For Valentine’s Day this year we decided to host a very small get together with a few friends. We usually end up waiting till the last minute before deciding what to do…and it can turn out kinda boring. I had so much fun planning the entire month before the party. I got lots of idea from Pinterest (so nice for party planning!) and put them together with Ella. I’ll post pictures of some of those projects later. For today, here are some photos of the party night. Unfortunately, we were having so much fun once everyone arrived that I forgot to take pictures of people! Everyone dressed up a bit, which made it that much more special. And we had a sitter upstairs for the kiddos, so the adults actually got to relax. Perhaps this will become an annual event!
corner of the dinning room
with a vanilla & raspberry rose cake
champagne with strawberries (& sparkling cider for the 3 expecting mamas)
fruit & sweets for dark chocolate fondue
bread for cheese fondue
the little cafe seating area in the living room
the photo on the top shelf is of my great-grandparents’ wedding. i now have her wedding ring, which i wore as my engagement ring.
homemade vintage postcards hanging from the mantle
paper doily bunting in the living room
vintage jewelry & photos on the mannequin in the dining room
paper hearts hanging from the dining room window
some of the photos were hard to capture with the lighting using my iPhone
A couple days ago I noticed Ella rubbing the right side of her nose, so I asked if she needed a Kleenex. I helped her blow her nose and out popped a little red bead! I explained why we can’t put things in our noses, she listened, and then went to play. Within a few minutes, though, she was rubbing the other side of her nose. We found an added treasure on that side when out popped another little red bead and a piece of apple peel. Goody! It was hard not to laugh. And I’m guessing that won’t be the last time I pull something out of her nose.
Today, as I peer out the window at the snow-covered trees and fresh tracks through the yard, I’m longing for Africa. Not because of the cold or the wind or the snow. It’s because a part of my heart is there. How can a part of my heart be in a place I’ve never been? Let me explain.
For as long as I can remember, I’ve had an enormous desire to live and teach in another culture. Whenever missionaries would speak at church when I was little, I listened intently to their stories and watched their slide shows with great interest. When I was in fifth grade, a couple guys from my church traveled to China to smuggle Bibles to its citizens. When they returned, one of them gave me a piece of Chinese paper money and told me I could keep it as long as I became a missionary myself someday. I still have that paper money tucked away in my Spanish Bible from my year and a half in Honduras during college. They are my reminders of what God has called me to.
Amazingly, when I met Pete, he shared a very similar dream. One night shortly after we started dating, he told me that he wanted to move abroad to teach medicine. Seriously, I felt like God was handing me a very special gift through an incredible guy who also had dreams of other cultures. I know plenty of people who have wanted to go abroad but had to put it behind them when their husband or wife didn’t share the same desire. Clearly, God was letting me continue down the path to being able to teach abroad long-term.
In the years since we got married, God has been giving us clear signs that we need to consider East Africa for our long-term plans. We often meet people who have either lived in Kenya or Tanzania or who have family or close friends there. Doors have opened to lead us closer to actually going abroad. My heart has been preparing for the culture and the people and the land as we make plans for the future. I can’t make my heart do that. I really believe it’s God preparing me for what is to come.
So that is why I feel a longing for Africa. I love this city and the people, but I’m not quite complete here. My heart was made to travel and to teach and to love people who don’t speak my language. I cannot wait to get there. But I must. God is still working in me, and in Ella, and in Pete, and in the little baby we’ll meet in a few months. I get so excited about it that I nearly cry (which could partially be hormones, but not entirely).
Ella’s been taking lots of photos on my iPhone lately. It’s the most fun to discover photos & videos she’s taken at times when I don’t even realize it. Her perspective is unique!
I haven’t been great about taking pictures of the wee bump this time around, so I caught a few in the kitchen this afternoon while making chocolate cake. At least the apron can keep the bump free of batter drips! I’ll be 24 weeks tomorrow.
