The Rawdons

Ella playing keyboard

2009-02-21T16:04:00.004-06:00

And now, not to be outdone by her sister, here is Ella on the keyboard:

Maddie singing

2009-02-21T14:57:00.006-06:00

Here is Maddie singing "Mighty To Save" and playing the drums. She loves music, singing, and dancing!

Ella's 1st Birthday

2009-01-13T20:18:00.003-06:00

First snow/Halloween

2008-11-07T12:20:00.001-06:00

Last night and today we got our first snow of the season (an inch or so). Here are some pics from Halloween:

October Update

2008-11-01T08:17:00.005-05:00

Ok so we are terrible at updating the blog now that Eric and I both have Facebook accounts, but for those of you who can't see pictures and check out updates on that here is what we have been up to...

I went back to work in September. I am teaching part-time at a Christian preschool here is Sioux City. I teach Monday-Friday from 9-11:30. It is perfect because I pick the girls up around noon and we have the rest of the afternoon together. Two of my good friends take turns watching Ella and Maddie goes to her own school/daycare. Eric takes Friday mornings off to stay home with them. It has really worked out great. I love teaching and I think it is really good for the girls to be with other kids their ages a little bit during the day.

Eric is keeping busy with work. He continues to love his job. He has also just started playing football on Saturday mornings with some friends. It is just a fun time to get together with the guys and play a game he loves. We are gearing up for our weekend in Denver in December for the Broncos vs. Chiefs game. It should be a really fun weekend. Maddie and Ella are staying here and Eric's mom is flying out to stay with them for the weekend.

Maddie is growing up fast. She is 2 1/2 and it a very independent and opinionated little girl. She loves to sing and dance and play. In the car the other day she said, "hey mom, let's listen to 'Your Grace is Enough.'" I have to say that it is awesome to hear my 2 year old singing Chris Tomlin praise songs from the backseat! Maddie just moved into her "big girl bed" last week which is going ok. She pops out into the living room or just calls for us to come "snuggle" with her in her room, so it is taking her a little longer to settle down at night. Maddie loves her school and comes home talking about her teachers and all of her friends. It is such a great school and I know she is in good hands with I can't be with her.

And little Ella Ruth..."Ruthie" as we like to call her. She is great...almost 10 months old...I know where did that time go right?! I keep telling Eric that it is just about time for a 3rd...JUST KIDDING!! We are enjoying our family of 4 right now. Ella loves to play peek-a-boo with her sister...actually she loves to do anything with her sister. Whenever Maddie talks to her, Ella just lights up. Ella is crawling EVERYWHERE and pulling up on stuff too. She may be walking soon! She continues to be the good eater in the family and may just out weigh her big sister soon.

That is a recap of the Rawdons. Hope all of you are doing well. We would love to hear from you and how all of you are doing.

Maddie's New Bike & Ella

2008-08-22T12:53:00.004-05:00

Gramps (Kate's dad) got Maddie a new bike and it arrived in the mail yesterday...she was so excited. She is sitting on the bike in our basement watching a movie right now :) Thanks Gramps!! I love you!!!

Heading Home

2008-07-28T21:31:00.003-05:00

Well the girls and I have been at my parents' house in Indiana for 2 weeks while Eric was on the mission trip with the high school group at church. He got home last night and we are flying home tomorrow afternoon. We have had an awesome visit but saying goodbye is always SO hard. It will be bittersweet. I miss Eric and look forward to seeing him but I wish that we lived closer to my family.

Pray for us as we fly back tomorrow...it is a little tricky getting through security and getting them both occupied on the plane when I only have 2 hands (not to mention that I will probably be sobbing through the airport. My sister was here at my parents this weekend and when she left on Sunday, we were all crying and Maddie says to my mom and I "don't worry!" so I am sure she will comfort me tomorrow too.

Here are a few pics of our time together. We went to the zoo, visited my grandparents in Kentucky, my Grandma Jane in Rockport, spent a day at my brother-in-law's family's lake house in Santa Claus, Indiana, and spent a lot of time swimming in my parents' pool. Maddie is a little fish and even jumped off the diving board a few times :)

San Diego

2008-07-08T14:20:00.003-05:00

Last week we went on vacation to San Diego with Eric's family. We had a great time! We went to Sea World and the beach and spent a lot of time on "Papa's boat". Here are a few pictures.

