Emma&Jessa&Jack

Time to wash the car

2010-06-05T07:11:00.001-07:00

The girls are helping Daddy wash Mommy's car.

Uh oh, Jessa has a hose.

Jessa is very intense at her job.

I love Emma's close-up shots.

Look at that lip.

Now they are washing their cars.

What has been happening!!!!

2010-05-23T18:41:00.000-07:00

I am probably one of the worst blog writer that you have ever read. It has been quite a few weeks since I have written about the goings on in our lives. Having three children is quite a different experience in my life. On top of all of this, we are packing and moving.

We have a contract on our house and close on this house and our new house on the 15th of June. So needless to say, our house is getting filled with boxes and blank walls. This is the first time I have packed with other people around. When I moved into John's house, I was able to pack at a slow steady pace, but with children you may get 20 minutes here and 5 minutes there. So what should take you a day or two, it takes you a week to get accomplished. I do not know how many times I have answered, " Mommy, what are you doing?", my response - "packing", their question "Why are you packing?", my response - "we are moving to our new house"

The girls are growing like crazy. Emma is trying very hard to be independent. She is a great helper with Jack. She loves to play with him and talk with him. She is a lover of learning. When Emma is boring, you can see it on her face. She loves to be provided with choices for meals and activities. She will say "Mom, give me choices".

Jessa is 2 1/2 going on 13. She loves to play games on our I-Touches. She can change around the pages on the Touch like a champ. She continues to love her little brother, however she is starting to notice that he is getting bigger and needing more attention, which she does not like. She will tell me that she is a baby and put on one of Jack's bibs and crawls around on the floor.

Jack is growing leaps and bounds. He is almost 20 lbs and 28 inches long. He is rolling all around and starting to scoot around the floor to get his toys. He is a very happy baby. We started food a couple of months ago, which he mastered quite well as you can tell by his weight and height. We are still controlling his reflux with meds which seems to be working quite well.

We took our first family vacation as a family of five. We took the auto train to Florida to visit Grandma and Grandpa Pieters. The trip down went quite well. We boarded that train at 2:30, leave the station at 4:00, dinner at 5:00, and bed at 8:00. Jessa was up a couple of times due to the noises of the wheels on the tracks, which so could hear by her head. We pulled into the station around 8:30 and we were on the road to Tampa by 10:00. We had a great visit with the Grandparents. The girls loved the pool. (will post pictures soon) The ride home was delayed by 4 hours due to a disabled freight train in South Carolina during the night.

I will post new picture in the next couple of days. Talk with you soon

Swim Lesson

2010-03-09T16:20:00.000-08:00

The girls have been taking swim lessons. John got a video of this last Monday.

Update in Total

2010-02-21T02:20:00.000-08:00

I am probably the worst blog writer you will come across. When Jessa was a baby and I was up feeding her at nights, I would try to blog. For some reason, I can not seem to type and feed at the same time with Jack. I also thought I may be able to find a few minutes each day to write something, but if you know anything about have three children, 3 years and under you would understand the concept of a few minutes to do anything is a joke.

So I thought this Sunday morning, I would forego some sleep and update the last two months with pictures and a short run down of the events. Here we go!!!

January -

The first week of January is always going to be filled with excitement. Emma's birthday is then (which I did post about recently) and John's Dad and brother have a birthday the day before Emma's. Have and will always try to go to Rochester to celebrate right around that time. We had a party for all three at the Pieters Family Life Center. We had a great time. Wonderful pizza and cake. This was also the first time some of John's family got to meet Jack. Since his birth was so close to all of the holidays, we were not able to get to NY before now to show him off. We had a great time and here are some pictures.

Emma and Jessa love their cousin - Ethan. Jessa greeted him with a wonderful hug. I am not sure Ethan knows what to do.

Emma's greeting was a little less overwhelming for Ethan. I think she was trying to tickle him.

Here is a good picture of Grandpa, his little grandchildren, and Uncle Bob.

Here are the birthday boys and Emma with their cake.

We decided that it would be great to get a picture of all of the cousins. This was the not so organized one.

This was the better one.

About mid January, all three kids headed off to the doctors. Emma had her 3 year check-up - all is well with her. Jessa had her 2 1/2 year check-up - she cried during part of it, but still did very well. Jack had his 2 month check-up. He was 10 lbs at the time. Boy had he grown.

We got Wii from John's parents for Christmas and the girls love playing it. However Jessa is sometimes too light to play the games and Emma sometimes does not understand the directions. So they have found a way to make it work. Aren't sisters great!!!!

February:

I headed back to work - ugh!!!! This is a big challenge for me. Getting three children ready in the mornings and myself to be at school by 8:30 so I can be ready to see my first client by 9:00. Some morning I just do not think I can do it. The girls have been great. They are learning to dress themselves and with try to entertain Jack if needed.

