Snapshot Summary #32

Saturday
19 - February, 2011

Air soft mechanic in the making.

Gun Rebuilt!
Yes he did get it back together again, then he found a big spring that should have gone inside the gun. Oops!

Saturday
26 - February, 2011

Tea Time!

Tuesday
1 - March, 2011

Workin' Out with Mom


And then it's dress up time!












Thursday
3 - March, 2011

Waiting for prayer before diggin' into breakfast

Dress up is for every day!

Sunday
6 - March, 2011

After a hard day of hiking!


Sweet Chloe is PLUM Tuckered OUT!


Saturday
12 - March, 2011

We got to see Tim and Heidi's new sweet pea! Rachel is already 6 days old in this picture!! Holding her brought floods of emotions. There is absolutely nothing in this world that compares with the tender sweetness of a new born baby.


Big Sister takes a snooze


Sunday
13 - March, 2011

I just had to take a picture of Chloe in the dress Aunt Jo made for Mary E. so many years ago. It's a bit small on Chloe now, but so so cute, especially with the galoshes - don't ya think!


No nap means you fall asleep during family time.


Precious Asleep!


Wednesday
16 - March, 2011

Chloe

Abram and Banjo

Abigail

As you can see the weather has turned beautiful! It has gotten a bit warmer each day this week. Not quite barefoot weather (depending on who you ask) but sunny and 60 today!

Thursday
17 - March, 2011
A visit with Great Grandma Ruth



I couldn't decide which picture of Grandma and Chloe I liked best so I included all of them!

Cob and Grandma got in a good game of Upwords. Grandma amazes me. She plays for blood, with macular degeneration you think the game would be challenging for her to see but you would never know it!

While they were duking it out in the Upwords game I took the little ones to the river walk. They brought their bikes/trikes/skates/scooters and off we went. About half way through the sky spat a bit of rain on us so we turned back.

Suspended by Grace

We Worked on two main things in our home over the coarse of last week. #1 put off grumbling = put on thankfulness/rejoicing in accordance with Philippians 2:14,15. and #2 put off selfishness = put on serving one another in accordance with Philippians 2:3,4.

There are many life cycles. Our family cycles through high and low times. Times when the pendulum is bouncing a steady rhythme. Drew and I setting everything in motion for better or worse by our action or reactions to LIFE.

The family hums along harmoniously ~ Drew leading ~ Me respecting him ~ US working together, clicking together, the tribe in between us being bounced along, trained ~ memorizing scripture together ~ hum, hum, melodious, harmonious, steady swinging. We rise to the peak of the cycle AND THEN. . .

I'm not sure where the discord begins. We slip, slightly at first, an unkind word unchecked. I'm just too tired or too distracted to deal with it.

Slip

Slide

Down

Worse still, I am the one speaking the unkind word, thinking a wrong thought, assuming ill motives of another.

Whoa

Slip

Slip

Slide

The pendulum

S

L
O
W
S

lowers slows almost to standing

How did it get to that slowest of all slows, our melody engulfed in discontentment, selfishness and complaints ~ unrecognizable discord?

I call out to God the Father in the name of His Son "I need you! Help me obey Your Word, I want to 'rejoice always', I want to be 'quick to listen and slow to speak', I want to be a servant leader."

I read that portion of scripture to the children and ask, "How can we 'rejoice in the Lord always" and why would we want to?" No one is quite sure how to rejoice but they ALL want peace. We ALL need His peace, HIS PEACE - "guarding our hearts and our minds."

I read on ~ everyone eager to discover how we can have this peace. We discover, as if for the first time the thing I have long known and am ashamed I have not been doing. WE MUST "dwell on these things". . . HIM. Our minds MUST be filled Up to Brimming . . . Abiding in . . . Meditating on . . . Be completely saturated With "whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, things that are excellent and worthy of praise." Philippians 4:8. I pose the question, "Where is the single place we can find things that are true, honorable . . .?"


"The Bible"

"God's Word"

"Scripture"

three answers cascade on top of each other!

YES and then we look up John 1 "In the beginning was the WORD and the word became flesh"

It's ALL HIM ~ we recommit to memorize, meditate on the Word, on Him and the pendulum steadies as we come full circle.

Poetry

The children have been working on poetry and I found this rhyming dictionary site that has been very helpful. I need motivators along the way - deadlines - you know, that sort of thing. . . so when a friend told me about a poetry contest it motivated me to give the children a crash course on poetry. We got "Poetry for Dummies" from the library as well as some works of poetry by famous poets and off we went. Their poems have great potential! hm hm that is a polite way of saying they do need some work but as the contest deadline was today they will have to do. I do wish I would have started them a bit earlier so we could have revised them A LOT more.

