Yep... Critter is a Plum!

Week 12: Plum

As you move into the second trimester, baby shifts into the growth and maturation stage. After weeks in the critical development stage, almost all of baby's systems are fully formed.

Our Story... First Easter as a Thomas

It was such a battle trying to decide what to do for Easter without Ty.  Easter has always been a fun event in the Thomas house, whether they went to Fort Richardson for the day or rented a cabin for the whole weekend.  I was so excited about doing Easter Thomas style, but it was such a conflicting emotion, not having Dad there with us.  We battled about what traditions to keep and what not to keep but in the end, tradition won out.  And I'm so glad it did, I just love ALL the Thomas family traditions, it's what family is about. 

So on good Friday we packed up our stuff and headed toward Davis OK to River Bend Lodge.  We rented a cabin there and took Dad, Judy, and Summer and her kiddos with us.  Kim cooked yummy meals for us, we flew kites, made cookies and cupcakes, fished and even jumped on the trampoline.  The place was perfect and close enough to get us home early on Sunday... when Tyler and I decided we would dye eggs -- so fun!!  Here is the cabin website if you are ever looking for a close getaway place http://river-bend-lodge.com/ . 

I'll never forget this Easter, it was a great time filled with good family and good friends -- and Jesus is the reason for all the blessings we experienced on this glorious weekend! 

He is Risen Indeed!!! 

Ok so it's 3 days late... better late than never! Lime week, oh yea!

Week 11: Lime

Your fetus currently enjoys a 1:1 ratio between body and head, and has skin so transparent that blood vessels show right through. But, fingers and toes are no longer webbed, and hair follicles, tooth buds and nail beds are forming -- setting up a significantly more attractive future.

Prune week --- Yuck!

Okay, so I wasn't feeling so grand on Sunday and Monday, due to a virus I think, not the baby... BUT that's why I am late on the update.  Sunday started week ten for our baby prune, sorry Tyler I am not eating a prune this week, I can barely stomach raisins.  The baby seems to be alot more picky about what Mom eats than he/she was before this week and smells... ugh.  
Week 10: Prune
With bones and cartilage starting to form and vital organs beginning to function, baby is making major progress. Body length will almost double in the next three weeks, and arm joints are now working. (Soon, legs will too.)

It's Olive week!

Week 9: Green Olive

Your little embryo has now officially graduated to fetus-hood. Adding to the excitement, a Doppler ultrasound device might be able to pick up the beating heart. With basic physical structures in place and increasingly distinct facial features, baby is kind of starting to look like... well... a baby!

Critter's First Gifts

I just had to post about the very first baby gifts we received.  The first one was several years ago -- my sister gave me the cutest little red t-shirt that says "MY MOMMY LOVES ME", i've been saving it ever sense.  If I remember right she got it shortly after Tyler and I started dating.  I just LOVE it.  I guess the second gift, not pictured, was a gift for me.  My sweet mother-in-law already had me a baby bottle for my James Avery charm bracelet.  When we told her we were expecting she jumped, cried, screamed and ran for the baby bottle.  She had been saving it!!  Sweet huh?  The next gift was a gift Tyler and I bought.  It's the book, a book that Tyler loved as a child... so sweet!  Cherry Wells from church got me the lullabye CD last week.  Worship songs for the baby, how cute can it be?!!  And then, on Sunday, my sweet sister, soon to be brother in law and niece got us two pair of baby booties!  They will be so perfect whether critter is a boy or a girl!  Thanks everybody! 

Our story continued...

MY VERY FIRST CHRISTMAS AS A THOMAS!!

This is how I know God is good and bigger than we can imagine.  One would probably expect us to say, this was the worst Christmas Ever since Timber isn't here... but I can honestly say, Christmas was in fact very blessed.  I would have traded anything in the world to have gotten to have my first Christmas as a Thomas with both of my in-laws, but I didn't get a choice.  But we did have a choice as to how we reacted, we could share old memories and create new ones, or we could wallow in our grief -- we chose the memories and I know God was pleased!!  It was a Christmas full of memories both old and new.  We started a new tradition, Christmas Eve at our house!!  Tara, Alden, Mom, Us, Dad, Judy, Hitch and Grandma Pat... Oh and Ashely and Crystal usually stop by.  It was so awesome, starting a new tradition.  And the old traditions continued as well, Christmas Eve, Memaw always made smothered steak, mac and cheese, rolls and mashed potatoes... she passed that on to Mom and Mom cooked us up the best Christmas meal ever.  I look forward to smothered steaks on Christmas Eve EVERY year!!  This Christmas Eve there were some special gifts to be passed out.  A James Avery bracelet and charm for Tara, in honor  of my precious niece that was then only a bun in the oven.  Memory Bear's for Tyler and Dad -- these were bears made from Ty's jeans and work shirts -- ours (Tyler's) was made out of the jeans that Timber wore at our wedding.  We will always cherish those bears!!  We also gave Mom a memory book, filled with letters and stories that friends and family had written about Timber -- She loved it and was totally surprised.  Oh, and we gave dad a shotgun that was Ty's.  We gave him a gun case to throw him off, then brought out the gun -- he was shocked and got teary eyed.  Sad but oh so happy all at the same time.  Each gift was a step toward healing and a step toward remembering at the same time.   It's what the Thomas' family does, make memories!! 

Pics below:

Alden's first treasure hunt... he got a gun safe!!

And the Proposal!!

And another new tradition... a toy for all 3 guys!

The next morning there were lots of gifts under the tree just for the 3 of us.  I got several charms for my James Avery bracelet, 2 of which were from Mom and Timber -- a daughter charm and a daughter in law charm, the daughter charm wasn't engraveable so they got both.  So very special to me, especially since they got them just after we got married and it was from Timber too!  I TREASURE them!!

Also got the cute lil pistol I had been wanting!!

And Tyler's annual treasure hunt began...

It was a browning x-bolt 270 WSM. 

And after this treasure hunt we enjoyed our delicious traditional breakfast, homemade cinnamon applesauce, ham and rolls... so TASTY!!

Oh, and Tyler actually had two treasure hunts... his Mom got him this...

After our morning together we gathered with family at my Uncle David and Aunt Becky's where we continued to receive the comfort of the Lord, given through the awesome friends and family He chose for us. 

None of us will EVER forget this Christmas, my very first Christmas as a Thomas.  And even though we missed Timber VERY much, we know he was among the cloud of witnesses!! (Hebrews 1)