Life is beautiful.

Life is beautiful. Read on to see why :)

Let's see, we got a new van! Woot woot! The whole transaction of selling our old van and getting a new one was so perfect. A family who prayed about purchasing the right van and it being ours after they looked at many. They drove over an hour to come test drive it and purchase it. Pretty cool and confirmation to my soul that we were making the right decision in selling it, seeing as we were going back and forth about it. After many months of research and wanting something budget friendly, we ended up purchasing a 2009 Dodge Grand Caravan SXT. It's white and quiet beautiful I must add :) We are enjoying it, especially the kiddos, seeing as it has 2 DVD players in it :) It's a blessing to have something a bit newer and under warranty seeing as I'm a momma with a van full of kids...no worries about it breaking down on us.

Here's a pic of my new wheels :)



The kids are all doing well. They are all growing up so much it seems and I am enjoying these precious moments with them while they are little. I love the snuggling, the kisses and hugs and the, "You're my best friend" comments that come from their sweet mouths. So cute and I hope they always see Jeremy and I as their good friends, and not just their parents. I think it's so important to develop a friendship with your children, and not only play the parent role, if that makes sense. A safe place they can come to with anything and know they will be accepted and loved and listened to. I'm excited to live life with them, they are so much fun and I just love our little family. Although maybe 3 and one on the way isn't considered little these days :)

Gracelyn's 3rd birthday party was quite a hit! We did a Dora theme and that girl got more Dora stuff then I knew existed! Ha. A special surprise (to both the kids and myself) was when Aunt Kristy showed up as none other but Dora herself :) I cracked up laughing, totally something my sister would do! The kids loved it and the kids friends really thought she was the real Dora :) Kristy, thank you so much for putting all the time and effort into the costume and playing Dora for the party, a memory I'm sure that will be cherished forever. Here's a few pics from the party. Can't believe my beautiful girl is already 3! It seems she was just brand new the other day. Look at my beauty!



And now...








It was a really fun day celebrating our girl. So blessed she is my daughter and I look forward to watching her grow up, as much as I want her to stay little sometimes :)

My photography and Scentsy business' are going very well. I've been staying busy with both and I'm enjoying it very much. I am actually shooting 3 weddings this summer (eeek!) and assisting with another. Weddings still make me a bit nervous, but I've decided to push myself and go for it! I figure if the couples have seen my work and want to use me, it's silly for me to think I'm not good enough. Every photographer starts somewhere and I know it will help build confidence and experience for me. I'm shooting a longtime friend's wedding in early July and then the other two weddings in September. I've been busy with family sessions and newborn sessions too, which is always fun. Here's a picture from my recent newborn session. Isn't she precious? She was already 3 weeks old by time I took her pics, but still little nonetheless :)


Pictures like that make me excited to meet this little one in my belly :)

Speaking of which, I go for my second appt. today with my midwife. I'm anxious to hear the heartbeat for the first time. I've already had an ultrasound around 8 weeks and saw the heartbeat, but hearing it is always a great sound. I'm interested to see if she will change my due date (since the ultrasound showed I was 8 days behind) or will keep my due date the same. Right now my due date is the 10th of December, but if she changes it according to the ultrasound it would be the 18th. I'm really hoping she keeps it the 10th, because my last two babes came 5 days late and that would put me at the 23rd of December if I went 5 days late, with a due date of the 18th. I know it's out of my hands, but I REALLY want to be home for Christmas. One, it's my favorite Holiday and two, as wonderful as it would be having a brand new baby, I want to be home with my kids and family on Christmas. So anyhow, I'm praying that I will be, and believe I will be. After all, God cares about the details of our lives (Psalm 37:23) so I'll be home with my bundle for Christmas :)

On another note, I think we've decided we are going to be surprised this time around and not find out the gender. It will make me go crazy, seeing as I'm a HUGE planner and look forward to ultrasound day so much, but, I also LOVE surprises and can't think of a better surprise! Hearing my hubby say, "It's a GIRL!" or "It's a BOY!" after my long dreaded labors sounds amazing, so, that's the plan :)

I'm also super excited because yesterday I booked Jeremy and I's very first weekend away together alone since having children. Aunt Kristy is babysitting the kids for us while we have a weekend of laying on the beach, eating out in peace, and a couple uninterrupted nights of sleep and relaxation. As much as I'm sure I'll miss my babies, it's good for my hubby and I to have some time away together, just the two of us. We're staying in Traverse City and going away for our anniversary/birthday's in August. I can't wait :)

