The Akin's

UK vs AL

2012-01-29T16:48:00.001-05:00

One of the highlights while being in KY was Poppi and GiGi taking Micah to his first UK basketball game. It made it even better that they were playing Alabama, of all schools :) Before the game Micah took my Dad's hand, walked up to a poster on the wall, pointed, and said, "Hey Poppi! It's my boy, Kidd-Gilchrist." Yes, he loves him some #14 and amazes me with how he knows every players name (and number)! He did a great job paying attention to the game and happily cheered on the Wildcats to victory.

We of course had to go find the Wildcat and get a pic.

Micah with Poppi :)

3-ball!

My cousin, Jeramie (aka Princess Jeramie as Micah calls her), met us for the game. It was great seeing her--it had been too long!

Pregnant sisters. Blair is due in May with a boy and we can't wait!!!

Another Needed Visit

2012-01-29T16:39:00.000-05:00

While in Louisville, we were able to spend some time with another one of my high school friend's, Laura. She brought her precious little girl, Madison, over to my parent's house and spent the afternoon with us. I hadn't seen them since September and Madison had changed so much. I'm so thankful for life long friends :)

All About Kids

2012-01-29T16:34:00.001-05:00

We met my friend Kristin and her two kids at this amazing play place in Louisville called, All About Kids. It's pretty much a kids dreamland as they have so much to play with. I'm pretty sure we did more chasing our kids around than catching up, but such is life right now. We both just laughed about it and got as much real conversation in as possible when we could. I have a feeling that next time we visit Louisville, Micah will ask to go here again :)

Micah and Ava

Sweet Brooklyn

Cousin Love

2012-01-29T16:24:00.001-05:00

While in Louisville, we always love to see the other Akin clan. We were able to see them one night over Christmas and then spend a morning with them on this visit. I so wish we lived closer so play dates could take place more often. My sister-in-law, Anna, just refreshes me and there is never a dull moment with our kids. Anna's also expecting baby #3 (another boy!) about a month after me and we can't wait to add more chaos to this madness :) Love ya'll.

Necessary Traveling, Although Forbidden :)

2012-01-29T16:20:00.002-05:00

Paul recently went on an overseas trip for work. He travels about 3-4 times a year and we both thought it would be great to go ahead and get a trip in before our 3rd baby is born. The plan was for someone to come to Bham and stay with me b/c at 35 weeks pregnant, I'm really not supposed to be traveling at all. However, we couldn't work that out. Thankfully my wonderful sister, Blair, was already coming to visit us over MLK weekend, so we just drove back to Kentucky with her. I may not have told my doctor, but I wasn't about to stay in town by myself--just in case I were to go into labor. (Thankfully, that didn't happen and Paul is now home, so we are good to go!)

Our time in Louisville is always so fun, yet so busy. With so many family and friends to see, a lot of times I end up more exhausted than anything, but it's so worth it. One night my whole family went to eat at a Japanese/Sushi restaurant, called Fuji, and it was a big hit with my kids. They cook right in front of you and both of them ate like champs. I'm thinking we might just have to do this again soon.

Reunited at Last!

2012-01-29T16:04:00.004-05:00

Recently, our close friends from college, the Smith's, stayed with us for the weekend while coming in town for a wedding. We had such a great time catching up, meeting each other's kids, and just being with one another. It had been over three years since we'd seen them but truly felt like no time had passed at all (besides the fact that there are now 3 kids running around. Ha). They are so easy to be with and are constantly encouraging us in our walk with the Lord. What a blessing! We loved our time with them and are hoping it won't be another 3 years before we can get together :)

Eric and Paul in July of 2008 at the Waggoner's wedding (the last time we had seen them).

And now our little ones playing in the tub ;)

Their handsome boy, Coleman

Our Minnie

2012-01-28T22:23:00.002-05:00

This girl loves her some Minnie Mouse and lately has been obsessed with dressing up. She would wear this dress everyday if we'd let her :)

New Years

2012-01-28T22:20:00.003-05:00

We welcomed in 2012 with our good friends, the Bordas'. First of all, 2012? Seriously? Where, oh where, has time gone? We ate dinner, played Just Dance 3 on the wii, watched all the New Years Eve shows in NYC, and headed to bed. We all laughed at how old we feel, hardly even being able to make it up to midnight :)

The Bordas' are such servants and constantly love on our kids. We are more than blessed with their friendship!!

Just Dance 3. Once again, this is hilarious to watch (and so fun to play).

Micah is obsessed with taking pictures...

...and always requires at least one "funny face"

Meeting Baby Jude

2012-01-27T17:42:00.002-05:00

Our good friends, Noah and Lindsay, welcomed their precious baby boy on Christmas day. We had anxiously been awaiting his arrival and couldn't wait to meet him once we returned from the holidays. Jude is just perfect and is one blessed boy to have Noah and Linds as parents!

This picture makes me excited to welcome baby #3 :)

Kitchen Helpers

2012-01-27T17:29:00.002-05:00

I love having little hands helping me out in the kitchen. ~~(Or really just making another mess for me to clean up later)~~ It is fun watching them imitate what I'm doing and seeing their creative juices flow. I must say, they looked especially adorable in their Kentucky gear too. They are a blessing!

How Hard Can It Be...

2012-01-27T16:35:00.002-05:00

...to get a decent family picture? We seriously tried over and over and over on Christmas Eve and morning with a complete FAIL.

This is the best we got:

Such is life for now :)

"Home" for Christmas

2012-01-27T16:23:00.000-05:00

After our incredible vacation in Colorado we flew to Louisville on Christmas Eve for a few days. Thankfully we had no delays and made it back in time to worship our King at the Christmas Eve service. We all were pretty exhausted from traveling, but were so glad we went as it just puts the right perspective on the holiday. I am so thankful for Jesus coming to this earth as a baby boy, living a perfect life, dying on the cross for my sins, and conquering death by rising three days later. I pray that in everything I do I worship Him alone!

