End of One Chapter, Beginning of Another

This is it, our last week here. Whoa; reality has the ability to snap in focus faster than a stubbed toe sometimes.  We have a ton of packing left to do, not to mention more people we want to see and say goodbye to than we possible have time to do. Any takers for 30 hour days?  ...........kidding!...........

Recently had a deliteful girl's night (no kids! it was crazy... and quite, haha). The "creative juices" started flowing.... and they just haven't stopped! Realizing this will probably be a fad in my life, I've tried to take full advantage of this right-sided brain function. Projects have included: FINALLY getting my sewing machine to work (bobbin assembly had a backwards piece... thank you YouTube) and therefore making my first shirt. Followed by making baby-in-the-bathtub punch for a party, baking apple pie bites with cream cheese dip (see pic below), not to mention making a slew of (decent) homemade Christmas presents! 

*side note, if you receive said homemade present.... be gracious... it is my 1st time... haha :)

deliciousness!

I told Jarrod I've discovered my second favorite way to relief stress(a good cleaning still ranking #1) ..... pinterest. I admit it... I have finally caved into the craze. You can find some really neat stuff to make on there! I have to limit myself to 10-15 minutes at a time, it's definitely addicting.

Other news: Eliaya has graduated to the big kid bathtub.  She wasn't super sure about it the first time.... so Simba jumped in to make her comfortable!  We had the water running and he came charging from the living room and just hopped on in. Jarrod and I just stood there baffled. Normally we have to drag him into the bathroom, then lure him with treats into the tub for a bath. Perhaps he has a new affection for Eliaya since she said his name first and all.

Pray for little miss Eliaya, and our whole family really. I came down with an upper respiratory bug... I know, ANOTHER one. I promise I do wash my hands near constantly. Now Jarrod is stuffed up and Eliaya spent the better part of last night up coughing and crying. Please pray with us that this sickness would leave before the big move next week!

The topic of much discussion in our house has been the implementation of Christmas traditions. Both Jarrod and I come from families steeped in silly and sweet rituals. Previous years we just created a hodge-podge of traditions to call our own, but now we have Eliaya and we really want to create some memories around this most special time of year. It's so easy to get caught up in the busyness and honestly, selfishness of this season and forget why it is we can celebrate. Jesus, God with us, came to us. What a wonderful, beautiful, and most amazing thing!

Don't fear, we're not throwing the proverbial baby out with the bathwater. I think there is plenty of room for family celebrations, decorating our home, sending cards and gifts, cinnamon rolls and little smokies for breakfast, and all our favorite Christmas movies. (Miracle on 34th Street and Elf being the top runners, of course).  We want to have fun this Christmas; most of all we want to honor our King and teach Eliaya to do the same. Looks like she's off to a good start........

Eating the camel of our nativity

8 months old!

We pray that you are taking time to praise the Lord this Christmas season, and that it brings your family and friends closer together and fun times are had by all. 

Here's to the last Louisville edition,

-the Reeds

Packing Fun

Boxes, boxes, who's got some boxes??

Packing is in full swing. How is it we acquire so much stuff?? Jarrod and I distinctly remember purging our collection before moving to Louisville, and somehow it seems to have all returned and brought a friend!

Though all the stacking and taping has Simba a bit stressed, Eliaya seems to really enjoy it. Apparently we construct the boxes and pile them up just for her to play with.....

 (Experts agree, the growling must indicate happiness. Eliaya is one happy baby, she growls at everything!)

Priase! Jarrod finished his fall semester this morning! One more class stands between us and FL

We were planning on not decorating for Christmas with the impending move... but we couldn't help ourselves! This is definitely the Reed family's favorite time of year. I'm pretty sure even E likes it, she stands next to the lighted tree for long periods of time (10 minutes is next to eternity for her), just talking and laughing. I'm sure she's plotting how to get around the barricade and attack the presents sitting under the tree.... but so far her schemes have been foiled.

