Emma Grace Lockwood

That is the name of the baby girl I am blessed to be carrying in my belly right now. I could NOT contain my excitement yesterday when we found out that our baby is a GIRL!

As long as I can remember, I have always wanted a daughter. I have always wanted to have a mother/daughter relationship, and God in is infinite power, has decided to make my dreams come true.

I can't wait until the day that Emma is born and they place her on my stomach and I look into the eyes of my daughter. Daughter...I love that word. I love it when it's used because of me. I love being a daughter to my parents. My mother and I didn't always have the best relationship...my middle school years were pretty rough, and I didn't always treat my mother with the respect that she deserves. But as I have gotten older, I have come to know and love my mother in a deeper way than I ever have in my life. I think when daughters become mothers...the mothers take on a more special role.

I will never forget calling my mother on NUMEROUS occassions when my oldest son was a baby/toddler and saying these words, "Mom, if I was anything like Timmy is right now..God Bless You!" Me becoming a mother thrust me into my mother's world. I was so far from home, and yet my mother was ALWAYS there for me...day or night. Everyday that my mother is on this earth, is sweeter than the day before.

I loved getting to call my mother yesterday to tell her she will have her 2nd granddaughter. I love that I will now have new "mother" things to talk about with raising my daughter. I am so blessed beyond words for this wonderful gift. I pray that my relationship with Emma will be just as close as my relationship with my mother. My mother has been my rock this past year, and I hope to one day be able to be that "Rock" for Emma.

Thank you God for my daughter!

My Little Boy Silas

Do you like Silas' hair? If you know my Silas, then you know he sucks his two middle fingers on his right hand and twirls his hair with his left hand. This used to happen all the time, but lately, we have noticed that he only sucks his fingers when he is tired, going to sleep or has gotten in trouble. Since he "twirled" his hair in his fingers, we had been keeping his hair a little longer on the top. It got to the point where the hair was just unruly. I mean, it would just NOT lay down and it got too long to "style". So, Saturday, I asked Ed if we would cut the boys hair. He has already been cutting Timmy's hair, and I finally gave in and told Ed to cut Silas' hair short all over. I must say...he looks quite adorable with his hair cut so short. He no longer can "twirl" his hair, but he rubs and pats his hair instead. He looks like such a big boy.

Everytime I look at him now, I realize he is going to be a big brother. I can't believe that Silas is not going to be the "baby" anymore. I know that my baby isn't due until January, and I will cherish EVERY moment of this time keeping Silas as my baby. At the same time, he will need to transition to a big boy bed because the crib needs to be for the baby. The bed is already set up in Timmy's room, but the thought of Silas being more mobile isn't something we are quite ready for. I always look at the boys before I go to bed, and last night, I noticed that Silas is getting so long, that he really only has about a foot left before he will be too big for the crib. I guess one day, we are just going to have to get brave and try it out.

I know...he can't be a baby forever...but he will always be "my" baby! A gift God gave to me the summer after I miscarried the first time. God is good, all the time, all the time, God is good.

Not Me Monday!

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

I most certainly did NOT leave a load of wet towels in the washer all night on Saturday. I then most certainly did NOT just wash them again on Sunday night. They are most certainly NOT still in the washing machine on Monday morning. I always stay on top of my laundry duties!

I did NOT go to Wally world during my lunch break last week, and I did NOT buy Gatorade, Swiss Cake Rolls and Almond Joys. This is NOT the wierdest pregnancy craving I have had this go round...I am NOT still enjoying those Swiss Cake Rolls at my desk. YUM!

I have NOT been counting down the days to find out the sex of the baby in my belly. I am NOT secretly hoping for a little girl. I am NOT planning to take a half day on "the" day so that if baby is said girl, I will NOT go and buy something pink. (Note: I WILL be thrilled if it's another boy, but there is no harm in hoping for a girl)

Here's what I did NOT do...how about you?

17 weeks and growing

So, here you have it. My very first pregnancy picture this time around. I have been meaning to take a picture before now, but I never seem to remember when Ed or I have a camera. I can't believe it's been 17 weeks. My next appointment is on August 11th, and at that appointment, I will make THE appointment. You know, the appointment where they check all the baby's body parts and organs...the appointment where we will know if I am carrying our Emma Grace or our Jacob Neal. I can't wait to find out...I will really be happy with whatever God has blessed us with, but I am secretly hoping for a little girl. I am outnumbered right now, and would LOVE to have another girl on my side. Plus, this pregnancy has been different than with the boys. I have been sick, sick, sick all the way up to last week. So, 16 weeks of feeling sick is yucky, but so worth it.

I have to tell you something that Timmy said last night that was just precious. I had a craving for Wendy's Chili. I know...it's in the heat of the summer, and I want hot chili...but the baby wants what the baby wants. Anyway, I am sitting there eating my chili sitting next to Timmy, and with every bite that goes into my mouth, I am making a sound like "Mmmmmm". (If you are a member of my family...you can remember this sound well.) He looks at me, rubs my belly, and then says, does the baby like that chili? I just smiled at him and said, absolutely!

I am hoping to continue updating this blog about my pregnancy. I am finally feeling better and have a ton of energy that I didn't have for the past 16 weeks. Stay tuned...I will let you know THE appointment date next week.

