3 Three Years Later

Three years ago, I woke up ready to become Mrs. Raleigh Jordan Price.  The day started with a spinning stomach that was barely able to eat a blueberry bagel during my bridesmaids brunch.  As my closest friends gathered around me, we chatted about the day ahead while our hair was being curled, twisted, and pinned to look just right.  My puppy dog, Lu Lu knew that day would be a big one for me so she sat in my lap the entire time.  As the final bobby pins were put into place, we were ready to go to the chapel to get married!

After we finished getting ready, I rode to the church with my parents.  When we entered the building, I was rushed upstairs to put on my beautiful wedding gown.  The dress was adorned with satin and lace and my veil hung past the dress onto the floor.  The lace was so intricately designed and every detail was just as I had imagined it would be.  Sweet heart neck, buttons down the back, and scalloped edges made the dress complete.  I felt like the prettiest girl in the world that day. 

Before the ceremony began, I waited in the sanctuary for Raleigh to see me for the first time.  When he walked into the room, all I could do was smile.  Finally, after dating for six years, the day had arrived that we would be united as husband and wife!  Since we started dating in high school, we had dreamed about that day becoming a reality.  As my fiance admired his bride; I knew that God was smiling down on us at that moment. 

The afternoon was filled with taking pictures and hugging family members that arrived to give me well wishes.  My mom kept holding my hand; I could tell she was so proud of us that day.  Soon, the music began and it was time for my dad to walk me down the aisle.  While giving me away, he gave me one more kiss on the cheek and he put my hand in Raleigh's.  Glancing into my best friends' eyes, I knew that he was as ready as I was to be united in a covenant of marriage.  The ceremony was filled with humor and tears with the big finale being the official kiss to seal the deal.  Apparently, I didn't hear our preacher correctly because I went in for the kiss twice!  As our guests laughed and cheered, we proudly walked back down the aisle as Mr. and Mrs. Raleigh Price.

After the ceremony, the party began.  Our wedding cake looked majestic under the twinkling lights of the room.  Our guests sampled food such as miniature grilled cheese sandwiches and to our surprise one decided to take a bite out of the groom's cheesecake before we were able to cut into it!  By that point, we were in such bliss and the adrenaline was flowing that we could have cared less.  Raleigh and I were grinning from ear to ear and hugging everyone in sight!  Soon, the dance floor was packed with movers and shakers that danced well into the evening.

Finally, it was time for us to depart from our reception.  As we dodged rose petals we jumped into our vintage car and waved goodbye to our family and friends.  The next day we traveled to the island of St. Lucia for our honeymoon.  That week we relaxed, explored, and ate pizza on three different occasions.  We had the best time and didn't want the wonderful week to end.

Now, three years later I get to wake up to not only my husband but my precious little girls.  Time passes so quickly but oh how I have enjoyed these years!  I could not have asked God for a better person to spend my life with.  One of the verses that we used on our wedding day was Philippians 1:3, "Every time you cross my mind, I break out in exclamations of thanks to God."  I truly am so thankful to have Raleigh as my husband and the father of our girls.  As with any marriage, we have had our lows and our highs but we have always persevered through our circumstances as one.  On the inside of our wedding bands, we have engraved the following scripture: "Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer" (Romans 12:12).  How true has that statement been the past couple of months!

To me, the most important thing in having a loving marriage is for the husband and the wife to have God as the center.  We hear it all the time in wedding ceremonies, but "a cord of three stands is not quickly broken" (Ecclesiastes 4:12).  All marriages face adversity and if either the husband or the wife is not committed to Christ, that couple is going to have a harder time dealing with their circumstances.  With Christ being the center of the cord, He keeps the cord wound tightly so the marriage does not unravel when faced with trials.  Jesus loves us more than we can ever love one another and accepting His love for us makes our love for each other stronger than before.  When we have Christ, we try harder to be better spouses to one another.  We try to use kind words and have an understanding heart when the dishes are left in the sink.  He helps us through the small annoyances of marriage to the big battles that we face.  He created us to be joined together, man and woman, and with Him as the center we can't be torn apart.

Today, Raleigh and I aren't going on a luxurious trip or to a fancy restaurant.  All we are going to do is watch our wedding video while holding our girls.  That is all I want this year.  My family has grown and we are all together at last.  Currently, I am praying for God's guidance to this new year.  I don't know what the future holds, but I know that today is a good day and I am thankful.

Till next time, let your light shine!

Blessings, christen

p.s.: Last year, Raleigh and I took the pups to Helen, Georgia, for a weekend camping trip.  I haven't shared these pictures yet on the blog so I thought I would show you the fun that we had!  Enjoy!!!!

Raleigh and I at the highest point in Georgia

Lu Lu loved to sunbathe on our cabin's deck

I have never seen Obi so happy!  He LOVED running in the water and the woods :)

The Prices (2009)

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10 Birthday Wishes

"For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ." 

