Wednesday, December 31, 2008

Thus Far the Lord has Helped Us-2008

What a great year!! Sorry for the repeating song...have fun getting it stuck in your head! I didn't find out until AFTER I had uploaded all 1,150 images to Slide.com that I could only pick one song!



Last Belly Pics of 2008
30 Weeks, 35.5"
The girls measured 3 lbs. 3 oz and 3 lbs. 4 oz. at our sonogram on Monday. Baby A was vertex and Baby B was breech, with her head squished up into my ribs. We got pictures of their ears (?!) and they both looked beautiful and healthy!"Thus far the Lord has helped us." 1 Samuel 7:12

We always enjoy looking down a long road lined with beautiful trees. The trees are a delightful sight and seem to be forming a temple of plants, with strong wooden pillars and arches of leaves. In the same way you look down a beautiful road like this, why not look back on the road of the years of your life? Look at the large green limbs of God's mercy overhead and the strong pillars of His loving-kindness and faithfulness that have brought you much joy. Do you see any birds singing in the branches? If you look closely, surely you will see many, for they are singing of God's mercy received "thus far."

The words also point forward. Someone who comes to a certain point and writes the words "thus far" realizes he has not yet come to the end of the road and that he still has some distance to travel. There are still more trials, joys, temptations, battles, defeats, victories, prayers, answers, toils, and strength yet to come. These are then followed by sickness, old age, disease, and death.

Then is life over after death? No! These are still yet to come: arising in the likeness of Jesus; thrones, harps, and the singing of psalms; being "clothed in white garments" (Rev. 3:5), seeing the face of Jesus, and sharing fellowship with the saints; and experiencing the glory of God, the fullness of eternity, and infinite joy. So dear believer, "be strong and take heart" (Ps. 37:14), and with thanksgiving and confidence lift your voice in praise, for:

The Lord who "thus far" has helped you
Will help you all your journey through.

When the words "thus far" are read in heaven's light, what glorious and miraculous prospects they reveal in our grateful eyes!

---Charles H. Spurgeon

Monday, December 29, 2008

Fortune Cookie

Here's another funny (to me, anyway....)

Chris' flights were delayed this trip due to some crummy weather, so lots of people had extra time to kill and grab something to eat at the airport. Chris and the captain, in their uniforms, decided to sit down and eat some Manchu Wok while surrounded by other passengers. At the end of his meal, Chris opened his fortune cookie, and while only meaning for the captain to hear his joke, "read" out loud with a tone of irony, "Huh. 'You will die is fiery hole.'" A lady near him overheard and said, "REALLY? Does it really say that??" She didn't think it was funny, but that kind of humor is so Chris, it makes me giggle.

Pigeon Attack!

This is a video from my cousin Amanda. I couldn't stop laughing! The pigeons ate every last bite of french fries.

Thanks, Mandy, for letting me post this to the blog!!

Tuesday, December 23, 2008

Awwww....

Snuggling with my sweet boy this morning:

"Mommy, I wish we had flowers in our backyard so I could pick them for you."

....sigh....

Saturday, December 20, 2008

Responsible

Ethan loves to read books in bed after we've said our prayers. With his new bunk bed set-up, we put a light up on the wall and each night he picks out his books and takes them up to bed (and, proud mommy moment, it usually includes his little red New King James Bible so he can "read" the Psalms).

Sometimes we hear him read out loud, sometimes he quietly reads to himself, but always within about 15 minutes, I hear the light click off, and shortly after, snoring. I go in to check on him, and he's always got his books stacked neatly at the end of the bed so I can put them back in his book basket on the ground.

I love that he is responsible enough to listen to his own body tell him he's sleepy and it's time to turn off the lights. I wish I were so disciplined!

Friday, December 19, 2008

All I Want for Christmas is a....

...."SHOP-VAC"
(a real one that hangs in the garage. And, yes, we already have a real one, but he wants his own.) We'll be adding this to the list of ever-practical Ethan gifts (cheese grater, fan, hose attachments) and won't be doing much toy shopping at Toys R Us this year. This morning, Ethan said, "I'm SO glad we got to see Santa." He has his heart set on a real shop-vac....

Thursday, December 18, 2008

Ultrasound Yesterday

We were happy to see our girls again yesterday! Baby A (the calm one) was still vertex (head down), and Baby B (the crazy girl) flipped back to breech....but I'm pretty sure I felt her peddle her way back down again last night. Or she was having a dance party on A....

This sono tech was relatively new (graduated in January) and she was SO surprised that their measurements were exactly the same. They both weighed about 2 lbs, 11 oz and measured almost a full week ahead of their gestational age (I'm 28 weeks; the babies measured over 29 weeks).

The doctor was pleased and we're all set to see him again next week :) Praise the Lord for great appointments!!

Monday, December 15, 2008

Texas Weather

Yesterday was sunny and 79...couldn't ask for a more gorgeous day!

Today's high is expected to reach 40, and with the windchill, feels like 27....

My Yahoo weather says it's 24 right now

???????



Sadie says, "AAAYYYY CHIHUAHUA, IT'S COLD!!"



Saturday, December 13, 2008

I had my first shower! + Nursery Progress

The ladies I work with at KDO threw me a shower on Thursday. What an amazing group of ladies to have in our lives!! We are a small staff of stay-at-home moms, wives, and grandmas, so I was quite overwhelmed by such generous hearts, especially during this Christmas season. We are blessed!!!





They invited Ethan out of class so he could help me open gifts. I love that they gave him a special role!

Wow!

There are rolled-up onesies in these cute little carriages!

OH MY GOSH. "Tu-tu" cute.

No longer an office/"nothing" room!

My mother-in-law did such a beautiful job on this glider cover! I love it to pieces!!!

Wednesday, December 10, 2008

Nursery Progress and 27 Weeks

I have the best in-laws in all the world! Mom, Dad, and Lisa Collins (soon-to-be-Teuber) came out this week to help prep the nursery. Along with Chris, they did SO much work. I don't have current pics yet, but here's some progress.

Dad and Chris putting together the new crib

Big Brother doing his part




The painting is done, both cribs and the changing table put together, shelves in the closet, new switch plates, and a pretty cover has been sewn for the glider and ottoman. Yippee!!


27 weeks--34.5 inches again
Dr. update: Sonograms and Dr. meeting every-other-week (that means weekly appointments now!).

Thursday, December 4, 2008

Science Experiment & 26 Weeks

Ethan in the bathtub:
"Daddy, I need some paper, leaves, and grass."

Daddy: "Why do you need those?"

Ethan: "So I can do an experiment."
We didn't find out what he was doing. Leaves, paper, and grass in the tub didn't sound like a good idea. We decided we would do the experiment outside tomorrow instead. He also added glue to his list tonight.



26 weeks, 34.5 inches


Can you find the "raisin" under my shirt?

Monday, December 1, 2008

Our girls...

...are still girls :)

Our ultrasound this morning was great! Both babies were measuring well. Baby A is about 1 lb, 13 oz and Baby B is about 2 lbs. They both measured a couple days ahead of their gestational age, which was a relief to hear. Today they were both vertex (head down), which is the position I hope to be in when labor begins so as to try for a non-surgical birth. Baby B's foot measured about 2 inches...so cute!

We are working hard to get their nursery ready. Seems we can't agree on anything, though...now we're off to duke out paint colors. I'm actually a little disappointed since I painted samples this weekend and found one that I was ready to go with. Chris came in this morning and vetoed it, so we're on our way to re-mix paint.


Baby A Profile; Baby B's head is on the left



Baby B Foot


Baby A Foot (looks like a marsupial...)



Baby A Face