Happy Easter

Jesus is the reason for the season ya'll. So thankful he died for our sins so we could spend eternity in Heaven. I can't thank him enough and feel so unworthy to have this life here on earth and get to spend eternity with him in Heaven. Hope everyone keeps him in mind each and every day and not just on holidays.

We had a great weekend. Friday night we had a date night where we had dinner and picked up Randall and me some Easter clothes. Saturday I cleaned house to prep for guests and Randall worked at the church landscaping to get it ready for Sunday also. The boys hung out with his parents most of Saturday.

Sunday we had two amazing church services, a fun lunch with my family and a nap. I also didn't blog to show pics from the church egg hunt the week before. I am a bad mom and also didn't get a pic of the 4 of us yesterday :( But here is what I did get!

 Carter and Daddy holding the bunny

He finally got brave and held him alone!

Tucker found the golden egg!

 

And then us 4 on Easter Sunday. (Aubree too) heehee

We had such a great Easter. I am so thankful for my little family.  I am so ready for July to come and it to be complete. 12 weeks to go!!! We are ready to meet you Aubree Lynn!!!

Oh goodness.....

Has it really been 2 weeks since I blogged???  I really wanted to blog more. We have been so busy. I am hoping that break was just temporary.

So what have we been up to? We have been working, boys have been growing, and baby Aubree is growing too. I need to take a current bump pic where I don't feel gross. My mom always asks to take pics after I have worked and I am so tired. Maybe tomorrow am we can get an update before I head off to work.

I am currently 23 weeks and 3 days. I honestly feel really great. I have energy most days and haven't been sick to my stomach in weeks. I have another appt on the 23rd for my check up and another sugar test. I am sure I will pass this one too. She seems to be more active first thing in the am and evening time. I sure wish she would save some of that for when I am not trying to sleep. Silly girl.

Tucker starts tball practice next week. He is so excited. Practices will be twice a week. So we will have that two nights and church one night.... the busy time will never stop :)

This past weekend Randall was working out of town so we enjoyed mommy/son time just the three of us. We got their hair cut, got Tucker his tball stuff and of course hooked Carter up with a new toy so he wouldn't feel left out, played at the park, and visited my aunt in her new house. It was fun and kept us busy so we couldn't think about missing Randall too much. He was working out of town the first 4 years of our marriage. I don't miss that one bit and couldn't imagine him doing it again. I will never put us thru that. Even more so now that we have these kiddos. It just isn't a life to live!

Look at these goofy kids-

We had a blast at the park in Lowell

 They wanted "Ryan Newpher" hair... for those of you who don't know Ryan is a teen in our youth. They ADORE him. He combs his hair sort of like this so they request this style quite often :)

Oh and we had to get a bigger car. A little over a week ago we traded in our Maxima for an Armada. We had gotten the Maxima with the idea we would save $ on gas and payment which we did. What we didn't think about was the way the back seat is made and how three car seats won't fit... ugh. I hate we had to trade off so soon but we had to. Little Aubree wouldn't have fit.

The weather has perked up. Just about a week ago it had snowed and iced. Today is sunny and 66.  They say if you don't like the weather here just wait a few days. It will be way different and boy are they right!

Randall took the boys to golf today since he got off early. He is such a good Daddy.

Tonight I am taking my friend dinner who just had surgery then I will head home to enjoy a nice evening with my men. This weekend we have to get our garage cleaned up and are having dinner with friends. And of course church. I am ready for it all. Gonna be a great weekend!

Hope everyone is doing well. Tata for now!!

~Jenni

It is a baby.....

GIRL!!!

We had our ultrasound appointment this past Friday at 9:45am. I woke up so excited. I was the first one up. Like a kid at Christmas time for me!

Our ultrasound tech was amazing. We had the boys with us and she was so patient and kind the entire time. This will be the first baby we have had at WRMC. Everyone we have encountered as been great. Thank the Lord!

As soon as she started Tucker started asking so what is it??  Over and over again. Bless his heart. He was so ready to find out. She was doing her technical stuff first and stopped to tell us. She said what do you think?  Randall said he thought he saw and thought it was a boy. She said "Oh no. This is a girl for sure!" I said ARE YOU SERIOUS?!?!  She said 110% sure. And it was the first pic she printed. It is like she was sitting on a piece of glass. No doubt about it we are getting us a girl! Tucker was so excited and Carter was well wild.... thankfully the room had toys to help occupy. He did ask her if it was time to cut the baby out. He is so silly. Love that kid.

The rest of the ultrasound went great. She is showing at the same 7/6 due date. Right on track. The boys were both 2-4 weeks ahead. She is almost a pound. So very tiny and lots of growing to do before she comes out. Everything else about her is perfect. Thank God for healthy babies. That is all we truly wanted. Getting a girl is just a bonus! A boy would have been just as great but now I get to experience both worlds. God is so good!

Today I made my first real purchase. We took the teens to Kansas City this past weekend and she got a bib but today was clothes!

She will be born right before the 4th of July so I was so excited to find this onesie. Nana got her a red bow. Hope it fits! I can't believe it... I am getting a girl.

I am so thankful she has two wonderful big brothers to watch out for her. She will be one tough cookie and well protected. I feel for the boys who try to date her!

Hope everyone had a great weekend. We are still trying to recuperate from the teen trip but it was worth it. We had a blast!

~Jenni

Our Angel Baby

I have done posts on Tucker and Carter... I have talked about this new blessing... but I have never sat down and wrote about our angel we lost last April. I think it will be good for the soul to do so. So I will....

Before Randall and I got married we knew we wanted kids. He said 4... I said we will see. Tucker came... he was super easy. Carter came... he was well different. Little stinker! At that point we thought we were done but not 100% sure so my doctor wouldn't tie my tubes. Boy am I glad he didn't!!!

After totally turning our lives over to God we discussed having one more and completing our little family. I got off my birth control in February. March came... no luck.... April came... I didn't feel a thing. I took a test anyways and it showed up negative. We got pregnant really easily with Carter so maybe I thought it would be easy again so I was disappointed. The day after I tested I started. Go figure. This period was different. It was rough. On day 4 of bleeding while at work I passed what I thought was a clot... I was wrong. It was our baby. The bleeding lasted for another 6-7 days until I called my nurse. She said I need you to test again and call me back. I said no way am I pregnant. I tested negative and started. But I took her advice. Left work and went to Walgreens. Sitting in that stall I wasn't worried. I thought this will be just to take the next step to make this stop. Well I was shocked to see 2 lines come up right away.... I was hit with a wave of sadness and started bawling.  I knew what happened that previous week. I lost our baby. I know I didn't have to endure weeks of pregnancy than experience a loss but it is still a loss. And was still so hard. I called the nurse right away and they asked me to come up to the office for testing. I headed that way and called Randall. He knew I was going to test but like me thought it would be negative for sure. He was sad just like me. I picked him up at work and he went with me.

We arrived at the docs office and did the ultrasound. I had passed it and my body was doing the work it was supposed to. I would not have to have a DNC. Thank the Lord. The bleeding lasted a few more days and then I was fine.

But left so disappointed. Why didn't we get to keep this one?  Was something wrong?  Just seemed a little unfair. I prayed and prayed. I reminded myself I have two beautiful boys. Healthy boys. Many people never experience having children. I have twice. Why am I complaining?  I felt guilty then for complaining and being sad... too many emotions and I was having a hard time dealing with exactly how I should feel.

We decided we didn't want to try again right away so back on the pill I went. Right away. Fast forward a few months a peace had come over me. God told me, "I have a plan. That baby was not meant to be with you but to be with me until you meet us in Heaven one day. Trust in me." So we did. I got back off on my pill in August and October I was pregnant again. Thank the Good Lord!!! I did have early testing to make sure things were going good this time. Those came back perfect.

Here we are at 19 weeks along. I am thankful for this baby and thankful I will see my angel one day. I picture my Grammy rocking that baby and carrying for it until I can. It is perfect now. Maybe something would have been wrong here on earth so God took it home so it could be perfect.  Next week is our ultrasound. I pray everything is perfect. If something isn't as the docs say it should be I know God won't give me anymore than I can handle. But I have a feeling this will be just fine. And then us having 4 kids will have be true. 3 on earth and 1 in heaven.

Life is never how we picture it... but it is how God planned it to be. I am so thankful God planned for me to be a Mom. The best thing ever.

~Jenni

Being a Mom is hard...

Being a working Mom with a sick kid is harder...

Tucker has been sick since Saturday. Bad oh stomach bug. I took him to the doc yesterday and the doc prescribed nausea meds to help with his appetite and told us once he starts eating the bad poops should thicken up. Sorry for the TMI....

Today his appetite came back. Maybe too much for his tummy to handle b/c he lost part of his am snack. So on the BRAT (bananas, rice, applesauce, and toast) diet he goes with sprite. I am hoping with those solids it will help lessen the trips to the bathroom. The doc wants to see us tomorrow if he shows no improvement. The only real improvement I can see now is no fever since Monday and maybe wanting to eat a bit more. I am praying that by tomorrow am he feels better so we can avoid that.

The reason why I said a working mom with a sick kid is harder is because it breaks my heart I can't be there with him. He sent me this precious video earlier...

My mom sent that not intending to make me sad but it did. I want so badly to be there for him and for his brother 24/7. But I can't. Thank the good Lord for my mom. Without her this week being their 2nd Mommy and doing a great job I don't know what we would do.  I am also thankful for God providing my job to help support my family. I would love to be a stay at home mom but that is not what God intended. He knew I had my Mommy to help us.

