. 

Owen & Carter

Owen and Carter are little buddies.  We are probably in for it with them being as close in age as they are, which is almost 16 months.   

Carter is pulling himself up all the time now on things.  Owen is not sure yet how he feels about his brother's new mobility.  Owen can be very rotten and mean at times but is very concerned for little Carter if he sees him standing up.  Other times Owen is encouraging Carter to clear out the side cabinets on the entertainment stand and crawl in there with him. 

Don't let evil get the best of you...

My good friend, Jenny in Arizona has been very blessed to meet a family that I wish we could have met as well.  I have admired Katie's photography as she is a very talented photographer/Mommy/wife.  

She had a post this morning that I read that well was a verse that I needed to be reminded of.   

Thanks Katie. 

17 Never pay back evil for evil to anyone. Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable. 18 Do your part to live in peace with everyone, as much as possible. 19 Dear friends, never avenge yourselves. Leave that to God. For it is written, "I will take vengeance; I will repay those who deserve it," says the Lord. 20 Instead, do what the Scriptures say: "If your enemies are hungry, feed them. If they are thirsty, give them something to drink, and they will be ashamed of what they have done to you." 21 Don't let evil get the best of you, but conquer evil by doing good.

Romans 12:17-21

Life and Death

Talking with your children about death is possibly one of the hardest things to explain.
 We welcomed Ollie, the cat to our family shortly after we made the move from Utah to Ohio. We were driving home from my cousin's calling hours in November and saw a sign for free kittens. So....we stopped. Jacob and Daddy got out of the car and met a very nice teenager who helped them choose a cat. Jacob picked "Ollie" immedaitaely as Daddy checked out all the other kittens to make sure Jacob was making a good decision....and he did! Ollie looked to be the healthiest and most playful cat. Now I can't exactly remember but Ollie had mink in...which meant his tail should have been bobbed...but it was not.

Ollie stayed outside and has been a very good cat...staying away from the road and staying close to home. Ollie loved any chance he got to jump in the house or car. I'm sure Grammy doesn't find it humours but during our Christmas celebration with the Ratcliff's at some point Ollie jumped in their car and ate ALL of the bread for their church communion that would take place later that night.

Well yesterday started out like every other morning....I was expecting the children I babysit to arrive. They arrived got settled in and their Mom left. Only for a few short minutes later for her to be screaming outside as she ran over Ollie. She kept saying "sorry" "he always ran away from the car" and he usually did. Could it be he wasn't expecting her or the ice covered drive...I'm not sure. Either way...accidents happen. Thankfully Andrew was home to help me.

So the hard part came last night. Carly, the little girl I watch knew that Mommy had an accident with a cat and it was Jacob's cat. So we knew that we had to tell the truth and couldn't say "he ran away" or any number of other excuses you would rather say then talk about death.

Last night Jacob gave us a great opportunity to start the conversation. He found a gift that was giving to me from my Grandpa. He wanted to know why he has never seen my Grandpa. Grandpa passed away before Jacob could really remember him. Jacob was about 7 months old. So...this lead us into the "life and death" conversation. Jacob seem to understand fairly well....perhaps Jacob and Daddy are on the same page of how to understand things...because it was sorta like..."like the batteries in my car and toys they die and we have to get new ones" and well...pretty much...rather than going any deeper explanation that's exactly right. So, we will get the boys another cat at some point ...probably later this summer...but for now it was a learning lesson for all of us.

Cookies

The boys have been enjoying baking. We recently got a great deal on some premade cookie dough, so that makes for a faster baking time. Jacob and Owen are very independant and want to do everything themselves. So in the pictures you can see the "tiny" cookies made for just them because in Jacob's words "we are just little boys" I missed the picture of the cookie they made for Daddy which took up almost the entire part of the empty section on the cookie sheet as seen in the picture. I love and feel so blessed that I am able to stay home with these little guys.

Having faith.....

Even when there was no reason for hope, Abraham kept hoping— believing that he would become the father of many nations. For God had said to him, “That’s how many descendants you will have!”. And Abraham’s faith did not weaken, even though, at about 100 years of age, he figured his body was as good as dead— and so was Sarah’s womb. Abraham never wavered in believing God’s promise.
In fact, his faith grew stronger, and in this he brought glory to God. He was fully convinced that God is able to do whatever he promises. And because of Abraham’s faith, God counted him as righteous. And when God counted him as righteous, it wasn’t just for Abraham’s benefit. It was recorded for our benefit, too, assuring us that God will also count us as righteous if we believe in him, the one who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead.
Romans 4: 18-24

This is one of those passages that really gives me hope- Abraham's circumstances seemed so impossible, but YET he had hope. I want that kind of faith- I want to believe that not only is God able to deliver his promises- but that He will fulfil all his promises.

It feels so weird to be so dependant on God- but yet it feels so right. I think I would be lying if I said I haven't always needed God so much. I have ALWAYS needed Him- I just didn't know it.

Looking back I can see how Gods hands worked- to bring me right to this point. While waiting hasn't been the easiest thing to do- I am learning where to place my faith. I am thankful for peace- and rest in His promises today while I wait for tomorrow.

I also wanted to share a song that has really says it all- if I could sing, this would be a song I'm singing. God has been showing me how much I need Him, if I fail to seek Him even one day I feel myself falling apart. I am really learning what it means when people say "God is my sustanence"- He is the true food that sustains me.

Your Love by Brandon Heath

8 years...

I am a few days late getting this posted but on Tuesday, February 15th marked 8 years ago that Andrew proposed to me.  The greatest day of  my life...as saying yes was the best thing I could have ever done.  

Things I love about my husband:

-He is the most  mood consistent person I know.  He is in the same cheerful mood 363 days a year.  The extra 2 days a year are reserved for the flu or strep or something, when his mood goes from cheerful to just regular.  

-He is smart and enterprising when it comes to all things business, and works hard at providing for us.  I don't take this for granted, although sometimes I feel like I don't tell him how much I appreciate this quality of his.  

-He is really really funny, and although he insists that I don't think he is as funny as I did when we were dating, I still do.  I'm just used to it.  

-His number one favorite thing to do is spend time with our children.  I do appreciate this every single day, because I know when he walks in that door at the end of his long hard day, he would probably prefer to "relax" .  The boys run to him when he gets home, each with their own toy or book they want Daddy to play with....and Daddy does!

-He makes me do things I would never do.  I am a big old stick-in-the-mud non-risk-taker, and he is the opposite.  I need his push.  He is so encouraging and supportive of me, and never critical, no matter what. 

 Happy Engagement Anniversary! 

We are back....

You may have noticed its been nearly a month since we last posted anything.  So where have we been......

SICK. 

Yes every one of us has been sick.  The boys have been sick with two different bugs in the month, perhaps they did not fully get over their first cold.  I have bleached and Lysoled everything but yet Andrew informs me he has a sore throat today.  The boys started out with just runny nose, congestion, cough stuff...seemed to get over that and then they got a sinus infection in their eyes. I had never heard of that before....but some mucinex and constant wiping the nose & eyes they finally seem to be feeling better.

So now I will try another approach...and just ask the germs to LEAVE our house. You are not welcome here.

Where is spring at...lets hope the warmer weather will bring us less germs.

Brothers

I was attempting to get a few photos for Valentines; however, the boys wouldn't cooperate.  Owen had to still sip on his morning milk.  Its like adults that need their morning coffee.  Jacob kept giving me goofy grins, and by the 5th picture they were all done.  So...maybe next year!

Our Valentines...