Mom's Day 2012

(ETA: This post was written on Mother's Day this year.)

I can't believe that I celebrated my 6th Mother's Day this year! I am so thankful for these three little blessings whom which God has entrusted in my care. I love each little thing about them.

We went to our church for Sunday School, then drove to Knowles for regular church so we could both be with our moms. Brent and I have both been so blessed to have such wonderful mothers!

My mom was taking my grandmother out for lunch, so Brent and I took his mom to eat, then went to her house to visit for a bit.

My two sweet big boys :) Little Bit was taking a nap, so I didn't dare wake him for a picture. If there's one thing I've learned as a mom...you don't wake a sleeping baby ;)

I also can't post this without a big thank you to my mother-in-law. She loves my boys, loves me, and raised her son to be the devoted, hard working man that he is today, my husband :)

While we visited outside for a bit, Brody shot grasshoppers with his BB gun...

And Beckett worked so hard to figure out his bow and arrow...

Such is life in the south... :)

And this is what little dude was up to.

This Mother's Day was very special indeed. I had my three little Little's along side me all day. During the invitation at church I prayed for each of them. I prayed for their futures, and I thanked God for each day that He has blessed me with them.

But I also prayed for another little soul. The soul of a baby who may not even born yet. A baby who will live the first year of more of his or her life in South Korea without a family of their very own. A baby who will prayerfully join our family, and one day call me Mommy.  I prayed for this baby's birthmother, who may very well be struggling this very moment with the biggest decision of her life. The decision to place her child, a child she cannot care for, up for adoption. I just prayed that God would wrap his arms around us and guide us on this journey. And that He would get the glory for all of this. He has been so faithful to continue to confirm to us that this is His will for us. Through stories we read, people we talk to, and most of all, through his Word. God's faithfullness remains perfect and never failing. He is forming and molding our hearts to prepare us to walk this long journey to bring home our fourth child from halfway around the world.

Happy Mother's Day, indeed.

We are saying Yes!! (Big News to Share!)

(ETA: This post was orginally written on May 7, 2012. We weren't ready to share our news at the time, so I kept it saved in my bog archives. There are several more posts to share to get everyone up to date on where we are now...I will be posting them all soon!)

 Brent and I have had a huge opportunity placed in front of us. It came straight from the hand of God. At first, we weren't sure what to do with it. Afterall, it's hard to step out on faith, with so many unknowns surrounding you. But there are times where you know that, really, that's all we've got. Faith that God has His arms wrapped around us in every situation that we face in life. And faith that God will use all things for His glory!

So, we are saying Yes, Lord! We are going to adopt a baby from South Korea!

International adoption is something that Brent and I have always talked about. I think we even brought it up before we were married! We have known for a while that we both have a huge heart for these children, and we knew that God was working in our hearts. Since then, I have gone to Ukraine to work with the children there, and Brent has done the same in Nicaragua. And we both came home from those trips saying that we wish we could have just brought those kids home with us! It wasn't just a figure of speech...we really truly did. Since Brent has returned from Nicaragua, we have begun to talk more seriously about it. We just know there are so many children out there who need a home. And more than that, they need a family. It just breaks our heart to think of any child not knowing the love of a family. Not having a mom or dad to tuck them in bed each night. Not knowing what it's like to have grandparents who adore them. And we know that through God's abundant blessings, we can give a child these things.

 A few Sundays ago, on April 22, Brother Scott preached a sermon that completely validated in our hearts what we knew we wanted and needed and were being called to do. He was preaching from Genesis...on the faith of Abram. And he closed with a powerful challenge about decision making. We all have decisions to make in life. Some bigger than others. Some easier to make than others. He said that sometimes there's not necesarrily a right or wrong answer...no one will look down on you for either decision you make...and those are the hardest. He challenged us to look at our options. And ask ourselves two questions. Which option will make God my reward and my rewarder? And which option will best stretch and exercise my faith in God, so that He gets the glory for the decision we make? We talked after church that day, and we both knew our answer. We would put our faith in God, and we would walk this journey. A long journey full of challenges and unknowns. But a journey also full of blessings from God.

We did our research and found an agency in Little Rock, and from there we researched programs. Due to age restrictions in some countries, extremely lengthy travel requirements in others, and for various other reasons, we feel that South Korea is the best fit for us. We didn't necesarrily feel "called" to choose S. Korea as our country. There are orphans in every country that need families. None are more important than any other. South Korea just seems to be a good choice for our family. It's a long process...approximately 1 1/2 to 2 years, and our child, most likely a boy, will be around 18 months old when we bring him home.

We haven't begun any paperwork as of yet. We have our first meeting with the adoption agency this Friday afternoon, just to talk and discuss some details and financial things. And we pray that we will be able to begin soon after that.

We are so excited (and a bit nervous!) to begin this chapter of our lives. I don't know who this child will be that will one day be our son or daughter. I don't know if they are even conceived yet. I don't know their story. But God knows. And I do know that I love him or her already. I know that he or she has a family waiting for them to love them. And we can't to see where God leads us on this walk of faith!

Most of all, we covet your prayers as our family grows from a family of five to a family of six! It will be a long journey, but we know God is faithful to walk alongside us every step of the way.

Levi Hudson {Twelve Months}

Levi, you are officially a big ONE year old!! I absolutely cannot believe it. My baby is one. It seems like only yesterday you came rushing into this world and stole our hearts with your beautiful little face. You have been the sweetest little angel from the very beginning, and we love every. single. little. thing. about you. God blessed us immensely the day He gave us you. You are a perfect little gift straight from heaven. No matter how big you get, you will always be Mommy's baby. I love you to the moon and back. And everywhere in between.

At twelve months, you weigh about 21 pounds. You wear 12-18 month clothes, size 3 diapers, and size 3 shoe.

