Living Forgiven...in Alaska

Breakfast Fit for a Queen

2008-07-21T14:53:00.003-08:00

Dave went out our back door this morning and picked bunches of wild Alaskan strawberries for our breakfast. He had his on cereal, and I ate mine on a whole wheat English muffin with low-fat cream cheese. Very delicious! It's not everywhere you can just walk outside and harvest juicy sweet berries any old time you please. :-)

Pregnancy Update

2008-07-19T15:31:00.004-08:00

Many of you have asked how the pregnancy is going, and I apologize for not posting about it much lately. You know how it is -- when things improve we don't always remember to share that news! I'm not nearly as nauseous now and have more energy, which is wonderful. Don't take that to say that I am never nauseous or tired, but definitely the second trimester has been a big improvement over the first.

Yesterday Dave and I went to a prenatal appointment and got to hear our baby's heartbeat for the first time! That was just amazing. The little one's heart is beating strong at 150 beats per minute. I am still awestruck every time I stop to think that a life is growing right.this.minute inside my belly. Only God can work this kind of miracle!!

Everything is going well, and all tests are normal. Or should I say, all the tests we elected to have are normal. We flat-out vetoed the panorama of deformity tests we've been offered. The way I figure it, those tests aren't always right anyway and they generally stir up a lot of fear and worry, and sometimes they result in women choosing therapeutic abortions. Since the baby we have is the baby God wants for us, no matter what, and we would never think of aborting him or her, then what do I need a Chorionic Villus Samping, an amniocentesis, or a Quad Screen for? No thanks.

On August 19 we'll have another ultrasound and hopefully learn our baby's gender. Dave and I are kicking around lots of names and even have a few that we both like. :-) Looks like baby is still scheduled to arrive January 7th or somewhere around there. I can hardly remember anything these days, which our friend Brian calls "mommy brain", and which is pretty frustrating because I'm used to being so organized. I hear this condition will continue for about twenty years or so and only becomes more pronounced with the addition of more children....

Thank you all so much for your love and prayers! This pregnancy thing is a wild ride for sure, and we are so blessed!

Edwin & Pat's Alaska Adventure, Part Three

2008-07-13T16:22:00.003-08:00

Lisa's mom and dad came to visit from Texas for the third summer in a row. Dad's favorite spot in Alaska is Valdez, so we drove down there for July 4th weekend. Below you can see how we do fireworks in the Far North. They shot these off in Valdez at midnight. Delta Junction is even lighter in the summer, so we don't do fireworks here until February. :-)

Dave, Dad, and a few other guys from church went on a charter while in Valdez. Unfortunately Lisa's dad ruptured a disk in his back and so was in pain the whole time, but he still managed to catch a sea bass. Dave caught a humongous ling cod (below). Ugly fish, but good eating!

Watching marine animals in Prince William Sound is lots of fun. The seals and sea lions were fishing for salmon, too! And the seagulls were smart enough to hang around for the scraps.

We took Mom and Dad to the lovely Clearwater River and made s'mores.

Dad caught his first two arctic grayling! Below is the second one. I'm supposed to write something here about the great big fish that got away...

Thanks, Mom and Daddy, for coming to visit us. We had a blast!

Dave and Michael's Excellent Adventures

2008-07-01T18:09:00.005-08:00

Dave had a fantastic time with his best buddy Michael from PA. Thanks for coming to visit us, Mike! :-)

Last Saturday the three of us canoed the Clearwater River. It was a lovely day, and the brief rain shower that sent us under the trees for cover in the middle of the trip was a nice excuse to explore the spongy tundra below some towering spruce trees. We all caught grayling, and even better, we managed not to tip the canoe!

The guys spent Sunday and Monday in Denali and had a blast.

They saw caribou, a cow moose with two red calves, ptarmigan, a hoary marmot, Dall sheep, a wolf, two grizzly bears, a porcupine, and even the peak of Denali. The Lord certainly provided them a banquet display of His wonderful creation!

