7 years!!

Today Mark and I celebrate 7 years of marriage. I CANNOT believe how fast time flies! Aaron woke us up this morning to say "Happy Anniversary!" It was so sweet, even though he didn't really understand what it meant. God has grown Mark and I both as we strive to serve him together. I am so thankful for a man who loves God and is constantly seeking Him no matter where that takes him or us. We are enjoying His blessings so much during this part of our lives and pray that we always remember to bless others. I love my husband so much and can't wait for what the next 7 years has in store for us!!!

Christmas is coming!!!!

Mark is back from Africa. He had a great trip. He was blessed by those who were helped and was able to give to so many. It was tough for us at home, especially since it was over Thanksgiving, but I know this is something that he will remember forever and we were able to be with TONS of family while he was gone so it worked out great. We spent the week in Kentucky and had a great time! Thanks Baba, Jenny, Mom, Dad, and Rachel for helping out SO MUCH! We picked Mark up in Nashville Sunday night very late and haven't slowed down since. I have training for work this week for 2 days and have to work a shift on top of that, Mark is busy catching up at work, upward basketball starts very soon, and I have little to NO shopping done for Christmas...ugh! But....oh well...busy is good. Also...

I am REALLY getting excited about Christmas! I think Aaron is going to be like his Mama when it comes to holiday cheer. We set up our Christmas tree last night, which he LOVED helping with, and he has told me no less than 100 times this morning, "I like our Christmas tree mama!" He also sat on Santa's lap this past weekend It went well...no crying...just VERY serious face the whole time. I guess Santa encounters are very serious to him. He even told him he wanted a train for Christmas. I had no idea that's what he wanted. He always tells me he doesn't know what he wants when we ask him. As soon as the jolly man in the red suit asks, he says he wants a train without hesitation. So now I am on the look out for a cool train.

Happy Halloween 2011

a real pro at trick-or-treating this year

all ready to go

Luke and Aaron

(neither wanted their picture taken)

forced to put his hood on...

note the holding down of the arms by mark

This year we went to the Muse household for trick-or-treating. Our neighborhood isn't exactly made for trick-or-treating...so they were gracious to let us use theirs. It was really fun and Aaron hasn't stopped talking about going trick-or-treating since. He even included that in our prayer tonite at dinner, very thankful to God for letting us go trick-or-treating. I was able to snap a few pictures although it's difficult when your child won't stand still long enough for a good picture or put his hood up on his costume...so I took what I could get. enjoy!

Peru 2011

Well I'm back! I had a blast. After a VERY long stretch of flights, I arrived (and Jeannie too) in Arequipa about 2pm on Friday. Megan had lunch ready and we spent some time playing with the girls, catching up, and resting. The kiddos are adorable and fun! All three have such different personalities(Cohen's still being developed of course). Megan was awesome to show us around the city and give us some really fun Peru experiences....like smashing all 6 of us in a very tiny taxi, visiting the Llama place, dropping Ana off at her school, going to the market, worshiping in Porvenir with the church, and so much more. It was great to get to know Jeannie better, and deepen my friendship with Megan. I will never forget the girl talks/laughs, frappachinos, homemade cookies, and Gilmore Girls marathon every night. It was one of the best trips I have taken. I am so thankful for this opportunity and thankful to God for keeping me safe and bringing me back home to my family! The work in Arequipa is being blessed immensely by God and I pray that continues! It's good to be home with my family...Aaron seems to have changed just in the week I was gone. Mark gets the dad of the year award and my I am permanently indebted to my in-laws ( and everyone else in Melber) for helping out so much. Here are some pictures!!!

Leaving...on a jet plane!

