He's packing his bags and getting ready to go!

I am not sure even where to begin with this post. So much has been happening in our lives that I have wanted to write about, but it just hasn't been the right time. We are moving to Mississippi! Hal has a new job with Raytheon in Forest, MS. We are so unbelievably excited to be closer to both of our families.

Over the last few months we have seen God do an incredible work in both of our lives and in this job situation and move. I must be honest and say we said we would never move back to Mississippi. It just wasn't in our plans, but after living away from both of our families for almost 4 years, having a baby, and Hal's dad getting sick, our desires changed drastically! We are really looking forward to Drew growing up around his Ramsey family and getting to see his Parnell family a whole lot more.

There has been some wait involved with the timing of all of this. Those of you that know me, know that waiting isn't my strong point, but I must say that God has most definitely used this wait to change and refine me. I would often say, "Hal- can you believe I am not freaking out right now!" I saw myself be able to take a step back and really trust that God was in control and whatever he did was the best...the absolute best.

There is a lot going on with us right now! Our house went on the market today! We already have a showing tomorrow afternoon. As most of you know because you live here or have seen on TV the Florida real estate market is dreadful. But we have really seen God's provision and glory dealing with our house already. We have wonderful agents. The market is up as of late and our house is listed for more than we expected! We are praying it sells quickly and would love for you to join us in that. Hal starts on February 22nd in Mississippi! His last day with Cooper is on February 9th. We will be spending the 9th-13th at Disney and heading for Mississippi sometime early in the week of February 14th.

I can't write this post without saying that although we are moving closer to family. We have very mixed emotions about leaving family behind here. There are several people here who have been family to us. They have walked with us through a very special season in our lives as we anticipated Drew's arrival and then as we spent our first year as parents. They sat at the hospital until the early morning the night he was born, talked us through the early days of being parents, shared as we dedicated him to the Lord, and celebrated his 1st birthday with us. We have been incredibly blessed with the people God has put in our lives and look forward to having those friendships for many years to come!

Poor Little Man

January has been a little rough on Drew. RSV over New Year's and then this week he has been battling a fever. No other symptoms just a high fever. I may never get him to take a bath again after the traumatic experience of having to give him a lukewarm bath in the middle of the night to get his fever down! The picture below is Friday afternoon. When I got him up from his nap, his fever had finally broken. He and his bed were drenched. Now if we can get these last 3 teeth in life should be a little easier for him!

One of the few smiles we were able to get today. He loves bubbles!

First Haircut

We took Drew to get his first hair cut today. We had it trimmed a little back in the fall, but it was time for a major cut. I love his curls, but it was getting long and time for a cut. He did great! He thought it was pretty cool to sit in the jeep and watch a video.

The best shot I could get after we got home.

LIttle man loves to READ

The last week or so Drew has been all about books! A few books in particular are his favorites. I think we have read the Pooh book in the video at least 100 times. He even carries them to his changing table. He has also started signing "please." You will notice him put his hands to his chest and say please. I will admit that we do hide the Pooh book and a few others from time to time. :)

Great day and a video for Aunt K

It has been a great morning! My house is clean and my baby has been happy! I am feeling so blessed to be a wife and a mother today. There are days when the house is a wreck, Drew is cranky, and mommy is cranky also. Those days I often find myself frustrated and crying out for patience to make it until daddy gets home. I know that the Lord grows me more in those days so that I can enjoy peaceful ones that much more. Here is a video just for Aunt K to see little man walking. Enjoy, Aunt K!

Resolutions-2010 and a look back at 2009

No cute picture of my little man today....just back to good ole' me writing just like the old days. I don't know that I have ever really made resolutions. I do think this is a good time of the year to set some new goals. Time for a fresh start. I am also thinking that if I put them down here, I will have some sort of accountability!

1) Respond to emails better. I am AWFUL at this. I read them and think I will get back to them later, but I NEVER do. So if you are reading this and I haven't responded to an email or a facebook message, it isn't that I don't love you, I just have bad follow through with emails!

2) Listen to voicemails. I never listen to voicemails. I am not sure why, but I just don't listen to them. I have learned my lesson though. A very close friend of mine left me a voicemail over Christmas to tell me she had been in a horrible car accident, but I didn't listen to the message and thus didn't find out for almost 2 weeks. I will do better.

3) Run.....Run....Run. I was doing so good, but the holidays and a cold combined with a little bit of laziness means that I have not had my running shoes over since before Drew's birthday. Although I don't necessarily like the running, I do like the way I feel when I am working out.

2009...what a year! My first full year of being a mother. You have heard me say that motherhood has challenged me like never before. I seem to think that more and more with every new stage that we enter. Lately, I have really been dwelling on the awesome task that God has given Hal and I in raising Drew. As I watched my little man lay himself out on the tile floor and throw an all out fit a few weeks ago, I realized what I had known for awhile, but wanted to ignore....I don't have a baby anymore. He is changing, maturing and we have to be ready for that. How we respond to situations now will help shape who he will be in the future. How we handle discipline, temper, frustration, joy, and sadness will make a difference in the man he becomes and how he responds to his need for a Savior. What a responsibility....but what an awesome God who has equipped us uniquely for the task of raising Drew Ramsey. We can lean into the Lord Jesus and He will direct us as we raise our little man. There are days I feel completely overwhelmed with this task, but I am so grateful I have a partner in Hal who supports me and has the same goal for Drew: to know Jesus as his personal Savior.

Apart from motherhood, God has taught me a lot this year. Lessons that have stretched and grown my faith. I have seen parts of my character that God has been refining for some time really change...I hope to share those with you soon! :)

Happy Birthday Buddy!

Happy Birthday to my best friend and most amazing husband! So sorry that we spent your day at home taking care of our sickly little man!

I am beyond blessed. Thank you for being such a great dad, making me laugh, encouraging me and loving me very day, and most importantly for loving the Lord and seeking to look more like Him every day!

Happy Birthday!

New Experience for New Years Eve

Our poor little man has been pretty sickly the last few days. I took this picture after his bath tonight...we can't keep his poor little nose dry! He started getting a cough on Tuesday night that sounded pretty nasty by Wednesday. I went ahead and took him to the doctor on Thursday morning because I didn't want to go into the holiday weekend not knowing if we had an ear infection or something else. The doctor said everything looked good and it was probably just a cold, but we ended up taking him the ER on Thursday night/New Year's Eve. I had checked his temp shortly after Hal got home from work and it was fine, but by around 6:00 it had shot up to 103. The on call nurse told us to take him to the ER since it was a holiday weekend and he couldn't see his doctor until Monday morning. She didn't like that it had risen so fast. We were able to get in pretty quickly. They checked his ears which looked fine and did a chest xray to make sure it wasn't pneumonia as well as a culture to see if he had RSV. His chest looked okay, but he does have RSV which is a respiratory virus. He has been better today and his fever is still up but not what it was last night! We are praying for a good night's sleep tonight!

We spent the day playing with little man and watching football. It looks like we will be doing the same for Hal's birthday tomorrow!

Happy New Year!!