New Year, New Job

Hello dearest friends, I hope everyone had a good Christmas! We were both struck down with head colds so didn't enjoy our time too much. We are feeling better now, and are extremely excited to leave on our Mexico vacation! We're going to Secrets Capri, which is where Angie and Aaron went on their honeymoon. After seeing her pics again i just can't wait!
So if God has placed us on your hearts recently, there's good reason... and here's why! Chris interviewed at my company a couple weeks ago, had a second interview, and was then offered a programming job here. It offered more money than he's currently making and would have been a huge financial blessing for us as we hope soon to have little Akers (human children) running around the house. So, Chris went into his boss and let him know about the offer. His boss took a few days to think about it and made an offer to Chris earlier this week. The offer, strangely enough, wasn't for more money... right away anyway. His boss told him that Chris had been put on a short list of people they wanted to start a new company. This new company is still in the planning stages but is about 3-4 months out from being formed and funded. There is a slight chance that the company may not be formed, but a very good chance that everything will follow thru in the next 3-4 months. When the company is formed, Chris would be a partner (they are looking for the other half who would be a sales/marketing person who is tech saavy). We asked the right questions and found out that Chris was actually the only person on this 'short list' but they were waiting until later to mention it to him... that was their plan anyway. So, ends up Chris has decided to take on the challenge of a new company. His job will be drastically changing and he's taking on a whole new roll in the business world. Last night he started creating the business plan, which is completely new to him. It's a fresh start, it's a risk, and it's an adventure that he's really excited about. So please pray for us about this new company! Chris is feeling very confident about his decision but scared at the same time as much of what he will be doing in the next 3-4 months is completely foreign to him.
And now that all of that is over, I'm really ready to get away from it all!

Violet

Hi girls,

Thank you so much for all your well-wishes and prayers during the past few days. I have been thinking about you all so much. It's so wonderful to be able to share a part of this with my sister-friends. Although I do wish you all could stop by!

I wanted to share the website link that Adam made for Violet:
http://www.violetann.tv/

You can see some pics and videos that were taken right after she was born. We'll try to keep updating it on a somewhat regular basis.

I love you all so much and will try to write more when my head is a little less foggy. Violet's been practicing her Sapphires poses and she can't wait to meet all her loving aunts!

:)

A little bit of news

Hi girls,

We just got home from our doctor's appointment so I thought I would share the latest. I'm dilated to 3 centimeters (up from 1 at last week's appt.). I'm having mild contractions that last about a minute -- they get more regular when I'm active. My doctor said she could come pretty much any day now, or it could be up to another week.

I keep picturing her in there, packing her little bags and getting ready to come out. I'll let you all know if there's any more news!

Love you girls!

relieved

Hey girls. Jamie, once again, very happy to hear you guys were out of harms way yesterday. We were also relieved to hear that Jared (my cousin) and his family made it to safety. Holly was already in her car and drove by the gunman. But Jared was still in the building and had the girls (Elle and Myra, 4 and 1) with him. He walked into the foyer to see the gunman shooting and ran somewhere with the girls and some other people to barricade themselves into a hidden room. He was in lockdown there until about 4 or 5pm. For a long time they thought there was a second gunman on the loose and then they thought there were explosives on campus. So we were not breathing easy until Jared and holly were reunited and got to go home Sunday evening. We are thanking God today for the protection of our loved ones, but also praying for the families who lost loved ones. It's a really sad situation and our hearts go out to New life and the families impacted most intimately by this tragedy. I saw on the news today that the two victims who have died at this point were 16 and 18 year old sisters. My heart breaks for that family. I'm also praying for the YWAMers affected Sunday morning in the other shooting. I've spent a lot of time on YWAM bases and have done a lot of missions with YWAM, so that shooting hits a little close to home as well. There is just no safe place anymore. It's becoming a scary world, especially to raise children in. But we do serve a great God and that is a huge source of peace. Anyways, hope you all are good. Love you all!

Drama

Hi all!

Just wanted to let you know first that we are safe and were not at New Life when the drama broke out. Nick and I were at Panera when we got a phone call from a friend to find out if we were ok. So far we aren't sure what the whole story is, but we do know that all of our close friends are ok. The gunman opened fire in the parking lot about 1pm. Three girls were taken to the hospital with wounds and one person died on the scene. Our pastor seemed shaken during the press conference. Pray for him and his family.

Other than that, I just wanted to tell you how much I love you! This thing at New Life today, and watching what has been unfolding at ORU, I'm thankful for the friendships I have in you. Have you seen the outpouring from the president of Mardel? This man has come forward and wants to give the University $70 million. This money would get the school out of the $50 million debt and pour $20 million in to school. He gave this money, because Richard stepped down. God works in wondrous ways. :)

One last things... I need all of your address!! I realized that everyone as moved around a bit this year and I don't have current address. :)

I love you girls so much and pray for you daily. Kim and Liz... I've been praying for you lots. I can't wait to hear how you are doing. Steph, Jen, Julie and Angie... send pictures so I can keep scrapbooking this year.

new niece

Hi Ladies! Just wanted to announce the birth of my new niece, Sophia Lynae Newman. Sarah had her on Thursday night, 11/29/07 at like 7:30pm. Sophia was 6 pounds and 19 inches long. She's really tiny! She looks a lot like Owen. She's healthy and doing well. The birth was kind of crazy though. They gave Sarah her epidural and broke her water and she was about 6cm dilated. The nurse shift changed and the new nurse didn't check Sarah when she came on. Sarah felt kind of a wierd pressure and had Ben kind of look under the blanket to see if he could tell if there was a change. And Sophia's whole upper body was out! Ben went running down the hall to find anyone who could deliver the baby and the nurse ran in, got sterile, and delivered Sophia. But the doctor never made it. She got there like 60 seconds later in time to deliver the placenta and that was it. She was just down the hall waiting for Sarah, but it was all crazy and she missed the birth, mostly because the nurse wasn't really staying on top of Sarah's progress. When you have an epidural, you can't really feel the pressure and urge to push like normal. So it can be easy to miss it if you're not being checked regularly. Just a note of precaution for you pregnant girls who plan to be good and drugged for your labor and delivery... =) Anyways, that's our exciting news this weekend. Hope you all are good! Liz you've got to be popping out by now. Send us a picture of your baby bump sometime! Love you all!

Tis the season...

So I guess the Christmas countdown has officially started. Actually, Aaron and I started our holiday celebrations early this year. Over the Thanksgiving weekend we went out and got our Christmas tree. It has become a tradition for us to go to a local farm, pick out our tree and cut it down ourselves. Let me tell you it is such a fun way to start the holiday season. This year we took some friends along with us, which made it that much more enjoyable. Another change from last year - a 7' tree. Honestly we didn't realize how tall it was. It is hard to tell when you are under the big blue sky and not your house roof. Last year we went for the small 5' tree and ended up putting it on blocks to make it look taller. No need for blocks this year, it is inches away from the ceiling with out help. Good thing it wasn't any taller.

Anyway, just thought I would write a quick hello and hopefully get you all into the holiday spirit. Oh and I'm definately with Julie on the ORU stuff. I'm anticipating the next several years to be great for the University.

