One month and six years

We've been in Ruston for a month now. It has been so fun! I've enjoyed catching up with friends and making new ones, eating at favorite places and finding new favorites. Our apartment is becoming home. The boys are settling in to life in Louisiana.

Callen has had his first soccer practice and he loves his coach . . . well, its me! Long story, there weren't enough coaches for the U5 league so parks and rec put the call out to parents. I said, "I can tell you all I know about soccer in ONE sentence, but I'd be willing to help organize, call, etc." Then I got a call from another mom who said "yes" and was told by RPAR that I would help her. She too is new to soccer. First practice I show up with a google doc that I had found just 30 minutes before practice and that I read ON THE WAY to practice entitled "how to coach 3/4 year olds soccer." The other mom and I agreed to just wing it from this print out. I walked over to the parents after practice fully ready for the first words out of my mouth to be "So sorry you got stuck with us" when they all gushed "THANK YOU SO MUCH. THIS WAS THE MOST ORGANIZED PRACTICE WE'VE EVER SEEN. YOU ARE SO GOOD WITH THE KIDS. Y'ALL DID SO GOOD." After I stopped laughing hysterically, I did tell them that I know NOTHING about soccer, but do have experience with children. I told them we'd learn together! So funny.

Callen started school after Labor Day. Here's his first day of school picture.

Jack wanted to go to school too. And he was VERY sad when we had to leave "brubber" at school.

Then it was Mark's turn for this "first day of school" pic.

People keep asking how Mark is adjusting to life in Louisiana. In his own words: "I really like my job and the people I work with. I'm enjoying my classes. I like Ruston and being immersed in a different culture. There's been nothing in this move that has made me second guess the decision. I feel happy and content." It has been fun to watch Mark in this new "world." He's keeping a list on his iphone of Southern words and phrases that are new to him. I giggle sometimes!







This weekend Mark and I celebrated six years of marriage. Saturday was our actual anniversary, but since the Bulldogs were throwing a big party for us in the form of their first home game (HOW 'BOUT THEM DAWGS!), we had date night Friday night. Big thanks to Faith and Jenny Kate Moss for wrangling the fellas. Mark and I went to Cotton, a restaurant in Monroe by chopped champion Cody Bahr. The food was AMAZING. We had a great evening and had sweet conversation recounting our blessings from this past year.

We've been attending The Bridge Community Church in Ruston. It reminds us so much of Cornerstone. That's been a big blessing for us. The boys are enjoying their classes and Mark and I are in search of a small group to join. God has blessed us in this move and just keeps on blessing us.

On Wednesday we have the ultrasound that will reveal our new family title . . . "My Three Sons" or "Three Men and a Little Lady."

Stay tuned . . . we'll let you know. Any guesses?

We're also now taking reservations for guests! COME ON DOWN!

Life in Ruston

The Stenbergs are finding life in Ruston to fit us just dandy so far. Our apartment is shaping up - all the unpacked boxes are now confined to just one room. My mom kept the boys for a few days last week while Mark and I painted and cleaned and unpacked. I really wanted their room to be ready for them when they walked in and it was just perfect. Callen came in and saw all his old toys and such and was just simply stunned. He just kept saying, "How did you do this?"

 My dad came over one day and helped us do some work outside - trimming a bush and killing red ants for us. I think I'm gonna love having him close by!

We've had some fun adventures so far. Mark had his first day of work on Monday. He's loving the housing office atmosphere and the short walk across the parking lot to work. This week he was able to work Monday - Thursday and have Friday off. The plan tomorrow and the rest of the weekend is to get things really settled and just enjoy some family time. This pic is his first day of work. I think Bulldog Blue agrees with him!

We have Callen enrolled in a two day "preschool" program at First Baptist Church. It will be great for him to learn and grow socially, emotionally, intellectually, and spirtually. I'm ready for him to make some new friends too! This week the boys and I have ventured out a few times to local parks. We've hung out with our friend Catie Blunt, went swimming at the Smiths, one afternoon, and got our family pass to the new Lambright Sports Complex on campus today. I'm looking forward to more fun ahead.

We of course miss our friends and family in Iowa. I got a letter today from my good friend Jen that just melted my heart. God sure did some great things in my life while I was in Iowa. I cannot thank Him enough for giving me such incredible blessings there. I still need to write about our time at Clear Lake with friends, more on that to come. But for now, here's a pic of me and my gals on our lake cruise one evening. Sweet, precious friends. I love you gals and know that you are praying for us as we settle in.

