Home Sweet Hotel

Ben and I are sitting on the bed in our hotel "suite" just hanging out. We have one light on and the tv is on, but the volume is turned to like 2 because Jonathan is sleeping about 4 feet from the foot of the bed.
We signed the lease for our townhouse today and the movers will be here with our things on Thursday, so we'll be in the hotel until then.
The flight in was good, nothing eventful happened (thankfully), and the people we sat by on the airplane were very sweet, which was a huge answer to prayer for me.
My first Sunday here was great. Obviously Ben's was last week, so he was able to introduce me to the people he had already met. Everybody has been so warm and welcoming and glad we are here. I look forward to getting to know them all better.
Tonight Jonathan went to play with a new friend while we went to a reception with some church folks. Emily is 15 months old and her dad is on staff with Ben. Emily's aunts were babysitting and I think he had a great time playing with real toys in a real house. This hotel thing is getting old, even for him.
I think that's about all there is to tell right now. I'm feeling pretty disoriented since we're not in our house yet, but that's coming soon and we're going to have to celebrate somehow.

A day at the park

Today we had a picnic at the park with the moms and kids from our Tuesday morning Bible study. The kids had a blast. I'm going to miss these ladies like crazy- they have meant so much to me over the past year and I have learned so much from them.

I'm also posting some pics of Jonathan's first haircut. He was not a big fan. I never have understood what it is that little boys think is so horrible about a haircut. Ben says it's because she was having to hold his head still. I guess he'd know since he was a little boy once too.

The only thing constant

Moving is hard. Ben left a few minutes ago with Mazie to begin his drive to our new home. I'll be here for another week and then fly with Jonathan to meet them in our new home. I've tried so hard not to be super emotional this time around, and for the most part it's been easy. We've only been here 2 years (this time), I know we'll always be coming back for visits since our families are here, and I've moved away from here before and been fine. Plus I've seen this coming for the past 5 months, so I've had plenty of time to prepare. But it's so hard to close a chapter of life. The townhouse we're moving into will be our 8th place to live in our almost 8 years of marriage. Every place has meant something special to me. This morning Ben and I spent our last hours together in the house where we brought our boy home, bonded with him, had his first birthday party. It's the place where we worked together to make his nursery a special place. There have been very good times in this house, and it's sad to see it go. So I'm mourning its loss today, very thankful for the blessings that we have received here.

Happy Happy Birthday Baby

Today is Jonathan's first birthday. We had his party on Saturday and it was so much fun! He scarfed down his cake. At one point I asked him if he was finished and he clearly shook his head no.

Last night I was looking through pictures of the past year. It has been such an amazing year! It is so fun to watch him grow and change and learn. I can't help but think what he'll be like on this day next year.

On another note, we will soon be relocating to the East Coast. Ben will be the student pastor at a great church there. We are excited about the new opportunity, but of course sad to leave friends and family here. I am very thankful for the time that we have had here and know without a doubt that God directed our steps from Alabama to here and now from here East.

Above is a picture of the townhouse we will be renting for at least our first year there, and one of our family at Jonathan's party.

Juicy

I've decided to start making my own juice. Yesterday at our moms group we had a guest speaker who told us all about eating for wellness. She said a lot of things that I have heard before, some I practice now, some I get on kicks about and do for awhile, some I haven't ever been able to implement, and some things I had never thought of.
One of the things she said was that as soon as a fruit, veggie, or grain is sliced, crushed, or opened in any way, the nutrients begin to oxidize into the air and go away. So the only way to know that you are getting maximum nutrition from your food is to eat it fresh and raw. Juicing is one of the ways you can do this, and since I have a 10 month old with no teeth and a hubby who isn't the biggest fan of fruits and veggies, it sounded like a good plan for us. She also let us sample some freshly made apple juice, and it was very different from the so called 100% apple juice that I've been buying for my boy. That juice has been pasturized (heated so that all the germs are killed, how are nutrients supposed to survive if germs can't?) and chemical vitamin C has been added back to it. She also said that you can get a juicer at Wal-mart for $30. So first thing this morning I headed to Wal-mart to begin this new venture. I decided to go for the $60 model, because the $30 one looked like you would have to cut the fruit pretty small before you put it in. The one I got can fit a whole apple...you don't have to cut anything! I still think $60 is a good deal for those health benefits, and will probably pay for itself if I use it enough.
So I got it home and washed it just in time for Jonathan's morning juice. I stuffed an apple in the top and out came about 4 oz of juice. He usually drinks 2 oz plus 2 oz of water, so I fixed this juice bottle the same way. He drank that stuff down so fast and cried for more. So I gave him the next 2 oz with 2 more oz of water. A big hit, and sure makes me feel better about what's going into that precious little body of his.
When I read or hear about how bad processed food is for our bodies, it makes me feel overwhelmed and helpless. I pray that the Lord will help me to take the time and effort needed to provide my family with the nutrients that He has made for us and BLESS THIS FOOD TO OUR BODIES.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

