the porters

The Vintage Pearl Giveaway!

2011-07-06T10:02:00.000-07:00

Today one of my favorite online vendors, The Vintage Pearl, is doing an awesome giveaway! 3 Winners get $75 to spend on their incredible products. I have one of these necklaces and have purchased a few others and have been VERY happy with them! Hope you enjoy!

www.thevintagepearl.com/blog

chris

ps - will be updating blog with more pics soon!

Life with 3...

2011-03-12T17:32:00.000-08:00

Well we have survived the intial shock of having our third child! Hudson Timothy was born on February 12th at 2:45pm. It was my easiest labor and with only 1.5 pushes Hudson entered our world. He is a great baby and we love him so much already. Marshall and Reagan are adjusting fabulously and my biggest job right now is to protect Hudson from their reckless love of their baby brother:) "Just one more kiss" is the phrase I hear the most often from Marshall.

Matt has been a complete champ getting up with the kids in the morning to allow me to get in a few more minutes of shut eye before entering my reality of keeping 3 children alive throughout the day.:)

I ventured out to Costco when Hudson was 5 days old...with all three kids. Some might think I'm crazy but I felt pretty good and I figured I was going to have to figure out how to take them all places sooner or later:) Costco is the best place to start thanks to their gigantic carts. It was easy to strap them all in. Hudson sleeps all the time so he's pretty easy to drag along.

My mom has also been down here and there and that has allowed Matt and I to have a couple dates as well as me to have a little bit of alone time at Nordstrom or more often the grocery store:)

One thing has been on my mind lately is how amazing our friends, family and support system are. I literally did not have to cook for 3 weeks! 3 weeks...that was amazing thanks to my wonderful friends from church who stocked us with food, for my mom who came over and made us dinner one night and brought some costco meals, and a few extra special people who brought a meal as well. My friends have been visiting me at a great pace bringing me chai, gifts and just coming to get their baby fix:) I also have sweet friends who have taken pics of Hudson and my very special friend Britney who was the first to watch all 3 kids! I am so thankful for these amazing people that God has truly blessed us with.
I got to have a special one on one date with Marshall yesterday and we went to lunch, a movie and Starbucks. Such a special little time with him. He is going to be 4 years old in 3 short weeks. I cannot even believe he's that old already. Reagan is such a little charmer but definitely knows how to get under her big brothers skin. Her favorite thing to do is steal his toys and start running away...Lord help me and her mostly:)
Thanks for those of you who not only read my blog but have prayed for us and loved us along our journey. We are so thankful for you! Off to make dinner for the fam...:)

Christmas and some crafts...

2011-01-16T23:05:00.000-08:00

So 3 months w/o a blog post is better than 4 so here we go! We had an absolutely amazing Christmas season. Matt had a couple weeks off so we got to relax and do a bunch of things with our family! We took the kids on a train ride in Portland, attended a FABULOUS wedding of one of our old buddies kid free (thanks mom and dad!), hung out with some great friends and had lots of time with family!
Two days after Christmas I had all my decor put away, the garage cleaned and all the kids clothes organized for the next season...I think I might be doing a little bit of 'nesting':) Speaking of nesting baby #3 is due to arrive here in the next 4.5 weeks or so! This pregnancy has gone by so fast...my kids obviously keep me pretty busy! We're still undecided on a name:( Hopefully we'll pick one before we get to the hospital. Life is about to change again but I am excited to see what this next season holds. My theme for this year is to simplify things. In all areas of my life...not entirely sure what that will look like but I am excited to see what God has to teach my family and I as we transition from the Porter 4 to the Porter 5!
Thanks to all my friends who look at my blog and allow me to look at theirs even when I'm slacking on mine!

My favorite pic of the Christmas season! Marshall picked out his sweater:)

Lots of love going around here.

Reagan loved presents! Marshall did too but it was fun to see Reagan open them. Sorry about my feet being in the pic:(

LOVE Matt's expression in this pic:)

Oh how I love her smile:)

Finally had a chance to make a nursing cover for me!!

So here is the before picture of a huge project I finally decided to try! My mother in law gave me this queen anne chair a couple years ago and I have been wanting to recover it ever since. I was a little scared because I had never done something like this before but really wanted to use this chair once the baby gets here. So I decided to just go for it. With a little help and a lot of encouragement from my hubby here's the final outcome....

I am seriously in love with this chair! It's so comfortable and now looks beautiful in my living room! I bought the fabric on clearance a couple years ago and I think I only spent about $20 total in fabric and upholstery nails:)

Just a couple of accent pins:) Happy Sunday everyone!

hello there

2010-10-15T20:26:00.000-07:00

I find it ironic that my last blog post was titled, "We're back!", following which I took a leisurely 4 month hiatus from blogging. I feel like I'm cheating the blog world when I look at other peoples blogs but don't have the decency to update my own. So if I haven't commented on your blog it's because I don't want you to think that I am just lazily not attending to my own:)

In all truth this has been one crazy summer and we are already into yet another busy season. I keep saying I have 'busy seasons' in my life but I think the truth is we are just always busy. Not in a bad way just busy. My computer tanked a few weeks ago and I have been waiting until I can get all my pictures on Matt's computer as to write a big comeback blog with lots of pictures but I decided that was just actually helping me procrastinate updating the blog further. So here we are with just a few pictures and a little update...I'll ease in slowly:)

Our big news is that we found out we were pregnant again this summer. I am sure most people know this by now but I'm about 22 weeks and we are having our 2nd boy in February! I am really excited to have another boy. Love my Reagan but excited for Marshall to have a brother.

The church is growing and we are so thankful always for the ways God is allowing our family to serve Him.

We are absolutely loving the stage of life that our kids are in. Marshall is so funny and Reagan is so quick to follow the lead of her brother and has a shining personality to match his!

Life continues to be full and I am going to try to continue to be a little more faithful to this blog...we'll see:)

Oh my she wants to dress herself already:)

Dad leading the way to the pumpkin field

One of Marshall's best little pals, Kori!

Family chaos:)

Reagan's first pumpkin

We're Back!!!

2010-06-03T14:32:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure I know how to write a blog post it's been so long! Oh how I've wanted to blog...it's just Marshall turned three! Seriously I looked at my last post and realized it was right after Marshall's birthday. If you have parented or are parenting a 3 year old you know what I mean. It's H.A.R.D.:) We have some very sweet moments but that boy tests his mama's patience most of the day! Well anyhow...we're back and here's a little of what we've been up to the last 2 months!

This little girl keeps me on my toes!

Uncle Timmy turned 30! (We did invite adults to the party...we just made him watch the kids for a bit:0)

We LOVE Tim and Holly!

Just a normal cheesy smile from Marshall

Yes Matt does look a little scary in the morning:)

We had spiderman visit us...

Marshall ran the Awesome 3000!

Family pic

Matt ran the Awesome 3000 too:)

Miss Reagan turned one!

She also learned to climb...

and got her first baby doll. I'm so used to Buzz Lightyear and words like 'bamming' and 'smashing' I don't know what to do with sweet baby play!:)

Hope everyone is well! Take care:)

Marshall turns 3!

2010-04-07T20:12:00.000-07:00

Just warning you that this is a very picture heavy post! My sweet friend Kesha brought her magnificent camera with her and snapped shots of our party! We had a great time! Marshall had six of his little friends over for a "Tool Party". I love parties...it was a party for him but I had a lot of fun putting it together! All that said here is a glimpse of our day!

The construction hats...

The decor...Matt never knew his tools were stylish:)

Clean hands before cookie decorating...

Focusing...

We used lots and we mean LOTS of sprinkles...

More decor...:)

Cupcake toppers...loved them.

Trying not to light anyone on fire...

Marshall shoving most of the cupcake into his mouth...

Cowboy gear!

Fighting face...

Don't forget about Reagan!
The crew!

Happy Birthday Marshall!

I have a confession...

2010-03-25T14:27:00.000-07:00

I own a pair of Jimmy Choo shoes. I did not say that I bought them, because I did not, rather a wonderful generous woman who has been used by the Lord to bless us in numerous ways gave them to me. I could have gone my whole life without owning an expensive pair of shoes but now that I have them, I really like them:) Once my husband found out how expensive they are he wanted to sell them on ebay...I said, "get behind me satan."
I'm not a big name brand person but I do like quality things. I love my Jimmy Choo's. I am not, however, one of those people who only bring them out for special occasions. I wear them often and in many situations. I wore them out in the backyard playing with the kids the other day. I think about my shoes sometimes the way I think about life. Follow me here...many of us have been blessed by the Lord with possesions, spirtual gifts or any number of things you could imagine. If we don't use what we have then why should we have been given them in the first place? I'm a perfectionist but I want to live my life to the fullest and most times that means things are going to be messy. Both in my house and in our lives:) We must learn what it means to live fully and use what God has given us...even if it's messy:) Thanks for listening to my random thought for the day!

Marshall presenting me with a few dandelions...

I did remove this leaf from her mouth just after I took the pic:)

My Jimmy Choo's. In the the tractors and the mud:)

now i know my abc's

2010-03-08T18:57:00.001-08:00

I've had yet another project idea swirling around in my head for the last few weeks and finally had the time to do it. This one didn't take as much time as the bumper but it was figuring out when to make it as Reagan is just motoring all around my house now:) She is almost as busy as Marshall...perfect. I was hoping for a cuddler...not the case, oh well maybe my next child:)
Anywho...on to the project. So I found this alphabet fabric a few months ago with my dear friend Sandy at this fabulous shop in McMinville. Seriously I walked into this fabric store and didn't know which way to go there was so much to look at. I knew I would use this in Marshall's room but just wasn't sure where. I've been a little in love with burlap lately and I wanted to back each of the letters with burlap and fabric that matches the blanket I made him for his bed. I LOVE how it turned out and Marshall is loving talking about all the letters:) So fun.
I also put up a couple pics of our wonderful trip to Silver Creek Falls today! It was beautiful out there and we had quite the hike. It was definitely a bit of work with two kiddos but it was so fun. Both my kids were in bed at 6:30 tonight...ahhhhh! Have a great week!
Post cutting....

All laid out. I used Jute webbing to hang the letters together.

Marshall wanted to be in the picture but I wouldn't let him on the bed:)

I LOVE LOVE LOVE this pic of Reagan and daddy!

Thanks sweet hiker girls who took this picture. Unfortunately my kids do not like to smile for strangers:)

A couple shout outs!

2010-02-24T20:31:00.000-08:00

I'm sure that many of you, well I'm actually not sure but hoping that some of you get caught up 'blog surfing' like I do:) I wanted to share with you some of my favorite blogs in case you're interested!
My absolute favorite blogger is Lindsey of the Pleated Poppy! She is a very creative and talented stay at home/work from home mama and I LOVE her stuff. Here she is http://www.lindseycheney.blogspot.com/
She just recently posted some of her favorite blogs including Joy's Hope, which has quickly become one of my new favorites. This gal is so funny...you have got to check out this post about her local freecycle, it had me in tears www.joyshope.com/2009/08/freakcycle.html
One that I have recently begun following is Lisa Leonard. Someday I'll be able to affored the beautiful jewelry she makes and I love her photography. www.lisaleonardonline.com/blog

Well those are just a couple of my favs...hope you enjoy them as much as I do!
And no sweet pics of my kids this time...don't worry I'm sure you won't have to wait long:)

the beach!

2010-02-20T10:43:00.000-08:00

Last weekend Sharon and I took the kids to the beach for a few hours on Saturday! It was so fun! Went to Mo's for lunch, fed the seagulls, played on the beach for about 10 minutes:) and then headed to the outlet mall!
Marshall had a fabulous time feeding the seagulls!

Happily feeding the seagulls the rest of his cheeseburger!

Proof that I was there:) Love what the beach does to my hair and of course my kids are still looking at the seagulls.

Not sure what he's getting ready for...

Sandy hands...

