Valentine Blessings

Eleanor Anne

2011-07-18T21:09:00.019-04:00

Eleanor Anne Valentine "Elli Anne" was born on July 13th, 2011 around 10:50 am. She weighed 8lbs 15 oz and was 20.5 inches long. My doctor asked me how much icecream I had been eating as he was delivering her :) I told him I had eaten an icecream cone every night for about 3 months. She is so precious and pretty laid back so far. Right now she looks a little more like Blake's pictures to me, but I see some of Layla in her too....definitely has her own look. Blake and Layla are very excited about their baby sister and so far have been very good with her. Layla loves to hold "her baby" and sits there very gently with her. We are so thankful to have three healthy children and thank God for blessing us with them!

Blake's 4 Years Old

2011-05-13T15:47:00.010-04:00

Blake turned 4 this past Monday, May 9th. We had his birthday party on Saturday and had so much fun! Blake has been counting down to his birthday since Christmas. For the past month, we've had to have a calendar that he marked off each day. Needless to say, he was very excited. He wanted to have a "Woody" birthday and a "Woody Birthday Cake" :) So, with having a wedding flower job the day before his party, I did my best to pull this off.

Thanks again to my mom coming down and helping me with the flowers :) And thanks to our small group for coming, my parents and Gma Valentine for making the drive down too.

Blake's favorite things right now:

Toy Story--Especially Woody "I like Buzz but I love Woody"

Cars Movie -- Lightning Mcqueen

Loves and is a bit obsessed with the color blue for some reason :) Everything blue has to be his

Loves puzzles

Loves his Leapster Explorer Computer -- He has learned how to write all of his letters, spell and write his name, starting to sound out words, draw shapes, draw pictures, and now he is learning spanish on it

He can spell and write Layla, Mom, and Dad all by himself also

He loves books

Loves going to church

Blake is a sweetheart. Always hugging me and saying, "I love you mommy." He loves his daddy and his sister too. One of my favorite times of the day is when Eric comes home and Blake runs up and hugs Eric and says "I missed you, daddy." Layla and Blake of course fight a lot but they play together a lot too. Blake is a little short for his age and Layla is tall, so I get asked if they are twins a lot because they are just about the same height :) We are going to try out soccer this summer and maybe tball, and he will probably go to preschool a couple of days starting in the fall too. Time goes fast. I'm so blessed to have my sweet boy!

Halloween2010

2010-11-01T17:19:00.000-04:00

Halloween 2010. Blake was Woody and Layla was Jessie from toy story. Yours truly made Layla's chaps and her red yarn wig and Blake's vest. It took me forever to read a pattern again. My 7th grade homec class isn't very fresh in my mind anymore :)

We had fun in between temper tantrums from Layla. Apparently a two year old can't understand why she has to be layered in thick clothes, wear two hats, get candy and not eat it right away at every house we go to, come home and only get a couple of pieces, then have to go to bed...go figure :) They did have fun though. Blake loved it and understood it more this year. However, his obsession with candy made it hard for him to only take one piece :) Every house he would try to get two or three HAND FULLS of candy before we could grab him...lol.

Costumes at the Museum

2010-11-01T14:30:00.008-04:00

We went to the Children's Museum twice this past week dressed in halloween costumes. I took Claire, who I watch on Mondays and Tuesdays, with us on the first trip. I met Autumn and Shelly, friends from high school, and their kids (Micah and Ava) on the second trip. We all had lots of fun :) Blake is Woody and Layla is Jessie, from Toy Story, for halloween.

Happy Birthday Layla

2010-09-27T13:20:00.003-04:00

Happy Belated Birthday to my sweet baby girl! She turned two on Sept. 1st. I can't imagine my life without her, and I'm so glad God knew what he was doing when he surprised us with Layla!

She is my lover girl. She loves to give hugs and kisses and loves to cuddle. She loves babies, is a good talker (some of her first words were 2/3 words together) (whats that, that's so nice, it's a doggie), she loves to dance, tease her brother :), and gets away with too much just by smiling at me with those big blue eyes :). Happy Birthday to my baby girl! I love you!

Freeeee, 1,2,Freeee

2010-05-09T21:41:00.004-04:00

"How old are you, Blake?"

"Freee. 1, 2, Freee (Counting on his fingers)."

Today is Mother's Day and my son's third birthday. I feel overwhelmingly blessed today with my two children, wonderful husband, great parents, and family.

Some things that I love that Blake is doing:

He loves to read and do puzzles. He is really good at doing puzzles, difficult ones. He also likes to memorize nursery ryhmees/stories. His favorites are Fe Fi Fo Fum, Nibble Nibble Like a Mouse (from Hansel and Gretal), Little Red Riding Hood (broke all to pieces), Molly My Sister. He also loves to sing songs, play games, pretend. I love his little french accent he has for some reason. Words like Cooper....Coop aire. He says I love you sooooo much....You're so precious. I love my precious boy!

Updated Family Pics

2009-12-13T22:31:00.021-05:00

1
2
3

22 23

Big thanks to Shelly for taking our pictures a couple of weeks ago! I'm taking requests if you want any printed off. Let me know the number and what size you would like.

Home Sweet Home: Before

2009-12-04T21:53:00.019-05:00

WE HAVE BEEN HOUSE HUNTING SINCE MAY. IT HAS BEEN A LONG JOURNEY, BUT WE ARE SO BLESSED TO FINALLY HAVE A HOME! WE CLOSED ON OUR HOME ONE MONTH AGO, AND WE'VE BEEN WORKING NON-STOP EVER SINCE. THE HOME WAS BANK OWNED AND NEEDED/NEEDS A LOT OF WORK. EVEN THOUGH WE STILL HAVE A LONG WAY TO GO, WE ARE STARTING TO SEE SOME GOOD RESULTS. HERE ARE SOME BEFORE PICTURES AND THE AFTER PICTURES ARE ON THE PREVIOUS POST. THE AFTER PICTURES ARE STILL NOT FINISHED BUT WILL GIVE YOU A GLIMPSE OF WHAT WE'VE BEEN DOING. THANKS AGAIN TO ALL OF OUR FAMILY WHO'VE HELPED US THROUGH THIS TRANSITION. WE COULDN'T HAVE DONE THIS WITHOUT YOU!

