Why have I been so slow on the website updates??? Well . . . see the "Vacation" post below. By the way, I have added pictures to the post about our Labor Day trip to the Ozarks and one picture to the Cowboy post!

9/30/07 Minister Appreciation BBQ Three couples organized a Sunday evening BBQ to honor the ministers at our church. It was a wonderful evening of food and fellowship, and it was a tangible way to show our appreciation for ministers who aren’t afraid to preach the truth of the Bible! We are so blessed with a united pulpit, and I genuinely look forward to the preaching on Sundays and Wednesday evenings! More Photos

9/29/07 Women’s Seminar Tim was gracious to watch Cade on Saturday so I could attend our church’s Women’s seminar. Ted, the speaker, did a wonderful job addressing issues women face in today’s culture, and there were so many points I could take home and apply. I learned a lot about my worth in Christ, my perfectionist nature, relationships with other women, and finally about body image. God looks at each of us as souls, and I pray I can view other women the same way!!!! The links below take you to the seminar Power Point and a clip that helps show why we, as women, can never live up to today’s model standards!! Power Point: http://www.accounseling.org/Presentations.asp?PID=11 Dove Evolution Clip: http://www.campaignforrealbeauty.com/flat4.asp?id=6909

9/28/07 Young Group Bible Study Each month the high school and college students from our church have a Bible study, and we were privileged to host September’s study. Scott led us in a wonderful lesson on eternity, taken from the Crown Financial study, and it was really neat to hear thoughts from each one. These young people have taken a stand against culture and determined to live their life for Christ, and I’m confident they have no idea of all the things from which they are being spared! Here the young kids were trying out a game for their fall invite. After 45 minutes they finally worked out the game's kinks.

9/17/07 – 9/28/07 Vacation Time . . . But Not for Me!! For the last few months I have been working one day a week as a pharmacist. This has helped me retain my knowledge base and provided Grandma with a few hours to spoil her grandson! The past two weeks, however, I covered vacations for the two other pharmacists. This meant full-time work; one week the morning shift and the next week the evening shift. After two weeks away from home, I learned a lot!!! These are in no particular order. • I am SO blessed with my Christian heritage!!!! One of my co-workers commented, “I have never had an easy life.” After listening to her life story, I had to agree. Because of the changed life Christ brought to my parents, grandparents, great-grandparents, etc. I have been blessed with amazing, godly examples and truly an “easy life!” • God did not bless me with a manager’s personality! My biggest challenges during the two weeks were greatly co-worker related: sick days, lack of motivation to work, personality conflicts, etc. • Cade is blessed with a wonderful grandma who was willing to watch him while I helped out at work!!!! Mom put aside her chores for these two weeks, and literally spent most of the time playing with Cade. She helped him learn how to roll over, read lots of books, took many walks, and taught Cade Pat-A-Cake. When I left Friday, she got teary eyed and said she would go into withdraw the following week. She explained that after two weeks she and Cade had a routine, and it would be strange to not have him around her home. I guess this means Cade and I will have to find more times to “bump into Mom” during the coming weeks!! • Some people will never be happy!!! No matter how hard I tried to please some customers, I was still yelled at and they still left the pharmacy irate. For some reason, I don’t think it had a lot to do with me! • I have a wonderful husband who is willing to go to work every day so I don’t have to! He also is willing to CHOOSE a life-style that doesn’t require a second income. Although I do enjoy my pharmacy job, I LOVE being a stay-at-home mom. I am so thankful God blessed me with a hard-working husband who can support our family!

9/23/07 Happy Anniversary!?!? We stopped by to see Dad and Mom on our way home from Kansas and we needed to put something in their freezer. In order to make room for our stuff, we had to pull out our wedding cake!!! You read right! Our wedding cake was 4 years and 2 months old, and it was way past the traditional 1st anniversary celebration . . . but what do Heimer’s know about tradition??? Mom decided to cut a piece of the cake, defrost it, and give it a taste test. It actually didn’t taste too bad, and we had a nice 4 year, 2 month celebration! More Photos

9/21/07 – 9/23/07 To the Rolling Hills of Kansas When Tim and I moved, one of our goals was to visit Tim’s parents more often. Our drive shortened from 9 hours to 4, so that makes an easy weekend trip! We picked a free weekend (i.e. no wedding, baptism, or other company for Dad and Mom) so we could have a relaxing weekend in Kansas. We had a wonderful weekend with family!!!! More Photos