For all your stay at home Mommies out there...your job is hard. Your job is rewarding and your job is precious. I am sure you hear from others it isn't hard but we all know being a Mom is. I do however envy you in a way. Enjoy your time with your kids. I would do anything to have more time. But I don't and again am thankful for my great job.

God has blessed me and my little family so much. So in this time of stress because my little is sick I need to think this will pass.... there is so much worse going on in others lives. This is so minor compared. I hope everyone has a great Wednesday and I hope you don't catch the tummy bug... doc says it is going around!!

Losing friends

I honestly wasn't sure if I wanted to post this. Or how to approach it really. But here I go....

Recently I realized someone I had in my life wasn't a true friend. I felt used by this person, I was lied to by this person, and just plain treated unfairly. I was left disappointed by her. She wasn't who I thought she was. I took some time away from her and then began to talk to her again. Once again she proved to me she wasn't a friend. Not what the bible says is a true friend. Or someone God would want to me to rely on or trust. I hate losing friends or anyone in my life for that matter. But after much prayer and guidance from a couple true wise women who I call true friends I realized it was time to let go. I will always care for her but just because you care doesn't mean you have to invest any more time or love in someone. I really began seeking God to heal my heart.  This is something truly interesting I found online-

Question: "What is true friendship according to the Bible?"

Answer: The Lord Jesus Christ gave us the definition of a true friend: "Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master's business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you" (John 15:13-15). Jesus is the pure example of a true friend, for He laid down His life for His "friends." What is more, anyone may become His friend by trusting in Him as his personal savior, being born again and receiving new life in Him.

There is an example of true friendship between David and Saul's son Jonathan, who, in spite of his father Saul's pursuit of David and attempts to kill him, stood by his friend. You will find that story in 1 Samuel chapter 18 through chapter 20. Some pertinent passages are 1 Samuel 18:1-4; 19: 4-7; 20:11-17, 41-42.

Proverbs is another good source of wisdom regarding friends. "A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity" (Proverbs 17:17). "A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother" (Proverbs 18:24). The issue here is that in order have a friend, one must be a friend. "Wounds from a friend can be trusted, but an enemy multiplies kisses" (Proverbs 27:6). "As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another" (Proverbs 27:17).

The principle of friendship is also found in Amos. "Can two walk together, except they be agreed?" (Amos 3:3 KJV). Friends are of like mind. The truth that comes from all of this is a friendship is a relationship that is entered into by individuals, and it is only as good or as close as those individuals choose to make it. Someone has said that if you can count your true friends on the fingers of one hand, you are blessed. A friend is one whom you can be yourself with and never fear that he or she will judge you. A friend is someone that you can confide in with complete trust. A friend is someone you respect and that respects you, not based upon worthiness but based upon a likeness of mind.

Finally, the real definition of a true friend comes from the Apostle Paul: "For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:7-8). "Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends" (John 15:13). Now, that is true friendship!
That hit home. Perhaps when making friends I wasn't seeking God for who I should allow in my life but only thinking of myself.  Today I feel good. I honestly am not hurting from the disappointment. I have other things in my life that are more important to worry about. God is so good and so are a few true friends I have who always offer words of encouragement. These are the women I need in my life. They are always there for me and love my family. Some of the greatest women ever. You know who you are. You are very much appreciated. Thank you for always listening to me and praying with me. You are very loved.

On a side note-I am looking forward to the weekend already. There is a couple younger couples in our church we have known for a while but never hung out with. We finally set up plans. I have been talking to one of them the past couple days. Maybe God got rid of this bad friend so I had room for a good one?  Things happen for a reason. God has a plan!!!

Happy Tuesday!!!
~Jenni

17 week pregnancy update

Today was my 17 week pregnancy check up. I go back Feb 20th for the ultrasound and 20 week check up. I am ready for that one.

This was a quick visit. I think I spent more time in the lobby then with the doc. I do adore her thou. I was nervous b/c I had seen my previous doc with both boys but she has made me feel more than comfortable. She likes to get to know her patients and takes the time to check on the boys and ask what our weekend plans are etc. I love that. I just hope WRMC is as good to us as Willow Creek was. I hate we had to change but our insurance thru my work doesn't cover Willow Creek anymore. Bummer. Oh well. It is what it is!

The heartbeat today was in the 150's. The boys both ran 140's. I know...I know... it must be a girl. But as Randall would say don't count your chickens until they hatch. So we will see! 21 more days.

I love that sound. I look forward to these appointments just for that!

Here is what my app says this week about the baby-

I am so glad it is Friday. I miss my boys. I am ready for the weekend. Looking to enjoy time with them, getting some girl time in, and church time. TGIF!!!

-Jenni