Mission: Honduras

MISSION: HONDURAS

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LOCATION: TEGUCIGALPA, HONDURAS

TIME: 7-14 AUGUST 2011

OBJECTIVE 1: TRAIN, EQUIP AND DEPLOY HONDURAN HOMEBUILDERS TEAM TO TEACH BIBLICAL TRUTHS ABOUT MARRIAGE AND FAMILY

OBJECTIVE 2: FACILITATE 2 “A DAY TO REMEMBER” SEMINARS FOR MILITARY AND POLICE PERSONNEL.

OBJECTIVE 3: GET SUMBERSED IN A REGULAR ROUTINE OF P90X J

DEBRIEFING: God has been doing some amazing things in the city of Tegucigalpa, Honduras, namely within the ranks of military and police personnel. He is raising up leaders who are passionate for him and who are willing and excited and ready to share His name. Be prepared to see His mighty hand at work.

I had the great privilege of travel to Honduras this past week to mostly observe what the FamilyLife team is up to in Central America. My travel buddy was Gabe Buchholtz, who I met a few weeks ago at the Cru staff conference in Colorado. He spent 29 years in the US Air Force and has been on the global team at FamilyLife for the past 10 years. He has been a wonderful example, mentor, and friend this entire week. He is also responsible for bringing the P90X dvds and setting us up with a great workout each morning! We met the rest of our team at our hotel in Tegucigalpa. Leonel and Miriam Motto have been on staff with Cru for over 40 years and currently reside in Miami with the focus on ministering to families in Latin America. General Rodolfo Interiano and his wife Eva served are retired from the Honduras military and are now using their experience and influence to reach out to military families. Last, but by no means least, we met John and Shirley Wind, who lived in Honduras for 20 years as missionaries and have been in Mexico for the last 12. Let me just say that I am extremely blessed to have been surrounded by such experience and wisdom.

Below is a photo tour of our week, to give you a taste of what I saw:

My home for the week at Hotel Plaza San Martin.

Tuesday during the day was “A Day to Remember” seminar, which is similar to FamilyLife’s “A Weekend to Remember,” only condensed to a day. This was at the Air Force base and 40 couples attended from the Air Force, Army and Navy. 51 people committed their lives to Christ!!

Gabe and I, with General Espinoza, one of the Christian military leaders, I spoke of earlier, who invited us to do the military talks! For those who are familiar with the US military, his position would be comparable to the Vice Chairman of the Joint Chief of Staff.

Tuesday night was the beginning of a four evening training session. These people are military and civilian couples who are passionate about Jesus and desire to share his truths about marriage and family. This was Movement Makers III training which taught them how to be effective speakers. Many of them already completed levels I and II and were officially certified at the end of the week. They are now equipped to host their own events and seminars and they are very eager to do so.

Wednesday we went to the National Police Academy in Tegucigalpa and held another “A Day to Remember” seminar. The crowd of 25 couples was a younger crowd with newer marriages. 10 attendees prayed to receive Christ that day! We met one couple who was fighting through the husband’s infidelity. God working through this painful day for them, brought about a repentant heart for him and the beginnings of forgiveness for her. They have a tough road ahead, with lots of work, but praise God they are moving the right direction!

Thursday was back at the Air Force Base for a short session about Family Relationships. Gabe got to share part of his own testimony of marriage and raising a family. Leonel translated into Spanish for him.

Friday night after training was complete, General Espinoza surprised us with a separate graduation reception, consisting of ceremony and a fabulous spread of hors d’oeuvres.

One of the most exciting parts of the entire week was Saturday morning. This morning was an optional breakfast for any of the couples that wanted to be part of the Honduras team. We were expecting 3 or 4 couples…..10 came!!! They were all eager to volunteer for positions and Tegucigalpa is now equipped with a team ready to reach their community for Christ!

I was beyond blessed to be a part of this trip and see first hand what God is up to in Honduras!

