Myers Family

Girls' Birthday Party

2012-01-22T20:56:00.000-08:00

Both Emma and Karis have birthdays in January, so we celebrated carnival style!

Face painting: Alyssa and Mayla

Mommy painted a not very still Karis

Not bad, considering she did not want to hold still for this!

Tigers Kadin and Mayla

Happy Birthday Karis and Emma!

This September...

2012-01-22T14:26:00.000-08:00

Rumor has it, and it's true, we are expecting baby number two!

We are awaiting the arrival of Baby #2 this September!

Karis is one!

2012-01-21T08:00:00.000-08:00

She is 21 lbs, wearing size 4 diapers, 18 months clothing. She loves balls, books, animals, and big stuffed animals. She is a cuddler, but only when she wants to. She will plop on her stuffed animals and cuddle all the time!

She also loves animals and does not seem to have much fear of them. She does not always sleep through the night. She has 6 teeth. She is walking very well, but still with bow legs. Her favorite food is spaghetti, but loves anything with tomatoes!

She goes to bed at 8 pm every night and wakes up around 8 am, and takes one 1.5 hour nap at 1pm. Lately, she has had a rash of accidents, falling, bruising, bleeding and scareing mommy and daddy to death! When other children are around, she desires so much to be one of them, following them around, laughing when they laugh, talking when they talk!

She loves drinking out of a straw and thinks anything we are drinking is hers as well. She also loves chocolate, as has been introduced mainly by Papa and Grandma. She does very well at independent play, but loves attention. When we turn on something loud, we are teaching her that it is singing, so we try to mimic the sound the machine makes, like the blender, vaccuum or hair dryer, and she sings along, helping her concur her fears. She is an amazing joy!

Happy Birthday Karis Anne! Today you are One!

Gas today costs $3.47/gallon

News paper $1.50

A box of 200 size 4 diapers from Costco costs $36

Gallon of milk $3.25

Ground Hamburger $3.47/lb

1000 sq ft home in Washington $180,000

Candy bar $1

16 oz Coca-Cola $1.20

President in office: Barrack Obama (D)

Unemployment Rate: 8.5%

Dow Jones Stock Market Index 12,578 points

World Population 6,928,198,253

US Population 311,800,000

State of Washington Population 6,767,900

State of Washington sales and use tax 8.6%

Scripture Verse for her first year:

"Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD,

the fruit of the womb a reward.

Like arrows in the hand of a warrior

are the children of one's youth.

Blessed is the man

who fills his quiver with them!

He shall not be put to shame

when he speaks with his enemies in the gate."

(Psalm 127:3-5 ESV)

cute as can be!

2012-01-12T10:02:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-16T21:09:00.001-08:00

Kisses and Bubbles

2011-12-02T22:04:00.001-08:00

Christmas is in full swing

2011-12-01T14:06:00.001-08:00

We have officially started the Christmas season! Our shopping is officially done, our trees are trimmed and the kids are looking forward to all the fun!

Currey and Myers children after having decorated the tree. From left to right: Austin, Emma, Mayla, Karis and Kadin

Shopping trip to Cabellas, Karis loved the fish tank!

"Karis Bunyan"... if Paul Bunyan had a daughter

10 Months old

2011-11-26T14:10:00.000-08:00

Karis is 10 months old. She has four teeth, has officially begun walking, taking only 4 steps at a time, weighs 20 pounds, wearing 12-18 month clothing. She doesn't mind wearing hats when I ask her to, she loves trucks, balls, books, bubbles and babies. She loves pop-up books, but you don't realize how difficult they are to find until you start looking for them!

The Watering Whole

2011-11-02T19:27:00.000-07:00

I recently started a new blog as a ministry, it is not necessarily about our family, but is focused on ministering to women, wives and families. Take a look, we have a handful of posts so far!

http://www.the-watering-whole.blogspot.com/

Sunny Santa Maria

2011-11-01T14:35:00.000-07:00

My wonderful husband surprised me with a trip to Santa Maria, California for my birthday! We had a wonderful weekend in sunshine and enjoying family. We went to Avilla Barn to enjoy the fresh squeezed apple juice, animals and other fall fare. We also had a BBQ on Sunday with many of the friends and family I have enjoyed while vacationing to Santa Maria over the many years. We were able to chat with the Johnstons, the Craigs, McCushs, Sloccums as well as Patty. We just had a great time enjoying one another's company over the short and blissful weekend.

Grandma reading Karis her favorite book

Aunt Mishal, me & my mom

Alyssa, Des & Grandma Bonnie tie-dying our nails

Karis & Grandma at Avilla Barn

Alyssa & mommy in the pumpkins at Avilla Barn

Aunt Mishal, Des & Alyssa at the sweet shoppe at Avilla Barn

Karis and Great Grandma Bonnie

Aunt Mishal with her signature flower, the sunflower

Papa reading to Karis

Grandma Bonnie, Grandma Carole, Desiree, Karis, Uncle Craig and Aunt Mishal

Karis after having thuroughly enjoyed an oreo

Karis helping grandma put on her makeup

All Saints Day

2011-11-01T09:00:00.000-07:00

On this All Saints Day I was able to interview my aunt and mother on the life of my Great Grandmother, Irma Smith, and this is what became of that.

Vacation Days

2011-10-23T23:36:00.000-07:00

We have just spent the last 8 days on vacation... it was wonderful! Karis was at the perfect age for a trip to Hawaii, as she LOVES water and sand, she is able to look at all the things around her and get excited, it was a blast! The airplane rides on the other hand were not pleasurable. She was a great traveler, but it was a bit of a challenge finding ways to keep her quiet, especially when Ray and I didn't even sit together!

Our arrival at the Marriott Maui Ocean Club, Ka'anapali, Maui, Hawaii

Karis loves the water, and so does mom and dad

Karis had regular 2 naps per day... generally one of which was out on the pool deck.

the tube was not one of our favorite items on this vacation, as she seemed to enjoy being held and played with in the water. in this tube, it was more difficult to play with her when she was in the tube, nor could she get to the water.

We took our bath toys as pool toys for the week, and it seemed to work out very well.

view from our room

karis spent a lot of time with grandma and grandpa on this trip

Daddy and Karis feeding the koi fish at the hotel

Papa spent a lot of time with Karis this week, feeding her cookies and taking her for walks.

The view of Ka'anapali beach brom the sheraton Hotel on the end of the beach, Black Rock.

Karis LOVES sand! unlike daddy, she doesn't mind getting sandy!

So proud of herelf! she gets so excited over the sand! she just crawls all over not sure what to do with herself... she was such a mess, all three of us had a difficult time getting cleaned, and i continued finding sand all over Karis until the following morning.

Like any child, she wanted to taste the sand... I didn't mind, but Ray had difficulty with it.

last day of our vacation, not wanting to go home!

We spent much of our time on the pool deck, on our balcony and walking to Whaler's Village. I love eating out, my favorite meal had to be at Bubba Gumps, mom ordered "Jenny's Accidental Catch" and it was great! We also enjoyed the Bourbon Street, but I ordered the 2/3rd pound of boiled shrimp in cajun seasoning off the appetizer menu and a side of fries, it was great! By the second to the last day, Ray paid me a very nice compliment and stated how he was sick of eating out and wanting to eat at home... this is a man that prior to getting married, he LOVED eating out, and 7 years later he is desiring my cooking! So the last night we ate in, bbq'd beef and ate in our room!

Down home Indian Dinner

2011-10-14T12:39:00.000-07:00

Our feast!
Menu:
steamed white rice
naan / roti
curried yellow lentils and garbanzo beans
potatoes in cocnut and pineapple sauce
tandoori chicken
spciy garlic green beans
pineapple
tapioca

the Currey family joined us for dinner and brought along helpful hands! Emma helping roll out the naan.

tandoori chicken

we even ate on the floor!

Karis is learning to eat ethnic food from a young age, as even she ate dinner with us!

Projects with Mommy

2011-10-12T09:51:00.001-07:00

Getting ready for our unexpected trip to Hawaii! Janelle and Eric were planning on going to Hawaii this coming week, but unseen changes brought about travel plan changes as well, and we are blessed to be going to Maui this week! So here we are creating a toy to hang on the back of the seat in front of us for the 7 hours of airplane travel (LORD help us!).

Add caption

Lasting Impressions

2011-10-10T09:51:00.000-07:00

Karis has left impressions on me, both temporarily in the physical as well as in the aphysical eternal. You can see a little red indent on my middle finger nuckle... that was about 5 minutes after she bit me!

Even though she bites, this is the little girl that greets me every morning when I wake up. What a joy she is! Take note that she is tanding in her crib, a feet that she has been able to perform for at least 4 weeks now.

Last days of summer

2011-09-29T11:00:00.001-07:00

Woodland Park Zoo

2011-09-24T08:21:00.000-07:00

8 Months Old

2011-09-21T10:19:00.000-07:00

8 Month old Karis

look at her tan lines!

9th Grade Tahoma Bears vs Kentwood Conks

2011-09-19T10:08:00.000-07:00

Daddy and Karis in the stands

Papa Smith and Karis

Papa was easily distracted from the game by Karis' playfulness

Christian in number 45 on the far left (blue and white)

Men's Backpacking Trip

2011-09-17T09:42:00.000-07:00

Ray had the opportunity to take a backpacking trip up to Emerald Lake in the Cascades (Necklace Valley). Starting at trailhead 1062 they had an 8 mile hike with 3500 feet of elevation gain, each man, Kevin and Jimmy as well, packing about 50 extra pounds of gear.

Jimmy Finnestad at the beginning of the trailhead

Ray midway up to the lake and panting

One of the many little rivers/streams they crossed on their hike

Tanks Lake - they spent their second day of the trip hiking up to Tanks lake and exploring the area.

It is so steep, you can't even see Jimmy's head behind Kevin.

Kevin and Jimmy

Emerald Lake

Ray came home with blisters all over his feet as well as his hips where his pack rested on his hip bones.