2 Corinthians 4:6

As I blew out the candles of my 26th birthday cake, I felt complete.  My family was complete, this past year was complete, and the amazing experience that we had in the NICU had finally become complete.  Never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined what God had in store for me last year when I quietly whispered the words, "Use me, God."  When I began my 25th year of life, I knew that I wanted that to be a year of change.  I knew that something was missing in my life and I timidly took a leap of faith in order to find what that was. When I decided to take this leap, I knew I had to go for it and not do anything half-way.  That would be like doing a belly flop off the diving board instead of a back flip.  Yes, I had desires and dreams that wanted to be fulfilled, but I also knew that in order for me to achieve these things I would have to completely submit my life to Christ and trust that even if these birthday wishes did not come true; I would still be completely in love with my Savior.

As the year progressed, I continued to pray for the desires of my heart.  I prayed for children and I prayed for God to show me the direction He wanted to take me for my spiritual walk.  Soon, my wish for children was granted!  As my belly grew, we began to make plans for our expanding family.  We were overwhelmed with joy that God would give us not just one child, but two. We picked out colors for the nursery, had baby showers, and did research on all things twins.  Around the seven month mark, our plans changed drastically.  I woke up early one morning with painful cramps and we rushed to the hospital.  Shortly after arriving, I was rushed into the delivery room for an emergency C-section.  I was scared to death and all I could do was close my eyes and pray.  God delivered our babies at two pounds each and not a cry was heard when they entered this world.  As family and friends packed my post-par tum room, I assuredly smiled back at them saying everything would be just fine.  I was thankful that we made it through the C-section and I decided to focus on the positive instead of the negative.  That is great and wonderful, but reality ordered me to rip off my mask so I could fully realize the severity of the situation.  What I saw in front of me were two beautiful little girls desperately fighting for their lives.  They came into this world premature and we had a long road ahead of us.  As the days progressed; I kept tripping on rocks and holding on to the edge of the cliff instead of following the hand that was holding mine.  I desperately clung to what I knew to be true and safe instead of becoming fearless in my faith.  Satan proudly had his shoulders held high since he knew what a grip he had on me.  He knew my greatest fear and he did everything in his power to drag me into his murky, slimy pit of darkness.  Satan unleashed great amounts of uncertainty, guilt, and doubt on my head and in my heart in order for me to play on his team.  His offers were tempting me like Snow White with the red apple.  He kept saying, "Just take one bite, it will make you feel so much better."  So many times I wanted to eat that apple.  I wanted a break from this world and I wanted to go far, far away.  Just when I started to lick my lips and take a bite, I felt a loving hand on my shoulder telling me to stop.  When I glanced back to see whose hand was on me, I was blinded by light.  Light so bright and pure that it made me fall to my knees in thankfulness.  The light was with me and it started to fill my heart and my head with love and truth instead of the wretched mess I almost gave myself to.  Just as God saw in Genesis 1:4, I saw that the light was good, and I started to separate the light from the darkness.

 Each morning, as I prepared myself for the day ahead, I would look into my vanity mirror and asked, "Mirror, mirror on the wall, who is the fairest of them all?" Each time, I looked into the mirror, I saw Jesus' reflection staring back at me. I began to wholeheartedly follow my fearless leader because I knew that the more I mirrored Him, the stronger my faith would become.  Earnestly seeking His truth prepared my spirit for what lied ahead of me each day.  I felt his presence throughout my day and often I confessed my fears and doubts to Him.  He assured me of his faithfulness and He kept showing me the direction that I needed to go in to stay strong through my journey.

As the days progressed, so did our faith and the girls growth.  Each day, we got to do a little more with them.  They started to breathe on their own and we were able to finally hold them in our arms.  As the weeks carried on, they began to bottle feed and grow into themselves.  They actually started to look like real babies!  We began to realize that God was using our sufferings to glorify his name.  Soon, we realized that He was granting the other desire of my heart which was to write for His kingdom.  When we started the blog a year ago, we had no idea what direction it would go in.  All we knew was that we wanted to be disciples of Christ and to share His truth with others. Through this life-changing event, we decided to meagerly become like John in the Bible.  "There came a man who was sent from God; his name was John.  He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all men might believe.  He himself was not the light.  The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world.  In him was life, and that life was the light of men.  The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it" (John 1:4-9).  We began to fully rely on the power that the light has over the darkness.  We knew that Jesus had already defeated our enemy, and he had also defeated death itself.  Our love for Jesus taught us that He will watch over us in our darkest hours and carry us into the sunshine.  He promised that those that ask will receive.  He heard our cry for mercy and He carried us on the feathers of His wings.  As the girls continued to grow, we continued to give thanks to Him for the blessings he continued to show us. "From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another (John 1:16).

