Home Sweet Home

Well other news. We are buying a house. We close on the 15th of this month and won't get possession until the 18th. Our plan is to have hardwood floors installed that next month and be able to start moving in the weekend after Thanksgiving. We are super excited about this little adventure and feel so blessed to be able to buy this home. Everything has went so smoothly and it has really helped to have such good friends helping us through this journey. Our great friend Amy has made this experience so easy and really dealt with a lot from my dear husband. I think that we have probably looked at over 20 houses, but I know that we are making the best decision. This will be affordable for us and also allow for me to not stress too much about work once our little babies get here.

The Expected Miracle

I decided to coin the title from one of our Associate Pastor's most recent sermons. This last one really impacted me. One comment that really stuck with me is why are we so surprised when God performs miracles? Why do we keep asking God to show us a miracle or losing faith when it doesn't seem to be working out our way? If we look back we will be able to note many instances of miracles being made by God. I could really go into the whole sermon that he did, but I guess that mostly I needed to hear that I need to take a moment out of my day and thank Jesus for what He has done for me.

I haven't written in this blog for awhile, so I guess the first bit of news is that we are not pregnant with just one little blessing, but are expecting two little boys. Kyle and I are so very excited for these little guys to come. God is sooo great. When I heard the phrase the expected miracle it made me take a moment to think of where I was just a year ago. I remember laying in our bed one night crying my eyes out after finding out that yet another friend of mine was pregnant. I had been told just six months after getting married that I had a severe case of Endometriosis and that if we didn't try to get pregnant soon there might not ever be a chance for us to have kids. Well, instead of following my husband's example and being led by faith I began to believe that I would never have kids. I became very angry that my husband kept pushing the idea of having kids to the side. I thought that he was basically playing rush and roulette. Little did I know that this was just the beginning of a trial that I would go through to see that God really does answer prayer and that if you fully rely on God he will answer your prayers.

Every time that I would have one of my melt downs my husband would gently rub my back and tell me that regardless of how I was feeling that he knew deep down that God would provide us with children the way that He saw fit. He never got upset or told me that I was being unreasonable, he just kept saying...Now, is not the time Amber!!! God will let us know when it is His time. Well, it was probably about a year ago that I let this get to a huge ugly head. I was really depressed so many people were popping up pregnant. I had a little niece on the way and I was totally excited, but wondered if I would ever experience the same joy. My husband kept telling me, I am still praying and we will have kids.

Well, look at our miracle today. We weren't entirely trying to have children and then boom on the same day that our house sold we found out that God had given us a miracle. I was soooo overwhelmed to find out that I was pregnant. Four weeks later when we found out that we were pregnant with twins, Kyle said the most amazing thing to me. (He still wasn't entirely ready to start a family.) He leaned over in the car and said, "Well, I guess that our babies will really know that they were planned. God planned all of this. Not only did He want us to have a baby, but he has blessed us with two little babies, just like you always wanted. Isn't God amazing?" Kyle was overjoyed at the prospect of having two babies.

Finding out that we are having boys has made this journey even more amazing. I always assumed that I would only have girls, so I was really shocked to find out that we are having two little boys. I am already referring to them as the boys!!! I can't wait for them to come. I just have to once again say that God is sooo good to us!!!

Growing Like a WEED!!!

I found out that you are a whole inch long today!!! I can't believe it; I can actually comprehend the size of your magnitude. You must have doubled in size over the weekend, because you are sure putting me through the ringer. Last night I almost cried watching a TV show with Kyle about guys surviving the wilderness. This wasn't at all supposed to be sad, but it put me in the mood. I have noticed that I am leveling out in terms of being grumpy. I am so touchy-feely with Kyle. I don't know why, but I constantly want to cuddle up and be held. I am not normally this kind of person.

Well this morning my little plan fell through. I now know that you have a mind of your own. I had truly thought I had gotten past the puking stage, but boy was I wrong. I kept the philosophy that this can all be controlled in your mind. My body finally took control of that idea this morning. Poor Kyle...he was leaving for work when he heard it start in. I had discovered last week that toothbrushing is getting pretty difficult to do without gagging. (Don't worry, I am still brushing my teeth at least twice a day) But anyways this morning there was no holding back I instantly began getting sick and Kyle walked into the bathroom to comfort me just as the worse came. Poor guy, he sat there and rubbed my back while soothing the uncomfortable feeling I was in. He is going to be such a good daddy!!! I know that he is a wonderful husband already, but this just proves his patience. He didn't even once seem revolted at the fact I was standing in my towel getting sick in the bathroom. Gotta love this guy!!!!

Quick recap of this past weekend...I am trying to journal as much as I can so that I can keep track of this period in my life. Kyle and I went out on a date Friday night and went and saw, "I now pronounce you, Chuck and Larry." I wasn't thrilled about seeing this film, but I even have to admit that it was pretty funny. On Saturday we both spent the day hanging out with some friends. I went to Joe Sult's 30th birthday party with Christen and then we checked out the Josh Gracin concert. I wasn't that impressed, but it might have been the fact that two enormously rude women wouldn't sit down in front and kept the entire two back rows from being able to see in front of them. Oh, yeah I went to the fair that day with my mom, Chuck, Austin, Olivia, and grandma and grandpa. We had lots of fun and food. Olivia loved watching the amusement rides and thought that the colors moving around were a private little show just for her. I love her smile so much and enjoyed watching her get so happy over watching all the shapes and colors.

