Winter can be fun too!

It seems like I always dread winter because it seems so, I don't know, BLAH! But this week has helped me to remember that winter can be a lot of fun too! We had some busy times and some really fun ones too! Monday we spent with my mom and dad. We had lunch together and then went to Kid Zone, where the kids had a blast! I took a few pictures that I can share:

Even without tokens, this game was fun!

Nolan enjoyed pretending to drive. He was really excited!

Nolan and his buddy, Papaw Bobby. He was so tired and just relaxed on his grandpa!

The rest of the week sort of flew by... Tuesday was MOPS and then we spent the night pacing the floor (Nolan had yet another ear infection!) Wednesday we grocery shopped and then saw the doctor. Thursday we spent the day together as a family. And today the boys and I had fun at Chuck-E-Cheese with Melissa and Shelley. They had a blast there and were so very well behaved. They make me so proud!

In addition to all this, we enjoyed 2 days of temperatures in the high 40's with sunshine. The boys LOVED the chance to play outside! We'll be sad to see this go! It makes me really wish for the spring to arrive.

Life as usual

After a long weekend off of school and out of our normal routine, we are finally operating on our schedule again. Back to life as usual! Avery went back to school today after 5 days off and is enjoying "spirit week!" He got to wear his pajamas to school today and tomorrow he says is "crazy day!" How fun for him!

Silas, Nolan, and I returned to MOPS today for the first time since early December. It was so nice to be back! And I'm really excited about this semester! Silas had so much fun in his class, or his "school" as he calls it, that he didn't want to leave...bless his heart. And Nolan is having a bit of separation anxiety, but he survived the meeting in the nursery. This is pretty new for him. He used to love to go play there!

The flu was short lived and we have all quickly bounced back. Steve had a touch of it, but not quite to the extent that the boys and I experienced! He was able to go back to work yesterday, which was a good sign that he was well! I'm so thankful that the bug was a short-lived one and that we are all better! Praise God!

I want to finish with one quick prayer request. This is on my mind so much and I'm constantly praying myself, so I'd love to know that others are praying as well! My brother, Ryan, and his wife are divorcing. They have 2 young children (ages 10 and 7) and I'm so worried about how this will affect them! Please pray with me that, whatever the outcome, their children will be well cared for and know that they are loved! Unfortunately the divorce is turning into more of a fight than my brother had anticipated and I know that this is stressful for him as well. I'd appreciate prayer for Ryan and his children! Blessings to those who lift up prayer on the family's behalf!!!

Prayer for a friend...

Please pray for the sister of our friend, Lindsey. Lindsey's sister, Stacy, who is young and otherwise healthy has had trouble since last night. Apparently her heart just stopped beating in what they consider a "sudden death" of some sort. Thankfully, doctor's have been able to revive her and are treating her for pneumonia and for her heart. She's in an induced coma so that she can heal, but this was a very sudden thing. Stacy has a young daughter and husband who are obviously in need of prayer as well!

Lindsey has had a rough weekend, and she and her husband Brian could use prayer as well! In addition to the news of her sister's sudden illness, they learned Saturday that a child from their daughter's daycare died after an incident that happened at the daycare. To say the least, it has been one troublesome weekend for this family.

Thank you to anyone who reads this and lifts up a prayer on the family's behalf! Blessings to you!

What a bummer!

That stomach bug that I mentioned Nolan having in my previous post has invaded our home! Avery, Silas, and I have all had the flu as well. Bummer! It hasn't been one that lasts real long, although Nolan was sick again last night too. Let us all pray that Steve has dodged the bullet and will not become ill as well!

It's funny because sometimes when you are sick it is hard to continue to Praise God. But last night I felt that God heard my prayers and provided for us very well! I was Praising Him for the way things went because they could have been so much worse. Steve was gone to the station and all 3 of the boys were sick at the same time and I was just starting to feel poorly. Essentially I was up all night, but never in that time was there an instance when the situation became more than I could handle. I know that, even in the stomach flu, God was there helping guide me through the situation! I'm Praising Him for getting us through a tough time last night!

Today the boys have been acting like they are better. Silas has had a fever off and on. And I've had them eating jello and very bland foods as well as drinking water, juices, and gatorade. Personally, as the day goes on I feel better and better. My stomach is growling and I'm actually considering giving something bland a shot.

So, for those of us who know and love us... Stay away until further notice :o) And I promise we won't be making any house calls until this is past us!

