The Baby Enns Family

Heart Melting Event Of The Day!

2011-11-21T21:13:00.000-08:00

I was reading Alex this fun little story from his coloring book, and got to the second to last page which read, "You are sweeter than any present ever placed beneath a tree, you may be small, but beat them al...l, you mean the world to me!" Then the last page says, "Draw a picture of the person that "means the world to you"...

Me: Alex, who is your favorite person?

Alex: (pause) God!

Me: I was gonna say the same thing! But what does God look like?

Alex: Um, I don't know?

Me: Well, we could draw baby Jesus?

Alex: Oh Yeah! Jesus is God!

Alex: Mom, we need to draw a big cross too, 'cause Jesus died on the cross.

Me: Yes, you're right, when Jesus grew up he died on the cross.

Alex: (once we had a big empty cross) Now we need a big Jesus.

Me: OK

Alex: (once we had a big Jesus- with a beard per Alex's request) But now we need Jesus on the cross.
Me: Well, since Jesus rose from the dead, how 'bout we leave the cross empty?

Alex: But I want Jesus on the cross first:)...

Picking Out Pumpkins 2011

2011-10-21T14:39:00.001-07:00

My Photo Book -December 2010

2011-09-27T15:53:00.001-07:00

Click here to view this photo book larger

Natalie Joy Enns ...In all her glory! :)...Bath time!

2011-09-17T14:19:00.000-07:00

I know I've been a terrible blogger... so I'm just gonna jump right back in with TODAY:

Ya gotta love those naked bath pictures! And here is a little video... (She LOVES water:)...

We are a Family of FIVE!

2011-07-06T22:12:00.000-07:00

For those of you who use to read our blog faithfully... I'm sorry it has been so long since I've written! I'm hoping to make this a regular thing again! I have much to catch up on, but for now, the most important news I need to share is.......

We are a family of FIVE! Just in time for Christmas, Natalie Joy Enns was born on Tuesday, December 21st, 2010. She was 8 lbs 1oz and she entered our world healthy. She is truly a joy. She is 6 months now (I can hardly believe that!) and: rolling, smiling, laughing, eating rice cereal (going to try squash tomorrow), has 2 teeth, says "badada", has eyes for Daddy, loves big brother and sister, sleeps 12 hours at night, and is very happy and content most of the time. We thank God for the wonderful blessing she is.

Pumpkin Carving 2010

2010-10-19T22:53:00.000-07:00

Half Moon Bay

2010-09-10T14:33:00.000-07:00

Last week Nate did a job in Half Moon Bay... which would have probably been about a 3 hour commute each way in traffic... So, we spent the first half of the week at his parents' house in Castro Valley (to lessen the commute), and then the second half of the week in Half Moon Bay at a hotel! It was sort-of considered a family vacation. Half Moon Bay is one of our favorite places to visit too! We like to go to the Ritz Carlton and walk around their beautiful property, as well as the beach down below. (This is where Nate proposed to me 5 years ago!) So we enjoyed the beauty of the ocean, our nice warm pool and spa at the hotel, waffle breakfast every morning, and fun evenings out down town. Unfortunately... we forgot to take pictures!!!! Here is the only picture we got, and it was only taken because Anna and I were matching:)...

Summer has flown by!

2010-08-20T22:05:00.000-07:00

I cannot believe that summer is almost over already!! We have been so busy! I'm apologize for my lack of posting. I hope this post finds you well. In case I don't ever get around to posting all about our summer, I figured I better at least post a couple of things about this week!

This week we've been enjoying our backyard. Tuesday night we BBQ'd hot dogs and hamburgers.

Mmm... BBQ goodness:)...

OREO's!!!

Wednesday evening we had our friends: Sara, Raeleah and Kylah over for Shishkabobs! (Sara needed a little break from being home alone with the kiddos as her husband was out of town:)

Happy Birthday, Auntie Katie R!

2010-06-04T10:30:00.001-07:00

Last weekend we made a quick trip down south to celebrate my sister-in-law's birthday! I was singing in Ripon on Saturday, so we left straight from there at 4:30pm... Arrived at Chris and Katie's apartment in Riverside at 11:15pm! Sunday morning we got up bright and early to celebrate Katie's birthday at DISNEYLAND!!! We drove through McDonald's for breakfast on the way there, and we were off! Stopped at the front entrance to get a nice family photo before the day got crazy and we'd forget!

Already enjoying Disneyland, before we even entered the park!

Not quite sure what Nate and Chris were looking at? :)

My little banana Anna... waiting for Auntie Stine to get us in FREE:)!

This one is a little blurry, but it's Alex and Daddy entering the waters of Pirates of the Caribbean for the first of 2 times today!

Unfortunately, partway through the morning Alex started complaining that his tummy was hurting... and just after we got off of Autopia, he asked me to pick him up... and all of a sudden... he threw up! (Thankfully I must have felt it coming and turned him out- away from me!) Thankfully, also, Alex is potty-trained but I still carry around extra clothes, just in case!

We weren't quite sure what to think of it... He seemed fine otherwise. The one thing we thought of was that Alex had been holding Nate's coffee mug in the car on the way there, and at some point we realized that he had actually been drinking some! (That was on an empty stomach too.)

So we decided to wait it out and see how he did.

After lunch, while Chris, Katie, and Nate went on Splash Mountain, I took Alex and Anna to see some Characters.

Alex was ready to give hugs; Anna was not!

Tigger and Alex:)

Tigger trying to give Anna "5".

Then... we all got in line for Winnie the Pooh... and while in line... Alex asked me to pick him up again... and yup... you guessed it... He threw up again!!! Once again, I was so thankful that I did not get it on me! Unfortunately, it got all over Alex's blanket! With him not feeling well, we definitely needed him to have something to snuggle with. So... I went looking for a blanket! I found one, but it was a big one for $35! No, we weren't willing to spend that much... but I found a tigger doll for $12, so we brought Alex into the store to see if he liked it... He LOVED it! So we laid him down in the stroller and got him snuggled in with tigger. It wasn't long before he was sleeping. Off we went to California Adventure!

Here is a pic of Anna peaking in on brother (after she stole tigger:)... thankfully he was out!

Daddy and Anna

Auntie Katie and Anna... look at those beautiful smiles!

And that's all I got as far as pictures at Disneyland! I wish I had more, but I just totally forgot about the camera! What you need to know is that: Alex woke up a happy camper, didn't throw up anymore, enjoyed Monster's Inc. twice, Buzz again, Pirates again, some fireworks, and Peter Pan! We all actually had a WONDERFUL day! It was so relaxed and fun! And best of all, it was with Uncle Chris and Auntie Katie! And we even ended up getting to be with Auntie Christine when she got off work in the evening!

The next day we all slept-in until 10:30 or something! Chris and Katie made an awesome breakfast! I felt so pampered!!! I got to just lay around while they slaved in the kitchen! It was soooo yummy too!

After breakfast, Uncle Chris had to head to school for a group project, so we said our goodbyes to him. Then the rest of us got suited up for the swimming pool! Chris and Katie have a beautiful pool, that they actually had never been in!

