Today marks one year since Becca came home from the hospital. She’s come a long way from those first days we had her home with us. Now instead of spending most of the day feeding Becca and making sure she gets her medications on time, we fill our time with playing “where’s Flopsie?” and learning how to put markers back in their box.

Thursday night we were all awakened by the apartment fire alarm system. We stumbled out of bed and made our way outside and then sat in the car until the firemen said everyone could return to their apartments. It was a false alarm, apparently (or at least, no worse than someone overcooking their midnight snack). Becca slept through the first part of the alarm, and once she came out of a daze, she was quite happy to enjoy the excitement.We had enough snow on Friday to take Becca out sledding. She enjoyed her rides down the little hill, and we enjoyed our time outside in the snow. Saturday Becca was sick all day with a fever. It was very similar to her one-day fever during the Christmas holidays. It turns out that she has another tooth popping through, and I think I can safely say that both fevers were related to teething.

Looking over the past year, it’s been neat to remember the many ways the Lord has answered our prayers concerning Becca. Thank you so much for praying for our little girl. She is truly God’s gift to us, and each day with her is a treasure.

We’ve enjoyed a variety of weather this week. Over the weekend it was sunny and warm. We enjoyed the extra time being outside. Becca didn’t like walking in the grass, but she did enjoy crawling on the sidewalk. She was a little hesitant about the stones, but they didn’t stop her from moving right along.

Then, on Tuesday morning we woke up to an icy world. There was a dusting of snow on top of the ice, and it was great for sliding and slipping on. Since Tuesday the temperatures have been in the teens and twenties, so the ice hasn’t had a chance to melt. The UTA campus has been shut down, and had rolling blackouts on Wednesday.

Becca continues to be lots of fun. She now consistently says two words: “d-yes” which means “yes”; “gen – gen” which means “again.”  It’s really cute to hear her ask for something “gen-gen!” Becca also has started kissing us; she opens she mouth wide and presses it against our cheeks. She also kisses pictures in her books. It’s funny to watch her head go down multiple times as she kisses certain pictures.

Becca’s newest skill is picking out and bringing books to me so I can read them to her. We spend a lot of time each day reading books. And now that she knows how to say “gen- gen,” we read some books multiple times in a row!

As you can see from the picture, Josh and I continue to work diligently on our degrees! We appreciate your prayers as I work toward meeting my major deadline. I have to defend by April 1 in order to graduate this May.

In case you think we’ve stopped counting Becca’s week birthdays, we haven’t! Today we’re celebrating Becca’s 61-week birthday. Last year at this time Becca celebrated her 9-week birthday by moving from of her plastic bin to a real crib. Now Becca celebrates by climbing in and out of bins, emptying bins, and putting things in bins.

This week we decided to give Becca her Christmas present. I know Christmas was two months ago, but Becca had many new things her occupied without adding another gift. Becca is now enjoying her Noah’s ark with all the animals. Grandpa and Grandma J bought her some extra animals for the ark.

Friday night Becca went to her first little girls’ birthday party. We celebrated Amaris’ 1st birthday with some families from our church. Becca enjoyed being with the other kids, and she loved the chocolate cake. In preparation for the part, Becca drew some art on our homemade birthday card.

Speaking of birthday parties, Yani (Amaris’ mom) planned a little surprise party for Becca’ 1st birthday at a church fellowship back in November.  I didn’t have our camera with me, but I was able to get some pictures from Yani (see pictures on the left).

Happy Birthday to our most faithful blog reader and commenter. We love you!

At the beginning of this week, Josh and I enjoyed our 3rd annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day getaway. We had decided to skip the hotel this year and just do something at home. What Josh didn’t know is that I was planning a surprise getaway. In December, my sister-in-law Ashleigh offered us a night in a hotel, and that’s when I decided to surprise Josh. (She told me about it, but not him.)

So, without Josh knowing, I packed up everything, loaded the car, and then escorted him to the car. I love surprising Josh, but it’s hard to do, especially when I’m dying to tell him what the surprise is. The surprise was a success! The hotel was perfect. Our room was a King Suite, so Becca got her own room (which was a big plus). We enjoyed playing with Becca and eating pizza — compliments of Caroline and David — for supper (Becca loved the pizza!).

Our stay included a special breakfast that was great, and since we didn’t have to checkout until noon, we were able to enjoy the indoor pool as well. Becca wasn’t sure about the pool at first, but once she decided it was safe, she loved it! We had a great time, and it was so nice to get away and relax.

