I definitely agree with Julie, it had been way too long...

Things here in PA have been unusually busy. We moved our office this past week, which turned out to be a lot more work than anticipated. We are still working on getting things put into place, but over all the move is done. As I speak, my brother and dad are building a wall, so yea, there will be lots of things to do for a while. At work at least.

I also had a pampered chef party last week and I'm still working on getting things closed out. If you didn't get a chance to shoot me an order, there is still time, but I think I'll end up closing things out tomorrow night. The party went well and it looks like I'll have a pretty good amount for free stuff. I'm definitely looking forward to that. The trick is finding the things that I REALLY want and putting some things off till next time.
I was contemplating becoming a consultant, but I think I've decided not to do that for now. I've been praying about it a lot and every time I do I always get the feeling that its not the right time. So I've decided to put that on the back burner for now and wait to see what God has in store. This was a pretty hard decision for 'cause there are so many good reasons to go ahead with it. Like the extra income, the opportunity to build it up so I can work from home (which would be especially nice for when we have kids); it would give me something to do on the nights that Aaron is at work; it would give me the opportunity to branch out and meet new people. It seems like a good fit, but for some reason I don't have a peace about it. We'll see what happens next. If you think about it, pray that I would have direction in this area. I really would like to do all of the things that I said - meet new people, something to do when Aaron is at work, etc....

Aaron is doing well. Things at work will hopefully pick up this month. February ended pretty well, so all signs say that they will. March, April and May are usually the best months of the year and we are hoping for some pretty big ones this year. We have some goals set and they depend on Aaron having a good year.

OK well, that's the update here, but before I go I wanted to invite you all to my house after Joe's wedding. I've blocked out the rooms at my parents and there would be plenty of space for everyone, including babies. Between my house and my parents everyone would have a room. I know that Steph and Shawn are planning to be here for the entire week after and it would be great to have everyone up. The following Friday is 4th of July, which would make for some fun parties and such. I also heard from Adam and Kim, and it sounds like they will be here for at least a couple of days. I also heard from Julie and they are going to try to make the trip. Nate and Liz will at least be at the wedding (with baby in tow), so that just leaves Jamie and Jen. It would be great to see all of you, at least at the wedding and it would be so fun to have a mini-reunion in PA for anyone who can stay. I would definitely make your stay worthwhile.

Well, Let me know your plans for the wedding. I hope to see you all there.
I love you girls and miss you tons.
Hopefully we can be more faithful with the blog in the future (yea I'm talking to myself too).

Thank you for blogging!!!

Thank you Liz for breaking the silence and blogging something! I've been so bored having nothing new to read on the blog. I'm glad you're doing well Liz. The end does get pretty painful when it comes to sleeping. But good luck with it, hopefully you can get some rest before the baby arrives. Congrats on finishing grad school. Your brothers wedding looked very pretty. But it is hella stressful when siblings get married! Especially brothers, I don't know why, maybe mine are just idiots. But so far every brother that has gotten married has been a full week of lost sleep the week of the wedding and at least a few months of stress beforehand. Not to mention striking that delicate balance of being friends with and supporting the bride through the process without becoming the intrusive, annoying, future sister-in-law. Both of my brothers have married girls with lots of sisters, so I've always kind of felt like the extra sister who has to be included but isn't a "real" sister. I don't know if that makes sense. I'm not complaining, I love Sarah and Lauren and we're very close (especially Sarah... still getting to know Lauren), I just think brothers' weddings can be kind of wierd because everyone's emotions are always running so high. So, enough of that rambling on and on about brothers' weddings.

