Visit with Santa....

Today i decided to take Macie to the mall to see Santa. We have been wondering how she would react because the last time we took her she was only 1 and didnt really know what was going on anyways. She was so excited to see Santa and did very well. When we first got there and he said "hi" to her she got a little shy and tried to hide behind my legs, but after i told her it was ok and to go ahead and go sit on Santa's lap she was fine. On the way to the mall she was going through this huge list of toys that she wanted for Christmas but once she got on Santa's lap she forgot everything...lol. It was really cute to watch her just so fascinated with Santa, as if she couldnt really believe he was there in front of her. Of course her babydoll had to see Santa too:)

Tis the Season.....

I can hardly believe it is december 13th and in 12 days we will be celebrating Christmas. It really does seem like the older you get the faster time seems to fly by. Its been awesome these past few weeks getting ready for Christmas with macie now that she is a little older. Before i think scott and I were more excited than she was because she was so young she really didnt understand what was going on. Its amazing when you become a mom its like you get a new pair of eyes too. The way that you look at the world is completely different. Its as if you see the world as your child does with this new sense of wonder and amazment. I know I find myself laughing a little more, goofing off a little more and just really trying to embrace every moment and capture its true beauty regardless of how big or insignificant it may be. I often find myself just sitting and staring at macie and thinking of how amazingly perfect and beautiful she is and how blessed i am to be her mommy. Scott and I both are just so in love with our precious daughter in a way that we never thought we could love another person and we often say how crazy it is that shes just this little life with this little heart beating inside of her and this little mind waiting for what the world has to bring before her. I know one thing that has been a true blessing to me this year was putting up our christmas tree. I was talking with a friend a few weeks ago and I told her one thing that really bugged me was when you have kids you start to accumulate all those silly looking ornaments and your christmas tree no longer looks pretty and elegant but instead it looks covered in cartoon characters and finger paintings. I dont know what happened but as i was pulling the ornaments out of the box this year as macie was helping me i had to hold back tears because its like i had an "ah ha" moment where i really got it. Its not about our tree being beautiful and elegant anymore its about all of those ornaments as silly as they may be representing our lives. I found one from when scott was 2 years old and there was one from when we got married, but the kicker for me was this little keepsake box ornament and inside we put macie's paci from the hospital that she got when she was born. I felt amazingly embarassed that all along instead of embracing each ornament for its worth i failed to miss the point. As I walk by our tree now i just smile and feel blessed because i know that each ornament has a story and that story represents the journey we have been on individually and as a family. I am so blessed this Christmas season for an amazing husband whom is one of the most selfless and giving people i know. I'm blessed for a precious daughter that although i dont deserve to be her mommy the Lord has entrusted her to me. I'm blessed for family and friends that have supported us through many ups and downs. I'm blessed for a church that has become our "home" not where we live but where our hearts live. I am blessed for jobs that scott and I both love and feel that we are making a difference in the lives of others. There are just so many more things I am blessed for and I can't wait to see where the Lord is going to take us next and the ornaments that are yet to come as we capture the many moments ahead in our lives.

This and That.....

Its been awhile since we have updated but honestly there isnt much new going on. I decided not to interview for the job in Columbus after all, it was going to be a huge financial loss and with the driving 2+ hours a day we just didn’t feel it was a good move for our family. We had a nice thanksgiving and were able to spend time with both our families. We went to Mt. Vernon and spent the night on Wednesday the day before thanksgiving and then had a nice dinner with the whole gang on Thursday. After we got home that evening we went over to my mom’s house and had another meal with my family. So it was nice the way things worked out in the schedule that we were able to be with both families this year. Steph and I decided to go shopping for black Friday and it was definitely nuts. We got to target at Polaris at 4 a.m. only to find out after standing in the cold for 15 mins that they didn’t open until 6...it was so crowded and people were nuts, steph and i just walked around in amazement over how people act. I must say though we did get some good deals so we both were happy with the outcome of our adventure :) Now we are just trying to finish up Christmas shopping and all the hustle and bustle that comes along with it. Scott and I were talking and we both are really looking forward to Christmas this year. Macie is at the age now where she gets what’s going on a little more and she has been talking about Santa coming to visit our house. I can't believe that less than a month it will be here :) Hope you all are enjoying this time of the year and remembering all the amazing things Christ has done for us to allow us to celebrate!!!!

Praying and waiting....

