Austin's Collage

Thanks to Uncle Caleb for this cute collage of Austin...

More Pictures!

Austin is now three weeks old...some days (or nights) it seems like we have had him a lot longer, but we are thankful for each moment we have with him. This was Sunday night, we took advantage of him not wanting to go to bed and snapped some pics.

Bath Time...

This is a picture of Austin's first bath that he didn't cry hysterically. He does look a little annoyed in the picture, but overall I think he is starting to enjoy his baths.

A new friend for Austin...

Congrats to Grace and Brandon on their new little bundle of joy, Elisa! We are so thrilled for you guys and can't wait to meet her at Michelle's wedding! She was born yesterday morning, weighing 7 lbs 15 oz...she is already bigger than Austin...poor boy.

My little sweetie...

So, it has been almost two weeks and I feel like I have been away from the computer forever. I am pretty much a walking zombie right now, I had no idea how very much my life would change with Austin's arrival. I've been told things will settle down and that soon I will actually be bored, but right now I can't even imagine that. However, I LOVE my new little blessing. It is such a wonderful blessing to be a mother and I am trying to cherish each and every moment I have with him. Here are some pictures...none of them are that great, but hopefully I can get some better ones here soon. Introducing Austin Oaks....

Thanksgiving Pictures...

We had the privilege of spending time with both families for Thanksgiving. Nate's family all came down on Wednesday night and spent the actual Thanksgiving day with us, and then my family came for the weekend. We loved hosting everyone at our house, so thanks for coming! We were all hoping that little Austin would join us, but he has yet to make an appearance! As you all can see I am ready to burst!

Personality Quiz...

I saw this quiz on a friend of Rachel's blog and thought I would take it to see what they said about my personality. Interesting.

You Are An ISFJ

The Nurturer You have a strong need to belong, and you very loyal. A good listener, you excell at helping others in practical ways. In your spare time, you enjoy engaging your senses through art, cooking, and music. You find it easy to be devoted to one person, who you do special things for. You would make a good interior designer, chef, or child psychologist.

What's Your Personality Type?

A new little baby!

I got to hold a three day old baby on Friday. Yeah! Unfortunately she wasn't mine, but she was so cute none-the-less. Little Heidi Hobson was born to my friend Elaine on Tuesday evening. CONGRATS to Mark and Elaine! Nate and I are so happy for your new little bundle of joy, she is beautiful!
A little over a week to go for my due date!

Christmas Shopping!!!

Yeah for days off of work for Nate! Yesterday Nate had the day off of work to celebrate V-Day and we started our Christmas shopping. Now I am totally in the Christmas mood and want to start decorating the house...but I guess that is a little soon, eh? I usually don't start shopping until December (and actually think it is weird when people do it so early because they miss out on all the great sales), but since Austin is coming in a couple of weeks we thought we would get a head start on it this year. We got nine presents bought in a span of three hours so we were pretty happy about that. Nate doesn't like to shop for the sake of shopping, so I actually had to buy presents instead of just looking for ideas. So...we have only four more people to buy for plus eachother (which may never get done...just kidding Nate, you'll get a present!). So anyways, we had a great day off together and spent the evening eating yummy Mexican Soup and watching the movie Cars...so romantic! Ha!

Words from a mother...

At my church shower a couple of weeks ago Mona shared her thoughts about being a mother and what she has learned since becoming one. She said, "The thing that strikes me in all this is that all the while you're being a mom you're using words. Words to teach, to show love, to correct, to encourage, to question, to admonish, etc..." She used Proverbs as her text and inserted the word "mother" into these verses.
Proverbs 15:1, "A mother's soft answer turns away wrath, but harsh words stir up strife."
Proverbs 15:28, "The heart of the righteous mother studies how to answer."
Proverbs 15:4, "A mother's wholesome tongue is a tree of life."
Proverbs 15:7, "The lips of the wise mother disperse knowledge."
Proverbs 15:23, "A mother's word spoken in due season, how good it is."
Proverbs 15:11, "A mother's word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in vessels of silver."
Proverbs 16:24, "A mother's pleasant words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the bones."
Proverbs 18:4, "The words of a mother's mouth are deep waters, the well-spring of wisdom, as a flowing brook."
Proverbs 27:19, "Ointment and perfume delight the heart and the sweetness of a mother gives delight by hearty counsel."

May all our words be used as healing ointment and sweet perfume!