Anyways, things are all fine and dandy here. The kids are good. They are supposed to be sleeping right now for a nap and I can hear Lilah in her room talking and laughing. I don't know what she could be laughing about because it's not like there's a clown in there or anything, but she is cracking herself up! Seth is actually sleeping. He's always been a better sleeper and generally an easier human. He's going through a pretty disrespectful phase lately though. I'm going to start spraying his tongue with diluted vinegar when he talks back. (Don't judge me, you don't have have two year olds!) It's getting out of control and I don't want to spank all the time (seriously, it would be like every 5 minutes). Plus I want him to make the connection that disrespectful, bitter words are connected to the tongue and are bitter in his mouth. Anyways, the kids are funny and have a pretty good time playing together. They like to hug each other and love to dance together. Josh is doing alright. He works alot and is pretty exhausted all the time. He's going gray quickly and has developed a stomach ulcer. His stress level is high. But we're doing ok and making the most of the time we have together when he's actually home. He's doing his ER rotation this month, so we should get more time together this month than usual. His normal surgery months are rough because he goes in at like 5am and usually gets home around 8 or 9pm. (Sometimes later) He works at least 2 weekends a month and usually has to do rounds on his weekends off. So we typically only have 2 or 3 days off a month. Then he also has to take surgery call overnight at least 8 -10 nights a month. The rough thing about call schedule is that he might be in surgery all night but then he still has to work all day the next day. There are times often when he will literally be working 48 hours straight. He's pretty miserable. But we're just hoping that when we get past the residency phase, it will get a little better and he will enjoy the work more. He loves actually doing surgery, but he's always so tired that it makes it hard to enjoy the time he's at work. Josh could always use some prayers tossed his way to get him through his days (and nights). =) I'm doing fine and have been staying pretty busy with the kids and a little bit of part-time work at home. I went to see Kim in Seattle a few weeks ago and that was fun and relaxing. Violet is adorable and it was cool getting to know her a little bit. We've been getting out as much as possible here in Columbus to get more familiar with the area. I have to say (and I know this sounds stupid), but we love Columbus. There is so much to do here and it's easy to get around. The winter is too long, but the summers are really nice. Columbus is so kid-friendly too, there is always something to do that is realxing and fun. We are really happy about being here and are enjoying it. I've finally come to the conclusion that we are definately mid-westerners and are happy about it. We like the mid-west! Well girls, I will go now and stop writing about nothing at all. I miss you all and hope you are all doing well. Love you girls!

Celebrations

I thought I'd break the silence for once. So things here on my end have been ridiculously hectic the last couple months, but I think things are finally calming down a little (or it's at least the calm before the next storm:). My brother just got married, which has kept Nathan and I insanely busy, and boy could I tell you stories from this wedding. But in the end it was beautiful and my brother was so handsome, and I shocked myself by crying through the ceremony, and crying through my speech. I can't believe he's all grown up now. I've posted a few pics, but didn't take many because I was too busy, and mostly have pics of Danielle because I was with her that morning. I was the matron of honor and Nathan was a groomsman as well. As beautiful as it was, I'm soo glad it's over. It was such a lot of work for us.

I also finally finished my masters! Whoo hooo!! So I'm officially post-grad, and thrilled to pieces about it. I had my comprehensive exams 2 weeks before Matt's wedding, which was incredibly stressful, but it's all over now and I passed. So I'm relieved and pleased with my accomplishment, and love the feeling of finally being done with school for good.

And of course, then there's the pregnancy, which is coming close to its end now. As much as I've loved being pregnant due to having such an easy pregnancy (yes Julie, I know you hate me), I think I'm about ready to be done. I'm looking forward to having my body back, and wondering if that will ever happen:) And of course I can't wait to meet this little person that's half me and half Nathan. I now think often about that moment when I get to meet him or her and discover the gender, and just see this person who I've been getting to know. I've also become a little more uncomfortable as I've had pretty bad back pain for quite some time now. Everyone tells me to sleep now, and they obviously don't understand that I don't ever sleep through the night, not because of frequent peeing (which I could handle), but because of pain and discomfort. Oh well. But needless to say, now with all this other stuff behind us we're fully focused on getting ready for this baby.

Nathan has also still been freelancing, which has it's share of stresses since when one job is over you never know how long it will be until the next one comes. So far we've been pretty fortunate. But keep us in your prayers as his current job will be up soon, and I'll be leaving work soon too. So that's our life in a nutshell right now. Now everyone else needs to blog too because I miss hearing from you all!

