I’m sorry the blogging has been in fits and bursts lately. I find myself absorbed by daily happenings with few brain cells to spare at the end of the day for putting thoughts into words. God is good and we are doing well. I will share more later, but just wanted to pop in and say… hi! We’re here! I’ll write more later.
June Pictures
I don’t remember going for very many walks, but look, here are pictures of another walk at the park!
Going for a walk at the park
Carolyn trying to follow the big kids and Brian up the steep trail
Hands full!
Hood strawberries are the best!
Strawberry picking at our old digs with good friends!
So glad I finally made it back for a little visit with one of my long-distance besties.
Coloring book for grownups?
Decided to get my creative on and began coloring a difficult coloring book page. FUN.
Here are a few pictures of Anna and Maggie preparing for their first dress rehearsal! Thank you, Melissa for the lipstick.
Anna’s hair and makeup are done!
Maggie’s hair and makeup is done!
Sisters
Aren’t they just lovely!?
Cuteness overload
This girl makes me so so proud.
And a couple of old Rose, my sweet pup who is in need of some serious love and care. She has a skin yeast infection, a weak hind leg, some kind of ear infection and lots of missing hair. She moves slow and seems stiff, but is more playful today already than yesterday. And she is a total sweetheart and I’m enjoying nursing her. It’s also serving to prevent me from getting pregnant or adopting, which is good. 🙂
Rose, as you can usually find her.
Unless she is like this.
Filed under Everyday Stuff
May photos!
Lots and lots of great pictures for the grandmas and grandpas!
Anna completed her Sparky years in fine form! She did a wonderful job memorizing Scripture, playing the games and making friends.
Maggie finished her first year as a Sparky! In this picture, you can see how disappointed she is that she did not get a plaque like Anna. Sorry, girlie!
Jordan doesn’t think too much of award ceremonies.
Grammy was able to come! We are so grateful for her showing her interest in the kids. It means a lot to them and us. Thank you, Mom D!
Time for the kids to get their teeth cleaned! This is the first time Carolyn has been in the chair.
Maggie is an old pro, even though she takes up just the backrest of the seat when she is lying down.
Big girl. No cavities for anybody!
I rocked that day. Mostly because Jordan did. See, I had a babysitter lined up for Jordan, but she called in sick so he came with us. But he was awesome and stayed (mostly) on the bench so that I could give at least a fraction of my attention to the girls!
Like this one! The hygenist was soooooo impressed that she opened her mouth and let her clean in there. So was I. 🙂 Watching older siblings is so helpful. She was pretty sad she didn’t get to keep the glasses, though.
Birthday celebrations with the family for Anna, Jordan, Jennifer and Dad D. It was a good gathering.
At least Anna is stylish (and dressed) right?
A new day! Anna got a new, big bike for her birthday. Maggie got her old bike and she got to pick a new color to paint it and new handle grips too. She is so fast!
Here are the chicks shortly after we got them! The ones that are 5 or 6 weeks old now.
Soooooo cute – Maggie and Carolyn bringing in the empty garbage can together.
Favorite posture of the Cornish Cross meat chickens. They didn’t walk a whole lot. I think if we were better at feeding them only at certain times and free ranging them, that they’d be healthier and happier. As it was, I was not happy with the way they looked and behaved.
Their legs were just so thick too, to support their huge weight! These birds are just 10 weeks old! They dressed out at 5.5-6 lbs.
They grow wonderful meat. And despite the less than ideal conditions, they were raised much better than commercial chicken. Commercial meat practices are disgusting.
Jordan’s sixth birthday present! This and a trip to a frozen yogurt place. It’s considerably too big, but he likes it, so I think a few short rides and a few short years and it’ll be a winner. The back rest has a chest strap so he doesn’t scoot forward too much.
Yippeeeee! The only thing he didn’t like about his birthday was when the frozen yogurt bowl was…. empty.
Sweet 2 1/2 year old girl.
Joy-givers
River time!
One of these is a snail and one is an insect. See the one on top? It’s actually the larval stage of a caddisfly!
hehehe
wheeeee!
