Fall Flashback

I am trying hard to get caught up on all of my photos from last year. So, it may be a season or two late, but here is a little fall flashback on the things I didn't get to share until now!  

A fun afternoon at the corn maze with the family! One of the best parts is that we are friends with the family who own the corn maze so we were able to go on our day off which happens to be the day they are closed...so we had the whole thing to ourselves! Grasshopper hunting! Riding the train where we ended up having his birthday party!  

Watching a video one night in the tepee! Teaching Eli to split wood! He was so interested and he could really do it (note that the sharp part of the axe is covered)...he was just pounding with the dull part, but it worked and he was so proud! Playing and swinging through the leaves! More fun with our friends at their orchard and pumpkin patch...including a little creative pumpkin painting!  

And finally some fall portraits...because it's impossible for me to resists my two cuties in the leaves!:) What a fun fall!

Snowman Snow!

Lily got this cute wooden snowman set for Christmas and ever since we have been waiting and waiting for good snowman snow!  We've had snow, but it's all been the light and fluffy stuff...none good for making snowmen.  Until recently.  We finally got some good snow and the kids and I headed out on a lovely winter day to build a little snowman couple.  It was so lovely though that they started melting later that day, but it was fun while it lasted!

And yes...at the end of our snowmen building Eli decided to eat one of them!:)

Valentines

Valentines Day was a bit hectic this year...I was busy getting ready for the big father/daughter dance the following two nights and all seemed a little crazy.

But a few days earlier we did make some pretty darn cute homemade valentines.  The kids picked out what they wanted to make and both took part in making them.  Lily actually did most of the work on hers...she did   all of the cutting out on her own!  Eli wasn't able to do quite as much, but he picked out the bugs for each jar and helped stick them on.  They both gave out valentines at our homeschool group and Eli also took them to his preschool class.  So cute!

Valentines Day itself was pretty low key.  I told Joe that all I wanted was doughnuts...and that's happily what we enjoyed that morning!  Who needs jewelry or fancy things when you can have doughnuts?:)  I'm actually quite serious!  For dinner we went out for Chinese food and then at home we enjoyed the fruit pizza that the kids and I made (complete with a heart made of strawberries and raspberries).  We enjoyed our special dessert and took a little time to thank the Lord for our little Joy (her due date was Valentines Day last year and this now feels like her special day).  It felt good to remember her and to be thankful for her.  She always felt like such a gift of love to me.

The Test Results!

On Thursday night, right as we were starting dinner, we got the call from my doctor.  We also had a house full of students at the time who were over for dinner.  I ducked into the bedroom to talk with my doctor and received the good news.  Yes, the good news.  No, actually it was wonderful news!

All of the test results came back negative (normal)!!!  The tests for cystic fibrosis and the viruses are conclusive.  And we opted for the new, more advanced downs syndrome test that is said to be 99% accurate.  In addition the concern with our baby's bowel was the only one of eleven downs syndrome markers that they found in the ultrasound.  So we are feeling pretty confident in the results.

I can't even begin to share how relieved and thankful we are.  For days I just haven't been able to stop thanking the Lord for His goodness to us in this.

So now we just sit back and wait and let our little guy grow and mature.  At 32 weeks we'll have another ultrasound to determine if the issue with his bowel has resolved itself or whether there is some sort of physical problem (like a blockage in his bowel).  If there is a blockage he would need surgery after being born.  That would be hard, and we are praying against that of course, but to be honest we are just so relieved that mostly likely anything we are facing at this point is treatable.

We are so thankful for all of you and for your prayers and love and concern for us and our baby boy.  We sure would appreciate your continued prayers for his health!

Today we celebrated this wonderful news with cake!  The kids and I baked a giant cupcake to celebrate their baby brother and his health.  Had the news been different we would have loved this little guy every bit as much and welcomed him with our whole hearts into our family.  But today we are just so thankful that he doesn't have struggle with one of these lifelong diseases.  We don't know, of course, what the Lord has planned for the future but all we can do is continue to trust in the One who does know.  And eat some cake to celebrate.

