Huffmania

There's A Lot to Love

2012-01-31T17:46:00.000-05:00

about the little town we live in...and we're really just starting to discover all the fun and unique treasures our town offers!

Emma Grace slowly and carefully inspected each berry to make sure it was perfectly ripe. Her berries were as beautiful, deep red, and sugary sweet. What Jack's berries lacked in quality, he made up for in quantity. I am pretty sure he could win a record for fastest strawberry picker. He loaded up about 8 lbs in the time EG picked her perfect pound. She could have picked for hours, but unfortunately, Jack filled up our ten lb box in less than an hour! Emma Grace will be wonderful at any job that requires precision and accuracy. Jack, on the other hand, will be good at anything that requires speed. I think he takes after his mom in his lack of attention to detail. Oh well. We can't be good at everything, right Jack?!

We've been enjoying gobs of Angel Food Cake covered in fresh berries!

The Sunshine State

2012-01-29T18:00:00.003-05:00

The gray-hairs are on to something. Florida really is a glorious place to be this time of year. We did our annual migration south this week and we are LOVING the weather. We've eaten almost all our meals outside and our kiddos have loved playing outdoors. We are missing these faces, and we always feel that more acutely right after we've been with them. Our time in West Virginia was cold but also refreshing and God really blessed Andy's work. There were lots of bubble baths, and pancakes, and way too much staying up late! It was a wonderful trip.

Since we've been back, we've been enjoying Jack's closest-turned-basketball goal and spending lots of time outside. Welcome back to the Sunshine State, Huffmans!

Birthday Money Well Spent

2012-01-29T17:26:00.003-05:00

Jack treated himself and some friends to ice cream from the Ice Cream Van today!

BUS STOP DUTY

2012-01-12T18:22:00.000-05:00

One of the highlights of being in West Virginia is getting to hang out with Andy's family. I've been thankful we've had extended time here so we don't have to cram seeing everyone into a few days or a few big get-togethers. Instead, we're getting to do things like this....BUS DUTY WITH GRANNY!

Everyday, Granny gets Cousin Luke off the bus. And today, we joined her! The kids loved waiting for the bus and playing with Luke. A big thanks to Luke-He's the one who gave EG the nickname Emma Grapes a few years back. (He actually thought her name was Emma Grapes!) It stuck and now we call her Grapes or Grapers more than her real name! Along with loving Luke, they equally loved the endless supply of snacks and cartoons that Granny offers. Andy has such happy memories of hanging out with Granny as a child and I'm sad my kids don't get to experience that as often. She's a wonderful grandmother and our kids have taken right to her! Thankful for moments to "do life" with those we love in West Virginia!

Snow Days

2012-01-08T18:03:00.001-05:00

When we put our swimsuits away and headed north, our children had HIGH expectations for a winter wonderland. Last year at Christmas, it starting snowing the hour we arrived in North Carolina. I felt like I was in a movie. It was perfect. Emma Grace built her first snowman within hours of arriving and the snowy fun continued into the next few weeks. While in West Virginia, the kids did lots of sledding and their snow suits really got good use.

I really like Florida weather for the most part. The summer is HOT, for sure, but to me it's a fair trade for all the glorious days between October and May. I love being able to spend so much time outside from fall through spring. We even ate our Christmas meals on our patio, which was strange for sure, but nice. But a little dose of winter weather seems to do us all good. So this year, as we headed to West Virginia, we all had hopes of a repeat of last year! It hasn't been nearly as snowy this time around, but thankfully, we've had a few days of snow. Yes Emma Grace is wearing a skirt and tights in the snow. I made her wear a snowsuit earlier in the morning when they were sledding but didn't have it in me to fight her on it in the afternoon. Come rain or shine, or snow for that matter, that girl loves to be fancy. Thankful for a little dose of winter though I'm pretty sure we'll be glad to get back to 70 degrees soon!

Feeling Chinese in DC

2012-01-04T17:08:00.001-05:00

Over the New Year, Andy and I took a trip to Washington DC with some really fun Chinese friends. We enjoyed touring the capitol and learning more about the history of our nation. Ironically, it was our Chinese friends who arranged the tour! In some ways, they are better at living in America than we are!! One HIGH HIGH HIGH light of the trip actually had nothing to do with the US. In fact it had to do with a country on the other side of the world...For those who live in southwestern China, our former home, these dishes will be familiar sights. For those of you living in the rest of the world, these are some of the best dishes China has to offer...in my opinion. We ate at a restaurant called "CHONG QING LUO" (a major city in Southwest China) and everything about it from the decor to the food had authentic Southwest China flavor. We had 水煮鱼片, 麻婆豆腐, 干煸四季豆 and a host of other yummy dishes.
Andy and I talked about that meal for days and my mouth is watering just looking at those green beans! Our Chinese friends enjoyed it as much as we did! Being far away from China, they too were happy to have a taste of home. They enjoyed it so much that they went back the next day! We were sad to miss out on round two! Oh Yu Xiang Qie Zi, how we love thee and miss thee so. My mouth waters just thinking of you.

In some ways this trip was "worlds colliding" for me. There we were in our nations Capitol, speaking Chinese with our friends and learning about the history of America. We ate burgers and salads for most of the trip, along with our Chinese friends. But for them, and strangely for us as well, we felt most at home enjoying this authentic Chinese meal together. Though we were physically standing at the heart and soul of America, it seems our hearts (and our palates for that matter) still linger in China...

Christmas, West Virginia Style

2011-12-28T10:34:00.000-05:00

We traded in our swimsuits and shorts for our winter duds! (Actually I had to go out and buy winter clothes for our kiddos!) We're here in West Virgina enjoying time with Andy's family. The kids are pretty much loving all the attention from their aunts and uncles. And they love all of their pets. Collectively there are 4 dogs and 1 cat while everyone is home. It's rowdy and our kids are loving it.
I am pretty sure Jack and EG will have great memories of playing with their Aunts and Uncles. They really enjoyed helping pick out gifts for them this year and EG did lots of wrapping for me!
They also felt like they should help with the unwrapping part...

What fun!

Christmas, Florida Style

2011-12-26T18:57:00.001-05:00

We had a really low key and fun Christmas. We spent most of Christmas day with our friends, the Fitts. We lived beside them last year and grew to love this dear family. There were yummy soups, manicures, the movie White Christmas, and one other activity not typical to Christmas.....Read on to see for yourself!

YEP our kiddos when swimming on Christmas. The water was cold, but they didn't seem to mind. This was a Christmas first for us!

We spent Christmas Eve with some really fun Chinese friends. There was yummy soup, despite the hot weather, lots of Wii bowling and playing outside. Again, not typical for Christmas, but we really enjoyed all the time outside!

Merry Christmas from our family to yours!!!

My Christmas Reflections

2011-12-23T13:07:00.008-05:00

Last year's Christmas was a wash. We were so very overwhelmed with our transition home that Christmas was not very Christmasy for us. It honestly felt like a burden. Who wants a list a mile long of to do's and to buy's when you're barely keeping your head above water as it is? Though we really enjoyed being with our families, we left so early in December for our pilgrimage north that we didn't bother with a real tree. The thought of dragging out all 200 + ornaments and all the Christmas garb we own just seemed too much when we would only be around for two weeks to enjoy it. So we put up a tiny fake Christmas tree in an apartment that did not feel like home. I cried when it was completed, then stuck it on top of a box, my measly attempt to give lift to both the tree and my Christmas spirit. It didn't work. And that's OK. Really it's OK if some of our Christmases aren't the way we want them to be. Oh sweet grace it is when we get our to do lists done without killing someone along the way, we do our daily Christmas devotions each day and in our hearts we truly have room for this Savior born in a stable. But some years we just don't. That's the reality of living in this broken world. There's often not enough time, or energy, or our hearts aren't the right place.

This year, we're doing better. IN SOME WAYS. I love our 8 foot tree. Andy and I love going big with the tree. He even commented that it needs more lights next year. I like the way you are thinking, sir. And since we have the power grid to support the 2,000 lights we think it needs, that's what we'll do next year. And we've mostly followed our Jesse Tree devotional with the kids, hanging ornaments each day that remind us of all God was doing to prepare the world for his Son. GOD MADE MAN-This one moment in time that truly changes everything. I've managed to make some Christmas goodies along the way and not kill myself buying gifts for my in-laws. Thankfully they are super gracious with me when I have a hard time coming up with gifts for them every single year. But Christmas still feels "off" for us. First of all, we're wearing shorts. That just feels wrong. And since we're in our own home this year, we're far from our families and even farther from our China family. So we don't really have a group to celebrate with. And we're struggling, deeply struggling with things we don't share on our blog. Doesn't Christmas just seem like a time when our celebrations should be perfect and the problems that plague us should take a back seat for just a moment? But they don't. Our problems, our sin and the broken places in our lives make no concession for the Holidays. The contrast of all I want Christmas to be and the reality of what it is in my family today is a gift really. Yes, the contrast is a gift. Do we know why Jesus showing up to our mess is such glorious news? He left his throne. I imagine it's so peaceful there. He left his Father. Oh to be perfectly loved. And he showed up on the scene to right the wrongs we've done. To clean up the mess we've made. This king of all kings, born in a manager which undoubtedly was filthy, broke into our world with one mission. His birth puts him on a trajectory-of service and humility that leads all the way to his horrific death. All to clean up our mess.

So today when I see the mess in my life and I face the reality that my Christmas celebration doesn't meet the mark, I'll rejoice. This season isn't about my perfectly accomplished to do list. It's about rejoicing in Christ's perfectly accomplished to do list: To seek and save Erin Ashley Huffman. It is finished EA, and you can rest and rejoice. I can eat those Chocolate Thumbprints with real joy in my heart and look forward to a day of feasting and celebrating when every detail of the party will be perfect, including me.

Finished Product - the Biggest Lego Ever

2011-12-19T21:12:00.004-05:00

More pics of the clubhouse to come. Thanks Kacki and Poopaw!

Making Progress

2011-12-19T12:38:00.002-05:00

An Early Christmas Gift

2011-12-17T10:48:00.003-05:00

Thanks so much Tim and Kathi for the wonderful Christmas gift. Our kiddos love it! I am sure there will be many happy memories made enjoying your gift!

STRIKE A POSE

2011-12-17T10:00:00.000-05:00

Uncle Al comes to town

2011-12-16T15:38:00.007-05:00

We had a really great time with Alex, Andy's brother a couple weeks ago. The weather was perfect for an airboat ride with our small group from church...we saw lots of alligators!
Andy and Alex got to see a WVU game while in town. It was a great game and Andy loved having another WVU fan to celebrate the victory with.

And EG and Jack loved their time with Alex. Here's Emma Grace directing the clearing out of a part of our yard for a secret gift coming soon!
What a pleasure to have you with us Uncle Al!

Doodle Jump

2011-12-12T17:38:00.003-05:00

Uncle Al introduced our kiddos to Doodle Jump on the IPhone. Sorry to say we will probably never have a cool phone like that, kiddos. But that's just one more thing to enjoy when Uncle Al is around! Our kiddos loved their time with him two weeks ago! More pics of our time to come!

Celebrating Jack

2011-12-10T16:15:00.005-05:00

Oh yes, you shaped me first inside, then out;
you formed me in my mother's womb.
I thank you, High God—you're breathtaking!
Body and soul, I am marvelously made!
I worship in adoration—what a creation!
You know me inside and out,
you know every bone in my body;
You know exactly how I was made, bit by bit,
how I was sculpted from nothing into something.
Like an open book, you watched me grow from conception to birth;
all the stages of my life were spread out before you,
The days of my life all prepared
before I'd even lived one day.

Your thoughts—how rare, how beautiful!
God, I'll never comprehend them!
I couldn't even begin to count them—
any more than I could count the sand of the sea.
Oh, let me rise in the morning and live always with you!

Too Cool for School?

2011-12-02T15:10:00.002-05:00

Not this little guy. He LOVES school. His best friend at school is a little girl named Elena. They've been in the same class for 2 years now. And his precious teacher, Mrs. Pike is as loving and warm as Jackie boy is, so it's a great match! As much as he loves time with his mom, I am pretty sure this guy would go to school everyday of the week if I let him! He's so social, like his Daddy and I think he comes alive being around other kids. I'm so grateful that our preschool has been such a wonderful fit for both our kids.

