~~of computers and crashes--lessons in practicality~~

recently i learned how hooked on computers, i mean internet, i've become... and how dependent on the efficiency of ms excel!!! let's just say i've learned one thing: back up my info o-f-t-e-n!! madly racing about trying to collect information i thought i had hard copies for is nothing but a pain in the neck. lesson learned, trouble taken, consequences reluctantly accepted. :)

enjoy this winter holiday and catch you on the flip-side.

blessings.

~~name calling~~

not many of us want to call our children nasty names. when mrT and i were expecting our children, we were very careful to investigate the meanings of the names before we decided they were the names we wanted. why? because we firmly believe that, although we may be speaking their actual name, we are prophesying the characteristics of the meaning into their lives.

my challenge lately has not been changing their names, but watching my tone because sometimes my voice says a child is stupid, dumb, or less than the gift that God gave me. how terrible. what devastating effects it can have. a sunny disposition can turn thunderous very quickly.

a wonderful piece of advice my mom (i think) gave me is to listen to my words and at the end of a sentence silently add "sweetheart" or "stupid." very quickly one's tone dictates which name your words imply.

like proverbs 15:3 says, 'a soft answer turns away wrath, but grievous words stir up anger.'

i want my interactions with people to be 'sweetheart.' i'm starting at home.

~~reason to celebrate~~

rejoice with us. :)

last week missT had a follow-up appointment with her paediatrician. at her previous visit, we were finally able to start reducing the clonazepam. she was only taking 2.75mg / day but the effects were strong. with her head full of fog and all processes slowed to a dull roar, how can a kid learn? all she wanted to do was sleep! after a full night's sleep, she would start asking for a nap around 11 30 am and at 6 30 pm she would be begging to be in her pj's. how many 7 1/2-year-olds do you know like that?

the reduction begins..... and, for the first time in 2 years, she didn't ask for a nap in the afternoon. get this... we had only reduced it by .25mg. at that rate, it would take 11 months for her to be completely off the drug. (cold turkey could throw her back into seizures) a month later, after we had gone down yet another .25mg, she actually asked if she could 'please, stay up later.'

so, when we saw the Dr. last week, the first news was that the eeg missT had in july had come back with a 'significant improvement' and was 'normal.' as you can imagine, after 140 seizures in five years, most of them in the last two, i am about to burst!

i love what missT says about the eeg results: 'i am NORMAL!'

thank you, Jesus. (big sigh)

***if you wanna be great...***

in God's kingdom, learn to be the servant of all...

i remember singing my heart out to that song as a child. what i'm hoping to instill in our children is service isn't always boring! Granny needed her lawn raked and we got to have fun doing it. check this fun serving time out.

who knew you could rake a yard with a leaf blower?

it's camoflaged nicely, but there's a geyser of leaves in front of that nozzle.

almost done!!

this wonderful mound of cottonwood leaves is only about half of what we raked & blowed (is that a word?). a few years ago, we had a pile so high, landing in the middle of it hardly hurt at all!

~~nature's beads~~

combine a little girl's love of crafting and nature walks and what do you get?

a snowberry tiara!

(some websites say that snowberries are toxic, others write the snowberries are only inedible due to their taste. our children have each tried them and i have no fear of them ever eating another!)

~~you should try this at home!~~

a few days back we tried a very cool experiment. almost every day since, the children have been begging to do it again! after collecting water bottles, balloons, a funnel, vinegar (acid) and baking soda (base), we prepared by pouring the acid into the bottles to 1/2 full and 2 heaping tablespoons of the base into each balloon.

standing ready.... set....

MIX!!!

(the results were instant... perfect for eager, curious budding scientists)

the balloon expanded until some of the pressure was released through the valve at the bottle.

i think we were all amazed at how simple and fun this could be!

we found that remixing the solution encouraged the reaction.

~~in His eyes~~

as I read Rachel's Cinderella's Sandals, i was reminded of a short little story i had written about 10 years ago (i think it was the 'princess' part that triggered the memory.) it speaks to the agonies in each of us.

