Brady got baptized!

As an earthly parent, you see the good, the bad, and the ugly in your child.  With all the quirks and flaws, it's easy to wonder how exactly this child is going to manage in a great big world.  But then, that still small voice I know so well reminds me, "he's not yours.  He's mine."  And so clearly the words of Psalm 139 ring in my ears,

"Oh Lord, you have searched me and you know me.  You know when I sit and when I rise.  You perceive my thoughts from afar.  You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways.  Before a word is on my tongue you know it completely, Oh Lord."

And this is what I know, not because I can read it in my Bible, but because the words of this Psalm have displayed themselves in every moment of my life, that Brady has a Heavenly Father.  The One who created all the quirks and flaws.  The One who made this most amazing boy exactly who he was supposed to be.  The One who has a need and a specific purpose for this little 7 year old puzzle piece.

"For you created my inmost being;

you knit me together in my mother's womb...

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;

your works are wonderful, I know that full well...All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be."

So, Brady made the choice to publicly display his decision to follow Christ.  

I don't know what the future holds for Brady.  I honestly sometimes shake my head in wonder and think "only Heaven knows!"  But that's the great news!  Heaven knows!

"For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope, and a future."  Jeremiah 29:11

Welcome our sleepy little Vincent!

As I look at my sleepy baby, I am so amazed at God’s goodness and in awe of His handiwork.  The miracle of life is just that, a miracle!  I always knew I wanted to be a wife and mother, little did I know I would be a wife to a man of such character and strength (seriously, have you seen his arms?!) and mother to 3 beautiful children!  Adding the 5^th member of our family was a well thought out and discussed decision and I cannot wait to see who he becomes!  He already has such expression in the faces (and noises) he makes, I’m certain he will add more wild adventure to our lives.  The road will not always be easy, there is no doubt.  If it is really true that history repeats itself, I anticipate moments like this…

And this will probably happen during what was supposed to be naptime…

Along with Brady and Juliette, Vincent will spend his early moments of life in Sicily seeing the orange groves filled with the bright oranges.  He will hear the church bell chimes filling the air, marking the time passing each day.  He will smell the delights of what our neighbors are cooking for lunch.  He will feel the love and acceptance of our community welcoming these foreigners into their lives!  This will be all he knows, this will be his home. 

There will be many things Vincent will need to learn and lucky for him, he has a big brother and sister who can show him so many things.  Juliette will be able to teach him many things about her first love…

Pasta!  How to swirl the noodles in the bowl to get optimum cheese coverage, how to dip the bread in the empty bowl to soak up the bits of goodness left behind, and how to fit several servings into his belly. 

and she will teach him about cuddles, puzzles, and how she loves to play!

Brady, with his wild imagination, will show him the proper way to play dress up…

 

Just like he taught his sister...

Playing "Grown-ups"

How to draw and paint, and perhaps more importantly, how to create figures out of play dough then leave them out to dry.  Brady will also be able to teach him how to look a year in advance for gifts he would want to get for a birthday or Christmas present.  

 

Our family is nowhere near perfect and we get a lot of things wrong.

There are tantrums…

And we get angry…

But, through it all,

We do dessert really well…

We celebrate life…

and we get excited…

We grow and learn, but most of all, we love.  It started with just 2 of us...

And our love grew a little more with our sweet Brady...

 Even more still with our "moose" Juliette...

 

and our hearts are full!  Welcome, our sleepy little Vincent!

Let us introduce you to this thing we call life.  We will love you, care for you, do our very best for you, and inevitably, say things our parents said to us (that we swore we would never say).  We are honored to get the chance to raise you and support you as you become the person God created you to be!

A Glimpse of Fall... 6 months late!

Fall was filled with a whole lot of fun! 

Brady participated in the Missoula Children's Theater performance of the Tortoise and the Hare

 

Brady's first day of school for 1st Grade!

Juliette's first day of school for Italian preschool!

Hanging out at the ropes course on Mt. Etna

Apple picking and Chestnut hunting on Mt. Etna

Followed by pancakes and gelato!

