"I gonna be a big sister!"

...that's how Paige broke the news to her daddy several weeks ago.

Yep, I'm pregnant!

(another thing at the top of the blessings list)

12 weeks along.

One friend, when I told her, wondered aloud, "was Ben even back by then?"
Uh, . . . yes.

Baby's due November 6th!

Thanks

Thank you all for your kind comments, phone calls, listening ears, and prayers. This has been hard for me, and your support has been SO appreciated.

It seems like every day I hear of another family that's struggling - several are losing homes they can no longer afford because work has slowed, and several where the husband/father was recently laid off and is scrambling to make ends meet. I have one friend who's graduating from a top law school this spring with no job prospects (out of ~300 new graduates, only 40 have jobs lined up) and tens of thousands of $ of school debt to pay off.

So, I guess what I want to say is I'm sorry for complaining. Times are tough for a lot of people, and truthfully we still have so much to be thankful for.

I'm counting my blessings these days, and one thing near the top of the list? . . .

good friends.

Ugh

This is really hard for me to write.

After finally arriving at the end of a very lengthy, I mean looooooooong, drawn out, disjointed, interrupted by a deployment, grueling hiring process which we fully expected to end happily, Ben was recently notified by FBI headquarters that they won't be hiring him as a special agent after all. No reason stated. Even his applicant coordinator was surprised.

While we always knew this could happen, we are still trying to wrap our heads around it and figure out what to do next.

If you look at the big picture, I guess this is pretty small potatoes. But that perspective is a little difficult to keep in focus when you have no real income and you're not even sure what you want to do in an economy where people are struggling to keep jobs that they actually already have.

Still, we're trying to remain optimistic, keep our minds open, and spend a lot of time on our knees.

Bedtime

Paige skipped her nap today and therefore was a little overtired at bedtime tonight.

We listened at her door as she yelled for us from her crib:

Aghhhhhhhhhhhh! Get me out of here! I'm TRAPPED! I'm trapped in a cage!!!

Ha! Love it.

Easter

My parents hosted Easter brunch, an Easter egg hunt, and Easter dinner on Sunday. All of my siblings and their families were there! (except for my step-brother who lives in Poland)

The Hunt

Paige with cousins Anna and Maggie; the 2 year-old girls

Our little cutie

Not my favorite picture of me, but here I am with my sisters and brother. Amber refused to stand in the middle, so we're not in order from oldest to youngest. From Left to Right: Jen, Amber, Noelle, Chris, Me, Chelsea

Family Pictures

One of my favorite people ever just happens to be an awesome photographer. He agreed to meet up with us yesterday in Heber and take pictures of our little family. You can see some of them here on his Phlog.

Thanks Jason!