NEEDS A PAINT JOB, BUT WE LOVE THE LOT AND THE MATURE TREES, ESPECIALLY MY BIRCH TREE :)

NICE VIEW OF THE GOLF COURSE RIGHT BEHIND OUR HOUSE

KITCHEN: YIKES :)

LAUNDRY ROOM: OH HOW I LOVE WALLPAPER. A BIG THANKS TO MY MOM FOR TAKING THIS OFF THE WALL FOR ME :)

HALF BATH DOWNSTAIRS

FAMILY ROOM

LIVING ROOM: THE FIRST THING WE DID WAS RIP OUT ALL OF THE URINE STAINED CARPET FROM THE DOWNSTAIRS AND UPSTAIRS. THAT WAS FUN. THANKS FOR SHELLY FOR HELPING US DO THIS JOB. WE WERE REALLY BLESSED AT THE CLOSING ON OUR HOUSE AND ALSO FINDING SOME AMAZING SALES TO BE ABLE TO PUT NEW FLOORING THROUGHOUT THE HOUSE. PRAISE GOD BECAUSE THAT WAS SOMETHING WE HAD TO DO.

DINING ROOM

THREE COATS OF PAINT TO COVER ALL THE WOOD TRIM. TAKES FOREVER, BUT IT REALLY BRIGHTENED EVERY ROOM

MASTER BATH: TO THE RIGHT WE HAVE A NICE SIZED WALK IN CLOSET AND TO THE LEFT IS A SHOWER AND TOILET (WHICH REALLY NEED SOME WORK...YUK)

MASTER ROOM: HAPPY WITH THE SIZE OF THIS ROOM

GUEST BATH

BLAKE'S ROOM

LAYLA'S ROOM

GUEST ROOM/FUTURE NURSERY (NO I'M NOT PREGNANT)

UPSTAIRS HALLWAY: THEY WERE CEILING FAN HAPPY. NEVER SEEN A CEILING FAN IN A HALLWAY BEFORE

Home Sweet Home: After

2009-12-04T21:04:00.006-05:00

FOYER: TO THE LEFT IS A LIVING ROOM AND TO THE RIGHT IS THE DINING ROOM

ONE OF MY THRIFT STORE FINDS: MY INSPIRATION CHAIR FOR THIS ROOM. I WOULD LIKE TO TURN THIS ROOM INTO A DEN/LIBRARY/OFFICE

DINING ROOM

THROUGH THE HALLWAY IS THE FAMILY ROOM: LOVE THE BUILT IN BOOKSHELVES AND BEAMS IN THIS ROOM. WE WERE BLESSED WITH A GIFT FROM MY REALTOR THAT YOU CAN SEE ABOVE THE FIREPLACE :)

MASTER BEDROOM

BLAKE'S ROOM

LAYLA'S ROOM: ANOTHER GOODWILL FIND...MY INSPIRATION CHAIR FOR HER ROOM....LOVE IT :)

Candy Please

2009-11-01T20:34:00.012-05:00

Lol...Eric laughed when he saw this picture and said "is that what I look like when we're trying to get the kids ready and out of the house"

Mommy's eyes :)

Blake made it down one street and said "sit down?" :)

Blake was a puppy dog, and Layla was a kitty cat. I couldn't really get Blake to say "trick or treat," but he would say "candy please" sometimes. We only made it down 1 1/2 streets, but he got double the candy...still trying to get the concept of "just one, blake" across to a 2 year old :) They both had fun!

Grandma's Lap

2009-10-21T15:19:00.002-04:00

"I want to sit on grandma's lap!" Lol, going through pictures, I had to post this one. Also, to say a big thank you to my parents for letting me, my children, and my two dogs stay with them for the past few months. My children are not always little angels :) A big thank you to Shelly and Brian for letting Eric stay with them also. We finally found a temporary furnished apartment to live at in Indy, and we should be closing on our house next week :)

Babies Babies :)

2009-09-26T21:46:00.003-04:00

Molly Annalynne
Iris Elizabeth

We just had two nieces born within a few days of each other. My brother and sister in law had Iris Elizabeth on the 20th. Eric's sister and brother in law had Molly Annalynne on the 24th. Precious little blessings! Congratulations to all of you!

Layla's 1st Party

2009-09-23T23:05:00.008-04:00

Layla had fun at her first birthday party a couple of weeks ago. Thanks to all our family who came, and thank you also for all the great presents you got her! We appreciate you!

I have to update that she really started to take off walking the week after her birthday. She's walking a lot now.

Happy Birthday Layla

2009-09-01T22:34:00.007-04:00

What a gorgeous, but kind of scary ;), smile. She just had another tooth pop through on the bottom right side (her right side) this morning.

My baby girl is one year old today. That year went so fast! We're having a little party for her this coming weekend. So, we went to the Toy House and to Toys R Us to play with toys and look for bday gifts today. I need to get her some girly toys so she stops stealing all Blake's cars and toys. He doesn't like that very much :)

She is such a precious little girl. She is walking around holding on to things, but doesn't really want to let go yet. I've seen her take about 5 steps on her own a couple of times. She just needs to make the decision to take off. She is a climber. Her favorite thing to do is crawl/walk up the stairs holding onto our fingers. She will walk all the way up grandma's small slide and slide down on her belly. She is also loving to crawl under things...tables, chairs, tunnels. I don't really know what kind of toys she likes yet besides everything Blake has. Everything still seems to end up in her mouth :) She does like to play with balls....rolls and chases after them.

