Our Summer in a Nutshell

This summer, writing on the blog has become a little more of a challenge for me time-wise. However, there is a lot to share, so I think it's time for an update! Here are the most recent happenings in our world...

Celebrations...In July, I was given two amazing parties by my Hannah's Hope girls to celebrate our miracle. The first one was all of the current gals. We had a super yummy, rich lasagna dinner, decadent dessert, and enjoyed catching up with each other since it had been a while. The second one was the "alumni" gals and we had a Mexican themed meal, homemade Baby Ruth Bars and tons of other goodies.We decorated margarita glasses and just had a fabulous time hanging out. Both groups spoiled me to death with presents.

Hood River...We've spent quite a bit of time in the Hood with Mom and Dad this summer. Here are some pics of a summer day around our 11th anniversary. We had a nice lunch at Indian Creek Golf Course.



Winnie...Tuesday July 26th we said goodbye to our dear little friend. She was not eating and we were unable to keep giving her dialysis because she was bleeding like crazy whenever she'd get poked, which the vet said was very abnormal. We spent all day up in Hood River at my parents' loving on her and vacillating about the painful decision, but in the end, she could barely move and it was the loving thing to have the vet come to the house and put her to sleep. So very hard, but it was the right thing. She went peacefully in the back yard of her favorite place on earth...Grandma and Grandpa's house.

Baby...Thursday July 28th we said hello to our new little GIRL!!!! Our wonderful friends Paul, Gretchen and baby Noella gifted us with a sneak-peak ultra-sound. Paul is a PA at Southwest Medical Center, so we met them there after work and he took his time searching every angle imaginable on our little tyke In the end, he was about 99% sure it was a girl. We kept it a secret until the first week in August, when we gave our parents and siblings gender-revealing cupcakes (a great idea I stole from Dana). They were chocolate with pink raspberry cream cheese filling.  August 19th, I'll have another ultra sound and chance to make sure no boy parts were hiding! We have heard all of the stories of those who have painted everything pink, just to give birth to a bouncing baby boy, so no warning is required.

Vacation...Monday August 1-Saturday August 6th, we went on our annual Ruth camping trip. This was the second year in a row we have camped at the Cove Palisades by Lake Billy Chinook in Central OR. The weather was in the 90's and we had fun playing at the lake, sitting around the camp fire, and going on walks. We really enjoyed hanging out with 2 1/2 month old baby Rylee too. It was very cool to practice being around an infant 24-7 for almost a whole week!



In back: Aubrey, John, Heather, Sophie, Chip
In front: Josiah, Lorinda, Rylee, Amy, Dustin, Jenny, Brady, Hallie, Nala, Bryan, Cherryl, Mike

 House...Thanks to the Lord, our house sold in 3 weeks! We are going to be closing by August 22nd, so we've begun the process of packing and putting things in a nearby storage unit. We are looking at staying in an apartment for 3 months at the most as we look for another home to purchase. We are not sure where it will be yet, but we're on the lookout for a spectacular find. Thankfully, Bryan has his real estate license and is really good at hunting for deals!

Jen's Work...Also moving, but one weekend earlier than our house-move and just down the street from the current location. Thankfully the boss has already said I'm not to lift anything heavy. My job is going to be keeping people from scratching the floor by making them use felt sticky things. We will be in a very cool-hip-industrial type of space, and there's lots of excitement in the air, so it should be a very good move for Macadam!

Bry's Work...He has been on vacation from the staff assistant position for the summer, which has given him a chance to explore some other job territory. Please pray for direction as he is trying to figure out the right career path. Being a jack of all trades comes in handy sometimes, but it's not always easy when you're trying to get focused!

Ecclesiastes 3:

1 There is a time for everything,

and a season for every activity under the heavens:

2 a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,

3 a time to kill and a time to heal,

a time to tear down and a time to build,

4 a time to weep and a time to laugh,

a time to mourn and a time to dance,

5 a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,

a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,

6 a time to search and a time to give up,

a time to keep and a time to throw away,

7 a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,

8 a time to love and a time to hate,

a time for war and a time for peace.

And a time to go to bed...good night world!