******************************************

Calloused, strong yet incredibly gentle hands gripped her badly bruised shoulders. She moaned quietly as her body adjusted to the raised position He pulled her into. As she looked at the One who lifted her and whimpered in fear, she cowered expecting yet another reeling blow.

"Fear not, My Child.” Four words.

Four compassionate words.

“I won’t hurt you. I know your pain. I’ve cried your tears. I could not, will not increase your hurt. I’m here to help you heal.”

“Help me heal? You’re a stranger.” Cynical thoughts turned her face away from Him.

“I’ve known you a long time.”

“You know…” her words trailed off as she lost her balance. Once again His strong hands lifted her. Fearing rejection if He saw her bruised, swollen face, she turned away from Him.

“Turn to me.”

“I can’t.”

“Don’t be afraid. Turn to me.” The words, brimming with a love nearly tangible, aroused trust. Violent fits of agony flooded her body as she slowly she moved to face Him. Looking past the discoloration, the lacerations, His gaze pierced the core of her being. She felt his eyes pierce her soul.

Ashamedly she met His gaze only to gasp in amazement. The reflection she saw in His eyes was not of a beaten, abused servant but that of exquisite beauty.

Worship overwhelmed her. “My Lord!”

Lovingly He smiled. “You’re seeing yourself as I see you.”

~~not-so-sweet thoughts~~

since i was pregnant with t2, i have dealt with type 2 diabetes. unfortunately for my poor husband, it was undiagnosed and he lived with a crazy wife for a long time. as i had no idea of the effect sugar and carbohydrates had on glucose levels, i ate & sat, then sat & ate some more. two hours later, i would be out of my mind frustrated and angry at anything and anyone that happened to cross my path at the wrong angle.

so this morning when i had my Bible in hand to read, i had this thought: would the physical diabetes in me be healed if my spiritual diet was balanced?

okay, for those of you who haven't clicked the little 'x' in the top right corner, here's the rest of it.

high glucose levels, in the physical body, are dangerous. not only for the people around you (haha... mood swings and all that), they can be deadly. the little bits of sugar that the insulin is supposed to take out of the blood act like shards of glass in the blood veins. that's bad for any veins, but when it comes down to the tiny ones in eyes, finger/toe tips and the finer details of our mortal beings, it causes great distress like blindness, amputations. (that's why diabetics are asked by docs about numbing).

okay, to the spiritual... just a lot of questions in me, i guess. like this: am i numb? where am i numb? what is my spiritual diet? (confession time: internet, doing anything other than sitting down for devotions like phoning, texting, watching a movie, you can jump in any time here with your's... lol) the apostle paul talks about the 'milk of the word' and 'meat.' do i even know what meat is? how do i balance this meal?

**the hope of it all, of course, is Jesus. the help of it? exercise is one of the best things to lower glucose levels. could it be that 'spiritual exercise' would do the same?**

~~experiencing the Presence of God~~

during the summer, i managed to read books one & two of a four-part series about the origins of Quakerism. two themes have stayed with me: there are 'good' and 'bad' people in any age, culture, or race, and the concept of 'going to meeting.'
that phrase has gripped me. simply put, it's stopping whatever you're doing and quieting yourself before God to meet with Him. definitely not as easy as it sounds. setting my self, thoughts, and plans aside is nothing less than complication in it highest form! anyway, i thought, why not try it? when i had a bit of time by myself...
i stopped.

it took a while for the busyness (and business) in me to stop, but finally a solid Sense of Quiet settled into me and Peace ruled. it was wonderful.
a few days later, i thought, why not lead the children into this Peace? when t4 had gone down for his nap, the other three and i met on the trampoline (so the free-ranging turkeys wouldn't hassle us). after we talked about a few things, i explained what i had been doing and that they could have the same experience with Jesus.
**i have to admit that i had my concerns! for a four-year-old to sit for very long and wait for an Unseen Presence is a lot to ask--of both the child and the Presence! :) inwardly i sent a pistol prayer asking Jesus to be quick.... please**
after we had prayed a little bit, i directed them to sit and be very quiet and wait until i said 'thank you Jesus.'

