Andrews First Dip in the Pool

Okay trying something new here. Instead of using hello I just added image via the icon in my post. Ignore me in the pics I look really crappy just look at my adorable little boys:)

RC and I took the boys swimming Saturday night. It was a lot of fun. AC is my little fish. He loves to swim and goes out by himself (with his floaties of course). Trace is not a fish he loves to sit on the steps and splash but if you take him in the water he does the white nuckle cling around your neck. Andrew seemed to enjoy the water until I took him under. Then he was cold and didn't seem that thrilled.

My littlest man enjoying one of the rare occasions his big brothers are actually leaving him alone! 

AC loves his little brother! 

Man how can you resist a pout like this!?!?!?!? 

My little guys learning to wink! 

You gotta love two really cute Cowboys;) 

This outfit was given to Andrew from RC's Aunt Marilyn. Isn't he a cutie! 

"T" is my letter.

Okay for those of you who read my Mom's blog her friend assigned her the letter "L", and she had to come up with 10 things describing her that starts with the letter "L". Oh and for those who don't read my Mom's you should its good reading and the link is on my page.

Well anyways she challenged us to comment to her and she would give us a letter. Well blogger was having issues so I just told her I wanted to do it and she assigned me the letter "T". So here are 10 things describing me that starts with the letter "T".

"Tired" - I think this would be the most obvious because I do have 3 boys ages 4, 2 1/2, and 2 1/2 months. So yes tired is a very good description of me right now:)

"Texan" - And dang proud of it. For those who don't know I was born and raised most of my life in the Great State of TEXAS. My boys know and take ownership of the Texas flag because that is apart of their lives.

"Talkative" - I have always been very talkative (no wise cracks RC, Mom, Dad, Nyki, Shawn or anyone else). I am even more talkative now when I am actually with adults, because I crave adult conversation. I love being home with the boys, but there is only so much little boy talk you can take without going absolutely crazy!!!!

"Trustworthy"- I participated in this survey called Johari Window, http://kevan.org/johari?name=Outnumbered4to1. Well one of the things my friends and family called me was trustworthy. So I guess I can put this on here because they said it.

"Tense" - My hubby put this on the Johari Window thing and he would know. I get so concerned with what others, especially my Mom and husband, think that I get extremely tense and apprehensive about certain situations. No I am not saying that they make me that way I do that to myself.

Wow okay now I'm stuck.
Thinking>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

"Team player" - Most of the time anyways. I think I go along and help the "Team" whenever I can. I know not always but quite a bit of the time.

"Temperamental" - (RC keep your mouth shut!) I am now admitting not that I need to because most of you know this, but I am now admitting that I Brittney have a short temper from time to time!

"Tenderhearted" - When someone else is hurting I hurt too. Especially when it is my family and friends.

"Territorial" - No I am not a dog, but I do get very territorial. Don't mess with my friends and family. This is especially true when it comes to my husband. I have major issues with the female servers who feel they must touch my husband. He is mine mine mine keep your hands off if you want to still get your tip. Okay sorry went on a little rampage there:)

"Thankful" - God has given me so many blessings. I have an absolutely gorgeous husband. 3 beautiful little boys. Loving family that I was raised in. A roof over my head and food in my stomach. I am truely thankful that I am who I am and know who I know. I love you all.

Okay that was harder than I thought it would be. Okay I will challenge all of you now. Even if you don't have a blog, you can do this via email. So comment and I will give you a letter. It's really cool to see how you can do this.

Andrew Rolled Over

Hey Everyone! Okay so let me tell you about my day. First of all I woke up not feeling really great. So I had the boys playing in their bedroom. All of a sudden I hear Trace screaming. I go running in and he is climbing down from the top bunk and the fan is going so you know where my mind went. Yes he got hurt by the fan (let me clarify something here I have taken off the long chain link and turned the fan off by the little chain so they couldn't turn it on by the light switch, well they figured out how to turn it on anyways). He got hit in the nose and had a bloody nose. Well while I was cleaning up his nose he was crying so hard that he puked on me. So I throw him in the bath tub. While I am washing his hair I find a sore on his head, and asked him where he got it and when. He told me on Daddy's bike in the kitchen. Well Daddy's bike hasn't been in the kitchen since Saturday sooooo..... I told him that he needs to tell me when he gets hurt.

Okay then I got to go to the bank and deal with them. RC lost his wallet on Sunday, so I got the joys of checking the statement and cancelling the debit card. Well that is all taken care of and new cards have been issued. Nobody had used our card so that was a true blessing. Thank you God!!!

Well now on a good note. Andrew has started sleeping much better. I decided to try putting him on his belly and he immediately curled up and was out like a light. He sleeped from 9 'til 4:30 the next morning. Imagine my surprise. Ever since then he has been sleeping until atleast 3:30 or this morning it was 6:00. Also while I was changing Trace's diaper Andrew was laying on his belly on the back bed in Mom's house, and was totally ticked off. He rolled over for the first time. Yeah :) Wow I started the day out crazy and through it all God showed me his amazing power through my littlest guy doing something amazing.

Time Changes things and people too...

First let me start with didn't my sister in law do a wonderful job on my new blog background. I love it:) Thank you Tasha.

Now I have to say isn't it funny how time changes you. Okay let me explain. When RC and I met he tolerated my listening to country music. He didn't really like me wearing my cowboy boots. He said he would never wear boots, cowboy hats, or a belt buckle. Those were just not his thing. Well I have to tell you he now listens to country music all the time. He bought a belt with a belt buckle a few weeks ago. Today he and I both bought straw cowboy hats. He even told me that if I bought him boots he would wear them. See all you Texans this little Texas cowgirl finally rubbed off on him. I just had to take it nice and slow and new he would eventually come around. He thinks I look really good as his little cowgirl. Man has time changed him. I told him that and laughed and he told me to shut up and then laughed too. Well I just thought you guys might get a kick out of that, for those of you who know my husband. Anyways I promise to take pics and get them on the blog.

