Christmas 2012

It was strange this year to think that this is the last Christmas we will be having in the states for a while, so we have been taking the time to cherish the little things.....Christmas lights on the houses, a real tree, even Christmas music on the radio. We've heard bits and pieces of what Christmases are like in Indonesia, but it's hard to imagine what it will be like for us.

We went to my parent's house in Bellevue for a few days and celebrated with my side of the family. It was a nice time relaxing and spending quality time with family. The only bummer is that we've been battling sickness for a couple of weeks now, but overall we still had a great time.

 Cousins having a great time. Jameson looks like he's wondering what to think of all of this.

 Uncle Jake playing with Callie. She's always shy at first, but he can get her to warm up fast.

 Eva (left) and Callie with her new hippo flashlight

                            Blake with the new remote control car that uncle Rich gave him, and Callie with her new  

                            stroller. So much fun!

 Looks like Santa left us a cute little Christmas bundle!

Having way too much fun playing with toys! My dad's face looks like a little boy that just saw Santa Clause!

 Blake being a goofball as usual

 Wonder where Blake got it from?

 Stockings!

Uncle Jake holding Eva. How sweet!

Upcoming Decision Date!

 

We wanted to update everyone on our status as far as support and how things are looking regarding when we will attend final training and be leaving for Indonesia. January 2nd is a big day! MAF will be evaluating our support status and will either give us the okay to attend the required ten weeks of final training starting in February, or we will be delayed for another several months and attend the summer training. We have been planning on the February training and are getting so close to our goal, so please pray with us that our support comes in and that we'll be approved to attend in February. This has been a long road for us and we are so ready to get to Indonesia!

We are now at 82% of our monthly goal and still need 52 new ongoing monthly partners of $25 per month (quarterly or annual commitments are okay too) to be fully funded and ready to go and we won't be able to board a plane until we are at 100% of our monthly amount required.

 

Just a reminder that we have reached 100% of our one-time amount (praise God!) and any further one-time donations will go to the MAF general fund, OR one-time amounts can be sent to us directly to be used towards Indonesia set up costs and to purchase a vehicle when we get there (this option however is NOT tax deductible). Another option for folks who are considering an end-of-year gift is to make an annual commitment to give each December through at least our first term overseas.  We understand that the amount given each year can fluctuate and that's okay... what's important is that we know of your intention.  End-of-year gifts without an ongoing commitment will be processed into the MAF general fund, but a commitment will allow us to add you to our ongoing team and fulfill that last 20%!

Thank you to each of you who have helped us get to this point and for those who have continually lifted us up in prayer. We are so grateful for you!

Clinging to Immanuel

The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel, which means "God with us." Matthew 1:23

It's hard for me (Ellie) not to get into the minds of the parents, the police officers, the children that survived such unspeakable horror and imagine what they are feeling......and an overwhelming heaviness and grief descends on me (as I'm sure it does countless others). As a parent it's excruciating to even fathom what those poor families are going through in the wake of the elementary school shooting in Newtown, CT. It doesn't matter that I don't know them or that they are thousands of miles away, they were innocent children....and I have children of my own. Yesterday when I saw the news, all I could say was "no, no, please God no".....and I cried. And my mom and I cried over the phone together. And then I cried out to God.

Not coincidentally, the word Immanuel keeps going through my mind and it's meaning "God is with us." It reminds me that He came to this earth in the form of a baby boy to be with us, to suffer with us. He knows grief. In fact, He knows it more than we could ever imagine. The story of the death of Lazarus in John 11 also comes to mind. When Jesus saw Mary (the sister of Lazarus) and the others weeping after Lazarus died, he was "deeply moved in spirit and troubled" and he wept with them. Even though He knew that He was about to raise Lazarus from the dead, He couldn't bear to see them grieving. Oh, how He loves us.

While reflecting on this in the car I heard a song by Aaron Shust entitled "My Hope is in You." Sometimes the only thing we can do is cling to that hope.....hope found through a tiny baby boy in a manger. He was with us back then, and He is with us now.

Cling to His characteristics and His truths. Here are a few that stood out to me:

"The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love..." Psalm 103:8

"God is light, in Him there is no darkness at all" 1 John 1:5.

"Put your hope in the LORD, for with the LORD is unfailing love and with him is full redemption." Psalm 130:7









 

  

Eva Grace has Arrived!



Wow....we had every intention of keeping up our blog but lately things have been a little crazy! We apologize for the late notice, but our little Eva Grace has finally arrived! One week after her due date I was induced, on November 3rd. To be honest, I really did not want to be induced, but it ended up being a huge blessing! It was the most relaxed labor and delivery I've had, and we didn't have to worry about getting to the hospital in time. Once labor started, she was born after only 2 1/2 hours! She weighed 8lb 8oz and was born at 2:18pm on November 3rd....she shares a birthday with her grandma Scheer!

We are doing well, though I will say that it's been quite an adjustment for all of us, mostly because our life hasn't slowed down much and we are not getting much sleep (not surprisingly!), though that has been a little better lately. We've tried to keep up with our goal of finishing our support team by the end of the year and have been gearing up for some travel as well. Eva is such a sweet baby and it's pretty cute to see how Blake and Callie have reacted to her. They both shower her with kisses and love to watch her sleep. Blake is such a sweet older brother and we can tell that he just adores her. The transition has been tough at times too. Callie is almost 18 months now and doesn't quite understand all of the changes going on, so she has been extra clingy. She also gets nervous and insecure every time we prepare to travel somewhere. It can make it difficult to pack! Blake has also been struggling with acting out, so we could use prayer for patience for both of them and for quick adjustment for the whole family. In addition to a new baby, we have also had to go through several other transitions including travel, transitioning Blake and Callie into sharing a room, and saying goodbye to our cat, Taz, as we dropped him off at his new home this week.

Here are some pictures of our new baby girl. We thank God for this new little life and what a joy she is!

Proud grandma Barb 

Watching baby sister sleep!

 

Big brother Blake....he's so proud!

 

 Callie checking out her new sister

 

 My handsome little man

 

Sleeping on grandpa