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Sunday – Day 4 : Jingle Bells!

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Since the boys have been waking up so ridiculously early, we’ve had pretty packed days.  Granted, we’ve switched over to central time, but even still, it’s earlier than usual!  It’s the first time that Micah is sleeping in a real bed and not confined to a crib.  He’s done very well, (meaning he’s stayed in bed from the time we put him down until he wakes up in the morning and he hasn’t fallen off the bed), but when Manu and Micah wake up in the morning, they are tearing through the villa like it’s Christmas.  So, after a long introduction, I just wanted to say that it’s been a long day.

The boys woke up at 6am and started running around and playing.  Israel came down and put them back to bed.  I came down at 7am after Ty woke up and peeked into the boys’ room.  Israel was sleeping on Micah’s bed and both of the boys were wide awake.  I released the boys and Israel kept muttering that we’re on vacation and he doesn’t understand why the boys wouldn’t want to sleep in.  

We had morning worship, played charades again, ate breakfast, and then started our day’s activities.  Israel booked a sleigh ride for us at 11:30am so we got dressed and headed over to the Orchard Country Winery & Market.  We arrived there early (shockingly) and so we checked out the market.  They had a lot of free samples of their grape/cherry/apple products.  We tried their juices & ciders and also some unique cherry products such as cherry salsa and cherry spread.  Then it was time for our ride.  We got the one horse open sleigh which was nice since the boys like the song “Jingle Bells”.  The horse did have lots of jingle bells too.  It was a very fun ride through the orchards, vineyards, and woods! 

We came home, had lunch, then was nap time.  A very long nap time.  When we woke up the boys really wanted to go ice skating since I had been talking about that with them.  It is one of the nice, free amenities here where we’re staying.  So, Manu and Micah ice-skated for the first time.  They did surprisingly well!  I’m sure we’ll be going several more times.  We ate dinner at a Mexican place in Egg Harbor called Mojo Rosa’s.  We met the owner who was also our waitress and she was super-cool.  Very veggie-friendly.  She owns a couple other restaurants in the area and we want to check them out later this week. 

Back at home again, the boys spent some time jumping on our bed and burning off some calories from dinner, then we had worship and got ready for bed.  It was a very long day.  Israel knocked out by 10pm. 

I’ll be going to bed with Ty once I feed him his last meal at midnight, but wanted to write down our experiences from the day so we can remember.  Israel and I were talking about how sad it is that our vacation has to come to an end so soon (-we have until Thursday but it still seems too short).  It really made me long for Heaven.  It’s going to be a perpetual, glorified “vacation” – spending time with loved ones in a beautiful, relaxing environment with plenty of exciting activities to do.  No stress, no worries, and no need for sleep!  Jesus Himself will be there and the angels will worship with us.  Who would not want that?  The unbelieveable part is that it will never end!

Until then, here’s to our limited vacation time while it lasts!  I pray that they will help our family long for Heaven even more.  And more so, I pray that we all will be there.


At the vineyard waiting for our sleigh ride


We bought some salsa and other yummy food at the market.


Our one-horse open sleigh


Ty is behind me in his car seat.  He didn’t even wake up to see the horse! 

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Sabbath in Door County

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This Sabbath was truly a blessed experience. It started with eating our traditional Sabbath rolls and mango juice. After eating, we relaxed by the fireplace and had worship. This morning, we were able to visit the Fish Creek Seventh-day Adventist Church and then spent some time outside. We ended it with BBQ tofu wraps with slaw. We’ve been trying to make this vacation extra-special and to center it around our boys. It’s been all about quality time together and special treats that they normally don’t get at home. They are loving it and so are we.

This evening, we had a little game night with the boys while watching the winter olympics. We checked out the games Hi Ho Cherry-O and Charades for Kids from the office. They were both super-fun and we had a great time together. Now all of the boys are sound asleep in their room. The place we’re staying at is so awesome. I think it comes second only to our honeymoon. We never want to leave!

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At the dinner table – we light the candles for dinner. The boys enjoy blowing them out when we’re done.

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Friday evening by the fire

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Sabbath morning on our way out to church

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In front of the historic Fish Creek Seventh-day Adventist Church – founded 1876

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Playing in the snow in the afternoon – building Elijah’s altar ( – it “rained” snow afterwards 🙂 Ty sleeping in the car behind

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Manu watching skiing for the first time (and bobsledding). He was quite enthralled.

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Looking forward to exciting plans for the rest of the week!

