A big bonus on our trip over the States was having a long enough layover in Atlanta to go to Joel and Mary Stuart’s for lunch. It was a sweet time to introduce Martha to her Aunt and Uncle and get to see their new house!
Reuniting with Martha was such a treat and so special to get to be with her as she prepared for her wedding. While it was such a busy busy time, we did get to steal a few moments here and there. We enjoyed being with her and Ian so much!
Noa had been OBSESSED with her cousin Liam for months before we went and just about every day asked if we were going to Liam’s house. It was so special to finally get to be with him. They had a great time togther!
Technically they’re second cousins, but from they looks of them, they could be brother and sister, don’t you think?
cleaning grandma’s floors… endless fun!
getting ready for nap time
Martha loved her special time with Grandma Chase, and her bracelets 
This Martha also loves her time Grandma Chase
I got to watch Liam one morning for Carly. He and Martha enjoyed getting into my diaper bag… already partners in crime!
We also got to play with Jude Lookabill, and the 4 kiddies had a grand time together. Here are the three oldest jumping on the bed. Next time we see these families, we hope it will be in Japan, and there will be six kiddies, jumping on futon 
Carly, Martha, and I with our babies… well, mine and Carly’s babies… Martha still wasn’t married at this point 
We were SO THANKFUL to get a long weekend in PA with Eric’s family. The weekend was made of precious moments and was just what we needed amidst the business of life here and Iverson-wedding crazies. What a refreshing and special time. See for yourself. Here are the girls with Grammy, getting in some snuggle time
On a walk with Great Nana. We got to have dinner and Laura and Clayt’s new house… what a treat!
Noa with Aunt “Yawa”(Laura)
5 Noll ladies
Reading with Grammy and Grandpa
I love these of Martha with her Grandpa
I think you can definitely tell she is his.
With Aunt “Kayin” (Karyn)
On a side note, Noa now thinks every brunette is Karyn. She always like “Kayin” in a super excited voice…and then I tell her it’s not Aunt Karyn and it’s kinda sad…
Anyway, we had a little early birthday party for Noa while we were there. Here is the cake that sweet cousin Abby decorated for Noa:
Here she is enjoying some of her new gifts from Nana – Dr. Seuss boooks!
Giggling with Uncle Clayt and Aunt Laura
More of Martha and her grandpa
We had a fabulou lunch out on Nana’s patio overlooking her beautiful yard
Eric and his Nana
Then, it was back to VA for us. It was a whirlwind week leading up to the wedding, and so much fun! We were blessed to get time with some precious friends, the Weavers who let us stay with them. Noa, who proudly wears Waver-girl clothing 90% of the time, wants to be like them in more way than one. This evening, as soon as Sophie got onto the floor to color, Noa copied her. So fun to have thses “big sisters” to look up to.
In fact, having spent a year watching these precious girls and getting to hang out with them so much, I pray my girls will be very much like them, both in their sweet spirits, but also in their precious relationships as sisters. We loved our time with this sweet family!
Some other amazing friends who we were blessed to grab just an afternoon snack with: the Masts. It was so great to see them for a bit and get to visit. Reuben and Hannah are just the greatest caretakers to Noa and Martha and it so fun to watch them just love on them. It wasn’t long enough, but it was special nonetheless.
Aunt Maggie and Annie came up a few days before the wedding and we had some sweet times together. Noa is also obsessed with her cousin Annie and was thrilled to finally get to play with her (last time they hung out, Annie was only 8 weeks old, and couldn’t quite keep up with Noa). They had a blast playing in Grandma’s yard, learning to share, and listening to their Mamas gab away. Baths, course, are very much in order when cousins get together.
Maggie made all the girl cousins matching dresses. Aren’t they precious??? (LTR: Annie, Trinity, Noa, and Martha)
And of course Daniel Josiah, the only boy in the mix so far (that we know of), was just as sweet as could be with all his little girl cousins. He and Noa, like last time they were together, absolutely LOVED being together.