She will wave hi and bye bye and actually tries to say bye (ba) sometimes. She likes to clap and dance. She will hold 1 finger up when you ask her how old she is and then claps for herself.

The gift of raising children is such a blessing from God!

Layla & Lilly

2009-06-09T21:48:00.002-04:00

These pics are from a few months ago. Lilly, my niece, was feeding Layla a bottle and playing with her. She is going to make great babysitter someday :)

Takin a Walk

2009-05-27T13:26:00.001-04:00

Prayer Request

2009-05-19T13:47:00.002-04:00

Please keep my friend, Dan Page, and his family in your prayers. His mother was just killed in a car accident yesterday morning. Their family has really been through some hard hard times the past few years. Dan's brother was first diagnosed with leukemia in 2005. He did battle through it and God has healed him. Then, his grandmother and grandfather both were diagnosed with cancer. His grandfather just passed away a few weeks ago. His grandmother is still battling the cancer. Then, his father was just diagnosed with cancer a couple of months ago. Now, his mother was just killed.

My heart just aches for them. Please pray that the Holy Spirit would wrap them with a spirit of love and comfort right now. Also, that God would bring about some amazing things out of these horrible tragedies. Sharon, Dan's mother, was a woman of God and a great example to everyone she met.

Thank you for your prayers!

Daddy's Little Helper

2009-05-17T20:26:00.001-04:00

Blake's first oil change. He loves to help Daddy :)

Spring Break

2009-05-15T08:02:00.002-04:00

We went down to visit my grandparents in Florida over Eric's spring break. It was our first family vacation, and we had a lot of fun.

Mini-Marathon

2009-05-13T14:59:00.002-04:00

Blake, Angie, Travis, and Steph came down to Indy 2 weeks ago to run the mini-marathon with Eric and I. They did much better than I did, but I'm just glad I survived. I trained a little bit better than the first time I ran the mini, but still not good enough. Then we all stayed in a hotel downtown without any children. Although, we all love them very much, it was a nice little break. Thanks again for coming down, cousins! We had a blast!

Zoo and Mother's Day

2009-05-13T14:55:00.000-04:00

Two Years Old

2009-05-12T13:48:00.003-04:00

I thought this pic was hillarious.

My baby boy turned two on Saturday. We didn't really do much to celebrate because I had a wedding the day before and Eric was down in Indy. But, we had a little last minute cookie cake with just the grandparents. Then Eric and I took the kiddos to the zoo in Indy to celebrate his bday and mother's day on Sunday.

Blake is starting to talk a lot more. Most of his words are still one syllable and require translation, but he is starting to say some words with two syllables. Cars are still his favorite toys. He also likes trains, and he loves to read. A couple of weeks ago he started reading books to himself. He will sit there and babble for an hour to himself. He also loves being outside and would live out there if I let him.

Blake has also gotten a lot more lovie. For awhile there, he wouldn't give me kisses or hugs. But, in the last month, he started giving me kisses and big bear hugs around my neck that make me melt. He goes back and forth loving and fighting with Layla, but he is a good big brother.....taking her toys and her binky to her, giving her hugs and kisses, and trying to get her to crawl to him. Layla started crawling on Blake's bday. She has been scooting for a couple of weeks, but finally took off forward on Saturday.

Being a mother is such a blessing. I thank God and pray for them everyday. God Bless all you mothers out there!

He Has Risen!

2009-04-14T11:36:00.004-04:00

First Easter Egg Hunt...kids were sooo adorable.

Layla had enough of the pictures :)

Happy Easter to everyone. We traveled to Florida for Eric's spring break to visit my grandparents, and we had a wonderful time. We had a crazy experience getting down there with canceled flights and more delayed flights with two children, but we had a great time once we got there. I'll be posting pictures soon.

After growing up in the church my whole life, being active in my youth group, attending a christian college, and going to chapel 3 days a week throughout college, I've heard a lot of sermons over the years. However, God never ceases to amaze me how I am always learning new things about him and different perspectives. In church on Sunday, I loved what the pastor said about Christ and the resurrection.

He described his loving relationship with his mother first. Then later said that you can't decide to believe in Christ and His resurrection anymore than you decided that your mother was your mother. The evidence for the resurrection is vast (please study up on this if you never have). Your mother simply was and is your mother. Christ simply was and is. The resurrection simply happened. The decision we all have to make is what you do with this information.

We can't simply say, ya I believe in God. If we truly believe and accept Christ, we must give our entire life to him, trust him, obey him, seek to learn more about him, grow in a daily relationship with him, stop living a selfish life and live for him instead.

Thank you, God, for sending your son for me. Your mercy and love is overwhelming!

Hot Cheetos

2009-03-11T11:22:00.003-04:00

I walked in the living room a couple of days ago, and Blake was sitting on the chair eating Jalapeno Cheetos. He cracks me up. Since when does a 1 1/2 year old like hot spicy things. My son does.

Jack 2 Years Old

2009-03-11T11:08:00.004-04:00

Lilly was mad that she didn't get sprinkles :) Sometimes I can't help but smile when kids pout :)

The kids playing ring around the rosie (sooo cute)!

Layla watching the kids play...lol.

My nephew, Jack, just turned 2 years old. Cory and Kim had a birthday party for him this past weekend. He is such a cutie pie, and I just love his personality! It was a lot of fun getting the kids together. Happy Birthday, Jack!

Family Pics

2009-03-10T14:21:00.002-04:00

Here are some pics from first week in February. Liz, my cousin, had a baby shower. It was good to see the extended fam.

Blake 22 Months

2009-03-09T22:26:00.004-04:00

Blake is 22 months old today. He is starting to talk more and more everyday, finally starting to try to repeat things we say.