Christmas day was filled with my laughter and sweet family time. I wouldn't want it any other way.

Our tradition continues with new matching pajamas--which this year just so happened to match my parents colorful house and trees :)

The boys playing our new game from Blair and Andrew, Just Dance 3. It was hilarious watching them :)

These poor babies were so sick on Christmas but still managed to be sweet little girls. I absolutely loved their smocked dresses with the nativity on them!

Excited about his new book from Aunt Vicki and Uncle Allan.

This is a result of "Micah's Photography"

Ry showing off the UK Kidd-Gilchrist jersey they bought for Micah...which just so happens to be my Grandpa's number when he played for Kentucky.

Love these girls!!

Beaver Creek

2012-01-26T15:00:00.000-05:00

We arrived to the gorgeous Beaver Creek, Colorado on Dec 17 and let me just say, I LOVE this place. God is an amazing Creator and seeing His majestic mountains quickly remind me of that :) Our skiing adventure began early Sunday morning and with it being our first time with kids, it took sometime to get everyone situated. Jordan went to an amazing day care and had lots of fun. Micah was old enough to go to ski school and did incredible for his first time skiing. He loved it. And yes, I did ski at 31 weeks pregnant, but I PROMISE I took it nice and easy...and enjoyed a few days off too! The best part is always just being with family, but Colorado was pretty perfect too :) There are way too many pictures to post, so I'll just post some of my favorites.

An Early Christmas

2012-01-26T14:11:00.000-05:00

I know, I know, I'm wayyy behind on this whole blogging thing. Lately, I just really haven't felt like getting on the computer to post anything. I'm thinking it's something to due with being in 3rd trimester!?! However, I've come to the realization that baby #3 is due in about 3 1/2 weeks, so if I don't catch up now, will I ever??? So, here we go on our Christmas highlights...

Since none of our family is in town, we celebrated an early Christmas at the Akin household as we flew out Dec 17 for Colorado with family and didn't return until after Christmas. I'm thinking this might just have to be our tradition for awhile. Our kids definitely didn't know the difference as it was just as exciting to be opening gifts on December 16th as it would be on the 25th :) Plus, they got to play with everything for a day (while we packed), leave it, and return back home to exciting and new toys. (Oh and don't feel bad for them, they had another Christmas on Christmas day from family.)

Micah's Christmas Program

2011-12-16T10:30:00.000-05:00

Yesterday, we couldn't wait to go see Micah in his preschool Christmas program. Jordan and I had to run some errands before the program started, and she kept saying, "Mehc-me, Mehc-me" (yes, that's her way of saying Micah. Ha). When we pulled back up to his school she started smiling really big--I guess she totally knew we were going to see him. Paul met us there and quickly took our seats. Here Jordan is ready to see her big brother:

A few minutes later our little star entered the room. And he was searching for us...

...AND found us. I absolutely love this face and wish I could bottle it for the next 20 years. I have a feeling one day he won't be quite as excited to see Daddy and Mommy :(

Micah opened the program by reciting Luke 2:11, "Today in the town of David, a Savior has been born to you. He is Christ the Lord."

He did a great job in front of everyone, and then the singing began.

Here are the 3 year olds in their glory.

After the program, we headed to Micah's classroom for a Christmas party.

To say he loved having his sister there is an understatement. He kept asking, "Jordan, do you like being at my school?"

Playtime.

And last but not least, Micah's teacher, Mrs. Laura!

Staff Party

2011-12-12T14:00:00.004-05:00

Saturday night we hosted Paul's immediate staff's Christmas party. (The entire staff party was Thursday night and was a lot of fun. Unfortunately, I neglected to get any pictures.) It was a wonderful evening with lots of food and close friends. Paul truly loves his job and has been blessed with a close knit team that works well together. We are thankful!

Baby Jude is due any day now! And we can't wait to meet him :)

Kids craft time! They made reindeer handprint pillow cases. Thanks to Callie for the idea and supplies!

Jordan getting in on the action.

Finished products.

Christmas Baking/Craft

2011-12-12T13:51:00.000-05:00

Paul and I recently started a new Small Group and have loved getting to know new faces and studying the Word with one another. It has been very encouraging and each person brings something different to our group.

On Saturday, we decided to have a little Christmas craft/bake day. Unfortunately, not everyone could make it, but we loved the time we had with those that could come. The girls were busy baking and creating (thanks Pinterest), while the boys enjoyed watched basketball and then playing basketball outside ~~and getting horribly sweaty~~. I hope many more of these days are to come ;)

"Santa! I know him."

2011-12-11T22:35:00.001-05:00

Friday morning we packed up, embraced the craziness of the holiday season, and took our kids to the mall to see Santa. The line was loooonnnnggg, so we decided to walk around the mall for a while, which led us to this:

It was both of our kids first carousel ride, and they loved it. Jordan wasn't so sure about it at first, but once we got moving, she had fun. We ran into a few other families from church too, which made Micah's day to see his friends.

After our little detour, we headed back to conquer the unending Santa line. It took us awhile to get through it, so we had a long time to observe all the other children visiting Santa. Micah couldn't wait to get in his lap, and Jordan was enjoying saying, "Ho, ho, ho" as we waited. Finally our time arrived :)

This picture sums it up...

...so typical of my kids personalities if you know them! Haha. Jordan was the first kid we heard cry that day, but it made for a great picture and wonderful memory.

Poor girl with tears getting rescued by her Daddy. It was a great family day and I know we will enjoy looking at this picture in years to come :)

India Reunion

2011-12-10T22:32:00.000-05:00

This past week we were finally able to get our India team ALL together again. Some of them we hadn't seen since we returned in August, which just makes me sad. We had a great night catching up on life and enjoying a meal together.

Weekend Getaway

2011-12-07T23:03:00.000-05:00

This past weekend Paul and I said goodbye to these precious two children...