Alright, I've saved the very best news for last. My little brother is getting MARRIED! I couldn't be more excited for him. I absolutely adore his fiance Kate (umm hello, it's meant to be, she was meant to be our sister! Kristy, Keri and Kate:)) and my heart is just overflowing with joy for them. My brother (and Kate) have both prayed and waited for God to bring the right one into their lives and the timing is perfect and so beautiful. Kate asked both Kristy and I to be in the wedding, so that will be fun. They are getting married this October, so nothing like being 7 months pregnant standing up in a wedding :) It will be fun, I cannot wait! I had the honor of being there to capture their special moment and take a few photos...here's a little video I put together for them, it pretty much makes me cry every time I watch it :)

Make your own free photo slideshow

Blessed,
Momma Keri

9 months of cuteness!

Our sweet Lincoln Jude is 9 months old today. It's hard to believe in just a few short months we'll be celebrating his first birthday. 9 months is my most favorite age, so it's fun for me :) Here's a pic I took of our boy the other night as we were outside doing some weeding. What a gorgeous boy!



He's full of joy and laughter and always has the biggest smile on his face when we smile at him. He's been such a blessing to our family, I'm so thankful for our sweet Lincoln Log!

Gracelyn will be turning three in just 2 days! That is hard to believe also. She has grown up the fastest to me out of our three, and it's probably because she started walking at 8.5 months old and has always been such a go getter from a young age. I know I'm her mom, but honestly, she is one of the most beautiful little girls I have ever seen. She is so sweet, full of life, joy and loves hanging out with her best friend, Ethan :) Saturday is her party and we are so excited to celebrate her! I love birthday's and I love making them a big deal. They are special and it's a time the day is all about them and celebrating who they are. She is having a Dora the Explorer themed birthday this year and I can't wait. I bought more party supplies than I normally do just because I wanted to make it really fun for her and a year she remembers. I remember things when I was three :) Here's a picture of her I took at the Memorial Day Parade.

Our beauty!



Ethan is doing well, aside from being sick with the random summer flu bug right now. Ugh. Can't wait until he is feeling totally better and we are praying everyone is healthy for Gracelyn's party on Saturday. The kids have been counting down the days :) E is finishing up his first soccer season this Saturday, his last game. They are having a little celebration cook out afterwards...then home to get ready for the party. It should be a fun day! It's been so cute to watch Ethan play soccer and last week he got 2 goals. The look of excitement on his face is so priceless, it looks at us like, "Mom! Dad! Look what I did!!" I love being able to pour love into my kids! He's one of the few kids on his team that runs after the ball constantly and is determined to score. It's so cute and I'm already looking forward to next year :) Here's a picture I snapped of him on "picture day". So cute.



What a blessed life God has given us with our sweet kiddos. Can't wait to know if we're adding another boy or girl to our crew and what he/she will look like :)

On another note, we sold our van today! It was pretty cool as someone called on it and turns out they are also Christians and have been praying about the right van to purchase. Baby #3 is due any day for them so they were in need of a van. It made me happy to know it was going to a Christian growing family and a family who is excited about it. I've loved our van and am excited about getting another one. We are on the hunt for something a bit newer and may go look at one tonight, we'll see.

We figured out how much money we put into it and then what we sold it for and we had it exactly 2 years today (weird!) and we spent $93.75 a month to drive it...pretty good :)

That's all for now folks.

Be blessed!
Momma Keri

Blessed.

Hello all :)

For those of you who may have not heard our news, are you ready for this one? Here it goes! We are expecting another little bundle this December. Yes, it's true, we are having another baby! Blessing #4 is on the way.

I am 10 weeks along and we just announced the news to our families this past weekend on Mother's Day. It was a fun and memorable weekend...always so fun to announce a pregnancy!

To be honest though, since finding out we were expecting, I was feeling a bit nervous to share our news with family. Silly I know, since this is our decision and not theirs, but multiple family members have made comments to me since Lincoln has been born that left me feeling a little uneasy about their support. The good news is once we did share, everyone was happy :) Either that or really good actors who should be getting paid :)

It's funny how we care about what people think sometimes, when others opinions really shouldn't matter when it comes to whether or not we are going to expand our family. However, it seems if you have more than 2 children these days people look at you weird or think you're crazy for wanting more children...I don't really get it.

I get looks all the time at the store or comments like, "Wow! You sure have your hands full!" It used to bother me, until God gave me an answer to those people. "Yes, I do have my hands full and I love it! Children are a blessing from God and I'm so grateful to have healthy children." They usually don't have a response to that. Ha! I'm thankful for the random strangers I run into that encourage me when they see me juggling all 3 kids and the groceries in the store, instead of the judgement I feel from people sometimes.

