Mother's Day 2011

My two sweeties surprised me with these beautiful tulips for Mother's Day. I just love them! I also had a much needed mani/pedi. :)



Mother's Day. A day that was once a very sad day for me is now the exact opposite. I have a baby girl to call my own. She says "Mama" about 1,000 times a day and around the 999th time when I think to myself, "should I change my name?" God kindly reminds me of how long I waited to be called that sweet name. He also reminds me of all my friends that are still waiting to be called Mama. I remember my friend Paula sending me this scripture as I waited. She sent it at a time when I was so discouraged and just tired of the fact that it was so hard to get pregnant.

"I am still confident of this: I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living." -Psalm 27:13

Mother's Day makes me think a lot about my struggle to get pregnant and reminds me just how far God brought me in my faith during those three years. After three years of waiting and trusting, confident that He knew my heart, confident that He heard my cries, and confident He was going to answer my prayers - He gave me my miracle. My Amelia Joy...and was she ever worth the wait!!



At church with our girl.



After church we took my MIL to Carino's for lunch. Jared, Jen & their girls joined us. My niece, Peyton (in the yellow shirt below) was so funny. When it was time to leave she said, "well we're just going to miss y'all so much - I should babysit Amelia this week!" HAHA! How cute is that?



Sweet girl giving Daddy kisses.



After lunch I headed to the store to pick up some things for dinner. We were hosting Mother's Day with my family. We had nachos and lots of yummy desserts. I ordered petit fours and smiley face cookies from Ed's Bakery. We also had angel food cake w/strawberries and whipped cream. Everything was so yummy!



Gift time!!



Mom had 3 of her 6 kiddos there. We missed you Chris, Joy, and Cary!! The second picture is of all the Mamas striking a pose. How cute is my Grandma on the end!?



The gang!



It was a special day celebrating our Mothers. I couldn't help but have a full heart while watching Amelia throughout the day. Such a gift.



Love to all,

Goodbye 2010...

I feel like this post is sort of cluttered, but in all honesty, I'm feeling a little cluttered right now. If you could see my house and my garage (oh heavens if you could see my garage, you would call the garage police) and would understand what I mean.

So if you can - just read through the clutter.

About a month ago, I started reading through my old posts, starting in January. I found myself laughing and crying over things all over again!

2010 has been a good year. At times, a hard year. God has grown me in several areas and for that I am grateful. I have to admit though - with the growth came growing pains.

Amelia has made this a wonderful year. She has grown so much in just a years time. We of course think she's terribly smart and love it when she starts saying or doing something new. She brings a joy that nothing else could bring. With that joy comes some pain. Parenting is not for the weak of heart. She IS my heart, running around on two legs. To see her hurt or sick breaks my heart and has brought me to tears many times. It's painful to have to correct her constantly...though I know it's for her own good. God has taught me a new level of love & patience through motherhood. It really is a privilege to be called Mommy and to stay at home with Amelia. I don't take one second for granted.



Alex and I have experienced loss in different ways in 2010. We lost 3 grandparents this year. There's joy in knowing we will see them again, but I do wish that Amelia would have had the opportunity to know them.



We've experienced loss in ministry. Whether it be friends that were ministering along side us or church members that have left - it's always painful to experience that loss. There have been times where I'm so tired and I look at Alex and say, "are you sure we're supposed to be doing this?" He always answers, "has God told you otherwise?" I have to answer honestly and say, "no, He hasn't." One of the things God has taught me through ministering this year is to love freely and forgive quickly. We're definitely not perfect and we're blessed to have a church that loves and supports us.

I have been blogging for almost 3 years now and have met some amazing women because of it. There are many days that I wish I lived in the same city as many of you, so we could grab a coffee and talk about life. I had a chance to meet up with some blogging friends this year and it was such a fun time. Every one of these girls are funny, beautiful, Godly women...what a treat to get to visit with them face to face!



I'm truly looking forward to 2011. I want to know Him more. I want to give more. I want to be a better wife, mother, daughter, friend.

