ZOO Daze

We enjoyed a nice Saturday at the ZOO. Mili's first time to go since she can actually say the animals names and make their sounds. She enjoyed the hippo more than anything. She also loved the lions (RRRRAAAAARRRRR....as Mili says each time after the word lion). Mili also danced with the monkeys (the picture of her face thru the bars is when she was looking intensely at the monkeys). I took that picture standing behind her (pretty good photography skills, huh since it was my first and only shot of her with her face in the bars).

The weather was fantastic. It was about 70 degrees, little cloudy, with a light breeze. We were very comfy in capri's and a short sleeve top (not Brian, of course). This was also Mili's first time to realize where she was when she was on the Metro (subway). A lot of people call it "the train" here. So we were telling Mili that we were riding on a train. She loved it. She kept saying, "riding train, choo-choo". She is so much fun right now.

We have started potty training again today and hopefully will have better luck this time. I wanted to have it done before I deliver Sadie but don't know if that is possible now.

My little stinker is dancing to some music right now. Round and Round she goes. A few minutes ago she was playing the drums with a jazzy song. Now she is using her hand bells for a shaking good time. As you can tell she is never still for very long and she doesn't do the same thing for very long either. Sadie is bouncing to the music right now too. I forgot how much I loved feeling my babies move inside me.

Hope all of you are having great weather and getting out to enjoy God's creation. We came home from church last night (children's musical program) and sat outside on the balcony for about an hour. Mili loves to play out there and we love to sit out there so it is a great combo for us as a family.

Hope your day is great....don't forget to give God the glory for EVERYTHING in your lives.

Hugs and Kisses to ALL!!!

Great Day to Play!

Saturday, we had a blast at the park. This is Mili's first time this year and she loved (most) of it. She was not too sure about the slide at first but is doing better with it now. She also wanted no part of the swings (crazy girl....that is mommy's favorite). She insisted on going back to the boat (pic with her and a steering wheel). We had a great time as a family and wished that we would have brought a picnic along because the weather was so fantastic. Upon leaving the park we had a normal two year old fit. Gotta know they are going to happen.

I am hoping that we will go back to the zoo again soon since Mili is aware of animals and their sounds. I also want to take her to the aquarium in Baltimore. She could stare at the aquarium at our friend's house for hours.

Hope you enjoy the pics of Mili and her fun day. We are looking forward to more days like this before I get too big.

The last picture is of a dress that Brian's mom made for Mili. She is so cute in it.

Hugs and Kisses to ALL!

GUESS WHAT??? OR WHO???

We are getting ready for more drama in our house. It's a GIRL!!!!! I was a tad bit disappointed at first but am doing much better now. I thought that because this pregnancy is so different from Mili's that I was carrying a boy the whole time. Oh well, We are just thankful that the baby is healthy and everything looked good on the ultra sound.

I am glad that Mili will have a sister to grow up with like I did. I think this situation is much better for us financially right now anyway. We will only need to buy a limited amount of things and that is great for the budget.

I wanted baby Nate to have a play buddy. He still will, but it will just be a girl now instead of a boy.

We are very thankful for the wonderful gift we are given and as she continues to grow you will see more pictures until the day she arrives (can't wait to hold her). We will keep you updated.

By the way, We are pretty sure her name will be "Sadie Elizabeth". It is not written in stone but pretty close.


The pictures didn't come out that good for the ultra sound so I am sorry that I don't have a picture to share. We got to see Sadie rubbing her eye with her fist (cute already).

Love to All!!!

A great day for babies in the US!

WOOO-HOOO!!!! For the ban on partial-birth abortion. The Supreme Court ruled yesterday that they would uphold a ban on partial-birth abortion. I am so excited for the babies that deserve a chance before they are murdered. Yes, I said murdered. Abortion is murder no matter which way you say it.

Americans seem to think if they change the "name" to something else then it makes it okay to do whatever it is. In this case the word abortion is used when it is still murder. I have been reading up on some of this on CNN and such and found out that partial-birth abortions happen anywhere from the 21 week. I am 21 weeks almost 22 weeks pregnant right now and can see and feel my baby kicking. HELLO, if that is not ALIVE then I don't know what is. For the arguments on abortion before the second trimester (which is still murder), I saw my baby's heartbeat at 12 weeks and it was beating earlier than that.

