Some new pictures...

Still having a hard time getting to the computer to update photos, as some of you have been asking for. :) I am doing this at midnight...if that tells you anything. I also drank caffinated coffee at a wedding we went to this evening, so I am having some trouble getting to sleep. Not a good idea! Especially when my two little girls don't exactly let me sleep in!!

Norah turned 2 months this past weekend! Time sure does fly. Maddie and I enjoyed some mommy/Maddie time on Saturday night. Her and I don't get to do much alone these days - and she doesn't get nearly as much attention from me as she once did, so we had a special time together. She is growing up so fast - it is hard to see my little baby changing so much each day. I could tell she got a kick out of being with just me, hanging out in Bayfront park for a dance festival. Norah is doing well and continuing to grow lots too. I am definitely starting to get into the groove of having two. Life has not been nearly as overwhelming, and I am finding ways to keep my sanity each day. I have been able to get out more with both of them - doing our usual playdates and errands during the week days. I need to get out and be with other adults, or I start to go a little stir crazy. :)

Here are a few new pictures for you all to enjoy! I'll keep them coming!

Norah is Growing like a Weed!

I brought Norah into the doctor last week and she already weighs almost what Maddie weighed at 4 months old! :) She is growing like crazy - and is VERY healthy. I haven't had much time to update our blog lately, but I just wanted to post a few photos of Norah and Maddie - things are going well over here. We are having a great summer!

Some pictures

Here are a few new pictures of little Norah and sister, Maddie. Life is good - even though rest is little and things are a bit overwhelming, trying to manage two children under two. Looking at our little family today, I was overcome with so much happiness. I am so thankful for all God has given me.

A quick update - Norah had a doctor's appt. yesterday and she already weights 10 lbs. and has grown about and inch and a half! She is growing like a weed - a very good eater and healthy. We can be thankful for that as well. :)

Two Beautiful Daughters

I am so thankful for these lovely little girls!

Welcoming Norah Grace Hall to the World!

On June 28th, 2009, at 8:54 a.m., our family welcomed baby girl, Norah Grace, into the world. She is beautiful and healthy at 8 lbs. 10 oz., 20.4 inches. She is perfect in every way and we feel so blessed and are filled with much joy at the addition to our family. God is good - incredibly good!

The labor went incredibly well. I started having stronger contractions around midnight on Sunday morning. I labored through the contractions at home until about 4 a.m. when they were much stronger and 2 minutes apart. By the time we got to St. Lukes, I was dilated to 6 cm and was begging for an epidural. :) I was able to get the epidural around 6:30 a.m. and it was setting in by 7 - ahhhh, relief! :) Amazing how much better I felt after that. By 8:30 a.m., I was at 10 cm - they broke my water and I started pushing. I only pushed for 20 minutes and we had our baby girl by 8:54! It went so fast! Praise God for that!!

Madeline has been a great big sister so far. I am proud of her - and after holding a little baby, she has seemed so grown up to me. She is a good helper. We do have our moments, but I can't complain at how well things have been going. We were blessed to be able to have Brandon at home with us all last week and today we are starting out all by ourselves - just Maddie, Norah, and I. So far so good! But I am finding it is difficult to give my all to both children when I am running on little sleep and still feeling pretty sore. God is getting me through though, and I couldn't ask for anything more. I have lots of offers to help and people are bringing lots of meals - I have been blown away by the generosity! Thanks to everyone - and thanks for your prayers. Norah Grace is a lovely little baby. :)

Family Vacation

Brandon and I thought it would be fun to have a little get-away before the baby comes along in 5 weeks. On Thursday, we took Maddie to the Minneapolis area for a mini-family vacation. It was wonderful! We stayed at a hotel, took Maddie in the pool, took in a Twins game, enjoyed the Como Zoo, and the Underwater Adventures in the Mall of America. We all had a really great time - Maddie really enjoyed all of the animals at the zoo and the fish at the mall. It was so fun to experience everything through Maddie - it was like a new experience for me all over again! It's awesome to see her curiosity. She was a great traveler. It was wonderful to get away, but also nice to come home. We will be traveling quite a bit over the next month - mostly back and forth to the Cities on weekends. Hopefully the baby will wait until we return from our trips, or else come early! I am now 35 weeks along, and feeling like he/she can come anytime now!

Enjoy these pictures from our time in Minneapolis and St. Paul. I love our time spent together as a family. Maddie especially enjoys having Daddy around so much during the day. It will be hard to send him off to work on Monday! We are thankful for what time we do get to have! We'll keep you updated on any baby news!

An update - way overdue!

Wow, life has been crazy busy! We are finishing up the Nav school year here; the students are deep in finals. I am happy that I don't have to do those anymore! Last weekend we had our end of the year final picnic. We had a great turnout of 30 students and staff. It is hard to say goodbye to the seniors that are leaving! It is the last group of students that we knew as students at UMD. We had a nice dinner out with them last night, wishing them well and congratulations on all they have accomplished. I am attaching a picture of my freshmen women's Bible study group. A week ago, we went out for ice cream in canal park. They have been a fun group of women to get to know!



In family news...I am now 32 and a 1/2 weeks along! Our baby is growing a lot now! I feel her (or it could be a him!) moving around a lot. Keeps me up at night - but I really enjoy feeling those movements. Here is a photo of me at 32 weeks.



I had a very special mother's day weekend. Brandon and Maddie really made me feel special with breakfast in bed, flowers, cards, and a new camera! I enjoyed lots of time with family - I do so love an appreciate my mom, mother-in-law, and grandmas! I am so blessed to have all of my grandmothers and all of Brandon's grandmothers living still! I am happy that Maddie is getting to know them as well. Another treat was having Kelly home for the weekend.





We are looking forward to a pretty low-key summer. We won't be involved with many Nav things, as there are not any students around for the summer! We are in need of some good, quality family time - and an adjustment period, once the baby arrives! We hope you all are doing well and had enjoyable mother's days as well. God bless!