Christmas Gifts

A couple days prior to Christmas, I had just finally begun to feel the holiday spirit; thanks to the beautiful center peice and picture of Jesus and a little girl.

Christmas Eve was a struggle for me because, not only was I dealing with the inconviences of the pregnancy, but what felt like contractions. After Roger and I put the kids in bed, I was hurled over the porclin throan. Shortly after, we decided I needed to go into the Emergency room because of the intense cramping I was having. I returned home around 2am with the doctors concluding that the cramping, extreme nausia and other symptoms (aside from the pregnancy) were result of food poisoning.

I was thankful to return home to a beautiful tile I received for Christmas that says, "Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass...it's learning to dance in the rain." That's exactly what I did, I counted my many blessings and tried to catch as much sleep as I could before the kids woke us up to open presents.

Santa brought Kambrya a kitchen and Nikholi a race track!

Grandma Judi was also able to manage to send some gifts back to the kids. When Nikholi opened his gift he said, "This is what I've always wanted!" We laughed.
BTW: it was one of those bikes that hook up to the tv to play educational games.

Here is a picture of the kids enjoying their time opening present after present.

Kambri received several baby dolls, one from her brother, one from us, and her favorite was from Grandma Marini.

Nikholi also was excited to see that we got him a hot wheels race track to add onto the tracks he already has.

After we opened all the gifts we organized them nicely in the kids' rooms and they still can't get enough of their new toys.

Another one of Nikholi's favorites was his computer, also brought by Santa Claus.

Thank you to everyone who helped make this Christmas a very memorable Christmas, despite our minor setbacks, you've really made a difference in my life and our family.

THANK YOU!

Christmas Photos

After pondering how I was ever going to get some decent Christmas photos of the kids, I attempted what I believe is the impossible! I put the kids in the bath, did their hair, put them in nice Christmas clothes and begged them to stay put. It was an absolute nightmare, especially since I didn't have any help.. but I got a few cute photos out of the lot, check 'em out:

My little princess is getting soo big!!

I had to beg on my knees for Niikholi to simply hold the book. I even asked him to pretend... I'm shocked you can't see his tears in this photo. He was NOT happy with me!

That's when I grew a brain and asked Nikholi what he wanted in his picture. He said, "LEGOS." A time old toy that is universal for boys and girls; which worked perfect for my purpose, to get them together so I could simply take a picture.

Although difficult to get, these priceless photos have made it on to our Christmas card this year and if you're wondering what our Christmas card looks like, scroll to the top and check out the banner. As soon as we purchase some new ink cartridges, I'll be printing them to send them out.

Here are some other photos that didn't quiet make the Christmas card cut, but are fun to look at (most of them were too dark, too bright, or simply not just right):







This last photo is of the kids and Santa Claus from last Saturday when the kids had breakfast at the mall with him:

More Christmas festivities photos to come...tonight is our Ward Christmas party and tomorrow night we are planning to see the Temple Lights. :)

For the Holiday Season

Our family can be so dysfunctional sometimes that it's nearly impossible for me to get any good pictures of the kids together, much less all of us as a family; so these are going to have to do for our holiday photos this year. ;)

Our Little Peanut

Today we had our first sonogram of our little peanut. The technition showed little concerns and shared with us that we have one little one growing inside me with an estimated due date of July 17th, a week behind what we had previously estimated.

I'm having very strong feelings that I'm carrying a little boy. Although, a sonogram won't be able to determine that for another couple months. Every thing appeared to be healthy with a heart rate of 154 beats per minute. We all very excited and ancticipation is a killer.

Eight Weeks

"By eight weeks, tiny hands and feet help the embryo begin to look human. The umbilical cord is thick and strong. Inside it are a vein, which carries nutrients and oxygen from the mother through the placenta to the embryo, and two arteries, which transfer waste from the embryo's blood to the mother's bloodstream."

While all these changes are taking place, our lives are beginning to change dramatically. We are faced with new uncertainties and many fears. We're still battling the hurry up and wait hiring process with the Pentagon, so it's hard telling where we'll be within the next six months.

Nikholi is soo excited that mommy is having a baby. He enjoys telling everyone we meet that "Mommy has a baby in her belly. We don't know what it is though; if it's a boy or a girl." Then when he is asked what he would like to have he always says, "BOTH, a Boy and a Girl!" Since I became pregnant he's been determined that I am having twins. :)

Either way, we'll find out Wednesday! Mommy has an ultrasound schedule for Wednesday to determine our gestation and of course look for multiples.

