Baby Bliss!

It is so exciting knowing we are having a little baby. Last weekend we got the crib!!! I am more than thrilled with it! We got it from Kid to Kid in Highland Village. Not expecting to get it that day, we did not have room in the car. We measured it and decided that we would come back in the truck. Well, those of you that don’t know me well, I try to be independent and am completely stubborn! Although my sweet father in love said that he would get the truck and come get it for me, I was determined that I could handle it… and handle it in my SUV. I measured and measured and was certain I could get it. So, as my sweet mother in love was trying to help the poor cashier from Kid to Kid shove the crib in my car, the phone rings… my dearest father in love… yeah, he had to come rescue me and my stubborn self with the truck. I was sure that I had measured correctly, but apparently not. That sucker is huge! But from the looks of it, we may have a fairly large baby to go with it. Now we just need to find out what this baby is going to be and we can begin painting!!!















Monday the 19th I had my doctor’s appointment. This one was one of the short and sweet visits… the next one we will have a sonogram and Stephen will be there to see our little one!!! His or her heartbeat was at 160 beats per minute! Unfortunately, I could not coax the doctor to letting us come in a week early to see what we are having a little sooner… I mean I have got to get Stephen on the nursery as soon as he gets home – no time to waist! So we decided that we would go to Window in the Womb to find out on the 7th and then our appointment on the 16th will just be to confirm. Yes, I am that impatient that I can’t wait 9 days! I just want to be able to call this baby by a name. Now we just have to pray that Stephen’s flight comes in on time, and that the baby’s legs are not crossed, and … just pray… the emotions are a little strong and it not working out the way I planed may not be pretty!
Things are moving along great. I just can’t wait for Stephen to get home and share all of this excitement with him! 11 days!!!



Praise the Lord for our new crib! Praise the Lord for sweet and understanding fathers! Praise the Lord for strong heartbeats! And Praise the Lord that I am only 11 days away from seeing my amazing husband!

Darn Cravings

These darn cravings.... I already find it a chore to eat all the time and now my body decides it wants to be picky! Seriously! These cravings aren't like "mmm, that sounds good"; it's more like "I need it NOW!" I have not had too many crazy cravings, just crab ragoons, or something, anything covered in jalapenos... yum! But I do find myself driving 30 minutes on my lunch just to satisfy. And it's not like once I eat something I am fine... not at all, I crave it until I get it. I can't wait until Stephen gets home and can get up early to go get me a chicken, egg, and cheese on a multi grain bagel from Chick-fil-a with 2 extra sides of pickles.

Happy New Year!

Ok, so New Year’s Eve and being prego don’t really go together… this is why I was in bed nice and early! Not too much happening here lately… just passing the time. It is funny how this pregnancy thing really makes me impatient. First I couldn’t wait to start showing… definitely doing that now, now it is me wanting to feel the baby, and I am also so anxious to get to meet this little one. It’s all going so fast and yet so slow, all at the same time.

One reason I have been so excited is the fact that Natalie is about to pop! Severen is almost here! I got to throw her a little baby shower with our home team pals. I think I had more fun shopping for Severen than I have had shopping in a long time!

Wednesday, January 7th was Stephen and my 3rd year anniversary! I of course was sick, and could barely talk. (See honey, your not missing too much.) Stephen is by far the most amazing husband ever! The past 3 years have truly brought me more joy than I could have ever imagined. God has blessed me so dearly with this incredible man. And now through our love God is blessing us with another life that we get to share it all with. Even though I had already purchased my anniversary gift (I am so thoughtful), Stephen once again surprised me with a gift. I received a stunning dozen long stem red roses at my door. And then a beautiful charm bracelet with two gorgeous charms; one of a baby carriage and one of a heart with Happy Anniversary on it. I am so thankful for Stephen and am looking forward to all of our future years of adventures! Happy Anniversary Stephen!

Now we can countdown to getting ready for Stephen to come home! I have quite the list of items to get accomplished by the time Stephen steps off of his plane. Luckily for me, Stephen’s parents have been helping with everything! They are so sweet and kind and sure as heck are too nice… I am sure they are counting the days for Stephen to get home too! Right now they have been painting our guest bathroom while I am at work. The air filters are changed, Christmas stuff in the attic, the batteries replaced in all the smoke alarms, and so many other things! So not only have I had a great three years of joy with Stephen, but I have had a great three years of extra love with his family!

