Dear Penske .. I miss you.. lets hang out again soon.

B & Free here to once again share some exciting news..

looks like were moving again! But not across the country this time (thank goodness) - Just across town.

We're so excited.. and trying not to freak out at the same time. I say trying not to freak out because this is now what we have gotten ourselves into:

May 18th - 21st: Freelands exams & last day of class
May 22nd - 30th: California with my dad & Tracy
May 31st: just one day later - Moving day
June 10th: just 10 days later - Africa

So its going to be a busy month. And we are going to have to work fast to get everything packed up and out in time. I am taking 3 weeks off with all the traveling were doing in May/June so I will have to work during the move.. and Freeland will probably be exhausted from everything else going on.. But we're up for the challenge. I guess we don't really have an option at this point!

Never in our life did we think just 1 year later (to the day) we would pack everything up and do it again! (do you want me to twitter our move again this year? Just Kidding - this is all it would say: "just turned left on peach.. wish this truck had better radio stations .. stuck at a traffic light.. heading west.. annddd we're here!") Okay maybe we thought we might do it again .. but that was only if we found a place we wanted to move. And we never imagined we would find a place that was going to be big enough AND allow all our animals.

Long story short the DAY AFTER we renewed our current lease we received an email from the Realtor who showed us some houses last year. She said her current tenants were moving out and asked if we would be interested. We said we would look - not expecting much so we didn't get our hopes up. When we pulled up outside I even told Freeland "umm im not too sure about this". But then after I stepped just one foot in the living room and could instantly picture us being able to fit more than 4 people at a time in 1 room - I turned and looked at him and said "i want to live here"

And he agreed.

After lots of discussion & prayer we both felt a peace about making the move. And now its a done deal! Its a great house.. and one we feel like we can stay in the rest of the time we're in Erie. Since most of you are probably just concerned about the animals - yes the dogs will finally have their own backyard! AND we are going to be right next to a HUGE park so they will get to go on LOTS of walks in the future! They are also going to have tons more room to run around inside the house so Im sure that will make everyone involved happy too!

PS - our current landlord was great and said she will work with us even though technically we had already renewed our lease for another year! phew! And we're going back at some point this week so I can hopefully take some pictures of it then to show you. Right now I dont have any. But stay tuned..

oh.my.gosh.he.is.so.cute

oh boy.. Freeland & I are in love.

and im just waiting for my phone to ring and say "Henry misses you - come back over and see him" (hint! hint!)

we tried to get them to let us take him home so they could have a night to them selves.. but for some reason they said no! what!

yesterday freeland finally said "stop taking pictures" and he even tried to tell me he wouldn't hold Henry with the camera in my hand. something about he just wanted to hold him without paparazzi around or something? Not to worry, we quickly came to a resolution though. My camera was staying out!

so here are some more pictures from the first few days of Henry's life.

Enjoy - obviously! How could you not???

Henry with his proud momma








this one is for my mom because I know she would say "where are pictures of you & henry together" if I didnt post them. (thanks adam for taking them)

another of Aunt Brooklynn & Henry playing. He is such a flirt:



and here are just a few of the many friends who also came by to meet him.. love on him.. hug him.. kiss him.. eat him up.. and also see the proud parents:











and some of the boys:


adam telling them all the details of Henry's entrance to the world

as you can see .. adam & camille are very loved:




Henry is such a ladies man!!


throwing a deuce


check out his cute little leg warmers
(and he is also sportin a onesie I made him with a Texas cactus on it)




master diaper changer and swaddler in action



and last but not least.. my personal favorites. I know Im partial.. but seriously:

I think we can all agree those are 2 of the most handsome men you have ever seen right?

click here to see more pictures (I will upload more soon)
or click here for the slideshow of all of them

lovely day

dear friends, there is so much to update all of you on. (in due time)

Im not sure where the week has gone. but its pretty much gone! Its been sunny / rainy / sunny / rainy etc. all week long. I couldn't figure out this weather!

But then it occurred to me - this is just another season. Spring! Its nice to meet you! We're still getting used to the whole 4 season thing!

See, I imagine spring being nothing but sunshine and flowers.. but doesn't the saying go: "April showers bring May flowers.." (which bring June bugs if you are in Texas) So I guess this is what an actual spring is maybe supposed to look like? I mean don't get me wrong - it rains in Texas! And its also beautiful this time of year in Texas (you can actually plant flowers before May 15th there and bluebonnets are everywhere!) But we jump from "winter" to summer before you know it there so Im just embracing a Spring here.. Where it ranges from 35-70 degrees on any given day. It rains but then its a beautiful afternoon.. and only up North would you find anyone (freeland & I) sitting on the porch in our swimsuits when its 45 degrees outside. Never in my life would 45 degrees have been warm enough to even be outside before! I actually felt HOT the other day when it was 55 degrees outside! Such a wimp now! But Im loving spring up north so far.

