Lots of Changes

I really don't know where to begin. The past 6 months have flown by in a bit of a blur. Just a few highlights...in brief...

In November 2008, God opened the way for us to buy a home here in Columbus (Dublin, Ohio). We moved in just before Thanksgiving, which was a very busy time for us, with all the holidays and traveling right around the corner. We are less than 5 minutes from church which is so nice. We look forward to the opportunities that He will give us to be able to open and share with others for His honor and glory.

At the end of February, the Lord called us to the ministry here in our small congregation in Columbus. We were a bit taken back, okay, shocked, when we received a phone call from our counseling Elder in Mansfield (1 hour away). We are humbled and overwhelmed at this special calling and we truly feel this is the Lord's doing... We are so thankful for the much needed support and prayers that we have felt from our brethren, family and friends during this time of transition in our lives. The Lord truly provided and continues to provide words and inspiration through His spirit for Scott to minister His word in truth. The Lord can truly work in our hearts and lives if we are willing to be used. Please continue to keep us in your prayers.

March 12th we celebrated our 3rd wedding anniversary. The Lord has blessed us with many opportunities to prove His presence and faithfulness in our life. We are thankful He has lead us together, and what a blessing that He is the center of our union. We are blest that He continues to work in our lives - to mold and make us for His service and glory. We enjoyed a dinner for two at Bonefish Grill. Very delicious to say the least.

On April 8th, we were blessed with a sweet baby girl, Briana Elyse. She weighed in at 9 pounds even, 20" long and a little dark hair - but not much at all, and is now of course losing it. She is a good baby. Of course, the first couple weeks were a little rough - all around, but we are all adjusting very well, now. She sleeps 6-8 hours through the night!! So I'm not complaining.

An additional update on the girls...

It took Alayna about 4 weeks to adjust to Briana. She was very whiney, and cried about everything for the first several weeks. I thing she was possibly teething too. She is doing so much better now. She went from slapping and knocking on Briana's head, to more lighter pats. We're still working on her gentleness with Briana. Alayna loves to give her hugs and kisses, wave to her, and babble right in her face. She laughs and squeals when she sees Briana or hears her making noises. Several times Alayna starts to cry or gets sad when Briana starts crying. Alayna loves the outdoors and all the animals that she sees, especially dogs. She loves to go with Daddy when he's outside doing yard work. She is saying a lot of words - just the other day she put her first two words together... "no more". She is getting a lot more vocal these days as she loves to babble and ramble on and on!! She has gone potty on the toilet, but we are a ways from being potty trained...However, she does love to read her books when she is sitting there!! She loves her books!

Briana is already 6 weeks old. She weighed in at 10 pounds 10 ounces last Friday. She started cooing at about 3 weeks old, and started following us and smiling at us at just a few days old. It doesn't take much to get her to smile and acknowledge us these days, as you can see in the pictures below. Some people from church said she looks like Scott, and others have mentioned she favors the Kellenbergers. I can't tell.

As turkey hunting season has come and gone, Scott is very excited that his efforts for turkey hunting were not in vain, as he brought home 2 jake turkeys this year (the limit per season). He is very glad it is over though, as his “days off” started at 4am driving an hour north. However, this was his first time back hunting since we were married and I am glad it was successful and enjoyable for him.

Mother's day was an extra special one with the added blessing of Briana. I am realizing more and more what my mother and all mothers go through raising their precious little ones. They truly are a blessing and so worth investing the time and effort to raise them for the Lord. Scott made me breakfast and dinner, and it was very delicious.

I planted flowers in pots for the first time, and I’m very excited about it and the fact they haven’t died yet. Scott did help me, as being a beginner I really don’t have a clue...but learning. (I think I have too many flowers in that small of a pot, We'll see if they survive) It really is exciting to watch things blossom and come to life. It's been awhile since I/we had a lawn/landscape/space for flowers, etc. As being in an apartment we really didn't even think of these things, nor had room for them. We are really enjoying this time of year.

We are so thankful for the Lord's blessings as he is working and continues to work in our life. The best thing is that with all the changes in life...God is never changing, and as that hymn professes "in every change he faithful will remain". So true.

P.s. I may not be a frequent blogger, but I'll do my best at keeping pictures current with updates of what's going on as much as possible. Keep checking back. It just may not be updated as often as you check it.