Baby Eyes

Hi.

I don't think that at any point during my schooling I ever thought I would miss it.  Learning, that is.  However, watching my precious little niece has made me realize that I do.  Quite alot, in fact.  She's changing and learning so much every single day.

While I'm hoping my looks aren't progressing as quickly as her's, I wish my language, understanding of the world, and delight in new things were.

Look- this was taken the weekend we moved here, just three months ago.  She's grown so much since then.

Then there's her personality.  Her delight is contagious.  I don't think anyone can watch her learn to interact without smiling.  Her smallest actions are completely entertaining and can keep us enthralled for the duration of her time in between naps.  In fact, most of the time we are disappointed when she goes down and antsy for her to wake.

It's a little unnerving, almost, to feel how much we love her, and to think that someday we'll have a child of our own.  Maybe unnerving is the wrong word, but it's hard to fathom that we haven't even felt the depth of love that comes from being a parent.  I can't imagine the fullness that's in her parents' hearts.

Babies have this wondrous ability to look at the world with an open mind and eyes that haven't yet been jaded.  Everything is new, and bright, and shiny, and colorful.  This weekend I watched Lily become completely enthralled by leaves on the tree in her front yard.  How wonderful would it be to have that outlook again?  Now, unless I'm actively engaged in learning, I feel that I only become more disheartened with the world.

Our little niece, without even saying a word-just through babbles, giggles, and focused eyes- has inspired me to desire a lifelong continuation of learning.  Whether it's working and extending what I do with my passion for art, learning to sew, going back to school for more Literature classes, reading more educational books, working on my writing, expanding my very basic cooking ability, diving more earnestly into learning about my God, or learning something new entirely, or if I'm lucky- all of the above, I want to always be learning.  

I think maybe that's one of the best ways to enjoy life, and for that realization, I'm so thankful to the little blue-eyed girl who has stolen all of our hearts.

Til next time,

Aim

Let's Talk About the Weather

Hey,

I don't know about you guys, but we've been having some perfect fall weather in Des Moines.  And what better way to spend a perfect fall day than grilling out watching as someone grills brats for you and then attending your alma mater's away game with a bunch of fantastic people? 

And let's face it, not much is sunnier than this face:

I've also been trying to get back in my running groove with this beautiful weather.  I've enjoyed a couple since this weekend with a brand new playlist and one of my favorite CDs.  

It's not often that I listen to "Christian" music.  I probably should, but I don't very often.  99.9% of the time, when I do, it's my Meredith Andrews CD.  I've told you about it before because it's dear to my heart.  It's a soul soother.

I wish I could share each song, and what I get out of it with you, but that might be overkill.

So here is just one.  It's called Draw Me Nearer, and the best way I can describe how it makes me feel is that it's like curling up with a cozy blanket and a steaming cup of coco on a cold, rainy day.  When this world gets a little hard to handle, you know, when the clouds roll in, this song is a good prayer.  Maybe someday when you need one, you'll remember it.

For your nearness Lord I hunger
For your nearness Lord I wait
Hold me ever closer Father
Such a love I can't escape

For your nearness I am hoping
For your nearness Lord I long
Have no need of any other
I have found where I belong
Yes, I have found where I belong

So draw me nearer Lord
Never let me go
Closer to your heart
Draw me nearer Lord
Draw me nearer Lord

In your nearness there is healing
What was broken now made whole
Restoration in it's fullness
Lasting hope for all who come

In your nearness I take shelter
Where you are is where I'm home
I have need of only one thing
To be here before your throne
To be here before you throne

So draw me nearer Lord
Never let me go
Closer to your heart
Draw me nearer Lord

And keep me here, keep me here
There's nowhere else I rather be
So keep me here, keep me here
There's nowhere else I rather be
There's nowhere else I rather be

So draw me nearer Lord
Never let me go
Closer to your heart
Draw me nearer Lord
Draw me nearer Lord
Draw me nearer my Lord

And because listening to it will be a billion times better than just reading it, here's a link: Draw Me Nearer

If you like what you hear, go HERE for more.  I promise, this CD is a gold mine.

That's all I've got for now.  Later.

Aim

Weekend Highlights

Hi.

I thought I'd tell you about some bright spots in my weekend.  The distractions with which I felt blessed.