You eat all table food...and you love practically anything we eat. I honestly can't think of much you don't like! You went through that little stage where you wouldn't eat any baby food, so I'm so happy that you are a good eater now! You still take 2-3 formula bottles a day. One between 5-6 am when you first wake up and I bring you to our bed, one at nap time, and one at bedtime. The rest of your bottles are whole milk. I'm in no hurry to get rid of your bottle...I know it'll happen soon enough.

You go to sleep in your crib between 8 and 9 and usually sleep until sometime between 5 and 6. I bring you to our bed, give you a bottle, and you go back to sleep until around 7 usually.

You are still doing your funny little hop-along crawl, and I can't imagine that you will walk anytime soon. You do pull up on everything though and cruise around furniture with ease. I feel like you will walk even later than your brothers...they both walked between 13 and 14 months. But you aren't even interested in standing alone yet. I'm sure not rushing you though my sweet boy- you'll get there when you are good and ready!

You are a pretty vocal little guy. You say Mama, Dada, Bubba, Pawpaw, Na-Na (for Noni), bye bye, uh-oh, night-night, Boo-tie (Brookie), nana (banana), no no, and have repeated several other things we've asked you. But the ones I listed were the ones you say pretty regularly. You have the sweetest softest little voice.

You are still pretty easy going, but have developed a bad case of separation anxiety from your mommy. I know it's because I stay home with you all day every day, but boy oh boy do you flip out when I leave you somewhere like the church nursery. And it's not just a brief moment of unhappiness either. You really don't get over it until I return to get you. I certainly love being loved, but it breaks this mama's heart to leave you anywhere crying like that. I hope this phase is short lived!!

You love to dance to music, play with balls, play on your ride-on cars, go for walks, and watch your "songs" on tv (Cedarmont Kids). You also love playing peek-a-boo! And you LOVE to laugh at your silly brothers and your Brookie!

Happy first birthday, Levi Hudson!! I love you more, SO much more, than you'll ever know!!!

Sandy Toes and Salty Kisses {Part 4}

This post should finish up our Navarre Beach vacation!

As much as we loved the serenity of Navarre and as beautiful as it was, there wasn't really a whole lot to do there other than beach. So, we drove to Destin a couple days to change up the activity for the kids. It was only about a 30 minute drive, and such a pretty drive at that, so it wasn't bad at all. 

They LOVED playing at the Track! Brody was so happy to finally be tall enough to drive a go-kart!

And Beckett enjoyed the little Kiddie Carnival area :)

I think the bumper boats were Brody's favorite!

Before dinner in Destin, we spent a little time on the beach there, and I have to say...You just can't beat the beaches of Destin!

The water was more clear, shallow, and calm, and the kids were in heaven. So was I.

Levi's baby toes in God's big ocean...

Dinner at Pomano Joes! Love this place!

Brent and I even got to go on a date one night! I adore having my kids with me everywhere I go, but I have also come to appreciate a night out alone. It was really nice to eat dinner without cutting up tiny bites of chicken, wiping mouths, cleaning up spills, and reminding kids to sit down the entire time :)

On the last night of our vacation, we were getting tired of burgers and seafood, so we loaded up and headed to our favorite place - Cracker Barrel!!! Yes, I realize that makes me sound really old and boring, but I'll own it. I loooove Cracker Barrel!! And so do our boys...we've trained them well.

And we ended our vacation with what else?? A final game of miniature golf!!

I was not ready to leave this fabulous place when our week came to an end. If only we could go more than once a year! Unfortunately, Brent didn't agree to leaving me and the kids there, and him coming to visit on weekends, so he drug me away kicking and screaming. Just kidding. Sort of.

I will say, it does feel good to be back home and be be back to our normal routine. Until next time, Gulf Coast!

Sandy Toes and Salty Kisses {Part 3}

We finally got to enjoy the pool and hot tub, too!

They actually wanted to be in the pool just as much as at the beach!

Brody even started swimming without floaties or a life jacket while we were there! He has been really close for a while now, but one day at the pool he just told me he wanted to try again, and Poppy was in the pool with him, so I gave him the go ahead to try. He took that life jacket off, and without missing a beat, he swam nearly the whole width of the pool!! I was SOOO proud of him! That boy is so determined, he can do anything he sets his mind to.

We had dinner on Monday evening at Shaggy's in Pensacola Beach. Delicious food!

And we had a great view while we ate!!!

After dinner, we played a little miniature golf!

And then took an evening walk on the beach. Luke and Beckett have so much fun together :)

The rest of our week was filled with more pool time...

More beach time...

By Wednesday, the weather was BEAUTIFUL! There was a light cool breeze, the ocean was calm, lots of sunshine, and highs in the 80s! You couldn't hardly drag us off the beach!!

Brooke spent most of her time searching for seashells...and she certainly found some pretty ones!

And they all enjoyed a little boogie boarding :)

We had several little photo shoots out on the beach. I have accepted the fact that it's nearly impossible to get a family of 5 with 3 small children to all smile at the camera. But I love these pictures anyway. This is my precious little family. Sometimes I look at pictures of them and get tears in my eyes because I just can't believe how blessed I am to have them in my life.

I love them all so very much. So much that sometimes it hurts. I want so badly for them to always be happy. And have great memories. I know that I will cherish these pictures always.

This time I have with them as small children is fleeting, and I know one day all too soon I will look back on these pictures and wish for this time back.

The four sweetest little boys!!!

Love this picture of my mom and Brooke! Beautiful girls!

{Buddies}

The Littles

I just love this picture of Brent with his dad and the boys. Love it.

And I'll end tonight with two cute pictures of two cuties!

Tomorrow's post should wrap up the beach trip!