Over the past couple weeks I have been faced with some difficult challenges. Food is no longer appealing; which is crazy because I LOVE food! I'm nausiated all day long. Thanksgiving was wonderful, but again challenging, all this wonderful food and no taste buds to appriciate it! The only food items I've been able to tolerate lately is a cheese and bologne sandwich and ceasar salads. So when I came home last night, from what everyone expressed was a wonderful thanksgiving dinner, I gobbled up two bologne and cheese sandwhiches with a tall glass of milk.

In my husbands efforts to curb me away from caffiene (one of my worst addictions) he has finally succeed this week. Prior to and even in the beginning month of pregnancy I was consuming approximately 8-42 oz. of caffeine per day. Now, I don't even want carbination! A family favorite are those seasonal Cranberry Sierra Mists, but lately I haven't even been able to look at those.

Many people say every pregnancy is different and now on my third, I can't agree more. My pregnancy with Nikholi was complicated in more aspects than one. I couldn't keep any food down, much less my own syliva. I had pre-term labor at 26 weeks, which was later slowed by a horrible drug called Magnesium Solfate. Nevertheless, I ended up delivering him two day prior to his due date.

My pregnancy with Kambri also brought some concerns, but was a lot smoother than my first. We moved cross-country during my pregnancy with her and towards the end doctors were concerned of a low birth weight. With her I was able to E-A-T! I remember downing a whole box of powdered donut holes by myself. Donuts were my favorite and if Roger dared bring them home they wouldn't last to see more than two hours on top of the fridg. My water broke at home and we delivered our princess two weeks prior to her due date.

Through my experiences I have learned that STRESS plays a large contributing factor to the success of the pregnancy. So trying to have as little stess as possible will be key to a full term delivery. Although there are many uncertainties, Heavenly Father, always seems to take care of us. When we try our best and flucuate our schedules accordingly, everything seems to always work out.

I am soo thankful for: my total boy with his witty comments; my darling princess for her constant comfort (she's always open for a hug); my husband who never ceases to amaze me (accounting for how much we have changed and grown together); my mom for her example in courage for fighting through the storms; my dad for always calling and thinking of me; my brothers and sisters for there awesome examples in faith and strength; and most of all, my grandmother for always having a phone line open when I need someone to talk to, who offers the most excellent advice without biases of either party I'm concerned about. Thank you all for the wonderful impressions you've had on my life and I hope everyone had a WONDERFUL ThanksGiving!

We'Re ExPeCtInG

I know I haven't updated the blog as often as I probably should have; I've become addicted to Facebook! However, I have some exciting news to share and hopefully, this will give me more reasons to write and share experiences on our family blog.

A word from DAD: For those that know or dont know we are having third. A third? (you may ask yourself) well, I'll come out with it; A baby! I'm really excited and looking forward the long sleepless nights and the baby screaming and crying (feed me, change me). Great times! (LOL)
What I like the most about this one coming is I get to name it. Yes thats right I'm naming the baby. (watch out!)Everybody ask what do want a boy or a girl, I say I'll have name for what ever it is. All I want is a heathy baby. The great thing about having a baby is it shows the love that we have for each other; to bring life to the world as we know it.



A word from MOM: Mixed feelings all around, but most of all I can't believe this is our reality. I feel like I'm still dreaming, SOMEONE PLEASE PINCH ME! Although, this isn't our first, the experience is totally new; which creates a feeling like I've never been down this road before and I'm forgetting what to expect. Over the next 7 1/2 months I will be preparing mentally and physically for our new addition!

These first three month are probably going to be my most anxious time with this pregnancy. Although, I know my physical appearance won't make too many dramatic effects over the next 9 weeks, I'm already having cravings, I feel exhasted, nauseous, completely bloated and faint. However, it's not all bad news, I'm soo excited for this new stage in our life and that my body is preparing itself for the task ahead.

I'm so greatful to my wonderful husband for providing me with support, even though he is currenly in New Mexico, on my emotional roller coaster. He has said a lot of things, I would have never expected him to say that have really calmed my fears and brought me peace.

Nikholi is four and half and determined it's TWINS *laughs at his wonderful imagination* and Kambri is currently 18 months and I'm suspicious of her inclings; she's already started potty training! This makes me a happy mommy!

