Thanksgiving (and a little beyond)

For Thanksgiving, Benny, Andrew and I traveled to Columbia, MO to spend the holiday with my side of the family. Shortly after arriving in town, we got to spend some precious time with some of our favorite people...the Horn family! (I'm a slacker and didn't get any pictures.)


On Thanksgiving day, lots of family came over to my parents house to hang out and eat.
This is Brayden, my cousin Andrea's son with Andrew. He was SO excited to hold Andrew!


Benny, Andrew, Brayden and Andrea. (Brayden is going to be a big brother in February!!)


Ian (my step-sister Crystal's son) and Andrew. He was also very excited about holding Andrew! :)


Ian and Brayden waiting to eat.


After dinner we encountered a slightly dramatic situation. Brenda (my mom's sister) was taking the blades off of the electric knife and accidentally made a pretty good slice in two of her fingers. Brayden noticed that Brenda was getting quite a bit of attention while I was applying pressure and fixing her wounds...


So he decided that he had gotten hurt too!! Here he is with a paper towel, applying pressure to his "wound." (And no injury would be complete without a sad, pouty face! :)

On our way back to Anderson, we got to stop in Greenville to spend time with the Ambuehl family. (Again...total slacker and no pics.)


Back in Anderson, Benny's younger brother Kyle came in town on Saturday to hang out and to meet his nephew for the first time!


This past week, our friend Andrew Rode (who coached football at AU last year and is now coaching at Greenville College in Illinois) was in town recruiting. We were thankful to get a couple of hours with him!


Hanging out with Daddy. We loved how content he was to sit on Benny's chest like this!



"Tummy Time." Look how strong that neck is!



We are so thankful for our wonderful family and friends and are especially thankful this year for the sweet blessing of having little Andrew in our lives.

Fall Fun!

Two weeks before Thanksgiving the weather was BEAUTIFUL in Indiana! For three days in a row, Benny and I took Andrew on a walk around AU's campus. The first day, the two soccer guys from across the street joined us, we picked up a couple of the girls I mentor on campus and we all had lunch together. The next day, we had a few more. The last day, this was the group:



It became one of those "little things turned into a big thing." We loved it!


Our smiley little boy!


Watching TV with Daddy:


Benny, Andrew and Benny's mom Kathy after the AU soccer banquet. Benny was honored for his three years of service as an assistant coach. (We're just starting to look for coaching jobs for next year for Benny. Please be praying that the Lord would lead us exactly where he wants us to serve!)


He is SO precious! :)

Paintings for Andrew's Room

When we picked Andrew's name, we decided to give him a name with a strong meaning. His name means "tender warrior." (Andrew= warrior/man and Caden means gentle/tender). Our prayer is that his character would one day reflect his name: a strong, bold leader with a gentle, tender spirit. We asked our good friend Jill Scovell to do a painting for his room that would reflect the meaning of his name, and this is what she came up with!!





She picked the Lamb/Lion combo because it reflects the perfect example of a tender warrior...Jesus Christ... the sacrificial lamb and the mighty lion. Thank you, Jill for blessing us with such a meaningful gift! (See link to the right for more of her incredible artwork!)