Alive

2011-11-30T23:58:00.005-05:00

I think there are different parts of us that "come alive" depending on where we live. For example, living overseas in a developing country really tapped into my sense of adventure. Of course, after 7 years of living there, many things felt normal, but I always loved the challenges of overseas living. I liked that my life there required resourcefulness and thinking outside the box. In order to have fun, we had to work for it. In order to have yummy American dinners, we had to scavenge the city for ingredients and diligently execute our furlough packing list as if our life depended on it. In America I am rarely challenged in that way. Fun is way too available and my cheese is pre-shredded and pre-measured. The only thing my grocery store doesn't do for me is cook my meals. (though Publix is coming really close with their "Aprons" meals-they give you a new recipe each week and they have all the ingredients for that meal in one little section, on sale, and often times the veggies are pre measured and sliced. They even have a cute old lady cooking up the meal every weekday from 4-7 so you can try it and make sure it's a winner. Last week the loaded french toast and crockpot hashbrown casserole were amazing.) Anyway, that was not my point. My point is that my love for "challenge and adventure" is not nurtured here like it was in China.

But there are other areas, I am now discovering, that are beginning to come alive again-areas that couldn't be fully alive in China. I think we all have them. I am pretty sure that my friend Marianne will return to her role of Music Connoisseur now that she is back in the US and has access to a music scene. So glad about that Marianne, my music selection has suffered terribly since you stopped recommending albums to me! I imagine that part of her coming alive again as she listens to some local St. Louis band. And I know Alisa would be one heck of a family member if she lived in the US. That girl was made to be a part of a big, close family. I imagine her planning the fourth of July cookout every year and loving every second of it. I imagine her thriving in her role as oldest sibling.

I was made to create. Much like my little Emma Grace, I need to make things. Yummy desserts, colorful dinners, scrapbooks, homemade decorations. It's just how God made me. And I feel alive when I create beautiful things. How like our Father, the one who created the peacock, (our family bird), and the one who placed all those stars in just the right spots so they would look like a dipper. He loves to create and what he makes is beautiful.

Most developing countries don't have the luxury of creating beauty in everyday life. They are too busy getting up at 4 am to push their potato cart up the hill to the market just to earn a day's wages. I did have opportunities to use my creativity in China. But it was often so hard to even find the right supplies so that part of me sort of went dormant for a while. (except for those 25 lbs of scrapbook supplies Andy lugged over the ocean for me more than once.) That part of me is coming alive again and I find myself constantly wanting to make things beautiful. I am simultaneously sad and thankful. Sad for all the people in China who God has given those gifts but they can't use them because they are too busy making ends meet. Oh the frustration of living in a fallen world. And I am thankful. Thankful that God is allowing that part of me to come alive again. And I am thankful that he knows the right season for each part of me to be made a little more alive here on this earth. He knew that this little chapter of my life would have Beauty and Creativity in leading roles. And he intimately works those details out in all of our lives. And most of all, I am thankful for heaven. I know that in the New Heavens and New Earth we'll be fully alive. Every part of us, all at once. And more alive than we've ever been here. I wonder what that Chinese potato cart lady/would-be artist will create when she gets there? This was a family creation-Andy and I made the wreath yesterday while we were on a walk and then my kiddos and I picked out all the goodies for it around our neighborhood today. Tomorrow we'll be delivering them to EG's teachers for Christmas.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

2011-11-28T20:55:00.005-05:00

The Year of the Rooster

2011-11-28T20:30:00.002-05:00

Each year we buy our children a Christmas ornament. My hope is that when they have their first Christmas tree of their own, they'll have lots of ornaments to start with. I hope that each one is a reminder of God's faithfulness to them, and to our family throughout the years. My sweet Jack is celebrating his 4th Christmas in a different house. He was born in West Virginia so his first two week old Christmas was there, accompanied by a WVU ornament. And then at one, I bought a really fun very Chinese-looking ornament for him, not knowing that it would be our last Christmas in China. And last year, we bought him a flamingo, in honor of our move to Florida. I never intended for each ornament to represent the place we were living at the time, but it seems we have a theme here. I am hoping this year's ornament is a last of that theme. Lord willing there won't be anymore moves for us in the next few Christmases! But I couldn't resist this little guy...
The town we moved to is known for having roosters and chickens roaming down town. I'm not sure how long they've lived there, but long enough for the Rooster to be on all the signs for our town. It's sort of the town mascot. There's about 6 of them and they usually hang out behind the consignment shop, right in front of the town fire station. Our kids love seeing them. (There are actually two peacocks that live on a side road downtown and we see them from time to time as well)

So it just felt fitting to buy a rooster for our little ones this year. Jack and Emma Grace, we are praying that you would grow to deeply know and understand the love of Christ in this town. We are praying that your roots would grow deep here, both in our fun little town and in the Lord. We are praying for lots of happy days filled with peacock spottings, tree swings, and long bike rides in 70 degree December! Would this little town would be the place where God meets you and shows you himself in ways that cause you to marvel and worship at who he is. Merry Christmas Jack and Emma Grace!

Turkey Intimidation

2011-11-25T19:35:00.002-05:00

I have suffered from Turkey Intimidation for several years now. I've learned A LOT about cooking over the past 8 years. I can even make homemade gravy now, which according to my Paw Paw, is a requirement for "wifery" in our family. But Turkey...now that's a different story. I've entertained thoughts of cooking my own turkey over the years but it felt like so much pressure. Living in a country where we pre-ordered our Turkey a month in advance and paid a steep price for this rare bird, it felt like the stakes were too high.

And last year I was in no place to roast a Turkey. I am not sure I had cooked more than freezer pizza in my oven at this point last year.

But this year, I had the perfect opportunity to go for it! We had a group of international friends over for thanksgiving, and since it was my American holiday, the cooking was all up to me! It was the perfect chance to just go for it. I LOVE cooking for people from other cultures. Why? Because it's really hard to mess up. First of all, they are always so gracious when they are in our home. Hospitality is such a large part of most other cultures so it seems natural to them that we would have them over. And that our house would look "lived in." I love the overall feeling of no pressure when I entertain non-American friends. And they don't know what it's supposed to taste like anyway, so even if it's not "right" by our standards, they'll never know! And finally in most countries, MEAT is a love language. We've been loved with meat more than once. I remember Xiao Li's parents slaughtering and cooking a whole chicken for us when we visited their home. I remember Wang Shu Shu gifting us a giant hare and two bunnies to raise and slaughter and eat. (We delegated the raising and the slaughtering to loving neighbors who were better with this kind of thing...but we did eat them!) So I knew that cooking up a big turkey would speak lots of love to these friends.
And after I got going, I realized it's just like roasting a whole chicken which I've done more than once...only bigger! We used Alton Brown's "Good Eats Roast Turkey" recipe that called for the turkey to be brined for 16 hours. It was the best Turkey I've very tasted. Way to go Alton. You were right. So I'm over my Turkey Intimidation and we liked the recipe we used so much that I am planning to use it to roast a chicken soon.

Last year, we were thanking God for his abundant clear provision for us as we lived the whirlwind of relocating our entire life. Just making it through a day was something we thanked him for. And in many ways it feels like we are still in the process. It feels less chaotic for sure, but we still feel like tress with very few roots here. We are thankful for our house, for kind neighbors, and for a wonderful preschool for our children. We are thankful for the new friends he has provided for us here and our church, which week in and out points me to rest rest rest in who God is and all Jesus is for me. And I am thankful for the way I relate to him now. I've never experienced the grace of God like I have this past year. Emma Grace was thankful for heaven and cookies and a brother. Jack was thankful for Mommy and Daddy, dinosaur vitamins and cars to play with.

Happy Thanksgiving from the Huffmans!

Happy Thanksgiving Xiao Li!

2011-11-23T10:21:00.002-05:00

We have a Love Cup Explosion on our hands

2011-11-23T10:14:00.003-05:00

We had a wonderful visit with my parents this past weekend. WONDERFUL. I am marveling more and more at God's perfect design for the family. Children need parents. And they also need grandparents. They need the delight of two adults who aren't worn down for the daily grind of raising children. They need to feel special in a way that only grandparents can offer. Every time we spend time with either set of grandparents, my children come home full to the brim with love. After my parents left I told Emma Grace that I thought her "love cup was full" from spending time with Mamma Nette. Her reply, "yes, it exploded!" Way to go Mamma Nette and Pappa Dan exploding your grandchildren's love cup. We are so grateful!

The Pilgrims have arrived!!

2011-11-21T18:33:00.002-05:00

Can you guess who was the Mayflower? Pilgrim Emma Grace with one of her closest friends (and possibly Jack's favorite person in the world right now) Kaelyn! Thankful for Thanksgiving parties with friends, for cardboard boats carried by cute little ones, and for the sweet potato casserole I ate too much of!

Sunday Dinner

2011-11-16T17:13:00.002-05:00

The last thing I want to think about on Sunday nights is what to eat for dinner. So I found a solution that everyone likes-Roasted Marshmellows. It's simple, quick, and everyone is responsible for cooking their own! Not super healthy, but I'm just thankful not to cook. (OK, I only fed them marshmellows for dinner once, but we are really enjoying the fire pit we built in our back yard and we've made way too many s'mores for dessert lately!

the sneak factor

2011-11-11T13:01:00.005-05:00

According to Andy, having all this candy around is "increasing the sneak factor in our house fourfold...all four of us are sneaking to get it." It's true. Everyone around here knows the top shelf is now home to quite the stash of candy. Some of us just reach up there while little ones aren't looking and others of us get stools and climb shelves while big people aren't looking. I put Jack to work and he really enjoyed sorting the candy and stuffing his birthday pinata with some of it. I enjoyed throwing away a 10 lb bag of it. We now have a very small stash of the best candy located at an undisclosed location for when big people want to sneak or when big people think the little people around here need a treat! Mom, I saved the Almond Joys for your visit!

Thankful

2011-11-09T10:59:00.005-05:00

Thank you Brooke, Nikki, Alex, Erin, Laura, Bridgett and Sharon for providing lots of fun and snacks! for me and our kiddos while Andy was gone. so sorry I fell asleep during our second girls night.

Thank you Little Caesars for (finally!) having your grand opening while my hubby was gone. Your 5 dollar Hot n' Ready went a long way for this non-cooking mom.

Thank you Lord, for intimate moments with my Emma Grace, laying on the grass looking to heaven.

Thank you Bryan for coming over at 11:00 pm when I was sure someone was knocking on my door. Darn Ice Maker.

Thank you Friendship Park for hosting us several times. We never tire of you.

Thank you Marianne and David for all you have done for us. Andy's trip to Lubbock was so helpful. Our hearts are eternally bound to yours for all the years God has allowed us to know and be blessed by you.

Thank you fungal infection for going away so that I can wear my wedding ring again. So not comfortable bopping around town with no ring all week .

Thank you Alex for the BOGO coupon to Pei Wei. Our family enjoyed an almost authentic Chinese meal when Andy got off the plane!

Thank you fun craft paper and balloons for giving us something to do and bringing some color to the front of our brown house!

Thank you time change for giving us an extra hour to snuggle this morning. For once I was happy Jack was up at 5 am!

Thank you Lord for all your graces to me these past five days. And thank you Lord for bringing this man home to us. And for using his absence to make us remember what a blessing he is to each of us.

A stirring in our hearts for Heaven

2011-11-08T13:53:00.001-05:00

There are moments when I am amazed at God' work in my children's hearts. This week was one of them. While playing outside EG told me, "Mom, there's nothing I want to do here. I don't even want to play with Sarah and Colin. All I want to do is go to heaven and see God. I really want to go right now. Everything here is stupid. I want to climb up in a tree and fly right up to heaven and see God."

