amazing things

The past few weeks & Happy Easter

2011-04-18T20:31:00.000-05:00

The the past few weeks have been a bit crazy. Josiah got sick a couple of weeks ago and we ended up in Urgent Care after what seems to have been an allergic reaction to the medicine. He is on the mend now, but we had several days of laying low and drinking Elmo juice and snuggling with "ooh ooh" (monkeys.)

We had to get some time in watching the Masters as well. This kids loves to watch golf and even cheers for the players. He yells "get in the hole" when the hit the ball. Pretty funny considering we did not teach him that.

We took a trip to central Kansas. Josiah did a little yard work with Nana and he really was helping her pull weeds. It was pretty funny to watch him because he was really going at it. Whatever he does, he does it with all he has!

Then we headed south a few miles to cousin Brece's house. They hunted eggs together... Josiah very focused, Brece... well let's just say just got distracted easily! But they were both willing to stop and pose for this picture.

Josiah even got in the spirit and hid some eggs all by himself.

We hope you all have a happy Easter and take time to stop and reflect on why we celebrate. Jesus, God's only Son came to earth and had to die a horrible death, so that each one of us, if we believe in Him, are able to spend eternity with Him.

In Honor of Pop-pop

2011-02-26T13:13:00.000-06:00

The past few weeks, well actually 8 months, have been difficult as Jeff's dad fought hard against brain cancer... on Feb 11, 2011 he lost that fight. It was a sad day but we all were glad he would no longer be suffering. We celebrated his life last week and we would like to honor with just a few of our favorite memories of Josiah's beloved "Pop-pop."

Pop-pop and Josiah's first meeting! Josiah is only a few days old!

Waking up on Josiah's fist Christmas morning.


Snoozing (aka snoring) with Pop-pop.

All the cousins (at the time) together for the first time with Pop-pop and Nana.

Experiencing Josiah's first Royals game. Although rainy and cold... we were there (Josiah is under the blanket... he didn't see much of that game.)

Father's Day 2009: Pop-pop holding Zach, Shane holding Simon, Skip holding Emerald, Jeff holding Josiah and Calvin. What a great group of fathers!

Pop-pop showing off this card lacing skills! The grandkids were pretty impressed.

Thanksgiving 2010: Josiah and Pop-pop counting blocks with Nana's help.


Couldn't resist the feet picture... Josiah definitely has Pop-pop's feet... as wide as they are long.

Last week we all headed to Pop-pop's favorite breakfast place, Neighborhood's Cafe. Simon and Josiah checking out the cinnamon roll that was as big as the plate!

Thank you for being a great Pop-Pop to Josiah. He will miss the way that you loved them, but he will also remember forever when you would put your finger in you mouth, widen your eyes, and pull out your finger, making a popping noise. It was sure to always bring great laughter from him.

We love you Pop-pop and are so thankful to have had the privilege to share so many special memories with you.

Art Blizzard of 2011

2011-02-02T22:53:00.002-06:00

When it looks like this in the yard...

Don't let the sunshine deceive you it is about 5 degrees.

and this on the patio...

Snow is only a couple inches below the seats of the chairs.

Josiah does this...

He loved creating on blue paper.

...and just keeps going.

Yes - 9 pieces of finished artwork in one day.

Josiah has been spending a lot of time inside the past couple of days with all the snow. I needed to get some work done yesterday so I got out the art supplies and let Josiah have fun. This is his little desk in our office area. He created all this pieces of art yesterday. First we did stickers... in case you can't tell, each sticker page has a theme... all the basketball stickers on one, all the football on another, etc. I think he may have his mother's need for organization! Next we moved on to gluing... his first time and he loved it.

Snow Excitement!

2011-01-23T21:20:00.000-06:00

Well, in case you didn't know we have had some wintery weather around here lately. The first big snow storm came in about two weeks ago and it was bitterly cold so we didn't get to go out in play in it. Finally, during the second big snow this past week, we were able to get out for a little while and "play" in the snow....

Can't you feel Josiah's excitement in this picture... all the pictures we took that day looked like this. At one point he asked to "goff" (aka - golf!). I don't think he is a fan of the cold weather like this mommy!

We did eventually find something he liked, going down the slide! With slick snow pants on and a little powdery snow you slide down pretty quick and easy - but still no excitement.

Hope everyone is keeping warm and safe. I think we will stick to inside activities for a while.

Away in the Manager

2011-01-07T22:42:00.000-06:00

Our dear little Josiah can be so sweet sometimes. This holiday season, Grandma taught Josiah the motions to "Away in the Manager." While we were at my parents Josiah did a little performance... please ignore the singing (it's not a Call family strength!)

Sharing the Purple Love

2011-01-01T07:40:00.000-06:00

Grandma, Josiah, and Brece

On New Year's Eve my family headed to the Little Apple, Manhattan, Kansas to watch K-State men's basketball team take on University of Northern Florida. In case you didn't know the rest of my family bleeds purple... this Gorilla was just excited to take Josiah to his first basketball game. It was fun to show him in person the game that his mommy loved to play for so many years.

Josiah was a little overwhelmed by all the noise, action, people, etc. But overall it was a fun experience. Cousin Brece is an old pro at K-State sporting events and knew exactly what to do during the "Wasbash" and when the team shot free throws, "woosh!"

What a fun way to spend New Year's Eve than with family!

Weekend Getaway

2010-12-30T17:41:00.000-06:00

In early November, we headed south... well south in Kansas anyway, to visit my Aunt Cindy and Uncle Keith. We had a great few days. Josiah got to go out in Uncle Keith's truck and see "moos" (cows) up close and personal. We played at the schools playground, and did some relaxing... it was a great little getaway!

Relaxing with Uncle Keith.

Getting some fresh air!

Choo-choo Look Who Turned Two!

2010-12-30T17:30:00.000-06:00

Yes, like every blog post starts, I am behind. So I am trying to get a little caught up so I can start the new year off up-to-date... whatever that means!

Our little boy, Josiah, turned TWO earlier this month. His birthday celebration started over Thanksgiving... so we spread it out over several weeks. Josiah is very into "choo-choo" this year so that what most of his birthday celebrations centered around.

Josiah wasn't too sure when all the attention was on him while my family sang "Happy Birthday."

But he had no trouble blowing out the candles.

Mmmmmm, cake! He also had not trouble downing a piece of cake and anytime from here on out when you asked him about his birthday he would say "cak!"

Cousin Brece liked the cake too... even though this picture doesn't look like it!

On Josiah's actual birthday, we celebrated lunch with friends down at Fritz's in Crown Center. What better way to celebrate than at a restaurant where a "choo-choo" delivers your food.