Tornado

2008-06-28T12:16:00.003-05:00

You may have heard about the tornado that hit the Little Sioux area, killing 4 Boy Scouts. Little Sioux is about 60 miles south of us, in between Sioux City and Omaha. This picture is not of the Little Sioux tornado, but is a real picture of another tornado that hit in Iowa...pretty amazing what nature can do.

New employee

2008-06-09T21:22:00.004-05:00

Some of you may know that we have been searching for a middle school pastor since December, when the one we had got married and moved away. Yesterday, our candidate was voted in by the church and accepted the position. His name is Mike Henry and he will be moving here from Lodi, California, along with his wife and dog. I am super excited for him to get here and boss him around - wash my car, get me lunch, etc. :-). Mike will be my first employee that will report to me - lucky him!! The plan is for the Henrys to be here by August 1. But seriously, I am really excited that he is coming and look forward to working with him.

Facebook

2008-06-09T21:20:00.001-05:00

I (Eric) entered the 21st century's social network by joining Facebook. If you are a fellow Facebooker, look me up and, if you're lucky, I might just make you one of my friends :-).

Everyone is Healthy Again!

2008-05-24T13:45:00.002-05:00

Wow it has been a while since we last posted so let me catch you up...let's see on Mother's Day Eric got sick and ended up going to Urgent Care where they put him on a Z-pack for Strep Throat. We figured that by Monday he would be fine. Well Tuesday he was still sick...really sick. So that afternoon I took him to the Emergency Room. They hooked him up to an IV and gave him fluids for dehydration and some pain medicine. After several blood tests they figured out that he had a virus of some kind and there wasn't much to do but wait it out. So we went home and he laid on the couch for the rest of the week. He missed all week of work!! By last Friday he was feeling good enough to play 2 softball games (of course he is miraculously healed in time for the game :).

Then Monday, the 19th was our 6th wedding anniversary. We didn't really have big plans, but were going to go out to dinner and leave the girls with a friend. Well Maddie woke up crying with a fever. She seemed OK for most of the day but then after her nap she was burning up! I took her in and she had a fever of 104.3 and ear infections in both ears! So much for a romantic evening. We laughed and said, "6 years ago would you have ever pictured this to be our life??" So after Maddie got on medicine she went to be early and we put Ella down early too and Eric got Apple Bee's car side pick up for dinner instead!

Maddie was much better the next day and is done with her medicine now. So we are all healthy and feeling good. Unfortunately, my Mother's Day and my anniversary didn't go as I planned...such is life :)

Dummie of the year!!!

2008-05-08T22:26:00.002-05:00

HANDS DOWN, ERIK IS NOW THE OFFICIAL DUMBEST PLAYER IN SURVIVOR HISTORY!!! Even if you haven't been watching this season, you need to watch this episode when it is put on cbs.com tomorrow. It will be episode 13; how ironic for Erik that it is unlucky episode 13. I hope he can earn a million dollars scooping ice cream.

DONE

2008-05-04T18:21:00.002-05:00

Well during nap time today Eric and I worked for 3 hours straight. The swing set is finished and it looks great! The girls have been enjoying the warm weather and their swings. I am sure that this is just that start to a lot of time spent in the backyard!!

Almost Done

2008-05-03T19:30:00.002-05:00

Eric spent a good part of the day working on the swing set again today. The swings are the only part left to attach. The fort, rock wall, and slide are in place and Maddie and Elway were both enjoying it earlier!!

Progress!!

2008-05-02T15:23:00.002-05:00

We are making progress...unfortunately it has been raining all day so we have had to work in the garage but here is where we are now...

Swing Set

2008-04-30T15:47:00.002-05:00

Well we bought Maddie (and Ella) a swing set a few weeks ago...some assembly required :)
The box said that 2 people could put it together in 5-7 hours. Eric and a friend worked all afternoon a few Saturdays ago...but it is still a work in progress. Eric is hoping to get it done this weekend (as long as it doesn't snow again like last weekend). We will keep you posted (ha ha..get it posted :)

Softball

2008-04-27T21:03:00.002-05:00

Softball season is officially here and I am so excited! This year, I hooked up with a city team and will be playing more competitive ball. We played in a tournament yesterday and lost all 3 games. However, it was our fist time playing together and at least we got to play. We were supposed to play on Friday night but got snowed out (at the end of April :-)). I played a little outfield but mostly first base. My ankle is still bothering me from when I sprained it almost 2 months ago. I went to a chiropractor from our church 3 days last week and have an appointment on Wednesday. Hopefully I can be back in the outfield when city league starts in 2 weeks.

