owen at 3 months old

Jackson's Baptism

The memory of this beautiful day when my sweet Jackson was baptized will be forever imprinted in my mind.  It was a time stopping moment where the souls of believers and the angels in heaven danced in celebration, rejoicing the life of this precious new believer.

Jackson at only 4 1/2 on his own accord told us that he believed in Jesus and wanted to be baptized.  We questioned whether this was too young and wanted to make sure that he understood the choice he was making so we waited.

This past year Jackson continued to mature spiritually.  His love for Jesus apparent through his beautiful prayers, the deep conversations we had, and his general desire to learn more about Him.  All of this yes in very much a child's way, but with such pure and complete faith that had my mouth dropping open at the profoundness of our conversations at such an early age.  

It was in June when we were talking about Kindergarten starting this fall and how much fun he would have going to P.E., Art and Music when he asked me, "And chapel too, right?"  My answer of no left him very upset.  He asked me in a very worrisome tone where he would learn about Jesus.  He was so used to learning, worshiping and giving thanks daily at school that he was shocked there was not a dedicated time to learn about Jesus at "big school."  I agree it is quite the bummer.  When I reminded him that hello, he would be learning about him at church and of course at home still he replied pressing his hands to his forehead, "Good, cause you know I'm just REALLY into that guy!" And then, "Hey, why have I not been baptized yet, cause you know I have Jesus in my heart?"  We prayed together that night and I questioned him about what his decision meant and why he wanted to get baptized.  To see the truth so clearly in his eyes and words as he spoke to God that night was beautiful. After talking to Bryan we decided to go ahead and let him profess his faith through a public baptism at our church.  This verse guided us in our decision.

“Let the children come to me, and do not prevent them; for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” – Matthew 19:14

Jackson was more excited about his baptism than he was about Kindergarten starting or his upcoming birthday.  Throughout the week leading up to the big day we spent a great deal of time talking about the significance of baptism and what the Bible has to say about it. That this next step, was not just because of tradition but what the Bible teaches us to do once we have accepted Jesus as our lord and savior.  I explained that we get baptized for two reasons.The first being that Jesus did (Matthew 3:13-16) and we want to follow his example to be more like him. And in Acts 2:38 the Bible commands believers to repent and be baptized.  We talked about the story of when Jesus was baptized by John the baptist and then the verses in Acts.  Jackson thought it was amazing that after Jesus was baptized that he saw the spirit of God descending from heaven like a dove.  He really got that baptism was a way to show the world that he believes.  That it would symbolize his new birth in Jesus.  We are continually surprised by the depth of understanding Jackson has about Jesus at such an early age.  He told me several weeks ago from the backseat of the car, "Isn't it cool that Jesus found me?"  Yes it is! And how cool that when he heard Jesus calling that he responded with complete faith and obedience.  

The day of his baptism was a perfect day.  All of Jackson's grandparents,some of his great grand parents, his great aunt and uncle and many of our church friends were there. Because of the large number of people getting baptized, about 20, that day, to make it more personal there was a time set aside at the beginning to spend special time with your core group that came to witness this special event.  Bryan led this time and started by telling Jackson's story. He then asked Jackson why we were here.  He announced loud and clear "because I believe in Jesus!"  We presented Jackson with a cross to wear during his baptism and then Bryan blessed him and this occasion.  Back with the large group with gathered around the baptismal fount where the baptism candidates were asked these two questions.  Are you a sinner in need of a savior and do you declare that Jesus Christ is the Lord of your life?  Jackson answered with much conviction then marched up the steps and down into the water. He had prior to this day asked Bryan to come in with him because he was nervous about going in with just Pastor Jim, but to our surprise he didn't even look back for Bryan to go in with him.  Pastor Jim baptized him in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.  

And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” Matthew 3:17

We celebrated with our family at Jackson's favorite restaurant afterwards.  I will never forget the way he kept glancing down at his cross, curly locks still dripping wet, with such sweet contentment.  God whispered in my soul, "He is mine."

A story of it's own...

Like I said, each pregnancy is different, each baby boy unique, 

and each delivery has a story of it's own.

