update

So many things have happened that I feel very behind and I'm not sure where to start!

Events:
On July 27, 2010 We welcomed miss KatieLynn to our familia! She was born @ 2:17 p.m. and weighed 8 lbs 2 oz. She is healthy and a pretty easy going little girl, but man does she have some projection in her voice already! When she was born she scared Dr. Nelson with how loud she was :) She is such a wonderful addition to our family and we feel really blessed that Heavenly Father sent her to our family!

Mike:
Michael really enjoyed the summer, I think? He played t-ball and absolutely loved it! We started reading this summer and he is really picking up on sounding out words correctly! I love it... he even read me a whole book the other night! Proud mama moment *sigh* We made some new friends and he played to exhaustion on occassion. He went camping and the highlights according to him were the lightning storms and the fact that he stepped in cow poop. :) what a cutie! He is trying to be really helpful with Katie and loves her oh so very much! He has his moments of wanting the attention and has an issue with it, but all in all he is doing much better than I thought. Michael loves singing the primary songs, at home, he has a little stage-fright and doesn't really sing the songs right at church, but he tries and I love to hear his voice singing the beautiful words to the tender songs. Michael loves to sing "I am a Child of God" to Katie when she is crying and it has helped her calm down a few times. AND Michael seemingly had the final say on what to name his baby sister. ;)

Steve & I:
besides getting ready for a new little one, Steve was finally busy with work and we were able to catch-up on some bills. We enjoyed trying to decide on names for our little girl and had our hearts set on Katelyn Marie, but after 24 hrs of having her in our arms... it was definitely wrong and we realized she was Katie Lynn. We feel so blessed to have the families that we do and are so thankful for little children Heavenly Father has sent to our home.

Having a new little one in our home has been an interesting transition after the passing of our JoshuaJay. There are days when it seems as if Josh was just here a week ago and that Katie has been here for months and months. Katie seems to be an answer to prayers of pain and sorrow and has become a balm of Gilead of sorts for the wound that has been left in our family since Josh passed away. We know that our family will be ALL together again and we are so thankful for the sacrifice that Christ has made in our behalf.

Good Things to Come

So I took the title of this post from a MormonMessage by Elder Holland. Lately it's felt as if the world is kind of cruel and unforgiving place and I'm sure that I've done my part in adding to that, so when my friend posted a link on her facebook page to Elder Hollands message it brought tears to my eyes.

In the past week it seems that another one of those milestones hit me harder than I expected, 18 months. It's been 18 months since I last held my boy, my Joshua Jay. Still miss him, but I understand more of his mission that he is on now. I've been very blessed to be on this journey, I know blessed is the word I used. I haven't enjoyed very much of it, but as I and my family have learned to and experimented upon the Lord's promises, we have been given courage, comfort, and the ability to look beyond what is immediate and look to what is eternal. It's an amazing feeling to know, I mean to really know, that someone you love is working and waiting in the Spirit world.

i've had a lot of mixed feelings lately as the birth of our daughter is approaching, feelings that I didn't think I would experience. I've felt guilty, anxious, and a bit depressed. But again trying to have faith in the Lord's plan worked out. even with my the little bit of faith I have had at trying times, the abundance of what the Lord has poured out upon our family has been amazing. So many prayers have been answered in unexpected ways, thankfully we have been able to accept them even when it's been a way we haven't enjoyed.

We've had our challenges, we have our challenges and are trying to keep our chin up.
I haven't really gotten to my point, but really my point is good things come, you just have to hang on. If you have an opportunity, if you want a quick 5 minute pick-me-up Elder Holland's message "Good Things to Come" is excellent (I'm sorry I don't have the link)

"Don't you quit... you keep trying, there is help and happiness ahead. Some blessings come soon, Some come late, and some don't come until Heaven... you will be alright in the end. Trust God and believe in good things to come." ~Elder Holland

P.S. 1 wk 2 days until we welcome our little girl.

Things that I love

So the other night I was in a feisty mood while I was trying to go to sleep, so I decided to start listing things in my head that I love and am thankful for. To keep in that spirit of gratitude I've tried to keep it up the last few days so, without further adieu ... things that I love

I LOVE:

~ when the sun shines, especially on gloomy days
~ seeing my family happy
~ feeling peace and calm about trials
~ enjoying nature
~ my husband and confidant, Steven
~ watching Michael learn something new and really understand it.
~ adventures, but mostly when I get to look back on them... sometimes they can be pretty scary
~ my children (Michael, Josh, and the new little one coming in July)
~ to learn... again mostly when I get to look back on what I learned
~ to read
~ to understand how people work... should have been a psych major.
~ the scriptures and the spirit they can bring into a home
~ music, especially primary music. what can I say, I've been in some part of primary for 7 yrs.
~ finding out that someone who you just wanted happiness for, is happy.
~ experiencing joy unexpectedly
~ serving without knowing that you were doing a service.
~a friendly note in the mail... not e-mail, but the real mail always makes me smile ;)
~ being able to recognize that my prayers are answered
~ time with my husband... dates area fabulous!
~ reading time with Mike... especially when it's dinosaurs... he Loves dinosaurs!
~ seeing little wisps of Josh in things that Michael does
~ understanding the strengths and challenges that Mike and other kids have
~finding that I can have patience... can being the operative word. :)
~ feeling loved
~ finding a friend that I didn't know I had.
~ talking for hours about everything going on with someone I love... thanks Steve ;)
~being friends with my sisters and mom
~the adventures of parenthood and being an aunt to some wonderful kids (wish Utah and Arizona weren't so far away)
~ finding pictures on the computer that I haven't been able to find for months and months... like this one:

Me and my two super heroes on a walk... my most favorite of all. summer of 2008
(thanks for taking that pic babe! I didn't realize how special a pic like that would be to me until now)

I could keep going, but I'm sure at some point I will be doing this again. It seems that when we look at all our blessings and count them, they grow into a vast array of beauty and joy. The other night I definitely needed it! Love you all.

Little Thought

When I stand before God at the end of my life,
I would hope that I would not have
a single bit of talent left,
and could say,
“I used everything you gave me.”

~Erma Bombeck~

makes me wonder what talents i've been given and if i'm wasting them.

Little Thought

When I stand before God
at the end of my life,
I would hope
that I would not have
a single bit of talent left,
and could say,
“I used everything you gave me.”

~Erma Bombeck~

Makes me wonder what talents i've been given and if i'm wasting them.

Little Thought

When I stand before God
at the end of my life,
I would hope that I would
not have a single bit of talent left,
and could say,
“I used everything you gave me.”

~Erma Bombeck~

Makes me wonder what talents i've been given and if i'm wasting them.

Little Thought

When I stand before God
at the end of my life,
I would hope
that I would not have a single bit of talent left,
and could say,
“I used everything you gave me.”

~Erma Bombeck~

Makes me wonder what talents i've been given and if i'm wasting them.

Little Thought

When I stand before God
at the end of my life,
I would hope
that I would
not have a single bit of talent left,
and could say,
“I used everything you gave me.”

~Erma Bombeck~

Makes me wonder what talents i've been given and if i'm wasting them.

Little Thought

When I stand before God
at the end of my life,
I would hope that I would
not have a single bit of talent left,
and could say,
“I used everything you gave me.”

~Erma Bombeck~

Makes me wonder what talents i've been given and if i'm wasting them.