M.O.M.M.Y. Mother of Many Montana Young

This is Andrew's Christmas story. I think you will laugh as hard as I did at his sense of humor.

One Christmas when I was putting up the lights, a great light appeared behind me. It was as if I was magnetized to it, because I was getting closer and closer to it without moving my feet. I thought it was some kind of trick my brothers were playing on me.

I began floating over houses, lakes, and even over clouds! I was so close to the light that I could touch it. It felt so much like nothing I just figured it was nothing. I floated straight through the light! In less then 1 second I was back on my roof. I thought it was a dream so I pinched myself but nothing happened.

Suddenly I fell through the roof and into the Christmas tree. I was smaller than the tree! Even smaller than the ornaments! It must be a dream!

Once again, to figure out whether this was a dream; I put up tree branches like a ramp so I could get on the couch.

Next, I ripped a mouse off of the sled ornament. Let me tell you, it was not easy! I sat down on the sled and gave a great push. I was so scared! The sled was going everywhere; left, right, up, down, even some loop-de-loops. I looked away for one second and BAM!

I found myself in “present-topia!” I was in the middle of all the presents; I decided to take advantage of the situation and peek at my gifts. I snuck through the crack in the wrapping paper and let out a big “Ahhhhhh!” My gift was awesome!

At that moment, I realized it was time for my family to open presents. Everyone thought I was on the pot so they began opening gifts without me. All of a sudden the ground began moving, and I realized someone was picking up the present I was on! I wondered if they would see me. Instead, I was flying into the kitchen on a wrapping paper boomerang.

So I climbed onto the counter to grab something to eat. As soon as I got to the top I stepped in a melted butterscotch chip. While I was trying to get out, my brother picked up the cookie I was stuck in and was about to eat me! I jumped off! I thought I would land in the jell-o, but I landed in a spider’s web under the counter. Fortunately for me my brother ate so sloppily, half of his cookie fell on the web which made me fly up to the 5^th step of our staircase.

I decided to climb the stairs to my room and see if the light was still there. As I was climbing the stairs someone came up behind me with gum on his shoe. Now I was stuck on this shoe! Thankfully I fell off when he stepped on a cd on the floor.

My sister picked up the cd with me on it and put me in the computer. I was spinning and spinning. I saw my life flash before me. Then I shot out of the computer and back out the window! I knew I was going to die, and on Christmas of all days!

Then the light appeared again . I went safely through it. I was turned back to my real size. So I ran inside to enjoy the holidays!

What Will God Do?

On Thursday as I was reading aloud to the children and waiting for our lunch to cook, the doorbell took us by surprise. We usually don't get visitors in the middle of the day. It was the mailman hand delivering some certified mail. One was for our landlord and I didn't accept it. The other letter was for occupant. I thought "how strange..who sends a certified letter to occupant? What company would waste money on this kind of junk mail?" I went ahead and opened the letter to ease my curiosity.

The letter was from the city informing "the occupant" of 221 Landmark that our home would be sold at public auction on September 15th 2009! Apparantly our landlord has not been paying the mortgage..(long story, and not my business to share, other than the fact that we live in this house!!!) So, according to the landlord it will all be taken care of and everything will be fine. The "occupants" well, we are not too sure. Leaning on the Lord for guidance and provision.

Santa's Shop a story by Trenton

Wrangling Chickens

We picked up our chickens on Thursday (about 30 of them..all grown up girls). What a crazy adventure that was. Nine kids chasing dozens of cackling, stressed out birds all over (and under) the porch, around and around and around the bushes..(you can watch our video on Facebook if you want a visual). I got the best workout this week after chasing those crazy birds! We dubbed Dustin (my nephew) the chicken wrangler. He must have caught half of the birds on his own. And he seemed to be the only one able to catch the escapees!

The birds rode home in the back of Grandpa Leroy's truck in a dog crate and several cardboard boxes. Only a few of them were worse for the wear. They had a little bend in their tail feathers, and some drooping beaks, but they seem to have managed over the last few days. They even laid five eggs the first night. Not too bad for stressed out hens! Today the kids collected 10 eggs. We were hoping for a dozen a day..almost there after just two days!!! YEAH!