ORU stuff

Julie, great overview of the latest at ORU. I have also been following it but you did a fabulous job of explaining it in few words. I'm also very pleased to hear that there will be new leadership at the school. I don't mean to dishonor Richard and his family, but I strongly believe that new leadership is just what our school needs. I'm excited to see the changes (hopefully for the better) in the next few years. I want the school to survive for many many more years so that girls like us can form friendships to last forever, like ours!!
So I'm about to attempt a new post on the Akers blog, you should all read it if you have time, but the short of it is that we thought we lost Fujiko last night. But we found her. Anyway, it was a very scarry, but humerous event.
Kimmie! You're beautiful! Love the pictures!

ORU

Hi girls! Hope you all had a fabulous Thanksgiving weekend. Kimmy, your pictures are super cute! You're so pregnant! Can't wait to see Violet! Your house is also really nice. It looks beautiful. We had a good weekend with family. We all had a slumber party at mom and dad's house. Seth and Lilah had a blast playing with cousins. I wanted to touch base with you girls about all the happenings at ORU these days. I don't know if you guys have been following the situation as it unfolds, but it's pretty interesting. If you haven't been staying up on things, I highly recommend hitting the internet for the updates. Specifically, ORUs new Face Place for alumni has been pretty valuable and entertaining for getting up to date info and keeping a finger on the pulse of the campus right now. Quick overview: professors brought wrongful termination lawsuit against Richard and Lindsay after being fired abruptly when they addressed the board concerning a laundry list of allegations uncovered against the Roberts family. The news hit media and a private investigation was launched into the allegations by the Board of Regents. The faculty met to deliver a vote of "No Confidence" in Richard Roberts as president of ORU regardless of the investigation outcomes. Strong feeling that the Roberts had mismanaged funds and the university was ready for a change in leadership no matter what. Richard submitted his letter of resignation a few days ago and has stepped down permanently from position of president. Billy Joe Daugherty has been acting as an interim president in the meantime while the Board looks for a new president. Yesterday, the owner of Hobby Lobby and Mardels has promised 70 million dollars to ORU to relieve the university of its debt. The Board of Regents has now voted to accept Richard's resignation and also voted to completely separate ORU and the Oral Roberts Evangelistic Association from each other. They will no longer be associated and ORU will be its own entity under completely new leadership. Wow. It's been a big week in ORU history. I am really excited and prayerful that God is doing something big at ORU to restore it to its original purpose and I really hope the board gets a quality leader in Richard's place now. It's an important time to be praying for ORU and supporting the university despite past irritations with the administration. Because, as it turns out, the administration is getting cleaned out. I am really hopeful that we are on the edge of seeing a new day and an incredible era at ORU that will set the university up to be a strong academic and spiritual institution. Anyways, not to rant. You may be able to tell that I am supportive of the leadership change. But I thought you might all be interested in case you weren't aware of all the new stuff happening. Love you girls! I'm passionate about ORU for a lot of reasons, but it is, afterall, where I met my sapphire girls! Lets fight and support the university that brought us together so that future ORU girls can make their own friendship clubs to get them through life!

Me again

Hey girls,

Hope you all had great Thanksgivings! Just because I'm so in love with myself, I thought I'd post some more pictures... :) But these pictures have some tummy shots, so you can see how enormous I'm getting. You know something's big when it makes my chest look small.

Here's the link to my Flickr photo set if you want to see all of our Thanksgiving fun: http://flickr.com/photos/kaylind/sets/72157603320787892/

Now someone else share something! :)

Quick hello

Hi girls,

Hope you are all having a lovely Thanksgiving week!

I just finished uploading some pics of our new house, so I thought I would pass them along in case you would like to see them. Don't judge me if you see clutter or mess -- it's still a work in progress.

If you click on the picture below, you should go to my Flickr page. If that doesn't work, follow this link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/kaylind/sets/72157603251144942/

All is well here -- just counting down the days! We are getting so excited to meet this kid, it's unreal.

Love you all!

Yuck

Julie, I am so sorry to hear about the drama on your homefront! I am praying that by now you are all over that nasty stomach flu. I am also hoping God gives you the grace to deal with your mother-in-law during this trying time.

Things here have been pretty busy, but not with anything really important. The last few weeks have been a challenge - I was sick with a stomach bug at the beginning of last week, then Tuesday of this week I got a TERRIBLE urinary tract infection, and Wednesday I woke up with a nasty head cold (still dealing with that). In the midst of all this, my work put on a food drive on Halloween so we had to set up and work a "Spook House". Thank goodness, Shawn was involved a lot this year so I didn't have to do so much with the stomach bug hitting at the same time. We bought a 1997 Honda Passport from our friends Frank and Kori (photographers at our wedding), but before you get too excited, we still have to find a transmission for it. Shawn and a friend will be doing all of the labor since they work on cars regularly anyway, and they know the guy at the salvage yard, so we're getting a sweet deal, but we still haven't found a good one and time is ticking away. I would like to have it ready before it starts to get too cold.

We are celebrating our anniversary this weekend by staying home (yay!!!) and watching movies. We are going to dinner at Ti Amos on Sunday just because that's where we had our first date, and we may do some Christmas shopping, but other than that, we'll be at home. I would have LOVED to do something bigger, but money is still tight and with Christmas right aroung the corner, we just didn't think it would be smart.

Also, right around the corner (in 7 days to be exact) we'll be making the trek up to Minnesota to spend a long week with my family. I can't wait! We'll be exchanging Christmas gifts (but not opening them, of course) at that time too so we can all save on shipping costs this year. :-) This also means that I finally get to meet my niece, Madeline, for the first time! I can't wait to hold her!

I hope all of you are doing well! Liz, thanks for the email! I haven't gotten back to you yet, but I will soon! I'm glad to hear things are going well with the baby. Kim, we are counting the days with you until Violet Ann arrives! Take care of yourself! I miss all of you girls so much! Love you!

family intimacy over a barf bowl

So, we've had quite a week here at the Vicena house. It started out with a lot of promise. Josh took vacation from Saturday through Wednesday. Vicki (Josh's mom) was going to to come in Sunday and Monday to watch the kids for us so that we could do a couple things just the two of. We spent Saturday working on projects around the house. Then on Sunday, Josh's mom called on her way to our house... sobbing hysterically... because it doesn't look like it's going to work out with her and her husband, Paul. (Who, by the way, is a total and complete jerk ad always has been. Josh and I expressed our concerns about Paul's controlling, manipulative, and inconsiderate behavior from the very beginning and strongly advised Vicki against a relationship and especcially marriage with him.) Vicki stayed with us through Tuesday and will be back over the weekend. Josh and I did not get any time alone because she felt too fragile to be left alone. Other than a matinee we got to go see on Monday while the kids were napping. She's going to be here a lot because she can't really be home much with Paul. She looking for a job in the Columbus area. I may sound incredibly insensitive concerning Vicki's situation. The thing is, she has a tendency to make poor decisions based entirely off of feelings, and then expect josh and me to pick up the pieces and listen to her cry and whine about it for the next 2 years. We very specifically told her when she decided to marry Paul that when this marriage fell apart, we would not be sympathetic. We would help her make good decisions from here on to get her out, get a job, and settled into a new place. So this is going to be a long process that Josh and I are already annoyed with. She calls like 10 times a day about everything. And you all know how good I am at coddling people.... Surprisingly, Josh is actually more irritated and unsympathetic than me about the whole thing. It's just one more thing to deal with that takes time away from our time together as a couple. I guess the first divorce the first year of medical school just seemed fun enough that she decided to do it again the first year of residency. Each stressful new phase life just wouldn't be complete without a family disaster to pile on an extra load! Again, I know I'm sounding really selfish and nasty. I'm sorry. I just needed someone to vent to.

