Our Mountain Meanderings

We're Home!!!

2010-12-14T00:43:00.000-09:00

We're finally home!

Miracles never cease!

2010-11-30T23:31:00.000-09:00

Believe it or not, we've crossed the finish line on our adoption fundraising!
Please allow me the privilege of bragging on our God and blessing your heart with a testimony to His ability to provide for our every need by checking out this post on our adoption blog: Finish Line.

Tee Shirt Fundraiser to bring Karis Home!

2010-11-15T23:35:00.001-09:00

We really didn't expect to need another fundraiser to finish our adoption process, but we do.

Airline fares are not nearly as low now as they were last month...we're looking at $2900 per person. Ouch!
Add to that our in-country expenses of about $1300, plus Karis' visa for $400, and we're looking at $7500!

Taking into account some funds that remained in our adoption account and some gracious gifts from friends this past week, and we have $1945 of that.

Still...we need $5555. And if we do have embassy next week, which remains unseen until Wednesday, we may need to raise that money in just TWO DAYS.

So, I ask you to hop on over to our adoption blog, and check out the fundraiser info in the right sidebar. We have some awesome long-sleeved t-shirts designed by none other than Rebecca Litteer and digitized by Eric Wood!

And if you decide you don't need another shirt, your donation is appreciated just as much. Thank you for being a part of bringing Karis home!

Design on brown long-sleeve tees...just $20 plus $5 s/h!

"Just Like Starbucks" Pumpkin Spice Latte

2010-11-13T17:01:00.000-09:00

This is one of my favorite recipes of the season!
At the fraction of the cost of stopping off at Starbucks for one, you can enjoy the creamy goodness right at home in your jammies in front of the fire! (Um, purely hypothetical scenario...)

I can't take any credit for it; I originally found it at prairiecotttagerose.blogspot.com!
Without further ado...

Ingredients:
2 c. milk
2 T. canned pumpkin
2 T. sugar or sugar substitute-adjust to taste
2 t. vanilla extract
1/2 t. pumpkin pie spice
1/2 c. strong brewed coffee (or 1/4 c. espresso)

Directions:
In a saucepan, stir together milk, pumpkin, and sugar. Cook and stir over med. heat until steaming. Remove from heat, stir in vanilla and pumpkin pie spice, transfer to blender and process for 15 sec. or until foamy. (The whole blender step can be skipped and just whisked in the pan with no loss in taste).

Pour into a large mug (or more if you decide to share), 1/2 full. Add the coffee or espresso on top. (Or, if you're like me and decide to serve to a large number of people for a special occasion, it can just as easily be doubled or tripled and all be mixed into your crockpot and kept on warm for a few hours). Of course, whipped cream on top with a sprinkle of nutmeg or cinnamon takes it to a whole new level!

Faith Mountain Academy: P.E.

2010-11-09T16:01:00.004-09:00

I love it when I can use P.E. as an excuse to press "pause" on the academics to get out in the mountains to enjoy the sunshine and fresh snow! We have almost a foot of snow already from yesterday, and so we snowshoed up to the sledding hill.

Snowshoeing worked nominally well...we put Anna in Andrew's snowshoes (they're too small for him anyway, and are the same size as Jacob's), and Andrew wore mine and I wore Marks. But poor Anna-she just couldn't walk wide-legged enough to make it work! Before we got too far she was down to just her boots, with me occasionally carrying her under one arm or on my shoulders. (Note to self: If you try to hold a 30 lb. child on your shoulders while maneuvering in snowshoes that are a bit too long with ski poles in one hand and the other stabilizing the child while making it through a foot of fresh snow, you're progress will be slow and your back will yell at you later for it). But Anna was a trooper and made it to the top of the hill, and was rewarded by being pulled all the way back down in the sled!

This might have been the first. time. ever. that Jacob thoroughly enjoyed being out and didn't complain once. His attitude is one of the main reasons I choose snowshoeing over skiing. But even with snowshoeing he can get overwhelmed at times...today was not one of them! He was a great encouragement to Anna, too...I was proud of him!

I think Andrew was already to the top of the hill long before Anna and I even made it to the base of the hill! He pulled the sled up for us, and helped me maneuver it with Anna on the way back down...such a helper all the time.

Ironically, the sledding wasn't even good! They went down once, and I dont' know if it was too powdery or too warm (those don't usually go together, but that's what it was like), and it wasn't worth going down again! But they sure had fun anyway, and the disappointment of the sledding was quickly forgotten when I mentioned "hot apple cider" before heading back down.

With beauty like this, can you blame us for heading out?

Anna and Jacob heading up to the top of the sledding hill.

The view from the top. The small patch of orangish-brown on the left is our house, the church is on the right.

Two Blogs Converged

2010-11-06T12:22:00.002-08:00

I guess that's a modern twist on a classic poem...
I am all caught up on blogging...right up to our trip to Ethiopia! And therein lies my dilemma, which is a great one to have!

See, I've had our adoption blog, Family Woven by Faith, ever since we started this process. The main purpose of the blog was to chronicle God's faithfulness to us in providing every step of the way. But after we got our referral, I wanted to a way to chronicle Karis Lemlem's life as we saw it through pictures. Since it's not allowable to publish pictures of adopted children until after passing court, I created a private blog, Karis Lemlem's Journey to Home, which has since been unveiled now that she is legally our daughter! (If you haven't checked it out yet, you really should-she's the cutest)!

So now, I have tons of pictures of our week in Ethiopia...they're obviously part of our adoption process, yet also part of Karis Lemlem's life! So, I have debated where to post what.

I think, unless anyone out there has a brilliant creative idea for me, that I'd best just merge the two blogs. I've never done that before, but I hear that it can be done, and blogger help can walk me through it! I'm hoping that the dates on posts meld nicely. What's even more remarkable to me, is that within a month from now...the adoption blog will need to just hang out by itself for a while...because Karis will be a part of our daily, Mountain Meandering way of life!!!

So that's to come. Maybe today, maybe not. But I'm very excited to share our time in Ethiopia with you!

Jacob is SIX!

2010-11-04T14:49:00.000-08:00

Oh, how I love this boy! He has an unwavering enthusiasm for life, has more energy than the energizer bunny, feels everything (love, joy, sadness, injustice, and everything inbetween) very deeply, and has an uncanny knack for getting hurt. Thus, I am even more confident in God's great plans for his life, because he's still alive today! He gives the most ferocious hugs, and needs lots of physical contact to feel loved. If he's having a hard day (and is thereby creating a hard day for me), the best response is to pick him up and give him an unending bear hug! He has provided the greatest number of parenting challenges, which provides an equally great number of moments filled with love and joy.

And so we celebrated his 6th birtday with gusto! He was SO excited to be "real 6," as opposed to the "pretend 6" for his party. Chocolate-chip pancakes in the shape of dinosaurs and relief from dishwasher duty started his day off right!