Crossing over one of the many bridges

Their campsite

The guys had such a great time, they are already discussing their next trip and all the areas they want to visit. The hike was strenuous and they revisited all the things they would do differently next time. They missed their wives and families so much, they came home a day early, surprising everyone! We wives could not be happier to see them and to know they were safe.

There was a bear sighting/incident at mile marker 5 just the week prior to their hike, but praise God, no incidents while they were out.

Summer love

2011-09-09T20:28:00.000-07:00

Karis LOVES food, and orange popsicles! Really any color popsicle. She has had a wide array of flavors this summer, and as you can tell, she has no aversion to sweets. She LOVES icecream too (just like her mommy)!

Labor Day Weekend

2011-09-05T19:56:00.000-07:00

Karis driving Papa's boat

Daddy and Karis in the shade of the beach umbrella.

Karis loves the water and sand. You just have to let her get in gradually, but she LOVES it!

This is the beach we hang out at... Wally's beach on Lake Roosevelt.

The Myers Family

Karis driving papa's boat

Mommy loves it when Karis sleeps with her

Karis taking her nap with mommy

Ray preparing for his backpacking trip. Hiking Little Mount Si with a 33 pound pack.

Ray, Des and Karis at the top of Little Mount Si

Midway to the top of Little Mount Si on our way up, Karis is sleeping in the pack on Des' back.

The view from the top of Little Mount Si

a mover and a shaker

2011-09-01T19:44:00.000-07:00

Karis has begun crawling. She started out on all fours bopping her butt up and down about 4 weeks ago, but she is actually able to get across the room now. It is amazing how we have seen a transformation in her ability to get around. When she first started out on all fours this first picture is the pose she would get stuck in, unable to get back up to a seated position. Now she is able to get from lying, to seated to crawling and everything in between. This is also one of my favorite pairs of overalls, Osh Kosh B'Gosh! I think my mom had a pair for me when I was young!

Karis stuck and trying to get from all fours back to seated.

moving across the floor on all fours.

Her favoirte way to crawl is like a bear, up on all fours rather than down on her knees.

Teeth

2011-08-30T21:59:00.001-07:00

Karis has her first tooth! She actually has a little set of bumps protruding through her gums. She definately has some pain as she will not allow you to even touch her mouth sometimes and she wants to be held but you can't really make her very happy sometimes... all in all, you wouldn't know she is teething based on how bad everyone says the teething phase is, you'd just think she didn't get enough sleep.

Sad Goodbyes

2011-08-28T20:22:00.000-07:00

Ray has been the Associate Pastor while I have had the pleasure of being a Children's Ministry Director, at AICF over the last 3 years and it has been wonderful, but we have decided to move off of Anderson Island and we have said our final good-byes.

Our little Vacation Bible School crew, met at the Coffee Shop every Tuesday morning. From left to right, Cathy, Karis, Sam, Jack, Katie, Ben, Ashlynn, Abby, Jackie, Hannah and Amy. I have loved getting to know the VanNuys boys, Jack and Sam, as Sam is such a loving boy and Jack is great at picking up details to stories and history. Katie is growing up to look just like her sister Hannah, Katie is fearless and Hannah is a sweet and intelligent little girl. Ashlynn is shy and reserved at first, but she is chatty once she opens up. Ben and Abby are very bright and attentive. Harley is generally in attendance as well, she is very bright and loving, she and Hannah are like best buds! We are going to miss the VanNuys, as Ray volunteered at the local fire department with Thomas VanNuys and Jackie assists in children's ministry.

AICF's elders, from left to right, Scott, Cliff, Ray, Karis, Jay, Hank, Cathy, Tony, missing is Jeff

Myers with the Bittners, a close set of mentors and partners in ministry over the last 2 years

Some of my favorite children, Karis with the Prisco children, Hannah and Katie. We love their parents and have enjoyed many great moments with them, Andy and Amy, so here the girls are entertaining Karis as the guys have a chat in the background.

My favorite ministry in the church, Children's Ministry. This was the last sunday at AICF, and they all made me cry!

It has been a learning experience and a joyful one at that. I have fallen in love and given my heart to a few children, and their parents, and it was a very painful goodbye. I didn't realize just how much I would love teaching until I was able to have free reigns and the teaching of a professional teacher, Cathy. It has been such a blast! Thank you Lord for the period we have been able to be part of this body of believers.

7 Months Old

2011-08-27T13:52:00.000-07:00

7 months old and eating everything... including this flower!

Baby blue eyes

The love of her life... Dada (Abba)

Mama and Karis

She has the secret to a cloudy day... sunshine!

Beginning of Summer

2011-08-25T16:41:00.000-07:00

Uncle Josh and Karis

it is a beautiful day here in Maple Valley! It has been a really poor summer, with very little warmth and lots of rain. Karis and I walked to the library and then up to my dad's appartment, a grand total of 3 miles! I was exhausted and ready to get wet by the time I got there! Karis had a great time in the water. As long as you introduce her to it slowly she does really well, but it takes her awhile to get comfortable.

Josh snorkeling in the pool with his long toes in the foreground. Look how long his arms are! He is going to be a tall young man.

Grandpa eating Karis' feet!

the 12th Man

2011-08-22T10:34:00.000-07:00

We had the opportunity to attend a Seahawk's game this weekend, and they were great seats! I've never sat so low in the stadium before! The noise was unbelievable! Karis did ok with the noise, it was when the crowd errupted into chaos that she became upset, so it was a rather difficult game. They lost the game, 7 to 20, Vikings won.

Mommy and Karis just before the game began

Introduction to the starting lineup

Our little family at the game!

The twelfth man is the audience, the fans, the loud uproarious fans!

Daddy and Karis having a good time with all the people!

Anytime she can get attention she loves it, so she definately enjoyed this one!

Painting

2011-08-15T10:40:00.000-07:00

Karis painting with squash

Karis loves to eat! When she first started on solids she really enjoyed the green beans more than anything, but now she loves carrots! She loves just about anything we give her though. She has had ice cream on multiple occasions, I give her little bits of real rice, she LOVES to suck on juicy fruits like peaches and nectarines and watermelon, she enjoys the Gerber Graduates foods, and she still takes in a ton of mommy's milk. At just over 20 pounds, she is doing well!

I wanted her to have a little fun with her food, so I gave her a whole container of squash to play with and paint all over, she had a great time!

Sunny weekend

2011-08-04T13:56:00.000-07:00

My sister, Alyssa, was able to stay with us longer than expected, so we took her with us on the Myers' annual summer vacation to Grand Coulee. We had a great time together. Our little family, Ray's parents, my sister and the Currey family spent the weekend at the vacation house overlooking the Grand Coulee Dam. We spent one day at Spring Canyon beach park as there wasn't enough beach to camp out. The second two days the guys made beach for us. They actually pulled weeds off the beach to make a 4 foot wide beach for us to hang out at. We were eaten up by bugs however at the first of the two beaches. We were accompanied by the Greens and their eldest son and his children the second day. We had the opportunity to celebrate Alyssa and Mayla's birthdays while there.

Soap Lake pit stop

Mayla and Karis playing in the sand at Spring Canyon

the four Currey children and their daddy and papa on Papa's boat

Ray and Des with sleeping Karis

Keller ice cream run - Austin, Alyssa and Emma

Karis and her favorite toy - a spoon

Alyssa overlooking the Grand Coulee Dam and 12 million cubic feet of concrete standing in front of 157 miles of 200 feet deep water

Daddy put Karis to sleep at Slide Waters

Daddy taking Karis down all kinds of slides at Lake Chelan's Slide Waters

Here ia Karis, now up on all fours, not quite ready to crawl, but will be within the next couple of weeks. She is becoming more and more independent. I had a bit of difficulty with naps and sleeping during this trip, as I didn't have a place to lie her down and let her fall asleep, instead we had to rock her to sleep and hold her for most of her nap, which meant she didn't sleep much more than 45 minutes at each nap. She is always a trooper though, and had a good attitude all week long. But I am glad to be home and back on schedule!

The view from Dry Falls, "Banks Lakes."

Karis and mommy playing in the sand. The water was a bit cold for her liking, but she seemed to enjoy anyways.

She quite enjoyed papa's boat. It makes every little one fall asleep, even Karis!

Mommy, Karis, Mayla and Auntie Jen.

Alyssa turned 18 on July 29th! We had a blast with her, jumping off the boat and swimming in the frigid water.

We have a tradition of going up to Keller in the boat for ice cream mid-day. Karis is getting in on this tradition and seems to be quite fond of it!

Alyssa's 18th birthday. We took her back to childhood with a Fudge Mr. Potato Head cake.

Alyss and I at the base of the Grand Coulee Dam. The largest of its kind, not as tall as the Hoover Dam, but much much wider and produces much more electricity.

Daddy and Karis eating ice cream at Keller.

Daddy and Karis at Slide Waters in Lake Chelan. THis is our favorite water slide park, as they have so much packed into one area, and they allow us to take Karis down most rides.

While Karis napped and was watched by Grandma, Ray and I enjoyed a bit of alone time on the tubes!

Emma, Alyssa, Karis, Mommy and Daddy at the little kid's section of the water park.

Aunt Jen and Austin enjoying some tubing.

Mommmy and Aunt Alyssa

Uncle Kevin and Emma

We had a great time. Weather was perfect, water temperature was great, we couldn't have asked for a better day!

Grandma and Karis after her nap.

Me, Ray, Jen, Kevin, Austin and Alyssa swimming off the boat at Lake Roosevelt.

We were able to take the Dam tour as well as the Dam laser show. No sunburns, no injuries, no mechanical failures on the boat, so all in all, is was a fabulous weekend!

Toursits with Aunt Alyssa

2011-07-26T16:08:00.000-07:00

My recently graduated, all-most-18 year-old sister, Alyssa and Karis' Auntie, came out for a visit this week. Wish she could stay forever! Karis has obviously enjoyed her time with her auntie.

Alyssa at the gum wall in the alley behind Pike's Market.

The four of us playing tourist at the Space Needle.

A $3 peach! The most expensive peach we've ever had! but it was pretty juicy!

