Standing Up

It's official. Tali no longer enjoys merely sitting on the floor, happily reading her books. Now, in order for any "fun" to be had in her life, she thinks she needs to be standing. And so, with wobbly little legs, she pulls up. Here are some shots of her latest milestone. Oh, and one picture of her enjoying her newest trick: climbing up the stai...

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Home Again

Enjoying a walk after our yummy dinner at "Fried Green Tomatoes"Re-visiting the Arboretum where we got engagedWhere we were blessed to stay: Pine Hollow Inn, GalenaThe Lord was so kind to richly bless our time away. Josh and I felt overwhelmed by how truly good the time was; it even exceeded our expectations. We drank-in the beauty of our bed&breakfast out in the woods, ate some yummy food, played Dutch Blitz and Speed Scrabble, revisited the arboretum where we got engaged, had wonderful fellowship, talked about goals for our marriage, worked on generating some names for baby boy, checked out quaint little shops, got soaked in a downpour, and enjoyed just being in love. God was so kind to...

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And We're Off!!!

We're packing the car (or more accurately, Josh is) and about to take off for our little get-away! After fighting colds all week, it seems like the two of us are healthy and Tali's just a bit under the weather. Hopefully, she continues towards 100%.I'll post some pics when we return from Galena. We'd love prayers that the Lord would richly bless our time, drawing us closer together and that Tali would be happy with Grandpa Red and Grandma Billye. Than...

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Trusting His Promises

Josh & I have been been reading through Genesis in our quiet times/devotions. I am so grateful that God is giving me fresh eyes to look at this book anew and to benefit from it. In particular, I have been struck by how faithful God is to keep His promises.Today I read Genesis 21, where God grants Abraham & Sarah their promised child, Isaac. Verse 1 stuck out to me: "The LORD visited Sarah as He had said, and the LORD did to Sarah as He had promised." Much earlier, (Genesis 15) the Lord had promised Abraham that his seed would be as numerous as the stars in the heavens. When Abraham was a whopping ninety-nine years old, God reiterated the promise to him, but it had not yet been fulfilled....

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Flowers

Our girl loves flowers. And so, over and over again throughout the day we see and hear her going "sniff, sniff" ("flower" in sign language). It's hilarious and very sweet. Tonight, we had a friend come over and after waving to him, she quickly pointed at the flowers on the counter and went "sniff, sniff." It's very important to Tali that everyone who enters our house sees the flowers and loves them as much as she does.I want to appreciate the beauty of what God has made like my daughter. There is not a day that goes by that Tali does not beg to go outside (aka: point outside, sniff-sniff, then whine a bit) and look at the flowers. They absolutely captivate her. How many times do we simply become...

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Winning My Heart, One Potato at a Time

My husband most definitely knows how to bless me and make me fall in love with him all over again. What did he do this time? He not only went to the grocery store for me in search of things like "exactly two pounds of potatoes" and "ten ounces of pearl onions" and brought home each and every item on the list, he then helped me slice and chop it all. And he did it with joy, despite the fact that he is possibly even more tired than I am right now.It made me think about how often I take for granted that God has blessed me with the best husband in the world and how much I lack the servant-mindset of Christ. Josh actually enjoys serving me; it's not a chore for him. I, on the other hand, can adopt...

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We Love This Season!

Cool nights, hot tea, and cute jean jackets. Around our house, fall is a time to be celebrated! Tali loves to play outside and isn't quite sure what she thinks of this change in temperature, but she loves her jean jacket and that seems to help quite a bit. A couple days ago she scooted over to the spot where her clothes are stored and she pulled out this jacket. She quickly brought it over to me, pointed at the jacket, and started babbling. I said, "Do you want Mommy to put your pretty jacket on you?" She nodded and I put it on her. Then she proceeded to proudly touch it and point to various spots on the jacket, grinning from ear-to-ear and babbling away.Thank you, Andrea & Aaron for...

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Find Mommy

I didn't expect to love each and every month of motherhood a little more than the last, but so far that's the case. Having a 10 month old is the best! Each day Tali does something new. I love getting up in the morning and anticipating what new and fun things she will bring to my day.This week the new thing for her has been the "Find Mommy" game. I run (as much as a six month pregnant woman can) into a room and start calling, "Where's your mommy? Can you find Mommy?" And pretty soon I hear the clomp of my little scooter giggling and going as fast as she can towards my voice until at last she finds me. She starts waving her arms and grins ear-to-ear with pride. It is so much fun to play with her.I...

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Beginnings

Even though I'm no longer officially a "student," something inside me gets really excited about the start of a new school year. I'm not a teacher, I'm not in school, I don't have any children of school age, but I still feel as if a new beginning has arrived with the start of a new school year. So as the children around my neighborhood march off with their new backpacks and cool lunch boxes on their way to a brand new classroom, I want to have a beginning as well-sort of my very own "something new". And so enters this blog.There's no big theme or mission I'm out accomplish really, aside from keeping friends & family up-to-date on our lives. I want to share how God is at work in our home,...

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