Introducing *Roan*
(meaning = little red one)

Hey girls! I would like to introduce you to the newest member of the Britton household, Roan (rhymes with bone).
I have really wanted to add fish to our home since before the July 29th wedding, and we finally have! I was motivated in two ways. One was that while visiting with Beth in Lafayette, we were able to spend a nice afternoon with Charlene, who introduced us to Shamgar, Dr. H's Beta he received for his birthday. The second is that everyone around me is having babies and right now this is the closest we will be getting to having a little one to care for! He is such a pretty fish, red and purple! I think he is a little mean too, because when he first moved in he had a roommate, Murphy the snail (Murphy means the 'Sea warrior'). However he did not live up to his name, and only lasted a day and a half. We are still debating on what the COD is...

I was glad to spend time with one sister this past week and am looking forward to seeing you other two very soon!

Hey Everybody! I just wanted to let you know that I will be in IN June 9-24. My nephew is graduating on the 10th and my former neighbor is getting married on the 24th, so other than that I have plenty of time to see you! I just made the flight plans a few weeks ago which is why this seems early; I am excited to hopefully see you if I can.

Yeeeeeeeeeehaw! This picture is from a couple of weeks ago when Andrew came down for spring break. We had a really fun time, and fortunately, the weather was good while he was here. See ya!

Hi girls,
A Happy Thanksgiving to you also, it was a little different this year, being married and all, but everything worked out pretty well.
Mike and I have cut down and decorated our first Christmas tree... and on November 29th, weighing in at 9lbs 4oz (yes those are the correct numbers!) Hollie gave birth to Miller! I was very sad that I didn't get to be there and that I don't know when I will meet him, but I hope soon.
Love you girls!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!!
Happy Thanksgiving fabulous ladies! I am thankful for you. Today I will be having dinner with my cousins and then will be dining with school friends in the late afternoon. Take care and have a blessed day. Love & hugs ~ Beth

This past weekend Mike and I babysat for Dawson & Mary Elizabeth.

Dawson had a good time playing in the leaves with Mike, while M.E. and I 'hung' out together, literally.











I carried her around in a baby bjorn, as you can see in the pic, she is just dangeling there. It was a bit chilly, hence the blanket up to her nose!














He is a cute kid! I think he had a pretty good time.











Fall is here, in all its beauty. The snow has held out since our encounter last week, but the rain hasn't!








Things have been going well for us here, I am having a good time working at the daycare, one of the babies is just starting to walk, carefully letting go of tables and walls and taking a daring 2 or 3 steps before plopping on his rear! It is exciting to watch him learn and grow.
Every day, I hold him and at least once a day, think about Hollie's baby boy that will be born very soon and get excited for her & Corey - and excited to meet the little guy! She is due in a month.

Mumbo-Jumbo

Hello Ladies!
I know the holidays seem far away, but it is never too early to plan (especially since you all now have other families to consider in your planning). Anywho, what are your plans for the holidays? I will be in TX for Thanksgiving, but will be in IN 20 December - 10 January. Perhaps one day we could rendezvous?

Also, I have some prayer requests. I am going to try and raise funds to cover my next semester expenses. Could you please pray that God would provide the time to write a letter and do mailings, that He would provide, and that I would not worry about it? I would really appreciate it. God has been teaching me about the importance and purpose of prayer lately.

And, Texas is really nice with many good aspects. Even though it is big, it is lacking in certain things. One main thing right now is the colors of fall. Where I am it is mostly green with some brown. Could anyone in residence of the beauty of the fall season post/email some pictures?I hope you all have a blessed day. As my desktop wallpaper is a picture of us at the Britton event of the year, so I see you all everyday and think of you often. Much love!

CLASS DISCUSSION
One of my favorite classes is Intro to World Missions. It is my favorite not only because of the content :) but also because of Professor Young. He is an excellent teacher. He uses biblical passages, some of which do not seem to relate to the subject matter, to build up to his point. Due to a business trip in China, he has actually been in class only three times, and from those three class times I have learned more and have been challenged more than in any of my other classes. For example, last week, we were looking at how Paul related to the Corinthians in his first letter. One of the tasks or challenges of being a communicator of the gospel is learning how to be a beneficial presence to others which entices them to ask about the gospel. Prof. Young brought up the fact that a lot of times we identify ourselves the "right" way and actually end up driving people away from the gospels. Some examples are: identification as a Republican shuts down opportunities with Democrats, vocalizing anti-homosexual remarks turns away homosexuals. The finals thoughts of class: "We are making a lot of noise that causes people not to ask about Jesus. We are called to be redemptive, not right." I started wonder about that. The question I am struggling with is this: Where do we draw the line between promoting God's truth and being attractive for the cause of the gospel? (The example in my mind with regard to this question is same-sex marriage.) Don't get me wrong, I am not promoting sin, but what about truth? What are your thoughts? I hope I have explained this sufficiently.

BOOK CORNER
I highly recommend Walter C. Kaiser's Mission in the Old Testament: Israel as a Light to the Nations. We have been reading it in my missions class, and it has been a thoroughly enjoyable, quick read. It demostrates that Israel was God's chosen people not in the sense of the only ones to be saved, but rather they were chosen to take God's salvation to the nations. When they didn't , He intervened. This was a new concept for me, and I have learned much from it. The book says it much better than me so read it!

CONCLUSION
I was going to post a recipe, but I need to do some homework instead. Later!