Above: Denali caribou

Enjoying Our Blessings

2008-06-22T18:55:00.004-08:00

Dave's best friend Michael landed in Alaska yesterday to visit us! It's been fun so far introducing another Lower 48-er to the Great Land. We've fed him salmon, caribou, and moose, and he has already seen eagles and a moose. Not bad for a little over 24 hours in the state. :-)

This is Lisa enjoying the delicious Copper River red salmon Dave recently caught and smoked. He used a teriyaki brine and a sugar/salt brine, and both are yummy. Today I combined it with cream cheese and made a bagel spread. We are definitely enjoying all the Omega-3s! Thank you, Lord, for all our many blessings.

Pike Fishing at George Lake

2008-06-17T17:52:00.006-08:00

Now that summer's in full swing, Dave is taking advantage of the beauty and bounty of the Great Land. Check out this haul of pike he caught with our friend Brian!

The moosies like to play in the water on gorgeous summer days, too. :-)

Dave described this fishing trip as one of the most exhilarating of his life. Pike are fighters, and they were plentiful. Dave and Brian caught probably twenty or so combined and each kept four.

We Found Little Lost Lake

2008-06-17T17:40:00.003-08:00

Dave and I had a wonderful time at Lost Lake on Saturday. I finally even felt good enough for a canoe ride! :-)

Dave has been such a gentleman through this challenging first trimester of my pregnancy. He did all the hard work, and I just enjoyed the scenery.

Not to mention the fact that Dave made the most amazing lunch! I loved the shrimp kabobs with coconut milk and onion puree. Food always seems to taste better grilled outside in the fresh air and sunshine.

Dave's Green Thumb at Work Indoors

2008-06-14T12:28:00.004-08:00

My husband is a gardener at heart. He told me that growing up he loved to help his mom in their backyard - weeding, planting, watering, you name it. Apartment living does have its drawbacks, but due to Dave's persistence, the lack of a garden does not have to be one of them!

Above: Our living room window
Below: Balsam rose

The best part of our garden is the flowers. It is amazing to have fresh, gorgeous flowers growing inside! Our sweet pea was the first to bloom, then balsam, then morning glory (below).

We had great hopes for harvesting our own tomatoes, but so far we haven't been able to eat any of them. Growing tomatoes indoors is tricky business. The 'Early Girl' variety below are nice and big now, but still green. Not sure they're living up to their name!

This next one is the absolute best so far and Lisa's favorite. Two days ago, after much anticipation, our Oriental Hybrid Stargazer Lily opened! It's as big as my hand, and the fragrance is amazing and wafts throughout the room. Beautiful!

These tomatoes are the most successful so far. Called 'Sweet Gold', they are yellow cherry tomatoes, and a few are almost ripe. Dave and I are excited because neither of us has ever tried a yellow tomato before.

Finally, Dave's crowning achievement - round two of the homemade hydroponics set-up. You can see the wonderful lettuce in the foreground and then more tomatoes behind. We've eaten the lettuce on several occasions, and it's really good!

This has been a fun hobby for Dave to enjoy. Maybe if we ever have a house, our backyard will be full of flowers and veggies!

Our 1st Baby Pictures

2008-06-11T07:47:00.003-08:00

Our baby is 3 cm long, 10 weeks old, boxes and kicks (probably a boy?)

and has a healthy heartbeat of 171 bpm. Isn't God awesome!!

How could anyone believe that we came from chance???

Official due date established from our 1st ultrasound is:

January 7th, 2009

Gold Panning and Excavating Caves

2008-06-07T21:27:00.007-08:00

Those are two things Alaskan men do for fun. :-) Dave called up our buddy Isaac to head out today and enjoy nature with him.

First stop: Gold panning at Gunnysack Creek

(Poor Dave still hasn't found his big nugget.)

Next stop: Hiking around Black Rapids

The guys found what they call a "bear cave". Not sure if there really was a hibernating bear there recently. Isaac did have along a gun "just in case".

Below: Isaac brought a pick axe... just in case, you know...
There may just be gold in those cave walls.

(No luck striking it rich for Isaac, either.)

The resiliency of Alaska flora and fauna never ceases to amaze us. This beautiful flower was growing out of a rock with no other greenery nearby.

Overall a fun outing for the guys. Dave hasn't had this much exercise in a while! He claims he'll sleep like a baby tonight. :-)

Friends and New Arrivals

2008-06-07T20:48:00.006-08:00

We are so blessed by our friends here in Interior Alaska. Though Dave has resigned his job and we'll be leaving by the end of the summer, and though he's busy applying for jobs and I'm busy finishing up my masters degree, we're trying to enjoy living here while we can. We praise God and thank Him for the many wonderful people He has brought into our lives.

