It's Official...

I am sad to announce that I am RH+. Rachael will have to get the shot after all :( The results came in earlier today.

Rachael is having a lot more heartburn recently but she and the baby are still doing fine. Please keep us in your prayers.

More updates to come!

Brandon and Rachael

Birthing Classes / Donated Blood

Rachael and I have just started birthing classes to get ready for the arrival of our daughter (due April 27). Our classes are on Monday nights from 7-9pm at OU Medical Center in Everett Tower (which is where we plan to have the baby). It was pretty fun. We learned a lot of anatomy and some breathing techniques Rachael can use while in labor.

We are also excited about our 4D ultrasound scheduled for February 9th. This picture is not of our baby but is a picture of what a 4D ultrasound looks like (I will post our babies pictures as soon as we have the ultrasound).









Elizabeth is 27 weeks along now! She is about 14.5 inches and weighs about 2 pounds! She can now open and close her eyes and sleeps at normal times. Isn't God's design amazing? Only He could make new life such a miraculous experience!


Because Rachael is RH- blood type, she will have to get a painful shot every time she is pregnant UNLESS I am RH- also. This presented a problem for me because I do not know my blood type. The only way to find out your type for free is to donate blood. I do not like needles and blood but I went down to the blood bank and donated. It wasn't as bad as I thought it might be but I still am not sure if I will do it again or not. Sure, I would do it is they issued statements saying they NEEDED blood... but when they just WANT it I think I will pass. :) Anyhow, I will find out my type soon. I'll let you know if I was RH- or not. :)

How do you do with needles, shots and blood?


Brandon and Rachael

Winter Ice Storm 2007

This is our first winter blast of 2007. When we heard the cold weather was coming, we decided to spend our "locked up" time with our families.

First, we went to my parents house. We played games, ate dinner, and drove around (my dad has a 4-wheel drive pickup and loves to play in the ice).



After spending the night by the fire at my parents house, we went to Rachael's house to spend some time with them. We played card games, watched movies, and fellowshipped. We are still out here now. I love ice storms like this where we can all stay home and relax with family.


Jasmine (our niece) is really growing up. She is saying words like "fish" and "hot". She is walking with help and will soon start on her own.







I taught Jasmine how to hold the XBOX 360 controller (picture). She sat with me for a while and we played together (she is a big mover so that was an accomplishment!).


How did you spend your weekend in the ice?

Brandon and Rachael

PS - Granny Tuter is in the hospital. She fractured her pelvic bone. Please pray that the Lord would heal her and that she would recover quickly. Thank you for your prayers.

CBI Reward Party!

We recently had a reward time for the children that were in Rachael and my group in CBI. The children memorized large passages of scripture, did daily devotions, learned the books of the Bible and more! To reward them for their efforts, we had a party at the church with pizza, games, scavenger hunts and more!

Grace and Rebekah finished all of the assigned task. They got matching T-Shirts from Mardel as a reward for their outstanding effort.

Rachael did most of the prep work to make it all happen. All the kids looked forward to the day with great anticipation and were not disappointed! Everyone that I talked with afterwards said they loved it!

I had a pretty good time myself. One of the most fun things we did was play statues at the end of the day (we are being Jesus, Mary and a donkey in this picture). It was a lot of fun and the kids deserved it.

Way to go CBI KIDS!

Brandon and Rachael

New Years Day Tradition

One of my favorite traditions with Rachael and I's families is the new years day get together we have each year.





We went to the river by the Tuter's house and shoot some guns. I enjoy shooting about 1-4 times a year.


Jonathan brought his shotgun. He loves to hunt and is a big time outdoorsman (at least compared to me he is). I was able to beat his known record of skeet shooting! He has shot 10 in a row and I shot 14! It was a lot of fun to beat him at his own game :) Next time he goes, he will keep track and probably beat me. It is nice to be on top for now though.







Dad taught Justin how to shoot a handgun while we were at the river.








We played lots of games at the house before watching the OU vs. Boise State game. Rachael nearly always wins every game we play out in Tuterville (she denies it but I say it's true).





While we were there, Smalls burnt $1200 worth of old, out dated school books. I wore the wireless headset to the TV and went out to keep him company. We had fun talking and listening to the game.




We enjoyed our time with our families and look forward to next years annual get together.


How did you spend new years day?

Brandon and Rachael

Land Ho! A New Adventure...

Rachael and I are looking for some property to move out onto. Our long term goal includes living on a few acres (4+) that we have a home on, a ministry house on (a small house we can use for ministry to others), and room for family to move out with us (parents, children, etc.).


We are targeting land east of OKC off I-40 or I-240. My dad went out to look at some off Anderson Road with us. We were walking through a field, he found some barbwire and ripped his jeans!

As we look for land, we are praying that God would show us His will. We desire to raise our family at a place that we feel safe and can serve the Lord for a long time. Would you pray that God would open doors to find the right place?


Brandon and Rachael

PS - Rachael and Elizabeth are doing great! We are all counting the days!

Happy New Year! (married one year)

Happy New Year (2007)! This marks one year since Rachael and I were married. We celebrated the new year together downtown last night.



At about 7:00pm, we went to buy tickets for the 8:15pm showing of "Night at the Museam" at Crossroads Regal. Then we went to Santa Fe to eat. It took to long to get our food so we went to the movie and skipped dinner. The movie was fun and we had a great time.



Then we stopped at Sonic to make up for dinner on our way downtown. Once we got downtown, we drove around and saw the New Year's ball, the Sheridan (where we stayed on our wedding night last year), and the Christmas lights.




Then we parked at Bass Pro and sat in the car waiting on the fireworks. We had a slice of our wedding cake from last year (which acctually saved very well) and a glass of sparkling grape drink (non alchoholic of course).




The fireworks were great and we enjoyed seeing the year 2007 in together.






How did you celebrate the new year?

Brandon and Rachael