Wahoo!
How. How? How!? How is all the really important stuff on my desk always like this?
Cool!
Mama took the girls for a walk on one of the last mornings before Jordan’s school was out.
The playground at the end of our walk…. with a couple of very large spiders.
Filed under Everyday Stuff
Le Garden Tour de Tour de Garden
This year, we have a garden that is not dying! Well, lots of it is alive and thriving. Last year it was just the thistles and grass, this year it is the thistles and grass and blackberries and blueberries and some other stuff! On request from my Mom, here is a tour of our garden today, June 12th.
Hello garden!
Hello little lettuce patch, peppers and lots of volunteer tomatillos.
Oh and hello tomatoes and snap peas!
I just love tomatoes.
Brian built all these rows by hand. With a shovel and a hoe. It was a lot of hard, heavy work and I just love it!
Blooming sage and rosemary near the brussel sprouts
Second year fruit trees! (They were bare root trees last spring)
Lots of delicious, approachable blackberry blooms!
Brian says I am fascinated by bees.
I admit that I am. I can’t wait until we have our own hives next year. See the bee flying away on the top right?
Can’t wait until august! How should I preserve these?
Isn’t she lovely? I love how close I can get. I could have sat down by the blackberries and just watched them for awhile.
This bright yellow furry bee must be some sort of bumble bee!?
This one got away (flying to left)
Here are our chicks – 5 weeks old today.
There is a: Buff Laced Wyandotte, Gold Laced Wyandotte, Barred Rock, Australorp, Welsummer, Americauna/Easter Egger, Buff Brahma and a Rhode Island Red. I had a lot of fun choosing them. They all lay brown eggs except one is dark brown and one will be blue or green.
Filed under Everyday Stuff
Uggggggganda
The clinic site
Hello all!
Some people have wondered about my parents and their time in Uganda and what they’re doing. So here you go:
Uganda is a gorgeous African country with wonderful people and a thriving church. However, like most countries, there are troubles. One, there is a lot of poverty. Also, there is corruption in medical areas. For example, doctors and nurses will leave a patient to die (quite literally) if they are not first paid and likely bribed as well. On the flip side, if money is not demanded prior to treatment, many patients would not pay anything after treatment is given. Another trouble is a negligent, unkind, undertrained and ultimately traumatic medical system for when women give birth. The maternal and baby death rates are awful.
Therefore, Mom and Dad have been willing to uproot their comfortable lives here in the states to be facilitators for a group trying to build a Women’s Health Clinic in Uganda. The clinic will serve local women and also be a prototype of improved maternal care. At this time, my parents have worked to make the house on the clinic property livable. This project is finished, though water, electricity and mosquitos are still a problem. Also, the clinic property is properly fenced and gated, a reputable contractor has been located and plans for the clinic are being reviewed, modified, reviewed, and modified again as counsel is sought and taken. The process is very interesting! There are so many details.
Anyway, this project is not fully funded. Many people are standing behind the project, including our family, and if God wills, more will come alongside. If nothing else, I am honored to be gaining the heritage my parents continue to create as they serve God and others above themselves. We are blessed through them as we witness the good friendships that have been developing. A number of small gifts of food and clothing and medical payments have gone through them as they witness situations and give whatever they can. I know that I and they covet your prayers for wisdom as they go about each day.
Here are a few links and pictures if you’d like to stay in touch:
The “umbrella” ministry is a small non-profit called Next Generation Ministries. This medical clinic is not their usual ministry, but they are excited to see it beginning. (Donations can be made via paypal or by check)
Facebook page for the Women’s Health Clinic
Mom and Dad’s blog (in case they decide to begin updating it again in all their *cough* free time)
This sweet Mama was paralyzed from the waist down due to an improperly done c-section. She has since lost part of her foot due to lack of sensation.
Visiting with some good friends at their house.
The wall around the clinic compound getting built…
A picture of Mom and Dad walking into a courtyard in Uganda after church
vs.
A picture of Mom and Dad walking down a hill in the rain in the US when they visited in April!
Filed under Everyday Stuff