After swimming we got cleaned up, packed up, and said our very sad good-byes to Auntie Katie. It was a very special trip. Happy Birthday, Auntie Katie! We love you!

"My Private Seat"

2010-05-16T22:11:00.000-07:00

This is a funny little story that I just couldn't pass up! So yesterday we were over visiting my parents... Grandma Joyce had gone upstairs to get something, Grandpa Fred headed up the stairs to go "potty", and Alex decided that he'd like to go upstairs too. So he asked, "Grandma, can I come up too?" With the O.K. from Grandma, Alex headed up the stairs. Once up there, he proceeded to the bathroom to find Grandpa Fred! Grandma quickly said, "No, Alex, don't go into the bathroom. Grandpa needs his privacy." Alex, the little copy-cat that he is, said, "Ya, Grandpa needs his private seat." :) That was cute in and of itself, but then a little later, Alex needed to use the bathroom himself... And when Nate took him, once he was on the potty, Alex said, "Please leave Daddy, I need my private seat." Ah! What a kick!

Alexander

2010-05-05T14:15:00.001-07:00

I was looking through my most recent posts, (which I realize have been few and far between) and noticed that Anna has gotten much more attention than Alex lately... thus, here is a "must read" about our Alexander Tate:

Last Sunday after church got out, Alex's Sunday School teacher from first hour came running to find me! She said that Alex has grown so much and she was totally amazed by him that day! For one thing, he's talking SOOO much now:). She said that he just went on and on through the whole class:). Then, she said that right after they prayed for snack, Alex began talking about how Daddy told him he doesn't have to be afraid. He said very confidently, "I don't have to be afraid because God is with me all the time! God is with me (and he patted his chest) wherever I go."

Ah! If that doesn't make your heart sing, I don't know what will!

After that conversation was over, he began telling the story of Beauty and the Beast... so not as neat, but totally impressive! He's only seen it a few times, and he was able to tell the storyline! The teacher said that they were just cracking up.

Then he started telling them how I was sad, and so he gave me his blanket. He said that I got a scratch... that part is true, and he OFTEN will give anyone his blanket if he thinks they are sad:). He's too funny. Then he told them that he pushed me while we were gardening outside... and he kept showing them, over and over again, how I fell down and knocked my head! I have no idea where he came up with this, but they sure got a kick out of it! :)

And last but not least, she told me how he loves to help others. While sitting playing with bubbles, Alex turned to Eliana (a slightly younger little girl), got some bubbles on his wand, put it up to her face and said "now blow", and when she did, Alex exclaimed, "Oh, wow! Good job!" So he got some more bubbles on his wand and did it again... he praised her and did it again and again.

Wow, what a blessing. It sure was good to hear what a sweet boy my Alex can be, and especially that he is growing in the knowledge of God!

Curlers!

2010-05-01T21:13:00.000-07:00

I decided to have some "girl" fun with Anna:)...

A fun little flip!

Praising God for life!

2010-03-27T21:51:00.000-07:00

Last Friday evening we had a very unexpected event...

We had gone over to our friends (the Millen's) house in Castro Valley for dinner and visiting. It was a great evening, and we were having such a great time, that it was just before 10pm when the kids were still awake and Anna took a fall. I was sitting on the couch holding baby Johnny and Anna was next to me. All of a sudden I saw Anna falling off the couch, face-first, and she hit the ground with a loud thud! It was carpet flooring, but the thud was loud enough that I knew it was going to be bad. Anna cried instantly. I handed little Johnny off and quickly swooped down to pick up my precious Anna. As I held her in my arms she gasped and gasped and gasped (and I cried "breath, Anna, breath!"), and finally let out a loud cry. But not long after, she arched back, her eyes rolled back, her face became stiff and she seemed to me like she was dying!! I panicked. I called to her and she was not responding, so then called to Nate "help!". Nate got up, ran over, and took her from my arms. Carolyn ran into the other room to get the phone and asked if she should call 911, and I answered "yes!". It seemed like an eternity, but in all actuality, it was probably 10 or 15 seconds. Neither Nate nor I had ever seen a seizure, but Carolyn had seen many and told us that's what had happened.

Then she came back to. Oh I was so relieved! I thought we were loosing our little girl! Then we began debating... should we call back and cancel the paramedic and just drive her to the hospital on our own? But they were already there, and they wanted to take a look at her. Upon hearing our story, they decided that she should be taken to Children's Hospital. They stripped her down to her diaper only and strapped her to a flat board for kids. That was hard to watch because, of course, she cried. At this point I was very unsettled and scared for my baby. I'm so thankful it happened where it did though. Carolyn was so great through it all. As the paramedics were checking Anna out, she prayed with me. She hugged me when she could tell I was so worried, and she offered to help with every detail. Alex spent the night there with them, and Jim drove Nate to the hospital because only one of us could ride with Anna in the Ambulance.

I wasn't able to ride in the back with Anna, but at least I was in the same vehicle and knew that she was breathing the whole ride there. That 20 minute ride felt so long, and most of the time I prayed and prayed. When we arrived at the hospital I got out and went to see Anna. As soon as she saw me she reached out her little hand through the blanket and I grabbed her hand in mine. I could tell she was comforted to see me, and anytime I had to let go she cried. That was a sweet time for me.

Once we got into a room and off the stretcher and into my arms she was much happier. Then we did a lot of waiting and a lot of talking to tons of different doctors. Each person wanted to hear the details of the event clearly. And finally Nate was let in! The big question was whether or not they would do a CT Scan. The short of it is that they ended up doing a scan and Anna did beautifully. Nate and I touched her and sang her to sleep during the scan so that they did not have to sedate her. Praise the Lord!

About 2:30AM, a doctor came into the room and asked if we'd like to go home! The CT Scan came back normal! Praise the Lord! So we were able to get her back into her pj's and head home. Nate's mom picked us up and with it being so late and Alex asleep at the Millen's we decided to stay the night and Nate's parents' house. We found out in the morning that Alex did great and even wanted to pray for Anna. That will make your heart melt!

So, a week has gone by and our little Anna is alive and healthy! We are so thankful for God's provision. It was a good reminder that life is short and we must live every moment purposefully. It was also a good reminder that God is absolutely in control of everything! He orchestrated it all and had a good purpose for His own glory. I've already come away from that event having learned a few things, and I'm so thankful that God has helped me learn to trust Him more.

Another News Flash!!

2010-03-08T19:55:00.000-08:00

Today, just before her afternoon nap, Anna took 6 steps to me! Then she did it again! Then she took 12 as I kept walking further and further away from her:). Yahoo! Go Anna! (Here is a little clip... sorry it is distorted a bit and hard to watch.)

News Flash!

2010-03-06T18:13:00.000-08:00

Anna stood up on her own today! I actually thought she would have done this much sooner, but I guess with people and things to pull up on, she hadn't felt the need to try before! It won't be long before she's off and walking without help!

February 19th

2010-03-06T18:00:00.000-08:00

Just an ordinary day at the Enns' house... Out for a walk in the cool February air...