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Everyone Deserves to be Loved

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It is one of those rare moments when my entire family is napping.  Yes, all 3 boys, Israel, and even Bentley and the cats.  The snow is pouring outside and everywhere you look outside is white.  It’s Valentine’s Day, 2010.  I’ve been doing a lot of personal reflecting on Christ’s life, on human life, and on love. 

Many children are not blessed with growing up with both parents.  Many children are not raised by godly parents.  Many children don’t have true Christian friends or role models.  And many children are disappointed.

Many people are never able to live up to the expectations others have set for them.  Many people have failed at what they consider the most important things in life.  Many people are hurt by others.  And many people have lost those closest to them. 

So, many give up on life.

But what if they knew that Someone believed in them?  What if they knew that Someone could fill in the gaps that their family, friends, and/or churches left?  What if they knew that Someone could forgive them and help them change?  If only they knew that Someone loved them more than anyone in this world could.

So, on this Valentine’s Day, know that God loves you more than you’ll ever need to be loved.  His grace is sufficient.  And let’s share that love with those around us – to the annoying, to the angry, to the misfits, to the lonely…to those who need to know.  

I want to know how much God loves me.  I need to know so I can change.  I’ve realized that part of being a Christian means finding healing from who we are and who others have made us.  Before it is too late, will you be made whole?

**  This post is dedicated to my late cousin.  He was loved more than we know.  **

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Ty’s First Long Trip

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Last week, we had to be down in Lansing for Israel’s ordination review.  So, our whole family took the long drive downstate.  This time was different, though, because it was our first trip down with all 5 of us.  We decided not to take Leon (our conversion van) since he doesn’t have snow tires and his safety ratings aren’t the greatest.  So, Israel installed our car top carrier on the Freestyle and we loaded it up.  I started packing several days before our trip to make sure we wouldn’t forget anything. 

It’s amazing how my packing mentality has changed throughout the years.  When I was single, it was all about trying to bring as much as possible.  I wanted enough options with my outfits, although I was usually limited to how much trunk space would need to shared.  Once I got married, it was even better.  I had half of the car to pack my stuff.  Israel and I would just throw our stuff everywhere and anywhere in the car. When Imanuel came into the picture, three-quarters of our car was dedicated to baby stuff and we downsized our belongings.  I packed Imanuel’s stuff with the worst-case scenario in mind.  I would bring a minimum one outfit per day (-but typically a few extra outfits “in case we get stranded”) and enough diapers to last an extra few days.  (I hadn’t yet realized that our destinations did have stores that sold diapers and the like.)  I would pack items such as the baby bathtub, a big bag of baby first aid supplies, baby laundry detergent, etc.  The addition of Micah forced us to cut down so I began to eliminate obvious items that I could do without or never ended up using.  This included my number of outfits & shoes, amount of toiletries, the baby bathtub, the stroller if it was winter, and also the excess of diapers.  I would only bring the number of diapers I would need for the trip and maybe a few extra.  I also began to pack just one outfit per day.  I limited their belongings to one bag each.  This would include their diapers too.  Then, they would share a backpack with their books and toys.  We made a big cut-back when we only needed to bring one pack ‘n’ play since Manu graduated to sleeping on the floor.  Our compact double stroller was also a great investment when Micah was old enough to sit in it.  But even still, our family of four could easily fill the entire car top carrier and any extra space in the car.

So this last trip, I officially became a self-proclaimed packing genius.  My favorite word has become “consolidate”.  Here is the general breakdown:

– Total of 4 travel bags:  1 for Manu & Micah, 1 small bag for Ty, 1 for me, 1 for Israel
   My bag included the following:
     – 1 toiletry bag for me & the boys
     – 1 small bag with emergency medicine/supplies for infants, toddlers & adults
– Israel’s backpack:  all electronics, computers, worship books, kids’ books, toys, & DVDs
– My hand bag:  doubled as a baby bag
– Ty’s stroller & travel bassinet
– Blankets for the car
– 3 water bottles & a bag of snacks for the road
…and that’s about it!

I’ve become so obsessive with packing efficiently that when we stop at gas stations to fill up, I get this refreshing feeling as I throw away all the wrappers/trash from the snacks & diapers.  I feel like our car gets lighter and less cluttered as we go.  And on the way back up, I try as much as possible to keep the same number of bags.  We turn one of the travel bags into our family laundry bag and we distribute the rest of our clothes into the other 3.  If we plan on stopping by a hotel, we’ll turn our smallest travel bag into an overnight bag for the whole family.  To answer your question, yes, Israel thinks I’m crazy.