On his birthday, we had Mel and her family and Nana and Papa over for dessert. Jacob opened a few more presents, including from Grandma and Grandpa M. the ever-popular blue jeans (he pretty much refuses to wear any other kind of pants) with cowboy and indian toys, which used to be Mark's, stuffed in the pockets! He was pretty excited!

With a pan of gluten, dairy, and egg-laden brownies for the adults, we were able to stretch the party cake another day!

Happy Birthday, dear Jacob! I love you to infinity, and beyond!

Jacob's Birthday Party

2010-11-04T10:45:00.000-08:00

Jacob had, according to him, "the best birthday ever!" Obviously, Buzz Lightyear is the prevailing interest lately. No, we haven't even seen Toy Story 3 yet! Thanks to my friend and creativity coordinator Amy, we pulled off a little more fun than usual!

One of Jacob's most obvious characteristics? His capacity for pure joy!

Jacob had remembered, from over a year ago, some Buzz Lightyear fleece we saw at Jo-Ann's. And lately he's been complaining of being cold at night...sooooo, my mom made him a new fleece Buzz bedspread! Add to that a set of Buzz Lightyear sheets I found for free, and the boy is set! There were many other gifts that he has been really enjoying...pure joy!

More Berry Picking!

2010-11-03T22:32:00.000-08:00

My Carhartt Kids

2010-11-03T22:24:00.000-08:00

Faith Mountain Academy: Kindergarten Reading

2010-11-03T22:08:00.000-08:00

This was a quick activity I definitely need to repeat! In chalk, I wrote all along the deck the letters whose names/sounds Jacob has been working on. When I gave either the name or the sound, he had to run to and then stop at the correct letter! He LOVED this, and it gave me the evaluation tool I needed while he was doing what he does best...moving!

Refreshingly Modest!

2010-11-03T22:04:00.000-08:00

Anna has a new princess nightgown (love those hand-me-downs!). She likes the princesses. Except for Belle and Ariel. Her reason? "They're showing too much tummy" above their dress!

Those eyes...

2010-11-03T22:01:00.000-08:00

French Braids

2010-11-03T21:57:00.000-08:00

I love that she will sit still to let me do this...it always brings back good memories of doing my nieces' hair whenever we go back east!

Anna and Sophie

2010-11-03T21:55:00.000-08:00

No words needed...I just love this girl, and the dog has some good moments, too!

Jacob's 1st Lost Tooth!

2010-11-01T19:45:00.000-08:00

Jacob was SO INCREDIBLY HAPPY to finally lose a tooth! His front two teeth had been loose for a while...we finally noticed that his two permanent teeth were already coming in behind them! He was a trooper, asking me to pull it out when it was finally so loose that it was bugging him. The second one he pulled out himself the next week!

Vegetable Harvest

2010-11-01T19:43:00.000-08:00

Well, here's the harvest results.
Amy grew this pepper. I put it next to my phone for size comparison. Obviously, not enough sun this summer!

Our potatoes, on the other hand, did quite well! Which, to her credit, Amy actually planted also. I had been saving cut pieces of potatoes in a baggie in the fridge for a few months. After Amy knew me well enough to know that I actually never would get around to planting them and that I really wouldn't be offended if she just did it for me, she planted them in July. Given the short season they had, I was pretty pleased with the resulting six pounds of potatoes! Thanks, Amy!

Berry Picking

2010-11-01T19:39:00.000-08:00

The kids and I spent a few afternoons in our own backyard picking lowbush cranberries. Anna just plops herself right down and just pops in her mouth every berry she picks! The boys did pretty well, and it was a great way to enjoy the autumn sunshine!

A little hike!

2010-11-01T19:37:00.000-08:00

After spending the night in Homer, we drove to Soldotna the next day. Mark had stores he had to work at, so the kids and I spent the day hanging out at Tricia and Jerry's house! We took all of our school with us (reason # 326 why I love homeschooling), and took a hike down to the river for P.E.! It was the most perfect kind of day!

Homer the Jellyfish

2010-11-01T19:33:00.000-08:00

Andrew was so pleased with his find of a baby jellyfish on the beach. We really thought it was dead when he found it, but scooped it up and put it in container filled with sea water, just in case. Sure enough, it was still alive-but not for long. Despite offering it a bug in its water, and even buying a guppy for it, it didn't live more than two days. Andrew was heartbroken, but managed a nice burial for it.

Trip to Homer-Beach

2010-11-01T19:20:00.002-08:00

The kids LOVED the beach. They collected a ridiculous number of shells and special rocks, enjoyed splashing in the waves, and were fascinated by how their footprints would imbed and then disappeared in the sand. This is something we will definitely have to do more of!

Trip to Homer-Picnic

2010-11-01T19:15:00.002-08:00

When Mark was all done with work, we took our picnic dinner and headed down to the beach. The boys ate quickly, because they were excited to check out a beach with sand-unlike the beaches in Seward!

Karis on our minds!

Trip to Homer-Conservation Center

2010-11-01T19:12:00.001-08:00

In late September, Mark had to head to Homer for work, so we all tagged along for a family excursion!
While Mark was at his stores, the kids and I explored the Islands and Oceans Conservation Center...a fun, FREE place to learn and explore for the day!

Farm News

2010-10-19T16:56:00.000-08:00

Faith Mountain Farm is finally, blessedly, down two in the goat department. Several months ago, we had the kids' allergy tests re-evaluated, to find that they should not even be having goat milk. After that point, my enthusiasm for being out in the barn by 6 a.m. to do the milking rapidly declined.

We soon decided that we really could not, should not, continue to feed 4 goats when in reality, we didn't need any of them. So we tried, for a very long while, to sell two of them. We wanted to hang on to Sally because, well, she's my baby, and our top quality goat...and because if we end up needing goat milk for Karis, then we have it. But Snap, poor little wether, was of no use...and we had told the kids we would keep Snickers after the horrendous sobbing debacle of selling all of Butter's kids.

So, it was decided that Butter and Snap were the ones to go, and we finally found a new home for them in Homer! Jacob was a little sad to part with Snap, but it was short-lived; nothing like the tears from selling Butter's kids-I think b/c we at least still have Snickers. So, we're now a 2-goat farm, and happy of it!

September's Weather

2010-10-19T16:47:00.000-08:00

For the doubtful, for those who think it only rains here, for those who lived in Alaska for just a short time and don't remember September and all of its glory, here's the proof...

Ummm...

2010-10-19T16:45:00.000-08:00

Jacob is delighted that now that soccer is over, I allow him to traipse his shinguards all over the house, so he can use them for what he really wanted to use them! These boys, I tell ya...

Creativity Abounds!

2010-10-19T16:40:00.000-08:00

What do you get when you give Jacob a box, scissors, duct tape, and paint? Why, a motorcycle, of course!

A gift

2010-10-19T16:35:00.000-08:00

A picture of my young man and me on my birthday...my children are a gift, for certain!

A-Hunting they will go

2010-10-19T16:31:00.000-08:00

The boys LOVE going moose hunting with Mark. For the record, Mark does not ever truly expect to see or get anything while they are with him. But he does use it as time for scouting, and then gets out early or late without the boys in tow. But hey, when you own camo clothes, what else are you going to do with them? Them boys, they want to go huntin'!

