From Brendan

Hello Everyone! Thank you so much for all your prayers--they made me feel so strong. I feel GREAT. Everyday is a new adventure--it has been fun to keep my parents on their toes. The highlight of my day is watching people make faces at me trying to get me to smile (I like to hold out on them as long as I can and then flash them a big one). I love to be on the move and exploring new places. I sleep pretty good at night so I can keep mom on the go all day--who needs naps. I also really look forward to MEAL TIME!!
My favorite game is the "binky game". Maybe you've heard of it. It goes like this: I look like my head is going to explode, hold my breath as long as possible making my face turn bright red, and scream like my hand just go slammed in the car door. If I don't give in right away to their soothings I get my binky! Rest and Repeat...over and over and over until they plead with me to stop and sleep. Usually I loose interest in the game before they get too upset.
Finally, I love having my picture taken (good thing too, cause there always seems to be a camera in my face). I've put some new pics for you to check out below, so you can tell me how cute I am. Thank you for being my friends.

Brendan Continues the Family Tour

With Easter behind us (and Brendan's first cold too), we took to the road to visit Grandpa Mike's sister and dad - Brendan's Great Aunt Sherrie and Great Grandpa Rydbom.
Keeping with the family pictures, we also included some previously shot pictures from Easter that didn't make it in the last slideshow.

I Love My Family

It has been very special to spend the past few weeks introducing Brendan to our family. We had a wonderful visit from Grammy (Josh's Mom) and Grandpa J (Josh's Step Dad). Great Grandma and Grandpa took us out for Brunch at Banyans. Brendan is already one spoiled guy--but he deserves it.

What makes this friday different from all the rest....

I'd like to say that I'm up early this morning because I'm a morning person, or because I love waking up to the sunrise, or because the thought of playing golf today has sprung me out of bed early. Brendan and I have been up for awhile. It gives me this chance to blog (lucky me!).

What makes this Friday (April 2, 2010) special, different, set-apart? Nothing really. The sun came up like it always does. My stomach is ready for breakfast like it always is. It's just any other day...

Kind of. Well maybe not.

Today the Church remembers Jesus. Today we remorse for the pain Jesus undertook for us. Today we reflect on what it means to be wholly corrupted with self-conceit, idolatry, and pride not so that it makes us feel entitled or self-righteous - but so that it reminds us of how desperately we need a Savior. For although Jesus didn't literally die on this day 2000+ years ago, we remember what it meant. What it means.

Today we reflect on this phrase - the day that True Love died. The Bible talks about God being Love. It talks about how God loved us (you, me, us) so much that he commissioned a Holy Spirit-conceived child (Jesus) to take our sin to hell for three days and on the third day rise from the grave. This physical act of sacrifice, what would historically begin as a Roman crucifixion, changed the world. Would change my world. This event is the culmination of the most confounding but true fact about Jesus, that he came down from heaven to be sin for us. Not that we may boast, but that we may approach the Lord clean. Pure. Forgiven.

Forgiven.

"For we were free and made alive the day that True Love died." (Phil Wickham, Lyrics: True Love, 2007, http://philwickham.com/)

This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. (1 John 4, 10)