Ive been shockingly productive at work this week. Which really makes me feel fabulous. I can also actually see the top of my desk again. But in the process of that I broke our shredder because I was shoving so much paper in it. (although Im still sticking to my "i promise it was just 1 sheet at a time" story) The hubs has a big test on Monday so he has also had a productive week studying and getting prepared. And of course we have spent every afternoon at the hospital visiting Henry as well!

At the moment I am uploading more pictures from this week (so stay tuned) I will post some more today.

Happy Friday.

Jennings Family - Party of 3

I apologize for leaving all of you hanging the last few days. But I think you will all understand when you see this face:

HOLY CUTENESS!!!!!

Henry James Jennings
April 21st, 2009 at 12:44pm
weighing in at 8 pounds 14 ounces
21 inches long - 14.25 hat size
and a full head of hair!

and for your viewing pleasure:













and last but not least.. the beautiful mother admiring her handsome son:

Mom, dad, and baby are all doing great. They are naturals!

LOTS more pictures to come! Including the sexiest thing I have ever seen in my life - Freeland holding a baby!

PS. aren't the colors of those walls in her room amazing? I think Im going to peel some off the wall and take it home so I can get it matched & paint our office the same color. if you see a patch missing just ignore it.

our support letters

First of all, thank you (again and as always) for all of your encouragement and support. And especially for every single one of your prayers. We both feel like everyone has the opportunity to play a different part in missions & that it always looks different for each person & family. (whether that means actually going to another country, working in your own city or neighborhood, committing to praying for those who are going, providing financial support, etc.) All this to say - those of you who have been so encouraging to us, those of you who have asked how you could help, those of you who have prayed for us - even those of you that we dont know - you are all just as much a part of our trip and the work that God will be doing in Africa as we are.

Last week when I posted the update I never thought or expected anyone to express a desire to join in on helping us. While a few of our family and friends have suggested we post a link to how anyone could help financially support us we still were unsure if we should do it or not. Even though we both feel a HUGE peace about raising financial support we realize that not everyone shares the same opinions and thoughts about it and we never wanted it to look as if we were asking anyone for money.

Then you asked. Then we thought & prayed about it more. Then we also realized just because its on here doesn't mean that anybody has to give us anything. So then we decided we would post the link to where you can send support.

So, here is what we sent out to our family & friends so they could pray for us:

Dear Friends and Family,

You are receiving this letter, because you have faithfully loved, supported, and encouraged us. Now, as we prepare to go on a mission trip to Africa, we will need that love, support, and encouragement more than ever!

As many of you know, over the last few years Freeland and I have dreamed and talked at length about doing missions work in the future, specifically medical missions. Even closer to our heart, are orphans that are in need. Although we really have enjoyed our time thinking about it and praying for it, we never knew if or when we would have the chance to go - until now. We are thrilled and thankful to share with you an exciting opportunity that the Lord has placed before us this summer to be able to serve.

We will first be going to serve with Believers World Outreach in Jinja, Uganda. (June 10th-24th) While there we will be a part of a group of people that will give primary medical care, work with orphaned children, build new houses with renewable energy and do outreaches to share Christ with the people of Jinja. Freeland will be able to join their medical team while I will have the opportunity to serve their local orphanage. After the first two weeks, I will come home & Freeland will stay in Africa and travel to Kijabe, Kenya (June 24th-July 10th) and work with a local hospital though CURE International. The hospital there specializes in pediatric orthopedics and trains local Kenyans to treat physically disabled children.

As you can imagine, we’re very excited about this opportunity. We feel so blessed and undeserving at the same time. Our lives are a mess. Fortunately God uses broken vessels, so we are not going to allow our imperfection to get in the way of God using the passions He has given us and the opportunity He has created. We have personally felt the Lord tugging on our hearts to take a step of faith and trust HIM! We are going to answer that call.

Here’s where you can help! We cannot accomplish this alone, so we are asking you to be apart of this mission trip with us. We would like to ask you to pray about how the Lord can use you in supporting this venture.

First of all, we won’t be able to go on this trip without financial support. We need to raise $7,500 to pay for the cost of the trip. Unfortunately, we did not learn about this trip until just now, so time is of the essence. Therefore, one half of our trip payment is due no later than April 15th and the rest is due by June 1st. If you have a heart for missions, and are able to contribute financially, please fill out the pledge form and return it to us.

