Some of you know that Rebecca has a Christmas-time birthday. Well, this year is no different, in that we are rejoicing in God’s goodness in her life.

However, there is an extra special birthday present that the Lord has given her this year.

Actually, it’s a birthday present for Rebecca and Steven. And, a Christmas present too, for that matter. And, a New Years present. And a Valentine’s Day present . . . and a Resurrection Day present . . . and a . . . well, you get the picture.

That’s right folks, God has blessed us with the gift of a precious new baby. : )

We’ve been keeping our baby under wraps for a while, watching and waiting as we seek the Lord to sustain them. Many of you have known about Baby Praise (their in-the-womb-name) and have been both praising God for them, and praying to the Lord on behalf of our whole little family.

Our Lord has really blessed this pregnancy. Baby Praise is now in the 2nd trimester. Everything seems to be going very well, praise God!

We’ve made it through the morning sickness stage (WAY more sick than ever before!!) where Steven banned Rebecca from the kitchen, and literally did all the cooking for several months. There is just a tad bit of morning all-day-sickness still hanging on, but Rebecca is getting a bit better week by week.

We are enjoying each day with our sweet baby—talking to them, praying with them, singing with them—what a privilege.

We praise God for our new baby, and ask you to join us in thanking Him too! Every day is a gift from Him.

Love in Christ,

Steven, Rebecca, and Baby Praise

So we celebrated our second anniversary in the beautiful Marin Headlands. (Golden gate bridge in the background.)

While there we toured the one of a kind (though atypically romantic) Nike Missile Museum.

I’m more and more grateful for my Rebecca. In the Lord I have found a very “good thing”- her.

You haven’t heard from us for a while, but we are still here. : )

We are still madly in love, and growing deeper in it ever single day, by God’s grace (just passed 18 months!!).

We are busy in our callings.

Steven
Loving Husband: Keeps our family going in a Christ honoring direction; Picks roses for his wife almost every day; Current out loud readings are in Exodus and To Have and to Hold.
Visionary Deacon: dreaming big dreams while walking faithfully day by day with the people in our flock.
Creative Computer Engineer: rescuing people all over the country and world from mean and nasty technology.
Ham Radio Enthusiast: preparing our family to attend a local field day.

Rebecca
Happy Homemaker: recently painted the master bedroom, and tackling all sorts of organizing projects.
Bursts-of-Inspiration-Composer: still writing hymns on ReflectHymn.com, occasionally cries, “Pen and ink! Pen and ink!”
Aspiring Photographer: taking a class, honored to help with a wedding and family photo shoot.
Crazy Cook and Nutritionist: lacto fermented mustard, ginger ale, and hollandaise sauce have been the latest.

Both of us are enjoying lots of company (Come on by! We’ll leave the light on for you : ), everyday adventures, and growing together in the Lord.

Both of us have been more recently involved in a variety of pro-life activities.

Both of us are engaged in the battle against ants and spiders! Leave us a comment if you have a good suggestion for getting rid of them naturally (besides squishing them, that is).

We are looking forward to all that God has for us in the future, yet are enjoying each day He gives us, one by one.

For our one-year anniversary, we enjoyed a wonderful weekend away near the beach in Southern California thanks to the generosity of our kind friends. More photos after the jump…

Thai Dinner at Pismo Beach

Hiked up a small mountain in the rain

Anniversary Evening by Candlelight

Re-enacted our first meeting at this very spot

Visited quite a number of family and friends…

Visited the beach

And of course, put our feet in the ocean!

Welcome to our home!

We’d thought that we’d give you a little tour of our ‘Still in Progress But Slowly Coming Together’ house. Over this late summer and now during autumn, we’ve been able to unpack and get things mostly set up. We have been so incredibly blessed by the Lord through our family and friends. Each room is made homey only through other’s generosity and labor! Thank you, one and all. We thought you might enjoy seeing the results!

Wow. Green grass. It *actually* happens when you start watering the yard. Shocking, I know.

A few fall roses are gracing our yard. The fragrance is so sweet.

A pretty welcome wreath, thanks to Mom Loomis!

The view the UPS guy sees when he delivers packages, and which you would see if you knocked on our door. : )

Open the door . . . and “Welcome to the Loomis home!”

Our guestbook (don’t forget to sign before you leave!).

Our family table lies ahead.

The library is to one side of the entry.

Ready for a crowd, thanks to kind friends from our church.

More books in the library, a video screen covered by a lovely quilt, which is to be covered (someday) by a fun print (while we save up for more bookshelves!).

The music room is on the other side of the entry.

