Joys of Fatherhood

I love being a dad! While at times it can be tiring and frustrating, it is so rewarding. Here are a few of my recent highlights.

Father's Day was a really fun time of feeling appreciated by my family. Lyla made a tasty breakfast for me, with Vanessa's help. They then lavished some great gifts on me, including a new travel mug, coffee, and anew shirt. I also got a gift that Lyla hand-picked for me. It was a children's horseshoe game. She apparently told Vanessa that she thought it would be fun to play with daddy. trying to teach a almost three year old to play horseshoes was quite the adventure. She couldn't understand why you would ever throw a horseshoe at a stake far away when it was so much easier to just drop it over the one right next to you. In the end Lyla ended up using the stakes as drum sticks.



As Lyla get older things change. A couple weeks ago, I went into Lyla's room to let her know that "nap" time was finished. This is what I found

I asked her to sit on her bed for a photo & she couldn't

I was playing guitar the other day and Lyla wanted to play with me. So, she went to get her maracas. Below is how she returned to the living room.
We've had lots of thunderstorms recently here in Jacksonville. As a result we've spent a fair amount of time without electricity. Searching for inside, no electricity activities has been quite the challenge. I think I found a winner. Lyla really enjoyed this fort we made, and weathered the storm inside while reading her favorite books.

While Lyla requires the most attention, I'm still able to spend plenty of time with our new little bundle of Joy. This is how she likes to spend her time with me

Sage is the rage

Since my last post, the Herrema family has grown. Sage Jennie was born on May 14 at 4:28 pm. She decided to show up ten days late, but when she decided to come she came quickly. She was born 13 minutes after we arrived at the birth center. She weighed in at 8 lbs. 4 oz. and is already growing like a weed. It's hard to believe that this Friday she'll be a month old. Fatherhood the second time around is just as great as the first. Although it has caused a lack of sleep and extra work, I wouldn't trade it for the world.



Lyla has been a really good help as a big sister, but we've also gotten to have some good father/daughter times. We've been able to go to the zoo, out to breakfast, Disney, and to see the Jacksonville Suns, her favorite minor league baseball team. She was quite disappointed yesterday when I informed her we'd no longer be seeing "Big Mike" (Mike Stanton) as he'd been called up to the Marlins. But, we were able to watch a part of his first big league game on TV and she found it almost surreal that someone she'd seen in person was now on the TV.

Every good baseball fan needs their team gear

Orlando

A few weeks back we headed down to Orlando. The primary reason for the trip was the National Association of Photoshop Professionals Conference. Lyla and I didn't really have much interest in advancing our Photoshop skills, so we decided to wander on down to a little place called Disney World. It was an extremely fun time, for Lyla and myself, and very tiring. Here are a few pictures from our time there.

showing off a new bathing suit

Lyla was very shy when meeting some of her favorite characters

To see more pictures from this trip click here

DTS Outreach

While many things helped make the last month so hectic, one of the more enjoyable was helping to prepare the DTS students for the outreach phase of their school. As usual, the last week of the lecture phase the staff host a "love feast," which gives us as staff an opportunity to serve the students in a very visible manner. Everyone wears their finest clothes and we enjoy a great dinner together.

The DTS students left last Friday to spend two months in India, where they will be working with a Indian church planter. They will be doing open air services, orphanage ministry, and trying to find opportunities to minster to the Bhansala, a completely unreached people group. I'm really looking forward to seeing what Father is going to do in and through these students in the next couple of months

March Madness

March was a very intense and busy month, complete with a couple weeks spent out of town. I'll be updating you on these times over the next couple of days. The DTS has been going really well, and the students have really been being challenged by the teachings.
For the past 9 years YWAM Jacksonville has been involved with a ministry called Spring Harvest. Every year we join them in Daytona to minister to students there for Spring Break. They rent out an entire hotel and hold "parties" back on the pool deck, providing free food and coffee. They also offer a graffiti wall, henna tattoos, live music, etc. This year I worked at the quesadilla stand. I would spend half the night making and serving food to the breakers while engaging them in conversation, and the rest of the night I would mingle with the breakers while looking for opportunities to share the love of Jesus with them. Here are a few pictures from the week.

Preparing for a long night of ministry

The quesadilla stand was hoppin

DJ Will bringing the beats

The fun of Parenthood

So, every night before bed there are a couple things Lyla expects to happen. One, is the telling of the classic Princess and Frog story, and the other is me singing Come Lord Jesus Come, which she calls the "Princess Song" because one time I used it with a story about how a princess would sing it when she was scared to remind her that Jesus was with her. The two videos below are Lyla's take on these two things.

Lyla Tells a story from Aaron Herrema on Vimeo.

Lyla singing "Princess Song" from Aaron Herrema on Vimeo.

The Big 5-0

This year marks the fiftieth anniversary of the start of Youth With a Mission. As a family we have now been involved with YWAM for almost nine years. Sometimes it's hard to believe everything God has done in our lives, including meeting each other, through YWAM. I watched this video the other day that YWAM Kona did to celebrate our 50th year. Check it out.

The Flame Goes Forward - Celebrating 50 Years of YWAM from YWAM Kona on Vimeo.