Happy Birthday Andy!

Happy 30th Birthday Andy! I love you and I am so thankful for you on this day. It seems so significant to me that your 30th birthday falls on the day we celebrate the resurrection of our Savior. He has "trampled death with death." He has defeated once and for all our greatest enemy-our sin which leads to our death. He has bought us out of slavery to sin and into freedom-freedom to be who he created us to be-to be made into our original design. Freedom from shame and guilt and the wrath we deserve. Freedom to be in intimate relationship with our heavenly Father. Freedom to come each day to him, needy as we are, and be filled with streams of living water-to be made into a new creation by his power. Today we celebrate all that Christ has done for us. God is raising us up with Christ to be new creations and I see you living your resurrected life this year, more than ever. I see you experiencing the freedom God has called you into when he bought you. I see you walking in confident trust rather than fear and self reliance. I see you growing tender and soft, like our Savior. I see Christ conquering your sin, just as he is mine. This year I'm seeing glimpses of the Resurrected Andy more than ever. I love the work he is doing in your life. I love that I get to know the intimate works he is doing that no one else sees. Christ is risen, he is risen indeed. I am so grateful that I get to see his resurrection played out in your life, and you in mine. I'm praying our 30's will be a decade of growing into our new names together. I love you Andy! Happy Birthday!

FACES OF MY FISH

Dinner with a Princess

Emma Grace is very much into the whole princess thing and I am pretty sure she changes dresses about 74 times a day. She was delighted when Tim and Kathi treated us to dinner with Cinderella and Prince Charming a few weeks ago!! She and Jack really enjoyed meeting the characters and the hotel (castle, wink wink) was beautiful. Emma Grace had a magical time for sure! Thanks Tim and Kathi!Prince Charming has nothing...on this little guy! Thankfully for everyone, the stepsisters were much kinder in real life than in the book!! Emma Grace was worried about that but they ended up being her favorites! And Jack's favorite was....

Thanks Tim, Kathi and Mary for a really fun treat! We loved being with you.

Update

Since I haven't been great about updating my blog, I thought I'd do a little update for those interested!

These past few months has been so busy for us. We've had lots of visitors and taken several trips, all of which were really fun and we are in the process of buying a house. Although it was all really fun, I am feeling the need to slow down some! Andy and I have been talking about a few things we want to cut out in order to slow down and little and I am really hopeful that a slower pace of life will be healthier for all of us! I guess after living a slow paced life in China, I am just having a really hard time adjusting to the go-go-go ness of our life this year.

Our house is closing on Monday, Lord willing!! It's been a much crazier process than I would've imagined. It's been encouraging to see God providing for us. Just last week the price of our house went down 5,000 from our original offering price (long story!) On top of that, several people have given generously to us because they wanted to help with this purchase. Thanks to those special people. What a blessing you are and your gifts were a huge reminder that God provides for his children!

Our awesome realtor, who happens to be from Charleston, WV (Andy's hometown!) is letting us stay in her beach condo this weekend so we are heading there for a fun, low key beach weekend, just the four of us, to celebrate Andy's upcoming BIG 30!!!!

I definitely need to go back and update my blog from these past few months-so much has happened-dinner with princesses, a great visit from the Huffmans, retreats that involved thrift store fashion shows and karaoke, as well as a weekend with John and Alisa. Maybe someday I'll do that. Or maybe not. Maybe I'll just have to tuck those memories deep in my heart since my blogging time is short these days.

A little bit of Sheryl in my life

We are trying to convince Sheryl and Andy that they just need to move down here! I mean, they love this state, they come all the time for business and some of their favorite people in the world now live here! Those seem like pretty good reasons to me!!!

They were here again in March and we had a belated bday celebration for our big 30. Andy kept our kiddos so she and I could get away to the beach for 24 hours! It was really fun and really restful and I only peed in my pants once. We stayed at this quaint little hotel on the innercoastal waterway. I feel like this year my life has been full of great views and peaceful getaways. Much needed. On our big night out we ended up coming back to the hotel and watching 5 hours of TV together. We are so 30 I guess. It was a blast really and just what I needed! We bought matching shirts at the restaurant we ate at and now we wear them every Wednesday with rolled up jean shorts and parrot earrings. HEHE. Flashback to elementary school except the shirts were neon green.

We ate in St Pete Beach on the innercoastal waterway for lunch on our way home. It was a beautiful day and the waiter sang a really fun bday song. YAY for a lot more Sheryl in my life this year.

fallen off the face of the earth?????

If you are my friend and you feel like when I moved back to the US, I just fell right off the face of the earth, then read on.

I think my friends in China who I saw regularly might feel this way about me and I also think my friends in the US might feel this way. (Actually I feel this way) Somehow living overseas, I was better able to keep in touch with people on both sides of the world. This year it feels like I am doing a really crappy job keeping in touch with everyone, both in the US and in China.

There's grace which I spoon myself a heaping portion of each day. It's taste is sweeter to me this year than ever before.

The sweetest part of my year long exile from earth has been the Lord. His love for me is strong and I am enjoying it more than ever. I can barely keep afloat between the transition, my sin which rages in me, the sin of my family, and the BUSYNESS of life in this strange strange country I am now a resident of. What is keeping me afloat is the Lord and intimate times with him and deep love pouring into my heart.

Andy and I have been talking about how to slow down and we can't really come up with anything at this point. Life is just so daily, as my friend Laura says. And on top of that we are buying a house. So it looks like for now I am stuck. just thought I'd check in and let you know I am still here.

FANCY NANCY!

I mentioned in a recent post that Andy was the guest reader for Emma Grace's class. He was supposed to bring in 2 of her favorite books. Of course he had to bring in a Fancy Nancy book. For those of you who don't live with a 3 1/2 year old girl, I thought I would introduce you to Fancy Nancy. She's pretty awesome. She's the main character in a series of books about well, herself. She loves being fancy and she loves making everyday life into fancy occasions. She has very loving albeit unfancy parents who she tries to "accessorize." She loves french because it's fancy. Fancy Nancy is a precocious little red head with a penchant for all things fancy. I love her and I love how her parents embrace her uniqueness and play along! In the first book, after Fancy has given them a lesson in how to be fancy, her parents suggest they all get dressed up fancy and go out for a dinner at a "fancy" restaurant. They get all accessorized and head out for dinner at the King's Crown, a local pizza joint. Nancy is thrilled and so proud of her parents for their progress in fanciness.

Well, Emma Grace is pretty much in love with Nancy. She loves all things fancy-crowns and glittery stickers and flowers and purple and pink. For Christmas, Tim and Kathi got her a Fancy doll and a matching outfit for her to wear! They even bought her Nancy's dog (Frenchy). And to top it off, they took Emma Grace out for a Fancy Nancy dinner one night! Here is our Fancy Nancy, enjoying her fancy drink.

This man loves his grand daughter! Thank you Tim for a delicious and very fancy meal!!

Jack terrorized the restaurant after about 2 hours of being there, but for the most part did really well.

Fancy's not-so-fancy parents.

FANCY NANCY DOLL+FANCY NANCY OUTFIT+FANCY DINNER=ONE REALLY HAPPY LITTLE GIRL!!! THANKS TIM AND KATHI!!! You're awesome!