I had to include this picture of Jessa. I just think she looks so grown up.

The girls love playing with Jack. Anytime he is on the floor, he is fair game. I have been trying to sneak belly time to be during the girls' naptime.

Jessa so wants her brother to play with her. She loves giving him toys and stuffed animals.

This is Jack stating the he has had enough of everything and he just wants to be picked up.

Here is our Jack with his great smile.

Now he is bored with all of this playing.

Do you think Jessa loves her brother? I have never seen a 2 1/2 year that is as mothering as Jessa.

Emma loves to touch Jack - on the ears, eyes, nose and mouth.

You may want to know how work is going -- Well it is a challenge. Do not ever start a job that you deal with children during February. I have had so many cancellations within the first two weeks during my clients being sick and now Jack is sick. The day before our second big February snow storm, I took him off to the doctors and he was put on a Nebulizer treatment.

We had two big snow storms. The first happened over a Saturday

Two days later I am able to finish this posting - Sorry about that!!!

Did I happen to say that the Friday prior to the first snowstorm had a simple procedure done which caused him not to be able to lift things. Which meant no snow shoveling!!! Thankfully one of Emma and Jessa's teachers lives in our area and her 15 year old son was able to come down and help with the shoveling.

Ready to head back to work and school when the second storm hit. This time Jack was sick and on a Neb. I don't think I told you that when we were at the doctors on that Tuesday, the nurse wanted to get a weight on Jack for medicine purposes - Are you sitting down - 14 lbs with clothes on. I can not believe that my little peanut that was only 6 lbs, 7 oz at birth is now almost 14 lbs naked.

Well after a few more days isolated in our house we were getting a little creative with our activities. You will see with the pictures below.

Jessa decided a few weeks ago that she wanted to take one of Jack pacifiers and chew on it. After she got all dressed up in this outfit, we gave it the name of the Bikie Fairy. She also crawls around when she is chewing on the pacifier. It is interesting how each child reacts to a new baby.

Emma decided to get in on the act with her various of the Fairy - maybe the dance fairy.

Here is Mr Jack so serious

Daddy made a snow tunnel for the girls to play in during our second snowstorm.

Emma laying in the snow.

This is to remind the girls just how much snow we got.

Two weeks ago, John's parents stopped in for a visit on their way to Florida. Emma suckered Grandpa into reading her stories - alots of stories.

Well, I have been back to work for almost three weeks now and I do not know how most woman do it. Between the lunches that have to be packed, details to remember for school each day, and also thinking about my stuff, I am exhausted at the end of the day. I am hoping it gets easier as the weeks pass.

There is my update - look for more in the weeks to come. I may just surprise you with more frequent ones.

Emma's 3rd Birthday

2010-02-04T09:14:00.001-08:00

I know this is a late posting, but I am finding that it is very hard to find time to do many things that are not very important in my day. Three children really fill up a day.

I can not believe that Emma is Three Years Old now. Her birthday was January 8th. She is changing so much each day. I am seeing a little lady coming out. She has be very helpful with Jack. She love to get me diapers when I am changing Jack.

We went up the Rochester for her birthday. She had been asking to go to the Jumpy place with her Aunt Kim and Ethan. So Friday morning we met Aunt Kim and Ethan at the Jumpy place. The girls and Ethan had a great time. Jack slept through the whole experience.

We went out to lunch after at a local sandwich place.

Emma at 3 years old

Emma at 2 years old

Jessa riding an elephant.

Emma riding the elephant

Ethan riding the lion

Ethan going down one of the slides

Emma going down the slide

Jessa going down the slide

Jessa wandering around inside one of the Jumpy things

Our first significant snow!!!!

2010-02-02T22:10:00.000-08:00

This was our first snow of the season the weekend before Christmas. The girls loved it and wanted to be out in it continuously. I am so glad that my wonderful husband is an outdoors person.

Daddy made a huge pile of snow and the girls slide down it. They thought is was a great slide in their yard.

Emma hated her mittens on and insisted that she did not need them until she did not like her hands getting cold.

Jessa discovered a new invention - the scarf. Mommy took a scarf of hers and wrapped it around Jessa's neck. She thought it was great to suck on. That my oral sensory kid.

Jessa attempt at a snow ball.

The girls taking a walk in the snow. They did not get very far before the snow drift were too big for them to walk. This picture looks like they are leaving home.

Jack and I decide that it was too cold outside and we snuggled under a warm blanket.

He decided a nap is a good activity for the day. I have an idea it will not be long before he is asking to go out there with his sisters.

Prep for Christmas

2010-02-02T21:53:00.000-08:00

These are some of the activities that our family did this year to prepare for the Christmas Holidays.