The kids have all picked out a chicken and given it a name (hopefully Sopie or Rosie won't be Sunday dinner anytime soon!) Just kidding, I don't think I'm at all ready to be chopping off any chicken heads. Even my children that weren't very excited about the whole "fowl" idea seem to be enjoying themselves. They were all running around in the pen with the chickens and were very disappointed when I said it was time to go home.

We have four or five dfferent types of chickens..so stay tuned..the children will be doing some research to find out all about them and will fill you in on all the details.

Eggs Anyone?

Well, Martin and LeRoy have been busy this weekend. They have been preparing the Wilson/Blakesley/Fletchall or is it Fletchall/Wilson/Blakesley? (Maybe Blakallson for short??) chicken coop!! Holy cow (or holy fowl) we are getting chickens this week!!

The chickens will "live" in Doug and Denise's backyard and we will all be jointly caring for them The 24 hens belonged to a friend of LeRoy's from work. They lay about seven dozen a week..(yes The Fletchall's go through about five per week, so we will use them up). The children are currently painting it a bright barn red color and seem to be thorougly enjoying the process.

Guess what we will be studying this week for school? So if you have a hankering for farm fresh eggs, you know just where you need to come..we'll leave the coop open for you to help yourselves..smile!!!

Sharing our Sorrow

Well this has been a mighty long week...one filled with pain and sadness. I have wept. I have yelled. I have fallen to pieces. My body has been my enemy.

But I think the worst of the physical pain is over. My first miscarriage resulted when I was only 3-4 weeks along, so I didn't know I had been pregnant until afterwords. This time was much different. 11 weeks and 2 days...

Last weekend, I feared the worst, as my body began to show the beginning signs of terminating the pregnancy. I continued to hold out hope though, as I wasn't experiencing any pain yet. Martin and I went to the physicians office last Monday where they drew blood and sent us on to the hospital for an ultrasound. Our Doc was optimistic though and sent us out the door with hope. Hope is a good thing, for as the Bible says, "hope deferred makes the heart sick."

I knew immediately that something was wrong when the ultrasound picture appeared on the wall. The poor woman that was running the ultrasound, she tried so hard not to let on. After eight kiddos, I'm not a genius, but I could tell that what I was looking at didn't make sense. She used both kinds of ultrasounds to make absolutely sure..and then she left to get the doctor. He returned to give us the sad news and I wept again. I wanted to make my body obey my thoughts. I wanted my body to change "it's" mind..something, anything to make this not happen.

The week drug on and I stuggled to wait for my body to give up the fight. That alone is a tragedy to bear. The mind can certainly be a wicked thing at times. Finally on Thursday, my body gave in. I was unprepared for how I felt, both physically and emotionally. I experienced very similar feelings to labor, terrible back pains etc, only they didn't go away. They continued on for several hours, only diverging in their intensity. What happened next (I will spare the details, pretty gory anyhow), was frightening and will be in my mind for a long time to come. I am grateful that I was not alone at that moment. My screams and sobbing brought my husband quickly to my side. I was also grateful that the children had gone to bed early and were not around when this last part took place.

Now I am just dealing with my raw emotions and getting my life back together AGAIN. Seems that's one thing I am pretty good at....

Thank you for all of your support and concern. I (We) could/will not manage without all of your loving concern and prayers. I still have a long road ahead, my heart is fairly broken at this moment. But God is good and He has held me close throughout this whole ordeal. I know He will continue to be my Rock.

Happy Mother's Day

Blessings to all of you wonderful moms that make this world a brighter place. I hope that your day was filled with joy!

We all had quite the adventure today. I really wanted to spend the day at the lake and go fishing..complete with a BBQ and fire. The whole kit and kaboodle.

My brother Doug and his family were going to join us around one o'clock to head for Hyalite. I still wasn't feeling well, but I wanted to spend the day with the family and I figured some fresh air might do my heart and soul some good. The kids had loaded up the extra seat in the van so the Blakesley's could ride along with us. This leaves precious little room for stuff but they managed to beautfully arrange all of our chairs, belongings, poles etc. and we could still sit comfortably. They are becoming quite proficient in all that they do!! I am so proud of them.