Mexico

Hola Chicas!
Well, we've been back in the states for almost a week now... in this FREEZING weather. Mexico was a lot of fun. We ate, drank, slept, and relaxed a lot. I have to sort through all the pictures and get them uploaded, but then will send them all to you. One of my favorite times on the trip was going to Tulum and Xel-ha. The Tulum ruins were neat to see, but educational... so while it was fun, it was also sort of boring. BUT, then we went to Xel-ha, which has sort of a natural lazy river type thing. When you get to the bottom of the lazy river, you get to snorkel. I had never been snorkeling before and thought it was amazing. At one time I looked down and saw a fish (no kidding) the size of Chris. I tapped him on the shoulder and we both flipped our feet rather quickly in the other direction... as if that would keep us safe, if indeed we were in danger... when we really weren't. It was just starteling.
Chris is keeping very busy with this new company, which isn't yet formed or named. So we call it "New Co" for the time being. He works during the day, eats dinner, and then works at night. We decided that since he can't help me with any of the housework, and since i'm working full time too... that we're going to have to hire a house cleaner. I feel like a failure as a wife, and am really dropping my pride here. But I just can't keep up. So I've accepted it pretty well I think, and am really looking forward to not cleaning the bathroom anymore!
If you've seen any pictures of me lately, including the one i'm posting below... you'll notice how long my hair has gotten. It hasn't been this long since 1996 actually. Until two days ago... I chopped it all off (well, 8 inches anyway)! I had Chris take a "before" picture so as soon as I get an "after", i'll post them too. I was going for a drastic change, and I think i nailed it head on. I got so sick of it when i was in Mexico and came to the realization that there was no way i could have long hair when I have young kids, so off it went! My hairdresser swept the floor twice while she was cutting it because she kept on slipping. funny.
Here's a pic of us taken on our last morning in Mexico during the sunrise. It's not the best picture but it's one of the few I have of us together since we tend to not make friends while on vacation... i guess that's due to all the sleeping and reading we do. oh, and here's on of us in a hammock at Xel-ha too.

Missing You

Hey girls... Your posts have been great. I love seeing glimpses into your lives. Julie, the AF would be an amazing time for you guys. I have lots of friends who have had such a great experience with the AF. And that Josh would be a Captian going in... that's impressive!! You'll have to keep me posted. Who knows, maybe you guys would end up in Colo Springs for awhile. :)

Steph, I would love to see you when you come out here. Just let me know when, and we'll make it happen.

Let's see... my life seems to be at a stand still at the moment. School is fine. I think I still like my position. It is taking me to Orland next week for a Tech Conference. That should be fun. As for everything else, well... I'm sitting on the floor of my living room right now, in the dark really missing you all.

I watched The Sisterhood of Traveling Pants the other day on TV and thought of you all. Man, I miss you.

So... I'm going to focus my missing you into planning our next Sapphire trip. I do need some guidelines from you all. How long would you like to come for? Would Presidents Day or MLK day long weekend be a good time? Slopes... who would be up for hitting them? And finally, price range. Any thoughts?

I've found some cute places. I just need to narrow down some specifics. If you can shoot me your ideas, that would be great.

I hope you all are having a fantastic week. I'm praying for you and missing you lots! I so appreciate your friendship. Keep sending those pictures!

Well, everyone else is...

Hi everyone! I can’t tell you how much I enjoy reading everyone’s blogs. I feel like I have nothing to compare going on in my life! No buns in the oven, no kids, no recent discoveries of family connected to the mafia…my life is officially boring. J Ok, ok, so it’s definitely not boring, but just not exciting.

Well December was a pretty horrible month for us. A coworker of mine committed suicide, so that was pretty rough for my team. Another close friend from work found out that her dad has cancer and was only given 3-6 months to live. For those of us who have dealt with cancer and the horrible effects of it (no matter what the outcome), it just seems to hit that much closer to home. We also had a HUGE ice storm here in Tulsa that left the city looking like an atomic bomb hit – and just took out the trees. Literally. It, in turn, left us without power for 8 days. All of this was in 2 weeks. Nice.