The curtains are almost done… well they have been almost done for a few weeks now, but now that I am feeling better they should be done later this week. Here is what I have done so far… the master bath ones - done and up. The front living room done and up, just need to move the furniture back in place. The dining room - done but need to get the rod up. The picture makes it hard to tell but I used the fabric from the living room for the top section of the curtains (about top 3 feet) then the silk ivory ruffle, and then sage green burlap for the bottom (about 6 1/2 feet).

Praise the Lord for our baby! Praise the Lord for Severen! Praise the Lord for my sweet loving husband! And Praise the Lord for my family!

So long, farwell, auf wiedersehen, goodbye to 2008

What a year it has been! It began with a exciting start and ended that way as well. This certainly has been a year of growing and learning. We went from my car being stolen in January, to buying a new house, to me changing jobs, to Stephen leaving for a year to be in Iraq, to us finding out that we are expecting a baby, and so many other things in between!

Christmas was a blast and I have to say, I made out pretty well. I think the fact that my husband is in Iraq and I am getting a bigger prego belly helped with some sympathy gifts! And the baby is already getting his or her fair share! Thanks again to everyone!

Even Stephen sent me a gift! It arrived the night before Christmas Eve (so Christmas Eve's Eve) and I was able to open it with him on the video chat. That man is amazing! He knows EXACTLY what I like! He got me new shoes! Perfect fit and everything! Thank you Stephen; you are THE SWEETEST HUSBAND EVER!

I have to say it was hard without Stephen here, but as always family kept me nice an busy on Christmas Day. Now as for the day after... everyone left me! Yes, both my side of the family and Stephen's side of the family left for vacation. I must say I was quite jealous that I wasn't tagging along! But saving up my vacation time for when Stephen gets home is a much better choice. Also snow skiing would not have been the wisest choice with my balance already being off!

So what did I do? I went shopping! I found the most amazing deals! Unfortunately, one of the purchases that I really wanted to make I could not. I FINALLY was going to get my dining table for Christmas! I have had my eye on this table for a very, very long time. I would go by the store and check on it frequently, sometimes every week! Hoping that it would go on sale or that I would finally break down and make the purchase. In November Stephen said that I should get it for Christmas... I loved the idea and could not have picked a better gift! So, I decided to stop stalking the store and wait. So when I walked in right before Christmas, with my tape measure in hand and on a joyous mission, I was like a kid in a candy shop! The sales people greeted me and several had asked where I had been, and commented that they had not seen me in a while... yes, like I said I stalked this table! After searching the store, I calmly asked where they put my table, as I know they keep several in stock in their warehouse. It was gone! Discontinued and sold out! Needless to say I was devastated! This was the table our little family was going to eat at and share countless memories! And it was gone! After some long chats with my buddies there at the store they agreed to try to find me one. They made some calls to the buyer and the manufacturer searching for just one. After Christmas they called me to let me know that there were no more to be found. So, the lesson learned here today is IMPULSE BUY!!! No, on a serious note, I may have been a little too excited about something so material. And that should not have been a reason to be joyous for Christmas. Jesus brings me true joy and He is the reason we celebrate!

So, I will still get my table, but instead of buying it and taking the easy way out, Stephen has offered to make it for me. If you have ever seen some of the items that Stephen and his father have made you would agree that this is the best option anyways. So I will just keep my empty dining room (or ballroom) for a while.

As I continue to try to keep my self busy I have also been doing a little sewing. I have decided to finally make the curtains for some of my bare windows. I can only enjoy the white fake wood blinds for so long. So far I have done a set for my bathroom window and for the front living room windows. The empty dining room windows are next! I forget how much I enjoy sewing! Maybe, if I get really good I can make some items for our sweet little baby! Lucky for me, the poor soul won't be able to say "Mommy, why is this so crooked?" And Stephen knows better than to say anything but that he loves it.

Praise the Lord for Christmas! Praise the Lord for my sweet husband! Praise the Lord for my wonderful sewing machine! And Praise the Lord for 2008!

Is it really almost Christmas?

It sure doesn’t feel like Christmas at our house. Don’t get me wrong the tree is up and all the presents are wrapped, but the love of my life is half way around the world. But have no fear; Stephen will be home in 44 days! Yes, I have been counting for a while now. So we will get to celebrate Valentine’s Day together!