Recently I had the sweetest older woman who was a greeter at our local grocery store immediately pull me aside when I walked in with the kids, just to tell me how my job is so important and she just poured life into me. It totally made my day, and made me realize how important the words we speak really are. Our the words we speak encouraging? Do they build up or tear someone down? Are they fruitful? Life giving? It can be easy to say things before we think them through sometimes and I have learned the importance of words and what I speak over people.

The cutest old man offered $10 bucks for Gracelyn the other day. Ha! I laughed and said, "Sorry, she's not for sale! :)

All that to say, we are blessed to have another on the way. We are happy. We believe this child is a blessing and gift from God. An inheritance from Him. Yes, we planned it. Yes, we know where babies come from. Yes we know our life can look crazy, busy, sleep deprived, a laundry room with dirty laundry piled 15 feet high, crayon on the walls, lipstick stains on the carpet and everything in between that I missed but we are ok with that. If you don't like it, don't come over :) There are many seasons in life and in parenting. Right now, we are raising little ones...little ones who want their way, have temper tantrums when they don't get their way and bang on their door as loud as possible when they get disciplined and are in time out. It's the season of parenting we're in and it's normal, and we are training, teaching and molding them into who they will become. It's an important job and not one we take lightly.

In Psalm 127, we learn that:

Children are a gift from God. An inheritance from Him!

Children are like arrows in the hand of a mighty warrior.

Children are a blessing.

The Bible says having a lot of children is a blessing. In light of Psalm 127, this is the way we should think of every child. They are a blessing from God and not a burden.

Blessed with three and one on the way,
Momma Keri

Memories

Jeremy called me earlier in the day today with some sad news. His Grandma Rena went to be with Jesus today. Of course, rejoicing that she knew the Lord and that she will spend eternity in heaven, but sad here on earth, that she is no longer with us.

I wrote a bit about her on my facebook, but wanted to share a few things here too.

The first Christmas I was officially a "Harrison", I remember going to her house, in Royal Oak. As I was observing and walking around the house, I glanced and saw this beautiful photo of a young girl, I would say in her 20's. I was absolutely taken back at how beautiful this girl was. I went over to Jeremy's grandmother and asked who was this picture of. She chuckled and said, "Oh, that's me."

I immediately said,"You were one hot babe!!" She got the biggest kick out of that, and since then, that is what I would call her often...one...hot...babe!

I've always loved his Grandma Rena and thought she was such a fun, spunky Grandma. Her face would light up anytime she saw any of our babies, or any of her grand babies or great grand babies for that matter. I loved hearing her stories and she had a great laugh.

I loved that she would send notes in the mail to us, randomly, just saying how much she loved us, that she was proud of us and that we were treasures to her. It warms my heart, and now I'm determined to find those sweet notes, I'm sure I tucked them away somewhere.

I will always laugh when I think of her saying, "Oh crap." I always told her I got a kick out of her saying that...it just sounded so funny coming from a Grandma.

Here is a photo of her and I from a few years ago at Christmas. She would always ask why would I want a photo of me and an old lady? I always found that to be funny...because she obviously didn't know how grateful I was for her.

When she was in her early 20's and had 4 young boys, she became a widow. I can only imagine how difficult that would be. I feel so grateful to her...that she went on to raise 4 little boys. Without her, my husband and children wouldn't be here. Wow, amazing to think about. My heart is full of gratitude for her life. She brought so much joy and laughter and really was a gem. I'll miss her.

Grandparents are so special. They leave a legacy of love and imprints on our lives. They have so much wisdom and so many great stories if you take the time to sit and listen. I loved hearing her stories.

Just a couple months back, Jeremy lost his aunt Mariane. Rena was very close to her and it was hard to lose her. As we were at the funeral, I was chatting with Grandma and she said to me, "It won't be long before I join her." How true those words came to be. I'm sure there has been a joyous reunion between those two, I can picture it.

I am forever grateful to her for the legacy she left, and for the beautiful family she gave us. We will miss you Grandma, enjoy heaven until we meet again one day :)

I will leave you with a sweet photo I took of our Lincoln Log today. He turned 8 months on Monday. Oh so sweet. What a joy he is.

Much love,

It's Spring time :)

My faithful followers....hello :)

Hopefully by now you don't have high expectations when it comes to frequent blog posts. I think those days are forever gone, being a busy momma and wife. I do enjoy being able to keep family and friends updated on the latest Harrison Happenings though, so let's see what I can catch you up on. I feel like a lot has happened since I last posted.

