Daniel Stephen Godwin II......My Baby Boy

Meet Daniel.....

As with most parents, when expecting their first child, there are so many questions.....Will it be a boy or girl? Who will he or she look like? What will his or her personality be like? Will my baby be healthy? What will my little one grow up to be? Will I always be able to take care of my child? Will my child grow to love God and have a relationship with him? For some, these questions cause restless nights...

My pregnancy with Daniel was pretty much like any other....I had all the same symptoms and characteristics of a pregnant Mom. Hot flashes, crying episodes, back-aches, extreme happiness, massive amounts of energy, followed by extreme fatigue.. hungry at all hours of the night and day....relatively normal....EXCEPT....the kid didn't want to be born!

Even as a baby Daniel had a mind of his own....He would get here when he felt like it....As the day of Daniels birth approached, it was obvious he was gonna take his sweet time....November 24th, the day before Thanksgiving, the day before the Big Game.....Miami VS Dallas, I knew where my family would be, yes, we are a BIG football family....The doctor came into our room and I said " Look, I am not getting up on Thanksgiving at 4:30am to be here at 6am only to be sent home again...so...." Doc answers " yeah, and Dallas plays Miami tomorrow, I am not coming in at 6am either......So after a couple of hours of idle chit-chat of golf and cars (between Doc and Dan) we got to work....

Welcome to the world....

Daniel Stephen Godwin II

7lbs, 4oz, 21 &1/2 in

Our lives were forever changed in that moment. A moment in our life forever sealed and pressed in only the minds of my husband and I. A moment so precious, you don't want to move or breath for fear it was only a dream.. Daniel was perfect...crystal blue eyes, a little blond fuzzy head, little hands and feet that had just moments before pressed on my tummy in protest....How could it be that God created such perfect life?...Such precision in every little detail of this tiny guy? How could anyone not want to be part of this creation in its finest..? Human life...one of Gods most intricate and detailed miracles, and yet it is as easy as the spoken word for my King....

Daniel was a precious baby...He slept through the night almost immediately.  Not too many issues to worry with. He loved his "patsy" and had a certain blanket.. When Daniel was about 8 mos, he was given a small 101 Dalmatian Toy Set. Inside had a ton of tiny dalmatians...about an inch big...Daniel had a favorite, and he slept with that tiny dog clenched in his hand for a year...bedtime was a wreck if we couldn't find that dog!!!

The next years with Daniel were a whirlwind....He was a fun, curious, active , smart little boy. He wanted to be with his Dad every waking moment.. Trucks, and mud, frogs and Barney, Talking Woody and Cowboy boots  were some of his favorites.....BUT the most important toy of all.......His Police Car! It had lights and sirens....the whole thing....he loved that car, it went everywhere with him....even to this day, it is on a shelf right by his bed....

As a little one, Daniel had a BEST FRIEND....Cody......only he pronounced it "Cot-ty.....and Cody had a BEST FRIEND.....Daniel....only Cody pronounced it Dino.....(with Southern accents of course)Man, they were thick as thieves.... they wanted to do everything together...swim, eat, play, run, cops and cowboys, they even got spankings together...Usually if one got in trouble, the other one cried....If there was one in time out, it wasn't long before the other would place themselves in time out,just so they could be together...

Well, life happened and Daniel and Cody live far apart now...but their friendship doesn't know the miles that separate them....

Daniel started school, and did very well. He loved when he learned to read...he had lots of fun on the playground, and pretending...and there were THE GIRLS....

When Daniel was 8, one of life's ugly realities knocked on our door.....Diabetes. Our Daniel was diagnosed with Type I Juvenile Diabetes. In the very moment we were told, my heart sunk..We were devastated. My husband felt to blame....what would we do? How would we ever teach him?

Thankfully, God saw fit to give my husband 20 years of life experience....You see God know us before we are born...

Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.

Jeremiah 1:5:

 Daniel did fine. He learned and progressed like a champ.. 