Hawaii...

My lucky husband got to spend the afternoon in Oahu, Hawaii last week and these are just some of the pictures he took there. He actually spent the night there, and got an afternoon of snorkeling in before he had to head off somewhere less exotic. Don't we all wish we were there?

Family Picture...

I know Rachel has already posted this picture on her blog, but I thought I would too. Most of my family got together last weekend up in Topeka (minus my brothers) and we had a wonderful, relaxing time. Nate had fun playing with Ethan, and always makes comments to me about how he hopes our little boy is "as good as Ethan"...our little Austin already has a lot to live up to! I learned the card game "golf" (which my parents apparently love), and ended up loosing horribly by the end of the game...but it was still fun. Love you all!

Lawrence Baby Shower...

Last weekend I had my first ever baby shower. Sonja threw it for me up in Lawrence, and it was a great time. I got so much great stuff...lots with airplanes on it! Nate and I have been so blessed by the generosity of others.
This picture shows the little outfit that Mrs. Wilson made for me. SO cute...

This is a picture of Nate's mom, Pat, me and my mom, Laura.

Rachel and I...hum, I look huge...

Since Rachel already announced it on her blog I guess I will do the same. We are naming our little boy Austin Oaks. Oaks is Nate's middle name, for those of you who don't know. Six more weeks until the due date!

Our baby's room....

So, we've been working on our baby's room pretty much since we found out he was a boy. The theme was actually easier with a boy (for us) than it would have been for a girl. I immediately wanted to do an airplane theme and since Nate didn't care one way or another, the decision was made. Here is some of what we have been working on. I had more pictures but had some problems with them, so maybe I will post those later.

This is an upclose view of the blanket and pillow my mom and I made a couple of weeks ago. We used the Pottery Barn sheets set for fabric and added the white chenille fabric to it, and it turned out mighty cute. Plus it is so nice and warm! I can't wait to use it all!

Babies R Us...

So we decided to start the daunting task of registering for our little boy. We went over to Babies R Us on Saturday and filled out all the information that they require. All we could say was HOLY COW, that store is huge and has way too many options! Being first time parents they gave us a list of all that we would need for our baby...how can someone that small need so much? I think we are getting taken. They need to write a book on what you actually do need, because we are the first to admit that we have no idea! Hopefully we made some good choices, but if not, I guess we will learn as we go!

Our Weekend...

We had another busy but great weekend. We had two weddings to go to (one that we semi invited ourselves to, but that's another story!) that ended up being within 30 minutes starting time of eachother. So we went to one wedding ceremony and the reception of the other one. Congrats to Jake and Maria and also to Jim and Alba! We were able to see and spend some time with Jamie and Lynette friends of ours from Colorado. They came out for Jim and Alba's wedding, so that was so fun to see them and to catch up on all the Colorado news. They confirmed that Travis was indeed engaged but don't know when the wedding is going to take place.

Airplane Quilt

This is a quilt Nate and I just received for our little boy. It was made by Nate's mom, aunt, and grandmother. We are decorating the nursery in an airplane theme, so it fits in great. The stars in the fabric around the border actually glow in the dark, so that is pretty neat. Thanks to all three of you!

Congrats to...

MICHELLE AND SCOTT!!! They got engaged on Labor Day, and plan to get married in four short months! Wow! I can't wait to be there for your special day, I know it will be amazing!

Blessings from the Lord...

Nate and I had a wonderful Labor Day weekend with his family. It was a mini family reunion as Anna and Caleb were able to come back home too. The weekend was packed full of activities...just like Nate likes it! Friday night we went water skiing (or Nate and Dave did), Saturday afternoon we went bike riding, and Saturday evening we went to the KU football game. It was my first KU football game, and I would have to say it was pretty exciting. They started a little rocky at first but after that proved they have some potential. It was definitely a weekend to remember and we were blessed by being surrounded by family.

Happy Labor Day!

HAPPY LABOR DAY! I hope you all have a wonderful, relaxing labor-free day!

My Find...

I just found this song that I love on iTunes, by Jaime Jamgochian. I have never heard of her before, but she was one of my recommended singers (based on other songs I have purchased). Here are the words to one of her songs...check her out!

