Another day in paradise...

WOW...it's amazing how much more beautiful our grandson is today than he was yesterday, and the day before that, and the day before that...WOW! I'm sure he's exhausted from just having to keep up with that!! It takes a lot to look this good! LOL...I know you aren't suppose to say pretty or beautiful for a little boy...but I'll just let the pictures speak for themselves...and as long as he's a baby, he'll never know I called him pretty!! He will be 5 days old today at 6:41 p.m. Mountain time...wow, time is flying by! Lollie needs to take more pictures today...however, he has a bit of jaundice so the doctor sent over a UV light box and he needs to stay on that whenever he's not feeding. I'll be honest we've cheated a couple of times b/c well, the kids gotta be cuddled every now and again...and he's a definite cuddlier! I think it's hard on the new mommy b/c she can't get enough cuddle time w/him...but she is also very aware the more time he spends on the "light box" (we're calling it his tanning bed) the better off he is.

Enjoy these photos of the day he came home from the hospital! It was a VERY good day!

Mommy & daddy getting their lil' punkin ready to go home.





Why! YES! it does take two people to put on his little beanie! SOMEBODY had to help and of course "lollie" was more than willing!!






Coming home outfit...isn't he a cutie??



Lollie is LOVING THIS!! He is so unbelievably sweet...I think everyone should start with their grandchild...then maybe there would be no stress in the world!!



POP is in "love" as well...this child has just washed away any problems one might ever think were important!!



It took EVEN more hands to get him situated in his little car seat...and of course one set of hands to document this moment on film...poor child...I think he's already had more pictures taken of him than most do in a lifetime!!




Thanks for letting me share pictures...I promise my blog won't always be about our sweet little grandson...but I'm sure now that he's here...they will take a whole new direction. Thank you for all those that have prayed and continue to pray for this sweet little gift from God...and for those of you who continue to support my new addiction by complimenting him on a daily basis!

He's HERE!!!

Sorry for the delay in posting...I've been kind of busy...YEP...it's official folks...I am a LOLLIE! Our first grandbaby...a boy...has arrived healthy, happy and safe! He was born on Friday 1-15-2010...he weighed 7 lbs. 11 oz. and measures a whopping 21 inches long! He arrived at 6:41 P.M. mountain time...yep we have a little mountain man, now and he is precious beyond words. I actually don't have that many words in my vocabulary to describe not only him but the way I am feeling about this wonderful adventure. "Pop"...aka my loving hubbin...is in awe as well. We are so proud of our daughter and her husband....it's as if they have always been meant to be parents...whodda thunk???

I won't bore you with words presently...but I will share several pictures from his first day of life...he was mere minutes old when most of these were taken...Enjoy...and look at all his HAIR...he looks a bit like his mommy, I must say...but I've never seen newborn pics of my son-in-law! For now, he's his mommies boy...in looks...but he is smiiten with both his parents as they are of him.

He's perfect...and he's going to be very upset with me one day when he finds out I posted this for all the world to see...WELCOME to the world...Walker Bruce Beal...son of Jacquelyn Lee and Nathaniel Bruce...you already make this world a better place!!




WHAT are all these people messing with me for???




He was tired after all the bathing, diapering, checking and messing with him...




Daddy on diaper duty...first diaper change for both daddy and son!!






Awww...his first shampoo...and loving it!!





"sweet new mama"



"sweet feet"

New Year...New Life...New Decade...New Beginnings...

WHEW...that's a lot of new!! I have been MIA...for a very long time...so sorry. It's hard to start back up once you have gotten so FAR behind...but b/c my dear friend Miss Kat...who was my very first blog buddy ( I do not know how we found each other...but I am thankful we did) has sent me a personal email to tell me she missed me...so for Kat and the few others out there that actually read my ramblings...I am BACK...not sure if I will post every day or even every week...but I'm going to do my best.

As most of you know that have read my blog...I LOVE children and have wanted a grand-baby since my first child was born...lol! Well, we are expecting our first grand-baby...a BOY in just a matter of days...He is due Jan. 22...but I think (probably a little wishful) he will be here next week. There is suppose to be a new moon next Friday...I'm taking bets that's when he arrives...our daughter just wants him to come very soon! Things are moving along very well for our daughter and son-in-law...Jackie is progressing and "things" are happening...so I am happy to say I don't think it will be long now, however, most of you know...there is no rushing a baby, especially the first.