However, the turning point was when I got to see my wonderful husband take that long-awaited walk across the stage as he accepted his degree. Yes, he graduated on December 18! It was only a year that he was in school to finish, but it was a tough year. We got through it successfully, though, so his mom and grandpa came up to celebrate! Then, later that week, we headed down to Chickasha for our Christmas vacation. We had a great time, but we were both sick. We both went to the doctor when we got back to Tulsa the day after Christmas to find out that we had sinus infections. That week is a bit of a blur, since I spent most of it in bed, but I was well enough to get together with some friends for New Year’s Eve. We saw the ball drop on TV and then headed home. Very exciting. J

Let’s see…what else is going on…We purchased a used Honda Passport back in October thinking that it would be easy to fix what was wrong on our own, but we are finding that we were sorely mistaken. We’re still trying to purchase a rebuilt transmission for it (3 months later), and we’re hoping that will be done this month! All in all, though, we are still getting a great deal, even with replacing the transmission, so we’re not too disappointed.

Shawn has finally gone full time at his job at Callidus Technologies. He was part time there during his final semester. We just got through renegotiating his salary and are fairly satisfied with the outcome. Of course, we could always use more, but we’re very happy with what we got. Now, this year will finally be the year to pay off most of our debt and we’ll finally get to start travelling a little to visit our friends. We’re planning on going to Joe’s wedding in DC and then heading up to Aaron and Angie’s through the Fourth of July. I am also planning on heading to Denver to see Jacqueline and her baby (she’s due any time now) sometime in March – so Jamie, we’ll have to get together while I’m there!

I think that’s all the majors from the past month or so. I look forward to all the continued blogging… LOVE YOU GIRLS! Miss you mucho.

Little ray of sunshine

I've loved reading everyone's recent updates -- I, too, have been missing you girls a lot lately. I could really use a spa day with all of you about now!
Liz, I'm so happy for you and your baby bump. You are adorable! You must keep us posted on the progress.
Julie, that's crazy about your family. Remind me never to double-cross you.

This week has been our hardest by far. I know there aren't many others to compare it to yet, but hopefully things get a little easier after this phase passes. I have mastitis for the second time, which pretty much makes you feel like you've been hit by a truck. A truck that was aiming for your boob. It sucks. And you get a lovely fever and chills and all the treats that come with the flu on top of everything. It's also really been affecting Violet this time. She's been extremely fussy the past few days and won't sleep unless she's being held. Even at night. All night. So it's been a little challenging.
One of the huge blessings I'm realizing through all of this, though, is what an amazing husband I have. He hasn't complained once about 3 am diaper changes and he even sits next to me and rubs my hair while I wince and cry as Violet nurses. I don't know if we've just been too exhausted to argue these past few weeks, but it really feels like we've become even closer through all of this. And watching him be a dad is just about the sexiest thing ever.

Apart from our baby ups and downs (there are more ups than downs, thankfully), we are also considering a move to LA sometime in the next few months. The Seattle branch of Adam's company is being restructured, so his role would change drastically up here. But his bosses in LA (which is also where the CEO works) really want Adam to move down there and work. He'd have a lot better opportunities and -- hopefully -- better pay. The downside is, of course, having to move, especially when we've just started to make our home here in Seattle. But all signs are pointing to a move to LA sometime soon. The office is actually in Santa Monica, which isn't so LA-ish, but is still very expensive and so not our style. But hopefully we'll be able to find a little neighborhood that suits us.
And who knows -- maybe we can have a future Sapphires reunion on the beach!

Ok, the little angel is finally asleep, so I think I'm going to go do the same. Love you girls and miss you lots!

crazy family

Hi girls! missing you all today! Liz, your baby bump is adorable. You look really good, and I have to admit that I am pretty jealous that you have had such an enjoyable pregnancy, free of nausea and grossness. but I'm happy for you and hope you continue to feel good. By the way, are you guys waiting to find out what the sex of the baby is?

