redemption

Jared and I lived in a very small apartment for the past 3 years while he attended seminary in St. Louis. As a result, we are super happy to have space and a yard now.

I love that the sun rises on this side of the house, shining plenty of light into the dining area.

I bought this rug at Ikea 5 years ago, and I finally have hardwood floors to use it on.

My long awaited, fenced in backyard.

It seems that my blog has taken the back burner the past few months.  I can’t imagine why.  I only had a baby and moved across the country within a 5 week span.

If you used to stop and read here because I actually wrote something, rather than posting pictures constantly, please don’t give up on me.  I promise, I’m coming back.  My brain is slowly beginning to function again, and I plan to use it for this blog soon.

I’ll still post the pictures because I love them.  But, I hope to add a little more variety and thought.  Thanks for bearing with me!

It’s what I do.

Jared and I laugh almost daily about the fact that every time he comes out of his office (he works from home), I am either sitting on the couch feeding his daughter or in the kitchen.

When I am not feeding people or cleaning up after them, I take pictures of them.

Bryn is almost 4 months old!

I spend lots of time loving on her.  We all do.  She is seriously the sweetest thing ever.

She has perfected the art of bubble-making.

Here she is, hard at work.

Shea is becoming quite an explorer now that his brother is at school.  He’s catching lizards and building habitats for them, and finding plenty of other exciting adventures in the back yard.  He’s realizing that Gage isn’t the only one who can explore!

I was always afraid that Gage going to school would inhibit his artistic endeavors because of limited time.  Thankfully, that has not been the case at all.  He comes home from school and jumps into a project right away.

Gage caught this shark with his Papa.

We all fall more and more in love with this little girl everyday.  She is such a gift to our family and none of us can imagine life without her now, although she’s only been with us for 3 months.  It’s amazing how a new little baby instantly belongs and pre-baby life seems so long ago.

Lately, Jared and I have felt like God is telling us to just be the church.  We believe He is giving us a vision for what that looks like in our own lives.  For a long time, while living on campus at seminary in St. Louis, we yearned to live in the “real world” and be more able to open our home and lives up to people searching for more.  We long to see God’s Story change lives and we have begun to see that happening here in Wilmington.  God’s Story sets drug addicts free and heals broken marriages.

We are seeing that ministry isn’t about Jared being one of the “lucky” ones who finds a job in a church.  It’s about living our lives in a way that allows people in.  That is what we are trying to do and hoping to inspire others around us to do the same.  Take a look at the website Jared recently put together and pray for us as you think of it.

on a Sunday at 1:00PM, this little baby boy entered our lives:

Amanda Hardy Photography

And, we couldn’t be more thankful for such a sweet blessing.

Shea has a sweet nature and tells us throughout the day that he loves us.  He’s usually the first one to thank me for the dinner I’ve made, which is pretty amazing for a child so young.  He has a grateful heart beyond his years.  He loves his big brother and wants to be just like him and adores his baby sister.

He has recently discovered his love for cherries.

He is our child who stops to smell the flowers.  I think he gets that from his Granny.

We love you Shea!

because I’m too tired for many words.  Hopefully, the words will come later.

A sneak peek at our house……..pics of the inside will follow soon.

We live 5 minutes from the beach and have been once.  It’s sooo hot, and I think we’ll enjoy it more during the fall.

This picture makes me happy.

Bryn’s first beach trip.  She slept the entire time.

2 weeks after moving in, we took a trip to Lake Junaluska, in the mountains of NC with my parents.  We love the mountains, so it was a nice little getaway.

Grandfather Mountain

Bryn liked hanging out with us in the mountains.  We hiked a little and enjoyed the outdoors.  The boys and Jared swam in the rocky, freezing cold Ocanoluftee River.

Gage started school on Tuesday!  I can’t believe he’s really in school.  (he’s been homeschooled since he was 4!) And, let me just say we are so incredibly proud of how he is handling this transition.  I’ll have to write more about it later.  It’s worth a blog post, for sure.

Shea has discovered cherries and loves them, as you can see.

Bryn and I decided to have our own photo shoot in the bathroom because I thought she looked so cute hanging in her little snugli carrier.

And, that’s all for now, folks.

Here’s what we’ve been up to around here:

Bryn meets Aunt Stacey and cousin Ashlyn

Granny came to help for a month!  She was amazing!

We needed as much help as possible b/c of THIS!

And THIS!

And this!

Shea got so sick of it, he decided to go lay down in the hall outside of our apt.

Bryn with her Papa

Shea with his Mandy.  We’ve been spending as much time with her as possible because we sure are going to miss her.  She’s part of our family, and I think we’re all going to go through withdrawal.  What will we do without our Mandy???

Bob Smart, our pastor in IL, baptized Bryn for us.  We are so thankful for Pastor Bob and the way God has used him in our lives.  God used him to bring us to seminary in St. Louis.

The girl is fattening up!  At 3 weeks old, she weighed in at 8 lbs. 5 oz. (birth weight was 6 lbs. 13 oz.)

Tomorrow, I’m getting on a plane with Bryn and Shea and we are heading to NC for good.  Wilmington will be our new home.  Jared will meet us there on Saturday.  Life has been a whirlwind these past few weeks, but I am thankful for the quiet times I get to sit and feed my baby.  She’s still doing great at night, sleeping for 7-8 hours.  All I can say is that God is gracious to me and I am thankful.

Things could not possibly be going better. My Mom is here practicing all of her “J” tendencies (Myer’s Briggs….a lot of you get what I’m saying) and we are benefiting greatly from her “J-ness”. Our kitchen is cleaner than ever, clothes magically appear washed, and much of our house is neatly packed for our move thanks to her work.

Mandy Hardy Photography

Jared is doing an amazing job as Daddy to our little girl. He is responsible for her at night after I give her one last feeding b/w 11 and 12. I go to bed, and for the past 2 nights, he has been able to keep her happy for 6-7 hours straight before her morning feeding. That’s right. She’s sleeping for 6-7 hours at night! We’re crossing our fingers, hoping it stays that way. I believe it’s God’s grace, allowing me to get the sleep I need without having to give her formula in the middle of the night.

Mandy Hardy Photography

The big brothers are falling more and more in love with her every day. Shea pulled a chair up to where she was sleeping on the couch this morning and just stared at her. Gage has brought numerous friends over to see his baby sister and his face beams with pride as they ooo and ahhh over her. Yesterday, he was talking to her and said, “You let a kid be mean to you. He’ll go home to his daddy with a black eye ’cause no one’s gonna be mean to my baby sister.” He is such a protector.

Mandy Hardy Photography

Bryn had her first doc appt. yesterday and she has already surpassed her birth weight. The doctor was amazed and said that usually doesn’t happen until 2 weeks. So, the girl is getting plenty of milk!

Mandy Hardy Photography

Many of you have asked how we chose her name. Brynda is named after her Gran-Gran (Jared’s Mom), who passed away in 2000. We always knew that if we ever had a girl, we would name her Brynda. We chose her middle name, Shaffer, because that was Brynda’s maiden name. I am so thrilled to be able to use Jared’s Mom’s name for our little girl. I wish so much that I, along with our children could have known her, and this is a special way to remember her daily. I can’t wait to tell Brynda the story of her Gran-Gran and help her understand what a special name she has.

Brynda Shaffer Lee was born on May 24th at 635 AM – She weighed 6 lbs and 13 oz!

More details later…

Posted by Jared