God's Blessing of Peace and Grace!

On December 30 at 7:59 am we welcomed Shiloh Grace into this world! Her first name means "His Peace" and boy do we feel blessed with God's Peace and Grace.

Thank you to all who have prayed with us for a timely birth. We feel overwhelmed by God's provision and orchestration of her arrival. I will give details at another time of our birth story but we want to give praise to God for this amazing gift!

Nesting

My nesting instincts kicked in last night after midnight and wouldn't allow me to go back to sleep for another 3 hours or so. I didn't actually do anything around the house, just sat and thought up a LONG list of to-do's, mostly for Kurtis. :) Hopefully this means the baby's arrival is sooner rather than later!

And here's a recent picture...just because :)...

Picture Update

It's been a while since my last post, thought I'd better catch up with our life happenings before our next big event, Baby #3, comes!

We took a road trip to Texas for Thanksgiving. We are a little crazy and chose to drive straight through. It took us 24 hours there and 28 hours on our way back, thanks to traffic coming back into LA...welcome home! :) (We had a fabulous time with my parents, sister, brother-in-law, cousins and my brother. I did a better job of taking pictures this time...
but really just of the kids.)

The kids did an amazing job on the long road trip!

While in Texas the cousins enjoyed playing together.

Zoe and Aaron...the "littles"

The girl cousins...

Two Peas in a Pod
The brilliant Isaiah...

All the cousins

We got home on Sunday at 4:30pm and put the kids' bunk beds in the room that we had finished building and painting before we left on our trip. Zoe has already gotten used to her big girl bed and Malachi is very good at climbing up and down from his top bunk.

Yesterday, Kurtis turned 38! He worked all day, came home and we had a yummy dinner followed by my 2-layer homemade Chocolate Motherload Cake. It was good, not quite as good as Claim Jumper, but Kurtis was pleasantly surprised! :)

The New Look

Well, I happen to have a very talented sister and she is starting a blog and web design business called Uncluttered Design. She asked me a few weeks ago if I would be willing to be her guinea pig and let her give our blog a new look...uh...twist my arm...YES! We love the new look! Check out her site, she is even doing a GIVEAWAY right now with the launch of her business, maybe you could win a cool new look! :)

Halloween 2009

We had a very fun Halloween party at our church this year.
We didn't have a family theme in our costumes but we did all have a costume: Dr. Kurtis, me as a maternity patient, I loved my comfortable and easy costume :), race car driver Malachi and Chickadee Zoe.

We brought a pumpkin for the pumpkin carving which I think turned out awesome, thanks to Kurtis cause I can't say Malachi was all that into it. :)

Malachi with his winnings, a jar full of Hershey's Kisses. The goal of course was to guess how many were in the jar and Malachi was only 5 off! The only direction I gave him was, "There are a lot in there so it's probably a big number." He then guessed, "1-3-0." I confirmed that he meant, "130," he said yes and I wrote it down on his paper for him...and he won!

Zoe being our cute little chickadee (thanks for letting us borrow the costume Verwys'!) She was pretty timid the whole night, wasn't quite sure what to make of all the strange costumes, but she seemed to have fun.

After the fun games, yummy food and lots of sugar we piled in the car to head home and the kids were asleep and in bed not too soon after their regular bedtime. No Trick-or-Treating door to door, which I was more than happy about!

My first conversation for the day

Random lady at the gym : "When are you due?" (with smile on her face)

Me : "Beginning of January."

Random lady : "Are You SERIOUS?!" (stated with immense shock and almost horror)

Me : "Yep, I still have a ways to go."


Then while working out all I could think of were the responses I would love to say to people but never would because they're rude, like...

Me : "Yep, how long have you been coming to the gym?"

Random Lady : "(insert any amount of time)"

Me : "Are You SERIOUS?!"

Ha Ha...I of course would never say that! :)

To anyone who has ever thought to ask a woman when she is due, try to come up with something more gracious and flattering than "Are You SERIOUS?!"

Baby #3 update

A week ago I went in for a follow up ultrasound to check on my low lying placenta. Today I had an appointment with my midwife and went over the results.

Thankfully my placenta has moved slightly and there is no sign of placenta previa. As my uterus grows it is expected that my placenta will continue to move appropriately out of the way.

On a different note, they found one of the baby's kidney's is measuring larger than the normal ranges. Of course, whenever you go in for an ultrasound all you want to hear is that your baby is perfect, everything looks great, etc, etc. So this wasn't the news I wanted to hear but it does sound like this is somewhat common. I will need to go in for another follow up ultrasound in a few weeks. If the baby still has numbers out of the normal range they will notify pediatrics at delivery so they can check that everything is okay. I of course briefly looked online for what this could mean and quickly decided that was pointless. I worry enough naturally as is, I surely do not want to make that worse. Please pray that all is well with our little one, that this is nothing serious and that our follow up ultrasound will show the kidneys as normal. Thank you for your prayers!

