Straw Sounds

Who hasn't pulled a straw out of the lid of a cup from a fast-food place and heard the unmistakable scraping sound that it makes? Well, Reuben heard this for the first time last night and thought it was the funniest thing that he's ever heard. Here's a short video clip from then:

A Few Videos of RTW

January/February - Graduation & Snow Day

We started the new year off with Ryan's graduation. I am so proud of him for working so diligently amidst the physical challenges and the long hours of studying. He loves his new job and we all look forward to what lies ahead. Snow came early in the new year and it seems like it does not want to leave. Reuben has not been out much to play in the snow but he does like to watch it fall. One day I am sure he will be throwing snowballs and building snowmen and sledding. I look forward to those days!!

2009 A Christmas to Remember

This Christmas was a time of joy, traveling, friends & family, and sickness. The joy of it was the remembrance of our Savior, Jesus Christ, who being one of the Trinity, took on flesh and became one of us.

We traveled to TN (Clarksville and Ripley) where both our families live. They all were a blessing to see and to spend time with.

The most interesting and memorable thing that happened this Christmas was the sickness that swept through our families in such a short time. Thirteen members of our family caught a virus of some sort. Needless to say, there was a lot of cleaning going on in each household.

This Christmas was also Reuben's first Christmas. Although he was one of the thirteen who got sick, he had a fun time playing with the wrapping paper and bows. He also got to be held and kissed by his great-grandparents, grandparents, uncles, aunts, cousins, and several other people.

We are so thankful for the memories that were made and especially thankful for the gift of Salvation that only comes through Jesus Christ.

A little late...Thanksgiving Day

The Whitfords

Sophie, Ginger, and Christian

Ryan and Mark putting the table together.

Christian and Sophie feeding Reuben.

Handsome Reuben posing.

This year we spent Thanksgiving Day with some great friends of ours. Due to Ryan's work schedule we were not able to travel and see family. Mark and Ginger Hales showed great hospitality and fed us tasty food on a cold and relaxing Thanksgiving Day. We are so thankful for friends who are our brother and sister in Christ.

The Most Handsome Kid Ever...

Reuben tries to take over the microphone when we practice.

Reuben upclose and personal. Reuben in his favorite contraption.

The days have flown by since Reuben was born. I cannot believe that he is 7 months old! Now, he is sitting up on his own, trying to cut teeth, eating vegetables and fruit, clapping his hands, and much more. Every week he seems to be doing something he has never done before. Ryan and I are so happy to be his parents and are glad that the Lord has given Reuben to us. He smiles all the time and has the most contagious laugh.

Reuben Likes to Laugh

About a month ago, we were at a friend's house and Ryan was playing around with their dog. Reuben thought it was the funniest thing to see his dad chasing a dog around. Here's some footage captured on a cell phone:

Has it been 4 months already?

Wow! 4 Months has flown by so fast and needless to say I am not very good at keeping up with this blog. Hopefully, I will do a better job at it now that Ryan, Reuben and I are in a routine.
Here is a snopsis of our lives these past few months:
Reuben was born April 26 and had to stay in the hospital for 3 weeks. He had an issue with his platelets (due to Mom passing them to him through pregnancy) and was not able to go home until they were at a normal level. He had to go to the doctor about twice a week until his counts were stable. Now, Reuben is doing great (eating all the time, gaining weight, growing taller, sleeping more) and is loving life as a Whitford.
Ryan started a new job shortly after Reuben was born. He works five or more days a week and loves almost every minute of it. Most days he is very exhausted due to the physical aspect of his job, but that does not keep him from spending time with Reuben and I. We are so thankful for all he does for us.
I have recovered fully from the c-section and am getting used to being a mommy. My days are filled with housework, feeding Reuben, changing diapers, bathing Reuben, playing with Reuben, going on walks, cooking dinner, ironing, organizing areas around the house, hanging out with friends, going to the park, babysitting Leah Brown, cleaning other peoples houses, and much more. As Ryan would put it, "She has left a 8 hour job for a 24 hour job." I love being a mom and enjoy taking care of Reuben (and Ryan).
So, life here at the Whitfords is going great. God has blessed us with so much. We look forward to each day that we have with each other and we hope to use the time we are given for the glory of God.

