Our Life in Good Old Rocky Top!

Lashes, Love It Bundle!

2011-06-13T16:51:00.002-04:00

Be the 1st to purchase the Lashes, Love It Mascara Bundle which includes our BRAND new Lash Love Mascara, Oil Eye Makeup Remover (recommended by Oprah!!) and FREE eye lash curler...only for $30! Whats to love about our new mascara you might ask?

1. Lashes appear fuller, lifted and multipled while looking naturally flawless.

2. Water-resistant formual contains our exclusive MK Panthenol-pro complex & Vitamin E.

3. Helps moisturize, strengthen and condition lashes.

4. Flexible, sculpted brush separates and coats even fine, hard-to-reach lashes withouth leaving clumps.

5. Suitable for contact lens wearers!

6. Only $15 (without bundle)

For questions or to order yours today, contact me @ (ChristyBrooke33@hotmail.com) or go to my website to order @ www.marykay.com/christybmartin. You'll be SO glad you did!!! :)

The Miracle Set--$68.00--Tomorrow (5/12) ONLY!

2011-05-11T15:52:00.000-04:00

In honor of Mary Kay's Birthday, tomorrow, May 12th, the TimeWise Miracle Set is ON SALE!! Retails for $90 but THIS THURSDAY, get yours for ONLY $68!!!

TimeWise Miracle Set has earned the prestigious Good Housekeeping Seal!! This highly respected seal is only granted for outstanding products and services that perform as promised and whose companies stand behind their product claims. The Good Housekeeping Seal is easily one of the most recognizable and trusted consumer!!

Mary Kay and Good Housekeeping are names people can trust!

There are three simple ways to order:

1. Call or Text Me (if you don't have my #, E-mail me)

2. Email: ChristyBrooke33@hotmail.com

3. Visit my website: www.marykay.com/christybmartin

(Discount will be applied when I receive your order--I will e-mail you with a receipt!)

I have TimeWise Miracle Sets IN STOCK and ready for delivery!!! And if you are not local, I will ship to you completely FREE!!

Thank you for helping me celebrate and I am excited to offer you this FANTASTIC DEAL!!
Feel free to pass this on to friends and family who are not currently being serviced by a MK consultant!

Many Blessings,

Christy

I Love Shutterfly!

2010-11-24T12:23:00.005-05:00

There is something about getting Christmas cards in the mail that everyone loves--at least I do! Well, must say, I absolutey LOVE to purchase my Christmas cards from Shutterfly!! We used them last year and I was SO pleased with the quality of our cards and they were shipped very quickly, which is always a bonus too!

Now that it's time to start thinking about Christmas cards again, I would highly recommend that you check out Shutterfly for your Christmas cards. They have a really big selection of holiday cards or (the photo Christmas cards are my favorite!!) and other personalized gifts such as photo mugs at a really great price! I know purchasing Christmas cards can be expensive, but the great thing about Shutterfly is that you can always seem to find coupon codes to help with the cost--love that because I am the coupon queen and it thrills my heart to get a good deal!!

I can't wait to get our 2010 Christmas cards in the mail & out to each of YOU! Love you all dearly--Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Love,

Christy

Happy B-day Aunt Mandy!

2010-03-19T10:28:00.007-04:00

Happy B-day Aunt Mandy (a little early)--we love you so much and hope you have a WONDERFUL, WONDERFUL b-day!!!!

Happy B-day Phillip!

2010-03-02T16:29:00.010-05:00

This post is late--but better late than never--right? :) Wanted to give my bro-in-law a b-day shout out on the blog!! Phillip, we love you and think you're the coolest uncle EVER (& Uncle Brad & Jay too--we have LOTS of cool uncles around here!! lol). Hope you had a wonderful b-day....here are a few pics from our big b-day celebration!

How about that double doozie?

Joshua & Phillip--the B-day boy!

Shower for Grayson Levi

2010-02-22T12:22:00.006-05:00

First off, let me just say that I absolutely LOVE the ladies I work with. I truly feel blessed to be in their "space" on a daily basis. Natalie, one of my dear friends from work, came to Sevier Heights last August and it's been so fun getting to know her--we have SO much in common & always have a great time working together. Anyways, last Friday we were honored to have a baby shower for her. And this wasn't just ANY baby shower, this was a shower for a special little miracle who was given to Adam & Natalie through adoption. If you were to hear their adoption story, you would definitely be WOWED @ what an amazing God-story it is, which made it so cool to see Natalie with her precious gift from the Lord. And of course, it was a blast showering little Grayson Levi with presents too. He is such a cutie!!! I am just amazed at the process of adoption and think it is one of the most wonderful things EVER. Thank you God for blessing Adam & Natalie with this baby boy and for giving Grayson such wonderful parents who will raise him to love You. What a GIFT!

Sweet, sleeping baby Grayson!

Grayson's mommy opening his gifts!

Natalie, me & Sarah with Grayson

Snow Day

2010-02-10T14:14:00.024-05:00

Recently, we had a snow day here in Knoxville. We don't typically have snow days, but when we do, I don't take a single moment for granted. :) I so loooooooooooove being cooped up in the house watching it snow, sipping on hot choc, watching movies, etc--but I must admit that after being in the house for two days straight, I got a major case of cabin fever! Anyone else felt like that lately? ;) Anyways, this particular snow day just happened to be Jesse's 1st. I wasn't sure how he would like the snow, but he absoultely LOVED it. He even cried when it was time for us to go inside. Here are a few pics of our fun in the snow & then a few from inside our warm, cozy house!

My 1st taste of snow

Trying to figure out what all of this white stuff is all about. :)

Happy 2010!

2010-02-10T10:24:00.046-05:00

It's official--it's been way too long since my last post. Part of my lack of blogging has been that we have been extremely busy, but the other part has been just plain laziness. I knew re-capping Christmas, Jesse's b-day, January, etc would take quite some time, so I have just put it off instead. :) However, my dad has been on me for some time for some new updates...so, here ya go, Daddy-O!!

First update: Christmas. Oh, we had such a wonderful Christmas this year. I never knew how much fun Christmas would be once you have a child, but it was! Joshua and I could hardly contain our excitment trying to get things ready on Christmas Eve...we loved every minute of it. Here's an extremely quick recap of our day!! We spent Christmas Eve @ Joshua's grandmother's house (aka: Mama Dee). We always enjoy being with the family, but she lives in an itty bitty house so with all of those people (including 8 kids) crammed into her house, we are usually ready to leave when it's time. ;) Christmas Day, we woke up and did our own Christmas, which was a BLAST, and then headed to Joshua's mom & dad's house (Pappy & Mammy) for a wonderful breakfast & then more presents. It was sooooo funny watching Jesse open his presents. He honestly had no clue what to play with first...he would go from one present to another. It made my heart smile to see him having so much fun and all I could think about is how blessed we are to have him here with us. After Christmas with Mammy, Pappy, Phillip, Mandy & the kids, we headed home for afternoon naps (for Jesse anyways). Joshua and I spent the afternoon setting up our Christmas gifts & then we attempted to clean up the mess....and "attempted" is the perfect word. There was stuff EVERYWHERE! We spent Christmas night @ Joshua's other grandmother's house (Memaw)--we had an INCREDIBLE meal, as we always do over there, and finished opening our gifts about 9:00 PM that night. Yep, with a family of 30, it takes quite some time to open presents! We always have the best time and although I missed being with my side of the family, it was a wonderful 1st Christmas celebrating as a family of three! :)

The kids with Mama Dee

Opening our Christmas jammies on Christmas Eve!

Jesse got his very own letter from Santa!

Christmas Morning @ Home

Christmas Morning & Mammy & Pappy's House

Christmas Night @ Memaw's House

Memaw got Jesse his very own chair!!

January was a great & busy month! And I mean BUSY. The first part of January was really special for us because that's when we celebrated Jesse boy's 1st b-day. I HATED that we had to wait that long to celebrate, but things are always so crazy for people right before Christmas and I wanted to be sure everyone was able to relax & enjoy themselves @ his party and not be worried about what they should be doing instead. Jesse didn't miss a thing--actually instead of having one b-day party--he actually had THREE! The first was on his actual b-day and we celebrated with Mammy & Pappy with a cookie cake and a gift or two, the second was when G-pa & G-Pam came in from Ohio and we celebrated with them with cupcakes & more presents and the the third one was his big party--cowboy style! I still can't believe my baby boy is one. He has truly brought more joy into our lives than we could have ever imagined. He is just amazing and I thank God everyday that I am privileged enough to be his mommy.

Jesse's B-day--December 23rd

Birthday Celebration #2

1st time riding in his big boy car seat!

Birthday #3--Cowboy Style!

Happy B-day to my precious boy!

So, there's a little bit of an update on our 2010 so far...more to follow very soon. :)

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-23T16:48:00.002-05:00

Thank you for being a part of our lives--we love you all so very much. Hope you have a wonderful & Christ-filled Christmas!

Happy 1st Birthday!

2009-12-23T11:54:00.006-05:00

Our 1st family photo

Only a few hours old...

Now here's our Jesse boy @ one!

I haven't done the best with blogging lately (hope to catch up soon) but I couldn't miss this post because TODAY IS A VERY SPECIAL DAY! One year ago today (12:22 AM to be exact) the Lord blessed us with the most precious baby boy. I look back over the last year and so many emotions fill my heart--I remember being a little nervous about being a mommy but I was also sooooooo excited and thankful that God intrusted this baby to us to raise and nurture. And I can honestly say, the last year has been absolutely amazing! This little boy has brought so many smiles, laughs, poops :), and love into our lives this year and I just tear up thinking about how blessed we are. I pray every day that God will raise him up to be a man of God with integrity and humility. I pray that he will love the Lord Jesus with his whole heart and I pray that Joshua and I will be the type of parents who are encouraging & uplifting to his life. So, today, on this very special day, Jesse, I hope you know how honored I am to be your mommy. Other than marrying your daddy, YOU are the most wonderful thing that has ever happened to me and I love you more than words can express. I am so proud of you already!!! Happy 1st B-day my little love bug, Jesse boy, etc! :)

Celebrating Three Wonderful Years!

2009-12-02T16:18:00.005-05:00

Today, Joshua and I are celebrating our three year anniversary! I can't believe how quickly the last three years have gone--it feels just as though our wedding was a few days ago--but at the same time, I can't remember what it is like to not be married to Joshua. I love this man more and more every day and I thank God for blessing us with a love like we share! Happy Anniversary, honey, I love you!

BIG BOY

2009-11-17T15:54:00.008-05:00

Brad's friend, Chad Davis, (who is also a photographer in Nashville) came to visit a few weeks ago and we so enjoyed having him stay with us for a few days. While he was here, he was nice enough to take some pictures of Jesse for us. We went out to the church parking lot for no longer than 10 minutes and THIS was the outcome. Can you believe it? I LOVE them, Chad...thank you so much! Here's our BIG BOY!!!

Shoes for Haiti

2009-11-05T15:08:00.002-05:00

Click on the Vimeo Plus link below to access video!

Shoes for Haiti from Sevier Heights Baptist Church on Vimeo.

Brad's Haiti Trip

2009-11-03T11:36:00.010-05:00

Brad got home last night from Haiti and he had an AMAZING trip...thanks so much for all of your prayers! I can't wait to share the video they will play @ the Walk this Wednesday night. :)

I just received these pics from one of the girls that went with Bradley and the title of her picture album summed it up perfectly......

"Break My Heart for What Breaks Yours"

There's a Monkey in the Martin House!

2009-11-02T14:49:00.017-05:00

We had a great Halloween in our house...very relaxing and such a good family day! We had Joshua's b-day party on Friday night (will post on that later) so he played with all of his "toys" from his b-day while Jesse slept and I got the house cleaned and laundry done. Later that afternoon we played with Jesse boy and then Joshua and I curled up in our chairs (I know, so romantic...ha) and watched Transformers 2 while Jesse took nap #2. It was such a nasty & rainy day so we enjoyed having the day to just be home and be together--lately things have been so busy that I really soaked this day up--I wanted it to last FOREVER. :) Anyways, here we are gearing up for Jesse's 1st Halloween out on the town....

This is the new face he's been doing lately...cracks me up!

Later that night, we got Jesse all decked out in his costume and we headed to our 1st trick or treat stop--Mandy (my sis-in-law) mom's house. We love Mrs. Pat and Mr. Mac--I have known them for years and years and they have always treated me just like one of their own. So, I think Jesse will be super close to them too, which I am glad, because they are such wonderful people with so much love to give!

