Good times with our friends and families!

We've been enjoying some very special moments with our friends and families! We've been a part of birthdays, wedding celebrations and preparations on both sides of our families, we've visited with a lot of family members, we've even been to Texas and back to see some of our closest friends. We've visited different churches, parks, play centers, and a pumpkin patch! I'm thankful for the memories, pictures, and videos we've been creating of this special time with Jakub- showing him where we're from. :) We've, of course!, also been spoiling him a little with fun toys, and foods:) A certain someone reading this (you know who you are;) will be happy to know that he got to eat his first marshmallow. You should have seen how happy his face was with that one:)


We've also all had some illnesses, Jakub for his first times, but we're over it all now and thankful for the help we received through it all!

Other special moments:

- Playing the piano - he plays one key at a time
- Picking pumpkins and eating them:)
- Visiting Harding and the students/leaders who worked with us the past two summers in Olomouc
- Visiting the West Fork school where Josh grew up and where Jakub's Papa still teaches
- riding in wagons
- Jakub opening and closing every cabinet in the kitchen one at a time...
- learning to play pat-pat on command- he won't stop doing it now:)
- seeing his face the for the first time when he saw Nana's birthday candles lit
- watching him walk all the way around the coffee table- it won't be long...
- watching him learn to give kisses to others



Here are some pictures from the last 2 weeks. Probably in random order..

This is our trip to TX. When in TX do as others do... Isn't it cute on him? :)

Here Jakub is playing with Keegan and Cohen. Soon, there will be another boy, Carson, to add to the group:) We can't wait to see pictures of him when he arrives into this world:) We had so much fun visiting our friends and church family there.

Here are my sweet friends, Randi and Melanie. Randi will be having Carson, prayerfully, sometime around the beginning of December. We can't wait to see him:) We had such a good, though too short, time together. I think it's sweet that we've all got boys and can share in that experience together.

I don't have a picture of all of our husbands together, but here is a picture of Christian feeding Keegan. You can see Jakub is having a good laugh in the background. I wish I knew at what... :)

Here's the Johnston Pumpkin Farm we visited, which is about 15 miles outside of Conway.

He had a lot of fun riding with the pumpkins:)

Sweet smile...

Talking to the turkey...







Seeing how tall he is...









Family photo:)







My Dad, Sister Hope, and Mom






Ok, I'm running out of time and still have so many pictures to show... SO, I'll have to put up more later. Here are just a couple more. Enjoy! :)

Welcome to the USA!

Here's a picture of our family. It's one of the few we've managed to take together since Jakub was born. That's sad... We actually took it today for our church directory here in Fayetteville. :)

Well, Jakub's first trip to the U.S. has been a great success so far. He's really enjoying getting to be with and play with so much family. It's been wonderful to spend time with them and to see him interacting with them and loving them. We've taken so many pictures since we've been here, but it would take me a long time to go through them and post a lot, so I'll save that for another time. I'll just put up a couple more at the end of this post.

Jakub also turned 10 months this week, so there are some things I want to write down now so I won't forget them or this time in the US.

- He has 2 teeth, which came within 2 weeks of each other. I think a third one is on it's way now. He's had a lot of pain, but handled it so well!
- He weighs about 23 lbs and is 31 inches long. We had a well check-up here last month and he is a healthy boy! His weight is around 60% for his age, and his height is 98%.
- His hair is coming in thicker now and still has a reddish-blond look. I love it.
- He's pulling up on everything, walking around the furniture or with us holding his hands, and he can climb up the stairs alone.
- It only took 2 days of jet lag before he began sleeping through the night here as he usually does at home. We're blessed with how well this kid sleeps at night.
- He says "ma-ma-ma" all the time now and has even called out to me 3 times when he wanted me to get him. It melts my heart:)
- He's starting to say bye-bye and to wave sometimes on command.
- He tried to say button after I did the other day, but would never finish the word. He talks gibberish all the time and makes lots of noises while playing. He's also starting to make singing noises with music and he likes to dance to it, also.
- He had his first stomach virus here, which only lasted a few hours and by the next day he was pretty much back to normal. He handled it so well- we were so proud of how strong he was and how healthy he is all the time. We thank God for that!
- He loves Bible class and hasn't had a problem being left there at church. He loves to play with the other kids and toys. He didn't even look back at me one time when I left him... I was both proud and sad at the same time:)
- He is terrible now about getting his diaper changed. He hates to lay on his back and immediately turns over and tries to crawl away. I dread this time.
- He has a dominate personality and when playing with others he often pokes at them, crawls on them, or takes their toys away. This could be a problem...
- He still loves bath time and reading at bed time.

