Birthday #1 and #2

Hello all,
This past month Ty turned two years old. Our friends Adam and Mimi have a daughter, Rylee, for those of you who dont know...and she turned one... two days later. (Hope that wasn't too confusing to read) The party was also a welcome party for the Schultz family who officially joined the Valpo community. I have attached a lot of pictures....so have fun with those. We love you all. Maybe one day we'll put up a post that has to do with soething other then our kids.....maybe not....they are way more fun.

Freddy B and the Gang

More of the kids

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Time marches on and our kids keep growing. I realize that most of what we have been publishing on here are pictures of Ty and now Elayna...but they are the coolest thing I can think of to post about. They really are the best thing that has happened to Andrea and I. And for those of you who have kids... you totally understand....for those of you who fear it.....well....one day you'll understand :) Not that its for everyone.....i'm not saying go out and have some kids. :) anywho.....wow that was two smilie faces in two sentences.....i am getting soft.

Andrea and I redid (that's a new word of mine) our bathroom this past week. it looks much better...still not done...but as soon as it is I will post some pics of it on here.

Another thing...our friend Heather will be moving in with us this next week...so that's exciting......for those of you who know her you prob already know this....for those of you who dont....maybe i'll do a little heather blog to introduce you to our new house mate. Well that's all for now.....I enjoy our time together here and hope that you do as well as we experience life together virtually in words and pictures....the best part about that is you only see what I want you to see...and I dont have to see your messy house. Maybe that's the worst part....hmm.

Love you all.....keep using your noggins.


Fred

Man to Man Coverage

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Hello Everyone. Life has been great here at the Butson house. You realize what the important things are whenever you look at your children....and we are blessed to have two awesome kids. Elayna is growing...well....way more than Ty did....she's our little eater. Still small compared to most....but doing well all around. Ty is beginning to sit on the big boy potty....yeah...I said potty....those are the types of words that parents use once they have kids. Also poopie...and wipie....na nite.....buh bye....the list goes on and on. It's crazy! Anywho....he doesn't do anything but grunt and smile....then just wants to flush it and say "buy bye."

We went down the beach last week just before it started to rain....Ty loves to look at the water. it was a fun time. other than that there are a couple great pics of Elayan and Ty....wish we could see you all....it's just not possible. However....the invitation is always open for people to come visit...we've got a spare room and plenty of floor. :) Until next time...

Big as a bear!

Hello everyone....our beautiful little girl is doing great. Thought I would take a break and post some pictures of her.......we love you all and wish we could have everyone visit. We know that's not possible so this will have to do for now.

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She's Here !!!

Elayna Louise Butson
Sep 3 @ 4:41am
6lbs 6 oz
18.75 in long

Four Years

Well it's been the best four years of my life.......i'm not even just saying that. On Aug 17th Andrea and i celebrated our anniversary. It was nice to once again be able to be home for the anniversary. (pretty important fact for all you guys out there) We chose to stay a little closer to home this time. In past years we have ventured up to Chicago...or up somewhere in Michigan. But this year we started off with a massage. In a town about 10 minutes from our house. It was my first "official" massage...and let me tell you.......i would go every day if I could. it was great.....it wasn't so great for Andrea. Her masseuse didn't deliver, as mine did. Normally at home if Andrea gives me a massage...i seem to let out little groans...mostly so she knows that it feels good and that I wouldn't mind it if she continued for another 20 min :) So it was extremely difficult for me to hold back my true feelings while receiving my massage. Overall....great experience.

Second we drove up the road to this small restaurant called Popolano's. I must admit that the food we got wasn't that amazing....but it was definitely a nice place to eat. Hoping next time our meals will be better.

Immediately after leaving the restaurant Andrea, like most pregnant women do, had to go to the bathroom......again. Except this time she wasn't so sure she could hold it....so we ended up at Dunkin Donuts.....a great place....the place to get a cup of coffee...in my opinion. So I did......and andrea got a donut.

After that we drove to Michigan City,IN which was another 20 min up to Lake Michigan. It was dark by the time we got there...but nice enough to see the lighthouse and sit by the all the docked boats. We got some funny photos of my jumping over a cement post. Luckily no one was hurt....at least we think.

Looking forward to many many great years with my wife....who in my opinion is the best person in the world. I am the luckiest guy to have a woman who cares for people so much...and puts up with my sarcastic, and sometimes mean moods. So cheers to Andrea for being the best wife a man could ever ask for.

Are we making the world a better place?

So many questions have been racing through my mind this past month or so. the main question i find myself with is; What does it mean to be a follower of Christ? Am I doing all I can? Do I have all my chips in? Am I even playing the right "game?" I dont think i'm going completely crazy...I just know that I want to be certain that what I do for God is what he wants from me. Is he pleased with all of his children going to church.....having pot-lucks.....spending all extra time in small groups......creating worship services. etc. The list goes on and on. Now dont get me wrong....i love potlucks....i am a part of a worship service...and love the idea of small groups. I just want to make sure that our focus is right. I guess more importantly that my focus is right.

