tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23221975261206286232024-03-06T02:53:47.706-05:00Marked by LoveBethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07553304699196121442noreply@blogger.comBlogger214125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2322197526120628623.post-79530658129145835752022-11-20T17:47:00.003-05:002022-11-20T17:47:41.839-05:00VIVIISBORN<p> Vivi is born 2012! Love Her so much! P.S.K. Vivi is writing this and that's not me in the pic (:</p>Joshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16252255003340093162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2322197526120628623.post-54837440048433285762011-12-30T13:22:00.001-05:002011-12-30T13:22:08.247-05:00Still here...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">Hey blog peeps, long time no blog. We are here, doing well, and finally unwinding after the holidays. December was kind of a weird month for us. Josh was working nights and when he wasn't working or sleeping he was studying for boards (step 3). His board exam was the Wednesday before Christmas and last night was his last night shift! Can I get an AMEN?!! Josh is working all this weekend and then starts surgery rotations for the next 4.5 years! There really isn't much to complain about the first half of his intern year, it's been a pretty smooth transition for us. I'm praying for another smooth adjustment into his surgery schedule and a regular on-call schedule. So there's a little update on one of my boys.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">And now a little update on my favorite 13 month old. Jonah is doing great. This is a really fun stage but it isn't without its challenges. We're also struggling with chronic ear infections. Poor little guy keeps getting a cold which leads to an ear infection. His pediatrician just gave us a number to call an ENT for a consultation so we'll see what they say. I'm praying for no tubes.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">We had a blast celebrating Christmas with Jonah this year. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">He doesn't get the whole Christmas thing but we it was </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">And there really isn't that much new with me. I love my job of taking care of my boys. It's hard work but extremely rewarding. I'm also staying busy with BSF (<a href="http://www.bsfinternational.org/" target="_blank">Bible Study Fellowship</a>). As much work as it is I'm so thankful to be studying God's Word through through BSF. I've also met some really women through my discussion group. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">So far our first seven months of living in Canton has been pretty good. We've had ups and downs but God has remained faithful and we continue to look to Him as we embark on 2012. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"> <span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-size: large;">Merry Christmas </span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-size: large;">Happy </span><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-size: x-large;">2012</span><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-size: large;">!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">May your new year be filled with the Lord's peace and </span></div>
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<br /></div>Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07553304699196121442noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2322197526120628623.post-43896388700786442892011-12-08T23:02:00.001-05:002011-12-08T23:56:56.081-05:00Jonah's 1st Birthday Party Pictures<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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About a month ago we celebrated Jonah's first birthday in Dayton at my parents' house. It was quite the celebration with a lot of family and friends. I really enjoyed the planning and putting this party together, and of course celebrating Jonah. I definitely couldn't have it without the help of my amazing family. I of course have a lot of photos from his big day but here are just a few highlights from his day. </div>
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Jonah wasn't quite sure what to think of his cake. He acted like he didn't really care for it. He was more concerned about it being all over his hands than actually eating it. Not sure how he went from the pictures above to the pictures below so quickly. </div>
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We actually gave him a quick bath before he opened up his presents.</div>
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I told Josh if our next baby is a boy (good Lord's willing we're able to have another baby) he will be having the same first birthday party that Jonah had. :) </div>
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Thank you again family for all of your help, and thank you to Josh's family who drove five hours from Michigan to celebrate Jonah's first birthday. I can't even begin to tell you how much it means to me to have had so many of his cousins at his party. And I certainly can't forget to thank my Aunt Toni and cousin Jessika for flying up from Atlanta, GA just for the party. Thank you all so much!</div>
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It was an great day of feeling loved and blessed by our family and also by many of our dear friends. There is something about seeing other people love your children that warms your heart. </div>
</div>Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07553304699196121442noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2322197526120628623.post-82960995287346828652011-11-30T23:36:00.001-05:002011-12-01T00:23:23.946-05:00Jonah is 1!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Sorry this is a week late, we've been a little busy around here celebrating our one year old, traveling to North Carolina for Thanksgiving, and decorating for Christmas. And sorry again for the incredibly long slideshow, I seriously deleted so many pictures to make it not so so long. Thanks to those who watched it. Jonah and I watched it again today. He actually cuddled up close with me and watched the whole thing. He does have a cold so he has been super snuggly. And also, these are probably the last of the monthly pictures. Don't worry, there will still be lots of pictures of Jonah. I just don't think we need to do it anymore and I kind of promised him during our last mini-photo shoot (below) that if he sat still and smiled for momma that I wouldn't make him do this again. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Discovering Jonah:</span><br />
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<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">weight: 20.6 lbs (20%)</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">height: 29.5" (40%)</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">head circumference: 18" (30%) </span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">favorite food: cheese (particularly pasta and peas with a little cheddar cheese)</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">you take two naps during the day and sleep about 12 hours at night (on a good night)</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">you are pretty chatty but "dada" is about the only thing we can make out right now, I'm still waiting for you to say "momma"</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I don't think you have a favorite toy though you do love your stand up keyboard (which thankfully plays really nice classical music). You prefer to play with anything that hasn't been Jonah-proofed like book shelves, the printer, or our scale in the bathroom. You also love books. You love us reading to you and you have been enjoying looking at them too by yourself. You particularly love to be able to turn the pages yourself. </span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">you're not walking yet but you are cruising along the couch and I can see you get more confident every day. </span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">you have six teeth but only four that are visible right now. </span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">you have been getting upset if someone else is holding you and you can see me or your father. And we got paged for the first time to get you out of the church nursery at a church we were visiting for the first time two weeks ago. </span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">you understand when we say "No touch" and "sit down" and you listen about 60% of the time. I can see you learning and trying to process these instructions. Many times a stern no really hurts your feelings and I hate that but it is truly because I love you so much. I wish you understand why we tell you no (like don't like the trash can because it's dirty and has lots of germs), but your Kika reminded me there are going to be many more times when I will tell you no and you won't understand it, it will be because I said so. </span></li>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Jonah, this past year has been wonderful! You have taught your father and me so much and we continue to thank the Lord for blessing us with you. We will continue to pray for your heart to know the Lord and to desire Him above all else. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">We love you Jonah, we couldn't imagine our family without you.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">And a recap from the past 12 months...pretty sure month 5 was your chubbiest and baldest. =)</span></div>
