New sleeping positions...

Christmas 2009

Josiah got Hardy Boys books (yes, OK...he's not quite reading at this level yet)

Our Christmas feast courtesy of my Mom...

Carrie got to enjoy the Christmas dinner and opening of presents from her horizontal position.

Carrie's cedar chest became the most excellent Christmas banquet table. :)

Baby Mama looking forward to digging into her portion...:)

Our Turkey Cranberry Wreath

What a happy, handsome boy!

Can't believe that he is wearing 18 month clothes already!

Josiah is like his mommy and daddy as he L-O-V-E-S his books!

More books!

Grandma got excited about her new turtle neck sweater! Great color Grandma!

Grandma loves her jackets so she got a new one from Joshua, Carrie and Josiah...quilted pattern outside and a reversible, faux fur inside...toasty!

Shoes are GREAT! The tag tastes better! :)

Carrie opens some presents...she will be the best dressed mom-to-be when admitted to the hospital in January!

Grandpa reading a book to Josiah!

Grandpa and Josiah love being together!

Josiah gets his sky blue eyes from his Grandpa and Great-Grandma Kay

View from Carrie's prone position! Got to have the Christmas spirit!

As you can imagine...Christmas this year was very different though we have much to celebrate and rejoice in the Lord's blessings!

May each know and seek the peace only found through salvation in Christ Jesus our Lord and Savior!

Update on the Briggs' Clan

Hello Everyone,

Just wanted to give everyone a quick update on the Briggs' Clan:

Carrie is still on strict bed rest...by strict, she can get up to go to the bathroom and that's pretty much it. She had another amniotic leak yesterday morning though not as bad as the first two amniotic leaks that she has had in the last month. She is still feeling Caleb move around which is comforting and a great sign!

We have our next appointment on January 12th with the Perinatalogist to determine: (1) how Carrie and Caleb are collectively doing, (2) when Carrie should be hospitalized for the remainder of the pregnancy and (3) the risk/benefit of staying home for a couple more weeks.

The good news is that on January 12th, we will have made it to 24 wks which is the age of viability. Our goal continues to be making it to March 27th which will be 34 wks gestation.

Carrie's mom will be coming out January 1-14 to help me out. This is a HUGE blessing to both Carrie and I but also my mom who has been here everyday for the last month, taking care of an active 13 month old and a bed ridden Carrie while also cleaning and cooking so that I can work.

Carrie continues to be a trooper and remaining diligent regarding staying as still as possible in bed. I can only imagine what it must be like as I would be going stir crazy after a couple of hours. She always reminds me that the end result is worth it all! Amen, Amen, Amen!

We appreciate all those who are praying for us and we appreciate your continued prayers! This, Lord willing, will be a long road ahead (for the next several months) and we will only be sustained through the effectual, fervent prayers of the saints of God.

Joshua, Carrie, Josiah and (in utero) Caleb

Update on Carrie...

Hello Friends and Family,

Here is a quick update on Carrie and our second pregnancy:

- On Nov. 30, 18 wks into our second pregnancy, Carrie's amniotic sac ruptured unexpectedly.

- We saw our regular OB/GYN on-call doctor on Tuesday and were given extremely grave news although our baby's heart rate was still strong at 150 bpm

- On Wednesday AM, we saw a Perinatalogist (High Risk Pregnancy). She gave us some hope going forward.

1. Baby was perfectly healthy...in fact, we are having a baby boy who we have named Caleb Joshua.
2. 99% of women with this condition lose all amniotic fluid - minimum needed for continual fetal development is 3 cm. Carrie had 4-5 cm! Major Praise!
3. Perinatalogist broke it down into 3 groups: 25% experience labor within 48 hrs, 50% experience labor within 1 week, and the last 25% experience labor 6 weeks or longer

- Carrie has been committed to total bed rest.

- My Mom has been here every day to take care of Carrie and Josiah so I can continue to work.

- Major praise is that my Mom's back and arm have not been giving her a lot of trouble with Josiah.

- Carrie has been feeling Caleb move around a lot. She says that "he's a strong one".

Prayer Requests:

- We are praying for the amniotic sac to heal.

- We are praying for continued strength for my Mom as she cares for Josiah and Carrie.

- We are praying that Carrie will be able to carry Caleb to 34 weeks which would be March 27, 2010.

