I guess I'm not a typical woman because...

...I don't mind getting appliances as gifts - in fact, I prefer to get a gift that I will actually use, as opposed to some frivolous, impractical gift that only feeds into my propensity for idleness :)

So, when I received a late mother's day present from Bram this weekend, I was thrilled! Check it out: the Eureka Boss Smart Vac! (And no, you may not make the joke that this gift sucks.)

All back together again!

Home - Finally!

It has been a long and strange month, but the Lillards are finally all back home together. Bram returned on schedule Thursday, May 22 and his two favorites could not have been happier to welcome him home! We are taking the long holiday weekend (plus a few extra days) to reconnect, relax, and have fun!

As Promised
I promised to post some pictures of our visit in Cincinnati, so here they are!(Eating on the back porch - it was so much fun to have everyone around the table together!)

(Benjamin taking a ride in his shopping cart - his Poppi got this for him!)

(Benjamin helping cook dinner!)

Other Fun Happenings

We are anticipating the arrival of our new patio furniture. It has been a few years coming! The past two years (since we remodeled our backyard) we have attempted to purchase a patio set only to have the orders canceled for some reason or another. This year (thanks to the economic stimulus package) we were able to purchase a really nice dining set and it is actually on it's way as we speak! We are excited for the opportunities for fellowship this will provide us - and since Bram is the master griller of the house, we will be having lots of cookouts! Skirt steak, anyone?

We hope everyone enjoys the long weekend with your families and friends!

Back home - family update

We made it back to Maryland in one piece, thankfully! After so many full days in Cincinnati, the quiet around here has been both a blessing and a bit unnerving. Thankfully Ryan and Jenny are here to help break up the silence at times - though they are very quiet compared to the Lyman household :) Benjamin adjusted to being home right away - was back into old habits immediately. I am very glad he is getting better at adjusting to "new" environments. He was confident and comfortable more quickly than I had prepared myself for! It is nice to be able to sleep in our own beds - Benjamin has definitely been enjoying it most - averaging 14 hours of sleep each night since we returned! It's nice to have a rested boy on my hands each day.

And the extra hours alone are welcomed by me, as I am definitely in nesting mode! I have found myself occupied with many little projects and the planning of other little projects for when Bram returns...no heavy lifting or painting for "the preggy" (as Bram affectionately calls me.) I reach the 8 month mark this coming Saturday, and boy do I feel it! At my last midwife check-up they informed me that I gained 8 pounds in the course of 3 weeks - par for the course with my pregnancies. At this point in my pregnancy with Benjamin I actually gained 10 pounds in about 2 weeks! But after that the weight gain plateaued as I was losing weight and he was gaining it. So if I do the same thing this time I will have gained 28 pounds. Not too bad in my estimation :) The baby turned head down over the weekend (both a blessing and a curse, as you other Mommies are well aware!) and despite the cramped quarters, he or she has not settled down in the activity department. It feels as though I have two little feet constantly kicking the upper part of my belly. Ruthie Hempel told me that if it's a girl, she's a dancer, and if it's a boy, he's a soccer player. I guess we will just have to wait and see!

Bram will return a week from today! It has been such a strange trip for him. We had prepared ourselves for 4 weeks of intermittent email contact, but instead, for the past 2 weeks we spoke on the phone everyday and even got to be together in Cincinnati for 4 days! The sub needed some major repairs and all the testers (of which, Bram is one) had nothing to do but sit and wait for the repairs to be completed. For the last week it was always, "We will leave sometime tomorrow" which didn't turn out to be the case until Wednesday morning. We said our goodbyes for the week and praised God for the blessing he had given us in the time we did have together. Thanks to everyone who has been praying for us over this time...your faithfulness to us has been a huge blessing! We have been granted such undeserved gifts over the past 2 weeks and we know it is attributable to your prayers for us - thanks again!

The next post will have pictures and videos of our time with Lymans, so stay tuned!

Another big development!

Bram is in Cincinnati! He flew in on Sunday and will be here until Wednesday! The repairs needed on the sub will take longer than originally expected, so Bram was able to come "home" for a short time. I am so happy to have this unexpected blessing! Benjamin is so happy to have his daddy around and the two of them have been playing and carrying on like they always do. Benjamin will be very sad when Bram has to leave again.

Thanks everyone for praying for us over the last week or so...those prayers have definitely been answered in a very tangible way!

Unexpected developments

The last week has been full of surprises for the Lillards. Bram's trip got off to a good start and we were able to email each other frequently in the first week. On Wednesday I received an email from Bram saying that the boat was in need of a major repair, they were heading for port, and would be there for a few days. I got a call from him on Wednesday night! It was so good to hear his voice after a week! We were able to talk many times on Thursday, and we expected that he would be heading back out early Friday morning. Friday we had our "last conversation" about 5 times...in other words, his departure kept being delayed throughout the day. I last heard from him at 11:30 AM.

