1:25 PM

Date night!

Posted by Courtney |

Last Saturday, Nathan and I went out with some friends, Anthony and Tracee Smith, for a double date! It was AWESOME!!!! We totally needed this night. Things have been so crazy lately and we haven't really gotten to just unwind and relax. This night was designed especially for that. 

Anthony and Tracee had rented a limo for their daughters 16th birthday. The limo was going to take her and her friends to dinner, then just wait for them to get done. Well...Anthony said let's not waste precious limo time (since you had to rent it for a 4 hour min.) and have it pick us up for dinner too. How fun is that right??? So Nathan and I dropped off our kids and my mom's house, then went home to wait for "our limo" (said in a British accent) to pick us up. 
Here we are waiting for the limo...Don't we look cute?!?



The limo arrived and off we went "in style" to our restaurant! It sort of felt like we were celebrity status! Oh yeah :-) They took us to Cacharel in Arlington. We had never been there before and let me tell you, IT WAS AWESOME!!! I never knew that such a fancy restaurant existed in Arlington! It's a French restaurant with such elegance. I ordered the Caesar salad, Duck, and chocolate soufflé for dessert. Wow..Amazing!!!! We just love hanging out with Anthony and Tracee! It's nice to be with people that you can be "real" with. We never run out of things to talk about either. They are such a sweet and Godly couple! Thanks guys! We love you :)

So that's our date night!!! It's not everyday a limo picks you up to take you to dinner. I could definitely get used to that!

comments (4)

2:03 PM

Oh sweet Victory!!!

Posted by Courtney |

I think I finally accomplished what I thought was the impossible!!!

JUDAH IS TAKING FORMULA BOTTLES!!!!!

I honestly didn't think it was going to happen but after 24 hours of non-stop trying, he gave in to the bottle drinking! The bottle that finally did it for him is called, "First Years, Breastflow Bottle" http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2815318

It simulates the breast perfectly, which kind of tricks him into thinking it's the "real thing" :)

I tried a new formula too, "Carnation Good Start". I heard it tastes most like breast milk, although I still thinks it smells like dirt. Poor baby. no wonder he didn't want to drink it! But at least he got over it! I feel like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders. Now when I leave for Belgium, I don't have to worry about him not eating.

This is how I did it. I put breast milk in a bottle and gave it to him. He at first started screaming thinking it was going to be "the dirt" formula but then some milk went into his mouth and he immediately started gulping it down. Well because he was so hungry, he ate it really fast and wanted some more. I then put some formula in the bottle and offered it to him again. He cried and refused for a second but then conceded to the taste. Thus I had the VICTORY!!! He tried refusing a few times after that but would always give in. So far so good :)

I have to be honest and say, it's kind of hard for me to think that I will not be nursing him any more. I have never nursed a baby this long and for some, this isn't long at all (I guess I'm just not the long nursing type, don't judge me). He is 81/2 months old already! The longest I nursed any of the girls was 6 months. I feel pretty good about the fact that I did it for that long. (pat on back). It does make it hard when I know he likes it so much though. That's the sucky part. I really do enjoy nursing, but it was just time.

Now the hard part is here...the part where your milk drys up. Oh my word, my boobs are hard as rocks right now. I guess better now then when i am in Belgium but it seriously hurts like crap! I hope they dry up sooner then later cause I can't take much longer of this. It's painful people!

Thanks for all the advice and words of encouragement! I really needed them.

And thank God there is VICTORY in the Watkins house! Woo HOO!!!!

comments (8)

10:43 AM

Before and After's

Posted by Courtney |

WoW!!! I can't believe that we have been in our house for 13 months. In some ways it feels like we have been here forever and in other ways it feels like we just moved in. 


About 16 months ago, my sister saw that a house got put on the market which was 4 houses down from her. She imediately called me (as she did everytime she saw a house for sale close to her) demanding that I check it out. You see, we had been praying for God to give us a house on the same street. And even though I prayed for this to happen, I just didn't know how we would find a house that was in our price range and within walking distance of each other. 