Emma Grace, I am right there with you, sweet one. Things here are not OK, and even a four year old can see that. Sin rages in our hearts, our world is fallen and broken. People get cancer and die. Marriages fall apart. Buildings collapse. We were made for so much more. We were made for a world where righteousness rules in our hearts and people love God and each other. A world where there is no death and no pain. EG, you are right, things here are stupid. Yes, we get glimpses of the goodness we were meant for and we savor and enjoy them. But our hearts know things aren't right. We were meant to be with God, all the time, and to be in perfect relationship with him and others.

She and I prayed and lay on a blanket in the grass and "looked to heaven." She sang a little song she made up about climbing a tree and going to heaven. And we read this passage from the Jesus storybook Bible.

Even my four year old feels in her heart that we were made for this. Come quickly Jesus.

COME HOME SOON!

2011-11-07T07:26:00.003-05:00

Andy has been out of town for 4 days now. One more to go! Our kiddos have missed him more this time than any other time. "It feels like forever" til he comes home. I agree with you Emma Grace! We've kept busy while he's been gone. We tend to do better with activity than just sitting at home. So we've been to a birthday party, the library twice, to three parks, to a friend's house, and I've had two girls nights at my house after the kids were asleep. I've been really blessed by these times with other women. WE DON'T DO WELL without the leader of our family around, so it takes a lot to keep us afloat-thus the flurry of activity. We all need him in different ways and we all feel the sting of his absence. I'm especially feeling it at 5 am when Jack is up due to the time change! I am reminded of what a servant leader he is-he usually gets up with our early bird. And I just need him. Things just feel off inside my soul when he's not around. So I'll be breathing a big sigh of relief and we'll all be offering big hugs when this man's plane lands tomorrow afternoon. As our sidewalk chalk says, "COME HOME SOON DAD!"

Halloween Festivities

2011-11-01T11:46:00.005-04:00

This year was our first "real" Halloween in America. Last year we did venture out into our apartment complex and the kids got a few treats. Actually-5 apartments was just the right amount of candy for our little ones.
But this year, we really experienced part of American culture that we forgot existed. Halloween has taken over this country in the last 7 years while we were gone. Seriously, our neighborhood came alive over the last few weeks with decorations, lights and anticipation! And I understand why now-last night was a blast! Everyone was out, spirits were high, candy was overflowing, and people were talking and getting to know one another, something kind of rare in the "single family dwelling" culture that we are now a part of. Halloween brought our neighbors out and we really enjoyed the community of it all.

We hosted a pumpkin carving-cookout the weekend before Halloween. Down here is hot Florida, you have to wait until 2 days prior to Halloween before carving your pumpkin. Otherwise the pumpkin faces all look like wrinkly old men with a few teeth. Everyone got really into it and some of our neighbors even brought power tools to use! WOW!Smurfette, Ninja, Mermaid, Aerial, and one cute cowboy! We enjoyed trick or treating with some of the kids from our street.

EG and Jack were a little timid at first, but they got the hang of it really quickly. (and after they realized they got candy at every single house, they were leading the charge from house to house!)
Mr Brian, our neighbor who has helped us a ton on our foreclosure-of-a-house, with his buddies. Jack the lion is the newest addition to our street!
Now I am just trying to figure out what to do with the 20 lbs of candy we collected. To eat or not to eat???
Happy Halloween from the Huffmans!

Thursdays

2011-10-20T22:51:00.003-04:00

On Thursday mornings, it's just me and this little man-

Someone recently defined joy to me like this-You have joy when you know someone is delighted to be with you. I like that definition. Jack loves his momma. And he loves spending time with her. And holding her hand. And telling her he loves her. And his momma feels the same way. Our joy cup was overflowing this morning.

Together. On the horse farm that is in walking distance from our house.

On a cool fall morning.

It was perfect.

somewhere between platinum blond and gray

2011-10-14T20:52:00.003-04:00

Today was a first for our family-we attended an annual event in our city for the second year in a row! It seems crazy to me that we are starting to do things a second time around. Last year everything was new and still a lot of things are new to us even this year. But it feels nice to begin to have some "familiars" in our life. When I told Emma Grace and Jack that we were going to the Fall Festa, as Jack calls it, at Daddy's work, they immediately remembered last year's event. Their mental wheels starting turning and they were full of excitement thinking of the bounce house and the maze and the free pumpkin. (I was excited about the amazing dessert table!) It's nice to start a sentence with something like, "remember last year when we...." instead of everything being new and unfamiliar.

I hung some more pictures on my wall today-these really groovy hand stitched minority patches??? not sure how to describe them, that I bought before we left China. I framed them today and hung them in our entry way. I had the thought, "wow, those will be there for a while." who knows the next time we will pick up and move again. There is part of me that misses the adventure of moving apartments every few years, getting a chance to pick new paint colors, and discover life in a new place. But quite honestly, it feels really good to be staying for a while. I am sure I'll get restless a some point, but for now, staying put is really nice.

Today I talked with the kids about why Andy is going back to school. He and I have dreams about what the Lord would call us to do one day and it was fun to share them with our kids. We talk about them a lot but I have neglected to ever tell our kids. Emma Grace really tracks with most of our adult conversations so it was fun to share with her a little more about our hopes and dreams.

By the time those dreams are realized though, I am worried I will have a full head of gray hair. Perhaps we will be old by the time we get to do our dream job. Andy and I often talk about being 65 years old bopping around a certain city in China doing certain things that make us want to dance with excitement. I seriously can spend hours daydreaming about this one particular dream I have for my job after my kids are on their own. And we might be old and gray before it happens. Or we might not be old, but just gray. At the rate Andy and I are graying, we might be totally gray before he even finishes his masters degree, much less have our kids grown and out on their own. Today I pulled about ten gray hairs from the front of my head and then just gave up because there were too many. DRATTS. I definitely think gray is hip so I'm looking forward to rocking a full head of it when the time comes. Plus gray goes great with blue and black, some of my favorite colors to wear. (As did my college days platinum blond color!)

The reality is this-the last few years of my life have been the most stressful of my 30 years and my body is really starting to show it. "Outwardly we are wasting away, but inwardly we are being renewed day by day." This sums up the last year of my life for sure. Every strand of gray hair and every wrinkle on my face has been hard earned. But I wouldn't trade them for a dip in the fountain of youth for one second, though I may be tempted to buy a bottle of platinum blond once they really start to take over. Just kidding.) Every gray hair and every wrinkle on this pilgrim's body represents a thousand opportunities I've had to see the Lord come through for me, to know his love for me in a deep and real way, and to have my heart be made more and more ready for the resurrection that is to come!

Just call us Swamp People

2011-10-11T19:45:00.002-04:00

To live in Florida is to live in a swamp. It rained for about 2 days straight recently and the field behind our house became a pond. Literally. We had 20 ducks, 3 sand hill cranes and about 47,000 frogs appear out of no where. Emma Grace and Jack love the wildlife in this area. And we love the blessing of our yard/swamp which is home to lots of this wildlife. We have a speckled hawk that visits us each morning. We've seen deer, a white owl and we had an armadillo living in our bushes for a while. There are even ARRRRGUANAS here. (Lizards really, but I don't correct Emma Grace because I love hearing her pronunciation of Iguana.) Our most recent wild life adventure-During the two day rain storm, our drains overflowed into our street and 5 catfish came up! You can imagine the delight of a 3 and 4 year old "scooting" the catfish back into the drain with their dad! They loved the rescue mission! Now if we'd cooked them, you could really call us swamp people!

China Moment

2011-10-10T19:35:00.003-04:00

Our Home Owner's Association has some rules. Most of which I think are for the good of all of us. But the "no clothes line" rule is just so...."not green" of them! Well, we are abiding by the no clothes line rule. But they never said anything about this!

Anyone who has walked an apartment complex in China on a sunny afternoon knows this familiar sight! At the first sign of warm weather, Chinese grannies are competing for bush space to dry their linens. Thankfully we "own" these bushes so there is little competition. HEHE. I am sure our neighbors already think we are weird, but this might have sealed the deal! To my China friends, definitely jump on this bandwagon if you haven't already...the quilt dried in no time! And to my American friends, you should try this at home!

Saving the Animals...two by two

2011-10-05T23:12:00.003-04:00

Emma Grace's first homework! Last week in her class they talked about Community helpers-policemen, doctors, teachers, etc. They had to construct a building from the community with boxes from home. She and Andy made an animal hospital. Andy was pretty into it, maybe more than EG. He'll be great for all the projects in our future!

Here they are constructing "Noah's Ark Animal Hospital"

"Saving the Animals two by two" was the slogan for their hospital and they glued animals walking in the door two by two! Wonder if the teachers got it??!!!

Fearfully and Wonderfully Made

2011-09-25T19:18:00.007-04:00

Emma Grace. I have been thinking a lot lately about the meaning of her name, Grace. I started a post about how God is using her in my life to teach me about grace but it feels too weighty and too personal to share right now...maybe one day I will be able to articulate all that God is doing in my life through this dear child to help me really understand grace. For now here are a few things God has been doing in my heart through her lately...

Emma Grace and I role play, ummmm, a lot. You see, I have this salon in our upstairs bathroom and everyday I (Lemonade) do the hair of whatever little girl comes in...it's usually "pink girl" but occasionally Blueberry will show up (think Strawberry shortcake characters) Emma Grace is really creative and she and I usually come up with some pretty creative hairstyles. We love them. But unfortunately one of her classmates didn't like them and it really hurt Emma Grace. I was reminded of how a teacher once told me my hair was nappy-ok, I admit, it was a little messy, but that was the 80's style I was going for and any fourth grade teacher should know better. Not bitter here, just saying, I was really hurt. Anyway, this past week Emma Grace came up with a wild idea for her hair... purple and blue braids of fake hair wrapped around her pig tails. I was a little hesitant. Honestly, I was worried about what the girl at school would say. I started to find myself suggesting other things. But then I thought, this is so silly... Emma Grace is who she is and she is expressing herself. I should be glad for the person God has made her. I think I hid my panic well enough but then EG remembered the voice at school making fun of her hair and she got really upset and started to worry about her do. I talked to her about what I wanted her to think about if that little girl said something again. "Emma Grace, I want you to remember what the Bible says about you. It says you are fearfully and wonderfully made. God made you just the way he wanted you and he loves how creative you are." So many times in my parenting the things I am teaching my children are the exact lessons God is wanting me, his child to learn. It was a sweet time of rejoicing in who my little one is. She is fearfully and wonderfully made. She is left handed. She likes to tell me which countries are her favorite. She currently loves Mexico, Haiti and Zimbabwe. She worries about the weather. She perfectly color coordinates her outfits everyday-girl's got style. And her shining quality that comes through in almost everything she does...She is incredibly creative.

Andy and I are really trying to encourage her creativity. (which can be tricky-one of her latest ideas was to decorate our whole house in yard sell knick kancks that she has collected) One thing we are doing to embrace her desire to create is our "craft cabinet". (the bottom half of our china cabinet...it works since we own no china) It's in our dining room and full of supplies that she can access anytime she wants. Again, tricky with a 2 year old brother. We've had one near haircut, but overall, it's going well. EG is constantly creating things-beach scenes with little drink umbrellas, homemade kites with tissue paper, cards, butterflies, puppets, puppet stages, etc. She usually comes home from school and heads straight for the craft cabinet. Recently she and I made this funky tree with homemade playdoh. It was nice until the playdoh melted.

Andy and I are often amazed at the things she comes up with. She is fearfully and wonderfully made. God, your works are wonderful, I know that full well.

Recently we gave the kids a reward for filling up a stay-in-bed sticker chart. We have a terrible time keeping our kids in bed, so this was our newest attempt. It worked and they were allowed to choose their reward. We gave them a number of fun places to choose from-Chuck E Cheese and several other similar kids joints. Jack immediately decided he wanted to go to go Chuck E Cheese. EG thought for a few days and then decided that instead of all those kid places I mentioned, she preferred to go "to cafe." What she meant was she wanted to go to a book store and read books and get cafe. How adult of her! I love it. (we often say she's our 30 year old trapped in a 4 year olds body!) She and I had such a peaceful little visit to the book store. We sipped our hot teas, had pumpkin cheesecake, and read books while Andy braved Chucky's with Jack on a Saturday! I was glad I got to take EG! She and I are so alike. Andy laughs at how I love to hang out in artsy coffee shops. So glad I have a pal to go with me now!