Who's Who

2008-04-16T09:41:00.002-05:00

Ok which one is Maddie's baby picture and which is Ella's???

Final 4 Finish

2008-04-13T18:04:00.003-05:00

Unfortunately for me, Eric picked Kansas to win the entire tournament and out of 64 teams they actually won! It came down to the final game for us. I was in the lead by a few points, but both of the teams I picked (UNC and Duke) were out of the final game...So it came down to Kansas. The victory meant that Eric got more points to finish as the winner.
Last Monday when they played he was cheering them on like it was the Broncos in the Super Bowl or something...I told him he was being annoying and then I went to bed.
So now he gets a Saturday morning to sleep in with no interruptions. Man I could almost feel that soft pillow under my head without the sounds of crying and "Mam ma come here" in the background...back to reality :) Hey at least their is always next year...Maybe IU came make is past the first round next year too!

Total Opposites!

2008-04-13T17:58:00.002-05:00

The more that Ella grows, the more different she looks from her sister...one is blond and petite and the other is brunette and chubby :) Ella is well over 14 pounds now and is doing great! She loves to smile and "talk" to us. Maddie likes to make Ella laugh by dancing and acting silly.

Fun Week

2008-03-30T17:17:00.002-05:00

My parents (Gram and Gramps) and my sister Sarah were here this past week to spend some time with us here in Iowa. Dad and Sarah hadn't met Ella yet so it was fun to have them here. We spent lots of time playing with the girls and Dad took Sarah and I shopping one day (I love the GAP!!). It is always sad when they leave but Maddie and Ella and I are excited to be going to see them in Indiana for 2 weeks in July while Eric is on a mission trip in New Mexico. Here are a few pictures of our weekend!

The Fam

2008-03-30T17:12:00.002-05:00

I was noticing that the last picture we have of the whole family on our blog is from Easter last year! So here we are...

Now who's winning!!!

2008-03-27T21:50:00.003-05:00

I just wanted to let everyone know that I am now beating Eric by 2 games!!! Unfortunately I have Duke and UNC in the final game and since Duke lost last weekend I am hoping UNC can pull it out...after all the winner gets a "morning off". Which means that when I win, I will be getting to SLEEP IN on a Saturday morning while Eric deals with the girls!! Wish me luck!!

Bracket busters

2008-03-22T14:09:00.002-05:00

How is your bracket doing? I went 22 for 32 in the first round (yikes!). In the ESPN tourney challenge, I am near 1,600,000th place. However, as poorly as I did, I am still beating Kate by 1! I also did a bracket with the other pastors at church. I'm not sure where I rank there. Hopefully things get better for me.

MEGA-Surge

2008-03-15T21:22:00.002-05:00

Last night we had our city-wide middle school event - MEGA-Surge. We had somewhere around 400 middle school students and 75-100 adults. We had 5 bouncy blow-up games, 2 courts of dodge ball, swimming, pizza and pop. Unfortunately I couldn't do anything but walk around because my stupid ankle is still pretty sore. We brought in Seth Franco, a former Harlem Globetrotter, to perform, share his story and the message of Jesus. We had several students indicate a decision to give their lives to Jesus. We'll be following up with them in the coming days. Overall, it was a great night!!

New boss

2008-03-10T20:42:00.002-05:00

Yesterday our church voted to offer the senior pastor position to Lloyd Grant. Lloyd accepted the offer so that means I have a new boss. He'll be starting some time in May so I have a couple more months to do anything I want :-). Really though, I'm excited for Lloyd to come and am hoping our church will begin a new phase of making a difference in our community.

Madeline Day is 2!!!!

2008-03-05T12:33:00.003-06:00

We can't believe Maddie turned 2 years old yesterday! We had a very special day. Yesterday morning I had MOPS so Maddie got to go and play with all of her friends at church. Then we came home for lunch and she got to open some of her presents and eat chocolate birthday cake and ice cream. After dad got home from work last night we went to Chuck E. Cheese's for pizza and games. Maddie had never been there before and we had a great time! She played "ski ball," rode the rides, and even got a sucker and some stickers with all the tickets she won :) We are going to get her a swingset for the backyard for her birthday when the weather gets a little warmer but she got some other nice gifts too...a few of her favorites include a microphone and keyboard set from Omi and Papa, Playdoh from Gram and Gramps, new boots from Aunt Sarah and Uncle Chris, and VeggieTales DVDs from Grandma Di and Grandpa Dennis. Ella enjoyed her first trip to Chuck E. Cheese's too and can't wait until she is old enough to play with all of her big sister's new stuff too :)

OUCH!

