8 Months

Hi friends,

Look how I've grown. :) I can't believe I'm already 8 months pregnant and that my first baby shower is on Saturday. I remember my bridal shower and how unreal that felt. Now, I'm having a baby. :) For those of you that don't know, we will be naming our boy Ezekiel David. Ezekiel means strength of God and David means beloved. David is also my brother's name and Matt's brother's middle name. We will nickname him Zeke.:) Ty's getting very excited about the baby coming. He doesn't really want to touch my tummy to feel him kick though. :) I asked him if he wanted to yesterday and he said no because the baby will just stop kicking. :) Zeke is kicking and moving a ton these days. So fun!!!

Let's see, within the last 3 months, we have been very busy getting ready to bring a new addition into our lives, our family, and our home. I have been organizing the house like crazy. Matt and Ty think I'm very silly because I'm constantly moving things to make space for all the new items that we will be receiving. I also have been addicted to Garage Sales. My good friend, Sheree, calls it Sailing. :) It's been SUPER fun finding great deals for Christmas, and baby clothes and shoes for Zeke. Oh, we also had a garage sale ourselves. We made some good money and took everything else to the goodwill. It was great to get rid of so much junk.

Matt has been working at his new job, JB Hunt, for over 2 months now and really enjoying it. The first month or so was difficult because he was trying to really understand all his responsibilities, etc. It makes it especially hard when his boss and the ones that trained him are at the San Francisco branch. But Matt, being as brilliant as he is, is now ready to take over the company. :) He's enjoying it much more now that he has been there for a few months. He's doing great and meeting goals, etc. I'm SO proud of him.

And, speaking of jobs, as of Nov. 5th, I will no longer be working outside the home. Nov. 5th is my last day at Chapman. I'm going to stay home and raise my boys. :) I will be teaching voice, piano, and tutoring, so if you know anyone who is interested, send them my way. I already have 3 students so my business is already on its way. I have taught lessons many times throughout the last 10 years so it's nothing new. :) I'm excited to be a stay at home mommy. It will benefit us all. I know it will be VERY difficult at times but I believe it's well worth it. Ty is going to need me home more too because for the first time in his 8 years, he's not going to be the only one. It will be a shock to him but I know he's mature enough to handle it and will really enjoy taking care of his brother. Newton is pretty excited too. :)

Ty's now in 3rd grade and doing GREAT. Academically, he's the top of his class and he's doing much better with his behavior. His teacher just calls him talkative and energetic. :) Oh, yes, that's my son. He's also pretty proud that he already knows all his times tables which is what they learn in 3rd grade. I guess it helps having a teacher as a mom. :)

This summer, we stayed very busy. Ty went to his first over night church camp with my parents' church. He loved it and was extremely tired when he came home. He swam, canoed, played every sport possible, learned more about God, and stayed up way too late. Ty also went to my parents' timeshare out in Escondido for a few days too. We were able to join them for a few days and played golf. Very fun. The end of Aug, we went camping in Santa Barbara with some great friends from up north. What a fun time, especially eating SHHMORES.:)

Newton turned 5 in Aug and we had a little pool party with her girlfriend, Shadow. :) Ty also had his spiritual birthday on Aug. 15th. He's been a Follower of Jesus for 2 years and is very excited to keep reading his Bible and learning more.

Matt and I have been taking childbirth classes and that has been great. It's been a great bonding time for us and we find ourselves laughing at many parts of the class. :)

Football has started and Matt and Ty have been glued to the TV. Luckily, I enjoy it too. We bought Zeke 49er bibs and onesies. Matt is VERY anxious to see Zeke wear them. Newton has already tried one bib on. :)

Another favorite hobby of mine is getting together with friends. We have been SO blessed with many wonderful friends. Love you ALL!!!












So, the month after next (almost next month), we will be holding our very own baby boy. Praise Jesus!!!

Half Way There...

