A Story of Mary

Yes, it is the end of February and I have not been on the blogging world in what seems like forever. However, I will say it has been with good reason….back in early December little did I know I was about to begin a new chapter in my life! One of complete “Faith” !
Growing up as a child I always played “house”, had the most “babies”, was the neighborhood babysitter, and the church babysitter. My life has virtually revolved around kids! Fast forward 8 years….my lovely husband and I now have 3 beautiful children of our own and my love cup is overflowing.
As I lay in bed one night I found myself beginning to look forward to the next chapter of my life “Preschool and Beyond” leaving behind the chapter of “Diaper Duty”!
I prayed a very simple prayer; 
“Dear God, my mind and heart are in what seems to be a constant battle….one of moving forward and one of living in my ‘comfort’ baby zone. As I look ahead to what you may have planned for me and my family I pray that my mind, heart, and soul be open to all things.”
Fast forward a couple more weeks; 
Sitting at church listening to the story of Mary (one I have heard 100 times)

“Behold thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and shalt bring forth a son; and thou shalt call his name Jesus. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of David his father; and he shall reign in the house of Jacob forever.”

The priest proceeded to ask the congregation; “Could we too be as brave and fearless as Mary to go forth and do what the Lord asks of us?” Sitting there I thought…how strong Mary had been…to not question or have any self doubt….how admirable!! Could I be as brave? Could I do as I was asked without hesitation?

Little did I know….I already had!!
Three + One = Four
That’s Right! The Wednesday before Christmas we found out we were going to be a family of “6” “Dear God!!” this is what I wanted, right? Questions, fears, and self doubt (can I seriously handle 4 kids under 7?) have filled my mind over the months all to be comforted in knowing these few things….
We have a family that is full of love!
We have shelter!
We have food!
We have water!
And yes, “Faith”!!!
I know by “faith” in doing the things we are “called” we will have peace within ourselves. The greatest gift of all! When we desire the things in life that are not ours or were never meant for us it is only then that we experience feelings of failure, uncertainty, and jealousy! Traits which are not nearly as admirable… 
Baby Blessing #4 looks forward to meeting everyone in August 2012!

From baby to big boy!!

Mr. Smiles is in a toddler bed  he is doing great and we couldn’t be more proud of our little man!


 He is 18 months going on “3” (at least). He wants nothing more than to be like the big kids. When mommy walked in to find him horizontal on the front of the crib it was time to take down the rail. He is our youngest crib to bed transitioner (is that a word?) but so far so good.

He has even mastered the in and out! Naps are a bit more tricky these days as the toys in his room are ever so tempting. However, Im happy to say when the sleepy sand starts to come…our smart little guy will make his way into his bed for a snooze! Nice job buddy 🙂

 Keep up the good work!! Love, Mommy and Daddy

O’yes, and the stats on our man;
Tooth number 9 is popping through as of today
Weighing in at 23lbs (10-25%)
Height 32 inches (50%)
Say’s Momma, Dadda, T, Nonna, Papa, Ball, Uh-O, Santa, Tree, and sign language of coarse (our saving grace with all of our kids!)
Loves; his sisters, balls, trains, trucks, to eat, and play babies with his big sisters 🙂

Thank the Lord!!

 All I have to say is “Thank the Lord” for digital camera’s!! Trying to get “1” good picture this year for our Christmas cards was worse than getting a root canal. It was dark outside not letting enough light in from the outdoors, the lights in the house made the kids orange, and the tree lights gave a ‘special’ fire type glow! I give/gave up….picked 3 out of the terrible options and by far have created the worst family cards in my opinion in 6 years. O’well the message is still the same “Merry Christmas and Happy New Year” and “Many warm blessings for a happy 2012”!!

 Hope you enjoy the laughs….the blurry pics

 


 Ugh, Another one bites the dust!

 Cheese!

 She was soooo patient!!

 Are we done yet?

 Ahhhh, too much light!

 Getting old….

 Not bad 🙂

 Duh?!?

 The squeeze of death…

 Hey, lets see how many ornaments I can take off?

 


 
So close but sooo far!!

 Another…Cheese!!

 Really, Mom, just stop already!!

 This one would have been cute..minus the blur and the light

 I told her big eyes…no squinting…this is what I got..LOL

 Serious face?

My Lord, I hope you all enjoyed this because…I personally wanted to cry and I’m sure my kids did too! Thank you God I didn’t have to print them all to view them 🙂