Happy Half-Birthday

2011-07-21T10:46:00.000-07:00

6 months ago our world changed forever... Our first child, Karis Anne Myers, was born. It was the longest day of my life and ended in the greatest joy I have ever had the pleasure of experiencing. I love this little girl with all my being and I can't imagine life without her.

She is a great sleeper, sleeping through the night, waking to eat at 6 AM. Weaning from 3 to 2 naps per day. She loves to eat, as she has been eating baby food for the last 4 weeks, just started on meats which she doesn't seem to mind. Her favorite seems to be carrots and green beans, but she also seems to like the applesauce flavors quite a bit as well. She has been sitting on her own for 3 weeks. She has begun to push up and hold for a few moments with her arms while laying on her belly, but has not initiated any leg movements towards crawling. She loves to watch TV, so we have to keep her away from it. She LOVES books and paper. She is definately teething, as she chews and bites on everything. She laughs a lot, she smiles a lot, she talks a lot, we get stopped everywhere we go to be told what a happy baby she is. She is in size 3 daipers, but not for much longer. She barely fits a size 6 month, but fits very well into a 9 month outfit. She is a morning and night time baby, she is a bit grouchy during the mid-day hours (just like mommy). Breakfast is not her favorite meal of the day (just like daddy) but really enjoys eating towards the end of the day.

She has changed so much in the last 6 months that I almost can't remember what she was like just 6 months ago! I am just so thankful that change doesn't occur this rapidly throughout life, otherwise by this time next year she just may be asking to get married! I want so much to just keep her at this state a little longer, but by next week she will have changed. It seems that everytime I put her down for bed at night a new change happens by the next morning, can I just keep her awake all night so that she doesn't change and grow!?

Not only has Karis changed, but Ray and I have changed: as individuals, spiritually, as a couple, as a family, as a child, as a sibling and as a friend. It is hard for the birth of your children to not affect you in every area of your life, and in ways you can't describe until it happens. There are challenges I felt were insurmountable, and yet here we are, overcomers and victorious over all things.

Thank you Ray for your support, and I look forward to all the things to come, difficult and wonderful. To my family, for their support, who do you turn to when there is difficulty?! Your family and church family. To my friends for their advice and encouragement, for their shared experiences, they give you something to hold on to when you feel stuck in the moment. Thank you God for giving us, for allowing us and blessing us with this beautiful child. My only true challenge is to not allow my family, my husband and child, to take presidence over God.

Grand Coulee Dam

2011-07-17T13:40:00.000-07:00

We went chasing the sun this week and found ourselves in Grand Coulee, eastern Washington. We had a great weekend, swimming, basking in the sun and boating.

Alyssa and Emma basking in the sun. Emma did not leave Alyssa's side all week long, she was her little protege!

Grandma and Karis

Such a GQ baby!

Myers' family enjoying some sand time!

She didn't pay much attention to the sand or water, but loved her normal bath toys at the beach

It took her a while to get accustomed to the water temperature, but once she did she quite enjoyed herself.

Desiree taught Alyssa to luffa with the sand at the beach at a very young age, and here Alyssa is teaching Emma the same beauty tricks her sister taught her.

New momma playing in the sand wiht the girls.

Our first morning on vacation, Karis and Daddy having coffee together.

Karis' nap on mommy as she read.

The water at the beach was too cold, so we purchased a little kiddie pool so we could warm up the water.

Mommy and Karis swinging at the park.

Lathering up Karis, I couldn't help but get this picture, I also have one of her back side in this position, too cute!

Boating on Papa and Grandma's boat.

She is just too cute!

Daddy and Karis boating.

She knows she's cute!

Just like Mommy!

2011-07-16T20:00:00.000-07:00

Karis loves her food, just like mommy! You should see the way she devoured the icecream we had this weekend!

Her favorites are actually the vegetables, green beans and carrots, so this is her eating her carrots.

Respect for our Husbands

2011-07-13T14:00:00.000-07:00

While Karis napped so sweetly in my arms, I watched a couple of cooking shows, and I quite appreciated the attitude these women had towards their husbands.

I watched the Neelys cook together, and how they giggle and laugh and are playful together. Reminds me of Ray and I. Then the Barefoot Contessa was on next, and she was making her husband a special meal to come home to as he had been away on business, and she was so excited to have him home, she was treating him like the king of his castle. Then I watched Giada at home, she was cooking with an older relative, and she laughed and was very respectful to her thoughts on the traditional cooking that Giada is known for tweaking just a bit. I had to begin contemplating how I have been treating my husband lately. Since having Karis, our relationship has been strained in ways we are not accustomed to. I have not doted on him lately the way I did prior to having Karis, and I apologize. I love you so much, even though I don't show it the way I used to. I hope you know just how much I love you!

Being Thankful for Hard Times

2011-07-11T22:23:00.000-07:00

This last week has been a long week.One night this week, Karis actually woke up every 15 to 20 minutes during a five our period because she wasn't swaddled. I finally gave up and swaddled karis with one arm in and one arm out (something we tried earlier this week and it went just as poorly) and she only woke up twice to eat! So I wrapped her with one arm for the last three nights and tonight I don't have either arm wrapped, so we shall see how it goes.

Earlier this week, I felt like an aweful mother. Not only was she lacking sleep at night, but she was not taking good naps either. Due to the lack of sleep, she was extremely fussy all week. She is upset and I can't fix it, I can't get her to sleep, I can't get her to take naps, I can't sleep, I can't get work done, I am stressed because I am constantly holding her. It is a rough week, and I feel like it may never go back to the way it was. Other moms tell me that it will get better and that it is only temporary and this will be a very short phase, but it is hard to see that there is an end when you are in the midst. You worry that your circumstance may be different and may never get better.

This is much like our daily lives. While in the midst of circumstance, the most common encouragement people give is that it is temporary, it'll get better and there is a purpose, but it is hard to see when in the midst. It is hard to imagine that the situation you are in can be for your good. But God gave us a promise, that all things will work together for those that love him, regardless of what it looks like when you are in the midst of the circumstances.

Day at the park

2011-07-10T12:45:00.000-07:00

Went with the Curreys and Finestads to Mud Mountain Dam without being able to walk down to the dam itself. It was one of the few days of sunshine we have had this year.

Learning from Karis

2011-07-05T16:47:00.000-07:00

Parenting is a learning process...

Next time around, we will not swaddle the baby as long as we did with Karis. We will also be consistent with giving the baby a bottle once a day so mommy and daddy can go on a date...

It is a miracle our children make it to the age of 18 without being checked into a metal facility with as much damage as parents have the ability to inflict! We are constantly evaluating and re-evaluation if we are doing her good or harm, and Lord we pray that we do more good than harm, but it is hard to tell at times!

July 4th - A Day of Independence

2011-07-04T21:00:00.000-07:00

I play with Karis in the sun, without fear of an invading army, without fear of my husband being taken captive or killed protecting us, I live in complete security that I am in a safe house, in a safe country...

200 years ago, the women would be out in the sun hanging laundry, looking over the horizon to watch for signs of war. The nights are long, they have their children in the house while their young men/older boys and husbands are out protecting their town, protecting their freedom, uncertain of what the night may bring.

As we celebrate our independence, I worry about the sounds of the fire works waking up Karis and scaring her. Yet 200 years ago, the sounds that we hear tonight were real bombs, and their anticipation for the noise to cease was not because of the incovenience of waking up their children, but because of the loss of life, the loss of peace, living in a country of turmoil and war. Today we celebrate the ceasing of the bombs in our favor and the coming of peace and resolution. So rest in peace America, for many men have paid their all to give us this opportunity, and God has given us grace to continue in peace.

Swaddling Sorrows

2011-07-02T22:39:00.000-07:00

Karis has been a great sleeper, and we have been swaddling her since she was first brought home. She is now rolling over too often, I knew it was coming it was just a matter of when, but I had a conversation with Ray this evening about needing to wean her out of her swaddle blankets due to the possiblity of suffocation without being able to use her hands to roll from stomach to back. She has woken up every hour crying because she has rolled over and gotten stuck. It seems our hand is forced to remove her from the swaddle, she has finally fallen asleep but for how long I am not sure. We tried the whole one arm out and one arm in a couple weeks ago, but it didn't seem to help, only seemed to aggravate the situation, so we are trying again. Pray for us this week, I have heard some bad stories about trying to wean them from this habbit. I am tired just thinking about it. It is so hard to know how to do things the right way. Sleep sweet Karis...

Me and Mommy

2011-07-01T22:50:00.000-07:00

Bath Time

Karis is 5 months old

2011-06-21T22:36:00.000-07:00

Started on Solids

2011-06-19T07:30:00.000-07:00

Karis is almost 5 months old now, and I can't believe how quickly she is changing. Over the first few weeks of her life, I struggled. I felt like it would take forever for the pain of surgical repairs to go away, I felt like the pain of breast feeding would never get better, I felt like I was so far from being a good mommy that the periods of difficulty may never end and I didn't know if I could handle having more children, let alone one. What I had heard so many times was difficult to comprehend, "it will go by quickly." When in the midst of difficulty, you feel as if the situation may never end. Now that she is five months old, I have become much more comfortable in my role as mother, and I can't believe I ever thought that it was not "do-able." It is my greatest pleasure and blessing.
When reading the Bible, we look at the trials and circumstances of the saints, and it is easy for me to tell them in my head, "stick it out, can't you see what God is doing?!" Yet, in my own life, I have a hard time seeing out of my difficult circumstance and see what God might be doing in my life.

So here is my greatest blessings: Ray and Karis.

She is teething, look at the waterfall pouring from her bottom lip... also take note of the rolls.

She is really getting the hang of using her lips... she has started sucking it in, making her look like a cabbage patch kid. She also razzes like she has rabbies.

Some of the most precious times!

Cute in her sunglasses.

Karis has recently started waking up during the middle of the night, acting as if she had never been fed before. She has begun watching us as we eat, she sits well on her own, so we decided she was ready to start on solids. As of Thursday, she has started on rice cereal, and she is doing SO well! She loves it! She weighs just over 17 pounds already! When we went to the doctor for her four month check-up she was in the 97th percentile for height and weight, her head was in the 67th percentile.