(And also for the record, Mark did not get one this year...around here, you really need a good solid week to go waaaaaay out, which *nearly* necessitates either a boat or a 4-wheeler. Nearly, but not quite).

Kids' Program

2010-10-19T16:25:00.000-08:00

The kids all loved the Kids Own Worship program on Sunday nights this past summer! Though Anna played the shy one during the presentation, Andrew and Jacob were totally into it!

Soccer!!!

2010-10-09T15:28:00.000-08:00

The boys had a blast playing soccer this season. This was Andrew's third season, but a first for Jacob...and it was obvious that it was pure joy for him! He almost always had a grin on his face, and always kept himself in the thick of things! After his first day of school, which included our first soccer practice, his bedtime prayer was "Dear God, thank you that I'm in Kindergarten so that I can do math and play soccer. Amen."

There ended up being 17 kids on the team...and if I had realized there would be that many, I might not have volunteered to coach! I'm not really sure how that happened, but it was fun-for the most part. The boys are already looking forward to next year. I, however, have no plans to coach again...as I will have TWO little girls to keep track of! (This year, my friend Willow watched Anna during practice, and it worked out great)!

Moving on!

2010-10-09T14:50:00.000-08:00

Praise the Lord, we had a successful resolution to the court date fiasco from earlier this week!
As of Friday morning, our court date for Oct. 29th was reconfirmed, and our tickets are booked...and list of what to pack is growing and growing!

So, we're now crazy busy...we leave for Ethiopia two weeks from tomorrow! Today we're out cleaning the yard and putting away outside and mucking out the barn...all in preparation for winter. The snow is halfway down the mountains now, next weekend is Jacob's birthday, and the weekend after that we're leaving! So, lots of outdoor work going on, and I'm so thankful it's a gorgeous, sunny day!

But, while I'm waiting for Anna to finish her lunch to get her down from a nap, I'll try to finish blogging September! (Yes, she's a very slow eater). :)

Lots going on...

2010-10-06T08:30:00.000-08:00

If you haven't hopped over to our adoption blog, there's a lot going on!

We were ecstatic to receive a court date, for Oct. 29th, to go meet Karis and to legally become her parents.

I spent a whirlwind 24 hours searching for flights, confirming, and purchasing our tickets.

And now today, the court date is in question, an unprecedented move, I guess...

Check out all the details here...and please pray with us! Thank you!

Corn, anyone?

2010-09-30T12:40:00.000-08:00

This girl loves her some corn on the cob!

It's a...

2010-09-30T12:20:00.000-08:00

BAT!

School Stuff

2010-09-29T11:00:00.000-08:00

School is in session here at Faith Mountain Academy. We are having a fantastic year thus far...it's amazing how far a little planning can go!

Anna does reading with Jacob every day...this is early on, reviewing letters and their sounds!

It feels like we've been in this astronomy book forever...maybe we have been! But, we're nearly done! Here, we were doing an experiment to see how clouds are formed.

Today's Funnies

2010-09-27T19:45:00.000-08:00

Some completely random sayings around here today:

Anna was struggling to get her underwear on, as they were inside out. "Mom, these aren't getting on me."

We were out berry picking this afternoon, and Anna was plopped down in the middle of a good patch of crowberries. Jacob is picking away, trying to fill his little bucket with enough berries to make berry crumble. He said, "Anna, you could try picking them and NOT eating them."

Tonight Anna was looking through one of her preschool books. With every new page turn, she would exclaim "Oh, this is so easy!", and then show me the page. "Oh, this is so easy, too!" On and on, through the whole book. Perhaps preschool isn't challenging enough for her. :)

Pace Yourself

2010-09-26T01:54:00.000-08:00

If you haven't been here in a while, or even if you faithfully pop in here, a few notes:

I'm sorry I've been so inconsistent about blogging. Unfortunately for our blog writer/blog reader relationship, my primary purpose is simply to record family memories, much as a craftier, more time-endowed mom might scrapbook.
Given my primary purpose, if life is too busy to allow time to blog about said life, blogging gets the back-burner until I either get so overwhelmed at all that has happened that I won't have to time to blog about before NEW stuff happens that I have a crazy spurt of blogging. Or I get so overwhelmed that I just skip everything I'm behind on and start where I'm at. (Today was the former. I did the latter last year, and didn't want a repeat of big chunks of our life missing).
Usually when I have a spurt of blogging, I schedule the posts to publish a few a day, so as to space things out and not get overwhelming if you've just stopped by after a long hiatus.
I did not schedule the posts for this spurt. I'm just movin' em out, lettin' em fly!
I know I rarely do over 30 posts (between 3 blogs) at one time. Over the course of 36 hours would be more precise.
Pace yourself. There's a lot here. Enjoy or skip at your discretion...I'll never know otherwise!
And with that, I am blogging from the current month's events! Yee-haw!

First Day of School!

2010-09-26T01:41:00.003-08:00

The kids were SO excited to start the school year...presents wrapped on the table the first morning helped. :) I can hardly believe that Andrew is in 3rd grade this year! Jacob is in Kindergarten, and Anna is in preschool!

Oh, Jacob...

2010-09-26T01:28:00.000-08:00

...you're the winner of the "first day of school injury" award this year. Granted, we hadn't officially started...I just woke you kids up and kept you on a similar schedule to my plans for our school day. It was an "in-service day," and you all were "in-service" cleaning up the school room with me! Alas, you were enthusiastically running to get your Bible to do your devotions, and you fell into the trunk by the piano. You cried really hard, and I certainly couldn't blame you. *sigh* At least it's not a trip to the ER...

Giraffe Artists!

2010-09-26T01:26:00.000-08:00

No, not giraffes that are artists...just artists that can create giraffes!
While Aunt Becca was working on the giraffe in the girls' room, Jacob decided he needed to make a giraffe, too! He hurried off to get his art set (a well-loved and used gift from Uncle Tom and Aunt Jenny last Christmas), and before we knew it, he was back with an amazing picture of a giraffe!

Anna's New Bed!

2010-09-26T01:24:00.000-08:00

We've been going through Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University class, and it remarkable how God starts providing when you commit to following His money principles.

One basic principle that seems so simple yet can be so difficult: to save money, stop spending money!

Well, some folks Mark knew through Ace were moving out-of-state, and they had a practically brand-new set of solid oak bunkbeds for sale. They knew Mark had kids, so they offered them to him for $350 OBO...would he like to come see them?

Well, he went and looked at them, and we debated offering them $200. Much less than they're worth, but for us at this point, they were not a necessity. Anna would have been fine in her toddler bed until Karis was ready to move out of the crib. So no, we didn't need them, but we could spend $200 on them just because it's a really good deal, right? We prayed about it and felt that we were definitely NOT supposed to buy them...stop spending money, see?