Oh by the way he looks really hot in his cowboy hat and tight jeans!! ;)

I am thankful....

Okay, let me say God has a sense of humor. I don't know how any mother who does not have Christ on their side survives motherhood. Let me back up a little ways, you all know that in February my middle son ended up with stitches in his head, 2 weeks later I broke my ankle, 2 weeks later my oldest son ended up with stitches and the next day I delivered my youngest. Well God was sufficient and got me through all of that.

Then what am I writing about? I am writing about the fact that we as mothers deliver the child and then are expected to anticipate the childs personality (especially if it is your 3rd). We are expected to know how to soothe our child and be able to take care of their every need. We are to function on anywhere from no to very little sleep and be able to have patience with our children. Then we are also suppose to be emotionally, physically and every other way available to our husbands who still need our love, respect and support because they are just big boys. We are too juggle home life with our other responsibilities. We have to still get out of bed and care for our little ones even if we are sick. On top of all of this our hormones are still so out of wack that you can burst into tears at the drop of a hat (or deal with it in whatever way you deal I cry so that is why I say that).

No I am not writing all of this as a total gripe fest I have a couple of points....

1) Gods grace is sufficient. Only he can get a mom through all of this without them quitting or being sent to the looney ben. I do not know how any one can get through all of this without him there to get you through.

2) I have an amazing husband. I have always known RC was wonderful but I have seen a side of him since I got hurt that I had never seen before. Last night my youngest decided that he needed to be awake from 2:30 to 5:30. I was at my wits end and in walks RC even though he has to work the next day. On other occasions he sends me to bed at 9 and puts the baby to bed when he goes to bed. That way I get a little extra sleep. He is just amazing.

3) The biggest thing that has been revealed to me a little more through each birth of my children is I am so lucky to have parents like mine, but especially a mom like my mom. She is my source of advice. Growing up I didn't appreciate her the way I should have. She is now one of the smartest woman I know. I call her and she always has a few ways to try to help me with my problems. She has a heart of gold and I know my siblings agree. She always was the mom that all our friends loved. Shoot she just went to the wedding of my brothers buddy, even though my brother wasn't able to attend. She always tried to fix the hurt whether it was ours or our friends (both physical and emotional). She takes on our problems as if they were her own. I am very lucky to have a mom like mine and I don't tell her often enough how greatful I am that God gave her to me. I believe not because I am a mom, but because I know what my mom did and does in my life that we should appreciate them more than just one day a year.

So saying all of this back to God's sense of humor. He took me through all this just to realize I am a lucky lucky woman. It took struggle after struggle to make me see that I have a heavenly father that loves me no matter what, I have an earthly father that loves me with enough discipline to make me the woman I am today, I have in-laws (I am counting all in-laws) that truely care about me, I have siblings that as time goes along our friendships truely have grown, I have children that even on their worst behavior I still have a love for them that radiates and keeps me from sending them to the moon, I have church family that helps me any time I need and I have a husband that looks at me and even when I haven't had enough sleep and am yelling and screaming is still so in love with me and remembers why he married me in the first place.

I thank you all for being a part of my life and I challenge you to stop even if things are as hectic as can be and look at what you have to be thankful for. It is a real eye opener and puts your crazy life into perspective.

1 Month old Andrew SMILES! He is such a Daddy's boy and smiles at him (yes thats who he's looking at) all the time. The little stinker only smiles at me every once in a while! His very first smile was a week and a half ago at his two big brothers. They thought that was the coolest!

I Got a New Van. It is a 2001 Mazda MPV! 

It can be a bench seat in the middle,  

Or It can have Captain Chairs in the middle. 

Interior is tan. 4 doors. 

Plenty of space in back for the stroller! 

Boys favorite part, it has a tv/vcr! 

We went and saw the Easter Bunny on the 15th. We didn't plan on it so it is just a fluke that they are all in their I'm the Big/Little Brother shirts. 

Tagged are you serious!

Tagged are you serious. I don't think I can narrow it down to 6. I am just weird.

1: Like my sis-in-law. I do so much better writing out my feelings. The words get all jumbled in my head when I try to say them, but I guess I think it out better when I put it in writing. I may not always give the other person the letter but it helps me feel better. I actually should do this more often!

2: When I get tired I still do the same thing I did as baby. No I don't suck my thumb or a binky (for those who don't know Mommy talk that is a pacifiar), I suck my tongue. Yes my tongue. My mom says that I even did it walking down the aisle at my wedding.

3: I can sleep almost anywhere and almost any time. My mom tells the story of us being at a childs birthday party and the mom of the birthday girl came in and asked mom "Do you know where Brittney is?" Mom replied, "Probably curled up asleep somewhere." Melanie said, "She is curled up in middle of the play room floor with the other kids climbing over her."

4: I prefer fresh fruits over ice cream and most other desserts. Give me the choice and 98% of the time I will choose the fruit. Unless it is cheese cake of course.

5: I guess some would say that my enjoying to take a group of our junior high girls out shopping and the movies is weird. I have a passion for making sure these girls get guidance at an age that many people overlook.

6: I love to do data entry. Call me weird but I enjoy entering info into the computer. Let someone else make the calls I'll gladly enter the info in for them.

I tag Shawn, Randy, RC and Jeremy! I wanna hear from the guys!

Andrew's Scripture

As I mentioned in a previous blog each of my boys have a scripture that we have picked out for them. Actually these verses have come into there lives kind of randomly.
AC's scripture is Jeremiah 29:11. During my sonogram to find out if he was a he or she, I had my mom, RC's mom, and RC in the room with me. When they saw him, the first thing out of Ede's (RC's mom) mouth was "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11 So that is how that verse came into his life.
Trace's verse is Psalm 127:3. This verse came into his life from a card. RC's Aunt Marilyn sent us the first Congratulations on the new Baby card from family. On the card the verse was written. Sons are a heritage from the Lord, children a reward from him. Psalm 127:3 So that is is Trace's verse.
Well I mentioned in the previous blog that I needed a verse for Andre so I started looking. I found a few that were really nice but they just didn't seem right. With AC's and Trace's I just new immediately and these just weren't like that. Well I decided to set it aside for a little while and to be honest forgot about it. While in the hospital we are requested to fill out a card to keep a record of when and how long the baby nurses and the amount of wet and dirty diapers. Well my care nurse took the record sheet to enter the numbers in my chart and when she returned it she had written across the bottom Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. James 1:17. I knew immediately that I had just found Andrew's scripture.
Isn't God cool that he brings His PERFECT word into the lives of His children in many different ways. Now believe me I pray each one of these verses over all three of my boys, but they now have verses of their own.

