Rosemary's First Trip

During the first 2 weeks of her life, Rosemary was able to meet all 6 of her grandparents, 1 set of great-grandparents, and her aunt. Pretty impressive!

 

The only downfall of having a newborn in the winter is that finding good things to do with the family during the cold winter days is hard. With a summer baby you can go to a park and just sit there and nurse on a bench and let the older kids play, but not with a winter baby. Everyone we know has been sick, so in an effort to stay well, we've been staying at home quite often. Needless to say, Mama was getting quite stir crazy.

 

Annabelle wasn't feeling well on Saturday, but woke up on Sunday feeling fine, so we decided to get out of the house for a few days and head up to MD to celebrate Christmas with family. But, by the time we got there Samuel wasn't feeling well and Annabelle started not feeling great again. Then the next day Andy and I felt bad. Then we passed it on to Andy's parents!

 

Even though Rosemary's umbilical cord fell off on day 5, we hadn't given her her first real bath until we were there. She was cold and not happy for most of the experience. She's still super cute when she's screaming, though.

 



 

We were there for New Year's Eve so we had a little party with the kids.

 



My goodness, what a full and exciting 2012 we had!

A Walk Across the Sun

Our friend, Corban, just had his first book published. A Walk Across the Sun, a novel about human trafficking was just recently released. We were able to go to a book signing downtown where John Grisham gave the opening remarks. I cannot begin to tell you what an incredibly gifted man Corban is. His passion for justice is beautiful and it's been amazing to see what God has done through him and his family. Their willingness to say "yes" to the unknown and trust Him has been such an encouragement to Andy and me. God is using them in great ways.

I am not an avid reader. But, I read A Walk Across the Sun in less than 3 days. I literally could not put the book down. The topic is not an easy one to stomach and frankly I wasn't sure I was ready for the weight of what I was about to bear. Andy and I have been slowly educating ourselves in human trafficking for about the last 3 years, but nothing gripped me, educated me and inspired me to action like this book. The world needs to hear what Corban has to say. We are praying that this is just the first of many books for him.

Go out and buy this book!

The Funny Side of Parenting

The Nation Center for Biblical Parenting is an excellent resource for Christian parents who want to thrive at raising their children. We actually just went to a conference a few weeks back that was so helpful. I am so thankful that there are such good resources out there to assist us in parenting.

They send out about 2 emails a week on various tips revolving around raising kids. This is the email I got today. Too cute to not post.

The Funny Side of Parenting

Parenting often contains surprises, some delightful and others, well... How many of the following might you be able to relate to? Hint, if you smile at any one, it's probably because you've experienced it in your home.

1. The later you stay up, the earlier your child will wake up the next morning.

2. For a child to become clean, something else must become dirty.

3. Toys multiply to fill any space available.

4. The longer it takes you to make a meal, the less your child will like it.

5. Yours is always the only child who doesn't behave.

6. If the shoe fits...it's expensive.

7. The surest way to get something done is to tell a child not to do it.

8. The gooier the food, the more likely it is to end up on the carpet.

9. Backing the car out of the driveway causes your child to have to go to the bathroom.

10. The more challenging the child, the more rewarding it is to be a parent...but you usually have to work overtime to get that reward.

How many of you have experienced some of these??? I know I have! Oh the joys of parenting. The best job in the world :)

Quilts for Uganda

As some of you might have known, we were in the beginning stages of adopting when we found out we were pregnant. We had been given this passion several months ago, but did not have many specifics. While attending an Adoption Conference in October the Lord spoke very clearly to our hearts about the need for families to advocate for and adopt the children of Uganda.

So, why Uganda? Why not another country or why not even right here in America? The answer is simply... I don't know... All I know is that we prayed that the Lord would give us specifics about what orphans we were to focus our energy on and the Lord answered our prayers. He placed Uganda so deeply on our hearts, we cannot help but feel responsible for caring for these children in as many ways as we possibly can.

The facts about Uganda and their orphans are staggering.

Uganda is one of the worlds least developed countries. It is resource poor with an estimated 90% of it population living in rural area’s. It has a current population of 24.7 million (census 2002) and an orphan population of over 2 million set to rise to 3.5 million by 2010 (UNICEF, 2002). This creates an environment in Uganda where 10% of their population are Orphans, and the percentage will only rise.

Orphans Know More.

Uganda has the highest proportion of AIDS orphans in the world. (UAC2001).

