Babymoon Anniversary

I have learned there are several definitions of the word "babymoon".  Sometimes this term refers to parents period of bonding with a recently born baby but in this case I am referencing a getaway for the parents before a baby is born bringing many sleepless nights!

Bethany and I took a Babymoon Anniversary vacation to San Diego!  We visited Seaworld, the local beaches, and some friends.  We also had some delicious seafood during our time in the city.  You can see from the sand art in the first picture we are celebrating our fourth anniversary, love and a baby boy!

On our first day we visited the USS Midway aircraft carrier!  It is an epic boat. 

It looks light Bethany is crossing a street but she is on the flight deck of the midway.  They give every visitor a set of headphones and a device for an audio tour of the ship.   

Eric had to spend some time in the brig for telling Bethany she looked fat (I mean pregnant) in the last photo. 

Yummy seafood for both my babies-- Bethany and the boy! 

Our excitement on display before one of the shows at Sea World.  

My beautiful wife and some ugly birds.  

Eric loves swords. Anytime, anyplace. 

The dolphins clapped for the audience while we clapped for the dolphins! 

Presenting SHAMU Jr. Jr. Jr. 

Shamu does a round house kick. 

Shamu and friends doing jumps for the grand finale.  Sea World has a neat message that goes like this, "Helping people to connect with sea life so they will protect sea life." 

Bethany gets stuffed on stuffed french toast. If you cannot tell, she is pleased with her order.  We enjoyed a late breakfast at a nice place in La Jolla before visiting the beautiful shores of the beaches there.  

Eric enjoying a natural resource not found in Tucson. H20. 

We got to meet Emma for the first time!  She liked breaking Eric's towers.  What a cutie!

Our friends the Hernbergs showed us wonderful hospitality.  Thanks Hernbergs! 

We also got to visit our friends the DeBerry's!  Eric attended a seminary class with Justin.  We miss seeing them in Tucson but loved hanging out and catching up with them. 

A truly unexpected and special event took place when for 30 minutes, Piper decided she liked Eric for the first time since she was born.  When you ask Piper if she wants something she has a very cute way of saying, "I do!" instead of yes.  Here is what happened:
Eric: "Do you want me to pick you up Piper?" 

Piper: "I do!" 

Eric: "Wait... what?"

Praises: This was a wonderful break from the stresses of work and a chance to get away with my wife who I truly adore!  We also praise God for such great friends. 

Prayers:  Please pray for our marriage as we head into our 5th year and expand our family!  It really is Jesus Christ who makes our marriage beautiful and we need his help!  

Baby Boy

Bethany and I went to our ultrasound.  Somehow Bethany was still wondering if she was really pregnant.  I think this appointment put all her doubts to rest!  An ultrasound machine is a really cool device that cost about as much as two houses according to our nurse.  They put blue alien jelly on Bethany's stomach and voila!-- we could see the baby moving on a screen.  Here are the pictures we got from the ultrasound.  Some people say they cannot see babies in ultrasound pictures so I will put a caption under each picture to help you know what they are.  But personally I think the pictures are pretty clear!

Profile of baby's whole body.  Skull and spine are visible in white. 

Another body shot, you can also see his little knee. 

A side view of the baby's skull.  We were able to see him yawn! 

Little baby feet.

Notice the nurses caption that says, "All boy!"  There is a little butt, two legs and a little "rocket ship" in the picture.  

Praises:  Praise God for a baby boy! 

Prayers:  There are a lot of tests that can be done prior to the baby's birth.  These tests are all screening for problems for the baby and the doctors will ask if you want to abort the baby.  We want to trust God with whatever degree of health and life our baby has and have decided not to have any of these tests done.  Please pray we will have a healthy and strong baby! 

The Very Hungry Caterpillar

In the next few days we will attempt to update you on a number of recent events/activities in our lives over the past month but first a review of another party we had here at Rio Vista.  Eric and I belong to a dinner club consisting of 3 other couples and ourselves.  When the club first started we called each other with only an hour warning that everyone would be showing up for dinner in 60 minutes.  The challenge was to pull together whatever you could for 8 people in that amount of time.  We have since tweaked the challenge and now give each other 24 hours notice BUT the couple that calls the hosting family also picks a theme for the dinner.  Once you host dinner, you get to call the next one and pick the theme.  Our themes so far since last October have consisted of Martin Luther, Martin Luther King Jr., pirates and college.