Enjoying the new playground in San Giovanni La Punta

Ottobrata Festival

The season was finished up with me participating in 3 craft shows!

Amelia Gets Married!

It happened!  My little sister got married!  One of the main reasons we ventured back to the States during the summer was to be there for the wedding.  The ceremony was officiated by my dad, who also officiated my wedding, which was very special.  Amelia had a vision for the reception, and even when there were doubts about how it was all going to work, the end result was beautiful!  Spending the special day with her was an honor and I'm so proud of the woman she has become! 

My parent's neighbor brought over a wonderful breakfast the morning of the wedding!

 Our Uncle Lanny and Aunt Janice came up from Alabama to celebrate with us!

 

 

Dad, Mom, Amelia, Patrick, Me, and Greg

Welcome to the family Patrick!

 

 The whole gang! 

 

 

Marriage and the addition of new family members is such a blessing!  It has made me a better person and I pray that Amelia finds the same to be true!  I'm so happy to have been able to share this day with Amelia and Patrick and know they will have so many happy years and memories together!

Whirlwind kind of Summer

A week after we returned from vacation, Brady had his 6th birthday...

 

And then 8 days after that, Juliette had her 3rd birthday...

 

And then we boarded a plane headed for the good old USA!  We landed in North Carolina, Greg's sister, Juju, picked us up at our hotel, and then we drove to meet my dad who took us home.  I certainly was glad to be in one spot, for at least a few days.  The kids entertained themselves by peeling paint, enjoying my parents, and hanging out at the park...

 

We then ventured to Greg's brother, Chris and his wife Michele's house where we practically lived in the pool.  Greg was probably the biggest attraction...

 

 Brady, Mary, Morgan, Jay, and Juliette

Heading back down towards my parent's house, we needed to make a side trip to Virginia Beach because Juliette had a doctor's appointment at Children's Hospital of the King's Daughters.  We are fortunate enough to have friends living close to the hospital and enjoyed spending time with them and eating at Doumar's... a total necessity when in the area!

 

Ok, so then it was back to my parent's for another couple of days and then we were Louisiana bound.  Are you keeping up so far?

We stopped off in Tennessee.  We went on a bit of a goose chase, but found a replica of Davy Crockett's childhood home, spent the night at the Chattanooga Choo-Choo (the hotel lobby is the old train station.  Very cool!), and then took a drive up Lookout Mountain to visit Ruby Falls...

 

We finally made our way into Louisiana and the first stop was a Safari park where we took a tour through the park feeding the animals...

 

Making our way to Greg's parent's house, and we were so happy to see the rest of the family!  We enjoyed a night in the pool and a nice meal together.  The very next day, Monica, Greg's mom was admitted to the hospital and was there for the duration of our visit.  The highlight for the kids was of course the pool and also a pinata...

 This is the only one I have of Laurel and Fen.  Shameful, I know!

 

Our sweet Caroline!

That's Juju in the background.  We really should have been better about getting pictures of each other!  So when the big stick didn't break the pinata, the kids tried a couple different stick options, but in the end it was necessary to call in the cavalry...

 Greg and his war cry and me and my 3 month pregnant belly

Moving on to our next location, we went to Natchitoches (I love that the spell-check word for Natchitoches is Scratchiness!), Louisiana.  We met up with Greg's friend, Brian and his daughter, Harper.  The guys went to college together here and it was great fun walking the campus, eating meat pies, and walking downtown.  There was also great fun to be had at the Alligator Park!

 

Who knew an ATM was so entertaining!

 

Brian and Harper

Brady's favorite part was getting the goats to eat his shirt!

Ok, so finally we drive back up to my parent's house for my sister's wedding.  A couple days after the wedding, we get back on a plane, land in Naples, Italy, rent a car, then drive to Calabria to catch a ferry, ride the ferry to Messina, drive to base to pick up our car, then rush to the airport, navigate the craziness that is the Catania airport, return the rental car, and FINALLY make it HOME!  

What a wild and wonderful summer we had!  So many places, so many memories we made, and even more importantly was so much time together as a family!  And we still love each other!