But you know what God did? They came back into the store to ask Mark about them, and he thanked them for the offer but politely declined. So you know what they did? You know the punch line because you see the little girl in her new bed...they GAVE them to us!!!

An added bonus was that at that point, we weren't ready to move them into the house because I wanted to paint the girls' room first, so they would have just sat in the basement. But Amy and Nathan, living in the trailer at the church that we used to live in, were going to be having houseguests from MN, and were trying to figure out how to sleep everyone! Voila! Bunkbeds for them! Thank you, Lord!

Goat Obstacle Course

2010-09-26T01:15:00.000-08:00

One of the reasons we enjoy the fair is that we love the animal barn...it's one of the influences that started us on our path to raising goats!

One of my "goat world" friends organizes a goat obstacle course at the fair, to both raise money for their goat club (which sponsors shows, helps 4H kids, etc), as well as to get more people handling goats! So, Andrew and I entered, and we both really had a great time! The winner in each category wins "half the pot," and as the winner among the adults, I came away with $12! Andrew was one of the youngest in his age bracket, and he did really well!

Andrew's race was recorded in two segments...

Our Day at the Fair!

2010-09-26T00:37:00.000-08:00

It has just become tradition to go the Alaska State Fair in Palmer every year...the kids love it, and there's a lot about it that we enjoy, too!
Andrew especially loves to see his own handiwork and the ribbons he's been awarded in the 4H building!

You can save a lot of money at the fair by making the kids bring their own spending money for any rides they want to go on! And it shortens up your time in that area of the fair...two or three rides and they're done!

It was so fun to watch Anna's expressions, as this was her first year to go on any rides...she certainly was thrilled!

Lovin' Hotel Life!

2010-09-26T00:01:00.000-08:00

One of the many perks of Mark's new job is that we can accompany him on overnight trips if there's no extra charge for us on the hotel tab. On the last Friday of each month, Mark needs to be on a web/conference call meeting at 6 a.m., and be at his Anchorage store by 8 a.m. The only way (well, other than leaving the house at 4 a.m.) to make that happen is to get a hotel in Anchorage for the night prior. We decided to coordinate our trip to the fair for that day to make our "fair day" a little shorter and more manageable.

Andrew reading a bedtime story...

"There were three in the bed and the little one said..."

Breakfast is easy! Paper bowls, a box of cereal, and a box of milk!

After we ate breakfast, we moseyed on down to the pool to splash the morning away while Mark was at work! The kids have very fond memories of this weekend!

"The Whistlers"

2010-09-25T23:18:00.000-08:00

During the drive to Anchorage on our way to the State Fair, Andrew took it upon himself to teach his brother and sister how to whistle. I remember teaching Andrew how to whistle, and the wondering forevermore why in the world I taught him a way to annoy me. Needless to say, I was not necessarily pleased with the developments being made in the back of the van. They were getting it. They were practicing. They were being cheered on by Andrew. They were...whistling. And they were ever so proud of themselves!

If you need a quick laugh, check out the videos. If the sound of children mustering a whistle around nearly hyperventilating, you may want to skip it. But I dare say that the very last second of the first video of Anna will be worth the annoyance and dark picture...listen carefully as she tries to stop laughing so that she can whistle!

And then they practice some more once we get to the hotel!

Belugas!

2010-09-25T22:33:00.001-08:00

On our way to the State Fair in Palmer at the end of August, we were treated to a beluga whale pod sighting!
It was Anna's first time ever to see them, and the boys were pretty excited, too. Despite the fact that the wind was very cold and blowing very hard, we stopped to watch them for a while!

Of course after the fact, the kids kept singing and singing and singing Raffi's song "Baby Beluga!"

A few weeks after this, I went to Anchorage with just Anna. As soon as Cook Inlet came into view, she was clamoring to see the belugas, and would not be swayed that the white she saw out on the water was just from waves...and she was most disappointed that I wasn't about to pull over to watch for them. It was a relief when she fell asleep for the remainder of the time along the Arm!

Thank you, Nathan and Amy!

2010-09-25T22:04:00.000-08:00

We are so grateful for the friends the Lord gave us this summer. While we knew we were being blessed with a co-laborer for Christ in this building project, we were surprised with the blessing of such amazing friends. We miss you! There were many tears after you left!!!

Trying to stop time!

2010-09-25T21:51:00.000-08:00

More fun times with Nathan, Amy, and the boys in the last week they were here!
Anna still talks about Timmy all the time!

Sharing their mutual love for Toy Story.

Sleepover! We actually managed to swing two sleepovers for the boys in the last week. First Jacob spent the night at their house with Josh while Caleb was here with Andrew...regrettably, no picture! A few days after that, Josh spent the night here with Jacob and Andrew spent the night there with Caleb. It made it more manageable than trying to get four boys to settle down for the night, and I think it made all the more special for them!

Celebrating Amy's birthday!

Campfire

2010-09-25T21:43:00.000-08:00

The last week the Voights were here, it seemed to suddenly dawn on us that hey, it's really their last week here. So, we spent a lot of time together! One evening after having dinner together, we headed down to the lake for a campfire.

These kids have a blast together! They would all run up the hill and try to hide (even Anna started scaling the "cliff"), and then Nathan would sneak around as the "bear" and chase them all down. They played it over and over again!

It was a nice diversion for us, as it was one of Mark's first overnight business trips. But I sure missed having him there for the good time!

And these two boys just seemed particularly photogenic that evening!

An enjoyable campfire on a rare sunny evening!

Anna's Hunting Story

2010-09-25T16:31:00.000-08:00

If you have a minute or five, this is pretty hilarious. This girl can talk, I tell you. Where she comes up with this stuff is beyond me!

Rainbow Treat

2010-09-25T10:18:00.000-08:00

On our way home from the fair, this is to what we were treated...

Ninilchik State Fair

2010-09-25T10:06:00.001-08:00

Every year, Kenai Peninsula version of the state fair is held in Ninilchik. It's primary emphasis is the 4H program, and the kids all enter their livestock, etc. We've never gone whole-hog (pun intended) with it, but wanted to at least make it down to check it out in case the boys want to enter some of their animals next year.

Andrew is always very proud of his display board (the "goat" one at the top)!

Anna checking out the pigs!

The kids always have a pony ride at the state fair...and for $3 less per kid, I ~~told~~ encouraged them to have their horse ride at this fair instead of at the big state fair!

Had we not gone with Amy and the two older boys, it would have been a little disappointing...but as it was, we at leat really enjoyed the drive down and back!

Play Dates with Emma!

2010-09-25T09:47:00.003-08:00

My friend Melanie was working this summer, so we were supposed to be watching Emma once a week. It didn't always work out that she was coming, but the girls had so much fun together on the days that she came!

Fun with the Voight Boys!

2010-09-25T09:33:00.001-08:00

Happy Birthday, Caleb! The boys were thrilled that you were here for your birthday!

Now if you know Josh and Jacob the way I do (both boys have many, many more examples than I could link here!), you would have been just as nervous about this picture as I was. This simply can't be good...two accident-prone boys climbing on wagon at the top of the hill.

