Christmas is Coming!

It's a busy but wonderful time of year, with  many Christmas activities and projects going on!   Here's a brief snapshot of what we've been up to these past two weeks:

After decorating our house for Christmas, we had our church small group over for the dessert portion of the annual progressive dinner.  I decided to give this delicious chocolate pound cake some holiday cheer by adding "holly cookies" around the edge.

Later that weekend, our middle school youth group was here for a little Christmas party.  We played a few games and they really got into Christmas Charades!

Last Monday was a big day at the middle school; we took 120 students to Wal-mart to shop for our Christmas Basket program (are we crazy, or just very optimistic??)  Back at school, the students wrapped gifts and packed up the baskets.  The whole day actually went very well and it was cool to see the middle school students in a spirit of giving!

 

Yesterday our house turned into a Peanut Butter Ball factory.  Turns out the recipe made *way* more peanut butter balls than I anticipated!  Four hours later (and with a lot of help from Jonathan!) we could finally enjoy the finished product.

 This afternoon we enjoyed a beautiful concert from the Rehoboth choir!  Jonathan accompanied some of the songs with his violin.  This was a great way to start the busy last week of the semester with an hour of peace and worship.

Next weekend we will travel to the East Coast for the holidays!  Until then--enjoy a wonderful Christmas season!

Giving Thanks

After a busy week, it's finally time to catch up on my blog!  We had a wonderful Thanksgiving with Jonathan's parents, his sister Hannah, and my friend Genavee.  On the day before Thanksgiving we took a short hike back to First Canyon--other than the very sticky mud along the way, it was a great walk!

Hannah arrived on the train Thursday morning and we all went to church together.  Then, back at home, we finished cooking our Thanksgiving feast and shared it with our neighbor, Mr. Fred.

Once the meal was cleaned up, we drove to Santa Fe for the weekend!  Our beautiful Hilton hotel was within walking distance of the historic plaza, so on Friday morning we set out to see the sights: Loretto Chapel with its "miraculous staircase", San Miguel church (the oldest church in America!), the Georgia O'Keefe museum, and lots of interesting shops along the way!

Hotel lobby

Our own artistic attempts, inspired by Georgia O'Keefe  :)

That evening we saw Frozen, the amazing new Disney movie, then ate some delicious New Mexican food at Tomasitas restaurant.

The next day we walked around the Farmer's Market and went to the New Mexico History Museum.  Look at those authentic cowgirls!

Sadly, it was time to drive back to Albuquerque for Genavee to catch her flight.  The rest of us went to the mall and I did some maternity clothes shopping before reluctantly saying goodbye and making the late-night drive back to Gallup.

It was a wonderful Thanksgiving--we have very much to be thankful for!

Snowy Weekend at the Grand Canyon

My friend Genavee Brown is here to visit for Thanksgiving and was able to come a weekend early, so we took off on Saturday and spent one night at the Grand Canyon.

The snowy weather made traveling (and canyon viewing!) difficult at times, but when the clouds occasionally lifted from the canyon, the sights were truly spectacular!

We began our trip with a snowy walk along the rim trail, catching occasional views of the canyon through the fog:

Canyon?  What Canyon?

Oh, there it is!

Winter Wonderland

Stumpy the Octopus

After checking into the Bright Angel Lodge, we walked down to the Mule Barn to say hello to the mules; we also caught sight of the cutest baby deer ever!  Then we walked along the Rim Trail again out to Maricopa Point to get a few sunset shots.

After a good dinner, a French movie, and a restful night's sleep, we caught the Hiker's Express shuttle to the South Kaibab Trailhead and made it down a little past Cedar Ridge on the snowy trail!

 

It was fun to see the Grand Canyon in the snow, and we are thankful for a safe trip through the winter weather!

We're Expecting!

We are excited and thankful to be expecting "Baby Newman", due to arrive on June 1, 2014!  Pregnancy has been an amazing but anxious experience so far, and in this (long overdue) blog post, I wanted to share some of my thoughts about the first trimester.

In  late September I took a home pregnancy test and felt the first wild excitement and joy of expecting a child!  That evening, I shared the news with Jonathan, who was equally excited and a also surprised!

The Big Annoucement

The funny thing was, as soon as we embraced the joy of pregnancy, I began to feel the anxiety of pregnancy as well.  Even though the baby growing inside of me was no bigger than a poppy seed, I was already completely in love with him/her--and terrified that I might lose him/her.  I began to fear that any symptom might be a sign of miscarriage.

And then, less than a week after we found out the news, I had an episode of spotting and then began to feel stomach cramps.  As the cramps continued through the next day, we began to panic.  I called our obstetrician's office, and the nurse told me the truth: if this is a miscarriage, there's nothing you can do but wait and see--and, I will add, pray.  We did a lot of praying that week...and I learned my first lesson about having children: there is so much that is out of my control!  And I know that this will only become more true when the baby arrives and we set out on the adventure of parenting...My faith and trust in God will need to grow each day to meet new fears and challenges.

There is a Bible verse that has come to my mind often over the past weeks, and has brought me a lot of comfort:

"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."   Psalm 139:13-14

The process of birth is truly a miracle, and I can neither understand nor control what is happening inside my body right now.  But God already knows and loves Baby, and He has perfect wisdom and control in this little life!

Mrs. Snuggles is excited to be a big sister!

We were so thankful to see Baby's tiny heartbeat on our first ultrasound, and to hear the heartbeat again on the Doppler at 10 weeks.  Now I am at 13 weeks, still having some "evening sickness" and just starting to notice a tiny "baby bump" as my pants get tighter.  We thank you for your support, prayers, and shared excitement as this adventure continues!   :)

A Visit from Mom and Dad Nic!

It has been a while since my last post, mostly because we have been preparing for (and now enjoying!) a visit from my parents!  They arrived here last Monday and jumped right into life in Rehoboth, even spending their vacation time volunteering throughout the school.  Last week they helped as Book Fair salesmen during our Parent-Teacher Conferences.  I am blessed to have parents who are so selfless with their time and energy!

But we have had lots of time for fun as well!  We celebrated Mom's birthday on Wednesday with a Lemon Meringue Pie:

Also, in honor of Mom's birthday (and a long weekend), we arranged a hiking trip in Flagstaff, followed by a night at La Posada in Winslow, AZ.  The hiking was beautiful!  First, we explored the cliff dwellings at Walnut Creek Canyon...

...then we hiked through the aspens--a few of them still in their fall splendor--on the Kachina Trail that winds around the side of the San Francisco Peaks.

After dinner in Flagstaff, we drove to Winslow and checked into La Posada, a historic Harvey House hotel designed by the famous architect Mary Colter.  It was closed by the Santa Fe railroad in 1958, but was recently purchased and restored by a visionary couple from California.

Our Room

The Front Entrance

 Now it has regained much of its former glory, from a nationally renowned restaurant and extensive gardens to unique, southwest-inspired decorations in each guest room.  It was a very special experience to stay in this lovely and historic hotel!

Breakfast in the Turquoise Room

The Corn Maiden's Delight: Polenta topped with eggs, cheese, fire-roasted tomatoes, and fresh corn salsa!

The Gardens

The old ballroom of the hotel is now a library/game room

Unfortunately, we have to say "goodbye" to my parents on Wednesday morning--it will be a sad day for all of us--but we are so thankful for this time together!