Crocheted craft

Thank you for my gorgeous hand-made beanie, Jael!!!!

Husband pleaser

I've been making this bread for about a month or so now. I got the recipe from a link on a friend's blog. The article is titled 5 minutes a day for fresh baked bread. You have got to try it. The article may seem long but the recipe is so simple once you've read the background info. It really does take only 5 minutes of your time once the dough is made (which itself only takes 5 minutes of your time).

The first time I made this, when Nate got home he literally said. "Where did that come? Did you make it? Really? Wow! You're amazing! I love you!" The praise only got better after he tasted it. The bread only gets better the more you make it too! Thanks for the recipe, Laura!

Baby Blanket

A dear friend from church, Teresa, made Lilah this blanket. She chose the colour - lilac - before she knew what Lilah's name means - "Lilac tree". That's pretty cool! It is adorable. The back side has a beautiful layer of flannel that is so soft. I admit that I've been using the blanket for myself while reading in the cold mornings/nights.

Eliana loves it. She couldn't wait to model it for us.

I think Lilah is ok with it, too :)

Eliana's 2nd B'day

We had another BBQ at Cherokee park this year for Eliana's birthday. It was a clear, cold and beautiful day.

Nate was an absolute champion, doing all of the shopping and handling 3 bbq's on his own - to perfection. There's no man like Nate!

Once again I made a pumpkin cheesecake in celebration of Autumn. It's a hit if you'd like the recipe!

Though there was plenty of food and friends to enjoy, Eliana's favourite part was sneaking off to play in the park. Thank you to all the sweet ladies that took care of her!

My favourite part was when Joanna and Buni pulled out their fiddles to play songs for Eliana. It was such a treat. What a blessing musically gifted friends are!

The 'bag bag'

I'm a big fan of 'bag bags', and Nate had requested one a few times, so I finally found on line (@ the Martha Stewart site) how to whip up a quick bag bag. I used a tea towel, some scrap material, and elastic.

A birth story (2)

Birth stories aren't for everyone, but if you do enjoy reading them here is a link to Lilah's birth story on the girls' blog (or you can click on their link in the top right corner).

Four Years

Five days after Lilah was born, Nate and I celebrated our fourth year anniversary (hence the lateness of this post). Of course, we went out for a big breakfast and enjoyed Dubbo's best 'flat white' (coffee) at the Grape Vine Cafe.

Each year Nate and I choose a word to summarise the last year of marriage. Year one was "revealing", year two was "adventure", and year three was "abundant". Year four we both agreed on the word "growth". To decide on the word, Nate and I will separately come up with three words on our own that we think describe the year. We then reveal our words to each other and discuss which one summarises the year the best. It's funny, but each year, our deciding word has been on each of our three worded list!

This year, growth was on top because of the many ways we had seen growth. Our family grew from three members to four, our marriage had grown stronger through the grace of the Lord Jesus, and by the mercy of God, each of us had grown in our relationship with the Lord, which hugely impacts our marriage.

Just before our anniversary, Nate had read John Piper's book, This Momentary Marriage (note: meaning 'momentary' in the light of eternity). He liked it so much, that I think he has already given away 4 or 5 copies. Personally speaking, I didn't think it was possible for Nate to be a better husband. However, and profoundly, I did see him grow even more sacrificial and selfless after reading the book, especially during the hard time of serving a post-labour mum, a new born baby, and a 20 month old daughter.

We are taking a marriage class together at the Seminary this semester. One thing that our veteran professor, Dr. Cutrer and his wife, Jane, taught us and that stood out to me straight away is that though we love each other intensely, we are still such infants in knowing how to love each other. It excites me to know that God still has so much to teach us and that our marriage still has so much to grow! I pray that through journeying along the highs and lows that marriage (and life) will bring us, the Lord will continue to keep us and grow us nearer to Him and each other all our days.