Happy Birthday "Tutu" Kate and family update

I've found that this time of year is very difficult for me to remember to write in this blog. I absolutely love sharing our life with all of you, but time just slips away from me and I'm always on the go with this busy girl I'm chasing. :)

Since my last post, Kate has turned a year old, we had her first birthday party, we celebrated Thanksgiving in Georgia with family and had another first birthday party for Kate with family, and we are now preparing for Christmas in Georgia! It's definitely my most favorite part of the year! This year is especially exciting because I just love seeing Kate's reactions to seeing family we haven't seen in a while. She may not remember exactly who they are, but she does know she likes them and the fact that they give her so much love and attention. One day she'll remember all the faces AND NAMES and it'll be precious! :) Until then, I'll just soak this time up.

Kate is doing so much these days. She signs "more" and "all done." She shakes her head "no." She waves "bye-bye" and "hi." She blows kisses. She does this little bounce when she hears music and is standing (we call it her dance). When we say "arms up" she immediately puts her arms straight up and then back down again when we say "arms down." She makes this adorable noise by putting the back of her hand over her mouth and twists her fist forward and backward (like an indian call that most people do by just putting the front of the hand over the mouth). She has a walker that she pushes EVERYWHERE and has attempted a few wobbly steps on her own. The most she has done is 6 steps towards her daddy! She needs to gain a little more confidence and then she'll be RUNNING everywhere! She can point to her mouth when I ask "Where's your mouth?" She's just recently held her plastic phone up to her ear. I have to keep reminding myself that she is a sponge and is soaking up and learning sooo much so fast! It's really important for us to always have a Godly attitude towards her and towards each other so that she will learn that honoring Christ with our words and actions is crucial.

We had 2 birthday parties for Kate. One was here in our home with some of our close friends and the other was in Georgia with our family and a few close friends. They were both a lot of fun! I made her tutu and her hairbow. A friend helped me (with her machine and sewing skills) make her shirt too. She looked precious and got to wear the outfit for both birthday parties! I also made her cake and cupcakes (with the help of a friend). I will have more pictures from the birthday party in Georgia after Christmas.

I am back at MOPS (mother's of preschoolers) at our church every other week. I'm with the age group 12-18 months and I love them! It's always busy. There's always laughing, tears, or poopy diapers, but I love it! I look forward to one day (hopefully, next year) going back to the preschool (The Creator's Kids) and taking Kate with me! I'm still planning on keeping our friends baby Eden starting next month a few days a week! That will be challenging for sure, but I'm really looking forward to it!

Now, hopefully, ya'll have been praying for a way for Hank to go back to school and start his Master's and for something to work out with his job situation. I'm grateful to say that the Lord has worked that all out! In September (shortly after my last post), Hank had an interview with and accepted a full time job offer for the State Employee's Credit Union Operations Department being a Loan Servicing Tech. He worked a short 2-3 week's notice with UPS. When I say short, I really mean long because he worked both jobs SECU 7:30AM-5:30 and then UPS 6-10:30pm for that amount of time. It was difficult, but we are so grateful to have this change and to have Hank home FINALLY at night! I absolutely LOVE cooking dinner and having it ready when he gets home and all of us having dinner together, AND doing Kate's bedtime routine with him rather than by myself. I will NEVER take this evening time for granted. It is such a precious time for our family! As far as Hank going back to school, we are still working out the details for that, but hopefully in the next year he will be starting back at Southeastern. Thank you so much for your prayers for our family. Please continue to pray and PRAISE the Lord with us for the wonderful things he has and will continue to do in our lives!

Birthday Girl

Happy Girl

She's both a mama's girl and a daddy's girl (looking at her daddy)

Proud of the cake I made (my first)

her newborn picture on top

cutest rear end ever :)

we are definitely proud

Kate's waving to all her friends

"blow it out"

"this is TOO sweet" (something I would say for sure)

"ok, it's yummy" (something her daddy would say :))

"Aunt" Bonnie is our personal photographer :)

Georgia Birthday Party

Our friends Shana and Addyson

Thanksgiving with my Mom's family

Elyn Grace- almost 3 months old
Kate's cousin

Kate and her Great Aunt Faith

Kate playing with my 1st cousin Lan

my best friend Joy and her son Isaiah

12 months

10 month's & planning Kate's 1st birthday!

