Times; they are a-changin'!

I am so excited to let everyone know that yesterday I was offered and accepted the position of Hood & Somervell Counties Family & Consumer Sciences County Agent. That's a mouthful, I know. But basically, it breaks down into me being the county agent for the "domestic" side of 4-H and adult education in the Granbury & Glen Rose areas. I will be in charge of the Nutrition, Fashion, Method Demonstration, & Share-the-Fun projects as well as teaming with the Ag/Horticulture agents to grow the clubs in our counties. I will also do adult education seminars, such as Diabetes Awareness and other home/family topics. I still have to get approved through both county commissioner courts, so as soon as that is done, I will know a start date. 

Kit & I are SO excited about this new position and what it can mean for our family. I am thrilled to have the opportunity to make a difference in other peoples' lives. I know this is where God wants me/us to be... Through this whole process (I interviewed 5 weeks ago!), I have learned a lot about myself and my relationship with God. It seems the more control I give up, which is hard for me, and trust God, the better my life gets and the more at peace I am... I was telling Kit yesterday (before I got the offer) that I feel more in-love with him and happy about my life than I ever have. I have a wonderful husband, amazing daughter, great family & friends and now an exciting new opportunity to serve the Lord and the people around me. 

We also excitedly await the newest addition to our little family! Harper is doing great, and I have been having a very easy pregnancy so far. It's been awesome! We officially hit the 3rd trimester on Saturday, so we are in the home stretch... January 28th will be here before we know it! Rayleigh is going to be a great big sister. I can't wait to watch my girls grow up together! 

The Big Expansion

Ok, "The Big Expansion" may be a little dramatic, but we've hit the 26 week mark with Harper! 

                             26 weeks with Rayleigh                                  26 weeks with Harper


I am still feeling great for the most part and don't really feel like I am any bigger at this point than I was with RayRay. (I think the above pics say the same.) This pregnancy has been so easy, and I am very thankful for that! I am enjoying these last few weeks before "Situation Uncomfortable" begins. My only definite pregnancy symptoms have been lots of Braxton Hicks contractions and just the extra tiredness that comes along with growing a baby!
 Keeping our home in "spick-n-span", functioning order has always been a challenge for me and is even harder now. It really shouldn't be that difficult. The rest of the women in my extended family seem to have it down easily, yet it seems to escape me! Right now, I am cleaning out our "junk room" to turn it into Harper's room. It seems like that room just ended up as a catch-all for everything that didn't really have a place, like all of my craft stuff, wrapping paper, Kit's guitar & keyboard, extra clothes, toys Rayleigh outgrew, books, you name it. Yesterday I started tackling that room and after 3 solid hours, I made a good dent in the progress, but I still have a long way to go. 
Part of my problem with cleaning & reorganizing is that this seems to be when my ADD kicks in the worst! (Just ask Emily. She was receiving texted pictures all day of various things I was digging out of the rubble, like me in my letter jacket from high school.) My organizational skills are pretty lacking when it comes to everything-has-a-place, so I feel like I just end up shuffling everything around. I did manage to get into a pretty serious just-throw-it-away mood yesterday, so I actually got rid of some stuff and old clothes that needed to be tossed to make room for more baby things. I am seriously considering hiring a professional organizer to come in for a day or afternoon to help me look at things and really decide how to get my house the way I want and keep it there. 
Laundry is the bane of my existence and has been since I moved out of my parents' house in August 2002. Previously, it has been that I was just too lazy to do it. I don't mind washing & drying, but it just seems easier to me to dig it out of a pile and run the steamer over it than have to fold or hang everything up. That is precious time I could spend doing something else productive, like napping or reading my Kindle. :) But with an expanding family, it seems like even though I really have been trying harder, it doesn't get any easier! (In my defense, my husband has 3 times as much clothes as I do, provided by the coaching staff of Granbury ISD and has two outfits every day: his classroom clothes and his coaching clothes. That piles up FAST!)  If any of you out there have tips for keeping up with the laundry so my mom doesn't have to help me every time she comes to visit, I would really appreciate it! Ha ha. And sadly, I'm not joking about mom. 
Well, I've rambled long enough. I hope you all have a great week!! 

Loving life!

