Azalie Hope: Birth Story

Zalie Hope’s Birth Story:

March 16, 2015

Typically with the other two girls I have written their birth story down very shortly after they were born.

However, with the third we are pushing to get it done by her first birthday party ….which mind you, is AFTER her actual birthday ;)

Zalie’s pregnancy and birth was different than the others unproblematic which was a blessing. After the unexpected pregnancy announcement, I was fine having a smooth 9 months from there on out. Until we found out the gender I was convinced she was a boy since she was so much different and easier in utero than the others.

I got some morning sickness- but it was much more manageable than the other two. We even made a two week cruise through Italy and the Mediterranean without too many issues. J

Charis and I were both due with little girls, 3 days apart. She was due March 6 and I was due March 9, 2014. Everyone had bets on all the important stats, and most people bet that I would go first since it was my third, and since I had gone a week early with Lainey. I had contractions off and on from about 37 weeks on, and was much farther along with my labor at that point than I ever got with the other two. At 37 weeks the doctor said I could go at any time and she was sure I wouldn’t need to be induced.

At 39 weeks she was amazed I had not gone into labor yet. All along she said this baby was bigger than my other two, probably by at least a pound.

Fast forward- Charis ended up getting induced March 4- two days before her due date. I decided to hold out a little longer, as I really wanted to go without being induced this time and I thought she would come at any time. We did not go to visit Lydia as we thought ours would come as soon as we left city limits….(maybe we should have gone for a visit!!).

I continued to work betting that baby would come at any time. Baby still did not come and at my 40 week apt. they stated that if she didn’t come in the next week, we would have to schedule induction for the week of March 17.

On her due date, March 9 it was beautiful outside!! We took a walk, played outside, and daddy even got a round of golf in before life got crazy with baby. ;)

I started to have issues finding childcare since I had planned on already being on maternity leave, and it was getting difficult to plan for all of the logistics- Charity was coming in town to see BOTH of the nieces and ours wasn’t here yet. So- I called 2 days shy of my 41 week apt. and asked to be induced the next day (Thursday). They scheduled me at 2:00 pm.

I went to work the day before (on Wednesday) and started having very consistent/ hard contractions early afternoon. By late afternoon I left work and ran home to get the hospital bag- hoping to make it there in time. After leaving work, and sitting in the car for 20 minutes- they completely stopped. So- we proceeded with our evening plans and went to AWANA, etc.

The next day since we didn’t have to be there until 2:00 pm- I got up early (around 5 am which was typical towards the end of my pregnancy), had devos, cuddled with Lou, and then we went to Maddox bakery one last time as a family of four, ran some errands, and went to Fareway before going home to grab bags and drop K and L off at grandmas house. When we were at the grocery store the cashier asked “when are you due?” I responded by looking at my clock and saying….hmm “well in about 2 hours”. She looked a bit confused. ;) It was a great day to have a baby! The weather was perfect, about 70 degrees, sunny, and I dug out my flip flops for the trip to the hospital.

2:00 pm Once we got to the hospital, it felt a little bit like déjà vu. We were put in the same room that Lainey was delivered in, and it was at about the exact same time of day as when we went in for Lainey! I was about 4 cm dilated, but not thinned out- I asked them to break my water but she was too high up and it would have been dangerous.

Rather than have Pitocin and be bed ridden, I opted for cytotec so I could walk and hopefully get labor moving on its own some.

Labor officially started at 3:00 pm

3:25 pm- nurse ended up not giving me cytotec as I started having contractions after she checked me... And they were consistent and she thought the cytotec might be too much for me. We waited for them to calm down and they got stronger, every two minutes/ 90 seconds long. Nurse decided to check me again and tried to strip my membranes but couldn't completely.  However I had dropped a station to -1 (was -2 when I came in and was a little more effaced. She said that I was the first patient she had ever had who came in to be induced and was already in labor. Praise God!! She is having the midwife Mary come to check on me and possibly break my water and hopefully we don't need any pitocin!!  She stated "I better go get a table ready, this baby could come pretty quickly!!"