A Refuge in Times of Trouble

My mom called today to give me a verse she read during her quiet time. She thought it would be bring me encouragement. My mom is ALWAYS thinking about her children and praying for us on a daily basis, so when she called to give me this verse. I felt blessed to have this word from the Lord.

Nahum 1:7 (NIV)

The LORD is good, a refuge in times of trouble. He cares for those who trust in him

This verse really speaks to me right now. If you have been following my blog, then you know that Ed and I stepped out on faith and moved to Atlanta, GA so Ed could work with ISF. Things have DEFINITELY been tough for us, but as written in past blogs, God has never left us. We have truly been blessed through this journey.

After reading this verse from mom, I felt it important to share a recent "blessing" we received from the Lord. Our van had a flat tire on Sunday, and thankfully, our spare is a real tire and not a doughnut. So, Ed was able to drive the van to get the flat tire looked at. He took the tire to a "used" tire place that was recommended by a close friend in Acworth. Upon arriving, Ed found out that we needed 2 tires instead of just the one that was flat. Everyone knows that tires are NOT cheap these days, and with needing 2, I was so worried that it would cost us an arm and a leg. But, what are you to do when you rely on that vehicle to transport your family to and fro. However, I was thrilled when Ed called me and told me that they gave us 2 used, but look brand new tires for....get this...$50 TOTAL. That is with labor AND the cost of the tires! I shouted PRAISE THE LORD! I know to some this may not sound like much, but when money is tighter than it has EVER been...this was TRULY God caring for us.

I have to come to relish in the "little" blessings in my life, and most of the time, those "little" blessings turn out to be HUGE!

Timmy's First Grade Year

Well, my boy started 1st grade today! I can not believe that his summer is over. It seems like it just started, and now he returns to school on August 3rd. I think that is the earliest I have ever heard of starting a school year, but Cherokee County gives a week break every 6 weeks or so. He will have a "Fall Break" in September, a week at Thanksgiving, a couple of weeks at Christmas, a "Winter Break" in February, a "spring break" in April and school out by Memorial Day. Whew...that made me tired just writing it.

I know he is my son, but I feel Timmy has matured some over the summer. I KNOW he grew because his jeans are somewhat "high waters" if you know what I mean. Thankfully, he can wear shorts to school until it gets colder, so it will give me an opportunity to get him some jeans/pants before he HAS to wear them.

Last Thursday was the "meet and greet" at his school. Ed had to work that night, and I left Silas with a babysitter so it could just be a "Timmy" night. He was SO excited to meet his teacher and see his classroom. When we got to the school, the parking lot was like a parking lot...there wasn't a single space available. People were parking on the sidewalks, parking at houses up the street and walking...I decided to try my luck at the bus parking lot, and luckily..there was a space available. Once we got into the school, we went to the "wall" to see what classroom he was in and what hallway we needed to take to get there.

We found the hallway and classroom with no problems, and in entered Timmy. I wish I had brought my camera because I have never seen him walk with his shoulders held high and his chest sticking out...too funny. We were introduced to his teacher, Miss Roach, and she showed Timmy where his desk was. He was so excited that he had his very own desk with a shelf to put his supplies and books in. While Miss Roach was going over some basic information with me, Timmy sat down at his desk and was just beaming from ear to ear. After awhile, a little boy came in that was in Timmy's kindergarten class and that just thrilled Timmy to pieces. He didn't think he would know anyone in his class.

After we said goodbye to Miss Roach, Timmy wanted to go see if he could find Miss Parker, his K5 teacher. We found her and he ran in and gave her a big hug! She said, "Timmy, you have grown over the summer, and he said, "Yes I have." She asked him who his teacher was and he said, "Miss Roach...like the bug" I had to laugh quietly to myself because when we were walking to find Mrs. Parker, Timmy was having trouble remembering his teacher's name, so I told him it was Miss Roach like the bug. I had no idea that was how he would tell other people.

Timmy is a car rider, and I wanted to walk with him from the car rider door to his classroom to make sure he knew how to get there. So we walked to the car rider door, turned around and off we went. I started walking beside him, and he turned around and said, you follow me so I can show you where to go. This kid is hilarious. Once again, walking down the long, main hallway to the "blue hallway", he walked with his chest out and shoulders raised. He was so proud of himself. I was very impressed...he found his classroom again with no problems.

Fast Forward to this morning....I woke him at 6:30 and he opened his eyes with a smile on his face and jumped out of bed. (Oh how I wish EVERY morning was like the 1st day of school) He was really excited to get to school, that he kept rushing me to get ready and for us to leave. It was 7:00 and he wanted to walk out the door. They don't even open the car rider line until 7:10, so we were a little early. We got to the school, and IT WAS UNBELIEVABLE. I think every parent was walking there child to class that day. There were like 100 parents in the office when I went in to get Timmy's car rider pass. I ended up walking Timmy to class, and once again, followed him with his chest out and his shoulders raised. He walked straight into the classroom and sat down at his desk. He was so proud to be there. As we were walking to class, he asked me, "Do you think Miss Roach is going to be pretty today?" (She is a VERY beautiful young lady, and he talked about how pretty she was over the weekend) I told him, "Timmy, I am sure she is going to be pretty everyday"

I am hoping that he is excited about going to school for years to come, but I am sure as he gets older, it will be harder and harder to get him ready for school. I will just cherish these young years when school is all the rage. I can't wait to get home from work to get a full report on the 1st day of school in 1st grade!