And I have to tell ya, I'm trusting Him for some miracles. I have so many friends that are still waiting. I remember how it felt for another year to pass and still no baby. Just know that I'm praying for each and every one of you. I'm asking Him to open your womb and to bless you in 2011! He can do it, girls. Just ask Him. And then believe what He tells you. And then hang on to it. Don't let the devil slip in and take that from you. You are His precious child and He is able!! And on the days that you start to give up - email me, so I can email you back some scripture and give you a pep talk!! I mean it. I love you all, dearly.

Happy New Year, sweet friends!

Love to all,

A Sweet Giveaway...

This week is National Infertility Awareness Week.

I love that there's a week dedicated to this. I went through 3 years of infertility. Those were three of the hardest years of my life. I'm thankful for those years, but can still remember the emotional and physical pain. I remember questioning God each and every month that just wasn't our month. I remember having to leave baby showers early and crying the entire way home. I remember wanting to skip church on Mother's Day. I remember everyone around me being pregnant (or so it seemed) and feeling like I had a huge infertile stamp on my forehead. I felt broken.

But infertility also brought me closer to God. At times, it felt like He was the only one that did understand. He was the only one that could heal my broken heart. The only one that could replace my sadness with joy. He's the only one that could open my womb and give me a child. I started focusing more on Him and on others and less on myself. I was able to rejoice over someone else saying, "I'm pregnant!" I was able to throw the baby shower. I actually got to the point of being able to praise Him for my infertility!

And that's when it happened. Before my third IVF cycle. I was driving in the car, had the praise music on, and was having a conversation with Him. I heard Him say, "it's your turn now." I heard so clearly, it was as if He was sitting right there in the passenger seat. Sure enough...that's the cycle that He gave us our sweet baby girl.



I don't write these words to brag. I write these words to give hope. To encourage you to ask Him, listen for His answer, and believe what He says! Kelly had a great post where those who have struggled with infertility could leave a message. You can go there and read the answered prayers and also pray for those who are still waiting. I have several friends who are still waiting and I cover them in prayer each and every day. I believe with all my heart that God is going to bless you with a baby of your own. His timing is perfect.



I want to do a giveaway for all of you who are still waiting. Sure, I could give away a book about infertility, but if you are anything like I was - you already own all of them. And besides, who wants a book when you're heart hurts? Not me. I want cupcakes!! HAHA!! So that's what I'm giving away! A 1/2 dozen cupcakes from Crumbs Bake Shop in New York! They will arrive fresh on your doorstep, ready to eat!! I've asked Susy who lives in NY if these are good and she replied with a big YES!! I may have to order some for myself! :)

So simply leave a comment on this post and you will be entered to win these yummy cupcakes!! Remember, this giveaway is a special giveaway for those struggling to conceive.



Best Seller 1/2 Dozen Collection includes: Red Velvet, Cookies and Cream, Devil's Food, Peanut Butter Cup, Squiggle and Cookie Dough.



Random.org will choose a winner on Sunday, May 2nd! If you don't have a blog, make sure you leave an email address for me to contact you.

"He settles the barren woman in her home as a happy mother of children. Praise the LORD!" Psalm 113:9



Love to all,

One Year Ago Today...

I wrote the post below, one year ago today. March 8th, 2009.

Alarm went off at 7:30am. I immediately went to the kitchen and made a huge pot of homemade vegetable soup for lunch. That way Alex wouldn't have to worry about cooking. He had a busy week and weekend, so I wanted him to be able to relax as well, when we arrived home today. He usually takes me through Burger Mama's and grabs lunch, but they are closed on Sundays. Ah Shucks.

Waiting to go to the OR.


We arrived at the clinic at 9:25am. We were the only ones there, so they immediately took us back. I changed into a gown and she took my blood pressure. It was high. I've never had high blood pressure...ever. We were fairly certain it was just anxiety. My stomach was indeed, in knots. I wasn't really nervous, it's just a big day, ya know? She said it was time to head to the OR, so off we went. Once we were settled in the OR, she received a call that Dr. M headed over to the hospital to check on a patient. She apologized and said it would only be about 20 minutes before he returned. It ended up being about a 45 minute wait. While we waited, Alex read to me out of his Bible. He read the story of Hannah. I immediately felt relief. All of those knots in my stomach were gone. We prayed together and I was thankful that we had that time beforehand, just the two of us.

