Time has just been flying by. Kate turned 2 in October and Levi turned 1 a week later. Kate talks a mile a minute now and loves to identify everything. Levi is still content to crawl but loves to walk along everything. Kate and Levi love to play together and Kates favorite thing to do is to help Levi. Usually her trying to help ends up with Levi in a headlock as Kate tries to pick him up and place him where she thinks he should be. They both keep us laughing will all the funny things they do and say.

Thankful today for how God has blessed our family. As I wrote the date today I realized that 2 years ago today would have been the due date of our first child. However, at just 6 weeks pregnant I experienced overwhelming pain when I discovered I had miscarried. Today I am so blessed to have two precious children and because of my loss I realize more fully that they will always belong first to God and that He has allowed me the joy of taking care of them on this earth. Thank you father for this precious gift.

I have taken a 9 month break from posting. :-) Im back and will try to be more consistent. The kids are growing up so fast. Kate turns 2 in two months and Levi turns 1 in two months and a week.

Women of Grace Bible Study

Today I got to attend the women of grace bible study for the first time. They are studying the amazing collection which goes through the entire bible...they are on 1st Kings. It was so fun to be with other women who love the Lord and study the scripture together. I had previously been unable to attend since I nannied during the bible study time. I want to be consistent in my time in the word and this is great accountability and encouragement for me. :-) Kate has her 15month check up tomorrow. I cant believe she is getting so old. She has 8 teeth right now and 4 more are coming in. She has the sweetest personality and is learning to communicate without words. She is very receptive to discipline right now and we are praying that God would capture her heart at a young age. Life with two kids can be exhausting at times but I am so thankful for the precious kids God has given to Eric and me.
Eric has a website where he is posting pictures now. It is www.ericdeshan.com. Check it out!

Levi's birth story

A couple days after Levi was born I sat in the NICU staring at my young son and wrote out his birth story. Monday October 24th, 2011

Eric awoke at 5 am and drove to Oklahoma to complete a drilling job. Kate and I ran to the store to get some newborn diapers so we would be ready when Levi was born in 6 weeks. I did not know that he would be making an appearance later that night. Around 6pm I started feeling contractions. I called Eric in oklahoma and told him. He suggested I call the doctor. I continued to have contractions about 6 minutes apart so I called the doctor on call. I told her my husband was out of town and asked what I could do to slow or stop the contractions. I did not want to have to go to the hospital. She suggested I take a warm bath and drink lots of water, which i did, but my contractions stayed consistent and actually got closer together. I called Eric again and he suggested i have a plan in place in case I needed to go to the hospital. I was reluctant to call anyone because i was determined not to have Levi yet. My wonderful husband called our friends, the bortnems and lucas rogers, and asked them to keep an eye on me. Brandi bortnem offered to come watch the rangers game with me and while talking to her I decided I should probably just let her take me to the hospital. Thankfully, Eric started driving back from Oklahoma even before I made it to the hospital. When I checked in at labor and delivery I dont think they believed I was in labor because I was so calm. They checked my dilation and I was already at an 8 and they could feel the bag of waters and babies head. When they told me I responded, "no". I did not want to have Levi without Eric. Brandi called to see where Eric was and he had just been pulled over for a speeding ticket and was still 2 hours away. God was so good and allowed me to stay calm through all the contractions. I was in shock the entire time and could not believe I was having Levi 6 weeks early. God provided two great friends, Brandi and Carrie who encouraged me and stayed with me until Eric arrived. Eric arrived 8 minutes before Levi was born. I had been waiting to push and as soon as he walked in the door we got the show on the road. I pushed 5 hard times and Levi Michael DeShan was born at 11:12pm. They rushed him away to check his breathing but let us look at him first all swaddled up with only his little face peeking out. He was 6 lbs 6 oz. Praise the Lord he was so big for being so early. He spent almost 3 weeks in the NICU. It was so hard to leave him there everyday but I knew they were taking great care of my son. On 11-11-11 we brought Levi home for the first time to meet his big sister Kate. :-)