...and were Kentucky bound. Not without Micah practicing his own camera skills first ;)

We had a short but oh so sweet weekend with my family in Kentucky. I got to spend some quality time with my precious nieces--without Jordan whining ~~every second~~ when I hold them. I cannot believe how much they have changed since I saw them in September. Love them!

We enjoyed a kid-free delicious dinner at one of my favorite restaurants. It was so good catching up with my family. They are a blessing!

And now, for the real reason we flew in for the weekend...the Kentucky vs UNC basketball game! This was Paul's birthday gift from my parents and it definitely was a great one. Even though Paul is wearing UK blue, he is a Tarheel fan at heart, so we both couldn't wait to cheer on our teams. Both of them have amazing talent this year and it was one of the best games I've ever seen.

(*note to self-never wear this boa again to a game or you might be finding feathers days and days later! that thing could shed!!)

Love being back at Rupp Arena-such a fun atmosphere.

The game really came down to the last second...

...and definitely couldn't get any closer than this. If only this was the National Championship game :) Go CATS! Thanks Dad and Mom for a fantastic weekend!

Rainy and Cold Days...

2011-12-01T09:30:00.000-05:00

...call for new, creative ideas. We came back from Thanksgiving to cold and rainy Alabama for a few days. I actually really enjoyed the change in weather as it just feels more like the holidays. However, not being able to go outside with my kids leaves me a bit crazy and them just full of energy. After reading multiple books, putting together puzzles, coloring, and playing cars and dolls, I decided to breakout the finger paint for a change. Micah loved it and Jordan, well, lets just say she was slowly introducing herself to the mess.

A Week of Thanks

2011-11-30T17:59:00.000-05:00

For Thanksgiving this year, we headed to good ole NC. The kids and I flew alone on Monday...which went well considering we boarded our plane and THEN were delayed for 45+ minutes just sitting on BOTH our flights. Not fun, but our kids actually did pretty good. We all were exhausted when we finally landed in Raleigh, but it was well worth the trip. Paul arrived Tuesday late afternoon for the craziness ;)

We really had such a great week with Paul's family. We ate, watched football, ate, shopped, played outside, played cards, and ate some more :) I also endured Black Friday at midnight for the first time with my sister-in-law, Ashley. Great memory for sure! The rest of the week was rather uneventful, besides an unexpected trip to the emergency room for our precious 2yr old niece after falling off a stool. The diagnosis was a fractured elbow and she did surprisingly well in a splint and sling. Our kids are a bit older now, so it's fun to see them interact and play together. At one point, Micah and Maddy were playing "Honey" (aka mom and dad) and Jordan and Emma Grace were their children. It was quite comical. We sure missed Tim, Anna, and their kids as they were in Turkey for the week seeing old friends. Unfortunately, we all won't be together for Christmas, so we had an early Christmas :)

Sweet cousins.

Celebrating Lottie's birthday.

Brotherly love.

The whole crazy crew (but, definitely not complete without Tim, Anna, Levi, and Judah)

Hope each of you had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Reconnecting

2011-11-29T17:02:00.001-05:00

The weekend before Thanksgiving we had some good friends, the Taylor's, come visit. We served alongside them in Kenya and have missed them. Thankfully, we now live only a few hours away from each other, so I look forward to staying better connected. We got to meet their newest addition, Luke, for the first time which was a special treat! Their oldest son, Noah, was born while we were in Africa, and it just amazes me how quickly time goes by--he is such a big boy! We are definitely blessed by their friendship and had a wonderful visit!

Turkeys, Turkeys, Turkeys

2011-11-15T21:25:00.000-05:00

Well, I don't know about you, but we are in full swing of this whole turkey thing ;) Our house has been invaded by them this year and I'm loving it.

Last week we went over to a neighbors for a play date and she had made the cutest little turkeys for the kids to eat.

Ummm...can you say, delicious!?!

She also had stuff for each of the kids to make a pine cone turkey--which I thought turned out perfect!

This isn't exactly a turkey, but I couldn't pass up sharing his scarecrow.

Micah's school Bible verse is Psalm 118:1 "Oh give thanks to the Lord; for He is good." This year, we've really tried to talk to Micah about "thankfulness"--especially to be thankful for what the Lord has done for us and provides for us. I recently asked him what he was thankful for and this was his response, "toys, chocolate milk, regular milk, movies, school..." Oh, you sure can tell, our teaching is clicking. Haha.

I'm in shock it's already November 16th. I'm trying to slow the clock down so I can really soak up the holidays. I feel like I'm going to blink and they will be over. We leave Monday for a wonderful week in NC with Lottie and Granddaddy. Our family jokes around and call their house the "holiday house"--it just has a special holiday feel about it. Oh, how we cannot wait to get there!

Zoo Time

2011-11-08T17:22:00.002-05:00

This post is a little behind, but a couple weeks ago we went to the Birmingham zoo with some friends. It was my first time to go, but not my kids. My Mom had taken my kids this summer while Paul and I were in India. We enjoyed the gorgeous day with good friends and especially loved the African exhibit :)

A little playtime in our yard after nap time.

Fall Festival #2

2011-11-07T09:00:00.000-05:00

After we spent last Saturday morning in downtown Bham, we headed home for naps, and then were back out again for our second Fall Festival of the day. Our Small Group put on a Fall Festival for an apartment complex where some of our friends live, and are wanting to engage their neighbors. Our kids were ecstatic to put their costumes on and to spend the evening with some of their friends. The apartment complex was rather diverse, as there was many nationalities represented. This was fun for us as we met several Kenyan families and enjoyed talking to them about our time in Nairobi. We hope to go back to visit them soon. It was a great turnout and an overall wonderful fall family day!

Setting up and waiting for people to arrive.

These gorgeous teeth were quite the hit!

Some of our Small Group kids

Downtown Fall Festival

2011-11-06T12:00:00.000-05:00

Last weekend our church helped throw a Fall Festival downtown and we decided to take the kids to check it out. They had a free medical clinic and some preschool games inside, and then some older games, events, and food outside. It was a gorgeous day and great to get out into the community.

