We are Having a Baby . . .

And the long awaited answer is that it is a baby . . . . well let me share with you how we told our families first! When we came back to the states Stephen's mom did not know about the baby yet so here is a video of us surprising her with the news!

So to tell Stephens family the gender we decided to make cake pops, we made the cake batter and added the appropriate dye to it! Then we covered them in white chocolate and sprinkles, that evening we had everyone bite into it at the same time! It was really fun to share the special news with everyone that way!

With my family since we have all the nieces and nephews, we decided to do a pinata which my awesome sister-in-law made for us and then we filled it up with candy and colored confetti. The kids had a blast, Karis thought for sure that an actual baby was going to come out, either a baby girl or a baby boy hahaha! After we cleared that up, Caden decided that since I had a baby in my belly that he wanted to have one in his so he started telling everyone Auntie Em is having a baby and I am having a baby too!

So we finally got the pinata hung up and started with the littlest kid and worked our way up to the older kids! They beat that pinata like crazy until a lot of candy and a certain color came out . . . . . and that color was . .

PINK!!!! Its a GIRL! 
We are praising the Lord for our beautiful baby girl and can't wait to meet her in early December!

Beautiful Blessings

Over the past several months our family and my belly have seen some changes : ) back in March Stephen and I found out that we are expecting! Since that moment, God has been changing and challenging us in so many new and unexpected ways. As I gaze down at my growing belly, as I look at the sonogram of the baby developing inside of me, I stand amazed that God would entrust this tiny little life into our hands.

As we were experiencing the excitement of new life we were also grieving the loss of an old life. My grandpa went to dance in heaven with Jesus on June 10^th – as I dealt with his loss I would look down to see new life, new life that the Lord has created in me through HIS miraculous hand of grace. I am humbled to recognize that it is only through the hand of our sovereign Lord that life is given and life is taken away. And I praise Him that it is only for a time because if we know HIM as our Lord and Savior we can be confident that we will meet again.

 
So as the journey continues for us here on earth it is my prayer that our marriage, our parenting . . . our lives are lived in such a way that the grace, love and hope of our Lord is shown. As we embark on this next stage of parenthood, I know that the Lord is going to teach us, change us, and grow us to be more like himself. So with that I leave you with this passage that has been my comfort over the past several months - Psalm 118 - these are the last two verses - 

You are my God, and I will give thanks to you;
you are my God; I will extol you.
Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
for his steadfast love endures forever!

Read the next blog post to find out what we're having!

29Re

The Freedom of Submission

I praise the Lord for HIS work in my life and how HE continues to change me, mold me and make me more like Himself. The last 2 weeks have been exhaustingly refreshing, I normally wouldn’t put those two words together but I can’t really think of any other way to describe it. I guess it’s the whole idea of being at the end of yourself (utter exhaustion) and relying completely on the strength of the Lord (refreshment). The Lord has literally blown me away with blessings and encouragement day after day from the sermons at church, to the girls on my volleyball team, to the enriching conversations with Stephen, to the Baptist Bible College Girls volleyball team coming to visit! I can say with honesty and transparency that I have recently discovered the freedom of submitting to Lord’s will for us being here in Honduras.

This realization came after a conversation Stephen and I had about all the really GREAT things that God is doing here in Honduras. I distinctly remember sitting on the kitchen counter sharing with each other what we’re learning, how we’re growing and how God is using us. Stephen is having opportunities day after day to invest in the lives of young men, to teach them how to become better leaders. He has the opportunity to take some of the young men under his wing and mentor them in how to coach and in their walk with the Lord. It was that day in the kitchen that we realized even if it’s for one kids life to be transformed, then it’s worth it. It’s worth the inconvenience, it’s worth being away from family, and it’s worth being uncomfortable. Not saying that it’s always easy but we were not called by the Lord to be happy or to be comfortable, we are called to be faithful and obedient. Because of that revelation I now feel that I have freedom to live in the submission of God’s plan for me, His plan for us here in Honduras.

Not only was it that conversation in the kitchen that day but it continued by having the girls volleyball team from Baptist Bible College, where Stephen and I attended, come and visit! It was after I got home from picking them up from the airport and spending the day sharing with them all the wonderful things about Honduras that I realized, as I had begun embracing God’s plan for us and enjoying it, God was allowing me the privilege of sharing that joy with others. I am so thankful for the volleyball team coming and the great blessing and encouragement that they were.

As we submit to the Lord there will be freedom in all that He has to offer, and I firmly believe that it will be exceedingly and abundantly above all that we could ask or think.

Colossians 3:15-17¹⁵ And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. ¹⁶ Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. ¹⁷ And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

February Update!

I praise the Lord for the change of seasons, as we head further into February we head into dry season here, which means A LOT of dust, dirt and most important sunshine! As much as I love the rain I am thankful to see the sunshine in the mornings (it makes it much easier to get up and start my day.) Now I know a lot of you are still experiencing full on winter but spring is coming : ) OR come visit us and enjoy a little warmth!

Since the beginning of the month Stephen’s middle school soccer team has finished up their season with a disappointing loss at the end to prevent them from going to the tournament BUT overall had one of the best seasons compared to the last several years with 2 wins and 11 goals! It was encouraging to see the boys mature in their ability to play soccer and grow as a team.

Also, since the beginning of February I have started coaching volleyball with another one of the teachers at the school, we are coaching the girls’ varsity team. So far it’s going really well, and I am really enjoying it! I will keep you all posted on how our season is going!

We also got to celebrate a special little girls first birthday! We praise the Lord for wonderful friends, and feel truly blessed to have a little munchkin to spoil and shower with love! There are so many moments when being away from family and the states just plain stinks BUT then there are moments here that make it worth it and celebrating Abigail's birthday was one of those moments! I have learned that no one can replace your family but the Lord sure can provide friends that feel like family!  