Daniel began playing Pop Warner Football.....he tried other sports, Little League, Basketball....he just didn't like any of them like he did football, and he was good. Daniel played football all the way to Freshman year of High School...then he started feeling another calling......God! God was calling my boy to higher things...

As Daniel started pursuing spiritual aspirations, he started having a hard time with committing to football and church events...the schedule was just too tight...Daniel decided he would have to put football on the back burner....

I'll never forget the first time Daniel preached. It was amazing. He did very well. We were so proud of him. Truly, this was not completely unexpected. Daniel was brought up in church. We knew there was a special calling on Daniel's life...it was confirmed through others many times. My Grandfather, Daniel's Great, used to call him "Little Preacher Man" from the time he could walk....

Daniel is still at it...he is currently, in Leadership Training at the church we attend. I know that God has great things in store for Daniel. We are so excited to watch God's hand unfolding his life....

Daniel has two Hero's in his life....His Father, and Officer Baca. Daniel says "How can a boy go wrong, when he has TWO Hero's?" Daniel is so in awe of his Dad and who he is...Daniel's Dad is a Captain for the FBOP, and has an enormous amount of training in weaponry and other defense tactics. Daniel's latest description of his father is "Tactical and Beastly".  Dan went to Daniel's school one day for Career Day...he was all decked out in his black riot gear, all 80lbs of it....You have never seen a kid so proud of their Dad in your life.....and of course, this made Daniel the coolest kid in school....He still talks about it to this day....

Then there's Baca ....Bro. Baca (aka Officer Baca) is one of the Youth Pastors for our church in Tucson. Next to his father, Bro. Baca has been the largest influence in Daniel's life.....Now, let me just say, there have been many great spiritual leaders in Daniel's life..Pastor Pounds, Pastor Conner, Pastor Sansum, Bro. Lopez..just to name a few. Bro. Baca is also a Police Officer. As a former Police Explorer, Daniel has much respect and admiration for Bro. Baca.

As you can see.....Daniel is a pretty amazing person. He love's Community Service, there's not a sport he doesn't know something about, He loves his family..although he goes round and round with his sister, he would be on you like white on rice if you thought about hurting her..they call this Brotherly Love. He has a blast playing kid games with Ashton...Usually Cops...big wonder huh?

Daniel likes to collect sports antiquities, baseball cards, he loves shoes and ties....

He's my boy..I hope all who read this can experience the Joy of God's creation. A little boy from Heaven.....

Be My Valentine

A Youth Valentine Party ???

I am not surprised  the youth of our church were so easy to please, and so appreciative...they are a great group of young people...

We had so much fun.

The menu was simple and good...Lasagna with all the fixins...As a kick off to my new business venture, The Candy Contessa, I designed a Candy Buffet...It was a hit....We had it all, cotton candy, giant jaw breakers, candy necklaces, licorice, cinnamon hearts, kisses, giant lollipops,...the list goes on and on....

Sugar and Spice, Everything Nice.....

The night was filled with laughter, knee slapping, and finger pointing...you know when someone does something funny and you point at them while your cracking up...finger pointing..

We gave away gifts and Valentines..

We played super fun games, some preached, some sang, some acted...we all laughed....

Our night came to an end with some sound advice from our  Pastor and his wife....oh and let me not forget, they had to impart their wisdom while wearing wax mustache and lips.....Although this Godly advise was taken to heart, it was received with priceless smiles....

Pastor & Sis. Pounds (aka, Mr & Mrs Potato Head)

 

I had a blast doing this party...and I am super blessed for it...

The Man of My Dreams, Hopes, and My Forever....

This is my husband, Dan....

Dan is one of those men that come from a generation past..What I mean is, although he is a young man, his values are the kind that you don't find present in men of this generation anymore.

Dan believes in opening doors, holding a lady's hand as she steps out of a car, helping her with her coat, or standing when she leaves or arrives at a table....a little too romantic and in the clouds for you..? How about a little more reality....

