Autum Fun

Last week we went apple picking and it was a blast. We picked about 20 pounds and Hillary has already made two pies. The apple orchard was part of a big farm wich had all sorts of produce and a mini-grocery store and bakery where we bought fresh apple cider donoughts - wow! Last week was also our 4th wedding anniversary, so we celebrated by going out for coffee one night and dinner another. It was great to have two nights out together in one week. Wesley is doing well, though his teeth are hurting him as they are just about to break through. We have been enjoying the last few warmer days before winter comes to get us. Wesley, is not sitting up well enough that we can bathe him in the kitchen sink. It is easier and makes less of a mess in our bathroom!

arts and anniversary

This Saturday we took some teens to the New Britian Museum of American Art, which is about 15 minutes from our house. A guy at our church is an art teacher and he helped us think about art and aesthetics from a Christian world view. He had a lot of neat things to say, and began our discussion by talking about the distiction of "I like it" vs. "It is good." We all subjectively like different pieces of art, but to say whether art is good, we need some sort of standard. He had us look at a few pieces and say which one was best when compared to a certain standard and it was really interesting. I started to like "fine" Art - painting and that kinda stuff - when I lived in St. Louis and the Art Museum there was free. I remember just, going there and wandering around the museum by myself and really enjoying it. I can still picture the flow of certain rooms and remember paintings that I would sit in front of and stare at.
This coming Thursday is our 4th Wedding Anniversary. Yeah!

heat, light, and people (soon)

It has been just over two weeks that we've been in our new church offices and it is pretty exciting. It is great to have a dedicated space where I can spread out and work without being in the way or being distracted by various things happening around the house. Yesterday we finally had the heat turned on, and new light bulbs installed and now we're sorta ready for people. There's still a bunch of organizing to be done, some rooms need painting, and we'll have to go on a shopping for furniture, but we are off to a start. The offices are about a block from where we worship and a 5-10 minute walk from the town center. I've already met people at the office and walked to get coffee, which was really cool. Outside of getting adjusted to the office, I took two teens climbing outside yesterday (Columbus day) andI'm working on various teaching stuff for this week. The preparation is going well, but it is always a challenge when I spend more of the day by myself writing because I miss interacting with people.

chubby baby

Wesley has started eating solid food and we're seeing the effects. You'll notice in this first picture, how his sweater isn't exactly covering his belly. As the day went on it continued to in higher and higher as his belly kept expanding. He's got chubby cheeks, a few chins, and fat little legs. It is a lot of fun to see him grow. He's basically sitting up on his own, though he's not completely stable as of yet. This picture is from his baptism last week. This was a wonderful time of celebration with many family members attending. Other than a growing baby, life is going well, with ministry continuing in October and the pace of life adjusting to a more normal rhythm.