I must say, "AREN'T THEY THE CUTEST!?!" Sitting youngest to oldest! 

They had us put Andrew in the sunlight to help his jaundice so this little bear blanket became his jaundice buddy. 

Trace playing too! 

AC having fun on Mommy's crutches. 

AC's Birthday Cake 

Trace at AC's birthday party, on Sunday at Chuckie Cheese. 

AC at his Chicken Little birthday party at Chuckie Cheese. He's 4 You know! 

My Littlest Man, I am now officially outnumbered 4:1.  

God is in Control!!!! Even when we feel out of Control.....

I know it says somewhere in the bible that the Lord does not give us more than we can handle through him. (If you know the location of that verse I would love to have it.) Well I am at the point of clinging to that verse with all of my heart. I am on my knees before God crying out Okay God I am listening you have my attention. I am either at the end of where I can go and God my wonderful savior is about to pull me back and say I just needed your attention or Satan is trying to deceive me and make me feel like one more thing will be my fall. Well I have news for Satan you will not win because I know (through many tears and breakdowns that Mommy has helped me through) that even if there is more it is because God is testing my faith. I am saying this here and now for Satan to hear loud and clear that I have taken the step into the darkness and I am just waiting for God to reveal to me the next step or my wings so that I may fly.

Okay Okay now I will back up and fill you in. I am 37 weeks and 5 or 6 days pregnant. Through out this pregnancy I have dealt with severe migraines and some other difficulties. About a month ago my youngest stood up on his bunk beds and put a fabulous hole in his head right around his right ear. That took 3 stitches. Then approximately 2 weeks ago I fell and broke my left leg in 3 places. Yes I am on crutches until after the baby comes. Since my fall I have been living with my parents because I can't get down the stairs without feeling like I am going to fall. Well my husband has been living at home so that is 2 weeks without my husband. I also know while it is hard on me, it is just as hard if not harder on my parents to have me and the kids back at home. Well I went to the doctor on Tuesday and the doctor told me she would be really surprised if I made it to my next doctors appointment which is scheduled for next Wednesday. I am dilating and 50% effaced so things have definitely gotten started. Well then I am using the computer yesterday and the kids are cleaning up for their nap and my oldest went running out of the computer room to get something and I heard him fall. I turn to check on him and there is blood all over his face. I walked without my crutches because like if you read my previous posting that Mamma instinct kicked in and my focus was on taking care of my child. He now has 3 stitches in his forehead. The baby could come any day now and well quite frankly I am not ready.

Like I said I am clinging to the verse that says God will not give me more than I can handle through him.

Anyways the next time I post will probably be after my next doctors appointment or after the baby is here so Keep us all in your prayers please. Love you all.

Making my Pregnancy even more Difficult...

For those who don't know I succeeded in breaking my leg/ankle in 3 places on March 6. I was at Cost Cutters getting the boys hair cut for their big trip to Texas with just Grandma and Grandpa to see Uncle Shawn become a Rescue Hero like Jake Justice. ( Jake Justice is a police officer and my brother just graduated this last Friday to become a police officer.) Well anyways AC was getting his hair cut and I was holding Trace. I stood up to show them something with AC's hair and when I went to sit down I caught the foot rest in the barber chair, the entire chair twisted and I started falling. Well Momma's instinct kicked in and I turned to protect my babies (truth be known Trace was the only one to cross my mind because he was the one I physically could see and hold) well I turned to land on my back and my leg twisted underneath me. I broke my Tibia in 2 places and my Fibula in 1. Yes it is extremely painful and actually a complete pain considering I am 36 weeks pregnant and on crutches.

I went to the doctor (the same one my father went to when he broke his collar bone and to tell you what a good doctor he is he actually remembered my dad). They took me out of the unstable splint and put my in a bright green cast (my husband asked me if it glowed in the dark). I chose this color because green in my oldests favorite color, mine too but it was for AC. Trust me it doesn't match anything in my wardrobe so it was definately for AC. They took another s-ray because there was a minor displacement, and it has moved a little but if it heals like this it would be okay. They want to see me in a few weeks (after the baby is born) to see if it has moved anymore. If it has there is a possibility of surgery, but they won't do anything until after the baby is here. They gave me a water proof cast which is kinda uncomfortable but the doctor joked that it was because if my water broke it wouldn't ruin the cast. Like I said he is a good doctor.

I go see my OB/Gyn today, and I know I will get picked on for being a clutz. This pregnancy has been somewhat difficult and I just added another difficulty. I get to be in a cast for delivery. I will also find out today if I will have to have another sonogram because they are concerned about my weight gain (or lack there of, I have only gained according to their records 6 pounds according to mine 12, they go by first doctors appt. (which was almost 3 months in this case) and I am going by my start weight, and also the fact that I measured a little small this last appointment.) So if there is still a discrepancy then they will do a sono to make sure the amniotic fluid is okay because the measurements they do says the baby is.
Well I will keep you all updated and I know my mom will pass this on to those on her list. I would appreciate the prays for my family and myself. I have been living with my mom since the fall (even though she hasn't been here for almost a week) because I live in an upstairs apartment. Now with the cast I hope to be going home because I know my parents are happy as empty nesters and not use to having toddlers around 24/7. I have no doubt in my mind that they would let me stay but I am ready to go home to my home. Even though I like the comp and big screen tv . Like I said if you will just keep us all in your prayers I would appreciate it and will try to keep you updated as much as possible.