I'm currently contemplating a Midwife or an OB/GYN. My OB, who is totally awesome and helped me discover that I have endometriosis, carries rumors that he no longer delivers. I won't find out for another couple weeks, but if that is the case I believe I'll be searching for a midwife. If you have any comments on this or can share your own opinion, please do so under the comments for this post; we want to hear from you!

Roger and I found out we are expecting our third little bundle of joy on July 10, 2010. Overwhelmed with excitment I'm hoping to share our journey with you through a series of posts on our blog with a short-list of baby names, a checklist of what we need to buy for the baby, and preparing the nursery so that everything is ready for when he or she arrives!

New Family Photo

I've been neglecting to post as frequently as I probably should on my blog because of my new discovery, Facebook!(lol) I'll try to do better at keeping both updated regularly for freinds and family enjoyment.

I love this picture of me and Roger. I took this picture of us standing out in our front yard. It turned out a lot better than I expected!

I had a friend who shared a quote with me, "True love is having every reason in the world to walk away, but CHOOSING to stay." I love my husband with all my heart, although our relationship can seem like an uphill battle we learn more and grow more together each day. I'm so thankful for the trails that we have gone through that bring us closer together.

Lastly, here is a new picture of our family. I've been trying to take more pictures of the kids and family because it's nice to be able to preserve these moments.

I think one reason my memory of my childhood is soo well is because of all of the home videos and photographs of me. I'm looking forward to creating those same memorabilia for our children.

Reflection

This morning was our weekly Presidency Meeting for our ward's Relief Society. Before we start discussing ward business we open with a prayer, a spiritual thought, and a handbook selection from the Relief Society manual. Today was my turn to give the spiritual though, so I thought it would be a perfect time to reflect on my favorite part of the Ensign this month - TESTIMONIES in all different forms.

On page 40 of the 2009 September Ensign, under Tangible Testimonies it says: "Consider the many gifts and blessings our Heavenly Father and jesus Christ have given us. By recognizing our gifts and the blessing in our lives, we show reverence for God and strengthen our individual testimonies. Sharing our testimonies, however, isn't limited to words. Our faith can be expressed in the notes of a hymn, the shaping of clay, or the strokes of a paintbrush.

Many of you know that Roger is an athiest, although he wouldn't call himself that; but rather, he doesn't believe in a God, a supreme being, forces of nature, etc. After church on Sunday I asked Roger "WHAT IF!" What if there was such thing as an Armegedon, a Second Coming, a Living Christ... He quickly shot back, "What if?" But my thoughts reflected much deeper than his. My mind became boggled to know that a person can live life in a certain state of happiness, as he does, not knowing the purpose of life, but to live an die.

Frequently, as we have these discussions my testimony is tried and tested... As for now, I'm still holding strong because I know the spirit works in miraculous ways. I've seen things come together in my life, that I don't believe would have without faith. Faith in our Heavenly Father that he may carry us; faith in our brother, Jesus Christ that he may fulfill us with hope, to return to our father; and faith in the Holy spirit to guide us.

The Ensign displays many breathtaking photographs, pottery, wood work, etc. that relfects individuals testimony of the church. One of my favorite forms of art is writing, so I wanted to share with our Presidency and the WORLD my personal testimony that I wrote when I was 16 years old.

"So many times I have wondered if the church is true. Always I seem to recieve these awesome personal revelations and confirmation that hold me over for a few weeks then the desire leaves. I don't feel that peace or happiness inside any more. And that's when I turn to the worldly things. I don't endure to the end. And it says in 1 Nephi 13:37 "Endure to the end and we shall be lifted up."

I have a strong testimony of the scriptures. When I am really struggling, I need to stop trying to deny Christ and i need to pick up the scriptures and look for guidance. When I'm not reading the scriptures, I'm denying the word of Christ. And I fear I have come to realize, that I can't do this alone.

Sure I may have gotten myself into this mess with Satans help, but now I can't do it alone. I need to walk in his light and ask for guidance, seek help and then desire results. In Alma 32:37 it says, "If ye can no more than desire to believe, let this desire work in you."

Have the desire to let him help you. have the desire to choose good over evil. YOU KNOW YOU CAN'T DO IT ALONE! SO QUIT TRYING to do it ALONE!

These trails I have gone through and are going through, will only make me stronger. If I endure to the end. He would never give me the burden of anything he knows I couldn't handle."

