Merry Christmas!  We’re a little late on Christmas cards this year, but here it is!  If you’re wondering what the Engstrom family has been up to, please read christmas-card-letter-2011

Hope everyone had a fantastic Christmas season!

Aren’t they sweet?

when you get married everyone asks, “when are you thinking of having children?”

it is a predictable question, like comments about the weather in an awkward silence.

when you find yourself with a child, everyone asks, “when are you thinking of having another?”

or at least that is what everyone asks me.

Here’s what I have to add. Once you have the second kid, people will begin asking you, “Do you think you’ll have any more?”  Or if you’re a same-gender-kid family like ours, you’ll be asked, “Do you think you’ll try for a girl?”  As if having three boys…or not having a girl…is the most horrifying thought imaginable.

Now that I have three kids (and yes, I did get that girl!), the question I have heard SO many times in the last three months is, “Are you done?” Sometimes, its phrased “You’re done, right?” or “You don’t want any more, do you?” or “Thank goodness you got that girl so you don’t have to try again!”

Apparently, one is not enough….two is close to right but not entirely satisfying…three is maybe just a little bit too much…and for goodness sake, please do not try for a fourth.  This is probably why the average American family has 2.5 kids.  Its just right.

I will say, I can’t blame people for asking if we’re done:

Here is a picture of our new nephew…our first nephew!  His name is Camden Ryan and he is precious.  He is in the NICU right now and we would appreciate your prayers for him.  He goes in for his third surgery tomorrow…his third surgery and he’s only two weeks old!

Camden is an awesome little man and an amazing reminder that life is precious.  He is a reminder that there is coming a day when we will not experience sadness or sickness or brokenness, and that the Gospel is our only hope for today.

Toodus got to go see him last week, and I’m hoping to go visit soon!  To stay updated on Camden, please go to:  www.camdenmoore.wordpress.com.  If you would like to help love and serve our brother, sister, nieces, and nephew, you can:

1.  Click here to donate towards providing meals, housecleaning, and helping with the medical costs.

2.  Send a book for Carmen and Tim to read to Camden in the NICU.  DM @eatplaylove…she is throwing a book shower for Carmen.

3.  Please, please, please pray for Camden!!

Here she is! The one and only Emmaline Elizabeth! Born January 25, she is the most precious new addition to our family.

We know her name is a mouthful, but we love it. We call it her princess name. People keep asking where her name came from: is it a family name? did we make it up? did we combine several names?  The story is that I knew a girl in college named Emmeline (by the way, her name rhymes with sign not seen); we liked the name because its feminine and unique but not too weird or crazy.  And there are a lot of nicknames that go with Emmaline (see below).  As we were waiting for our baby girl to arrive, we were also in the season of Advent, awaiting the birth of our Savior, Emmanuel. The more we reflected on the miraculous hope of Emmanuel – God with us – the more we thought of the name Emmaline.  We pray that she would embody the Gospel: the hope, peace, joy, and love that can only come from knowing and believing that Christ came to dwell with us.

Sweet Emmy did not have a middle name until she was 18 hours old.  We had a lot of middle name options but finally settled on Elizabeth for four big reasons.  First, my sister’s middle name is Elizabeth – and we love giving our children family middle names.  We hope that Emmaline will have a sweet bond with her three amazing aunts.  Second, both of our boys have a biblical name:  Micah and Hudson Noah.  In the Bible, Elizabeth was the mother of John the Baptist and the sister of Mary, mother of Jesus.  Elizabeth was a faithful servant of the Lord, and He showered on her grace and mercy.  She knew that God was using her and her family to prepare a way for the Lord, and we pray that Emmaline would believe the same about herself and her family.  Third, it is fitting that, in Hebrew, Elizabeth means “My God is a Promise.”  As Emmaline’s first name points to the promise of God with us, her middle name also reminds us of God’s promise to come again.  Finally, Elisabeth Elliot was an amazing missionary and a woman who I hope will be an inspiration to our Emmaline.

She already has a number of nicknames: Em, Emmy, Liney, Liney Lu, and E.  You can call her Emmy Beth, Emmy Liz, and I still catch myself calling her Emmy Grace (Grace was a middle name option).  I often add a title in front of her name:  Princess Emmaline, Miss Emmaline, Lady Emmaline  And we are still calling her Baby Raine (short for Lorraine the Plane).  Raine will be her blog name from here on out.

I finally downloaded all of the pictures off my camera, so I will post more pictures and stories in the coming few days.