Precious memories

 Since before you were conceived I've been keeping a journal for each of you. Here I write everything I feel about you and all the events in our lives. It's just captured it in short, but so awesome to read about things I would have forgotten about. I write all the funny things you do and say and all the sweetness about you. I write down your first 100 words, all your milestones ... 1st step, tooth, word, wave and all the rest. I even allow you to scribble on a few pages.

You each also have a box with all your very special goodies in. Things like you 1st dummy, bottle, blanket, toy. Your positive pregnancy test and the scissors we cut your cord. The clothes you wore the day you were born and outfits you wore a lot. Your 1st pair of shoes and slippers. Stuff from your 1st birthday. And whatever is really special.

Lily you, in particular love and I mean LOVE looking through your box and want me to read from your journal all the times. If your journal were the only book in our house you would be happy. When you go through emotionally unhappy time we just go to a quiet spot and I read to you from you journal and you just absolutely melt and calm down. I think to hear I just adored you as a baby and all the cute things you did, makes you feel so loved and that gives you security and comfort !!  

I have to say I get so emotional going through the box, there so many special memories.

My plan is to give you each your journals and box when you're pregnant with your first baby.

Sleeping

 
The other night I just had to take a pic of each of you sleeping. Wow so sweet !!

There is just something so magical about little ones sleeping. 

Doll's nursery

You girls looooooooove playing with your dolls in the nursery. Here you feed, play and change their nappies.

This entire room is your domain and you have such happy moments here daily.

Camping in our Backyard

Loads of fun to go camping, especially when it's walking distance from the kitchen. You girls planned on sleeping in the tent, but when it got dark you wanted to go inside. Think we will practice this a bit more before we attempt going into the wild ...

Gorgeous girls

We set up the tent and daddy started a fire.

Miss Cutie

Went for a bath inside and came out again to camp away !! Did some research on Scorpions and camping on ipad.

Lily went to fetch Lente our Guinea pig to play inside the tent a bit.

Sun set braai

Me and the girlies !! Love you loads

Lily's favorite food - sausage !! Yummy !!

It was so much fun, and you loved camping at home.

Our precious Abby

Dogs' lives are too short. Their only fault, really. ~Agnes Sligh Turnbull

 

 

 Whoever said you can't buy happiness forgot little puppies. ~Gene Hill

Lily 3 months old with  Abby 

Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole. ~Roger Caras

Justin and Abby taking a nap

 

 My goal in life is to be as good of a person my dog already thinks I am. ~Author Unknown

 JP and Abby on the phone

There is no psychiatrist in the world like a puppy licking your face. ~Ben Williams 

If you think dogs can't count, try putting three dog biscuits in your pocket and then giving Fido only two of them. ~Phil

    Lily 2 years old with Abby

 Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole. ~Roger Caras

 The more I see of man, the more I like dogs. ~Mme. de Staël

  

Children and dogs are as necessary to the welfare of the country as Wall Street and the railroads. -Harry S. Truman

Anybody who doesn't know what soap tastes like never washed a dog. ~Franklin P. Jones

  Lexi 1 year old and Abby

If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went

 If a dog's prayers were answered, bones would rain from the sky. -Old Proverb

 

Our friend Stephanie playing with Abby

 

Until one has loved an animal, a part of one's soul remains unawakened." ~ Anatole France

  Ruby 5 months old with Abby

  

All of the animals except for man know that the principle business of life is to enjoy it." ~ Samuel Butler

  Abby at kids door in the morning waiting for them to wake up

A door is what a dog is perpetually on the wrong side of. -Ogden Nash

We give dogs time we can spare, space we can spare and love we can spare. And in return, dogs give us their all. It's the best deal man has ever made

Lexi 3 years old with Abby

 

Money will buy a pretty good dog, but it won't buy the wag of his tail. -Josh Billings

Making a baby with love.

Being somewhat of a control freak each one of your lives were planned. Having a baby was a seriously planned adventure to us. There's a few specific events during that initial period of your life's that I dearly treasure, and so enjoyed.  It's moments and memories carved into my inner being.