THIS is the rocking chair that my daughter, son-in-law and hopefully very soon LOLLIE (me) will rock that sweet baby boy. It is the rocking chair that my sweet hubby bought me when I was pregnant with our first child...Jackie. It is called a "Mother's Rocker"...I mean seriously...can it get any better? My husband's very dear great aunt was close friends with a lady who collected exquisite antiques...she had this chair from the early years of her marriage. I think it was about 60 or more years old when we purchased it, so I'm guessing it's around 100 years old or so. She never had children of her own...but loved this chair beyond words. It came to the point in her life that she thought she may want to change things up a bit and replace this chair with a "recliner" (I think she thought it would be more supportive)...so she bought the recliner, but was unsure that she could part with the rocker. Lovin' hubbin's aunt told her about us and that we were wanting to have a child and we were starting to collect a few antiques. She said in that case she would "interview" us and consider selling it to us. We met w/her, chatted, sat in the chair (I instantly bonded w/the chair) and expressed our desire to own it. She said she would think about it, but was still unclear as to what chair to keep. She had both chairs sitting side by side in her tiny house in the parlor where she watched a little TV. She promised to let us know when she decided to sell or not b/c she did have to part with one, she concluded there was not enough room to house them both long term. A YEAR passed...and no word from this lovely little lady. I had given up hope on ever getting the chair, I just assumed she had decided to keep it and I couldn't blame her...it was that beautiful! I just figured the chair was not meant to be mine...well almost a year later to the day that we had first spoken to her, she calls us up and tells us she had decided to part with the chair, if we were still interested! WERE we still interested...HECK YA!...but she said, even though it's been a year...she was still going to need to ask $50.00 for it...we couldn't get to her house fast enough!! Partly b/c we were thrilled she remembered how badly we wanted it and remember I had already "bonded with this chair (hard to explain...but I think a lot of you know what I mean)...but the REAL reason we were excited was because we had had just learned we were pregnant with our first child! Gives me goose bumps.




After Jackie told us she was pregnant...I made the decision she MUST have this chair to rock her baby to sleep ( I knew she had an affection for it as well)...Jackie was a huge fan of being rocked (honestly, we spent many hours rocking her in this chair, so I know when she sits in it for the first time w/her baby boy...it's going to feel like "coming home" )...I'm praying this chair brings her and BABY BOY as much joy and comfort as it gave me...her daddy...her grandparents...uncles and aunts...when we were able to rock our babies and all the other babies in our family in this chair!! I had Jackie pick out a new fabric (she did an exceptional job) b/c the original fabric had worn quite a bit over the years and the springs, the padding and cushion were a little worse for the wear. I was able to find a great upholsterer here in Sacramento...and as of yesterday...this sweet memory, this awesome rocker...is heading to Colorado...hopefully, just in time to make new memories...with the new little man in our lives...awwww NEW BEGINNINGS...gotta love em!



TIME WORN LOVE....the chair is in it's original condition...we just changed the fabric and spruced up the insides of the chair so it would be comfy for those moments of rocking, reading, watching the snow fall, cuddling and making memories. I have a picture somewhere (most likely packed away until after the re-model) of our daughter rocking in this chair standing up (she was about 15 months old)...it was in her room as a young girl and she WAS ALWAYS the adventurous type. I will try to find it one day, soon and post it!! Just before I sent it off to be packed and shipped...I sat in it for about 30 minutes..rocking and remembering...it still has that little "crick" in it every time you rock back...I call it baby soothing music! It was funny how it felt exactly the same as it had 31 years ago when I sat in it for the first time. It made my butt, my back, and my heart very happy...in fact even though I have changed and the materials on this chair were different...the sweet memories of this chair came flooding back...and YES a few tears of joy were shed!! I know our daughter is VERY excited to have it and it gives me the greatest JOY to be able to pass it on to her! OH and don't worry...if our son and DIL have a baby any time soon...we have another rocker for them...it was my husbands grandfathers...and it was in our sons room for years!!


Now here are a few pictures of the mama to be....some from the beginning and a few from her own maternity shoot...YES, she instructed hubby on how to take the pictures she wanted...and she used her trusty tri-pod for some as well. I love them all...she and her sweet hubby did a great job.

We can't WAIT....
In the beginning at about 8 to 10 weeks...


18 weeks...

28 weeks



38 weeks...






Proud papa to be....







I'll keep you all posted....until then...Happy New Year to all my blogging buddies and I promise to try and do a better job posting this year...now on to the business at hand...waiting for the arrival of our grandson...and the remodel of our home in Sacramento!

Happy Birthday...Emily!!

Today is our sweet daughter-in-laws birthday! As you all know I feel very fortunate to have two wonderful children and equally as wonderful children in laws. Emily is in a 4 way tie for being one of my most favorite children! LOL...you know that corny line in the movie "Jerry McGuire"...where Tom Cruise tells Renee Zellweiger that she completes him OR is it Renee Zellweiger telling Tom Cruise...anyway you know what I mean...well, sappy as it may sound...Emily completes our family. I can't imagine life without her...she's been a part of our lives for over 10 years...she and our son met as sophomores in High School and we feel she has been a part of our family ever since. She just grew up right before our eyes into the totally awesome and beautiful woman she is today. I know my son counts himself extremely lucky and assuredly blessed to have her as his bride. I can assure you all of the rest of our family feels the same way, almost like we hit the "jackpot" with her as an added member to our family! She truly is a perfect match for our son and is such an added bonus to this crazy clan of ours.

