Aubrey Space

Family Activities 2009

2009-12-18T02:27:00.000-08:00

So how long has it been since I wrote anything here? Ethan is no longer 11 weeks old but 16 months old. He has done so much this year, heh, this week even. I sometimes look at him and wonder where the baby went all of the sudden. He is walking running and climbing now. He has an incredibly tender heart and loves to cuddle (primarily his stuffed animals) and just this week figured out how to open the doors between rooms (watch out) and is drinking pretty well from a regular cup. He is loving the Christmas tree and got some early presents last week when Grandma Judy was here visiting. Such a change from last year when he couldn't do anything to the presents and now is intent on opening all the presents he can get his hands on. Ethan is incredibly obedient and won't touch the tree or do most of the things he's not supposed to. It is eye opening though to see how I probably look to God when I complain as I see Ethan when he doesn't get to do what he wants. We are on the verge of Christmas here in Austria and I really love the weather, the sights and the atmosphere, they do Christmas right here. We look forward to all that will happen in the coming months and will keep the posts a bit more regular as we settle into a more routine schedule, whatevever that is.

So now what

2008-10-28T14:56:00.000-07:00

I can't believe it is October 28 and Ethan is 11 weeks old today! We continue to press on toward the prize of serving in Austria by Spring. Ethan is growing bigger every day. He even started sleeping through the night about 10 days ago. I tell you 6 hours of straight sleep is a gift from God. We have truly been blessed with the Best child in the world. I mean just look at him. He is a pretty cool kid don't you think? Help Us and Ethan get to Austria! Pray!

Well, that was a long time without writing

2008-09-23T14:29:00.000-07:00

We are still alive! We hope you haven't lost heart in never hearing from us. We are continuing in the journey of parenthood. Right now, the priority has not been on blogging, so you will have to forgive me for 2 and a half months of no posts on this page. You can see a little more of our ministry and life the past few weeks at www.ambroseinfo.blogspot.com and we will try to keep this page updated more frequently.

So some stats: Ethan Zayne Cornelius Ambrose was born on August 12 at 8:46 pm, weighing in at 7 lbs 13 oz and 20 inches in length. Today he is 6 weeks old!!! A huge mile stone as technically it is the end of postpartum although our recovery continues. He weighs in this week at 10 lbs 6 oz and 22 and 5/8 inches, although those numbers are actually one week old. He is doing good and you can see his photo album by clicking on the link below.

Ethan Photos

Recent photo

2008-07-08T15:54:00.001-07:00

I just wanted to share with any readers the most recent photo of Michelle. She is due to give birth in 52 days! We would be happy with any time up to 3 weeks before the due date, so please pray with us.

3D ultrasound photo

2008-06-06T12:23:00.000-07:00

So I finally figured out a way to share the photo we got at the last ultrasound with everyone. Isn't he cute?

Continued Prayer Need

2008-05-28T15:56:00.002-07:00

Please continue to pray with us as we are encountering some challenges in Michelle's pregnancy. Although everything appears great, and we keep getting lots of ultrasound pictures, we are definitely in need of prayer for faith and peace. Keep Michelle's health and the health of our son in your prayers! Thanks!

If I figure out how to get an ultrasound photo to scan and upload I'll share it on this Blog.

Where have we been?

2008-05-21T13:45:00.001-07:00

Many of you might be wondering why this incredible blog hasn't been updated in 6 months. Okay, so maybe no one is concerned any more and you've stopped reading it.
We have been busy and I mean busy! Since the last post at Thanksgiving our world has changed. We are now expecting our first CHILD! A Boy!!!! This August.
There is a lot that has gone into our getting to this point and I will share that in brief below-

We found out 3 days before Christmas that we were pregnant and two weeks later that we were expecting twins. At 21 weeks we received the tragic news that one of the babies had not survived. This was an incredible shock and loss and we have been trying to move through the grieving process these last number of weeks while at the same time rejoicing over the health of our son. We want to thank all who were able to pray and comfort us. We are still grieving and never will be the same after what has happened.

That pretty much sums up the reason for our absence. There wasn't much to talk about before we were telling people and once we told people of the pregnancy it became very difficult to talk about. Sorry for anyone feeling left out. From now on this blog will have posts about our day to day lives as missionaries and a family returning to Austria.

Thanksgiving with Family

2007-11-28T12:44:00.000-08:00

We spent the week of Thanksgiving with Michelle's Brother's Family in Medical Lake, WA. We had a great time and great food. This pic is of the nieces making chocolate covered marshmallows. There was probably more dessert than anything else. The girls were enjoying dessert all week. We had snow the first day there and then lots of cold weather. We saw a lot of deer and birds before eating the turkey. We even went shopping the day after Thanksgiving, which for my european readers is a big american tradition, although a crowded one. I will post some more photos on our web album site. Use the link on the right.

