Frank's wedding

A good buddy of mine, Frank (some of you call him Frankie), tied the knot last weekend in Mobile. Along with a few other Auburn guys and a future brother-in-law, I was asked to be one of the groomsmen. Ellen and I had a fun time seeing some of our old friends while the boys stayed with Grandma and Gramps.

Frank and I went to the same church as kids, were in Boy Scouts together, sang in the church choir, and were roommates together at Auburn. He also sang and played the guitar at my wedding.

Here we are with a good friend Tommy and his wife, Melody.
Some quick trivia: Frank and I were roommates and we both married an "Ellen". Tommy and my brother, Rob, were also roommates, and they both married a "Melody". Huh.

This is what we found when we went to pick up the boys. Apparently Davis played pretty hard at the lake!

Davis's Surprise Christmas Present

Here's a late Christmas announcement!

4.5 months?

Two things really hit me hard this morning. As I was walking from our house to the office where I coordinate short-term teams, I thought, "Are we really going to be back in the United States in only five months?! Only five months?!" Although our official arrival date is November 12, we are actually departing the one week before that so that we can properly "unpack" this time in the Philippines before restarting our lives in the States. (That'll happen in Washington State.)Therefore, we'll actually be leaving here in a shade over 4.5 months!

The second relevation came as I opened up my email and saw a message from our Personnel department. It was sent to all 200+ of my fellow co-workers in the Philippines, and the subject read, "Critical Needs". Number 2 in the list:

"Short-term Team Coordinator—Dan leaves the position vacant in November, 2007"

Both revelations can really humble a guy. To realize that the last three years of training and service has now come down to 4.5 months makes you reconsider your effectiveness. Can we really "finish well" here in a way that glorifies Him? If no one is found to take the mantle of leading short-term teams to the Philippines, then what will happen?

It's not that we aren't excited about coming home. We are. Definitely. But there's a bunch of things that this family needs to do before before we can get to that stage! Time's a-wasting!

See you soon!

Welcome, Davis!

On Christmas Eve, Davis Jonathan Brooks was born here in Manila. He weighed 6 lbs, 8 oz, and was 19 inches long.

December 24, 2006, 12:13pm. First picture--only seconds after delivery.

Getting cleaned up right after delivery.

Me, Ellen, and Aunt Anne watch his first feeding.

Davis's first portrait. Taken on Christmas Day.

Mommy and baby's late night feeding.

Mom and baby are doing fine...but we are ALL a little tired. Aunt Anne has done a great job in helping where needed. Fortunately, the nursing staff let her stay in the delivery room, so she was able to get some really great pictures. For the grandparents and relatives, these are pictures of (mostly) Davis. In the coming days, we'll tell more of the story of this Christmastime birth!