Is it May ALREADY?

Let me try to recap a little of the first few months of 2011 for you (if you're still reading... tap,tap,tap... you in there?)

January:

Exciting news! We may have been expecting a child of our own, but there's another birth that's happening...

For some time, Scott has been sensing a call to be a senior pastor. Over time, we've prayed and the Lord has confirmed a calling to start a church. A new church. A Church "Plant", as in planting the seed and growing a new church body.

We prayed through where we were supposed to do this, and we began to realize that all the roads we'd traveled with their interesting experiences and trials, along with many ministry opportunities that never panned out, had been part of God's plan to get us to our current town. We might or might not have chosen our location were it left to ourselves, but it became evident that God wanted to plant a church using us, right here where we already live.  We began meeting with a small "core" group in January, and a very generous couple who owns a small local restaurant let us meet there on Sundays (restaurant closed) for free!  Very exciting times, to be sure!  You can check us out here or on Facebook here.

February:

Our little church is growing, and we've been blessed with several large families with young kids.  That means we're out of space for our church meetings!  We are very grateful, as a local public school has allowed us to meet there on the weekends.  It's a super location.  Be praying for us as we determine how long the Lord would have us there, as well as that we would be a blessing to the teachers and staff there.

Our family is about to officially grow, because my pregnant belly is almost at it's growth limit!!!  For whatever reason, I tend to carry babies large.  By 36 wks, I was measuring full term  (as the tape lies... w/ the doctor's measuring tape, a belly-height, top to bottom, in inches should equal the number of weeks near the end)  Baby S would be arriving soon!  Nesting was in full swing, but with the church things happening, nesting couldn't accomplish enough quickly!

At the same time, Spring Soccer began.  Both C & A1 were playing again, with Scott coaching C's team.  It may have been crazy, but that's such a good thing for the kids and a great way for us to get to know families in our town.

C got some dental work done.  Check him out!

March:

Aaaah!  The weeks are short, and baby S is coming soon! Planting on the farm is in full-swing, and planting as in the church is going well.  We're so grateful for the families who are a part of CC Community Church.

My wonderful doctor (I love her!  I'd recommend her highly!) has measured my belly again, and at 40 wks gestation, I measure 46 weeks... like I would if I was 6 weeks past the due date.  Good grief! We are a little concerned that S will be huge, and since I want to avoid a c-section if possible, we set an appointment to be induced in case I don't go into labor early.

Seth Josiah is born on a Wednesday evening after we start the induction that morning.  He's precious, and we feel so blessed.  Check the next post for pics and info.

The end of March brought challenges and blessings... challenges as we tried to balance Scott's work on the farm with work for the church plant, balancing life as we know it with a new little one and an 18 month old, and many others.

April:

April started with a bang!  We all took turns battling a nasty cold.  Me first, then a mild version for A1, a yucky version for A2 and Scott, and it appears that C and S2 avoided it altogether (Praise the Lord!). 

The rest of the month was consumed by farm, church, soccer, and planning for Easter.  We had a great group at church on Easter Sunday to celebrate the risen Lord!  New faces and familiar faces were all celebrating together!

The month would end with Scott, S2, and I taking a few days to go on a pastor's retreat made possible by Central Baptist Church in Bryan/College Station, where we went when we were at A&M.  (was that just 6 "w" words in a row?  wow!)


So, for the most part, you're caught up!  Be watching for more posts focusing on S2 and a couple of other things I wanted to highlight on their own.  Thanks for your patience, knowing that I WANT to post, but will post-pone :) it if we're just super busy. 

D to the C, part deux

(Click for a full-size version of the picture)
I LOVE when we fly somewhere and I can see and identify the scenery below! As we skirted the DC area on our way to Baltimore, I was able to snap this pic.
Look center-left for the Washington Monument, go horizontally to the right along the Mall, and you can see the Capitol Building and Dome about 2/3 of the way across the pic on the right.



We took Anna's "Little Monkey" with us and sent the kids some photo-texts throughout our trip to keep them involved. Here is Little Monkey on our Peanuts Flight (the seatbelts light was off...)
From Baltimore, we caught an Amtrak train.

The train system is pretty efficient here, but for some reason our train was delayed for nearly an hour! We didn't mind waiting, though, because after 90+ degree Texas weather, the 75+ degree Baltimore breeziness was quite a delight! The quick 30 min train ride seemed so much shorter after the wait.
(The other alternatives were the regional train- not as reliable or fast -, the taxi - expensive and slower, rented car - ditto, or the superfast Acela train, which was a GREAT option had we not been on a budget)

We arrived at Union Station to meet our friend Nate. I LOVE the architecture of this building.

Union Station has a lot of great shoppes and a pretty decent food court, so we grabbed a bite to eat before Nate took us for a drive.

D to the C, part 1

Knowing that our anniversary would take place close to my travel restriction point of pregnancy, we scheduled a fun trip for a few weeks prior.