Reagan wearing the headband her mama just made for her! I've been thinking about this idea for a while and finally had some time yesterday to do it while she was sleeping! Yay for naps:)

Playground and puddle pics!

2010-02-16T19:43:00.001-08:00

Some of you might have seen the pics that my sweet friend Tara took of Marshall playing on the playground and in the puddles on fb, but if you haven't, or would like to see a couple more go here... http://blog.selaphotography.com/ . She did an amazing job and I am so excited to get some of those on my walls:) Isn't she talented?!

If I had a quarter for every time I saw this expression during the day I would be one wealthy mama!:)

Projects, projects...

2010-01-26T22:08:00.000-08:00

I have been working on a little, well it turned out to be monstrous, project for Reagan's room. I had a boys bumper for Marshall and didn't want to buy a new one for Reagan. I had quite a bit of fabric scraps left from other projects I've done for her so I decided to try a sort of patchwork slipcover bumper! It seriously took FOREVER but I love the final product! And yes that's her in the crib:)

Also Reagan decided that it is time to pull herself up into a standing position. Poor thing has had a couple head bumps since her balance isn't great yet but she's so stinkin' strong! Life is busy as usual and I'm so thankful my kids are feeling better!

I'm so sorry I haven't posted very many pics of my house yet! All of the rooms are ALMOST done but I hate posting pics of halfway done things! They are coming soon I promise!

Rested and refreshed!

2010-01-11T19:51:00.000-08:00

It's so sad when kiddos are sick! Mine are not feeling well today so we've spent the day indoors. A couple movies and popcorn were enjoyed and now the kids are in bed...hopefully sleeping:)
Reagan has a stuffy nose and she's a total binky baby so it's been hard for her to sleep today! So sad...and sad for me:(
Life is good here...we've had two weeks off! Matt has his gall bladder taken out last week which was probably a good thing as it forced him to rest. He's not very good at resting but he had to after surgery. We had a fantastic weekend in Portland...left the kids with my parents for the night and stayed with Tim and Holly. Dinner at Macarroni Grill and a movie was just what we needed to end our mini vacation! We are definitely feeling refreshed and ready to start our new year! Happy new year!
Just a couple pics of the kids from the last couple weeks!

The Christmas aftermath...

2009-12-26T22:55:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas! Another Christmas has come and gone and I am sitting in my living room wondering if all this stuff is ever going to get put away! The time we had with our family this past week was wonderful! Marshall is at such a fun age for Christmas and Reagan just wants to eat the paper:)
We actually had four Christmas'...yes four. One with Matt's dad, one with my parents, one with Matt's mom and one with our little family early Christmas morning! I am sad it's over but excited for the new year. This year has been a wild ride for us. I can't believe that we were living in a one room studio apartment with Marshall at the beginning of this year! Then we moved into our rental house. Next came the moving of our church to a fantastic new location. Then came Reagan:) Then a little bit of peace...then we bought a house and moved in! Then we hosted Thanksgiving and a party on Christmas day night!
I am so thankful for the fullness of our life. We have a lot going on but we love it. We are so privledged to serve with the people that we do and that God has called us to the life we live. I pray that this year I may come to know the fullness of Christ even more and that it may become more evident in my life than ever before.
These pics are totally out of order but they are here none the less. We went to the Zoolights with my family and it was great! Lots of people but so fun...the boys are in LOVE with trains this year.
Hope your Christmas was full of joy!

Marshall's first electric drum kit. It comes with headphones:) Praise Jesus

Sweet Reagan...she loves Marshall's new truck in the background.

My parents grandkiddos!

Waiting in line for the train and the Zoo!

Matt loves pictures!

Marshall in his pj's!

Thank you uncle Dave for the super annoying machine gun toy:)

Ahhhh!

December happenings...

2009-12-15T23:25:00.000-08:00

Well we're as busy as bees over here in the Porter household! Trying to get your house set up with two little ones cruising around definitely takes some effort. I'm so thankful that they nap at the same time otherwise I'm sure I'd never get anything done!
So we got our Christmas tree last weekend and also took Marshall to the OMNIMAX Polar Express Movie. He loved it...got a bit scared and cried during a few parts but for the most part did really well. He sat on my lap for the entire movie (which I loved)! It's the first time we've taken him to the 'big screen' and I wondered if it would be a little scary as it's pretty loud in there...all in all he did great. Then we went to the Old Spaghetti Factory for dinner. Matt's Grandma was in town and she wanted to take us all to do something special!
I am so thankful to be in my own home this Christmas season. A full week of family gatherings is in store for us next week...I better finish my shopping!
Just a few updated pics!

Reagan happy as usual...seven months on Friday!

I painted my room and brought all my bedding out to the couch. Marshall snuggled right into the middle of it:)

Yay for the balloon man! We'll take a train balloon please!

Family tree hunt!

My men on the gator...Marshall was obviously in heaven!

So much to do, so little time to blog...

2009-11-27T13:56:00.000-08:00

...such is my life as of late. I LOVE it though! I am having so much fun getting our house set up. It takes a lot of time and work to get things functioning smoothly though. I've been painting, cleaning and working on curtains. I thought I would take a minute while both the kids are sleeping to update the blog since it's been forever!

I did also decide to brave the black friday shoppers this morning, well at like 9! It was so much fun and I got some great deals. Being in a home that is our own brings with it a sense of desire to start traditions for our family. Tradition #1 - black friday shopping is fun with friends! That's the only tradition I have so far, I need to work on more!

First pic in front of our new home!

I hosted Thanksgiving this year...yes you do see fourteen settings! It was so much fun!

My sweetnessThe living room before we painted. Forgot to take a pic of the fireplace before I painted it but you can kind of see it on the left in this pic.

Post paint! I love my colors. Also that horrible looking gas insert in the fireplace is coming out soon so we can use it as a real fireplace! More pics to come!

New house and halloween update!

2009-11-02T22:35:00.000-08:00

It's official...we signed papers this morning! Now we are just waiting for keys...could take a couple days unfortunately. My house is torn apart but most of it is in boxes and I can't wait to get into our new house!
We had a great halloween! Lots of trick-or-treating with friends! The kids had a blast and I already can't wait for next year!
Cousins...Marshall, Lola, Deakan!

Shoveling taco soup before we head out to trick-or-treat

Reagan and mama

My awesome SIL Holly!

Johnny Jumper...Reagan's new friend!

Paint and the Pumpkin Patch

2009-10-24T14:08:00.000-07:00

This is a little glimpse of my life these days! Paint samples, fabric and BHG magazines! We are moving in less than two weeks and I'm so excited! I can't believe we are getting our own house! Quite the milestone for us.
Last Monday we headed out to EZ Orchards in search of the perfect pumpkin for Marshall:) He picked this gourd type pumpkin out right away. It's totally not carveable but that's the one he wanted and he would not put it down. I told him he could get his 'own special pumpkin' so all the way home he held his pumpkin and called it his 'special own pumpkin'. Never new an .89 pumpkin could provide so much entertainment! He ate dinner with it that night, ate breakfast and watch Seasame Street with it the next morning! He's played with it so much this week as well!

Deakan came over yesterday for the afternoon...we had so much fun reading and building a fort!

Like father like son...

Love her sweet smile...isn't she getting big?!!

Family pic in the cornfield!

Marshall's special pumpkin!

One of my favorite pics of all time...

Dinner with the pumpkin...

Breakfast with the pumpkin...

...and Seasame Street with the pumpkin:)

Happy fall...Christmas will be here before we know it!

Top 5 things happening in my life...

2009-10-17T23:08:00.000-07:00

# 1 - I am recovering from turning 30:) I actually feel no different so there's hope for all you youngsters who are turning 30 next year! Can't wait for you to join me!
#2 - My sweet Reagan girl is getting so big! I put her down on the floor tonight and within a few minutes she had moved all the way accross the room! She's only 5 months tomorrow! Scary...

Sorry Reagan I wish I could tell you this will never happen again but I think this is only the beginning of life as the baby sister of Marshall:)

#3 - Marshall is at such a fun age right now. Well all of his ages have been fun...they just keep getting better. His vocabulary is so great and you can really have small conversations with him now. I cut my bangs the other day (kind of by accident...the length anyways) and when Marshall saw me he said, "Mommy, what's wrong with your hair?" Wonderful isn't it?:)

He's loving his fireman jacket and snow boots as of late. I used to see kids in public dressed like this and think, "Why would their mother let them go out like that?" Now as a mother I think, "Well as least he has clothes on." (Not that the outfit is necessary that bad but we're a little early for the season. When he took that coat off the other day his head and arms were covered with sweat...)

#4 - We just started a 10 am morning service at Outward and it's going great! Matt gets to come home in the middle of the day for a bit now and it's wonderful! www.outwardchurch.com

And finally #5 - The biggest news of all...we bought a house!!! We got a sweet and I mean sweet deal on a great little 3 bed 2 bath house! It's got a fenced backyard and a double car garge which I am really looking forward to with all the rain that's been coming down! We're still waiting on all our paperwork to go through but the plan is to move the first part of next month! It really hasn't hit us yet but we're so excited! God has truly provided a great little sanctuary for us! And yes the color of the house is light turquiose so according to my husband painting the outside will be one of the first things to happen! I've got paint on the brain and packing to do...which is probably what I should be working on instead of blogging...all in due time right?:)

Please join me in welcoming my thirties...

2009-09-30T17:05:00.000-07:00

It's true. My twenties are over. Wow do I sound old? Today I turned 30. A new decade to begin. I'm actually doing quite well with it despite how morbid I might sound :)
One makes so many life changing decisions in their twenties and it seems like the thirties is where life gets played out...I've been doing some real soul searching as of late and I think it's been good for me!
My wonderful hubby, along with my sister and the rest of my family planned an awesome surprise party for me on Monday night! It takes a lot to surprise me apparently because I'm so nosy...I just like to know that I'm going to be surprised:) Can anyone else relate to me or am I just nuts??!
Anyways Matt and I went to dinner and coffee and then one of the guys from the church called and told him that they had broken a sprinkler head down at the church building and that water was everywhere...we had to get down there immediately Matt said. I was fully expecting to walk into a room full of water but when I walked in the place was decked out and tons of people yelled surprise when I walked in the door. Pretty sure I almost peed my pants. I was seriously shaking a bit because it literally scared me...good job guys! I am so thankful for my friends...
So here we go...a new chapter in my life, wish me luck:)

Updates!

2009-09-16T09:40:00.000-07:00

Hello after a little absence in blogging! Of course it's busy with two kiddos but that's no excuse:) We've had a few things going on around here. We're hoping to buy a house befere December so I've been looking like crazy. I think I know something about every available house in Salem, in our price range at least! We found one that we loved but it didn't work out so we'll keep looking! We also took the kids to the fair and it was Matt's birthday last weekend and I was able to surprise him with tickets to the Keith Urban concert in Portland! It was a great concert and we had a wonderful time. We got a sweet deal on some amazing seats!
Can't believe we're half way through September!!! It's going to be Christmas before we know it.
On another note we have been having Outward's service on Sunday evenings but starting on the 27th of this month we will be adding a 10am morning service! We're so excited.
Ps - I can't wait to get some colder weather going on! Sorry to all you sun birds but I love jeans, boots, scarfs and extra hot lattes!

Me and Reagan...thanks Aunt Heidi for the 'baby legs'!

At the fair waiting for the chinese acrobat show to start. It was a pretty great show and Marshall was trying to do acrobat moves for the next few days!

Just loved the pen behind the ear:)

Waiting for Keith Urban to play!

Keith Urban...he's actually pretty short! He is an incredible guitarist and Matt LOVED the concert. Yay for a great present!
Actual view from our seats...no zooming. Pretty sweet!

Blue eyes...

2009-08-31T13:01:00.000-07:00

Matt and I both have brown eyes! No idea where my blue eyed children come from:)

no words...just eyes

2009-08-29T00:39:00.000-07:00

Just another day...

