who turned the moon off?

Late this afternoon we were in the backyard, and I pointed out the moon to Arden. She acknowledged it was there and then a few minutes later said, "the moon, it's stopped." I tried to explain to her that it really wasn't stopped, but I'm sure you can imagine how that went trying to explain that to a 2-year-old! Anyway, a few minutes after that she said, "the moon, it's stopped. it's off." This made me laugh out loud!

trip to Birmingham

Two weeks ago today we made the 10 hour+ journey to Birmingham with the girls. It was a very last minute decision, but we're so thankful that we were able to go. Woody took a course and is now a "certified green professional" in the home building industry and I was able to get some down time to physically and emotionally heal from the miscarriage.
(On a side note, thank you, thank you for all your prayers and words of encouragement during this time! The LORD has been so faithful to heal and restore and continues to do so.)
We had a great week and were really able to relax and be refreshed. We were able to get a lot of good time with Woody's family and enjoyed being able to see our nephew, Kai, for the second time! Arden especially LOVED "Baby Kai" and was in his face every chance she got. Esther, on the other hand, wasn't too sure about Kai being in everyone's arms instead of her! We were also able to catch up with several longtime friends, which is always great for the soul! Even the girls got a chance to see friends while we were in town, not that Esther remembers anyone :), but Arden seemed to really enjoy seeing old friends again! And lastly, Woody and I got some much needed "date nights." Our weekly date night hasn't really existed since we moved, so it was really great to get time with just the two of us, and I know Nonie and Dagan loved having to take care of the girls. Two highlights of our time in B'ham were going to the fall festival at Nonie and Dagan's church and then going to the "Grand Ole Pumpkin Patch," one of my favorite things this time of year. And although the leaves haven't completely changed, the weather was cooler and it was so nice to experience a little fall! I could go on and on about our trip, but I'll just end and let you see the pics below...

okay, I forgot a few...

Here are a few more of Arden's...
"Good morning sunshine!" (when we open up the blinds in the morning)
"It's a beautiful day God made." I've been saying this for a while and Arden just started saying it a few days ago. I love it!
"Like your new seat." Arden got a new car seat and Esther got Arden's old one...Arden reminds us that she likes it every time she rides in it.
And her Aunt Hannah reminded me of this one..."He's smellin' at you." She said this of Kai smiling at her!

what they're saying...

Well, I have much to catch you up on from the last couple of weeks, but before I forget, I wanted to write out some of the words and phrases the girls are saying these days. I know, bear with me, I'm always talking about what Arden is saying, but I can't help it! The child didn't talk until she was 2 and 1/2 and so it still amazes us to hear words coming out of her mouth! (And they really just crack us up!) Esther's adding all sorts of words to her vocabulary as well. She's been saying the typical first words like Dada, Mama, bye, hey, hot, go, dog, and shoe and train, of all things, and she's surprising us with new words as well. So here we go...
Arden-
"Sleeping Kiwi" (aka Sleeping Beauty)
When you ask her a question, she has been responding,"Do you know?"
She's really into the Disney movie, Cars, and she's been going around saying, "Rust-eze...Look at that shine!"
"Burgerham" We got to go to Birmingham last week! (which I'll be doing a post on soon with pics) While there she got to see her cousin, Kai, and she absolutely adores him! So we constantly hear, "Baby Kai's just a little baby."

Esther's new words include...tree, bow, head, wa-wa (water), drink, bath and night-night. She also said, "Dada, bye-bye" the other morning when Woody was leaving for work! It's so sweet to hear her little voice!

Alright, that's all for now. I'll try and catch up with the other things later this weekend. And can I just say, "Go DAWGS!!"

Nonie's visit

Two weeks ago, Nonie (Woody's Mom) came for a week long visit to help out with the girls and around the house. Little did we know how much we would need her help while she was here! We're so thankful that the Lord planned for her to be here when we found out about the miscarriage. She was able to take care of the girls for us while I had surgery and then while I recovered, and it was just encouraging to have some family with us through everything. So thank you Nonie for coming to visit us and for all your help!! The week didn't turn out quite like we thought, but we're so glad you were able to come and we enjoyed having you here! The pics above are from our visit to a church downtown that has pumpkins...it's the closest thing we've got down here to a pumpkin patch! The girls loved seeing all the pumpkins and picking a few "baby pumpkins" out! Don't you love the sisterly affection? :) We also enjoyed walking around downtown and getting dinner at a local place. The last pic is of Nonie and Arden enjoying some pumpkin cookies they baked the last night of her visit.

three

Preface-This isn't my usual happy-go-lucky sort of post.  Instead, I wanted to honestly share with you what our family has experienced in the last couple of days, really the last 2 months.  It is sensitive, some may call it graphic, material, so I wanted to let you know before you started to read.

I had been looking forward to sharing with you that we were expecting...13 weeks today, due in April.  However, we got different news this last Thursday.  We went in to hear the baby's heartbeat at our doctor's appointment.  Two nurses and the doctor tried to find it.  We've been here before and so knew, despite them saying not to be alarmed, that we were not in for good news.  We went in for an ultrasound, hoping to see our little one at 13 weeks.  Instead, we saw our precious child, 10 weeks and 4 days old, but with no heartbeat.  This is our third miscarriage and instead of getting easier, I think they're getting harder.  Not in the questioning God sort of way, but rather I have a deep longing to hold our little ones and also rest in the plans that the LORD has for us.  This time has been especially hard because we did see a heartbeat a few weeks ago, and I have been extremely sick and exhausted for almost 7 weeks.  Woody had stepped in as the incredible Super Dad, not only doing his job, but mine as well...taking care of the girls, the meals, the house (well, okay so the house went by the wayside) but he took care of the important things.  We really thought that we were about to end the first trimester safely, and so were not expecting the news of a miscarriage at all.  My heart aches and I feel empty, yet the steadfast love of the Lord and His faithfulness remain.  Now, more than ever, Arden and Esther are truly miracles to us, and we are so thankful that the Lord has chosen to bless our lives with them.  And we take comfort in knowing that we now have three little ones already with our Father.  It has been on my heart to share this with you because I know so many others have already gone through a miscarriage, and there are those who may one day have a similar experience or know someone who will.  God keeps bringing me back to Habakkuk 3:17-19a, so I'll end with it...

"Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD; I will take joy in the God of my salvation.  GOD, the Lord, is my strength..."

Happy Birthday Aunt Ti!

We love you and hope you are enjoying your day!  Wish we could be there with you!  Hope you're able to see some great whites on your trip...from a safe distance of course!  

Just for fun, here are a few of my favorite pics of you and the girls...

Happy Birthday Christi!!

The night before you moved to S.F. (Arden-6 months old)

When you came to stay with us for Esther's arrival...you became Arden's 2nd mommy!  (Arden-18 months)

With Esther-1 week old

This might not be your best memory, but I love it!  I think Esther was telling us, "No more Napa Valley, PLEASE!"

With Esther near the Cliff House on the Pacific when we came for a visit to S.F. (Esther-7 months)

Princess party with Arden and Halli this summer-"Aunt Ti's so much fun, we love her!"