Our three children trying to have their picture taken for our annual christmas card

Who do you think is have the most fun in this picture?

Jessa is trying to show Jack the tree ornaments.

This is the first year that the girls really got into decorating the tree.

Emma loved to hang multiple items on the same branch. It work for her.

Mommy tried to give them the non-breakable ornaments.

Mommy decided to have the girls do Gingerbread house this year. I did not make the houses. I bought the kit. I am not that good. I think Jessa ate more of the icing then decorated her house.

Emma was very orderly with her candy pieces.

The girls love washing dishes. I was able to caught Emma doing a fine job washing out this straw.

I think she was surprise to see me taking her picture.

Merry Christmas

2009-12-24T02:10:00.000-08:00

I can not believe that it is Christmas Eve Day. I have a little bit of wrapping left and a trip to the market this morning, but I am very excited. This is the first Christmas that the girls really understand. Jessa will not let Santa bring the presents in the house. She insists that he leaves them on the front porch. The girls are also talking a lot about Jesus's birthday.

John has been tell the girls the Nativity story using the Little People Nativity set. They love it.

We have dinner out this evening and then the cousins exchange presents. Church at 7:30, then home to bed.

Christmas morning is at the house, then off to my mom's for more presents and food.

I hope all of you have a wonderful and God fulled day today and tomorrow.

Merry Christmas to all!!!!

Some new pictures

2009-12-19T17:40:00.000-08:00

Here are some pictures of the girls playing in the snow today. They really loved it. I think they would have stayed out all day long.

Here are some pictures of Jack and the girls.

All the time in the World

2009-12-14T00:20:00.000-08:00

You would think that since I had "Baby Jackie" as the girls call Jack I would have all the time in the world to blog at night. I am up every 2 hours feeding him and sitting infront of the computer. I have to ask any mom who has breastfeed, how easy it is to have a child latched on and try to type on a keyboard. It is not easy, usually one of the two gets disconnected.

Well here is a review of the past few weeks. We are trying to get adjusted to the concept of a party of 5. I was just saying to John the other night as the girls were running around the house that I can not image our family with only the two girls.

Emma is handling the transition like I expected. She is quiet and observant. She is trying to figure out where she fits in with the new set-up. She likes Jack and wants to be very helpful such as getting the diapers. However she gets very bored with the fact that this thing does not do anything. We are pretty sure that in about 8 months she will be having more to do with him. Right now her main objective is obtaining as much attention as possible even if it is bad attention. She really knows how to push my buttons.

Jessa thinks Jack is one of her baby dolls. If we let her she would have been picking him up on her own by now and pushing him around in her doll stroller. She races to his side when he makes a peep. She is putting a blanket on him (sometimes over his head) or handing him this little blanket duck that she has decided is his thing like her bunny bear. She is however in the deep of being a 2 year old with all of the wonderful (hahaha) challenges of that age. She has taken to hitting when she is told not to do something or screaming when an object does not go her way.

Jack is doing well. He is growing and changing very fast. His eyes are open more and he is really trying to explore his environment. He likes his sisters and will focus on them when they get in his face. Daddy and Jack have been bonding over manly things already. Mommy and Jack are still working out all of the avenues of feedings and sleeping and routines. We head back to the doctors on Friday for his one month check-up and we will see how much weight he has gained.

Mom and Dad are making out okay. We can not seem to stay awake passed 9:00 pm and are still working out all of the new routines and rolls that have been added to our family with our new addition. We are excited about Christmas for the girls this year.

Sorry for no pictures. The new pictures that I have taken are on my computer and I am using John's during the night. I will post some within the next couple of days.

Family of 5

2009-11-24T17:29:00.001-08:00

Three siblings

I think Jack likes his sisters.

Jessa just loves her new brother. She does not understand that he is a boy. She is always calling him, she or her.

Emma likes giving him kisses.

Jack is starting to open his eyes more often.

Well, having three children is quite a challenge. We are learning how to get our activities done. I am not looking forward to Monday when John heads back to work. The girls are getting adjusted to their new brother. Jessa keeps saying "I love my brother". Emma likes moving his arms and touching his ears.

Jack had a rough start to his week. Due to the fact that he was born 4 weeks early, he did not take to nursing as well as I would have liked. I had a Lactation Consultant come to the house on Sunday for a session. We tried a few different things. This was very helpful and he is having a better last few days.

New addition to the family.... Welcome Jack!

2009-11-18T10:35:00.000-08:00

At 6:30 pm Jack was brought into this world weighting 6lb 7oz, 19 1/2 inches long.

Both mom and baby are doing fine.

It all started around 4:30 in the morning when Gaye's water broke. As luck would have it my morning wake up alarm was going off within a few this happening.

