A Few Days

Matt leaves for Zambia this Wednesday.  For those of you that read this blog, we would appreciate your prayers for:

• Safe travel - they are taking 5 students with 4 adults.  Its a good ratio, but there is always risk of someone getting lost when traveling that long.
• Safety in country - they will be doing manual labor after Katrina-like disasters have struck Zambia.  Dehydration, illness and fatigue will all be factors during this trip.
• Spiritual renewal - for both the team and the people they minister to.  Many of the villagers they will visit are stricken with HIV/AIDS and haven't had visitors in months. Our team will be a fresh breath to them during their struggle.  Pray also that the students will be encouraged spiritually - and challenged to grow in their faith and relationship with Christ.
• Pray for Annelise and I.  We will be home for 10 days without Matt.  My sister Leah will be staying with us to help out.  Pray that God would keep us safe and that the baby would do well for me.  

Thanks in advance for your faithful prayer support!  We'll keep you posted as we hear from the Zambia team in the coming days.

Blondie?

No, I'm not talking about the dessert (for those of you wired like me)!

Do you think my kid is going to be blond?  I was looking at the comparison of these two pictures and it seems like her hair is getting lighter.  Who would have thought that I would have a blond haired, blue-eyed girl!

My Ornery Little Girl

Annelise hasn't been feeling like herself lately.  She is very congested, which has turned my once happy baby into a rather ornery one.  One minute she's laughing - and two seconds later she bursts into tears.  Being the kind mommy that I am, I took some pictures of her in action.

HAPPY...

NOT SO HAPPY...

REALLY NOT HAPPY.

Shots

Yesterday was a sad day for us.  Annelise went for her 2-month doctor's visit and had to get 5 shots!  I knew it was going to be sad, but I didn't realize how hard it would be for me.  Two nurses held her down to give her the shots simultaneously and Matt stood by her head, calming her.  Mommy hovered in the corner, fighting tears and praying her "silent screaming" would stop and she would begin breathing again.  As soon as they were done, they said "Ok, someone hold her."  That's all I needed to hear.  I scooped her up and cuddled her for most of the night.  One good outcome was that she slept 10 hours last night!  So, we all got some rest after the big ordeal.

By the way...she's now 10 pounds exactly and 23 inches long.  Tall and skinny like her aunts!

My Coworker

A New Cousin

Congrats to James & Pam Wickman (my cousin) on the birth of their first child.

Evan Philip Wickman was born this morning weighing 8 pounds 1 ounce and was 20 1/2 inches long.  Welcome to this wonderful world!

9 pm - 6 am

Annelise slept through the night!  I think that's all I need to say...

Lots Going On

Another Sunday has gone by and I can't believe we're starting another week. Not much is new around the Neal household. Annelise has been sleeping really well lately. She finally dropped her late night feeding and is only getting up once in the night. Mom is certainly happy about that - although dad doesn't seem to notice it much! She's also been a much happier baby - content to lay on her play mat. She's beginning to notice her toys now and is starting to laugh. We're really beginning to enjoy her smiles and interaction.

Today, we said goodbye to our pastor of 13 years. Pastor Mark took the lead pastor position at College Park Church in Indianapolis. It's a wonderful opportunity for their family and will allow Mark to spend more time teaching and writing. We have truly enjoyed being under Mark's teaching and shepherding for so many years. We know that God has something wonderful planned for our church very soon!

In other exciting news...our school is celebrating the ground breaking of their new high school facility tomorrow evening. I graduated from Calvary 8 years ago and have anticipated this day for many years. It's so exciting to be a part of this expansion. A new school building will allow us to minister in more unique ways to both our students and the community around us. God has finally blessed us with that opportunity! Matt will start the 08-09 school year in a brand new building. He might even have his own classroom!

Lastly, as many of you know, Matt leads the high school spring break trip to Zambia, Africa each year. This year he will be traveling with 5 students and 3 other leaders April 2-11. Annelise and I aren't looking forward to daddy being gone for that long (and I'm sure he's not looking forward to leaving us either). But, we're excited at the opportunity he has to minister in this unique way. Please pray that God would keep him and his team safe during their travels, that they would have an effective ministry, and that they would be able to raise the remaining funds needed to go. If you would like more info about this trip - or would like to know how you can be a part of making it happen - please feel free to email Matt. Here's a picture of their team.



Well, I'll post more pictures/video of Annelise tomorrow. She is growing so quickly!

My Twin?

My friend Kate posted a blog yesterday about my "secret double life."  I guess the cat's out of the bag.  Don't tell Matt.

Sunday Blues

What an oxymoron!  I know, I know...Sunday is supposed to be a day of rejoicing and rest.  It's the Sabbath, right?  Why is it then that we find it ok - and even praiseworthy - to fill our Sundays with church meetings galore? I used to feel bad about sleeping in on Sunday mornings or skipping out on small group.  If the doors were open, I should be there.  Now that I have a young child, I have seen the light.  The light of Scripture that is.  We're to keep the Sabbath holy.  Resting in the Lord.  This day is supposed to be different from all of the other days of the week.  But, too often we get up early, rush to church, subject our children to a rigorous schedule of Sunday school and worship, rush home for a quick bite to eat, run out the door to a Missions meeting, change our clothes and head out to small group, then get home and frantically prepare what we need for the next day at work.  If I'm lucky, I can find 30 minutes on a Sunday relaxing.  But, all too often, the only rest I find is 15 minutes in the rocking chair, nursing my child.  How did we let it get this way?  Sometimes I feel like we're guilted into this busy lifestyle by the church.  Like the more we participate in, the holier we are?  Of course, no one would EVER say this out loud.  But don't we think it in our hearts?  "We missed you at church last Sunday" or better interpreted as "Where were you?  Sleeping in?!"  At which time I find myself making up some excuse like, "the baby didn't feel well" or "we had a rough week." Why can't I just say "We felt like getting some rest and spending time as a family." Fortunately, this Sunday, I am home for a few hours in between church and small group.  My daughter is actually napping in her crib (rather than the car seat) and I'm sipping a cup of tea as I write this. BUT, my husband is at a Missions meeting and when he gets home, we'll turn around and head out to small group.  Do any of you ever feel this way?

This is How We Roll...

Annelise is a great office companion.  We spent most of the day at a fundraising event for the Mission.  She was held by just about every woman in the room.  Trust me, she loved it!  Now, we're home and mommy is finishing up a few projects before we call it a day.  Here's a few pictures of "how we roll" in the office together.

Update: First Day Back to Work

The work day is finally coming to a close for me  at 8pm.  My first day back was...interesting.  Oh how the tables have turned.  It used to be a day in the office was filled with accomplishments and coming home was full of distractions.  I must say that today was quite the opposite.  My babysitter happens to be in the Florida this week, so my normal Tuesday morning in the office was filled with baby's cries, wet diapers, and much more!  Anne had to come to work with me today.  It was crazy - I felt like I got nothing done.  BUT...we came home around 2pm and I got more accomplished in the next two hours than I did all morning at the office.  She slept soundly in her crib while I hurriedly typed emails, designed brochures and created "to do" lists, never knowing when her whimper would turn into a full fledged screech.  She slept the entire time - THANK YOU LORD!  So, overall, how did my day go?  Very well!  Thank you for your advice and for praying!  I made detailed lists for the day and it seemed to help immensely.  Now, we'll see how tomorrow and Thursday go...