Our 18 month old Little Lady

Zoe is a fun, energetic little lady that keeps us on our toes. She is such a blessing!

I meant to post this a little over a week ago and I'm finally getting around to it...better late than never. :)

And I quote...

"When people move side to side, it means their bottom is too heavy."

Statement made by Malachi as we were driving the other day.

It's Not a Vita-Mix

A while ago I posted about my love affair with blog giveaways. I recently won my second blog giveaway! I was more like a runner's up really. The giveaway was hosted by this gal. She was giving away a Vita-Mix Blender! I already have one for myself but I still left my comment to try to win it for someone I love...sorry Aim :)!

Anyhow, I was picked as a runner up and instead won a copy of her book, The Handbook of Vintage Remedies. This is a book with herbal remedies for a wide range of things like athlete's foot, heartburn, low milk supply for breastfeeding, teething, ulcers...to name a few. I haven't had the chance to look through the whole thing but I think it will be a nice resource to consider. She also has 'recipes' for natural cleaning and skin care remedies that I am anxious to try.

He Worked, He Saved, He Did It!

Well, Malachi finally saved up the $20 for his Razor scooter! . We had been planning on finding one on craigslist but how excited we all :) were to get a NEW one when we found it on sale at Toys R Us 50% off so it was 19.99! He is very proud of his new toy, we are very proud of him for being so patient and saving! Here are a few pictures with his new "ride!" :)

Visit from Grandma and Grandpa

My parents were here visiting for a little over a week and we had a great time just hanging out. I did a horrible job of taking photos so I wish I had more to post than this one but I was just too busy soaking up all the spare minutes, I couldn't bother myself to get the camera. ;)

Highlights...going on walks, Grandma reading, reading, reading with Malachi, a couple trips to Costco (thanks mom and dad for stocking up our fridge and freezer), Kurtis and I got to go on 2 dates! And I can't forget, Grandma jumping on the trampoline with Malachi will be a memory Malachi won't soon forget! Thanks for all the time you spent with us. We love you!

At just over 20 weeks...

...my belly is growing at an alarming rate! :)

I saw my midwife yesterday and was able to hear the baby's heartbeat and go over the ultrasound results. Heartbeat sounded wonderfully strong and everything for the baby looked great on the ultrasound. The one concern is that I have a low-lying placenta. More than likely that will move by the end of the pregnancy and my midwife was not concerned. It is something to pray about, we would like to have this baby naturally as well and with no complications. I will have another ultrasound at 28 weeks to check on the location of the placenta.

Beside the already large belly :) I am feeling good. I have my energy (most days) and not uncomfortable (yet).

# 14,760

I am a bit of a sucker for a good blog giveaway. I have won one in my life and it was actually for some awesome blankets made by Aden & Anais. I actually won the heavier winter blankets which will work nicely for baby #3 coming in January but I LOVE their light weight muslin wraps too!

Anyway, back to my point...I love a good blog giveaway and I just entered to win one on thepioneerwoman. She is giving away 2 Le Creuset French Ovens! Last week she gave away 2 KitchenAid Stand Mixers. I entered that one as well but sadly did not get picked. I'm keeping my fingers crossed...pick me, pick me, comment #14,760.

And if you want to enter, just to give you an idea of your chances :) I posted my comment (#14,760, in case you thought I mistyped that) and 10 minutes later there were over 15,000 comments! :)

9 Years!

Today Kurtis and I celebrate our 9th Anniversary! A lot has happened in that 9 years...completion of Kurtis' BA and MA, a number of job transitions for Kurtis, a house (and major remodel), 2 beautiful children with 1 on the way, transition for me from full time teacher to full time mom...many challenges and a multitude of blessings!

We often think of what we were told by our good friend Sherwood Lingenfelter, that finding a good mate is looking for someone that you will have fun and enjoy working through all your junk with and dealing with the things life throws at you. Every minute of every day has not been "fun" and it has been hard work and takes great commitment but what a true blessing it is to enjoy the journey we are on together and I wouldn't want to be on it with anyone else!

We cannot forget to say...
Thank you to everyone that has stood beside us in support and love to encourage us on this journey!

For those who haven't heard...

We're having a GIRL!

Everything seemed to look fine on the ultrasound (I hate it that the tech can't tell you anything!), I will go over the ultrasound with my midwife on the 24th. We saw HER heart beating and HER little arms and legs moving around. How great it is to be able to refer to our precious baby as a HER and not an 'It'! The miracle of life never ceases to amaze me!

Now we just need to decide on a name...I'll keep you posted on that! :)

Boy or Girl?

