November...

November was quite the month. The beginning was like any other but the end result was a new reality.

Elijah had his 3rd birthday on the second but since we had already celebrated twice before then we didn't really make a big deal about it that day. The rest of the week was pretty routine.

The following week both boys had well-baby visits at the pediatricians office. To make a long story short...the doctor felt a "mass" in Thad's abdomen and wanted to do an ultrasound. Two days later we were on our way to Children's Hospital in Little Rock. Both boys had outrageously high blood pressures and both had enlarged kidneys. Just under a week later we were released with a diagnosis of Poly-Cystic Kidney Disease. For details visit: http://www.pkdcure.org/

The boys are doing fine but both will be on blood pressure meds indefinitely and will be monitored for the rest of their lives to track the progression of the disease. PKD is our new reality. It is still a little surreal that two perfectly healthy boys (or so they seemed) boys could have a kidney disease that is incurable as of yet. CRAZY!

A week later we headed to Illinois to celebrate Thanksgiving with Jeff's family. It was great to spend time with family and be reminded again of all the things we are thankful for.

After coming home, we began a new routine that includes twice weekly visits to the pediatrician and giving the kids meds several times a day. The kids have adapted well to the new changes and Eli actually looks forward to seeing the nurse for an "arm hug" and pressing the button on the blood pressure machine all by himself!

Looking back at the craziness of the month, we are in awe of God's faithfulness and provision in our time of need. Thank you to everyone who prayed, gave, visited, hugged, cried, and just loved up on us! God was once again very tangible to us through the hands of his people. Our future here on earth is as uncertain as everyone else's but this we know: God has a plan for a hope and future, He is in control, and we are so blessed to have two amazing little boys!

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Autumn

October has been another busy month for the Rice family. Thankfully, fall finally found us. The month began quite warm but has finished in the 70s with the temps dropping into the 40s at night.

The month started with a visit from Auntie Meredith and Isaiah. We went to "Touch a Truck" an event put on by Chick-fil-A. All different kinds of vehicles (monster truck, police car, fire truck, tractor, bus, ambulance, mower, semi, UPS, and more) were parked in the parking lot and the kids were able to touch, climb in, walk thru, etc. It was a really neat thing to get to do! Papa even got to join us and then bought us McDonald's for lunch...our favorite!

Jeff spent the better part of one Saturday at the BEST competition. His physics class put together a robot that had to complete certain tasks and compete against other schools. It was a fun time and they even made it to the semi-finals!

During the weeks, the boys and I went to story-time, playgroup, friends houses, and more. We keep fairly busy and really enjoy getting to do different things during the week. I also enjoyed attending our women's group at church where we made a special dinner and had a Mexican Fiesta!

We also celebrated Elijah's birthday (a little early). Auntie Meredith agreed to host and we we able to invite our Russellville friends and Mark and Jennifer. A great time was had by all. Elijah LOVED his Thomas the Train cake and all the wonderful gifts he received. He couldn't wait to get home to play his new drum set. I think he is a natural (at making noise anyway)!

Jeff finished up his first quarter of school this month and was a part of his first ever parent-teacher conferences. The conferences went well and many parents had encouraging things to say. I am VERY proud of Jeff and his perseverance during this often overwhelming time.

We ended the month by going to a local church for a Fall Festival. There was trunk or treat, tractor rides, cotton candy, popcorn, slushies, pony rides, balloon making, a costume contest, and more. Elijah enjoyed the festivities and quickly figured out that saying "trick or treat" led to candy being placed in his bucket (smart kid).

I hope you enjoy the pictures. Sorry there are so many...I had a hard time choosing which to put in the show. :-)

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The End of Summer

As summer draws to a close and the weather becomes cooler, we find ourselves playing outside more and relishing the opportunity to get out our warmer clothes. September included a birthday bash for Isaiah, a trip to the ER, and some fun family times.

We thoroughly enjoyed celebrating Isaiah's birthday at the beginning of the month. The boys had fun playing at the park and riding the train complete with steam engine! Watching their eyes light up as they rode the train was worth a million bucks. After the park, we came back to our house for brats, burgers, cake, and presents. It was fun, fun, fun.

Later in the month, we were at a different park when Elijah slipped and hit his head on a bicycle pedal like thingamajig and split his forehead open. Luckily we were only 3 blocks from the hospital and had the fastest ER visit ever. The doctor Durabonded (glued) his head together and we were in and out in an hour. The doc said there should be no brain or nerve damage (he just missed hitting a major nerve in the forehead that controls facial movement and more). Thank you Lord for your provision and protection that night.