4:00 pm- midwife came in to break water and baby had moved back to -2 station and was too high to break water safely. So- she started me on low dose of pitocin, said she would be back in an hour and could probably break my water then, and baby would most likely be here in a couple hours. Dr. Ferrar is in a class, so most likely it will be the midwife who delivers me. :) 

They started me on pitocin, and contractions did not get much stronger, but continued to stay steady. They started to get fairly intense and I asked for an epidural. They came in and gave one to me, however every time I took a breath I felt a sharp twinge go up by right hip. So- I asked them about it and they redid it. However- when they did that, they did not give me nearly enough, and it wore off in about 15 minutes. The midwife asked if I wanted to try again and I told her I did not know if we had enough time and I would live without it. She then said, "If you feel like you need to push, let me know". 

I answered immediately "I need to push". She looked at me skeptically, because when she had checked me before the epidurals I was only at a  4 or 5 cm. However- she checked me again, and I was at a 9 almost 10! That all happened within 30-45 minutes.

They quickly called the doctor who came in, and the got ready for the birth. Mary (midwife) was there for the birth, as well as Austin, Grandma Jane, and Dr. Ferrar delivered. 

Baby born at 8:28 pm. Pushed for a 1/2 hour. Felt everything including ring of fire as epidural wasn't strong enough so it was as close to a "natural" birth as I get. Midwife was in the room the whole time as was the primary one who helped deliver her. She was great!

She has a strong cry and cried nonstop except when mommy (but preferably daddy) was talking to her. Was happy once we started nursing we did skin to skin for an hour after birth (the sacred hour) and she chowed down. Daddy cut umbilical cord.

She weighed in at 7 lbs 10 oz, 21 inches long. She smells so baby sweet and like heaven! Her hair is so thick and soft and feel like a little duckling or velour it's so soft!! It is pitch black (darker than Keira's!) but her skin is a little lighter than Keira's. Her facial expressions look like Lainey to me. She has a TON of hair!

About 11:00 sisters came up to meet her. They were very tired, but so excited to meet her and be able to finally let out the big secret...her NAME! We let Keira announce it to the Grandparents as we had kept it a secret from everyone. :)

It is now 2:30 am and we finally have all the IV's out, baths for me and her, and sent her to the nursery for a bit so we can sleep. Since she was born  6 hours ago she has nursed 3 times for at least an hour each time. She is a hungry monkey!! :)

Visitors:
Andrea showers
Cheyenne
Mac Capello
Cassie Mccart
Heather Miller
Natalie Olberding

Faith

Charis and Nate

Grandmas and Grandpas

Saturday- March 15, 2014
Left hospital after 36 hours (sat morning). The day was beautiful- 65 degrees. Went to Grandma Janes and saw baby Lydia for the first time and gma and gpa Gieser came in town to see babies. By evening the weather had changed a ton with a high of 38 degrees tomorrow. By 10:00 Austin went to pick up a prescription for me and it was sleeting and very windy and cold.

In the meantime of bringing a baby home from the hospital and meeting a cousin, we bought and sold a car. We bought a Subaru forester from Mac Capello with awd for a great deal and sold our sonata to Cheyenne for a reasonable price.
It was a productive day!

She was born late Thursday night, we went home Saturday morning, and then went to church on Sunday. On Monday, I took her to her follow up appt. with Dr. Hill, and then in the evening we took Miss Z on her first outing to Chickfila. It was St. Patty's Day- so they had all sorts of special green shakes, facepainting etc. We dressed her in green and got all sorts of comments on how little she was. 

