Sunday, January 20, 2008

Steph's Baby Shower

Jenna Sanders along with Licha Esquivel and Mary Sanders, had a lovely baby shower for Nathanael and I. It was a small church family baby shower. We had such a good time celebrating Nathanael's coming birth. Nathanael's adopted Great Grandmother Licha Esquivel made him a special coconut cake. It was delicious.
While Nathanael's ultrasound video was playing in the back ground we all had great fellowship and enjoyed Licha's yummy luncheon. After eating, we all gathered around for a devotional by Sally Harris who spoke on several passages about how children can glorify the Lord. It was very good and made me excited to begin teaching Nathanael the ways of the Lord.
The Lord Jesus has blessed our family and this baby shower was another amazing blessing. We received many toys, clothes and even a bassinet and car seat. The Lord always provides and he has given us a church family that truly cares about us. Thank you to everyone for your generosity!

Sunday, January 6, 2008

A Precious Gift from God

After much prayer, the Lord has chosen to give us the desire of our hearts. He has blessed us with a baby. In His Word, God says in Psalm 127: 3 Children are an heritage from the LORD: and the fruit of the womb is his reward. We are most undeserving of this wonderful gift.

After going to our last ultrasound, we got see Nathanael Levi in 4-D. It is so neat how his face is visible. This picture was only possible because the doctors felt that I needed an ultrasound done on a higher quality machine because of a problem they had found with my cervix. But thanks to the Lord, we found out that it was a misdiagnosis. Nathanael's due date is April 18, 2008.

In preparation for Nathanael, we are reading Growing up God's Way, by John Stormer and a number of other parenting books. Also on our parenting book list is Withhold not Correction, written by our very own pastor, Bruce Ray.
Derek chose Nathanael's name from the Bible. The spelling is the same as that of one of the disciples. His name means gift of God. Nathanael likes to kick when Daddy reads him his favorite book The Lightlings by RC Sproul. Nathanael loves it!
For anyone who would like to bless Nathanael with a gift, he is registered at BABIES "R" US. (http://www.babiesrus.com/)

Honeymoon in Michigan!

We had a wonderful honeymoon in Michigan. Thanks to Dad and Jeanine, we were able to stay at a lovely hotel and see all of Derek's relatives. They even hosted a beautiful reception that included family and friends. Stephanie really enjoyed meeting Derek's family for the first time.

Another highlight of our honeymoon was spending time with Khira and Mom. We enjoyed a day at the mall and an excellent homemade meal of spaghetti and garlic bread. Yummy! Mom can really cook great meals and is willing to share her recipes with me. Thanks mom!
We got to see our bestfriend Jesse from college and meet his family. We even rode 4-wheelers which was a blast. Jesse took us on a nature hike and we enjoyed Michigan's beautiful forest. The Lord sure did a good job when he made Michigan.
The very best part was being able to enjoy one another and spending time enjoying the gift of marriage. Praise the Lord that he chose to show us himself and a picture of Christ and the church through the union of a man and a woman. How can we ever grow weary of how amazing our Great God is?

Derek and Steph's Wedding




It is amazing how God brings two people together and makes them one. Our wedding day was unforgettable. The groom was definitely the best part of the whole wedding, at least that is what the bride thought. A big thank you to all the people who brought it together. Cheri Johnson, Licha Esquivel, Mary Bloomberg, Mom (Mary Sanders) and Dad (Danny Sanders), and our two photographers Keith Whyte and Michael Floyd, you guys will never be forgotten, thank you for your sacrifices and hard work. And of course my little sister Jenna, who introduced us to one another at school. Where would I be without her?
Also a big thanks to our dear pastor, Steve Harris who gave a wonderful message on the roles of man and wife. We were grateful for the presence of our church family, Juanita Community Church, who truly helped us celebrate this life-changing event. We love all of you. The Lord is so good to us to give us people who care about us as well us provide for all our needs. Thank you Father, for saving us and loving us enough to give us good and perfect gifts on earth.