Big Weekend

These pictures of the ordination/installation/baptism weekend are all jumbled up, and I'm far to lazy this morning to order them. So, let's begin.

We went to a famous South Florida fruit stand called Robert Is Here. Check out the link! It's a great story about a kid starting a business at his bus stop. Here is Mikey pictured with the famous Robert himself.

Here's a picture of Nathan being prayed over during his ordination and installation ceremony.

Here's Mikey and Papa enjoying the Florida sun.

Our dear friend, Pete, came to preach at the service, and he managed to fit in some snorkeling with Nathan in Key Largo.

Mikey was in this swim suit and rash guard for about five minutes. It was too small, he was too hot, and it probably wasn't even worth it for this not-so-good picture.

We had a lovely dinner at Sundowners when the sun was setting. How apropos. 

Guess who surprised us! Wilbur came out from California and just walked up to us in Key Largo. So sneaky! It was such a joy to have him there for the service.

Nathan's sister, Hannah, and her then-boyfriend-now-fiance came too! It was so special to us that they got engaged in Miami.

Here's Mikey giving me the stink eye for dressing him in a sweater vest for his baptism. Nathan is praying

Papa Mike Bear and Mikey

After church that Sunday, Mikey started reaching out for toys for the first time. My dad couldn't help but buy him this Curious George when he tried to grab it. Mikey now sleeps with it, and when I put him down for a nap, I tell him that he's going to enjoy some Georgie time.

Mikey was very intolerant during the baptism part, so Nathan stuck his pinky finger in the baby's mouth.

Here we are listening to the vows.

Mikey's about to get sprinkled!

And there it is.

There they are! Reverend Doctor Nathan Parker and his son, Michael Harrison Parker. It was so special to have both of our dads (after whom the baby is named) there to witness it.

And it was so special to share the morning with our new Pinelands family.

Three Things We LOVE About Living in Florida

There are many places I have lived. There are things I've loved and things I've hated about each place. Or as the British would say, there are things I quite liked and things I rather disliked. 

Here's the beginning of our Florida list.

1. People have asked us many times what we loved about living in England. We always said, "Our church." People are now asking what we are loving about living in Florida. Our number one answer is the same - our church! The people there have welcomed us with open arms (literally... they're very huggy!). Nathan and I are so blessed to have a new church family that is warm, friendly, and loving. The church is incredibly diverse - so many cultures and ages and stages and family structures represented. They are an amazing picture of the body of Christ.

So what else do we love about living in Florida? 

2. Weather (the number one thing we hated rather disliked about England). It's warm every day. While the rest of the country is frozen over - I've heard of some cities that have experienced more than 70 straight days  of below freezing temperatures - Miami is experiencing the third warmest winter in its history. So shorts and t-shirts and air conditioning every day it is!

3. Produce. Most people know that I'm a huge avocado fan. I was a little sad to discover that most of the avocados around here are not the Hass ones from Mexico or California I would usually find in the supermarket, but instead the big, fat Florida ones. Well, I wasn't sad for long because we are staying near an avocado grove. We arrived at the end of the season and found several avocados just lying on the ground, begging to be eaten.

I ate this whole bowl of the stuff straight up. Just salt and pepper. This was only about half of the flesh on one avocado. IT WAS HUGE!

There is also a starfruit tree on the property, and we enjoyed a few at the end of the season. I've never had starfruit before. It's really tasty!

These beauties are wild lemons from a church friend's tree. I get so excited when she offers them to me. They are mild and oh-so-juicy, and tonight we had them with our salmon. Yum!

There are more thoughts to come!

The Next Chapter of Life

What's that Mikey? What are you trying to tell us? Are those palm trees and alligators on your blanket? Why the bright green onesie?

What my key lime cutie pie is trying to say, is that we're moving to Florida! Yes, the Lord has answered our prayers for full-time ministry work. It's finally official and public news. Nathan has accepted a position as the senior pastor of Pinelands Presbyterian Church in Cutler Bay, Florida.

We will head to Atlanta as a family on a red-eye flight on January 4th to see family and friends and collect our belongings, and then we'll make the drive down to our new hometown on the 18th. Nathan will preach his first sermon on February 2nd. To hear Nathan's candidating sermon preached at the church a few weeks ago, you can click here.

Since our departure from England - well, our whole lives, really - God has provided for us in amazing ways, from housing to transportation to wonderful people who have loved us incredibly well. We look forward to seeing the ways that he will continue to provide for us in Florida.

In the mean time, you can pray that God would help us in the following areas:

- Saying goodbye to my family in Bakersfield (I'm crying already!)

- Traveling with Mikey and all of our stuff on planes and long-distance drives

- Finding a permanent home in Florida (the Lord has already provided a temporary place with a church member)

- Beginning healthy ministry habits

- Loving our new church family well

- Strengthening our bonds as a married couple and as a family as we go through all of this change

Start planning your next vacation to south Florida and come see us! We'll be very close to Miami, the Keys, and to all the cruising ports.