Jordan attempting her first try at "corn hole"

Micah and a new friend listening to the Creation story

Trick-or-Treat

2011-11-05T23:13:00.000-04:00

It's hard for me to believe that Halloween has come and gone. This year we had Spiderman (or "Peter Parker" as Micah called himself without his mask on) and a Lion. Our Lion loved dressing up so much that she fussed when she had to take it off. It was difficult to even get pictures of her because she was constantly on the move wanting to "roar". We had a fun Halloween evening as we went to a neighborhood cookout and then took a hayride with our neighbors as we Trick-or-Treated. We now have wayyyy too much candy in the house and this pregnant Momma has been enjoying it a little too much ;)

Pumpkin Carving...

2011-11-05T22:57:00.000-04:00

...with the help of my lil' pumpkin. This year, Micah picked out the design for me to carve (nothing special) and insisted on helping with the pumpkin carving. I was afraid he would try to take over with the knife, but thankfully that wasn't the case. He sat back and watched until it was time to clean our pumpkin out. Once Micah's hands felt the sliminess, his faces were priceless as he wasn't too sure what to think. However, he did end up enjoying the messiness.

Blue Eyed Stroller Girl

2011-11-04T22:31:00.000-04:00

Just the Two of Us

2011-10-30T22:31:00.000-04:00

Time is ticking and it's hard to believe we will add another baby in about 3 1/2 months or so. We recently had some family pictures done and I couldn't resist sharing a few favorites of Micah and Jordan.

Innocent Haystacks...

2011-10-21T09:00:00.000-04:00

...resulted in a trip to the Children's ED :(

**Warning: LONG STORY**

You may remember this picture from my previous post:

Yes, my son is proudly flexing his muscles as he climbed these haystacks in a matter of seconds. Oh so proud, and standing on top of the moon...almost literally ;) We stood at the bottom encouraging him to "cheese" as we took some pictures. And then it happened. Within seconds of us putting our cameras down, Micah didn't say a word but decided to jump off from the very top. We didn't have time to respond to his actions. Micah looked like a flying squirrel coming down...not sure if he thought he was Superman or what!?! He luckily landed on his stomach, face and arms on about 4 inches of loose hay. I didn't think he was going to be able to move. I was in shock. No tears, just utter shock. You can imagine the relief we felt as parents when he looked up and started crying. Thank you Lord, that he didn't break his neck! Paul immediately went over and picked him up and we were amazed that there was not a scratch, bruise, busted lip, or broken bone to be seen. I thought we would be seeing blood or at least a large goose egg on his head. He cried hard for about 10-15 minutes and complained of a headache, but that was it. It definitely scared him to death and he kept saying, "I'm never doing that again." We got some fluids in him and then he was ready to play again. I carefully watched him for the rest of the morning as I was afraid of a concussion or internal bleeding of some sort, but no signs showed up. When questioning why he decided to jump, he told us that he had seen another girl jump off, so he wanted to try it too.

A few minutes after this traumatizing incident, a guy who worked there and had seen what happened came up to us to check on Micah. He was glad he was okay and basically told me, "Man, I wouldn't even jump off of that. You've got yourself a real man." He went on to say that each haystack is 5 feet tall, but because they are stacked onto each other that probably takes off at least a 1/2 ft...making the height Micah jumped from about 16-18 ft tall! That morning he had decided to rake some loose hay at the bottom of the haystacks--just in case someone fell off. Well, once again, thank you Lord for the loose hay!!

Sunday morning came and thinking he might be sore from the fall, I immediately asked him how he was feeling? He said, "I'm okay Mom. God protected me. He caught me when I fell." Umm...talk about melting a Mom's heart!

Our day went on as normal as we went to church, came home and rested, and then went to Small Group that evening. Paul had to work at church that night, so I took the kids to Small Group solo. On the way home from Small Group Micah had been watching a movie and as soon as we pulled into the garage he told me to turn it off (he usually begs me to keep it on). Thankfully, Paul pulled into the garage about the same time, because as soon as we got into the house Micah started screaming of a headache asking me to hold him and rub his head. And I mean screaming uncontrollably and kicking his legs everywhere. It was also hard for him to keep his eyes open and they kept rolling back into his head. I've never seen him act like that and it scared me to death. My immediate thought was that he had an internal head injury, but I did notice his head was a little warm, so I took his temperature. He had a low-grade fever of 100.4. After talking to my parents (and him continuing to yell the whole time), I called my doctor's office and left a message. While waiting for them to return my call, Micah threw up all over me and then said his headache was gone. By this point, I began to think it may be something viral, but after telling the doctor about the 16-18ft jump, she wanted him to be taken to the Emergency Department. We headed that way about 9:15pm and after vomiting in the waiting room, they took us right back. After hearing the story, the doctor's were amazed that Micah didn't have a scratch on him from his jump, which gave us another opportunity to give God the glory. They monitored him and after getting a second opinion decided to do a CT scan. Thankfully, it came back completely normal, so the conclusion was that it was something viral related. They allowed us to leave and we returned home at 1am with one sick and tired boy. By Monday night, we had our little boy back again! I've never been this scared as a parent, but am so thankful the Lord protected him.

War Eagle

2011-10-20T08:30:00.000-04:00

Last Saturday was a full day for us. After we returned from Baker's Farm, Paul and I headed to the Auburn vs Florida game. Some friends were so sweet to think of inviting us, and we couldn't wait to watch a game. We had a wonderful time tailgating, touring Auburn's campus, and of course cheering the Tigers onto a victory. The stadium is full of energy and school spirit--there is never a dull moment which adds such a fun atmosphere to the game (much different than Kentucky football, but not any different than a Kentucky basketball game!). It was a great day with friends-thanks Priest's! War Eagle :)

PS. After the game, we were walking out and randomly ran into one of my brother's best friends from college. He lives in Lexington, KY but was in town for a bachelor's party. Such a small world! I mean, really, what were the chances we would run into him in a stadium that holds about 87,000 people!?!

