This stuff feels weird!

About a week ago, Brian and I decided to introduce Annie to one of my favorite places on earth. The beach. After a couple hours at the outlet mall, shopping for a sweatshirt and sunglasses for Annie, we sat her little buns down in the sand. She LOVED it. Brian had asked the doctor (at her 6 month well child check up) about sunglasses, and whether or not they were necessary for her young age. The doc said "it's never too early to start protecting your eyes," so we just HAD to purchase these cute shades for Annie. And to our surprise, they didn't seem to bother her a bit. We got more comments on how cute she looked, and every time we looked at her, we had to chuckle. What a cutie!

My First Mother's Day!

Wow. What a tremendous amount of emotion fills my heart today. This is the first year that I can officially announce that I am a mother. God has blessed me with the gift of motherhood. I am a proud mommy of an adorable (nearly) 7 month old baby girl. I truly feel more blessed than ever before.

We had a busy Mother's Day...daddy had to work, but Annie and I managed to stay busy. With a wonderful morning at church, followed by Mandy and I making dinner for Mom, Dad and both Grandma's. After dinner...Annie and I went up to visit Brian's family, and to see our buddy, Wyatt. Annie always enjoys seeing other little ones! This time next year, there's no telling how many new little people there will be!




My prayer today is for God to give me every skill & talent and the wisdom that I might need to be the best mother I can to Annie, and hopefully others some day. I want to be a Proverbs 31 woman for her, (& other children) because that is what I feel God has put me on this earth to be. I pray that my children would be proud to call me their mother...that they might see the Lord through my words and actions.

Healthy Annie...not so healthy family.

I'm happy to say after Annie's 6 month check-up, that the doc sees her as the epitomy of good health. She is doing great. Right on track with where she should be, which I suppose is a relative term, but we feel good about it. She now weighs 17.5lbs and is 26" long. She falls somewhere in the 60th percentile. Still surprises us that she hasn't shot off the charts with length, but I suppose there's still plenty of time for growth!

I wish I could say everyone in the fam was doing as well as little Annie. Poor Gracie is on her 3rd day in the hospital. Started out with a temperature of 104 for 48 hours, took her to the er, got sent home only to be phoned by her doctor that night saying to get back to the hospital, and they wanted to admit her. Now they are just trying to get her to hydrate herself, rather than by iv. Hopefully today will be the last of 3 long days for her and John and Mandy.

Meanwhile, my grandfather was admitted to the hospital yesterday with similar issues. He too, has become severely dehydrated and the medical staff would like to see him hydrate himself, rather than by iv. Hopefully his condition will also improve and he will get to go back to the care home soon.

My mom...now up at OHSU undergoing some personal surgery, is hopeful to be released at some point tomorrow.
We trust the Lord has His mighty hand in all of this, and will carry each of them through. We have great support from our friends and family, and are thankful for everyone's prayers. God is good!

Fun in the Sun!

After taking her to the playground for the very first time, I decided to introduce Annie to the front yard yesterday, and I'm certain it was a big hit! She could have cared less if I was there, she was just mesmerized with the way the grass felt on her hands and tootsies. I loved watching her expressions as she, no doubt, was wondering what this new texture was she was feeling! I guess she's still too young to completely appreciate the playground as I did when I was a child, but I am certain she still enjoyed just being outside. The entire time we were out for our walk and little adventure, she was happy as a clam!

Buddies!

So my friend (and cousin) Erin and I were pregnant at the same time for most of our pregnancies, and we're now finding it so fun to compare our two little ones. Or should I say, CHUNKY ones? :) Not-so-litte Wyatt Arndt was born December 28th...Annie, October 18th. We're starting to think that Wyatt is about to (if he hasn't already) pass Annie right on by with his weight and length.


This was last weekend. The two checked each other out, finding it amusing to have another person of their size to look at. Oh what fun lies ahead for the two cousins! We're all looking forward to watching them grow up together!

The Walls are Up!

Annie is starting to get antsy these days...it's almost as if I can see her thoughts, thinking, "When am I ever going to be able to move around on my own??" She is so interested in EVERYTHING, and I just KNOW we'll have our hands even more full when she starts crawling! But for now, she just likes to rock about on her hands and thighs...she hasn't quite put the knees and hands thing together yet, but I'm sure she'll figure it out soon!



The guys are making great progress on the garage still...yippee skippy! They have just about finished putting the siding up, and today they will be working on the roof. I'm looking forward to the day this project is finished! It will be nice to have it done and have daddy back! :) He and his dad have been working so hard! Every chance Brian gets, he's out there working on it. I'm so proud of him for sticking with it. Expected completion date: May 1.

Bananas & Bauman's!

I love bananas. Wouldn't it be great if Annie decides she does too? Our first banana experience would prove otherwise. She wanted that foreign thing out of her mouth, and fast! Ha! Aww....now look at the happy girl! Bananas, be gone!

We took a trip to Woodburn this week to visit Bauman's for Annie (& Brian's) first time. Ok, ok, so she's a little young to "experience" the farm, but it made for some cute pictures. I can't wait to go back when she's a little older!