So, after Josh and I slipped away to see a quick movie on Monday afternoon, we returned to our beautiful children and were greeting them when Lilah crawled in my lap, hugged me hello, and then vomited like a scene from the Excorcist all over me. She then spent the next 2 hours vomiting every 10 minutes until we gave her a Zofran injection. The poor thing was so sick and every time she threw up, it scared her. I spent the rest of the night just cuddling with her and holding a bowl in front of her face. She's been sick since then, still throwing up and has had diarrhea for the last couple days too. Last night Seth started running a fever of 102 degrees and he's been acting like he feels pretty bad today. Josh woke up this morning with the flu as well and I'm afraid I might be getting it. It's gross and exhausting, but the kids have been so mellow we've just been cuddling all week. The cuddling has been nice. I watched Monsters Inc. with the kids this morning and we just made a bed on the living room floor to watch our movies and camp out. Unfortunately Josh still had to work with the flu. So, even though we've been sick, we've all just been spending time together as a family and cuddling. Josh's vacation is over now and we spent the whole time dealing with his mom and cleaning up sick kids. It really didn't turn out quite the way we'd hoped. Oh well, such is life. Sorry to dump all this complaining on you girls. Just needed someone to vent to for a few minutes. Thanks for listening. Also, if you girls get a second, please say a prayer for us that the flu passes quickly and we all feel better soon. Thanks!

Speaking of dreams

I've been having a lot of dreams lately about the baby coming early and us not having anything we need for her. Then in childbirth class last night, a lady on the video was talking about how she had a dream that she gave birth to five rabbits. So I guess mine isn't too weird.

We just hit week 30, if you can believe it. Only ten more to go. It sounds crazy, but I'm going to miss being pregnant. I know that having the baby on the outside will be even more amazing, but these last few weeks have just been so much fun. Seeing her move inside of me and feeling her kick, and even getting woken up at all hours of the night. It's pretty amazing. Plus, we don't have to deal with the crying or the pooping right now, which is always a plus.

I've been getting to know one of our townhouse neighbors, which has been a lot of fun. She's also pregnant and is due about a month after I am. She's home during the day as well, so we've been taking our dogs to the park together and meeting up for lunch and such. It's nice to have someone to talk to and to eat with.

I think we've also found the church that we're going to commit to. It's in our neighborhood and just feels right for us. There are a lot of babies and young families, but plenty of older people as well. They do a lot of outreach and community stuff, which we really want to get involved in. We're going out of town this weekend, but when we get back we're going to give it another Sunday or two and then maybe pop in to one of the small groups.

So since I've been so bad at the picture posting thing, I figured I should post some to let you all see how fat I'm getting. It's pretty much all in my tummy and boobs, which is starting to really make me feel a little top-heavy. But as long as my butt doesn't get any bigger, I'm okay with that. These aren't the most flattering pictures in the world, but I didn't have time to Photoshop out my double-chin.

Love you girls!

Secret Agent Akers!

I dreamt last night that Chris and I were secret agents! We were on a mission in a foreign country that took place in an airport. We had to do a "trade" of documents, or money, or something... that our connecting contact (let's call him Alfie because he didn't have a name in my dream)didn't know about. It was my job to switch the documents from our bag to Alfie's. Chris and I met up with Alfie in the airport for coffee. When Alfie got up to pay, I quickly made the switch. We knew that once we made the switch, there would be only a short period of time before he would discover the switch, so then we had to get away (without him being suspicious of course). So the rest of the dream was Chris and I getting out of the airport, and away from Alfie (who discovered the switch before we were able to get out of the airport). It was all very exciting, and we were having fun!
I told Chris about the dream this morning and he replied "You weren't supposed to remember that. Now I have to get rid of you." I love Chris, he's so hilarious. And, i'm thankful for a husband who adores the fact that I'm a little bit loco!

prayer

Angie, I think it's great that you are developing your sense of urgency and commitment to pray for other people. You're becoming an intercessor. That's an awesome role in the body of Christ. It's something we all need to develop if we haven't already. I'll keep your uncle and friends in my prayers too. I know they're all going through a lot. Hope all of you girls are doing well. Liz, how's the pregnancy going thus far? How are you feeling? Kim, you're rounding the corner on that last trimester. Violet will be here before you know it! Steph, how's life in Tulsa? Jamie, I saw you guys got snow in Colorado this week. yuk! How are you guys doing? And Jenn, we need an update on you too. Love you girls!

The power of prayer...

I have been challenged in my prayer life in the past couple of weeks. Not necessarily to pray on my own behalf, but more on the behalf of others - those close to me. I've known for a long time that I need to be challenged in this area and I'm thankful to see some real, evident answers to my prayers and the prayers of others.

An update on my uncle Glenn...
He is doing very well. He has made a lot of progress this week and they were able to move him out of trauma and into ICU over the weekend. His lungs are healing well, in fact, as of yesterday evening he was breathing on his own for a 24 hour period (that may be longer now, I haven't heard an update today). Once he is able to breath on his own for 48 hours they will move him into rehab. The doctors say he is "out of the woods" now, but the healing process is not fun. The contusion on his brain needs time to heal, and in the mean time he needs to be tied down most of the time so he doesn't do anything that would hinder the process. This is probably the hardest time for the family. Reality has sunk in and now its just a waiting game. He is not himself and they have to limit their visits so not to over stimulate him. He gets very frustrated with his current position and is very irritable most of the time. The bone doctor said yesterday that his bones are healing very well, especially his collar bone, so they are very happy to hear that. The family is so thankful for the progress he has made and continue to believe for a "miraculously speedy, full recovery"
Specific prayer at this point as per the family:
1. Continual healing throughout his body, specifically the contusion on his brain.
2. A calming peace for my dad as he goes through this process and enters rehab.
And I would add to that list, overwhelming peace, patience and strength for the family as they go through the healing process with Glenn.
Thanks so much for your thoughts and prayers. The family is overwhelmed with the miracles God has performed in the life of their husband/dad. The power of prayer is so evident in this situation and they are so thankful for all the support they have received.

There are two other situations that I have been praying for that I haven't told you all about.
1. One of my very close friends is going through a lot of serious marital problems and is contemplating divorce. I have been praying strongly that God would intervene in their relationship and give them both an overwhelming strength to forgive each other. God has brought good things about in this situation over the past week, but she is still wavering. Please pray that God would open up her heart to forgiveness and open up her eyes to the reasons why she loves him. This has been one of the most challenging situations for me. I want to be a friend to her and the more I talk to her about this situation, the more I realize her stance on marriage is not as strong as it should be. There isn't much I can do, but pray and ask God to give me the words of encouragement that she needs, however hard that may be to hear.
2. Another good friend of mine is dealing with a very rough pregnancy. She is now about 4 months along and is still not able to keep a stitch of food or water down. For the past couple of weeks she has been on an IV at home that provides nourishment for her and her baby. I believe she is being recommended to a specialist this week. They have a 2 1/2 year old as well and are dealing with some other challenging situations in their life - change of job, trying to sell their condo and get into a better situation financially. This pregnancy was not planned and makes it that much harder.

So yea, pray for me, that I would be able to grow in my prayer life. Thanks so much for any and all prayer support you can and have given. I love you girls and am so thankful to have you in my life.

