Visits with Friends

God allowed us to get some time with some sweet friends this past week. Owen and I went to Harrisonburg to see my parents for 4 days before Thanksgiving while Matt worked on 2 papers (way to go Matt!!). While we were there, I got to visit with Amy and Molly Joy Aldrich. We didn't get a picture, but it was a great visit!! While in Northern, VA, Matt and I also got to see our friends Brett and Krista Miller. We didn't get a picture of them either, but enjoyed getting to know them as a couple!

While in Northern Virginia, we got to see one of my best friends from childhood, Tori, and her husband Scott. They live in N.VA now and so we see them whenever we can when we're up there! It was so neat for them to know Owen better!


While in Harrisonburg, Owen and I got to visit with Sarah and Madison Gammage and Lisa and Gray Ryan. What a sweet time to see all of our babies together!


After Thanksgiving, we saw our good friends Michael, Laura and Noah Salvatierra. They are raising support in getting ready to go to Peru with Mission to the World. We relish every moment we have with them before they depart. Noah is 2 months older than Owen - what a joy!

Happy Thanksgiving!

We had a great visit with family over Thanksgiving. We were at Owen's Grandpa Purdy and Grandma Purdy's house in Northern Virginia. We enjoyed a lot of good visits with Matt's parents and siblings. We saw the Reston Town Center Christmas Tree be lit, played games, ate a lot of yummy food and just hung out.

Owen tried Turkey on Thanksgiving day, but he did NOT like it one bit! He just shuttered. Oh Well! It was a fun thing for Matt and I to try.

We are thankful to the Lord for all of the ways He has blessed us and for all of His promises that He upholds us with.

This is Owen enjoying the Macy's Day Parade!


Here is a Charlotte Purdys Family Photo.


Owen with Madison (left) and Ashley (right)


Owen with Aunt Noelle and Uncle Scott's Yellow Lab - Starbucks. They loved each other!


This is Matt, Owen and I with Matt's sister Noelle and her husband Scott with their girls.

Look who's STANDING!

For those of y'all who didn't know, Owen has not been much for standing thus far. He's certainly "behind" the "norm" for children his age in how he "bears weight" on his legs. His pediatrician has referred us to an "Early Intervention Center" to have his gross motor skills evaluated. In the meantime, he's been starting to stand like a champ! Just in the last two days he'll bear all of his weight on his legs. It's so fun for all of us! We haven't been too worried about it, but now we're really hopeful that all is well. Owen will still go through the evaluation, but we're pretty sure at this point that he won't be needing any Physical Therapy. We'll keep you posted!

Owen's Parents

Here is a recent picture of Matt and I. We are sitting on the couch together after a long day...a usual occurance in our house!

I wanted to give you a brief update on where we are at and ask you to pray for us as well. Matt is approaching his final semester here at RTS. It's hard to believe our time here is almost over! Because of this, we are in the midst of looking for a "call" to a church. Matt would love to be an associate pastor at a church on the East coast - preferably in VA. Please join us in praying for the Lord to lead us and guide us to the place that He has prepared for us to minister and to live.

Look what I can do!

I went upstairs to get Owen from his nap yesterday. I had heard him chatting and such for about a half hour after his nap was done. When I got into his room, I saw exactly what you're seeing in this picture. He had sat himself up in his crib when he was done sleeping! Way to go Owen! He has only sat himself up a few times. We were quickly reminded that we need to lower his crib now that he can do this!!

What else is new with Owen? Well he's got 2 teeth - they are front and center on the bottom. He enjoys playing with them with his tongue - exploring these foreign objects in his mouth. He eats Rice Cereal or Oatmeal with either veggies or fruit at breakfast, lunch and dinner. He says Dadadada and Mamamama a lot. I think it is still "indiscriminately" as the baby book says, but we love it anyway! He continues to be a joy and a blessing to us and to others!

Howdy Cowboy!

Here's our little Cowboy :) We had a fun time dressing Owen up as a Cowboy - he didn't have any idea his idenity changed for the night.

There was a community Halloween party in our neighborhood Monday night that we took Owen to. We weren't sure if we were going to "celebrate" Halloween this year, and to what extent, but we enjoyed the opportunity to be involved with our community here and to get to know some of our neighbors better. Some of our seminary friends that also live here went with us - the Kulps, Hunts, and McCanns. Owen enjoyed playing with Bennett the sheep and Celia as Little Bo Peep.