.working at the car wash.

Last Saturday we dropped Andrew off at church and had some time to kill, so we went to get the car cleaned. HattieJo really enjoyed watching them wash the car. She was talking up a storm to the people in the room while we waited. She is social butterfly for sure!

:18 months old:

I can't believe our baby girl is a year and a half old today.... where is the time going? She is such a little girl and not a baby any more!
She enjoys: pushing her baby around in the stroller, playing with the puppies, blowing bubbles, running... she will say, "fasst..one, two" and take off, talking to the dogs, pretending to be on the telephone, eating, being naked, riding the 4wheeler, taking wagon rides, helping, putting puzzles together, stacking blocks, dancing, being outside, wrestling her daddy on the bed, and so much more! It is so fun to sit back and watch her truly enjoy herself doing something!
Some of her frequently used words: blocks, slide, thank you, ride, wash, brush, teeth, two, more, mouth, eyes, ear, toe, shoes, socks, bubbles, cookie, chip (she says "pch"- reversal of letter sounds!), tv, up, down, bath, cracker, light, hat, tractor, french fries, ice cream, please and I am sure that there are more!
She loves to pray. When we say the blessing or when we just pray together as a family she will want to hold hands and bows her head, then will say "AAAAAAAMEN" when we finish. What a joy! HattieJo is finally leaving a hairbow in her hair although it has to be a little light weight one, but we are making progress.
Some of her favorite things to eat: french fries, bread, chips, cranberries, grapes, cucumbers, fried okra, ham, and McDonald's chicken nuggets(one of the things that I have been LOVING this pregnancy too!).

HattieJo,
Mommy and Daddy love you so much! We are thankful for all the special memories and times that we have with you. You are so lively and joyful. You are loving life! We pray that you will come to know the Lord at an early age. We are so excited to continue to watch you grow and develop more and more each day.
LOVE YOU!

.say cheese.

She is a pro at saying, "CHEEESE." When she thinks you are videoing or taking a picture of her she will proudly say, "CHEEESE." These sweet grins MELT MY HEART!

:tools, tools, and more tools:

So the other weekend when Andrew was hard at work on his truck, HattieJo decided that his tool bag looked like a fine place to play! So she went to digging and found lots of treasures, including the screwdriver that she used as her microphone.... She is going to be a rock star!

.SHOES.

.bookstores.

Who would have known that a book store could be FREE entertainment for an 18mth old?? Several weeks ago I met a friend to hang out and we met at Barnes and Noble. HJ had a great time getting into all the books and really enjoyed playing with the train set! Then last week Andrew had to meet several young pros to discuss some things about membership at the Summit, so HattieJo and I tagged along and we played in the kids section at Borders for an hour! We read books, through a ball, and played with every stuffed animal we could find. I didn't have my camera, so I had to use my phone to capture some of our fun.

.Another Sunday on the Farm.

I know I blog all the time about how much I LOVE Sundays, it's so true! Our Saturday's are PURE craziness with church, but we LOVE serving at the Summit and thoroughly enjoy going to worship on Saturday nights! So last Sunday it was gorgeous and we took advantage of being outside! The day started with a morning walk which ended at our fire pit where Andrew whipped up a little fire for us to enjoy!After the fire we played outside for a bit then started to get things ready for lunch. Our great friends, the Herringtons who also serve with us on Saturday nights came over for lunch and to hang out for the afternoon. After a delicious lunch if I must say so myself, we took another walk around the farm! On the way back from our walk, we stopped to rest and play at the fire pit! Then we came inside for some dessert(brownie sundaes....and some sour patch kids- check out HattieJo's sour patch kid face in the bottom collage!) and playtime!

.ADORABLE.

Andrew cousins Michele is a talented seamstress! She is the one who made HJ a playmat/quilt for Christmas that is awesome. She has also made her several dresses. The most recent might be my favorite.. I loved the material and I must say that HattieJo was ADORABLE with it on... THANK YOU MICHELE! We love you!

.a girl and her daddy.

HattieJo ADORES her daddy... She loves in the evenings when he gets home to greet him with a squeal and a run away so that he will come catch her for a kiss. She also loves helping him take care of the dogs. One night last week he was going out to take of the dogs and she insisted on going, so she got on her "hat, hat" and proceeded out the door, so proud! I LOVE to watch them together. So I snuck outside to catch some pictures.