Josh’s semester started on Tuesday. He’s teaching one class — Grammar and Morphology — and working as the web/lab assistant, and he’ll be collecting data and writing for his dissertation. I continue to work on my paper and wait for my committee to get back to me. Right now, the progress of my paper is in the hands of my committee members.

Becca continues to grow, learn, and explore. She has learned a hand sign for “please.” It’s so cute to see her use it when I ask her if she wants something. Becca has four top teeth coming in, and has also made good progress in walking with a baby stroller and standing on her own. She’ll be walking on her own very soon.

After our Christmas in PA, we drove with my brother Jon and his wife, Ashleigh, to SC for our second Christmas. We are very thankful for their willingness to let us tag along with them for the trip. While down south we got together with both sides of Josh’s family. We also celebrated Great Grandpa and Great Grandma Jensen’s 60th Wedding Anniversary. It was great seeing everyone.

We visited my friend Mr. Leo West. It was good to see him and spend a little time together. While in SC, Becca had a sick day. She had a fever, took extra naps, and wanted to be held most of the day.

We enjoyed our time at Dad and Mom Jensen’s and Becca enjoyed meeting and playing with her cousin, Bella. On our way back to TX, we caught the beginning of the Martin Christmas gathering which was at Great Grandma Martin’s house. It was the first time for all three great granddaughters to be with their Great Grandma.

We arrived back in TX on New Year’s Eve and celebrated our 3rd Christmas at home in TX. Becca was very proud of the present she made for Josh. We’re now back into the swing of things. Josh went to Pittsburgh for 4 days to present a paper at the Linguistic Society of America, and I continue to work toward my dissertation deadlines.

On December 17th we left for a two-week trip to visit both our families in PA and SC. This week we’ll share some pictures from our trip to PA, and next week we’ll share some from SC. We had a wonderful time visiting my family in PA. It was the biggest Sutter gathering yet: the first time for both Dan’s wife Isabelle and Becca to be with the rest of the family (all at once).

Our schedule was packed full while in PA. With a house full of 13 people, there was lots of cooking to do and dishes to wash. We had family photos taken, went snow tubing, went bowling, celebrated Hanukkah, and visited Santa’s mother-in-law’s home. Among all the activities, we were able to squeeze a trip in to visit Grandma Sutter and Uncle John. It was great to be together and we enjoyed seeing my siblings and my sisters-in-laws.

A very happy New Year from Becca-Bear! When I asked Becca what’s been the best thing about 2010, she had one thing to say: “being at home with Daddy and Mommy!” We’ve had a wonderful year of watching our little girl grow from a  very tiny baby to a beautiful, very energetic one-year-old.

The best thing about 2010 for me has been having another year with my husband and being a mommy. I’m very thankful for my wonderful husband and for the blessing he is to me each day of the year. I’m blessed to be a mommy and to spend each day at home with my family.

We’re looking forward to 2011 and all the wonderful blessings God has in store for us. Happy New Year!

Becca saw Santa this evening. He said he’d been praying for her all year!

Merry Christmas!

Today is Becca’s 56-week birthday! Saturday will be her second Christmas, but it will be her first Christmas to spend all day with Daddy and Mommy, instead of being at the hospital. We are so delighted with God’s gift of our daughter Becca. Josh is finished with his semester. Both Becca and I are glad to have some extra time with him during Christmas. (Becca was generous enough to proofread Josh’s final paper to help him finish up faster!)

We’ve been enjoying some of Arlington’s Christmas activities. One Friday afternoon, we took a trip to Home Depot and enjoyed looking around. Becca loved riding in the cart. Another Saturday evening, we enjoyed (and froze) watching the Arlington downtown Christmas parade. Becca enjoyed most of it.

Another evening we had dinner at Chick-Fil-A and then walked downtown and looked at some window displays. Becca did not like the moving Santa doll and was amazed by the giant nutcracker. We enjoyed the warm evening weather. A big change from the night of the parade.

I’m currently under a deadline with my dissertation. My prospectus was approved the week of Thanksgiving. And now I’m trying to get an entire draft of the paper written by January 15th. I would appreciate your prayers as I try to meet this deadline during a busy time of year.

We hope you all have a very Merry Christmas!

In November, my sister Emily visited us for a week. It took a little while for Becca to warm up to her aunt, but they soon before good friends, and Becca enjoyed laughing at her crazy Aunt Emily. While Emily has here, we went to quite a few things in the area. I think I saw more of Dallas and Fort Worth in the week Emily was here than I have in our previous two-and-a-half years of living in Texas.

