the whirlwind is over...

I didn't think this weekend would be over so fast but it is....My family and Sam's family came up to visit this weekend to celebrate my dad's birthday, Sam's dad's birthday, and Sam's birthday, all within a few days of each other next weekend. So, I thought to myself...why not make a party out of it! And we did...my parents and brothers were coming up to b'ham anyway because Austin had a football game (which might I add, he played amazing!) on Friday night. Then Allie, Bjorn, Mark, Lynette, and Eileen came down on Saturday and stayed until this morning. We had so much fun just hanging out as a family all together... and it was so neat to see (almost) everyone together again since the wedding back in December. I'm still amazed at how fast the time has flown by!

Another special thing that we celebrated this weekend was Sam's Baptism this morning. Even though he was "baptized" as a baby, our church takes a big stand on encouraging every believer to follow through in "believer's baptism." The way that Brookhills does baptism is so special, as they invited family and friends to gather around the baptismal pool and have a close up look at the significance of what is being said and done. I'm so proud of Sam.... to see and learn more of the Lord is working and changing his life in the last few years is really amazing to me, and challenges me to want to live more the glory of God. (I have to admit, I've had to remind myself that "getting baptized" doesn't make the Lord loves us anymore than He already does. And it doesn't make us more "holy" either, but I know that God is so blessed by our obedience to follow him in public acknowledgement of who he is in our lives, by following the example set by His own Son.)

Needless to say, after all the family and dogs ( we had four dogs at one time our tiny apartment) had left this afternoon, I was about to pass out.... 3 hours later, we woke up and realized we had slept the afternoon away. But I'm not complaining.... sometimes you just need a little sleep!

So, the weekend overall was such an enjoyment, and the last month or so of working hard to get the new apartment in shape really paid off.... I'll have pictures soon.

All for now!