A phone call to the Dr., Gaye's mom, the neighbor, and we were off to the hospital.

Our neighbor watched the girls until Gaye's sister could get to the house. It is a blessing to have great neighbors.

Once at the hospital it was just a matter of waiting for baby and mom to deliver.

The girls see very excited that Jack has arrived. They also had a great time staying over night at their cousins house.

Playing in the Leaves

2009-10-27T12:58:00.000-07:00

Family picture in the leaves

The girls sitting nicely

The girls waiting for the leaf shower.

Here comes the leaves

They seem to like this.

So excited!!!

Jessa running through the leaves.

Emma and Jessa like being covered up.

Emma rolling in the leaves

Okay - doesn't she look like she is planning something.

Sunday afternoon, daddy decided it was time for the girls to play in the leaves. They ran and jumped into the leaves. I think their favorite part was the leaf shower. Daddy must have showered them about 10 times. The leaves were going everywhere.

A weekend away

2009-10-18T11:10:00.000-07:00

Emma and Grandma at the Annual Dinner.

Emma showing off what a big girl she is.

Emma standing outside the Jumpy House she went to with Aunt Kim and Ethan.

Emma climbing in the Jumpy House.

Emma, Aunt Kim, and Ethan at the Jumpy House.

John and Emma headed to Rochester for Heritage Christian Services Annual Dinner. Heritage is celebrating 25 years this years, so we decided to make the Annual Dinner this. However a new addition to our family(8 months pregnant) and modified bed rest caused me to not be able to go. We talked about it and decided that John should still go which led us to think about him taking one of the girls. Emma was the definite choice.

They headed out at 5 am on Thursday morning to get to Rochester around 11am to have some time to relax before the dinner. At 5:45 am, I get a call that John got a flat tire on the Blue Route. He was calling AAA to get it changed. They made it an emergency due to his location and having a young child with him. They were there within 20 minutes and had it fixed.

John decided to go to Allentown to get a new tire before going much farther. At 7:30am, he and Emma had breakfast and waited for PepBoys to open. 8:00am he was finding out that both front tires needed to be changed, then all four tires. By 11:00 am, they had 3 out of the 4 tires replaced and the repair guy was heading to the next town for the 4th tire. Finally at 1:00, they were on the road again.

A trip that normally takes 5 1/2 to 6 hours, turned out to be a 12 hour ride. Emma was wonderful the whole day. She was patient and understanding.

They hit John's parent's home and left within 15 minutes for the dinner. The dinner went well and Emma again was great. She was a party animal and stayed up until 10pm.

The rest of the weekend was uneventful, thank heavens. They returned on Saturday with a wonderful welcoming from Jessa and I. I think each girl enjoyed their time with a parent by themselves.

A Walk in the Woods

2009-10-18T10:52:00.000-07:00

Emma and Jessa at the Trail Head.

Jessa loves picking flowers

The girls walking in the fields.

John has started exploring the local trails with the girls. Emma had a project for school to collect fall things from a nature walk, so John decided to head for a nature walk. The girls love it and have been back several times.

New baby pictures

2009-09-27T10:59:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone, It is me laying in bed, still on modified bedrest. I guess it is working because Jack is in the 78% for his gestational weight. He measure at about 3 1/2 lbs now. I am happy about that. It means that he is not being affected by the contractions. We are continuing to pray that he stays in there for another 8 weeks. That would put me at 37 weeks which was when Jessa was born. Please keep praying for him and my strength.

Happy Gotcha Day

2009-09-16T08:03:00.000-07:00

I can not believe that it has been 2 years since we were handed our beautiful little girl. She has developed into a wonderful 2 year old girl. I can not image what our life would be like without her.

Memory Box Monday

2009-08-03T17:09:00.000-07:00

I have been reading a blog from a family that lives out in Colorado. She does a posting on Monday about things that are memorable. This Monday does have several things that are memorable. Two years ago on Sunday, we received our call from the agency about Emma. I remember the mix of emotions that I was going through. I had a 3 week old baby that I was talking about leaving for 2 1/2 week and the anxiety and sadness of that experience of that. Also the excitement of finally getting Emma and going to China.

These are her referral pictures at we received that night.

This is her now with her new tattoo!!!

Today I went to talk with the Pediatric Cardiologist about the baby's extra heartbeat. The baby is fine. We think that is was due to caffeine. I guess no more chocolate for 18 1/2 weeks. :(

John is feeling alot better. He is back to work fulltime now and only has one more week of the meds. He is very tired, but the all of the aches and pains are pretty much gone. I am very happy for that.

Ultra sound today

2009-07-20T18:16:00.001-07:00

It's a Boy!!!!

