Really? Adoption?

August 24, 2014

If you get our monthly newsletters, you know that we’re smack dab in the middle of the adoption process. If not, this might be this first you’ve heard, and you’re not sure how all of this happened. It still seems very surreal to me too, so you’re not alone. (Sometimes I honestly wonder how we […]

Goodbyes & Surprises

May 22, 2014

We are blessed! I cannot tell you how good it feels at this very moment to be a part of a family (not just blood, but our spiritual family too), especially when I know they’ll always love us and never forget us even when we step on an airplane and travel across the ocean to […]

Reflections during Packing Week

May 2, 2014

I wish I had time to fully express all that God has been doing in our lives while we were here in Michigan, but since it’s packing/cleaning/moving week, time is short. For both Payton and I, we were able to watch God develop our ministry skills. We’ve had plenty of time in training in regard […]

The Shepherds’ Swag

March 29, 2014

What does 3,500 men singing the “Deep, Deep Love of Jesus” sound like? Well…very, very deep. Grace laughed as she thumbed through the hymn book published for the Shepherd’s Conference that I went to last month. She described many of them as “all the man songs,” since they hit– and linger– at all those low, […]

The Vaccine Must Dance

March 26, 2014

In the event that you feel a bit tentative about taking a live virus pill, don’t worry, Viviotif will convince you with their brochure! I was convinced!–who wouldn’t want to take a virus that looks as happy as this one! Just about a two weeks ago, Payton and I ventured out in a snow squall […]

While the men were away, Part 2

March 24, 2014

I learned a lot while the men were gone. A lot more happened than just eating Five Guys or hanging out with ladies. Just before the guys headed out to the Shepherd’s Conference in California, my mom read a passage in Isaiah 58 about praying and fasting. There’s been a lot going on at our […]

While the men were away, Part 1

March 21, 2014

…the girls went wild! Nope. Actually, we kept the manicures and bon-bons to a minimum. Earlier this month, Payton got head to sunny, southern California for the Shepherd’s Conference with my dad. They attended the three day conference with about 2500 other men and got to hear from a variety of speakers. I was a […]

The Month of Loves

March 1, 2014

February causes mixed emotions for most people, ranging from hate to passion, or maybe even passionate hate, but I thought I’d recount some of the loves/likes I encountered along the way. #1. An Adventure with the Luyendyks! (Although this wasn’t quite in February, it was close enough to count in my book.) Seeing these old […]

A Taste of Asia Pacific

February 27, 2014

I think it was my mom who had this awesome idea about getting everyone at church together and feeding them food from Asia Pacific. It happened to pair well with the fact that I love to feed people! Thanks to Jim and Connie Turek, I’d already had a taste of AP from being in their […]

Meant for the Wild

February 18, 2014

Not long ago my mom came over to our side of the house smirking and stifling a laugh. She said, “Well I always knew you were meant for the jungle!” And then she showed me this… Do you know what I was supposed to be? A zebra. Yup. A zebra. Payton saw it and told […]