Here's Jesse with Mrs. Pat & Mac

Is he not the CUTEST little monkey you've ever seen? :)

Our next trick or treat stop was Mammy & Pappy's house. We were kind of late so I didn't get a picture of all the kids in their costumes...and I hate that...but we did get an after bath pic, which is better than nothing!

Jessie & Mammy--Jesse was REALLY over the costume @ this point! ;)

Happy Halloween from the Martins!

Beautiful Feet!

2009-10-29T16:36:00.008-04:00

Romans 10:15 says, "How can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, "How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!"

This verse took on a literal meaning last night at The Walk (the service Bradley leads worship for here @ Sevier Heights). They've been doing a study on Poverty and during the invitation last night, Tim gave each college student the opportunity to leave their shoes @ the altar to offer up as a gift for some orphans in Haiti. Brad and I went into the sanctuary this morning and I was completely overwhelmed by the response. Do these pictures not bring TEARS TO YOUR EYES? I was completely in AWE. And this is not even half of the shoes left!!!

I think back to whenever I was in college and I was doing good to have money for a meal or a cup of coffee--and I'm sure that some of these students are in the same position, but the fact that they knew that there is someone in Haiti who needed their shoes much more than they did is incredible to me. What an amazing gift and I know the Lord was looking down @ each of these students with a HUGE smile and saying, That's right...you've got it. That's what you're on this earth for...to love and minister to those around you. Especially the lost, needy, lonely & hurting.

So, early tomorrow morning, Bradley and a few other students will be heading to Haiti to distribute these shoes. They will be back on Monday with video footage for the Walk next Wednesday night so these students will be able to see first hand how their shoes blessed the Haiti people. Please be praying for Bradley and the rest of the group as they are away and pray that these shoes will not only be a blessing to a hurting people, but also possibly bring someone to the Lord!!

Walking in Progress...

2009-10-29T16:13:00.002-04:00

I found this video today and thought I would post it to keep you all informed of Jesse's walking progress...keep in mind that this was taken over a month ago, so he's gotten ALOT better even over the last couple of weeks! My boy is growing up WAY TOO FAST. :(

My Man's B-day!

2009-10-28T10:44:00.005-04:00

My precious husband celebrated his 29th b-day yesterday and I just wanted to remind him how special he is to me. I have always loved my life, but since Joshua came into my life, I have loved it that much more. Not to say "life" hasn't brought us some road bumps or challenges, but I feel so blessed to have my best friend (my husband) right with me so we are able to go through those things together. This year has been especially amazing watching Joshua as a dad. All I have to say is that Jesse is one lucky boy to have a dad who loves him the way that Joshua does.

Honey, I look forward to celebrating YOU today and through-out the weekend (we do b-days big around here...haha) and love you so very much! Thank you for all you are & for all you do for our family!

The CROUPE

2009-10-21T16:19:00.006-04:00

Here we are @ the doctor yesterday--my poor boy has been diagnosed with the croupe! :( Isn't that so sad? His little cough sounds aweful --it just breaks my heart! Please be praying that the Lord will heal him QUICKLY. This way Jesse & Mommy might get some sleep too. (PLEASE LORD!!! ha)

Two Special People Celebrating a B-day!

2009-10-21T15:09:00.010-04:00

Well, I have to laugh when I think about this post, but two very special people in my life celebrated a birthday recently and these two certain people just happen to LOVE giving eachother a hard time. All of that to say, I thought it was appropriate to combine their b-days in ONE post! :)

On October 6th, my sweet mother-in-law celebrated her big day & we had an awesome dinner for her over @ Phillip & Mandy's house --what a blast we had! I am so grateful that the Lord gave me a mother-in-law like Sally--she is so good for me in so many ways and she has honestly treated me just like a daughter. Because my mom is so far away, I am so thankful for that! Happy B-day, Sally/Mammy! We love you and are so blessed to have you in our lives!!! Here are a few pics of her b-day party.

The girls and Jesse...can you tell we live in TN with all of that ORANGE?!!! :)

All the kids got a bath and this was taken right before we headed home! I LOVE after bath pictures. :) So glad you had a good b-day, Mammy!

We celebrated another very special b-day on the 12th of October and it was a BIG ONE for this guy! Happy 60th b-day to my favorite dad in the WHOLE WORLD. Honestly people, doesn't he look GOOD for 60? ;) I can't put into words how much I love my dad...all I can say is I am SO very blessed. And anyone who encounters him is blessed as well. He has a way of making people feel very special and "loved on" whether they are his own kids/family or not. I love that about my dad. I love that growing up my friends loved him like a dad and they STILL talk about how funny and wonderful he is...and I couldn't agree more! You are one special man, pop! :) And the cool thing is YOU ARE MY DAD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I feel that God gave me a very special gift when He gave me to you to raise and nuture. I love you!!!!

We weren't able to be with dad on his b-day--so we don't have any b-day party pics--but he had a wonderful time celebrating his b-day in Niagara Falls with Pam! We were so happy he had a great birthday. :)

Okay so G-pa and Mammy, know that you BOTH SO SPECIAL to us...dark side or not :) and we love you dearly!!!!! We are blessed & honored to call you family. :)

Love, Joshua, Christy, & Jesse

B-days, B-days, B-days!!

2009-09-28T09:36:00.010-04:00

This time of year is filled with LOTS of b-days for our family...keeps us busy, but we love it!

First of all, my sweet mama had a b-day on the 25th. :) I love my mom--she's such a wonderful lady. Me & my brothers have always loved to tease her (and she is such a good sport), but she has one of the best hearts of anyone I know and she is blessed with so many wonderful qualities. However, I must say, the thing I appreciate about my mom the most is that she has always loved me no matter what. So, thank you mom for your unconditional love. You are so very dear to my heart and we miss you so much. Love you!!!

Me & Mom in Cali back in 2007

Secondly, our triplet nephews turned FIVE on the 26th! I still can't believe they are five. I remember their 1st b-day like it was yesterday (that was also when Joshua decided that he liked me--wahoo!) and it's hard to imagine how quickly the time has gone. Happy B-day to the most adorable 5 year olds I know. :) Uncle Joshua, Jesse and I love you so very much!!!!!!!!!

Jesse & Mahala with the boys on their 5th b-day!

Prodigal Son

2009-09-24T13:42:00.002-04:00

For those of you who might be interested, you can click on link below to read a post my brother Brad wrote about one of his songs--you'll be able to hear him sing it too. It's awesome and I really think you'll be blessed! http://insidethewalk.org/blog/

Happy B-day Nan!

2009-09-22T16:04:00.004-04:00

Happy B-day to the most wonderful "Nan" a girl could ask for!! She is soft spoken, funny, loving, wise, BEAUTIFUL, godly, and an amazing friend!! She's just plain wonderful. :)

Nan, I wish we could be with you today to celebrate your special day, but since we can't, know that we're thinking about you and love you so very much!!!

Give Me Jesus

2009-09-17T08:35:00.004-04:00

My friend, Sue, posted the below video to facebook this AM and I thought I would share it on my blog. What an incredible message and what an amazing tribute to Mrs. Graham!!

"Give me Jesus" is one of my very FAVORITE songs. I remember whenever I worked for BGEA I would put this song on @ my desk and listen to it over and over. I'm doing that same thing again today. :) It's such a great reminder of what we are on this earth for--not to gain earthly crowns but to gain heavenly crowns. I encourage you to live today with a HEAVENLY perspective!!!

Give Me Jesus - Fernando Ortega Ruth Graham Tribute

2009-09-17T08:33:00.001-04:00

Weekend in the Burg

2009-09-16T16:28:00.039-04:00

WARNING: EXTREMELY LONG POST!

Wow! What a fun time we had this past weekend. :) My mom called me about a week and a half ago and informed us that she had decided to take a quick trip to Lynchburg for a college reunion. My dad was going too, so this was the perfect opportunity for us to hop in the car and see our family...and all of the Lburg friends too! Unfortunately, Joshua has been short on help @ work so he was unable to come--we really missed him--but he probably would have been sick to death of all the girl talk by the end of the weekend anyways. ha I hadn't been back to Lburg since Dolly's wedding over 2 years ago, so I was SO excited to go back for the weekend!

Bradley and I headed out of town Friday morning and got to L-burg around 4-ish. We met up with dad so he could see Jesse (who cares about the daugther & son anymore...right???? ha) and then Jesse and I went to spend a little time with Dolly, Leland and Michael before they left to go out of town. I was SO excited to finally be able to meet sweet Michael and boy was he precious, darling, all of the above!!! Dolly and I have been able to experience all the stages of life together so it was VERY surreal to sit there and watch our boys play together after all of the prayers we have prayed. We are so incredibly blessed and Dolly's friendship will always mean the world to me. She is the real deal people!!!!

Quick trip to Starbucks! Bradley's teaching Jesse early. :)

Jesse meeting Dolly for the 1st time!

I love this picture. :)

After I left Dolly's I stopped by to see my mom for a short bit and she cried and cried whenever she saw Jesse. She hadn't seen him since he was a week old, so she couldn't get over how much he had changed. It was SO good to be with her. My parents had a banquet on Friday night, so since they were busy, I took the opportunity to meet my old Lburg roomie, Chapel, her husband, Troy, and their little boy, Charlie Cash for dinner. We had the BEST time and again, it was so wonderful seeing all the great things God has done for Chapel. They live in a GORGEOUS home and have been blessed with the most precious baby boy! After dinner, we headed to an icecream shop and met up with another one of our good friends, Brian, and his kiddos, Makenna & Nick. Brian never fails to make us laugh. We sat there, ate our icecream, oo-ed & ah-ed over the kids and laughed. It was so refreshing and I left with that feeling in your stomach--the one you get when you've laughed so much it hurts. It was great! I stayed with Chap that night and after we got the boys to bed, we stayed up late talking. And just like back in the day, I got SLEEPY and my words starting running together...so we ended up going to bed too! Some things never change. :) It was a LONG day for me...what can I say???

Jesse meeting Chap for the 1st time!

Troy & sweet Charlie!

Jesse & Brian

Me & Jesse with Makenna & Nick

Saturday morning, Bradley and I met Dad and Pam for breakfast. I know that EVERY family has their issues--just like my own--but the thing I love about being with my family is that we truly enjoy eachother whenever we're together. We don't fight, we don't bicker, we just laugh and have a great time. I'm so thankful for that! Anyways, it was fun for them to love on Jesse and they even brought him some presents too...guess that's what g-parents love to do! :)

G-pa & Jesse--they are such good buddies. :)

After breakfast, Brad, Jesse and I all met up with my mom, Nan, and Jim (Nan's husband) at the mall, ate lunch and just hung out. We haven't all been in the same place in so long, so it was nice to have everyone there (except for Jay and we missed you so, so much!!!) My friend, Bonnie and her baby girl, Alivia met us @ the mall as well and I hadn't seen Bonnie since my wedding and hadn't met Alivia yet either so that was such a treat! What a cutie-patootie she is -- she has the most beautiful face and the cutest giggle. Bonnie has waited such a long time for a baby--and has been through so much trying to have one, that it made me EXTREMELY happy to see her with her beautiful little girl. :) After the mall, we all headed to a reunion cookout with my mom and then Jesse really needed a nap, so I headed to Bonnie's house for that! It gave us a great chance to catch up a little bit while the kiddos slept. Loved that.

Jesse & Mimi

Jesse & Nan

Bonnie & Alivia

That night I headed to dinner with mom & Nan @ Shakers (yum...miss that place!) and then we headed back to the hotel to hang out. By this point, we were all EXHAUSTED from running non-stop and I wanted to get my poor boy into bed early--he was such a trooper the entire weekend! It was so great to be with mom and Nan--it refreshed my heart in a huge way. :)

Sunday AM Brad came to get me @ the hotel and brought along another dear friend from Charlotte, Lyndsey. Lyndsey had never met Jesse before either--we were SO happy to see her! We all ended up going to Thomas Road to hear mom & dad sing and I ran into a thousand people I haven't seen in ages. A lot of our friends from college still live in LBurg so it's always like a big reunion when we go back. You see someone everywhere you go...and I love that! We FINALLY headed back to Knoxville about 1 PM and it felt like the weekend had come and gone in no time. Both Brad and I got to see our parents, our Nan, alot of our friends and had the most wonderful time! Everyone needs a weekend like that every once in awhile. :)

Jesse meeting Lyndsey for the 1st time!

Finally got to see Kim!!!

Saying Goodbye to Mimi!