School continues to go well for Jeff. We enjoyed hosting his physics class for pizza one night as they worked on a robot they are building to compete in a show in mid-October. It was fun to get to meet some of the kids Jeff teaches everyday.

We also enjoyed going to a few rummage sales one Saturday morning. Elijah found the guitar you see in the pictures. It was a great find for him but drives me crazy! He loves to play it and show off his moves. :-)

Thad is a fun-loving, smiley, little guy. He definitely favors Jeff in appearance and loves to be with Daddy. He has started sleeping most of the way through the night giving us both some much needed rest.

I enjoy playing with the boys, hanging out with friends, and attending a weekly MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) group. I also had a blast last week going out to dinner with some friends from Russellville. I love you Laura, Laura, and Beth!!!!

I hope you are all well and enjoying the cooler weather. Until next time, please enjoy the picture show.

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New Beginnings

So much has happened since I last wrote that I cannot even begin to retell it all here. I will attempt to summarize the major changes though and hope you can get an idea of what God has been doing in our lives.

July 30th: Jeff accepts a high school science teacher position at Union Christian Academy in Fort Smith, Arkansas.

August 2 & 3: Househunting trip. Found a house and signed the lease.

August 4 & 5: Pack House and beginning loading U-Haul.

August 6: Finishing packing and loading. Move to Fort Smith. Unpack U-Haul. Begin Unpacking.

August 9: Jeff starts new job.

August 13-20: Jeff's parents visit and lend a hand.

August 19: School officially starts.

August 29: Find new church.

Today: Still hanging pictures and settling in. Jeff loving job (at first home football game as I write). Enjoyed eating dinner with new pastor and family. Both boys asleep.

It has been a whirlwind of change but God has been so faithful. From finding the right place to live to blessing us with a new church family, God's hand has been evident every step of the way. We hope that you can also see the hand of God at work in your life. Enjoy the pictures!

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My Boys

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Life has definitely changed since Thad entered our world! We are now even...2-on-2. Thankfully, we still have control over Thad tipping the scales in our favor. Eli on the other hand can sometimes beat the two of us all by himself!

So far, Thad is the antithesis of Eli. Thad is a content baby most of the time and loves to be held. He is laid back and pretty quiet. On average, he only gets up to eat twice a night which has been WONDERFUL! Eli, on the other hand, is as energetic as ever and is VERY independent. He has been quite a bit more defiant of late but we are hoping that this is just a bump in the road and that as our lives calm down (whenever that will be) that he will resume his normal semi-obedient ways. We love both the boys to death and cannot imagine our lives without them!

Eli recently went to his first movie. He and Daddy went to see Toy Story 3 in 3-D. Eli sat there mesmerized for most of the show. He seemed to enjoy it but said he would have rather gone to the park. Thank goodness he loves to be active and be outside! Recently Papa gave him a new Packer backpack filled with toys. Eli loves it and fills it up with various items and carries it around. Papa and Nanna take great delight in spoiling their grandkids rotten.

Leigh Ann is doing well and is quickly recovering from her C-section. Her life is now twice as chaotic but so far she is juggling both the boys well. Eli misses having her all to himself but is beginning to make the needed adjustments to accomodate having to share Mommy with Thad.

The job search is still on and we are on our knees praying for one open door. Jeff hopes to be able to start teaching at a new school come the start of the school year (which is only a few weeks away here). We appreciate your prayers as we hope to embark on this new journey!

Welcome Thaddaeus Matthew Rice

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Family Fun

This past month was one filled with warm weather and family fun.

Towards the beginning of the month, we headed to Van Buren, AR to visit with Leigh Ann's parents. It was a great opportunity to get to see the new ministry they are involved in at Oaks Manor - Christian Conference and Retreat Center. Eli especially had fun as Papa took him on tractor rides and bought him a new shovel and small excavator to play in the dirt with. The facility is beautiful and we thoroughly enjoyed the visit.

Later in the month we were blessed with a visit from Jeff's parents. They handled the hot weather wonderfully (it was in the 90's) and spent a lot of time playing with Eli outside. Grandpa taught Eli how to golf while Grandma never tired of reading books and playing whatever game Eli wanted. We laughed hysterically at each other as we tried out hand or rather legs at the Wii. Flying like a bird and hula hooping are definitely not our specialty.

Leigh Ann also enjoyed the baby showers thrown in her honor both at the ranch and at church. Her mom, Jeff's mom, and Meredith were all in attendance at the ranch shower making it an extra special event. Leigh Ann was showered with love and gifts. We are so thankful for our family and friends!

