Baby Larkin in Claymation

I still have so many pictures from different events to post, but I just can't find the time to sit down and blog! I did want to post a few pictures from our 4D Ultrasound. A friend put it well when she said that 4D pics look like Claymation...you know the old Christmas movies where the people are made out of Play-doh. Anyway, while Larkin looked like those little clay characters he also looked pretty cute in some of his little pictures. Everything seemed healthy and he was right on average in all of his dimensions. We are now just counting down to meet him. Here are some of the pictures:

Here we see an arm and foot trying to cover his face...he's a flexible little guy.

This is his foot...all 5 toes!

This is him with one fist up...he is nestled next to the placenta, so that got in the way on several of the pictures.

Sweet little Larkin is smiling...again covered by the placenta.

This one looks like he's sucking on his lower lip...either that or he looks like Bart Simpson. :) This was definitely my favorite b/c of his cute little nose.

Pray for Albertville

I actually have a lot of updates coming...This weekend was very eventful as my friend, Ashley, got married. Along with the events of the wedding, there was some eventful weather across Alabama. I didn't realize until Sunday morning that my hometown, Albertville, had been hit by a tornado in the night and that there was extensive damage. Thankfully, my parents were fine and there was no damage to their house as they live a few miles away from the heaviest hit area. However, there was a lot of damage to the downtown area, the high school and middle school, and several homes along a portion of downtown.

- The lunchroom of the Alabama Avenue Middle School.

I have had a hard time really understanding what has happened as I haven't visibly seen the damage...I've almost had an "out of sight, out of mind" mentality, which bothered me. I do not live there currently, but Albertville will always be my hometown and will carry so many of the memories I've had in my life. The streets that I used to ride my bike through are now bare as many of the hundred year old trees are down. Good ole AAMS (Alabama Avenue Middle School) where I walked the halls during those awkward middle school years has piles of rubble throughout most of the building. I've now seen pictures that are making the reality of the situation sink in and making me realize the urgency of my need to pray for this city.

- These are some houses across from the high school.

I do ask for prayer for the Albertville as they begin to "rebuild the city". Mostly, I ask for prayer for those who lost their homes or will have to undergo major renovations to fix the damage. Thankfully there were no fatalities, which is a miracle. I feel like this will be a situation the Lord will use for the city to become stronger through the devastation it has faced. It makes me sad (as cheesy at it sounds) to think that my little boy will not see Albertville as I saw it...the old, beauty of so much of the landscape that truly made it such a nice place to grow up. Thank you all for your prayers!

- This is on East Main...the oldest and prettiest street in Albertville.

- This is of the High School, the campus used to be covered in trees.

**All of these pictures were taken courtesy of Kathy Baugh**

And he shall be called...

Samuel Larkin Denson

Joe and I had a successful "naming retreat" at the beach. I think Joe went in with his mind made up on the name, but I needed some time to talk it out. We had decided that we wanted to call him Larkin, but we were unsure of the other name. Not a lot goes with Larkin as it is a bit unusual. However, we love it! It's Joe's middle name and has been in his family for a few generations. His grandmother was excited to hear the name as Larkin was her father's name, so that was very special for her.

As for Samuel, we have both loved Samuel since praying for our child early on. We both felt strongly about going with family names or names with significance to us. The story of Hannah praying for Samuel has carried a lot of meaning for many people we know who have prayed for God's blessing of a child. We felt that it was fitting as that story and the faith of Hannah's prayers encouraged me often as we hoped for a child.

So little Larkin is kicking up a storm and growing like a weed. I had a great dr's visit today and everything continues to go right along as it should. I do think Larkin is nestled nicely on my sciatic nerve which sends shooting pains down my rear-end, but at least he seems to be enjoying himself in there. I am thankful that this pregnancy has been somewhat of a breeze and hope it continues as the hot weather draws closer.

24 Weeks and Counting

I wanted to post a quick update on the pregnancy. I am 24 weeks and counting down to the arrival of our little man. I am feeling GREAT! Everyone was right when they said the second trimester you became "normal" again. I have so much energy and just overall feel good. I do think that the springtime weather has contributed a lot to how I feel since I have always said I have "seasonal depression"...basically hate feeling stuck inside with cold weather. I also have had great reports at the dr. recently and it seems (as you can see from the picture) that little man is growing very well!!