Time to go Romantic...

First I did pass my sugar test. I am a little slow digesting sugar but I do not have gestational diabetes. Went to the doctor and he says everything looks great.

Second I guess I am going through the nesting phase because my living room is rearranged, my DVD's are alphabatized, and my kids have a new bedroom set. The boys now have a bunk bed and what use to be Trace's crib is now deemed as Baby Andrew's crib. I do have to say Thank you because I forgot to on Saturday to my Dad, my Mom, RC, AC and Trace. You all gave up your Saturday to help redo the boys room and take the other stuff (the couch, and a few mattresses) to the dumpster. And for anyone who doubts it the boys had their tools and they carried the cushions so yes they did help.

Third and the one I really want everyone to respond to is.....

Valentine's Day will be here next week so I thought I would go all romantic.

I was talking with my momma about my favorite date that I remember (since I got to actually go on one last Saturday) and the one I remember the smell, taste, and mood of most prominatly is one that happened while RC and I were dating.

We had been dating for 4 or 5 months and I got a phone call from RC saying to meet him at his house and we would go out from there. When I knocked on the door he answered the door holding a dozen red roses and was all dressed up. (Ladies I have to tell you I have an amazingly handsome husband and when he dresses up WOW!!! Knock my socks off!!) He invited me in and then took me to the dining room where he had set the table, with candles and a radio. I was very curious by now but he told me to just sit down and enjoy the evening. He cooked me dinner, and yes I do remember what he cooked, Mojo chicken and potatoes, and corn. It was absolutely delicious. After dinner the radio still had not been explained until he turned it on and asked me to dance. See to go back a minute I had mentioned earlier that I enjoyed dancing and he had told me that he doesn't dance. So for him to ask me to dance was very special. He played Eric Claptons "Wonderful Tonight" which is what we danced to at our wedding. And we danced right there in the dining room. I had no idea that he had even planned anything usually he would pick me up and then we would decide what to do. But that evening he had planned everything and that was the most amazing thing in the world.

Okay for the record we have had many more wonderful dates but this is the one that I will gladly tell my grandchildren about to show them what it means to actually put previous thought into a gift that doesn't have to be expensive. I want to instill into my children that the cost of the gift doesn't mean anything if there is no thought put into it, and if there is thought put into it then the cost most certainly doesn't matter.

Now its your turn. What is your Favorite Date??? Which one do you remember most? It is time to go all romantic even if you are a guy. So please respond!!!

Wow I updated!!

Hey everyone. Just wanted to let everyone know whats going on in the Crosby household. My headaches are just as bad. On Wednesday, January 18th, I had one so severe that the darvaset didn't cut, so my doctor sent me to the emergency room and they gave me a shot of morphine. Just in case anyone is wondering, that made me a little loopy. (No wise cracks Mom!) One thing that I wish they would teach the triage nurses is that you don't tell a pregnant woman "Oh I can't find the heart beat but oh well." Luckily I had just felt the baby kick the nurse sooooo. The nurse in the back checked and she found the heart beat no problem and she commented on how active he is. She would find the heart beat and then he would kick her and move. This happened about five times. Mom and Dad were awesome as always. RC had to play for church, so Daddy took the kids and kept them at his house and Mom took me to the emergency room. I feel really bad because she didn't eat before we went. She came home and took me straight there. We got there about 7pm and they finally took me back around 10:30pm. We were finally aloud to leave about 1:00am. So Mom didn't get much sleep before she had to get up the next morning. I also felt bad for calling and waking my husband up to help me get upstairs because I felt pretty drunk. But after he saw me try to walk he agreed that I definately needed help getting upstairs.

On Friday I got a phone call from my Doctors office saying I failed my one hour glucose test so I had to go in for the 3 hour test. Can I say yuck!!!!! I went for my test Tuesday morning (once again Daddy kept the boys, we had planned on RC keeping them but he needed to do some work for Mom at her office and it could only be done on Tuesday morning.) The boys spent the night with Grandma and Grandpa since I had to be at the lab at 8:00 am. They took blood (so thats one poke with a needle), then I had four minutes to drink that horrible orange drink they make you drink, then I had to wait an hour, then they took blood again (thats two), then wait another hour and they took blood again (they tried my right arm and they couldn't find the vain so they took it out of the left, so yeah that makes pokes three and four), then wait the final hour and yes you guessed it they took blood again (That's five total!) . So needless to say I felt like a pin cushion. I should get the results back on Friday at my doctors appointment. One thing I am hoping is that if I do get diagnosed with Gestational Diabetes, that maybe the blood sugar level will explain my headaches. I am just tired of getting headaches and not knowing the cause because my blood pressure is always great when they check it at my appointments.

Okay enough about my complaints about the pregnancy, now I will talk about the really great things. He moves all the time. The boys are really excited about baby Andrew. Trace already brings me baby toys for Andrew. It's so cute!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! My blood pressure is good, my weight gain is good in my eyes (the Doctor did question whether or not I was eating since I had only gained about 8 pounds at my last doctors appointment), and well its almost over. I just entered my 3rd trimester and am at 30 weeks. For those who don't know a normal pregnancy goes about 40 weeks.

The boys are doing great. They have hit the stage that they fight about almost everything but hey maybe they'll get that over with before Andrew gets here. I know I know its just wishful thinking. RC is also doing great. He really misses riding, so he is really glad that Dad got released and the have a date this Sunday. Tomorrow the 27th is his 26th birthday. We will go on a date on Saturday night. Mom is taking the boys after we go get me glamour shots, so I will actually have my hair done and make up on for this date. OOOH LAAA LAAA He doesn't get that as often as he should. But Hey I am Pregnant sooooooo. Okay Okay I'll stop there. Well anyways I love you all and I will try to update a little quicker next time.

Wait Wait Wait before I get that head nod and yeah right from my mother and sister-in-law, I promise I will really really try. I may just need a little reminder a little sooner. Ha Ha I love you guys!!!

