Moving Forward

Last week, we marked nineteen months and one day since we met Annie. It happens that Annie was nineteen months and one day old the day we met her. My heart is filled with so many emotions as we now move forward. From this point on, Annie will have a family longer than she went without.

We've come a long way in the last nineteen months. I have to remind myself of that on the days that aren't so easy. There have been a lot more of those lately. I suspect a lot of it has to do with changing routines - Papa and Nana have left, Daddy's been working at the pumpkin patch - she's had a little bit of upheaval again.

The good news is that she's gaining the language to be able to express her needs and feelings. She is aware when she is crying and when she is happy. She misses her mommy and daddy when we aren't around. She is feeling safe enough around us to unload the emotions that overwhelm her.

So we give her a soft place to fall. And we give ourselves grace when we fall as well. As we fall together, we celebrate the fact that family helps each other up, and we move forward.

Aaron and Hur

This is one of my favorite passages in the book of Exodus. Whenever I read it, I remember the friends who lifted me up during a personal crisis three years ago. How timely that this week, we studied this very story in BSF and I had the privilege of lifting up one of those same friends this week. God is good.

Halloween 2014

Dayna has become a huge Bethany Hamilton (Soul Surfer) fan this year. What a great role model to emulate! It was fun watching her come up with her costume - including painstaking detail to the logos on the surfboard. (We did stipulate she needed to be Bethany before the accident.)

Our little stinker was awfully cute, too!

Pumpkins

We're not big on carving pumpkins around here, but painting them sure is fun!

More from the Pumpkin Patch

Another October - another several trips to the pumpkin patch. It was a lot more fun this year for Annie as she was more mobile and interested in the goings-on at Vala's.

Mayhew Cabin / John Brown's Cave

Dayna is learning to share her mother's love for historical fiction. She's been reading about the Underground Railroad. This year, we decided to add to our Nebraska City trip with a tour through the Mayhew Cabin and John Brown's Cave. The cabin was a stop along the Underground Railroad. Through the cellar was a hidden tunnel where the slaves escaped to a waiting wagon on their way to freedom.

Annie - Fall 2014

We may have ensured her cooperation for pictures with the promise of an apple donut.

Dayna - Fall 2014

Girls

Family Pictures

Time for our annual family pictures in Nebraska City. It seems the more people we add to the family, the harder it is to get a picture of everyone. It was still a fun, beautiful day.