He Also believes..

Lets, help Mom, by unloading all the groceries, somebody unload the dishwasher, while Mom is starting dinner, each of you straighten up a little, so we can all relax this evening and play a game.....the list goes on...yes, he is pretty amazing...

I used to agree with all the incredibly smart people who wrote books and articles on Marriage when I would hear them say " Marriage is an Institution". I agreed wholeheartedly.. marriage was an institution, for the criminally insane ! I grew up only seeing a handful of the "perfect" marriages and frankly didn't want any part of it......and then I met Dan.....

 

He was the one

..Dan had ambition, he knew where he was going and where he wanted to end up, and I wanted to be with him when he got there. He was a very respectful person. And...I must say quite easy to look at.....lol

We had a whirlwind romance...we had our first date on Feb 8, 1991 and were married May 31, 1991...Yes friends, you added that correctly, we met, dated, and married all in three short months..... We have been married 19 years this May.....

Although, the critics didn't think we would make it , and we had only the support of a small group of family and friends, We have had a truly blessed life... I am not saying we haven't had our ups and downs...believe me, that is a whole other blog....lol, but God has always provided the Grace to handle every trial and untimely adventure life has thrown us, and those times are what have made us who we are today....I wouldn't change much.....

So, you can see how blessed I am to be Mrs Dan Godwin. He is a great Dad, my Best Friend, The Love of my Life, and he's not only a Hero in real life......HE'S THE HERO OF MY HEART .......

 

Hair Today...Gone Tomorrow...

Meet Jack....

Jack is our family dog. As recently pointed out by our Vet, he is pampered....

Jack enjoys empty coke bottles, coffee grounds and expensive shoes. Let's elaborate on the shoe thing..Jack has a very discriminating palate, he only goes for the really expensive shoes...Go figure. On a regular basis, you can find him trying to russell up a bowl of  trouble, and for the most part he is pretty successful... 

Jack enjoys chew toys, and tug-o-war. He really likes cookies and biscuits, but only if someone will break them up and hand feed him.....hummmm.

One particular day, when Jack was especially jazzed to be out of the house, ( little did he know we were on our way to the "Humiliator's Shop" aka The Groomer) he really got to exersize his "big boy bark". Jack barked at the wind, the trees, every person of every color, creed, race and religion, and every truck, car, motorcycle, bicycle, bus, train, and lets not forget, all of our local law enforcement.....you can image the noise...

Three hours later and after a much needed Quad-Shot Iced White Chocolate Mocha with Extra Whipped Cream, ....I get the call...."Can you come pick up Jack? He is ready ....."

Thought I would include a photo or two to show you the end results.... BEFORE

And AFTER......He is only a bit of a thing after all that hair came off....He looked at Maddie and I as if to say,"Don't look at me, I am half naked!".....He was much quieter on the way home......The Groomer, Katy said" He was quite a handful, he is very adventurous". I couldn't help it, it was all I could do to not roll with laughter....Adventurous is AN UNDERSTATEMENT LADY !!!!!!!

p.S. As we were leaving, a man walked in carrying a Quad-Shot Iced White Chocolate Mocha !!!!!!

My Princess and Pajamas...

It's the simple things in life that make the best memories.......My daughter and I have wanted to have matching pj's for Christmas for the last couple of years...BUT not just any pj"s...Nick and Nora pj's from Target, BUT  not just any Nick and Nora pj"s..they must have the sock monkey on them.  For one reason or another it has never worked out. It looked like it wouldn't  work this year either....Until, Maddie finally found a pair in her size...on clearance...we bought them in hopes I could find matching ones online.....I DID....The pj's came in the mail!
Maddie was so excited for us to wear our matching pj's together and snuggle on the couch....her excitement over something so small and insignificant, made all the huge stresses and worries of life melt away...I can still hear her giggle as I write this note...

I love being a Mom to a little Princess who cherishes the silly things in life....