This is Owen's:

I went into labor almost exactly a day before my scheduled surgery.  At 2 a.m. on Thursday morning I began having the kind of contractions that take your breath away and make you think...could this be the beginning of the real deal?  After four hours of intensifying contractions that were becoming closer and closer together, after taking medicine for anything that could be exaggerating these (you know what I mean), after trying to sleep it off, I told Bryan maybe he should hold off on going to work first thing in the morning to give me a little more time to see if this would be the big day.  It just couldn't be I thought since I was going to go in the next morning.  It just couldn't be because this time I was going to get a good night's sleep, wake up in plenty of time to take a shower, leisurely put on makeup so that I look awesome in my last big belly shot and in my meeting Owen pictures.  As I stepped out of bed thinking maybe if I changed my activity by walking around or taking a bath I could calm these what must be false labor contractions down.  About five minutes later my big hearted neighbor, Amber, arrived by our request to be here when our big boys woke up because we thought we had another emergency on our hands.  Why does bleeding always have to be involved in the stories of my boys?  And how was I supposed to know that this was actually just a normal phase in regular labor?  Hello, third c section.  Now, didn't I pray too that I would be spared from any of the labor fun since I was going to already get to have c section fun?  Well, other plans, not of my own had been made and we were just a long for the ride.

A long ride it could have been to the hospital smack dab in morning rush hour traffic time.  I think Bryan and I were in a constant state of prayer, both aloud and silent, as we made the drive into Houston.  I did at one point call 911 and ask if we could have a police escort should traffic back up again.  They were so sweet and said just call them back if we needed them and I could just jump in one of their ambulances.  Well, at this point, traffic remained clear, God willing, and though I didn't glance at the speedometer, Bryan's hazard light driving got most people out of our way quickly and we soon found ourselves in a labor and delivery holding area.

After a thorough check and monitoring of Owen, our worries were eased as we found out that hey, I was just simply in labor with no emergency on our hands.  I encouraged my Dr. and nurses to speed things along as I understood there was no emergency now, but that I would like to please have this precious baby before one might happen.

My surgery went beautifully, my nervousness constantly being eased by the whispered prayers of my loving husband whose head only left mine to take the most breathtaking pictures of our Owen being delivered from my womb.

My first glimpse of Owen was even before he took his first breath, still a part of me, and then moments later as he become his own little self his first cry sent tears streaming down my face.  And then it gets better...I actually got to hold him right away.  I had never had this opportunity with the other two because of their very own stories, so this was a true gift.  When they laid him on my chest, I looked into his deep and said, "You're mine!"

Owen got to meet Mimi and Poppy, Uncle Wayne, Aunt K and Cousin Hayes when Bryan wheeled him out as they headed to the nursery to check him out thoroughly.  Our family is amazing.  My Aunt Jennifer within minutes of my phone call that morning took a day off work to relieve my neighbor and watched the big boys all day.  My Uncle Wayne rushed to the hospital to be there when we arrived because we thought it might be another emergency situation and from previous experience of not having anyone there when that happens I wanted to make sure Bryan had someone with him.  Mimi and Poppy rushed in and got there moments before my surgery for hugs, kisses, and well wishes, and Aunt K had to bring Baby Hayes who was just so excited to meet his new cousin.  And as this was all happening, my in laws booked a flight to come back for the day from a dental convention so they didn't miss it either.  Everybody that could be there was.  We are well loved...that's for sure.

In recovery only a short time later I was able to nurse the very hungry Owen right away. He had passed all his newborn tests with flying colors so he got to come be with his mama.  I was in heaven snuggled underneath the recovery room heating blanket (it's amazing and I'd love to own one), holding my precious little bundle.  I was also under a heavy dose of benadryl on top of my other pain meds to fight off the anesthesia itchies so I thoroughly entertained the nurses with my constant, yes constant ramblings that I can't begin to remember at this point and that's probably a good thing.

Later that afternoon after a good long nap, securing Owen's nursing abilities, and making sure my loopy ramblings were on the down low the boys were brought up to meet their new brother.  They gave him the "Owey Bear" they made for him, celebrated with a birthday cake, and took turns holding and loving on him.  Wow, is Owen a blessed little boy to have them for big brothers.

After only two nights at the hospital instead of 3 or 4, I was released to go home.  We were shocked and relieved at the same time.  I was doing amazingly well after surgery and Owen couldn't be any more healthy so we headed home Saturday early in the afternoon.

We were welcomed home by my mom, dad, and my sister's family.  They all oohed and awed over sweet Owen. And let me tell you, he is very ooh and aweable.

A party of five now lives at my house.  Two parents to three precious boys, each unique, each with their own story, each loved completely.  Man, God is good!

Introducing Owen!

