1st Day of "School"

Caden experienced his first day of preschool today. While it was just for the morning and Mommy stayed to help out "Miss" Becky (his teacher), he seemed to really enjoy it.
Caden's classmates: Gabe, Owen, Asher (not pictured)


Circle Time with "Miss" Becky



"choo-choo" to recess train
(the other guys are 3 yrs. old, Caden couldn't reach Owen's shoulders...too cute!)

Caden would prefer to swing all day!

This is mostly just some structured social time for Caden once a week. We don't expect him to participate fully in everything just yet, but thought we'd give him the chance to start learning. We don't have lots of options for playgroups or other special activities, so we take advantage of what we do have. We are blessed to have friends/teammates that are willing to help us make our children's lives as "normal" as possible.

My Birthday

The last two days have been absolutely wonderful! Brett told me that since he couldn't go out and buy me a really good present, he was going to give me the day off. What mom wouldn't love that gift?! Because of other work-related things, we divided up the excitement over two days. Here's a little glimpse of my princess treatment...

Caden helped his daddy pick these flowers from our yard. Aren't they beautiful?! I woke up to these flowers, breakfast in bed, and smiling faces from my boys. In the afternoon, Brett took Caden with him out to a village, giving me time to rest and have the house to myself. Tracey came over with a beautiful cookbook holder that she had made by the iron worker. When Brett and Caden returned home, he brought gifts from the other girls on the team including a cute note pad and Bath&BodyWorks scented hand soaps. Thanks girls! That evening, Brett took me to our favorite restaurant in town and we enjoyed the night just the two of us (thanks Emily for staying with Caden).

Wednesday morning I was woken with smiling faces again and breakfast in bed. This time Brett had made blueberry pancakes (we found frozen blueberries in Accra, Ghana) and brought them with fresh orange juice. Not to mention this was the second morning in a row that I had been treated to sleeping in while Brett got up with Caden, our 6-6:30 riser. And yes, the pancakes were delicious!

That afternoon Brett got in the kitchen to make me a cheesecake, with a little help from Caden (who mostly ate the graham crackers). I woke up from a nap to find the two of them working hard at crushing Petite Beurres (similar to graham crackers) and pecans. You can also see my cookbook holder in this picture. Here's the final product:

And here's my response after the first bite:For dinner, Brett jumped in the kitchen once again to make pizza and salad. It was good for Brett to learn his way around in our new kitchen and he said he actually enjoyed it. He has offered to make pizza night his night to cook dinner once a week! It's the birthday gift that just keeps on giving. Thank you to everyone that made my 29th birthday so special...especially my wonderful, thoughtful husband! (I love you!)

28 weeks

I haven't posted anything on this blog about our trip to Accra, Ghana to check out options for having our baby. We decided to have the baby at Lister Hospital, feel free to read more about it on our Ministry Blog. We also had an ultrasound and were quite disappointed in what the doctor was able to tell us....absolutely nothing! Not exactly true. He did measurements on the baby and said that I was measuring for a due date of November 26th, one week earlier than my original one. He said the baby looks great and my test results all came back good. So what is this "nothing" all about....we couldn't tell what the baby was! The little one was so comfy and curled up that we couldn't determine if it was a girl or boy. And then after much prodding by Brett, the doc finally said, "Well, if I have to say something...I would say it's 70% that it's a girl...but I really can't say." WHAT?! So now we have one doctor betting it's a boy and the other betting it's a girl. We'll keep trying to find out, but as this baby gets bigger, it's only going to be more and more difficult to get him/her to cooperate.

"Cheeeese!"

Caden has learned to say "cheeeese" when posing for a picture. Sometimes you get a very natural smile and then others turn out mostly teeth. This morning, Brett wasn't feeling well and was in bed when Caden crawled up and tucked himself under the covers with his Daddy. So cute! Of course, I had to take a picture and thus began the random photo shoot.

My Very Own Car

I'm sure many of you have been in a grocery store where they have the little cars attached to the grocery cart that keeps your toddler entertained while you get your shopping done. But I bet you would never expect to see them in West Africa...me either! MaxMart in Accra, Ghana knows how to keep their customers coming back...or at least this mommy and daddy.

