Psalm 100

A Psalm of Thanksgiving

Make a joyful shout to the LORD, all you lands!
Serve the LORD with gladness;

Come before His presence with singing.
Know that the LORD, He is God;
It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves;
We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.
Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,
And into His courts with praise.
Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.
For the LORD is good;
His mercy is everlasting,
And His truth endures to all generations.

Lately

Lately we've been quite busy with everything and nothing all at once. Our days are filled with typical errands and household chores. Elisabeth has been quite busy becoming a "big girl" lately with potty training, wanting to help Mommy with cooking and cleaning, and by showing her independence any way she can. She communicates amazingly well, making things so much easier for me and Brian. She is becoming more excited about her "Baby Sister" as each day goes by. She loves to look at her tiny clothes and talk about her as if she fully understands her arrival into our family. She will be a wonderful Big Sister! As my constant companion she is forced to join in on my love for Christmas, and thankfully she has grown to love it as much as I do! She loves to look at all of the Christmas decorations at every store we go to, repeatedly exclaiming, "It's so beautitul, it's so beautitul!!" She already knows EVERY Christmas song by heart and can be heard singing them as she plays. I also overhear her frequently telling the story of the birth of Jesus to her toys and imaginary friends (yes, she has several!!). She brings a smile to our faces and a joy to our hearts like we have never known! Here are a few (or A LOT) of pictures of what we've been doing lately...

Our attempt to capture Fall in a bottle after a walk on a beautiful morning. Elisabeth loved collecting the different colored leaves and sizes of acorns.


First time to have her toes painted. She looked at mine and said she wanted hers to look that way!


Becoming more of a big girl every day!


Her new best friend, Violet (named after a cat in one of her DVDs). I'll be sure not to lose this one!


Elisabeth loves to help me cook at EVERY meal.


This day she proudly helped me get the roast and vegetables ready for the crock pot.


"Baby Sister" is growing right on schedule. I'm 28 weeks now...she'll be here before we know it!


I've been nesting like crazy lately and already have the baby's clothes all washed and organized in her drawers! The timing is perfect and will save me a lot of work when it's time to pack and move. I still have a lot to do...this nesting thing is becoming something I can't control!!

Today we made a trip to the new Children's Museum with my good friend, Heidi, and her two kids, Clara and Dawson. Elisabeth had a fabulous time exploring the world on her level. Surprisingly she was so quiet (If you know Elisabeth, you know that quiet is RARELY a word used to describe her!) and inquisitive as she went from one section to the next. It was like she was soaking up every detail so she wouldn't forget anything. She always has a great time with Clara and Dawson, and today was no exception! It's always a blessing to see your children enjoy themselves so much!

"The Grocery Store"










"The Hospital"

I'm already the annoying mom with the camera!! Her face says it all!


Following in Daddy's footsteps?...Future Orthopedic Surgeon?!


Pediatrician?


ER Doc?

Outdoor Water Area





Dawson, Clara, and Elisabeth

"Construction Site"








Fascinated by Bubbles


Duck, Duck, Goose

Elisabeth loves her friends, Clara and Dawson!


What a blessed day to spend with friends!

We have much to be thankful for as we quickly approach Thanksgiving! I am so grateful for the simple things each day that remind me of my blessings. Elisabeth and Brian and I may be busy with everything and nothing all at once, but it's through these things that God shows us how much He loves us. It's through all the simple everyday things that we've done lately that make my heart swell with gratitude. Don't forget to take a moment, not just for Thanksgiving, but for today, and thank Him for all that you are grateful for!

Pleasantly Distracted

So, I've been pretty distracted from blogging lately...first due to our trip:

Our first stop was California to see the Medina family.

Elisabeth showing her love for her friends, Madison and Emery.


Our best friends, Stacy


and Ty. We are ever so grateful to have spent time with you!!


Our adventurous little girl!

This picture is Elisabeth in a nutshell! And I could not love her more!

After our time with the Medinas we headed up the Pacific Coast Highway toward San Francisco.

The views were breathtaking!

Pier 39 in San Francisco

From San Francisco we made our way to the Redwood Coast.

On to Oregon...

California/Oregon border. All I can say is GORGEOUS!! Although the pictures never do it justice.

Day trip to Newport, OR from Corvallis.

Last stop, Columbia River Gorge, east of Portland.

Now that Brian has officially completed all of his out of state rotations we have another reason to be pleasantly distracted! It is a wonderful blessing to have him home again, and I am so thankful that our separation is over. The time went by much faster than I imagined it would, and I am grateful for that. Elisabeth loves having her daddy here for breakfast everyday and home again in the early evening. We all love the fact that there is no more studying for fourth year! So we are just enjoying each other and looking forward to all that is approaching in the near future...finding out where we will be moving for Brian's residency, selling our house, having our second daughter, Brian's graduation from medical school, and moving to our to-be-determined new home. So many MAJOR events approaching, but with much prayer, patience, and trust, we know that the Lord will guide our every step. So for now, I'm just focusing on taking care of Brian and our girls and being grateful for each one!

I am now 25 weeks and 2 days, and I figured it was about time I posted a picture of our sweet growing girl!

Elisabeth is so excited to become a big sister and talks about her baby sister all the time. We are still deciding on a name, but hope to have one soon. We prayed for a long time for Elisabeth's name and are doing the same for our second daughter. I love that I will be able to tell them that the Lord named them! I have a midwives appointment tomorrow and thankfully Brian will be able to go with me as he has the day off. I'm hoping for another peek at our sweet girl! She's just as active as Elisabeth was when I carried her...if she's as active as Elisabeth has been the last two and a half years then I certainly have my work cut out for me!! Thankfully I know that the Lord won't give us more than we can handle!!

Although I get overwhelmed and exhausted at the thought of all that is coming up in our lives seemingly all at once, I simply can't wait! And I am ever so grateful for these wonderful distractions to help get me through! I feel so blessed...