Luke Jeffrey Eischen

Mandy and Jeff helped us celebrate our anniversary by welcoming healthy baby Luke into the world! They are now a party of four: Jeff, Mandy, Maddy, and Luke. Congratulations!

August 18th, 2008 1:43 pm

He was 8 pounds 9 ounces

20.5 inches

1st Year!

Today is our one year anniversary!!! It is crazy to think that it's already been a year. Randy and I were talking about some of our favorite things about being married. One is that we're best friends so it's a blast to spend so much time living with, playing with, and growing with your best friend. We love going to sleep next to each other and waking up next to each other instead of having to say good-bye. We feel it hasn't been a very big adjustment like some suggested it would be. Number one on our list, WE'RE HAVING SO MUCH FUN!

For our anniversary we celebrated this last weekend. I knew we were going somewhere special but didn't know where until an hour before we left. We went to Elizabeth Street Inn on the coast in Newport. It was gorgeous. We don't have any clear pictures of the coast or the hotel however because it was so foggy. I guess when it's 100+ degrees inland, the air pressure sucks all the fog in to the coast line. On Saturday we went to the Oregon Coast Aquarium, walked downtown where we got a bunch of salt water taffy and laughed at the sea lions bullying each other around. It was an amazing weekend to spend together celebrating one of many anniversaries to come!

One thing Randy didn't know is that this whole time I was also planning a special gift for him. With the help of my amazing cousin, Jamie, I recorded our song "Like Red on a Rose" for him and then also made it his ringtone on his phone for when I call. He was so shocked I had to explain exactly what it was :)

Camping Trip

One of the many camping adventures this summer was with our Shepherding Group at Salem Alliance, Synergy. The first night it was just Shelly and Brian, Danielle and Josh with their one year old Vanessa, and Randy and I. Saturday a couple more couples came to join us. We went up the Santiam River where we hiked, some fished, and played games around the camp fire. We're hoping to get one or more trips in before it gets too cold.

Tiffany Marie

Tiffany "Felt" soon to be "Knutson" and I have grown up together since we were in the nursery together at church. Our families have celebrated numerous holidays and camping trips together. Tiff and I were on the youth group's worship team and in leadership under Pastor Lance. I'm so excited for her and Jason to start their lives together as husband and wife!!! This is a pic from her shower in Eugene.

Summit Mt. Hood

Randy summitted Mt. Hood this weekend with 5 other guys. Dan and Chris are some of his best friends from college and all lived and managed, at some point, the Alpha Omega House. Dan's dad is experienced on this adventure and led the team up the mountain starting around 10:30PM Saturday night. It was a new moon that night so you could see not only stars for miles but it was impossible to not see a shooting star! Starting at Timberline Lodge the team made it up past all the ski slopes and then took a nap before the rest of the more strenuous hike to the top. There were places where you would hike on narrow paths gripping your ice axe just in case. Since it's a volcano the smell of sulfur was prominent and often made it difficult to breathe since it's not oxygen. Everyone made it up there safe and made it down safe! Let the adventures continue!