Gangs all here!

So we have lots of visitors this week! My uncle Rob is here from Hawaii, as well as Patrick is visiting before his deployment. Unfortunate circumstances have brought my Uncle Rob out, but it's been good spending time with him nonetheless. We are hoping little Levi comes any day now and these 2 will still be here to meet him! That would be such a bonus!

There are some amazing things going on in our life right now! We have been blessed by all the amazing family we have been surrounded with and the wonderful friends in our life. Josh received his pay back after it being cut in January. This has been an adventurous year with many high highs and some low lows and it looks as if it will continue in that pattern. Josh and I are ready to meet the challenges we face as this year holds a lot of uncertainty in many areas.

Most likely the next time I post will be when Levi is here. And thanks to our fabulous new Blackberry's we'll have pictures up of him instantly on FB! Be sure to check our facebooks for all the details as soon as he arrives! And if you dont have a facebook, well, your missin' out, Son.

Baby Season has come upon us!

Oh wow, I've been kind of dreading this blog because I havent updated in what seems like FOREVER! We'll just take it one thing at a time =]

A week and a half ago my very wonderful friend Jeni had a safe delivery of little Lincoln Boaz Van Horn. He was born on the 14th. I am looking forward to meeting him! Then on the 18th, my first niece came into the world ~ Rylin Marie Nabors. She is beyond beautiful and has super blond hair like her daddy! She has been such a blessing already. Mommy and baby are doing fantastic!

I'm sure many of you are going, "huh?" It seems as if my family is picking up the pieces, putting them back together and moving forward. Next Wednesday will be the first time in almost 3 yrs that me and my 3 sisters will be together. We are having taco night at my parents. As much that has gone on, I am so full of joy to be a family again! I dont think the ties that bind us can ever be completely severed and we are more than on the road to healing. It has been the most wonderful experience to see Justine have her little girl and just watch everyone's hearts soften and face forward and just move in that direction. It's a feeling that is indescribable. Even when you are in a situation that is out of your control because someone elses heart is hardened or whatever, for me, it still is painful, even when you know you've done all you can do. This is a new chapter in mine and my sisters lives and I am embracing with open arms. It's amazing how God works. I mean, I know he is God and all, but I still am in awe of how he just works things out sometimes, despite all of our humanln efforts that never seem to bring about anything. God makes things work in His timing and under his circumstances and it is always such a beautful and amazing thing. It truly is mind-blowing. This definitely gives me so much hope and peace for other aspects of my life that dont always seem to pan out the way I see fit. Guess I'll just have to be patient...grrr.

One small thing that I feel led to share is that I have made an amazing friend in the past 2 weeks. We met under unusual circumstances and had some odd things in common which has given us much to chuckle over. She is truly fabulous. I am so blessed to have the friends that I do have. I have some seriously awesome Lady friends that are trustworthy, respectable, loving women. It is hard to find people who love you for you and to find good friends who are always there for you. It is never something to take for granted. I am still sticking by making sure I am nurturing my friendships in this amazing year of 2009 so these friendships last for years to come. If you find yourself with no firends, it is definitely time to do some self-examining. Friends are a must, especially the ones that lift you up and dont bring you down and you can be vulnerable with, without feeling like it will come back to bite you.

Pristine Solutions is taking off!! Josh is doing a phenomenal job at getting the word out and we have been really busy on weekends and week nights. God is really paving the way. We definitely feel like this is where we need to be.

Lately, we've been back at Harvest for church. the girls are LOVING Sunday school, which is such a relief because Haylie hated it and made me dread going to church because I'd have to leave her screaming and crying and she would be like that when I picked her up to. Josh says he feels more connected at Harvest and he has friends there from going to past Men's events and stuff. Ok, so were church-hoppers. So sue us...lol. We love both so it's difficult, but for now it's Harvest. We'll be sure to update our Twitter immediately if we go to a different church!! hahaha!

LEVI! I seriously LOVE HIS NAME!!! it's so perf! I think we have a middle name...it's pretty much narrowed down, so for all of you who dont know - welll, guess you'll just have to wait! =] I am 34 weeks and I have a dr.'s appointment tomorrow!! I am so excited for him to be here and yet I have so much to do still! AHHH! oh well, I'm not too stressed. Honestly, what's one more?? haha! Ok, well, I think I've touched on all the major things. Not too much new in the 'getting-out-of-debt-world' except we found a budget system that has really worked for us and we are doing fab at sticking to it. We are still making good progress on our debts and when something major goes down in our financial world we will be sure to blog it! Until then ~ muah!