Most of our good friends here have brand new family members! :-)

They even trust us enough to hold their babies, though I feel like I have no idea how to do it. Apparently I will learn, right!

Lisa's nausea subsides now and then for an hour or two, and we're trying to do things and see people in the interim. Unfortunately, the queasiness is still very much a part of our lives, at least for now.

It's so fun to watch Dave play with other people's kids. He's going to make such a wonderful dad!!

Learning the Ropes

2008-06-01T16:38:00.005-08:00

Here are a few things I've learned so far about pregnancy:

1. Water doesn't taste good anymore. I used to drink water all day long, but now for some reason it seems repulsive. Adding lemon juice or powdered mix helps a LOT.

2. I still love pickle juice. :-) Actually, any salty refrigerated item seems to work. Dave bought Greek olives the other day, and those didn't last long. I'm enjoying the pickles and pickled okra (Texas style) we have in the fridge right now.

3. Sleep is difficult when you have to get out of bed every 2 hours to go to the bathroom. I guess this is good training for later on when I'll be getting up that often to feed a newborn.

4. When I find a food that doesn't make me gag, I need to restrain myself. Pizza sounds good, then I eat too much, and once again I feel sick. It's challenging when food has become my enemy all of a sudden.

5. Kneeling in front of the toilet is now a favorite exercise of mine. I've only actually thrown up twice so far but constantly have "that feeling" even if nothing comes of it.

6. My husband is more wonderful than I ever give him credit for. Not only is he cooking and cleaning more often, he even makes me ginger tea from scratch to help with the nausea.

7. Did anyone else burp all the time during pregnancy? I know that's gross, and I apologize, but it is happening all the time seemingly for no reason at all and I am just wondering....

8. My nose now works better than ever before in my life. Just opening the refrigerator is a highly dangerous event (especially right now with thawed fish awaiting preparation for dinner) and makes my stomach go nuts. I am trying to breathe out my mouth whenever I sense a potential odor offender, but that doesn't always work.

9. Already, my perspective has totally changed. I am "thinking for two" now all the time, I guess. Yesterday Dave and I went fishing, and as I walked along the rocks I kept thinking about how huge a responsibility pregnancy is. If I were to fall, I wouldn't hurt just myself.

10. Pregnancy is a great excuse for getting out of things. I haven't abused it so far because I have honestly felt sick, but it's interesting how if I don't want to do something or if I forget a detail, people are willing to let me chalk it up to being pregnant.

I'm really trying not to turn this into a "pregnancy blog", but just yet it's hard to think about much else. Maybe when my stomach stops controlling my life we'll have more of a variety of subject matter. :-)

He Loves Me

2008-05-29T10:25:00.004-08:00

Of all the things Christians preach, the most powerful one is simply that God Loves Us. It doesn't mean God condones wrong actions or any of that, but it means that the Sovereign, Holy, Powerful One who created us from dust really LOVES US. That message is hard for people to absorb when so many times we don't feel worthy of His love. I thought this devotional was encouraging and wanted to share it.

In your lives you must think and act like Christ Jesus.
-Philippians 2:5

It's dangerous to sum up grand truths in one statement, but I'm going to try. If a sentence or two could capture God's desire for each of us, it might read like this:

God loves you just the way you are, but he refuses to leave you that way.

He wants you to be just like Jesus.

God loves you just the way you are. If you think his love for you would be stronger if your faith were, you are wrong. If you think his love would be deeper if your thoughts were, wrong again. Don't confuse God's love with the love of people. The love of people often increases with performance and decreases with mistakes. Not so with God's love. He loves you right where you are.

Just Like Jesus excerpt from Max Lucado

A Season of Changes

2008-05-23T15:39:00.005-08:00

Lisa's mom is so ready to be a grandmother she can't stand it! She recently mailed us these soft, adorable newborn outfits (with feet!) that say "I Love Mommy" and "I Love Daddy". So cute!