I was the only parent around when the boys (Andrew and Caleb started it) began this activity. My instinct was to halt it before anyone got seriously hurt. So I stopped myself and tried to put myself in Mark's and Nathan's shoes...would they let them do it? Absolutely, they would, and I'm sure they tried something similar themselves growing up!

It was all good...the boys had a blast, and no one got hurt!

Fun with the Nasholds!

2010-09-24T21:41:00.003-08:00

We were delighted to have a visit with Gloria and the boys...though it was bittersweet, knowing that they would be moving to southeast Alaska that very week! I was grateful that Simon needed everyone out of the house to get some painting done as they prepared their house for leaving...it was the perfect opportunity to have them come spend the night!

The boys have always played so well together...like here, and here!

Sadly, with the boys' allergies, our typical menu of homemade pizza couldn't be had...but we enjoyed our time regardless!

The boys were thrilled to have a sleepover...though Anna was disappointed that Daniel wouldn't be sleeping in the crib in her room, too!

We will miss you guys SO MUCH!!!

Swimming Lessons

2010-09-24T17:12:00.000-08:00

The kids were all in swimming lessons for two weeks in August. Anna had been greatly looking forward to having her first lessons, after watching her brothers for the past few years! She did great...no fear whatsoever!

All of them made great progress, and we plan on trying to get to the pool more frequently for P.E.!

Home from Africa!

2010-09-24T16:50:00.000-08:00

We were so excited to have Aunt Becca home from her missions trip to Uganda and Ethiopia! We pulled out the laptop right there in the parking garage to look at all the pictures and videos she had for us of Karis! The kids then watched the videos over and over again in the van!

Mom, dad, and the kids and I all went to pick her up from the airport, and Tricia and Jerry met up with us at our house. Mark was anxious to see the videos of Karis, too, and Anna couldn't get enough of her baby sister!

And of course there were cool presents, too!

Grillmaster

2010-09-24T16:43:00.000-08:00

Andrew was my kitchen helper on a night I planned on grilling. He was all over it, and did really well!

(In an effort to get some one-on-one time with each of the kids, we've instituted the "Kitchen Helper" routine. It has worked fabulously...during the summer they helped with all the mealtime preparations, and during the school year they're just helping with dinner. But, it also alleviates SO MANY potential arguments! Who gets to choose which book to read before Anna's nap? Who gets to choose the bedtime story? Whose turn is it to pray? Who gets to be my calendar helper? You get the idea! It's always the kitchen helper...which rotates through in order Monday through Saturday, so I can always remember)!

Summer Sundays

2010-09-24T16:36:00.001-08:00

All summer long, we've been holding a fellowship/Bible study night on Sunday nights. After a potluck/cook-out, the kids loved having "Kids' Own Worship" in the "Worship Wagon," (previously known as ugly old bus). While they had their worship time, the adults were involved in either Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University, led by Nathan and Amy, or a Bible study that Bill led. Regrettably, almost every Sunday brought rain, so we weren't able to break out the bonfire and volleyball each night as much as we thought we would. But, it was definitely an outreach to the kids in the community, as we soon had over 20 kids attending!

Ahoy, Matey!

2010-09-24T16:29:00.000-08:00

To wrap up the library summer reading program, the librarian hosted a luncheon at the library, with pirate craft. I love the pirate expressions in the group photo...Andrew, Caleb, Josh, and Jacob tried really hard to get a good "ARGH!" in there!

Jacob Conquers!

2010-09-24T16:25:00.003-08:00

Conquers the monkey-bars, that is!

These are the chickens...

2010-09-24T16:21:00.000-08:00

...that are now in my freezer. Sadly, there aren't as many of them still there as I would have hoped. Thirty-six chickens isn't going to get us far. Two Saturdays of butchering. Andrew, Mark, and I make quite a butchering team. Andrew fetches the chicken from the pen, puts it in the cone, then cuts the jugular and holds its feet while it bleeds out. After he cuts of the head with the pex pipe cutters, he gives it to me to take off the feet and skin it. Then Mark guts it. Times 36. Funny, I somehow didn't take any pictures other than this. Go figure. Thanks to my mom for watching Anna the first Saturday, and thanks to Keith for coming to help the second Saturday...and actually Jordan and Kindra got roped in for a bit all in the name of "learning how to do it for your own chickens." Ha!

Ready for Snow

2010-09-24T16:14:00.000-08:00

Why else would she be turning two strips of cardboard into skis?
She did ask me just the other day, "Mommy, why don't we ever do winter?"

Apparently, she doesn't have much memory from just months ago.
"Oh, we do, Anna, we do. Trust me, it's coming."

"End of an Era"

2010-09-24T15:58:00.003-08:00

Otherwise known as "Mark has a new job!"

Mark had been working at Ace Hardware for 7 years. Seven long years.
When we first moved here, he was working construction, until he injured his rotator cuff. Then he started at Ace. After about three years there, he was promoted to manager, and had been filling that role very well, earning the respect of all of his employees and customers.

For the most part, he liked his job. But the un-most parts were really, really stressful. There is much that could be said about why it became a very difficult place to work, but I will refrain from being unkind.

Needless to say, when a job opportunity with Hillman Group came along, we were both cautiously optimistic. Mid-June, he applied for the position of sales rep for the state of Alaska...with the backing of the Hillman employee he would be replacing. The end of June and beginning in July had Mark jumping through hoops of paperwork, interviews, and background checks. And had us praying, and praying, and praying some more...along with beseeching everyone to pray along with us that if this was God's will, that he would get the job.

There was much rejoicing when his new boss called! Well, rejoicing at our house. Not so much rejoicing down at Ace. Anyway.

He started in August with the current sales rep, learning the ropes for a month. Hillman Group sells fasteners to hardware stores...and the sales rep is responsible for visiting each store at specificed intervals (big, busy stores once a week, some stores only every other week, etc) to inventory their stock and then place the appropriate order to fill their supply. He has a handy-dandy machine that allows him to do this in relatively little time.

He then places their order online. He communicates with store managers. He knows exactly how to best service them, because, well, he was in their shoes for six years! He tries to set up new accounts with new places of business, which are a more time consuming...but the commissions reflect the effort.

So far, it's been fantastic. He has a company car, and the company pays for all of the maintenance, gas, and insurace, etc. Nice. They have great benefits. He is much less stressed out. And while he's been gone overnight a few times (every other week he flies to Fairbanks, and he's setting up a new store in Ketchikan), for the most part he's home much more. He leaves about the same time as he would any other day...actually sometimes not leaving till 7 p.m. Drives to his store(s) for the day...almost all are done in under 2 hours. And then he drives home, places the order online, and is relatively done for the day. Nice. It's working for us. God is faithful to provide what we need, when we need it!!!