My little Princess turns 2!

Yesterday was Haylie's Birthday! So many friends and family came to celebrate with us! The theme was The Little Mermaid and Haylie sqealed with joy when she saw all the Ariel decorations. She enjoyed opening EVERY one of her gifts! She made a mess with her cake, which was also a big hit. Mommy made it just for her! Cant beat homemade buttercream icing, especially chocolate. She got one gift card and we already used it to buy 101 Dalmations which us 3 girls watched during our lunch today. The girls were so pooped after all day of playing and celebrating and they fell asleep together in Haylie's bed. Probably one of the most precious things I have ever seen! Thank you to everyone who made the trip over to share this day with us and Blass little Haylie with so many wonderful gifts! We are so blessed to have such wonderful, giving family & friends surrounding us! Here are some pictures to enjoy!

ONLY ONE?!?!?!

Only one POUND, that is! Whoop, whoop!! That's all I've gained since the last trip to the Dr.'s. I celebrated by scarfin' some serious pizza @ Lamppost! YUM! All is good and normal with Levi. I'll be 31 weeks tomorrow!!

Josh and I officially started our own Professional Window Cleaning business and it's going AMAZING!!! It's called 'Pristine Solutions'. We are living the American Dream! Working with my husband has it's challenges and DEFINITELY it's rewards! We are a fabulous team and I wouldn't want to work with anyone else. Josh's dedication and hard work is laying a great foundation. We are waiting for our ficitious business name in the mail and then we'll be getting our business license. This is probably one of the most exciting things we've ever done. We are almost completely booked up through March and our nights in the next few weeks are full of estimates. God is really paving the way for us to be able to do this. Our goal is to have Josh be doing this full time in June and he will be leaving GM! Hooray! I can't believe the rollercoaster ride this year is turning out to be, it is scary, but even more thrilling! We got hooked up with the Yellow Pages recently! hahaha, I'm so excited about the smallest things! We bought a ladder! Hahahaha! Such an adult thing to do! lol! You ever have those moments?? I mean really, I havent been an adult for THAT long so I still have those moments where I'm like "tee-hee, that was so adulty of me!" hahahahaha! It's a GREAT feeling that our financial future is completely in God's hands and ours! We can work as hard or as little as we want. Well, one thing I've learned throughout my life so far is that I KNOW how to perservere, even in tough times. I dont easily let go of my dreams because of challenges or the discouragement of others. I have been on the other side of perserverance....Hawaii and paying off our credit cards are 2 big examples. Josh and I are definitely pushing each other and encouraging each other. He is breaking out of his comfort zone and seeing the rewards that follow. He is amazing! I love that he's my BFF! He's hot, too. Just thought I'd throw that in there. Every day is so new and exciting!

Tomorrow is our Haylie Baylie Boo's 2nd Birthday!! Her personality is just booming! Someone very wonderful once told me that your babies birthdays will forever be just as important and special to you as it is for them and that is sooooo true! We're so blessed to have our 2 precious little girls and I'm BEYOND blessed to be able to stay at home with them! Haylie is spilling over with joy everytime she sees any of her Ariel decorations. It's been a battle to hide things from her. I swear she can sniff out anything that is Little Mermaid!

Thank you, family & friends, for all your love, prayers and encouragement! We love you guys! See most of you tomorrow!!

Baby Shower Madness!

I had the pleasure of attending 2 Baby Showers today that were a blast! It's awesome to be surrounded by a ton of mommy's! The first one we went to was from my bestest, Jeni! She has 2 little girls and is prgnant with a boy! Sound familiar?? The next one was for Cassandra. We were on cheer together in high school and I've known her husband for 20 years! wow, I feel so old saying that! She is having a little girl! I even ran into Justine at Cassandra's shower who is also pregnant with her first baby. Just thought I'd share the pics with ya'll!

Ups & Downs

WoW, it's been awhile since my last post and lots of stuff has changed even since then. First of all baby Levi & Mommy are doing fabulous. I did gain 7 lbs in the weeks in betweent appointments, a little more than I would have liked but I'm still on track for what is normal. Only 18 lbs altogether and I am now 7 months, but I have been hitting the gym faithfully and I am even managing to still run a mile and then some. I plan on looking amazing this summer! ;) Levi is like 2 1/2 lbs and is getting chubby as we speak. He can now blink his eyes and can see light!

