It's a . . .

BOY!  Three of you got it right.  For all you who guessed girl, don't worry, I was right there with you.  On Monday, we had our anatomical ultrasound, and got to meet our new little man.  I always enjoy this ultrasound, not just because we get to discover the gender, but because we get to see his hands, toes, heart, eyes, and so much more.  It really is amazing to be able to get a small glimpse into what goes on in the womb, and we are blessed to report that everything looked wonderful.  Even though this is my third pregnancy, I am constantly awed by how intricate and awesome pregnancy is and it is a great reminder of how great our God is!  

So, here are some pictures of the newest member of our family - Eli James Dilley.  We can't wait until we get to meet him! 

We think he looks just like his big brother Ethan

 Thumbs up Mom and Dad!

 

Can You Guess?

It is already that time!  On Monday, Chris and I will have an ultrasound to check the baby's health and to hopefully discover the gender.  Since we already have a girl and a boy, I considered not finding out and letting it be a surprise, but then quickly realized I am too curious not to find out!  So, here is your chance to guess - boy or girl?  Take a second to vote and then give us your name suggestions.  We are not necessarily keeping with the 'E' theme (it was coincidental with Emma and Ethan), but would like this name to go with the others (Emma, Ethan, and Madge just wouldn't work).  We will keep you posted and let you know Monday the verdict.

Will it be a boy or girl?

Five!

It is hard to believe, but today we celebrate our Emma Lynne's fifth birthday!  It seems like not so long ago we welcomed this tiny, pink, little baby into the world.  She has changed and grown so much since then - she is now in Kindergarten, she ties her own shoes, she dresses herself, and is starting to read!  Even as I write this post, she is busy helping her Nani measure flour for some chocolate chip cookies.  There are so many wonderful things about Miss Emma that we love, but here is a little peek into what makes her so special to us:

• She loves to learn!  Emma absolutely loves school and really enjoys the challenge of learning new things.  She taught herself how to tie her shoes from reading a book I bought her, and even is learning Spanish this year!


• She loves to dress up.  This may not seem out of the ordinary for a little girl, but Emma really enjoys to wear dresses, get her hair done, and do her (and her Nani's) fingernails.  While I would have been just as grateful for a tomboy, it has been a lot of fun to play "princess" with my princess.


• She is an awesome big sister.  I could not have asked for a better first child.  Since she became a big sister to Ethan, she has constantly helped me care for her little brother without being asked.  She get wipes, diapers, and cups when I need a hand and is always the first to give her little brother a hug when he falls.  I cannot wait to see her with the new baby!
 

• She is a singer!   Emma loves to sing.  It has been one of my greatest joys to share this love with her and, as a result, our house is constantly filled with music (her brother also shares this love).  There are not many sounds sweeter than hearing her voice echo through our house!


• She is a creator.  Before all you theologians and seminarians get uptight, what I mean is that she enjoys creating artwork, towers, jewelry, and lots of other projects.  Papa takes her once a month to the Home Depot for their kid's program and it is something she really looks forward to!

I really could go on and on - I am sure you parents know the feeling!  Even at five, her personality is so multifaceted and evolving every day.  Not that I am in any rush, but I am excited to see where the Lord takes her interests, hobbies, and heart as an adult.  For now, it is our prayer that one day, at the top of the list, we can add She loves the Lord.  While we love her dearly as our first-born child, it is our greatest desire that she (and our other children) would one day become a child of God.  Until that day, we will continue to parent her in a way that points her to Christ and enjoy the blessing that arrived five years ago today.  We love you, Emma Lynne!

Emma, the Day She Came Home From the Hospital

Emma's First Birthday

 

2-Year-Old Emma Helping Nani Cook for Thanksgiving

 

3-Year-Old Emma with Nani and Papa

 

4-Year-Old Emma Striking a Pose  

Our (Almost) 5-Year-Old and Her Brother on Halloween

Fall Fun!

Fall is in full swing, and so are the Dilleys!  We recently visited Westview Orchards with Nani, Papa, and GG (great grandma) Dot to pick some pumpkins.  It was a cold and rainy day, but we all had a great time anyway!  We rode the wagon out to the pumpkin patch, and Emma and Ethan had a great time running through the patch, looking for that perfect pumpkin!  Ethan even got to ride on a pony named Jake.  Emma wanted to ride until we sat her on the pony and she was terrified (poor thing).  We capped off our adventure with the classic orchard experience - cider and doughnuts!  Here are some photos from our outing.  Don't you just love fall?

 The Whole Gang

 Ethan and Mommy

 Four Generations!

 

 Finding the Perfect Pumpkin with Papa

 

 What a big pumpkin!

 Riding on "Jake"

 

The Sweetest Sound

There is almost nothing better to hear than this sound:

I'm Back!