Snacks are always welcome:)

Valentine's Day 2010

2010-03-03T22:01:00.000-08:00

Our Valentine's Day celebration this year was (Saturday Feb 13th) a trip to Monterey with Heidi and Vijay, AND NO KIDS! :) It was actually our Christmas gift from Heidi and Vijay, so they treated us!
Our first stop was in Scotts Valley to visit Uncle Elwin and Aunt Vonnie. Our second stop was brunch!

Then we walked down to the boardwalk and enjoyed the sites.

From there we were going to take the 17 mile drive, but unfortunately it was closed to the public due to the golf tournament! So...

Third stop- Point Lobos State Natural Reserve. It was gorgeous! Absolutely AMAZING!

The waves were HUGE! The pictures don't do it justice. It was truly amazing.

Our forth stop was Carmel. We walked around town, got some treats and headed down to the beach. Unfortunately, the beach was closed! We had even brought wood to build a fire. :(

So we found a nice bench that overlooked the beach.

Cheers! Happy Valentine's day!

My 30th...

2010-03-03T21:36:00.000-08:00

So I turned 30 this year! (Yes, me, Amy.) I was really dreading it, but, now that I've been 30 for a month I've realized that it's not that bad! It's GREAT, in fact! As for celebrations, Nate did a fantastic job of surprising me with a party- I had NO idea. And then the next day after Anna's party, Nate watched the kiddos so Adawna and I could go out for some "girl" fun. (BTW: Adawna flew down from WA to visit me!) We grabbed some Taco Bell cause we were starving! (We got so busy putting Anna's party together, we forgot to eat lunch.) Then we went to the mall, looked in a few stores, and then headed to the Nail Salon:). We both got spa pedicures- ah, it was so nice! (I hadn't had one in over a year!) It was so nice to be out just us girls. After pedicures, we sported our disposable flip flops through target to get some milk and diet coke. Then it was off to the casa. We forgot to take pictures while we were out, but Nate got one before we left and then took a couple after... These are the AWESOME flip flops...

Thanks for coming, Adawna! I miss you already!

Anna Turned ONE!

2010-03-01T08:48:00.000-08:00

It's a bit late...

But our little Sweet Cheeks, Anna, turned ONE on January 31st! It's hard to believe a whole year has already come and gone. Here are some pictures from her birthday celebration...

Cake time...

Presents...

Grandma Enns reading to Anna and Jonathan after the festivities.

Our 1 year old:

Anna is a special gift from God. She... is very active (always opening my cupboards and pulling my towels down:), crawls all over, walks with help (and just a couple of days ago she took 2 steps without holding on!), smiles easily, dances to music and tries to sing along, claps her hands, waves, loves to play with big brother, loves food:), and she says a few words: Uh-oh, mama, dada, hi, bye, wf wf (doggy), dank-ou (thank you), peez (please), and she signs "more" and "all-done", and she's recently started trying to copy words we say. We love you, Anna Christine Enns.

Christmas - Round 3 &4

2010-02-25T21:43:00.001-08:00

Round 3 was at Nate's Parents house! We had a very nice dinner, read the Christmas story, and opened gifts. We spent the night there and got to hang out some more the next day (Christmas morning) before flying out to WA that night.

Christmas morning baths!

Here comes round 4...

Flying to WA!

Out for a walk in the beautiful Washington air...

The next few pictures got out of order and I just can't get this thing to work.. ugg! So anyway, these are pictures of our visit to the Capital building.

Hangin out...

And the gift giving begins!

Alissa and Erik's gift to us all was: tickets to see White Christmas at the 5th Ave Theatre! (And free babysitting!) It was absolutely wonderful!

Grandma and Grandpa's gift to the kiddos was a day at the Children's Museum and Spaghetti Factory lunch! (So we got to enjoy it too:) We also took a stop at the Capital since we were right there.

Woops, this one is from White Christmas:)

Grandma and Grandpa also treated the adults to dinner and babysitting! mmm.. BJ's!

Black Diamond...

It was definitely a Christmas to remember. Time with family is so sweet. And we recognize that it is all because of Christ that we are able to be united in love, sharing in the joy of His birth, death, and resurrection.

Christmas - Round 1 and 2

2010-01-21T22:55:00.000-08:00

Round 1 took place at our house on Monday, Dec. 21st. Our friend, Kristi, came over to visit for the day and brought presents from her parents and her. When Nate got home from work we celebrated! I didn't get any pictures, but here's our ugly fake tree that actually turned out pretty nice!

Round 2 took place at my parents house on Christmas Eve. We stopped there on our way to Nate's parents house so the kids could open gifts from Great Grandma, and one from Grandma Joyce and Grandpa Fred that was too big to take with us to WA (which is where we had "Christmas" with my side of the family). Enjoy the pictures below of the kids and Great Grandma Richardson.

This is the big gift... It is an Easel has a while board on one side and a chalkboard on the other. It also has a roll of paper at the top so you can pull paper down and either color or paint on it! It's really neat and Alex has been coloring up a storm lately!

Trying to get "that" Christmas Family Photo

2010-01-21T22:41:00.000-08:00

Enjoy the blurps and the good stuff...

Thanksgiving 2009

2010-01-21T22:11:00.000-08:00

We actually didn't get a single picture of Thanksgiving this year, if you can believe that! It was, however, an amazing day. Once again we spent Thanksgiving at the Richardson house with lots of family. It was the: Enns, Swamidass, Enns, Richardson, Humphreys, Richardson Clan! We ate, visited, ate, sang and shared things we were thankful for, ate, and visited:).

I was able to shoot a picture of some of us before Chris and Katie headed home that weekend.

Tim and Meg Humphreys, Alex, Grandpa Fred, Grandma Joyce, Chris, Katie, Anna, Kristi Humphreys, and Amy.

Alex is Potty-Trained!

2010-01-20T23:13:00.000-08:00

So I decided to potty-train Alex last week:)... it was difficult at times, but overall I must say it went very well! He has only had one accident since Saturday, and that was during a 45 minute ride in the car!

Tide Pools and Half Moon Bay

2010-01-19T14:31:00.000-08:00

Back in November we had a fun day at the beach with Kristi and the Swamidass Clan.

Power Tool Fun

2010-01-19T14:15:00.000-08:00

Halloween 2009

2010-01-14T22:33:00.000-08:00

Real quick - Here are some pics of the kiddos dressed up for Halloween. I know it's way late, but I just had to share! First we went to the church Pumpkin Patch, and then we went Trick'or'treating with our friends the Millens. (Notice that Alex has two different costumes... the one he wanted, and then the one I wanted:).

Brother and Sister - Normal days

2010-01-14T22:12:00.000-08:00

Pick'n the "Pennos" (as Alex use to call "tomatos")

Grandpa Fred's Birthday

2010-01-14T21:56:00.000-08:00

This year we went to Disneyland for Grandpa Fred's Birthday! Is that a special birthday or what?! My dad's birthday is October 23rd, so we got to see it all decorated for Halloween. My dad got in for free because it was his birthday, Andrew and Bekah and their kids, and Chris and Katie, all have annual passes, and then Nate's sister Christine (who works at the park) got us in! It was a wonderful trip. Enjoy the pictures!