We quickly learned that once you have 3, life does not slow down for you!! ;) 

Azalie Hope Diehm is Hebrew and means flower of hope. I loved the name Azalie because it was different and I loved that it was Hebrew- a tribute to God’s special, chosen people. I loved the name Hope as the time I was pregnant with her (and our time in history in general) seemed to be so full of bad things and it at times seemed like there was no hope. Her name is a reminder to me that there is HOPE…and it is in God, He is in control and the one and only provider in our lives of peace and Hope. J

Despite her being unexpected and showing up at 40 weeks and 4 days, we are BEYOND thankful for her and would not trade her for the world. She completes our family and is loved by all!! We continue to pray that she loves God and is used by HIM! J

Keira: 2013 Sayings

Keira 2013sayings


02-16-13
Keira sayings:

Everything fresh: like big brieves ( breaths)

We are all sinners-  she told this to Rachel, her babysitter.

"Daddy get a woof dog with triangle ears": She knows Daddy wants a husky. 

08-26

34 lbs. wants to be a fairy or teacher when she grows up, so she can tell kids what to do. 

12-01
Wants to be a zookeeper. So she can see animals be born and die and touch there fuzzy ears.

Lainey: 2013 Sayings

Lainey 2013 sayings:

August/ 20 months
Wants you to sing amazing grace and Jesus loves me and goes right now. Plays happily in crib in morning.

21 months:

"I HUNGY!!"

"Too"- her response when you say "I love you"

"Hep u" -her way of saying "help you" when she wants help. Bc I always say to her "do you want me to help you?"

Key-wa- "Keira"

"Nigh-nigh"!!! When she is tired.

"Oh-URT"- to request yogurt, her favorite food, usually first thing in the morning.

***she also Loves oatmeal for breakfast***

"Daddy??" - she will say this when she wonders where he is/if he is at work.

"No!!!"- she can hold her own when Keira and her fight over toys.

She will want me to hold her and will wrap her arms around me and pat my back and say "mama, mama", or lay her head of my chest and say the same thing. She is definitely a mamas girl. :)

23 mo: moved to big girl bed. Wants you to "pray" every night (numbers 6)

When she gets tired she always asks for " mommy cuddles?!" And puts her head on my shoulder.

The Latest and Greatest Sayings Around Our House....

I try every couple months once a year to post some of the funny things the girls say/do so that I don't forget.

Here is the latest:
Keira:

October 2013:

Keira told me she picked water at school to go with her lunch:  "freshens her and is healfy that is why she ordered that at school". She then went on to say: "dad drinks too much pop its not healfy". Ha! Maybe she will be the one who gets him to stop drinking poison err...Mt. Dew. :)

November 2013:

Conversation with Keira about her school day: "a police man and a woman came and we got to ask them questions about what they do... but I didn't ask them questions.  I told them a fact about my mom.  How one time she thought they were chasing her, and then she lookind in the back seat and saw it was my light up shoes going off".  Great - I am loving how my daughter is portraying her fugitve mother.

April 6, 2014
Yesterday Lainey tried pulling her hand away from me in the parking lot like usual. I said, "Lainey, don't do that. You might get hit by a car, and that is dangerous. They are bigger than us, and could hurt you or you could even die." Keira gasped and said, "oh no! Lainey can't die! I am not sure if she knows Jesus yet!!" It melted my heart. Talk about having her priorities straight. Once again, I can learn from my children and their innocent teaching to me.

"Just a moment"....that is the latest way Keira describes things. For instance, "Lainey, you can have this toy if you wait just a moment"...or, "Mom, I can come get my shoes on in just a moment".


Lainey: April 6, 2014

"um"...this is Lainey's response to everything...as her eyes go up to the sky and she says it LONG and thoughtfully. Lainey, what do you want for snack, "UM...."/ Lainey, what did you do today, "UM...." :)

"Because": This is an adjective in Lainey's world. She uses this to describe/exaggerate her point. "Mom I want some cheese BECAUSE...."/ "I need that doll BECAUSE"

"Mom, you go pump. Zawee is hungy". This was what Lainey so matter of factly stated last night when Zalie started crying. It made me laugh because I had no idea that she knew what that was, kids are such little sponges!