Yesterday was Lisa's last day as a teacher for the indefinite future. I had thought I might work one more semester before the baby comes, but my principal said it would be easier to replace me now than at mid-year, so I have officially resigned my position. I'm in training for a new career now! Motherhood will be even more of a challenge than teaching, I expect. :-)

Dave is feeling some better but still experiencing symptoms of sickness. We appreciate all the prayers for his health! We're trying not to whine every two seconds about how beautiful the weather is now when we're stuck inside on the couch not feeling well. After all, we were healthy all winter at -40 below! But that's how things go sometimes. The trees have budded and are absolutely gorgeous outside.

Happy Birthday, Dave!

2008-05-18T11:13:00.003-08:00

Today is Dave's 32nd birthday! However, he's still sick, so it probably won't be his best ever. He did receive a good present this morning when he woke up and the fever was finally down (after a whole week). We canceled his birthday bash last night, and neither of us felt well enough to go to church this morning. So we can't celebrate, but nonetheless, it's his birthday!

Happy birthday to Lisa's dad in Texas today, too, who is 61 years young. :-)

Supposedly This is Normal...

2008-05-17T21:34:00.003-08:00

It's been tough around our house lately. I had a virus the week before last that was nasty and kept me out of work for a few days, then I shared with Dave, and he has been even sicker than I was. Add to the fever, coughing, nose-blowing, chills, and exhaustion the fact that I am now queasy almost 100% of the time, and we're really not doing so good. I keep hearing from everyone that this is all normal, and I'll feel better before long, and really it could be worse. That's good to know, I guess. I haven't lost any meals yet, but I have actually hoped to throw up in case it would help, that's just how nauseous I'm feeling. I gave finals last week and just have a few more days to go to wrap up this school year. All I want to do is sleep, so productivity has been a huge challenge. Today I made soup, went grocery shopping, and did the dishes; those things seemed like huge accomplishments. The second trimester is better, right? Only five more weeks to go....

We're Pregnant!

2008-05-09T21:31:00.005-08:00

God willing, on December 26, 2008 (or somewhere around there), a new little Noble will enter the world!

Lisa's first prenatal appointment is next Friday.
We'll keep you posted! :-)

Indoor Garden

2008-05-08T18:31:00.005-08:00

Our plants are really taking off! Thank you, Mom and Dad Noble, for the AeroGarden! Between that set-up and Dave's hydroponics, we should have plenty of leafy greens on the table soon. Did you know that sweet peas not only smell wonderful, but after the bloom fades a real pea develops? We're learning new things all the time. It's nice to see some flowers arriving! We already have plenty of herbs to harvest. Maybe soon we'll have vegetables, too. The tallest plant on the right side on our table (top middle photo) is a tomato plant. This indoor gardening stuff is fun!

Our Parking Lot is a Wildlife Viewing Area

2008-05-04T20:33:00.008-08:00

Not long ago on this blog, we reported Lisa's close encounter with a moose in our parking lot. Today there was a goat literally right outside our door!

Technically the goat is not wild, since she's owned by our Russian neighbors across the way, who sent two of their children to gladly come with a leash and pick her up when I called our landlord and said, "Um, there's a funny situation here at the apartment. We have a bleating goat in the parking lot, and she's in urgent need of milking." Apparently, that was not a strange thing to say after all, because our landlord was not in the least distressed.

Two hilarious situations ensued from this decidedly uncommon event. First, Dave had previously been grilling on the deck. The presence of the goat put an exciting spin on his trip to the garage to get more charcoal for the grill. Since we don't yet own a gun, Dave's exact words were, "I've got to find something to protect myself with!" as he ran to the closet and grabbed... his trombone. I wish you all could have seen it with your own eyes as Dave yelled "Back off! Stay back!" and threatened the poor goat with his musical instrument. (In all fairness, Dave asked me to report the argument we had about him going outside with the goat in the first place. After all, I fearfully told him, that animal has horns!)

The other funny incident occurred when I saw a neighbor in the midst of the goat hoopla, and I excitedly told her, "It's a goat!" Since we were out on the deck grilling, she thought I meant we were having a goat for dinner. I had to explain that no, there's a goat on the front porch, we are having chicken and moose to eat tonight. She then caught my drift and took her little girl down to see the zoo outside our front door. :-)

Above you see Dave before the goat visit, grilling in a sudden downpour.