The coldest day!

The weather man said today was the coldest day we've had in 5 Years! I've been telling Avery all day long that today is the coldest day of his life (and Si's, and Nolan's!) He thinks it's funny! But I've gotta say that I don't think temperatures this dangerously cold are very funny at all! And I'm so happy to see that the forecast says it won't last long!

Nolan had his first ever stomach virus on Wednesday night. Poor guy experienced about 12 hours of a pretty bad bug. We've taken it easy since then, just reintroducing milk again this morning. He was ready to eat by last night and he DEVOURED a grilled cheese sandwich. He was so happy, so I took a picture:

Before this extreme cold snap, the boys had fun playing outside. Any little bit of snow has been a reason to bundle up and play! They are so cute, hauling one another on sleds. Correction: Avery hauls Silas. Silas pulls with all his might, but can't quite muster the strength to haul Avery. We need a hill to sled down so they don't need to pull! :o) Enjoy some pictures of them all bundled up and playing in the snow:

And a final note: I've had so many people ask me lately "How are you feeling?" Often I forget that I should be "feeling" any way other than normal! I've been feeling GREAT! So far, this has been the easiest most uneventful pregnancy that I've ever had. I feel incredibly blessed that so many people have been asking, and especially blessed to be able to answer this way. Praise God that I can have such a positive response!

I pray that everyone will be able to stay warm and healthy during this exceptionally cold weather we are experiencing! Take care!!!

Baby Girl has a name!

Chaille Jo Anne Frye

This is what we have been calling our baby girl. My grandpa (my dad's father) was Robert Chaille (shay-lee), and grandpa's mother's maiden name was Chaille. Steve's mom's middle name is Joann and my grandma's (dad's mother) middle name is also Joan (pronounced Jo Anne.) So, Chaille's name is very dear to us. We love names that hold such special meaning!

We still have months to prepare for Chaille's arrival, but it is fun to be able to call her by name! We have so much to do before she comes and I'm trying not to rush it, but at the same time can't wait to see her now. It's funny how conflicting my emotions can be! But I'm so in love with her already!

Today is a snowy one here and cold too. After Avery got out of school we went to the playland at church. Now it is naptime and Avery is playing with his GeoTracks trains. We have such great boys. I'm looking forward to an afternoon and evening at home where it is snuggly warm!

U/S Results: It's a....

GIRL!!!

After 3 wonderful little boys, we are getting a girl! We are all excited! As much as the men of this house teased me, I think that deep down they are just as excited as I am. We went in to the ultrasound all together and the tech asked if we wanted to know the gender. Then she said let me get some measurements first. But, when she put the probe on my stomach, she could immediately tell. Baby was not shy about showing us her gender, however we have yet to see her face. I'll have another ultrasound later to check and make sure that things look good there. But, from everything they saw today, we have a healthy baby GIRL. I can't believe it.

We were given a CD of the ultrasound but our computer won't recognize it. So... until I can get on a computer that will open it, I'll just have to post the picture I took of the print-outs we were given.

We just feel so blessed that God has given us another baby to love and care for. And we are praising Him today for a great report!!!

Catching Up

I apologize for not getting Christmas on here sooner. It seems as if I always have something to do that ranks ahead of the blog in importance. But here I've added pictures from our very wonderful Christmas. We don't do a great job of capturing Christmas on camera, but we do live each moment fully while we experience it!

The look on Avery's face really captured the excitement he exhibited. And... notice the new pajamas on each of them!

Starting to tear into stuff. Warning... we did not pick up any paper from the floor until AFTER everything was opened. It was a mess for a brief time!

Santa was awfully good to these boys this year!

Nolan was happy to watch more than anything. He is such a content little boy. But Avery and Silas got excited for him while they helped him open his gifts.


Merry 1st Christmas Nolan! (side note... I dropped the camera and the batteries fell out, resetting the date stamp...oops!)

Dad opening the mugs that the boys got for him!

After a morning at home, afternoon at Grandpa Randy and Grandma Debbie's, and an evening at Grandpa and Grandma Frye's, these boys were exhausted!

But I must say, they were wonderful all day long!

All 3 of them!

Our boys made this Christmas absolutely wonderful. They all took in the day with such awe and thankfulness. They made us so proud! And when we got into the car to head home at last that evening, Silas asked "Where are we going next?" When we told him home, he said "good because I'm so tired!"

