Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Reflecting on Seventeen Years


1992 - 1993

So young. Having fun living in our tiny loft in an old pencil factory on the north side of Chicago, but starting to recognize God calling us to grow up.

1993 - 1994

A new adventure. Minneapolis. {Brrr!} Our first house.

1994 - 1995

First time parents... to a Siberian Husky puppy. Our first renovation project.

1995 - 1996

The best thing we ever did for our marriage -- both of us attend Bible Study Fellowship. The Word comes alive.

1996 - 1997

Baby bug hits. Move to our third Midwestern state.* Take the trip of a lifetime to Holland and Poland, because we might never get that opportunity again.

1997 - 1998

And Baby Anna makes three! But the baby bug persists.

1998 - 1999

Take our spiritual walk to the next level -- serving God -- we are both called to be BSF Children's Leaders. Baby Ryno makes four!

1999 - 2000

The year of paint and caulk.

2000 - 2001

Move to the Blue House. Baby bug hits again, but concerns about Ryno are strong.

2001 - 2002

Autism. Pregnancy. Welcome to our world, Baby Grace! In-home therapy begins. Welcome back to our world, Ryne!

2002 - 2003

Sacrifice and trust. Everyone thinks we're crazy as we move to Chicago to further help Ryne.

2003 - 2004

Confirmation! Ryne thrives, and God answers prayer in BIG ways!

2004 - 2005

The most difficult year. Marc moves back to the Blue House, commutes to Chicago on the weekends for six months. My mom and Marc's dad die two weeks apart. Life was a blur, but God's grace was more than sufficient.

2005 - 2006

{Exhale} Life starts to seem normal.

2006 - 2007

While taking a romantic walk on the beach, we decide to become homeschoolers.

2007 - 2008

Marc is out of work for four months, but after what we've been through, trusting God for this seems pretty easy.

2008 - 2009

How time flies! Life is crazy busy, but it's fun. We're not so young anymore, but our love is as strong as ever.

Happy Anniversary to us!

* I'm guessing in this age of stat counters, many of you know what state we live in. I still prefer to keep it mostly off this blog, along with our last name. : )

6 comments:

  1. HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!!! You make a great couple!! Tell Mark he MUST sit closer to you in Sunday school though. ;)

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  2. Too funny! I've thought about that before -- it's bec. I usually have my Bible, notes, tea, etc. sitting in between us. Maybe we just need to sit farther back, so we don't have to be turned sideways like that. : )

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  3. Happy anniversary! This was a neat post. I may borrow the idea. Congratulations!!

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  4. Happy Anniversary!
    What a sweet posting of your lives together. God is good.
    Debi
    www.lifeaboveandbeyond.com

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  5. what a precious story, thanks for sharing your faith in God's grace. Your confidence is inspiring. Happy New Year- Laura

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