New Beginnings

There's a reason Easter falls during springtime. The new covenant bursts to life as Jesus rises, the firstborn from the dead. And new life springs up in the grass and trees.

This year we added another new beginning!

We moved into our new house!

It took lots of help, but there was so much meaning to our church family showing up to help us out and then celebrating the Lord's Supper with them that night. That's the message of communion: 

Love one another!

Virgil installing light fixtures, Aunt Sue the super-cleaner, and that's Joe outside the window, painting doors. Not pictured, Steven, Uncle Joe, and Kailey.

Before they left we had that awfully cluttered living room you see in the corner there, not only...

Clean! But furniture moved in, too!
(No, he did not clean it, but he does love the dustpan for some reason.)

Eddie recognized the old furniture! He was a happy camper.
He was amazingly able to sense this is our home now!

As soon as the utilities were back on, we settled in! (Ok, not completely, of course, there are still boxes to unpack and the never ending list of projects---but, we're home!)

There's nothing quite like being a part of an old, in many ways broken-down house becoming "new". It's amazing the appreciation and new light shed on the glorious work called redemption: something worthless and un-lovely being made useful and lovely again. Specifically regarding all the hard work, perseverance, and sacrifice such an undertaking requires. But I think there's also more joy and satisfaction than would be possible from just giving up on the un-lovely thing starting over.

And for the (semi)finished photo you're all waiting for...

We had some visitors!

Honeymooners stopped in to see us (yeah, we're pretty special, folks).

Button down shirts and shorts was apparently the hip style for Saturday brunch!

There was celebration for that new beginning too, a fresh, new marriage. Stories of their driving down the California coast made me reminiscent of our first weeks after our wedding. It's an unrepeatable experience, everything new and exciting and romantic!

But back to our new beginnings, Easter, and all that!

Coming down the mountain from sunrise service Easter morning.

After the early service, we all have brunch back at church followed by the Easter program. I think my favorite part of the program was the youngest kids', just 3 years old, and they said bravely into the microphone in front of everyone: "Christ is risen!" "He is risen indeed!" Soon it'll be Eddie up there!

Here's a close up of his cuteness:

The only picture I got was the one with the obnoxious hot pink vynl sticker (thanks Uncle Steven!),

but those blue eyes and that bow tie? So precious!

Easter afternoon was restful and wonderful! We were back at Tom and Jody's, which feels like home after living there for so long! Delicious appetizers (except the traditional jello eggs I made, they may have tasted delicious, but they certainly didn't look appetizing, not one came out of the mold in one piece!), warm weather on the back porch with the kids playing in the yard, Eddie offering the dog his sippy cup (yuck!), an enthusiastic game of Dominion (I have to rub it in a bit, Jonathan was so sure of his victory, but in the final count I actually won! So satisfying!), a delicious dinner of ham (along with the question, how did we ever get from the Jewish feast of Passover to celebrating Easter and our Jewish Christ's resurrection with something as un-kosher as ham?!), and sharing some of our favorite and meaningful Easter songs as we enjoyed the meal. 

"And he who was seated on the throne said, "Behold, I am making all things new." Also, he said, "Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true."

Revelation 21:5

Miss Katie May, No Longer a Miss

Are they not just the sweetest, most darling lovebirds?

We paused the craziness of working on the house (more on that later) for a weekend of celebration with my dear friend, Katie, in Magdalena. Katie and I became the best of friends when God placed us in each other's lives. I remember when I first arrived at Tucson airport for the first time. The girl with her nose buried in her book in the backseat of the Schick suburban that took me to Mexico seemed so different than me. I doubted we'd hit it off very well. We just didn't seem to have that much in common.

Only Narnia,

and thrifting,

and Jane Austen,

Adventures in Oddessy,

4-H memories,

Phil Wickham, JJ Heller, John Mark McMillan, and a hundred other musicians,

and coffee,

nutella,

and all things vintage,

long walks and talks,

an affinity for sweaters and sandals,

and, above all, Jesus.

He's all you need in common anyway.