So things are going pretty well for us. Josh is on plastics this month, which isn't bad. I think we're going to meet with an air force recruiter soon to look at joining the military and get more information about health care in the military. The pay is pretty enticing to get us through residency and to help pay off some school loans before they collect too much interest. The med school debt and the fact that we can't really make it on Josh's current salary is just sort of becoming oppressive. The military would go far in getting us a better financial footing. Plus, during Josh's repayment years (5 years following residency), he would be getting state-of-the-art training and work experience and the hours would be better than private practice. And we wouldn't have to pay for malpractice insurance, which would be huge. I don't know, we're just bouncing the idea around and balancing it with our desparation at this point. =)Not to mention, men in uniform are hot and think Josh would be pretty irresistable as an air force captain! haha... Obviously, the crappy part would be deployment. But they do usually keep the docs pretty protected. So, we'll see.

So I titaled this post "crazy family" because I have recently discovered that mine is crazier than I already thought. My great grandma Ida passed away right after Christmas and we had her funeral on Friday in Cincinatti. I went and it was a good time with family on my dad's side. For those of you who don't know her, grandma was spunky, to put it mildly. So the stories about her life were entertaining in themselves. But as my dad and his cousins were discussing the family history, I learned some interesting facts. I learned that my family has a history of generosity and kindness. We have a noted propensity for sarcasm and humor. And my great grandpa had solid links with the mafia. Now when I say that, I am not speaking of my distant relative about whom I uncovered buried information. I am speaking of the great grandpa that lived next door to us until he died and who let us bounce on his belly like a trampoline. We were close. So it seems a bit surreal to learn that he was a highly recognized "business partner" with Jimmy Hoffa. (Seriously, we have the Christmas cards from Jimmy and grandpa lost a huge investment on something called Drive Alert when Mr. Hoffa disappeared) We also have a news clipping of a man being found dead in grandpa's "stolen" car. I don't actually think grandpa really killed anyone, but his connections are unmistakeable. He was a boot-legger and prohibitionist as well. I also learned that my family came to Cincinatti when my great, great grandfather fled there with his brother from Kentucky after being connected to some murder. I found out I am 1/16 Indian (of the blackfoot tribe), which is just one generation away from qualifying for the tribe benefits. But I am mostly German and originate back to the fifes of Germany, from before Germany was a country. So, here's to family and all the history, characteristics, genes and life lessons we inherit from them (the good ones and the crazy ones). Love you girls!

Growing

So, here are some pictures of my growing belly that have been requested recently. I really popped out over the holidays. The pregnancy is continuing to go well. Overall I can't complain too much. I experienced no morning sickness or other early symptoms, so I didn't even feel pregnant for quite some time. Now I'm definitely feeling it...I guess it's hard not too when you're this size. But my only real complaint now is back pain, which can be quite bad at times. I've been feeling the baby move for about a month or so now, and Nathan has been able to feel it a few times as well. I think it's much more real to him now that I am really showing and that he can feel the baby. He spends time talking to the baby through my bellybutton, which he insists is the portal directly to the baby:) Yes, he's definitely ready to have another member of the family who will now be awed and amused by his humor. But it's definitely crazy to have a little person growing a moving around inside of you. Kinda scary too at times.
Outside of the pregnancy, we continue to keep busy. I just finished my last grad class. Whoo hooo!! I still have comprehensive exams in Feb though. Nathan is in the process of changing jobs. Since he is freelancing, there can be a bit of uncertainty when one job is up and he's looking for another. He just started a new position today, but is still looking for something more longterm(this is a 4 month gig). So we've definitely been learning to trust God completely with where we're at right now. Bella is also doing well. I couldn't resist including pictures of her. She currently think she runs the house, has lots of spunk and even some attitude, and just loves to cuddle up with us. Work is going well for me. I'm already more than half-way through my year (which is of course a little shorter than everyone else' since I wont make it until June). I love my kids and will definitely be sad to leave them before the end of the year. As usual, I won't miss the politics though. Other than that it's just the business of life. My brother is getting married and we're both in the wedding, my baby shower will be shortly after that, the baby comes, and then we're inundated with company and traveling this summer. We definitely are looking forward to seeing everyone who goes to Joe's wedding in June, especially since I missed the last reunion. So that's life in Michigan. I've enjoyed everyone's Christmas cards, and Kim, it's been fun to keep up on Violet these last few weeks as you guys update the website. All three of you seem to be adjusting well to your new little life:) Keep us posted.

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.