Alive and Well

Sorry, no pics this post. :( My laptop is being operated on and won't be back for a while.

Our Christmas was a relaxing one with my family. Settlers of Catan was the game of choice and, believe me, we played a lot of it. We also spent time pondering the real meaning of the peace Christ gives to those with whom He is pleased. Without Christ in our hearts, Christmas would be such an empty, disappointing time of year.

Thirteen days and counting until Aria Hope's due date...although I'm praying she comes a little sooner. :) We'll keep you updated if anything happens.

Santa Hats

Two of my stellar siblings getting into the spirit of things. How composed they are. ;)

Me and Charity just doing a smiley pic.


Yes, they were in rare form yesterday...quite high on hilarity.


Our new camera has a sweet panoramic feature that my sisters were playing with.


Pretending there's mistltoe over our heads.


My sweet santa.



Charity and TJ had way too much fun wearing the hats.

Daddy's First

Yesterday after church, we did our traditional Walmart run. I was getting a few must-haves for our hospital stay whenever Aria decides to come. Shopping didn't take long, and we were kinda excited to get out of the crowded store.

TJ, like the gentleman he is, took charge at the self-checkout, but he stopped suddenly when a large yellow package was the last item on the conveyor belt. Monumental moment - his first diaper purchase as a daddy. :) I couldn't resist getting the camera out and taking a picture.

A Time to Break

Yay! The semester is over and we can finally breathe a bit. :) This past week was very busy for both of us - TJ had a lot of grad work to finish (the above picture is him working on his big New Testament Introduction paper). God gave lots of grace, and all the reading, papers, test, etc. got done.

We are just going to hang around here for Christmas break - cleaning the house, ebaying, spending time with family and prepping for Aria's arrival. If anything interesting happens, we'll keep you posted. :)

Only 5 weeks to go...

Well, it hardly seems possible to be so close! Lord willing, only 5 more weeks until we get to hold our sweet baby girl. We are getting very excited and impatient - I'm looking forward to getting her room ready after school dismisses for Christmas. We still have a lot of things to get before she comes, but we do have a few essentials so far. We are very excited to grow and learn in this new season of our lives together and are very grateful that God has blessed us with the opportunity to bring a new life into the world for the glory of God.

Oh, haha, and about the picture...the other night we went to the Daily Grind to celebrate "A Couple's Christmas" and afterwards decided to have a little fun goofing off with our new camera. We couldn't resist taking a sunglasses picture. :) TJ LOVES sunglasses.

Slumber Party

In light of the nasty weather headed our way this weekend, we decided to head over to mom and dad's to chill with them and handle any possible extension emergencies conglomerately. Needless to say, there was no lack of fun.

The snow version of Minas Tirith.
Charity's prize snowman. :) I can't remember his name.


Hmmm...where's TJ?


This is the girls with our game faces on for a smashing round of Cranium against the boys.


"I don't know, I've never made a pie crust before!"

Checking the vitals of the latest addition to the snow fort.

The Big Game

We are NOT fair-weather fans. :)

Yes, we love Brett and missed him lots at last night's game. Here's TJ's tribute to Brett - yes it's the wrong jersey, but it's the only one he could borrow. :)

The beginning of the game. Too bad the refs made some bad calls that ended up making the difference in the game.

The girls at the downstairs TV getting into the game. Sticky rice was our snack of choice.

TJ's Deer

Since moving from Guam to the states to attend Bible college here in the north woods, TJ has wanted to go hunting...but year after year, somehow it never happened. Finally, this year he was able to go with my two brothers and my dad. Opening day they all went out and God blessed my man with a lovely 200 lb doe! Both my brothers were able to get deer as well (Dad graciously gave up chances to shoot in order to let my brothers get deer...he's amazing.) :) Our freezer and my parent's freezer are now both packed with venison. Just thought I'd share the blessing.

Dad and TJ butchering Jonathan's deer - saved lots of money!

My Veteran...

As I reflect on Veterans Day and Thanksgiving Day, I am remembering how incredibly thankful I am that God brought my veteran home from Iraq safely! This is a little video my sister made for me the day my hubby was deployed.

So thankful...

Why is it that we focus on being thankful only during this time of year when God has showered us with blessings year round? I almost feel that is an insult to our Creator...kind of an, "Oh, and, by the way, thanks for everything you've done all year on our behalf. Amen" Anyways...

Just a few things I am so thankful for...

• My salvation - I am completely unworthy of God's love and forgiveness, yet He has showered me with both!
• The family God has blessed me with - two godly, patient parents and four amazingly awesome siblings (who put up with my bossiness over the years).
• My amazingly loving, supportive, understanding, patient, godly husband - I always dreamed God would bless me with a man like him...and He did.
• A wonderful place like Northland where I can serve the Lord with those of like minds and an eternal purpose.
• God's sovereignty - we don't yet know His will for our future, but we know He is working all things for the purpose of His glory.
• I'm thankful for God's hand in blessing TJ and myself with a sweet little baby girl whom we are so excited to meet in 8 weeks! We pray for her everyday.
• Food...I couldn't live without it - and God has never let me go hungry.
• My church family! I absolutely love Grace Baptist and the wonderful people there...and the Pastor God has given us. I miss it terribly whenever I'm gone.
• I'm so thankful for the Holy Spirit who works in my heart everyday whether or not I'm being obedient...I'm thankful that He has never given up on me.
• I'm thankful for music...it's just a little taste of heaven and a wonderful outlet for praise to our Creator.

I praise God for His kindness to us! And I hope He teaches me to be thankful everyday for big things and small things.

30 1/2 weeks...photo shoot.

Somehow he has managed to avoid gaining the sympathy weight. :)

Daddy loves Aria Hope Camacho!
Me and my bodybuilder hubby.
The only serious one he posed for. :)
Yep, he's been getting those weird cravings, too.

Does this shirt make me look fat? :)

15 weeks down...25 more to go!

It looks like I won't be pulling over on the side of the road to lose my breakfast anymore. Morning sickness has come and gone. Now the trick is making sure my stomach never gets empty, and that I get plenty of rest at night. I'm glad to feel well enough now to start exercising again.

Well, the Lord has granted baby Camacho health and safety thus far and we are very grateful. When I went in for my 14 week checkup, the doc said I measured two weeks bigger than I should have, so he ordered an ultrasound. I made sure to drink a little caffeine before the appointment so the baby would be active. :) Sure enough, we saw lots of wiggling, kicking and jabbing...very cute. :D He/she already takes after daddy. Anthony was able to come along, and I was very glad he could be there to see the baby...to actually see the little human that has been causing all my nausea, fatigue and cravings. Thankfully, the baby measured perfectly normal and is developing very well. At our next ultrasound in a few weeks, we will (Lord willing) be able to find out if we are going to be buying a lot of pink or blue clothes.

More updates to come soon.

Yes, we're expecting. :)

For those of you who have (and haven't) heard, we are expecting...and very excited about it. We are due January 11. So far everything has been normal and we are very happy with our doctor. Poor TJ (Anthony) has been having to put up with a lot of nausea and fatigue on my part, but he has been the most amazing support and encouragement to me. I thank the Lord for such a wonderful husband.

We will try to keep you updated on all the important news... :)