Wednesday, December 31, 2008

Eight Great Blessings in 2008



New House -
In January we moved into our house. It is the first place we have been able to paint and we have had a blast making this place our home. The nursery, of course, was the best project but we also painted the kitchen, redid an old hutch, put up a fence in the backyard, painted our bedroom and the guest bathroom. We have big plans for 2009 too I can't wait to do some more painting inside and work in the backyard!



Expecting -
On Valentines Day I found out that we were pregnant again! I hadn't told Stephen I suspected anything and waited until that morning to take a home test. Walking out of the bathroom, I simply handed him the test and said Happy Valentines Day. The sweet look on his face was precious.



Graduation-
In January, Stephen finished his last class for his Masters degree but it wasn't until May that it was official. In April, we took a trip to Louisville where Stephen was honored at a CYM banquet and were able to say our goodbyes to the campus. In May, we had a big Graduation party with lots of family and friends. It was a special day when we finally got the actual diploma in the mail. We thank God for the special memories and all that we learned during our time at Seminary.



Family Trip to the Beach -
It was so much fun to watch Mary Beth explore (and eat) the sand at the beach. Even without a normal nap schedule she was a joy to be with because you could see how much fun she was having. We also took a boat ride, ate at great restaurants, took some beautiful pictures and really enjoyed our Forth of July!




Mary Beth's first Birthday -
The whole year was amazing to watch Mary Beth grow, first sitting up in January, learning to crawl in May, and learning to walk in August. Lots of precious memories that we will never forget but her birthday is at the top of the list. I will always love looking back at the video of her cautiously exploring her first cupcake.



Jackson's Arrival -
After a healthy(a little morning sickness, some heartburn but otherwise easy) pregnancy and then a few days of uneventful contractions I was grateful to be induced on October 14th. It was a blessing to have my friend Beth and Stephen in the delivery room to welcome Jackson into our family! Mary Beth has adjusted so well to Jackson. She hugs and kisses him every chance she gets. She is a great big sister.



Stephen's ordination -
In November, Stephen was ordained as a minister. It was a wonderful service and incredibly meaningful. The support of our church family is amazing. We feel so blessed to be a part of Anderson Mill. The Lord is at work in this church and we are so excited that he chose us to be part of it! We look forward to many, many years of ministry. We also enjoyed lots of family time with both Stephen's parents and my parents here to be part of the service.



Family Christmas-
This year, our time together at Christmas was especially meaningful. I had so much fun looking for, shopping for, picking out, wrapping and playing with Mary Beth and her first baby doll. It is so crazy how much a 17-month-old has picked up on. She rocks her baby, burps her baby, carries her baby in the carseat. So precious! What great memories.


New Blog

Stephen started a new blog!
It will highlight ministry happenings and
behind the scenes kinda stuff from
SHIFT Preteen Ministry and also the Middle School Ministry of AMRBC

Check it out - and if you know any parents or students,
let them know about
THE SPACE IN THE MIDDLE

Sunday, December 21, 2008

New Look

Early Christmas

Last year we started the tradition of having Christmas before Christmas. It started because we are so busy traveling on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, but I realized yesterday several other reasons we love Early Christmas!

1) We have the whole day to spend with the kids, playing with toys
2) Laundry doesn't matter! because the kids stay in pjs all day (and nobody came over to see the piles)
3) Dishes don't matter! because they'll still be there the next day and nobody was trying to cook...
4) No meal planning! it doesn't matter what we eat because its not the "real" Christmas Dinner - we'll leave that to Grandmothers
5) Restaurants are open - so we used a giftcard to go out to O'Charleys last night

I had such a great time. It was like having a day off!
I know my husband can never fully understand - but I'm so grateful that he started this tradition for me last year! Thanks Baby!

Today though, I gotta get back to work -
laundry and dishes are starting to gross me out!
Before I head back to the kitchen, I thought I'd share a few pictures...


Daddy got us matching pjs!


Reading about the best gift of all!


The boxes were bigger than Mary Beth, we thought she'd be more into it this year but she still didn't really get the whole unwrapping part


First baby doll!
We knew when Jackson got here that she would need her own baby.


We got one that makes sucking noises and cries when the paci falls out. It came with a bunch of accessories that are a little too old for Mary Beth, but she'll get the hang of it soon.


Jackson got some Pop-links.
They've made some cool improvements since my pop-links as a kid.


a rattle too!
[its pretty difficult to find toys for a 10-week-old]




Jackson fell asleep before we finished.
Also, I have to brag on my new shoes!
(That could be a blog entry in itself, so I'll save that story for later)


Mary Beth trying to show Jackson how to play with the pop-links.
He's very interested, can't you tell?


This is the only kinda mess in my house that I love to see!