Baker's Farm

2011-10-19T10:04:00.000-04:00

On Saturday we headed out with our good friends for a day at Baker's Farm. This farm is a perfect place to visit during the fall as they have so much to do. We enjoyed jumping in cotton, the petting zoo, climbing haystacks, horse swings, hayrides, and most importantly the pumpkin patch. It was a great way to start off our Saturday.

Climbing haystacks...more on these in a later post!

Love ya Bordas'! Thanks for a great day :)

Never Thirst

2011-10-18T16:02:00.000-04:00

Last week Paul and I had the opportunity to attend a benefit for a local organization called "Never Thirst". This organization started about three years ago in hopes to provide developing nations with clean water as well as the ultimately proclaim and spread the "Good News". It was amazing to see how far they've come in these few years and to see the Lord's hand upon their work. To learn more or partner with them go here: Never Thirst.

Shhh, It's a Secret

2011-10-11T09:00:00.000-04:00

Well, not really...which is why I'm sharing. I'm sure a lot of you have heard about this by now, but our church holds an event called "Secret Church" twice a year. Basically, it is a 6 hour (YES, 6 hour) intense, inductive Bible study on a certain topic. I know many people think, "gosh, that is so long", but I promise it's worth every second. Our pastor, David Platt, opens up the Word and digs in. It is sooooo encouraging, refreshing, and well worth your time. You will be challenged and just reminded on what Biblical truth is--and let's be honest, we all could use a little reminding ;) The next one is just around the corner as it is held on Friday, November 4th from 6pm-12am (central time). Recently, Lifeway has stepped in and is providing a way for each of you to join us through simulcasting. I highly encourage each of you to look into hosting this event. Get some friends together and have a fun night of Biblical fellowship. The next topic is "Family, Marriage, Sex, and the Gospel"--and you won't want to miss it! For more information check out Secret Church Simulcast.

TOMS

2011-10-10T14:57:00.000-04:00

Lottie bought all the boys matching TOMS, so of course they had to show them off. Recently, their Granddaddy has bought several pairs for himself and now has the nickname "the TOM King". I'm sure this makes him very proud. I'm pretty obsessed and think they make great models :)

Family Came To Town

2011-10-09T17:58:00.000-04:00

Last week some of Paul's family came in town to visit. We LOVE company--and especially family. We all aren't going to be able to get together for the holidays this year, so this time was much needed. We stayed busy, but also enjoyed some downtime at our house.

Once again, I neglected to get my camera out, so these pictures are courtesy of Lottie (which explains why she isn't in them).

Park time.
These two are one week apart:

These two swinging buddies are 6 months apart:

And now we are both expecting our 3rd within a month of each other-so fun!

The crew minus Lottie-Dottie

We took a trip to IJump and the kids AND adults loved it! It's basically a bunch of inflatable jumping toys. We managed to sneak a picture of Lottie enjoying the slide with Micah.

Baby play area.

The morning ended with our JBird being fussy.

Once I picked her up, I realized she had a fever-which began our weekend of sickness. Micah woke up in the middle of Friday night with a stomach bug and high fever. Yuck. Thankfully, a high fever is all Jordan ever had.

It was also my sweet husband's birthday this past Saturday. We had to readjust our plans due our sick kiddos. We did manage to celebrate the October boys birthdays while Paul's family was in town.

It's A...

2011-10-07T15:06:00.000-04:00

...well, we went for our ultrasound to find out the gender, but the stubborn little one decided to cross its legs and not reveal itself. The ultrasound tech unsuccessfully tried and tried to get the baby to move for about 25 minutes. No such luck. Everything else looked great, so she sent me on my way to see my doctor and told me to return after my appointment and we would try again. We quickly returned to find our little one had gladly moved positions and finally allowed us to see the sex. It's another GIRL! We are thrilled and are now working on a name (which never seems to be an easy process for us). Our appointment ended up taking forever, but I guess I'm thankful she is already being "lady-like" and crossing her legs--plus, we we were able to get some great extra pictures of our precious baby ;)

So Blessed!

2011-10-05T15:11:00.000-04:00

Oh We're Halfway There

2011-10-03T23:31:00.000-04:00

It's true. I'm officially 20 weeks and boy, has this pregnancy flown by. I really wanted this child to be a surprise, but my sweet husband wasn't quite on board with that. So this Thursday is the big day! We obviously have a 50/50 chance, but throughout this whole pregnancy we've both been thinking another little girl. So far, Paul's been correct every time, so I'm leaning on his prediction this time ;) Obviously, we would be happy either way and are trusting the Lord knows best for our family.

It's Fall Y'all ;)

2011-10-01T22:38:00.000-04:00

I don't know about you, but we love some fall around here. Cooler weather, football, leaves changing, fall decorations, pumpkin patches, family walks...I mean really, what's not to love?

Here is a preview of our fall so far:

This girl LOVES her some hummus (takes after her Momma!)

I know this is blurry, but I couldn't resist posting this sweet smile!!

A local elementary school decorates the street with creative scarecrows that Micah loves to look at as we drive by. We decided to stop and take a look close up.

Good ole Woody!

Angry Birds--such a cute idea.

Birthday Party, Farm Style

2011-09-26T22:22:00.000-04:00

As I mentioned before, we came to Louisville really only to drive to Ohio for my Great Aunt's birthday. It was a great party and I'm so thankful we got to go. My Dad's family is from Ohio and live on beautiful farms. Some live on a livestock farm, while others live on an apple orchard. I hadn't been here in years, and couldn't wait to see my family and to show my little ones a little country life :) We all had a blast and hope it's not too long before we can return.

Touring the apple orchard the next morning which was such an intricate and just amazing machine and process.

