For Better or Worse

August 9, 2003

I don't normally get all gushy around Valentine's Day.

In fact, our little family has a tradition: we spend the evening together and order a heart-shaped pizza.

Romantic, huh? :)

Don't get me wrong-- K usually does something really special. Just not necessarily ON Valentine's Day.

Anyway, I can't let this one go by without proclaiming just how special K is. I love him with all my heart-- but in the last few months, he has been so good to me that I can't help but love him exponentially more every day.

April 16, 2006

It is really true that trials prove someone's love. What a refining fire! And we have had several in the last few months. Let's start with my contractions beginning at 21 weeks. From that point on, K has pretty much worked from home every day to accomodate me. To make sure that I don't overdo it. To make sure I can get Moses in bed for his nap. To make sure that I have plenty of time to get my own work done in the day.

He has always been more of the "cook" of the family, but now he is making almost every meal. He practically waits on me (and Moses) hand and foot. He makes sure that every need is met before he leaves the house for anything.

Summer 2006

How did I ever get so blessed?

And then there is the bat situation. How he has remained strong through all of this, I have no idea. No, actually, I do have an idea. It's God. There is no one I know who has a walk with God like he does. His committment puts me to shame.

November 2007

And watching him work amazes me. The things he has to do sometimes-- like telling a woman in the hospital that she was dying-- I can't imagine ever having to do. The weight of the world must be on his shoulders at times-- but he never lets that weigh down his family. My needs and Moses' needs always come first.

It makes me feel a little selfish.

August 2008

He works harder than I ever have in my life. He stays up until all hours of the night to make sure that things are done around the house. Even as I type (and it's about 9:30 pm), he is in the other room sanding walls to prep for painting. Things have been so crazy lately that he stays up until 3:00 in the morning working on his sermons.

All because he loves his family.

December 2008

And lately, that has just been a little overwhelming to me.

How did I ever get so blessed?

Throughout this journey-- both the good times and the bad-- K has truly been the leader in our family. I am so glad that I don't have that job. And now that I get to watch him with his children, it takes my love for him to an entirely new level. I don't know what is more precious-- watching him snuggle with his son, or watching him wrestle with his son. He is truly an amazing father.

And I love him with all of my heart.

One Big Day!

This was a momentous day: K turned 30, and Moses had his first Pre-School Open House!

Moses and I started out the morning decorating a card for Daddy, and wrapping presents:

K loves chocolate, so I make a chocolate chip "cake" and then added 50% more chocolate than the recipe called for, in the form of springy blue M&Ms:

Moses enjoyed it (he even has chocolate on his shoulder...):

Later in the day, Dean dropped off this pie from Marge (the coffee is on right now, and I can't wait for a piece!):

This evening, we visited Moses' school for the first time. Doesn't he look like a big boy?!

He had a lot of fun, particularly playing with a stroller with a baby doll in it. (I hadn't thought about THAT type of present for his upcoming birthday...).

So what did Moses think of his new school? This was his face upon leaving/returning home:

For 45 minutes, all he did was cry "baby" and point in the direction of the church where the preschool is located (as well as where the baby and stroller are located...). It was sweet and heartbreaking all at the same time.

Apparently he will adjust just fine to preschool life!

Here are my boys on their big day:

Not so bad...

Less than 24 hours after gall bladder surgery, and here I am sitting up in bed, checking email, blogging, etc.! I am very impressed with my surgeon and the nurses. The entire process wasn't really too bad. And once I found a comfortable position and was able to sleep yesterday, things got much better.

PLUS, it helps that I am being waited on hand and foot. :) K is one amazing husband.

And, Grandma and Grandpa came and took Moses to a hotel yesterday, so Kurt can focus on me. In the meantime, Moses is having a blast. They went and saw the new baby chicks at the farm store (once I figure out how to get the video from my phone to the computer, I will have to post it-- Moses went from gently petting the baby chick to smacking it on its head... it hurts when I laugh that hard!). They went to the mall and the coffee shop. They attemped to go swimming, but Moses was having too much fun making silly faces in the full-length mirror in the hotel room.

And the pain isn't too bad after all.

And here is the best part: the surgeon was able to identify some problems with my gall bladder that were causing it to not function. That means I WILL feel better after this!

All in all, I am feeling very thankful to God for his provision for our family!

Okay, that's enough sitting up time now... back to bed...

More Tidbits

My husband

I don't talk about K much on here-- partly because I tend to focus mostly on Moses, and partly because K wasn't so thrilled about a "family blog" in the first place. But I just have to take a moment and write about how wonderful he is. He is so helpful around the house (I think he does more "housework" than I do most weeks), he is a wonderful pastor, and I love him more than anything. Of course, part of the reason I like him so much as my pastor is because he looks so darn good in his suits. :)

Anyway, I need to brag just a little. He is currently working on his M.Div., and this year he is taking 4 semesters of Greek in just 2 semesters. He aced last semester (or, two semesters...), and my guess is he is well on his way to acing this semester. But I am looking forward to June-- because he is taking 6 months off from class! What will we do with all that time...?

Work

After a few crazy weeks, things are finally starting to slow down to a pace I can keep up with. Which is good, since I might be out for a week due to...

Surgery

Thank you Daniel, Erin, Sara, and Crystal (and anyone else) for the prayers! This weekend was a good weekend-- with the exception of morning nausea (and NO, I am NOT pregnant-- I am getting tired of that question... as if I would be so stupid as to miss THAT! Besides, after 6 months, I think I would be showing my now...), I really wasn't very sick at all. Perhaps that is because the fattiest thing I ate was lunch meat...

No word yet on whether the surgery will actually happen on Thursday....

Moses

Moses is just becoming such a little gentleman. We had such a good weekend. It is a joy to spend time with him, and every day he makes us laugh-- or melt. In the last week, he has started singing "holy, holy" when he hears "God of Wonders" on our worship mix CD. I don't think there is anything more precious than hearing a not-yet-two-year-old sing at the top of his lungs, "Ooooo-eeee! Oooooo--eeeee!"

Just for fun