Quick Update

Just a quick update. I went to the doctor on Monday for my check up. Everything there is going great. I did get asked if I was eating because I have only gained 8 pounds and am starting my 7th month. (For the record I eat all the time just ask my husband). My headaches have become a real nuissance to the point that they prescribed me with Tylenol 3, which is Tylenol with codeine. That however did not do the trick due to the fact that the codeine gave me an even worse headache than I already had. On Monday I mentioned my headaches again (because I was going on day 5 of one) and my doctor double checked my blood pressure and everything was fine so she prescribed me Darvaset (that doesn't look right but hey). Well I have to say that did the trick. By Tuesday morning I was headache free YIIIIIIIIIIPPPPPPEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Just a little excited if you couldn't tell. Well anyways they say my measurements are great, my blood pressure is great and overall I look incredible so cool. The boys are getting more and more excited because a few of my pregnant friends have had their baby's and well the boys are beginning to understand that that is what is on the way.

Well gotta go pick up my boys Love you all.

AC's 3 year old pic was taken back in June but I just took the time to learn how to post pictures.  

Trace's 2nd Birthday Picture (A little late, but better late than never) 

Not Much Going On

Not a whole lot going on here. Andrew is so incredible active that I am scared of him coming into the world. Yes Yes I know he has to be to keep up with the other two boys but wow if he's this active in the belly just imagine how active he is going to be. Yes Grandma and Grandpa I know he will be perfect I am just stating that he's active! The boys are cute as ever. They have a small cough right now but they are amazingly cute. They are excited about seeing the christmas lights. They love driving to church because they see alot. I am also currently teaching them the true meaning of Christmas. Sorry so short will try to write a better one next week. Love you all.

What's Going On!!

Alright so I know that it has been a while and I apologize for that.

First and foremost It's A Boy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Andrew Ryan Crosby will be his name. RC and I are very very excited. In the sono room RC did admit that he was a little disappointed it wasn't a girl but like he pointed out we have no wedding to pay for! The boys are absolutely excited about another brother. When you ask either one of them who's in Momma's belly they will tell you Andrew Ryan. It's really sweet.

Another really cute story about my boys happened last night. They had a late nap and Daddy (their's not mine) got home early. Well Daddy was in the kitchen talking to me and AC tell's Trace, "Hey Trace that sounds like Daddy!" Well then he opened the door and told Daddy, "Hey Daddy its your favorite boys, AC and Trace!" It was so cute that I called my mom immediately just to brighten her day. I have to say I am really lucky to have God's glorious riches shown to me through my amazing boys. God is so good!

Finally planned our Thanksgiving plans. Thursday we will go over to my in laws and then the boys will spend the night over there. Friday morning RC and I will get up and meet my parents at Walmart at about 6 am to do Christmas shopping. Then I think the guys (Dad and RC) will probably go for a bike ride and I will go get the boys from NaNa's. We will then meet back at Mom and Dad's for our Steak Thanksgiving Dinner and hang out and play.

Well anyways I don't know what else to write about. My next doctors appointment is November 30 and they may change my due date. The doctor says April 7th but the sono tech said she thought I was about 2 weeks farther along. Oh well only God really knows what Andrew's birthday will be. I am just glad to see everything is going really well. My breathing problems have subsided for the most part. The one thing that I ask for prayer is my migraines have increased and the only thing I can take is Extra strength Tylenol.

But all in all, everything is well on this end I pray that the same is on your end. I love you all.

Real Quick!

Not much to say, I haven't received any results from my echo. They had to cancel my appointment due to Hurricane Wilma. I go to the doctor today at 4:30pm. I feel really blessed to have my parents close by because they go to my appointments to help keep up with the boys for me. RC doesn't know if he will be able to go to my appt. so it really is nice to have someone else go with me. I am hoping to find out today if I can schedule my next sono so that I can find out if it is Andrew Ryan or Alexys Dyan. Well thats all for now I will try to get back sooner.

Update!

Hey everyone just a quick update. I had my sonogram on Monday, Oct. 10, and found out that I am actually about a week farther along. The doctor said my due date was April 7th but the sonogram says April 2nd. I don't know if the doctors will officially change my due date yet but hey either way it will be awesome. I did have my echo on Tuesday, Oct. 11, they also gave me a halter (or something like that) to wear for 24 hours. My boys called it Mommy's machine and it monitored my heart to see what it was doing during my episodes of shortness of breathe. Horrible, a) it irritated the heck out of my skin and b) it was really difficult to sleep. I will not get my results until Oct. 24th and then I meet with my ob-gyn on Oct. 27th. So I will definitely keep you updated.

The boys are doing very well. They kiss mommy's belly every night and tell the baby night-night. They are growing up so fast. Trace no longer looks like my baby any more he is definitely a little boy now. He is in the stage of Me do it me self. His big brother is quickly learning the difference between respectful and disrespectful talking. I said he's learning the difference not that he is putting it into action yet. He does come back and apologize generally and it could be a day or two later. So I know he is learning the difference. He can recognize his name any where. He is also learning to write it.

RC is doing great. He is participating in a race at the end of this month. He will be riding across the state of FL. Unfortunately I do not get to watch him because of a previous commitment I had made to Judgement House. He still works all kinds of hours, and plays guitar at church and plays softball and rides his bike. But it has definitely made our family time all the more meaningful.

Oh yeah Mom and I joined the choir at our church to sing in the Christmas Eve service. Not something we would normally have chosen to do by ourselves so I know its God saying time to get out of you comfort zones.

Well that's all for now, I love you all and hope that all is well with you!

I'm Pregnant!!!!!!

Wow God really works in mysterious ways. Recently I found out that my family is getting bigger than RC and I planned. But God reminds me constantly looking at my family that he is just blessing me even more by giving me another child to raise up walking in Christ. One of the coolest things is that both my boys have their own verses given to them. AC's verse was given to him unintentionally by his NaNa. She quoted Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." as she saw him for the first time during my sonogram. Trace's verse came in a card from RC's Aunt Marilyn (Ede's sister) and it just touched my heart. It is Psalms 127:3 "Sons are a heritage from the Lord, children a reward from him." So now I am on the look out for another verse because I think it is really cool to teach my children the importance of God's word and especially pray these verses over them.