Most importantly, we covet prayer support from all of you. We would ask you to make a commitment to pray for us. We specifically want to pray for the people God will have us serving - that they would see Him through us and come to know Him personally. We also want to pray that during this time we will begin to see how God is calling us to serve in the future. We are hopeful that this summer will plant an even larger desire in our hearts and open our eyes to where the Lord is leading us in the future.

We are very excited about the opportunity to minister and be the hands and feet of Christ to the lost and hurting people of Uganda and Kenya. So please join us in this great adventure, and again thank you and God bless you for your support!


In Christ, Brooke & Freeland Ackley

PS: You can find out more information on these organizations from their websites:
http://www.believersworld.com/
http://www.helpcurenow.org/
*the 2 pictures are from the Mendonsa's Website

For those of you who asked or are interested, if you would like to donate online you may do so at http://branchcommunity.com/blogg (click on the link to go to their page)

- Once you are on their website all you need to do is select the top “give” button under “Missionary Support”.
- You will be redirected to PayPal. This is the paypal website that Believers World Outreach has set up. If you already have a paypal account you can use that. If not you just enter in your information.
- Please make sure on the second page under Purpose you select the small blue box that says “add special instructions to the seller” and note in the comment box that the donation is for Brooke & Freeland Ackley. Our account number is: 400-09.

I dont think I can say it enough - thank you! thank you! thank you! For every single thought, prayer, you encouragement, your excitement, and for believing in what God is doing.

raising support for our trip to Africa

Im really at a loss of what to write. Really. Even though it is about to be a really long (BUT AMAZING) story I still feel at a loss of words.. mostly because words dont describe it. And I dont think anything I can say does it justice.

Raising support scares me. Its one of the reasons Freeland & I have waited this long to go and serve. (this long - really isn't that long but you get what Im saying. Its why we haven't gone before) Its very hard & humbling to ask for support. Especially these days when everyone around us is struggling. I wish we were at a point in our lives where we could do it all ourselves but we aren't. And I know God is calling us to go this summer so we aren't going to let finances stop us from that. Its a huge step of faith for me. Freeland had the opportunity to go to Morocco once. It was the summer before we started dating. He raised support for that trip. And wouldn't you know it - before he could even send out one letter - his trip was paid in full! It was a HUGE blessing. I mean how unreal is that? One family paid his way for the entire thing. It still gives me chills thinking about it. Especially because they are such close friends of ours!

SO back to raising support for the current trip. I have gone back & forth deciding if I should write about it or not. Mostly because I didnt want it to sound like I was asking for financial support on our blog. But I finally decided to go ahead and share all the details - for a few reasons: first, our family encouraged us to share it. (and friends echoed their encouragement) Second, I want to be able to look back and remember this time in our life. And third, because I want to share what God is doing and really how incredible he is.

So here is how everything has happened so far.

2 weeks ago we received everything in the mail with all the information for our trips. We started going through all the details of exactly what needed to be done and how we should do it. It was at that moment we realized that not only were we going to need more than $7,000 in just 2 months for us to both go.. but we also were supposed to have 1/3 of it in by April 1st. (which was only 3 days away at that point) That of course caused a slight panic. We were ready to trust God with all of it.. but I don't think I was planning on being ready that quick! How could we come up with even part of that in 3 days? We realized at that very moment God was quickly showing us that he was in control. And we both felt a huge peace that it would be taken care of. (which its not my nature to feel a peace about finances just so you know)

Well by the end of the weekend, before we even sent out support letters or asked our family, we seriously had $1600 for the trip. WHAT? YES! Without sending one letter or asking anyone for money God provided (through friends & family) $1600!!! How insane is that? People seriously just called us and said they wanted to send us money!

It was the most overwhelming thing in the world. And it was such a huge confirmation that God really does have a plan for us, he cares about the details, he longs to provide for us, and he wants us to go to Africa!

So that was just the start of raising support for the trip. That same week we sent out support letters to our family & friends. Our intentions were to let them know about our trip and how they could be praying for us. Of course it also shared our financial needs.

And thats the scary part. But its also the part where we had to learn to just trust God. And seriously it has been the most overwhelming, humbling, exciting thing ever. Freeland and I have both felt so encouraged and loved. We have received tons of emails and phone calls from people saying how much they believe in what were doing and what God has planned for us. And we have definitely felt all of their prayers. And before we knew it people also started sending us financial support. The first time we opened our mail and there was a check I started crying. And every time since then we have checked the mail and there is a check - I start crying again. I just cant believe that anyone would be willing to help us and yet there are LOTS of people who are more than willing to help us.

