Christmas Party
Loud laughter filled the air while we watched two precious babies curiously playing with a banana box. The smell of glazed ham and peanut butter cookies filled the air and the soft Christmas tree lights glowed in the background. 12 beautiful young ladies and their 12 adorable babies joined us for our 1st annual Christmas party. The evening was filled with reminiscing, laughter, eating, and lots of present opening. We were tremendously grateful to the supporters of this evening; East Main Vision Clinic, Costco, members of Mars Hill Church and several other individuals in the community as well as to our INCREDIBLE staff assistant, Kristal Bean who coordinated the entire event. The moms and babies were immensely blessed by all of our supporters’ generosity. As we watched the joy on our young ladies faces and observed all of the friendships in the room we felt an overwhelming sense of thankfulness to an awesome God whom we serve. His faithfulness and mercy cannot be compared to anything. To witness his continual pursuit and love of His children is an incredible privilege. Each and every day we thank God for allowing us to be a small part of His big plan for these young ladies.
Fair Day
What’s better than 4 mommies-to-be enjoying fresh hot scones and a Garth Brooks wannabe on the side stage?? We all had such fun at the Puyallup Fair on opening day this year. Always budget conscious we packed our lunches but still enjoyed all the “must haves” at the fair! We did a lot of walking (always good for exercise!) and a lot of eating (maybe not so good!). We all took turns petting a 2 day old piglet and several amazing dogs at the dog exhibit. We also walked through the pavilions and window shopped. We contemplated putting the ladies on the Extreme Scream but decided that was probably not using much wisdom, haha! While each young lady is taking steps toward becoming more independent and walking through difficult life choices, we can’t ignore the opportunity to also have some fun together!
Family day.
Early in the morning the ladies at New Beginnings awoke to the sound of their cell phone alarms. After a morning stretch and a big yawn they made their way to the kitchen to pack their lunches for our day at Fort Worden. Fort Worden once guarded the nautical entrance to Puget Sound. It is now a state park and has many huge abandoned concrete batteries which were constructed in 1897 (http://www.parks.wa.gov/fortworden/history.aspx). Fort Worden is also close to Discovery Bay, the YWAM base that our family attended in 2009. All of us packed into two mini vans and made the two hour drive to Port Townsend (home to Fort Worden). We all had fun playing on the beach, picnicking and exploring the old batteries. When we finished we headed to YWAM Discovery Bay to watch the School of Performing Arts graduate and perform the dances they were taking to India. We arrived home late in the evening feeling tired but full of joy from the day’s excursion. Our family enjoyed showing the New Beginnings ladies a piece of our lives from DTS. The day trip was a fun way to share life together!
Sundays at New Beginnings….
“If there is anyone else here who feels led to be baptized, please stand up”, Pastor Lance said after baptizing eleven church members who had previously signed up. Rachel and Colleen looked at one another and began to speak quietly. After a moment they both got up and proceeded to the front to be baptized. David and I followed to offer support and were surprised to see that our daughter, Malia had also joined the line of those waiting to be baptized. It was a great day of celebration! Not only did we have the opportunity to pray for Colleen, Rachel and Malia, but to actually baptize them too. All of us had tears streaming down our cheeks and were thrilled to see the work that God had done in these ladies’ lives.
A few Sundays prior to the baptisms, church service was just getting started when Colleen, Charles and Cianna scooted into our row. I waved hello and focused my attention back on worship. However, out of the corner of my eye I caught a glimpse of a giddy young lady doing a very familiar “happy dance”. I looked over again and saw Colleen waving her left hand….she was wearing a beautiful engagement ring. “Charles proposed to me this morning!” All of us currently living at New Beginnings were sitting together and began hugging Colleen and offering words of congratulations. I am sure that we made quite a scene in the middle of our congregation!
This past Sunday, after a particularly difficult week in the house we were reminded of God’s faithfulness when 4 of our past residents and their babies came to church. All of us combined took up two full rows. We invited them for an impromptu BBQ after church and thoroughly enjoyed each other’s company! We also took the opportunity to celebrate David’s birthday. He was particularly touched by Rachel’s card to him which simply stated, “Happy Birthday, you’re the best dad ever”.
We love our Sundays at New Beginnings. It is a day we set aside to attend church together and partake of God’s word as a family. We are so thankful for all of your prayers and financial support. We love serving these young ladies and without your help would be unable to do so. Your partnership is making a difference. Lives are being healed, renewed and restored every day. Thank you!
All for His glory!
Our 1st Annual Stroll N Roll
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- New Beginnings Mommies
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- Thank you Olympic Landscape and Irrigation!
“Time to get up ladies!” we said as we gently knocked on their doors. “It is time to head to our 1st Annual Stroll N Roll!” All the young ladies in the house were great sports as we woke them up early on a Saturday morning. We had a great turn out for our first year and are eager to have any even larger group next year. We would like to thank our sponsors, The Old Cannery Furniture Warehouse, Hometeam Northwest Realty and Clearwire. We would also like to extend our thanks to our largest donor, Olympic Landscape and Irrigation. Lastly, but definitely not least we would like to extend a HUGE thank you to all of our walkers and everyone who sponsored them. All funds raised go directly to helping pregnant mommies who are in desperate need of housing and support. We couldn’t do it without all of your help! Mark your calendars for the 2nd Annual Stroll N Roll, Saturday, July 16th, 2011.
