The best of times and the worst of times

Happy New Year!

2011-01-17T19:37:00.000-08:00

Greetings Family and Friends,
Happy New Year! As this year came to an end, we decided to take a moment and think about what memories the year 2010 will leave us. In thinking about the past year we are reminded over and over the goodness and providence of God and the blessings of family and friends. As many of you know, we spent 8 months of 2010 unemployed, but thanks to the wonderful providence of God, the amazing love of our family and friends, and the support of our church family, we survived this year and came out with a new appreciation for everything we have been given. Everything we have truly is a gift from God.
The year started out with us on a trip. For Christmas we flew to Wisconsin to be with Neil’s family. After a weekend of fun, we all hit the road and drove to New Jersey to participate in and celebrate the marriage of Neil’s brother Kenneth to his wife Ai Wen. This was a busy and fun trip for all of us, and Abigail did really well in all the new places with new people.
February was quite busy as it started with Sarah taking a trip to Minneapolis. She received tickets to visit her best friend there as a gift from her friend, Neil, and her parents. Neil stayed at home with Abigail and that provided a great bonding time for father and daughter as well as a new appreciation for all stay-at-moms. February also brought Abigail’s first birthday, which we celebrated a little late with a fun afternoon party. Since she was not walking yet we entered her in Ripon’s Almond Blossom Festival Diaper Derby and she surprised all of us when, out of about 40 babies, she won first prize. She was quite the speedy crawler.
March brought us to Washington with the rest of Sarah’s family as we celebrated her dad’s 60th birthday. It was a fun weekend with family and once again, Abigail did great with all of it.
Thankfully April and May were quiet months, since the summer was quite packed. June brought a failed camping trip. Since we had a family reunion camping trip coming we gave it a test run and tried camping overnight closer to home. We packed up close to midnight, after 3 hours of Abigail crying. Although she is a good traveler, apparently she is not a good camper. We still did travel to Oregon, though, for the Haveman family reunion. We stayed in a hotel near the camp ground.
Shortly after arriving home from Oregon we drove up to B.C. Canada to attend a wedding of a college friend. It was quite the drive. We stayed in Salem one night and then made it to Neil’s Pake and Grandma’s for the weekend. Abigail again proved herself to be a good traveler and it was an enjoyable trip.
We had only been home from B.C. a couple weeks when we enjoyed a visit from Neil’s parents. After experiencing some travel difficulty, they made it here to enjoy 10 lovely days with us. We had a lot of fun showing them many different sights in California and it was wonderful for Abigail to spend some more time with her grandparents.
Sarah spent another week in Minneapolis in early August to participate in the wedding of her best friend, Nikki. Again, Neil and Abigail stayed home, which provided some wonderful last minute bonding as shortly after Sarah’s return Neil had his first day at his new job. He was hired at St. Joseph’s Medical Center in Stockton. As a housekeeper, his hours have varied, but so far he has always had day shifts. One thing we do miss, though is our weekends as he has had to work every Saturday and Sunday since starting.
Neil’s new job meant less travel, but we didn’t mind a quiet fall. Our biggest trip this fall was a lovely day in the mountains enjoying the Fall color. We drove all the way to Lake Tahoe and back. It was very nice to get a whole day away from Abigail (even though we did miss her ). As the holidays approached, life sped up again and we have thoroughly enjoyed the time of celebrating with family and friends, although we did miss being able to travel to Wisconsin again. Maybe next year. For now, we look ahead to another year of excitement and hope as our family will be growing this summer. We are all excited to meet the newest addition at the end of July.
Thank you for coming on this journey down memory lane with me. Until we meet again, may the Lord continue to bless you.
In Christ,
Neil and Sarah
Abigail and Baby

