So what's new?

Well, vicarage is winding down and is officially over June 14. We've been asked to stay here until the end of July so that Nick can be in charge of organizing VBS. It's basically a summer vicarage and his duties will only involve preaching a few times and all of the VBS details. We are hoping it will be a good chance for him to relax a little while still working. Fewer responsibilities will be nice while we are packing and preparing to leave. We plan to spend most of August visiting and staying with family. We haven't seen some of Nick's family in well over a year so they obviously haven't met Ava. Cade knows everyone by pictures, but it will be nice for him to see everyone again. I can't believe how much he's grown physically and mentally since we've moved here! Just today I was looking at pictures of him from last summer..

June 2008

May 2009


2008

2009

He's gone and turned into a young boy instead of a toddler! It's crazy to think that he'll be 3 in September. He loves to read books and play ball with Daddy. His newest developments include learning to tell time, reading words, and writing letters of the alphabet. It's been a while since we've worked on sign language with him (he knew 100 signs plus the alphabet last year) so I'm looking forward to incorporating that more again. He's wearing some of the same clothes as last summer because now he doesn't have his big ole cloth diaper taking up space. He's definitely much taller. When we got here, he could easily walk under the bar counter and now he routinely whacks his head on it. And now that I think of it, he's been through 2 different shoe sizes since that first photo. Another huge change, of course, is that now he has a little sister!!

May 2009

Miss Ava is quite the little princess. She's sweet and adorable, loves to coo and talk and smile, and don't worry, she'll let you know if she needs anything! We're trying to figure out where she got her 'loud personality'. She sure does give us a break at night, though! Some nights she'll sleep 7 hours straight! She's definitely her Daddy's little girl. She has his eyes and looks so much like him! It's wonderful having a a girl. I'm really looking forward to seeing how our relationship will grow as she gets older.

We recently found a house to rent for our final year in Fort Wayne. It worked out that we can rent this beautiful house for equal to or less than a 2 bedroom apartment! It has 3 bedrooms (room for visitors!), a fireplace, basement, and is fully furnished. I'll be calling for volunteers on window washing day...

As for me, my hobbies have come to a screeching halt for the time being. I need to get a daily routine and cleaning and cooking schedules going so I can free up some time during the day. I haven't been able to add to my Etsy shop for quite a while, but I did have a couple of custom orders for wedding cake toppers! Pretty cool and I can't wait to see pictures of the cakes - white birds and elephants. Someday I'll get back at it...

For now we are enjoying the wonderful spring weather, looking forward to Nick and I's 5 year anniversary, and counting the days until we have to start packing to leave! It has been quite the year, full of changes and growth.

Blessed

"No other success in life - not being President, or being wealthy, or going to college, or writing a book, or anything else - comes up to the success of the man or woman who can feel that they have done their duty and that their children and grandchildren rise up and call them blessed."

President Theodore Roosevelt