Back in Business (at last)!

Hello Everyone!

Happy (Belated) New Year!
Well many apologies to those of you who have been eagerly awaiting an update! While we knew this next blog would be late, we certainly didn’t mean for it to be this late!

Our New Family Member
Yes, our Baby Girl Finally arrived! Kelaiah (kih-LAY-uh) Rae Polsfut was born Thursday, December 8th, 2005, at 3:37p.m., weighing 8 lbs. Erika’s labour was long, but good and the end result was more than worth it!
My girls came home the next afternoon, but sadly were readmitted four days later for Kelaiah to undergo phototherapy for her jaundice. I was very glad when they came home for good two long days later!
Kelaiah is lovely- I couldn’t have hoped for more! Nine weeks on she is progressing well; smiling, starting to giggle, really trying to hold her head up, enjoying looking at toys and pictures, “chatting” with us, etc. Kelaiah loves to eat (she’s now weighing over 11 lbs and has grown 2 inches!), go for walks in her stroller, rides in the car, and her favorite part of the day is bath time with daddy! Erika and I are enjoying her immensely and feel so privileged to be able to bring up this beautiful little girl!

New Grandparents
We were blessed to have some of our family around throughout all of December. Pixie (Erika’s mom) came to be with us at the beginning of the month and was such a big help to us as we were adjusting to parenthood. Two days after she left my parents arrived for Christmas and New Years. It was great to have them around and to be able to show them where we live and what I do. We were so thankful to have our parents around- we really appreciated their support!

Nate
After having a wonderful December off of work, I am now right back into the swing of things. Erika and I just got an internet connection at home (about time!), which means that I can now work from home two days a week. This is going really well. I enjoy being able to do what I do from the comfort of my own home. The extra bonus is that I can give my little girl a cuddle (or change her diaper) during my coffee breaks!

Erika
The first few weeks of January were especially hard for Erika as she was adjusting to motherhood without the (physical) support of our parents and with me back at work. However, things are getting much easier as Kelaiah is beginning to settle into a routine and as Erika is busying herself with mommy things, i.e. mom’s coffee mornings, post-natal classes, helping out a needy family with a baby on the way, etc. She is now totally loving being a mom!

Ministry
Impact on the Green: Just before Christmas I received a grant from the government for my Impact on the Green clubs! This was such a blessing as I was able to use it to purchase lots of new equipment that the young people wanted for the club- they are really enjoying it!
exodusonfire: My exodusonfire church youth are already planning their summer! So far we know that we’re going to Activate Youth Camp, and we also have plans for a missions trip to Mexico. Two weeks ago the youth held a successful bake sale at church to begin to raise money for the summer events!

Prayer Requests
*We have some rather major decisions coming up about our ministry here- please pray for God’s direction in our lives
*For continued success with Ignite (our youth service) and for continued unity that we have with the other youth group that comes
*For continued favour with the government as I make connections with them regarding a big clean-up project I put together every year called the Noise (more details to follow)
*For health and wisdom for us as a family

Thanks for your prayers and support!

Much Love and Many Blessings,
Nate and Erika & Kelaiah too