Thursday, July 30, 2009

Oppps, sorry for the delay

It's been awhile since I posted, whoops!! To make up for it, I have lots o' photos!! We took a little summer/beach vacation at the Ackerman household in Bridgman (near St. Joseph, MI) recently. Mark, Erin, Westin and Baby-t0-be were there and we were so happy to be able to spend time with them and Gramma and Grandpy! We went to the beach several times, the zoo, church, walked around St. Joe, got ice cream, and ate A LOT. Yeah!! (click on photos to see them larger)

Jon, handling the grill

Mark, Erin and Westin at the zoo- I think this was right after we heard the lion roar!

Baby B at the zoo- he was such a good boy!

Family photo!

See? A happy baby? I can hardly believe it!!! Isn't he a little cutie pie??!

With Grandpy at the beach




One afternoon while the boys were golfing, us girls walked on the pier in St. Joe. This was Brennan's first feel of Lake Michigan and he wasn't a fan of the cold water. He loved to look at the waves, but did not want to be in them!

Our last day on the beach, it was super windy and the waves were SO fun to play in. I had a hard time catching my breath for some of them! Sadly though, we saw the Emergency crew pull up with their jet skies and fly down the lake to Warren Dunes- we found out later a 57 year old man died! You really do need to respect the water- it seems to happen several times a summer and it's so sad every time we hear about it.

Well, that's all I gots. I'm happy to report that I went to the dentist this week and not only was I cavity free- the ol' front tooth is holding up good! ha!!

Sunday, July 19, 2009

Summer Vacation!

Were here at the Ackerman's household (Jon's mom and dad) for the weekend- enjoying time with Mark and Erin and Mom and Dad. Yesterday we went to the zoo in South Bend and had Logan's for dinner. Today the whole family came over for lunch and we've just been relaxing all day. Brennan was great yesterday but he's having a rougher time today. I notice that I am still on edge sometimes, just wondering when the next meltdown will be. He really hasn't had an inconsoleable moment since we put him on the prevacid, but I think I still worry about it when he starts to cry because it was my life for four months, you know? Annyywhooo. I am off to buy tickets for my mom and I from DTW to IAH- wish me luck!!

Monday, July 13, 2009

Five Months


Dear Brennan,
It looks like I totally missed your four month letter! We've had a lot going on in our lives, haven't we? I'll just have to make up for it in this letter :)

I'll be honest with you because I'll regret it later if I'm not. I'm sure we'll teach this to you when your older, but everybody, every single person, has problems and struggles and pain. And there is no use trying to cover it up and always act like you have it all together. Because we know, no one has it all together- no.one. Your dad and I decided a long time ago to be authentic and not put on fronts because we believe that's important.

Opps, I got sidetracked and started preaching at you (and your only 5 months old, poor kid. . . :) Anyways, yes, this last month has been crazy! And in all honesty, like I said I would be, it was not a good month for you. We put you on prevacid to help with your acid reflux because the zantac didn't seem to be working. Thankfully, it stopped the inconsolable crying you were doing several times a day. But you seemed to still be in pain and weren't a very happy camper.

This month we went to Houston, TX, which will be our new home in just a few weeks. Grammy Ackerman came with us to take care of you and she did just a wonderful job. You and her got lots of quality time together and it was really sweet of her to come with us. Our plane was stuck on the runway for THREE hours and then we had a three hour flight, but you did okay. Daddy walked you up and down the aisle and I fed you A LOTTTT to keep you happy. We were also the absolute last seat on the plane and had to wait forever just to unboard. But we made it!

First plane ride and mommy didn't even realize your outfit had planes on it!

You didn't sleep well this past month and had many nights where you got up almost every hour to hour and a half. One night, you slept only two hours total. We think you had gas pains or a reaction to your immunizations. You were screaming in pain. We gave you a bath, took you for several car rides, and called the pediatrician at 3:00am because we didn't know what to do. You and dad went for another car ride around 5:00am and ended up sleeping in the car while it was running idle in the driveway. We felt bad for you because we knew you were in pain.

Praise to Jesus- we changed your prevacid dosage last week and you seem to be doing much better. In fact, last night, you slept through the night!

You've started sleeping on your tummy and it is adorable! This month you also started sitting up with the help of a prop and you started laughing much more. You love to be in the front pack carrier and you love being outside, so you and I take several walks a day. You like to be moving and busy. We started you on rice cereal and you seem to like eating it but then get fussy- so were not sure if it's not reaction well with your GERD or what. But you are just the cutest little thing when we feed you. Your a very strong boy, in fact, our pediatrician said he hadn't seen a baby as strong as you in a long time- you roll over all the time and have perfect head control.


To this day, your dad and I can't believe our handsome you are! Your a show stopper everywhere we go! You love to motorboat with your mouth and love grabbing your feet!


Brennan and Mckenna on July 4th
Brennan, we love you so much. Were so thankful you are a healthy little man. Please be a good little boy while mommy and daddy are packing this month!!! :)

Love,
Mom and Dad

Friday, July 10, 2009

Hola.
I just wanted to take a second and brag on my hubby. He's amazing and I love him :)
He recently did a video for one of Trinity's sermons (The Compass) and it seemed so applicable to where we have been at. Check it out at: The Compass

Also, in January, Trinity did that awesome food drop with other churches in the Lansing area. Check out the video Jon did for it: Trinity Food Drop

That's all! Enjoy!

