Thanksgiving 2011...

We spent Thanksgiving with my side of the family this year. Amelia and I headed to my parents on Tuesday and Alex joined us on Wednesday evening. I wanted to be there to help Mama with food. She has been working so hard to get her house ready, they moved right before Thanksgiving, so I wanted to be there to help with whatever I could. I've been hosting Thanksgiving for the past few years, after my parents moved 3 hours away. I was so excited to have it at their house this year. I love hosting but being 5 months pregnant and having a toddler - I chose to hand the Thanksgiving & Christmas hosting back over to our Mamas this year! :) I made an apple pie, fudge pie, and almond green beans. I brought fresh cranberries and oranges intending on making cranberry sauce. My SIL, Sara, volunteered to do it for me and it was SO GOOD! It was Rachel Ray's recipe. So easy and delicious.

Here's Amelia posing. Her Aunt Sara was trying to show her how to stand and this was her interpretation of that. (LOL) She wore this sweet little outfit that I ordered from HERE. I actually ordered it for her birthday but since we didn't have a party, I just saved it for Thanksgiving!



I didn't take as many pictures as I would have liked. We had a moment of defiance at the dinner table (over sitting in a highchair) and I didn't think to pick up my camera after that. I'm happy to say that we made it through the meltdown after 3 trips to the bedroom and were able to have a happy Thanksgiving with family. (LOL) Amelia enjoyed the time with her family, especially with her cousins, even though she was sick with her first (and hopefully last) UTI over the holiday. I had these as a child and as an adult and they are NO FUN. I felt so bad for her. She's much better now and I'm so thankful for that!



Our family of three.



Here's the entire gang! My favorite part of Thanksgiving is when we write down what we're thankful for and share at the end of the night. It's neat to see my nephews and nieces mature and go from being thankful for toys and food (both wonderful things) to being thankful for Jesus and eternal life (the best thing ever)! I look forward to hearing my girls share every year as they get older. It was a Happy Thanksgiving, indeed.



O Come, let us sing for joy to the LORD; Let us shout joyfully to the rock of our salvation. Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving; Let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms. For the LORD is a great God, And a great King above all gods, In whose hand are the depths of the earth; The peaks of the mountains are His also. The sea is His, for it was He who made it; And His hands formed the dry land. Come, let us worship and bow down; Let us kneel before the LORD our Maker. -Psalm 95:1-6

Love to all,

Jesus Loves Me This I Know...

I don't put a lot of videos on the blog but Amelia has started singing and I just love it! I thought I would share a video of her singing the newest song that her Granny taught her.

"Jesus Loves Me This I Know."



Love to all,

Sweet moments...

Amelia and I just arrived home last night. We've been at my parent's home since Sunday evening. We had a fun week!



We took Papa to physical therapy on Tuesday. He's making progress and getting stronger every day. I'm so proud of him! He was doing little projects around the house and was sweet to let Amelia help. Lord knows it took longer with her helping but she loved that time with her Papa.

My Mom seems to teach Amelia a new word or song every time we visit. She taught her "Jesus Loves Me This I Know" and can I just say, it's the sweetest sound to my ears to hear her singing those words!!

We made a trip to the mall. Amelia took a sweet ride on the ice cream truck!



We played with cousins. We don't get to see Jackson and Millie very often so it was a sweet time to spend a couple of days with them!



We helped unpack boxes at the new house. My parents have a wonderful yard now. I could just close the front gates and watch Amelia play from the kitchen window. My sweet girl thought she was so big playing outside by herself!



Amelia was exhausted and slept the entire 3 hours home. A nice, quiet drive home. This was a sweet time for Mommy.



We enjoyed our first Thanksgiving meal with our homegroup last night. Oh it was SO GOOD! Thanks to leftovers, I'll be having Thanksgiving again today. Amelia had both of her Great Grandmothers (my Grandma & Alex's Mimi) at homegroup last night! We just had to get a picture. How sweet and special is that!?



I hit the 20 week mark while at my parents. Sydney is moving all the time and I just love it. I feel like my belly doubled in size over the last 2 weeks. Could be from all the sweets I've been craving. I'll be interested to see how much I've gained. The nurse told me (at my November appointment) that I've gained 7 pounds so far in this pregnancy. I was pleased with that. I'm fairly certain that number will go up to at least 10 pounds after Thanksgiving.

We arrived home to such a sweet surprise. Alex put up our Christmas tree!!! Amelia LOVES it. She rounded the corner this morning and it was like she was seeing it for the first time all over again. She literally gasped as if it took her breath away and ran to touch it. She keeps saying, "it pretty, Mommy." She sits behind it until I make her come out. I think she's going to have the same love for Christmas as her Mommy. We'll put the ornaments on this weekend!



So that's what we've been up to! We're gearing up for the holidays and can't wait to spend lots of time with our sweet families.

Love to all,

Christmas Shopping...

Christmas music is playing in the background, there's talk of the Christmas tree going up this weekend, and I've officially started my Christmas shopping. Amelia is at such a fun age. I can tell I'm going to have to show some restraint when it comes to buying for her this year.

