Starting life over again has been a little gentler with these pilgrims in our midst.
extended family
Engaged!
Noelle has graced us with a visit.
And now she wears a ring.
Stewart bought the ring and spoke with Noelle’s parents, and his initial plan was to propose at the beach. But there are some parts to a beach proposal that are messy, and loud, and — it was a whole ADDITIONAL day of waiting.
So this morning, he put the ring BOX in his pocket before they set out on their hike to Pretty Place (a YMCA camp about an hour away). Noelle noticed he clearly had something in his pocket and directly asked him what he was hiding. Without skipping a beat (we are told) he proposed and she accepted. And they then found some people to take a photo.
And soon our family will grow by one Daughter-In-Love.
All was right in the world
For a few days, Gunnar came to visit.
And the world felt good and normal again.
Christmas in our new house.
The good news is, some two+ months after catching the blog up, I am working to fill in all the missed weeks.
The bad news is, I have forgotten a good many details.
I do remember that one of the best parts is seeing how the kids gifted one another.
Sweet Noelle brought me coffee from Finger Lakes Roasters!
Jeff, Marguerite, Joseph, William, and Victorious joined us for dinner.
Johanna and Katriel got bean bag chairs from Mom and Dad.
Marie and Noelle blessed us with music.
It was warm enough out for a fire.
Mid-day (these photos loaded out of order) we got to watch Encanto. This is my new favorite movie!
Where there is a will, there is a way! We got all of us into the dining room.
Christmas Eve 2021
I’ve spent the better part of the last three days shopping or cooking.
Kelly and I broke for a few minutes this morning to be at the mall when it opened.
Marie worked til 2PM, then played some games with her sisters.
Both Kelly and Noelle are here for the holiday.
Church was at 5PM and we were some of the last to leave as we took some photos and visited with our new church family. One of the ladies in our church asked where in NY Noelle was from and wouldn’t you know she has a niece in the area Noelle may have met when they visited her church. God’s world is both BIG and small.
We went home for dinner of amazing snacks.
Veggie tray, shrimp, carmelized pigs in a blanket, spinach artichoke dip, taco dip and beef and turnkey sliders.
And for dessert we had a new recipe. It didn’t look like much and we had our doubts. It ended up being amazing.
Marie and Noelle sang for us.
South Carolina Thanksgiving
Not a cloud in the sky.
So grateful for the Hoyt’s hosting us as they also had guests from New Jersey.
Stewart was at Noelle’s, and Nan was in Webster.
Outings… Picnic at Ba and Poppy’s
After church we headed to Ba and Poppy’s for a wonderful picnic on the back porch. Alana and John, and Bruce were able to join us.
Silly setting and faith-filled friends.
We were up at 5AM and had kids up shortly after. We hit the house hard, loading garbage cans and hampers and bedroom fans and suitcases and Stewart’s computer and a few boxes into the cars.
And by 7:40AM we were out the door. Stewart headed to Nan’s for some sleep; he’d been up all night after working FedEx til 2:30AM.
Nigel went in to work early. The first showing for the house was 8:30 AM.
There was Dunkin’ and a playground. We took Marie to work at 9AM and then John, Tabitha, Johanna, Katriel and I went to visit Ba and Poppy.
We had lunch at Wendy’s and checked into our hotel by 3:30PM.
Some Property Brothers and rest.
(REST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)
Then we went to Rebecca and Dana’s house for a picnic. Here we thought it was a big family gathering and we were joining in. Turns out it was essentially our family and their Grandma Helena. Later Rebecca’s sister, BIL, and niece came by.
The boys got to see Jonathan for the first time in almost a year.
It was so deeply life-giving to spend time with our friends. Not only did Johanna and Katriel very much enjoy playing with Levi and Caleb, but the grown ups got to spend time catching up, and we ended the night in prayer.
Katriel’s Baptism
Oh – that I would have seen this joy with my own eyes.
A few weeks ago, while we were finishing up with story time, Katriel turned to me and stated, “Mom, I want to be baptized.” Can you imagine the spirit within me leaping with gratefulness?
Right after the sermon on Sunday, John walked Katriel up to speak with Pastor Tim, and a few nights later he and Miss Polly came by to talk with Katriel about what it meant.
We told Stewart and Noelle, and also William and his family, that the special day was coming. They all joined us at PCC for the morning.
Katriel grabbed a small hug as she came up.
We had a small lunch back at home with our friends.
And Miss Barb brought some special frog cupcakes from her favorite bakery on the west side.
This was super special for a few reasons.
First – Katriel almost drowned a few years ago. We don’t really talk about it. But even getting her face wet is dramatic.
Second – the rest of us were baptized together in 2018. She was really too young to grasp it, but what a joy it is for me to know she arrived at this moment 100% on her own.
Dayspring Disciples 