Saturday night we went to a rodeo. I don’t think Josh or I will ever be tempted to enter into a rodeo event, even if we’re low on cash. The bull riding looked painful and the other events looked complicated. And you only get one chance at trying to rope the poor little (feisty) calf. Becca didn’t go to the rodeo, but she does enjoy playing with her nativity.

Emily was a great help while she was here. She helped make baby food, she babysat Becca twice when we had to go out, she helped clean Becca’s bed, she washed my kitchen floor (without being asked), she made Becca’s birthday cake, she helped us put up our Christmas decorations, she washed lots of dishes, and she did many other things. The last night she was here, she even scrubbed our bathtub – that was a nice surprise to step into. We’ll see if we can talk Emily into coming again next year. Thanks, Em!

Two more presents arrived for Becca after the official celebrations. My brother Joey sent her a “I <3 BJU” outfit. And my brother Sam and his wife sent her  a Yankee’s outfit and a Mets outfit. I’m not sure if she can wears those down here in Texas Ranger country.

Today is the 4-year anniversary of our first date. I was really excited when Josh asked me out and was hoping it would go well. When I got an email from him a few hours after our date, I decided that I hadn’t scared him away. I was thrilled when he asked me out again…and that he’s now my date for life. I love you, my sweet husband. Thanks so much for asking me out!

On another note, since my miscarriage we’ve received a lot of mail from Dover, Pa – thanks fam.

We had a wonderful time celebrating Becca’s 1st birthday. Becca now weighs 16lbs. and 5oz. and is 27 and 1/4 inches long. She’s come a long ways from her original weight of 2lbs 0.8oz!

During the afternoon of Becca’s birthday we went to see some sights in Dallas. We visited the Children’s Medical Center in Dallas. They have a two-story model railroad. It was quite impressive. Next we visited the Pioneer Plaza Cattle Drive in downtown Dallas, featuring bronze bovines.

Our next stop was the State Fairgrounds. We didn’t stay for long, but it was neat to see the area. We got home in enough time for Becca to take a short nap so that she wouldn’t be too cranky for her birthday celebration. Josh and Emily decorated the room, while Becca and I waited in the bedroom. Becca and Mommy enjoyed all the decorations.

At first, Becca wasn’t too sure what to make of her birthday cake. After some tentative fingering, she enjoyed pulling the entire cupcake apart. And eventually she put some in her mouth. After she “finished” her cake, we gave her some homemade sweet potato pie, which she loves.

Becca also enjoyed playing with all her packages, in addition to the gifts themselves. A big hit was her magnetic letters. She loves pulling them off our front door and fridge and carrying them around the apartment. The other day she brought me the “O”. We’re all enjoying spelling words and making new words.

One of the highlights of Becca’s birthday was visiting the NICU. We kept Becca up late so we could see the nurses on night shift. We were very happy to see many of our nurses, and I think they were pleased to see Becca. We continue to thank God for His hand on Becca’s life. Thank you for all your prayers for her over this past year.

Since my photographer sister was here this past week, we have loads of pictures to share with you all. I’ve decided to do spread them out over the next few weeks. Today we’ll have pictures of Thanksgiving, next week we’ll showcase Becca’s birthday, and then maybe the next week we’ll showcase Emily’s visit.

We had a lovely Thanksgiving evening with Emily, and René, Yani, and Amaris Rodriguez. It was good to get together with them for the evening. We have so much to be thankful for. Becca especially enjoyed the sweet potato pie that Josh made.

On a somber note, our Thanksgiving did not turn out exactly as I had hoped. We spent Thanksgiving morning in the emergency room as my body began the process of miscarrying our second child. I was about 12 weeks pregnant, but the ultrasound at the emergency room showed a 6-week baby and no heartbeat was found. Yesterday, the doctor confirmed that my body is preparing to have a miscarriage. We appreciate your prayers for us. Children are a true gift from the Lord, and we are very grateful for His gift of our dear sweet Becca to us.

Happy 1st Birthday to our dear little Becca-Bear! You are God’s very special gift to us! We love you!

Happy Thanksgiving to all our friends and family! We have so much to be thankful for this Thanksgiving season. Last year we spent the morning and afternoon watching our baby’s heart decelerate and wondering if we were going to have a Thanksgiving baby. We spent the evening in the operating room and then saw our little Becca for the first time. Josh was able to see her in the NICU that night; I had to wait until the next day.