Without this NICU experience, I would not have learned how to let go of Satan's strongholds in order to hold on to the truth spoken by Christ.  This journey taught me that Jesus truly is the way, the truth, and the light.  Without him, I would never have made it.  Through the power of the Holy Spirit, I was able to face my darkest fears and persevere through them.  He continued to give strength to the weary and we are now so much stronger that when we started.  As the final days of our journey came upon us, it was weird seeing it end. My high school senior yearbook stated it perfectly, "Every new beginning comes from some other beginnings end."  We were so ready for the girls to be home but a part of us didn't want to let go of the experience that we had.  It was so hard saying our goodbyes but we joyfully said hello to the new road ahead of us.  My heart is so full of joy right now and I know that He still has so much in store for us.  As I begin this new year of my life, my greatest wish of all is that I will continue to seek Him first in everything that I do.  I want Him to be the center of everything in my life - Raleigh, the girls, my future....everything.  Even though this experience was not planned by me, it was truly God's perfect timing in my life.  This experience has taught me so much about His love for me and I pray that I continue to show that love to others.  It is my wish that each of you will continue to follow us on our new journey and as we all become better disciples of Christ we will move mountains with our faith.  We won't be able to deny His presence in us and we will shout it from the roof tops to bring others closer to Him. "Many are asking, "Who can show us any good?"  Let the light of your face shine upon us, O LORD.  You have filled my heart with greater joy than when their grain and new wine abound.  I will lie down and sleep in peace, for you alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety." Psalm 4:6-8.

Below are some pictures of the best birthday I have ever had. These pictures will forever be keepsakes to me!  Blessed be the name of Jesus, for he is GOOD!

We roomed in on Tuesday night.  It was so weird to see the girls' room all packed up and ready for us when we arrived.
It was the first time that we saw our girls not hooked up to the monitors and without tubes on their faces.
It was kinda sad saying goodbye to that room after spending 83 days there!!!!

Early Wednesday morning, the night shift nurses woke us up to give me birthday doughnuts!
It was so neat that they thought of that because it is a tradition that Raleigh and I eat doughnuts on our birthday.
We got to be so close to those nurses and it was so hard giving them one last hug!!!!

After the girls had their final exam, we got to dress them up to go home!  I wasn't able to find any preemie bloomers,
so Mom bought us some monogrammed diapers. We put them on top of their real diapers
(didn't want a blow-out on those new dresses!!!!) and they were just too darn cute :)

Ms. Kirby was our discharge nurse for the day.  She was one of the nurses that had the girls' the most.
All the other nurses would joke with her about how much she loved our girls.
She wore pink scrubs just for the occasion!               
We love you Ms. Kirby!!!!!!

Ms. Casey was another nurse that had tears in her eyes as the girls left the hospital.
She helped us tremendously through Adeline's scary time and she was one of the nurses on the day they were born.  Saying goodbye to the NICU staff was by far the hardest part of the day for me.
More than once my eyes welled up in tears because
these great people made this experience a WHOLE lot easier!!!!!

Leaving the hospital and ready to go to our new home!!!!  Tears were literally steaming down my face at this point.
I couldn't believe that the day had finally arrived.  It was surreal.
Thank you Baptist East for being our home away from home!!!!

Raleigh is such a great dad.  The night before we roomed-in, he watched the car seat video one more
time to make sure he had them secured correctly :)
Riding home from the hospital, I remembered the first time I left those doors without the girls.
What a great moment to finally have them with us coming home!!!!!

Earlier that day, our parents put out our yard sign and hung pink bows on our door.
We had to have a proper homecoming!!!!!

Home at last!  I am holding Adeline and Raleigh has Maralee.  What proud parents we are!!!!!

I'm not happy, am I?  :)

Priceless.
Maralee Simms Price & Adeline Summers Price at 11 1/2 weeks.
Maralee weighs 4 lbs. 8 oz. and Adeline is 4 lbs 12 oz.

God's perfect timing!  It was the best birthday EVER!!!!

Till next time, let your light shine!

Blessings, christen

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5 Rejoice

This is the day that the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it! Twenty six years ago the Lord brought Christen into this world and today he is bringing our girls home! Last night we roomed in with the girls at the hospital and all went well. There is no greater gift for Christen than this special moment. As always the Lord delivers. Plenty of pictures to come over the next couple of days.


- Raleigh

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2 Getting Closer

Hey everybody, I thought I would do quick post from my phone to keep everyone updated. Christen and I are currently pulling twelve hour days at the hospital because the doctors have decided to get the girls off of the feeding tubes. So that means Christen is nursing them full time during the twelve hours of the day and the nurses bottle feed them the twelve hours of the night. We don't want to get too excited but the doctor told us this morning that we could be rooming in as early as Monday night but likely Tuesday night which would put the Girls coming home on Christens birthday. I swear, God is so amazing. Again, this all depends on a lot of things but the girls are fighting hard as always. Adeline is up to 4 lbs 11 oz and Maralee is now 4 lbs 6 oz. They are starting to look the same again. I actually mixed up the two for the first time last night because Maralee's "patchy" side was face down and she had been laid in Adeline's crib for a moment to change her diaper. We're going to need to paint some toenails at home or something. Let us know all your ideas.

She looks like she is on a lazy river ride.

The Lord's timing, as always, is perfect. Only days after finding out I passed my last Architectural Registration Exam, we are finding out now that they may come home on Christen's Birthday, only three days before there original due date of July 24. We stress over individual moments in life and often forget God is constantly watching over the big picture.

Now, before I let you go, we need to talk about the poll. You may have noticed but it seems to be a little bit of a landslide in my favor. All the family members kept saying they looked like me but I didn't really believe it until they pulled out my baby picture and sure enough - they did. Now, I get to study every detail of them each day and I assure you that they have plenty of Christen in them. Their eye color, ears, and chin look just like Christen I believe. But it is hard to deny the resemblance of my baby picture. Now, the whole reason the internet was created was for self humiliation. I know you are asking yourself, "I wonder what Raleigh would look like as a girl?" So, in the spirit of ridicule, I'll answer that question for you....

