life lately:

joshua has taken a recent love for books and "reading." up until about a month ago i struggled to get him to sit through 2 pages of any book. now he reads to himself and has me read to him all the time. his favorite by far is this singing elmo book. we literally read/ sing it about 20 times a day. today we walked to the bookstore down the street and bought him 3 new books :) so fun! 

since we found out we're having another boy, i've started planning his nursery. i came up with 2 different themes-- "little explorer" and "vintage safari." i think we settled on a combo of both with main colors being green and brown :) 

compared to about a week ago we've seen a major heat wave. it's been so nice to play outside & watch my little man explore. he's so independent & wants to do everything on his own. we've played in the dirt, played with sticks, went on walks, and really enjoyed the sun! 
{love that he'll hold my hand when we walk}

after a few tries, i've turned my $50 Craigslist dining room set into this beauty. 
i love it!!! 

made these Oatmeal Carmelita's  last night for manny's staff meeting. so good!

our kitchen reno is pretty much complete! i have a working dishwasher! it's AMAZING! 
i plan on doing another post soon about our whole kitchen transformation :) 

in other news, i'm starting to feel the baby more and more. 
manny might have even felt a little kick last night! 
we are so blessed. 

19 Weeks


19 weeks. and i'm finally starting to feel like a normal human being.

i've found my cure (sprite) or just enough time has past.

i'm not sure which one, but i've spent most of this week NOT SICK.

hallelujah. praise the Lord.

i can't even begin to explain to you how bad 12 weeks of super sickness, constant nausea, throwing up, and exhaustion can to do your spirit. let's just say last saturday got pretty bad... the only thing that i felt like i could keep down was some sprite. so manny graciously went to mickey d's and got me that $1 soda & it changed my life! every time i'm feeling a bit nauseous i just drink a small glass of that carbonated, sugary clear liquid and i feel like i can conquer the world.

hallelujah. praise the Lord. 

so now that i can think straight and have a bit of energy, let's talk about this babe growing in my belly...

i've felt him/her kick :) it started a little bit last week, just those funny feelings like 'is it indigestion or is something moving inside there' and last night i definitely felt this babe kick my belt. that is fun.

i'm not really showing... still wearing all regular clothes. my jeans are even too big & i have to wear a belt still.

next thursday is our ultrasound doctor's appointment! we get to found out! boy or girl?!?!?
everyone keeps asking what we want... really a healthy baby but we've said mostly we want a boy because he and josh will just be bff's and then i really don't need anything. but if it's a girl i would be thrilled! because you know, there are no girls in the pollard family (besides kaitlynn) so that would be really fun. and girls have way cuter clothes :)

it's very hard to believe that i'm close to halfway through this pregnancy. spending so much time sick really kept my mind off the joy of having a babe grow inside of me. and i think the fact that i'm barely showing just allows me to not remember most of the time.
but then when i think about it... i get a little scared. i'm pretty sure joshua is going to be very mad at me. he likes my attention. all of it. so that will be quite the adjustment i believe. i'm nervous about what it will be like caring for 2. for so long (ok 14 months) it's been just me and josh. when he was an infant we just hung out in peace and quiet, now that's he's *almost* a toddler we run and play and talk all day. with this new baby there will be so much less time just him & i... my attention will be split and josh will be used to all the running and playing and talking and this babe will want to be held and nursed and quiet. i really don't know how it will go. but we'll all adjust and find a perfect place and time for each of these cute baby's needs.  

so little babe #2,
we are so excited to find out if you are a boy or a girl. i can't wait to start planning your nursery & pick out some cute new clothes for you (especially if you're a girl). i'm getting to excited to hold a tiny, tiny baby in my arms and cuddle you close. i'm praying that you keep growing and staying safe inside of there. i'm praying that your brother's heart is getting ready to share his momma and daddy. i'm praying that God's will be done in your life, every second of you life, from the moment you were conceived until the moment you are no longer on this earth.
little babe, i love you so. can't wait to meet you in about 5 more months!

into the new year...

everybody's talking about resolutions and goals and all of that.
i'm thinking about the year that is to come. what will 2013 bring us?
never in a million years would i have thought 2012 would have brought us into our very own house! 
so who knows what will come this year...?

i'm just focusing on a few things:

  • let's finish the house 
  • have a baby 
  • read more
  • be intentional with 1 or 2 girls in our youth group 


most importantly though i want my life to be gospel-focused. i want every aspect: the house, the baby, the boy, the husband, the church, the youth group, the books, this blog, everything - i want it to point back to what Christ is doing in my life & how i can use every aspect of His grace to bring Him glory. 

that's all i want to focus on. 

Happy New Year!


Happy New Year! 
we tried to make cool plans for NYE but the cabin had a flood so Joshie stayed with Kma, we went out to dinner & a movie & watched the ball dropped with some great friends.
today we slept in, watched football, split wood & did more stuff around the house. 
now we're hanging out with Kma & Opa's house getting ready for pea soup & smoked baby back ribs :) 

here's a look at 2012 with a favorite picture of mine from each month:
enjoy!

january:

february: 

march:
 

april:

may:


june:

july:

august:

september:

october:


november:
december: