End of Year 2012 Recap

So I realize I have really let this blog thing slip during the last several months.  As Malachi got more and more mobile, I got less and less "free time." So unfortunately this blog suffered greatly... I have hopes to post more regularly in this new year but I make no promises for the first several weeks after the baby is born! ;)
There is no way I can completely "catch up" but I would love to share some of our highlights from September through the end of the year.

September

Labor Day Weekend is a big one in West Liberty! And for the second year in a row, we opened up our front yard for fun and prime seats for the Tractor Parade! :)

Then we had visitors come for the rest of the weekend - Uncle Tommy, Aunt Kelly, Caleb, Nate and Levi. We always love our time with them and Chi certainly enjoyed having a house full of playmates!

Malachi got his first pairs of "big boy" shoes.

I was able to get away toward the end of September for three days to attend a womens conference with other ladies from our church. It was such a sweet time of encouragement, rest and fun for me to be away by myself.  And Malachi and Jeff enjoyed their "guy time," as this was my first time away from Malachi for more than a few hours! They did great though!

At the end of September, Malachi and I flew to North Carolina to meet our new nephew/cousin Samuel - born to my brother and sister in law.  It was a sweet time of being able to help Katie adjust to life as a new mom and since my sister was able to meet us there it was a great time for Chi to spend with Auntie Sissy :)

Samuel Ethan Belden



 

October

 

Malachi and Daddy are so much alike!

We got our first snow of the season on Oct. 31st this year! crazy!

Cutest Puppy ever for Halloween this year!

 

November

 

Daddy and Chi on one of Daddy's days off making a fort!

30 weeks and growing strong!

Malachi's newest "game" he loves to play with Daddy.

Freedom for Malachi brings destruction for Mommy :-/

Thanksgiving Day with dear friends!

This day is now a bittersweet one for Jeff and I, as this was the last time we saw a dear friend who was at this dinner and was then killed in a car accident the following Monday. It has been a hard month for many in our life.

Our christmas tradition of picking out our tree at the lot - so fun!

 

December

December 7, 2012 - Jeff's long-awaited graduation from Southern Seminary! Praise the Lord!

Jeff's mom, grandma and nephew, along with my dad, were able to make it out for the celebration - we are all SO proud of him for this great accomplishment! 

We greatly enjoyed the time with family, as well!

The week after graduation Jeff took me away for almost three days on what we call our "babymoon." It was absolutely fabulous! We ate amazing food, enjoyed each other, explored new areas and relished in the Malachi-free time. It was probably my favorite thing this year! :)

 

36 weeks!

Since we couldn't travel for Christmas this year, Josh and Katie and Samuel came to us! We had such a nice, relaxing visit!

 

Malachi very much enjoyed his cousin :)

The books were the biggest hit with Malachi this Christmas - no surprise considering who his Daddy is! The books were the biggest hit with Jeff too!

 

2012 has brought some big changes - no more school, a new child, and a much more active little man! But in the end, we close 2012 the same way we started it - enjoying our son, loving each other, seeking to live more Christ-like everyday, ministering to our church family and planting ourselves in this community that the Lord has placed us in. We pray the same for 2013!

 

Until next time,

love from the Mixon House (and kisses from Chi Chi!)

 

 

Thoughts at the end of a pregnancy...

These last few months have been quite the whirlwind and I can hardly believe 2013 is upon us already! I have said for months that Baby Mix #2 is due "after Christmas" and here it is post-Christmas and we just wait...
Waiting puts me in quite the reflective mood.  For many months I have had lots to distract me and fill my thoughts - Jeff's last semester of seminary, graduation, family visiting, a "Babymoon," Christmas, more family visiting, etc. etc. But now all of that has passed and I just wait.  I wait for this baby to make it's way into the world.  I can finally think about labor and delivery and life with a newborn - things that I am not all that far removed from but still seem so long ago in so many ways.
I can't help but remember how NOT ready I felt when I was nearing the end of my pregnancy with Malachi.  Maybe it's the way many people feel with their first - where fear and anxiety and uncertainty outweigh (or feel like they outweigh) the excitement.  Maybe I'm alone in these feelings, I don't know.  Don't get me wrong, I was excited but I was also very scared! I had NO idea what to expect and so when it finally came time to deliver I was terrified.  So much so that Jeff had to look me square in the face on the afternoon we went to the hospital to induce and say "Courtney, we are not coming home without a baby." Wow - talk about denial! ha!
But this time around it's different.  Maybe because I feel like I know what to expect, maybe because I am uncomfortable, maybe because I am now further in my pregnancy than I ever got with Malachi.  I don't know what the specific reasons are but I feel ready to have this baby.  And in a lot of ways I am so thankful that I feel so ready.
There is still a lot of uncertainty this time around too. Like what will the buildup of labor feel like this time when I don't have to be induced? What will it be like to have TWO kids? How will we manage with a newborn and a non-stop 19 month old? Will Malachi be sweet and gentle to his little brother or sister? All things I think about and all real concerns.  But overall I feel excitement and joy to be blessed with another child - now I'm just ready to meet him or her!

38 weeks, 6 days

This is the day in my pregnancy with Malachi that he was born - feels weird to be past that now!