*as soon as she saw me with the camera, she bent down and said, "cheese, cheese." (sorry its kinda dark, forgot to change my flash)

*I can only imagine what she is telling Mionee and Hoss in this picture!*

*"wide pease, wide pease"

:Happy Valentine's Day:

On this day where we think and celebrate LOVE, I am so in LOVE with this little blue eyed girl up above. I am in LOVE with her handsome Godly daddy, and already in LOVE with her little baby brother that is on the way! In thinking about LOVE I am so reminded of our heavenly Father's LOVE for us! His LOVE is unconditional and everlasting. What a joy!
"In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.." 1 John 4:10

.blocks.

A sweet lady that I teach with is so generous and is always giving me things for HattieJo. The most recent is this cute little wagon full of wooden blocks. HattieJo was so excited about her "bocks, bocks" the other night. And I must admit she was quite good at stacking them (she would get at least 6 high each time before they would topple over). She got such a kick out of stacking a few then knocking them down as she said, "uh-oh, uh-oh!" I LOVE watching her with new things and how she tries to figure them out and just use her fine motor skills!

:manicure or pedicure anyone?:

I feel like HattieJo's nails are growing faster than mine and I am the one taking all the vitamins! So last night was "manicure night." After I finished trimming her nails, she thought it would be appropriate to fix daddy's nails and toenails!

:21 weeks:

Yep, that is right. I was 21 weeks yesterday! This pregnancy is FLYING by. I know that has to do with being on the go and having HattieJo to chase around at all times. We went last week for our big 20 week ultrasound and everything looked great. We were very thankful for a great report. It is amazing to see the ultrasound and the baby moving all over the place and be so reminded of God's amazing creation in the gift of life. We are having a baby boy and are thrilled. I am not sure what to do with a boy, but will quickly find out! I am feeling great other than being tired by the time I sit down at night. I have gained 7lbs. so far and am in mostly maternity clothes, although I am still able to wear a lot of my "normal" clothes! I have been craving McDonalds chicken nuggets and french fries this time around, so I usually have that once a week at some point! So just wanted to update on baby boy Hopper!

.a weekend away.

This past weekend we had a great opportunity to go back to my home church for Andrew to preach a Disciple Now weekend for about 80 students and 20 adults. The theme for the weekend was BROKEN, taken from the book of Hosea. So Andrew spent the weekend preaching through the book of Hosea. He did such an incredible job of showing the Gospel through the story. Here are some of the key teaching verses:

"Come let us return to the Lord; for he has torn us, that he may heal us; he has struck us down , and he will bind us up. After two days he will revive us; on the thrid day he will raise us up, that we may live before him. Let us know, let us press on to know the Lord; his going out is sure as the dawn; he will come to us as the showers, as the spring rain that water the earth."

I am so thankful for a man of God that not only preaches the Word with boldness to others, but leads our family in such an incredible way! On Sunday he had the opportunity to preach their church service on the book of Jonah.

During the sessions at the church HattieJo had lots of hang out time with Grandaddy, Grandma, and Aunt Bec! As you can see from the picture, HattieJo loves to be naked even when we are away from home!

:Happy Birthday Gigi:

Today is Gigi's birthday! We love you Gigi and hope that you have a WONDERFUL birthday. We wish that we were there to help you celebrate.Love you,
Andrew, Anna, HattieJo, and baby BROTHER


*This picture was of HJ and Gigi when HJ was just a few days old!

.streaker.

Every night whether HJ gets a bath or not the girls LOVES to run wild and naked before we put her pj's on... When she sees me with her pj's she will say, "clos off" (clothes off) and start tugging at all her clothes! Once she runs for at least 15 minutes she is ready for her pjs!

:Sunny Sunday:

This past Sunday was GORGEOUS! We spent the whole day outside and it was WONDERFUL! It is amazing what just being able to be outside will do to your mood. We had such a fun day together as a family. Andrew had the opportunity to preach at a Chinese church that morning, so HJ and I stayed home to PLAY, I mean get the house in order and laundry finished. After lunch we went back out and stayed for another couple hours; walking, talking, running, laughing, working on the truck, riding the 4wheeler, chasing the dogs, looking at the puppies, and everything else! Needless to say we were all worn out by the evening!