2017.

2017.

such a full year.

so many laughs and memories. adventures and accomplishments. quiet moments and busy days and nights.

so much good.

when i look at these squares, all i can think is man we live a beautiful life. it really does make the bad and messy fade away. i am overwhelmed by the goodness in our year. all those little moments those make up a life well lived.

we are excited, and let's be honest a bit anxious, for 2018. ellie's impending surgery and recovery has stole most of my energy for the next year. once we are past that hurdle and she is well, i can think about the rest of the year. right now there are many thoughts, ideas, and plans swirling around but those will have to wait.

enjoy 2017 in pictures.....

winter brought celebrating our winter babies. lots of inside play. cheering for our cyclones on cold winter nights. volleyball, gymnastics, and wrestling. and sneaking outside to play whenever would could.

spring was full of soccer for all three girls. a trip to celebrate a milestone birthday for daddy. growing kids. and celebrating our savior.

summer was full. growing the garden. playing more soccer. lots of time at the pool and parks. a trip to new york city for mom and dad. tonsillectomy for miss cece. a kitchen reno. ellie off to summer camp. and celebrating our summer babes.

fall brought three girls in school. a very tired magpie. a softball league championship for cecilia. school sports for ellie. cheering on our cyclones. finishing projects in the kitchen.

farewell 2017.

we look forward to 2018 full of hope.


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follow the links below to see previous year in review posts.
2016
2015
2014
2013
2012
2011
2010

miss ellie

one week from today ellie is having surgery.

i don't want to make a big deal out of it.

but i am going to be honest. i am worried. 

she is having her lingual tonsils removed. 

i know what you are thinking.....what are your lingual tonsils?

well..a little anatomy lesson. we all have three sets of tonsil tissue- one being the tonsils in our throat that we all refer to as our tonsils, the second is the adenoids, and the third set is your lingual tonsils. your lingual tonsils are located in your tongue. pretty much no one knows about them. we have been to five doctors including four specialists. more than half had not seen something like this. 

ellie's are enlarged and swollen. we are not sure why. but they need to come out. 

we have learned this is a rare condition. especially for someone her age. and it is a rare surgery. 

the surgery to remove them is similar to a regular tonsillectomy. except it is much more invasive and has many more unknowns. 

ellie will stay in the hospital overnight following her surgery. and from there we really are not sure what to expect. 

ellie will need to relearn swallowing and speaking.

a big challenge will be making sure she is taking in enough calories. the doctor did talk about the possibility of a feeding tube. it all depends on how she is doing.

we expect her to be out of school for 2-3 weeks. when she returns it may be for half days.

the doctor estimated 4-6 weeks before she feels 100%.

again it all is very much unknown. guys, when we scheduled the surgery they didn't even have any paperwork to give us. 

we are hopeful that all will go smoothly and that afterwards she will feel so much better.

we are very thankful for good health, doctors, and health insurance.

we are also very thankful this is all that this is.

early on we did some testing to rule out some yucky things. those days of waiting and letting your mind wander were not fun. thankful that is not what we are facing. my heart goes out to families who face those types of diagnosis.

please pray for her. for us. for her doctors and nurses. 

Merry Christmas!!

wash me and i will be whiter than snow. psalm 51:7

a big thing happened today. huge. when i think of the magnitude of this day, i feel so small. unworthy. but the good news is the blessing is for me. and you. and all of us.

Jesus came to wash us all whiter than snow.

thankful for this amazing, beyond my understanding, blessing.

christmas blessings from our family to yours!

wash me and i will be whiter than snow. psalm 51:7

jacob james

for real sweet boy.

you have my heart forever.

you are our best boy and we love you so.

what in the world would life have been like without you mister.

you have us wrapped around your finger and we don't even care.

you can have our hearts.

you are all boy.

climbing. jumping. wrestling. dirt.

friendly and kind.

your heart is golden.

you love your paci and blanky.

you like to wear "unies" over your diapers.

we haven't ventured into potty training yet and that is a-ok.

you love to play outside and swing.

cars is your favorite.

you will sit and do art with mags for hours.

the grass is definitely greener for you....you love to do what others are doing. eat what others are eating.

buddy, you are growing too fast.

 jake.

you are the best.

we love you oh so much.

maggie vera

oh magpie.

where do i start.

you are rainbows and sunshine.

you are thunder and lightning.

mostly easy going. occasionally you did in your heals.

your whole big family is very important to you.

and you are oh so important to us.

you love big and are sentimental.

you are rocking kindergarten and love doing your school work.

art is your jam.

you march to the bus stop on a mission each morning.

you love to mother hen jake.

eating still isn't a huge priority for you.

you could live on pasta and chocolate milk.

school does wear you out...your preferred bedtime is 7pm. you let go and fall to sleep easily these days.

you make us laugh daily.

i love being your momma.

sweet mags.

we love you too much.

10

10.


our sweet angel baby would be turning 10.

it seems so long ago.

so much has changed since our sweet baby came and went home to heaven.

it was an early miscarriage.

we had barely began to do life with that little one and then they were gone.

our hearts already hurting from being so far from our family were broken.

but some how we kept going.

i think about it now and i don't even now how we did it.

but then i do.

jesus carried us through.

there is simply no other explanation.

10 years later the pain is still raw.

it makes no sense.

seeing our family now though.

from the pain god can do beautiful things.

though these god things are sometimes hard to understand.


our sweet baby is a lucky one.

10 years celebrating birthdays with jesus.

sweet baby, we love you.