Dinner of Elegance
- On April 30th we were fortunate to have several members of the City Harvest Church prepare us dinner. We took this opportunity to invite over some ladies who had recently given birth in order to have a bit of a reunion. We had no idea the elegance that was in store for us! I walked in the kitchen and thought that they had hired a catering company but found that the ladies just decided to wear white shirts and black bottoms with matching red aprons. They had prepared menus placed on chargers on the beautifully decorated table and served us a three course dinner. To start we had a Caesar salad and bread and were even offered freshly ground pepper and cheese! Our main entrée was gorgonzola chicken over a bed of pasta and for dessert we had delicious cheesecake. They served us and cleared our plates between each course. The attention to detail was phenomenal as was the food! To top it off they presented each of us with gift baskets each including complimentary facials donated from Rejuvenation Salon and Spa! We were so incredibly blessed and enjoyed the time that we were able to spend with the new mommies and their babies. Thank you so much ladies of City Harvest Church, you truly displayed a generous and servant heart which exemplified the love of Jesus!
The ladies from City Harvest Church
The ladies from City Harvest Church
Day at the Museums
We all piled into the van and headed to Subway for a quick bite to eat before heading off for downtown Tacoma. After some awkward glances at David, the only man in a sea of pregnant women, we managed to find seats and enjoy our sandwiches. The day was bright and sunny reflecting our mood as we headed off to find parking. After the lengthy walk from the parking lot to the museum we had to stop and catch our breath and regain our sunny dispositions! 
The Art museum sparked much conversation and reflection, especially trying to visualize the architects aim at creating mountains and waves in the center of the building (not to easy to see for those of us who are not very artsy!) After finishing with the art museum we headed for the Bridge of glass and enjoyed the reflection pools outside the Glass museum. We stopped along the way and pointed out our favorite Chihuly pieces. Lastly, we wrapped up the day at the Washington State History Museum. We sat in a covered wagon, dressed up, and learned a lot about the development of the railroad and the evidence that points to Bigfoot’s existence. Both important to learn about prior to becoming a mommy! Not really, but lots of fun and culturally enriching none the less! After a couple of hours walking around museums tackling the walk back up 19th st. was a bit taxing! Overall we all had a terrific time and truly enjoyed a beautiful Pacific Northwest day! 
Beautiful babies born!
“You can do it…..one more push…he’s almost here” were common phrases around here this past month. We have had the pleasure of welcoming three handsome lil’ boys to mommies of New Beginnings! We have been blessed to walk with Amelia, Christina and Ha during their pregnancies and celebrated with them as they entered official mommyhood. While we are saddened by their departure from New Beginnings we couldn’t be happier about their new little arrivals. Congratulations ladies!
February newsletter
Soaked to the bone from the persistent rain that fell throughout the day we shut the trunk of our packed car and said goodbye to our training in Port Townsend. On the way home we reflected on how much God had done in our lives over the past four months. Saying good bye to our “Discipleship Training School family” was difficult and picking up our family once again to move was hard. While we were excited to finally begin full time at the New Beginnings Home we were reticent. How would we effectively “parent” women who have come from varying backgrounds, many which were dysfunctional. We were reminded of something one of our speakers taught on, that God is sovereign and knows each of these women inside and out. If we were willing, He would use us to touch their lives. Having been full time at the New Beginnings Home for over a month now, God has continued to remind us of His sovereignty and been faithful to His word.
Many of you may remember Amelia, a young lady we wrote about in our October newsletter. While at New Beginnings Amelia began to experience the love of Jesus in a way she hadn’t before. Seeking a healthy lifestyle she began consistently attending AA and church. Both of these avenues led to some important milestones she celebrated in December; on the 13th she was baptized and on the 27th received her one year sobriety coin at her AA meeting. Both of these events were reflections of God’s sovereignty in her life. We have all been blessed to watch Amelia continue to flourish and felt bittersweet when she was accepted into a housing program which will provide her low cost housing while pursuing her education in Social services. Her growth over the past couple of months has inspired her to mentor other women who have struggled over their lives. On Saturday, January 23rd, Amelia moved out of the New Beginnings Home. We have greatly missed her (and her fantastic cooking) but know that the New Beginnings Home functioned just as it should in her life. Our home gave her a place to sleep, food to eat, time to dream, mentorship, life skills and friendship. She will be welcoming her son Isaiah in just a couple of weeks and now she has a place of her own to welcome him into. Thank you for making a difference in Amelia and Isaiah’s lives. We appreciate your commitment to this ministry!
Thank you Select Comfort!
The ladies of New Beginnings with Comfy Pillows from Select Comfort
As the bags of pillows were unloaded into our home our curiosity increased. Bag after bag began to fill the living room. “Where in the world did all these pillows come from?” Our director, Miles Musick informed us that Select Comfort donated 50+ pillows to the New Beginnings Home. Anyone who has been pregnant knows that pregnancy and sleep go hand in hand! There is no better way to get great sleep than with brand new, amazing quality pillows. We are always in need of essentials such as pillows and are so grateful for this generous donation! Thanks so much Select Comfort!