2009-08-15T22:50:00.000-07:00

So we've been staying home quite a bit lately. Matt and I have decided to try the 'envelope' system to keep ourselves on a tight budget and it's been a fun challenge to see how little money we can spend. I love challenges...I haven't had Starbucks in almost 2 weeks! Seriously how proud of me are you?!!
Anyways here's a few pics of our week!
Marshall snug in bed with his, BASKETBALL, how did that get there? Well before he went to sleep the little rascal got out of bed, got his basketball, got back in bed and tucked it under his little arm! So funny, I couldn't help but take a picture...

Chris and Reagan! She's a red-head!

Marshall helped me bake cookies the other day. He was very helpful! He's wanted to bake cookies everyday since then, go figure:)

Time for another hair-cut to get rid of that comb-over!

And last but not least I picked these gorgeous hydrangeas fresh from my backyard! Love fresh flowers!

Proof that I exist

2009-08-07T22:59:00.000-07:00

I'm a list person. Sometimes when I make a list and forget to write something on it, I go back and write it on the list even if I've already accomplished it. I write it on there and cross it off right away! I like to see all that I've taken care of.
My world as a mom, while I'm definitely prone to listmaking, is chalk full of things I cannot cross off my list. I am never done with laundry, dishes, diapers, cleaning up spills, cleaning up Marshall, putting kids down for naps, consoling crying kids...you get the point. I am so thankful that I get to stay home with my kiddos and take care of all the things that go on in our household, but there is something about creating something and finishing it that makes me feel like there is proof that I exist! I started and finished something! For example...I just finished making a blanket for Marshall's big boy bed and I love it! I made a smaller version for Reagan before she was born but haven't put a picture of it up until now. I can't tell you how much satisfaction it brings me to know that my kids are using something that I made. Maybe I'm weird, I don't know, I don't really care I'm just happy to have finished my project and can't wait to start another one!

Reagan's first blanket!
Marshall's blanket...

Marshall enjoying his new special blanket!
My sweet Reagan girl...

"Bear bears"....also known as blueberries

2009-08-04T23:10:00.000-07:00

It's blueberry season again and I LOVE fresh blueberries! Marshall's translation of blueberries is "bear bears".:) I love toddler language...
I had been a little nervous to take him because I wasn't sure how he would do. However, he did great and I think he might have picked a decent blueberry or two. He tried scooping them out of my bucket into his, little rascal, and I'm sure he ate several but who wouldn't expect a two-year-old to consume a few! Here a few pics of our time!
I think he was just being silly before a meal!

Marshall and daddy reading a Saturday morning story. Have any of you ever heard of the book "Skippy John Jones"? I can't read the book because it has the cat talking in a funny accent and I feel completely embarassed just trying to read it out loud to my child. Matt, however, thinks it's hilarious and did great! Also please note Marshall's doggie slippers...pretty sure it was 100 degrees that day!

And last but not least, Matt teaching Marshall about the construction of a block house:)

A vacation...kind of:)

2009-07-22T18:09:00.000-07:00

My parents had been on a little trip to Hawaii this past week and so we decided to go and stay at their house for a couple days! We had been wanting to get away as a family for a bit and it was the perfect place to go. We got up there Tuesday afternoon and just spent most of the day hanging out. Marshall built with blocks (which he is enamored with currently), Reagan took a nap, not sure what Matt did:) and I made cookies. My parents came home late Wednesday night so I thought my dad would like a little chocolate chip cookie homecoming...I was right:)
On Wednesday we got up and headed downtown Portland to OMSI. We had never taken Marshall there and I can't even remember the last time I was there. Anyways they have this great area for kids 2-6 and Marshall had a blast. He play in the sandbox, built more blocks, and played in this stream type thing with boats. Check out his little water cape!
It wasn't a super long time but it was definitely quality time both for Matt and I and our family. I'm so thankful for my parents...they are so generous!
Things continue to be busy for us mostly with the church. Can't remember if I posted about out new building?! Anyways, the first of June we moved into a new building in Salem. The old place just wasn't meeting our needs any longer. We got more square footage, full time use and cheaper rent with the new building! It's been a TON of work as we've had to remodel several things on the place but people have really stepped up and helped out. We are LOVING the new place. God has definitely moved mountains to make this all become a reality. I think there are some pics on our website. www.outwardchurch.com
Okay until next time...enjoy the 100 + degree weather!

I love my job...

2009-07-18T22:42:00.000-07:00

...as a mom! Some days being a mom is tiresome and draining...other days are refreshing. Today was one of the refreshing ones. We all slept in after a late night last night at the Haynes for a BBQ. I took the kids to Target and Costco to grab a few things today while Matt was working on his message. Then it was home for naps. Marshall just started taking naps in his "big boy" bed. He's gone down without a peep and hasn't even gotten out of his bed, he goes right to sleep. Honestly I cannot believe it. I've been dreading the whole transition to a toddler bed but he's done so great. I'm not ready to switch to nightime yet...I like knowing he won't get out while I'm sleeping:)
Anyways both the kiddos slept for a while this afternoon and I got to sit down and read a magazine! I did the dishes and laundry too, but a magazine...it was wonderful!
Then our wonderful babysitter Britney came over (Marshall calls her Britey) and Matt and I went on a date! Best Little Roadhouse, coffee and a walk...perfect date night! And here I sit, both kids in bed, just finishing up Law and Order, drinking my water and about to start working on a blanket I'm making for Marshall. Life is good...

I snuck in to check on him and I found him hanging off the bed! But sleeping none the less...

Ah my sweet little girl, she's smiling and talking all the time now.

Can't believe those blues!

Marshall at the Haynes house with his "weerbear". (That's his interpretation of wheelbarrow)

And lastly Marshall is sitting "just like daddy" on the couch with his keyboard. My dad fried his keyboard during a coffee spilling so he gave it to us so we can practice Marshall's letters. Marshall loves it. Thanks papa:)

I love Saturday mornings...

2009-07-11T11:20:00.000-07:00

My husband is an incredible breakfast maker! We love Saturdays especially because we normally have a great family breakfast! Here are a few pics of our morning.

Matt's famous egg, ham and cheese scramble...yummy!

Marshall is ready to eat...he loves eggs!
Mommy needs a quick picture!

Matt also has this things for grits. I think they're disgusting but Marshall loves them as well:(I have been making these iced Irish Cream lattes as of late so I whipped a couple of them up for our breakfast. They're a healthier version of Dutch bros. "Kicker". (But I still drink a 'kicker' now and then:)

Matt was getting ready to head to the office this morning to study when Marshall told me he wanted to go to work with daddy. Without thinking I said okay. Uh bad move. Marshall ran to get his shoes and starting telling me how he was going to go with daddy in his 'big truck.' Marshall loves to ride in the truck with Matt. I started to tell him that he had to stay here with mommy and he starting crying and repeating, "Marshall go in big truck with daddy", over and over again. My sweet husband decided to go to the office a little later and took Marshall on a ride. They are out right now and I have no idea where. I love watching my men spend quality time together...it makes my heart want to burst seeing how much fun Marshall has with his daddy. I'm so thankful for Matt. Anyways...I look forward to hear about all the fun that was had without me!

Our new way to travel!

2009-07-09T23:12:00.000-07:00

Ah my favorite time of the evening! Both kiddos are sleeping soundly and I have a few minutes to myself to blog!
My parents ordered us a double jogging stroller last week and it was scheduled to be here today. So of course I spent most of my morning anxiously awaiting the Fed Ex truck. Finally about one o'clock it arrived and thankfully both kids were sleeping when it got here so I had a minute to put the thing together without Marshall's help:)
We LOVE our stroller! We took it on a maiden voyage this afternoon to Starbucks and then to Riverfront Park where they just put in a new fountain for kids. The fountain is awesome and I'm sure this will be a place we will be frequenting this summer! I think we will be living out of that stroller as it's so nice not to have to put Reagan it the front pack. She's definitely over 10 pounds now and it's so HOT to carry her! Thanks mom and dad!
Also here's a cute pic of Reagan from the other day. I don't know why it loaded onto the page sideways so sorry that you'll have to turn your head a little bit!

July!

2009-07-07T22:54:00.000-07:00

I can't believe it's already July! We've definitely had a lot going on these past couple weeks. Most recently my brother in law got married this past Saturday! It was a beautiful wedding and hopefully I'll have some pics on my next post! These are just a couple pics of me and Matt and then also me and my new sis in law Holly at the rehearsal dinner! I am so glad to have another girl in the family! Marshall was the ring bearer and he had a rough time and didn't make it down the aisle! He did great in rehearsal but I think he got a little overwhelmed with all the people plus he was in a suit and it was so hot out!
I actually coordinated the wedding so I was exhaused Saturday night and have spent the last couple days catching up on laundry and cleaning! Life goes on...
Reagan is doing great! I have a couple new pics but of course my camera battery died before I could get them on the computer. Another thing to add to my to do list...
Well I'm off to finish a little laundry before bed!

hello...

2009-06-24T22:42:00.000-07:00

So I know that I have been a terrible blogger as of late but I promise I have a good excuse! My hubby has had my computer at work all week and I've been left internetless! Sad I know. So I have so much to share...but not tonight:( I'm too tired!
Lots to share about the church...we've moved to a new location and it's been incredible!
My mom has been here all week...and she's been absolutely wonderful. I got to run errands yesterday by myself, got a pedicure today by myself, and I get to do something tomorrow afternoon by myself! Having some me time has been so great this week.
Anyways my good friend Michelle is in town visiting and she took some pics of my kiddos the other day. Her link is www.endearingstudios.com so go check out my babies! We had so much fun getting Reagan to pose.
I'll update more soon with more pics of Marshall's new haircut and the church!

Bridal Shower!

2009-06-12T23:00:00.000-07:00

I was finally able to throw my new sis-in-law to be a bridal shower! It was held tonight at my house and it was so fun! I absolutely love showers. I love to decorate and I love entertaining! I am so excited that Holly is joining the family! She is such a gem. We had a great group of ladies and she got some great gifts! Sorry about all the 'aqua' colored stuff Tim!
I'll be updating soon about all the new and exciting things going on with our church! We moved out of our old building last week and will be in our new (to us) building this Sunday!

The dessert buffet! There was another table as well...lots of yummy desserts!

Beverage menu...our sweet friend Tara manned the espresso machine in the kitchen! Sorry no picture of her:(

The gift table!

The beautiful Bride to Be...Holly!

My good friend Stacy and I using our "Hooter Hiders" :) We both have newborns and they're only two weeks apart!
And as always a crazy picture of Marshall! He hung out with our friends the Vandyk's for the evening so mom could have a little time to socialize with the girls!

To the farm!

2009-06-03T12:54:00.000-07:00

So I woke up this morning and decided that I needed to get Marshall out of the house today to run around! His energy level is very high right now and I need to tire him out a bit more during the day:) I called my sis @ 8:30 am with my plan to head up to Bauman Farms. I've never been there but have always heard great things about it.
The boys had a great time! Playing on the tractors, feeding the animals and playing in the covered wagon was a blast for them! We finished our trip with a smoothie and fresh strawberries. You'll notice the last couple pics are complete with Marshall's strawberry covered face!
...Reagan did great too! She slept most of the time!

Our little lady!

2009-06-02T15:18:00.000-07:00

Here she is! Freshly bathed and beautiful! Enjoy!

I can't believe it's June!!!