Josiah and his friend Georgia waiting to be seated at Fritz's.

Watching the train go round and round at the gingerbread house display in Crown Center.

Doing a little coloring at the Crayola store.

Listening to some kids singing Christmas songs. (Georgia decided to direct the choir!)

Playing outside at Crown Center on the big wooden tractor.

...and the fire truck too.

That evening we celebrated at home with friends from our community group. We had another "cake" too! This time a Rice Krispie train cake.

I ate the whole thing!

We finished off the evening by letting Josiah eat some of his cake... he ended up eating the whole train car!

What a wonderful birthday weeks Josiah had. We also celebrated with Jeff's family that weekend after Josiah's birthday, but Aunt Steph took those pictures because I forgot the camera.

Not sure what Josiah is going to do without a present to open come January. The kid has been so loved and has had a present to open almost everyday since Thanksgiving!

We love you Josiah! Can't wait to see what year 3 has in store for you!

Nice weather = A Happy Little Boy!

2010-10-21T20:00:00.000-05:00

Deanna Rose Farmstead

Our little boy loves to be outside just like his daddy! The past few weeks we have had some incredible fall weather. So we have taken advantage of it. One of Josiah's favorite places is Deanna Rose Farmstead. Now, being raised on a farm this isn't quite what I remember it being like as a child, but for Johnson County, Kansas its pretty great. We spend a lot of mornings there as it is free Monday-Thursday!

Josiah sitting on one of the old tractors.
Grandpa has instilled a love for tractors in this kid.

Another pictures on the tractor... he didn't want to get off!

Feeding the fish is another favorite activity at Deanna Rose.

He isn't afraid of the different animals and will walk right up and pet most of them, including this friendly goat.

Another great (and free) place we frequent is the Overland Park Arboretum. This is only a couple of minutes from our house. It has great walking trails, a small pond, and a lot plants and flowers. Not the best picture but the only one of have of him there.

Powell's Pumpkin Patch

Last week Steph and I took the kids to the pumpkin patch. We had a lot of fun picking out pumpkins with 4 little munchkins.

Josiah and his cousin Zach. These two have become quite the pair lately. They have learned to say each other's name and rarely let the other out of sight if they are together.

The best picture I got of all 4... I hope Steph got a better one. There was just too many pumpkins in all directions to look at.

Josiah just kept walking and walking.

Ahhh... finally the perfect one! Or at least one that looks good for a picture.

We had a wonderful afternoon with some of his cousins. Hope everyone else has been enjoying the wonderful weather.

About time..

2010-09-06T22:12:00.000-05:00

...for a new post. There are plenty of new pictures of our little man! So here a brief over veiw of summer.

Marching for Babies... supporting cousin Zachary and all the other preemies out there.

Enjoying a little mulch one of the first days of Summer.


Hanging out with "Aunt" Mandy. We had a horrible time... as you can see!

Having Zachary over to play and spend the night. Bath time is a lot more fun with someone else to splash!

It couldn't be summer without an iccceee ceeeaam cone!

Grandma, Josiah, cousin Brece, and Grandpa all looking good at mom's cousin Lori's wedding over the July 4 weekend!

Moving into a big boy bed. Mom's back started hurting from lifting me over the edge of the crib. I did really well in the transition. I fell out a few times but am doing much better now.

Hanging out on the boat with cousin Brece on Call family vacation. (Didn't know 2 toddlers could "look" this happy all squished into life jackets!)

Taking in a Naturals baseball game while on Call family vacation in Arkansas.

Mom wanted me to try on jackets for the Fall. I wanted to try on my hat. This is the outfit we ended up with!

Well hope you enjoyed all the pictures and highlights of summer. I am sure there is something I left but this should get close. Here's to hoping Fall weather sticks around!

The story of the Golf Club

2010-05-05T22:22:00.000-05:00

The story of the golf ball...

On Saturday we got my golf club out because I kept trying to hit the golf ball around the yard with a stick.

I loved trying hitting the golf ball and others were pretty impressed with my coordination.

I would throw the ball down then hit it.

It was a lot of fun until we had to go inside and mommy took my club away. I wanted to keep playing in the house, but mommy wouldn’t let me. Don’t know why?

The Story of the Stick

2010-04-28T22:46:00.000-05:00

The Story of the Stick

by Josiah

I played with this stick for a long time.

I poked the ground.

I hit myself in the face, and swung it around.

Then, I threw it down.

It was so much fun until Zane ran off with it and ate half of it.

Oh well, it’s just a stick and the most important part was I had fun!

14 month and counting

2010-02-23T09:32:00.006-06:00

Well Josiah is over 14 months old now and he is really starting to develop into quite the little boy. He is definitely a toddler, walking all over the place. He fell at daycare and we had our first trip to Urgent Care last week. Thankfully, it ended up being just a good scrape and no stitches were necessary.

We have had quite the winter with lots of snow and cold temps. However, a few weeks ago we had snow without the bitterly cold temps so one Saturday morning we headed outside to play in the snow. Josiah was not interested at the beginning but gradually warmed up to the idea. Here are a few pictures of the life sized snowman mommy and daddy built and Josiah with his little "snowmound." His didn't last very long as he is very much into knocking down whatever is built up!

Josiah is still a great little boy, but the "exploration" and "discovery" stage is coming out...
The discovery of the paper towel roll....

Josiah is also starting to really comprehend words. He started saying "uh-oh" last week and hasn't stopped since. A few other favorites are "daaah" (translation is "dog") and "daalll" (translation is "ball").

He is growing like a weed and I am pretty sure he won't have a chubby little boy on our hands for much longer!

Happy 1st Birthday Josiah

2009-12-19T22:42:00.003-06:00

Ok, so I am going to be lazy... if you want to see pictures of Josiah first birthday party check out my sister-in-law's blog, thepankewichfamily.blogspot.com. All the good pictures were on her camera and she posted them already - so why repeat when its such a crazy busy time of year! We did a joint party with Josiah's cousin Zachary, who is 18 days younger than Josiah. We had a lot of fun with a Thing 1 and Thing 2 Dr. Seuss themed party.

Merry Christmas to everyone! Can't believe this will be Josiah's second Christmas and that he will actually be able top open his presents this year. We have had a lost of practice so far with birthday gifts, so that will just flow into Christmas presents. We are blessed to have so many people who care about Josiah!

2009 Halloween

2009-11-01T13:39:00.003-06:00

Here are just a few snapshots of our little turtle. I think he turned out be a pretty cute little turtle.