Grandpa, Great Uncle Dick, Dad, Micah, and Ryan

How 'bout them apples?

Watching the washing of apples as they float away.

Picking a "golden apple"

Quick Visit

2011-09-24T18:11:00.000-04:00

Once again, we flew to Lville for my Great Aunt's 90th birthday celebration. The birthday party was actually in Ohio, but it was just easier to fly to KY first and then drive up with my family. Paul was away at an amazing conference up north, so it worked out well to be away for a few days. The weather was sort of blah, but we made the most of it and went outside after the rain passed through. I'm so thankful for Southwest direct flights-the prices and one hour flights have been too good to be true!

Lovin' the longer hair for pigtails-YAY! She is looking so much more like a big girl.

Micah getting to drive GiGi's corvette and loving it!

Miss Priss seeing Lion King 3D

Enjoying some precious time with my nieces as we babysat them for a few hours...

...Jordan was a good little helper ;)

Preschool Starts Back

2011-09-20T18:00:00.000-04:00

Oh yes, the day finally arrived for school to start back and Micah couldn't wait! We visited his school a few days ago to meet his new teacher and see his classroom, and he was excited to be a "Dolphin" this year. I'm honestly shocked at how quickly the summer flew by. I really enjoyed having my munchkins at home all day and although I'll now enjoy some one-on-one time with Jbird, we will miss our crazy brother. It's hard to believe that he is already 3. Some days I wish I could freeze time...

Old Friends (and New)

2011-09-13T17:52:00.000-04:00

Besides seeing family, one of my favorite things about going back to Louisville is seeing my life-long friends. I sure miss them! This particular visit I was able to spend quality time with several of them, which was wonderful. I neglected to get pictures of us, but I did manage to snap a few of one of my best friend's kids playing with mine! Hopefully they will get to know each other as they grow up :)

UK Football, Mascots, and Bball Players

2011-09-11T23:43:00.000-04:00

While in Louisville, my parents decided to take Micah to his first UK football game (he went at 6 months old, but that doesn't count). It was a daytime game, so we briefly tailgated where he got to meet these guys:

Overall, he did extremely well considering the length of football games. He enjoyed watching the game and cheering the CATS on, dancing to all music, and trying to find the mascots. Before the game, my Mom had told Micah that he was going to meet the Wildcat that day...slight mistake :) Therefore, during the game, Micah was really confused as to why the Wildcat never came near him. He looked intently through his binoculars keeping his eye on the Cat in hopes that it would come his way. Well, that never happened.

At halftime we took Micah on a search to find the Wildcat, but instead ran into a bunch of UK basketball players. I may or may not have used Micah as an excuse to get a few pictures ;)

Doron Lamb (my personal fav)

and Terrance Jones

Once we walked away Micah asked, "Why are they so mad?" Haha. I guess he even picked up on the players annoyance of picture taking.

Towards the end of the 4th quarter, my Mom took charge and walked Micah around the stadium to where the Wildcat was located. We walked in and there was two front seats open that we quickly plopped down in. The Wildcat search was on.

Spotted.

Watching and ~~patiently~~ waiting...

At last!!!!

One happy camper and a promise fulfilled. Thanks Mom :)

On the way home sporting his new Kentucky jersey that Poppi bought him.

Random Run-in and Zoo Visit

2011-09-09T23:13:00.000-04:00

Right after our Florida trip, Paul headed overseas to Europe. We flew to Kentucky to spend the week with my family while he was gone. One day my Mom and I took the kids to Chick-fil-a for lunch and we randomly ran into these sweet faces:

Too funny. Anna and I had already made plans to meet up at the zoo later that week, but we totally weren't expecting to see them on this day. It was such a great surprise for all of us. We love you Akin's!!

Like I said, later that week we took our four munchkins to the Louisville zoo and had a blast. There was never a dull moment, that's for sure.

This massive gorilla walked right up to the window and scared Jordan to death! Can't blame her.

The Big 6-0

2011-09-07T23:01:00.000-04:00

Labor Day weekend was spent in Florida celebrating my Dad's 60th birthday with my family. My Dad is the most loving, godly, patient, and humble man and we all were honored to be with him on his special day. With it being hurricane season, we were a little afraid we'd have bad weather. Thankfully, that wasn't the case at all, and we were able to spend our days at the beach. The last two days we even had great waves to play in-which is so unusual for the Gulf Coast.

This little one was the sand QUEEN. I personally hate when sand gets on me, but she seemed to enjoy placing it all over her entire body--even in her mouth. Yuck.

"I really like your belly button."

"Well, I love you, sister."

GiGi teaching our Jbird how to swim--surprisingly Jordan loved going under

Looking at the memory book we made him

Sweet bathing beauties

Our pilot flying us home :)

I-N-D-I-A

2011-08-15T22:24:00.000-04:00

Paul and I kissed our little ones goodbye and headed to India for 9 days. It was the first time we had left them for this long, so it was a tad emotional for me (I don't think the pregnancy hormones helped either). Thankfully, we left them in great hands. I think we missed them more than they missed us ;)

This was our first time to India and I was very happy to be serving alongside Paul again. I didn't realize how much I'd missed it! We spent a few days out in villages which was challenging yet so rewarding. The people were eager to hear Good News and were so hospitable. Besides getting sick, and I mean sick, from something I ate the last two days on the ground, this was a wonderful trip! I was so blessed to have gotten to go.

On our 8 hr overnight train ride to the first village where a mouse kept crawling beneath our feet-SICK!

Creatively sharing Good News using henna

Girls listening to our Story

Finished product

Our lovely transportation

Rejoicing to be leaving "Hotel Leo"-it was by far the most disgusting hotel I've ever stayed in...cob webs everywhere in our bathroom/shower, bugs on walls/floors, brown toilet and sink water, a broken window in our bathroom, stained pillow cases,etc. Needless to say, I was very thankful my sickness began in the next hotel :)

the village crew

Another village sharing our Story

One of the villages we visited felt a bit more like home to me as they are African descendants who were brought over to India as slaves years ago. I want this one:

Another one...