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<br /></div>Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07553304699196121442noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2322197526120628623.post-82505659825537931042011-11-22T16:01:00.001-05:002011-11-22T22:59:47.444-05:00Happy 1st Birthday Jonah!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Jonah is one year old today!!! We are excited to celebrate our son and also celebrate getting through our first year as parents! Thank you Lord for blessing us with a wonderful baby, Jonah truly has been such a good baby. I know there were things that challenged us (like Jonah's 45 minute naps up until 6 months), and there will certainly be more challenges. But we welcome them as we welcome this next year of Jonah's life.<br />
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Here is a long (sorry) slideshow of pictures from Jonah's first year of life. I tried so hard to keep it short but I failed. So sorry friends for the long photo-montage of our baby boy. Family, I'm sure you will enjoy every bit of this. =) Grab some tissues because I was a mess making this. This year has flown by. I'm still having a hard time wrapping my head around being a mom with a one year old.<br />
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Happy 1st birthday Jonah! We hope you know how special you are to us. </div>
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After Thanksgiving I will post pictures from Jonah's birthday party and his 12 month picture. </div>
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Until then, happy Thanksgiving! </div>
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</div>Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07553304699196121442noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2322197526120628623.post-31833612661283194972011-11-17T15:09:00.001-05:002011-11-17T17:23:20.487-05:00photobooth pics<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Last weekend we celebrated Jonah's first birthday (his official birthday is next Tuesday the 22nd). We had a wonderful time celebrating our sweet boy. We of course took lots of pictures and I will be sharing those very soon. But as I was going through the party pictures I couldn't help posting these pictures now. We set up a little photo booth and it's hard to tell from the pictures but I think the kids (and grown-ups) had fun.<br />
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A special thanks to Jonah's grandparents, cousins, aunts, and uncle from Michigan for driving down for Jonah's party. It was such a blessing to have you there and I loved that Jonah had many his cousins at his first birthday party. </div>
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This one is from the night before the party, we were testing out the photo booth </div>
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making sure it was all set for the party. By the way, I love married Marcky. Aren't he and his wife Shelly, so cute?! </div>
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I don't know what I would have done without these beautiful girls, thanks so much ladies!</div>
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Another thanks to my Aunt Toni and cousin Jessika for flying up from Atlanta just for the party. </div>
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Jessika just started med-school and even had a test the following Monday, and she still came! She is such a sweet girl and I love how much she loves Jonah. </div>
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Thank you again Josh for putting up with my crazy, being so helpful, and for making our son's first birthday party amazing. I love sharing these memories with you.</div>
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And thank you again to everyone (mommy) who helped me make this party happen, </div>
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I seriously couldn't have done it without you (mommy). </div>
</div>Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07553304699196121442noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2322197526120628623.post-90051947574068820882011-11-10T09:54:00.001-05:002011-11-10T10:06:40.634-05:00Party Time<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">This weekend we will be celebrating Jonah's first birthday at my parent's house in Dayton! </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">(His birthday isn't until the 22nd but this is when we were able to get the whole family together.)</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I am so excited to celebrate my sweet boy, watch him eat cake for the first time, and see his family come together to love on him (even Josh's family from Michigan is coming down! I feel so blessed that they would make the drive for his party.) And of course at the same time, I feel a little sad that all of this is happening so quickly. I'm praying I will fully be able to enjoy this celebration and not get caught up in the details and constantly worrying if everyone is happy (just call me the party people pleaser). </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I ordered his invitation from <a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/AlanaGrosseDesigns">this shop on Etsy</a>. The seller was super great to work with. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">And for your viewing pleasure, a t-shirt I had made for my brother's 30th birthday. </span></div>
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</div>Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07553304699196121442noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2322197526120628623.post-28218229403127007652011-11-02T21:30:00.002-04:002011-11-02T22:27:13.383-04:00A few Halloween pics<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Halloween....Jonah's last first holiday. And we celebrated by dressing him up as a cheeseburger!</div>
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Seriously, the cutest cheeseburger I've ever seen! </div>
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"Can someone please get me out of this cheeseburger costume? </div>
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My parents are embarrassing me."<br />
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Aren't both of my boys so handsome?<br />
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Josh and the interns organized a little Halloween party last Saturday. We went as cheeseburgalurs! The party kicked off right around Jonah's bedtime so he was a little sleepy but actually did amazing for us. So proud of that little cheeseburger. The party was fun, it was really nice to meet more people in Josh's program. But the party did not compare to the Girls' Group Halloween parties. It was kind of a sad day knowing that I wasn't able to be there this year. </div>
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And we didn't go trick or treating this year. We thought it would be kind of weird if we went when Jonah is clearly not eating any sweets. Maybe next year. Hope everyone had a fun Hallowizzle!</div>
</div>Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07553304699196121442noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2322197526120628623.post-48471200109347220802011-10-26T16:00:00.001-04:002011-10-26T16:00:13.628-04:0011 MONTHS<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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You look like you're too big to fit into the picture. Which you are getting to be </div>
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so big and I'm gonna need you to stop it, okay? </div>
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So fast, you getting bigger is just happening way too fast for me. </div>
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I mean, I know you aren't heading off to college anytime soon, but I can't believe in less than a month you are going to be 12 months. A full year! If I'm not okay with you getting so big so fast (I totally realize there is nothing I can do about that) this month, not sure how I'm going to handle you turning a full year next month. But like always, I'm jumping ahead of myself. </div>
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I will try to embrace today and cherish every moment I have with you. </div>
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This is seriously the name of your game, let's pull up on anything and everything. </div>
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And you continue to be a ham in front of the camera, which makes for a lot of smiley pictures. =)</div>
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I don't know how you know it but every time I pull out the camera (which is a lot) you give us the biggest smiles. Your father standing behind me making silly noises and faces might have something to do with it, you happen to think he is pretty funny.</div>
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Yes, you love your Dada and I'm kind of okay that you've been saying "dada" and not "momma", because I know where I stand. You are just starting to have a hard time if someone takes you that is not as familiar to you, you get a little sad and point to me. And if you realize I'm not near you while you've been playing, you get a little fussy and try to come find me. I never ever want you to be sad but I kind of love you crawling up to my legs and pulling on my pants to get me to pick you up. The first time you did that my heart just melted. You are very much a momma's boy and I'm perfectly okay with that. </div>