I’ll never forget the night when were moving to the U.P. from downstate.  The moving truck had gone before us with most of our stuff.  In our car, we had 6 month old Imanuel, 1 year old (crazy) Bentley & his dog cage, Aroe & Chance and a litter box, along with a few travel bags.  We stopped by a hotel on the way up.  Israel ran in to see if they allowed pets.  They said yes.  First, Israel brought in Imanuel who was in his car seat and I had Bentley on a leash.  The lady at the front desk smiled at us.  Then, Israel ran back out and came back in with the two cats in his arms.  The lady gave him a crazy look.  Finally, he brought our bags and the litter box.  We all slept in one hotel room that night. 

I’m just imagining how hilarious that would be if we had to fit all five of us, plus Bentley and the cats in our car.  Then, how crazy it would be if we had to stop and get a hotel!  Anyway, I’m going off on a tangent…

We are now safely back and almost unpacked.  It was a super-fun trip and we’re so glad we were able to spend some time with family and friends.  Wish we would have taken more pictures!  But it was so nice having everyone meet Ty.  It was also really awesome that we got to see Ian again…and I was finally able to hold him!  He’s so adorable!  Well, I’ll end this with a video clip that I took on our trip.  Manu and Micah’s car seats are in the way back of the car and Ty is the only one in the second row.  I caught the boys in the back in one of rare moments when they weren’t napping, bickering, or telling on each other.    (It’s sideways and I don’t know how to rotate it!)

Until next time!

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Third Night’s A Charm & Family Pics

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Tomorrow, Ty will be 7 weeks but I couldn’t wait any longer.  He has been growing at such a ridiculous rate so, 4 nights ago, I decided to skip one of his night meals.  The first night was a bit rough.  He woke up and waited patiently for me to feed him.  When I didn’t, he cried for a while, but his pacifier helped.  The second night, he woke up again expecting to eat, but this time it only took about 10 minutes with his pacifier and he went back to sleep.  Last night, while it took him a while to finally go to sleep, after his last feeding at midnight, he slept through the night feeding and didn’t wake up to feed until 7:30am.  I think this proves that he is definitely getting plenty of milk…more than enough.  So, he’s down to 6 feedings a day.  I’m hoping this will control his weight gain.  We’ll see what our doctor will say at his 2 month well baby visit. 

On a more general note, the Lord has really given me the strength to live from day to day.  I can truly say that I trust God.  I know that He is able and willing to help me, if only I rely on Him.  All around, my life has been a testimony of God’s grace:  I’m learning how to love Jesus more by spending time with Him daily.  I’m also learning how to love people more by letting things go and giving them the benefit of the doubt.  My love and appreciation for Israel and the boys are growing deeper as time goes by.  I’ve been exercising faithfully and getting into shape.  And as a bonus, my house is clean and chores done!  It is so true that “[t]hose who make God first, last, and best are the happiest people on earth”. 

Here are some pictures of the boys who transformed my life!  I can truly say that because of them, I’m learning how to walk with God. 

My Sweet Heart


My Silly Boy

(BTW, that thing he’s playing with is Ty’s “pee pee teepee”.)


Last Monday we took the boys to the Mineral Museum at MI Tech.

 

and…My Sunshine  🙂

Happy Sabbath! 

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No Excuses

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Today marks the 31st day since I was in labor all night, went into major surgery the next morning, and since I’ve had a stretch of more than 3-4 hours of sleep at one time.  If my mother were not here, I would have surely lost it.  But even though my mother has been here to help, it has been perhaps the most difficult weeks of my life.  And yet, God saw it fit to teach me one crucial lesson.  I have no excuse.

After watching the messages at GYC via live streaming on our website, I had made several commitments.  I was particularly impacted by one message by Sebastien titled, “But Now”.  There were so many times that I made commitments to the Lord concerning myself, my husband, and my children.  Yet, often times my promises were like ropes of sand.  After so many times, it is easy to become afraid to commit again.  But I praise God for Sebastien’s message that challenged me to make commitments even though in the past, I’ve failed.  But Now.

One of the personal commitments that I made was to spend more time alone with the Lord.  I also committed to reading through the Bible cover to cover – something, I sadly admit, I’ve never done before.  Before it seemed I could never find the time.  I had so many excuses and there were also many people who assured me that I was justified.  I mean, my life was consumed by raising 2 young boys, being a pastor’s wife, GYC work, taking care of our home, cooking, cleaning and the list could go on.  Then, add to the list how my life has been these past 31 days…

But God is so patient with us.  And He is so desperately waiting for opportunities to reveal Himself to us. 