All looks good with the baby. The doctor wants a second ultrasound in two weeks to check his heart. The baby has a premature atrial contraction, which is an extra beat. The doctor indicated that it is common and can be caused by chocolate (ugh!!!).

We will have pictures scanned soon.

Daddy's home from the hospital

2009-07-18T16:52:00.000-07:00

Last Monday, mommy and daddy headed off the the doctor's again to see if they could help with the headaches. Their doctor put him back on antibiotic and decongestant thinking it was a sinus infection. She also wanted to him to get a bunch of blood work done the following morning.

Tuesday morning we were about ready to head off to school and mommy and daddy were going to get the blood work done - yuck!!! when mommy noticed that daddy's face looked a little funny. He had a very crooked smile and his left eye would not shut. So they decided to head to the hospital instead.

Tuesday afternoon - after a MRI, a lot of blood work, and a spinal tap, he was diagnosed with viral menigitis due to lymes disease. The doctors decided that he had to stay for more treatments. Mommy and daddy were finally relieved at someone found out what was the matter.

Daddy had to stay in the hospital for two days. He came home on Thursday evening. He now has to have medicine in a picc line - I am not sure what that is - it looks like a booboo on his arm and he has something called Bell's Palsy on his left side of his face. The funny face will go away in 2-6 weeks and he needs the medicine for 4 weeks.

He is feeling better, but is still tired and has a few headaches. He did play outside with us on Friday. He keeps telling us that he went to see Elmo's doctor. Elmo's doctor is a good doctor to make our daddy better.

Thank you for all of the prayers for daddy.

Emma and Jessa

Jessa's 2nd Birthday

2009-07-13T18:06:00.000-07:00

Today was Jessa's birthday. I can not believe that she is 2 already. I still look at her as a little baby. Our plans have changed with our vacation. We were suppose to be up in NY from last Saturday until next Saturday so John could play in a golf tournament and we could visit with family. Unfortunately, John has been suffering from a very bad headache for over three weeks. After a few different meds and a CAT scan, we know nothing more than when we started. We are trying another dose of antibotic and thinking maybe it is a sinus infection. If this does not work, we head to a beta-blocker and hope for the best.

The interesting way that God works is I just found out that a couple of family members in NY are sick. Maybe it is a good thing that we were not exposed to those bugs. I am taking advantage of the time off and relaxing a bit and getting some work done that I have not been able to do.

We had a very nice birthday party for Jessa at the house this evening. I think she knew that she was special today. She would say a very cute "2" when you asked how old she was.

I will post some pictures later from the party.

Can I please ask that you pray for John and for his headaches for be gone.

Summer vacations

2009-07-05T09:31:00.000-07:00

Two weeks ago we headed to Lake Ontario for four days. The weather was fair. We played among the raindrops, but the girls did not seem to mind. They had a great time with their cousin, aunt and uncle and grandparents. It was great to see the three of them together.

We arrived home on Sunday and the girls were very tired. Sleep was not a high priority for them over the few days away. The transition back to school was not an easy move. Jessa had a tough time on Monday. We ended the week by getting ready to head to the beach on Saturday for the week.

We had a great time at the beach with my family. John had to work for the week, but returned on Thursday night for a day and half. The girls loved the water and the beach. Jessa just kept asking to go to play in the water. Emma became an expert at sand drip castles. She spent hours playing in the sand. We arrived home on the 4th of July and had a very quiet day.

We are heading to either Rochester or the Lake again on Saturday for a week. John will be golfing on Tuesday and Jessa will be turning 2 on Monday, July 13th. I can not belief that she will be 2.

The pregnancy is going very well. My blood pressure has been great. We go for our next ultrasound on Monday, July 20th. We are going to try to find out what we are having. I will keep you informed.

Here are some pictures for both of our trips.

Lake Ontario, NY

Ocean City, NJ

Our new bug

2009-05-04T17:18:00.000-07:00

We had our 8 week ultrasound today. Everything looks great. The baby's heartbeat is 160. If you believe the old wives tale, that means a girl. Poor John. Mom is very tired and sick. I am wanting Mexican Food all the time.

The girls are doing great. Emma is visiting the older class, she is have a blast. I think she is liking the challenge. Jessa is as crazy as normal, but we love her just as much.

We have scheduled next Monday to put our house on the market. Our kitchen is almost completed and we only have to finish our bedroom. I really hope our house sells quickly so I am not 6 months pregnant packing our house. I would rather be 6 month pregnant and unpacking.

John is doing well. Working hard and playing hard with the girls. Boy does he love those girls.

