Count Your Blessings

This morning as I was standing at my dresser, (trying to find something, ANYTHING that fit me) and I was extremely frustrated. In my frustration I found myself wishing for my life to be different and blaming everyone but myself for the situation I found myself in. As I stood there in my robe, Brook who was lying on the bed behind me, let out the biggest squawk of delight. What a happy moment for her as she kicked and giggled. She was enjoying life to the fullest!

At that moment I was flooded with a sense of thankfulness. I have been given so very much and I had totally lost sight of it. Mentally I started making a list of all the things that God had blessed me with, and all of the sudden it didn't matter too much what clothes I wore today.

I am so very thankful for my Husband, Daughter and Family. I am thankful for the comforts of life that I enjoy: a warm home, (now that the furnace is fixed) plenty of food, a car that runs, and Trevor's stable job that provides money for these things. I am thankful that I live in a country that allows me freedom and a vote (even though I didn't because I was having a baby during the last election). I am thankful for a Christmas tree with presents heaped under it. And I am thankful for my savior Jesus Christ, and that he loved me enough to come to this earth in diapers, and die on a cross for me.

I am blessed, and remembering that keeps my life in perspective.

Showered

On Saturday, December 13th Brooklyn and I were showered with gifts again. This time by the ladies of the Boissevain MB Church. We were very blessed. It was humbling to be the recipients of so many gifts from ladies that we are just getting to know. I was so encouraged by how many people showed up. I think there were about 30 ladies, all of whom have very good taste. We were given so many nice things. It took me all evening to go through all the clothes, toys and blankets. Brook is going to be the best dressed little girl in town! We were also given a very nice play pen. It is the Cadillac of play pens with a change station and mobile included. I hope we will get a chance to use it this christmas. My Mom came out for the shower which was really nice, but she had to split right after due to deteriorating weather conditions.

It has been a bit overwhelming the last two months as we have been showered and farewelled and installed. We have felt so appreciated and loved throughout all of the changes that have happened in the last few months, but we have been the center of a lot of attention. I am looking forward to being one of many again, and enjoy making a big deal about someone else. Don't get me wrong, I have appreciated every one of these events and the people that have organized them, but I am glad to be "normal" again. Now that we have finally got most of our possetions unpacked and gotten used to most aspects of our new house it is starting to feel like home. It sure hasn't taken long and that is a blessing in itself.

Installing Trevor

On December 7th there was a service at the Church to "install" Trevor as the new youth pastor. They asked Trev if he would commit to doing his best and serving the church and community to the best of his ability. We had a bunch of family come out to support us. We were surprised that they all made the long drive out, and we appreciate it a lot.

After the service we all had lunch together at the church. The original plan was to eat at our place but there were just to many of us! We ate some good food and my Mom brought a birthday cake for my sister and I. There was also some really good pie that gave the cake some competition.

Afterwards we got to show our new place to everyone. It was really fun to be able to have so many people in our house and still have room for more.

Rest

Wow! Last night Brook slept for the entire night! I had forgotten what it was like to stay in bed for more than 4 hours at a time. I put her to bed at 11 pm and she woke up at 7 am. This morning we are both alive, awake, alert, and enthusiastic. I know it likely won't be a regular every night occurrence, but hey, we'll take what we can get.

My body is definitely not used to that much sleep at one time. I woke up with a bit of a headache. The kind of headache that I used to get on Saturday mornings when I was a kid and I had slept for 14hrs. (those days are long gone)

I am a little bit .... paranoid at times. I wake up during the night looking for Brook in the bed, thinking that she is wrapped up in the blankets somewhere. Eventually I will wake up enough to realize that she is in the crib across the hall and I can stop searching. Well, last night I woke up at her regular feeding times, and laid in bed wondering when she would wake up. Finally at 6:30 in the morning I had to make sure she was OK. I snuck into her room and she was fast asleep. She was so asleep that I had to put my hand on her chest to feel her heart beat to know she was alive. She had a wonderful deep sleep. I had a good sleep too, just a little interrupted.

Farewell Baby

There has been no shortage of well wishes coming our direction in the last few months. There was a Windygates community supper on October 31, and they gave us a gift to show us their appreciation. (a very nice clock) There was a Windygates baby shower for Brook on November 2nd. The Manitou MB Church sent us off with a Farewell potluck and Baby shower on November 9th. We felt have felt very appreciated! We are going to miss so many people that we have worked with, churched with, or just gotten to know through everyday life.

