Welcome fall...routine!

SCHOOL HAS STARTED!
Okay we don't have a kid in school yet (Mike and I decided to send Malachi only 1 year of preschool-so he will start next fall), but there is something so exciting about the first week of school! There is a routine that starts to form during the school year, something that is lost along the way for the summer months.
This past weekend was Mike's weekend off. It was delightful! On Friday I, Amy, started to clean the house an organize. Among the lost routine is also a lost was my sense of organization-which means more chaos and routine lost in my mind. It is difficult to follow a routine when I don't feel organized. I joke that it's an OCD (or CDO in alphabetical order...as it should be). But it is true that I find it difficult to focus, difficult to make decisions, and am more likely to be short wicked if I don't feel organized, things aren't put away correctly or if there is too much clutter. So Friday was organization day! There is a load/pile that is supposed to go to Epilepsy Foundation when they finally come to get it...but going back to my above comment-I might not be able to last that long and may have to hand it off to another wonderful organization.

On Saturday we decided to bite the bullet. We have been talking about how our old house needed a small table-the dining room was just not that big. But the table is really made for 2 people, even though it has 4 chairs. It cannot have 4 people's plate, silverware, glass, AND the food. So I am constantly refilling cups, adding more of this or that to the plates and other than our dinner prayer we rarely sit the entire meal together. So we went shopping for a new table! It was out of stock, the one we wanted was the only one without more in the warehouse and the one on the floor was nicked...of course! Mike and I are patiently....sorta...waiting to hear it has arrived. I say, "sorta" because we moved the old one out-in anticipation, so the boys are sitting on their picnic table and we sit on the floor....Oh well-builds character right?
Sunday came, the Lord's Day. We enjoyed worship with our church family. Pastor Todd brought a wonderful message about who we actually work for in our jobs (Hint: CHRIST). He spoke on Colossians 3:22-4:1. It was challenging and encouraging. Afterwards we decided to head to Lake Minnetonka. About 2 weeks ago Mike had stitches after helping a family from church move (I'll talk about that in a bit) so I didn't want him to swim, too soon I thought. But Malachi and I swam a lot! Nanyel even got in a little bit but wasn't as comfortable yet-also wasn't a huge fan of the lifejacket....which is Grandma Laurie's rule! Malachi had to be forced out of the water with a promise of we'll come back another day. It is so fun to see him love to swim and start to learn how to respect the water.

Monday-Labor Day (a day to celebrate Mom's who went through Labor to bring kiddos into the world...JK). It was a nice relaxing morning. Mike didn't have to work until 2p.m. which was super nice! After he went to work Malachi and I made Chocolate Chip cookies. When Nanyel woke up we had CCcookies for snack, played outside with cousins, and headed to Grandma's to make our annual Labor Day Salsa! The boys needed, and I mean needed, a bath after their fun day of coloring, sand, and dirt!

The Lord has given us much to be thankful for. Please pray for us as we help the church kick-off another wonderful school year. High School Youth Group starts tonight, Middle School Confirmation starts Next Wednesday, and Sunday School (for Malachi too) starts on Sept. 14. We are so excited to see where God will take our family, the church we serve in, and our town to this year-will you join us in prayer?

Following HIM,
Amy (and Mike, and the boys....and don't forget the dog).

P.S. Mike's stitches. Mike got stitches after helping a family move. He got them after they were trying to move a hide-a-bed from their basement to give to Mike...yes Mike wanted it! We told them originally after his stitches not to worry about it, but on Saturday we got a phone call from them saying they think they could get it out. So alas, we now have a 1970s hide-a-bed in our spare bedroom, so guests I know where you are sleeping :)