This month begins a new adventure. Jeff has been accepted into a non-traditional licensure program for teachers. It is a two year program at the end of which he will be a certified teacher if he meets all the standards. He has 15 days of intense training during June and then one Saturday a month for the next two years. We are excited at this new opportunity and are praying for open doors. We are thankful that the Lord has already provided for another vehicle that Leigh Ann can drive while Jeff commutes to Little Rock for his training! (A special thank you to all who helped make this possible!)

Leigh Ann continues to "grow" as "Moe" increases in size. Please pray for her this month as the heat index continues to climb and Jeff is gone for long days at class. Pray that "Moe" stays put until his due date too...we don't want Jeff to miss the birth!

Stay tuned for more updates, enjoy the pictures, and thanks for your prayers!

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Big Boy

It has only been a few weeks since I last updated the blog but it seems as if Eli has grown exponentially since then. Many of his jeans are now too short and his belly hangs out from under some of his t-shirts. He can reach the pedals on his tricycle and can get things off the counter that I thought were still "safe". His vocabulary also continues to grow daily and he is Mr. Independent. "I do it" and "mine" are two of his favorite sayings right now...much to the chagrin of his parents at times!

Eli was given a special privilege recently when the county brought out a gigantic bulldozer and trackhoe. Scooter let Eli "drive" with him several times as they worked on shoring up a bridge that connects two of the pastures here on ranch. When the county came to pick up the equipment Eli cried. He can make all the noises of the big equipment and loves to ride on the ranch tractors and backhoe.

Jeff and Eli found an enormous snapping turtle in the field one night as they were riding around on the 4-wheeler. It was a really neat find and we watched it for about a half an hour as it made its way toward the pond. It had an armored head and tail and could rise up about 6 inches off the ground if provoked (yes, Jeff tried to get it to snap). Eli would crouch down on his haunches and try to call it like a dog. It was really cute. Eli has also enjoyed looking at the "baby ribbits" in the pond as there are literally thousands of tadpoles swimming around in there right now. I hope they don't all survive into adulthood or the ranch will be overrun by frogs!

Jeff and I recently celebrated our 4th anniversary. He surprised me with a romantic night out. We have really enjoyed our first four years and can't wait to see what the next four hold!

We also celebrated Jeff's birthday this week. We enjoyed a steak dinner at Texas Roadhouse where he could watch some of the hockey playoffs. I caught the ear of our waitress while Jeff was away from the table and later he was embarrassed by a surrounding of waitresses who then made sure the whole restaurant knew it was his birthday. Maybe I should have thought about the paybacks that might come for my birthday in a few weeks...ooops!

Well, that is all for now but please enjoy the pictures.

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Spring

Here are a few more things we have done so far this spring...

The weather has been beautiful with the temperature around the mid 70s. We have enjoyed spending a lot of time outside. One of Eli's favorite past-times is throwing rocks into the creek and saying "splash" as they hit the water. The bigger the rock the better. Jeff is also working on adding a playhouse onto the swing set. Eli likes "helping" Daddy with this project.

Leigh Ann is now starting her 7th month of pregnancy so we are hoping the real heat holds off for a while. Moe is now waking her up at night sometimes with his acrobatics.

The ranch kids were treated to a field trip to a park where we grilled out brats and burgers and then went ice and roller skating. This was Eli's first time trying both. Jeff thoroughly enjoyed getting out on the ice again and could have skated all day. Leigh Ann took the side lines this time and snapped photos instead...her balance is a little off :-).

Easter was a celebration of life in more ways then one. Christ is risen and we rejoice in that and the life He gives! Easter day was sunny and beautiful with the trees all budded out and the bees buzzing. New life was seen everywhere you looked.

We hope you enjoy checking out the pictures!

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New Life

Spring brings new life and we have enjoyed marveling at God's creation in all its splendor lately. At Glenhaven, we have had many new calves being born and even have been able to witness the miracle of a new calf trying to take its first steps. Eli calls them cute baby cows and really wants to touch them. The grass is green and daffodils are prevalent in many yards and fields. It is an exciting and awe inspiring time of year.

Eli continues to grow and expand his vocabulary. He loves to play with his cousin Isaiah and has had several opportunities to go to indoor inflatable parks with him. All the jumping, running, and sliding actually wears him out!

