so life's been all over the place the last 2 weeks. ever since the accident, life's been a waiting game. we had to wait a week to receive our offer from insurance and get the check. then we had 3 days to find a van before we had to return the complementary rental car. it went back friday. we still have no van. who in the world knew it could be so much work? i think it just feels that way because we feel the urgency to get a vehicle quickly. thankfully, we can use the work truck as needed and as long as they don't need it for the business. it inconveniences people so we definitely need a van soon. we've had so many ups and downs while shopping. we think a certain van is perfect and get to the dealership and realize it's NOT. we think we will be able to make a deal and then they change their mind at the end and we have to walk away. anyway, it's been tiring. my back is still quite sore from the wreck and a couple days last week i could barely walk by the end of the day. i'm going to see a chiropractor tomorrow, so i hope to get some relief. all in all, we are so thankful, of course. God has shown some abundant blessing in all this mess. as He always does. His love is so gentle.
what else has been going on...oh, we were struck with the runny nose plague again. finley introduced us all this time. and it is inevitable that when his nose runs, 2 days later audrey is right there too. luckily, it hasn't been too rough this time around, but not desireable of course.
jake and i were blessed to go on a date last monday. dinner, movie, free babysitter... perfect for us.
my mom mailed me some incredibly comfy maternity yoga pants. lifesaver.
i go to the doctor this week so i'm excited to check in on baby3. he/she is plenty active so i don't worry too much. i'm getting excited to meet this newest one. we've made progress with finley who actually predicted the baby to be a "bruder" this week instead of a garbage truck. that is HUGE improvement. lol.
i've got some big ideas for ways to spruce up jake and i's room. it needs some tlc. big time. i'm excited to get some work done in there. i figure i'll be spending much more time in there when baby comes and i want it to be warm and cozy.
audrey can kind of, sort of count to 10. fo real, y'all. and she knows most of the abc's. before you give me a standing applause, which i know you regularly want to do, it's all her. i can already tell as she wants to do everything herself that she is a self-learner/teacher/smarty pants. she is so special to us.
God's been doing some work in my heart. just cleaning out some junk and hopefully replacing it with goodness. it's a hard process. i just hope i am listening and willing because i know what He has for me is way better than what i have for myself. life is all about the day to day and they way the Lord is renewing our mind and heart to be like His.
i am grateful for you today. thanks for popping in and checking on us. i've decided our "life family motto" (which i come up with a new one like every 6 months, but this one will stick:)) is: "do not grow weary in doing good."from Galatians. i want my babies to grow up with this in mind and heart and i pray none of us will grow weary in doing good. the light is so much better.
love to you.
mer
some pic from a recent park day:
i'm a little technologically challenged, but i'm hoping to make my blog flow more and look "cooler" eventually. haha.
to be honest, i've had a bit of a tired heart the last few days. yesterday, i was quite impatient and didn't care too much about investing in finley and audrey's hearts. i know this is normal as a mom and i'm guessing extra normal for a pregnant momma. i went to the Y to get some alone time and maybe sweat a little. while i was there i listened to this song that rang true of my heart. i'll share it in a bit. i got through the day and enjoyed a nice glass of wine once the kids were in bed :).
this morning started out much better. we ate breakfast and headed out to take audrey to a well baby visit. right around the corner from the doctor's office is where the accident happened. i was just driving down the street and saw a green truck coming through an intersection quite fast. i realized quickly she was way too close. i honked as fast as i could, but suddenly realized she was going to hit us, and bam. it happened. we were both going about 30mph i think. she hit my driver's side door smack in the center. as i realized what happened, the first thing i did was turn around and check on my precious babies. audrey was crying, she was on my side of the car. the first thing finley said was, "my chicken nuggets!" as he had been eating some and they flew out of hands when we collided. i kinda chuckled about that. i was super shocked and several people came over to check on us. i called jake. the firemen and police came and did all the paper work stuff. the lady who hit us broke her arm and was taken off in an ambulance. since she hit right at my door, all the side airbags in our van went off. this was an incredible blessing. it hit my face pretty hard and i got a few cuts on my left arm. if they weren't there though, i know i would be much more hurt. i'm sure i would have hit my head hard against the window. i had no idea vans even had side airbags, but i am grateful. jake came and took care of all the paper work and talking to the police. we got home and we've just been chilling all day. i am getting more stiff and sore by the hour, so i'm not exactly looking forward to tomorrow. sweet baby3 has been moving and kicking a lot, so i think all is well in there. our van is probably totaled. we haven't heard for sure. either way, we're expecting to not get an equivalent van. we got a great deal on the one we have. we'll see. in my flesh, i'm hoping whatever we get still has electric doors for the kids :). i sure love those.