Mission Trip

Yes, it's true...it has been over a month since last we posted. But here is the promised "Mission Trip" post!
Amy took 9 students (along with 1 other chaperone) to Boston, Mass. It was a long trip, but a great one! The crew left morning of July 4th and made their way to Chicago. We stayed at North Park Covenant Church (near North Park University). We tried to see some fireworks, but Navy Pier was closed and traffic was horrendous. The youth were very good about it though! We had fun with light ropes-things, and having delicious Giavonni's pizza!
After Chicago we headed to Liverpool, NY. We landed there late on Saturday (okay only like 8p.m. but after 12 hours in the car-it felt late). The church we stayed at was extremely welcoming, even made us breakfast! We stayed and worshipped with them Sunday morning and they fed us again...a potluck lunch! The staff there was so inviting and welcoming-we joked that if we needed them to, they'd come with us and support our missions. They were wonderful people.
Finally, we were on our final leg to Boston! What should have been a 3-1/2 hour trip turned into a 6-1/2 hour trip. I neglected to remember the 4th of July traffic and heading toward Boston/New York City. OOPS!!!
But, alas, we landed in Boston and started our week off with a bang! We were assigned as a large group working at a camp that is associated with the Boys and Girls Club of Lynn, Mass. When we arrived it was a blast! We were assigned different crews (I was a Grey Squirrel) and worked with the same kids all week. We swam, boated, played lacrosse, kickball, talked, laughed, took goofy pictures, and jumped in the pond-and so much more! It was a great time to watch the youth grow in how do they portray Christ in a relationship. And the youth were opened up to a new way of life. It was crazy for me to even fathom that not a single kid (except for the camp director's son) was from a 2 parent-married home. If both parents were still together they weren't married, most of their parents never were married, but if they were they have been divorced. The confusion of all that is difficult to understand, and I was privy to witness them experience raw emotions, shock when I told them I had 2 kids. It was funny-they thought I was only 15 years old...guess I'll be grateful when I'm 40. :)

The week was great, we connected with 2 other churches from New Jersey. One was the Chinese Christian Church of NJ and the other was St. Bart's Catholic Church from NJ. It was fun talking to them about faith, but mostly about our cultural differences. They had no idea what Lutefisk was, but we had never had Canollis (I may have misspelled that) so I guess that's fair.

Thanks for all your prayers as I traveled and as Mike once again, held down the fort for my time.

Following HIM,
Amy

Dog Days of Summer

Okay so our May and June update never happened! OOPS! We are totally sorry. This one will be jam-packed with information to catch you all up though :)

In May we lost our 2 year old and gained a 3 year old. That's right Malachi celebrated his 3rd birthday! The weekend before his birthday was Memorial Day weekend. Mike, myself, and the boys went to Lake Minnetonka. It was so nice to actually go and relax! We went down early Saturday morning and were there until Sunday dinner. Mike had to work the weekend of Malachi's birthday so we really took the time as a family to just be together. We celebrated Malachi's birthday on Thursday (his birthday was Saturday) for dinner. On Mother's day Amy preached at church. It has become routine that while Pastor Todd is away from the church Amy gets the opportunity to fill the pulpit. It has been great to see the first message compared to now, a lot of learning has definitely taken place.

In June, Amy was at Bethel taking a class for her Covenant Orientation. It was the last week of school so she was back for youth night on Wednesday but Mike held down the fort mostly at home. At the end of her class we had a wonderful picnic with a family from church. Our monthly ROCK (Raising Our Children Knowledgeably) group met, but due to a scheduling thing that was accidentally overlooked it was the DuFrenes and one other family. But it was delightful!
We also celebrated Malachi's birthday with a party that weekend. We had family and a few friends for a super party! Amy then once again brought the message at church. It was Graduation Sunday so we celebrated the graduation of a few of the youth that Amy and Mike have worked with over the last few years. Then began the chaos that is VBS. Malachi was old enough to participate in it this year! He had a blast and with Mike's schedule he was able to come to a few things at VBS this year. Amy was the lead actor for the opening session so she could participate not only with Malachi but also the other kids too. Next year we are hoping Nathaniel will be able to go so we can all go! We had another great year this year with over 100 kids hearing the Gospel!