Baby Reuben! - (Posted April 27, 2009)

Our son, Reuben, was born (or "extracted" as Ryan calls it) at 6:25 AM yesterday (Sunday, the 26th). God is good! There was long and difficult labor involved so we had to eventually have a C-section performed after the all-nighter. Reuben and Mom are both doing well. Reuben likes to eat, sleep, and just look around. These characteristics are attributed to his Dad, but Dad thinks these things are just true of men in general. The doctors and nurses are puzzled as to where he got his long, slender frame, but he certainly has his mother's nose. Dad says he came out just in time to learn how to mow and plans on teaching him how to play golf soon as well.

Reuben's Baby Shower - February 28, 2009

Kellie's Mom and Sisters
Pam, Jamie, JoAnna,
Emily, Karla, & Koralee









Ryan's Mom and Sister
Mrs. Carolyn & Wendy

An awesome and delicious cake made by Jessica Joslin.
Look at all the wonderful gifts Reuben received.

Ryan's favorite comic strip, Calvin & Hobbes:

The Painting of Reuben's Room

Much thanks goes out to my wonderful Mother-in-Law (Carolyn) and her husband (David) for helping me paint Reuben's Room. They did a great job making the room look catalog ready for Reuben's arrival. The room color consists of navy blue, red, green, brown, khaki, and orange. All of these colors are in the sports bedding that we picked out for him. I cannot wait for Reuben to occupy his room. I hope he loves it as much as we do.

Naming of our son...

So the time has come and we have finally settled on a name for our dear son. His name is Reuben Truman Whitford. Let me now tell you how this name was chosen. Reuben, mentioned in the Book of Genesis, was the eldest of Jacob's sons and it means, 'behold a son'. We also liked the fact that both Ryan and Reuben started with the same letter. Truman was the name of Ryan's grandfather, who had a great impact on Ryan's spiritual upbringing. Ryan's grandfather and mother would pray with him and read the Word of God with him. What a great reminder of passing on the Word of God from generation to generation, in which we will continue to do with our son.

About eight and a half years ago...

Ryan and I met at a revival service in Martin, TN. We were both attending the University of TN at Martin and were both involved with the BSU (now called BCM) ministry there on campus. After our first encounter with one another, I started to see him around campus more and more. Soon, we began dating and about 2 years later we were married on August 10, 2002. Ryan had already graduated from UTM with a Bachelor's degree in History by that time and I was finishing my last year of college at Austin Peay State University to become a mathematics teacher. After our first year of marriage we moved to Louiville, KY where I would start my teaching career and Ryan would start attending Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. Soon after arriving to KY we found a great church home, Ninth & O Baptist Church, where we are still active members. We love our church family and are so very blessed to be a part of a God-fearing body of believers. After four years of school, work, and many more life activities, Ryan and I wanted to start adding on to our family. Much to our dismay we were not able to 'get pregnant' right away. I was having some medical concerns and soon was diagnosed with ITP (Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura). In short, it's an immune problem. Shortly after my diagnosis I was put on medication that would drastically change my looks, attitude, emotions, and let's just say, every part of me. After this particular medication did not work, I was given two types of treatments to try and help cure my immune problem. One treatment came in August of 2007 and the other in December of that same year. Needless to say, neither of those treatments worked so the next option was for me to have a splenectomy. So in April of 2008 I had my spleen removed. The recovery went well and my looks and emotions were beginning to return to normal (if there is such a thing as normal!). My health continued to improve with each day that passed and then in August of this year Ryan and I found out that we were expecting our first child. We could not believe it at first, especially me, having been through so much physically over the past year. On December 1 we found out that we are having a boy! God is so faithful to hear and answer our prayers and we are so glad that He is giving us this wonderful responsibility (and challenge!) of being able to raise a child. Our son is very healthy and is kicking a lot these days (Ryan says that it's for football and not soccer which isn't a real sport). We look forward to his arrival sometime in the month of April of 2009. We will keep you posted on what our son's name will be. Please keep us in your prayers as we embark on this wonderful journey of parenting.