Anyhow, we all get loaded in and were headed to the gas station. Remember, we live in a small town..there are only three in town..not one on every corner like in Denver. We get out of our neigborhood and onto the main road when the van dies. We try to restart itso that we can get to the turn off, but it was unsuccessful. Doug, Trenton, and Dustin get out to push this 15 passenger monster to the gas station..uphill!! Not enough umph, so the other boys have to get out and help. I ask Denise to get out and take pictures...can't miss this Kodak moment. The boys are all out pushing nd Denise is trying o run alongside to take a picture..now this is entertainment..as long as you are on the inside!!

We get to the station with the help of another kind gentleman and several laughing onlookers. Our first obstacle is overcome!! Yeah, we are on our way!. Our next stop is Sportman's Warehouse, where Martin needs to get his fishing license. He has a gift certificate to buy his license and at least one adult must have their license so that the children can fish. About three minutes after entering the store, Martin returns. Something is not right. He gets in and informs us that the store has been bought out and no longer accepts gift certificates for Sportsman's. He was told he could drive to Billings (over 100 miles away) to use it. GREAT!!! They don't sell fishing licenses either, so we were out of luck on both counts. We decide to forgo the fishing license and get on with our BBQ. So we head to the store to get the food.

Perhaps this stop will prove to be our one stop without any problems. NOT today..couldn't find the brand of tea that Martin wants. Don't even sell the brand (Arizona or Lipton, can you believe this?) This is an affiliate of King Soopers, it is not a little mom and pop store..no name brand tea? Are you kidding? We make due and head on our way!!! We are already one and 1/2 hours past our original departure time..

We drive up the canyon only to discover that the road leading in is CLOSED!! Apparantly for road work or something..we have to turn around and head home after all of this. We at least took the scenic route and enjoyed the beauty of the Montana mountains.

We had a great BBQ and enjoyed the rest of our day. A good lesson for the children to learn..life is what happens when you have other plans!! I had a good laugh and enjoyed being with the family, so all is well that ends well!!!

Welcome Back

Well, we are going to give it a whirl again and see if we can't keep up this time.

So much has happened since the last time I wrote, I don't even know where to begin..how about with the great news??

We are expecting baby # 9 in November. We are so excited and are already battling over names. I seem to have my head set on this little one being a girl....the kids are betting and taking sides. A girl would at least tip the scales a little more evenly to the estrogen side!!

Martin is still unemployed, but we have our first (yes first) interview today. He has had no calls or anything since November!! We have been through Wyoming and Colorado to extend our search. We are trying to wait patiently as the Lord directs our future path.

A Diamond is a Piece of Coal That Stuck to Its Job

I was thinking of this following poem today, somewhere in the recesses of my heart. I had one of those awful, terrible, really horrible, bad days!! As I tried to recall the words I'd heard some time ago, I picked up this book off of my night stand, and wouldn't you know..here was the poem. I am copying it here for you to be encouraged.

Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him

Where is Thumper?

The road weary hunters returned home Thursday with two does and a buck. No bunnies though dear brother. Thumper goes down the next time..since they obviously killed Bambi, his wife and child!

Due to the warm weather I was spared the gruesome work of dressing and preparing the meat. We took it to a processor down the street. Yippee!! It may take him a week or two to process since he has close to 500 other animals already. I am still a city girl at heart...perhaps I should catch a fish and start with that?

At any rate, we are all grateful for the bounty and the fact that our freezer will be full of meat for several months..as much as six months worth. WOW!!

Well, either way, this isn't about me. This is about the growing of a boy into a man. I have been pondering the affects of "the first hunt", "the first kill" and such matters on the heart of my son. I believe that he experienced more than the sum of those events this past week. Has he crossed that not so imaginary line into "manhood"? Is that what it takes? Does he have whatever it is? I believe a resounding YES is in order! But is my boy ready? Am I ready?