YAY! Going home to see my DADDY!!! :)

8 Month Pictures

2009-09-03T12:59:00.013-04:00

Sorry I haven't been the best with blogging lately--it's been a WILD last couple of weeks. Hoping things will slow down very soon! Until then, we just keep trucking along. :) We did however get Jesse's 8 month pictures back yesterday and I LOVE them. As you all can probably tell from most of his pics, he never smiles for the camera...but I'm telling you...Jesse LOVED the lady that took his pics. He just smiled and smiled...and she got some GREAT shots. Now if he would only smile like that when his MOTHER takes his picture! ha

The Walk

2009-08-27T09:42:00.005-04:00

Last night was the kick-off & also Bradley's big debut @ The Walk (service for college students here @ Sevier Heights on Wednesday nights) so a bunch of us headed downtown for the big event! All I can say is...IT WAS ABSOLUTELY AMAZING. Brad led our worship time and then Tim, one of our good friends, and also the college pastor on staff @ Sevier Heights gave an incredible "talk" to over 1200 people reminding us of how important it is to really LIVE out your faith and not just TALK church. It made me think of a quote that I recently heard--I'm not sure who said it, but I love it--"witness always--only sometimes using words." That is my prayer--that people will know I'm a Christian just by the way I live. Anyways, we walked away completely FULL...and so blessed by the ministry of The Walk. Not to mention that Joshua and I were sooooooooo proud of Brad. We were talking in the car on the way home--we've always known he was talented, but honestly, we were both blown away with the platform God has given him here and how he is being used. Here's some pics & a video recap from the night....hope you enjoy!!!

Jennifer, Jesse, & Eli!

The Walk 8.26.09 from patrick murphy-racey on Vimeo.

Bathtime Fun with Daddy!

2009-08-12T10:46:00.006-04:00

I was giving Jesse a bath last night and all of the sudden Joshua comes into the bathroom with his swimming trunks on and jumps into the tub with Jesse. He said, "we need to play". Cracked me up. Anyways, I saw it as a good opportunity to get some cute pics (imagine that). :)

Ummmm, dad, what are you doing in here? :)

Love that sweet face!
And he really does smile...just NOT for the camera! ha

We're Crawling!

2009-08-12T10:18:00.003-04:00

What's Going On in the MK World!

2009-08-07T08:26:00.005-04:00

Happy Friday everyone! :) Don't you just loooooooooooove the weekends?

Well, as most of you know, I've sold Mary Kay now for a little over 5 years. I am so not the pushy type, but I have been extremely excited about a new Mary Kay product...I thought I would share it will all of my wonderful blogger friends! It's the NEW Mary Kay Timewise Replenishing Serum + C--

Need a lift? NEW TimeWise® Replenishing Serum+C has benefits† that can help. This antioxidant-rich serum is formulated with ingredients that enhance the production of new collagen and help keep existing collagen from breaking down. It also contains ingredients known to support elastin, a protein that gives skin its elasticity or "spring." Skin will appear lifted and firmed, and its resilience will be visibly improved. Youthful contours will appear more defined. The overall effect? Positively uplifting. $55

Look at the results!! After just 2 weeks....

90% said their complexion was enhanced!
89% noticed more resiliency!
86% said they were more toned!
79% said they looked younger!!!

All of that to say, if any of my wonderful customers would be willing to "test Market" our fabulous new Timewise Product I will give it to you for 40% off!! Then, if you like it and want to stay with it, I will continue to give it to you at a discount for an ENTIRE YEAR! Just let me know if you're interested.

Something else EXCITING going on in the MK world that I thought I would also announce...The Miracle Set now comes in TRAVEL SIZE FOR $44!!!! I know some of you really LOVE this product, so this smaller packaging & lower pricing might really be appealing to you!

This gives you a lower priced way to experience the full benefits of the complete Miracle Set. Each set includes TimeWise® 3-In-1 Cleanser (2 oz. tube), TimeWise® Age-Fighting Moisturizer (0.75 fl. oz. tube), TimeWise® Day Solution Sunscreen SPF 25* (0.5 fl. oz. bottle with pump), TimeWise® Night Solution (0.5 fl. oz. bottle with pump) and bag. $44

Let me know if I can help you get any of these products! Your skin will thank you for it. :)

Guess Who Moved to TN?

2009-08-05T09:47:00.008-04:00

Does this face look familar?????? YEP, that's right, my little bro, Bradley, is now a resident of Knoxville, TN (and temporarily living with Joshua and I)!!!!!!!! It's so funny how the Lord works, but Sevier Heights (the church I work for) has been looking for a college worship leader over the last few months. I had no clue that a girlfriend/co-worker of mine had heard Brad's music on my blog awhile back and recommended him to our college pastor, Tim, for the postion. Tim ending up calling me for Brad's number and they scheduled to have lunch while B was in town for July 4th--they hit it off instantly. Long story short, Brad happily accepted the postion and started this past Sunday. I'm still in shock because everything happened so quickly, but we could not be more excited to have him here! And it's so cool because after talking with Bradley, we see how the Lord answered both of our prayers by bringing him here to Sevier Heights & TN.

Brad will be leading worship for both the high school & college students on Sunday mornings and then on Wednesday nights, he will be leading worship for over 800 college students at an event here called, The Walk. Check it out at http://insidethewalk.org/. This is an amazing opportunity for Bradley and no one deserves it more than he does. Plus, you can only imagine how extremely HAPPY I am that we just happen to live in the same city & work @ the same church. Our God is so good!!

Oh, and I think Jesse is going to loooooooooove having Uncle B here too. He was practicing for his big debut in church on Sunday and Jesse couldn't get enough. He even took a break from jumping. :) Check it out!

Joshua, Jesse, & Josie

2009-07-29T15:33:00.009-04:00

Phillip, Mandy, and the kids are all on vacation this week and so we've been keeping their English bull-dog, Josie. The other night, I had bathed Jesse and we were all playing in his room and Josie decided to join us. Here are some cute pics I got!

Before Josie came in the room, Jesse was showing us how
he can sit up like a big boy!

Don't you love it when you have JUST given your child a bath and then they go and sit on a shedding DOG? ha At least he had fun. :)

Haircut

2009-07-29T15:19:00.003-04:00

I took Jesse this past weekend to get his hair cut...AGAIN. :) He must have his mama's hair because it grows like a weed. Anyways here are some pics of our 1st offical salon visit.

BEFORE:

AFTER:

With our friend & talented hair dresser, Heidi!

Weekend Wrap Up

2009-07-29T12:54:00.024-04:00

We had a really fun weekend in the Martin house! Friday, I got my grocery shopping done early (YAY!), we worked in the yard (I get off @ noon now on Fridays) & to end the day, we had pizza and watched a movie (my fav). Ahhhhh...it was great. Then Saturday, Sharon, one of my dear friends from Charlotte, came to visit and so Jesse and I spent the day with her relaxing by the pool. I tend to work myself to death on the weekends--you know, errands, cleaning, laundry, getting ready for another work week, etc--so having Sharon here and just being able to "veg" with her was AWESOME. We had the best time and it was so much fun catching up...I'm not kidding when I say, I think we could have talked for days! This was also Sharon's first time meeting Jesse, and I was so glad they were finally able to meet after all this time. :) Come back soon, Sharon...we miss you already!

The three pool bums. :)

Jesse's 1st time in the pool!

Check out his facial expression--it NEVER changed and the water was FREEZING! So funny.

Jesse loved the water! He played and played and then fell asleep...on Sharon...in the pool. :)

Sunday, we skipped church (I know, BAD!) and went to Dollywood with Joshua's family. This was another one of Jesse's "firsts", so we took a ton of pictures and Joshua and I so enjoyed seeing his reactions to everything. We even took him on his 1st ride....he loved it! I don't know about everyone else, but I LOVE going to amusement parks--something about being there just brings out the kid in you--don't ya think? Anyways, we had the best family day....I feel like we have stayed so busy lately, that it was nice just to get away and enjoy eachother....and we did. :)

Quick stop by Cracker Barrel for breakfast...yumo!

Jesse's 1st trip to Dollywood

Jesse in his souvenier hat from Memaw & Pepaw

We went to an afternoon show -- here are my sleepy boys!

Jesse & the girls!

On his 1st ride...the ducks!

Special Day

2009-07-23T15:59:00.009-04:00

Yesterday (7/22) was a very special day because several important people in my life had something to celebrate!!

First off, one of my best friends from growing up, Sara, had her 31st b-day. Sara and I have known eachother since 2nd grade and we've always been the best of friends. Our families used to do everything together and we have so many fun memories of sleepovers, lip syncs to oldies music, amusement parks and the most fun was playing kick the can & hide & go seek in their cul-de-sac! I laugh whenever I think back at all the fun we've had over the years. Sara, you are so precious and dear to me!! I hope you had a wonderful b-day...thanks for being such a wonderful friend/sister! I love you. :)

My matron of honor!

Here we are with our boys! There are 4 boys between the two of us and she has 3 of them!! ;)

Next off, it was my wonderful mother-in-law & father-in-law's anniversary!! I have to say, that I am so blessed to have in-laws that love me the way that Sally & Pappy do. They are awesome!! And to celebrate their anniversary, they took me, Joshua, and Jesse out to dinner. :) HELLO...how in the world did that happen? Well, we certainly had a great time celebrating & eating Chinese. :) Sally & Pap, we love you so very much and hope you had a wonderful anniversary--and we wish you MANY, MANY more!!! Here's Jesse trying to sing a happy anniversary song to Sally last night. :) Enjoy!

My BFF Turns 30 Today!

2009-07-17T10:33:00.007-04:00

Happy B-day to this AMAZING woman, Courtney Michelle Sweet!!! I have been priviledged to call her my best friend since BIRTH, and since I don't have a sister, she has always been that sister to me. Over the years, we have laughed together, cried together, fought together :), grown together, and I wouldn't change ANY of it! I love you, Court, and could not imagine my life without you in it. Have a HAPPY, HAPPY 30th! Can't wait to party with you in a few weeks!

My Little Jumper

2009-07-13T14:32:00.008-04:00

I mentioned this in my blog before, but Jesse's new favorite thing to do is JUMP. I think he would do it for hours upon hours if I let him, and I could probably sit and watch him for hours too, but that would make me one HORRIBLE mother. haha ;) Anyways, Sunday morning, I was in the kitchen fixing him a bottle and he was absolutely going to town in that jumper...I was dying laughing inside, but didn't want to make any noise because I knew it would distract him. I grabbed my camera for you all to enjoy this adorable moment! Here's the little man in action....check out those dancing feet! :)

4th of July Weekend

2009-07-08T09:46:00.020-04:00

Hope you all had a wonderful & safe 4th! As usual, we stayed really busy, but we had a great weekend with our family. Both Joshua and I didn't have to work on Friday, so we slept in until 7:30 AM (funny how that is what we call sleeping in) and then Jesse and I headed to the grocery store while Joshua worked in the yard. We were expecting some really special guests, so we had to get things in tip-top shape! Around lunch time, my dad and Pam arrived and we were sooooo excited to have them here. And I know they were excited to see us, but they were SUPER excited to see Jesse. haha They hadn't seen him since February, and they couldn't believe how much he had changed since then. They ate him up!! My brother (Uncle Brad), arrived around 3 PM, and him being here just made it that much more fun! We hung around the house and talked for most of the afternoon, then we all got ready and dad took us out to eat. We ended up @ Red Robin and I'm not sure if I was just really in the mood for a burger, but boy did it taste good! We had the best dinner and it was so refresthing to be with some of my family.

Saturday, the whole gang got up early and headed to Sally & Pappy's for a huge breakfast and then a fun day out on the lake. We love our days on the lake, but they always seems to go sooooooo fast. I guess we just enjoy not having anywhere we HAVE to be or anything we HAVE to do...we can just sit back, relax, and enjoy the water. Because we stay so busy, I really cherish days like that. Anyways, we had such a good day. Some of our best friends, Jen & David and their little boy, Eli, were able to join us as well and we always love having them there to hang out with...they're awesome. :) Jesse had a fun day too--Joshua got him in the water for the 1st time and it was hilarious watching his reaction. You can probably tell from the pic below, he had NO CLUE what to think. He's definitely gonna be an active little guy, so I'm sure he'll LOVE the water oneday here really soon. To finish our day, we came home, got our showers, and then to follow Damas tradition, we had a HUGE bowl of icecream and watched a movie. Well, actually, me, Joshua, and Bradley all fell asleep, but Dad & Pam enjoyed the movie. :) Fun 4th for us!

Dad & Pam left early Sunday AM and I was so sad to see them go. It's so nice to have special visits from your family, but my dad always says that short visits are the best because when you stay too long you start to smell like an old fish. haha I don't think so, but you can't argue with dad, you know. ;) Brad ended up going to church with us and then he had to head out of town right after the service. We spent the rest of the day back @ the lake and then came home that evening, watched a movie and then got ready for a busy work week. It was such a wonderful weekend--thanks, Dad, Pam, & B for coming to see us! We loved having you here and hope we'll be able to get together again really soon. We love you guys!

