John Mayer's - I'll be Home for Christmas

Gideon and I have been singing to this version of the song "I'll be Home for Christmas" for days. It is my new favorite version of this song! I absolutely love it and I dedicate this to all my family and friends in Kentucky whom we shall see in a few short days! Love you all!

Editting and Additions

I wanted to edit a few of the pics from earlier today and add a few from that were taken inside our apartment. Enjoy!

Blizzard 09'

We had so much fun in the after affects of the Blizzard of 09'. I don't know about Kenny though! Sorry Daddy!

Sick Day

I don't feel well! Help me momma, help, help me momma!

Here comes brother to the rescue!

I didn't ask for you, Gid-gid!

Well, I guess I can tolerate it for now! Hmmp!

Are bunny ears what the doc prescribed?

Maybe not, for little sis, but I like em'!

What a Wonderful Celebration!

What a wonderful celebration it was this past Sunday! The last 365 days plus have been an amazing journey and so many of you were there right beside us, lifting Maia up in prayer to our Lord and supporting us in so many ways. We had a time of worship and praise to our Heavenly Father for his healing touch upon Maia and how he has used her for His glory already in her young life.

We are so very busy, but I wanted to get this up for you. You can also link to the web album at the link below.

God Bless!

http://picasaweb.google.com/tdsuth02/MaiaSBirthday#

25th Anniversary of Baby Fae

This video popped up on my home screen today at school and I just had to post this immediately.

Baby Fae was born with Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome 25 years ago. At that time HLHS was a death sentence and there wasn't a baby born that survived. Her doctor did an experimental procedure and transplanted a baboon's heart into her little body. At the time, this caused much an ado concerning animal rights and medical ethics.

I am so humbled and inspired by the medical advancements that have been made since little Fae's birth. Thank you, Lord, for your intellectual imparting to these researchers and doctors since that time! Thank you, that Maia's doctors knew exactly what to do for her little heart last year, this very week!

Below is a trailer for a movie of Stephanie "Fae" that will be coming out.

What a Month!

Okay, Okay! Can you tell it has been a very hectic first month of school for me??? Between Kenny's new ministerial responsibilities and my teacher responsibilities we pretty much look at each other across the room in the evenings, give a knowing nod to each other, and hit the hay way much earlier than we have at any time this past year! Whew!

Oh, what? I didn't tell you what Kenny is doing now at church? If I didn't tell you, it wasn't intentional. Kenny is now the official men's minister at our church in Lakewood, NJ. It is a volunteer position and he still works his full-time job. He is loving his new minsitry and the Lord has given him such a gift of teaching! I am so very proud of him!

With ministerial position comes more expectations and responsibility however. It is a good thing and we know that God is in it, but he also needs to be at church for different functions about three nights a week. Add that to my Bible study I am taking and my teaching responsbilities and it adds up to quite a sum of "busy"ness. I am hoping things start balancing out a bit more.

Gideon is loving Kindergarten and is learning his numbers and letter sounds quite proficiently. Of course his favorite part of kindergarten right now is prize day. Every four days a student does not get his frog moved to the orange lily pad of poor behavior he gets a prize. Gideon is beyond "giddy" on those mornings of the prize-pick-out!

Maia is jabbering away, speed crawling, pulling up, and giving those great big smiles I love her for! I can't wait to celebrate her 1 year bday at the end of this month. I want to go back to CHOP and to the Ronald McDonald House to show our gratefulness for they did for Maia and our Family.

Well, busy-ness or not, we love you all and miss you dearly!

10 months old!

Ten months ago

A little girl with a tiny heart was born, but....

Many were praying for her and God heard and said, "Yes"!

Slowly but surely He is revealing this healing to us, day by day!


And she is a testament to so many of His unfailing power!




She is Maia.

Which means "Close to God" in Hebrew.

Her middle name means...

His promise, His oath, or Consecrated one!

May her life always be used by Him for His Glory!!!!


In Honor of Maia's celebration of Life,

The following is a video link about CHDs and a few of my

blog friend's children are featured.

Get out the tissue!

Please click on the following:


http://www.onetruemedia.com/shared?p=919536ae53bca5144f3877&skin_id=601&utm_source=otm&utm_medium=text_url

West Virginia, Mountain Momma!

I will post more later about our trip, but for now enjoy a little slide show. If you want to see the pics individually OR see a few of them that are actual video clips, left click on the slideshow and it will take you to the web album. It was a great time! Thank you Gunnoe Family for opening up your home to us!

A Much Delayed Post

Sorry it has been awhile since I posted AND it just dawned on me today that I still hadn't posted Gideon's bday picture on my blog so here are a few. It was a great day of fun and laughter with our now 5 year old son!

Egg Race.

Opening the presents.

Our Cousin Kim with Maia.

Sorry there aren't any more pics. It was a busy day and even though I love documenting our days with the camera, I just didn't have the time to pic up the camera like I wanted.

On other news, while all my KY friends were saying good-bye to their kids for their first day of school this morning, I still have about three more weeks till Gideon has his first day. It is nice to know there is still a bit more summer left for the Sutherlands.