So it turns out I'm about as good at keeping a blog as I am at keeping a journal. That figures I guess since they're kind of the same thing. I would make a new year's resolution to post more often, but I'm sure I wouldn't keep it so I'm not going to fool myself.
We had a fantastic Chrismas withe Jeremy, Jeni, and Olivia. Jonathan and Olivia loved each other to death and had sooo much fun together.
Jonathan is completely mobile now. He's crawling everywhere. He's also pulling up on the furniture already. I didn't expect that yet. His favorite thing to crawl to is Mazie's bowl, so now we are having to put Mazie's food in her room and we leave the gate in the door but put it up high enough that she has enough space to crawl under, but Jonathan doesn't have enough room to get underneath. It works well since she's littler than him, but I feel sorry for her that she has to go to that extra trouble just to eat or drink.
Everything else is pretty normal around here. I'm ready to get back into the normal routine of things...Tuesday morning Women's Bible study and Wednesday night with the kids at church.
I'll try to remember to post more often, but if not, it probably means we're just carrying on as usual.
Have a great start to your '07!

Trick or Treat

I know that some people are not fans of Halloween, but I absolutely love having adorable children come to my house, so last night I was all ready with 3 big bags of candy. So here is the story of my favorite Trick or Treater of the night: Tigger. I think Tigger was probably about 6 years old, I didn't know him and he didn't know me, but that didn't bother him at all. As soon as I opened the door he came bounding into the house. He went over to pet Mazie (who was behind her gate in the living room), looked through my candy bowl to see what he wanted in addition to what I had already put in his pumpkin, and said hi to Jonathan who was in his room swinging in his swing. His mother was just standing outside saying "you don't just go into people's homes" and I was thinking that I would probably have gone in after him, but it really didn't matter to me. I thought it was hilarious. And then I started wondering what Jonathan thought of the whole thing. If you are 6 months old, swinging in your swing in your room, and Tigger comes bouncing in to say hi, do you think it's weird, or is everything in this crazy new world of yours so weird that you just think it's normal? I didn't have a chance to see his face, but I sure would like to know.

Are you my Tio?

Just a few minutes ago the pest control guy came to do our annual termite inspection and our quarterly bug spray. I had Jonathan in one arm and Mazie in the other as he was telling me what he was here for and what he would spray, etc. As he was talking, all of a sudden Jonathan busted out laughing harder than I've ever heard him laugh. He thought the guy was so funny. I think he may have thought that he was his Tio Edwin, who has apparently made a very good impression on Jonathan.
Then a few minutes later I still had both Jonathan and Mazie in my arms and I was sitting on the couch, and Jonathan reached out and grabbed a handful of Mazie's fur. Thankfully Mazie is a very good girl and didn't snap. She only screamed as loud as she could, and it was so sad. I'm just so glad to know that her first reaction wasn't to bite. Looks like she'll be able to stay! Here's a pic of Mazie...I'll let her be the star today since she was so good.

Rambling

I had planned on going to the grocery store first thing this morning, but Jonathan woke up very cranky so he's back in bed and I guess we'll go later. He's been a little fussier than usual for the past several days, and I'm starting to wonder if he's not feeling well, but I don't know how to tell. I'll just keep a watch on his temp today and call my wonderful pediactric nurse practitioner friend Staci if anything gets worse.

Staci is one of my best friends from high school that is such a blessing to me!!! We had the most horrible experiences with pediatricians for the first 4 months (one clinic refusing to give us an appointment because they have too many patients, another office completely shut down after we'd been there once), but it's all better now. Staci is very smart, caring, beautiful, and one of the most Godly women I have ever known. So if you ever read this Staci congrats on being the star of my blog today :) .