I always have trouble poetically conveying just how much we love our family and most especially our children and children-in-laws...So I thought I would make a list of 26 things I/we love about Emily...what makes her so special. So here's to our sweet daughter in love...Emily...

1. She loves the Lord
2. She loves our son...her husband, unconditionally!
3. She is so very sweet and thoughtful
4. She's has a great sense of humor.
5. She loves life...and makes that feeling contagious when you're around her.
6. She loves her family and feels family is one of the most important things in life.
7. She is super athletic...I'm in awe of her abilities!!
8. She is creative beyond even her own beliefs.
9. She actually laughs at my jokes!
10. She loves our daughter and our daughter loves her...it's as though they are sisters and that warms my heart!
11. She makes us laugh.
12. She is a great wife, friend, daughter, daughter-in-law, grand-daughter, sister, sis-in-law and aunt!
13. She has the BEST laugh!
14. She is honest and sincere.
15. She is beautiful inside and out!
16. She loves to keep active and makes all of us want to do the same!
17. She cares about people and genuinely how they feel.
18. She is on her way to being the BEST Physical Therapist...EVER!
19. She is not afraid of hard work!
20. She is extremely organized...something I wish she could teach me!
21. She loves animals, children and older people...does it get any better than that?
22. She is NOT selfish at all!!
23. She loves me and my hubbin and she shows it in all that she does for us and our family.
24. She is compassionate!
25. She is very supportive of our son in all his endeavors, she is his BEST cheerleader!!
26. She is affectionate, caring and loving to all,

HAPPY, HAPPY BIRTHDAY...EMLS...we love you and hope you have a great day. As I've always said, I could not have hand-picked a more perfect young lady to marry Marcus...we are all thankful you guys fell in love and chose to spend the rest of your lives together. Have a GREAT birthday... WE LOVE YOU!!

Happy Birthday...Nathaniel!!

Today...is our son-in-laws 30th birthday...the man that we have prayed for since the day our daughter was born. The young man that was to be our daughters husband, father to their children and the best friend a person could ask for...was born unbeknownest to us...on this day 30 years ago....just 3 months before our daughter was born, her future HUSBAND was born...in a small town in Illinois!! We love this guy...look at that face, how can you not love him? Look at his smile...a smile that is bigger than life and that can light up a room from wherever he is...a young man that has made our daughter a very happy young lady...a man that is about to become a father himself... a young man that is just a pure joy to have in our lives...I know his parents are very proud of him...as they should be.

I thought I would just tell you a little about this young man...the man that we have all grown to love more with each passing day. Nathaniel or "Nat' as he is known to family and friends...is obviously a very handsome young man as is evident in all his pictures...but more than that he is a very smart young man, a man with a big heart and a very sweet nature about him...my daughter LOVES all of these attributes in him and why wouldn't she? He is also someone that lives life to it's fullest...not a day goes by that I think he waste any time just cruisin along. On the other hand, he works hard, he plays hard, but he always knows when it is time to re-charge. He loves the outdoors, he loves to ski, bike, camp and hike...not to mention fish, hunt and play any outdoor game or activity you can mention...AND he is one of the most entertaining "Guesstures" players I've ever seen! He has introduced our family to such a wide variety of fun things to do...from playing "hillbilly golf" and listening to all types of music to finding such beauty in the simplest of things. Nat is professionally a hydro-geologist...something I think he was born to do. I think he might have known very early on in his life that this was the job for him...geology of some sort was to be a part of his life. Nat is an eagle-scout...something that I think is a huge accomplishment and certainly a sign of how dedicated and determined he is...he achieved this at a very early age and I know this gave him great satisfaction in achieving. He is also a huge lover of animals...especially dogs (see how trustworthy he is, you can't be a dog-lover and not be trustworthy in my book)...I don't think I've ever seen someone that is so in-tune with their dog as Nat is with the current baby of the family...Corinna! One thing that always gives me such pleasure when I'm around Nat is that he loves to laugh...he has one of the best laughs and smiles I've ever had the privilege of knowing...but most of all one of the BEST things I can think of when I think of Nathaniel is that HE LOVES OUR DAUGHTER...and she LOVES him. What more could a mom hope for in a son-in-law.

Nat is about to become a father himself (we are so thrilled as they are, too)...and I know he's going to be a GREAT dad...he's going to show this child so much love, understanding and commitment to life and love that this child will not want for anything he/she may need. He will teach our future grand baby a lot about life and what is important...just through example of loving our daughter, loving life and showing him/her what God has in store for this sweet family. We are so thankful for this young man...the man that was to be our son-in-law from the day he was born...the young man that I had prayed about for so many years but never knew; until he walked into our daughters life about 6 years ago...the man that was to be the BEST son-in-law we could have ever dreamed of having.



