Our family is a gift from the Lord. Each child given is a gift, including those we lost in miscarriages and the ruptured tubal pregnancy. A loving husband is my greatest gift apart from Jesus. So this blog includes some of my favorite pics of my family, not in any time order, just the late 1990's. First a picture of my favorite (!) husband and then one of me at a river cafe in northern France on one of our sidetrips from Brussels! Here we tried to order tea with milk but our poor skills at speaking French didn't help. Finally our waitress figured it out and exclaimed with delight, "Te ole!" (Actually, "Te au lait!", but it sounded like cry of triumph.)
Our firstborn son, Jonathan Milo Leal, whose middle name belongs to his father, grandfather, and now him as well as his business (vino de Milo), is a heart treasure. Playing games is a long standing tradition, even trying out different designs with scrabble tiles lined up -- ready to fall down!
Jenny is a precious jewel in our hearts, loved from the first moment we held her, and even before as we awaited her birth. She's always been the traveller, and so we went to visit her wherever she was living. Here she is in Brussels and some of it's surrounding attractions.
She and her brother have always been friends (or is it frenemies?). Included here is a pic with Bear, the world's best dog. From their growing up years in a village in Nepal, to the current role of Jonathan as favored uncle to the favored grandsons, they always end up spending quality time together.
Speaking of Bear, you can't talk about our family without bringing out the photos of this favored dog. He loved snow, bringing home dead possums and leaving them on our porch as a gift, sleeping in Jonathan's bedroom (sometimes kicking Jonathan out of bed so he could sleep there), and jumping for whatever food Bill would give him! He was quite the acrobat. We got to love him for 13 years.
The extended family was deeply part of our lives. Bill's dad visited us in Athens, and we visited him in California. Here he is in his Zapoteco outfit, from the area in Mexico where he and Mom worked for so many years (and where Bill grew up). Also included is my sister and her kids. Here, Nancy is hugging her three kids, David, Daniel, and and Anna, and then seen jumping on our neighbor's trampoline!
So, in sum, the four of us have been friends for a long time. We've walked through a lot of life's challenges together, celebrating many graduations (seven masters and two doctorates so far), and just being family. We hold them close to our hearts and pray for them and their families every day, asking our Father to work His good in their lives. We know He's given family as a gift and we gratefully place them back in His Hands.
Our firstborn son, Jonathan Milo Leal, whose middle name belongs to his father, grandfather, and now him as well as his business (vino de Milo), is a heart treasure. Playing games is a long standing tradition, even trying out different designs with scrabble tiles lined up -- ready to fall down!
Jenny is a precious jewel in our hearts, loved from the first moment we held her, and even before as we awaited her birth. She's always been the traveller, and so we went to visit her wherever she was living. Here she is in Brussels and some of it's surrounding attractions.
She and her brother have always been friends (or is it frenemies?). Included here is a pic with Bear, the world's best dog. From their growing up years in a village in Nepal, to the current role of Jonathan as favored uncle to the favored grandsons, they always end up spending quality time together.
Speaking of Bear, you can't talk about our family without bringing out the photos of this favored dog. He loved snow, bringing home dead possums and leaving them on our porch as a gift, sleeping in Jonathan's bedroom (sometimes kicking Jonathan out of bed so he could sleep there), and jumping for whatever food Bill would give him! He was quite the acrobat. We got to love him for 13 years.
The extended family was deeply part of our lives. Bill's dad visited us in Athens, and we visited him in California. Here he is in his Zapoteco outfit, from the area in Mexico where he and Mom worked for so many years (and where Bill grew up). Also included is my sister and her kids. Here, Nancy is hugging her three kids, David, Daniel, and and Anna, and then seen jumping on our neighbor's trampoline!
So, in sum, the four of us have been friends for a long time. We've walked through a lot of life's challenges together, celebrating many graduations (seven masters and two doctorates so far), and just being family. We hold them close to our hearts and pray for them and their families every day, asking our Father to work His good in their lives. We know He's given family as a gift and we gratefully place them back in His Hands.
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