Our Carli is a Blessing - A Gift From Heaven Above

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A WEE BIT OF HEAVEN DRIFTED DOWN FROM ABOVE

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YOU LIGHT UP THE WORLD WITH YOUR SWEET BIG BOY CHARMS

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You're So Precious to Me, Sweet as Can Be, Baby of Mine

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Monday, June 30, 2008

Carli Lynn

What's in a name? Lots of times, parents name their child after a loved one or a best friend or someone who has made an important impact on their lives. Or sometimes, a name is simply a favorite name, it is pretty or better yet, it just "fits." For Carli Lynn, her name will always mean something to Keith and I. We know she will be enveloped with love from family and friends. That she will always have the support of many loved ones through out her life - to me, as a first time Mom - I wanted my daughter to have a strong name. A name that meant something to her, so that if ever she did doubt the love, support and family that surround her, she simply could look at her name on a piece of paper and know that though her parents may not be perfect, we will always love her, support her and do our best to give her what she needs - that our actions will always be with the best intentions, and these best intentions began before she breathed her first breathe and made her way into this world. Our first act as her parents was to give her her name - and to us, it means more than just a title this little girl will go by for years to come.

Carli

Carli originates from Carlis. Carlis is the name of my grandpa, my father and my oldest brother's middle name. When I see Carli written down, or hear someone say it out loud, I am immediately reminded of strength, character, honor, family, God and love. I pray with all my heart that Carli will know her Pa and Uncle Andy to the degree that Keith and I know them. They are strong men, with kind hearts, who love their families unconditionally. They always put God first, then family. My dad has successfully instilled this belief in all his children, and his faith is not something that I just hear about - no, his faith is something that I see, that I admire and that I hope one day, Carli sees in Keith and I. Carlis Dwayne King is a strong, honorable, God-fearing man - whose heart melts any time we talk about the upcoming birth of his first grand-daughter. Carli already has him wrapped around that tiny little pinkie - and they haven't even met yet. It is a great honor and privilege that we named our first child after her Pa - and that he know how important a role he plays in her life.


My Pawpaw, is a strong man. He is quiet, he works hard and is blessed with a wonderful family. I am sad to know that my Carli will never know Pawpaw the way that I know him. While age has changed my Pawpaw, and taken away his memory - I will not forget the heritage and strength he has. He is strong, he is stubborn, he is gentle, he is love. No, maybe he is not perfect, but I admire his imperfections because that is what made him human. Carli may not ever be blessed to see this in my Pawpaw - but she will know him as I do, because I will share with her stories of her namesake. Keith and I chose to use Carli as our firstborns name - because we pray that she will see the strength that her name carries and the heritage she will carry on.


Lynn

Lynn may seem like such a common name, but it isn't. No, Keith and I chose to use Lynn as Carli's middle name because it too is a name that puts a smile on our faces. We chose Lynn, because it is Keith's father's middle name. Terry Lynn Hays is a kind hearted, quiet soul. He is a leader in the church, he is respected and loved by all that meet him. He has always made me feel like a part of their family from the first time I met him. Terry has the amazing ability to put people at ease. He is an amazing man of God, who loves his family with all his heart. He is unselfish, and kind. Carli Lynn will always know that her middle name is not common - no it is unique. It carrys the heritage of her Pappy who loves her unconditionally and would do anything for her. Our prayer for Carli Lynn is that she know, her middle name is more than a simple title - it comes with honor, love, faith and peace. It is important for her Pappy to know that Keith & I are very honored to name his first grandchild after him.


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Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Reality

See this? This is our to-do list before Carli arrives. It is a bit intimidating...but at least we made a list. I think we are currently on the second thing on the list for the office. Goodness, we have a ways to go. We are now taking volunteers to help with everything else...you think I'm kidding, but I'm not!



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Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Jealousy

Sometimes, I wish for the life of my dog...