I'm back!  I am happy to report that my nausea has subsided considerably, so I am back to blogging (and to life, for that matter).  As you may have suspected, a lot has happened since my last post, so this post will be a bit of "potpourri", after one of my favorite Jeopardy categories - a little bit of everything.

Probably the biggest thing that has happened is Emma starting Kindergarten this fall!  She is an amazingly smart little girl, and has absolutely loved elementary school.  On the first day, Nani and I dropped her off at her classroom and, after a while, she looked at me and asked, "Mom, are you leaving now?"  Needless to say, she has adjusted to school quite well!  Ethan wasn't too sure about his sister being gone at first, but now he is enjoying being the little King of the castle when she's gone.  Chris and I have been so thankful for her school and her wonderful Kindergarten teacher, and we feel very blessed that the Lord has taught Emma and us so much during this new transition time.

Another item of significance (at least to me), is that Emma learned to tie her shoes!  That may seem like it is not worthy of a blog mention, but it was a very big day in our house.  Last year, I bought her a book shaped like a shoe with strings that teaches you how to tie your shoe.  We had been through it a few times, but, one Saturday, she picked up that book, sat for about 2 hours practicing, and, by the end of the afternoon, was tying and double-knotting her own shoes.  It was such a reminder to me of how fast she is growing up.  She even asked Papa this week if they could take her training wheels of her bike this weekend.

 

Our beautiful little Kindergartener

  

Ethan wasn't too happy about Emma's first day

Giving Mom lots of hugs!  I needed them more than she did.

At her locker

As for the little man, his vocabulary has been growing as fast as he has.  He is starting sentences with "actually" and "well, Mom" and loves reading books with his sister!  He has been slightly influenced by "the terrible twos" lately, but it has been another great growing opportunity for him and us!

Ethan at the Armada Fair this summer.  So corny!

Finally, I wanted to share some pictures from this summer that never made it into the blog, but should have!  This July, we were able to see one of our favorite Louisville families - the Wellums!  They stopped by on their way to Canada, and it was so wonderful to see them.  Dr. Wellum is a professor at Southern Seminary, and we became close to their family after being a part of their young couples Sunday school class for 7 years.  Here is the photo of almost the entire gang (their eldest son wasn't with them):

 

 Visiting with the Wellums

We were also blessed to be able to see my close friend and college roommate, Wendy, and her family.  Wendy married a Michigan man (she has good taste) and we met them in Ann Arbor for a quick visit.  I couldn't believe how big her boys are getting, but it was a blessing to be able to see them.  Wendy has been an instrumental part of my life since college and one of my closest friends, and she is one of the people I have missed the most since moving to Michigan.

 Roomies!

 Almost every was happy! 

 

How's that for potpourri?  Since I am done spending the majority of my day in the bathroom anymore, I will be back blogging on a consistent basis!  Have a great day!

Morning, Noon, and Night Sickness

I was hoping that my next blog post would be about Emma's first day of school, our recent trip up north, or some cute story about something silly Ethan did.  Unfortunately, I haven't been feeling well enough to blog on a regular basis because I have had "morning" sickness pretty badly.  I was placed on some anti-nausea medication by my doctor, but the side effects were worse than the nausea (if you can believe that), so I recently started another medicine that is supposed to help relive the nausea.  It has helped some, but I still find myself struggling to be able to get anything done.  I am sure many of you Mom's reading this can relate.

I wanted to share my difficulty as of late, not to complain, but to be reminded of how dependent I am on the grace of God in my life.  First, I am thankful for my morning sickness.  You may think this crazy, but it is a reminder of the tiny gift the Lord has given me to take care of.  There are many in the world who are not able to have their own children (through no fault of their own), and I am humbled that the Lord has allowed me to give birth to two beautiful children.  (As a side, we need to remember to pray for those who struggle with infertility and to thank God for men and women who show the love of Christ to so many orphaned children through adoption).

Secondly, my morning sickness reminds me that God is in control, I am not.  Obviously, this is not something I would choose for myself - I miss going to church, participating in activities, and frankly, I am tired of the bathroom!  However, I know the Lord has a plan and that in my weakness, He is strong!  I can trust that the Lord will use this for my good and His glory.

Lastly, I am once again reminded that I am so grateful for my family.  They have helped with the kids, ironed our clothes, and sat with me on the couch when I have felt the worst.  It has been humbling and encouraging to be taken care of when I can't take care of myself - just because they love me.

If this pregnancy is anything like the last time I had morning sickness, it should only last a few more weeks.  While I look forward to the day when I no longer wake up and immediately head to the bathroom, I don't want to miss out on the blessings and lessons that He has for me now.   I appreciate your prayers and hope to be back to blogging soon! 

