suburban hobos

Over the past couple of months we’ve been slowly plotting how we can have a vegetable garden in our small, mostly shaded, back “yard.”  As of today, it seems as though we may actually have some tomatoes and other veggies and herbs to enjoy later this summer.

Lot’s of visits from family and friends as of late.  Maggie’s sister, Mary, and her husband made the long drive up from North Carolina for a quick weekend visit.

My aunt Tammy came in for an overnight visit and enjoyed some laughs and made-up games with Eliot.  She’ll be back for another visit next month.

Our friend Michelle from Arizona spent last night and will be back with her husband, Mike, in a couple of weeks.  She was the last guest to sleep on the air mattress as our new guest bed was delivered today.  You should come test it out.

Another thing that I can’t forget to mention is Eliot’s dedication in church two Sundays ago.  Our good friend Michael dedicated Eliot to Jesus and it was, to understate it, a very special morning.  We’re thankful that Eliot will grow up in this community of friends and neighbors.

Most of you likely know about the church plant I’ve devoted much of my time and energy to over the past year. Today we held our third weekly service, so there is no turning back now!  I’ve preached a couple of times- Authentic Community and Who needs a King?- along with the other members of our preaching team, Michael and Michelle.

Last Monday the three of us were interviewed on a local public radio station.  As you can see, we had a good time.

Each Sunday we’ve met new visitors who are curious about this new, multi-ethnic church.  Hopefully you can be one of those visitors in the near future.

Today is “Gotcha Day.” Today it has been one year since that day in April when we met Eliot for the first time and brought him home with us. Today is a very special day. I remember it so clearly: the ride to the adoption agency, the fluttery butterflies in my stomach, the excitement, the surreal feelings, the sadness for his birth mom, the anticipation. He had on a light blue outfit (that we still have) and slept through the entire meeting and all the way home, while I made phone calls to our families.

This is one of my favorite pictures of my two favorite people. It was a glorious summer day and the beautiful garden was in full bloom. We were outside in the backyard that we shared with our landlords (that we miss so much!) taking dozens of pictures of each other holding Eliot. I’m not sure anything could make David happier than being a father to Eliot. He is a fantastic Daddy.

Here we’re at the courthouse in downtown Chicago waiting to be called in before the judge to start the legal process of making the adoption official. All the papers were signed and we just had to wait for the courts to do their part, and we knew that we were really going to be Eliot’s parents! He was so worth the wait.

At Christmastime we got Eliot a passport and traveled with Kevin and Linda to visit Anne Marie and Tony in Taiwan – Eliot became a world traveler before he’d even turned one! We had a wonderful time with the Swanson/Chow family.

Eliot grew unbelievably fast. This picture is at my parents’ house during our visit in February to celebrate their 40th anniversary. Eliot was discovering his independence and seemed very impressed with himself that he could sit in his own chair.

April 17, 2009 was a day that changed our lives forever. We’re so glad Eliot’s here, we are so thankful to be his parents, and we love him like crazy.

Tomorrow marks the beginning of weekly services at our church plant.  One of the more exciting things for me about the weeks and months to come is the opportunity to share the preaching load with two incredibly smart and devoted friends, Michael Washington and Michelle Dodson.  Here we talk about the resurrection of Jesus, the topic for our first sermon series.

I assume most of the readers of our blog don’t live nearby, but if you do please know that you’re always welcome to join us for worship.

It’s been too long since I’ve posted an update, though not for lack of activity in our lives.  In chronological order these photos show a great week-long visit from Jane who enjoyed lots of time with her grandson, the beautiful and delicious carrot cake Maggie made for Eliot’s first birthday, a lunch Lawrence’s Fisheries with our friend Jeff who was visiting from Haiti, breakfast after a sleepover with our friends the Davidsons, Eliot dressed up for his first Easter Sunday, and a trip to the Morton Arboretum this afternoon with our friends the Washingtons.

You can see a few more photos from our adventure today at this web album.

If you think of it, please pray for us as we prepare to launch the new church in Bronzeville this Sunday.  I hope to post more about this over at Signs of Life later this week.

• The second preview service for our church plant last Sunday went very well.  We had quite a few visitors, including some folks who had come for the first preview service.  We have our final preview service in two weeks and three weeks later, on the Sunday following Easter, we commence weekly services.  You can listen to my sermon from the second preview service on the church website.
• Tonight Maggie is having a few women from the church plant over to watch the Oscars.  I’ve still not figured out where I’ll escape to for a few hours.
• Eliot’s first birthday is just 21 days away!  And three weeks later will be the one-year anniversary of when we first met our son.  He’s changed a lot in less than a year.

On our afternoon walk today Eliot and I met a woman who pointed out a beautiful red cardinal and his more subdued mate in a tree just above our heads.  I know it may not look like it in this photo, but surely spring is coming.

You can see a few more photos of Eliot’s first Chicago winter on this web album.

Last night Maggie’s play with the Hyde Park Community Players opened.  She did great!  A couple of days ago our neighborhood newspaper had an article about the play and it included a photo of Maggie (“the fool”) and another actor (“the blind man”) at one of their rehearsals.  Click on the photos for the full article and photo.

You can find a bit more information about the play on my blog, Signs of Life.  Maggie is about to head out for the second performance.  On Sunday they close with a matinee at 2:30.

It’s been too long since I’ve posted something new.  My excuse?  10 days in Colorado taking two classes and this past week spent preparing for our church plant’s first preview service tomorrow.  Our church website is now live and will give you a pretty good idea about the things that matter to us: http://thenewcom.com/bronzeville/

On another note, Eliot continues to be great.