So, I have been a bad preggo mommy and haven't taken any belly shots yet, but I promise I will soon! I have steadily been getting bigger and bigger every week and feeling little Harper move more all the time. She has been quite the little mover & shaker lately. It's been fun! Rayleigh got to feel her move for the first time the other day, and it was a really neat experience. She wasn't quite sure what to think but kept telling me to "do it again." Ha ha. Kit has finally been able to feel her move too. It seems like every time he would try to feel her, she would stop! With as much as she has been moving around lately though, there have been plenty of opportunities. 
Mom and Makemma came down this weekend, and it was so nice to finally spend some time with them when we weren't rushed or on a schedule. We got to just hang out and work on different craft projects together. Mom found some great fabric for Harper's room, so we started making plans for the nursery. It's going to be so chic and adorable. I can't wait to get going on it!!
Makemma was working on a totem pole for a class project. She had to include each family member with their like/interests/hobbies. She worked on that while I worked on a new Fall wreath that I had seen on pinterest (my most recent, yet productive, addiction). It turned out great, and I am really excited with how it looks!  

Most of the nursery planning consisted of me trying to figure out what we are going to do with all of the stuff that's in Harper's room right now (formerly my junk room). I am anxious to get my house in order and keep it that way. I am slowly coming to terms with the fact that I need to create a system of organization and routine for our household or we will forever be playing catch-up/clean-up. I really feel that if I can get everything in a proper place, our home would be much more relaxing and operate more smoothly. It may be time to call in a professional organizer! 
Rayleigh has been such a joy lately. I mean, she truly is the most awesome kid. She is so smart and picks up on things so quickly. We can carry on conversations and she learns new words all the time. She really is getting excited about Harper coming soon and likes to talk/sing to her in my belly. She loves her family and tells us that we are her best friends. Our morning ride to school usually consists of her telling me that "Nana, and KiKi and Doodles and Bubba and PawPaw and GiGi and Paige and Granny & PoPo are my best friend!" She is always telling me, "Mommy, I love you!" or "I love you THIS much!" or "Love you to the moon and back!" It melts my heart and I feel so blessed to have her. She is such a ham and loves to cheese it up for you! Here are few pics of her over the last month or so. 

 My little Miss Priss

 She is dressing up as Minnie for Halloween and had to try on the costume. She LOVES it!

 I just love this picture. She thought she was pretty stylin' that day!

 I am pretty sure there is a picture just like this of me when I was her age in a 5-gallon bucket. She had a blast playing in the water!

 I couldn't resist and had to get her a mum for homecoming. She loved it and it actually stayed on for almost an entire quarter! 

 She loves to be outside and play in the dirt. Here, she is helping dad plant some bulbs in pots. 

 Don't cry Rayleigh. We won't make you go to school there. 

She loves to wear that silly life jacket around the house. Try to make her wear it in the boat and it's a totally different story! 

Over the past few weeks, we've really been taking a look at our life and how blessed we are. Kit lost his grandpa, Ray (who Rayleigh is named after), back at the beginning of September. It was exactly 5 years to the day of when Kit's grandma had passed away, so we know they are happy to be together again and watching all of us from above! We are so thankful that we were able to spend the last few years with Grandpa and that he was able to spend time with Rayleigh and meet our little niece Layla. I know we will all cherish the time he spent living out at the ranch, and I am grateful to have known him! 


I feel like I have the best life, and I thank God so much for all of the blessings we have. We are so fortunate to have such great family and friends in our lives to support us and love us!

Wait, What?!

We picked out a boy name. I was looking at boy nursery themes and birth announcements. I mean, after all, I knew this time around we were having a boy. I just knew it, because my pregnancy has been so different. I have felt great, haven't been sick, haven't even really felt pregnant. I had Kit convinced too. So when the sonographer said, "It's a little girl.", I looked at Kit and said, "I'm sorry!" He just laughed and said, "Why?! It's fine. She's perfect and healthy, and that's all that matters!"


And of course, I felt horrible for practically guaranteeing my husband that he was finally going to get the son he wants so badly. I really want him to share the special bond with his son like I share with Rayleigh. It was a polarizing experience because I knew we both wanted a boy but at the same time, I was elated that Rayleigh is going to have a sister!! Most importantly, we are both just happy that she looks perfect & healthy! We were both pretty quiet for the rest of the appointment and on the way home. I think we were both trying to wrap our brains around the fact that we are going to have 2 girls. 2 girls. HOLY COW. 2 little "Mini-Me"s? Double the dresses, hair bows, and jewelry. 2 first dates, 2 proms, 2 beautiful little girls to have to chase the boys away from. For Kit, 2 times walking his daughter down the aisle and giving her away to some buffoon who will never love her like we do. (Maybe a slight exaggeration.) But also twice as much love, twice the adventure. 2 times as many sleep-overs and heart-to-heart talks with my girls. 