Thanksgiving was a huge success, Jarrod and I cooked... for once everything was edible! I confess, my turkey secret success is fully attributed to pinterest...... guess I can't go on hating it anymore :)  Who would have ever thought of soaking a turkey in water, salt and maple syrup????

Lastly, here are a few more of Eliaya's recent pictures. She's growing so much! 

And Lou teaching us poise :)

1st Christmas as a family of 3! (well, 4. Simba counts too )

Okay, so this last picture is of "chicken crack". It's a buffalo chicken dip, and it's amazing. If you've never had it, you're really missing out! It's now the default 'what should I bring to the party?' food? yumm!!!

Love you all, hope you enjoy this season of celebrating the greatest gift: Jesus.

-the Reeds

ps: hopefully another 1 or 2 editions will come out before the big move... so keep posted!

Movement

"Whoa, watch your step!"   "Don't back up!"    "Careful!"

These are common phrases at our house now. I've decided that a dance class should be part of childbirth / becoming a parent education. Little fingers and toes and a lightening fast little body create quite the obstacle course for our feet to maneuver.  

Eliaya LOVES to climb. She will pull up on the couch cushions and stretch just as fast as her little nails can grip, then after toppling over she'll scurry over to Jarrod's desk where she uses the drawer handles to pull up, all in attempts to get into the swivel chair.

Question: has anyone invented a baby helmet? There's definitely a serious market for one in our home. Prototype in the works. Feel free to send your stock requests :)

Other than Eliaya's latests conquests... our other big news is we are moving back to Florida!!

We, with many of you, had been praying for a few months for God's direction and clarity regarding where we needed to be. Well, God opened the door for Jarrod to work as a civil engineer, where he will be able to finish his hours and sit for his Professional Engineer exam (something we had really wanted to do), as well as continue to take classes through Southern to get his master's of divinity. This really is an awesome bridge for our family, allowing us to accomplish multiple goals at once. Jarrod is excited to venture back into the realm of traffic and surveys.

As of this past Friday, we have a place to move into! (I was a bit stressed on that one..) We are sad to leave the great people we've met here in Louisville, but rejoice that it's not goodbye. What an awesome part of Christian fellowship, it never ends!

Okay, so the packing has begun: it's remarkably different from the last time I packed. Both Eliaya and Simba think boxes are fascinating toys. Though, E has shown Simba up, she crawled through the box first. He still walks around it, afraid of getting trapped inside. Perhaps he has mild PTSD from his Christmas delivery 3 years ago.......

As I type this, Jarrod is DONE with Greek!!!!!! And while he admits he learned a ton and benefited from this class immensely, the Reed household is full of rejoicing over this triumph.

Here are some pictures of Eliaya from the past month.... can't believe how much she's growing!

Getting bundled, it's cold!

sharing with daddy

Reading together

Papa giving us frozen yogurt.... yum!

at the zoo

Well, as I'm typing this... Eliaya has decided that last week was crawling and pulling up, so apparently this week will be "cruising". She's holding on to the couch and walking towards the dog! #walkerbyChristmas? 

In closing, a quote to ponder: “Loss and suffering, joyfully accepted for the kingdom of God, show the supremacy of God’s worth more clearly in the world than all worship and prayer" -John Piper, Let the Nations Be Glad

Though my suffering is small in comparison to many, do I suffer well? Does how I deal with loss and disappointment cause others to see the one, true God? Does it move them to worship Him? We know that suffering is part of the Christian life, Jesus told us it was coming. I pray, not that we would suffer more, but suffer effectively. By that I mean that while suffering, we would take joy, peace and encouragement from seeing God's hand through the church (through other's stories of God working), and that our suffering would then produce much fruit. Allowing joy and peace to overflow from our cup into other's who will go through hard times after us.                                

            This is from Jarrod's Greek paper. You should ask him about it! I learned a lot.

 

God is so good. Whatever the circumstances, He is good. Praying for you all, that you might grow more in love with Jesus this week.

Love,

-the Reeds