A little lady on the way!

A 3 year old little boy, a 19 month old little boy and now I am 20 weeks pregnant with our little lady. We couldn't believe it when we found out it was a little lady and not a little man.  After our first two boys were born I was convinced we only make boys!  God proved us wrong, and ETA for our little lady Charlotte Ryan (pretty sure that's the name) is October 28, 2014.  We can't wait to meet her, and I have had so much fun thinking about dressing her and planning and changing the nursery. I am excited for Nick to have a little girl, and I am excited for myself to have the mom daughter relationship that most girls and moms have.

The days can be long, but the weeks fly by

Time is going by so quickly.  I realized I haven't posted since March, and it feels like it was just a few weeks ago that I wrote my last post.  The fall is always so busy in the lives of teachers.  We are blessed with Nick having the summers but seem to make up for those hours come fall and the busyness of getting his classroom situated and back in the swing of things.  I am also teaching a few hours a week for a homeschool program called Gorman.  I love it, but it is an adjustment to find time to plan lessons again!
Nick and I were blessed to take a step back last weekend and take some much time needed away to go to a marriage retreat up at Hume Lake!  It was wonderful, and so good to be away from all distractions, especially the internet!  Having a smart phone makes us accessible at all times by text, phone, email and any social media we are attached to.  It is a constant balance to not let it overtake, and become all consuming.

Back to the marriage retreat...Here is a picture of us taken at the lake.  It is such a beautiful serene place.  It was a time of rejuvenation for us.  The couple who spoke gave great tips for conflict in marriage.  It was so practical, because EVERY marriage deals with conflict.  I appreciated their insight, and the Lord brought to mind specific areas where I can do better in my marriage.
The boys are growing so quickly, too quickly.  Lucas will be 1 in another month.  I can't believe it.  That boy is growing so fast, and eats like there is no tomorrow!  He is becoming our little big man!:)  Noah's vocabulary is growing by the day, and it is so much fun to have "real" conversations with him now.  His absolute favorite thing to do is wrestle with Daddy, and actually I would have to say that is Lucas' favorite thing to do as well.  Those boys love to rough house with dad.  Today, they were rough housing with each other, and loving it.  I was sitting on the sidelines like a referee constantly reminding Noah to be "gentle" with Lucas.  Gentle and roughhousing??  Those are not words that go together!  Sigh....this is the beginning of it, being a mom of boys is definitely going to help me relax!

Parenting

Sometimes Nick and I feel like we have absolutely no idea what we are doing when it comes to parenting.  It is such a new world to us especially as Noah grows into a toddler and we have new words enter into our vocabulary like tantrums, and discipline.  Sometimes I am scared of this role of parenting.  I start to get wrapped up in the idea that I don't want to screw up, and what if I don't do enough to show my boys who Jesus is.  Thank goodness I don't have to bear that burden.  I am so thankful that our Lord shows us and guides us how to do this when we ask him for help.  I can't imagine being a parent without relying on Christ.  Lately we have been opened up to more insight from many different parenting books.  I am so thankful for the wealth of knowledge out there when it comes to books.
We went overload on books from Amazon last night when we picked out these great reads:  The New Dare to Discipline by James Dobson, Raising a Modern Day Knight, Bringing up Boys and The Family Blessing.  More than anything else in parenting Nick and I desire that our boys grow to understand their need for our Rescuer and Savior Jesus Christ.  We pray that they come to desire to follow our Lord with all their heart.  As we raise them we pray that as we live out our days that we would live out the call in Deuteronomy 6: 4-9 which is our family verse.

⁴ Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.^[a] 5 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. ⁶ These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. ⁷ Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. ⁸ Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. ⁹ Write them on the door frames of your houses and on your gates.

Wowed by the Intelligence of an almost 2 year old!