Suspended
The Hammock is light
In the breeze it sways
I feel I’m in flight
Warmed by the sun’s rays

A bird sings near by,
Perched up in a tree
High up in the sky
A white cloud I see
By Mary
False Banquet

Horses graze, gust howls, Far-off cougar growls.
Onward it lurks, the odor is meat, on it goes with no sound of its feet.
Like a mouse pursued by tabby, comes cougar petulant, crabby.
The odor draws near, he licks his lip; banquet approaches to taste, to rip.

But as he prepares, to spring, a sound, a neigh, horse does bring.
Like a flash of thunder, storming the prairie, away dash the horses, the wind does carry.
Off prowls the horror of the plane, and as for courage it remains vain.
Long legs sweeping, sweeping along, hooves sounding as a great palace gong.

The hooves ring the planes, which the cougar once reigned, now he knows; it’s no longer his domain.
The rabbits are eaten, the prairie dogs too, none remain but the horse for old cat to chew.
Woe to the glutton of old man cat, no longer shall he, be so fat.
He gets thinner and thinner each day; someday he’ll starve, he’ll waste away.
By Jacob

Tough Climb
Snowflakes are falling, mom is asleep, but as for me to the cookie jar I creep.
Up the shelves, quickly I go, silent as a cat, silent as the snow.
Slowly forward, one inch at a time, Oh my, what a very tough climb.
I near the cookie jar, creep, creep, creep, but then BANG! Down I fall in a heap.
By Jacob

The Bad Band

The band begins I plug my ears
And from the crowd come several sneers
But when the drums begin to play
Every one runs away
By Abigail

Snapshot Summary #31

Sunday
13 - February, 2011

Apphia and Cilla in their matching dresses

Davey and Ezra


For the past 12 years Drew and I have been driving 23 miles to church. After a great deal of thought, we have made the sober decision to look for a local church. We hope to find a fit at an assembly in town. Our search begins tomorrow (Feb.20.). Please pray with us as we seek the Lord in this matter.

Wondering if Red Neck would be broody with the baby chicks.She showed NO interest.

Monday
14 - February, 2011

We enjoyed neighbors and friends here for taco's tonight. I hardly had to prepare any food, Laura and Miriam made the majority. The kids enjoyed playing and we enjoyed sweet fellowship and yummy food. The above picture is the product of the children's quiet play during our family time.

Tuesday
15 - February, 2011





Our chicks are already three days old!

Wednesday
16 - February, 2011



Chloe continues to enjoy reading and singing as her favorite past times!

Thursday
17 - February, 2011



Baruch's day to help clean out the chicks pen.

Friday
18 - February, 2011

Friday snack - home made cookies!! Yummy Mommy!

Happy Valentine’s Day! 2010 flew by in a flash! In November we made an addition to the family - BANJO. The children were thrilled that we made good on our commitment to get a dog once Chloe was potty trained. Banjo, a black and white Havanese, seems a perfect fit for us. He has plenty of energy for a long walk, but not so much that he won’t settle down and enjoy someone’s lap. Chloe, however, has taken his presence as a threat and totally regressed on. She is finally (after 3 ½ months) remastering her potty skills – thankfully. Chloe keeps the dog hopping with her commands and doesn’t hesitate to let him know “I’M IN CHARGE”. Banjo isn’t the only thing Chloe aspires to command. We all work hard to not let her get away with disobedience, no matter how cute – and she is quite cute (yes, that is coming from her parents). Abram continues to astound us. His 4 year old brain is in overdrive!! He keeps us on our knees. He asks penetrating questions, unfortunately almost always at bed time (he always has “just one more”). Baruch just turned 7, lost his first tooth, started piano lessons and is constantly modifying his toys to find out how they work and make them “better”. Abigail has a tender heart, loves to dote on Chloe, and seems to be blossoming in her self-confidence. Jacob! We still use the same single word to describe Jacob – excess! There isn’t much about him that couldn’t be summed up in that word. He likes to earn money by walking the neighbor’s dog, mowing lawns and shoveling snow. We all take pleasure in his ability to play the piano and guitar (and anything else he tries). He is always looking for competition in ping-pong, basketball and any other sport. Mary entered her teenage years in October. She is maturing into a lovely young lady with unusual spiritual insight. She continues to surprise us with her creativity in sewing and needlework and enjoys playing the piano as well. She helps mom’s sanity with her culinary ability, by reading aloud to the little ones and is the only one patient enough to train Banjo . Banjo sits, fetches, goes in the kennel on command, is learning “leave it”, and is almost rolling over! Beth continues to strive to build up our home as she walks in grace, struggling through some days and soaring through others. Drew keeps trying to direct the whole tribe in a strategic way to honor the Lord. When people ask him how life is with 6 kids, he will say “when things are good, they are really good, when they are bad… oh boy.” Our aim is to make known the fame and worth of Jesus Christ in every sphere we can.
Love from Drew and Beth
on behalf of the entire Tribe:
Mary(13), Jacob(11), Abi(9), Baruch(7), Abram(4), Chloe(2) and Banjo(6 mo.)