The Abigail Adventures

2010-07-07T07:56:00.000-07:00

Wow! Our little girl is growing up so fast these days! In the last week she has learned to do the slide at Grandpa and Grandma's all by herself (it is a 4 step slide that is about 2 feet taller than herself), climb into her own chair at home and her rocking chair at Grandpa and Grandma's, climb on to our coach, and successfully get off the coach without hitting her head (most of the time). She also had one totally dry day earlier this week and is starting to eat with her own fork and spoon. We are also pleased that her vocabulary is growing, both verbally and in sign. It also seems that she is developing a mind of her own. Surprise! For example, the other day I gave her the choice of 3 different dresses to wear to church. She definitively chose one over the other two. But I wanted her to wear a different one so I let her choose again, putting my favorite ahead of the other two. She still chose the first one. Then I gave her my favorite and put the other two away and she was quite upset until I gave her the dress she had chosen back to her.

Seeing all this growth in such a short amount of time made us think about how kids grow. It seems that kids grow in spurts. Sometimes it seems like she is a tree. If you watch a tree grow you don't notice much difference, but if you leave it for a while and then come back you do see change. Other times she is more like corn where you almost feel like you can seen her growing before your very eyes. Right now she is definitely going through a growth spurt in practically everything.

Thanks again for stopping in.

Happy Canada Day!

2010-07-01T07:32:00.000-07:00

Well, long time, no blog. I guess the last number of weeks I have been too busy living life to blog about it. But we have a short break in the craziness now, so I have some time to sit down and share with you.

In June we had family visit and we visited family. My brother and sister-in-law visited and met her parents here to play tour guide for a week. We enjoyed them staying with us for part of the week and having time to visit with them. At the end of that week we all met up in southern Oregon for a family reunion with my mom's side of the family. Due to a previous bad experience with Abigail sleeping in a tent, we decided to take it easy on ourselves and everyone else in the camp ground and get a hotel room for the nights. And we are so glad we did! We had a wonderful time, especially since we got to sleep at night.

Now we are home for a short time before we head out on the road again. This time to Surrey, B.C. to attend a wedding of a college friend and visit some of Neil's family. A couple days after we return Neil's parents arrive for a 10 day visit which we are thrilled about. We are busy trying to make plans about what to see and where to go, but mostly we are excited to just spend time with them, time that will allow Abigail to better know her grandparents. A week after my in-laws leave I leave. I will be off to MN for the wedding of my sister-friend. I am the matron of honor and so have had a lot of fun planning this and that with and without her. I will be flying out on a red-eye and leaving the family behind for almost a week. Hopefully I will be kept so busy I won't have time to miss my wonderful husband and daughter (as much).

So, now the question you are all wanting to know. How is Abigail? Well, she is growing up WAY too fast! She walks everywhere now and even is starting to run. She is experimenting with different laughters, which is always fun for her parents. She is doing really well in the potty training arena and hopefully we will be able to switch to training pants later this summer or fall. She is starting to test us and unfortunately looks way too cute with her bottom lip stuck out. Her only apparent fear is the garbage truck and she is getting really good at signing. I am sure there is more, but for now this blog is already plenty long so I will save it for another day. Thanks for stopping in to read about the Elgersma Times.

Warning: Potty Training Story

2010-05-25T08:48:00.000-07:00

First of all, I want to say "thank you" to all of you who have been praying for us and encouraging us. Last week, as you may have noticed, we had a couple bad days. We found out that Neil did not get a job we had really be hoping for. We are moving on now with other potential jobs so please continue to pray for direction and a job. Thank you!
Now on to the main story. As some of you may know, a while back we decided to start potty training Abigail. Some people were questioning of whether we should be doing this so soon but we were curious if she could do it so we started in on training her. We figured that she would catch on to peeing first, it seems like most kids do. But surprisingly she has caught on to pooping on the potty first. We taught her the sign for "toilet" and ask her through out the day if she has to go potty. Sometimes she signs it back and so we take her. Sometimes we take her even if she doesn't sign it back. It has been hard sticking with it, but last week it paid off. For the first time Abigail came up to me and signed "toilet" and when I brought her to the bathroom she pooped on her little potty seat.