Yes, Dave is the king of the grill! What an interesting evening we've had!

Grill Master

2008-05-02T17:02:00.003-08:00

FINALLY, a sure sign of spring!

Dave made his own rub for the pork ribs - "Memphis style".

Not just any ol' grilling - it's hickory-smoked! Welcome, spring!

Wishful Thinking

2008-04-30T07:24:00.003-08:00

On Saturday we posted our "Spring Thaw" header in hopes that it would come true! However, this morning we woke (yet again) to a snow-covered scene outside.

It's beautiful, yes, and it's much nicer to be outside at 30 degrees than -30. But still, we can't help wondering...

O Spring, wherefore art thou?

First-Time Frittata

2008-04-26T13:53:00.004-08:00

Dave has taught me lots of things since we've been married, not the least of these the joys of gourmet cooking. We tried a recipe from our Italian cookbook this morning, and it was delicious!

Frittata ingredients: zucchini, onion, tomatoes, mushrooms, fresh parsley, fresh basil, Parmesan, eggs, pepper. Yum!

We know lots of really great cooks. Cyndie O made us our first frittata a few years ago. Actually, that was our only frittata until today. Now we've joined the frittata-making club! Are you hungry yet? We have plenty of left-overs. :-)

Babies, Babies Everywhere!

2008-04-23T22:01:00.009-08:00

People say there is something in the water here in Delta Junction because so many of our friends are pregnant! Apparently the water's fertile in the Lower 48, too. Our sister-in-law Heather in North Carolina is due May 20:

Is she the cutest pregnant lady ever, or what? Paul and Heather's little girl will be our second Noble niece, and her arrival is much anticipated!

Our friend Katrina had a baby boy this morning! Wahoo! Congratulations!

As for other pregnant Delta friends: Kristin is due in a few weeks, as is Laurie, followed by Diane. Melissa just had a baby girl in South Dakota. As for Texas friends: Leslie had a baby girl recently, Carla's having twins soon, and my cousin Vanessa just delivered a baby boy days ago. Babies, babies everywhere! :-)

Going Back to Thailand

2008-04-20T22:08:00.006-08:00

No, not Dave and me! Although that would be wonderful, we were informed last week that friends are forming a team to return. I'm thrilled because I served with each team member either in Thailand or in college ministry, I know each of them personally, and I have been blessed and encouraged by their faith. May God be glorified in this effort to spread His Good News!

Above: Chris Fikes on the left. We are trying to help Chris with fund-raising efforts; please let us know if you are interested in contributing. Chris and his family have made a 5-year initial commitment, and they are trying to complete the first phrase of raising funds before they leave in May 2009. (In the photo above, Thum is giving the "wai" gesture, which is used to say hello, to show respect, or to say thank you. In the case of His baptism, it is definitely a sign of gratitude!)

Above: Derran and Ann are friends that will also be part of this team, along with another wonderful couple, Ryan and Ning, and a single woman, Haley. (Thum is wearing jasmine flowers, which are used in celebrations and smell incredibly sweet. His new life in Christ is certainly something to celebrate!)

I thought I would also include a picture of me years ago when I was serving in Chiang Mai and skinny. ;-) I guess if I still ran every morning, ate mostly soup and vegetables, and sweated off ice cream, maybe I'd still look this way! Also pictured above are: Bpay, my best friend and teammate Jennifer, and Nui, a sweet friend I had the incredible honor to study the Bible with who became a Christian while I was there. (The occasion was the holiday of Loi Kratung. We all made floating rafts out of bamboo and banana leaves. The festival does have Buddhist significance, but we were participating to bond with the students in our campus ministry and not to "send our sins away" with the floats. Almost all the students who were with us that night are now Christians, and they understand that Jesus is the only one who can remove their sins!)

May we all be reminded that we live in a world in need of a Savior. We are called to help share the Gospel. Whether we go abroad or not, if we call ourselves Christians then we should also consider ourselves missionaries. To God be all the glory!

20,000th Visitor Award goes to...

2008-04-18T19:53:00.003-08:00

Our friend Rebecca, who lives in North Carolina, was the 20,000th person to pull up our blog since March of 2006! Thanks for visiting, Rebecca. We wish we could see you and all our other Lower 48 friends more often! :-)