Naturally we have a hard time receiving any of it. (I think I have said everyday "should we send this back to them?") But we realize God is the one doing all of this and they are giving because they trust him.

And here is the amazing part and what I always want to remember: In just 2 weeks God has provided over half of the finances for our entire trip!! I remember when we first sat down to pray about raising support and doing all of this I seriously questioned if we would be able to raise any money in just 2 months. I told Freeland that I hoped we had enough for him to at least be able to go. And I wondered how any of this was going to happen! And in just 2 weeks .. in just 14 days God has taken care of half of it already!

Its seriously amazing to us and I tear up now just thinking about what He is doing and how thankful I am for the people who have trusted him and given and for the people who have encouraged us and are praying for us!

BUT the story doesnt stop there. Then we started working on all the other details. The details we wouldn't be raising support for. Like, having someone watch the dogs, getting all my shots, figuring out our flights to & from NY (where we will meet the team and then go to Africa) travelers insurance, etc. And lets just say all those things add up to A TON of money. (in the thousands) And once again we were at a point of "what are we going to do? How will any of this work out?"

And of course - in just a week.. over $1000 of it was taken care of! God provided. (are you seeing a trend here?!) Our dear friends Sarah & Drew and Adam & Camille have offered to watch (and spoil) our animals for us! (which saves us $540) And without going into too much detail God totally provided for all - EVERY SINGLE ONE - of my shots to be paid for. (that saved about $500) So in just one day over a $1000 was also taken care of!

And thats where we are currently at. We still have a ways to go before we are done. But how could I ever question if it will happen after all that has already happened?! How can we ever question at all? If you made it all the way to the end of this - thanks for reading. And hopefully you were able to see more than anything that God is doing all the work here. Freeland & I of course are rejoicing daily for all he is doing. And we feel like we are learning new things about Christ's Love all the time. I pray that we truly hold onto the things we are able to rejoice in and are learning now. And my hope is that even in suffering we can rejoice the same as we are able to now. It excites us that God cares so much for the people in Africa that he is providing us a way to go. I know that we have little to offer but that he will do so much.

Now we just cant wait to get over to Africa and see God work there!

youre like an onion with lots of layers

So I had a doctors appointment yesterday. (not the shots - this one was later in the day. And if you are keeping track that means I was at the doctor twice yesterday for a total of 4 hours) it was a follow up appointment for some things .. and mostly my toe.

yes.. its still not better. and yes.. its actually worse. and yes its still really really gross.

Thankfully Freeland was able to come with me to the appointment. After asking the doctor a few questions he told me "you're like an onion with lots of layers.." WHAT??? Okay. I guess. Im confused. Do I say thank you or should I be offended?

Freeland left the appointment incredibly frustrated. After discussing why Freeland was frustrated.. and how he felt like the Doctor didnt answer any of our questions, didn't listen to what I was saying, didnt help at all.. I realized something - I wasnt frustrated. I actually felt like the doctor listened more than any other doctor has to me. (which isn't saying much) This was eye opening to Freeland.

And I think he started to understand why every time he asks if I want to go to the doctor I say no. Side note: It was also interesting to have him there with me since he has been learning all of this recently. (how to do patient visits) he was very aware of everything the nurse & doctor both did right and wrong. It was eye opening to see the difference between what you are "supposed" to do and what doctors actually do.

Point is: My toe still hurts & looks gross. My body is apparently broken - or an onion with lots of layers.. But really if these are my biggest complaints - I really have nothing to complain about.

And at this moment I am fully aware of that. Seriously.Very.Aware.Of.That.

Also, I think Freeland is going to be a great doctor. He actually knows the difference between hearing & listening to a patient. And I think thats one of the most important (if not THE most important) thing.

Off to bake cupcakes. (during my lunch break) and I PROMISE an update on the important stuff.. hopefully today.

going under the .. needle

Today is the big day. The day I start my shots for Africa.

Its the day I refused to set up myself because I don't understand half of what I actually have to do.. and because I just umm well i don't like to get bogged down with all the details.

SO Freeland did it for me. {thank you hubby wubby}

Seriously - THANK YOU! - I would have probably started crying if I were the one who had to call all those clinics, figure out who gave what, how much it cost here and how much it cost there, who charged an arm, and who charged a leg, when it had to be done by, who was going to do it, what their opinion was of every country and every shot, explain 1000 times that our insurance didn't cover it, hang up - try again, and the list goes on & on & on.

