Saturday, December 29, 2007

5th Anniversary

I'm going to a bit of catch up here... with our house being flooded there is a lot to make up for.

We spent our fifth anniversary in Beaver Creek... it was awesome! Brian had my parents set up to watch Avery for the night. I slept long and hard... so that's what that feels like?!?

Dinner at a great italian restaurant and then bed at 8pm... boy, are we wild or what?


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Monday, November 26, 2007

100 Gallons of Water

After a wonderful week with my parents for Thanksgiving, Brian and I walked into our house and discovered that our basement had flooded. Yikes! One of the sprinkler pipes broke in four places (thanks to the people who owned this house before us... they did a good job of jerry-rigging the system and had pipes above ground). Anyhow, we walked in and saw about 2 feet of water in the window well of our office and buckets of water flowing all over our computer and our desk! Not quite how we had invisioned coming home.

Well, Service Master has been at our house for the past two days (great guys!) and have done a ton of work to help us! They vacuumed up 100 GALLONS of water from our basement!!!! All of the carpet padding is gone, along with both bathroom vanities and a number of walls. We had to move everything into our garage... thanks to all our friends here! And we probably won't be able to move stuff back down for a month!

God really has given us both peace about this whole situation though, and I find myself strangely calm. I just look at our family and feel so blessed that we are together and that we have sweet Avery. Our house is just "stuff" and I know it will all get taken care of. If you are reading this, I would love to ask if you would say a quick prayer for us and this situation. We found out that insurance will probably not cover any of the costs... which may be anywhere from 3,000 to 6,000 after all is said and done. You can pray for three things: Peace, Provision, and Thankfulness to be true of our lives.

Here are a few pics of our basement which is a total disaster area right now...



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Wednesday, November 07, 2007

Tummy Time

Avery rolled over from her stomach to her back on October 31st! Brian and I were so excited to see her learn something new and were cheering loudly while she just stared at us blankly like, "What are you guys so excited about?" She continues to hold that head up high too... so fun.

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Reading Together

In the midst of exhausting sleep training (which we started today... yes, I am crying a lot and trying to distract myself by doing various things around the house)... there are some sweet moments with my daughter that I cling to. I know she doesn't know what the heck I am reading about, but she seems to enjoy looking at the pictures. Brian snapped a couple of shots just before bedtime.

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Grammy's Visit




Brian's mom came out for a few days last week and had a great time! I think Avery was a little thrown off after she left not having someone around who would play with her all the time. Pin It

Wednesday, October 31, 2007

Who Wants Jelly Beans?

Avery celebrated her first Halloween as a bag of jelly beans... and who wouldn't want to eat up these?



She was SO cute and the funniest part was that she didn't smile even once. Pretty hilarious actually. She had just woke up from a nap and we went to a friends house and took some pictures with their kids.

Kate, Luke, Avery, & Brian... getting ready to head and get some CANDY!

Avery & Ben... a future match? We'll see...

We tried everything to get her to smile, but I think she pretty much was out of it... and probably didn't want to be wearing a costume. When I made her costume it also fit her much better than it did tonight... her belly has expanded a bit which made for a tight fit around the middle!

And so we went "trick or treating" to a couple of neighbor's houses mostly to show her off. It was a kick for us, and we were proud of her for not having a meltdown.
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Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Fun Pics Of Avery

I just thought I would post a few cute pics we have taken recently. We are enjoying Avery more these days... her personality is continuing to surface and our predictions are that she is going to be a fun and extroverted little kid. Not surprising knowing her parents. :)


An after bath time picture... she loves taking baths, she just looks at me and smiles the whole time.

SO BIG!

All dressed up with dad... I LOVE this picture, what a great smile! It was Avery's first time in a dress. We were going to be heading to church and then she fell asleep in her room... we weren't even going to think about waking her up.

My sweet baby girl!

Look at that belly! You'd think that we weren't feeding her or anything.
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Eat You Up


Avery loves it when I act like I'm eating her hand. But she also wants to join in on the fun, so every time I go to "eat" her hand, she brings her hand to her mouth and chews on it a bit. Her hands are perpetually wet these days. It just cracks me up! Pin It

Sunday, October 21, 2007

Lesson From Getaway

This weekend was a neat time for 80 of our students to get up to the mountains and encounter God at our Rocky Mtn. Getaway. They had a blast!