After de-pantsing herself in the middle of the street (that is her typical cue to tell us she needs to go potty), Austin took her to the bathroom. He tried to put a diaper back on her, but she refused and said, "Whats the deal dad?!"

First Week Memories: Azalie Hope

First week memories-

Newborn hair feels like velour- and black is adorable!! I don't like to put hats on her head because it covers up her beautiful head full of black hair!

She is so cuddly and tiny! I love how she still curls up in a ball on my chest to sleep.

Lainey is a smotherer- she grins from ear to ear when she can touch her or hold her. And calls her "baby zay-we"

Keira loves to be a proud big sis and tell her name to everyone but beyond that isn't too interested.

Daddy is a huge help!!

This week has been like a vacation, we did st. Pattys at chick fil a, got to see aunt Charis, and uncle Nate and meet baby Lydia, and see aunt faith and aunt charity and uncle Levi. We got to meet both great grandparents, and spend lots of time with both our grandparents. We bought a car, sold a car, and did some shopping and went out to eat. It has been a great week of family time, and I have actually slept better than I did the last month or so of my pregnancy. Daddy has been staying up with her at night when she wasn't hungry , and she is already is a good routine of eating every 3 hours like clock work!!  :) she is my best nurser, and sleeps pretty good as well, although she still has her days and nights a bit mixed up (midnight-3 am is her awake time).  She has had a clogged tear duct but it's getting better already.

She likes to be held more than anything else and hates being cold/ having her diaper changed.

She likes a paci, but is not addicted to it.

She often clenches her fist, and we joke that she leads a stressful life. ;)

She is a joy and we are so thankful to have another beautiful, healthy little girl in our family. She is a blessing from God for sure! :)

I think she has Keira's coloring, and Lainey's facial expressions with her own facial features that look like gpa Dwight and the Oswald side more.


People who were pregnant at same time: of course Charis had Lydia 9 days before and it has been SOO fun having a twin cousin close to share these first moments with. My friend Tennille who has a boy born the same week as Keira, had a little girl two weeks to the day after Zalie. Andrea, a great friend, had her little boy 3 weeks after Zalie.Laura, another girl from church had her baby a week and a half after Zalie.  During the time I was pregnant there have been a TON of girls in our church pregnant or having babies, it is so fun to have 8-10 other girls to go through this stage of life with at the same time!! 

Gma lea says out of the 3 girls she looks the most like Austin.

Lainey: 2 year old update

Lainey: 2 years old

Poppy- got rid of Jan 13, 2014...yay! It only took one day, I came home and was sick of her trying to talk around it, so I said it was going bye-bye. She whined at bed time, but as very motivated by the thought of being a "big girl". I told her "big girls don't have poppy's" and she held back the tears and consoled herself by saying, "I a big girl...I a big girl" over and over to herself. Next day she was fine and we have never looked back, PTL! :) 


Says "no problem" and "you stop it!" All the time.

Her favorite songs are: "Jesus loves me" and "jingle bells" which she sings all the time. :) She also loves "FROZEN" and sings "Let it go" at the top of her lungs. 

She tries to entertain and loves to laugh at Keira's jokes. She is definitely the "spice" in our household...and our little comedian. She is always about the fun and trying to get everyone to laugh. Favorite show is "neighborhood", and she LOVES the ipad. First thing she asks for in the morning is my ipad, and she knows how to get right to the "PBS kids" app and watch her shows. 


DOCTOR STATS: 
Lainey: 2 year old checkup
Lainey: 21 lbs
Lainey: 31 inches

Size 3 diapers
SiZe 4 shoes
18 month clothes some 12 mo.

"I fix it. Need new batteries"....she runs to the tool drawer and gets the screw driver to replace the batteries anytime the power button on a toy is turned off. :)

"I go to Museum"....she LOVES the Children's Museum!

