House of Boys

I AM...

2010-07-14T23:06:00.000-07:00

I am STRONG

I am BRAVE

I am READY

I am DETERMINED.

SUCCESS is not optional.

God has a CALLING for my life.

It's AWESOME.

It's GOOD.

I am ENJOYING it. Agaist ALL odds. I CHOOSE the path of JOY. And no matter WHO is JEALOUS, ENVIOUS or HATEFUL, I WILL press forward being ME.

What YOU need to realize is that NOBODY can control you unless YOU let them. Seek that which DRIVES you. There WILL be those who desire you to FAIL. But faint NOT. Trails and struggles birth STRENGTH.

The GOSSIP falls on DEAF ears...because GOD orders my steps...not mankind.

My life is too SHORT and PRECIOUS to fret over the DRAMA.

Precious Owen

2010-06-28T20:16:00.000-07:00

I don't have long to type right now..
I need to ask you to pray for sweet Owen. Remember Abby Grace? The sweet little girl who I asked you all to pray for last summer? God worked a total miracle in her life..now I am asking you to pray a miracle for her newborn little brother, Owen.
Please visit their blog to catch all of the details.. He is in need of our prayers.

My annoying blog will not let me post pictures of him.. please visit HERE to see him.. he's so adorable.

Also pray for his mother, Amanda, my sweet friend who is trying to survive one night at a time during all of this. They have 3 other kiddos at home.. so imagine how all that feels.. being pulled all those directions on top of the worry of the situation.

Thanks for being awesome prayer warriors,
Rachel

NEW BLOG HOME

2010-06-11T20:47:00.001-07:00

HI ALL!

I have moved the blog to a more "comfortable" place for now! There, I will expand more info on business and family... I will leave this blog open for strictly business purposes!! So please keep checking here for business updates/info!!

BUT--if you'd like to follow our new family blog, please email me at marquez.rachel@yahoo.com and in the subject line put BLOG FOLLOWER! I will email you back the new blog info! :)

Thank you for all the faithfullness to my blog!!!

I just want to say for the record...

2010-06-09T23:48:00.000-07:00

...that if I were a shoe, I would look like this:

{swoon!!}

OBSESSED!

2010-05-29T21:35:00.001-07:00

Oh Lordy, Lordy!!

This week I stumbled upon this in the grocery store...

...and boy is it GOOD!

I've heard all the raves about this product but hadn't yet had the chance to taste for myself. What have I been missing?!?!

And the best part? It's actually HEALTHY for ya! :0)

Slather this stuff on toasted wheat bread (my FAV), or as my boys like it, on a banana! YUMO!

Prayer request:
Please pray for a couple friend of ours.. I don't want to mention their names but they are just precious to us and are going thru some pain right now in the loss of their unborn child. I ache for them. Yet they are handling this with the grace of God's peace.. I admire it.

Hope everyone has a GREAT weekend!!!! :)

How are we doing?

2010-05-20T21:38:00.000-07:00

Man, it's been too long. I am such a terrible blogger these days!!

I'm keeping this short because I am determined to "hit the hay" before midnight!! That would be a first!

I hope you are all doing so well. There is so much going on over here that I will have to do another post just to fill you in. It's all good and wonderful and fantastic and YIPPIE God is good! LOL Can you feel the excitement? :0)

So here are some photos as of recent... I will have before and after pictures of our new house hopefully next week so check back...
Hugs to all!
Rachel

Heavy Spirit

2010-04-29T22:17:00.000-07:00

I have a heavy heart and spirit tonight. I won't lie. I won't get on here and pretend life is perfect. I won't be fake. I'm pretty much through with all that. It's no fun and people can usually tell anyhow..

I have such a saddness in my heart. Let me tell you why and can I ask you to pray for these people?

Someone I know found out they had a miscarriage a few days ago. And they are pretty sad about it. In telling the world, the stated in the same sentence how they know God has a purpose for this pain. Wow. Faith. Real faith. Please pray for this couple. I won't mention their names but God knows..

And second, this one has really crushed me. A couple-friend of ours lost their 6 week old baby boy on Sunday. He passed away. He was asleep on Dad's chest. They both fell asleep. When dad awoke, baby wasn't breathing. They tried to save his life but to no avail, he went home to be with Jesus.
It just sickens me. Is that ugly to say? Sounds ugly. But it's my heart right now. I don't like to cry. But I'm fighting tears right now. Even though nobody in my house is awake...why would I be afraid to cry then? Hmm.. I think because letting tears flow is like facing the emotions within which is sometimes hard for me.

I just cannot imagine what they are feeling. I feel guilt looking at my little Parker wondering why it wasn't him? Don't get me wrong, I'm so thankful... but really. The loss of a child? I cannot imagine a worse pain.

I think about what the coming days will be for them: walking past his nursery, dirty or unfolded laundry belonging to him that still needs to be washed or put away, his carseat in the car, the reminder phonecall from the doctor for his 8 week checkup, remembering his cry, thinking you hear it in the middle of the night only to realize that he's....gone.

Yes I know he's in heaven with our Lord. Yes I know that he is at peace.. if you are searching for that blog post that shines the faith of God thru adversity, you will not find it at the moment. Like I said previously. I am being real. These are my real feelings. Give me break if you will. I KNOW in my head all of those things are true. That pain and suffering does have purpose. But let's imagine that it was YOUR child. Gone. Man, I never want to live that truth.

It's totally selfish that I am sitting here having a pitty party when that couple over there is living without their precious son. All 3 of mine are tucked away asleep and for now, are here with us. I realize that all of that could change in one second. I live in fear of that everyday. I thank God everyday that He gives me THIS day with them. I am not guaranteed the next.

Why am I finding it so hard to pray for these people who are suffering??? Makes no sense. I truly feel that it's because when I DO speak with the Lord over this, I am going to have a total meltdown of emotion. It hits so hard as a mother when you pray for peace for the parents who have no choice but to go on without their precious little one.

Please join me in prayer for these ones who are suffering. I pray that the enemy would be bound away from their home and their hearts. I ask that bitterness not set in and that peace and joy will soon fill that hole.

I ask you Lord, to help me put life in perspective more; but not at the cost of tragedy, please.

Never again shall I sit and worry, fret or lose sleep over things that truly do not matter without complete guilt. People are suffering. Over REAL issues. How selfish of me to WASTE God-given time (that I am not owed) over some of the most childish things know to mankind.

I'm so thankful that God's mercy starts anew each day. What. a. blessing.

Please Lord, help the hurting all over. Meet their need. Fill their spirit with peace. Just put Your hand upon them.

Fabulous News

2010-04-17T00:17:00.001-07:00

Just dropping in to say hello..

It's been so busy for me lately that I haven't had time to blog.
It's 2am and I should totally be in bed but I'm not because I stayed up late to finish a big order..and I'm glad I did. It's hard to rest when you know you have orders piled up unfinished.

In about a month we'll have a new blog home! I'm super excited about that.. I will keep this blog for the growth and showcase for Jack and Cole Designs boutique.. which right now has been taken down so that I can work on it. It took a back seat during my pregnancy and pretty much that whole time we survived with repeat business and word of mouth.. not bad for not having to advertise! But now it's back to the hard core part of it. Now it's going to be harder trying to juggle the online store with my own handmade items I sell. But I love to be busy.. I love to craft so no complaints from me!

A few friends of mine and I have been working on a lingerie shower for a girlfriend of ours...it's been a blast hanging out with them. They have both blessed my heart in so many ways. It's so refreshing to hang out with girls who you actually admire and desire to be like. That's few and far between these days but it does exist! :)
I truly believe that God sends the right people into your life at exactly the right time.

So.. I know I'm so behind on posting info but...WE BOUGHT A HOUSE! We couldn't be more excited. We have been so busy working on it, making it our own and it's been so much fun. This house is perfect for us and it was totally meant to be. I kid you not we had a contract on another house when I clicked the REFRESH button on the real estate website and it totally popped up! It wasn't even on the market an entire day before we looked at it and decided it was made for us. It has great square footage and layout..and a HUGE backyard! My boys love it. It has definately been worth the wait for this house.

We are in the middle of rennovations. It's been a blast busting down walls and putting new ones up. I love Lowe's and Home Depot, and being the Re-Vamping Queen that I am, it's right up my ally to take something and give it a facelift!
I cannot wait to show you guys the before and after pictures.

We feel so blessed that God has given us this house. Cannot wait to start our lives there and make precious memories.
Want to shout out to our realtor--Juli--she's amazing! I never dreamed I'd gain another sweet friend out of the whole deal! We love Juli and appreciate all of her hard work for our family.

I really must run and get some sleep now. My puffy eyes will hate me tomorrow.
Blessings sweet friends! :)
ps-stay tuned for house pics and shower pics!

Understanding the "unfairs" in life

2010-04-08T00:12:00.000-07:00

Sometimes...

people will say things about you that aren't true...

they will make unfair accusations about you...

they will tell others these hurtful things about you...

they will try to get everyone to see these untrue things...

they have a jealousy for which you never meant to cause and you don't understand...

they feel that you wish ill on them when you truly do not...

they will try to befriend those you care for and sway them in their thinking of you...

they will accuse you of things you have never done, said or felt...

they will do many things to you that are totally undeserved...

BUT

God has forgiven me of my sins... so I in return can forgive them of theirs. Because I too am a sinner..saved by grace.

All I can be is ME. Exactly how God made me. And relish in the truth that God knows the truth, he knows my heart, he knows my motives and my intentions.. I stand before Him at peace KNOWING that I have done all I can to remain in His will.

Am I perfect? No. Have I made mistakes? Yes. Have I let my mouth get the better of me in a time of pain.. certainly. But, I am a new person. I have turned all things over to Him. I never, ever do things to intetionally hurt people.

Not long ago I received a ugly comment on my blog referring to the flower headbands I make and sell. Listen up.. YES I MAKE FLOWER HEADBANDS..YES I SELL THEM...AND I LOVE DOING SO. I have always been a crafty gal. And upon ordering those same headbands to sell in my online boutique, I realized it was more cost effective for me to make them myself.. and boy has God blessed it. He. Is. Good.

I try to keep away from territories that other people have worked hard to gain and sell.. fair is fair. But please grow up and see that TONS of other people make them and sell them. It makes one look bad to be so catty over a headband.

I would also like to state for everyone who reads.. that a few weeks ago I was wrongly accused of misadvertising by using someone else's product and saying it was my creation. I have NEVER done that. If I said it was mine it the picture, it was MINE. I made it. I wouldn't claim it as mine otherwise.. and just because I didn't tell you I made it at the time, doesn't mean I didn't.

Life is way too short to fret over petty things.. so let's end this dreaded post.

I think it's silly for someone to feel they were "copied" when they weren't the original designer of that idea anway..

I saw a quote once that read, "It is better to fail at originality, than to succeed at imitation." But that statement is only true if you are the original desinger. The owner of the idea.. otherwise, you were merely "inspired" by someone else's creation.

Enough said.

Beautiful Picture

2010-04-01T10:40:00.000-07:00

Photography by Art and Soul Photography by Angel Porch's Photos

Sunny Marie

2010-03-22T23:02:00.000-07:00

This is my best friend's daughter, Sunny Marie. Isn't she beautiful??? I adore her. She has this contagious smile that would melt your heart. She looks so much like her Mommy to me. I had so much fun taking her pictures!

Also wanted to let you guys know that I will soon be making some major changes to the blog...it will be finding a new home soon. Don't worry.. I will pass along the info to my sweet blog followers so you know where to find us! :) I want to take my business blog and seperate it from my personal blog. I also want to be able to feel comfortable with WHO is reading my blog and what they read about us... So we'll keep business public and family private! More info coming soon!

Friends

2010-03-14T22:52:00.001-07:00

I just wanted to say tonight.. that I am so thankful for friends. FRIEND. Do you think that word is taken too lightly these days? I do. Webster's defines friend as:
" a favored companion, one attached to another by affection or esteem." Esteem is defined by webster as: " the regard in which one is held; especially : high regard."

I am so thankful for true friends. I am thankful for friends who are classy enough to handle situations presented to them with grace and dignity. I am thankful for friends I can be my complete self with. Those who build me up. Who truly want and desire the best for me.

One of my closest friends, who's words I value greatly once told me that when it came to friendships, it's quality not quantity. Boy is she right. :)

I just want to say to Michelle and Jess, thank you for being such dear friends. You know how much I appreciate you guys. You have been there for me through some of the toughest times. My husband (who is not easily won over) has always spoken so highly of both of you.. he really respects who you are as individuals. Thank you for all of your support. Thank you for loving my family.

I know this post seems somewhat sappy; but I'm big on giving credit when it's due.. and I hope that I have been as good of a friend to you both as you have been to me.

Love y'all dearly.

Disturbed

2010-02-04T21:14:00.000-08:00

Can someone PLEASE tell me why this sexy lace garter reads, "Prom 2009?!?!"

Seriously, they are targeting high school senior girls with this CRAP? I am outraged and annoyed by this JUNK! This popped up while I was doing an online search for some zebra decor.