Good friends and family.  I was able to spend quite a bit of time with Molly and Jake.  They are in the process of moving, so it was nice to hang out and try to make their move a little easier.  All those smiles from Lily definitely brought some extra sunshine to my weekend as well.

I was able to spend the majority of Sunday with my favorite Skokie family.  They were in state visiting family, and set aside a day to come see me!  We went to a pumpkin patch/orchard, and it was delightful.  The kids Everyone had a fun time.

I made my first batch of chili for the season late Sunday night.  It was piping hot and ready for Monday's dinner.  A glorious fall evening meant that the mister and I snuggled up with a blanket and enjoyed a little time on our underused balcony.  Not technically the weekend, but still a highlight of the last few days.

Thank God for happy distractions, right?  That's all I have for you today; I'm a little talked out for now.

Until next time,

Aim

Grandpa Bill

Dear friend,

I'm going to attempt to tell you about my Grandpa Bill today.

You know, during our first year at Trinity, Ashley and I knew a girl who lost a relative.  We got to thinking about how blessed we were to not know that kind of pain yet.  And we acknowledged that when it did happen, it was going to be tough.

I've grieved for others, and have had to say goodbye to people I've cared about and loved, but this is a new sting.



Forgive me,  I will get through this letter...



I don't think I'm done processing.  I think I'm still learning how I grieve.  It seems to come in bursts.  I go through my day.  I've had plenty of distractions this weekend, which I think is good...  But then, seemingly out of nowhere, my head is buried in Jered's shoulder and I sob until his shirt is drenched.  And then it's over.  Until the next time it builds up.

Um, so, back to Grandpa.  You may know that I hate public speaking.  Hate it with the burning fury of a thousand suns, or however that saying goes.  Well, when I was in the TIU band, we performed many concerts.  And especially when we were on our mission trip/tours, the concerts were peppered with student testimonies.

Now, I was in the dangerous position of good friend to the band chaplain, who had to track people down to give the testimonies.  Time after time, I refused.  No way, Megan- you are not getting me to talk in front of hundreds of people no matter how close we are.

Well, right before we went to Ukraine, Grandpa Bill was having alot of health problems.  And although throughout most of the trip, I was sticking to my anti-public speaking guns, one day, I felt this overwhelming conviction that I needed to share about Grandpa because maybe there was someone out there who was facing the same fears and that my grandpa needed prayer, even the prayers of hundreds of people he would never meet.

I'm not telling you that because I think what I did was worth mentioning, but because the response I received from people was.  Complete strangers came up to tell me, through the translators, that they would pray for my grandpa, and the outpouring of love was heart wrenching.

What did I tell them?  Well, I told them he was sick.  And I didn't know if he was a believer or not.  That he was incredibly stubborn.  And that he was one of the strongest men I knew.  And that I wanted him to claim that Jesus was his Savior.

My grandpa fought his illnesses for over three more years.  That means I got to see him three more times.  I got to talk to him on the phone the day after I got married.  I got to hear his voice, eat his cooking, hear him chuckle, hear him tell me that he thought Jered was a good guy, hear him tell me I'd always be his sweetie pie, and receive some more scruffy kisses.

And I've heard since he's been gone that he did claim to be a believer.  And I will hold on to that hope as hard as I can, and trust that God heard my prayers, along with everyone else's, and cling to the belief that I will see him again someday.

I've told you about my grandpa and our time at Mississippi before, but you're about to hear more.



Every normal trip to Mississippi involves fishing.  The following photos were taken a couple years ago over Labor Day and Grandpa's birthday weekend.

These are the fish that reside in Grandma and Grandpa's pond:  Big Mona (not pictured) has been hiding out for years.

Grandpa Bill was the one who showed me that fishing didn't have to be so gross.  Spiced and sliced hot dogs are the bait of choice most of the time.  And forget using a normal fishing pole- I much prefer a cane pole.  

Did I ever tell you about the very first fish I caught?  It was a baby catfish, and when Grandpa pulled it off my hook for me, its whiskers got him and his hand came away bloody.  I also caught eight bluegill in one day before.  Shocking, I know.  

I never got excited about ordering fish at a restaurant, but boy, did I love when my grandpa fixed our fish at the end of the day.  Between our own, freshly caught fish and the hush puppies, I was in dinner heaven.

