Halloween...what does it mean to you?

Lots going on today. I just got a note from Amanda and she is in the hospital and 4 cm dilated! She has been waiting a long time for this baby and she is almost here!! Please pray for a safe delivery and a healthy baby. Our God is an Awesome God and to think that he has specially created this precious girl for Amanda and John! The creation of life and the gift of being able to bring it into this world is humbling. Hunter already has some great friends and Lainey will be a beautiful addition to the group!!

Prayer is powerful and I believe that I have a group of girls in my life that are a prayer power house. We all need those people in our lives that we can count on to drop everything and be there in a moment of need. That we can trust with our darkest hardest moments and know they will help us back on track and into the light. The people you know will cry when you cry and laugh when you laugh. The people that tell you the truth and not what you want to hear. We all need people like that, and I am endlessly thankful for the people in my life that pray with me.

A few more people to pray for...

Amy's mom is in the hospital and in a great deal of pain as she struggles with colonitis. Amy went to be with her. Pray for healing.

Elaine, my co-worker and friend, has a niece that was flown by helicopter to San Fransisco hospital. Please pray for healing, pray for the doctors that surround her.

Tonight we are going to dress up Hunter and knock on a few doors and hopefully get the good candy like Reese! We will be celebrating Fall and Fun costumes....but to tell you the truth I struggle with Halloween and what it represents, A Day of the Dead. I love pumpkins, harvest, costumes, scary movies, haunted houses, corn mazes and celebrating all that the Lord has given us....but I do not believe that the dead come alive on this night or any of the ancient myths surrounding this holiday. Here is Wikipedia's definition of Halloween...

Halloween has its origins in the ancient Celtic festival known as Samhain (Irish pronunciation: [ˈsˠaunʲ]; from the Old Irish samain).[1] The festival of Samhain is a celebration of the end of the harvest season in Gaelic culture, and is sometimes[2] regarded as the "Celtic New Year."[3] Traditionally, the festival was a time used by the ancient Celtic pagans to take stock of supplies and slaughter livestock for winter stores. The ancient Gaels believed that on October 31, now known as Halloween, the boundary between the alive and the deceased dissolved, and the dead become dangerous for the living by causing problems such as sickness or damaged crops. The festivals would frequently involve bonfires, into which bones of slaughtered livestock were thrown. Costumes and masks were also worn at the festivals in an attempt to mimic the evil spirits or placate them.[4][5]

Have a fun day and enjoy the silly kids in costumes, candy and good friends and family....we will! I will post some pictures tomorrow.

XO

Good Grandma Lovin

This is a picture from our trip to Canada to visit the Little family. Bobbi took this picture and it is one of my favorites! Being far away from our families makes us appreciate every second we do get to spend with them . My parents are coming up to Tracy to visit in a few weeks! We are going to a fundraiser for a Christian college in Sacramento. They came up for this fundraiser a year ago and that is when they met Wade for the first time and found our we were expecting Hunter! As Wade and I have been reflecting on a year ago we have realized not only how much we have accomplished but how loved we are.

Uncle Rick and Auntie Bobbi are Hunter's God Parents! Wade and I asked them when we were in Canada. We wish we lived closer but we are making due with video chat and regular visits. In fact we are due for another chat! Wade and I need to sit down with my dad and write up our family trust...that paperwork is so important!

Nothing big planned for tonight. We are just going to make dinner, give Hunter a bath, watch a bit of TV and head to bed. Hopefully we can video chat with Grandma Little too we have not talked to her in awhile!

Get a Babysitter!

Date night was amazing! Wade and I dropped off our little man with Rochelle's two girls. We really trust this family! We went to my favorite spot for dinner....Olive Garden! We enjoyed uninterrupted conversation, wow what a treat the simplest of things are. We thought we would catch a movie too and since it is Halloween time we choose a scary movie Saw V. We both enjoy a good scary movie and this one made out stomachs turn! I have to tell you though....what made our stomachs turn more than the blood and guts in the movie was that once the movie was over and the lights went up there was several small children!! Can you believe that parents would ever bring their small children into this type of movie. I cannot control other people choices, but I can control my own and Hunter will not be joining Wade and I into the movie theater to see anything else but Disney movies! Come on parents that is what babysitters, date nights and DVD's after bedtime are for....