Sometimes my son seriously amazes me!  There are so many moments through out the day where I see his mind expanding and growing by the way he plays or the things he says!  Every day it seems as if new words enter his vocabulary.  He often cracks me up when he walks around make chhhoo (best i can describe) noises which is how we tell Kookka no.   Today was another one of those moments.  He has a shape box where he tries to fit the shapes in to the correct holes.  I have always had to help him, and today he wowed me when he figured it out all on his own looking for the correct sides and finding the shapes to go in.  It is amazing to see his little mind grow in intelligence.  I love being his mom, and I am amazed at how smart he is!

Patience

I think this is one of the biggest fruits of the Spirit that God is working on in me as a mom.  I am realizing just how difficult it can be to show patience toward my son when he throws a temper tantrum out in public, or at home, or in the car, or where ever else we may be:)  As my mom and mother in law have often said our hardest days are our biggest learning days and I feel like Noah and I are having a lot of those lately.
The parent child relationship I get to have with Noah is such a reminder of my relationship with the Lord.  When I don't get my way how do I respond to God?  Do I kick and scream and throw a tantrum or do I trust and follow where my Heavenly Father is leading me?  I see how my son struggles with his emotions because he cannot yet fully communicate to me what he wants and doesn't understand all that I tell him.  What a picture of my relationship with God!  I do not fully understand His thoughts for they are much higher than mine.  It makes it difficult at times to line up to His will because of my lack of understanding and trust.
What a reminder when I am constantly having these types of interactions with my son to pause and remember my relationship with our God and the patience and love He has for me.  It reminds me to show that to my children as He continues to bestow it on me.

Time to write!

It has been 1 1/2 years since I have blogged!  I am sure no one even checks this page anymore, but I enjoy seeing where we have come, and so I am drawn back to journaling some of life's special moments.
Quite a lot has taken place since I wrote our last post.  Mainly we have another son!  Lucas John was born November 3, 2012!  He is now over 4 months old and a true joy just like his older brother Noah!  Our boys are 17 months apart!  Yes, it is definitely keeping my days busy of scheduling, nursing and changing diapers.  I love it though, and would not have it any other way.  I cannot wait for our boys to be playmates and buddies!
I am now a full time stay at home mom!  I love it, and wonder how anyone can balance working full time and being a mom, and taking care of their home.  It keeps me so busy!  Once in a while I do get out to sub which is nice both to have adult talk for the day and also to make some extra money.
We are also officially a van family.  Nick and I ate our words when we said "we will never buy a van".  We bought a 2011 Toyota Sienna, and as Nick's brother put it, "It's just too convenient not to love."  Well said!  I love pushing a button and watching Noah run to climb in and play with the seats.  It has made life easier with two little boys!
Time is going faster with two little boys to raise.  There are times when the days go by slowly until nap time, but overall I look at my boys and see how fast they are growing.  It is so bitter sweet.  A part of me wants them to stay small forever and it is hard to see them grow and change.  It is so sweet to watch them grow and to be their mamma though.
These are a few of my favorite things about Noah:
I love how you are starting to talk more and more.
I love how you say Kookka
I love how you call our names again and again just to hear us respond to you!
I love your hugs when I ask you if you know that Mamma loves you.
I love how you grab your pacifier out of your bed just to get a few sucks in.
I love how you love tomatoes!
I love how excited you get when you get to watch Cars.
I love how much you love buckles right now!
I love how you love to play with Kookka
I love when you give kisses.
I love hearing you call Mamma in the morning or after a nap.
I love you so much Noah!

These are a few of my favorite things about Lucas:
I love your smile, it lights up the room!
I love how you smile when you see me, it melts my heart.
I love how you wake up happy in the morning.
I love that you are finally sleeping through most of the night.
I love how you love to hold a toy and play with it/study it
I love how when sitting in your bouncer you reach up and swing at the hanging toys.
I love how happy you are.
I love that you are a mamma's boy
I love your chunky little legs!
I love how you to love to study your brother already and try to mimic him.
I love how hard you laugh when daddy plays with you.
I love you so much Lucas!

