Timmy at the Beach

A Day at the Beach

Hannah and Lauren have been counting down the months since March for our trip to the beach over the weekend of July 4th.  Neither of them have been to the beach before, and they were super excited to experience the beach for the first time.  On Saturday we went to Folly Beach with Jessica, and it was a perfect day.  Hannah took to the water right away and loved splashing and running in it. She especially had a great time in the ocean with Tim and told him while they were in the water, "Papa, I just love you so much!!!"  Lauren took a little longer to warm up to the water, but then she loved it as well.  Timmy was content to sit on the beach, but when we tried to put his feet in the water he would pull them up underneath him to avoid it.  Jessica and I enjoyed hanging out on the beach and a relaxing day.  Thank you, Lord, for such a wonderful day!

The 4th of July

We had a great time over the 4th of July in Charleston, SC with my good friend and college roommate, Jessica Bell, or Aunt Jessica, as Hannah and Lauren call her.  We spent most of the day on Friday on a beautiful piece of property called "Peaceful Way" where there were water activities, horses to ride, lots of yummy food, a hot air balloon, and fireworks later in the evening. We left not too long before the fireworks started, but we had a wonderful day together as a family and with precious friends.

WMHK Birthday Party

Recently the local Christian radio station here in Columbia (WMHK) had a big birthday party with lots of ride for kids, a concert, and lots of free food.  Hannah and Lauren enjoyed their first little ferris wheel ride, getting their faces painted, sliding down a huge inflatable slide, and eating lots of treats they're not used to eating (cotton candy, hot dogs, popcorn, juice, chips).  We had a great time even in the super hot weather.

Cute Timmy Faces

Timmy is crawling/scooting all over now and is so much fun!  He has become quite expressive in the faces he makes, and we all like trying to match his faces and then get him to repeat them.  He is learning that we think he is funny and that makes him want to interact even more.  These are some of his little faces that Tim captured recently.

Girls, Baby dolls, and Purses

Our girls love taking care of their baby dolls and are going to be wonderful mamas one day.  They each have several dollies that they take take of - feed, change their diapers, change their clothes, etc.  Whenever they go on pretend trips, the girls will ask Tim and me to babysit their dolls and will give us quite the schedule of how to take care of them.  It is precious!  They also enjoy filling their purses and bags full of goodies to take on a "trip" with them.  They always want to make sure they are well prepared (for anything!!).  Recently, they came outside in their pajamas with one of their dolls, their diaper bags, purses, and a cute hat on.  We just had to take a picture.

Fun in the Sun

What a blast we had at the Burrows' home and pool yesterday!  It was a beautiful day outside and perfect for enjoying the pool.  Hannah and Lauren are not used to being in the water, but they took to it like two little fishies.  By the end of the day they were jumping off the pool steps into the water with their little floats on by themselves.  I realized that I definitely need to give them swimming lessons.  They are both ready, and I want them to be good little swimmers and continue to enjoy the water.  Meantime, Timmy enjoyed lounging in a baby float for the first time.  By the time we arrived home we were all sleepy but thankfully the only one who got a sunburn was me.  :)  Hannah and Lauren are already wanting to go back to the pool today.  Thank you, Lord, for such fun time with my children!

Happy Father's Day!

What a wonderful day!  This morning our children all climbed into bed with Tim and woke him up with "Happy Father's Day!" greetings and hugs.  Timmy just hit at Tim's chest and smiled and made fun noises.  He can say, "Papa, Papa" now, among several other little words that are fun to hear!  Then, they treated Tim to a yummy breakfast at Bojangle's, and later in the afternoon Tim treated all three of them to Bible story time.  Usually Hannah and Lauren are the only ones who get to enjoy Bible time, but Timmy was able to join in today too, and he was very interactive.  :)

Thank you, Lord, for a wonderful Papa!

A Fun Friday Night

Fridays have always been my favorite day of the week - particularly Friday evenings.  And especially now that I have a wonderful family of my own, I enjoy these evenings even more.  Friday evenings are time for our family to be together knowing that the next day Tim gets to stay home.  Even just this morning when Hannah woke up, the first thing she said, with great delight on her face, as she walked down the stairs to greet Lauren, Timmy, and me was, "Papa gets to stay home tomorrow!!"  :)  We celebrate the weekends around here because we get to see Papa (Tim) all weekend long.  

Tonight in Columbia was a humid 90 degree evening, and we went downtown for dinner with my Mom.  After dinner the girls played in a little fountain while we enjoyed being outside for a little while, and then once we returned home, Tim and the girls and I had a good time in our backyard on the playground.  Our children are growing way too fast, but we are also loving every minute of watching them grow.  What a privilege!

And the 4th baby is a...

Today was the big day we have been anticipating and counting down for the last few weeks.  I am now 16 weeks pregnant, and today was the day of the ultrasound to determine the sex of the baby.  What a blessing to find out that the heartbeat is still strong, the measurements look good, and we will be adding another precious little boy to our home.  Two girls and two boys.  We are so excited and can't wait to meet him in November!!  Hannah and Lauren were pleased to find out there will be another brother and are glad that Timmy will have a little best friend to play with just like they are best friends (and they proudly declare that they are best friends all the time)!  Please rejoice in the Lord with us!!  He alone is good.

