Hello All! Today is the day four years ago that our family welcomed Faith!! From that day on we rarely have a dull moment. She has an excitement that is contagious. We love you Mae-Mae!!! Faith went to pre-school today and celebrated with her class. She got to make her own crown and decorate it. So here is our four year old little girl's picture from today.

Last Saturday we celebrated her birthday by heading to Klackles Orchard in Greenville, Michigan. It was the perfect day!! The weather could not have been better, Praise God! We enjoyed playing on all the fun children's play equipment, walking the corn maze, climbing the Hay bale mountain, picking fresh apples, riding the pumpkin coaches, enjoying cider and doughnuts. Grandma and Granddad Briden and Grandma Nettie came along to celebrate with us. We all had a great time!! I even got to eat an apple : ) Faith's favorite thing was eating doughnuts and jumping in the inflatable pumpkin.

After Klackles we headed home to have a fun family Tinker Bell themed party. She even received a Tinker Bell dress up costume as a gift. She looks adorable in it. The cake was actually cupcakes that Mommy ordered from Wal-Mart with a Tinker Bell cake topper. It's hard to believe Faith is four now. She has grown and changed so much in just a year. I am so glad God blessed us with Faith, she is a sweetheart and so full of life. God Bless your Day Faith, we love you!!!! I must also add Happy Birthday Uncle Rick!! Faith and my brother, Rick, share this birthday, twenty four years apart of course. We love you too, Uncle Rick!!!Blessings to all- Crystal

Hello All! Well this past weekend we had guests. Uncle Rick and Aunt Kristin cam to visit on Saturday night and to church with us the next morning. The first thing the kids wanted to was "wrestle them". So we immediately went into our "wrestle" room. It was fun to see them and catch up on their lives. They are always so good with the kiddos and we love to talk and laugh with them both.




























The "Big" girls have officially moved into their new bedroom. They were able to help paint and decorate it. The color choice is a bluish/ green, because Grace loves blue and Faith green. They added their own peel and stick removable hearts, stars and flowers on the wall next to their beds. We are so thankful to have the added space for them to still have their own room : )









Yesterday was quite exciting for Grace. She was outside for recess and was told by the teacher to line up. She immediately jumped turned and ran smack into a tree. Needless to say she got a huge goose egg on her forehead. I was called by the school after it happened. I came to school to assess the injury and she was in the office with an ice bag on her head. The first thing she said to me was " Mommy, I don't want to have to leave school and go home." I checked her out and she appeared fine other than a huge "bubble" on her head. So she was s glad to stay with her buddies at school. This picture was taken this morning with the tree she hit head on and the bump on the head has gone down dramatically : )




I am now a full fledged Gestational Diabetic. With the girls I was always sort of borderline, but with Hope I failed the long three hour Glucose Tolerance Test (GTT). During the GTT you drink 100 grams of dextrose and the lab techs. draw your blood to see if your body is tolerating that much sugar. I failed a couple of the blood draws, my sugar was too high. So now I have my own glucometer to measure my blood sugar level and I am eating a modified ATKINS diet. It is amazing how many carbohydrates are in all the foods we eat commonly daily. My sister-in-law Suzi is a Type 1 diabetic and has battled this most of her life and for all four pregnancies. My hats off to her, she is a trooper!!! I am already dreaming of eating a large "Peanut Butter Cup Perfection" in a waffle bowl from Cold stone Creamery (http://www.coldstonecreamery.com/) . Alas, I will need to wait patiently till the beginning of December. It is worth it for Hope to be healthy, I would do anything for that girl : ) If I have learned anything being a parent this is only the beginning of my self sacrifice. I would gladly die for any one of my precious people God has given me. So now Mommy "Sucks it up" and gives up carbs. But please remember me after Hope's birth and send all refined sugar to our home address ; ) Just Kidding!!


In other news Faith Mae turns four next Wednesday on the 26th. I can't believe my baby girl is getting so old. She is loving pre-school and is often bummed she can't go to school everyday like big sister Grace. This weekend we will celebrate her birthday by going to Klackles Orchard in Greenville, Michigan(http://www.klackleorchards.com/). They have a wonderful fun area for kids to play, a corn maze, wagon rides to pick your own apples, and many pumpkin patches. I will post photos of that outing soon : ) Oh and don't worry, Apples are quite low in carbs compared to other fruit. I promise to pass on the cider doughnuts though. God Bless you all- Love, Crystal

Hello All! Well I have many fun pictures to attach to this post today. First, Luke was dedicated in our church on Augsut 26th 2007. We dedicated him to God and we as parents committed to raising him in a Christian home, and the church commits to help our family in this as well. It was a great ceremony. Luke did excellent and he even let our Pastor hold him. We Love you Lukey!!! May God Bless your life and may you always glorify him.

Labor Day was a day spent at our local Lake Michigan Beach. We can walk to this beach from our house. Today though we drove over a street and parked as we were hiking in with lunch, beach umbrella and of course sunscreen. We had a great time of rest and relaxation. The kids could swim all day if given the chance. Actually so could Mommy, I love the water.

September 4th was a big day in our household as well. I turned 32 and we celebrated with Ken and Vera. They made a great meal for us all and included many of my favorites. Deviled eggs and carrot cake to name a few. My Father-in-law even grated the carrots for the cake. Thanks Mom and Dad Briden!!!!

On the 4th Grace had her first day of kindergarten. Unbelievable, my baby a big kindergartner. I am so happy for her, she is one smart cookie, she will excel. But, Mommy on the other hand misses her baby. I have been home with her since the beginning. She is my sweet spirited child who is always ready with a smile. It is sad without my Gracie around. I know, I know there is a season for everything. She has told me she is not ready to go away for college just yet. I am glad of that. But, I have told her in time she will be : ) Mommy on the other hand will cry I am sure. Happy tears, I assure you!!

Today Faith became a big pre-schooler as well. Another tear filled moment for mommy : ) She was so excited to finally get to go. Rarely now does Faith not get to do things the same as Grace. So to wait a year for school was an eternity for our sweet Faith. When I arrived in the classroom to pick her up she shouted in true Faith style "My Mommy, My best Mommy!"

The picture of the girls by the lighthouse painting is a mural at their school. It reads "Christ Lights the Way." Luke and I had a great morning. He was basking in my undivided attention. He got to ride Sandy the penny pony at Meijer and even got to pick pout a hot wheels car to take home.

Luke is ready though for school, at least in his mind. He kept asking his favorite question " Mom, what about me?" I said don't worry buddy your turn will come. He has also already decided he want s a football backpack. This last picture of Faith is so her, always posing and always making us laugh. Enjoy and may God Bless you all. Love, Crystal

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