Tomorrow afternoon I will get on a plane by myself (yes you read that right) and make the long journey to Arequipa, Peru. One of my best friends, Megan (and her family) lives there and will be husband-less for a few weeks. So I am headed down for a visit! My excitement almost can't be contained. It's been a long time since I have taken a trip by myself (like almost 7 years). I never imagined I would be able to take a trip like this having a young kiddo...so I will enjoy EVERY minute of it. Of course, for those of you who are thinking..."how can she leave her child?" Believe me, this is not going to be easy. He is so much of my world right now that it's hard to imagine walking away from him and Mark tomorrow afternoon to get on a plane. But something that Mark and I committed to before we had children is that having a child cannot and will not be the only thing that defines us. Right now, the mommy role that I fill takes up the biggest part of my life, and it should. I love it and wouldn't change a thing. It is my biggest ministry right now and I am proud to be blessed by God for that responsibility. Same with being a wife and a nurse. However, those roles should not always limit what I am able to do when opportunities (like this one) come up. Will it be hard to leave, oh yea, there will be many tears. But none the less, something that I believe will be good for all three of us! Sometimes mommies and wives need time away....daddies and little boys too! Granted, not all need to fly to Peru to do that...but you get the idea. A time for me to be a girl that giggles with friends and has time to herself that doesn't involve a 2 year old yelling "mommy!" pulling on my leg, or thinking about what to cook for dinner for several nights in a row, or making sure the laundry is done so Mark has a shirt to wear to work the next day. The break will be welcomed. But I will miss them both terribly! For the first time in over 2 years "mommy" will not be at the forefront of my mind....what will that feel like?

I cannot, repeat, CANNOT believe that I have been given this opportunity. I feel so blessed and grateful beyond measure to several people who are making this possible. Of course Mark is taking on double duty of mommy and daddy while I'm gone, a job I know will not be easy. I love and appreciate him for taking this on! Another big thank you to Papa and Gigi for keeping Aaron most of next week while Mark goes out of town on a business trip! I know you will enjoy your time with my sweet boy, but you will also be WORN OUT! He's a never ending ball of energy. He is so excited to come stay with you all that he probably won't even know I'm gone! I know my mom and dad will be with him every second they can too! There are a few others (you know who you are) that literally made my trip possible. I would not be going with out you. So from the bottom of my heart...THANK YOU!!!! I will enjoy every minute of it and praise God for the opportunity. So...off I go!!! Lots of prayers would be appreciated!

Big Boy!

Tonite we went to the park for a while. Aaron LOVES to slide and also perfecting his ability to climb. Enjoy the pictures!

Recent happenings

I thought since I have been a slacker on the blog lately I would just give an update about what is happening with the Adams! Things have been relatively busy around here. I think it's pretty safe to say that we have a big boy on our hands instead of a baby. It's not something that I admit happily because I would LOVE for him to stay little forever! Actually I think I want him to stay the age he is right now forever. He is so fun and hilarious to be with. Mark and I tell each other all the time things that he says and just crack up laughing. We will be moving him to a big boy bed soon. It makes me sad, but I know he's ready. This big boy is growing up faster than I am ready for...I think it will always be this way huh? He is pretty much totally potty trained...with some accidents here and there. I am constantly amazed at how much he can pick up and then repeat at just the right time. My favorite thing right now is that he is picking up things we are teaching him about God/Jesus. He pays close attention in worship and is starting to tell us what is happening. Sunday during the Lord's Supper we were talking about eating with Jesus like we normally do and he said, "mom, do you eat with Jesus too!?" He is also very interested in reading his kids bible we bought him when he was just a baby. Yesterday, impromptu he told me that 'that man, and that lady hid from God in the trees," and then followed up by telling me about Noah and the 'big ark boat' and all the animals. He comes home almost every Sunday/Wednesday singing a new song (that we don't know) about God that he learned in bible class. I love it! Aaron still wants to cuddle in the mornings and evenings...which I take full advantage of all the time. I know there will come a day when that will not be the case.

We are slowly adding furniture to the house as we find it. It's coming together nicely. Still need a guest bed though. Mattress on the floor is the current arrangement for guests. Our roof has been replaced this week...thank you hail for enough damage that insurance paid for it!

