A Life of Gratitude

The past two days have been absolutely amazing! God blessed us with a daughter!! We've know for a while that our fourth child would be a girl but since we were told the same thing with Tyson, we had a hard time believing it until we saw it with our own eyes. Yesterday, when I gave birth to baby #4, it really was a girl! Allison Elizabeth Shaw was born at 4:20pm on May 30, 2017. She weighed 7 pounds and 14 ounces. She is 20 inches long and absolutely beautiful!     The boys are head over hills in love with their sister! They actually argue over who gets to hold her next! Bryan and I are in love with her also. She makes the most adorable sounds and has the sweetest facial expressions. She is very calm and laid back. I love snuggling with her and could watch her sleep for hours.  Today I am grateful for this sweet baby girl. She is such a precious addition to our family! I can honestly say that our family feels complete now. As a ...

I am almost 38 weeks pregnant and I'm honestly very, very ready to hold this baby girl! In fact, last week I was begging God that this baby would make her entrance during my 37th week, just like two of  her big brothers did. I'm ashamed to say it but I was a little angry with God. Why wouldn't she come already? Doesn't He know I'm miserable and so tired of being pregnant? At 34 weeks my doctor said she was trying to come too early and informed me that I "had to keep her in there another week." So to go three more weeks without a sign of her coming, just really aggravated me. But God...... He knows what He's doing. He can see what's coming. He is in control. He has our best interest at heart. Since my hissy fit with God, all three of my boys have had a stomach virus. Two of them are better now but my Evan is still trying to get better. The virus has caused some other issues to arise and we have to back to the doctor tomorrow. My poor little...

Today was a wonderful Mother's Day. I enjoyed spending my day with my fellas. They made sure I felt special and loved.  In case you didn't know, I am currently VERRRYYYY pregnant, it feels like a million weeks by now. My whole body is swollen and each day seems like a year. Our entire family is eagerly awaiting the birth of our sweet little Allison!  Being THIS pregnant and having 3 little boys to take care of is super tiring. I'm honestly exhausted! This is just one of those seasons when I'm reminded that motherhood isn't always easy, but its always worth it. At church today our Pastor said something that stuck with me. He was referring to leaders in general but I believe this statement is crucial for Mothers as well. He said,  "We're always leading. We're either leading them forward, or we're leading them backward." It's true! At all times, as mothers, we're either leading our children in the right direction; forward, o...

Lately I keep being reminded of something that happened a few years ago, when my grandmother passed away. All of the family was standing in a line beside her coffin, shaking hands with her friends and extended family. My grandmother had 6 grandchildren and I was the baby, so my husband and I were standing at the very end of the receiving line. An adorable elderly lady came up to me and whispered some of the sweetest words in my ear. She said, "You were always her favorite." I have no clue if that was true. For all I know, she may have said that in every grandchild's ear. I do know, that those words touched my heart in that moment in a way that no other words could have. Those words have stuck with me. And even now, I as I replay that scenario in my mind, tears fill my eyes.  Maybe that phrase wouldn't mean as much to other people, I'm really not sure. For me, I've always longed to be someone's favorite. I won't go into details but I've hon...

I am sooooo excited to share these gorgeous maternity photos made by my sweet friend, Sarah Hurley. I am thrilled with the way they turned out! If you had seen how my kids acted while we did the photo shoot, you'd understand why I'm so thrilled...hahaha! Sarah did an amazing job. I love how she captured our little family as we wait on Allison to join us. Today I am thankful for this sweet season of life. This is going to be our last baby so this time is very special to us. I'm trying to enjoy these last days carrying Allison in my womb. These pictures capture the excitement my kids are experiencing and the joy that we all feel about our newest family member. I am also grateful for Sarah's talent and the pictures she was to give us. I am so happy with them! I can't to print some for Allison's baby book!

The Cincinnati Zoo is the second oldest zoo in the USA and has been voted #1 family activity in Cincinnati repeatedly. So, we knew we had to check it out while we're here. We had a wonderful seeing all the animals, feeding the giraffes, riding the train and carousel, watching the 4D movie, and spending time together! The weather was perfect and the kids really enjoyed themselves, especially Tyson. This was his first trip to the zoo while be old enough to really understand everything, so he was absolutely amazed! Evan feeding the giraffe. Tyson feeding the giraffe. He didn't want to stop! Dylan feeding the giraffe All of us riding the train. Daddy and Tyson on the carousel. Evan on the carousel. Dylan on the carousel. I had to sit on a bench on the carousel. Whose hump is bigger? Mine or the camels? The boys had to push me up the hills! Today I am grateful for a fun, beautiful day at the Cincinnati Zoo. We had a wonder...

 Today we took the boys to see their first Major League Baseball game. The Cincinnati Reds and the Chicago Cubs were playing.  Dylan was super excited!! The younger boys have a hard time paying attention that long but they enjoyed it too. It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon for a game, just a little windy.  The view from our seats. Tyson was passed out in this photo! Baseball is exhausting! Dylan got his first autograph by the Red's best pitcher! I was thankful for a playground for the little kids to play on! Tyson is climbing up! He's getting too big! This is the best "selfie" we could get. Tyson is on my lap but wouldn't look at the camera! Silly boys! They had a great time! Today I am grateful for a fun day at the ballpark. It is so much fun to watch our boys experience things for the first time! I am also thankful for good weather. The forecast said that it would rain all day today so we were thinking it might b...