George made a "zoo" with his bed. :) 

Ian actually sat still long enough to read a book! 

Gracey dimples 

 

 

 

 

Icey bike 

Icicles in Georgia?!? 

 

Goldilocks, Grace and Grizz 

Joe Cool George 

Ian boy 

Grace and her Grandpa 

erased

I just wrote for about an hour and a half, then forgot I was offline when I went to publish, and it erased it all. @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ Well, it was good for me anyway to get all my thoughts out today. I'll tell you what I learned in writing my first post. That although I have several people heavy on my heart today, my parents, my dear friend who just lost her baby, my husband, that I can do them and myself infinitely more good by bringing it all to the Lord in prayer than simply by worrying or even writing about it all. I am resolved to be a true helpmeet to my husband, especially as we enter into this years' busy season for him at work, and he is worked and stressed about as much as he could be. I will not be selfish, I will not resent him for working so much, I will appreciate his presence and his help when he can give it, and not berate him or be bitter silently towards him when he can not. I will support and encourage him everyday, and make his home a place he always looks forward to coming home to. I will pray, continually, for my parents to have clear direction and peace from the Lord. I will also hold up in prayer my dear friends who have just lost their baby. She had just gotten past the point in her pregnancy where she had lost her baby almost exactly 4 years ago, and had just started to allow herself to get excited about it all, and then the Lord took her tiny baby back to be with Him. Well, since I have already spent so much time writing, (although it certainly doesn't appear that I have by this), I must go. Dishes, supper, children are waiting and I must make the time tonight to read my chapter in "Calm my Anxious Heart." I was supposed to have read it for Bible study last night, but I never got to it, and I know it would help me now. It's called "Worry is like a rocking chair." I am worn out, physically and emotionally, and am heavy hearted with all of the people on my mind right now. I hate not being able to help more, and I am guilty of not helping where I could. I will hopefully write more later.

tuesday

I never got the chance to post yesterday. I was trying to clean up this messy house in the morning, then in the afternoon, one of my newly pregnant friends brought over her neighbor, who was also a friend of mine, and is about 6 months pregnant. Her neighbor and I are both homebirthers, but my friend who is newly pregnant has had three hospital births. We were talking about the differances in our birthing experiences, and she was just asking questions, why do they do that in the hospital? Nothing that she said about her experience was positive, she readily admits this. I am at a loss why someone would choose to repeat an experience that has been negative. She was saying they didn't listen to her, they didn't honor her wishes, they wouldn't let her rest at night after having the baby, but woke her up to do bloodwork and ask when she peed last. (amazing), and when she got into the hospital at 3 cm, they wanted to put her on Pitocin immediately. She asked if she could walk around to try to get the contractions going, and they "let" her. Her contractions really picked up and when she got back to the room, they said "Okay, time for the pitocin." They didn't even listen to her that her contractions had picked up and weren't even going to check her!!! Finally, she got a nurse to listen to her , and they checked and she was 7 cm. Then they said she had to have an IV of fluid and right before
she was going to push, they put a shot of painkiller in the iv without even asking her. Then, when the baby started to come quicker than they expected, they told her she couldn't push, but had to wait for the doctor. Again, I don't know why someone would choose to repeat a negative experience. I will really be praying that she will be able to make a choice that would be better for her. I hope she can. I will get off that, as I could really go on and on on that subject, as anyone who knows me knows. I just have to put in here, George, my three year old is putting together his puzzle of the United States beside me, and there is a picture of the white house, and he asked me who lives there. (He knows) I said "The president", and he said "No, mama, you call him George Bush, mama, his name is George W. Bush!" He takes his politics very seriously. His father would be so proud. Anyway, here we are back in blog land. I read Misty's blog yesterday and she had a link on there to Molly's blog, www.threepennies.blogdrive.com. This woman has been writing, and I think continues to write, an excellent series on bitterness. I was really convicted and inspired by her post of yesterday, and I will definitely continue to read her posts. I hope she writes more on the subject. On an entirely differant subject, I was so encouraged this morning when George asked to go potty. I put pull-ups on him, and he peed in the potty twice today, but just a few minutes ago, he pooped in them. He never even told me he had to go. I am so frustrated with him and potty training. I don't think it'll ever happen. I mean, I know rationally, it will, but he is just confounding. I reward him every time he even sits on the potty, and we talk about how great it would be to go stinky on the potty, (he cries almost every time I change his messy diapers), but it's like it doesn't go beyond the words. Sometimes he just comes up and tells me that he's a big boy and he wears underwear and goes in the potty, but he just won't. I wish I really knew whether or not he had the physical readiness to really do it, or if he is just being stubborn and set in his little ways like he does. I really don't know. I think once it gets warm, I am just going to put him in real underwear and not look back. I'm sure it'll be messy for awhile, but he's bound to get it eventually, right? I wish I knew the right way to go about it, but everyone tells me something differant. I think it's not an unreasonable hope, though, that by the end of the year, maybe both the boys will be out of diapers. I have a feeling Ian will be a lot easer to train. Things are just more straightforward with him, he's much less sensetive and he already loves to copy whatever George is doing. I hope the Lord blesses us with more children down the road (a few years down the road), and it would be nice to have some diaper free time in there somewhere. Only He knows, however. Well, I should probably start getting supper ready. I think Ian is teething again, he's had a runny nose and been drooly all day, and he's taken a three and a half hour nap this afternoon. He's actually still sleeping now at 5:30, and I put him down at 2. I even got a nap today, it was wonderful. Okay, I really have to go now.

