First Day at the Beach

Vera, Moses and Samuel

Cody got back from his trip to Phoenix, AZ on Sunday, February 8th, early in the morning. I woke up to him standing over me. It was a wonderful surprise! The day before they got back Rachelle and I took the kids to the beach. We had a great time. Samuel loves to get in water and was not afraid to walk right in. He didn't even mind that it was a little cold. I was glad that I brought an extra set of clothes because he fell in and got soaked. I let him go around in his diaper for a while after he fell in. Then when he fell in the water again, I gave him some dry clothes. And as you might be wondering...yes, he did try to eat the sand :0)

February 13-16, we went to the World Christian Conference at the Alliance Redwoods. The conference was put on by the World Christian Fellowship (WCF). The WCF seeks to enable and mobilize Asian American Christians and those who closely identify with the Asian American world view to fulfill their calling. Our friend Albert was heading up the children's ministry and Cody and I volunteered to help. We had a great time hanging out and doing crafts and activities with the children while their parents went to the different sessions throughout the day. One of the speakers I got to hear was Michele Rickett. She is the Founder of Sisters of Service, an innovative ministry that informs, mobilizes, and equips advocates for global outreach to women and children in the least Christian regions. She has worked with women and children who have been victims to human trafficking and sex trade. My heart was moved as I listened to her share testimonies of women and children who are victims to this in other countries and even in the U.S.A. I want to look into this more and see how I can help these women and children who are coming out of such horrible situations.

Children's Discovery Museum in San Jose

The Adventure Begins....

Could this be Samuel in 2 years ??

Samuel with Christmas present from Great Grandma and Grandpa Black.

Enjoying his birthday cake at Great Grandma Morris' on Christmas Eve.

Samuel drinking from a straw celebrating his birthday at Grandma and Grandpa Bowler's.

We had a great time with Cody's family for Christmas and New Year's. It was nice to have an extended visit with them and they enjoyed getting to spend time with Samuel. He has changed a lot over the past month. Samuel not only likes to take his blocks out of the container, he also likes to put them back in! Samuel likes to pick up objects and bring them to me. He knows how to feed himself with a spoon also! He doesn't always get it in every time, but he is doing a great job learning. One of Samuel's new nick names is "The Climber" because that's his new favorite thing to do. If it's there, he'll try and climb it. Today he had fun climbing on the chairs and then onto the kitchen table!! So, do not leave him alone in a room! Once he gets onto the table he likes to pick up things and throw them off!

Before leaving to come to California to see Cody's family we felt we were going to be staying here longer than we had originally thought. Not knowing exactly how long we would be in California, we felt led to end our lease at our apartment. We also felt the Lord leading us to give away many of our things. We gave the majority of our furniture to a friend who is a manager of an apartment complex. They plan on opening apartments to the homeless and discipling them.

Samuel and I are staying with some friends in San Jose while Cody and Julian are traveling down southern California to Arizona right now. They are sharing the gospel along the way and seeing people come to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. In one testimony, they went to a skate park and were sharing the gospel with some teenagers. The majority of them were resistant to it, but one of them stuck around after the others left. He said that he felt like the reason they came all the way from Kansas City to California was to tell him about Jesus. He made a decision that day to live his life for the Lord!

Even though it is hard sometimes to be apart from Cody, I know the Lord has a purpose for it. With Cody being on this trip, the Lord has revealed to me how much I depend on Cody. I long to spend more time with the Lord and long to hear His voice. I am learning how to trust in the Lord in all things and He is teaching me how to hear His voice in greater ways. He has also been using this time to prune and refine my heart and reveal things that I didn't realize were in my heart.

I have found that as we have left our home and the majority of our belongings behind that I am left with Jesus. It's true that at the end of it all, all we have is Jesus. He is all we will have when we die and He is ultimately all that we can hold onto in this life. I desire to be filled with His love in such a way that when I meet other people, His love spills out of me and they are consumed by His love for them.