First foods... rice cereal.

She is holding her head and body up well with her arms while on her tummy. She sits for almost 15 seconds at a time on her own, sometimes more, but more frequently less. She is using her hands more and more proficiently every day. She is able to follow objects across the room without difficulty.

Honoring our Dads

2011-06-18T10:56:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow is Father's Day, and I want to honor my husband. It is his first father's day, we have been parents for just short of 5 months now, and it has been a blessing to watch him grown into the role of Daddy, Abba. He is a blessing to me in so many ways. He was my coach during the most difficult day of my life, labor, he is the bread winner of our home so that I can stay home with Karis, he is the spiritual head of our home, constantly prodding me to read and pray even when I am lazy and tired, and he loves me regardless of what the scale says I weigh. He treats me like a queen and he adores our little girl. He loves to hold her, and play with her, so much so that his beard recently gave Karis a rash on her face. We love you Ray, and we are so grateful that God gave you to us as the father and head of our home.

I also need to say thank you to the three fathers, grand-fathers. Ray's dad, whom we see quite frequently, is a best friend and mentor to my husband. It is Ray's favorite person to hang out with. I have two dads, Harold and Steven. One I get much of my personality from and the other my love of cooking. Thank you to our Dads, who have spent much of their resources and time investing in us, we hope to make you proud. We love you.

New Faith Every Morning

2011-06-12T09:20:00.000-07:00

Des' excerpt from the Children's Ministry update this morning:

Karis may have a really rough night, but when she wakes up in the morning, she has no recollection of that night. She starts totally from scratch. People often refer to tomorrow as a “new day” when you can start new. But I’d argue this. As adults we go into the next day with feelings that have carried over from previous experiences, preconceived notions about things, prejudices and biases. Karis has none of this. When I start over tomorrow with her, I literally, get to start from scratch. She is too young to recollect the mishaps of yesterday, but as she gets older, her memory will also mature and she will be able to recollect these things.

As Christians, we also have these same hindrances. Maybe our prayers have n ot been answered the way we expected, maybe it seems they haven’t been answered at all. Maybe we have been in circumstances that we wish no one would ever have to experience. Whatever it may be, we carry baggage which keeps us from really starting afresh each day.

Because of the lack of memory, she has perfect faith in me that I will come when she cries, that I will take care of her. Matthew 18, Mark 10 and Luke 18, Jesus talks of having faith like a child, I might push that a little farther… I encourage you to have faith like an infant.

As we start each day, can we really have all faith in our God? Can you lay your baggage aside every night, and vow to start afresh with God each morning, with all pure faith of an infant, that what he has for you today is good, regardless of what your preconceived notions, biases, prejudices and emotions tell you?

Rolling Over

2011-06-06T21:42:00.001-07:00

Karis rolled over from back to front for the first time, all by herself, and multiple times!

Need to get back to our schedule!

2011-06-06T08:38:00.000-07:00

I am soooo tired today... Karis has not had a very good pattern over the last few weeks, and it is mainly my fault for not being as consistent as normal. She woke up at 1:30AM to eat, she hasn't done that in over 10 weeks! Last night however, Ray held her for a nap around 4:30 PM (not unusual) and she woke up at 6 PM crying (not normal unless she is still tired) but it was time to eat, so I fed her, could not get her to calm down, so I put her to sleep. She woke up every 30 minutes or so crying hard! So we took her temperature, normal, gave her gas drops, diaper was changed, nothing seemed to make it better, except for sleep. Needless to say, I missed a wedding shower last night, so we ate the dessert I had planned to take with us, don't know if that is a good thing or a bad thing ;) When she finally woke up at 8 PM, nearly 3 1/2 hours later, she was happy, wide awake and hungry! She was surprisingly easy to get to sleep at 9:30 PM. She wakes up at 6:30 AM and doesn't want to go back to sleep, so on average, I have been getting 6 1/2 hours of sleep a night... partly my fault for not keeping her on schedule and my staying up after she goes to bed, but I am tired!

Light of Christ is burning brighter than ever!

2011-06-05T10:07:00.000-07:00

We spent the day with another couple and their two young girls, Emma and Madeline. It was a great day! I was most encouraged! As the world seems to get darker, the light of Christ seems to burn brighter.

More and more families seem to be in disarray. Pornography is rampant. Disresepect from children is all too common. Violence within the home is well known. Divorce has become the social norm. Homosexuality is openly okay. More and more, the family unit seems to be chaning from what God hade originally ordained and set up for humanity.

Yet, there seems to be a new breed rising from out of this corruption. A phoenix from amung the ashes. With the advancement of technology, the ability to hear a vast array of sermons, the multiplying books being published in paper and digitally, information is easier to get ahold of than at any oither time in history. Couples and families, can now unite together, learning form the experiences and understanding of others as well as those that have gone before. It seems that marriages have the ability to be stronger than those of one hundred years ago, because of this techonology. I have read dozens of books that have helped my husband and I communicate. I have read dozens more on how to rear children in a Biblical manner. These are tools in my repitoure that even Abraham and Sarah did not have.

In conversing with this other family, they too have read many of the same resources we have. They are pushing to raise their children in a way that would please the Lord, where discipline is not out of anger or to get children to obey, but to mold their hearts. Spanking has been around for a long time, but the families I am speaking to now, are not questioning whether or not it is the right thing to spank, but basing their thoughts off of why they spank, or why they discipline.

We are in a generation of lawlessness, but there is a young people that are trying to get to the heart of the issues. They are using technology, education and experience, to get to the heart of our lawlessness and create a heart that simply desires to please God. A generation that seeks to leave behind the "laws" set forth by other generations, and instead, mold hearts that desire to do what is righteous in the sight of God.

I am seeing this in many couples within the church, and even within our own family! Kudos!

Sleeping Patterns - Changed

2011-06-01T08:51:00.000-07:00

I am so bummed... Karis was sleeping through the night about 10-11 hours, going to bed at 9PM and getting up between 7:30AM-8:30AM. Since returning from Hawaii and a three hour time change, she now wakes up at 4:30AM as well! Can't believe it! Bummer!

Finally home

2011-05-28T10:31:00.000-07:00

We have been on the move for the last 3 weeks, having only spent two nights at home during this period. We are so glad to be home! Ray had a trade show in Portland, we came home for a night and flew out to Hawaii for my sister's graduation, returned home for a night and left for a second trade show in Spokane. It has been crazy!

The trade shows were GREAT! Good networking, fun people, good causes, good food, nice hotels, and many prospects for work! Ray was outstanding, and his booth really made an impression. Everyone knew when they saw the green polo which booth and company we were with, and they remembered exactly who we were at the second expo. Karis also made a great impression, as everyone seemed to know who she was and who she belonged to. She was a trooper, taking naps and sleeping in her stroller, hanging out and smiling at all the visitors, she thought they were all there to see her (many of which were).

We spent this week in Spokane, and it was amazing! I had quite a bit of time to walk the Riverfront Park in downtown Spokane, which our hotel was nestled just at the northern most part of the park overlooking the river. Water levels were high, the dam was open for the most part, and the torrential river and falls were AMAZING! How can you deny the power of GOD when you see water flowing in this magnitude? It was so terrifying, that I could not get close to the edge, but neither could Ray. It pounded in your chest and made you feel as though the dam might break at any moment and the water would rush over you sweeping you down the white foamy river!

At the riverfront park

Upper Spokane Falls

Karis Enamored with Daddy

Ray at the Cedcore Booth -- hot booth!

Karis driving the four-door rear-mount pump custom fire truck

Riverfront Park Clock Tower and foot bridge

Spokane Upper Falls from Canada Island with the Lower falls drop in the distance under the second bridge

Upper falls looking at Canada Island with the spray coming up and over the bridge

Trip to Hawaii for Alyssa's Graduation

2011-05-22T13:00:00.000-07:00

Just got back from a 6 day trip to visit family in Hawaii. My sister, Alyssa, graduated on Friday... no longer a high school student!

Karis sat and watched TV with Alyssa for over an hour

Our first morning in, we had to sleep in!

Breakfast with Grandpa and Grandma

Karis, Alyssa and Hoku

Mommy and Karis at Ko'olina in the sand.

Aunt Mishal and Grandma with Karis

Aunty Stephanie

Here is daddy putting Karis to sleep... He has not had the opportunity to spend this much time with her, it was great bonding time.

We stayed at the Makaha Golf Club and Resort. Not the greatest hotel, but it had a beautiful view!

stopped for Leonard's Malasadas in Waikele twice this week... this is the yummy haupia filled malasada! For those of you sho don't know, a malasada is a portugese doughnut covered in sugar or cinnamon sugar and some times stuffed with creme.

stopped at Ala Moana... forgot how aweful traffic is in Hawaii... Karis hated the drive but loved being out and about. This sign is posted at the koi pond in the center of the mall.... is it a necessary sign? Really?! has anyone really been tempted to drink the water?

Mommy and Karis at the Kapolei Rec Center pool... she loved swimming.

Aunty Alyssa was in love with Karis and always wanted to hold her... also in the picture is daddy, mommy, grandma and Aunty Mishal. Ko'olina was one of my favorite beaches growing up and is a pleasure to share this with my children.

proof that it does rain in Hawaii. it actually oured while we were there!

Karis LOVES the water... swimming here with mommy and Daddy at Ko'olina.

Aunty Mishal and Karis

Desiree and Nicholas - Nick is chaning and growing so quickly, as he is turning 16 this summer, just under 6 feet tall, plays the tuba, piano, guitar and base, and has a driver's permit (he's not that bad on the roads, I had the opportunity of riding with him.

Aunt Mishal, Uncle Bob, Grandpa and Grandma forming a heart. Uncle Bob was pretty sick and was finally feeling well enough to take an active part in our festivities here...now i am in bed with his terrible cold!

Karis in Alyssa's cap at her high school graduation from Kapolei High School. Alyssa was so excited that she scared Karis and almost dropped her backwards! When she went to take off all of her leis, she had 53 in all and was completely drenched in sweat! Graduations are a BIG deal in Hawaii, it marks the beginning of a new start and the completion of a LOT of work. Congratulations Alyssa, you DID IT!