Our 6th Anniversary

On September 1st, we celebrated our 6th year of being married. We enjoyed a delicious meal at an authentic French restaurant (thanks Dave for keeping Caden) and reminisced over our last 6 years of marriage together. We realized that we have had 6 years packed full of love, laughter, and adventure. We have grown in friendship, trust, and understanding of each other and yet we know God has so much more to teach us. We continue to anticipate what God has planned for us as a family and know that His adventures for us keep getting more exciting.

When we started dating, I never dreamed my life would go the way it has...but I would live it all over again! I love you Brett Emerson and continue to be proud of being your wife and thankful to God for putting you in my life!

Look What I Found...

The other day I went to use the bathroom and lifted up the toilet lid and discovered this....

Can you tell what it is? It's a cloth diaper and diaper cover. Caden has watched me rinse off his cloth diapers in the toilet enough that I guess he thought I'd want this one there (even though it was unused!). I laughed and then told Brett to grab the camera and come here. I have found pieces of paper towel in the toilet too...maybe it's time to try the potty training again.

Use #72 For A Growing Belly

My Boy(s)

Caden is crazy. Tonight as I was looking through some pics from the last several months, I came across the one above: Caden running down the hall at the Miller's house (when we lived there), holding on to one end of a measuring tape and running with a look of pure joy and excitement on his face. The best thing about this pic, for me at least, is that I'm in it. I'm on the other end of that measuring tape, playing with my crazy son whose passion for life inspires me daily.

Another cool thing about this pic: Caden is a boy. Yes, of course, he could have been a girl and I would have loved him (her) as much or more than I do right now. But God blessed me with a boy, the boy I have always so strongly desired to share my life and my experiences with. A boy, a little me, a miniature version of what I see every day in the mirror, with a little bit of the love of my life mixed in...And now, you gotta be kiddin' me, another boy?!?!?! April is gonna have her hands full with these 3 boys runnin' around the house! What an amazing blessing baby Corban will be. Yes, I want to have a little girl one day, a precious little princess to love and protect, but for now God has given me boys. Between my brother and I we have 5 boys, a good start to a baseball team, and more are sure to come. Add to the mix my sister's son and there are 6...3 more and we can turn in a starting lineup card!Psalm 127 says, "Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are sons born in one's youth. Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them." Seeing my son everyday, I know that I am blessed. Watching him run, jump, climb, fall, get up, scream, laugh, cry, get over it, eat, drink and be merry in a way that few adults will ever know, I thank God that I am the father of a boy. My son(s) will continue to help me, as I help them, draw closer to understanding the heart of God, who gave his one and only Son that I might have life, and have it to the full...

25 weeks, 5 days pregnant...100 days to go!

And as we all know, babies do not always arrive exactly on their due date...but knowing that tomorrow we will be counting down in the double digits is exciting! Also, for those of you wondering what that is in months...I'm almost 6 months and I'll be in my 3rd trimester this next week. I'm still feeling good, in general, but have experienced more Braxton Hicks Contractions, kicking from the baby, and general soreness earlier than I did with Caden. So what does this mean? Who knows, makes me wonder if this little guy is bigger and stronger than Caden, our easy going small baby, was. It just reminds me to be praying for his development in the womb as well as his health and temperament once he arrives. I would love the additional prayers!

22 months

This age is apparently the beginning of the "like to make funny faces" stage of life.

May it never end, my son...

Homemade Playdough

Can you call it playdough if it doesn't come in a Playskool can? We do. My mom had given me several recipes for homemade playdough and I finally made some for Caden. I tried to make it blue...but it came out more of a light aqua color. This was Caden's first time to see playdough, so he doesn't know any different. He LOVED it! We have played with it almost everyday and he always throws a fit when it's time to put it away. His current favorite thing to do is to take a rolled ball of playdough and squish it between his hands/fingers. So fun!

Sick....but oh so cute!