I Need A Maid

Okay, in the grand scheme of needs in this world I don't really need a maid (not even close).  Would I love a housekeeper?  Would we benefit from one?  Yes, greatly!  Yet I'm pretty sure I'll never have one.  There are just too many other real needs and one of these days maybe we'll all learn to clean up after ourselves!:)  But clearly we aren't there yet.  In fact our house feels like a disaster these days.  You see my three little children are conspiring against me and a clean house!  Yes, all three of them...already.

Lily and Eli have entered a wonderful new stage over the last few months where 70% of the time they are quite happy playing together without me or Joe being a part.  This has been a blessing most of the time to this  rather sick pregnant mama.  It's also created a constant disaster.  There are remnants of their toys and play and "creativity" everywhere. And while they are being asked to clean up their own things much more often...we just can't keep up!

Lily is in a very creative, crafty, artsy stage.  I love this.  But it also means that there are colored pencils, crayons, paper, tape, glitter, beads, etc...everywhere I turn!

And Eli...Eli is just in the stage where he LOVES to dump everything out and he loves things that have little pieces!

Here is some evidence...

This is part of our living room...sort of like an informal play area.  This picture was taken a week or two ago around 9:30 or so in the morning.  I kid you not that the evening before we had this area totally cleaned.  We didn't even make it through the morning before it looked like this!:)

And the third one?  Well, it's not his fault really at all...but let's just say that this pregnancy has made it harder than ever to keep up around the house.  

They are all working against me see?:)

And I need a maid.  Okay, I don't NEED a maid...but a girl can dream!

It's a BOY!

We had our ultrasound on Monday and learned that we are having a baby BOY!!  We are all VERY excited  (and I'll share more soon how we shared the news with the kids)!

We saw his little face for the first time and I fell totally and completely in love with this little guy.  Even though  the 3D images are a big lumpy and "clay-mation" like and he will likely look quite different when he is born there is still something so special about being able to see his face...the little nose and chin and lips.  Yep, I'm in love.

Most of the ultrasound went great, but near the end they found an area of concern.  His bowel showed up brighter than normal on the ultrasound and just a little bit later he was diagnosed with an echogenic bowel (which basically means that the texture of his bowel appears inflamed).

After speaking with two doctors and a genetic counselor in Portland we've learned that this could be something very minor or something more serious.  In the majority of cases it is something very minor that resolves itself and the baby is totally healthy.  However, it could also mean that the baby has a viral infection, cystic fibrosis, downs syndrome, or a blockage in his bowel.  

Last week I went in to have tests done for the viruses, cystic fibrosis, and downs syndrome.  We should be getting those test results back hopefully sometime this week.  If all of those tests are negative (normal) then we'll do another ultrasound at 32 weeks to see if the problem has cleared and to determine if there is any blockage in his bowel (which would require surgery right after birth).  

According to statistics there is a very high "chance" that our little guy should be totally healthy.  We have certainly been on the other side of those statistics before however and we are doing our best to place our hope and trust not in the statistics, but in the One who planned this little life from the very beginning.  I take comfort in knowing that this pregnancy and this precious boy was not our plan, but he is the Lord's.  And our God has big plans for him no matter what the test results show.  We are asking for people of course to pray that our son would be totally healthy.  And if he is not that God would give us the strength and patience and peace to walk down this hard and unexpected road.  

I am totally in love with this little guy of ours and I am in awe (as my friend put it) of this journey that He has him on.  

It's a boy all right!:)

Legs!

The Father Daughter Dance!

Last weekend Lily went to her first father daughter dance!  It was put on by our local rec center and Lily was BEYOND excited!  She was excited for weeks, but the night of the dance as I curled her hair and sprayed it with sparkles she was literally giddy and could not stop smiling.  And I think that you'll agree with me that she was one of the most beautiful little girls I have ever seen.  Watching her, so beautiful, so happy just about brought tears to my eyes.  She is just so precious.

I was there that night because I was the photographer for the event...and over two nights took portraits of 140 father daughter couples.  So sweet and so exhausting!

And, as it turns out, that's how it was for Lily too.  She was at the dance for about an hour and a half  dancing and eating and feeling like a princess and then she was just exhausted and a little overwhelmed and wanting to go home.

Yes, her first father daughter dance was sweet and exhausting.

And she was beyond precious...