Simple Grace Ministries: March 2007

Lacey

Larissa (Lacey) Leigh Hitch was born on March 30th, 1984, thirty days past her due-date and only thirteen months behind her older brother. She had so much hair when she was born that Mom had to style it almost from the first day!

Lacey and Nick had a very close relationship...perhaps partly by coersion? [smile]

Lacey loved taking care of "the baby" when we were younger and she always tried to be the first one to earn the dime or quarter Mom gave away when we girls changed a diaper while Mom was pregnant and couldn't stomach it. Lacey was a classic older sister who took it upon herself to fix up the bruises and mishaps the rest of us created, and although we never could figure it out, she could often put Nick in line by her persuasive smile and sweet voice.

Lacey has loved fishing since she first got a rod in her hand but none of us liked taking Lacey along on our fishing escapades because she always came home with a fish when the rest of us came up short on our luck. Lacey even let us have her secret fishing spots after she'd gotten her catch of the day but it never did us any good. To this day she holds the reputation of being the master angler in our family!

Lacey graduated from high school in 2002 and has since taken over homeschooling Bristol. She also pays the family bills, makes the majority of the meals, strives to keep the house clean, her horse worked with and her mandolin practiced. And after all of that, you can always count on Lacey to have a listening ear to anyone who needs a long talk.

Happy 23rd birthday, Lacey! We love you!

Bristol

When baby Bristol Levi Hitch was born at home on March 24th, 1998, we had a kitchen scale to weigh him on. We were taking bets as to how much he weighed but no one came anywhere close to guessing right! When the scale said 10 pounds, 4 ounces, we quickly assumed that the scale was incorrect. Much to our surprise, we discovered that it was accurate and our baby weighed over 3 pounds more than any other Hitch baby had weighed at birth. He was full of surprises from the first breath!

Having three older sisters who thought he was the cutest thing alive, Bristol couldn't ever escape from a camera...even to have a thoughtful moment in the garden.

Our very first concert was less than two months after Bristol was born. While practicing for countless hours in the basement, Bristol would sit in a sling on Avery's hip and he quickly learned that falling asleep was his best option at the first note he heard.

Bristol's favorite attire was that of a "real cowboy."

Always trying to stay up with his big brothers, Bristol learned young to tie his own tie (which he always does for stage), style his own hair, polish his own shoes, and...well...keep those whiskers from showing.

Happy 9th birthday, Bristol! We are so thrilled that God has put you in our family!

Spring

The first week of spring has brought our attention outdoors to the greening grass and budding gardens. With the help of our good friend Sammy Siegmann from Wisconsin, we tackled the job of raking the yard this morning. It feels good to walk outside in bare feet and feel the spring sunshine!

"So let us know, let us press on to know the LORD. His going forth is as certain as the dawn; and He will come to us like the rain, like the spring rain watering the earth." Hosea 6:3

Lucas

Lucas James Hitch joined our family on March 19th, 1988, and due to a fast birth, Dad and Mom thought they'd lost him when he was born. He quickly pulled out of his hard start and became absolutely determined that he would take in as much of the world as possible...so much so that he insisted on being held outwards from the time he was a newborn.

Lucas loved to fish but also loved telling tall tales about his fishing adventures. He could captivate his audience for long periods of time, mostly because his stuttering, hoarse voice was so cute.