Camping and other fun!

Tyson went on his first camp out this last weekend! Our friends, the Patricks invited us to camp out on their property up near New Braunfels and it was so much fun! Our car was maybe twenty feet away--easy access and no need for a bear bag! Christian put up and took down the tent alone while I tried to convince Tyson that the grass which was taller than he was was not 'scary.' There were lightning bugs and a campfire, good food, and friends! We even had an air mattress so it was delightful! (I thought it was delightful--I guess it still woke up Christian each time I got up to use the restroom but that's ok!) The next morning we went kayaking down the river and Christian jumped off this HUGE tree swing--he was at least twenty feet in the air and he would do back flips off of the rope after swinging down...it was so cool! The first time he jumped, Tyson's eyes were huge!! He was almost as impressed as I was with his daddy! Christian has been so amazing to do everything this year. I am so lucky to have a husband that is so much fun and does so much to help me out with Tyson. He is the best daddy ever!


Last night we went to paint pumpkins and have soup with some friends and it was so much fun! The food was AMAZING and there was even a pinata with candy in it! Christian helped Tyson with the bat and when the candy fell out he was the first to tell him which candy was the best. Tyson would've been happy with one piece of candy but Christian helped him get more...I suppose that's why he gets to eat so much of it, too :) Anyway, we feel so lucky to have so many good friends and so many fun things going on! Hopefully things will only get better once we have two little guys to tote around!

Dad's visit

This past week my dad came out to visit because I requested him to come. he had just recently come out but after seeing my mom and step-dad I had so many angry and sad feelings I just needed to see my dad. The fact that he was willing to come out just to spend time with me made all the difference in the world.

My dad is amazing. I think I could have said anything to him and he would never have gotten up to leave the room. He never even seemed offended. He owned up to things that had been hard for me and was available and open to talk about anything the entire time he was here. We did a lot of talking and it was really good for me.

During one of our conversations, Tyson fell off of his chair in the kitchen and had a bloody lip. I just held him until he felt better but at the same time I felt like that was what was happening to me. After all of this time, I was able to talk to my dad and he just held my feelings for me. Thanks dad!

I'm still just feeling things I don't quite understand but at least they aren't frightening anymore. I think the biggest thing I realized was that even though my home is broken, I still have the pieces in my hands. I have a father and a mother who both love me very much and even though our home will never again be like how it should be in my mind, I am lucky. I can finally trust my dad again. I can move past the past and build with each member of my family a new relationship, a better relationship, and even though I won't do it all at once-I can't-it is too overwhelming. I can, I want to, and I will. I just can't talk about all of my feelings about my family all at once. I'm still feeling them and letting them work inside me. Anyway, that has been my week. Thank you to all of you who had us in your prayers. It has made all the difference in the world to me. The last thing that happened is my testimony of the church has grown stronger. I needed so much help from God to get me through to this point and He has been with me the whole way. I'm so grateful He was there to see me through.

Also, Monday night around midnight I started feeling the results of food poisoning from Wendy's and felt awful! I am so grateful to everyone who helped me out Tuesday! Kim picked my dad up from the airport and I had babysitters available at any time. I am so humbled and grateful to have such amazing friends and support. Thank you again to everyone!