I am soo very thankful, that at the age of 16, the light shined so brightly through me that I was able to record these wonderful words and thoughts. I encourage EVERYONE to gain a testimony of what they believe to be true. DO IT NOW! Testimonies of the TRUTH only grow stronger as they are built upon each day. If you record your testimonies, whether in the form of a painting, pottery, woodworking, or writing, you'll be able to reflect back to those thoughts and feelings at that very moment. And TRUST ME.. they will strengthen YOU and bring to light everything you do. ;)

Battle to Dominance!

In a race to see who could leave first - I lost.
Roger and were lying in bed this morning, enjoying our Saturday morning discussing what plans were today. I had plans to go to a service project for a sister in the ward and Roger wanted to get his hair cut. He said I could go when he got back.. and I argued that he could go when I got back. So it was a race to see who could get out the door faster. I tried to throw on my jeans and he ripped them off while trying to gather his things (wallet, glasses, etc). Since he took my jeans, I took down his shorts trying to throw them on.. he grabed one leg so I couldn't get the other one in.. and tied my jeans in knots. He threw my jeans back at me and took his shorts, hurrying to put them on so he could get to his truck. I grabbed my keys and his keys, thinking he couldn't go any where, until he grabbed the spare. So I made a mad dash to the car carrying my jeans... he went for his truck.. we ignited our engines and HE WON! Grrrr! It takes a second for my car to switch into gear, so even though I had it in reverse and had my foot on the gas, I wasn't going anywhere. He had blocked me in.. so I couldn't leave! So needless to say, he won that battle today and I sorely lost. He turned off his truck, I finished unknotting my jeans to get dressed in my car (hoping no one saw me frolicking across my yard to get to my car), we switched keys and he left to get his hair cut.

Relief Society Blog

In attempt to keep our sisters connected and up to date on what's happening in the Ward, I have been invited to edit the Patuxent Ward Relief Society Blog. Please check it out for insight on activites that are rolling through our ward and upcoming dates to be aware of.

http://patuxentreliefsociety.blogspot.com/
(copy and paste into your internet browser)

Master Family Reunion

This post should have been posted over a month ago, but with the stresses of life, I kind of fell behind. So here they are now. The following pictures is from our trip to Indiana for a Master Family Reunion. Roger had to stay at home for an interview with the Pentagon Police, so it was just me and the kids. On our way there, the most breath taking view was driving along the freeway, turning around the corner and seeing the Temple.

What a beautiful reminder that "We are never lost when we can see the temple" (Lexington Park Relief Society Bulletin Board).
This picture might seem a little weird, but it me snapping a photo in a tunnel that goes through a mountain in Pennsylvania. I thought it was pretty cool!

This bridge is pretty cool too...Across the way is Pittsburgh:

We stopped in Ohio to have dinner with a close friend. The dining experience was horrible; but it was great to be able to spend time with him and relax from our already 12 hour drive.
When we left and had another 3-4 hours ahead of us until we arrived at our destination in Indiana. I was definitely wiped when we got there around 2am.
The next day, Grandma Judi, the kids and I all went out for breakfast at my new favorite restaurant in the entire county, Cafe Max. Grandma also reserved a Condo for us during our stay. My jaw dropped when I saw the place! It was beautiful, I could have lived there in a heart beat.. it was even bigger than our own house! Here are some pictures of the Condo:
This is the room that Nikholi and my mom slept in..

Here is the living room. I have to say it was very tastefully decorated, I loved it! And you can also see here that we brought the Wii!

What a great place for entertaining. Having 15 or more guests over wouldn't be a problem, it would be fun and comfortable! Look at all the seating options.

Here is the dining room. I loved the Nautical theme:

The kitchen was also beautiful and very convenient. There was a washer, dryer, pots, pans, casserole dishes, cleaners, etc.

There is a story about the bathrooms! I couldn't figure out how to work the dang showers! So I had to take a bath while I was there, I hated it because I felt like I was being forced to relax. lol. My cousin Jesse came over and I asked her, she looked at me like I was crazy! She went in there and also couldn't figure out how to turn the shower on. lol.. Then I asked my mom.. she also laughed and looked at us like we were crazy, but she couldn't figure it out either.. Then the last day that we were there, we asked Grandma and Of Course, Grandma knew how to turn it on. Apparently there was a lever you had to pull 'inside' the spicket! Grrr.