Some of his words are: mama, dada, lalala (layla), pa (for gpa), ma (for gma), jor (jordan), je (jess), shh (shelly), bri (brian), all the names of his cars (from the cars movie), babu (vroom vroom), row row (row row row your boat), choo choo (train), brush, nana (banana), blue, red, boo (book), mi (milk), ju (juice), baple (apple), hiiii (hi), bye bye, ba (baxter), lots of animal noises.

His favorite things are cars. Lines them up, pushes them off things, sends them down the slide, sleeps with them, hides them, and takes them everywhere with him. He also likes trains, airplanes, books, playing outside, and his dada. He loves his mama too, but he is a daddy's boy. One of my favorite parts of the day is to see him run to eric when he comes home from work.

He warms up to Layla more as she is getting older. He can be mean to her too, but he really likes it when she laughs at him. I love my little guy so much and thank God everyday for blessing me with him!

Update on Me

2009-03-09T08:48:00.004-04:00

Hey everyone. Sorry I haven't updated in awhile. I've been really busy with my floral business that I started. After having kids, I realized how much I wanted to be able to stay home with them. But, I still wanted to be able to help out and bring in some extra money also.

I laugh at how many businesses I've tried to start over the past 3 years. None of them worked out very well. Looking back, I think that I was trying to create and force things to happen instead of letting God open doors by using some of the gifts He has given me.

Doing wedding flowers has been in the back of my mind this whole time, but I think that I just doubted myself that I could be successful at it. I finally decided to go for it and put at add on craigslist. I received an almost overwhelming response. I just had my first wedding on Valentine's day, two weeks ago had an event at the Art Museum in Indianapolis, and I have 6 more weddings booked for the rest of the year.

I also found an awesome person, Chelsea, who does blog designs to help me create a more professional blog. She is in the process of making it right now, but head over and check it out if you get a chance. I also have some new flower pictures on there. It is the www.rebeccavalentine.blogspot.com site . Chelsea is very reasonable in pricing if any of you are interested. She also has a lot of free backgrounds (like the one on this blog). Check her out at http://aquapoppydesigns2.blogspot.com/ . Love you all!

Jordan's 1 Year Bday

2009-02-04T11:19:00.006-05:00

These are a few pictures taken at Jordan's 1st birthday party over Thanksgiving. The cousins had lots of fun together.

Big Blue Eyes

2009-01-30T11:27:00.003-05:00

Layla at 5 months. Shelly snapped these adorable pictures of Layla two days ago when she babysat for me. She is growing up so fast.

Blake's Blooper

2009-01-29T14:07:00.005-05:00

This is going to be one of our funniest home video moments :) He was ok :) He actually jumped back up and almost did it again :) You might want to watch/read the post below this one first to know what was going on.

Layla Laughing

2009-01-29T12:07:00.004-05:00

This is the video of Layla laughing at Blake. Blake was falling down and rolling around on the bed. He really liked her laughing at him. It is fun to see them start interacting with each other!

Rolly Polly

2009-01-18T17:43:00.004-05:00

Adding on to this post: Layla had a doctor appointment today. She weighs 16 lbs 10 oz and is 25.5 inches long. She is the 97% for both of these...big girl :) She had a good laugh with her big brother today. Blake was rolling around on the bed, and she was laughing pretty hard at him. He enjoyed the attention and kept doing it for her and laughing with her. I actually got some of it on tape, so I'll try to put it on the blog.

Layla rolled over for the first time this afternoon. I wanted to jot this down before I forgot. My sister-in-law, Jess, had a good point that this blog is kind of like a journal, so it is good to write updates/milestones of the kiddos along the way. Now if I could just get her to take a bottle. Any tips?

Pretty Ears

2009-01-17T21:07:00.002-05:00

I got Layla's ears pierced 3 weeks ago. I kept going back and forth on whether or not I wanted to get them done because I didn't want to hurt her. But, she only cried for about 15 seconds. Then, she was fine and didn't even act they were sore when I cleaned them. They look so adorable!!

Snowboarding

2009-01-06T16:22:00.002-05:00

Yeeaahh...I was finally able to go snowboarding for the first time in three years because I've been pregnant for the last two winters. We went with John and Kristin for a night ski and had so much fun. Special thanks to my parents for babysitting and allowing me to escape for a little bit!

Family Visit

2009-01-05T19:36:00.004-05:00

Shelly and Steph caught really getting into the kiddy dance at the Children's Museum :)

So hard to get both of them to smile at the same time :)

Stephanie (Eric's cousin), Travis and their two kids, Olivia and Landen, came to visit us a couple of months ago. We had such a great time with them. Thanks again for coming down you guys!!

Merry Christmas

2008-12-19T15:29:00.003-05:00

Hi everyone. Sorry that I haven't updated my blog in awhile. I've been really busy getting ready for the holidays, and I've received a lot of interest for my wedding flower business. I just posted some fall family pics below this that Shelly took of us a couple of months ago. I have more pictures to post and more about our awesome parenting book that we are reading. Hopefully, things will calm down a little after the holidays.

Eric and I have our five year wedding anniversary coming up on the 27th. I can't believe how fast time goes. I'm very blessed to have such a wonderful husband and father to my children. With every year, I grow to love and appreciate him more and more. Happy Anniversary, babe. I love you!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all of you. We love you all very much!

Fall Family Pics

2008-12-16T14:55:00.021-05:00

STUDMUFFINS

Shelly did another amazing job taking pictures of us a couple of months ago. It's always so much work taking family pictures when you have little ones. Shell is becoming a professional funny face maker, funny noise maker, and dancer :) Thanks again, Shell!!

Blake is a little over 19 months now and Layla is 3 1/2 months. Blake is really into cars, trains, and airplanes. Layla is smiling a lot at us now and even laughing a little. They are a lot of work, but such a blessing!

