Baby Hamblin...

Jesse and I are doing our best to prepare for our biggest life event so far - the birth of our first child. That's right, after 3 years of trying to conceive, the Lord has blessed us with our first little girl. She is due to arrive November 24th so her and my niece, Adaya, may have the same birthday! I am currently 27 weeks and things are going really well. I love to feel her squirm around in my belly and we both can't wait to see her little face for the first time. We have decided to name her Maci Lynn. I still have days, after almost 7 months, that I am just overwhelmed at the idea of finally becoming a mommy. As much as I want to say my faith was strong in the Lord, I had my days that I gave up on ever having a child of my own. Now that it's a reality, I am so humbled that I ever doubted God's power. He has a plan, He knows what's best and, in the end, He knew that we'd be more satisfied if we were patient with Him - and we are! It is a wonderful time in our life to be having a baby. So, I have a picture of my belly so you can see our little miracle.

A beautiful day in Arizona

On the 18th, Jesse and I went for a hike at the Superstition Mountains. It had recently rained and I couldn't believe how green everything was. It was such a beautiful day! We took our time and looked at everything. We stopped at one point and climbed up a giant, red rock and ate lunch. Then we headed back down.

It just always amazes me that people could possibly not believe in God. Just looking around at all the beauty of the earth is enough for me to know that nothing happened by accident. We serve a great God who wants us to enjoy all the beauty He's laid out for us.

Anyway, we had a great time and I've attached a few pictures for your enjoyment!!

What's happenin' with the Hamblin's?

Well, I knew this year would be a great one and so far it has been! I received a phone call about three weeks ago for an interview for a second grade position. I went in and had it then left the building a little bewildered. I had no idea if the interview went well or not, so naturally, I went home and stressed about it. Two very long days later the principal called me back and offered me the job. I am now starting my third week as an official teacher. Though my class has been a challenging group of students, I am thrilled at the opportunity to have my own classroom and at the end of everyday I go home looking forward to the next. Jesse has also been blessed with a wonderful full time job at Do It Best Hardware and is loving it there. The hours are very compatable with mine and it is so nice for us both to be home in the evenings. Things are going very well and we are so thankful to the Lord for giving us all these wonderful blessings that we don't deserve. The next step in our lives is to look for a permanent place to live. We have time to really think about it, and we will take our time because we are both sick of moving! In the search for our future home we have made a decision to down-size our family and have recently found a fantastic home for one of our very loved puppies, Pedro. He went today to live with his new family. They have a Min Pin already so we both belive that he will be very happy. We are still looking for a wonderful home for Bailey and have decided to keep our little Napoleon. I am a little bitter-sweet about it because I love all of my puppies so very much, but it is very hard to have three dogs. So, as sad as I am about loosing Pedro and Bailey, I am looking forward to giving all my attention to one little dog. It would have been much harder for me if I didn't know that Pedro was going to a good home, but he is and he will be just fine.

Well, in conclusion, I know I have slacked a little on my pictures, but that is pure laziness! Some day soon I will put some more updated pictures up, but for the time being, my words will have to paint the pictures for you! God Bless to all!!

A new look at things

Well, the first month of the new year is almost over and if the rest of the year is going to fly by that fast I'd better get a move on! So much happened last year that will shape how this year goes and I am really looking forward to seeing that happen. I graduated from college and moved back to Arizona. That means that I can finally fulfill my dream of being a teacher. I can also be near family and watch the little ones grow up and create memories with the rest. I am very optimistic about what the Lord has in store for Jesse and me. I feel that right now is a time of patience and waiting on the Lord for both of us and in this time I will give God everything and just allow Him to work in our lives however is necessary for us to glorify him the most.

I can honestly say that I have no idea how this year will turn out, but I really feel in my heart that it is a big turning point for the both of us. I'm not sure what awaits around the next bend but my heart is willing and ready to take on whatever adventure awaits!

Ahhh, Christmas!

Well folks, this Christmas was crazy and fun! Jesse and I had the pleasure of packing up and moving back home for our Christmas present to each other. On December 17th, we headed back to Arizona. Shortly after our great move we were able to celebrate the joyous holiday with all of our family. First, we had a lovely time with Jesse's mom and her side of the family. We have had the woderful pleasure of learning a great deal about Jesse's new step-dad, Shawn and his upbringing in Pakistan. We both recieved wonderful gifts from his home country including a traditional outfit for each of us. I must say we make quite a pair! It was also great to be able to spend time with his brother and his family, and the grandparents. We always have a great time together - lots of laughter! After that we headed up to see my parents new place in Lakeside. We were both thrilled to see my parents dream of a cabin in the woods finally come true. It is a little piece of heaven to be up at their house. It was a very special Christmas to be able to spend it with my brother and his family, and my grandparents. We had a blast in the snow and even gave life to our new found friend - the snowman Harvey! I know that we are both looking forward to many more good times up there. Finally, we made our way to Payson to spend one more fantastic night with Jesse's dad, step-mom and his siblings. We had such a great time waking up on Christmas morning to see the looks on Riley and Garret's faces when they discovered all that Santa had brought to them.

We made some wonderful and life long memories this blessed Christmas season! It still just amazes me how the Lord could be so gracious and send us the most precious gift of all time - His son. It always humbles me to know that God could have made such a grand entrance for his son and yet he chose a small manger to lay the King of Kings. I hope that I never loose sight of the real meaning behind this holiday and never take for granted that God did this for me. I pray blessings on all my family and friends this upcoming year - we love you all!

Thanksgiving 2007!!

We had a wonderful day this year. It will be our last in Lubbock and we were able to spend it with some wonderful friends. Not only was the day wonderful, it also started to snow! It was the most picture perfect Thanksgiving. We prepared lots of wonderful dishes and ate until we were stuffed. I am really going to miss the cold when we are back in Arizona, but I am happy that we had the opportunity to experience such a wonderful time this year! Here are a few pictures from our day. Enjoy!!

Camping trip, October, 2007

Jesse and I went camping at White River Lake in Texas this weekend. We went with our frineds, Corey and Summer and their kids, Kobie and Cohen. It was a wonderful weekend and went very smoothly. The kids (who are 6 and 3) had a wonderful time and were perfect angels on their first camping trip. It was so nice to get away from TV, traffic, work and school for a couple of days. I think it's important for everyone to take a few days to themselves to regroup and refresh. Also, it helps to remember and appriciate the simple things in life. Here are a couple of pictures from the trip. I hope you enjoy!!