We didn't really buy her anything for her birthday. We cancelled the party so we could spend time at my parents after Daddy's surgery. We were actually at the hospital on her birthday, so we took her out to eat and she did receive a baby doll and some super cute house shoes. She was happy as can be! :)

I start making a list for her early in the year. A list of things I think she would enjoy. I received several great suggestions from blog friends last year. So if you have any suggestions for a 2 year old, feel free to leave me a comment.

This is what I have in mind for her big presents this year. A couple of her cousins have this and Amelia loves it. She usually cries when she has to leave this thing. It's the Little Tikes Cozy Coupe.



Amelia loves to play the piano at her Granny's house. There's also a local toy store that has a couple of these out for the kiddos to play and she goes straight to it every time. I'm going to watch Zulily for one of these. They had them at a great price last Christmas! It's the Traditional Spinet Piano in Black 25 Key by Schoenhut.



I was looking for a kitchen and this is the one my friend, Annalee, recommended. She told me about a certain toy last year and it was the best gift ever. Amelia still plays with it daily! This is the KidKraft Pink Retro Play Kitchen and Refrigerator.



So how about you? Have you started your Christmas shopping? Do you have any gift ideas for a 2 year old? Feel free to share!

Love to all,

I refuse...

I've had so much on my heart the past couple of months but every time I would sit down to write on my blog - I just couldn't. I took that as I should just wait...that He's still teaching me something in those areas...or that some of it will just stay between me and Him.

One of the things that I feel I can finally write about is this.

Blogging.

I read so many blogs in regards to this same subject and I honestly think it's the enemies way of getting in and trying to stir up strife. He just loves to see Godly women tear each other down, or respond in a non-loving way to one another, or see them harbor jealousy in their hearts towards one another, or make them feel inferior because their "follower" number over on their sidebar dropped this week. There was a time that I found myself looking at that number like it actually meant something...and ya know what...it doesn't.

My self worth can't come from how many people read my blog or how many people comment on my blog posts. That's insane.

I know that sounds silly but it's something I read A LOT. Women with hurt feelings because they lost a follower or because they never receive comments. If you fight looking at that number constantly, you know the best way to stop struggling with it? Take your follower button and comments section down. We need to stop looking for our self worth in positive comments from others and look for it in the only One that can fill us up. We need to look UP. He's the only one that can fill that need.

My brother-in-law is currently watching his Dad fight an incurable cancer. A cancer that will take his life unless God sees fit to perform a miracle. Every time I think of it, all I can do is cry and pray for that miracle.

I've been going to my parents since my Daddy had his surgery and though I'm exhausted by the time I return home - I wouldn't want to be anywhere else. Serving my parents is a privilege. Many would give anything to have their parents back, just so they could serve them and take care of them. While I'm there we watch things like Little House on the Prairie, Wind at my Back, and The Walton's.

Clean television.

Shows about families spending time together and enjoying the most simple moments. Shows without drama and that lift the spirit.

Alex has been preaching a series called "Building Up The Believer" and it has been so convicting. This last week the Father revealed to me that I must guard my mind and home from the trash that the television brings into our home. THAT I ALLOW IN MY HOME. We can make excuses all day long as to why we watch certain programs but when it comes right down to it, it's either clean or not. There's very little good on television.

I love to write about what my baby girl is up to and love having those memories to come back and read at any time. I have no doubt that I will cherish my blog for that very reason.

I just refuse to miss opportunities with my family because I'm on my computer, phone, or watching a program that shouldn't even be on my television at all.

I refuse to miss opportunities to encourage and edify another believer because I'm so blinded with jealousy.

I refuse to fight insecurity because someone else has a larger following or receives more comments.

I refuse to miss an opportunity to be a servant to someone else because I'm so wrapped up in myself.

Do you hear that devil? I refuse.

He wants us to love like He loves. -John 15:12

"Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord." Ephesians 5:15-19

Love to all,

19 weeks...

Our sweet baby currently measures 6 inches (about the size of a large heirloom tomato) and weighs about 8 1/2 ounces. :)

Love to all,

Pink or Blue...

We headed to the doctor this afternoon for a big appointment. Today we found out if we're having a boy or a girl! Even more importantly, we were able to see if everything was okay with our sweet baby and from all they can see on ultrasound, our little one is 100% healthy!!



When we've asked Amelia if she's having a brother or a sister, she always says "boy." We've never prompted her - this is just always her answer. I've felt from the beginning that it was a boy and was eager to see if I was correct.

Well.......we're proud to announce that in March 2012, we'll be welcoming a baby GIRL!!!! Amelia is going to have a sister! We're so excited and are thankful that all is well with our sweet girl. She refused to look our way and stayed face down the entire time. She's going to have to get used to having her picture taken but there's plenty of time for that, I suppose.

We're almost 100% certain on her name. We'll share it soon! When we ask Amelia what we should name her baby sister, she says, "boy." HAHA! I think we can come up with something better than that. :)

Love to all,