Luke's 5th

Luke requested a "Dinosaur Train" birthday party this year (based on the PBS Kids t.v. show). Easy as pie. All the kids decorated a backpack to take on our scavenger hunt. We dug up dinosaur bones in the sandbox (we never did find them all - Clay really hid them well!), had a dinosaur egg hunt, answered trivia questions about dinosaurs and the show, and wreaked havoc on a pinata. It all culminated with pizza and cake.



Oh yes, and it wouldn't have been a party without a little T-Rex wrestling on the trampoline. Good times.

On his actual birthday a week or so later, we had another cake with G and G Hall.



I just can't believe that my little Luke is 5! Happy Birthday, buddy!

Long Lost Missouri Weekend and News

In August, Clay had a job interview in my hometown, good 'ol Springfield, MO. The hospital flew our whole family down and rented us a van, so it was kind of like a nice, long weekend vacation - fully funded. It was really nice to see my family, and we even had a little jaunt to the lake with them and Clayton's cousin - Rebecca - and her family.

Clay on his much-anticipated first ski of the year.


Clay, Audrey, Luke, Rebecca's son Jacob, and me


I wasn't entirely sure I'd be able to get up on slalom just 4 weeks after giving birth, but I did on my first try and skied twice!


Although the interview and dinner with spouses went very well, the job fell through in the end. We are disappointed not to be heading back to "Missery" next year, but Clayton has signed on for a Pediatric Anesthesia Fellowship at a children's hospital here in Detroit. He is very excited, and hopefully this will open the job market a little bit more for us in the future.

Every step we've taken as a married couple has been quite different from what we originally planned, but our Father in Heaven always seems to point us in the direction of what will be the best for us. I'm sure that this next year will be no exception.