Happy Birthday News...

So first off, I have to wish my honey a happy 27th birthday! We just arrived back in Germany yesterday, so we are totally jetlagging on his birthday and aren't doing anything super exciting really. Spending time together will be just perfect.

Out of the four of us, jetlag seems to be hitting Ellie the worst. She was awake last night from around midnight until around 3:30 or 4AM.  Hopefully tonight will go better - I'm trying to limit her naps today.

Li'l B, Ellie, and I had a wonderful time in the States. We spent about a week and a half with each side of the family, so the kids had lots and lots of quality time with their cousins. I finally got to meet little Lilly (Nathan and Shawnna's little girl) - wow is she beautiful! It was so fun to watch the cousins play (and from time to time fight ) together. I also had a wonderful time with our parents and siblings. I can't get over how blessed we are with such loving and supportive families.

One of these times when we are home for a visit, we will all stay healthy! Ellie and Li'l B both somehow managed to get pink eye along with fevers, congestion, and colds while at my parents house. They managed to pass along their colds to me by the end of the trip, so we are going through the kleenex awfully quickly right now at our place. Despite the bouts with sickness, we had such fun. I love summertime in Michigan - Li'l B got to experience the beach for the first time, and spent lots of time on playgrounds and parks or just playing outside. We all loved it.

In the past three weeks, Ellie has started crawling and pulling herself up on everything. She also now has two teeth on the bottom, has started saying "more" in sign language, and also is waving "hi" now. It's so fun to watch her interacting more and more. I can't believe how quickly she is growing up on me. She is so much fun.

And now for the BIG news...while we were having a restful vacation, Brandon was working his tail off at his training. We definitely missed him lots, and it was so fun to meet up again yesterday and trade stories.

AND... As a result of Brandon's successful completion of this training, he was selected for a new position. He called me the day after he graduated to tell me that his next school will begin in September in .... GEORGIA!!!! So folks, this little family is headed back Stateside in one month!!!! I can't believe all that we have to do in the next few weeks (it's gonna be c.r.a.z.y. ), but we are really excited for this new opportunity. We have enjoyed our time in Germany, but it is exciting to think of heading back stateside in just a few weeks...  Can you believe it?!

And...that's all for now. I have lots of unpacking to do ... so that we can re-pack it all very soon!!! Sending much love!

My Captain

So the promotion went perfectly. I was so proud of my man - it's such an honor to stand beside him and support him. Li'l B did his part like a pro, despite the fact that he had no nap and it was blazing hot in there.  He took off Daddy's old rank, waited for Mommy to "pin" the new rank on, and then (in perfect military tradition), he punched the new rank (with a good bit of force, I might add).  He was just our little man, and we were proud. 

Brandon leaves tomorrow for a few weeks of intense training. He's been training hard on his own in preparation, and I know he'll do well. The last few months for us have been challenging as we've been praying over some decisions for our future and seeking God's direction for our family. As I've shared in recent posts, I've been going through the process of surrendering this to my Lord, but it's been a challenge for my heart. Yesterday, Brandon overwhelmed me by buying last minute tickets for me to fly home while he's away. What a man he is. He bought the tickets. I cried. I called my mom to tell her. I cried again.  I started feverishly packing and cleaning and doing oodles of laundry. I cried again.

I can't tell you how much I needed this break, to be with family and friends, to refresh, to watch my loved ones enjoy my children, to have support and encouragement. Brandon amazes me with his love, his kindness, and his generosity. While he's going through the toughest training of his career thus far, he's sending us into the loving arms of our families, to just enjoy togetherness. I married a man who loves sacrificially, who cares for and nurtures my heart, and who daily makes me love him more. I married a truly wonderful and amazing man. I'm so proud of my Captain!

I should be doing laundry...

but I just couldn't resist a quick update. It seems like my days have been filling up quickly with little time to sit down and update all that is going on around here. Even with those full days, I still have piles of laundry waiting to be folded and an apartment that isn't nearly tidy enough. Lately we've been trying to spend as much time outside as possible, which is fun and enjoyable, but certainly doesn't lend itself to getting much accomplished in the housework department. Brandon reminded me the other day that in 20 years, I'll forget about the dirty house and will enjoy memories of special times with the kids. I think he's right.

We went back to Hanau this week after discovering that the clinic there had accidently kept Brandon's medical records. Somehow we didn't notice that we had only 3 of the 4 folders. Woopsies. Oh well, it gave us a chance to go back to our old stompin' grounds for a couple of hours. The kids played on "their" playground one last time, and we met up with some friends for dinner. It was a lovely day.

Ellie has mastered the "Army crawl," as we like to call it around here. She now officially has to be monitored quite closely as she has started pulling things off of shelves and tables. Tonight she crawled out of the kiddy pool on the balcony in order to get something that had caught her attention. Most of the time she just wants to chew on everything. Poor girl still has no teeth, but she's teething like it's her job.

Last Friday was "organization day" at work, which is basically code for "fun day." The unit has competitions between the batteries in a variety of sports. Brandon played softball, and Li'l B was his "coach." He spent lots of time in the dugout with Daddy while our team was batting, and gave B lots of tips on defense, mostly to the effect of, "Catch it! Catch it!" I'm sure it was helpful. It was a fun day, but I forgot to apply sunscreen, and I paid for it.

And last but not least ... Brandon gets promoted to Captain tomorrow. I'm so proud of him and his growth as a leader. It's such an honor to be his wife and stand by him as he walks through his military career. I'm one blessed lady. We are planning to have Li'l B be a part of the ceremony - hopefully it will go well even though the promotion happens to fall in the middle of naptime. Pictures to follow for sure!