Cow Appreciation Day

2009-07-06T17:00:00.005-04:00

Chick-fil-A's 5th Annual Cow Appreciation Day is this Friday, July 10, 2009. For all of you brave souls out there, if you will dress up like a cow and take a trip to a Chick-fil-A restaurant, they will give you a FREE MEAL! I don't know about you, but I think I can handle a little embarrassment for a free meal! ;)

Happy Boy

2009-07-01T11:30:00.005-04:00

6 Month Check-Up

2009-07-01T10:44:00.006-04:00

Praise the Lord, we've got a healthy, growing boy on our hands! We had Jesse's 6 month well visit @ Dr. Rob's on Friday and he weighed 16 pounds 8 oz and was 25 inches long. He was in the 25th percentile for his weight & height and then his head was in the 50% percentile. He has a big head!! haha Don't worry...I'll make sure we keep him in check! ;) Seriously though, we thank the Lord for his good health and do not take it for granted!

Jesse did great during his shots--he even got camo bandaids for being so brave!

Surprise Visitors!

2009-07-01T10:17:00.011-04:00

We had such a nice surprise last week! My Nan called last Tuesday and said that her & Jim would be driving home from Oklahoma on Saturday and that they would love to make a quick stop through Knoxville if we didn't care...and of course, I was thrilled with that idea! They ended up getting into town on Sunday after church and then we headed to Sally & Pappy's for a wonderful lunch. We had planned on going out for a nice dinner, but we were all so stuffed from lunch that we had no room left. So, instead, we decided to hang out at the house, relax & enjoy eachother's company. We had such a wonderful time with them--they told lots of old stories and we laughed alot! I'm so happy they were able to come to TN and I know they really enjoyed being able to spend some good quality time with Jesse boy. Here are a few pics from the weekend & from their visit!

We love Sunday lunches @ Mammy & Pappy's house!

Hanging out with daddy

Daddy got ahold of Jesse's hair--I think he was going for the Fonzie look. ;)

Our wonderful, Nan!

Jesse & Jim

Poor boy got his 1st bruiser this weekend...can you see it? :( He's a tough one, that Jesse Lee!

Thanks again for coming to see us, Nan & Jim! We love you both so very much.

Orphans of God

2009-06-30T11:06:00.002-04:00

I was listening to the radio yesterday, and the song, Orphans of God, by Avalon, started to play. I've heard this song a thousand times before, but for some reason, this time, the words of this song hit me like a brick. Recently, we had three precious children in our church lose their parents and I could not get them off my mind. Can you imagine how they must feel? Lonely. Scared. Helpless. Confused. I just pray they KNOW & FEEL the love of our God in such a real way. I pray they grow up to feel valued and important because THERE ARE NO ORPHANS OF GOD!!! I hope you'll take a second to watch this video and really listen to the message. All I can say is WOW.

Aren't you grateful for the consistent love of a faithful God who looks past your faults and loves you for YOU? I am thankful I don't have to try to be someone else or try to meet certain expectations--He just loves me for who I am! No pressure, no exceptions. I drove down the road with tear filled eyes overwhelmed with a grateful heart. I am a child of the King and NOTHING will ever change that! I hope this will bless your heart as much as it did mine. And please, please pray for these three children as they deal with the loss of their parents. They are so precious to the Him!

Avalon - Orphans of God - Front Row Live - Gospel Music Chan

2009-06-30T11:05:00.001-04:00

6 Months Old Already?

2009-06-23T10:36:00.006-04:00

Today my baby boy is 6 months old! Can you believe it? It just blows my mind how the time has flown by and to think that in another 6 months we'll be celebrating his 1st b-day is CRAZY. It seems like just yesterday I was leaving the hospital with Jesse, but at the same time, I can hardly remember life without my precious boy. I am incredibly grateful to be a mommy...nothing has ever made me happier than the two boys God has given me!

Father's Day 2009

2009-06-22T15:47:00.006-04:00

Since I wasn't able to blog yesterday, I wanted to be sure to wish my wonderful Dad a Happy Father's Day!! And why do I love my dad so much you might ask? Well, I'll be happy to tell you. :)

1. He's such a good listener. When I was in college, my dad and I had a date night every week and we would sit and talk for hours. I always walked away feeling like I could take on the world and what meant so much to me was that whatever I was talking about, whether stupid or serious, I knew it REALLY mattered to him. These talks are some of my most treasured memories and it gave me a confidence that can not be taken away.

2. He's an encourager and has always wanted what is best for me no matter what. Now that I'm a parent, I know how hard it must be to see your kids grow up, become more independent, and for some, move away. My dad has ALWAYS encouraged me to follow God's plans for my life no matter what that meant. I remember when I moved to Charlotte and was leaving him in Lynchburg, he didn't hesitate to let me go because he knew that's where the Lord wanted me. I can't imagine how hard that must have been for him, but that's what a good dad does. He taught me how to be independent, but most importantly, he taught me to be obedient to the Lord.

3. He's a giver. He taught me by example how to be unselfish and to put others before myself not expecting anything in return. This is not always easy...especially when the people you love hurt you...but I've learned that doing what is right is not always the easy thing to do.

Thanks dad for loving me the way you do--I am SO blessed to be able to call you "DAD". I LOVE YOU!!!

I also have to say Happy Father's Day to my wonderful husband who celebrated his 1st Father's Day yesterday!! Not only did the Lord bless me with a wonderful dad, but he blessed me with an a wonderful husband who is an incredible dad to our little boy. Thank you Joshua, for being the amazing dad you are. Jesse will grow up knowing how incredibly blessed he is to have a dad like you. We love you so much!!!!!

Bradley turns 2-4!

2009-06-18T09:16:00.012-04:00

Okay...I just have to say that I was blessed with the two most wonderful brothers in the ENTIRE world. They are just plain cool. :) And even though we live so far apart and aren't able to see eachother every day, we still have such a close bond that I will forever be grateful for. TODAY is a very special day because my baby bro, Bradley, turns 2-4! I always tease him because he will forever be 5 in my eyes, but what an amazing man of God he has turned out to be. He has a heart of gold and God has blessed him with such a humble spirit that makes everyone want to be around him. He has a laugh that is contageous...and boy can we laugh! Just wanted him to know today how very happy I am that he is MY BROTHER! I'm a lucky girl. :) Hope you have a very happy b-day today, B! I love you very much!

Here we are...way back in the day!

And here we are laughing...

More Laughing...haha

The Handsome B-day Boy!!

Happy B-day Mindee!

2009-06-16T11:51:00.008-04:00

My cousin Mindee is celebrating her b-day today and so I thought I would wish her a GREAT day!! This girl is really the complete package--fun, a family girl, beautiful on the outside, but most importantly she is beautiful on the inside. I love you girl and I pray that you feel SO special today...because you are!

We Can Roll Over!

2009-06-16T09:27:00.007-04:00

Our Jesse boy is rolling over on a regular basis now...here is a short clip I got last night and please excuse him fussing @ his frog. I'm not exagerating when I say they have a love/hate relationship! :)

Chick Magnet

2009-06-10T13:30:00.005-04:00

Okay, even if he is a "Chick Magnet", it won't do him any good because he's not allowed to have a girlfriend until he's 30!!!!!

Memorial Day Weekend

2009-06-10T12:55:00.014-04:00

I know this is late, but better late, than never! :) We had a wonderful Memorial Day Weekend...I looooooooooove long weekends like that and I appreciate them that much more now that I have a child. We spent the majority of our weekend at my in-laws house on the lake. It was relaxing and we always have such fun with our friends and family.

Jesse with Michael's (Joshua's cousin) girlfriend, Sarah! We love her.

I LOVE this hat!!! haha

My fav :)

Mommy & Jesse

Daddy & Jesse watching the boats!

One of my best friends here, Jennifer, and her little boy, Eli, came to hang out with us! Jennifer is expecting another baby right around Jesse's B-day! YIPPEEE...we are so happy!!

We broke out the mini motorcycle and all the boys (young & old) had a blast with that. Umm, and yes, Phillip even took Mahala...but he went easy on her. :) Look @ her eyes in this pic...cracks me up!!!

3 HANDSOME little boys...they are getting so big. :(

Jesse also had his 1st hair cut (or trim I should say) on Memorial Day. I know he is still little, but his hair has grown so quickly and all those wispys were completely out of control, so Aunt Mandy came to the rescue and trimmed it up a bit. She did a wonderful job!!!

My handsome boy after his 1st trim...thanks Aunt Mandy! I love you.

That pretty much sums up our Memorial Day Weekend...family, friends, lake, LOTS of food, haircut, & fun. I always walk away from those weekends feeling really worn out, but recharged at the same time. Funny how that happens. :)

And last but certainly not least--the reason we celebrate Memorial Day--THANK YOU to all who serve or have served our country so bravely!! We are so grateful for all you do and continue to ask God to bless you and your families in a very special way.

What's this Stuff?

2009-06-10T12:38:00.005-04:00

I was fixing dinner a few weeks ago and Joshua called me into the family room to see something. I sat there and cracked up as I watched Jesse study Joshua's facial hair. It was so sweet to watch but I don't think he knew what in the world to think. ;) I jumped up to get my camera and I'm so glad I did because these pics are just so priceless. I love them!

BUMBO SEAT!

2009-05-13T15:27:00.006-04:00

Can I just say that I LOVE this thing!

Springtime in Knoxville

2009-05-13T13:02:00.023-04:00

Wow! I didn't realize the last post I did was the beginning of April...so sorry. I guess time just slipped away from me. Well, now you can GET EXCITED because I will make up for lost time in this post. We are all doing great--Jesse is growing so fast and it's sad to think he's already almost 5 months old! He is such a joy and has completely stolen his mommy's heart. :) Here are some of the fun things that have taken place in our house over the last few months!

March 2009

On Sunday, March 29th, Joshua and I dedicated our sweet little man to the Lord. It was such a blessing to turn Jesse over to Jesus and ask Him to do amazing things in and through his life. Phillip, Joshua's brother, was able to pray the dedication prayer and that made it just that more special for us! It is a day we will treasure forever.

Jesse all decked out in his dedication outfit from Memaw!

Jesse & Uncle Phillip

Lord, we give our baby boy to YOU!

April 2009

Our Easter weekend was a blast! We started out by taking all the Martin kiddos to see the Easter bunny at the mall. I must say...the picture turned out adorable and Jesse sat on his lap like it was nothing. I wasn't sure if he would freak out, but I guess he's still a little young for that. Easter Sunday we had an awesome church service and then we came home and helped Jesse open his Easter basket. Joshua had a ball with that. We spent the rest of the day at Sally & Pappy's house eating way too much and then finished the day with an Easter egg hunt. I so enjoyed experiencing Easter for the first time as a mommy!

Cousins

I love this picture. :)

Our family after the Easter egg hunt!

April 17th was a BIG day for me, personally. I turned the dreaded 3-0! haha Yep, thats right. I thought it was funny because everyone kept asking me if I was depressed or sad because my twenties were over, and I could honestly say, no way! I think my thirties will be the best years yet and I feel like I have so many wonderful things to look forward to. Anyways, Joshua, our friends & our family made it such a special day for me and having Jesse here to celebrate with us was the icing on the cake!!

May 2009

On May 1st, Jesse and I left town for the weekend for a work conference. The nice thing about this conference is that it just happened to be in my hometown, Va Beach! I think the Lord had it all planned out because my Nan had never met Jesse before, and with her back problems it's so hard for her to travel, so this was a perfect time for her to meet Jesse boy! She was so sweet to watch him for me while I was @ my conference and honestly, I think she would have kept him for good if I would have let her. They bonded!! :) Uncle Brad (my bro) also came to town that weekend from Lynchburg so he could hang out with Jesse and that was such a special treat too! We had a great weekend and it was so refreshing to see some of my family and be "home" for awhile. Oh, and the conference was awesome too!! haha

Jesse & Uncle B

Nan cried when I came to get him...so sad!!

Jesse's 1st plane ride & he did GREAT! Praise God. ;)

Saying Goodbye to Jasmine

2009-04-02T15:46:00.003-04:00

Most of you know that whenever I married Joshua, I inherited his English bull dog (Jasmine). She is the sweetest dog -- very gentle and obedient -- you couldn't help but love her and I'm not even a dog person! Well, today is a very sad day because Joshua had to have her put down. Jasmine was born with a very serious case of heredity mange (the reason she doesn't have much hair--she looked more like a pop bellied pig) and it had gotten completely out of hand and had made her very sick. She hasn't eaten anything for the last 8 days and the final straw was last night when Joshua went to take her out to potty and she couldn't even stand up. Joshua was heart broken. So, even though he HATED to put her down, he knew that it was time. Please pray for Joshua today--he is very, very sad. We both loved Jasmine, but Joshua and Jasmine were big time buddies. We will certainly miss her!!

Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star

2009-03-27T11:18:00.004-04:00

I'm not sure if I'm singing the right words to Twinkle, Twinkle (haha), but it was too cute not to post! I think this boy is going to be a music lover. :)

Thank You, Nan!

2009-03-27T10:52:00.008-04:00

Last night, we came home to a special package for Jesse from his great-grandmother, my Nan, who lives in Va Beach. She sent him some adorable outfits and other Easter goodies. Thank you so much Nan! I thought you might like to see how much he loves his new bunny. We can't wait to see you in May!!

Fresh out of the bath (smelling soooooo good) and ready to open his present!

I love my Bunny, Nan! Mommy and I named him Flopsy. :)

Spring/Easter Pics

2009-03-26T16:56:00.009-04:00

You can never have too many pictures right?! ;) Here are the most recent pics of our little man--taken last Saturday at 13 weeks. WOW...time flies! I want to have some more taken in his Easter outfit, but we'll just see how it goes. ha But for now, I hope you enjoy these!

My favorite!

Def not a fan of the flowers, but I'm a BIG fan of that sweet face!

Here are a few others we had taken while we were there:

Startin' Out Early

2009-03-24T13:32:00.006-04:00

What can I say? Jesse is destined to be a UT fan!

The Birthday Girl

2009-03-24T13:24:00.007-04:00

We celebrated our sister-in-law, Mandy's, 31st b-day over the weekend with lots of good food & fun @ Wasabi. Happy B-day Mandy...we love you!

The b-day girl!

My Two Boys

2009-03-17T09:00:00.003-04:00

Out of the Vault!

2009-03-13T12:02:00.008-04:00

To this day, I think Disney movies are the best! I remember when I was little how much I loved watching Aladdin, The Little Mermaid, Beauty & the Beast, Robin Hood, etc. and because of this, as soon as I got pregnant, I felt the need to own EVERY one of them so that our kids will be able to enjoy them too. Well, we have started our collection but whenever I hear that one of them is going into the dreaded "vault", if I don't have it, I PANIC! haha I know that sounds so silly and Joshua teases me about it, but I don't want Jesse to miss out!

Last night, Joshua came home from work with a special surprise for Jesse. He was really excited about it and wouldn't even tell me what it was until he showed Jesse. (However, I think it was sort of a surprise for me too.) Long story short, one of the guys from work had told Joshua that Pinocchio had come out of the vault this week, so after work he stopped by Walmart and picked it up for our little man. HOW SWEET! I know it was nothing huge, but I don't know who was more excited...me or Jesse? :) I think Joshua was proud that he thought to do that all by himself and he knew it would mean a lot...what a good daddy!!!!!!!!! Thank you. :)

Here's daddy showing Jesse his surprise!

My Growing Boy

2009-03-10T15:56:00.009-04:00

I can hardly believe Jesse is 11 weeks old TODAY! Everyone told me how quickly he would grow, but it's gone so much faster than I could have ever imagined. I must say that I absolutely LOVE being a mommy and I'm trying to soak up every minute because I know these days are so, so PRECIOUS! Here are some pictures from our bath time last night. I tried to get him to smile, but he was too preoccupied with the strange object in mommy's hand...oh well! ;)

Birth Announcement

2009-03-09T16:14:00.010-04:00

A girl I used to work with @ Sevier Heights (Christie Werner) did these for me and I was so happy with the way they turned out! They are INEXPENSIVE & ADORABLE. :) You can see more of her items @ http://www.thetrendybaby.etsy.com/. She has some really cool stuff!!

The Time of My Life!

2009-02-25T15:07:00.029-05:00

It's been way over a month since I've had the chance to blog and I feel SO out of the loop. Our computer has been out of commission since December and I've been dying to get it fixed so I could share all the wonderful things going on in the Martin family! We're up and running again, so I'm excited!! This may be a long one, so bare with me as I re-cap the last two months of our lives...it's certainly been a whirlwind...but SO wonderful. I've had the time of my life!

THE BIRTH STORY

The whirlwind all began on Monday, December 22, 2008. I woke up early that morning to get a few things done before I had to go to work, and low and behold, I lost "the plug"! haha I immediately got scared/nervous/EXCITED knowing that within 48 hours my sweet little man would be in my arms. I wish you all could have seen Joshua when I told him....he turned white as a sheet and I even caught him talking to himself in the shower. I could not stop laughing. I guess we all handle situations like this differently, but Joshua was hilarious! I had planned to go to work that day, but I started feeling some pressure, so Joshua asked me not to go in just in case my water were to break. He wanted to make sure he was close by in case something were to happen and we work over an hour away from eachother. So, I agreed and waited for him to come home so he could take me to the doctor. I already had an appt scheduled that day for 4:30 PM, so I got my nails done, cleaned, ran some errands, and packed our bags before my appt thinking that tonight might be the night...and sure enough it was! By the time I got to the dr I was having contractions...nothing terrible, but they were 5 minutes apart and beginning to get a bit more intense. Dr. Glover checked me to see how I was progressing and I was already 5 cm....almost 6! He said, "kids we're having us a baby today"! I immediately started to cry and Joshua could have shot through the roof with excitement. We walked across to the other side of the hospital and I was admitted by 5:30 PM and the rest is history. Jesse Lee Martin was born just after midnight on December 23rd, he was 6 pounds, 11 ounces, and 20 inches long. I never understood how you could love something so much until that moment. When I saw Jesse's sweet face I immediately fell in love. All I could say when I saw him was, "HI, HI, HI!!". haha It was such a surreal moment and a moment neither Joshua or I will ever forget. The whole experience--my pregnancy, labor and all--was absolutely wonderful and I am so grateful to the Lord.

MERRY CHRISTMAS & HAPPY NEW YEAR!

2008 was the BEST Christmas EVER! We were discharged from the hospital on Christmas Eve just in time to make a quick pit stop to Target before they closed to get Jesse a Christmas outfit. We were not prepared for a Christmas baby!! :) My brother, Bradley, was in town, so we came home to an excited uncle and then later that night, Joshua and Bradley went to the airport to pick up my mom (Mimi). Mimi was here with us for almost 2 weeks and we had a great time with her! It was so much fun having my brother and mom here for the holidays as we celebrated the birth of Jesus...and of course our baby boy! I still can't believe how much happend in such a short amount of time...and how in the world I didn't fall over from sleep deprevation, I don't know, but we did great and had such a wonderful Christmas & New Year!

Christmas Eve --Uncle Bradley & Jesse

Christmas morning with my man!

Uncle B & Jesse

Mimi & Jesse -- only 2 days old!

Me, Mahala, Mom, & Jesse @ Mammy's house

Malachi giving Jesse kisses!

The triplets didn't leave Bradley's side :)

Getting to Know Jesse

Since the majority of my family & friends don't live close, I thought I would list a few things about Jesse that will help you get to know him a little bit better! :)

1. Most of the time, he only cries when he needs a diaper change or is hungry. He seems to

be pretty laid back!

2. When he gets mad, his hands go WILD

3. He has dark brown hair, blue eyes (so far), & big hands and feet

4. He LOVES his mommy (I can already tell..haha)

5. He has his daddy's middle name (Lee)

6. He is a BIG time grunter...he grunts 24/7...it's hilarious except for @ 2 AM. ;)

7. He looks alot like Joshua, but has my eyes and nose

8. He was born on 12/23 @ 12:22 (very easy to remember!)

9. He loves his bathtime!

10. He loves it when his mommy sings "Sugar Bear" (a silly song I made up)

Jesse's 1st Pictures
Sally & I took Jesse to get his pictures taken for the 1st time @ 6 weeks. It was hilarious trying to position a newborn for pictures. DEAR LORD! But overall, I thought they turned out really cute and the photographers were amazed at how well he could hold his head up at six weeks! I was so proud. :)

Back to Work!

Having seven weeks off with my baby boy was one of the biggest blessings of my life! It was so nice after some of those long nights to climb back into bed after Joshua had gone to work and snuggle & sleep with my little man. It was such an incredible bonding experience and I'm so grateful for the good quality time we had together during those weeks. The only bad part about maternity leave is when the countdown begins for the day you have to go back to work. Thankfully, I love my job, so I wasn't dreading going back, but I was SO sad at the very thought of having to leave Jesse for 8 whole hours a day...YIKES! I really feel that the Lord prepared my heart the best it could have been prepared, and on Monday, Feb 16th, I headed back to the working world. I have been so blessed because one of my best friends here in Knoxville (we met @ church and she is from VA too!) , Jennifer Jenkins, is watching Jesse for us. That alone was a huge answer to prayer. Jennifer used to be the nanny for the gospel group "The Martins" and she is so wonderful with children! Her and her husband, David, have an adorable little boy named Eli, and he loves Jesse to death. Once Jesse and Eli get a little older, I think they will be good friends just like his mom and I are. :) So, every morning as I drop Jesse off @ Jennifer's house, my heart is at ease knowing that he is with a godly woman who loves him and is taking great care of him!

Here is Jennifer & Jesse @ the hospital on his b-day!

When I got back to work, there were 3 roses on my desk from my friend, Jacque. One for me, Joshua, & Jesse. See why I love my job so much? I work with WONDERFUL people!!

Well, thats a wrap...at least for now! ;) It's been a wonderful last couple of months and along with being a wife, being a mommy is absolutely the best thing in the world! I am so thankful for my adorable & healthy little boy and I can't imagine our lives without him. God is so good!

The BEST Christmas Gift Ever!!

2009-01-12T14:50:00.009-05:00

I know this post is SUPER late, and I don't have a lot of time right now to type (our computer @ home is down and I have just a couple of minutes on my inlaws computer), but I did want to let you all know that Jesse Lee Martin made his arrival into this world on Tuesday, December 23 @ 12:22 AM and was 6 pounds 11 oz and 20 inches long. He is absolutely perfect and we are so grateful to the Lord for our sweet little blessing!! I will share more details (pics & info) soon, but I thought I would leave you with a few pics from the last couple of weeks. Thank you all for your notes, calls, & prayers. We love you and can't wait for you to meet Jesse!!!!

Surprise Visitors!

2008-12-16T13:41:00.019-05:00

This past Thursday night, about 9 PM, we got a phone call from my brother, Bradley, asking if he and his girlfriend, Jess, (yes, he has a girlfriend!!) could stay with us on Friday night. Jess is from Nashville and had to take a quick trip to TN to renew her drivers license. So, of course, Joshua and I were so excited and didn't hesitate to say YES!!!!!! They got in about 7:30 PM on Friday night and we had the best time. We ate dinner, played the wii, talked & laughed ALOT. This was the first time Joshua and I had met Jess...and lets just say she won our hearts! She is beautiful on the outside AND the inside. :)

Joshua creating Bradley & Jess's wii character

Here's Bradley!

Joshua showing Jess how to bowl on the wii. Turned out she needed no training @ all...she beat us all!

Two stud muffins!

Getting ready to head back to L-burg! :(

Uncle B giving his nephew a pep talk! He's so excited!

Thank You, Overton Family!

2008-12-12T15:21:00.006-05:00

I just had to say a special thank you to my dear friend, Heather, and the rest of the Overton gang down in Florida, for the ADORABLE blanket and bear they sent our little man this week. Heather actually made BOTH of them!! WOW...she is one talented girl. :) We love you and appreciate you thinking of us so much!

It's the Holidays...What Can I Say?

2008-12-10T14:27:00.017-05:00

WARNING: LONG POST! It's been awhile since I've had a new post, and I apologize to all my blogger friends for boring you with the same post for the last three weeks. ;) It's not that I haven't had anything to write about, but you know...it's the holidays and it's a really busy time of year for all of us! I'll also mention that I have not done the best job taking pictures this year...not sure why????? Maybe it's this forgetful pregnancy brain I'm dealing with. ;) Anyways, here's a brief recap of what we've been up to the last few weeks.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Joshua and I had a wonderful Thanksgiving here in Knoxville. We were able to sleep in a little bit (PTL!!) then we headed to Joshua's Memaw & Pepaw's house for another one of his Memaw's UNBELIEVABLE spreads. She amazes and inspires me with her hospitality! She doesn't ever miss a thing. It was such a great day and a wonderful time to reflect on the blessings God has given us...especially our baby boy on the way! The next day, Sally and I were up and running by 5 AM for our annual "Black Friday" shopping day and boy did we have a blast. Being pretty late into my pregnancy, I must say that I kept up REALLY well. I didn't actually get tired until about 6:30 that night as we were heading to dinner. However, by the time I got home, I felt as though my legs were not able to function and Joshua told me that he thought the baby had actually dropped that day from all that walking! I was just proud/glad to have the majority of my shopping DONE. :)

The only place the entire family can fit for Thanksgiving...the garage! :)

Happy Anniversary to Us!