My mom is now done with all her chemo and radiation treatments and now it is time to just focus on healing. Part of that healing will be to see her grandkids and daughter next week!!!! We are so excited to meet up with my parents and the Gunnoes at their cabin in West Virginia. It is the halfway point between NJ and KY...exactly!n What a nice trip that will be! We are so looking forward to that time! Maia has grown so much since our visit in April and I cannot wait to carefully hug my mom and give a great big hug to my dad since his full recovery from a recent stroke! God is good!

Bye-bye Brenna!

We are sad to say good-bye to our niece, Brenna. We have enjoyed her presence for the past three weeks. It has been a wonderful time of 10 year old fun, loving on cousins, and being beach bums at the "shore".

Here are some photos of the past week or so. It has been a blessed time and we wanted to share.

Bronx Zoo

Bronx Zoo

Click on the picture above and it will LINK you to a web album of our day. Choose the slideshow on the web album page to see a nice little clip of all the pics!

We had a great day at the Bronx Zoo with our Niece Brenna today! What a gorgeous zoo! It was full of wonderful exhibits that I could tell the animals really enjoyed and it was just a massive zoo with plenty of shade for the zoo-goers! It is definitely everything I have heard about this zoo and much, much more!

It cost a pretty penny to get in to the zoo. The four of us cost $108, but we could have just adde d$42 more and got a family pass for the whole year to all five NYC zoo locations and the aquarium. It was tempting, but we had to pass for this year.

The kids are all tuckered out and fell asleep as soon as the car got on the highway back to Jersey, but it was definitely a good tired!

A Video from PreK Promotion

Okay! I don't have sound to this but you gotta watch it just for the facial gestures that Gideon makes! In no way could he be related to me! LOL! I was the mundane kid for school performances...NOT! I guess the apple don't fall too far from the tree!

First Futbol Feat!

Gideon had his very first soccer practice tonight. It was so precious watching these four and five year olds learning their drills at various stations. Too cute, really!

Gideon was doing some weird movements while we were waiting for the session to get started. I asked him what he was doing and he replied...

"Mom, I have watched what they do before soccer matches before and this is how they warm up!"

So here is what he was doing!

My son is just adorable. That is all I gotta say!

I'll post more pictures in a little bit of the practice itself!

How Fun Can a Latex Glove Be?

How can you make a little boy's day and bring big smiles?

Bring out a medical latex glove that you swiped from the E.R. from your last visit.

Shhh! :)

Then you stretch it over your boy's head.

This might take a few tries; make sure he leans into it!

And, Voila!

Chicken Boy is Born!

And One Happy Boy is Created!

He was definitely acting silly once this was on his head!

Bawk! Bawk! Bawk!

Too Funny!

As a side note, Gideon, Maia, and I were out running errands yesterday.

It was downpouring when were about to drive into the parking lot of the grocery store.

I prayed a little prayer out loud.

"Dear Lord, please help us find the perfect parking spot so Maia does not get too wet. Amen."

Gideon sees an open parking spot that is pretty far away and announces that he found the spot Jesus wants us to have.

I see it and I tell him that I am not so sure that is the "one".

Gideon then says that this is the one Jesus wants us to have and we need to be thankful for what the Lord has provided us.

Out of the mouth of babes. I took another look at the parking spot with new eyes.

Even though it was very far away from the entrance to the grocery store (five stores down might I add), but now I see that it really is very close to the front of the plaza and we can run pretty quickly to shelter.

I announce thank you Lord Jesus for what you have provided.

"Yep!", announces Gideon "the perfect spot; thank you Jesus!"

Officially a Kindergartener

This week we attended Gideon's PreK Promotion Ceremony at Calvary Academy.

It is so hard to believe that our little boy will be attending Kindergarten this coming year. It just seems like yesterday I held him in my arms for the first time or I cut his little locks from his head while he sat in his highchair. Boy, time has flown.

I know that most parents can identify with these statements. As a child I heard my parents say similar comments, but could not truly understand what they were saying until now. The months and years sift through my fingers like sand. I cannot hold onto them as much as I like.

I try to be a parent that relishes each moment and truly enjoys the little things of my children. Because of this attitude, I feel that time has been a bit slower for me than it could have been. It has been a real treat to be Gideon's momma and I feel truly blessed to have had the opportunity I have had with the my son these past five years! It has been a wonderful experience.

While I was driving Gideon and Maia around today. Gideon was feeding Maia a bottle in the back of the car and she started to giggle. It was a fun sight to watch my Gideon's eyes light up as she continued to belly-laugh at him. I asked him if he was getting a kick out those giggles and he replied..."Mom, you have two adorable kids don't you?!?" Yes, I do, Gideon! But I definitely have one amazing young man blooming before my eyes!

Gideon walked down our apartment hallway after his ceremony this week and announced...

"I am officially a kindergartener, aren't I mom?!?"
"Yes, you are, Gideon!"
"What does officially mean, mom?"
"It means that you really are a kindergartener, Gideon."
"Yes, I really am!"

Yes, you are babe and I couldn't be prouder!

Ladybug Says Boo!