2009-06-01T22:19:00.000-07:00

So we finally made it to the fountains in front of the capitol today! It was so nice today so after everyone's nap my sis and I headed downtown for a nice Starbucks drink and trip to the fountains with the boys. I love where we live now because it's a great walk into downtown and the capitol park with the fountains is really close. Marshall hasn't quite ventured into the spray of the fountain yet, we'll get there though I'm sure! We mainly just play near the edge in the puddles! And yes you might be thinking that my son has incredibly long hair right now! You are correct, but my husband doesn't want to cut it yet:) So we're going with the shag for now!
Life is a little crazy still but I feel like we are definitely adjusting to having two kiddos! Reagan had her two week check up today and she's doing marvelous! In the 90th percentile in height and weight...way to go baby! She's such a great sleeper...praise the Lord!
I'm going to try and put some more pics of Reagan up this week. I haven't really had a chance to take very many shots of her yet! Okay I'm off to check a few other blogs before I head to bed!

My little man!

Drinking the fountain water...we're just working on keep his immune system busy!Me and Reagan...just her feet and ankles I guess:) Sorry about the white legs...first day in shorts!

Life with two...

2009-05-28T09:49:00.000-07:00

...is definitely an adjustment! My little Reagan is such a good napper and sleeper which is making this transition much easier on me! It's so crazy how much I didn't know with Marshall that I learned and am now putting into practice with Reagan. She is officially 9 days old today and we are going on a great schedule already. I actually had an hour and half yesterday to myself while both kiddos were napping! I still can't get over the fact that I have 'kids'...plural!
I need to take some more pictures of her this week as you can't really see her cute face in these.
I love the ones with her and Marshall. Marshall loves his little sis...however, he doesn't quite know his strength vs. hers yet so we try to keep him away from her unless I'm right there:)
I'll try and post more pics soon!

Reagan Noel Porter...

2009-05-23T13:34:00.000-07:00

...is finally here! She was born Monday May 18th at 2:22pm, weighing in at 9 pounds 3 ounces and 20.5 inches long! And what a different entry to the world she made from her brother Marshall. My labor with Marshall was 26hours long, with almost 3 hours of pushing and an epidural that didn't work. Reagan's labor was about 6 hours long, a GREAT epidural and 10 MINUTES of pushing! All in all it was a great experience and we are loving our little girl!
She is a great sleeper so I'm feeling pretty good. My mom is here this weekend which is amazing! I'll update more later but wanted to get these pics up for you to see!
Marshall loved helping bring baby Ra-Ra home!

Get her out of the sun!

The first family photo!

And before my husband put this pic on facebook he wanted to make sure she was looking modest!

The Countdown!

2009-05-05T22:48:00.000-07:00

Had another doctor's appointment today as I'm just shy of 38 weeks and he said the baby's head is engaged! Yay! We made another appt for next week unless I go into labor on my own before that! Which is my hope of course:) We shall see when this little one is ready to enter the world...my mom thinks she'll be on her own time schedule!
I'm getting a little sentimenal about the reality that these are my last days of it just being Marshall and I during the day. I'm hoping to be able to do some special things with him this week. Tonight I made milkshakes with special straws! Very messy but very fun!
Also wanted to show you the pic of the outside of our house! We are still absolutely loving it and I'm so thankful that we got to move when we did.
Lastly my dad came down to Salem to visit last week and I snapped this pic of the boys watching Matt mow the lawn! Too precious!
Okay the next post you hear from me might be via my husband in the hospital but we'll keep ya posted!

Belly and Bedroom Pics!

2009-04-23T12:41:00.000-07:00

Okay so here are a few pics of our morning and also more of the house! Like I said the other day I have about 4 weeks left till baby Reagan arrives but I hope it's sooner than that! Here's the latest shot of me with a big belly!

My son wanted his hiking boots on with his shorts this morning! Whatever...

Okay this is Reagan's little corner in our room. My friend Stacy did that darling canvas above her bed and I've decorated our room throughout with that fabric...I LOVE it! My did built that little crib...isn't it gorgeous?

Just showing off my curtains...that is a tablecloth that I found at Ross 3 years ago for $2.99! I've used it as the backdrop for my wedding, a curtain headboard in our studio, a tablecloth and now it has taken on the role of curtains for our room! I love amazing finds!

I love my bed! If you'll also notice there is a gigantic mirror right behind my side of the bed! What a treat to look at my ginormous self as I get in and out of bed everyday:)

And last but not least here's the pic of our living room! I've been putting all the pillows together and putting the final touches on this room! It's so cozy...and we can watch TV with no headphones!:)

36 weeks and counting!

2009-04-22T12:54:00.000-07:00

Ah naptime! I love the quiet in my house when Marshall is sleeping. I also love the fact that my house will stay clean until he wakes up and pulls all his toys out again:) A mother's work is never done! I can't tell you how much I am LOVING my new house! Having bedrooms is a new thing for me and I am not taking one minute of it for granted! I will have more pics of the house soon I'm just trying to finish up a few things before I reveal all! Again I have a slight tendency towards perfectionism.
Went to the doctor yesterday for my last ultrasound. I'm 36 weeks this weeks and everything looks good. He said he thinks the baby is about 6 lbs right now so she'll be big...awesome. I go back in 2 weeks and we'll see how things are looking! I'm ready to not be pregnant anymore that's for sure!
These are just a couple of pics from the family birthday party we had for Marshall and a little shower for me!

Marshall is still saying, "Happy birthday to Marshall", every time he is at this table:)

He was thrilled with a set of sports balls he got from his uncle!

Just a little taste test of his Elmo cake!

Yes my mother in law did fill his new squirt gun with water in my house!
My sweet friend Stacy threw me a little shower! I was the first in line for treats!

I wore these pajamas when I was a baby apparently! My mom was so sweet and packaged up a bunch of clothes that both her and I had worn when we were babies...still in great condition! I can't wait for Reagan to wear them!

I'm back!

2009-04-13T21:51:00.000-07:00

Wow what a crazy last two weeks this has been! Trying to get better from the bug I've had, moving into a new house, celebrating Marshall's second birthday and Matt and I will celebrate our 3rd anniversary tomorrow! I'm working like a madwoman trying to get my house decorated and ready to bring a baby home to! I'm a little bit of a perfectionist so I've only included pictures of the parts of my house I have finished so far! There will be more soon though as I'm spending the rest of my evening crafting pillows, curtains and baby stuff!
Obviously the Elmo cake pictured below was for Marshall's birthday and boy was he excited! The other one of Marshall and Deakan is them waiting at my window for their papa! We spend Easter with Matt's family and I was a terrible mother and didn't even have an easter egg hunt for Marshall. He did get a couple chocolate eggs and I promised to do better next year. There is only so much a very prego mommy can handle right now:)
Hope everyone's Easter was great and I'm looking forward to stepping back into normal life...until I have another child in about 5 weeks!
Sorry no prego pics yet but I think I have forgotten to mention that our baby's name is Reagan. Not sure on a middle name yet though!

We Moved!

2009-04-01T21:37:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to send out a little update! We are alive and well but life has been crazy these past few days! We MOVED! I am loving my cute house! It's very messy right now but it's so incredible to have a bedroom! And Marshall absolutely loves his room! My camera is out of batteries so I will get some soon so I can update you with pics!
Also I've had this horrible bronchitis type thing and it's been lame! I'm feeling better now which I'm so thankful for!
It's Marshall's birthday tomorrow so we've got a little preparing to do tonight! Lots of pictures coming soon!

a little updating and a little ranting!

2009-03-24T22:06:00.000-07:00

So we've been a little mia lately because things have been so incredible busy! First of all we did get that darling rental house I talked about on my last post! We are so excited and we move next week! I have already started packing but still have a lot to do...
Then I got hit with this really nasty bug that sounds like it's going around everywhere! I don't remember the last time I've felt this awful. I was telling someone that it's not fair that mothers of toddlers get sick. Praise the Lord for movies! Cars is our current favorite! Also this sneezing and coughing stuff is not good for a prego lady who already has to pee often anyways. The force is not good and I'll just let you imagine the rest:) And what was the Lord thinking when he allowed a pregnant lady's bladder to become the size of a pea during pregnancy but then allow water to be one of the best things for you during pregnancy? One of my many questions for God when I get to heaven:)
Finally I'll leave you with a quick pic of Marshall who also hasn't been feeling that great. I pulled his high chair down off the counter to eat Mac N Cheese today while watching "Cars"... I need to teach this boy how to smile normally for the camera!

Little Drummer Boy!

2009-03-13T20:16:00.000-07:00

It's a well known fact that Marshall simply loves music, the drums especially. A friend told me that old oatmeal cans make great drums. I decided to take it a little further and make something for him that he could wear and play at the same time. He's hardly taken his new toy off for the last couple of days. This cardboard thing probably won't last through the weekend so I'm planning on getting him a real one for his birthday in 3 weeks! Holy cow I'm going to have an official 2 year old on my hands!
In other news we've found the most darling house that I think we are going to be able to rent. With the new baby coming soon we are finally going to retire of the studio apartment and get something with bedrooms:) We should find out for sure on Monday and I am so excited! It's a darling old house with tons of character and a great fenced backyard for Marshall to play all summer in! The Lord has honestly performed some miracles to make this all happen.
Have a great weekend!

Bath time and burp rags

2009-03-03T22:31:00.000-08:00

I don't know about anyone else but I usually give Marshall a bath before bed. I'm not saying he gets one every night before bed but when he gets one it's before bed:) So he has his bath and then I dry him off and send him, without any clothes of course, into the living room to see Matt. When I put him down and send him out, he runs faster than I've ever seen him run, jumps up onto the couch, and begins jumping up and down screaming and laughing all the while. It's like there is a sense of freedom that comes from being without clothing! The child seriously goes nuts...great bedtime routine I know. It's no wonder it takes him a while to fall asleep:) So this evening after I put him in his jammies, I was trying to take some pictures of the cute burp rags I just made for the new baby, and Marshall went a little camera crazy. He's never been this cheesy in front of the camera so I thought you'd like to take a peek! And you'll notice that even though I was repeatedly telling Marshall not to touch the burp rags he got one little finger in the shot. We are in the 'testing of my mommy's patience' stage!
So here are just a few shots of my son's personality as well as a little window into one of the many craft projects I am currently keeping myself busy with!
BTW - I am now 29 weeks prego with a due date still scheduled for May 21st but I think she'll be here early:)

Guitar Hero!

2009-02-25T11:36:00.000-08:00

So here is the debut recording of my son's worship leading abilities! He honestly started doing this all on his own. Obviously he has been observing Matt and Grae leading worship at the church and is apparently taking decent notes!

By the way he is using a pick as well...doesn't like to play w/o one:)

Happy Wednesday...

Some thoughts...

2009-02-22T13:27:00.001-08:00

For the last few months I have been slowly making my way through the "Experiencing God" Bible Study by Henry Blackaby. I've been mulling over so many things and wanted to share with/encourage you to pick up this study if you've never done it before.
I feel as though it's radically changing my life! This past year has definitely been one that the Lord has and is still using to reshape who Matt and I are as a family as well as redefining what we believe about who God says He is. Not that we were doubting God but over the last several months we have come to know more about and have experienced God on a deeper level than we've ever known. I'm not talking about anything crazy here, just spending time in God's word and really learning to trust him to provide for ALL of our needs! Although some months have been hard I wouldn't trade them because God has given me a new perspective on what He wants to accomplish in our lives.
Sometimes this stuff is hard to explain over a blog!
Anyways, one last thing that I was dwelling on last night...
I have been thinking about what it means to give your best as a mom and a wife and whatever other roles we each are to others. I know it's so easy to try and take shortcuts and save your energy (especially when pregnant) or be frustrated with something and take it out on your husband, etc, etc. There will always be a reason that we don't feel like doing something.
Anyhow, I was thinking last night about the fact that at any moment our lives could change. We could lose someone that we love and I would hate to look back and be disappointed in myself that I missed a chance to serve my husband or love on my child. I don't mean for this to sound morbid.
There are some days when staying home with the kiddo seems a little overwhelming and you've got to come up with a plan as to how you're going to kill some time! However, I know it's going to go so quickly. A friend of mine says, "The days are long but the years are short." I guess I want to look back over my child raising years and feel like I gave it my all. It's going to go so quickly and honestly I want to be tired when the kids are grown. I want to leave it all out on the field so to speak. (Sorry for the sports analogy!) I will still probably grumble about scrubbing food stains out of my carpet, or cleaning the house four times a day, but I'd like to choose to see it as blessing that I get to be home and love on the people who matter the most to me. I guess I'm partially thinking about all this because I know the days are probably only going to be more challenging with another litte tyke on the way! We want to have 3 or 4 kids so I'm going to be in this for a while! I think I just want to have the right perspective on life you know? I want to honor God with what He has given me...a great family!
So there you have it! A few of my wandering thoughts for your pondering! Hope you don't stop reading my blog after all my ramblings...:)

V day update!