Lord help us...I think I am going to contact the company and just tell them how disgusted I am by this.

Picture Post

2010-01-30T20:00:00.000-08:00

Some recent pictures of us at a birthday party and just hanging around!

I love this picture... Big Brother, Middle Brother and Little Brother undies! :)

Do you think it would be silly to frame that photo? I love it. Probably seems strange to display their undies but I always want to remember how small they were!!

Ok here is another cake by my oober talented friend Michelle. She made this one for my brother's birthday. He LOVES the Cowboys. Seriously...he cries when the lose.

Some shots of the jumpy birthday party we went to...

and of course a few pictures of sweet Mr. Parker and my two other precious boys!!

Fab Find

2010-01-27T20:56:00.001-08:00

Wanted to share with you gals a FAB FIND of mine! Go Jane is a great website with great stuff at great prices!! Check out these FAB shoes for $16!

Now I know these are Miley Cyrus brand but WHO CARES when they only cost $10 and $8 each!! At Walmart! I own both of them!

Ok sorry it's short and sweet. I have to get to bed because I know a cute little boy who is going to wake up any minute and want to eat! More Fab Finds tomorrow!
Blessings!

Parker's Birth Annoucement

2010-01-26T09:35:00.000-08:00

I wanted to share with y'all Parker's birth annoucement! I am so excited! It turned out PERFECT!! The lady who designed it was just awesome and super inexpensive! Contact me if you want her info! She also does invitations!

Be back later!! :)

Weekend

2010-01-23T21:12:00.000-08:00

Boy how time flies, eh? I can't beleive tomorrow is already Sunday! I have to tell ya that breastfeeding is a job in itself. I feel like I can hardly finish one feeding before it's time for another! I'm sorry my posts are so few and far between but seriously, I'm nursing ALL THE TIME! I love it don't get me wrong.. but there just aren't enough hours in the day. I think I'll do a whole post on breastfeeding and my nursing "must haves." Doesn't that sound like fun? NOT! But hey, that's what's going on with me so I figure I might as well share those products that help me survive the day!

Parker is do so well! He is such a doll and we are enjoying him so much. I love to just stare at him. I can't wait until his first smile! Don't you just love those toothless smiles??! :)

We had a birthday party to attend this weekend of one of my sweet friends daughters. Her name is Elizabeth but they call her Lizzie. She's adorable. She turned one and had a super cute party. I wanted to post pictures of the outfit her mom--my friend Heather--made for her! It was adorable! And talk about well made. She can customize the outfits with any fabric/theme you'd like. Contact her if you'd like an outfit for your daughter. She *might* be starting an Etsy store soon and if she does I will share her info! For now, if you'd like to order this outfit her email address is heathershaw06@hotmail.com I wish I had better pictures of the outfit. Maybe one day Heather we can get together and I can shoot some of your work! ;)

A picture of us and the boys before the party

And some of the sweetest friends a girl could ask for. I love these girls!! :)

A few more pictures from the party...and a few random photos of my precious boys!!

I promise not to go so long in between posts anymore! :)

Good to be Home

2010-01-19T18:05:00.001-08:00

The title couldn't be any more true! It is SO GOOD to be home! Once again we thank you for praying for Parker. He's doing well! Eating is back to normal! I have some pretty cute pictures coming soon! He's such a doll!

Ok so who is totally loving this guy?!

Ok believe it or not, this is my FIRST season to ever watch The Bachelor! I know...crazy!! I have just never gotten into it. But now, I am HOOKED!! Is it just me or does Jake seem too good to be true? I think he's a great guy. He's actually got some morals and values it seems. Each episode he impresses me more. The drama is already heating up on this one. I don't like to speak ill of people but that Michelle gal was something! I felt bad for her...she almost seemed a little crazy huh?

Ok sorry for the short post...off to get a few little boys in bed!!

Guess who is feeling better??

2010-01-16T12:03:00.000-08:00

God hears the prayers of His people!!

Parker has had an awesome day!

He has been off oxygen since 6am this morning and has been maintaining good levels on his own!!!!!!!! PRAISE!! He is also eating regularly again and has his little personality back! All these things mean he is feeling better!!

I want to THANK YOU for praying for my son. I know that all these things have come to be because people like you have prayed! Some of you who left comments are new. It is nice to "meet" you! I hope you will come back and we can be blog friends! As soon as I have a little more time, I plan to visit your blogs and get to know you a little better! A big thank you to Kristin who posted about Parker on her blog. What a sweet person she is. I love her and *hope* to meet her in person one day! I feel like we are already close friends! She is my sister in Christ and has prayed for me and my family many times over! I love you Kristin!!

I want to thank our sweet friends for coming to the hospital to visit us. Shawn and Jessica who brought us a yummy meal, Michelle for visiting with us and bringing us some much needed snacks, Amanda for sending Parker the cutest little stuffed aligator, my brother and Gail who came and brought us movies to watch.. we love you all. Having visitors helped pass the time and really lifted out spirits.

Another thank you to each person who sent text messages, emails, facebook comments/messages about Parker. Those were so encouraging! Just knowing you were thinking of us gave me so much peace. I cannot thank you enough.

We are so eager to go home! As you probably already guessed I miss these two handsome little guys so bad!!

I have not left this hospital room since Teusday and it's time for me to get some fresh air! I'm eager to sleep in my own bed, to tuck my boys in at night...heck, I even miss the dogs! :)

So fingers crossed for no setbacks today!! And *maybe* we will get to go home early!!!
I will keep you all posted!!!
Blessings!

My little fighter

2010-01-14T19:29:00.000-08:00

So I walked by a mirror early and saw myself and almost threw up. I feel sure Stacie and Clinton from What Not to Wear will jump out of the closet at any moment to slap me with a fashion ticket! LOL. Seriously if you could see what I looked like! The bags under my eyes are so big they need their own zip code! Ha!

Thought I'd start off with a little humor. That's my personality. I just have to say thank you for your prayers. We covet each and every one of them. We have felt so blessed throughout this whole process and have been blown away by how many people are praying for our son.

Currently Parker is back on 100% oxygen support. He is getting breathing treatments every 4 hours now to help open up his lungs. We have been told that he has Atelectasis, which is collapsed lungs along with Pneumonia. The latter is a very scary word for me to hear. People die from Pneumonia..so hearing that word from the doctor today was like a punch in the gut. I tried not to panic...so I did the next best thing--ask a ton of questions.

I can't even describe to you how awesome the care is here. Every whim is being taken into consideration. My son couldn't be taken better care of anywhere else. We don't even have to get our own ice water. I love his doctor and all the nurses. These people truly care about the well-being of children.

After each breathing treatment, Parker gets suctioned--this is not a pretty thing to watch. This is to help remove the mucus that was just broken up by the treatment. It seems to really help him but only for a short period of time.

They are attacking the pneumonia aggressively with antibiotics. He has good days and he has bad days. We are just playing the waiting game to see what happens next.

The praises are that his blood and urine came back negative for infection and bacteria. And also the spinal tap came back negative for meningitis! We are very thankful for that!

The unfortunate thing is that we are back to not be able to feed him. His oxygen levels are dropping again and are not consistant enough. So no breastfeeding or bottle feeding until they are more stable. The worry is that the milk can asperate into his lungs and basically fill up in his lungs--not good.

So that's the update on Parker. He is fighting this thing hard! God has revealed himself to me in several ways through this. I feel so unworthy of all the prayers. How often do you tell someone that you are going to pray for them and then you forget? I think we are all guilty of that. But I have had so many who keep telling me over and over that they prayed for Parker today; or yesterday..or have sent me bible verses or prayers that they have prayed. Gods people are amazing. My hope is that I can return the favor to each and everyone of you when it is needed. I pray God's greatest blessings over each person who has prayed. From a mother's heart, thank you.

I will keep you all posted here on the blog and on our facebook.

My Angel

2010-01-12T20:02:00.000-08:00

Here are a few photos of Parker the last 24 hours. Please keep him in your prayers. The little guy has put up with quite a lot of poking...and he's a little fighter I tell ya!

He does have RSV. So we are fighting that. He is not breathing well enough on his own so they have him on oxygen. We are also waiting on blood and urine cultures along with spinal tap results to come back on Thursday morning.

We are so worn and and miss our other boys so badly. Keep us all in your prayers. We have already counted our blessings a hundred times over while being here. There are so many other children who are so much sicker than Parker is. Let's pray for those children and their families as well.

So Thankful

2010-01-06T17:48:00.000-08:00

In my last post I mentioned a scary situation that took place at the hospital after Parker was born. It's been very hard for me to talk about because when/if I do, I burst into tears. I get this sick feeling in my stomach and it feels as though I was losing my baby boy all over again.

We were supposed to be discharged last Wednesday from the hospital. I was actually scheduled to stay until Thursday but I was feeling good and was eager to get home and see my boys. So my doctor said we could go home early. We only had to wait for him to come check me out and to also do the "pee pee surgery" for little Parker.

The afternoon turned into evening and it was obvious that he wasn't going to make it over to discharge us. Victor and I were both bummed because we wanted to go home and sleep in our own bed so badly. Anyhow, we had some friends visiting us and we really enjoyed their company. Shortly after they left my niece noticed that Parker had some throw up coming out of his mouth (he was laying in his little hospital bed). We didn't think anything of it; just wiped it up. A few minutes passed and I randomly decided to check his diaper. I walk over and see that he now has vomit coming out of his nose. Upon further observation I realize that he isn't moving and is also not breathing. I tried not to panic and quickly picked him up to burp him. That did no good so then I go into panic mode and I turn to Victor and say, "Victor I think he is choking." He takes him and also tries to burp him to no avail. I started yelling and told my husband that he was choking. He told me to run and get a nurse. I was a total basketcase. I opened the door to our room and scream for the nurses to come. I couldn't even speak when one of them asked me what was wrong. All I could manage to do was wave my hands for them to come into the room. When I turn around I see my little boy, his face was totally blue and his lips were as black as his hair. It was a horrible sight. The entire event seemed to take 30 minutes. I watch as 5 nurses rush into my room, one of them calls for a code red... I'm standing there with my hands covering my mouth sobbing and I tell you honestly that I thought that my boy was going to die. Those few minutes he was without air seemed like an eternity. I must have been ugly I know because I was yelling at those ladies to save him. One nurse picked him up and began beating him on his back. She beat and beat and beat and it seemed like nothing was happening.. they finally the stuck something down his throat and he coughed out a very large amount of mucus that was stuck in his throat. He started crying and that is when I knew he was okay. I was still sobbing and all the kind nurses were saying, "He's okay Mom..see he's breathing..he's okay." But I just couldn't overcome the emotion of what I had just witnessed.

If I wasn't already an over-protective, off the wall crazy mom, I can tell you that I am now. It took me quite a long time to calm down. My poor husband was in shock as well. I just threw myself into his arms holding Parker and we immediately hit the floor and thanked God that He allowed him to live. I know many other mothers who have had more tragic situations with their children but this was by far the worst thing I've had to endure as a mother. I apologized to those ladies who saved his life for yelling at them. They told me not to even worry about it.. they understood.

So...it was meant to be for us not to be discharged. God had us stay an extra night for a reason. If this had taken place at home, I feel sure that Parker wouldn't have made it. I wouldn't have known what to do. My husband and I are now going to take an infant CPR/Emergency class.

I am so thankful that God was watching over my sweet little boy that night. I have a great appreciation for my children. Not that I didn't appreciate them before but now I hug them a little tighter. Life can be taken away from us so quickly. My heart aches when I think about mothers who have lost a child in some way.

Thank you Jesus for being with my boy. Thank you for my three precious boys. I love them more than life and cannot imagine life without them. God is good.

Enjoy these pictures I took of little Parker. He's such a sweetie!

New Year, New Life

2010-01-01T18:54:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year to all of my blogger friends! I hope everyone had a safe and happy holiday season!

My husband and I were chatting last night about how we didn't even realize it was New Year's Eve until it was almost 2010. Ha! We both agreed at the exact moment that we wouldn't rather be ANYWHERE else on New Year's Eve than with our precious boys. Wow, I'm so blessed to have a husband who feels that way.

I haven't shared Christmas pictures and I totally need to do that.. but I wanted to jump ahead and add some pictures of our precious Parker Reed!!! This birth expeirence was the most amazing one I have had. SO different from the other two. I switched doctors sometime back and we delivered at a different hospital...it's known to be the best place for Moms and babies. I have to say that it was the best place for us. I loved it! My doctor was amazing! If you know me at all you know I am a total weenie about anything having to do with doctors/medical/NEEDLES! I hate needles. It was just the strangest thing this time around.. God gave me a peace unlike the other two times.. We had to be at the hospital at 4:30am on Monday the 28th. I woke up, got a shower and got dressed and I was just so surprised that I wasn't nervous.. Usually I'm throwing up and other gross things ;) My husband was a nervous wreck. It was funny hearing me telling him to calm down and that it would be okay. LOL.

