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Update on Aaron: He is doing much better today. He had a rough weekend, but has more energy and is in less pain today. Thank you for your prayers!

Wife turned nurse

My husband, Aaron, had surgery yesterday to have his tonsils removed. At 24 he waited a little late, but better late than never. He usually gets strep throat between 4-8 times a year. He had surgery scheduled a few years ago during Christmas break, but we decided to get married instead. OOPS! :-)

What is it with men when they are sick? They become big babies. I love my hubby and he is a good patient, but can not seem to do anything for himself. As his wife, I love taking care of him, but it wears on you when it is 24-7. I also have a little boy to take care of so, essentially, I have to babies on my hands for a few days. However, when women are sick, we have to take care of ourselves and everyone else still. There is not much time for us to be babied. I suppose that is why we are the nurturing mothers...and the fathers are just rough and tough with the kiddos.
Anyway, Aaron is doing great. He has only had a little bit of pain...but he is highly medicated! He has been sleeping a lot, eating ice cream and mac n cheese, drinking gatorade and ginger ale, and being lazy trying to recover. I hope it is a quick recovery!
I appreciate all of your prayer for Aaron and for myself - patience is a virtue, Casey.

I have a 1 year old...now that's just crazy!

Saturday was Desmond's 1st birthday. I simply can not believe this past year has flown by so fast! My baby is not an infant anymore...he's a 1 year old! He's a big boy...starting to take his first steps and talking all the time as if you should know what he's saying. It is so much fun!

 

  <---Des in the wagon his Poppy made him! It is awesome!

 On Saturday, we had a big party with friends and family...over 50 people! Our little boy is most definitely loved! He was spoiled with some great gifts and lovin's. Seeing as though he loves food in general, he had NO problem DEVOURING his cake! Needless to say, he enjoyed it a little too much. When I woke him up Sunday morning to go to church, he had thrown up in his crib and fallen back asleep in it. YUCK! He had to get another bath and the sheets and bumpers all came out to get bleached.

 

 <---Des and his best friend, Mayer

 

As you know, Sunday was Valentine's Day. It took me back to memories of last V-day. I was totally surprised Des had arrived and was overjoyed to have a Valentine and a Jr. Valentine. This year was no exception. My boys loved on me and it was a great day.

 

My mom and dad got to come visit for a few days too. They came in Friday night for the party on Saturday and just left this morning. Whenever my parents come, TONS of stuff gets done around our house. When we moved in this house last May, they did so much work to makeover several rooms. This visit was no different. Although many of the fix-its they made were not necessarily noticable to the average Joe, they make a HUGE difference to us! We get to see them every few months, usually, and it is always nice for Des to see his grandparents - and them love on him! He is one loved little boy!

Time Flies

One year ago today, I was GREAT with child. I was 8 months preggo (or so I thought - my due date was March 10) and had been teaching 4th grade and coaching girl's basketball at a local Christian school. I was loving it, too! On that particular day, we had just begun our regional basketball tournament. And because it was a Christian school association, I had to wear a dress to coach. I'm not the kind of girl that wears a dress, not to mention while I'm coaching! I'm one of those coaches who is on her feet the entire game, jumping up and down and everything else. Being pregnant didn't stop me from that!

My girls had come so far and had improved so much, it was unbelievable, even to me! You see, to begin our season, we juggled a few girls and only a couple of the 10 we ended up with had ever played organized basketball before. We had a long road ahead of us and I never dreamed we would even be able to compete at the year-end tournament. We had our opening game on Thursday of that week and beat a team we had already beaten a few times throughout the season. I was beaming with pride for my team!
That game started around 1 p.m. and I arrived home about 4 p.m. With nothing to do that evening, and orders from my doctor, Aaron and I stayed at home to relax. We were just laying on the couch, well I was partially on and my belly was hanging off. As every woman who has had a child knows, I was having to frequent the bathroom. I got frustrated because it seemed as though after I had rocked back and forth several times, and with the assistance of my husband to get up, I went to the bathroom and came to sit back down. As soon as I got comfortable, I'd have to go right back! Since I didn't have to teach the next day because of the tournament, we were up later than usual. A little after midnight I had gone to the bathroom. By the time I merely got back to the couch, I started to head back. UGH! While waddling my way through the living room, I felt a gush of warmth on my thighs. Was I urinating on myself? NOPE! I couldn't stop it.

"Umm...Aaron, I think my water just broke," I said.
"What? No it didn't." he said as he stayed relaxed on the couch.
"Uh, yeah...I can't stop it and its still coming!"
Surprised, he replied, "oh my goodness, let's get to the hospital!"

