Monday Morning

I just wanted to send out a quick request for prayer for our family. We are scheduled to go into the hospital Monday morning for Sam's arrival by C-section. I'm not nervous at all about the actual procedure, but I am a bit nervous about having three kiddos 3 years and under. Any encouragement or advice would be greatly appreciated!

Just please pray for us over the next week and pray also for our two older ones that will be hanging out with the grandparents while we are in the hospital. Ben and I are actually looking forward to our time in the hospital. For me, it is 3 days of people checking on me, bringing me food, and taking care of me... I mean sounds good. For Ben, he will enjoy the quiet and will be able to do some work as well while we are there. He works mostly from home most days and well, our house is not the quietest during the day!

Thanks for your prayers and thoughts for us and our family! Here are some pics from the day today, we had family fun day and spent some time at the zoo! It was great to spend some time with Lydia and Thomas before we become a Party of Five!!!

Snow Day

We woke up on Friday morning to SNOW!!! I was driving home on Thursday from my weekly Dr.'s appointment when I heard on the radio that Montgomery County Schools would be closed on Friday due to winter weather, and of course I thought "OK, like it's going to snow here..."

Well, it did, and it was so much fun. TW was actually sick with a sinus infection (his expression above pretty much says it all), so we didn't stay out in it too long. But, Daddy and Lydia had a blast throwing snowballs and attempting to make a snowman. Lydia remembers the snow from last Christmas when we were at my Dad's, but Thomas didn't really know what to think. Our little guy likes the warmer weather. He didn't like walking on the snow, so every time he took a step, he would look up at me and say "Hold you!"

It was so pretty, and we were thankful to get enough to play in for the afternoon, but I was glad that it only lasted for a day. We were able to get out on Sat. after most of it melted that morning. We have had a hard enough time adjusting to the cold after living in Puerto Rico, so I'm not sure we could handle much more snow than what he had!

I'm Three!!!

This was her cake as she requested white with pink icing and sprinkles.
This picture is just for fun. We were playing dress-up, and for some reason TW loves to wear this hat!
Here we are at Red Robin for the big party!
Our Birthday Princess!
This is one of my absolute favorite pictures of all time. Now you have to use your imagination, because at first glance it looks like our SON is wearing a tiara, but Lydia put this on him and came into the kitchen saying; "Look mommy, it's King Triton and I'm Princess Ariel!" It was such a fun thing, so I had to get a picture.


It's hard to believe that our little girl is 3 years old! It has flown by and there have been a ton of changes during her three years. We celebrated her birthday week starting the Monday before her birthday. Each day began with a "birthday surprise." Nothing huge, but fun things like stickers, books, and these really fun little princess figurines (thanks Target!).

We had a great week celebrating her life. What a sweet gift she is to our family. She is definitely our little momma, and she helps me keep everyone straight. I love that she loves people and always shares her joy with those around her. We will be walking through stores or even parking lots, and every single person that passes she will wave enthusiastically and say "HEY! How are you doing?" It is funny how it really catches people off guard because she is really friendly.

We celebrated on her actual birthday at Red Robin with some friends here in Montgomery. Let me just say that I should do a blog post dedicated only to Red Robin. I called earlier that day to tell them that it was our daughter's 3rd birthday and a few people would be joining us for dinner there that night. I just wanted to make sure that they could sing to her and maybe bring some ice cream. The girl on the phone asked me a few questions about what Lydi likes, and of course being a now 3 year old little girl she has really grown fond of the Princesses.

When we arrived for her dinner, they literally had a table set up that was decorated better than what I had for her party on Sat. There was a baby doll sitting in a booster seat, a princess tiara centerpiece, some little party favors, a magic wand, a birthday card, and a Happy Birthday Banner!!! I was blown away. All of this at no extra charge. Our waitress was so SWEET, she took pictures, and even took some for the manager. It was awesome. I just could not believe that they went to all that trouble.

When we were leaving she brought a bag over and said take whatever you want because all of this was bought for her, so if you want it's yours. We are still playing with the baby, and the magic wand, did I mention there was also her very own tiara. It really made the day so special. THANK YOU RED ROBIN!

Not only have I craved this place this entire pregnancy, but now when we go there and spend money, I don't mind at all!!!

Enjoy the pics, and I will be posting more snow pics soon...