It doesn't seem possible that I'm 20 weeks or 5 months, half way there. And most of you should know by now that our baby is a BOY!!! Ty really wanted a brother and I believe that this is just perfect. I think having a brother will help Ty to feel even more connected to our family, especially his baby brother. He has already been very involved with the baby, like picking out clothes, trying to feel the baby kick, and reading updates on how the baby is growing. We want him to be as involved as possible with the baby so he feels very special as the big brother.

We even have more good news, Matt got a job!!! He will be working for JB Hunt, a transportation and logistics company. This is what he really wanted so we are just praising God. The position is an entry level position but it has potential to move into a manager position that they will hopefully be hiring for soon. Even the HR person said that she knows that Matt would like to make more money and when they are ready to hire for the manager position, they will be looking at him. Taking this entry level position will give Matt time to get his feet wet, prove how competent he is, and really get to know the company. His office is in Irvine, only a half mile from my parents so they will be able to help out a lot with Ty which is wonderful. We are praying that by the time the baby comes or by the time my maternity leave ends, Matt will be making enough money for me to stay home more with my boys. :) Matt is very excited and I'm so proud of him. Even though, this is what we have been praying for, it will be a little sad not having him home so much and sad for Ty that his dad is going back to work after having him home full-time for 6 months. But I strongly believe that this was ordained by God because Ty really needed this time with Matt especially before the baby comes.

This summer so far, Matt and Ty had fun swimming, playing baseball, football, golf, etc, going to cheap movies, playing video games, going hiking, riding bikes, etc. Oh, and preparing for 3rd grade. Newton also has enjoyed having Dad home. Poor dog will be alone a lot now. And if you know Newton, you know that he's the type of dog that LOVES company. Oh, and Newton will be 5 in August. We are going to have a BIG party. Just kidding. :) We will probably go to the dog beach.

We also celebrated Matt's birthday and Father's Day in June. For Father's Day, my family went to the beach, had a picnic, and played some sports. Lots of fun.
Ty is sure in the right family. :) Matt and I also celebrated our 6th year anniversary. Can't even believe it. We celebrated by going to San Diego while Ty went to grandma and grandpa's.

And Ty's last track meet was the beginning of June. This meet included all of Southern California, 8 counties and 188 cities within. Ty placed 7th in the 100 meter and 3rd in the 200 meter. We were SO proud of him. Last year, we had an issue of him giving up when someone was in front of him and this year, he pushed it until the very end. See the video of the 200m below.

Later on this month, we have the opportunity to go camping with some friends so we are really looking forward to that. Ty is also going to a camp with my parents' church for 4 days and 3 nights. He has been to their church several times so this will be great for him. The camp is at Big Bear Lake and there will be great activities like archery, canoeing, sports, etc. And most importantly, Ty will grow in his knowledge of the Lord. He is very excited about it. I'm a little nervous about it because it's the longest he's been away from home but it will be so good for him and I can't wait to hear about all the fun he had.

And I can't believe that our son will be in 3rd grade on Aug. 25th. He was finishing up Kindergarten when he came to us and now 3rd grade? Wow. It will be fun working with him because I taught 3rd grade for several years. Fun age!

Well, that's the latest from the Wilson Household. Exciting times.
Love you all!!!

What's up in the Wilson Home

I believe all of you know that November 9th was a very special date for all of us. We gained permanent legal guardianship. Still brings tears to my eyes thinking about that day. I remember being just beside myself when the judge granted it. I felt like jumping across the table and giving him a huge hug. Little did he know how much of a difference he was making in our family. Walking out of the courtroom hand in hand, with tears in our eyes, we were looking forward to telling Ty that he is permanently ours. Wow, what a day! Yes, we still plan to adopt him but we will wait a little while.

For Thanksgiving, we had the opportunity to go to my parent's timeshare in Palm Springs. We played tennis, ping pong, board games, and went swimming. Instead of cooking a traditional Thanksgiving meal, we went out to eat. It was yummy and relaxing.

