Back Home

Well, we have made it safely back home.  We had a very busy week when we were in GA.  We got back to Valdosta around 10:30pm.   Josiah feel asleep in the van.  We were hoping that it would be an easy transfer, but he ended up waking up.  We did his bed time routine of giving him his bath and something to eat.  We were hoping that it would keep him calm, and we could put him right to bed.  Well, our plan didn't work.  Instead, it gave Josiah a second wind.  He stayed up until midnight laughing and being a ham.  We got up around 6:30am on Sunday--his normal wake up time.  We went to church and then met some friends for lunch.  Sunday night my sister and her family came over for dinner and to see Josiah--Chris and I found out that we aren't as important anymore!    On Monday, Chris drove to ATL to see his Granny for the day.  Josiah and I hung out with my parents and grandmother.  We went out to lunch and did a little shopping.  On Tuesday, we went to see Papa Tim at work, so Daddy could get his eyes checked.  Josiah spent some time with just Mimi and Papa, so Daddy and Mommy could have a date.  On Wednesday, we went to the park.  It was an interesting experience.  There was a group of moms there with their kids having a going away party.  They had their food on the picnic tables and one lady left her keys and cellphone there (not a good choice in this day and age).  A man went up took the keys and cellphone and then started eating some of their food.  She realized her belongings were missing before he left.  They stopped him and asked him if he had their stuff.  He took it out of his pocket and handed it to the lady.  He also handed back the half eaten sandwich, but she didn't want that.  One of the other ladies called the police, and the young man hung around for the longest time eating the rest of the sandwich.  I would have expected him to run off, but he didn't.  Eventually, he started strolling off, so I got my camera and took a video of him.  My dad kept his eye on him, but he eventually got out of his sight before Valdosta's Finest showed up.  While the police were talking to the women, the man comes strolling back.  He wasn't arrested, but it made for an interesting morning.  That night we went over to Granny and Papa Gig's house for dinner and spent the night.  Josiah had lots of fun with the cats there.  They hadn't been around a baby before, so they didn't know to stay far, far away.  They eventually figured it out!  My parents' cats have been around plenty of kids, so they knew to keep their distance.  Thursday morning we went to visit some friends.  Then that afternoon we went to the strawberry patch.  That night my sister and her family came over again--they were sick all week, so we didn't get to see them very much.  Tayler spent the night with us.  We played some games and hung out.  On Friday, we visited with some more friends and then had lunch with Chris' mom before we left for Jacksonville.  We spent the night in Jacksonville, since our flight was so early in the morning.  We had a nice dinner with Mimi on Friday and then we all crashed pretty early.  We flew back to Norfolk where Uncle Chuck picked us up at the airport.  We went back to the house where Aunt Melody had made lunch.  We ate lunch and then brought Josiah down to the beach for a little walk.  He loved the wind, but wasn't so fond of the sand.  We got in the car and drove 3 1/2 hours home.  He was a little fussy Saturday night and Sunday, but he is doing so much better today.  As you can see, we had a busy time while in GA.  We enjoyed hanging out with our family and friends, but it is always nice to be back home.

First Flight

Well, I've made it safely to GA to see my family.  I was a wonder baby according to Mommy and Daddy.  I cooperated with their plan by getting up on Saturday and staying awake until we left for Norfolk, VA.  I took a nice long nap for Mommy and Daddy in the car.  I'm guessing Mommy took a nap with me since she was pretty tired from working 20 hours this week plus getting us all packed and still making some meals for Daddy and me.  We stopped around lunch time, and I ate a really great lunch and was in such a good mood.  Mommy and Daddy kept praying that I would be a good traveler today.  I don't know why they were so nervous about flying.  It was as if they expected something less than wonderful from me.  We did run into some spring break travelers.  In my less than mature days, I would have started crying with the stop and go traffic.  Now that I'm 9 months old, I'm more mature, so I talked with Mommy and Daddy while we waited in traffic.  We got to the airport in plenty of time for me to stretch out and play on my blanket.  I was a little distracted by all the people, but enjoyed my play time.  We flew on Southwest, so we didn't have assigned seats, so Mommy and Daddy picked the very last row on the plane.  They figured that if we were way back there people wouldn't want to sit beside us.  Well, their plan worked, and we had three seats all to ourselves!  I enjoyed looking out the window.  I got to see all the people working--driving trucks, loading those big bags that carry our clothes and those people who wave those big sticks in the air.  It was all so fascinating!  We got ready to take off, and I didn't have any problems.  No crying from me--remember, I'm 9 months and very mature!  After we got up in the air, Mommy and Daddy fed me my dinner.  Again, I ate like a champ!  Mommy and Daddy had the great idea of spreading my blanket on the floor with my toys so I could stretch out.  Well, it turned out to not be such a good idea.  I got a little fussy, so Daddy picked me up and then I decided my stomach didnt' feel so good, and I threw up all over him...I mean ALL over him.  It was a good thing that he had double layer of shirts on because I would have been a little embarrassed to see him walking around in his undershirt.  I spared Mommy from any throw up.  I figured it was the least I could do, since I save my special diaper presents for her when Daddy is at work.  Mommy got me changed into some clean clothes and then she gave me some of her good milk that helped me fall asleep.  I slept the rest of the way--even through the landing.  So other than Mommy and Daddy's well intentioned idea of letting me play, I liked the whole flying thing.  I'm looking forward to going back home and maybe Mommy and Daddy won't be so concerned with the direct flight thing next time.  Well, I should get going.  I have lots of people to entertain while I'm here, but wanted to let you all know how my first flight went.