The last few weeks have had some ups and downs in it for us. Josh was forced to take a paycut at work which really stinks, but God is opening doors for us to supplement that income and that has been a huge blessing. My eBay store is still doing pretty good and that is helpful. Josh is also doing lots of sidejobs to keep us trucking along. We also sold our truck, which was HUGE for us! We have been trying to sell it off and on since November. We put it on Cragslist last Wednesday night and by 11:30 on thursday it was sold. That will save us over $300 a month right there. At this point we are going to try and save up and purchase a little pickup truck perhaps this summer some time. We will definitely be paying off my student loan in the near future and hopefully the van by the end of the year. We only have $61,000 in debt altogether. We were close to 100k this time last year!That is pretty exciting! Josh and I definitely feel like there are going to be lots of turning points this year.

Yesterday the girls and I joined a local chapter of Moms club and already made some new friends! It was so awesome meeting other moms who have similar interests and priorities in their lives. We are lookign forward to the weekly playdates and field trips. They also have family events and Moms nights out! Hooray for adult interaction! LOL

Madison & Haylie are absolute dolls and are getting so big! Haylie's birthday is coming up and we are having an Ariel party for her! Her favorite Princess, by far! Just like cousin Rachel! She is the spunkiest baby I have ever seen! She loves animals...cant wait to have a house and get her a little puppy one day! She cant sit still for more than 2 seconds! Madison is my cuddler. Every night when she goes to bed or at nap time she says "Mommy, you come cuddle with me?" It melts my heart! Money cant buy that. She is NOT a fan of animals and is deathly afraid, its kinda funny actually, but she is my social butterfly! She loves meeting new kids and makes friends so easily. We will probably be looking into preschools around the summer/fall time. I think she is ready, I may not be, though. =[

Well, I think we are all pretty much up to speed! Looking forward to hearing feedback from you guys as always! Love you!

I'm 26 weeks and I'm payin' it forward!

Levi is about 2 lbs now and he can open his eyes! I cannot wait til he gets here! I was very patient with my last 2 because I felt so unprepared and apprehensive about what it was going to be like, but I'm practically a seasoned pro now and I can't wait to meet our son!! AHHHH! My sister and I went and registered at Babies R Us last week and it was SOOOOOOOO fun picking out BOY stuff! Talk about a change of pace! My sister and Grandma are planning some sort of wonderful Baby Shower and there wont be any pink in sight! We are still indecisive about a middle name...any suggestions??

We have been spending some time at Disneyland since we have gotten our passes! Madison asks to go like EVERY DAY!! lol. I've added some recent pictures of us from there. The girls are huge fans of Buzz Light Year.

I cannot believe Haylie will turning 2 in a month. It seems like a few weeks ago we brought her home and I was crying incontrollably cuz the little stinker wouldnt let me sleep for like 2 months straight! HAHA! Even those times go by so fast!

Josh and I have set our major financial goals for the year and we would like to have no car payments by the end of the year. We are paying off my student loan next month and we will be down to just the 2 cars and Josh's student Loan. We have listed the truck on Autotrader, but now isn't exactly a prime time to be selling a vehicle or anything for that matter. Please pray for Josh in his job that he will have a great review when that time comes around (usually March) and will get a raise. He has been blessed every year so far and I pray God will continue to bless us.

I set my New Year's Resolution even though I'm not exactly fond of that term. This year is a year that I am going to really nurture my relationships. The past couple of years have brought heartache as some relationships have fallen apart and I have spent a lot of time dwelling on things that are completely out of my control. I can't change anyone, but me and I really want to show the people in my life that are loving, supportive and selfless the same compassion and love. Lot's of things brought me to this: I saw a sign that says "the smallest deed is better than the greatest intentions" I have been full of a lot of good ideas and intentions, but I seldom act on them because I think no one will really care one way or another. Also, I was thinking about a really wonderful woman I know named Colleen Whitt and she has the biggest heart. She remembers everyone's birthdays and always is sending little gifts for my girls and really makes time to let the ones around her know she's there and she cares and that has been such an inspiration to me. I am truly blessed to have some wonderful Godly girlfriends that I adore and I have let distance and the hustle and buslte of life get in the way of letting them know how wonderful they are. It's not just friends, though. It's my husband who has been more than amazing to me and my little girls who need a Godly example of a mother to look up to. It's family who has been so supportive and loving. I'm just so excited to make the most of 2009 in this way and let my friends and family know how much they mean to me! It's time to pay it forward!