One night as I was up in the middle of the night feeding Ty, the Lord impressed something upon my heart.  Look at my life!  I’m so worn out by the end of the day and yet I still willingly wake up every few hours to feed Ty.  And I don’t even complain about it.  How could I have ever used the excuse that I was too exhausted to wake up a little earlier or stay up a little later to spend time with Jesus?  to study His Word?  Very few people could possibly be more worn out than me!  It struck me: 

Mothers have no excuse! 

If we are willing to wake up every 3 hours throughout the night to spend an hour feeding/burping/changing our babies, what is one hour every morning and evening to spend with our Savior and the Giver of our children?

If we are willing to cut out foods, no questions asked, for our nursing babies because we suspect it may be giving them gas, what is modifying our diets for the temple of the Holy Spirit?

If we are willing to defend and protect our children at all cost, what is being unashamed for the One who gave up Heaven for us?

I believe God, in His mercy, has paid special attention to us women, and particularly mothers.  He has shown us our capability to deeply love others – particularly our husbands and children.  And yet, often times we end it there.  But that just means we can love Jesus so much more.  Enoch’s experience should truly be ours! 

So, despite my failures in the past, I am determined to love Jesus more.  By His grace, I have been able to read and study His Word every day since I made that commitment.  I find time.  It helps that I am awakened every few hours during the quietness of the night to take care of Ty.  In the busiest, most trying time of my life, I have found the most time to spend with Him.  The difference is that I realized, I have no excuse.  The Lord has given me so many people in my life whom I love so very much – the latest being my precious newborn Ty.  But even now, I can love Him more!

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“I Wanna Be Like Mic…ah”

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Ty will be 4 weeks tomorrow morning and he has leaped from a “normal” 50th percentile birth weight (7lbs 12ozs) to a staggering 97th percentile (just over 12 lbs).  He has been feeding every 3 hours and at night he usually has one 4-5 hour stretch from ~1am – 6am.  And he only feeds for about 15 minutes.  The only reasoning I can think of is that Ty’s metabolism is super-duper slow…or Micah is sneaking him cookies when I’m not looking.  Either way, he is morphing into a “ball of flesh” as Israel likes to call it.  We’ll see if their doctor will put Ty on the night-time starvation diet like she did for Micah. 

Here are pictures from today of Micah holding Ty.


“Little bro, it’s not always easy being big, but don’t worry.  I love you…and I got your back.”


Daddy and the boys
 

Happy 4th Sabbath, Ty!  And a blessed Sabbath to all of you!

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My 2009 Check-List : The Final Evaluation

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Back on Wednesday, July 15, 2009 at 8:24pm, I created this list on Facebook.  Now that today is the last day of 2009, I’ve decided to do a self-evaluation and look forward to new goals for the new year.

10. Find a hairstyle that I really like and find a hairdresser that can make it happen. 
– I’ve found an awesome hair salon called NV Salon.  I have a great hairstylist.  I think the current hair style that I have is a keeper…at least for a while.  🙂

9. Not gain more than 35lbs during this pregnancy. (Never been done before.) 
– Totally saved by Grace.  I had an OB appointment on Dec. 10 and I was weighed.  I had gained a total of 34 lbs.  I went into labor the next evening.  If the baby would have waited until the scheduled c-section over a week later, I’m sure I would have gone over!  Isn’t God so nice??

8. Make it a habit of reading more. 
– I was really doing great on this one.  It’s been more difficult after Ty was born.  It’s been nice though because during feedings (usually at night when I’m all alone) I’ve been able to read the Bible on my iPhone.  It’s great because you don’t need to turn the lights on.  🙂

7. Transform the current office into the new baby room. 
– This was done thanks to my awesome sister who helped me do this when she came to visit.  It is temporarily my mom’s bedroom (-we put a twin bed in there), but once the baby is bigger/older, we’ll relocate him in there with one of the cribs.

6. Develop an exercise routine and stick to it. 
– I wasn’t very successful at this one.  I’m very motivated now that baby is out and I can pretty much hide my fist in my belly.  I am planning on participating in a sprint triathlon relay with Stephanie and Tennille.  I am going to do the running leg which means I need to be able to run a 5k without passing out.  Triathlon is in June.  I’ll need to train as soon as I recover from surgery.  Plus, my sister sent me a bunch of really nice pants that no longer fit her (-they are too big).  They are all size 6.  I have my work cut out for me.     

5. Learn how to cook more healthy, yummy meals. 
– Umm, I kind of progressed on this one.  I did get a vegan crock pot cook book as a gift so I’m excited about that.  I’ve been trying to incorporate more veggies/fruits in every meal so I guess that counts.  I also experimented with carob desserts.  Okay, I need to definitely work on this one – especially if I plan on losing all this weight.