Family Update:
Mark is unemployed (at least for a few weeks!)

We have begun our two weeks of family fun, rest, and relaxation.

Mark said yesterday with a smile on his face "I don't have to go to work tomorrow. Or the next day. Or the next day."

Our boys are hanging in there. They enjoy being at the lake and it isn't altogether unfamiliar. We'll just be here much longer than we ever have before. But it will be good. Today we plan to make a chain to count down the days till we leave for "Weeziana" (as Callen calls it!).

And I think we are also going to make a "fun bowl" with ideas of things we can do to pass our days - park, pool, skating (here we come Seydels!), games, walks, campfires, etc. We'll pull out one or two and have some family fun.

Baby Stenberg is growing and still making me nauseous if I don't eat quick enough. Guesses on gender???

Just a quick one today. I've made a few promises to update the blog more and take more Instagrams (follow me there, "missmandybee") as we move away. Working hard to keep that promise!

Coming and Going

I've been meaning to sit down and write this post for quite a while. But as you will read . . . there just hasn't been a quiet moment.

{Fair warning . . . this post is serving as my journal of the past few months. It is LONG. Read only if you are my family or if you want to see some really cool God stuff or if you are simply looking for an easy summer novel! HA HA HA}

So, we are moving to Louisiana. I know. CRAZY.

Here's how we got to that decision and all that God did to show us His goodness in the process . . .
Early October 2011
Mark called me from work one day and said "I am going to look into going to grad school." Now, it wasn't a complete surprise, but just a little sudden. I said, "OK." We had already planned a trip to Louisiana for the fall to visit friends and go to homecoming festivities at Louisiana Tech. So one evening after Mark had begun the process of thinking through what he might study and where he might study I {almost} laughingly said "You know . . .  Louisiana Tech has a good business school ..."

We continued to talk cautiously (for my own heart) about that possibility as we were living the dream in our still newly built dream home. Mark began researching their accounting program along with Iowa State in Ames. He also went ahead and made an appointment with a professor at Tech since we were already going to be in town. I begged him {seriously begged him} to NOT go to the meeting if it wasn't a real possibility that we would go there.

You see, I've been in Iowa NINE years now. I moved here as a single gal and had absolutely no idea what God had in store for me - an "Iweegun" (that's what my dad calls Mark) husband and two little red-headed Iowa boys. I had put any dreams of moving back to the sweet south to rest a while ago. I just didn't think it would ever happen.

But as we continued to pray and Mark met with the professor at Tech, Mark continued to feel more confident about pursuing a Master's in Accounting at Tech and moving our family to Louisiana. He said all along, "I think it would be very honoring to your parents to move the boys closer to them."

Janauary 2012
We finally felt a peace about putting our house on the market (which would have been necessary even if Mark stayed in Ames for school) and really started to investigate a move to Ruston. Mark began an accounting class at DesMoines Area Community College to put the feelers out about school in general. (He set the curve for the class and the other students called him "professor Mark.")

February 9, 2012
I sent a message to Ruston friends (folks affiliated with the university, friends, etc) and it included this little excerpt:
"There are a couple things that need to line up to make this happen.
1) First and foremost, for God to settle in us the decision!
2) Possible waiver of out of state tuition (I'm thinking it is possible as a spouse of an alumni - but not sure)
3) A place to live that is reasonable for us on a limited budget as Mark will attend full time grad school
4) A part time FLEXIBLE job for me so I can still be a mommy first!"

And the responses came pouring in! Almost the same day our house went on the market (and THE NEXT DAY after we had prayed for some very specific things) I got a response from Elaine Caston regarding the out of state tuition waiver. After talking to a sweet lady in an office at Tech and faxing (because email attachments just didn't seem to work for her!) a letter asking for Mark to be considered a Louisiana resident based on "number 5 - married to a resident of Louisiana" - Mark was declared a "resident" of Louisiana within hours! CRAZY. No out of state tuition - check.

