“Taste and see that the Lord is good” Psalm 34:8a It’s August in Missouri which means many things - soaring heat indices, weeds outgrowing grass, back to school rush at Target, the return of 20K + college students (traffic!), and for our family it means that once again we are in countdown mode for a new baby. I have been pregnant during August for 4 of the past 6 years. »
As Molly recently posted, this is the second anniversary of the stillbirth of our twin sons, Phineas Jon and Abraham Steven. We like to call them Phin and Bram. It’s difficult to add to what Molly has already written, but there are few things that have been on my mind and heart lately about the boys. Immediately after the twins were born (jumping ahead in line to be with our Father), the pain of the loss to us was visceral. »
It’s a beautiful Tuesday morning – unseasonably cool for August, and as I sit at the computer I can hear the lovely sounds of a 10 month old trying not to nap. She is in the next room over and the monitor registers her sometimes pitiful moanings, and “nananana’s” and some sort of singing noises. The sounds rev up and then there is quiet for a minute, followed by more noises, then more quiet. »
So it’s been a long time since something fresh has come across this blog. We’ve been busy – wonderfully, exhaustingly, busy. Busy with this little blessing: Miss Josephine Joy Bottorff made her appearance (3 weeks early) on October 23, 2014 at 1:33 in the afternoon. She was welcomed with overwhelming joy by her parents, grandparents (even her Grandpa K who was two days post-op from a total shoulder replacement), aunts, uncle, and a host of friends. »
Hello Everyone! We’ve recently changed hosts for our site. The web address is the same and everything should still look and work the same. The only exception is that during the transfer, we lost the email subscription list. So if you’re still interested in getting email notifications for new posts, please re-register on the right hand side of the page. Thanks! allyn »
Fall colors Columbia 2009 October is one of my favorite months of the year. I love the beauty that unfolds as the seasons change, especially here is Missouri with all the trees and rolling hills. Allyn and I live in an older neighborhood with established trees and it is such a treat to drive home each day and see new bursts of red and orange and yellow erupt from the towering oaks and maples. »
So as you may know, we have a new member of the family on the way! Josephine Bottorff will be joining us in early November. In preparation for this joyous event, we’ve set up the nursery in the room that used to contain the office. This means that the office was moved to the other room. Part of this process involved moving our musical instruments over. Since Molly and I both play our guitars with the worship team at church almost every week, there’s a lot of schlepping guitars around. »
Things will be changing soon in the Bottorff house. Our party of two (plus one furry friend) will soon become a party of three. There is a new nursery coming together in the room that used to be our office/music/junk catcher, and the spare bedroom where four framed prints from the twins’ “things that go”-themed nursery still hang, has become the new office and instrument hub. Things are different this time around. »
I’ve been thinking a lot lately about life and death and their relationship to one another. Maybe it’s more accurate to say that I’ve been thinking about this life in contrast to eternity. I picture it like two realities separated by a great chasm. On the one side is our day to day reality (the good, the bad, the ugly) and on the other side is a glorious reality shielded by a veil. »
Allyn and I had the opportunity to share our testimony with our church family this past weekend. Ours is not a story you would expect to be highlighted on Mother’s Day; however, our pastor has been preaching through the book of Job and asked if we would be willing to share from our own season of suffering and loss. We were honored to have the opportunity to talk about what God is doing in our lives in this unusual season and hopefully to point to the reality of a God who brings beauty from ashes. »