Katie doesn't have the best luck with fishing.

Good laughs abound.

Can you see why?  Wondering where those whopper fish are?  So were we.

This would be the look of a dad who still gets called to take fish off the hook and has to untangle lots of lines.

It seems some people always get all the luck.  Lynn caught big ones all day.

Katie's luck stayed about the same.  

I normally stay safely up on the hill, laughing and listening to Grandpa give instructions to the less skilled fishermen.

Very rarely would you see this: 

And when it comes to fishing, a little rain never stopped us.

As Kiera struggled to reel in a big one...

Uncle Frank caught this guy.

And if there's a project going on?  Like the building of the new deck that Jered thinks I conned him into helping with?  Well, you can probably find us over here, by the snacks and drinks: supervising.

Even after all that fun, the real magic happens here:

You cannot go to Grandma and Grandpa's without having biscuits and gravy.

When we were quite little, I remember aside from Apache, Grandpa's horrifying German Shepherd, two cats always stayed around the house.  I think they were named Lightning and Thunder, but they kind of feel like they are a part of one of those memories that feel like a dream.

One of my favorite things growing up was going to Grandma and Grandpa's for Thanksgiving break.  We usually got to take an extra day off school, and everyone went down for an early family Christmas.  Us cousins would spend hours and hours coloring, sometimes in the camper parked in the garage for extra sleeping space while everyone was at the house.  It was also the "coolest thing ever" to be able to sit in the Jacuzzi on the deck when there was snow on the ground.

One year, Grandma and Grandpa got us bean bag chairs for Christmas.  I remember because with limited car space on the ride home, Katie and I had to ride with them on our laps, and when you're a kid, or maybe just us, it was exciting and fun to have to ride all the way home with a giant bean bag chair on your lap.

I don't mind telling you that my grandpa used to terrify me sometimes when I was little.  He could be extremely stern and gruff.  As I got older, I understood his sense of humor better, and probably stressed him out less because I was old enough to know that you don't pick up hammers right next to Grandpa's freshly installed front windows or run around the house being quite loud. 

Jered always tells me that he can tell instantly when I'm mad because my eyebrows shoot up into my forehead.  Guess who I got those from.  This guy.  He could give you a stare that would chill your bones with nervousness.

But he had a sweet spot for all of us.  I was always Aimee Lou to him.  Always.

He was resilient.  Even on our latest visit over his birthday weekend, as tired and weak as he was, he dictated a recipe for the perfect pan-seared steak for me.  Hopefully one day, I will live up to it.

I'm frustrated because no matter what I tell you, it will not do him justice.  He was a great, stubborn, strong, smart, talented man, and I've been so blessed to call him my grandpa.

The world has been left wanting, and I'm just one of many who will feel that want for a long time.

Thank you friend, for your prayers over my family.  

Aimee Lou

Here, There, and Everywhere

Hi,

So, as I mentioned last week, I was able to travel home to see my family for the weekend.  It was a delightful time, although Jered wasn't able to go, and it was a short visit.

We spent Saturday morning afternoon shopping.  Saturday morning was the plan, but we opted for introducing Mom and Katie to New Girl instead.  (I know I don't really need to tell you this, but it was a success.)  We stopped by Good Will and found some treasures, and then dropped in at JCPenney, which has seriously upped its game, and found some things for the same prices you find at places like Good Will.  All in all, pretty successful, I'd say.

Rather than actually checking out the Scenic Drive for all it has to offer, we merely stopped up at the square for some delicious corn dogs and a funnel cake.  It. Was. Magnificent.

Saturday evening consisted of going to the family wiener roast.  It was sprinkling on and off, so we ended up camping out inside most of the time, enjoying some good laughs.

I made a new friend.  I guess we would be very distant cousins.  He was six.  He was also hilarious.  It was almost like talking to a grown up.  He kept growling at me though, and at one point I told him that he could get away with that for now, since it's almost Halloween, but as soon as Halloween was over, he should probably stop.  He proceeded to tell me that he did it at Christmas.  "You growled at someone on Christmas?!"  His reply: "Yep.  Turned out to be not so jolly after all."

Hahaha.