Jack Attack

2011-09-21T20:50:00.000-04:00

From Foreclosure to Home

2011-09-18T20:48:00.001-04:00

This Thursday we cranked back up on "Project Foreclosure." Andy and I had taken a break for a few weeks from working on our house and are finally starting to get into some semblance of a routine. (think it's been about 18 months since we had a real routine) Anyway, we called in some back up and made quite a bit of progress continuing the transformation of our foreclosure into a home! The main man on the job was Tim and he worked from the moment he got here! He brought the know how on most of the projects we did...

Andy did the grunt work. I provided a long long list of projects I wanted them to do.And this little one brought the creative flair! We were quite a team!

We sprayed, painted, potted, dug, rearranged, cleaned, dumped, sanded, scrubbed, bought, built, spread, corrected my painting mistakes, and did a good deal of eating. (Tim also doubled as Chef for the weekend. YUM-MY!!!)

One of my favorite projects was the back patio, formerly the concrete slab behind our house! Tim picked yellow as the accent color and it totally works! Yellow pillows to come!

There's not much that a can of black spray paint can't fix, in the words of my mother in law!

My favorite part was potting some plants. It's really starting to feel like a home! Thanks Tim for all your hard work!

One Day

2011-09-10T10:00:00.002-04:00

One Day we'll have grass. And a repaired fence. And a freshly painted front door. But for now, we're trying to enjoy our home for what it is and take advantage of the giant dirt pit that is our front yard!

Labor Day Fun

2011-09-09T10:58:00.005-04:00

This weekend we enjoyed a HOT Labor Day celebration. I was remembering last year's celebration with Tim and Kathi in North Myrtle and how I sat out early in the morning and got my first taste of fall. No tastes of fall here-we're still smack dab in the middle of summer. We went to the beach with a group of Chinese Scholars who just arrived in the US! So fun!

Emma Grace caught a big fish! We had "shao kao" ( lots and lots of grilled meat!) It was yummy.

Jack enjoying his Labor Day treat, a Sprite!

I guess I should've communicated that we usually wear swimsuits at the beach. Most of our freinds didn't have/didn't bring theirs. We'll work on proper attire next time! We still had lots of fun.

Ray and Denise's first time to see the Ocean!

Since we didn't have the right beach attire, we decided to just take a cruise. HEHE. We can dream! Jack espcially loved seeing all the cruise ships coming in and out!

Life

2011-09-03T23:10:00.005-04:00

In two weeks I've lost two shirts to blood stains. Jack with the gash on this face and now Emma Grace with her nose dive into the side of the toilet. She had a major bloody nose and is now sporting quite a bruised and swollen honker! Thankfully for me, Andy was home when both of these happened. I am no good with trauma, blood, guts, etc.

Our house is coming along. S-L-O-W-L-Y. Just decided on "chocolate" for our main bathroom downstairs and Andy and I spent quite a bit of time hanging pictures last night. Now the only things left are painting all the trim and doors, decorating the entry way, dining room, buying a bed for the guest room, hanging more pictures, the yard, the yard and the yard, and about a gazillion other projects. Good thing we're going to be here for a while! If you were a fly on the wall, you'd definitely hear me ask Andy "did we make a good decision in buying this house?" about 10 times a day. He reminds me how we prayed and God led us to this house and he keeps saying...think long term, babe. I am way to short sighted for all this. But I am digging the pictures we hung last night and the chocolate paint color.

Jack and Grapes are doing really well in school so far. I think they both enjoy it for different reasons. EG's favorite part is the crafts and the learning. Jack loves the friends and the snacks and his loving teacher.

We had a blast yardselling with our Chinese friends! Success! We got the table they needed and EG scored quite a few gifts along the way. She is majorly into knick knacks. I like to say she has a knack for knick knacks and we are running out of room for them! The shu shu's and Ayi's were very generous and bought her quite a few. She decorated when we got home and said she's gonna be a decorator when she grows up. She's a Kathi Huffman in the making.

Jack is loving his new bike. Loving it! He is so naturally athletic, like my brother. I often wonder what God will do with that gift he gave him...???!!!

I've been thinking a lot about sharing in Christ's sufferings here on this earth and sharing in his resurrection. I want to see resurrection in so many areas in my life and the lives of my little ones. AND I WANT IT HERE, NOW. But that's not the reality of living in a fallen, broken world. Today, I had the thought that sharing in his sufferings here on this earth, really really does make me long for the resurrection that is to come. Oh, I can't wait for our sin and sickness and our sufferings to be taken away. Oh, I can't wait. CAN'T WAIT.

Enjoying highs being in the upper 80's. Good bye hot 90's, hello September. Time to break out the Christmas Music.

Introducing my freinds to my friends

2011-08-26T17:15:00.002-04:00

One of the unique blessings of living in an apartment complex is the people you get to know! These two women played such a huge part in my life last year, and continue to do so. As I talk about these women, I thought it would be nice to have a face to go along with their names. So here they are-Terri and Char, two of God's special gifts to me! Terri is loving, oh so loving, full of joy, and so authentic. Char is delightful, SPUNKY and alive. I love them both so much and I'm just beginning to know them.

September First is coming soon!

2011-08-24T17:12:00.003-04:00

My personal rule on when to play Christmas music: all months ending in "ber" are fair game. September is coming up and I am looking forward to breaking out the holly jolly tunes. Jackie boy loves Christmas music more than me and has been singing it all year long. Everyday at our family Bible time, we allow him to pick a song and every day he picks the same one. He doesn't really care if the month ends in "ber" or not. He's sang this song so much that he knows every word and I think he's too cute singing it. Thought I'd share to get you in the mood for September 1st!

Familiar Scenes from Florida

2011-08-24T16:39:00.006-04:00

It feels really good to be in our home with no plans to move again any time in the near future. Our house is far from "in order" but at least we are stopping here for a long time, Lord willing. We had a really fun summer visit with my family in NC. As Andy said, our month long trip was like setting the reset button on life. Sometimes you just need that. It was really good for us to put down the paint brushes and leave the to do list at home while we enjoyed time with friends and family. I didn't go to the grocery store for a whole month. Now that was a vacation!!

Familiar scene #1. Andy is really glad to be back on his bike! Last year he had a 30 minute drive to work. But this year, like in China, he can ride to work. He is thrilled. Also glad to be back to a familiar scene are these two kiddos. Here they are on their first day of preschool. Jack started the school year with a bang. He fell into his big boy bed the night before school started. Pretty sure he was out of his bed and was running back to it in the dark because he thought we were coming. I think he tripped and fell into the side of the bed. OUCH and A. LOT. OF. BLOOD. So thankful Andy was home. A couple hours and a trip to the urgent care center later, his gash was all glued up and he was ready for action. He seems fine and will have a small scar. Both Jack and Grapes have wonderful teachers and they both had a really good first week of school. I'm so grateful. Grapes was the line leader this week and she loved that special job. One last familiar scene that we are enjoying is having international students in our home. Most international students are arriving this month to begin the school year. We've had a blast getting to know some of them. We had this group of Chinese students over this week for dinner. Turns out the couple on the right attended the university Andy and I taught English at in China. Small World?!!

One of the highlights of our time in NC was the time I got to spend with my cousin Brandi. She is an expert yard seller and showed me the ropes. I learned a lot about the ins and out of "good yard selling." This Saturday I am passing along the love and taking these students yard selling. We're on a mission to find the best deals in the state! Thanks Brandi for my shopping re-education. Hoping our international friends will love it as much as we do!

Thankful for the beginning of routine and a few familiar scenes!

Let it Snow!

2011-07-28T22:02:00.002-04:00

Not your normal July weather! Taken July 24th, 2011

Flat Stanley meets Kristi Troy

2011-07-28T21:37:00.006-04:00

I had a great time meeting Kristi and Troy, EA's cousin and her hubby! They live in Denver and took us to Rocky Mountain National Park for the day! EA and Kristi did a lot of catching up and we all really enjoyed getting to know Troy! We saw a ton of elk and other wildlife!

While we were in the park, we ran into the Dortches, who were also playing in the snow. We snapped a quick picture...

We ate pizza in Estes Park and then headed straight for....

the fudgery! Yum Yum!

What a great day! YAY for family! That's all from our Colorado trip. Hope you enjoyed!

Flat Stanley's First Hike

2011-07-28T21:11:00.005-04:00

I had a great hike with the Huffs and Ellie and Keith near Long's Peak. The weather was perfect and the sky was beautiful! Check out our pictures!

What a fun day!

Melissa the Mermaid

2011-07-28T20:54:00.001-04:00

While at the beach with Kacki and Poopaw, EG and Jack enjoyed a trip to Ripley's! Thanks so much for entertaining our kiddos while it poured down rain for 3 days straight at the beach! Emma Grace loved the "Melissa the Mermaid" attraction. She loved it so much that we decided to make our own Mermaid costume. Here's our version of Melissa-

Jack is asking for a shark costume, so I think I'll be heading back to the store for some blue fabric tomorrow.

A week in pictures

2011-07-22T19:34:00.007-04:00

With the temps reaching 100 degrees this week we tried to keep cool.

Here are a few things we did to pass the hot days...

watched trains

rode in old police cars

rode trains

rubbed cows

played in the water fountain

headed to the bathhouse

went to the petting zoo

(somewhere along the way, I lost my hand - oops)

played in the park

gem mining

celebrated Pappa Dan's birthday with special cookies.

We had so much fun this week, tomorrow we go to the beach with Kacki and Poopa,

I can't wait!!

2011-07-22T16:32:00.000-04:00

OH BOYSSSSSSSS! LET ME SHOW YOU HOW IT'S DONE!!

Teach a boy to fish.....

2011-07-22T16:20:00.005-04:00

Please ignore the hair-d0, I have had a hard time this week. My friends carry me around in their pockets, put me in grocery bags and once the little girl put me in her mouth (that's why may hair looks so strange)

Teach a boy to fish and he will be "hooked" for life.

COLORADO is awesome!

2011-07-21T17:50:00.002-04:00

Flat Stanely here. Sorry I am not actually in these pictures. I had a little accident and am currently drying out (thanks to EA's water bottle) Anyway, we are all having a great time. Really great. It's pretty interesting to share a dorm with EA. Her side of the room is, well, much like it was in college (MESSY!!) while mine and Andy's side (we have the bunk beds) is nice and neat.

We are enjoying the awesome weather, beautiful mountains, quiet breakfasts, and wonderful encouragement. Jack and Emma Grace, I know you and Flat Clara are having a really great time riding trains, playing putt putt and camping. We can't wait to see pictures. We miss you lots and we've been praying for you. Please tell Aunt Katie Happy Happy Birthday from all of us. And eat some cake for us!

My first trip to Colorado

2011-07-18T22:28:00.004-04:00

Well, I'm out here in Colorado having a great time! I enjoyed my first trip on an airplane and the pilot even let me sit up front for a few minutes before the plane took off! I thought of you Jack and how much you would have loved to push all the buttons up there! There were hundreds of knobs and buttons and levers. So fun. Can you find me in the picture? Andy and EA keep saying this is like a second honeymoon for them. Ten days, just the two of them! So when they saw this french bakery in the airport, they had to take a picture. Guess it reminded them of their honeymoon in Paris when they ate fresh croissants everyday for breakfast!

But there are a few differences between their first honeymoon and this one. First of all, they brought me along. Kind of a third wheel, but it's all working out. There are actually three beds in our dorm room and they let me have the top bunk. That's right, I said dorm room. Not very honeymoon like if you ask me, but still really cozy. We're all enjoying the Colorado mountains, which we looked at this morning from our breakfast table. Andy and EA are reconnecting with lots of friends! Here is EA with Ellie, her roommate before she married Andy. They had snow cones and got caught up on life.

And here I am with a very special lady. Jack and Emma Grace, this is your mom and dad and me with Leslie. Leslie actually told Kacki about Jesus when she was in college! They've stayed in touch over the years and it was really fun to run into her. Kacki, she says hi to you.