I'm actually pretty excited about it. I've been asking God to show me if I'm doing the right things, and have the right motives. But not just asking....really begging God with all sincerity. I'm not sure i've ever been as persistent as I have this past week. Maybe its because I'm about to have another child, maybe because I've been away from my family a lot this year. I'm not really sure....what I am sure about is that I'm not sure. It has definitely brought a new excitement to my life.......i'll keep you updated.

fred

Pictures I can't resist posting

Here are some pics from my trip to visit our growing family in Ohio. Both my sisters are there. The new one is Rose Linville, Shannon's third. I didn't get any pictures of Charles Russell Osborne IV, otherwise known as Chase, while I was there, but I'll post a couple of him from when they visited me in Valparaiso. Ty loves his cousins. They have great love/hate relationships. One minute they are kissing, the next hitting each other. I guess that's what happens when you have kids a few months apart. Elayna will be only a couple months younger than Rose, and Ty is 2 months younger than Vivienne. Well, hope you all enjoy the pictures.
Here's a breakdown of our growing family:

Shannon and Troy Linville- 3 kids
Roland- 4
Vivienne-2
Rose- a few weeks

Rachel and Chuck Osborne
Chase- 6 months

Andrea and Fred Butson
Ty- 2 in November
Elayna- only a few weeks from birth!

It's a hot one

So, it's been a hot one this summer. We've tried to make use of the pool as much as we can, but on the hottest stretch of the year, I went to visit my parents in Marion, OH. Being 8 months pregnant, I was driven first by Fred to Marion, IN, picked up there by my little sis, Rach, who was there with the youth group from Dayspring Wesleyan in Marion, OH, then headed back to OH with her. We, of course, still have our trusty car from college....it's been good to us, except for the fact that we don't have air, radio, or a CD player. The result of this trip for Fred, me, and the fam on this 90 degree day are the pictures we've posted here. Ice cream seemed a good idea, until it ended up down the front of my shirt...nothing like feeling messy and hot to make you feel even more confident with a bulging belly! Will post again soon!

He's crazy folks...

Well....he's my son....I should have known. Ty is a crazy kid. Just thought I'd share some fun video footage for those of you who dont get to see him.

Cheers.

A little hello

Well it's been several days since my last post. I'm not actually sure anybody reads this thing......but oh well. I've (fred) been gone a lot this summer....however......when I am home....we like to hang out by the pool. So I added a couple pics by the pool to give you an idea of what it's like. Andrea is doing great......although really wanting to not be prego anymore. All in all we are very excited about Elayna. Andrea told me that she went out and bought 4 new outfits for our little girl.......she's pretty excited about them.

My older sister Angela visited with her kids a couple weekends ago...so i've also posted a pic on there of that visit.

And our friends Adam and Mimi Schultz (who are soon to be Valparaiso peeps) came by this past week...and their daughter Rylee took a bath with Ty. Since that bath i am told that Rylee now splashes water everywhere. (just like ty)

I guess that's all for now....hope to hear from somebody soon. Is anyone out there?

Mac Attack

So i'm sitting in a "green room" in Michigan with my fellow band mates. We currently all have mac laptops....it's pretty cool. This week we have a fill-in guitar player, Jeff, who does not have a mac...he has a gateway computer. Now....nothing against gateways....actually I take that back....i dont like those things, but he is having major problems connecting to the wireless signal that is feeding this blog. He is currently pretending to throw his computer to the ground and continues to try to connect with no resolve. I love macs. Here is a fun link that might help get your mind around why people who have macs are so pro-mac.


CLICK HERE FOR THE GOODNESS

Giving

My bible reading today was from from 2 Corinthians 8. The boys (sevenglory) and I have been coming together every night and discussing what we've been learning through God's word. It's been a great time for us to really share what's on our hearts, deeper than some cool new song or t-shirt design. Anywho.....giving was the focus of my reading today.

Now...I love tithing. I can honestly tell you that every time Andrea and I give our tithe, I feel like I'm actually putting money in a savings account. God has just taken care of our every need, and there is no way I'm not ever going to give back. But this chapter seems to talk about not just being willing to give.....and not just giving.....but really meeting the needs of people around you.

Andrea and I have talked a lot about tithe and how it should be distributed.....by either local church....or whether it can be split up into different ministries. I have still not come to a complete conclusion. However, I love the idea of taking care of each other. Cause when we give to a "brother" in need, we are giving to God. I want to be so willing to give to those around me in need, that I not only give it, but I give it even if I can't "afford" it. And do this knowing that I might not even be able to pay my own bills. Now this sounds crazy....and you might say....hey your family is your first ministry and you need to make sure that they are taken care of. And I'm definitely on your side there...but how much better is it for my family if I model sacrifice in exchange for faith in knowing that God is going to provide? I want to error on trusting too much in God, rather than playing it safe in my finances especially if this means letting my friends and neighbors go without a blessing I could give them.

What woud it really look like if we all took care of each other? Can it work?

Just something I'm thinking about. Thought I would share.

Cheers

Devotional for CmCenral

I recently wrote a devotional for CmCentral. It's a site that focuses on the Christian Music Industry. The Devotional is on the left side about half way down on the home page.


CLICK HERE FOR DEVO

Summer is Crazy!

Well for my first post I thought I would just say hello....cause dang.....summer is a crazy time of year for us. Wait....that's every part of the year. Anywho....Andrea is doing great (with our second baby, Elayna, on the way), I am on the road as of now...but have been home a lot more than I originally thought. Actually I have been playing at the same camp for 4 straight weeks, and that camp happens to only be 90min away from home...so the fam comes out here for a couple days a week. Which is where the video is taken from directly above this text.

Ty is doing great! He just learned to jump this last week...he not only gives high fives...he also can "pound it." For those of you who dont know what that means.....just ask anyone who's younger than you.

WE love you all and will do our best to update this thing.....even if nobody is even reading this right now.

cheers.

The Butson Family