Three's Company

As you may have guessed, we have a big announcement!  We are so excited to share that we will be adding another member to our family in April.  Emma and Ethan are very happy about their new sibling and have even put in gender requests - they both want a girl.  When I asked Emma why she wanted a girl, she said (without missing a beat), "because we already have a boy." 

Everything so far looks good, but we appreciate your prayers for a healthy and safe pregnancy.  Here is the first picture of our little peanut:

Summer of Chevron

Since Chris and I have been married, there has been one piece of furniture that we have never purchased - a coffee table.  Before kids, we thought that it cut our apartment living room in half.  After kids, we saw it as one less things for them to run into (although they still got that classic childhood experience of running full speed into a corner at some of our family's homes).  Well, we are now living in a house, and our kids are old enough and tall enough that their risk of poking an eye out has mostly passed.  I know - never say never, but, nonetheless, I started looking for a coffee table to fill in our living room a bit.  Since the price of a new coffee table is outrageous, I decided to look at garage sales for an inexpensive used one that I could refinish.  A few weeks later, we were at a friend's house for a play date and I noticed a coffee table in their garage sale pile.  She graciously gave it to me for free, and my project was born.

All of our living room furniture is black, but I wanted to do something with a little spunk.  I keep seeing all these adorable chevron patterns, so this was what we decided to do.  With the help of my amazingly talented Mom, we sanded, primed, painted, taped, and sealed our very first chevron coffee table. Here are some pictures from the beginning to the end of our project:

Before sanding

 

After sanding

 

Painting the black base (we also bought a children's table and chair to refinish)

 After taping - probably the most time consuming part!

Painting the chevron stripes

The finished product!

The finished product in our living room

I loved the way it turned out, and I'm thinking there might be some t.v. trays that need to be refinished!  What do you think?  Do you have any projects this summer that you've been working on?

Little Fishies 2012

After a busy week of VBS, we headed into two busy weeks of swimming lessons!  This year, she took lessons at the pool that I learned to swim at.  She started in Level 2 (since we took lessons in Louisville last year) and had a blast!  She did have a little bit of first day jitters (new state, new pool), but she had two wonderful teachers who were patient and kind.  By the last day, she was not only swimming the front and backstroke, she was jumping off the diving board in the deep end!  She was tested on Thursday and she passed Level 2.  

Friday was "Fun Day" and she went down the water slide with a huge smile on her face.  While Emma swam, Ethan and I watched from the baby pool.  Papa even joined us for some of the lessons and he and Ethan had a great time chasing each other in the baby pool!  Here are some photos from the last two weeks:

Best Buds!

Ethan rocking his big sister's shades

Here she comes . . .

 

 She loved the waterslide!

Amazing Wonders Aviation

It's that time again!  It is hard to believe that it has been a whole year since the last VBS, but last week Emma, Ethan, and I traveled around the globe with "Amazing Wonders Aviation."  Clad in her pilot's goggles, Emma was very excited to "travel" to the different stations for the first time as part of the Kindergarten class, while I was a co-teacher in the First/Second Grade class.  The church was covered in travel-themed decorations - from airplanes and globes to waterfalls and rainbows, and the halls were filled with the familiar sounds of children singing the always upbeat VBS songs! It is always a great joy to not only have my children participate in VBS, but for me as well to be able to serve.  I cannot tell you how much I benefited from the children's ministry program when I was a child, and it is a privilege to be able to help to continue that ministry to a new generation.

Of all the stations, it is safe to say that Emma enjoyed music the most.  She knew all the motions (better than I did, I confess) and even got to perform some of the songs and motions on Sunday with the rest of the VBS kids.

Ethan spent his week in the two-year-old class and though he was a little reticent about leaving his Momma every morning, he had a great time.  He colored, sang, listened to a Bible story, and even got to play outside with the water table.  As an aside, I am so very grateful for the nursery workers who spend their week caring for the worker's children so we can participate in VBS.  Not only did they allow me to participate as a teacher, but they did such a wonderful job planning fun and creative ideas for them to do during the week.  Ethan left his class every day excitedly telling me of all the things he got to do that day!

Major Ethan Dilley

In addition to VBS last week, my brother and his family came to town for a visit.  It was a joy to be able to see them and play with my sweet nieces.  Emma, Julia, and Ethan spent a majority of their free time playing with each other in the pool, and we are already missing them!  

Julia, Emma, and Ethan going for a swim!

After 2 days of rest from VBS, Emma began swim lessons this week!  What a busy and fun summer it has turned out to be and there is quite a bit left!

Summer Break

It has been quite a while since my last post!  I took a short "Summer Break", but now it is back to blogging!  In addition to updates on our family, I hope to finally finish some book reviews for you!  I also have some projects I have been working on over the summer, so I'm looking forward to sharing those with you too.

