Family and Friend outing

Before Chris left, we went on a day trip with our good friends Ryan and Angie Miller. They took us to some cool places, including the volcanic cave. We decided to save that adventure for another time, but we did continue our travels and ended up stopping at this beautiful 'miradouro' (lookout point). The boys spent their time throwing large boulders and pebbles into the ocean far below. For those of you planning to see us, you too and enjoy this great past time. We also took some scenic pictures and family portraits with the beauty surrounding us. We hope you enjoy them as much as we do.

Growing Up

It is amazing how time flies. I realize it seems to go faster as we get older, but nothing tells time like the maturation of a child. It seems like not too long ago our little bundle had just arrived. I remember cradling him in my arms and snuggling with his serene body as the skin just hung from him bones. He was so tiny even his skin was too big. Now, I soak up every half-second where he will be still in my arms and maybe rest his precious head on my shoulder. He has turned into a boy who is full of life, laughter and motion. First, he began to roll over and enjoyed life from a new perspective. Then he began to do the 'dead man's crawl' (he still doesn't do a true crawl). Now, he is learning to pull himself to a stand and walk along the edges of the furniture to get where he wants to go.
I often hear parents complaining about their children growing up. They say "I wish he/she would stay this age forever." This is not so with the Noll's. Chris and I often discuss how exciting it is that Elijah is becoming more independent. We glow with pride as we watch our baby develop new skills and reach for new things (usually stuff we leave on the couch accidentally). It is actually an engrossing process watching a child grow in independence. We especially look forward to watching Elijah grow in his knowledge and love for Jesus. As exciting as it is to watch all the earthly developmental stages, I can only imagine it being 100x's as exciting to watch a child grow and fall in love with his Creator, His Maker and begin to call Him his Friend who sticks closer than a brother. We are glad to have all of you share in the joy as we watch Elijah become a boy, and eventually a man of God

An Ear Fettish

Elijah has discovered his ears. At first we thought he may have an ear infection because he was pulling on his ear, but soon he discovered the other ear. As he is developing his fine motor skills he is learning how to play with his ears. One of his favorite things to do is to use his pointer finger and slowly find his ear hole. It is not rare to find him playing with a toy in one hand while laying or sitting there with his other index finger in his ear. Maybe he finds it comforting because he often falls asleep in this position.

Elijah

Our big boy is just that, BIG. Chris did an unofficial weighing yesterday and he is up to 24 lbs. He is into everything and especially loves to open and close our drawer in the living room. He discovered the drawer one day when he was playing with the knob. He pulled on it and found that it moves and makes a cool noise when he slams it shut as well. He is also trying his hardest to pull himself to a stand, but his little arms struggle to lift the 24 lbs under them. He can do it every once in a while and especially enjoys his new view from a few feet off the floor. He also like that when he pulls himself up to a stand he can reach for every little object he is not supposed to play with.

Terceira

Most of you know we have settled in and are enjoying our time here in the Azores. We just wanted to share a little about the island and our experiences here. The name of the specific island we live on is Terceira. In Portugese this means "third" because it was the 3rd island discovered as well as the the 3rd largest.
The Azorean way of life is very relaxed and old fashioned. It is not at all uncommon for us to be driving down the street next to a herd of cattle. A few weeks ago we were driving down the main street in town and were amazed to see a single cow trotting along with the flow of traffic, literally in between cars. As far as we know this is not an everyday occurrance, but were also not at all surprised. As we have driven around the island just to get a feel for our new home, we have been caught behind a donkey or horse pulling a cart full of fresh milk. In fact, if you are driving around base at the right time, you can see the same man beating his knarled horse with a stick as he takes his daily trip to drop off milk somewhere in town.
We are awed almost daily at our ocean view and sunrises. Because we live on the north-eastern side of the island we get sunrises instead of sunsets, but they are just as glorious. We also enjoy the reminder of God's promise to never destroy the Earth with a flood again. The rainbows are just as magnificent and all too common, but we still enjoy them...almost daily.