On Sunday night the Lim Family came over and we carved pumpkins! We had so much fun scooping out the slimy guts and letting Hunter run his fingers through it. The best part is when you get to put a candle inside the pumpkin and see how it lights up. It was fun to watch our engineers Monica and Wade take a mathematical approach to carving their pumpkins...and of course they came out as state fair winners.

This week our good friend Justin is in town! He is so much fun to have around! I wish I had more energy in the evenings after work so I could stay up and chat with Wade and Justin....but my early morning alarm clock drives my bedtime.

One of my dear friends Amanda is ready to give birth to her baby girl, Lainey, any moment. She is 41 weeks pregnant!! I only made 36 and was uncomfortable then... I cannot imagine how ready she is to see her little girl. We are praying for a smooth and safe delivery!

Daddy Day

Wade and Hunter are preparing for their Saturday (Daddy Day) adventure to the Bass Pro Shop. Wade wanted his hands free to check out all the merchandise.

I love my job...but I really wish that Daddy days were family days! I want to be with my boys.

Wade is an Amazing husband and father. With my work schedule right now he carries a large load at home...and he does it with a smile. They should have fun today and I will get a ton of work off my desk.

Hunter Picks up the Check

Whenever I seemed to be stressed out or worried about some area of our lives, God reminds me to Let Go. Wade and I are trying to become as lean and debt free as possible...therefore we are constantly talking about or stressing about how we spend our money. We spent most of dinner talking about money and then we break out in laughter as Hunter picks up the check!

A simple reminder that we need to work hard at moving towards our goals, but we need to also enjoy every step in the process becuase God is in control.

Tonight is date night. I cannot wait to just enjoy a few hours alone with my husband!

Rise and Shine

Every morning I tip toe into Hunter's room and wake him by singing "Rise and Shine". He usually puckers up his lips and sings along by making any noises he can...but this morning he started crying, I must have sounded worse than usual. Hunter will be 5 months old on Monday and he is almost 18 pounds! This morning I gave him 6 ounces of milk and that seemed to cure the "my momma a bad singer" blues. Milk always cures Hunter's blues.

This Sunday I would like to attend Church. I really want to find a church home where Hunter can be in a good Children's program. I think we will go back to Journey this Sunday.

Grandpa Ed

We lost Grandpa Ed Hamerston last night. I met him for this first time on our most recent trip back to Canada this past August, but through all the stories Wade has shared I feel like I have known him for a lifetime. I do not think that men come in any better form than my husband, but my husband, with swollen eyes, will tell you today that men do not come any better than Grandpa Ed. Ed and Wade shared many things, their most talked about is their birthdays June 27....but 50 years apart. My favorite is their love and devotion to family. Ed was a simple man who enjoyed a good laugh, a bit of sarcasm and a strong Canadian Wiskey. He was an entrepreneur who built his own empire. He was a proud Canadian, husband, father, grandfather and great grandfather. I am honored to have known him and look forward to sharing warm stories of Grandpa Ed with my son. He will never be forgotten.

This past year of my life has left me with many lessons learned...number 1 is that family is first and the closer the better, number 2 is many of my friends have become a sacred part of my family, number 3 is that we are NOT in control, GOD is. Our life is HIS to give and take away. This may feel like a loss to us today, but Wade and I have faith that one day we will be with him again. Lord, we are grateful for Grandpa Ed and the time we were given with him!

Wade travels back to Canada Thursday to be with family for a week. Pray for our family. Pray that this is a time we can grow closer to each other and to God.

Remember that you are alive today and here with a great purpose and plan. We love you and enjoy walking through every moment of life together.