Busy week ahead of Thanksgiving

2007-11-12T10:03:00.000-08:00

Well, we had a great service in Lake Stevens, even if I wish I was with Martin who commented about the great time they had in Graz yesterday. We have a busy week ahead with a service in Forks on Wednesday (about 4 hours away) and meeting friends Thursday and Friday. Saturday we head to Oroville, only a seven hour drive. Then all next week we will be with family preparing for Thanksgiving in Medical Lake.

Off to Lake Stevens WA

2007-11-11T07:47:00.000-08:00

Just a quick note to let the readers know that we returned from Port Orchard and spent the day recuperating yesterday. Today it is off to Lake Stevens Assembly of God. We only have a 40 minute drive this morning, so that should be refreshing.

I know it has been forever but we're busy

2007-11-09T13:42:00.000-08:00

I really don't know if anyone reads these posts, but they probably haven't for quite a while. Very bad blogging on my part. Anyway, I'm sorry. We have been quite busy traveling and doing ministry, but I hope to make time now to regularly fill you in on what we are doing. This week we have been in Port Orchard, WA. We are participating nightly in the missions convention of CLC in Port Orchard. We have been in three homes so far this week and will again be sharing in a home group tonight. We also participated in "Missionary Squares" on Wednesday night with 7 other missionary units plus Buddy Barrel! This weekend we are off to Lake Stevens to share in the Sunday am service. BTW we have also updated our ministry website with some pictures and info, as well as our last newsletter.

Michelle's Surgery

2007-09-18T16:40:00.000-07:00

Michelle had surgery on her left shoulder this week to remove a calcium deposit that had been causing pain for the last four years. She is currently recovering from the surgery and will start rehab on Thursday. Living with one usable arm this week has been quite a challenge for both Michelle and I.

September travels

2007-09-18T16:37:00.000-07:00

The past three weeks we have been in Pasco, Camas and Toledo, WA. We are looking forward to the coming weeks when we will be in Ridgefield and Vancouver, WA followed by Malone and Aberdeen, WA and then on to Medical Lake, WA.

Where have we been?

2007-08-22T15:39:00.000-07:00

Ok, I apologize. We haven't entered a single blog since we got back from Austria. Well, we've been busy OK, and well, I've been kind of lazy too. We have been all over the place in the last 9 weeks since we got back from Austria. We had some great times back with Family and our church home. I performed a wedding for my stepsister, and we started traveling. We haven't been to that many churches so far, but we have been around. We left on July 8, the day after the wedding for Springfield, Misery (spelling mine) and had 10 days of heat mixed with frigid AC. We then headed to Richmond, Virginia. With stops in St. Louis, Chicago, and Pittsburgh. Not a straight line you say? That is correct, but straight lines are no fun. In Richmond we had a great time with Michelle's mom and step dad. We never stopped and can now tell you all about 1. the first British settlement in America, 2. colonial America, 3. The home of Thomas Jefferson, 4. What Washington DC looks like from the outside of every monument, 5. The largest city in Virginia is Virginia Beach, which is a blast when it is sunny, and 6. Busch Gardens Williamsburg is full of great rides. After 10 days in Virginia we headed to Indianapolis for the 52nd General council of the AG. It was a lot of fun/work and after all that we were finally headed home on August 14. We stopped to see Mt. Rushmore (well worth the trip and $8.50 to park) and then drove to Medical Lake, WA to spend time with Michelle's Brother, his wife and their 3 daughters. All this before a church service this last Sunday in Goldendale, WA. (Check your map). Now finally home we are back in business with itineration (read travel/fundraising) and calling churches. I hope to share more of our adventures in much more real time in the weeks ahead.

Final Sunday in Austria

2007-06-03T08:25:00.000-07:00

We said goodbye to the church in Graz today. It was hard having to say goodbye and know that we will not see most of the people for at least a year. We will miss the church a lot and look forward to being able to return soon. We leave on Tuesday for the US and a year of itineration. We can't wait to see our family and friends in Seattle. We fly from Vienna to Copenhagenen and Copenhagen to Seattle. Coming soon our adventures in America.

Visitor in Graz

2007-05-22T12:42:00.000-07:00

We had a great weekend with our Area Director Jim Sabella and his family. We hosted them and Jim spoke in Church on Sunday. We are getting ready for the transition from Austria back to the USA. We will be going through reverse culture shock and getting used to life in the US after 3 years in Austria. We look froward to it while at the same time wishing we could stay in Austria.

