k & v..

as my sister so lovingly reminded me tonight (wait, it wasn't loving. is went something like, "when are you gonna post about the rest of your time in nc? you do such a good job writing about yourself, but what about the rest of us?" ha what is sisterhood without sassy banter?) i have yet to share about the other fun shower we had while i was in north carolina like i said i would in this post.

i'm not sure that i've mentioned it yet, but my sister and her fiance are being rude and getting married when i'll be a very rotund thirty-six weeks pregnant. i mean, how dare they plan a wedding before i even got pregnant and make it so close to my future due date? psht. anywho, i love them so i'm still acting excited and rolling with the punches. seriously though, i can't wait for this day, and have made sure to remind myself of it daily by putting their sweet a invitation on my fridge.

the party was so fun and sweet. vally and kyle's friends kristen and quinten offered to host at their house, and i was in town to be able to help out with some of the details which made me really thankful. being hours away during fun seasons like this is not the funnest thing, but i'm so glad that i can be a part of days like this for them.

the soon to be b and g.. i read somewhere that you should take pictures from behind because that's where all the love is. i agree.

doing my matron of honor-y duties and writing down names at the gifts table. they picked out cute stuff, and i was covetous of those burlap "mr." and "mrs." pillows on the right.

some panorama action during gift opening.

just look at 'em. toats adorbs.

rubes got dirty and sweaty, and kept showing everyone her underwares. i loved being able to just let her run around in the backyard and enjoy all the kids at the shower. and we all know that sparklers make the world go round, and every parent's blood pressure go up, so that was fun too.

sisterly love. and sadie girl, stay in there until at least after october 13th, capeesh?

we three. it's blowing my mind that in just two short months we'll be three married old ladies. it makes me very thankful for the years that we just had each other, and even more thankful for where we've ended up.

the men folk. this is going to be a beardtastic wedding once d gets in town to round out the threesome.

uncle getting in a superb photobomb.

they're cute. kind of crazy to think that just a few hours after this a tree fell on the house.

look, i don't like to use my flash. just pretend like this is in focus. also, i can't wait for the wedding weekend so we can take pictures that include daniel. that's gonna be frame-worthy for sure.

what a fun time celebrating. two more families becoming one. God's really good, and we are all incredibly good looking.

thrift a gift..

i heard read about something so super fun yesterday that i had to share with any of your lovelies who might be interested. i follow along with danielle over at take heart, and she posted yesterday about the thrifty love gift exchange. now, i love giving love and gifts of all kinds, but something about a thrifty-themed gift exchange just pushes all of the right buttons for me. on top of that, you buy and send a $10 thrifted gift to a total blogging stranger; which makes it even more fun and mysterious. now to find something that i don't want to keep for myself. :)

the details of the exchange are on danielle's (and all of the other lady host's) blog, but i'll give you a rundown here as well.

the deets:

if you would like to join in on the fun, email carina at punkpumpkinpeanut{at}gmail{dot}com by july 5th. make sure you include your blog and a mailing address (it will only be shared with whomever you're matched with).

you'll get your match by july 10th, and then you can go thrift your heart out for whatever you can find in your $10 budget.

mail your thrifted love by july 25th, and join in on the link up on august 6th with a post all about your thrifty gift finding adventures. 

doesn't that sound like fun?! ok, i'll work on containing my excitement and give you a minute to go send your email to carina.

so good..

He is always good. but sometimes He does things that are just so good the joy from them spreads quickly and deeply. and this is one of those good things..

my sweet sister, valentina, committed to tie her life forever to this great man, kyle, last night. theirs is a story of redemption, purity, true love, and His grace and mercy. so good.

october, hurry up and get here.

Our New Addition

Ruby Madeline Mehaffie finally made her first appearance into our lives on May 30th, 2009! She was born at 6:59 AM and weighed in at 6 pounds 2 ounces and was 18 inches long. She IS perfect! I'll tell the story from my perspective, as I'm sure Alinna will have her own version. In short, we both worked Friday and came home only to go out for dinner to celebrate Alinna's last day of work for a little while. After eating at Anita's (a mexican restraunt) we came home and at about 10 o'clock Alinna started having some small contractions. Me being the good husband that I was, I went to bed because I had to work the next day and wanted my beauty sleep. I also figured Vally, Alinna's sister was there to help Alinna if anything exciting were to happen. I awoke around 3 AM only to find Alinna walking off some contractions with all the lights on in our bedroom. She said something along the lines of, "I think this might be for real", and apparently I asked if she was 100% only for her to answer, "I don't know." Don't judge me, but I went back to sleep. Again, I woke up at about 5:30 and she said something along the lines of, "It's on!" I told her to make me some waffles while I put my clothes on and then once I drank my coffee we could go. Just kidding, I'm not that much of a jerk! We left and it was fun running one of the only lights on the way to the hospital, arriving at about 6. We check in and I texted my family that we were at the hospital and would keep them posted. They all were supportive and began praying for Alinna. I don't know how God works in these situations other than whatever happens is part of his plan. I say this because I remember praying for Rockie, my sister-in-law, and although they have a beautiful boy, she had a rough delivery.

Anyway, I'll leave some of the next details out due to the fact Alinna might not want me to share. Note: she is in pain. A nurse saw that Alinna was 8 cenitmeters and quickly got things moving. As we moved into the delivery room I grabbed Vally who had to wait outside until now, and we began being coached on what to do when it was "go time." One minute later, it was "go time", so a few good pushes and little Ruby was born. This is where Alinna may elaborate on the pain as I just understated the heck out of it. The next text I sent out to the family was a picture of our healthy little girl!

We are currently at home and doing well with our new addition. Thanks to everyone who prayed for Alinna and Ruby's safety. A special thanks to Alinna's sister, Vally, as she has been a huge help in every way imaginable during this whole process. Also, to my mom who flew in on the 30th and was unbelievably helpful but had to leave a few days later. Also, to Alinna's mom who flew in the day my mom left and will be here until the 21st to help and be a great support.

The moral of this story is: Don't eat mexican food around your due date. I'm convinced, besides God's plan, that is the reason she made her appearance to the world. We'll have much more to share about Ruby I'm sure. Until then, WELCOME TO THE WORLD you oh so perfect gift from God!