I could be doing the dishes or the laundry, dusting or cleaning the bathrooms, but instead I figured I'd just wait for Jonathan to wake up here on the computer. I'll probably regret this decision later.

I started Tuesday morning women's bible study yesterday. I'm doing The Power of a Praying Woman, and I am excited about it. I think it is going to be a great growing experience for me, and a good opportunity to hang out with other moms that I don't get to see very often since we're in youth world on Sunday mornings.

I am substitute sunday school teaching for my friend Jill's 10th grade girls class this week. We're talking about spiritual gifts, and I'm thinking about giving them each a small wrapped box to remind them to use their spiritual gifts during the week. I need to find some small cheap boxes and wrapping paper though. Jill is a great teacher and has a huge group of girls.

Since I last wrote we've been to Dallas to watch Shiloh play a football game. They are very good and we are expecting an amazing season.

I had a great long conversation with my sister Amy last night. She is very gifted at sorting things through and will be a wonderful professional counselor in a few years. I am so thankful for the Word of God and the power that it has to speak and guide us when we're trying to sort out the messes of life. Once it speaks, there is nothing else left for us to say.

And speaking of nothing else to say, that's it for me for today. Have a good one!

Diaper Mania

I have had it with diapers. I used to wonder what they did in countries without diapers, and I think now I know, because they are so faulty that I just about wonder why I even bother. I think I have washed poop out of every outfit Jonathan has worn this week. Thank the Lord for Oxy Clean Baby! I have tried almost every kind of diaper available, and can't find one I trust. Next on my list are the Pampers Swaddlers, which I haven't used since the hospital, and they are my last hope. I've even entertained the thought of trying that insane baby potty training idea (http://www.diaperfreebaby.org for more info on that). He's in a size 2, which is supposedly for 12-18 pounds, and while I'm not sure how much he weighs right now, he was 12 pounds at his last Dr. visit, and I'm sure he has not gained 6 pounds in the last month and a half. So, I guess I'll keep on trying and keep on washing poopy outfits until something works.

We are Family

This weekend we went to Oklahoma City to celebrate the new marriage of my sister Melissa to her sweetheart Edwin. They were married in Miami, and had a reception at my Grandmother's house. We carried on the tradition of family pictures on the stairs. The picture I am posting is all of the cousins and their spouses. We always enjoy spending time with all of them, and I feel very blessed to be a part of such a wonderful family. Welcome to the family Edwin!!!

Happy Anniversary!

Ben and I celebrated our 7th anniversary this week. It's fun to think back over all the things we've been through together. When we got married we were barely 21 and in the middle of college. Ben was working at Sam's and I was working at the bank while we were going to school. We lived in an apartment, and our schedules were crazy. It was very common for us to eat dinner at 9:30 or later each night. Our grocery budget was $70 every 2 weeks, and we had another $20 to go out to eat once every 2 weeks! It was just a year later that we moved to Alabama to begin full time student ministry. I remember at some point before we were married Ben and I were talking about the future and struggling over some decisions, and I said "I can just imagine God smiling at us right now and saying, 'It's hard for you to make this decision right now, but you have no idea how much I have planned for you, you're going to be just fine". He is so faithful, and has brought us so far. I am so excited about the rest of our lives together. Love you baby!

Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.
Philippians 1:6

Summer Time

Summer is winding down and it's time to get ready for school to start. I can't believe it's gone by so fast and our boy is 3 months old already. Last week we went to Hoover, AL to watch Shiloh in a 7 on 7 football tournament. They were amazing and won the whole thing, beating some big time teams. While we were there we were able to see quite a few people from our Hunter Street family. We miss them all dearly! God's timing is perfect, and we were able to be at Olivia Claire's first birthday party. We went straight from there to Dallas, Tx for our staff retreat where we were able to spend time concentrating on building our relationships with each other and fellow staff members. We have greatly enjoyed this time for the past 2 years. The picture is of Jonathan on a shopping trip we took in Texas. He loves being outside! He is learing how to use his hands, and beginning to talk to us. He makes the sweetest sounds. I love to watch him admire Ben. He looks at him with these sparkly eyes and I can tell he is thinking "Dad, you are the coolest person in the whole wide world". It is so much fun to watch him grow and learn!

Here he is!