Mike + Kenzie

I've known Kenz since 7th grade when we became instant best friends. We were pretty much inseparable & knew everything there was to know about each other. Kenzie is one of those people you can completely be yourself around and know you are loved without end. I think we could compile a book from the hundreds of "notes" we used to write each other during class. I still find them when I go through my old stuff & they make me smile at how silly we used to be! We've been through some of the hardest things together & some of the best things together. We were roommates in college & knew each other almost better than ourselves. All it would take was a certain look from her & I would burst into tears or start laughing hysterically. Those are some of my best memories. I am so blessed to have such an amazing friend & sister in Christ. The moment I met Mike, I loved him. I could see why God put these two together. They have such a sweet but fun love for each other. We had an awesome day celebrating their marriage! The wedding was awesome & the reception was gorgeous!

Here's some pictures of the weekend:

                                                                          Mike & Kenz

                                                             Me, Kenz, Mart (baby huber)

                                                                     Kenz & me

                                                               The BEAUTIFUL bride!!

                                                         Eric & Mart & Baby Huber

                                                                      Gorgeous head table!

                                                             My beautiful mom & me

                                                                   My awesome parents :)

                                                We are sooooo blessed by this awesome couple!

whirlwinds & blessings.

Whew! What a whirlwind the past few weeks have been! Sorry I haven’t updated our blog recently- I’m ready to get back in the saddle with this blogging thoughJ! I’m trying to decide where to begin? Let me start with a brief overview of recently & then go further in depth- here’s our lives lately: July 15-17^th we headed to Kentucky to visit the Creation Museum with our dear potluck group as a last ‘hurrah’ before Ryan & Alys left for med school and we were living in Little Rock. July 18^th-27^th we were at “CSU”, which is the biennial Campus Crusade for Christ (now known as ‘cru’) conference held on the campus of Colorado State University. July 28-31^st we were back in Illinois for a few short days spent with family & of course the beautiful wedding of Mike & Kenzie- which I was beyond honored to be a part of. This week we have been re-adjusting & on Sunday Seth leaves for Honduras, working with FamilyLife, through the 14^th. The 16-18^th is mission training. We both leave for Costa Rica as part of FamilyLife on the 21^st & return the 28^th. Whew! I think that just about covers it! Now for the details…..

Creation Museum: We had been talking about this as a potluck for sometime. A while back we officially set the date & made the reservations. We all met at the hotel on Friday night and went to the creation museum on Saturday. Words can’t describe how thankful wear for these dear and precious friends. They have been one of the sweetest things we’ve known. I knew going into the weekend it was going to be so bittersweet. Sweet because we were able to spend a whole weekend with these awesome friends- but bitter because I knew it would be the last time in a long time we’d all be together. I think that mixed with the emotions of just recently moving (4 days earlier) and the unknowns ahead made it an emotional mix of feelings. We did have a blast, though! We will miss them so so much but will cherish the times we’ve had and the hopes of the future times we’ll have!

CSU: I have been debating of how to even put this week into words. I don’t know if I can. I wish I could because I want so badly for you to understand it & feel it & experience it with me. I’ll start by saying, this waaaay exceeded any expectation we had. This is a conference held every other summer on the campus of CSU (hence why we call the conference ‘csu’). All US Campus Crusade (now Cru) staff attends. There were about 5,000+ people in attendance. We were so beyond blessed to be a part of something so awesome & special. I’ll try to break it down:

