A Long Post...The Past Few Months!

**This is a VERY long post, since we have not blogged in forever**

First off....they are just so stinkin' cute & such an amazing blessing from the Lord!!!

Such a happy boy...all the time!

We have been rather busy around here.  We went home in April, went to Daytona Beach, school got out,  a few trips to Charleston, Mike's birthday, & Mike got his official transcripts from his Masters and is now officially DONE.
In April we went home since it was the one year mark when Hudson went to be with Jesus.  We thought it would be extra special to come home this year and bring our newest bundle of joy Judah home to WA for the first time.  We loaded up on the plane (which is always a sight to see with just Conner and now to add Judah it was an adventure).  We ended up finding a non-stop flight which is usually very hard to do, which helped out a lot.  We took off into a thunderstorm and it was one of the scariest flights we have ever been on.  I sat with my eyes closed it was so bouncy & one of us asked Conner what was wrong "I'm praying this plane doesn't crash, its tipping a lot."  After we got past the thunderstorms the rest of the flight was smooth.  My parents met us at the airport and we loaded into the car.  We had a "welcome Judah" party with a ton of friends and family.  It was a blast to have everyone meet Judah and also get to spend time with our friends and family.  Everyone really enjoyed Judah and he slept most of the time while everyone took in the sweet boy.  Judah has brought so much joy to our family (as does Conner) but Judah has also brought us a sense of healing.  While he doesn't replace Hudson at all, its been a healing experience to bring home a healthy baby and see Conner get to enjoy the new things with Judah each day.  We all miss Hudson so very much and talk about him each day.  Conner tells Judah about Hudson & that he has a brother in Heaven watching over us.
Below are a few pictures from the party-**(I didn't get a picture with everyone, so if you have one of you with Judah can you send it to us)

Gma & Judah

Conner & Gpa looking for crabs

Aunt Bev

                                              Emily, Sophia & Judah

Terry, Judah & Dad

           Shawna, Darby & Judah

Mrs. Witte & Judah

Auntie Alice, Dad & Judah

Mom & Judah

On the 1 year mark of Hudson going to heaven Mike ran a half marathon in his memory up in Oak Harbor.  He had Tristan & Scott (who were Mike's roommates while at Central) run with him.  The boys and I went to watch and cheer them on.  They all ran it in their '100's for Hudson' shirts and had amazing times.  Mike ran it in his personal best time of 1 hour, 41 minutes.  It was great to see Tristan as he had just got back from Iraq and we had not seen Scott since right after college.  They are both in the Army as well, so it's hard to be all together at the same time.  

The boys and I really enjoy going to the races and now they will start to run in more of them as I can now run again.  

It's always special running in Hudson's memory.  It was even more special for this race & know that Mike did so great on the run because of Hudson.  We had the whole day set aside in honoring Hudson.  We know he was looking down on us all and smiling.  Hudson taught us so much and contiunes to teach us.  We are reminded daily of the impact Hudson and the PCICU team has had on those we know and don't know us.  The Lord has used a very difficult situation & hard times for his glory.  We want nothing more than to have Hudson's memory live on in our family & our boys as well as those who were touched by Hudson and those who come to the PCICU.  

Cheering them on...

100's for Hudson

Go Daddy Go..

Tristan, Mike & Scott

Conner couldn't let Tristan's half be enough, he had to work out more...

After the race we headed over to Burlington Foursqaure.  We have a heart for what's going on at Burlington Foursquare.  Our dear friends John & Brandy are the pastors there & the Lord is doing such amazing things.  We had not been to a service yet and wanted to make sure we made it on this special day.  It was nice to meet those from Burlington who have/had been praying for Hudson & our family.  We stayed the night before the race with them and visited.  It was a lot of fun & a full house as you can see below.