I loved that moment, the second,  where your dad's and my hearts merged into one and we both agreed that we want a baby. Before that you was a idea, a maybe, a thought or a possibility. But at that moment you become a fact and a reality to us. And so it always started. There was a moment that we agreed our lives will be incomplete without you. All of a sudden there's life in the air around us. Excitement beyond words.

I loved monitoring, following and keeping tract of my menstrual cycle. I used online fertility calendars and used high-lighters and personal abbreviations on my personal notes to  determine exactly when I would be the most fertile. I loved waiting for the signs and counting down to the days we would conceive you.

 Lily and Lexi's fertility map notes

I love making love to make a baby. It's different from doing it for fun. It's passionate and exciting.  So much more power in it. Moments that pulled your dad's heart and mine even closer together. I recall those baby making sessions and treasure those memories above all the other times. Making love to make a baby is done with purpose, and nothing compares to that.

 Daddy getting out the shower after making Lexi. He looks happy hey !!

I love the horrid two-week-wait to see if we conceived or not. Each day hoping to feel a early symptom. Hoping to feel nausea, ridiculous as that may be. Every day felt like a year. 14 days when I couldn't focus on anything else but hoping to be pregnant. We were blessed wit a baby each time we tried to conceive. 

 Out of Ruby's journal as I keep track of every day from conception to a positive on test (14 days)

I loved all the home pregnancy tests I did. Being as anxious as I am I did many. I knew I did them to early but I just had to know. Oh and what a moment when I saw that positive. Total ecstasy. Joy beyond words. I kept a positive pregnancy test of each of you.

 Ruby's positive pregnancy test.

I loved announcing you were on your way. I sent a message to everybody I knew a day or two after I got a positive home pregnancy test.

    This was Ruby's announcement. The other two were sent via sms.

I loved keeping tract of your development from where the sperm connected with the egg,  forming a Zygote then a Morula then a Blastocyst. This is all before the baby has attached to my womb,still in the first week of pregnancy. I followed your development day by day for 280 days.

 Out of Lily's journal (21 days old)

I love choosing a name. Also a magical moment when we just KNEW !!!!! With Lily we had the name before we even tried to conceive. With Ruby I had the idea of using another L name but after you heard the name Ruby from a friend, Chantal, you wanted that name and woke me up at night with Ruby in my thoughts. It is so much fun deciding on a name. To be in the position where I had the power choose a name you would be called over you everyday for the rest of your life was so powerful. Each one of you got a name we thought about long and hard analyzing every part of the meaning. Lily of the valley, a flower describing Jesus who was pure and humble amongst many attributes. Lexi, female, shortened version of Alexander the great, meaning Defender of mankind. And Ruby, The ruby was one of the stones in the high priest's breastplate (Ex 28:17). I believe each one of your names were inspired and will be connected to your created purpose. 

  A piece of scrap paper I played around with when choosing Lexi's name.

I loved going for sonars that was done by such a special lady, Heidi whom became such a dear friend. The effort she put in so I could see my precious baby's faces. Truly a science miracle to take a  peep right into heaven. Oh my word ... unless you've experienced it, you will not know the thrill. 

 

This was 4D (video) of Ruby yawning 

I loved fixing up your room. Each had a special and unique theme. Lily was froggies. Lexi ladybirds and Ruby butterflies. Long story behind why ...

Lexi's room. Don't think she slept here for more than a few afternoon naps ;)

I loved going for a preggies photo shoot and getting cute pic's of my baby bump. 

Preggie shoot being preggies with Lily, Lexi and Ruby

I LOVED ABOVE ALL, GIVING BIRTH !!!!!

 Precious Ruby born into my arms with daddy and Lily by our side. It was past Lexi's bedtime.

 I loved announcing to the world that you were born. Each one of your birth announcements were sent the same day you were born.

This was Lexi's birth announcement

So many precious memories to the start of your lifes. You girls are my live !!!