Sometimes it is not meant to be.....

When I wrote the last post I hesitated a little before i posted it. Was I writing to soon, should I wait longer. I wanted to enjoy the feelings i was experiencing and just take it day by day.
Today we got news that S had a miscarriage today. With out going into much detail and protecting her privacy she went to the E.R today and it was confirmed that she has miscarried.
We are all shocked and trying to deal with our emotions. We will get through this. I feel really bad that S has to experience this i wish i could take the pain away. It is a very hard thing to go through both physically and emotionally.
I feel strange writing about this but maybe it will help me deal with my emotions a little better then the last time. I feel like I never dealt with the miscarriage I had in June of 2008. I think a lot of it has to do with not talking about it.
Please pray for S and her family as they go through this difficult time. We will not loose hope. This is just another mountain we must climb.

Wow.......

this is an amazing feeling! I have dreamed about doing a post about this for SOOOO long now I still can not believe it is happening. Pinch me I think I am dreaming, if I am I don't want to wake up!
First of all i would like to introduce an amazing woman and her family. This is S and her husband J. S is our gestational carrier and is 9 weeks pregnant with our baby! It has been a long process to get here but so worth it!
It all started on June 13 when her husband J called Matt and told him that they have been thinking for a long time about this and would like to help us have the family we have been praying for. S wanted to carry our baby for us! We were shocked and amazed at what they were willing to do for us. After talking it over with each other Matt and I jumped at the chance to begin this journey them. After many tests and Dr appointments we finally made it to the BIG DAY, November 29th 2009. S was as calm as could be, Me......well lets just say I though I was going to be sick with nervousness! But I have always told her, let me do the worrying and you stay calm and relaxed. Which she did and it worked! She was a champ!
We found out that we are going to be parents Dec 7th and it has been a whirlwind ever since! Sometimes Matt and I find ourselves looking at each other and smiling in utter amazement, I think we are still in shock at how our prayers have been answered.
I ask that you will say some prayers for S and her family as this is an incredibly stressful, self-less thing they are doing for us. The stress that pregnancy can cause on husbands and children can be very hard and she is doing it all for us! AMAZING!
Here are a few pictures we have taken to document this journey together.
Amazing Family, Amazing Friends.......Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Our Lucky shirts I got for her an I. So cute!

I think J and I could have used a Valium ! We were the nervous Nelly's that's for sure!

The pee stick.

I have said since the beginning of 2009 that I wanted " 2 lines in 09". I got them in December, talk about waiting till the last minute! We can't wait!!!!! Aug 2010 can't get her fast enough!

Sadie got new boots from Santa!

The last time we went to the snow sadie's feet started bleeding. Since this has never happened before we thought it must have been because it was really cold and the snow was icey. Sadie loves the snow so much that we thought she should have some boots to protect her feet. I am not sure she thinks the same! Tahoe here we come! Happy New Year!

Bentleyville

Bentleyville is a city of lights. It was originally at this persons house but this year was moved to the bay front on lake superior in Duluth. It is amazing how many lights there were the pictures do not do it justice,it is just beautiful. Matt could not stop saying "Brrrrr, Brrrrrr, Brrrrr!" It was quit cold but so worth it to just see the lights. They had some fire pits out where you could roast marshmallows and get warm before finishing up the walk through the city of lights. What a great thing the city does and how exciting for everyone to be able to experience this every year! Thank you Ann for taking us again!

Matt & Mom roasting marshmallows around the firepit.

Mom and me with frosty the snowman's girlfriend?

t the entrance to the walk through tthe city of lights. they had parks, ice rinks, golf courses. it was just magical to see all the lights creating such beauty!

Surrrrprisssse!!!!

We flew to Duluth Minnesota to surprise Matt's mom on her birthday. Tom has been planning this party for a about a year and we were invited to come in February. ohhh how hard it has been to keep this a secret! We had so much fun visiting and shopping, and trying to stay warm! it was -20 with the wind chill on a few days we were there. much different then what we are used too! It was not that bad really it just limited the time you could be outside. Happy Birthday Mom/Ann! We had a blast surprising you!

Jenny, Wendy & Kirk. Matt's step sisters and brother in law

The whole gang who surprised her.

Christmas Tree Hunt

We went to Butte Meadows for annual Christmas tree hunt. Matt LOVES searching and cutting down our Christmas tree every year. He does not want to ever go to a "farm" or parking lot to pick our tree. I love his desire to make it a fun and memorable experience every year. I missed last year because Sadie had her surgery a few days before the trip and I needed to stay at home to take care of her. This year we took her and Toby. They really enjoyed the snow. It was freezing up there but we found the perfect tree. It is much smaller then what we normally get, but so much easier to decorate and to fit in our living room. And we picked it out much faster too, i think the cold weather had a lot to do with that! It was a great day!

Warm and cozy in the back seat. All pooped out from the hiking in the woods.

Toby's first snow experience and he LOVED it! Looks like we will be making a few trips to the snow this year.

The intensity in Matt's face shows it all. He takes this job very serious!

Me, I am just happy we found a tree and that is not 15 feet tall!

Starting the search out right with a ice cold beer and saw. Look at the selection we had in the back ground!

Christmas Party 2009

Our annual Christmas Party with our friends was Saturday Dec 5th. Jen hosted this year, again....thanks Mike and Jen! As usual we had a great time with all of our friends. The group keeps getting bigger and bigger each year with more kiddos and more friends. It is like going to a class reunion each year. What a great way to reconnect with high school friends! I think facebook has helped with the reconnecting :) Jen always incorporates lots of fun games and everyone got to walk away with some pretty cool gifts, and some not so cool gifts, but LOTS of laughter along the way. We look forward to this party every year and much thanks to Jen and Mike for hosting again this year. I must say you are the best hosts ever! Merry Christmas to all our friends and family. We are so excited for Christmas this year and can't wait to celebrate with our family.

Mikey and Jessica are more then thrilled with there white elephant gift.... a red nighty and spicy bloody mary mix! Mikey is "modeling the itty bitty underware here, a classic picture of him!

Susan and Jen. Susan just had a little baby girl 3 weeks ago. I got to snuggle baby Kendall and get my baby fix. What a cutie!

Jordyn won a gift in one of the games. She was thrilled to be able to play all of the games that the adults played. So what if we are teaching a 7 year old how to gamble! It's all about fun this time of year.

Jessica demonstrating well how the mitten game is played. You must place hat, mittens and scarf on before you can unwrap the gift. So much fun to play with a whole bunch of people.

Heidi and Kellen watching and waiting for there turn to unwrap the gift!