2009 has been wonderful so far. Nolan has battled an ear infection since Christmas, but otherwise, we've had no reason to complain at all! God has blessed us!

Speaking of blessings... TOMORROW is our big ultrasound on the newest blessing in our lives. We hope to find out the gender. But we are just praying for... HEALTHY! We very honestly don't care what God has given us, we just hope to find out that our baby is healthy! He or she is a very active baby and is actually moving while I sit here typing. So, in that sense, I am relieved! And I'm so anxious and excited for tomorrow! Check back later for our news if I haven't already called and shared it with you!!!

OH.... The Excitement!

This Christmas season has been one of much excitement at our house. The boys are VERY into it this year. And tonight, Christmas Eve, is the epitomy of excitement for them. We had dinner with Grandma Darlene and Papaw Bobby and then visited Daddy at the station. Daddy had presents for them to open! Their new pajamas and slippers!!! Our Christmas Eve tradition.

After we left the station we headed out to see some Christmas lights. Now that we are home, it's comical to listen to the excitement spilling from their room! At current count, Silas has been up 3 times to "see if Santa has come!" No matter what I tell him, he just refuses to believe that he has to sleep for Santa to arrive. He's a night owl anyway, so I may have a hard time outlasting him tonight! :)

Steve and I have had several conversations lately about how Christmas means so much when you have children. Of course this excitement is much of it. But I can also imagine the excitement that Mary and Joseph felt that first Christmas. Awaiting the birth of their baby boy, The Miracle Child from God! Despite the exhaustion from travelling to Bethlehem, the discomfort of staying in a stable because the inn was full, and all that goes along with being "with child," our Savior was born this night. And Christmas is special because Christ was born! WE ALL HAVE SOMETHING TO BE EXCITED ABOUT THIS CHRISTMAS EVE!

God bless you family and friends and Merry Christmas to you all!

It's the most wonderful time of the year!

Merry Christmas from Our Family to Yours!

I love the holidays! And sharing the holidays with children makes them incredibly more exciting! I mean, driving past a house with Christmas lights on it is like winning the lottery when you are 3 and 5! And to me, it's a great reminder that life is about living in the moment and making the best of what you have. What better moment is there than hearing your children say "oh wow! Look at that!" ?

We had a fun family day on Friday. We went and picked out our Christmas tree, ate out together at one of our favorite restaurants, and then came home to decorate the tree. The boys watched The Grinch and had hot chocolate while we got the lights on the tree. Then they helped decorate it. They did a great job. Here's a picture of our beautiful tree:

Another one of my favorite things to do this time of year is to watch the specials on television. Tonight a Charlie Brown Christmas is on. I love to watch these shows with the boys because I still remember the excitement in watching them myself when I was their age. It's so fun that the same classics stick around! And it's so cuddly to have the house all cozy with Christmas lights and decorations while you sit all cozy watching it together. Life seriously doesn't get any better than that!

Saturday, the boys and I had a day in at home. We stayed in our pajamas all day, enjoyed our Christmas decorations, and did some fun things together. Here the boys are decorating some cupcakes we made with sprinkles:


I told them not to use too many sprinkles, so our cupcakes instead of being covered in sprinkles, have 3 or 4 sprinkles each. Oh well! They were still delicious! After this, we made ornaments to hang on our tree. Take a look:

Avery's tree was very pretty. He hung his on the tree first! (that becomes useful here in a couple more pictures)

Silas hurried to color his after he saw Avery hang his on the tree. It's still just as special. Then Silas rushed to hang his on the tree. This is where it gets funny...

When I went to see where they hung them, this is how they looked. (sorry the picture is dark) I laughed and laughed. When Avery ran in to see Silas', Silas said to him "I made them friends Avery. They are friends now!" Oh, the sweet innocence of a three year old! This made my day, and the ornaments will be around for years as a reminder of this day and the fun we had!

And what makes Christmas even more special this year is that Avery and Silas understand very well that it is not about Santa or presents. They know we celebrate Christmas to honor the birth of Jesus Christ, our Savior and King! And to hear them remind me and each other is something that makes my heart jump for joy! Dear God, please don't let them ever lose sight of the true meaning of Christmas! They are such wonderful little boys!!!

I'll finish with a few pictures of my 10 month old! We cut his hair the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. You'll notice the difference in the pictures below. Notice also, what a happy boy he is!!!