Marley (the dog) has a party!

This is the first birthday party Wyatt has attended so it was a pretty big deal to me! Here are some pics from the big event.

From the heart

We've been doing a lot of thinking these days...about who we are and who we want to be...about how we've changed, about the Lord....and though I find it hard to write out these thoughts without rambling on and on, I will attempt to share with you the workings of our hearts, if you will. I must preface this by saying that we have a deep love and perhaps an increasing pride in the US. I am very, very proud to tell others here that I am an American and in no way do I ever wish to be part of another country. We have downloaded every "patriotic song" we can think of (we did this for July 4th) and they always end up on the playlist when we take long road trips. :) We are so thankful for the roots that we have and we plan on passing these "roots" down to our children as best we can. I believe many people get so confused when they see us living overseas and tell themselves, "oh, they just don't like America" or "it is so easy for them, they just don't have the roots we do" or even, "they are just closer to the Father than we are"....All of these ideas are very false. In fact, for Levi and I it is a daily battle to be obedient to where we know the Father has us. We MISS home so much. We LONG for our families, our friends to know Wyatt, to help us raise him well, to give us insight and advice....We still feel like we NEED that so much! We battle! But when we go before the Father he reminds us that "his grace is sufficient for us, for in our weakness he is made stronger" It is not that we are "closer to him" it is that we are weak here.

We are more needy than ever before! What do I do with the people that are living under tarps just a couple of miles down the road? How do I handle all the beggars in my face every day? How do I cope with the fact that every morning I see my landlords (who have become like family) lighting a fire and putting seeds on it as they pray to statues who will do NOTHING for them. How do I process the fact that everyone I have told good news to in the past 2 years have not accepted? What do I do with all the idols that surround me? How do I tell everyone that Wyatt will not be worshiped on the day where they worship babies? Life here is HARD and HUMBLING....because we struggle, because we battle every day. So many times I have this "idea" of the perfect America where life is so easy, and everything would be so great if only we were back...and then the Father reminds me of how this time on the battlefield has refined my heart, my soul, my spirit. I am not the same...WE are not the same. We used to fight over so many petty things and I would continue fighting just to "win". (I could always win if I fought long enough:) Now, the Father has brought that pride to light and I am able to hold my tongue and practice restraint ( a new thing in my life!) I understand that to live a life in Him means to have self control and to love others. I also used to be so vain. I was so consumed in the way I looked or what material possessions I could find...that has also been stripped of me here and I don't miss it at all. I see the world through new eyes now. I have grown in wisdom, in love, in grace.

So we are here because the Father has told us to come. He tells everyone in Matt. to be involved in one way or another...for us, it was this way. We knew it, he confirmed it and we have not been told to leave. So we will stay as long as he allows and tells us to stay. You may think, but you are needed in America too...we say, no...that is what you are there for! If He hasn't told you to go, then you are being told to stay so that you can fulfill the command in Matt. 28:19-20. We are all commanded to fulfill this in one way or the other. For us, it was a scary step of faith that took us across the world. What will it look like for you?

These days

Well, my angel baby has had a tough couple of days and his mommy is just keeping my head above water! Wyatt has both of his bottom teeth now. They have broken through the skin but are not fully in yet. Now I believe he is also going through a growth spurt. So if he is not crying in pain, he is hungry! Needless to say, our sleeping baby is not sleeping so well and this only adds to the crankiness!

Levi and I are on a diet of sorts because the people we work for make us do a BMI to see if we are too big and right now I am normal but Levi is obese. (the BMI says I am normal but I have pounds to lose for sure) Granted, Levi will never be "normal" by this scale so we will have to send in a picture to show he is just muscle...but Levi wants to send a good picture! haha so we are on a diet. This means roasted veggies (yes, I got Levi to eat roasted zucchini last night even though he whined about it at first), raw veggies, no fried foods, no sweets, and no drinks with calories...(yes, Levi cheats but he is a guy and can afford to, right?) this is not so easy on hard days like today! I realize how much we reward ourselves with food. We have a stock of chocolate and dr. pepper for days when we dread traveling or have those "really hard days"

To make matters worse, Levi left today for a 3 day trip. Before he left we were going to teach together but because Wyatt was struggling so, I had to back out. (tough moment for me) Right before Levi left our house, I found some wipes that had been ripped apart in Wyatt's room....and that means a rat is in Wyatt's room! AAAAGGHHH!!!!

So tonight as I was laying Wyatt down to sleep and every 10 minutes he was rolling on his back and screaming at the top of his lungs, I found myself stressing out. I thought, "oh great, your schedule is ruined", "oh, I should try to let you just scream it out and then you may get tired and go to sleep", "oh, I need a vacation", ect. ect. I stopped myself and remembered that this moment with my screaming baby is a gift from the Lord. "But God, this is not the gift I was dreaming of when I was preggo". In this moment, I have the chance to praise..."yes, I will praise you...for you are to be glorified in all things" So, as I stood by Wyatt's crib, I held him in my arms rocking back and forth and singing Jesus, Jesus, Jesus...there's just something about that name....and I remembered how sweet it is to sing his praises in all situations...for these moments will pass all too quickly and I can't let them go without praising Him.