at about 40 seconds, t3 could hold the wiggles down no longer. after a quick whispered reminder (and a pistol prayer for God to remember a child's time table:) ), he sat a bit more. i only waited a few seconds more before i thanked Jesus for his faithfulness. then i explained what had happened in me during that very short instance.

as i described the deep Peace that had settled into my spirit, missT replied with awe & amazement, "mom! that's how i felt!!"

wow.

i asked t2 if he had heard/felt anything or thought of anything special during that time. no, he hadn't. then t3 provided the comic relief. "i did, mommy! Jesus told me that he loves all the people in the world and that everyone has to give me candy!"

**sigh** isn't that beautiful? i can't wait until i remember to do that again!

~~also introducing...~~

"Rosco"... not his real name because we all misunderstood daddyT when he was chatting on the phone. this handsome 19-year-old is "Rascal." we do call him Rosco sometime because that is what has stuck in our heads! the two middle T's think The Dukes of Hazzard is the best tv series in the world and so when we heard 'rosco,' immediately thoughts went to 'rosco P coltrane' of the Dukes. thus the nickname. (if you know the Dukes, you will understand why the P is in bold)

this old guy has more energy in his ears than i have in my whole body!

they say the way to a man's heart is through his belly.

we're trying that approach.

~~introducing.....~~

**the third picture will make some squeamish**

mr T3... now 4 years old.....

mr T2... now 6 years old...

(get ready for this one.....)

missT... now 7 1/2 years old...

and number last....

mr T4... now 15 months old!

~~not paid for this~~

Riding Tornado is my new favorite flick. have any of you watched this movie? it is time well-spent. i mean, it's about a man & his horse (not really his... a stable owner's) ... what more is there to say? even better, it's about a messed up man and his messed up horse and they find healing in trusting each other. you can preview it on amazon.

my 'not-so-cowboy' husband thinks it moved too slowly but in my opinion, it was a good speed for the type of story it is.

one of the favorite concepts presented in it is that so many christians feel that to be healed from brokeness is to be perfect and it's in our brokenness that we are perfected. i love that.

anyway, if you're up for a quiet movie night and need something edifying, here ya go.

~~school days loom ahead~~

when i opened my email this morning, i was delighted to read a short paragraph that spoke directly to who i am. for those of you who know me, flying by the seat of my pants is what i do best and trying to force myself into a schedule is a little like pushing a rope. i do it for one day (the schedule--not the rope), two if i'm lucky... if i make three days in a row, someone better call the ambulance.

oh, yes, back to the email. here's what it said:

**if you change your plan, it won't mean that your first plan was a mistake. it will mean that your first plan became a step toward your next plan** (How Do I Know? (...if my plan for the year is a good one!) By Virginia Vagt

now that's more like it. i can live with that.

enjoy the wind up!