- We serve a great God and we pray for His Glory to be made manifest.

Thank you to everyone who continues to pray for our family and this precious life!

Joshua, Carrie, Josiah and soon-to-arrive Caleb

A Must See Video...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZum_o-GAEI

This is an European analyst who correctly states that many European countries are trying to get out of government run healthcare because it is bankrupting their countries...

She also states that America is already HALF way toward Socialism with the government running Medicaid/Medicare.

Glad to be home...

The trip went very well though I was glad to be home and see my son's smiling face this morning!

What a blessing God has given us...even with 5 teeth coming out simultaneously, he is still ALL smiles and laughter and chatter!

Since Cash for Clunkers was so popular....

Here's another suggestion...

Contrary to popular beliefs!!!!

Who deserves your hard-earned $$$$ (change) (dinero) (mulla)???

Life according to Obama and the current ruling class!

Margaret Thatcher had it right...

Finished reading...

Carrie and I just finished reading Safely Home by Randy Alcorn. It is a novel regarding the Persecuted Church in China. There are definitely some literary liberties that Alcorn takes in the book that don't exactly line up with my understanding of Scripture though I was definitely intrigued by the plight of the Persecuted Church in Restricted Access Countries like China, Sudan, Iran, etc.

I have been researching legitimate organizations those purpose is to get God's Precious Gift into the hands of eager believers.

Here are two that I have found and would encourage everyone to get involved:

Bibles Unbound

Open Doors USA

Carrie and I are committed to get as many Bibles to believers in Restricted Access Countries that we can! Will you join us!

If you can't give financially for Bibles, then pray for the Persecuted Church.

Secret Believers

Just remember:

The best gift to give is the gift of God's Word!

Thomas Jefferson quote applicable today...

New Fall Fashions....

Josiah is thinking..."Dad, I don't think the pants go on my head, but hey, I'll work this angle!"

So, what do you think? Can this be the new Fall Fashion look? :)

Adventures of Josiah...

Wow, I really did pull myself up...hello, down there is the floor! Wow!

Josiah exploring the bouncer from a different angle!

Josiah crawling around with Reagan looking on...

Hmmmm...how did that Cheerios get there?

Notice the position of Reagan! Crumbs anyone?

Cheerios are yum-yum good!

Josiah has an announcement to make....

We are going to be needing one of these come May 2010!!!

Josiah is going to be a Big Brother Lord willing May 9, 2010.

Carrie is feeling fine although the hungry/tired feeling kicked in a little earlier this time around!

Hmmm...Basketball or Tennis...

Josiah was fascinated by this giant tennis ball the Girl's Tennis team gave Coach Briggs and Assistant Coach Mom. Here he is thinking tennis....

And here he is thinking basketball...

Josiah was laughing at Grandpa tossing the ball from hand to hand!

Josiah just loved the feel of this giant tennis ball!

Fall Creation present for Mom and Dad...

With everything at Michael's or other arts and crafts stores so expensive, Carrie and I have resorted to creating our own decorations. As many of your know, Mom likes to decorate for each season. So, we created this fall decoration for their kitchen table.

S-U-C-C-E-S-S

With the help of Shirley Cook, a very close friend of Mom and Dad's, we were able to pull off a complete Surprise Birthday party for Mom and Dad. No small feat with 43 of Mom and Dad's close friends from their Sunday School class, friends from church and family showed up at BJ's Brewhouse and Restaurant in Stockton yesterday afternoon for the surprise celebration!




Mom and Dad were completely SHOCK and SURPRISED!!! A very difficult thing to pull off with Mom as she intuitively picks up on cues and figures things like this out. Dad saw everyone first and said he thought to himself, "Wow, there are some people from my Sunday School class" and it wasn't until they started singing Happy Birthday that he realized why they were all there. Mom was behind as she was concentrating on helping Grandma navigate the stairs and chairs and it wasn't until she rounded the corner and gasped at the sight of friends singing Happy Birthday.


Mom said that it definitely made her 60th Birthday Celebration very, very special!

Carrie is expressing her creative side another way now...

Carrie has found a new outlet to her creative side...making and decorating cakes...

Her first cake...a tennis match...how appropriate since I had just finished playing tennis with my Dad! :)

She did a PHENOMENAL job for her first attempt!