Glad You Made It

2008-11-10T10:59:00.002-05:00

Glad you made it to our new family site. Feel free to check out my flower site also and leave me comments.

I'm kind of excited about starting this business. I just put an ad on craigslist, and I am getting about 2 or 3 contacts per day. I didn't really expect so many so quick, but it's great :) I'm looking at doing weddings up in Michigan and down here in Indy, so if you know anyone getting married, please pass on my information. You can give them my new email rebeccavalentine@live.com and my floral blog address www.rebeccavalentine.blogspot.com . Thanks. Love you all!

The Parent/Person You Want To Be

2008-11-03T08:59:00.000-05:00

Becoming a parent has really made me reflect on who I am as a person and who I want to be. Ever since Blake was born, I have wanted to really sit down with Eric and get on the same page on our goals for parenting our kids. However, every time I thought about it, it was such an overwhelming task. There is so much to think about when it comes to parenting. Where do I start?

I wanted to find a book that dealt with parenting issues, so I went searching. A lot of parenting books are for parents of older children who are dealing more with discipline/teaching their children about God/etc. I'm starting to get to that point with Blake, but I'm not quite there yet.

Something God has taught both Eric and I by our parents and others is that who you are as a person has more of an impact on your kids than anything you verbally teach them (although that is important too). I ended up finding a great parenting book that has this message at the heart of it. It is called "The Parent You Want To Be," by Les and Leslie Parrott. I would add that it is really about the person I think everyone would want to be. The book has you look at your pasts individually and then has you and your spouse go through questions together. The authors' website has a link for you to do this activity in case any of you would like to. I thought I would include it. Hope you find this interesting :) We sure have :)

http://www.realrelationships1.com/downloads/parentingprofile.pdf

Happy Halloween

2008-11-01T13:11:00.001-04:00

I love this picture. (eric took it)

What is this stuff?Oooo, candy is good :)

He was trying to fit his sucker and his binky in his mouth at the same time :)

We had fun trick or treating. We just went to a few houses around our neighborhood. Blake was still figuring this whole halloween thing out. He put all of his candy in his trunk instead of the halloween bucket I bought him. He sure liked eating a few pieces when he got home :)

The Big Hunt

2008-11-01T13:07:00.000-04:00

These are a few pics of the bird hunting trip. Poor birdies :( We made pheasant casserole and it was good.

Night Before the Big Hunt

2008-10-31T21:03:00.000-04:00

Jack, isn't he a cutie :)

Lilly and Layla. Lilly was being a little shy :) We got more really cute ones of them together with my mom's camera though.

Grandpa Perry and Layla

Like father like son :)

Jordan and JackGot the beanie at baby gap. I just love it :) We are practicing keeping it on :)

Eric and my brothers, Cory and Mike, went on a bird hunting trip to Pennslyvania. We all got together the night before. These are a few pics from that.

Cousins

2008-10-21T16:06:00.000-04:00

Eric's cousin, Blake, his wife, Angie, and their two kids, Brooklyn and Riley, came down for a visit this past weekend. I didn't get very many pics, but here are a few. We went to the zoo. They had a halloween zoo boo this weekend. The kids were all dressed up in their costumes and they had trick or treating for them and other things too. Riley was a lady bug, and Brooklyn was the little mermaid. Their kids are so adorable. Blake is going to be a monkey this year. That's one of the animal noises he makes. He's so cute in his costume. I couldn't believe he stayed in it all day :)

Family

2008-10-21T16:04:00.000-04:00

Here are a few more pics of family when we were home a few weeks ago. My grandpa perry and his wife, Donna, and also, my uncle Larry. Love you all!

Grandma and Grandpa Valentine

2008-10-21T16:00:00.000-04:00

Grandma and Grandpa Valentine came over to visit when Layla was 2 weeks old. These are some pictures of our visit. Grandma made some beautiful things and one of them was a christening gown for Layla. Thanks again, grandma and grandpa :)

He's My Son

2008-10-13T22:46:00.000-04:00

I'm going to try to start writing more on my blog about what's going on in my life/our family. I've enjoyed reading some of my friends entries on their blogs, and they've inspired me to start writing.

Today, I listened to the Christian song, "He's not just anyone, he's my son," on the radio, and it brought me to tears. The song is about a mom singing this to God in a prayer for her sick son.
Adjusting to having two kids these past six weeks has been hard, and I find myself just trying to make it through the day sometimes. But, I love when God gives me little reminders of all of the blessings in my life that I am so thankful for. Just to have two beautiful kids that are completely healthy is such a blessing from God.

Like the mom in the song, holding her son's hand as he slept and singing this prayer to God for God to let her take her son's place, I pictured myself ever having to be in that same situation with my son, Blake. Since having kids, I've realized how powerful a parent's love for their children truly is. It is beyond what anyone can ever describe. That realization has also allowed me to understand God's love for us so much better. It's hard for me to fathom that no matter what I've done or how unworthy I am, God loved me that much to send his son to die for me. But now I can see that a parent would do anything to save their child. They would gladly take their place if they could. Praise the Lord for His amazing love!

LYRICS: I'm down on my knees again tonight,I'm hoppin' this prayer will turn out right.See, there is a boy that needs Your help.I've done all that I can do myselfHis mother is tired,I'm sure You can understand.Each night as he sleepsShe goes in to hold his hand,And she triesNot to cryAs the tears fill her eyes.

Can You hear me?Am I getting through tonight?Can You see him?Can You make him feel all right?If You can hear meLet me take his place some how.See, he's not just anyone, he's my son.

Sometimes late at night I watch him sleep,I dream of the boy he'd like to be.I try to be strong and see him through,But God, who he needs right now is You.Let him grow old,Live life without this fear.What would I beLiving without him here?He's so tired,And he's scaredLet him know that You're there.