I will be leaving for Peru in a few weeks. I will be gone for 1 week. It will be the first time that I will be away from Aaron for more than a few days. I am SO excited to go, but getting more and more nervous as the time approaches. Mark is VERY capable of taking care of Aaron, but there's just something about leaving for that long and so far away that is getting to this mama. The trip is going to be awesome. I love to travel and absolutely LOVE the company I will be with. I will miss both my boys terribly!

That's a long enough post for now. More later. I'll include some random pictures of the little..I mean big boy for your enjoyment!

Aaron (2) and Cole (7mo)

Eli and Aaron with O'Pa

Aaron's big boy bed at Gigi and Papa's

(thanks Gigi!)

A boy and his Papa in their overalls!

Weekend visitors

It's been TOO long since we have spent time with Josh, Lori, Weston and Taylor Willeford! So...we made a plan with them to come visit this weekend. We really loved the visit. We all agreed that we MUST do this more often. Our kids are the age now where they can really play well together. We ate dinner friday night and then went on a short hike on Sat morning, followed by the kids playing on the swing set and in Aaron's little pool (it was horrible hot!). Talking and laughing were abundant. Couldn't have had a better time! Here are some pictures of our cuties!

Saturday fun!

Today was a GREAT family day. I really liked just spending time with Mark and Aaron around the house. We didn't accomplish a whole lot, but did get a few things done. The most important was FINALLY getting my china cabinet in place and my china put up. It's been almost 7 years since I have seen my china and had pretty much forgotten what it looked like. Even though my husband wants to fight about it's worthiness, I LOVE it! So pretty and regardless what he says...I will use it! Can you tell it's an issue??? Ra Ra came for a visit today too! Aaron had called her no less than 5 times in the past 2 days to ask for her to come 'paint with him.' So guess what they did tonite after dinner? The Muse family (minus Madeline) came over too so Maddox, or 'Maggik" if you are Aaron, got to paint too! Aaron and Maddox play so well together. Maddox didn't want to leave tonite and was totally fine when Greg and Andrea said they were leaving and he was staying for the night. Some day Maddox, some day! Good day today! Tomorrow going to worship with my church family and small group in the evening...it's gonna be great!

Raich, Andrea, Aaron and Maddox starting to paint

Masterpiece

(he got just as much paint on is body as on the canvas)

The boys playing on Ra Ra's Ipad - it was a hit!

New china cabinet - it was my moms

another view - sorry it's so dar

Thanks to Ed who came over to help!

getting the cabinet out of the trailer

Nine Day Trail Ride 2011

We are now back from the annual Nine Day Trail Ride. This year was awesome...although it ended pretty stressful. We had a great time. Aaron stayed from Sunday-Thurs. night. Gigi was so helpful to keep him the other nights/days so that we could ride longer and give us a break. I think he liked being with her just as much. He got to go to his first movie "The Smurfs." Jenny said he wore his 3-D glasses through the whole movie, even fell asleep with them on! He still hasn't stopped talking about it. Plus Lauren and Alex Smith were there (teen girls from church). They are so much fun for him to cart up and down the stairs to get him toys. So, Aaron got the award for the 'trail rider who had the most fun.' He did so great and slept better than he does at home I think. I'm sure it was because he got to sleep in his 'trail ride bed.' Who wouldn't?!?! His riding stamina was so much better than last year and seems to LOVE horses now more than ever. Of course he would only ride with his Papa or his Daddy. Super sweet, but sad too because I asked several times to ride with me...ha! Friday morning we loaded up horses in the trailer and went over the Garden of the Gods to ride for the day. Everything went great....until Mark and Jerry, who left us to ride back to the trailer, got stuck in a thunder storm and both got struck by lightening! I know....CRAZY! Mark was just fine, although he felt it a little. Jerry got the brunt of the strike and is in the hospital in Paducah with an irregular heart beat and a pneumothorax (hole in his lung.) He is stable and looks like he will be fine, but very sore because the electric field he was in made him pass out for a few seconds and fall off his horse on his left side. He severely bruised some ribs and has cuts/bruising all over his left side. God has taken care of him and we are so thankful that he was not hurt more than he was and it looks like he will recover fully after a lot of rest and healing time. If we can only keep him off his feet during that time...it's gonna be hard! So there's the short version of the story..you'll have to call for the long version if you dare. It's a tear jerker! I included a few pictures of our adventures...more on facebook!

