Making Way for Baby

Here lately, we've been talking a lot about the baby that's coming, reading "big sister" books to Kilee and talking about what little babies do. Today, we were arranging the new baby's nursery and putting the new bedding (thanks, mom!) on the crib so we could see it. Kilee was a little curious about what was going on. I told her that the crib was ready for when God gave us the new baby. Then, she said "Up, mommy!" I put her in the crib. The following pictures explain what she did. I can't tell if she wants to be "the baby" again from these pics or if she's just excited about a baby. Either way, these pictures are funny and cute!

The crib is set up really high now. She's kneeling in this picture.

Pretending to be asleep in the crib!

Tucking Pooh in.

She was very careful putting the baby to bed. So cute!

He Has Not Left Us As Orphans

This video was originally posted on Youtube by a 15-year-old. It is set to a powerful song by Avalon that conveys the truth that there are no orphans of God. If you have a relationship with Christ, you are no longer a spiritual orphan seperated from your Heavenly Father. He has adopted you into his family through the blood of His son, Jesus Christ. This video really challenges me. As the church, adopted sons and daughters of God, we are uniquely gifted to share the love of Christ with the orphan. We can share our resources, our hearts and if we are called to adopt, our lives. Would God have you adopt a child in the US or abroad? Would you be willing to sponsor an orphan child in the US or abroad? Pray about how God might use you in the life of an orphan child.

Trick or Treat!

Our little Elmo had a great time tonight! We really enjoyed getting to hang out with our neighbors and all of the little children really enjoyed Kilee's costume. Some of them really thought she was Elmo! Isn't she cute?

Carving the Pumpkin

Hello! Here are some recent pictures and video of us carving the pumpkin together. We had such a great time. Kilee cracked us up -- she was so cute!

Carving the "Munkin"



"Eat, Munkin, Eat!"



On the Porch

Don't worry. She did fall at the end of this video, but she's fine.

Picking "Munkins"

Last weekend, we went to the pumpkin patch to pick our Halloween pumpkin with our wonderful friends the Lawrences and their little girl, Ellie. We had a great time and it was a gorgeous day. Kilee was very excited to be picking a "munkin" as she calls it. It was a great family day!

Trying to touch both pumpkins at once!

I LOVE this picture!

Scott and Kilee on the hayride out to the pumpkin patch

Scouting out the best one . . .

Got it!

A very tired Kilee and me!

Obsessed with Wearing Boots

So Kilee has a new favorite wardrobe item. I found some rubber boots at a consignment sale a couple of months ago so Kilee could splash in puddles when it rains. Since we have had no rain until recently, I have just introduced them to her. Needless to say, Kilee doesn't think that rain or puddles are necessary to make her latest fashion statement. She dons the boots as often as she can get her hands on them! Here are a few pictures of our little fashion diva. :o)

Sly smile

This is darling, I think.

Super cool.

Doing her "v-sit" from gymnastics class! I think she's pretty good!

Kilee Sings

Scott and I were in the living room watching Law & Order after dinner for some much-needed "Thursday night veg-out time", when Kilee decided to sing us some of her newest material. I'm not sure exactly what it is she's singing, but it includes choreography as well! We were cracking up!

Gymnastics Videos!

Here are a couple of videos that Scott took of Kilee during her "Teddie Bear Tumblers" gymnastics class. So incredibly cute, don't you think?

Pictures, Pictures, Pictures!

Hello All!

I feel like I'm the person from the camera commercials that never prints her pictures but just piles them up in her camera. These past few months since we've moved to camp, lived there for 3 months, and moved back home, I have done a pitiful job of keeping track of pictures! Here are the ones I pulled off my camera tonight. Enjoy!

Kilee's 1st Sleepover with her best buddy Ellie

Aren't they cute in their jammies?

Dressed up for church

Such a cute dress. She looks like such a lady!

Kilee and Daddy picking wild violets in the yard.

Adorable

Trying out Mommy's purse

Her backside after slipping in one of Racer's mud puddles!