Introducing Our Pre-School Princess

I have been meaning to post for a while about Lydia starting pre-school, but she has only gone two full days this entire month! School started on the 6th of January, and even though it's just pre-school I was more nervous than Lydi. Admitting that now is a bit embarrassing, but she's always been with me. It's quite a change even though it's only 3 days a week.

The following Friday after her first day was canceled because of the weather. This picture was taken on Monday of what I thought would be her first full week, but at 12:00 I got a call saying that Lydi was sick, and I needed to come get her. This was our first experience with a "big girl" sickness. I don't want to be gross and explain what that means, but basically Lydi has never really thrown up. She was scared to death!!!

I felt so bad for her once I got there to get her, and she was not able to go back that entire week. She was still sick the following Friday. The next Monday was a Holiday, so she went back on this past Wed., and the teachers said she had a rough start, but as soon as they got the day started she was absolutely fine.

She goes on MWF, so this morning she asked me if she was going to school. I explained to her that she would go tom., because she doesn't go to school on Thursdays. This was her response: "Mom, they will all be so sad, because I'm not there today!" Maybe we should work on some lessons to teach humility, but I thought it was cute. She really does enjoy it, and she was excited about being able to go back tomorrow.

I hope she continues to enjoy it, and since she is our little social bug I think that it will be great for her. Even though I miss her when she's not here, I am thankful for the time I've had to hang out with TW and also to prepare for Sam's arrival. It has been a great blessing so far, and I am hopeful that it will continue to work out well!

Funny Picture, Scary Story

It has been extremely cold lately which is no surprise to anyone reading this, but unfortunately during this cold spell we began having issues with our heat. Well, at least that's what we thought...

Wednesday a week ago at about 9:00 p.m. Ben and I were watching t.v. and I smelled this weird odor that reminded me of burning plastic. I immediately thought that the kids' small space heater had caught on fire. I ran into the back of the house, but only to find that everything back there was fine, but the smell was getting stronger. At this point Ben thought it smelled like burning wood, so we decided to turn off our heat just in case something was burning up in the unit.

We slept without heat that night and used our space heaters. We just moved the kids into the same room, so we were able to run two heaters in our bedrooms and we stayed fairly warm that night. The next morning it was 54 degrees in the rest of our house, so we spent the morning wrapped up in jackets, sitting on the couch, watching t.v. A man came to check on the unit and he discovered that we would need a new fan motor and filter for the unit. No problem! Done, he fixed it and we were back in business and in no time it was up in the high 60's in our house.

So, on Saturday night the same thing happened again. We smelled the exact same odor, and once again had to turn our heat off until we could figure out what the problem was. We got up Sunday morning and went to church. We tried to turn our heat on that morning, but the odor was still strong. Right after we got home another man came, and he could not find anything at all wrong with the unit. He said to turn it back on and if we smelled the odor again he could come back.

In the midst of our heat going out we were also having problems with outlets in the house going out. On Monday morning an electrician came to check on the problem with the oulets. He fixed the outlet in the kids' room, and then he checked out some others in the house. This is the part where the story gets to be a bit scary...

I was in the kitchen doing dishes when I hear the electrician say "Oh, well, this is your problem." I go into the front bedroom (TW's old room, soon to be nursery), and I see something that literally makes me sick to my stomach. An outlet in that room had been burning, and it was black on the outside. The wires inside were charred, and the electrician said that if we would have had something plugged into that outlet more than likely we would have had a fire. There is basically no explanation for why our house did not burn down. I know that it was God's grace and protection for our family.

I was overwhelmed with emotion and thankfulness. So, it turns out that there was never anything wrong with our heat. Thankfully, it works better now as a result of the improvements made, but the smell was the outlet burning and that odor was being pushed through the return and out all of the vents in the house. We never checked the outlets, because we just assumed that it was the heat the whole time. The outlet in the nursery was replaced, and we have to continue to trust the Lord with our anxieties and fears as we are now aware that this could happen again. We know what to look for and we definitely know the odor.

Well, we are now warm and are much more aware of checking outlets and making sure that we are careful about what we plug in and where...

This whole situation has been really stressful, but it has also been a reminder of how our God really does protect us, and how near He is to us!

