New Year

Our church decided to read our Bibles together and the church got Life journals for the congregation to challenge us to read our Bible daily, something I have always struggled with. I always say that is something that I am working on. I am encouraged by my husbands faithfulness in this area. So have picked up one of these Journals. You are suppose to read the reading for the day, which can be up to four chapters in Old and New testament and sometimes includes a Psalm as well. It has been nice reading before bed. Love is taking a theology-type class and does his readings and book work while I do my readings. After you read you are suppose to get the "notebook" and write down what God speaks to you from your reading, what stands out to you the most. Observation is next, write what you have observed, next is application and how you can apply this to your daily life and lastly, prayer. Pray. I haven't been doing the whole journal thing for the last two weeks, but I have been reading my Bible and retaining what I have been reading. I have also taken my prayer life to the next level. I feel that I have been slacking as a mother. I have been diligently praying for my children and their futures, each of them. It's been exciting to see God answering these little prayers, even about the childrens sleep!
Sorry this is so long, it's really for me to look back at as opposed to reading for others.

So as my prayer list is growing and my family becomes more open to prayer for one another, it gets more exciting to see how God is speaking. I have been challenged by Him to listen to Him more. I know our future is in His hands. I am so blessed to have my family!

The Lord has been laying on our hearts what is next for us and how do we get there. I feel change is coming, in our location, in our jobs and as our children grow, our parenting. I pray for guidance in all these areas and that Love and my relationship continues to grow and include God in every step, even when we stumble, His Grace Is Enough.

A few photos

Pickle with his new home made hat (my first one)
Love and Pickle having a moment.
Cousins meeting for the first time, how sweet.
The diaper cake for my sister's baby shower that Love made.
Notice the wet shirt of mine, all because Nuggets DR. can't put a diaper on properly! Thank you Dr. Kim. We still love her and all had a good chuckle. This was Nugget's two week check-up. 7lbs1oz! Wait to go!

Thanks giving

We have had a crazy past month...I am trying to catch up with the blogging. Nugget has been home for just over a month now. I know that Thanksgiving has gone, but we had an exciting week then. We found out that week that Pickle was cutting 4 top teeth all at once! To make the total up to 6!

That Wednesday he (Pickle) took his first steps, and they were towards his Daddy, which made it all the more sweet. We spent time with Loves family for a nice time, especially for the kids, the weekend before. And the crazy buzz of the Gracey family for Thanksgiving at my Aunt's house. Fun and loud, as usual. Turkey, stuffing, sweet potatoes, cranberries, cheesey mashed potatoes, baked brie, beer bread and Love made and brought Scottish Eggs, yum!

Sunday night Pickle decided that he wanted to walk more, so now at almost 15 months old, he is taking more steps, getting into everything, pulling things off shelves, loves to laugh at Bug and the cats playing. Pickle, we have also found out, is a lover of all animals. We have been trying to capture a photo of how he hugs the cats, practically lays on top of them, and they let him. It is quite the sight.

So we are thankful this year for a good job for Love and that I can stay home with the boys, be a part of Bug's PTA, watch Bug attend and enjoy learning different things (math, Spanish, music, memorizing scripture, playing the Wii), not have a car payment (which will probably change as we look for a mini van), and have loving family and friends that write letters, call on the phone, and those who we get to see often. Thank you for allowing us to be a part of your lives.

P.S. Bug asked me when we can visit the ocean again! And we love the candy ribbons Gma K made for us, I mean, the boys!

Third boy welcome!

Since I last blogged, we have a new addition to our family, Nugget. He is great, had no complications, both of us healthy from the get go. Even though my OB wanted me to get a flu shot, nothing bad happened during labor, except it was fast and furious, which is fine. All in all, we have our third boy! Beautiful and healthy. He came to us on Sunday November 8th at 11:22 am, during church, just like Pickle. We got to bring him home with us right away, even though he was 5 weeks early. What a blessing to us all.

Pickle's 1st Birthday!

What a blessing to have the First Birthday of my second son! We went to dinner for Italian and had a few gifts and a few family members, we didn't want such a to-do....Bug and I made cupcakes earlier when he got home from school and had a nice time doing so. I don't think the day even fazed Pickle....but we had a nice evening with family that ended with cupcakes and lots of hugs and kisses......He eats lots of foods that we give him (pnut butter and bananas seem to be the fav right now), crawls non-stop, is "cruising", and wanting to walk more and more each day, started drinking from a cup, and says lots of fun sounds, and even seems to whistle a bit when he gets really excited about things!

To my Pickle, my Bubba...I love you, my dear sweet boy!

Internet issues

I needed to post this mostly for myself so I don't forget, I haven't really kept a baby book for either one of my children, but would like to put something together in the near future with #3 on the way, no we still don't have any names picked out. Pickle got his first tooth in two days ago! What an exciting time, he started dancing and can wave "hello" and "good-bye". What a joy, I have been enjoying our time together alone, without anyone else around. It's been nice.

Yesterday a huge truck drove by our house and somehow cut our cable for t.v. cable and our internet, so I am over at my folks checking on things on facebook and email, for my sister and her family are making their way back state-side and will be coming into Chicago tonight. I have been thinking about just going out there to meet them at the airport, but we will see them next weekend and the week after. It has been just over two years since I have seen her and my brother-in-law. They celebrated thier 10th wedding anniversary this last July and had their first son in May (quite early, he was due in July). I am excited to meet Ezra Jude and hold the little guy, he weighs just over 9 lbs right now, born just under 4lbs. What a man already, he has survived heart surgery at one week old and the infection after the surgery. Can you tell I'm excited?! I don't have a clue where to go to meet them at the airport, so I'm trying to get in contact with their best friends and Pastors in Chicago. I do like the drive out there and it looks like I might make the drive by myself, if I go, with the kids! Love might like the mini break from the kids, but we still hate being away from one another. It's the way it is, we like each other. You know, some people like to have their "girl time" and "guys night out", but we would rather just have spend that time enjoying eachother, without kids maybe. We have been getting a little more of that with school nights we try to be really good about not getting Bug to bed late, actually, we have done great with that. It's nice and relaxing at about 8pm now a days!

I'm going to end for now, I seem to just be rambling...I love my family, everywhere.

Kindergarten

Bug started kindergarten last Thursday. Yep. I thought this year would be homeschooling/unschooling. This summer he asked about school, and I let him choose if he wanted to stay home or go to the school. He decided that he wanted to try out school...and with baby on the way and an almost 1 year old we thought it would be best. Bug and I are so much a like that we can jump on each other pretty easy to stir the pot more often than it should. But we also have a good time with each other, we know what makes the other laugh. But I must say that him being gone for some of the day is nice, I just have one child to look after for the time being and that will be our only "mommy and Pickle time" so I am taking advantage. I do miss Bug and try to find out what "special" classes he has for each day (art, music, p.e., you get the idea), usually he just telss me that they got tplay outside today! He talks about a few friends already and has gotten into trouble a couple of times, one for playing when he was suppose to be sitting and another for hurting a girl that was an accident.

So Bug's first day was my last day on a missions trip to Mexico with our church. I didn't really pay attention to that little detail until the day we were leaving, somehow I had it in my head that I was coming back the day before, so that bummed me out, leaving Love to send him off his first day and with G'pa to help. It was nice to know both of them wanted to be a part of Bug's first day! Very cute and my only request was pictures!

G'pa walking over the bridge with Bug for the big day!