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A picture from your first wagon ride last Sunday. Thank you again Grandma G, for such a great gift! We love it and hope to get in lots of use before it's too cold. </div>
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Another fun gift from Grandma G, an IKEA tool belt. It's a little big but it's not stoppin' Jonah. So cute! </div>
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I love that you love reading books and hope you always love reading. You don't always want to sit on our laps and snuggle but if we grab a book it is guaranteed snuggle time. </div>
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Your father has been mentioning that you might need a hair cut soon. Your hair can be unruly most of the time but I'm loving seeing the curls pop up and I want to wait and see if we can get some floppy curls. I promise to trim the back to take of the rat tail/mullet if that gets out of control. Don't you just love this awesome front wave? And check out those curls in the pic below, I love them!</div>
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Thank you again Jonah for bringing so much joy into our lives. Seeing God's grace through your life has been an amazing blessing and gift to our entire family. You are loved and adored by so many sweet boy. And thank you for taking an amazing nap today so I too could rest and write this blog post for you. =) Love you so so much Jonah!</div>
<br /></div>Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07553304699196121442noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2322197526120628623.post-59762346463907940162011-10-17T21:46:00.000-04:002011-10-17T21:46:15.427-04:00New Tricks<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I call these first two pictures his 'downward facing dog' pose. </div>
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This little boy is on the move. </div>
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He is loving the new world he is discovering now that he can pull himself up </div>
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and crawl for real and real fast. </div>
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I love how he gets excited every time he pulls himself up, it's like he is so proud of himself. </div>
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Imagine if for your entire life (all 10 months of it) you only laid on your back or belly or sat on your toosh to play, and now all of a sudden you are realizing there is a whole new world (the bathroom, laundry room, windows, our closets, the kitchen, outlets, etc.). You would be pretty excited too when you pulled yourself on the coffee table or couch. </div>
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I absolutely love that he is developing physically but it is seriously happening so fast. Everyday I am seeing him getting a little more coordinated and problem solving when he gets stuck somewhere. The best has been watching him learn how to get down when he is standing up. He starts slowly with a little squat with his hands still on the couch, and just before his bottom reaches the floor he plops himself down. This kid is amazing and I am one really proud momma. </div>
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And with all of this new physical development, diaper changes are extremely challenging with a little boy who does not like to sit still unless you are reading to him. </div>
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And we also have our fare share of bumps and bruises. But if he is anything like his boy cousins,</div>
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I'm sure this is only the beginning. </div>
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<br /></div>Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07553304699196121442noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2322197526120628623.post-18832831565677400762011-09-30T22:45:00.002-04:002011-09-30T22:45:41.799-04:0010 Months<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Oh boy oh boy! Double digits! </div>
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This has been a great and challenging month, but I love it! You have been changing so much and love seeing all of the things you can do now like point to things and wave but it is happening so fast. I'm trying not to get ahead of myself but I can't believe in two months you are going to be one! Time to start planning your birthday party!</div>
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Jonah and the whale</div>
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<i>I solemnly swear I am up to no good. - Harry Potter</i></div>
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What have you been up to this month? Getting into trouble. You have a knack of getting into things you're not supposed to and you laugh every time we say "no no no".</div>
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Not sure if we need a new strategy but I know it's only the beginning. </div>
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And we usually know you are getting into something you're not supposed to because you</div>
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have a little staccato laugh that gives you away. </div>
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Within one weekend this past month you woke up every morning with holes in the feet of your pj's. </div>
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I guess you went through a growth spurt that weekend. </div>
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This past week you started crawling on your hands and knees instead of on your belly. </div>
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You prefer to crawl on your belly as you can get where you need to faster. I love the expression on your face when push up on your hands and knees, you get so proud of yourself it's so sweet. </div>
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You continue to do a great job eating as long as you can feed yourself. Your diet is slowly growing, but you could eat pasta, cheese and bananas all day long. We're still working on getting you to eat meat, without mixing it into your other food. It takes you a while to get used to new textures. </div>
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This is what we usually find when we get you up from your naps. </div>
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This month we started going to Bible Study Fellowship (BSF) and I am so excited about the program you get to be a part of. EVERYONE I have spoken to about it says it's AMAZING for children. Even the babies in the nursery (that's you) are hearing the lesson, they sing hymns to you, and pray for each baby. I love that you are already hearing about God's Word and the Holy Spirit. Before you were born I was praying for your heart for when you would hear about the Lord, and this month I continue to pray for your heart to have a saving knowledge of Jesus and a deep desire to love and honor him. I am so excited for what the Lord has in store for you sweet Jonah. </div>
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Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07553304699196121442noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2322197526120628623.post-91986423894173867602011-09-01T21:25:00.001-04:002011-09-01T21:25:25.623-04:00How Long Oh Lord? Part two<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">And here is <a href="http://zerkles.blogspot.com/2011/09/bethanys-story-part-2.html">part two</a>.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">Thank you again Erica for asking me to be a part of your series, it has been so healing for me and truly an honor. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">Thanks for reading. </span></div>
Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07553304699196121442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2322197526120628623.post-10793199408041964282011-08-31T23:32:00.000-04:002011-08-31T23:32:12.741-04:00How Long Oh Lord?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">I know I know, two posts in one day. Crazy! </span><div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">My friend Erica asked me if I'd be interested in sharing my story for a series on her blog called "How long oh Lord?" I just wanted to let you know that you can read <a href="http://zerkles.blogspot.com/2011/08/bethany-part-1.html">part one</a> of my story on her blog now. And I believe she will be posting part two on Thursday. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">It was difficult for me to write but oh so therapeutic and healing. Thank you again Erica for asking me to be a part of this series.</span> <br /><div>