Thanks for your prayers for his and our transition to the US. God has blessed us greatly. Though we do miss our friends and work in Olomouc, we are having a wonderful time at home with our family and friends. We're trying to soak up every moment here and with Jakub.

Here are a few more photos:

Here's one of us at my sister Hope's wedding.




Here's one of Jakub with his great grandpa. He sang him to sleep and it was so precious. We all had a great time visiting out on the porch. A lot of Josh's family was in town for his brother's fiancee Nellie's wedding.



Here is Josh with Jakub. Some of our family gave him this Tickle Monster kit with a book and special monster gloves you use to tickle the baby with:) It was really sweet and a lot of fun!

Crawling around...

Here are a couple of videos of Jakub crawling. For more pictures see the post below. Enjoy!

Happy 9 Months Baby Boy!

Happy 9 months to you, Jakub! We're so thankful to God to have you in our lives! You bring us such joy and happiness. Here are some photos and stories to tell about all the fun things you are doing right now.




You love to play and do so really well with us, with others, and alone. You're dramatic, also, when you play. You talk a lot, you yell loudly, you laugh, you throw things, you chew on everything, you crawl around, in, on, and behind everything you can. You love to open and shut doors and drawers. When you catch us watching you while you're playing you laugh really loudly and make fun faces and you usually crawl as quickly as you can to us so we'll pick you up. :)





You're exploring a lot of new toys right now. The one above is "Pingy" the penguin. You love to hit and kick him so he'll turn and sing to you. You're also doing well at standing up against some toys to play. We have to stand you up there because you're just now trying to pull up on things and you don't have the hang of it, yet. You're learning, though.




Here you had been having a tickle-fest with Daddy. You two have a lot of fun playing together. You like it when we get on the floor with you. You also like to crawl away and play chase with us... especially when you have a poopy diaper. :)





You're also now enjoying practicing walking. You usually jump a lot, too, when we practice. You're good at it and I'm sure it won't be too long before you're doing it on your own.




Sweet smiles for "da-da..."





You also like to hang off of the bed with Daddy and look at things below. With all of the loud talking/yelling/laughing you do, the chasing and play-screaming, the eating grass/leaves/dirt... there's no mistaking you are a boy. I love it, too! You are a lot of fun to be with.




Playing in bed with Mommy and Daddy...


Other things to remember about right now:

- You still like to have your pacifier when you're sleepy

- You got your FIRST TOOTH! the day before you turned 9 months. You did so well... we didn't even know you had it until you were biting on a finger and fussed a little and then I saw it. I could feel it, too. It must have happened over night, but you slept so well and did so well. I hope the other teeth come in like this one. We're so proud of you!

- You love to play with pots and pans while I'm in the kitchen.

- You eat 3 solid-food meals a day and you love it. You usually have fresh fruit and cereal for breakfast. You eat some veggies and maybe some meat for lunch. You have some yogurt or fruit for a snack and you eat some more veggies for dinner. You are a good eater- too good! You still don't show signs of being full and will open your mouth for anything:) I have to give you pieces of food to eat on your own slowly because you try to eat quickly anything you can reach and you sometimes choke yourself a little:) I won't complain, though, because you eat so well and eat anything! You even like cold yogurt plain now. I don't know of anything you won't eat.