all sons and daughters: "reason to sing"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGhmvNGFENE
this is the song i was listening to and meditating on yesterday. i needed a reason to sing. i realized yesterday that there is always a reason. and it's because God is King and He is so so good. today, i've looked at my precious babies differently. it scared me deeply that they could have easily gotten hurt or much worse. they were unharmed. i wish it didn't have to happen, but i am thankful that in God's grace i can learn something and be reminded in my silly, sinful heart, that He has the whole world in His hands. thanks for all the love and well wishes. i really appreciate it.
gonna try and get some sleep! love you guys.
mer
hey you guys. it's been almost a month...can't believe it. christmas has come and gone. as well as new years. and our amazing trip to portland. lemme tell ya about it.
sooo, we hopped on the plane early on the 18th. finley was mostly better. audrey had caught his cold and was less than cheery. in fact, she did horrible on the first flight. like, record breaking bad. lol. we made it eventually. we spent a day and a half in portland, seeing my big sister and a couple friends. on thursday, jake and i took off for an anniversary getaway. we went to bend, OR, a small mountain town in central oregon. we had an amazing time! we stayed in am awesome hotel with a beautiful view of the river. we ate at a fancy steakhouse, shopped, got coffee, jake went snowboarding, i got an amazing pedicure at a spa, went to a movie, slept in. i mean, what could be better?! it was a refreshing time away and we sure needed it. thanks meema, grandpa steve, and aunt katie for babysitting!
we got home on saturday and christmas explosion happened. all 4 of my siblings and us were up in portland, which is EXTREMELY rare. plus, my mom's husband steve's 2 sons and their families were there. plus a few friends. it was a full house. and really awesome. everyone was together for a couple days. we had thanksgiving dinner on christmas eve (my request since i missed my mom's meal this year), went to church, had a lovely breakfast and a huge gift opening event on christmas morning, wore matching pj's, layed around and the best part...(ha!)...all the girls went and saw les miserables! i have loved that musical since i was 16 when i saw it on broadway in new york. my dad bought me the soundtrack that christmas and when i was at school in england, i saw the play on broadway in london. it is my absolute favorite. of course, i was dying to see the movie and completely enjoyed it. so much goodness.
a big chunk of the family left the day after christmas and the rest of our time in portland was spent celebrating my sister liz's birthday, hanging out with dear friends (keith and vanessa, andrew and julie, allie, steven and becca, shona, kim, sarah, kelly, kelsey, jeanette)... these people who hold such special places in our hearts.
my mom fed us and our friends countless meals, we watched a couple movies, ate at our favorite places, spent all kinds of money :), and just had a blast. we had tons of help with the kids which truly refreshed me. we were sad to go, but ready to come home and live our little life some more. what a blessing.
thanks to everyone in my family for helping make this trip possible and just loving jake and i are our babies. we love y'all and are so so thankful.
we have a bunch of pictures thanks to my beau, but they're not yet uploaded, but i'll post some when they are.
what else...this little babe i've got in me is a mover! like, a crazy marathon swimmer or something. i love feeling his/her movements so much. i sometimes think it's a boy in there, and then i switch to thinking it's a girl. so glad we're gonna wait and be surprised. this pregnancy has been my favorite so far...which seems weird because i was so sick in the beginning and even still some days. and i'm utterly exhausted at the end of the day of chasing the 2 crazies i have already. i just feel really calm and thankful for this little person and i'm so excited to meet them... in 4 more months :)
i started watching the west wing on netflix. wowzers, amazing show. loving it.
i guess that's all for now. we're back home, unpacked and settled. and it feels good. vacations are incredibly necessary.
love to you.
mer
