It's been awhile...

It's been awhile since our last post.  Time flies when you're having fun.  Here's what we've been up to.

Micah's Baby Dedication

We've committed to lead Micah, whom God has entrusted to us, back to Him.  It brought back so many memories of Maddie's baby dedication.  Here are some of the goals Emily and I discussed in preparation for the baby dedication:

• That they would understand that they are not only accountable to us, but to God.
• That they would bring glory to God in everything they do.
• That I would be the husband we want Maddie to marry and Micah to be and that Emily would be the wife we want Micah to marry and Maddie to be.

We invite you (whoever you are) to hold us accountable as we do the things we need to do to achieve these goals and lead Maddie and Micah back to Him.

We Moved

We will never forget the story surrounding our move -- one only God could write.  We're settled for the most part.  Here's our little helper painting the play room.

 

  

Record Snowfall in Atlanta

We had the most snow we've seen in Atlanta since we moved here five years ago (3+ inches).  

 

Unfortunately, they don't sell sleds in Georgia.  So we did what most southerners do -- use an empty Rubbermaid.

 

 

And Maddie had a good time making snowmice with Bop Bop.

 

If you're wondering, "Why snowmice?"  Maddie's into Angelina Ballerina.

So it begins...

Maddie tried getting Micah in Time Out last night.  You're probably thinking, "Isn't he too young for time out?"  Yes, but I was trying to be consistent with "consequences".  Here's how it went down:

Micah was stuffing his mouth with one of Maddie's trains.  She wasn't happy because he was getting slobber all over it.  We don't want him doing that, so I took the train away and told him that he was going in Time Out if he did it again. (Teachable moment?)

He then picked up a train.  As if she had busted him, Maddie shouted, "Micah's touching a twain!"  I said, "Oh, he's allowed touching the trains.  He just can't put them in his mouth."

I turn my head for a second and hear, "Look!"

Maddie was stuffing a train in his mouth......

Christmas 2009

It's Micah's first Christmas.  Maddie finally understands OPENING presents.  Unfortunately, it didn't go as planned.  They're BOTH getting over bronchitis.  Here they are with their nebulizers.

 

Maddie with her Zhu Zhu pets.

 

Maddie and Micah with their Thomas train table.

 

 

 Micah and Aunt Bethany.

 

Our new tradition -- a birthday cake for Jesus.  Notice the Zhu Zhu pets and Birthday Thomas joined us for the fun.

 

Christmas Fun!

Just in time for Christmas.  Here are some pictures from the neighborhood Christmas party.

 

 

 

 

 

Is it too late for FALL pictures?

Christmas Eve is tomorrow, so why not share some FALL pictures?  I was browsing our pictures and came across some pictures from this fall.  Don't mind the turkey bib.

 

 

 

 

 

Why I'm NOT a Bengals Fan

Yes, I was born in Cincinnati.  And no, I'm not a Bengals fan.

How did we break up?

In 1989, the Bengals lost to the 49ers in Super Bowl XXIII.  The 49ers won with 34 seconds left, leaving an eight-year-old completely devastated.  Since then, they've gone something like 110-193-1.

Every Sunday during that stellar stretch, I remember asking my dad if the Bengals were on.  "No, Mike.  They're blacked out again."  It eventually became a joke.

Needless to say, I lost interest in the Bengals and professional football all together.

How did I become a Steelers fan?

Emily is from Washington, PA, which is just outside of Pittsburgh.  She comes from a family of Steelers fans.  The year we got married was Big Ben's rookie year.  While they didn't go to the Super Bowl, they had a MUCH more exciting year than the Bengals.  Not having an allegiance to any professional team, it was a natural fit.

Since then, I've experienced a game a Heinz Field, celebrated two Super Bowl championships and have welcomed two little Steelers into the family.

HERE WE GO STEELERS, HERE WE GO!

Fall Pics

I know it's late, but here are a few pics from our trip to the pumpkin patch and playing in the leaves.

Special Visitor

We had a special visitor last week -- soon-to-be Aunt Lindsey.  My brother's fiance was in from Colorado for work related reasons.  We were disappointed we didn't get to spend more time with her, but had fun at dinner and a quick visit to Barnes & Noble.

Life is short, God is in control, and He's still good -- SO good!

A year after our friends suffered through a stillbirth (Brooks), I find myself reflecting on the brevity of life again.

Samuel Erik Apinis died after four weeks. Samuel is the son of Bryan and Kathryn. Bryan is on staff with North Point Community Church and is the Director of community groups in our area.

As a group leader, I meet with Bryan on a quarterly basis. We've met three times since our group launched in January.

At our first meeting, Bryan revealed Kathryn was pregnant.

At our second meeting, Bryan revealed "the baby" had a heart condition and would immediately require surgery. Although concerned about the surgery, he seemed more concerned about Kathryn's concern she wasn't going to be able to hold the baby in the days/weeks immediately following the surgery. With Emily pregnant and recalling how it felt not holding Maddie for over six hours after she was born, the news hit close to home.

At our third meeting, Bryan revealed "the baby" wasn't going to require surgery until it was older. We celebrated the news and looked forward to the birth. Micah was a few weeks old at the time. I had forgotten what it was like to have a newborn and reminded Bryan of what was to come.

