Trip to the Ranch

Last week was an extremely busy week with the trip out to my folks and the women's tea at church, etc. So, I'm just finally getting around to downloading the pictures off our camera to get them on the blog.

We had a great time at my parents' house. It was colder than I anticipated for the second week of April. It actually snowed the first day I was there. And we also left one day early because the weather forecast was not looking good. And I'm glad we did, as the ranch saw a mini-blizzard on the day we originally planned to drive back to Lincoln.

Jeremiah got to see his first colt and baby calf, though he wasn't too excited about either. In fact, he was downright unsure of the baby calf, especially since Uncle Dusty dragged it by the tail over to where we were standing, the calf bawling all the way.

Jeremiah did get to ride a pony (of sorts). Uncle Dusty and Aunt Brandee very generously let him ride a little rocking horse they bought for their new little one due in August. And they're letting Jeremiah break in the horse at our house until their baby is ready to ride. Jeremiah grabbed right onto that horse's ears and said, "Giddyup!" Not really, but he loves to bounce up and down on it.

A Visit to the Zoo

We took a trip to the Lincoln Zoo yesterday. This was the opening day of the season for the zoo. Not everything was out yet but there was still plenty to see. We met Jeremiah's birth-mom at the zoo and we all had a very nice time together. I'm sure we'll be back to the Lincoln zoo more this year. Jeremiah really liked watching the spider monkeys this time. We're also really looking forward to another zoo visit later this summer when we get together with my (Jon) family for a trip to the Omaha Zoo.

Softball Season

It's that time of year again. What time is that you ask. Well, it's time for softball, of course. We had a great softball practice last night. We got together with another team in our league and had a sort of scrimmage. Everyone got lots of good batting practice in. I'm looking forward to the season starting up next Monday. I hope all of you have something you can look forward to this spring!

Holy Matrimony

Jon, Jeremiah and I went to a wedding this afternoon. I used to work with the bride at Back to the Bible, and we both knew the groom from when we were in the singles’ group at Berean. He’s now living in Sioux Falls, so she’ll be moving there after the honeymoon.

One highlight of the day was dressing Jeremiah up in an adorable little tux outfit that we got from Jon’s brother and his wife. Our nephew, Isaiah, wore it in a wedding when he was about Jeremiah’s age. He was so cute! And he really behaved well all through the ceremony and most of the reception.

Another bright spot was the opportunity to catch up with some friends we hadn’t seen in a while. Jake and Kathy used to be in our small group when we went to Berean, but since we started going to North Pointe, we don’t get to see them as much. I had such a great time just talking with them, catching up on their family and what God’s been doing in their lives.

The third aspect of the wedding that both Jon and I enjoyed was the ceremony itself. Jennifer and Merrill, the bride and groom, are both in their mid-30s, so this was a celebration of not just their love for each other, but how God brought them together. The pastor gave one of the best sermons I’ve heard at a wedding regarding God’s design for the role of a husband and the role of a wife. I was personally encouraged and challenged in my own role as a wife. I can’t believe we’ve been married now for almost nine years!

And doesn’t Jeremiah look just adorable in his little outfit?

Heading Out West

Tomorrow, after church, Jeremiah and I are headed out to Western Nebraska to visit my parents and brother and his wife for a few days. Jon has to go to Wichita for his yearly week of training, and I didn’t really want to stay at home for that entire time by myself. So, perfect excuse for a road trip!


Even though Jeremiah is only seven months old, I’m excited for him to see the ranch. He’s been there twice already, but he wasn’t really old enough to notice anything, and it was too cold to go outside at Christmas.


My parents are right in the middle of calving season (over 200 calves born so far), so Jeremiah will get to see some baby calves. Plus, they had a horse colt born on Friday, so we’ll get to see that too. Watch for updates and pictures coming next week!

Meetings

This is one of those things that I both do and don’t miss from working full-time. I don’t miss having meeting after meeting throughout a day and not getting any work done at my desk. But I also miss the brainstorming, dialogue, creativity and fun that some meetings can bring. I think that’s one reason I’m enjoying planning this women’s tea for our church next Saturday.

One aspect I have gotten out of practice in when running a meeting, however, is the balance of getting everyone’s ideas, wanting them to feel that they have input and a voice, but making that final decision as the leader as to what is feasible and what’s not. For me, I err a lot of times in wanting to implement everyone’s ideas, but that’s just not do-able. There has to be someone in charge who makes the final decision, and sometimes those decisions have to be made only by the leader, without getting feedback from anyone else.

I need to remember this more when it comes to the leaders who are in my life—the pastors at my church, my city officials, my state and national leaders. As much as I would love to tell them my ideas for running things, that’s not always do-able, and my ideas aren’t always the best ones out there. That’s why it’s so important for me to pray for these people. I have to confess, I don’t do this very often even though I know it’s important. I know that prayer makes a difference—I’ve seen it countless times in my own life and others around me. What about all of you? How do you remember to pray for your leaders? And how have you seen some of those prayers answered?

I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone—for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.—1 Timothy 2:1–2

These Small Hours

Jon has written on this blog before about the song “Little Wonders” by Rob Thomas. This is a favorite song for both of us. I think it became that way after we went to the movie Meet the Robinsons not quite a year ago. The movie was OK, but it had a good message about adoption. This song was playing as the credits rolled up.

I never thought I’d leave a cartoon movie in tears, but I did this one. Last year, Jon and I were both pretty discouraged. We had been waiting a long time in the whole adoption process, and I wondered what God was trying to teach us. Was He saying “No,” to our request for a child? Was He telling us to wait even longer? We prayed and prayed, but didn't know.

In hindsight, we obviously know what that answer was. Every day I look at Jeremiah and thank God for the blessing of this sweet, wonderful little boy. And that’s where the song comes in. The chorus goes:

our lives are made

in these small hours

these little wonders,

these twists & turns of fate

time falls away,

but these small hours,

these small hours still remain

There are so many great moments for me in being a mom. But I think the most special are just the little everyday things—snuggling with Jeremiah after he gets up from a nap; watching him roll around on the floor and then look up at me and smile; watching him fall asleep on Jon’s lap so content to be with his daddy. These moments are so precious, and they are going past at lightening speed. There’s no way to hold on to them, so the best thing for me is to just sit back, enjoy them and thank God continuously for His many blessings.