2009-02-18T13:58:00.000-08:00

I'm so bummed that I forgot to take my camera on our Valentine's date on Saturday! We had such a great evening! We dropped Marshall off at Matt's moms and headed up to Bridgeport. We had a giftcard to McCormick and Schmick's for dinner and movie tickets that Tim and Holly bought us for Christmas! We've been saving them and it was worth the wait!

So here are my roses and a pic of Matt and I the morning after V day!

My little munchkin!

I'm thinking Marshall has a guitar playing future! PS - he does wear clothes sometimes:)

Provisions!

2009-02-12T14:08:00.000-08:00

So the Lord has definitely been teaching our family what it means to trust in Him to provide for our needs! Over the last couple of months we have been blessed in some pretty crazy ways. First some friends of ours gave us a half of a cow's worth of meat! Our freezer is stuffed with ground beef, roasts, and steaks! I even had to put some of it in a friends freezer because ours way too full! My husband is a happy man:)
Next the sister in law of a good friend of mine was getting rid of all her baby girl things and she gave them all to me! I had two huge garbage bags full of girls clothing! Lastly a good friend of my mother in law goes to these last chance sales and Nordstrom and bought me a ton of clothes for Marshall and our baby girl on the way! I have more girls clothes right now than I know what to do with and I haven't had to spend a penny! These Nordstrom clothes are brand new, with tags still on them! I posted a couple pics of some of my favorites! I actually have more on the way so I might put a few more pics up later!
The verse in Matthew speaking of how we need not worry about what we will eat or what we will wear in ringing in my head right now! God is impressing on my heart how personal of a God he really is! My hubby likes steak and I like Nordstrom! Seriously though...He is a God who is able to do more than we can ask for or imagine.
My husband gave a great message at church this past week about being generous. He talked about some of our blessings and if you have time you should give it a listen! Here's the link
www.outwardchurch.com/blog it's the first message called Worldly Squalor or Heavenly Treasure. Just click on listen below that title! Enjoy!

I decided to try some swoopy bangs!

Slow Days!

2009-01-30T12:48:00.000-08:00

Life on our homefront has been pretty mellow the last few days as Marshall has had a little bug. The cough and really runny nose has been sad to watch! So we've stayed indoors for the most part, playing and watching movies! Shrek 2 was the only animated movie I had and I was so sick of it so we borrow a couple from my neighbor. 'Cars' has now become the new favorite around here!
The nice thing about sick kids is that they take long naps! Marshall slept for 3 1/2 hours the other day! That NEVER happens! He woke up after 2 1/2 hours and I brought him out on the couch with me only to have him keep sleeping for another hour! It was awesome. I documented it with these pics because I'm sure that will never happen again!
I've also decided to start potty training! We'll see how it goes. We got some Seasame Street underwear today and he's gone on the potty twice now. I'm sure I'll have my messes to clean up but he's so interested in it and I don't want to miss that!
This morning Matt had an early meeting and brought me coffee in bed after his meeting! I love that man! So all three of us sat in bed talking for a while, us with our coffee and Marshall of course with his milk! I love surprise family time! More updates about baby girl next time!

The belly!

2009-01-24T12:58:00.000-08:00

So I thought I would finally put up a pic of the belly! Here we are in all our glory! I'll be 6 months this coming week! It's going too fast. I'm trying to soak up all the time I can one on one with Marshall right now. I know we'll never have this time back:) We've been going on little dates a lot. We went to Starbucks yesterday for a bit and sat in the bar level chairs and the barista gave Marshall his own little cup of whipped cream and chocolate sprinkles! Needless to say he was thrilled! The realization that it won't be the two of us during the day much longer is starting to sink in. I'm thrilled to have another baby but I really want to enjoy this time as much as possible!

Friday night fun!

2009-01-16T22:50:00.000-08:00

Just snapped this pic of the little man enjoying another part of the tool kit he got for Christmas...I love this age!
Also tonight we decided to take a little family date to Dairy Queen. We let Marshall have his own little cone and he loved it. He was having fun with the ice cream but got very serious when it came time to eat the cone. He finished off the whole thing!
Not a whole lot else going on here right now. Just watching my belly get bigger! Maybe I'll post some prego pics soon!

A little bit of this and that...

2009-01-09T15:06:00.000-08:00

Hello hello! As we begin this new year it's crazy to think of all the changes that are up and coming for our little family. Not only are we adding a little baby girl to our family, Matt's brother Tim got engaged on Christmas eve to an incredible girl named Holly! We are so excited and looking forward to a fun wedding in July. In the mean time we are looking to move out of our sweet little studio and into a place with more room. We are looking at a house in the area but we'll see what happens. You could pray for the right place for us if you thought of it! God has been so good to us over this last year. I have learned so much about how He is my provider. I am excited to see all that our new year holds!
I also just wanted to take a minute and show you the humor I find daily in Marshall's antics. Our friend left his coffee mug here at our house a while ago and Marshall found it and thought it would make an excellent holder for his sippie cup:)

This is Marshall in the morning. He loves to put shoes on with his diaper and he also loves to put his socks on his hands to double as gloves. Go figure. Such a proud smile to go with his outfit! Hope you're laughing.

Christmas and some good news!

2008-12-31T13:21:00.000-08:00

Hello again everyone! Well I think most of you probably know this already but our biggest and best Christmas news was finding out that we will be adding a baby GIRL to our family in May! I can't believe it! We're really excited. Matt has been teaching Marshall to chant "brother" so now we need to learn "sister"!!!

We both kind of thought we would have a boy so we were very surprised to hear the technician say...it's a girl! None the less we are so excited about a girl!

Well Christmas has come and gone. My tree is gone and decorations are all cleaned up:( It's a little sad but I'm happy to have my house in order once again. I cannot believe that a new year begins tomorrow!

I hope everyone has a wonderful New Years!

Marshall's most beloved gift was the tool kit he got from my parents. It had a hard hat, along with belt and suspenders and all the tools he needs to destroy my coffee table!

First thing the next morning:)

Grandpa and his boys!

Marshall getting some movies!

Matt's grandma gave him his grandpa's old Bible for Christmas. It is so worn and fragile but such a special gift. Matt's grandpa started a church when he was young as well...what a meaningful gift.

Snow Snow Snow!

2008-12-19T00:02:00.000-08:00

I cannot believe it's been snowing for almost a week here now! We woke up Sunday morning to snow and as a family tradition we grab Starbucks and head towards south salem since the elevation is higher out there. Matt loves to drive in the snow and as you'll see from the pics it was a winter wonderland. Marshall had fun but didn't really love trying to walk in it. He kept wanting me to hold him...very weird for my child:)
Anyways this first pic is of Heidi and I and the boys at the Salem Festival of Lights. Just a little parade they had here on Saturday night. They started blocking off all the roads early that night and Heidi and I were trying to get to a decent parking spot. I "accidentally" went a wrong way through an alley and then had my sister get out of the car to move some roadblocks. Wouldn't you know that right as she was moving the last one a motorcycle cop drove up and told us to go the other way! I was almost to my parking spot. (I hope my dad isn't reading this)
Anyways we did end up getting a great parking spot and a good story out it. Seriously I never do things like that...I just didn't think they'd have people patrolling the area yet:)
Hope everyone is enjoying this crazy weather!

By the way we have a big outreach service this coming Sunday night which we've invited a bunch of families from our community to. We're planning on having Santa, goodies, gifts and a great service so please pray that we don't have to cancel because of the snow! Thanks!

the beach in december...

2008-12-13T12:29:00.000-08:00

We took a little family trip to the beach last Saturday. It was really fun. Very cold, as it should be in December, but Marshall definitely enjoyed the ocean. Just a few pictures of our trip:)

The First Haircut!

2008-12-04T13:36:00.000-08:00

So Matt and I decided last week that it was finally time to take Marshall to get his hair cut. Not to mention we were getting a little pressure from some of my friends...you know who you are:)
So we headed to the barber shop where Matt always gets his hair cut by Elisa! She is wonderful but Marshall freaked out! I put him down in the chair and he reached his arms up for me and said 'mommy' in a very sad voice. So we thought maybe Matt would go first so Marshall could watch. He adjusted himself a little to the shop and we tried again. This time sitting on Matt's lap. As you'll see I spent most of the time trying to distract him from the actual haircut. He was spraying water all over the place and eating a sucker at the same time. I don't know what it was but he was not a fan of the haircut.
By the way I'm planning on learning how to cut his hair because it's so stinkin' expensive even for a kid!

Happy with a spray bottle and a sucker...this was his second sucker by the way.

Looking at his shoes to get him to put his head down...
This is one of my absolute favorite pics of all time. He's all done with his haircut but he just wanted to get out of that chair so bad. He doesn't really like being contained!

Wow it's so true that after they get their first haircut they look like a little boy. Bye bye baby Marshall!

O Christmas Tree!

2008-12-01T09:25:00.000-08:00

My aunt and uncle own a Christmas tree farm in Lake Oswego and my family has begun a tradition of getting our trees together! This past Saturday was the chosen day for this event and we had a great time. Grandpa kept the boys busy playing "drums" in the garage as we were all getting ready to go!

Bright eyed and bushy tailed!Marshall obviously ran for the tractor the minute we set him on the ground...now joined by cousin Deakan.

Marshall's looking for the perfect tree...

...but Matt is the one who found it.
Daddy's little helper!

And Marshall got the end the trip with a tractor ride with aunt Laura.

A little early Christmas prep!

2008-11-21T12:58:00.000-08:00

Now I know it's not even Thanksgiving yet but sometimes I feel like Christmas comes and goes so fast that I really want to enjoy the whole season this year. Thus leading me to start my Christmas projects early. We haven't had stockings up until this point because every time I looked at the stores I couldn't find something I liked or I thought was even worth what it was priced. So this year I decided to take matters into my own hands and create our very own stockings. And since I just finished them last night I couldn't very well just leave them in a box, no they needed to be up on the wall! So here is my first Christmas project! I have another cutout for the baby but we don't know the sex or name yet so we'll wait and add that one next year!

Just a little snapshot of Marshall. He likes to wear my running shoes, yes with his little ankles crossed, while he watches Veggie Tales!

Ps - For those of you, Chels, who have requested a pic of my belly to see what I look like prego right now, you'll have to wait until I look officially cute and pregnant! It might be a while....

It's so cute when you're pregnant with your first child and nothing is stretched yet. Not the case with the second one. Just look like I've put on a few pounds:)

Outward Church!

2008-11-19T16:00:00.000-08:00

Well I finally have a few minutes, a computer and an occupied child in order for me to update my blog! I have tried the last few days but couldn't get online...sad. Anyways I don't have any new cute pics of Marshall so I decided to post some pics of the other love of our lives, Outward Church. I realized that many of my blogging friends haven't been able to come to Outward so I wanted to show a few pics of what goes on for us every Sunday night!
God is doing awesome things at the church and we are so excited to be a part of it! Enjoy!
Oh yes and pictures compliments of Michelle Young of course!

Outside of the theater!

Our other worship leader, Grae.

Matt speaking...he might be praying here I think his eyes are closed!

Matt leading worship.

Aaron our associate pastor speaking!