We arrived at the hospital at 4:30 and headed to the C-section prep room. This was new to me. They sat me in the most comfortable chair and the nurse I had was so awesome. God weaved it all together perfectly! She got me comfy and started my IV. No big deal. Talked over a few things and I got to relax with my hubby until the doctor arrived... everytime he comes on the scene there is just this total calming. The man knows what he's doing and he always wants the best for Mommy! We laughed and joked and finally it was time to head back to the OR. I kissed my hubby (who was all dressed up in his blue outfit!), and walked back to the OR with my nurse. In all previous c-sections, I have never opened my eyes in the OR. I walked in holding a nurses hand and didn't open my eyes until after I was laying down with the blue drape over my head.. so that way, all I could see was the drape, my husband, and the baby when he was handed to me. This time, I decided to look. It wasn't that bad at all :)

My anesthesiologist was flat out amazing. He talked with me and told me not to worry, said that if I got sick they would shoot a little something into the IV to take care of that.. he was so nice. I got the epidural and laid down and it was just dandy after that! My doctor walked in, held my hand and said, "Are you ready??"
They put the drape up, Daddy came in and the process began. I laid there in total calm and peace and actually got to feel the EXCITEMENT of meeting my baby instead of lying there throwing up on the table and in total panic!! I cannot tell you how many times I have thanked God that this went so well for me.. The last two were not so fun. When Britton was born the epidural wore off during the end of the surgery and I screamed for the next three hours after. NOT. FUN.

I suppose God allowed those two not so fun expeirences to show me how grateful I need to be that this one was so awesome. I was in awe of how enjoyable it was. Man am I thankful!!

I will never forget seeing Parker for the first time. Gosh..awesome. Hearing his cry. Actually getting to focus on that moment instead of being in pain. It was just awesome! Having my husband hold my hand, kiss my head and tell me I was beautiful (the man lies WELL. Ha!).

It was overall amazing. I can't thank Jesus enough. We did have one huge scare while we were there... I'll save that post for tomorrow. It was horrible. BUT, God IS good and he saved my little boy. :)

Enjoy some photos from this blessed event!!

A tender moment

2009-12-29T14:23:00.000-08:00

Today I find myself in a place of total peace. I find myself asking why the Lord blesses me so. I am so enjoying this third precious boy that the Lord has given to us. He is the sweetest thing in the world. A gift from God that I will treasure always.. more photos coming soon.

Random Photos!

2009-12-19T21:00:00.000-08:00

What have we been up to?

2009-12-07T20:00:00.000-08:00

Ok so here are some fun pictures! A few days ago it snowed here in Texas!! If you live here in the Houston area (Kristin I know you know!) you KNOW how big of a deal this is!! It didn't stick to the ground long; but it was so beautiful! My kids didn't get to go outside in it because it was actually very muddy and FREEEEZING! But we had fun sitting by the window and watching it fall!

Later that night we did our usual Christmas cookie tradition. It was loads of fun. I had my nieces and nephew over and we made cookies! This year, I let the boys sit in their high chair and have their own "cookie-making station." I made little bowls for them with icing and sprikles in them so they could do their own decorating and get MESSY! And boy did they ever!! It was alot of fun and we were all SICK afterwards from an overload of sugar.

I am soo enjoying the Christmas holidays! We have two Christmas trees up, the stockings are hung AND we got several gifts wrapped thus far!

And of course, stinking blogger isn't letting me upload all of my photos!!! Grrr!

Adorable Diaper Wipe Cases

2009-12-02T21:06:00.000-08:00

Here is a photo of our new diaper wipe cases that we are doing! I think this one is adorable.

We can do any fabric or color combo and any name or word of your choice!

Email us at jackandcoledesigns@yahoo.com if you would like to order.

More images/styles coming soon!

Thanksgiving

2009-11-27T20:37:00.000-08:00

I hope everyone had a blessed Thanksgiving! Here are a few photos from our day. It was a great time with family.

Mr. Parker is getting bigger and will be here very soon! I almost can't beleive it's a tad over a month away from now. That is insane. Where has the time gone?! I have so much left to do and I better get on it! Enjoy the pictures!

Christmas Fun!!

2009-11-20T19:36:00.000-08:00

Hey Moms!
Keep this link handy as Christmas gets closer! My son loved seeing it last year! Starting Dec. 1st they are going to be tracking Santa on his route!! Very cute!

www.Noradsanta.org

Picture Post!

2009-11-14T20:07:00.001-08:00

Ok first off...how cute is this little girl?? This is a customer's daughter all dressed up in our crown tank and zebra tutu!! Precious!

I wanted to share some recent photos of my sweet boys!! I just love them so much! I feel so blessed to have my children. I cannot wait to meet our third little boy!!

Have a blessed evening!!

This and That...for lack of a better title :)

2009-11-08T18:51:00.000-08:00

We had a great show this weekend!! I enjoyed meeting all the customers and spending some kid-free time with my Mom and my husband. I have to give a big THANK YOU to my Mom and my hubs for helping me run the booth for 3 days. It was so worth the work and we had the best time!

We got oodles and oodles of compliments on our booth! I sold a ton of precious things and even got several orders for custom designs! Overall it was well worth the time and energy. We have already been asked to come back next year!! We have several other shows before Christmas and we are very excited about those as well. :)

This week is an exciting week for me...we head to Dallas Market in search of a few things and to get some cute items for Mr. Parker!! Then later on this week I'm going to the Nutcracker Market!!! This is something I look forward to every year! If you've never been, GO. It's awesome. My husband actually enjoys going with me as well. It's loads of fun!!

Here are a few photos from our booth, as well as a few of my silly boys.
Blessings!

Plum Worn Out

2009-11-04T20:01:00.000-08:00

I just got home with the hubs from setting up our christmas booth. Geez we are worn out! I'm so excited about the market this weekend though! So many people stopped by to see our booth before it was even all set up! So that's a good sign.. I'll have to post tomorrow to let you know how it went!

I am now 8 months pregnant! Wow how time flies!! It is starting to get a bit uncomfortable.. but still I really can't complain.

Ok I hate to be short but I'm going to rest!!

Christmas Market!!

2009-11-03T19:22:00.000-08:00

Come to this HUGE shopping event! See Jack and Cole Designs and all of our FAB products! Lots of other great vendors too! One of the biggest shopping venues in the Houston area!!

Second Baptist Church

19449 Katy Freeway, Houston, Texas

**Also see below post for our church baby shower!!**

Church Baby Shower

2009-11-01T21:24:00.000-08:00

Y'all...can I just take a moment to tell you how blessed I am? Our church shower was amazing!! Tammara, you are so creative and talented! This shower was SO ME! Michelle made the most amazing cake ever! It was almost too pretty to eat!

We got so many wonderful things.. it's about midnight right now and I have to run to bed but HAD to post these pictures!

We are so blessed to have such amazing friends!! I felt so undeserving of all the hard work.

Enjoy the pics!!

Fall Festival

2009-10-31T18:48:00.000-07:00

Here are some photos of our family and friends at the church's fall festival!!

Aren't my boys precious?! My little McDreamy's! ;)

What we've been up to

2009-10-30T18:37:00.001-07:00

Kristin, thanks for helping me thru this new layout!! Michelle, is this better?? ;)

Ok so we've survived the swine flu and the regular flu and had several trips to the ER this month. So not fun! Thanks to sweet friends who were lifting us in prayer!

We did squeeze in a few fun things before we all decided to share the flu.. we took the boys to see Toy Story in 3D. They loved it! We went with our friends Jess, Shawn and their little boy Jase!

Aren't they cute????

And here they are helping Daddy and I carve our Pumpkin!

Crazy Layout

2009-10-29T20:13:00.000-07:00

Hi all,

I know this layout is crazy.. I was playing around with a free blog layout website.. and as you can see, I'm not a pro at it!! It will have to do for now!

I hope everyone is enjoying the beautiful weather! Cannot wait for the holidays!

I've been busy getting ready for Baby Parker!! Our church shower is this Sunday so I'll have pictures for everyone!!

Bare with me

2009-10-25T19:31:00.001-07:00

I know I have been horrible! Life has bee CRAZY! Forgive me!
I have lots to catch you up on...coming soon!

Also please overlook the eyesore that is my blog design... I'm getting that taken care of ASAP!

5 Years Later...

2009-09-25T20:56:00.000-07:00

I feel like there are just not enough hours in the day to even get a blog post done!

Today my husband and I celebrate 5 years of marriage! I have been very excited about this day. We had special plans to do something fun today but as life would have it, BOTH boys woke up with fever this morning and had to stay home from school. It turned out to be a great day overall. We had fun together the 4 of us...and we got a TON of packing done!

Tonight is our last night in this house. It's bittersweet in some ways. Lots of wonderful memories here. Yet we are excited about what the future holds.

My husband is the sweetest man in the whole world. We agreed not to give gifts until a few weekends from now when we go away and actually celebrate our anniversary... but the man couldn't stand it. He gave me the most adorable pair of shoes, matching outfit, super cute purse and matching jewelry! I have to brag on my husband and tell y'all that he can pick out some super stylish things! He knows my style.

I love you Victor and could never imagine my life without you. I am so thankful for your protecting nature...and how you care for me and our family. You are without a doubt the sexiest man alive and I've heard it from many a girlfriend of mine how they'd LOVE to have a man like you. ;)

I had wanted to post some of our favorite wedding/dating pictures but the durn scanner wouldn't upload them.. that's a project of mine once we get settled.

Gotta run and get some rest before tomorrow... busy day.

Thank you to my sweet friends who have offered/helped us move. We couldn't have done it without you guys.. you are the sweetest friends ever and we are so thankful that you took time to help us. It shows us how much you care! :)

Calling on our God

2009-09-22T09:50:00.000-07:00

I am at a total loss for words today. I ask you to please, please go to our Healer today for Sara Sullivan. I knew her from high school. She graduated a year ahead of me and was the sweetest girl.

I don't know all the details but you can read the blog to stay posted. She has been battling breast cancer I believe her entire pregnancy. She has been doing pretty well and gave birth to daughter Chloe about a week and a half ago. Both seemed to be doing okay. They arrived home with Chloe when Sara started having major headaches that then turned into seizures. She is currently in the hospital on life support. They are supposed to declare today if she is brain dead or not.

Please lift them up in your prayers. I cannot imagine what her husband is going through. A new baby is supposed to be such a sweet and precious time for a family...not he is praying for his wife to live.

Here are some photos of Sara and Chloe

Here is their blog.. you can follow updates here. Please pray.
http://www.bandssullivan.blogspot.com/

Sunny Marie

2009-09-17T18:40:00.001-07:00

I wanted to share with you guys the photos I took of my sweet friend Annie's baby girl, Sunny Marie. She is so precious weighing 5 POUNDS! She is the smallest baby I have ever held. So sweet I can't even tell you! Annie and Sunny are doing great and the whole family is settling into parenthood just fine! Annie is a total natural mother and I am so proud of how awesome she is doing!

I am praying blessings over them and cannot wait to watch Sunny grow!

My other friend Jessica had her baby two days before.. Ally Kate! She is so adorable as well and favors her older brother, Jase. I got some cute pictures of her today before all of us headed out the door for a girls lunch. I will post those pictures tomorrow.

Enjoy these pictures of Miss Sunny! Also, please excuse the lack of blog design. I'm in the process of a new design!

6 months and new arrivals!

2009-09-16T21:26:00.000-07:00

How your baby's growing:
Your baby's growing steadily, having gained about 4 ounces since last week. That puts him at just over a pound. Since he's almost a foot long (picture an ear of corn), he cuts a pretty lean figure at this point, but his body is filling out proportionally and he'll soon start to plump up. His brain is also growing quickly now, and his taste buds are continuing to develop. His lungs are developing "branches" of the respiratory "tree" as well as cells that produce surfactant, a substance that will help his air sacs inflate once he hits the outside world. His skin is still thin and translucent, but that will start to change soon.

Well, we've made it to six months! I am getting more and more excited to meet this little man! I am DYING to see him being held by his two bigger brothers! Bryce and Britton talk to my belly and kiss it and tell Baby Parker that they love him.

This has probably been the best pregnancy to date. I have been more upbeat and excited than the previous two. It's amazing to watch before your very eyes, your family grow and expand. What a blessing it is to have children. I can feel in my heart that we are most likely not done. :) Call us nuts but we want a big family. My husband has always said that from day one. We want a HUGE dinning room table one day filled with all our children, and their children... we hope and pray that God will allow us that and most importantly, that we can leave a godly legacy.

Parker's wardrobe is really expanding! I have so many cute things for him already. I will have to take a picture to show you tomorrow! Lots of goodies! I have had to buy several things because after two rowdy boys, stuff just falls apart! Can anyone else relate? We need a playpin, swing and a few other items that just broke after Britton used them too.

I am sleeping okay at night at this point and have gotten off the Tylenol PM. No major complaints. The belly is for sure expanding making it a little more difficult to bend over. LOL But I'm embracing every moment of it.

