Blessed

After another busy day, the evening brings some time to play with Abi, vacuum, organize, put tax documents in one pile (ha ha), throw a batch of laundry in the washer, etc. etc. And thus will proceed next week and the following week, etc etc. I took a couple minutes to read Malcolm & Christine's blog and I was reminded how much I miss family and friends in the midwest. But it also reminded me how grateful I am for them despite the distance. Then I started thinking of all the blessings... we had a wonderful visit in Nov w/family & friends in MN, my friend Jill got a new job in Wisconsin, Dick's treatment is going well, Leroy's "Earl" may not be there, I know without a doubt my new job is where God has placed me for His glory, Steven is excelling at his promotion and has had the privilege of ministering through it, we had a great visit when Steve & Annie received their Businesspeople of the Year Award, spent time with their wonderful friends (love the Kaps and Settlemeyers!) and more visits are on the horizon with Mom and Dad (can it be tomorrow yet?!). The Twins' and families are coming for a visit tomorrow for their 30th birthdays which means more time with people who bless our lives. I was reading John 6:35 and Jesus said, "I am the bread of life. Those who come to me will never be hungry..." He wasn't referring to actual food... but rather the amazing sustenance that He so graciously filled my heart with this evening. To those in our lives who "feed" us: thank you for being God's blessings. You are much loved!

4 Months Old: Giggles, Rolling Over and Lots of Yelling (both happy and mad)

Her father's daughter

Abi is her father's daughter... proof if you need it.

Beach Time!

Abi is nearly 4 months old; she was definitely due for her first trip to the Oregon coast! We enjoyed a weekend in Lincoln City with our friends Nichole & Jeromy as well as their two kids. Obviously it had been awhile since we'd been to the coast (our anniversary actually) because we were pleasantly reminded it only takes 2 hours to get there from our house. Abi is a great car passenger since she sleeps 85% of any ride. Saturday dawned with a slight drizzle but we enjoyed a beach walk, lunch at Dory's Cove and then the girls hit Tanger Outlets and the boys later enjoyed The Mist (a true local lounge). Sunday was the perfect Oregon beach day; slightly breezy, slight overcast and just a slight chill in the air. Abi took in all the sounds of the beach while occassionally looking back or over her shoulder to make eye contact with Mommy and Daddy but the stroll was too much... she dozed the last 45 minutes of our walk.

Happy 2010!

We had a wonderful New Years Eve... at home. :) Between colds (both the girls in the house) and Steven working New Years Day, we decided we were more than content to stay home. This included a bath for Abi. As you can see from the video, she LOVES her tub time! The clip was taken after she'd already been in there splashing for 10 minutes already. After an easy 7:45pm bedtime, the grown ups in the house enjoyed a quiet beer and cheese tasting together and Public Enemies starring Johnny Depp. We did actually get adventurous too: a beer from England, Maine and Germany. We tried 6 different cheeses including Champigneon Cabmbozola (German), cranberry LaRoule (French), Taleggio (smells like stinky baby belly button!), cranberry chipotle cheddar, Rembrandt (licorice finish noted by Steven) and Marco Pole.

As another calendar year begins, I can't help but marvel at all that has come about in our lives in 2009. God is truly gracious and ever loving that He has showered our lives with such love and blessings. May you find His peace and joy this year and may His path guide you!

Our first Christmas as a Family

We spent a very wonderful Christmas in Eugene with GrannyAnnie, Papaguchi, Auntie Stephie and Great Auntie Evie. What a foggy holiday we had here! Abi was a champ at church though; slept the entire 2 hrs! As for opening gifts...she was more interested in the noise the wrapping paper made than anything as it was her nap time. :) It was a wonderful holiday spent with wonderful family!

Is it Christmas yet?

The Christmas cards are mailed, packages are shipped, shopping is done (well 90%)... is it Christmas yet?! After returning from MN, we hit the road running. I went back to work 3 days a week, Steven's back on shifts, getting another group of Explorers through the program enrollment, etc. After a 3.5 hr drive to Eugene (normally 2) on glare ice south of Albany, we enjoyed last weekend in Eugene at Granny and PapaGuchi's house along with Auntie Stephie. Abi's become quite an animated talker so with all the loves she got, she was quite noisy! It was wonderful to see wonderful friends through the weekend at the Nichols' Christmas party and other friends (shout out to Wendy!). Thanks to Granny and Papa for babysitting too so Steven and I could go out with friends. So, just another week and we'll head back down to Eugene to celebrate Christmas; we're excited Auntie Evie is going to be flying in from NYC this year too.

Abi's had an eventful week. She was 12 wks on Monday. Apparently she's decided that means time for firsts! We're on a streak of sleeping for 8 hours at night (yay!), she picked up a rattle and put it in her mouth (fun!) and today.... she rolled from her tummy to her back!