Shower of Blessings

Life has been a little busy these days, but I am pretty excited that I am finally able to set some time aside and get back to blogging.  You will get to read ALL about what has been going on in our lives soon.  But for now I am going to back track and play a little catch up and share some of our highlights that took place in our lives before Christmas. 

Most of our time was spent getting ready for our little guy to enter the world.  We truly had a blast getting everything together.  Our family and friends made everything extremely easy.  It felt like we were being blessed with people providing things for Logan almost every day. God has placed the most loving and giving people in our lives. In October a few of my girlfriends gave me the perfect shower!  No games, wonderful food, time of prayer, and fellowship. Logan you are loved beyond words!

The lovely ladies that made this day so special!

I had the privilege of sharing our adoption story with everyone.

We had a special moment of time. The ladies went around and
prayed over Katelyn, Logan, and our adoption.

Prayer time.

Thank you for all the gift cards. It is wonderful
to grab a card and run to Target for Logan's needs!

Dear Friends!

I have this awesome frame that Di made
 (with every ones kind words)
hanging in Logan's room!

Thank you all for the prayers, love, support, and gifts that were poured over me on this special day celebrating Logan's life!

Merry Christmas!

Hello Family and Friends,

Kevin and I would like to send you a Merry Christmas greeting from Rochester, Mn.  As always, we are covered in beautiful white snow!   Each year as we sit down and write our Christmas letter we get to look back through the year and remember our lives together as a family of two.  Lord willing, next year we will be writing you as a family of three!  Our little Logan is due to be born on December 27^th.   The Lord has led us down the path of an open adoption.  On August 24^th, 2011 we met face to face for the 1^st time with Katelyn (Logan's birth mom) and her family.   Not even in our wildest dreams could we have imagined the relationship we would develop with our birth mom and her family.  We have decided to stop trying to wrap our minds around what the Lord is doing in our lives through this adoption.  God is too awesome to grasp!   

In March Kevin and I had the opportunity to go to a Marriage conference in Texas with some dear friends.  This was our 2^nd year to have the privilege of attending this conference.  We always leave being deeply affected by all the teachings and speakers.  It truly is a time that Kevin and I get to bond and share our hearts with one another.  This Spring and Summer I also enjoyed my small gardens in my backyard.  Each year it is my hope that I am able to learn more and more while playing in the dirt!

In April I had a fabulous time spending a week with two of my girl friends and their babies.  I do not get to see these ladies near as much as I would like.  They flew in for a girl’s weekend that we all planned together!  We have decided to make this the first of many “Girl’s Weekend” getaways!   

September was a special month.  My mom and Nana flew in for an extra long visit. A few highlights of our time together include:  Mom and Nana getting to meet Katelyn and her parents, seeing the musical Hairspray, taking a tour of Niagara Falls Cave, watching so many movies we lost count, playing the Wii, and Nana deciding that she wanted to spend a few nights in the hospital.  She sure gave us a big scare.  We all had a wonderful time together and are looking forward to their next visit!

In October we had our annual family camping trip with Kevin’s family.  This year we all chose to camp the same weekend Iowa State had their family weekend.  It worked out perfect!  We camped together as a family and then got to see where Lizzy and Kalynn (our nieces) are going to college.  It was a short weekend together, but we all enjoyed the time that we shared.

A few other things we did together this year:  Went to an Iowa Hawkeye game, saw Steven Curtis Chapman in concert, fishing, sleepovers, stained our deck, Chili Cook-off, Lizzy’s graduation, and watched lots of football!

As Kevin and I are closing up this year we are preparing for our new season of life. To be parents!  We have decided that I will be staying home to raise Logan.  My last day of work at my current job is December 18^th.  I am overjoyed to start my new job as a housewife and stay at home mom.  I have longed for this day for many years!

Year after year the Lord shows us endless amounts of grace.  All that we do not deserve.  The blessings that He has given us are countless.  It can be challenging at Christmas, in the world we live in today, to truly celebrate Jesus and what He has done for us.  Kevin and I are trying to be more intentional about not turning Christ’s birthday into a selfish holiday and putting all the attention on us. We really do want our hearts and minds focused on Christ as we celebrate who He is and what He chose to do for us.  We serve an awesome God that deserves way more then we can ever give Him!