If I had to sum up Katie and I's friendship, I'd have to say "iron sharpening iron" at it's finest. To the glory of God, He made us friends to make us better lovers of Him. And we both miss the days when we lived just a few minutes away from each other, spent time together almost daily, shared life together. Now, we have to settle for sweet visits in person--her to California or me to Mexico, skype dates, and text conversations.

When Jonathan came into the picture, Katie dubbed him "the BFF-in-law". A title he takes very seriously. I'm so glad he could take time off to come to the big weekend with me. My moral support as I rather bittersweet-ly stood by my best friend while she gained a new best friend. As it should be, as it should be, I remind myself. *tear*

And we of course brought Eddie along for the ride. He loves Katie a lot too. The first time they met, he was smitten. I seem to remember his totally dazed, relaxed, and completely in-love, look into her eyes as he lay on her lap. And he's been to CVE several times, but each time he's more interactive (and a tad bit more clingy, I have to admit. Partly his age, and partly so much love from so many people; I don't think he gets it yet.).

 

Walking the streets of the this town I love so much, with these people and others I love so much.

Speaking of people I love,

this talented, beautiful, special girlie was in there! 

We always seem to miss each other when either of us are in Magdalena. I haven't seen her in ages! And it was her first time meeting lil' Eddie! She's blossoming into such a lovely woman!

The above photo was taken at the pre-ception: the big party the night before the wedding. All the guests were there celebrating and enjoying the yummy tacos and soft serve ice cream. I think my favorite moment has to be when the bridesmaids joined in with the background music serenading Katie and Denver with "their" song. And the decor? Just what you'd expect from Katie May. Like that super creative book wall! 

And the chalkboard was a big hit!

#katiesdreamteam (minus one, not sure where Karalea was off to)

It was such a joy and honor to get to hang out with these ladies as we loved and supported Katie through the wedding weekend! Katie as a common denominator made us all fast friends, even though we represent different spheres of Katie's life. They are all amazing women, and we had a blast!

The best we could do for a snapshot with the happy couple.

And I have to say, Denver is a sweet guy, and super blessed beyond compare to get to be the one to marry my Katie. There were some sweet and very romantic moments witnessed throughout the weekend, but my personal favorite was being right behind them as they walked out of church after the service. He swung her in a celebratory circle, both of them incandescently happy!

And they're off! "Just Casados"

Emerson Way: A Christmas to Remember

Remember that year we closed on our fixer upper house on December 23rd? Oh yeah, the one where we spent Christmas Eve tearing out the kitchen! That was crazy!

We did do other things.

Christmas Tree Lane, now just a short walk from home.

Hanukkah--I love celebrating the Festival of Lights! Something about the glow of adding another candle every night till it looks like this! It's magical, and so full of meaning!

Eddie's new Christmas toy! He was thrilled! Soon after this, he decided to make walking solo is primary form of transportation. By my birthday he was officially "toddling".

By the time family left just after the new year, we were settled in at Grammy's, out of our apartment, well underway with projects at Emerson House, and pretty tired! Just a week later, friends flew across the country with a suitcase of tools and helped Jonathan replace all the electrical in just one weekend. After they left, the floors were refinished with plenty of time to dry and harden as we were off to Illinois for some much needed rest. We'll be back at it next week, with the help of my parents who are coming for a whole week to hopefully bring us that much closer to moving in!

It's been challenging, exhausting, exciting, frustrating, and amazing all at the same time! It feels right, and we know it's right!

And this guy's pretty excited about it too!

I'm Thankful For...

 ...Eddie and Grandpa,

 Eddie and Grandma.

I'm thankful for the sweet treat of spending a week with them and everyone else we love in Magdalena.

I'm thankful for...

 ...how much Eddie obviously adores Katie. This is very important.

(Oh, and that chocolate goatee, he's not allowed to be able to pull that off.)

 I'm thankful for adventures.

Supervised adventures, that is.

 Chewing face! Nice catch, Grandma!

Hey, if you only had front teeth you'd have to resort to the same technique.

Oh, words can't describe how thankful I am for this happy boy!

Since getting home from Magdalena last weekend, he's been doing this adorable thing. After we tickle him, which we apparently do a lot, he tickles himself while, in a very high-pitched voice imitates the "tickle-tickle" noise we must make. So. Cute. I. Can't. Stand. It!

