Perfect Birthday

So, my birthday was over a month ago. Can you tell I am a little behind in my postings? Oh, well. I still wanted to share!

Ryan surprised me on my birthday with flowers, amazing sugar cookies and a bowl full of cherries! It was perfect and extremely yummy!! I will always prefer an awesome sugar cookie or cake over chocolate any day!

Hands and Feet

After staring in amazement over these tiny hands and feet, I could not help but think of a song that I loved when I was growing up. It is "Beautiful Feet" by Sandi Patty. I googled Sandi Patty, Friendship Company (the album) and Beautiful Feet to death. The album is not even on Itunes, which is so sad because of all of the memories it has for me. However, in my search I remembered another wonderful song that I also love. It has various artists, but the title is "How beautiful". I can only pray that this little boy will one day be able to use his hands and feet to serve his Creator.

How Beautiful

How Beautiful the hands that served
The Wine and the Bread and the sons of the earth
How beautiful the feet that walked
The long dusty roads and the hill to the cross
How Beautiful, how beautiful, how beautiful is the body of Christ

How Beautiful the heart that bled
That took all my sin and bore it instead
How beautiful the tender eyes
That choose to forgive and never despise
How beautiful, how beautiful, how beautiful is the body of Christ

And as He lay down His life
We offer this sacrifice
That we will live just as He died
Willing to pay the price
Willing to pay the price

How Beautiful the radiant bride
Who waits for her Groom with His light in her eyes
How Beautiful when humble hearts give
The fruit of pure lives so that others may live
How beautiful, how beautiful, how beautiful is the body of Christ

How beautiful the feet that bring
The sound of good news and the love of the King
How Beautiful the hands that serve
The wine and the bread and the sons of the Earth
How Beautiful, how beautiful, how beautiful is the body of Christ

"How, then can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, 'How beautiful are the feet of those who bring the good news!'" Romans 10: 14-16

Profile of our little Boy

Everything looks good! We found out that our little one is a Boy!
It is pretty amazing that to see pictures of him growing strong and healthy.

Wii or not to Wii....

Well...

Ryan and I have been looking for a Wii for quite some time. I have never looked for a "game" with such vigor. I know every customer service rep in the electronics department at Walmart, Circuit City, and Best Buy. As for EBay and the Internet - I look several times a day and have signed up for Wii alerts (which sends you email's and text messages when the Wii's are available online - even at 3 am!) The crazy thing is I am not even for sure if I am going to be able to play this piece of machinery. The last time I really played video games regularly, is when my family first got a Nintendo and Super Mario Brothers was the game to beat. It was so easy! 4 buttons, 2 dimensional, simple plot. Now, I just look at the controller, hit a whole lot of buttons and pray that I am actually going in the right direction. Ryan assures me that the Wii is very simple and that I will enjoy games like Guitar Hero, Tiger Woods Golf and the new version of Super Mario Brothers. He said they are similar to the real thing, which is what makes it so fun. So, I am trusting him and thus looking for this console like crazy. All I have to say in the end is, it better be worth it! :)

2007 in review....

I can hardly believe how long it has been since the last posting. Life is truly never dull around the Schwenk household.

This year has been filled with lots of great memories, stories and blessings. It started with Ryan's family coming to see us in March! We drove to Schwenksville, PA (Yes, it does exist) to see the heritage of the Schwenk family name! We had a blast and wish the trip could have been longer! Next, Ben and Tim graduating from high school in May. Go Trojans!!! And Russell got married in June to my new and wonderful sister-in-law Brittany. Mom, Dad, Ben and Tim came to visit us over the 4th of July! We had so much fun, even though it rained on the Fourth and fireworks were clouds of smoke! :o)

We moved right into the fall without a hitch. Ben and Tim decided to carry on the Friske tradition of attending OSU. Russell and Brittany were living in Stillwater, while she finished her Sr. year, and Mom and Dad were left with an empty nest. (They never knew they had so much time.) Ryan received a promotion to Greensboro, NC in September and we were moving by mid-October. While, at the same time finding out that we were expecting our first child in June 2008 and taking a Caribbean cruise late in the month for some much needed R&R.

The last two months have been filled with house hunting in NC, selling our house in NJ, packing and moving everything to storage, filling out MBA applications for Ryan and looking for a new job here in NC (for me). Every year seems to go by so quickly. We try so hard to relax and enjoy what God has in store for us, so we don't miss out on any of his blessings. This year has been great! We look forward to celebrating the coming of our Lord over Christmas and into next year!

We wish you all a very Merry Christmas! Love - Ryan and Andra

Guess Who's Expecting?

Can you believe it! We are finally expecting our first. I am 10 weeks today and thrilled beyond belief. Ryan cannot stop smiling. You would think he is excited or something. :)

I do not think either of our parents expected the news. We told them this last weekend. (We were trying to heal the wounds from the OSU loss. I think it worked!) It will be the first grandbaby for the Friske's and the second for the Schwenk's. Both sets of grandparents are extremely thrilled. As my mom said, "Oh, I have to re-think Christmas." The baby is not even here yet, and is being showered with genuine love and excitement.

Mom and baby are doing just fine. I have really been blessed with an easy pregnancy up to this point. The biggest difference for me is that I am extremely hungry every 3-4 hours. (I am not talking a snack here, a snack there. I am talking, get out of my way I need to eat!) The only thing so far that the baby does not like is grease. And there is no discrimination here; we are talking all kinds of grease.

We have our first doctor's appointment here in NC next week. So, things are moving right along. We will keep everyone posted as things begin to change.

We are 100% grateful for this little one. We praise God daily for entrusting us with His child. We hope and pray that He will continue to give us wisdom and discernment as we embark on the never ending journey of parenthood! "...sons are a heritage from the Lord, children a reward from him...." Psalm 127:3

Love - Ryan and Andra

Our first Blog...

Thank you for coming and viewing our blog. This is a whole new world to Ryan and me. We are dedicating this blog to tell the story of the life that we've been given, here on earth and one day the life that we will share with many of you in heaven. We have been truly blessed.

Our story goes back a long way, beginning in Stillwater, OK when we were in Kindergarten. God amazes me every time I think about it. (And Ryan has the crazy videos to prove it.) Since then, a whole lot has happened and God has molded us into who we are today. We are hoping someday to be "mature and complete, not lacking anything" James 1:4b. We started dating the fall of our sophomore year in college and got married in December of 2002. Since then, we have been living in the Northeast, New Jersey to be exact. There was never a dull moment in our lives. Whether it was work, church, trips into NYC, crazy fondue parties with friends, short vacations to Cape Cod in the summer (for the baseball league of course!), or lazy Saturday mornings in downtown Somerville, we were always blown away by the world that God has created around us. We have loved every minute of it, and it will always hold a special place in our hearts.

Most recently, we have embarked on a new journey to Greensboro, NC. We have been here two weeks, and it is already beginning to feel like home. The people are very similar to the Midwest, and the scenery is breath taking. We both have decided that we are going to have to purchase bikes. There is just too much to see and do around the area. It is nice to be back where college sports are king! (Ryan has been deprived for the last four years. Sorry Rutgers...) We will still cheer on the Cowboys, even from NC!!! Go Pokes!

We can't wait to share all of our wonderful memories with you. Check back often, as we will try to update the blog frequently.

Love - Ryan and Andra