Her train cake that Daddy made SMOKED! She loved the train and said, "CHOO CHOO!"

we went to the beach ball drop at noon on her birthday at the zoo for a treat to celebrate. :)

we started the day off at cracker barrel with brunch before heading to the zoo. 

IT WAS A GREAT DAY!!

Celebrating St. Patrick's Day- Azalie's First Holiday!

Azalie's was four days old for St. Patrick's Day, but I was feeling pretty good, so we decided to have a little fun. :) 

We celebrated st pattys day (azalie's first holiday) at chick fil a with a party! We got free shamrock shakes (delicious!), shamrock chocolates, and of course- chicken! Lainey was scared to death of the "cow" that was dressed up and stood on Austin the entire meal keeping her eye on the cow and saying "daddy, I scared to deaf!!" It was hilarious! The "cows" parents came in to eat with his brothers and I told Lainey she made the cow sad bc she cried every time he came near. So- the whole way home she said, "cow ok...I make him sad" 

Keira's Birthday: # 5!!!

First of all...I am about partied out! Between Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years Eve, Lainey's Birthday, Keira's Friend Party (the Princess party), and a Family Party for Keira today I am done with birthdays....forever, or at least until the most anticipated birthday of 2014 occurs in March with the arrival of #3!!!

Don't get me wrong: We have thoroughly enjoyed the Holidays and Birthdays but I am happy to now settle down and enjoy life in 2014 for a bit.

Today is Keira's actual fifth birthday...and Lainey and her are now peacefully napping after a fun day with family, pizza, cake, and presents. So- I decided to update this blog before it never gets done.

I have intentions of doing a "Birthday interview" with her when she wakes up, and then putting it in her memory book (and on here), but I can add that later...if it gets done. :)

We had Keira's BIG friend party with 14 little princess last weekend. It was a fun morning, that she absolutely LOVED!!

The Itinerary for Keira's Princess Party was:

The theme and activities of this party were decided by the hostess, Miss Keira. Grandma Lea bought her a Belle dress back in September and she has been saving it since then for her birthday party (she refused to wear it to play in so it would stay nice!). 

Her rules for the party: everything must be pink, everyone must be dressed up like princesses, and there were to be NO boys. We would have loved to invite more princesses, but I cut it off at 14- thinking that was the most I could handle. 

Once all of the princesses blew in (we had 50 mph winds and bitterly cold temps), we started the day with makeovers, including sparkly eyes and blush.  We then moved on to a game similar to musical chairs called "pass the wand", where each girl got a wand to take home when they got out. In the words of Keira, "that sounds fair?!"...it wasn't a game to win but for fun!! 

After that each princess made a bead necklace and decorated a name card at the table with princess stickers and their name. We then did the typical piñata, which was a bit difficult for the princesses to break open!!

We then served the princesses a gourmet lunch. On the menu: castle shaped pb& j's, shirley temples, fruit, and pink cookies (all requests of the birthday princess).

We finished the day with a cake pop bar- where each princess got to dip and decorate her own pink (strawberry) cake pop!

Thanks to all the "carriage drivers" and "servers" otherwise known as parents and grandparents who came and brought their princesses and helped!!

We had such a fun day- it will for sure go down in the memory book!! 

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.734813302958.1073741842.186701344&type=1&l=43758d488d

Today we had a get together for Keira's birthday with just family. It was a more casual get together with Little Caesar's pizza, homemade cake, and just fun celebrating the five years God has given us with this precious little girl!!

Here is a brief update on Keira right now that I posted to my facebook today:

"Happy Birthday to our FIVE year old!! I remember being in the hospital what seems like a few days ago and thinking five years sounded so far away, and look- here we are! We are thankful for how God has used her to help us grow, for her excitement for Jesus, and for all the fun memories we have had with her over the past years. She is our little conscience, always responsible and using big words to ask the most thought provoking questions. She loves art and music enjoys being outside tromping around on her jeep or bike too! She wants to be a teacher when she grows up so she can "tell kids what to do", and she weighs in at a lanky 35 lbs and is around 4 feet tall!! We love you Keira-Deara!!"

