A California Christmas!

I'm so excited to go to California for Christmas! We leave this Friday! It will be the first time in 8 years that I've been in Cali with my family for Christmas. I can't wait! Last night, Jesse and I talked with the boys about what we all want to do on our vacation. And a lot of it involves food....

Here is our top 10 list:
1. Make sand angles (Caleb)
2. Disneyland (Knox)
3. Pedros' Tacos-EVERYDAY (Jesse)
4. frozen yogurt-EVERYDAY (me)
5. Surfin' Donuts (Caleb)
6. Ichibiri (Knox)
7. go surfing (Jesse)
8. San Diego WIld Animal Park (me)
9. HUGE family Christmas time with cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents, friends. At least 35 people all eating and laughing and playing in the street after dinner! It's tradition to play in the street-football, kick-the-can, whatever. My grandparent's cul-de-sac on Christmas Day is a rockin' good time! (all of us)
10. get tan (all of us)

Christmas List

 On Christmas morning, we have a tradition for receiving gifts. Each person in our family gets three gifts to represent the three gifts the Magi gave Baby Jesus. (If that sounds sad to some of you they still get stockings and presents from their brothers and grandparents. Don't worry!) The boys generally get to choose those gifts and they tell us what they'd like. Anyway, below is one of my son's original Christmas List:

1. A real light saber. From the movie. Able to chop off an arm.

2. A jet pack. So I can fly. Or at least jump really, really high.

3. A Samurai sword that warriors use.

Ummm...no. He isn't getting any of these. And explaining why was pretty hard too. Imagine keeping a straight face as you told your son why these weren't available or good for him to have! 

But our conversation made me think of my requests to God. Some things I want seem so important, so right, so perfect for me that I don't understand why the answer is no. But as a loving Father, he knows what is best. And also what is ridiculous for me to ask for. (jet pack, anyone?) And just as I want my sons to be content with what they get,  I too need to be content with what my Heavenly Father gives me.  He loves me and everything that comes to me comes from His hand. And everything that He withholds, is withheld in love. And if I trust that to be true, I will not need to feel sadness or discontentment, will I?

Matthew 7:11 If you then being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children: how much more will your Father who is in heaven, give good things to them that ask him?

Ultrasounds

At the last ultrasound, baby Ava was too small for them to see all of the chambers of her heart. They had me come back at 20 1/2 weeks which was Monday. Unfortunately, they couldn't see her heart at all. She has one but she was in a crazy position and was sound asleep. She wouldn't move AT ALL for over 30 minutes. Now I have to go to Maternal Fetal Medicine for another ultrasound. I don't want to go though. It's where they send you when there is a problem. The doctor assured me they didn't see anything wrong but couldn't get the right views and this place will be better. But still...So, we will go for another ultrasound next week. 3 in as many weeks. 

I brought home the DVD from the ultrasound and the boys watched it. Caleb was confused because it didn't look like a baby to him (especially the close ups of arm bones and such!) but Knox really liked seeing the baby on TV. They are so excited to meet this baby. We all are. And although I'm nervous, I trust the Lord to care for her and grow her perfectly, according to His will. 

Give Thanks!

There are so many things I am thankful FOR. My Savior, my family, my friends, my health, my country (seriously! I lived elsewhere). I have been very blessed.
But today, as I was doing a little craft project and needed some verses on thankfulness, I was struck by how many times the Bible says to give thanks TO the Lord. He has graciously given us everything! I wrote out the references for some of the verses that tell us to give thanks to the Lord for all He has done on some leaves and glued them onto a cute foam tree for the center of our appetizer table so as we munch and watch football tomorrow we can give thanks TO the Lord.

Here are a few.....
Isaiah 12:1
2 Thessalonians 1:3
Psalm 86:12
Psalm 28:7
Psalm 100:4
1 Chronicles 16:34
Psalm 118:29


Happy Thanksgiving and remember to WHOM you are thankful!

Ava

A couple days after we found out I was pregnant Jesse had a wedding to officiate in Friday Harbor in the San Juan Islands. While we were there I went for a little walk to a spot on a cliff overlooking the ocean to pray. I was feeling overwhelmed with the pregnancy in general and the desire to have a daughter in particular. I didn't want to spend the next several months anxious over the sex of the baby. I prayed and asked God to give me peace, one way or another. I asked Him to give me a sign if I was having a girl. The sky was empty except for the sun-they weren't even clouds. I asked God to send a bird if I was to have a daughter. To have a bird fly overhead-out of no where. I scanned the horizon. Nothing. Five seconds later, a tiny bird flew up from the side of the cliff right by me. I laughed. I don't normally do this type of thing and thought I was just being silly. A few seconds later a flock of birds surged up from the other side of the cliff. Too many to count. I felt they were a gift to me. I felt peace. God knew my desires, He loved me, I could trust Him. Whatever He had for me.

I wish I had continued to trust in God's goodness to me that day. But I didn't. In the months that followed I would sometimes grow anxious. I still wondered and desired and doubted and hoped. Almost every time, I would see a little bird and be reminded of that day on the cliff. And I would feel peace.

A few weeks ago we were discussing names for the baby. We've always liked Savannah but as we talked about it, it seemed not right somehow. I thought of the name Ava. It was similar sounding but...it just jumped out at me that night. Jesse loved it. I went to look up the meaning and then I knew it was to be our daughter's name.

It means "like a bird".

We're having....

a girl!

At the ultrasound we had the tech write what we were having in a card with a picture of the "goods". We left the hospital and were driving...somewhere. We couldn't decide where and how to open the card and I was starting to get emotional so while we were stopped at a stop light I told Jesse to just look. And then tell me. He said he would look at the picture and try to figure it out. I couldn't bear to watch as he pulled out the picture. He stared, then laughed. "I have NO idea!" , he said. "Here, see if you can tell." He handed me the picture and I instantly said, "IT'S A GIRL!!!". He opened up the card and there it was...
"It's a GIRL!"

We cried and I laughed, too. What a blessing. We are so excited to meet her!

This morning when we dropped the boys off we told them we would have a special present for them to open and when they opened it they would know if they are having a baby brother or a baby sister. We went to Fred Meyer and bought a darling hot pink Addidas track suit and two pink “baby bottle” candies (don’t ask-they’re disgusting but the boys love ‘em!) After school the boys couldn't wait to get home to open the present! They were positive it was going to be another brother! Knox said a girl would be fine but Caleb wasn't too sure. When they saw the pink they both smiled and while Caleb isn't that excited about a sister yet, he loved the candy! We told him it was from her and that helped a little bit! :)

We have a name but I'll blog about that later....

Jane

Today is my youngest sister's birthday. Jane Alexandra Olds was born two decades ago but it seems like yesterday. When my parents brought her home I thought she was a present for me. I was absolutely, completely, 100% in love with her. A few days after she came home from the hospital I wrote her a poem. I loved writing little poems when I was young and kept them in a Hello Kitty notebook so I called them the Hello Kitty Collection (of course! Hey, I was 10-12 years old). My dad found the book and sent it to me last year! Here is the poem I wrote for Jane twenty years ago:

Jane Alexandra
I thought joy was a myth
Until the day November Fifth.
When my baby sister was born
On that cold November morn.
She opened up her little eyes,
Eyes as blue as the sky.
I know now that love is real,
It comes from the love I feel!

Happy birthday sweet sister! I love you!