Moving

Moving. I don't like moving. I know it is good because it makes you decide what you actually need. It forces you to go through the back closet and the bottom drawer, sort through it all and decide what is actually worth breaking your back over. I must have taken a truck load of stuff to MCC in the last few weeks and it still seems like we moved way too much stuff.

The move was successful! We are now residents of Boissevain. Thanks to everyone that helped us move all our stuff. It was great to have so many willing volunteers.

The last few days have been busy with unpacking boxes and setting up rooms how we would like them. It will take some time for us all to fully adjust to town life, but so far everthing is going well. Milo (cat) seems to think he has won the lottery. After spending the last 3 years as an outdoor cat he is loving the change. I'm just glad he remembers what the litterbox is for. Sam (dog) is slowly getting used to indoor life. Our backyard is going to need a fence. She enjoys walks and wishes they were "Runs". Baby Brook had a nap and was used to the new house. Trevor is really excited about our new place and has already changed a few light fixtures and has lots of ideas of things he would like to do. He has been itching to do renovations for a while. Me, it will take me some time to get used to a new community, but so far everyone has been wonderful. We have been very well received and there should be no shortage of social opportunities. I am loving the comforts of our new home. A dishwasher, warm floors, and more than one hallway.

Trevor starts his new job on December 1st. He is looking forward to getting to know the youth in the community and being able to put so many of his ideas into action. As exciting as a new house is for us, our ministry is more exciting! We can't wait to see what will happen next.

The New Addition

Our beautiful baby girl, Brooklyn Dawn, was born on October 12th at 2:26pm. She weighted 7lb 6oz. What a wonderful way to celebrate thanksgiving! This is her at 6 weeks.

My water broke on Saturday, oct 11th at around 11pm while at my parents house. The entire family was out, so we didn't have the opportunity to surprise anyone with news that our baby had arrived, but we definitely felt supported as we packed ourselves into the car and everyone waived us goodbye.

We didn't rush to the hospital like you see in the movies, but as luck would have it, we were stopped by the police anyway. Just outside of Manitou a policeman pulled us over. Trev seemed to have "frozen" a little. The policeman explained that he had pulled us over for a routine impared driving check. Trev sat there stairing like a deer in the headlights. (His worst nightmare had come true. Somehow I was going to have a baby in jail.) I leaned over and explained to the officer that we were heading to the hospital to have a baby. To our surprise he asking if we needed a police escort! If I could go back in time I would have changed my response, but we politly declined and continued on our way to Bountry Trails Hospital. I will spare you the details of what happened between then and 2:26pm, but we are very excited about our new little girl. Both of us are doing really well, and we are adjusting to one another quickly.

It was really cool that she was born on sunday because everyone was out for Thanksgiving and they got a chance to see her. Trev and I felt so supported as new parents as we had lots of family and friends come to visit and bring us gifts. Thanks so much to all of you as you have looked after us, prayed for us, and offered your help in so many different ways.

LIfe Changes

With the news of our first child coming, Trev and I felt God calling us to make some changes. We thought that having a child was enough of a change, but God always has other plans. After a few months of thinking and praying, we decided it was time to leave camp. We started asking God where he could use us, and he answered.

Trevor has recently been accepted as the Youth Pastor at the Boissevain MB Church, and he will begin his job as of December 1st. He is excited about his new job and it shows in the speed at which we have purchased a home and made plans for moving. Below is a picture of our new home in Boissevain. We will get possession mid November. This is our first home, and we are excited to have a place to call our own. Hopefully we can create just as many memories in this new home as we have in our house trailer at camp. We will definetly have more room.

We are going to miss Pembina Valley Bible Camp emensly. It has been our home since June of 2004 (4.5 yrs) and we have loved living here. We are going to miss all of the wonderful people that we have met and been supported by. There is no more beautiful place to live.

Our Baby is Due october 13th . I don't think there is any coincidence that October 13th is Thanksgiving Day. We have been giving thanks for this little one since the day we found out that he/she was coming. Nine months feels like an eternity some days. It's exciting that we can count down the days on our fingers now!

So, apparently there are 5 things in life that cause the most stress.
1. Buying a home
2. The birth of a child
3. Moving
4. Starting a new job
5. A death in the family

I figure if #1-4 go well, then I won't kill Trevor and we won't have to worry about #5!