He is changing quickly and becoming a young man, almost before my eyes..leaving behind the days of childhood at a breath taking pace. Although, I must admit, I continue to take joy in the moments when the little boy comes out to play..literally. The struggle between being mature and wanting to hold onto the carefree days of childhood is a heady undertaking indeed!! I am in awe at the grace of GOD; that this very process has occurred for so many generations. The masculine journey ahead of him is sure to take many more turns into unfamiliar territory..for both of us. But it is new for me and I want to embrace every moment of it with mercy and tenderness toward the heart of my eldest child and each one to follow!!

Friday Fun

Fridays are our favorite day for so many reasons. With Christmas around the corner, we are getting into the spirit with some fun crafts and activites. Today , we wrote stories and made special cards for Nana..it is her 73rd birthday on Sunday!! We hope she will enjoy her little package.

The older children were also working on a project for history. They had to build early Egyptian houses..they were really creative with what they did. I just gave them their time limit and let them go..it turned out to be really fun for them. Trenton even used his new skill in lashing to make a bed for his "little" people!!

Abbie decided to cut her hair AGAIN!! I guess she was a little bored? This time she took a little bit more risk! I was inside finishing the ,morning chores and she had gone out to the schoolroom with the older kids. When I came in I noticed this pile of hair on the floor. I just looked at her.."What did you do?" And then I see chunks of hair dangling down her back. I reach for it and this whole handful falls to the ground. Oh my! She was trying to frame her face or something and did one heck of a bowl cut in the front. Good thing she has thick hair and a lot of it. But it's not all bad, I trimmed a little to make it even, and now I get to put pretties in her hair everyday to cover up the cut! She readily agreed to mommy's provisions!!

Martin, Trenton, and Grandpa LeRoy went hunting again. They still have not brought anything home. I think maybe they are milking their time out a little..just kidding! They are hunting on some private land, a friend of LeRoy's, who also happened to be the guy who taught Trenton his hunter's safety class. (Life in a small town.) So, their plans are to be gone until Wednesday. Hopefully they will get something this weekend. Our freezer is running a little low. Don't want to stock it too full and then they bring home this huge animal and we have no where to put it!!

They left with Doritoes, crackers, candy,. some summer sausage, and cheese!! I asked what else thye were gonna eat.."oh we'll figure it out later"...the differences between men and women. We would have baked a cake, several casseroles, and all of the snacks would be ready to go in cute little dishes..no mind that we would be out in the woods..right?

It's late and I still need to exercise. Gotta work off that piece of cheesecake from earlier!!

Keeping Our Sense of Humor

It is no secret that Martin and I have kept our lives open to the will of God for our family planning. Although I am very content now (and extremely happy that my jeans are fitting really nice !)

Last Wednesday however,(day after the elections, mind you), I was feeling like something was awry. I asked Martin to please get a pregnancy test just to be sure.. He discreetly leaves the house and brings home the test. I run upstairs and take care of my business during our snack break (we are watching Dancing with the Stars).

I do my thing and sure enough...TWO blue lines! AAHH!! A brief moment of freaking out and I return to find Martin waiting at the bottom of the stairs. I look at him and he knows the result without a word..done this enough to know THAT look.

So we return to the living room to watch our show and I blurt out to Wendy and LeRoy that we are pregnant!! (Perhaps this is why I have been struggling with my emotions etc recently right?) Ususally we wait to tell people for a few weeks while we adjust to the news and make sure that everything is okay. For some reason, Martin calls the kids down from bed to share our news with them. They are ecstatic.

Later that night as I am getting ready for bed, I finally look at the test box to put it away. (We got the box with two tests) I realize that the two blue lines are for Negative as in NO BABY!! Not "Yahoo! Your"e pregnant!! " How in the world did I miss that? Come on, I mean I must have taken at least fifty of these since we started having kids. I must be losing my mind! Who doesn't check the box first to find out HOW to interpret the results?