- You've begun saying "na-na" and "ma-ma" and it's so good to hear. You say "da-da" a lot, but especially when Daddy comes into the room or when he comes home from work. I think you know what you are saying to him. We're still working on the "ma-ma." :)

- You wave bye-bye when we prompt you, but you won't say it yet and you don't do it alone, yet.

- You love to sing with me and read books- especially touch-and-feel books. You always look at the page and find exactly where to scratch or feel and it's great to watch you observing and exploring the books.

- You nap two times a day- 9 and 1- and then we go for walks and play dates in the afternoons. You love to be outside touching everything. You also like to feed the ducks with me and you don't mind when they come right up to our feet. You don't seem scared of anything, yet.

- I guess that you weigh a little over 10 kilo now. You're growing so quickly! I also measured you the other day at almost 73 cm. I think that's 28 1/2 or 29 inches. Your feet are also really big, but I don't have any shoes for you yet so I don't know what size you are:) You wear 9-12 month clothing and 12 mo pants fit you the best.

Well, that's all for now. I have some new videos to post, as well, but I have to upload them first. Hopefully I can do that soon.

Please be praying for our trip to the U.S. in a week and a half. We're really looking forward to being there, but a little nervous about the travel there. We hope Jakub will do well, that we won't be too tired, that the travel will be safe, and that we 3 will adjust to our new sleep schedules well in the U.S. It's likely my next post will be from there:) Exciting!

Fun times!

I have only a few new pictures to show, but I've been having so much fun with Jakub. He crawls everywhere and explores everything. He's also eating new foods and learning new movements/skills. It's a great time!

He has been getting up on his knees more over the last 2 days and even pulling forward on them a little. Maybe he will learn how to crawl on them after all. He's really starting to say "na-na-na" a lot with his "da-da," so it's nice to hear a new sound. When he wakes from a nap and wants us to get him he sometimes yells "hey" really loudly over and over. It's cute. :) He yells a lot, period, when he's talking. I don't know why he thinks he has to be so loud...

He wants to open and shut every door he passes. We haven't lost any fingers to this game, yet. When he crawls across the floor in the living room, and some toys are in the way, he grabs them and throws them really hard out of the way while he keeps moving. He can be so dramatic. :) His new favorite meal is steamed cauliflower mixed with sauteed tomatoes and onions and then mixed with some real cheddar cheese. I thought it was pretty yummy, myself. He's eating pieces of things now and chunkier foods on his own, but I still spoon feed him as well. Tonight I might be making him his first lasagna (if I can overcome my laziness and get to the store), which is exciting. Anyway, that's how things are going here with Jakub.

As for work we're enjoying doing a lot of follow-up activities with the camp students and the kids we already knew in Olomouc. Yesterday we took them bowling and then to the square for ice cream. Jakub loved being with all of the students. They enjoyed him, as well, and even included him in a little water-splash game in one of the fountains. :) We're hoping to see some of them at worship on Sunday, so please be praying about that.

Josh and I are also starting to make some plans for our trip home, which makes it seem really close! Only 2 1/2 weeks! We're very excited.

Here are the pictures. Some are of Jakub in the tub, some are of him eating blueberries and yogurt, and some are of him playing. He loves to crawl under tables and chairs. Enjoy!

Memories...

There are a few things that Jakub is doing right now that I don't want to forget... so I'm writing it down even though I don't have any pictures or video to go with it right now. You'll just have to imagine:)

- He loves to lean back and look up now- at anything. I always think he's going to fall, but he doesn't. He's so strong and controlled now with movements, and so curious about everything. I love to watch him while he's exploring.

- When he's frustrated he scrunches up his nose and lips and huffs and puffs several times. I don't know how else to describe it, but it's so funny and often makes us both laugh. He's a little dramatic with the expressions and talking. It's entertaining to say the least.

