Vacation Bible School Part 1

We're finally back on the road! :o) After such a hectic time at home it's almost a relief to be back in the swing of things (ALMOST). Anyway, I'm going to share some of the highlights of VBS and of our time with Laurie and the kids.


Welcome to Cowtown...this is where it all took place! :o)

There was singing....

Accompanied by Laurie on the keyboard...

I don't think we have any pictures of Laurie telling the Bible story or doing the memory verse games...she did an excellent job, as usual!!

And NOW.....THE DRAMA

Each night we had a little skit that kind of summed up the lessons. It was about a young sheepherder named "Davy". (Get the picture?)

This young man (Nelson) played Davy.

And of course, every story has to have a villain. Ours was none other than Snakeoil Snidely (played by Pastor Charles).

Then, there was the Narrator, Windy (played by Tim the first couple nights, and then by one our teens, Julian, the other three nights).

Davy had a girlfriend (Sweet Clementine), but for some reason we don't have any pictures of her. :o(

Then, we had Sheriff Saul and Deputy John. Our puppeteers, Omar and Mario did a fabulous job with them!

I'll share more about VBS soon, but this is a start, right? Just check back and you'll see some of the crafts and outdoor games we did. I'd just like to note that all of this was coordinated by my very talented sister! It's amazing how much work went into this week long production! She never ceases to amaze me!!

The "ICK" is here!

Our home has been hit with a BIG UGLY BUG!!! It started Sunday night with Tim getting sick. Then, just as he was feeling better, I got sick Wednesday night. Last night Nathan and Phillip were sick. I'm just praying Katie, Austin and Laurie escape unscathed! Pray for us. We have to be ready for VBS Monday night. God can help us!

Happy Birthday to Me!

Ok, so it's not my birthday yet....but Mom and Dad had a little party for me! :o) We were passing through last week on the way to California so they decided to go ahead and celebrate.




Mom made a yummy Birthday Cake!

The Birthday Girl

Mommy and Me

Ride 'em Cowboy..er..CowGIRL :o)

Nathan having fun with Uncle Tim

Oh, the Fun!

Can you believe this???

McDonalds is doing their part to help trucker obesity! :o)

Happy Father's Day

F.A.T.H.E.R.S.
"F" aithful.
"A" lways there.
"T" rustworthy.
"H" onoring.
"E" ver-loving.
"R" ighteous.
"S" upportive.

A little tribute to my Daddy! Love you, Dad!!!

What Makes a Dad
God took the strength of a mountain,
The majesty of a tree,
The warmth of a summer sun,
The calm of a quiet sea,
The generous soul of nature,
The comforting arm of night,
The wisdom of the ages,
The power of the eagle's flight,
The joy of a morning in spring,
The faith of a mustard seed,
The patience of eternity,
The depth of a family need,
Then God combined these qualities,
When there was nothing more to add,
He knew His masterpiece was complete,
And so, He called it ... Dad
Author Unknown

Grandpa goofing around with one of his many grandsons! :o)
The little ones love to snuggle with Grandpa.

Grandpa goofing around with Grandma! :o)

Fathers are Wonderful People
Fathers are wonderful people
Too little understood,
And we do not sing their praises
As often as we should...

For, somehow, Father seems to be
The man who pays the bills,
While Mother binds up little hurts
And nurses all our ills...

And Father struggles daily
To live up to "HIS IMAGE"
As protector and provider
And "hero or the scrimmage"...

And perhaps that is the reason
We sometimes get the notion,
That Fathers are not subject
To the thing we call emotion,

But if you look inside Dad's heart,
Where no one else can see
You'll find he's sentimental
And as "soft" as he can be...

But he's so busy every day
In the grueling race of life,
He leaves the sentimental stuff
To his partner and his wife...

But Fathers are just WONDERFUL
In a million different ways,
And they merit loving compliments
And accolade of praise,

For the only reason Dad aspires
To fortune and success
Is to make the family proud of him
And to bring them happiness...

And like OUR HEAVENLY FATHER,
He's a guardian and a guide,
Someone that we can count on
To be ALWAYS ON OUR SIDE.
Helen Steiner Rice

Long Overdue!

I'm a bit behind in my blogging (I know at least a few of you noticed). Not much has been happening lately (just truckin), but I did want to share some pictures from a quick visit with Amber, Bob and Joseph a couple months ago. We met them in Gettysburg and spent a few hours together. As usual, we found time for photo ops.

Bob at the cemetary


Tim and the President


I just LOVE that face



Amber and I

What a fun day!


Don't worry...Mommy was nearby...


Young Love :o)



Tim and I and my niece (Katlyn)


Yay! Look at me!

Awww...such a sweet family

A Parting Shot :o)

PS Thanks to those of you that have already responded to my last post through comments and emails. We look forward to visiting some of your churches! :o)

To Whom It May Concern

How many of you out there actually EXPECT to have 1 or more visitors to your church this Sunday? I'm just curious. How accessible is your church information (times, location, phone numbers)? I have to tell you, trying to find a church (especially a conservative Holiness church) while you're traveling is a very difficult task. I use every resource I can to find a church. I have used our GPS, church directories, church finder websites, the yellow pages, and the phone-a-friend hotline. Even with all of these great things at my fingertips, there are some Sundays that we miss church altogether. One of the things that makes it difficult for us is of course, parking. Not every church has the kind of space we need for parking our truck. Usually we can find a lot nearby and walk the rest of the way, but not always. Another obstacle is that churches all start at varying times. We usually try to arrive around 10:30am to be on the safe side. The final problem we encounter is outdated information (especially when finding a church from a website or the yellow pages. Sometimes we get to the address and find the church has moved or closed. It would be easy to find out about these things and avoid all the obstacles if we could call ahead, but alas I have found that 9 times out of 10 when we call a church phone number we get an answering machine. Even THAT would help IF the church would put some vital information on that message (such as the times of service). I almost always leave a message when I get a machine and almost never get a return phone call. It makes me wonder if some of these Churches are missing out on some local visitors because they choose not to answer the phone??
While I'm harping....I just want to say how disappointed I am that so many churches choose not to have Sunday evening services. Most of them say it is because they want to have "family time". What better way is there to spend time with your family than in church?? And how many of these families are really staying home on Sunday nights and REALLY spending time together as a family?? Just wondering...
Anyway, if any of you out there have any suggestions of ways to find a church please let me know! Also, please consider putting your church information on www.churchangel.com So far that is the largest directory I have been able to find online, but there are VERY few holiness churches listed on there. I am proud to say our home church (in AR) is listed on that site and our pastor does answer his phone!! :o)