Jesus said to him, "If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me." Matthew 19:21

Then Peter answered and said to Him, "See we have left all and followed You. Therefore what shall we have?" So Jesus said to them, "...everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands, for My name's sake, shall receive a hundredfold, and inherit eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and the last first." Matthew 19:27, 29, and 30

We all are happy to have Cody back with us!! Since he got back we have been blessed to spend a lot of time together with family and friends. Heather and Jay came to Missouri for Thanksgiving and we enjoyed hanging out with them at my parents. We are now getting ready for our trip to California. We fly out there on December 18th. We are excited to see the Morris'. This will be Samuel's 1st plane ride (outside of the womb). We will bring toys, books, cheerios and hope he will take a nap sometime during the flight :) While visiting my parents they wanted to give him his birthday present early. We can learn the alphabet with his new talking and singing catepillar. Samuel is making new "guh" and "duh" sounds. He can also climb up and down the stairs like a pro. When we go outside he likes to walk, so I don't carry him as much. He's singing a lot more and dances when we listen to music. He also likes to climb and explore. We love our boy!

He's a Walkin' Man

Samuel took his first steps on his own October 21st!! He has been practices his walking quite a bit and is doing very well. It's hard to believe how fast my little boy is growing. And he isn't so little anymore. He will be 11 months old on the 14th. And he weighs 21 lbs. 8 oz and is 30 inches long. Samuel and I went to a conference in Chicago with some friends this weekend. Our favorite speaker was Heidi Baker. If you are not familiar with her, she and her husband are missionaries in Mozambique and the countries of South East Africa. They minister and share the gospel with the poor and the orphans. They have seen thousands of people give their lives to the Lord and witnessed blind eyes see and deaf ears hear. I love her passion for the Lord and how she loves people. Cody has been on a ministry trip for about a month. Cody and the guys he works with traveled to Indiana, Ohio, Arizona and California to share the gospel. They have seen many people accept Jesus, be healed, delivered and baptized. We are excited for what the Lord is doing. Cody will be coming back home soon and we look forward to seeing him!

9 months

Samuel wants to play
Samuel with his friend Elisha. She is 6 1/2 months old. Cale and Samuel

Samuel is crawling really fast now and does really well holding onto things while he walks. If I turn over a hamper, he will push it in front of him while he walks! He says mama and dada on a regular basis and gets a reaction from us every time. He gets really excited when Cody brings out the guitar. If Cody stands up to play, Samuel will try to climb his legs to get to it! He also enjoys having play time with babies and children. When I take Samuel for a walk in his stroller by the park, he gets excited and wants to get out and play with the kids. I started watching Cale, who is 3 mos. old a couple days a week and Samuel enjoys the company.

On Saturday night we went to the city to feed the homeless. This was the first time I had done this and it was a life changing experience. We went with some friends who live in Kansas City. We made breakfast burritos with scrambled eggs, potatoes, green bell pepper, and onion. We also brought corn on the cob, apples, donuts and soda. The Lord provided all the food for us. We didn't have to pay for any of it. We prayed before we went and asked the Lord to direct us to where we should go and who we should talk to. The first person Julian and Cody talked with while the rest of us stayed in the van and prayed. Bobby was his name and he was a veteran. He was a Christian and they got to pray with him, give some food and give him a Bible. We pulled over at a bus stop and Julian talked with two older men. One took the food that was offered to him, but the other man refused. Julian asked the other man if he could leave some for him to have later and the man said no. Julian asked if he could give them a Bible. The first man said the had one and the second man said, "I want one of those!" He had lost his Bible and was grateful to receive a new one. He wasn't hungry for food, he was hungry for the Word of God! At another spot we saw someone sleeping on a bench covered with newspaper. Julian got out to leave some food with a Bible beside the bench and realized it was a man and woman, nicely dressed. The man had a little bit of facial hair like he might have not shaved for a day or so. Julian thought they may have just lost their business and that's why they were on the streets. We got to minister to many others that night. It was awesome to be the hands and feet of Jesus. I feel like I have been missing out on a big part of Biblical Christianity. Feeding the poor and pointing them towards Jesus is something necessary in every Christians life. Even if you don't feel "called" to be an evangelist, the Lord can use you to give someone a hug, a word of encouragement, a piece of bread or a cup of water. We know from the scriptures that Jesus ministered in the temple to believers, to tax collectors, prostitutes and the poor. He wasn't afraid to get on their level and hang out with them. He loved them. The Lord shares a lot about his thoughts towards the poor in His Word.