The Diehm Diaries 2013

Diehm Diaries 2013

As we consider the Christmas season, I wanted to share a story with you. There was a man who was living well, with a nice house, a wonderful family, great job, and everything else going for him. The problem was that he was dying of stage 4 cancer and didn't even notice the symptoms coming on since he was so wrapped up in his life. His doctor however did notice, and contemplated speaking with the man. You see there was a new cure that this doctor knew about that had a 100% success rate of curing this man's type of cancer. The doctor wondered however if the man would reject his cure since he was living such a happy life and might not want to hear the news. The doctor also wondered what his colleagues might think about this radical treatment and how they may ridicule him. The doctor pondered telling the man about his certain death, and the cure that he was sure would heal him. If you were the doctor what would you do? This story is real for all of us, because we all are or have been in the shoes of the man dying of a disease. The Bible calls this disease 'sin'. As the doctor that is sure of the cure, I hope you will read my diagnosis and consider what the Bible has to say.

Like the man in the story, most of us are unaware that we are suffering from this disease. Maybe we have heard about it, but surely it would never happen to us. After all aren't you a pretty good person? We need to look no farther than the Ten Commandments to see that we are all guilty of breaking God's law. Have you ever told a lie? Have you ever wanted something that wasn't yours? Have you ever stolen anything regardless of value? Have you ever used God's name in vain? Have you ever not loved God with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength? The list goes on, but the fact is that “we all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). The Bible also says in James 2:10 that even if you “keep the whole law and yet stumble in one point, you are guilty of breaking all of it”. See God is perfectly loving, but He is also perfectly just and must punish sin. Romans 6:23 tells us that “the wages of sin is death...” and so because of our sin, our punishment that we deserve is death. This isn't just physical death, but spiritual death in hell for eternity. It may seem like a steep punishment coming from a God who says that He loves us, but we must not loose sight of the person we are offending. It is God who made us and gave the law. To assault a random person might get you into a little trouble, but assault the president, and the punishment will be much steeper. So since we have sinned against God, we deserve to go to hell. You wouldn't say that a judge is 'good' or 'loving' if he let a criminal go free, would you? Of course not, and so God must punish sin. Once we understand that bad news, we can realize the cure for our disease. What if as that judge was getting ready to imprison you unless you could come up with a 100 million dollar fine, and all of a sudden, someone you didn't know came in and paid your fine for you. You didn't deserve it as you were guilty, but this man did it for you anyway. That is what Jesus did for you and I on the cross about 2000 years ago. It isn't anything we can earn, or anything we deserve, but something the Bible describes as grace. Ephesians 2:8-9 says “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast”. Romans 6:23 certainly starts with “The wages of sin is death...”, but it finishes with “but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Please understand that you are a sinner and that you are on your way to certain punishment in hell if left to yourself. There is nothing YOU can do to right your situation. Only Jesus can help you, and He already has paid your fine for you. So what do you need to do? You do nothing to earn it, but merely take the free gift by faith in what Jesus did for you like the Bible says. This means that you come to a realization of what your sin means to God and find yourself guilty before God. It means that you have a change of heart about your sin and turn and accept Christ's free gift of eternal life in heaven. If you do that then you are guaranteed to go to heaven when you die (1John 5:13). If you truly have that change of heart, the Bible says that you will be born again, meaning you will have a new nature. You will no longer desire sinful things as a pattern of life, but will instead desire to serve God and follow Him. If you have come to this saving faith, does your life reflect that? If not, the Bible says to consider whether or not your really in the faith. But don't just take my word for it, take Gods. Read through the gospel of John first and see what conclusion you come to. Just ask God to show you the truth. God bless you in this season and all others, where Jesus is the only reason.  

