Moving Day...Home Sweet Home

Eric, Lydia, Elijah, & Haven said goodbye to their cabin that was on Barbara Mandrell's old property when the new owners decided to make the area more of a tourist attraction.

Elijah explored the big U-Haul before he went to a friend's house to play.
It was INCREDIBLE how many people showed up to help!

Matt wore his official moving t-shirt with pride :0) Those days make him very thankful to now be working at summer school.

The truck was no longer empty....

but most of the house was.

Then the work began at the new house. I was amazed at how much was accomplished that day (although it was just the beginning for Eric & Lydia).

Clothes were hung...

Beds were made....

Bookshelves were filled...

And flowers even graced the kitchen window. (By the way, I love how Lydia has an outside view at the kitchen sink!)
One of the best parts of the day was when Elijah and Haven came home. We had a big welcoming party so Elijah would be excited about his new place to live.

He was glad to see his toys :0)

And there's nothing like helping daddy make a big fire!

Just
a
few
weeks
later
they threw a party!

All 5 of them!

Mom's shirt explains...

Their adorable house was FILLED with loving friends, happy to warm their new home!

Lovey

Please pardon this interruption in the normally delayed scheduled postings. This is BREAKING news!

We are expecting baby #2!!

Santa may have to deliver this baby since our due date is Dec. 24th.

I am 7 1/2 weeks, but already have a "pouchy" belly (note to self- can't eat as many calories after I stop nursing).

We are SUPER excited and are so glad that you came by to share in this joy with us! We praise the Lord for another miracle He is perfectly knitting together (Psalms 139:13-14)!

Taken April 13th while Matt was at work.

A happy Daddy that afternoon!

Eric and Lydia found out later that night. It has become a tradition for us to drive to each other's house (mostly late at night) to spill the beans. Lydia was a little leery of who was flashing a bright light at her front door, but that didn't last long :0)

Eric was expecting Lydia when the door opened to his workout room~ surprise!

Meet Lovey at 7 weeks old:

I have felt nauseous (maybe more so than last time), but I haven't been sick. Ritz crackers are my favorite little snack when I don't feel so great. I usually get to take an afternoon nap when Luke does~YAY! I'm hoping to feel like working out again this week. After a 2 week break, I NEED it!

Last time we waited until I was 10 weeks before we told everyone else, but we couldn't pass up the opportunity for a SPECIAL Mother's Day surprise!

Pa & MeMa found out last night at Camino Real. They had been on belly patrol so they had a hunch, but didn't think we would tell them there :0)

Grampa and Grammie found out tonight at Red Lobster.

Eric and Lydia had given mom a corsage that had 4 small flowers for each of her grandchildren. They wanted to do 5, but knew that would give it away. So we waited until tonight to give her another one for Lovey.

Elijah got a special dessert since he turns 3 tomorrow!

Here's some pictures of me and BIG brother Luke on this special Mother's Day!

Double the Happiness

Lydia and I shared our birthday celebrations this year. Our combined age is 59- wow that sounds weird! I don't think the YUMMY coca-cola cake would have supported that many candles.

I think this was the gift that caused mom to exclaim- "Wait! That's Laura's" (This, of course, was joked about all through Christmas.) In the end, we both received equally wonderful gifts!

Here's how Luke celebrated:

Lydia and Eric won both rounds of Like Minds. They both think of the same items when you give a category such as: What you see at the beach or What you put on an Ice Cream Sundae. (I was going to post a link for the game, but I'm guessing it isn't being made anymore since I could only find it on Amazon for $70 & EBay for $30.)

Elijah help deliver a VERY big surprise! It's not easy to surprise me. Not really because I'm sneaky. Just because I pay attention. And, of course, know how to read mom's face when I ask a question :0) However, I didn't think anything when she asked me about our video camera tapes laying on our counter a couple of weeks prior to this. (Good job mom!)

The difference in size is amazing! Even more amazing is what dad used to have (similar to this). He carried this MONSTER all through Disney World!

Best of all we no longer need tapes! Thank-you mom and dad!