Some things to please pray for about this pregnancy and others:

1. Morning Sickness - it has definately come full force with this one.
2. Headaches - they seem to hit atleast every other day.
3. Rest - especially after last night I am already struggling through the night.
4. RC - he is dealing with the unexpected surprise and he is also trying to figure out balance everything.
5. My boys - they are adding another child to the mix and they already get jealous of my spending too much time with the other.
6. Vehicle - my car won't hold three car seats so we are having to look for a new vehicle, we are hoping for a mini van.
7. My parents - they have been wonderful but they are like every grandparents in the fact that they take on the worries as well.
8. RC's parents - the same as above.
9. The baby - a healthy baby and no complications during his/her life.

I am truly okay with a boy or a girl, I just pray that God will give me another healthy happy child. Both of my boys weren't planned and they have blessed my life beyond measures and I know God will allow this one to do the same.

Mommy and AC's Special Day!

Wow! Yesterday was a pretty cool day! Well I'll start with Trace and where he was...

Trace got to spend an afternoon, just him and NaNa (RC's Mom). They went to the beach. NaNa had her hands fool because Trace isn't thrilled with water: bath water (he does ok with), swimming pool (near death grip) or pretty much anything else. So for the first little bit she had to get him use to the water. Well he finally warmed up to it and they got to enjoy a nice time playing in the water and sand (sitting right next to NaNa, of course).

Now to AC's and my special day. Since Trace was with NaNa, that left AC and me to a day to ourselves. Well I gave him a few choices: the park, swimming, the mall or Chuckie Cheese. He of course jumped on the chance to go to Chuckie Cheese. We had so much fun eating pizza, riding rides and playing games. AC figured out that he likes sprite and cheese pizza (he doesn't get sodas very often so that was a treat for him, and no caffeine so a treat for me). We rode tons of the rides, actually he rode the rides, I only got to ride one. The one I got to ride was a giant rocking horse. Yes I do mean giant, as AC put it, "It's even bigger that Uncle Shawnie." Then after riding the rides we went to play some games. We had to win tickets for prizes. Yes people I did let him play most the games (HEY I like them too!). We ended up winning 381 tickets. So AC got Smarties, a Chuckie Cheese puzzle and 3 Chuckie Cheese cars. He gave one of his cars to his little brother. Isn't he a good big brother. I almost forgot one a AC's favorite parts, he got to dance with Chuckie Cheese himself. That was really cool.

We then went and picked Trace up from NaNa's. Then we met Grandma and Grandpa for dinner at The Tampa Ale House. Grandpa had been whining for that place and so we finally gave in. For those who have never heard the old man whine it can be pretty convincing. (Hey Dad I am just kidding I love you!) AC and Trace were really excited to get to spend the evening with Grandma and Grandpa. We all then chose to walk through Micheal's and found some really great crafts for the kids to try. Of course, the boys were bought some candy and I'll give you 3 guesses as to who bought it for them and it isn't a she. Then we sent them home so Grandpa could play with his bike. We went home and trust me when I say the boys were "ready" for bed by nine. Normally they try to stay up to see Daddy but not last night. They were both, actually we were all exhausted.

Speaking of Daddy, you may all have been wandering where he was during all this. The amazing man was at work. He is still working a lot of hours, but I am really trying not to be upset (not mad, just really missing him) about it because he is doing this to provide for our family. God is really going to bless him in full. I am a lucky woman to have a man that is willing to sacrifice his rest to allow the boys to have a stay at home mom. Well anyways this is a long blog so I'll sign off. Tune in next week and you can hear about AC's day at the beach with NaNa and Mine and Trace's Special day. Love you all and God bless you!

The Shopping Trip

Man! I have to get my computer fixed, Mom always beats me to posting the fun stuff. And she always does it better than me.

The shopping trip was absolutely awesome, exhausting, but awesome! I had taken 4 of the girls to see the movie The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, good movie I thought and then we decided we needed to go shopping. I had a lot of people tell me I was crazy and after the shopping trip I think they're right. The craziest thing is I would do it again in a heart beat, next time Renee needs to stay longer. I believe we all had a blast. I had taken 2 of the entire group shopping a few weeks before because they didn't think they would be able to go, well I got in major trouble because I didn't buy anything for me only for my kids. Well this time I wasn't going to get in trouble especially since they had told the rest of the group to make sure I bought something for me. I love the back to school sales, I got a Black cute little shirt for $10 and a pair of kahki capris for $12.99. Sales are good. Julie and I even joined in on the whole dress thing we had fun trying on the dresses but learned that 2 kids really do a thing to your figure. I was about an hour late for my bible study which I took the girls with me but still my husband kept calling, "Do you know what time it is?", "Where are you?", and my favorite "Do you realize that everyone is waiting on you?". I didn't realize that when I got married I got another father. No just kidding, even though I do seem to get grounded everytime I am out with these girls. :) :) :)
RC and the boys got some really great bonding time. They spent most of Sunday just the three of them. They played and played and I think RC was just as tired as I was.

Well anyways I'll write more later Love you all

PS: RC says thank you to the girls because they cured my wanting a girl of my own. I love the girls to death but I realized boys are less dramatic. I do mean the drama in a good way but there is enough drama in me for my husband to deal with he doesn't need any more!

Just a Quick Hello

Hey all, don't have a whole lot of time. Busy weekend planned. Going to RC's cousins going away party tomorrow. (3 hour trip) He is going into the Navy, so please keep Japheth in prayers. Then Saturday we are hoping to go take dinner to a friend who is being induced today. Another prayer request, Rosie and Russell. Then Sunday while the boys have a boys day, my mom and I are taking some girls from church out shopping. Pray for us they are all 11 and 12. The boys are doing great. AC informed his NaNa that he didn't want to grow big because then he might scare Trace. Isn't that sweet. No Uncle Shawn that does not mean he is scared of you. RC is good looking as ever. Anyways just a quick note. I promise to write better next week. Love you all.

