Writing

So, apparently, pregnancy and blogging do not work well for me. I wonder if anyone even follows my blog anymore...probably not. But, it gives me an outlet to begin working on something that Sean and God have been on me about for quite some time - writing.

Throughout middle school and high school, I had several pen pals (some of whom I am still friends with today...none of whom I have ever met). I was always known by the notes of encouragement I would pass out to people at church. I would write notes to friends when we went on vacation and even started a story, which was never fully completed. People always saw me with a pen and paper nearby. Six years ago, I graduated from college with a degree in literary studies with the full intention of writing "some day." I figured it would be the perfect career to have while being a stay-at-home mommy and raising a family, not to mention the fact that I really enjoy writing.

Well, it seems that "someday" may have arrived. Perhaps the reason I have neglected my blog so much is because I am ignoring the nudging God is doing in my spirit. Within the last two weeks, I have received a couple of words at church about writing and fulfilling my calling. Then, this weekend, I went to see the movie, "Julie & Julia" with a girlfriend of mine. While the main focus of this movie is about cooking, there is an underlying theme about writing, and it was even more fire under me.

I honestly don't know what I'm going to write about or where to start. Sean and I have a few ideas for children's books that we have been tossing around so maybe I'll start there. How to get published or who to contact....that kind of thing is what I am clueless about so if you have any suggestions or contacts, please let me know.

I'll keep you posted on what evolves from this journey. In the meantime, I could use all of the prayers, encouragement and support as I embark on this endeavor that cannot be ignored.

Still Here

Yep, it's been another month since I last checked in. While the nausea and vomiting are gone here at 19 weeks into the pregnancy, I am still about 2 months behind from all the time I WAS sick. My house shows for it too so fear not, blog friends, you are not the only ones suffering. LOL Because I know you just anticipate my new blogs with such excitement that to not have something new from me must be devestating. Ha!

Nathan has finished his t-ball season. We are having an end-of-year picnic at a splash park this Thursday to celebrate. These boys were just learning the basics of baseball, and they learned a lot in a few months. It was amazing to see them at their first practice and then at their last game - big difference! Nathan's goal for the season was to hit the ball all the way out to the grass (outfield), and he did that on his last game. Each boy got a trophy at the end, and you would have thought that someone had hand-picked one just for Nathan. He is so proud!

Both boys are growing like weeds. It is hard to believe that I will have a 3 year old and a 5 year old by the end of the year! They aren't "babies" anymore....but at least I'll have a new baby to keep me feeling younger.

While both boys are definitely growing, Elijah is the one who is huge. He inherited the Lingenfelter side's big bones (which skipped Sean). He is STOUT...oh, which, by the way, is what his middle name (Cade) means (we didn't know this when we named him but how appropriate). He is solid. He is just a few inches shorter than Nathan, but I think they are only 1-2 lbs. different in weight. When you pick them up, Elijah feels much heavier!

Speaking of Eljah...our passive baby has turned into a fiesty, defiant 2 year old. We are working on breaking his strong will - which wears me out often. The good news is that he is fully potty trained!!! He just mastered night-time and naptime training. Gone are the days of diapers and Pull-Ups for him. I am just happy that I will only have 1 kid in diapers this fall, not 2. Wahoo!

Sean is still looking for a permenant job, but in the meantime, he is working for my dad and brother. It gets a little overwhelming and stressful at times when you start thinking about the whole ordeal. He has a tendancy to get a bit depressed sometimes. But, we are continuing to trust God and know that He will be faithful to provide for our every need, however that may be.

Sean and I celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary this past Friday. My parents watched the boys overnight (Elijah's first time) while Sean and I stayed at the hotel where our wedding reception was held - Embassy Suites. We had dinner at a Japenese restaurant downtown that we like called Kenichi. It was great, as always. We walked through Victory Park and saw the Channel 8 news anchors preparing for the evening news. :) On Saturday, we had a late breakfast at the hotel and then went to the dollar theater for a movie before picking up the boys. Once we picke them up and were settled, we headed to Grapevine Mills Mall to look around AND have dinner at Rainforest Cafe. The night Sean and I were engaged, we had dinner at Rainforest Cafe. So, ever since Nathan was born, we have taken him there to celebrate our anniversary. The boys had a blast. Elijah was scared last year, but he LOVED it this year. He just didn't want to get too close to those moving elephants. LOL Overall, we had a fabulous weekend! I am so blessed to be married to such a wonderful man for a decade now. I am praying that we have many, many more to come. In the meantime, we will enjoy every day that we have together.

I know I am behind on photos, but I am hoping to catch up on those these week too. So, hopefully, I'll have a bunch of catch-up photos to post within the next few days. In the meantime, I hope everyone has a wonderful day! I'll check in soon.

T-ball Pics

"Outta my face, boy! I'm on the base!!!"

Coach Sean and Nate

Sean gets to help everyone bat!

Our little ball player running to base.

Go, Nathan, go!

We are very proud of our little man, and he is having a blast playing. If you want to check out a game, let us know and we'll get you the info.