Well, I can't believe 2 months have gone by and I completely forgot to write for her 9 month! So sorry! Kate is 10 month's old now and we CANNOT believe how much she has grown! Since turning 9 month's old, she has started crawling, clapping, pulling up (not well), and now has 4 teeth! She has completely surpassed all of our expectations for a 10 month old! She understands when we don't want her to touch something, she squeals in excitement when we get her out of her crib from naps or in the mornings, she laughs when we do silly things, she loves to look at books, and she is crawling and exploring like crazy! I've offered her plenty of real food cut up into small pieces, but she doesn't want to have anything to do with that chewing business! She'd much rather have everything fed to her on a silver spoon and pureed! :) Right now, I don't mind it, but we will continue to work on it for sure. We are so proud of the little person she's turning into! She's absolutely precious! I can't believe we are already starting to plan her 1st birthday! I'm not sharing any hints about the theme yet, but don't worry, you'll know soon!

I know some of you are wondering what is going with us as far as Hank's job situation and him looking for a church to serve. Over the past 2 months A LOT has changed. The Lord has really tested our faith and reliance on Him. We don't know how we are making it on such a small budget, but the Lord is providing ways for it to happen! We are so grateful! So the update as of now is just simply we are staying put. Hank is going to start his Masters in January and hopefully the Lord will provide the finances for us to be able to work that out. In December/January I'm going to start watching a newborn for about 6 months! It is a friends baby girl and I'm really excited about it! I'm also going to start back teaching for MOPS (mothers of preschoolers) twice a month, and I'm excited about that as well! We are praying about what to do for Hank's job situation because if he could just have a few more hours with UPS, it'd be fine for him to stay there. Ideally, he should stay there because they provide such amazing benefits for the whole family, it pays pretty good, and the longer he stays the better his retirement would be. So as much as he'd like a change in scenery (I can't imagine seeing box after box every night of the week), it may be that the Lord is wanting him to stay put there. So please continue to pray for us as we seek the Lord's plan for us. The one thing we do have peace about is Hank starting on his Masters, so that is very exciting! The Lord is control and we are very grateful for that!

I will leave you with some pics!

While in GA for my birthday we got to see my best friend and her boy!

Isaiah is 7 weeks older than Kate! love him!

While in GA Kate got to go the GA Aquarium for the first time! She had a blast!

While in GA Kate got to see her Godfather Blake!

Kate went for a swim!

standing up! better move those candles Mom!

looking out the window!

college football time! Go Dawgs and War Eagle!

8 month's & family update

Well, I can hardly believe it, but Kate is 8 month's old! I didn't expect to feel so different about this month, but I have! I feel like she has grown up SO MUCH in the last month! She is rolling all over the place (we have baby proofed), she is spinning on her belly to get to toys she wants, she has started feeding herself these little puff's that are like cheerios (Gerber brand though), she loves books now and seems to really pay attention when I read to her, she absolutely notices when Hank or I leave the room and she gets really excited when we come back into the room, she sits up completely independently now (along with that comes her being able to sit in a high chair and ride in a grocery cart. YIKES!). We put away her swing, so now she has her jumperoo set up and that's it! At one time we had 5 large baby items set up for her (swing, bouncey seat, etc). It's amazing how much she has grown up right before our eyes! It almost seems over night!

The last update I had given you about Hank's job situation was that we were just simply looking to serve somewhere (anywhere). Within the past month and a half we have been in contact with a church in Georgia and are looking forward to meeting with them again at the end of the month. Hank will be preaching a trial sermon for their congregation on the 31st. We are looking forward to seeing what the Lord does. This would be such a blessing to be so much closer to family, and to finally be able to serve in the way that God has called us to do so. It's exciting to be headed into this next step in our lives. Please pray for us as we continue to seek God's purpose for our lives and for consistent peace through this process. I will share more on what God is doing in our lives with this church later on. Just continue to pray, and we will certainly be grateful.

I will leave you with a couple photos!

7 months (trying to sit up by herself in the tub)

7 months- watching PraiseBaby

8 months- first time having hair in a ponytail

7 months (1 day shy of 8)- sitting in high chair for the first time at Charlie's

8 months old

8 months old- happy girl!