Alyssa's graduating class of just under 500 students, with the men in the right set of bleachers in black and the women in white on the left side of the bleachers.

It was a beautiful ceremony with the releasing of doves and even fireworks. Karis was not happy though, the noise of all the fog horns, clapping, screaming and noise all around her gave her a bit of a fright.

Karis and Great-Grandma Vai. Grandma Vai was trying to convince us that Karis needed to stay in Hawaii with her so they could go "holo-holo"

Alyssa with her leis, balloons, roses, poster and book. The stadium was full of other students, their families, and an abundance of balloons, posters and leis.

Grandma, great uncle Dan and Karis

At Alyssa's graduation

Uncle Bob and Karis

My family at graduation

Daddy teaching Karis about planes.
The Myers family on the plane headed for Seattle

Sock Dolls

2011-05-10T14:18:00.000-07:00

I made these this week from some old socks we had lying around...

She just laughs at them... she thinks they are just the funniest things... and the hair tickles her a bit, and each one makes a bit of a different noise. The blue guy on the end doesn't have eye balls yet, I need to purchase another pair.

Changes

2011-05-09T10:29:00.001-07:00

She is 15 weeks old, just short of 4 months and she is able to do so much more than she had even just one month ago.

She continues to babble and talk like a talk show host. She doesn't really cry a whole lot, but does this "I'm upset" talking-cry thing, it is really funny. She also does it when she puts herself to sleep. Her favorite syllable seems to be a "mum" which makes me feel like she is calling out to me.

She is mainly wearing 6 month clothing, size 2 or 3 diapers. She loves swimming in the tub and grandma's hot tub. She is almost too difficult to bathe as she wants to splash around too much, i am soaking and wet in the face by the time I'm done bathing her.

She knows and lights up when she sees other children, especially her cousins. Even with a baby doll she seems to know. She is definitely ticklish and is getting better at laughing.

Still sleeping through the night and is taking 3- 30 minute to 1 hour naps a day. Eating every three hours, not taking a bottle even with dad and grandma's best attempts and every bottle out on the market! Which means that mommy hasn't really gone anywhere without her yet... we have been trying, but might just wait until she starts some solids for a real date. I have let her taste chocolate ice cream and a mashed banana, but she spits both out still, not quite ready to eat solids yet.

she is sitting with the assistance of the Bumbo still, but is rapidly progressing to very little need for these devices. She will stand with her holding our hands only. As you bring her to a seated position from her back using only her hands she holds her head even with her body. She does not push herself up with her arms when on her belly, but she holds her head up about 45 degrees or more, she hates being on her belly. She is closer to rolling over from back to front than from front to back.

She is a joy to both mom and dad, and we feel so blessed to have her.

Innocence, Hope and Excitement

2011-05-08T00:40:00.000-07:00

An exerpt from my children's ministry update today:

As we celebrate mother’s day, think back to your first child, when they were Karis’ age. There was an innocence, a hope, an excitement.

There was an innocence in them, unlike that found in any adult. Even though they are part of a fallen race, they seem so innocent and without blame. How can anyone ever be mad with an infant? There seems to be no sin.

There is a hope, a hope to have them love us, a hope for a future. You yearned for them to love you. I can't wait for her to put her arms around me and tell me she loves me. What did you hope for for your children? A happy life. A healthy life. To love you and enjoy your company? To wrap their arms around you and love you?

There is an excitement in what is to come next, what the relationship will look like. As they were so tiny, you had no idea of what their personality might be, how they might interact with you. I am excited for her to experience life for the first time, to have her first cake and ice cream, to experience the ocean, to taste salt water taffy.

Now apply all three to your life with Christ. When God created the universe, he had become a father. He looked at his creation, Adam and Eve, and said, “it is good.” He knew it was coming, we know it is coming with our kids, but the disappointment he must have felt when Adam bit the apple. The heart break he must have felt. Put yourself in his shoes, as the father of creation, the mother or father of a child.

The innocence was lost. We were sinful creatures in an instant.

The hope that he may have had in living with us in perfect harmony, walking in the garden, singing his praises, was not lost as he can do anything, but it would be postponed. Imagine having to watch your child grow up in someone else's home, or from "Skype." Not being able to be physically with them.

The excitement of what would come in our relationship with him became the disappointment of a broken relationship with his children. Imagine a relationship in which some of your children may even deny your existence.

What was it like the first time your children disobeyed you? Do you remember the feeling in your heart as you realized they were in rebellion to you for the first time? What was it like to feel like your child had done something wrong, and you knew you had to discipline them, even when it broke your heart?

Now, imagine God’s heartache.

His love, like the love of a mother, surpasses our understanding. Because of that love, all three can be renewed.

Psalms 36

1 I have a message from God in my heart concerning the sinfulness of the wicked: There is no fear of God before their eyes.
2 In their own eyes they flatter themselves too much to detect or hate their sin.
3 The words of their mouths are wicked and deceitful; they fail to act wisely or do good.
4 Even on their beds they plot evil; they commit themselves to a sinful course and do not reject what is wrong.
5 Your love, LORD, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies.
6 Your righteousness is like the highest mountains, your justice like the great deep. You, LORD, preserve both people and animals.
7 How priceless is your unfailing love, O God! People take refuge in the shadow of your wings.
8 They feast on the abundance of your house; you give them drink from your river of delights.
9 For with you is the fountain of life; in your light we see light.
10 Continue your love to those who know you, your righteousness to the upright in heart.
11 May the foot of the proud not come against me, nor the hand of the wicked drive me away.
12 See how the evildoers lie fallen— thrown down, not able to rise!

When we look at Karis, we look and feel what the father must have felt when he created you and me, and he continues to hope for you to turn to him and he has an anticipation of the day you desire to make your relationship right with him.

Happy Mother's Day. Thank you to our mothers, you are appreciated. Now take the time to make it right with your creator as well, for there is nothing more important.

6 year anniversary and first Mother's Day

2011-05-06T20:04:00.000-07:00

This is a big week for our family of 3... or at least for me.

It is my first Mother's Day this Sunday as well as our 6th Anniversary today. Ray suprised me with an overnight stay at the Salish Lodge at Snoqualmie Falls. It was beautiful! A four diamond hotel, I couldn't believe it! When the valet attendants asked if we were staying I thought Ray was pulling a joke and he was going to pull back out of the parking lot... but they took the car and we went in, we actually had a reservation for a room overlooking the falls, as well as a dinner reservation at their restaurant! What an amazing man!

The hotel was magnificent, the staff was wonderful and attentive!

This is the Library, with the fireplace going with real wood, not a gas fireplace!

This was the view from our own personal room at the restaurant, it was very convenient as Karis was catching Daddy's cold and not feeling very well and complained about being there quite a bit. We had scallops and steak, but there wasn't much food for the price nor as amazing as I was expecting, they didn't even refill my iced tea when it was empty. We split a salad, an $11 salad that only contained like 8 pieces of lettuce! We did have foie gras and truffles for the first time (not together but on separate dishes), the truffles were extravigant. The view was SPECTACULAR though!

Our room was AMAZING! We not only had a luxurious bed, a real fireplace (which when lit set off the fire alarm), but we had an AMAZING two-person hot tub! It was in use almost the whole time we were there! It was so relaxing, and Karis LOVED swimming! I was SPOILED! I don't know that I will ever have another hotel experience like that one!

Shopping Trip

2011-05-05T14:37:00.000-07:00

I spent $100 on all of this... that is a 57% savings. I also bought a bag of dog and cat food which are not pictured below.

With the purchase up above we had a wonderful anniversary dinner at home... bacon wrapped filet mignon, white cheddar pasta, red and white wines and a spinach, strawberry and feta vinaigrette salad.

This is our cat hovering over his latest kill... only thing was...

it wasn't dead.

I took the photo and the flash must have jolted him back to life, because he began flying all about the house! I had to protect Karis, so we hid in the bathroom with the outside lights on and the doors wide open... when we emerged an hour later the bird (and cat) was gone.

2 months old... family photos

2011-05-04T23:06:00.000-07:00

These were taken with Ray's side of the family in March in honor of his mom's birthday. Hoping to get a set with my side of the family as well, but can't happen for a couple more weeks!

All of the kids did a great job, especially seeing as we were there for over 3 hours! Karis smiled for every photo (not knowing what was going on, she was just happy).

I was only going to get a couple of photos, but it was so hard to pick with all that were taken! Now I understand Jen's dilema... good thing I only have one child to buy pictures of!

Sleeping through the night

2011-04-30T08:46:00.000-07:00

Karis has been sleeping through the night since she was 8 weeks old. I have had a great many of ideas given and done quite a bit of reading in order to get her to this point. We have also not been able to always follow all of those ideas, but there are 3 that have to be always present in order for her to sleep all night long, we have tried without them and she hasn't slept all night long.

1. White noise... we use rain

2. Swaddled... we have a couple of "Summer" brand velcro sleeping wraps that I cannot live without! (thank you to Bree and Jen)

3. Double feedings... she generally eats every three hours, but we feed her twice before bed with a bath, bible and prayer in between. So she eats at 8 PM and again at 9 PM and is asleep by 9:30 PM.

Resurrection Sunday

2011-04-25T08:51:00.000-07:00

Saturday night Ray's family had planned to do an Easter celebration at his folk's home, however, aunt Laura was not feeling well enough to travel out that far, so the family decided to do Easter at our home just a couple blocks from Aunt Laura. Ray's parents took the ferry early to help me with my horridly messy home and received a call that Eric had to go into work so Janelle was going to stay in Maple Valley to do Easter with her husband... so here we are on the island, next ferry is not for another 2 hours... so we then changed venues back to Ray's parent's home so that Janelle and Eric would be able to join us! What a chaotic 24 hours! But what a special thing it is to see a family so willing to change plans to make it accommodate everyone! We are blessed with such wonderful families!

Speaking of which, we have only 3 more weeks until our little family of three is on our first plane trip together, headed to Hawaii to visit my wonderful side of the family for my sister's graduation!