     The drive out: on the way back from Kentucky we stopped at my parents hours for a quick supper & got to see my little brother, Chad, for a bit. He told us about this truck stop on I-80 that we couldn’t miss. We decided to drive to somewhere in Iowa that night & spend the night. On the way we’re looking for this truck stop when all of a sudden a “WORLDS LARGEST TRUCKSTOP” sign appears- I yelp “We have to stop!” & so we did. I imagine the looks on our faces when we walked in the front door looked something comparable to the movie “willy wonka & the chocolate factory”- when the winners of the contest walked into the chocolate paradise- haha! This place is amazing- it has a dentist, a barber, restaurants, showers, a museum, everything! Very well worth the stop. My suggestion- if you haven’t been there & you’re planning a trip on I-80 out in Iowa- stop there. It’s worth your time J. Anyways, we stop at a hotel that night & hit the road again in the morning. Somewhere in the middle of  nowhere, Nebraska I notice our air conditioning is actually blowing hot air, not cold air like it’s created to do. We ignore it for a bit & about 5 minutes later- it’s getting hotter. Hmmm. We decide it’s broken & that’s not a good thing considering it’s 95+ outside. Seth calls to a repair shop (found from our handy gps) and we head that way- Sidney, Nebraksa. As soon as we get on the off ramp I exclaim “What is that smell? Is that us?!” Seth replies “I could be, I’m not sure” (trying as hard as he can to keep his frantic wife calm by not telling the whole truth!) Again I exclaim “what’s that sound?! Is that us?! Are we going to explode?!” Seth replies “I don’t know what that sound is, but it doesn’t sound good”. I exclaim “but are we going to blow up?!?!” (I’ve watched too many movies I guess). Seth looks at me “No, baby, we’re not going to blow up. I want you to remember the memories we are going to make from this.” I know I tend toward the dramatic side, however when you’re in the middle of NOWHERE and don’t know ANYONE and it’s 95+ degrees and your car is sounding like a marching band with a nice hot rubber/metal smell- making memories are the last thing on my mind! We pull into Sidney & it literally looks like we are in an old wild west movie. We pull into the auto repair shop & a very very nice man takes a look at our car and tells us it looks pretty bad. Great- just what I love to hear! We tell him we are headed to Ft. Collins & ask if it would be safe to drive it there. He said it should be safe to drive but we CANNOT use the air conditioning no matter what (I won’t got into technical auto mechanic terms because you might laugh @ my attempt to explain what was wrong with our vehicle). So with a quick change of clothes into some shorts & the windows down we made our nice, warm, breezy drive to Colorado & made it safely- or so we thought! The next morning seth gets up to take our car to a local Honda dealer & they tell us we are “lucky” we made it. Apparently there was more wrong than we knew. Let’s attribute that to the hand of God’s goodness & provision! Amazingly, the Honda dealers gave us a rental car for no charge while they fixed our little problem car. God provided abundantly what we needed & safely!

     The Conference: If I could sum our time up in one word it would be AMAZING. But since I’m a girl of many words I’ll explain. Tuesday morning we registered & walked into moby (this is csu’s arena where met everyday). Boom- all around us there are people. People laughing, talking, catching up. People who really really love Jesus. 5000+ of them, all in the same room. We took our seats & all of a sudden some of the most beautiful worship we’ve ever experienced began. And thus began our week. That morning Francis Chan (author of Crazy Love, Forgotten God, & Erasing Hell) spoke to us. He also spoke to us the next morning (Wednesday). I’m not even going to try to explain the talks at this time because I can’t do justice to the power of the Spirit & how mighty & alive & active God was working. Here is the link to watch any of the main sessions we heard during the week, if you want to listen to them- http://www.ccci.org/csu/index.htm. It’s hard to try to describe the week without going into detail- at the same time, this is a blog post not a book & I want to try to summarize. We spent our mornings worshipping & listening to speaks & in the afternoon there would usually be a list of seminars you could choose from to attend. Then we would meet back at moby in the evenings for more worship & a speaker. Usually after the evening session we had some form of “entertainment”. For example we got to see Tenth Avenue North, Tim Hawkins, David Crowder Band, the movie ‘Courageous’- which comes out in theatres in September (You should go to see it opening weekend- this determines how long it stays in theatres!!). We also heard talks from Dan Allender, IJM, and tons more! Seth & I were able to meet a lot of FamilyLife staff- which was great since we hadn’t met too many yet. We had a free day on Thursday & Seth & I went up to Rocky Mountain National Park & hiked. I forget how beautiful the mountains are until you are actually in them. We packed a lunch and hiked for a day & then drove to grand lake for dinner. The week ended with an incredibaly powerful-Spirit led- talk from David Platt (author of Radical) & some beautifully, powerful worship. I wish I could explain it better- but it into more vivid detail, but I’m not sure how. We were so so blessed with such an amazing week!  Here's some pictures of our day spent hiking:

I think I’ll end this post here. Next time I’ll talk about the beautiful wedding of Mike & Kenzie. I’ll also update on how things are & once we get our house ready- I’ll post pictures of it J!