Next morning I clarify everything for Wendy and LeRoy and break the news to the kids. The kids are devastated,especially Abbie. She wanted to help mommy "get her new babies from the doctor". In fact, she has had several tearful moments this week trying to understand the confusion. Today, she was telling her brother the things she was thankful for and she said "the babies." He told her mommy is not having another baby right now and she began to cry again.

So we have had a good laugh, knowing that God too must be chuckling a little bit. I KNOW, I KNOW, some of you are not laughing at all about this, in fact it is probably causing You to have a freak out moment............

My Changed Life

My last entry was a little rushed as I needed to get dinner going for the family. I must say that our neighbors must think I am a terrible cook, ()if they pay any attention to our house around dinner time.

Tonight, I was broiling burgers and when I opened up the oven door to check on them, this cloud of smoke appears. The kids hear me yelling, "Man your stations, doors now!! Open quick!" Each child takes their place and the "smoke out" begins, but not before the alarm starts blaring. So, not only is the oven tempermental (this has happened a dozen or so times), but, we have an overly sensitive fire alarm system (good for its purpose, thankfully) but when I am trying to make an appetizing dinner, the one thing the family doesn'tt want to associate with it is smoke and a fire alarm!! My sweet children posed the question as to what our neighbors must think when we have to open our doors every few nights and let the smoke out (and they can surely hear this fire alarm too!)

Okay, now that I have that out of the way, I just want to make sure that I am clear about everything. While I am very disaapointed about Martin's job, and he is too, we absolutely know that God is in control. We have no doubts as to His omnipotence in this area of our lives. We may not understand, or even like it very much, but we trust His merciful and abounding love for us and our children.

Consider Abraham, (he and I have quite a bit in common I think). God told Abraham "Take now your son" (to give him as a sacrifice-his ONLY son mind you) (Gen 22:2) and Abraham obeyed. He got up the very next morning and did what he was asked to do. (Gen 22:3) He did not argue, or confer "with flesh and blood" (Galatians 1:16).

"Abraham did not choose what the sacrifice would be. Always guard against self chosen service for God. Self-sacrifice may be a disease that impairs your service. If God has made your cup sweet, drink it with grace; or even if he has made it bitter, drink it in communion with Him. If the providential will of God means a hard and difficult time for you, go through it. But never decide the place of your own martyrdom, as if to say "I will only go to there, but no farther." God chose the test for Abraham, and Abraham neither delayed nor protested, but steadily obeyed. If you are not living in touch with God, it is easy to blame HIm or pass judgement on Him. You must go through the trial before you have any right to pronouce a verdict, because by going through the trial you learn to know God better. God is working in us to reach His hghest goals, until his purpose and our purpose become one" ( Nov 11 My Utmost for His Highest)

Our loss is counted as His gain, only what is done for Christ will pass the test anyhow. These are perilous times, these are hard times, but we have firmly planted our feet on the solid ground. Take heart, this same Jesus will do this for you too!!! He loves us, He knows us, and He gently leads us to places we may never have chosen on our own. But we remain changed for eternity and His glory when we walk in this way.

When the darkness closes in

So...almost six months to the day, Martin has been laid off again!! (Twice in one year, are you kidding??) We have been looking for other things since we had a good idea this was coming, but the pickings are slim. Hopefully with the holidays coming we can both pick something up, at least as holiday help.

Hard to know what the LORD has planned here. From an earthly perspective, I wish we hadn't moved 700 some odd miles away from friends and family just for this. I mean, we could lose a job anywhere right? Ha Ha, just a little humor..gotta keep laughing or I'd lose my perspective.

Anyhow, we are fine! We have been there, done that ,so many times now we have lost count!! We will choose to praise the LORD even in the middle of this crises..no matter how dark the darkness gets...our sacrifice is of praise today!!

No Street Lights

Some days it sure feels like we are traveling along a long, dark road with no lights to illuminate our path. Our streets and neighborhoods in Belgrade have very few street lights ( a huge change from the big city) and so traveling at night (especially when your eye sight is poor!) can be difficult to say the least.