Take it easy on me, we raised a lot of money for our High School athletics with a Womanless Beauty Pageant! It would just be wrong to leave you with that image though, so instead, I give you sweet Maralee sleeping.

Thank you all for your support and prayers as we are hopefully getting closer to bringing those sweet little girls home!

-Raleigh

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3 Happy Dance

Anybody ever heard the phrase, "It has to get worse before it gets better?"  Well, I am starting to believe in that statement.  Last Thursday was a rough evening.  As always, Raleigh and I headed down the interstate to make the girls 8:00 pm feed.  That night, I was just plain tired of going to the hospital.  I started to yearn for the girls to be well and home with us.  Before they were born, we usually kept to a routine of eating dinner at home and being in our comfy clothes by eight o'clock.  Of course, routines change and we have adjusted to our new schedule but that night I just really wanted to have the girls at home with me instead of driving to go see them.

Earlier that day, the nurse practitioner gave the thumbs up to start trying three feeds a day from the bottle.  As great as that sounds, it was a huge test for them because they were still having trouble taking one feed, let alone three.  The nurse that was in charge of the girls that evening told me that it might be a good idea for the girls to be evaluated by the occupational therapist.  For some reason, that made me feel like throwing in the towel.  I felt defeated and wondered if they would always be less developed than other children.  It is the hardest thing as a parent to admit that your child is under-developed.  I think it is my pride.  Our girls are doing so well but my pride wants them to be better than other children even though they are preemies!  Has anybody else ever felt that way about their kids?  Boy, it is a hard thing to deal with!

Leaving the hospital that evening, I didn't have much to say.  I was tired, upset, and sad.  I got out of the car and headed inside to get ready for bed.  As I stood brushing my teeth over our bathroom sink, I became overwhelmed with my emotions.  Tears started flowing and I fell to the floor crying.  Raleigh came to help me and tried to make me feel better about the occupational therapist but I honestly wasn't in the encouraging mood.  I hate to admit this, but I stormed upstairs just to be alone for a little while.  I crept into the girls nursery and just sat in the reclining chair rocking back and forth in the dark.  Oh, how I longed to have them home in their room!  I just want it so bad it hurts!!!!  Eventually, Raleigh came to get me and we both headed to bed, just spent with exhaustion.

Friday morning I woke up still feeling upset.  Typically, I go to the hospital for their mid-day feed and that day I was moving a little slower.  When I arrived for the feed, the nurse let me try breastfeeding them.  As I sat in the hard plastic chair holding baby Adeline, I became overwhelmed with guilt.  The sweet nurse came in to check on us and she could tell I was upset.  We began to talk and the tears just started to flow again.  I felt like a wrecking ball spinning out of control.  Suddenly, my guilt engulfed me like a wave crashing down on the sea floor.  Guilt is a horrible feeling, my friends.  I have been plagued with it since the moment I arrived at the hospital 78 days ago.  I have felt so guilty for them being born premature.  I feel guilty when I get to their feeds late or when we just go once a day on the weekends.  Guilt strikes me when I see a cute girl in her last days of being pregnant and it rears its nasty head when I try to relax.  Sometimes I feel like it is my fault that they were born early.  Recently, one of the nurses told me that they think the girls were actually closer to 24 or 25 weeks instead of twenty-seven when they were born.  They think this because during their initial assessment, they still had fused eyes and their whole growth has been about two weeks delayed than their actual week.  Knowing this gives me more discomfort because I realize how fortunate we are for them to be with us.

As I sat there crying, I looked down and saw dear Adeline looking back at me.  Her eyes are so big and blue and she smells so sweet.  She makes funny noises and loves to grasp whatever she can get a hold of in her hands.  As I held her in my arms, I realized that she was a miracle.  Even if she is more premature than we thought, she is alive and she is getting better every day.  She was born early for a reason and this is all part of God's sovereign plan for our lives.  He knows how many hairs she has on her head and he knew she would be born early allowing him to deliver her safely into our arms.   He knew we were ready for this challenge because he heard our request to be used to glorify His kingdom.  He has been preparing us for this fight for years and He knows that if we rely on Him we will win this battle.  The one thing that God has not given me for this battle is guilt.  He would never make me feel guilty.  He loves me too much and He chooses to offer me kind words instead of discouraging ones.  This is self-guilt and I have allowed the devil a port hole to enter into my mind and fester this ugly beast.  It got out of control last week and since then I have tried to give it to God and let it go.

Maralee has hit the four pound mark and Adeline weighs 4.9 pounds now. Since they have done so great, the nurse told me that I needed to start coming for all of their day feeds.  That means I will be at the hospital five times a day and if they do good with this advanced feeding schedule, their is a very good chance that they could come home early next week!!!  I can't believe that the end is right around the corner.  I want it so bad it hurts.  Please pray for the girls to do good this weekend with their feeds and for us to remain patient.  Also, please pray for our families because they are helping us get our house prepared for them to come home.  We are so excited but at the same time, we don't want to push them to hard.  We want them home but we also want them to be taking their feeds extremely well before they leave the NICU.  The last thing we want is for them to be readmitted because they can't take their feeds.  Let us pray that they remain healthy growing little girls!