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-21T13:32:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas, friends! I'm so sorry for being a "bad" blogger lately! I just wanted to take a moment to let you all know that I will have some new posts coming very soon. Life continues to be very busy. Christmas is only 4 days away! The past few weeks have been full with baking, Christmas parties, our Church Christmas Musical (so lots of practices), and the normal day-to-day life as a family. This week is full of time with family and friends, and we fly to WA on the 25th! So Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! Hopefully I will have a new Post soon!

Who is the craziest guy you know?

2009-11-18T08:54:00.000-08:00

Brian Reeder!! He is the craziest guy I know! He is also one of the funnest and awesome. Last month he was in town for a wedding so we got to hang out! Of course, Alex latched on to Brian right away.

Picking Out Pumpkins

2009-10-20T10:36:00.000-07:00

This year we kept it simple and picked our pumpkins at The Home Depot.

Rain!

2009-10-14T15:22:00.000-07:00

Anna's changing table is right up against the window and she loves to look out! (especially when I'm trying to change her diaper) Yesterday the rains came... and they stayed alllll day long. Anna really enjoyed watching the rain out her window:-).

Alex Is 2 & Anna Has Mastered A New Trick!

2009-10-08T22:40:00.000-07:00

With a "Big Boy" 2 year old running around, and a very busy 8 month old, I am finding it very difficult to get ANYTHING done! O.K., well, not ANYTHING, but not much! Thus, blogging is neglected. That said, here are a few pictures of our most recent happenings... Alexander's 2nd birthday "parties", and Anna's new found trick!

Alex turned 2 on September 24th. It was a fun day filled with cupcakes! We had some friends over in the morning- they brought cupcakes... we went to Grandma Joyce's house for lunch and a little celebration with Great Grandma Richardson- more cupcakes... and then after dinner we had to celebrate with Daddy, of course- more cupcakes!

Alex LOVES birthdays!! Oh, and I forgot to mention that he is a pro at blowing out candles! I don't know how he learned it, but he knew: when to blow, how to blow, and he got both candles out on the first blow!

Here are a few pictures from his big birthday party with friends and family a week later:

* * * * * * *

Now for Anna... this little girl is growing up WAY to fast! On October 6th, this is how I found her:

Now she is pulling herself up on everthing. She loves to stand:)!

Anna's got the GIGGLES!

2009-09-27T21:49:00.000-07:00

Backyard Renovation

2009-08-27T22:57:00.000-07:00

You may recognize the picture below if you've been following our blog since we started it. If not, this is a picture of our backyard about one month before we moved in.

By the time we moved in, most of the weeds had turned brown, and were almost as tall as me! The picture below is the yard after Nate's dad had cleared a good portion of it.

NOW... The REASON for this POST!

Nate's birthday was August 4th, and this year, both his parents and mine went in together to help give him a GREAT gift! They gave sweat-equity, and grass! So... Saturday, August 22nd, the Renovation began! In the picture below you can see part of the yard before we got started. Actually, you can see a red paint line... A few weeks ago my parents came over and my mom helped us design the grass configuration! Here's Nate using the Rototiller.

Nate and his dad working away!

Grandma Enns weeding the side of the house, with Alex:) A good portion of the yard done with the rototiller!

Nate's dad and my dad- ready to get sweaty!

The bender-board going in!

DIRT:) and bark!

Me with the sod roller!

Compost!

And the picture below concludes day one!

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Unfortunately, day #2 found me under the weather:(. So I didn't get to do much. At 12noon the sod arrived!!

The next 2 pictures you can see my mom getting everything moist, Alex enjoying it all, and Nate and his dad laying sod!

A VERY dirty Nate, admiring his new lawn!

It was difficult to get a good shot, but here it is, our GRASS! A few weeks of lots of water and babying the lawn, and Phase ONE complete!

We have a lot more we'd like to do in our backyard, but it will be one step at a time. Below I tried to take a picture of our drawing. If you can see it, it includes some ideas of what we'd like to do in the future, including: a patio, stepping stones, the arbor from our wedding, and lots of plants and trees.

THANK YOU SO MUCH, Mom and Dad Enns, and Mom and Dad Richardson for this wonderful gift! We cannot wait to enjoy our grass! We are already enjoying it's beauty. Thank you also to other family members who contributed: Katie Enns, Heidi and Vijay Swamidass, and Chris and Katie Richardson.

Anna Pics

2009-08-26T23:49:00.001-07:00

Anna is a 1/2 year old!

2009-08-19T22:13:00.000-07:00

Our sweet little BUSY Anna is almost 7 months now! As you can see in the picture below, she is a happy girl. She smiles easily, which melts our hearts! At six months she was in the 25th percentile for weight (weighing 15lbs), 64th percentile for length, and her head size was in the 47th percentile. If you can believe this...She is crawling!! Well it's not quite the real crawl- it's more of a scoot, but if she wants something, she'll get it! Be prepared Mama!

Big Boy Alex!

2009-08-19T10:44:00.001-07:00

This is an amazing story that I just cannot pass up.... It happened about a month ago now. Alex seemed to be interested in going potty, so we decided to buy him a little potty to practice on. I found the one I wanted and picked it up on a Saturday... We were gone all weekend, but Monday morning I asked Alex if he would like to go on his potty, and he said "ah huh". He sat on his potty and we waited. Nothing came, but that was just fine. Then, in the evening Nate needed to go to Home Depot, so he took Alex and I stayed home with Anna. (That was nice:). On their way home, Alex said, "pee pee?", so Nate asked him, "Do you need to go pee pee?"...Alex answered, "ah huh". So Nate told him to wait and he could go on his potty when they got home in just a minute. As soon as they got home Nate raced him upstairs, pulled off his diaper, and sat him on the potty... I ran into the bathroom and witnessed Alex going "pee pee" on his potty for the very first time! We cheered and made a big deal of it. Alex was so proud. Then the next day, our friend Kristi was over and noticed Alex grunting off in a corner and told us, "just so you know, I think Alex is pooping." So we asked him if he wanted to go on his potty... at first he said no, but then he decided he did want to go. You will not believe this!... Nate took him upstairs and Alex went poo poo and pee pee on his potty!!! We were amazed! He is not potty trained yet, in fact, we really haven't been pushing it, but he is still interested and not afraid of the potty, which is great news! When "I" am ready, I think I'll get that book about potty training in a day.

Catching Up...Again

2009-08-16T21:52:00.000-07:00

Well, I've been trying to play "catch up" on our blog for a while now, and I just keep getting further and further behind! So, I'm just going to do a very brief post, with very little detail, of a few different events.

In the beginning of June we took a road-trip down to So Cal. The main reason for this trip was my big brother's graduation ceremony from Fuller Seminary! It ended up being a very rough trip because Alex came down with something really awful- we still don't know for sure what it was. But we made the best of it. We were able to celebrate with Andrew and family, go to Disneyland (Alex's 2nd time, Anna's 1st!) and visit Nate's sister Christine, and visit our good friends from Hemet- Tim and Rebekah Finn, and their little guy, Ethan.