On that note, I wanted to share a funny story of the harassment I receive about my growing belly. Thankfully I take joking and sarcasm very well and everyone knows that I don't get my feelings hurt too often or to easily. So keep that in mind...

We had our Good Friday service last week and saw some friends of ours. I said something about my "little man" and they all kind of smirked and giggled. I immediately let them know that at this point in my pregnancy, the baby should be just a little over a pound. My brother quickly, and with no hesitation, turned to me, pointed to my belly and emphatically said ,"That's only a pound?" I laughed along with the rest and started making up reasons why my belly (while only carrying a child around a lb in weight) was as voluptuous as it is. Oh the moments of pregnancy. :)

Lastly, Joe and I are going to the beach next week for a get-a-way weekend together before our little man comes but also so we can have a NAMING RETREAT! We still have not settled on the full name and until we do, I just can't bring myself to post his name. :) So, it's coming soon.

Celebrating Easter

I am so happy to take a break from belly bump updates to share about an amazing opportunity for Easter celebration this Sunday! I love Easter and all that it brings. I love the Spring weather, the beautiful trees and flowers blooming, cute shoes, great spring clothes, and so many other signs of the Easter season. However, most importantly, I love celebrating Christ's death and resurrection and being reminded once again of His love for us! How he suffered and endured such agony on the cross, died and was buried and with that so were our sins, and how he rose from the grave the 3 days later so we can know that HE IS ALIVE!

I hope everyone is able to celebrate this Easter through great worship and teaching. I would like to extend an invitation to Mountain Brook Community's Easter worship. Our pastor, Tim Kallam, is truly gifted in dramatically telling the Easter story year after year in a new way that each time pierces the hearts of everyone. In years past he has told the story from the several perspectives. This year, he will be telling the story of Christ's death and resurrection through the perspective of Peter! I hope anyone that can will join us!

Happy Easter to all!

We're halfway there!

Not a lot has gone on the last 2 weeks. Life has continued to be very busy as Joe crunches numbers, trying to push through to the tax deadlines. This season comes around every year and we have learned how to adjust pretty well. I will say, selfishly, I enjoy not having to think about dinner and what to cook (or try to cook). However, I will be glad when life is a little bit more normal.

Which...leads me to my next point...life will actually be very abnormal (in a good way) in just under 20 weeks! That's right! I hit the half-way point of my pregnancy. It has flown by and I can say I have enjoyed the last 20 weeks so I hope I can say the same about these next 20 weeks! Here is a picture marking the half-way point of our little one's growth (and my growth...).

A Happy Happy Birthday

Celebration for my birthday started last Saturday, but the actual day was yesterday (Feb 24) and it was incredible!

Joe and I found out that we are having a baby BOY!

We planned my ultrasound appointment for my birthday as I knew there would be no greater gift than finding out what our little bit was! He cooperated VERY well. Not only could we tell that he was a boy, we were also able to see how well he was developing. Everything measured as it should, his heart had 4 chambers and a great heartbeat, and there were 10 fingers and 10 precious toes! We are so excited about this little guy and can't wait to start picking things out for him...starting with his name. :)

We also continued our celebration by going to dinner with our families. It was such a sweet time as our parents were so excited about the news of our baby boy. Joe's family had a special excitement as this keeps their boy/girl ratio with the boys dominating. :) Our baby boy also got several little gifts from each of our family members. My mom gave him a baseball photo album...we only hope he will have Joe's athleticism to be able to capture some baseball moments. :) Mrs. Denson gave me some of the sweetest outfits that Joe had worn as a baby. It's so special to think our baby can wear his daddy's clothes (Joe was mortified that he wore some of these things). Also, Mrs. Sara (Joe's grandmother) gave him several goodies, most of which were centered around the family's love for Bama! And Lura (my soon to be sister-in-law) gave him some of her old books from her childhood which was so special.

We continue to be so thankful for this sweet baby boy and never want to cease to thank the Lord for this gift! Thank you all again for your prayers yesterday. I am thankful for all of you!

**New Post Below**