It turned out to be a lovely time.  Plus, I had my first chili of the season.  Mmm.  I think it's time to pull out the crock pot again!

On a completely unrelated note, did I ever tell you about our upstairs neighbor that I could hear singing Madonna one night?  It was terrible.  Just awful.  Like one of the embarrassing auditions on American Idol where they think they're really good, but in fact, stink.  I got a decent giggle out of it though.

Also, after pulling out my fall/winter clothes to bring back with me this weekend, I decided it would be beneficial to go through them and get rid of anything I wasn't going to wear before I brought them back.  I ended up getting rid of a garbage bag full.  Then, last night, before I pulled them out to unpack them, I went through my closet, and got rid of the same amount.  I like to think this justifies my new purchases.

I always look at my clothes and think, "I might still use that someday."  But the reality is, the things I pulled out hadn't been pulled out in about a year.  Time to go.  Sometimes my closet just needs a face lift.  And that's exactly what it's getting.  (I'm hoping I can get Jered to do the same because I thought I had a lot of clothes... until I pulled out the bags of his fall/winter wardrobe.)

Last night, as my husband worked, what I stubbornly consider an unfair shift after pulling a 12 hour night shift right before, I got to work on some old projects.  Remember those red pillows?  And how I was going to cover them with the cloth napkins and move them to our room?  Well, wouldn't you know, Aimee shrunk the napkins when she washed them.  Awesome.  

Good news is, I found some new fabric to cover the Christmas pillows, so they will end up staying in the living room.  And, Grandma Lynn gave me a bunch of smaller pillow forms that will really be perfect for the bedroom, so those are on the to do list next.  I'm going to make it my goal to have at least the living room pillows done in the next couple days.  Fabric is washed and ready, so no excuses!

Oh, I forgot to tell you!  Katie and I revisited Good Will to check out the book section again, and scored majorly.  I'm talking almost 15 books, for no more than a dollar each- and that was for the big hardback ones.

I don't know what the mister is planning on doing tonight, but I'm hoping it involves staying home and being lazy.  Or helping me carve a masterpiece out of the pumpkin Dad got for me.  (Every year Dad brings pumpkins home for Kate and me to carve or paint.  We didn't get to it this weekend, so I brought mine back with me to do here.)

Well friend, not a whole lot of structure to today's letter.  Just a bunch of stuff.  Anyway, I will talk to you later.

Aim

Culture Shock and Trinkets

Hi there!

Last night I did something I almost never do.  And that's a small almost and a big never.  I went out to get my hair done!

Remember how after I demolished my hair by foolishly hacking away at it, the girl who fixed it asked me to promise I'd never do it again?  Well, I haven't.  In fact, I kind of went the opposite direction, and I've gone 10 months without even a trim.  I don' think that's what she had in mind.

Anyway, I had my hair cut and highlighted- which I really never do unless it's Katie doing it.  I love it.

Alas, you most likely could not care less about that.

You know, I'm finding that I have a lot less to tell you about when I'm not allowed to talk about the mister.  Sometimes, I feel so much like writing, but don't have anything in mind that I skim around online looking for something to write to you about.  Just now, I clicked on my Facebook page and immediately saw an ad for Urban Impact New Orleans.

I may have never told you about my trip to New Orleans.  It was a few years before I started writing these letters.  That week greatly impacted my life and my faith.

So, let me take you back a few years.  Well, I guess it's been more than a few now.  My, how time flies!  Anyway, let's go back to spring break of 2007.

"Back ven ve vas babies!"  (Ashley, you may be the only one to get this movie quote.  Katie frequently lets me down when I quote it.  Tsk tsk.)

Five young ladies, supported by our church, went down to New Orleans for their week of spring break.  We slept on the floor of one of the church buildings, and worked through the church ministry program for Katrina relief.  We would end up gutting the home of an elderly woman that we lovingly referred to as Miss Pat.

However, on our first night in Louisiana, we went against the suggestion of one of the leaders, and went into the city.  (We had to see it!)  It was wild.

Please excuse my sloppy photography.  Our first night in New Orleans really was a blur though.  We walked a block or two down Bourbon Street and decided that was enough for us.  We turned and hightailed it back to the van.

  

But... if you are able to overlook the more depraved parts of the scene, you find the amazing New Orleans culture.  This jazz spot we found was a beautiful portrait of the city's traditions and heritage.