~~what keeps me going~~

a few days ago i found a love message that the Lord had given me a couple of years back. in fact, i think it came before the children did! as i read it, i could feel life being drawn from it the way that only Ramah words can give. i think maybe it will encourage you, too.

~~~It isn’t how much you love Me, but that you love me. I don’t want anything more than that. Don’t make things so complicated that you forget about the simple things I enjoy. Your laughter, your singing, your tears, but most of all, I enjoy you. Uncomplicated, unsophisticated you with nothing to hide behind or to cover what you deem unacceptable.

Do you know that most of the things you detest so much about yourself, I have no issue with? You get more concerned about being perfect than I do. Relax. Take your time going through life. Enjoy it. Stop focusing on the product—a perfect life, a good reputation—and enjoy each step of the way. Take time to smell the roses, play in the puddles. Don’t be panicked. You have already been guaranteed a home in Heaven. So, for now, remember that with every step of the journey I’ve gone before you.

                                                                                    ~~~from Jesus

~clouds are the dust of his feet~

when i was (much) younger and still treeplanting, my camp was moving north to the swanell logging camp on the ingenika river. the road had recently been improved which only meant the dust was thicker than ever. as i was turning onto the logging road from the highway, a logging truck blasted by me. i waited a bit for the dust to settle, then turned to join my convoy. i brought up the back of 5 or 6 pick-ups, trailers, and now a logging truck. i managed to stay a distance behind but as the trees closed in along the road, the dust hung in the air. of course you can imagine how quickly it becomes too thick to see through.

all of a sudden i had the heart rocking view of logging truck tail lights WAY TOO CLOSE!!! how could i not have realized how close i was...

...His way is in the whirlwind and the storm,
and clouds are the dust of his feet.
                    Nahum 1:3b

that is my favorite verse.

so many times our view of God is so very clouded. we wonder where He is... at least that's me! so often i hear my thoughts ranting, 'where are you? i've followed you as best as i can...' you know how it goes. :) i like to think it is those moments that i am closest to 'seeing' Him. what a comfort.

...His way is in the whirlwind and the storm,
and clouds are the dust of his feet.
Nahum 1:3b

~girl time~

recently missT and i had the awesome blessing of girl time. we had to travel to vancouver for a medical appointment. when we were done, uncleG joined us and helped us navigate the transit system. it's been more than 10 years since i lived in the city and used transit on a regular basis. besides that, there's been some significant changes since the olympics rocked beautiful bc.

i love this picture. one of the things i noticed after we had arrived home was the symmetry. it's almost a perfectly balanced picture. okay, the tall building on the right doesn't help much.

i love it when an adult freely gives a child their undivided attention.

the following pictures were taken by missT. we had stopped at a 'green space' to wait for auntyN. of course, boredom is never far from reach for a child. missT took the camera around the little park and these are some of the results.

can you spot the monkey? uncleG is a pretty special guy.

great picture, eh?

this is one of my favorites

~the global exchange~

i am so interested in this! while checking the 'stats' option for this blog, i learned that people from so many places stopped by. i may never travel to new zealand, france, singapore, or germany, but this blog has touched down somehow. it maybe only for a second or two, but hey, that's more than i can say for me.

naturally, i'm curious about what made you drop in?

would love to hear from ya.

~~birthday in the raw~~

gotcha, didn't i?

so now you're wondering how that title has anything to do with this picture, eh? i'm venturing a guess that only BB has any idea. :) well, this little mrT4 has had reactions to dairy, eggs, wheat, and corn.

so WHAT to make for a birthday cake?

a raw one, of course. you have to check this out. the ingredients are:

~cashews, ground pretty much to a paste

~avocado (yes, you read that right)

~cocoa

~cream cheese (why he could handle this, i don't know)

~coconut oil (i melted it, thereby skewing the 'raw' part of this cake)

~peppermint

absolutely amazing (BB, if i forgot anything, could you zip me the correction?)

you should try it.

hot wheels!

aren't these great? t2 has been waiting a long time for this craft! they really do need to be bigger, but i couldn't find clothespins any larger than these... well, actually BigT did find some but they were too huge. these little hot wheels are quite easy to make: buttons, twist ties, straws, clothespins, and hot glue.