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Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07553304699196121442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2322197526120628623.post-86289053028349542832011-08-31T10:34:00.000-04:002011-08-31T10:34:49.233-04:009 Months<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">My sweet little wiggly, ever-moving, no-longer-want-to-be-held nine month baby boy. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Last Monday was your nine month birthday and Tuesday at your nine month check-up (with a new pediatrician that we really like - praise the Lord) you decided you did not want to be held. You were trying to do everything you could to not be held and the people in the waiting area at the doctor's office were staring at me as I was trying to wrangle you in my lap. I told them you had never done this before, and looked at me like "ummm, duh, he's a baby and babies do that." But when I told them you had never done that before they looked at me like I was crazy. I feel like it was seriously overnight that so much has changed, and definitely wasn't ready for it. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Before I get into the new challenges, here are some Jonah stats:</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">weight: 18 pounds (15th percentile)</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">height: 28 inches (44th percentile)</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">head circumference: 17.75 inches (15th percentile) - your Aunt Britt and Papa-doc still do not believe this because your head looks so normal. I can't imagine what your head would look like if it was in the 50th percentile. =)</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">- Eating solids has been good, sort of. I feel like you do really well every two meals and then on the third it seems you're not that interested or you don't like what you are getting. Starting new textures has not been your favorite, which has made getting you to eat protein a little difficult. I usually shred chicken into your veggies and you LOVE cheese. I think you could eat orzo pasta with melted cheddar cheese all day long (our version of mac n' cheese). You do not like yogurt, which is strange to me. Basically, as long as you are able to feed yourself you are one happy little eater. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> - You are starting to nurse a little bit better, which is makes me happy because I am not ready for you to be done nursing. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">- You have been getting faster at your army crawl. You are able to get your knees under you but you haven't pushed up yet on your hands. As much as I want you to master this skill I'm okay that you haven't yet. Once you are for real crawling you are going to be hard to keep up with. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">- You're starting to get interested in pulling yourself up but still not too sure about standing up. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">- And I know I shouldn't post about this but I want to remember how sleeping was for you at nine months. Our nights are getting better, praise the Lord. We are having some pretty early mornings but I'll take those if we're able to get through the night. And napping has been good too. You've been taking a longer nap in the morning (almost two hours) and about an hour and a half nap in the afternoon. You still wake up after about 40 minutes but you've been doing great with putting yourself back to sleep. </span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-KneZCPfR7sU/Tl09pKuf-0I/AAAAAAAAF_Q/rq5zAJWpzhE/s1600/16106267596.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-KneZCPfR7sU/Tl09pKuf-0I/AAAAAAAAF_Q/rq5zAJWpzhE/s640/16106267596.jpg" width="426" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> I love your half moon eyes, definitely like your fathers. </span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iDDhHQBIVTg/Tl2j9NF_Q-I/AAAAAAAAF_4/kANj6Xp-9fI/s1600/16107123402.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iDDhHQBIVTg/Tl2j9NF_Q-I/AAAAAAAAF_4/kANj6Xp-9fI/s640/16107123402.jpg" width="426" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Over these past couple of weeks we have been seeing a lot of your personality develop, and I love it! But I guess I wasn't quite ready to see you become so strong willed (clearly you are my son, just ask your Kika about my strong will as a child...and still). </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXu2CZrXlfuHvxL1Do9dc6ZnILe1FHn-Q15vnZXVKjkVWeEfiwdlfPRuETbQoGSnEyvj720S1gX_FQZsvk1cO47dLHLOVFZqXuVralNoOYRxKP6KK8qXCB0x32pC-6k7RmdnTB-pyLHlc/s1600/16106238640.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXu2CZrXlfuHvxL1Do9dc6ZnILe1FHn-Q15vnZXVKjkVWeEfiwdlfPRuETbQoGSnEyvj720S1gX_FQZsvk1cO47dLHLOVFZqXuVralNoOYRxKP6KK8qXCB0x32pC-6k7RmdnTB-pyLHlc/s640/16106238640.jpg" width="426" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">At nine months you have already mastered the throw your head back and arch your back at the same time. This usually occurs when you aren't getting what you want because I've had to pull you away from something dangerous. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">At nine months you are shaking your head no while you're eating if I'm offering you something that you don't want. Not exactly sure if it is indeed a no, but your lips are sealed and there is no way food getting in there if you don't want it. You also want to hold the spoon while you're eating which is great so you can learn how to feed yourself, but your interest in your spoon is purely for playing with and you've gagged yourself a few times. I even got you a big fat spoon to hold while you eat, but that didn't work out so well either. Your world and meal time is over the moment I take your spoon away from you and I hate that. I want you to have everything you want but not everything is good for you, and that is a tough lesson to learn at nine months....and even still at 27 years old. </span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--udCsFAud-g/Tl2jCu3oUTI/AAAAAAAAF_w/PoB8oZjFDyE/s1600/16107066782.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--udCsFAud-g/Tl2jCu3oUTI/AAAAAAAAF_w/PoB8oZjFDyE/s640/16107066782.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Even with the new challenges of being a parent, your father and I are so glad we are your parents. Thank you for keeping things exciting and for keeping me on my toes. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I know there is so much more in store during this next month. </span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-F00oEcg5cWA/Tl2YGmfOYZI/AAAAAAAAF_g/d5AfGZ2wvWc/s1600/16106444130.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-F00oEcg5cWA/Tl2YGmfOYZI/AAAAAAAAF_g/d5AfGZ2wvWc/s640/16106444130.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">picture by <a href="http://www.brookeandfreeland.blogspot.com/">Brooke</a></td></tr>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Can you believe this was just nine months ago? </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I love love love love love!</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Starting to get a lot emotional over here so I better end this post. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Thank you for continuing to bless me and love me even though </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I take your spoon away from you.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Love you Jonah-bear!</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">picture by <a href="http://www.brookeandfreeland.blogspot.com/">Brooke</a></td></tr>
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Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07553304699196121442noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2322197526120628623.post-57548213897943704942011-08-29T14:08:00.002-04:002011-08-29T14:08:44.222-04:00Monday Things<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">I'm currently watching Jonah on the video monitor looking around in his crib. He's only been down for a nap for about an hour and I know he needs to sleep longer. Poor little guy is trying hard to get comfy to go back to sleep. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">I know I still need to get Jonah's 9 month post out (preferably before September), but that little nugget just won't lay still for the picture. And the ones I do have are of him crying. I will attempt another photo shoot when Josh gets home but if it doesn't work out then I'll just have to make what I have work. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">Right now Jonah is putting his blanket over his head and playing peek-a-boo. So cute. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">Not sure when but I am guest writing for one of my friend's blogs soon. I'm sharing my story of loosing Leyton and the Lord's grace through it all. It's going to be in two parts because there was so much I wanted to share. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">Josh is finishing up his ICU rotation on Wednesday and starting ER for the month of September. I'm not sure what to think of him working in the ER, I guess it will depend on what shifts he has. But he has a total of 22 (10 hour shifts) this month when I think the norm is around 15ish. Josh is working so hard and we are so proud of him. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">I know summer is coming to an end quickly but if you love s'mores you are going to love this super easy s'more cookie recipe. I made them this summer when the Ruiters came for a visit. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">Chocolate Marshmallow Meltaways (from Parents magazine - but I just call them s'more cookies)</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">1 1/4 cups graham-cracker crumbs</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">1/2 cup creamy peanut butter</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">1/3 cup maple syrup</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">1/4 cup sugar</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">1 tsp. vanilla extract</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">1/2 tsp. cinnamon</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">7 oz. marshmallow cream</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">nonstick cooking spray</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">chocolate syrup (I used chocolate chips)</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">1. In a large bowl, mix the crumbs, peanut butter, maple syrup, sugar, vanilla and cinnamon. Shape into 24 1 1/4-inch balls and place them on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet or tray as you shape. Use a fork to flatten and make a crisscross design on each ball.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">*I could probably stop here and just eat these cookies as is, they are so good!* </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">2. Before serving, spoon 1/2 tsp. of marshmallow cream onto each cookie (wait to spoon the marshmallow cream on the cookies until you are ready to eat them). Coat the spon with nonstick spray to make it easier. Then drizzle the cookies with chocolate syrup (I just put a couple of chocolate chips on top). </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">Enjoy! </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">And my little munchkin is back to sleep, hopefully for another hour or two. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">Happy Monday!</span></div>
Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07553304699196121442noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2322197526120628623.post-43460342527053927842011-08-03T22:02:00.002-04:002011-08-03T22:03:37.680-04:00DIY projects<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I love love love having a garage. It is such a great space for painting furniture. I'm sure this winter I will love it even more for its intended purpose but right now I'm loving it as my prime painting space (get it? prime? bad painters humor, I am my father's daughter). </div>
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Here are the before pictures of our bedroom furniture (Josh's furniture he had when he was younger).</div>
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And here are the after pictures...</div>
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The color is Martha Stewart's Bedford gray, it might be my new favorite color. </div>
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I need to put something on top of this wardrobe, any suggestions?</div>
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One of our other DIY projects this summer was to make a chalkboard. It took us a while to get it all together but I'm really pleased with how it turned out. The whole idea was to make a large chalkboard for very little but we had a hard time finding a frame. We almost gave up our search and almost purchased one but one day at a flea market we found a $2 frame that was exactly what we were looking for.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi72YAPhtr0Xf9k4KHdwHZDKQVcKd73krOuplnWcrlaC_js2i9fMfxApgNg-lWj55UJWG46klg2pMmiGQ-V-dBZn7U0copDfdUA-elL1mhJMoik5wnlSCYykFAnvy-PeL5-9QRyrCqcXxc/s1600/15632051830.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi72YAPhtr0Xf9k4KHdwHZDKQVcKd73krOuplnWcrlaC_js2i9fMfxApgNg-lWj55UJWG46klg2pMmiGQ-V-dBZn7U0copDfdUA-elL1mhJMoik5wnlSCYykFAnvy-PeL5-9QRyrCqcXxc/s640/15632051830.jpg" width="426" /></a></div>
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<i>Hey Amy, see that green bottle on the bottom right? That's my Ace juice bottle I have saved since '03 trip to Italy to visit you. Wish we could have some Ace juice together in your lovely hammocks. =)</i></div>
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This was the sign Jonah and I came home to when we returned from my reunion trip with my girlfriends.</div>
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Basically, we got a $6 board cut to fit the frame, some chalkboard paint $13, and I had left over paint from painting our bedroom furniture. Easy-peasy! </div>
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I also painted this make-shift cabinet I made after we lost Leyton. </div>
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Sorry no before pics, it was painted black.</div>
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Color: Whetstone Gray by Martha Stewart</div>
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A little leftover chalkboard and a small stool I picked up for $5 that I also painted (basket from World Market). The art is from one of my nieces when they were driving through Canton on their way up to Michigan, and I can't seem to erase it. I love have little reminders that they were here.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMHxO9nDzgqduWkgbmW8VsVwiIx415L85y6f2QSUJkKGSls-Ka_lkWbxksNeaFC1OGyQ56i2-fTS7Q0oA_deaTb747GjsdPa2qRIxS7M0aa9MzbYV1dGWcIruunS2TyR6pR19UQqjaiZg/s1600/15632164592.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMHxO9nDzgqduWkgbmW8VsVwiIx415L85y6f2QSUJkKGSls-Ka_lkWbxksNeaFC1OGyQ56i2-fTS7Q0oA_deaTb747GjsdPa2qRIxS7M0aa9MzbYV1dGWcIruunS2TyR6pR19UQqjaiZg/s640/15632164592.jpg" width="425" /></a></div>
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Lastly, I painted this mirror and bookshelf that sit in our bedroom. Sorry no before pics but they were both dark brown. Color is also Whetstone Gray by MS. And I have two gray candles to go with those candle sticks that are supe cute but I can't seem to find them. They're most likely in one of my unpacked boxes. Can you tell I'm loving the color gray right now? </div>
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I have a few more things I'd like to paint like an end table in our family room but that is going to require sanding. We also need to find a tv console table and if I find something that is gently used I can paint both tables at the same time. And I have a few more projects underway that I'll post those </div>
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pictures once they are completed. </div>
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And a big thanks to my friends <a href="http://sarahanddrewb.blogspot.com/">Sarah</a> and <a href="http://www.brookeandfreeland.blogspot.com/">Brooke</a> for inspiring me to spruce up my things! I'll be coming up to Erie to visit soon to get some more inspiration. Love you girls!</div>
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Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07553304699196121442noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2322197526120628623.post-79797972259395553342011-08-01T15:16:00.000-04:002011-08-01T15:16:09.564-04:008 Months<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I tried to get this post out before August since your background was chosen to reflect Independence day and that was in July but alas it is August 1st....and you don't really care. </div>
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<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">~ This picture was chosen in honor of his father and his Uncle Marcky ~</span></i></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Oh my oh my, my precious boy you are 8 months old. I am still trying to figure out how that can be possible. It seriously feels like just yesterday we were bringing you home from the hospital. And now you are hitting your milestones left and right. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">You are sitting up really well now. You still have a full tumbles so we make sure we arm your play area with pillows or your bobby but even in the past few days I have seen your confidence grow and you're learning to right yourself if you begin to topple a bit. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Just this past weekend you have started to army crawl. I knew you had it in you, you just needed the right motivation to propel you forward. And the tv controller is just that. I feel bad for teasing you with the controller so this morning I stuck almost every single toy in front of you and you wouldn't budge. So I grabbed the remote and off you went. Not quite sure how I feel about you lunging for the remote this early. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Your diet has been expanding and you continue to be a great eater for us. You love bananas and you could probably eat puffs or cheerios all day long. I think you just love being able to feed yourself. We're already seeing your autonomy as you were grabbing the spoon this morning and attempted to feed your self. Even though by the end of breakfast we were both a mess I love seeing you develop new skills, it makes me so proud of my boy. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Along with all of your new developments this has also been a challenging month for us. Ever since we came back from my trip with my girlfriends and you stayed with your Kika and Papa-doc, you have yet to sleep through the night. I know this isn't incredibly out of the ordinary for babies but ever since you were about 10 weeks old you were making it through the night like a champ. So this is just a little foreign to me. You would often wake up during the night but you always knew to go back to sleep. When you wake up now you start crying and can't seem to get yourself back to sleep. I know there can be lots of reasons for this like you recently had a little bug last week and weren't feeling well, it could be teething, you could be going through a little growth spurt, but my main worry is that you actually aren't getting enough milk from me during the day. I've never had a milk supply issue but lately you haven't been nursing well. I really hoping you aren't done breastfeeding because I certainly am not ready for you to be done. We're praying this is just a phase and that we can figure out why you aren't able to get back to sleep. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">check out those two teeth on the bottom! Very cute and very sharp. =)</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Thank you little buddy for being such a joy to me each day as we are still getting settled in to our new home and new town. You make each day so much fun. Yes, we do need more friends but I kind of love it right now just being you and me, you have been excellent company to me. I am cherishing these days we get to spend with one another. Love you Jobu!</span></div>