9/14/07 – 9/16/07 Tim = New Hunter = Hooked for Life Well . . . after 4 years of marriage, Tim has finally decided to join the Heimer hunting team!!! With the hunter safety course complete, we headed to the sports store and spent Tim’s Christmas money (yes . . . 2006 Christmas money! He’s a saver!) on hunting clothes. Last year he bought Darin’s old bow, so he was set to head out to the woods. He hardly slept Friday night and got up early Saturday to head out to the tree stand. He didn’t see anything that morning, but did get to see a few deer in the evening. Jay and Darin harvested does, and we got to use the new meat cooler at the farm. Tim and Darin went out again on Thursday (9/20/07), and they each shot a deer. They tried to track Tim’s deer for ~1 hour, but then realized he must have just grazed it because of the small amount of blood. After tracking Darin’s deer for a couple of hours through dense brush, they finally gave up and called it a night. Tim learned a lot from the hunts, and also came home with a lot of insect bites!!!!!! He’s been itching all week! After talking over the weekend, Tim is very excited about hunting this fall and described it as “addicting”. Hilarious- my husband has caught hunting fever!!!!!! More Photos

9/12/07 More Yummy: Cereal or Spoon??? Lately, after a full meal, Cade has still seemed hungry . . . so we introduced him to cereal! He ended up with more on himself than in his mouth and preferred chewing on the spoon to actually eating the cereal. He was really out of sorts the remainder of the day, so I think we’ll wait awhile before trying cereal again. He may have had a sore tummy, or he may be feeling pressure from on-coming teeth. Either way, I was thankful when he was back to his normal, smiley self the following day!!!!!

9/7/07 - 9/8/07 Certified Safe Hunters Well, after 13 hours of class Tim and I are now certified to hunt with a gun! Taking this class has been one of our major frogs (something you know you need do . . . but keep putting off for a more convenient weekend . . . which never seems to come), so it’s nice to finally have it out of the way. All of the adults in the Heimer family have now completed their hunter’s education!!!!! Although I dreaded the long class time, I actually learned a lot and enjoyed spending the time with Tim (up until the last hour when our instructor droned on about his achievements). I came away with a greater passion for safety and an increased appreciation for my upbringing. If you have more free time, you can read on . . . You may ask why I came away from a gun safety class thankful for my parents. Well, while most of the participants were down-to-earth fathers with their son or daughter, we were “privileged” to have one junior high boy who was there, “because my probation officer said I had to take this class.” He provided unwelcome commentary through the two days, tried his best to look uninterested, and even tried sleeping through the class while on the front row. He went back and forth with the instructors, and all of the class seemed mystified that he had not been kicked out. While trying to drive home the importance of safety, one instructor, who investigates scenes of fatal gun shots, got in his face and said, “Have you ever seen a four-year-old girl whose head was blown off because she found her dad’s loaded gun?” “That’s cool” replied the boy. WOW!!! The teacher was hot!! Our second-to-last teacher was a conservation agent (complete with a pistol on his hip), and he had finally had enough. He told the boy he would fail the class, even if he passed his test, and told him he could leave if he wanted. The boy thought for a moment, and then walked out the back door. You could almost sense everyone relaxing! If my parents had seen this scene play out, I KNOW I would have been in BIG trouble!!!!! I praise God for parents who cared enough to discipline me, give me boundaries, and show love in tough ways!

9/7/07 - 9/9/07 The 2nd Annual Elder/Cowboy Roundup! Dad and Mom hosted some of their friends out at the cabin this weekend, and we were privileged to spend a little time with them. So what can you conclude after spending a few days with four elders and their wives . . . they are normal people too! Having two fathers in the eldership, we seem to know some secret other people haven’t figured out. Elders have normal jobs, a sense of humor, a love for their grandchildren, wives who like to shop, and passions outside of the Bible (i.e. hunting or horses). They read quality literature in their spare time (i.e. Cowboys and Indians magazine), spend most of their week without a tie, and need down-time like the rest of the world. Earl did warn me that I would be excommunicated if I divulged too many secrets, so I’d better stop here!!!! More Photos

9/5/07 The Everlasting Balloon!!! When Cade was born, my dad and mom bought him the biggest helium balloon I had ever seen!! It came home from the hospital with the rest of the balloons, but one by one the others slowly sank to their demise. Tim, my ever-curious husband, decided to conduct an experiment to see just how long it would stay in the air. With each passing week we continued to be amazed! It was still flying! So how long did the helium last???? 5 MONTHS!!!!!

