“The heavens declare the glory of God,
and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.
Day to day pours out speech,
and night to night reveals knowledge.”
- Psalm 19:1, 2 ESV

At 2:50 this morning, I woke up to go watch the lunar eclipse. I had it all laid out and ready to go…camera, camping chair, jacket, snacks, etc. The only thing I couldn’t find was the camera attachment for my tripod. So, I had to take pictures while resting my camera on my car. Boo.

A cluster of stars or a nebula or something.

Suzanne was quite happy to stay in bed sleeping, so I drove off into the country (to get away from the “city” lights). The sky was clear and the temperature was a brisk 3° C (37.4° F). Brr…

Despite the missing tripod attachment and the cold, I did get a few good photos and enjoyed a decaf double-double (2 creams, 2 sugars) and a lemon-cranberry muffin from Tim Horton’s. Below is a progression of the shots I got.

A photo progression of the lunar eclipse of August 28, 2007. (Medium | Large)

“And God made the two great lights—the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night—and the stars. And God set them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth, to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good.”
- Genesis 1:16-18 ESV

Very good, indeed!

Joe and I always read with Evan before he goes to bed. It’s a fun time for our family, and I really treasure it since this special time might not always happen when baby #2 arrives. We let Evan choose the book. Sometimes he knows right away and pulls that book right off of the shelf. Other times, he has a hard time deciding and seems to look at each book as if it may be the one. One of his favorite books lately happens to be one of my least favorites, but we read it nonetheless. The things we do for our children At least I can count on Joe using no less than 3 different accents while he’s reading!

Tonight was extra special, because Evan chose to read The Lamb.

We read this book a lot, but what made this time so special is that when we pointed to the cross in the picture (like the one above) and asked Evan who that is, he replied, “Jesus!” We pray that he will know the sweetness in that name. And we pray that one day soon, Evan will understand WHO Jesus is, WHY He had to die, and that He died in our place and took the punishment that we deserve.

“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 6:23

We love this book, for children and adults alike. You can preview more pages from the book here. (Look for preview pages below the image of The Lamb.)

What a funny little kid Evan is. Being 2 ½ years old, he is learning to talk…a lot! He seems to pick up on every word that Suzanne and I say. Beyond that, one thing that he enjoys doing is walking around pointing at things and telling whose they are. “Mommy!” he exclaims, as he points at the ironing board. “Daddy!” while pointing at the propane tank. Smart boy.

So, anytime he sees tools, he obviously says, “Tools. Daddy.” Well, I thought it was about time to give this little man some tool experience.

Tool Number 1: Phillips Screwdriver

Evan’s new tricycle (a.k.a. “BIKE!”) required assembly when we got it. So, as I started assembling, Evan played with the wheels and rode around on the tricycle frame. Little did he know he was about to take one small step toward being a man. Here’s the little guy working hard with this cool “wed” (red) tool…the screwdriver.

So, he didn’t actually do much, but he did get about a ¼ turn before his arm got tired. But, all that hard work payed off…

There’s even more fun to be had when it’s ALL put together…

Many of you have asked to see a picture of me in all my pregnant glory. We were so diligent when I was pregnant with Evan - we took monthly pictures, discussed baby names, got the baby’s room ready, etc. This time around has been so different! We are still just as excited about this baby, but we’ve been busy moving, getting settled, and enjoying summer. And somehow it’s mid-August and I’m over half way through this pregnancy already! Here I am at around 5 or 5 and 1/2 months along:

I definitely started showing sooner this time! It will be interesting once 9 months rolls around. We’ll keep you posted.

Baby! We had another sonogram today, mostly to help my doctor decide about how far along they think I am and decide whether or not to change my due date. We were so excited to find out the gender of this baby since they couldn’t tell last time. Well, it looks like we’ll have to wait a little longer to find out, because she couldn’t tell today either! Seriously. No joke! I realize that WAY back in the day, women discovered the gender of the baby upon delivery. GASP! Actually, technology has come a long way since my mother was pregnant with me not so many years ago. My husband would GASP! at my saying “not so many years ago” since he is a distant, many, many moons younger than me…READ 5 months. He would have you believe I lived with the dinosaurs!

We are a little disappointed, but that is minor in comparison to seeing the baby’s movements and heartbeat. What a miracle pregnancy is! We did get a few pictures. Note how each picture is labeled. Such insight! I really appreciate them pointing out the obvious - “BABY,” and “PROFILE.” Some of the photos aren’t quite so easy to decipher. But, I digress. Back to the pictures. Here’s a shot of baby being extremely modest:

Do you see more than just black, white, and gray? Toward the upper right corner are the feet - crossed. Slanting down toward the left from there are the legs; yep, they’re crossed! Hence the reason for being unable to tell if the baby is a boy or girl! This may be one of the only times in our child’s life that we wish for LESS modesty!

And here’s the profile. Cute, if I do say so myself!:

What a nicely shaped head, eh? We are already getting anxious to meet this little one. Boy or girl, this baby will be loved just the same. Thanks for being excited for us! I have another check-up with my doctor at the beginning of September. I’ll let you know if/when our next sonogram will be so that maybe, just maybe we’ll be able to find out if the baby’s room will be pinkish or blue. Or green or yellow.

I have learned a lot about Canada and more specifically Alberta since we’ve lived here over the last year. To name a few:

1) Albertans love their beef. They are proud of it. And they are proud of loving it. And it is good beef. Unless you’re vegetarian.

2) Alberta really is similar to Texas in many ways. Except the cold. And the mountains. And the way they say: about, sorry, bag, again, been…the list goes on and on! We’ve had MANY conversations (and laughs) about things we say and how Canadians say it differently. But really, it was much more of an adjustment for me to move to a small town than to move to another country because Alberta reminds me of Texas. But not in the winter. Did I already mention that?

3) Canola is a big cash crop here in Canada and especially Alberta. Canola, a combination of the words “Canada Oil” or “Canada Oil Low Acid,” is the world’s only “Made in Canada” crop and it is often the nation’s most valuable one, with annual exports of canola seed, oil and meal that are valued at over three billion dollars. (See http://www.canola-council.org/portal.html).

Canola is one of the “prettiest” crops, and is a definite highlight of summer in Alberta. Just look at it:

This is a common site while driving around here. We’ll miss the bright yellow fields soon as the harvest is coming…quickly!

Now you can sound really smart next time you buy canola oil or see it at the grocery store!