Well, it's a two hour time difference so we are all wiped out. Heading to bed now. Jack and Emma Grace, your mom and dad wanted me to tell you they miss you very much and that they are blowing you kisses out our window so make sure to run outside and catch them soon.

Flat Stanley signing off now

Clara's day

2011-07-18T20:37:00.004-04:00

Check out the things we did today:

I had my first trip to the library.

Emma Grace and Jack picked out 5 books each.

It was hard for them to choose only 5.

We read lots of books and played with puzzles.

I like the library.

we got our fishing poles ready to fish...never did get to fish, ran outta time

Emma Grace shared her milk with me...

I love Dora!

Jack took me for a ride....

Boy, what a fun day!

Whew, I am exhausted! (MammaNettte said that :)

We will be "off line" for a few days.... I'll take lots of pictures for you.

I am missing my brother Flat Stanley...if you see him, let me know.

Stay tuned for more exciting adventures from Flat family...

Hi from Flat Clara and friends!

2011-07-17T20:05:00.011-04:00

Emma Grace took care to make sure I was not afraid on the rides.

She held my hand when I was.

Thanks to EA for letting me be her guest blogger. I am currently on vacation with my buddies and their grandparents. We had so much fun today!

We went to the park, rode the rides and played on the playground.

We got so hot, that we HAD to have ice cream to cool us down.

I like this vacation so far!

Jack wants to be like his uncle Charlie, see the name on his helicopter?

It's says Rangers.

Last year when Jack said helicopter, it sounded like "heart doctor"-

He's older now and doesn't says it like that anymore.

I miss it.

It was so cute.

If you look close, you can see me riding in the back seat of the plane.

EG was a good pilot!

Look, here I am again!

See you tomorrow~

Guest Blogger

2011-07-17T08:51:00.002-04:00

I would like to introduce you to Flat Clara and Flat Stanley. They will be guest blogging while we are out of town. Flat Clara will be traveling all over NC with two little blondies and their grandparents. Flat Stanley will be hoping on an airplane with two foot-loose-and-fancy-free parents and heading out to Colorado. They'll both be blogging about their adventures here for the next week or so. Enjoy!

She's already thinking...

2011-07-16T21:27:00.002-04:00

about what to do with this...

Great grandparents can't resist, I guess.

Taking a break!

2011-07-13T14:17:00.003-04:00

I'm really looking forward to the break Andy and I have coming up. He and I are heading out to Colorado for ten days at the end of this week. I am looking forward to being in Colorado, what a beautiful state, to extended time with Andy-30 meals of all adult conversations, to extended time with the Lord, much needed, to vision and encouragement in our work. It's good to take a break from our house. We've made good progress in the past few weeks, but we have so much more to do. It's nice to get away and not have that to think about!

A highlight of our new house is all the big trucks that come around. Garbage and Recycling day bring two mammoth trucks that make a lot of noise and have really cool ways of getting the trash into the truck. Our kids (especially Jack) love watching. He actually follows the truck all the way to end of the street and watches the truck do it's thing at every house on our street. He and the driver are becoming buddies. Even the furniture delivery truck was worth taking a seat for...

Another highlight has been getting to know our neighbors. One family has two girls, 5 and 8 and we've already stayed up past our bedtimes playing with them twice this week. Our house is in a cul de sac so it's a great place to ride bikes, blow bubbles, chalk the sidewalk, and eat popsicles. It's hot hot here, but our yard is kind of jungle like at this point, so we have plenty of shade.

Andy has been incredibly busy tackling the list of projects we have to do on our house. It's definitely livable-we have a floor now and all our walls are painted (well mostly!) but there's tons of stuff left to do. The yard, which is a project for the fall, needs lots of work. We're trying to conquer the inside before we set about that task. We did haul off all this brush this week.

All this stuff was growing in our yard and we've been cutting it down slowly. At least our yard is less jungle like at this point.

For the most part, we've keep the kids under control during the chaos that is moving. But there have been a few moments where I've come in to find EG eating in the nude or Jack helping himself to some ice cream...not sure why he bothered to get the bowl out...he was eating straight from the container.

Old World, New World

2011-07-08T22:28:00.002-04:00

Aubrey and Abby, precious new friends

Back in October, Andy and I attended a retreat for people returning from overseas. It was a weekend long getaway at the beach intended to help us transition back to life in the US. It was really helpful to process to be with others making the same big move and to reflect on the gravity of our move as well as get some helpful insight on how to make the transition go as smoothly as possible.

One of the activities they had us do was create an "Old World, New World" book. The first few pages of the book were about our "Old World" (for us that is China). Each page had a different aspect of our old world written on the top-friends, places, activities. They had us draw or write on each page. The room was electric while each family worked on filling out places and people from their old world. It was like a piece of us came alive again! Andy and I enjoyed listing all our friends from China. We drew a picture of the market where fresh veggies were daily piled and sold for practically nothing. We loved drawing pictures of the activities we were a part of. It felt so good to go back for just a few minutes to "that life."

Then they had us flip the pages to our "New World" (for us that is Florida). We were to repeat the same activity-this time listing places, people, and activities from our new world. The room grew quiet and somber. Most every one's pages were stark white with a few words scattered here and there, quite a contrast to the previous pages overflowing with people and places we love. We were thankful to write our families names and a few friends here in the US, but most of them do not live close by. They reminded us that this process of starting over takes time. There's so much to cherish from our old world and our new world feels empty right now. But it won't forever.

As we've closed out this first year of living back in the US, I've been thinking a lot about how God is filling our "New World" pages. He's coloring them in ways I did not ask and could not have even imagined. That's one thing I really like about moving and starting over. I have an awareness of my needs and my dependence on God to provide for me that I could not have settled into my old world. I still love my old world and miss my friends so much. But I am also keenly aware of God's movement in my life to meet me in this new world. People who bring us joy, a home that we love, neighbors who have blessed us beyond belief. There's so much to be thankful for as we watch God fill in our pages. I remember the first few months entering most interactions with people with an expectation and wonder-"what will God do in this interaction? why did he bring this person into my life" It's been fun to see some of that unfold this year. Starting over is hard. Really Hard. And I am not sure I can say I would choose it for myself again (I told Andy that I hoped he liked this house, because I am planning on us being here til we die!). But I'm glad for the way it's helped me see that God is my good father and that my good gifts in my new world are from him.

Our house has a pet elevator

2011-06-29T16:54:00.004-04:00

We just installed our pet elevator. Hope Andy likes it. (we did it while he's out of town this week!)

So thankful Katie could come and hang out with us for the week. So far we've gone to a kid's play place and to the Peabody hotel to see the March of the Ducks as well as to a local park. It's been fun and SUPER helpful to have extra hands with our kiddos.

Oh Happy Day!

2011-06-25T22:43:00.002-04:00

"For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:...a time to weep and a time to laugh; a time to mourn and a time to dance." Ecclesiastes 3

Today is a day for laughing and dancing for this precious family. Our dear, precious friends, Xiao Li and Axin are holding their baby boy!!! Si En, which in Chinese means "to think about or mediate on grace" was united with his parents this week. Xiao Li and Axin have been praying and waiting for a child for several years now. While we lived in China, we had the privilege of walking with them while they waited and wondered about God's plan for them. I can't express how much joy filled my heart today as we talked with them on the webcam. They had a stop over near where Matt and Laura now live. While they were there we got to meet Si En via the webcam. He's healthy, 9 months old and almost exactly a year younger than his older cousin, who is also a boy!

I am reminded of God's faithfulness. He was faithful to them as they waited and wondered and he held them during the times of not knowing and the pain of waiting for a child. And he is faithful in giving this precious child to them. Si En is well loved. God has filled Xiao Li and Axin with hearts overflowing with love. We too love you Si En!

Yes we can

2011-06-25T14:26:00.002-04:00

Bob the Builder and his helper Wendy hard at work. They (and their parents) chopped down all the undergrowth pictured behind them. Our yard hasn't been loved in quite a few years. It's fun to dream and plan about cultivating it and really making it a fun place for our family and friends to enjoy.

1000 projects

2011-06-23T15:14:00.003-04:00

1000 unfinished projects+2 busy children=VERY SLOW PROGRESS! That's where we are in life right now. I think we are more OK with that then we were a couple days ago...or maybe we're just feeling better now that our clothes aren't in a giant mountain laying in our floor. We got around to putting the kids clothes away and ours into folded piles-waiting for our dresser to get here. Having conquered clothes mountain makes life feel a little more manageable.

My favorite spot in the house right now in my desk. I have wanted my own little desk for a few years now. Seems like that could help me to be organized rather than just have crumpled piles of paper in random spots all over my house! We'll see. Not sure how much more organized I will be. Maybe the fun chair will motivate me??

I got the picture from a really cool night market when I went to visit my friend Abby before we came home. I am slowly getting around to framing the things we bought there and I am really glad to have some reminders of our life there around our home. This year it's almost felt like I lived in a vacuum-sort of trapped between the life I used to live and the life I will have in America. It's just felt really disconnected from our past. So I am glad to have some tangible reminders of the country and people we love so much.

And on my desk is a picture of my Mom, brother, and sister, and one of my grandfather. Lots of faces to love.

Grapes is FOUR!

2011-06-20T20:17:00.003-04:00

I love telling Emma Grace the story of when she was born. I remember so many of the details of that night and early morning. (which is impressive because my memory is so terrible) Everything about that night and morning seems to just stick out in my mind...eating shrimp gumbo in Hillsborough, my water breaking on the way home, and me thinking I was peeing in my pants since I drank so much water and skipped the bathroom because the line was way too long, the pain of childbirth, that was really painful, how happy we were to meet her, how we cried happy tears, the orange juice that tasted so good to me right after she was born, how alert she was from the beginning, all the nurses saying she looked like a 3 month old, not a newborn, the funny poop stories from her first few weeks of life, and on and on. Those two days go down as some of my favorite on this earth. What a blessing to experience God creating a new person.

And on your fourth birthday, I'm glad to reflect and think about the person God has created you to be, Emma Grace. He has given you a brilliant mind, one I pray will always be sharp with the knowledge of God. Would God teach you truth in your inmost being, beginning in that amazing mind of yours and trickling down all the way to your heart. I pray you would know the love that surpasses knowledge in your mind and in your heart.

He has made you compassionate. You have a heart that hurts when people hurt. That is a gift. I pray you would remain tender and hurt for the things God hurts for and rejoice for the things he rejoices over.

You have more dynamic determination than anyone I know. (And I thought I had a lot!) You have a penchant for everything fancy, frilly, girly, and pink. You're great at voices, like your daddy, and you are very responsible.(we like to say you're a 30 year old trapped in a 4 year old's body!) You are a gift, Emma Grace and we love you. Happy Birthday to the oldest 4 year old I know.

Moving...again!

2011-06-18T14:25:00.005-04:00

Hope you'll enjoy seeing our home!

taken from staircase, looking into dining room

taken from front door. Dining area in front of house, living room in back half.

Kitchen from back of house. sink overlooks the living room

standing at staircase looking into living room. Master off to right.

Standing at back door

It was a year ago this week that we moved back to the US. In some ways that feels so long ago that we lived that life. But these few weeks as we've been packing up everything we own, again, the feelings I felt last year at this time come back quickly. First of all, how do we accumulate so much stuff in such a short amount of time? Secondly, I DON'T LIKE moving. This will be our last move, ever, I informed Andy this week. HEHE. Just kidding, but I am really hoping not to see a roll of packing tape for at least 5 years. The feeling of saying goodbye is familiar, but thankful many of the people we've gotten to know this year are staying here as well!

We've made considerable progress on our house, considering if was a foreclosure and needed lots of tender love and care but the big mountain of boxes in our front dining area isn't being conquered as quickly as we'd like! Here are a few pictures of our home. I feel so thankful for this house. God is so kind to give us the house we asked for from the first time we saw it. I love that it's in a neighborhood, yet quiet and kind of rural. I love that it has an open floor plan and that the kitchen overlooks the living room. I love that it's bright and cheery, something I specifically prayed for when asking God for a house. I am reminded that God is lavish in his giving to his children. So thankful! Check out Andy's handiwork on the hardwood floors. I am very impressed by the work he and Kevin did!

Tonight she said...