Then there was Father's Day... This year we were able to spend it with both Nate's family and my parents. We had a BBQ at Nate's parents house and it was a great time of relaxation. Unfortunately I didn't get any great pics.

There has been lots of brother/sister love this summer too.

Then at the end of June we went to Six Flags Discovery Kingdom. It was stinking HOT!

And the last event in June was a visit with my long-time good friend Megan, from WA. She and her boys: Max and Jack, and her mom drove down. We were able to spend a day together, playing at the park and then at my mom's house. It was fun to catch up:).

Beach Day

2009-07-11T21:41:00.000-07:00

Nate's sister, Christine, came up for her birthday weekend, so we went to the beach! (May 16th) Enjoy the photos!

Alex- still smiling:)

Mother's Day

2009-07-11T11:25:00.000-07:00

This year our time was divided between the two families. We celebrated first with Nate's family, and then with mine.

Here's how it went: After church we raced home to put the finishing touches on lunch for Nate's mom. Though Heidi and I are both moms now, we decided that this year would be about her mom. After all, she has been a mom for much longer than we have:). So the three daughters: Heidi, Katie, and myself, made Mother's Day "Dinner". We had a great time being together. Here are just a few pictures from celebration number one: Grandma, Rachel, and Anna

Heidi and Katie in the kitchen

Katie beautifying with fruit

The table

The men, patiently awaiting dinner and snacking on some jalapeno poppers.

After dinner it was off to my parents house for appetizers and desserts! (Oh how NOT hungry I was.) Here are a few pictures from celebration number two!

Uncle Chris and Anna

Auntie Katie and Anna

Katie had the most brilliant gift idea this year! Each of us kids, and grandkids, oh and my dad too, wrote letters of love & appreciation to my mom, and they were written on paper flowers, forming a bouquet of love.

Mom & her bouquet

Getting a good picture with the kiddos was difficult.

Now that I am a mom, I appreciate my mom even more!

Happy Mother's Day!

sick, Sick, SICK!

2009-07-09T22:04:00.000-07:00

I've been trying to update this blog for a month now, and I just keep getting more and more behind. So much has happened, and I'd still like to fill you in on things, but for now I will just copy and paste an email that I sent my mom today. That will give you an idea of how things have been most recently....

"Goodmorning, Mom. How are you? I'm tired. I'm trying to trust in God and I've been praying for strength. We took Alex in to Kaiser yesterday and it turns out he now has an ear infection, on top of whatever cold he has. Then, as I was waiting to be called in, I noticed that Anna had some goop in her right eye!... I showed the doctor when she was done examining Alex and she said it could just be a clogged tear duct, but that she would order the prescription for pink eye in case it turned out to be that. Well, I should have just picked up the medication anyway! By the time we were done with dinner her eye was all nasty. By the time I got to church it was pink too. Rehearsal went late and I didn't get home until 9:45pm. At that point I still needed to give Anna rice cereal. Nate was pooped and needed to get to bed Asap. So once Anna was down we headed off to bed. But, my head just wouldn't turn off. So finally I went down stairs. Shortly after I heard movement upstairs and went to check to see what was happening.... Nate was sweating a ton and couldn't sleep. Poor guy- he decided to sleep on the floor.Eventually I got to sleep, only to be awakened by Alex crying at 7:28am! I gave him his medication, checked his temp. (99.2), gave him tylenol, gave him a nose drop to try to clear him out a bit, gave him some milk (he hardly drank any)....... And then I heard Anna crying!! (8:10am) So I took Alex upstairs, changed his sheets (he had majorly leaked during the night), and put him back to bed.Then I washed my hands and went to get poor Anna. Fed her, cleaned her eye (she HATED it), changed her, and she fell asleep to escape her misery. Then I washed up again, took a bite of a pop tart, sat down to write you....... and now I hear Alex SCREAMING again! It's 9:15am and I have a headache. Pray for me.Sorry to dump all of that on you. I love you so much. Thanks for being such a great mom. I'm sure you remember days like these.
Love,Amy"

The day continued on course... After sending that email, I went to get Alex (leaving Anna asleep on the floor downstairs) and as soon as I picked Alex up, I could hear Anna begin to cry...

Anna is 4 Months Old!

2009-06-09T16:38:00.000-07:00

We cannot believe that just over 4 months have passed since our little Anna entered the world. She is such a joy! She is rolling over, smiling a ton, holding toys, and talking up a storm! This morning she had a doctor appointment, and here are the results:
Weight: 13lbs 8oz (40%)
Height: 25 inches (63%)
Head size: 16.2 inches (54%)
She is pretty much average across the board...but the doctor said she is above average in looks:). I can't help but agree:)!

Family Time

2009-05-27T22:12:00.000-07:00

Rachel with the 2 babies:)

Great Aunt Ruth

Great Uncle Art

Nate's Uncle Art and Aunt Ruth came down from Canada!

More Easter Pics

2009-05-27T14:26:00.000-07:00

My friend, Kristi, took picture of Easter- so I DO have some of the actual day:)! The first few you see are from the day before Easter- the Anderson's arrival, and the rest are from Easter day. Enjoy!

Easter Vacation

2009-05-08T11:14:00.000-07:00

This Easter was full of tons of family fun! My sister's family was able to make the drive down from WA to come see our new baby girl, and the rest of us too:)....

Unfortunately I don't have a single picture of Easter Sunday, but we had a huge family gathering at my parents house. The gathering included: My Mom and Dad and Grandma; my brother Chris and his wife Katie, her parents, grandma, and sister Kristi; my sister Alissa, her husband Erik, their kids: Conner, Katherine, and Isabella; me, Nate, Alex and Anna, Nate's parents, sister Katie, sister Heidi and her husband Vijay, and their kids: Rachel and Jonathan! I think I remembered everyone:). We had amazing food, an Easter Egg Hunt for the kids, and sang song around the piano as Great Grandma Richardson played.

Enjoy some pictures from the rest of the week:

Monday we had a Picnic at the park by our house in Mountain House. It was really fun and my cousin Renee and her 4 kids joined us!

Alex recently discovered the sand pit and absolutely loves it:-)

"Auntie" Kristi and Alexander

Renee and Anna

Katherine playing Hop-Scotch

The Teeter-Totter! Erik, Isabella, Peter, Conner, and Alissa

Sidewalk chalk fun! Katherine, Kristin, Jonathan

Alyssa and Alex in the sand pit

Tuesday: Brigetta was out visiting from NC so we got to spend a day together!

Tuesday Night we went out for Pizza to Celebrate Uncle Erik's upcoming birthday:

Alexander helping Uncle Chris with Battle Ship:)

There's Conner on the otherside of Battleship, and Nate and Erik

Uncle Erik's Birthday Cookie

Katherine, Isabella, and Auntie Katie playing Candyland

Friday we took a trip to Half Moon Bay. Here is Alex at the Tide Pools. Alissa and Me carrying Anna in the frontpack, taking very careful steps:)

Katie and Katherine

Our second to last stop was at the Ritz Carlton. Here's Uncle Chris and Auntie Katie

Our final stop was at Starbucks:)! Yahoo! I know I can always count on Alissa's vote for that! :) And I needed a place to feed Anna before the long drive home.