Maybe you remember a story I told a while back where Abigail signed "toilet" and then when we brought her there she picked up her book and signed "more." Well, I thought maybe that was what she was doing again, but instead she pooped. And she did again the last 2 days. I think we are on a roll! It seems that she has made the connection and she likes being able to have control over this part of her life. We will keep working on peeing on the potty, but for now I am happy with the progress we have made.

Ponderings on Purpose

2010-05-23T11:58:00.000-07:00

I have one of those daily calenders that has a cute saying or a verse from scripture for each day. Todays saying is this: "You don't have to make your life happen; you just have to worship God and let Him make it happen. You don't have to strive to figure out your purpose. You have to strive to know God. He knows your purpose.....You won't have to accomplish it, He will."

That got me to thinking. We currently, as a family, feel purpose-less. Yes, I know I am a wife and mother and daughter and sister. I know who I am in relationship to others. But what is my purpose? What are our purposes as individuals and what is our purpose as a family? What are we here for? What reason is there to get up in the morning?

We have been actively pursuing answers to these questions for almost a year now and all we seem to find are more questions. And according to the quote on my daily calender today, we have been going about it all wrong. We need to stop pursuing our purpose and start pursuing God. But what does that look like in real life? Do we stop applying for jobs? Stop actively searching for a means to financially support our family? But isn't that lazy? Doesn't "God help those who help themselves?" Seems to be the American way to me. But according to the earlier quote (and I realize that both quotes I have used so far are not found in the Bible) the American way is wrong. Shock and awe! What? How can that be? Okay, enough ramblings from me for day. Abigail is calling. I just wanted to share with you some of my ponderings. I would enjoy hearing what you think. Thank you.

I Cried Today

2010-05-21T13:59:00.000-07:00

Hope. What is hope? One definition says: the feeling that what is wanted can be had or that events will turn out for the best. Today I do not have hope. Tomorrow holds no promises and yesterday is where I want to be. Where is God when the feelings of hope are gone? What do you do when you can't get out of bed? Where can you go when everywhere there is a dead end? When do the tears stop when hope is gone? Hope. It is amazing how much better life is with hope. It is amazing how everything looks brighter and tastes better with hope. It is amazing how crushing it can be when hope is gone. Some will say to you, but what about this or that? This and that are great when you have hope that they will work. But after a while of every "this and that" ending with nothing, one begins to not even want to consider any more "this or that"s. This probably doesn't make much sense to most of you, and that is okay. This is mostly just the ramblings of a person having a bad day. Or maybe it is more. Tomorrow is another day. Maybe with it will come renewed hope.

My Daughter

2010-05-19T21:21:00.000-07:00

It has become quite apparent recently that Abigail is very much my daughter. Most kids have a "lovey", right? Well, Abigail, up until recently, has been an exception to that. We have tried to get her to attach to a stuffed animal or blanket is nothing has really worked. Well, she has picked her lovey. A book. Thats right, she is quite attached to one particular book. She carries it around with her and takes it to bed with her. We have even seen her put it on her crib mattress and lay her head on it. So, there you have it. I am passing my obsession with books on to the next generation.

In other news, Neil has recently applied for several good job possibilities. No interviews yet, but we will keep you informed. I don't want to share too much right now since we are trying not to get too attached to anything until we know for sure. Oh, and more about Neil :). He is in a choir, Voices for the King, and someone recorded a song from their last performance. If you would like to view it, and I know you would, here is the link (please let me know if it doesn't work): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BiX39Uo5iOY&feature=player_embedded

Okay, time for bed. I hope and pray that you are all having an AWESOME week!!

Life Continues

2010-05-05T11:33:00.000-07:00

Well, there actually isn't much new going on but I figured it was time to update the blog. We are still jobless, still waiting for whats next. I am staying busy with Abigail and some babysitting and Neil is staying busy with many different music things and the job hunt. Mostly in the way of "new things" in our life is Abigail.