Sunday was an o.k. day. Kyle and I went to the Dallas Summerfest Car Show for a little while and then went and saw another movie. This one sucked...License to Wed. Don't go see it. Kyle slept through the entire thing. The Car Show was fun except that I got way too sunburnt. Overall, our weekend was pretty good. Kyle and I even managed to go to the parade this year, which is a first. I guess that we are getting our practice in for later. Here's to a great week of news!!!!

Not feeling well, but still happy as can "bee"

This week has been a huge pain in the butt. I have had no ambition at work and I can't seem to stay focused. It doesn't help that 24/7 I feel the urge to run to the bathroom and get sick. I am keeping the philosophy that mind over matter does work. So far, so good!!! I really shouldn't be complaining. I am super happy!!!! I love this time in my life, I just don't want to be sick the whole time. This past weekend was lots of fun. Kyle's Uncle Rick and Michelle came down and stayed at Ann and Bill's. Other than Saturday when I nearly passed out from a horrible headache, we had a blast!!! It was nice being able to relax and enjoy some time with our family. Kyle and I have made a pact to spend as many weekends as we can in Blodgett. I just feel totally relaxed going there for the weekend. Ann is such a caretaker and makes dinner for us and I can just relax without worrying about anything else. It is nice to be able to take my mind off of everything that is going on at the house. Including lots of work to do. Well, this is kind of a pointless blog, but I have been trying to post at least once a week during this process.

Kyle bought me a different car last night. I am really excited about it. I will post some pictures of it as soon as we get a new bumper. It is a 2000 Honda Civic. Much like the car that I bought brand new in college. Only this one is an automatic and has air conditioning. The two features that I said were a must. Did I mention that it only has 56,000 miles on it? Amazing deal we got. Total God Thing. We were actually buying a different car when the guy called on this car and Kyle just got an urge to say no to the deal and go look at this car. We are really happy with our decision. It made a great adventure, including us stopping at Chili's at close to 10 for dinner. It was nice to be able to spend time with my honey without the interruption of cell phones and other people. Well, I am really hoping that this week gets better. Wish me luck!!!

4th of July

Our 4th of July went pretty well. Other than me being entirely too grumpy in the morning, I think we had a good day. Independence put on a great fireworks show and we spent time with some of our great friends. Kyle, Jim, and I drove over to Christen's to park and then walked down to the park with her and her parents. The show lasted about 45 minutes and I got to eat a little bit of fair food without going over the top. Does Corn on the Cob sound good? It did last night. Kyle and I are still reeling in the shock of all of our new life changes. God is so great and also has a wonderful sense of humor. We are so incredibly happy!!! This is the first time in our life that everything isn't planned out five years in advance and it feels so good.

Well, other than the fireworks show, we spent time with the Basso, Williams, and Graber family celebrating Mr. Riece's birthday. He is turning 13 on Saturday. It was a lot of fun and we had some great food. Brandon and Conner are growing up so fast and I love watching them play together. It is so amazing watching Brandon learn how to interact so politely with adults. He ha such a vocabulary and just melts both Kyle and my heart when he gives us spontaneous hugs. It seems like only yesterday that the little guy was born, but it has now been just over three years. Wow, time sure flies. Then Conner, he is such a sweetie. He was having so much fun yesterday and his personality is so different from Brandon's. He has no fear and is willing to try so many things. It was a lot of fun hanging out with our "second" family.

Kyle and I are looking forward to a great weekend. It will be our first car show of 2007. We are going to enter our Corvette in the Philomath Rod Run. We look forward to this every year and this year is no exception. We decided not to enter the Mustang, because of lack of time, but maybe next year. Well, I will post more pics of all of these fun events after I get my new computer. At that time I will also post pics of Kyle's latest "Man's Day Purchase." Love to all-Amber

To my little "d"

I learned about you on Friday (6/29) and ever since I can't stop thinking about you. Are you getting enough to drink? Are you feeling okay? Are you going to stick around? You are amazing. You are what we've always hoped, dreamed, and waited for. I can't believe you are here. You are an answer to an always prayed prayer. I am already completely in love with the idea of you. I never thought that I would worry this much, but I guess it comes with the territory. I can't wait to meet you.

New Beginnings

Life is full of big changes for us. Kyle and I both have been hired to new jobs. I am working at Western Community Policing Institute located on Western Oregon University's campus and Kyle is working as a Regional Director for Renew Consulting in Salem. Our life is changing full circle. In the same week that Kyle got his new job we also sold our house. We haven't been talking much about this because things went really crazy for awhile. The people that bought our house ordered a home inspection. (We didn't think anything major would be wrong.) Boy, were we surprised. They found mold in our attic. After spending almost $5000 dollars to fix it this past week our house is finally a week away from closing. This has been SOOOOOO stressful for me.

Until yesterday we didn't even have a clue of where we were going to live. Then two days ago I responded to an add on Craig's List and just like that we have a new home. We are going to be renting for about the next nine months until we either find our dream house or build one. We are just going to take a breather for the next three months until Kyle is completely done with his three month probation at his new job. There is a picture at the top of the page. We are not living in the house, but in the apartment above the three car garage. It is really nice and CHEAP!!! 850 square feet of living space will take some getting used to, but we can do it. We are going to save a lot of money and Kyle and I can't wait until we are able to buy our dream home. This is big for us.

Thanks to all of you for your prayers. Life is good. God is great. Kyle is finally able to go to church with me and we are looking forward to having weekends off together. I know our space will be tight, but we would love to make plans with people for the summer.