He is here and he is magnificent!  A breathtaking blessing straight from heaven above!

Owen Wyatt Reece was born at 10:13 in the morning on Thursday, July 26th.  He weighed 7 lbs. 9 ounces and was 20 1/4 inches long.  With the beautiful glow a top his head, his flawless peachy skin, deep blue eyes, and cute button nose there was no denying that this copper top beauty was ours.

Hearing his first cry sent me to tears.  It was the most wonderfully anticipated sound that rushed straight to my heart and made it leap with joy.  I had been holding my breath since earlier that morning when I knew that he was on his way, hoping and praying for a healthy delivery.  My prayers were answered.  Here he was, loudly telling us hello.  The completeness that accompanied the moment they laid him on my chest for the first time was clearly orchestrated by our Heavenly Father.  As if He were speaking through me, my words rang clear and strong, "You're Mine!" as I took in the beauty of God's new creation.

We are awestruck each and every time we welcome one of our babies into the world.  Each pregnancy has been different, each delivery has it's own story, and each baby boy completely unique.  The one constant, unchanging factor is that each is a beautifully answered prayer from our Creator.  A moment when God's words speak loudly in my heart and radiate through my soul.

For you created my inmost being;
    you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
    your works are wonderful,
    I know that full well.

Psalm 139: 13-14

Dear Heavenly Father,

You created Owen's inmost being;

you knit Owen Wyatt Reece together in MY womb.

I praise you because he is fearfully and wonderfully made;

your works are WONDERFUL,

I KNOW THAT FULL WELL.

AMEN!

 We all adore this new addition to our family that made us a party of five and are transitioning beautifully.  Owen is here and he is magnificent!

"Just Colin"

Colin is my little sunshine.  He is my peaceful easy feeling.  He is my sweet stinker. My easy going, stubborn fellow.  He is my space loving snuggler.  My little big boy.  My serious silly guy.  My man child.  My tongue tied chatter box.  At almost 2 1/2 years old he is quite the character.

Things I don't want to forget about Colin at this age:

- His favorite color is blue which he says "byou."  And he is quite displeased when he does not get the blue plate, cup, bowl, straw, and I'm not convinced that he actually likes blue coconut slushes from Sonic, but they are blue and so he has to have one when we go.  He will no longer accept his back up blankey because the stitching is in green instead of blue.  " I need byou ABCDs!"  And for goodness sakes, the paci that we probably should have dropped the habit of by now has to be blue.  Even in the dark of the night when he loses it can he tell that we try to give him the yellow one.

- He thinks he is 6 years old and wants to equally participate in everything Jackson does/likes.

- He absolutely adores Veggie Tales.  The theme song is his favorite song, he loves listening to Veggie Tales stories instead of lullabies at bedtime, and his potty time celebrations are always a pack of Veggie Tales gummies.  Bob the Tomato is pretty important around here.

- He is a ninja in training.  Ninjago and Power Rangers is always the center of his imaginary play. (big brother influence here) "Super Super Samarai!" is a constant phrase shouted out with gusto and great motion at our house these days.

- He is becoming more of a snuggler which I love.

- Diego Saves the Tree Frogs and the fairytale Puss in Boots are his favorite stories.  Puss in Boots is by far his favorite movie.

- He loves playing with our Geo Trax set and anything of his brothers, which brother shares very well, but which Colin does not even though they are not his own toys.

- He has quite a temper and when he does not get his way he throws whatever is in his hand of whatever is close by very hard.  It shocks me every time as it doesn't really match with his laid back personality.  We are working on this.  Don't ask what happened to our brand new t.v. - it's just too painful to talk about.

- He has been sleeping in his big boy bed since Christmas time and will not get out until we come to get him - thank you thank you sweet boy.  Speaking of sleeping, he still takes at least 2 hour naps, mostly 3 hr. every afternoon from 1-4 and goes to bed at 8 at the latest sleeping until 7 in the morning.  A blessing during this pregnancy for sure!

- Finally we are what I would consider potty trained.  He showed an early interest just after his 2 year old birthday so it took a bit longer than it did with Jackson.  He still has the occasional accident when he gets distracted, but that's getting better every day.

- He talks non stop, especially in the car. So does his brother. And ok, so do I. Must run in our blood...poor Bryan. But boy do we love hearing what he has to say in that sweet precious voice of his.

- He reminds us to say our "Bwessing!" at meal times should we forget.  He likes to have his own turn praying telling God, "Tank you for the foo, Tank you for the day.  Amen!"

