Home Sweet Home

All dressed up to go home. Coming home outfit
compliments of Auntie Ri.














A very happy mommy & daddy.














Mommy & Ethan ready to go home.


Meeting Grandpa




















Grandma is in love















Counsin Reyna waited a whole 7 days to get to hold him
...a long time when you're only 6 :o)

Date Night

Look at Those Lips!

Ethan & Mommy

Ethan & Daddy

Last night my sweet hubby took me on a dinner date to Spaghetti Eddie's. We had a wonderful dinner and talked about Ethan the entire time :o) Then we headed to the hospital to feed and visit the baby.

The Countdown to Coming Home

Snuggling With Daddy Last Night

Look Mom, No Wires or Tubes on my Face!

Trying to Wake Him Up Mid Feeding

Sleeping Happily After Eating


We headed to the hospital this morning to get some great news. Ethan is scheduled to come home on Monday. His jaundice is gone, he's eating enough that it's eliminated the need for additional IV fluids, he doesn't need any more oxygen, and his infection counts are down to "normal"!! All this means we're on course to bring him home on Monday. They'll maintain an IV port in his foot so that they can administer the last few doses of antibiotics over the next two days.

The greatest thing for me is that I got to see him for the first time with NO tubes and wires on his face and head. Although the best placement for the IV is in the side of their head, it's just horrible to look at. He still has a few little red patches on his face from stuff being taped in place, but those will fade quickly.

We are truly blessed to have so many prayers and support from those who love us. There are many other babies who are MUCH sicker and families that have to plan for extended stays in the NICU. It's experiences like this that reinforce the things that really matter in life. Enjoy the new photos!

Life As We Know It - Has Changed

Monday, September 22, God blessed our family with a miracle. On this first day of Fall 2008, Ethan James was born at 4:15 pm. Thankfully, my whole labor and delivery process was pretty much a non-event (yeah for epidurals!). However, it was clear pretty quickly after delivery that our little guy was having a hard time transitioning from life on the inside to life on the outside. I was only able to see him for a few seconds before he was transported to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit downstairs. James went with the baby while I was recovering. After a while James came back up to my room and said that Ethan would be staying in the NICU but that I could go see him as soon as I was able. That evening we learned that he had some sort of infection in his body and that he needed to stay a while for observation & antibiotics to treat his infection.

Since we knew that Ethan would not be coming home when I did, I asked to be discharged from the hospital on Tuesday night so that I could sleep in my own bed. We also decided that James should go back to work on Wednesday so that he could save his paternity leave for when Ethan comes home. He stops by the hospital on the way to work to see the baby and my mom takes me over in the afternoon to see him. Then when James gets home from work we go to see him at night together. As soon as the baby is home, James will be home with us for two weeks (yeah!).

Each visit we've received great progress reports and Ethan is continuing to do very well. I was able to feed him yesterday morning and he's been eating like a champ ever since. The doctors say that he'll need to stay at the hospital at least until Sunday to finish antibiotics and continue being observed, but possibly into next week. Of course, we're praying for Sunday! He's also being treated for a bit of Jaundice as well, which is really no big deal at all.

I apologize for not caling everyone upon his arrival, but due to the fact that we were unsure of his health, I was not up for calling lots of people. My focus has been soley on Ethan and his getting better...oh, and on taking care of recovering from birth as well :) It was very tough in the beginning to see him with the tubes and monitors, but it's getting easier on us as he continues to progress. We can't wait to bring him home. Please check back for updates and photos along the way.

Thank you for all the prayers and support on behalf of our little family.

Wedding Photos

A few friends from afar have been asking for photos and i've not been able to get them in an email so i'm posting here. Enjoy! I'll have more of the professional ones added later.

Father Daughter Dance














Myself and 3 of my 5 bridesmaids
(missing Ieshia & my sister Lisa)














My Incredibly Handsome Husband Waiting For Me


















Cutting The Cake

I'm One Blessed Woman...

Just thought i'd share a few photos of my "Main Squeeze" and I over the last year. I'm such a blessed woman to have this amazing man in my life. I'm honored to have the opportunity to share my long journey with some single women from CCV next week. Going over the time line and reflecting on all that God has done in this last two years is mind-blowing.

I've learned that God's promises are not for some of us, they are for all of us. We serve a God who is jealous for our love and will fearlessly pursue us to the ends of the earth. We should feel honored, but we often feel oppressed by how this might impose in our lives. What do I have to give up? What will it cost me? It does cost us the temporary sacrifice of things that we have deemed dear to us...our comfort, our way of doing things, the immediate gratification of what is familiar. But reaping the benefit of His promises is priceless and must be daily placed at the front of our minds.

I struggle with this in different areas of my life on a daily basis. My prayer is that I will continually let go. I have learned that in letting go, my return is far greater than I could ever imagine. It was in letting go of my pre-concieved ideas of HOW God would bring this man into my life, WHAT he would be like, WHEN he would arrive, and WHERE we would meet that I received the greatest gift i have ever known (beyond salvation and my relationship with God)....my husband.

God has brought this man into my life as an opportunity to show His love for me in a new way. I am honored, blessed, and somehow speechless (the speechless part won't last long...he he).

Weekend Recap

It just melts my heart when she says, "You know what Jessie, I love you SOOOO much." I had the priviledge of hanging out with Reyna from Friday night till Sunday afternoon. My parents stole a week away for a much needed vacation and I was filling in for them.

We enjoyed Friday night at the Monrovia Street Fair with Michelle & Ieshia. She was elated to go see the new "Baby Zachary" in Riverside, and we recoupperated at home on Saturday evening.

Sunday was church and Reyna had a wonderful time in Sunday school. Although I was a pretty pooped auntie by Sunday afternoon, she was a welcome diversion from my current hectic life.

I am blessed beyond measure by that little one, and i thank God that she is part of our family. What would i do without her!!

my first entry....

I have no idea where this will go and if anyone other than me will want to read it, but why not try something new. So here goes nothing....