Abby has taken off with her signing. She now signs "more" "milk" "please" "all done" and "toilet." She also says "night night" "mama" and "daddy." We mostly did signing with her for meal times but she is now using "more" for reading books, playing and food. She is so proud of herself. The other day she signed "toilet" to Neil (we are in the process of potty training) and so Neil brought her to her potty seat. He sat her down and she picked up her book (we have a couple books there to read to her while she does her business). She handed Neil the book and then signed "more." All she wanted was to read that book but she knew to sign "toilet" to get him to bring her there. And one of her books is full of pictures of animals and one of the pictures is of a cow. She always flips through the book and finds the picture cow and the touches it and looks at me/Neil. She wants us to make a "mooing" sound, which we do. She thinks its hilarious!

We got Abigail a little play house the other day, it has a slide that she loves to climb up and down. Since it has been warmer lately we like put it in the front yard and set the sprinklers under it, turning it into a water slide. She loves it! She is such a little water-baby and loves being outside. We are hoping to do some camping this summer and we know she will thoroughly enjoy that.

She is walking everywhere now. Just recently she seemed to gain confidence in walking and that is all she wants to do, she barely crawls at all. Lets see, what else? She is scared of the garbage truck. Not much else scares her, but she hates the garbage truck. She will hear it a block away and come and crawl into my lap until it is gone.

Well, thats about it for us. We are enjoying a quieter time in our lives before the busy summer hits. Hope all is going well with you. Thanks for stopping in.

Spring Is In The Air

2010-04-08T10:45:00.000-07:00

Right now I am sitting and enjoying some sunshine on our front porch. Abigail is down for a nap and while I enjoy this quiet time I am thinking about new life. This last year has been a year of change for us. Some of the changes have been good and have brought a lot of joy, while other changes have been difficult and have brought pain and sadness. We experienced the slow and painful death of a dream and for a while things seemed rather bleak. But now, as I watch Spring blossom around me, new hope is also blossoming. Time has a way of bringing healing, and new hope is being found. The seeds of a new dream have been planted and as we water and tend this dream I am quite anxious to see what comes of it. There is nothing concrete to this dream yet, just hopes and wishes, but for now that is enough.

On a different note, Abigail continues to grow as well. We have phased out the binkey, and so far she is taking it pretty well. She is such a good baby, (soon-to-be-toddler). She is talking a lot and while most of it we can not understand, some of it we can. She says "Hi" and "Daddy" and "Momma" and "Bye." She is starting to feed herself with a spoon, which she is quite proud of. She LOVES to be outside and would spend all day out there if we let her. She climbs up and down the front steps, plays in the dirt, finds bugs, and "picks flowers" for me. And, like her older cousins, she is growing to like trains. She has a large train she pushes around the house as well as a smaller train made out of blocks that she enjoys taking apart and putting back together (more taking apart, though :). She also loves to "help" me and will wipe down her "dishes" in her cupboard with a damp washcloth while I do dishes.

I hope you are all enjoying the Spring. Thank you so much for your friendship and prayers as we are navigating our way through this difficult year.

Busy Busy Times

2010-03-24T15:16:00.001-07:00

Wow. I am sitting at home looking at the weeks ahead and for the first time in over a month we have no one coming to visit and we are not going to visit anyone. This has been a very busy time for us and I am so glad to finally be able to get back to "normal."

So, what have we been up to these past weeks? Well, as I wrote about before, our sister, Karen came to visit us a couple weeks ago. We stayed pretty busy showing her around California. We went to Knight's Ferry, Columbia, Iron Stone Winery, Micke Grove Zoo, and Putt Putt Golfing. We also went on walks around here and spent time with my family. It was a great visit!

Then a week ago we flew up to Washington. My parents and brother flew with us so there were 6 of us altogether. After landing in Seattle, we rented a van and drove up to Lynden. We stayed at my grandparent's house and enjoyed a weekend of visiting with them as well as seeing my brother and sister-in-law, in Bellingham. We were there to celebrate my dad's 60th birthday and we had a great time going out to eat and partying. Things can get a little stressful staying with my grandparents since they are getting a little forgetful, but over all it was a good weekend. We also got to see Neil's family, who live just over the boarder in Canada. And my roommate from college came over to visit one afternoon as well. It was a full weekend and although we had a good time, we were glad to get home.