And I have many more photos still to post, especially of all these sweet kiddies, but I am way to tired of blogging at this point. This is hard work! It will have to wait til later…
Continue reading about a million photos of our trip to america
Sorry for the lack of posts recently… we had a busy busy busy few weeks at home for Martha’s wedding. It was a wonderful time of being with family, and especially with Martha and Ian, and we are so so so thankful that we got to celebrate with them. While it was very busy and I didn’t get to visit with half the poeple I expected and hoped to (so sad!), I am thrilled that we were able to do what we went to do: help Martha and get her hitched I wouldn’t trade for a minute the sweet moments I had with my little sister before she became Mrs. Robinson.
SO, we are back home now and it feels SO GOOD to be here. The girls had a relatively good night last night and I am optimistic that we’ll kick jet lag quickly. I will post pictures from our trip and the wedding as soon as I can.
Thanks for checking in with us!
Can you believe this girl is almost 2 years old?!? I can’t and am absolutely a mess when I begin to think of how quickly the time passes and how much she is growing. It is truly a joy to watch her grow and learn and change. What a reminder of God’s faithfulness and goodness! But it is bittersweet as her “baby days” seem well behind us. She is growing up so so so much!
Noa has so many words and things to say. She sings and talks all day long. It seems like she learns several new words each day and she all of a sudden comes out with words that we haven’t actually “taught” her but that she’s heard and remembered. She speaks in almost complete sentences, usually putting 3-6 words together in a row. It is truly amazing to watch a person learn to talk. I don’t think the novelty of it will ever wear off… WOW!
Noa is still the sweetest big sister to Martha. She loves to hold her, make her laugh, make her smile, and tickle her. She also loves to talk to her. Most times, if Martha’s is crying on the floor or in her seat, I can buy some time by just asking Noa to go talk to her. Martha is enamored and Noa loves the audience.
Noa is learning a lot about the importance of obedience these days. Our mantra, since I read a great book on parenting recently (Ginger Plowman’s, “Don’t Make Me Count to Three”) has been, “I obey right away with a happy heart.” Noa loves to say it and is getting better at doing it. My prayer is that God would keep her heart soft towards obedience and discipline so that when she learns to follow Him, she will have habits in place that make her tender to the touch of the Holy Spirit working in her life. 
O Lord, we praise you for this precious little girl and thank you for the ways you are growing and changing her, while still protecting and keeping her. We thank you for how she shows us You, without even trying. May she always love you above all else, and may her life be a testimony to you all of her days. We praise you for Noa, and ask for your continued gracious blessing on her life.
**Noa is also preparing to make her 5th trans-pacific flight (her 7th flight in general) of her lifetime (all before age 2!) Today, us three Noll girls fly with my mom and siblings back to America for my sister, Martha’s wedding. Eric will not be able to come until much closer to the wedding, so we decided that I would go with my mom a little bit early in order to support my sister and help her prepare. We are so thankful for flyer miles and government stimulus money and cheaper “infant-on-lap” airplane tickets (only allowed until age 2 – Martha’s getting married just in the nick of time!) that have made it even possible for us to fly across the world once again to be with family for these special occasions. However, this week of our family being apart will be by far the longest we’ve ever been away from Eric and is sure to be hard in many ways. Please pray for us during this time, for comfort while away from one another and for traveling safety. Please pray, also, that Eric would have a fruitful time of work and guy-time here, and that the girls and I would truly be a help and encouragement to Martha as she prepares to become Mrs. Robinson. I will try to keep you posted on how we are doing throughout our trip. Thank so much!
ok, i lied. a few more photos from our trip. i just love these two!
check out all the hugs:
It was so so so special to me to see Noa with Carly and Matt’s son, Liam. He was born just before we moved away and we have missed the three of them so much. Liam and his parents are in the difficult process of raising support to come to Japan and we are praying/hoping that the Lord will bring them here very soon.