Joshua and I celebrated our 2nd Anniversary on December 2nd. :) Unfortunately, we both had to work during the day, but after work he took me out for a romantic dinner and then surprised me by taking me to see a Christmas light show that I've been dying to see here in Knoxville. It was a very low key & COLD night, but a night that I would not trade for anything in the world. It's hard to believe that we've already been married for two years (and now expecting a baby!!!)but I have never been happier and I thank God everyday for my amazing husband!

Work Christmas Party

Every year, Sevier Heights takes us to Calhoun's on the River for our staff Christmas lunch. We always have the best time....I'm feel very blessed to work with such an amazing group of people. I love my job!!!

Natalie, Sarah, & Sheila

Here's a BIG belly shot for ya! My friend Leena loving on our little man. :)

Michelle, Meggan, & Leslie

Baby Update

Okay...I'll admit...I have not done a very good job with the baby updates. Sorry! I will try to do better...especially now that the time is growing very close for our little man to arrive. But let me just say that Joshua and I are SO excited and we have stayed very busy trying to get everything ready. My friend Bonnie summed it up best when she said she feels like a "nesting monster". THAT'S ME TOO! But I guess all women feel like that before their little one arrives. Well, the nursery is almost done! Once we get some things on the walls (which we plan to do this weekend), I will post some pics for everyone to see. We really love how it's coming together and the elephant theme is adorable. :) Last Saturday, we had an all-day birthing class @ the hospital. It was one of the funniest experiences we've had together as a couple...I laughed till my belly muscles were sore. The best part of the day was watching our teacher put the "pregnancy suit" on Joshua and then go on to tell him to bend over and tie his shoes. I am SO mad I didn't have my camera because it was most definitely a kodak moment. You should have SEEN HIS FACE! It's good for these men to see what we go through! haha It was a long day, but I feel like we walked away feeling more knowledgable about what to expect..and it was a great bonding experience. We are also looking forward to having my mom come to TN really soon! She is flying in on December 23rd and will be staying with us until Jan. 10th. I haven't seen her in over a year so I am SO excited about her coming. I'm sure there is nothing like having your mom there with you when you've got a new baby on your hands. :) It will be fun having her here for Christmas too. As far as doctor visits are concerned, I am now going on a weekly basis until I have the baby. As I look back over the last 8 months, it amazes me to think how quickly the time has gone. But we are both so ready & excited for this sweet boy to come into our lives. As of Monday, I'm 1 cm. dialated and 50% effaced, so I'll keep everyone posted on my progress....we CAN'T WAIT!

Worship Team

A couple of months back, the opportunity came around for me to try out for the worship team @ our church (First Baptist Concord). After our wedding and after moving to Knoxville, I chose not to get involved in anything @ church right away so I could get adjusted to all the new changes in my life. Music has always been such a HUGE part of my life, so it felt really strange not being involved...I really missed it! Anyways, I found out not too long ago, that I made the worship team and it has been so much fun singing again. It's also given me the opportunity to meet a lot of sweet friends too! Joshua's brother, Phillip, is the main speaker at one of the campuses, so it's been great being able to serve with him. Joshua is definitely my biggest fan and I'm very thankful that he encourages me to use my talents for the Lord!

So....there's a little update on us. I know this was a LONG post, but I feel like so much has happened over the last few weeks. I will be sure to keep you all informed as the baby news comes along and please keep us in your prayers over the next few weeks as we prepare to be parents. We know the Lord has blessed us with this little life and we are thrilled to be able to raise this baby boy in a good Christian home. :) What an exciting & fun time it's been for Joshua and I, and my only wish is that you all could be here to share it with us. We love you.

Merry Christmas!!

Road Trip!

2008-11-19T10:31:00.016-05:00

A few months ago, Brother Hollie (my boss) asked me to plan a day trip to Charlotte, NC so that a group from Sevier Heights could tour the new Billy Graham Library. So, this past Monday morning I was up bright & early so that I could be @ work by 6 AM to load a bus to do just that. Seeing that I hadn't been back to BG since right before Joshua and I were married (almost 2 years), it was such a nice treat to see everyone again. We arrived around 11:15 AM and I immediately went to the headquarters to meet up with some of the girls for lunch. We went down stairs, got our food, and as I walked around the corner, I was SO SHOCKED to see a table full of baby gifts. I was CLUELESS. They were so sweet to surprise us with a baby shower and I can't tell you how much it meant. Thank you so much to all of you who planned this for us...and thank you to Donna, Suzanne, & Tracy who made a special trip to BG just for this...what a special day! :)

Here I am with Nancy (my boss @ BGEA) & Liz

Donna, Mrs. Capin, & Suzanne

Tracy & Cindy

Ashleigh & Tameka

Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Caroline was a great assistant. ;)

It was so good to see you girls!!!

After lunch, everyone had to go back to work, and I managed to head back to the Library for a quick tour before we headed home. I was SO excited to see this because whenever I left BGEA to move to Knoxville, they had almost completed the outside of the Library, but I was never able to see the finished product. It is absotluetly beautiful and such an incredible testimony of Mr. Graham's life. What a legacy!!

The BGEA Library

Mr. Graham's home place

A BEAUTIFUL Christmas tree in the Library

We left BGEA around 3 PM, stopped for dinner in Asheville, and pulled into Sevier Heights parking lot around 9:00 PM. It had been a LONG 15 hours and I was EXHAUSTED, but I couldn't stop smiling from such a fun & wonderful day. :)

Another Baby Shower!

2008-11-12T16:34:00.012-05:00

Yesterday after work, the ladies here at Sevier Heights threw us the nicest baby shower! They had everything decorated to the "T" and again, we were showered with so many wonderful gifts for our little man. Thank you to everyone who worked so hard to make this so special for us! I feel blessed to work with such an amazing group of ladies who love us so much.

Happy Birthday, Mr. Graham!

2008-11-07T10:56:00.005-05:00

Today is a very special day...it's Billy Graham's 90th B-day! What a blessing it was to work for The Billy Graham Association while I lived in Charlotte, and it was also such an honor to be able to meet Mr. Graham the few times I did. Today I want to thank the Lord for such a humble servant who has given his life to boldly share the gospel. He is an inspiration to so many and I can only imagine the number of people who will now be in heaven because of his stand for Christ. Happy B-day Mr. Graham...may the Lord give you many more years of health & happiness. We love you!

Halloween & A Baby Shower

2008-11-03T14:17:00.016-05:00

Joshua and I had a VERY low key Halloween night. We were both tired after a long week, so instead of heading to my in-laws to see the boys & Mahala all dressed up, we decided to get into some comfy clothes, make some chili, pass out some candy, and watch a scary movie. The scary movie part was Joshua's big idea...I probably could have done without that. ;) We had a great night and we even had some special visitors come by our house. Here's Tinkerbell & Peter Pan...we were so excited that they stopped by to see us!! Olivia & Owen (Joshua's cousin's kids) were ADORABLE and VERY excited about their candy.

On Saturday Joshua and I spent a lot of time working in the nursery! We finally finished painting, we put the crib together and organized/cleaned everything as much as we possibly could to this point. Then on Sunday, Mandy, Heather, and my good friend from church, Jennifer, threw us our 1st shower...and what can I say? It was overwhelming with the outpouring of love and gifts for our little man. We were/are so thankful and appreciative for everything that was done for us! The fun part was heading home to unload all our gifts and to really take a look at all that we got. After the shower, Mandy, the boys, Mahala, and Sally came over to help me get situated a little more and seeing all of our baby's things REALLY made it sink in....I'm going to have a baby boy in less than 8 weeks! It's so unbelievable, but I CANNOT wait. :)

Our 1st Shower!

Me with Sally (Joshua's mom) & Memaw (Joshua's g-ma)

Heather, Jennifer, Me & Mandy

Joshua's Memaw buys all of her great grandchildren a Build-A-Bear that has a recorded message from her. It's one of my FAVORITE gifts and I know it will always mean so much. :)

Thank you all for such a special day!!!

Joshua's B-Day!

2008-10-30T13:37:00.010-04:00

Well, we had another b-day in our family! Joshua turned 28 this past Tuesday (28th) and it was such a great day. To celebrate, we went with the family to Wasabi and then headed back to our house for presents, cheesecake, and to play Joshua's new Wii! Now, THAT was fun! Sorry I don't have any pics just yet...forgot my camera cord @ home. It was a great day and I could tell he enjoyed his b-day so much...which made me a happy, happy girl. :) I love my man!

My Dad...the B-day Boy!

2008-10-21T10:28:00.004-04:00

Okay...I feel like a LOSER. Last Sunday, October 12th, was my dad's b-day and I forgot to post about his big day. My dad checks my blog several times a week, so when you get this dad, just know I had great intentions to blog about your b-day earlier!! ;) I love you so much and I'm so thankful the Lord gave you to me. Me, Jay, & Brad were so blessed to have been rasied by a dad who loves us the way you do. You have always been such a godly example and for that, we will forever be grateful. Enjoy your Starbucks card and every time you sip on that coffee, just remember how much you are loved & appreciated by all of your children. P.S.--I have another present for you, but he won't be here until Jan 1st. I have a feeling that might be your FAVORITE gift. ;) I love you!

A Few Pics

2008-10-16T14:23:00.011-04:00

Joshua's Uncle Eddy took some pictures of us last Saturday @ the lake and I thought I would share a few. Lots of you have been asking for prego shots, so here's me @ almost 7 1/2 months!

I've named this one our "dazed & confused" shot. :)

Here's a couple of BELLY SHOTS for you!!

Happy B-day, Sally!

2008-10-06T10:28:00.004-04:00

Today is my m-in-law's b-day and I wanted to wish her a VERY HAPPY B-DAY! I am so blessed to have a m-in-law that loves me and takes care of me the way that she does. I love you, Sally...have a wonderful day in Gatlinburg. Looking forward to celebrating tonight!! :)

Nursery in Progress

2008-10-03T11:33:00.008-04:00

Exciting News...we finally have our baby bedding!!! Being the terribly indecisive person that I am, I went back and forth trying to decide what type of bedding I wanted to use. I couldn't decide if I wanted to do something baby-ish or if I wanted to do something that he could grow in to as he got a little older. Well, whenever I was in Charlotte a few weeks back, I ran into Pottery Barn Kids and saw the "Eli Elephant Bedding" and immediately fell in LOVE with it. It's SO ADORABLE and even cuter in person. My sweet mom bought all the bedding & curtains for us a few weeks back (THANK YOU MIMI!) and everything was shipped to us over the last week....it makes me sooooooo excited to get his nursery together!! Also, a very special THANK YOU to our friends Jordan & Seth who purchased the pillow insert, Eli pillowcase, and green gingham sheets that completed the entire set! So, the nursery is in progress....can't wait to get it done & share the pics with everyone. :)

Weekend Recap

2008-09-29T12:26:00.018-04:00

I thought I would take a second and recap on our eventful weekend! As you know, we had lots of b-days to celebrate last week...here are some pics from a few of the parties. :)

Friday night after work, we celebrated the triplets 4th B-day @ Chuck-E-Cheese. Here the b-day boys!!

Malachi

Mason (with a full mouth) & Maverick

Opening their presents...I LOVE Malachi's face in this pic!

Mammy & Pappy got them their 1st BIKE!

Then on to Olivia's 4th b-day party on Saturday morning....I honestly think me, Joshua, and Mandy had just as much fun (if not more) as the kids @ Jumperoo!

Joshua & Mandy

My husband is little kid @ heart. :)

Joshua helping/pulling Mandy down the slide...so funny!

Since I'm prego, for the most part I pretty much just sat & watched/took pictures/laughed @ everyone...but I did end up going down the slide just ONCE. Can you tell I was trying to be VERY careful? I really was!!!!!

The B-day girl!!

A Week Full of Birthdays!