This Christmas was quite different than last year. The biggest change was that Ty was SUPER excited because he remembers all the traditions and experiences from last year, from making gingerbread houses to looking at Christmas lights, from making and decorating Christmas cookies to decorating the tree, from putting the star up to helping Matt put the lights up outside, from our annual Christmas party to shopping for family, from making Christmas lists to leaving cookies and milk for Santa, from picking out our family ornament (this year, it's just the word "Peace") to Ty's own ornament, from buying gifts for a family in need to our special Christmas dinner (just Matt and me), from one gift on Christmas eve to opening stockings on our bed Christmas morning. We had a few new traditions this year. The night that we decorate our Christmas tree, we watched the movie "The Grinch," and all slept by the tree. Also, the Monday before Christmas, we watched Monday Night Football and ordered pizza. This year was also special because Matt's mom, Cheryl, joined us for Christmas. I love my mother in law so it was wonderful having her. She is an amazing cook so that was great! On Christmas eve, we all went to my parents church and then back to our house for a few presents and dessert (which is another tradition). We all got PJs and Ty received a playstation game which he just had to play before bed. :) Christmas morning, my mom in law made breakfast and we opened many gifts. Ty was REALLY spoiled. I went overboard this year. Oops! :) Then we went to pick up Cheryl's dad, Grandad, and then over to my parents house. We ate, played baseball (remember our holiday/birthday tradition), opened gifts, and had dessert. One special gift that Ty and I made for Matt was a mug that had pictures of Ty and Matt all over it and said, "I love you Dad. I love playing with you Dad." Matt loved it. We also got Ty a calendar titled "You are very special and we will love you forever and ever and always (something I tell him every night before he falls asleep). The calendar has pictures of Ty and the family and each month states another reason why he's SO special. My dad bought Ty has very own telescope. It was so cute watching grandpa teach Ty how to use it. We enjoy setting it up in the backyard looking at the moon and stars. After all the gifts were opened and it seemed like everything was finished, my parents gave Ty a little gift that had a note to find his last gift. It was the Wii system. SO awesome!!! It has been a great motivator for Ty because he can't play it unless he has good days at school, not perfect, but good. :) He seems to have more better days since Christmas. Matt and I love it too!

New Years Eve was fun. We just stayed home, played Wii, and watched the ball drop. Ty actually stayed up til midnight. I think the Wii helped. :)

Well, I guess this is a good time to talk about something more serious. Many of you already know this but for those of you who don't... Matt lost his job on Jan 12th from Starbucks. Basically, his manager was fired and another guy came in and did a clean sweep. For about 2 months, he would come in and find things wrong with Matt's store or with Matt's leadership. Within the last few months, Matt was written up 4 times and then "fired". Matt has been with Starbucks for 6 years and never once been written up. Matt knew something was up when he first sat down with this new manager and he looked at Matt's salary and did a little laugh under his breath. So to save the company money, they are going to get rid of the managers who have been there awhile and make good money to then replace with new managers and pay them less. Oh, and listen to this, once Matt was let go, he still received his bonus for how well his store was doing for the past quarter. If Matt was doing that bad at his store, why on earth would he get a bonus. Even though this was a very difficult time for Matt and continues to be, he is relieved to be finished with Starbucks because within the last year, it has become a very unpleasant place to work. Also, after he was fired, he received several texts and messages from his partners about how unfair this is, how he should be the last person to get fired, how he is the best manager they have ever worked for, and several other encouraging messages (some being about his character and love for God). He was a witness there and it's hard for me to see him be treated like this but we know that God has a plan. Since then, Matt finished his classes at Cal State Long Beach and now is a Global Logistics Specialist. (So proud of him.) Matt has gone on several interviews but nothing has turned up yet. He applies for several jobs everyday and is being as proactive as he can in all this. As his biggest cheerleader, I am here to pray for him, support him, encourage him, and truly show him how much I appreciate him. It's great having the weekends with Matt and Ty also really enjoys having his dad home with him a lot of the time. It's been 4 months now and Matt is doing all he can. God IS in control.

Now back to more exciting things...
We have really enjoyed playing in the rain, jumping in puddles, and going to the snow this season. SO fun! One day when it was hailing, Newton started barking at us because he didn't understand what was hitting him. Poor Gewt!