2008-03-03T13:00:00.004-06:00

Thursday night Eric decided to go play basketball at open gym night up at church. Since we moved to Iowa he hasn't really gotten a chance to play sports like he did in Rochester so he thought it would be fun. He left about 7:00pm then at 8:30 or so he called to say that he was on his way home and that he had hurt his ankle. He thought that it was either badly sprained or broken. My first thought, "he is never playing sports again!!! :)" He got home and was in horrible pain and up most of the night on Thursday night...so I was too (of course that was the one night so far that Ella decided to sleep 7 hours straight!). On Friday morning we went in and got it X-rayed and it isn't broken so that is good I guess. In the mean time he is on crutches and has it wrapped. It is still really swollen and painful and he can't walk on it at all!
So we are praying for a speedy recovery and that he can walk on it again soon. At least it is his left foot so he can still drive and he isn't 8 months pregnant like I was when it happened to me...I am definitely having flashbacks to winter camp '06 when I broke my foot!
Maddie's 2nd birthday is tomorrow and we are planning on going to Chuck E. Cheese's for games and pizza. Hopefully "gimpy" can come along with us :) I will keep you posted...

Feb. 26th

2008-02-26T18:20:00.003-06:00

Ok I know that Eric just updated the blog last night, but I got the cutest picture of Ella smiling today...just this week she has really started responding to us talking to her. Being a mom is so much fun!!

Family update

2008-02-25T20:04:00.003-06:00

We've been slacking a bit on our posting so here is a family update:

Ella: Ella is a whopping 10+ pounds. She loves to eat and has gained 3 pounds in her first 6 weeks! At this rate, she'll weigh 8000 lbs. by age 13. She's a bit fussy, usually at night, but other than that, she is a good baby.

Maddie: Maddie will be 2 years old on March 4. It's hard to believe that; she's growing up so fast :-(. She has developed a love for music and loves to dance, no matter what style of music is playing. She is also learning to sing and loves to pretend just about anything is a microphone. She still loves Larry Boy, Mickey Mouse, Handy Manny, and Little Einsteins.

Kate: Kate is back on the treadmill and running again. She can't wait for the weather to warm up so she can run outside. She loves staying at home with the girls. She is part of the MOPS group at church and helps lead a small group of freshmen girls.

Eric: Eric is staying busy at work. The middle school director quit in December so he's been leading high school and middle school since January. He is also leading the search team to hire a new middle school person. In February, Student Ministries held their annual winter retreat, ECHO. There were over 100 students and 30 leaders at the weekend. The church is also looking for a senior pastor. This week we have a candidate coming and Eric has lots of meetings with him. Eric is hoping to get on a softball team this summer.

Doing Great

2008-01-22T16:26:00.000-06:00

Ella has been home over a week now and continues to do great. She had her 1 week check-up yesterday and is back up to her birth weight of 7 lbs. Maddie is loving her little sister, but loving the fact that Gram is here more (at this point Maddie likes Gram more than me :)
Here are a few more pictures...

Coming home

2008-01-14T21:25:00.000-06:00

Kate and Ella came home today. Both continue to do great! Elway will be coming home tomorrow as she's been with her dog friend all weekend. She should be very tired.

ELLA RUTH RAWDON

2008-01-12T20:53:00.000-06:00

Welcome Ella Ruth Rawdon to the world! Ella was born this morning, January 12, 2008, at 11:26am. She weighs 7 pounds even and is 19 1/2 inches long. As you can see, Maddie loves her new little sister. Both mom and baby are doing great!!

In the hospital

2008-01-12T09:54:00.001-06:00

We are in the hospital, waiting to have this baby. We got here last night around 8:30pm. Kate went from 2 to 4 cm in an hour, but didn't change all night. This morning, they started her on pitocin and the doctor just came and broke her water. We'll keep the progress posted as much as we can.