2011-05-30T00:49:00.002-04:00

I want to remember some of the silly things my kids say. Tonight, while riding in the backseat of the car, Emma Grace said:

Whew, it's going to be a long day tomorrow. I have a lot of work to do. I have to babysit and go to work. I have to plan and plant my garden. And I have to stay up really late and cook a big meal because all my friends from work are coming over. I'm making spaghetti. Chick Chick will have to babysit because I have a lot of work to do. It's going to be a long day.

I promptly said, well, looks like you better be getting to bed really soon, because you're gonna need some rest with your big day coming up! I'll let you know how her long day goes!

School's out for summer!

2011-05-28T15:21:00.004-04:00

Jack and Emma Grace just finished up their last day of preschool this week. It's been really neat to see how much they have learned and how much they both enjoy their friends.We are thankful for this little school. Jack's teacher, Mrs Davis has been incredibly kind to us and works so hard to make the class environment fun and educational! Emma Grace learned lots this year-she's mastered the scissors and can write her name. And I think she did LOTS of playing on the playground. We seemed to have a steady supply of mulch chips from the playground in their shoes!

Helping Dad

2011-05-20T21:21:00.000-04:00

Emma Grace and Jack are enjoying helping out around our new house. They have some of their own tools, though they are a little confused about which tool to use when... Emma Grace is using her garden shovel to help Andy remove carpet tacks from the floor! At least she's helping! Way to go Team Huffman!

2 1/2 Jack

2011-05-19T21:02:00.000-04:00

I love so many things about Jack at 2 and a half. I love how happy he is, truly happy about life. I love how tenderhearted he is and how he tells me he loves me about 20 times a day. Sometimes it's because he just wants me to know it, sometimes it's because he wants me to tell him I love him too, and sometimes it's because he wants some candy. (And I give it to him!) I love that he tells me to kiss him and that he sings Farmer and the Shell in his bed for our hour before falling asleep. I'm even amused that his favorite word is poop and that he said, "it smells like poop in here" to our guest at dinner tonight. Jack has a rugged adventurous boyishness to him that's coupled with his tender little heart. I've been telling my children lately that they are fearfully and wonderfully made. What he makes is so good and our little Jack, with his black bottom feet, sticky hands and soft heart is a reminder to me of that each day.

Settling in one spot, for a while

2011-05-18T20:24:00.005-04:00

In the past 8 years since we graduated college, Andy and I have lived in 10 different locations-we've lived in apartments with other friends in China, 3 apartments together in China, with our families when we came back to the US, a house in the US, a hotel in Thailand for a month, and now an apartment in the US. There's been a lot of packing and unpacking for us. So the thought of settling in one spot for a while is really appealing to me. Each place we've lived holds special memories but moving definitely takes a toll on me! It's been almost a year since we sold everything we owned in China and headed back to the US. It will be almost a year to the day from the day we left our apartment there to the day we move in our home here. We've loved our set up this year in an apartment, but we also knew it would be temporary.

The next month of our lives will be full of work on our new home. Andy has been busy ripping out carpet, patching holes, and painting. Our neighbor has been removing the popcorn from the ceilings (goodbye 1970) and we've started to trim some of the trees that were way overgrown in the yard. Tonight Andy is over there with a friend who we met in China, Aubrey. He and his wife met there and they moved to our city here and attend our church. It's been neat to have a China connection so close by! Andy and Aubrey are taking out the tile in the kitchen and entryway. We decided that the carpeting in the first floor needed to go since we are really hard on carpet, especially in the dining area! So we are taking up the tile as well and putting in hardwood flooring all through the first floor.

The picture above is taken from the back doors that lead out to a patio area. The kitchen is off to the right. The living room area is where the red padding is. The dining area is in the front part of house to the left of Andy. There's a bedroom and bathroom off of the living room area and 3 bedrooms and a bath upstairs. It's really open and simple, which I like.

As my Rossi always says, "If I can just see where you sleep, I feel better." So this post is for those of you who like to visualize where people are living! I'll get a picture of our bedroom up for my Rossi eventually.

Home Sweet Home

2011-05-16T14:08:00.006-04:00

Well, it's official. We are now very in debt. For a sizable fee and the commitment to pay a lot of money over the next 30 years, we also get to do fun things like....

paint our kids' bathroom this awesome "embellished blue!"

We are really thankful for the house God has provided for our family. We have seen God lead through the whole buying process. We knew we wanted to live between where Andy is in school and where he going to be working next year. This house is right in the middle of the two so he can bike both places! It's in a cozy neighborhood. The first time we saw the house, really liked it and we LOVED the big back yard-kind of a rarity in the area were looking to buy. Within a week of seeing the house, we made an offer and that began the waiting process. At first we didn't get the house, because someone else put in an offer 30 minutes before ours. As sad as I was (and I was really bummed), I was also really thankful that God is wise. I kept thinking, "well God, you know and I'm so glad you're in charge here, not me!" It was so good to go through that process as it helped me to see I would be fine without that house. (easy for our flesh to start telling us we have to have this certain thing in order be happy!!!) But just a few days later, the bank called and wanted to consider our offer. We're still not sure what happened with the offer that went in before ours, but it was so nice to know that what was out of our hands, was totally in God's control. They eventually accepted our offer and we even ended up getting the house for $5,000 less than we offered for it!

I've been reminded this week how kind God is to me. The house is just really fun-mainly because of the big backyard, which I imagine we'll spend lots of time in. Family members have given generously to help us out and our neighbors have warmly welcomed us (our next door neighbor is from NC! YAY!) and have offered to help us on the somewhat major projects we are working on before we move in. Just today I got a message from a new friend here offering us a new mattress and box springs. It's neat to see God's provision for our family.

I am praying our house will be a place of refreshment and deep connection with the Lord and each other. We have a great big view of the sky so I am looking forward to many days of watching the sky, sipping my coffee and drinking deeply of his love for me. We are praying it would be a place where many others would taste of his love as well.

Many more DIY pictures to come. Hopefully not too many DIY disasters, though we've already come close a couple times.

Mother's Day!

2011-05-08T22:29:00.007-04:00

We love you Mom and Kacki! We hope you had a great day and know that you are so loved and appreciated. Now more than ever we understand your love and sacrifice for us over the years. Hope you'll enjoy a few pictures of your grand babies!

My mom is 7 years old and has pink eyes and blonde and red hair. Her favorite food is bread and her favorite restaurant is Chick Fila. Her favorite TV show is a Boz video. I love my mommy because she kisses me. Emma Grace ( on a mom survey at school)

Thank you God for mommy for making Emma Grace's grits (Jack in his Mother's Day prayer)

I want to remember these days and these faces. I want to remember their little voices and their little hands. What a precious stage of life we are in with these two. I am grateful to be the one to nurture and love and train these little hearts. I want to remember the blessing and honor of being their mother.

We had a really great day. Jack and Emma Grace presented me with homemade cards this morning and Andy wrote a really kind card with a gift card to Starbucks (coffee and time to myself are the two love languages I speak most fluently these days!!!) We enjoyed a picnic with friends from church and had a delightful dinner with a new friend from our complex. It was a sweet day for me.

International

2011-04-29T18:10:00.004-04:00

Fun with LJ and Ramiyah-our Haitian American friends

After living overseas for 7 years, I feel really drawn to other cultures. There is something really comforting about being around people who aren't from my own home culture. I like Americans, don't get me wrong, hehe, but I just really enjoy people from other countries. One unexpected blessing from this year has been how international the area is! We live close to a few colleges, one of which has a huge foreign student program. When I open my door, I hear Vietnamese across the hall and smell the garlicky meat they cook on their porch. We have neighbors from the Ukraine, Haiti, Japan, Saudi Arabia, Kenya, Poland, India, Korea, Colombia, and Dubai and quite a few white American college students! It's been a blessing to be surrounded by so many different cultures. So far this year I've gotten to try Arabic coffee, see my fully covered Muslim friend uncovered in her home, try sushi made by our Japanese friend, and I've been "smoked" with fragrances by my friend from Dubai. Our kids also have the blessing of learning about the nations. Today in our apartment we had 4 countries represented in the kids playing! I am thankful that the nations are at our doorstep. How fun.

Roomtime

2011-04-26T14:46:00.004-04:00

I thought she was using the markers to color Mother's Day cards....

What can I say? This girl is creative!!!!

Happy Birthday Andy!

2011-04-26T14:15:00.005-04:00

Happy 30th Birthday Andy! I love you and I am so thankful for you on this day. It seems so significant to me that your 30th birthday falls on the day we celebrate the resurrection of our Savior. He has "trampled death with death." He has defeated once and for all our greatest enemy-our sin which leads to our death. He has bought us out of slavery to sin and into freedom-freedom to be who he created us to be-to be made into our original design. Freedom from shame and guilt and the wrath we deserve. Freedom to be in intimate relationship with our heavenly Father. Freedom to come each day to him, needy as we are, and be filled with streams of living water-to be made into a new creation by his power. Today we celebrate all that Christ has done for us. God is raising us up with Christ to be new creations and I see you living your resurrected life this year, more than ever. I see you experiencing the freedom God has called you into when he bought you. I see you walking in confident trust rather than fear and self reliance. I see you growing tender and soft, like our Savior. I see Christ conquering your sin, just as he is mine. This year I'm seeing glimpses of the Resurrected Andy more than ever. I love the work he is doing in your life. I love that I get to know the intimate works he is doing that no one else sees. Christ is risen, he is risen indeed. I am so grateful that I get to see his resurrection played out in your life, and you in mine. I'm praying our 30's will be a decade of growing into our new names together. I love you Andy! Happy Birthday!

FACES OF MY FISH

2011-04-18T14:06:00.002-04:00

Dinner with a Princess

2011-04-15T22:27:00.000-04:00

Emma Grace is very much into the whole princess thing and I am pretty sure she changes dresses about 74 times a day. She was delighted when Tim and Kathi treated us to dinner with Cinderella and Prince Charming a few weeks ago!! She and Jack really enjoyed meeting the characters and the hotel (castle, wink wink) was beautiful. Emma Grace had a magical time for sure! Thanks Tim and Kathi!Prince Charming has nothing...on this little guy! Thankfully for everyone, the stepsisters were much kinder in real life than in the book!! Emma Grace was worried about that but they ended up being her favorites! And Jack's favorite was....

Thanks Tim, Kathi and Mary for a really fun treat! We loved being with you.

Update

2011-04-14T13:19:00.007-04:00

Since I haven't been great about updating my blog, I thought I'd do a little update for those interested!

These past few months has been so busy for us. We've had lots of visitors and taken several trips, all of which were really fun and we are in the process of buying a house. Although it was all really fun, I am feeling the need to slow down some! Andy and I have been talking about a few things we want to cut out in order to slow down and little and I am really hopeful that a slower pace of life will be healthier for all of us! I guess after living a slow paced life in China, I am just having a really hard time adjusting to the go-go-go ness of our life this year.

Our house is closing on Monday, Lord willing!! It's been a much crazier process than I would've imagined. It's been encouraging to see God providing for us. Just last week the price of our house went down 5,000 from our original offering price (long story!) On top of that, several people have given generously to us because they wanted to help with this purchase. Thanks to those special people. What a blessing you are and your gifts were a huge reminder that God provides for his children!

Our awesome realtor, who happens to be from Charleston, WV (Andy's hometown!) is letting us stay in her beach condo this weekend so we are heading there for a fun, low key beach weekend, just the four of us, to celebrate Andy's upcoming BIG 30!!!!

I definitely need to go back and update my blog from these past few months-so much has happened-dinner with princesses, a great visit from the Huffmans, retreats that involved thrift store fashion shows and karaoke, as well as a weekend with John and Alisa. Maybe someday I'll do that. Or maybe not. Maybe I'll just have to tuck those memories deep in my heart since my blogging time is short these days.

A little bit of Sheryl in my life

2011-04-09T14:42:00.007-04:00

We are trying to convince Sheryl and Andy that they just need to move down here! I mean, they love this state, they come all the time for business and some of their favorite people in the world now live here! Those seem like pretty good reasons to me!!!