April 19, 2012
A conversation began between us and the director of housing at Louisiana Tech about a graduate assistant position for Mark. Melanie and I worked in housing together back in the early 1990s. CRAZY. She basically offered a job to me for Mark over the phone before he was even officially accepted as a student. The job just "happened" to include a 3 bedroom, 2 bath (nearly 2000 sq. feet) apartment RENT AND UTILITY FREE as a part of the stipend. CRAZY. Affordable housing - check. Oh, and go ahead and cross off "part time job" for Mandy too - because with FREE housing, I am clear to do my mommy job ONLY.

We were simply stunned by God's goodness and faithfulness to us while we walked this path.

All the while, our house was being shown, but no offers were coming in for purchase. We kept trusting and believing that God would sell our house in His time. We knew He would not bring us this far just to let that be what stopped us.

And indeed, true to His goodness, He sold our home. We closed June 15.

Here's a couple fun little extras:
1) I called to see about getting Callen in to our pediatrician for his 4 year check up. You know, sometimes if you wait too long, they are booking WAY out. I had an appointment already for Jack for August 13 at 9a. Would you believe that there was an opening for a check up with our doc at 8:45a that same morning? Seriously. CRAZY.
2)  I haven't mentioned yet that the last few days in our home were ... yep, CRAZY.  The week before we were to move out, I experienced pain like I've never known in the form of cluster headaches. Saturday-Thursday mornings when I needed to be packing, I was completely debilitated by a headache that started somewhere around 8:45a and ended around noon. And I was an emotional wreck about leaving this house where my boys had spent all their early days. I would NOT have finished packing were it not for the selfless service of friends (Courtney, Sarah, Mindy, Hanna). On Friday, before moving Saturday, the headaches just stopped. We loaded our trailers (one driven by my sweet cousing Bret and his wife Alidya all the way from Arkansas to move me "home!") on Saturday with the help of more incredible friends (Tom, Jordan, Jack, Carl, Bret, Alidya, Timothy, Justin, and the one and only Vicki Squib!) and I left that afternoon to spend a few days with my sister and bro in law and new nephew Cade Marek. Yep, in the midst of all that, I went to Texas. CRAZY. but worth it.
3) We had our carpets cleaned on closing day. The guy doing the work (husband of a friend from church) was there when the new family came to do their walk through. He called me when he was done with the carpet and said, "Mandy, I just want you to know, this family is so excited about their new home. They love it. They walked in with their two girls and the girls were dancing and running and giggling all over the place. They are thrilled and full of joy. It is such a good thing." And yep, I was crying my eyes out on the other end.

So, its June. And most folks are VERY confused about where we are and what we are doing. That's why I called this "coming and going." Cause I feel like I am meeting myself on the road these days.

Here's our past week:
June 16
We headed to Huxley for Callen to play his final BamBam Baseball game. But before we got out of town, Mark saw smoke from the trailer. (Let me interject here that I was already a nervous wreck about driving this trailer all the way to Louisiana.) So we turned around and headed to Entire in Ames, where we discovered the new tires that had been put on at another store were the wrong size. And so began an hour 1/2 wait to get new tires so all of our stuff wouldn't go up in flames.
We got the tires (missed the BamBam game) and got on the road, finally arriving at my mom's house in central Arkansas on Sunday for a few days of R and R. My boys were so happy to see their MiMi and Poppa. My mom is a wonderful hostess.
June 20
We turned south and went to Ruston. Pretty easy drive from my mom's house really. We saw our new home . . . and it is a blessing! Both Mark and I set our expectations low - just knowing the dorm is OLD and there was a chance the apartment was well old too. But we were VERY pleased. Callen said in the car before we arrived, "Mom, when we get to our new place, I"m going to say, "home sweet home." and Then I'm going to say, "Thanks God for our new home." What a sweet reminder!
June 21
We moved half our earthly junk into our apartment in Harper Dorm smack in the middle of  Louisiana Tech campus. Thanks to friends who gave up an evening we got it done in an hour.

{Another quick side note: when Mark pulled out one of our mattresses, we realized just how much God had our trip in His hands . . .

a burn hole where the mattress was resting against the wheel well. Oh MY. PRAISE God for new tires!)

We stayed with Kelly and Billy Smith in Ruston and were given the royal treatment by that queen of hospitality. My boys think she hung the moon.