The piano has been getting a workout with some exciting hymn-writing projects. More on that later! : )

Looking back from the music room, across the entry, and to the library.

Now we have a very long, un-exciting, and currently un-decorated hallway. Someday, I want to put up a wall of family pictures.

But wait! What is this? It’s the most exciting room of the house!!!!!!

The Server Closet!!!! Yes. It’s still in progress. But, all necessary parts are working *quite* well, I’d have you know.

This is the future girls room, which is currently set up as our guest room.

Oh wait. What is this? A newly cleaned and organized room, de-cluttered of boxes, junk, and general stuff!!!!!! Whoohoo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The study’s OfficeMax supply section.

Steven’s work space, most days of the week.

Steven found these neat little tags to keep our baskets organized.

The guest bath. Yes, that’s real Grecian marble. This phase of the remodel was done years ago, and is quite elegant, if you ask me.

Ok. Now it’s time for a *scary* room. Du-du-du-duuuhhhhhh!!!!

Yes, we still have a few of these types of rooms left. However they are getting better. Someday we hope this room will serve as the nursery, but for now, it’s going to be the sewing room.

It was fun to unpack my fabric stash and start getting things organized.

Next, we have our room, complete with some amazing Craig’s List and Goodwill finds.

And the master bath (you can see a splotch of test paint on the wall in the mirrored reflection–one of these days, we’re going to get around to painting . . . )

Back through the dining room, where you can see the front door . . .

. . . And our lovely kitchen. Notice the Kombucha and Sourdough starters hiding underneath the towel; the ever present jars who often inhabit our culinary escapades.

Our wonderful pantry, complete with shelving, brackets, and hooks put up by Dad Serven! Thank you, thank you, thank you!

The Laundry closet. Not very exciting, excepting the fancy new shelving!

Looking out the back door, you can see the remains of our summer garden.

I had never grown eggplants before, so this was kind of fun!

Winter garden planted; sprouts are just coming up. A few tomatoes still left on the summer garden.

Back of the house. Someday I’d like to plant a little herb garden out the kitchen window.

And now, back inside for my favorite picture of all. My sweetheart of a husband. : )

This picture was taken after a particularly hilarious attempt at a portrait. : ) Life is so much fun with my husband!

We sat on a bench at the end of a path and enjoyed a long talk; our view was gorgeous.

We are so blessed. Thank you Peter!!!

That evening, we watched the League of Grateful Sons which I (Steven) had not seen. In all, it was good to remember those who gave their lives serving our country, and made me glad for the work I have been doing to try to remember and preserve family history, geneaology, stories, photos and so on, for future generations (as the Lord calls).

Speaking of 200, 2,000 or 20,000 year plans, one thought I had while watching “The 200-year plan” last year was this: how do we preserve data for our great grandchildren in this digital age? Hard drives wear out, and as well, file formats change. Well, I have some ideas here- reply if you are interested in discussing it.

The following is from the preface to another document, that is the Westminster Confession, entitled “To the Christian Reader, especially Heads of Families”.

AS we cannot but with grief of soul lament those multitudes of errors, blasphemies, and all kinds of profaneness, which have in this last age, like a mighty deluge, overflown this nation; so, among several other sins which have helped to open the flood-gates of all these impieties, we cannot but esteem the disuse of family instruction one of the greatest. The two great pillars upon which the kingdom of Satan is erected, and by which it is upheld, are ignorance and error; the first step of our manumission from this spiritual thraldom consists in having our eyes opened, and being turned from darkness to light, Acts xxvi. 18. How much the serious endeavours of godly parents and masters might contribute to an early seasoning the tender years of such as are under their inspection, is abundantly evident, not only from their special influence upon them, in respect of their authority over them, interest in them, continual presence with them, and frequent opportunities of being helpful to them; but also from the sad effects which, by woeful experience, we find to be the fruit of the omission of this duty. It were easy to set before you a cloud of witnesses, the language of whose practice hath been not only an eminent commendation of this duty, but also a serious exhortation to it. As Abel, though dead, yet speaks by his example to us for imitation of his faith, &c., Heb. xi. 4; so do the examples of Abraham, of Joshua, of the parents of Solomon, of the grandmother and mother of Timothy, the mother of Augustine, whose care was as well to nurse up the souls as the bodies of their little ones; and as their pains herein was great, so was their success no way unanswerable.

We should scarce imagine it any better than an impertinency, in this noon-day of the gospel, either to inform or persuade in a duty so expressly commanded, so frequently urged, so highly encouraged, and so eminently owned by the Lord in all ages with his blessing, but that our sad experience tells us, this duty is not more needful, than it is of late neglected.

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