Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Cade's First Christmas

When they say that you haven't experienced Christmas until you do so with a precious little one in your midst, "they" are RIGHT!

The night before Christmas, after getting our little man in his snowman pajamas and settling down for bed, Pete and I read the story of Jesus' birth to Cade.  It was a series of moments I will never forget.  The usually squirming, "needing" to play/move/be on-the-go child that Pete and I are lucky to call our son sat still and listened.  He took it in and seemed to enjoy the story.  After it was over we continued our nightly ritual by saying our prayers and snuggling our sweet baby boy for a few minutes before laying him down in his crib.

He is so much fun at this age and we knew we would need our sleep before tackling the next day of opening packages and celebrating the birth of Jesus for the first time with our son!  As I held him in my arms I tried to imagine what life was like without this precious little boy and realized that after 11 months of officially being a "momma", I just don't even want to think about the richness our lives were lacking.  Similarly, and to a much greater degree, I tried to imagine what life would have been like before Jesus strapped on flesh and was born into this sinful world in need of a Savior, in need of Him.  And just like I feel about motherhood, that I wouldn't go back to how things were before, I can't imagine a world with no hope, no Jesus.

Our little guy has opened up a whole new world to us and we are grateful for every breath, every move, every clap, every "no", and every moment of his life.  We are thankful that just as Cade brings joy to our lives, there was a babe, who left the perfection of heaven to rescue us and to remind us of our need for an everlasting, ever-loving, ever present God who is oh-so BIG and delights in the details of our everyday.  And that this man-God Jesus isn't just for us to know, but for the whole world to know.

What a blessing it is to be parents, what a blessing it is to know Jesus, and what a blessing it is to be Biblically charged with sharing His GOOD NEWS to those who have never heard of it!

We are thrilled everyday to be able to share this Good News of Jesus with our son and Cade's first Christmas was such a celebration of His life!

Here are some pictures of Cade opening up some little surprises our family got him in honor and celebration of Jesus:

Opening the first package.

Cade checking out his new outfits.

Enjoying the box!

Baby loves airplanes!

Cade's Christmas Loot

Momma got a KitchenAid!

First Christmas Family Portrait

Sunday, December 18, 2011

Generous Givers, Faithful Friends | A Note From Our Hearts

This post has been a long time coming.  Throughout our single and married lives, Pete and I have had the privilege of knowing some of the most kind, thoughtful, and generous people this world has ever known. I won't mention names out of respect for some of our nearest and dearest, but these faithful friends are a HUGE reason that we were able to begin our ministry with Mission Aviation Fellowship and have seen so much success in developing partners through this process of fund-raising before heading to Indonesia.

We cannot find the words to accurately express our gratitude and appreciation for the generosity and faithfulness of our friends and partners in ministry.  Know that you are prayed for daily and are thought of fondly!  From our family to yours, THANK YOU!


Thursday, December 15, 2011

CLAPPING

It's amazing the joy that clapping can bring.  Whether you are in the stands cheering on your fave team or offering up a round-of-applause for a great performance, clapping is fun and exhilarating.  It brings people together and allows the joy and excitement of the moment to live on for a little longer.
So it's no wonder, that when your baby boy claps for the first time it would bring about a similar response. Only, when it's your adorable 10.5 month old son clapping and looking up at you as if he has just hung the moon, it's way more than mere excitement.  And when he consistently drops what he is doing to clap and see your response, just to get more excited and giggle, the joy that wells up in your heart is impossible to contain.  It truly runneth over.
These little things: learning to clap, sitting up, trying to stand and walk on his own, saying "mama and dada," crawling around and giggling are some of the most amazing moments of my life.  The look of sheer joy on his face when he does something that we are proud of is one that I will never forget.

Momma and Monkey - loving life!

Monday, December 12, 2011

Lions, Tigers, and BEARS - OH MY!


While there weren't Lions and Tigers on our recent trip to Gatlinburg, we did get up close and personal with a beautiful black bear.  As Megan and I were talking in the kitchen, she looked up and just feet from where her oldest son had recently been playing, was a cute, hungry, black bear leisurely walking from the woods onto our deck and driveway.  After a a few squeals, running downstairs to make sure her 4 boys were inside, and returning back to the living room, we all joined in watching our little Yogi friend steal our bag of trash and climb up a nearby tree.  It was so fun to watch this little bear out the window and hear the little boys get so excited.  And even better to see Kevin and Rich outside "scaring" the bear away from the trash and into the tree.  What a wonderful memory of our time with sweet friends in Gatlinburg.




Tuesday, December 6, 2011

Joys of Life on the Road | Wright-Patterson AFB

One of the great things about being on the road and building our team of ministry partners is all the fun we get to have with our family on the journey.  It's an absolute blast being able to watch our little man grow and develop daily.  I can't imagine a better time to be starting this journey!  While on the road we also get to see our extended family and enjoy catching up on life.

During our trip to Wright-Patterson AFB, my grandfather, who I call "Troll", showed us around the museum at the AFB.  I remember him taking me around when I was younger and Pete experienced his first AFB tour with Troll, as well.  So it was fitting that Troll be the one to take Cade, or "Tex" as Troll like to refer to him, around the AFB while we were in Ohio.  It was a blast and we made memories that I know will last a lifetime for all of us adults!

Here are some pictures of our adventures at Wright-Patterson AFB:

Cade Flying High in a F-16 Cockpit 

Cade and Daddy Sharing the Cockpit

Our Little Astronaut