It's official...I'm an Auntie!

My very first niece was born on 10/10/07 at 6:09 PM. She was 9lbs 6oz (BIG baby!) and 21 inches long. Shay had to have a c-section, but everyone is doing very well - happy and healthy!

Update.

My uncle made some real progress over the weekend, but according to the doctors he is not "out of the woods" yet. In was in to visit on Sunday and we are so thankful for the good reports over the past few days. They have his breathing machine down to 40%, which means his lungs are providing for 60% of his breathing, which is huge progress. His oxygen counts were a little lower, but the doctors said that is normal in his case. He's been responding to the doctors as well. He can open his eyes when asked, as well as squeeze hands, follow commands, and respond to yes and no questions by shaking his head. They had him sitting up for therapy the other day and he seemed to do well with that as well.

The family is very pleased with the progress, but there is still a lot of recovery ahead of him. They are asking for people to continue to pray for his lungs and recovery, and also for wisdom as they make decisions to go back to work this week.

Thanks for your prayers, it really means a lot. Praise God for all that he is doing and continues to do in Glenn. We are looking forward to his full recovery.

Pray, pray, pray...

I don't usually ask people to pray for people they don't know, but this is a really serious situation and requires a lot of prayer.

My uncle Glenn was in a cycle accident last weekend. Somehow (the details of the accident are not clear) he lost control of his bike and went sideways into a fence. The whole one side of his body is pretty beat up. He had ruptured spleen (which was removed right away) swelling on his brain (luckily no blood), a major concussion, a broken nose and jaw, a fractured vertebrae in his neck and several in his back, a broken shoulder, broken ribs, a collapsed lung, and ligaments torn in his knee. He has been in the ICU all week and has developed ARDS disease due to the trauma his body went through. Basically ARDS causes the lungs to tighten or stiffen.

The family has been through a lot of ups and downs this week. Currently Glenn is stable, but still in a comma. They have reduced his drugs to monitor his response and they are a bit concerned he is not responding more. However, the major concern right now is that his lungs will continue to respond favorably and his oxygen levels will continue to rise. Overall the outlook is hopeful that Glenn will come out of this, not only that, but come out of it will little to no major lasting effects.

Please pray that Glenn's lungs would continue to strengthen and that he would have a quicker-than-expected recovery. Also pray for his family. His daughter Shawna is our age and pregnant with the first grandchild. Pray that they would continue to have strength and hope. There are a lot of people praying for him, and we all believe he will be healed and whole in the end.

Thanks so much for your prayers.

motherhood

So, it's time for an update I think and I entitled this blog "Motherhood" because that is basically all that I have going on right now. I am starting to get hooked into some groups in Columbus and it's starting to feel more like a "life" here. The thing about life when you become a mom is that your whole world revolves around children and anything you can do that will allow you the cherished opportunity to relax and not have to entertain your children. Or at the very least, to take care of your children and entertain them along with other adult humans who can help preserve your sanity for a couple of brief hours. You stop even caring if you have something in common with the other women you are talking to because the very fact that they speak in full sentences and you don't have to wipe their noses is a huge improvement from your normal company of 2 year olds. So, I have been very lucky to be able to get involved in a support group for residents' wives at the hospital where Josh works. We have a playgroup activity with our children every Wednesday and we meet for food and adult conversation most Thursday nights. The extra benefit to this group is that everybody's husband is a grunt doctor like mine. So we are all equally desperate for people to hang out with and all understand what it feels like to be a single mom who actually has to maintain a healthy marriage without receiving any of the benefits of marriage (a husband who is present). We call ourselves the "widows club". I am also joining a group called MOMs. They have activities daily and it's nice because I can get out of the house pretty much every day if I want. (By the way girls, it's a National organization. So those of you who are soon to be joining me in the joys and perils of motherhood can find one in your area if you want in case you feel like you need a little support every now and then and need a fun place to go with your kids for sanity sake). So, all that to say... I am getting to know some people and that is very nice. Although, I have not yet met a single Christian woman who I could be friends with. I would really appreciate you guys' prayers for me that God would help us find a church, and that I can find at least one good Christian friend in Columbus. =)

So, Josh is doing well and staying extremely busy. He's actually on a really easy rotation this month so he's been home more than usual. He's had a lot of studying to do, but at least he's home more this month. He's only working about 70 hours a week this month. Yay! He also just had his attending evaluations done by his seniors. he got fantastic reviews and one attending even said he was "by far the most competent intern." Seth and Lilah are good. Lilah is getting teeth and is working pretty hard on standing one her own. She forgets that she needs to hold onto things and will stand for a few seconds. Someday soon we're hoping she'll realize that she doesn't actually have to hold onto things and can stand on her own quite well. Lilah is going to be my strong-willed child and is already flexing her will-power when she can. She also has a rather aggressive temper. We have no idea where that came from....

Seth has also hit a new milestone this week. He discovered that he is able to get out of his pack n play. This has been an exhausting milestone for us. Seth was up at 6:30am yesterday to ask Josh when he would be out of the shower. He refused to take a nap that afternoon because he "doesn't like it his bed." And last night we started putting him to bed at 8:30pm. He got out of bed and came out to the living room literally every 30 seconds until 11pm when we finally locked him into his room with a door knob cover. We talked to him, we sang to him, we prayed with him, we spanked him, and we put him back into bed completely ignoring him. We did everything that Dr. Phil, Super Nanny, and James Dobson all say to do to get your child to stay in bed... completely to no avail. There is no professional on child rearing that says to lock your children in their room until they fall asleep on the floor I'm pretty sure. But that is what we did. Because we had already put him back into bed at least 80 times. (I'm NOT exaggerating, every 30-60 seconds for 2 hours.) I found Seth asleep, standing up next to his bed, with his face and arms flopped across the side of his bed. He woke up at 7am today crying "Mommy! I need a hug! Please let me out!" That woke up Lilah. So I'm tired. Really tired. And I'm hoping Seth decides to start sleeping soon. I'm also just tired of diapers, and poop, and snot, and toys and messes, and of CONSTANTLY mediating fights over who had the toy first, and of picking green beans out of Lilah's thigh rolls. I'm tired of having to hide my car keys because my 2 year old son has an unnatural obsession with driving, and of having to remember to put my coffee up high every time I leave the room because Lilah will knock it over within 10 seconds. I'm tired of of digging chunks of my mail out of Lilah's mouth and of having to keep the bathroom door closed at ALL times because Lilah will eat the knobs at the bottom of the toilet while splashing in the toilet water. But now Lilah is flashing me a big snaggle-tooth grin and I admit that even though I'm tired of all the gross stuff that's part of motherhood, I really love that chubby grin and those smiles and cuddles that I get every once in a while throughout the day, or hearing Seth say that random hilarious thing. (He totally greeted my great Aunt from Texas last week who I've only seen like 3 times by saying "hi crazy mamba jamba!") Right now Josh is playing with Seth asking him about all the parts of his body. When Seth gets the answer correct, he gets tickled. Josh just asked him what his upper thigh is called and Seth just responded by pointing to his rear end and saying "it's my sugar pie!" I seriously have no idea where that came from! And even as I type and look at Lilah's single-toothed grin, I am realizing that she has a pistachio in her mouth that Seth gave her without me seeing him. I need to go dig it out of her mouth before she chokes. Love you girls! And thanks for giving me a chance to vent about my boring life with kids. =)

OMG

Oh My Gosh Liz! Congratulations! I had not even read your blog when I emailed you the other day or I would have congratulated you then. Sorry! I'm so happy for you and I hope you're feeling good. God Bless!

yea!

