Lots of Firsts

Ok, this might be a really long post. I have lots to update..finally! Brody has had a lot of "firsts" the last few days! So I'll get right to it!

First of all, the SNOW! Hello, is this Texas? Well, yes, its perfect proof of the crazy weather in Texas. Because it POURED snow Wednesday..and will be in the 70s next week. Typical. It was so much fun though! We felt like we were on vacation!

Our Front Yard

Our Backyard

Trying to drive!

Brody and Matt getting snowed on

Snowball Matt's Snowman

Brody also had his first haircut on Wednesday. His hair wasn't outrageously long, but definitely needed a trim. He was such a big boy! He didn't even notice what Mrs. Amy was doing because he was soo interested in the bright pink brush!

Brody and Mrs. Amy

And here are just some photos with a couple other "firsts."

First fort with Daddy

First Spaghetti

Make It Go Away!

I haven't been outside since Friday. I haven't done laundry in over a week. My house is a disaster. And all I want to do is curl into a ball on the couch. My sweet son feels neglected and my husband has been left to fend for himself when it comes to dinner and clean clothes.

Someone PLEASE tell me how to make this "all day sickness" go away. Whoever named it morning sickness had no idea what they were talking about. It's horrible. If I don't eat, I need to puke. And sometimes if I do eat, I need to puke. The dr took me off prenatal vitamins and put me on a mixture of a couple of vitamins to hopefully help the nausea. Well, that didn't work. I drink tons of water and that actually seems to help some, and I am constantly snacking.

With Brody, I was on a medicine that took it all away. However, we changed insurances and it would cost me like $300 a month to have the medicine now. So that's not an option.

I know there are some gurus out there on home remedies for this thing. So start leaving your comments with all your ideas. Is there some magic herb I can take? I've read the entire internet (the entire thing!) and I only find the basics- eat small meals all day, drink plenty of water, ginger ale, take vitamins at night, etc.

Please help me!

Brody Has Something to Say

That's right! We're going to have another little one. We found out a little over 2 weeks ago but wanted to wait until I went in for a sonogram to announce it to the world. We are so excited! Brody and the new baby will be 18 months apart exactly...we are due July 21. We can't wait for Brody to be a big brother and to have a little playmate. We went in yesterday for the sonogram and everything looks wonderful. We saw a strong little heartbeat on a baby tucked safely inside my uterus. That was such a beautiful site.

This Thanksgiving we have so much reason to be thankful. We have a precious, mischievous 10 month old and another one on the way. The Lord has blessed our lives tremendously and we are so grateful.

We hope you all have a WONDERFUL, HAPPY THANKSGIVING! We'll keep you posted on the baby news and I'll post the sonogram pic soon.

10 Month Update

Brody is 10 months old today. I know I say this on every post about him, but I really can't believe how fast he is growing. He's getting to be such a big boy and do big boy things. He still army crawls all over the house. He has started getting up on his knees, but still never actually uses them to get anywhere. He's getting to be quite the climber as well. Last night, Matt just happened to glance down at him and he was climbing into the magazine rack. Then he got up on his feet and was bent over holding onto it! He's never even attempted anything that "danerous" before. We got so excited and started clapping. Then we realized we were encouraging him to hurt himself haha.

Today, I thought it would be fun to put him in the laundry hamper while I was doing laundry. He loved it! He just stood there holding onto the side like a pro! Like he's been standing forever. He would let go and just lean against it but never fell once. He probably stayed in there about 10 minutes just laughing and talking. I was so proud of him! I know, first time moms are such dorks! He's getting a ton of teeth. He's getting 2 more on the top and 2 more on the bottom, for a total of 8. These last ones are just now breaking through so he's loving that..lots of whining and fussiness. But he looks so stinkin cute when he smiles with all those teefers!

He is getting to where he won't eat baby food. He only wants food that we eat..which isn't always good because we don't eat very healthy. He loves mashed potatoes. That's got to be his favorite thing right now for sure!

I'm sure he's doing so many other things but I can't think of much more. We'll have another post next week..I guarantee it!

Today's the Day

I don't know a lot about politics. I don't understand all of the economic policies and plans that the candidates are proposing. A lot of it goes over my head. However, what I do understand is the sanctity of marriage and the innocence of an unborn child. I know where Sen. McCain and Sen. Obama stand on these issues and that's enough for me. I believe that if we vote biblically, God will take care of the rest. I don't know who has the best solution to help our suffering economy. But I know that if we put a man in office who feels that if "his own daughter got pregnant, he wouldn't want her PUNISHED with a baby" then our country is in trouble.