- He is very creative in his thinking. He sees incredible things in clouds, makes cool shapes out of his half eaten food, and his imaginary play is very cool to watch.

- But don't call him by the name of the superhero he is dressed up as or sweetheart, or cutie patootie or  by a nickname that he has previous called himself (aka Mikey, Bobo...) because he is matter of factly "Just Colin. Just Colin."

36 Weeks

I have to say I think these pictures taken by my sweet husband turned out great.  I always feel a bit funny posting just pictures of me on my blog, but these are not just of me.  These are of me and precious Owen who I will be carrying for only moments more.

Coming Soon, Jackson 6.0

We decided to celebrate Jackson turning 6 early this year with a surprise birthday party at his favorite place, Chuck E Cheese.  With Owen's upcoming arrival and the starting of kindergarten just days before his actual birthday I knew I needed to take advantage of this little window of time.

My nephews were already in town for the fourth so with the addition of a few of his closest guy friends, it was a perfect sweet play date group.  By the way, Monday morning parties are the way to go when you book a big venue like this.  The boys had a blast and Jackson was able to really spend quality time with each of the fellows we invited.

I was so proud of myself for following through with a destination party, our first one yet and man is this the way to go if you do it on the right day and with a small group of kids.  I did indulge my creativity by making these simple Ninjago balloons and matching cake topper which Jackson loved and to be honest I just couldn't help myself from doing at least this one little thing to add a special personal mama touch.

Jackson had a blast as I knew he would since he had been talking all Spring about wanting to celebrate here.  He loves playing arcade games, loves the mechanical dancing mouse, loves even more when the costumed mouse comes out, and because it was his birthday he knew he would get to have that mouse all to himself for a while and would get to experience the TICKET BLASTER.  I'm not sure if I've ever seen him so elated.  And get this...by taking the advice of his oldest cousin and his sheer determination, he caught the 1000 point ticket!  By the looks of the very worn ticket, I don't think this happens all that often.

It truly was a great celebration, and I will never forget the way he slowed down from his party high to thank me as we were leaving.  The look on his face and the sweet deliberation of his words as we walked hand in hand to the car.  "Thanks Mom for that great surprise."

Happy early birthday sweet Jackson!

This Baby has a Name!

The process of deciding on a name for this precious baby boy was much harder than we anticipated.  Finding out through an early ultrasound at 12.5 weeks that we were having another boy left almost too much time to make this big decision.  Name possibility lists were started, revised, trashed, started over, revised, revised again, trashed, started over, and so on.  We really had a hard time.

At one point because I'm so visual my new crayola window crayons (these rock by the way) were put to use writing a big list out on our bathroom mirror.  I think there were 10 or so names on the list at this point which made fixing my hair a bit tedious looking through the blue cursive.  Over the next several months I crossed off names, circled names, starred names, circled and starred names.  And throughout this process I told Bryan to let me know if there was anything he wanted to add, to let me know if I crossed off ones he still liked or starred ones he didn't.  There were about three names that remained possibilities out of all of these for various reasons, but one in particular kept grabbing at my heartstrings.  


I fell in love with this particular name for many reasons. I loved that it was sweet yet strong, meant "fair or red headed hero," that it was not a commonly heard name, that it sounded so endearing out of the mouths of our baby's brothers, and so on.  At this point Bryan hadn't felt strongly, rather indifferent actually to any of the names on our list.   This naming process was getting stressful.  I began praying about direction and guidance in our decision and the very next day when I opened one particular baby name book I found the Bible verse listed below this name was Psalm 27:1, "The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?  The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?"  God had spoken to me when we were beginning to explore the idea of bringing a third child into our family with these simple words "Do not fear," and I still think even now that at this point in our baby naming journey His answer for me was to name our baby the name that had already begun attaching itself to my heart.  I kept bringing up this name to Bryan, sharing the many reasons I loved it and thought because of our journey it was perfect.  At one point he was beginning to head in that direction too which I of course thought he would because I loved it so much, but truly he felt that it just wasn't right, it just didn't take hold like our other boys names had. 


