The Joys of Being an Aunt!

I have been Aunt Shanna since I was 15 years old

and I love every minute...no wait...every Second of it! 

My first nephew is Junior Hernandez and he is 13 yrs old...I can't believe it!!!

He is such a sweet boy and also such a goofball!!

I remember when he was born..it was just a few months after I met my brother 

and I was so excited  he was bringing a little bundle of joy along with him. 

Next in line is Makenzie Joy Cronk and she is 12!!!!!

I will NEVER forget the day she was born. The night Melissa went to the hospital,

that day I was out all day with my buddies riding 4 wheelers on the hot, dusty trails. 

I remember Aimee & I sleeping in the waiting room all night long, eager for her arrival.

 

 

Makenzie is definitely her own person and I love her for that. She is so much older then her age, sometimes I think she is already in high school. 

Now we have Eric Hernandez who is 11yrs old. From what I've viewed over the years Eric is more of the shy one. Once he warms up to you, he is just as goofy as his brother Junior. 

Eric is a peacemaker, one who likes to please people and make sure every thing is okay.  I think that might be the middle child syndrome. 

We now have Matthew Cronk who is 9yrs old. Matthew is ALL BOY!

Thanks to his Grandpa J. he LOVES fishing and goes up north every chance he gets. 

He loves his sports as well...Matthew plays softball, soccer, and football. I love how active he is. 

Matthew has a huge heart & even though he is 9, you can definitely see God working on his heart. 

Then we have Ian McCammack who is 8yrs old! 

Oh Ian....what can I say . . . 

I have been Ian's Aunt for a little over a year now

but I've known Ian since he was just a few months old. 

There is nothing you can say to this charming boy that he doesn't already know. 

Ian is such a sweetheart and SO quick to help out and LOVES to tell you stories. 

If he could, he would probably talk to you about one topic for an hours. 

Alex Hernandez is 7yrs old and such a little clown. 

Whenever I would see him, he would point to his eyes & then point to me and say
"I'm watching you"

Alex is such the entertainer, 

the one who doesn't care what he's doing and still making others laugh. 

Next in line is none other then Calvin McCammack who is 6yrs old.

Talk about a kid with a bundle of energy. 

Calvin sometimes reminds me of the Energizer Bunny..that just keeps going, and going, and going...

Calvin is the most determined little 6yr old I have ever met. 

If there is something on his mind he will do everything in his power to get it.

Now for Luke Merritt who is 5yrs old! 

Luke is such a joy to be around. He is such a little adult. 

I once carried on a 20 minute conversation with him on the phone. 

Luke loves to achieve and show you that he CAN & WILL do it. 

I love how no matter what pants he has on, THOSE are his "fast pants"

Oh Sydney Noel McCammack...who is 4yrs old.

Where do I begin??

It took Sydney forever to warm up to me even before I was her Aunt.

Sydney is your typical goofball of a little girl. 

She is definitely ALL girl!
No matter what is going on, she wants to be involved in anyway!

Now to Brady Hale who is 3yrs old!!

From what I've seen of Brady, he adores his mom & dad!! 

Brady is a very serious little boy,

but it's not hard to get a smile out of him. 

I have however, seen Brady break down and do a little dance for us a few times. . . watch out!

Then we move on to Olivia Merritt who is 3yrs old!

Liv is my little sidekick.

 No matter what the occasion, she is right there on my lap.

Even though Liv has a brother who is 14 months older then her, 

she does not let that influence her away from her desire of being a princess. 

Liv just recently told me she is letting her hair grow as long as Repunzel's!

Oh Zachary Cronk....who is 3yrs old!!

The first couple years of Zach's life he was SUPER shy...at least with me. 

He first started out calling me "Maunt Manna"

Now I'm "Aunt Thanna"

One thing you'll notice about Zach is

once the shirt comes off, it's wrestle time!! 

This little boy has become such a joy and has many surprises...

like putting on multiple Pull Ups under his pants 

Now to Cooper Hale who is 2yrs old! 

Cooper is your sweet, loving, and very silly little 3 year old. 

He is always up for a hug or a cuddle for anyone willing to join in. 

He is good at not flaunting it but Coop is a very fly, cool little dude!

Geneva Kate McCammack who is 2yrs old!. 

Geneva strives to be like her older sister. 

However, she definitely knows what she wants

& when she wants it. 

 Geneva has grown up so quickly, it feels like she should still be 6months old!

Brynna Hale who is 1yr old!!

From what I know about her, if she doens't know you,

she's got one eye on you and the other on her mommy!

I think she has to fight for attention, after all she has 2, very active, older brothers to compete with. 

Little Braeden Cronk who is 1yr old!

Braeden is such a lover & cuddler. 

I have never seen a baby that is so calm and just loves to relax. 

It's almost as if Braeden is the one doing the holding, when you cuddle him. 

Annelyse Merritt who is 1yr old!!!

The only thing I know about Annelyse right now is she LOVES me,

and is not very fond of her Uncle Devan. 

No matter what her older siblings are doing, she is determined to do the same

& I love how willing they are to share with her and watch her

enjoy the same things they like.

