365 :: 4 Emma's Ballet Recital

Well, it looks like I'm already behind on my posting...

Without further ado, I present to you the much anticipated ballet recital of Emma and friends.

Emma's Ballet Recital, May 2011 from Dugald Hall on Vimeo.

memories - in memory

Wow. Life and death are but a mere moment apart.

Steve Malone, my former pastor - a man who taught me, challenged me and married Dugald and I is gone from this world.

My journey with Steve began at Red Mountain Church many, many moons ago. As a young 20-something I was searching for my next step in life. Unmarried and unattached, I had high hopes of escaping the Magic City.

While waiting on my next great idea, I began to attend Red Mountain Church. Steve Malone, then pastor, had been tapped to lead this new urban church - charged with a mission and vision for the community. To be frank, this place blew my mind. Incredible messages, incredible music (thanks, Brian T. Murphy) and communion like nothing I had ever experienced. Each week, I left overflowing - full of questions, full of challenges and full of life.

Let's just say, I never escaped.

My experience with Steve changed me forever. He taught and mentored me in a way that no one ever had. His words awakened in me to whole new life. He guided Dugald and I into a covenant with one another and Christ on our wedding day. If it sounds big, it is.

But his story was complicated, and in what felt like mere moments, his story at Red Mountain was over. His story with me was over.

Let's be honest, Steve made some poor choices. Choices with consequences that ran (ok, still run) very deep. I don't really know all that happened, but the experience left me with an immense understanding that we all should cling to Christ and pray for wisdom to walk away from sin.

At the end of the day, Steve Malone was created in the image of God. He was loved. He is missed.

Steve taught us a song that is sung when a child is baptized. We sang it often at Red Mountain, and I think of him every time I sing to my sweet girls.

I am Jesus' little lamb,
Ever glad at heart I am;
For my shepherd gently guides me,
Knows my needs and well provides me.
Loves me every day the same,
Even calls me by my name.

365 :: 2 & 3

365 :: 2Happy babies = happy mornings


365 :: 3

Our first ballet recital was tonight. So cute!
Emma's style of dancing was more interpretive than classic, but she
had a WONDERFUL time. Will post pictures tomorrow.

365 :: 1

Big little, little big.

Our world is crazy. Emma wants to be a baby; Eleanor wants to be a big girl.

Case in point - snapshot before dinner - Emma has found Eleanor's binkie and crawled into Eleanor's baby chair. Eleanor has found Emma's sucker and is sitting in a wooden chair with it hanging out the side of her mouth.

Hilarious.

So, I'm Committing - 365 :: A Year of Posts

So, I'm committing to a post a day for a year - 365 :: A Year of Posts.

There are so many amazing little things that happen every day, it would be a real shame to miss out on these sweet memories.

What a Year!

Wow, it's hard to believe that Eleanor is a year old. And what a year it has been.

We were so excited to add her to our little brood, but man, two kiddos have been really challenging.

Now don't get me wrong, every mom is a working mom. Motherhood (parenting, really) is a job that is never-ending and rarely does one get enough rest, encouragement or fulfillment (honest, but true). Add to that a full-time, in-the-office, do-I-have-an-outfit-without-milk-on-it-kind of job, and it can be kind of brutal.

For those that know me, I've tried the part-time job thing, but it doesn't work. My career path is not one that is easily left at the office, and one doesn't ever arrive at completion. It's a daily grind of what-should-I-do-next, so it's not exactly part-time friendly. The only thing that was part-time was the pay. And that's not cool.

So, with Eleanor's arrival, Dug and I decided that I should pursue full-time employment. Staying at home isn't an option (for those of you who are wondering). The good news was that I was able to transition my job without really changing employers, so the transition was probably less challenging than it might have been. But, it's been a big change and has forced us to make some changes.

The first one is about protecting our family time and making choices that really work for us. This has meant that after-5:00pm activities have been seriously restricted, as it's really the only time for us to spend with the kids and get ready for the next crazy day. This has meant that our church home of almost a decade just leaves us completely crazy starting out our week - so, it's left us with some tough decisions.

We feel good about the decisions we are making, as we prayerfully consider our options. It may seem at times that we are only thinking of ourselves, but honestly, our job as parents is to help create a home that is filled with love and honesty, not a million things to do. We've stayed well-connected with our community and have sought out new relationships. It's been a fearful, but fruitful time.

So, I leave this post with a promise to post more - I'm actually thinking about challenging myself to a post every day for a year. We aren't talking some complicated group of pictures with a play-by-play of our life, but a nice reflection on the day.

Here's one from last week's celebration of Eleanor's first birthday - so cute!