2008-09-22T12:43:00.008-04:00

This week in September is always a really busy & fun one for me & Joshua. Between my side of the family and Joshua's side of the family, we will have celebrated 4 birthdays by the end of the week! So, I figured I would give a b-day shout-out to everyone in this one post. :)

Today, is my sweet Nanny's (aka "Nan") B-day!! For those of you who know me, you know that my Nan is one of the dearest people in the world to me and we've been blessed with a very close & special relationship. She is such a blessing in my life!!! Nan, I love you and miss you very much...Happy B-day...you're beautiful!!!!

Me & my Nan

Thursday, the 25th, is my mom's b-day and I honestly couldn't say enough wonderful things about her....she's so much fun, she's loving, she's always been supportive of me, she's always been a godly role model who is constantly giving to others selflessly, and last but not least, she is the BEST mom a girl could ask for! I feel so blessed to have her in my life...I love you SO much mom...Happy B-day! I miss you and can't wait to see you SOON! :)

Me & Mom

Friday, the 26th, we celebrate the TRIPLETS b-day! These three little rascals bring so much joy into our lives...they are full of energy, adventure, trouble :), and kisses and I couldn't love them any more than I do. Happy B-day, Malachi, Maverick, & Mason!!!

Me & the boys on my 29th b-day!

Last, but certatinly not least, Joshua's cousin's little girl, Olivia, celebrates her 4th b-day on the 28th! Love you sweet, Olivia!! You and your family are SO special to us!! Here's Olivia with her mommy, daddy & brother while we were on vacation last year in Florida.

So, this will be a partying week for us...lots of time spent @ Chuck-E-Cheese & Jumperoo, and we can't wait! ;)

Way to Go, Baby!

2008-09-12T09:26:00.005-04:00

I just wanted to take a quick second to congratulate my sweet husband on a job well done! As most of you know, Joshua was recently away from home for a month, where he attended a manager traning in Minnesota. Not only did he get the award for top of his class, but he has already been promoted!!! We officially got the news last week and I couldn't be more proud of him. He works SO hard and is SO good @ what he does, and I know the Lord is rewarding him for his faithfulness. We are so thankful, and what a blessing this is to our family right before our baby comes!! Thank you, Jesus, and honey, I love you and am so proud of you!!

Luk 19:17
And he said to him, 'Well done, good servant; because you were faithful in a very little, have authority over ten cities.'

September 11th

2008-09-11T12:27:00.010-04:00

'MEET ME IN THE STAIRWELL'

You say you will never forget where you were when you heard the news On September 11, 2001. Neither will I. I was on the 110th floor in a smoke filled room with a man who called his wife to say 'Good-Bye.' I held his fingers steady as he dialed. I gave him the peace to say, 'Honey, I am not going to make it, but it is OK..I am ready to go.' I was with his wife when he called as she fed breakfast to their children. I held her up as she tried to understand his words and as she realized he wasn't coming home that night. I was in the stairwell of the 23rd floor when a woman cried out to Me for help. 'I have been knocking on the door of your heart for 50 years!' I said. 'Of course I will show you the way home - only believe in Me now.' I was at the base of the building with the Priest ministering to the injured and devastated souls. I took him home to tend to his Flock in Heaven. He heard my voice and answered. I was on all four of those planes, in every seat, with every prayer. I was with the crew as they were overtaken. I was in the very hearts of the believers there, comforting and assuring them that their faith has saved them. I was in Texas , Virginia , California , Michigan , Afghanistan ... I was standing next to you when you heard the terrible news. Did you sense Me? I want you to know that I saw every face. I knew every name - though not all know Me. Some met Me for the first time on the 86th floor. Some sought Me with their last breath. Some couldn't hear Me calling to them through the smoke and flames; 'Come to Me... this way... take my hand.' Some chose, for the final time, to ignore Me. But, I was there. I did not place you in the Tower that day. You may not know why, but I do. However, if you were there in that explosive moment in time, would you have reached for Me? Sept. 11, 2001, was not the end of the journey for you. But someday your journey will end. And I will be there for you as well. Seek Me now while I may be found. Then, at any moment, you know you are 'ready to go.' I will be in the stairwell of your final moments. Author--Unkown

I received the above reading in an e-mail this AM and I thought it would be a good to share today. September 11, 2001, is a day that I'm sure we will all NEVER forget. I was sitting in my Statistics class @ LU when we recieved the news...and I'll always remember the feelings & emotions that immediately flooded the classroom. I'm so thankful to live in the wonderful country we do, and especially today, let's be sure remember the people who died or may have lost loved ones on that tragic day seven years ago. More importantly, I'm SO thankful for the salvation we have through Jesus Christ and the assurance that no matter what happens tomorrow, we are ready....ready and waiting to be with our Lord and Savior.

Weekend in the Queen City!

2008-09-10T09:25:00.034-04:00

Well, I must say, this past weekend was WONDERFUL! I came back so refreshed and and I can't tell you how good it was to be with my Charlotte "family" again. Here's a quick recap of my weekend....and just a warning....this will probably be a LONG POST! :)

Saturday morning, I kissed my VERY sleepy husband goodbye, and left my house around 6:25 AM!!! I made a quick pit stop to get some gas and then met one of my good friends from Lynchburg, Kim Handy, for a quick breakfast before I headed to Charlotte. Kim was in Knoxville for the weekend and I wasn't going to leave town or let her get away without seeing her! We had a great time talking and exchanging gifts (her b-day & surprises for Baby Martin)...and I sure wish we could see eachother more often. She always keeps me laughing! I have no idea why we didn't take any pics....I guess it was too early and we just didn't think about it, or maybe it was because we were too busy jabbing our jaws. :) I always love my time with Kim!

After breakfast I went to pick up my friend, Jennifer, and her little boy, Eli, and we headed to Charlotte! We got to CLT a little after 1 PM, I dropped Jennifer off @ her girlfriend's house and then I headed to Dolly's baby shower....I honestly couldn't get there fast enough! I was SO excited to see everyone again, and what a wonderful reunion it was!!! The shower was beautiful and the Reber girls did an amazing job making it a special day for Dolly, and baby Michael.

Michael Leland Seckman, Jr.

Michael's beautiful mommy!

Ashleigh, Stacey, & Dawn

The two "prego" girls posing!

Thank you, Dolly & Leland for the adorable gifts for our baby!!!!

Can you tell that I LOVE it all???? :)

Some of the BGEA girls!

Yes, we had a baby shower, but we had a bloggers reunion as well!

Me & Ash

After the shower, I had a few stops to make @ some stores we don't have here in Knoxville, and after that, I met Becky & Beth Landrum for an "Olive Garden date". These girls are honestly two of the most precious people I know. The food was delicious, but the fellowship was the best!! :)

Me with the Landrum Ladies!

After dinner I met up with some other dear friends of mine, The Uibels. It was great being able to spend a little time catching up with them too. I love them dearly! Okay, so talk about a BUSY day...I think I crammed as much as I possibly could into my Saturday, but it was so much fun! I crawled into bed around midnight and I was EXHAUSTED. I talked to Joshua for a second--however, I don't even remember our conversation--and the rest of the night was history!

Sunday AM I got up early and met Dolly for breakfast @ Panera. I loved being able to spend some good quality time with her. Dolly is such a special friend in my life...it's been so cool to see how the Lord has given us our hearts desires at the same time. We found our husbands together, got married within a few months of eachother, and now are having babies together! It has been so much fun sharing these adventures with her...and even though we're 5 hours apart now...we have one of those friendships that will last forever.

After breakfast, I headed to West Cabarrus (my church in CLT) for the 1st time in over a year and a half. It felt great to be back and I was so happy to see everyone again!! Because my family has always lived so far away, alot of people there have been like family to me and I'm so grateful for the time I was able to share with them. After church, a bunch of us went to Zaxby's to eat, and I was SHOCKED to find that the girls had gifts waiting for me for Baby Martin....ahhhhh, how sweet! I was completely surprised, and it meant so much to me & Joshua! THANK YOU!

Me & Amory...it was so great to see her!

Meeting sweet little Tucker was one of the highlights of my weekend!

The guys table. :)

Precious ladies SO dear to my heart!! Thank you for lunch, the gifts for our baby, and for the wonderful time spent together. I love you all and miss you dearly!

We had a great trip home and I was so happy that Jennifer & Eli were able to make the trip with me. Having someone along makes the trip so much more enjoyable! Even though I had a wonderful weekend in CLT, it feels really good to be back home with my man. :)

Time to Register!

2008-09-03T08:56:00.011-04:00

Last night after work, Mandy and the kids met me @ Babies-R-Us to help me register for our baby. With it being my 1st time picking out baby stuff, it was a little overwhelming, but SO MUCH FUN! Mandy was a HUGE help by showing me the things I most likely will and won't use or need, and seeing that she's doing an awesome job raising 4 kids, I soaked in every bit of her advice. :) We had a really great time and now I'm even more excited for our little man to get here! Here are a couple of pics...

Phillip, Mandy, and the boys!

**Side note--Phillip didn't help us register, only came so we could eat! haha

Sweet baby girl!

Labor Day Weekend

2008-09-02T12:45:00.002-04:00

Hope everyone had a great & safe Labor's Day weekend. We had a really fun one here in TN! One of our good friends from college, Megan, and her son Clay, came to stay with us for the long weekend and boy did we keep BUSY! Friday night we went to a football game, Saturday, me, Mandy, Megan and the kids went shopping and then spent the rest of the day at the lake. Sunday we had church and then me, Joshua, Megan, Clay, and a bunch of Joshua's family went downtown Knoxville for "Boomsday". For all of you who have never heard of "Boomsday", it's an annual event here in Knoxville and they have the largest Labor Day firework show in the country. The fireworks are AMAZING and we've really tried to make a point to go every year. It's a lot of fun and it's a great place to "people watch". :) Monday we spent the day back out on the lake with family...we had a great weekend...but I'm trying to recover today...I'm sleepy! :) Thanks for coming to stay with us Megan & Clay...we love you guys and can't wait for you to come back soooooon!

God's Protection

2008-08-25T13:24:00.008-04:00

Well, I was in my 1st wreck this AM on the way to work. A nice truck driver decided to run me off the road sending me into a guardrail. What a great way to start off a Monday morning! Thankfully, the Lord protected me & the baby from any harm....it really could have been bad. I am so thankful to the Lord for HIS PROTECTION!! Here are some pics of the damage....

Thank You!

2008-08-25T10:26:00.011-04:00

I wanted to say a big THANK YOU to a few people who have showered our little man with gifts of love!!

My sister-in-law, Mandy, bought this adorable UT outfit for the baby. For those of you who know how huge UT sports are in East Tennessee, you know this is a MUST. :) Thanks, Aunt Mandy!

And to one of my best friends from home, Sara...I came home last week to a suprise package from her with some adorable things for our baby. Thank you Sara...I love you!!

His 1st book!

My dad and Pam came to visit this weekend and they were so sweet to bring lots of fun presents for Baby Martin (still no name...sorry!). I didn't get a picture of everything they brought, but all of their additions have been added to his closet. (Notice the new BLUE hangers)

And last but certainly not least, my SWEET mom bought these ADORABLE outfits for the baby!! Thanks mom...I love these and appreciate it so much!! ILY!

Thank you again, everyone! We love you and are so grateful. :)

It's a......

2008-08-12T11:28:00.008-04:00

YES!!!! We are having a BOY and honestly, we could not be more thrilled! :) It's been such an EXCITING morning for Joshua and I and we are so thankful that our baby looks perfectly healthy and is doing great! God is sooooooo good. I will write more later to share all the details, but I wanted to post the news really quick so the world could know! And here are a few pictures for you to enjoy as well. I'm one proud and happy mama. ;)

Profile

His little feet

Hello, I can't wait to meet you!

What's Your Guess?

2008-08-11T11:50:00.012-04:00

Tomorrow is the BIG DAY and I'm SO excited!! Joshua and I will be at the doctor's office @ 8:15 AM for our ultrasound to find out whether we're blessed with a BABY GIRL OR BABY BOY! I thought it would be fun for all my blogger friends to cast your vote down below and then tomorrow I'll be posting the EXCITING news to see how many of you are right!! :) This will be a really fun appointment for us, but it's also a very important appointment as they examine our baby to make sure he/she is growing properly, etc. We would certainly appreciate your prayers...more than anything, we are praying for a healthy baby! Can't wait to share the news!!! Until then...what's your guess???????

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Celebration Weekend!

2008-08-11T10:13:00.020-04:00

Well...I must say, this weekend was one of the best ones yet here in TN! First off, after being gone for 28 LONG days, Joshua flew home on Friday night! I have never been so happy to see someone in my entire life...and by the look on his face when he saw me @ the airport, I am pretty sure he felt the same way. ;) He had a really good trip and he even won an award @ his school for "Best Leadership", and from what I hear that's a pretty big deal. I'm so proud of him for all of his hard work and SO happy to have him home!