Don't get me wrong, I believe each and every woman has a choice. The choice must take place before conception does. Every woman has the choice to have sex or not or use birth control or not. If that woman does not want the baby, FINE there are many, many people who can't have children and would make excellent parents. Give the baby to someone who wants to love them. In the case of rape the woman didn't have the choice but that doesn't mean that she can play God and kill a human because of circumstances. I am sick and tired of people in today's society deciding that they can or can't do something purely based on circumstances. What ever happened to taking responsibility for your actions. Instead if we can justify it then we can go on with life and do what we want.

It is amazing to me that the same courts that can convict someone for a double murder when they shoot a pregnant woman and both die, say it is okay to have abortions any time you wish. Because the mother "wants" the baby in this case makes it a real person. It is a real person from day one of conception.

As you can tell I am very passionate about this subject and hope that you can understand that just because we as humans are selfish and want our way all the time, doesn't make the baby any less of a baby and doesn't make abortion any less of murder. It stops a beating heart. It is also amazing to me that women who have children and love them dearly can believe that abortion is okay. I would think that they have felt those sweet feet, hands, elbows, knees and other parts of the body inside their body and feel differently about the subject. If they would have miscarried or lost a baby during pregnancy they would have been devastated but they think it is okay to kill them if you don't want them or they will inconvenience you. There is a way to stop that before conception takes place.

Now that I have spilled my guts about this.... Our baby is almost 22 weeks and we will find out the sex on Monday. Can't wait to call the baby by name. Right now he/she is still Popcorn so we don't have to call the baby "it". Popcorn is very active and makes me so happy to feel a baby in the womb again. It is amazing that all the development of a baby happens in 9 months. WOW! what a miracle.

This is a great day for babies in the US.

Love to all!

This and That!

We had an excellent Easter in our house. Church was great and despite the cold weather everyone looked so nice and was cheerful. It just shows you that you CAN be in a good mood no matter the circumstances.

Brian sang on praise team in all three services (he had to be at church at 7:00 a.m. for practice). There were several special music ensembles and they were all wonderful. Worship was great and the message was just as good. Two of the services were packed. I am interested in seeing the Update this week to see how many were on campus on Easter Sunday. Although numbers are not important, it is important to know how many people were given a chance to change their lives for eternity.

I had a great time in middle school class. I had two new girls in my group. They came to the egg hunt (community wide and free). This was their second Sunday. I hope I was able to explain what Jesus did for them when He died on the cross for their sins. They were leaning into the circle listening with intent.

The pictures of Mili "praying" are just priceless to me. I hope that she always knows that God will listen any time and any place. She still loves playing with the nativity figurines. Just so you know, we are not teaching her to pray to the figurines....only to the One, True God. When we sit down to eat she always puts her hands together and says pray, pray?? It is so cute.

I am 19 1/2 weeks pregnant in the last picture. Popcorn is really showing these days and I am picking up maternity clothing here and there when I see them on sale. I hoping to have a pretty good wardrobe soon. I am running out of things I can wear. The outfit in the picture was the only thing I could find for Easter that looked nice on me. Everything else was capris or entirely too big for me yet. I got out my maternity clothes from when I was pregnant with Mili and something black had faded on many of the pieces. I was so sad because my two favorite pair of capris (white pair and khaki pair) were ruined. I now have to try to find some as comfy as those again.

Hope you all enjoyed your Easter weekend and if you haven't read about my new nephew, Nate then you need to scroll down and see him.

Hugs and Kisses to all. I miss you all!

Aunt Again!!

Here are a few pictures of my new nephew (my only nephew) Nate. He is a sweet little thing, of course you can see that. He was in NICU for most of his stay in the hospital but is doing great now. He weighed 7 lbs 11 oz and was 19 1/2 inches long.

Everyone is doing fine and loving on the new addition (except me). I don't know when I will get to get my hands on him, sniff, sniff.

Hope you enjoy the pictures of the sweetpea.

No comparison to Good Friday

Yesterday we had a day that seemed as if it lasted a full two days. Mili has been sick and so we tried to sleep with her sitting up because she coughs so much when she lies down that she doesn’t get any sleep resulting in no sleep for mommy and daddy. She is too squirmy to sleep in the recliner with us anymore so we used the futon because it is against the wall and then stacked up pillows for her to sleep on. Anyway, one of us slept with her for a couple of nights to ensure no more vomit in the bed from the snot in her throat (hope no one is eating and reading right now…smile). Wednesday night was Brian’s night so he woke up at about 7:20 am Thursday morning after a very long night with Mili Bear and come to get me to go lay with her until she woke up. He then realized that he was supposed to meet his friend for breakfast at 7:00 am. He called and explained to him and the friend was very understanding.