Well with enough prodding from my sis, Nathan and I checked it out. When I walked in the front door, I immediately knew this was OUR HOUSE!!! I just had so much peace about it. Now, it was in pretty bad shape and was definitely NOT "move in" ready. Even with all the work that I knew needed to be done, I still wanted that house SOOOOO bad. It's an almost 3800 sq. ft house because, (get this people) It has a fully finished out basement! Can you believe there is a house in Texas with a basement??? It's awesome! There are 5 bedrooms, 2 bath's, 2 living rooms, a dinning room and a huge laundry room. I have to say it was perfect for us.  

We met the owners who had lived in that house 57 of it's 58 year long life. It's always nice to know that only one other family has occupied your house. That means it's probably a pretty good house. Of course the owner's loved us and told the realtor that if we made an offer to give it to us. We of course made an offer for 100k and was accepted! I still think that was a steal considering the amount of house we were getting. The closing process went well and soon we had the keys to our New House!!!!

Then it was time to get to work. And boy did we work HARD!!! flooring had to be ripped up and walls had to be re-textured! Walls had to be knocked out and doors had to be replaced! Then there was the painting...panting walls, cabinets, doors and floor vents. A lot of work but well worth it. Now, can I say it is completely finished???...NO!!!!! But we are getting there slowly but surely. I wanted to show some before and after pictures to give you a clue of all the work we have done. 

Kitchen before...

Kitchen After...

Living room Before...



Living room After...

Before...

AFTER...


So here I sit 13 months later, loving my house and enjoying every minute of it! And even though there is still so much work that has to be done...I look at these pictures and can appreciate all the hard work and elbow grease that went into making my house a HOME!!! I am truly grateful!

comments (8)

9:43 AM

I need some tips...

Posted by Courtney |


So, my dearest Judah boy needs to be weened from breast milk LIKE NOW. However, he refuses to drink formula. I have tried switching formula's, tried getting a bottle that simulate the breast...and still no luck. He literally screams the entire time. I am so frustrated. I probably wouldn't ween him yet but I am leaving for Belgium in 19 days and he's not going with me. 


Have I mentioned that I am so frustrated right now. I  have tried putting half formula and half breast milk in a bottle, I have tried letting him get GOOD and hungry before I offer it to him. I just don't know what else to do. 

I would appreciate any advice anyone has to give. This has to happen soon or whoever keeps Judah while I'm gone is going to hate me by the time I get back. SERIOUSLY!!!!!

Any tips???

comments (14)

9:15 AM

She's HOME!!!!

Posted by Courtney |

DESTINY IS HOME!!!!!

I'm so excited!!! She got home around 10:45 am today and with LOTS of prayer, won't have to go back till she delivers Shiloh at full term.

NO MORE HOSPITALS FOR THIS FAMILY FOR AWHILE!!! That's what I am declaring! If I never have to re-live this past September the rest of my life, will be ok with me. She is doing really good besides having to lay down for the next 10 weeks. Man that would totally suck. And Destiny is not that kind of person. She always likes to be doing something. Especially coming to see me everyday at my house :) (Sorry Des that it had to happen in your birthday month)

Speaking of birthday month....


TODAY MARKS THE FIRST DAY OF MY BIRTHDAY MONTH!!! Happy birthday month to me. For those of you who don't know, my actual birthday is the 24th of October! This birthday will be very different because I will be celebrating it in BELGIUM!!! I honestly don't think it's going to be that great because my sister won't be there. Boo!!! Totally not happy about this. It makes me want to cry. This was going to be our first oversees trip together. I know God has a plan in all of this but just not seeing it right now. I really can't believe that we leave in about 3 weeks. That sends butterfly's to my stomach. Mostly because I am still nursing Judah and haven't even weened him yet. He hates formula and I just don't think I want to pump the whole time in Belgium. Oh man, I'm getting stressed out just thinking about it. I have never left him for more than 24 hours before. What am I going to do?!?!?!

In other news, Judah hasn't had fever in about 2 whole days! I have no idea what was up with him. He had what Des and I refer to as, "phantom fever". It comes on just as quickly as it goes without any explanation. So strange! But Praise the Lord it's gone!

Ok that's all I have for today...I need to go 4 houses down to see my lovely sister!