God has majorly blessed with me with these special little men.  I am thankful for each day that I am privileged to be their mamma.

Being a mom!

I have been blessed with the role of being mommy to Noah.  I absolutely love being a mommy.  I didn't know how I would feel, or act or if it would come naturally. For the longest time I didn't feel ready to have kids.
When Noah came into the world I was in love with him, but it was not the kind of heart melting love I feel for him today, that grows as each day passes.  I remember the first month was tough at times because he didn't really recognize us and there was a lot going on!
It was somewhere around 5 weeks though that he first began to smile, and that was the end of it for Nick and I!  Our hearts melted for this little boy and they continue to melt with each day that passes.  I really feel now that my heart and love just keep growing, it's crazy!  Raising kids is such a joy and each part of it is such a treasured moment.
Lately I find myself trying to soak up each moment that I rock him to sleep, each moment of nursing, each moment of waking up once in the middle of the night.  These moments are fleeting and will soon be gone.  And there will be new things to look forward to.  But oh how I am treasuring these times!  His coos and laughs are some of my favorite sounds in the world!  Sometimes I find myself anxiously waiting for him to wake up so I can spend more time with him!

It has been hard to go back to work even though it is part time.  I find it so difficult to leave that sweet smile and laugh in the morning!
Each moment is a blessing, and as time is passing quickly I am trying to treasure each moment I have with our little man:)

Doesn't that smile just melt your heart!??!  He is such a special little man:)

Noah David Patey

So Noah is almost 3 1/2 months old, and he definitely keeps life busy!!
Let's back up to that day when Noah entered the world!

Between 38-40 weeks pregnant I was 2 cm dilated and 90% effaced, I was sure Noah was going to arrive early!  However, he was way too comfortable in my tummy and his due date of May 27 came and went!  The weekend that he was due my contractions started coming on stronger and stronger, but they would never get closer to 8 minutes apart.  Tuesday May 31 rolled around and I went in to see the Dr.  By this point I am not feeling my best and am really hoping Noah will decide to come soon.  Thankfully when the Dr. checked I was 4 cm dilated and 100% effaced.  My blood pressure was going up and they decided it was time to get this boy out!!


We were sent to Labor and Delivery and arrived around 3:30 pm.  We got checked in, and the midwife broke my water around 5 pm.  Well after that the contractions really started coming.  We were really trying for a natural labor so I was so thankful to be working with a nurse and midwife who supported that!  The contractions came on stronger and stronger, and by 7-8 pm I was working my way into transitional labor which really started to hurt!  There were definitely some points where I was begging for drugs, but those surrounding kept encouraging me that I could do it, and that it was almost time to get him out!  Right before it came time to push was the worst pain I had experienced.  I think it was during this time that I mentally checked out from this experience!  What I remember most is the intense amount of pressure I felt inside of me, and how there was nothing I could do to make the pressure go away.

It was around 930-1000 that the midwife first started having me push.  I remember telling her I didn't want to! Ha.  Let me tell you though, everyone is right when it comes time to push you dig deep and you get that baby out!  Nick remembers seeing Noah's head first around 10:30 and the little guy was a somewhat turned so he had to SLOWLY work his way out!  Oh my word was it slow (almost 2 hours of pushing)!  I was so thankful for Nick who did not leave my side for one moment!  He was my rock and got me through this!  I also loved having my mom in the room with us, she really helped me get through the contractions, and kept family up to date in the waiting room!  Nick's mom Kelly was outside the whole time, and also my dad, sister and nick's brother chris and fiance amanda all came down to wait for the arrival of Noah!

Finally the little guy decided once the month of May was over that he would come on out into the world, and he arrived at 12:06 a.m. on June 1st!  He was 8 pounds 12 ounces, and 21.5 inches long!

