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....