This past month we got the call that we would be hosting everyone around the theme of children's story books.  Fortunately, dinner was to be held on a Saturday evening so we had all day to prep.  The list of children's stories involving food range from Strega Nona to Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs so after some discussion we settled on The Very Hungry Caterpillar.  The following pictures capture how we themed and planned our evening.

Here we have our menu for the evening consisting of the items eaten by the very hungry caterpillar on each day of the week.  This was a 7 course meal!

We prepped the fruit beforehand.  We gave everyone bites of fruit instead of serving the whole thing!

Eric did the decorating work for the Very Hungry Caterpillar cafe.  We take great pride in our cafe here at apartment 9.

We were the hosts for the evening--hence the black and white outfits.

We allowed one of our smaller guests to hang out with us in the kitchen while we got the food ready to serve.

Our happy customers enjoying the food and company.

Great fun was had by all including the hosts!  We thank God for good friends and fellowship.    

Eric Turns 27!

One of our favorite things to do here in Tucson is host people in our home for food and fun so what better reason to gather and eat than a birthday—Eric’s birthday! At first this was just going to be a casual gathering of friends and it’s hard to get friends together in the summer in Tucson because everyone heads to cooler temperatures for their vacations. Then as the idea progressed in my mind and I walked the aisles of Target, I decided to add a little theme to the party. I stood in front of the party section and deliberated between Star Wars and Avengers and finally settled on an Avengers theme due to our enjoyment of all of the Avenger heroes movies including the most recent one. My friend, Jenn, agreed to make a cake that looked like Captain America's shield because Captain America is Eric's favorite Avenger.

We had a great time eating yummy cake, playing games and celebrating Eric. I am so thankful for God's gift of Eric to me as my husband. Pregnancy has been a challenge on my body at times and Eric has been so kind and gentle to get me anything I need, encourage me when I'm discouraged and pray for me when I'm feeling crummy. He goes to work every day and works hard to provide for us. He has also been studying a lot to get more certifications so he can provide for us on one income. I am continually amazed by his tireless efforts to serve me, our church, his co-workers and his friends and usually always with his great sense of humor and encouraging and humble spirit. I know he will be a great dad and I can't wait for him to meet his son or daughter.

Speaking of son or daughter, it's hard to believe that we are almost at the half-way point until Baby Reinhold's arrival! In the month of July we had a doctor's appointment that gave us the chance to hear his/her heartbeat for the first time and that was a blessing to us after 7 weeks of illness and physical fatigue. In the beginning of September we will go for our ultrasound to find out the gender and make sure everything is growing the way it is supposed to. God has been teaching me continually about trusting Him with each day of our baby's life and I am thankful for the assurance of knowing that His presence and love will be with us no matter the circumstances of our lives.

Stay tuned for photos from our next party...also with a theme but one you probably haven't seen before!  

June 2012

Well, here it is almost the end of July and we are filling you in on the events of June. We think, however, that this post was worth the wait and we suspect you will find it was worth the wait too as you read on.

June 1^st, 2012 was a day that will change our lives forever. I know that sounds a bit dramatic but on that Friday, our lives turned a corner down a path that we had been praying for and now found ourselves walking on. After 18 months of trying and praying and shedding some tears, we got a positive on a pregnancy test confirming our suspicions that I might be pregnant after being 2 weeks late for my period! We cannot begin to express our gratitude for our friends and family who faithfully prayed for us while we waited for God to answer our prayers for children. He had a perfect time for us and He receives all the glory for being faithful and loving and kind to us, children or no children. We are expecting to welcome Baby Reinhold into the world around January 26^th, 2013.

As I mentioned, His timing was perfect for us and points to His wisdom being infinitely greater than ours. At the end of April, I transitioned from my job at State Farm to being the secretary of my church and in the middle of May, Eric’s office moved locations so that he is now able to walk to work. This saves us a bunch of money on gas and saves him an hour of driving every day. I am in a much slower paced environment which would end up being perfect for the amount of nausea I experienced in my first trimester of pregnancy.

God’s activity, however, was perhaps most evident when we looked back over our fertility chart for the month of May. On May 3^rd we met with Eric’s fertility doctor who informed us that Eric’s second analysis came back perfectly normal although he could not explain the difference in the two samples. He encouraged me to visit a female fertility doctor to find out if there was anything hindering pregnancy on my end of things. I told Eric I would like to wait to schedule that appointment until we found out about our attempts in May. Looking back now, we believe that May 3^rd, the day we were told that everything looked normal, was the day we conceived! I have always heard of stories where doctors can’t explain miraculous changes in their patients, but it is exciting to have our own story of knowing that God healed us and heard our prayers to have children.