Noah David Patey arrived into the world!
We were in love instantly!

Noah David

I realized last night that I have not updated this in a while, and there is some big news to update with!  We are having a boy!  Noah David Patey is due May 27, 2011!  Nick and I are getting so excited to meet our newest little man!!  He is kicking alot lately, and it is enough that you can see my stomach flicker from the movement!  Can't wait until he is rolling across my whole belly!!  We only have about 16 more weeks to go before we get to meet our little guy!  I can't believe how fast time is flying by!  My girlfriend Katrina had her little boy Klaas Gerrit a few weeks ago and it is crazy to see him out of her belly now!  God is amazing, and the creation of a little boy or girl is such a beautiful thing!  Here is a picture that can let you know that Noah was definitely a boy! 

Baby Patey!

Hearing the heartbeat, seeing it suck its thumb, seeing baby's mouth moving to drink amniotic fluid.  These are some of the amazing moments of seeing our baby thus far!  Here are a few pictures!

Preggo!

I have needed to post about this for some time now!  Nick and I are expecting our first baby!  Baby Patey is due May 27, 2011!!  We are so excited for this blessing God has given us!  Here are a few pictures of my first 3 pictures so far!  One month, two months, and three months.  At this point I am 15 weeks along!  That means baby Patey is the size of a large orange!  So cute and sweet:)  We find out the gender in a few short weeks, and can't wait to see whether baby is a boy or girl!

This last picture is how I look today at 15 weeks!  Crazy how time is flying!

APU alumni game

This past weekend, APU had its first alumni volleyball game! I am going on close to 5 years of being out of college volleyball! I cant believe how time has flown! It was a great opportunity to see old friends and get together and play once again. It felt like we had never left each other! It brought back so many memories of daily practices and games, and the team unity that was such a great part of college volleyball. It made me really miss the days I spent playing college volleyball at APU. After our alumni game we watch APU play and beat Westmont and then had an alumni dinner with past and present players. I loved listening to the coach of the 1980 team that won the national championship. She had such a heart for athletics, but also for God first in everything the ladies stood for as athletes. It inspired me, and made me want to play college volleyball again! Overall it was a great experience, and I hope that we don't wait 5 more years before our next alumni game!

School has officially started!

So as of yesterday I am back to school.  Nick has been back for 3 weeks now!  It does feel good to get back into the swing of things, even though I am sad to see summer go.  It was so nice to spend time in our home taking care of it, and working on projects that we are too busy for during the school year.  Both of our years have started off well, and we are enjoying our students.  It is so wonderful that both of us are done with BTSA and our Masters degree!  We will have more time on our hands, which will hopefully allow us to get back into the world of club coaching!  We are also excited to get to serve at Grace Baptist with the High school ministry!  We have our first meeting coming up and we are looking forward to investing in the next generation!

We have been able to get involved alot with our BLISS sunday school class at church, and really love being a part of Grace Baptist Church. God is good, and we are blessed to be surrounded by a wonderful church family.

I am trying to stretch myself in my reading by taking on Mere Christianity.  It is a book that I have always wanted to read but I have to think through it as I read it, which can be difficult at times.  I will have to post about the thoughts it gives me as I work my way through it.

End of summer...

So summer is officially coming to an end.  Nick has already started back at Golden Valley teaching Algebra and CASHEE math.  I can't believe he is beginning his 5th year teaching!  Wow, time sure seems to fly by!  I am getting ready to start my 3rd year at Magnolia Science Academy on Sep. 1st.  I get to change some of my focus this year to leadership within my department which is exciting, especially because I have more time to do it now that I am done with BTSA and my masters!!

This summer was wonderful being in our home, traveling with family and friends and working on house projects.  Nick was a busy guys painting the fence, painting the kitchen cabinets, working on the landscaping!  We got to stay involved with our BLISS class at church and had a fun progressive dinner to end the summer, as well as a family picnic next week!

