2014: The Last Quarter

October, November, & December went by so quickly. More quickly than I even had planned. We just wanted to give a little update on our lives these last three months.

October: We started the month apart - with Chandler & Kristen in South Africa & Trey headed to the US to start vacation. The girls then made a 16 hour flight {that is 16 hours… in the air… on the same plane… with a toddler!} to meet with Trey for vacation. We had a great time with family & friends - splitting our time between Pensacola & Panama City. We were even able to get in a FSU game while we were there.

November: We returned back to Benin to the end of rainy season and the beginning of dry & hot season. Thankfully we had a few more rains before it completely stopped. Our friend Anthony joined us for a few weeks in November. We, along with our supervisors and another colleague from West Africa, hosted an evangelism training for Baptist churches in 3 different cities. We traveled the furthest north we've ever traveled in Benin to Parakou. We ended the month with 2 Thanksgiving celebrations - first, at the US Ambassador's house and second, at our supervisor's house.

December: Based on our schedule, we thought this would be a slower month… at least until Christmas. Boy, were we wrong. The first two weeks we were just doing language. But then Trey got sick. He was sick enough for our IMB nurses & doctor to put him on the next flight out to get medical care in a better place. Kristen & Chandler went to spend time with Little Man and our friends in Sakété while Trey spent a week in Kenya getting all sorts of labs & tests done. He arrived back in Benin just 2 days before Christmas. We were thankful for a quick diagnosis! But it did change our Christmas plans a bit. We had planned to travel to Ghana & spend Christmas with colleagues there. Trey didn't get back in time for us to apply for the Ghana visas, so we changed our plans & spent Christmas in Sakété. We missed our friends in Ghana, but we couldn't have asked for a better Christmas. More to come about this in our next post! Trey then celebrated his 27th birthday at the beach! And we wrapped up 2014 with the loudest firecrackers we've ever heard {setting off firecrackers in-between a concrete wall & concrete house will do that}.

Here's to 2015 - a year that holds lots of anticipation, excitement, uncertainty, and faith.

Happy Mother's Day!

Today we celebrate mother's. This year I am one of those celebrated :) I love being a mom. I mean, there is still a lot to learn and a lot of experiences to go, but I am loving it. This is my second Mother's Day without my mom here. There is a lot that has happened since she has gone Home. On a daily basis I miss her. I want Chandler to know her through me.

The day after we had Chandler I talked Trey through changing a diaper (so that I could stay in my hospital bed!) and showed him how to swaddle. He later asked me how I knew how to do all that stuff. I was never a big fan of kids and I especially was not a fan of babies. I mean, they're cute, but I wasn't the person to hold and play with them for hours. When he asked me that I thought back to a time I remember my mom teaching me how to swaddle my baby doll. So much of what I know about being a mother I learned from her. The Lord is good to bring those lesson's back to mind with I'm in need of it. My mom is not here for me to call her and ask about things, but she instilled so many things in my life that I will never forget.


The Lord has also blessed me with other incredible "mothers" who have stepped up in my mom's absence. From a great mother-in-law, grandmother-in-law, & aunts, to friends who had children before me to other missionaries overseas with us to some of my best friend's moms. These women have helped to answer the practical questions about how to get Chandler to take a bottle or how to give her a bath or when to move her up in diaper sizes. I would be lost without these women.

I'm so thankful to be Chandler's mommy! I'm so thankful for my mom and the opportunity to keep her alive in my child's eyes. This morning at church we sang one of my favorite songs, Revelation Song. Allen and Ashley sang this song years ago at church and it just touched my heart. Ever since it's been a big part of my life, I guess you could say. They sang it again at our wedding and it was also sang at my mom's funeral. I thought it was more than perfect to worship in song with that this morning as I remembered my mother.

newborn photos

I LOVE pictures. Like seriously, just love having a photo to remember things by. And well, now I have a child that I don't want to forget a moment with. On my own I'm taking tons of pictures. In fact, if you follow me on instagram you'll noticing I'm posting at least 1 picture a day. I have this dream of having 365 pictures to put in her baby book :) We are blessed to know personally a few great photographers. Both our families wanted newborn pictures & family pictures while we're home. Here's a look at our newborn pictures. And if you're in Pensacola, check out Amick for your pictures... in Panama City, give Carrie a call with SWAK Photography. Both are wonderful people and excellent photographers!

Photos below by Amick with Amick Cutler Photography

Photos below by Carrie with SWAK Photography