Thankful Thursday

2009-04-09T17:46:00.000-07:00

I thought this would be a great time to explain what my clues mean. For all of our readers that have not guessed, we are going to have a baby. Surprise!!!! Yes it was very much a surprise-a wonderful and exciting surprise. We are expecting the baby to be arriving around Dec 12th. My mom and John both think that it is a boy. My midwife joked that it is twins. Right now I am feeling great other than very, very tired. I only feel nausea when I have not eaten, so I am trying to do several small meals during the day.

Jessa loves to look at little babies, but I think she is not going to be happy when this baby comes home to stay. Emma wants to have a baby boy, but I think she would be happy to have either. I will keep you informed about all the excitement.

I have to say that I am very thankful to God for the opportunity to be pregnant again and give birth again. As John says, "I am getting my three children" and John's dad now only needs one more grandchild to fill his quota of 7.

A very full last two weeks

2009-04-05T17:02:00.000-07:00

Emma splashing in the puddles.

Jessa loves making big splashes.

Emma is winning the race.

Jessa is catching up in the race.

Daddy moved the girls' house out for them to play in. Boy do they love it. Thanks Dawn and Chuck.

Emma thinks it is great to feel the breeze in her hair. As Emma says... "It's windeeee.."

Bennett and Nicholas were over the last two Fridays due to their spring break. Bennett decided to make a tower with Alla.

I think Alla and Emma are attacking Bennett. Do you like how Jessa is the quiet observer.

Emma is posing out in the grass.

Jessa is planting some flowers for us. How do you think she is doing?

We want to pass on some thank yous for this weekend. Gramma and Grampa for watching the girls on Saturday and Granddad and Nana for coming down to work on the kitchen and go to the Birthday party. We are in the mad rush to get our house together to put it on the market. We are in the need of a bigger home. I will explain more later this week. I have left a clue somewhere on the blog site. We pulled down the kitchen ceiling on Saturday and are putting up a new one on next Saturday. I have gone around and made lists for the things that have to been done in each room. I feel very overwhelmed.

We could use all of your prayers to get this work finished and not have this house on the market for long. God definitely has a plan for us. He also has a great sense of humor.

A very touching post

2009-03-23T16:54:00.000-07:00

I ask that anyone who reads my blog, please take a look at the blogsite that I have the link for on the side - a place called simplicity. It is a very moving post about our service men and women.

A new family member

2009-03-21T16:51:00.000-07:00

Alla is kissing Jessa

Emma saving Daddy from Alla

Jessa is trying to eat Alla

The girls are wrestling with Daddy and Alla. I am not sure who is winning.

Jessa is resting with Alla

Emma and Jessa are putting Alla to night-night.

Jessa playing croc hunter

Emma is hugging Alla

Alla is a very large soft alligator that we found at Sam's Club. The girls fell in love with it.

We had a good day. The girls are getting big enough that they can walk in the mall and completely enjoy it. They must of covered half of the mall with very little problems.

We got to talk with Gramma and Grampa in Germany. It was great to hear from them. We miss you!!!!

Thankful Thursday - one day late

2009-03-20T17:57:00.000-07:00

Doesn't she look like an angel?

The girls like trying to find Bennett's belly button.

Jessa really loves her cousin.

The girls enjoying an afternoon in the park.

We think they want to take a walk.

My thankful Thursday entry is one day late. God has blessed me with some much. I hear stories or read blogs about other families that are going through so much in their lives. I look at my life with my family and feel very blessed.

Thankful Thursday

2009-03-12T17:57:00.000-07:00

This is my first Thankful Thursday posting. I have to admit the idea for this posting is not mine. I got it from another blog site. I have been feeling that I need to include it in my blog. The premise for Thankful Thursday is to thank God for something in your life or day. I thought my first TT was for all the mom's out there. I thank God for the days that children do not nap!!!!

We have had a very sick week. Jessa started with a fever on Friday and we headed to the doctors on Saturday to check her ears. They were fine and we were sent home with the feeling that it was just a cold. By Sunday, Mommy and Jessa were getting worse and Emma just did not seem right. Monday, Daddy took the day off from work to care of the girls (all of them). We headed back to the doctors due to the continued fever with Jessa. Upon the doctor checking her out, she was diagnosed with scarlet fever and strep throat. The doctor immediately wanted to see Emma and she was diagnosed with strep. Mommy received the diagnosis also. We spent the following days at home with multiple doses of antibiotics and tissues.

I decided that the girls needed one more day of a good nap before we started to get back to a regular routines. We had a normal morning filled the activities around the house, playing with babies, dancing, reading, and then lunch. We headed off to bed for some well deserved rest on the girls' and mommy's behalf. On a normal day, the girls are off to sleep within 20 minutes of going up. Today was not a normal day, Emma decided that she did not want to nap and within 40 minutes of the girls going to bed, she had Jessa awake.