I called to see about my nephew, Nate, who was born c-section yesterday morning. He was in the world but in NICU. He was being a little lazy about breathing and they wanted to watch him over night. He should be fine but not the news I wanted to hear.

Mili had been running fever since Saturday and so I was concerned that she was not going to get over this without some antibiotics. I called the doctor and they set us up with an appointment at 11:45. I called Brian on his office phone and cell phone and left messages on both several times (he had the car). Brian happened to be in the lab where he gets no reception on his cell phone and so he didn’t get the message in time. So I had already hurried to get me and Mili bathed and dressed in 30 minutes (yes, I said 30 minutes). I had to call back and cancel the appointment and ask for another one. This time it would be at 2:00pm. Brian had a meeting at 1:30 so he had to either bring me the car and then I had to take him back at lunch or he could stay at home for lunch and then I had to get him back before 1:30 and then head to the dr office. Either way Mili’s nap was cut short, so we chose to take him back to work on our way to the dr office so we didn’t have to get Mili out twice. At the dr office Mili was excellent. She opened up and said AHHH and she didn’t cry at all. The doc said she had ear infections and needed antibiotics. She sent it in on the computer to the pharmacy.

I went straight over to the pharmacy and waited another 15 minutes (30 minutes total from the time it was submitted). Went to the counter for the medicine and they didn’t have it ready. I was very angry because Mili was now not feeling good and getting antsy. They said it would be another 20 minutes. After 20 minutes they still didn’t have it ready. They said it was due to our insurance change. I gave them my card and then I finally got the medicine an hour after it was submitted. I was very upset and let them know about it.

I have been thinking about how I treated the cashier (not her fault it wasn’t completed) and how the other people saw me act, especially Mili. I am sad that I let my anger get in the way of how I should have acted. I should have showed more mercy to them and they would have known that there was something different about me. I should have done what Jesus would have done.

There is obviously no comparison to yesterdays very long complicated day and this day over 2000 years ago. Can you imagine the frustration and loneliness Jesus felt on Good Friday? The night before, his best buddies fell asleep numerous times after he asked them to stay awake and alert. He was struggling with the fact he would die soon and be arrested and betrayed by another one in his circle (Judas). While studying to teach the middle schoolers this lesson on Sunday it hit me that the trial that Jesus was on is a perfect example of his love for each of us. Jesus was guilty of nothing but the truth and Barabbas a well known murder was freed to live a new life. Jesus died so we (sinners) could be free to live a new life on earth and have eternal life with Jesus when we die. Another example of Jesus’ love is when the thief on the cross next to Jesus asked him to remember him when he entered into his Kingdom. Jesus said, “Today you will be with me in paradise.” (Luke 23:43). As Jesus was being spit on, beaten, his beard being plucked, skin slashed, and crown of thorns beaten down on his sweet brow He was saying, Father forgive them for they know not what they do.” (Luke 23:34).

I want to be a shining light like that. I failed at the pharmacy and the older Mili gets I will explain to her that mommy handled the situation wrong and discuss how mommy could have done better. If we don’t live what we preach then we are not accomplishing anything. The good thing is that God has already forgiven me for my mistake and that is only possible because I once had a time in my life when I prayed and asked Jesus to forgive me of my sins and that I wanted him to take control of my life and live within me. The Holy Spirit is sent to live within me and help me make wise choices to show Jesus’ light to the world. I am so glad that Jesus didn’t stay dead that he rose on the third day which is Easter Sunday. I am glad my savior is a living savior who I can talk to daily and get advice from his precious words in the Bible. I am very thankful for Good Friday, without it we would all spend an eternity in hell (where we all belong, we have all sinned). No one can be good enough to go to heaven, thank goodness. I would hate to have to try to figure out if I had been good enough and worry about that everyday of my life. With everyone’s idea of what “good” is, then it is impossible to use this theory. Instead there are no worries about weather I will spend eternity with my Savior. He didn’t just die for me he also died for YOU. If I had the cure for cancer everyone would expect me to share it. So I have the cure for eternal life and I am sharing it. I hope you all have a wonderful Easter Sunday with our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

I wish Judas, the one that betrayed Jesus, would have realized that Jesus was going to die for his sins too. Instead he tragically took his own life. The guilt was too much for him to live with but Jesus would have forgiven him too if he would have just asked.

Hugs and Kisses