June 22 and 23
Mark met with his professor and laid out his grad school plan. He could be done after Fall Quarter 2013! Friday night we took Callen to the Peach Fest rodeo. SUCH fun! Saturday we enjoyed the Peach Fest parade. IT WAS HOT. But the boys loved it. Then we met cousin Bret and family at the apartment to unload the second half of all our earthly possessions. And we unloaded his horse trailer in a record 30 minutes! After naps, we got to spend the afternoon/evening with my old gal pals and all our kids. Just a taste of God's goodness - these ladies still love me!
June 24
We hook back up to our now empty trailer for the long journey back to Iowa.

WHAT?
Yes, this is where confusion usually sets in . . .
Mark didn't want to leave his family business high and dry for the summer. And he can't start his job till August 20 anyway. So we needed him to work through July. We are now at our home sweet {temporary} home with his mom and dad in Ames. We'll stay here through the last Friday of July. Then we plan to head up to Clear Lake for some SERIOUS down time for our little family before school and work starts for Mark. Our plan is to be in Ruston no later than August 15.

Tuesday, June 26
And finally . . . .
Today we are able to say with confidence after hearing a strong heartbeat . . .
We'll be taking along a little hitchhiker on the move.
Yep, baby number 3 due early February.
CRAZY.

On the move . . .

I'll post our moving story soon (how we got to this decision, all the things that led up to it, etc) . . . but I wanted anyone who might care to know that I WILL be updating this blog more frequently. But for now, know that this family will miss Iowa and all that goes with it - friends, family, food, fun. More to come soon.

Willow House - Christmas Ideas!

Believe it or not . . . it is time to start thinking about Christmas gifts. And I've got some ideas for you that could help make your shopping a bit easier this season . . .
Keep reading below, then check out my Willow House store . . . http://www.mandystenberg.willowhouse.com/

With this plan you can choose $557 in gifts for only $161 out of your gift giving budget. That is a total of 20 Christmas gifts, and a savings of nearly 70% off. Better than extreme couponing!


The Plan:
1. Book a party between now and the first week of December
2. Take 5 outside orders or web orders
3. Have a minimum of 10 to 15 guests at your party

You will receive (Based on $1,000 party):
* $250 in FREE MERCHANDISE
* 4 items at ½ Price
* Flat shipping & handling rate of $9.96
* ANY one item at 70% retail

Here is an example of one customer’s gift giving list after hosting a $1,000 party:

Mom
Bellemead Flatware Caddy (pg. 14)

Mother-in-Law
Jamestown Tray (pg.18)

Grandmother
Decorative Card & Photo Display (pg. 20)

Sister
Annabelle Iron Bookstand (pg. 8)

4 Teachers
Yuletide votive Holders-set of 4 (pg. 51)

Father
Scrollwork Oversized Throw (pg.17)

Father-in-law
Hampton Rain Gauge (pg. 37)

Best Friend
Athena Crackle Vase (pg.7)

Sister-in-law
Snowflake Snapshot Holder (pg. 51)

3 Gift Exchanges
Holiday Hanging Trio-set of 3 (pg. 46)

Holiday Party Hostess
Must Have Markers (pg. 40)

3 Neighbors
Carrigan Wine Stoppers – set of 3 (pg. 31)

Person you drew from a hat
Lemon Berry Bread (pg. 35)

Gift for herself
Mediterranean Sage Bowl (pg. 68)

Total out of pocket expense for all of this - $161.05


Why not plan a Willow House party today? There are lots of reasons to invite the ladies over to shop: Girls Night Out, Open House, Sip and See, Cooking School, Coffee “Shop”. Give me a call, and we can find a time to set up your party. I will help you with the invite and the set up. I look forward to hearing from you.

STORIES: kids choir

I grew up in church. From the time I was five years old, my childhood days were filled with church activities:  camp at Wolf Creek, "training union" (then Discipleship Training), Sunday School, VBS, and Mission Friends/Girls in Action. But my most favorite church activity HAD to be Children's Choir. The first musical I performed in was "God's Kids." I was five. And I was hooked. We had the coolest shirts with our names on the back in Rainbow reflector letters. Amazingly awesome for the mid-1970s! We traveled all over LA (Lower Arkansas) singing at other churches. It was so much fun.

"Miss" Lucy was our director. She was dedicated heart and soul to children's choir. She was a great encourager to all kids and always found some part for each child who wanted it. I had lots of speaking parts - imagine that! There are SO many times throughout my life that songs from one of the MANY musicals will pop into my head - seemingly out of nowhere. The songs are all Biblically based and they are stored in my heart. What a HUGE blessing.