We flew home yesterday and today we spent the day re-combobulating everything. Oh, and I had an interview this afternoon! It will be just a part time position helping make and deliver meals to people, but I really hope I get it. Oh, and some of the biggest news of all is that Abigail took her first steps this weekend! We were all so excited and proud of her! Now we just need to practice her new-found skill. Thanks all for now, thanks for checking in :).

Spring Is In The Air

2010-03-10T11:05:00.000-08:00

It is beautiful in California this time of the year. Trees are blossoming, plants are sprouting, flowers are blooming and it is just the right temperature outside. We are looking forward to enjoying this beauty as much as possible this week.

Neil's sister, Karen, arrived last night and we are looking forward to showing her a taste of California. We have lots of ideas and now we just have to decide what to do in the time we have. Definitely on our agenda is a trip to Micke Grove Zoo. Abigail has never been to a zoo, so this should be a lot of fun. There is also a lot to do on the coast as well as a number of Missions we could visit. Columbia, Iron Stone Winery, Daffodil Hill, Knight's Ferry, and Pine Crest have all been nominated as well. She is only here for a week, though, and with Abigail's nap routine there is only so much we can do each day.

That is about it for today. There really isn't much to report on for now, but I will try and keep you updated as the week progresses. Thanks for tuning in!

Full Rich Weekend

2010-03-01T09:08:00.000-08:00

Wow! This has been quite the weekend!

Friday night we left Abigail with a non-family babysitter for the first time since we moved to California and it went very well! Neil and I enjoyed some time with other adults at our young couples church group and Abigail learned (again) that she can survive with someone else taking care of her.

Saturday morning was the 48th annual Diaper Derby, part of the fun-filled Almond Blossom Festival weekend. We had Abigail entered in the Diaper Derby but we weren't sure how she would do since she doesn't like loud noises, especially cheering. She was in the 4th heat (out of 5) and so she had a chance to watch other babies crawl their way to victory. When it was our turn we got down on the mat, Neil was sending and I was receiving. I got Abby's attention before the race even started and she was raring to go before Neil set her down to crawl. They said "start" and off she went! None of the other babies even left the starting gate. She crawled right to me and won her heat. This meant she was entered into the final race against all the other babies who won their heats. We were so proud of her! The winner's race started soon after that. Again, I got Abigail's attention even before the race started. This time she wasn't the first to take off, but the other babies each sat down and looked back at their dad's; Abigail kept her eyes on me, crawling along. Another girl almost caught up with her, but Abby crossed the finish line first! She won! Now we are proudly displaying her trophy and blue ribbon (and will, of course share this story with all her boyfriends in many many many years).

After all that excitement it was time for the parade. We let Abigail stay up past her nap to enjoy her first parade. She made it about 3/4 of the way through before Grandpa and Grandma brought her home for her nap. Later that afternoon we went and took in the festivities at the Carnival. The day ended with Pizza Plus pizza. It was a GREAT day!

Sunday dawned bright and clear. We made it to the early service at church and then put Abby down for her morning nap. Then the work started. At 1:00 we had many guests due to arrive for Abby's birthday party. Neil juiced 24 oranges for orange juice and juiced lemons for lemon aide. We also put together pigs n' a blanket, lil' smokies in homemade BBQ sauce, aram sandwiches, a veggie tray and chips. For the younger guests and the birthday girl we had grilled cheese sandwiches. The party was a great success! We had so much fun with family and friends! Abigail got her hands and face dirty in her apple cake and then had fun playing with her new toys the rest of the afternoon.

This weekend was a lot of fun, but I really hope we don't have another like it any time soon - I couldn't survive another! :)

Home Again

2010-02-17T20:22:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I returned home from my adventure-filled weekend in Minneapolis. I took off on Thursday and had an uneventful flight. As many of you know, I hate flying and so this was difficult for me, but I am determined to not let my fear of flying rule my life. I landed and was picked up by my friend's mom and cousin. My friend and her fiance landed right before midnight, so it was a late night for us.