This was hard for me, because like I said I thought this name was God's answer to me, but was this name God's answer for us?  "For us" became my focus.  I realized I had stepped into another journey that God placed me in to stretch me, to cause me to come back to him for more.  To not just stop at what would be the answer for me, but to search for what God had planned for US.  I had noticed that Bryan was having a hard time even talking about possible names, that none of them had really grabbed his heart, that he was becoming stressed that he was feeling indifferent and like me wanted to start calling our baby by name.  We decided just to take a break from it, from the beginning of strife it was causing, and reconvene in a month or so after seeking peace and direction.  Over that time I prayed and prayed that God would easily reveal to us what our babies name should be.  Easy was not his answer, but instead to wait, to persevere.  His answer for now was wait and seek to be one with my husband.  


I didn't yet know if that meant Bryan would all of the sudden fall in love with the name I had chosen but I did know that God wanted me to put being one with him first and every time I pulled back and selfishly retreated to my love for that one name, God found a way to pull me close to Him and remind me that I asked to be shown wisdom in this decision, that he gave it to me, and that I was to obey him.  My heart felt so good being exercised like this.


About a week or so later out of the blue, Bryan mentioned a name that we had never put on a list, never even said out loud, never contemplated.  We both kind of froze looking at each other when he spoke the name and to be honest I realized even at that moment, it was our answer, the sweet name we would forever call our third child.  I wish at that moment my heart would have been ready to accept it, but I just wasn't there yet in letting go of the other.  We even set aside a date night I looked forward to a week from then that I designated as "Baby Name Date Night," when my parents were keeping the kids for a night and when we would I just knew it decide for sure that's what we were going to name him.  Well, from the pressure I put on myself to have that be THE night combined with the end of pregnancy hormonal invasions that were producing a whole pregnancies worth of waterworks that day it just didn't happen.  I was disappointed in myself ( a secondary emotion B would say) for holding on so tightly to that name and realized I needed to pray for God to change my heart's desire if that was his will to match with Bryan's because more than anything I wanted not to please him by choosing the name he was falling in love with, but to share the oneness we've always had in deciding on our baby names.

Bryan was so patient and sweet to me understanding that I just needed a little more time and told me he'd be praying about the decision too.  It felt so good to know that my man could look past the ever so ugly alien invasion moment I was having, to know I was married to a man that seeks God's wisdom in our decisions, and to love me for the very not perfect person I am.  We know Bryan's head doesn't need to get any bigger (ha ha) and I'm not saying he's a saint, but man did God do a good job in matching his not perfect self with my not perfect self.  I feel it's a perfect compliment.

The next Saturday after putting away some baby laundry in the nursery I took a seat in the glider and soaked in the goodness of what the nursery symbolized, that we were about to bring home a third healthy amazing little fellow to love.  Bryan found his way in there and was surprised and probably a bit afraid (warning: possible alien invasion moment about to occur) when I suggested that we talk about our baby's name.  I told him that over the last week I felt such a strong pulling to our new name, that if we chose the name I had loved that I would actually be disappointed to not get to use this name for our baby.  He said that he had felt an increased love for this new name too, that it just felt right, that he could picture our baby, our little boy, our future man child being called this all the days of his life.  A peace filled my heart and I couldn't believe the words coming out of my mouth for they did not seem like mine, but oh did it feel good to say that beautiful name out loud and know it was the name that was my new heart's desire.  God had released the other and put in its place something even more beautiful that symbolized the oneness of Bryan and I.

Owen Wyatt Reece 

we can't wait to meet you!

Colin was the first to wander into the nursery looking for us.  He climbed into the glider and we told him that his new baby brother would be named Owen. Without hesitation he gave the chair a gentle little nudge and while rocking sang in a sweet little voice over and over again, Owen, Owen, Owey, Owey, Owen.  Being the social fellow Jackson is, he of course made his way to where his people were.  We announced to him, the biggest brother, that we finally decided on the name with which he responded, "Owen...well that's just perfect!"

If you were wondering, the middle name was decided very easily and very early on.  Jackson was named  Jackson ANGLE after my dad and in keeping with tradition of using the mamas maiden name for the middle name, Colin was named Colin MICHAEL after Bryan's dad, all the boys hold the same last name, Reece, of Bryan's paternal grandfather so it seemed very fitting to name our third boy after Bryan's maternal grandfather, Howard Wyatt Cargill.  So Wyatt it was.


Did you know that Owen means "Mighty Warrior"?  and that the Bible verse listed with his name is:

Give unto the Lord, O ye mighty, give unto the Lord glory and strength.