The next day, it was on to the work.  And boy, did we work.  Let me just say, if you thought it could get humid in Illinois, you know nothing.  Nothing until you experience Louisiana, my friend.  Anyway, take a look at what Katrina had done to this Miss Pat's house:

The house was already elevated, but do you see the water level lines on the walls?  And this room was nothing compared to her mother's old room that she had left untouched.  She hadn't been able to bear going through her things yet.  Amongst a host of other belongings, a mattress that had been saturated for months was something our team had to remove.

I will tell you though, I loved gutting.  Absolutely loved it.  It was really quite liberating.  

I think it was on the very first day, after coming in to see the work we had done, and being astounded that "five girls did this," that Miss Pat became emotional and asked us where we found our peace.  This opened up the whole week to conversations about Christ and salvation.

She was one of the sweetest women I've ever had the privilege to meet.  This is a picture of her holding up the necklace we gave her.  It was a little box with, if I remember correctly, some of the fruits of the Spirit written on it.  Or maybe we wrote some down and put them inside... To be honest, I don't quite remember.

One of the most heartbreaking moments was seeing Miss Pat's reaction to us finding extensive termite damage above one of the windows in her home.  Equally hard, was seeing a woman who thought that the gutting of her home was a beautiful thing because it had been so bad beforehand.  Can you believe that in this photo, she was telling us how wonderful it looked? 

Miss Pat quickly became rather famous at the church we worked through.  Each night, groups had the opportunity to share news of the projects they had been assigned to, and I think it's safe to say that everyone fell in love with her through her story.

Later in the week we were able, after much coercing, to talk Miss Pat into joining us for dinner and a worship service at the church.  I don't remember much about it, except that she made one of the leaders promise to sing Amazing Grace as a condition of her attending.  It was a beautiful evening, and I remember crying. A lot.

I think we got to go see her one last time before we left, and it was so hard to leave her.

The last day there was spent going into the city, picking up garbage, and meeting people.  We spent quite a bit of time with one family, and this little girl was such a delight.

It was so humbling to meet the people and to see what they went through after the storm.  How they lived.  

What I found most surprising about this trip was the culture shock I experienced when I came home.  I remember very clearly, sitting in class and feeling like I was wasting my time.  Like I was sitting idle while there was work to be done.  Help to be given.  I saw big, white walls and thought about how good they would be for gutting.

It's been a while now, but we received an update about Miss Pat's house and how the church was maintaining contact with her.  The house was beautiful.  It would just send goosebumps up my arms to see the work that was done and the improvement made for this little woman.

You know, this time meant so much to me that I used it as background to one of my short stories in college.  I basically wrote it as it happened, but my teacher told me that it needed more scandal to propel the story.  (My life just isn't that scandalous.)  Part of the story was spent talking about how Miss Pat found trinkets in her home that she gave to each of the girls in the group.  But she forgot me.  (Really happened.)  I considered stealing one of the few trinkets she had left to her name so that I would have something to remember her by too.  (Only in the story.)

Our last night there, I opened up and told Margo about how I felt left out and sad that I didn't get anything.  Not because I wanted a gift, but a memento to remind me of Miss Pat.  She told me she had noticed and assured me that it was an accident, and I knew that.  In the story I kept a nail that had gotten stuck in my shoe at the house.  In real life, Margo brought me a purple glass ball similar to something Miss Pat had.

I still have that glass ball.  It is in my old bedroom, sitting on top of my window sill with other trinkets and photos.  Maybe it needs to make a return trip to Des Moines with me.

Anyway, I just thought I'd tell you a little about the trip that changed my heart when it comes to the idea of missions.  I decided then that at the very least, short term mission trips needed to be a regular occurrence in my life.  Since then, of all things, Trinity's band, took care of that with the tour/mission trips.

However, now that I'm an "adult" in the "real world" it's time to start keeping my eyes open for more opportunities.

Well friend, I hope you're enjoying the sweet, sweet rain we are getting.  I'm feeling rejuvenated by it.  I will talk to you sometime next week after I get back from visiting mi familia.

Aim

(Oh! I should also tell you that I swiped some of these photos from Miss Mariah Nelson.  She took many more pictures on the trip than I did!)