One song was called the "clock song" - "Don't let your face be 7:25 looking like a frown . . . let it shine like 10 after 10 - like a great big happy clown!"

To this day I sing these songs from time to time. "I Am a Promise" comes to mind when I am singing to my boys. I remind them God has a plan for their lives and "you are a promise, you are a possibility, you are a promise, with a capital P, you are a great big bundle of POTENTIALITY!" I can still remember - pretty much word for word my speaking part in that song in particular: " . . . you may have holes in your tennis shoes or freckles on your nose. But it doesn't matter one bit. God's got something very special in mind for you. It might be climbing high mountains or ?, helping sick people get well or singing a song! Whatever it is . . . you can do it!" The years have robbed me of a few words - but you get the idea!

There was also:

Music Machine - "Music Machine, Music Machine, like no other gadget that you've ever seen; whatever you want to sing about, just put something in it and a song comes out"

and a couple "Psalty, The Singing Song Book" musicals with songs like "Don't build your house on the sandy land, don't build it to near the shore . . . well it might look kind of nice, but you'll have to build it twice, oh you'll have to build house once more."

Too much fun.

Wonderful memories of great friends (Phyllis, Eric, Karen, Kristie, Bret, Molly and Valerie, Shawn), sweet songs, a very special church (Dermott Baptist), incredible Godly people . . . and I of course have lots of stories about those people! Another time . . .

STORIES

So my sister has challenged me to be a better blogger - for professional 
as well as personal reasons.
One of her ideas has really struck a cord with me -
share some of my stories through a weekly blog post.


I am after all a Southern girl.  And the way Southerners really get to know each other is through story-telling. You can't sit too long at a Southern gathering before the stories start to fly . . . "Remember that time . . . " leads into "Oh, yeah, well once I  . . . " and on and on and on it goes. So, it only makes sense if I want people (and potential photography clients) to get to know me . . . I need to share my stories. 


Sweet sister was also the inspiration for my memory jar.  It is still a work in progress - but it is simply a place to keep things I can't seem to part with but do not necessarily need/want them sitting on shelves in my home.  So, as I continue to build my jar . . . I'll share the stories of the pieces inside.



First . . . a pic of the jar itself, only partially filled

Now on to the first item:
My Pappaw's Belt and Buckle

Thomas Mayo Bartholomew, Sr . . . My "Pappaw" was such a fun man. I was his first granddaughter, Rod and Bret beat me out of first grandchild status, but I came along as the first girl, securing my place as a favored one (sorry cousins, its just true!) Pappaw drove an 18 wheeler. He would come pick me up and take me to his house in Monticello, AR, for fun weekends with him and my Grandma. We had a common love for horses, especially Poco D Diamond, popcorn, ice cream, and laughing. Pappaw was a horseman - riding in cutting shows and just for fun. And he ALWAYS had on a cowboy belt, usually with one of his many AQHA Secretary buckles. When I was in college and graduate school, I would call Pappaw anytime I needed a pick me up. He ALWAYS made me laugh like no one else. We were true friends. I still miss him tons and can get really weepy wishing that he could have seen my two red heads. But I have my memories and will certainly pass those along to my kids.

I have so many stories about how much my Pappaw loved life. He loved to laugh and prank friends. He loved his family - especially us grandkids. He loved my Grandma - and well, who didn't? But, well,  that's another story . . . 

A Wedding Sneak Peek

It was a beautiful(ly HOT) Iowa Saturday . . .

A really sweet couple . . .

And lots of fun!

Rachel Randall and Ben Noland
CONGRATULATIONS!

They laughed a LOT all day!

Sweet Daddy and Daughter moment caught by our second shooter, Courtney

Groomsmen

Way too cute flower girlies

Mom and Daughter

a beautiful day

a beautiful couple

fun bridesmaids

AND . . . we did a SHOOTBOOTH at the reception!

So much fun!

We'd love to help you celebrate your next event:

birthdays, parties, receptions

To see the entire SHOOTBOOTH album, visit:

MandyBee Photography

Click on "Proofing and Ordering" and look for the ShootBooth album.

Thanks for letting MandyBee Photography be a part of your big day Rachel and Ben!

SIX MONTHS

I saw on someone else's blog that it has been SIX MONTHS since I updated my blog.

Wow.

That hurts.