Raleigh and Maralee (10 weeks old)

 

Christen and Adeline (10 weeks old)

 

Friends, it was really quite silly for me to get so upset about the girls needing help.  The occupational therapist ended up being a good thing and she is helping us move in the right direction towards coming home.  I feel like God is using this experience to refine my thoughts.  He wants me to conquer the devil with my mind and not let him use guilt to discourage me and make me afraid.  When I stop allowing little red to control my emotions I will have defeated him.  For me, this is much easier said than done but every day I am learning my lesson.

Isn't that what life is about?  We are all filled with guilt and hard times but it is how we decide to deal with these things that determines the type of people we want to be.  I encourage you to rely on God and give him your worries because He desperately wants you and me to seek him when we are scared.  He is with us always; it is just up to us to allow him to enter into our hearts and our minds.  The more we are filled with God's truth, the easier it is to fight this never-ending battle for our minds.  Joyce Meyer wrote a great book called Battlefield of the Mind and she talks about how the devil lies.  She says that he doesn't know how to speak the truth.  He wants us to feel guilty because he hopes he can use that to sway us from being close to God.  "If we listen and accept what we hear, our enemy rejoices."  Friends, I do not want Satan to do a happy dance because he got into my mind.  In order for me not to let Satan have a stronghold on my mind, I have to fight him with praise and prayer to God.  By doing this, I have God on my side and the battle will be won!

"For the weapons of our warfare are not physical [weapons of flesh and blood], but they are mighty before God for the overthrow and destruction of strongholds" - 2 Corinthians 10:4

Till next time, let your light shine!

Blessings, christen

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6 Even If

To say I have been anxious lately would be the understatement of the year. To those who know me, seldom do I really get worked up over things. I have always had a very easy going, look on the bright side kind of mentality. Since my possibly final Architectural Registration Exam two weeks ago I have been a nervous wreck. As I mentioned in a previous post, I allowed the devil to slip into my life and take hold of my thoughts- with each passing day I began fear the worst more and more. None of the other tests had really affected me like this one had. Of course the others were just as hard as this one, some harder truthfully, but I could rely on the fact that if I failed one of those and had to retest in six months-I could at least move on to the other tests. But this test was the last test and I let myself begin to think that the sum of all seven test would be determined by this final. Forget the fact that I passed six other test, if I failed this test - I failed them all.

The devil is real and he fears those of the faith. One of the toughest things about this blog is being so publicly open about everything that is going on in our lives. It is hard to be open at times because you are revealing to the world your imperfections, and although we never will be, we try to appear perfect. I believe the devil hates this blog; he hates the truth within every post, and he hates the community of fellowship that is being formed. He decided to plant a seed of fear in my life recently. He made me question, why did you tell the whole world on the internet that you just took your last test knowing that you probably failed it. If you had of just kept your mouth shut no one would even know if you failed it. Stop writing on the blog-you're just advertising that you and Christen are not perfect. I confess, I deeply considered this.

As God always intended, Sunday was a renewal of faith for me. Our music minister had the opportunity to preach and he spoke on Daniel 3. It's the story of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego (you probably didn't say that last one right...) that we are all very familiar with. This was a story that growing up, I loved. To recap, King Nebuchadnezzar was outraged at the three believers because they would not worship his idols. He threw the trio into a blazing furnace and asked them once again "if you are ready to fall down and worship the image I made, very good. But if you do not worship it, you will be thrown immediately into a blazing furnace. Then what god will be able to rescue you from my hand?"

Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to the king, "O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king. But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up."

Did you catch that - even if. It's so subtle but it is the defining moment of this story. They believed God would rescue them, but if he chose not to make a visible miracle, and example, of them to the world, it did not change their hearts. This message drove out any remaining fear in my heart. Pass or fail is irrelevant when it comes to the purpose of this blog. I may fail, but my faith does not have to fail. There is a truth that lies within my story just as it did for the three believers.

He said, "Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods."

Nebuchadnezzar then approached the opening of the blazing furnace and shouted, "Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out! Come here!" So Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego came out of the fire, and the satraps, prefects, governors and royal advisers crowded around them. They saw that the fire had not harmed their bodies, nor was a hair of their heads singed; their robes were not scorched, and there was no smell of fire on them.

God is with us always, and I assure you he was there when I opened a certain letter that came in the mail today. He told me he was there, and even if the results were not what I had hoped for, that he needed me. He needed me to deliver this message.

The first words I read were Congratulations! They felt as if they were from God himself - I believe they were at least. Our God is and awesome God and I am here today to say thank you to him. He continues to bless my family in ways that my novice writing skills cannot describe.

So today, I sign off as


Raleigh J. Price, AIA, LEED AP


Thank you Lord, I pray that all see your graciousness. Once again, you never cease to amaze me.

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5 Chris10's Monthly Must-Haves: July

Hello Friends!