I'll leave you with a few verses that encouraged me today. God has really been using His Word to strengthen and uphold me this week, and I'm very thankful...

Psalm 42:8 - By day the Lord directs His love, at night His song is with me...

Psalm 37: 23-24 - If the Lord delights in a man's way, He makes his steps firm; though he stumble, he will not fall, for the Lord upholds him with His Hand.

Sending much love!!!

Summ-a-time...

We've had a lovely few days here lately, just enjoying the summer weather (it's finally here to stay! ) The kids and I have been spending lots of time outside at the playgrounds playing with the neighborhood kids, out for excursions in the jogging stroller, or just in our front "yard" playing soccer or some other game. I'm lovin' it. I've been able to meet a few other young mom's on the playground, and it's been fun to see Li'l B interacting with other kids. I get along particularly well with one gal that lives in our building, but the bummer of it all is that she is headed home in August when her hubby deploys.  Such is life in the military I guess. We'll enjoy her and her cutie daughter while they are here.

The only downside of our week has been that we've all somehow gotten colds. The kids have been up a lot at night with coughing and congestion, which of course has left us all feeling a bit worn out. Thankfully I think we're all starting to feel better, one day at a time.

Li'l B makes me laugh. A lot. We are constantly amazed at the things that he remembers and the phrases he is putting together. When we put him to bed now, he stalls by telling us story after story. The other night I was in another room listening to him talking Daddy's ear off. It made me smile. I babysat for another 2 yr old boy the other night, and it was a riot watching the two boys interacting. I was especially amused watching Li'l B take charge from time to time. Once when his little buddy tried to play with a picture I have framed on our end table, Li'l B approached him quickly and said, "No, no, Anthony! That's just a decoration!" Where do you suppose he picked that up?

Brandon and I found a bargain on a belgian waffle maker at a flea market on Saturday, and we've been making some scrumptious waffles the last few days. Last night we had "dessert waffles" while sitting on our porch swing. It was lovely.

Ellie wants to walk and run and chase her brother. Sometimes she seems frustrated because her little body just isn't ready for that yet, but she so wants so badly to join in. She watches him all the time, giggling at his antics and then trying so hard to move with him. When she takes off, we're all gonna be doing a lot of running, I just know it.

It seems lately that the Lord is trying to teach me to hold onto things loosely. It's easy to get really attached to things, or to my agenda, or to my goals/dreams/ambitions. I feel like lately God has been walking me down a road of surrender, reminding me that everything is His anyway. Sometimes I feel like my two year old, wanting to say, "It's MINE!", only to have that gentle, patient nudge from the Holy Spirit telling me to let go. The funny thing is that the tighter I hold to "my stuff", the more unhappy I feel. I am coming to believe that contentment is achieved only after we are willing to come to the Lord with open hands.

On that note, I need to go. Ellie will be waking up ready to eat any minute! Speaking of which, I have to include a picture of my girlie after I took her pigtails out the other night. It cracked me up.

Sending love from Germany as always!

It's Just Daddy

I’m trying to figure out how to put into words the thoughts that have been swirling in my head all day, so here’s my attempt… (bear with me)

It all started last night at bedtime. I heard Li’l B awake after we had put him in bed, so I went to check on him. He immediately said, “Mommy…come lie down for a minute!” (how does one resist that?? )

Let me backtrack to say that at this same time, Brandon was giving himself a haircut. His clippers every now and then make this crazy and obnoxiously loud noise (we think because he has to plug them into a transformer due to voltage differences).

Back to my story… every now and then as li’l B and I laid in his bed, we’d hear a sudden, loud buzzing noise from the bathroom. Li’l B would sit up quickly, look around, and say, “What’s that noise?!” to which I would reply, “It’s ok, bud. It’s just Daddy.” This scenario repeated itself several times. After about the 4^th time, we heard the noise again; this time, however, Li’l B looked at me calmly and with a cute little smile said, “It’s just Daddy.” He then settled down and drifted off to sleep, no longer concerned about the noise because he knew the source.

For some reason, something clicked in my brain as I heard my little boy’s words last night. I’ll be honest. I’ve  been struggling a bit lately, although I’ve given myself very little time to really process through the reasons why. I  think there are a lot of contributing factors: lots of changes, moving, goodbyes, decisions, future uncertainties and questions. I’ve been somewhat overwhelmed, and have been looking to the future with a degree of anxiety that has been wearing on my spirit, causing a sort of heavy cloud to weigh on my heart and my emotions. I’ve felt a bit detached spiritually, asking lots of questions from God and not particularly enjoying the silent wait for answers.

The alarm in my son’s voice last night when he heard the strange noises struck a chord with me because it so resembled the sense of urgency I’ve been feeling at the “noises” in my life recently. Somehow through all the changes, the decisions, the questions, I’ve failed to rest in what I know to be true: God is sovereign. God is present. God is fully in control. God knew what this day held before I even opened my eyes this morning. God cannot be surprised.God equips you when He calls you. God is enough.

Li’l B fell asleep last night despite the noise, solely because he trusted the source. The noise didn’t stop, but he stopped worrying about it because he knows his Daddy. You know, I think life’s just like that. Most often God doesn’t choose to remove our struggles immediately. More often then not, they remain in order to be used to increase our faith and improve our character. It seems most often we have to choose to trust - despite the uncertainty, despite the change, and despite the questions. We have to remember that God works all things together for good for those who love Him. We have to choose to trust that the God who ordained this day has a plan, perfectly woven and beautifully orchestrated to make us more like Himself.

And so…when the anxiety builds in my heart today, when my thoughts get a bit crazy, when my emotions feel a bit frazzled … I’m asking God to remind me to trust His Hand in it all.

After all, it’s just Daddy…