Carly and I have been best friends since we grew up here in Japan together. When we were in college (her in Australia, me in America) God, in his amazing way, led her and my cousin Matt to fall in love and get married. We then had the great joy of being newly weds together in the same town for 2 years before we moved to Japan last August. I can’t tell you the ways that the Lord has used this sweet friend to bless and encourage me, even from so long ago. I am so so so thankful that He’s made us family and He’s allowed our paths to continue to intersect at so many of life’s steps so far. Seeing our babies together and enjoying each other was just another reminder to me of God’s goodness in giving me this dear friend, and makes me hope and pray even more that our children, who are technically 2nd cousins, will always be blessed by sweet friendship too, no matter how close or far away we live from each other. 
*on another note (because this is the only scrapbook my children have and I want to remember this detail , it was super fun to see how Noa just took to Carly immediately, even though I don’t think she remembered her. People have often said that she and I look alike (I know, what a compliment to me!) and so I wonder if that’s why Noa was immediately so comfortable with her Auntie Carly. Either way, it just made me smile to see two girls that I love so much love each other so much too!
Our last two and half days in the States were spent in Virginia. It was so great to be back “home” and get to see so many wonderful and dear friends. It was a whirlwind, and of course, not long enough, but still such a joy to our hearts to be with so many who have been such a blessing in our lives. My pictures don’t do the time justice, as I am missing many faces in this post, but here are a few fun ones:
Aunt Martha and Uncle Mark were along for most of our visit, which always makes life super fun. We are so thankful for the excitement that the Lord has ahead of them… Mark beginning his first semester of college at UVA in August, and Martha becoming a wife in September!
Our visit was just in time for Liam and Phoebe’s One Year Birthday Party. It was the perfect chance to celebrate these two precious children who we love so much and have watched grow from afar. Here is Liam with his Mom and Dad and his birthday cake.
It was also a great chance to meet new friends and reconnect with old ones. Martha was happy to meet Canon Reid for the first time. Look at those two sets of blue eyes!
And Noa got to meet her almost-birthday-buddy, Jude Lookabill for the first time. Another fun friend who we can’t wait to see again. We’re praying that Jude and his parents will be here in Japan real soon, and the kiddos can be MK buddies together too! 
It was also a special time of reconnecting with old friends. Eric had fun catching up with some of our fun friends, the Reid family! In our time in Harrisonburg, we loved getting the chance to babysit these guys, or just come over to hang out.
Noa loved seeing a very handsome and grown-up Paul Tongen once again. I love this photo of them checking each other out.
We love the Tongen family and it was such a joy to see them, along with many other families from our home group while we were back. What a treat!
Here is Noa connecting with BF Kathryn Sink. We have so many pictures of these two since they were babies and it was fun to watch them play together again. Here’s a big hug!
And of course, splashing around in the pool with Liam made the time even more fun!
And finally, a Noll-Cole trio! How fun to have these three, Noa and Phoebe and Martha, all just about 9 months apart from each other, get to hang out. 
Although we wish we could have played longer, it was such a blessing to get to see her for just a bit. Phoebe and her parents will move to California in a few weeks. We are so excited for where the Lord is taking them, but sad that they won’t be in Harrisonburg anymore when we go back. We pray, though, that no matter where the Lord leads our families, he will only strengthen our friendships and let these little cuties always enjoy whatever time they get to be together.
The Mast and Weaver families are some of our dearest Harrisonburg friends and feel like family to us. We know that it is truly God’s goodness that brought them into our lives, soon after Eric and I were married, and used these precious families these last 3 years to bless and encourage us in so many ways. We were so thankful to have a few hours carved out with them on Sunday afternoon. What a treat!!
Chloe and Hannah getting some baby time with Martha
almost the whole group
Martha flirting with sweet Reuben. This young man has always been able to make my girls smile.
Chloe and me
Andrea and I with most of the little girls. So fun to all be together!
Gloria working her baby magic and making Martha laugh. Hannah and Sophie taking notes and learning how. Its no surprise to me that these girls love babies so much, with such great moms who also love babies so well!
All the kiddies together! I am so so so so thankful for each of these precious ones!
*Dean, Andrea, Andre, Gloria, Chloe, Reuben, Sophie, Hannah, and Kate~ Thank you so much for such a special and wonderful visit. We have missed each of you and it was such a joy to our hearts to get to be with you once again! We love you!