So after a strange turn of events something pretty awesome happened today. I was online last night looking up different volunteer programs that i was interested in and there ended up being a job opening at one of them. I applied on a spur of the moment kind of thing figuring that I had a long shot at it and I probably wouldnt even get a call from them. Well it so happens that they did call today and after talking with the lady for about 15 minutes they want me to come in for an interview next week. Now who is to say i will even get offered the job but it has me really thinking alot. The job is a nursing position at a pro-life pregnancy center in columbus at the branch near osu campus. They focus on being supportive and offering resources to girls to try and prevent as many abortions as possible and to help aid girls with healthy prenatal care and support. Its an amazing ministry and I know the Lord has done amazing things through this just by the countless testimonies and women that they have served. So since the call today i have been weighing the goods and the bads and there are definitely both. The major bad is that its a 55 minute drive. With gas prices low now it wouldnt be so bad but I doubt they will stay this way and the drive would add 2+ hours of travel time each day. It would also require me to work more days a week. My job now allows me to work 2, 12 hours shifts a week which is nice to have extra days off. However, the job in columbus the hours are really good. The hours are monday tuesday 10-5, wednesday 12-5, thursday off and friday 9-3:30. It would definitely be a huge adjustment and I am thinking about all the logical reasons why it would not be a good idea but then again I feel like this would be a huge and amazing opportunity to do something i might really love. I love nursing but my heart isnt into doing hospital nursing forever, i feel like the Lord wants to use me in a different way. I have a passion and have wanted to work in nursing for a womens ministry for as long as i can remember and i have talked to scott about it often so part of me thinks maybe Lord this is it? Right now there are alot of uncertainties and its all just ideas like i said i might not even get the job but regardless of whether its this job or another I really feel like the Lord is afirming to me that He wants to use me in something different. I pray that the Lord will close the doors that should be closed and keep open the ones that needs to be open and that I will have the clarity to see His plan and be still enough to hear His voice........

We voted!!!!!

Wow...this year is definitely a historical election. Regardless of the outcome our world will take a new direction. Either we will have the first African American President or the first woman Vice President. Scott and I have been talking about the election over the past few days alot and i have felt pretty calm about things. I know alot of people are freaking out and thinking our world is going to come crashing down because of the outcome of 11-4-08. I have felt peace because i know that although we may elect a new leader of the US today we will still have the same ruler of the world and that is a God so much bigger and wiser than any president, male, female, black or white. Only time will tell the tests before us but that has been the case for years and years. Life is so unpredictable and each day we have to live as if its our last and live as if our country is being led by God and not man. I thank God today for having the privilege and the freedom as a woman, christian and an american citizen to vote freely for the things that are important to me.

Because it was such a huge election we wanted to take this leap of faith together as a family and decided that we would vote together. Macie is so young and doesnt really get the impact that this day will have on our country but we wanted to include her in this time anyways. So after scott got out of school the 3 of us went over and voted. We all got stickers and wanted to capture this moment in time...I hope its a day in history that macie will look back on someday with proudness as an american citizen.

Buddies.....

I took this picture of macie and her buddy kirah a few weeks ago and kept forgetting to put it on but its absolutely priceless!!!!!!

Fall Festival.....

Tonight our church held its annual fall festival which we look forward to every year. The kids dress up in their costumes and members of our church pass out candy from the back of their cars in the church parking lot. They have hot dogs, cotton candy, inflatable slides and pony rides. Macie was so excited to go and has been talking about it for weeks now. My grandmas bought her a horse costume awhile back and macie couldnt wait to wear it. It was pretty cold out but we had alot of fun and was glad we were able to go again this year and look forward to many more years to come.



After we got home from the fall festival we carved pumpkins. It was so funny to watch macie dig in all the slimy goop and try to pick out the seeds. I asked her what her favorite part of making pumpkins and she said it was "the seeds inside." Scott and I both love to eat pumpkin seeds but for some reason we didnt get to make them last year so we were super excited to do it this year. Scott and I attempted to carve faces and a few other things in the pumpkins which turned out pretty good actually. Overall we had a very fun day together and know it will be something we look forward to doing every year as a family.

Its been awhile......

Its been awhile since i have updated our blog i know, but it seems like everytime i got ready to do it something always came up. Its been very busy around here lately, nothing big just life. I have been working 3 days a week at the hospital which has been good but exhausting because of the 12 hour shifts. Its been a huge adjustment but an amazing new journey also. I feel so grateful because i love being a nurse and everyday that i go to work i feel excited for whats to come. By the end of the day I am usually exhausted but i feel so good about what I do like i have truely accomplished something and made a difference in someones life that day. Its been hard not seeing macie on the days i work because i am gone literally ALL DAY, but it makes me appreciate my days off and the time i get to spend with her and scott just lounging around and being together. Although there is alot going on in peoples lives around us i think we have finally come to a point in our family that we are relieved to just have calmness and normallcy. We are relieved to not have big mountains to climb but just little mole hills to deal with. There is definitely beauty that always comes from trials but its nice to have a break too and be able to just sit in the midst of Gods peace and just be still......i am thanking the Lord for fall, sweat pants, osu football, friends, family, the journey that has brought us here and the journey that is yet to come but most of all the stillness of just being right in this moment right now.

Catch up time soon....