April 7th - Celebrating 3 Years!

2009-05-06T13:53:00.000-07:00

Grandma Joyce (Mama) and Grandpa Fred (Boppa) watched the kiddos for us so we could go out to celebrate our 3rd anniversary!

Ah- a blissful dinner with no children! We love our little ones, but WOW, it was WONDERFUL to enjoy an evening without them:). Nate and I agree we need to do it more often!

Does Mud Taste Good???

2009-05-06T09:45:00.000-07:00

Here is Alexander having fun in the dirt...

Time to get cleaned up...

The New Do

2009-05-06T09:33:00.000-07:00

So this was a while ago now, but I just had to share Alex's hair cut! I had been bugging Nate for quite some time, and he finally gave in. We buzzed it! We were both sad after- his long beautiful hair was gone. But the next day, Sunday, March 28th, Nate had fun styling the little tike's new do:). See below.

Sweet Anna Pics

2009-03-28T12:53:00.000-07:00

You would think that with a brand new baby girl in the family, I'd be plastering pictures of her all over here!! Well...life as a mama of 2 has been rather busy! It has been absolutely wonderful, but yes, very busy. So FINALLY, here are some pics of little Anna:

Anna in her pink & brown dress at 3 weeks old:)

Anna snoozing on daddy's lap at almost 4 weeks old Anna at 1 month! Look at that fun fuz hair-do right after her bath:)

Anna at 7 weeks

Anna at 8 weeks. See that hand above her head? That is big brother Alex's hand! So sweet!

Alex giving Anna kisses:)

Valentine's Day

2009-02-18T21:18:00.000-08:00

This year Valentine's Day was about FAMILY! Anna's due date was February 13th, so we thought we might have a Valentine baby. As it turned out, she was born on January 31st, adding yet ANOTHER January birthday for our family! (We have LOTS.) Anyway, this Valentine's day we enjoyed as a family of four. During the day we relaxed, went for a walk and played at the park, did some jobs around the house, and gave Alex a bath... Check out my BIG baby!

Bubbles!

Ooh!!

Then we had the Swamidass Family over for dinner and cookie decorating! (The Swamidass Family is: Nate's sister Heidi, her husband Vijay, their 3 year old daughter Rachel, and their newborn son Jonathan. Jonathan was born on January 15th, so he is just 2 weeks older than Anna!) It was a very fun evening celebrating together.

Jonathan

Rachel

Heidi, Vijay and baby Jonathan

Cookies!

Baby Wise

2009-02-18T20:46:00.000-08:00

The day before yesterday I was sitting in the glider reading "On Becoming Baby Wise", while Alexander was playing with some toys. I decided to read aloud so as to involve Alex, and not make him feel like I was ignoring him. Well, shortly into it, he decided it was his turn to read...

He grabbed the book from me and began flipping through it. I just couldn't pass up this opportunity... Alexander is becoming baby wise! Getting ready to take care of his little sister:).

Actually though, just so you know, this is a FABULOUS book! I followed it pretty closely with Alex, and I intend to do the same with Anna. If you have an infant and are in need of some guidance and sleep- check it out!

Anna Christine Enns

2009-02-05T22:04:00.000-08:00

* Born January 31, 2009 @ 1:47am * 6lbs 9oz * 19 1/4 inches

Our Baby Girl Is Coming This Weekend!!

2009-01-28T08:05:00.000-08:00

So I went in for my 38 week prenatal check-up yesterday, very nervous for the results... And as I feared, the doctor did want to induce labor this weekend! It's great in some ways, because I can plan, (and I am a total planner), and I know for sure the baby won't be "late":)... BUT it is also nerve racking because things are going to be started before my body is ready. Please pray for Nate, baby Anna, and I as we prepare for labor this Friday. Please also pray that I could turn my brain off at night and actually get sleep before the baby comes!!Now, for the details... Basically my feet started itching terribly a month ago. I thought it might be from changing detergents, but when it didn't go away after changing back to my original detergent, and more than 2 weeks passed, my doctor decided to do some lab work. She wanted to test for Cholestasis... I'm going to cut and paste some info about it below:
"Some women experience a very severe itching in late pregnancy. The most common cause of this is cholestasis, a common liver disease that only happens in pregnancy. Cholestasis of pregnancy is a condition in which the normal flow of bile in the gallbladder is affected by the high amounts of pregnancy hormones. Cholestasis is more common in the last trimester of pregnancy when hormones are at their peak, but it usually goes away within a few days after delivery.""Cholestasis may increase the risks for fetal distress, preterm birth, or stillbirth. A developing baby relies on the mother’s liver to remove bile acids from the blood; therefore, the elevated levels of maternal bile cause stress on the baby’s liver. Women with cholestasis should be monitored closely and serious consideration should be given to inducing labor once the baby’s lungs have reached maturity."
I got my lab results back online on Saturday, and all but one of them were normal. There was one bile acid that was heightened. It didn't seem too far out of range, but how am I to know? So, I figured everything was OK. Then Monday morning I received an email from my doctor, and my heart began pounding! She said that we'd talk more at my Tuesday appointment, but that she thought it might be Cholestasis, due to the lab and continued itching, and she would normally induce at 38 weeks. I will be 38 weeks this Friday!
Needless to say, I couldn't think about ANYTHING else all day Monday, and I was awake ALL night, and felt anxious waiting to hear for sure what would happen!
At my appointment we scheduled the induction, and the nerves did not go away. sigh.Basically she said that I might have Cholestasis, or I might not, but because the risk is so great (Still Birth), we wouldn't want to risk it. It is better to induce while baby is healthy.
Sorry this is so long. Please pray for us.

Our Little Musician

2009-01-22T20:53:00.000-08:00

A good friend of ours, Russell, took these photos during our Christmas visit in Fresno. Alex just loves music!

It's Official!

2009-01-22T11:29:00.000-08:00

Alex is walking everywhere! He's been practicing for quite some time now, but he's been a little chicken. It ususally takes some coercing to get him to walk. Well, today -all morning long- he's been getting up and walking all over! Not only that.... amongst his travels, he figured out how to open and close doors with the handles! Oh man, I thought it would be a while before he'd even reach them! (It doesn't work to just close a door anymore!) So, while I was putting new sheets on his bed, Alex was walking from room to room, opening and closing doors- it was actually really cute:). It's a whole new world now!

Side note: Here are more words Alex is saying: ball, apple, kitty, na-night, bubble, and for things that go around, he waves his arms in a circle and says, "noa noa noa". He also tries to mimic lots of things that we say.
And oh man, I know that I mentioned he says "hi" before, but he is just sooo funny! Wherever we go, he likes to wave and say, in a very loud voice, "HI" to just about everyone he sees! If he gets someones attention, he'll keep saying Hi to them:). I wish I were so outgoing!

Alexander Update

2009-01-05T21:28:00.000-08:00

I was realizing that it's been a very long time since I've given an update on Alex, so I thought I'd just list a bunch of things that he says, knows or does....