Kilee and Grandpa

She put her shoes on all by herself!

Kilee and our dear friend and Crossings staffer Dustin, a.k.a. "HillBill" Nice matching camo!

This picture is one of my favorites because she completely dressed herself. I was going through some hand-me-down clothes from a friend and she was "helping" me. She was already wearing the shirt, but the bottom is actually not a skirt. She put both legs through one hole in some gray gym shorts to make a skirt! Hilarious. The red shoes pull everything together, I think.

My Current Favorite Book!

Okay all of you stay-at-home wives and mommies! I'm always behind the times as far as coolness goes, but I found the most awesome book at Half Price Books the other day I want to share with you! It's called Living Well On One Income In a Two Income World by Cynthia Yates. Mrs. Yates is a Christian author and humor columnist, and her book is teeming with incredible financial wisdom, stories that will make you laugh so hard you have to run to the bathroom, and godly insight about how to use the resources God has given us for His glory. I totally recommend it! You'll laugh, you'll cry, and you'll want to evaluate how you use your money, gifts and time. Chapter titles include: Live Within Your Means, Let's Organize, It pays to be Savvy, Roll Up Your Sleeves, Use Things Up, Waste Not, Discover Your Creative Genius, and Presentation is Everything . . .or is it?. Amidst the godly wisdom, she has interjected absolutely hilarious stories of her and her husband whom she refers to as "Wonder Man." The following is an excerpt from the "Use Things Up" chapter. SO funny!

"During one of my household "sweeps," I found midnight blue satin sheets in a basement box. To the thrift store, or to use? No question! Always wanting to rev up our love life, I decided this would be a night to remember. Upstairs I raced. Pillows flying, blankets on the floor, I wrapped the bed in blue. Candles came from all around the house, perfume was spritzed, and I slinked into a nifty satin nightgown. No matter the long sleeves and that it hung just below my knees; Wonder Man would be dazzled. "I'm coming, Wonder Man!" I yelled. And in a playful mood I ran into the bedroom and dove onto the bed. Satin on satin makes for pretty poor friction. I hit the wall at 45 mph. We thought twice before we went to the emergency room."

Just wanted to share it with you! Enjoy ladies!

Zambia, Seattle, and Alaskan Fishing Boats

Hello all! Sorry it's been so long. We've been pretty busy and I haven't posted any pictures because our camera is broken! I guess Scott tried to take a picture of me before I put my makeup on and it was just too much for the poor camera. Ha! Just kidding. Anyway, Mom and Dad forwarded these pictures to me.

The first two are from the airport when we were seeing Scott off on his trip to Zambia. He went to Kitwe, Zambia to visit the Lifesong School that Crossings is partnering with to reach orphans in the area. It was a life-altering experience for him to see the hugeness of God through the testimony of orphans on the other side of the world. After Kilee and I watched the footage with him this week, we are just blown away by what God is teaching us.
The second two pictures are from when my Mom, Dad and Jeremy's girlfriend Katie went to Seattle to meet Jeremy during his debriefing time after his first contract at sea. Jeremy is an Alaskan groundfish observer and is working contracts observing fish on Alaskan boats until Thanksgiving. This was a special treat for everyone. I wish we could have seen him! The first picture is of my parents and the second one is of Jeremy and Katie.

More posts to come as soon as we get our camera fixed!

Developments . . .

Just wanted to keep everyone "in the loop" about the latest developments with our adoption. Our home study was finalized today and approved by our adoption agency! Our formal application went before our agency's board of directors last week and we should hear next week if we are approved to proceed with the adoption! If we have final approval to work with them, we will attend an orientation in October at the agency's facilities in Lynchburg. We are SO excited about this and we will let everyone know if and when we are approved next week!

Recent Cuteness

Recent cute stories from our life with Kilee:
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Charades

The other day, I was drying my hair in the bathroom and Kilee was with me. This was what happened:

Kilee: "Potty!"

Me: "Yes, that's the potty."

"Potty!"

"What about the potty?"