PS. I am setting up meals for them while she is on bed rest. We don't need every night, only on Mon. and Wed. nights. If you are interested in doing this for them, please leave me a comment saying what night and week you would like. I have the next 2 weeks covered starting next Mon. but after that, I need people. Just let me know if you are interested! Thanks guys!


comments (4)

11:51 AM

Update on Destiny

Posted by Courtney |

The Dr. came in this afternoon and said that she will be staying in the hospital for one more day. Although she is doing very good, they would rather be safe then sorry.


Currently she is off of every IV drips and stuff. She is just on Procardio which she will be on for the remainder of the pregnancy. Destiny feels so much better today now that she is off of the "Evil Satan drug" as Destiny calls it. That stupid Magnesium is awful stuff but works great for people in Destiny's condition. 

So here's the plan of action:
-She will be in the hospital for one more night just to be monitored. They want her to act like she would at home so that they know what her body is going to do. Des says that she feels a little crampy which I figure is another reason why she is staying another night. 
-The Dr. is looking into an experimental drug called "17 Hydroxy Progesterone". This is supposed to help mature the baby a little more in case Destiny's body just doesn't cooperate (which it will). We're just know for sure if her insurance will cover it since it's an experimental drug. They are checking though. Apparently Destiny is a prefect candidate for this. 
-If all is well, she will be going home tomorrow, although she will be put on bed rest till she's about 34 or 35 weeks. For those of you who are counting, that's 10 weeks of bed rest. YUCK!!!! 

So that's the plan as of right now. Please continue to pray for Destiny, Jon and Lyric. They need to be covered in prayer constantly.
If any of you are interested in bringing meals to her and Jon during these coming weeks, just let me know. We are going to need all hands on deck. 

I was telling Des...this is when me living 4 houses down really comes in handy. This is going to be a long road but totally worth it cause we're going to get a healthy baby in the end!!!!
Here's a picture of Destiny today just chillin in her hospital bed! She's so cute :)

comments (3)

1:55 PM

Hospital's...my second home!

Posted by Courtney |

I'm starting to feel like I live at hospitals these days.

First it was my brother getting shot in the face by a random drive by shooting and NOW it's my sister in for pre-term labor. When is the maddness going to end????

Currently, I am sitting in a chair right next to my sister's hospital bed, FREEZING because she has the air turned down so low. The medicine that she was on (Magnisium suphate) made her have EXTREME hot flashes which she described as "hot oil" running through her whole body.


She is 24 weeks along which is not acceptable for going into labor. I believe that the stress of my brother being shot and the trama of it all, made Destiny's body kick start the birthing process. Poor thing :( It's awful to see your sister confined to a bed so much so that bed pan's have to be use. It's just plain awful! I wish I could take away all the pain she is feeling and go through it for her but I can't. What a helpless feeling. I was with her most of the day today just getting her what ever wasn't in arms reach of her. Even taking away a throw-up filled trash can out of the room since the nurses weren't being pro-active enough.

Let's just say it's not been the best day for my sister. They are saying that she will be going home tomorrow if she continues to not have any contractions since they took her off of the "Mag", for the next 24 hours. We need to pray people. That stuff is evil. They say it makes you feel like you have the flu but worse. So we don't have to guess that Destiny doesn't EVER want to be put back on that stuff agian as long as she lives. It looks like she will have to be on bed rest though for an undetermined amount of time. We are just praying that Destiny's body just makes a 180 degree turn tonight and that she will carry Shiloh full term.

And to top it off...Judah has been running a fever for 3 days. The last 2 nights it's gotten up to almost 104 degrees. Which means I haven't been getting any sleep cause he moans all night and can't sleep because he feels terrible. He doesn't have any other symptoms though which is so strange. Do you think our family is under attack right now?!?!? I would say...Uh, YES!!!! Enough is ENOUGH! I am sick of this. My Dad said tonight he thinks it's strange that everything that has happened, has been to the youngest boys in the family: Preston, Judah and Shiloh. Mmm...something to think about for sure.

I am so tired. Quite possibly on the verge of a breakdown. I NEED SLEEP!!! Hopefully I'll get some tonight, but I'm not holding my breath.

Thanks for your prayers and keep them coming.

P.S. I hate that my first blog on my new site has to be so depressing but, what do ya do?

comments (6)

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