Who knew I could write such a lengthy post about one picture of a hat in the trashcan? :)

End-of-School-Celebration

2010-09-24T13:51:00.000-08:00

We finally got around to celebrating the end of 2nd grade for Andrew (hence the 2 candles)! We had attempted a party of sorts with Amy and Nathan's boys, but invariably someone got sick and we never got around to scheduling it again. So, on a rare nice day, I opted to classify our picnic dinner as the celebration, and served ice cream cones for dessert! Phew...one month of a break before plunging into a year of 3rd grade/kindergarten/preschool/newborn!!!

A Decade

2010-09-23T22:34:00.000-08:00

As I finally wrap up blogging about life that happened in July, I would be remiss to not note that July marked for us a DECADE.

Not of marriage...we just wrapped up year 12 for that in June. :)

But we followed God's leading to this great state of Alaska exactly 10 years ago. Ten years of adventure, working, moving, ministering, struggling, succeeding, raising children, building the church, hopefully touching lives with the love of Jesus Christ...for the past decade.

Most of the time it has flown by. We can't imagine living anywhere else (well, recently that might only be partly true, as Ethiopia is definitely on our hearts and minds. But you know what I mean)!

I think I feel old. But God is faithful!

For mommy

2010-09-23T22:24:00.000-08:00

From Jacob. Love that boy!

More Hiking!

2010-09-23T21:44:00.000-08:00

We hit the trail with Amy and the boys again mid-July...Primrose Creek Trail. I had never hiked this trail before, and really enjoyed it!

Learning to Kayak

2010-09-20T16:22:00.000-08:00

As part of the library summer reading program, "Make a Splash," our librarian invited a kayaking instructor to come and give the kids some basics on kayaking. While they were disappointed to not actually be going in the water (the parents were not upset about this!), they learned some valuable safety tips and how-to's for when they actually get to go kayaking!

Camping is for...

2010-09-20T15:07:00.000-08:00

...football with friends,

campfires and s'mores,

and opening presents...at least when we're camping for Andrew's birthday!

And what camping trip is complete without tearing down the tent-in the rain?

Camping is for...

2010-09-20T14:08:00.000-08:00

...taking a leisurely Saturday afternoon hike on a rare sunny day!

We'd never hiked Skilak Lake Trail before, so we decided to try it. It wasn't the best choice for a hot summer day...it's so open and weedy along the top ridge that there's no respite from the heat. But we had fun anyway!

The view from the top!

Camping is for...

2010-09-06T22:23:00.001-08:00

...running. And sweeping out the tent after your brothers.

And camping is for running around with camp chairs on your body, and pretending you're a turtle and other such things only Jacob's imagination can supply.

Camping is for playing in the water on a rare sunny day!

Andrew's latest post

2010-09-02T14:02:00.000-08:00

Andrew has up his first blog post of the school year...considering that we're only in the middle of day 2, I think we're doing pretty well! Please hop over and take a look (I promise it's a VERY quick read), and if you have a second, please leave him a comment! He will torment me mercilessly checking his blog for comments if he doesn't get any...thanks!

http://andrewwritesablog.blogspot.com/

It's so Great...

2010-08-24T15:09:00.001-08:00

...Andrew's UP to eight!!!
We can hardly believe that our first darling baby boy is EIGHT YEARS OLD, which leaves us feeling a tad older than we like!

This year, Andrew didn't have any specific theme in mind for his party...for which I was grateful. So I thought of the cake idea and surprised him, and he was delighted with his UP cake, though why I do these things to myself I'll never know.

Andrew and my neice Mykenna are just one year and two days apart, so some years we plan a family party together. Andrew wanted to go camping, so we chose a campsite closer to Soldotna, and had a party at Kimberly's Friday night. It was a fun time, and Andrew loved his gifts (including the Wii that Tricia and Jerry had already given him).

It was also everyone's first chance to see pictures of Karis! We had just gotten her referral THAT DAY, so we were VERY late for the party (who can pack for a weekend of camping when you've just had a new baby?!?), and also had gone through baby clothes to send some things to Karis with Rebecca, who was leaving for Uganda and Ethiopia the very next day! A joyful day, all the way around! Happy Birthday Andrew...you have a baby sister!

Random Jacob-ness

2010-08-19T17:51:00.000-08:00

We were hiking three days before Andrew's birthday.
We passed by this puddle.
Jacob says, "Look, mom...that's what Andrew will be!"
I hope he never loses his different way of looking at things!

Jacob has come to love inch worms this summer. At times, he will have over 20 of them all over his arms and hands and shoulders. He calls them his friends. I say "that's nice, dear."

Manitoba Mountain Hike

2010-08-19T17:16:00.000-08:00

The 2nd week of July, our tot time group headed up the Manitoba Mtn. Trail. Lots of littles!

We hiked to a great overlook, where we stopped to have our lunch. The hillside was covered in fireweed and false hellebore, and all the kids just started running and throwing themselves into it! They had a huge circle of it trampled down, and the moms had fun imagining what other people would imagine went on there to make it all flat! UFO's landing or a herd of moose bedding down were the likely options! It was akin to a corn field in the midwest, I suppose!

It was such a beautiful hike...I had no idea that Mills Creek was this gorgeous!

The view from the top, overlooking Summit Lake!

Jacob the Builder

2010-08-19T15:41:00.000-08:00

He has been so proud of his Lincoln Log buildings lately!

Crescent Creek

2010-08-19T15:37:00.000-08:00

Early in July, Amy and I took all the kids hiking at the Crescent Creek trail. Every summer our Tot Time group has scheduled hikes...and this year, I would have been hiking alone quite a bit if it weren't for Amy and the boys!

Bye, Brookie...

2010-08-19T15:30:00.000-08:00

One of the kids' favorite friends, Brookie, moved away this summer. They still ask about her all the time...but we made sure to have a really fun playdate before she left!

The cupcakes spelled out "We will miss you!"

Construction Fun

2010-08-19T15:03:00.000-08:00

What do you get when you have a responsible skidsteer operator, a skidsteer at the church construction site, and a bunch of people still hanging around after Bible study and fellowship on a Sunday night?

I'm back, maybe

2010-08-19T12:06:00.000-08:00

I know it has been a long hiatus from this here blog for me. Certainly not on account of lack of things to blog about, as usual.

Since we got our referral for our baby girl on July 16th, our life has pretty much revolved around her, as much as is possible half a world away. The best way to stay in touch while in Ethiopia is via facebook (go figure!), so while Rebecca was there the last two weeks of July, and since then with other yahoo group friends from our agency who have been traveling, facebook is the place to be! I obviously don't have time to keep more than one web life going at at time!

We've gotten several great updates on Karis, and tons of pictures that I've been blogging on a private blog. All those pictures will be made available as soon as she is legally our daughter...which is regrettably not until at least early October.

Right now I'm out watching the kids and the goats playing in the yard, enjoying what is perhaps the 2nd sunny day we've had since I don't know when. I remember we had a hot sunny day for Andrew's birthday (7/17), but even that turned into a downpour by night...which was lovely for camping, I assure you.

At any rate, I'm trying to have pictures and "for the record" posts forthcoming for both here and the church project...to get them posted before school is here and I'm more overwhelmed than I am now, which is pretty hard to imagine.

