Neglectful blogging

Yep, it happened again...we stopped blogging for a while. Good news is - the apartment is ALMOST finished. So we are ALMOST ready to posts pics of our new place. Just have to nail in some trim, paint a little, and get some pictures on the walls. We are having a housewarming party this weekend, so it has to get done by then!

Tirzah is mobile and still as cute as ever. She loves to clap and wave. There are plenty of videos to upload, but those will have to wait for another posting.

Micah is busy with school, work, and all his (many, many) extra-curricular activities.

Lauren is busy as a stay at home mama and is enjoying her classes (but not the homework).

These are long overdue, but here is a slideshow video from Tirzah's 6 month photoshoot.

A Peek at Pictures - Tirzah Eve from Tracie Bea on Vimeo.

Kitchen - before and after

New News

So, while Tirzah and Mommy wait for a phone to charge before running errands - there's a little time to update this blog.

We have been busier than ever!

Biggest news - Micah got a job at our church.

Also big news - we are moving into a bigger apartment next door RENT FREE!!!

Micah is doing facilities work for the church and his first task on the job is to renovate our future apartment. The place needed to be gutted in a few rooms and there was no kitchen - lots of work to be done! You can see it here (the living room is missing from the video - the ceiling needs to be re-plastered and the walls need some repair):

We are on a time crunch to get this place finished by the end of this month. Why the time crunch? First, the church has planned for the apartment to have been finished already and really want to see it completed ASAP. Also, our friends Kelly and Nicolas have been wanting to move back to Chicago, but have been waiting for the right opportunity. With us moving out, our current apartment needs new tenants. Kelly and Nicolas already know what our place looks like and know that the church rents this place for a low price. So, they were really excited when they heard our place was available. They had a small window of time when they could move soon or it'd be a long wait before they move. So, Micah thought he could finish everything in time for them to move here quickly.

So, we'll have our friends as next door neighbors - along with a playmate for Tirzah, their new baby girl Clara.

This past week Micah's dad and his friend Scott came down to Chicago to help with the renovations. They were such a big help and did a lot of great work. So, the kitchen is done! (Pictures soon!)

In other news, Lauren and Micah will continue their graduate studies this semester. Lauren will begin nannying for a baby boy in December. He'll be coming to our place, which makes caring for Tirzah while nannying so much easier. Lauren knows the family from caring for their daughter at her previous job. She still babysits for her from time to time. The parents are such a nice, down to earth couple and will be a pleasure to work for.

Tirzah is growing right along and is quite the talker. She can make most consonant sounds and loves to point at things with her little index fingers. She still loves music and is very smiley. We think she's adorable.

She did great on our lastest trip to MN on the Greyhound (we went to see her new cousin, Ethan) she was quite enamored with the handicap sign on the bus as you can see here:

<3 MLT

Ah!

Ba!

Rolling!

Sitting up!

Tirzah in the SAM Octagonian

I just received the quarterly copy of my fraternity's publication, SAM's "Octagonian."
See below!

“Beast” Day 11 – West Point

Today was a bit of decompression for some of us. It was a busy day yesterday with Chaplain's Time. After Chaplain's Time, we had to break down, transport stuff for storage, then some of us stopped by the barracks in-between to drop off snacks for the cadre would couldn't attend.

This morning though, some of us still went out to do PT, or to march with our company to some field training. This afternoon we transported more stuff back to the Chaplain's Office, had a debriefing, and planned ahead a little bit.

I was given some NCs to look up in my company for various reasons. Please keep praying for these New Cadets. We now have 3x the number out-processing total since last night's number. The good news is, the out-processing procedure is slow, in order to give these NCs time to think about their decisions. Three of us visited their barracks today (and brought them snacks from last night's Chaplain's Time since they couldn't be there). It was a blessing to pray with them and encourage them as they make new plans for their future.

Thanks again for your prayers.
- Micah
the videos below are pretty good - if you have a few more minutes, you should check them out.

“Beast” Day 10 – West Point

Chaplain's Time today!
Our uniform on Wednesdays consists of a West Point polo and khakis - a great change-up from the rest of the week. We spent a good portion of the day getting ready for Chaplain's time. We moved equipment into Robinson Auditorium, picked up thousands of cookies and drinks from the commissary, and ran little errands that needed to be run.

We knew the NCs were anticipating tonight's time with us. This is the one day a week where the cadre do not interfere (and does not participate much), and where the NCs can talk to each other and decompress for a couple of hours. Of course, this is our favorite time of the week as well - when we can pray with the NCs, worship God, and share our testimonies. Tonight was amazing!
Many church members brought hundreds of baked goods for the NCs, and we had an excellent turn-out as well. One of the professors at West Point shared a short testimony and encouragement, which I thought was absolutely wonderful. What a better example than a professor (and Major) to encourage these young men and women through the love of Christ Jesus!