t..i..r..e..d.....

I am tired. We've stayed up til 1 and 12 the last two nights, because Nate was putting together that entertainment center, and tonight he's working at the remodeling show in Atlanta, so he won't be home until about 10:30. I am usually such a night owl, but I have been exhausted. The boys take a nap in the afternoon, but George does not sleep anymore, he just does somersaults in the travel crib in my room and talks the whole time, so it's impossible to try to take a nap out here in the living room. Oh, I will be soooo happy when we have the basement done and we have more rooms for everyone! I got a package today from my SIL with a bunch of baby clothes in it for Grace. Most of it's 3-6 month stuff, but it's summery, so I hope either it warms up soon enough for her to wear it, or she stays that size until it gets warmer. My favorite thing were the cute little sneakers. I loooove shoes for my kids. (the weird thing is, I could care less about them for me.) Mandi sent cute little girly sneakers in sizes 1,2, and 3, and red patent leather dress shoes in size 3. I can't wait until she can wear them. I love red. There were some really cute things in there, although a little too much of my least favorite color, pink, but really inevitable if you have a little girl. It 's fun to have all this stuff, though, and I can't wait until her hair is longer and I can put little clips and pigtails in it. I got my birth announcements in the mail today, and spent the morning addressing them. I got the new years letter done and sent, these were next, then I really need to get all the thankyou cards done for Christmas, George's birthday and presents for Grace. Man, everyone just needs to quit giving us stuff, it's such a pain to write thankyou's! :P Just kidding. Really, I am always amazed at everyone's generosity, and we are so incredibly blessed. Boy, I might just have to have some caffeine or something, or I might not make it to bedtime tonight. I usually can't sleep if Nate's not in the bed with me, but I might be able to tonight. I think he is going to go work at that remodeling show tommorow, too. I was very disappointed with his decision to work through church, especially when I really think there were other people from his work, that don't go to church, that could have worked. I'm going to try not to say anything derogitory about it, though, as my mom told me on the phone this morning, it's always better to let the Lord convict him of things than to try to do it yourself. I'm not sure how I'm going to get all the kids ready and contained at church by myself. I'm sure Nate's family will help, they always do. I almost always have to leave the service with Grace, though, so in a way, I don't know why I would go, but I know I should, and I want to. Plus, I have some things I need to give Nate's mom. Maybe Nate will just go work at the show after church. Oh well, I'll figure something out. Oh, I have had two good friends tell me in the last two days that they are pregnant!! It's so exciting. They both already have three kids. One has three boys and one has three girls, and I know they are hoping for the other one this time around. That makes three of my close friends who are expecting right now, plus my sister in law, and I am praying for a few other people to get pregnant right now, so I hope they will be able to join the club very soon as well. :) Okay, I don't have any caffeinated coffee in the house, maybe I will just make myself some cocoa. I might have some tea, though. I think I would have felt better if I hadn't tried to take a nap. I was lying down on the couch out here with a pillow over my head, but I just kept hearing George. The rule is, he has to lie down and be quiet. I warned him once, and spanked him twice, and by then, when he really was quiet, I was too riled up to be able to nap again. I just kept almost falling asleep, then I would hear him. Of course, now he's been quiet since I last corrected him for it. I wish I could find a way to get that kid to sleep. He looks exhausted when he gets up and I know he needs to sleep more, it's just like he can't unwind enough. He gets almost no sugar, like once in a blue moon do I ever make any desserts or let him have anything with processed sugar in it. We had salad and grilled chicken for lunch, which he ate 2 bites of, and he had a whole wheat biscuit with natural pb and whole fruit jelly for breakfast, so I don't think it's his diet that keeps him awake. Oh well. I wouldn't worry about it, but he just seems tired so often, he looks like he needs more sleep. I just pray the Lord would show me what I need to do, if I need to do anything about it. My mom has another cold. There's someone else who doesn't get enough sleep. She's just too busy, and involved with things. She works full-time at an elementary school 45 minutes away from her home, teaches a CEF Good News Club one night, and goes to Bible study's 45 minutes away two nights a week. She is one of those people who can always be counted on to be involved with, or organize, or teach anything at church, and she usually is. I am so excited for her to come and visit on her vacation week in February, I really want her to have a real vacation and be able to relax. It worked out really well, actually, the week that she's going to be here, Nate will be at a conferance in New Orleans or someplace for 4 days. So, even though we all wished he could be here to see her then, it will be nice to have some time just with her and also to have her help with the munchkins then. It will be a huge help for me to just have her here to play with the kids, and that's what she wants to do anyway :) Then I can get more done around here. I just noticed that this is really long. I think I am mostly writing to keep myself awake! If I could choose my own hours, I would go to bed at 2 and get up at 10. That's just the way I am wired, and I have been trying to get over this my whole life. I am so not a morning person. I can get up and function and do things, but I always feel the worst in the morning, and the best at night. A few weeks ago, after a few days of nursing every few hours at night with Grace, the thought occured to me how annoyed I would be if I weren't able to sleep in the morning when I could be, and I told my husband not to wake me up to have sex between the hours of 4 and 8, upon peril of his life. Okay, I know that was not a great thing to tell him, and certainly not very keeping with my resolution. I recanted a few days later. He still hasn't, though, for which I am kind of thankful, and kind of disappointed. That's one thing we will always be opposite on, he's not a night person, and i'm not a morning person. Well, I just had to take a break to feed Miss Gracie. She has the cutest little fuzzy purple outfit on today. It reminds me of a monster off of Sesame Street. It has little silver snowflakes embroidered on it, and socks to match. One of my better Goodwill finds. I swear, none of us would have any clothes if I only ever bought new, and I don't know how people who only buy new clothes can afford it. You can get soooo much more for your money at thrift or consignment stores, if you are willing to dig and/or wait for the deals. Well, I think i've blabbered long enough, and I need to go change Grace's diaper. Goodbye

