A blessed season

We have so many things to be grateful for from the last four months: safe travels, a healthy baby, family, Christmas, and support. We feel tremendously blessed from the past four months and would like to express our gratitude to all of you for praying for us, loving us, and supporting us.

Safe Travels

We arrived safely into Uganda on February 20th!! Thank you to all of you for praying for a safe flight. Not only did we experience safety, but the trip was also very seamless. Aubrey cried for a little bit the first take off, but the rest of the time, she was so content and slept a lot. She also got lots of "ohhhs and awwws" from the flight crew, something that adds to the joy of parenting. Getting through customs and getting our luggage was the easiest that Lauren and I ever remember for Uganda. We made it to our guesthouse, then headed off to our home in Gulu the next morning!
Another blessing that we are grateful for, is that everything at our property and house was safe when we got back. Four months is a long time to leave and so this was an answer to prayer!

A healthy baby

Aubrey Anne Charlotte Ranck continues to thrill and captivate our hearts! She was born January 3rd, 2020! We are new to this parenting thing, but learning things along the way. I'm proud of how well Lauren cares for Aubrey Anne, through the daily grind of mothering, as well as the effort she puts forth to learn mothering tips from friends, relatives, and through research. As a father, I didn't know how I would respond to such an important role. However, I have to say that fatherhood is growing on me and I enjoy it more every day. I enjoy her snuggles, her fun looks, am proud of her, and look forward to more of her developments as she gets older.
One of the joys of having a child is watching family respond to her. Both of our parents love spending time with her, which has also been a highlight of our time in the US. Lauren has a grandfather and I have a grandmother that both thoroughly enjoyed time holding their great-grandchild!

Aubrey Anne only minutes old!

Lauren's parents visited us at the hospital!

My parents getting time with Aubrey Anne

Aubrey Anne's first snow!

Aubrey Anne getting daddy time!

This is what Aubrey thinks of the Coronavirus.

"I like raising my hand and asking questions!" :)

Family

This past season has been a very rich time for us as we got to spend a lot of quality time with both of our families. It was good for both of us to get to know our inlaws better, as we only spent one month as a married couple before we came to Uganda. Lauren's parents graciously took us on a four-day trip to Florida at the beginning of February. Aubrey Anne had her first tour of Disney Springs! We mainly relaxed and enjoyed time as a family.

Aubrey Anne meets Pluto!

Christmas

Christmas was a very special time, connecting with family! My family spent 3 days at a cabin and it was such a rich time! The highlight for both of us was getting to reconnect with siblings after being in Uganda for over a year. It was also a time of anticipation of our baby bubs at the time!

We took a walk.

Thank-you all for your love and support while we were back in the US. We enjoyed getting to catch up with so many of you! We felt so incredibly blessed by all of your kindness! We also did some support raising. We want to thank all of you for your financial support!

Love,
Eric, Lauren, and Aubrey

Aubrey is two months old!

Prayer requests:

1. The uncertainty of Coronavirus. There have been no cases in Uganda. However, we don't know how the world economy will affect access to fuel, electricity, supplies, etc. here. 
2. As we continue to settle and adjust as parents here, away from grandparents and family.
3. For our work in the community (more coming on that next later).

Praises:

1. Safety as we traveled back to Uganda last month.
2. Financial support that is meeting our needs.
3. Protection over our house and property while we were away.