Now that I am crying, I will stop there and get back to the story!!


After a while of quiet in the car, out of the blue Kit says, "I'm going to have to get a shotgun." I just laughed and agreed. More silence.... then, "Maybe both of the girls will want to get married at the ranch. It would be a lot cheaper." More giggles from me.... It's so funny how differently our minds work. Kit was already thinking of 20 years down the road, and I was busy thinking of how I was going to do her nursery and that I probably wouldn't have to buy a whole lot of new stuff since we were having another girl. 


I had Rayleigh convinced it was a boy too. Oops. She had decided a long time ago that she wanted a brother, and that was that. Kit was excited to tell her the news. It went like this:
K: RayRay, we found out if you are having a brother or sister today!
R: Brother!
K: Noooo. Sister!
R: Noooo. Brother! 
K: Noooo. Sister!
R: (Silent pause)....Sister? Oh.


Ha ha. It's been a mental adjustment for the whole family, but we are so excited! (So Harper, someday when you read this, don't feel bad we wanted a boy. We love you and are so happy you are YOU!) 


Naming our little girl was pretty easy. Right after I had Rayleigh, I heard the name Harper and fell in love with it. I knew that our next little girl would be named Harper! For a middle name, that was pretty easy too... My Granny, JoAnn, has been one of the most influential people in my life. She is so strong and hard-working. She always puts everyone else before herself. So many of my fondest memories include her and my PoPo. I knew that I wanted honor her, and hopefully Harper will inherit those traits too!


We can't wait to meet you Harper Jo! You are so loved, and we feel so blessed that God has chosen us for you! I can't wait to see your beautiful face and to watch you and your sister grow up!!! 

Cruisin'!

Kit and I took a little "Us" time in July and went on a cruise with my Dad, Piper, Paige, Piper's mom Louise and nephew Tanner. We left out of New Orleans, cruised down to Cozumel, and back. Rayleigh stayed with Nana, Doodles, and KiKi for the week. We had a great time, but I have to say that being away from Rayleigh that long was tough on me this time. I guess Baby #2 is making me a little crazy! 


We loved New Orleans. What a neat place! Yes, it smelled funny. Yes, it was crowded. But wow! It was so fun too... There is so much history alive there! We all felt very safe in our hotel because there was a real life Vampire Hunter checking in behind us at our hotel. I knew immediately I was going to love New Orleans! We enjoyed walking in the French Quarter, seeing the river boat, Andrew Jackson memorial, the Catholic cathedral, and all of the neat sights. We also went to Bourbon Street for dinner and hanging out one evening. It was really fun, but I don't think Mardi Gras will ever be in my future! It was plenty on a plain-jane Wednesday night. 

The infamous Bourbon Street!

I loved all of the bands!! It was awesome!

Enjoying some time in a little outside bar on Bourbon St. 

What a cute couple! 

Kit really wanted his picture taken with this guy. You just never know with my husband!!

Kit then insisted that I have my picture taken as well.

Dad had his palm read. He & Piper were both a little freaked out by it!

The Riverboat!

We went to the Jax Brewery just for Doug. I wish they would have sold stuff. 

The square was beautiful!

One of the oldest Catholic parishes/cathedrals in the U.S. 

We had a great time on the cruise. I think that 5 days was plenty of time for me on the boat. Kit loved the casino and did really well playing poker! Because of Baby #2, I wasn't able to participate in any excursions or anything in Cozumel, so the ladies went shopping! Kit LOVED the snorkeling, which was funny because he didn't think he would enjoy it at all. He's not big into swimming, so he didn't think he would have as much fun as he did! He really, really enjoyed the fish and seeing an octopus! The dune buggy ride was fun too. 

I didn't try the slide, but Paige said it was fun!

Dressed up for dinner one night. 

I am officially an animal towel folding expert (as long as you want a dog)

Just because I could not partake did not mean I couldn't be supportive! 

At the cantina after a full day in Cozumel

Our boat is on the left. (we actually knew 2 other groups on the boat to the right. It sailed out of Galveston.)

Kit & I (with Baby #2 on board)  It was so beautiful there!! 

The trip was relaxing, Kit & I didn't strangle each other in the car, and Rayleigh got to spend a week with Nana. All in all, it was a lot of fun!! Thanks to Piper for getting it all together and to Mom for watching RayRay while we had a little vacay! 

It's in the air.

Something's in the air. Or water. Or I'm not sure what, but it's everywhere.  What is "IT"? Well, "IT" seems to be BABIES!!! 