As I write this blog, I have completed my first trimester of pregnancy and although the past 7 weeks have been challenging for me, I try to remember every day to give thanks to God for our little child and that all of the nausea and sleeplessness is a chance for me to lay down my life for his/hers.

Phew, that was just June 1^st! Don’t worry—I won’t spend as much time on every other day of June for all of our sakes! Just a few days after finding out about our pregnancy, Eric and I headed to Pinetop, AZ with friends and the youth group at our church to help staff a 3 day youth retreat into which we had just put hours and hours of planning. It was a rewarding time getting to know the youth and their parents and enjoying the cooler temperatures of a higher elevation with actual forests made of trees. We finished the retreat by fishing with our pastor and some friends at a lake in Pinetop.  It was great to relax by a body of water--something we often say we miss living in Tucson.  Below is a video that shows some of the highlights of the retreat.  

We split the kids into two groups and named them the tribes of Galatia and Ephesus.  Eric and I were the tribe leaders for Ephesus.  As you can see below, Eric took his job as tribe leader very seriously.  

The rest of the month of June is a blur in my mind, mostly characterized by nausea and sleeping on the couch because that is the only place I can get comfortable. We shared our exciting news with family and friends on Father’s Day which was a blessing and increased our joy in this new season of our lives. Then on June 28^th we celebrated 4 years of marriage and by celebrated I mean that I gave Eric a present and fed him ravioli and then we went to AJ’s Fine Foods to share a yummy dessert because that is all my stomach could handle. We forgot to bring the camera to take a picture of our dessert. =( We plan to celebrate much more extensively this September when we will spend a week in San Diego on an anniversary/babymoon vacation!

I got Eric these fancy bookends for his nightstand as his anniversary gift and the next day he brought home these beautiful lilies that filled our apartment with their scent for many days.  

Praises: We praise God for the answered prayer of giving us a child and that He has thus far carried us successfully through the pregnancy. We also praise God for His provision of a new job location for Eric to save us money and for my job which allows much flexibility while I am sick.

Prayers: Pray for us to love God first before any of His gifts to us including the gift of children. Also pray for us to cast any anxiety that pregnancy or child-rearing might bring on to Him because we know He cares for us. We also ask that you would please pray for two couples in our care group who are certified to adopt children because God has not given them their own and they are just waiting for a phone call that they have been chosen by a birth mom. One couple has waited 10 years to have children and the other has waited almost 5. We know that just as with us, God reverses bleak looking circumstances by the word of His mouth and so please pray that He would act for them just as He has graciously acted on our behalf.  

Slaughter Jam

I would like to warn friends and family that this blog post is not for those who do not believe in killing and eating animals.  This post is about the process involved in killing and eating one of the most common meats we find in the grocery store, chicken.  So if you don't want to see chickens die or if you think chickens have voices and souls like in the Disney movies, this video is probably not for you.  But if you follow with gusto when God told Peter in the bible in Acts 10, "Get up, Peter. Kill and eat", this is for you.  We had a blast learning about what was involved in getting that meat into the grocery store.  Also if you are curious to see if chickens really do run around with their heads off this is a good blog post for you.  It really is wacky. After the Chicken Fest we all got out instruments and praised God for chicken and for Jesus Christ!  Also very enjoyable. 

Geoffrey and Eric with Cotton Puff and Fufu. 

 Our friends Kelsey and Truett. What a cute little dude. 

Also this month we were praising God that our friends Ernie and Lisa Blanco gave birth to a healthy baby boy!  Our friendship with them began when they gave birth to their first son Haddon. However God took Haddon home and the Blancos were struggling with the loss of their first born when we met.  It was amazing to see their trust in God through this very difficult event and to see God giving them joy and peace even in such a trial. Specifically at the funeral of their son they reminded us that we have a joy that shines even in death.  We have joy of eternal relationship with Jesus Christ.  It was precious to be able to share in the joy of the birth of Ernie Jr, Jr, Jr and praise God with them.  The Blancos are a reminder to us that God is in control and working his love and goodness out even in difficult circumstances.  I encourage you to read their processing of this tragedy on their own blog.  Blanco Blog >

Transitions

Job Change for Bethany

Two years ago in April 2010, I, Bethany, started working for Tom DeBerry's State Farm Insurance agency and a few months later got licensed in property and casualty insurance.  Over the past two years I have learned a lot about the insurance world and have gained confidence in picking up the phone and interacting with people everyday that I don't know at all.  My office administrative skills have been developed as well as my customer service.  I am very thankful for that job and was not searching for a new one at all.  I thought I would be there until we had kids and I stayed home with them.