Maia wasn't herself yesterday.

She woke up limp and clammy.

We decided to head to the ER just to rule out anything serious,

especially with her special heart.

Of course by the time we arrived at the ER

She was back to her normal happy-go-lucky-self.

Before we left the house, her pulse was 174, in the SVT range,

but while we were at the hospital,

She was in her normal range of 130's or so.

Oxygen levels looked great too.

She was never blue, but very clammy.



So we hung out and waited for the docs to tell us to go home.

Momma was even brave and took a pic of herself.

Even though she still had bedhead and was make-up free.

We aren't sure what happened and the docs don't know either.

We hope it doesn't happen again.

We are wondering if maybe it could have been the sweet potatoes

she had the previous day.

Well, she was the hit of the ER and she flirted with every nurse and EKG tech

she could find.

Thank you, Lord for keeping our daughter safe!

No more sweet potatoes for quite some time...if ever!

April Rose

For the past two months I have had a link up on my site for Little April Rose, a baby who had been diagnosed with Trisomy 13. The mother was an unwed Christian lady who was now telling her story along with that of her unborn daughter. It has been discovered this week that the whole story was a farse and many were misled to pray and to also give funds to this young lady, now known as Beccah.

MckMama and many other reputable bloggers have come forward to reveal the new details even further. I will not go into any more detail about this but you may want to go to McMama's site for further information, she has a great description of what has been discovered. I would also agree with MckMama and others that we need to pray for this miguided young lady and that the Lord would use this situation for His glory in her life and that of others and not allow Satan to have a foothold.

A Most "Pleasant" Evening!

Pt. Pleasant Beach and Boardwalk on a Saturday Night!

We're Waiting For Daddy to Bring the Grub.

Hmmm. Will He Ever Get Here? I'm Hungry!

I'm good! I've had my bottle already.



Food has come and Momma is chowing down on some yummy corn.

Gideon is flying in a helicopter ride! He's definitely happy!

Very Pretty Evening = All the Locals are Out to Have Fun Too!

Wait until after school is over then all the Philly and NYC people will join us as well!

Whew!

Head out on the Highway, Searching for Adventure!

I'm not sure about this one guys????

Waiting for Gideon to Get Done with His Rides is Fun with Momma and Daddy!

This one is for the Grandparents? Okay! I'll bat my eyelashes and give it all I got!

Family of Four Pic! Our first one since October!

Fun at the Shore!

Daddy getting ready to pose with Maia by the shore too.

Oops! That COLD shore got his toes. A bit cold I presume???

Gideon doesn't mind! He loves it!

Daddy and Daughter

Momma and Daughter

Won a Prize on the 1st Try! WTG, Gid!

It truly was a most "pleasant" evening!

It just makes you breathe in easier!

It makes you exhale with satisfaction.

It was wonderful!

Only 18 More School Days Left!

Many students do not think that teachers look forward to holidays and summer vacation. They believe that teachers love school so much that they would live in the school building year-round, if they could.

Well, that is what I believed as a kid at least.

Let me dispell this myth for you! I am so looking forward to summer vacation!

I cannot wait for summer days with my son, daughter, and even husband on some days! We plan to take walks, go to the park, have picnics, and then on Fridays to go to the beach with daddy on his day off! Yay! It is going to be very nice. We might try to squeeze in reading and math readiness activities for Gideon so he is nice and ready for kindergarten, but that is pretty much all I want to do with school this summer.

School is officially out on June 17th. The teachers have one and a half more days after the students are released. I know this sounds so late for my Kentuckian counterparts, but we don’t return to school until after labor Day in September, so it really isn’t that bad. In fact I would rather have it that way. This year’s Labor Day is unusually late and we don’t go back until the 7th of September!


Woohoo!

Don’t get me wrong, by the time mid-August comes around, I will be chomping at the bit to get in my classroom. I love the smell of school! I know this sounds odd, but it is so true! I don’t know if it is a universal teacher thing or not, but it is definitely true for this die-hard teacher! I love the smell of pencils and of desks and of the new lunchbox you get every year. Oooh! It gives me goose-pimples just thinking about it! I usually cannot sleep the night before school starts because I am so excited to get started and see my lovely students!








I usually cannot sleep the night before school starts because I am so excited to get started and see my lovely students!

So in other words, have no fear! This teacher loves school and her students. I am just in need of good bit of R&R with my kiddos this summer!


Hasta La Vista la escuela! For now at least! J

I know the pictures have not necessarily coincided very well with the topic at hand but these two are the very reason that I look forward to this summer!

There is one pic that I would like to give a bit of explanation for. All the others are pretty self-explanatory.

The one where Maia is wearing the Ronald McDonald House onsie is very special. She is finally able to wear the onsie Grandma Judy bought her from our stay the Ronald McDonald House while waiting to have Maia discharged.

We love the Ronald McDonald House and the amazing service and love they give each of the families. We will forever give to this charitable organization. It is truly a house that LOVE built!

We weren't sure how long we would be there and we weren't sure if Maia would ever get to the stage where she could wear this onsie, so we are forever grateful!