Ringing in the New Year

New Year's Eve we gathered with Josh's family at Chad and Tennille's for pizza, fellowship and games!

Mandy prepared some Minute to Win it games for us to compete as families.  My girls chose the team name "Frozen". Go figure:)

Listening to instructions

 

They were so much fun!

We got the kiddos settled down watching movies and the adults started a Guys vs. Girls Jeopardy style Bible Trivia.  The girls were victorious after two final jeopardy rounds because we were still tied after the first one!

Then, Papa told some stories and we celebrated New Year's with the east coast at 11:00pm before cleaning up and heading home.

Sweet time with our family.

Our 2013 blog book will be a difficult one to look back on.  9 months of anticipation and excitement as we prepared to welcome our newest addition.  So many of my memories last year were centered around sweet Sadie.  Watching me grow, feeling her move, preparing her nursery, and talking to the girls about their sister.  It's hard to look back and see the excitement knowing the end result.  We could not have prepared ourselves for the life-changing turn of events we experienced in October.  Never occurred to us that we might not bring her home.  Missing her greatly, but continuing to walk this road with the strength and peace He provides.  We sang "Blessed be Your Name" this morning in church and I just cried thinking about the meaning of those words and the pictures that immediately came to my mind.  "When the suns shining down on me and the worlds all as it should be, blessed be Your Name," reminds of that Friday afternoon at the park, watching the girls play and excited about contractions that indicated we were getting close to meeting our baby girl.  Then, "On the road marked with suffering, though there's pain in the offering", took me back to that same day lying in a hospital bed, just hours after leaving the park, realizing we had lost her.  Blessed be Your name.

Praying the Lord continues to reveal Himself this year as we walk through more "firsts" without Sadie.  Thankful to each of you who are walking this path with us and supporting us along the way.

Happy New Year!