It's only been....

FOREVER since I last posted!  I  have some valid reasoning, though.  I was gone...out of town...for a long time.  A month exactly.  We left Dec 23rd and returned home Jan 23rd.  We got snowed into a hotel along the route towards Wichita and ended up getting there about 3:30 Christmas Eve night.  The day after Christmas, Mark headed back home for work while the kids and I stayed in ta-town.  Dustin came to town middle of the week and then we all trekked to Dopps Camp for New Year's weekend.  If you're not a regular to my blog, you're wondering what the heck Dopps Camp is.  Well, we typically have 80-110 at our family gatherings so we rent a camp for our holidays.  This year, we went to an awesome camp in Anadarko, OK called Oakridge Christian Camp.  If you need a retreat place, I would suggest it highly.  They have a TON of activities, good food, and an amazing staff that cared for us like family.  They have everything to paintball to laser tag to go karts to bungee trampolines to rock climbing to mini golf.  Oh, there is even a maze to walk through and a playground for the kids!  Seriously, if you ever need a camp or have a group leader that is looking for a camp, check them out!

Mark headed to KC the weekend of the 8th of Jan for Railroad School.  The kids and I headed up there to see him (after almost 2 weeks apart).  We got snowed into KC Sunday and Monday, but the kids didn't mind a little extra spoiling from Mark's parents.

Other than that, we just spent time loving on my family, seeing friends that we hadn't seen in awhile, and eating at some of our favorites tha we don't usually get.  Today, Cassie asked for Sonic.  Sorry, Cass.  There is no Sonic in Edge-of-the-Earth, Nebraska.

We really enjoyed our time and were sad to leave, though it is always great to get back home to routine.

I have a prayer request for you all.  We have not broadcasted this until now, but we are asking for your prayers on a great opportunity.  There is a possibility that Mark might get a transfer to a town near Wichita due to the fact that we cannot sell our house and are having to pay for it plus utilities AND rent plus utilities on our home here.  They might let him transfer due to employee hardship.  We would move back into our house that will not sell and he would commute.  Please, please, please pray that this transfer goes through.  It will be sad to leave the close friendships that we've already forged here, but it would be a big burden off of our backs in more than one way.

I can give more details on a person-to-person basis.  I fear I've already put too many details online as it is, but I just ask for your prayerful support during this time.  Also, for my sanity of moving 9 hours away twice within a few months of each other!  That will be quite the ordeal, but well worth it for the benefits involved.

Now, for the update that you all really came for:

Cassie is learning and learning!  She is sounding out words more and more every day and has enjoyed using her new tag reader to help her learn words.  Yesterday at playgroup (childcare during my women's Bible study), she said, "Conrey, we're going to go potty now" and took him to the bathroom and helped him potty.  Then, another time, the childcare lady heard her say, "Now, Con!  We talked about this!"  I'm not sure what it was in reference too, but she is the little momma that takes care of her brothers!

Conrey is in the midst of potty training.  He did SO well the 4 days before we came back home.  He is struggling somewhat now, though we're not completely back to square one.  It will just be an adjustment, I believe.  He is hilarious and cracks us all up hourly.  Not long ago, he spelled his name, "C-O-N-R-E!"  I said, "Y!"  He said, "BECAUSE!"  He is quite the literal little guy and we've had to practice how to make believe.  He is getting pretty good at it now and it is not surprising for him to announce that he is a super hero or dinosaur or some type of animal.  Too cute!

Keaton...oh, sweet Keaton!  He is truly one of the sweetest babies I've ever known!  He has the best disposition and smiles so easily!  He is teething, which has been a challenge.  There are times when he gets really upset and I know that it is a pain cry with his poor little gums.  If he's crying, but not in pain, if I strip him down to just his diaper, he usually calms right down.  He is just like his daddy and brother in build and temperature tolerance.  He does NOT like to be hot!  He has been sleeping through the night since about 2 1/2 months.  He was sleeping from like 10:30 or 11 to 5:30 or so and I considered that through the night.  Now, however, he likes to be to sleep between 7:30 and 8:30.  He wakes up to eat at about 6:30 or 7 and then typically sleeps until 8:30 or 9.  The boys likes to sleep, for sure and I don't mind!  He is getting SO big!  He is nearly 19 lbs and is just a little ball of lovely pudge!  Most people comment that he does not seem like a 3 1/2 month old baby.  From the hospital, he has held his head up and smiled a lot.  He has kept on overachieving since then.

Mark and I are doing well.  We don't like the time apart, but it sure does keep the spark lit, so to speak.  We are just happily in love and working every day towards building our relationship and our family.  We feel as though our trust in the Lord has strengthened us as individuals and with each other and we praise God for the trying past 2 years and the lessons and growth that they have provided.  They have been quite uncomfortable and sometimes painful as we went through the trials, but we came out better and stronger for having walked through them.

I guess that's about it.  It was about this time last year that we found out about little Keaton.  Can't believe the year we've had, but I'm extremely excited about the year ahead!  May God continually bless you in 2011 and may you embrace the challenges as they come so that you might emerge stronger on the other side!