Our Day

Bike riding

Grace went on her first bike ride with our family. She thought it was great fun just putting on the helmet. We ride a lot in the summers to the Bike Inn an outdoor restaurant that is right on the bike path. They have some farm animals and a sled that takes you down a hill on rollers. We usually go at nights for ice cream and sometimes there are a bunch of kids for our boys to play soccer with. The summers are so great here and we are really enjoying the warm weather. Grace loves being outside and one of her favorite things to do is jump on the trampoline. She actually doesn't jump just runs and falls down,but to her it is great fun. I am sitting outside typing right now and Grace is joyfully singing as she pushes her stroller around the yard. The stroller is definitely her favorite toy. I can't get her to put her baby dolls in it yet, but she manages to put just about everything else in her stroller.
Grace did better with greeting everyone at church this week and I think she wasn't as overwhelmed by all the people. She sat in her stroller at church again and did great and fell asleep about halfway through the service. She is slowly letting us hold her more and loves to point at everything for a full explanation of what it is. It will be such a joyful day when she is truly able to freely give us love. We continue to pray for Gods guidance and wisdom in training our children we know we are so inadequate for this task, but God's great mercy and grace continue to amaze us.

Grace's first bike ride

Birthdays,Anniversaries and Performances

Mike and I have been married 18 years today WOW!! Where has all the time gone? We have shared so much of our lives with each other and have so many special memories. Each year I look back at where God has been working in our lives to refine us as a couple and am so grateful to have such a wonderful husband to lead our family. Today was an unusually busy Sunday we all went to church then back to our house to celebrate Bekah's 2nd birthday. Sandy made a wonderful icecream cake and the frosting looked spectacular. Brent must of worked hours to get the icing design just right. It was really yummy!!! The kids had a great time playing in the warm sunshine. We were just hanging out enjoying the celebration when we had to wrap it up and head to Eamons gymnastic show. He did fabulous and we got super pictures of his performance. Of course Grace couldn't be left out so we got some shots of her doing her first headstand. We had Rob Margaret and cousins back for dinner and cake. It was another great Sunday full of worship, great food, friends and fellowship.

May 20, 2007

The Sign of the Covenant

Having spent my entire Christian life in credo-baptist churches, I never had an understanding of the covenant - who is "in" the covenant, how you get "into" it, what it brings with it and what the responsibilities are of those God has made covenant with. I understand the sign of the covenant to be baptism and as such have applied that sign and seal to our children - this day we celebrated Grace's receiving of the same. Will this baptism alone save her - no; is it a means of effectual grace to be applied to the elect - yes. God added to our number and we obediently responded in faith by promising publicly in the sacrament of baptism to pray with and for her and to raise Grace in a home that provides Christian nurture.
Does Grace believe that a table is really a table? Yes. Why? Because I told her. In the same way, she can know that Christ died on the cross for her sins at a very early age. While faith remains a supernatural gift, God can use Christian parents as human agents to frequently communicate this gift as they fulfil their covenant obligations. I expect that Grace's understanding of her savior will continue to develop, mature and be personally embraced as she grows in stature (and wisdom)!
Praise be to God.

Grace is baptized on Mother's Day

Finally home!!!!

Living out of a suitcase for more than 6 weeks is way too long. We have been back in Germany 2 weeks and are finally over jet lag. Grace is doing wonderful and is a real trooper when it comes to traveling. She loves our boys and I think it was a huge relief for her when she realized she wasn't just stuck with Mike and I. She is such a blessing to all of us and a great joy. She imitates everything we do and say and is really a super easy little girl. We are still working on her giving us love and hugs, but we know that will come with time. We are so thankful for Gods abundant blessings in our lives and this precious child he has given to us.

Our Time IN New Jersey

New Jersey

We had a great time visiting everyone in New Jersey. We took Grace to the zoo; she loved the stroller ride, but wasn't that interested in the animals. She really enjoys following her brothers around and she is really trying to talk. She says about 10 English words now. Grace is beginning to realize if you eat enough finger foods it fills you up. Her favorite food right now is french fries, but we try not to give her too many. She also eats egg yolks,bacon and of course rice. She still is happy to eat baby food because she can eat it quickly and it fills her up. She is totally attached to her bottle and gets very excited when she sees me making it. It is the only time she really likes me to hold her so I am glad we have that time together.
Grace is happy to play and entertain herself all day so we have really been trying to engage her in play which she loves. She likes to get on the boys scooter and have them push her on it up and down the sidewalk. We went to visit my sister and the boys took the canoe out on the lake while I pushed Grace on the swings. She was afraid to look up in the beginning but then really enjoyed it. She has a great time playing with her brothers and cousins. We look forward to moving back to the States so we can come and visit more often.