The fun started on Friday. We went wedding dress shopping most of the day. We saw many beautiful dresses and some questionable dresses :). Finally, the last dress to be tried on was it. She was gorgeous! She looked like the bride she would soon be and she didn't want to take it off. The day was a success!

Saturday was my birthday. We started with going out to breakfast. It was mostly a relaxing day, hanging out at the apartment and running errands. We watched some Olympics and a movie and played games. It was a wonderful birthday. Sunday we went to the Global Market and I got a new diaper bag and a beautiful skirt for my birthday. Then I was given a tour of Minneapolis before going to church. It was another great day.

Monday was the busiest day of the weekend. We went to see where the wedding and reception would be and then went SHOPPING! After much deliberation, we picked a dress for the bridesmaids. I think I looked pretty good in it :). After a long morning of shopping, we decided to go see a movie after lunch. The day ended on a wonderful note when my friend ordered the dress of her dreams! She is so excited for August and I was so glad that I was able to be there this weekend and be a part of all the wedding excitement.

The trip ended on a high note when I went home on Tuesday and got to see my husband and baby. I missed them so much and was so glad to be home, refreshed and relaxed. Thank you to all whole helped make this weekend possible.

Leavin' on a Jet Plane

2010-02-10T08:54:00.001-08:00

Well, after more than two months of waiting, the day is finally here! Watch out, Minneapolis, here I come! So, for those of you who are wondering why I am going to Minneapolis, let me back up, this is a fun story. Okay, do you like "A long, long time ago in a place far, far away" or "Once upon a time"? Well, you pick. Either way, our story starts some time in November, 2009. My best friend, N.M. was thinking about her impending engagement and how much fun it would be to have her best friend around for a while to help do some planning and have some fun. One big problem. Her best friend is me, and remember, and I live in CA. So this required a little bit of planning. Being the sneaky person she is, N.M. contacted an old friend of her's, my sister-in-law. Now Sis was able to get her in contact with my mother who then, of course, involved my wonderful husband in their devious plots. The three of them got together, behind my back, and planned my weekend away. So now, for the first time since my darling daughter was born, I will be leaving her and my husband for 5 wonderful days on my own. Oh, I will miss my family a lot, this is true, but it will also be good to get away for a while. The adventure starts tomorrow morning and I look forward to telling you all about it upon my return (assuming I remember any of it ;). Thats about all for today. Have a great weekend and happy Valentine's day to all!

Memories

2010-02-05T10:34:00.000-08:00

Today is Abigail's birthday. She is one year old. Just writing that feels weird. How can it feel like just yesterday we found out we were pregnant and here our little girl is a year old? We were so excited when we discovered we were pregnant! I loved being pregnant. Throughout the pregnancy I was not very sick, although I did experience some interesting cravings :). I loved feeling her move inside me and talking to her throughout the day. When I was about 35 or 36 weeks along I came down with a rash that was related to the pregnancy. It was called PUPPPS and I itched all over my arms and legs and stomach and I got very swollen. Knowing the only cure was giving birth, I was all the more anxious for my baby to arrive.

On the morning of February 5, 2009 I woke early with a back ache. I finally woke Neil up at 7am to tell him it was time. We left for the hospital around 9:30 and they admitted me. Abigail made her appearance a little before 1:30 in the afternoon. We were so excited! Since then it has been quite the ride. Abigail is now crawling everywhere and loves to look at books and explore everything. One of her favorite parts of the day is bath time when she gets to play with her toy ducky and splash water all over. She sleeps through the night and is go go go all day. We are so thankful for our little girl.

This has been the fun week of celebrating Abby's birthday. On Tuesday we got a package from Abby's Pake and Grandma (Neil's parents) with 4 outfits that Grandma made for her. They are just adorable! And on Thursday we got a package from Uncle Nathan and Auntie Melanie. There was another outfit and some homemade toys that Abby just loves! She has also gotten birthday wishes via facebook and phone calls from many others and maybe some more cards in the mail today.