He scurried through the house to pick up my bags that I already had packed and grab a few loose items. I stayed put in the living room as my water was still breaking! He quickly returned and said, "Casey! What are you doing? Let's go!" "Oh yeah, that sounds like a plan...I don't want to get this everywhere!"
After a few minutes, I felt like my water had stopped coming, so I headed to the bathroom where my wonderful husband had put some clothes for me to change into. I removed the watered down sweats I had been wearing and started the bath water. "What on earth are you doing? Let's go!" said my anxious husband. "I've got to take a shower...I feel nasty after that!" Plus, my contractions hadn't started yet, so I figured I was ok for a while. I suppose he was more anxious because he knew we had at least a good 30 minute drive to the hospital.
I quickly rinsed off and dressed and was finally ready to go. We trekked our way to the hospital and he hit every stinking pot-hole in between. My contractions started just a few minutes after getting in the car. We got to the hospital about 12:30 a.m. and I had called ahead to let my midwife know I was coming. She met me at the door and took me upstairs. The contractions were every few minutes at this point, but weren't too terrible. When we got settled in my room, she checked me and I was dilated to 3 and 100% effaced. It was just a matter of time...
About 2:30 or so, they gave me an epidural (which was amazing). At that point, we were just waiting. My midwife checked me a few times through the night and then around 5 a.m. said that I was at a 5 and projected it would be mid-morning when my baby would come. My parents were coming from Oklahoma and had left around 3:30-4 a.m. with a 10 hour trip ahead of them. They knew they wouldn't be there for the birth, but hoped to be there very soon after. They had a shift change at 7, so the new midwife came in about 7:15 and said, "you're a 10, let's deliver this baby!"
Aaron quickly woke up from the cot next to me. We weren't ready for that! We knew he would be born that day, but not so quickly! She left the room and returned a few minutes later. Because of the epidural, they had to tell me I was having a contraction. At about 7:25, I started pushing. After 2 series of 3 pushes, he had crowned. Our lives were about to change forever! The very next push, out Desmond Aaron Pontious came into this world! 7.5 lbs and 20 inches long, born at 7:38 a.m. on February 13.

My reaction? "He's not ugly!" Ouch, sorry Des. "He's absolutely perfect!" I called my mom a few minutes later as the nurses were cleaning him up.
"Mom, do you hear that baby crying in the background?"
"yes," she replied," why on earth would they have a baby in your room?"
"Well, that's Desmond - your grandson!"
"No way! You had him so quickly? I thought it was going to be mid-morning!"

 

  

 

We got the word out to other friends and family. We were such proud parents. I wanted to soak up every minute, every event, every visitor that came to see our handsome newborn. He was delightful and more amazing that I could've ever imagined! Little did I know, that little boy has brought me such pride and joy in 364 days. He has taught me so much in such little time. I love him more than I knew I could...and it just gets better every day!

Happy birthday tomorrow, Desmond. Mommy loves you so much!

Running Mad

I HATE running. I absolutely despise it. The only times I prefer to do it is if I'm being chased by something or if I'm chasing something (like a basketball or softball). I understand the importance of being in shape, especially when trying to perform on a team. However, it is the worst torture for me. Last year when I was coaching, I told my players on the first day that they would be running like crazy before and during the season. I did it for a reason, and a very good one at that. You see, you can't be a good basketball player if you play 3 awesome quarters and are tired for the 4th. We could not play to the best of our ability unless we were in better shape than the other team. Yes, good defense and making a shot here and there are important. BUT, it inevitably comes down to the 4th quarter and whether or not we could continue playing at a high level for all 32 minutes of the game.
I'm just now starting to run again after having Desmond. Yes, he will be 1 on Saturday - back off! And I still hate it. However, I'm seeing the importance of taking care of myself. I can't be the best mommy and wife unless I put my health and shape first. "If momma ain't happy, ain't nobody happy!" I guess in my case it would be "if momma ain't HEALTHY, ain't nobody health." There are more children in our future. I want to be healthy for myself and for him/her/them. I've got to "go the distance" to take care of myself.
I've decided to set a goal for myself this year - to run a half marathon. I'm actually going to walk/jog it. I'm not interested in RUNNING it. I want to finish the race. I'm thankful for my friend, Carrie who is willing to jog/walk it with me. We have already started training for it. The race is the last weekend in April. I will be sharing more about it later.
It sounds funny, but my relationship with the Lord is just the same. How am I supposed to "bring up my children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord" if I, myself, am not doing it? I have to stay on top of it - keep it healthy. What good is a luke warm Christian? none...the Lord will spit you out of His mouth! Get healthy, stay healthy...be healthy in every area. I'm trying to do my best. Are you?