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Monday, June 16, 2008

Fun Cards

Happy Father's Day to all the Dad's out there! We didn't do much for Keith's first father's day. I guess it just goes to show what a great dad he will be since he spent the whole afternoon in the sweltering garage working on a filing cabinet he is building for my new office. He got it all built, and it looks really nice. We still have to sand and paint it - but I think the hard part is done. **In case you were wandering why that makes him a sweet dad, since he was building the cabinet for me - he is building the office, to move my current office into, so that we can move the guest room into the old office and Carli's nursery into the old guest room. See it all leads back to Carli!**

So we have gotten lots of sweet cards since we found out we were expecting Carli. Keith has had a birthday, we had our anniversary, Mother's day and now Father's day...many are sweet - but these are by far my favorites and I just had to share.

An Anniversary Card

The inside says "See It All Evens Out!"

Keith's Father's Day Card from Carli:
I thought it was quite appropriate!

Good news! I cleaned the living room to a picture worthy status so I could put up the before and after pics on the blog....

Bad News: I didn't take any pictures before the dogs got all their toys out, brought in pieces of grass and gave the living room that "lived in look."

Maybe I'll try again tonite.

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Wednesday, June 11, 2008

Presenting...

BUMP PICTURES!! I'm pretty proud of these - because the background is pretty cool and you can actually tell I am pregnant!!

25 Weeks - Beginning of 6 Months

Mom and Me in CA

With Emmett - he preformed Amber's Wedding Ceremony.
Emmett and his wife, Pat, took care of Amber and I while we were at ACU.

There you go my friends - I finally got a decent bump picture - aren't you proud?!

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Tuesday, June 10, 2008

Finally, Amber Got Married

Yep, that's right - one of my best friends from college finally got married. I say that only because she and Arjet have been dating for longer than Keith and I have known eachother! Yes, the girl that came to ACU proclaiming "I will never get married" tied the knot this weekend back at in her home state of California. It was beautiful. My mom made the journey with me, and we had a blast together. It was actually quite a relaxing trip. I was suppose to have been a bridesmaid, but the fabric for my dress never came in so it didn't work out. But I was there, and that's what counts. We had lots of fun, here are some pictures from the weekend:

At the lingerie party
Jessica, Misty (Amber's sister), me, Amber, Dyan, & Jennifer
The bridal party -
Can you imagine the backdrop of your wedding being the beach and ocean?!
It was beautiful!
Sisters - Misty & Amber
With the bride
They're Married! Mr. & Mrs. Arjet Skenduli
The Wedding Party
I like this picture - she looks so relieved to have survived the ceremony!

For the girl that would never get married, she sure has been blessed with a wonderful husband and had a beautiful wedding. Can you imagine that she says she'll never have kids? I'm pretty sure God has a sense of humor and He'll surprise her on that one too one day!

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Tuesday, June 3, 2008

Kitchen and Dining Room - DONE!

I was determined to finish and clean the kitchen and dining room today - and I'm exhausted. But I did finish - woohoo! Below are our before and after pics - we took care of the wallpaper as soon as we moved in, but just this past weekend we got the crown molding up (to match the living room) and painted the ceiling as well. Finally got everything dusted off, from having the floors put in and uncovered all sorts of things. Let us know what you think...two more rooms done!

Dining Room Before We Moved In
Dining Room After
View of Kitchen Before
A little different view - but here is an after.
View from Dining Room Before
View After: The before shoot does not show the border and wallpaper that we took down.


Nothing dramatic - but definitely glad the yellow wallpaper is gone! One day we plan on getting new counter tops and new flooring in here - but it is down on the list. Apparently we have a nursery to decorate first! :)

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Sunday, June 1, 2008

Master Bedroom - Finished!!

First and foremost - if you voted for "other" on the color of the nursery furniture - tell us what you want it to be! :)

And finally - some house pictures. Our bedroom has been finished for two weeks, but I haven't gotten around to making the bed to take the final pictures. We also just finished the baseboards and crown molding this weekend - but before we post pictures, I must clean up the house a bit! So more photos to come - we can see the end in sight (at least for two more rooms). Tell us what you all think of our bedroom!

The Before - this is what the bedroom looked like with the previous owners of our house.
The "Between" - waiting for the new carpet. View from hallway.
The After - Notice the new crown molding (compliments of Terry & Keith!)
View from hallway also.

Shea helped me take pictures - the hallway is on the right.

View from opposite side of the room - notice the crown, the angles were a challenge! Don't they look great?


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