Summer Funnies!

2010-07-25T01:19:00.000-08:00

Andrew and Jacob may very well be having the best summer of their lives, as they so thoroughly enjoy playing with Caleb and Josh (Nathan and Amy's older boys).

The other day we had a rare hot sunny day...it warranted breaking out the swimming pool, a.k.a. the baptism tank. I started the video camera because the boys were actually "playing baptism." But what I caught on camera instead could very well be a finalist on Funniest Home Videos! All I can say is that Jacob and Josh are two peas in a pod...or something!

Andrew's Baptism!

2010-07-24T15:05:00.003-08:00

One of my favorite parts of church life is the privilege of seeing people get baptized...people who have started a new life in Christ, and they choose to follow Jesus publicly! We had six people who have been wanting to get baptized...and Andrew is one of them! We were able to have a baptism service on June 27th...and it was special to have so many family member here for it.

Andrew has been wanting to be baptized since shortly after he made the decision to trust Christ as His Savior. We decided to have him wait a year or so to make sure he realized the significance of the decision to be baptized...that he truly did want to obey Christ and follow Him. We have been so grateful for the spiritual development we have seen him go through, and he truly has been ready to make a public proclamation of his faith and desire to follow Christ!

We are so proud of the young man of God Andrew is becoming...his cake for the occasion has Luke 2:52 referenced...growing in wisdom, stature, and in favor with God and man-just like Jesus did as a boy!

Now here you can take a look at the trouble it causes to have the baptismal water be only 43 degrees! The video of Andrew's friend Lane being baptized is nearly identical...nothing like trying to baptize an octopus that's clinging to you!

And Lane's baptism, just because it's pretty hilarious, too!

Float Plane Day

2010-07-24T14:38:00.000-08:00

The theme of the summer reading program at the library is "Splash Into Reading." So our wonderful volunteer librarian has planned a water-themed program for each month of the summer!

The kids all enjoyed having one of the instructors at the local float plane school teach them all about the planes and piloting. Then they all got to sit in the plane and move the rudders and check out the controls.

There were about 15 kids there, and they all took their turns. Andrew liked being able to sit in the pilot's seat (he has taken a flight before in a float plane for this 4th birthday).
Anna wasn't shy at all about climbing in there and talking with the pilot.

And Jacob? He climbed in but wasn't content to just sit there! No, he wanted to stand right up and see all there was to see! That is so indicative of Jacob's personality!

Craziness

2010-07-23T11:19:00.000-08:00

I simply can't believe how quickly this summer is going by, and how much is being packed into one summer.
New church building!
New daughter!
New job for Mark!
Mark starts his new job on Aug. 2nd...and it's all good! Today is his last Friday...next Thursday will be his last day! Then we'll spend next Friday in the basement getting his home office/basement squared away a bit. And possible butchering chickens. But that's another post.

Today, three of my four kiddos are sick. Anna and Jacob were fighting each other and were in general being horrendously behaved all yesterday! I should have known...Anna woke up from her nap with a fever and a headache/tummyache, and Jacob started it in the middle of the night.
And Karis is fighting an upper respiratory tract infection with a bad cough...I know that snuggles and smoothing their foreheads doesn't actually help make kids better, but I would feel so much better if I were there to comfort her while she's sick. And since I was there, I'd just bring her home, of course! :)
Prayers for my kiddos would be appreciated!

WE HAVE A BABY GIRL!!!!!

2010-07-18T23:35:00.000-08:00

Just in case you don't follow our adoption blog, there's joy and excitement to spare around here...we have a baby girl!
She is precious, and I so wish I could share pictures with you! But, she's not legally our daughter until we pass court in Ethiopia, so until then we can't post her picture publicly.
More details here!

Long-awaited visit!

2010-07-16T01:19:00.001-08:00

Over the river and through the woods, to our house Grandmother came!
We thoroughly enjoyed our visit back in June with Mark's parents and with Joe and Marge...though they came with the work team, they were able to spend a few days ahead of time with us, and they stayed in our basement apartment. So we were able to spend more time with them than we otherwise would have with as busy as the team was! (See all of 'Week 2' posts here for proof)!

Time with Grandpa...

and Grandma...

and Uncle Joe...

and somehow we didn't have pictures of the kids with Aunt Marge! :(

We did all go to Exit Glacier together, which was fun! I'll post another good picture from that day in another post!

Fun visit!

2010-07-10T12:50:00.000-08:00

While Mark's parents' team was here, we also had a unexpected but delightful visit with some friends from West Grove!
When we got married, Mark's dad was pastoring the church at West Grove, and Mark and I were youth leaders, blessed with an amazing group of kids!

Now, Lisa M. is leading the youth group, and she and Melissa R. led the group up here on a missions trip with our friend Scott Kirby! They had hoped to work with us this summer, but the nature of our construction project doesn't work well for a group of teenagers. Both Lisa's and Melissa's daughters had been a part of our youth group while we were there, and it was special to have them drive down from Anchorage to visit with us for the evening!

An evening with Timmy!

2010-07-08T13:08:00.000-08:00

While the team and Nathan's family went on the wildlife cruise last week, Anna and I stayed behind to watch Timmy! (Trust me, it was far more fun for Anna and Timmy to be playing at home than stuck on a boat for 4 hours). And Timmy was such an angel-baby, that it was more fun for me, too!

Vacation Bible School

2010-07-08T13:01:00.000-08:00

Every summer, Vacation Bible School is a highlite for our kids...and this year was no exception! The kids loved having Grandma and Aunt Marge there, and the program this team pulled off was top-notch! They used the Wordless Book colors, so that each day, the Gospel was presented solidly.

As a pastor's wife, I'm delighted that the parents in the community had such a quality program for their children through our church. As a mom, I'm blessed that the kids are still singing the worship songs as they go about their day, and remember the lessons they learned.

Andrew did a great job with him memory verses, as usual, and loved the team and the missionary story the best!

It was exciting to see Jacob "finally" start to bloom in this kind of setting. He can so often find it difficult to change the beat of his drummer to match the beat going on around him, but he really enjoyed VBS and even put a lot of effort (which worked!) into his memory verses. And he LOVED the missionary story that was told in segments each day. It was so sweet, but sad, when he was getting sick with a cold on Friday and I debated keeping him home. "But mom, I need to find out what happens to TiPhom!" (I'm sure I don't have the spelling correct, but that was the character they were following in the story). Followed up by genuine tears and a begging session to be allowed to go that day...he's a different boy than he was a year ago! (Phew!)

It was almost odd to see Anna so thoroughly involved in VBS...she's certainly no baby anymore! I had other pictures of her doing the crafts and such, but I just love these pictures of her at the closing program, singing her little heart out! She still sings "Mighty to Save" all the time!

It has been fantastic partnering with this team this week...they are greatly missed!

If you build it...

2010-07-05T23:07:00.003-08:00

...they will come!

This is perhaps our busiest summer yet, as we're in full-swing on our church construction project. Remember when we moved in to this place? The whole point of our church buying this property is finally coming to fruition...and it's downright exciting!