Yesterday Caden ran a little fever off and on. I'm happy to report we have been fever free so far today, praise God! I took this picture yesterday morning after he got up and all he wanted to do was lay on the couch. So of course, I did what any Mommy would do and I set him up a comfy place on the couch and turned on one of his favorite videos...Little Einstein's! I couldn't resist the urge to take a picture and share it with all of you. Brett flies into Accra on Saturday and should be home sometime Sunday afternoon. We are all ready to have him home!

Water Water Everywhere

One afternoon after a big rain shower, Caden discovered the water that had entered our front porch. What is it about splashing water that is always so fun?!

I love that I captured the water in motion in this picture.

He is beyond happy at this point...quite proud of what he has discovered.

Singing With Caden

Warning: Viewing this video could make you smile!

Big_God
Uploaded by emersonstogo

Yes, that is a blanket hanging in Caden's window...but it does a great job of keeping the rising sun out in the morning. Now if we could find a blanket to cover all the roosters to stop them from crowing at 5:00AM.

A Work In Progress

Well what do you think?

(for those of you reading this through google reader, you'll want to open the link)

The header was one I created when I thought we were moving to WordPress. Now I've learned how to add it to blogger...not too difficult! Any suggestions or things that used to be there that I've forgotten to add?

A girl's gotta take advantage of the computer time while her husband's not home, right?!

Yikes, I just realized my videos are not showing up....

Paint With Water

I'm sure we all remember the "paint with water" pages as a child. And all the parents out there remember how we would soak the pages with water and end up with holes in them. Well, I am experiencing all of that for the first time with Caden and privileged to share it with you.



I'm trying out this new site...let me know what you think. It was a little more work, but I think it's just because I don't know their "system" yet.

21 weeks

I know many of you have been looking for a new picture of the pregnant me...so here's 2 for ya! This one is from the front. An intern told me I didn't look pregnant from the front, what do you think? One thing for sure is that I am losing my waistline...no more cute curves here, just straight up and down. (This makes for difficulty with non-elastic waisted pants.)And here's the routine profile shot. I didn't think I had changed that much until I went back and looked at the last two pics.

Bath Time!

Counting My Blessings

1. Right now, it is 77 degrees outside and cloudy...so nice!
2. My hubby comes home tomorrow!
3. Caden has been really good while Daddy has been gone!
4. Baby boy in my tummy is active! (We're talking flips and even hiccups)
5. Our internet is working again (it was out all weekend), so I feel "connected" to all of you again!
6. Our houseworkers have taken good care of Caden and me while Brett has been gone!
7. Caden has been taking great 2 hour naps and sleeping until 6 (much better than 5:30)!

Of course, I can't really "count" them all...but these have been the sweet blessings from God during my 10 days apart from Brett. I know it's because so many of you have been praying for this time and I have truly felt the presence of the Lord because of it! If I could name each one of you that has said a prayer for us, I would definitely count you as blessings in my life!

A Lion Says...

lion
Uploaded by emersonstogo

....or a zebra or giraffe.

Take A Guess

Any guesses on what this is a picture of?

Does this help?

That's right, my child has learned how to put peanuts into the small spaces of "mega blocks".

It does't matter which side you prefer, he can put them in both. And yes, he thought of this all on his own.

FYI: This is post #250. Hope this makes you feel 250 times closer to us. ;)

Fun With Caden

I've had requests to see more of Caden in his rainboots as well as more pictures of our dog...this is what I came up with. I wanted to post this at the highest quality, but our internet isn't that good. Thanks for eveyone's prayers during our time with Brett...things are going well.

I Love My Shoes
Uploaded by emersonstogo

I Couldn't Resist

I've been waiting all day for this video to load correctly so I could share it with all of you. I've been teaching the cradle roll class for Caden and Caleb this summer and I'm seeing results from my teaching. Very exciting!

