splash park

The girls and I met Lauren this morning at Splash Park by the pier for some fun in the sun! We had a great time...thanks Lauren for getting us out of the house, all your help and even taking a few pictures! Arden's been talking about all the fun we had at "splish splash park" all afternoon!
Esther working on her balancing act...




check out the expression, not to mention the belly!


Arden spent most of her time in the sand. Here she is borrowing a little boy's bubbles...


Esther says, "oh the drama" (and probably one of the only times you'll see me in a bathing suit this summer!)


saying goodbye to the park...headed to Chick-fil-a...

while i was cleaning...

On Friday I decided to clean out the girls' closet...sorting, organizing, etc. Both girls were in the room with me playing and "helping" me go through all the clothes. At one point I realized Esther was being really quiet...she was only a few feet away from me and she was coloring her body with a red marker...so no, that's not blood in the picture. I thought I was paying enough attention, but apparently not! This may be something that happens a lot with children, but i think it's the first for us. I don't remember Arden ever doing this. Also throughout the cleaning out process Arden tried on MANY different articles of clothing and modeled them for us, putting together her own outfits. So here's a pic of each of them, although the one of Esther doesn't really do her coloring justice.




Other news...we went to Babies R Us in Jax on Saturday and got a new crib! Arden's crib was recalled in the fall and so we had a voucher for a new crib that was going to expire in a week or two. It was really fun to go in and pick out a new crib and not have to pay anything for it! :) It's not set up yet, so I don't have a picture, but it's completely different from our other two cribs we've had/have. It's got a modern feel/look to it and has a dark walnut finish...Woody REALLY likes it! :) The girls also really like the "new baby's crib!"

grocery savings

This won't be nearly as exciting to some of you as seeing pics of the girls, but I've been wanting to put the whole coupon savings thing into practice, but haven't been able to for obvious reasons. Anyway, yesterday I prepared a grocery list and decided to work on getting some coupons together and printed out. Woody went to Publix today for me with list and coupons in hand...the results, surprising! We spent $68.58 with a total savings of $84.26!!! We were excited to say the least, especially since this was the first real attempt at things! So I won't normally be putting our savings online, I just decided to share this first experience...we're hooked!

earth day picnic

The girls and I joined Allison and Brittany and their kids for a picnic at the mission (aka cross park). It was a beautiful day to enjoy God's creation and marvel at our God, the Creator. We all had a great time and can I say again, it's so nice to be feeling well and out doing things again and spending time with friends?! The girls had a ball and loved playing follow the leader with Gabby and also being pulled around in our wagon by Gabby and Matthew (what great helpers!). Here are some pics from our day...







Here are all the kiddos minus Gabe...sad I missed getting him...he headed for the water every chance he got-too cute! :)

feeling better and family

We're all finally feeling better and getting back into a normal routine of life-it feels really good! We still didn't get to spend much time with Woody's family while they were here, so that was sad, but the little we did see them was really great! Hannah, Michael and Kai got to spend an extra day with us due to a photo shoot Michael did in Jax (check out his website on the side bar to see the new photography business he's starting in B'ham). It was really fun to be out of the house once again and of course to spend some time with them-Kai is changing and growing so fast...and the girls really love being around their cousin! Arden tended to take the mommy role and wanted to help him or hold him and Esther just seemed fascinated to watch him and follow him around saying his name! We look forward to our time with them again, which hopefully won't be so long now since I'm able to travel again. :)
Since we were pretty much sick the entire time everyone was here, I only took a few pics and they're pretty much all of Kai, so thought I'd show off our cutie of a nephew!

SHE's a fighter!

This may come as a shock to some of you, but...we're having a GIRL!!

3 girls...wow! We're really excited about having a third girl and I think even just having a third child is now beginning to sink in! We got a great report yesterday. She's healthy and growing well. The doctor that I've been seeing through all of this used the words "amazing improvement" when he saw pictures and measurements from the ultrasound. He was visibly pleased with how things have turned out and we're very grateful for his help and wisdom through everything. Praise the Lord! He even said I can return to a "normal life," including being able to travel (yay!).

Thank you all for your prayers, love and support over these last few months...it's meant so much to our family.

We're thrilled to be welcoming a sweet baby girl into our lives in September. Now if we can just pick out a name...

will it ever end?

On Monday night, Woody and the girls got a stomach bug and I don't mean the 24 hour kind. Somehow I had supernatural strength and energy to take care of them through the night and on Tuesday, wash every crib sheet we own at least twice in that time, clean/disinfect and wash my hands every 5 minutes to make sure I stayed well. Unfortunately, I came down with it Wednesday night...thought I was going to die, really...I've been pretty sick before, but I've never been as sick as I was that night. Not long after Woody had talked with the OB nurse on call around 11 or midnight, I finally was given some peace and able to rest for a little while. Thankfully Woody was feeling better and able to take care of me and so far, he's the only who seems to be somewhat normal again. Now he's the one doing all the washing, cleaning, and taking care of us. It's Saturday...I'm still not feeling great and the girls are STILL sick. We've thought Thurs. and Fri. that they were getting better, but they just end up getting sick again. Will this ever end?? Please pray for our family...this has really been a trying week! To top it off, Woody's family has been down here since Thursday to visit. We thought surely we'd be better by then. So far, we've spent a little time with them on our deck and talking through the windows...very sad!