I am excited to introduce a new series that I will be doing each month on the blog.  It is titled Chris10's Monthly Must Haves and each month I will showcase ten things I absolutely adore!  Hope you enjoy!
 

Food

With the summer heat in full steam, now is the time to head to your local Farmer's Market to pick out some fresh fruits and veggies.  Last week, I picked up some peppers and made my friend Susanne's home-made salsa. This recipe makes a ton of mild salsa but if you want to give it some more heat, leave in some of the pepper seeds. If you have a food processor, this is so easy!  Tip: When dealing with peppers, try to wear plastic gloves while you core out the seeds.  If you don't do this, your hands might get a warm sensation from dealing with all the heat!

Home-Made Salsa
Ingredients:  
2 large chili peppers, 2 large jalapeno peppers, 1 yellow pepper, 1 green bell pepper, 6-8 green onions, 4-5 sprigs of fresh cilantro, 2 16-20 oz. cans of peeled tomatoes, 1-2 tablespoons of salt, 1-2 teaspoons of black pepper, 1-2 tablespoons of sugar
First, core all seeds from the peppers.  Then cut up the peppers and put into a food processor and place into bowl.  Next, cut the white part off the onions and put into food processor.  Cut off stems of cilantro and put into processor and add all into bowl.  Open the can of tomatoes and pour just the sauce into the bowl then place the whole peeled tomatoes into the processor and grind.  Add salt, sugar, and pepper over the mixture.  Stir all ingredients together, seal the bowl and chill in refrigerator.  Enjoy!

Music

I can't stop listening to Jimmy Needham's, Forgiven and Loved.  It reminds me of Jason Mraz and I just love sitting in my lounge chair listening to it.  Perfect easy-going song!

Scripture

If any of you are like me, you have heard scripture verses all your life but tend to forget where to find it when you need it most?  It has been a goal of mine to try and memorize scripture each month but it has been hard to stay accountable.  So, one of my girl friends and I are going to memorize two scripture verses each month.  At the beginning of the month, we will each write down a verse on a note card and give it to one another to have memorized by the end of the month.  The great thing about writing it on a note card is we can put it on our mirrors while getting ready, in our cars while stopping at red lights, and in our purses to pull out when we need it most.  This month, our scripture verses are from Isaiah 26:3, "He will keep in perfect peace all who trust in Him, whose thoughts are fixed on Him." and Deuteronomy 33:26-27, "There is no one like the God of Jeshurun, who rides on the heavens to help you and on the clouds in his majesty.  The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms.  He will drive out your enemy before you, saying, 'Destroy him!'

Home

I found this great soap at Target and it was super cheap.  I love the way it makes my hands feel and the Lemon Verbena matches my kitchen perfectly!  I went to their web site and love what they say about their product, "Mrs. Meyer's Clean Day makes honest, hardworking cleaners that work like the dickens on dirt. Remember, keeping clean is easy. All you need is a sensible pair of shoes, a little elbow grease, and the right soap."  So southern, don't ya think?  To find all of their products click here.

Fashion

While I was out buying hostess gifts, I ran across some letter pendants that can go on necklaces and bracelets.  I scored some teeny tiny A & M pendants and I bought a 16" and 18" chain for them to wear as a double necklace.  It is my way of always having Adeline and Maralee close to me!

Kids

Speaking of Adi and Mar, I found the best gift for them!  Last week, this item was featured on The Today Show and it automatically became a must-have for me.  These pacifier holders are called WubbaNub's and they are so practical and cute!  If any of you have little ones, you know how easy it is for them to let go of their pacifier.  These cute animals are attached to the pacifier and it makes them so much easier to grasp.  Also, what I really love about this product is hospitals have started to use them for infants! 

Books

Last summer, I read The Shack in two days.  It is a book that forces you to think outside the box and ask, "What if..?"  I thoroughly enjoyed it and I promise even guys will have tears in their eyes after reading this page-turner!!!

Lifestyle

This month is our three year anniversary and we are going to just have a stay cation!  For those of you that aren't familiar with this term, a stay cation is when you stay in your town instead of traveling for vacation.  Actually, our whole summer has been a stay cation but we have had lots of fun!  So far, we have kayaked, gone to a baseball game, had a couples massage, and have lounged in our very own backyard.  The thing that I have enjoyed most about our stay cation is that we have gotten to do things that have been on our bucket list for Montgomery and at the end of the day we don't have any luggage to unpack!

Hobbies

My friend Stephanie and I both have little girls and agree that a girl is not dressed without a bow in her hair!  So, we have embarked on the wonderful world of bow-making.  We were cracking ourselves up trying to learn the master techniques of forming these cute products.  We used everything from a lighter to a hot glue gun to perfect these mini masterpieces.  It was a really fun way to catch up and enjoy each others company for an afternoon.  Bow-Making Tip of the Day: Purchase some liquid starch to make the ribbon firm.  Just place the liquid starch on the ribbon and then place the ribbon in between tissue paper before you iron.  The tissue paper protects the ribbon and the iron makes it stay firm!  That allows you to make lots of fun shapes like this dragonfly bow.

