Our Weekend with Logan: Part Two

Our weekend with Logan came and went in a flash! I planned to post updates each day, but unsurprisingly, I could not find the time! That little man was so much fun to have around. He baby-talked, sang, and giggled all the time. He slept through each night, he took long naps, and he ate each meal and snack without too much mess. We did change a LOT of diapers, but that's to be expected. Little price to pay when you get the best hugs a kid could give, because seriously, Logan gives amazing hugs!

James, Logan and I spent all of Saturday at the house, but we had somewhat of a busy Sunday. We took Logan to church that morning, a restaurant for lunch, home for a nap, Wal-mart and church again that evening. We had a finger food fellowship after Sunday evening worship. Everyone at church loved Logan. He captured their hearts in no time at all. No surprise there. He's just so sweet!

After church on Sunday night, we drove to Paris and spent the night with James's parents. On Memorial Day, we hung out around their house most the day. Tina and Oliver came over to pick Logan up and to hang out for a bit.

Later that afternoon, James's mom took me shopping (Whoo-hoo!), and we brought James and David dinner from Dairy Delight. I got an ice cream cone. Big mistake. We were riding in Tammy's Jeep Wrangler with no doors, windows or top. The sun beaming down and the wind blowing all around were not a good combination with that ice cream cone. It was melting down my hand before we were out of the parking lot. I ate that thing so fast. I used napkin after napkin trying to stay as clean as possible. Needless to say, I was a bit of a mess, but we laughed about it the whole time. Next time, I think I'll get a shake!

That just about sums up our baby-filled, three-day weekend. As much as I enjoyed having Logan around, it was really nice coming home to a baby-free house. I felt a sense of freedom when we were able to do what we wanted last night without having to care for a little one. That may sound selfish, but we're going to enjoy our time alone as much as we can. Someday we'll have kids, but for now, we'll just borrow our nieces and nephews when we need a baby fix!

Our Weekend with Logan: Part One

James's sister Tina and her family came to visit us in our new house for the first time last night. I cooked dinner for them, and we watched a movie. Well, when I say "watched", I mean James and our brother-in-law Matt watched it. Tina and I played with their sweet little boys, Oliver (2 y.o.) and Logan (1 y.o.).

Matt and Tina didn't come all the way to see us just for a Friday night visit. They came to let Logan stay with us for the weekend. This is Logan's first time to spend the night at someone's house. I, for one, am amazed that Tina was willing to let us keep him all weekend like this. We had no idea what he would be like. I kept imagining him crying the whole time wanting his mom. Much to our surprise, he has been an angel!

Matt, Tina, and Oliver left our house last night around 10pm. Around that same time, James was putting Logan down to sleep. He fussed for a few minutes, but overall he went to sleep rather quickly. Neither James nor I slept very well. We kept wondering if he was breathing. That, to me, is by far the most frightening thought with this experience. We can protect him as much as possible, but what happens if he suddenly stops breathing while he's asleep? As unlikely as that is at his age, James and I still struggled with it. I prayed myself back to sleep several times in the night. I prayed God would keep him safe, and thankfully, He did!

Logan woke around 7:30am. I changed his diaper and we went into the kitchen for some breakfast. He ate a small bowl of Cheerios and yogurt. While he was eating, James went to Wal-mart to get whole milk for Logan. We forgot to get it on Friday. When James returned, Logan was just about finished with breakfast and ready for his milk. Perfect timing!

Next, James and I got Logan ready for a bath. He didn't really like it as much as I would have expected, but it wasn't a terrible experience. I dressed him for the day and then we played for a while. He has been so good! He has baby-talked and sang to himself all morning. It's been very pleasant.

Within an hour or so, I could tell Logan was getting sleepy. We poured him some more milk, and I rocked him while he drank it. Just as I suspected, he fell asleep within minutes. He slept for nearly two hours. While he was sleeping, I showered, got ready for the day, wrote this blog post, ate lunch and watched the season finale of "Flash Forward" with James. Now for some super sweet pictures!

 

In 10 days...

Peru!