Alex says:
Ma-ma
Da-da
Hi
eyes
c-cker (cracker)
nana (banana)
ice
ba-bye
uh-oh
up
nnnn (nose)
gock (socks)
boo

He signs:
more, please, all done, thank you

If you ask him, he'll point to his:
hair, eyes, nose, ears, tongue, teeth, belly, foot, toes

Things he does:
claps, folds his hands to pray, blows kisses and sometimes even gives kisses, waves, plays piano and sings along "Ohhhh", helps daddy strum the guitar, waves his arms to direct whenever he hears music, dances to music, crawls up and down the stairs, plays peek-a-boo, makes LOTS of animal sounds and gets EXTREMELY excited whenever he sees an animal.

And his most recent achievement happened on December 23rd... He took his first few steps on his own!!

I've probably missed a bunch of stuff, but this gives you an idea of what he's up to. He's such a sweetheart. He smiles at people everywhere we go, and he is always sad when people leave after a visit of any length. He's also my cuddle-bug. We love that he will hug and cuddle with us.

Our Christmas Decorations

2008-12-23T16:02:00.001-08:00

The Enns' Traditional Trip To Lori's Diner

2008-12-22T12:50:00.000-08:00

Every year, sometime right before Christmas, Nate's family makes the trek on Bart into San Francisco. We hit Lori's Diner for dinner- so yummy! We visit the St. Francis hotel elevators for a great view of the city, and some fun. And we walk through the city enjoying the lights. We walk all the way to Embarcadero to see the Christmas village set up inside the Hyatt. Then before heading back to Bart, we ride the Hyatt's elevators, and enjoy the view from way up high once again.

This year it was raining, so the challenge was to keep Alex dry and warm. He actually really loves the rain though:). I think we all managed to stay fairly dry, and it was fun all the while.

Here are some pictures, including preggo belly shots of my sister-in-law, Heidi, and I! She is due January 19th, just about a month before me!

I'm planning to post a few more pictures of the evening when I get them from Nate's Dad. Our camera battery was practically dead when we got there, so we didn't get to take a lot of pictures.

I've been a bad blogger!

2008-12-22T12:13:00.000-08:00

I'm sorry I've been such a bad blogger! It's been a LONG time since I've posted anything new. I keep meaning to post, but life takes off and doesn't stop! So... I'm going to just summarize a bunch of our family happenings to fill you in and catch us up:

One, not-so-fun, thing that has been going on in our family since November 1st, is illness. Alex got a really bad cold that actually started with a fever, and then just as he started feeling better...I got it! And now I know why he became such a terror that week! I felt absolutely awful! It was like no other cold I've ever had in my life! Then, just as we thought Alex was finally totally better (3 weeks into it), it started all over! And just about that time, Nate got it too. And what do you know, once Nate was better, I got a mild version of it, again. It has been a rough month and a half! I think we are FINALLY all over it! And I really hope it doesn't come back in any form!

Amongst the fun colds, we've kept busy... I've continued to watch Nikki every Wednesday and Friday (having to keep her and Alex apart the times when he was sick)... Nate worked many evenings at home, and just about every Saturday in October and November... We've had a lot of fun dinners at both parents houses... I was busy singing in choir, getting ready for Christmas!

Then came Thanksgiving! Thanksgiving was awesome! This year it was at my parents house, and I think there were a total of 26 people! Nate's whole family came, Andrew and Bekah and Karis and Sophia came up from L.A., Bekah's parents came up from San Diego, Chris and his new wife, Katie came, and Katie's whole family came, and of course, my mom, dad and grandma were there! Fellowship and food were great. Also, Thanksgiving landed on Andrew's birthday this year, so we sang to him and he opened gifts.

The next day a bunch of us went into San Francisco to see the lighting of the tree in Union Square. It was WAY crowded, and over-rated, but it was fun to be with family, and dinner afterwards was delicious.

Saturday the 29th, Nate, Alex and I went to get our tree!! We got it from Home Depot- which we've done the past few years, and it is absolutely gorgeous! I will try to post pictures soon. The week following, we did a little decorating each night. It's so fun having space to decorate now!

Other than that, I've been enjoying time with family, lots of baking, a Women's Christmas Dinner at church, shopping, another night in the city with dinner at the Cheesecake Factory:), a progressive dinner with our Sunday School class, and ...FEELING BABY MOVE! It is such a joy to be pregnant. This little girl has been quite active the past few days! I'm not sure what's gotten into her? But it's sure fun.

Yesterday we went into the city again, but I'll do another post for that one...

Fun... in Our Backyard???

2008-11-15T10:43:00.000-08:00

Who knew that so much fun could be had in our practically non-existent backyard?!

A couple of weeks ago- the day before Halloween, to be exact- my cousin Renee and her 4 kids, and my Aunt Joanne came to visit. They stopped by on their way to my mom's house. We had lunch and then the kids played outside while we visited inside. They had sooo much fun picking old corn and shucking it, and searching for whatever else we had growing in our garden! Other than the corn, pumpkin, squash and tomato plants, our backyard is just dirt....not a place I expected kids to have fun! But I guess it's just me, that doesn't like dirt:).

The Corn Maze

2008-10-30T15:02:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday 3 families got together for some Autumn fun! It was the "Humphreys", "Richardsons", and the "Enns". We trecked out to Dell' Osso Familiy Farms in Lathrop. This place is absolutely HUGE! The main attraction was the Corn Maze, but there was so much to do there. Unfortunately, Nate had to work, so he couldn't come...and he LOVES corn mazes. Anyway, here are some fun photos of our day...

Nikki

2008-10-23T21:45:00.000-07:00

About a month ago I started nannying little baby Nikki! I watch her just a few hours a week while her mom teaches piano here in Mountain House.

This was the first time Alex met Nikki! He wanted to on the chair with her the WHOLE time:).

The rest of these pictures are from this week. Alex had so much fun watching Nikki. He sat by her, touched her toes, smiled at her, and sat by her some more. It will be fun to see him with his new sister when she arrives!

Look at that big grin!

Bob, Brigetta, & Robby Bonner Came To Visit!

2008-10-23T17:12:00.000-07:00

The Bonner family flew out for Jenn & Thomas's wedding this past weekend... and they stayed with us! It was so fun having them here. Robby and Alex are now at ages where they can interact quite a bit more- that was so fun to watch.

They are such cuties!

Alex just can't keep his fingers out of his mouth!

The men feeding the boys:).

We miss you guys!

Alexander's Construction Party!

2008-10-03T12:40:00.000-07:00

I tried uploading a video of Alex eating his cake, but it was too long! I'll have to learn how to edit it first!

Happy 1st Birthday Alexander!!

2008-09-24T21:38:00.000-07:00

Alexander Tate Enns was born exactly one year ago today, at 5:45am! Happy Birthday Alex!

It wasn't the funnest day for Alex though. He had is 12 month doctor appointment, which included shots! No fun. The doctor also thought he heard a slight murmur while listening to his heart, so he sent us down for an EKG. Poor little guy. It was hard to see him hooked up to so many wires. The good thing is that the results were normal. But it was a long day at the doctor- what a birthday!