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Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07553304699196121442noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2322197526120628623.post-58454587144655273112011-07-29T22:50:00.014-04:002011-07-29T22:57:13.140-04:00Hope Street Reunion<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">First...read <a href="http://libbyryder.blogspot.com/2011/07/college-reunion-2011.html">this</a>...</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: x-small;"><i>October 2007 at Britt's wedding shower</i></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Karyn, Britt, Libby, Ruth, & Beth</i></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">In college my girlfriends and I lived on Hope Street for our last two years of school. We were called the Hope Street girls and because we'd like to think we're still 22 we still call ourselves the Hope Street girls. This year's reunion trip was amazing. My girlfriend Britt's (who I've known the longest, we also went to high school together) parents hosted our trip at their house in Urbana, Ohio (about an hour north of my parents in Dayton). Her parents were wonderful and I would be perfectly happy if we met there every summer for all of our reunion trips. They have an amazing house with a pool in the middle of cornfields, it was so peaceful. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I wasn't initially planning on this but I ended up leaving Jonah with my parents for part of my trip. He was with me from Wednesday to Thursday and with my parents from Thursday evening to Sunday afternoon. I did see him on Saturday to deliver breastmilk and get some quick snuggling in. As much as I hated not being with him and felt like I was missing a part of myself, it was REALLY nice to be able to have uninterrupted time (aside from having to go and pump) with my friends and to be fully present with them. And catching up on sleep was pretty great too. I don't even have to thank my parents for watching him, they were so excited when I asked. Thank you Aunt Britt and Uncle Jason for coming up from Cinci to hang out with him, and Uncle Marc and Ya-ya for making sure Jonah didn't miss me too much. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">This is pretty much how we spent our days together. Soaking up a lot of sun and lots </span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">of great conversations in the pool together. </span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">So basically, this is what every meal was like, amazingly delicious. Britt's mother prepared all of our meals from beef tenderloin, twice baked potatoes, ribs, freshly picked sweet corn, strawberry cake, asparagus casserole, spinach salads, croissant breakfast sandwiches, cheesecake, plus so much more. She wouldn't let us give her money for the groceries or even let us help clean up. We seriously felt like we were at a bed and breakfast, especially when we found our beds were turned down when we went to bed each evening. Britt's parents served us so well, we couldn't say thank you enough. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Now for lots of pictures of my beautiful friends...</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i><a href="http://www.libbyryder.blogspot.com/">Libby</a>, Ruth, Beth, & Britt </i></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>(sad that we are missing our friend Karyn who couldn't make the trip this year)</i></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">These pictures were taken in my parents back yard when we went to drop off Jonah. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Enjoyed a great dinner at Adobe Gilas at the Greene.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Enjoyed some live music after dinner. The singer was pretty good but I don't think anyone should be singing Lady Gaga acoustically. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Hung out in Yellow Springs one evening. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">A guy outside of a grocery store asked to sing us a love song. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">We couldn't possibly say no. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">A little wine tasting in a cute wine shop.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">for all you Modern Family fans...Dunphy Real Estate </span></div>
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Britt took us on a walk around her parents property. Lots and lots of cornfields. </div>
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There was something really peaceful about being out there. Everything that I have been rushing to do was put on hold. Such a great reminder of God's glory through creation and also through the lives of my friends. </div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">It probably wasn't the best idea to go for a walk late in the day when the heat was pretty intense, but nothing a nice soak in the pool wouldn't fix. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I think many of you remember me posting about my friend Libby a year ago when she got cancer. Praise the Lord she is now cancer free! The girls and I wanted get her a special gift to honor her and continue to encourage her for how she has been faithful to the Lord during this incredibly rocky year for her family. When I lost Leyton the girls gave me a Tiffany necklace of a key with Leyton's initials on it, so we wanted to do something similar for Libby. We got her a necklace with a key and a heart and had "DWYC" engraved on the back of the heart. That stands for "Don't Waste You Cancer". You guys should seriously read her blog, she is amazing (especially this <a href="http://libbyryder.blogspot.com/2011/07/365-days-later.html">post</a>, it's a must read). Throughout this entire journey she has been pointing to Christ and giving God the glory. I am so honored she is my friends. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">This trip came at such a great time for me. I was definitely needing quality girl time with close friends who love me and who I can share my heart with. I am so thankful we were able to have this time together and be intentional about encouraging one another. And even though we may not do the best about keeping in touch with one another, I love that we can all get together and pick up right where we left off. </span></div>
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Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07553304699196121442noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2322197526120628623.post-67535018937382982162011-07-26T22:26:00.000-04:002011-07-26T22:26:31.309-04:00His faithful steed<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Jonah received this horse for Christmas from his grandma and grandpa (Josh's parents). We kept it at my parents house due to lack of space in our old townhouse, and recently brought it to our new home and he loves it. This is such a great gift because when he is a little bit older we can take off the safety seat and flip the base of it upside down and get even more use out of it.<br />
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Hard to believe this was 7 months ago. And now my baby boy is already 8 months old! Stay tuned this week for his 8 month post. Also, Jonah and I just returned from a reunion trip with my college roommates and I will be posting about that too. Basically, I have not been the best blogger (which isn't anything new) and I have a lot of blogging to catch up on. </div>
Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07553304699196121442noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2322197526120628623.post-25015774245057496702011-07-18T22:54:00.000-04:002011-07-18T22:54:24.953-04:00Family Pictures<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Jonah and I are getting all packed up for my annual reunion trip with my college girlfriends. This year we are going to be spending the rest of the week at my girlfriend Britt's parents' house in Urbana, Ohio. I am so thankful it's not too far away this year and we'll only be about an hour from my parents if I need them to watch Jonah. I am really excited to see these girls. I'm actually going early tomorrow to pick up <a href="http://www.libbyryder.blogspot.com/">Libby</a> and her daughter Ava from the airport in Dayton. We get to have an extra day together and I'm so looking forward to hugging her and loving on her daughter and celebrating her being cancer free! </div>