Scott knew that I would love to visit our nation's Capitol, and since he had only been there once before (and hadn't paid a lot of attention, hee hee), he suggested that we go there on our trip. I heartily agreed! What a great suggestion!

We flew "for peanuts" to Baltimore, caught a train, then met our good friend Nate, who generously had us stay with him and his family in a D.C. suburb.

The best part of the trip (for me) was that, having visited there before, we were not under time pressure to see everything that there was to see quickly. We got to take our time, meet up with people, and just enjoy ourselves. (Scott would tell you he's glad that I was 6 1/2 months pregnant, since it slowed me down a little) :)

Scott's favorite part of the trip (first impression-wise) was the Dyson Air Blade hand dryer we encountered while enjoying a delicious meal in Chinatown one night. Yes, that's right, a hand dryer. Wanna see it?
On a way less superficial level, I think he'd tell you honestly that he thoroughly enjoyed the trip for the same reasons I did, but I will tell you he researched the Air Blade possibilities for our church when he came back! :)

We definitely decided that we'd have to do the trip again before long, and would love to take our kiddos with us the next time around! Huge thanks to Mimi for keeping them that week!

In future installments of D to the C, I'll show you some cool pics of things we saw!

Feeling Up To Par?

We took the family Mini-golfing while Caleb was on intersession. What fun!

I should Photoshop myself out of this one...
Anna decided kicking the ball would be easier.


Handsome.


Success with the club!

Road Trip for the Guys!

Caleb, Scott, Pawpaw, and their friend Ricky got away to College Station for one of the first game weekends, and what would be Caleb's second football game ever! It was definitely the first that he'll be able to remember... the actual first one was at five months!

Caleb learned to whoop, yell, and Gig 'Em








as well as saw Varsity's horns off--Aaaay!


Thanks, Mr. Ricky for driving them safely! Thanks Pawpaw for the tickets!

*nine*

Here I am, two months behind on posting, but I couldn't pass up the momentous occasion that happened on our road trip:

Our 9 year anniversary!

Scott and I got to celebrate by spending the day in Tyler while Nanny and Dandy kept the kids. (This was prior to heading to Missouri). We got to eat good Mexican food at Mercados, and oddly enough, we went shopping so I could have something to wear for the Missouri wedding. How patient of Scott to (suggest that we) spend our time away doing one of the things he least enjoys! I'm grateful! :)

I thank the Lord always for His provision of a husband who has devoted his life to glorify God. He does so in the way he leads our family, the way he parents our kiddos, the way he loves me, and the way he is teachable when the Lord is working on an area of his life. I'm grateful that the Lord is daily shaping us for ministry. I'm looking forward to the many years ahead in which I'm privileged to serve alongside, support, and show love to Scott!

Here are some pre-1999 old-school pics to bring back some memories...

Road-trippin'

So, back to my post train of thought (catching you up to the present)...

We took a road trip mid-June (beginning with Sea World, then proceeding to North Texas, followed by Springfield, Missouri). The eight hour rides to each of the stops after Sea World were long, but the kids did so well.

We visited with Nanny, Dandy, Ashley, Mandi, Uncle Drew, and Aunt Debbie for a few days. Caleb loved the swimming pool, air hockey, Chuck E. Cheese, time with Webkinz and Mandi simultaneously, and his first experience with a Nintendo DS (uh-oh!). Anna loved clinging to my neck in the pool, but wanted to go-it on her own (not possible in the 3 ft. pool). She also loved to lead oldest cousin Ashley all over Nanny's house in circuitous fashion. We were all excited for her, as she had a very successful first experience sleeping in her own non-crib bed/air mattress. As a result, we went ahead and set up a real bed in her room when we got back home!

Following our time there, we trekked on up to Springfield, MO, for the wedding of some friends. We stayed with dear friend "Beppy"/Betsy. Scott had the privilege of being one of two Best Men in the wedding, and I must say he "cleans up" nicely!

We also got to see a few of our many other dear friends. Some of them have moved to Kentucky, others to Iowa, some to Dallas, and others are serving faithfully in the Ozarks. It was a sweet time, and we're grateful for Betsy's hospitality, the generosity of Barron and Betsy to watch our kiddos during the wedding and rehearsal, and for being able to spend time with friends. Our time there was short, but special.

The Moment has Arrived!

...talk about a loaded title...

I'm referring to the posting online of Scott's sermon during our church's Generations series based on Titus 2, which speaks to different generations within the church body.

The site is relatively new, and they've changed video players, so I've yet to figure out how to embed the file straight to the blog. When that happens, I'll post it anew!

Until then, you can watch the sermon in full here, but be sure to click on Generations #4 -- College Students (but boy, does the message apply to all of us!).

We've had a loaded summer as well, so be looking for upcoming posts documenting our month of June!

Spring Break at Snoopy's with the Family

And the winner is...