Just wanted to let everyone know we are all doing very well. Things have been very busy around our household the past few weeks so we havent had the chance to blog. I feel like i'm starting to get the scratchy throat, stuffy nose thing going on which i am sure is from my patients:) and i have heard its been going around, so i am off to bed...working 12 hours again tomorrow. I hope to blog wednesday and catch everyone up on whats been going on in our lives and to post a few new pics of macie too. g'nite sleep tight...

Our little Mia....

So lately macie has taken her interest in soccer to the next level. We knew that she always liked soccer because she loves playing kickball in the living room. Scott is always asking her if she is going to be his soccer girl when she grows up because he loves soccer and she giggles and says "yes i a big girl." But this week she has asked me everyday to play soccer with her. We roll the ball to her and she kicks it back to us. She does very well and has now started throwing the ball up in the air herself and kicking it in the air which i think is amazing for a 3 year old because it takes cordination for that...but i am sure most of the time its just by chance she actually kicks it:) So macie and i were talking about soccer the other day and she started going through daddys espn magazines and finding pictures of "big girl" soccer players and having me tear them out for her. I told her mommy played soccer when she was a little girl and daddy too and she thought that was hilarious. Scott had given me one of his old soccer jerseys in college which i had put up in the attic so i got that out and let macie wear it around the house and she loves it!!! But not only does she just need that shirt when she plays soccer now...she has to have the "big girl" headbands in her hair too.. its super cute watching her get all her gear on and play soccer. She gets excited because we tell her next year she will be able to play upward soccer at church and i know she will love it....here are a few pics of our little mia hamm...

Praising the Lord today!!!

So as most of you know i had laprascopic surgery yesterday to address pelvic pain i have been dealing with for over a year now. The surgery went extremely well and we are praising the Lord for this. They found that I had adhesions around my left ovary and on my bowel. They did some biopsies and we should know the results at the beginning of next week but they are leaning towards them being positive for endometriosis which we thought was a possibility all along. They also drained a cyst on my right ovary. Going into the surgery we were worried and was told there could be a possibility that my left ovary would have to be removed and if there was alot of scar tissue I might end up having to have a hysterectomy, which we were very worried about because we would like to have another baby very soon. So to come out of the surgery with answers to my pain and to still be able to keep both ovaries we are thankful beyond words. Now we can look forward to having more babies and less pain:) Thank you all so much for your thoughts and prayers. God is so good and we are giving Him all the glory for this!!!!

Uh oh....

Oh the joys of having a toddler in the house, it seems like everyday is filled with something exciting and completely off the wall most of the time. So to keep things consistent we had a pretty adventerous day with little miss macie today. It all started this morning scott got up early to go to church for praise and worship practice and macie woke up just as he was leaving around 7:15. I was super tired and knew she would be cranky later if she got up that early so i decided to get her out of her bed and lay her down with me for a bit. I noticed as i was dozing in and out of sleep a few times she kept trying to sneak out of bed and i would pull her back up beside me and tell her she had to lay down for a little bit longer so we would be rested for church. Well I must have fallen back to sleep because the next thing i know she was talking some jiberish at the foot of our bed holding an elmo napkin from her 1st birthday party that she had gotten from her baby book that was put up on the book shelf in the computer room. So i put the book back away and thought that was all she had gotten in to. Well she kept telling me something about scissors and making toast which i was completely confused about. As i walked into the kitchen i then realized some of what she was trying to tell me. Macie had gotten one of the kitchen chairs and pulled it up to the counter, she then got scissors out of the butchers block and cut open 2 packages of grape laxative strips and ate both of them. Now she is only supposed to get one at a time and the kid ate two. So needless to say she has been pooping all day long. I am so thankful that she didnt get into something more dangerous and we have moved the medicine up in the cabinet now but i just can't believe out of all things she ate laxative strips. Even though its been an interesting day cleaning up poop everywhere it is kind of funny. But that wasnt all we kept finding things throughout the house all day that she had gotten into, including a bag of chicken nuggets that was in the computer room on the window ledge. The fun never stops, each day is always filled with something new and exciting.

Sillyness...

Each day i am shocked at what our daughter does and the things she comes up with. Even though she definitely pushes my buttons she is actually a very funny little girl. Whenever i see her acting silly it makes me feel oh so sorry for scotts parents because i know thats exactly how he must of acted when he was a kid. This morning i was upstairs getting dressed and macie was in the living room playing with her princess tent. Things got really quiet which those with kids know is never a good sign. I walked downstairs to find macie sitting at the kitchen table with the salt shaker. I asked her what she was doing and she said "i just drinking it mommy" I said "macie thats salt honey its yucky. She looked at me puzzled and said "it goes on my toast?" i explained to her that salt goes on our food sometimes but inside i was laughing because she has toast with cinnamon and sugar sometimes and i think she was thinking it was sugar. I asked her if she needed a drink to wash out the yucky taste in her mouth and she said "yes mommy i need applejuice cause my tongue hurts" kids say the funniest things i swear. Who knows what is to come, everyday is definitely an adventure especially because she has scotts personality...Lord help me:)

Girls just wanna have fun....

