Big Changes…Bigger Blessings

Wow. To say a lot has happened this summer would be the biggest understatement I have ever made! In the course of two weeks we welcomed Baby Eli, packed up our sweet little home of 6 years and moved around the block to our new home! It has taken until now for me to think beyond eating, sleeping, and unpacking – I’m now ready to branch out from the essentials!

Don has reserved the right to tell Elias’s story which is coming soon, but know our little Eli has nudged his way right into our hearts. He’s absolutely adored by all of us girls winning the nickname of “our little man” – and if you were to contest his cuteness you may find yourself in a scuff with his 3 protective, adoring sisters. “Is he a good sleeper” is the most common question I get and for all his sweetness, smiles (yep, he’s smiling already!), and engaging looks – the bags under my eyes, and few extra pounds I’ve gained (I tend to eat more when I’m super tired) since losing the baby weight should answer that sufficiently…

Coming home from the hospital is a mix of emotions for me: 1) I’m excited to be with ALL my children again and begin normal life 2) I’m terrified of trying to manage ALL my children and find normal life! The joy always wins out over the smatterings of baby blues and tiredness… Here is Eli home for the first time:

Here he is a few weeks later in his new home showing amazing head control: please ignore the slight chaos in the background and feel free to play “Finding Waldo” with the ever present, now “Caffeine-Free,” Diet Coke in the background:)

And finally, here is my baby boy today…I just want to eat him up!!! Oh, the sweetness.

Our sweet little house is empty and up for sale. It housed and sheltered us until we were busting at the seams, so awhile back Don and I began the process of praying for some direction on where to move our growing family, we considered all sorts of places throughout Utah County and seriously considered a few homes… but, as is the case when you let the Lord be apart of your decisions, He knew where we needed to be and we weren’t looking in the right place so we kept getting the red light on “our" choices. When a house became available in our ward we “knew” this is where we were suppose to be, but knowing and getting don’t always go easily hand in hand – perseverance, faith and many prayers later we closed on the house! I will always remember when Don told us it was ours…we had gotten into the habit of going for evening walks pass the house with the girls to look and dream. On one particular evening we went by the house, and Don looked at me and said, “It’s ours.” I looked at him hard and realized he meant it was actually ours, and I,being pregnant, cried. Packing up our house pregnant, then moving our belongings with a brand new baby would have been absolutely impossible, but with the help of our dear friend, Clint, and many numerous members of our ward it was done blessedly quick! I now enjoy a dishwasher and the knowledge that our children have the freedom to spread out and have privacy to ponder and play (we actually lost Liberty the first day in the house, we could hear her responding to our calls but couldn't locate her – she finally emerged from her hiding place in her sister’s closet where she colored herself like a tiger and christened the closet walls with similar markings….).

Here is our new home:

Landscaping is one of Don and my favorite hobbies, and this house came with a lot of landscaping potential! So weeds quickly gave way to bulldozing, leveling and with that came lots and lots of … dirt. The carefree days of my youth of not caring how high things were, how steep they were and how dirty they are allude me now – my kids? Not so much…   These next few pictures are the common results of shooing my kids out the door and telling them to go play, especially if Don gives them permission to include a hose…

Yep… life is back to normal.