I bet the moms out there are wondering why I consider this a Thankful Thursday. I was also wondering that as I was getting more and more upset about how the evening was going to go with two very tired girls. I made the realization that God has given me everything I prayed for. I remembered praying so hard for a child and wondering if I would ever be a mom. There are many days since I have become a mom that I fell like a complete and total failure at this motherhood stuff, then Emma will say "thank you, mommy" with her arm outstretched or Jessa says "mommy, happy". I just have to smile and realize how Thankful I am for God and His Blessings.

A side note, we are all getting better. Now we are just waiting for Daddy to come down with it!!!

Wonderful Pictures of Jessa

2009-03-11T19:07:00.001-07:00

I thought it would be fun to see how much Jessa has changed in 20 months. I hope you enjoy it.

I find it amazing how that little baby that grow inside me could be a true person with ideas and feelings. God is great!!!!

I have been reading a blog recently about a family that lost their home in a fire. The strength and courage of this family is incredible. I know that is truly do to God and His strength and power. If you want to read some incredible insights into how to live your life, please connect to to aplacecalledsimplicity.blogspot.com. Your life and humility will certainly change. God Bless people like this family.

2009-03-02T18:48:00.000-08:00

Don't you like my daughter with the pants down below her diaper like those guys who walk around with their underwear showing. What you don't see is her high-heel shoe on the other foot.

Grandpa and Grandma came for a visit on their way to Florida and gave the girl's hotdog hats.

I think they liked them.

Big bump

2009-03-02T18:42:00.001-08:00

This morning Jessa decided to put Emma's undershirt on her head and walk around blind. After one fall and several mommy comments, she took a header into her baby changing table. I thought it was a good bump and bruise until John came into the bathroom this evening during bath to show us our friend Maverick. He wins for the bigger bump. If you would like to see that bump, please link to Meilin's websit to the left.

Hair cuts and the park

2009-02-27T20:19:00.000-08:00

Emma and Jessa went for a hair cut on Thursday after our trip to the ENT for Jessa. John and I went to Dupont Hospital to talk with an ENT about the possibility of Jessa getting ear tubes. Due to the fact that her ears were clear at this point, we could hold off and take a wait and see attitude which is what we decided to do. After the appointment, we headed to the hair cut place. Emma got her second cut which she was not too thrilled with and Jessa got her first hair cut which she seemed very unimpressed with. Following the hair cut, we made a trek to the playground to let the girls run around and give Mommy a chance to play with her camera more. The girls had a blast. Please note the different styles of going down a slide.

This is before the hair cut - do you think mommy ever combs her hair?

This style has her ending up with her feet on the ground and ready to go off running.

Great butt shot!!!!!

Two unique styles!!!!

I am trying many different angles and views with my camera.

She is beginning to enjoy the swings more than in the fall.

Emma just wants to go higher and higher.

My birthday present

2009-02-27T20:04:00.000-08:00

I got a new camera for my birthday. I have been wanting to get a better camera to take pictures of the girls. Now I have to take a class to learn how to use it. Don't you like my glamour sunglasses that came with my birthday cake?

I got a fancy cake for my birthday too this year. I wonder if I should take something from the symbolism of the cake. I am I a shopper.

Here are some pictures that I took with my new camera. The girls enjoying a drink on their beanbag.

Jessa with her milk belly. No comments about the bottle please, we are working on it.

What a cute little face. She is pretending to be sleeping. Shhhhh!!!!

Jessa is taking after her mommy and liking hats. Boy is her hair getting long.

I just want to give that face a kiss, don't you?

I can not believe how grown up she is looking. She has such a personality and great plans for her day with the activities that are on her agenda.

2009-02-21T13:16:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday Mommy!!!!
Love Emma and Jessa

Can not wait for spring

2009-02-17T17:16:00.001-08:00

We are so in trouble with Jessa. She is already texting her friends. We gave the girls a few of our old cellphones. One of them plays music(ringtones) that the girls dance to. This night, Jessa crawls up into a chair and started playing around with it.

Emma has such a great smile. She loves her noodles(noonals-as she says). She still knows how to slurp with the best of them. I can still remember sitting in the hotel room in Guanghou with a bowl full of noodles and chopsticks. We were amazed at how this 8 month old could slurp those noodles. She and Daddy have slurping competitions at dinner. Jessa has decided that using a spoon with her yogurt is just a waste of time. She much rather lick it out with her tongue. She can get just about all of it, but her face gets a little messy.

It is amazing how long Jessa's hair has gotten. She is really looking like a girl now. She still makes her cheese face as you can see.

Emma and Jessa both like to eat their snack in their playhouse. Jessa is the one that is stealing Emma's pretzels and having fun with it.

