Luciana "light" Elisabeth "pledged to God"

This has been the BEST week ever! We are so very thankful that Luciana is finally here with us! We have sooooo enjoyed getting to know her these past 7 days. She is absolutely PRECIOUS!!! We can't get enough!

Luci's arrival was a bit unexpected ;) Well...I say that because we had just scheduled to be induced Friday the 11th. We had come to the realization that little Luci had to be pretty comfy and may need some assistance with her arrival. When I got home from school on Monday I felt a little funny (but don't most at 39 weeks?) and went about my normal routine. When Chad got home from work I told him that I thought "something" may happen. We laughed because we both thought it was wishful thinking. Later that night, after the Bachelor of course, I realized that my water may have broken. As we got ready for bed that evening we realized that I was not just "feeling funny" but that I might actually be in labor!! Yahoo! We took our time getting ready, said goodbye to our pup and left for the hospital.

Peyton knew something was up :)

We arrived at the hospital at midnight. We were admitted and were told that my water had in fact broken!! (I was nervous that we would be sent back home...nope, we were going to leave with our BABY!)

When the doctor on call came to check on me he said that I was way too "chipper" to be in labor so he sent us for a walk. We walked from 12 - 12:30 and during that time my contractions were 3 minutes apart! OUCh!!! The anesthesiologist had just started a c-section so they had to get in contact of the doctor on call. This process took us until 3 in the morning! 2 1/2 hours of contractions 2 minutes apart. ahhhh!

As soon as I got my epidural life was GOOD!

I was able to dilate on my own and by noon on Tuesday was ready to push! I pushed for a little over an hour and by 1:06 Luciana Elisabeth blessed us with her presence. It was so enjoyable....our delivery could not have gone any better. We enjoyed the entire process.

We lucked out when we got Niki as our nurse! She was AmAzInG! She made our experience so enjoyable and we are so thankful she was with us!

Now that's a proud Papa! Love you Chad!!

Luciana came into this world three years to the day my grandmother Viola Lucille went to Heaven. My grandma and I had a very special relationship so it makes February 8th just that much more meaningful. (picture from Christmas 2007)

It is our prayer that Luciana will be a "light" to those around her. Thank you God for our precious baby girl!

p.s. More updates to come! We have LOTS of picture to share!

We have been keeping busy as usual so time is flying by. We are anticipating the arrival of our sweet girl any day now. Next post will most likely be with the news that she is here! We can't wait!

TU Girls' Weekend

I have so many fun memories of my time spent at Taylor. I am thankful that I was able to spend two years there...I met great friends and my hubby too! It has been close to five years since us girls have spent time together. With three babies on the way we decided it was time to make it happen. We gathered in Chi Town for a girls' weekend. Thank you for having us Kacey (we missed you Chels). It was a great weekend spent talking, shopping and relaxing. We hope to have more TU get togethers in the future!

The girls back in 2002!

8 years later....5 marriages, 2 babies and 3 more on the way!

Sweet Fallon Jo

Thank you for a wonderful weekend!

34 Week Ultrasound

Last night we got a call from our doctor informing us that the bright spot on Baby C's heart is just a calcium deposit on the papillary muscle and is not a concern. This is great news!!

Baby C is now weighing in at just over 5 lbs. She looks pretty scrunched in there...Less than 6 weeks to go!

Christmas Catch Up!

I found myself spending a lot of time reflecting this Christmas season. There are SO many things I am so thankful for. I am thankful for my marriage, my family, our health and I am so very thankful for our little girl. I get overwhelmed thinking about how lucky we are to have her and that in a few weeks she will be here. It is truly a dream come true.

As I look back at this time last year we were grieving. We were angry, sad and simply hurting. Many people told us at that time that next year would be different for us.... we would have a baby or be pregnant. While we wanted to believe what they said we always knew it could be wishful thinking.

This Christmas was so much different for us. God used our trials to bring us closer to Him and to each other. We are looking forward to 2011 and changes it will bring to our family.

Isaiah 9:6
For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

We had a wonderful Christmas spent with family and friends. Lots of rest and relaxation before baby C makes her debut.

Here are some pictures from the last couple of weeks.....

Christmas belly. HoHoHo!
















Christmas morning

















Miss C's stocking....lucky girl :)

















Mom and dad wanted each of the grand kids to choose an organization to donate to for Christmas. Each of the kids chose something that was special to them and shared it with the family Christmas morning.

Ella and Grey gave a scholarship to the Midland Community Center.


















Eli donated money to a widow, orphan and disabled person in Bulgaria for two weeks.

Anna bought a pair of rabbits for a malnourished family in Rwanda. She also donated for one free day of medical care to a patient in Rwanda.

Emma bought disposable diapers for the Jackson Center for Women.

















Liam and Thijs donated to the Holland Rescue Mission. They also rang the bell for the Salvation Army at Walgreens.

Baby C donated money to a new school that is being built by our church in Haiti.

We surprised my parents with a new sign for the cottage.

Jen lost her center stone in her wedding ring so the fam began a search party....it was recovered by Eli :) phew.

We headed to Ft. Wayne to celebrate Christmas with the Cunninghams.

Grandma McClure with her great-grand kids.

Junie B stylin' in her new vest from Peyton.

Every Christmas the "cheer girls" get together. I love it how we always make time for each other over the holidays. We celebrated new babies, engagements and reminisced about our cheer days!

My mom treated all of us girls to the Princess Diana Exhibit that is currently in Grand Rapids. The exhibit showcased her life and humanitarian work. We also were able to view her wedding gown, designer dresses, family heirlooms and rare home videos.

Ella and her mama

Me and the girls

2010 Art Prize Winner - Calvary, American Officers, 1921

(pencil on paper)

Thank you mom!

We had a great end to 2010 with Jacki and Brandon. Lots of laughs all around! We can't wait to met their little guy in May. Lots to look forward to in 2011!

Whoa! Looks like I enjoyed my dinner :)

Testing out the new crib.

A little glimpse of the room in progress

Just waiting for sissy :)

We have our last ultrasound tomorrow evening to take a look at our little girl's heart. We can't wait to see her and see how big she really is!