Catch up!

I feel like my whole schedule is off. Nate came home from work at 4 in the afternoon on Wednesday, (completely unheard of!!!), then he took the day off yesterday!!! It was the first day off he's taken during the week since Christmas. It was so incredibly wonderful to spend so much time together as a family, and it was nice to catch up on some housework that I wouldn't have been able to if he hadn't been here to watch kids. We watched the inauguration on TV, then when the kids were napping, we finally took down all the Christmas decorations and the tree. It was wonderful to get that done, I feel like it's been hanging over my head for weeks now. When the kids woke up, Nate wanted to go look for an entertainment center. He's been wanting one for awhile now. I was quite happy with our little wooden $10 table from Goodwill that we've had for 5 years, but he wanted something more substantial. He got a bigger TV a few months ago, and a DVD player, which has been in our bedroom. Well, we got the kids packed up and went into town. Nate ran in to one furniture store to see if they had anything worth really looking at, and came back and said they had one really big one on clearance. We went to Big Lots to look there, and they had the same one, only not on clearance, and a slightly differant model. It looked so big and dark. It had a cherry like finish. Not that it was real wood, it was that fake press board stuff. Then we went to Lowe's to see if they had anything, and while we were there, Nate said we should look at light fixtures. The ceiling fan/light in the living room and the kitchen we've never replaced, and they look like they've been there since the 70's when our house was built. We both fell in love with this gorgeaus wrought iron leaf set of lights. We got a ceiling light for the living room, and a torchiere that matched. I was very excited, I think they are so beautiful. Then, after Nate ran into Wal-mart to see if they had any entertainment centers comparable to the one at the first place, (and deciding they didn't), we sped back to the first place to get the one he had seen there. I thought it looked huge and ugly, but there is a lot of storage space in it, and for the price, it was worth not loving it. Then we went to McDonalds for a late supper. I hate McDonalds, but it was right next door, and the kids were starving. We let them play on the playground there, and they just loved it. It was 9 before we got home and got the kids into bed, and than Nate installed the ceiling light and set up the torchiere. They look so nice! Then, at about 10, he decides to start putting together this monstrosity of an entertainment center. I tried to stay awake, and finally, at 1, we both called it quits and went to bed. He got about half of it done. It will be nice tonight to get it done and store some things in it, it will really let us unclutter the bookshelf and computer desk, and get the movies away so I'm not constantly correcting Ian from putting in videos. I'd like to get a couch cover for my ugly brown couch, and than the living room will be almost how i'd like it. I take so incredibly long to make decisions, though, by the time I get my house decorated like I like it, we'll have outgrown it! This morning, we went to spend some time and have lunch with a good friend. She has three boys, and our kids love playing together. That's another reason my schedule is off. I really like planning and having a set schedule to my days, so I feel kind of lost when they go all crazy. But, it was so great to spend the whole day with my husband yesterday, and it was wonderful to spend time with my friend today. Welcome deviations. :) Speaking of my husband, I think I am going to tell you my secret New Year's resolution. I wasn't going to tell anyone, but now I am placing a burden upon any who read this. I want you to keep me accountable. My resolution was to start treating my husband as if I were trying to win him, instead of taking him for granted. I want to treat that man so good, and really Biblically love him. So far, I have done alright, but last night, my attitude got a little sinful, and I wasn't acting towards him as I should have been. Now that you know it, I ask for your help. If I post anything that tells of my not being faithful to this commitment, please call me on it. Post a comment and read me the riot act. Well, you say, why couldn't you just not put on here if you've done wrong? My answer is that I created this blog for an outlet for my thoughts, a journal of my actions, and hopefully, a springboard to my path towards being more Christ-like, and if I don't put the truth here, I may as well stop putting anything here. I know my resolve is not worthy of the task, but with the Lord's strength, and maybe some nudging from my cyber sisters, I can start treating my husband the way he should be treated. Well, George is calling me, and so is the laundry, so i'd better go. God bless you in your journey today.