 In the mean time, please pray for Seth’s trip to Honduras this next week. (This is a huge God story if you want to hear it, I’ll explain it sometime). Originally we both were going to go but with life being so crazy & us still being in boxes we decided it would be best for me to stay home & settle this place & for Seth to go. Seth will be traveling with another FamilyLife missionary named Gabe. Gabe has overseen Latin America for sometime & has been leading trainings in different countries there. Pray for their trainings- pray for those are being trained how to start a marriage & family ministry in their churches/small groups/neighbors & pray for the team that is going to be leading these trainings. Pray as God prompts you to pray for them. Also pray for me as I’m back in our new home by myself. I’m planning on keeping busy & possibly plan to visit my family in texas at the end of the week (since they are only a short 6 hour drive away now!). Pray for our marriage- that God will use this time & distance to unify & grow us- not isolate us in business.

Until next time here’s a new favorite song of ours:

“The Goodness of God”  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrpJoM3L4Qs

Love you all!!!

thoughts from seth

For the ease of deciphering who is the author of blog post, we will post Seth's blogposts in the color red. Ang's will tend to range in colors- but she won't post in the color red :). Here are some thoughts from the mind of seth this morning:

So, I’m feeling a little bit like Gideon this morning. Maybe most of you know the story, but if you don’t or if you need a refresher, check it out in Judges chapter 7. God clearly calls Gideon to save Israel from the Midianites and the Amalekites, by putting a dew on the fleece that Gideon had laid out and keeping all of the ground dry. Just to be safe, Gideon asked God to show him again by placing a dew on all of the ground, but keeping the fleece completely dry. God did this and Gideon knew that God would deliver Israel by his hand. So Gideon gathers together his army to go fight the Midianites and Amalekites and comes up with about 32,000 men. We are not told the exact number in the Midianite/Amalekite army but the passage does say that they lined the valley like locusts and their camels where without number. That’s a lot! God tells Gideon to get rid of everyone that is afraid. Bam, 22,000 soldiers go home. Still God wants to be sure that the victory to come is recognized as His doing and no one else’s. He tells Gideon to have all the soldiers drink from a pond and whoever does not lap the water with his hand while staying alert, should be sent home as well. To me, this shows a sign of weakness and it knocks out another 9,700 men. Gideon is left with 300 men. God allows Gideon a little more assurance if he is doubting the victory. Gideon takes it, and sneaks up to some Midianite guards to hear one of the recounting a dream that the Israelites will be victorious over them.  Time for battle! Armed each one with a trumpet and a glass jar with a torch, God and the 300 men defeat the enormous Midianite/Amalekite army.

This is how I am relating this morning and perhaps some of you feel the same. You are all called to different places, whether it is your current job, schooling, ministry, family, or maybe you are heading somewhere new soon. For Ang and I it happens to be Little Rock, AR. We started this journey well over a year and a half ago, and I’m looking back, knowing I was full of fears and weaknesses. In a strange way I seemed to find comfort in those. In the same way that I would have found comfort in 32,000 soldiers, I found that I would get reassurance in my fears and weaknesses; I think because I could use them as an excuse or something to fall back on when I failed. This last 18 months has been a long grueling process of purging those fears and weaknesses (don’t worry, Ang, the process isn’t over yet J). But, I’m realizing that all God wants left is me at the very core, with nothing of my own, just all of me, wanting to bring him glory. So, we’ve been down here 5 days and I still having purging to do. Fears about fitting in at our new job, and meeting expectations, and getting everything transferred to Little Rock. Weaknesses of selfishness and pride and not leading our marriage. We have all been given the reassurance that we will be victorious in this life if we choose to follow Jesus. So, if the odds seem like they are against you or you don’t feel like you can face the battle ahead, you may be right where God wants you with the opportunity to bring Him so much glory! 

home sweet home?