Today AJ and bethy came over to play for a few hours. Macie and bethy had so much fun playing dress up and the game "dont spill the beans" Its amazing to watch them play together and think about how much they have grown up. I remember the picture taken of me holding macie in my arms only a few weeks old and bethany only a day old. It makes me sad that they grow up so quickly but i love seeing their personalities boom. They are very different girls. Bethy seems so much more laid back and quiet. My macie is extremely loud and wild which isnt so charming at times she definitely gets this from daddy;).It was good though to watch them play together and get to chat and catch up with aj for a bit.

Busy weekend...

So friday night scott, macie and I went to church to help out with 5th quarter which is basically a hang out event for teens. We had a really good time getting to know the teens, playing volleyball and basketball. Macie loved being able to see all the big kids and run around the gym playing with basketballs and eating pizza and chips. Macie got to bed around 12:30 and i thought surely she would sleep in saturday morning but nope she was up bright and early around 7:45 like clockwork ready to start the day. She has done pretty well this weekend in her big girl undies. She had one accident last night but has stayed dry for two days now:) its been very frustrating but i think we are finally on track and working towards being potty trained for good.

Saturday afternoon we hung out around the house and morgan was home from college so she and her mom tery came to visit us for a little bit which macie loved because she hasnt seen morgan for almost a month. Saturday evening my good friend amy and her girls kirah and kenah came over so we could talk about a bible study we are leading together for teen girls which starts next week and the girls played. Kirah and macie always have so much fun together it was cute just watching them play and dialogue back and forth some of the stuff they come up with is so stinkin cute i love this age!!!!! After they left my mom called and said she was coming to pick macie up and keep her all night. Macie was so excited that she was staying at grandmas house:) and she had a blast and has been talking about it all day. She keeps asking me "mommy i do that again at grandmas house." Since macie went to grandmas house scott and I went to sonic and grabbed some nice greasy food and talked for a bit which was nice to do without toddler interruptions.

This afternoon after church we had a picnic with tons of good food and playtime at the park. There were alot of people there for the picnic and it was nice to hang out with friends and eat a good meal that we didnt have to worry about cooking or cleaning up after so we thank our church so much for having that today!!! After church we came home and chilled out for a bit and macie fell down our whole flight of stairs. It scared scott and I so much and her lip is pretty gashed up but she is doing much better. Its amazing how God created such little bodies to endure so many boo boo's. Now we are all pooped and trying to recover to start yet another busy week. We have had an amazing weekend together as a family which we are so blessed for.

Macie's 3 year check up....

This morning bright and early macie and I took a visit to the doctors for her 3 year well baby check. This is always an exciting time for scott and I because we get to see how much she has grown since the last visit and they go over some developmental things with her also. Macie was 31 pounds so she is in the 50th percentile for her weight and she was in the 75th percentile for her height. This means that macie is about average compared to other kids her age in weight but that she is taller than 75 percent of kids her age. The dr. thinks we might have a basketball player on our hands for sure which is odd because neither scott nor I are tall. I am guessing she gets in from the cameron side because scotts dad and brother are pretty tall. But they definitely said she is growing like a weed and is very intelligent. They also had her do a kids snellen chart to check her eyes. They usually wait until they are 4 but if they think the child is ready they will do it early. I was cracking up the whole time because of macie's answers to the nurses questions. She would point to objects like a boat, a circle, a square and aske macie to identify what it is and macie did awesome. It was cute because she pointed to a cross and macie said "a God" and when she pointed to the cup macie said "a drink" it made me so happy to know that she identifies a cross as a symbol for God.

Macie's iron level was a little low which didnt suprise me because she isnt a huge red meat fan, she mostly eats chicken. So i think we will try to get her to take a multivitamin to fix that little problem but other than that she is doing great. I can hardly believe she is 3, man time flies. Before we know it she will be at her preschool check up.

Thankful.....

I am amazingly blessed to have a friend in marion that loves me for me and is my prayer warrior. No matter what I am going through she can either relate somehow or is on her knees on my behalf praying to God for me. We can be dressed in sweat pants or church clothes and still have a great time. We like the simple things in life like fast food and walmart. Our girls love to play together and because they are only about a week apart and her and I are about a week apart we get to share in so many of the same milestones together. I am so thankful for your friendship amy jo and I love you for loving me even when i'm not so lovable!!!!

Cupcakes...