I didn't mean to be defensive!

Hello everyone, I just wanted to start by saying I'm sorry if I sounded defensive. I have been told by some that it sounded really defensive and none of my previous post was meant to be defensive. I write these blogs not as journaling but as a special way to keep those who I love and care about updated in my life. I have my own journal, the one I use for my quiet times that I use to journal for myself. I thank all that have responded and I will look into getting a counter because I do feel better knowing that people read this. I am glad to know that you all do care :)

AC is feeling much better. Now he and his brother are fighting over every little toy (No Grandpa I am not telling stories on your little boys!) The weekend is going to be packed. Tonight I have plans to go out, RC has a double header (softball), tomorrow RC wants to get a ride in and then we have to get him fitted for his tux (for his cousins wedding), and then we have a birthday party for our friend Donna (my parents are taking our little guys THANK YOU!), and then Sunday we have church and bible study. AC and Trace are excited to spend this afternoon with NaNa (pronounced Naw Naw, that is RC's mom) and tomorrow with Grandma and Grandpa (my parents). They will have a busy weekend as well. But I do believe we will all have a blast.

Well I will try to get by early next week to update this again, if not it will be next Friday. I love you all and ask God to bless you.

Hey Everyone!

Ok I am going to start with the fact that my computer is broken and so I can only post from my mom's house. (Yes mom I am over today just so I could watch Amber Frey: Witness for the Prosecution.) That was kind of interesting. Well anyway now that that is out of the way. I agree with mom and the comments she made about the comments. I am curious if anyone but my mother and sister in law read this because I can just as easy talk to them on the phone.

Life is good here, exhausting but good. RC is working lots of hours but that has just made our family time go from quantity time to quality time. WE both use to say oh well we can just talk tomorrow and he and I would sit on the couch watching tv instead of really talking but that has changed. He came home from Band practice last night and He had plans to chill out on our balcony just us no tv. The boys were already in bed. Because I was to the last 20 minutes of my show he instead chose to finish the movie with me and then we laid in bed and read his bicycle magazine together and then went to bed cuddling. To those who don't believe it when people say studying God's word together brings you closer I am here to tell you it really does. RC and I have an incredible marriage that is not for anyone else. It is our marriage and we are incredibly happy with it. Not everyone agrees with our arrangements but it is our unique arrangements that makes our marriage ours not the worlds. He and I have really opened up and are accepting constructive criticism from one another and we are willing to make the changes that God and one another alone ask us to make.

Well now about the boys. Cute as ever. I know I know you all are probably tired of hearing that but it is true! AC isn't feeling very well today, he is running a low grade fever. He went to play in his bedroom last night and when I hadn't heard from him for about 10 minutes (normally he is in and out of the room atleast every 2-3 minutes) I went to his room to check on him. He had climbed into his bed and was sound asleep. Poor pumpkin, He woke up just long enough to take some tylenol and tell his daddy good night. Trace was in a good mood last night. He was all about his laugh. Every time I turned around he laughed and laughed. Well I gotta go I love you all and may God bless your daily lives.

Life's Crazy

Hey everybody. I hope life is finding you all well. I have to say if it isn’t go to God, he will provide the comfort needed to get through life. Life is so crazy. Everything going at once, and the season doesn’t seem to have an end is sight. You will hear me talk a lot about seasons because I believe that God not only has seasons for the weather but seasons for our life. The season God has me in now is being so hungry to learn His word and how to demolish the strongholds that satan has deceived me with. As I told you I am in different bible studies and am extremely active in Vacation Bible School. On Sunday nights RC and I are attending one that is Extraordinary Marriage, on Tuesday mornings I am in one by Beth More called Living Free, and Wednesday mornings I am in one by Cynthia Heald called Loving Your Husband. Yes it seems like a lot but as I said earlier I am just hungry and I know that part of defeating the lies that Satan tells us is by replacing them with the truth of Christ, the truth is revealed to us via the Word of God. God has also placed me in a position of leadership, as of this last Sunday and am a co-vessel (I am referring to it this way because I by no means am qualified to teach someone, God is doing the teaching and I am simply one of the vessels he is using) of a class for young mothers. We have a few young girls in our church that have come into the role of motherhood sooner than planned. Yes I do qualified to be a member of the class, the advantage I have that these girls don’t is that I have the support of a loving husband to help me raise my precious little boys. I was approached about this and before I had the chance to even think about it the word yes was coming out of my mouth. I know that was the Lord because had I had time to think, my fears of inadequacies would have come into the play. I am excited to see what God does through this class so that the girls of the class can learn that they have the support of God to get through their raising of children.

Any ways wow sorry about the rambling about me, now about my kids. They are cute as can be and at the same time onery as can be. They are at the stage of beginning to fight with each other and being tricky about it. AC gets up every morning and his first words to me are “Mommy it’s a wonderful day outside” and Trace is all about the snuggles in the morning. They play together even though they don’t necessarily play the same thing it’s really kind of cute. Yes I think my kids are cute, not that I am bias or anything. They look a lot like their Daddy and yes I think their Daddy it cute. :)

About their Daddy, RC is doing pretty good. He is working the two jobs and that is exhausting to him but he is handling it all right. He still has time for fun, on Saturday mornings he tries to get a ride in with the guys, he still plays guitar at church and family time has become more important to us all. He loves the fellowship of the bible study on Sunday nights. It is really cool to see that as I better fulfill my wifely duties, he stands up more and shines as the head of our house hold. By no means are we to the point of the perfect marriage but we are to the point of trying to have a God driven marriage.
Well I guess that’s all for now. I send out my love and prayers. May God bless you all.

I Really Don't Know What to Say...

Hey everybody, I just don't know what to say. I guess I will start with I'm sorry for not updating my blog. My computer is broken again (hint hint Daddy!) and I went out of town. So anyways well lets see what's going on in my world....?