Word from Dad

It has been a LONG time since I have written an entry. I wanted to just take a minute and say how thankful I am to have a wife who cares enough to keep everything updated and current. She is a blessing, and I am amazed that she has the time to keep it all going.
Life is busy here in N. VA. We are in a busy stretch with the part-time guy (that's me) covering for the full-time guy (that's Pastor Tom) while he has hip replacement surgery. It is a lot of responsibility and a lot of work to try and manage the part-time role at the school with a temporary full time role at the church. Preparing sermons is fun but not when I'm thinking about the next science test. I will be preaching at least twice in the next five weeks and maybe more.

We are excited that so much of the family is going to be here next weekend for the baptism. I'm not sure where everyone will sit while we are hanging out here, but we'll figure it out! :-) Thank you all for keeping up with the ongoing lives of the Greenwood Inc. missionary family of N. VA. I do sometimes feel more like a missionary than a staff member. We are trusting the Lord everyday to help us make this ministry work in such an expensive part of the country with the economy the way it is.

Part of that ministry has been a really neat opportunity to get to know a family from Sri Lanka. Sara started a friendship with the wife of this family shortly after they started attending the church a few months ago. We were able to have them over for dinner last weekend after I led a retreat at the church. They are refreshingly NOT Christian. By that, I mean they don't pretend to be Christians. They are very interested in Jesus and have a lot of questions without pretending they already know him. They come from a Buddhist background so the conversations are very interesting. I guess all that World Religions stuff I learned at Campbell is paying off! Go CUDS!!!

Well, Josiah just work up so we are going to take advantage of the 60 degree day and go for a family walk. Thanks for the prayers and support!

10 oz!

We went to the doctor on Friday and learned that Josiah had gained 10 oz. in 2 weeks!  They were very impressed with his progress and said that as long as he stays in the percentile that he is in, they won't be concerned. 

We've had a very busy weekend.  Mimi and Cousin Tayler came for a visit.  There are LOTS of pictures of the many things we did while they were here.  Hope you enjoy looking at them all.  We went shopping the first day they were here.  Then on Saturday we babysat for a family from church.  While we were there, we decorated some Valentine's Day cookies.  That night, we celebrated Tayler's 10th birthday!  On Sunday, we went to church.  Tayler and Mimi babysat Josiah so Chris and I could go out on a date.  On Monday, we went to the Air & Space Museum.  There were LOTS of cool things, and I was able to enjoy playing with my new 35mm digital camera.  Poor Josiah is going to be so sick of seeing a camera!  I am going to need to play with it before I shoot my first solo wedding in July.  My mom and I have done some weddings in the past, but this is my first one all by myself.  For Him Photography is in the process of getting started.

Busy, Busy, Busy

Well, the Greenwood family is going to be fairly busy for the next few weeks.  Thus, the reason of only having two pictures downloaded.  I still need to take his 7 month picture!  Last Friday and Saturday, Chris was at a presbytery meeting in Baltimore, MD.  It wouldn't have been so bad, but they drove back Friday night and then went back on Saturday morning.  They decided to do this to try to save the church some money.  Then on Sunday we had a congregational meeting at the church.  To help out, I made some of my "famous" chili and baked some of the potatoes.  This weekend, my niece and mom will be coming into for a visit.  This will be Tayler's first time to our place in VA.  I have a busy Sunday as I will be trying to get parents to update their child's information between the services and Sunday School.  Then that night I will be having a  meeting to start the planning process for VBS.  Then the weekend after that, Chris will be having a training seminar at the church for the Home Fellowship Group leaders.  Josiah and I won't see him very much Friday or Saturday, but it'll be nice to have him home each night.  The first Sunday in March, Chris will be preaching and then the second weekend in March all of the grandparents will be in town for Josiah's baptizim.  So as you can see, we will be pretty busy for the next few weeks.  This doesn't even include our Bible studies or the daily tasks we need to get done.  I'm tired just thinking about it!  I just pray that I don't forget Josiah somewhere during the next few weeks!    I will be so thankful when this season is over because I don't like to stay busy, and I miss our quiet time as a family.  I will try my best to keep taking pictures of Josiah--I might just be a little delayed on downloading them. 

