Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Little did I know...

what my August would bring

This month has been pretty amazing. When I started to catalog the events in my brain the other day, I thought maybe I would just share them.

~We began the month with the first offer on our house since it has been for sale since November. We are waiting to get all the approvals from the bank right now, but if all goes well, we will close September 30th. In case you are wondering, yes that is three days after I am due. We will see what happens.
~Not so important, but slightly life changing: my stone-age phone died, and I finally broke down and got a new phone. My new phone has a full keyboard which is totally revolutionizing my texting. Oh yes, I love it.
~Rob turned big number 30, and we had a surprise birthday party for him and Jordan Heijermans. It was a blast. If you know Rob and Jordan, it won't surprise you at all that their birthdays are one day apart and they were both turning 30.
~The next day my sister and her family took off for South Carolina. We are surviving so far although it is a little heart-breaking to hear Brynne saying "Cade far away in South Carolina". She is still figuring out why she can't see her cousin any old time.
~We experienced an earthquake. I was taking a nap, and it shook me awake. It was pretty crazy.
~We rounded out the month with a hurricane. The best part about the weather, is that it gave us an excuse to flee to Charlottesville - one of our favorite places. We are trying to keep track of what is going on at home, but are glad to be away from the craziness.

Did I mention I only have four weeks until Brooke Aran arrives? We cannot wait!

I'm so glad God is in charge and not me. He is a sweet Father to us in all situations.

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

32 Years (and no, I'm not talking about my age)

Do you remember writing little notes and making cards for your parents when you were little? I remember that I always used to end just about everything with "Thanks for being the best mom / dad / parents in the world." I love that even though I am now 29 and have my own family, I still think I have the best parents in the world.

Today, Dad and Mom celebrate 32 years of being together. I celebrate with them. I rejoice because they have exemplified a Christ-honoring relationship in front of me for every moment I can remember. The greatest example I have seen in them is a consistent walk with God. They showed me how to love Jesus when we were at home, when we were in the car, when we were with our church, when we were on vacation, when we played, and when we worked. Their relationship to one-another has had a tremendous impact on my marriage, my parenting, and my walk with God. I cannot get over the gift of parents like Dave and Judi Coats. I can daily see God's grace to me through them.

Congrats Dad and Mom. I love you so much!

Monday, August 08, 2011

Saying Goodbye

People are often surprised to hear that while I am from Wisconsin, both my sister and brother and their families ended up living here in Virginia with us. Of course, this was not necessarily a strange coincidence as we all decided on the same seminary. But it is still pretty funny to think about sometimes. I often get asked "When are your parents moving here?".

While I never expected all of us to live so close to each other over the past few years, I have enjoyed the experience so much. We have regularly held "family dinners" which besides great food have held a lot of interesting conversations and much laughter. I also feel like we have enjoyed so many great things about this area together...the beach, DC, Outer Banks, Williamsburg, Busch Gardens...to name a few.

One thing I never imagined though is that my sister and I would deliver our first babies within two weeks of each other and experience becoming moms together. I cannot really say what that has meant to me. It was sweet to share the joys and struggles of the last two years with our sweet girls. Cade and Brynne are best friends. They certainly know how to get on each other's nerves and get each other in trouble, but they also get each other giggling faster than anyone else can. I was also able to hold my nephew Bryce on the day he was born, and see him grow to be 10 months old.

About a month ago my sister's husband was asked to be youth pastor in a church in South Carolina. While I could not be happier for this opportunity for them, I am having a hard time imagining them being seven hours away instead of five minutes. I guess we always knew this day would come eventually, I just tried not to think about what it would be like. I know most people live a great distance from family, and now it is our turn to experience a little of that. I have to be honest and say that I am pretty sad about it today.
I want to thank God for not only giving us the years here together, but giving me a family I love and enjoy. I know these are amazing gifts. I hope to focus on His goodness over the next few weeks and not just my feelings (although I'm sure being seven weeks from delivering a baby does not help with emotions! :) Thank you Jennie for being such a wonderful sister!

Praise God for the sweetness of His never-ending presence in an always changing world.