Jaclynn Grace

I still cannot believe I have three amazing kids. And, I don't know how we have a baby that is old enough to start eating baby food. I still think I have a newborn, but that is for sure not reality. She is growing so quickly. I am convinced that time moves more quickly the more children you have. 

Here is Jaclynn enjoying baby cereal for the first time. She has been grabbing at my food for a while now so we decided to give her a taste of some rice cereal. She was very pleased to sit up at the table with the rest of her family and enjoy a meal. Although, this baby is pretty smart. I think she isn't quite convinced that she is getting the real thing. She still looks around at what the rest of us are eating and tries to go for that instead of her own. Oh well, she is still so easily pleased. Thank you Lord for this dear baby. She has been such an amazing blessing to our family. She fits perfectly right in to our little family. It is hard to believe she has only been here for four months. It seems like we've had her since the beginning! Oh how I love this sweet, chubby baby!

Calvin was so proud to help his baby sister with her first meal. I know we all weren't sure how Calvin was going to react to his new sister before she was born. He has certainly surprised me! He loves this little baby so much. As soon as she was born he recognized his new, very important, role as Big Brother to Baby Jaclynn. Calvin is so gentle and nurturing with her. Don't get me wrong, he still has his very loud Calvin moments, but I know he is her little protector.

The Bartletts

We are so pleased to announce the marriage of Gary and Michelle Bartlett! Michelle and my Uncle Gary were married on May 17, 2008. Congratulations! We love you both so much! It took me too long to post your pictures here but they turned out beautifully! The wedding was gorgeous. We were so happy to be there, three silly little kids and all. Thank you for sharing you day with us!

So Sweet!

What a day! Potty training, tons of accident clean-up, teething, tantrums, skipped naps, and a sticky juice fight have made for an exhausting day. So, I decided to post some cute pictures of the kids to remind me of how sweet and adorable they are! 

Sydney age 1

Also 1
Jaclynn 4months
Calvin Age 1 1/2
At 2
Today
Sydney posing at Disneyland
Flower Girl at Auntie Sammy and Uncle Tyler's wedding
Jaclynn Today
My three darling children ;)
Enjoy Today!

Adventure for the Stay at Home Mom

Who says stay at home moms don't get excitement and adventure?

Just last week I climbed  an enormous mountain. It took tremendous strength and focus. In the end I reached the top and completed what I had set out to do. I know most of you can relate.

See photo below...

Week after week I get the pleasure of scaling my growing mountain of laundry. I cant even keep track of how many loads I do. I thought I had a great system down and then I had a baby. Any advice, suggestions, new wonderful ideas, please send them my way! For now, I have to go climb another mountain. Yipeeee!

The Real World

 Could your two year old toddler survive if he had to beg your neighbors for food?

As I opened my mail this evening this question was printed in red across an envelope I received from Kids Alive International, a christian organization that provides care for children at risk. Reading this question made my heart very heavy. Could my two year old toddler survive if he had to beg my neighbors for food? I told myself not to think about it. And then the guilt came. How could I not think about it. Clearly this question was being asked because somewhere in the world there was a two year old begging for food to survive. Again, I sit here and cringe. Could my sweet two year old survive? I don't know. Thankfully it is an unlikely fate for our children. But the reality is children living in underdeveloped countries face this dilemma daily, without hope for change. Unless the Holy Spirit gives us a nudge and we make a difference. I realized quickly the first way to make a difference is to stop telling myself not to think about it. I often hear of the suffering that is had by children in other parts of the world. I feel extremely compelled to find out what can be done to make a difference in there lives. Possibly a donation, clothes, food, shoes, a teddy bear, or the Bible. But too quickly they are forgotten. We go back to the busy life we live. Full of freedom, joy, family, friends, shelter, and an abundance of food. All of these things readily available and easily taken for granted. I am the first to be miserably guilty of that. How many times can I possibly complain about something trivial in my life? Far too many. But oh so quickly (thank you God) I am reminded of how blessed I am and how many things I have to be thankful for. As I write this, a picture of my darling wide eyed two year old continues to cross my mind. My sweet Calvin will never have to face the harsh reality of keeping himself alive at the tender age of two. But unfortunately there are countless little ones enduring exactly that. Now I don't only ask myself what I can do to make a difference but, what can I do to remember there is more to this life than myself? A difficult task at hand for sure.

We are so blessed!

 Our family received another beautiful blessing from the Lord. Jaclynn Grace Zuniga was born just after 3 PM on February 5th 2008. She was 8 pounds 12 ounces and 21 1/2 inches long, and that was at almost two weeks early! (good thing we induced!) She has been a total joy and delight to us all. Sydney and Calvin immediately took to her and have not stopped giving her tons of love and affection since the day she was born. She fits perfectly into our little family and is a constant reminder of the love that our Heavenly Father has for each of us. To bless us with such and amazing gift is humbling. What a joy it is to dwell in new motherhood again. God certainly got it right when He gave me an enormous heart for my husband and sweet little babes. I can't imagine being anything other than my husbands wife and my kids mom, the highest calling a woman can embrace.

Here are a few photos of Jaclynn at nine weeks taken by our friend Cassie.

You can visit her website at www.ittakestwophoto.com

Four Months Later!

I had grand plans for this blog until we got a Mac. I cannot figure out how to do anything on this computer. Right now my main focus is posting pictures. If anyones has some advice please let me know. For now I will attempt to entertain you with words from the heart of our sweet little boy:

This morning, just after Calvin had finished his oatmeal (sprinkled with brown sugar for the first time) he was getting cleaned up and I said "Calvin, I love you." Calvin's response, "Thank you Mommy, I love sugar!"  Not surprising from one of my children, I know.