 Oh, he also takes steps. 

Which he's very proud of himself for doing.

Except when he falls down, then he's just frustrated and confused.

 This special place, with these special people.

 He's decided he really likes birthday parties, 

so we're going to drag out this celebrating thing.

 He actually really loves his tias, but sometimes he doesn't show it very well.

 "Hold it for me, Momma, I don't want to get my hands dirty."

 One is FUN!

Mmmm. Delicious.

And beautiful.

Happy Thanksgiving, 2014

Sweet Princess Keyla

Sharing her kitten with Eddie.

It was such a joy to be with Keyla in June when we visited Magdalena! Though her body was breaking, her overflowing joy, contagious smile, and absolutely royal manner revealed the Creator's mighty hand was on her. She was so full of His love then, now she's engulfed in it, in Him, held in His arms, kissed by His lips, knowing the fullest joy, and I'm sure, leading the chorus--"Yes! Jesus loves me!"

"Though in this moment we may weep,

The grave is not the final word.

The song that spread the skies will make our bodies rise,

The day that He returns."

Suddenly it's November

While I've been meaning to post more regularly, and set the goal of more than one blog post per month, somehow time got away from me and here we are in November. How did that happen? Eddie is almost a year old! Unbelievable!

Anyway...allow me to document the past few weeks.

Probably most notably for Jonathan an I, our tentative search for a house became more serious when we encountered one worth pursuing. It all became very real as we sat down with our realtor and she talked us through an offer proposal. After a few days, as expected, they counter-offered above our price range, and we let the idea of that being our house fade away. While we knew we were unlikely to actually get the house, it was fun to dream and wonder. Since then, we've continued looking, even seriously considering a few, but trying to be patient and continue surrendering to the One who knows His plans for us, His place for us, and His perfect timing for us.

Two little "punkins"!

The weather is finally cooling down (after a legitimate rain this past weekend, Praise the Lord!) and with it crisp, fall air, worthy of sweatshirts. We even had an early taste of it a week ago when we made a weekend trip to Big Bear. It's that time of year, time for ski patrol training days, and it's always nice when Eddie and I get to go along and enjoy some mountain time.

Shortly after arriving, since Jonathan wasn't occupied until the next day, we enjoyed an afternoon hike. It was called Castle Rock; as we made our way up, huge boulders made for some spectacular fun!

 This one looks like it was stopped by this tree!

 By this point, Eddie had fallen asleep.

Poor guy, it was nap time!

 He perked up!

 And when we let him out...then he was having a ball!

Actually, we got him out and he and I played in a pretty flat spot while Dad finished the hike. The last few yards to the top of the "castle" required some climbing that was pretty difficult with a baby carrier.

 Oh, he's so handsome!

The only pictures I took were on our hike, but we enjoyed our stay at a quaint but nice lodge-style hotel just a few blocks from a sweet little "ski-town-esque" downtown. The Copper Q provided some lovely hot drinks--peppermint lattes and dark chocolate mochas, there were lots of interesting little shops selling gifts and souvenirs, and the sidewalks boasted welcoming benches around cozy fire pits for the chilly evenings. 

Jonathan completed his ski patrol training, so now all we need is some snow! And, as I mentioned we actually got some rain a few days ago which gave the mountains a little dusting supposedly. 

And this little guy?

 He's been busy! Playing,

(he really does great entertaining himself)

 working on his balance,

(pushing chairs across the kitchen, walking along the bookshelves and couch)

and eating!

(his current favorite is peas, go figure!)

 Last week costumes were encouraged at family dinner, and with his current affection for his Curious George stuffed toy, I couldn't resist dressing him up like The Man With The Yellow Hat. Unfortunately, he wouldn't wear the hat, which is kind of what makes the outfit. Oh well, we tried!

Another favorite pastime of Eddie's: dirt! If we're outside, he immediately finds the nearest dirt source--handfuls come out of the planters on the patio, indoor potted plants aren't safe either.

All boy!

It's also been fun to see his preferences develop! He lunges for the stroller and begs to go on walks, definitely loves being outside!

And he's pretty fond of this guy.

Me too!