Can I be honest for a second?

Dave Helm preached a great sermon at church last night about making time to spend with the Lord. Every meaningful relationship requires quality time spent together. Our relationship with God is no different.
As soon as Dave started preaching, I had to laugh to myself. Just that very morning, JP and I had sat down to read together from the One Year Bible. We were a few days behind and had some catching up to do. I wanted to hurry through it so I could get back to the thousands of things I felt like I needed to do...the pile of dishes in the kitchen, the laundry, checking my email, etc.
For some reason, JP was reading ESPECIALLY slow that day. He would pause after every verse, ponder it, then his eyes would light up with revelation and he would share what he had just learned. He was obviously having a very fruitful time in the Word. And I was annoyed. VERY annoyed. It was taking so long!!! I could have been finished reading by now! I was irritated that he wanted to look up every name we came across to see what it meant. I was growing fidgety and restless. Finally I started dropping hints that I wanted him to hurry it up.
JP gently rebuked me and told me that it wasn't about catching up or getting through the reading. If we didn't learn anything, it was pointless. I knew he was right, but I was still glad when we were finally done and I could get up and go on with my day.
Needless to say, Dave's word was very timely. :) I thank God for His faithfulness to screw my head on straight when it needs it.
One other thing to any single people out there reading this: It really is true when the Bible talks about married people being distracted. Before I was married, I used to get up, read my Bible, spend time singing to worship music as I got ready for the day, etc. Now I wake up, change a diaper, get breakfast for the baby, breakfast for JP, lunch for JP, let the dogs out, clean the baby up after breakfast, get her dressed...you get my point. I am distracted by taking care of my husband and daughter - finding time to be alone with God is far more difficult. JP and I read together, but that doesn't substitute for my own time with the Lord. I look back on the days when it was just me & Jesus and wish I had cherished them more. So even though you may desire a husband and family (which is a wonderful desire), be sure to be thankful for the time you have now with Jesus.

Announcement!

JP and I are thrilled to announce...our second child is on the way!
Baby #2 is due September 27th, 2008. What a joy! We praise God for His kindness toward us!
I'm feeling great. I haven't had any symptoms yet, except maybe a little fatigue. Please join with us in prayer for a healthy, full-term pregnancy, and grace along the way!

Sesame Street Live

G and Bompa (JP's mom & step-dad) gave Rae & Ava the best gift ever this weekend...front-row tickets to Sesame Street Live at the Target Center!!! I have never seen Rae sit so still and so engrossed for such a long time. The characters were right in front of us and at certain points they would come down off the stage and interact with the kids. We were in the perfect position right at the bottom of the steps...so the characters would come right down and touch Rae & Ava's hands, honk their noses for them, etc.
It was a blast to watch them both have such a great time - thanks, G & Bompa for the memory!!!!

The count stops by...I am not zoomed in at all!
Saying hello to Ava.
G bought the girls balloons. Rae's accidentally ended up at the roof of the Target Center less than five minutes after this picture (my bad).
They sat like this - totally engrossed - almost the entire time.
I think Lisa, Gail and I had just as much fun as the girls.
We made friends with the girls sitting next to us. You can see where we were in relation to the stage/steps well in this picture.

She's a Classic

Yesterday JP got a "new" work van. The payment on his other one was ridiculous, so we went for something cheaper.
To say "new" is pushing it - it's a 1983 Chevy Beauville. Despite the fact that it's almost as old as I am, it is in GREAT shape. It doesn't have any rust, the interior is in good shape, and it only has 83,000 miles on it. It's really classic and "retro" looking.
God is good, and we were able to pay cash for it, which eliminates another nasty car payment. And the family who sold it to us is Christian. The original owner of the van is now a missionary in Thailand. He gave the van to his son who has used it a couple times a year as a camping/vacation vehicle, then stored it in a garage.
Praise God for this answer to prayer!

Food Experiments Continue

Maybe I shouldn't have relinquished control of the fork. :)
Actually, she did quite well. She even flipped the fork around when she was holding it backwards a couple of times. One time she even got some food on the fork and put it in her mouth. :) Ha ha...we have a long way to go. I'm so proud of her, though.

Walking

Israel is full-blown walking these days. She only crawls to places she can pull herself up to walk. She's still pretty wobbly, but every day she gets better and goes further without stopping to catch her balance on something. Is my baby really this big?