Sunny days...clouds away!

2011-04-21T14:48:00.000-07:00

3 months old today! Happy birthday my little sweetheart!

Passover Seder

2011-04-19T09:03:00.000-07:00

Last night our family took part in the Passover Seder at our senior pastor's home. It was a very beautiful evening, anda great way to remember the death and resurrection of Jesus, our Lord.

Kelly had the table beautifully decorated when we arrived, candles, ceremony pamphlets to follow along with, name tags, cloth napkins, it was lovely.

This is the seder plate and our table. It was very yummy... however there were many complaints of the strong horseradish.

Karis' first seder meal, and she doesn't even get to taste it!

The men reclining at the table just after going through the seder plate and awaiting the lamb.

Good Weekend

2011-04-09T12:47:00.000-07:00

We had Christian and Josh with us this weekend so we took them bowling, went to the fire house, went fishing and had a great weekend!

Karis had her 2 month check up with her first set of shots on Thursday... it was terrible! The shots go into their thighs so deep! I about cried! She did well! She also got her ears pierced seeing as she now had her tetanus done. The ear piercing was easier than the shots! As you can tell, she also does not keep her socks on without a pair of shoes.

Ray is holding a 14 pound bowling ball while holding our now 14 pound little Karis in the other arm...

Score board... Des won with Ray in a pretty close second! He generally kicks my butt, surprisingly I won this time around, I think he was going soft on me.

Go-karts!

The boys in Ray's Fire Gear...

Christian in his gear...

Take a guess...

2011-04-07T12:55:00.000-07:00

What do you think this is?

take a good look... we have a cat, and this was its live toy... it is what was left of the mouse when we woke up in the morning... we have had a total of five mice killed by our cat in the last couple of weeks!

All snuggled up

2011-04-06T13:00:00.000-07:00

Projects Lately

2011-04-05T20:46:00.000-07:00

Since chaning my employment status to mother and full time house maker, so have my duties... I am no longer making appointments, dealing with paperwork and other people's insurances... instead, these are the things with which my time is employed:

I am learning to be a good "couponer." This is my first trip. Total cost: $78 Total paid: $22.78! I purchased 6 boxes of cereal, 1 forzen pizza, 2 boxes of Cheez-its, 1 bag of chips, deli meat, frozen cinnamon rolls, sour cream, cottage cheese, cuties, peanut M&Ms, toothpaste, and I have a certificate for 2 free gallons of milk, plus added coupons! What a great trip!

I found that I have much more jewelry than I wear. So I put together this board with scrap items from around the house... now my jewerly is also an adornment for our wall and I can see all the items I have to wear. The flowers and ribbons are our hair pieces.

My real favorite... finger puppets! I am in the process of making them for our children, beginning with Karis. They are to accompany our favorite stories, songs and finger plays. So many of them are numbered for counting songs and learning. Can't wait until she can use them with me!

Sleeping

2011-04-03T09:00:00.000-07:00

I can't tell you how pleased I am! I have been waiting to post this because I wanted to ensure this would be a real habbit and not a couple night phase... Karis is sleeping through the night. It started with eight hours, then nine, ten and last night was eleven hours! However, draw back, she is not taking naps like she should! I put her in her crib and she only sleeps for thirty minutes and refuses to fall back asleep! What can I get done in those short thirty minutes!?

Two Months Ago

2011-03-21T23:06:00.000-07:00

A couple of our favorite moments over the last couple of months... I can't believe it has already been two months since the night she was born.

Happy second month birthday!

Peace among a Storm

2011-03-20T17:26:00.000-07:00

This morning our family ran into some bumps in life, rather tumultuous actually. Karis was awake, I hung up the phone and just watched my little girl in my lap... she was perfectly at peace, while I felt totally in tangles. She was babbling and talking to me, she was encouraging me. From out of the mouth of babes came my peace while in the midst of a storm. Thank you LORD.

First trip to the Zoo

2011-03-19T09:20:00.000-07:00

8 weeks old

2011-03-18T09:19:00.000-07:00

Karis is 8 weeks old already... She enjoys the company of her mom and dad very much and displays this with coos and smiles. She has not yet giggled, but I am eagerly waiting. She is sleeping about 6 hours through the night, she has slept for 7 a few times and I am excited for her to get to 8 hours! She loves bath time, as any child does because they love to be naked. She has a nack for knowing when to pee to get it on mommy in the most advantageous spots! She is learning to self soothe herself to sleep, but mom and dad are a bit too soft sometimes and come to her crying quite frequently. She enjoys listening to the books mommy reads her and loves to sing (or to be sung to). Her favorite position to be carried is over the shoulder, and she likes this to be done quite frequently as she does not like to be put down, but don't mess with her too much as she is easily over stimulated. She has started drooling, the front of her shirt is almost always wet. She is generally a happy girl, but I had a lot of milk yesterday and it has made her very angry this morning. She cried for 3 hours, wouldn't settle down, wouldn't eat, wouldn't sleep... Poor girl!

Christian's Wrestling Match

2011-03-17T19:47:00.000-07:00

We had the opportunity to attend my younger brother's, Christian, wrestling match this afternoon. He did very well, and was able to pin his opponent within the first round, winning the match instantly. You can see Christian lift his head up a few times during the match as he is listening for instruction from his coaches, these are the important things you learn in sports. As you can tell, his opponent was also a good friend of his, hence the hug at the end of the clip. His opponent put up a good fight. Great sportsmanship guys, congratulations to both of you.

I am so proud of all my siblings... I have a 17 year old sister and three brothers, 15, 14, 11.

My sister, Alyssa, is graduating from high school this year... she holds a special spot in my heart as she is my only sister and we shared a room together growing up. She is such a beautiful young lady, both inside and out. She has many giftings and talents, including her amazing creativity and attention to detail (just take a look at her nails and you will see). She also enjoys the fine arts, dancing and acting and has done many plays with her school. We are thinking she might go into business when she graduates, but only time and Alyssa can tell. She likes Frank's Red Hot sauce, taking pictures, face book and hanging out with her friends.

My eldest brother, Nicholas, is a great athlete and has a gifting for music. I struggle with music, an area which seems to come naturally for him. He is an avid skateboarder, he is in band and wrestles, and has a talent for breaking bones. He has always been such a sweet young man, and has always been so tender and caring towards our mom. He is a very easy going young man and has been since early childhood, a trait that attracts so many people to him, plus he is handsome. Nick loves Top Ramen, Saimin, but he doesn't cook it the conventional way, he boils his water and pours it on top so it is still a bit crunchy. He also has the ability to grow a great "fro."

Christian is 14 and always amazes me. When we took the picture below, I made him put his arm around me, but he put his arm around Karis on his own... he is always saying and acting out the kindest gestures. His sweet nature and humility always surprises me for a boy his age and with his talent. He is still finding his favorite activities, as he has been involved in wrestling, football, airsoft and soccer and he has done well in all of them. He has put a lot of work into his sports and is very disciplined in working out and weight lifting to improve. He is also an animal lover, with a cat and two dogs that he adores. He also eats like a horse!

Josh has a flair for the dramatic. He has been in many plays with school, he enjoys any type of performing, including magic tricks. My favorite are the tricks he performs with a special deck of cards, he is quite good at this, as well as his disappearing hankie. He Has also dabbled in Lacrosse, we will see if he enjoyed this enough to continue on next year, but I think he will, he seemed to really get into it. He also plays in the band at school and will soon be moving into middle school. Josh also enjoys building with legos and Kennex types of sets, he just might end up becoming an engineer one day, work on the math and you could be making good money some day!

Can you tell I am proud of my siblings? They hold a special place in my heart!

She's a Talker

2011-03-17T09:00:00.000-07:00

Karis is constantly talking and singing... She is a great conversationalist!

To her Grandma, enjoy!

Visit from the Woods

2011-03-14T09:23:00.000-07:00

My Aunt and Uncle, Bob and Mishal, came for a visit this weekend, and we are sad they are leaving tonight.

Hair Cut

2011-03-14T09:22:00.000-07:00

I cut 10 inches off of my wild mane...

Locks of Love should enjoy this one. It ended up being 1 1/2 inches in diameter.

Sleeping

2011-03-12T09:14:00.000-08:00

What great news! Karis is 7 weeks old, and she slept for 7 hours last night! Actually, just short of 7 hours. She ate at 10 PM and woke up at 4:45 AM to eat again... What a blessing to sleep like that! It was much needed last night, as I had Ray feed her last night with a bottle (which she fought like crazy!) and while he fed her I fell asleep and didn't wake up until 2 AM (which was her normal time to get up and eat).

Salad Dressing Recipes

2011-03-09T12:41:00.000-08:00

I made the following two salad dressings yesterday, and they were wonderful so I thought I'd share them.

Ranch Dressing

1 1/4 C Mayonnaise

1/2 C Milk

1 tsp Chives

1/4 tsp Parsley

1/4 tsp Dill

1 tsp fresh ground Garlic

1 tsp fresh ground Onion

1/2 tsp Salt

1/4 tsp Pepper

1/2 tsp Vinegar

1/8 tsp Paprika

Balsamic Vinaigrette

1/2 C Balsamic vinegar

2 tsp Dark brown sugar or 1 Tbsp Honey

1 Tbsp Garlic

1/2 tsp salt

3/4 C Olive oil

1/4 tsp Pepper

Intimate moments

2011-03-07T10:04:00.000-08:00

This is a glimpse into the intimate moments of our little family... Karis loves to read books with baby faces in them, she enjoys singing with mommy (all kinds of music from country to worship to kids activity music), and watching daddy make funny faces and run around the house with her.

This video clip was taken this morning during a diaper change, she loves her diaper to be changed. She must have her mom and dad's compulsion to be clean! When Ray was a young child, I am told that he would go and play in the dirt and come back in crying because his hands were dirty. He would go directly back outside after being washed, only to play in the dirt and return crying because his hands were once again dirty... this pattern continues even today. She may have these same tendencies.

The other thing you'll notice is how she now focuses on faces intently.

Here she is pulling my hair... she is getting good at grabbing onto things lately.