** The 2nd picture above is a reflection of us in a window, in case you were wondering.  :)

Cute Lauren

Timmy is 8 months old

     Here are some of the latest pictures of our fast-growing little man.  He is definitely treated like a little king by his loving big sisters.  Hannah is now able to prepare his bottle and feed it to him as well as feeding him baby food.  Both girls like to help me give him a bath, and they constantly entertain him.  Lauren especially loves to make him laugh.  The other day in the car they all three took turns making sounds to try to sound like each other; it was so fun to listen to.  I wonder what having four will be like.  :)

A Sad Day for Two Little Girls

      Today our good friends and neighbors, the Wilson family, moved from South Carolina to Delaware.  Hannah and Lauren have known this day was coming, and for many months now almost every time we pass by their home (a few houses down from ours), Hannah will say, "Miss Kellyn is moving.  That's SO SAD!"  But, yesterday reality really hit home.  It was the day we would say our final goodbyes.  Yesterday morning I told Hannah and Lauren that later in the afternoon we would go down to Miss Kellyn's house and say goodbye to them before they left.  Both girls immediately started getting sad.  It was time for me to put Timmy down for his nap, and once I came out of his room, Hannah and Lauren were both waiting for me outside his door, and Hannah said, "Mama, we are both really sad."  So, we went in my room and climbed up on the bed and each took turns praying for the Wilson family.  Then, Hannah climbed in my arms and burst into tears for about 5 minutes while I held her and loved on her.   We talked about how it was okay to be sad and this really was going to be a sad day.  But, we were also happy that we had known Miss Kellyn and her family for the past year and half.  Both girls made cards for the Wilson's and that seemed to cheer them up a bit.  But, later in the afternoon when we went to give our final hugs, Lauren was the first one to cry and could barely give Miss Kellyn a hug because she was so sad.  Hannah was able to be happy through the goodbyes, but as soon as we got back in the car, both girls could not contain their tears.  Lauren was crying really hard and saying over and over again, "Miss Kellyn, Miss Kellyn."  Hannah also started crying really hard for the next 10 minutes.  Our girls are at the age now where they are really starting to experience deeper emotions.  Tim and I were so sad for our girls as we watched them going through this grieving process.  We just wanted to hold them and love them because we too know what those emotions feel like.  Early this morning the Wilson family left before we were even awake, but when Hannah and Lauren woke up they remembered that this was the big moving day.  They were still sad but doing much better.  It truly was a sad day yesterday for our two precious little girls.

Soon to be Family of 6

Praise the Lord!  Our family of 5 will soon be a family of 6.  New little baby Reed (#4) is due to arrive around Nov. 20, 2008.  I have just completed my first trimester of pregnancy and thankfully am feeling great!  We all went to the doctor last week to see this precious miracle on an ultrasound, and all the measurements and the heartbeat are perfect.  Hannah and Lauren were thrilled to find out the news that they were having a new little brother or sister.  Hannah even cried happy tears when she found out.  :)  We captured it all on video to enjoy for years to come. Hannah and Lauren have been the ones to announce the news to many people by singing their new version of "This is the Day... This is the Day.... This is the Day that the Lord has put a baby in Mama's tummy."  We will go back for another ultrasound in 4 weeks to hopefully find out if this baby is a boy or a girl.  We are split down the middle with our guesses.  Papa and Hannah think the baby is a girl, and Mama and Lauren think it is a boy.  We are all happy either way, and Timmy is not sure what to expect yet.  Timmy and the new baby will be 14 months apart.  We praise the Lord for the blessing of children!

Zoo and Red Robin

We recently spent the afternoon at the zoo and then had a yummy dinner at Red Robin with our friends, the Bouillions.  While we were out we took the opportunity to snap some fun pictures of Hannah, Lauren, and Timmy, and even a couple of Tim and me as well.  During this month, Timmy will turn 6 months, Hannah will turn 4, and Lauren will be 3 on April 1.  We are thankful to be Papa and Mama to such precious children!

Visit with the Bouillions

We had a great time with our friends, Dawn and Barry Bouillion, and their two precious girls, Anne-Marie and Ellie-Grace this past week.  I was so excited when I found out that they were going to stay with us for a whole week!!  Tim and I went to school with the Bouillions at CIU and have been great friends ever since.  It is fun to get together as our families are growing and to be able to share a common bond in the Lord Jesus Christ.  We are thankful to have such wonderful friends!

Blessed Beyond Measure

Allyson writes:  Growing up I always looked forward to the day I would be married and have a family of my own.  However, I honestly never imagined that marriage could be as wonderful as it is or that raising children could be this fun!  The LORD has far exceeded all my expectations with the amazing husband he has blessed me with, who fears the Lord and strives to lead our family with utmost integrity.  He has also blessed us with the most precious children who teach us and bless our hearts tremendously through their childlike faith and contagious, ongoing giggles.  Even as I write this post, Hannah and Lauren are playing and laughing together while singing Bible verses.  Music to my ears!  I am an incredibly happy wife (help meet) and mama!  :)

Reed-Prescott Reunion

On the weekend of Feb. 8-9, six out of the seven Reed and Prescott families descended upon Bethal Christian Camp in Gaston, SC.  We enjoyed some wonderful meals together, a beautiful bonfire on a chilly night as we roasted marshmallows and made smores, and treasured time together that never seems to last long enough.  We gathered from Columbia, Chicago, and China.  It was so much fun to see all the cousins together now that they are old enough to play with one another.  There are now 11 grandchildren in all - ranging from 5 months - 6 yrs.  How blessed we are to be part of a family that is serving the Lord all over the world!