Sadly, Jeremy's wonderful aunt, Mariane, passed away on March 1st. Bob and Mariane hosted Bible Study at their home for many many years. I had many great memories talking with her and she always had such a sweet spirit. Always welcoming you into her home, feeding you and just thinking of others. The last time I saw her was at her oldest grandchild's high school graduation...and we chatted for a bit and she started to cry as she spoke of Tyler and remembering when he was born. She really loved her family and it showed. She had been suffering for the past year or so quite a bit with her breathing....and a hospital visit turned into her going to be with Jesus a few weeks later. We will miss her very much, but take comfort in knowing she is with Jesus and is in no pain and that we will see her again one day.

On a joyous note, the kids are doing wonderful. I constantly reflect on God's goodness in my life, blessing me with these 3 precious children who I adore and fill my life with so much love, joy, happiness, the list goes on and on! They are all so special in their own way and I just love our little family. Jeremy and I feel very blessed!

Ethan is getting so grown up. His mind is like a sponge it seems these days as he is just learning so much and remembering everything he hears. He's a bright kid and loves life. It's so fun to watch him grow. We signed him up for soccer last month and he's already had a couple games. It's cute to see him in his little jersey and have absolutely no clue what he's supposed to be doing ;) He loves the outdoors and anything involving a ball so I'm sure this is the start of a long adventure in sports with our boy.

Gracelyn is going on 3 this June - wow! She has grown up the quickest to us, I'm not sure why. It's probably because she's been very independent from a very young age (the girl was walking at 8 months!) so she just seemed to grow up on us so quickly. She is so full of spunk and joy - she really lights up our lives! She's pretty much Ethan's shadow (or is Ethan her shadow? ;))....the bond they share is truly special, they love being together and are the best of friends. So many people made comments to us when we got pregnant with her...that we were crazy...(and the comments of course came with Lincoln as well) but I wouldn't trade our children being so close in age for the world! We always knew we wanted our children close in age, so they could really be siblings and friends and God has blessed us with our desire! The joy those two bring me is indescribable...two peas in a pod. I'm sure Gracelyn will grow up to want to marry her brother, just as I did :)

Lincoln is such a joy! He is so smiley and happy, we sure adore him. He's 7 months now and rolling all over the place and loves to watch his big siblings and dream about the day he can join in on all the fun they have together! Until then, he watches from his high chair and patiently waits to run along side them :) He's a very sweet and mellow baby...and starting to get shy when strangers talk to him. It's really cute. I was at church yesterday holding him and people would start talking to him and he would just turn his head and put it into my chest....like hey, I don't know you but thanks for thinking I'm cute! :) His eczema looks much better...but it still bothers him in the night when he's sleeping and he wakes up every few hours uncomfortable. Many nights he ends up in bed with us because it's the only way he can get comfortable some nights. Not so comfortable for mom but I cherish the snuggly moments with him so I'm not complaining :) We pray over him and that he outgrows it and doesn't itch for years to come.

Another exciting note is Jeremy and I got the kids a swing set! It's something we've wanted to do for awhile. The kids absolutely LOVE their swing set and I love seeing them so happy and having so much fun on it. It is totally worth every penny, lots of memories over the years to come playing outside with them I'm sure :)

Photography is going well and has picked up again now that the snow is gone :) I am keeping busy with it and enjoy capturing these sweet moments for families. The first wedding that I shot back in October was published in a local magazine this past month - pretty exciting! It's a Detroit magazine but is sold at Border's, the airport and many other well-known places. It was a really cool accomplishment for me and totally unexpected.

Here's a sweet pic of a little boy I photographed this past month...I had done his mom's maternity photos just a couple weeks earlier.

Meet baby Weston :)


And here's my favorite of the family of three.


New life.....what a blessing from God!

My Scentsy business has been busy as well and I've been enjoying it. If you don't have their products, you really should...you will get addicted like me :)

My dear cousin Angela and her husband Tommee welcomed their first little one, a baby girl who they named McKenlee Joy on Good Friday. What a special day to be born....a good Friday indeed :) They live in Grand Rapids and I went out to visit them last weekend and do some newborn pics of McKenlee as well. Here's a little sneak peek from their session.


I'm anxious to get editing the rest of their session! She's such a sweet little thing.

Well, I hope you all have a blessed week!

I'll leave you with a picture of Ethan and also one of our 3 blessings in their Easter outfits. Enjoy :)




Blessed,

Beauty!!

Just stopping in to share this photo of my girl. She's perfect in every way!



Love,
One blessed momma

Marvelous March!