Psalm 29:1

I feel mighty.  I really do. That I persevered through this process, that I seeked God and persevered even in what I had considered at first to almost be too small of a trial to go to Him with, but I did and I am so thankful for the glory it has brought Him and the strength it has brought to our marriage. Every time I say our baby's name, I feel giddy, and just can't help from smiling from the inside out. 

It's not going to be too long before we meet our sweet Owen Wyatt.  Oh I can't wait to get to know him!

31 Weeks

We will be meeting our new little love in just a short while and that sounds absolutely wonderful.  I can almost feel his little head snuggled against the nap of my neck, I catch myself already swaying as if he's in my arms, and at night while I listen to the quiet that two sleeping boys brings, I yearn for the warmth of him on my chest as I catch a few moments just with him before I nod off to sleep, and though it sounds crazy hearing myself say this, I can't wait to be up in the middle of the night nursing him while my house is at it's stillest.  We are ready but sweet baby we don't want you to take that as a signal to come just yet.  We can wait for the good stuff while you grow stronger and are fully ready to take on this world.

You are one blessed little boy.  You are so incredibly loved already and you have not even ARRIVED yet.  Jackson's hands are constantly on my belly feeling your powerful kicks, giggling as he imagines what you're up to in there, talking about how he's so much older this time around and will get to hold you so much more.  He thinks you growing inside of his mama is amazing, that you're amazing, and can't wait to hold you.  You should have seen the look of wonder on his face when he felt you get hiccups for the first time.  Your rhythmic thump thump thump lulled him to sleep that night. Colin adores you too in his own 2 year old way.  He pulls up my shirt when we snuggle at night so he can lay his head on my bare belly and feel you move around.  He is not as inquisitive as his older brother is, but you can tell that he thinks my growing belly that holds you is pretty interesting but he would much rather just go ahead and have you here.  He says "open your belly and get your baby out now."  "Not yet," I reply which now has become one of his favorite sayings for everything I ask him to do.  He's a funny fellow that little big brother of yours.

I think this third little boy of ours was feeling a bit left out not having taken his mommy to the hospital yet.  I guess it was time for a mini date with him.  On Thursday when my contractions began coming anywhere from 3-10 minutes apart for several hours with a different level of discomfort we decided it best to go and get everything checked out.  The Sunday prior I experienced the most violent stomach virus ever which left my system a bit off despite my best efforts to rehydrate and rest a lot.  After a couple of hours of monitoring the Dr. sent me back home with a strict 80 oz/day water requirement, to eat eat eat, and modified bed rest until my big ultrasound on Wednesday.  I am of course hoping that everything will show on my ultrasound and lab work that everything is back to normal and I can resume a take it easy, non bed rest plan but oh my I'm just thankful to have gotten so far in my pregnancy with far fewer restrictions than I ever have had.  Normally I would have been a month plus into bedrest so praise God!

Our little fellow is looking quite like his youngest big brother and his Daddy at least by the looks of his 4D picture I had two weeks ago.  We're still trying to pick out a great name for this perfect addition to our family and can't wait to share it with everyone when we do.

July 30th is the big day at this point to meet him, but we will see as time goes by if they or he decides to move his arrival up a bit.  What a beautiful day it will be!

This was a beautiful day too!  My precious new nephew, James Hayes Trotter, was born about a week ago on May 24th.  We are so excited for new parents, Karen and David and just love that our third little boy will be so close in age to their first. They are going to be best buddies and I have to say how blessed he will be to have such amazing older cousins to show him the ropes and get him into all kinds of trouble.  And Hayes we have such big plans for you.  First up, teaching you how to blow raspberries while eating...oh yes payback Karen will be oh so sweet!

Uncle Bryan, Aunt Jenny and cousins Colin and Jackson with Baby Hayes

 Your cousin Jackson is quite enamored by you Mr. Hayes!

This summer is going to be booming with Reece babies!  All boys in fact!   Hayes as the ring leader, followed by our cousin Emily's baby in mid July and then bringing in the rear will be our precious little one.  Our holiday gatherings are going to be so much fun!  

Easter

I loved my mantle this Easter.  It really set the tone for our family to focus on the true meaning and to talk about Christ's resurrection often.  I found this subway printable on pinterest and new exactly where it would shine. Paired with this beautiful art deco vase I inherited from my grandmother's passing this past December, gave even more meaning to this beautiful season as I thought about the new life she is experiencing in Heaven with our risen Lord.