In Christ,

Kevin and Nicole

Sneak Peek of our Adoption Story

I am anxiously waiting for our adoption story to all come together!  We will be writing our story with Katelyn and her family.   In the meantime I just have to share a few things that have been going on with us and our adoption.  I will keep everything brief as we will be posting our entire story in the months to come. 

The Lord has led us down the path of an open adoption through New Life Family Services.   Below is our profile book that Kevin and I put together for birth mothers to view, in order for them to choose us as their adoptive parents.   On August 24^th, 2011 we met face to face for the 1^st time with Katelyn (Logan's birth mom) and her family.   Not even in our wildest dreams could we have imagined the relationship we would develop with our birth mom and her family.  We have decided to stop trying to wrap our minds around what the Lord is doing in our lives through this adoption.  God is too awesome to grasp!   

August 24, 2011 - Kevin and I with Katelyn and her parents right after

she asked us to adopt Logan. We had the privilege of naming Logan

with Katelyn.  Logan's due date is December 27th!

In September my mom and Nana flew to Rochester to spend some much needed time with Kevin and I.  They also had the opportunity to get to know Katelyn and her parents.   It was wonderful for my mom and Nana to witness the closeness of our relationship.  We spent the evening at Applebee’s talking and growing our relationships.  My mom said it best after dinner.  She said you just can’t put it into words what God is doing in your lives! 

I can’t say enough positive words about Katelyn and how she has allowed Kevin and I to be a part of her pregnancy.   On October 6th Katelyn asked Kevin and I to go with her to one of her doctor’s appointments to witness Logan on the ultrasound.  She shared with us that she fell more in love with Logan once she saw his little body moving on the ultrasound and she wanted us to have the same experience.   It was pretty awesome to see him moving around and the clarity of his facial features.  Simply amazing!  

This brings us to where we are today.  Last night Katelyn and her parents spent the evening with us at our place.  It was so much fun to show them Logan’s room and all the stuff we have for Logan.  Katelyn enjoyed going through all of Logan’s clothes and we picked out his coming home outfit!  We spent time talking about what the next 18 years of our lives will look like together as an extended family.  It is such a blessing to be able to share our hearts with each other without fear.  What a miracle from the Lord!  After talking we ordered our pizza, played the Wii, and then finished the night by eating a bowl of ice cream.  Fun times! 

Katelyn soaking up Logan's room!

I have searched and searched for the perfect baby book for Logan and I just can’t find what I am looking for.  So, I have decided to take on the task of making his book.  I can’t wait to see it all finished.  As you can see I am off to a good start!

This week our mailbox was extremely good to us!   Kevin and I are humbled at the fact that Mark and Christy (Katelyn’s parents) are throwing a baby shower for Logan.  We are looking forward to meeting all of their family and friends of the family!  Have I mentioned that we are blessed?  =)

Our Day at the Apple Orchard...

Turned into having AMAZING seats at the Iowa game!  We decided to ditch our original plans and head to the Cities, on this beautiful Saturday, to watch the Hawks take on Minnesota. It could not have been a better day. The weather was absolutely gorgeous!  We enjoyed taking long walks around the campus, eating cheap meals to save money, lots of laughing, and people watching!  We got to watch a great game even with Iowa taking a loss.  Sad times!  It was such a fun day making memories with Adam and Kathi!

Thank you Adam for your dedication to American Family and sharing your tickets with us!



Steven Curtis Chapman

Kevin and I had the privilege of seeing Steven Curtis Chapman in concert last weekend.  I don’t know how anyone could have left his concert without being touched by his life's testimony.  He continues to give God the glory through the years. What an amazing night of worship! 



When I realized that  Josh Wilson was on stage with Steven, the night got even better!  I recently heard Josh, while running, for the first time last month. Since then he has been a new favorite of mine!



Before the concert Kevin took me to Wendy’s for a frosty and fries.  I will admit this is my biggest weakness when it comes to fast food.  There is just something about dipping hot and salty fries into a cold frosty!





It Got Done!