Josiah and Zachary were "so excited" to go trick-or-treating. Can't you tell by the looks on their faces. I think at this point Calvin and Emerald were running around unable to contain their excitement like these two!

Post trick-or-treating! Josiah loved going through his candy, pulling each piece out one by one.

Garden Tractor Pull

2009-10-27T21:44:00.002-05:00

Ok, so it's been forever since I have updated again. Actually a few weeks ago I tried to upload a funny video but it never worked, so I am going back to pictures.

Here are a few pictures from Josiah's first Graden Tractor Pull event. He got to watch Grandpa pull. He was so into it that he skipped his afternoon nap and watched the whole thing. Uncle Caleb also go to go with us. It was a fun afternoon.

Such a determined look on his face... I have no idea where that look comes from!

It's about time, catching up

2009-08-24T20:42:00.010-05:00

Well its been a while since I have blogged... over a month actually. We have had a bit going on in our lives recently. In the month of July we were gone a total of 15 days. We took a quick trip to Omaha in early July for Jeff's Great Aunt Dolly's funeral. Then we headed west. We took a 9 day trip with Jeff's family to Telluride, Colorado to visit Jeff's sister Laura and her husband Shane and sweet little Simon. That's right we took a road trip with 6 adults, 4 children under 4, and 2 minivans. It is about a 16 hour drive from Kansas City; however it ended up being a great trip. Here are few pictures from that trip.

Josiah was a very good car traveler. We was pretty content to play with toys, whenever he wasn't sleeping. The elevation changes did cause him to wake up from naps, but all in all it could have been a lot worse!

We stopped for a picnic lunch on the way out. Here Zachary and Josiah get a little freedom from their car seats!

We spent the night in Colorado Springs at a hotel with a pool. This was Josiah's first time in a real pool. He seemed to be unaffected by it... neither excited or upset. That's our boy...

Besides spending a lot of time with Jeff's family and exploring Telluride and the surrounding area, one of my favorite moments was watching Josiah and his cousin Simon interact. Josiah and Simon shared Simon's room while we were their. They were pretty much on the same schedule so they got some great play time in the morning before the big kids got up.

One morning, Simon kept taking Josiah's pacifer out of his mouth. Finally Josiah fought back and they swapped pacifers and immediately stuck each other in their own mouths. Oh what will Christmas be like when these two and their third amigo Zachary are all mobile!!!

We had fun riding the gondola from Nana and Pop-Pops hotel room in Moutain Village down into the town of Telluride.

One evening Jeff and I took Josiah on his first hike. We took an easy path through some beautiful aspen trees... I was in awe! Josiah stayed awake the whole time and just took it all in.

I think Aspens are some of the most beautiful trees God created. They were incredible and I can't even imagine what they would be like in the fall.

All the cousins together again!

Finally we headed home... even though Josiah had a very chapped chin he was pretty content on the way home, as long as he had some puffs to munch on. Thanks goodness for puffs. Pop-pop thought Josiah might turn into a puff, fortunately he didn't.

This was my favorite aspen photo I took... ahhhh! Can't wait to go back! Thanks Shane, Laura, and Simon for sharing your home with us!

First July 4th

2009-07-05T20:29:00.004-05:00

We had a great July 4th! We have made it our annual tradition to host a July 4th celebration as we are conveniently located 2 blocks from a parade and 2 blocks to a great fireworks show. This year we were excited that both sets of Josiah's grandparents were able to join us. Here are a few photos (I didn't do a very good job of taking pictures...)

Don't Turn Your Back

2009-07-01T22:04:00.005-05:00

The past couple of weeks Josiah has really be starting to become more mobile. Here's what happens when I turn my back...
He started out in the middle of the blanket that is on the left side of the photo.

He was pretty content to swiffer up the dog hair under the couch for me!

Josiah and I also got to attend cousin Emerald's little dance performance at the end of her Disney Princess Dance Camp. Steph wasn't able to to make it so we got to go. She did a great job and is turning into quite the little sassy princess!

We also go to celebrate Jeff's first Father's day with my brother Luke. Luke is holding his precious little daughter Brece Anne (9 days old in this photo). She has some incredibly awesome hair - next generation of Call girls has begun! Now, Josiah has cousins on both side of the family... including 3 within 6 months of his age!

Josiah took his first dip in the pool this last week. We found a little plastic frog pool on craigslist that is just big enough for Josiah and mommy to sit in. He had a great time... mostly playing with the red plastic cup - his favorite bathtime toy as well.

One last photo to show you what happens when you turn your back on this little guy... I have a feeling crawling may be in our near future! Once again, he started in the middle of the blanket in the upper left of the photo.

Happy July 4th! Hope everyone has a safe and relaxing holiday!

oh what a daddy can do...

2009-06-16T17:17:00.003-05:00

With Father's Day just around the corner, I thought I would share a little snipet of the interaction between Josiah and his daddy. Josiah has a wonderful daddy who loves to play with him. Daddy makes all kinds of funny noises that mommy can't. Josiah always seem to be in a better mood when daddy walks in the door after work.

Here is proof... Today, Josiah woke up with a cold (the one I have been fighting for 2 days) and has been more fussy than normal most of the day. I have had to use the "snot-sucker" several times on his poor little nose, but looks what happens when daddy walks in the door...

What a week!

2009-06-07T21:48:00.008-05:00

It's been a busy week for us... Josiah works pretty hard these days watching baby Einstein that is!
On Tuesday, Josiah had his 6 month check-up... guess what? We still have a little peanut on our hands. Here are his 6 month stats: 13 lbs (that is not a typo), 25.5" long, and 17" head circumference. Once again, the doctor is not worried about his weight as he does not look or act abnormal. For example, when she asked if he was smilling, Josiah just flashed his usually heart-melting smile. When she asked if he rolled over, he promptly rolled over on the exam table. She also gave us the go ahead to begin on solid foods!

On Wednesday, Josiah got to meet his Great Aunt Carlotta and Great Uncle Jay who flew in from California! It was a quick meeting but fun meeting!

Then the festivities began. My dear friend Emily (Wilson) now Beydler, got married on Friday. Thursday Josiah tagged along to the nail salon, the church for program assembly, and then to the rehearsal dinner.

On Friday, Josiah and I headed to the church for rehearsal and getting ready for the wedding. Jeff was able to take a half day off at work and came and got Josiah at noon. Good thing, because he didn't sleep a wink the whole morning. Here are few pictures from the day! Josiah looked pretty cute in his little pink shirt and brown tie. He didn't last long at the reception but it was fun for a short while!

This is the bride, Emily (center), and friend Amy (right) as we are all getting ready.