NewWord
Uploaded by emersonstogo

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BRETT & USA

Our team celebrated the 4th of July early since everyone would be getting ready for their survey departure (they left early this morning). Brett's birthday is Saturday and unfortunately, his family will not be with him to celebrate the exact day so I surprised him with a cake at our "July 4th" celebration. Thank you to someone at GracePointe who sent us the Pillsbury Funfetti cake mix! I made my own icing (a first for me!) as well as decorated the cake (another first). It turned out super yummy! Don't feel too bad for Brett, this was already party #2 for him. His mom threw him a surprise party while we were visiting Nashville back in April and invited family and friends. Friendship, cake, and presents were all shared. A side note for those of you who have not looked at the calendar yet....Brett's birthday is 7-7-77.....this year it's on 07-07-07 and his is turning 30. Brett says he doesn't feel old yet, but when he can't do what he wants on the basketball court then he will acknowledge that he is getting old.

Cute 4th of July Little Boy Our Little Family

Pretty Soon He's Gonna Want an Xbox

His favorite playlist right now is "Caden's Videos", which includes a heavy rotation of Little Einstein. It may be entertaining and educational, but somehow Caden's daddy never gets to listen to his iPod anymore...

Active Baby

Yesterday I was able to feel the baby moving with my hand on my belly. Later that evening, Brett was able to feel a tiny kick as well. So exciting! It is very different this time around knowing the baby is a boy. Some of you may not know that we did not find out if Caden was a boy or girl until his birth. During the pregnancy, that was a little difficult (clothing, room decor, etc), but when he was born my attitude about it all completely changed. I would have waited again, but being in Africa and not having access to all the baby stores we decided it was best to find out. I found myself feeling different about this baby last night as I said to Brett, "He usually kicks twice in the same place" as if he's already a little person with us and I'm learning his habits. I'm sure some of it is that this is my 2nd pregnancy, but I'm enjoying getting to know this little guy even before I meet him face to face.

17 weeks and...

Here I am at 17 weeks...not a lot of change, but wearing more maternity clothes these days simply because they are more comfortable in this hot weather. However, they tend to hide my belly a little because there's still plenty of room in my tops for future growth.We returned yesterday from our trip south to the Baptist Hospital in Tsiko (cheek-o) for our prenatal exam, ultrasound, and tour of their facilities. We will be posting more about that experience on our Africa Blog next week. We were blessed to see our new little one on a portable ultrasound machine. We very clearly saw a head, eye sockets, arms, legs, spine, and a healthy beating heart.However, the visiting gynecologist that did the ultrasound for us has not done prenatal ultrasounds for awhile and he was not trained to do measurements on the machine. He did say that if he was betting man.....he would bet that











Brett feels like he saw boy "parts" very clearly before the computer's battery died on us...I'd say I'm 90% sure it's a boy. We'll be requesting another ultrasound at our next visit and hope to get a better picture (and technician). But till then, we're only looking at boy names....

Our Little Fish

We enjoyed a special team swim day at the Hotel Kara Pool this weekend. Caden is learning to balance with his swim vest and even venturing away from Mom and Dad occasionally. He has finally figured out how to keep his mouth closed and head up so as to avoid inhaling water. We took a few short video clips and put them together for you to get a small glimpse of our little fish.

Little Fish
Uploaded by emersonstogo

A House Full of Friends

It's great to have a living room that is packed, everyone fellowshipping and worshipping together. This past Wednesday we had our 6 teammates, 12 interns, and 2 former Togolese missionaries jammed into our living room. It was a great time, and we even got to Skype with some good friends back in the States, who shared with us all that they are going to have a baby! We'll let them remain anonymous here, just in case they're not ready for their news to hit the world wide web and our millions of readers. You know who you are, so congrats and we love you guys! We thank God for filling us up in this way...

Baby's Moving

Just thought you'd all be interested to know that I have definitely felt the baby moving!

Keep your eyes on our blogs next week for the results of our ultrasound.

Rain Boots

I wish you all could see Caden walk in these rain boots. It's hilarious! He resembles someone walking on stilts. Obviously, the boots are too big for him but he doesn't seem to think so. He's ready to help Eric, our day guardian, in the yard as well as whatever the rainy season brings us.

Basketball Skills

Who needs Chuckie Cheese when you can have your own personal basketball toss game where the ball actually rolls back to you?!

Someday, I'll be able to beat my Daddy on the court!