They were here again in March and we had a belated bday celebration for our big 30. Andy kept our kiddos so she and I could get away to the beach for 24 hours! It was really fun and really restful and I only peed in my pants once. We stayed at this quaint little hotel on the innercoastal waterway. I feel like this year my life has been full of great views and peaceful getaways. Much needed. On our big night out we ended up coming back to the hotel and watching 5 hours of TV together. We are so 30 I guess. It was a blast really and just what I needed! We bought matching shirts at the restaurant we ate at and now we wear them every Wednesday with rolled up jean shorts and parrot earrings. HEHE. Flashback to elementary school except the shirts were neon green.

We ate in St Pete Beach on the innercoastal waterway for lunch on our way home. It was a beautiful day and the waiter sang a really fun bday song. YAY for a lot more Sheryl in my life this year.

fallen off the face of the earth?????

2011-03-29T11:32:00.002-04:00

If you are my friend and you feel like when I moved back to the US, I just fell right off the face of the earth, then read on.

I think my friends in China who I saw regularly might feel this way about me and I also think my friends in the US might feel this way. (Actually I feel this way) Somehow living overseas, I was better able to keep in touch with people on both sides of the world. This year it feels like I am doing a really crappy job keeping in touch with everyone, both in the US and in China.

There's grace which I spoon myself a heaping portion of each day. It's taste is sweeter to me this year than ever before.

The sweetest part of my year long exile from earth has been the Lord. His love for me is strong and I am enjoying it more than ever. I can barely keep afloat between the transition, my sin which rages in me, the sin of my family, and the BUSYNESS of life in this strange strange country I am now a resident of. What is keeping me afloat is the Lord and intimate times with him and deep love pouring into my heart.

Andy and I have been talking about how to slow down and we can't really come up with anything at this point. Life is just so daily, as my friend Laura says. And on top of that we are buying a house. So it looks like for now I am stuck. just thought I'd check in and let you know I am still here.

FANCY NANCY!

2011-03-09T12:23:00.000-05:00

I mentioned in a recent post that Andy was the guest reader for Emma Grace's class. He was supposed to bring in 2 of her favorite books. Of course he had to bring in a Fancy Nancy book. For those of you who don't live with a 3 1/2 year old girl, I thought I would introduce you to Fancy Nancy. She's pretty awesome. She's the main character in a series of books about well, herself. She loves being fancy and she loves making everyday life into fancy occasions. She has very loving albeit unfancy parents who she tries to "accessorize." She loves french because it's fancy. Fancy Nancy is a precocious little red head with a penchant for all things fancy. I love her and I love how her parents embrace her uniqueness and play along! In the first book, after Fancy has given them a lesson in how to be fancy, her parents suggest they all get dressed up fancy and go out for a dinner at a "fancy" restaurant. They get all accessorized and head out for dinner at the King's Crown, a local pizza joint. Nancy is thrilled and so proud of her parents for their progress in fanciness.

Well, Emma Grace is pretty much in love with Nancy. She loves all things fancy-crowns and glittery stickers and flowers and purple and pink. For Christmas, Tim and Kathi got her a Fancy doll and a matching outfit for her to wear! They even bought her Nancy's dog (Frenchy). And to top it off, they took Emma Grace out for a Fancy Nancy dinner one night! Here is our Fancy Nancy, enjoying her fancy drink.

This man loves his grand daughter! Thank you Tim for a delicious and very fancy meal!!

Jack terrorized the restaurant after about 2 hours of being there, but for the most part did really well.

Fancy's not-so-fancy parents.

FANCY NANCY DOLL+FANCY NANCY OUTFIT+FANCY DINNER=ONE REALLY HAPPY LITTLE GIRL!!! THANKS TIM AND KATHI!!! You're awesome!

BIG BOY???

2011-03-08T12:10:00.002-05:00

We love to play this game in our family called "Tiny Baby." It's basically where I pretend our kids were just born and we have to hold them carefully and we ohh and ahh over how cute they are and how tiny they are. THEY L O V E it. (and it's awesome because if I am having trouble getting back to go to bed I just play tiny baby with him and "put tiny baby down for a nap" and he goes right to sleep. YES, I trick my kids into napping when I'm desperate.

Sometimes Jack will say, "I'm not tiny baby, Mom. I'm a big boy! I'm a guy!" cuteness. For the most part these days, Jack does feel like a big boy to me. He's lost his baby look. He runs and jumps and eats dirt and breaks bones. He loves school and trains and harassing his older sister. For the most part he really is a little guy and not a baby anymore. But we (both he and I) are holding on to one aspect of "babyhood" and both of us are unwilling to give it up. Yep, the paci. No shame from either of us about it. We collectively love the paci and he is actually planning to take it to his senior prom. In all seriousness, we try to only give it to him at naps, but sometimes it makes it's way outside the bed! Right before we took this picture, he was riding a scooter with sun glasses and a paci.
BIG BOY? Well, for the most part!!!

Guest Reader

2011-03-02T15:53:00.003-05:00

This week Andy was the guest reader for Emma Grace's class! They are studying "the west" this week (note the bandannas) so he gave them cowboy boot stickers to get things kicked off. He brought in two of EG's favorite books to read-FANCY NANCY, of course and If you give a pig a pancake. (those weren't western in theme, just her faves) The kids liked it especially Emma Grace. How fun to have your dad and little brother (mini guest reader) show up for a visit to your class!!!!

Emma Grace loves her classmates. It's been such a blessing from God to have such a fun and loving environment for her to learn and play!!!

our last few weeks

2011-02-25T14:18:00.004-05:00

Here are a few highlights from our past few weeks:

Jack broke his collar bone jumping off a bench. He is a W I L D man and is always looking for the highest point to jump from. Thankfully he is almost fully healed-children's bodies heal amazingly quickly.

Jack loves to be "naked." (it rhymes with baked and he runs around the house saying "I'm naked" all the time!)

We just bought a house-well, almost. haven't closed yet, but if inspection goes well (that's tonight!) we'll close in April. We love the backyard of this house. lots of trees. When Emma Grace first walked into the backyard of this house she asked, "Is this a forest?"

Emma Grace is developing in her theology. A few weeks ago I told her I was going over to Erin's to teach her how to teach her how to use coupons. Here's how the conversation went:

Me: EG, I'm leaving now. Dad will be here with you. I'll see you in the morning.

EG: Where are you going?

Me: I'm going over to Ms. Erin's to teach her how to use coupons.

EG: She knows mom.

Me: No she doesn't know, I have to go teach her.

EG. No, mom, she knows.

Me: No babe she doesn't know. That's why I have to go teach her.

EG: Oh, well does she know about Jesus?

ME: Yes, she knows about Jesus. She just doesn't know how to coupon.

EG: Oh. Ok mom.

I guess in order to get to the second level of heaven you have to be able to coupon. Don't worry, Erin and I are well on our way! We've finally gotten in the groove of using coupons and it's truly amazing what you can save. just a 3 hour investment of your time and you can save over 100 dollars each week on your grocery bill! I sound like an infomercial. It's like playing a game really. I think that's why I like it.

Hopefully that 100 savings a week will help us get some of the trees in our forest trimmed. it's kind of overgrown at this point.

30=LOVED

2011-02-22T20:45:00.003-05:00

The one word I would use to describe my 30th birthday is LOVED. I felt so loved and celebrated this past weekend! My birthday weekend included a 24 hour getaway with Andy. The best part was getting to have extended time with him, but second to that was not having to take care of a single detail in planning it! Thank you Andy! It also included LOTS AND LOTS of cards from friends and family. Thanks you each of you. I read each one and loved them all. I plan to re read them and tape them to my door and read them for several weeks, just to spread out the love. It also included a surprise party with all our friends here. Andy and Terri, who deserves her own post and will get one soon, did an awesome job and I felt very loved and celebrated. And finally on my actual birthday I got to see this awesome sight: What a gift to be at the beach in 80 degree weather with my two kiddos. The morning of my birthday I read Psalm 139. David speaks of God creating us and intimately designing and knowing us, of him ordaining our number of days before they even began. In response to this he says, "How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast the sum of them! If I would count them, they are more than the sand!"

God's thoughts are precious to David in large part because he knows how precious he is to God. God in all his wisdom and love and in his vast and unsearchable wisdom created David. He planned who he would be, the path he would take and even the number of his days. God loved him intimately. The thing I've learned most, this 30th year of life is to delight in the love of my heavenly father. He is to be loved as a response to his intimate love and care for me. He thoughts are precious to me because they are always for my good, always loving toward me, always kind.

I pray God's thoughts would be more and more precious to me with each passing year. That they would be my treasure and my delight.

Happy Valentine's Day!

2011-02-15T12:35:00.004-05:00

I LOVE YOU! AND I WANT TO TELL YOU...

HAPPY

VALENTINE'S

DAY!

Chinese New Year-part one

2011-02-06T18:13:00.009-05:00

I've been writing about China a lot lately. I guess it just confirms what the sidebar of our blog says-part of our hearts will always be in China. We will always be 3/4 American and 1/8 Chinese and 1/8 confused about who we are. Our precious friend Ping invited us to her home to celebrate Chinese New Year. We were thrilled to have the chance to meet her sisters and her father. Her father owns a Chinese restaurant here. You can see him cooking in the kitchen here!

Their family is from the coastal part of the motherland so we appropriately had seafood hotpot. Can I just say I have come a long way in my ability to eat Chinese food. I took it to a whole new level this week by partaking of this spicy boiling pot of mussels and squid and calms and oysters. Andy commented that we enjoyed an "authentic Chinese New Year meal, complete with stomach issues to follow!" We really liked the crab legs and lobster! And the cake...

We got the cake at the Chinese Market and they loved having an authentic Chinese style cake to celebrate! And so did we! Chinese cakes taste not sweet enough for the first few years you eat them. But about year 5 they start to taste really good. Light, fluffy cake, not too sweet, with a light fluffy icing-and candied fruit. Yum Yum.

The best part of the evening-the company. Our kids love these A Yi's, Fen, Jing, and Ping. They were so kind and even gave our kids the traditional hong baos (red envelopes with money-kids receive them each new year from neighbors and family) Such a blessing to be able to celebrate with Chinese friends!

Thankful

2011-02-03T13:47:00.005-05:00

Lest you think that all we do is spend our time pining for China, I thought I would write a "half way" post about a few of the things we love about the life God is creating for us here. We are half way through our first year in the USA! We both feel like we turned a corner after Christmas and we're starting to really enjoy what God has given us here. It's like he's designed this perfect little spot unique for our family. I guess he does that for all his people, all over the world. So here's my top then list at the half way point of this year (in no particular order)

1. We really love the weather and the natural beauty of this place (once you get out of the city). Cookouts in January! Shorts in February!

2. Seeing our families more often.

3. YAY for Kids night at Chic Fila

4. We are joining an amazing church. A pastor who loves and reaches out to us. People who genuinely want to get to know us. A body of believers steadfastly committed to biblical unity and peacemaking.

5. Sweet times with Andy sitting on our couch talking and praying. seems the brokenness in our own lives, coupled with the transition stress, and all we are learning this year = great connection talking and praying .

6. Living in an apartment complex with lots of people from Andy's work who love the Lord and us! EG and Jack having awesome older kids to play with.

7. Our life group, our coaches, and our times with them. so sweet.

8. Lots of international friends that God has given us! For Arabic coffee, for hong baos from our Chinese friends, for being "frangranced/smoked" with burning incense by my UAE friend, Moisa. ( I smelled like smoke for week!)

9. For a new start. I like the challenge of a new place, figuring things out, developing some new habits. It's nice to wipe the slate clean sometimes. YAY for exercise class at the gym with Erin.

10. For the first time in my life feeling, not just knowing in my head, that I am precious to God.

Chinese Market Update!

2011-01-31T14:37:00.001-05:00

I went to the chinese Market again today with my friend Erin. We had a really great time and I wasn't sad at all! I didn't even feel tempted to buy any hanging pig! YAY for emotionally stability this week!

