Sarah, Michael and Anson:

and…..anson’s outta there!

Gotta get some mowing done!

This is too much cuteness. Just way too much.

I love these next two! The lip pull is awesome.

This is Dillon. He rocks. But that’s obvious.

I thought I’d end with a very Anson-ish look. Don’t you just love him??!

I can’t believe he’s a year old. What a amazingly awesome year it was!!!! People tell you how fast the time with your kids goes by, but I don’t think you really understand until you’ve got a walking, “talking”, cake-eating, dirt-loving, big-boy toddler who seemed to be a little tiny baby just yesterday! And that is why I remind myself each day – DON’T BLINK, ENJOY EVERY SINGLE MINUTE.

I already printed and framed this one for the living room :)

LOVE that tongue.

I had to include the crying one – his little hands lifted in the air is so adorable!

Pattycake!!!

I love those cheeks!

Having Hudson makes it even harder to imagine not being a photographer. How could I ever go without all the pictures I have? It makes me realize just how valuable photography is in a way I didn’t understand before. I always believed in my work, but having a baby and wanting those memories to never fade really makes me see even more value in it. I feel so blessed to have such a wonderful family and such a wonderful job.

That said, I needed to actually get the pictures I have off the computer and onto my wall! Here are some pictures I just ordered prints of for our living room! :)

Here’s a picture Tyler took of me and Hudson. Thanks Ty! I love it. :)

And one of Tyler and Hudson….man I love these boys so much!

We prayed. We asked God to make us good parents to this little miracle. We asked for peace and for the baby to be healthy. We asked for the character to be good examples to all the people around us. We asked that the doctors and nurses would see Christ, and not us.

In the coming months we visited the specialist over and over again. We could make a flip book with the ultrasound pictures we have. At each visit they found more reason for concern. Extra fluid in the kidneys, extra fluid surrounding the brain. I spent hours researching about chromosomal abnormalities. I watched videos of amazing kids with Down Syndrome and fell in love with their attitudes toward life. We continued to pray for calmness and for the fear of the unknown not to overwhelm us.

At 28 weeks we went in for a full anatomy scan of the baby. I remember watching the ultrasound so closely trying to see if anything looked different or concerning. The baby was especially hyper that day and it took forever just to get a heartbeat. Tyler said he was clearly going to take after me. :) After the ultrasound the doctor came in to discuss the results with us. He was smiling. He said that he couldn’t believe it but that all the problems we had been seeing had resolved themselves. Straight up disappeared. He said we must have been praying because this was a miracle. We laughed and cried and thanked God over and over again.

I don’t know why we went through what we did. I don’t know why our baby boy developed so differently and then was just fine. I don’t know if I’ll ever know. What I do know is that I’m so thankful for the doctors who really, truly cared. I’m thankful for our friends and family who prayed constantly. I’m thankful for the knowledge I gained through researching about chromosomal abnormalities. I’m thankful for my amazing husband who is so incredibly strong. And I am forever grateful for the grace of God not only in giving us a healthy baby, but also for holding us and comforting us through the hard times.

On March 12th I gave birth to a healthy baby boy. I am so excited to introduce little baby Hudson. We are so in love with this little guy. :)