The BEST smile...EVER...he's always so happy...he reminds me a lot of my own dad...in that he is always smiling and always happy. What an ideal kind of guy!!






This is a picture of Nat on the last hunting trip he and my guys took in October...hunting/hiking/backpacking/horseback riding into the Montana and Idaho wilderness. I think Nat would agree with me...in saying...it was a slice of HEAVEN and he enjoyed every minute of it!






HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!! NATHANIEL BRUCE...WE LOVE YOU AND HOPE YOU HAVE A GREAT DAY!!

SALE!!

For those of you that have viewed my daughters photo's and Etsy site, just a quick note to let you in on a sale she is having...Go here jacquelynlee.etsy.com and check it out...I love her wraps...and every picture and wrap is of great quality...I love the letters to use for bridal shower gifts or new baby gifts...everyone loves to see their initial placed in their home for all to see, it's a great gift with something a little different than your standard mixing bowl OR diaper bag! LOVE that!! You may also want to check out some of her vintage pictures or nature pics...she is currently working on more...but she has been quite busy with getting her new business up and running AND planning for our new grand baby (yea, I had to be a "Lollie" for a portion of this blog!). So check it out and if you see something you like, contact her or if you have something in mind you want...let her know, she's always open for suggestions! Enjoy browsing.




Next post I will get back to our road trip...it will include VEGAS and the HOOVER DAM...yippeee...then I'll post pics of our new home and all the nature that surrounds us!

SEE THIS BEAUTIFUL COUPLE...my daughter and son-in-law...well...


I have patiently been waiting for several weeks to spread the word...I have FINALLY been given the okay to do so. This couple, this very sweet and loving couple...my daughter and her husband are PREGNANT! Yes, a grandchild is due to arrive in late Jan....Jan. 22 is the date given as the due date...however, my sweet hubbin...the "POP" to be has a birthday on Jan. 20...I can't imagine a better gift. Any day SHE or HE gets here with 10 fingers, 10 toes and glorious health...is good for me!! Hubbin and I are beside ourselves with great joy and anticipation. ..I think of course I'm a tad more beside myself than he is (cos for any of those of you who know hubbin, know he's bubbling on the inside...staying very calm on the outside). Jackie and Nat are of course very excited and apprehensive. ..as it is with all new parents to be. I think things are starting to settle in and they are becoming more relaxed with each passing day. Jackie is feeling good...no morning sickness, just extreme fatigue in the afternoons.. .this should pass soon...because she is entering here 2nd trimester... can you believe...in 6 months there will be a little one to love on! Oh my how this child will be in for a whole LOT of LOVIN!!

Jackie and Nat told us about this momentous occasion several weeks back, when they were home for a friends wedding. They gifted us with a card to be opened together...inside that card was a PICTURE of the babies first sonogram. YES, tears flowed, squeals were let out and we all couldn't hug enough! On the card it said, To: Lollie and Pop...January 22, 2010...WOW! a baby from our baby girl & her sweet hubbin...we couldn't be happier!

Jackie had requested we wait until after her 12th week...which was Friday a week ago and then to wait till they heard the babies heartbeat... they heard the HEARTBEAT on Tuesday morning of this week... and all sounded great according to the doctor.

Again, we feel so blessed and can't wait to hold this little bundle in our arms...I'm saving my pennies NOW...b/c I will NEED to see this baby very often! LOL

I am asking for each of you to continue to pray for Jackie's health and the health of the baby...things are going along very smoothly and our prayer is that Jackie and our precious grandchild remain healthy, happy and content.


Thanks everyone...for the smiles I know are plastered on each of your faces...I'll keep each of you updated...and thanks for the prayers...in advance. Did I tell you I'm going to be a "Lollie" (that's the name we've picked out and hubbin will be "Pop", well, that is if our grand baby agrees!!) Yipppeee...I get to start shopping and sewing for Baby "B" very soon...the 20th week they are having a sonogram to see if we have a Baby girl "B" or a Baby boy "B"...any bets on this one??? I have my gut feelings...what' s yours!!!

BTW...I found myself at Target the other day to pick up a few things for the new house...well, of course I couldn't resist going down the baby aisles...I don't think I EVER quit smiling...I betcha people were wondering what I was so giddy about...hmmm...it just makes my heart soar! You'll be proud of me, I did restrain from buying ANYTHING...I know, that's almost a miracle in itself...but I'm waiting till I know what Baby "B" will be...and then...let the shopping begin! Sorry, Jackie, you know I have to buy something!! I'll start with educational things...then head right into the cute baby clothes...I can't wait!