You can imagine my surprise when my boss came into my office last month and asked if I would be interested in taking over the position of office administrator at our church which would mean no longer working for him.  The church needed a new secretary and had not been able to find anyone to fill the position so my boss had recommended me and let them know he would be willing to send me to work there.  I agreed to the switch as a chance to take a slower paced job and to serve at the church.

Since the end of April I have been slowly transitioning over to the church and next week I will be there for a full 30 hours a week doing office administrative work, cleaning and helping the pastors with whatever needs to be done to get ready for Sunday.  The church office is a much quieter environment than State Farm but I am adjusting to the change.

Eric and I have also been asked by the pastors to help out with our youth program called Cross Encounter.  The first major event we are working on is the youth retreat which will be in the White Mountains of AZ in the beginning of June.  We have been working on fundraising for the event with another couple at church and are enjoying the chance to get to know them as well as working closely with one of our pastors.  The commitment to working on the fundraising has certainly increased our busyness level but it is a great chance to get to know the youth a little better which is a blessing for us.

Family Planning Update


Our latest development in our path to achieve pregnancy is that Eric had another analysis done which came back completely normal!  You can imagine our surprise at this and even the doctor was quite puzzled.  According to this latest test, he should be able to father children quite successfully.  That means it is time for me to go to the fertility doctor and get checked out.  Please pray for us during this continued time of waiting. I have a bit of anxiety about finding out either that there is something wrong or that there is nothing wrong and they can't explain why we aren't getting pregnant.  Thankfully, I have a friend here who has undergone all of those tests so she is able to help me know exactly what to expect when I have my appointment.

Eric's Career


Eric continues to excel at his work and we are thankful because his office has decided to move into a building right down the street from us on River Road.  This is essentially like getting a raise because he can walk to and from work and we will save a boatload of gas money!  (This is also great because the Corolla still has a check engine light on that we can't afford to fix right now so it can stay parked most of the time while we save up to fix it.)  He is also studying for his Net+ certification after passing his A+ and receiving a raise the very same day from his boss.  We are so thankful for the gifts God has given him and the way He has blessed Eric to work in a field that he has no degree in.

Prayers and Praises

We praise God for the blessing of our church family, our jobs, our continued good health and the love that He is growing in our marriage and in our relationship with Him.  He has been kind to us in so many ways--big and small and we are thankful.

Please pray for us as I transition into a new job and as Eric gets ready to take his Net+ exam.  Please also pray for contentment and peace in our hearts as we wait for God's timing to grow our family.  We have seen abundant grace as we wait but also have hard days when it feels like everyone around us has cute little babies and didn't have any trouble getting pregnant.  We continue to wait on the Lord in hope.

We sadly failed to take any pictures during the month of April so we promise there are some coming in May!
    

Tribute to Nana

Tribute To My Nana

Ann Tappan, who myself and my brothers affectionately called Nana, recently passed away.  She was my mom’s mom, my grandmother.  Bethany and I flew back to NH to support the family during her passing and to reflect on her life.  It was a moving funeral in which Bethany beautifully sang “I Will Rise” by Chris Tomlin.  The service was encouraging because during the music, sharing and afterwards God strongly spoke to my heart that He had saved my Nana and she was home with Him.  What more could you ask for in a funeral?  The bridge of this song is a picture of the believer coming home to heaven to meet Jesus Christ in His glory.  Bethany sang:

I hear the voice of many angels sing, “Worthy is the Lamb”.  I hear the cry of every longing heart, “Worthy is the Lamb!”

I knew in this moment that Jesus Christ was the one who had brought her home.  Christ paid the blood sacrifice for my Nana’s sins on the cross and my Nana had entrusted her life to him.  Jesus Christ snatched her up and changed her forever. 

Nana’s love for Jesus was evident in how she lived.  She is one of those people who loved us so fiercely in our childhood that I know it changed us.  She showed us a deep picture of her love for us flowing out of Christ’s love for her.  Sometimes you don’t stop and realize how dearly someone loves you until they are gone.    