Spring also brought a break from school that allowed us to head to Illinois to visit some of Jeff's family. We were able to meet the newest member of the Rice clan, Ruth. This tiny new life has already brought much joy and many smiles to the world! We also enjoyed the wonder of new life in the form of adorable baby lambs at Uncle Kevin's house. Eli even got to bottle feed two of the lambs! Uncle Doug and his family came down from Wisconsin for a few days to join in on all the fun. It was a full house with much love, laughter, and chaos. Eli was in his element!

Our own new life, "Moe", continues to grow and is a very busy little guy. He seems to be all elbows and knees. If he is as active after he is born as he has been in the womb then he will have no trouble keeping up with Eli! Look out world...double trouble is on the way!

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Moe It Is

We wanted to post a few pictures of our baby, we got these on Wednesday, and there's no doubt that Moe is a boy. We're extremely excited and know that Eli will be too when he figures this all out. Right now he looks at us like we're crazy when we tell him that there's a baby in mom's tummy.

Fun Times

Another month has flown and life has been busy as usual. With February came... more snow! Some schools were cancelled for a week! It was a little hard to believe considering most places only received a few inches of white slushy snow. We enjoyed making snowmen, sledding, and being pulled behind the golf cart (be sure to check out the Smilebox pictures).

Elijah is as busy as ever and is now speaking in partial sentences. It is so nice to be able to communicate more effectively with him and there is much less frustration now. We are still working on potty training and he is still sleeping in his crib. Maybe next month...

"Moe" is also a busy little boy/girl. He/She can now be felt kicking outside of the womb. Jeff was able to feel it for the first time the other night. This part of pregnancy is actually kind of fun! I am not as tired anymore and feel good most days. I still can hardly keep up with Elijah but I don't anticipate that ever changing. :-)

Next week brings the much anticipated ultrasound. As of now, I am 99% sure that I will opt to find out what "Moe" is. It was fun having Elijah be a surprise but the planner in me would really like to know for this one. Jeff has left the decision up to me so... you'll just have to wait a little
longer.

We'd like to send out a special thank you to Uncle Kevin, Aunt Lynda, and the kids for Eli's new Elmo shirt, sweater, and books. As you can see from the pics...he loves the Elmo shirt. He wears it as often as I will let him!

Well, that is about it for now. We hope you enjoy the pics!

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Snowdaze

Christmastime at the Rice household was a flurry of activity. There were multiple Christmas parties to attend, church functions to participate in, and several guests who we hosted on and off throughout the month of December. It was a time of great celebration over the birth of our Savior. It was kind of hard to convince Elijah that it was Christ's birthday and not his as he received an abundance of gifts this year.

The Ranch Christmas party kicked off the month of December and as usual there were no shortage of gifts. Eli didn't mind sitting on Santa's lap but was frustrated that he couldn't just go up on stage and open all the gifts that he thought must be all for him. He received his first "gun", his first fishing pole, clothes, pjs, cars, books, a blanket with his name embroidered on it, and, of course, a ton of candy. He also received several giftcards that Mommy helped him spend wisely (new shoes).

Christmas Eve we hung out at the Anderson's and enjoyed going to their church for a service that evening. Elijah especially liked running around with all the boys in the nursery!

Christmas day opened with the story of Jesus's birth followed by an explanation that was lost on Eli and then more gift opening. Jeff surprised Leigh Ann with a Wii and Wii Fit. After we opened gifts at home, we headed over to the Tucker's for some great food, fellowship, fun, and MORE GIFTS! Elijah's favorite present was by far and away his new John Deere pedal tractor. He wouldn't get off it for a long time after it was assembled. Look out world, here he comes! We took turns laughing our heads off as we watched each other attempt to hula hoop, hit soccer balls with our heads, and walk a tightrope on the Wii.

Potty training has begun but is definitely going to be a work in progress for a while. As you can see from the picture, he enjoys "reading" on the potty. He has tried out his new big boy underwear several times but can't figure out why a puddle forms at his feet every time he wears them. We are working on that!

This past week we were encouraged to hear "Moe's" heartbeat again. The nurse informed us that this pregnancy was no longer considered high risk and that everything was going well and on track. Praise God. Only 6 more months to go!

The day school was supposed to start back up brought the first real snowfall of the year. So, due to tradition, school was cancelled. Most of the kids here never get to see snow let alone play in it. There was much merriment as the sleds were brought out of storage and the 4-wheelers were fueled. After many hours of play, the kids were cold and tired but had had a blast.

We hope that your holiday season was as blessed as ours. God has been so good to us and we look forward to what He has planned for us in 2010.

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