February 2018

February was a fun and exciting month...

• Daphné and Django started playing more together
• Train ride to Antibes to visit Tonton Rob and Tata Cricri
• I turn 37... yahoo!
• Daphné and Django's cousin is born in Paris!!!

How precious are your thoughts about me, O God.
They cannot be numbered!
I can’t even count them;
they outnumber the grains of sand!
And when I wake up,
you are still with me!
--Psalm 139:17-18

Her children rise up and call her blessed.
--Proverbs 31:28

Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
--Romans 15:13
 

But Jesus called them to Him and said, “Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of God.
--Luke 18:16

Two are better than one,
Because they have a good reward for their labor.
For if they fall, one will lift up his companion.
But woe to him who is alone when he falls,
For he has no one to help him up.
--Ecclesiastes 4:9-10

Older women... that they admonish the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be discreet, chaste, homemakers, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be blasphemed.
--Titus 2:4-5

 A merry heart makes a cheerful countenance...
--Proverbs 15:13

The generous soul will be made rich,
And he who waters will also be watered himself.

--Proverbs 11:25

Set me as a seal upon your heart,
As a seal upon your arm;
For love is as strong as death,
Jealousy as cruel as the grave;
Its flames are flames of fire,
A most vehement flame.

Many waters cannot quench love,
Nor can the floods drown it.
If a man would give for love
All the wealth of his house,
It would be utterly despised.
--Song of Solomon 8:6-7

Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD,
The fruit of the womb is a reward.
--Psalm 127:3

[Little cuz is bundled up with his papa and mama.] =)


Love Linz

January 2018

Alright, you ready?  The next blog posts are going to be 10 photos from each month of 2018!  Now, I will be cheating and combining some here and there, but I hope you love and enjoy it!!!

Archer and Juli came over to celebrate Daphné's birthday.

Daphné turns 3!!! 

Papi and Mamie lovin' on our Django bud.

My sister, nephew, niece and my papa ;) // Daphné's birthday umbrella.

Bedtime stories (photo by Tonio).

First solid food (mush actually) - carrots!

Our JOY bomb!

The amazing Tata Cricri and Tonton Robi!

Mamie Nancy and Tonton Sebastien.

Me and my girl.

Love Linz

I miss you all

No more apologies.  I just have to be ok with the frequency of my posting.  Truth is, I miss it.  I miss you.  You are my audience, my encouragement to do this, my faithful followers.

In the social media realm, I've closed my facebook account, which should be even more reason for me to be here.  I mean c'mon, right?  Let me tell you why I'm able to type this blog.  Our kids are in bed before 9pm, and they are staying in bed / not crying.

They are finally going to sleep on their own.  Hallelujah!!! It's been a rough year, but things are looking up.  We worked with a sleep trainer* to help us get Daphné to stay in her big girl bed and fall asleep WITHOUT one of us in the room with her.  It's working!  And for Django, we can finally put him down, and he can fall asleep WITHOUT us rocking him or holding him or giving him a pacifier or bottle.  It's working too!

 (picture taken today - Django is 364 days old here)

So, here I am on the eve of our son's first (1st) birthday getting all sentimental and thankful :

Past year :

• I kept another human being alive for an entire year!
• I made it through another black hole of post-partum depression... still climbing out - more posts about these things shall come in due season.
• My parents visited for 3 weeks to meet Django and hang out.
• We moved to another apartment (total answer to a couple years of prayer).
• We took a 4-week vacation to Seattle and the San Juan Islands.
• We just got back from a refreshing week in Austria, where Tonio and I met in 2009 at the Calvary Chapel European conference.

Near future :

• Daphné starts school September 3rd.
• Tonio and I go to the Christian Surfers International Gathing on the west coast of France the end of September. 
• Our church retreat in October.
• We celebrate 8 years of marriage October 30th!
• ...
• ...
• Christmas =)
• Daphné's 4th birthday.
• ...
• etc...

Should I stop?
Yowsers.  So. Much. Good. Stuff. But. Tiring. Nonetheless.

Well, it's 23h42, which is how the French write 11:42pm.  I must turn in and sleep.  It's been SO MUCH FUN writing again.  Until we meet again.

Love Linz

*Sleep trainer link if you're interested - Natalie is wonderful!  I HIGHLY recommend this method. www.babysleeptrainer.com

I'm still here!

Goal : post more often =)

Reality : will happen some of the time =)

Thanks for following our family!  Here's a few pictures in the meantime. 

Road trip to Paris!

Our threenager!

My buddy!

Love Linz

6 months of life!

Our sweet little Django is 6 months-old.  Here's a photo from each month!

One month.

Two months.

Three months.

Four months.

Five months.

Six months.

Did you notice how his little brown bear got smaller?  Hehe!

We thank the Lord daily for our sweet buddy!

Papa, mama and Daphné are blessed by this guy.

Love Linz

Poetry

Perhaps you saw my post on Instagram or Facebook a few weeks ago...
Six of my poems were published!  In a real book!  With an ISBN and everything!

My friend, Amery, had a dream to one day publish a book of art, photography and poetry.  Well, she did it, and in my hand above, I'm holding her dream come true!  It's pretty cool to have been a part of this process.  She emailed me many years ago, asking if I had any poetry that might work with the theme of love gained or lost.  I sent her some, and she liked what she read!

