Happy Birthday RVC

It was a year ago tomorrow that we opened the doors to the River Vineyard Church, nervous, yet excited about what would happen. We had spent months as a team praying over this exact moment. I remember we all stood in shock as we had 50 people that first Sunday. We had no idea where they came from...except from God. The last year has grown this church to around 200 regular attenders. We have seen lives changed, people come to Jesus, leaders raised up, marriages saved, marriages happen, babies born and community expand. The image I get is of people holding hands, but always adding more so it just keeps growing stronger, yet wider...and Jesus is our common thread...what holds us all together.

Today, we celebrated that. We had our 1 year anniversary picnic at Columbian Park. It was great. There were so many people there...many of whom I did not even recognize. It was a lot of fun and a time to rejoice for all that God has done this past year. Noah, as shown in the picture below, had a blast.

Yesterday was an awesome day. We started by hitting some garage sales (not unusual for a Friday morning). We found a few things, but I am still on the hunt for boys clothes. The last two weeks have netted...none. Oh well. Noah got a few new toys, a flashlight, and an outdoor chair. I think he is pretty happy. :-)

Afterwards, we had lunch and ALL took 2 hour naps...It was heavenly. When we woke up, Dave and Noah mowed the lawn (Noah watched or used his little lawnmower) and I cleaned up the kitchen/living room. Later we headed over to Bill and Summer's so that Dave could help Bill move a swingset. Summer made yummy spaghetti and it was nice to catch up.

This morning, Dave went into work and Noah and I attempted to see the free matinee at the movies. We lasted 15 minutes. I was in a sweat by the time we left, and Noah was starting to throw fits. He was much more interested in all the kids, then sitting down to watch a movie. Not unlike what I anticipated...so at least we did it during the free movie. Now, we are back home. Soon it will be lunch and nap time...and I am contemplating a hike to Happy Hollow this afternoon...if I can put the wheel back on Noah's stroller that broke off that is.

There's something to be said for time away. Since Noah is my job, and I am never off the clock...I have found that lately I have been a little frustrated with child-rearing and having pets and the whole gammut. Don't get me wrong. I love being Noah's mom and I am proud to be in this position. It's just sometimes, I need a night off...to be duty free...to not clean up puke or change a diaper. Tonight was great. Noah was in good hands with Adam and Becky...Dave and I enjoyed a movie and when we came back to pick up Noah, I found that I had really missed him and was anxious to see him again. I got big hugs as if he too, were happy to see me (it goes both ways I think in frustration and in joy). We took him home, I read him a story and tucked him right into bed without any fuss. It was angelic. :-) I actually wanted to just lay down beside him and relish in this kiddo...my child...my son. At the end of the day, he is all mine. He is my job, my ministry, my responsibility...and I love him. I also think I did him a favor tonight by being a wife and enjoying quality time with my husband. Life is a balance and I, for one, am still figuring out all the intricacies that come with it. Soon, we will be adding one more and making it all the more interesting.

Lord, thank you for my amazing son. Thank you for allowing me to find the "God" moments in him. Help me to have patience as a mom and raise Noah to be a responsible godly part of your kingdom. Thank you for entrusting someone so precious in my care. Amen.

Date Night tonight!

...and I can't wait. I love my kid and for the most part, love my dog...but I need a break. Dave and I are catching a movie and eating buttery popcorn and I won't have to get up to correct/reprimand my son for 2 whole hours. Thanks Adam and Becky for watching the imp tonight!

The irony about Sunday's blog is that yesterday was a complete wash. He took a nap in his crib only because he fought me tooth and nail about it. (Sunday's really screw up our schedule with church...so it generally makes the start of the week a little rough as we regain routine). Last night he slept in the big boy bed, but we battled it out again. I finally had to whip out some super nanny tactics, and thankfully they worked. I love that woman. She is brilliant!

So...I promised spirtual thoughts, but perhaps I may just share some spiritual experiences. Lately, God has been moving in really cool ways through our church. A lot of the leaders are noticing that things are happening...people's prayers are changing, people are really being affected by the holy spirit, and lives are changing...but it seems like its on a grander scale. My lifegroup is amazing. People continue to surprise me as we do prayer time and I have seen God moving in the lives of our lifegroup....Mine included. I have finally started to discipline myself in my quiet times. I am not allowing myself to turn on the computer or the TV until I spend some time with Jesus...It is working. It's so nice to start my day on the right foot and I feel so much more productive this way. The result is feeling much more connected to the Lord...and I love it.

This morning, I am busy cleaning. Noah, Chester, and I are all working each others nerves, and I feel an outing later this afternoon is in order. We didn't get out much yesterday and I think we are all feeling it. Noah is generally a good helper...this morning however, has been most trying. He means well...its just hard for me to redo everything 3 times when I barely find enough time to do it once. I think after we all take naps, maybe we will all be in better moods.