Thanks to all you who contributed to the random poll I held about who would play Scott if a movie were made about the McDonald Family. Drumroll please:

It seems that 90% of respondents feel that Kevin James of King of Queens and Hitch fame would best play the role.

Only one other actor received support, that being Sean Astin of Rudy and Lord of the Rings fame. (10%)

Scott would agree with the results, incidentally! He loves Kevin James!...and Sean Astin.

I think it'd be fun to do a poll about an actress for me, but I have NO ideas for the current me (I might have suggested Helen Hunt for the pre-baby me or a girl from a 90's teen basketball tv show -Danielle Deutscher- for my high-school/college self). Also, Scott won't contribute any ideas, because he's afraid it will turn into the "does this dress make me look fat" argument; suggesting an actress could backfire for him. (Of course I wouldn't be mad, but he still balks.)

So, I'm stalling/shelving the poll. If you think of someone good for me, you can post a comment without risk of backlash. ;)
Otherwise, we'll skip the poll.

Little Did You Know...

With a tip of my hat to Christine, I'd like to start a two-part post to see just how well you know us. Here are some perhaps little-known facts about Scott.

• Scott is a movie buff. He can quote one-liners from just about any movie he has seen.
• Scott played "center" in football while in high school. He also played trumpet in band. He had to choose between football and band. Football won, then he shattered his ankle when a teammate fell on it in a game. So much for football.
• Scott has nearly the entire Bible Trivia game memorized. Bible Trivia was an event for youth camp in Falls Creek, Oklahoma. His youth group often won.
• He rarely misses a rerun of Seinfeld. He can quote those episodes like he does movies.
• Scott sometimes holds up one hand at shoulder level when he is really intent on eating. Palm perpendicular to the table, facing in, fingers up, but curled. No one knows why.
• Scott reads just about any chance he gets, and can rattle off a whole list of excellent Christian authors.
• The Lord has gifted Scott in discipling and asking hard questions. In a moment's time, he can discern what direction to take in a conversation, and he figures out (with the Spirit's guidance) just what to say to get at the heart of the matter. (stinks when I want my way for no logical reason!) ;)
• Scott is the dramatic one of the two of us. When we're together, he's the talker and the most expressive, but he doesn't get sentimental as much. I'm the listener, the calm one, though we're both pretty easy-going. He's good at games like charades, pictionary, etc. (Blue and Green in Cranium).
• He loves the taste of fruit, but not the texture. Therefore, no fresh fruit, no bananas in banana pudding (but banana flavored pudding is fine), etc.
• Scott's favorite current tv show is LOST. Now that some questions are being answered, he's addicted.
• His favorite meal involves some kind of steak and some kind of potato.
• Scott loves to keep in touch with some of his closest high-school friends. One is a lawyer, one is in the Secret Service, another in the ministry, and another is an overseas executive for JP Morgan. Talk about diverse career paths!
• Working at the church is not just a career for him; he has a passion for seeing others experience God the way he has, and he lives and breathes what he believes. He's a great daddy and husband, and I'm so grateful for him!

Trip for Two

Back in August, Scott and I got to take our first-ever trip alone since Caleb was born. (Thanks Mimi and Pawpaw!) We spent two evenings in nearby San Antonio, eating some authentic mexican food and enjoying the atmosphere of the Riverwalk. I hope the pictures I took make you want to visit!

Roughing It

The end of April brought a special treat for Caleb...
his first camping trip!

Scott took several of our college students camping in the Mark Twain National Forest, and Caleb went along. We packed his sleeping bag, a change of clothes, snacks, and curiosity, along with a healthy dose of "do not run off from Daddy" and "do not touch spiders or other weird insects." We prepped him for the lack of bathrooms and talked about the smart way to be around a campfire. He was raring to go! The trip was to be Friday afternoon to Saturday noon. If not for the rain that came the first hour and a half, it would have been absolutely perfect. (Luckily, we packed Uno, Go Fish, and some other diversions). Caleb had SO much fun!

Here's a pictorial smorgasbord for you to feast on...

Daddy Fun

Wrestling is big in our house. Scott can't wait to get Anna in on the fun...

Welcome Scott to McBookSpot

Scott just finished reading Blue Like Jazz. Don't miss his comments on this "trendy" book at our book blog: http://mcbookspot.blogspot.com.

What a Blessing

Today (well, I guess yesterday, technically--Anna has kept me up late) was the seventh anniversary of the day Scott and I were married. I am so thankful for the blessing of a husband who loves the Lord, loves his family, and desires to do what is right, no matter what. Caleb eagerly anticipates the moment Scott arrives home from work, because that means it's Daddy Time, and there are sure to be moments of wrestling, "sleeper holds", hide and seek, and reading books together. I can't wait to see how his little girl interacts with him in days to come. I'm reminded of the chorus of one of my grandpa's favorite hymns...

Count your blessings, name them one by one.
Count your many blessings, see what God has done