Traditions

Many families have been great to share their traditions with me, and I LOVE the ones that we have adopted. However, on New Year's Eve I told Ben that I don't have any traditions for our family for New Years. I personally think that the beginning of a new year is a very important holiday and should be celebrated with some kind of tradition. Anyway, so this entry is a plea to all of those that might know of some great traditions for bringing in the New Year. I did cook my first New Year's Meal, and it turned out well. This is the first New Year's Day that Ben and I have been at home since we were both in college. We're usually in Atlanta for Christmas Conference or whatever it's called now. It was nice to be here, but it made me realize that I don't really know how to celebrate the coming year! Any ideas???

Check out our new haircuts!

These aren't the best pictures to capture the new haircuts, but you can definitely tell that Thomas is proud of his new ride. He LOVES his new car!!! This was a Christmas gift from my Dad and Janice (Pawpaw and Mawmaw). He absolutely loves it. When we were at their house to celebrate Christmas my sister gave TW his first haircut. He looks like such a big boy now!!! I really couldn't believe what a difference it made. It was taking some convincing on my part for us to cut his hair; for some reason Ben was opposed to the idea. However, in Publix one day a woman came up to Ben and Thomas and said "SHE's so cute!" So, he immediately found me in the store and within two days his hair looked like this:)

Lydi also got a haircut. Not her first, but definitely shorter than it's ever been. The day after she got it cut I went into the bathroom and she was standing there looking in the mirror. I asked her if she liked her new haircut, and she replied with this... "Yeah, I do. It makes my eyes look bigger!" She looks like such a big girl with her short hair. Both of our kiddos look so much older, thanks Aunt Kellie for keeping my kids looking as cute as they can be!!!

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Winter Jackets

Obviously, living in Puerto Rico our kids did not need winter jackets. I think that Lydi had a hoodie, but never wore it. So, when we heard the forecast for the weekend we decided that we might need to invest in some winter apparel! Also, when I took Lydi for her check-up on Friday morning she kept telling me how cold she was. I did have a fleece on her, but apparently that wasn't enough for the 45 degree temperature outside.

So, after we left the Dr. I went out to find the perfect winter coats and I was hopeful that I could find a good deal. I ended up at Kohl's, and I found a deal that seemed too hard to pass up even though the jackets weren't my favorite, but they would be warm and that's the whole point, right?

Well, not entirely satisfied I called my good friend who is also one to find the bargains and she told me to check out Children's Place. I got home from purchasing the jackets from Kohl's and got on-line to check out what the Place had to offer. I was blown away!!! As soon as I put the kids down for their nap I went out again in search for the right sizes and the right style at Children's Place. (Ben is working from home primarily right now, so the kids weren't left alone)

I got there and of course the jacket that I had picked out for TW was there, but not in his size. So, I asked the lady if there were anymore in the back, and there was!!! After being really excited that they had the one I wanted for him, I went to the other side of the store and found the perfect jacket for Lydi. I spent less at Children's Place and I was also able to get them these super cute hats!

Now, this may seem like a totally pointless and unnecessary post, but I have been so excited about these purchases. I guess I am also a little enthusiastic about the fact that our kids actually need winter clothes again.

Funny Story

I very rarely post something without pictures, but I had to record this story as soon as possible so I wouldn't forget.

I had to take both kiddos to the Dr. yesterday, because of runny noses and coughing. I was so sick of the snot! So, turns out Lydi has an ear infection (2nd of her life) and TW has a sinus infection. Not so bad, we've had a lot worse, so we're thankful that they should be on the mend soon!

Well, as you know I am currently 25 weeks pregnant, and I was at the Dr. with my 2 1/2 year old and one year old. As we are leaving I am holding Thomas and Lydi is walking with me. Ahead of us was a lady with her teenage daughter. When I say ahead of us I mean by about 2 or 3 feet. Anyway, we were walking out behind this lady, and for whatever reason she decided that she would not hold the door open for us. Now, it's not that big of a deal, and maybe she didn't know we were there. However, my little girl says... "Mommy, that lady did not even hold the door open for us. I want to talk to her about it!" At this point the lady and her daughter were very aware of our presence.