Now onto July! July we celebrated Amy's birthday since her birthday was the last weekend in June, Mike had to work and there was a wedding that Amy had to attend. She also worked on getting everything ready for Mike and the boys as she left on July 4 for a mission trip with 9 students to Boston. That's what brings us up to today. Another post will be more mission trip specific, but we are grateful for all we have been able to do. Mike's job allows for more ministry with the boys in toe-it is fun to see them understand some of it now.

Thanks for your prayers!
The DuFrenes.

I Lied.

Well since my last post Lake Snowbegone has come back twice! The first big snowfall was on the 3rd of April, right after the previous post. Mike had to shovel snow on his birthday! It was tough to get excited about it when it happens that late in the season and when all the fun activities have since been closed.
The second time it happened was last night. They forecasted very small amounts, like at most 3inches. I think we had that before Soup Supper started last night! It was crazy to see the snow keep coming. Mike has been out more than once to shovel-we even parked outside last night because we didn't want to flood the garage with the amount of snow that fell on them in the 2 hours I was at church. It was absolutely crazy to look out and see snow flakes as big as snowballs coming down from the sky. But it was beautiful none-the-less. It is a perfect reminder that God washes us white as snow through Jesus' death on the cross. Which is the focus of this week.

This year I tried something new with the boys. We took out TV (for the most part), cell phone usage outside of work, computers outside of work (even then no Facebook). It has been interesting-we have had conversations, well as good of a "conversation" as you can have with a 1 and 2 year old. We played blocks, we colored, we did a lot of reading. It has been nice to just feel more present and this is definitely something I plan on keeping to some extent after this week. Being intentional to not be tied to an "outside" world that is going and being present with the boys. Silencing the phone from 4p.m. to 7p.m. on week days other than Wednesday-maybe, we'll have to see what works for us. Overall it has been freeing.

That's all I really have now. Hope you think about the implications of this week, that if Easter didn't happen-would we really know who this Jesus was? Would I be a Christian?

Things to think about.

Lake Snow-be-Gone is no longer

Welcome to spring! Or at least for a little longer... They are forecasting snowy weather tomorrow. YUCK! But we are getting ready for all the muck. Muck-yep that's right. The boys are loving it! Yesterday we walked to my parents' house and Malachi, Nathaniel and us played with Ellie and William. The three boys were covered in yucks-ville muck. They biked in the circle, jumped in the puddles, and tried to climb into the muddy area of the yard. All had a blast and had to be bathed before bedtime. It was so great-we watched as William pushed Malachi around on a tractor (the boys' feet couldn't reach the peddles).

At church we are kicking off the wonderful time of year-Vacation Bible School. This year our theme is Weird Animals! God created each and everyone of us unique! We are just starting the recruiting time but it is going to be a great year! This year Malachi will be old enough to fully be able to participate. Last year he did, but was technically too young.

Mike is still working at Menards. He is still in the flooring department. Please pray that God continues to put people there (co-workers and customers) that need to be treated like human beings, ones created in His image.

We covet your prayers, we feel them.

Following HIM,
Amy

Spring is in the air...

Wow, time certainly flies with 2 little crazy boys in the house. This past month has been full of good-chaos. It is the kind of chaos that you just want to hold onto longer. I know that a few years down the road I will look back to this time when they are 2 and 1 and long for it, long for the simplicity in keeping them excited, or engaged, or just the joys they have of just playing with us.
In the past month Nathaniel turned 1 (on February 1st) his birthday party was full of family. It was delightful to have all six kiddos on the Gelschus side together. We also wished Hannah (DuFrene side) a very happy first birthday too! It is fun having N and H so close (only 4 days apart) in age. Makes the holidays that much more exciting have the "twins" there.

January updates: Amy went to Chicago for work and take a class. It was delightful but crazy too, ask her about the train sometime! She also got to see JPUSA (Jesus People USA).