I was reading Psalm 81 and was wondering why God brought me to that verse. I was thinking "I know this story backwards and forwards."

1 Sing for joy to God our strength; shout aloud to the God of Jacob!
2 Begin the music, strike the tambourine, play the melodious harp and lyre.
3 Sound the ram's horn at the New Moon, and when the moon is full, on the day of our Feast;
4 this is a decree for Israel, an ordinance of the God of Jacob.
5 He established it as a statute for Joseph when he went out against Egypt, where we heard a language we did not understand. [b]
6 He says, "I removed the burden from their shoulders; their hands were set free from the basket.
7 In your distress you called and I rescued you, I answered you out of a thundercloud; I tested you at the waters of Meribah. Selah
8 "Hear, O my people, and I will warn you— if you would but listen to me, O Israel!
9 You shall have no foreign god among you; you shall not bow down to an alien god.
10 I am the LORD your God, who brought you up out of Egypt. Open wide your mouth and I will fill it.
11 "But my people would not listen to me; Israel would not submit to me.
12 So I gave them over to their stubborn hearts to follow their own devices.
13 "If my people would but listen to me, if Israel would follow my ways,
14 how quickly would I subdue their enemies and turn my hand against their foes!
15 Those who hate the LORD would cringe before him, and their punishment would last forever.
16 But you would be fed with the finest of wheat; with honey from the rock I would satisfy you."

As I prayed, asking the Lord to teach me through this verse, it hit me. Verses 11-12. But my people would not listen to me, Israel would not submit to me. So I gave them over to their stubborn hearts to follow their own devices.

The Lord as blessed American beyond understanding. We are the most powerful, wealthiest country in the world. Yet, we are turning so far from God. We don't listen to him. There may come a day that He does turn his back on us. But with that being said, I trust that the Lord will protect those that do trust and listen to his commands. Therefore, we must vote for the candidate that most closely supports biblical truths.

I will admit that I don't absolutely love some of McCain's proposals (the ones I do understand), but all I know is he supports life and marriage. And that's enough for me.

So, please pray today for the voters. And pray that no matter what the outcome, the Lord will use it to bring this nation back to him. Ok, that's all I have to say. You'll probably never see a political post on this blog again haha!

Brody's First Halloween

It's so fun getting to have "firsts" with Brody. He has no idea what's really going on at this stage, but its fun for mom and dad! And an excuse to take tons of photos! Brody had his first Halloween this weekend. I wouldn't say he "celebrated" his first Halloween...Halloween isn't really a celebration. Just an excuse to dress up and get candy. Matt and I both don't take it very seriously but definitely thought it was fun to try to dress Brody up as something. We had some ideas but decided that because of his crazy hair, he would make a good rocker with an awesome mohawk. And the mohawk really ended up being all of his costume. We put some cute clothes on him, but we didn't really have anything that said "I'm a RockStar!"

My handsome boys!

Side view of the hair.


Brody Boy and Mommy

(Sorry we're a little washed out. The flash was way to bright but I haven't had time to edit any photos.)

We went over to Kristin and David's for dinner and some guitar hero. Kristin was one of my college roommates and David was our next door neighbor. They just moved back to CS in the last few months so its been great getting to hang out with them again!

Brody LOVED Maggie (the hot dog). He gave her tons of kisses!

We played Guitar Hero for the first time. I can't believe I've been missing out on this!

Kristin and David were REALLY GOOD! They blew us away!

My son and his crazy faces!

The Rocker and his guitar.

And look what was waiting for us when we got home....

This Cute Lil Pumpkin!

Brent, Leigh Ann and Cole spent the weekend with us. Our boys had a good time together. Sometimes Brody is a little too rough so we had to keep a close eye on him. But he sure loves his cousin!

Does anyone notice that Cole is as tall as Brody when they are sitting down? Yea, that's right. Brody is a shorty!

9 Month Checkup

Brody turned 9 months yesterday! He is getting to be such a big boy! Today we went for his 9 month checkup and he's right on track.

He's still a little guy. He weighed 18 lbs 2 oz (10-25th percentile) and was 27 in long (1oth percentile!) So he's just probably not going to be very big.

He had to have blood work done so they can do some standard 9 month tests and he was such a big boy! It wasn't just a prick in the foot like they do when they are newborn. Oh no, it was a big needle with the little tube thing just like they would use on an adult. The only reason he even cried was because we were pinning him down, not because she stuck a huge needle in his arm. He didn't even notice the needle. Now he looks all cool like he just donated plasma with his little armband on. For those of you in the B/CS area, you know what I'm talking about..that cheesy commercial where the guy is in the hot tub with some girls and reaches for a drink so you can see that he just donated plasma that day and THAT'S why those girls are in the hot tub with him. Well, Brody is reaching for his favorite toy..THAT's how cool he is!

