You Post the Caption....

We took this picture of Natalie on Sunday night. Leave a comment with your suggestion for a caption. Come on friends, NAME THAT PHOTO!

Photo Update

Kristen and Christopher have been home since Friday, and things are going well. Christopher seems to be adjusting to life here and Kristen is continuing to regain strength and mobility after the c-section.

Here are some photos from the last few days:

Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep...

Photo Update

Here are a few more photos. Christopher and Mom are doing well. Kristen has been able to get out of bed and walk a little today, and she just farted!!!!! (That's a big milestone after surgery! :)

Happy Birthday Christopher!

Well, we arrived at the hospital at 5:45 a.m. and Kristen safely delivered a healthy baby boy by 8:13 a.m. We have already fallen in love with our "little man". We must say that he is the most gorgeous baby we've ever seen! :)

Mom and baby are resting and doing fine. Here are some photos from our morning. We will post more in the coming days. Praise God for a healthy baby and a safe delivery for Kristen!

Daddy's Girls!

I am proud to have these two turkeys call me Daddy!!!!

For the Love of Shoes

She's a climber, a screamer, and loves cars and balls, but when it comes to shoes, she's ALL GIRL.These three pics were taken over the course of about 2 hours. Our Natalie's current obsession is putting on and taking off shoes...over and over again. It doesn't seem to matter whose shoes they are, just as long as she can find them and get them on.

The power of Elmo

We have recently discovered that Natalie enjoys television, as long as it involves Elmo, people singing, or funny home videos.

This is how Natalie watched Elmo on Sesame Street this morning. Apparently the sunglasses, binkie, jammies, Hippo, and one shoe only add to the television-viewing enjoyment.

Possible Temper Tantrum...coming soon

Just in case you were wondering, Allyson is now fever-free and has her personality and most of her appetite back. She is still dealing with diarrhea...hopefully that will subside by tomorrow.

And just so you know...I already talked to the hospital and asked about my exposure to a possible stomach bug. Her all-too-quick answer was, "If you start to show symptoms, the c-section will be postponed."

And if that happens, there just might be screaming, stomping, and some choice words.

One week and counting...

Here we are...one week from D-day. That's hard to believe. On one hand, the night we discovered our third pregnancy feels like years ago. Truly. On the other hand, the last 8-ish months have flown by like just a few weeks. When we found out we would be blessed with another child, Natalie was just 9 months old, and still quite the handful. We would probably argue she was still holding fast to colic. Allyson was starting her 4-year-old preschool program and thriving socially and academically. Now, here we are with a walking, blabbing toddler and a preschool graduate...just one week away from starting all over again! What a difference a few months make...

I am feeling like a much larger version of myself. Sleeping is fitful, walking is closer to waddling, sitting is uncomfortable, my legs fall asleep within seconds of sitting in an awkward position...you know, all the normal 8 3/4 month pregnancy symptoms. Having said that, I have little to complain about.

Yesterday evening Allyson developed a mysterious fever. All day today she was laying around, lethargic and feverish. Up until about 9:00 PM tonight, she had no other symptoms. Now we're dealing with the big "D" symptom, but no fever.

So, after a day of dealing with a sick kiddo, a very active toddler, and 22 pounds of belly, all I can do is roll my eyes heavenward and say, "You must be kidding me."

Donuts Anyone?

Anyone up for a Saturday morning donut date?

5-Year-Old Vocabulary...

A quote from Allyson's bedtime prayer last night...."Jesus, help mommy to feel good and help the baby to come soonly......"

Amen!

Finally....

Just about two years ago, Kristen and I made the decision that I would begin to pursue training as a computer/web programmer. At that time, our local community college was just launching a Web Analyst/Programmer degree program that would be offered in an online format.

After many hours of research and seeking advice, I enrolled in the program knowing that I would have a lot of late nights over the four semesters it would take to complete the degree. If it had only been the stress of late nights, this would have been easy! However that was not the case.

In that two years I/we:

• Welcomed Natalie into our lives
• Worked extra hours at the church as the youth pastor for a season (in addition to my other full-time responsibilities)
• Dealt with some major turmoil at the church
• Lost lots of sleep with an extremely grumpy baby (Natalie, we still love you)
• Faced more turmoil at the church
• Worked as an online sales manager at a local car dealer on my day off from the church
• Made another baby :)
• Began an internship as a Web Developer at a local web development company
• Faced even more serious turmoil at the church
• Accepted a position as a full-time web developer at Foremost Media here in Janesville! (Yeah!!!!!)
• Resigned from the church
• Completed an Associate's Degree as an IT/Web Analyst Programmer with a 4.0!
  

With each semester, I can remember telling Kristen that there was no way that I could juggle it all, but somehow, we made it work and we both still have most of our sanity. God is amazing at carrying us through seemingly impossible times. I am extremely grateful for that!

For the first time since graduating from college, I love getting up in the morning and going to work! That in itself was worth all of the energy, time, and finances invested in making a career change.

Thank you for letting me boast a little about this latest accomplishment!

Here is my degree (definitely not Ivy League, but ironically, it holds more career potential than my expensive private college degree!!!!).

The Piggytail Debut

If you've known Allyson for at least the last four years, you know that I am a big sucker for pigtails. Ally's made their debut at about 18 months old. Here's a shot in case you've forgotten their adorableness...
Natalie's hair isn't quite as long as Ally's was at that age, but it is at a length that demands some kind of styling. Although I can't yet manage the two pigtails that Ally had, one still does the trick! (And, true to her personality, Natalie doesn't hold still quite as well as Ally did.)

Digging for Gold...

David and Ally were snuggling in our bed the other morning, enjoying cartoons and avoiding the reality that it was time to get up and face the day.

In case you didn't know, David loves teasing our oldest and gets a big kick out of pushing her buttons. On this particular morning, he reached over to pick her nose.

She quickly exclaimed, "Daaaaaad, there's nothing you want up there!"

Well said, my dear.

The truth hurts.

First of all, let me say that we are less than three weeks from D-day (that would be Delivery Day)! I am SOOOOO ready to rid myself of this belly in favor of our son!

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Second, as you may notice, the blog is under construction as David (the computer programmer dude) tries to spiff up the site a bit. Oh, and here's a question for you, it's been highly debated around here. If your last name ended in an X and you wanted to pluralize it (as above), would you add an "s" or an "es"? For the record, "es" just doesn't seem right to me, maybe because we aren't actually foxes. But I'm not sure Foxs is right, either. A little help?

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Finally, I must share a story from this morning. For whatever reason, garage sales are kind of big around here on Wednesday mornings. We have been in search of a toddler bed, so I loaded up the girlies and we went on a hunt. (Just so you know, we were highly successful and found a nice little bed & mattress for $15! We are thrifty gals.) When it comes to these kinds of things, I always drive by the house first to make sure it's worth unbuckling and re-buckling both children.

I drove by one sale that was unlike any I've ever seen! They had so many trinkets and decorative chochkeys (yes, I see you little red squiggly line...I have no idea how to spell that word) that it looked like the breakable aisle at Hallmark. There were multiple bookshelves full of figurines and tables and tables and tables covered in various candle holders, vases, and other end-table fillers. It could have been interesting to walk through, but I quickly said, "Natalie would be a disaster in there. She'd break everything!"

Allyson quickly agreed, then lovingly added, "YOU'D knock everything over with your big fat belly."

Yeah, um, thanks Ally.