Family photo opprotunity... too bad Josiah was pretty tired - no smiles from him.

We loved showing Josiah off, he got a lot of attention with this styling tie!

Had to include this picture of the maid of honor and my friend Katie Jarmer! She is such a great gal, too bad she is in Mexico for the summer! Miss you Jarmer!

On Saturday, "Aunt" Mandy got to hang out with us for a while. Jeff had to work, but the rest of us got to sleep in and take it easy for the day. Josiah ended up sleeping until 9:30am and then taking 3 2-hour naps throughout the day. We have started supplementing with a little extra formula to make sure Josaih is getting all he needs. He gets so excited when the sees the bottle and can't wait to hold it all by himself! He is such a big boy!

On Sunday, we started with green veggies! Josiah got his first bite of green beans. Our camera was out of battery from the busy weekend so we didn't get a photo, but he really didn't react any differently than he does when he eats his cereal. We will keep you updated on the progress through the green veggies and on to the orange veggies!

Another busy week ahead... I am helping with VBS at church this week and cousin Emerald is coming along too. Should be another exciting week!

The past month... beware a long post!

2009-05-31T21:52:00.006-05:00

So its been a while since I have updated our blog. Life has been crazy around our house. Jeff has been working long hours between the golf course and Blue Valley Irrigation. I keep busy between being a mommy, working and helping a dear friend prepare for her wedding day. And here is what Josiah has been busy doing...

Just a little exersaucering... this great invention will entertain him for a long time!

...hanging out with Mr. Giraffe before eating cereal.
...catching some zzzzz's. He has been sleeping so well at night!

....having lunch with his friend Meryl who will be moving away in a few weeks!

...swinging. Daddy built this incredible swing set for Josiah and he absolutely loves it. Josiah takes after his daddy as loves being outside.

...waking up in the morning all smiles! Such a happy boy when you let him wake himself up. More like mommy when you have to wake him up before he's ready - not all smiles!

...wrestling with Uncle Caleb and winning!

...consoling Uncle Caleb when he loses. Who could be upset with this sweet little snuggler (Josiah - not Caleb!)

...learning from the best. Grandpa just had his tractor repainted and couldn't wait to show it to Josiah.

(couldn't help but include a couple pictures of this). We all determined the tractor was "parade-worthy" now.

...sitting up almost all by himself. Josiah is really starting to get better balance and needs less and less support each day!

...getting his first haircut, well, just a trimming. We decided it was time to trim the few really long hairs (see them sticking out from his forehead) as they were creating a weird comb-over.
... and here is the after haircut picture. Daddy did a great job for using a scissors around the squirmy little guy.

Well thats all for now! I assure you more pictures to come after this coming weekend!

Hold you over...

2009-05-20T20:46:00.002-05:00

Here is a new photo to hold you over... more to come! Daddy built Josiah a swing set this past weekend and Josiah loves to be outside and swing.

Sittin' pretty

2009-05-05T17:15:00.003-05:00

Josiah has been doing a lot of changing and developing recently. He always seems to be doing something new. He has really started grabbing for toys and playing with them. He also now enjoys sitting up more than laying on his back. He can't balance himself, but if he is propped up he can "sit" for about 10 minutes or so! We have also invested in a garage sale find - an exersaucer! He loves it and keeps discovering new toys on it.

I will try to post some new pictures soon, but enjoy this video for now.

Happy Easter!

2009-04-15T21:00:00.008-05:00

"Time to rise and shine!" Josiah on Easter morning!

Josiah and Daddy digging into the Easter basket... his first Bible storybook.

...mmmmm Cadbury eggs. Guess Daddy has to eat those.

We had a wonderful Easter Sunday. We went to church all dressed up.

Then headed out to the K for the Royals vs. Yankees. As you can see, it was a cold and rainy day. Josiah lasted about 3 innings then we retreated to the nice clean new restrooms, while Dad and Pop-pop watched 3 more innings.

We hope you all had wonderful Easter as well!

A Month of Many Firsts

2009-03-28T10:01:00.007-05:00

We have had a busy March and Josiah has had a month of many firsts.

He went to his first collegiate sporting event, a softball doubleheader. My cousin Lori plays for Western Illinois University and her team came to Kansas City to play UMKC. This was the first time Josiah had been outside for more than just a few minutes. It was a beautiful day!

He even took a nap admist all the stimulation.

Later that week, the weather continued to be nice so mom took Josiah for his first run. Well actually it was mom who was running, while Josiah rode in the jogging stroller (thanks to some gracious friends who gave us the stroller!) We are hoping to use it more this spring - but not today as a snowstorm is coming in!

Another first for Josiah was March Madness! We have learned the Josiah loves to watch basketball on tv! He was very intent on watching the games. He was even helping mom with her bracket choices.

When all the games started last week, I just propped him up the couch and let him watch the games while I tried to clean house. It was a great babysitter.
The next day, Josiah enjoyed watching some more games, this time from the floor during his tummy time.

Finally, our last first for the month is the doctor said Josiah could start eating rice cereal. Well we started this week and like everything else so far, Josiah doesn't seemed phased by it. Besides learning how to swallow the cereal, he did great. Not really even making a face. Last night, he downed it like a champ!

Getting ready for the first bite. We couldn't wait to use the doggy bib, however it was a little big.

The actual first reaction of the first taste of rice cereal! Not too bad.

Downing it like a champ - well almost!

We know there are many more firsts to come, but it already seems like he is doing so much. Smiling whenever one of us talk to him. Giggling when he gets excited - this is thanks in large part to his 3-year old buddy Tarin who entertains him 2 days a week. We can't wait to see what the next month holds!

Boomer Sooners!

2009-03-12T16:25:00.003-05:00

Josiah just wanted everyone to know that he's will be cheering on the Sooner's tonight in the Big 12 Tournament.

Last weekend, Josiah got to hang out with dad on Saturday while Mom and Aunt Steph went shopping. He enjoyed watching the basketball games with Daddy. Daddy said that he was happy during the OU game, but when KU came on he started crying - seriously! He is also a Wildcat at heart, but we don't have any KSU gear that fits him yet.

3 months old

2009-03-06T16:43:00.006-06:00

We can hardly believe that 3 months have nearly gone by since that snowy Tuesday in December. Our precious little boy is growing... we don't know how much until we go to the Doctor in a couple of weeks... but he is growing. He had finally left behind the newborn sized diapers and clothes and is working his way through the size 0-3 months clothes. And finally, he is fitting into the wonderful cloth diapers! After a little trial and error with the inserts, we are well on our way to many loads of dirty diaper laundry. It really isn't that bad now that we are in the swing of things... and it is certainly helping out the bank account.

