Visiting the Grandparents in New Mexico
This past weekend we drove to my parents house in New Mexico. It was a wonderful weekend of rest for us! Malia enjoyed hanging out with grandma and grandpa and meeting quite a few of the neighborhood dogs! It was a nice time to get away, especially since our apartment is still filled with boxes and things put in "temporary" places. It will be nice when we get totally unpacked and settled.
On another note... Malia is now 4 months old! She's getting stronger and bigger everyday. While in New Mexico her grandparents bought her a little doorway jumper since she's now big enough to use one! We put her in the jumper, but she hasn't quite figured out how to jump! But she enjoys standing up in it! I'm sure she'll figure it out soon!
Colorado
Beautiful blue skies and gigantic mountains! I love Colorado! The past few weeks have been wonderful as we have settled into our new apartment. But with all moves there are always some challenges (finding your way around, finding a new church, making new friends), but thankfully Chris, Malia, and I are in it together. We love our new apartment and are getting use to the residents that live above us... yes they walk loudly but we get a good laugh from it. We discovered that they actually have two young boys which is probably where most the noise comes from. Best of all with this recent move is the peace and quietness that we find living in our new place (even with the loud walkers... it's much quieter than living next to a freeway). Every time I walk outside I am reminded of God's beauty. Nature has always helped me to feel closer to God, and I am excited to draw close to Him as I explore this new place. In the two weeks that we have been here I already find myself so much more at peace than I was before. Praise God for His beautiful creation that I so thankfully get to enjoy!
Honoring My Grandfather
This past week we did our first road trip with Malia to Oregon. It was a fun trip but also bittersweet given the circumstances. We gathered with my family to put my grandfather, Merritt Daniel Middaugh, in his resting place at the Willamette National Cemetery. The service was beautiful and it was so good to see all the people who gathered to honor him. My grandfather was an amazing man who I loved dearly, and it pains my heart that he is gone.
While at the funeral, I had the opportunity to meet the military chaplain who visited on a regular basis with my grandpa. My grandpa was of the generation where you didn't really talk about your faith, so we had very few conversations regarding our faith. After talking with the chaplain I felt more comforted knowing that my grandfather and him had many conversations about Jesus and his faith. I know he is with the rest of his family in heaven now, and I am at peace with his passing even though it hurts.
Yesterday at church we sang the song Your Beautiful by Phil Wickham. The lyrics moved me to tears as I thought about my grandpa.
I see Your face in every sunrise
The colors of the morning are inside Your eyes
The world awakens in the light of day
I look up to the sky and say
You're beautiful
I see Your power in the moonlit night
Where planets are in motion and galaxies are bright
We are amazed in the light of the stars
It's all proclaiming who you are
You're beautiful
I see you there hanging on a tree
You bled and then you died and then you rose again for me
Now you are sitting in Your heavenly throne
Soon we will be coming home
You're beautiful
When we arrive at eternity's shore
Where death is just a memory and tears are no more
We'll enter in as the wedding bells ring
Your bride will come together and we'll sing
You're beautiful
I see Your face, I see Your face, I see Your face
You're beautiful, You're beautiful, You're beautiful
I pray that someday we will all arrive at eternity's shore, and there we will no longer feel the pain of death that we experience when we lose someone we love. I am thankful that the God I follow loves us so much that He sent His son to die for us so that we could have eternal life. Someday I will see my grandfather again, along with the many others I loved who have died.
Gathering with my family was a special time. It was especially important for me that my daughter Malia could meet her great-grandma. One of my favorite things was getting a picture of the women in our family, four generations gathered together. My grandma, her three daughters, my cousin, my niece, myself, and my daughter.
Left to Right: Aunt Patty, Me (Lisa), Malia, Mom (Debbie), Grandma (Dorothy), Aunt Marilyn, Stephanie, Alyssa.
Malia Merri Grace Nelson
Malia Merri Grace Nelson finally made her appearance in the world on Sunday May 24, 2009 at 2:53 a.m. Chris and I were so happy to see her bright eyes looking back at us after she was born. She was so alert as she was taking in her new surroundings! What an amazing nine months it has been and now finally we get to welcome our daughter!
Malia's middle name Merri is in honor of my (Lisa) grandfather Merritt Middaugh who passed away on Friday May 22, 2009. She also shares a very special birthday with her great-grandma Ruth Nelson.
We'll continue to post pictures and updates as we are able to. Right now sleep has been a big priority, so when Malia sleeps we sleep! But I promise to keep writing and sharing the fun stories of our family!
Thanks everyone for your prayers and support over the past nine months! We are so happy to share our lives with you! God Bless!
Malia with mom and dad. 
Malia Merri Grace Nelson: born May 24, 2009 at 2:53 a.m.
Weighing 6 lbs. 12 oz. and standing at 19 inches long!
Getting Bigger!
So here is a picture of me at 35 weeks pregnant! We're on the countdown now until our baby girl's arrival. As much as I am enjoying being pregnant, I am definitely becoming more and more uncomfortable each day. The past two weeks I have measured around my belly only to discover that each week I have grown about an inch around! We had a doctor's check up at the beginning of this week and he told us that right now the baby is fully developed and would be perfectly fine if I was to go into early labor, but her main job right now is simply to put on the weight. So here I am growing outward while the baby keeps adding on the ounces. I think she gains about a half a pound a week right now! We still have a few more things to get done around our apartment before she comes, so we are praying that we are able to accomplish those things. Next week on our agenda will be to put the base to the car seat in the car. I'll feel more ready once that is done! But everything is in God's hands, so whenever she comes we will be happy and we'll take care of things the best that we can in the meantime!
Officially 30!
I'm officially 30 years old! Yay! It's been a long journey to get here, but I have finally arrived! Turning 30 was not nearly as bad as I imagined it to be when I was younger. I had such a wonderful weekend leading up to it and a very relaxing and fun birthday!
Over the weekend my friend Julie came to visit me. We've known each other for about 19 years, so it was fun to celebrate the incoming decade with her. Of course she also came to town because she wanted to see the pregnant belly before the baby comes! We had a fun weekend, Julie, Chris, and I went to the California Museum of Science on Saturday and walked the rose gardens. It was a beautiful day, but super hot!
On my actual birthday (monday) I went to lunch with my friends Yuki and Meghan. After lunch my friend Dayna took me out for a pedicure (which was amazing) and while we were out Yuki and Meghan delivered me cupcakes. It was a fun and restful day! To top it off Chris and I made fondue for dinner and then played my new game Carcassonne with Dayna and Matt! It was definitely a fun birthday!
Thank you friends for the many birthday wishes! Goodbye 20's hello 30's!
Baby's Blanket is Finished
I finally finished making my baby's blanket! I bought some pink yarn to compliment the pink speckles on the rest of the blanket and crocheted a pink boarder around the edge. It turned out really great! I'm excited about the blanket, but I'll be even more excited when the baby is able to use it.
