Welcome Baby Noah

Congratulations to Justin and Jeanna, who welcomed baby Noah John into the world at 1:30 pm yesterday. God is so good!

Tagged

OK, I've been tagged by Casey. Here are the rules:

1. Link to the person that tagged you and post the rules on your blog.
2. Share 7 random and or weird things about yourself.
3. Tag 7 random people at the end of your post and include links to their blogs.
4. Let each person know that they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.
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I have been tagged before and never posted answers . . . sorry friends who tagged me in the past. Alright 7 random things . . . you better sit down I lead a crazy exciting life-- haha . . . not.

1. During my father's time in the Navy, we lived in Japan for five years (age 7-12), and my sister and I modeled during our time there. I was also baptized in the Tokyo Bay.

2. I have had braces twice. I had braces in middle school and then again as an adult. I lost my retainers just before Jonathan and I were married and didn't think anything of it. Well, I learned the hard way that many women experience major shifting with their teeth during pregnancy due to changes in hormones, gums, and weight gain/loss.

3. I enjoy doing laundry and ironing. I love everything about laundry . . . the smell, the feel of hot clothes right out of the dryer, the satisfaction of a perfectly folded T-shirt, and getting rid of those pesky wrinkles. There was even a time when I ironed our sheets-- that was before children . . . hey stop laughing!!!

4. If I could choose any drink to have with pizza it would be root beer.

5. I am terrified of spiders. I don't like them, I don't want to see them, and I don't want to talk about them.

6. Jonathan and I used to be avid rock wall climbers. We took a belaying course at our YMCA in Raleigh, and we would spend hours climbing new courses, coming up with moves, and challenging one another. We also biked rugged trails for a little while-- until Jonathan "tacoed" his bike tire on a tree root. I don't really remember what it's like to have so much time on our hands.

7. I prefer dark chocolate.

Ok, hope these tid bits are random enough. I tag Katie, Mollie, Tim, Jeanna (she's having a baby today so give her a few days), Ellen, Kristi, and Ginnie

Thanksgiving Travels

We traveled to Florida over Thanksgiving. It was very nice to get away for a few days and spend time with Mom, Katie & Jimmy, and Jimmy's parents (Jim & Deb). We had a lot of fun playing with the girls, playing games, and of course stuffing our faces!!! We celebrated an early Christmas as well. So, the girls got to open some presents and enjoy playing with their new toys. Unfortunately, the Brooks family all came down with a rather violent stomach bug during our visit. Though we were uncomfortable . . . ok I was miserable, we still had a really good time!

Your Questions Answered . . .

Hello all! No, we're not pregnant (to my knowledge), we haven't been abducted by aliens, we haven't gone into hiding, and Madeline is not still sleeping like that!!! Haha. We have just been busy . . . very busy! Mostly I've been busy being humbled and reminded that I am not super woman, it is Christ who strengthens me, and I need his daily sufficient grace in a bad way!!! Having one child didn't change my life dramatically, having two children brought about a few more changes. Having the second child begin crawling and pulling up over the last two months (in the midst of moving into a new home and home renovations) has completely changed my life!!! Haha.

We are doing well. I have come to realize that Rome wasn't built in a day, and neither shall my house be finished. Madeline is in her ninth month, jabbering constantly, crawling and pulling up, and becoming quite a character. Hannah is learning by leaps and bounds. Her imagination continues to grow, as she spends much of her free time role playing, having vivid conversations with her dolls and imaginary friends, and making up praise songs. Her most recent accomplishment-- finally learning to ride her bike (given to her on her birthday). I have been sewing, baking, Christmas decorating, and running (almost daily) . . . pretty much anything that involves putting off our home renovations. I also recently took on the role of nursery coordinator at our church. Jonathan has been busy creating two new websites (one for the church and one for the museum). His work at the museum keeps him very busy, but he is enjoying learning the ropes as museum director. He will also be preaching the next two Sundays from Romans 8.

God willing, I will attempt to post a few pictures and recaps this afternoon.