update...

Sorry it's been a little while since I've updated...Ethan is feeling much better. He still has a runny nose and cough, but he is eating and playing again! Hooray! Thanks for all your prayers. He is doing several new things lately, so I'll have to capture them on camera and share them with you. He's been eating Cheerios by himself for a couple of weeks....it's so cute to see him feed himself. He's also discovered how to jump and stand in his jump n' go. Before he always just spun and twisted around. Now he's bouncing all over the place. It's so funny! I'll try to get pics of these happenings and more very soon! Until then...have a great weekend! :)

sickness

Well, the last several days Ethan has been dealing with a really bad cold. Bless his heart, he just sneezes and coughs all day and has had a fever off and on for about five days. Each day he continued to get worse. Yesterday Josh went to church and I stayed home with Ethan. Well I knew something was up when he didn't get up in the middle of the night like he normally does. And he usually sleeps in until about 7:30 every morning. I knew he hasn't been feeling well so I just kept letting him sleep when 8:00 past, then 9:00. I kept checking on him to make sure he was breathing, but just let him sleep. I finally went up to his room at 10:00 and made a little noise to try to wake him up and he finally opened his eyes, but nothing else moved. I picked him up and he felt really warm to me. I went to change his diaper, after 13 hours of sleeping, and he wasn't hardly even wet. All he wanted me to do was hold him. He didn't have enough energy to hold his head up. He just layed his head on my shoulder and never moved. I even picked up his arm and it just flopped back down. I tried to get him to eat or drink something and he wouldn't. I called the doctor on call and he told me to get to the ER. I called the church and someone got Josh and he came home right away, planning on going to the ER. Well, Josh somehow got Ethan to start drinking and he ate a little as well. He started to gain a little energy so we decided to wait on heading to the hospital. It was off and on all day with him being lethargic and then having a little more energy. He was just pretty dehydrated. So anyways, he is doing much better today. Praise God! It was just so scary not seeing him move or react at all yesterday. So, hopefully we're on the mend and he can get over this nasty sickness. For all of you who called and helped out yesterday, we appreciate it!!

justin and jen

So I was looking back through some pictures of Justin and Jen's wedding and I just had to post a few. We love you both so much and so glad that God brought you together!!

correction...

So my brother decided to inform me that I made a mistake calling my previous post a "solar eclipse"...evidently I was mistaken...I guess it was a lunar eclipse....though it was beautiful all the same! Thanks Justin :)

solar eclipse!

If you look closely, you can see the solar eclipse that happened last night. It was so beautiful! It was such a clear night too. The picture obviously doesn't do it justice. (I even had the camera zoomed in all the way!) It gives me chills thinking about it even now. It just reminds me how powerful and sovereign God truly is. He created the entire universe and is still in control!

new pics

I was finishing getting everything packed in the diaper bag for church and turned around...and there Ethan was taking things out! He found what he wanted though...the cell phone! I love this picture...he's got that "Oh no, I got caught" look on his face...priceless!

Tickling is the worst!!

Eyeing the situation :)

visitors!

This past weekend my parents and sister came up from Indiana to visit. Ethan had such a great time playing and reading books with them! Enjoy the pics!

happy valentine's day!!!

"I love looking at the cards my grandmas and grandpas got me...

I am one lucky little boy!"

Happy Valentine's Day!

ethan update...

Many of you may know that Ethan has struggled with reflux since he was born, and we have been to many doctors and had various tests done to determine what has been irritating him so much. Last week, we visited a gastroenterologist in Columbus and she wanted us to do another upper GI. (If you are a parent who has gone through this test with your child, you know how awful it is to have your child fast, and they cry and cry because they don't know why you're not feeding them...and then they shove barium down their throat trying to get a good picture of the stomach while you are holding their arms and legs down....sorry, I'm reliving it too vividly!) Anyway, we had the second upper GI done this past Monday and the radiologist said that everything looks really good, structurally everything is intact and where it is supposed to be. He does have acid reflux and the doctor prescribed Prevacid...so as of now, he is doing soooo good on the medicine. He has been sleeping better (and longer!) and is so much more content. He smiles and smiles and it just melts my heart. I have longed for this little boy to show his true colors all along....praise God!

my friends

This weekend Josh and I were able to visit with several of our friends, so Ethan was also able to visit with his :) Here are Ethan and Jackson watching Praise Baby, although Ethan kept checking Jackson out...out of the corner of his eye.



Next thing we know, Ethan is reaching over to touch the top of Jackson's head...



Then Ben and Josh had a fun time having the boys box each other!!



Loving spending time together...



Another night this past weekend we got together with a few other friends and Ethan was able to play with Addabelle and Remmington.



Remmington sure has the cutest curly hair! He is walking all over the place and he has been for over a month now (he's 10 months old now!) It's so weird to think that Ethan could be walking soon as well.



The three kiddos hanging out...



Remmington liked Josh to hold both him and Ethan at the same time...



Getting to know each other!

my ministry is you

This song was sung at our M.O.P.S. meeting yesterday morning and it has encouraged me so much...I thought I would share it with you all, whether you stay at home with your children or not. The message is truly priceless...our ministry to our children, and teaching them to love the Lord are the most important things we can ever instill in them.

It's so easy to look outside

And feel there must be more

Than staying home with young ones

Playin' on the floor

This world keeps telling me

Stayin' home is not for you

But in my heart I'm learning

What God wants me to do

For this special time in my life

My ministry is you

Tho' so many things pull on my heart

My ministry is you

So all of this world can wait

While I give myself to you

Because you only stay young

For a little while

My ministry is you

It's a privilege to love

And teach you every day

Even good things are bad

If they take me away

From the time I have with you

To lead you in God's way

To help you love and serve Him

All of your days

I know that I'm your only mother

And these days we have together are few

So in this fleeting and precious time

My life is devoted to you

For this special time in my life
My ministry is you
Tho' so many things pull on my heart
My ministry is you
So all of this world can wait
While I give myself to you
Because you only stay young
For a little while
My ministry is you

I pray that these words touch your heart and encourage you as much as they have me...may we consider being a mother a ministry that is incredibly priceless!

fun with the cousins...

It's sure hard to get all three of them to sit together at once!



Aunt Stacy rocking a very tired little boy...



Colvin wrapped Pacho up in a blanket to keep him warm :)



I love this picture of Kale and his "mu-ky"! :)

nine months old!

It's official! Ethan is nine months old today...it just doesn't seem possible. We are incredibly blessed to have him in our lives, and we thank God every day for His gift to us. Here are a few of his recent accomplishments...

-waving at everyone!

-playing peek-a-boo

-playing pat-a-cake and clapping his hands

-shaking his head "no" (even though he doesn't know what it means yet!)

-standing with help

-starting to pull up into a standing position

-still not crawling, but rolls back and forth everywhere

-loving to eat Cheerios (it's so cute to hear him crunching!)

-always seems to have an "orange" nose because he LOVES his orange veggies!

-has four teeth now (top two and bottom two)

-went sledding for the first time this month

-weighs in at a whopping 17.5 lbs! (he's just a little guy!)

sickness...

Well, since Thursday Ethan has been battling a nasty cold...and I believe that Josh and I are now coming down with it as well :( I have to admit that I have been tempted to take several pictures of him as cute as he is sick....but I feel awful knowing how miserable he feels. His cute little red nose and watery eyes are so sweet. It's so hard to believe that he will be nine months old this Wednesday! Hopefully he'll be feeling better and I can post some new pics...and we'll update you on all of his new accomplishments. Until then, we'll be focusing on feeling better...