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But I will leave you with a few family pictures we had taken mid-June while we were in Michigan. A friend from college took them (see her blog <a href="http://www.katekruegerphotography.com/">here</a>) and I'm so happy with how they turned out. Hoping to have her take more pictures of us, maybe even this fall??? when Jonah turns one, if Josh's schedule allows. I just LOVE Michigan in the fall, so many great memories of college, I get all nostalgicky (I know that's probably not a word) when I think about the fall. I digress, enjoy the pictures...</div>
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<br />Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07553304699196121442noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2322197526120628623.post-56622098434539397012011-07-13T22:29:00.001-04:002011-07-13T22:29:34.918-04:00true joyMonday was harder for me than I had expected. I don't know if it was harder than last year but just different. Different because we have Jonah, which makes it harder and easier at the same time. He was a great little snuggler during my low parts of the day, which was so nice because there were a lot of bad storms all day, perfect weather for staying home and snuggling.<br />
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Thank you to everyone who prayed for us, called, emailed, and sent texts. Remembering Leyton is a huge blessing to us. There are times when we feel like we're the only ones who remembers we have another son. So you reaching out to us on Monday was really special to us and we so much appreciate it.<br />
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This is how my day ended...I always have quiet, calm down time with Jonah right before I put him to bed, but like usual, Josh gets him riled up just as I've settled him down. Josh was hitting his head against a pillow and Jonah thought it was the funniest thing he has ever seen, he can hardly stand himself. A great way to end the day.<br />
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<br />Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07553304699196121442noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2322197526120628623.post-25954385365917704762011-07-10T22:53:00.002-04:002011-07-10T22:53:46.593-04:00Grace, abounding still...two years laterquick disclaimer...sorry if this blog seems like I'm rambling, having a hard time getting all of my thoughts together into a nice cohesive post...<br />
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I just went back and read <a href="http://becomingtheglupkers.blogspot.com/2010/07/year-later.html">this</a> post I wrote a year ago. Even with two years having gone by and so much having changed in our lives (having Jonah, graduating from med-school, moving to Ohio), sometimes the pain of loosing Leyton is still really fresh for me. I guess that's understandable now even having a son, I am able to see everything I didn't get to have with Leyton with Jonah now.<br />
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With all of the change that has been happening in our lives and thinking about Leyton and how I would have a two year old, I've been kind of a closet emotional mess (does that make sense?). We just got back from a short visit in Dayton to celebrate my Pop-p-'s 70th birthday, and with a busy and full weekend my mind wasn't always thinking about Leyton and the day that we lost him. I guess that I am thankful for the distractions (but then I of course start feeling guilty), as I remember last year I tried to stay busy to help keep my mind from going to a dark place. But today during worship at church my thoughts were definitely on Leyton (that happens often during worship).<br />
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As embarrassed as I get sometimes when tears start streaming down my face during worship, I love that moment when the Lord touches my heart and reminds me so much of His love for me. It is such a sweet moment of grace.<br />
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When I thought my broken heart could not possibly be put back together after loosing Leyton, the Lord has been faithful to hold every single piece and slowly but surely mend it back together. I know I have said this before but will continue to say this, the Lord's has been so faithful to bless me with His grace every single day. With new mercies every morning, Jesus remains faithful.<br />
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I'm not exactly sure how the day is going to go (emotionally). Part of me just wants to sit and and be sad but I know that is from the Enemy who does not want me to feel happy and gives me those guilty feelings. I'm sure I will have sad moments but I will also rejoice in the blessings of grace the Lord has given me, my wonderful husband and my sweet sweet Jonah. Oh how my Jonah fills my heart with so much joy.<br />
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I really want to share this song called "Beauty Will Rise" by Steve Curtis Chapman. I can't listen to it without crying. My friend Teena gave me this cd back in February 2010 when I wasn't even pregnant with Jonah yet. You don't really have to watch the video as it is an unofficial music video.<br />
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If you remember, Josh and I would certainly appreciate your prayers today. And thank you to our family and friends who continue to lift us up in prayer. Experiencing the Lord's love and grace everyday is a direct result of the many people who have been so faithful to pray for us.Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07553304699196121442noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2322197526120628623.post-44800338713300441522011-07-05T21:09:00.000-04:002011-07-05T21:09:32.768-04:00Marc & Shelly's Wedding<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Oh my goodness my big brother is married! I am so excited for my brother and Shelly and their wedding was so much fun! I loved our wedding (and your's too Brittany but I think I had more fun at their wedding. It was definitely different than a traditional Belcastro affair but it was so Marc and Shelly and I think that is what made it so special. And even with their outdoor ceremony getting rained out, everything turned out great. Shelly you handled that beautifully. I might have been a bit upset about that but you were totally calm, you just wanted to marry Marc, you didn't care if it was inside or out, I thought that was pretty great.<br />
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Click <a href="http://vimeo.com/25204237">here</a> for their wedding highlights video. I cry everytime I watch it, so don't say I didn't warn you.<br />
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The rehearsal dinner...<br />
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the centerpieces my mother put together. don't you just love the large hosta leaf? great job mommy.</div>
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Jonah sporting his "I heart Aunt Shelly" bib</div>
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the groom and the bride</div>
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my brother's best friend Xan and his fiance Serena drove all the way from Wisconsin </div>
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Jason (Brittany's husband), Marc, & Xan</div>
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aren't they so cute?!!!</div>
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The wedding...</div>
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Shelly is incredibly creative. She made all of the centerpieces, the flowers were made out of paper. And the bin behind the flowers was full of games and books for Jonah. Everything was so thoughtful. And they didn't have cake they had doughnuts and I'm so mad I forgot to take a picture of the doughnut they cut together, it was pretty cute. </div>
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Jonah in his studly vest Shelly's mother made. </div>
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He did such a great job for being up so late and for getting passed around a lot. </div>
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Thank you again to all who helped take care of him during the reception, that really helped so </div>
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Josh and I were able to really enjoy ourselves. </div>
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Mr. & Mrs. Belcastro!</div>
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My goal is usually to get Josh on the dance floor with me and of course when I'm not out there, </div>
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I turn around and this is what I find. </div>
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sisters! and I love love love Shelly's dress!</div>
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They had a photobooth and it was so much fun! they used all of the pictures as their guest book. </div>
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I'm not quite sure what I'm doing in the third picture but the last on is our favorite. </div>
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family photo</div>
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win</div>
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Marcky - Josh, Jonah, and I love you sooo much and are so excited for and Shelly. You have always been an incredible big brother to Brittany and I and I know you are going to be one amazing husband to Shelly. Congratulations again!!!!!</div>