This year we will spend Thanksgiving with our very healthy baby girl who weighs a pound and a half more than our 15lb. turkey. I get to spend the day with my husband, instead of confined in a hospital bed, and I get to hold and kiss our little Becca-bear as much as I want. This Thanksgiving if I get teary-eyed, it will be because I am overwhelmed with all that God has done for us, not because of the uncertainties that lie ahead.

I am especially thankful for my family this Thanksgiving. God has blessed me with an amazing husband who loves me, is my best friend, and who desires me to grow in Christ. God has blessed me with our wonderful daughter, who is a joy to be with and fills our home with laughter.

We have a special guest this week. My sister, Emily, is down for a visit. We’re very busy seeing all the sights of Texas. More pictures will be posted in the coming weeks. We hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving. Thank you for your prayers for us over this past year.

This week Becca started pulling herself up to stand, using the couch, a chair, and Josh’s desk. The first several times she pulled herself up without help, she shouted out with delight. It was so precious! I never know when to expect Becca to be standing at some piece of furniture. I also never know when she’s going to topple over.

Friday, we took Becca to the park for a swing ride. Becca loves swinging. Even though it was chilly outside, she would cry every time we’d stop the swing to get her out. After our trip to the park, Josh and I built a tent and had a campout in our living room. Becca was not impressed with our tent when she woke up the next morning.

This week we introduced Becca to cloth diapers. Now before you start thinking pins and rubber pants, wait. Cloth diapers have come a long way since our parents used them – pins have been replaced with snaps. So far, we’re liking the new system, and we think we’ll stick with it.

A year ago today, I went from teaching elementary school music to being a hospital patient. When I went in for pregnancy monitoring, I thought I’d only be in the hospital for an hour, but that hour turned into hours and those hours turned into days.

A year later, I’ve gone from hearing and seeing a baby heart monitor all day long to hearing and seeing our dear little Becca. How blessed I am to look back at last year and then look at all the Lord has done since then.

A year ago today, I was still teaching and planning to have a baby in February. However, a year ago today was when I started worrying about Becca’s movement. Five days later, I was admitted to the hospital, and so started our preemie adventure. And today we celebrate 50 weeks with our delightful Becca-Bear!

Last week, we found a bed bug in our closet, so this week has basically been another week of preparing for the treatment, and now we’re in recovery mode. Becca offered to help me hang up all the clothes, but (as you see in the photo to the left) she got distracted by the hanger. Hopefully, this will be the last time we have to deal with the bed bugs, at least while in the USA.

Becca is now starting to pull herself up on things. We don’t have many furniture items her height, so she usually pulls up on the laundry basket and on her little dresser. As of yesterday, she can also go from being on her tummy to sitting up. At least that’s what I’m assuming happened, since one moment she was on her tummy and the next time I turned around she was sitting up. It’s so cute to watch her move around the apartment – 50 weeks of fun!

Today is Becca’s 49-week birthday. It’s hard to believe that she’ll be 1 in three weeks. Where has the time gone? Becca is zipping around our apartment. It’s so cute when she follows us around from room to room. Becca is getting up on her hands and knees now, so it will only be a matter of time before she transitions from creeping to crawling.

Grandpa J flew through DFW Saturday morning, and we had breakfast with him. It was the first really chilly morning we’ve had in Texas this fall, so Becca was able to sport a new outfit. The outfit is a sized at 0-3 months, so we were glad Becca got a chance to wear it this fall.

The picture on the left is the best shot I’ve been able to get of Becca’s two teeth. It’s so cute to see teeth when she smiles. The picture on the right is of Becca and me playing with Daddy’s socks – oh what fun!

This week, Becca turned 11 months old (and 8 months old adjusted). We’re having a wonderful time watching Becca grow and develop. Each new stage is a delight! Becca and I now play a new game of lion chase. It’s so cute to hear her squeal when I come out of hiding, running on all fours to eat her up.

This weekend, Mom J stopped by overnight on her way back to South Carolina from an EMU trip to Uruguay. We had a good visit with her, and Becca enjoyed playing with Grandma Jensen. Becca really likes and the new puzzles and book G&G Jensen gave her for her birthday.

Both Josh and I are busy with our research. Josh will be presenting a paper at a linguistics conference next weekend, so he’s busy gathering and organizing data for his talk. I’m in the process of revising my prospectus. We’re loving the cooler weather – we’re now able to open the windows! On another note, today is our 28-month wedding anniversary – I love being married to Josh – it just keeps getting better!