Us in the OR. They won't let Alex take his mask off, but he assured me that he's smiling in this pic. :)


The embryologist came in and told us about our embryos. It was a different embryologist than we normally have. She didn't show us pictures or anything, so I don't have any to post. She said of the two embryos that we were transferring, one made it to blastocyst stage. The other was a nice morula. A morula is the stage they hit, right before becoming a blastocyst. The other two embryos have not made it to blastocyst stage yet, so they will call us tomorrow and let us know if they make it overnight.

Waiting on Dr. M to arrive.

Dr. M arrived and started the procedure. The speculum is the part that I hate the most. Between that and the pressure on your very full bladder, it is quite painful. The nurse told me that if I wiggle my toes and take deep breaths, it can help relax those muscles. She was right...it really helped. He loaded the catheter and we watched, once again, our little babies shoot across the screen to land in the perfect spot for implantation. I was teary-eyed. It's an emotional thing to go through - on so many levels.

Now we're home and Alex is waiting on me hand and foot. We've eaten our yummy vegetable beef soup and are about to take a nap.

We both feel really good about today...about this entire cycle. We continue to pray that God will open my womb and that my body will accept these babies. We're believing that this is our time. :)

Thank you for the prayers, emails, text messages, phone calls, etc. You have offered such encouragement and we're blessed to have you in our lives. You really are the best family & friends that anyone could ask for.

We love you guys,
Alex & Jill

And as we all know...this precious girl was the result of that cycle. God is so incredible. I can't believe how far He has brought us in just one year.

Love to all,

33 weeks and counting...

I'm not even going to tell you what my husband was saying while taking this pic. He was totally making me laugh. I WILL tell you that I'm 33 weeks and counting the days until November! :)


Here's what little miss is up to this week!

This week A weighs a little over 4 pounds (like a pineapple) and has passed the 17-inch mark. She's rapidly losing that wrinkled, alien look and her skeleton is hardening. I'm relieved to know that A no longer looks like an alien. (LOL)

Fall is officially here and I'm lovin' it! My parents were in town for a couple of days. They had to leave Saturday afternoon, but before they left my Mom put out my fall decor. I'm still experiencing some serious swollen feet/legs when I'm up for more than a few hours at a time. We had been out for a while and the feet were feeling it. She brought me back to the house to lay down while she decorated. Thank you, Momma!! I'm going to post pics of my fall decor soon. :)

My little niece, K turned 1 on Saturday! I remember that day like it was yesterday. On the day she was born, I was struggling to hang on to hope. The pic below is our first picture together...she was just hours old. I had just gone through a 2nd cycle and was on bed rest. I remember going to the hospital, holding her in my arms, and the tears started falling. I remember my family just giving me that moment with her. It was a happy day, but at the same time, very hard for me. I wanted so badly to be holding my own baby. Just a week later, I found out that I was not pregnant. It seems like my cycles always fell around the birth of a niece/nephew. I know now that God was in that. He was in every little detail and was doing a work in my heart with each failed cycle. I had no idea that in just a year, I would be weeks away from having my own baby girl. The waiting was hard. But I still wouldn't change a thing about our 3 year journey up to this point. His timing is perfect. He brought me to a place of finding joy in my infertility. A place of thankfulness. And then He blessed us with our miracle baby.


K shares a birthday with my Grandma Mc, so they had a joint party. It was a gorgeous day...perfect weather to be outside. By the time of the party, I had been up for a long time. My Uncle snapped the pic of me with my eyes closed...I could have totally fallen asleep there on my Daddy's shoulder. That was around the end of the party...I promise I didn't sleep through the entire thing!! :)



I hope you guys have a great week!

OH....I will be posting the 1st giveaway for my favorite Christmas things, this week! You won't want to miss it!

Love,