Proverbs 31 Woman

2011-03-01T16:11:00.000-08:00

I am officially a "Home-Maker." Can't believe I am saying that! It is what I have wanted for so long. So over the next many years, I will be looking into ways to make my home more peaceful, through efficiency, organization, schedules, etc. I will look into ways to save money: couponing, home-made items, etc.

My first venture as a Proverbs 31 woman is to begin couponing. I started this venture about 2 years ago, but only lasted for about 4 months. During our MOPs meeting, we had a gal go through how she is able to save hundreds of dollars on her food bill monthly. Amazing! I now have contacts that can help me save that kind of money!

When I first started this a couple years ago, many of the coupons I was clipping I didn't end up using. To get 30 cents off of tissue paper when I normally use toilet paper is not worth the time, however, these ladies are able to get the tissue paper not for 30 cents off, but they end up paying only 30 cents for the box! It is getting to that point that will make it worth it. So with the help and guidance of others and many websites, I will start my venture. I'll keep you posted! But until then, if you want to check out a few of the sites I will be following, here they are...

http://thecouponproject.com/
http://www.frugallivingnw.com/
http://www.moneysavingmom.com/
http://thekrazycouponlady.com/

Painted her nails

2011-02-26T13:18:00.000-08:00

Sick Day

2011-02-25T09:52:00.000-08:00

Karis has her first cold, and it is miserable. She isn't eating well, she isn't sleeping well, she isn't breathing well and there's not much to be done. I slept with her all night long in the rocking chair because she was uncomfortable and didn't want to be laid down. Now Ray has woken up filling ill as well.

Karis had her routine 1 month followup yesterday. She is gaining a good amount of weight, 10 pounds 3 ounces naked, 75th percentile for her age. Two nights ago she slept for five and a half hours during the night, and I am afraid this cold might set us back quite a bit for sleeping through the night. She also took a bottle from Ray, we are going to start giving her one daily to give them that bonding time and get her used to a bottle.

Falling into Routine

2011-02-22T10:10:00.000-08:00

So much has changed in the last 4 weeks! My little girl, Karis, is no longer wearing "newborn" size clothing, but has transitioned into 0-3 months. She loves taking showers, she is an avid eater, she sleeps well and through most sounds and noises during the day. She is a very relaxed baby, she doesn't cry much, she more fusses when she needs something but very infrequently does she really cry.

As you can tell, bath time is one of her favorite!

Karis is much like her mommy, she likes a schedule. From day one she put herself on a four hour feeding schedule. We had to switch her to a 3 hour schedule at 2 weeks old due to being a little fussy and indigestion. We are following the "Baby Wise" plan of "Parent Directed Feeding." At four weeks old she is eating at 9 AM, 12 PM, 3 PM, 6 PM, 9 PM, 1 AM and 5 AM. During the day she eats every 3 hours and at night every 4. She is doing very well on this, she is putting on weight quickly and sleeps well in between feedings and is very alert during her awake times. We have a great system between the two of us, where she wakes me up almost exactly at the time she is supposed to eat, within 10 minutes usually. It has been great, as I can pretty much guarantee when she will be hungry, so if I know I have to catch the 9:30 AM ferry, I will feed her at 8:45 AM instead of waiting until 9 AM (otherwise I'd miss the ferry). So for planning purposes even, this has really been working out quite nicely.

At night I use the time to pray, her 9 AM feeding I turn on our worship music, and our day time feedings we read her Bible and other books, currently on "Little Pilgrim's Progress." So if you wake up at one of those times at night, either I am praying for you or I need prayer! :)

I have read so many books on rearing children, I have talked with many people, and I have so many ideas of what I want it to look like for our family, but that does not guarantee anything. It doesn't guarantee I have the right ideas or that I will be able to follow through with them, or even that my children will continue in the way they are brought up.

We can do all the right things (no parent will though), and regardless we need to be praying over the hearts of our children, as it is not guaranteed that they will remain faithful to Jesus. God is the only power able to control this, and we are dependent upon prayer. A scary thought of not being able to control what paths she will choose, as I never want her to take the wrong ones, but even if I were to choose them all for her, I would even choose the wrong ones at times. There is a matter of giving things up to faith in the Lord and his plan. Ray preached a sermon on prayer this last Sunday, a wonderful sermon found on the AICF webpage, http://www.aicf.us/sermons/. This exact thing he mentions briefly and has been on my heart of late and the only way to remedy this concern is through prayer. The point of children is to rear worshipers of Jesus, and we are just beginning that journey.

1 Month Old and she is MINE!

2011-02-21T11:09:00.000-08:00

Karis has made it to 1 month, we have made it to her 1 month birthday! Happy Birthday Karis (we even had birthday cake, no frosting)! She is growing beyond belief! We have done hand and foot molds, hand and foot prints and will be taking professional pictures soon. She is just so beautiful (I am biased) and such a joy!

I have heard many stories of children begin adopted and their biological parents wanting them back after a couple of months... I have gone 30 days as being a parent to our daughter, and I can't imagine someone taking her from me at this point... I feel as though I have invested so much already, emotionally, physically, spiritually... I am tied to her, she is MINE! The attachment that is felt is so strong. I can't imagine the heart ache for those that experience this type of trauma. She is comfortable with her Daddy and I (so it appears), and the trauma of not having those constant people caring for you must affect the child as well. I love my little girl and cannot imagine not having her here with us. For those that have lost children and grandchildren, I am praying for you today, and thanking God for my little one.

Ray is on a roll

2011-02-21T10:10:00.000-08:00

Ray has been so busy lately... He is a bivocational pastor. What this means is that he works part time as an Associate Pastor for Anderson Island Christian Fellowship, but he also runs his own business from our home, CEDCORE, http://www.cedcore.com/. He has been working at this since June/July of 2010 and has not had any real promising leads or patrons and has been an area of some concern as we both have the desire for me to quit work at MultiCare and be a stay at home mommy and his personal assistant. As of January however, he has had a few calls from his website, and he has a couple of very large contracts he is busy working on. It seems God has opened the flood gates for him! But this means that he is also crazy stressed and busy to meet fast approaching deadlines. So pray for his stress levels as well as work to continue to flow in allowing me to be a stay at home mommy!

First Giggles

2011-02-19T09:54:00.000-08:00

It was a joy last night to hear my daughter's first giggles... When she goes to sleep she usually smiles and makes all kinds of noise, this time the noise was a definate giggle and it warmed my heart! I'll try to get it on video, but it is so random and hard to tell when an infant is going to do something memorable.

Looking towards God

2011-02-13T16:29:00.000-08:00

I had a small glimpse of the desires of our maker's heart last night... Karis is only 3 weeks old, and for the first few weeks of life, babies are unable to follow or track faces, they are learning to recognize people. Over the last few days she is progressing in this area, as she is now focusing on Ray and I when we get close to her and it is obvious she recognizes us, as it is a gaze that she holds for a few seconds. Last night, I picked her up and put her into position to feed her, and she looked up at me with a knowing gaze, that I was the one who always fed her. She quieted down when she looked at me, as she knew I would take care of her and feed her. When she sees Ray and I, she knows we love her and take care of her and she displays this through an instant contentment and calmness. This has been fostered through consistency in our care of her. She knows that I will feed her every 2-3 hours, she knows we won't leave her in a dirty diaper.

God has taken great efforts in taking care of us, every one of us. He gives good gifts, and he watches over us like a good shepherd. When we are provided for and cared for by his merciful hand, do we look at him and thank him, or do we ignore him and take the gifts which he has given us without gratitude?

The feeling of this child recognizing me and what she knows I will do for her, gave me a feeling I could not express, I can't even begin to describe what it feels like, but it is overwhelming to say the least. I imagine this is the same look God wants from us and so many times I think I have done it on my own and I forget to look to him.

3 weeks old

2011-02-11T13:14:00.000-08:00

Karis is 3 weeks old tonight... can't believe it! When Dad and I get close to her, she will turn her head to look at us now, she does not track our faces very well if we move, but she does attempt to follow them. She is a very content child, as I have her sitting next to me in a pillow at the moment, without being held, no pacifier, no entertainment, she's just sitting here hanging out. She eats every 3 hours regularly and is doing well on this schedule. Weighed her this morning with clothing and diapers (estimated at 3 ounces) and she weighed a full 9 pounds 4 ounces! She is packing on the weight quickly and well. She is able to push her head up if lying prone on her stomach. Dad and I are learning quickly what faces she makes when she is hungry or using the bathroom, but it still hard to tell when she is fussy exactly what it is she wants.

I still feel as though I am the laziest person alive, as my house has only been cleaned once, and I do much of nothing all day long! I have watched half a season of "Ugly Betty" and "Lie to Me" as well as a few National Geographics, and this seems to be the pinnacle of my achievements in the last few weeks.

2 Weeks old

2011-02-06T15:35:00.000-08:00

This has been a great week in the Myers house hold... I have felt like I have had the time to bond with my little girl and get to know her a bit... Take a look at her little faces, it seems there is always a new expression to be seen.

Her umbilical chord fell out this week, meaning... she was able to take her first full emersion bath. Don't know that she enjoyed it all that much though... I think she prefers the shower instead (not kidding). She is eating on a schedule, at 4 hours apart, growing well and eating very well. When we saw Doctor Haastrup on Thursday, she had gained another 9 ounces, bringing her weight to 7 pounds 13 ounces!

As you can tell, Ray enjoys playing with his daughter, even though she has no idea what is going on... He attempts to tickle her and bite her, but it doesn't always elicit a response. She does not focus on people or faces very often, she more just hangs out watching nothing in particular. She has started sucking her own thumb without assistance, repeatedly, so we know it is not an accident. She doesn't seem to know what to do with the other fingers yet though, as they kind of sit and rest on her face or in her eyeball!

We are working into parent hood and it seems to have its ups and downs... but she is the greatest blessing given to us yet!