The road that leads to our house is off the highway, so you can see the large billboards and lights from this road, but when you are trying to gage the distance in the dark, it is easy to lose the way. I have found that I try to turn off the wrong road constantly, or I pass right throguh the intersection instead of slowing down and turning down the street that leads home. As the time change occurred, so has the frequency of my driving "at night". I began to wonder what God might be trying to tell me.

Am I willing to 'drive" on the dark road when I can't see where the Heavenly Father is leading me, or do I second guess His judgement and try to do it on my own?

The road I take to get home is clearly marked, and I know I must wait until I get to the large billboard, but I have mistakenly tried to turn earlier several times. In fact, last night I went straight through the intersection ( thank God there were no other weary travelers) and I missed the turn!! I lost sight of the road sign!

How often do we do this in our lives? God has clearly marked our path with His word, "thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path".

I lost my way! I turned my head and trusted in my own judgement rather than the trustworthiness of the road signs!! How often do we do this with our relationship with GOD? How often do we think we know better? Do we think we know the "signs" better than he does? Do we assume we have arrived at our destination, only to find that we completely missed the turn?

The road may be dark, there may be many curves along the way, but God has promised to never leave us or forsake us. He gives us the grace we need to arrive at our destination safely. He always provides us the light at the end of the road, even when the darkness surrounds the rest of the path.

Ephesians 5 :8 For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light.

Hunting

My hubby and Trenton are venturing out for their second try at hunting this weekend. Grandpa LeRoy got home from Ohio at midnight last night and they were determined to get up early this morning and go.

I was awakend at 5:12 a.m. because Martin forgot to turn on his alarm, so I hear Grandpa hollering upstairs to see if Martin is coming. (They were supposed to leave at 5 a.m.) I quickly try to console Lillie, who is also awakened by the rucous, but it was too late. The ball was rolling..I gently asked Martin to shut off the light in our closet as he headed out, so maybe we would have a chance at another hour of sleep, and he kisses us goodbye and heads down the stairs. Unfortunately, he trips at the bottom of the steps over a pile of stuff I had left there the night before. He was none too happy when I tore out of bed (awaking Lillie again) to see what happened.

Perhaps, a nice elk or deer might work to ward off the memory of this crazy morning??? We shall see...

All dressed up

We had a great time on Friday night at the church. The kids scored far too much candy that I wish I could hide from myself! I will let them have a few pieces over the next week or so, and then give it away, before it makes it's way to my hips!! Also, with a diabetic child in the house, it really is a challenge and temptation that can have dangerous consequences.

My nephew and sister-in-law joined us for all the games and merriment. Hope that you enjoy the pictures of the kiddos..they all looked so cute. I challenged them to make their own costumes next year and see how creative they can be.

These are for you Uncle Jeff and Aunt Kelly-we miss you and wish you were here!!

The Day the Music Died

I can't stand halloween. It's not the dressing up. I actually LOVE to dress up, and usually take the kids to a church for the activities on this night. I don't mind the candy. I have an unfortunate love for sweets. The evil/gross/scare you to death stuff is behind me these days. But I really hate halloween, because this is the day the music died.

It's been eight years today. I can still smell, almost taste, the sterile , cold room at St. Anthony's. I can make myself feel the frigidness of the room. I can see each of the faces there that day. I can envelope myself with the emptiness that crept into my heart and soul at that moment.

I had said my private goodbye earlier that day. But, as the moment approached, my words seemed so hollow, so penetrable and foreign. I felt as if it would take everything out of me, every last breath, as a crowded room waited for the mysterious step from this life to the next. We were trying to remain strong for one another as the Lord approached and walked my mom to her new home.

I watched her go. I saw my grandfather say his final farewell, when he reached out to dry one final tear that fell from her already closed eyes and rolled down her cheek. I believe it was her way of telling him goodbye, he could let his baby girl go. I held her feet, as if for a brief time I could hold her there with me, or somehow keep her from leaving me behind.

But what I can't seem to remember anymore are the really important things; like, how much she loved me and my kids. What would she say if I could ask her a million questions? I can't remember what it felt like to have her hug me. I can't remember the smell of her hair or her perfume...even the memory of her face is beginning to fade with the years.