Hopefully by now you all are used to my infrequent blog posts. It's always on my to do list but not first on my priority list. Thank you for still coming to my blog and reading :)

We are doing well! It's been in the 70's this past week in Michigan and we are setting all sorts of records. I love it! We grilled out last week and it didn't seem real...middle of March and bbq'ing! How awesome! We are all enjoying the weather and the kids play outside a lot everyday now which is wonderful. They love to ride their bikes, play with chalk, run around and just enjoy the outdoors.

Our three amigos are doing great. E & G are still getting over a cough and cold but mostly better which I'm thankful for. They are loads of fun and I so enjoy being their momma!

Our sweet Lincoln Jude is doing well. He had his 6 month check up last week and is doing well. We are headed back to the dermatologist tomorrow because our pediatrician wants him to be seen one more time. His skin has been a lot better than it was - but he now has some raw spots/sores that he wants to get checked out. It's probably just the eczema but he wants to be sure. So, we are headed there early afternoon tomorrow. He weighed in at just 15lbs - which is the smallest of our babies at age 6 months. Ethan was 18lbs,8oz and Gracelyn was 15lbs, 3oz. He moved down on the weight scale a bit so he wants me to bring him in in a month just to weigh him again - but I know he's fine and he likes to eat :) He's already gained almost a pound since that appt. (weighing him at home) so he's doing just fine :) Tomorrow late afternoon I also have Ethan's 4 year check-up, so we'll see how he's doing too :) Busy day tomorrow!

He is such a happy little guy. He tries talking now, rolls over and is such a joyful little boy. I feel so grateful for our children, they truly make my life so much better! Being a mom is such a wonderful thing and I enjoy my little ones so much! God is good!

Speaking of little ones, I would so appreciate prayers for my friend's new baby boy, who is just about a week old - not even. He was born at 35 weeks, 3 days and is in the NICU due to having some trouble breathing. They then discovered he had a hole in his lung. So, needless to say, it's been a rough start for little Hunter Zion and hard on mom and dad too. They haven't been able to hold him much and he's been hooked up to all sorts of things - it's heartbreaking to see your baby like that. Will you please pray for my friends, Bryan and Claire and for Hunter and all the doctors too. I'm believing for healing and that his breathing will get better each day on his own so he can start taking off the machinery and soon be in momma's arms again and very soon get to go home! I know they would so appreciate your prayers, thank you!

My Scentsy and Photography has been going well - I'm enjoying them both. I've only done 1 session in these winter months so I haven't done much for many months - but now that the weather is starting to get nice early, it's starting to pick up again. I did my very first maternity photo session last night and enjoyed it sooo much! It was with someone who found me through Craigslist and they are expecting their first baby, a little boy (I know the two potential names but it's a secret until he arrives to everyone else) and they were such a lovely couple and were up for all of my ideas. Very nice to work with! I haven't had a chance to sit down and look through all the photos just yet, but here's a sneak peek I posted a little while ago on my photography facebook page. Isn't this precious? Oh how I love pregnancy and the miracle of new life!!



I hope I get to do more maternity sessions this spring and summer because I really loved it!!

My dear cousin Angela is due in just a couple weeks with their first baby, a little girl and I couldn't be more excited for her and her husband, Tommee! I plan to travel to Grand Rapids to visit and do photos once baby arrives, I cannot wait! She's going to be a beautiful baby girl and I just can't wait to meet her and for my cousin to become a momma and see how wonderful it is:) I'll be sure and post a photo or two from that session in the near future :)

Scentsy is going well. Tomorrow will be one month that I've joined and I just had my first party that was booked by a friend this past weekend. It went very well and was a great party! I honestly love, love, love these products which makes it so easy for me to talk about and be passionate about. Next Saturday, March 31st is my Open House party. If you live local and would like to stop by, I would so love that! It's from 4-7 pm. Thirty one bags will be here also - they offer tons of cute bags and you can get them monogrammed. My neighbor just became a consultant and they have super cute stuff. If you live out of state and would like to support me in my first big open house party, you can order directly online. I would so appreciate it! I will post the link below if you would like to place an order. If you have any questions at all about the products, please send me an email. If you are new to Scentsy and aren't sure what to get, email me! Lots of cute warmers, lots of delicious smelling scents and they offer combine and save packages to help save you money. I'll be closing my party on April 2nd at noon so put your order in before that date - thanks :) To order: https://keriharrison.scentsy.us/Buy?partyId=73838408

I want to get started on editing that Maternity session while the older two are still napping so that's all for now. Here's a super adorable picture of Lincoln from his 6 month photo shoot. What a doll, I know!!



Much Love,