A special visit

Levi and I have had a very precious 10 days. Our old fellowship back in the states, Riverbend, came to spend 10 days with us so they can see what we do and join in on what our father is doing. How special that time was! We spent time in the word together every morning and spent every night playing spades. They loved on Wyatt and he loved all the attention! It was a painful goodbye and I had to once again seek the Lord about staying in a dry land while my closest friends and family are in the land flowing with milk and honey! I asked the Lord if it was our time to return and the answer was clear as I expected...no....for his ways are not my ways and He is faithful, sufficient, enough...

So while I miss America and my heart hurts at times, it is a good pain...a pain that reminds me that obedience is more valuable than sacrifice and that He is my provider, comforter, and the one who gives me more than I could ever ask or imagine....I feel that he has given me much more humility, love and patience than ever before. My heart is full most of the time, my pride is always brought to my attention and causes humility to increase. I recognize my sinfulness and this causes a repentant heart and a deeper passion for holiness. My inability to call a girlfriend and gripe when I am frustrated with my husband or life in general has caused me to spend more time in reflection and understanding. In response, I handle things so much differently when I would have typically gotten frustrated and angry.

4 months old!

Wyatt is so much fun these days! He is beginning to roll over from his back to his belly, he has found his voice and loves to use it, he is even getting his first 2 teeth! He talks the most in the mornings. He still loves his play mat, but he scoots off of it every 2 minutes now! Everything goes to the mouth and he does not like these new teeth! He is still travelling 8 hours with us and does so great! He really likes the train. At night, he will go to sleep in that little carrier we have while waiting for the train (it comes at 6:15 which is past his bedtime!) When we get in the train, i keep him in the carrier and just lean back in the seat and he sleeps the whole trip (over 4 hours!). On the morning train, he takes 2 of his naps and I have to get up sometimes to rock him to sleep, but he goes to sleep fairly quickly so it is o.k. He doesn't sleep much in the car still, but stays entertained most of the way down the mountain. These days he has been getting sick and spitting up so much up and down the mountain. (I pray that this is not a sign of car sickness!) He is an awesome baby and I wish all of you back home could spend time with him. He smiles ALL the time and rarely cries unless he is sleepy, hungry or his teeth hurt. We take him everywhere and everyone loves him! Strangers always ask to hold him and he goes to them willingly and smiles at them the whole time. Indians think he is so cute and we are so thankful for him. What a blessing the Lord has given to us!

Family Traditions

I am all about traditions in a family. I feel that since our family is going to be living a life of chaos most of the time, having simple traditions will be important. Noel Piper wrote a book about traditions and it got me thinking. She says the most important part of making traditions is planning. So I am already planning ahead. Here are some I am planning on doing with our family:
Daily:

• I plan on giving each child a "life verse". I will give it to them when they are born (or adopted) and speak it over them every night. Our normal routine at night is bath, bottle, bible story, two worship songs, prayer and this verse. As they get older, this will probably be the first verse they memorize.
• I sing a "good morning song" every morning when Wyatt gets ready to play....this just seems to start the day off right. I don't do it as soon as he gets up because I am not a morning person so I wait until he is fed, changed and ready to go. As he gets older, the morning song will change but I do want to make sure I always start the morning off right for him by saying the same thing over and over.
• Every week or two we will have a new bible verse that I will put up somewhere in the house and I will say it throughout the day (probably at every meal so I can stay consistent) My mom recorded me quoting Genesis 1:1 at the age of 3. She felt that memorizing scripture was very important and I am so thankful for this!
• we will have dinner together at the table. My parents did this with us and though not every dinner time was a pleasant experience, it is a great time to really talk and to teach kids manners, ect.

Holidays:

• Birthdays- every kid gets a "special plate" This plate is reserved for birthdays but can also be used for very special occasions in the kids life. My mom did this with us and we loved it! We thought that plate was so awesome because we had to save it for special days.
• Christmas- levi's mom gave the kids 3 gifts and I really like this idea. I know this is controversial (even with my siblings) but I LOVED Santa when I was a kid and some of my best memories are of Santa so we will definitely have Santa bring the 3 gifts and write letters to the kids. We will also make him cookies. I know that we will read the Christmas story and watch the Nativity Story every Christmas too...just not sure when yet.
• New Years- I plan on having a special dinner the night of New Years. We will get dressed up and either go out or dine at home but it will be really nice. Each child will get a letter telling them special moments we had with them the previous year, ways we've seen them grow, and what we look forward to the next year.

These are just a few I've been thinking about. Are there any special traditions your family has? I love hearing new ideas!

Wyatt is 3 months!

Wow! Time is flying by! Our little newborn is not so little anymore! He is grabbing his toys and my hair, he is smiling all the time, cooing and making all kinds of noises. He will play and play until he is so tired he is crying! He is a great sleeper now and sleeps most of the night! He takes only formula and he eats so well. Oh how we pray for him! We pray that the Lord will change his life early enough to protect him from the nasty world out there. We pray that when he makes mistakes, he will be humble enough to admit it. We pray that God will use him to change the world. I really feel that God is changing our world every day. Some days, some weeks are wearing and we feel like we are doing nothing, then something amazing happens and we are reminded of His power and grace....I pray that Wyatt also experiences this in His life. How I pray for his life! I pray that he will be so passionate, so humble, so loving, so tender hearted....yet so strong, so tough, so manly....I pray that if God wants him to marry, that He will provide a wife who is the perfect partner. Who is patient when Wyatt struggles, who respects Wyatt even in the hard times. I pray that God will already be preparing Wyatt to do mighty things in the Kingdom. That he will live out his name and he will be a mighty warrior for Christ.