I also had a couple of BRIEF moments to think about my walk with the Lord too. One question the speaker posed the students was, "Do you measure the "success" of your walk with God by the depth of your dependence on Him or by your giftedness and behavior?" Such a great question, especially in light of my season of life. I was challenged by the thought that God wants me to DEPEND on Him and not merely use my gifts and abilities FOR Him. And when I find myself stuck at home all day every day, I feel like I rarely get to use my gifts anyhow, so it was a great word for me. I want to depend on the Lord and cling to Him... He's all I've got and all I need. I really want to remember that daily. Pin It

Avery's First Trip To The Hills

So, we had our fall retreat this weekend and it was Avery's first time up in the mountains. It was beautiful up there, but it was SOOOOOOOO windy! The wind actually knocked out the power at the YMCA camp we were at. Avery didn't like the wind so much, she pretty much held her breath every time we were outside.



Avery was a champ for most of the weekend... most of it. hahaha. Here she is with Brian helping out with the registration table where students check in.



And then, on Saturday afternoon, Brian and I had the BRILLIANT idea of going into town to walk around a bit. Big mistake! We got out of the car (Avery was actually asleep at the time... a miracle of miracles) and we started on our way. We snapped two cute pictures and then Avery woke up and started screaming. Oh, what a joy. So, our little excursion turned out to be a mild nightmare. Instead of sitting down for lunch, we got Taco Bell drive thru. And I drove while Brian ate (Avery fell back to sleep in the car)... we drove and drove and drove. Not quite the afternoon we had hoped for.



When we got back to the lodge, Avery's hat had slid down over her eyes... it was very cute and a good reminder that our daughter still has cute moments.

I did end up leaving a day early from the retreat because it was too hard to be there with Avery. I was really sad to miss my first Getaway in 11 years... long time. So, it was a hard ending to the weekend. I sure did love being up in the mountains though... at least I could look out the window and see those beautiful peaks as I was holding a screaming baby. Pin It

Thursday, October 18, 2007

A Tasty Lower Lip

It seems like most of my days are spent talking to myself. I feel a bit crazy at times because I go through my day talking out loud to no one (or Avery) like, "Do you think I should make some lunch?" "Mom has to go potty, I'll be right back." "Man, I have smelly armpits, I think I need to take a shower, after all it's been three days." (Perhaps that is too much information) Avery pretty much just sits there... as to be expected. What can you do?

Her new thing this past week has been sucking in her lower lip. It is so funny. We can hear her doing it from across the room. It is a loud slurping sound. Brian and I have tried so many times to catch it on video, but every time we put the camera in front of her she just stops and stares at the camera (also, very funny). Anyhow, I finally caught her in action.



The last three months have been incredibly exhausting... motherhood is far harder than I ever thought it would be (props to ALL moms out there). So I am relishing in these moments of her beginning to laugh and smile. They make my heart full.



She was just staring at me, probably thinking, "My mom is so strange... but she makes me smile." And I just adore that she has a little dimple on her right cheek. I just want to eat it up! Pin It

What A Stinker

I got done feeding Avery this morning and she was in a great mood so I had to snap a few pics. She is getting cuter by the day... which helps us to get through those moments when she is freaking out.

She loves to suck on her wrists... she may be teething already!

Avery in a peaceful moment.



Isn't this smile a killer... she is such a stinker! Pin It

Daddy's Little Pumpkin

So Avery and I were having fun with the camera and thought we would take some pictures of us for Brian. Of course I speak as though Avery was voicing her opinion... yes, I know that baby's don't speak. That's when I know that I spend all day every day with an infant... I start to put words in her mouth.

This is Avery's surprised face.

This would be the disinterested face.

Look at those cheeks! Pin It

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

15 Seconds Of Silence

My sister said the other day, "It's hard to believe that Avery cries, because all the pictures and videos are all so cute of her... and I only seem to see her on the webcam when she is in a good mood." So, here you go Andrea... proof that I have a fussy baby. Enjoy! :)



It is kind of a pathetic cry here... but trust me, it gets much much worse. And makes me want to pull my hair out most days. I am most certainly looking forward to days when she doesn't scream her head off.

In fact, right now, as I am typing this she is crying in her crib needing to take a nap. There was just 15 seconds of silence... sadly, those were a beautiful 15 seconds... now replaced by crying. "Oh Lord, please give me another 15 seconds of silence." Pin It

Saturday, October 13, 2007

Red Corona & Green Coke To The Rescue!

