So Long Ordinary

Did October seem really fast to anybody else? I suppose that moving and settling into a new home might have something to do with it. Wowzers . We're doing well. Still fighting a cold - each of us in our own way - but I think we're nearly done with that. This cold has really taken a toll on everybody (including the grandparents, who had it the worst, bless their elderly little hearts. wink. wink. ). Sean has been tearing down walls. In the garage. And he made the three most awesomest bookshelves you ever did see. They are my favorite and I'll never let them go. And he's fixed or installed countless little things this house has needed. I tell you what. Having a handyman for a husband is, well, just downright handy . I've been organizing (or trying to) and I seem to be doing a lot of the ordinary daily stuff like laundry and dishes already. Guess that means we're gettin' good and settled! It's fun to cook meals in my own kitchen again. It's fun to g...

The picture above is a Waorani (Auca) Christian in Tiwaeno, Ecuador. These people are full of joy . In the middle of the jungle, laughter rings out, people joke and tease, and God is praised. All that joy? It's about Jesus. They understand His love, His sacrifice for them, His forgiveness. They trust His love. They bask in it. They know they don't deserve it. God's love isn't for sale. You can't trade for it. You can't barter your way into His love. You just get it - whether you want it or not. Since returning to the States I've suffered from what my mom has dubbed the "missionary complex." That is, I have a very hard time accepting the blessings of life in America. I see all my nice, new stuff and I feel extreme guilt. I don't deserve this. I'm not "suffering for Jesus," no longer serving as a foreign missionary. I really hate admitting this but....every blessing we've had up to this point made sense to me. In my pride, ...

I'm just plain tuckered out. It's The Two Year Old doing this to me... You probably think I should place equal blame on her sisters too. (The emotional five-year-old and the ever-growing kicker in my belly. ) You would also say that my current "condition" in addition to the lingering cold in my chest are wearing me a little thin as well. You would most likely be right. But this post is about The Two Year Old. The fact is that the only one who makes me run/waddle after her just for sheer pleasure is The Two Year Old. The only one who screams as I pry dangerous objects out of her sticky grip is The Two Year Old. The only one who strips off her clothes...and then her dirty diaper before I can push myself out of the couch is The Two Year Old. The only one who stuffs tiny torn pieces of Kleenex into the printer is The Two Year Old. The only one who pulls caramel apple dip off the counter and spreads it all over herself and the house is The Two Year Old. The only one w...

Folks, we live THREE - count them three - miles from Wal-Mart. When you are settling into a new home this can be dangerous. Three times yesterday we breezed through their automatic doors, not to mention countless times in the days before.... It's not a good sign when the greeters stop greeting you because they've seen you so much. They're beginning to think we work there. Ha! Even better. We're the ones paying their paychecks. And their Christmas bonus. After living so far from anything resembling a Wal-Mart, we sure have adjusted to its availability quickly. It does occur to me to go somewhere else but - oh yeah! - there isn't anywhere else. I want to make that clear, people. In this little town, Wal-Mart - SUPER Wal-Mart, mind you - is king, queen, and court jester. We love the smallness of our town, don't get me wrong. But, Wal-Mart could use a little competition, don'tyathink? Say, a Target perhaps? (Oh, you all thought I was spending all my tim...

Yup, we love it! We've been staying in our new house since Thursday (though we were gone over the weekend to visit a church) and we just couldn't be happier. We feel so incredibly blessed to have this little red house as our own. It's taking some time to unpack all the tubs and boxes, but we're really moving right along as far as settling in. Let's face it, we've had some practice in moving over the years and we almost have moving/settling down to a science by now. It certainly helps to have lots of help, too :-) (I know, I've mentioned this before and I'll stop there - even though I could still go on and on about our wonderful parents and family.) The girls are quite content in their new room. Maddie is even sleeping in a big girl bed now! It's fun to see our girls sharing their bunkbed and playing together in their room. The baby room is storage for our tubs for now :-) We have some motivation to get that room cleared out by Christmas, though...

It is official. Baby Number Three is another girl!! We've known this for a while, but the doctor in Mexico did not give us the kind of certainty we were looking for when she told us it "wasn't a boy...yet." Don't ask. Long story. Anyway, we did another ultrasound today and we are very sure now that the new baby's room must be pink...or purple...or some other girlie color. Though a nice light blue could be quite cute for a little girl's room...hmmmm.... And no, we aren't disappointed. We love our third daughter 100% already and we're thrilled that we get to raise three girls together. It really only matters that she is healthy - which she is. And no, this doesn't mean we'll try again for a boy. I just wanted to clear that up for ya'll :-) Now it's time to corner my husband on a name. Wish me luck.

Life is a bit on the hectic and chaotic side these days! We closed on our house on Friday (Woo-hoo!) and have been busily working to get it ready to move into ever since. Well, that isn't strictly true - we did leave for the weekend to visit and thank a supporting church. But this has been a FULL week of cleaning and painting. Mostly painting. Who knew such a small house could require so much work, time and money? Seriously. Who knew? But, we are starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel. My father-in-law has had to come out of his retirement and begin a new career as a painter. And he's good. He hasn't even complained (and goodness knows, I would have by now). Sean and his dad (with some help from my mom-in-law and myself) have spent hours - no days - now painting every paintable surface in our house. It looks so awesome. Yup, we all bit off more than we could chew, but it sure will be worth it! Easy for me to say, right? I mean lookee here, I even ha...

Well, hello, there! Yeah, I'm still alive. And I have way too much to say to catch you up on our new life in the United States of America. We've been back just over one month - and what a full month it has been! Hmm.....where to begin? We love it here. We absolutely love that we get to settle here in Colorado. Did I mention that I cried when the U.S. customs guy told us "Welcome back"? Had no idea THAT would happen! I have truly loved and enjoyed every minute of life overseas (well, 98% of the time). But I'm proud to be an American. Yup, even during the current political and economic crud, I'm glad I'm an AMERICAN! Yes, there have been "reverse culture shock" moments. They come at the most unexpected moments (like in church) but, to be honest, we don't feel that out of touch when it comes to our own culture vs. the cultures we've lived in these past several years. We've honestly been too busy to acknowledge much that is go...