Location Location Location

Linda's (my dear friend) house has the absolute best location for having garage sales at! This is the 2nd time we have done at her house and we pretty much sold out. Josh had to hustle to get the signs down by 11 because continued to pour in. We could easily put what was left over in 3 boxes, which is amazing considering we started with several and many many bags and tubs full of stuff. We really didnt have large items like we have in the past. It was all smaller stuff. We scurried over to Bank of America to pay off the rest of that stinkin' credit card. We werent able to do so before the end of the year because we went 3 weeks without a paycheck so we held onto our little pile of cash to make it through yesterday. Were now onto paying off our truck. We havent decided if we will just pay it down and sell it or just completely pay it off. It's up in the air, but anyhow thats where all the extra cash is going now. God has really been taking care of us and we have been extremely blessed. We are definitely tightening up our budget and back to using our envelope system. Ebay has been a major blessing for us. It's really been booming! I've got over $1000 in listings in my store. Thank you all for your encouragement and support. Thank you especially to those who gave us stuff for our garage sale! We love you all! Slow and steady WIN the race!

What's In a Name?

The moment you've all been waiting for! We are going to name our little boy 'Levi'. It means "joined in harmony" We feel this is very appropriate because the last year or so has been a very harmonic and peaceful time in our life and we are so excited to welcome him into our family! A middle name is up in the air. As we were looking at names this morning we learned that the name Madison was originally derived from the name Matthew, which is really cool because we love Uncle Matt!

On a different note, Josh and I realized that the last couple years we have set out some pretty big goals for ourselves and have been able to accomplish them. In 2007, we sought out to earn our trip to Hawaii and we did it. In 2008 we wanted to pay off our credit cards, which we also did. So now we are trying to set some goals for ourselves and stay focused and accomplish great things in 2009!

Hope every one's year is getting off to a great start!

Let the spending commence!

We just made our first purchase for Baby Hank! His bedding! Josh and I are in the process(a very slow one) of redoing our room and so we bought his bedding to match the color schemes we'd like to go with altogether. We are sooooo excited!! Well, there's really nothing new just wanted everyone to see it! If you cant see the picture click on the blue link at the bottom of the email and it will take you directly to the blog! Happy Tuesday!

Winter Wonderland

We are extremely excited to be starting a brand new year! 2008 was truly amazing for us as we conquered our credit card debt, learned that we would soon be adding a baby boy to our family, watched our little girls grow and develop as well as strengthen our personal walks with the Lord and with each other. 2008 did have its fair share of challenges that hopefully molded us to be better people.

As far as our finances go, there are going to be a lot of changes in that area of our life as we take on new debts such as student loans that are now coming into play. We need to regroup and have a game plan to make massive strides because we really would like to buy a home this year or next. We are having another garage sale this coming saturday, as always contributions are always welcome and we are always grateful. Ebay has been booming and we have been able to make a little bit of money there, which has been very nice. We'll keep you posted on all of that.

Baby Hank is 16 weeks away from his due date, but if he is anything like his sisters, he'll be early. We have NOT decided on a name. When we do, you will know =] I just had a doctor's appointment today and have only gained 11 lbs so far. My goal is to keep it under 20. She was impressed that I only gained 3 lbs through the holiday. lol. His heartbeat was perfect and I see the nurse again in 4 weeks!

Madison and Haylie are defintely enjoying all of their toys. Madison is becoming a little whiz on her laptop as well playing lots pretend and dress-up. Haylie follows her lead, but she also likes to curl up in the corner with a good book, a couple of her favorites are 1 fish, 2 fish, red fish, blue fish & Merry Christmas Mouse. She LOVES books (wink, wink, her birthday is just around the corner) These 2 are the best of friends and it warms our hearts! I couldnt have planned it better myself!

It was great to be back at church yeaterday missing the last few weeks. It was a great way to start off the year, even tho I was totally griping about getting up and going so early! But I'm so glad we did. It was all about prayer and how we should pray all the time and always go to God in prayer. It was just a really encouraging message to hear as we start a new year and face new challenges.

I'm glad we had this time to catch up and we look forward to hearing from you!

Until next time....