Okay so I did find one cute picture of Marshall and the backside of Deakan in the nursery!

Trick-or-Treat!

2008-10-31T21:53:00.000-07:00

Yes I believe I am definitely an overachiever by getting my Halloween pics up even before the night is over! This is mostly for my mom to be able to see the pics of the grandboys since she wasn't here. We had so much fun tonight! Heidi and Deakan came over as well as Matt's mom. We got the boys dressed and tried to take a few pictures. It was hot in my house so I decided to take Marshall out into the garage to take some pics. Well the garage is now Marshall's new playground so the pics you see are actually of me running around after him trying to snap a few good shots. Deakan however was the perfect child and stood completely still for his mommy to take pictures.
We headed out into the neighborhood and the boys were a hit. Everyone kept calling their families to come look at them in their costumes. It was really cute. They both did great carrying their little baskets up the door for candy! We rent a cheap apartment in one of the nicest neighborhoods in town and they were giving out full sized candy bars! Way to go Marshall...now that Marshall is in bed Matt and I are about to watch a movie and raid Marshall's treat basket:) It's not actually that mean because he can't have all that candy anyways. Plus it's the only year we'll be able to do this as next year he'll be two and will be fully aware that his candy is his candy!
Hope everyone had fun tonight!

Baby Porter #2!

2008-10-30T10:34:00.000-07:00

So here is the vey first viewing of Baby Porter #2! Everything is where is should be, arms, legs and such:)
The little guy (Matt refers to the baby in male form already) was wiggling all over the place during the ultrasound. Even though we've gone through this before it's still so amazing watching that little thing move!
I'm feeling great so I'm really thankful for that! The next update will be in a couple months when we find out if it's a boy or girl!

Pumpkin Carving!

2008-10-28T22:05:00.000-07:00

So after our eventful morning at the pumpkin patch and a good nap, Marshall and I attempted to carve his pumpkin! It turned out to be more like me drawing and carving and Marshall playing. Well he did at least help with the scooping!

Don't worry he didn't actually take a bite but it was his first reaction!

This was after he threw the pumpkin on the ground when I handed it to him!

My cheap creations!

2008-10-27T17:31:00.000-07:00

I have been searching for the perfect headband and have not been able to find one. So I found a skinny one at Walmart for .96 and decided to cover it! Here are the results of my efforts. It's perfect and it's exactly what I wanted! This is mostly for Michelle who is dying to have a few of these...cute huh?

Pumpkin Patch

2008-10-27T15:03:00.000-07:00

So we finally made it to the pumpkin patch! Weekends are really busy for us so we went this morning! I also can't believe how expensive it is to go to these places on the weekend. We thought it would cost $3 for each of us to get in today but we went and they said to just come on in and just pay for your pumpkin in the store! I was thrilled! Our whole pumpkin outing cost us .89 for Marshall's pumpkin! I was very happy to get such a great deal! Anyways we took some great videos but I always forget how to upload them. So I'll have Matt do it later and put them up soon!

We attempted to take a nice family picture but unfortunately Marshall had already seen the giant tractor and would not sit still!

So here's a nice pic of Matt and I:) Marshall is running across the field toward the tractor!

He was hilarious in here! Running from animal to animal saying their respective sounds!

No smiles. He's totally serious when playing on tractors!

The Zoo again!

2008-10-21T13:17:00.000-07:00

Every time I have gone to update my blog lately I realize that all our current pictures are on Matt's computer. So today I finally have a few minutes to update!

We are back up at my parents house as Matt is helping my dad finish reside the house. They have been working very hard on getting it done before winter! Marshall has been sleeping for two hours now, although I can't believe he's still asleep since the whole house is shaking. I just made some yummy chocolate chip cookies so the kitchen smells wonderful!

These pics are a little random. My mom and I took Marshall to the Gresham Teddy Bear parade the last time we were here and Marshall loved seeing all the floats but his favorite part was seeing the horses!

Then Matt was gone at a conference for a week so we went up to the zoo the day after he got back for some great family time. It was a beautiful day and it was $2 Tuesday so it only cost us $2 vs. the $11 it would normally cost each of us! Crazy...it actually wasn't that busy so it was a perfect day to go. Since Marshall is getting older and recognizing the different types of animals is was way more fun this time than the last time we went!

Hope all is well...

A very cheesy cheese!
Marshall's favorite thing to do at my parent's house is raid the cupboards...
Matt and Marshall at the carrousel.
Heidi and I needed to go to a store at the mall but it wasn't open yet so we found alternate entertainment:)
Looking at the sheep at the zoo.

Marshall is very into riding horses lately.

So I'll explain the hair. He got yogurt in his hair during breakfast and I washed it out but his hair just stayed like this!

Just like daddy!

Okay I wish this picture would have come out clearer but this was the black bear exhibit and the bear was walking back and forth up to the window. The bear was eye level with Marshall and he was obviously impressed. He actually back away from the window a bit when the bear got close. I would probably do the exact same thing if I were his size:)

More Family Pictures

2008-10-03T19:33:00.000-07:00

So we got a bunch more of those family pictures back so I thought I would share them with you! I am so very happy with them!

Enjoy!

The Fair!

2008-09-24T12:00:00.000-07:00

A couple weeks ago my mom came down to Salem and took Heidi and I out on a little girls night. We went to dinner, Starbucks of course and then over to Target to do a little shopping. It was a great treat for the both of us and we had a great time with our mom!

As promised here are the pics from the fair. I haven't been able to find my camera for the last couple weeks and wouldn't you know I found it this morning in the exact place it's supposed to be. It was just covered up by some stuff! This better not be the pregnancy talking already:)

I don't normally share super personal stuff on my blog...not sure why, I just don't normally. Anyways the last couple weeks have been a little rough on me as I feel like the Lord is testing my faith in some ways. Just this morning I took Marshall to the park and carrousel and we saw a little boy whose head was deformed an he had definitely had some operations on his brain. He was a sweet boy but it reminded me that I have so much to be thankful for. A dear friend of mine was telling me that we don't normally have to look very far to find someone worse off than we are. Not that we look for others to be struggling but it's a good reminder to me that everyone deals with something. Anyways, it's just been a reminder to me that God is in control of our lives and he promises that he will give us the strength we need to accept our portion in life. Takes a little weight off my shoulders!
So those are my deep thoughts of the day:) Take care!

Girls night out!

Grandma chanting "We're going to the fair" with Marshall and Deakan on our way to the fair!

Don't worry about the fence Marshall, just go right in!

Being nice to the goat!
And now we're biting the donkey ears...I did a little mouth washing after the petting zoo!
Playing the drums!
Why can't I ride this one?
A horse just my size!

This would be one lame reason to get arrested:)

Family Pics!

2008-09-16T20:13:00.000-07:00

Alright y'all my sweet friend Michelle did another round of pics for me! This time she attempted our whole family! I know she's brave. She was sweating by the end of the shoot due to running after Marshall.
My sweet child had a complete meltdown while we were trying to get some picture of him, Matt and I. We took the pics in the park by my parents house and I should not have let him see the playground before we took the pictures. He was screaming and crying and trying to run away from us and toward the playground...it's like I never let him play!
Anyways all in all it was a complete success! She put some of our pics on her blog so here's the address..you've got to check them out.
http://endearingstudios.blogspot.com

Enjoy the evening!
By the way...we're prego with number two:)

Our day downtown!

2008-09-03T14:08:00.000-07:00

My good friend Michelle is here for a month from the Florida Keys. She happens to be a professional photographer and has been taking some amazing pictures of Marshall, Deakan and Lola! We went downtown a couple weeks ago and these are the pics she took. I am begging her to move to Oregon:) We'll see!

Not much else going on here...we went to the fair last weekend so I'll post pics of Marshall running around the petting zoo soon. I mostly just got shots of the top of his head as I was trying to keep him from riding the goats. I'm not even kidding...

Should have brought Michelle w/ me:)
Fair pics coming soon!!!

Where have I been?

2008-08-28T12:46:00.000-07:00

This is such a crazy time of year for us! We have just had so much going on and sitting down for daily blogging has been completely out of the question. Marshall just went to one long mid-day nap so hopefully that will free up a little more undistracted time for me!

Things are good here...busy with church and family but we're looking forward to the fall. These are just a few pics of Marshall in the back of my dad's truck. We had a birthday dinner for my mom the other night. Also my dear friend Gina just had her 4th baby yesterday! Yes I did say four, she's amazing. She had a realatively quick delivery and I got to take part in the whole thing. Every time I see a baby born I am brought to tears at the amazement of life. It takes my breath away! With that said we've decided it's time for Marshall to have a brother or sister so I'll keep you posted on our progress:)
I'm still busy with weddings and really enjoying it! Matt and I are also super busy with church stuff and are anticipating a great year!

Marshall with Auntie Laura...
He loves his papa...

Gina's support team! Mom Brenda, Kristen, Courtney, me and Paul's mom Lori!
Sweet baby Cali Anne weighing in at 9lbs 5.6 oz! She's a healthy one!

Wanted to put some pics up of Gina but I'll wait until she's a little rested before I go snapping her picture to display in public places!

Wedding Update!

2008-08-12T16:16:00.000-07:00

I think I'm still recovering from the intensity of my wedding on Saturday! It was sooo crazy. Very fun but very full. It's looking like I'm going to keep doing this for a while! The Zenith Vineyard is absolutely gorgeous and I hope that I get to work there again!
Today Sharon, Marshall and I went blueberry picking and it was so fun. I let Marshall get out of the stroller for a bit and he went picking for himself. It was so cute! Okay I'm off to figure out dinner!

A day in the life...

2008-08-08T10:26:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the blog slacking lately! I've been slammed with weddings! Tomorrow I have my HUGE wedding and I seriously mean huge. My suburban is packed full of all the decorations and such to take to the vineyard tomorrow! Pray for me if you think of it:)
Just a few quick shots of my little man. Grandma got him a little backpack the other day (yes it includes a leash but I'm not sure I'll be using that yet) and he loves it. He calls it backpack and loves wearing it around the house! We were wrestling a bit on the floor on my comforters the other day and I snapped a few cute ones! Take care! I'll update about the wedding next week!

heidi's blog

2008-07-30T10:44:00.000-07:00

nothing really new going on here! i'm just having a little mommy break while listening to marshall's lullaby music in the monitor as he's taking a nap. that music makes me want to take a nap:) no new pics to post but my sister just updated her blog so you should check out all the pics of marshall and deakan! click on the heidi and deakan blog on the right hand side of my blog!
we have a busy weekend ahead as i have two weddings this weekend. one on saturday and another on sunday! fun fun fun! i'm loving this job! wish the sun was shining today...

A Major Blog Update:)

2008-07-22T09:29:00.000-07:00

Where oh where have I been these last three weeks! So much has happened and I just keep procrastinating updating the blog! Which is not great since more things keep happening and now I have a ton of pictures that need to be put up! Oh well so here goes...Matt and I had the opportunity to go to the American Idol concert! You might not think that's a big deal but we are huge fans of the show and the seats were right next to the stage and three rows up from the floor! Also the tickets were free! It was such an great treat for us!

Also my college roommate and dear friend Chelsea came to visit with her 19 month old son Asher. We hadn't seen each other since my wedding which was over two years ago, and had obviously never met each others little guys either! She was here for a week and it was such a blast. We spent a few days in Portland and a few days here in Salem. You could check her blog to see some other pics of the trip. It's the "Garner" link. We also had a playdate here and "Kesha" has those pics on her blog! So much fun! Marshall and Asher LOVED each other! They would crack themselves up playing peek a boo in their carseats and Marshall loved to give Asher hugs. Asher didn't like the hugs because they sometimes ended with Marshall trying to pull him down to the ground. My child is a little aggressive apparently:)

We also got to visit Chelsea's uncle who is a Portland firefighter...my dad was on vacation! Enjoy!

Nothing Runs Like A Deere!

