16 Months

Dear Preslie,

My heart aches for you today. As I was holding your sister and staring into her eyes, I couldn't help but ache and long for the chance to gaze into your eyes as well. I always think and wonder what you would look like. Would you have curly brown hair? Would your eyes be green or brown? Would you be energetic or shy? Would you be a daddy's girl or mommy's girl? Would you hold your baby sister tight, and want to do everything that she is doing? We learned in Sunday school about Lot's wife, and how she longingly looked back and turned into a pillar of salt. I try so hard to not let the "what ifs" consume my mind, but there are times when I just can't help it. There are times when I want to go back in time and just hold you closer, and kiss you more. I was so scared, and that has been one of my biggest regrets. I should have held your little body longer, I should have held you tighter. I think back to that day and remember how perfect you were. You had the most beautiful hands, and feet. You had the cutest little button nose, and the longest legs. You are perfect Preslie, and I am trying everything I can to be able to make it back to you. To raise you like I am raising your baby sister. To be able to hold you and sing you to sleep, to feed you, and feel you snuggle up against me. I don't understand fully God's plan for our family, but I can't wait to find out. I know we will see you again someday, and can't wait until we are all together again. Stay close to us, visit us often, and know that we are not forgetting you. You will always be our first daughter, and our guardian angel in heaven. We love you and your sister so much, and are so grateful that we were able to have you for the short time we did.

Happy 16 Months my baby "P".

Love, Mommy


My Darling


Go back to sleep now
My darling
And I'll keep all the bad dreams away
Breathe now, think sweet things
And I'll think of all the right words to say

Because we made you
My darling
With the love in each of our hearts
We were a family, my darling
Right from the start

Grow up now
My darling
Please don't you grow up too fast
And be sure, darling
To make all the good times last

Because we made you
My darling
With the love in each of our hearts
We were a family, my darling
Right from the start

3 Joyous Months

Our beautiful miracle is 3 months old today. She has brought us so much joy and life back. We don't know what we would do without her. She is growing up more and more each day, and we cherish every minute.

Arista loves to smile, and she smiles all the time. Her sweet smiles melt our hearts, and give us energy.



Arista loves to talk. She babbles to us all the time, and constantly says "hi".



Arista loves her hands. She tries to nibble on them any chance she gets.



Arista loves to be independent. She loves to lay on the couch and kick and babble away. Her new favorite thing to do is sit in our big rocking chair.





Arista loves Banana Bee. We pulled this little guy out a few weeks ago and she loves him. He makes many different baby talk sounds, and Arista talks right back to him.



Arista loves Daddy. They get up early every morning and play for a few hours. They play on the jungle mat, do webcam, and watch star wars.



Arista loves Mommy. We sing songs, read books, go shopping, play with toys at Target, and snuggle.



Arista loves Preslie. There have been many quiet moments the past few weeks where I know she sees her sister. She will look behind me and smile and laugh. I can't help but look over my shoulder expecting to see someone there. I know that the bond that these sisters share will continue on forever. Although we wish Preslie was here to play, we know she is preparing for our return.



We love you Arista, and are so happy that you joined our family. These 3 months have flown by too fast. We look forward to making many more memories with you. Happy 3 months!!

3rd Annual Miss America Party

This past Saturday night I had my 3rd Annual Miss America Party. Aubrey Boardman and Emily Becker helped out in hosting this year as well. Aubrey came up with a word for every girl who attended, and made a sash for them, as well as came up with questions for us to answer during commercial breaks. We did a bracket again this year, and Janel "Miss Pure" won first place! We had some yummy desserts, lots of laughs, and enough pageant to last us till next year!

Miss East Lansing, and runners up!







I pass the Michigan Miss America Party baton onto "Miss Competitive"

Arista's first trip to Idaho!

Arista was able to meet so many fun people the past few weeks. We had our first trip traveling to Idaho together. We were able to have a long layover in Minneapolis to visit our friends the Hogges. We had a blast for the short amount of time together, and we are planning on visiting them longer for spring break!

After a long day of flying, everyone was anxious to meet their new little niece...

Auntie Kelsey
Auntie Kipley

Auntie Mikelle

Uncle Merrick

We were also able to see my cousin Melissa and meet her little daughter Georgia. Georgia was adorable with Arista, and constantly said "baby" while pointing to her. We could not get enough of little Georgia, she is such a doll. Arista was also able to meet her great Aunt Deb and Uncle Richie the week before.

Melyssa and Georgia

The greatest babysitters



I had a blast going out shopping with my Auntie Karen and Melyssa, while we had 2 awesome babysitters. Mikelle and her boyfriend Kyle were generous to take on Arista and Georgia, two nights in a row. I got some much needed shopping, girl time, and yummy food in. Unfortunately the last night Melissa was here I got horrible food poisoning. :(

Arista also turned 2 months while we were here. She is becoming more and more active everyday. She has found her hands, and her hands have found her mouth. She loves to chew and suck on them. She smiles and coos all the time, and loves to lay on her back and look around at everything that is going on. She has also spent a lot of time with her Auntie Mikelle being bounced on the yoga ball. It calms her down immediately, especially when she is overly tired. Her nights and days are still mixed up, but we are ready to start a schedule when we return home. We just love her!







Arista spent much time with her great grandparents Fern and Wayne Bateman. She is their 49th great grandchild. Every time Arista would cry Grandma would say "It's okay to let her cry, it will make her have a great singing voice".

