Photograph by Ashley McNamara

Matt wrote about it here, as well, and I received this email from Holly this morning:

I was wondering if I could make a request to give some sort of credit to Ashley McNamara and Kristin Rachelle (the photographers who did the photo shoot for us at no charge) and Angela Chodorow ( Jr. High friend of Matt's who set it up) on Annabelle's Circle. They were perfect strangers to us before Monday. If we had no photos to show for it, I would never forget that evening. We somehow just stepped away from the pain and difficulty, and simply walked on the beach, cuddled, and celebrated our love and our family. God truly provided a much needed evening of joy and blessing through the kindness of those three women. It didn't feel like a photo shoot at all, which I felt really strange about considering, and ended up so grateful for. I would never have set this up on my own, even if I could have paid for it. It was like the first date we've been on in... well I don't remember. It was magical. They are now a part of "The Circle" and I want to formally acknowledge their generous gift and kindness there... It just meant a lot to us, and always will.

Click here for Ashley McNamara's site, and here for Kristin Rachelle's site. Don't miss the photos of Matt & Holly, and some real talent on display.

If you are wondering why the progress has slowed recently, there are several reasons. I won't go into all of them, but I will mention that mid-July to mid-August had been fully scheduled for Hawkins Construction and family last spring, and so Marci and I have been unable to commit the bulk of this month to the Linden projects.

As well, the rearranging of project priorities contributed to shelving some of the project goals for the time being, while the house was made into useable living space again. Small tasks are being accomplished here and there, but as we move closer to Holly's due date, Holly, Matt, and Annabelle's well-being (and not the house) has become the priority. All Big Work Weekends have been postponed until after Labor Day, though a few small parties of people may be invited around to help with some things, as the Lindens see fit. (You may get a call from me!) Thanks to those of you who have phoned and emailed recently, offering their weekend time, and we hope you will honor the rain checks! If you have a specific date before Labor Day that you are available (or a specific item you would like to help with) please email me at sean4annabelle@mac.com.

For now, the best way you can help Matt and Holly is to be available with a listening ear, an encouraging thought, and prayer.

Holly is scheduled to go in for delivery of Annabelle on Monday, August 18th, and is expected to stay at the hospital for at least a few days.

Just a quick note...

After the 4th, we pressed on this past weekend, trying to take care of anything in the house that would make the place more "homey". (Sorry, no pictures. Too busy working.) We finished up on the baseboards and door casings and did a good amount of patching and painting on the walls and trim. The place is looking swell, and all the rooms are back -up and running with furniture and most of the tools and construction materials moved out. The Lindens wanted the place to themselves on Sunday, but I returned today to do some work on the front garden wall -cleaning it up a bit with a coat of stucco and some cap blocks. It could use some paint, which we will get to some day soon.

The neighbor, Mike, has been helping out on sprinkler maintenance. These things can be a challenge to get just right, and it's been great to see him wandering over from time to time, attaching a new head and adjusting this and that. The new sod has taken root through this hot weather, though there are a few dry patches, and the garden boxes are at odds with the dog's digging fetish, so I would say that that puts the Linden Landscape up to speed with the rest of us in the suburbs!

Keep these guys in your prayers. Annabelle's Circle has let Matt & Holly know that all the remaining gifts of money are at their disposal to cover any bills in this challenging period, while Matt transitions into a new job. We want to make sure that their medical insurance payments are kept up, so that has become the absolute top priority.