Tomorrow morning I will go in for my ultrasound not only to check to see how the baby is doing but to find out if we are having a boy or a girl. I don't have a feeling either way, Kurtis and I are mostly concerned to hear that the baby is healthy. But it is a nice perk to be able to learn more about our little one.

I have friends that have decided to wait to find out but not us, no way! I think it's fabulous that we can have the opportunity to get to know our little one a little more even as he/she is in my belly. We have always chosen the names of our kids soon after the ultrasound so we can refer to them by name. I enjoy the attachment stuff that's able to begin as a result. Note: if you are one of these said friends, take no insult. I don't think there is anything wrong with choosing the surprise route, just not for me. ;)

When we had Zoe I think it was also great for Malachi to begin to prepare for a sister and call her by name. I thought it was helpful for him in his brotherly bonding as well. Speaking of Malachi, when asked what this baby is he has given the same response from the beginning..."It's a girl." When asked if he wants a brother or sister he responds..."I want a brother." Quite intriguing how his three year old mind works that he makes that distinction. :)

So tomorrow we shall see. I will post and let others know after we find out. When we choose a name, I suspect that will be posted as well. Then not only can we be praying for our little one by name, so can all of you! :) For now, our prayer is that whether a he or she this baby is healthy, strong and thriving.

Hi my name is Pamela and...

I'm addicted to allrecipes.com

Seriously, I think I could spend hours looking up yummy new recipes to try. Kurtis finds it amusing that I will make something tasty and then possibly not make it again just because I am so busy trying other new and exciting recipes.

So you know our crazy, huge tomato? The one I thought would make some delicious pico de gallo. Well, I used it instead to make a vegetarian version of this recipe...yummy! I had enough for the vodka cream sauce, the fresh tomato chopped up was an excellent replacement for the canned tomatoes if I can be so bold :), and more to top our salad. I sliced up our squash and tore up our kale and skipped the Italian sausage (cause I didn't have any). I also didn't have heavy whipping cream so I used half and half with a teaspoon of cornstarch (thanks for the tip from VBHOKIE). The reviews are a favorite part for me, they have helped me break out of that "I have to do exactly what it says" mentality. And about those reviews, it is nice to order them by 'most helpful' to get some of the best tips. We enjoyed it with these breadsticks that Malachi and I made earlier in the day, another new favorite food blog I have been devouring lately that you should check out.

So what have you been cooking up lately and where do you go to find inspiration and new recipes? And, I'm always game to try a new recipe so if you have a favorite don't be shy, share the recipe! :)

Spoils from our Garden!

Malachi helped me picked some things from our garden this morning: kale, tomatoes, chili peppers and summer squash.

Here is our crazy tomato! It looks like three large tomatoes that grew together, plus the little afterthought green one on top. I'm thinking some yummy pico de gallo is in our future.

My little readers

This morning I caught Malachi and Zoe quietly sitting near each other reading books. This is very common for Malachi, but Zoe is just recently having more enjoyment in books. I love it!!Note the upside down book :)

16 Months

Took this yesterday when Zoe woke from her nap. Typical scene, she puts her pacifier in (upside down) in an effort to tell me that she wants to take it with her out of the crib. She is now weaned from breastfeeding, it's been a whole 3 days :), and our next step will be getting rid of the pacifier completely. She is growing up so fast!
A few things about our Zoester...
Loves to put dirty clothes in the laundry basket and understands and follows most simple directions. Does not have very many words yet but still is able to communicate her desires. Loves to laugh and play with her big brother. Enjoys dancing to music. Affectionate...yet has a bad habit of pinching that we're working on. Fun loving and a pure joy! What a blessing she is!

grow garden, grow!

we got back from TX and were so excited to see how much our garden had grown (thank you Nicks for taking care of it for us!)

we have anaheim chili peppers, kale, summer squash, tomatoes, basil, oregano and bell peppers

I am most excited about the tomatoes. I love tomatoes! My mouth waters thinking about home grown tomatoes with a little salt sprinkled on top.

Trip to Texas

We spent two weeks at the beginning of this month in Texas. We had a wonderful time with my parents and sister's family. I didn't take as many photos as I should have, I had morning, or rather all day, sickness and had very little energy. Thankfully my mom and sister both can relate and were wonderful to let me relax and rest on the couch for the majority of the time. The cousins played and we just enjoyed being together. Oh how I wish we lived down the street from them and Grandma and Grandpa!

two peas in a pod. they did a great job playing together...most of the time. :)my beautiful niece. we were able to be there to celebrate her 9th birthday!

my oldest nephew is always thinking. he was always working on something, building something, reading or figuring something out. one day he is going to be famous for discovering something important I'm sure!the littlest nephew. quite a personality and such a doll. he quickly learned to stay clear of zoe and her nose tweaking habit which we are still working on breaking her of.

the car that malachi could not get enough of. the cousins were very good at sharing!we also got to see our dear friends, the ishams, who moved to texas was it 4 years ago? thanks for driving out to spend the day with us!