Not a lot of new news, Josiah is doing great. Sleeping after his 9:00pm feeding until at least 6:30am sometimes longer. He is pretty scheduled on his eating and will let you know if the time is getting close. We are now working on a nap schedule.

Here Josiah is taking his Sunday afternoon nap...

Here he is sporting his hooded bear jacket - thank you Angela, Tina, and Krista.

The photo at the beginning of the blog and below are a couple of recent pictures that my friend Angela took while we had our big cousin's weekend photo shoot. If you need pictures of your little one, your graduating senior, your wedding, or family, be sure to give her a call. To see more of her work go to www.joplinexpressions.com.

Cousins, cousins, cousins... from left to right Zach (age 2 months), Josiah (age 2.5 months), Simon (age 5 months), Calvin (age 2 years), Emerald (age 4 years). I wonder when the next time we will be able to get a picture of all of them sitting together... might be a few years!

11 week old burrito - unwrapped

2009-02-22T15:24:00.003-06:00

Here is our 11-week old burrito being unwrapped. Enjoy!

What a blessing

2009-02-06T06:49:00.007-06:00

Everyday I grow to love our little boy more and more. Everyday I think I realize what a complete blessing he is. However, earlier this week, I spent an evening with my sister-in-law Steph and my nephew Zach who is still in the hospital. (Warning Steph - this will most likely make you cry.) Zach was suppose to be born any day now, but instead came 2 months earlier and instead of Josiah and Zach being 2 months apart they are a little over 2 weeks apart in age. Zach is doing really well and is just working on keeping his stats up while he eats so he can go home soon.

As I spent some precious time with Zach and Steph, while daddy watched Josiah, I was overwhelmed with the realization of how I have taken some much for granted with Josiah. I had a complication free pregnancy, except for the last day. I had a complication free and short labor and delivery. I had a complication free nursing experience so far. And for the most part a pretty complication free baby and praying that it stays that way. After spending the day working in the office and then the evening at the hospital with Zach and Steph, I came home and just stared into my little boys blue-gray eyes with a new sense of love and realization that he is such a blessing. That I shouldn't take every moment with Josiah for granted. There is so much I could miss out on if I did. In a way, I what to say thanks to Zachary and his mommy for helping me realize this. I always knew this but came to realize it more fully after my evening there.

Well it is 6:30am, yes that's right AM - I am becoming a morning person with Josiah new schedule and I had better get some work done before he wakes up again. Here are few pictures of the "Faces of Josiah." He has begun smiling at us quite often and his daddy and I can MAKE him smile now too! However, we haven't been able to capture the heart melting smile on camera yet... so here are a few of our attempts.

So many changes every day. Every day to be thankful for the blessing God has entrusted to us!

Josiah's Baby Dedication and Stats

2009-01-28T19:43:00.008-06:00

On January 18, our little Josiah was dedicated at church. We are so thankful for our families that were able to be there in person and for those who wished they could have been there. We are blessed to have so many people in Josiah's life to help him not only in his physical and mental development, but most importantly in his spiritual development. It was a fun day for our family. Here are a few photos.

Pastor Tom dedicating Josiah. As soon as Pastor Tom was done, Josiah decided to loudly fill his pants!

Grandpa and Josiah hanging out in the blue shirts.

Mandy was able to come down for the dedication and spend some time with J-man.

Uncle Caleb enjoyed playing with Josiah's cousins Emerald and Calvin. He can't wait until he can play like this with Josiah!

STATS!
We finally have our little peanut's stats as we had our 6 week doctor's appointment yesterday. (Josiah was actually 7 weeks old.) His weight was 8 lbs 13.5 oz which is is only in the 5th percentile. His head circumference and length were in the 25th percentile. Dr. Brunner wasn't worried about his weight since he is a very content, happy, and alert little boy. He also got his first round of shots and had 3 band aids on his little legs. All the nurses just think he is adorable and enjoyed spending time with him while mommy had her checkup. Synopsis - everyone is happy, healthy, and doing well.

Going back...

2009-01-23T10:04:00.009-06:00

These are just a few of our favorites from Josiah's 3-week photo shoot with my dear friend Angela. She does wonderful work and if you ever need a photographer I can get you her info. Check out her blog, www.joplinexpressions.blogspot.com and her website, www.joplinexpressions.com)

Thanks so much Angela - we love the pictures of our precious little boy!

Well our little guy is over 6 weeks old... hard to believe how fast he has grown. The 6 week mark also meant it was time for me to head back to work - part-time. I started back on Monday and am trying to adjust to the new schedule of working in the office from 9-4 Mondays and Wednesdays, and getting a few hours in at home on the other days. It was a bit of challenge but I think after a few weeks we will get the hang of it.

I am truly blessed to have a very generous and caring boss that allows me to have a flexible schedule. After working for him full-time for 5 1/2 years, it was refreshing for me to get a 6 week "break." Some people may not view delivering and caring for a baby as a "break," but for me it was. As I headed back to work this week I was excited to be creative again, to use the gifts God has given me to design and create. I missed that aspect of work a lot. I feel refreshed creatively and much less burned out. However on the flip side, over the past 6 weeks I have grown accustom to being stay at home mom and taking care of our little Josiah. So, I think as every mom does, I feel a bit guilty leaving him in the the wonderful care of a friend 2 days a week. So going back to the office was bittersweet, but at the same time very refreshing.

God has blessed Jeff and I so much through the healthy pregnancy, quick deliver, and contented little boy Josiah. He has provided for us financially through jobs we both enjoy and someone to care for Josiah while I am at work. We just thank God for the amazing things He has and will continue to do in our lives!

First Christmas

2009-01-10T20:59:00.001-06:00

Finally we have gotten around to updating the blog with some Christmas photos. We did a lot of traveling for the holidays, only being home a total of 2.5 days from Christmas Day through the Saturday after New Years. Little Josiah handled it all very well. Above is our first family photo on Christmas Eve. We were home for Chirstmas Eve and were able to go to Christmas Eve service at our church.

Christmas morning Josiah got to hang out with Pop-pop until we headed over to Skip and Steph's to open presents. He seemed to be pretty comfortable sitting on Pop-pop's lap.

Great Grandpa Pankratz didn't miss too many opportunities to hold his Great Grandson.

Josiah - you better watch out for your goofy Grandpa... always seems to find a way to do something silly with the bows!

Uncle Luke flew all the way from Germany to meet his nephew and a get a little practice in for being a daddy come June. Josiah just curled up and slept on Luke's chest.

