Priceless

Well, we haven't posted in forever and while I could share all the exciting news about our move and our beautiful new home..... I am way too tired. Instead, I just had to post these adorable pictures of my nieces (all three of them). They are so stinkin cute.

Cheers,
Katie

Pumpkin Pickin'

In preparation for Halloween, we headed up to Stoney Creek Farm with some friends and their son, Brandon, on Saturday afternoon to pick some pumpkins and enjoy the farm's opening day of their Fall Festival. We enjoyed a hayride out to a good old fashioned pumpkin patch, ate some delicious carmel apples, and watched the kids play in the "Kiddiepillar"- a gigantic blow-up caterpillar that had a slide, etc inside.

A good day with friends and a great start to the Fall season.

Blessings,
Katie

Nugget of Truth

"Dreaming, praying, and working for- in a sense, imagining for- a good story in the lives of those whose paths we cross briefly, or for the long haul, is what we're made for." - Real Love for Real Life by Andi Ashworth.

I have been reading this book, Real Love for Real Life, after a dear friend sent it to me, I believe, in an effort to lift my spirits as I had been sharing with her, during a recent visit, the struggle I sometimes feel as a mother. My struggle has not been with finding enough love to completely saturate Avery, but with trying to find purpose and meaning in the daily grind of child rearing- becoming comfortable and fulfilled in measuring success not in a great presentation or a completed work assignment, but rather in peekaboos and trips to the park.

Anyway, I came across the above quote while reading and was struck by its simple truth- the razor sharp purpose and meaning it brings to my life and my life's work- whatever that may be. Bringing about what is true, lovely, and admirable in others... that is a noble job and worthy of our efforts.

Blessings,
Katie

God Grew Tired Of Us

Last night, Adam and I watched an excellent documentary entitled, God Grew Tired Of Us. It shared the history and struggle of war torn Sudan and, in particular, followed the story of three Sudanese "Lost Boys" who after escaping Sudan to Kenya found themselves being "relocated" to the United States where they experience for the first time electricity, grocery shopping, and hot showers.

The film was moving and another reminder to both Adam and I of the horrible atrocities that are still occurring in Darfur. If you do the Netflix thing, or even if you don't, you should check it out.

Katie

The twins have arrived!

We are the proud aunt and uncle of two more twin.... GIRLS! That's right, Avery now has four girl cousins. Zoe Elizabeth and Evelyn (Evie) Frances Barth came into the world on Thursday afternoon. Both were over 7 pounds.


They are absolutely gorgeous and I couldn't be more proud to be an Aunt. It really is as exciting as the first few days after Avery's birth.

Oh, and I don't think I have shared our big news yet, we will be doing this again ourselves in March- baby #2 is due March 9th.

Katie

Come out of your tent...

We returned to our church, Common Ground, in Broad Ripple this Sunday and it was so refreshing and invigorating to be back. Since we've lived up in Zionsville we've only made it down there a few times and although we've tried to go to ZPC as much as possible, there's just something about Common Ground that we have grown to love. One analogy that the pastor, Jeff, used this Sunday struck me in particular and I think it's just too beautiful NOT to share. So, pardon me as I paraphrase, but here goes...

A good friend of mine goes hiking each year in the Grand Canyon. He says you can tell how many times the other people you see along the way have camped in the Canyon by how much stuff they bring along. Each year my friend says he brings less and less. You just learn that, although you think you need the stuff, it simply weighs you down and is often unnecessary. He now just brings a tarp in case it rains and he sleeps under the stars. His camping counterparts will almost always set up their tents as soon as they arrive at their camping site. My friend often urges them to join him under the stars. "No thanks," they usually reply, instead opting for the perceived comfort and safety of the inside of their tents. Undoubtedly though, someone will always join my friend for a night of sleeping under the stars. And they almost inevitably admit that it was an amazing night - the best of their trip by far. Yet the next night, it never fails that they return to the tent. They saw all the grandeur and beauty of the starlit night in the canyon, but they chose to go back to their tent.

Isn't it ironic that we so often opt for our tents? My friend tells the story of one morning waking up and seeing mountain lion tracks not far from where he lay his head. Scary, yes. But think about a tent. Are you truly protected? Yet we still choose our tents. So often we crawl back in and zip up our lives in the nice orderly way in which we created them. Perceived comfort. Perceived safety. But we are potentially missing out on so much more. "Come out of your tent," God cries to us. "I have so much more in store for you."

- Taken from a sermon given by Jeff K. at Common Ground Christian Church (www.cground.org)

A Busy August...

It's been almost a month since my Mom and Dad posted a blog and let's just say lots has happened since then. I went to the State Fair, I went to the zoo, and I grew taller and got even prettier than since you last saw me! They left me one weekend to go to a party for Ben and Michele, but I got to spend extra time with my grandparents which is one of my favorite things so it was okay. We've gone to visit our new house almost every day and they're doing a great job. It's going to be so fun when we move in! It has been one of the most fun months of the 15 I've experienced so far. Enjoy the pictures... scroll down, there are a lot!

Love,
Avery

A Trip to the Zoo...

Well the weather finally broke here in Indianapolis and we thought it the perfect opportunity to take Avery to the zoo- her second trip, but the first family trip we had taken there. We weren't alone in our thought, however, as we arrived at the zoo at about the same time as the rest of Indianapolis. We managed to have a great time despite the crowds. Our favorites- the seals, baboons, and polar bears.

A New Tradition...

After weeks of anticipation, Papa finally got his wish to take his favorite granddaughter to the Indiana State Fair. A Barth family tradition continued and added Avery to the list. Even Grammy came!! We had so much fun - we visited the pigs, horses, cows, sheep, and goats and Avery got up close and personal with lots of them. Her favorite was definitely the clown band and she showed off her moves to their music. And what would the fair be without the food? Although we didn't try the Fried Pepsi, we did enjoy Pork burgers, fried taters, an elephant ear, real milk milkshakes, and lemon shake-ups! Yum!

And as fun as it was, we did have one scare at the end. Avery got a balloon on the way out and shortly after playing with it she started gagging. We rushed to a first aid tent and found a nurse who said it was likely an allergic reaction to latex. We have a doctor's appt this week to find out! Avery was back to her happy self within a few minutes but those precious minutes were scary for the rest of us. Katie and I both noticed that the nurse that helped us was the same nurse that was at the St. V's ER when we took Avery in after she fell and hit her head as a five month old. God was looking out for us, huh?

Can't wait till next year. Maybe they'll have fried Cheerios!

A Party for Ben & Michele,

We had a wonderful time seeing everyone at a couples shower for Ben and Michele as they get ready for their wedding in October. Benny's thank you speech even brought his future bride to tears. What a fun night!