wednesday

I have finally gotten all my addresses and sent out my new years letter yesterday. Of course, then this morning, Nate's mom said she had printed out a bunch too many family pictures and would I like some to send out in my letter? Oh well. I am so hungry! I don't know if it's because Grace has nursed more the last few days or what, but I just feel so starving most of the time. I have really been trying to not have dairy products, because I think they make her spit up more, so that has been a bit of a challenge. It was so convenient when I was pregnant to just grab a hunk of cheese or some yogurt, plus I was trying to eat as much protein as I could, so that was another boost. I never drink cow's milk anyway, so I don't miss that, it's just cheese. Okay, and ice cream. It's probably good, though, maybe it will help me lose weight faster. Of course, I have always believed a better answer to losing weight is not to just eat less, but to move more. I always respond better to more exercise than to less food. I really miss the days of working out faithfully. When I lived in Colorado with my aunt and uncle before I went to college, I had a gym membership, and was there at least 3 days a week, usually five. Then when I went to college, it was easy to stay working out, at least the first semester and a half, before my classes required too much of my attention. Some days, I sooo miss being in college. It just sounds heavenly now to be back in an environment where the only person I was responsible for was myself, and while I have never been the best student, it even sounds good to me to have to study again. I guess just the motivation for doing it, and the immediate payoff of passed quizzes and grades. I never really cared enough to be a straight A student, or well, even a straight B student. I was one of those kids whose report card said "She's just not applying herself." I think half of it was psychological. It was easier for me to not try my hardest and get by than to risk trying my hardest and possibly fail. I've always lived and thought in a strangely preemptive manner. It preserved my psyche better to make fun of myself before anyone else could. It was easier for me to demean my body with my husband than to act as if there were nothing wrong with me and risk him demeaning me. I think I've always operated under the conclusion that it was better for me to act in a way that left a question as to my self worth, than to have it confirmed that I wasn't good enough. Of course, if followed to its natural conclusion, the person who makes the preemptive remark is pretty sure someone else will eventually. This is an issue that Nate and I have talked through many times. He used to get so upset at my making disparaging comments about myself, and it is something I have really made an effort in past years to stop doing. It's insulting to him. It's his wife that I was bashing, and really, who wants to be around someone who is self-centered and negative all the time? The Lord has brought me far in this
area, only by His grace, and I have learned much in the way of getting my eyes off myself, at least in this manner. Nathan has said that self confidance in a body that might not look fabulous is much sexier than self-criticalness in a body that is physically perfect. I will always have imperfections, and will never measure up to what the world considers "physically perfect", but beyond exercising and getting into better shape (which I need to do), I can't change the way God made me, which brings me to the most significant point in favor of adopting Nathan's prescribed outlook. I believe I wrote a post when I first started blogging about being content with me. God made me just like I am for a purpose, and the Bible says that the woman was made for the man. I carry that out personally to mean that I was made for my husband, and God knew what He was doing when He made me. It is extremely insulting, borderline blasphemous of me to question God's creation and further, to demean it. I believe I said it better in the other post, but today, God has brought me through these series of thoughts again, so that is what I am writing today. Reading back over this, you can just see my disordered mind going from one thought to the next, the connections being tenuous at best and the flow of my ruminations tortuous as always. Oh well, I guess that's what this place is for, right, for me to get my thoughts down? Anyway, here they are.