Now for some pictures! Here are the new fall things that arrived today! I think they are so stunning! Contact us if you are interested! Some of you have contacted us via the website to purchase and you are more than welcome to do so.. or you can just shoot us an email at jackandcoledesigns@yahoo.com

Now how cute is this with matching hat??

And how about this adorable onesie?? My friend Kristin makes these! Check out her website on my side bar... Summer Suzette Couture!!

Why do they grow so fast??

2009-09-13T20:51:00.000-07:00

I came across some of these pictures of my boys...it made me want to cry seeing how fast they grow!! I love them so much!!

I love my job as a mother. I feel so blessed to be called Mom.

New designs & been busy!

2009-09-12T20:23:00.001-07:00

Hello all my blog friends! I'm sorry for being absent lately. I have been one busy bee these days!

For the last week and a half we've been busting it to pack up our entire house since we are moving. We haven't found the perfect house for us yet but we are still on the hunt! We are very grateful that my parents have offered to let us stay there while we are on our search. Sadly, this excites me to death because my parents are almost finished with a total renovation of their house! It's like a new house on the inside and it's BEAUTIFUL! I can't wait to cook in my mom's new kitchen! I so enjoy spending time with my family so it's going to be alot of fun staying there. Our house has bare walls and it looks so strange... most of the furniture is gone and so it looks very empty. How sad is it that I started to like this house more as soon as all of our junk and clutter was gone! Hah! Maybe being a "pack rat" isn't so cool. ;)

Today was a good day of rest for us which is very unusual in this house...we're always on the go. But for the past week my oldest has been battling an ugly virus. I'm serious dragging from lack of sleep from being up with him late several nights. I had to bathe him in the middle of the night on several occasions because his fever was very high. Yesterday and today he had no fever...and we were very excited because today was Miss Abby Grace's birthday party and believe me when I say that they were excited to go. However, as things will, murphy's law reared his ugly head and my youngest woke up with a little fever. :( So we had to miss the party. Needless to say we had one upset toddler. He really wanted to go. I did get to run by there on the way to get more medicine to drop of Abby Grace's gift. I think she liked it!

So I wanted to show you guys a few new things we have coming! First up, this was intended to be Abby Grace's birthday gift but again, having a sick kiddo threw off my schedule and I didn't get to complete it just yet. I still need to do some touch ups to it and add the rhinestones but I really wanted to give you guys a peek! We can do this in a wide array of sizes and styles. We can do any letter or number you'd like or ask us about custom designs. Now this set is NOT perfect; but I'm on the verge of perfecting it! I think it's totally cute...I know Abby would love it!

Contact us through our website if you are interested in this outfit. We have several more coming!

And here is one of a new line of headbands we are carrying! LOVE them!

My Precious Little Boy

2009-09-03T21:35:00.001-07:00

Tomorrow my precious little boy will be TWO! I cannot believe where the time goes.

He is one of two of the sweetest boys in the whole wide world!

He's loving, hugs his Momma and still needs his Momma to put him to bed! I love how he drags his blankie around the house, I love the little lisp he has when he talks, I love the way he sings "Jesus Loves Me", I love all his hugs and kisses, I love how excited he gets when I go in and get him from a nap, I love how much he loves his BIG BROTHER and does everything just like him! Most of all, I love being his Mommy!

I am the most blessed gal on the planet. I love my boys more than life itself. Can't wait to see and hold the newest little man coming into my life soon!

Happy Birthday to my sweet son! I love you so much!

When God Changes Your Plans

2009-08-29T16:02:00.000-07:00

So the last few weeks have been a rollercoaster of events.

I didn't say anything here on the blog but we bought another house...wait, don't get excited. This was the "perfect" house. We had been looking for a little while..we are ready to move on to somewhere with more space and a playroom!

We loved this house we found! It has a huge kitchen with pot and pan drawers (I'm sorry but I get excited over that kind of stuff!), a huge dinning room, a biiiig laundry room with cabinets and storage, a detach garage with a long driveway for my kids to play. It was perfect...like I said.

So we thought this was the house God had for us. Turns out, God has other plans! Don't you just love when he taps on your shoulder and says, "Rachel, this is a very nice house, but this isn't the house I want for you!" And I reply, "Um Lord, I don't think I've told you how crowded it is in our house...and oh, Lord, we are having another baby; did I tell you that Lord? (as if he didn't know!)...and we've been doing the Dave Ramsey thing for several years and we are so thankful for it...and so Lord, it's time to buy this house."

Do you ever have "those conversations" with God? Ha, they are quite funny. I love Him for the simple fact that He doesn't knock me down and put me in my place. He gently whispers, "Like I said daughter, Daddy knows best."

So the house fell thru at the last minute after two months of waiting. It wasn't our fault. Some issues with the sellers caused us to have to walk away from it. Big Bummer.

So for about two days, my husband and I walked around here totally out of sorts. It's always hard when God changes our plans. The way we thought/hoped for something to turn out and He puts our plans in the big blender up in heaven and turns it on!

Then the strangest thing happened. God gave me a total peace over it. For whatever reason, God didn't want us to have that house. I had to realize that God can see the beginning and the end of everything. "He will withold no good thing from me..." So the "good house" that we are looking for is out there, we just have to find it. I know my friend Tasha has had to come to that realization as well and I'm so happy that they have found a house!

Sometimes the waiting period can be the sweetest. :)

So shortly after the "sad news" thing started falling into place. We sat down and talked it over and came to the decision that God wants us to keep looking. The only problem was, the house we are in now is not an option, it's now somebody elses!! So what to do?

We could go to my parents house until then but they are under major renovations...not a kid friendly place.

So as the next hour passes, God answeres that worry. My in-laws who happen to be awesome people, have several rent properties and offered us to stay in one of their houses while we are on our house hunt!!!

I know it's such a small problem and there are such greater things I could worry over but I think we all know how it is when we plan something and the Lord changes it. I just want to praise Him for giving me the peace to accept NO when I heard it. He didn't have to give me that peace...I'm not owed it. But I am his daughter and he loves me! Thankfully.

I think I'm overjoyed with excitement at what the house God has for us will be like! We'll see. It may take us a while to find it but I know it's out there! Lord, if I could make a small request, can I please have a laundry ROOM? Right now I have a laundry closet and it works my nerves sometimes. ;)

So here's to my God and to the "unanswered prayers." He knows best.

First trip to the dentist!!

2009-08-28T07:24:00.000-07:00

Short and Sweet.. No pun intended ;)

2009-08-26T20:42:00.000-07:00

It's 10:45 at night... I just made a box of brownies... and I'm going to eat them all by myself...because I can...because I'm hungry...and baby Parker REALLY wants them! I'll share some with my husband of course!

Oh, and I licked the bowl clean too! Waste not, want not! LOL

Goodnight!

Feelings from the heart

2009-08-23T19:55:00.000-07:00

Happy Sunday! Hope everyone had a great day!

I was excited today to find out I have more blog readers than I thought...I realize that several of you read the blog but don't have blogs yourself.. Hi Jamie!! ;0) Thanks for following me and my little crew.

I just want to brag on the holy spirit right now.. church today was so amazing. We had a guest speak whom I grew up listening to each year at church camp. He's awesome.

He spoke from the book of Psalms and on the Valley of Baca. Which is the valley of sorrows or tears for a believer.

Here was the verse:
"Blessed are those who dwell in Your house;
they will still be praising You.
Blessed is the man whose strength is in You,
whose heart is set on pilgrimage.
As they pass through the Valley of Baca,
They make it a spring;
The rain also covers it with pools."
Psalm 84:4-6

It was a good message that I needed to hear. I'm so thankful that the presence of trials or valleys in our life is not the absence of God's love, care or protection for us. Notice in the verse that it says, "As they pass through.." Instead of IF they pass through. He is speaking to God's people here. He made it a point to say that as long as we live on this earth, Satan fights us, he battles us and wants to tear us apart. God does allow things that we do not understand. Some people associate a trial or something "bad" happening to them with the lack of obideince. That is not always the case. Isn't that good to know?

He said something today that was very profound to me: "If it will matter in a thousand years, then worry about it." Puts things into perspective for me. If it won't matter one thousand years from now, why fret over it? We should worry about things that will last in eternity.

I have to say how thankful I am for my mother. She is the most amazing person and I love her more than words can say. She quit working back in March and I have had the pleasure of hanging out with her ever since. :) We go eat lunch, we go shopping, we get pedicures.. I've truly enjoyed this quality time with. Especially being pregnant, there is just something about having your mother there. She shared with me something she read in her bible that really spoke to me so I'd like to share it with you all.. it was along with this chapter that he preached on today:

"The Lord is a sun and a sheild; the Lord will give grace and glory: no good thing will He withold from those who walk uprightly." Psalms 84:11

Something I have had to learn myself, is that the phrase, "no good thing" does not mean what we want. It means no good thing according to His will for our life. That's a hard pill to swallow. Either way, we are to be thankful for those things to which He doesn't see fit to allow.

Mom also shared with me this tidbit of info written by Billy Grahm's wife Mary:

I'm embarrassed at how often I've heard myself say, "Oh, God , please..." I learned to beg with my mother, so I employ those same techniques with God. To my relief; it never works. You see, God's word says He is a sun and a sheild. A sun provides light so we can see. And a sheild protects us from what we can't see. He has the grace to give us both. I've learned God is full of grace. He witholds nothing that is good for me. I walk with Him; He shows me the way. I have a need; He provides it. When it isn't the fullfilment of my own imaginings, I trust Him. He sees the end from the beginning. He has the grace to give me what I need, and the grace not to. He is full of grace.
Mary Grahm

Thank you Jesus for speaking to my heart today. God Bless each of you who stop by here to read. Come back tomorrow, I have cute pictures to share!

Goodies for Parker

2009-08-22T19:01:00.000-07:00

Not alot of time to type but I wanted to show you guys some of the cute goodies I got for Mr. Parker today! They are quite adorable.. It makes me realize how small my boys once were and how fast they grow!! I wish they could be little forever!

First up... since he's going to be born the week of Christmas, I'm hoping it will be chilly so he can wear his little winter boots!!

His first pair of tennis shoes! They are so tiny!!

And he'll be ROCKIN' in this little outfit. :0)

I just love all the tiny little things! On another note, my friend Jessica is about to have her little girl Ally (can't wait!!). In her nursery instead of doing a glider chair she did a traditional white rocking chair. She was explaining to me when I was there the other day how great it will be for breastfeeding. So I sat in it and tested it out using her boppy. It was perfect! See, I had this fabulous, upholstered chair with my last son.. it was super luxurious but soft and squishy at the same time. It was actually hard to breastfeed and hold baby upright while I was sinking into this chair. But this rocker is perfect, stiff enough to offer good back support and an added plus is that the boppy sat perfectly on the arm rests! So I was super pumped about getting one myself..

So we went down to our local Lowe's today to check them out and they had little one's for kiddos! Bryce sat it one of them and said, "Mom, this is where I can rock baby Parker and then put him in his bed." It was so precious. So of course I had to get pictures of them in the rockers...

Random question: Why in the world put the kiddo rocking chairs next to the aunt killing chemicals? That stuff was all over the ground. Oh well..everything I see is through a mother's eyes.

Introducing....

2009-08-19T11:59:00.000-07:00

the NEWEST little MAN in my life.... Parker!!
What an honor to raise THREE precious boys to love the Lord and to leave a godly legacy. I am truly one blessed Momma.. Rachel and her boys! ;0)

Designing 101: Something I have learned...

2009-08-15T20:50:00.000-07:00

So...you know how some people get writers block? I think it's also possible to get "designers block." LOL Seriously though... something I've had to really learn is to literally think outside the box. When I go to markets to choose items to sell in our boutique, I always want to pick the things that I like. Very quickly I learned to pick things that maybe I wouldn't choose, but someone else might really love. I keep an open eye now when looking at things because there are a million different styles and tastes out there.. and we want to offer something for all of those.

When it comes to designing things. I'm trying to think outside the box with that one too. Trying to design things that I love, but also design things that other people, with different preferences would love as well.

I'm totally rambling tonight. Just some thoughts I had.

Prayers

2009-08-14T07:33:00.001-07:00

Hi all,
I had posted the other night about Katie, whose daughter had to be delivered via emergency c-section and she was on life support. She passed away yesterday. Please be in prayer for her parents. My heart is so broken for them. I can't even imagine. Here is a picture of Katie with her daughter. Just pray.

The Marquez Brother's Band and The Bump

2009-08-13T16:40:00.000-07:00

The bump at 18 weeks:

Marquez Brothers Band.. coming to a city near you ;)

Urgent Prayer Needed

2009-08-11T19:42:00.001-07:00

If you haven't seen today's post yet...scroll down and read. I had to get on again and post this urgent prayer request.