Santa can't bring me what I need,
Cause all I want for Christmas is Stephen!

(I do find myself breaking out in this remix very frequently)

One of the great blessings that we have had with Stephen being gone is video chat. Normally I don’t embrace technology as fast as others do, but if it means getting to see my husband, I am all for it. We typically get to video chat several times a week, and boy does it make all the difference in the world! Stephen also gets to talk to his parents and sister since they too have a built in camera, so that makes things better for the whole family!

Stephen is doing well over there, just keeping busy with work. He has actually been working out and has lost about 15 pounds already! He is losing it, and I am gaining it! What a deal!

Not too busy lately; mostly just running around trying to shop for Christmas items, and sleeping (of course). I did make it to the 2nd and 3rd ornament exchange of the year, and made it out of there with some good lookin’ ornaments. Unfortunately I didn’t get any pictures of the home group ornament exchange, but was able to snap a few at the family exchange.






















Natalie and I of course had to compare bellies again. Since she is getting so close we may only have a few more of these… then we will start with the pictures of the babies OUT of our bellies.
















Praise the Lord for video chat! Praise the Lord for ornament exchanges! And Praise the Lord that he sent His Son!

Busy as a Bee

Well, I haven’t been too busy… just busy sleeping most of the time! But busy none the less. I figure that on the inside, with this baby bakin’, I am staying really busy! Some amazing thing happened this past week! I had my first doctor’s appointment and my little sister had her baby, Delaney! God sure does know how to bless this soon to be mama!

Thursday, the 4th, was baby day! I got to see my baby for the first time and heard the sweet little heartbeat. My mother-in-love, Jenny, got to go with me since Stephen is on the other side of the world. What an amazing time this was for me. And so far so good! I even survived the blood work; no crying or passing out! (This was a first!) I am convinced- this baby is going to make me tough! Except for the fact that I cried several times that day just from pure bliss! Stephen, the sweetest husband ever, sent a little gift for me after the appointment. This touched my heart in so many ways! Thank you Stephen, this baby has no idea yet of what a wonderful man you are! I am so excited that I get to share the joy of raising this child with you!

And my official due date is July 11th!

Here are the pictures of our cute little one! I hope he or she has Stephen’s eyes!












So, as I said before, Anna and Jacob were married the day before Thanksgiving! Here is a picture right after the “I do’s”.

Then on Friday morning Anna went into labor. Actually I think she was in labor all night, but she went to the hospital early that morning and had Delaney by 11:39am. Everything went great and they were able to go home on Saturday.

Delaney Rosemary Brown
December 5th, 2008 – 11:39 am
7 pounds 11 ounces
20 inches long










This weekend I also went to the first of three ornament exchanges. Fun, fun, fun! There is one every weekend for three weeks straight! Let me tell you, that is the way to celebrate Christmas!










Here are me and Natalie showing off our prego bellies and enjoying some yummy fried pickles! She actually looks cute with her belly, I just look pudgy!












It has been so much fun being pregnant at the same time as Natalie. She always has great advice. And I am so excited that our kids will get to be great buds! Natalie, I am very blessed to call you family and a friend!

Praise the Lord for sonograms! Praise the Lord for baby heartbeats! Praise the Lord for Delaney! Praise the Lord for ornament exchanges! Praise the Lord for family and friends! And Praise the Lord for fried pickles!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving to all! What a fun day it was! Although I am suffering from a head cold, morning sickness and complete exhaustion, it was a great day. We have so much to be thankful for! I got to enjoy it with both my family and Stephen’s family… I am sure I was quite boring considering I slept most of the day.

Last weekend we had my sister’s shower to celebrate the soon to be birthed Delaney Brown! Anna’s life is changing so much this month! She also got married yesterday!!! Congratulations to Jacob and Anna Brown! Jacob we are so excited to have you in our family.














Stephen is doing pretty well, at least from what he will tell me. They moved him again; he is back in his own room and enjoying it. In the chow hall today they had Mexican food for lunch and he thought that they might get some turkey for dinner. What’s Thanksgiving without turkey?

I can’t wait to get to talk to him again tonight; it is the highlight of my day!

Praise the Lord for family! Praise the Lord for new family! And Praise the Lord for turkey!