Things to look forward to is my (Brickner) family reunion this weekend!  There are so many people in my family I have not see in months!  I look forward to sitting down and hanging out with individuals and catching up on their lives!!

Other than that I am trying to enjoy my last days before school starts again.  The year will soon be busy with grading and lesson planning, so until then I am soaking up my relaxation time:)

Trips!

Tomorrow we leave for Santa Cruz to celebrate our 3 year anniversary!  I can't believe it has been 3 years since I married the love of my life!  Nick is the most amazing man I know, and God blessed me big time when he brought Nick into my life!  We have never been to Santa Cruz so it will be fun to travel around and check out the city!!  On Friday there is lots going on in preparation for the wedding of Lindsay and Randy! Woo hoo that it has finally arrived!!  I am so excited for my friend to take this next step in her life!  After the wedding on Saturday Nick and I had to Bass Lake for the annual family vacation!  I am ready for a week of lounging around a dock on a raft with a book in my hand!  It is a great time of relaxation and fellowship, and we are looking forward to going after we missed it last year when we were in India!  As for the house update.....we have been BUSY!!  Right now our kitchen is ground zero, but all the tile backsplash has been taken off and dry walled over, and the cabinets have been primed!  When we get home from Bass Lake it will be time to paint!  I will post pictures of the finished product on the blog!  For now I will leave you with a few pictures of previous Bass Lake trips to get in the mood for the next week of awesomeness!

Summer!

So thankful that summer has now officially begun!!  A camping trip to June Lake/Mammoth with the family was the perfect way to kick off summer break!  Nick got to fish with the boys, we had great fellowship, and Kookka got to be wilderness dog for a day!  It is so nice to have a break from the busyness that comes throughout the school year!
Our summer to do list includes:
1. Office project, building a storage closet, cleaning up the office and decorating it some!
2. landscaping the backyard and part of the side yard!
3. painting kitchen cabinets, scraping teapot wall paper!
4. Nick building a front gate from scratch!
5. Lindsay and Randy's wedding and our 3 year wedding anniversary in Santa Cruz!
6. Annual Bass Lake family vacation!
7. Camping with Andrea and Brian Underwood our new friends and neighbors!
It is going to be one busy summer vacation, but let me just tell you about the blog I stumbled upon, thanks to my good friend Colleen!!  http://www.younghouselove.com/  Is amazing!!  This young couple gives you tips about how to completely DIY to your house at an amazing low cost, and with the latest fashions!  I am in love, and so excited to take some of their ideas and apply them to my own home this summer!

My class

So proud of my kids at school.  We began raising money for an organization called Smile Train, which does celft surgeries for children all around the world.  Each surgery cost $250.  The goal was for my class to raise $25 to help go for the surgery.  Well after discussing and encouraging my students they showed up the next day with $50!!  They wanted to continue raising the bar on themselves and by the end as a class we had raised $250, which was enough for one whole surgery!!!  Wow!!  I was so inspired and amazed at my kids!!  When I told my mom, she and my dad were so impressed they wanted to help sponsor a party for my students.  We celebrated at school today with In N Out burgers, fries and cake that one of the students' brought in!
How awesome it was to see 12 year olds excited to raise money to give back to others.  What a great example of giving everything you have to help someone else.

back to the blogging world!

It has been a long time! I am missing blogging, although I didn't blog very often. I think I would like to try again! I spent some time customizing our page and changing pictures and settings around. The picture I chose for our main picture is of us in India. My heart misses India and the people we met there. God is doing such an amazing work there, it was so awesome to see His kingdom being built!

On a side note, I am incredibly thankful this school year is coming to an end. Ever since India Nick and I have not had a moments rest! We have been so busy with family stuff, our masters, teaching, buying a house, adjusting to a new city to live in, finding a home church. It feels like the list goes on and on! Needless to say we are very excited that summer break is just around the corner, only 2 weeks for nick, and about 5 for me. We have family camping trips, friend camping trips and a wedding (yea lindsay and randy) this summer, not to mention catching up on some much needed rest!