Christmas "vacation"

2007-12-29T10:19:00.001-06:00

I had a few days off after Christmas. Instead of taking it easy, Kate put me to work and we painted the girls' rooms. We also moved Maddie's crib into the baby's room as Maddie got a new crib/toddler bed for Christmas. Maddie's room is the purple one and the baby's is yellow. Who ever thought I would have a purple room in a house I owned??

Christmas 2007

2007-12-29T10:15:00.000-06:00

Here are a few pictures of Maddie on Christmas morning:

Sermon #2

2007-12-18T20:45:00.000-06:00

This past Sunday I gave my second message in "big church" at CBC. If you want to listen to it, click HERE to find it.

Survivor finale

2007-12-17T21:20:00.000-06:00

Congratulations to Todd for winning Survivor China. He was the most deserving of the final three. However, Todd owes Amanda a very nice dinner because she lost the game and gave it to him. Todd was the only person that could beat Amanda with the jury. Amanda had 3 or 4 chances to vote him off but never did. Why she took him to the finals I'll never know.

What a day!

2007-12-06T20:56:00.000-06:00

Last Saturday we got about an inch of snow along with some freezing rain and regular rain. At night, the rain froze, making for some icy conditions. Today, we got an additional 4 or 5 inches of snow, which I love. We live on a hill which isn't too bad because we have a 4-wheel drive vehicle. Unfortunately, we found out today that the 4-wheel drive is not working!

It started when I came home for lunch. I was having trouble getting up one hill so I decided to try another street because the plows had just gone by. I managed to get up that hill (slowly) and got to our street and headed down the hill. When I got to our house, a friend's minivan was blocking our driveway as our friend was stuck (Kate watches her son a couple mornings a week). Because I couldn't get in the driveway, I went down a bit further and parked in the street. Not a big deal since I had 4-wheel drive (or so I thought). After eating lunch, I thought I'll go get the Blazer in the driveway. I went to turn around and the fun began. I got stuck in a neighbor's driveway, where some of the ice was built up. Another neighbor lady came out and helped us push the Blazer into the middle of the street. We began to push the car up the street as Kate steered and spun the wheels on the ice. It was then I noticed that the front wheels weren't spinning. That meant the rear wheels were giving all the power but all the weight is up front. We pushed a little more, mostly in vein. Then the neighbor lady said she had a 4-wheel drive truck. So I went and got that and pulled the Blazer up to our driveway, but we couldn't push it in. Then a guy with a Bobcat came and pushed the Blazer the rest of the way. It only took us about 2 hours to move the Blazer a hundred feet or so.

The one good thing out of the day was that we got to take Maddie out for a quick sled ride. She didn't enjoy it too much because she was cold.

If you were wondering what to get us for Christmas, you can just send money to our "Fix the Blazer" fund. All donations are tax-deductible (ok, not really).

Christmas tree

2007-12-06T20:41:00.000-06:00

Last Friday we went to a Christmas tree farm and cut down our own Christmas tree. We had fun even though it was pretty cold. By the time we were all done, Mom and Maddie were ready to get in the warm car. Here are a few pictures:

The most wonderful time of the year

2007-11-26T21:34:00.000-06:00

Now that Thanksgiving has passed, it is officially the Christmas season. Along with it comes cold weather, hopefully lots of snow, Christmas lights and trees, and all the other goodies. It also means it is time to break out the Christmas music. One of my favorite Christmas CDs is Hanson's Snowed In. If you don't own it, you should go buy it on iTunes or somewhere else; it's very good. And just so everyone is clear on the Christmas music rule, here it is: you may only listen to Christmas music the day after Thanksgiving until Christmas Day. On December 26, sadly, all Christmas music must be put away until the following Black Friday. Make sure you listen to it as much as you can!

Halloween Princess

2007-11-10T09:08:00.001-06:00

Here is Maddie dressed in her princess costume for Halloween. We went to the church's Fall Festival party and she had a great time!

Annual trip to Denver

2007-11-02T21:44:00.000-05:00

We returned from our annual trip to Denver a couple days ago. Here is a recap of our trip:

Saturday: Arrived in Denver and met up with my dad and Diane. After checking into the hotel, we tried to find a place to watch the Rockies in the World Series. We couldn't get into Buffalo Wild Wings so we settled for Old Chicago. Unfortunately, the Rockies lost.