Today my sister bethany came over and macie, bethany and I decided to make cupcakes. I think macie had 1/3 of the batter eaten before we even got them in the cupcake pan but she did a great job at helping mommy stir up the mix. It all started this morning when she was going through her toybox and found a star cookie cutter. She asked me what it was and what it was for and I explained to her it was for making cookies...so instantly she wanted to "cook" cookies. I didnt have any cookie mix at the house so we ran to the store really quick and macie picked out funfetti cake mix to use. It gave a recipe on the side how to make cookies out of the cake mix but i thought it was a little odd so i talked macie into making cupcakes instead. She picked out winnie the pooh cupcake papers and rainbow sprinkles to put on top, and we bought stuff to make sugar cookies another day. I was actually suprised because our cupcakes turned out pretty good and everyone knows i can't bake for anything. I can cook pretty well but when it comes to baking even the pre made already cutout cookies you just throw on a pan i seem to mess up somehow. Here are a few pictures of our cupcake making adventure this afternoon.


Tonight macie and her daddy are going to a soccer game and I am going to revival so i better get macie down for her nap.

Fun weekend..

Wow what a busy weekend it was at the cameron household but we had a great time. Friday night macie and I ended up going over to the harding football game after all since the rain let up some and she really wanted to go. It was actually very nice out after the rain stopped so we definitely enjoyed getting out after being couped up in the house all day. Saturday my sister stephanie and scotts friend justin came into town to watch the OSU vs USC game with us. We had nacho dip, puppy chow and pizza and played catch phrase at half time which was definitely a hoot. Even though osu lost we still had fun and was thankful our friends could come hang out with us for the day.



Sunday macie got to go to her new big girl class at church for the first time. She was super excited all weekend long and kept telling us she was going to her new school with her friend kirah. It was so cute seeing her get ready on sunday because she wanted to take her big girl purse and bible.



I gave her a dollar and told her that she needed to take it with her to her class and i tried explaining to her that she needed to give it to her teacher when it was time. She kept going around saying "mommy i need to give jesus my dollar when i see him at church" it was priceless. When we picked her up after the service she was so proud of the picture she colored us and said she had a fun time with her new friends. Its crazy how quickly she is growing and becoming such a big girl. Sunday afternoon she went to the gilmores to play for the day because mommy wasnt feeling good. She loves it over at their house and always has so much fun and gets super spoiled. Its revival this week at our church so we are looking forward to a great week of being renewed and refreshed by the Lord.

The Snack Game

The past few weeks i have been thinking about getting macie some little tikes games to play. She is starting to get a little older and i thought maybe we could try some of the simpler games like candyland and chutes and ladders. So since it has been raining off and on all day here today i thought it would be a perfect day to give the game playing a try. I asked macie this morning if she wanted to go to the store and pick out a game and she was super excited even though i dont think she really knew what i was talking about, but anything that has to do with the store she is all up for anytime. So we ran to meijer and picked up candyland and chutes and ladders. We had lots of fun and macie did better than i expected. We still need to work on moving the people in the right direction but she does well with matching the colors on candyland and counting the number of spaces on chutes and ladders. She even won the very first time we played and was ecstatic of course...screaming "i win mommy after every move."



Its funny because after she woke up from her nap today she immediately asked me "mommy can we play the snack game" hahah i was laughing hysterically because she called candyland the snack game. Oh what kids come up with just amaze me. I have a feeling candyland and chutes and ladders will be occupying most of our time tonight but we are also going to make some puppy chow to snack on for the big game tomorrow evening and maybe hit up the football game if the weather calms down a bit. We are having a few friends over and macie is super excited to wear her new buckeyes jersey. It should be a super fun weekend so we will post more pics soon.

In the moment

Most of the time i only post about macie or what we have been doing in the cameron household but the Lord has been teaching me something lately that i wanted to share with all my family and friends that read this. So many times in life its easy to get caught up in the "what ifs" and should ofs" that we miss whats truely going on right in this moment. I was talking to a good griend a few weeks ago and she said we often live for a certain moment or event to come but then when it comes we miss it because we are waiting for the next thing already. I thought about that for days and how much that is so true in my life and i am sure alot of peoples. We are always going to have obstacles in our paths no matter what thats just a part of life but if we constantly dwell on the things in our paths than we will miss the blessings God is trying to teach us in "this moment." I know this isnt something amazingly profound to comprehend but for me it was a huge wake up call. I was so focused on the heartache that "may come" that i have missed so much joy thats right in front of me. I vowed to take a 10 second promise that whenever i start feeling overwhelmed or thinking about the "what ifs" i will stop what i'm doing for 10 seconds and just sit quietly in the moment of whatever is going on around me. I have found myself smiling a little more and worrying alot less lately and I know that i am starting to really get it, life isnt going to wait for me to wake up and see the blessings that have been here all along, instead i need to realize life is passing me by and the blessings have been there all along.I have a quote in my kitchen that says "life isnt about waiting for the storm to pass, its learning to dance in the rain." I want to live my life by this quote. I want to live in a way that regardless of the storm i will find beauty in the midst of the battle somehow, somewhere no matter what.

The next Takeru Kobayashi ??????