"Aunt" Mandy FINALLY got to meet our little guy. She was pretty excited and Josiah initiated her by spitting up on her - twice and missing the burp rag on both occasions.

We hope you all had a wonderful holiday. We are trying to get into a routine around our house but we will see how that goes.

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-28T21:41:00.000-06:00

Merry Christmas to everyone (a few days late). Josiah had a busy past few days including traveling to Grandma and Grandpa Call's house and meeting mom's cousin Lori. Then traveling to Cedar Vale for the big Call Christmas meeting all of mom's aunts and uncles and many cousins. Josiah was a wonderfully traveler and slept through many long car rides.

More pictures to come of all our traveling and meeting family.

A week of many firsts

2008-12-20T21:47:00.000-06:00

It was a week of many firsts for our precious little Josiah. On Monday, we ventured out in the cold weather to surprise Uncle Caleb as he arrived back in the states after living in Indonesia for the past two years. Uncle Caleb was pretty excited and proud of his first nephew! We had a great dinner at Famous Dave's. Josiah did great until we were done eating, and then he decided it was his turn!

Our first bath:

We gave Josiah his first bath on Sunday night. It was quite the process and Josiah screamed during most of it. The best part as combing his hair - he has a natural mohawk.

On Wednesday, we are our first outing, just Mom and Josiah. We had a doctor's appointment - Josiah is doing well was almost back up to his birth weight. After the doctor's we went to mom's office to show off. Every one thought he was great! Mom was even able to run by the store. A very successful outing for our first one. We made it home just in time to eat again!

On Friday, we went to our first Christmas Party. Josiah was dressed in a cute little Christmas outfit, but managed to pee all over it right before we left (the first of many last minute wardrobe changes). We had a good time seeing friends and introducing our new little fellow. He was great - just sleeping through it all!

Tomorrow, we are hoping to make it to church for our first time as a family of 3. They weather is suppose to be bitterly cold so we will see how the night goes and what the temps are like in the morning.

More pictures to come tomorrow of proud grandparents and great-grandparents.

We're home!

2008-12-11T20:37:00.000-06:00

Just a quick update to let you know we are home and everyone is doing well. We got home around 2:30 this afternoon. Jeff and I just laughed at the state our house was in! Here are a couple of pictures.
All dressed up and ready to go home!

Proud (and tired) mommy - I am not as drugged as I look!

Happy and proud daddy!

Zane meeting sizing up his competition!

More to come later... I am off to feed him and daddy is in bed getting rest.

Welcome to the World... Josiah Scott Pankewich

2008-12-10T13:32:00.000-06:00

I know we have either talked to or emailed/facebooked with most of you, so you know some of the details by now. Josiah Scott Pankewich was brought into the World at 9:55 PM on Tuesday, December 9, 2008. He weighs 7lbs 8oz, and is 19 inches long. He is just perfect. We keep thinking to ourselves..."Is it just because he is our kiddo that he seems so perfect, or does he really look that good, and behave so well???" It is truly amazing. Here's the story the best I can tell it.

Heidi went to the doctor on Tuesday morning for a check-up. Heidi has been pretty swollen for the past couple of weeks, and only getting bigger... Dr. Brunner was a bit worried about preeclampsia, so she told Heidi to go home and rest for the remainder of the day. Her blood pressure was a bit high and some of the other tests came back as warning signs that we needed to keep a close eye on her. Josiah was fine, but we were on alert for sure. Like is typical for her, Heidi went back to work for a short time to talk to her boss and co-worker so that she could let them be ready to take the things that Heidi was working on and run with them... Due to the snow, I went home a bit early from work. I had to run a couple of errands when I got there, so I went back into town. Heidi called me and told me that the nurse wanted her to get a blood pressure monitor so that we could keep an eye on her. Heidi was also so excited that she got to begin a 24 hour urine test starting Wednesday morning.

I got home from my running around and Heidi was on the phone with her boss, going over a few more work things. She hung up the phone at about 5:45 and she was going to get something to eat. We didn't get so far though... Right about 6:00 her water broke. We laid her down in the bed and I called in. They told us to come right in to the hospital, and her contractions started in about 10 minutes. They were about 5 minutes apart from the very beginning. I frantically packed my bag of clothes and gathered the last-minute things that I needed while trying to stay calm and time her contractions... it was a bit crazy. We got into the car and headed right to the hospital. Luckily the highway is right by the house and it wasn't too slick. They did a good job of clearing the highways of the snow and ice, so I was able to driveat about 50-55 mph.

We got to the hospital shortly after 7:00 and they brought us right to the room. Heidi progressed pretty quickly and it was pretty obvious that this was going to be a quick labor. Without going into too many details, she went from 2 cm and 75% effaced to 5 cm and 90% effaced in about 40 minutes. By then, she was having difficulty controlling her breathing. The nurses were great at getting her under control when I couldn't. She was also ready to get the epidural by now. They ordered the epidural, and by the time that she got it, she was probably 7cm, so pretty much past the danger zone of receiving it too early. Our Doctor was called and she made the trek to the hospital after she had just finished her bath and hopped into bed. (poor Dr. Brunner had travelled home which 2.5 hours due to the weather and traffic. Fortunately it only took about 30 minutes for her to get back.) When she got here, Heidi was very alert and relaxed and ready to deliver. She was at 9-10 cm, so the doctor got all robed up and they made the final preparations for Heidi. The doc came over and got Heidi to start pushing... From then it went so fast, and Heidi did very well... She only had to push through four contractions, for about 8 minutes, and beautiful Josiah popped out very healthy and crying like he should at 9:55... What an amazing moment when Dr. Brunner got him out and turned him so that Heidi could see him. I got to cut the cord and they took him to the warmer and cleaned him up. Heidi had a little bit of tearing so the doc had to stitch her up, and by the time she was ready, they brought him over and put him right on her chest. within 10 minutes, she was able to start feeding him a little bit. We got about an hour to ourselves with him, with only a few visits to check both Heidi and Josiah. What a blessing to be able to have this precious time with just the three of us.

We are so grateful for all that has gone on, and how well everything went. We are also grateful for all of your prayers for us. We feel so loved and so fortunate that God has blessed us with such a wonderful, precious baby boy.

I attached a few pics that Heidi's friend Emily got on her camera this morning when she visited. Unfortunately we forgot to bring the cable to download from our camera to the computer, there will be plenty of more pics that we will be able to post when we get home... which if all goes well will be sometime Thursday around lunch. Thank you for your love and prayers for us.

Showered by family and friends

2008-11-30T21:38:00.000-06:00

Last weekend we were showered by family and friends. My sister-in-law, Steph, hosted the shower at their house. We had a Radio Flyer (red and black) theme! It was awesome. Also, my niece and nephew helped Nana make some yummy dirt "wormy" cake!