Can You hear me?Am I getting through tonight?Can You see him?Can You make him feel all right?If You can hear meLet me take his place some how.See, he's not just anyone, he's my son.Can You hear me?Am I getting through tonight?Can You see him?Can You make him feel all right?If You can hear meLet me take his place somehow.See, he's not just anyone.Can You hear me?Can You see him?Please don't leave him,He's my son.

More of the Kiddos

2008-10-09T19:45:00.000-04:00

19
18
17

16
15
14

13
12
11

9
8
7
6

Kiddos

2008-10-07T22:14:00.000-04:00

5
4
3

2
1

My awesome sister-in-law, Shelly, took some more pictures for me of the kids. It only took hundreds of pictures to get two good ones of them both together. Layla is going to be a tough girl after Blake trying to roll all over her. Thanks again, Shell!

Pilot Blake

2008-10-07T14:58:00.000-04:00

We have a small airport across the street from our house that gives flying lessons. One of my friends gave me the idea of taking Blake over there to see the planes land and take off. There is a picnic table right up close. So, we went over last night, and a nice man saw us watching. He was giving helicopter lessons, and he let Blake come look at his plane and 2 of his helicopters. Blake loved it. He is really loving airplanes, cars, and animals right now. He puts his arms out like an airplane and goes "vroooom." It's so cute.

Flour Face

2008-10-02T13:50:00.000-04:00

Blake helped me make banana bread a few days ago. This was his first time getting to lick the bowl :)

Conner Prairie

2008-09-26T13:22:00.000-04:00

Conner Prairie had their country fair this weekend. Blake had fun petting the animals. The first pic shows my hair all chopped off. I'll get a closer picture of it later. It is a lot easier, so I really like it :)

Bath Time

2008-09-26T13:18:00.000-04:00

Blake likes his towel, mom :) This was Layla's first bath.

Layla Updated

2008-09-26T13:14:00.001-04:00

Here are a few more pics I snapped of Layla at 2 weeks old. She sure sleeps a lot. That's ok with me though. It has been quite an adjustment having two children to take care of. I'm slowly getting better at it, but my mom did come down this past week to help me out. Thanks again, mom :)

Children's Museum with Family

2008-09-26T12:59:00.000-04:00

Chad, Meghan, and the boys came to visit at the end of August. These are some pics of the boys at the Children's Museum. They sure had a lot of fun:)

Layla Michel

2008-09-02T18:08:00.000-04:00

Layla Michel Valentine arrived yesterday morning at 10:26 a.m., weighing 7 lbs 14 oz., and measuring 20 inches long. She is healthy, feeding, and sleeping great. She has a very sweet temperment so far. Hardly crying very much at all, and just seems happy and content :) During the surgery (c-section), the hospital was playing "How Great is our God." Babies are such little miracles. What a blessing God gives us.

Blake 15 Months

2008-08-17T12:32:00.000-04:00

We've been meaning to get some updated photos of Blake, but just haven't found the time to do it. Finally, last night we went out to a field by Shelly's house, and Shelly took some awesome pics. Here are a few that she posted on her blog. Only two weeks before we take some more with his new baby sister :)

Children's Museum with Jaxon

2008-08-15T20:33:00.000-04:00

Katie Morris, one of my good friends from college, came over to visit me a couple of days ago with her son, Jaxon. Jaxon is just four days younger than Blake. We took them to the Children's Museum here in Indy, and they had so much fun. The museum is so great for kids of all ages. I was shocked to find out they had so much to do for this age. Thanks for visiting us, Kate and Jax. We had a great time!!

Indiana State Fair

2008-08-15T20:20:00.000-04:00

This was for you Shelly and Brian. Lucy the cow.

We went to the Indiana State Fair this past weekend. Blake had fun looking at the animals and sitting on the tractors. There were a million tractors. Guess that's Indiana for ya. Oh and we got to see the world's largest and second largest boar....they were a little over 1100 lbs :)

Choo Chooo

2008-08-05T11:49:00.000-04:00

We just went to an antique store tonight, and Eric came up with this idea for the smoke stack. It'll look more fitting when I paint it black, but I thought it worked great.

This is one of the projects we've been trying to get done before the baby comes. I'm planning on putting Blake in a toddler bed in December, and I new we just wouldn't have time once school started and with the new baby. So, Eric and his grandpa built this train toddler bed for Blake. It is sooo adorable, and we aren't even done with it. My mom and grandma are going to paint the wheels for me. We are also going to add some more details like a smokestack on the engine, a sign, hopefully a little bell, and whatever else we find. I'll take more pictures once it is done. Thanks for everyones help on this project, and thanks for bringing it down this weekend, Dad.

Blake and the baby are going to have to share a room for awhile...yikes...we'll see how that is going to go. The rest of the pictures are the baby's little corner of the room.

Brown County Camping

2008-08-05T11:44:00.000-04:00

My parents, Kristin, John, and us went camping for the weekend over Eric's birthday. I didn't take enough pictures here either :( We had a blast. I just wished we could have stayed longer. My family used to camp here when we were kids. It was more beautiful than I remember. Definitely planning on making more trips there!

Brushing Teeth

2008-08-05T11:41:00.000-04:00

Blake is loving to brush his teeth now. I probably was suppose to start this earlier, but better late then never...right!?

4th of July at the Cottage

2008-08-05T11:35:00.000-04:00

Here are a few pictures from the 4th of July up at the cottage. I have to apologize, I didn't take very many because Blake ended up sick most of the week. He had some weird virus and fever the first 3 days, and everybody got food poisoning the last couple of days. Not a great week, but still nice to see everyone.

Water Boy

2008-08-05T11:27:00.000-04:00

Sorry I haven't posted in awhile. We've been up in Michigan, at the cottage, camping, and we've been working hard to get ready for the new baby. This is Blake swimming in his little pool. He absolutely loves the water. In the big pool, he trys to do the doggie paddle...kicking his feet and splashing his arms. He's a natural :)....kidding...just being a mom.

