Abide

Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me.

I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.

John 15:4,5 (NASB)

If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.

My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples.

John 15:7,8 (NASB)

Abide: also translated "remain;" to be constantly present, to maintain unbroken fellowship

Has also been defined as to stay a long while

There are so many things asking for my time

But I can put on a fresh pot of coffee

If you would stay a long while with me.

There are many things running through my mind

And I'd like to share my concerns with you

If you would stay a long while with me.

There are many burdens I've been carrying

And it'd be nice to lay them at your feet

If you would just stay a long while with me.

Jesus, pull up a chair

I have cream and sugar to share,

And please stay a long while with me.

a little update

Hello blogland! Kate is one month old!
Life with a newborn is a whole new experience! We are loving being parents and dreaming of the day we will sleep for more than 4 hours at a time. Seriously, we really love being Kate's parents and watching her change as she starts to engage with her world a little more. She's a wonderful, beautiful baby. We know we are very blessed.

We have gotten out a little with her. This past week I had to order my bridesmaid dress for my sister-in-law's wedding. So the three of us headed to San Antonio so I could try on and order the dress. Kate mostly stayed in the car with Josh and mostly slept the whole time. I was worried about doing too much with her, so we got something quick to eat and headed back home. She did good and we look forward to being able to take more time in San Antonio with her. She also went with me to a training meeting for the pregnancy center where I might start volunteering once Kate gets a little bigger. She did great! Little by little we are getting used to doing other activities. We have already gone walking at the park twice and several walks around the neighborhood.

Last weekend Josh's dad turned 55 and we had a fun time celebrating at their place. Michael grilled fajitas and veggie kabobs, made guacamole, and his girlfriend Denise made rice and taught Jo Ann how to make some delicious potatoes. Josh and I made the cake. Everything was delicious! Kate slept through most of the celebration.More later

Stand by Me

This video clip is so cool. I was introduced to it in an email forward.

This is what the email said:

"It is a composite audio/video of song whereby additional tracks were laid in by different singers and musicians from different places around the world. The finished product is tremendous!

The song itself is that classic standard "Stand By Me" originally released in 1955 by The Staple Singers and released again in 1961 by the Drifters."

Check it out:
Stand By Me around the world

Great-grandparents are a blessing

Happy Easter

Happy Easter!

This weekend my parents came into town again and brought my Mima, one of Kate's great-grandmothers. We had a great weekend hanging out and enjoying Kate with my family.
On Easter Sunday we got to dedicate Kate at our church. We were worried that she wouldn't get to go because we were having a special service outside and rain was predicted. But around 8:30am the sun came out and the air warmed up. It was a nice service and Kate did so great for her first time at church.

My brother and his girlfriend also came into town Saturday and got to celebrate Easter with us.

We'll look forward to an Easter dress and egg hunt next year!

Helping Daddy while he works from home

Hello big blue eyes!

Tummy time with mommy...but she kinda fell asleep

Firsts

Here are a few of Kate's firsts:

First bath in the kitchen sink! No, we didn't use the Ajax on her...
Kate seemed to not mind the bath and maybe even liked it. She was very patient while her parents figured out how the do the whole thing, too.


First time in the stroller!
On Saturday we had our first day without chilly wind and we took her out briefly for a walk up the street. I was worried about her head wobbling around too much since the road is kind of rough, so we didn't stay out very long. Next time I'll put in a blanket or something to pad her head more. She's just so little still!

First time out alone with mom!
Okay, there's no picture for this one because we were alone just the two of us. I got her all ready and loaded up for the doctor's appointment by myself and made it there with plenty of time. Then we had to go over to the hospital for lab work for her 2 week old state tests. We did all of that by ourselves. Way to go Seefeldt girls!

Too Precious

Love those little smiles!

What about Sammy?

For anyone who has been curious about how our dog, Sammy, has been adjusting, here's an update. Sammy is great with Kate. He's not really excited about hanging out with her yet, probably because she doesn't do anything that interests him. He is a little mopey about not getting attention, but he's being very sweet about it.

A few nights ago when we were up for a feeding I noticed that Sammy was lying on the floor next to his pillow, not on it. I thought that was weird until I saw why. Sammy's little toy (a crazy-eyed donkey dog toy we named Pedro) was lying on the pillow. Sammy generously had given his bed to his Pedro and was lying next to him. I think he was trying to tell us that he knows how to care for a baby.