Monday, February 6, 2017

A letter to Josh,

A letter to Josh,

We love you Joshua! Thank you for being our rock and keeping us happy. Days like today are hard, but they become infinity better when you give us a hug, or Carter a bath, even when you just talk to us:) I hope you know how important you are to me. I don't think I could make it through this time without you. I am so glad to have you as a partner. You are the best scarecrow;)

All my love,

 Maddie 

Joshua is the best dad

I want you to know that I love you. But I really want you to know that your dad loves you so much and works so hard to take care of you and sure you are happy. He is so amazing and will work all day and be away from us, so that we can have the things we need and want. I know that he is sad to be away from us, but does it because he loves us. These are a few of my favorite pictures from our favorite day! (and a few days after) These are my favorites because I can tell how much your dad loves both of us, and it makes me so happy to see.
Your dad loved you from the moment that you came!

We had no idea what we were getting into, 
but we could not wait to meet you! 

I teased your dad for weeks about Kangaroo Care, 
but when you came I didn't even have to ask him to.



He wanted you to see him in all stages of facial hair...

Even though he is EXHAUSTED he will always take care of us.



We love to nap together!

I love you both so much! 

Dad's teasing him about the changes that will come! 

You came right in time for the NBA finals! 

I want you to know how lucky we are to have him in our lives. He will always love us and keep us safe. You are such a blessing to us Carter, even though you are hard sometimes your dad will always love you. 



Monday, January 16, 2017

C. W. C.

This is my first baby's birth story.

LONG VERSION
It has only taken my 8 1/2 months to get around to it! But I figure better late than never.

I feel like I have been writing this in my brain for the past few months. Maybe even years.

I have always wanted to be a wife and mother. Ever since I was a little girl. Growing up there were things I enjoyed doing, like having out with friends, playing basketball, or watching movies, etc. Despite those things I still just wanted to be a mom.

Josh and I decided that we wanted a baby in July, I stopped taking birth control and got pregnant pretty soon after that.

September 14th, 2015. I remember the day because it was the first day of school that year! I had a feeling I was pregnant a few weeks earlier, but the tests I took came out negative. But the 14th they were positive! I was so excited to see those two lines come up!

I feel like the pregnancy was heavenly! I loved being pregnant, I was showing but I never got huge! It was awesome. I never got sick, too swollen, etc. I was nauseas and tired, but compared to the "normal" pregnancy I was very blessed.

A few months into the pregnancy I just realized what have I gotten myself into. I don't know how to raise a baby! I know Josh doesn't know how! (I know I am a great wife!)


I guess I realized C is his own person. I can only do the best that I can do and hope he will be happy and make good decisions as he gets older.

So we continue through the pregnancy getting regular checkups, he is a sized a week larger but he is healthy so no change in due date. April 30th! What a perfect day, so we think.

April 1st comes and I think any day now I could go into labor! After April 31st came around I began thinking this child would never come!

The morning of May 6, 2016 couldn't have come any sooner! We call the hospital at 5 am to make sure they have room for us, they do! We make our bed, start the dishwasher, take out the trash, and make our way over to the hospital.

After we check in and get to our rooms the pitocin drip started, I begin to feel contraction. OW! I thought I had felt pain before! An unnamed friend told me not to get an epidural too early because they wear off. She had her baby 8 years ago. So basically I could've had an epidural before the pitocin. Oh well. I get an epidural after several painful contractions! Congratulations to moms who give birth with out one.



From about 7:30 am-5 pm it was painless and enjoyable. I was napping, relaxing, it was great. Then I had to start pushing!! I started pushing and 10 minutes later he was here! The little stinker had his hand on his face, so instead of an easy head, shoulders, and body. We had a slanted shoulder line with his head. If that makes sense. I tore the most you possibly could, and even ripped a little inside my uterus. He was born, I couldn't hold him until the doctor was finished. The post birth surgery took 3 times longer than the actual delivery. Which still isn't very long, but it was very different that I was expecting it to be.

Although it was the most painful part of the day our baby masked a lot of that pain. I am so grateful that he is here and has blessed our lives more than I can say!

In recovery one of the nurses shared that it would talk about 8-9 months to recover from the tearing! Jokes on her because not 2 months later I was running all over town with baby C!

Although it was very hard at times, it was the greatest day of my life. I have never felt more strong and beautiful in my entire life!

SHORT VERSION

May 6th was the best day of my life! I felt so much love; for my husband, my son, and myself!



Thursday, December 8, 2016

I married my husband!
This means that I also married his family!

What does this mean?

To me this means that while I don’t have to love them as much as I love him, I should try to love them as much as I love my family. I think the reason this can be so difficult is because of the time we have spent with or own family and haven’t spent with them makes us feel more connected to our own. Like if I spend Christmas with my in-laws instead of at my own mother’s home then I am somehow letting them down and dishonoring them. Because I have spent more time with my family I don’t want to disappoint them. But I don’t want to disappoint my in-laws either?!!?



Seems rather contradictory. I think the reason is because the way we love is not unconditional. We need to open our hearts to love and accept family with all their flaws and desires. If we can open our hearts to love everyone the same and enjoy being with them no matter what.

“Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh”
-       -Genesis 2:24

Not only should a husband cleave unto his wife, but a wife should cleave unto her husband. Their separate immediate families are still important, but each other’s families should be as important as the other. Because their family is each other and it connects you to each other’s in-laws.

James M. Harper and Susanne Frost Olsen give some great advice on the topic;

“When you married, you also became part of another family with its own set of expectations. You need to recognize and respect those—within limits.
What are those limits? Here are three things that "honoring" your in-laws does not mean:
   It doesn't require that you submerge all your own feelings, desires, preferences, and needs in the service of "doing things their way."
   It doesn't mean you must permit them to disrespect, control, or manipulate you for their own selfish ends.
   It doesn't entail "obeying" all their "parental" requests or requirements—which, in some instances with some in-laws, may get pretty crazy.”


Be sure to love everyone! Remember what is important and open your heart to your family!







Monday, December 5, 2016

Who is the Boss?

Who Is the Boss?
Is my husband the boss of me? Am I in charge of being my husband boss? Is our son the boss of both of us??!?!
No, no, and no.
None of us are the boss of any of us.
I don’t think that is a proper sentence, but it is true!
What does the world tell us? The world tells us many things, but they are mostly all wrong.

“The husband is the boss!



The wife is the boss; the husband is dumb!












The children are in charge of the parents, because parents don’t know what they are doing! 




















No one is the boss/everyone is!!!!"



-              The World       -


What is the truth?

I believe the truth is we are ultimately the boss of ourselves, but in a family it may be a little different.

1. Parents are the leaders in the family.
2. Parents must be united in their leadership.
3. The parent-child hierarchy dissolves when children become adults.
4. The marital relationship should be a partnership.
a. Husbands and wives are equal.
b. Husbands and wives have different responsibilities, but they function as equals.
c. A husband’s role as patriarch gives him the responsibility to serve his wife and family.
d. A husband’s role as patriarch gives him the responsibility to serve his wife and family.

5. What is the power relationship in your marriage?