Most of you have heard of Takeru Kobayashi i am sure, the nationally known fastest hot dog eater champion. Well lately i am starting to wonder if our daughter has found her place in this world next to Takeru Kobayashi. Hot dogs isnt the food of choice for this toddler however, its pancakes. Over the past few days our daughter has managed to down 27 mini pancakes in two days for breakfast. Its crazy and at first i thought she was just being silly but no she was really that hungry. It took 3 plate fulls of pancakes yesteryday morning and this morning to satisfy her morning hunger. I am just amazed at how a 3 year old little girl can possibly fit 13 mini pancakes in her oh so small tummy at one time. I think she definitely must be going through a growth spurt right now. At least she is eating breakfast i suppose. It is the most important meal of the day after all right???

Great Weekend

I can't believe its sunday already and the weekend is almost over. We had an awesome weekend at the cameron household and macie has finally gotten back to her old self and has been playing like crazy all weekend long. Last night we went to kirahs 3rd birthday party and macie had a blast. She enjoyed playing on kirahs new swingset and spent alot of the time riding kirahs tricycle up and down the driveway and playing in the sandbox with the other little girls close to macie's age.



Church was amazing this morning and was a definite affirmation for me about some things i have been dealing with lately. Its crazy but it seems like no matter what we are going through we always bump into the right message or the right song at church at exactly the right time....It just lets us know God has and is with us always, regardless of what it is we are experiencing in that exact moment.

Its a little chilly here today which makes me long for fall...I love the apple cider, hooded sweatshirts, football friday night, crisp apple pie, and the beautiful array of colors in the midst of falling leaves!!!! Macie and I made chili this morning to simmer in the crockpot this afternoon which should be super yummy for dinner tonight. She has become such the little chef lately. Everytime i start cooking in the kitchen she comes in and pulls a chair up to the counter and says "mommy i cook too" i love all the ways that she is growing and becoming such a little girl for mommy to teach fun girly stuff too. She has become my little sidekick lately and i love every minute of it!!!!!

Just the two of us...

Good news the dr. called late this afternoon and macie's lab work all came back ok...so i'm thinking she must have just had the flu that has been going around very badly. I was worried this morning because she was still really sluggish and not eating much but by this afternoon she was back to her old self pretty much except for being a little tired still. So this evening scott went to the mansfield senior vs harding football game with good friends of ours the gilmores and macie and I stayed home and had a girls night. We made homemade pizza which had a smiley face on it and went for milkshakes and playtime at the mall after that.



We had a great day together playing and doing girl stuff which i needed. Since i am having surgery at the end of september i decided to take a leave of abscence from work for the next few weeks so it will give me a little more time to be home with my macer which i have missed over the past year because of school. Tomorrow we are going to macie's bestest friend kirahs 3rd birthday party and she is so excited thats all she has talked about for days now. So its off to clean up the house and hit the sack early, i'm beat.. thanks for all your prayers with macie!!!!

Update on lil miss sickey poo.....

Well monday after our visit to the ER with lil miss macie i was sure the antibiotics would do the trick, however that hasnt been the case. Since last saturday she has been puking daily at least twice a day with diarrhea, fever, loss of appetite and a sore throat. The doctors have said all along that she has strep throat but after the babysitter called me at work today saying she was running a fever and throwing up we found out after another visit to the dr. that her strep culture came back negative so she doesnt have strep throat after all. Well then what is it you might be asking??? which as a nurse i have been driving myself crazy searching the net daily for answers and clues but the answer is yet to be determined. The doctors did some blood work today and they are testing her for mono again and saying to us they really dont know what is going on. We are worried and sad that our baby can't do normal 3 year old stuff because she is so tired and feeling pretty yucky. Tomorrow we will find out the results of her blood work hopefully and we will update everyone with the results. Keep macie in your prayers right now her little body could use a healing touch.

CELEBRATING OUR 4TH WEDDING ANNIVERSARY!!!!

I can't believe how fast time goes and the paths life takes us down. I still remember trying to pick out just the right outfit to wear on scott and I's first date putt putting, and now we have been married for 4 years and have the most amazingly beautiful and smart 3 year old. There have been trials and triumphs i know we can both agree on that but no matter what we love each other and have held tight to each other and the Lords promises for our lives and our family. Its crazy but sometimes i try to remember my life without scott in it and I can't. I guess that just means i am a better person with him and i wouldnt have it any other way. I love you babe happy anniversary!!!

Cincinnalli....what?

This past weekend the cameron family headed to cincinnati for the Nazarene National Softball Tournament or Cincinnalli as macie calls it. Its something we did for the first time last year and had so much fun we decided to try it again. This year didnt go exactly as planned however because our poor macers was sick the whole time. It all started about 2 and a half weeks ago when the doctor diagnosed her with strep throat. After a full course of antibiotics and 18 days later she still has strep throat and has been running a fever, vomiting and not eating for days now. We took her to the ER last night since all the doctors were closed yesterday due to the holiday and they were amazed at how swollen her throat is. Two shots and a new oral antibiotic later i had a not so happy 3 year old needless to say, but she was happy that the nice nurse gave her a new doll.