But then, as I was sitting down to dinner that night I heard the familiar sound of Bram's ring tone coming from my cell. "What are you still doing on land?" I asked in stunned amazement! His immediate response was, "Do you want to fly down here for the weekend?" He was going to be in port until Monday morning! So, he will be in King's Bay, Georgia for the weekend. He is on a very large military base - about the size of a small city - staying in a VIP suite for $33 a night! Bram said the room is about the size of the first apartment we lived in after we were married!

Today, he and few guys spent the day in Jacksonville, Florida and will probably go see Iron Man tonight. He plans on playing golf tomorrow after church...it's hard to pity him right now, isn't it (hehe!) I am so glad that he got the opportunity to get off the cramped quarters of the sub and get a little exercise...I am also very glad that we have been able to speak on the phone so often. This has been an unexpected blessing on many levels. I just wish we could be together in this time. But, I will take what I can get.

Benjamin and I have had a wonderful time in Cincinnati! We have spent a lot of time with family (my grandparents drove in from Missouri to visit while we are here) and I've got to reconnect with old friends (like my best friend from High School, Shilo, whom I hadn't seen in 12 years!) We are planning on visiting the Cincinnati Zoo next week and heading down to Kentucky to visit my mom's parents. This has been a wonderfully full time of fellowship for us...if I can't be with my Bram, these are the people I want to be with (only Jenny and Ryan are missing from the picture!)

More updates to come!

The month ahead

(Bram about to board the USS Florida last year)

The Lillards are facing a very challenging month ahead. Bram will be on a submarine for the next 4 weeks. This means no phone conversations and limited email contact between us. Over the next few weeks Benjamin and I will be in Cincinnati visiting my mom and dad (and Jamison and Adam) so there will be some relief from the shock of Bram's absence. And when we return to Maryland, Jenny and Ryan will be here to make the house feel a little more full :) I am very thankful for these blessings, but I think I would rather have my husband home with us.

We have been preparing our hearts for this long separation for many months, but now that it is upon us there are new challenges and feelings to battle. We covet your prayers over the next 4 weeks. Please pray for safety during our travels, and pray for me as I enter my final trimester of this pregnancy that the uneventful trend will continue and no complications would arise while Bram is away. Also pray that the time would go quickly for both Bram and I, and that God would sustain us in this difficult period.

I look forward to sharing with you the ways God has been faithful to us during this time. Be on the lookout for updates on Bram, our trip to Cincinnati, and all the new things Benjamin discovers over this period!

The next post will be from the Nati!

The gift I have been given - A tribute to my Parents and Grandparents

This morning God has filled my heart afresh with thankfulness for my salvation. Jesus lived the perfect life I could not live and stood in my place, taking on my sinfulness and enduring the punishment of death that I deserve, so that I can be reconciled to God in his perfect holiness. And then God showed that he accepted Jesus as my substitute when he raised him from the dead. What a gift I have been given, first that this even took place, and second that I believe it. Would I even believe this if my parents hadn't told me of this glorious truth from the time I was very small? Would they have believed it if their parents hadn't done the same for them? These thoughts have given rise to an overwhelming gratefulness for the faithfulness of those that came before me. Their faithfulness has blessed me in ways that have eternal significance. Their love for the gospel has transfered to me the gift of greatest important - my salvation.

Mom and Dad - My words cannot convey to you the joy in my heart that your faithful adherence to the word of God has endowed. You have raised children who are not simply moral people, but who understand that their sin is an affront to the holy God, who have trusted in the finished work of Jesus on the cross, and who strive to serve him by his grace. I am blessed beyond measure because your words have always been backed up by your lives. Your humble dependence on God for your salvation and your very lives has and will continue to have reverberations in the generations that follow you. You have honored your own parents by obeying them and following them in service to God's kingdom. You have been instruments in God's unstoppable work of salvation in my life - and the lives of those you serve. There is no higher commendation that you can receive. Thank you.

To my Grandma and Grandpa Lyman, and Mimi and Papa Fields - How can I ever thank you for your many years of humble submission to God's word? How can I ever thank you for your faithful obedience to God's command to raise up your children in the fear and knowledge of him? Because you did these things - and still continue in faithfulness to this day - the glorious gospel has gone out and effected the hearts of the generations that have come after you. I am the recipient of an inheritance worth more than all the earth's riches. I am the heir to a heritage of humility, sacrifice, and service that outlasts all the great family names of this world because it has eternal worth! When you preached the gospel to your children, God honored your obedience and granted them repentance of their sins. This enabled them to preach it to me, and in God's great mercy I have repented of my sin and will live forever in his presence. When you stand before God one day, you will hear him say "Well done, good and faithful servant." And we will all give him the glory for your faithful acts in this life. Thank you.

I am a part of the 4th generation of those who serve God in his church and who are a blessing to the world around us. My siblings, cousins, and I (and our spouses) will stand on the firm rock of Christ because you all have exhibited it in your own lives. As we bring forth what will be, by God's mercy, the 5th generation of those who love God and his gospel, may we see his great promise come to fruition - "...that my righteousness will be forever, and my salvation to all generations." Isaiah 51:8

I love you.