Kim's First Mother's Day

HAPPY 1st MOTHER’S DAY KIM!!!

Today was special as I was able to celebrate Kim in this new way and to be thankful for my son as he has made Kim and I something that has become an unspeakable joy, namely, parents.

These pics are long overdue for posting since my family left about 2 weeks ago. Wyatt is the first grandchild/nephew on our side of the family, so it goes without saying just how anxious mom, dad, and my sister were to make their way to Fort Worth to see the new little Marshman. It was great to see him take to both mom and dad as soon as they arrived. Wyatt was alseep on their chests in no time. The other great highlight was when my sister, Dawn, got here from the airport and almost broke down into tears when she made her way through the kitchen into the living room to see her first nephew waiting to be held by his new Auntie.

It was a very special time for me in many ways. For one, it was great to be together with my full family again for a few days. Since we weren’t able to go home for Christmas this year, we all four hadn’t been together since back in July, and even back then, it was only for one day. Another priceless moment was just getting to see my son held by my parents and sister. I’m not sure how to explain it, but it was an unforgettable experience getting to hand Wyatt to the people who have memories of me being that small and young, holding me in the same way. As for Dawn, I felt honored that Kim and I could make her and Eric, “Auntie Dawn and Uncle Eric.” I’m excited for them to be a part of Wyatt’s life. I can’t believe how grown up she and I are now. It seems like only yesterday I was chasing her around the house. Now I’m going to have to pass those duties off to her nephew.

Having everyone gathered together under one roof, linked together by little Wyatt felt like the Lord had just created one more strong bond in which our family can continue to grow closer. It was also great to see Kim, Dawn, and Mom interact with Wyatt, sharing old insights and teaching new ones. One final memory that was made was when Mom took a picture of the three generations of Marshmen in our home. I know one day Wyatt will grow up and be glad to see all three of us together. I remember when me, my dad, and my grandfather all took a picture together at a church in Camden where the Marshes have history. Those are moments that you only learn to appreciate when you mature and realize that life is about more than “you” and that heritage is a thing of the Lord.

So here are some relatively new pictures of Wyatt, primarily from the week(end) that he spent with his PawPaw, GiGi, and Auntie Dawn:

Dad (PawPaw) and Wyatt

Mom (GiGi) and Wyatt

Auntie Dawn and Wyatt

Wyatt and his playpin

Wyatt and his first trip downtown

Wyatt and his mommy sleeping

2008 was an eventful year for me and Kim. In just about every major area of our life, we’ve experienced drastic changes and new challenges. When I was debating about getting sucked into submitting some end-of-year blog posts, I started replaying all that has gone on this year and had forgotten just how much we experienced in 2008. So, I’ve decided to give a brief timeline of all that has transpired here at the Marsh home this past year and want to thank all of you who have supported us in so many ways, especially in prayer. God continues to manifest his glorious presence to us as he proves steadfast and faithful in leading us in his perfect will in every facet of our lives, whether at home, at school, or at work.

• March 1 – Officiated my little sister’s (Dawn) wedding to Eric Smith in Asheville, NC.
• March 3 & 4 – Completed the final steps of the Ph. D. application process for the program at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (i.e. a major exam and faculty interview).
• April 11 – Received my acceptance letter into the Ph. D. program at SWBTS!
• May 9 – Graduated from SWBTS with my Master of Divinity with a concentration in Theology (enrolled in August/2005).
• May 20 - We found out that Kim was pregnant with our first child!
• May 28 – Kim and I celebrated our 3 year anniversary.
• August 3 – Led worship for Sunday Morning service at Redeemer Church for the first time.
• August 11 – First ultrasound for our baby; Found out we were having a boy!
• August 21 – First day of class as a Ph. D. student at SWBTS: Systematic Theology (major), Reformation Studies (minor).
• August 21 – First day as a College Professor; Taught Attic Greek I for two sections of class at The College at Southwestern.
• September 7 – Had the opportunity to preach at Redeemer Church while Pastor Tim was on vacation.
• September 26 -30 – Moved out of our first home at the Carroll Park Duplexes (Seminary Housing) and into the Town Homes located in the Student Village (also Seminary Housing). Word of advice: Never move during the middle of a semester, especially if you are both working, taking classes, and teaching!
• November 2 – Was able to drive Dr. Tom Nettles back to the airport from Redeemer’s Reformation Celebration Weekend. Dr. Nettles is a well-known scholar and expert on Church History, especially with respect to the Reformation and Baptist history. He currently teaches at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.
• November 22 – Officated my sister-in-law’s (Keri, Kim’s twin sister) wedding to Trace Jeffcoat in Pelion, SC.
• November 27 – Cooked the best deep-fried turkey I’ve ever made for Thanksgiving.
• December 10 – Finished my first semester both as a Ph. D. student and a College prof.
• December 25 – Kim and I spent our first Christmas not traveling since getting married.
• December 31 – Still waiting on baby Wyatt to be born; Due date is January 9, 2009.