We have missed a few years of Christmas letters (the last one we did was in 2010), and a few things have changed in the past 3 years (as we then had an almost two year old, and are now on our way to having a 5 yr. old, 2 yr. old, and are 30 weeks pregnant with #3!)

Our excuse for no Christmas Letter in 2011 was the arrival of our second little girl, Elaina (Lainey) Jane Diehm. She came a bit early and arrived with style on New Years Eve 2011. Since then she has been kept us very busy…from not sleeping through the night until she was 10 months old, to using the toilet water to brush her teeth, she has earned the title of “Dennis the Menance”, as we affectionately call her. However, we love our “Lainey Lou” to pieces, and she totally has us wrapped around her feisty little finger. She is now almost two years old, speaks in 4-5 word phrases, and still has not made it onto the growth chart at a petite 20 pounds, although she eats more than any one else in the family on a daily basis. Her favorite activities include “helping” cook (as she stirs and taste tests everything), playing with sister “KEY-ra”, and feeding or strolling her baby dolls through the house, with a purse on her shoulder. Her current favorite phrases are “I DOO it!”, “Love you too mommy”, “I HUNGY or FIRSTY”, and “Oatmeal COOOO-KING” (as oatmeal is the first thing she requests in the morning).

In 2012 we neglected a Christmas Letter as we were busy transitioning to our new home: trying to figure out which box had the dishes in it, and which one had shampoo. The last thing on the list was documentation of our hectic life. ;) We sold our first beloved home in May of 2012, as we decided to take advantage of incredibly low interest rates and move into a bit bigger home that we could use for hospitality and to meet the needs of our growing family. We lived with family for 5 months while our new home was being built, and were very excited to get into our new home in November 2012…just in time for the Holidays! We are very thankful for the new home that GOD has blessed us with, and have enjoyed getting settled, adding our own touches, and getting to know the neighbors over the past year. Lainey loves seeing the cows out the back windows (as we have cornfields and pasture in our back yard), and Keira loved going on walks this summer to catch the toads that live in abundance out here. Austin and I are thoroughly enjoying the decrease of home projects that has come with a newer home. 

This year has also been full of changes for us! In July God gave us quite the surprise as we found out baby #3 was on the way!! We are now anxiously anticipating the arrival of another little girl beginning of March 2014. We are excited to have a houseful of girls, although Austin has reserved the right to “Guy’s Nights” to keep his sanity. 

In September, Austin and I were blessed with the opportunity to take a once in a lifetime trip…a 14 day cruise through the Mediterranean Sea with stops in numerous countries including Italy, Croatia, Slovenia, Malta, and a few others. We learned A LOT of history, toured the famous ruins of Pompei, and saw the Vatican and Coliseum in Rome, to name a few of the highlights. We thoroughly enjoyed the abundance of food on the boat, and getting to interact with many different cultures. One of the main things that I took away from the trip was how blessed we as Americans are with having Christianity at our fingertips. The ability to go to church, have Christian friends, and hear the Gospel is something we so often take for granted here…but it is almost obsolete in Europe. I came away with a whole new viewpoint and appreciation after our trip!

Beyond the exciting BIG things going on in our lives, it has been a great couple of years. God has blessed us with a great church that we love attending and learning at (Southview Bible Church). We continue to teach the K-2^nd grade kids club on Wednesdays, and I have had the privilege of being involved in serving as a deaconess and organizing some of the social events of the church. We have a great group of friends who are an encouragement to us, and we are so thankful to have others to share life with!

Austin continues to work at Council Bluffs Savings Bank, and has transitioned into more of the business banking side of things. He enjoys the variety that his job offers, and we are both very thankful that He works for a very family friendly company that cares for its employees. He has a great schedule that allows us to be involved in activities in the evenings, and have lots of family time.