Arista has had a blast with Grandma and Grandpa, and even went to Relief Society on Sunday to hear Grandma speak. She slept in the back with Grandpa, and was sporting a new dress.

Arista seems to have a calming effect on people...and animals.






Arista sure has had a blast on her first trip out to Idaho, and we are going to miss everyone when we leave on Thursday. Her Aunts and Uncle have spoiled her rotten! She is anxious and excited to see Daddy soon.

2010 Theme and Word

I have been thinking the past couple of weeks what a theme for our family this year could be. I really felt like our theme for the year 2009 was "Come what may and love it" - Elder Wirthlin. In no means did we love the pain and grief we went through, but we love how strong we came out on the other end. Through the suffering of Preslie's death our relationship slowly grew stronger and stronger. Not only did Chris and I cleave unto each other, we cleaved unto Christ and the Lord. Together through our strength and faith, we were able to endure the pain this past year and bring a beautiful daughter into the world.

I thought that when Arista arrived all my pain would magically disappear. Boy was I wrong. I think more about Preslie now, then I did while I was pregnant with Arista. I am always thinking about what she would be doing now, and how she would be such a great older sister to Arista. I find my heart and arms still aching to hold her close to me, and to see her smiling face everyday. Arista has helped us tremendously bring back joy and peace back into our lives. I have come to realize that the hole in my heart will always be there, and that Preslie will always be missed and loved. I feel such a void in our lives without Preslie, but I am truly grateful for the opportunity to look into my daughter Arista's eyes and see a piece of her older sister. Preslie is close, I know she is. On the days where I miss her the most, I know that she is missing me too. The love I have for Preslie reaches further than death, it's eternal.

After much pondering I decided our family theme this year will be: "Stop seeking out the storms and enjoy more fully the sunlight." This is a quote from our former Prophet Gordon B Hinkley. I chose this theme for a few reasons. Negativity, is something I have struggled with my entire life. The glass is always half empty, and the "I can't do anything right" motto rings into my head frequently. I can find a thorn on every rose, a hair in any food, and something wrong with each situation. After the death of Preslie and seeing that bad things do happen, my negativity escalated. I have been strengthened through Preslie's death, and have seen many positive outcomes. However, my day to day negativity is taking a toll on myself.

I have found that I am petrified of something bad happening to Arista, and I feel like I have to do all I can to keep her safe and alive. The fear of losing another child, and going through the pain is terrifying. I know that I cannot think this way, and that through Christ, the Lord, the scriptures, Chris, and faith I will be able to enjoy each day I have with her.

I recently watched the movie Pollyanna, and despite her circumstances of her parents dying and being paralyzed she found something to be glad about everyday. In every situation good or bad, she played the glad game. What a great thing to try and do! I am going to make it an effort to play the game and find something good or "glad" out of every situation. I know that changing the way you think is a slow process, but all I have is time.

Our family word for 2009 was "HOPE". Hope for the future, hope for Arista, hope for my Mom to be cancer free, and hope for many other things in our lives. We have come to have a strong testimony of hope, and the blessings that hope brings. I love that we are able to witness how hope impacts our lives. Faith and hope go hand in hand, so our faith was strengthened as well.

Our family word for 2010 is: FOCUS. Our family has a lot to focus on this next year. Chris finishes up his last semester of law school, and then it's on to the "real world". It's our goal to focus on...

1. Getting healthy

2. Arista

3. Church and school studies

4. Being more optimistic

5. Stregthening relationships

6. Stregthening our marriage

7. Finding a job

8. Becoming more Christ-like

The Martin family has some hefty goals for this year, but with keeping ourselves focused we can attain each and every one of them.

Vote for Chris and Chewy!!

I entered Chris and Chewy into a local "look-a-like" contest. We need your help! It only takes a few short minutes.

Just click on the link below, then click the "register to play" tab. Once you register you will be sent a confirmation email, and then you can log in and vote for Chris and Chewy. It's that easy! We know it's a drag to register, but it only takes a minute!

The prize is 4 tickets to the Broadway play 101 Dalmatians, as well as a gift card to a local jewelers. Seeing the play would be a great date night for this couple new to parenthood.

The contest closes January 22nd!! Please vote!!!

Thank you for helping us out!

http://wilx.upickem.net/engine/Details.aspx?p=A&c=12898&s=2597573&i=1#SD

Some Firsts

Arista has had some firsts the past couple of weeks that I wanted to share...

(12/31/10) Arista smiled at me! No it wasn't gas, it was a real smile. She has been smiling more and more everyday.




(1/2/10) Arista had her first bath with Daddy. She was so calm the entire time, and loved every minute of it. Chewy loved watching!

(1/3/10) Arista attended her first Sacrament Meeting. She did really well, despite the cold draft coming from the vent next to us. She slept the entire time, and was held by a great friend Lisa.

(1/7/10) Arista has her first diaper rash, and we feel so sad that it hurts her!

Arista is growing like a weed, she has already outgrown a few pajamas and outfits. She is constantly reminding us of the joys of having her here. She will not be laid down, and has slept on us for many many nights. Her happiest time is in the morning right after she wakes up and eats. She will play on her jungle mat for a good 25 minutes. Chewy enjoys playing on it with her as well.

Arista loves to admire all her pretty bows while having her diaper changed, and she has even tried to pull them down a few times. She is not fond of wearing them, but we are working on that. ;)

Arista will have her very first plane ride a week from today. We are flying to Idaho to visit all her Aunts, Uncle, Great Aunts and Uncles, Great Grandparents, and Grandma and Grandpa of course. We can hardly wait!