Movies

Toy Story 3 is a must-see if you haven't already!  Raleigh and I are HUGE fans of Pixar (the company that created Toy Story, Finding Nemo, and Up) so we are always at their movies on opening night.  I promise adults will love this movie as much as kids.  In fact, Raleigh read a fun article that stated that this movie would probably have the largest following of all Pixar movies because most adults saw the first Toy Story when they were children.  Woody's horse, Bullseye reminded us of our dog Obi :)  The film will make you want to laugh, cry, and hug the person you are with so try to catch this while it is still in theaters.


I hope y'all enjoyed these monthly must-haves!

Till next time, let your light shine!

Blessings, christen

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3 Running the Race

I hope everyone had a nice Fourth of July!  It was so weird for us not to be at the beach this year, but we still enjoyed ourselves.  I LOVED having Raleigh home and not studying!!!!!  He just has this weight lifted from his shoulders and it is so nice having my husband be his good ole' self :)  Raleigh was off on Monday and I must say I missed him yesterday when he went back to work.  We had a nice weekend even though we weren't getting our sun on at the beach.  On Saturday, we went to the Farmer's Market before we saw the girls and then we just relaxed in our new lounge chairs in our backyard.  We grilled hamburgers that night and they were yum yum good!  Sunday, we went to church and afterwards we visited the girls.  Some exciting news....the girls have moved to an open crib! 

Aren't they cute?!  I think it is adorable seeing them snuggled up against one another.  They do have their separate cribs when they get fussy but they spend the majority of their time together.  As Raleigh mentioned, it is so fun to see them just looking right at one another.  As long as they keep their temperatures at a normal rate, they can stay in this open environment.  That is just another step toward coming home!  As much as I love seeing them in an open crib, I yearn for them to be home in their own cribs.  We have been working so hard getting the nursery ready (pictures coming soon, promise!)  and I just want to see them tucked into their beautiful bedding all nice and sound.  I know the frilly stuff is just that...frilly...but I am tired of seeing them in this sterile environment.  I want to dress them in cute clothes, have them wrapped in monogrammed blankets, and be in our arms any time of the day.  When we started to pick out their bedding I thought it was ridiculous how expensive everything was.  I knew we were buying it more for ourselves because the girls won't remember what it looked like, but now I have a slightly different perspective.  Parents decorate their children's rooms' out of love; it is a display of our affection for the new additions of our family.  All we want to do is love our children and that is one way of showing it.

Anyways, on with the story.  On Friday, we also met with our pediatrician.  Raleigh and I both liked his perspective on the girls.  Of course, I had  my list of questions (by the way, he said that the vaccinations were fine) and the main thing he told us was that when the girls come home we should treat them like new born babies, not preemies.  He also told us to act like parents and not nurses.  That was so nice to hear!  Everybody has their own parenting style and we are still figuring ours out but now I feel more at ease knowing that their schedule is more important than charting their growth, feeds, etc.  Currently, the bottle is still our biggest roadblock towards getting the girls to come home.  Both girls are taking around 35 cc's (half of a bottle) and trying the bottle twice a day. 

Adeline gets about half-way through her feed and she is finished for the day!

 

Maralee has been taking her whole bottle majority of the time!

Friends, it has been such a difficult process getting them to take their bottles.  They are trying so hard to suck, swallow, and breathe but they just aren't coordinated enough to finish every time.  The first time I heard that my children were uncoordinated ruffled my feathers but now I realize the truth in that statement.  They aren't supposed to be doing this yet so for them to be trying is such an accomplishment.  Lately, the NICU has been filling up with new preemies.  Having been down that road, I can sense the fear and uncertainty in the parents' voices and expressions.  I thank God that He delivered us from that scary place and we are on our way to the promised land.  Right now, I am reading Deuteronomy and it is a recap of everything that the Israelites went through as they journeyed from Egypt through the desert for forty years.  I feel like Raleigh and I are where the Israelites were - about to cross the Jordan into the promised land filled with milk and honey.  God is showing us how He kept us safe through our desert and He is wanting us to remember how faithful He was to us in our darkest times.  "And now, O Israel, what does the Lord your God ask of you but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to observe the Lord's commands and decrees that I am giving you today for your own good?  He is your praise; he is your God, who performed for you those great and awesome wonders you saw with your own eyes." (Deuteronomy 10:12-13, 21)

It is my goal to use this experience to catapult my faith and love for my God.  It has been amazing for us to see the work of His hands in our lives.  Even though Adeline and Maralee still have so much to accomplish, they have already come so far.  They might not take their full bottle every time they try but sometimes they do.  On June 20th Maralee took her first full bottle and on June 28th Adeline finished hers! 

 Adeline finishing her bottle for the first time - I was so proud of her!!!!!!

It was such an accomplishment and "Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character, and character, hope.  And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us."  I absolutely adore that bible verse.  It speaks such truth and it earnestly gives me the encouragement that I need to finish this race.  Whether or not the girls realize it, they are showing their perseverance each time they try to take their bottles.  Because of that, they are developing their character and their story is not only giving us hope for a future but it is helping us to show others God's wonderful love for all of us. 