“The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.”

~ 2 Corinthians 13:14 ~

“Moved the desk out of the office, took down the college picture frames, painted all the walls yellow, because it goes with everything. Put those guards on all the outlets, found a safer car to drive, did it all for your protection, and your momma’s peace of mind.”

Those are the opening words of a song by Andy Gullahorn called, “How Precious Life Is” from his new album Reinventing the Wheel. Gullahorn is one of my favorite Christian/folk songwriters and guitarists, who is also a close cohort of Andrew Peterson. As we were moving this past week, this song began to resonate to me in some very personal ways. In our old house I had an office that was pretty much left untouched by Kim. I was even in charge of cleaning it (at my own request) so that she would not be blamed for throwing away important documents or putting books up in places where I would never be able to find them again. On the wall hung posters and pictures that weren’t necessarily from college (some of which are still stowed away in my closet), but they were definitely things that were hung for my satisfaction only such as a framed picture from the John Wayne movie The Cowboys, chord charts/scales, and a grandiose poster of Paul Newman and Robert Redford from Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Now they’ve been packed up in light of the upcoming birth of the newest member of the Marsh family. It wasn’t hard for me to do at all. I mean how can a poster compete with your child?

There is, however, a definite change in lifestyle occurring for both Kim and I as we prepare for the arrival of our new son. But we welcome it with great joy and openness, and without hesitation. Yes, things are a changin’ round here, but if they weren’t, then something would be wrong, right? If things weren’t becoming different, then either two things are evident. One could be that we are staking out our possible state of immaturity, refusing to be selfless and sacrifical for our child and forcing him to conform to our world rather than us to his. Or second, we were living like two “old” people way ahead of our time, and have wasted our youth and independence on what C. S. Lewis calls the childishness of wanting to be grown up. I don’t believe either of these characteristics are indicative of our situation. Kim and I have had a wonderful few years of married life with just the two of us, but that in no way has caused us to regret our current situation as we receive from the Lord the glorious blessing of our first child. I know how special and wonderful children are to parents, mainly based off of how I have seen my own mom and dad love and cherish me and my sister. If my future relationship with my son, and Lord willin’ more Marsh kids, is anything like the one I have with my parents, then he can’t get here soon enough.

In my sidebar Box.net media player, I’ve uploaded two songs dedicated to my buddies who are making that change right now, and the ones who have just had their first child in the past year. There are several of us who are both beginning the Ph. D. program here at SWBTS and are having our first child. I am looking forward to the forthcoming years where we can grow together, and so can our children. One of them is the song I already mentioned above by Gullahorn. The other one is “Family Man” by Andrew Peterson from his Love and Thunder album. Both of these tracks are more like memoirs from two fellas who, although they loved and cherished the “pre-baby” phase of their lives, confess to the unspeakable joy of beginning a family. For me it is all too surreal to believe. I still remember in vivid detail my childhood and feeling like a wild and free country boy growing up in the South, and now I’m about to be a father! However, it’s a great time in life right now, and I can’t wait to pass on the wonderful family and heritage that I have to our son.

• Purchase Andrew Peterson’s album Love and Thunder.
• Purchase Andy Gullahorn’s album Reinventing the Wheel.
• Check out The Rabbit Room where you can interact with both of these guys on other issues than music. This is one of my favorite sites!