Smell The Flowers

2008-06-12T12:05:00.000-04:00

This is one of the funniest things Blake does. Daddy taught him how to smell the flowers one day while we were shopping for hanging baskets. Blake thought it was so funny and started doing it all the time. At first, he would just lean over and touch the flowers with his nose. Now, his face has evolved into a full out scrunched up nose, teeth hanging out, giant sniff. It is hillarious. The first few pictures are his face when you tell him to "smell the flowers, Blake." :)

Claustrophobia

2008-06-12T11:57:00.000-04:00

What is it with my child and loving to climb in everything. He sure isn't claustrophobic.

Water Baby

2008-06-12T11:53:00.000-04:00

We are going over to Shelly's pool, and Blake absolutely loves the water.

Nature Hike

2008-06-12T11:42:00.000-04:00

A couple of weeks ago, we went on a little nature hike not too far from our house. I have a picture of me when I was around 5 years old inside a dead hollow tree that looks just like the first picture of Blake in the tree. If I get a hold of that picture, I'll put it on.

I'm A Good Boy :)

2008-05-30T12:42:00.000-04:00

Shelly took this picture of Blake yesterday while he was eating, and I thought it was just too cute. But, then again I am his mom. Shell watches Blake every week for me, and I'm so grateful to her!!

Pirate Party

2008-05-21T13:00:00.000-04:00

Isn't the cake adorable. I wish I could take credit for this but I can't. We had it made, and she did a great job! The pirate is holding a treasure chest and she had the chocolate gold coins sticking up on top of it. :)

Grandma got him a pirate hat, but he didn't keep it on very long. Eric wore it most of the day :)

Cory, my big brother, his son Jack (right), and Blake
Niece and Nephew, Lilly and Jack

My little bro, Mike, and his son, Jordan sporting

the cool pirate party hat.

Blake had his first birthday party this past weekend up in Michigan. He enjoyed getting to eat cake for a second time and make a mess. We had a pirate theme party, mainly for Eric because he loves pirates. The kids attempted to destroy their first pirate pinata. They didn't make much damage, but we helped them out. I'll put more video clips on later of that. Blake didn't have much of a clue what was going on, but he had fun. Thanks to all our family who came, and Blake thanks you all for the gifts also. He is loving all of them :)

Six Months and Counting

2008-05-20T13:28:00.000-04:00

Doctor said she had some really long legs. She

was playing with her toes.

This is her heart beating. Doc said the four

chambers of her heart looked healthy :)

See her little left hand wave hi to us :)

I had my second ultrasound today. They went through and looked at all her little parts in detail. Everything looked healthy and normal. Praise the Lord. She is still a girl, so I was thankful for that...seeing as how I've already bought some girl things and the grandmas have too. Due date is September 4th...coming quick :) I'm still in shock.

1 Year Old

2008-05-10T15:02:00.001-04:00

My baby is 1 year old. I can't believe it. Blake's 1st birthday was yesterday, May 9th. We didn't do much because we are having a little birthday party for him in Michigan next weekend. But, we had a lunch date at McDonalds, and Blake got a happy meal. Then, Aunt Shelly came over later, and I made Blake a birthday cake. He really liked it. I think the sugar started hitting him by the end :)

Oh, and if you are wondering what happened to his face. He took his first bad fall a couple of days ago. It was scary, but he was alright. I cried longer than he did. I thank God for all the near misses and pray everyday for them.

Pick Up Your Toys

2008-05-10T14:55:00.000-04:00

The toys were suppose to go in the bin, but Blake was having more fun taking them out and climbing in. Why are they so cute when they climb in things?

Just Married

2008-04-17T11:18:00.000-04:00

My sister, Kristin, got married to John Germanceri this past Saturday. She looked absolutely beautiful, and the whole wedding was gorgeous also. John is a great guy, and we're happy to have him in the family! I didn't take very many photos, so I'll be posting Shelly Valentine's photos. She was the photographer and did another amazing job!! Shelly just posted a lot of pictures of Kristin and John's wedding on her blog. They look amazing. Check them out at www.shellyvalentine.blogspot.com

Shocking Announcement

2008-04-04T21:45:00.000-04:00

I have been feeling a pregnant nauseous feeling now since around Christmas time. I took a pregnancy test back then, but it was negative. So, I didn't worry too much; however, the nauseousness never went away. I took another test 3 weeks ago, and this one was positive. Eric and I weren't really planning on having these two so close together, but we weren't really preventing either. I figured maybe I'm a couple of months along, and that would be ok. So, I went in for my first ultrasound today to find myself 4 1/2 months pregnant and having a healthy baby girl. Eric and I were shocked but excited too. Another precious little miracle. Praise God!

Hot Mommas

2008-04-02T12:41:00.000-04:00

Katie Morris and Becky Shepherd are two of my bestfriends from college. We all got pregnant right around the same time and all had boys:) Blake and Jaxon (left) are only 4 days apart, and Caden (right) is only 2 months older. Hopefully, they will be great friends also. This pic was taken at Caden's 1 yr birthday party about 1 month ago.

Blake Dedicated

2008-04-01T10:38:00.000-04:00

Eric and I dedicated Blake to the Lord a couple of months ago at our church. Dedicating children to the Lord is a tradition started way back in Biblical times. Eric and I truly believe that Blake is a child of God, and God has entrusted us to raise him to know Jesus Christ personally. Our number one desire for our children is that they will grow up to serve Christ with their our heart, soul, mind, and strength. "Train up a child in the way he should go, Even when he is old he will not depart from it." Proverbs 22:6. Parents can only do so much for their children, but I praise God that when we give back to God what he gave us, we can rest in the peace that He will take care of everything. I can trust that He will bring to completion the good work started in Blake. I serve a wonderful Savior that loves each one of us personally, one who cares about every detail of our lives, and will be there with me in every situation! Praise God!!