This summer has been busy and exciting.  Last week, we celebrated a very HOT 4th of July with some friends from church.  There was plenty of kids and babies running around, and Chris was kind enough to stay outside with them when the rest of us were inside fixing the food, watching the little babies, and, let's be honest, enjoying the air conditioning!  Since it got so hot, they spent most of their time in the kiddie pool and sprinkler.  Here are some great action shots!

Go Ethan!

 Go Emma!

It wouldn't be the 4th without Daddy in his Patriots Jersey!

Needless to say, they were tuckered out by nap time!  After they woke up, we headed to my grandparent's house for dinner.  It is such a blessing to us to be able to live near and spend lots of time with them!  Emma and Ethan love to visit because they get to watch Tom & Jerry and eat suckers (classic grandparents).  I wish I had thought to take some pictures there, but I totally forgot because we were having too much fun.

Next this summer we have VBS and swim lessons!  Before I know it, I will be writing my "Back to School" post (perish the thought).  Until then, we hope you are enjoying your summer and will update you on ours a little more often.

Birthdays, Batons, and Bouncy Castles - Oh My!

June has been an eventful month for the Dilleys!  We started the month celebrating our little man's second birthday (can you believe it?) Ethan is very into Dinosaurs lately, so we threw him a Dinosaur-themed party, complete with a Dinosaur cake!  He loved turning two and had a great time eating, opening presents, and spending time with his family.  
 

Ethan's Dinosaur Friends

 

 Blowing out the candles!

Not too long after we celebrated Ethan's birthday, Chris and I celebrated our 6-year anniversary.  It is amazing to look back at our lives six years ago and to see what the Lord has graciously done in our lives.  We kept it simple with dinner and a movie, but, honestly, we love to sit and talk, so it was the perfect date!  I feel incredibly blessed to be married to Chris and am honored to be his wife!

 Date Night!

I was also blessed to be able to participate in a special event at our church a few weeks ago.  As some of you know, my former youth pastor, Patrick McGoldrick, was recently diagnosed with ALS (see post here).  This year, as we honored the last graduating class under his ministry, our pastor surprised Patrick with a tribute to his ministry and a charge to keep running hard after Christ.  Lining the auditorium, a student from each graduating class under Patrick, from 2000 to 2012, passed a baton that read "Keep the Pace" - a reminder to keep running hard after Christ.  I was incredibly honored to be the representative for 2002.  As the baton was passed last to Patrick, we were all humbled by what Lord has done and continues to do through the ministry of Patrick and Dena.

Finally, as school wraps up this year, Emma, Ethan, and I visited my Dad's class on Field Day, and were able to do something we had never done before - jump in a bouncy castle by ourselves!  The school had rented several large bouncy castles for the students, but during lunchtime they were unoccupied and Emma and Ethan were able to jump, jump, jump!  

 Bouncing Away!

Video of all the fun!

And June isn't even over yet!

Hogwarts, Class of 2025

It seems like just yesterday I was writing about Emma's first day of preschool, and now I am writing about her graduation.  Yes, I am one of those Moms who loves all the ceremonies and celebrations - even in preschool!

The day of her graduation was an eventful one.  We began the morning at the pediatrician's office with Ethan who somehow managed to perforate his ear drum (he will be fine, but he gave us quite a scare).  Then, I took her to National Coney Island where she enjoyed, what else but a Coney Dog!  One of Emma's favorite treats is going to a restaurant and getting a hot dog, so she was very excited.


Then, we picked up Nani and headed to her last day of preschool.  We had a great time playing on the playground and cooling off with some Popsicles.  Finally, it was the moment we couldn't believe was here.  Her teacher, Mrs. Grashik, called her up and handed Emma her diploma and read from a sheet with questions they asked her about Kindergarten.  We have gotten several of these sheets this past year about various topics (How to Cook a Turkey, Holiday Questionnaire, etc) and they have all been pretty humorous.  This one was no exception!  Pay particular attention to the last two questions:

That's right, magic!  We have absolutely no idea why she has magic on the brain, but she is most excited about learning magic in Kindergarten.  Look out Harry Potter, Hogwarts has a new student!

Nonetheless, we are so proud of our Emma.  It is amazing to see how much she has learned this past year in school and we are so looking forward to seeing how much she will learn in Kindergarten.  We are also so thankful for her wonderful teachers, Mrs. Grashik and Mrs. Kehrig and all the time and energy they poured into her this year.  Their patience and love for learning made Emma love school even more!

Four years ago when I held that beautiful little baby in my arms for the first time, I could not have imagined how much joy she would bring to our lives.  What a blessing it has been to see how the Lord has grown her into such a smart and beautiful little girl and we are so thankful that the Lord has entrusted her to us.  We love you, Emma, and are so happy we are your Mom and Dad.  Look out Kindergarten, here comes Emma . . .

Emma graduating!

 

Nani and Emma

 

Mrs. Kehrig, Emma, Mom, and Mrs. Grashik