I didn't know what to do other than snicker under my breathe, because the truth is that at the end of the day with two sick kids and one on the way I would appreciate some common courtesy. But, again, maybe she didn't know we were there. But, Lydi was really upset by the fact that she did not even hold the door for us. So, I just said "you're right Lydi, and that's OK we just need to remember to do that for other people." She just replied "Yep, we do." That was it, until I realized that we were parked right next to one another. It obviously didn't take Lydi long to get over her frustration, because before the poor lady could retreat to her car, Lydi was holding her hand out demanding that she say "bye" to us. As I am putting Lydi in the car she is telling the lady and her daughter "bye and have a good day!"

What do you do in a situation like that??? I just laughed and when I got home told Ben about it, and we laughed some more. Maybe next time this lady will be sure to look behind her before not holding a door open!

In the Midst of the Move

Well, we have arrived in Montgomery and have been in our new house for almost a month. During this past month there has been a ton of stuff going on. The most fun news we received was that baby number 3 is going to be a little nino (boy). We are so excited!!! We have also picked out a first name, but we're not sure about the middle. His name will be Samuel, and our plan is to call him Sam. As Lydi says that her brother's front name is going to be Sam and his back name will be Parmer.

Speaking of Lydia this move has proved to be the toughest on her, because she is a little older now and definitely notices when her surroundings have changed. She left many good friends behind in Puerto Rico, and she doesn't understand why she can't play with them living here in Montgomery. She really is our social child, and it is a priority for us to find her some playmates ASAP here in Montgomery.

I do have a funny story about transition stress and getting called out by my 2 1/2 year old. I was in the kitchen doing one of my many tasks recently and Lydi was in there needing my attention for some reason. So, in my sin and imperfection I snapped at her in a very short and unfriendly tone. She proceeds to look at me and say "Mommy, I love you, but please don't speak to me like that!" Talk about being humbled. Ben and I will often say this to Lydia when she is being disciplined, and she used my own words to really put me in my place. It is so tough to keep my cool in the midst of chaos, but I am learning that the little eyes watching me and little ears hearing me don't miss anything!

So, all in all the transition is going well. We are excited about the new ministry God has called us to, and we're still working out all of the details of our transition from PR and ILead into this new ministry in Montgomery with IXO. We are thankful that God has brought us here, and we look forward to what He has in store for our family!

Pajama Party

Lydi had her first sleep over this past Saturday night. It was so much fun. Her sweet friend, Bethany Teague came over to spend the night. Since our apartment is the casa de chaos right now, we are letting Lydi sleep in her tent at night. She thinks this is the coolest thing, so for the night she gave up her tent and let Bethy sleep there while she slept on a mattress on the floor right beside the tent. It was so cute, after they went to bed I could hear them in there talking and giggling. I remember those days. I can't believe my little girl is old enough to have a sleep over!!!

Bethany is 8 years old, and has become one of Lydia's favorite people here in Puerto Rico. She is going to be terribly missed by our whole family, but especially our little girl. This was a special treat for Lydia! She thought she was such a big girl; she even told me that she didn't want to sleep with her pacy, because she didn't need it anymore! (some of you might be thinking... she is too old to still be sleeping with a pacy, but if you've kept up with our lives over the past 2 1/2 years, you should understand why I haven't taken it away!)

So, here are some pics of our FUN night. The next morning, we went to Krispy Kreme, and of course they loved it. We had a lot of fun, I think I might have had more fun than the girls did!

I've also attached some random pics just for fun... I didn't want the little man to feel too left out.

Forgot to add...

I realized that after we posted this detailed version of what God has next for us, that we forgot to mention to our faithful readers that we are expecting number 3 sometime mid-February. I am sure that those of you who read this already know, but I felt like we were kind of cheating baby Parmer, by not announcing the news on our blog. We don't have a good ultrasound pic, but soon after we get back to the States we should be able to get one. Anyway, just wanted to add that our family will be adding yet another wonderful little blessing. I remember a while back when one of my dear friends wrote on her blog about some of the responses she had when people found out she was having number three, and let me say that I echo everything she said!

I have been overwhelmed knowing that we are having number 3 just four years into marriage and seven moves under our belts, but I have to really remind myself of what God's Word says about children. They ARE a BLESSING!!! There is no other way to look at this pregnancy. Yes, it will be tough having 3 three and under, but God never promised that he would call us to things that are easy. My children are a joy (most of the time), and I am thankful that God has chosen to bless us with one more!