James's parents, his cousin Mary Ann, his cousin Josh, he and I will be leaving on a jet plane very soon! James's mom is already packed and ready to go. I, on the other hand, will wait until next week to pack. My suitcase is not even accessible to me right now. It's in storage in James's parents' basement. We're going to keep our nephew Logan this weekend, and when we take him back to his mom, we're going to get my luggage. I don't think it's really hit me that we're leaving the country in only 10 days! It seems like yesterday that we were in Thailand. I love traveling, and I'm so excited that we have this opportunity!

Buying Our First Sofa

James and I have wanted to get a sectional sofa for our new living room ever since we first saw the house. We looked in a few furniture stores, but we had not seen anything that interested us.

Last week while browsing "Swap Shop" emails at work, I noticed a post where someone was selling a "Chocolate Brown Leather Sectional Sofa" that was only two years old. This is the photo that the seller posted with the description:

I immediately forwarded the email to James. He liked it too, but he felt the price was a little high. Then yesterday, the woman posted the email again. That meant the sofa had not been sold yet. I again sent the email to James who this time decided I should go check it out. I drove to a nearby town where a single, non-smoking, non-pet-owner welcomed me into her lovely home. The couch is even more beautiful in person. It is in almost perfect condition. There is a small spot where the movers had nicked the back of the couch on the brick steps, and it's because of that nick that the seller went down in price by $300 right then and there. You seriously can barely even see the nick. When she offered me the lowered price, I jumped at the opportunity and wrote her a check. James will be home from drill at the end of the week, so over the weekend he will pick up our new sectional sofa and move it into our living room!

Conviction, Confession, Freedom

A guest speaker delivered the message in Sunday school this morning. He covered a lot of material, but the message that stood out to me was this: Prepare yourself in private time with God so that when you're in public, you'll be ready for the opportunities God presents to you. Preparing myself for opportunities. This is something I have neglected recently. I have been reading God's Word, but I have neglected to open my heart to learn what He has for me and to know Him more. Because of this, I have missed opportunities. I felt convicted and ashamed this morning. The Sunday school lesson reminded me that reading the Bible is not enough. Spending quality time with God is absolutely necessary. It is during that time that we grow closer to God and that we become more like Him. I have not been acting like Him lately, and I sure do regret it.

God also spoke to my heart during our new pastor's message. Kylan preached on 1 John 1:8-2:2 and the message was entitled "When Christian's Sin". It was like God prepared Kylan to speak to me directly. 

"If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us. My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world." -1 John 1:8-2:2

Kylan covered the following questions:

1. Do Christians sin?

The answer: In 1 John 1:8, John states, "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us." In short, yes. Christians sin.

2. Should Christians sin?

The answer: In Romans 6:1-2, Paul states, "What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?" In short, no. Christians should not continue to live in a sinful lifestyle.

3. What happens when Christians sins?

The answer: In 1 John 2:1b, John states, "And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous." Inevitably, we will sin, but we are not hopeless. Jesus defends us and pleads on our behalf. He took the sin on Himself when He died on the cross so that we may have a right relationship with God.

4. What should Christians do when they sin?

The answer: In John 1: 9, John states, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." We are not automatically able to enter into a right relationship with God just because we are Christians. We must confess our sins before our advocate, Jesus. Then He will make us clean.

Something else Kylan said this morning was that we should not condone sin. The word "condone" means to disregard,  overlook or excuse. Lately, I have been somewhat desensitized to sin and am guilty of condoning it as well as taking part in it. Thankfully though, by confessing my sin before my advocate, Jesus, I no longer have to carry the guilt and shame. I am made clean before God so that I may be at peace and experience joy in His presence. 

Thank you, Jesus, for saving me from myself and my sin. Please help me to become more like you so that when others see me, they see you...not the sinful, selfish person that I am. You have put me on this earth for your glory. Help me to glorify you in all my thoughts, words and actions. Amen.

New Home Photo Update

In 25 days...

We're going to Peru!

Our First Half Marathon

We did it! We actually ran 13.1 miles last Saturday. My best friend Becca, her Aunt Kim, Kim's friend Sky, and I had one of the best weekends ever.

I had posted a blog where I had thanked everyone who helped me achieve this amazing experience, but then Blogger went down for a few days and the post was deleted. Instead of trying to remember everything I wrote, I'll just re-post the pics instead.