Congratulations Liz and Nathan!!! loved the pictures of the house too, looks like you have done a lot in a short time!

more news....

Well, you all should be very proud of me....blogging twice in the span of like a month or so. Things here continue to be busy. My new job is keeping me insanely busy, and grad school doesn't help matters. I can't wait until I'm done with my Master's. Only a few more months to go! The house is still coming along. I am uploading pics to Kodak as I type, so you will all have pics of the house shortly, along with some of Bella as well:) I couldn't resist. As much work as she is with everything else going on, it's so fun to come home from work and have her so excited to see me, and just want to play in my lap:) But many of you already relate to that.
Ah well, so we decided we apparantly did not have enough on our plates at the moment with continuous upgrades and work to be done to the house, the new dog, the new jobs, grad school, etc. This apparantly was not enough adventure for us at the moment, and we have officially embarked upon the new chapter of parenthood. Yes, we are pregnant! I am 9 weeks pregnant, and am due April 27th. We were going to wait till we were 3 months to spread the news, but our families couldn't make it that long. It's quite impressive we made it this far with them actually. Oh, and yes, it was planned. I figured I'd answer that now, as that seem to be the first question. So that's our newest news, and the most exciting by far in our minds. I wanted to make sure I shared it with my girls.

Mia Ann Ekle

I have a new niece! That makes 12 (i think) nieces and nephews. Mia Ann Ekle was born last night in Seattle, weighing 8 pounds 12 ounces and born with a full head of black hair. yea :)

Labor Day Weekend...

Hi all... I've really been meaning to post for quite some time. I still don't have Internet at home and feel bad taking more time to surf the net than I already do.

This summer was pretty busy for us. After Seattle, we sent 4th of July in Ohio. We decided to visit his Grandfather last minute cause he wasn't doing well. He's been dealing with prostate cancer for almost a year now and the doctors have pretty much done all they can. In spite of that, he has been doing much better lately. The last I heard he was getting up and around a lot more than he had and we are so thankful for this turn of events. He really didn't look well when we were up last.
Between now and then we had a couple of small trips and a nice week long vacation at the beach with my family. The summer went so fast, which brings me Labor Day weekend. The in-laws were in town, which mean lots of talking and entertaining for us. Overall I think it was a success and I'm pretty sure they had a good time, but let me tell you I'm very exhausted. I need a holiday to recoup from the holiday weekend. They stayed in town till yesterday, which extended the weekend a little longer than usual. Anyway... I survived.

Well I guess there isn't much else to say. Things are good. Sounds like you all are busy with changes in your lives - new puppies, new homes, new babies... What an exciting time for all of us. I just wish I could join in the fun. Soon enough I'm sure.

Talk to you all soon, until then keep it real.

Back again....

So i realize it's been far too long since I've blogged, so here I am. Things have actually been quite insane here with us since June when we closed on the house. The home we bought was a foreclosed house, and the previous owners took pretty much everything with them before they left (appliances, even the air conditioner!). So we had tons of work to do. We actually since have tons of work to do, but it's coming along. We had a lot to do before we could really even live here, and there was a rush to get it done because my parents had summer company, and we were taking up the guest room. Anyway, much of the inside is now done, which leaves us with some decorating, and the formidable task of the landscaping. I need to finish taking the "afters" of the before and after pics, but once I get those taken, I'll send them to everyone. We definitely are happy with the house, despite the work. The up-side to buying a house that needs work is that when it's done, it's exactly what you wanted, so that's nice. And the house is also only 7 years old, so it's like new now.

On other news, we also bought a puppy, as if a new home and all the work that comes with it wasn't enough for us. Her name is Bella and she's a Yorkie and she's just over 12 weeks old. I will also mention I think she's more work than many children sometimes. But she's starting to come along with her house training, so that helps matters quite a lot. I hate to leave her home while I'm at work:(

Which brings me to the topic of my employment status. After being unemployed for many months, I got a job as a preschool teacher, which I was more than happy to leave after a couple months of that. Not my calling. I just now started my first full week of school in my new job, which is great so far. I got a jobs as an elementary resource teacher in pretty much the best school district in southern Michigan. It's going to be an interesting year, as this city is one of the wealthiest in the country! I've even already had parents look me up online to check me out. But it should be fun. I'm happy to be back in elementary again and am looking forward to getting into the swing of things and finding my groove there. Also on the job front, Nathan is still enjoying his job. Things were very busy there for a while, adding to the stress of renovating and moving, but they've calmed down a lot now. So we're in the process of settling into our new life in our new home with our new jobs and our new little puppy. :) I wish it was really as idyllic as it sounds:) lol. I guess things like that never are. But we're enjoying the new adventures!

I've read the blog and kept up on everyone's life, even though I haven't posted, and it sounds like everyone is doing quite well. Kim, you'll also have to post pics of the new place. And let us know how the pregnancy is progressing! Jamie, congrats on the new position. It sounds right up your alley. How do you like having different kids all day? I love it. Julie, how's life in Ohio? You also need to post pics of the new house. Ok, I've gotta go work on a paper. I'm only 2 classes and comprehensive finals away from my Master's!! Whoo hoo!

Updates

So things went better than planned with Shawn's job - he's not hired on contract basis but on part time basis with a verbal agreement to work full time starting in December, which includes a renegotiation in salary at that time. Not bad at all. We're very happy with it. He's starting on Monday, so for the next week or so he'll be doing both jobs and school.





We went to MN over the weekend and had a great trip aside from the food poisoning from Taco Bell that put a damper on our first day there. Other than that, it was wonderful to see everyone...Shay is very pregnant and very ready to have little Madeline Loveday Rohde in this world. I can't wait to see what she looks like. We also went to dinner with bunch of my dad's side of the family after the shower - lots of cousins that I haven't seen in a long time. So, now I'm back at work and glad it's just a 4 day week! I have big plans of cleaning and organizing this weekend! I am actually very excited about it. I may even start on Friday night. :-)

Thank You for your prayers

Chad went home yesterday afternoon! The doctor has told him that he can return to college in January but Chad has decided he will prove the doctors wrong and be back by the end of September. The doctors have been amazed at his recovery and are shocked they sent him home so soon!! There is nothing left to do except praise God!

update on Chad

Hi girls,
I'm so glad today is Friday. I hope to take several naps this weekend as I had something going on every single night this week. I'm exhausted!
Wanted to give you all an update on Chad. The surgery was yesterday and the hospital staff all say it went as good as can be expected. The GREAT news is that Chad started moving his extremeties immediately after surgery. PRAISE GOD FOR THAT!! Chad took out his own breathing tube, another good sign. He is currently in ICU. Prayer requests at this point would be specifically:
1. that his previous symptoms would reverse
2. for there to be no swelling or bleeding as these are the two major concerns
3. quick recovery
4. Chad's emotional state
I'd like to use this time to say how much I love coffee. I'm serious! I LOVE coffee. It's getting me through these days!
So, Nobu is nearing on the 60 pound mark and has more and more energy every day. Funny, it's been raining for a week straight here and this "water dog" will not go for a walk in the rain. He also has to be coersed to go potty in the rain. honestly, it's not fun walking outside first thing in the morning, wrapped in a towel, and stand in the rain waiting for your pokey puppy to take a poo. Yes, this was the picture of us at 6 AM today! (we have a fenced in yard, i was covered!)
So Hobby Lobby has scrapbooking paper 50% off this week - i stocked up! I purchased $52.80 worth of paper, for only $26.40! How amazing is THAT!
And here's my final piece of breaking news. I just can't take it anymore. I've been keeping a secret from my blog reading friends (personal blog). This is a great feat for me since I have always been known to be a terrible secret keeper. You may think i don't deserve credit, because i haven't kept the secret from everyone. But, I'm taking baby steps here (big baby steps in my mind!) Oh, and most of you already know, so it's not really that big of a secret... On Saturday, September 1st, we get to bring home this cutie to join our family!!! Everyone, please meet Fujiko!