Well, off to go vacuum and then put my kiddo down for his nap.

Big boy!

When my head is not so congested...I intend to write some deeper spiritual thoughts...for the moment however...this is what I have:

Noah is sleeping in his big boy bed and has been for the last 3 days! We were fully expecting a rough transition...or a transition, period. He just lays down and falls asleep. At most, we have had to go down and re-lay him down once. I'm flabbergasted. So, now Dave and I are needing to finish the rest of the room by ordering the bookcase and cleaning out the rest of his closet and I guess...move him completely in there. What a big boy!

Elsewhere, things are going well. I'm fighting a cold. The Colt's won. Church was good. Tony preached a great sermon today. We all took naps. Clearly my brain is too congested to move beyond simple sentences...so until later.

Update

I suppose I can update...

Noah is doing well. He played with Abby and Rocky last night while Dave and I went out on a date. He watched Rocky's flag football game and was apparently really into it. He had his own ball and would run up and down the sidelines yelling, "ball" over and over. What a funny kid.

We have an awesome lifegroup and God continues to do cool things through it. I pretty much just stand back in awe and have to say, "You are so worthy God!". We are all hanging out on Saturday morning and then going to Learning to Minister Like Jesus at church...which is a prayer training that our church offers. Noah gets to hang with his buddy River on lifegroup days. They are 2 weeks apart and are learning to play really well together. It's pretty cute.

I got a massage on Wednesday to help with my sciatica...it was WONDERFUL...probably one of the better ones that I have ever received. It was just super nice to relax and just be for an hour. When I came home, Dave had somehow gotten Noah to take a nap in his big boy bed. It was his first time sleeping there. We are not sure now when we are going to transition him. We were thinking December, but we might start with naps and if that goes well, maybe we'll transition him sooner.

In our spare time, Dave and I have been watching season 2 of Bones. We are getting pretty into it. I love how the characters interact...it amuses me. The new season starts next week.

My house has all but gone to pot though...I should really spend the morning picking up and cleaning. I'm sure Noah will "help" me. I think I am starting to get enough energy again to keep up with the house...now its a matter of just doing it. I'm meeting with Leah at 11:30 though...so I need to get hopping if I hope to get it done. Have an awesome day!

High School Marathon!!!

It's rare that I have an absolutely AWESOME night....tonight qualified. Ann and her kids, Jonell, Kelsey, Abby, and Mindy all came over and we watched High School Musical (1 AND 2). Towards the end, we got pretty silly.

The pictures denote some of our really creative dance moves. I'm pretty sure they need to consider us when making High School Musical 3. What can I say, this movie brought out the inner tween in us. The funny part is, Ann's kids...Henry and Harmony are more the actual age to watch this movie then a bunch of 20 something year old girls. Oh well. We had fun! It was a great night and I haven't laughed (or danced) that hard in a long time. It was great fun. Thanks ladies for a really fun night!!!

It is Finished!

Noah's room that is. I'm posting a few pics so that you can see the finished product. We are really happy with it. Now, we just need to pick up a new bookshelf from IKEA, and his room will officially be done.

Dave has worked hard getting it finished. We picked up the bed last night, then we went miniature golfing as a family. It's always fun and challenging to golf with Noah. :-)

We hit a few more garage sales this morning, but we weren't nearly as successful as I was yesterday. Oh well. Now, we are just resting and hanging out until the family gets here.

Motivation...

Dave was really pleased when he saw that we had done the first coat of paint...it has motivated him to finish the room. He is now finished with the wall and is doing the trim. We got a call today saying that Noah's bed had come in. It sounds like we might actually pick that up tonight and get it in there. Dave's parents and his brother are coming tomorrow night. Hopefully, the room will be done so that they can see the finished product. (As soon as its not a paint zone, I will try to take pics and post them).

Last night, Summer, Halie, and the girls came over for dinner. I am apparently having a gourmet pregnancy (a far cry from the cream of wheat/chocolate cravings of Noah). So, I made 3 cheese chicken pasta with fresh basil and tomatoes sprinkled on top...using fresh parmesan. Summer complemented me that it was the best meal I have ever cooked (and we have been friends for 4 years now!) That made me really happy. We had a fun time hanging out watching Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy. :-)

This morning, I got adjusted at the chiropractor and then Noah and I hit some garage sales. I wanted to try and find a few more fall clothes for him. Fortunately, I was pretty successful. He has a few nice new tops and a pair of pants. He was a pain though during the whole excursion. He has learned the art of tantrumming. It's driving me crazy! He has a hard time letting go of toys that he plays with while garage sale-ing. We ended up buying a little push mower for a quarter, and I let him walk from garage sale to garage sale with that and that seemed to amuse him. Any parenting tips on defusing a tantrum in public?