Its not that NOTHING has been going on. There's been plenty.
Its just that, well, I am a bad blogger.
I want to be better.
Blogging helps me clear my mind sometimes.
It helps me remember what has happened to us from day to day.

So, here goes.

Another attempt.

How about this time, I commit to blog once a week?

And while I'm at making commitments, I think I'll throw in a few more.

I commit to stick to my current diet (Weight Watchers)through the end of April as previous planned. Make the plan. Work the plan. That's the plan.

I commit to begin training for a 5K. I had to take a break from Surefire Fitness (as much as I loved it) because of some back issues. But now there is a void in my life that I need to replace. Exercise is a must I've learned for my sanity. Maybe I will do Midnight Madness this summer. I am also planning to move our Wii upstairs to the family room (or maybe my room) and start Wii Fit.

I commit to MAKE time (not find it or use kids as an excuse to not do it) to read my Bible each day. Really. If I cannot read for FIVE minutes, then I need to do a major re-prioritizing in my life. Who I am kidding? I NEED TO DO A MAJOR RE-PRIORITIZING in my life.

Please don't read this as me being all down on myself. I'm not. It is simply time to live out some things I've been half-way doing for quite some time.

And if I will put it out there for "everyone" to see, then all the better for me.

Now that that's all out there . . .

What have the Stenbergs been up to since October?
We settled into our new home. We moved in the last week of September and have enjoyed making it home. There is so much room here. Mark worked hard to make this house all that it could be for us. And it has been the perfect place to do what we love - host connection group and parties!
We've had a few game nights, many connection groups, two baby showers (and one more to come in April), a wedding "reception", and two birthday parties (mine and Mark's). We love it.

NOVEMBER
November is sort of a blur.
I started Surefire Fitness Bootcamp, but had to stop my month just short of 4 weeks because of a throat infection. It was no fun. Bootcamp was both the best and hardest thing I had ever done, especially since at that time I was still nursing Jack. Just craziness. But I did end up going back to bootcamp after Christmas and went through mid-March. I hope to go back in the fall.

Grandpa Stenberg's birthday

We were together with Mark's family towards the end of November for Mark's dad's birthday. It was fun having the grandkids all together










DECEMBER
We got tenants in our basement "guest room." Emma and Jordan Bradley moved in around the first week of December. They got married in Ruston, LA, the weekend after Thanksgiving and moved right into our place after their honeymoon. I was Emma's children's minister when she was a little girl in Ruston AND was overseas with Jordan's brother Ben. Crazy how paths cross. I take more than a little credit for their relationship!

MandyBee Photography had some busy days in December with families and seniors getting in last minute shoots. It was fun. I'm planning to really push to get some business this spring/summer, starting with hosting a booth at a bridal show in Ames this coming weekend!

Christmas!

Christmas morning at Mimi and Poppa's

me, angie b, and dad

We spent the holidays in the south with my family. The week before Christmas we drove down to Arkansas where we met up with my sis and bro-in-law at my mom and Jerry's house. We had a great time with them. On the day after Christmas the Likens and the Stenbergs caravaned to Dallas. We spent the next day with my dad's extended family in Granbury and then a few more days in Lewisville with my dad, Gigi (my sis) and Uncle (Philip). There were lots of miles on that van when we got done!

Angie B, Bret, Me, Casey and Tracey, and Patric and Kelly
Bartholomew cousins
Missing David, Rod, and Matt

JANUARY

Birthday dinner
Joy, me, Jenna, and Eve

I turned 39 January 13. I had dinner with friends on my birthday and then a big shin dig with tons of friends the next night. Good times!

Birthday celebration!
All my girlfriends except Eve - wonder where she was?

We tried (and failed) at potty training with Callen and started cereal to this 4 month old Jack.

The boys and I road tripped to see Gigi in Minneapolis and took along Joy and her kiddos.

Callen with his Gigi in Minneapolis

Naomi and Callen in MN

And then we battled RSV with baby Jack for about two weeks. It was quite rough around here.
Just because that wasn't fun enough, we also took away Callen's pacifier that he was still napping and sleeping with at night. I am pretty sure it was a much bigger deal for me than it was for him!


