Wordless Wednesday

Reflecting on 2009...Looking to 2010

I am not going to lie to you, 2009 has been a tough year for our family:

*I had 2 miscarriages and have not been able to get pregnant again (so far).

*My dad has been sick all year, and therefore my parents had to leave the mission field.

*Jon got laid off from his job very suddenly without any type of severance.

These are just to name a few. But through all these things God has remained faithful and He is Sovereign. And He continues to grow our faith each day. He has blessed us in MANY ways and for that we are thankful!

Some of the positive things we experienced this year...

*Mia started preschool and loves it.

*I started a job at our church which I love. I am really enjoying getting more involved with the youth of SMI.

*God blessed us with our SUV.

*We had another successful year coaching soccer.

*Averi got potty trained.

*And hopefully we will be blessed with a new house soon. We are in the house hunting process. We love our adorable little home but are outgrowing it, and God has opened a door for us to be able to move in the next couple of months. We are not sure at this point if we will try to sell our house or rent it out. I'll keep you posted...

So I look forward to 2010. Hoping it will maybe bring a new baby for our family (God willing), a new job for Jon, and a new house. We will be helping lead the youth of our church on a missions trip to Costa Rica in March. Can't wait to see what else He has in store for our lives in 2010...

Christmas

Every Christmas Eve Santa Claus comes on the fire truck to all the houses in Pelham. My girls really look forward to it each year...

It was pretty chilly but they were way excited and couldn't wait to go out and watch for Santa...

So we waited...

And waited...


And then FINALLY Santa came...



Then after we saw Santa, we had dinner and opened presents with Jon's mom...

CHRISTMAS DAY
Mia's daddy got her a new guitar:) It's twice her size but she was thrilled and love's playing with daddy. He also got them a piano that he bought on Craigslist, but it is in storage until we move.

Averi with her Minnie Mouse

This pink chair was one of her big gifts. She loved it:)

She also got a new doll crib that matches her bed...


And Mia got a make-up vanity. It came with jewelry, pretend makeup, perfume and nail polish and a blow dryer that blows air. She was thrilled...

She dressed up right away...

Later in the morning we went over to my parents to celebrate with them. There was so much going on that I didn't get too take many pictures. But I did get these of my girls in the ADORABLE sweaters/hats that my mom knitted for them...

Zoolight Safari

Playing in the "snow"



Riding the train...

Looking at the animals...

Family shot...

The girls with Uncle Joel...

Christmas Card

I didn't get Christmas cards out this year. So please don't be offended if you normally get one and didn't receive one:) This is as good as it gets this year. Click on picture to enlarge...

Happy Birthday Jesus

Mia's class had a "Happy Birthday Jesus" party today.

Heading to the party...

Party time...

They let Averi be a part of it and she totally thought she was so big:)

Mia and her buddy Elliot...

Averi enjoyed the ice cream...

Okay she REALLY enjoyed the ice cream...

Thanking God for His Son...This pictures cracks up with her one eye open:)

Giving Mrs. Moore her present...

Mia and her AWESOME teacher Mrs. Moore. We couldn't have asked for a better teacher. She is so sweet, loving, godly, and an amazing teacher as well...

Here's a picture of Mia crying because the party was over and she was so sad when she realized she didn't have school for 2 weeks. I'm sure that won't last long, but at least I am happy she likes it now:)

Mia's Christmas Program

Mia had a little Christmas program this morning. Her enthusiasm was cracking me up.




She spent most of the time waving and blowing me kisses. SO cute!

My Dad

Please remember my dad in your prayers this week. He will be at the Mayo Clinic tomorrow and Wednesday having multiple tests run and seeing 8 different doctors. They will hopefully determine what has been making him so sick this past year. We are praying that the Lord will give the doctors wisdom and that it will be something treatable and/or curable. I will give you an update later in the week as to what they find out...

Decorating the Tree

This was the first year for Averi to help decorate. She was SO into it. Her enthusiasm was priceless...


Mia was a big helper too...She asked for days and days when we could put our tree up. We have had it up for a week, but I'm just now getting around to posting the pictures:)




We have a hard time keeping Averi dressed these days. We'll just turn around and there she is wearing hardly anything (if anything at all).

And if she does have something on, it's always one of Mia's gymnastics leotards:) She is begging to take gymnastics. Maybe next year...

Being silly...

Counting Our Blessings!

COSTA RICA - I will be helping lead the high school group of our church to Costa Rica in March. I am absolutely thrilled and can't wait to be a part of it. We will be holding a 1 week camp for kids from the slums there. I wasn't sure if I would be able to go with Jon not having a job right now, but a member of the church came and told me they would pay my way there if I could work it out to go. Talk about a HUGE PRAISE! We are still praying about Jon going too. He really wants to but we will have to raise the money for his way. It will also depend whether he gets a new job before then and has the availability to go or not.

INSURANCE - Or lack thereof! Our insurance ran out on Monday and Averi woke up with a fever and earache Tuesday morning. I couldn't believe the timing. I knew she had an ear infection as we were just in the week before with Mia who had a bad cold and a double ear infection. Averi also had a cold too and was saying her ear hurt.

So anyways, I called doctor's office and asked for a call back from our pediatrician. The nurse said "you mean Dr. A. himself?!" Typically they have a nurse call back but I knew that if I talked to him directly and explained to him our situation, that he would just call in a prescription for Averi without making us come in. So he called me around 7:30 that night and was very gracious and understanding and said he would be happy to help and call in the prescription. They typically won't do that without seeing her first. So he even called Publix for me to make sure they got it done that night before they closed and he called in one of the free antibiotics. So that was a huge blessing.

We are still trying to get some type of insurance coverage at least for the girls for now. I also saw my OB at a banquet last week and he assured me that everything would be fine if I do get pregnant (he knows we are trying) and to just let him know and they would work something out at his office. Again, an awesome praise! That really put us at ease with all that...

WORK FOR JON - Jon hasn't been able to find anything long term yet, but as I mentioned in my last post God has provided work for him for at least the next month. He is helping Jeff B. build playsets during the holidays, and also working for Jim T. at his architecture firm doing some financial stuff. So we are very thankful for that!

FINANCIAL - We were able to sell an extra car that we had to my grandmother. We have been needing to sell it, and kept putting it off, so the timing was perfect because she moved down here a few months ago and was needing a car. God has continued to provide for us in other ways. We have not yet had a bill unpaid, there are presents under our Christmas tree, we have had money for food etc. God is good ALL the time! Thank you for your prayers...

Coaches Banquet

Jon & I enjoyed a night out lastnight. We went to the Briarwood Coaches Banquet. It was fun to get dressed up and go out for a little while and enjoy some time out with other adults. They served a wonderful meal and had a video and speaker.



**On a side note, God has provided work for Jon for at least the next 3-4 weeks. He got 2 calls in a row today from members of our church that own companies and asked him to help them out with their businesses for a few weeks. What a blessing!!!