Our family loves to relate stories or events using movie lines, lines from comedians, or books.  Lately, some comic strips have made them laugh and repeat the lines... so, here's one we've been hearing around our house" Dude... I'm, like, not even helping."  This comes from a comic strip and our olders say the line when they realize everyone is busy and they're just standing there.

This is from: http://www.comicspage.com/bliss/index.html ____________________________________________________________

One of this Spring's highlights for me was to attend the 2nd annual Heritage Homeschool conference and most especially, to finally -meet in person- Stacy "Raising Maidens of Virtue" McDonald.  I had formed an online friendship with her over 8 years ago through an online ladies email list.  It has been a blessing through the years to talk by phone and correspond through email.  It was one of those sweet blessings... a treasured memory.  Our friend, Kristen, sent me copies of a group shot---this, from that picture, is me with Stacy..

Pictures of Spring...
Slices of life around our home... in April

   

We went to The Local Scoop, an old fashioned Ice Cream parlour for Samuel's 17th Birthday celebration.  It was sure a fun night.  We had arranged for a few of his special friends to be there - but we hadn't told any of our youngers.  Anyway, when a few of the friends were walking by (outside before coming in) one of our boys piped up: "hey! there's the ___'s!"  Samuel's back was (purposely) to the window.  Oooops... so, Surprise, Sam!!

Joey demonstrating everything he used to open the can of pineapple.  It's time to buy a commercial opener.  The #10's thrash home can-openers in no time.  I have often thought that through the years we could have purchased a few commercial can openers with what we've spent on can-openers. (by the way... I like Joey's humour.)  He did not need  all those  items to open the can. He *always* exaggerates. ~wink~

 
dolly loves to paint... and this time she has a wooden "star box" to paint!

Grand-dears Zac and Nate love to help in the kitchen when they come over.  Hmmm... they usually want the same two things... chocolate chip cookies or brownies.  This clean up was sort team effort... I let them help clean the bowl.  I always try to leave a little extra behind to make the bowl "spatulating" a bit more rewarding "Can I spatulate the bowl?"  = a phrase our kids say when they want to have the prize for making brownies.

 

My birthday celebration dinner 3/26	April 2,, 2007

wonderful Mexican food dinner... missing Kathryn and Timothy
and the rest of our family

 
grand-dear Abbey and our 'melia - Hannah and Samuel: always making faces pics

 
Michael and Lindsay...  then another grand-dear and Naomi, Joey & Stephen
 

Remembering Roger Bennett	March 21, 2007

One of our family's favourite pastimes is to go to Southern Gospel concerts.  Now, this doesn't happen all that frequently, and certainly not as frequently as we would like.  (Especially in the Seattle area... a great dearth of good gospel music!)  So it was with great sadness that we read through the accounts of the passing of Roger Bennett, the accomplished pianist and heart of the Legacy 5 gospel quartet (quintet, really!).

His musical ability and his amazing ability to relate to the crowd is indelibly imprinted on my heart and mind.  I loved his piano playing and his easy way with the other singers — his kindness and gentlemanly way... I will miss him very much.  I will miss reading his blog... the ways of the LORD throughout his battle against Leukemia. I will miss accounts of the goodness and mercy of the LORD, his trust in Him and His obedience to His call.  I will miss the accounts of his love for his wife and children, his dedication to proclaiming the gospel and sharing the Good News and his excellence in musical presentation.  I will miss taking out children to see and hear Roger Bennett and I will miss the unique dynamic between he and Scott Fowler.  And I will miss his songs... Because He knew Jesus... He related to the suffering of Christ and ministered in song... I will miss all that very much. 

Heaven has another beautiful voice... and Roger is now... forever... In His grip.

Precious Kathryn in Jinja, Uganda	March 15, 2007

The little Dolly...	March 14, 2007

why dolly shouldn't do school work in bed...
but it was sure sweet to watch her tire & fall asleep.

Missing Kathryn...	March 7, 2007

I knew I'd miss her, I knew I'd miss her a whole bunch---but I didn't realize the things that would remind me of her the most or make me feel so sad.  Sort of a bittersweet sad, really, bcz the things the remind me of her are really sweet things.  Hannah was playing the piano... a song Kathryn studied so hard to learn for a recital a number of years ago and Hannah is learning to play it so beautifully now.  I sure miss hearing Kathryn play.  In fact, she tells me that that is probably the most difficult thing she experiences in Uganda: no piano to play.  Here at home she plays in the morning, at noon, in the evening, at night... and sometimes here and there in between.  So, no piano... the luxury of home she misses the most.

Kathryn tells us this is a friend of hers also volunteering at the orphanage and she's sure enjoying working with her and having a new friend.  It's a blessing to be able to talk with her occasionally and to receive pictures.  This one is of her and her new friend Julie - the white Nile River is behind them.

Thank you all for remembering Kathryn in prayer as she ministers to little children in Jinja, Uganda. I'm posting some of her letters here so you can see slices of life in east Africa.

 

The first pool of the chilly-chilly year	February 9, 2007

Dolly went to see the progress with Papa.  She's his little side-kick on jobs that don't require lots of work.  She often asks him:  "Papa, is there anything that I can do to help you with?"  He always smiles... and often says yes.  In no time, she has her coat, kisses everyone goodbye and heads for the truck!

Over the weekend we celebrated lots of things...	February 5, 2007

Our Timothy and friends/roommates Christian and Nathaniel.  They were here for the weekend and headed back to school in Oregon on Sunday afternoon.

 
Kathryn made a surprise anniversary breakfast on Sunday morning; we had most
all of our children and a couple of friends here.  It was really quite a nice day!
And what a marvelous blessing to have Daniel B bring Hannah back home!
 

These next pics, Wes took while we were up in Canada at Harrison Hot Springs. What a tremendously relaxing time that was! We even got some website design work done.  For the amount of time it has taken us to get the website business up and running, you'd think it would be a mega site by now... but, alas... no.

    

In the pics below: a couple of views from our balcony.  Every year we marvel at how few people are there.  On occasion, we've been the only ones in the pool.  And to me... that's a blessing!  Pools and modesty are always a conflicting matter.   I always think it's pretty funny that Wes is in the swimming pool industry.  He doesn't like to swim and I don't like to spend time with groups in a pool... but alone---that's another matter for I love, love, love to swim and be in the water.  One cool thing about most of the guests: they're older.  Like us + 20 years or more.

  
The pools are naturally heated by the hot springs.  Ahhhhhh...... 
So... we celebrated and celebrated... 29 years and pray for at least 29 more. ~smile~