Sunday: Went downtown to the ESPN Zone but couldn't get a seat. We walked to Coors Field and found a place to watch the Sunday afternoon football games. As we left, downtown was filling up with people going to the World Series game. We left downtown and went to Buffalo Wild Wings to watch the game. This time we got in, but unfortunately, the Rockies luck was the same.

Monday: Monday was the real reason we were there. In the morning, we went to the stadium and walked around the Broncos Team Store. In the afternoon, we went bowling where I won 2 out of the 3 games (my dad won the other). We went to the Broncos game and were stunned by the Packers on the first play in overtime. It was a close game, but the wrong team won.

At the game, there were a couple fights, one in the section right next to us. Loyal fans + too much beer = big problems. A couple guys got bloodied up pretty good and another was escorted away by the police.

Tuesday: In the morning, we dropped off Dad and Diane as they headed back to Phoenix. Then we drove down to Colorado Springs and drove to the top of Pikes Peak (that's what the picture is). It's a pretty interesting drive. It takes about an hour each way and the road is steep and narrow in certain places. The temperature at the bottom was around 70 but it was in the low 30s at the top. The higher we got, the more snow we saw. It is a beautiful drive though. That night, we had dinner with our friends, Dustin and Shannon Hanson. It was good to see them.

Wednesday: We got back on the plane and came home. My mom came to watch Maddie while we were gone. They had a lot of fun hanging out.

Are you kidding me?

2007-10-08T20:09:00.001-05:00

I am not a "homer" (a fan who thinks his team never deserves a penalty, that if his team loses, it's the refs fault, and so on); I am a realist, a fan who can see his team as they are, good or bad. Right now, the Broncos stink!! They can't play offense, they can't play defense, they can't even get a kickoff return right. Now this doesn't mean that I am not a fan anymore. I am still the biggest fan and will watch every game. Hopefully I won't be watching a train wreck all year, especially when we go to Denver in a few weeks for the Monday night game against Green Bay. At least one team is winning in Colorado right now (the Rockies).

Preacher boy

2007-10-02T22:38:00.000-05:00

This past Sunday I got to preach in "big church" for the first time at my new church. I preached 6 or 8 times at the church I worked at in Indiana, but hadn't done it since. If you would like to hear what I had to say (or you suffer from insomnia and don't want to get hooked on a sleeping pill), you can find it on our church's website and listen to my message here:

http://cbcsiouxcity.org/Information/sermons.htm

I haven't listened to it as I am scared to hear myself talk. I was given this article that has some similar ideas as my message (I didn't read it until after I preached.) The article is called "Abducted By an Alien Gospel" and you can find it here:

http://www.lifeaction.org/soro/revivingthegospel/content/aliengospel.html

A couple disappointing weeks

2007-10-01T20:48:00.001-05:00

Well, it's been a couple disappointing games in a row for the Broncos. They just can't seem to put a good game together although they did play the Colts this week, who look pretty good. We had tickets to the Jacksonville game, but sold them because we also have tickets to the Monday night game against the Packers. Hopefully the Broncos can get it together by then and pound Favre and the Packers. At least Colorado was able to upset Oklahoma by scoring the last 20 points of the game. It was an exciting game to watch.

Good week of TV

2007-09-22T10:59:00.000-05:00

The week started off with another Broncos victory. Again, Jason Elam won the game with a field goal. This time, however, it was in overtime and after the Raiders missed a field goal that could have won the game. On Thursday night, Survior China started. Too bad "Chicken" got voted off. It would have been good to see anyone nicknamed "Chicken" last a little longer and bring some flavor to the game (because just about everything tastes like chicken). Oh well! It will still be good.

Exciting start to the season

2007-09-10T13:07:00.001-05:00

Yesterday was the first Sunday of the 2007 NFL season. The Broncos opened it up with an exciting game, winning it with no time on the clock. In the words of the announcer: "I don't think they can make it...the hold is down...the kick is up...it's good...holy toledo!!" Hopefully there will be many more victories this season. The defense looked good and so did the offense, but they will need to score touchdowns and quit kicking so many field goals. Here is a picture of Maddie and me as we prepared for the game.

It's a...

2007-09-06T13:56:00.000-05:00

Hey Everyone! Eric and I just found out on Friday that we are expecting another girl!! I am so excited for Maddie to have a sister! Maddie loves playing with her dolls (especially her Cabbage Patch named Eva in the picture) and I know she will make a great big sister. I am due January 21 so they will be almost 2 years apart!

