We have a name!

Choosing a name for a boy was not easy. Boy names are not super fun and exciting and you definitely can't make them cute like you can with girl names. So when we found out we were having a boy Kyle and I both had no clue where to start. I would suggest a name and he would veto it. After a couple of weeks of this Kyle finally said you make out a list and I will choose my favorite from it. So that I did.....it was not a long list. Ultimately, Kyle is not a huge fan of really traditional boy names but I was not a fan of going to crazy with the name so.....his name is Collins Edward Murphree. Collins has no significance whatsoever it was just a name we both agreed on. Edward was my grandfather's middle name. I always liked it and new I would want to use it for a middle name if we ever had a boy. Now that we have named him I try to add his name to at least one conversation a day with Kylie. She will say his name but mostly she just gives me a blank stare. I bet that blank stare will look a little different once he arrives! I have converted one of her unused drawers into "Collins drawer" and she knows that everything in that drawer is for him. Hopefully, within the next few weeks we will have painted her room and gotten everything ready for her to make the transition. I am nervous about the big girl bedroom but I think she is going to love her big girl bed. We have been undergoing several projects so pictures will come soon. I really need to do a better job of taking the before shots and not just the after shots. I am not trying to hide anything I just don't want to stop a job once it is finally getting started! More soon!

Kylie playing in the water hose (video)

My favorite part is when she waves to Dada (I'm a little biased though).

Storms-Psalm 71

It is impossible to predict where a storm will go or when it will hit, but it is good to prepare for it. No one can say that their lives are exactly how they planned. You can know that storms are coming, and knowing how to prepare for them is the only recourse we have. The Psalms are written by "storm survivors." Storm secrets: 1. Storms can give you a brand new shelter that you didn't know you had. Where do we run when we have trouble? David ran a well-worn trail of trust back to the savior. A rock-massive mountain stronghold. Sometimes storms will come into our lives so we will seek refuge. Storms grab our attention and make us say, "I cant do this buy myself." We must understand that when storms come, we do have somewhere to go. 2. Storms can give you a new perspective. David's storm was that there was a group of people who were violently pursuing him (enemies). However, his enemies made a miscalculation. The world says: "when bad things happen, God must not be there." This is not so. Storms take us on a new course God is with us, even amidst the storm. Even when we were in our mother's womb, He was with us. "Few of us ever fully understand that the heat of suffering is the refiner's fire....all of God's wisdom comes at a very high price." -David Jeremiah "So bless you, prison, for having been in my life."- Alexander Solyhenitsym Do we bless God for our storms? 3. Storms can give us a new story. The hero of my storm is God not me. Remember who the hero was and continually give him the glory. God controls the storm. "There is nothing, no circumstance, no trouble, no testing that can ever touch me until first of all it has come past God and past Christ, right through to me. If it has come that far, it has come with a great purpose."-Alan Redpath Passion should increase with age because you've seen God move in the storms you've lived through. God, I don't understand this storm, but I accept it. The above is from sermon notes that one of my dearest friends gave me. She had been working at a summer camp in 2004 in Tyler, TX. I have read these notes many times throughout the years but in light of the many storms-phyiscal, mental, emotional, and spiritual-that I have been weathering I needed them to resignate in me again. Weathering storms these last few weeks has brought me to my knees. I have never needed the power of God more. The storms have come and with great purpose. The purpose is not clear to me yet...it may never be but I am so thankful they are bringing me to a new place with God and my family. It is in these storms I am clinging to him the most and for that I can only be grateful.

It is a.....

It is official we are having a boy! He is very healthy which is the most exciting thing to me. I am in complete shock. I just knew we were having a girl. Kyle and I were just praying for a healthy baby but I must admit I wanted Kylie to have a sister. So now there is a whole new level of preparation that must occur. I am so excited about adding blue to our house!

Reading List

Right now I am in the mood to read. I love reading. I love what I take away from a book once I am done whether it is fiction or nonfiction. I tend to read mostly Christian books (both fiction and nonfiction) but every now and then I branch out. Well right now I have quite the reading list. I am really not sure when I will finish all of these books but I am hoping to get through at least one or two by the time baby #2 arrives and I have even less time. All of these books came highly recommended. I will have to give my take on them later but I am sure they will not disappoint. Right now I have started Decision Points by George W. Bush and I am loving it. The other books are mostly for my personal growth as a wife, woman, and mother. I have always wanted to grow spiritually and I have daily strived to be a better more godly person but since becoming a mother there is definitely a since of urgency. I know she hears and sees everything I say and do. She watches my every move and looks to me for guidance and direction. I so want to bring her up to be a woman after God's own heart. So with that said here is my book list what does yours look like? 1. Decision Points by George W. Bush 2. One Thousand Gifts by Ann Vosenkamp 3. Treasuring God in your Traditions by Noel Piper 4. Shepherding A Child's Heart by Tedd Tripp 5. So Long Insecurity by Beth Moore

Times they are a changing....

These last few months that I have not been blogging have been spent mostly sick. That is right the Murphree family has had something off and on since November. I am happy to say that sicknesses are passing and we are enjoying the beautiful spring weather. A couple of weekends ago we celebrated Kyle's 29th birthday! To celebrate we went to Connor's Steakhouse with his family and then on his actual birthday the three of us just stayed around the house and ate birthday cake. He loves thin mint cookies so I decided to make him a Thin Mint cake. I got the recipe from a friend who had made thin mint cupcakes. The recipe did not disappoint. It was the perfect amount of mint. Go here for the recipe http://themunciefamily.blogspot.com/2011/03/thin-mint-cupcakes.html. Now for Miss Kylie....she is wonderful. Everyday is a new adventure. She is just a sponge right now and soaks up anything and everything. Everyday I wait for her to show me what she has learned that day. She is finally getting more and more hair. Maybe by the time she is 2 we can put it in a ponytail. She is average weight and a little above average height. All in all I just love being her mom. I feel the pressure a lot of days as I stumble through how to raise her up to be a godly woman. I just keep praying for wisdom and I keep reading all of your blogs for ideas. And now to provide at least some blog exposure to our newest one. I have waited and waited to post about being pregnant. For several reasons: sickness, time, and fear. However, we have past the first trimester and it is time to post a belly pic and hopefully soon the sonogram pic of baby #2. Baby #2 is set to arrive September 29th. So Kylie will be exactly 2 years older than her sibling. I have always wanted my kids to be close in age. I hope that they will be great friends. I can only imagine what life will be like next fall but I am so grateful for the opportunity to find out. Kyle and I feel truly blessed. The next few months (really as all months) will bring about some much change in our family and with that so much dependence on the Lord. Anyway, here is a belly pic from I believe 10 weeks. I had no idea just how quickly I would begin to show. Based on the picture do you think Kylie will adjust well to sharing mommy?:)

November Kylie Video

Small video of Kylie From November