We all had family nap time this afternoon....sleeping 2 hours each. I'm beginning to like that Noah is only taking one nap a day, because he usually gets his money worth. Now, Dave is painting, I am cleaning and finishing laundry. We thought about going on a date tonight, but it's now a little late to try and nab a sitter...so maybe next week sometime. Besides, we need to get his bed today. It will be nice to sit around as a family together without any of us having to run off somewhere this evening.

Amazing Friends

I have great friends. As I am typing this, Jonell and Sheena are painting the last wall of Noah's room. I helped with taping, but the actual painting is not good for the baby...so I am not really allowed back there. They are such good sports. See, Dave HATES painting. He's also been really really busy with work, general maintenance of the house, and getting the rest he needs. So, Noah's room is almost, but not quite finished. Anyway, I sent out an email to my lifegroup somewhat last minute to see if anyone was interested in helping me paint to surprise Dave. (He has no idea this is happening right now). Jonelly and Sheena both volunteered. I happily bought the girl's pizza and made cupcakes to celebrate Jonell's birthday...which is today, although her party is on Saturday. I have a hard time asking for help and receiving it...so I feel honored and undeserving when friends give up an evening like this to paint my son's room. Sheena is even new to our lifegroup and offered to come over. It has been great getting to know her through this though.

Later- Room is finished with 1st coat...and looks great! Becky Wellner came over with River and we all sat around and talked and hung out while the boys caused chaos with each other. They are 2 weeks apart and actually play pretty well together...with the occasional possessive streak breaking through.

Everyone just left, I'm getting ready to head to bed...very thankful for these friends and a delightful and productive evening. Hopefully Dave will be pleasantly surprised as well. :-)

I love my lifegroup

The title speaks for itself. We had an awesome group tonight. We had great childcare, great snacks, and great community. Here's why. We are doing our life-temonies in group right now. It's kind of like your testimony but its a 5-10 minute rundown of your life story, where you're at on your journey, and how you ended up here. I was one of the 3 that gave theirs tonight. The purpose is to really get to know people on a deeper level and bring vulnerability into the group. People are welcome to share as much/ little as they want to. As it was, people were really respectful and listened to everyone with sincerity. I felt the beginnings of togetherness forming and we had a great time of ministry! I left there thinking...I can't wait until we can do this next week!

Thanks God for putting this group of people together. Thank you for the journey's you have taken us all on that have lead us to you. Thank you for always being there for us...despite the sometimes more trying circumstances we have had to face. We love you Lord!

Grrrrrrrr Van

Our van has been making a funny noise when we veer right. It is very consistent when it does it on the curve by our house. It has also done it other places as well...except for when we actually WANT it to make the noise. We took it in last week to try and have it looked at while we were still under warranty. Dave turned and tried and he couldn't make it do it so the guy could hear it. We left defeated, but as soon as we took the curve by our house, it made the sound again.
I was determined to have this fixed while still under warranty (we had about 100 miles left). So, this morning, we tried again. Noah and I waited about an hour and then we took it out with the mechanic. We even pre-scoped out some curves that might have done it...no dice. We must have tried 5-6 times and NOTHING. There is nothing more irritating then having this happen not once, but twice. The guy was sympathetic and reported that there was an issue so that it would still be covered under warranty if it got worse. Not kidding, as soon as we hit our subdivision, it happened...twice. The only problem is, our house is about a 10 minute drive from the place...so if we wanted someone to come all the way out here so that they could actually HEAR it, it might take some enticing. However, that is our next plan. I need a week or so to gear up for it again. Maybe next week, we'll try again...this time on home turf and see what happens. In the meantime, all I have to say is GRRRRRRRRR!

Family Fun

Dave worked all day yesterday. :-( So, instead of sitting at home, Noah and I decided to take a mini-road trip. It seemed all sorts of family was in the Kankakee area, so we headed towards home. We went to Dave's family's side first. We got to play with Noah's cousin, Tyler and Mike and Laura. It was nice to visit with Laura as she is pregnant too (28 weeks along). We had a nice chance to chat and catch up. After lunch and nap, we headed up to see my family (30 min drive). My step-sister was there with her two kids who love playing with Noah. So, we went to to the park and played outside and had a grand old time. My dad fixed this savory chicken on the charcoal grill. He brined it with garlic and rosemary...mmmmmmm it was SO good. I love it when he cooks. He is masterful.
We had to leave shortly after dinner because we lose an hour coming back. We saw Dave briefly last night. Enough for Noah to jump in his arms and fall back asleep again.
This morning, we had church...and I had my first break week from teaching. We went to the first service with Abby and Rocky and then Rocky and Dave went off and did manly things at Menards, while Abby and I stuck it out at the church for a little while. By manly things, I mean getting tools at Menards to hang the outdoor sign to the church office. Abby, Noah, and I sat and cheered them on. Noah "helped" by stealing the anchors and trying to "drill". After this project was done, we had a very quick lunch at Fazolis and then Abby and Rocky went home and Dave went back to church to tear down.
We got home around 2pm and all promptly fell asleep. It's now shortly after 4 and we are all awake (barely). Noah is in a fantastic mood (a 2.5 hour nap does wonders) and is chasing the dog laughing. The football game is on. Life is good.