This is one of Kelly's friends... I love Kelly (Kelly's Korner) she has the most amazing blog and she inspires me everyday. I've been a blog follower of hers since Jan. when Harper was sick in the hospital. Her blog has been such a blessing to me. Anyhow, this is a friend of hers.. please pray for her. Info below:

From Kelly:
This is my beautiful, sweet, precious friend Katie. She was set to deliver her daughter in a couple of weeks and today had to go in for an emergency c-section. I don't know full details but from what I've gathered baby was not breathing and they are now saying she is brain dead and may be taken off machines tomorrow. (I don't know if I have everything correct) but can you PLEASE pray for Katie and her husband Jason. They delivered in the same hospital where I had Harper and I partially know the emotions they are going through right now but I can't imagine how hard this really is. Please lift them up. They are a Godly couple but they are going to need their faith to make it through. I know so many of you have lost children and I can't even begin to understand how hard it was. I am just sick over this. It's just so hard to understand why this would happen to such a wonderful couple.

Halfway Mark! 20 Weeks

2009-08-11T18:33:00.000-07:00

Well we have made it to the halfway mark of this pregnancy! Yeehaw!

It's a little bittersweet for me, knowing that the end is somewhat near. I love pregnancy (after the first trimester) and really miss it when it's over. I enjoy feeling life within me move around. It's the most amazing feeling. Although as the baby gets bigger, it begins to hurt a little!

Here's a peek of what baby looks like now!

Baby is now the size of a banana. I wish I would have had my blog back when I was pregnant with both my boys. I would have loved to record their pregnancies on here. I did scrapbooks with them but as you guess, they are all unfinished. I despise those projects I start and don't finish! I suppose we all have those?

Next week we find out if we are having a boy or a girl. Daddy and I are super excited and can't wait to know what it is! Let the shopping begin! Boy or girl I can't wait to shop and buy this kid some clothes! I suppose if it's a girl, then I will shop more than if it was a boy (or so everyone says). Yes I do have lots of boy clothes but I don't want to hand them down a third time. If this is a boy the kid deserves some nice, new clothes of his own! ;0)

On a side note, I added a few new items to our etsy store. Well, they aren't really new. I added the burp cloth, a few ribbon holders and I'm hoping to add some other things tonight.

I took the boys to see a movie with some of their friends from sunday school class. It was so cute to see them sitting in their little booster seats. It was an early morning movie so there were lots of other kiddos there with daycare centers...when we walked out into the parking lot, several of the kiddos got into a yellow school bus. Bryce loves school buses. Not sure why. He asked me, "Momma, can I ride on the school bus when I get bigger?" I told him that he could.. then he walks over to my van, and pats it with his hand and says very proudly, "This is our bus isn't Momma?" LOL

Too cute!

Also thought of this verse today and it made me smile...it's hanging in my kitchen on a post card. I have them all over the house with different verses:
Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one's youth. Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them. ~Ps. 127:4,5 :0) Our quiver is about to get fuller!

An idea becomes a reality

2009-08-09T18:45:00.000-07:00

So I had mentioned several posts ago about the route we were taking with our business. I feel like it's in a sturdy enough place for me to express more about that route. For as long as God allows, we will always be Jack and Cole Designs, baby and children's boutique. When I started this journey several years ago my passion was to offer unique and one of a kind nursery and children's room decor and furniture. I feel like we have accomplished that *thank you Jesus!* and now that it is growing and is as stable as it can be at this point, we feel like we can also stretch ourselves to another branch, or spin off if you will, of Jack and Cole Designs!

We aren't yet at the point to say the spin off company name, but I will tell you about one of the products we'll be doing! Being that this is our third baby, I've had plenty of experience with maternity clothing. I hate that there just isn't much out there for women in the way of trendy, unique maternity clothing. Even more so, there isn't much out there for trendy women who aren't a size 2! We'll offer regular and plus sizes. So, we have been in the works designing, working with other vendors and distributors to launch our own line of maternity tops!!!!!!!! I'm SO excited about this!

We have a pretty cool name for the line. It won't just be tops, there is another awesome product we'll be launching (Lord willing) that will be apart of this extension of J&CD. There isn't anything else out there like this product so I'm hoping it will be a big hit with the Mommies!

I have been busting at the seams to tell all you guys but didn't want to say anything before we did as much research and planning as possible. Sad to say, my website has been slow going back up because I have had to give alot of time and attention to this.

So that is just one of the several "spin offs" that we are taking with J&CD. The other two inspirations and ideas I have are a long time in the making so I just have to be patient and grow my business one day at a time. We'll get there!

I hope to point people who purchase our products in the direction of Jesus. Hoping that in some way, by finding our company that they will come to know Him. He is the one who has given me these dreams and hopes and I'm so thankful for that.

Wish us luck and be in prayer for our endeavors! Thankful to have my faithful blog followers to pray and encourage me!

Blessings!

19 Weeks

2009-08-05T17:21:00.000-07:00

It seems like only yesterday I was full of excitement to be hitting the second trimester and here we are at 19 weeks! Yay! Overall, I feel thankful to have made it this far and that the baby is healthy.

Each time I go for a checkup, the nurses have to search what seems like forever to pick up the heartbeat. The first few times this alarmed me but now it's almost like a game to see how Baby can hide. Everytime they tell me, "This baby is hiding WAY in the back." Little toot! Maybe that will be his/her nickname...little toot! Anyhow, this is new for me because in both previous pregnancies they never had an issue finding the heartbeat; especially at this stage of the pregnancy. It was like they would put the doppler on my tummy and it was there instantly! Nope, not this baby. I fear that we may have another stubborn child on our hands! LOL Could you blame the child?

The heartbeat today was around 140 she said...and it was hilarious on my facebook page to hear everyones thoughts on that. I read up on it online and it plainly says that they are all wivestales when it comes to predicting the gender of the baby. It's still fun to read and think about what it may be. We are only a couple of weeks away from finding out if we'll have a football team, or a football team with one player with a pink jersey!

IF the Lord does give me a little girl, my hope is that she will be tough and easy going...able to throw a football and wear a tutu. If it's a boy I can already imagine the noise level in my house! Out of control!!

As far as names go, we only have a boy name set in stone. I would tell you but lets wait and see if it is a boy. I totally LOVE the boy name we decided on. I like the way it sounds and the way it looks when it's written down. We are having a hard time coming up with the middle name to go with that name so we'll have to see what we can come up with between the two of us.
Girl names...now that has proven to be much harder! We've tossed some back and fourth and either he vetos mine or I veto his. It's quite funny actually.

I've gained 10 pounds overall and doctor A says that's really good. I've been eating pretty good.. I crave lots of fruits and have been drinking tons of water. I just need to exercise more. We've been going to the pool and I've been swimming laps but we're about to take on walking around the block or something.

So that's the update on Little Toot!

Way to go Amber

2009-08-04T19:47:00.000-07:00

I wanted to post this on my blog for my friend Amber. She makes some really rocking hair bows, headbands, girly picture frames the cutest flip flops you've ever seen!

Her line was recently picked up by a pretty snazzy local boutique. They just put up a new billboard and used Amber's bows on it! Pretty exciting! Her bow is on the girl on the far left.

I was just really excited for her...that's so neat! Her website is up and looks fabulous. You can view it HERE

Kudos to you Amber! I wish you much success!

Jessica's Shower/Birthday

2009-08-03T18:45:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday we had a shower for my friend Jessica. I love her to death. Michelle and I threw it together..Michelle did most of the work. The two of them are two of my closest friends. I love so many qualities about each of them.

Anyhow, the shower went so well and Jessica got a TON of cute things! Lots of diapers too. Michelle made the cake. She makes cakes for most of the showers, for weddings, birthday parties and so on. She has an amazing talent for cakes! If you are in the Houston area and need a cake, let me know and I will give you her information.

A few days before the shower we went out to eat to celebrate Jessica's birthday. We went to Cafe Adobe! YUM.. and we had dessert at The Dessert Gallery! Oh girls I can't even tell you how good their cakes are!

So here are a few pictures of each event! Also scroll below to see pictures from the Big Brother Class we took the boys to!

Big Brother Class

2009-08-03T06:49:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we took the boys to the Big Brother Class at the hospital. It was so cute! There were lots of other older sibilings in the class. Our friends the French family took the class with us so the boys enjoyed having their friend Jase in the class with them. It was a fun expeirence for all of us. The boys each got to pick their own babies out of the basket...Bryce picked a white baby and Britton picked a brown baby that looked like Daddy! LOL Hilarious.

They each got to swaddle their baby, change the baby's diaper and learn what could/could not go into baby's mouth. Then we headed out of the classroom for a tour of the hospital. They weren't too sure about the delivery room. All those machines sort of scared Bryce a little bit. But then we got to go to the nursery and Bryce was excited to see the "tiny babies" as he called them.

Not sure how much they actually soaked in. We are planning to take the class again closer to delivery...overall it was a good time with the family. Enjoy the pictures!

Baby Shower Gifts

2009-08-01T11:22:00.001-07:00

I made a few gifts for Miss Ally Kate. I have really enjoyed making gifts and not just buying them. I still love to buy cute things but making them has been alot of fun too. I can't wait to see her dolled up!

Isn't the tutu adorable!? My friend Jennifer made it. She is about to open her Etsy shop soon! Contact her via email if you'd like to order a tutu. She can do custom ones as well. She uses cute appliques and rinestones! flower5366@aol.com

Have a great day!

Burp Cloths!!

2009-07-31T21:21:00.000-07:00

I made this set of burp cloths for my friend's baby shower! I think they turned out pretty cute! I only have a picture of the first one because I'm not quite done with the other one. Don't look too close...it isn't perfect. I have learned one thing about sewing: When you get tired, just quit for the day! I notice that when I don't stop and at least take a break when I'm tired, I end up messing up big time! Anyhow, I love making things and I hope my sweet friend will love them!

I also made a simple bow holder for the little princess to hold all of her bows. I'll post pictures of that in the morning.
I have so many stinkin' pictures I need to post. Ahh if I only had time!

Abby Grace is doing so well! I visited with her tonight...she's so sweet. Thanks for your prayers!

Be Inspired!

2009-07-29T19:10:00.000-07:00

Saw this and had to post it on my blog! LOVE IT! Saw it on Rhonna's blog. She rocks.

It inspires me to be all I can, and follow my dreams no matter what comes my way, or what people say! I hope it inspires you as well! Live your dreams, follow what you love...thru adversity great ideas are born! Grab hold of those moments and take the creativity and put it to work! :0)

Blessings!
*long post coming with lots of pics!!

Bad Blogger

2009-07-29T07:32:00.000-07:00

So sorry I haven't updated!!!

Abby Grace is doing well!! Praise Jesus! Keep praying for a painless recovery for her.

I have so much to post!! Exciting things happening! Lots of pictures to share too!

Maybe during naptime I can get that done! We'll see!

URGENT PRAYER

2009-07-26T20:18:00.000-07:00

Everyone,
I have so much to say but have been so busy lately I just haven't had time.

PLEASE STORM HEAVEN'S GATES TONIGHT FOR ABBY GRACE. HER SURGERY IS AT 6AM IN THE MORNING. THIS IS A 6-8 HOUR SURGERY SO IT WILL PROBABLY BE THE AFTERNOON BEFORE WE CAN GET ANY UPDATES OUT. PLEASE, PLEASE PRAY FOR HER!!

HERE ARE SOME SPECIFIC PRAYERS:
~The doctors would be guided by the Lord
~A quicker surgery than expected with no complications
~Quick recovery with no infections
~As little pain as possible for Abby Grace
~Peace and overall calmness for her parents and family

Thank you, thank you, thank you for your prayers!!!

Blessings,
Rachel

Kate McRae..heavy on my heart

2009-07-23T06:46:00.001-07:00

Hi girls,
Are you all familiar with Kate McRae? If not please visit her parents blog and read about her. She is suffering with a terrible cancerous brain tumor. She starts chemo tomorrow. Please visit the blog and read. They really need our prayers. I am committing to pray for little Kate. I cannot even imagine if it were one of my children. They have such a big faith though; which encourages me to get on my knees and thank God for my blessings.

I may/may not have told you all before, but I have index cards all over my house with different bible verses on them. I mean they are everywhere. I put them up about a year ago after seeing it on one of my favorite shows. Anyhow, I have them throughout the entire house in places where I'll see them often. They encourage me greatly. One of the cards I saw right after reading about Kate was this one:

"My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness." 2 Cor. 12:9

I am praying this verse over Kate and her parents.

Please visit her blog today and read about her updates. Pass the link along to your friends and fellow blog readers. Thank you.

http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/mcraekate/journal

Loving Vacation!

2009-07-21T19:39:00.000-07:00

I can't tell you how much of a blast we are having! My kiddos are just having the time of their life!

We hit SeaWorld yesterday and today and we really enjoyed it. Minus the intense heat and it was just awsesome. We saw the Shamu show yesterday.. it was magical. Britton was a little unsure at first but Bryce was all eyes on Shamu. Today we went back and went to the waterpark. I liked being in the water..we did the lazy river and we were so proud of how well Bryce swam! Britton is a little like his Momma, scared of everything so he hung on tightly to me or Daddy. From there we went to the kiddie pool and they both had a blast there.

