Father's Day

On Father's Day we packed a little picnic lunch and headed down to the beach after church. It was a little windy, but warm and sunny. Just perfect!

I am so thankful for David and the wonderful daddy that he is to Mariah. He loves her so much and she definitely loves him too...just one look at her face when she sees him walk in the door says it loud and clear!

"...the glory of children is their fathers."

Prov 17:6

Meaningful Conversation

I am having trouble uploading video to Blogger today for some reason. But you can click HERE to see Mariah "talking" to her daddy. She is such a wonderful blessing to us...an endless source of entertainment!

Stay tuned for another video taken just before I snapped this picture!

Real Life

I just discovered this fun weekly photo challenge and have been inspired by it to use my camera a bit more than I have been lately. This week's challenge = REAL LIFE. I forget sometimes with all the busyness of real life that these are the moments I will want to remember when I am old and sitting in a nursing home someday. So here is one such real moment that takes place on a weekly basis in our house...

My husband, being a musician, spends a good deal of time at his instruments. These days he finds himself with a little helper.

I think she is going to be a daddy's girl!

Check out some other "real life" moments...and maybe even join in yourself!

BIG birthday party!

This weekend we celebrated David's birthday with a BIG party! There were around 35 people here at our house (a record for us so far) and we had so much fun! We ate fajitas, had lots of yummy desserts, played outside (it wasn't raining...can you believe it?!), and did a lot of visiting. It was nice for me to have the chance to get to know some of David's friends a little better. They are all wonderful families. We are blessed to have such great friends like these! Here are a few pictures from the evening...

Check out that fire! There were a LOT of candles on that tiny cake! :)

You know how when you get married, there is a lot of blending that takes place with traditions and such? Well, come to find out, blowing out candles was never a tradition in David's family. So he told me later that this is the first time he has ever blown out candles on a birthday cake! I couldn't believe it! 

The kids had a great time weeding out the grass around our oil tank and having grass wars! It's funny how kids can find things to do no matter what. Plus, now our oil tank looks nice and tidy! Thanks kids!

Aren't they little cutie pies?!

It was a wild, busy house but such fun! 

David's B-day!

Happy Birthday David!

May 27th

I am so grateful for this man! He is a gift from God to me and I feel so honored to be his wife. Everyday I am amazed at his strengths and gifts. He prays with me and for me everyday. He loves God's Word and I love how sometimes he just can't wait to tell me something new he has read or learned. He is a WAY better communicator than I am and he is extremely faithful and loyal. These are just a few (a very few) of the things I admire about David. 

He is my best friend and I love him so much!

And this is the look he will give me when he finds out that I did a post about him! 

Happy Valentine's Day!

So this morning, as I was taking a shower, I heard mysterious rustling in our bedroom. When I came out...there, on the bed, was a present all wrapped up for me and a beautiful red envelope that said "To the lovely Melanie" on it! Now, if you remember, last Valentine's Day I also received a red envelope (in the mail that time) but that one said, "To the lovely Melanie BERGE" on it! What a lot has changed since then! AND, on the dresser were these gorgeous tulips! I absolutely LOVE them!

This is what the package held...a cozy fleece blanket that says "I love you" in a bunch of different languages. 

So...

Ichliebe Dich!

Ti amo!

Te qwero!

I love you David! 

Climbing Muckish

David had a whole week of holiday from teaching at the end of October, so we made the most of it and went mountain climbing on Muckish! We took the "Miner's Path" and found it to be a wonderfully challenging adventure. It was a beautiful clear day too, so that made it even better! 

My fearless and handsome guide, who also carried the pack the whole way. What a man!

There is some fascinating history on this mountain. I guess back during World War II, this area was mined for the quartz sand, which they used to make binocular lenses.

See the sand! It is pure white and seems so out of place on the mountain.

Finally we reached the summit! Ahhhh....Look at that view!

So then we hunkered down in the rocks, away from the wind and cooked ourselves up some grub! Why is it that food tastes SO good when you first climb a mountain and then cook it over an open fire before eating it? Yum!

From the top of Muckish, we could see Errigal which is where David and I first climbed together on my first trip over to Ireland, one year and 4 months ago! Such beautiful memories!

My birthday

For my birthday, my wonderful husband got to "scheming"...

...and came up with a wonderful plan for the day! We jumped in the car and took off for a delightful day in County Donegal! This is our favorite part of Ireland. 

As we were walking around this cute little fishing village, David spotted this restaurant called Mellys! So in we went and feasted on fish and chips! I will never forget it!

Next, we found ourselves on a beautiful beach with not a soul in sight and enjoyed the crashing waves and each other's company.

It was a wonderful birthday! I am most thankful for the gift of this wonderful man in my life! God is so good to me!

Summer Update: Holland!

After our week of VBS, it was time to say goodbye to my family and friends. It was a bitter-sweet time. I was so excited to be married and going to live in a new and beautiful country with my husband and yet, I was sad to have to leave behind so many that I love dearly. It is good to know that you are in Gods will though, over wise it would be unbearable! So we packed our bags and headed for our new home....

We had a short one-day stay over in Ireland before heading off once again. This time we went to Holland for two weeks. David was playing with the worship team for the big Operation Mobilization conference. There were many new missionary families and individuals there getting training before heading off into their field of service for the next two years or so. It was a very exciting atmosphere. Holland was beautiful!

David and I were recruited as mock airport personal during a training day. 

There were so many different cultures represented. I was fascinated by it all!

I spent most of my days working in the "creche" (nursery). Most of the kids spoke two or three languages. I was completely impressed and felt a little bad that I have barely mastered one. It was good fun though, trying to communicate with each other! 

We were able to do a bit of exploring and found some friendly cows.

Everyone in Holland rides bikes it seems so we just had to find some ourselves and try to look as "native" as possible. Only problem was, our bikes were ancient and make squeaky sounds as we went along. Oh well, it was still fun.

We biked to this little town and rested near a lovely canal. The sun was shining and there was a group of old men near us chattering away in Dutch. Then the bells went off and started playing a hymn!...I was charmed and completely amazed by the beauty of God's diverse creation. Gorgeous! 

Summer Update: VBS

My last week as Children's Ministry Coordinator at the Covenant Church found me deep into VBS. Our theme was Jerusalem Marketplace and it was so much fun! Thankfully, I had a TON of help since I was on my honeymoon the week before it. Here is a little taste of our week...

Everyone dressed in Bible days costume. Here we are...the VERY newly married Mr. and Mrs.!

David was the rabbi! And the kids LOVED him! I think they thought that all rabbis must have Irish accents!

Here is adorable little Elijah, enjoying the marketplace!

Whole families took part in this VBS which made it very unique. Moms, dads, grandpas, and grandmas were all there taking part. Here is Alisa with her boys.

Paying good attention in school with Rabbi David!

Elianna is practicing her Hebrew letters on her clay tablet!

We even had real animals! It was the most fun I have ever had at a VBS! Thanks to everyone who helped out and pitched in to make it possible. I don't think any of us will soon be forgetting what it may have been like when Jesus walked this earth.