If you've followed their blog, you're aware of what has happened. I believe Samuel, as well as Bryan and Kathryn, have had more of an impact on the lives of others in four weeks than I have in 28 years.

Their testimony of faith is amazing and I can only hope that Emily and I would respond to tragedy in the same way.

For me, Brooks and Samuel are reminders that life is short, God is in control, and while the outcome can be tragic, he's still good -- SO good.

"I don't know what to do with the fact that God answered all my little requests but did not answer my big one. I am thankful for His faithfulness in the small things, and I continue to trust that He is good and loving. He is my comfort in this new day without Samuel. But I don't know why God didn't save the day and heal my son. I will probably never know. What I do know is this: what God asks of me is my trust in Him, my continued faith, my obedience to Him, and my heart. He wants me to come to Him in the dark times and continue to proclaim His goodness (He IS good!), and He wants me to love Him. Those things I will seek to do with all my heart, but I know some days it will be harder to do than others. I know I can rest in His unchanging grace, and I know on the harder days, He can handle my sorrow, anger, and lack of faith. I will strive to authentically walk this road of grief before me and let God, who did not heal Samuel's heart, now heal mine."

Me & The Little (Old) Man

Here are a few pictures of me and the little man from this weekend. Doesn't he look so cute in his polo and fisherman hat? My favorite is the Grumpy Old Men look over Mimi's shoulder!

Hopefully the hair comes in soon!

Two Months

Micah is two months today. I can't believe it! It seems like it's taken just as long to get used to having two around the house. If it's not Micah, it's Maddie. If it's not Maddie, it's Micah.

He's doing what baby's usually do and just started a half-smile. Maddie seems to be paying a little more attention to him as well. She pushes him in his swing, gets him his pacifier when he's crying, and even kissed him -- ONCE. It'll be exciting to see how they interact once he becomes more active.

While I'm on the subject of babies, I have two prayer requests:

1. For Baby T. A couple in our community group who suffered through a stillbirth a year ago is getting induced tonight. Please pray for a safe delivery and healthy baby. I can't imagine the anxiousness that is trying to consume them right now. Thank God for his peace, which transcends all understanding and protects our hearts and our minds in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:7).

2. For Samuel. Bryan, the dad, is the Director of community groups for our area. They knew about Samuel's heart condition before he was born. Unfortunately he has issues with his lungs as well. Please pray for God to perform a miracle and heal Samuel's body. Please pray for Bryan's leadership as he, his wife and their two sons journey down this path God has them on. And please pray for the boys, Bryan and Caleb, as Bryan and Kathryn spend most of their days away from home. Thank God for Samuel's improvement thus far and for the testament Bryan's and Kathryn's faith.

Rotten Fruit

If Saturday was a test, I failed -- MISERABLY.

When you're the parent of a newborn/infant, you can't help but break your life down into three hour increments. Within those three hour increments, some "experts" suggest your newborn/infant sleep for an hour and a half or more.

NOT MICAH. He averaged 30 minutes. And when he wasn't eating, he was wailing. And when he wasn't wailing, he was dozing. And when he was dozing, you couldn't sit down or he would start wailing again (in which case you'd have to get back up and bounce him in your arms in a futile attempt to get him to doze again). And before you knew it, it was time to start it all over again.

Long story short, I handed him to Emily (who stays home with them EVERYDAY) and said "I can't take it anymore. I'm done."

I thought I was patient.

Apparently my fruit is rotting.

G'ma & G'pa Mauntel Visit

My parents came in town on the 4th to meet their newest grandbaby. We celebrated by grilling out with Em's parents. Maddie hadn't taken a nap all day, so she crashed early only to be awaken by the first BOOM! My parents got to check out North Point for the first time on Sunday and we hit Maddie's favorite spot -- the mall -- on Monday.

Here are the three generations.


And two of my favorite shots from the weekend.

Micah William

I've been somewhat slow to dedicate a post to our newest addition to the family - Micah William. While Em has done MOST of the work around here, for some reason just having two kids is enough to wear me out. When they're down, I don't feel like doing ANYTHING aside from checking facebook and watching The O'Reilly Factor. What an EXCELLENT use of time, huh?

Micah was born on 6/18 at 7:16 PM. For some reason we believed the myth the second one comes faster. Not so with Micah - he came 12 hours after Em started her patossin. Our little guy weighed 7 lbs, 1 oz and measured 20 inches. It was so exciting to run out to the lobby to tell Maddie he was here. I don't think she knew what to think at first, but quickly warmed up to him. In fact, she demanded he walk as they were cleaning him off!

Mi-Mi brought Maddie down to visit on Friday. She picked out a balloon and handed out "I'm a _____" buttons for everyone

Em and Micah were discharged on Saturday.

Maddie was waiting at the house for us. As soon as we walked in the door, she wanted "baby brudda" to play. She showed him all her toys, including her favorite Veggie Tale - Madame Blueberry!

I'm sure we'll have more stories the more comfortable she gets with him. For now, it's "Da-Da! Get him!" whenever he cries.

"He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." Micah 6:8