Life seems a bit crazy!

I've been thinking a lot about you all. This week started my third week of school and things are crazy. I love my new position as the Tech teacher. I'm really busy all day, but I spend it all with kids. I see the Kindergarteners - 6th grade. Each grade has it's uniqueness about it. My 2nd graders have to be the cutest. They are so poliet. They always ask how my day is going and tell me regularly that they love me. :) It is so cute.

My 5th graders are pretty good, but are starting to get attitude. :) My other favorite class is 6th grade, but that is only because they were my kiddos last year. I'm learning lots about computers and I'm really busy with school now. I've laid low the last few years and didn't get very involved with what happened at school. All has changed this year. I'm running lots of after school classes and committees. I'm going to love my break when it arrives.

Nick's family is coming for Labor day, so that will be exciting. I'm hoping that I will be prego by then, but nothing to report yet. It's been tough the past few weeks with the pregnancy stuff. I have a few friends around here that have gotten prego on the first try. I know God has a plan, but it is a little hard when you don't know His plan fully. I know you all understand that.

I love reading about what is going on in your worlds!! I'm praying for each of you daily. Keep posting!!

Kim...send pictures of your new house!!

Hi girls - It sounds like its been a pretty rough couple of weeks. I, too, have missed hearing from everyone, but I understand that life just plain gets busy sometimes. Kimmie, I am so sorry to hear about your Grandmother. I am keeping you and your family in my prayers more than usual this week. Juls, I am so glad you're close to your family right now. I would love it if you were here still - I could really use you around about now! - but I am so glad that your family is close to help you get through this challenging season. I really wish I was able to make it up to Ohio for the shower so I could see both you and Kim.

Thanks to all of you for all your birthday wishes! It was a good birthday, but I hope this year is even better than last. Things are looking up in the Cobb household. Shawn just has one semester left of school (yay!) and we just found out yesterday that the job situation is going to greatly improve. He will start next semester working on a contract basis (part time) for a company here in Tulsa as a Controls Engineer. When he finishes school in December, he will (hopefully) be signed as a regular salaried employee of the company. That's the plan, anyway, and it sounds like a great plan to me. Once he starts working full time, I can look at just working part time and going back to school. The financial burden will not be nearly as great, so that is music to my ears. That means more time and money to go visit my family and my Sapphires.

We are heading up to Minnesota over Labor Day to see my family. I am throwing a shower for my sister in law and my (soon to be) niece. The Dr. bumped her due date up to October 2. It's getting so close, I can hardly wait! We also got to spend some time with Shawn's niece and nephew and his mom last weekend. It was fun! But I would have liked it a lot more if we weren't all crammed into our tiny whiney apartment. :-)

Ok, well I suppose that should be all for now! I love you girls, and I think about you all the time. Let's get better at blogging, ok?

Adios!

sorry

Hi Girls,

Kim, I'm so sorry to hear about your grandma. I'm sure it's hard even when it's kind of her time and you've been expecting it. I'm sure it's especially hard because you can't make it into town for the funeral and stuff. That would be really hard. You and your dad are in my prayers.

I hope all the rest of you are doing well. People haven't been posting much since Seattle. I think maybe we all got our talking and updating out of our systems when we were together. =) I miss you all though. We've just been getting settled into life in Ohio. Josh is working all the time, about 90-100 hours per week. So we don't get much time together. The kids are good. They're getting big and staying busy and active. I'm still babysitting 3 days a week. We're still trying to find a church and I'm still trying to find friends and activities to do with the kids. That's about it for us. I've been going to my parents' house a lot when Josh is on call and that's been a huge blessing for me with his work schedule. I'm really glad that we're near family for residency. I don't think I could have survived otherwise! Love you all!

Another update

Things have been a bit hectic around here lately. My dad called me on Friday, informing me that my grandma had passed away. It wasn't unexpected -- she was 90 and had been sick for a while. For the past five years or so, she's had dementia and hasn't really been herself. And then about a month ago, her health really started to deteriorate. She quit eating and couldn't even get out of bed. Since she was DNR, all they could really do was wait.

They're having the viewing today and the funeral tomorrow. It was such short notice that I couldn't get a plane ticket. I would have had to fly through the night last night, and I know the baby wouldn't have liked that. I would have been a zombie when I got there. So Adam and I decided that I would stay home. I'm having a hard time with it because most of my Wilson relatives will be there, some of whom I haven't seen since I was a teenager. I really wanted to be there for my dad, though. Times like this make it very difficult to be far away from your family. Of course, if I really had to be there, I could be there. But with buying the house and the million other things going on right now, a last minute plane ticket just wasn't in the budget.
So I'd appreciate your girls' prayers -- especially for my dad. I think he's having a pretty hard time. Not that it wasn't her time to go -- I'm sure she's at peace now and not feeling any pain. But it's still got to be horrible to lose your mother. And he and she were very close.

In other news...Nancy and Ken (Adam's parents) have been here since Thursday, helping Kendra get ready to move into the dorms. Yesterday we piled all her stuff into about three carloads and moved her in. It really made me think of our ORU days. Of course, the University of Washington is a bit different than ORU (none of those Jetsons buildings) but the overall feeling was the same -- so much excitement and anticipation and meeting new people. Her little dorm room looks like something out of the Pottery Barn catalog. It helps that her roommate actually did her shopping at Pottery Barn. It's all very pink. We spent the afternoon there, helping her put things together and put clothes away. It was a lot of fun but exhausting. I came home last night and crashed. The in-laws are here until tomorrow then it will be just Adam and me again for the first time in over a month. We're a little excited about some alone time. And being able to walk around naked again, of course.

Ok, I'd better stop before this turns into a novel. I love you girls and miss you so much!

pray

Girls, please pray for Chad. Chad is the youngest son of my mom's best friend. The family lives in Seattle. Chad is about 20 years old but they have just recently found he has a birth defect that makes his skull not grow completely, thus blocking off spinal fluid from flowing. (that's basically what's happening but i'm really not well informed with specifics) Chad is going in for emergency brain surgery. He has spent an evening and night having tests done to determine what/when etc the surgery can be done but during that time has gotten worse. To those of us who aren't specialists, it seems he would need the surgery immediatley! So please pray for Chad and his family (one brother and one sister, and his parents) as they get through this day. I'll keep you posted as the surgery takes place and how it went, etc.