The reality has been so much harder than I prepped myself for. I didn’t think saying goodbye would be so hard. So emotional. So heartbreaking. So scary. But it has been. I didn’t think I’d truly experience much of a culture shock. But I am. I didn’t really think it got that hot here. But it was still 100 degrees at 7:15pm. I didn’t know God would be so sweet to us. But He has been.

We took off Friday morning to move down south. My parents & my brother & sis-in-law (Jake & Jen) & their baby (Kylie Jo) & Seth’s parents came to help us move in. 5 vehicles, 2 trailers, 9 people, & 600 miles of road. We arrived around 4:15ish and after Seth & I practically signed our lives away to get the keys to our apartment, we walked into our new home. We started unloading the trailers & carrying in the boxes and boxes and boxes. Did I mention we chose to live on the third floor? We are beyond thankful for an amazingly hardworking & motivated family to help us unload & unpack!

The first night- that was easy. We had a full house full of family and slept very well due to pure exhaustion. The looming thought about everyone leaving us- not so easy. Saturday consisted of more unpacking & a tour of FamilyLife for our families. Then came the first hard part: my parents were going to leave for home. Wow. That was a lot harder than I thought. For both of us. Here they are- saying goodbye to their only grandbaby & son & daughter-in-law from Texas, & leaving their daughter & son-in-law in Arkansas. It was a quick & hard goodbye. Mom & I cried a lot.

Next came Jake & Jen & Kylie Jo. They were going to leave a few hours later. After a quick dinner and a few last minute things, we walked them out to the car to say goodbye. That was so hard. Lots more crying.

Thankfully Seth’s parents were going to stay one more night so we didn’t have to say goodbye to everyone at one time. We ran some errands with them. As we were pulling in the parking lot of Home Depot I found myself staring at the people like I was expecting them to look different or something- like I was in Africa instead of Arkansas. We went into the store & I was asking a sales clerk a question. As I was listening to him I realized I had no idea what he was saying because I was stuck on something. His accent. I forgot people have southern accents here & they actually do sound a lot different than Illinois people. Not a big deal, I know, but it hit me at that moment- I’m in a new land & it doesn’t feel very familiar to me.

Later that night I just laid there, sobbing.

Me: are you sure this is what we are supposed to do?

Seth: absolutely baby, without a doubt.

Me: I want to go back home

Seth: I know you do, but I know without a doubt we are supposed to be here.

Me: yeah. I know…I might cry a lot.

Seth: I know, I’m ready for it.

Me: are you scared?

Seth: no, not really, I’m excited

Me: oh. well I’m scared…are you sure we are supposed to do this?

(multiply this exact conversation about 10 times since).

I called my mom about 11:00pm & sobbed to her for a while. It felt good to cry and to release all the unknowns and worries. We both cried together at the stinging reality that we now lived 600 miles apart.

We went to church this morning with Seth’s parents at a nearby church. It was huge. Much larger than any church we have back home. Here in the south- that’s common. People are also very nice in the south- that’s common here too- courtesy. Church was good. It was so good for our hearts to be there. Refreshing & needed. We met a few other FamilyLife staff. That was good for me- it helped relieve some of my intimidation factor of that “first day of school” feeling.

After church we had to say goodbye to Seth’s parents. The third and final goodbye. That was so hard. I wanted to cry out, “Take me with you, don’t leave me here!” Momma B and I cried a lot and hugged a lot. It was so hard to let them go. Seth & I stood there crying as we watched them drive away. “We are all alone now”, I cried to Seth as we walked up to our empty apartment. So again, we cried (more me crying than Seth). The same conversation as above played out again with Seth comforting me as best he could. I collapsed in his arms, crying. Tears of fear, of loneliness, of uncomfortable/unfamiliar, of being plain overwhelmed.

Me: are you sad?

Seth: *looks at me for a while & almost opens his mouth to reply*

Me: *while sobbing* it’s okay if you are…No wait… If you lose it, then I’m going to lose it and then that means you may not be sure if this is right... But if you need to lose it, it’s okay.

