More Christmas 2008!

We were so sad that we couuldn't go to be with all of Rebecca's family this Christmas. But we were very thankful to be able to be together with Jose's family to celebrate. Here's Nevaeh hanging out with Grandpa on Christmas evening.
Oh, so pretty. ;)

Vea with her peek-a-boo doll that Santa brought her.

Jesus is the reason for the season! But for Nico, sugar cookies were a GREAT substitution for a Birthday cake for Jesus! He had so much fun making them. Every one had to be LOADED with sprinkles. Believe it or not, I have actually never made sugar cookies. So at the last minute, when we found out we couldn't go to Oregon, I went out and bought the ingredients, cookie cutters, and a rolling pin (yes, I didn't even own a rolling pin!). And I'm glad I did... made it feel a little more like Christmas around here! And Nico made sure we all knew how much he LOVED sugar cookies! ;)

Christmas 2008!

Things didn't go exactly as planned this Christmas. We were planning to head down to Oregon, to spend Christmas with my family at my parent's house. But the incredible amount of snow in Seattle and Portland prevented us from being able to go. So we made the best of it, and played in the snow! We were thankful to be able to be with Jose's family.
Nevaeh loved the snow for about 8 minutes, and then she'd had enough. ;) Nico and Daddo played outside a lot, and rode around on snowmobiles - since that was about the only way to get around our property without getting stuck!

This picture by the pool was taken a couple days before Christmas. By Christmas day, we actually had several more inches of snow!

The kids in front of our Christmas tree.

Nevaeh's Latest

Nevaeh is learning to walk, and she is SO proud of herself!! ;)
End of November, we finally officially dedicated Nevaeh to the Lord. Here she is before going to the service, wearing an heirloom dress that her Nana wore when she was dedicated as a baby.

Why is it that the favorite toys are pots & pans & tupperware?? Nevaeh at the cabin (above) making her usual mess, and below at home - so proud that she could actually climb into the drawer.

Halloween!

Me and my sweet kids.
Nico & Vea

Mom was here for the holiday.

Nico's friend, Trae, was Bob the Tomato, and Nico was Larry the Cucumber.

Fall Things...

We went to a pumpkin patch on a field trip with Nico's preschool class.
Our son... always hammin' it up! ;)


Bath time at the cabin... making beards out of bubbles is always fun!

GREAT NEWS! - Nevaeh had a swallow study last week that showed that she is no longer asperating! That means that we no longer have to worry about giving her thin liquids. Now we just need to teach her how to eat - or enjoy eating - enough to replace the formula she gets through her tube. We are not close to being rid of the tube, but this is a major step! Thank you all so much for your prayers!

Summer Stuff

Hanging out in our pool with friends.
Going for a bike ride.
Nevaeh is almost 15 months! She is crawling all over the place, and started pulling herself up on furniture while we were in Nicaragua. She is even climbing up a few stairs at a time. We have to really watch her now! Her new thing is to get into the roll of toilet paper in the bathroom & eat it! We have also caught her with dog food in her mouth a couple of times! Ick! Her favorite thing to say right now is "Uh-Oh." So cute. ;)

Hanson family and Mom came to visit!

After Nicaragua, we drove to Oregon to pick up our kids from Nana & Papa's house. A couple days later, Rachel and her boys and Mom came to our house for a visit. Justin came too, but I didn't get any pictures of him (sorry Justin!). Above: Nevaeh with her cousins, Torin (taking a picture of me), Levi, and Zach.
The boys loved our pool! Here they all are with Rachel.
Vea getting kisses from Nico. ;)
Nana with Vea.

We went to Nicaragua - August 1st-8th

Jose and I went to Managua, Nicaragua for a mission trip with our church and our company, Rijo Athletics Baseball. We were there supporting Impacto Bible Church in Managua. The purpose was to reach kids for Jesus through baseball in the city, and through Vacation Bible School in the poorest villages in the country - Los Marqueces. It was an amazing experience! God worked in our lives as well as those we came in contact with. We plan on having an ongoing relationship with Nicaragua and Impacto, and will definitely continue to go back!
What precious children! Above at Los Marqueces, and below at a baseball clinic in Managua.

A ciy street.
A home in the Jungle.

Baseball clinics for the children and for the university kids

Here is James, Jose, and Troy (Rijo Athletics staff) being mobbed by the little baseball players. They were like celebrities here! They signed so many autographs! In a country that is predominately Catholic, baseball was the perfect way to break the ice and share the gospel. We were all accompanied by interpreters from Impacto Bible Church, who we were there to support.
For doing the baseball clinics to the little ones, Jose was given a framed certifcate of thanks, and a copy of a newspaper article about us. We made the Managuan news!
Jose teaching baseball to university players.

Vacation Bible School for the children in Los Marqueces

At Impacto - Our good friends, Troy & Denay went on the trip with us.

The ladies and non-baseball guys of our team went to the villages of Los Marqueces for most of the week. We did a Vacation Bible School for the children, held in a school that World Vision had built there. I sure fell in love with these kids! I was in charge of crafts. Above the kids have on their crowns they made, symbolizing that Christ is our King.
The last day we were there, the whole team went. Here is Jose showing some kids the pictures of themselves. They all wanted their pictures taken, so that they could see what they looked like. ;)
This was my little helper, Maria. She followed me around all week. This was a frog craft we made when we talked about God's creation.

Nevaeh Surgery Update

It's been 3 1/2 weeks since surgery & Nevaeh is doing great! We had her post-op appointment yesterday, and the surgeon said everything has healed well.

She has been eating her baby food better than ever, which is great! I think it is a lot more comfortable for her now that the food doesn't come out of her nose!

And she has been making big strides in her physical development as well. Last week at the cabin, she learned to go from all fours to a sitting position. The physical therapist came out today and said it will not be long until she is crawling! Yay! She will be so happy to be able to follow us around! Thank you all for your prayers!


After Mom & Dad left the cabin, the weather got beautiful. This day, we decided to take a ride on Jose's new toy - the "Ranger." We had packed a lunch & had planned to drive up a snowmobile trail to a scenic spot for lunch. But we ran into a bear cub right in the middle of the trail! It was pretty cool, but we decided not to stick around to see if Mama bear was nearby!


Throwing rocks in the river.

"Oh, Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!" Psalm 8:1

The Beautiful North Cascades

What an awesome Creator God we serve!

Mom & Dad came to visit us at our cabin

We had a great visit with my Mom & Dad. It was unseasonably cold while they were here. But we still went out & used our fire pit Jose made. And Dad & Jose went fishing. Nevaeh got out of her arm restraints just in time for the trip & was so happy to have freedom!

Off of our deck... It was warm enough for water guns!

Nevaeh Surgery Update

Nevaeh's surgery went well. Here you can see her new "Mic-key" feeding button, which replaced her G-tube. The string coming out of her mouth was stiched to her tongue & taped to her cheek. This was just a precaution, in case she had trouble breathing & her tongue was blocking her airway, the nurses could grab the string & keep her tongue forward. That was only in overnight. Her lips are all swollen from the device that held her mouth open during surgery. We had a long night, but by the time we came home, she was having moments where she wanted to sit up & reach for things to play with. Of course her arm restraints prevent much play. She will have to wear those for two weeks.

Today, the bleeding has significantly slowed down, but she still has some coming from her mouth & ears and is becoming more irritable.

Our biggest prayer request is that she will be able to eat without throwing up. She isn't keeping her feedings down. And the surgeon is really concerned that her acid reflux will desolve the stiches before they are ready to come out. So please pray that she will stop throwing up. Thanks so much for your prayers!