Knowing the circumstances surrounding traveling to a country like this pregnant or with a newborn are either quite difficult or impossible. We are once again convinced that the Lord's will is best and even though he placed this passion in our hearts when we were pregnant (but just not aware of this new miracle) he is in control and we simply need to follow his lead, whether it is down the road to adoption one day or another plan to care for orphans.

With that in mind, one of the ways we have chosen to contribute to the orphans of Uganda now is to combine two of my passions and fill a need where there is one. And the best part is, I'm asking you to come along side of me!

I will be sewing and gathering quilts for an orphanage in Uganda and once we have enough quilts for an entire orphanage, we will be shipping them directly to the children. I have spoken with several orphanages and they run anywhere from 30-50 children.

Why quilts? In Quilting for Peace: Making the World a Better Place One Stitch at a Time, it explains: The world can be an especially frightening place for its youngest inhabitants. But simple things can have an almost magical effect on anxious children, and quilts seem to hold extra-special comforting powers. Linda Arye, founder of Quilts for Kids, explains it this way: "Somehow, when you get under the covers, the whole world goes away, and it's just you in safe haven. And I guess that's what the quilts do. They provide a safe haven for these kids."

I am aware that a quilt isn't going to change their lives, but many have said that donated quilts are often the only long lasting possession that orphans have to call all their own. So if I had to give them one item of comfort, I can't think of anything better than a quilt.

My goal is at least a quilt a month, so if you do the math, it would take me years to finish alone. So, in faith, I am starting my first quilt this week and asking my fellow sewers to join me. Even if you only make one, or just sent me a quilt top or donate some fabric or send a few dollars to help out with the supplies and shipping, it will help.

The future of our family is completely uncertain, but what I do know is we serve a God who has a heart for the orphans and widows and cares about their lives...and we should too. So, until we get a better glimpse of God's heart for our family, I will sew my love into some quilts for these children that have become so dear to my heart.

This is where the rubber meets the road and I'm beyond excited to see where God is going to take this. Will you consider joining me?

Planned Parenthood Director Leaves

She had a change of heart...

Read the story here!

Praise the Lord that hearts are being changed and innocent lives are being valued.

Thankful Thursday

This week has been such a great week. Nothing super exciting going on, but we feel very blessed.

~ The house is really coming along. It really feels like home now. Of course there is a ton more we'd love to do, but we're in a good place to relax and enjoy it.
~ Andy's job is going really well.
~ I'm learning how to sew my first dress.
~ I got two crafting books I've really been wanting. Handmade Home and The Creative Family. I simply cannot wait to get my sewing area up and working so I can start on some of the projects in these books, and my dress of course.
~ Andy and I are reading a fabulous book, Hope Lives. If you're up to be challenged, I highly recommend this book. It has given us many opportunities to see into the heart of God for orphans and to know His will in a deeper way.
~ We finally got to meet our friends, Caleb and Eden from Ethiopia. They are seriously the worlds cutest children. I thought, I had them, but I was wrong! Words cannot express the emotion I felt when I saw them in their parents arms. What a beautiful example of how the Lord rescues us.
~ The weather this week has been gorgeous. We are finally excited about fall. Especially the idea of no mosquitoes. And pumpkins. And apples.
~ And to top it all off, my birthday is tomorrow. WOOHOO!

Will We or Won't We...

Marriage is under attack. That should not be shocking news to anyone. Andy and I are determined to stay committed to our promise that we made to each other and to the Lord as long as we both shall live, no matter how difficult times get. And when they are difficult, we need encouragement and support because it's much easier to fail when you don't.

I just read a great article on intimacy in marriage and want to share it with those of you who are interested. In an effort to keep Eckert Escapades a 'family blog,' I have posted the article in it's entirety over at Hospital to Home.

It's quite a lengthy article, but I believe you will not only be challenged by it, but also blessed.

A Sacred Marriage

Andy and I have been sold out on making our marriage the best it can possibly be. We are not content to have a mediocre marriage. But that means hard work! I have been re-reading Sacred Marriage by Gary Thomas and have forgotten what rich text it is. What an incredible book. The premise of the book is: What if God designed marriage to make us holy more than to make us happy?

What a thought!

God designed marriage. It's a fact, whether you believe it or not. Why would we ever go to anyone or anything else to find out how it should be done?! I am not implying counselors and mentors are null and void, obviously not, because I'm reading a book by another human. But, to try and maintain a marriage and not know what the creator of that institution meant it for seems asinine. Our world has made an embarrassment of the word marriage. It is so easy to fall into the trap of having a marriage like the world.

Join me in asking God to show us what marriage should really be all about

*He also has a book Sacred Parenting that I'm looking forward to reading.