Happy
Valentine's Day! It's been a couple of years since
our last Autry family update letter & of course much has changed in our
world. I love getting this sweet chance
to connect with old & new friends and family near & far, I especially
love our move to doing this at Valentine's Day instead of Christmas...it's just
so much more realistic for me just to plan to be a couple of months off the
rest of the world's schedule!
So first things first...our
biggest announcement of course is that we will soon be a family of 5! Autry baby #3 is expected August 2015! The news has spread to quite a few friends
& family but since we haven't made an official announcement (meaning it's
not on Facebook yet...lol!) some of you may not have heard. It's so different this time sharing the
anticipation of a new baby with Caleb & now Sophia...Caleb really didn't
understand what was coming when I was pregnant with Sophia but this time he
totally gets it & he's got so many plans for all the things he's going to
teach the baby...it's so cool to see him getting excited about his big brother
role & Sophia...oh man...she is thrilled!
She's such a little mama naturally & she already is so sweet to the
baby...picking out toys for baby...kissing baby...even tucking baby in...it's
precious & I can't wait to see how she reacts to an actual baby in our
arms. Jake & I are very happy about adding
another amazing little human to the family...but of course with all the many challenges
we face as parents we have some anxiety about what it will look like to now be
outnumbered by these beautiful babies...so you can pray for our peace &
that God will throw tons of parenting wisdom our way so we can be good stewards
of these gifts He is giving to us. I
will never get over how truly life changing parenting has been...it was like
life was finally in color after Caleb was born...it's incredible to see how
much I am learning from them as they are learning from me. It's a gift...such a gift. 
Speaking of learning...we made
the decision this last fall to homeschool as a family & we have joined 2
Christian homeschool communities - one is much smaller & organized by a
dear friend of ours from way back to our dating days (14 years ago!) called
Mommy & Me Homeschool Group. The
invitation to visit this group was the catalyst that the Lord used to lead to
our decision. The second group is a much
larger community part of a nationwide homeschool Co-Op called Classical
Conversations, it's an amazing community of christian families using the
classical model of education. As a piece
of our weekly meeting Caleb is giving presentations to his class & it is so
freaking cool to see how much he enjoys public speaking...it is one of my
greatest fears & I am loving that he is getting a chance to learn this
skill starting as such a young age...he definitely takes after his dad in this
area & it is so much fun to watch him.
I am in love with both of these groups & I am so grateful for the
opportunity to be part of these communities.
It has been a real stretch for me in many ways to push past my anxieties
& fears concerning community but I am trusting how I can see this is where
God has brought us & I believe He will continue to give me courage to be
vulnerable & grow through the gift of these communities. Jake & I have always desired deeper
community & friendships in our life & of course it's always been a
struggle...but our prayer is that our children will grow up seeing beauty &
value in sharing life deeply with other people & that will require us
showing them what that looks like. So
please pray for all of us that we would grow in friendships & community
this year. I love watching my kids start
to make friends...I have been blessed with 2 pretty much lifelong friendships
(we've known each other for 30 years) & I wonder if any of the friends my
kids know today they will know 30 years from now.
Another way that God has been
growing me personally in the area of vulnerability has been through a ministry
at our church (Imago Dei Community) called Refuge. Refuge is exactly what I always thought
church was supposed to be...it's a place where it's safe to be honest about how
broken & messed up we all are, to go to Jesus together to let him change
us. I first joined Refuge 3 years ago
& was a part of a small group there when my daddy took his life. I was so grateful for the gift of people who
were willing to sit with me in my pain in some of the darkest moments of my
life. After Sophie was born I wasn't
able to make it for a while & finally this fall I was able to go back &
be a part of a grief group at Refuge.
For the first time since my daddy died I have hope that I can find peace
with this new reality...I will never be the same...there is no resolution to this
kind of life changing loss but I am starting to see hope that I can be
reconciled to who I am now & that my pain is changing into something I can
live with. I am so incredibly grateful
for the gift of Refuge & how God is using it in so many people's lives.
I do not want this letter to be
more than 1 pg long...so here's some highlights to wrap up! Jake is no longer working in public
accounting, meaning we actually see him from Jan - April...yay! He is loving his new job at Louisiana Pacific
as a corp. tax accountant. Caleb is
going to be a 5 year old (little) man next month & I am in absolute shock
at that reality...the days are long but the years are short! He is so my son...certainly there are many
things I see him in that remind me of Jake but let's just say he is so my
kid! Sophia on the other hand is a lot
like her daddy...she's got tons of energy & passion. And she's sweet & motherly &
beautiful...and really just a ton of fun to have in our family. I love watching their personalities grow
& really getting to know who they are.
Love - Jake, Laura, Caleb, Sophia
& baby Autry
