Beach Trip

This summer we (along with Daryl's family) hit the road to Nags Head, NC for the twins first beach trip. Here are some of the highlights.

Gabe and Eden love playing in the water but it was hard for them to play in the ocean so we turned the temperature down in the hot tub . . . they had a blast!

It took us awhile to get this shot but it was well worth it.

Gabe is so happy playing in the sand. The twins tried to eat the sand and weren't happy with the taste.

6 months old

Where has the time gone?? I can't believe Gabe and Eden are already 6 months old. We took them to Portrait Innovations to have their pictures made and they turned out great. It's hard to imagine that in only 6 more months they will be 1 year old.

Our Many Mini Milestones

This summer is full of firsts.

The one that took us by surprise was Eden cutting teeth at 5 months old. We discovered these pearly whites on Father's Day and it seems as though she has made some enormous changes since they came in. We have always had problems with getting Eden to eat. She's either never hungry, too distracted, or doesn't care but since these teeth have entered her mouth we haven't been able to feed her fast enough! Also, she has had problems with reflux so much that she was on medicine 3 times a day. . . well not anymore! These teeth seem to have fixed that problem too!

Eden's pearly whites. It's funny how Gabe has yet to cut teeth and he actually likes to eat!

Eden found her toes!

Gabe learned how to hold his bottle! This is one of our favorite milestones!


Gabe's first haircut. Daryl and I have disagreed over having Gabe's haircut but with 6 month pictures just around the corner I finally gave in and took him to Stacy Lewis at Untangled for his first haircut. He was such a good boy during the whole process
Before

After
He's such a little man!

Road to Africa 5K

On June 12th, we set out to conquer the Road to Africa 5K. This 5K was a fundraiser for my brother and his family who are waiting to adopt from Africa. It sounded like an easy task; just put the babies in their strollers, stroll them through the 5K, and we will be done in no time. Oh boy was I wrong!

The "race" started out well. I had one goal, not to be last. The goal was accomplished but with a lot of prayer and sweat! The first part was easier since it was on a paved road but the next part took us through the woods and a field. Here's what I've learned, umbrella strollers aren't meant to go off road. It was a lot harder than I thought it would be and the 90 degree heat didn't help.

Crossing the finish line was amazing. Gabe and Eden did well through the race and slept through most of it. The woods and field were bumpy which irritated Eden but they were great through the whole process. They both received medals for their participation as they were after all, the youngest to compete.

God has already blessed our family with Gabe and Eden. We are continuing to pray for our niece and nephew in Africa.

We officially registered Gabe and Eden in the 5K. Here are their racing bibs to prove it. Gabe and Eden both worn shirts that said, "My little cousin is in Africa."

Our First Pool Attempt

On Memorial Day we decided to take the babies to the pool for the first time. Little did we know there is so much prep work required for such an event.

Our morning started out well with happy babies and it continued through getting them in their bathing suits and sunscreen. Once they were in their bathing suits, time started getting away from us. I don't know how many pictures I took, but I guess we were just taking on the role of new parents. Once we finally got into the car, we had to stop at my in laws to blow up floats which Gabe interpreted as nap time. After the floats were inflated, we finally got up to the pool on the farm.

We were greeted with plenty of people wanting to hold and see the babies in their new bathing suits. Twenty minutes later, we were in the water with two expressionless babies. Gabe cried at first because the water was cold and he wanted to sleep. Eden kept a stern look on her face as if to say, "who's idea was this?" Literally 5 minutes into pool time it began to rain. We headed for the house until it eased up then tried again with little success.

Although the day was a wash out, we still had a good time. I feel much more prepared to try the pool again. Below are the best pictures we could get of the twins in their swim gear. Eden loves her sunglasses because it changes everything to blue.

My First Mother's Day

My First Mother's Day

Of course your first Mother's Day is going to be special but this has been a long time coming.


Every year my church recognizes mothers on Mother's Day by having all moms stand up and a child brings them a flower. Last Mother's Day, Daryl and I were at the point of transitioning from trying to get pregnant to the adoption process. I told Daryl that if we didn't have a child by the next Mother's Day then I would want to go away for the weekend because I just didn't think I would be able to watch the other mothers at our church stand in recognition. Little did I know that God was going to bless me two fold with Gabe and Eden.


My first Mother's Day started with a wonderful breakfast by my husband. Afterwards he gave me a beautiful bracelet with Gabe and Eden's names on it. We went to church, where I proudly stood with other mothers in recognition of our special day. We had a nice lunch after church with family then went home to relax for the afternoon.

Later that evening Rachel, the birth mother, called to wish me a happy first Mother's Day. I'm sure that was tough for her to do but it meant so much to me. Without her (and God's divine intervention) I would not have had this day to celebrate.

Our First Family Trip

This past weekend, we loaded up the minivan and headed to Tennessee on our first family trip to see Jake (Daryl's brother) graduate from Tennessee Temple University. The trip up went really well, we only had to stop once to feed Gabe and Eden, and they slept the whole way. Saturday afternoon we checked into the hotel and were surprisingly found 2 cribs in our room (we thought they only had one). We relaxed that afternoon then went to Jake's graduation party that evening. The babies were amazing!

Sunday morning we went to church at The Rock (which was amazing) then headed to Golden Corral for lunch. Afterwards, Jake and Lauren (his wonderful girlfriend) got us turned around in Fort Oglethorpe, GA. Once we found our way back to the main road we went back to the hotel for naps then later to Highland Park Baptist Church, on the campus of TTU for the Baccalaureate service.

Monday we packed up our bags and went back to Highland Park Baptist for the graduation ceremony; afterwards going to Crust Pizza before getting on the road.

A proud Uncle Jake with his hands full!

As hard as it was to pack up everything needed and everything you might need for a trip with infant twins, we had a great time! We got to meet Lauren's parents and family which are just as sweet as I imagined them to be. Our babies continued to sleep through the night in the hotel!!!!!

We were able to put a hair bow in Eden's hair for the first time!

And Gabe grew a mustache!

God continues to show us His mercy and love each day; I can't tell you enough how blessed we are!