"Small" Group

Today was a really cool Sunday. We are trying to soak up every last minute of summer, so we spent the afternoon/evening at a lake about 45 minutes from Richmond. This is our small group from church. In case you care, there are 6 couples and 17 kids under the age of 8. Did I mention 3 more on the way? It was a great day. Micah rode a SeaDoo for the first time (and loved it- just kept yelling "we're the big guys!") and Caleb just floated on his back in his life jacket. We are truly blessed to have these friends in our lives.

Krista's Shower weekend

This weekend I went to Maryland for Krista's Bridal Shower. She had been there most of the week doing planning things with mom from flowers to dj to trial run for the hair. Planning wedding out of town are so hard to do. You have to cram it all in one little time span. As we are nearing the 1 month mark, things are getting busier. Friday night my family went out for crabs, which was oh so yummy. It is pretty much becoming a tradition now with two of us living in other states when we come home, crabs it is! It was weird though, it was the first time we had our original 6 person family with no extras, sorry Ed!

Hope, me, and Michael...and mom's flash.


The whole family minus Mom's eyes.

The shower was at the Maid of Honor, Erin's house. Krista and her have been friends since birth. We had a nice little potluck shower where everyone brought a designated dish to share and gave Krista the recipe. So she left with quite a collection of recipes.

My mom, grandma, and sisters

Our family with my Aunt Bonnie and cousin, Maggie

Me and my sisters - the bride is in the middle

Here are the rest of the guests and the tables. We tried to keep as close to her wedding colors - blue and orange with touches of brown.

This is the centerpiece I did for each table. I had fun with the colors. This one is really crooked, but the only picture I have.

Krista and her maid of honor, Erin.

First 2 days at Ocean Isle

We are two days into our vacation and we are loving every minute of it. The weather and the beach have been perfect. The boys are in heaven. We are a very short walk from the beach.
The vacation couldn't have started out better. We stopped in Raleigh and visited some friends (Tyler and Lauren Pegues and the Liederbachs). In fact, Tyler and Lauren watched the kids while we went to see Coldplay in concert. Yeah, that'll do. Singing like you're British is always fun. Anywho, we are enjoing the beach so far. We came into this week with ZERO plans, which was ironically the best possible plan.

Micah focused in his freshly dug pool.Katie and Caleb on the beach.

We got this amazing stroller this week. Look who caught a free ride.

Micah is in heaven at the beach.

The quiver is full...and heavy.

The view from our porch. Lovin it!

A Downpour

Sometimes in life we hit a rainy spot, sometimes a storm, and sometimes it is just a downpour. Funny how everything ties together, as if there is a God who is orchestrating all of life. Last week, a friend of mine lost her baby boy at 36 weeks. This heart wrenching event has left me sick inside, and yet somehow looking to my Father for peace, an explanation. At the same time, on a little bit of a lighter note, a family member's life has been flipped upside down. A storm, that for some reason, God has orchestrated, and we cling to Romans 8:28, "And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose." Trusting that God is good, and He knows something we don't, we move on. Last night, we watched the Nooma video "Rain", which is about when it "rains" in our lives. So it was encouraging to watch, knowing it was truth for right now.

This morning was when the storm just accelerated into a downpour. Another friend lost her baby boy at 39 weeks. After years of infertility, they finally got pregnant. We have shared in their joy of anticipating this baby, the ultrasounds, the baby showers, decorating the rooms, deciding on his name. All to be lost in the shock of him actually never living outside of his mother's womb. This is their storm. They are left with planning a service and burial arrangements, and still the delivery of a baby they were supposed to bring home, and experience parenthood for the first time. But instead, God has something greater at work. What? I don't know. How? I don't know. But I know God is good, and He gives us exactly the right amount of grace we need to walk through the storm.

This morning, I am reminded, not that a storm could come. But that it will come, and when it does, how will I respond? Will it ruin me or will I say "Blessed be Your Name!"