Our niece Emerald is really excited to meet our little guy! I think this is a precious picture - even though it was somewhat posed.

Grandma Call, Me, and Nana Pankewich! For Grandma, our little guy will be the first grandchild with a second one to come in about six months. For Nana, he will be the fourth grandchild with the third one added just 3 months ago, and a fifth being added in a couple months! We are excited to see our little guy grow up with cousins on both sides of the family so close to him in age.

The post would not be complete with out a picture of the "Callgirls!" We missed Tamra the fifth Callgirl and can't wait for her to move back! Soon all the callgirls will be back in Kansas.

We had such a great day celebrating with family and friends. Unfortunately, I don't have a picture of Steph and I, or of my good friends from college that came. They are all on someone else's camera. We felt very blessed by the generousity of so many people that care about us.

Update on the pregnancy: We will be at 37 weeks on Tuesday - hard to believe. We are packing the hospital bag so it is ready. I did all of his laundry this weekend and trying to put it all away. We have our cloth diapers ordered and they should be here in a few days. So I think we are ready. Overall, I am starting to wear down - getting more tired and sore each day. I am pretty proud of myself, I have actually taken it easy the past few days. Taking naps and not getting everything done that is on my list - which is an accomplishment in itself for me. We were able to travel to my parents for Thanksgiving - a brief but good trip.

Jeff is currently "nesting" by redoing our bathtub/shower surround. It needed to be done soon - it was pretty bad. As with any other home improvement project it never goes quite as planned. We currently have some very beautiful cement backer board up. Hopefully in a few days some nice new tile. In the meantime we are taking sponge baths and traveling to Skip and Stephs for showers.

That is all for now. We will try to post a little more regularly... and soon we will have tons of pictures of our new little one to post. We hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

"My Last Post" by Zane

2008-10-28T21:25:00.000-05:00

Hi, my name is Zane. You may have heard about me, but you probably won't hear about me or see pictures of me for a while... They keep moving stuff around in my house, moving my kennel and my orange chair around to different places. I know something is going on but I'm not sure what.

Take a good look at these pictures as they may be my last ones on this blog... ever!
Daddy thinks its funny to dress me up in his sweatshirts... I don't feel the same way!

I like to rest my head on Mommy's lap, but her lap seems to be getting smaller and smaller these days. Not sure why, but probably has something to do with all the stuff they keep moving around. They keep pointing to Mommy's belly and asking me where Josiah is? I keep looking, but I still can't see him.

- Zane

72 days until Christmas...

2008-10-14T20:28:00.000-05:00

Just a quick update to let you all know we have reached the 30 week mark and can't believe our little guy could be here in approximately 10 weeks. I would upload some pictures, but my computer is currently disabled as we have finally cleared out the old office/new nursery and have not got everything set up in the new office/storage room yet. More to come soon!

29 Weeks...

2008-10-07T18:25:00.001-05:00

Wow it is hard to believe we are starting our 29th week today. Jeff and I are getting excited, as well as overwhelmed at times when we think about all that we would like to get done before our little guy comes into the world. Not much new news on the baby front. I passed by diabetes test which is great and am starting my every other week appointments now. I am still feeling really good except that I get winded a little bit easier and have to go to the bathroom about every hour or so.

On the home front, we have the former storage room / new office painted. We are cleaning the carpets and hoping to get the office stuff moved this weekend. Then we can begin to set up the nursery! I can't wait!

On the family front, this past weekend we had a great time at my parents house spending time with grandpa, parents, two of my brothers and their wives. It was a good relaxing weekend for Jeff and I.

Not much else to blog on today. Sorry no pictures. I need to have Jeff take another one of my ever expanding belly!

Parenting Practice

2008-09-30T21:31:00.000-05:00

This past weekend Jeff and I got the chance to practice our parenting ability. Jeff's brother Skip and his wife Steph were kind enough to take a vacation without the kids so we could get some practice in before our little guy comes along. We were in charge of 3 1/2 year old, Emerald and 1 1/2 year old Calvin for the whole weekend.

Jeff had to work on Saturday so I decided to take the 2 kids to the Louisburg Cider Mill Ciderfest, by myself. It was quite the adventure, but the kids did great. Here are a few pictures.

They wouldn't cooperate for the "normal" sitting among the pumpkins picture, so I settled for this one and it actually turned out pretty cute. Emerald refused to turn around and so Calvin just copied her.

I finally caught Emerald when she wasn't expecting it!

Calvin did a great job posing for the camera when sister wasn't telling him not to!

The highlight of the festival for Emerald was that she got to ride a pony. She loves horses and was only a little bit nervous at first, but enjoyed the ride!

Calvin got to play in the inflatable game! He didn't jump much but still had a good time.

I only got a few looks of "oh you've got your hands full!" All in all it was a fun time. I was pretty wiped out by the time we got home. Overall, the weekend went well. Jeff and I love our niece and nephew a whole lot, but we also realized that there is a reason design God human life to develop as it does. We are thankful that our little guy will start out small, immobile, and not talking! We got in some great practice and are getting more excited to meet our little guy in a few months!

3rd Trimester - Here we come!

2008-09-14T21:35:00.000-05:00

We can both hardly believe that we started the 3rd trimester this past week. On Tuesday we will be at week 26 of 40 (that means only 14 weeks and 2 days until Christmas - in case you were counting). Wow how the time has flown by. We did some serious consignment sale shopping this week - 2 nights in a row. Got a lot of great deals and our little boy will have some warm clothes. He already has his first church outfit!

We had another doctors appointment this last week and everything is good. I measured 26 weeks even though I was only at 25, oh well we have come to think he is going to be a big guy - we will just have to see.

As I am starting to show more and our due date gets closer we get asked a lot about the nursery. Well, its painted, and has been for over a year now, but it is still a very messy office! We are hoping in the next few weeks to get our back "storage" room organized, painted, and ready to move the office too. Then the fun begins - setting up the nursery. We already have so much stuff for it scattered throughout the house - wherever there is a little nook or cranny to stick something.

We also are excited that cousin number 3 on Jeff's side was born this past week. Jeff's sister Laura and her husband Shane welcomed little Simon into the world late Sunday night. By the time March rolls around we will have a total of 5 cousins on Jeff's side. We are so excited for our little guy to have two cousins only a few months apart in age!

That's all for now. Sorry no pictures this time. We will try to get some up of the nursery transition process!