He is doing so many things these days. He says mama and dada and knows what he is saying. He loves to say mama when he wants something..and that makes it VERY hard not to give in. When he wakes up in the mornings he pulls his bumper down so he can see out of his crib. Its quite a funny site..he looks like he's in jail. His crawling is getting better. He still army crawls but is getting very fast and is starting to push off with his feet. He can stand very well by just holding onto something, be it a finger, a knee or the couch. I have a feeling it won't be long until he's pulling up. He does so many new things, its hard to name them all. And let me tell you, he's a comedian! He definitely gets that from his daddy. You should see them together..they're a hoot!Here are some pics of our funny boy!

Early morning

Trying to watch tv instead of play w/ my toys

I love this used toy you bought me for $7, Mom!

But I REALLY love this clothes basket more!

Getting all cleaned up!

Such a cutie!

Did mom mention that I like to make funny faces and show off my teeth?

All smiles..most of the time.

Whatchu talkin bout, mama?

Creative Juices

When I was pregnant with Brody, I knew that I didn't want his room to have a theme. At least not the kind where you go to Toys R Us and blow your budget buying a million matching pieces. I wanted his room to be decorated in photos (duh!) that I took of him and him with our family and friends.

When I found his bedding, I loved the colors because it was all different shades of blue with various textures and patterns. It did happen to have sailboats on it. (But they are cool Nautica sailboats) Still, we only bought the bedding and not all the accessories...I did not want it to look like the Nautica Sailboat Collection threw up in his room.

Well, when he was 2 months old, I found this AWESOME board for $10 at the Roundtop Antique Fair!!
I loved the distressed paint job and vintage feel it has. And the big crack in it just gave it even more character. So I snatched it up, thinking SURELY I have somewhere I can put this in his room. Well, when I got it home, I realized the only spot for it was the same wall above his dresser that I was saving for canvases of him. For 7 months, this awesome piece of art stood behind Brody's bedroom door, waiting for me to decide what to do with it. In the meantime, the wall above the dresser remained bare, waiting for a masterpiece of some kind to be hung upon it.
Well, the wait for both is over. A couple of months ago, I finally decided what I wanted to do. I found a way to use the sailboat board and still have photos on the wall. I FINALLY actually tackled the project yesterday! Check it out!

I bought a spool of twine at Lowes so it would look "boatish." Matt helped me use a big staple gun to attach the twine to the back and we made Xs across it. The vintage sailboat painting is a cute backdrop to a photo collage. And I'll be able to swap photos in and out as he grows and starts learning new people. I love the final result! What do you think?

Time for a Brody update!

It probably hasn't been too terribly long since the last Brody update, but I feel like he is doing so much these days, it was definitely time for one.

He is ALL OVER THE PLACE! He has decided to start trying to crawl..finally! However, he doesn't get up on his hands and knees. He does sort of a wounded soldier crawl. His legs are straight out, board stiff while he uses his arms to pull himself forward. And its not one arm after the other. He sticks both out in front and just pulls. Its hilarious! I recorded it...however, my video camera is being retarded and won't let me put it on the computer.

Everyone tells you that your life will be turned upside down when you have a baby. So I was pretty prepared for that. I don't think I was quite as prepared for how life would change once you have a crawler (or semi-crawler)! He's into everything..nothing is safe! No piece of dirt on the floor escapes his wandering eyes. I don't really want to baby proof the house because I want him to learn "no" and learn what he is and isn't allowed to mess with. But there's just some things that HAD to be moved for safety reasons.

He is also saying "da-da." At first we think it was just something he was saying randomly because he learned how to do it. But now I definitely think he knows what it means and always says it when he sees Matt or wants him. Its very cute! He's talking like crazy. Da-da is the only definite word..but he never stops rambling. If he wants my attention if I'm in a different room (since he doesn't seem interested in saying Momma) he will kind of yell in a playful way. He's learning how to communicate his wants and needs. It definitely makes things easier. We're teaching him sign language for the basics...more, drink, all done, etc. I kind of slacked off for a while and am trying to pick back up so he'll learn them soon. He's been doing some sort of hand signal that he thought was waving, but after he had his snack today, I think it might mean "drink." And its very similar to the drink signal. So that would be awesome if he was already signing! However, it might mean that he is thirsty all day long because he does it a lot!