"Unhhh!" (pointing at the potty)

"What, honey? What about the toilet?"

"SCHHHWSHHHH" (waving her hands in a circle)

"Flush?"

"Yea, mama! Fusssh!"

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Imitation is the Greatest Form of Flattery . . . Maybe

Yesterday, I was folding laundry in the living room. I was putting the laundry in piles and Kilee came along and started unfolding the piles and scattering them around. I told her "no", refolded the clothes and hung them out of her reach on the back of the recliner. She started to cry, so I gave her a couple of her shirts so she could "help mommy." She walked away for a little while and returned a little later with her little lawn chair. I watched her out of the corner of my eye. She was folding her laundry and hanging it on the back of her chair!

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New Kilee phrases:

"Yep. and Nope." (We are trying to correct these to Yes, Ma'am and No, sir! :o) ha.)
"Here you go, Mama." (when handing me something)
"More peese, Mama."
"Bye-bye Daddy! and Hi Daddy!" (when Daddy leaves and comes home from work)
"Hey Rase-uh!" Saying hi to Racer, our dog.
"Potty, Potty, Potty . . ." (over and over again when we're in the bathroom)
"Choo-Choo!" (when she sees or hears a train, compliments of Nana and Papaw)
"Tankoo!" (thank you)
"There you go, baby." (When she pats a friend or her baby doll on the back.)

Chicken Pox :o(

Well, our sweet little baby girl has chicken pox. It was just yesterday that we noticed some spots on her belly, face and feet. It didn't look like chicken pox, though -- just small bug bites. More spots began to appear later in the day, so I took her to the doctor wondering what in the world it could be. After all, she had been vaccinated against chicken pox! The doctor said that it looked like a very light case of chicken pox. Since the vaccine is not as potent as actually getting a full-blown case, it is possible to contract a light case if you've been exposed. I have no clue where she might have been exposed, but there have been over 3000 campers this summer. I'm sure that bears some significance! Anyway, if you can be praying that Kilee will get to feeling better and that I don't get chicken pox as well, (I've only been immunized -- never had 'em) that'd be great!!!

Here's a cute picture of Kilee that my friend Tera took this week.

Kilee's First Fish!

Well, Kilee has caught her first fish! Scott took her fishing with some of our friends down at the camp dock. I didn't have a chance to dress her in fishing getup before she went, hence the ballerina tutu over her pajamas. Nevertheless, she was looking good! She was a pro! Here are a few pictures of the Daddy/daughter fun. Aren't they just adorable?






This past weekend was a busy one! After Week 7 came to a conclusion, we assisted a staff member with the details of the setup of his proposal. He and his precious girlfriend (also a staffer) are now engaged! Then, Saturday was spent preparing for a friend's baby shower at the camp. The shower was at 2:00, then we had a staff pizza party, a Walmart run, and church Sunday morning. Then, Week 8 was in full swing! The final week of the summer!

It has been such a wonderful summer filled with new friends, outdoor fun, great family time (amidst the crazy camp schedule), and wonderful memories. Most importantly, hundreds of students in KY, TN, AL, TX, MS, FL, OH, IN, MO, LA, Moldova and Zambia have come to know the Lord for the first time, taken a step forward in their walk with Christ, or have been called to full-time ministry!! God is so mighty, powerful, merciful and holy! We are continually astounded by the blessing of getting to be a part of this ministry.

A Different Kind of Pregnancy!

So, the other day we received an email from our adoption agency saying that they had received all of our paperwork and our homestudy and we are beginning the wait for final approval. Scott and I were talking and we decided that this stage of the adoption was kind of like the 2nd trimester of pregnancy! We know that there's a baby in there/out there but we've still got a little ways to go! It definitely feels like it's getting closer to the baby's arrival, though! I posted a couple of 2nd trimester "pregnancy" pics from then and now. I'm doing a little bit better with my weight gain and water retention this time (ha), but the new mommy emotions and excitement are the same!!!

Pregnant October 2006

"Pregnant" July 2008