4. Get a massage regularly – since for us, it’s free! 
– I did call – actually Israel called for me – but the massage therapist that we go to didn’t have a massage table for pregnant people.  She said she could give me a massage with me lying on my side, but I wasn’t very keen on that idea.  I’m hoping to take advantage of this this up coming year.  So, technically, I can omit this one, right?

3. Cultivate a deep devotional & prayer life. 
– I’ve had my ups and downs on this one.  I know things will be more difficult now that I’m a bit sleep deprived, but I am determined to find time.  I undeniably know my need of Jesus in my life.

2. Take a nice family picture…(after I get my nice haircut from my nice hairdresser.) 
– We took a nice family picture in October when Israel took our family on a overnight get-away for my birthday.  Now that Ty has joined us, hopefully we’ll be able to take an updated one sometime this year (after I get into shape)!

1. Train Bentley not to bark and go psycho on visitors or passing trucks.  
– Not so much.  The good thing is that it seems the older he gets, the more calm he is becoming.  I’m still hoping that I can accelerate his progress on this and not have to wait until he is retirement age.  Maybe I can turn this one over to Israel…

This new year, I’d like it to be a year of overall self-improvement.  Not that in the past, I haven’t wanted to improve myself.  But the past few years I have realized that I’ve focused more on taking care of my family needs than on my personal well-being.  But it is starting to take its toll.  I’d like to redeem some of my personal time with the Lord, and also my identity as His servant and His child.  I’m convinced that this is the only way I can make my family happy and to truly raise my boys in the ways of the Lord.  I will need God’s help! 

It is my prayer that this new year will bring our family closer to Christ and that much closer to His soon return.  Happy New Year!

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The Umbilical Cord

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So, Ty’s umbilical cord fell off last night.  As I was changing his diaper after a feeding, I noticed that it was gone.  I thought it was a semi-exciting moment, so I called Israel in the room to share the news.  I asked him to help me look for it since it must have fallen in his onesie.  We weren’t able to locate it right away and Israel’s first response was, “Bentley probably ate it.”  I kept searching to which Israel exclaimed, “Who cares, it’s not like we’re going to keep it anyway.” 

I would have let that comment slide were it not for the fact that over 3 years ago, we had a very similar scenario, but our conversation and outcome went very differently. 

When Imanuel’s umbilical cord fell off, it was such a momentous occasion.  It meant that we had properly dried that thing out and we could finally give our son his first bath!  We were so excited.  We looked at each other and asked, “What should we do with the cord?”  It was something that held so much meaning. And the cord was like a piece of him – a piece of us!  We were not sure what to do with that hard, raisin-looking piece of flesh.  So, we kept it on our night stand for a couple of days because we couldn’t stand to just throw it away in the trash…like it didn’t mean anything.  After about a week of it just sitting there, I revisited the cord issue.  I felt we had given it its due respect.  It was time for us to throw it out.  But Israel said no.  He liked it right where it was…sitting and collecting dust on the night stand.  In fact, he liked looking at it so much that he ended up keeping it there for over a month! 

So last night, I reminded Israel of this.  I ended up finding Ty’s cord in his onesie and gave it to Israel.  I asked him if he was sure he didn’t want me to tape it into Ty’s baby book.  We had a really good laugh.

It’s so interesting how much things change from going through the experience of raising your first child to subsequent ones.  I remember when Imanuel was first born, sometimes being moved to tears just thinking about how as each day passed by, I would never be able to relive them.  It saddened me to think that one day, I wouldn’t be able to hold him in my arms or rock him to sleep.  I didn’t want him to change so quickly!

But now that Imanuel is older, it almost seems silly that I thought that way.  While there is something special about remembering the past, in each growing stage of Manu’s life, I love and appreciate him even more.  There are lessons to be learned and we must move on.  I’m so glad he is no longer a newborn! In His wisdom, God has designed us so that in each stage of development, we are meant to grow and be strengthened.  Just as in the Christian experience, we are created to grow more and more into the stature of Christ.  In each stage, we can find completeness in Him.  That is nothing to be sad about.

With Micah and Ty, I have found emotional freedom from trying to hold on to what you can’t.  Each new day brings hope for character development and ultimately hope for salvation.  In the meantime, I am going to enjoy and savor every moment with my boys…because I know time will fly by. 

Israel tossed out Ty’s cord in the trash without a struggle.  He will soon have his first real bath…and a whole series of his “firsts”.  While the excitement isn’t quite the same as for #1, the depth of love starts with each new child where the other kids’ left off.  Ty, you are deeply loved! 

(And just to let you know, no slackers here on filling out the baby books and picture taking!  🙂     

In Virum Perfectum