I met Amery on a trip to China in 2007.  We went with an organization called Walking on Water.  We went to teach Chinese University students how to surf.  It was pretty incredible.  We also were able to share how God had transformed each of our lives and were able to share the gospel with a few of the students.  A rare and once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.  Here's a picture of us girls below (there were also 5 guys on the trip, not pictured).

Amery is the first one in the line-up (then me, Kristen, Tammy and Renae).  We are all southern California surfer girls messing around with the locals' hats that they wear while gardening =).  They got a kick out of us tall white girls.

But... this trip is the not the reason for the blog post.  It's this beautiful book of poetry!  I invite you to consider buying this book.  It's not a money-maker for her.  All proceeds go back into the production costs, which she advanced herself.

Here's what Amery writes about the book:

"We Have Loved" is a collection of twenty-one poems and photos about love. The photos were taken in various locations, spanning 3 continents and into Oceania. Hand-drawn illustrations embellish the 46 pages. The paper is medium weight. "We Have Loved" is 8.5 inches tall by 5.5 inches wide. An acknowledgments page, poetry/photography index and biography page are included.

The contributors include three poets, one photographer and one illustrator. Each word grouping, font type, illustration position, photo selection, printed space and blank space was thoughtfully planned. As you ponder our pages, we hope you feel among friends in your pursuit of love. Vulnerability and resilience are prevailing themes.

This book idea came to me ten years ago. I contacted about 20 friends, asking if they had an interest in publishing. Five of us caught the vision. I wanted this project to be like a quilt. Old articles pieced together to make something meaningful and beautiful. This final product is a dream come true. 

--Amery

A gift for someone?  A fun coffee table book to browse?  Reading material for the loo?  Bragging rights that you know me, a famous published poet?  (<---Hehe!)

It only ships within the United States, so if you live in the US of A, you're in luck!!!
I do hope one, or two, or many of you buy this book.  I know you'll enjoy it.  Also, it will really encourage and bless Amery! 

Buy it here on Etsy!

Thanks for reading the blog.
Love Linz

Selfies

We all take them.  We all love them.  So, I counted (approximately) how many I've taken since September 2017.  Drum roll please... over 100!  Not surprising, is it?  I thought it would be a lot more actually.  I think some teenagers take that many in a day.  Ha!

So as not to bore you, I will just share the ones that auditioned well =).  Each one represents a special moment in time.  Enjoy!

My first solo outing after Django's birth.  We (including me, Daphné and Django) went to the park.  A huge victory for me!

Driving to our really good friends' wedding, Elodie and Xavier.

Django's first trip to the mountains for our annual church retreat.

Two balloons representing the two precious lives of my brother and sister-in-law's daughters, Eisley and Ava.  

Special for a couple reasons.  My parents came to visit for 3 weeks!!!  We were remembering Eisley and Ava.  Jesus is probably pushing them on the swings up in heaven right now.  

Daphné and Django are so blessed to have such wonderful grandparents! (selfie by Pierre)

Celebrating our 7th wedding anniversary, a 2 night-3 day getaway.

Piggy back ride.  This moment is special because sweet Daphodil had been going through an "I don't love you mama" period.  So, to laugh with her on my back was medicine to my soul.  [She loves me again, just in case you were wondering ;)].

My beautiful cousin, Lisa, came to visit me, and we, of course, had to go to Monte Carlo, Monaco.

A walk through Saint-Paul-de-Vence.

I took this reflective selfie at the beach, my first solo journey to the sea with our two littles.  I patted myself on the back.  Another victory.  Small or big, I celebrate them all.

It's always a sweet treat to be one-on-one with my Daphné now since little bro joined the troop.

Our only family photo, except for the one we have the day after I gave birth - ha! (selfie by Tonio)

Our Tata Cricri at the women's Christmas tea at church.

I don't know if all of you know of my intense and passionate love for roller coasters... well, to be on a mini roller coaster with Daphné was a blast!

This couple from church invited us to their Christmas choir performance in a cute town up in the hills of Nice.  It was a great way to get into the Christmas mood, not that I ever need much help with that... hehe! (selfie by Tonio)

The bowling alley.  Nuff said.

Now, this picture radiates (literally) with pure joy!!!  I'm so thankful Daphné has such an amazing Papi and Mamie.  (selfie by Pierre)

Daphné and I enjoy taking filtered selfies together.  This is just one of many.  She's a beautiful butterfly princess.

Date with my man to see The Nutcracker by the Russian National Ballet and Orchestra.  

Silly faces.  More memories with Daphné's Papi and Mamie. (selfie by Pierre)

My adorable baby ram, the cutest one in the pasture.

Sunny Saturday outing with the family to the sea and Christmas village.

Life on the French Riviera.

Inside a gigantic Christmas ornament.

On the big Ferris Wheel.

New Year's 2018 with our friends, Thomas and Maëva from Grenoble, taken at 2am.  They also have 2 little people, and we hadn't seen them in over a year and a half.  Good to catch up. (selfie by Thomas)

Super fun finger puppets from Uncle Tanner and Auntie Sarah!

Howdy partner!  I also have some cute pictures of Daphné in this same hat.  I just can't take it.  He's absolutely scrumptious in every way.

Love Linz