</div>Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07553304699196121442noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2322197526120628623.post-76278719295353027832011-06-29T21:54:00.000-04:002011-06-29T21:54:05.182-04:00Seven Months<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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close contenders for your seven month picture...</div>
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when you get really excited you scream (we thought it was pretty cute....at first) and pump your legs really fast. I think you are mid-scream in these pictures. I had to post these pictures for your Uncle Marcky. </div>
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When people stop and ask me how old you are I have to catch myself and think...there is no way you are already seven months old. As sad as I get sometimes when I look back at pictures from when you were born, I am loving watching you grow and learn to do so many things. </div>
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I think one of my favorite things has been to watch you eat. We're still pretty much on baby food but now that things are finally starting to settle down for us, I've started making your food and I'm slowly introducing some lumpy food to you. I think bananas are your favorite (I believe that is what you are eating in the picture above). I have really enjoyed making your food and I love knowing exactly what you are eating and it is so much cheaper! And I thought your high-chair was helping to prevent you from sucking your thumb but you are still pretty persistent in following each bite with your thumb. This morning in fact you had your left thumb in your mouth and your right index finger. </div>
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You definitely let us know when you want more food by either slapping your arm on your high-chair tray or by grunting/moaning. And we know when you are finished when you perse your lips and start blowing razzies at us. It's a good thing you're so darn cute cuz those razzies make you </div>
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(and those feeding you) so so messy. </div>
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You are not quite sitting up on your own but we are working on it. I have noticed during your play time you are very focused and determined to get every one of your toys in your mouth, preferrably at the same time but you're learning that is just not possible. </div>
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This was your outfit for your Uncle Marcky & Ya-ya's wedding. You were so-O AD-OR-ABLE!! (Shelly's mom made the vest)</div>
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Don't tell Baby Wise, but sometimes in the morning right before your first nap, you and I snuggle up and I let you fall asleep on me. I know you probably aren't going to be doing this for much longer, so I am trying to soak up while I can. </div>
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You are now rolling in both directions, yay! You still prefer to roll to the right and your technique to roll to the left is quite interesting as you use your head (instead of your arms) as your pivot point, but hey it's what works for you. As much as we are loving you rolling around, </div>
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diaper changes are sometime a two-man job. </div>
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Thank you so much for being so flexible and patience with us this month as we were getting settled into our new home and traveling, traveling, and traveling some more. I know you don't love being in your car seat for so long so your Papa and I really appreciated how great you were during our long trips and even our late nights out. It has been such a joy being your mother. We are continuing to pray for you and your heart to love Jesus and to serve Him. We love you and look forward to seeing your grow more and more (even though it I sometimes wish you were teeny-tiny again). =) </div>Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07553304699196121442noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2322197526120628623.post-43415966575213148162011-06-22T21:47:00.000-04:002011-06-22T21:47:47.179-04:00Happy Birthday Josh!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Happy birthday to my favorite baby's daddy! Today is definitely one of my favorite days of the year, the day that you and I are actually the same age (at least for the next four months). Not that being a couple months older than you is a big deal or anything, but you do like to remind me so I'm enjoying us both being 27 today (and until October)!<br />
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I'm going to try to not be too frustrated with you today for not letting me make your birthday more of a big deal, but it is your birthday so I guess I can't be mad at you. Jonah and I have been wanting to celebrate you, honor you, tell you how proud and how much we appreciate and love you for ALL you have done and continue to do for our family. These past couple of months have been pretty significant milestones for our family, throw your birthday right in there that's cause for some serious celebrating!<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Zkb_-kAf7jo/TgFViz0267I/AAAAAAAAE3I/3gYD9DNmHDc/s1600/14782176826.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Zkb_-kAf7jo/TgFViz0267I/AAAAAAAAE3I/3gYD9DNmHDc/s400/14782176826.jpg" width="266" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXIFajLUciK7OWAgDj-feekQRluHL-G1_S4AGGtzLaMIClcfw9d7tLHwlpXli1aC02pFXmIhRY-SvahbjRGFfrbtInUiDoz-hTAf-8qiViYvuqUZG90Ol9XvSg2MhtwaeB-N9QH-BTQ6c/s1600/14782185620.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXIFajLUciK7OWAgDj-feekQRluHL-G1_S4AGGtzLaMIClcfw9d7tLHwlpXli1aC02pFXmIhRY-SvahbjRGFfrbtInUiDoz-hTAf-8qiViYvuqUZG90Ol9XvSg2MhtwaeB-N9QH-BTQ6c/s400/14782185620.jpg" width="266" /></a></div>
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You are an A-MA-ZING papa to our Jonah. I remember when we first had Jonah, I was questioning every single little thing (even what to name him). You always remained calm and helped me work through whatever mess I was creating in my head, and you were always right. I know that I can always count on you to continue to help me with that (because Lord knows I have been kind of all over the place). I know that I can always count on you period. You have always put your family first, you have always shown that Jonah and I are a priority. We are truly thankful to you for that. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIhs19Bzdmf2IsC9hBE7N6Z3AvklnAy6T5msFrGvp4-CSC9EXIwuvbzhQTp6jqN4gaax5SeFOxp7OSPrz-EyGj-JrQqL6KrCTXziKFMaAdImCMG0z2vwsT0w8pi08gw57ze-hkMK7pZpE/s1600/14782410128.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIhs19Bzdmf2IsC9hBE7N6Z3AvklnAy6T5msFrGvp4-CSC9EXIwuvbzhQTp6jqN4gaax5SeFOxp7OSPrz-EyGj-JrQqL6KrCTXziKFMaAdImCMG0z2vwsT0w8pi08gw57ze-hkMK7pZpE/s400/14782410128.jpg" width="282" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">the bluriness is actually some smoots on my camera lens, </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">but it's kind of artsy so we're just gonna go with it. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeYCjh243pryxcct5Ll8RpbWTQBb5gg6LZaYEnnDgvF_lrb6ri8kPKTvkdFACDVRfDLSBjQxsyahRixw1GmNgukMoMAIVdD1E-OjSlpy3yLTGNXxNQ43R2BYbSHDKddHjeNUpk9jQyR7E/s1600/14782187843.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeYCjh243pryxcct5Ll8RpbWTQBb5gg6LZaYEnnDgvF_lrb6ri8kPKTvkdFACDVRfDLSBjQxsyahRixw1GmNgukMoMAIVdD1E-OjSlpy3yLTGNXxNQ43R2BYbSHDKddHjeNUpk9jQyR7E/s640/14782187843.jpg" width="426" /></a></div>
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I love that I have been seeing you more and more in Jonah. Incredibly handsome and adorable. </div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-rNjnt1N5di8/TgFVukRgaTI/AAAAAAAAE30/VQfL7xrETYY/s1600/14782299553.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-rNjnt1N5di8/TgFVukRgaTI/AAAAAAAAE30/VQfL7xrETYY/s640/14782299553.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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And you were so great with our nephews and nieces this weekend. They know they can always count on their Uncle Josh to be there to play with them.</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0Bv-m1nkMx4/TgFVre4SIeI/AAAAAAAAE38/P3qbKD1GpNY/s1600/14782321107.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0Bv-m1nkMx4/TgFVre4SIeI/AAAAAAAAE38/P3qbKD1GpNY/s640/14782321107.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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This might not have been the safest activity for a 4 and 2 year old, </div>
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but I know you are always watching out for them. </div>
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As our new chapter of residency begins (in one week!), please know how much Jonah and I love and appreciate you for how hard your work for our family. We will be there for you to encourage you, to love you, and pray that the Lord continues to go before you in all that you do and keep His hand on you as you lead our famly. We don't know what we would do without you. </div>
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Happy birthday Josh! </div>
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<br /></div>Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07553304699196121442noreply@blogger.com1