Its a .....

BOY!!!! That's right, we are having another baby boy in September and feel so blessed! I will post some the pics from our fun visit from Mimi and Jay Pops later this week. Just couldn't wait to finally put this on the computer!!

Show me your muscles!!

When Lindsay was in town J.David came in to show us his arm muscles before his bath and being the imaginitive aunt she is, she posed JD with a simple question:  "Can you show me your leg muslces too?"  Without missing a beat this is what came of that question as well a few others that night.  Enjoy!

Water Table Fun and some JD funnies!

We have spent the last two days outside all day playing with the water table.  He has loved it and I am already getting some silly tan lines from sitting outside with him.  I can only imagine what they will be by the end of the summer!  ha ha ha.  Here are a few pics from the water table:

So proud he can make a 2 all by himself! ha ha.

 

First popsicle of the season!

 

I don't think he is having enough fun....

 

Walking his penguin around the table while we sand the hippo song.

On another note J.David's vocabulary has really taken off lately!  It is so funny what has been coming out of his mouth.  Here are a few lately before I forget:

JD:  I'm going to work like Daddy and hit some golf balls!

Me:  How are you going to get there?

JD:  I'm going to take Daddy's car, ok mommy?  (he then left the room and came back)

Morgan:  How was work?

JD:  Good.  I hit golf balls and then said WOOO!!  (he cheered for himself)

He was locked in our back room by the gates and I hear, "Mommy, help me get outta here!!"

Outside by his water table he stopped, came over and said, "I go get Jaxon a toy, I'll be right back, ok?"

Me:  no, we need to stay outside

JD:  Jaxon, needs a toy mommy.  I'll be right back, ok?

Last night he informed us he didn't want a bath b/c he was afraid of his bath water.  What?!?  Morgan was able to convince his to take a bath and afterwards and he says, "I'm not scared of the bath anymore Daddy!!"  Then runs in to inform me of the same revelation with big hugs to celebrate!  So cute!

Easter (LOTS of pics)

We had a great Easter weekend!  Aunt ZiZi (Lindsay) came to spend the weekend with us and we had a blast!  We all, especially J.David, were sad to see her go home.  Here are pics from the super cold egg hunt from the weekend before and from the beautiful Easter weekend we were so blessed to have.

Hunting for eggs, he would NOT look at the camera...ha ha ha.

@dinner with ZiZi

Dying Eggs, he LOVED it!!

Checking out what the Easter Bunny brought!  A water table a basket of goodies (most of which he has already taken out of the basket and tossed to the side...ha ha ha)

Looking for those eggs!

Cheesin' before church, again the best we could get.  His smiling for the camera days are nearly over.

 

Bible class proudly wearing the egg hat he just made!  And yes, he wore it for about 1/2 the church service as well...ha ha ha.

 

Hunting Eggs at Granny and Pappa's house

Each time he found an egg he would shake it and determine by the sound if it was jelly beans or money and then announce it to us with excitement!  Too cute!

Pre-church family photo

Beautiful Weather!!

Spring is finally here and we have really been enjoying the afternoons that we can get outside!  Here are a few pics that I've collected but we've been so busy playing chalk and T-ball that the camera has taken a backseat.  I plan to work on that this week! 

WEEEEEEEEE!!!

Lounging and being silly on my chair

Chasing Grady at the park

In his little "hide out".  This is behind his bed.  He takes all this toys back there and sneaks his paci (which is bedtime only).  He will play there for large chuncks of the day.  Notice the stamps on the wall, he decided it needed a little decorating one day....AHHH!!

This is what happens when mommy is cleaning out her closet....ha ha ha.  He thought he was SOOOO funny!!

Disney on Ice

Two weeks ago Morgan, J.David, and I went to Disney on Ice.  It was worth every penny!!   J.David loved it soo much, I don't think he took his eyes off the show once.  During intermission he even asked to watch it again.  ha ha ha.  He loves the disney characters but especially Mickey, Pluto, and Goofy.  Every time one of them would leave the stage he would get all concerned about where they went and when they were coming back. SO CUTE!  To top off the whole night he even got his to have his first cotton candy experience.  I'm sure the dentist will love me, but it was worth it, b/c after getting over the texture issue (he wouldn't touch it at first) he loved it.  The best part as a parent was when we walked out he looked at us and said, "I had fun!".  What more could we ask for!

Mommy and JD at the HardRock Cafe for dinner

Looking good in his magic Disney hat that came with his cotton candy!

This was his concentration level most of the night...ha ha ha.

The Toy Story clan closed out the show, and he is still talking about it!

One Year

First I want to start by saying Happy Birthday to our sweet Alexander.  This day last year was by far the hardest day of my life.  Losing Alexander was a shock to us all and I'd be lying if I didn't admit that it has taken us the entire year and then some to begin to recover from it all.  We have been so blessed with family and friends that have persistantly shared their love and concern throughout the entire year. Thank you.  Even if we didn't show it fully every comment and hug was cherished in our hearts.
We have come so far and are so thankful to have a God that has wrapped his arms around us and led us through the darkness.  2009 never quite seemed to "get better" so ringing in the New Year in January meant so much more than a party and resolutions to us.  It was the start of a new beginning.  The start of moving forward, never forgetting, but living better for it.  Today we have declared a day of celebration in our house.  Our goal over the years is to find a charity or cause that we as  family can make an annual contribution to, (both time and monetaril)y, but this year we had a hard time choosing a cause that felt like the "the one".  So this year we went to breakfast with my mom and sisters, took some beautiful flowers to Alexander's gravesite, and spent the rest of the day enjoying being together until church.  Then Saturday with Morgan we are taking J.David to do something fun, sharing a nice dinner, and finishing the day off with a special dessert.  Sound like a birthday celebration?  That was the plan.  I have relived the night of March 3, 2009 so many times over the last year that we decided to not allow this day to become another day of saddness, but a day where we honor the miracle that was Alexander's life.  His precious short life with his strong beating heart that has changed who we are for all of eternity. 
I've always found comfort and healing in music lyrics.  Give me a circumstance and I'll give you a song to go with it.  With that said, in December I asked my sis-in-law for a copy of a mix CD without knowledge that this song was on there or what it was about (she didn't realize it either), but the biggest lesson Alexander has taught me is that God has perfect timing and a reason for everything.  I could go into the mountain of coincidences God planned events over the last year but instead I will leave you with the words from the song Held, by Natalie Grant.  Its the chorus that brings me to tears nearly everytime I hear it, and what I try to remember with every trial, not just this one.  We serve an awesome God and I find this to be even more evident during our times of struggle. 

Two months is too little.

They let him go.
They had no sudden healing.
To think that providence would
Take a child from his mother while she prays
Is appalling.

Who told us we'd be rescued?
What has changed and why should we be saved from nightmares?
We're asking why this happens
To us who have died to live?
It's unfair.

Chorus:
This is what it means to be held.
How it feels when the sacred is torn from your life
And you survive.
This is what it is to be loved.
And to know that the promise was
When everything fell we'd be held.

This hand is bitterness.
We want to taste it, let the hatred know our sorrow.
The wise hands opens slowly to lilies of the valley and tomorrow.

If hope is born of suffering.
If this is only the beginning.
Can we not wait for one hour watching for our Savior?

This is what it means to be held.
How it feels when the sacred is torn from your life
And you survive.
This is what it is to be loved.
And to know that the promise was
When everything fell we'd be held.