Heritage: Episode I

I'm so thankful for such a wonderful family, on both sides. I want to give you a better picture of our families, from deep within. In this post, I simply want to address my husband Aaron's maternal grandparents. Grandma and Grandpa Hubbard. They are simply amazing! In the almost 7 years that I have known them, they have made me feel like their own granddaughter. I KNOW they love me.
When you visit their home in Michigan, you will find Grandpa tending to his 1/2 acre garden and Grandma baking pies. Grandpa will surely take you on a tour of all of his flowers, his garden, and the blueberry bushes out back. You will find out where he bought them, who he bought them from and what a bargain he got on each plant. Last summer, we had the opportunity to spend a few days with them in their home. It was a wonderful time. In one day alone, grandpa picked and we canned 90 pints and 17 quarts of green beans. Although it is their hobby, it is also their way of providing for their family still. We left there with two boxes of green beans and a box of fresh salsa. They provide all of their children and married grandchildren with green beans, salsa, corn, strawberries and so much more. They are so giving and we appreciate the fresh produce in the dead of winter! They are both such hard workers.
They both also like to have fun. For the winter months, they head to their home in Florida. We are blessed because they just "happen" to come our way from Michigan to Florida and back. Usually they stop for a couple of days each way. We play every card game you have ever heard of...and even ones they have made up themselves. They are so competitive, and even worse with each other. Its hilarious, but great at the same time!
I cherish them because they have been an example for everyone to follow. They are so giving and encouraging. Every time we are together, they want to know how our ministry is going. They tell us how proud they are of us being willing to serve in full-time ministry. They tell us what the Lord has been doing in and around them. They are so excited about serving our Savior! Grandpa always prays, "that Thou might bless this our dear family, oh Lord." And he has!
I'm so thankful for the Godly home they brought my mother-in-law up in. They have backed her up and supported her through everything, I know. I appreciate her because of the love that she has for me and the home she raised my husband in. When Aaron's dad left, she was solely responsible for the well-being of her 5 kids. She worked so hard (at least 3 jobs most of the time) just to provide for their necessities. Yet, she still gave sacrificially to those around her. She also made sure her family was in church and that her children saw what a Godly woman and mother should be. Thank, you Julie! Because of you, my husband is the wonderful man he is today.
I'm so thankful for this wonderful part of our family. I look forward to sharing more of our rich heritage with you.

I'm Back!

Ok, so it has been almost 2 years since I wrote anything. My sister-in-law, Whitney, has influenced me to begin blogging. She is a gifted writer and has been very successful with her blog. (Check it out at www.glamlifehousewife.blogspot.com ) So, here I am - sharing my guts with the world.
This first post is just to get you caught up on my life right now. In February of last year, I had a baby boy, Desmond. He was 7 lbs 5 oz. Although not a very big newborn, he grew very quickly. He is known as a "chunky monkey." He is starting to thin out now, but he's still squishy. He is the pride and joy of my life. He isn't walking yet, but he's getting into everything just crawling around. The way I see it, he is going to walk for the rest of his life. He can crawl as long as he'd like!
In March of last year, we accepted the call to go to The Donelson Fellowship in Nashville for my husband to be the youth pastor there. We have loved every second of it and are very grateful for our church family. Needless to say, we hit the ground running with 28 graduating Seniors last May. We headed straight into summer with summer camp in Florida (which was Desmond's first trip to the beach). My first nephew (my brother's son) on my side was born May 30th. So, Desmond and I trekked to Oklahoma for him to meet his new sweet cousin, Levi. We had a full summer of trips to Missouri, Ohio, Oklahoma, Florida, Texas, etc. etc. By September, Des had been to his 12th state! He was only 7 months old.
Skipping along, we had all of Aaron's family in for Thanksgiving. There was a total of 27 of us for dinner that day. It was crazy and there were people everywhere, but it was a blast! Christmas came and went. We celebrated with my family in Oklahoma. It was a white Christmas for Des and Levi's first Christmas. We took pictures of them in the snow. Levi was fine, but Desmond HATED the white stuff! Just this past weekend, however, we had more snow and he did much better.
Next Saturday is Desmond's first birthday. I absolutely can not believe it! This year has been a blast and a blur! It has flown by, but we have learned new things every day. I'll be sharing with you those things I have learned.
Well, enough rambling. I hope to update again soon.