The Chickens Get A Home & Bubba's First Words

Nana and Uncle Russell came to visit for a few days, it was so good to see them! They helped us paint the chicken coop, mow the grass and weed the yard. Because of them, we were able to move the chickens out of the garage. Their timing couldn't have been better as our house was starting to smell like chickens--GROSS!

Before.

After. We still have a lot of work to do yet.

It was a big week for you too, Bubba, you started talking! I can't even believe it. What started out as baby babble turned into "Dada Dada Dada" followed by "Dad" and a "Ya". You're growing up so fast! What are we going to do with you?

Bubba & Mommy.

Socks taste good.

An Answered Prayer

Back in January, Bubba had a seizure and we spent several days in the hospital with him. Some time after his stay in the hospital, we received an explanation of benefits in the mail from the insurance company saying we should expect to receive a bill from the hospital and we were going to have to pay several thousand dollars for Bubba's visit. I remember when that piece of mail came, my heart just sank.

Then another piece of mail came saying the doctor had asked them to review everything they had done for Bubba and they were going to cover things. Well time went on and we never received a new explanation of benefits or a bill. I began to wonder how things were going to pan out. Were we going to have to pay this large sum of money to the hospital? Was the insurance going to cover it?

I decided it was time to put my mind at ease and called the hospital to see what was going on. The gal on the phone had a hard time figuring everything out on our account and sent it in for review. The next day I received the dreaded call, the worst was confirmed we were going to have to pay several thousand dollars to the hospital.

About the same time the bad news came, our financial situation changed and we lost about a third of our income. We began praying to Heavenly Father that somehow we might be able to pay this bill with our now much smaller income.

Within a few days our prayers were answered and we managed to come up with just enough money to pay the bill. There is no doubt in my mind that the Lord heard and answered our prayers. God is real. He is there. He is merciful. And He will answer your prayers too, if you turn to Him.

Even More Photos From Last Week

I'm not sure how I managed to not see so many photos last week. Sleep deprivation? It has been a long time since I have slept a solid eight hours. Anyways, here are some more photos from this last week.

The Hush, Hush Series

I have been struggling to find good books to read lately. I feel at though I have read most of the good ones out there. One day while looking for some new good reads, I happened to stumble across the Hush, Hush series. I went to my local library and they had the books available for check out.

When I first started reading I felt at though I were reading Twilight all over again. Girl meets superhuman boy in science class, she shouldn't like him, but she does- you get the idea. In this case though, it's a fallen angel instead of a vampire. Similarities aside these books are SO GOOD!!! I could not stop reading! I felt at though I was reading the climax of the story the entire time! I really wish there were more books out there like this!

Bubba At 7 Months

My sweet little boy, we love you so much! Our lives simply wouldn't be complete without you! It's hard to believe it has already been seven months since you entered our lives. It's been seven months since we were promoted to Mommy and Daddy. Seven months of growth, joy, love, happiness and occasionally tears. It's hard to imagine what life would be like without you. Your toothless grin and giggles light up our lives.

At seven months old you have yet to sleep a solid eight hours, it's amazing that we can function on such little sleep. You love to smile, laugh and giggle. Bath time is something you look forward to each evening. You love splashing in your tub. You love when Daddy does video calls with you on his lunch break and you get so excited each day when he comes home from work.  You are such a good little eater, you love everything you have tried thus far with the exception of turkey and green beans- you throw those back up just about every time Mommy feeds them to you. You have figured out how to roll over, but you don't do it very often. You still like to be swaddled when you sleep at night. You love to chew on everything right now including Mommy's hair.

My hope for you little one, it that you enjoy each moment and season in life as it comes. Savor the good and learn from the struggles. Time passes far to quickly, make the most of each day and every opportunity that comes your way.

We love you so incredibly much! We hope you know it and that you never ever forget it!

Some Photos From Last Week

These photos didn't make it in my last post, but they are really cute so I have to share.

We have been working like crazy to finish building our chicken coop- it's become a family affair. It was chili out on this particular day, so we had to bundle up our little chick. Isn't he cute?

Eating strawberries is messy business.

Blackberries are pretty messy too! Don't worry, all of the stains came out.