I am going to throw in a picture of Nick and I from our recent masters graduation! Praise the Lord we are finished (well almost, nick will be done in a few weeks). We are so thankful to have that extra schooling, and so ready to be done with it!

Lastly, I changed the description of our blog to simply Love. When I think about who God is and what he asks of His people, love comes to mind. "

The greatest commandment is to Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength, and the second is to love your brother." Mark 22:37-40

When I think about that word, and the struggles and circumstances I go through on a daily basis, I can often times narrow it down to how am I doing at loving God and loving those around me? Am I love my husband by the way I treat him, and support him? Am I loving my students by being patient and caring? Am I loving my God and Savior and starting my day with Him, my Beloved?

HOMEOWNERS!!

That's right! Nick and I are officially homeowners! We bought a 3 bedroom 2 bath house in Valencia behind Granery Square! We are super excited, and only one street away from our cousins and great friends, Kurt, Kellie and baby weston!! We can't believe how blessed we are, and how much God has provided with giving us this house. We are in awe of his goodness!!! We painted this weekend, and moved everything in thanks to the help of our wonderful family on Nicks and my side! They are all so wonderful, and we are so thankful for them!! Our home is beautiful, and I will try to put some pictures up when it is all finished. Looking forward to settling in, and hopefully getting a dog soon!!!!!

India

Nick and I felt like as soon as we landed in California on August 3rd, that we hit the ground running. I can't believe how crazy life has been for this past month. There is so much going on, that requires alot of processing and adjusting that it has been so tough to process through India and all of our experiences over there and what God has and is teaching us from that.

WOW, I can't believe we spent 6 weeks in India this summer! Time came and went, and here we are back in America in a somewhat normal routine.

What an experience India was. It was beautiful, difficult challenging and fun all at the same time. I feel like there are so many stories and experiences that I can't even begin to put them into words. So many people left an imprint on my heart and now I feel like I am worlds away from them because I don't see them everyday, and I really am on the other side of the world.

So many faces are a blur across my mind as I think of them and wonder how they are doing; praying for them and thinking about their lives. So many beautiful faces, some that truly know and love the Lord and some that are lost in the darkness of a polytheistic religion.

The Lord is doing an amazing work in India and Nick and I were blessed to witness all that He is doing over there. There are so many different hands and feet that are working as part of the body to reach those who are have not seen the Light.

I try to ponder and process what exactly did God teach me over there. So often John 15: 8-13 was on my heart about what it means to Love one Another. How do we do that on a daily basis? How do we put others needs above ourselves?

God showed Nick and I how much of a practical dependence our Indian friends had on the Lord. THe joy of the Lord flowed out of them and was written all over their faces, because they were always dependent on Him. Wow, do I have the same dependence on the Lord. Is the joy of the Lord written all over my face? What do people see when they see me? What am I a reflection of?

We went to a land filled with people who did not have very much, and yet they did not live in need. They used what they were given, and got by just fine. Now we have returned to a culture that is me focused and material centered. How do we take what we have seen in India and what we see here in America and figure out how to live? It is difficult. I find that it is incredibly easy to fall into the lifestyle of focusing on things, because we are constantly surrounded and bombarded by it...everywhere we look. I don't want to live in such a way that I am so similar to the world and the culture that I live in. Can someone look at me and see that something is different? Do I reflect something different, or do I reflect myself...a focus on this life, on myself and on the things I can have in this life.

One of my biggest prayers and thoughts while being in India was that I did not want to come back and be complacent in my faith. I want God to be involved so directly and intimately in my life that talking about Him flows easily from my lips. That He is truly my primary focus, not just because I say it is so, but because it is how I live my life, to serve and glorify His name above all else.

Wow....looks like I have much to process through still!