Congrats Sarah and Chris

2007-08-30T21:33:00.000-05:00

Here is a picture of my sister, Sarah and her new husband, Chris. We had a great time at their wedding. As you can see Maddie loves her aunt and uncle very much!!

IT IS FINISHED!!!

2007-08-28T23:25:00.001-05:00

My seminary work is complete!! It's been good, but I am glad it is over. Soon I will get my diploma, a really expensive piece of paper. At least it makes me sound smarter. What will I do with all that extra time this fall - no papers to write, no assigned books to read?

Long overdue update

2007-08-22T21:31:00.000-05:00

Ok, as many of you have pointed out, we've been slacking on the blogging. So here's a synopsis of what we've been up to:

HOUSE: Yes, we are in our house and not living in a van down by the river. We really like it although we have some work to do. For example, we have a great, original 1970s bathroom that is pink, has blue sinks, and some sweet lamps. We'll be changing that soon.

MADDIE: Maddie is just as sweet as ever and learning new things every day. This summer she took swimming lessons with a couple other friends from church. Ok, it wasn't really swimming; it was more like getting used to the water. However, she really loves going down the big kids water slide with mom and dad. The picture of her floating was taken at our Student Ministries Lake Day. Lately, she's really been into dolls, putting them in a stroller and pushing them all around the house.

ROCHESTER: We were in Rochester a couple weeks ago. I (Eric) played in a church softball tournament. Unfortunately, we weren't able to win our 4th championship, but it was fun anyways. We got to see our friends Ryan and Megan's new baby boy!! We also got to see some other friends, but they weren't as small or as cute.

SEMINARY: Almost over! One more paper due on Sunday; such a good feeling.

That's all for now. We'll try to be better at blogging, but no promises :-).

update

2007-06-23T18:53:00.000-05:00

Just wanted to give a quick update to everyone...Eric is in Gulf Port, Mississippi (actually on his way home right now) from the 2nd half of the high school mission trip. He will be back to Sioux City tomorrow night. Maddie and I arrived last night at about 10:30pm from a great time in Indiana. My sister's wedding was great...she looked beautiful!

The great news is that we are closing on our house on Monday...Finally! Thanks for all of your prayers and please keep them coming! We miss you all!

Gulfport mission trip

2007-06-12T17:30:00.000-05:00

This morning at 7am, our high school team left on their mission trip to Gulfport, Mississippi. I am going to Indiana tomorrow to be at Kate's sister's wedding and then I will fly down and meet the team on Monday night. Please pray for the team: pray for safety as they travel today and tomorrow; pray for unity among the group; pray for them as they minister to the people down there. I am looking forward to joining them next week; I'm looking forward to the wedding this weekend as well.

Buffalo Wild Wings

2007-06-12T17:22:00.000-05:00

One of the disappointing things (although not more important than: friends; families and students I worked with; softball, football, volleyball leagues; etc.) about leaving Rochester was that Sioux City had no Buffalo Wild Wings. However, driving around one day, I saw the signs for a new BWW. I was so excited I had to drive by to make sure my eyes were not deceiving me. It opened last Monday, June 4. Since today was Tuesday (wing special day), I decided I had to go, even though I had no one to go to lunch with ;-(. So I went there, ordered my food, and then I saw a family from the church that I know - the Ackermans. I think it was a sign from God that I was supposed to be at BWW today (and every Tuesday from now on). I had my normal 10 medium wings and 5 honey BBQ - so delicious!! If you ever need me during lunch on Tuesday or when the Broncos game is not on local TV, you know where to call!

Vacation!!

2007-06-08T16:32:00.000-05:00

Well we are still not in our house...now living in the basement of some people from the church. They are so nice to take us in, but we are eager to get into a house to make Sioux City feel more like home. We are hopeful to be able to get into our house the last week of June...PLEASE KEEP PRAYING! In the mean time Maddie and I are heading to Indiana in the morning for a 2 week vacation. My sister gets married next Saturday so we will help with last minute details and spend time with family. Eric will join us on Wednesday, but leaves right after the wedding to go to Mississippi for the 2nd half of the high school mission trip. Just thought I would update everyone. That's it for now. We love and miss you all lots...thanks for all of you that helped babysit, bring food, and move us this week! We really appreciate it.