Well, Jonathan is here, and he's now almost 6 weeks old. Wow, time has really flown. In a way I can't believe he's already been here that long, and then at the same time it's like he's been here with us all along. I have to say that these past 6 weeks have been absolutely fantastic. Jonathan is so amazing, and he's already growing so fast! He's already smiling at us and trying so hard to make baby babble to us. As I sit and hold him I can't help but wonder what his little hands and feet are going to do someday. I wonder what things he will love and hate, who his friends will be, what his greatest accomplishments and hardest struggles will be. And Ben is just the best dad ever. He has been so supportive and loving to me, and is always happy to jump in and change a diaper or hold Jonathan whenever he can. He is the best!!!

Waiting for Jonathan

Well, we are about 2 weeks away from our due date, and ready for Jonathan to be here! Ben's dad gave me some baby pictures of Ben today and I couldn't stop staring at them, trying to figure out if they looked like Jonathan did in the ultrasound. Silly, I know, because who can really tell what anything looks like in an ultrasound, but I tried. His room is almost ready and I can't believe we're so close to meeting our baby boy!

Kristen

It's a BOY!

The long wait to find out the big gender question finally came to an end the Tuesday before Christmas. As the title points out, we will be having a boy! He cooperated perfectly with the ultrasound and was moving around like crazy. Our Scottish ultrasound nurse was very patient with us (me especially) as she pointed out things on the screen. Wow, it is difficult to see what is going on with those things. We have decided to name him Jonathan after my grandfather Trueblood. We are still unsure about a middle name.

The weeks are flying by and Jonathan is moving around more than ever! Kristen is still feeling him a lot more than I am, for obvious reasons, but when I jump at the opportunity every chance I get. April 27th seems like so far away but if the time to this point is any indicator then I know it will be here before we know it.

Now that things are happening more often we will do our best to keep this updated for all of you to check out if you so desire.

New Life

We are having a baby! Kristen is 12 weeks pregnant this week, and according to babycenter.com, that means that our baby is about the size of a lime. Wow, that is crazy to think about. We got to hear the baby's heartbeat two weeks ago at our doctor visit and I have to say that is one of the most amazing things I have ever experienced. We both sat with eager anticipation as the doctor began to search for the heartbeat and when she found it our reaction can be described only as shock and excitement. We heard it for abot 45 seconds or so and that was not long enough. I think that we could listen to it for hours on end.

We are both very excited and know that many changes are ahead for us and our family. What changes? I'm not sure i can answer that yet but I know that all of you with children probably know the answer already. All we know is that things will change in a major way and it is a change that we are anticipating both with nervousness and joy.

The next big thing will be in about 8 weeks when we can find out the sex of the baby, and yes we will be finding out. It is kind of strange to me to refer to the baby as "it" or just the generic "baby" during this time when we do not know. I am ready to begin saying "he" or "she." Which brings me to the next question. Everyone wants to know what we would prefer to have, boy or girl. I have asked that question of those who have been pregnant and now I realize the difficulty in giving an answer. It is something that we are truly undecided upon and I think it will remain that way until we find out in 8 long weeks.

We will definately keep you all up to date on what is going on throughout this time. Please remember to keep Kristen in your prayers. Pray for her health and the health of the baby. We appreciate it more than you know!

busy...

We have started tonight what will be a week of long days and late nights. The reason for this is the Team Impact Crusade that began tonight at church. The crusade will last until Wednesday night and we will be going to 30+ school assemblies this week with the guys from the team. Wow, every time i think about it I am blown away at the amount of work that will be done this week.

Work, yes but worth every long day and every late night. The guys from the team are amazing. They are authentic men of integrity who breathe to see people come to Christ. Many times when people hear of Team Impact or something similar the immediate thought is, "that's a children and youth thing." Well, I was impacted tonight not by muscles, broken concrete or snapped handcuffs. As I stood in the baptism water I was impacted by the 50+ year old man who I was about to baptize. Children and youth event only? Not for Bruce. I will never forget the look of excitement on his face when I brought him up out of the water. He shook my hand and thanked me and there was so much passion and sincereity in his eyes. Bruce was definately experiencing what it means to have new life in Christ!

Tonight, lives were forever changed through the power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and we are so thankful that He is blessing us to be a small part of what He is doing in Springdale, Arkansas.