swonderings?

I have just joined this new message board called Women at Home, at the behest of my dear friend Misty. One of the things they do is called Swonderings, where they post the beginning of a thought, and you personalize it with your own ending. This is the first one I have done. Here goes...

I Am....
a wife, a lover, a mother, a daughter, a grand daughter, a sister, a friend..
I Am...
intelligent, impatient, laid back, procrastinating, forgetful, accepting, nurturing, analytical, selfish, strong, sometimes guilt ridden, sometimes joyous, always seeking...
I Am...
completely uncompetetive, a lover of language, a baker of bread, a taker of pictures, a hater of being the center of attention, completely lacking in skills of craft, ie. sewing, stamping, scrapbooking, etc.
I Am...
a part-time talk radio junkie, a closet sci-fi and fantasy lover, a very fast reader, a very bad singer...
I Am...
a milk factory, a dispenser of sandwitches, a horsie ride giver, a changer of multiple diapers, a fairy of dishes, a tickler of children, a story reader, a nose wiper, a hug giver...
I Am...
tired, thirsty, munchy, cold, bleary eyed, squeezed into my jeans...
I Am...
Happy about the $17 I had waiting for me at the consignment store, struggling with guilt over the $20 I spent at the consignment store, happy that my children are sleeping, hoping Grace will sleep tonight, wishing I could sleep tonight, envying Nathan all the sleep he gets, giggling about his talking in his sleep while I was nursing last night, thankful for my mother in law who watched wild man Ian this morning so I could bring George to the library, anxious to start reading David Copperfield tonight, more anxious to continue watching the appendices of the extended cut DVD of Return of the King tonight, even more anxious to cuddle up with my husband while we watch it.
I Am....
So happy in love with my man, loving not being pregnant, can't wait to start really exercising, wondering how on earth I am going to have time to exercise, can't wait til my mom comes to visit in February, so happy that she gets to come in a way and at an expense that are so much more convenient for her (God Bless you, Misty!), watching my baby girl make faces in her sleep, loving the cute jumper and sweater I got for her this morning...
I Am...
running out of descriptions of myself, so I will say goodbye! :P

She's getting so chubby! Check out the dimples! 

But Ian sure will, even when he's filthy!  

The kid will just not simply smile! 

Me and George 

messy boy! 