Blake loves to take peoples glasses :) Even the pastors

Florida

2008-03-31T11:52:00.000-04:00

Blake and I got to go to Florida the first week of February to visit my grandparents. This was his first time at the beach, and he loved it. He had fun digging holes in the sand and tried eating it too. He loved the water. It was a little chilly, but he didn't care. He kept trying to crawl way out in it.

Kisses

2008-03-28T16:47:00.000-04:00

Some of our best friends, Derek and Becky, came up from North Carolina for Christmas. Their son, Caden, is only 2 months older than Blake. They were so adorable playing together, and we just loved getting a clip of them kissing.

I Love Whip Cream

2008-03-28T16:09:00.000-04:00

Grandpa Valentine spoiled Blake at Christmas and gave him some homemade whip cream. Needless to say, he loved it.

Blake Loves Lily

2008-03-28T15:34:00.000-04:00

This was a cute shot of Blake and Lily on Christmas day. Lily is my adorable little neice.

Just for John

2008-03-28T09:43:00.000-04:00

John, we taped this for you back over the holidays. It is getting to you a little late, but I'm sure you'll still enjoy it. Looking forward to the wedding and you becoming our brother.

Laughing with the Cousins

2008-03-27T21:20:00.001-04:00

We visited Meghan, Chad, and the boys out in Colorado in October. We got this video clip of John, Aiden, and Blake laughing. This was the first time Blake laughed for so long. It was so fun seeing them together!

My Little Helper

2008-03-27T14:37:00.000-04:00

Blake was "helping" me fold laundry this morning. He has just staring loving to climb in and out of things. He also thought it was hilarious to take all my folded clothes out and throw them on the floor :)

We're Back!!

2008-03-27T14:25:00.000-04:00

Well, I'm finally getting around to updating my blog. Can you believe it? It has only been about 6/7 months. A lot has been going on. We sold our home at the end of November. It was bitter sweet, but we praise God for being able to sell it with the market being so slow. We have also moved twice since then also, so we've been pretty busy. I'm starting to unpack and get settled finally, so I'll work on updating this more often again.

Blake is great. He is getting so big way too fast. He is a little over 10 months old now, and his one year party will be around May 9th. I can't believe it!! He just starting to take a couple steps on his own. The farthest I've seen him go is 5 or 6 steps in a row. He is a very curious little bugger and wants to get into everything. Here he is helping me put the dishes away.

Feet Discovery

2007-10-13T10:01:00.000-04:00

Blake discovered his feet about 3 ? weeks ago. I can't keep up. He seems like he is doing something new all the time. The spit bubbles just started this past week. Not to sure how I feel about that one, but it is kind of cute to see him so entertained by it.

First Real Food

2007-10-03T15:41:00.000-04:00

Blake tried some apple sauce a couple weeks ago for the first time. He wasn't to sure about it. He makes some funny faces, but then acts like he wants more.

Blake and Daddy

2007-10-03T14:48:00.000-04:00

This was Blake a couple of weeks ago. He is almost 5 months old now, and I can't even believe it. He is really reaching out and grabbing for things. He also likes to touch our faces.

Zoo

2007-10-03T11:26:00.001-04:00

Eric's mom was down here visiting us this past weekend. It was a beautiful weekend, so we decided to go to the zoo. Blake really did look at the animals, and he loves to be outside.

Lily, Jack, Blake

2007-09-18T17:24:00.001-04:00

Here are a few pictures of Lily, Jack, and Blake. Lily and Jack are my brother, Cory, and sister-in-law, Kimberly's kids. Jack and Blake liked each other. They kept trying to grab and eat each other. Lily is a good big sister/cousin. She loves "Baby Blake," as she calls him. The classic picture is the one of Blake's smirk. I know what you all are going to say about mine and Eric's smirks :)

Blake 3 1/2 Months

2007-09-10T12:16:00.000-04:00

Here are some more photos Shell took of Blake a couple weeks ago while she was babysitting. Babysitter and personal photographer....great deal!!

Blake & Tiger

2007-08-14T10:03:00.000-04:00

I know we are bad parents for letting Blake watch television. But it was only for a few minutes, and it was a historical moment! It was the first time he got to see Tiger win a major...lucky 13..., and seeing how he is going to be a professional golfer, he had witness this. So, here are daddy and Blake watching Tiger win the PGA championship together.

Blake & Jaxon

2007-08-14T09:54:00.000-04:00

I baby sat for Katie Morris the other day. Katie is one of my closest friends from college, and she had Jaxon four days after Blake was born. They are just about the same size and both as cute as can be!!

Blake 3 Months

2007-08-14T09:49:00.000-04:00

Shelly snapped some more photos of Blake at 3 months when we were over at her house. We were trying to get him to smile more, but he was so fascinated with her camera that he would just stop and stare. :)

Swimming Pool

2007-07-11T23:20:00.001-04:00

Meghan and the boys came to visit. Here we all are at Shelly's pool. Chad came a couple weeks later. We had a great time with them.

Blake Smiling

2007-07-11T22:53:00.001-04:00

At about 7 weeks old Blake starting smiling a lot and cooing at us. Here are a few pictures of Blake smiling. I'm going to get him on video doing this also. He is 9 weeks old today. I can't believe it. Time is going by too fast. I want to keep him this small forever.

Getting Lost

2007-07-11T13:32:00.001-04:00

Payton and Baxter getting lost playing "Get the Sticky"

Get The Sticky

2007-07-11T13:31:00.003-04:00

Payton and Baxter playing "Get the Sticky" at the cottage

Blake's Funny Faces

2007-07-11T13:31:00.001-04:00

Blake at 4 weeks old

Blake_bath2

2007-07-11T12:34:00.003-04:00

Blake (4 wks) in his towel after his bath