Bryce is potty trained so he wears his undies under his suit but Britton is not yet potty trained so he wore a swimmer diaper.. he walked over to me and said, "Poop." Daddy offered to take him and change him (props to the great hubby I have). They were gone quite a long time. Daddy came back with a sick look on his face. He sat down in the water and said, "Rachel, I think I am going to throw up." "Why??" I asked. He begins to tell me that Britton's poopie diaper was the worst diaper he had ever changed and assured me that I had "never changed one like that before.." LOL Daddy is so silly.. OF COURSE I HAVE CHANGED ONE OF "THOSE DIAPERS" BEFORE!!
We left the pool right after that and Victor was gagging when we were walking around.. he was honestly sick to his stomach over the loose stool. From what he described, the poo was not solid and spilled everywhere. I am so thankful that my husband changes diapers.. the whole ordeal was just hilarious.

After we left SeaWorld we headed to the riverwalk for dinner. It was nice, quite and lots of beautiful scenery.

I will have time to post pictures when we return. I've got some really cute ones.

I can't tell y'all how much I love staying in a hotel. I mean, someone comes in and cleans the room and brings clean towels.. gotta love that. Hotels are my kind of camping!!

Speaking of camping, please pray for my friend Amanda. You all know her on this blog. They are on their family vacation not too far from us.. trying to relax before Abby's surgery on Monday.. anyhow, Amanda was bitten by a copper head snake. I spoke with her yesterday evening and she was in the hospital.. they are monitoring her blood. They did not have to give her anit-venum (sp?). I haven't gotten ahold of her today but I have been away from my phone some. I plan on calling tonight to see if I can see how she is doing. Just pray for her. They are dealing with so much right now.

Well folks I gotta run! Gonna suggle up with the Hubs and my boys and watch some TV!!
Night!

Vaca is here!!

2009-07-19T15:22:00.000-07:00

Today has been a really good day. Sundays are usually one of my favorite days of the week. I love hearing my pastor speak. It charges me up, puts me in my place and I feel that I'm somewhat closer to being where God wants me to be. The message today was so awesome.. I loved it. I know some people don't like the "step on your toes" type of message but I really love them. I welcome them because I want to hear when I may be out of line, or when God might not be pleased with me so that I can work on those things. I'm so blessed to have such an awesome church. I have some really sweet friends there as well. And being a stay at home mom, it's nice to get there and get to hug some of your good friends.

Tomorrow we leave for our vacation!! I am so super excited! We have been looking forward to this and I think this vacation is very well deserved. We'll only be gone a couple of days; but don't worry, I'll be blogging while I'm gone. I hope to be able to post pictures each night of the days events.

My oldest son is super excited and has even packed his own backpack with pj's and clothes! Oh, and he put his swimsuit (which he calls, "Swimsoup") in his bag as well. Too cute.

Please pray that we have safe travels. I'm so thankful for each of my blog readers. You guys are a blessing to me!

Looking forward to chilling out, sitting pool side and soaking up the sun!

Fun with kiddos

2009-07-18T20:34:00.000-07:00

**Blogger isn't letting me load all of the pictures! It did load this cute one.. I will have to wait and see if it lets me upload the other ones of the kids in a little bit!

As I said in my last post today.. sorry it's been a few days. I've been super busy and I am SO WORN OUT!

I wanted to post these cute pictures.. Abby Grace came over to play the other day.. the boys and her had a blast. I got a few shots of them. My favorite one is of Abby Grace in one of our outfits! She is throwing her hands in the air and saying, "I am a Princess!" It was hilarious.

Baby shower pictures coming tomorrow!

It's been a crazy weekend!

2009-07-18T18:23:00.000-07:00

Hey!! I'm sorry I haven't posted in several days! I have been running around like crazy getting ready for my best friend's baby shower! I love you Ann! I'm just jumping on to say that I have some great pictures of her shower coming tomorrow.. it was SO MUCH FUN!!!

Love y'all!!

Happy Birthday to the most amazing man...

2009-07-15T06:52:00.000-07:00

Today is my husbands birthday! I want to say I love him more than anything in the whole world.

Victor, you are my ray of sunshine when life gets dark. You are my best friend in the whole world. You cheer me up when I am down. You are the most amazing father in the whole world. My kids do not know how blessed they are. Thank you for loving me, supporting me and carrying me through some of life's hardest times.

I am a very lucky girl to be married to my real life prince charming. I don't care how cheesy it sounds. You are my best friend. Without a doubt.

I hope you have a very happy birthday! I love you!!

Love,
Rachel

Pray for this family

2009-07-13T19:57:00.000-07:00

UPDATED: Please also pray for my sweet friend Heather's uncle.. he has been in need of a heart transplant and they got the call tonight that they may have found a match! PRAISE! Please pray for success in surgery and also pray for the donor family.

Can you please pray for this family? They lost a daughter last year as an infant to Trisomy 18. I don't know alot about the condition but I belive it's almost always fatal. Most infants do not survive to the end of pregnancy to be delivered. This couple just gave birth to their son, Grayson, who lives for about five days then passed away. Please pray for them. I know they are struggling. We think we have such big problems. Sometimes I should be ashamed about my complaints. I'll be on my knees tonight for Grayson's family, for Kate McRae and Abby Grace.

http://kinseygracethompson.blogspot.com/

I am excited because tomorrow Amanda is bringing Abby Grace over to play with the boys. I'll take pictures of the kiddos. They are going to have a blast together.. goodnight friends!

"Do not fear, for I am with thee; be not dismayed, for I am thy God; I will strenghten thee and help thee, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand." ~Isaiah 41:10

Awesome Day

2009-07-12T20:12:00.001-07:00

Today was such an awesome day. It was just wonderful. We enjoyed the services at church so much. I felt honored to be there and didn't take for granted today the fact that we have a wonderful church and church family. It's very easy to take it for granted sometimes...

My husband and I teach in the Elem. dept. at church and have been doing so for the last 4 months or so. We really enjoy it so much. I love the kids; they are so sweet, so innocent. I teach the 5th grade girls and Victor teaches with the 5th grade boys. Some of our girls are already about to promote out to the 6th grade and it makes me so sad! I don't want them to go to Jr. High!

I love those girls to death.. they are precious and sweet. It's so endearing when as a 10/11 yr. old girl, you can stand up in front of your peers and pray outloud. It impresses me.. I think that's why Jesus says in His Word that we must, "come as a little child." They have a big faith. Because they do not yet know to fear what other people are thinking of them.. they just love Jesus.

Anyhow, we always ask for prayer requests. I told the girls in our class about Kate McRae and it just touched my heart when one of our girls prayed outloud and asked God to heal Kate. How precious is that? I believe with all my heart that God heard those prayers..

After church this evening we went to eat with Amanda and David and their kiddos. We had a great time. We ate Mexican food which is mine and Amanda's FAVORITE! Mexican food does this prego gal good! ;0) Abby Grace is just the most precious thing. She wanted to sit in "Aunt Rachel's" lap. She has got to be the most sassiest little girl in the world. Pretty, polite and a little bit of southern charm in her but let me tell you, she will let you know what she wants and when she wants it! LOL She wanted to come stay the night with me.. I told her she was going to come over this week and we were going to paint each other's nails! I'll have to post some pictures of that.

Her surgery is getting closer and closer and I must admit that it's even scary for me. I know God is going to take care of her and get her thur this.. but I think the waiting is the scariest part. Her older sister, Kayli said tonight at the table that she was worried for her little sister. How precious. I told her that God was going to take care of Abby Grace. I am going to have them stay the night with me that night. We are going to pray for Abby, talk things thru and have some good old fashion fun.

Please keep Abby Grace and Kate McRae in your prayers. I've added a side button for Kate. You can click there and read her parents daily journaling. Right now poor Kate just keeps asking to go home and she really doesn't have any idea that she has such a long road ahead of her. Chemo, hair loss, endless spinal taps and pokes. But The Creator knew before one of her days began that she would have these days ahead. I am praying for peace for little Kate and for her parents..

So here are a few pictures I took of my boys this morning before church. Are they cute or what?! I know one day they are going to ask me to quit dressing them alike.. but until then I'm eating up how cute they look!!

Ps-just went in to say goodnite to my boys.. Bryce says, "You're the best Mom." Melt my heart!!

Awesome Devotion

2009-07-10T20:11:00.000-07:00

I have been doing this women's devotional that I really want to share with y'all. It flat out rocks. The book is called, "The bathtub is full but I feel drained.. defeating Mommy stress." You have to run out and get this book. It's wonderful.

It's part book, part devotional. I am so enjoying reading and growing closer to the Lord through motherhood experiences. It's amazing how much God has to say about motherhood in His Word.

I plan on taking a picture of the book and sharing some of the things I've learned tomorrow. For now, I'm beat! Not everything was crossed off the TO DO list today.. but that's okay. We hugged, we laughed, we spent quality time together. I'm blessed.

Goodnight sweet friends!

We're Open!!

2009-07-09T08:03:00.000-07:00

Hi friends!

Jack and Cole Designs is now REOPEN!! The new site is up, with some of the products we've added. We have so many more left to add and I'm working overtime to get those up! Please be patient with me.

I'm super excited because some of the fall clothing will be coming in during the next two weeks!

I can't contain the excitement of a few things!! Many of you already know that we have an Etsy store.. it only had a few items on it. We have been working really hard on some exclusive-made designs! Some handmade clothing, accessories and a SUPER CUTE ITEM FOR MOMMIES!! You're gonna love em!! Can't wait to unveil them!

My husband and I have been discussing hiring a seamstress. I just have been so behind on sewing because I have the kids so often.. I can't really get any sewing done while they are with me because they get into all of my things and I can't concentrate. We'll see where that idea goes. But for now, I'm sewing like crazy to get some of these sample items ready for pictures.

So stay tuned!! You can visit the new look of the website at www.JackandColeDesigns.com

Blessings!
Rachel

Kate Update

2009-07-08T15:21:00.000-07:00

I already posted once today.. if you haven't read that post it's below. I had to get on and post this update on Kate McRae. PLEASE pray for healing for this little girl. It is very sad.. her parents are trying to be hopeful. Let's flood heavens doors with prayer for this family!

A word from Kate's Mom:

As I write this my heart is racing, hands shaking. We DO have a diagnosis. Yes, you read right, they just got finished giving us the type of Kate's tumor. Dr Kaplan came in and told us. I told him I needed to sit down, we needed to prepare ourselves. I really didn't think they would have one. So here it is.. she has a Primitive Neuroectodermal Tumor. The culprit of my baby's hospitalization. It brings an eerie relief, mixed with anxiety. There is now a name to this awful disease. I will tell you what I know, which is not a whole lot and filtered through the ears of a mother, not a nurse. This is an extremely aggressive tumor and high risk because of it's location. (this is not the typical location for these types of tumors). However, these tumors are usually extremely sensitive to chemo and radiation (a prayer answered). So most likely (we have yet to meet with her oncologist) she will get high doses of chemo and radiation. However, because of it's location, we will most likely have to join a study. This means she would follow strict protocal for treatments. We are not sure what study she would enter yet, possibly one out of LA. This would most likely (we know nothing for sure yet) involve a bone marrow transplant or stem cell transplant. So there it is. Many long days ahead. I asked if there was any idea how long we would be hospitalized, obviously it depends on many, many things. (treatment, how she responds, complications etc). However, we are pretty sure we will be here for months on end. He said it could get scary again. But we need to be hopeful. And we know the giver of hope. So please cry out to God on our daughters behalf. Ask for complete and total healing, whether that is through modern medicine or simply DIvine intervention. Please do not grow weary interceding for us. The battle has just begun. Fight for us. Fight for Kate. I will post more later as we are still processing this. And please do not send us research from the internet. We have an entire library here at the hospital. Just let us figure things out slowly as we can digest them. We need the Bible as our guidebook now. Will let you know more shortly.

Update on Vivian and Baby Info

2009-07-08T11:59:00.001-07:00

Just wanted to let all of you know that little Vivian is making progress and doing better. They said if she had been struck just millimeters over she would have had serious brain damage...BUT GOD!! God is good and her mom said that it is a miracle that she is doing so well.

Let's keep praying for Abby Grace and Kate McRae

So today is already a MUCH better day than yesterday. My husband walked in the door last night with a gift for me. He bought me the new bible I have been wanting and the most beautiful damask black and white bible cover.. he knew it was a rotten day. It cheered me up so much. I sat and read my new bible for probably two hours. I really enjoyed it. I lifted my spirits greatly.. I told Satan to crawl back in his hole in the name of Jesus! haha!

So this morning we had our monthly baby checkup. It was a little scary because the nurse couldn't find the heartbeat.. last time she found it quickly. I try not to panic but it's hard. The doctor came in and couldn't find it either...right before he was about to do an ultrasound we heard it! Whew! So glad the baby is ok.

So now we're about to be 15 weeks!

Baby is the size of an apple! I hope nobody is offended by the above pictures.. it wouldn't bother me but you never know.

I'm super excited because two of my best friends are about to have babies. So we're busy planning showers for them. It's so fun. I can't wait to meet their little ones!

I hope all of you are having a wonderful day. Keep those little girls in your prayers!

Blessings!

A really poopie day...seriously.