George William 

Me and Ian 

blessings

I posted the picture of Nate's mom and dad (Karen and big George), because I wanted to say how thankful I am for them. They have been such a blessing in our lives, and I know it is rare to have in-laws that wonderful. Karen has been soooo helpful with the boys and especially since Grace was born, bringing meals, taking care of the boys so I could have a day with just Grace, and just generally being an encouragement. They just left here. They all came over to have lunch (frozen pizza) and Caleb is staying to watch the Vikings with Nate. Karen and George are going to a Michael Card concert in Fayeteville. Anyway, they are a real blessing to us. Another blessing is that there are people that want to know me better. Thankyou, Misty, I will try to post more frequently. (By the way, don't get the idea I am sitting around playing nintendo everyday, I have actually been very proud of my self control, I have only played it an hour and a half total since I got it! :) It means a lot to me that you are interested in the ramblings that I produce. I hope they are of some benefit to someone other than myself. It does help me just to get things down and where I can see my thoughts. I don't always like what I see, but often going through the process of writing them down brings me to some realization I would not have come to if I had just kept the thoughts in my head to ruminate. Well, I've got to get to my baby, little-miss-loves-the-boobies, she's been nursing about every 2 hours for 2 days now. This morning she wouldn't even wait an hour and a half. I think it's another growth spurt. She's getting really big now. Maybe she'll be a chubby baby like I was. I was such an ugly little butterball. My mother actually threw out my newborn pictures, they were so ugly. No kidding. Anyway, I will post more tommorow, if only a little, just to keep my scores of readers happy. :P

Nate's mom and dad 

Look how chubby my baby girl is getting! And smiley, too. :) 

New Year's letter

I just finished writing my new year's letter ( I was too busy having a baby to write a Christmas letter.), and thought I would post it here. Enjoy!


*Happy New Year! We trust this letter finds you all well, and with fond memories of a joyous Christmas and a blessed 2004. It was a wonderful year for us, as God has continued to bless our family. God's sovereign loving care in our lives has really been emphasized to me this year. We have learned that His plans and His timing are not our own, but they are infinitely better.*The beginning of this year found us happy with our two precious boys, and wanting to wait a few years before adding to our family, but in April, surprise! We found out that we had been blessed with another child on the way. The surprise arrived the 14th of December when baby Grace was born into her Daddy's hands. Nate said "We have our baby girl!" I had been so sure we were having another boy, I thought he must be mistaken, and it wasn't until the third time I looked that I really believed we had had a girl. She is a month old as I write this now, and she is such a sweet and content baby. The boys love her, and Nate finally has his "daddy's girl."* The summer brought a wonderful visit from Charity's parents in June, Ian's first birthday in July, and in August a special trip to Gatlinburg, TN for Nathan and Charity. George and Ian had a wonderful time at their Grandma and Grandpa Buchan's house while Mama and Daddy were gone.*In October, Nate surprised me with a trip up to Maine. It was wonderful to see my brothers, and both of my pregnant sisters-in-law. It was such a special time with both sets of my grandparents, and of course, my parents as well. We had a mini Thanksgiving at the Buchanan homestead and I was again awed at God's abundant blessing of family in our lives. *Nate's brother Scott and wife Mandi and little girl came down from Minnesota for Christmas. It was so much fun to see all the cousins playing together, especially Lily and Ian, who are only 6 weeks apart in age. It was so great to be with all of Nathan's family for Christmas this year. It has been a continual blessing to us to have Nathan's parents and brothers so close. They are such a comfort, help and joy to us.*Our church family has become even more precious to us as we grow in relationships with our brothers and sisters in Christ. Nate and I were able to go on the men's and ladies retreats' this year and learned so much. I have been teaching 5th and 6th grade girls on Wednesday nights in our church's Awana program. God has continued to teach and grow me through my ladies' Bible study. We finished up "The Excellent Wife," (although Nate would probably say I need to read it again!), and are now reading "Calm my Anxious Heart." God has really taught me so much about true contentment and complete acceptance of His will through this study. *Of course, our children are the lights of our lives. It's hard to believe that George turned three on Christmas Eve, He continues to surprise us with his unique intuition, his love for learning, and his imagination. Ian is a whirlwind of smiles and mischief. He is such a happy child, and always running or climbing or taking something apart. He is starting to say more words, his favorite of which is "more!" at the dinner table. Grace is starting to smile and be more interactive. We can't wait to see her little personality develop.*Nate continues to be challenged by and excel at his job. His unfailing commitment to his work is only outdone by his ambitious planning for new and better ways to grow the business. I got a promotion recently, from mother of two to mother of three, (Talk about a great Christmas bonus!) My days are filled with diapers and dishes, cuddles and kisses. The money is lousy, but the rewards are incredible. I am so grateful for the blessing of being home with my children. * Our hope and prayer for you, our dear family and friends is that you would be able to see and appreciate God's unique presence and blessing in your lives, and, from Ephesians 4:16-19"That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; and to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God." We keep you close in thought and prayer. God bless you this new year! Love, Nathan, Charity, George, Ian and Grace

Froggy George 

Mischievous Ian