Happy Birthday, Tammy!

Happy Birthday to my sister-in-love, Tammy, who is ___ years old today!

Tammy and her family moved out of state 2 1/2 years ago, so while we don't get to see each other as often as we would like, she is still a very special part of our family.

Tammy gave me such a warm welcome into her family when David and I started dating. Since I am the oldest child in my family, it has always been special to have Tammy as an, ahem, older sister from whom to seek counsel. She has always pointed me in the direction of what is God-honoring and has, over the years, encouraged my spiritual walk.

She is a loving pastor's wife and mother to five children (four girls and one boy). Dave and I lived in Tammy and Roland's house five years ago for about five weeks while we were waiting for our house to be finished. During that time, we made many special memories with all of them, and she was a godly example of wife and mother to me. She and I also enjoyed quite a few early morning talks over coffee (just hers - y'all know I don't drink that stuff!) in her living room.

Tammy, I pray that this year finds you basking in the blessings of the Lord, and that He will use your family to remind you on a daily basis how important what you do, every day, is for His kingdom. You are making a difference! Happy Birthday!

Remember the Free Playground?

Some of you may remember when we brought home a playground in May we found for free on Craig's List.

David has been working on it little by little over the summer. It needed some reinforcing, some sanding, some paint stripped off, priming, staining, and reconstruction.

Here are the BEFORE photos.

Now, here is the AFTER!


Andrew has thoroughly enjoyed playing on it, and he LOVES the slide. He is so excited to have a playground in his backyard.

One day, Andrew and I came home from shopping while David had been finishing the project. We walked over to the sliding patio doors, and walked on to the patio. We did not prompt Drew - yet as soon as he saw his playground, painted and put together, he exclaims: "Daddy, you did it! You did it! You made my playground beautiful!" Priceless words out of his mouth, and Dave was so touched by Andrew's sincerity and excitement.

REVISED Baby Countdown

Well, now that I've completely confused everyone, the 19th is no longer the Birthday. The only reason I was a little disappointed was because that was my grandfather's birthday. However, it is what it is and there is no reason for me to be sad.

So, unless baby makes an early arrival on his own, his birthday is scheduled for September 21st.

We would appreciate your prayers for the next few weeks, particularly as we continue to discuss more with Andrew about what is coming and how best to plan for him during those days when baby is born and we are in the hospital.

Any wisdom you want to share in this area is also welcome!

I am continuing to make slow but steady progress in the nursery. Most recently, I cleaned out and sorted one large memory box (photos, keepsakes, memorabilia). You would not believe the trash I was able to get out of that thing! Oh, it felt so nice to purge all that 'stuff'!

Then, I found another one... yikes. But, I started on that one this afternoon during an unusually long nap for my little boy.

We also picked up the rope-styled decorative moulding for the chair rail in the nursery today at Lowe's. PRICEY - I was not happy about it, but other options would be more expensive and take too long. Thanks, Laurie, for the idea on what to use as our division for the chair rail! David is going to try to get it installed this week after work.

Drew and I pulled out all the newborn baby clothes (those we saved from Drew, those we recently purchased, and those we received as gifts). We sorted them and washed them so that tomorrow we can start putting them in the dresser.

David's Daddy Shower

The team of teachers with which David works threw him a "Daddy Shower" at work yesterday. It was very cute and lots of fun. Drew and I joined the festivities as we watched Daddy at a shower in his honor, which, in my opinion, is nice for a change.

A version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire was devised for Dave to play, appropriately titled instead Who Wants to Be a Daddy. He had to wear this crazy cool Super Daddy apron made for his diaper changing duties, and his arsenal was complete with three lifelines he could use while answering questions during the course of the game.


The three ladies that are part of the 4th/5th grade team with David are amazing. Here is a photo of them all together after the party. From left to right: Mary, Janet, Tammie, and of course, the Daddy.