the straws serve as axles; the twist ties anchor the buttons together; and the hot glue adheres the rear axle to the clothespin.

while i had everything out for making the cars, i dressed up some of the other pins to use when displaying the children's artwork. my painter husband gets quite tired of the idea of filling holes in the wall from the pins/tacks/tape i've been using. he'll be so proud..... hahaha!

the not-so-last straw

i love the unbridled creativity children have! after we had finished the little clothes pin cars, each one had to have a straw to play with. it's just a plain old straw, one of those that stretch and bend and here's what my babes came up with:

t2: hey, mom, i can burp in my own ear!

 t3 had to have his picture taken because everyone else was. :)

 missT: mom, can i have a string and a pompom?

i want to make a microphone (headset) for when i sing.

these straws also became cannons attached to the cars and wings for planes when pinched in the clothes pin. when all the play was finished, the straws were used for their purpose... and the children guzzled 2-3 cups of water! good, healthy fun. my kind of life.

~nerf wars and counting the cost~

yes, i'm one of those mom's who allow their children to shoot at each other. no, they haven't become more violent in their play or talk because of it. we have rules. for example, if someone doesn't have a nerf gun, they are not fair game and if someone is smaller/shorter/slower than you, they are not prey! they need to be protected.


about a month ago, before the grass in a fenced play area had grown too deep, two cousins came for a sleepover. of course, the request was for the nerf stuff to be taken outside. very reluctantly, i agreed. i mean, would YOU want to search out about 50 nerf bullets in six inches of grass? after making sure the children understood that they, not me, would be finding each and every bullet, they counted out equal numbers of bullets.


out they went.


soon, in they came....


sans bullets.


not so good. the conversation went something like this: (me) did you find them all? (them) no. (me) out you go. (them) but..... (me--mercy is diminishing) go.


they went... then they came.... with a few bullets.


yes, i was exasperated.


after we found all but four, i had to preach a little. "...so, if you guys had known how hard it would be to find all the bullets, would you have asked if you could play nerf wars?"


i got a resounding "NO!"


to which i replied, "so, this makes me think of when the Bible talks about counting the cost of following Jesus. if you knew how hard it would be sometimes to make the right choices and obey Him, would you still have made that decision?"


i'm thankful to have received a decisive 'yes!' from those who had already made the commitment to follow Him. even though they're children, life isn't without its challenges.


i've thought a lot about it. finding nerf bullets was relatively easy compared to the fiery darts the enemy throws at us. i'm sure glad i have a Savior (who) is able to save forever those who draw near to God through him, because he always lives to make intercession for them" (Hebrews 7:25). he's covered the cost.

a wonderful craft from Mrs Scott

what started out as bracelets ended up in bookmarks... a perfectly versatile craft for those with boys who think bracelets are too 'girly'!

columbine... ever tried the succulent little bulbs on these?

to get the tutorial for this simple, and oh-so-beautiful craft, head on over to the Scott School or Mustard Seed

wild rose... a girls perfect flower... pink, edible, and make great little spot bandages for little scratches

the one on the right was created by a 4-year-old.

now isn't that perfect? an activity that interests several ages!

getting into the Word

i suspect i'm not the only one who is 'too busy to read my Bible.' as an early riser, i've found a great way to go back to sleep is to try to read a chapter or two in the Bible. it's also a great way to go to sleep at night. yes, i know that isn't the purpose of the whole devotions idea, but my rationale is 'at least my mind is on Christ as i fall asleep.' i think God is okay with that. we haven't had any discussion otherwise. anyway, enough of the rabbit trails.

i happened upon a handy little tool that has fed me a verse a day for the last few weeks. here's the address: http://www.theverseoftheday.info/, then click on subscribe. i love it! each morning, i get a verse to read, a name of God and thought for the day, and (my favorite) a trivia question. i think it's the best subscription i've come upon!

check it out & if you have any other websites like it, please do let me know. :)

intense living

pray.

pray for some friends who are fighting a battle worse than i ever have. their 11-year-old son is going through a huge round of chemotherapy to eradicate neuroblastoma. there are really tough side effects like permanent hearing loss, inability to eat... here, i'll let you read a portion of the email we received:

Mitchell's hearing has been significantly damaged by the chemotherapy, and we were told today that it will be permanent. He has moderate loss of the upper tones and will have difficulty with background noises, and it may get worse after this next round of chemo. We will have to wait and see how he is able to hear in the classroom setting when all the dust settles.

Otherwise he is doing well and his lung function is above average, which is good news going into this. He will begin chemo on Tuesday the 21st, and will be put into isolation shortly after as his counts drop.

The majority of his care will be directed at keeping his blood counts at safe levels till they come up on their own, and dealing with the effects that chemo has on the digestive system. One of the drugs is excreted though the skin so while he receives that drug, he will have to have baths every 6 - 8 hours to prevent skin burns. Then there is the one that strips the electrolytes from your blood. For that one they pump you with electrolytes until your kidneys start to work on their own. These aren't grandma's good old Bayer. The more toxic the drug, the more it kicks cancer in the butt.

 

his parents are amazing. the stress they're under is incredible yet they turn to Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith.

 

please pray.

 

 

When the Trees Fall in the Forest...

any of you who know us well also know how MrT and I loved treeplanting. we worked primarily in northern bc, prince george, houston and mackenzie forest districts as well as southern alberta in the kananaskis area. wow. who else gets to be outside everyday, see some of the most beautiful places in Canada and get paid for it? not only that, you don't have to cook for yourself!!! *sigh* i miss the simplicity.

that's why...

...recently i've started walking in the mornings (well, before i sprained my ankle) on the cut block near our house and got to witness the day to day growth of the natural pharmacy God has put in our back yards. for example, arnica--the yellow daisy-like flowers that you see first in spring-is one of the best healer for bruises, yet, if you've cut yourself and some of the tincture enters your bloodstream, it could kill you. also, the dandelion... yes, my favorite flower. google 'dandelion health benefits' one day and see the amazing power of this so-called weed!

one of the greatest delights of cut blocks i've found is when there are no trees, the contour of the land is easy to see. it makes me think of God and the way He cuts the excess (NOT that trees are excess. :) ) out of our lives to bring out what really is there. it's no longer hidden by beauty, or not-so-beauty (natural equivalent: bug kill?). it's there for all to see. the question we have to face, then, is whether or not we will gracefully bow to the Master Planter's plan to re-seed/re-forest our lives to His glory?

starting in the mouth of babes...

as i was planting our garden last week, i called in the troops to help with various tasks like getting the shovel, taking weeds to the compost and planting potatoes are just a few of the tastes of work the children experienced.

i'm so thankful for our generous neighbor allowing me to use her seeder. does it ever make planting fast! during one of the reloads of the seeder, one of the budding geniuses asked, "mom, why do you have to put seeds in the dirt?"

"because they have to die before they can live."

w.o.w

********

I tell you the truth, unless

a kernel of wheat falls to the ground

and dies,

it remains only a single seed.

But if it dies,

it produces many seeds.

(John 12:24)

********

Jesus said to her,

     “I am the resurrection and the life.

          Whoever believes in me,

               though he die,

                    yet shall he live...

                         John 11:25

so often our darkest, worst times are when the seeds God has placed in us are germinating and getting ready to produce fruit. *sigh* i wish i could remember that when life is tough.

~~cat proof~~

one thing i hate about cats is their drive to dig. it doesn't matter where the dirt is, a cat seems to think it belongs to them for the sole purpose of toileting. well, here's an organic way to keep cats out of the planters and flower beds: rose bush stems!

the big pot is (hopefully) going to be elephant garlic. the lobelia has since found a new home with some petunias.

another benefit? children learn very quickly that you don't want to play with mommy's plants!

the apostle Paul in the Bible refers to our lives as gardens...

"I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow." 1 Corinthians 3:6

where do the thorns come in?

my favorite yardsale find!

check this out! i got it for $2 last weekend. what a great way for a boy to learn the mechanics of the alphabet. T3 and i had fun putting the train together saturday afternoon. we didn't bother with order, just making a big, long train. that IS the most important detail for a 4-year-old, isn't it?