2008-07-03T09:10:00.000-07:00

Okay so our landlords brought out this awesome John Deere electrical tractor the other night! Marshall being a 15 month old was not expected to really drive the thing so Matt started to help push him around the yard! Well much to our surprise Marshall figured out how to push the gas pedal and started tearing around the yard! It was so funny. My parents were down for the day yesterday so we brought it out again to show them! This time Marshall had more confidence than the day before and was fearless and laughing his head off and he was riding around the yard. He ran over some toys and put the whole front of the tractor up in the air before I could get the toys out of his way! The two videos are a little bit of our experiene. The first one you'll see me on the ground because I had just grabbed Marshall off the tractor because he stepped up on one side, pushed the gas pedal, and started riding around the yard standing up on one side! I was nervous that he was going to fall off so I grabbed him. As you'll see this is now his favorite way to ride the tractor!

At the end of a long day of tractor riding Marshall enjoyed his entire popsicle sitting on his new tractor friend!

Weddings, weddings!

2008-06-28T21:21:00.000-07:00

So I did my second wedding today and it was so much fun! However, it was so stinking hot ALL day long. I was setting up for the reception and meeting the vendors as they arrived at the site. The reception was at the Oregon Garden, which by the way is beautiful, and it was seriously hot with NO air conditioning. They were expecting over 300 people! Anyways it was a blast and

I'm so excited to be working with SHE Designs this summer! I thought I would post of few pics of the set up! Enjoy...

Sunday morning

2008-06-22T08:52:00.000-07:00

Since we go to church on Sunday nights our Sunday mornings are usually very low key and relaxing. (Not like any other morning is really stressful either!)

Anyways Marshall has had the pukey bug for the last few days and he is finally feeling better today!

So Marshall and I headed out to our backyard this morning since he was up early early! Our landlords just put sod in their backyard so we now have grass in the yard. It's fantastic and we are so excited for it to get nice outside...we're still waiting here in Oregon!

Anyways these are just a few pics of our morning!

Just scooping some dirt up...not sure where his pail is!
My perfect vanilla latte! I love my espresso machine:)
Mom without makeup and Marshall saying cheese!
We tried our hand at bubbles...
Lounging in the lawnchair...And of course he would find the stick that is bigger than he is and lug it all around the yard!
Have a great Sunday!

Element 5

2008-06-20T07:25:00.000-07:00

My sister has been a massage therapist for the last 5 years. She has been working out of other businesses and renting spaces from other people since she started. Just this last week she made the move out onto her own! I'm so proud of her and her space is absolutely gorgeous!
She's calling her business Element 5. The five is actually the symbol of being to the 5th power but I couldn't get blogger to pull the five up any higher! It stands for the five elements...fire, earth, wind, rain and I can't remember the last one...oh well.
Anyways Matt and my dad helped her building the arbor like thing on the celing, which actually holds the bars she uses for the type of massage she does while walking on people's backs! If you've never had a massage like that you must try one! Anyways she has basically transformed this small empty room into a beautiful and relaxing environment. Let's just say I can't wait for my first massage!
And I must say that I helped with the chair! I had this gorgeous old Queen Anne style chair that was badly in need of a recovering. I can't fit it in my house right now and I had some swanky orange paisley fabric that I thought would look fabulous over it. I tried it and it works perfectly to match her space. Don't look too closely at the sides as I didn't have enough fabric to cover the entire thing:) Once we angled the chair in the corner and put up a little coffee table you couldn't even tell!
I love decorating and creating...it inspires me!
Anyways if you're here in Salem you must go see her and if not then I'll just let you be jealous!:) Just kidding!
Way to go sis!

catching up!

2008-06-18T11:34:00.000-07:00

Wow it's been almost two weeks since I've last posted! I did try and post last week but something in my blog picture settings got messed up. Being the computer genius that I am (not hardly) I actually did figure it out on my own! So now I of course have several things to post about...so here we go!
Last week our friends Jerry and Molly's boys had their last tball game! I love tball...it was the cutest thing we've seen in a long time! The boys were both fantastic and Matt and I loved every minute of it! Here are a few pics of our time together!

Daren and Kimberly with Molly and Marshall!
Marshall watching the game from the lawnchair. He was out of the chair by the time I was done taking this pic!
Darling Brody ready on second base!
An action shot of Brock...I was pretty proud of my picture taking skills on this one:)
Marshall and mom!
And Marshall learned how to climb up the back of the couch and onto the bookshelf...are you kidding me! Just today he learned how to get himself up onto the couch from the floor so I am really in trouble! This whole climbing thing is going to be an adventure.

We went to a friend's wedding on Saturday and Marshall had his first piece of wedding cake...with a fork I might add. Good thing I had another shirt in my bag for him!

My sister and I have also been working very hard getting her new massage room ready for business this week! She got it all finished yesterday so I'll have those pics for my next post!

Deakan's party and a few other things...

2008-06-05T08:57:00.000-07:00

Man the days go by quickly around here! Last week it was my nephew Deakan's birthday so we celebrated down at Riverfront Park. My sis did a great job putting the whole thing together including making a fabulous cake!
I also assisted with my first wedding this past Saturday! It was so fun! Matt had Marshall and he did great. It was so fun to get out
of the house for a little while...plus I LOVE weddings. I'm doing another one the end of this month!
Also in other news, my sister is moving her massage business downtown as she just rented this awesome space on the third floor in this newly renovated building. We spent yesterday getting it ready for her and I think she'll make the move next week. The building is renovated like I said but it's got concrete floors and the original exposed brick walls. Very urban! We love it. I've also been making some nursing covers, burp rags, etc, and she's going to let me sell some in her space!
This is graduation weekend for all the high school seniors so we've got a few parties to go to! Hope everyone has a great weekend!

I know her eyes are closed but Lola still looks adorable giving her cousin Marshall a squeeze!
I think Marshall is either trying to run after a dog or a bike that one of the kids brought!
No smiles for the kids but at least we got a cute pic of us:)
While getting Heidi's space user friendly we've made several trips to Lowe's and Home Depot. I love these carts! Marshall starts clapping and tries to squirm out of my arms as soon as he sees the thing he's so excited to get into it! They make such a ruckus in the store as well. Kicking on the thing, laughing, it's really quite funny to watch them together. I on the other hand feel like I'm driving a station wagon around the store...but it's all about the kids right?

Memorial Day at the Neely's

2008-05-28T23:21:00.000-07:00

Matt had a two day conference this past Thursday and Friday so Marshall and I went to my parents house! Matt met us back at the house Friday afternoon and we actually stayed until Sunday morning. It was like a mini-vacation for me! I got to have some one on one time with my good friend Tiffany over Starbucks, Matt and I went to see the new Indiana Jones movie, and my mom woke up with Marshall and fed him breakfast on Sunday morning! For all you moms you know what a treat that is! I still don't even know what day it is around here...it's taken me a little bit to get back into our routine.

Sunday afternoon we celebrated Matt's brother Tim's birthday and then headed off to a great night at Outward! Monday we had lunch with Matt's fam, took a trip to Starbucks, and took the kids to the park! Such an amazing weekend!

And we have lots of pictures to share...I'll just narrate them as we go since they are all a little random!

Here's Marshall showing off his new camoflauge rainboots drinking out of my water bottle!

Mr. Cheesy grin! He loves being on the couch by himself...I think it makes him feel independent.

Marshall had his very first experience gardening this weekend as well. He was very into the watering can...when we took it away to fill it back up again he would scream! We finally figured out to let him help fill it back up as well...they love to be a part of the process.

After this bath that didn't really clean anything off of this baby we headed for the bathroom to take a nice bath. I left the water running and draining because I was just trying to get all the dirt off of him. Well I stood him up to clean him off and he leaned forward and pushed the shower knob...water comes spraying out of the nozzle on both of us! I was wet and he looked a little surprised and a little pleased!

Marshall and Deakan lounging in the new matching chairs that Grandma got them! With their matching spatula toys as well:) Why do we buy these kids toys when anything from the untensil drawer will work just fine?

Just hanging out with Uncle Tim and Grandma Sharon's house on Sunday afternoon!
A long weekend for both my men!

Hope everyone had a fabulous weekend!

Pool time...

2008-05-17T12:36:00.000-07:00

I'm sitting inside my house right which is an ice box because my husband has the air conditioning up so high! It's soooo stinking hot outside..it's wonderful! We're just inside while Marshall is taking a nap! Then we're off to run a bunch of errands. The band Esterlyn is coming to our church tomorrow night and we need to get food and snacks for them!

Also we went to our friend Courtney's house yesterday and Marshall got to play in her kiddie pool. It's so cute so I think we're going to go and get one today! I also have an Old Navy gift card I got for Mother's Day! Praise the Lord for gift cards! Anyways these are some pics of our time in the pool yesterday! I had a really cute one of Marshall and I but my legs literally cause glare on the camera so I decided not to put that one in! Not until I get some sunless tanning lotion! JK!

Marshall taking a walk to the pool with Gina!

He loves to splash!
Marshall with Carly Diaz...I think these two might get married someday! Marshall loves her!!

The Zoo

2008-05-13T15:09:00.000-07:00

Well mother's day has passed and can you believe I didn't take any pictures! I'm so lame! Sorry Chels! I wanted to get a couple pics up from our trip to the zoo last week. These aren't very good pictures because we relied on my dad to take most of the pics and I haven't gotten them from him yet. So hopefully more to come...we did have a very fun day though! My sis, Deakan and Dad came along for the fun. It was a perfect day...overcast but not cold. And did you know that it's mating season at the zoo. It was at least for the bats and monkeys. I won't go any further and traumatize your imaginations. Mine is still scarred.

It's supposed to be 90 degrees here by the end of the week...I hope so! Have a great day!

All ready to go!
Watching the bats...those things are so creepy.
In the bird house with grandpa...
After lunch nap!

Checking out these new dinosaurs...he was a little uncertain of this thing!

Daddy's Truck!

2008-05-07T22:11:00.000-07:00

We took Marshall on his very first ride in Matt's truck last week! Nothing crazy but Marshall loves being up so high. We also got to go to the beach last weekend as Matt's dad had a place for us all to stay for a night! So it was me and all the Porter boys! Very fun! Marshall had a nice nap on the way over as you'll see!
Life has been super busy around here! Our young moms group at church just started another Bible study this morning and it was great. We've got some new people in the group and I'm really excited about that! Plus we're meeting in our apartment. I have such a small space but I love it and I'm so thankful that I can use it in that way!

a few more pics

2008-04-30T14:50:00.000-07:00

Here are a few more pics from this last weekend! We went to the park again today only I had to wipe the water off the swing before putting Marshall in it. I'm tired of the rain and cold! I'm so ready for it to be warm and dry outside! Sorry just venting...but I feel like I'm starting to run out of things to do inside! I'm sure I'll come up with something...I just found a new recepie for raspberry lemon bars, I think I'll go try that! Happy wednesday...

just carrying mom's starbucks for her...
please don't look at the reflection of the sun off my white legs...holy cow i need the sun to come out!
hanging with daddy...
marshall thought matt was a jungle gym that day and wouldn't stop climbing all over him!

New pics and a porter update!

2008-04-26T11:49:00.000-07:00

I can't believe it was snowing last weekend and today it's beautiful and sunny outside! Marshall and I took a little stroll to the park this morning and had some fun playing in the grass!

This was the sad look I got while he was cooped up in his stroller but once I let him out...

...happy as a clam!
Marshall is attempting to run after a dog that was walking past us! He's really into animals right now! We have a stray cat that has been coming onto our porch and Marshall goes crazy when he plays with him through the window. Don't worry I'm not letting him near the cat...only through the glass can he see his "kitty"!
Our first attempt at eating a flower...
And this is my latest project around my house! We have these amazing windows up by the ceiling that let so much light in and they are fabulous during the day. However in the early am, like 6 o'clock in the morning it's not so fun to have light pouring into your bedroom. Also Marshall goes to bed around 8pm and now that summer's coming it's staying light outside later and later. All that to say, we needed some curtains so I made some!