February updates: Malachi tried skiing, Nathaniel had his party! Amy did 30 Hour famine and Valentine's dinner with youth. Mike worked a lot-played with the boys and introduced them to his old toys.

We have seen bitterly cold days, and more recently some very nice days. Malachi has loved playing in Lake Snowbegone that has formed on our driveway.

At it's peak this week it was about half the size of the entire driveway and expanded some into the circle. There is not a dry shoe in the house at night for that little tyke, but he loves it!

Nathaniel is starting to walk, Mike and I decided we have to officially call him "walking" as opposed to learning to walk. He can walk a clear 10 feet before stopping, he likes to still hold on to walls as he passes, but can stand in the middle of the room, squat, walk, stand up after squating, everything. So it is just a matter of time before he is completely confident to run. Probably about the time that mud truly is embraced by spring. But it will be perfect for this summer where he and Malachi can enjoy the back yard together!

With this change in weather we have seen a change in ourselves too. Relieved to see some sun but very sick of being "stuck" inside. It is hard still with N not completely confident to be outside for long periods of time, or to not get chilled. So we find ourselves still sitting inside some, and not able to embrace it the way we would like to. Please pray for contentment for us in that department. Also, unlike other years Malachi has not been as quickly to adjust to the time change. Before Sunday I would have told you that springing forward is actually my favorite with kids (it is with N still). But Malachi has really struggled this week, today was the climax of such struggle. He has not wanted to eat much, has had temper tantrums every morning, which today's was 30 minutes. He woke himself up, so it isn't us doing that-we are allowing him to sleep a little longer to fight some of that, and Thursdays are his sleep in day because of Mustard Seed Kids at church on Wednesdays (which is done by 8, but he stays with mom until youth group is done so isn't home until close to 9). Please pray for him during this time, it is wearing on him!

WE are loving this new weather. Would you pray for us as we try to reach Hutchinson? We are excited for everything that is happening at OHCC-we are on the committee to help with the "Old Fashion Tent Meetings" this August-that is pretty exciting.

Following HIM,
Amy

2 weeks away

Wow, hard to believe that 1 year ago I couldn't walk. Quite literally I couldn't really walk. Nathaniel was seated so comfortably for himself that he was resting right on the front of my hips. So this whole walking getting up from a seated position was a huge challenge. I was waiting for the fateful day when he would join us! He took his time, enjoyed every moment! Born February 1st at 3:36a.m. he came in his own fashion and since he has set the tone for how our life would be now.
I can honestly say that a year ago I didn't think we'd be where we are now. I have an amazing husband who is back in the flooring department at Menards, which we love because that means we get to see him in the morning! The other departments would require him to be in by 7a.m. but flooring is 8a.m. so the boys get to have breakfast with their main-man! We have 2 boys who have quickly grown to be friends. Malachi has his moments of being a "big-brother-bully" but mostly he is so kind, generous and loving to Nathaniel. And Nathaniel is such a joy-loves to smile and his eyes light up in a way that tells you he is so glad you are there and he can see you. We also live in a great house with the selling of our old house happening in a few weeks! Hard to believe that a year ago we didn't even think of moving (sure we did when we first found out Nathaniel was on the way, but not after we checked out a few houses on the market at the time). We have great neighbors (I may be biased as it is my parents and sister's family).
Hard to believe that a year ago my sister lived in Louisiana and not a few houses away. That we didn't have Nanyel or Ellie in our mix. Or Malachi didn't have Sunday School each week or Mustard Seed Kids on Wednesday nights.
I am feeling very blessed on a cold winter afternoon while the boys sleep and I prepare for my busy week away next week; oh did I forget to mention? I'll be in Chicago attended a conference and class to pursue my ministry license! How exciting-I'll be staying with my old roommate! I am so pumped!

So we are feeling blessed, beyond what I could have foreseen last year!

Thank you for your prayers.
The DuFrenes