I lost the captain of my cheerleading squad, my greatest coach, my mentor, my mother, and my very best friend !

I can recall earilier that same year, sitting on my bed reading a devotion and being asked by the Lord to relinquish everything to Him. I had to lay all of my belongings, hopes, dreams, EVERYTHING, down on the altar, (like Abraham had with Isaac.) I gladly chose my Lord. I simply had no idea how much was going to be required of me at that time.

I am just beginning to realize the cost of some of those things I lay down. Things that took my eyes off Jesus and put them on me. But there were others that the Lord never desired me to set aside completely. He just wanted to loosen my grip on them, to take those things that were lumps of coal and turn them into diamonds.

I was`asked to sing a few weeks ago, and I thought I humbly refused,telling them I haven't done that since mom died. I was reminded by someone who loves me , that I was wasting the gift that God gave me by not singing anymore. I was hurt . I thought to myself "Of course I sing, just in the privacy of my own house." And then I realized, they were right. The Lord didn't give me this gift, or any other, to waste. I let something inside me die when I said goodbye to my mother.

She would not want this, she would be saddened by my lost interest., my refusal to take part in something that I once loved so dearly. I think she`would tell me to sing again, to let the music in my heart and soul rise again.

The`Lord is good..all the time. He heals. He restores. He refines..I am being made for His glory. I may not sing for crowds, receive wordly accolades, but I will sing for Him.

I miss my mom, and I will until I am called to my heavenly home and am reunited with her. I beleive that I am being refined and those things I lay down are being restored in ways that I could never have imagined. There is a song beginning to rise.....

Aah...Living Water

Last night I got an invitation from my sister in law to attend a mid week church service that started at 7:00. She called around 6:15 p.m. and we were in the middle of dinner. Since neither one of us had been to this church before, I was a little hesitant in my heart to go. But, after talking with my hubby, he agreed to keep the kiddos and let me check out this new church. It is just around the corner from us and right across the street from Doug and Denise's house. They meet in an aluminum sided building and share the other half with a dairy store. I didn't know what to expect!

We entered the building and the lights were low and a wonderful, sweet, autumn, cinnamon smell greeted my nostrils. Okay, I thought, this is nice! As we were walking down the aisle, a gentleman gently greeted us and let us know that we could receive the communion in the back at any time. We found some seats toward the middle and sat down and began to worship. I cannot begin to explain how wonderful it was. I

I partook of Holy Communion and thought through this past year. Many things came to my heart and mind during this precious time. I acknowledged a great amount of sin, but I also received such wonderful mercies, abounding mercies. The Holy Spirit just washed over my dry and weary soul like a torrential down pour. I couldn't have been more grateful. I have been so hungry this year, and I have felt like the Sahara in the middle of the summer heat! Unable to get even a drop. But then the LIVING WATER was being poured out on me.. Oh my soul was so grateful to be there..I didn't stay long enough to meet anyone, or even greet the worship leaders. i didn't need to..I met my LORD there last night and that was all I needed.

Are we there yet?

Well, we made it home safe and sound on Sunday evening! Daddy was a happy camper to have us all back again!! I realized just how much upheaval we have had though when Abbie asked me on Monday morning how long we got to stay in this red house? (our new home) She was so used to moving around that she wasn't sure where home was anymore...poor baby!

I didn't have any plans for going anywhere except the grocery store for a while, and I guess God agreed. When I went out to start the van on Monday (to help Aunt Denise find her lost kitty), my van wouldn't turn over. We tried to jump start the battery and nothing!!! Praise God that this didn't happen on the road..the big beast worked like a charm for the whole trip (except for the tire incident, but that's another story.)

After adding all of our travels up, the children and I drove close to 5000 miles! Hopefully next time we attempt something like that, we will see more than just the highways of the six states we passed through!

We had a wonderful trip though! Thank you so much to all of you who shared your homes, your life, meals, and your time with us. We were all so blessed.

We thought that the craziness would end when we got home, but no such luck. Martin's company is in the process of laying off several people. For the current moment he still has a job...oh the toils of the working class!

Keep up the prayers for our family..we could sure use them right now!