These are only a FEW of the many memories I could share with you

but I don't think any of us has that kind of time. 

I am just so blessed to be surrounded by such amazing kids which SO many 

different personalities. 

It blows my mind when I find out of people my age who don't have any niece's & nephews,

I just can't imagine....not everyone starts out when their 15 I guess. 

In Loving Memory of

Lilliana Grace Merritt

We love you

                              

Remembering Gods Grace

I came across Aimee's blog again about our experience in the hospital ( http://aimrogmerritt.blogspot.com/2011/07/more-grace.html ) and it reminded me of Gods grace and how thankful I am for his love & protection. 

Every morning I look at my baby girl and still in shock that I...ME...am a Mommy!

It seems like every morning I wake up with her she is so much bigger. She is at the stage where she gets a huge smile on her face when she wakes up and hears my voice. 

I am so blessed that God has allowed ME to be a Mommy and to this precious little girl. She brings us so much Joy and so much fear at the same time. I am so thankful that we have the Lord to rest our fears upon and not ourselves. 

Be Still my Soul......

2 Months Already!!!!!

I just can't begin to express how thankful I am for this little girl. Every morning we wake up she has more & more little surprises for us. 

She is getting so big way too quickly...as much as I'm enjoying seeing her grow,

I feel like I should still be able to pick her up with just one hand. . . makes me

a little sad. . .but at the same time, 

I'm overflowing with joy!

He loves me...He loves me not...

So Thursday (Aug 25th) was my birthday and my husband had to go to work so my sister Aimee asked to hang out for a little bit. It was a great day going shopping & a delicious lunch at Culvers where Devan was able to meet up with us.

 I was a little disappointed thinking my husband had NO plans for my birthday and it was just "another day" to him. My mother offered to take us out to dinner for my birthday so I jumped on that fast thinking "well we're not doing anything else and here is someone who actually wants to do something..." My mom treated us to an AMAZING dinner at T.G. I. Fridays...One of my favorites! 

I understand I'm being a tad bit selfish but my sinful heart thinks,

"Hey this is MY day...I deserve     fill in the blank    ."

I go to bed that night still a little hurt & upset and wake up the next morning and decide to just keep on going with a good attitude. Dev came up with an idea of taking me to a movie in the park and told me it was "ANNIE" & knew there was no way I would shoot that down. He also told me we were leaving Ireland at his parents and we better get over there so we're not late for the movie.  

Little did I know there was HUGE get together at his moms house and it was ALL for ME! 

SURPRISE!!!!

 OH how foolish am I! To ever doubt my husband and think that he doesn't have some kind of tricks up his sleeve. He truly is the best...and this was my first surprise party!! I had one when I was 13 but someone spilled the beans..lol. 

Thank you EVERYONE for coming and loving me & helping me celebrate my birthday! 

THANK YOU Devan for planning this all on your own and making this birthday a VERY special one! 

I LOVE YOU!

Great America Day!

Midwest Generation gives free tickets to employers and family every year to Great America.

We were not able to go last year because of the hustle & bustle of getting our wedding in order. 

This year we all got to go & it was a lot of fun. I really enjoyed walking around with the family and watching the kids. 

This is probably the first year I've ever been there that I didn't ride, 

it didn't bother in the least because I had a blast watching my niece's and nephews ride & have a blast. 

We did get a down pour of rain but thankfully we were at the Picnic Grove eating lunch under a nice secure roof and didn't get wet. 

This was Ireland's first trip to Great America and definitely not her last. Besides...she'll never remember she was even there....

(Uncle) Devan was a big hit

He took Matt on a ton of rides 1.since I wasn't able to and 2. since no one else was a lover of coasters like Dev. This was Matt's first time ever on rollercoasters and I think he loved them!!

Just Yesterday....

It feels like just yesterday I was pregnant and patiently waiting the arrival of our baby girl. 

I can not believe it has been ONE MONTH already! Our baby girl is 4 weeks old!! 

To celebrate

Dev surprised me today with a trip to the Shedd Aquarium! 

Ireland did so good ALL day! 

Even though she slept most of the time we were there,

Dev & I really enjoyed our time away together as a family!

Oh how I love this man....I can't wait for Ireland to get old enough to enjoy him as much as I do!

One of God's many Blessings!

Ireland Kaye McCammack has arrived!!!! 

She was born July 11th weighing in at 8lbs 7oz 20 1/2in long! 

It was rather a scary journey during the labor process

however, keeping my focus on God and his sovereignty I knew no matter what happened, even if I didn't understand it, God would get the glory 

(Proverbs 3:5)

We are so excited to have her home with us even if that means sleepless nights and many....many feedings!

Her Daddy couldn't be more excited to have a little girl! As much as he said he wanted a boy first I can't imagine him trading her in for anything!

And as much as I was SO SURE she was a boy, I just can't get enough of this little peanut! 

She is definitely already a Momma's girl...but I have a feeling that will change in just a few months as she will soon learn who her Daddy is!

I absolutely LOVED being pregnant and feeling her kick and punch me as she grew bigger & BIGGER

However, I wouldn't wish her back to that in a million years! 

Ireland, we love you!!