Little baby, little house

Hey girls! Hope all is well with everyone. I've been thinking about you all a lot lately. We had sort of a big week last week. First of all, we found out we're having a little girl. Yay! The ultrasound tech managed to get a couple clear shots of her little girl parts but, as always, it's not 100%. But we have both been feeling girl-y, so that just confirmed our thoughts. We'll have another ultrasound in October which should be more definite. It was just the most amazing thing to see her on the screen, sucking her thumb and wiggling around. We got a couple great shots of her profile and her feet. Everything looked normal and healthy. She's about six inches long right now and I've just started feeling her move a lot, especially when I'm sitting still. Adam's been talking and singing to her, which either soothes her or scares her -- we haven't decided yet.

Adam's mom, sisters, and nephews were in town last week to help move his college-bound sister out here permanently. So they got to come to the appointment with us, which was very special. And we got some good quality time with the fam. Lots of good quality time.
So now Kendra has moved in and the guest room has turned completely pink. She'll be staying with us until school starts.

Our other big news is that we put in an offer on a townhouse last week. The couple who is selling had to move to Ireland suddenly and are just trying to get it sold as quickly as possible, which means we're getting a pretty good deal on it. It has three bedrooms and two and a half bathrooms and is about a year and a half old. Hardwood floors, fireplace, and a teeny tiny backyard. Right now, we're just waiting for our financing to finish going through as they examine every little detail about our past. It's a very exposed feeling, as those of you who have bought a house before know, I'm sure. But in the end, we'll have our own place and will no longer have to deal with pot-smoking landlords. I cannot wait.

Oh, back on the baby front, my family and Julie are throwing me a shower in Ohio in September. You'll all be getting invites soon, just in case anyone happens to be in that neck of the woods or feels like journeying to exciting Ohio. :)

Love you girls!

Camping!!!

So, Nick and I went camping for our anniversary. It was our first camping trip together ever and my first time cooking over a camping stove and fire. :) We had a great time!! And I felt super successful at this adventure. We drove up to an area called Grand Lake on the out skirts of Granby and Rocky Mountain National Park. We found a spot on the edge of Mountain Shadow Lake. We got the last campsite and set up. We have the cutest little tent that we got for our wedding and I've never used it!! We took a long hike one morning and then spent the afternoon doing homework. Well...Nick did homework, I read my Rachel Ray magazine. I even made pancakes one morning!! I kept thinking of you all!! We should go camping. We can make it super nice for those of you that won't camp. There was an incredible RV parked next to us. :) Just an idea to throw out there!

back from trip No. 2

Hey girls,
I'm sad that no one is posting! Has nothing happened in the last 3 weeks? Well, Chris and I just got back from Montana. We used a friend's wedding as an excuse to see all the beauty that Montana holds. After the wedding was over, we spent a day and a half in Glacier National Park, just the two of us for the full day. We saw mountains galore, went on a hike at the top (about 4 miles?), saw a bull moose, mountain goats, sheep, and a ram. The goats and sheep we saw while on our hike and several times we were close enough to touch them (if we were crazy enough). I'll send you all pictures soon, but there's one I took where Chris and a goat are in the same picture. So crazy!! We saw a ton of deer too, but that was nothing new to me. I have one picture too of me standing on a mound of snow in my tank top and shorts. Parts of the trail were still covered with snow. We stuck our hands and feet in fresh mountain water, and Chris even had a little sip. Brr... that was so cold! So Glacier National Park is officially on my list of places everyone should visit before they die. I could go on and on about how beautiful it was, and even show you all the pictures, but none of it will do the park justice. Just go there yourself!
I have my second voice student starting in August! I never knew I would enjoy teaching voice lessons so much, and this is a great way for me to get some extra pedicure money. Yeah, I've started a new habit... Pedicures once a month. Hey, if twenty five dollars and 45 minutes of peace is all i require to feel refreshed, pampered, and ready to take on my work-place once again... i'm going for it!

Vacation is like a Coma

This is what I came up with this morning on my way back to the office. I went an entire week without watching TV, reading a newspaper, or talking with any of my aquaintences back home. I feel like i have been in a coma for the last week and am just now waking up. What happened over the last week!!
We had an interesting trip home... We sat by a 10 year old girl with some problems. Steph, I wish you were there to help diagnose. First i thought she was just a wild child and liked to talk. Then she started pulling back her already damaged cuticles and yelling across us for her mom to give her another bandaid. Her mom replied, "People aren't going to talk to you if you're bleeding!" She kept picking and bleeding for a while and ended up with most, if not all of her fingers wrapped. Yes, there was blood all over her clothes. So then, as she was watching a DVD on her travel player, she started talking along, and SINGING along at the TOP OF HER LUNGS. What do you think her parents did at that point? "shh" ...that's about it! oh my goodness. At the beginning of the flight all I could do was laugh. By the time Chicago arrived, I wanted to cry. And guess who showed up at our next gate?! Thankfully they were on the flight after us.

Trip plans

Hey all!

We land on Friday at 2pm. My sister is coming to get us on Tuesday morning to go to Vancouver for a few days visit. We don't fly out until Saturday night. We are so excited to get away from the drama our life has become. :) I'm so ready to see you all!!

Your friendly Seattle weathergirl

The weather forecast for the coming week is as follows:

 

Thursday – High of 65, few showers

Friday – High of 65, few showers

Saturday – High of 63, partly cloudy

Sunday – High of 72, partly cloudy

Monday – High of 79, sunny

Tuesday – High of 81, sunny

 

Be sure to pack a rain jacket and comfy walking shoes. And dressing in layers is usually the way to go this time of the year.

 

See you all very soon!

 

 

our trip

hello ladies! Chris and I get in wednesday evening and get to visit with my 2 brothers thursday. I have to drop off Nobu wednesday afternoon and will likely cry when i have to say goodbye for a whole week! We leave thursday morning, 9:00. We are very much looking forward to getting a break from our day to day life. Can't wait to see you all!

4 days and counting...

I'm very excited to say that I'll see you all this week! Except for Liz, we'll miss you terribly.

I get in to Seattle late Wednesday night and Aaron comes in late Saturday night. We will be leaving for Portland via train sometime on Monday. We haven't gotten our tickets yet, but I'm thinking it will be sometime in the afternoon. We leave from Portland late Wednesday night and arrive home Thursday morning.

Anyway... Can't wait to see you all. This has to be short cause I have a lot to do to get ready for the trip on Wednesday.

See you soon!

Alright, already...

...I can't take it anymore! I look at the same page every day when I check the blog.

Can you believe it's only 8 days until the reunion?!? Liz, we are going to MISS YOU SOOO MUCH! You'll have to give us a good post so that we know what's going on with you. We'll try and call you, too. I can't wait to see everyone! When Kim and Julie were here for Josh's graduation, I felt so complete. I don't feel that way most of the time, so I can't wait to spend time with my girls again. It will be very refreshing!

I was hoping to have some of my wedding pictures by the time I came out, but I don't know if that will happen. I have a small album, but I have yet to go get the pictures that I've ordered. I'm still hoping I can at least get some of them, though.

When is everyone getting into and leaving Seattle? I am getting in Friday evening and leaving Tuesday morning. Just curious...that's all.

Ok, so that's about it from here! Can't wait to see you! :-)

Party business

It's officially less than a month until the reunion! I'm so excited, I could just burst.

 

Below is an approximate list of costs for the weekend. Of course, this could change depending on our spontaneity. But it will give you a little bit of an idea as to what to plan for.

 

Costs

 

Food & drinks:  $50+

 

Space Needle:  $14

 

Transportation (ferry, bus, etc.):  $20

 

Film Festival:  $10 – 20

 

Other possible costs:  shopping/souvenirs, mani/pedi, etc.