Roasted Pig Head and Toothpicks

2011-01-21T20:15:00.010-05:00

This has been a rough week for me. It started last week when Matt and Laura left for Thailand. Since they've been in the US for the past 6 months, the reality of us not being in China has been slower to set in. We've talked on the phone and texted and even got to see them twice. Them leaving felt like the door to that chapter of our lives just got locked a little tighter. Many of our dear friends who live on that side of the world are all together at a gathering we have been a part of for the past 7 years. It was definitely a highlight of our time in Asia so we've been missing China even more as we've thought about not being there this year.

Then on Monday I woke up and one of my first thoughts was "I miss my apartment in China." We liked our apartment for sure, but it wasn't our dream home or anything. It's just that I miss this one particular spot in our old apartment. Every morning when it was still dark outside I would venture downstairs and make my coffee. I would turn on one lamp by the couch and read and pray. Except for my one little lamp, our downstairs was totally dark and quiet and I felt totally alone with the Lord. I cherished those early mornings. In our apartment here, I just don't have a spot. It's bothered me but I've never missed my "spot" in China with such intensity until Monday. It's funny how certain things just trigger emotions you weren't even aware of. It poured rain all day Monday and the weather kinda set the tone for my week.

On Tuesday I was really glad to not be alone! I went to this Bible Study with a group of women who have been or are in transition because of a move. We're reading a book called "After the boxes are unpacked." It was really good to be with people who know my China world. We talked about the idea of cherishing the past instead of clinging to it. We have to be able to let go and not cling in order to really allow God to move in and heal us and do the new things he wants to do in the new world he's brought us to. It was really helpful to think about but it also brought China to my mind even more.

Tuesday afternoon I went to a Chinese market with my friend Ping. She is a dear and I stalked her at a Chinese restaurant and made her be my friend a few months ago.

She absolutely loves our kiddos and it's been so fun to spend time with her. She is so Chinese and brought gifts for our kids to the house and then loaded them down with gum and xiao man tou and slimy grape drinks at the market. She even bought me an olive juice. Not my fave.

She and I have been trying to go to this big Asian market together for a while now and it finally worked out for us to go on Tuesday. Not the best timing. I thought I would really enjoy it. And for the most part I did, but it also made me really sad. There is a large Asian community here and this market is just unbelievable. It has everything you can imagine. I expected to find lots of yummy produce...

They even had really bad bread in small square loaves!This store really is like and Asian Walmart.

But I never dreamed they would have all this random SO VERY CHINESE DONG XI (stuff). I mean seriously, anyone who has ever walked in any Chinese store will recognize all this stuff!!

This is the aisle where I started to lose it emotionally. I mean it is so China. With Madonna playing in the background and all this Chinese stuff around me, I was acutely aware that we aren't in China. Seeing all this random, cheaply made dong xi at high American prices about put me over the edge. I started to cry and then I started to do some impulse buying. I just felt this strong urge to buy something really chinesey. First I bought these:

I love these toothpicks. I mean I never really loved them in China, but I felt like I needed them on Wednesday. They just felt so China with the fake Mickey and the little container you could find at any hole in the wall restaurant. I am pretty sure buying random items like this qualifies as clinging to rather then cherishing the past.

And then I walked over the butcher and got him to cut me a big slab of meat off a roasted pig hanging from the ceiling. I know. What was I thinking. In all my seven years in China I never once bought meat from a roasted hanging pig, but for some reason I was just compelled to. And I sat at a little table with another roasted pig head right beside me and ate it. Somehow sitting next to a dead roasted pig head made me feel better.

I bought my favorite Chinese vegetable, cai xin, to cook and a few other spices and we headed home. I don't think I've ever felt farther from China than I did on Tuesday at the market.

On Wednesday I hit my low. Andy took the kids out so I could make our Chinese dinner, but instead I sat on my bed and cried. Trying to make Chinese food was like pouring salt in my wound. So I put on make up to cover my red eyes and we went out for burritos.

It's not like the wish we were in China. I know this is where God has us. I love the things he is doing in my life here, in our family, and in our ministry here. And I actually really like Florida. But I just plain miss my old life, my friends, belonging, the vision of what we were about there. There's a lot I love about this new life and I have a deep trust in God's goodness in leading us here. But sometimes, you just need some hanging pig to cheer you up.

On Thursday the sun came out and we ended up having a cookout by the pool with about 25 of our friends here. It was really fun and a much needed break from the heaviness of my week.

Finally today I had the emotional stability to cook my Chinese meal. It was delicious and everyone in our family gobbled it up. Emma Grace, eating with her hot pink chop sticks said, "I love Chinese food!' It felt so comforting to stand over my sink, already stuffed with veggies and rice and finish off the last of the garlicky cai xin, just like I did every time Xiao Li made it for lunch. It's my Chinese comfort food for sure.

I'm hoping for a better day tomorrow. We're getting ready to have a snack and watch a movie, but before we do, I think I need a toothpick.

Andy at age 7?

2011-01-20T20:01:00.002-05:00

Now that Andy is back in school, my mom put this video up on her blog and said the third little guy reminds her of Andy! What do you think?!

Andy's had a great week at school and we are excited about implementing some of the things he's learned this week with our kiddos. I've had a really rough week missing China (I'll write about that soon), but today things got a lot better! Tonight we hosted a cookout by the pool with about 25 people we really like! YAY for 80 degrees in January!

DISNEY MARATHON

2011-01-17T14:45:00.004-05:00

Sheryl and Andy came down last weekend for the Disney Marathon! We had a great time welcoming the runner at the airport! Tinkerbell and Mickey were really excited to carry the balloons through the airport to greet Sheryl! I dressed up as a runner in her honor, but there was zero actual running done on my part! They started in the wee hours of the morning. A few hours later, we caught them at mile 17 in animal kingdom. So thankful for our free Disney passes this year!
Looking good ladies! Tina is from Haw River and she was Sheryl's running partner.

Don't they look awesome?

At mile 18, still going strong!

JUST KEEP SWIMMING. JUST KEEP SWIMMING! We saw so many fun costumes in the run!

26.2 miles later-Crossing the FINISH LINE!!!

WAY TO GO LADIES!

PROUD HUBSTER!!!

HER BIGGEST FAN!

Sorry Emma Grace, I think your momma gets that title!

Tom, from B-town was their coach and ran the marathon himself in just over 3 hours!

26.2 Sheryl, you're awesome!!

First day of School!

2011-01-17T09:26:00.002-05:00

Today is a big day in the Huffman house! Andy started school today! Though he's been working on his Master's of Divinity for a couple years now, today is his first day on campus! YAY Andy! Since our kids were off school today, Andy borrowed Jack's lunch box! Andy is taking a Christian Education class over the winter term. (I don't think they should call it winter term here-it's in the 70's) Lord willing, he'll officially start part time school this fall and we hope he'll be finished with the degree by 2030. HEHE. Just kidding. We hope he can complete his masters in about 4 or 5 years. He has lots on his plate-working, being a husband and dad and friend! We are proud of you Andy and I know this class, like all your others will be a blessing to our family (and others) as you grow to love and know Christ more and help us do the same! YAY for the first day of school!!

Mark this day

2011-01-06T12:30:00.001-05:00

Today marks a milestone in our transition back to America. We've already done some major things-like buying a car and hanging up (most of) our pictures on the walls of our cozy apartment. But today I did something seemingly small that signifies a huge step for me in the whole adjusting process. I baked muffins. From scratch. I know it may seem small, but really it's huge. Our home in China was a regular bakery shop, with my faithful assistant Xiao Li delighting us with homemade apples pies and banana bread. I too really enjoyed making homemade rolls and muffins.

And when the trauma of relocation happened, I stopped baking. In fact, I have stopped doing a lot of the "normal" things I did regularly in China. Blogging and baking and keeping up with my Bible reading plan all quickly became memories of some past life I once lived. (you will be happy to know I still shower...well...most of the time.) I call it trauma because it really is traumatic to sell your life, say goodbye to every person in "that" life, even the lady who sold me a coke everyday, and move across the world, albeit to your home country, to start over in almost every aspect of life.

I haven't had the emotional, mental, or physical wherewithal to do much more than survive and help my family do the same. But slowly, I am coming out of this fog I was in and beginning to get some normalcy back into my days. I took a huge step over the Christmas holiday. While at Tim and Kathi's I hibernated. I turned off my phone for an entire week and I slept in til ten several days in a row. I didn't cook or do laundry or wipe very many poopy bottoms. I just hung out. I owe my in laws a huge thanks for giving me the space and childcare to be able to recover. I didn't even know how much I needed that. But I came back to Florida refreshed and actually excited about my role as a wife and mom, something I haven't felt much at all this past 6 months. And then I BAKED!!!! I found a new recipe, got all the ingredients, put my kids in bed, lit candles in the kitchen, turned on soft music and set to baking.

Maybe, just maybe, one of these days I'll get back to blogging and bathing my kids on a regular basis. For now, thanks for bearing with my disheveled kids, my lack of blogging, and my overall emotional instability.

SLEDDING VIDEO

2010-12-28T23:28:00.000-05:00

SLEDDING!

2010-12-28T23:09:00.003-05:00

We've enjoyed an incredible amount of snow since we arrived in the "north" last week! It snowed within hours of us getting to North Carolina. We arrived in West Virginia to several days in a row of snow! We even had a fresh couple of inches when we woke up on Christmas. It's been a welcome winter wonderland for us flamingos.

Yesterday we took Lucy and Zoro (The Huffman dogs) on a walk on the carriage trial. The dogs had a blast running in the snow and we really enjoyed hiking the trail in the snow. We played with ice sickles, made snow angels and enjoyed the snow covering the woods!

Today the kids went sledding right across the street. There's a little hill that's the perfect size for them! Tim was at the top of the hill to give them a little push and then Andy would stop them before they went into the road! They loved it!!!!!

Jack, our little dare devil sled by himself and even put his hands in the air!! Way to go Jackie!!

How could I resist making hot chocolate for these two cuties????

Celebrating Christmas

2010-12-24T18:07:00.004-05:00

An excerpt from my favorite Advent Devotional Book, Come Thou Long Expected Jesus.

People love to celebrate. People love to break from the routine of life and celebrate. All over the world right now lights are strung and special music is being broadcast and trees are decorated and gifts have been lovingly purchased and lavish feasts are being prepared. The curse of C.S. Lewis's land of Narnia was that is was always winter but never Christmas. What monotony and tedium and bleak weariness! Life must be punctuated with celebration. It's a universal human impulse. And where did this inclination come from? God created us this way. "What is the chief end of man?" the Westminster Catechism asks. "Man's chief end is to glorify God and to enjoy him forever." Now, that is celebration worthy of the name!

And we who belong to Jesus have powerful reasons to celebrate. God has come to us. God has shown us that this life is not the only life we will ever know, and that this world is not the only reality we will ever experience. God has thrown open the gates of heaven to us through Christ his Son. We have seen the celebration going on within those gates. And that's where we're headed!

TIME TO CELEBRATE!! Merry Christmas from the Huffmans!

Thacker Christmas

2010-12-22T16:42:00.004-05:00

Jack and Emma Grace have loved playing with Sophie! Even though it's been cold, we've spent a good amount of time outside!We also enjoyed lots of indoor fun too!

Tonight I'm seeing my brother and extended family! Pictures to come!!!

Emma Grace's First Snow Man

2010-12-19T16:03:00.002-05:00

On Friday I wore flip flops and short sleeves. We were excited to come north for colder weather. It started snowing within two hours of us arriving in North Carolina! A lot of it was gone today but Dan still took Emma Grace out and helped her make her first first snow man!

How cute! YAY for grandparents! We have lots of fun planned for the next two weeks!

One hour and counting

2010-12-13T11:53:00.006-05:00

I have one hour at Starbucks and I have a lofty goal! While I'm sipping my Holiday Caramel Brulee Latte, I'm going to attempt to go back and update my blog from this past two months. Typically I just post when I have time, and if I'm too busy I just skip out. (see the past few months that only have 2 posts in them? That's because I've been a tad overwhelmed with life!) But, there are so many great things that have happened and I don't want to leave them out. So in honor of Alisa, the most faithful retro blogger I know, I will attempt to catch up....in one hour!
Happy speed blogging to me! So scroll down to Nov 1st to retro read our life!