It sure did not look like we were going to get our deck refinished before winter hit.  Thanks to the beautiful weather today we got it done!   While Kevin worked inside, I spent the afternoon enjoying the sunshine while working on the deck.  I wanted to put all of the deck furniture back in place for one final photo, but the furniture was stored for the winter instead.  So, these two photos will have to do.  I can already see our new white fence around our deck and yard. Can't wait until next summer!

Before



After



Annual Chili Cook-Off

We had such a fun night with our small group this weekend!  We hosted our small group's 2^nd annual chili cook-off at our place.  This year we decided to add a bit of a twist by turning it into a sleepover.   We started off the night by getting the chili ready to be tasted and tested.  As we were getting the chili ready for competition, we realized that it was the ladies competing this year!

Kathi, Me, Aimee, Di and Gina getting our
chili ready to be served.

Kev with the score card.

Time to judge!

Adam was a trooper and dished up all the chili
for the tasting!

And the winner goes to Di Kelm for the best chili!!! Everyone did a fantastic job in making their chili. They all were winners in my book!  A few pictures I wish I would have taken were: Di with her score card, Aimee with her amazing dessert chili, and Gina with her yummy goo! The remainder of the night was spent playing an assortment of games including having a "dance party" on the Wii.  We made some fun memories together. Ha! I don't think there will be a need for captions on the next few pictures. Fun times!

 

Eric, Aimee, and I went around and work up each couple
bright and early in the morning by jumping on their beds!
(This is after Eric and Aimee woke me up)



We thought this moment deserved a group photo!  This room
will now be called the "morning breath" room. Gross but true!

Us gals getting breakfast ready.

The guys making a coffee run.

Waiting for breakfast to get ready. Eric set the timer
for 30 mins in order to keep the guys from playing
all morning!

With full tummies we headed downstairs to spend the
rest of the afternoon watching football!

 







Much Needed!!!

I am pretty sure “Girl’s Nights Out” will never get old.  As we shared with each other the details about our week, we all agreed we really needed this night out together.  After we took our turns sharing the joys and frustrations that this week brought in to our lives, we ordered a delicious piece of Red Velvet Cake to end our night together!  To add a bit of adventure to our evening we decided that our transportation to Whistle Binkies would be by foot.  Too bad my camera battery became “Exhausted”  on our way home!!!  Next time I will make sure to have it fully charged.  Thank you girls for a fun night out and thank you Kanae for getting us together!   

This picture reminds me of a picture we took years ago. At least
we can see a little more of your head Kanae! =)

Family Weekend @ ISU!

Every year we try to have a family camping trip with Kevin’s family.  Last year was a no go for Kevin and I, so this year we made sure to join the family.  We all decided to have our camping trip the same weekend Iowa State had family weekend!  We camped right outside of Ames, Ia and spent Saturday afternoon getting a tour of the Iowa State campus.  It was fun to get to see where Kalynn and Lizzy are living, studying, and enjoying their active social lives!  It was a quick weekend for all of us, but we enjoyed spending time with each other.   

Kevin and I had the pleasure of staying warm in the RV...
or at least thought we would be staying warm! Thanks
Mom and Dad for sharing!

Perfect weather for the perfect lunch.

Lizzy would not have been smiling as big as she is, if she knew
what was coming! Licky...lick!  I must say this is my favorite
picture of the weekend!

Oh Kim, I am sorry to post this picture!  It cracks me up. The joys
of a camera angle. Ha!

Tami, Brenda, and Kim all went in and surprised us with a carseat
and stroller! Thank you SO much!

We all came to support Kalynn and Lizzy for Family Weekend.
  I think we may have won the "Most Family" Award! Here we all
are in Lizzy's dorm room.

Luke, Kalynn, Lizzy, Kim and Dan -  The family of the weekend! 

Our lovely nieces!



We had to take a moment and get a few pictures
of the beautiful fall colors.  A moment turned into
an hour due to these monkeys in the background!



See what I mean?

Two last things:  The guys got to witness Iowa State being blown out by the Texas Longhorns

and Kevin and I paid our respects by NOT wearing our Iowa Hawkeye gear.  Go Hawks!