Week 23 (a little late)

2008-09-08T21:39:00.000-05:00

I am a little late in making this post as we are almost at week 25 now. But I thought I would put these pictures up anyway (I am in blogging mode right now.)

This is not me, but Jeff at week 23. I think he has put a few sympathy pounds.

This is me at week 23. I feel like I am getting bigger fast. At my 21 week appointment my doctor said I had put on some weight! We have another appointment tomorrow (week 25). I am interested to see how much our little guy has grown over the past four weeks.

Gateway Anniversary - Day 2

2008-09-08T20:46:00.000-05:00

On Sunday morning we headed down to take in the sites of the grand Gateway Arch. Jeff took some neat pictures as we were walking up to it. It is pretty amazing to see it in person and stand right by it.

Of course we had to go up in the arch. This the "umpa-lumpa" door as we referred to it. The door was about 4 feet high by 2 feet high - a lot smaller than either of us had anticipated. When it opened, you were expected to get inside this rounded space ship looking vehicle that had 5 seats. Luckily, only one other couple, from Michigan, got in so we only had 4 adults (I being the smallest) on the 4 minute ride up. Its amazing what you can find out about people when you have 4 minutes in a small confined space.
Jeff is sitting in the little "space ship" that took us to the top (note: he is not relieving himself as it may appear.)

Once you step out of the "umpa-lumpa" door we walked up a short flight of stairs to the top!...and what a view there was from the top. Jeff once again demonstrated his photography abilities. This is a look to the West from the top of the arch.

St. Louis Cardinls stadium from the arch.

After the arch, we ate our picnic lunch in the park area around the arch. Guess what we ate... pb&j again, apples, and cookies. We did stop on our way out to Purina Farms for some famous Ted Dreww's frozen custard. We ended our time in St. Louis with a trip to Purina Farms where we saw a dog show and talked to the dog trainer who has the same type of dog as our Zane - he gave us some tips on brands of toys for him.

On our way back to KC we stopped in Columbia for some pizza at Shakespeares.

We had a great trip even though it was short.

PS. For those who have heard our honeymoon story - just wanted to let you know that I booked our hotel rooms online and everything turned out ok this time! No weird surprises!

Gateway Anniversary

2008-09-08T20:08:00.000-05:00

Jeff and I celebrated our 3 year anniversary a couple of weeks ago. To celebrate and take the "babymoon" that everyone suggest you take before the little on comes along, we headed to St. Louis Labor Day weekend. Neither of us had been there, except for driving through. Here are some pictures of what we did. We had a great time and enjoyed spending time with just the two of us away from work and all the odd jobs around the house.

Saturday we started off with breakfast in our hotel room... no we did not get room service, I just am becoming more and more like my mother or maybe finally realizing why we didn't get to eat every meal out. I bought groceries before we left and packed food for our breakfasts and lunches while we were away. Can't go on vacation with a cooler!

After breakfast we headed to Forest Park - home of the World's Fair back in the day. It is a 1500+ acre park. We did some paddle boating on the lake and streams around the park. Here are some pictures from our jaunt on the lake. We paddled by the fountains and up on the hill is the art museum.

We ate lunch at the park of course, our peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, chips, apples, and cookies. Then we headed over to the St. Louis Zoo - also in Forest park. The best part was it was free. After see some of the animals we headed to our hotel for a nap before our big evening out....

Our big splurge of the weekend trip was a riverboat dinner cruise. We rode on the Becky Thatcher Riverboat, had a great meal and listened to live band (piano and banjo) play riverboat music. We saw an amazing sunset over the Mississippi River and some great views of the arch in the evening.

The sunset we saw over the Mississippi while we were eating dinner!

Jeff was really impressed with the big chains. They were used to anchor the different tourist establishments along the river to shore. They were pretty big as you can tell from the size of Jeff's foot next to the chain links.

Over Halfway... 21 weeks and growing

2008-08-12T20:08:00.000-05:00

We had another doctor's appointment today. We are at 21 weeks, which is over halfway - hard to believe! Everyone is still healthy and my belly size and weight are right on track. Besides fighting a cold and sinus infection the past week, I have been feeling pretty well over all. Below are a couple of pictures of my expanding belly. I have been very fortunate in that a close friend of my sister-in-law Steph wears the same size clothes as me and has graciously let me borrow her maternity clothes. It is nice to have a whole new wardrobe of clothes that fit and you didn't have to buy all of it. We are verry thankful.

In other news, we are excited for Jeff's sister and bother-in-law, Laura and Shane to welcome their first little boy in a few weeks! By Christmas time, we will have doubled the grandchildren on the Pankewich side - that is if our little guy decides to come before Christmas. By the end of February, we will be adding yet another grandbaby to the Pankewich side. We recently recived the exciting news that Jeff's bother and sister-in-law, Skip and Steph, who have our little neice and nephew are also expecting. They are due in February! How exciting!

Reflection: Just a little reflection on how life has changed already. As my body continues to change in ways that I have absolutely no control over, I am reminded about how often I selfishly try to control my life. I am learning how I must continuly lean on Jesus Christ for my strength and trust him completely to control my life. It is not mine to control in the first place, yet I sure try to. I am also find myself noticing things I never did before and caring less about things I used to think were so important and really weren't. I am sure there are many changes ahead and many things that I will not be able to control. But the one thing I do know is that if I put my trust in Christ, he will take care of it all and all my anxiety can rest on him.

Quick update

2008-07-25T20:40:00.001-05:00

Sorry no new pictures this time... you are going to have to wait a few more months before you get pictures of our actual little boy. We will try to post some more of my expanding belly soon. I really feel like the past few days my belly has gotten bigger.

We have started doing a little shopping for our little one. Jeff picked out some cute little overalls that are camo colored. He was pretty excited about them.

Not much else new to report on but I wanted to post another entry to let you know we are doing well. I am starting to have more days of energy than not, which is good.

Little boy on the way!

2008-07-16T21:32:00.000-05:00

We had our first sonogram today and our little baby cooperated very well and the first shot we (mainly the technician) were able to tell we have a little boy on the way. I had a feeling it was a boy. We are both excited and it was really special to see our little boy's arms and legs. He is healthy and just a little bit bigger than he should be for his age - nothing to worry about though.

Covering his eyes!

He put his hand down... but we never got a good look at his face.

Our First Post: 17 weeks

2008-07-14T20:53:00.001-05:00

Welcome to our blog...

We thought we would start off with a a couple of pictures of the progression of our baby. We are at 17 weeks and I am starting to get a little bump. Jeff, on the other hand, has a little bump - but that is nothing new for him! We are getting excited about the new addition to our family and will soon know whether to call the "little bump" a he or a she!