Mary Beth was exhausted after 2 hours and took a wonderful, long morning nap. Maybe she is starting to understand that taking care of a baby is hard work!


My cutie pie gave me the best gift of all ...
(drum roll please....)
He slept through the night last night!
Not once did I get out of bed to feed, re-swaddle, change a diaper, or even put a paci back in!
Merry Christmas to me! =)

I hope you and your family have a wonderful, Christ-centered,
fun-filled, day-off kinda Christmas!

Monday, December 15, 2008

Two Month Old Cutie

Jackson "big boy" Timmons








We took Jackson to the doctor today for his 2 month well visit.
He is now 12 lbs, 12 oz and 23 inches long.
75th percentile in weight and 50th percentile in length.
He is doing well so far, after getting 3 shots this morning,
but we'll see what the next few hours brings.

Any day now, we are expecting him to let us sleep through the night.
He wakes up once or twice but is perfectly happy getting his paci and going right back to sleep. He goes 8-9 hours in between feedings at night, but it isn't quite "uninterrupted" sleep yet.
When mom and I were shopping a few weeks ago, we saw a cute onsie that said
"ALL Mama wants for Christmas is a SILENT NIGHT"
Isn't that the truth!
But I definitely feel blessed to be getting as much sleep as I am.

Here is a little more cuteness for you.


Saturday, December 6, 2008

Stephen's Ordination Service

Sunday evening, Nov 30, 2008
Stephen was ordained at Anderson Mill Rd Baptist Church



The service was wonderful.
Stephen shared his testimony, DJ delivered a sermon of challenge
and encouragement, and Julie shared a challenge for wives.




Quick Family Pic



Our friends Chad and Jenny drove up from GA to come to the service.
Afterwards, we ventured out with 5 sleepy kids to Ruby Tuesday for dinner. We had a great time getting to visit with family and friends.

Thanks to all of our friends at AMRBC for coming to the service and supporting Stephen on this important evening.

Meeting Nana and Papa

Stephen's parents and Christopher and Lauren came up
the Saturday after Thanksgiving. It was the first time they
have been able to come since Jackson was born.






New Timmons family picture

Friday, December 5, 2008

Thanksgiving



This year for thanksgiving Mary Beth, Jackson and I had a relaxing morning at home while Stephen was at church selling turkeys. I prepared the dressing, gravy, and deviled eggs then simply heated up sweet potatoes and corn, and Stephen brought home a turkey.


After lunch and naps for the babies, we tried to get some pictures. Notice I said tried... difficult task with a 16 month old who wanted to play.


That evening we decorated for Christmas and Mary Beth played with her Precious Moments nativity. soooooo cute!



Sunday, November 16, 2008

One Month Old

Jackson's first Sunday going to church-
He did great!
I was so pleased that he slept through the whole service.






One Month Pics







Jackson is a super sweet baby
He is doing great on a four-hour schedule, eating,
then staying awake about 1 1/2 hours
then goes to sleep for a couple hours.
At night he is typically sleeping 5 hours then 4 hours,
which means only 1 feeding in the middle of the night!
He is a quiet, happy boy unless he is hungry
or has a dirty diaper.
I always laugh at the blogs with a long list of
accomplishments for their 6 month old
(what are you going to do for graduation? write a book? =)
but I have to mention that he is doing really well holding his head up.
We haven't been to the DR in a couple weeks,
but my unofficial weigh-in here tells me 10-10 1/2 lbs.
He's our happy big boy!

Friday, November 14, 2008

Quiet morning at home

Some days I just love my life...
Some days its really easy to be content in all things...
Today is one of those days!


Today....
I spent a few quiet moments with my husband before the kids woke up
I shared my poptart with the cutest toddler who asked for "more" in sign language
I was able to sit down to drink a cup of coffee
I tickled Mary Beth until she giggled so much, I laughed out loud
I sat and watched Jackson sleep
I reminded myself that laundry and dishes can wait

Praise the Lord for quiet mornings at home!

Monday, November 10, 2008

Other Pics from Georgia

This past weekend my parents were planning to bring my grandmother up to meet Jackson. At the last minute they were unable to make the trip, so I went to Georgia so I could still spend the weekend with them (I'm not ready for a road trip with 2 kids by myself so my amazing husband drove us down Thursday night and turned around and drove back for work on Friday)


meeting Granny (Jackson's great grandmother)


Maw Maw (Stephen's grandmother) and Paul stopped by to get some great-grandkid action too!


Grandparents


Mary Beth is finally big enough for the horsey


Jackson chillin with his Granddaddy





Also, the post would not be complete without also bragging on my most wonderful-est friend Beth who drove us half-way back to meet Stephen on Saturday. Stephen and I are so blessed to have great family and friends - and this trip was just another reminder of all that God has blessed us with!