I spent Saturday cleaning up around the house and getting Joshua unpacked. Then Saturday night Joshua and I had a "date night". Joshua grilled some steaks and we had a wonderful dinner together. Then we hopped in the car and he took me to see the movie, Dark Knight...which I really loved...and you KNOW I loved it because we went to the late movie and I didn't fall asleep. That was a HUGE accomplishment for me and Joshua was so proud!! ha

Sunday was another big day for us! Like I mentioned in one of my previous posts, my in-laws just celebrated their 25th Wedding Anniversary. We didn't want to throw them a party without Joshua here, so Mandy and I planned to have a reception for them as soon as Joshua got home. We had a wonderful time celebrating and I know it meant the world to Sally & Pappy. There were some tears shed, a lot of laughter, and many hugs from friends & family, which made their day so special. We ended our weekend with the entire family eating pizza by the pool on a beautiful summer evening!

Happy 25th Anniversary!

Memaw & Pepaw

Aunt Sandy & Mahala

Joshua and his "Mama Dee"

My man is home!!!!!!

Brothers...enough said. :)

Maverick & Owen...look @ those sweet faces!!!

Uncle Joshua playing with the camera. :)

25 Random Facts About Me

2008-08-07T10:01:00.015-04:00

I had fun reading everyone else's random facts, so I figured I would do it too! :)

1. I'm a FANATIC CLEANER! If things are messy or out of place, I can't concentrate on anything else...which drives me NUTS! Joshua will MAKE me sit down @ night, otherwise, I always find something to do around the house. I have a hard time relaxing.

2. My favorite thing to do on Friday nights is rent a movie, order pizza, and eat icecream. Most people love to hit the town and do something fun, but I could care less if we go ANYWHERE. I love to put on my comfy clothes and veg out after a long week. Saturdays are meant for fun! :)

3. I was born in Lynchburg, VA and moved to Va Beach when I was 2. Lived there until I graduated high school and then moved back to Lynchburg for college...which were some of the best years of my life!

4. I HATE seafood...which is really odd seeing that I was raised by the ocean. I also HATE pork...and for a very stupid reason actually. When I was in elementary school, our class took a trip to the zoo and I saw this fat pig rolling around in the mud. I swore I would never eat pork again...and I haven't....I know, people think it's ridiculous, and I'll admit that it is, but I just can hack it. ha

5. My best friend Courtney and I have known eachother since birth. I don't remember a time in my life without her. Since I only have brothers (they're awesome by the way!!), I love that she's always been like a sister to me.

6. I am a BIG daddy's girl and we've always been very close. I love my mom to death and I have so much fun with her, but if I'm upset or need to talk...I go to my dad. Just hearing his voice makes me feel so much better!

7. Since I was little, I've always wanted a Christmas wedding, and I had my beautiful Christmas wedding on Dec. 2, 2006!

8. Getting my hair cut & highlighted is one of my favorite things to do. It's so relaxing not having anywhere to be other than there...and because my hair is so darn thick, it always feels like I've lost 10 pounds once I leave the salon. I love that feeling.

9. There is no one that can make me laugh harder than my mom. She is absolutely hilarious. She will talk to ANYONE and ANYTHING and everyone who meets her loves her. She doesn't mind embarrassing me...which causes for many funny moments...and when we get to laughing, we usually make a scene. :)

10. I wore braces from 6th grade to 8th grade. The very first night I had them, I swore I was going to get the pliers & take them off because my teeth hurt so bad. And my mom laughed @ me...nice huh? I LOVED getting them off and it just happened to be the same day as our school's homecoming and I was on the 8th grade homecoming court. Talk about a good day!

11. My dad helped my best friend's dad start Atlantic Shores Baptist Church in Va Beach. ASBC will always have a very special place in my heart because that's where my childhood/teenage memories were made & more importantly, thats where I was saved.

12. I'm a people person and I will always try to go out of my way to make sure that people feel special and loved. The bad part about this is that I can sometimes get hurt because I expect people to respond in the same way, and when they don't, I am often disappointed.

13. There is nothing that annoys me more than a snobby person who thinks they are too good for their own britches. ugh!!!

14. I LOVE to be with people, but in order to "recharge" my batteries, I NEED my alone time. If I don't get any alone time for awhile, I can get weepy & grouchy.

15. I love to turn on praise & worship in the car, roll my windows down and sing loud...that makes me so happy!

16. I am a lyric person when it comes to listening to music. I want to listen to the message of the song and don't care so much about the "music". The lyrics are what grip my heart and make me love the song.

17. I played basketball at Atlantic Shores Christian School from 6th grade until 11th grade when I tore my ACL ligament and had to have major reconstructive surgery. Funtimes. To this day, I love basketball and enjoy watching it whenever I can.

18. I'm a horrible decision maker. I tend to ask too many people for their opinions and that usually confuses me even more. I'm working on it though...Joshua is a GREAT decision maker and he's helped me a lot.

19. I hate conflict and I will avoid it at any cost. I think it's because I'm a horrible arguer. When I get mad or upset, I always seem to cry and nothing comes out the way I want it to!!! But again, Joshua has been great to help me talk things out when I get upset. I'm trying. :)

20. I will be 29 years old when I give birth to our 1st baby (January 2009). My mom was 29 when she had me. I can't wait to be a mommy!!! :)

21. I'm not the best in the kitchen....never have been....but I'm getting better! Growing up, my family ate out ALL of the time since our schedules were so crazy with church/school, etc. So, I would much rather go out to eat than cook. But Joshua is big on eating dinner @ home together, and honestly, I'm really beginning to love it. It gives you great quality time together...and I think it will mean a lot to our kids oneday when they're older.

22. My hands are ALWAYS cold and sometimes clammy...I hate it! My poor child. haha

23. I am totally in love with my husband! The Lord gave me such a good man and he makes me so happy. Not to be cheesy...and I know this sounds cheesy...but he completes me in every way.

24. I have lived in Va Beach, VA, Lynchburg, VA, Simi Valley, California, Charlotte, NC, and Knoxville, TN. I think we are staying put in Knoxville, and I'm really happy about that! :)

25. I am a HORRIBLE test taker. I went to college to be a teacher, but I had to change my major to psychology because I couldn't pass the praxis...talk about embarrassing!!!! I took the praxis 3 times and missed it by 1 point each time. The frustrating part is that I would have passed in 48 other states, but because Virgina's scores were so high, my scores just didn't cut it. It became a big joke between me and my dad and I can laugh about it now, but @ the time, it was NOT FUNNY! That dumb test put me behind 2 semesters. Thankfully, the Lord always knows what is best for me, because I couldn't be happier with my job now!

7 Days & Counting....

2008-08-01T12:42:00.004-04:00

Nothing new or exciting to post about today, but I did want to mention that ONE week from today, I will see my WONDERFUL husband!!!!!!! Now, that makes for an awesome Friday. :) Hope everyone has a great weekend!

25th Wedding Anniversary

2008-07-22T10:58:00.006-04:00

Today, my inlaws celebrate 25 years of marriage.....

Happy Anniversary, Sally & Pap! We love you and pray the Lord will give you MANY more wonderful years together!

Special Weekend with my M-I-L!

2008-07-21T15:35:00.012-04:00

This weekend was a VERY quiet one in the Martin family. Joshua was in MN, Phillip, Mandy and the kids were @ the beach with Mandy's family, and Pappy had to work all weekend, so Sally and I hit the ground running and took advantage of some fun time together.

Early Saturday afternoon, we decided to take a trip to Pigeon Forge (I LOVE that place) for a shopping day @ the outlets. Sally treated me to a yummy lunch @ Cracker Barrell and then we spent the rest of the day shopping. We had the best time and let me just tell you....my mother-in-law can shop!! :) She reminds me of my mom...they both can wear me out! LOL. But I love it. Anyways, Sally was so sweet to get me some maternity clothes and then we both got the baby some things too. That was my 1st purchase (other than diapers, wipes, baby lotion, etc) for our baby and it was SO fun picking stuff out! However, I have found that I have a difficult time trying to figure out what to buy without knowing our baby's gender. I know people do it all the time, but I saw so many cute girl & boy things that I wanted to buy, but I ended up sticking with the unisex stuff for now. You can bet we'll be taking another trip to the outlets after August 12th. :) We finished off our shopping day with an ice cream cone and a beautiful drive home in the mountians. It was a great day!

Baby Martin's closet...we're beginning to stash up on things! PS--I only have pink hangers in the closet because the people who lived in our house before had a baby girl and left them for us because they knew we were having a baby. I'll def swap to a more neutral or masculine color if we're having a boy! :)

On to Sunday...Sally and I sang in the choir and then sat through the 9:30 service. We decided to skip out on singing for the 11 AM service and instead, she took me to my FAVORITE restaurant (The Olive Garden) for lunch. I swear I could eat there every day. ;) After lunch, we did some more shopping and then we headed to a bridal shower for a friend.

Even though we missed the rest of our family, I enjoyed spending time with my mother-in-law so much. It was such a refreshing weekend and she made me feel so special the entire weekend. Thank you for everything, Sally, I love you!

Saying Goodbye is Hard to Do....

2008-07-15T10:38:00.012-04:00

The love of my life left this past Sunday for a MONTH to go to a little town called Wynona, Minnesota for some training for work. It was so hard to say goodbye...many tears were shed (by me, of course) and I already miss him TERRIBLY...and it's only been 2 days. Am I pathetic or what? And being prego probably doesn't help. ;)

Joshua seems to be doing really good and he's met some friends, but I think he's already a little homesick because last night he called me 3 times in the period of an hour....just to tell me goodnight & that he loves and misses me. Talk about making my heart melt. :) I have a lot fun things planned to keep myself busy while he's away (home projects, jewelry parties, movie nights, trip to the outlets with my mother-in-law, etc) so that will help, but I can't wait for him to get home! He gets back on Aug. 8th and then we find out whether we're having a boy or girl on the 12th, so we have alot to look forward to over the next few weeks! All I know is that I love Joshua more now than ever and I thank the Lord for what a great husband He's given me. Please keep him in your prayers while he's away--pray for his protection and that he'll be able to get everything done he needs to. He's got ALOT of work ahead of him, but he's excited at the same time, because this is a great promotion for him in his company! I'm so proud. :)

Nice Surprise!

2008-07-11T14:52:00.004-04:00

Have you ever had one of those moments where you feel like the Lord put you in a certain place @ a certain time when you usually wouldn't be there? Well, today I had one of those moments. Sally and I found Joshua a pair of shoes this past weekend @ Finish Line, but they only had his size at a different mall by my work. So I asked that Finish Line to hold them for me and I would pick them up one day at lunch. I NEVER go to this mall...I've probably been there 2 times since I've moved to Knoxville. Long story short, I decided to use my lunch break today to go and get his shoes...I had just bought them and then started to head over to over to Chick-fil-A to get something to eat. I walked past this table with a sweet lady and 3 kids...and I KNEW I recognized these kids. I tried not to stare, but I think I was too obvious because they were all looking @ me. haha What a wonderful surprise!!!! It ended up being one of my good friends from Va Beach, Beth, and her 3 little kids (they now live in Raleigh). Talk about a SMALL WORLD!!! I met Beth through her husband Anthony, who was one of my really great friends growing up. What a precious family they are! I just couldn't get over the fact that here I am in this tiny, tiny mall 30 minutes away from my house and they just happened to be there @ the same time. I love the way the Lord works!! It was SO great seeing the Williams Family....put a smile on my face!

Cardboard Testimonies

2008-07-10T09:09:00.001-04:00

My friend Leslie shared this with me today...please take a look! It's SO powerful!!!

My Growing Belly!

2008-07-03T11:35:00.010-04:00

Okay...for all of you who have been asking for a belly shot (especially my mom), here ya go!!! Here I am @ 14 weeks. I know you're thinking, man, she is popping out fast...and yes, I agree! I was a little concerned that I was growing too fast--or I thought maybe another baby might be hiding out somewhere in there without us knowing, but my doctor assured me that I was OKAY and doing great. He also mentioned that shorter individuals for the most part will show much sooner than others because they don't have as much room to work with. So, I'm embracing my growing belly and getting SO excited!!! :)

Cutie Patootie's!!!

2008-07-03T08:48:00.008-04:00

Last night we had dinner by the lake at my in-laws and Mandy brought the kids new pictures...they are ADORABLE. Thought I would share them with everyone. ;) On another note...Happy 4th of July everyone!

Mahala -- 7 weeks old and such a good baby!

My sweet neice & nephews...I love them to pieces!!