2009-07-07T11:53:00.000-07:00

So, today has been one of the worst stay at home mom days I think I've had. I know, I know. My children are healthy and happy; there are alot of children suffering and I should just shut up and be thankful. But we all have our days so just let me be human for a minute...

I woke up this morning to the foulest smell ever lurking into my bedroom. I could hear my boys in there awake and moving around. Sure enough, little one pooped and took his diaper off and decided to have an art show on the wall. Great.

My house is trashed with toys. It's out of control people.

So naptime rolls around and they continue to make noise and NOT sleep or be quiet. I wanted to pull my hair out. I decide that ok, don't go to sleep.. but I'm shutting my door and having some quiet time of my own. A few minutes later I hear my oldest son say, "Mom, Britton pooped in his bed again." SERIOUSLY??

Sure enough, he had done it--again. Poop on the wall, poop all over the blankets, poop on the crib. Love it.

So now, I'm sitting on the couch with a box of vanilla wafers and I'm going to eat all of them. No I'm not sharing.

Hoping tomorrow is better.

Pray for Vivian

2009-07-06T16:45:00.001-07:00

I just saw this prayer request on Kelly's blog and wanted to pass it along to all of you. Please pray for this little girl. Seems like so many are hurting right now. Keep praying for Abby Grace, Kate and little Vivian.

Here is some info on her situation:

Dear friends,

Just wanted to let you know about a situation involving Vivian Day, the three year old daughter of Clif and Somer Clark-Day. She was involved in an accident on her bike yesterday with a parked truck. This accident apparently caused a skull fracture. Somer notified me late yesterday evening... and was obviously overcome with emotion. Vivian had been taken away in an ambulance from her home because Somer knew fairly quickly that the accident was more than a major laceration. At the time of her call, she knew that Vivian would have to have a CT scan and knew she was going to have a consultation with neurosurgery. Somer had called me to ask me to put Vivian on the prayer chain at church.

I received another call from Somer later concerning the fact that Vivian was going to have an operation on her skull. Once the doctor and team began performing the operation, they discovered that the skull was a little more depressed than originally thought. The depression was approx. 2 1/2 inches long and an inch wide. Her head was shaved and cut from the middle of her head to her ear. The team pulled the depressed part of skull out and attached sutures. No screws were used, so it is thought that theses will grow with her. This is some good news. Other hopeful news is that no brain bleeds were detected. The doctor is concerned about a possible contusion (bruise on the brain). Therefore, Vivian will have another CT scan today. She is currently on anti-seizure meds and antibiotics. She is in the ICU at this time. If the CT scan looks good today, she might be able to move to a room within the next couple of days. After yet another normal scan, she would be able to go home. Somer did indicate that she did wake up and ask for some water and has spoken a bit. She is cognitive.

The nurses who were assisting on the operation had worked with Somer previously before Somer had children... and while she was pregnant with Vivian. She said they took extra care in cleaning her up and caring for her. Our senior pastor, Guy Whitney was there for Somer and Clif throughout the evening... staying until after 3:00 a.m.

Specific prayers have been requested for continued improvement and healing. Please pray for no contusions and/or brain bleeds. Please pray for these parents, who are in agony. Clif is apparently very distraught as he was assisting Bauer, who had fallen off his tricycle... and Vivian took off her little helmet and rode away from him.

Forward this information to whomever you think would need to know and will pray.

Isn't she precious? I hate when anyone is suffering but most of all when children are hurting.

*be sure and check the below post for our fourth of July pics!

Fun on the Fourth

2009-07-06T06:41:00.000-07:00

Did everyone enjoy their fourth of July? We did! It was such a good day!

We started the day out pretty early with a 9am outing to our local Chuck E Cheese! Not sure why I thought Chuck E Cheese was such a great idea for the fourth of July but it really was! I'm telling y'all we were the only people in the place for 2 hours! It was so fun to have the place to ourselves! The boys had a great time. Here are a few pictures from our fun...

After that we headed home for a nap. Boy, I love my naps! We then got dressed and headed up to the church for the fireworks and fellowship. I loved hanging out with our church family and friends. It was such a good time. There was BBQ, ice cream, big blow up jumpies for the kids.

Below is a picture of some of our good friends.. the Warricks. They have four kids. Three girls and the most precious little boy! Lindsey (the mom) is SuperMom. Seriously she is.. she always looks so chic and her kids always look so put together. If there was a Mom of the Year Magazine, she'd be on the cover!

Here is a picture of all the kiddos. A few were missing.

Miss Abby Grace showing her patriotic spirit! Me, Abby Grace and Amanda.

Abby Grace's Mom & Dad, David and Amanda. We love you guys! Amanda is my zebra-print lovin' sister-friend! Hah!

Meet the Pope Family. We love our Popes! Such good people. Michelle is one of my closest friends.. not sure what I'd do without her! Don't they have the most beautiful girls?!

Also wanted to mention that they are now selling Praying for Abby Grace braclets. They are $5 each and the proceeds go to her family. They are super cute! Hot pink and black..my favorite color combo! You can order them by e-mailing Amanda at something_sassy123@yahoo.com I will have a picture coming of the braclets really soon!!

Kate's Parents

2009-07-04T10:12:00.001-07:00

Remember the previous post I asked for prayer for little Kate? This is a video of her parents...it was taken the day before she had her brain surgery.

Let's keep praying for this sweet little girl!

Click HERE for video.

PRAYERS FOR KATE

2009-07-02T12:49:00.001-07:00

This little girl's name is Kate. I found her info on Kelly's blog. Please be in prayer for her. This is so heartbreaking. I know you are all praying for Abby Grace right now too. Please keep both of them in your prayers..

This is Kate - isn't she beautiful????

On Monday - her parents took her to the doctor for some hand tremors she was having and now they are faced with a very aggressive, malignant brain tumor that is wrapped around the major blood vessels that feed the brain.

She is having surgery tomorrow. They can not remove all of the tumor because of where it is.

Please pray for her.

Here is the website with updates on her:
http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/mcraekate

My new favorite find!

2009-06-30T07:39:00.001-07:00

Ok ladies have you heard of this FAB product before? I am so excited about it!!

It’s called the MilkBand…and I hear it’s a lifesaver! Beth Moore’s daughter says it was a lifesaver when it came to breastfeeding. I remember how hard it was to remember how long I nursed and on which side. I used to try to write it down but always seemed to forget. I hoping that this product will put an end to the problem…

Now you know a mom had to invent this! I’m hoping so anyway.. LOL

I’m going to purchase a few extra ones for two girlfriends of mine who are having baby showers soon. I know it will help them on the nursing journey as well. I’ve been reading up on breastfeeding in my pregnancy books. It’s funny how much you forget from one baby to the next. I read a TON and took a breastfeeding class when I was pregnant with my first son. But as time goes on, you seem to forget it all.

My friend Jessica and I were discussing breastfeeding on Saturday. She is about 8 weeks out from having her little girl Allyson Kate! She was telling me that she read how under wire bras can keep a good milk production from developing. I suppose I hadn’t really thought about that. She said she was ditching the wire bras because she doesn’t want anything fighting against her attempt at breastfeeding… I agree with that. It’s hard enough as it is.

So I’ve been reading up on the ‘ol breastfeeding techniques and hoping I can retain all this information. We’ll see. One of the suggestions they made was to let your baby “room in” with you at the hospital. Now, don’t get me wrong, I want to bond with my baby, but I also know how sleep is so important when you have a new baby. I cherish those few days in the hospital when you can turn the baby over to great nurses who take great care of them and then you can just pick up the phone and have your baby right back after a little nap! I’m torn on which I’m going to do. Having two little ones at home already AND having a c-section again, I know I’m going to need my rest. But on the other hand, if I don’t room-in, I might not build a great milk supply those first few days.

I seem to remember with Britton telling them to bring him in every three hours. That seemed to work and he didn’t really have a hard time nursing so maybe that will work for us.

Anyhow, I hit 13 weeks on Sunday! I am feeling so much better these days! Here are some pregnancy stasts at 3 months:

~craving fruit like crazy! Strawberries and grapes are my favorite!
~still getting up at least 3 times in the night for a potty break.. hoping that subsides soon.
~craving water like crazy too! I’ve never been a huge fan of water.. but this go-round I seem to not be able to get enough

I think both the boys have a pretty good understanding of what is going on. They both randomly walk up to me and kiss my belly. It’s so sweet. Britton even says “baby” and it’s so cute. He actually kissed Daddy’s belly the other night and said baby so I think he hasn’t quite understood that the baby is only in Mommy’s belly!

On that note, I had a dream last night that it was a girl! So now, I am totally confused on which I think it is. I’m dead stuck in the middle between both. We’ll see what they say. Either way will be a great surprise!

Me and My Boys!

2009-06-25T08:14:00.000-07:00

Prayer Request:
Please continue to keep Abby Grace in your prayers. Her Neuro appointment today revealed that they do need to do surgery which will probably take place next month. It's a scary time but we know God has a plan. If it were one of my boys I know those words wouldn't mean much to me in the midst of it all. So let's keep praying for peace for Amanda, her husband David, and their entire family.
Thanks for the prayers!
Rachel

Needing Mommy Advice

2009-06-24T07:31:00.000-07:00

Hi Moms,
I need some input! I want to know what you ladies do on a day to day basis with your kiddos who stay at home and do not yet go to school? What do you do to pass the time? I know going to the park is always an option.. but run me thru your usual schedule.

I get tired of the same old thing. Just want to know if you guys have any creative schedules...day to day routines that work for you.

Momma's Red Velvet Cake!

2009-06-22T18:20:00.001-07:00

This was my second post of the day so be sure to scroll down and read the post below!

YUM! We love red velvet cake!! It is so MESSY!

12 weeks! We have arrived!

2009-06-22T07:27:00.000-07:00

Yesterday marked 12 weeks on this pregnancy journey! I cannot tell you how glad I am to be here. Mainly because I'm *hoping* this will be the turn of events for me. So far, I have felt pretty good the last three days and haven't had to take a ton of medicine.. well, I have added one new pill to my group...

...say hello to my new best friend. Mr. Zantac is going to be a big help to me in the coming days. My friend Heather, (thanks Heataher you rock and you are a lifesaver!) informed me that it quite possibly isn't morning sickness at all.. but heartburn/acid indigestion! I'm so thankful she mentioned it to me! My hubs picked up the Zantac for me last night and I could really tell a difference! It is supposed to help the acid/sour stomach issue I am having.

So here is a look at what Baby #3 looks like this week!

And a little info on Baby:

The most dramatic development this week: reflexes. Your baby's fingers will soon begin to open and close, his toes will curl, his eye muscles will clench, and his mouth will make sucking movements. In fact, if you prod your abdomen, your baby will squirm in response, although you won't be able to feel it. His intestines, which have grown so fast that they protrude into the umbilical cord, will start to move into his abdominal cavity about now, and his kidneys will begin excreting urine into his bladder.

Meanwhile, nerve cells are multiplying rapidly, and in your baby's brain, synapses are forming furiously. His face looks unquestionably human: His eyes have moved from the sides to the front of his head, and his ears are right where they should be. From crown to rump, your baby-to-be is just over 2 inches long (about the size of a lime) and weighs half an ounce.

I love reading about all the growth. It's amazing the changes that take place in just one week!

Yesterday was a great Father's Day. I am so thankful for my Dad and for my wonderful husband who is the best dad my boys could ever ask for. Church service really rocked. Worship was awesome.. the message really touched my heart and got me thinking. I'm thankful for my Salvation, and that Jesus will never let go of me.

We gave Daddy his pottery that the boys made. He loved his plate that they made. Here are some pictures of the day we painted.. it was pretty funny watching the boys paint.

Have a great day!

A Day Worth Noting

2009-06-19T18:32:00.000-07:00

I just need to get on the blog here and throw my hands up towards the heavens and give a big 'ol Thank ya Jesus!"

Today is the very first day, since I was about two weeks pregnant, that I have actually felt good all day! Yippie! This is such a huge deal for me. I was thanking Jesus all day that I felt good "thus far" in the day and here we are at the end of the day and so far so good! As I type this, I can feel him/her moving around in there...such an awesome feeling. I anticipated that the "tummy demons" were going to attack me tonight as they always do.. so I'm slapping them into submission with the pop of a few Tums! ;0)

This morning around 4am Bryce woke up whimpering a bit.. I went into his room and he was burning up.. next thing you know, little brother has fever too. Isn't it the funniest thing--they don't share toys but please, let's share a virus!! I loaded them down with Motrin and they seemed fine the rest of the day.. fever didn't come back so we got out of the house..

Today, the boys, Moggie (my mom) and I ran a few errands. I had to hit Hobby Lobby (don't ya just love that place? I mean, it was made for me) to buy some items for my best friend's baby shower invitations. I can't wait to show them to you...they are GAWGEOUS!! I know she is going to love them. Then I had to head over to the Painted Potter to pick up our pottery..the boys and I went there a couple of weeks ago to paint some pottery for Daddy's father's day gift. I'll have pictures to show you of the pottery on Sunday.