"He who oppresses the poor reproaches his Maker, but he who honors Him has mercy on the needy." Prv. 14:31 NKJV

"He who mocks the poor reproaches his Maker..." Prv. 17:5

"He who has pity on the poor lends to the Lord, and He will pay back what he has given." Prv. 19:17

"He who has a generous eye will be blessed, for he gives of his bread to the poor." Prv. 22:9

"Do not rob the poor because he is poor, nor oppress the afflicted at the gate; for the Lord will plead their cause, and plunder the soul of those who plunder them." Prv. 22:22-23

"Is this not the fast that I have chosen: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, to let the oppressed go free, and that you break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and that you bring to your house the poor who are cast out; when you see the naked, that you cover him, and not hide yourself from your own flesh? Then your light shall break forth like the morning, your healing shall spring forth speedily, and your righteousness shall go before you; the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard. Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer; you shall cry, and He will say, 'Here I am.'" Isaiah 58:6-9

"The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me, because the Lord has anointed Me to preach good tidings to the poor..." Isaiah 61:1

"When you give a dinner or a supper, do not ask your friends, your brothers, your
relatives, nor rich neighbors, lest they also invite you back, and you be repaid. But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the maimed, the lamed, the blind. And you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you; for you shall be repaid at the resurrection of the just." Lk. 14:12:14

8 months

Samuel will be 8 months old on the 14th and he is on the move. He loves to explore and chew on everything :) He can walk along the coffee table while holding onto the edge and he can sit down on his own now! His top four front teeth are coming in, along with the bottom two front teeth. We had a great visit with Laurie last month and are amazed at how much Samuel has learned since then. Samuel has recently started to make the sound, bah-bah. My dad said he is saying "grandpa" :) Cody is in Kansas this week building a fence with Steve and Brad. Samuel and I are missing him and look forward to when he comes home.

On the move

Since my last post Cody and I celebrated our 2 year anniversary on June 10th! We got to go out for dinner while some friends watched Samuel for us. Samuel will be 7 months old in two days!Over the course of the past month Samuel has learned how to crawl, he likes to reach for his toes and stick them in this mouth :) and he is also able to stand with help. His legs are very strong. He has also been introduced to new foods! So far he has tried rice cereal, mashed ripe banana, green beans, and squash. He seems to enjoy the different flavors and he likes to chew on the rubber spoon. On Monday I discovered that his two top front teeth are starting to come through the gums.

We all enjoyed seeing Heather and Jay in Missouri July 2nd-6th. Heather, Samuel and I cheered Jay on as he took 1st place in his age category at the 4th of July 5k race in Warrensburg! It was great to get to see them. We also look forward to seeing my mother-in-law, Laurie who is coming to Missouri tomorrow! It is always a blessing when we get to spend time with family.

California

We had a great journey on our surprise visit out to California and are now back in Missouri. Samuel was a wonderful traveler. We left Warrensburg on April 28th and made it to Colorado that night where we set up camp. Samuel helped Cody start a fire. The next day we drove to the border of Utah and Nevada and spent the night at a hotel. The next day we made it to Grandma and Grandpa (John & Laurie) Morris' house. I hid behind some bushes while Cody put Samuel on their doorstep. Then Cody rang the door bell and ran behind the bushes. Laurie answered the door and said, "There's a baby on the doorstep!" They were all surprised to see us. We got to be there for Ashley's graduation party, Caleb's birthday and Mother's Day. We had a great visit with family and friends. Everyone enjoyed getting to see Samuel.

Future football player?

Relaxing in our new apartment!