Updated Baby Countdown

To the right, you can see my little 'Baby Countdown' in blue. That is according to my original due date, which is 9/30. However, most of you know I have to have a scheduled c-section. Well, this past week at the Doctor's, I was given my window of date choices, and I selected 9/19. So, whatever the Baby Countdown on the right says, just subtract 11 days from it.

September 19th would be my maternal Grandfather's 97th birthday if he were still alive. He went to be with the Lord a little over 10 years ago. I was very close with him, and was praying that his birthday would be one of my choices for Baby's birth. Now, unless God decides to insert His sense of humor here, Baby will come on Grandpa Rosy's birthday.

Baby Projects

I don't know where to start about the long list of projects we had on our list to complete this summer while Dave was home. However, now that he has gone back to work, I am working on getting Drew back on his 'normal' routine (although I know in a little over a month it will all be disrupted again).

There are also various projects left on my list I need to complete before the baby comes. Some are directly related to Baby himself; others are just items that need crossing off before he arrives that don't really have anything to do with a new baby in the house.

Drew and I completed two of those this week that are kind of exciting. We washed all the bassinet linens and assembled the bassinet. Of course, Drew keeps asking to go for a ride in it, and we have the long conversation over and over about how he is too big, but he did 'go for rides' in it when he was a little baby. He has been practicing rocking his big teddy bear in the bassinet, and he likes to sing while he does it. Very cute.

Another accomplishment (especially in the heat and when your belly is out to ........... here), we washed, re-assembled, and installed the infant car seat in the van. Again, Drew thinks he is the baby and that he should fit in the seat. After I let him have his turn in it, I think he realized how uncomfortable it is for him. So, now, if baby comes at any point, they will let us leave the hospital with him because his seat is properly installed. That is always a good thing (to be able to leave with your own baby)!

So, the list goes on, but we are making progress, one item at a time, one day at a time.

Our Little Boy is Three!

Friday, July 31st, was Andrew's Third Birthday! We can hardly believe it. He has grown to be such a compassionate little boy who is full of excitement, loves to share his sense of humor, and is growing to know more about Jesus each day. He is filled with wonder for the natural world around him, and loves to be a helper to Daddy and/or Mommy, regardless of the task. He enjoys cooking (baking), doing laundry, helping in the yard, and washing windows! To say we are thankful for this precious gift the Lord gave to us three years ago is quite an understatement, but is as true as can be.

Andrew loves to talk, and each day, he surprises us with what he will say next (in a good way). Just last night, Daddy asked him: "Drew, what was your favorite part about visiting the dentist today?" Andrew's reply astounded us, as he phrased it in a complete sentence, which, of course, we have not 'taught' him yet. He said, "My favorite part was going up in the spaceship chair."

The other night we asked, while in the car riding home after dark, "Andrew, who hung the moon?" I wasn't really sure what his response would be- I think part of me thought he wouldn't understand the question. He replied, quite emphatically, "JESUS!"

I wish I would have written down all the amazing things he has said in the last week or so, but I wouldn't be wishing I had if, I, in fact, had. So, thanks for humoring me and allowing me to share a few things I remember from the last couple days.

While we wish we could stall this time in his life (doesn't every parent), we look forward to seeing how God is going to continue to grow him through the years. Andrew, it has been the joy of our lives to be your parents, even for these three short years, and we thank God for the awesome responsibility and privilege He has given us with your life. We love you, and Happy Birthday!

Dad and Mom... You are SO Two Hours Ago!

Last week, we visited with some friends, Dan, Erin, and Baby Hope, at their house, for dinner. Hope was awake for a little while but then it was bed time. We enjoyed dinner together, which by the way, was delicious! Then we visited in the living room and Drew was playing with Hope's toys. He also had brought some 'toys' of his own (plastic bugs). He was playing with Dan and Erin, having so much fun. We watched and reveled in the fun they were all having. It was so funny to see Drew be so excited to have another set of adults besides Mom and Dad to play with. He was so excited to have their attention, and was quite the ham. Here are some photos Erin took while they were playing.