Spider man review

2007-05-15T14:59:00.000-07:00

Okay it took me a long time to write it but Spidey was awesome. You must see this film. Most importantly what does this movie tell us about sin, anger, revenge and the church's place in forgiveness? What about the prayer offered? See the movie, answer the question yourself.

Spider man

2007-05-07T10:37:00.000-07:00

We are headed off to see spider man tonight. We had a sighting a few weeks ago that I wanted to share with this photo. I'll report on the web hero tomorow.

Paris Trip

2007-05-05T02:46:00.000-07:00

Michelle and I had a great time in Paris and visiting her Family, Missionaries John and Nancy Lecossec in Gien, France at a Gypsy convention. We saw all the important sites in Paris, you know the Louvre, the Eiffel Tower, the Arc d'Triumph, Champs Ellysees, Planet Hollywood, Disneyland Paris, Notre Dame, Starbucks, yeah that is about all the important places. Click on the photo below for our photos.

France Trip 2007

Easter

2007-04-09T07:05:00.000-07:00

We had a great Easter Yesterday. We had three guests over and ate Raclette, a swiss meal with lots of cheese, and then we went for a hike up the Schlossberg in Graz. I have a link here to some of the pictures. Please comment if you know what time the clock on the clock tower says the picture was taken.

From Easter photos

Passach Fest?

2007-04-09T06:47:00.000-07:00

We had a great time Friday night celebrating a messianic Jewish passover in the church. The meaning of the feast and its correlation to the communion celebrated by Christians was powerful. We had a great time of fellowship and food as you can see from these photos.

Celebrations

2007-03-30T11:45:00.000-07:00

You know people really like to celebrate. We have been celebrating people lately. We have celebrated the birthdays of the members of our student group. You might not think that they want us to make a big deal about a birthday, but when you see their faces you know the joy you see is not false. I have included a picture from our last party-group meeting. You can see all the pictures I have uploaded by accessing the web albums link underneath.

From Birthdays

Renovations

2007-03-28T02:49:00.000-07:00

The 12th to 16th of March we worked on repainting and renovating the sanctuary of the local church. The room is pretty high so it meant a little high ladder work. The pictures tell the whole story.

Renovation

2007-03-20T04:44:00.001-07:00

From Alan's Birthday

Morgane and I shared a Birthday party this week. She is from France and has a Birthday just two days after mine. It was a great time after our groups meeting. The best thing I got was one of our students found Dr. Pepper and brought me a six pack. It is amazing some of the stuff you can't get in Austria. Now if I can only find Mountain Dew and Root Beer.

A trip to Vienna

2007-03-10T01:12:00.000-08:00

We went to Vienna on Thursday to meet with all the other missionaries serving in Austria. It was a wonderful time to have fellowship with everyone. We also got to eat some of the very best ribs in Austria. In fact I am having the leftovers this morning for Breakfast. I also got to meet with the team that led focus in February. We return to Graz today (Saturday).

2007-03-05T09:56:00.000-08:00

A photo of last weeks outing to a church on the top of a nearby hill. Pictured are Jaco, Morgane, Irmi, Robbie and me. We rode our bikes up, took over an hour, and then back down, five minutes. There was a wonderful view of Graz from the top.

Fasching?

2007-03-05T08:21:00.000-08:00

Austrians celebrate the Tuesday before lent a lot like people in New Orleans, a lot of costumes and colorful parades. It is the end of the party season that starts on November 11 and the beginning of the Catholic Lenten season. We have experienced three of these Fasching Dienstags so far but this is the first with pictures.

Focus 2007

2007-02-22T03:29:00.000-08:00

Finally a picture of focus. I am able to upload a photo now, so maybe more to come soon. We had a great 4 days at Focus 2007, a retreat for the young adults of the Austrian national church. I was the main leader for the first time this year. We had a great turn out with a total of 30 people attending. We had wonderful times of worship, prayer, seeking God and preaching. Who spoke? The leadership team because no one else accepted our invitation. We saw God's hand in leading us this way as it challenged the young adults to really lead and invest themselves in this time. I was so encouraged to see so many hungry for more of God. God showed up and the testimonies afterward were incredible.

What is he thinking

2007-02-14T07:07:00.000-08:00

Our fearless SFC Europe leader. What is he thinking in this picture. Send me your guess and the best guess will be rewarded.

European Student Ministries Prayer Weekend

2007-02-14T05:58:00.000-08:00

We spend the last weekend of January every year meeting together with other student ministry leaders from around Europe for prayer. This year it was great. We also had the addition of some world wide leaders in student ministry in attendance. An added day of discussion about ministry issues was very powerful. The fellowship and encouragement were great, but the highlight has to be the time spent in prayer for one another and the various national needs.
I have included a pic of our prayer times.