2011-07-26T21:40:00.000-04:00

...on the way!!

Yes, it's true! The biggest news of the summer was that we found out in June that we are expecting baby #3 around. The due date is February 20th, and so far I'm feeling great. We are so so thrilled although it makes me a little nervous that our kids will now outnumber us. Ha. Any tips or advice!?!

Chuck E Cheese

2011-07-16T21:51:00.000-04:00

I relived a bit of my childhood as we spent an evening at good ole Chuck E Cheese. The pizza was just okay, but the game time paid off for everyone. I honestly don't know who had more fun-Paul or Micah? :)

A Kentucky Derby game, which we of course, had to play

And here is our little one, totally hamming it up for the camera

"the Forest"

2011-07-10T21:23:00.000-04:00

We always enjoy our time in Wake Forest, NC as we love being with Paul's family AND it reminds us of sweet memories from our first two years of marriage. We headed there for the 4th of July week and were able to spend a few days with the entire Akin clan (we all staggered in on different days). So fun. The 4th was spent all day at the pool with some family friends, but unfortunately I neglected to get my camera out until dinner time.

Bath time with cousins is always a wild and crazy time.

One of the days we went to a local children's museum called "Marbles". We left the younger kids at home with the Dad's-which was a good call :) Micah loved it as there was so much to see and to do.

Devouring our lunch with good friends after a long but fun morning at Marble's.

Another highlight of Micah's week was seeing Cars 2 (or "2 movie Cars" as Micah called it for the longest time). I made the mistake of telling Micah back in February that Cars 2 was coming out in June. So, lets just say it was a lonnnngggg 4 months for this precious boy and we were often asked if it was June yet.

We ended the week with some family photos. There are really too many to even show, so I'll just you a quick preview.

Driving back to Alabama and enjoying a Baby Einstein with the headphones actually on (this lasted 5 min).

Thanks Granddaddy and Lottie for a great week with everyone!

Our Arab Boy ;)

2011-06-30T16:30:00.000-04:00

Daddy returned from the Middle East and it's always fun to see what he brings back for the kids. This time around he went with a couple of new outfits for our little man to dress up in. Micah loves to be in costumes, so he quickly tried them on. I think he may be the cutest little Arab boy I've seen :)

Checking himself out in the mirror...can't blame him!

Matchy Matchy

2011-06-30T16:20:00.000-04:00

Since it's difficult to get everyone together, one of the things that is always a must on family vacations is PICTURES!!! :)

Sea Island, GA

2011-06-28T14:21:00.000-04:00

At the end of June my family took a wonderful vacation to this beautiful place in Sea Island, GA:

It was perfect to be with my whole family for a week! It doesn't get much better than being at a beach and being with one another. God is good :)

Here are the most adorable twin girls EVER (aka my beautiful nieces) getting ready to board their first plane.

At the resort we stayed in, there were a lot of different activities to enjoy--too many for us to even attempt. However, we took advantage of what we could and had an incredible trip.

My little monkeys played on the playground.

We swam in the ocean.

Played in the splash pad.

...and then got dominated by the splashing :)

Snuggled under our towels (my personal favorite).

Spent a special Father's Day with my sweet Grandpa and Dad.

Learned all about sand...

...and is still not too sure what to think ;)

Had some intense sand volleyball matches.

Reunited with the tennis courts...

...after kicking my kids of the court.

Anxiously welcomed Daddy back to the States after a long trip to the Middle East...oh, how we missed him!

Took some naps...

...in some not so usual places :)

Ate yummy and refreshing popsicles.

Had some good food...

...and had to share :)

And last, but not least, enjoyed some quality time and dinners with family (and no kids!).

Thanks Dad and Mom for a memorable vacation. Loved being with you!!

Play, Play, Play

2011-06-15T09:11:00.001-04:00

While at Poppi and Gigi's house we played, played and played. It was so much fun but sure made us tired!

Played with chalk

Went to their church and played in the indoor play area called "Noah's Ark" (this was a huge hit!)

Played every sport possible inside and out

Played hide-n-seek

Rode bikes and stopped at a local playground to play

But then fell fast asleep on the bike from all the playing :)

Brooklyn Rose

2011-06-13T09:06:00.000-04:00

A few months ago I found out that I was going to be in town when one of my best friend's (Kristin) delivered her second baby. I cannot tell you how excited this made me as this probably will NEVER happen again. I was overseas when her first daughter, Ava, was born, so this just seemed too perfect! Kristin had some delivery complications with Ava, so the doctor wanted her to go ahead and schedule a c-section with this baby to be safe.

Kristin and I met playing soccer when we were about eight, went to middle and high school together, and have remained extremely close over the years. Her family is like a second family to me and serve as a huge encouragement in my life. Needless to say, it was blessing to be in the waiting room with the family.

Kristin and me at church the day before delivery (she doesn't even look pregnant!)

During pregnancy, Kristin and Jake never found out the gender of their baby, so this was the family anxiously awaiting the big news.

It's a GIRL!!! Proud parents introducing Brooklyn Rose :)

The big sister, Ava, meeting her new sister

The beautiful Zutt sisters

Kristin and her Aunt Debbie with Brooklyn

Shrek

2011-06-12T21:05:00.001-04:00

Shrek, on Broadway, was in Louisville while we were there, and my parents took us to go see it. This was Micah's first Broadway play (or play in general) so it took him awhile to get used to the LIVE characters and costumes. It definitely was entertaining and had some good laughs in it, but it wasn't my personal favorite play. We had a great evening with Poppi and Gigi though and the play was perfect for Micah.

Double the Love

2011-06-10T08:59:00.003-04:00

While in Kentucky, we also enjoyed loving on the two newest family members, Milly and Clarabelle. I'm so in love. The twins are about 8 weeks now, growing well, and just perfect. What fun it will be to watch them grow up. I feel blessed to be their Aunt :) Micah couldn't give them enough kisses either...