Baby Caylin

Here are some pictures of our new niece, Caylin Dakota. Our boys are absolutely smitten by her so I hope that is a good sign of things to come this fall when their new brother or sister arrives.

I have some more pictures from our visit the week after she was born. I have yet to upload them yet. Oh, and that is new daddy, Andrew, with Nathan. :)

Keep Praising

This is a devotional I wrote for my MOPS newsletter, and I wanted to share it with all my blog-readers as well.
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“Life is full of unexpected surprises” - we have all heard that phrase before, and I dare say that most of us have experienced our fair share of “unexpected surprises.” I am sure that several life experiences have already come to mind. How we deal with these unexpected surprises is up to us. We basically have two choices: we can allow the burdens of this world to pull us down into deep despair, or we can praise God for His hand and will in our lives and trust Him to see us through. While the choice seems simple enough, carrying it out is something much more difficult.

In Psalm 34:1, the Psalmist says, I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth. (NKJV) Perhaps, if we each got a handle of the depth of this Scripture, handling life’s difficulties would be so much easier. To be able to praise God continually – even through the hardest trails of life – would allow us to experience so much less stress and even draw us into a deeper relationship with our Lord Jesus.

Like most of you, life has thrown me some pretty unpleasant “surprises.” Back in 2004, Sean lost his job, and I conceived our first child within the same week! For the first seven months of my pregnancy, Sean was unemployed. This should have rattled me to the core, but instead, I had a peace inside that I simply cannot explain (even now). I continued to keep praising God and putting my faith in Him to deliver us. Although the wait seemed to take forever, He finally did pull us out and provided for us in ways beyond our imagination.

I think my biggest “surprise” came last fall when we started trying to conceive. This had never been a problem for Sean and me. Nathan was conceived shortly after I got off birth control, and Elijah’s arrival was a bit of a surprise. J So, when we decided to start trying for number three, I never imagined it would take seven months! Every month when my cycle arrived, I would cry tears of disappointment. I wondered why God would not answer our prayers…especially when our four year old was praying fervently for a new baby. What kind of God ignores the prayers of a four year old child?! I really struggled with my faith during this time; I struggled with seeing God’s blessing in this area of my life. Of course, my past struggles with the uterine infection (following Elijah’s birth) just played into my fears of never conceiving again. Finally, my pastor told us just to relax and leave it up to God. He prayed over us one Sunday, and then told us to forget about it and let God do as He had planned. It was then that I refocused and began praising God for everything in my life – everything He had given me, everything He had done and was going to do. Sure enough, I got pregnant the next month.

The Word tells us that God inhabits the praises of His people. When we praise Him, He allows His blessings to flow in our lives. As you face life’s “unexpected surprises,” may His praise continually be in your mouth. Praise the Lord!

Still Alive

Yes, I am still alive. And yes, I know it has been a while since I have updated. The reason behind this is due to what I posted 2 posts ago - the baby! I have battled SEVERE nausea and vomiting with the pregnancy for the past 4-5 weeks. Luckily, I am entering my 2nd trimester, and the doctor says that should be ending soon. For info on more of that...check out the baby's blog. :)

Our new niece arrived on April 7th. Caylin Dakota arrived at 3:48 p.m. weighing 7 lbs. 7 oz. at 20.5 inches. She is a tiny little thing, but so beautiful. Per her parents' permission, I will try to upload and post some pics of her soon.

We had a beautiful Easter. We celebrated the resurrection of Jesus at church that morning with our church family. Afterwards, we went over to Sean's mom's house for an Easter lunch and egg hunt - even though it was wet and muddy. (Thank goodness for patios.) I have some photos from the special day that I am going to upload in a bit and hopefully, I can post those soon. (I'm making no promises as to when!)

Nathan is busy playing t-ball this spring, and Sean is busy coaching. It's quite humorous at their games. Instead of catching the ball and throwing it to the appropriate location, they are busy fighting over who got the ball. (Think football more than t-ball.) Kicking the dirt and playing in the grass are popular occurences as well. Luckily, most of our boys have learned to hit the ball off the tee...that's a big improvement! I should have some photos to post of this fun endeavor also. We are looking forward to this Friday when we get to go to the Rough Riders' baseball game with our whole team! (Rough Riders are our minor league team.)

Perhaps the biggest disappointment this month arrived on April Fool's. Unforunately, the news we received was not a joke. Sean was laid off from his job. So, he has been desperately looking for a new job. Every time I have gotten pregnant, though, he has changed jobs and always gotten something better. So, when I found out I was pregnant this time, I jokingly asked him if he was ready for a new job. Little did I know how prophetic that statement would be! He has had some very promising interviews so we are holding out hope on those. But, we know that our provision comes from God so we put our faith in Him to see what He has in store for our family!

Oh, and Sean took his professional engineering test this past Friday. It was an 8 hour exam. We will find out around July if he is "officially" a professional engineer. :)

That's about it. I will try to get some photos up soon because if you're like me, that's the most exciting part about blogs. :) Until then...Blessings on each of you!

Take Me Out to the Ball Game

I have been trying to get this video to upload for weeks, and it finally worked today! Wahoo! This is Nathan singing "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" and then some song about Leonardo, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle, that he made up.