After church we headed to see my brother, sister, & Maddie in Seattle.  It was a special time for sure as my brother and Maddie meet Judah for the first time and Conner had a blast with them.  It was a nice time.  We left there and headed to Hudson's special spot (as we call it).  We let a few balloons go, and took Judah with us to Hudson's spot.  It's always a little weird for us as we know Hudson is not really there but in Heaven.  We could feel him looking down on us. We know he was happy with how we honored him.  It was a difficult day for sure but we know he is healthy, with a whole heart.  Thank you to all those people out there who prayed for us on this special day & have stood by us with great words of encouragement and support.  We couldn't have made it through this year without your support!!!

T-Ball

Conner did T-ball this spring.  He loved every minute of it.  Mike helped coach and for the most part enjoyed it, but of course there were a few difficult children ;).  This has been by far Conner's favorite sport.  Soccer was not so much fun as he just wanted to sit on the sidelines and drink his water.  Enjoy a few of the T-ball pictures....

Nice hit..

Ready for the ball

What a cute boy :)

Come on people this is taking so long..

As I said before we went to Daytona Beach for a nice & much needed family getaway.  I am always saying we don't get to go any where because right now our vacations are flying home to see family in WA.  So Mike planned a nice long weekend get away to the beach.  We didn't do anything but lay by the pool and beach.  It was so relaxing.  Conner swam all day and Judah enjoyed himself too. It was also Mike's 28th Birthday so he really enjoyed sitting by the pool and getting a 90 minute massage & then he also got one for me too.  

So much fun!

first dip in the pool...not too sure about it.

he swam all day long...no joke & loved every minute of it.

I can't wait for our next vacation!

Its been a long time coming but the awaited day of the Masters degree arriving in the mail.  He has worked on this since Conner was 3 months old.  Through a 15 month deployment, 3 different moves, our time at the PCICU, and much more....but well worth it.  We are so proud of him for never giving up even though it took much longer than he wanted and working so hard at always getting great grades.  He has been done since November but they don't send out the official title until May.  YEAH it's here....

Now he can add that to his ORB! (his Army record that is) 

Charleston:

We went to Charleston to deliver our first few boxes 'From Hudson's Heart.'  It was a very special day.  We have been wanting to do this much faster but it's just taken time.  We are excited about what his ministry is going to do.  The nurses will give a family a box and in each box they will get a resource card telling about Hudson & other resources that are good to know about when you're a "Heart Family," a hat, socks, camera for the family and nurses to use to capture memories, and a hand/foot print kit since many families don't know they will end up in the PCICU.  We hope to add more to the boxes as Hudson's ministry grows.  

We always love to visit the PCICU - it's a family to us.  They all stood by us through it all and took care of Hudson so very well. Even though we had our families come visit us, these nurses and Dr.'s were with us each and every day.  They all hold a very special place in our hearts and in our memories.  We keep in touch with them & they are our heart family.  

Some of the nurses meeting Judah for the first time & others seeing him again.

Conner giving Dr. Graham a 'from Hudson's heart' box

Judah is getting lots of attention.  Both boys get so much love from the amazing staff!!

No trip to Charleston is complete without a visit to the ocean.  We went to Folly beach & Conner had a blast!

Oh he had sand everywhere. I thought I was so prepared and we would be able to change and get on our way but oh no, I couldn't even begin to get all the sand off.  So he had to ride commando over to Kimberly & Mike's house (some dear friends & one of Hudson's amazing Dr's) and give him a hose bath.  Once we were all clean we all got to meet baby Elsie.  She is exactly 3 months younger than Judah and they weighed nearly the same at birth.  This picture below shows how fast they grow!  

Judah is so in love :).  She is a cute little girl & just too sweet!

Conner had to get in on the action.  He loves these 2 little ones so much.  He is such a sweet boy!

Our time in Charleston is not complete without a trip to Costco and a nice lunch with a few friends from the PCICU!  

Judah getting some extra lovin'

We headed home after a long fun day.  It's always a day of remembering Hudson & the journey our family has been through.  As a family we see sunsets as a gift from Hudson & on our way home we saw a beautiful sunset...

Well I think that sums up our adventures as of late.  Of course we have a bunch more pictures of the sweet boys & I'm sure I'll post a few of our favorites coming up.