Thursday, July 9, 2009

Big Decisions (and put on your reading glasses cause this is long!)



At the airport with our tired boy

Really,
I don't know where to begin. So much has happened since the last time I was able to blog. I decided to not write for a while, mainly because we wanted to make some decisions and make sure the right people were told FIRST, rather than hearing important news through a blog. Sooooooo, all that to say, and I'm sure you've already heard the news. . . but we are MOVING TO HOUSTON, TX!

Yep, that's right. Here's the low down . . . Jon has a contact at a church in Houston from when he was an intern at Willow Creek. This friend of his recently took at a job at a church in Houston (theMET, check it out here) and had a position he needed to fill. He contacted Jon the week Brennan was born (yep, when Jon told me all of this, I was living off of two hours of sleep and 100% not myself). We didnt think much of it mainly because we were living day to day crisis mode (Remember, it was a rough transition for me.) and we were totally content where we were. So, anyways, we would talk about it in passing but not seriously. Finally, I told Jon, "why don't you just go and check it out". Mainly because I didn't want to be THAT wife and feel like I was holding back my husband, you know what I mean? But really, deep down, I was thinking, "ohh, nothing will come of this, just let the boy go and check it out." HA.

So he comes back from his trip and is trying really hard not to show his excitement and to be neutral about the whole opportunity, but he truly was excited. It's a job role that allows him to collaborate with other video team members, he feels he'll be pushed in his craft and will develop some more skills, he really is on board with the church's vision and really liked the people and the southern hospitality :)

I, on the other hand, refused to even consider the possibility. No way, no how, am I moving away from my family and my friends and our whole support system. We have a colicky, refluxy, crazy boy and I need help and I will not choose to move away from everybody unless we have no other options. Are you KIDDDDDING me? Adjusting to being a mom is the hardest thing I've ever done and you want to MOVE to freakin' TEXAS???? It's not like Jon is out of a job or hates his job or whatever! What is my husband even THINKING!!?

So we were at a standstill. For a long time. Thankfully (because of Christ, I'm sure of it), we didn't fight about it. But we weren't on the same page, and that wasn't fun. He clearly wanted to take the job and I wouldn't even consider it. He wouldn't FORCE me to go and I would FORCE him to stay, so we put off making a decision for WEEKS. We took many walks with B in the stroller and Jon pushing while I cried even thinking about the idea of moving during this time in our lives.

Gosh, this is getting long, sorry, I'll speed this story along. Soo, anyways, I kept praying for God to change my heart if he wanted us to go down there. We headed to Minnesota and talked with Mark and Erin about it. We had a really good conversation with Jon's parents about the whole thing (including lots of crying on my part and possibly Judy's. . . ), talked to my parents and asked my dad for counsel, Jon fasted, he met with some Godly men at Trinity that we trust, etc. etc. We were doing everything we could to try and figure out "God's will". Eventually, I came to realize that this may be a case where God is kind of okay either way we choose- to stay or to go. He would be with us either choice. But there was no denying a huge door had been opened for us- were we willing to step through it? (I'm not getting into knowing 'God's will' on this blog). We felt as though we couldn't make a decision without me at least seeing the church and checking it all out. Jon felt like all the pressure was on him to make the decision because he was the only one who had gone down there. Thankfully, this man that gave us some Godly counsel also told us it would be wise to fly a "helper" down with us as well so I could focus and not worry about Brennan the whole time. So theMET graciously agreed to fly us three and Judy (Jon's mom) down there. And I'm so glad they did because there was no way we'd be able to do much at all while trying to entertain Brennan (aka devil child). Don't worry, I love him to death.

So we went down there and I could feel myself feeling more and more at peace about moving down there. Judy was such a servant and watched B while we checked out the area, met with a realtor, had dinner with some staff, toured the church, etc. I really fell in love with the people that we met- the staff wives are so welcoming and even our realtor was just such a doll. One night we went to the hotel lobby, split an ice cream sundae and decided that this was the next step in our journey. We wanted to have a few days at home (back to reality) before telling anyone, and then Jon told his work and we told our family and this crazy decision was made.



Gift basket in our hotel room





Am I sad to leave my family and friends? More than you know. I think my coping mechanism is to not think about it. Am I sad about having a PLANE RIDE anytime I want to go home. Yes. Am I nervous to fly with Brennan. Ummm, yes (story on how THAT went later. . . ). Are we really excited about this new job for Jon? A ton!! Are we excited about the friends we've already made and the possibilities down there? Absolutely! Am I pumped to say adios to Michigan winters? YES! Do we have everything figured out? No. Are we STREEESSSED about owning a home in Lansing, MI in the worst economy since the Great Depression? Yep. But were confident this is where God is leading us. It's not going to be easy and I firmly believe the grass is not greener on the other side. There will be good things and bad things about moving. I'm using all my mental energy to focus on the positives!

It's actually a little bit more deeper than that, but geeez, this thing is long enough so I am wrapping it up for your sake. I am adoing another post soon with everything else that's going on!

God bless!

Thursday, July 2, 2009

BIG, massive, ginormous post coming SOON, promise!!!! To include, but not limited to: Brennan's first taste of solids (yes, I have video and pics!), a trip to Texas and back (and was it a trip to remember, right Judy??), a huge decision to be made, a fussy baby, an amazingly good baby, annnnd much more. Just hold on to your panties a little while longer, ok? Adios!!!