The boys are what???

I kid you not - Emma is marching around the room singing "the boys are so handsome"!!! 

She turned four yesterday and is just full of life! 

My Loves.

Nelson, Emma, and Audrey, 

My heart overflows with joy this morning as I think of you. May Gods face continue to shine upon you each day of your life. May you embrace His grace, trust in his wisdom, and be full of his love. Trust his hand as he gently nudges you on. The path is narrow, but he will carry you when you loose strength and he will comfort you when you're hurting. Trust in the Lord with all you're heart and do not lean on your understanding. In everything that you do acknowledge him and He will direct your path. Above all else guard your heart because out of your heart comes all of the issues of life. Live at peace with all men. Do not be given to useless arguments. Stand firm, un-moveable in your faith that Jesus is the Christ and He came in the flesh, justified by the Spirit. He died paying the price for our debts of sin, he rose conquring death, hell, and the grave. He is alive and sitting on the throne, and has poured out his Spirit upon all flesh that we might be comforted and reconciled back to Him. He has purchased us and we are no longer our own. 

When your way is foggy, and you fear that your feet may fail; walk with confidence. Walk with confidence with your eyes fixed on Him. Never forget that He has a very specific plan for your life. Be his hands and his feet here on earth. Let his light shine through you and his Joy fill you. Let his love flow through you, and let his peace rest in you. Let's your roots grow deep and build your lives on him. He is our rock!

"And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow him. Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness." 

Colossians 2:6-7

With love, Mommy

Audrey's Arrival

Audrey, you are four months old as I finish this post. It brings me such joy to know that you are sleeping so peacefully in your room as I write this. I woke up and felt rough December 30th. I spent the morning packing several boxes with clothes to move to our new house. We finally bought our own cozy little house!!now back to the story of "Audrey's Arrival". Around 2 pm December 30th I wondered if my water was breaking. I kept waiting and wondering if it could really be happening. We took the kids to Starbucks for coffee in the afternoon and then went to Marshals. Nelson had some Christmas money and wanted to look for something to buy. He found a power ranger mask and Emma wanted a wooden Stag mount for her bedroom (what we were originally looking at for Nelson). Rene received a phone call and needed to run to the church. I continued looking around the store and kept wondering if my water could have really broken. I continued to feel a small leaking, but didn't feel contractions consistently.  After making the long line and checking out I made my way outside and set on the edge of the store window seal as I waited for him to come back. I began to think that I should probably go to the hospital to be checked. We had a New Year's Eve party planned at the church and the two ladies who were suppose to help decorate were not going to be able to make it. It was my last effort to get "everything in order" before this little missy was born. I decided I should go to the church and decorate before going to the hospital. My contractions were not close or consistent. If this was really "it" I wouldn't be attending the New Years celebration at the church and needed to make sure everything was set as well as possible. On our way to the church, Rene ran into subway and ordered me a toasted foot long tuna sub with sweet peppers, and everything else good. I ate the footlong and enjoyed it very much. Rebeca and Elizabeth ended up coming to the church to help me decorate. When Rebeca arrived I told her that I thought my water MAY have broken. After talking to her I was almost sure, my water HAD broken. I felt extremely excited! As I worked around the church as fast as possible .... I began to feel yucky and contractions were coming stronger. I was going into labor, and felt a little nervous as to how long I should wait before going to the hospital. It was the first pregnancy for my water to break on its own. The Doctor had told me that I needed to make it to the hospital at least and hour before having the baby in order to get an antibiotic in my system. Since my previous two deliveries were fast (using pitocin) I wasn't sure what to expect when labor really hit full force. Upon arrival we found out that my water HAD broken and we began the long process of labor and delivery in a hospital. I really dislike having to just sit in the bed for hours waiting, but the level of excitement was so high I could possibly sleep! We watched HGTV until the early hours of the morning. I would guess it was around 4am when It began to annoy me. Since my water had been broken for so many hours (which puts the baby at risk for infection), and my contractions were still irregular it was time for Pitocin. I would really love to experience labor and delivery without Pitocin. Sometimes I still feel like I may have an anxiety attack if I think about how painful the contractions became. My cervics were not completely ready for delivery, but the baby and the contractions were ready. It was terrifying for those last few minutes. The nurses were trying to get me to wait until the doctor arrived, but I couldn't have cared less about the doctor arriving! I was desperate to be free of the pain and to have my little baby in my arms. 

What a peace and a joy it was to see your sweet face all covered in white. You were two weeks early.

In the hospital Nelson and Emma were so happy to see you. Nelson continued to say "she's a beauty", and "she's a blessing". Now we call you Miss. Audrey.   

9 weeks eye contact, smiles, and sweet sounds. 

4 months you "tripod" to sit for very short periods. You are so playful. We all love to hear you talk and laugh. 

When Nelson gets in the car from school he will ask to take off her socks and claps her feet together. Emma loves to play with you near. 

We are no longer 2+2. Now, we are 2+3. And we are all the better for having you. God is really knitting our family together into a beautiful tapestry of His Love and Grace. He knew what we needed when he gave us you. 

Thanksgiving 2014

Nelson noticed the native Americans show their belly buttons. He also said their houses were messy (bottom right corner) and the pilgrims houses were nice (bottom, to the left).