An Update

Things are going well here. We had a bit of a scare with the baby. When I went in for my sonogram the babys bladder was very enlarged. This is not a good thing. We began to pray and pray that the Lord would just touch the baby and when we went to the specialist, there would be no problem. I am so happy to say that the Lord answered our prayers!! Yesterday was our specialist appointment, and they saw a completely normal baby!! Thank you Lord!!

I will still need to have some scans, to check the baby, but I feel confident that everything is just fine.

The kids are enjoying reading Mcguffey Readers right now. They are really helping some of our slower readers to get things moving. These are wonderful books.

We are looking forward to cooler weather, and being outside more!!

Baby Things

I was feeling really good today. Sewing is such therapy for me, so with all my energy thats what I did. Here is what I made and sold (yeahhh!) today. They *could* be for real babies, however, I sold these on my dolly forums. :)





And here is my newest baby. No, I didn't make this one, I bought her. This is Julia, she is a preemie resin baby.

Having a good day

Today has been really good! The all.day.morning.sickness hasn't had me on the couch today. I was able to cook two meals, and eat them! We caught up on some housework that needed to be done, and I didn't have to have a nap! Things seem to come in spurts with this baby. I will have a really good day, and then a really tough one. Of course, when I am feeling my worst, I think of how healthy this little one must be, to have such strong hormones making Mama feel so sick. Sick is a good sign.

I ordered a doppler and it should be here in the next week or so. I am excited about getting to hear baby's heartbeat. That is such a sweet sound to my ears. Next week, I am starting to look for a doctor too. I am praying the Lord guides us in choosing someone that will meet our needs well.

In the meantime Benjamin is quite the nursing champ. He doesn't look like he will self wean anytime in the future. I am praying for an easy transition since he will have to be completely weaned before this baby arrives. We are going to have a planned cesarean, and I will have to be away from him for several days. I was hoping he would lose interested as he got older and busier. No chance of that. I am a little sad about it, it seems like he was just a newborn yesterday. It has been wonderful being able to comfort him with nursing whenever he is hurt, sick, or sleepy. He will be almost two when I plan on weaning him, and I know he has greatly benefited from that amount of time.

This picture was so cute. Marendy was playing babies, and she had them all piled up on her stroller. Like...um....all 15 of them, LOL. She pushed them in to where I was and said..."Look Mama, I have a lot of babies, I suuuurrreee am blessed, huh?" Yes baby, you sure are!

A New Blessing is on the Way!!

We are so excited!! I looks like the Lord has blessed our family once again. I found out I was expecting on Brady's birthday. I wanted to wait until Fathers Day to tell Gary, but couldn't stand it. So, we had a quiet dinner just the two of us, and I told him the good news. Afterwards, we told all the children. Then, we called our parents. Everyone is so happy for us. I pray for a healthy baby to hold in several months. I am thankful beyond words. I truly feel unworthy to have such gifts bestowed upon me. Thank you Father for this little miracle.

Here is the little gift I gave Gary to tell him. Baby is due at the end of February.

Happy Birthday Brady

I can't believe my oldest is 14 today! Happy Birthday Brady! You are growing into a fine young man. I look forward to watching your life, and seeing what the Lord has in store for your future.

Our Vacation!

Well we have had a wonderful week and a half! We took off to Pigeon Forge for our 15th anniversary, and stayed 5 days. My mom was nice enough to come along and watch the children during the day, so Gary and I were able to spend some time alone. We went to dinner a few times, did some shopping, went to museums and galleries, and saw a few shows that were there too. It was such a wonderful blessing to have my husband all to myself for a while.

We weren't the only ones that had a good time. In the morning's and evening's we all went rafting, cooked on the grill, and did all the fun things you do while camping. It did feel like cheeting sometimes though, because it was so convenient to have the camper there.

I can't believe I have already been married 15 years. I give the Lord all the praise and glory for the wonderful marriage I have. I am so thankful for my husband. I look forward to our next 15 years together. Just like the note he left me on my mirror....it gets better, and better everyday, and truly, it does.

Creating Lifelike Baby Dolls

One of my pursuits is doll's. As a little girl they stayed near me as I dreamed of one day being a Mama, with my own babies to hold. Now that I am older I still appreciate the art of dolls, and still very much enjoy them. This is something the girls and I enjoy together too.

I have dabbled in several types of dollmaking. Currently I create lifelike newborns, often referred to as "reborns". To me, they are an artistic model of one of the most precious things on earth!

Here is my latest baby...







You can view more photos of "Lilly" on ebay at this link:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&item=200348096478