One year...already!

I know everyone says that kids grow up so quickly, but I never knew that it would feel like I just turned around and a year had already passed. I am so amazed at the blessing of our little Eilee. She is truly a light to the world (as her name says). Everywhere we go she reaches out her hand and enthusiastically says "HI!" I have learned so much from her about the way the Lord sees people. The homeless woman at the grocery store, the sales clerk at Target, the little boy walking into the library, the man with the toothless smile...they all get a "Hi" from Eilee. The world is becoming such a smaller place as the people I pass change from being just shadows on the sidelines to someone's grandmothers, sons, cousins, aunts, and friends each with a story uniquely their own.

Hanging with the Cuzz Buzzes

While Kristoffer was gone, we spent a couple nights with the Carlson cousins. We had a blast going to the park every day and taking a 3 mile walk around the old houses in Redlands. It was so good to have time to see them...

To England with Love

This Valentine's day was the first in 10 years that Kristoffer and I were apart :( Open Doors was having their annual IT conference in the UK and it just happened to fall right on the week of Valentine's day. After seriously considering joining Kristoffer, we decided that since his meetings went from 7 am to 9 pm that we wouldn't really get to see him much at all anyway....so Eilee and I stayed home. It was definitely the hardest goodbye we've had in a long time since we really spend so much time home together as a family. As we were driving to take Kristoffer to his ride to the airport, he said that he didn't care how hard it was--he was never going to go on a long business trip without his family again. I was so touched... :)

We sent this picture to him on Valentine's day.

A Night in L.A.

Spur of the moment, Kristoffer's parents gave us tickets to Itzhak Perlman at the Walt Disney Concert Hall since his mother was not feeling well. We were amazed by the beautiful architecture of this concert hall that has some of the best acoustics in the world. Itzhak Perlman is the premier violinist of the world, so, needless to say, his performance was breathtaking! During intermission, we walked out onto the patio which is home to our country's smallest National Park. We felt like we were walking in a dream as we stepped out and saw an amazing view of the L.A. lights. I was especially taken by a tree that draped over the sidewalks with its large leaves and pink puffs for flowers. For the parents of a ten-month old, just the mere fact that we were having a date was a treat, but we were able to enjoy beautiful music, breathtaking views, and innovative architecture. Plus, the evening ended with Itzhak playing an encore of the theme of Schindler's List (which he performed for the movie).

A New Year

This year Kristoffer suggested that we spend New Year's day in prayer for direction for the coming year. So, we each took turns watching Eilee while the other had time to read and pray. It was so refreshing and meaningful. We'd really love to make it a tradition. Here we are in our comfy clothes at the end of the day....we realized that we never had a family picture in front of the Christmas tree so we did it ourselves. :)

These are a few of her favorite things...

This Christmas was definitely one of the most special ever since we were able to see all the wonder through the eyes of a child again. Even though Eilee was only 9 months, she entered into all the excitement in a few special ways. Each morning she would wave to the Christmas tree as we walked down the stairs for breakfast....all the lights just captured her. Then, she would stretch out her hand toward the nativity on our mantle and say her new favorite word, "Hi," to baby Jesus. So precious!

Christmas Week!

This year we had a week of family celebrations starting with dinner with Erin's grandparents, followed by a Jensen family Christmas Eve, McGuinness family Christmas morning, and a Carlson family Christmas afternoon! Then, since Erin's sister Noel and Kristoffer's brother Kirk and his family were all in town, the rest of the week was spent with lots of great meals and good laughs with family. Eilee just loved practicing her new word "Hi" on any and everyone she saw. :)