New Years in Graz

2007-01-16T06:19:00.000-08:00

We celebrated New Years with our students in Downtown Graz. We have a great view of the Schlossberg and the main downtown fireworks display. We had ten people over to celebrate and watched all the fireworks from our balcony and open windows. Most everyone stayed until 4 am and we even had a little bit of waltzing to celebrate at midnight, an Austrian tradition.

Christmas in Hungary

2006-12-25T09:23:00.000-08:00

We spent Christmas in Budapest with the Buckleys. We had a great time watching the kids dig into their Christmas presents today. If it wasn't for the fact that Michelle has been under the weather all day it would have been the perfect Christmas. I got some great gifts, even if the big gift didn't make it from the states in time, Michelle still gave me a card with a picture of the gift inside. I also got a great book, a DVD, CD, daily German calendar, coffee motif coasters a shirt and a sweater.

Christmas Heroes

2006-12-25T09:07:00.000-08:00

This years Christmas Heroes are Aaron and Dawna Bibby, Michelle's brother and sister-in-law. They were so thoughtful that they sent us our Christmas gifts back in September with Michelle's mom. I got some great accessories for my guitar playing and Michelle got a great cookbook and a fun game. We enjoyed some great food and fun with our friends in Budapest and opened the presents we got each other.

Making Cookies

2006-12-18T11:24:00.000-08:00

We spent the weekend baking Christmas cookies. This is just a sample of the frosted magnificence. Three different kinds of snowflake cookies, maple madness, chocolate crescents and Russian tea cakes. And then there was also the fudge, not pictured as I ate it. I actually helped Michelle bake. It wasn't so bad and everything tastes better when you make it yourself. We are giving most of the cookies as gifts for our students and friends. The most challenging part of making the cookies is finding the ingredients. We had to find a lot of maple syrup which is in the health food section here. We also used a lot of ingredients sent from the US and bought at the lone import store. We look forward to baking the cookies in the states next year, where the chocolate chips don't have to make a 5,000 mile flight.

Students

2006-12-18T10:58:00.000-08:00

Our students had a great time this last week.
Trygve (in the red Amsterdam shirt) was
here for the last time. He returns to Norway this week. We have 8 nations and 7 languages represented in this picture. Try having a discussion about the proper way to introduce yourself here? We are so grateful for what God is doing in this group of young people. We are amazed to see how he works in their lives week after week. This pic is really a photo of answered prayer.

Christmas Tree Time

2006-12-12T11:35:00.000-08:00

We finally got a Christmas tree! It is quite the experience buying a tree when you have no car. We used our new bicycles as a transport medium. We did get some stares from the people we passed on the 45 minute walk home from the building materials store where we bought it. Try and imagine Michelle and I pushing a bicycle with a six foot tree strapped on it from the basket at the back to the handle bars up front. Most Austrians haven't even thought about a tree yet and if they have it is sitting somewhere outside right now waiting for Christmas eve. We told one of our Austrian friends that the tree was up and decorated already and her mouth dropped open in wonder. I know a lot of our family and friends back in the states have had the tree up two weeks now, so we felt a little behind in getting this done. Michelle did most of the decorating but I got to put on the tree topper. This years tree was a lot smaller than last year, but a 10 foot tree on a bike would have been weird don't you think?

2006-12-06T13:08:00.000-08:00

We met up with our former youth pastors and their two daughters. They are headed to Serbia and had a stopover in Vienna. We were so grateful to be able to meet them and show them around in Vienna. This pic is of them with Michelle in front of the Opera House.

Traveling in Vienna

2006-12-05T14:56:00.000-08:00

We are visiting Vienna this week. A mixture of Business and Pleasure. I had the joy of spending 2 and a half hours among Vienna's finest on 5 subways and 4 busses round trip. Vienna is a great city but if you don't live in the right place you have to travel forever to get anything done. So after all of the travel I was able to be a part of a one hour meeting. Yeah! We are only here two more days and then it's back into life in Graz.

Starting out?

2006-12-05T04:44:00.000-08:00

It seems a little weird to be starting a blog page when there isn't necessarily anything new to write. I am more at the end of an important period in my life than the beginning. There is just too much pressure from everyone around me that I finally gave in to doing this. Alright, most of the pressure I put on myself, but lets not go too much into details. As my first post let me say, I hope you enjoy the viewpoint, the stories and the photos. Michelle and I have been living in Austria for 30 months now and it has been an adventure. I look forward to being able to share some of what has been and is our life.