This is all my friend Byranie... I saw in on her blog and just laughed! It was a great little "escape from reality" if even for a moment.

RACHEL'S FUNKY NAMES...
1. YOUR ROCK STAR NAME: (first pet & current car)
Muffy Kia

2.YOUR GANGSTA NAME: (fave ice cream flavor, favorite cookie)
Vanilla Frosted Animal

3. YOUR "FLY Guy/Girl" NAME: (first initial of first name, first three letters of your last name)
R-Sch (kind of sounds like something inappropriate) ha!

4. YOUR DETECTIVE NAME: (favorite color, favorite animal)
Blue Dog

5. YOUR SOAP OPERA NAME: (middle name, city where you were born)
Lynn Denver

6. YOUR STAR WARS NAME: (the first 3 letters of your last name, first 2 letters of your first)
Schra

7. SUPERHERO NAME: (2nd favorite color, favorite drink put "The")
Red Corona

8. NASCAR NAME: (the first names of your grandfathers)
Gaylen Edward

9.WITNESS PROTECTION NAME: (mother's & father's middle names )
Jean Paul


BRIAN'S FUNKY NAMES...
1. YOUR ROCK STAR NAME: (first pet & current car)
Twiggy Passport

2.YOUR GANGSTA NAME: (fave ice cream flavor, favorite cookie)
Cookie Dough Nutter Butter

3. YOUR "FLY Guy/Girl" NAME: (first initial of first name, first three letters of your last name)
BSch

4. YOUR DETECTIVE NAME: (favorite color, favorite animal)
Blue Badger

5. YOUR SOAP OPERA NAME: (middle name, city where you were born)
William Schenectady (sounds sexy)

6. YOUR STAR WARS NAME: (the first 3 letters of your last name, first 2 letters of your first)
Schbr

7. SUPERHERO NAME: (2nd favorite color, favorite drink put "The")
Green Coke

8. NASCAR NAME: (the first names of your grandfathers)
John Addison

9.WITNESS PROTECTION NAME: (mother's & father's middle names )
Addison Therese

I'm pretty sure that Twiggy and Muffy make a pretty great rockstar couple! But you gotta watch out for that gangsta Cookie Dough... he might just bust a cap in ya... word. And you should definitely stay tuned to watch the romance between Lynn Denver and William Schenectady develop on the Days of Our Lives. Pin It

Wednesday, October 10, 2007

Beautiful Girl

This past week has been a trying one for us. After having Avery waking up only once a night, she slipped into a funk of waking 3-4 times. And her fussiness has gotten a bit worse. Exhaustion and sadness took us over for a while and we have both felt like we are at the end of ourselves. After a few conversations with friends and our doctor, we are going to pursue seeing if Avery is allergic to dairy. (Bummer for me... I love ice cream!) Our hearts have just broken over this little girl who seems to be in pain. Anyhow... in the midst of our tears and tiredness, we have found ourselves captivated by the beauty of our daughter. We have tried to spend time looking into her kind and soft eyes and really feel as though the Lord has helped us to love her more. We don't "enjoy" these days per se... with the crying and such, but we do love our beautiful little girl.




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Sleep Positions



One of our favorite things about Avery is her hilarious sleeping positions. It never ceases to amuse us the way she contorts her body when she sleeps. You would think that she wouldn't sleep well (perhaps that is true!).



"Mom! Stop taking pictures of me while I'm sleeping!" Pin It

Me & Avery

I sure do love my daughter... It seems like I am always the one with the camera, therefore, I never get pictures with me and my little one. So, I had Brian snap a couple of shots of us. Her chubby cheeks are so precious. My arms are definitely getting tired and stronger from carrying around the little chunk! And eventhough she cries a lot, I still love her very much.

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Friday, October 05, 2007

October Prayer Letter

We are so thankful for all of our partners who pray so faithfully for us and our ministry! God is moving! Even last week, a few of our students pulled off a HUGE outreach where about 1000 students came and 30 placed their faith in Christ. Praise the LORD!!!

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Thursday, October 04, 2007

Learning to Grab

Avery is beginning to discover her hands and how to use them. It is SO cool! I caught her on video trying to grab at some toys and it was priceless.





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