 

-----

 

Also, if you haven't already, please send me your flight info when you get a chance.

 

I should be finishing up the scrapbook in the next week or two, so if there are any more pictures you want to include, send them my way.

 

I think that's all for now…

 

Love you girls!

Quick Visit

Kim and Adam and Josh and Julie were here in T-town this past weekend for Josh's graduation. I didn't get too many pictures, but I thought I would share a few. The second one is of our first Sapphire baby girl, Lilah, and her cousinVictoria (Vanessa's baby girl). And the bottom one is just of Lilah being a very tired little girl. She had a long day! :-)

It was fabulous having you girls in town! I will upload more pictures shortly onto Kodak Gallery. Love you girls! See you SOON!

preperations

I do believe that God is preparing me for little boys... little boys who love to play in the mud and get dirty.
Nobu had so much fun today at lunch. He played for a while in his kiddie pool and got sopping wet. Then he ran over to the patch in our yard that has no grass... 100% loose, fun dirt! And just like that, Nobu was a black lab! What do I do but just smile, laugh, and kindly encourage him back into the pool where I tried my best to get him clean enough for the indoors. sigh! But seriously, I'm just glad he was having fun, that made me smile. Plus, he was all worn out by the time I headed back to work so I'm pleased that he will sleep through the afternoon. I love being Nobu's mommy!

Not much...just hello...

Jamie!! I am so glad you are coming up! Sorry for your crappy weather. We haven't been much better though. It's seriously been rainy and/or cloudy for going on about 3 weeks. Tulsa is actually flooding. Its crazy. We've been in a drought for about a year and a half, so now that's over. :-)
Strep is done! It wasn't so bad this time. Just really draining. I was tired all the time.
So...I am so glad that it's not too much longer until we get to see each other! I love the countdown thing on the side of the blog...very encouraging!

Well, I love you girls! Julie and Kim - I can't wait to see you this weekend! :-)

Weather Report

Just thought I would give you the strange weather update from Colorado. We had 3 or 4 inches of snow last night and they are calling for more tonight. Steph -- I'm so sorry you have strep...yuck, I hope you are feeling better soon.

Another update from us -- WE ARE COMING!! We booked our tickets last weekend to Seattle. We'll see you on the 15th about 2pm. I hope to bring this wet weather back to Seattle with us. :)

So unfair.

I have strep throat. In May. It's not fair. Luckily, I only missed one day of work, but still. Who gets strep throat in May?

Number 11

My sister just had her baby girl, Violet. Get ready for this... She arrived at the hospital at 5:30 this morning and delivered at 6:06, just 36 minutes later! Anyway, that's 11 neices and nephews. Number 12 to be born in October!

You make me smile

Hey girls! I don't have much to say right now because there's not really anything new happening this week. My brother got married on Saturday. It was lovely and stressful and exhausting and everything you would expect when your ADD little brother decides to do something like throw a wedding for 400 people. Dan and Lauren are on their cruise now and should return tomorrow. Their flight was delayed the morning after the wedding, which caused them to miss their connecting flight to Houston (cruise out of Galveston). So, they missed their cruise departure and had to fly to Jamaica to catch the boat at its first port. It worked out though because dad got them 2 nights in Jamaica at a Breezes resort for their wedding gift so that they wouldn't have to stay in the ghetto and get their fingers cut off for their wedding rings. Lauren spent the morning crying because they missed their cruise and then spent the evening crying because she was so excited about the all-inclusive resort in Jamaica. I think they're have a good time because Daniel sent us all a picture text message the morning after the wedding with his arms over his head and the title "Victory!" Anyways, after sleeping for like 2 days to recover from all the wedding chaos, I started working part-time doing some copy-writing for a friend of Kim and Adams and that has kept me very busy. I am writing about herbal supplements and I am now dreaming about vitamins and herbs all night long. Although, I'm also thinking about starting on a couple specific herbal regimens. I'm going to turn into a crazy, holistic, herbal supplement popping hippie by the time I'm done with this job. Also this week... we went out with mom and dad and Dave and Ben and Sarah and their kids on Tuesday night. David had a piece of art that was chosen to be displayed at the Young Masters art exhibit in the Troy Haner Center (where Kim got married). So we all got together for dinner and to see his art. It was very good by the way, he's quite talented. Anyways, we were at dinner and my nephew, Owen, stood up on his chair and shouted "Hey everybody! There's a baby in my mommy's tummy!" So, Sarah is pregnant again and is due December 24. I think they were ready and were planning to start trying around now anyways. But now the pressure is on because everyone expects us to follow suit pretty quickly and we're not quite ready yet. We close on our house on Wednesday and will be working furiously to get painting and stuff done so that we can move in ASAP and stop living with my parents. We have quite a bit to do and no money to do it, so that does take some of the fun out the renovations I have to admit. But, I will post pics of our new pad once we get things settled a bit. I feel like things have just been a whirlwind lately with weddings and work and moving and Josh's graduation is coming up. Also, both of my babies are sick and that can be time-consuming because they don't sleep and all they do is fuss and wipe snot everywhere. YUK! Lilah has been up every night for the past week because she's sick and last night she woke up with a 102 degree fever. I think she has developed an ear infection from the nasty cold she's had. The poor thing really feels yucky. Seth is handling it a bit better. So we would appreciate prayers for everyone to be healthy again.
Kim, your blog made me smile because you are able to put such a ray of light on life even when it's not perfect. I hope you get a job situation worked out that you enjoy a bit more. Although I will miss your discount. For the first time in my life, I have nice shoes! I also hope you get pregnant soon. Although, I do love little black babies. They just don't get much cuter. =) I know that God will work something out for you that is perfect and even though it is really difficult to go along with it right now, I'm sure that you and Adam and your future babies (whatever color they may be) have wonderful blessings ahead. And if you do have like quintuplets or something, I'm sure that your Sapphire sisters would be happy to at least help you out with them so you can take a nap or go shopping or whatever. (And I really would take one or two if you want. hehehe... just kidding... no, I'm not).
Love you girls!

Catching up

It's almost the weekend and it cannot come soon enough. I was supposed to have my annual performance review at work today (groan) but it looks like it will be taking place next week instead. I can't believe I've been here for a year already. A whole year of my life dedicated to shoes. It's been a good run but I think it might be time for me to start looking for something else.

 

So there's been some more turmoil on the family front. Adam's step-dad, Ken, moved out and will probably be divorcing Adam's mom sometime soon. This wasn't completely unexpected – he's been a not-nice person for a while now – but it's still been sort of a difficult time for everyone. Especially for Kendra, Adam's younger sister, who is about to graduate from high school. Anyway, we'd appreciate prayers for his family, and for us, because it's a little freaky when almost every adult in your life is getting divorced. Okay, maybe not every adult, but sometimes it feels like that.

 

We're still trying to multiply the Linds – so far, without any luck. My doctor put me on a fertility drug last month, which increases our chances of having multiple babies. But if any more than two come out, we're going to ship them out to you all. 

It is hard to let go and trust that someone has a better plan for your life than you do, especially when you want something so badly. But maybe that's part of the process for us. Needless to say, we will be overjoyed when it happens. And if it never does, expect some little black Sapphire babies to be adopted into the family.

 

I guess that's all the news from Seattle for right now. Hope you all have lovely weekends!