Muchos Cambios

Muchos Cambios…You may remember seeing these words three years ago as our family set out to begin a new journey living and ministering on the Isla de Encanto—the Island of Enchantment known as Puerto Rico. We left the States to work in Puerto Rico with MTI. We hoped that God would do many things in and through us, and that is exactly what has happened. God has taught us so much about ministering to people of other cultures, lifestyles, and languages. He has continued to shape our heart and desire to reach the nations for Him.

There are many changes happening now three years later both in our family and also with the work in Puerto Rico. Our vision however, has only grown stronger as God has given us clear direction in how He wants to use us to build His Kingdom.

The program in Puerto Rico has been successful in training missionaries and sending them out to continue their ministry in different parts of the world. The seminary classes and hands on ministry experience has shaped everyone that has played a role in what God has begun in Puerto Rico. There will be a small team continuing to plant a church in Puerto Rico and also continuing to develop the training programs that have begun here. However, we feel that God is calling us into a new and exciting opportunity to reach the nations.

We left the States sure that we would be moving to China after our time in Puerto Rico was finished. Here we are 3 years later still convinced of the need to reach the Asian nations, but we have learned more about a very effective way for us to reach these people. After much prayer and thought, we are currently pursuing work with International Students in the States. We were in the States for a while this summer to investigate possible opportunities. We feel even more passionate now, after our training in Puerto Rico, to reach the nations that are living in our own backyards. So, we began pursuing a new position state-side. We were hopeful that we would have very clear direction by the end of the summer, and that’s exactly what God has done. We have returned to Puerto Rico to pack up our things and say “good – bye” to those that have enriched our lives over the past 3 years. We are very thankful for the work God has had for us in the past, but we are also very grateful for the opportunity that is now in our future.

After packing up here we will be returning to Wedowee, AL on Sept. 1st. We will spend the month of September preparing to move to Montgomery, AL. We will begin working with International Exchange Organization (IXO). This organization is committed to building relationships through business and educational exchanges in China. www.IXOonline.org

One of the many things we have learned from our experience here in Puerto Rico is that Ben is a “hybrid” of sorts. Which means that he enjoys administrative tasks and projects, but does not thrive being behind a desk from 8-5. He wants to be involved in the lives of people as well as use his administrative gifts. This job will allow him to do both administrative projects as well as International Student Ministry. It is very exciting!!! I (Nikki) am looking forward to really investigating ministry with international students because our home will be a prime place for ministry which will allow us to use our gifts as a couple to reach the nations. We will also be involved in short-term trips and teams going to China. Ben has this saying that seems to describe this new opportunity perfectly; “we’ll be fishing on both sides of the pond.”

We are very grateful for all of you that have invested in us! Thank you for being patient with us and praying for us over the summer as we really sought out what the Lord would have for us. Please continue to pray not only for our upcoming transition, but for our good-byes here in P.R. We will be saying good-bye to dear friends locally, and also on our team. We are looking forward to what God will do with each of us as we move into new ministry opportunities. We know that God is committed to the people here in Puerto Rico, and we consider it a privilege to have experienced life in Latin America. God has taught us many things, and those things will be very valuable as we embark on this next journey.

We also hope to spend the month of September visiting supporters, friends, family, and speaking at churches to update all of our recent changes. Please e-mail us or call us with any questions you might have about what the Lord has done and is doing.

First Birthday

OK, so I realize that TW's birthday was more than a month ago, but I am just now getting a chance to post some pics from the big party! We had a lot of fun in North, AL celebrating with his cousin, Luke who turned one two weeks before Thomas. It was a blast. We had a monster truck party, and my very creative sister made everything look so great. I can't believe he's already one, and now almost 14 months old. Well, Happy Late Birthday to my sweet little boy!

Little Miss Organized

The other night Ben was putting away the left overs, and as he was searching in our rubbermaid cabinet he became a bit frustrated with the disorganization of the cabinet and began to throw things out on the floor. I call this cabinet our "angry cabinet", because I always get frustrated when I am looking for something.

Well, Lydi heard the commotion in the kitchen, and went in to see what was going on. When she walked in, she saw this mess and she said "Daddy, this is ridiculous and it makes me nervous!!!" It was hysterical. Ben and I both started laughing so hard! She definitely likes to have things neat and tidy, so she proceeded to help Ben clean up the mess.