Kambri and I shared this room together. Again, I loved how comfortable this condo made me feel. I loved it!

The kids really enjoyed it too.. Nikholi kept asking if we could stay.

The following day, we picked my mom up from the airport. We were able to spend a lot of tiem with mom; which was soo nice. We went out in search of a mall and were very heavily distracted. We passed by Winnamac down to Logansport then to Kokomo. We become side tracked in Logansport because of all the big beautiful houses and gorgeous churches..

Here is another beautiful home in Logansport.

What's even more funny than my mom and I getting distracted with houses.. is what happened when we did. My mom was trying to take pictures of the houses with her dinosour camera and they were all coming out really blurry.. I was driving and she was in the passenger seat, when I was taking pictures with my camera I would pull over to stop. However, she said, "Wait, I want a picture of this house." So I leaned over (while I was still driving) CLICKED and said, "Drive by Shooting!" Now if I said something like that out where I lived it would probably get us shot.. And we giggled because the picture actually turned out really well. We'll our laughing only promoted what was about to come next: Nikholi yelling out his window, "Drive by shooting, Drive by shooting, Drive by shooting!" lol.

And lastly, on our way out of Logansport this magnificent church. Historic churches fasinate me!

When we finally drove into Kokomo, we continued to become distracted. She began telling stories about where she used to live and insisted that we drive by a little apartment where she grew up. Formerly known as Fontanel Appartments:

Which produced another fun story about a high dive in the community swiming pool. :)

Again, as we were searching for the mall in Kokomo we became distracted again.. I know you're probably thinking, enough with the distractions already; but I've learned don't get my mom and I together because for some reason we can't focus! lol
Here is a picture of mom and the kids at the place that distracted us in Kokomo.

Check out this other distraction! lol.. Yes, I frantically ran up and asked if I could take a picture of him and his car and No, I don't know him from Adam.

So are you ready for the big distraction, that took more than two hours of our time.. And no, it wasn't the mall! It was 80-90% off close out at JoAnn's Fabrics.. MY BiGgEsT WeEkNeSs! I won't share with you how much I spent, but I will tell you how much I saved: ALMOST $200!

After we were done shopping and heading back into town we got stuck behind a golf cart; which isn't ironic because in the little town of Culver, IN everyone drives around in golf carts! They must have a pimp my golf cart some where around town too because I saw way too many with velor curtains and chrome rims.

Here were some of the things around the Condo. The movie theater, which only plays one show once per week.

Then this is the beach, that we can see from the Condo.. I took the kids swiming a couple time. It really was a lot of fun!

Sunday morning we went out to breakfast at Ponderosa (a nice breakfast buffet) with my Great Aunt Darla, my Mom, my Great Grandmother (GG) and my GrandDad.
Then went home and got ready for the family reunion! We had a pot luck, a lot of family showed up.. and it was nice to meet new faces and make new friends.

Kambri was able to play with her cousin and they looked soo flippen cute together!

There was a lot of good food and it was a great time to socialize.

There were even great games and prizes for the kids. They played with a giant parachute

And had sack races (I know the photo is kind of blurry, but they were quick as lightning)
Kambri also had fun on the playground!
She learned to climb up and slide down for the first time by herself..

I really have to watch out for her, she's pretty daring (Nothing like Nikholi).

What I was most excited about was being able to get a five generation photo.
The cute baby is Kambri, who is my daughter; then me to the far right; to the left of me is my mom; and to the left of her is my grandma and my mom's mom; then down in the front is my great grandma, my grandma's mom.

Here is a picture of me and the kids..

I felt so priveledged to have this opportunity to take photos of my great grandparents and for the kids to know their Great Great Grandparents!

I especially love this picture! These hands are of Kambri's and her Great Great Grandma.
On our way back to the Condo, I became distracted again.. And I lied also.. They don't only have pimped out golf carts to drive around, they have tricked out motorcycles also.

We brought our cousins back to the Condo and we all went down to the beach! This is my mom and our cousins.

And I had a blast swiming with the kids!

Then unfortunately all fun has to come to an end.. so we stopped by the nursing home to say our goodbyes to GG.

Put mom on an airplane, then stopped by Darla's where I was able to snap this great picture of Kambri and Grandma Judi sitting on the front porch.

We were sad to leave and had an interesting drive home.

It rained a lot, we had some potty accidents, and some sour pusses.

But it was a beautiful drive

and we made it home safe and sound!