9 weeks

Maralee weighs 3.12 pounds and Adeline weighs 4.3 pounds

 

After we had the girls, the first thing our doctor told us was that this journey would be like running a marathon.  Raleigh and I have both been athletes our whole lives and that parallel was quite fitting for us.  Like running a marathon, this journey has had its lows and its highs.  It is not fun going through it but we are going to persevere until we reach the finish line.  Running this race has allowed our faith and love for our God to multiply and we can't help but give him the glory. 

So, in honor of our girls, we have decided to run in a half-marathon.  The race is set for Saturday, October 2nd so we have a little less than 10 weeks to prepare for it.  Now, I am going to be completely honest....I did not want to do this at first.  Running a half-marathon has always been a goal of mine but has never seemed achievable.  As much as I enjoy running through sports, I despise running long distance.  In high school, I played soccer and I was a forward which meant I would run really fast for a short distance throughout the game.  I love running while dribbling the ball and having a target to shoot at when I try to score.  But, running just to be running....that is another story.  I have a long list of reasons not to do this race: time, full schedule already, not coming in first place, boring, lack of motivation - the list can go on and on.  The one thing that convinced me to try and run this race was the girls.  I have seen them struggle through each road block but they have persevered and just keep trying.  I figured if they can do that, the least I can do is honor them for their accomplishments.  Raleigh and I are following Hal Higdon's half marathon training program and so far we have attempted week two and are on week 3.  Sunday, I sweated my little booty off running through a local park.  We ended up running 3.5 miles and I will admit that I walked at least one mile all together.  So, the biggest thing for me right now is to build up my endurance so I can run longer and walk less.  I doubt I need to remind anybody, but I did have babies eight weeks ago so to say my endurance level is shot is an understatement!  When we aren't running, we are doing strength training to P90X.  We have already done the abs, cardio, and arms/shoulders videos and I am walking like a hunchback!  Even though I don't always enjoy this training, I do feel good getting back in shape.  I am going to try my hardest to stay on the schedule (even when the girls come home) so I can be as ready as possible come October 2nd.  I am scared that I won't be able to do it, but I am tired of letting fear control my thoughts.  "Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 3:14)

Happy 4th of July!

 

"Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us." - Hebrews 12:1

Till next time, let your light shine!

Blessings, christen

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3 Belated

I hope everyone is having a great Fourth of July weekend. I finally have a moment to share some of my Birthday with everyone. After my birthday, I was cramming for my test which was last Thursday. Thank you all for the prayers. They are always tough test and you never come out feeling good, but I have been especially nervous since I could be done with them if I passed this one. To be honest I have been living in fear a little bit these past few days. It has been such a long road taking these test and the fear of failing the last one and having to study for it again in six months after the girls are home is eating me up. Yesterday, I needed a little wake up call. We had a great day getting things ready for the girls, then we sat outside and relaxed a good while. Eventually we came inside; as we sat there Christen said, "It's so great to not have you studying!" only to turn around and see that I wasn't studying, but I was looking over the material again to check myself. This is where the wake up call came in. Christen reminded me what was the point of all of that studying, hard work, and prayer if I wasn't going to move on afterwards. By dwelling on it, I am handing over control of my life to fear, and once you begin this, it's like quicksand-you just work yourself into a bigger mess. I prepared for that test, I honestly put every bit of free time I had into studying for it, and I shared with the Lord the desires in my heart and the need to glorify His name. The results can take anywhere from a week to two months. So from today on, I am moving forward. If it wasn't meant to be and there is still more to learn in this particular area-then I will see that test again around Christmas. Regardless, I won't be letting my fears stand between the blessings God has so abundantly given me. Speaking of those blessings, why don't we move on to them; they are a lot more fun!

Well, first, when we went to see the girls on my birthday they had put together a little surprise for me (with some help from their Mom). They had decorated the room for the big event. The nurses even helped them sign a card for me.



An even bigger surprise was in store when I actually looked at the girls. Adeline's incubator was empty. They had moved her over to cuddle in Maralee's incubator.





I tell you, I have always known that I have twins of course, but they really have felt like "two girls". When you put them in the same crib and watch them lay in the exact positions, the amazing truth that these girls are an identical reflection of each other will blow your mind. They crack me up because they are just so sweet, they would just lay there with their eyes open and just stare right at the other one. Their legs kept getting all tangled, but they liked it. So far they love to be close. Often preemie twins don't like each other at first because they just accidentally hit each other so much but honestly they seem to calm each other down when they are placed together.



Their lives truly are a blessing and an amazing experience for Christen and I.

Now, I'm sure none of you have forgotten that Christen set out to make me a homemade Birthday Cake! Let me just say that she did an amazing job! Not only did it look great, but it tasted amazing as well. The recipe comes from my Nan-Nan, who made everyone of my Birthday Cakes until I went to college. She would always decorate them with superheroes and cartoon characters that I was into at the time; so Christen's goal was to do the same-she suprised me with our dog Obi on the cake. She won't tell you this, but she stayed up till 12:30 the night before finishing the icing. For Christen, that is extremely late! She may tell you different later, but I think she really enjoyed it as tough as it was. She said she has so much respect for people that makes cakes like that all the time. Now, you can't taste it of course so you will have to take my word that it was delicious but you can see the results yourself!







Again, she did an amazing job and I had a wonderful birthday!

-Raleigh

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