I haven’t posted on how the kids are developing in a long time- so I thought I’d take a second to let you know how they are doing.

Taylor has really become an independent little person. She likes to play on her own, has several dolls that she reads to, changes their diapers, feeds, and then puts to bed. (It’s like she’s been watching me!) She is really talkative these days – stringing together all kinds of new words in sentences. She’s got her ABCs down pat. We are in the process of potty training and she takes a lot of pride in going pee on the potty like a big girl. She is also the classic big sister- she tells Josh what to do, what not to do, and then tells mommy if he doesn’t listen to her. For those of you who know me, it should come as no surprise that my daughter is obsessed with organizing things. In, fact, the other day Taylor was coloring when I noticed that she was not in fact coloring, but sorting her crayons and when I asked her what she was doing she told me “I organizing, Mommy.” Girl after my own heart! :)

Joshua wants to do everything Taylor does and is almost as talkative as she is. Thanks to Taylor’s constant recitation of the ABCs, Joshua now knows his ABCs too! Josh loves to do things on his own: climb up in his table chair on his own, buckle his seat belt on his own, ride in his play car outside on his own, carry around his chalk bucket, put on his socks and shoes, etc. Despite the independent streak, he is still my little cuddle bug and needs his cuddle fixes on a daily basis. (Melts my heart.) Joshua loves his trucks and balls. He especially loves being outside and running around with Taylor.

Taylor and Josh both love their little baby brother Daniel. Daily they ask to see him and hold him. It’s sweet. :)

They are also both obsessed with all things Dora and Diego. And they enjoy watching Curious George and Clifford the Big Red Dog.

Daniel is growing so fast. I can already tell that he is more aware of what is going on around him. His face is beginning to fill in and the boy just keeps getting longer and longer. According to Grandma Hunt, Daniel is practically a carbon copy of his Daddy in every way- from his furrowed forehead, to his rosebud lips, and even his cry. We’ll post a comparison picture soon.

Here’s a snapshot in time of my three kids :)

Taylor 3 years old

Joshua 22 months

Daniel 1 month

 

I’m a law school graduate!

It’s hard to believe that three years ago we had a 1 pound, 9 ounce baby girl fighting for her life in the NICU and today we have a vibrant, healthy, and happy three year old daughter. God is good.

This year we had a small family celebration for Taylor given the fact that her little brother was only a few weeks old. We were happy to be able to celebrate with Grandma Darlene who was here helping us after Daniel’s birth.

We are so grateful for Taylor’s life and consider it a great privilege to be able to watch her grow up.

Happy Birthday, Taylor and thank you Lord, for Your faithfulness!

 

We are pleased to announce the arrival of our son, Daniel Robert Hunt!

 

Christmas 2011

Family & Friends,

Merry Christmas!

This year we happily announced that we are expecting the arrival of our third child this coming February. We are grateful to share that this pregnancy has been uneventful and we are looking forward to welcoming our new son to the family in just seven short weeks!

Taylor and Joshua continue to entertain us with their love for life and sense of humor. Taylor is the typical first born daughter. She loves helping Mommy, telling her little brother what to do, and she has her Daddy wrapped around her little finger. Joshua is growing into a kind hearted little man. He loves playing with his sister, wrestling with Daddy after work, and he adores his Mommy.

Jeff and Nicole will be celebrating their fourth wedding anniversary in January. It’s hard to believe our lives have changed so much in just four short years. Nicole is elated to announce that as of this December she is a law school graduate! In her last semester of law school she had the opportunity to work as a legal fellow with Americans United for Life, the first national pro-life organization founded in the United States. She also worked in a family law firm and had the opportunity to represent clients in court on several occasions. Jeff continued to serve at the Clapham Group, a consulting firm in Washington, DC that he helped form in 2007. Clapham represents a wide variety of clients including the US Chamber of Commerce, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and the ONE Campaign.

We are very excited to announce that we will begin a new adventure in the coming year as we move our family to Colorado in April. We look forward to being closer to family, enjoying the great outdoors, and growing our online advertising business, Discover Marketing.

We wish you and your loved ones a very Merry Christmas and may you remember the words of the angel speaking to the shepherds on the evening of Jesus’ birth:

“Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born for you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.”

(Luke 2:10-11)

Much Love,

Jeff, Nicole, Taylor, Joshua, & Baby Boy Hunt

This is a new video Jeff made to capture our family adventures this past summer.

This truly is a good life.

The Good Life – Summer 2011 from Hunt Family on Vimeo.

That’s right, I wrote man! As of last Friday, it is now official- we are having a boy!

The doctors say baby boy looks great for his gestational age. They’d like to have us back every 4 weeks to make sure he is growing at a steady rate- a smaller sized baby is an indication that preeclampsia may be setting in- so these check-ups are meant to be preventative.

Here are a few pictures of baby boy at 20 weeks from the ultrasound.

Well, it’s official. This family of four will be a family of five come February!

That’s right, I am 20 weeks pregnant and we are excited to welcome the newest addition of our family in early 2012.

Please join us in praying for an uneventful, full-term pregnancy.

We find out later this week whether we are having a boy or a girl. Stay tuned for more updates! :)

At 18 weeks.

This summer the Hunts didn’t get much of a break from school because in order to graduate this fall I had to take one summer school class. Thankfully, the class ended about four weeks before the fall term began, so the family got a mini vacation to California and Illinois (for Jeff’s brother’s wedding) before classes started back.

Joshua and Taylor LOVED the beach. It was Joshua’s first time to the ocean, it took him a while to warm up to the scene, but once he did he was in heaven. Taylor loved the beach too. In fact, not a day goes by that she doesn’t ask to go to the ocean. :)

We all had a great time visiting with family and friends in Hemet.

Taylor and Josh enjoyed their first trip to the zoo while we were in San Diego. I think they both really loved the animals.

We’d like to give a special thank you to Grandma and Grandpa Hunt for giving us a great place to stay while we were in Coronado and for babysitting the kids so Jeff and I could get out for some date time.

Our visit to California was a wonderful way to end the summer. Until next time, west coast, we will miss you!

Love, The Hunts

I wrote earlier this year that Taylor wore a dress for Easter that I wore when I was a little girl.

Well, my mom saved a few other things that I thought would be fun to let Taylor wear/use now. Below is a jacket vest I wore when I was a toddler and this past spring Taylor got a lot of use out of it herself.

Me in 1983

Taylor in 2011 (28 years later)

 

And this is a little stool/chair that my brothers and I used growing up to brush our teeth when we were too short to spit into the sink. My mom brought it out when she was here in April and now that Taylor is old enough to get more involved in brushing her teeth we started letting her use it.

The saying on the step stool reads: “This little stool is mine, I use it all the time, to reach the things I couldn’t, and lots of things I shouldn’t.” A saying that my brothers and I adopted like a mission statement for life when we were kids- and I’m sure the next generation will too. :)