And you dont even have to get any shots {since yours were all already done last year thanks to Scott & White.. and now Lecom} - so you did it all for me! Im so lucky. You even mapped it out for me on my phone, highlighted all the shots I have to get in the paperwork, wrote down the nurses name, and made sure I had my wallet in my purse. Shouldn't I be doing these things for you since you have a test today??? (Or really - shouldnt I be doing these things for myself since Im 25 years old!?)

Oh lordy. Im not a fan of shots. I remember once {or twice - whatever} my mom had to give me candy while I was getting a shot so I wouldn't freak out. Literally - feeding {read - SHOVING} candy in my mouth so I couldn't refuse the shot or scream at the doctor. And I think I was in high school.

Again - I don't like to get bogged down with all the details.

I have lots of thoughts to share with you about the progress of our trip. Promise to post them asap.. that is, if I make it through these shots! (i, kid.) But seriously its been an incredible 2 weeks.

PS - I promise Im not this dramatic about going to the doctor. Its just there are 1000 shots to get and it really is a mess of details.. and well, Im just being dramatic. So there you go!

**UPDATE** Got the first round of shots completed! I think Im ready to get a tattoo now! (seriously. but that was before the shots this morning.) The woman who "administered" all my shots was fantastic. we talked for 2 hours. Per her request I will be bringing her a refrigerator magnet from Africa now.. and some pictures :)

Easter

Photo Credit: Here

See, from his head, his hands, his feet, sorrow and love flow mingled down.
Did e'er such love and sorrow meet, or thorns compose so rich a crown.
Were the whole realm of nature mine, that were an offering far too small;
love so amazing, so divine, demands my soul, my life, my all.

I hope you all had a wonderful Easter.

The Lee's (bill & christie) had us over for a pot luck style lunch. Bethany & Josh, Camille & Adam, and Sarah & Drew were all there to celebrate too! And we also had new friends there as well! It was nice to all celebrate together. (we were all the ones who didnt go home to be with family) It really was the perfect day & the perfect weekend. Im thankful for such great friends up here that we can celebrate & fellowship with.

Freeland & I had a wonderful Easter weekend. Full of lots of worship, praise, friends, beautiful weather, fellowship, reflection, thankfulness, hope, and gratitude. I hope yours was just as wonderful.

ps - it was also full of studying for Freeland.
pps - we never decorated our easter eggs (second year in a row we forgot). Oops.

Guess who we get to see soon?!?

Z & V on their wedding day

Last night we got a phone call .. and before I knew who it was I could totally guess by the look on Freelands face. (or maybe by the way he was talking?! :)

It was Zach & Vanessa!! (Yes, the same friends who did this for us)

And they weren't just calling to tell us hi .. they were giving us the best most exciting news ever.

They were booking flights to come visit us!

I of course was quickly yelling in the background: "OMG they are coming here?!! Tell them Im so excited .. tell them to book their flights as early as possible so we get as much time together as possible.. oh my gosh Im not going to sleep the entire time they are here... ask if they can just stay once they are here... tell them I cant wait... tell them..." etc. etc. etc.

To say we are excited is such an understatement! The best part - we only have to wait 3 weeks!! Which still feels too long - hurry up and get up here! I want to see your faces! (and Im pretty sure our little zoo is going to FREAK OUT when they see yall!)

Seriously look how cute they are:

(I stole this from their blog - hope thats okay Vanessa!)

in honor of another snow day

In honor of all the snow we are once again getting ..

BTW: According to WSEE We have received 143.7" so far this year (thanks to last night) which Im pretty sure puts us in 2nd place for all time snowiest Erie winters?! Again, first place is 149.1" so thats only 5.4" more!

Okay back to the post - In honor of all the snow we are once again getting.. I thought I would post just a few more of the pictures from our snow day with the dogs. {where snow day means almost every day this winter this is what our dogs did}

These are probably my favorite out of all the pictures. It shows just how much fun the dogs always have {in case you couldn't tell by all the other pictures} in the snow. But it also shows how much fun Freeland has with them.

Here you see they play "catch dad" and just run & run & run in circles trying to get Freeland:

eventually they catch him and then he throws snow balls at them.

But sometimes this also happens:








see the dogs? They are confused as to why he stopped running celebrating their victory of catching him.

But then he just gets right back up again and keeps playing. Such a trooper!

Ready . Set . Go ...









and again ...

Got him!

Its still snowing. Who knows if we will get 5.4" more before the season is over? Just last week we were eating dinner on our porch and now its covered in snow again. It doesn't bother me! I'm all for 5.4" more! But I know some people (wink!) who are ready for this to be over so they can get onto more important things (like having a baby ... when its not snowing outside)

PS - We got all my shots scheduled for the trip. I officially have to get pricked over 10 times. (thankfully Freeland already has all of his but 2)