Seth: I am sad, but I’m so excited, baby. I know this is right. (Sometimes I’m so thankful for his stability).

Tomorrow is our first day at FamilyLife. I’m nervous. I’m excited. I’m unsure. Seth is very excited. It feels like the first day of school. I told him we need to pick out our outfits for our first day J.

God opened me to a verse this morning & I have been clinging to it. He’s been so sweet to me. Isaiah 33:6 “and He will be the stability of your times, abundance of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge; the fear of the LORD is Zion's treasure”. I love that- He will be the stability of this time for us. He is the constant & unchanging foundation.

Thanks again for all your prayers & your love. Even though this is hard, we know God is in the center of this and this is exactly right. I just wish that made it all the easier J.

goodbye & hello.

Bittersweet. Merriam-Webster’s definition: something that is bittersweet; especially: pleasure alloyed with pain. I’ve been calling everything bittersweet lately. If you’ve recently talked to me, you’ve probably heard me say it. My emotions have been on an ever-changing ride. Some moments I’m so excited for this thrilling & trailblazing journey ahead. Other times I’m like a 3 year old who is clinging to her mom’s leg because I don’t want to leave. Leaving is bitter. The journey that awaits us & the people we will meet & the things we will do- that’s sweet. But I’m in the leaving stage right now, so everything tastes pretty bitter. It tastes kinda like this: The other night I was in the garage going through some stuff & seth comes out holding a glass of what I thought was ice water. I grab for it before he has the chance to say otherwise & take a swig. NOT WATER!!!!! I immediately went from smiling to twisting my face in confusion at this bitter taste in my mouth. It was milk. Now imagine thinking you were going to taste water & instead you taste milk…yuck.

I’m horrible at goodbyes, in fact I dread them. Instead of saying “goodbye” I tend to end with something like “I’ll see you soon!” because that usually stops my tear ducts from breaking loose. And makes it easier. Who likes hard things? You might say Angela, it develops character & perseverance & is good for you. Well, whether I like “hard things” or not (which I don’t like them), they come, so I figure I might as well make them as easy as I can, right? I know, I know. But seriously, I’ve been leaving & saying “good-bye” to everything lately. I’ve said goodbye to our home in goodfield, friends, our bible study group, our potluck, our home church, the pregnancy resource center, OSF- my job, my co-workers, our family, town, community. I even found myself saying goodbye to my favorite restaurant the other day- may sound lame, but it’s my familiar.

On the other side of the coin- I love new things. I love dreaming & anticipating things. I love imagining and hoping and wondering. Moving is full of all new things. A new town, a new home, a new job, new skills, new friends, new church, new roads, new hobbies, new state, new everything.

In the word bittersweet, the bitter precedes the sweet. Such is life- the “bitter”/difficult precedes the “sweet”/exciting.

We move tomorrow morning. It’s pretty surreal & doesn’t seem to have hit me yet. We have been soaking in time with family and friends before we leave. This past month has flown by & it’s so hard to believe the time is already here!

Next time I post will probably be from our new home in Little Rock, Arkansas! Thanks for all your prayers and your love. Please keep praying as we make this transition and say goodbye to what we’ve known forever and hello to what’s ahead.

Rio D Braker

Rio D Braker was born on June 21st, 2011. He weighed 8lbs 3oz & was 20.25 inches long. He is a beautiful, perfect little miracle.

I love being an aunt. Don't get me wrong, I hope to be a mother some day, but i'm relishing my days as an aunt as well. I had the AMAZING privilege to be part of this miracle. Jackie asked if I would want to be in the labor & delivery room with her and take pictures of the whole day. I was honored & thrilled!