FEBRUARY
We hadn't been on the road and crazy/busy enough, so we piled everyone in the van and headed to Oklahoma City for Mark to attend a concrete counter top seminar. Did I mention yet how I love my concrete counter tops in my kitchen????? My mom and aunt met up with us in OKC and spent the day tooling around while Mark attended his seminar. We went to the Nat'l Cowboy Museum for the morning and had a great time. We also stopped in Stillwater at the "famous" Eskimo Joes on our way home.

Mommy and Callen at Eskimo Joe's

I also got my feet a little wet again with Upward Basketball. The directors asked me to help out with their end of the year awards ceremony. It was fun working with those guys again. And I was a little overwhelmed when I thought back to when we first began Upward at Cornerstone. God is good and faithful!

MARCH
Just some normal days around here . . . making baby food for growing Jack, celebrating life with friends, enjoying every other Friday morning off in a new swap with my pal Laura, and loving a few days of warmer weather. We are LOOKING FORWARD to spring!

Mark's Birthday
Mark turns 40 on April 2, but we celebrated a week early because his college ministry leader Larry was surprising him with a visit this past weekend. It was such a fun weekend to celebrate Mark. He felt quite loved!

Mark and Larry Thiel
(Larry was the Intervarsity campus leader at UNLV when
Mark was student there. Larry surprised Mark by coming
from California for the party. Way to go Larry!)

A few more pics, just for kicks:
When Jack started putting his foot in his mouth, I remembered a pic I had of Callen from about the same age. I finally found it and was able to put them together.

Callen                                                                             Jack

Callen loving life and Jack just watching his every move. Pretty much daily events here at our house.

Yep. Crawling. Moving.
Thinking about climbing!

One of my favorite pics of 2011 so far!

John Deere boy

Stenberg Update

Life has been pretty wild with the Stenbergs these past months. And I have simply not taken the time to contribute to my journal (blog). So, here goes . . .

Family of Four!
Jack Thomas joined our family on Wednesday, Aug 11. He is a precious treasure - another sweet red headed boy. We are very excited to watch him grow, to see how he and his big brother become friends, and to figure out life with two boys. He came into the world at a whopping 10 lbs 3 oz! Dr. Beer told me all along she had a feeling he'd be a big boy. And as usual, she was right on the money. Jack was born by repeat c-section and it was such a different experience than his big brother's arrival just two years earlier. Everyone who had a second c-section told me it would be different and they were not kidding. Now to settle in to a new routine (eventually - keep reading to see what else is going on with us) and to become the family of four that God has designed us to be.



Building a House
Our new home is coming close to completion. We've been living with Mark's parents since Mid-March. They have been such a blessing to us. Callen has loved being with Grandma and Grandpa. I'm thankful for the time he's had with them.
Mark has been working SO HARD on our new home. It is just beautiful. I love everything about it and simply cannot wait to get in. Well, maybe I can wait a little while to recover from surgery before unpacking boxes! I have a feeling I will be taking many of you up on your offers to help us get settled. It will be hard, but I can imagine even now me just pointing . . . "That goes there. Put that here." HA HA HA



MandyBee Photography
I had a very busy spring/summer with photography and am looking forward to continuing to expand my business this fall. I'm excited to do senior portraits and family sessions. So let me know if you'd like to schedule a session! On the horizon - new equipment and new ideas!

Extended Family Visits
With the arrival of Jack, I am in high anticipation of my family visiting over the next few weeks. Callen will have the privilege of experiencing "Camp Gigi" as Angie B arrives tomorrow to help us out our first few days at home. What a wonderful blessing she will be. My mom and Aunt Debbie will come next week and stay for the weekend and then my dad will be here a week after that. Good times on the way.

On the Horizon
I'm looking forward to starting Bible Study Fellowship (BSF) this fall. I've only heard incredible things about this program and simply cannot wait to be a part of a weekly gathering of women digging into God's Word together. There is now a program for kids 2 and under, so the boys will be in good hands each Wednesday morning!
My life has had a gaping hole in this area these last few months. I know that my marriage, my family, and my relationships with friends have suffered because of my lack of commitment to spending the time I need with God. Jesus is so faithful, even when I am not. And for that I am more than thankful. I am looking forward to what God will do this year and I'm asking God to give me a new passion for Him.



So, that's the Stenbergs in a nutshell. I'm sure I forgot somethings . . . but come on, I did just have major surgery two days ago and am currently experiencing the joys of pain medication.

Here's hoping for a few more frequent posts . . . for the two or three of you who read this crazy blog!