So needless to say most of macie and I's weekend was spent in the hotel cleaning up puke....The things you do as parents and the sacrifices you make are endless but i am just hoping my baby will be back to her old self soon. Scotts team did alot better than last year at the tournament and had a great time together. It was nice to get away even though macie was sick we were still able to go out to dinner as a team at the olive garden and macie got to play with her "boyfriend" hayden for a little bit...they are so cute together.



Well life is awaiting us so i better get back to laundry and unpacking...more to come soon.

HAPPY 3RD BIRTHDAY MACIE!!!!

We can hardly believe that our macie turns 3 today. It just seems like yesterday we were shocked to find out we were pregnant and now 3 years have passed already. The laughter she brings into our lives is like a ray of sunshine, no matter what heartaches come our way her smile lets us know that God still is with us and He has been all along. We aren't always the best parents i am sure, but we love macie more than anything else in this world and hope she will grow up knowing that she has a mommy and daddy that love her very much and pray for her everyday. Happy Birthday baby we love you!!!!!!!

Our new Home!!!

So most of you know that we bought our first house at the beginning of july. It has been lots of work but we are totally blessed and couldnt have asked for more!! We are only a few minutes from the hospital that i work at and about the same for the new school scott is teaching at. Our backyard faces the old high school so we can walk right to the football games on friday nights which is tons of fun. We also have an elementary school right behind our house too so we can take macie over to the playground whenever she wants and in a few more years she will be able to go to school there. The neighborhood is beautiful and we have the most amazing friendly neighbors. We thank God so much for giving us a home of our own to raise our family in, and we can't wait to have you all over very soon!!!!Here are a few pics.

Blessed!!!

So as most of you know i graduated from nursing school last friday which is a huge answer to prayer and i am so thankful that God stood by me this past year and continued to pour out His strength in those moments where i wanted to give up and didnt think i could keep going. Scott and I were talking last fall about the things we would like to see for our lives and there were 5 big things we both started praying about diligently and asking God to provide these things for us. We asked that i would be able to finish school, that I would get a nursing job, that scott would get a teaching job closer to home, that we would find a new home that was a little bigger and the 5th thing is a secret.

So out of those 5 things we have been blessed beyond words with 4 of them all in a month time frame. As i said before I finished school last week. I got a job at MGH as a nurse which i wanted so much. Scott just got a job at Harding High School here in town so he will be closer to home. We move into our new home next week!!!!! and the 5th thing although it hasnt happened yet we are continuing to pray and know that a God that can do all of these other things can still make a way for thing number 5 too.

We were talking last night and both of us are just in awe that every single thing we asked for God is making happen!!!!!! He can and will give you the desires of your heart if you continue to be faithful and believe that He will!!!!!! We are so thankful that we are getting a chance to basically start a new life. New jobs, a new home a new begininning. I can't wait to see where our journey has yet to go and the things God has before us.

Keep on Keepin on.....

So its been a few months since i have updated this thing and a few friends of mine have started blogs so it inspired me to take a few minutes and catch everyone up with the crazyness in the cameron household:) Things have been so super busy lately, just as it is always and in everyones lives i know. I was sitting on the couch earlier trying to catch my second wind after such an exhasuting past 3 days when i became so overwhelmed with thankfulness. God has been showing me lately just how deep His love and promises are and I can't help but stand in awe. With only 4 weeks left of school i am truely amazed at His grace and faithfulness to me every day. There have been many days especially lately where i am just "burnt out" with school and i think about all the things i have missed because my schedule is so packed right now. But in those moments I am also reminded that this is only temporary and to reflect back on the journey is inspirational. This past year hasnt been easy for any of us, scott, macie or I but we pulled together as a family and held onto each other and to God's strength and trusted completely on His grace to carry us through. Now only 4 weeks from the finish line i know He has been with us each step of the way and embraced us in those times where "we" didnt have the strength or the endurance to keep going on our own. God is doing some amazing things in our lives and in our hearts and we are so excited to see what else He has instore for us.

I have recently accepted a nursing position at the local hospital here in our hometown which i am very excited about. Its scary to think in a month i will be on my own as a nurse but I couldn't be more excited or proud to think i will be making a difference. Scott is very busy with finishing up the school year and serving many hours doing music and helping out with the youth at the church. Macie is continuing to grow and learn more everyday. Its amazing to watch her personality unfold and reflect little pieces of both scott and I in her. She is very outgoing and boistorus definitely like her daddy and has quit the temper tantrum when things dont go her way (we will say thats from daddy too;) We are in the process finding a new home. Nothing huge or super extravagant just a little more space would be nice. Lots of new and exciting things going on and so much to be thankful for!!! Thank you all for your continued support and prayers as we keep on keepin on!!!