House update

2007-05-23T20:53:00.000-05:00

We were supposed to close on our house last Friday, but some other issues came up and we still have not been able to do that. Please keep praying that this will get worked out soon.

No communication with the outside world!!

2007-05-23T20:42:00.000-05:00

I have now been on the job for a week and a half. Things are going well as I try to learn the ins and outs of the new church; meet students, parents, and others; and learn to survive without cable, internet, or phone. We are staying with a family that has an extra house on their farm land. Unfortunately, the house doesn't have cable or internet. We have cell phones, but we can't get any reception because we are so far out of town. When we drive into town for work or to go somewhere, our phones work and I have internet at work so I can check e-mail and turn in my school assignments. At least the house has hot, running water and we don't have to use an outhouse for the bathroom (for those who like to bash on Iowa, yes, we do have running water)!! Of course, things could be worse if we were missing things like food or other items many people in the world don't have. I guess I shouldn't complain. I also want to thank the Connellys for letting us stay at their house. They have been very kind and we appreciate them opening their home.

Survivor

2007-05-13T22:02:00.000-05:00

I cannot believe that Dreamz backed out of his promise to Yau Man. Thanks to that decision, Earl won the million dollars. Earl was a good player, but Yau Man was by far the best in the game. I think that Yau Man is my favorite Survivor player ever!!

2007-05-09T21:55:00.000-05:00

I can't wait for aunt Sarah's wedding! I love my dress!

Love,
Maddie

Maddie is a Walking Machine

2007-05-09T21:52:00.000-05:00

In all of the selling of our house and buying of the other one we forgot to tell you all that Madeline Day learned how to walk this past weekend! She is very proud of herself and her new independence!

Iowa House

2007-05-09T21:50:00.000-05:00

Hey Everyone just a quick update...
Eric talked to our realtor in Iowa and we are moving forward in the process! It looks like we could close by May 25th which would be great. Thanks for all of your prayers!

SOLD!!

2007-05-08T20:41:00.000-05:00

Our house finally sold!!! Praise God!!!

Don't forget your name!

2007-05-08T20:40:00.000-05:00

Don't forget to put your name on your post! If you don't, we won't know who you are.

CCC Farewell

2007-05-08T20:27:00.000-05:00

Last Sunday, the Student Ministries put on a farewell party for Kate, Maddie, and me. It started off with a slideshow of the past 4 years and then there was a time of sharing. The first part of the sharing was funny stuff. I think my favorite story was Michelle describing how she thought I was a short, fat black man by my voice. (For those who weren't there, she got this impression from talking to me on the phone but not knowing what I look like). Apparently, I also have some anger management and time management issues :-) (the anger tended to be towards my 7th grade guys CORE Group...or so they thought).

The second part of the sharing was the "serious" stuff. It was really AWESOME to hear how Kate and I have made a difference in the lives of students, parents, and leaders. Often times, we don't take the time to tell others how much of a difference they make in our lives. I was reminded that I should do the same.

But it's not just about us! I want to thank all the students, parents, and leaders who have made working at CCC such a joy! As I shared on Sunday, as much as I have had the opportunity to teach others, they have taught me just as much. I am always excited to see students, parents, and leaders put their faith in action.

I also want to thank everyone who came to the farewell and especially those who helped make it happen. I know it takes a lot of time and energy to put on something like that. So we thank you very much!!

Thanks so much and we love you all. We hope you will keep in touch.

Final day of Intensives

2007-05-03T21:31:00.000-05:00

It's hard to believe but tomorrow is my last day of Intensives at Bethel Seminary. This is the sixth time I have spent two weeks of my life in class over the past 3 years. While it has been a long process, it has been a good one. I have learned so much and grown so much as a leader and a follower of Christ. I don't think the whole 3-year experience has completely sunk in yet. I imagine that will happen in the weeks and years following seminary.

The next time I come on campus it will be to go through the graduation ceremony (even though I have one class to finish in the summer). But regardless, I can't wait!!

CORE group

2007-04-22T22:09:00.000-05:00

Thank you!

2007-04-22T21:59:00.000-05:00

Thank you CORE group girls for a fun goodbye party. I love you!
Kate

First post!

2007-04-21T23:10:00.000-05:00

Here is the first post on our new blog. It's late at night so I am really tired and don't have much to say. As I gain more experience blogging, I'm sure I'll come up with better stuff. I just wanted to get something posted. Leave us a comment and come back later.