We have been talking about getting beanbag chairs for the girls. Last Saturday we were in Target and found this one. As you can see Jessa really enjoys relaxing in it with her bunny bears and a banana (that is what she has in her hand). Let me also say this picture was taken at 5am on Saturday. Why is it that children know that it is weekends and don't sleep.

How fast they grow up!!

2009-02-08T16:42:00.000-08:00

I looked at Jessa this evening and was shocked to see a little girl. She is not a baby any longer. She is a true people with plans and ideas. She enjoys to move furniture (her daddy says she is like her mommy). You will find her pushing a chair around or her house being moved from one place to the next.

It did not seem to be such a sudden awareness for Emma. She is now sleeping in a big girl bed, at home and at Gramma and Grampa's house. We are talking about potty training her.

We went to the doctor's last Monday. Emma is in the 60% for height, 80% for weight, and 10% of head size. Jessa is in the 50% for height, 20% for weight, and 90% of head size. So they are the same for height and opposites for weight and head size.

We start our next music class this week with Mommy as their teacher. I am looking forward to see how they do.

We have not had much going on over the last two weeks. The girls had the stomach bug and are just now getting back to themselves. Thanks heavens that John and I did not get it in full force. We have had two little snows with cancelled school on two Wednesdays in a row. We are going to try to get away for our anniversary at the end of February (our last attempt was cancelled due to the girls getting sick).

Happy New Year

2009-01-26T17:09:00.000-08:00

I thought I would wait to post until tonight to include our New Year dinner. We had a quite uneventful week. The girls are feeling better and John did not seem to get this cold. The girls did share with their mommy though. I am feeling better.

Our 5 year anniversary was on Saturday. We can not believe that we have been married for 5 years already. We pulled out our wedding pictures and we both made comments about how different we look,(boy do you age in 5 years). John laughed because we did not spent our anniversary together. We used the day to do projects that we needed to get done.

Today was Chinese New Year. We spent the morning running around and getting the food for dinner. I made Chinese Dumplings, Fried Rice, Longevity noodles, and snow peas and water chestnuts. I was quite shocked when it all came out.

The girls seemed to enjoy it. John and my mom liked the dumplings. I needed to use wonton skins, because my store did not have dumpling skins. I guess I need to try a Chinese grocery store.

After dinner, the girls did their traditional dancing. Jessa goes over to the stereo and hits the random button. Emma waits with great anticipation for the music to start. Then they go crazy dancing around our living room. Emma dances with this wonderful stiffness that only she could pull off.

Jessa has this stammer step that she does with her head tilted to the side. Maybe the girls will be good dancers like their mommy and not take after their daddy who does not dance for a reason. Hahaha!!!!

This coming weekend the girls are going to stay at Gramma and Grampa's so John and I can go away for our anniversary. I am looking forward to being away with John for a little while. I will have to let you know how it goes.

A sick week

2009-01-19T17:02:00.000-08:00

This week was filled with sick kids. We came home on Monday with Jessa coughing. By Tuesday, she was getting sick with a barky cough. She and I stayed home from school together. That was wonderful to be just one child and me. Wednesday morning she woke up with 104 fever and stopped drinking and eating anything other than oranges. Thursday, she had a fever all day and wasn't drinking any more. Emma also started with a runny nose and cough. By Friday, we were back at the doctors and concerned that she was dehydrated. If she did not have a couple of wet diapers by morning, we were headed to the hospital. Friday night was a turning point, we were constantly giving her liquids.

She is better this week and Emma is feeling better also, but now Mommy has the cold. They are great at sharing things - thank you girls.

We are trying to decide whether or not to move. We have looked at a few homes, but are not sure if we are up to the challenge.

First Snow

2009-01-13T18:29:00.000-08:00

2009-01-13T18:13:00.000-08:00

Emma's 2nd Birthday was on January 8th. We had one of her parties on Sunday, January 4th with my family. She was not so sure about her birthday hat, but liked her cake. On Thursday, we had spaghetti and another birthday cake. She is very blessed with a great number of presents. Mommy and Daddy gave her a big girl quilt and big girl bed. The bed has not been set up yet. Mommy and Daddy are very nervous about wandering around the upstairs at night. She really is getting to be a big girl.

Emma's Readoption

2008-08-11T17:52:00.000-07:00

Friday, August 8, 2008 we had our readoption in the local courts. We were last on the list, but we think the Judge did that to end her week on a good note. She gave Emma a teddy bear at the end of the process. When we asked for a picture, she came out from behind the bench with the bear and Jessa caught sight of the bear. She got so excited that the Judge went back behind her bench to get her a bear.

It was a great opportunity for our family to be involved with Emma's adoption.

New Blog Site

2008-08-10T08:33:00.000-07:00

We decided to change blog site and give this one a try. We hope you enjoy the fun and trouble our girls are getting into now a days.