In Feb, we hosted a superbowl party and attended a good friend's wedding. Matt was a groomsmen and this was Ty's first wedding. It was fun.

Ty ended his season in baseball in November and now just finished 4v4 soccer. I think he enjoys soccer a lot more because the pace is SO much faster. In baseball, there was a lot of waiting around and Ty got pretty restless. During the 4v4 soccer games, there were only 4 boys on each side, no goalie, and the field and goal were much smaller. There were no practices, just games every Sunday. Ty loved it because he touched the ball so much more. I can honestly say that out of 7 boys, he was one of the best. :) He is so quick, aggressive, and accurate.

Ty's 8th birthday was great. I can't believe we met him when he was 5, became a part of our family when he was 6 and now he's 8. We invited some of our friends and family to Chuck E Cheese. Ty had the time of his life with 8 of his buddies playing games and it was truly hilarious seeing my parents getting into the games too. The next day, we went to my parents' house to play kickball (Ty's choice), out to eat at Sharkeys and then we played pool and ping pong. We even played around the world with the 6 of us and it was great. So funny, running around the table. It's a good thing everyone in my family, including Ty, is competitive. Ty's favorite gift was MarioKart for our Wii system. Thanks grandma and grandpa.

We have been attending a new church and though it definitely doesn't replace our memories and friends at our old church, the kids' program is much larger and Ty has several friends. Unfortunately, our old church didn't have very many boys Ty's age. He really is growing in the Lord and enjoying getting to know the kids in his class. Matt and Ty were able to participate in the Pinewood derby at the church and had a wonderful time together.

Now to the most exciting news of all, on March 22nd, I took a pregnancy test and it was POSITIVE. What an amazing moment. Matt had no idea I was taking a test. He already thought I had started my period. That morning I took Ty to school and came back home to give Matt a gift, a onesie that said, "If you think I'm cute, you should see my dad" and the positive pregnancy test. He opened the gift and was still confused. I said, "I never started my period and I am over a week late and I took a test this morning and it's positive." He got up and hugged me and I just cried. We have waited so long for this, 3 and a half years to be exact. It just didn't seem real. This isn't supposed to happen to us. We were planning on having surgery the next month to clean out my tubes. What perfect timing. Thank you Lord. Ty was so excited when we told him and can't wait to be a big brother. My parents couldn't believe it. I gave them onesies too that had grandma and grandpa on it and my mom didn't get it at first. She was thinking that these were for later when we finally have a baby. I smiled at her and at that moment, she knew. I said, "Mom, I'm pregnant." She literally fell into my arms and cried and then brought out items that she had bought for me within the last 3 years. Too cute. About 3 weeks ago, we saw the baby and saw and heard the heartbeat. A moment Matt and I will never forget. This journey has been a long and difficult one but we have been so blessed by it. Because of this journey, Ty is a part of our family and the celebration of this pregnancy is shared by so many. Please continue to pray for the safety of this baby and the adjustments that this brings. I'm 12 weeks pregnant and due on Thanksgiving Day. Pretty appropriate. :)


We also celebrated our 2 year family anniversary on April 30th with mini-golf, a movie and dessert. Ty has grown so much in the last 2 years and we are so proud to call him our son.

Mother's Day was wonderful and different this year. Even though I have been a mom for about 2 years now, it seems overwhelming to me that there's a baby growing inside of me, a baby that was formed from Matt and me. Wow, what an amazing feeling. Needless to say, Mother's Day was absolutely wonderful.

And one last thing, Ty ran in the track meet through the schools in the city of Orange and received 2nd place in the 50m, 1st place in the 100m, and 1st place in the 200m. He went on to the next meet for all of Orange county and got 2nd in the 100m and 1st in the 200m. His next and final meet is for all of Southern CA on June 6th. What an amazing little runner. Check out the video below.

That's about it in the Wilson home but what an exciting few months. I LOVE sending this post because I finally get to say that WE ARE GOING TO HAVE A BABY.

We LOVE you all!