RC is working a second job. He had this job fall into his lap and it helps us out. It is taking a lot of prayer on my part because he works his 40 hours at Signs By Tomorrow and then another 15-20 hours at the other job. There are a lot of lonely nights until he gets home but I know he is doing it so that I can continue to stay home with our boys. We do have special Family times and this makes the time with him so much more special. I love him and ask for you guys to pray for our family, for him so that he has the strength to continue until God tells us to stop and for me and the kids to support him and let him know that we love him and appreciate all that he does for our family.

Now onto my boys. They are getting so big. I don't know what to do with them. They both act like they are the kings of the world. They both love to pray. We will be doing just about anything and they will ask to say AMENS! It is really sweet listening to them talk to God. They love to go to Sunday School and bible study. They love to play and eat. If you want to see them My mom has pictures of them on her blog. I haven't figured out to do the whole picture thing. (Mom - Tasha y'all have to teach me!!)

Me well lets see I am feeling a bit overwhelmed. We are having issues with our car, we had a family of racoons take residents in our attic, the air conditioner started leaking, and our dish washer is leaking. Now let me tell you I am not whining I am simply telling you why I am feeling overwhelmed. I am also trying to handle preparing things for Vacation Bible School, writing skits, putting together packets, planning things for Family night, and getting things together because I am teaching. Then there is Wednesday morning bible study, It is on a book by Cynthia Heald called Loving Your Husband. I am really enjoying everything individually but together it is a little rough. I am very thankful for a Heavenly Father who loves me so much that he gives me His Strength to get through everything that He places on my plate.

I hope and pray that all of you have the comfort of the knowledge that Christ will be your Stronghold. He will protect you and love you no matter what idiot thing you did today, yesterday or even tomorrow. I ask for your prayers for my family and I pray for yours!

The Lord is my light and my salvation - whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life - of whom shall I be afraid? Psalm 27:1

The Lord is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation. He is my God, and I will praise him, my father's God, and I will exalt him. Exodus 15:2

Do You Know What's Going On?

Dear Friends and Family,

As you have probably all seen on the news lately, there have been too many abductions of children by pedafiles and others. There are also a big push to pass laws in congress for harsher punishment for sex offenders due to these unfortunate incidents. I pray that these laws pass. But there is one thing not being said, everyone is blaming the offenders and that they are the only ones who need to be held accountable. But I feel very strongly that one major point is being left out of the media coverage. The protection and changes must first be made in the home. We must be better aware of our surroundings, we must be home more with our children, we must take a stronger stand in the knowledge of our childrens where abouts. Come on these all sound like common since things but you would be surprised how few parents even know what their children are currently studying in school. I am not blaming parents for the abduction of their children but for us to protect our children we have to open our eyes (both Father and Mother) and know what's going on. They are trying to pass a thing about being able to send porn to picture phones. Well hello the majority of phones are in the hands of 9 year olds and older. We as parents have to take a stand and it has to start in our homes.

What's going on in your home, in your neighborhood, in your church, or even in you kids school? What kind of music do your kids enjoy, tv shows, or even food? Do you know the answer to these simple questions? Take time out for your kids and let them know you care. Because as I said before The Changes Must Start in the Home!

A Very Concerned Mom,

Brittney

Bible Study

I went to one of the coolest bible studies today. It is CBS, Community Bible Study. This group meets all over the world. The group started in the 1975 as an answer to the heartfelt prayers of a group of women who asked the Lord to provide many effective Bible studies for people in the Washington, DC area. It has since grown abundantly. In 1992, there were 3 meetings in Florida and in 2000 there were 24. In 1992, there was about 100 throughout the United States and in 2000 there were about 500. In 1992, there were 3 nationally, and in 2000 there were over 1000. Isn't God amazing. Wow to have it grow so rapidly. God is just awesome.
Well about why I thought it was so great. My moms best friend Julie invited me to go with her because it was an answer to prayers for her. It is a place to truely open the bible and study the bible. We are currently studying the book of Colossians. One thing that strikes me as great is that the childrens program is not just babysitting they have there lessons too. They are learning as well.
I am at a place in my christian walk that I am yearning for more knowledge. I want to learn the bible and know what the Lord says in His book of truth. I have found that in this place and what a blessing it is. I would recommend this CBS to anyone. It is nondenominational, it is strickly based on the truths of the bible.

I cooked!

Can you believe this I cooked dinner last night? First I made dinner for a family in our church- Pork chops baked in cream of mushroom soup, potatoes chopped and seasoned with butter, Lowry’s season salt, and cheese, and green beans. The mom in the family had surgery last week so we got the privilege of helping out. Then we came home and I made the pork chops and potatoes for us. For those who don’t know what the big deal about this is I don’t cook very often. I don’t think I cook very well but I made the pork chops for Mom and Dad not too long ago and they really liked it. So evidently that’s one thing I can cook.
Don’t get me wrong I am not completely useless in the kitchen. I love to bake. I enjoy making cookies, brownies, cheesecakes, and so forth and so on. Desserts are my things. We don’t do desserts very often because it is not really great on the curves.
That’s why our kitchen is called RC’s kitchen. We just don’t do enough desserts so RC is our cook. He is a really awesome cook. He did say he liked my dinner last night and went back for seconds so maybe I will try something else and see how I do with that.

What's going on!

Hey Everyone!
Okay as you can tell I am not as good as Tasha at keeping my blog updated. We went camping this last weekend. It was a lot of fun. Our Sunday School classes go camping like twice a year. It will now be opened to the entire church and is an official ministry of the church. Life has been so busy. We celebrated AC's 3rd birthday last week. Then the camping trip. It is just crazy. We have WOW (for those who don't know that is Women of Worship) this Friday night where Mom and I will be doing a song in Sign Language. Then the following weekend we have some really great friends bachelor/bachelorette party. The weekend after that their wedding. I really will try to keep this updated more because trust me I get "When are you going to update your blog?" from Mom and Tasha all the time.