Pics of Noah's new room

Here are some "in-transition" pictures of Noah's new room. Dave has done an all-star job of painting. He has finished the 3 green walls. Now all that is left is painting the blue wall and ordering the bed. We are giving the queen bed to Dave's brother and sister-in-law. They are turning it into a guest bed...so we will see it again.

You know how one project always begets another project. Well, every thing in our house was brass when we moved in. Dave and I aren't very brassy people. Slowly, we have been changing things into more of a brushed nickel. Well, Dave had to paint Noah's door and in doing that he decided to change the knobs and hinges...but of course you can't change one and not change the rest of them in the near vicinity. So, he ended up changing 6 doors total. Honestly, I think he was OK with it mainly because it was a break from painting.

So, yes....it's a BOLD green. I wasn't lying, but we really like it. I'm just ready to have the project finished and reclaim my house once again. I imagine Dave echos these sentiments. :-)

Riding the baby train

Well, we can finally let the cat out of the bag...Dave and I are expecting our second baby! Well, I'm the one that's pregnant...he just has to deal with me for 7 more months. :-) We went to the doctor today and were able to hear the baby's heartbeat...It was incredible...I love hearing that sound. Everything looks good and she set my due date for March 30. I'm so relieved to have hit this first milestone. In another ten or so weeks, we will be able to find out if we're having a boy or a girl. Bet's anyone?

So, Noah gets to be a big brother. We have been trying to tell him this fact, but he's obviously too young to really grasp the concept. Soon enough, he will get it. I imagine, once he gets used to it, he will be a very good big brother.

Dave and I are both really excited. I have been feeling really tired, but only slightly nauseous...Not nearly as bad as I had it with Noah. I will admit that its hard being pregnant with a toddler. :-) I am finding that napping when he does is a really great thing.

So, here we are...riding the baby train again. We're ready for the ride (We think! :-))

Lord, thank you for bringing this baby this far. Help him/her develop completely and wholly. Help us to be worthy parents to yet another one of your precious children. Amen.

Lifegroup Kickoff

Last night was our lifegroup kickoff. Dave and I are leading a new one this fall. Lifegroup is another name for bible study, except our purpose is to really do life with people (and get more into God's word)...so we call them lifegroups.

Anyway, we've had a lot of interest, but weren't really sure what to expect...It was awesome. We had our few established people, but the rest were all new...either BRAND new (like doesn't even attend our church) or has been involved in church for awhile, but not in a lifegroup. We totalled 15 people.

I think its going to be a good mix of people. We have some outgoing and some very shy and a good mix in between. Jonelly's house is awesome to host and she was the perfect hostess last night (thanks Jonell!). It really is a great place to have lifegroup.

I'm really excited to see where God takes this group and am honored to be along for the ride.

Thank you Jesus for this group. We pray that it would bring you honor and that people feel safe here. We ask that it be lifechanging and that, in time we would truly become a family of sorts.

Sunday

So this morning started with me in a really bad funk about having to teach again. Not sure why I was in it besides the fact that I feel really burnt out and it makes for a very long day. Anyway, I knew that I needed an attitude check, so I started listening to worship on the way there. When I got there, I pulled Darlene, the other teacher aside and had her pray for me. It really helped jump me into gear. I also received prayer from Sarah, our children's pastor...and some really positive encouragement from Tony, our pastor. Through all of this, I really felt God working on my heart and softening it to the task ahead. Children's church went really well, although we only had 3 kids. I think they all got the concept of the lesson...we talked about Lazarus dying and raising again from the dead. We then had a celebration with cupcakes to celebrate the miracle of Lazarus coming back from the dead. Then we wrapped Henry in toilet paper and made him Lazarus...it was pretty cute.
The other great part was, Dave and I swapped Noah at the clinic where he took Noah home after his shift and they both caught a morning nap. This way, we bought a little more time at church (and the picnic afterwards). It worked great. After church, we had a church picnic. It was really great to get outdoors and let the kids play and for me to chat with others.
When we got home, we were ALL exhausted and took nice long naps. Now, I am trying my hand at this cooking thing by making ham and homemade macaroni and cheese...we'll see how it turns out. Dave may put another layer of paint on if he gets ambitious. Other than that, I think we're all planning on laying low this evening.