At the Rock House/Swimming Hole

Didn't miss a ride for anything...even nap time!

Trail Ride boy

Loves Papa

Adams Family 2011

Follow up pictures

Here are some pictures that I wanted to put with the last post about our busy summer.

Reading with daddy (I love this picture)

Swimming by him'felf'

always wants to help

awesome form!

We've been busy!

So...we've been VERY busy the past few weeks. Mark has been out of town for work a lot over the past month and has plans to leave again over the next few weeks. Since I am not a good 'stay by myself person', I have been finding different places to go close to home to stay. In between trips, we have been working more and more on the house trying to get some smaller jobs completed. All the rooms are now painted (minus closets) and Mark has almost all the outlets/plugs changed out. The biggest projects left are lighting and base boards. Furniture and accessories are just going to come along the way as we find the quality pieces that we will keep forever AND that are decent deals. Next week, while Mark is out of town, we will just stay in T-town because I have to work and also prayer group on two different days which makes it difficult to go out of town. Over the weekend, we are going to Kentucky for the weekend and then I will drop Mark back off at the airport on the way home for ANOTHER business trip. I will probably go to Rachel's for the week after that to help her paint in her apartment (I have been promising all summer). Then it's home for a few days and then it's off to the Trail Ride. It will be a whirlwind I'm sure. Yesterday Aaron has his 2 year check up (a few weeks late). He did great with Dr. Bard and nurse Vicky. I told him that if he did what Dr. Bard and Ms. Vicky said without being ugly or whiny he would get a 'special treat' when we were done. He did GREAT and was sure to tell everyone there that he was going to get a special treat when we left. Hopefully they didn't think I was too horrible of a mom...especially since it worked like a charm. He was in perfect "Aaron form" and showed his mad skills of naming animals, singing his songs, showing his body parts, and many other things. That about sums things up for now. No pictures because our computer is not working. I ordered a new power cord which hopefully will fix the problem. For now, we are using a lap top from Mark's work that doesn't have the ability to accept our camera chip. So you'll have to use your imagination until we can get the computer back up and running. Have a great weekend!

Fun with cousins!

Well....Mark had to go out of town....AGAIN! This time, we decided to go to see Matt and Lori for a few days. We have had a blast. Aaron and Eli are playing non-stop together and LOVING every single second of it. Here are some pictures for your enjoyment!

More swimming pictures

I know...I'll stop with the swimming pictures soon. We have spent the week with Ra Ra. She has a pool at her apartment complex. We had a great time. One of the highlights for Aaron was the swimming! He is starting to ask to swim by him'fulf.' Quite an independent little thing.

His version of doing it by him'fulf'

"There's RaRa, Mom!"

"1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10....booster!"

(he decided to mix in VBS songs with his swimming)

Little swimmer

Aaron has decided very recently that he likes to swim. The night before we left for Kentucky we were at a friends surprise party which was also a pool party (mostly for the kids who came). I didn't bring swimsuits for us because Aaron never wants to swim when given the opportunity and doesn't like to be in a crowd of noisy kids...so I thought the combination of noisy, wet, and swimming wouldn't mix well. I just figured he could play with other toys. Of course I was WRONG! He begged, pleaded, and finally resorted to just staring through the iron fence real pitful like at the other kids swimming. Mark finally borrowed some shorts from our friend and a swim diaper for Aaron. He was a little apprehensive when he first got in but before we knew it he was jumping off the side to Mark. UNBELIEVABLE! I mean seriously my son normally HATES to have his hair and face wet. I guess being 2 years old allows you to change your likes and dislikes quickly. So yesterday when we told Aaron we were going to Kentucky (for Kelsy's wedding - which was beautiful by the way) he asked to swim in Gigi's pool. Of course he did! He is now OBSESSED with getting in the float for little kids and kicking his little legs as hard as they will go until he is forced to get out. It's the sweetest thing I've ever seen. Gigi even let him swim right after church this morning before lunch. When I saw him at lunch he was sure to tell me that he got on the diving board and "jumped' to his Papa (aka - Gigi let him down easy into the water where Papa was waiting). Cutest kid EVER!