I have some new blog friends now and I thought I would just give a quick run down of our lives right now for those that I haven't talked to in a while!

My husband Matt and I just celebrated our 2 year anniversary last week! It has been a crazy two years! Marshall came just a year after we had been married and has forever changed our lives! Definitely for the better! I'm able to stay home with Marshall and I am so thankful for that! Last August along with a couple friend of ours, we decided to start a younger style church here in dowtown Salem! That has been an amazing journey and the church is doing awesome! We meet in an old historic theater downtown, actually it's where Matt and I got married! Pretty cool. So that has been a huge growing experience for us and we're definitely learning alot! Our church website is http://www.outwardchurch.com/ if you're interested in seeing what we're all about!

Matt is also doing part-time construction work to help pay the bills! I am going to be doing some wedding coordinating and assisting this summer with a Design Co. here in Salem and I'm really excited about that. It will be here and there so that will be great with Marshall and will bring in a little extra income! We all know about that right?!!

So life is good, my sister Heidi also had a baby 2 mos after I did so that has been really fun as well! Parents are still in Gresham but we're trying to convince them to move to Salem! We'll see:) So there you have it, the life and times of the Porter family!

The Anniversary Trip!

2008-04-15T20:34:00.000-07:00

My oh my how fun to leave my child with grandma and grandpa overnight! I must admit it's my first time! And the next time will be soon!!! Jk...anyways Matt and I had such a wonderful time over the last couple days.
I started off our time by going to get a pedicure! So relaxing. Then we headed off to Portland. We stayed at Comfort Suites up by the airport and it was actually really nice. We got a great deal on the room so that made it even better. We went downtown to do a little shopping and see where the night took us. Then we strolled around a little bit and found this awesome guitar shop where we spent a good 45 minutes checking out vintage guitars...my husband was in heaven! We hit a movie and then grabbed dinner at Rock Bottom Brewery.
Then this morning I got to sleep in until 9am!!! For those of you with children you understand what an amazing gift that is! We had belgian waffles at the continental breakfast and lounged around until we had to check out. Then we of course hit Starbucks and then headed to IKEA. Matt had never been there and he made it a whole hour in the store. Then we were dying to see Marshall so we headed back to my parents house. Marshall was pumped to see us!
All in all it was a fantastic time for us...2 years and going strong! Enjoy the pics...I'm terrible at asking people to take our picture so you'll see a few close ups!

My pedicured toes...
Driving to Portland...
Still driving...
Dinner at Rock Bottom

I took a picture of us right before this but forgot it was on zoom so I got half of each of our faces:) I obviously am not showing that one...

My husband looking very much awake

I'm so glad I'm getting coffee...

And welcome home Marshall!

What a beautiful day!

2008-04-13T07:54:00.000-07:00

Well I think it was about 75 degrees here today in good old Salem! The best day ever...it was beautiful! I also have the best husband ever as he agreed to go to the park not once today but twice! We headed down to Bush Park after lunch for a walk around the park as well as a stop at the teeter totter and the gazeebo in the little rose garden.
Friday Marshall started walking all over the place. It's like he just decided it was time...crazy! He walked all over that gazeebo including around some bushes and tried a few different times to eat the grass.
Then we had a nice lunch at Best Little Roadhouse with some of our college students followed by a nap for Marshall. Well it was just too nice outside to waste any of our time indoors so after Matt had a quick nap we headed downtown for Starbucks and a walk at Riverfront Park. Matt thought it would be fun to bring Marshall's push cart for a quick ride in the grass. Then we found a strap on our stroller and Matt thought Marshall might like to be pulled all over the park instead of pushed...as you'll see below he definitely did. He drew quite a bit of attention with his funny squeals and laughter! Today is sunny once again..not as nice but I think we'll be heading to the park again!
By the way it's our 2 year anniversary tomorrow! I can't even believe it's been two years already. Matt jokingly told me it feels like it's been twenty...he's a funny one!
Anyways we're heading to Portland for a couple of fun filled days but I'll be updating when I get back!
Happy Sunday!

The Family Easter Pic!

2008-04-09T16:56:00.000-07:00

And here it is...the belated family Easter photo! Hope you enjoy! I sure did! My men are so cute!

For my mom and sister!

2008-04-06T15:09:00.000-07:00

My mom got Marshall his very own pair of sunglasses last week and he LOVES them! Everytime I put them on him he starts smiling this huge cheezy smile! It's so funny...every single time he does the same thing.
Today he was quiet for a minute so I hurried to check on him and found him in his collapsed tunnel reading a book. It was so cute I rushed to get my camera before he moved...oh those priceless moments. I'm so thankful for cameras to capture all our memories.
That's all just a few quick pics...heading off to church in about an hour! Have a great night!

Marshall's Big Day!

2008-04-02T22:19:00.000-07:00

Marshall's big day has come and now gone! It was an absolute blast but I'm sooo sad it's over! Don't you worry though we got plenty of pics! Like I said in the last blog I really did go to town on this party. Well we actually had two parties. One at McDonald's yesterday with some of his friends...and then one tonight with our families! My house was fully decorated and a taco dinner was ready and waiting for our guests! Marshall was so happy to see everyone and very excited that they brought presents with them. I got him a guitar for his birthday and he hardly put the thing down all day. My sister Heidi got him a tunnel to crawl through and he LOVED it! I'll try and narrate the pics below.
All and all it was a fabulous day...I love parties! I love getting ready for them, I love matching everything together, and I love having people in my home! I can't wait until his next birthday!
Enjoy the pics!
PS - I full on had to put marshall in the bathtub after his cake eating experience!

McDonald's party eating a cheeseburger happy meal!
This is my new favorte pic! I think I put his guitar in front of me while I took this picture...that's why he's coming towards me!
Uncle Tim got his this dump truck and the first thing Marshall did with it was try to climb into it!
He is very serious while opening his presents. It was so funny to watch him...he hardly smiled at all he was so focused on what he was opening.

His new swim hat from Aunt Laura!

This saw actually moves when you push the button...very cool and very boy!

Okay here comes the cake. I made him his own little cake and he couldn't wait to get his hands on it! Here goes!

Happy Birthday Marshall! To the tub...

A little bit of catch up...

2008-03-31T21:09:00.000-07:00

I knew I had some other pictures that I had forgotten to post so here they are! Marshall has been helping push the cart at the store lately which is fun, a little slow, but fun. Also my cousin got married up at the Benson Hotel in Portland and Marshall and I went together. Matt had to work but it was really fun to get all dressed up! The pics are mostly of Marshall cruising across the dance floor. He was a hit at the wedding with everyone including their photographer! I tell you what though, I have a very busy boy. I was so exhausted by the end of the night just trying to keep up with him. He's energized by being around a lot of people and all I can say is praise the Lord they had high chair at the reception. I would have left an hour earlier than I did if not. It was so great to finally tie him down for a minute! And then to have to clear a 2 foot radius on the table so he can't knock any of the nice glasses or china off the table. I can't believe we made it through that night without him breaking anything:)
So for those of you others moms...I feel like I'm probably going overboard with Marshall's party but I'm so excited. I'm trying to keep it simple as I'm sure I'm going to feel like I have to go above and beyond every year! But I think about it all the time...I'm always thinking of other things I can do! I'll have the party pics on Thursday so be on the lookout!

Easter part 1

2008-03-29T21:02:00.000-07:00

So sorry this has taken a while to get these pics up! I can't believe my last post was 3 weeks ago! I'm the worst. Anyways this is actually only part one of our Easter pics because my camera batteries died mid-morning and I didn't get a family shot until church with one of my friends cameras! So...our morning went like this...Marshall opened his Easter basket, eggs with kix and goldfish in them plus some cool Cars socks! He just wanted the kix and when he was done with the egg he chucked it behind him. Then we went to my mother in laws house for lunch. We had our little easter egg hunt which went like this...I showed Marshall the egg, shook it so he knew there was something inside it, I threw it across the room, he went crawling after it. End of Easter egg hunt! Life is fun with an almost one year old!
By the way Marshall started walking last week! He's doing it on his own this week moving from the coffee table to the couch or from the table to me in the middle of the living room floor! It's so fun and exciting! His first birthday is this coming Wednesday and I can' t wait to give him his presents. I bought him a kids sized guitar!
Hope everyone is well and I'll put those family Easter pics up when I get them!

Day at the Beach!

2008-03-03T19:41:00.000-08:00

Sunday morning we headed off to Pacific City for our first trip to the coast with Marshall. Matt had to be at the church all day so Marshall and I went with Matt's mom, brothers, and cousin Lisa who was in town for a few days! It was sooo much fun! It was beautiful at the coast and such a relaxing day. We went to this cool brewery when we got there as we were all pretty hungry and had an awesome meal! You'll see the onion ring tower below! Marshall had chicken strips and fries and made a huge mess on the floor. Most of the meal he was turned side-ways in his high chair watching all the people in the restaurant. I have a very social child. Wonder where he gets that from....:)

Trip to the Fire Station!

2008-02-28T21:55:00.000-08:00

Well it was a big day for Marshall on Monday as we finally went down to visit the Gresham City Fire Station! Grandpa Neely was on duty that day and we thought the grandboys are at an age where they would understand seeing such a big truck! When my dad opened up the truck door and set Marshall on the huge seat with the huge steering wheel Marshall did something that will be forever etched in my mind. He opened his mouth into the biggest smile I'd ever seen, he opened his eyes as wide as I'd ever seen, and moved his head back and forth taking in the view of where he was from all directions. It was like he was saying, " I can't believe I'm here, this is the most amazing thing I've ever seen." Seriously I wished so badly I'd had my video camera!
I think it was the size of the steering wheel that he was so excited about. He tried to climb into the thing at one point during his visit! That's a surprise!
I think I'll try and explain the pics below...

Just pure cuteness...

I really just like Marshall's facial expression in this one...oh and this is when he tried to climb into the steering wheel.
Marshall and Deakan...
Very excited to now be inside the back seat of the fire engine...
Okay Marshall look at the camera...
Okay now Deakan look at the camera...

Okay well now we lost Marshall and grandpa so just forget it!
This is a busy boy's wonderland...so many things to touch!

Okay that's all for now...sorry it's been a while I just haven't had anything picture worthy to post about!

Best Friends!

2008-02-16T08:39:00.000-08:00

Well you saw the video of Marshall's first steps with his borrowed walker, but what you don't know is that the two have been inseperable for the last few days! Marshall loves this thing and since it belongs to my friend Matt and I ordered one for Marshall yesterday! Seriously you'll see in the pics below that he climbs into the thing and plays or reads a book! It is so funny! If I set him in it he grabs onto the sides right away because Matt has been pushing him around our house and Marshall loves it! He just figured out how to move the walker once he runs into something. I can't believe how fast he's growing...
The last couple pics are at Starbucks of course! Marshall is actually participating in the styling of his hair by running his grimy graham cracker filled hands through it! Yummy!

Marshall's First Attempt to Walk!!

2008-02-12T23:36:00.000-08:00

My friend let me borrow this little walker deal so I let Marshall try it today. The first time he pushed it and walked on his knees but he got the hang of it so quickly! By this evening he was walking behind it and pushing it all over the living room by himself! I'm so proud of him!

Oh and that's my friend Britney in the background...I had to hold the video camera! And I'm not sure of what all I said so maybe turn the volume off and just watch Marshall:)

I just learned how to do this video thing so I hope it works!

Sleep Positions!

2008-02-09T22:21:00.000-08:00

Okay super quick post but this was too funny! I put Marshall down for a nap the other day and when I went over to check on him, this is how I found him! He's totally asleep!!!
I moved him to a more comfortable position and he stayed asleep. He really doesn't like to miss a thing!