As you can see in pictures above, Alex got a package in the mail! His very first birthday present actually came on Saturday, and he had great fun opening it. It was from cousins: Karis and Sophia, and second cousins: Joshua, Thomas, and Joey! Then he received his second present in the mail from the Bonners on Monday!

The sign you see in the last picture is going to be used at his birthday party this Saturday. We are having a pizza party at the park! And the theme for Alex is Construction! I will post some pictures after the event.

It has been a wonderful year! I can hardly believe it has been a whole year since that trip to the hospital! Alexander is such a blessing in our lives and we thank God for him daily. Alex is learning so many new things everyday. He's getting better and better at walking with our help, he waves at just about anyone, he loves being outdoors, and he can point to several things when I ask where they are. What a sweet boy he is!

Ultra-Sound Pics at 18 weeks

2008-09-16T21:32:00.000-07:00

This is a nice leg shot:) See the 2 little feet?
This is an arm.
This is a side view of the head and body.

The BIG Ultra-Sound Today!

2008-09-11T22:33:00.000-07:00

I was really hoping for a girl, so when the technician said that he thought it was a girl, I almost couldn't believe it! I asked him how sure he was, and he said that he was pretty sure:). So yeah- Alex is going to have a baby sister! I'll try to get some pictures posted soon!

Pictures from the Camping Trip

2008-09-06T13:36:00.000-07:00

Alexander's 1st Camping Trip

2008-09-03T22:02:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago we embarked on a camping trip with Zander baby! We left right after church on Sunday, August 3rd and returned home on Tuesday, August 5th. It was short but sweet. Monday was actually Nate's birthday, so this was sort-of his birthday trip! You'll see in one of the pictures that I put a candle in a marshmellow:). All-in-all is was a very fun trip to Pinecrest, with sunbathing and swimming in the lake, a scenic drive, camp fires, and just enjoying the outdoors. However, we don't know that we'll try it again with a baby because night-time was hard... Alex went down just fine, but woke up several times crying. We felt bad for all our neighboring campers.

News! News! Growing Enns!

2008-08-08T10:10:00.000-07:00

The Enns family IS growing! What do I mean by that? Yes, you guessed it... we are going to have another baby!! I am 13 weeks along now and my due date is February 13, 2009. We are very excited to welcome this new life into our family. Alexander and Baby #2 will be about 17 months apart, so we will have a lot of work ahead of us, but a lot of fun too! We covet your prayers for a healthy pregnancy and a safe delivery.

The Event of the Summer!

2008-07-31T15:08:00.001-07:00

My little brother, Chris, got married!! He's always been my "little" brother- I can't believe he's turning 26 in August! Anyway, on July 19th, 2008, we got to celebrate with Chris and Katie as they united in marriage. It was a wonderful day!

Alexander was the ring bearer :). Cousins: Karis and Sophia were the flower girls. Alex and Sophia rode in the wagon, pulled by Karis! They all did such a great job! No crying, no talking, no climbing out of the wagon... And they were great through the whole ceremony! I was a proud mom:).

Nate was a groomsman, along with my brother-in-law, Erik, Chris's friend Thomas, and my brother Andrew was the Best Man. (This picture is obviously from the rehearsal, not the wedding:), and the line-up is: Andrew, Thomas, Nate, Erik.)

For once, I wasn't a bridesmaid! Not that I wouldn't have wanted to be, but it was nice for the guys to be involved more this time, and for the mom's to take care of the kids:). My sister, Alissa, and I each read a passage of scripture in the ceremony, and my sister-in-law, Bekah, sang for Chris and Katie's first dance. Again, it was an absolutely wonderful day!

Here's a picture of me and my handsome boy:).

Pals

2008-07-21T16:57:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday, July 13th, we went out to lunch with some friends after church. It was so much fun. This is a picture of the three dads and their boys. From Right to left: Jeff and Joshua, Jim and Jimmy, Nate and Alex. Joshua is 11 months, Jimmy 3 months, and Alex is almost 10 months.

A day with cousin Rachel

2008-06-17T21:54:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday Alex and I (mommy) spent the day with Auntie Heidi and cousin Rachel. We played, read books, ate lunch, and went for a walk at Lake Chabot! While we were there we went down and played on a fishing dock. Alex and Rachel took turns looking down a hole:).

Our Corn!!

2008-06-17T21:06:00.000-07:00

I was looking at the pictures I originally posted of our yard, and realized I needed to give you an update on our corn! It's doing so well! Daddy and Alex have their male bonding time each day when daddy gets home from work. They go out and water the plants together!

Cousin Isabella

2008-06-17T20:58:00.001-07:00

About a week and a half ago my sister, Alissa and her daughter, Isabella flew down for a quick visit. It was so much fun to see them. These pictures were taken the night we had everyone over for dinner. After clearing the table we all sat around visiting for quite a while, and Alexander sat ON the table. As you can see in the first picture, Alex and Isabella are both cuddle-bugs! They were too cute! They hugged several times for long periods of time- it was precious. In the second photo you can see Great Grandma at the end of the table! This was the first time she came over to our new home!

Thanks!

2008-06-17T20:56:00.001-07:00

I just wanted to say a big "thanks" to everyone who commented on our blog! I didn't even notice the comments until today! It was very fun reading them- so thank you!

The Transformation In Progress...

2008-05-29T08:57:00.000-07:00

As most of you know, the house was a foreclosure and was in need of some TLC, to say the least. The kitchen had been mostly gutted, appliances gone, door knobs (throughout the entire house) gone, and the backyard was fence to fence weeds growing almost as tall as me! Although the previous owner took quite a bit, it didn't appear as though they were trying to trash the place. It just seems like they were trying to make some extra cash- possibly selling items on Craigslist or something. All that to say, it was the perfect house for us with Nate in the line of work that he is.
As the title shows, this is a transformation "in progress". We are not completely done, but we have made a lot of progress, and I'd like to show you some of what we have done so far...

The Front Room

The paint made all the difference! Oh, and see that chair in the back corner that matches perfectly? That was left by the previous owner! Hey, they left something!

The Backyard

This picture of the backyard was taken long before we moved in. By the time we moved in the weeds were much taller, and mostly brown!

So the present picture doesn't look all that great, but it really is better! Most of the weeds are gone now, and a few days ago Nate planted a variety of vegetables. What you see here is the first row of corn! Oh, and an orange tree off to the left, which was already there! (Another present from the previous owner:)

The Kitchen

There are still a few finishing touches left to do like: add knobs to some of the cabinets, install the toe kicks, and install the tile back splash.

More to come soon...

The Biggest Change

2008-05-21T15:23:00.000-07:00

The most recent happening for the Enns family is... we bought a house! We are so thankful that God has provided a house for our growing family. We moved in almost 3 weeks ago and we are loving it! The house is in a new community called, "Mountain House" located between Livermore and Tracy, CA. We are excited to see how God will use us here.

Our new address is: 186 S Tranquilidad, Mountain House, CA 95391