That's all I can think of right now. I'm sure there's more that our little rascal has been up to. He goes for his 9 month check up in a couple of weeks so I'll have an update then I'm sure. I feel bad that I don't even have any new pics of him to post! We have been so busy with the wedding and then editing photos, that I haven't even take any pics of my baby boy. I will post some soon, promise!

God's Perfect Plan

*This post is not meant to be sad or to make anyone feel sorry for us. It's meant to give God the glory for His perfect plan for our lives and how he uses trials in life to draw us to him.

2 years ago today our lives were turned upside down. We found out on September 18, 2006 that we were pregnant. We found out on October 3 that we lost our baby.

Many (most) of you know the story and know it was a NIGHTMARE for us.
We sat in the ER for hours...
when I was finally brought to a room the hospital lost power...
then they couldn't help me because the generators hadn't kicked on...
I went back for an ultrasound and they wouldn't let Matt go with me...
Without Matt being by my side, they tell me that I have an ectopic pregnancy and the baby wouldn't survive...
Meanwhile, the another ER doctor is outside the room telling Matt that if its ectopic, I might die...
Then they tell me they have to rush me to emergency surgery...

You get the idea...

I survived the surgery (obviously) and recovered well. It took longer for the emotional healing. But let me just tell you that I can't think of a time in my life when I felt closer to the Lord. I needed him so much to comfort me and give me hope. Matt and I were constantly in prayer that the Lord would heal our pain and that He would give us another baby.

As amazing as the Lord was through all of this, it's sad how in times of need, we run to the Lord and cling to him to help us with the BIG stuff, but in our everyday lives, when things are going good, we don't seem to lean on him as much. I constantly struggle with leaning on him just as much today, when times are good, as I did 2 years ago.

After 9 months of trying to conceive again, we found out in June 2007 that we were pregnant. We realized that this baby (Brody) was conceived about the time that the first baby was due in May. We thought that was neat :)

Had God allowed that first baby to continue to grow and survive inside me, our lives would look a lot different now. That baby would have been born before Matt graduated college, which means I wouldn't have been able to stay home with the baby for the first 7 months of it's life. To some, that may seem trivial, but it was very important to us. But there was no way that I could have quit my job at that time.

And I'm sure God had even more reasons for taking that child from us. Maybe just to humble us and get us on our knees before him. Whatever the reasons for His plan, they are perfect.

When our sweet Brody Boy was born in January, we were overjoyed, to say the least. And having been through this may have had some affect on the way we cared for him, especially as a newborn. We may have held him more than "the books" and other mothers say we should, spoiled him a little more, etc...but we are so grateful for this child and wanted to soak up every ounce of sweetness from him. Don't worry..we've definitely gotten better and he's not totally rotten.

This was meant to be an encouragement to the couples out there who are trying to conceive or who have been through something similar. The Lord truly knows what he's doing. He knows why He does the things He does. We could never try to figure His reasons out.

Psalm 121:1-2
I lift my eyes unto the hills,
Where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord,
The maker of Heaven and Earth.

Wedding Weekend

This past weekend was my little sister's wedding at Toledo Bend Lake. It was absolutely gorgeous and we had a great time. It was a long week of preparation, but very well worth it in the end. She asked me to be her matron of honor..and her photographer! So it was quite a task. Don't worry, I didn't stand next to her in my bridesmaid's dress holding flowers in one hand and snapping photos with the other. I shot all the photos I wasn't in..and Matt and Leigh Ann shot everything else and the ceremony. And they did a great job!

We got to stay in a lake house on the water for a few days before the wedding and got to enjoy some time playing in the water and just relaxing. It was a great little getaway. I can't believe my baby sister is married! She looked so beautiful...just look at her! I'm giving you a sneak peek before all the photos are edited.

Mr. and Mrs. Chase Bell

Shell Bell and Me

Our New Family!

Matty and Me took a break from shooting and got a quick dance in

Cole hung out with Brody at the lake house this week. Here Brody is trying to comfort him. Apparently he does this a lot..Leigh Ann has a similar picture on her blog from a different incident with Brody trying to comfort Cole.

Matt caught a fish!

And here's our sweet boy just being himself!

When I edit the photos, I'll let you know so you can see how beautiful the entire ceremony was. It was a perfect day..perfect weather, beautiful setting and full of so much joy.

Congratulations Shell Bell and Chase. We love you!

*And in case you were wondering, this was a very casual wedding..so the groomsmen wore their shirts untucked and the dads wore khakis.