Reflections of me - Reflections of you

2011-01-30T19:40:00.000-08:00

When I look at my daughter, I am constatnly looking for imagesof me and my husband. Always looking for a glimpse of how our genes came together to make this little girl. She has already made faces that look just like her Dad and cousin, Kadin, and it makes me giggle. Both make this funny face where they tilt their head and raise one eye brow, lower the other and have a crooked smile in the same direction. There is a joy in seeing a reflection of yourself in your new baby.

This can easily be reflected, as God has created us, He is looking for a reflection of himself in us. Especially since He purposefully created us in his own image and likeness. I lack much of this reflection as I still see much of myself and sinful nature come out on a daily basis. God is currently working on my patience. With a new baby, I am fighting sleep deprivation, pain tolerance issues and perseverance, all the while trying to be patient with my husband and others and it is beginning to wear thin at times. Pray for us as we grow in many areas over the next many years...

Karis is one week old!

2011-01-29T19:34:00.000-08:00

Praise the Lord, we have made it through our first week as parents and no one is injured! Kidding. We are doing well... Karis is doing very well and has her physician very pleased as she has not lost any weight since leaving the hospital last week. There are many areas that we need growth as individuals, parents and as a family, but it has already been a joy and pleasure to be her parents.

First Week

2011-01-28T15:20:00.000-08:00

The first week with our daughter has been a rough one... I don't feel like I was able to bond with her the way I wanted to this week. I think it was due to being so exhausted, as the day we went into labor we had been up for 48 hours and then to not sleep well every night there after just due to the natural happenings of having an infant around. I look forward to next week and pray it will bring more time for bonding. Ray and Karis however, are bonding quite well... and everyone enjoys cuddling with her.

Good Gifts

2011-01-24T20:01:00.000-08:00

We have been parents for almost 3 days... and there are so many feelings of inadequacy that sneak in.

For anyone that has had children, you are likely familiar with some of the frustrations that come with breast feeding in the early stages... and it is beginning to wear on me. Day 2 of being parents was a bit rough for me, as she was awake almost constantly all day long without allowing us to put her down. She was fussy, a lot of crying and frustration, not much sleep for anyone and we were all on edge. She was not eating a whole lot, but wanted to eat all the time!

Although I can do nothing for milk production, it really begins to weigh on you. As her mother I am responsible for providing her with nourishment, but it is difficult and you feel inadequate when you can't give her what she needs. It is hard when you can't tell what it is she needs, but she is crying and you try everything you know of, and yet there is nothing that consoles them.

God is the giver of good gifts, even when we don't know what we need. God help me to give good gifts to my daughter. Help me to realize that I am fully capable with your help to care and provide for this little one and give me wisdom in how to respond to her.

First Night as Parents

2011-01-22T09:33:00.001-08:00

I guess it is common for newborns to spit up quite a bit... but Karis choked last night, freaking both myself and Ray out! Even on all the medication they had given me and with how exhausted Iwas, I was able to wake up because of her gurgling and choking! God really gave us grace last night! After all, Karis does mean grace. She had a second episode this morning while Ray was holding her, but he had quick reflexes and I called the nurses in for support, but Daddy had it covered! Because of the difficulty she seems to have with the

choking, the nursing staff pumped her stomach this morning and got out 35 cc of air! No wonder she was having difficulty!

We are doing well. But Mom and Dad are exhausted, and Karis still has not waken up to eat! She latched on so well last night and ate so much! She has already had her first poop and potty!

We have had visitors all day long... it has been great!

Arrival of Karis

2011-01-22T09:22:00.000-08:00

It was a long and arduous day for mom, dad and baby...

After 12 hours of back labor, I decided to get an epidural... which helped my left side tremendously, but not the right. As is often common, my contractions went from 3-4 minutes apart at 2-3 minutes long into contractions every 7-8 minutes apart, so then we started the pitocin and Dr. Haastrup came in and broke my water.

Within 4 hours we were finally dilated to a 10, fully effaced and she was at a +1 pelvic station. We began pushing at 5:45PM and Karis was born at 8:21 PM.

During the process there were quite a few small complications that made the entire day turn out not even close to what we had wanted and anticipated... taking the fireboat was the first, difficulties with the IV and being poked 4 times, back labor, the epidural, my massive ripping (grade 3 ripping and tearing - 2 hours of

suturing), Karis' big head, her heart rate dropping, needing to use a vacuum... but, we are here, healthy and happy.

Karis has a huge head! She weighed a full 7 pounds 8.4 ounces and was 19 inches long. She had apgar scores of 8 and 9, so her initial check

s were great. We had wonderful nursing staff which assisted us throughout the process and we made it through.

We finally got to our room at 12PM! What a day...

At the hospital

2011-01-21T10:55:00.000-08:00

Greetings from the hospital! I am obviously doing very well at the moment... A bit nervous, emotional and overly tired. Ray and I have been up since 11PM last night with contractions.

It started last week Friday after our Dr's appointment, we started having contractions every 10 minutes. It was consistent and non-painful for the most part.

Last night it came on us really quickly. I woke up startled by the pain and the first few were 10 minutes apart, and we went to 4 minutes apart within the hour... so of coarse we called for the fireboat to transport us. What a ride! And the ambulance, that was probably the worst part! Needless to say, it was a very painful, but special time for Ray and I as we were alone at the hospital, but he was the most reassuring and comforting coach!

We now have an epidural in place and are doing so much better! So we are about to take a nap, it is great bonding time with my husband before adding a new little one to our party!

Continue to pray that God would give us peace, wisdom and a healthy little Karis!

Baby Shower

2011-01-19T15:29:00.000-08:00

My office held a baby shower for me today! Punch, balloons, flowers, gifts, food, games... it was beautiful! The picture below is taken after one of the games, as all contestants were given a bit of playdough and told to sculpt baby Karis, this was the winner. They also had the opportunity to guess what type of candy was melted in the different diapers, yuck!

Accumulating the Weight

2011-01-18T20:34:00.000-08:00

June 3, 2010 - 6 weeks

Belly Button 30"

Weight 141#

July 16, 2010 - 12 weeks

Belly Button 30.5"

Weight 142#

August 12, 2010 - 16 weeks

Belly Button 33"

Weight 146#

September 16, 2010 - 20 weeks

Belly Button 36"

Weight 150#

Fundal Height 20 cm

November 11, 2010 - 29 weeks

Belly Button 37"

Weight 161#

Fundal Height 29 cm

December 5, 2010 - 32 weeks

Belly Button 38.5"

Weight 167#

Fundal Height 30.5 cm

December 26, 2010 - 35 weeks

Belly Button 40.3"

Weight 170#

Fundal Height 33 cm

January 18, 2011 – 38 weeks

Belly Button 42”

Weight 178#

Fundal Height 36 cm

Almost there!

2011-01-18T19:52:00.000-08:00

38 weeks along and counting...! Ray thinks she will come one week early, I think she will be here next week wednesday, and my mom is betting on thursday... we will see! Meanwhile, I am getting bigger and can't wait to see her! Fundle height is now at 36 cm! Current weight is 178 pounds and steady, with a radius of 42 inches around the middle! Way to go baby girl!

The Measure of a Life

2011-01-15T17:21:00.000-08:00

We tend to place a higher value on people we know personally. I have been reminded many times about how God loves everyone, regardless of the esteem I may hold them in, and that Christ died for all of them. But I had a picture yesterday. As I wait for my unborn child to grace us with her presence, I wait anxiously, constantly wondering what she will be like. Wanting so much to hold her, to love her, to caress her. Desiring to know what her personality is like, what her face will look like, who's mannerisms she will have. With those same thoughts, there was a colored man, in a long, big, dirty coat, a hat that holes, and it was obvious he was homeless. As I drove by I thought of his mother. At some point, every single one of us, was in our mother's womb and God knew us intimately (Jeremiah 29). At some point, our mothers were thinking the same things I am thinking of my precious unborn child and waiting with anticipation to see who this unborn child would come out to be. That is the same for the gentleman on the side of the street. What is the worth of a man? How is it decided? Who is to decide? The answer is simple, but yet I measure people up in my own mind. God should be the judge and "Measure - Master," and he has already given us an answer as to the measure of a man. I had already measured up the man outside my car window and made less of him than God obviously would have. Every person on earth is worth so much, that the Son of God gave his life for each and every one of us, so that we might be called "sons of God." Do we act as such? Do we treat others as such?

"God forgive me for passing judgement on others so quickly, and making more of myself than I ought, for I am nothing without your grace and mercy and the precious blood of your Son."

First Hospital Visit

2011-01-13T17:08:00.000-08:00

We took our first trip to Tacoma General Hospital tonight... Everything is fine, but there was a moment where we had some concerns.

This morning Desiree woke up feeling a bit nauseated and just a bit weird and the swelling in the ankles had gone up considerably overnight. Took our blood pressure at 10:30 A - 133/78.

Dr. Mariani stopped by her desk at 5PM and wanted to take it one more time... 155/100. Okay, maybe it's stress, lets try again in another 15 minutes.

15 minutes later... 160/100... we were sent to the Labor and Delivery ward where we spent the next couple of hours, ran some tests, put our names on the prayer chain and waited...

By the time we left, her blood pressure was down to 134/76, the tests were normal, no preeclampsia and no concerns. Praise God!

Time is ticking

2011-01-13T12:56:00.000-08:00

The day is looming when I will go into labor and deliver our little girl, and everyone seems to have advice, an opinion. It is definately something that is going to happen, it cannot be stopped, it cannot be helped, it cannot be avoided. I know it is coming, I have prepared and I have studied.

Death is also coming. For everyone. It is definately something that is going to happen, it cannot be stopped, it cannot be helped, it cannot be avoided. I know it is coming, have I prepared and have I studied?

Christ's return is also coming. It is definately something that is going to happen, it cannot be stopped, it cannot be helped, it cannot be avoided. I know it is coming, have I prepared and have I studied?

What makes them any different? I should be preparing, I should be watching and waiting anxiously for Christ's return to take us all home, but I do not. I am not vigilant, especially as I compare it to the anticipation I hold for the birth of our first child. What will it look like, when will it occur? Will I be ready? Will it be glorious? What do I need to do to prepare and make it wonderful? The same can be asked for all three... Are you ready?