or is the best thing about it the crashing?

a very cool, useful tool for homeschoolers

my first grader finds math very challenging so to make things easier, i scoured the internet and found the neatest treasure! http://www.youtube.com/user/HarryKindergarten

this website has songs about everything. counting by 2's, 5's, 10's... being honest, days of the week and months of the year.

go on and check it out. you'll be pleasantly surprised.

~~reminiscing~~

recently we joined several other families for a field trip to a historical park. it was great! on the following day, the children and I had a neat chat about what we had learned and the favorite things they had seen and done. these are renditions of that chat.

of course, the builder in the family would love this sort of building!

and, yes, the beaver was purposely colored like this. what girl could have a beaver and no pink??

~~popcorn chicken anyone?~~

i am seriously not offended if anyone thinks these are the ugliest critters God made! this year there are about 225 chicks in a brooder room approximately 20' x 20'. it's dusty, stinky, and noisy. 25 of these babies are layers and the rest...mmmmmmeat birds! anyone who has had homegrown, mostly organic chicken knows there can't be enough "m's" in Mmmm!

our first year dealing with chicks, we were proudly showing them off to some friends and the daughter asked if they had names. imagine naming 50 little balls of fur. very cute. i decided from that point on, any chicks we raised were going to be named 'popcorn.' why? well, most popcorn kernels are yellow and then suddenly they are much bigger and white! that's exactly what seems to happen with chicks, especially the cornish giants. they're little then big, with nothing in between.

the dark ones you see here are the laying chicks. they're the quickest little things you ever saw! they shoot here and there between the other chicks' feet.

more 'popcorn' on the floor.

chores is such a great way for kids to grow up. T3 loves to fill the feed buckets, missT and T2 have helped with carrying shavings to the brooder room...

we're a little owly around here!

missT found the instructions for this little craft one day! they sure turned out well.

we found that a hot glue gun was necessary to keep the googly eyes fastened. the pipe cleaners are just twisted and stuffed into the back of the pine cone. the beaks are popsicle sticks carved down to size.

whoooooo you lookin' at?

...and the van got stuck in the tractor rut...

One of my favorite songs: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QCcWzLAcv4o

*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***

i love spontaneous outings. mrT and i never have to 'plan to be spontaneous.' we just are. i mean, who can plan getting stuck at 9:00 pm and having to call the neighbor with the 4X4 to get us out? curious what happened?

instead of turning onto our driveway, my darling husband headed down the mostly dry clay trail/driveway straight off the end of the road. it meanders past several fields, swamps, and pastures. in the lowest spots there is proof that this isn't the best place to drive a mini-van... especially one that rides a little too low and is rear wheel drive! as we were nearing the regular turn-around place, i spotted a 'white bum' way, WAY back in an adjacent field. (white bum = mule deer). it was h-u-g-e. as it turned, mrT said 'elk!' and got the caveman/hunter look in his eye. we didn't turn around.

instead we continued down this road-turned-narrow-trail in search of the big one. truly, it was the one that got away.... we turned around... we got stuck... the boys thought it was wonderful... missT voiced her concerns: we're DOOMED!

it took a lot of work getting out. rock forward, stuff sticks/logs under the wheels; rock backward, do the same, only on the other side of the tire. it took a lot of back'n'forth before we could get enough run at the rut, now with a 4" thick log in it, to pop the front tires out of the rut. even so, we drove up the hill kinda sideways because the rear end of the van refused to surrender. (yes, i chose that word carefully)

when i had a minute with the children, i told them how being stuck in the rut was so much like our lives. it's easy to disobey or lie or cheat or ___________ (you name your particular sin) and stay in that rut. BUT!!! we have Jesus. he wants to help us out of our sin and, truly, He is the only way we can be truly free. the important thing to remember is that we have to surrender all of ourself so we don't go sideways through life.

Updates on the 4 MiniT's

dress up day! the left-T (4) is wearing an old dress a friend gave us, middle-T (7) is known as my rainbow (the more colors the merrier) and right-T (6) donned an old set of scrubs to be a karate fighter!

and here's little-T at 10.5 months old. super easy baby.

enjoy your weekend!!!