It started with my cousin Craig and his wife Tara having adorable twins Hudson and Henley earlier this year. One of my best friends and cousins Lori is expecting their first child at the end of October; it's going to be a surprise what they are having! My neighbor and best friend in Granbury, Katherine, is due in November with their second, Baby Emma. Our friends Brady and Jenna welcomed their first baby, Kassidy, last week. Today, with total elation and praise to God, I found out that after a long road, our friends Tyler and Whitney are expecting a miracle in February. WOW! God is so good. Look at all of the precious miracles that He is surrounding us with. 


And guess what. "IT" has hit the Langdon household, too! We are excited to announce that Rayleigh will be a big sister in January! Baby Langdon is due January 28th, 2012, and everyone in the Langdon household is really excited. Rayleigh has been so fun to watch as we tell her about the baby and that it's in Mommy's tummy. She loves to tell the baby hi and give it kisses.  She likes to tell us that she has a baby in her tummy too, and if you ask her it's name, she always says either Kit or Brianne. It's pretty funny. 

Baby Langdon at 8 weeks 4 days

We are so thrilled to welcome another baby into the world and feel so blessed that God has deemed us worthy of another miracle. I know that there are friends & family that have fought and still fight the long hard road of infertility. Kit & I tried for about 8 months before God gave us this baby. I know that 8 months is nothing compared to what some of you have gone through and are going through to try for a baby of your own. I admire and pray for those that have fought this struggle; I remember the emotional roller coaster.  One of my favorite bible verses is the one I put above on the title of our blog: "Now faith is assurance of things hoped for, proof of things not seen." Hebrews 11:1  Keep praying and believing! 


We can't wait to see how our life is going to change once this little one arrives. (P.S. Mommy really thinks this one is a boy! And Daddy really hopes so!) We'll find out in August or September what to expect. We're taking suggestions for boy's names that start with a "K"! 


I want to say a special thank you to my Aunt Karla and those in the St. Lawrence prayer group and anyone else that has prayed for us over the last 8 months. Aunt Karla added our names in anonymously to be prayed for as we tried to conceive another child. The month after she added us in, we found out we were pregnant. Just shows you the power of prayer!! 


Lots of Love, 
Brianne

Happy Birthday, Rayleigh!

Wow! I can't believe you are already 2, Rayleigh!! You are SO smart. You truly amaze us with how quickly you learn and pick up on things. Not a day goes by that you don't learn something new. You have become quite adventurous lately as well, climbing and jumping all over everything & everyone! You & Bryson are definitely making the most out of the toddler trampoline from Nana, Doodles & KiKi. You guys are in it all the time, and it's funny to see you both get braver and braver! The couches have become your personal obstacle course, and you about give us a heartache several times a day by crawling and jumping all over everything. 
You are such a talker. I mean, seriously. You pick up and say words that I don't hear most kinder-gardeners saying. Lately, when we ask you and question you don't know the answer to, you say "Um..." and think about it and then tell us an answer. It's really cute. 
You are definitely not a baby anymore. You are a little girl with such a grown-up personality. You know what you like and don't like, and the only way we can convince you otherwise is to make you think it's your idea. You are very headstrong, but so sweet and such a lover at the same time... 
We have started getting more and more random "I love you"s from you out of the blue lately. It melts our heart every time. You love to cuddle and hug & kiss us. You are a little possessive of us, even with each other... If I kiss Daddy's cheek, you want to kiss Daddy's cheek and then tell me "My kisses, Momma." You also love to carry your baby dolls & stuffed animals around and give them kisses. You like to feed them and give them drinks out of your sippy cups. 
Right now, by far, your most favorite thing in the whole world is Dora the Explorer. You would watch Dora or Diego all day every day if we'd let you. It's crazy. You are even having a Dora birthday party this weekend when PawPaw & GiGi come down. It's going to be great, and I am so excited to see your face when you see all of the Dora stuff.
We went to West Texas on your actual birthday weekend, May 13th. We went all the way to St. Lawrence and saw PoPo & Granny, Jill & Abigail, Craig, Tara, Holt & the twins Hudson & Henley, Bitzy & Doug, Halie, Lexie, and all of the rest of the St. Lawrence crew. We even went to a polka dance. You had a BLAST dancing and playing with the girls at the dance. We threw a little birthday party for you and Abigail on Friday night, and it was a blast for everyone!  Here are a few pictures of us from the party. 

Momma, Rayleigh laughing, and Nana

Here Momma, you try some. 

Rayleigh, you are such a perfect gift from God. I treasure every day, minute, second, moment I get to spend with you. We love you! Happy birthday!