Get Ready.

Get set.



You're about to see a lot of pictures of a tree.



It's Kyle favorite tree.



Not merely his favorite kind of tree, but his favorite tree on the planet.



Everyone should have a favorite tree. I do.



It's a Ginkgo.



It drops all its leaves in one day.



It was spectacular this weekend.



I took far too many pictures of this tree.



But it was such an obliging subject.

Rejoicing in Suffering

6 good reasons to rejoice in Christ when it's difficult:
1. We get to see God's goodness as he grips us in the fire.
2. Experiencing loss and grief makes you more attuned to the pain others carry.
3. Jesus suffered more than we can understand, but we can identify more with him when we suffer too.
4. Clinging to Christ out of desperation is a good thing. We should do this every day anyway. We are hopeless and desperate without him, after all.
5. The life of a Christian should be marked not by our love for God and each other in our prosperity, but by our love for God and each other in our suffering.
6. (You fill in the blank.)

One Quarter

Six years ago this week I began dating the man I now call my husband. I am happy to say that I have now spent 1/4 of my life with him. That feels significant, somehow. Last night we relived those first moments being together, the uncertainty of each others' feelings, the certainty of our own, the excitement in every moment, the newness of it all.

It was fun to look back on those early days. It's almost unbelievable how far we've come since then. I am so grateful for all that is behind us, and all that lies ahead.

For Kyle...
We've aged. We've grown. We've loved more deeply.
We've survived. We've failed. We've learned to live cheaply.
We've vowed. We've kissed. We've spoken words sweetly.
We've laughed. We've wept. We've known Him more completely.
Our love, our life, it happened uniquely.
One quarter, one quarter, gone by so briefly.

My idea of a great Friday night alone

Kyle is headed to the Cardinals game tonight with some friends of the male persuasion for Ozzie Smith Bobblehead Night. My plans are to:

1. Paint
2. Make a DiGiorno and drink Diet Dr. Pepper
3. Watch as many old movies as I can. In queue: Sabrina (the Audrey Hepburn version, of course), Somewhere in Time, and The Grapes of Wrath
4. Work on our Halloween costumes
   

Tonight's gonna be a good night.

Sweet and thoughtful words from sweet and thoughtful friends.

This year on our anniversary, Kyle and I received an incredibly encouraging letter from some friends of ours. This came just shortly after we found out that we have infertility. It was an emotional day, and I've still not been able to tell our friends just how much this letter meant to us. Nearly two months later, I still think about these words all the time, and the best way I can think to express my gratitude is to (anonymously) share them with you all. I feel so blessed that God placed such people in our lives.

Kyle & Chelsea,

It's interesting how, with some friends, you knew them as singles before they married. It's fun to see how their lives intertwine and their personalities mold and meld. It is a blessing to witness.

For you, we only ever knew you as Mr. & Mrs. Bass. With that comes some of its own unique blessings. Because we knew you not before marriage, let alone before you dated, it's hard for us to see the myriad of ways in which you've grown together in and toward Christ. So the blessing here is for us to see just how wise our Lord is in fitting each of you to be such a complement to the other. Kyle with his patience. Chelsea with her passion. Chelsea with her vast creativity. Kyle with a keen eye, ear and mind to appreciate the arts. Kyle with his love for pie. Chelsea with her mad pie-making skills.

All of that is to say that we enjoy your friendship and your marriage and are thankful to have known you not as you were, but the way God created you to be - together. To Him be the glory! He knew your hearts, your minds and your bodies. And He put you together, not because those parts are perfect, but because, in His infinite wisdom, He knew that He would be most glorified by the way you handle those imperfections together.

Thereunto, here is our prayer for your marriage.

Father, bless and keep this union for the sake of your name. May their strengths continue to magnify your worth. May their weaknesses continue to display your sufficiency. May their love abound, within and without. Amen.

We love you both. Happy 3rd Anniversary!

We love YOU too. You know who you are. Thank you so much for the way you continually encourage us.