Blizzard 2008 and others....

Snow Day!!!

Today scott and I were lucky enough to have a snow day. The best thing about this is that we were able to spend the day home as a family lounging around in our sweat pants all cuddeled up together. Macie has recently fallen in love with elephants so last night we picked up an elephant figurine family for her to play with since she has gone 3 days without a binky (which for all of you that know macie well, you know how attached she was to that thing) so this was a huge accomplishment for her and we told her she could go to the store and pick out an elephant. So today since we had a snow day we did a family project and made a little house for her elephants out of a shoe box and stuff we cut out from magainzes. Macie loved helping daddy look in magainzes for pictures of flowers and animals to put in her elephant house. After we finished the elephant house we all cleaned up the house and i was able to get a little studying done so that we can have a little free time to hang out this weekend and go do some fun things. Tomorrow macie and I are going to the mall for a free kids day so we will have more pictures then....we hope you all have a great night, stay warm!!!!

Valentines Day!!

Wow its amazing how fast time flies i can't believe it will be march in a few weeks!!! Things have been going great in the cameron household the past week or so macie is talking like crazy and actually starting to put sentences together. Its awesome to watch her because she knows how to make sense of things now and can actually have a conversation with you which is really neat. Sometimes i get sad to think how fast she is growing up and i often wish she could stay this way forever. Scott and I are just busy with school so nothing new with us.

Macie had an amazing week this past week at the babysitters. We are so thankful we found sylvia and know everyday when we drop her off that she will not only be taken care of but that she loves it there. Its funny because even on the weekends now she asks us "we go to babysitters today?" haha. This past thursday on valentines day they had a little party at the babysitters house to celebrate. Macie wore here valentines pants and the shirt here gma pam got her. They had balloons, decorated cookies and macie was able to take some animal valentines she picked out at the store to all her little buddies there. She talked for days about here valentines party and was so excited to tell me all about it when i picked her up and she even made scott and I cookies...one said dad and the other mom that she decorated!!!

That evening after scott got home from school we just hung out and had a nice family dinner. Scott and I went to mansfield last weekend and ate at the olive garden and did a little shopping so we were able to celebrate as a couple a little early. He got me a beautiful vintage style necklace and i suprised him with osu basketball tickets so i think we both enjoyed valentines day and most of all enjoyed remembering how much we love each other and are so blessed by such a great little family:)

Crazyness but we love it!!!!

So its been forever since i have posted on this thing but life has taken us new places in the cameron household and its always nice to give everyone updates i suppose. I am now halfway through my third quarter of nursing school and will be graduating in 17 weeks ( haha trust me i have it counted down to the days even) school has been amazingly stressful but completely awesome at the same time. Every week is full of 3 or more tests and 2 days of clinicals which involve blue books and drug cards (those of you who have been through nursing school know...they are nightmares:)....basically it invovled hours of extra work on wednesday night when your brain is already fried....busyness has taken a new place in my vocabulary this past 7 months, i dont think i truely knew the meaning of being busy till now. I am doing very well and have made national honor society at school which is a shocker i know to all you high school and college buddies. We have eaten more fast food and hamgburger helper these past 7 months than we probably ever will again in our whole lives but i figure there are far worse things in life than that!! lol

Macie is going to an amazing babysitter that she absolutely loves and has even started calling grandma. I can't believe how fast she is growing up and the things that she says and comes up with everyday just amaze me. Sometimes i get sad to think about all the things i am missing out on by being gone at school so much and studying all the time but then i am reminded that its her that i am doing this for and her little body is what helps me keep pressing forward on those days i feel tired and want to give up. If there is anything she gets out of this as she gets older i really hope its that she saw how hard her mommy and daddy worked to make a better life for her because we love her so much!!!

I can't even put it into words how thankful i am for scott. I dont think i could have asked for a better husband or father for macie. He is so in love with macie and the way that he imerses himself in her life is completely awesome. I am amazed at how hard he works going to school all day and volunteering at church and he still finds it in himself to tutor kids 3 or 4 days a week because he really cares about his students. I know that things have been hard for him also this past 7 months but he has stepped up and helped me with the house and sacrificed so many things to make things easier for me and i know when i am done in june that diploma will be his just as much as mine.

I have learned a huge lesson these past 7 months outside of nursing and that is love. I have never been more in love with my husband than now. We have had a tough year full of sacrifices and struggles but ultimately we have clung to each other and to God's wisdom and faithfulness and ultimately taken the battles set before us head on as a team. I would never have imagined why God put such an amazing self sacrificing, hard working, loving man in my life but i am thankful he is all mine for this valentines day and many more!!!!

So basically life is crazyness in the cameron household but we wouldnt have it any other way!!!!!!