After the service we formed a greeting line for friends and family to come offer their condolences to us as the remainder of her family.  This greeting line served to be a thread of stories about God’s grace and work in my Nana’s life.  What a blessing to hear more about God’s miraculous and saving work in her life from those lives she touched! 

I did not get to say goodbye to my Nana but a friend of hers shared with me in the greeting line how he had been with Nana in some of her last few moments.  Nana had asked to read Psalm 23 with him and he described to me how she read the last line with confidence and tears in her eyes, “Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.”  

My Nana was able to say those words with confidence because she knew God’s goodness and love all the days of her life.  She knew her only chance of being brought home to heaven was Jesus Christ’s atoning work on the cross for her sin.  You had a beautiful life, Nana and I know you wanted to go home to Jesus.  I look forward to singing “Worthy Is the Lamb” with you someday in the presence of the Lamb who has saved us.  To Him be the glory for your beautiful life!  

Fun with Friends in February

When Eric and I count our blessings, high on the list are the relationships that we have with friends and family near and far.   Although we wish we could live in close proximity to everyone that we love, God has currently placed us in Tucson, AZ and given us many couples to grow and build with, all of whom have become very dear to us.  On a weekly basis we meet with friends at care group to share our hearts and give counsel to each other but we also have made many memories with these friends through hiking, celebrating their children, attending conferences together and fellowshipping over meals and shared interests. 

Two of the highlights of the month of February include time spent with some of our beloved friends here in Tucson.  The weekend after Valentine’s Day we traveled to Phoenix with Geoffrey and Heather to hear Mark Driscoll preach on the subject of marriage.  Between Friday evening and Saturday morning we heard 4 teachings that gave us wisdom and insight on how to make our marriages even better and more honoring to God.  If you have a chance to attend one of his conferences in your area, it is well worth the time and money spent.  We also enjoyed our time hanging out with Geoffrey and Heather and sharing those two days of learning together.  

One particular highlight of the conference for me was Driscoll’s sensitivity to the Spirit which led him to preach the Gospel and invite anyone down on stage with him who was ready to give their lives to Christ.  A handful of men walked down the aisles and stood with him on the stage as we all clapped and welcomed them to the family of God!  Only God could do such a work of humbling anyone to the point of walking down an aisle in front of a thousand people they don’t know so they can stand on stage and admit they are a sinner who needs Jesus Christ.  Praise Jesus! 

This past weekend we enjoyed another outing with Justin and Kerrie and Kyle and Kelsey when Major League Soccer came to Tucson to play a tournament.  I got Eric tickets for Valentine’s Day and the tickets included seeing two games.  Eric, Kerrie and Kelsey are all soccer players so they were able to appreciate the skill demonstrated in front of us and I had a great time sitting outside watching a live sporting event with friends.  

 The first game was the L.A. Galaxy vs. Real Salt Lake and if you are like me and are totally ignorant about soccer, Landon Donovan and David Beckham play for the Galaxy which is kind of a big deal.  We didn’t get to see Donovan play but Beckham played the second half of the game and everyone cheered when he went on the field.  The second game was the New England Revolution vs. New York Red Bull and of course Eric and I were somewhat vested in this game hoping for some revenge after the tragic outcome of the Super Bowl.  We were very pleased when the Revolution scored two goals and kept the Red Bulls from scoring at all!  It was a great night to enjoy our friendships and some great soccer!   

We praise God for His continued faithfulness to us and want to highlight these moments as ways that He demonstrates His love and goodness to us.  Although we daily fail to perfectly live out His commands, He pours out blessings on us anyway including the blessing of friendship.  We also praise Him for the friendship that He has given us in each other.  Through the encouragement of Mark Driscoll, we are seeking new ways to be thoughtful good friends to each other and have already enjoyed the fruit of that pursuit.

We also praise and thank God because on March 1st Eric passed his A+ certification exams and received a raise at work for being certified!    

We do ask for your continued prayers in the upcoming month of March as you think of us.  On March 7^th we will meet with the male fertility doctor to get more insight into our infertility.  Please pray for our hearts to rest in God’s love and faithfulness as we continue to wait for our family to grow.  We also still have a car with a check engine light that is always on and we hope by the end of March to be able to tell you that it is fixed and it was cheap! 

We would love to hear stories of how God has been faithful to you because that encourages our faith.  Drop us a note in the comments or send us an email!