Anyhow, just sitting here, thankful to be feeling alright. Tomorrow might not be this good, but I'll just relish in the goodness of today!

I'll leave you with some random pictures of my kiddos!

Until tomorrow friends! Blessings!

Yummy Dinner!

2009-06-19T06:54:00.001-07:00

I wanted to share this recipie with you ladies! I'm sure you've had it before. King Ranch Chicken. It was yumm-o!

I got the recipie info from Kelly's blog.

INGREDIENTS:

3-4 chicken breasts, boiled and cut into bite size pieces
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can rotel
1-2 cups cheddar cheese
Package of corn tortillas (small)

Tear the tortillas into small pieces and line the bottom of a pan. Mix together the soups, rotel and chicken and pour on top. Top with cheddar cheese. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes or until cheese is bubbly. Seriously - it's that easy!

I served mine with rice. I used 1 cup of the water I boiled the chicken in and added 2 cups of chicken stock to give the rice flavor. It was really good! I also made some yummy corn. 2 cans of regular kernal corn. Drain most of the water from the cans and pour them into a skillet/saucepan. I add 2 tablespoons of butter, salt, pepper, onion powder and garlic salt (just a sprinkle of each) and also add a half teaspoon of olive oil. Trust me, it's good. Then I made some cornbread and there you have it! It was such a good meal.

I'm no Betty Crocker but this was delish if I do say so myself! ;0)

Product Showcase: Bedding has arrived!!

2009-06-18T18:17:00.000-07:00

Hey folks! I have done two posts in one day! That's a pretty big deal I'd say. I feel like sometimes I'm too busy to post even once a day so I'm excited to have found time to do two! *If you haven't yet read the post below this one! A great FAB FIND boutique you have to check them out!*

Here is are some pictures of the new bedding sets we are carrying!! These will be available on the website in just a few days!

I think they are all beautiful! Look for them on the website soon!

Fab Find Thursday?

2009-06-18T11:04:00.000-07:00

I know it sounds weird...it should be Fab Find Friday! But, I have a Fab Find and couldn't wait until Friday!!

I stumbled upon this gals website from a blog friend of a blog friend. She has the coolest products! Her boutique is called The Preppy Polkadot! Is that the coolest name or what?! Anyhow, I wanted to showcase some of the unique items she has...

Ok, HOW CUTE is this mailbox?? I mean seriously! I LOVE it! I've already told my husband, like it or not we WILL have one of these! It's so ME!

And how about these little mini, personalized hand sanitizers???

Check out these cute serving dishes!! Would you be cute walking into the next party with these???

Those are just a few of the cute products she has! If you're in need of any kind of gift, head on over to The Preppy Polkadot and get you some cute thangs gals!

You can also visit her blog HERE. She updates with new, fun products all the time!

Fun day with friends

2009-06-15T19:24:00.000-07:00

Today I went with my two sweet friends Annie and Keli to do some baby shopping. Annie is pregnant with Miss Sunny Marie and she is due in September! I cannot wait to meet her! Anyhow, we went to do a few things that Annie needed to get done.. can I just say that it is BLAZING hot here already? Ugh. Like, miserable hot. I'm not looking forward to what August is going to bring.

The best part of the day had to be eating lunch at the Cheesecake Factory! Oh. my. goodness. I know many of you have probably eaten there before but have you had the FRIED MAC N CHEESE BALLS? I know it sounds kinda strange but I've converted many a friend over to them and converted two more today! Annie and Keli loved them! They are so sinfully good. If you've never tried them, you must! TRUST ME they will rock your world!!

It was a good time with girlfriends. Keli and I have been planning all the details to Annie's shower.. it's going to be beautiful! The invitations I had designed are so Annie.. I'll have to wait and post the invite with shower pictures just in case Annie tries to sneak a peek ;)

I didn't get any pictures today...walked out of the house without my camera. Bummer.

So on the pregnancy side of things I have felt pretty yucky for most of the evening. Yesterday was my first time to really throw up. It wasn't pretty. Subway isn't as good when it's coming up (TMI) and let's just say I won't be eating there for a while... for some reason, when I throw up, I tend to want to shy away from the place where I had my last meal..

I wish I could better explain the sick feeling I get. It's like acid build up in my stomach that makes me feel like I'm going to throw up. I've tried Tums but they don't help too often.. My doctor gave me something but it makes me drowsy which doesn't really make you feel any better. Annie gave me some medicine she takes and it helped me for a little while then the feeling came back. That is really the only compliant I have with this pregnancy.. other than that it's been really awesome and I am blessed.

I really have a strong feeling in my gut that this is a boy! I just can't see it any other way. I already have his name picked out, the room designed and even have bedding picked out! I'm getting kind of excited about what/who he will look like.. I know that I'm way ahead of myself and that it could be a girl but so many people have said that their gut just told them. I didn't have this "gut feeling" with my other two so many it's right! We'll see.. I'd be in total shock if they said girl at this point since my mind is so swayed with boy.

Well folks, sorry for the boring post with no pictures! I'm off to bed. I've been buckling down and working on the website. Lots left to do but really happy with how it's turned out so far! I have so many big plans for Jack and Cole Designs.. I just have to remember that family is first and take it one day at a time. It's easy for me to spend an entire day working on and planning my business. I enjoy it so much that it doesn't feel like a job. But I'm trying to remember that yes, following my dreams is important.. but these young years with my kids are going to fly by, and pretty soon they'll be off doing their own thing. By that time, I'll have plent of free time to pursue my dreams! They aren't going anywhere! ;)

Goodnight friends! Be blessed!

Let it be known

2009-06-13T07:14:00.000-07:00

I debated posting this but when it came down to it, I felt the need was there. I want to make everyone aware of this. I have a tracker on my blog and my website that tells me who and when is visting my sites. I am NOT directing this at my faithful blog following friends--so please know that. This is directed to anyone who may be reading my blog with a ugly motive at hand. I just want you to be aware that I can see you, I see where you are from (even if where you are right now isn't your hometown). I can see what you are searching for on my blog and so on. I am not one to start things or argue but this isn't just a business blog it is a personal blog as well and I have to protect my business and my family. The tracker I have is a great asset that is intended to help me see people who found my blog and how they found my blog. It's actually meant to be a great business tool.

If you are a blog friend please know again this is not intended toward you! I just know that there are some questionable things I can see behind the scenes and I want to put it out there so we don't have any problems.

I am thankful for my faithful friends who do read my blog! Love you all!

Second trimester is almost here!

2009-06-12T16:46:00.000-07:00

I'm so excited that on Sunday I will be 11 weeks along.. that means that the second trimester is right around the corner! I'm hopeful that when I wake up, the morning the 12 week begins, I'll be like a lady running thru a wheat feild and feel like a new person! Hah! I know it won't happen like that but I'm sure hoping it does. I'm ready for the sleepiness to fade, and for the stomach acid to go bye bye! I have a feeling the acid issue is going to stay with me this pregnancy. This is new for me so it's taking some getting used to. I've been eating tums like candy and so far I think they are helping. If any of you ladies have any advice on how to help this issue please share your knowledge!

I wanted to post a picture from the baby website I'm always on.. here is a picture of how my baby looks thus far!

I don't think any men read my blog...if there are then I know the above picture was already TMI for you.

So right now Baby #3 is the size of a fig! How cute.. last week it said the baby was the size of a kumkwat(sp?) I just thought, "couldn't they have compared it to another food?" That is such a weird sounding word. LOL
The baby is almost fully formed. Here are some other fun tidbits:

Her hands will soon open and close into fists, tiny tooth buds are beginning to appear under her gums, and some of her bones are beginning to harden. I love reading as the development takes place! I'm trying to relish in all these tiny moments that go by so fast.. this may or may not be our last child (we'll see if I can survive 3). I don't think I can make up my mind about that just yet.. I'm just not there. I might change my mind a few weeks after this one is born! ;) Time will tell.

Anyhow, I hope you are all having a wonderful day! Despite Satan's attempt to "hit me with his best shot" today I am surprisingly at total peace, and am not letting the little things bother me! Thank you Jesus for peace!

Have a great day!

Introducing....

2009-06-08T16:10:00.000-07:00

The Abby Grace Collection! Buy a bow (or frame), and support this family!!

Here is the Abby Grace picture frame. These are $25 each...so cute!

This is the Large Abby Grace bow for $20...

And the medium Abby Grace bow for $18!!

aren't these just snazzy?! They are even cuter in person!

To place an order for any of these products you can e-mail me at marquez.rachel@yahoo.com or Amber at frillyflops&bouncybows@yahoo.com The items will be available for purchase on the Jack and Cole website next week!

Let us hear what you think about these beauties!!

**A huge thank you to Tasha of Homeshade Photography for taking these amazing photos of Abby!! Visit her website HERE

First peek at the Abby Grace Bows!!!

2009-06-07T18:46:00.000-07:00

Here are two sneak peeks at the Abby Grace bows!! They are just gorgeous!! I'll have closeups/headshots for you as she gets them edited.

Gotta give a big shout out and a huge THANK YOU to Tasha of Homeshade Photography for taking these beautiful pictures!! She Rocks! Visit her blog HERE and her photography website HERE. If you are anywhere near the Houston area you've got to hire her to do your pictures!!

Amber did a great job and these bows are just beautiful..I have a picture of the picture frame coming too!!

Ok..don't you just love our little model?? Who else could model this precious bows except Miss Abby Grace herself!? She is the sweetest little princess!

These items will be available for purchase in our online boutique at www.JackandColeDesigns.com So check starting next week to purchase them!! If you'd like to purchase one now, e-mail me at marquez.rachel@yahoo.com and we'll be sure to get you one! Proceeds to go help Abby Grace's family with medical expenses.

I'll be back tomorrow or the next day with close up pictures and pictures of the Abby Grace picture frame as well as prices and hopefully a blog button to advertise the collection!

Blessings!

Abby Grace bows are almost ready!!

2009-06-06T12:49:00.000-07:00

We are almost ready to reveal the Abby Grace Collection here on the Jack and Cole Blog!!

They will be available for purchase on the Jack and Cole Designs website! We will put them in their own category so when you click on clothing, you then click on accessories and you'll find them under there!

Remember, there are two bow sizes, small and medium. And there is an Abby Grace Frame as well!!

Come back tomorrow for pictures!!

Wake up all you Moms!!!

2009-06-05T03:16:00.000-07:00

Did you know that the ever popular Victoria's Secret line, PINK is advertised in YM and Teen Vogue magazines??? Which has a target audience of ages 9-17!! WOW.

I don't have time to elaborate on this now.. but I will. I've got a good post coming that's bound to offend some. But what do I really care??

No I do not have a daughter, but I've got two precious nieces whom I love dearly and who are being exposed to all of this garbage.. and for that matter, I've got two precious boys who are also being exposed to the garbage.

The effect this has on young girls (or adult women for that matter) is out of control but lest we foget the way it strikes young boys! I realize that on the human nature side of things that yes, a boy (or man) will always be aroused by a scantily clad picture or a scantily clad dressed girl; but my prayer is to raise them to see those images and "AVERT THE EYES SON BECAUSE SIN ABOUNDS!!" I want them to see those images or girls dressed that way and think, "God's word tells me that this is not godly and as much as my flesh would love to pursue this it isn't good for me."

I hope I can raise my boys to seek the attention of godly, god-fearing ladies who have a love for modesty and find their TRUE WORTH in the mirror of God's heart...not some smutty magazine or mall window.

Ok I've said my two scents worth for today... please come back because I've got a post coming soon that I'm super passionate about.

I'll leave you with this...straight off the Abercrombie KIDS website!!! Clothing geared toward 7-12 year olds mind you.. isn't this just what you want your young daughter focusing on when she's searching online unsupervised??

GGGRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!

Blessings!

God's people come together

2009-06-04T11:22:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to jump on and say how touched I am at all of you who came to Abby Grace's prayer blog and have prayed for her! I am so thankful that there are people out there who can go to our Lord in prayer for a total stranger.

Like Amanda said in her post here, we've followed these blogs for a long time and our heart has broken for those children who are suffering, and the parents who suffer along with them. But it is so different when it's YOUR child. I know that God will get the ultimate glory in all of this...I think He already has. His spirit has been shown thru all these wonderful people.

We are close to showcasing the "Abby Grace Collection" here on the blog. We'll have two sizes of sassy, fancy hairbows, and we'll also have an Abby Grace picture frame (these are so adorable!!) for those of you who have no need for a hairbow. There will be two ways to support this family! My "bow lady" is working on her designs right now and I promise you they will be fabulous! You will be able to purchase these items on the Jack and Cole Designs website.. please note: I will make no profit off of these sales..this is strictly to help my friend and her family with any medical expenses they may have.

Speaking of, Amanda told me that one time parking at the hospital is $13!!! That's crazy...so they spent $26 in one day parking at the hospital to go to her appointments.. so these sales with help them in a number of ways!

*Also, I just added the Followers feature to my blog..so please join!*

Keep praying! We love you Abby Grace!
Blessings,
Rachel