Our First Tumble

Andy and I go berry picking several times each year. We like to pick about 40 pounds of each kind of berry (strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, blackberries and occasionally marionberries and chesterberries). You might be wondering what we could possibly do with that much produce. We freeze the majority of it and use it throughout the year to make smoothies, pancakes, we put it on top our ice cream and cereal and sometimes we just like to eat frozen berries.

Mommy & Bubba.

Strawberries recently came on at our favorite farm and with the crazy weather we have been having we weren't sure how long the berries would be around. We decided to get up early Saturday morning and go picking. We brought Bubba along with us for the adventure and figured he could sit in his Bumbo chair.

As soon as we put him in his chair he started trying to put anything and everything he could get his hands on in his mouth. We quickly realized that we needed to change something, we decided to put his chair on top of a container we brought to put berries in-- bad idea. Bubba decided to lean forward really hard to try and get a hold of some grass and he toppled over forward and landed on his face-- he was still buckled into his seat. He let out quite the wail. Aside from bruising his face, he was okay. We are super grateful that he didn't get hurt worse.

First time eating a strawberry.

Owie near his eye.

After Bubba's tumble. we decided it would be best to take turns holding him. One of us would hold him while the other one picked berries. I tried holding Bubba and picking berries at the same time, but each time I would pick a berry, he would pick a leaf and try and put it in his mouth.

I think it is safe the say that strawberries were a hit with this little boy.

We ended up picking 46 pounds of strawberries. These by far are the sweetest berries either one of us have ever tasted.

This photo was too cute not to share.

Bubba's 6 Month Check Up

This past week was a difficult one, Bubba. On Thursday Mommy took you in to see you new pediatrician for the first time, this was also your six month check up. Mommy was impressed with the new doctor and felt like the visit went well. The nurse gave you two shots at the end of the visit and we headed home.

Things seemed okay in regards to your vaccinations. On Saturday though, it was like a switch flipped. You cried and you cried and you cried. You cried all night Saturday, I think Daddy and I got a total of three hours of sleep that night. Mommy called the triage nurse on Sunday and she had us take you in to urgent care.

The doctor at urgent care was really nice. He noticed that your leg had swelled up and that there was a large lump under the skin when you pushed down on the leg. He suspected you were upset because of your shots but didn't seem overly concerned.

Today your pediatrician called to see how things were going. Mommy told him what had gone on, he explained that the nurse hit a blood vessel while giving you your shot. The blood leaked out the vessel and collected (it's called a hematoma)- that's what the hard lump in your leg is and the source of your discomfort. He said the pain should subside soon but the lump itself can take a month to go away.

I know that shots are essential to keep you from getting debilitating diseases. Hang in there little one. I'm so sorry you are in pain. Hopefully this next week will be better.

Satan's Counterfeit

I have heard it said many times that you can buy anything. I had never really given this idea any thought until recently and as I thought about it I had a major revelation. I felt kind of dumbfounded and wondered why I had never had this thought before. The realization was simple and clear as day to me.

What I realized was this:

Satan wants so badly for us to believe we can buy anything, but the thing is you can't buy the things that matter most in this world. You can't buy love, it's counterfeit is lust. You can't buy health, it comes from good lifestyle choices (healthy food, adequate sleep and exercise). No amount of fad diets, quick fixes or surgery will change that. You can't buy family, friends, confidence, self-worth, knowledge, happiness or even a testimony of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

All of the things that truly matter in life are the result of hard work and making good decisions and these things can't be bought.

Rolling!

Bubba, we just love you! I don't know that we will ever get tired of telling you that. Hopefully, you don't ever get tired of us expressing our love to you either. You have such a sweet disposition about you. As long as you can see Mommy or Daddy you are a pretty happy little boy.

I love those Asian eyes!

Selfie with Mommy.

We have been doing a lot of work in the yard and Daddy has been working hard to build the chicken coop. You just love being outside and watching your Daddy work. The other day while he was hammering some shingles into the roof of our coop, you just started to laugh. Each time Daddy would hit the nail you laughed- it was super cute!

Who says you can't eat in your swing?

I think the big milestone for you this week would be rolling. We've been working hard to help you learn to roll over. Whenever we put you on your tummy, you roll over onto your back. Good job! We are so proud of you!

Those eyes!

Chomping on your toes.

Looking wise beyond your years.

Sometimes it okay to cry.