PBS!

We just got done with a week of VBS...or PBS as Aaron calls it. He wasn't a fan of the bible class portion of VBS but couldn't get enough of the singing at the beginning and end in the auditorium. He even got to sit with his own class like he was big or something. It's crazy to think of him as a little boy doing real little boy things, like sitting with his 'class' at VBS. I can't hardly stand it. His new favorite song is the 'Hippo' song. I bet we sing it no less than 100 times a day and I catch him singing it to himself while playing alone. We really enjoyed going this week. Here's a shout out to those who did SO much to make this week successful. Especially Andrea Abrahams and Corynn Moyers...you girls rocked!!!

Happy 2 years!!!

I seriously cannot believe Aaron is TWO years old. I put a one year picture on here to show how much he's grown!

One year

Two years old

Here is what he is up to these days...

-Blonde hair is still very much abundant. Baba calls you 'toe head.' and 'cotton top.'

-Pretty much Type A personality. Very entertaining, dramatic, and loves to interact with pretty much anyone...unless they 'scare' him...then it's a dramatic getaway at any cost.

-TALKING non-stop. This child never stops talking. Pretty much full sentences now...and adds to his vocabulary every hour it seems. Cute sayings: "Over here," "over dere", "right dere," "uh-mon guys," "scared dat man, mom."

-he is very observant and is listening to EVERYTHING we say. He is repeating things that we didn't know he had ever heard or been taught. "oh be careful little mouth what you say" is becoming a VERY popular saying in our house these days.

-doing things himself. "no mama, felf." He is becoming very independent these days, but still wants to 'hold you,' frequently.

-he is VERY snuggly. Loves to sit and snuggle with his mama every morning after breakfast. I'm sure this won't last too much longer so I am cherishing every time he asks.

-He loves to be outside (that hasn't changed since birth). Favorite things are mowing on the 'big mower' with daddy and playing basketball and baseball with his daddy. He can hit the ball when we pitch it to him...GIFTED!

-"big tower Mama." Legos is his favorite inside activity. Never stops building towers.

-He is NOT a meat eater. PBJ's are a staple. Is still a great eater, just no meat. Except for chicken of course...which he gets from the Phillips side of the family.

-His understanding/comprehension is unbelieveable. Very smart and catches onto things quickly.

-He knows his ABC's and can count to 10.

-Still loves to sing and dance. Favorite songs are "Old MacDonald", "Jesus Loves the Little Children", and "Banjo on my Knee." "If you're happy and you know it," "ABC's," and the newest one is "Happy Birthday."

-Still loves horses and asks to ride all the time.

-Favorite people (other than Mark and I) are still his Papa and RaRa. His O'Pa is rising in the ranks though.

-Loves going to bible class with Ms. Yinya (Linda). Always comes out and tells us very enthusiastically that "Jesus is alive!" I'm sure they don't learn the exact same lesson every Sunday, but I guess that one stuck.

-This child LOVES babies! He will hold a baby until you take it away from him. The entire time he is taking in a high pitched voice and kissing the baby on its head. It's pretty cute.

-He is starting to pay attention to more detail to things. He is picky about which way the blocks are facing as he stacks them and does not hesitate to correct whoever is playing with him as to which way the blocks should be facing. It will be interesting to see how much more this will develop.

Aaron, your daddy and I love you so much. We have loved watching you grow for the past 2 years and are so excited for what God has planned for you as you grow into a young man. Your tender heart and loving nature are such a blessing to us and others. We cherish every little smile, giggle, hug, and kiss from you. You bring us so much joy!