- When I sing he sings along and it's funny. Sometimes I make high-pitched noises "in-tune" with his just to have fun and he thinks this is hilarious.

- He still army-crawls everywhere. He's so fast now I think he doesn't see a reason anymore to try to get up on his knees. He follows me through the rooms and it's nice to know he can do this alone now.

- He's getting really good at eating with his fingers, so I'm discovering new things to feed him so he can do it alone. He likes to do almost everything himself.

- He says "da-da" a lot when Josh comes near so I think he really knows what he's saying, though he still also says it when he's excited about food and such:)

- His feet are too big for the size 3 shoes I tried to put on this morning. Is that possible?:) I think he's going to be tall. So, we don't have any shoes for him and I have no experience buying them myself, yet, but I'm about to learn. :)

- He can pull himself up to standing against me, but doesn't do it on furniture or anywhere else, yet.

That's all I can think of for now. He's so much fun to be around and to play with. He gives the sweetest hugs in the mornings and sometimes he tries to catch your eye and then smiles really big. I just love him! That's it. :)

The End... and The Beginning!

Well, July has come to a close and we are exhausted, overwhelmed, excited, blessed, and filled with joy! Our camps, follow-up activities, visiting campaigners, and interns were all a success thanks to God and lots of answered prayers. There is so much to say and so little time:)

We got back on Saturday night from our second camp. I don't know the final count, but I believe we had just as many people total as the first camp- 70+ people. We had around 40 Czech students, which was our goal. We are so thankful for what was a wonderful and touching week with them. For this camp the temps were, thankfully, much cooler. The kids, being a younger-aged group, were a little more open and youthful, which was awesome. The programs and testimonies went so well and I believe many were touched. A couple of stories to tell you of how blessed we feel and how thankful we are to God for those blessings:

- On Thursday evening of our second camp we were surprised by a return visit from 12 students from the first, older-aged, camp. They came back to share with the younger students how we had changed their lives. They thanked us for the first camp and they stayed the night to be with all of us. I can't tell you how that felt. We cried, we hugged them, and we spent a wonderful evening all together. I'm not sharing this to brag, but to let you in on our joy. This kind of thing is one of the only ways we get to know sometimes that what we are doing is actually changing others and helping them to see God in life here. These kids literally walked up a mountainside about one mile in a thunderstorm, from the local train station, just to tell us these things and to stay the night with us again. I'll never forget this night. This gift, from God, is part of what keeps us going. I've got chills thinking about it even now...

Here are some pictures from a slideshow we made for the students at the second camp. We got the idea from another video we saw where people shared messages with those they loved in this way. It was a way for us to say goodbye to the students and to share one last message with them before they left.

This is our intern Alyssa- we love her so much!
And this is our intern Madison. We love her just as much. We will miss these girls when they are gone and we'll definitely be keeping in-touch with them.

- Yesterday, for worship time, we had 25 student visitors from both the camps come to be with us. Yes, they were partly coming to say goodbye to their American friends/teachers who were here for the summer, but they stayed to worship with us. They listened while we talked about and praised God in our home environment. They learned what communion is and why we take it each week. They, hopefully, saw God in us and among us. Many took Bibles at the end and began asking us some questions about reading it and studying it. It doesn't get any better than this! This is exactly what we pray to God for after camps are over. We don't want just a week with these kids, but years of growth and learning together. We pray they will keep coming back for activities we will offer each week beginning this week. We pray they will keep looking for God all around them and that we can help with that.

So, those are just a couple of stories I wanted to share with you. There are so many more, but I know we'll send out a newsletter soon with more and with pictures. Please keep praying for us here and for these students and other friends in our lives here. Pray they will keep looking for God with us.

Here are a couple more pictures from camp of Jakub:) He's just so adorable and so much fun right now. He's crawling everywhere and getting into trouble:) He laughs and talks all the time. He still smiles all the time. He likes to hug. He loves to read with me. He has no teeth:) He's such a joy in our lives!