At any rate, it's enough fodder for it's own blog, of course! Keep track of what's going on at our new church blog!

I'll post a link in my sidebar tomorrow...for now, enjoy reading how God is moving in big ways in a tiny town!

Not like me, I know

2010-06-29T13:30:00.003-08:00

To those of you who hop on this here blog about once a week and expect one (or less!) new posts to read, I would like to apologize.

I know it's not like me to have a slew of new posts all in one day. It's just that summer isn't going to slow down any, and I'm trying to also start a church blog to follow our building project this summer.

Which means...catch up, and quick!!!!

Summer Sundays!

2010-06-29T13:26:00.000-08:00

This summer, we're trying a new format with church. Every Sunday evening, we've been having a potluck at 5 p.m., followed by adult Bible study/Kids' worship time at 6 p.m. in lieu of morning Sunday school, and then a campfire and volleyball after that. So far, it's been hugely successful, and we have 2 or 3 families participating regularly that don't normally. So, we pray for sweet fellowship, encouragement and challenge for each other, and for conversations that will lead others closer to Christ. And it's a lot of fun, too!

While Andrew's away...

2010-06-29T13:20:00.000-08:00

...Jacob and Anna will spend a lot of time with the new easel!

These two spent hours on their art...Anna would paint while Jacob made his masterpieces on the chalkboard...featured here are Buzz Lightyear and his jack-o-lantern (which is curious to me, as we don't acknowledge Halloween)-it even has a tongue!
Then while Anna was napping, Jacob would have his turn at painting.

And they'll have slumber parties, too! They talked about Andrew a lot, and were so glad to see him when he came home from camp. But I think they had fun, too!

Andrew Goes to Camp!

2010-06-29T13:10:00.000-08:00

Though it was a very hard decision for us to make, we knew it would be great for Andrew to head to Bible Camp this summer! Solid Rock Bible Camp is only an hour away from us, and they have 3-night/2-day camp sessions for jr. campers. Add to that his good buddy Lane heading to camp the same week, and it was bound to happen!

Those boys started counting down the number of days till camp about a month out!
They both wanted to go to Wagon Train camp...instead of cabins, they're in covered wagons circled around a fire pit, and they got to work with the horses each day. The fun thing for them and Jacob and Anna, too, is that they deliver the campers to their campsite via horse-drawn carriage.

He did give his brother and sister a sweet hug good-bye (well, me too, I guess), and then was off into his cabin with scarcely a look back! It gave my heart some reassurance after I met his counselor...who is a sophomore at Messiah College! It was quite strange, thinking that 14 years ago, that was Mark and I...heading to a Bible Camp up north from our respective Christian colleges for the summer!

Andrew had a fabulous time...though he sure was happy to see us when we picked him up Saturday morning!

One of these days, we'll get some of his pictures scanned (he took a disposable camera with him) and he'll write a blog post about camp. The funniest thing to me was this statement he made after I asked him if he stayed warm enough in his PJ's and sleeping bag each night.
"I didn't wear my pajamas. I just slept in my clothes. Actually, I stayed in my clothes you dropped me off in on Wednesday until they made us change this morning."

He was one dirty boy!

Summer on Faith Mountain Farm

2010-06-29T12:38:00.005-08:00

Snap and Snickers are growing up fast...though Snickers is still small enough to play Houdini on a regular basis.

Turkey 1 and Turkey 2 (or turkeys #4 and #5, depending on the day and how my children have been behaving)...we inherited them, and they'll just hang out until we have butchering day. They are particularly fond of watermelon rind, and so have become quite spiritual in looking forward to Sundays when we have a potluck at our house...and invariably at least one watermelon gets brought to the festivities. They would become more spiritual yet, I'm sure, if they realized buthchering day is just around the corner...

Our new rooster! He's quite full of himself, and has fit in nicely. His cock-a-doodle-doo-er is a little rough, but it works. Thankfully, he's more of the mid-morning type. Once I have a pen free, I'll try to get one of our hens to go broody to hatch out a new laying flock.

And then our Cornish Rock cross chicks...which our now much larger and not nearly as cute. We intended to raise a batch of just 25, but our 4H leader ended up with more than she wanted, so out of sympathy we took another 25. We may raise another batch later this summer...my goal is to have at least one chicken per week in the freezer this year.

This girl may or may not be pregnant. We bred Sophie to a beautiful, 200 lb. Newfoundland/Pyrenees mix over Memorial Day weekend. At first I was pretty sure she was bred successfully...now we'll just wait and see. If she is, then we have a due date of Aug. 1st for puppies!

Jessie is growing like a weed, too. Last week we cleaned out the goat stall (and when I say "we," I mean "Mark"), and with the absence of so much bedding in the stall next door, she managed to dig her way out...thanks, Kelly, for capturing her before Sophie did!

Last summer I said that we were focusing on the animal-end of the farm, and that next year I would work on the gardening end. Well, I'm going to have to say the same thing again this year. I'm still battling my elbow injury from the accident in December, so any repetitive motion (like digging...and shoveling out goat stalls) is too much. I did buy several plants that were dying a slow and painful death in my basement, and I'm so grateful that the ladies on our latest work team actually got them in the ground! But more on that later...

Random Summer-ness

2010-06-29T12:22:00.000-08:00

Despite the size disparity, Anna manages Sophie quite well!

Sleepy swinger...if her brothers are outside when she wakes up from her nap, she wants out immediately-even if she's not quite awake yet!

Doesn't everyone use the door off their Rubbermaid shed for a sunning board?

Does anyone know what kind of bird this is? He and his rather gray, drab looking mate have been hanging out quite a bit...we quite enjoy watching them nibble on the dandelion fuzz!

Oh, Brother!

2010-06-29T12:10:00.000-08:00

Anna has some pretty good brothers...most of the time!

(Thanks for the pics, T)!

Look Who's 3!!!

2010-06-29T10:42:00.003-08:00

I can still hardly believe that my baby girl is three years old. It helps that most of the time she's keeping this household in line. But, still.

We had a delightful party with friends and family, a delightful PINK party, as per her request! You know how you ask your kids what they want on their birthday cake, and they say something like "a rocketship" or "a firetruck?" Not Anna. What do you want for your cake, sweetheart? Pink! I must say, it made my life a lot easier. Add some pink balloons and pink streamers and you've got a happy little girl.

This girl loves her some new clothes! And thankfully she received quite a few new outfits, which were sorely needed.

It was such fun to watch her open her presents...she was so excited about each one! Happy Birthday, my dear one...I pray God will bless you with joy and safety* this coming year!
Lots more pics (and maybe some duplicates, as I got most of these from Tricia!) over at her blog!

*While she was two, she fell and chipped her tooth, fell and got a gash on her cheek that needed gluing (for stitches) on her cheek, received a shiner from getting in the trajectory line of something her brother threw, and fell off the toilet and broke her arm. Yes, we're praying for a SAFE year 3 for her!