Day of Birth: At 4:10am we woke up to a text message saying Jay & Jackie were on their way to the hospital & we should head there as well. This was it, Rio was coming! I threw on some clothes, tossed my hair up & grabbed some freshly made coffee (kudos to my hubby for doing that first thing :)) & ran out the door. Haha, thinking back at it, our driving to the hospital was pretty comical. Seth & I drove separately to the hospital so he could go to work in a couple hours. We were convinced that we were going to miss Rio's birth (probably me more than him) so we were darting (eh..speeding) down Knoxville avenue at 4:30 am. We even devised a plan for talking to the police if we got pulled over! But we made it without need to initiate our plan. We parked & ran into the hospital. And I mean ran. We made a mad dash to the labor floor. Breathless we exit the elevator determined to make it in time for Rio's birth. We ran into Mom B & Bets & went to the nearest waiting room....all of us anxiously & excitedly awaiting news from Jay & Jackie. They took a walk and found us in the waiting area & informed us that they were going to walk for about an hour to help dilate some more. Seth then left for work & us girls talked & read magazines while we would look forward to getting updates from Jay on the progression. Eventually they found a room for Jackie & we were all able to be in there with her. Her mom and her sister, Amber, were able to travel over from Taylor to be with her too! Let me just say- she did AMAZING. I was so proud of her- she was very organized, determined, strong, focused, a fighter, and in the midst of it all, still had a smile on! Soon after things all happened in a blur. Labor progressed & she was ready to have this baby! We all gathered to the side of the room- praying, watching, & crying. Jay was an AMAZING coach & teammate for Jackie. All of a sudden.....Rio entered into this world. It was amazing, beautiful, miraculous. What a moment to be a part of- thanks for including us Jay & Jackie :). Below are some pictures of the day:

First family picture!

Sweet Rio, all wrapped up!

The crew- Betsy, Amber, me, Jan, Jackie, Rio, Jay, Mom B

Precious. daddy & his boy.

Aunt Ang's first time holding Rio

Uncle Seth's first time holding rio

I loooove Maggy's face here, so darling. She loved her new little cousin .

Dayne couldn't wait to play with his new buddy. He already started reading him books about tractors!

All the boys with "D" as their middle name

Braker family :)

adam & cori {wedding}.

We just spent an amazing weekend with an amazing couple! Adam Bloom & Cori Hoerr were wed on Saturday, June 18th, 2011. I had the incredible privilege to be a bridesmaid in this beautiful wedding! Their heartbeat is that God would be the center of their lives & their marriage & I can say with full assurance that God was absolutely the center of this wedding & radiates out of this couple's hearts. Words can't express how much I love this girl and now this boy.

Us girls spent the friday before the wedding getting pampered. We started the festivities off with a lunch out at 309....mmmm delish! We had fun just being girls and giggling over the excitement of the wedding & being together! THEN we went next door to Natural Nails & each got a pedicure & manicure to beautify for the wedding. Then we headed back to the hotel to get ready for rehersal.

For rehersal dinner we ate at ONE WORLD...mmmm! It was a sweet night full of laughs, friends, and good memories. The next morning we ate some yumshish breakfast at the hotel & started getting ready :)! Out come the curling irons, rollers, hairspray, eye shadow, etc! We had fun talking & laughing as we got ready & then headed to downtown peoria for the pictures.

The wedding ceremony was beautiful. Full of God and full of love. And two became one. Mr & Mrs Bloom. Adam & Cori Bloom!

We headed to the reception at Dan & Kayla Hoerr's (Cori's Parent's) home. The flowers & decorations were GORGEOUS. The food was OUTSTANDING. The bride & groom were BEAUTIFUL. God was so glorified & provided so abundantly!!

Below are a few of my favorite pictures (I had to narrow down from 300+ pictures)

 Adam & Cori- groom & his bride.

 My benna & me

 Miranda & Curtis- love love them!



 My buddy and me

I absolultely LOVE this picture....I think they are beautiful!! 

Love this one too!!

This is at the hotel before we left to get pictures taken :) 

Their first meeting. It was so sweet & beautiful.

Cori & her parents :)

                                          Cori's holding baby Gia, Dusty & Erin's beautiful little girl!

 



As you can see, we had an awesome time celebrating with Adam & Cori!

Congratulations Mr & Mrs Bloom :).