Birthdays are so much fun, but we are also thankful for each day we have with Abigail. There are definitely rough moments but her cheerful grin each morning, her happy giggles and her looks of awe as she discovers new things make each day better than the last.

Always something

2010-01-29T15:22:00.000-08:00

There is always something going on. This week has been quite the adventure.

On Monday Neil's cousin John visited on his way from Iowa to Alberta. He is taking the long way :). That same day we got a call from Jon, Neil's old roommate from Dordt, announcing his engagement to his long-time girlfriend, Eryn. We are also waiting for Neil's brother's wedding certificate to arrive. You see, Kenneth and his wife Ai were married on January 2 but their township lost the certificate they filed. They need the marriage certificate in order to get Ai permanent residence here. Since they lost the original, they need the original witnesses to sign it. It has already made it to the Matron of Honor in San Jose, now it has to get here for Neil to sign, then it is off to Neil's uncle Nathan (the pastor who married them) in B.C, then finally it can be sent back to Kenneth and Ai.

This week has also been exciting for Abigail. For a while now she has made the sounds "ma ma" "na na" and "ya ya" and this week she started making the sounds "ba ba" "da da" and "ra ra." She is crawling everywhere and pulls herself up on everything. She loves to climb everything, especially the stairs at church. She will be a year old next week. She is now in size 18 month clothes and is about 30 inches tall and around 20 lbs. She is curious about everything and loves to laugh and smile. She is a constant joy.

And Neil's adventures in piano tuning continue. On Tuesday he tuned his first grand piano and it went very well. We have also heard news that he might have some more pianos to tune. Most of them would be at a retirement home in our town where he has already tuned 3 pianos. He is making great progress and we are all excited for him and proud of him.

And to top things off, today I got a call from the Unemployment Office in Oregon. We recently tried to restart my claim and were told that it would take a while, that there were some questions regarding my departure from my employer. After talking with her I learned how the church described my employment and the end of my employment. It was most revealing.

All in all, it has been an interesting week. Next week brings Abby's birthday and hopefully more good news. Thanks for taking time read this and hope you have had a great week!

The past, present, and future

2010-01-21T09:45:00.000-08:00

Hello! Thanks for stopping in today. To start out this blog I want to take a moment and look back at what has brought us to where we are today. 2.5 years ago I married my best friend. We met and fell in love at Dordt College and 3 weeks after graduating we go married. Our first year was wonderful. We lived in WI near my husband's family. We worked regular jobs and had a lot of fun. Looking back, that was one of the best years of my life.

Then we moved to Oregon. I took a job as the part-time Coordinator of Youth Ministry at a church in Salem. We were so excited. Our excitement just grew when we discovered shortly after moving there that we were pregnant. I loved being pregnant. I barely got sick, I loved reading each week how my baby was growing, everything was wonderful. I thought everything was going well with my work too and my husband had a job he enjoyed at a local music store. Abigail was born February 5, 5 days before her due date. She was beautiful. The labor was easy, compared to some I had heard about, and we were totally in love with her.

I had 6 weeks off work and then I returned. But things were not the same. I will never really know why things were different, but that is a different story for a different time. In August the church decided that I was no longer a good fit for the job. In one week I lost my job and we lost our church family and many of our friends. Despite the support of some dear friends there, we were feeling very lost and confused and hurt. In September we made the difficult decision that our time in Salem was over and in October we moved to California to be closer to my family. We have been able to live in my grandfather's house since he is now living in a rest home. We have felt very welcome and blessed to be here.

So, that about sums up some of our best of times and worst of times. Since moving to CA we have not been able to find work but we have family and friends here and slowly we are gaining back our trust and faith in people. We are so thankful to our friends and family for seeing us through this time and are so thankful for our daughter Abigail who is our constant joy. I hope that we are able to have more good times in the next year to write about. Either way, welcome to the journey.