Fun in the Sun

2011-06-09T20:59:00.003-04:00

The little ones and I headed to Kentucky to spend some time with my family while Paul traveled overseas to the Middle East. We spent most of our days at the pool as we taught Micah how to swim and attempted to keep up with the busyness of Jordan in and around the pool. We got to see lots of family and friends too-which is always a huge bonus.

Micah and Ava (one of my best friend's from high school's daughter)

Day at the pool with sweet, old friends! Loved every minute and miss ALL these girls so much.

Time with Anna, Levi, and Judah is always so special.

And a day at the pool with Uncle Ryan and Poppi is just so fun.

Poppi and Ryan got Micah to swim UNASSISTED all the way from the diving board to the other end of the pool. Micah is doing great, but often likes to revert to treading water rather than swimming. Ha.

Sarah's Baby Shower

2011-06-07T00:08:00.001-04:00

I was so happy when I found out that I was invited to a baby shower for my friend Sarah...AND that I actually could make it. Sarah was my big sister in my sorority in college, and we hadn't seen each other in FOUR years! Wayyyy too long. Thankfully the internet has been a blessing as it's allowed us to stay in touch. Her parents live about 40 minutes from me in Alabama, so I was honored to go help celebrate baby Elsie :) It was great catching up and basically seemed like no time had even passed. She is beautiful inside and out and I'm thankful for her friendship and accountability in my life. Love you Sa!

College friends

Sarah's sweet family

Nana's Funeral

2011-06-04T20:34:00.000-04:00

Big Joe and Nana

This past year we've had to say goodbye to both of my Mom's parents. I cannot even begin to explain how thankful I am that the Lord allowed me to be back in the States and to spend time with each of them before they passed.

Here are some pictures of my sweet Nana's funeral.

Nana's name was "Betty Priestly Holland" and she always had an obsession with "Betty Boop" :)

My Mom and her brother, Joey walking behind the pallbearers

Some of the Priestly cousin's

This is the house that Nana grew up in that her dad built.

"Holland" cousins

Family

Saying Goodbye to Nana

2011-06-03T23:59:00.001-04:00

Sadly, my Mom's Mom, "Nana", passed away recently after being sick for quite awhile. Once she got really bad, thankfully the Lord took her quickly. I absolutely adored this lady and was blessed to be her granddaughter. She was full of life and never ceased to have a good time. I know it was time for her to go, but I will cherish the many memories I've had with her over the past 26 years. She truly was a special one.

Jordan and I flew to West Virginia for the funeral and were only there about 24 hours. It was short but so so sweet and much needed closure for me. It was nice to spend time at my Aunt's and Uncle's house with my family and reminisce of our beloved Nana.

Playing a fun and intense frisbee game called "Can-Jam"

Desperately Overdue ;)

2011-06-01T22:17:00.001-04:00

Our kitchen chairs were in desperate and I mean desperate need of being recovered. I've had them since the fall of 2005 when I moved into an apartment in college and they've served us well since. Our good friends even put them to good use in their kitchen while we were overseas. They actually were in great shape when we got them back last August...which goes to show you how quickly kids can completely destroy them. In the short 9 months we've been home, we've spilt juice, milk, spaghetti, ketchup, yogurt, and much much more. We often host people in our home and I'm always completely embarrassed when they pull out those seats to eat dinner with us. I often hope that they just don't even look ;) Needless to say, it was time to recover them. Within about a 2 week period I saw advertisements for "Amy Butler fabrics" in a magazine and then my sweet sister-in-law, Anna, recommended her to me as well.

When my Mom was recently in town she saw how filthy our chairs were and highly encouraged me to get this done asap. I was thankful for her encouragement and finally got around to researching online. I found several unique patterns that I loved, that matched my house...AND were laminated! I quickly ordered the fabric and within a week the project was complete. My Grandma and Aunt helped me measure the pieces and cut them out, and then my brother-in-law, Andrew, helped me staple them on the chairs. I am beyond in love with the new look and oh so easy to clean material!

Before

Example of ONE filthy chair

Laminated fabric

Finished product

Check out Amy Butler-she has things for a variety of different tastes and is so creative!!

Cookout, "Camping", and Games

2011-05-31T23:40:00.001-04:00

We ended a fabulous weekend with Blair and Andrew with a delicious cookout followed by a "mock camp out". Our original plan of having Blair, Andrew, and Micah camp outside for a night quickly faded with the intense humidity we had this weekend. Plus, Micah would go to bed earlier and we didn't want Blair and Andrew to just sit outside when we could be enjoying time with them. Micah enjoyed helping Andrew set up the tent, and then we played games, read a book, and did a puzzle inside the tent before calling it a night for Micah-man. Once he was down the four of us decided to play a little Trivial Pursuit-none of us had played in years and I'd say we all learned a lot :) Thanks Norton's for coming to see us. We love you!

Paddle Boatin'

2011-05-30T22:32:00.000-04:00

Over Memorial Day Weekend my sister, Blair, and her husband, Andrew, came to visit us. We always have a great time with them and like to be active when possible. We decided to take advantage of the gorgeous weekend and headed over to a state park (about 5 min from our house) for a little paddle boating and picnic lunch. We all knew it would be fun, but I think our day was even better than any of us expected...that's always the best :) Paul and I decided that we will be visiting this place again really soon.

Grandma in Town

2011-05-28T22:03:00.003-04:00

Last fall my Grandma lost her Mom who was 105 years old. They both lived in the same city in Florida, and my Grandma was faithful until the end of taking care of her and visiting her. She recently decided it's time to move back north to Kentucky where her two children live. My Aunt flew down to help her drive the longggg drive north and we were blessed to have them stop and see us for a night. We had a great time together and they were sweet to help me with a little home project (to come soon).