In preparation for Easter Bryan and I read part of the Easter story each night to the boys.  We used in conjunction an activity/sticker book that had an activity to complete with each part of the story.  It was something they looked forward to every night and was a fun way to encourage their excitement about the amazing story.  Jackson soaked in the meaning this year and says that by far the Easter story is his favorite now.  Wow, I can't believe David and Goliath has taken a back seat, but it truly is a story that is filled with wonder and amazement.

I was able to attend and help with Jackson's Easter party at school which was so much fun.  I just love the times when I have a chance to spend one on one time with him and I really enjoy being back in the classroom setting with a bunch of happy little kiddos who love being at school.  We enjoyed a wonderful lunch and decorated cookies, then the children began their craft of decorating their hunting crate that they would later use to hunt for numbered eggs to fill each spot 1-12.  We did this with our playgroup last year and it was a perfect way to make an otherwise hunting frenzy last for quite a while and also encouraged friends to work together to fill their egg spaces with the correct numbers. Jackson had a lot of fun and just loved that I was there.  Me too buddy.

That evening, April 5th, we celebrated our 9th anniversary with a "fancy" dinner in the dining room.  This is hands down my favorite family tradition.  It's no longer a surprise to Bryan that this will happen as it was the first time he was greeted by little Jackson in a tux at the front door upon coming home, but it becomes more special every year as our boys begin to understand how important that day was when Mommy and Daddy got married.  It's such a great way to involve them in our celebration that we really could keep just between us and hopefully will teach them to treasure the blessing of their own marriages.  I loved also this year that my parents were there to help us celebrate as they arrived early to help get ready for Easter.

Good Friday was a really good Friday.  Bryan got help from my dad getting our yard ready for Easter and then we enjoyed lunch at Clay's, our favorite burger place.  My sweet parents watched the boys that evening while Bryan and I headed out for a date night.  We went to a fun little spot that had a live guitar player and great food where we caught up a bit and just enjoyed being the two of us.  And because my parents were there, we extended our night a bit to catch a late showing of Hunger Games. It was a relaxed night of hanging with my favorite person in the whole world.   After 9 years, I still can't get enough of this sweet man that God blessed me to spend my everydays with.

Saturday my mom and I caught in some fun girl time searching for some new fabrics to freshen up my new baby boy's room and then we met the guys at another favorite restaurant for lunch.  Basically our favorite restaurants have to meet 2 basic criteria.  Good food and a good play area and for Spring time I add a third, an outdoor patio.  After a brief rest the cooking began to get ready for Easter lunch the next day. I made my favorite bowtie pasta salad to go along with the amazing ham my dad baked.  We kept the meal pretty simple with those two things, bread and a fruit salad so that we all had room for dessert. Tollhouse chocolate pie, Mom Reece's famous banana pudding recipe, and homemade snickerdoodle cookies.  Uh oh, I might have to whip up one of those tollhouse pies again tomorrow.  I don't want this baby to feel left out if I don't gain as much as I did with my other two.

Easter Sunday, we fully loaded the minivan with my parents and Aunt K and David to head to church where Wayne and Jennifer were meeting us.  We should have received an award for bringing the most visitors with us.  The praise band at our church is absolutely amazing and did not disappoint with an incredible set including "Are You Ready for a Miracle" and "Celebrate" intermixed with a couple good classic Easter hymns.  Of course with Bryan up there jamming away to these amazing tunes, this girl was in heaven.  My favorite quote, "To love what you do, and know that it matters," rings true every time I watch him play.  He truly loves being up there and his joyful worship style is infectious in our congregation.  His sister said it best, "everyone needs to have something in their life that makes them look the way Bryan does when he plays on Sunday mornings."  

Easter baskets filled with goodies were a great surprise when we arrived home.  Jackson's favorite things in his basket were his chocolate Easter bunny he has been talking all year about and an Action Bible, which has been read every night since.  Colin's favorite things were his chocolate bunny and his blue bubble wand.  After a great lunch the boys hunted for eggs in the backyard.  Jackson, once he discovered some of the eggs contained coins in them searched endlessly for the ones that made a jingle when shaken.  Colin really got into this year and had a full basket by the end too, although his were half eaten at that point.  By 3 o clock, after sugar high turned to sugar low, Mommy and Daddy were closed for business for an hour while we all took a much needed siesta.  Our day ended with enjoying leftovers and just the four of us dying our Easter eggs intermittently while playing in the backyard.

Easter was wonderful just as it always is.  The most amazing holiday during the most beautiful season of the year!