Here, as I worship You
I long to be more honest
Long to be more free

I, long to be more real
Long to be transparent
As you see my true intentions

Beyond this bended Knee
Beyond the words I speak
Beyond the songs I sing
Hear My Worship
All that my heart can bring
This is my offering
Jesus my Holy King
Hear my worship
Hear my worship

I long to have more faith
I long to be more faithful
Here before Your throne

I wait to see Your face
Awaiting in your presence
Waiting just for you to hear me

Our little boy....

This week marks the last week of my second trimester. It is hard to believe that my pregnancy is already almost two-thirds done! Although I would have to say I thought the first trimester would never end, this second one has flown by. Our little boy is now almost two pounds and about 14 inches long! I can't wait to see what he is going to look like! He already seems to have Nate's gymnastic abilities, as he likes to move around constantly...! For all of you guys who keep asking his name, no we haven't started telling people yet, but hopefully we will make up our mind soon!

Going Back Home...

Two weekends ago I got to go home for the weekend, and by home I mean my parent's house. Even though I have been married now three years for some reason I still consider Edmond my home town. Is that normal? Maybe it is just the comfort level of being at home, who knows. I suppose as I start my own family soon I will draw more roots here.
Anyways, my visit was fun. I had a lot of great "girl time" with my friends Robin and Autumn. The picture shown is of Autumn and I at breakfast Saturday morning. Yeah for yummy Mimis! I also got a badly needed haircut that weekend, so I no longer have the semi-long hair as seen in the picture. I got it chopped to just below chin length, and also low-lighted quite a bit darker than normal. It is quite a change...but I like change and like I said, it was needed!

Nate and I just arrived home from Saint Louis today. We were there for almost a week, and although we were there for business we managed to have some fun too. On Monday we were able to see Eryn and her beautiful family, and on Tuesday we got to go to a Cardinal's game (and let me just say...the new stadium is awesome!) Other than that the week was filled with meetings, tours, and mandatory socials. It was wonderful to be together though and a great break from the everyday life here in Kansas. I hope everyone else's week was just as eventful!

Rachel and Gaya's Wedding

On August 5th Rachel and Gaya got married here in Wichita, and these are just a few pictures that were taken. The wedding was so much fun and Rachel looked absolutely beautiful. Congratulations to the Aponso's, we can't wait to see what the Lord has for your future together!

Pictures from our lake weekend!

These are pictures from our weekend at Keystone Lake. It was such a great weekend and we have many good memories from it. The guys were on the boat pretty much the whole day, except for when we started pulling out lunch, so we didn't get many pictures of them (notice Nate has food in his hand!). Thanks to Grace for the pics! (I did see her last weekend and her sunburn is much better!)

Favorite Photos

This picture was taken at our house on my birthday. It's Nate and I and Rachel and Dave. You can see my expanding stomach which believe me has gotten even bigger since then!

This is one of my favorite photos of my family. It was taken last Christmas, and since we are so rarely all together at the same time, that is the latest one I have of us all.

A Recap!

So, our weekend was great. We got our much needed "lake time" in, and Nate even got some skiing in to. I didn't get to ski of course because that is against the rules, but it was fun just being out there. Poor Grace got burned very bad on her feet and legs, but other than that there were no major mishaps. I don't have pictures yet, but hopefully I will get some soon and post them.

It's Finally Friday!

Yeah! Friday is finally here! Nate and I are so excited...it is almost the weekend and we get to spend it out on the lake with our friends. Lake weekends are always the best. Hopefully I will get some good pictures of Nate skiing and will post them next week. Have a great weekend everyone!

This is a picture of Nate and I on my birthday last week. Happy 26th to me!

Thank Goodness for AC!

So, the air conditioning re-pair man didn't come until 8:30 last night. Which wasn't really in the 5 hour time frame he gave me, but by that time I didn't really care. Our house got up to 93 degrees which no person should have to live in, much less a pregnant woman. The guy wanted to post-pone me until today, but as soon as he heard how hot our house was he changed his mind, thank goodness. Needless to say, it took several hours to cool the house back down, meanwhile my lovely husband kept reminding me that some people don't ever have air conditioning. Thank goodness it was only a day.

One Hot Mama!

So, my blog title is one hot mama, and boy do I mean that literally. It is approximately 106 outside today, and you guessed it, our air conditioning just broke. Just my luck. I am now currently waiting on the air conditioning re-pair man, who should be here within the next five hours. Hum...So I am sitting in front of a little fan trying to keep cool on my own dreaming about how nice it would be to run to Sonic and get a cold drink. My what a wonderful July day.