Well, I should get going because I need to get dinner ready before I head to Bible study tonight. 

Doctor Visit

Well, Josiah went back to the doctor on Friday and only gained 1/2 pound in a month.  We will need to go back in 2 weeks to check him again.  One doctor wanted to go ahead and send him to a specialist, while another doctor said to add an extra bottle of formula and give him some avacados since they are high in calories.  We are going with the second doctor's opinion of adding an extra meal and avacados.  I guess they just don't understand his strong Greenwood genes!  What we will do next time if he hasn't gained weight like they want him to,  I don't know?  Like I've said before, we aren't concerned about his weight because he eats, is happy, is VERY active and sleeps well.  The doctors even say he is progressing developmentally like he is supposed to.  I just wished they would believe us when we say that it is in his genes.  Maybe we need to get Granny Kay to come over here and deal with these doctors for us--she has seen quite a few Greenwood men grow up!   

Well, just say a prayer that all will go well at the next visit on Feb. 13th.

Trip to NC

Well, we just got back from spending the weekend in NC.  We were able to meet Baby Harper for the first time--she's absolutely beautiful--if her proud Auntie can say that without being considered biased! 

The trip down to NC was pretty rough.  Josiah got his first fever on our way down there.  He was acting very clingy on Thursday, but wasn't running a fever.  I just thought he was needing some extra mommy time since we had a pretty busy week.  We also thought he might being cutting  his second tooth, so we didn't think too much about it.  Well, an hour into our trip, Josiah just starts screaming.  We thought maybe he wasn't too excited about traveling since this was his first long trip since we moved to VA.  We pull over to see what is wrong, and he ends up eating.  We get him calmed down and get back on the road. About an hour later, he starts screaming again.  This time when we stop , he is burning up.  We go ahead and take his temperature and it is 101.7.  At this point, we are half way there.  We give him some Tylenol and start praying fervently.  He calms down again, but an hour later he is screaming some more.  I start feeling like a horrible mother because here I am traveling with a sick baby.  I feed him some more and just hold him for awhile.  He gets calmed down.  At that point, Chris and I decide that if he wakes up screaming again, we will just get a hotel room for the night.  We get back on the road, and Josiah falls asleep until about 30 minutes from Goldsboro.  This time when he got up, he woke up in a fairly decent mood.  When we arrived in Goldsboro, we took his temperature again---it had gone down almost 2 degrees!  By the time he woke up the next morning, his temperature had returned to normal and we had our happy Josiah again!  I know without a doubt that our prayers were answered that night, and we praise the Lord for answering them. 

We enjoyed our time getting to know Harper and visiting with Corey and Simon.  It was fun comparing stories about what Josiah and Harper are doing.  We wish we lived closer, so the cousins could spend more time together.  We are so appreciative of Corey and Simon being willing to spend the time and money to travel to the US for a visit.  We hope to have our first visit to England this coming fall. While in NC, we were able to visit some of our friends.  Then on Sunday Harper was baptized.  Chris was able to say a special prayer for Harper just before she was baptized.  It was nice that he was able to take part in the ceremony.  After the ceremony we went out for lunch.  Chris and I have been practicing at home with Josiah on going out to eat.  After he finishes eating, he is given a toy to play with until we finish eating.  He did an EXCELLENT job going out to eat for the first time.  He ate his food like he was suppose to and then played with his toy while we finished.  I couldn't have been prouder of him!  The rest of the time was spent hanging out with the family and just catching up.  We also did quite a bit of walking to balance out all the eating we did there! 

Our trip home was a lot less eventful than the one going down---for that I praise the Lord!  He was so much fun in the car.  He has the personality of his Uncle Richard---I will-keep-doing-something-as-long-as-it-is-making-you-laugh.  Josiah does bring so much laughter to our lives, and we are so thankful for the laughter.  I hope we as a family never stop laughing and being silly together.

Well, I should get going because I have tons of things to put up from our trip and the laundry isn't getting done by itself.  Hope you enjoy the pictures we took while in NC.