I (Ellie) continue to work for Perigon Networks, a technology company in Bellevue. I continue to oversee the administrative and financial side of the business which includes Billing, HR, and Finance. It keeps me very busy, but I love the challenge, variety, and fast pace. I work with a great management team and love the small family atmosphere of the company.

Keira started attending Heartland Christian School this year in their K4 program. We have been beyond impressed with the school and are so thankful for the Christian influence she receives everyday, as well as the strong emphasis that they place on academics. We have really noticed that she has blossomed socially this year, as well as growing academically. She is currently starting to learn how to read and recently memorized Psalm 23 as a project for Thanksgiving time. Beyond school, Keira continues to take dance classes (ballet and tap) once a week, as well as being involved in Cubbies club as church. In her free time she LOVES to do any type of artwork or crafts, sing and dance at the top of her lungs, or play Barbies for hours on end. She is very detail oriented, and an often time corrects me. She recently told me that “Lainey is too old for a paci. If you aren’t going to get rid of it, I will”. If the weather is nice out she loves to ride her bike or Jeep, or do just about any outdoor activity. It has been very exciting this year as Keira has shown more interest in Jesus and the gospel and seems to understand it well and wanted to make a decision to give her life to HIM. We continue to pray for her and the other girls; that they would accept Jesus as their personal Savior, and that Austin and I would continue to being Godly role models in their lives!

As we look forward to 2014, I am thankful for many things, but first and foremost for Jesus coming to die for our sins on the cross so we can live eternally in Heaven. Secondly I am thankful for a husband who is the perfect match for me and a great leader for our home. As we see times changing and the years flying by, we have started to have a new awareness that “life is but a vapor”. Austin and I have both been challenged to be using every precious day that God gives us to share His good news with others, and to live for things that are going to matter in eternity. Life is so busy and it is easy to get caught up in petty things, but we challenge you in 2014 to evaluate what your relationship is with God, and to invest in things that will last beyond your 70-80 years here on Earth.

Love, Austin, Ellie, Keira, and Lainey Diehm.

Keira Sayings: 2012- 3 years old

Hello All!

I was just going through my list of blog posts that never got published, and I came across this one. So for memory's sake...this is what Keira was saying about a year ago.

The 2012 Edition of Keira Sayings:

• "Oh, I saw that on facebook!"

• "We can't fit everything in our trunk mom!"

• "I will never fight with my sister Lainey mom"

• "Lainey! Stop Crying! (with complete annoyance)

McDonalds: "Does yogurt ar fay mean there are strawberries in it?"- in reference to a yogurt parfait that she wanted from McDonalds. - July 2012

I (Ellie) ordered a coffee with 3 sugar packets in it. Once we got through the drive thru Keira says, "3 sugars mom?! That's alot of sugar!- August 2012

Eiffel Tower: Keira thinks that radio towers are the Eiffel Tower. She has seen pictures of the Eiffel Tower from our Europe trip, and now when she sees a radio tower out the window of the car she will holler, "There is the Eiffel Tower mom!"- September 2012

Keira at Cheer Camp: She refused to cheer, but told the girls (who knew Faith), that her Aunt Faith was in Washington...where there are bears with NO cages!!! She told them she thought that was "kinda dangerous for Faith".- October 2012

Keira-October 2012: An ambulance came to get the neighbor and Keira asked me where she was going. I told her the hospital, and she said, "oh so she can surgery, and they can fix her". I told her only God can fix people, so she said, "Let's pray". We prayed, and as soon as we were done, she piped up, "Ok, now God will fix her!!"

November 2012:

Her favorite phrase is: "Oh snap!"

She describes herself as "brown", not white...because people always comment on her dark skin

The Flood:

We saw rain clouds while driving for about 30 minutes and she was quiet the whole time. After about 30 minutes, she says, "I hope we see a rainbow, because God promised he won't flood the whole earth again, and there are LOTS of clouds!"- November 2012