Mark Your Calendars

Got an email today from a nurse at Kaiser...according to the ultrasound I am 7 weeks and 1 day pregnant which makes my due date January 7, 2010.

Heartbeat!

Just got home from the ultrasound, still don't have an idea of how many weeks I am. I hate it that the techs can't give you info! I did get to see the tiny heart beating on the screen and hear it!! What a miracle new life is!

Ultrasound

We have one scheduled...May 2o at 8:30 pm! I had no idea they did them that late but that's fine by me. I guess that is what you get when you ask for it to be ordered STAT! Anyone want to babysit our kiddos at our house? :)

No news...sorry I forgot to update

Kaiser has changed the way they do things and we only had paperwork and lab work at this appointment. I am not too happy about their change, don't they realize that everyone loves to see that little peanut at the first prenatal?! Note to self...and anyone else that has Kaiser...don't have your husband come with you to the first prenatal (unless of course you need help answering all the history questions). We will have our next appointment on the 28th and get to have an informal ultrasound then. I am supposed to have a formal ultrasound to give me a due date, since we have no idea, since I had no "first day of my last..." :) but I am working on getting in earlier than mid-June :|. I actually really like Kaiser but today I was a little perturbed with their new system. Maybe God just wants to give me the opportunity to practice patience...lovely. :\

To end on a positive note, I already got my lab results (good job Kaiser!) and all my numbers came back within the desired ranges. Hemoglobbin, did I spell that right?, was on the lower end but still okay. I guess I just need to eat a few more In-N-Out burgers to get that iron. :)
Anyway, thank you to everyone that prayed for us and the baby. You can continue to pray of course :) and I promise to update a little sooner next time for all those waiting on pins and needles cause you have nothing better to do than to keep checking our blog...hahaha. Yeah, I think it's too late and I'm rambling. I do have better things to do, like sleep.

1:30 pm

We will be going to our first prenatal appointment today. Please pray that our new little one is healthy and strong. I will update this afternoon when we get home.

We're seeing double!

Dancing Maniac

Oh Sweet Slumber!!

Our Zoe Girl is officially, I think, sleeping through the night. She has reached this milestone at the 1 year and 1 month old mark. It was not that difficult, I think she and I were both ready. What a blessed thing it is for me to have an entire night of uninterrupted sleep, however it was a huge blessing to have a whole year of nighttime bonding (even though I was not always thinking that at 1 am). Zoe you are a treasure and joy!

Marble Run

We love this toy!!I had no idea there were so many variations of this toy! This one looks fabulous, but it has a little bit of a pricey price tag.

3 Years Old!

Malachi is 3 years old today! We are so blessed to have him as our son. Here are a few photos from today and yesterday.

Malachi chose oatmeal and strawberries for his birthday breakfast...

He enjoyed a left over cupcake (actually left over from Zoe's birthday party, they were in the freezer)...
Malachi and Kurtis worked on his new train set this morning and while they did that Zoe picked up this piece...put it in her mouth...tripped...
...and did this to her mouth. It bled quite a bit but we think she is fine and will keep her two front teeth. Hopefully we won't have anymore accidents any time soon, otherwise social services will come after us.

We 'celebrated' Malachi's birthday by working on our garden. We switched out our winter vegetable garden and planted our spring/summer vegetables. Here Malachi is inspecting the two puny carrots we grew. He was not impressed and wouldn't even taste them. I ate them, they were good.This is Malachi opening up the gift Gramma and Grampa (from Texas) sent him, a CD of stories read by Jim Weiss. We started listening to it already, thank you!!!
On Friday, we celebrated Malachi's birthday with some of his friends. Here they are holding up some books we found at the One Dollar Bookstore to give as favors, they are some of Malachi's favorite stories.
We did a "Chicka Chicka Boom Boom" theme which is another of Malachi's favorite books.
The kids made coconut trees out of their food. I found the idea here. I used PB&J sandwich slices instead of the chocolate wafer cookie.

We also tried coconut bowling but the kids weren't too into that. It was a fun time, quite crazy having that many kids in our tiny little place, but fun!

Thank you to everyone for coming and for the fabulous gifts! He can't get enough of the Ikea rocker (thanks Allens); he will wear his outfit from the Igos for Easter tomorrow, thanks Igos; he can barely wait to do the sand art (thanks Smiths); Copelands, he loves the balls (so does Zoe) he even took one to bed with him tonight, thank you!; Thank you Verwys' for the memory game, I hope to play that enough to sharpen my mind :); and Nespers, he has helped me clean once already with his cleaning set, thank you!