7 months

Well, I just realized I never wrote a post after Kate's appointment last month. I will just say this about it... She's completely and perfectly healthy. :) She's still tall and skinny, but completely healthy!

I can't believe Kate is 7 months old! She's growing TOO FAST! She actually likes being on her belly now. She sleeps on her belly which is kinda cute, and she nuzzles her face into her mattress, which is even cuter! She's starting to "scoot" around a little and is happy to roll all over the floor for hours, if I'd let her. She's still not quite able to sit up by herself, but she's getting there. Hopefully pretty soon, she'll have that down too!

We are so blessed that she has never gotten sick and really has never had any other health problems. Thank you Lord for 7 amazing months with our beautiful baby girl! Looking forward to the months ahead! I am posting a few pics so you can see how much she's grown!

7 months old

6 months old

6 month pics

6 month pics

6 month pics

6 months old- trying to sit up

1st "swim" 6 months old

7 months old

what next, Lord?

Today, Kate is 6 month's old. I will write a blog about that after her appointment on Wednesday.

This post is more about the direction the Lord is sending us, or the lack of not knowing anyways. Hank graduated a year ago this month. Since then we have been searching for a church to serve. We haven't made any progress in this. We have communicated with Associational Missionaries and churches in numerous areas all over the Southeast. We've looked here, Virginia, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, and even Mississippi. The Lord continues to test our patience and trust in Him. Doors have closed and even not opened many many times. Hank has been working for UPS for 5 years. UPS has been such a blessing for our family. It has provided insurance for us, and even helped pay for Hank's education. It was one of our main reasons for staying put when he graduated, as I was pregnant with Kate. It made no sense to us, to give up something that would pretty much provide a free ride in having a baby. All the bills revolved around having Kate are completely payed for. Praise the Lord!  We are so grateful for UPS. I think UPS will always be bittersweet to Hank. It's always been for him to be there temporarily. It's not what he wants to do with his life, bottom line. We both feel so whole heartedly that it's time for a change in our lives. Our desire to serve at a church is so strong, but the Lord continues to close doors.

So here we are, a year later, still in Wake Forest, still at UPS, and just watching Kate grow up so fast. We feel so guilty for being so far from our families. Especially since he isn't in school, but we just don't have peace on where to go next. The Lord has provided an incredible house for us to stay in, thanks to The Forrester's. We are so blessed to call this house our "home." It's where Kate has grown up and there will always be a special place in our hearts for this home. It was the start of it all. When we had no place to go, after he graduated, the Lord used The Forrester's to provide a beautiful home for our growing family. We are so thankful. We wish we could pick this house up and take it with us, where ever we go. We will always feel that way.

We are so torn on what to do next with our lives. Hank has a desire to get his Master's. We both feel called to serve in ministry and we both feel like the Lord wants me to stay home with Kate. We are now at a crossroads. We need to do something. We need to make a decision. Financially, we are at the end. Something has to happen, something has to change. Please, please, please pray for us. Pray the Lord will open doors, and close one's that are not right for us. We want it to be evidently clear what the Lord is doing. The burden of providing for our family is bearing so hard on Hank. Pray for confidence for him, and pray that the Lord will provide for us as we make our decision.

We so appreciate any advice, prayers, or comments that any of you would like to share. We love all of ya'll and appreciate your support. Thank you in advance for your prayers for our family.

5 months

I've decided how I can hold my self accountable for writing in this blog. I'm going to write a blog monthly around the 9th of each month which is when Kate becomes a month older. Hopefully this will work. Not to say I won't still write other times because I may, but monthly is a start. :) Well, this month I took Kate to the doctor because she hadn't pooped in 9 days! I'm so glad I did because we found out that she had only gained 4 ounces in a month's time. So we now have started formula supplements after every feeding since my milk supply has decreased. We've seen a great improvement in her eating habits, sleeping habits, and overall "playtime." I'm so thankful that we figured this out when we did. After a week of being on the formula supplements she gained a pound! She's starting to look a little chunky, but super healthy and happy! When we were at the doctor's office the 2nd time to just get a check-up on her weight and make sure the formula was working out well, we had a little sad moment. The doctor she was supposed to see ended up not being able to because of an emergency. When we left we saw an ambulance out front. We saw 2 carseats inside the truck and a mom standing on the curb. I have no idea what was going on, but immediately started crying for that dear mom. I can't imagine how she must've felt. I wanted to run over there and hug her and offer to help, but Hank said it would be best not to because everyone was taking good care of her and her babies. So we just prayed for her and the babies right then. Wow! How quickly I praised the Lord for having such a healthy baby! We are so blessed! The small weight issues are just a drop in the bucket compared to what they could be.
 