Stephen has also started co-teaching the youth Sunday school class at church, with one of the guys we work with at the school. I have been joining them as well and it has been really encouraging to see God moving and working. So if you can be in prayer with us as God does HIS work in the students’ lives.  

This week I have been reminded from Hebrews

No matter where we live, where we work, where we go to Church, what season of life we are in God calls us to run with endurance. To lay aside every sin that easily distracts us and run our hearts out. To put off bitterness, anger, selfishness, pride (fill in the blank) and put on our running gear.  I praise the Lord for the seasons to remind us that everything is temporary, it reminds me to embrace each moment and not just endure the race but ENJOY the race! 

It's the Holiday Season

So in the last 2 weeks we have celebrated Christmas, Stephens birthday and ringing in the new year! It was our first Christmas in Honduras and away from our families, Stephen's 26th birthday and our first time seeing dangerous fireworks at midnight all over an un-monitored city . . . but it was pretty cool looking!

Back in the fall Stephen and I decided to save some money by staying here in Honduras for Christmas break. And we have really been enjoying our time here together we've loved being home, getting things done around the house and spending time with friends! We were able to go play tennis downtown at a sports complex, we went to see the new Hobbit movie, we have been able to play lots of games with a few other families that stayed over break. We have watched movies, washed the car, started a new workout routine and I have been able to get some reading done! Christmas day was great! We had a big breakfast, spent the morning opening gifts (shout out to my husband who got me some pretty awesome stuff) and skyping with family. Then later in the afternoon we got together with our friends Tim, Liz and their daughter Abigail, our pastor and his family and a few other people for a Christmas dinner . . . the power stayed on for us for this holiday, Praise the Lord! It was truly a wonderful Christmas! I am so thankful for the friends we have made while being here in Honduras, it is when you are far away from family that you realize how important good friends are! And we have some good one's that we are appreciate so much!

Stephen’s birthday was on the 29^th so we invited some friends over to share in a meal of ribs, mashed potatoes, corn, zucchini, and stuffed mushrooms. (Kyle and Melodee with their two kids Julianna and Levi are on the left and Tim and Liz with their daughter Abigail are on the right), Now I had never made ribs before but Stephen loves them so I did my best and the birthday boy approved . . . so now I think I have started a new tradition; ) Then we had cheesecake for dessert, in the past year Stephen has discovered a new love for certain foods . . . cheesecake being the main one! It was a happy day filled with laughter, love, food and friendship! I am so thankful for Stephen’s 26 years of life; I praise the Lord for the amazing man that I have the privilege of being married to. Each year together, month, day together, I continue to learn what it means to love and to be loved and I wouldn’t want to be discovering that with anyone else. Stephen James, I praise God for your life and who HE has created you to be!

Happy New Year! As I look back over the past year, I am amazed at where life has taken us. We live in Honduras, just that fact in and of itself still kind of blows my mind. At midnight, as were standing on a patio, overlooking the city; watching all the fireworks go off all around the city, so beautiful and dangerous; we celebrated bringing in the New Year and talked of the future . . . that’s when I really get amazed. Yes we did the whole looking back thing but what I like doing most at the beginning of the year is looking forward to what is ahead. Looking to what is coming, what can be accomplished, and what new adventures can be tackled. I love being able to share my hopes and dreams with someone, to be married to someone who is just as adventurous as I am. So as adventure comes our way, you will be sure to hear about it! So to 2014, may you be filled with wonder, excitement, adventure and love! 

We LOVE Visitors and Electricity!

Thanksgiving Update . . . my apologies for being WAY behind with my posts. With all this time off school I'm gonna try and get caught up! We had an awesome time with my brother Joel and his wife Sarah when they were here over thanksgiving! We were able to do some traveling and have some adventures! Joel had to do some observations for his health and PE degree, so he spent as much time in the classroom with Stephen as he could. There was a lot happening as they were here, the elections took place the day after they arrived. Here in Honduras the elections are not a safe time, there is a lot of corruption within the competing parties as well as riots all over the city. Because of the unknown circumstance school was canceled the day after elections, which gave us an extra day off to spend with Joel and Sarah. On that day off we decided to go to a national park called La Tigra it is well known for the fun fact that it is part of a cloud forest. And as we found out that is literally what you do, walk higher and higher into the clouds. So that was a fun day of hiking and spending time together. Tuesday and a half day Wednesday were spent at school and then Wednesday afternoon we had the oil changed in the car and went to see a movie . . . movie theaters here are so cheap it costs about $3 American dollars, and it’s in English : ) Late Wednesday night the power went out . . . . and stayed out for a total of 5 long days, coming back on for maybe 2 hours on two separate occasions. Talk about a thanksgiving ruined haha! Trying to make a feast without power is nearly impossible. That is why I was so grateful that we had already made plans to travel! We left early on Thursday morning since thanksgiving dinner was now out of the plan. We traveled towards the middle of the country to Lake Yojoa where we stayed at a brewery! It was such a cute, quaint place. We were able to explore a coffee plantation that afternoon and then enjoy our long awaited thanksgiving feast provided by the staff at the brewery, it was delicious. They also had awesome homemade cream soda’s, coke and root beer : ) Then on Friday we went to the ecological park and saw some beautiful views of the lake and some incredible nature. After that we went back to the brewery for lunch then lastly off to the waterfall. It was awesome, much bigger than any of us expected : ) It was beautiful. Then we headed home . . . it was a whirlwind of a trip but we had a great time! Joel and Sarah’s time went by way to fast but it was so fun to share our home, friends and country with them!