Five

This year has started out in a whirlwind, and doesn't seem to be slowing down! The first part of January we found THIS out!

 We will soon be 5! Of course we more or less knew it anyway since my body was apparently made to be pregnant when ever I say it's okay :-) We are super excited to add another little monster (or maybe princess, but not getting our hopes up!) to our day to day chaos! Deegan has been so excited as well, and prays every night saying "thankful that there's a baby in my mom's tummy". I managed to stay morning-sickness-free until 7 weeks and then it hit me hard! This time around it's mostly Afternoon/Evening sickness though, so poor Adam never gets to see me feeling good during the week while he's at work. He's been SUPER helpful with the kids and the house when he gets home from work and I really appreciate it.

Adam was finally able to take his Journey Man's test and is now DONE with schooling! I'm super excited and so proud of him for finishing up school and doing so well. He is constantly getting compliments from co-workers and his bosses on how well he does his work, and how hard he works. I couldn't ask for a better example of work ethic for my kids!  (I don't have any current pics of him working on my computer, so here's a picture of him relaxing after work :-)

I spent all of January making plans for a fundraiser boutique for the Kailing family in our ward. Brother Kailing was diagnosed with Carcinoma 2 years ago, and has been fighting hard for his life ever since. Last fall it was determined that the Carcinoma could not be stopped and he only had 6-12 months to live. While he has made great progress with the recent treatments, the prognosis is still essentially the same, and he's living week to week. He and his family are a very strong example of faith and love for the Gospel. While they have their down days, they are usually out celebrating the lives they have and serving those around them in need of love. The fundraiser was a much bigger success than I ever imagined and we were able to raise over $3000 for them!

On the 14th of February, Valentine's day, my boss from Call Assistants called and asked if I'd be willing to come back to work part time like I had been before (After "quitting" I told him I'd work from home part-time on an "as needed" basis, and the work load died off around the end of October, so I didn't work through Nov., Dec., and Jan.- good timing to not work and just focus on the crazy life!) I have to admit, I have secretly missed working with them and doing the work I did. It was fun, and it was nice to have something to change up the monotony of being home all day. So, I agreed, on the condition that I set my own hours, I only work a maximum of 3 hours/day and I work strictly from home. It feels good to be able to make those kinds of demands because you know they need you more than you need them! Of course, they accepted my terms and wanted to me start work immediately! I had a conference call that day, then told them I wasn't working the rest of the day. It was Valentine's Day! You can't call me on a holiday and just expect me to start working that day! That was okay with them, and I started the next day. So, now I am a part-time working mom again, but I enjoy it, and I don't miss out on much because 3 hours/day can be done while kids nap or play alone for a little bit!

March should be relatively uneventful (besides the masses of birthday parties for all of our siblings and their kids), but April will be good! We just booked flights and hotels for Adam, myself and the boys to go to Texas for a week for my birthday! Adam served his LDS mission in the San Antonio and Austin areas of Texas about 8 years ago, and we've wanted to go back ever since. We're super excited to finally have the time to do it!

Last but not least, here are a few random pictures of what we've been doing during the days.