Now for a funny story! Tonight I ran out to the store because I wanted to kill some time. When I was in the checkout line and realized that Kate was in gender neutral clothes it was too late because the lady next to me said, "How old is he?" and I said, "SHE is 5 months!" Oops! I remember not having a kid and seeing babies that were dressed that way and always wondered why that was. I promised myself I wouldn't ever do that, but oh well! LOL!

Family pic

Fun day outside with Mommy

5 months old

happy girl

Spring time??

Well, last week Kate was able to be outside A LOT and started to really enjoy it! Keep in mind she was inside for the first 3 months of her life! So she had to get used to the sun and wind and just being outside. She finally liked it and what happens?? It's rainy and cold ALLLLL weekend! Now it's supposed to be cold again the rest of this week! Boo! :( It is spring, so I'm waiting patiently for the warm weather to come and stay! We were very excited to have some of Hank's family come and visit us this weekend. We don't have family up often and when we do, it's always a wonderful time! Hank's Aunt Brenda and Nanny and Pop came to visit. We had the best time with them and they LOVED getting to LOVE on Kate! :) It was very sweet to see Kate's precious smiles when Nanny would talk to her and Kate loved playing in the floor with her Great Aunt Brenda! I heard Nanny say several times, that she never thought she'd live long enough to be a Great Grandmother. That always made me smile. :) Kate is sleeping sound in her room, and I think after the busy weekend we had, I'm going to bed! At 8:30! HA! I'm soooo a MOM! :)

Newborn, a whole new life!!

Well, it has been MONTHS since I wrote a post and I'm so sorry! Being on the computer is a luxury now, and most days it doesn't happen! I will make this all short and sweet because there is A LOT to update on!

Adilynn Kate Baskins
7lbs. 4oz. 21 1/2 inches
Nov. 9th 2010 5:42pm

I was induced and baby Kate STILL wouldn't hurry up! The doctor decided to break my water and that really got the ball rolling! My labor lasted 7 hours and 40 minutes and I pushed for 1 hour. I have to say that the Lord was amazing through the whole situation! It's an experience I will never forget! I was more comfortable than I ever thought I'd be. The labor and delivery was a piece of cake compared to the recovery! I would much rather do the L&D over again, before I'd do the recovery! I was very uncomfortable for weeks, but I slowly made improvements and eventually was able to get around on my own. Thankfully we had lots of help from family and friends! Kate has been an amazing baby thus far! Here are some little tidbits about her!

She has a head full of dark brown hair and it sticks straight up, just like her daddy!
She has been very alert since the second she was born! Even the doctor and nurses were shocked!
She seriously never even cried while we were at the hospital. Not even after delivery!
Her first expression she made was poking her bottom lip out!
She LOVES getting her diaper changed and taking a bath!
She's slept through the night since she was 3 weeks! She slept 4 1/2 hours the first night after she was born!
When we stick her ears out, she looks just like Hank!
She's been able to hold her head up since birth!

Kate is now almost 4 months old. She is so perfect and fits right in with us! We love her so much and are so blessed! She is now able to roll over from her belly to her back, almost able to sit up by herself, and stand up while we hold her hands! She also has the cutest laugh! She's such a smiley baby and I love it!

I'm home with her every day and Hank works 50-60 hours a week. It's tough at times, but the Lord has been so great to us. Please continue to pray for us as we seek to find out what is the next step for our lives. Hank does want to get his masters and he is looking for a full-time pastor position. Ideally we'd like to stay here in the area so that he can work on his masters, but we are open to whatever the Lord wants.

Well, Kate is napping and I better get some stuff done before she wakes up! Again, I'm so sorry for the delay in this post! Here are some pics from delivery and the past couple months!

40 weeks and 4 days

labor

first family photo

going home

first (bird) bath

 

1 month

2 months

Kate's 1st snow (she's had a lot since then)