June.. already?

Well, this time last year I was already "over" being pregnant, and ready to meet our precious little man, but still had a full 3 months of pregnancy ahead of me- ha! He was born in perfect timing though (literally, right smack dab on his due date) and we are so very thankful for the blessing he is to our life's! I just wanted to start with that, because quite frankly, it's so hard to believe how fast this year has gone! We're just T-3 months to Ayden's first birthday, and it's so bittersweet! :( He is changing so fast at this age (I should add, he's always changed fast- it's just that this past month has been full of some pretty big milestones for him)! He recently started going from the laying position to the sitting position, and then back and forth. I had no idea this meant a whole new "can of worms" was opening though. Starting Saturday, we put Ayden down for his morning nap around 9 as usual, and about 10 minutes later we heard what sounded like him blowing raspberries in his crib- so of course, we went to check it out.. he was sitting up, looking at the door, crying & blowing raspberries in-between breaths. Funniest thing I've seen in a LONG time.. (funny until we realized that this actually means he's charge of when he really falls asleep now.) His 2nd nap was just as interesting, and his 3rd he chose to skip all-together. If we've ever seen our life's change before our eyes, it was then!!! He's testing our patience, and slowly (but surely) learning what the word "NO" means! We have a very determined little man on our hands, and I really hope he carries this remarkable trait all through his life!

Other news on Ayden: his 9 month check is right around the corner, which means, more shots.. but also means we get to see how much he weighs, etc. and that's always exciting! Lets see, he's not crawling yet, but he gets on all 4's and scoots backwards/stumbles forward- so I have no doubt that we're super close to the real thing. He's MUCH happier than he's ever been before with this new found sense of independence! Ayden really enjoys playing with his friends- Kyle Pannabecker & him are best buds, OH, and Emma Pannabecker is his girlfriend (they've been on 2 dinner dates already, and even though I love her.. I think they need to slow things down a bit)! It's so cute to watch the boys interact though. It's amazing how different they are with only 5 1/2 months in-between them (which someday, will be like nothing)!

We had the Pannabeckers over for supper on Saturday night, and the boys just loved playing (Emma enjoyed watching, of course)! Kyle throws things at Ayden out of excitement, and Ayden, in return, attempts to rip every part of Kyle's face off- it's a healthy relationship, I'd say! ;) (for those of you reading and wondering why on earth we'd allow our babies to do this- Kyle is just over one year old, and Ayden is about 9 months- so really, they don't know any better yet. Either way, we can't wait to tell them how they treated each-other when they were babies.. right, Crystal?) We're thankful for Brandon & Crystal and the friendship we share with them. It's a huge blessing to have friends in the same stage of life living so close to us- literally, a 10 minute trip down the road instead of 2,000 miles away-HUGE blessing! We love you guys!

Sunday we had our Church community outreach carnival- it was loads of fun! There was all sorts of food, cotton candy, popcorn, snow cones, kids running around everywhere, live music, etc. etc. etc.! Ayden got the privelage of going on his very first horsie ride with his momma (I'll post pictures on facebook soon of all of Ayden's "firsts" this weekend- ((driving the car, his first lick of ice-cream, putting his toes in the pool, and playing in his crib while he's supposed to be sleeping)) so much fun)! He was hesitant at first, but once we got up there and started moving around, he had the time of his life. I think this means we have to buy a horse..! ;) We had a great turnout too, so I hope we'll be seeing more faces at Cedar Road in the weeks to come. Good work to everyone that pitched in!

Another thing I'll blog about this time: how incredibly powerful our Lord is.

I feel blessed to say that I've been "in a relationship" with God since I was in Kindergarten- ha! However, just in recent months, my relationship with Him has really deepened, and is exactly where I want it to be. There is nothing more rewarding then a DEEP relationship with our Savior, friends. I've learned recently (always known, but recently have learned), that sometimes, He will allow us to fall to our very lowest point, just to lift us to the highest & make us stronger than we ever were before. I've also learned that you have to ASK Him for help, and not just assume that He will help. Not because He doesn't know our needs (He's God, of course He knows what we need), but because He wants us to acknowledge that we can't do it without Him, and specifically ask for His help. It's amazing how quickly He intervenes on our behalf's when we admit we can't do it on our own. God works in funny ways, and I'm so very thankful for His humor!

Friends, I really do have the best husband in this whole world. I don't deserve Jaymes, yet God has given me the privelage of being his wife here on earth, and I couldn't be more honored! He rarely thinks of himself first, and is always doing cute little things for me when I need a "spirit lift". I had a horrible day with Ayden a few weeks ago, and he came home from work with a rose in his mouth.. for me! This past week, yet another horrible day, and he walked through the door with a candle and insisted I stop what I was doing immediately, and go take a relaxing bubble bath by candlelight. Seriously, SO blessed I am- he never focuses on how hard, or long his day was, and always makes sure I get enough "me time".. which is CRUCIAL as a momma!! I couldn't have picked a better daddy for my son, either. Ayden will never know how much that man loves him, and how far he would go to make sure he has the best life possible. Thank you, Lord, for placing Jaymes in our life's!

I'll end with the lyrics to this beautiful song, "Love never fails" by Brandon Heath. It's made a huge impact on my life recently, and I hope it does the same for you.

Love is not proud
Love does not boast
Love after all
Matters the most

Love does not run
Love does not hide
Love does not keep
Locked inside

Love is the river that flows through
Love never fails you

Love will sustain
Love will provide
Love will not cease
At the end of time

Love will protect
Love always hopes
Love still believes
When you don’t

Love is the arms that are holding you
Love never fails you

When my heart won’t make a sound
When I can’t turn back around
When the sky is falling down
Nothing is greater than this
Greater than this

Love is right here
Love is alive
Love is the way
The truth the life

Love is the river than flows through
Love is the arms that are holding you
Love is the place you will fly to
Love never fails you

GOD BLESS YOU ALL!

The Heares :)