8/31/07 - 9/5/07 Lake of the Ozarks My family was able to spend a relaxing Labor Day holiday weekend at the Lake. Our usual family vacations are action packed (i.e. July Nashville trip), but we decided to take a few days and just recuperate from the fast pace of life! Each morning the girls slept in, while the guys chose to go fishing. I guess everyone gets to decide what is relaxing for them! We spent our days lounging (all except for Darin who had to constantly be active), taking naps, reading, taking walks, eating, etc. We even got to watch fireworks from our balcony! In order to keep Darin sane, we spent one day on “tourist-trap alley”. Unfortunately, Cade did not get any attention during our trip, and he came home from the weekend feeling quite deprived!!! J Dad and Mom, thanks for a great trip! We love you! More Photos

8/28/07 Bible Study Picnic Yesterday we attended a picnic that was the finale to a ten week Bible study. Five couples from our church had agreed to be members of the initial group for the Crown Financial Ministry Bible Study, and we have been meeting together for two hours a week over the last few months. In the picture: Keith & Tami, Tim & Amber, Jim & Sally, Scott & Dawn, Brent & Charlotte(in back) When we began the study I thought I had a pretty good grasp on financial stewardship concepts, and I wasn’t convinced I had a lot to learn. Wow!! Was I ever wrong! The Bible study took us through ten lessons that included God’s principles on giving, investing, spending, work, debt, etc. It was amazing to see that our society operates with so many financial “norms” that violate how God thinks we should handle HIS MONEY. We earn money and feel it’s our right to decide how to spend it, but this is so contrary to biblical principles! The final chapter on eternity has changed my life forever!!!!!! The concept of a FINITE life finally registered in my brain. I will NOT live on this earth forever. Everything I see, but people, is temporary and will NOT be taken with me into eternity. So . . . what am I doing to invest in a kingdom that will never end? Is my focus on this short blip of earthly life? I encourage everyone, no matter what age, to complete this Bible study!! Crown even has material for children, teenagers, and college students. Tonight, Tim and Keith are presenting this information to our church and we will be starting more Bible study groups this fall. In addition to learning life-changing concepts, we thoroughly enjoyed getting to spend 20+ hours with these four other couples. We all knew each other through church, but it was such a blessing to get to know them on a deeper level!! More Photos

8/25/07 – 8/27/07 When city folk come to the country . . . In May we returned to Lafayette and got to spend some time with our former Bible study group. This past weekend we were privileged to host the group here at Dad and Mom’s cabin!!! Four of the eight couples were able to attend, and we had an awesome time! In the picture: Grant & Cara, Tim & Amber, Jeff & Gretchen, Rustin & Amanda, Mark & Angie. Our weekend was full of outdoor activities including four-wheeling, skeet shooting, and bow and arrow practice. We also spent plenty of time relaxing and enjoyed a late night campfire, Bible study, and singing in the hot tub!!!! Although we hadn’t seen each other for many months, it seemed like we had never been apart. These Christian friendships have been such a blessing to our marriage!! More Photos

8/23/07 Babysitting Fun! Mom was gone this past Thursday, so I dropped Cade off at Shelby’s so she could baby-sit while I was at work. About a half hour later, Tim received an e-mail asking, “Do you know what your son is doing?” Attached to the e-mail was this picture of Cade decked out in Cardinal baseball gear!!! Tim, a KC Royals fan, and Shelby’s brothers, Cardinal fans, go round and round about who has the best team. Click the link below to see two pictures that followed in other e-mails. Cade is going to think we lead pretty boring lives compared to Shelby’s family!! More Photos

8/23/07 Normal life . . . Well, I’ve been avoiding making a post because I haven’t taken any pictures lately. On the way home from church last night I asked Tim, “Do you have any ideas about something I could post on?” He replied, “No. It’s pretty much just “normal life” right now.” How right he was!! The last two weeks have been filled with “normal life” stuff- paperwork, doctor appointments, wash, diaper changes, etc. But in the midst of the mundane, life has been exciting. Cade’s personality continues to become more interactive, and he enjoyed playing in his new jumper this week!!! Tim and I just finished the Crown Financial Bible Study, and it has been amazing to watch God change our perspective from this temporal life to eternity (more to come on this subject). We feel like we’re looking at life with a new set of eyes! Well, it’s time for Cade’s bath and more “normal life” things. To all the other people out there leading “normal” lives . . . may God bless your day in spite of it’s normalcy!!!

8/10/07 - 8/12/07 A Fun-Filled Weekend!! Friday evening we joined Jason and Natalie at Bonkers, an indoor play gym for kids. Keith and Tami dropped their kids off and headed out on a date night, so Tim and I got to be the “parents” of four kids for the evening. I got a lot of funny looks, as I look too young to have one child let alone four!!! We had a great time at the gym and then headed to the park for a round of mini golf. It was a fun evening!!! Saturday we had a slow morning around home and then headed to a local hunting store where we attended a presentation on videoing hunts. Tim and some other guys spent the afternoon shooting their bows at the farm, and Cade and I tagged along. Sunday evening Robert and Emma had us over for supper, and the wonderful meal was a great way to finish the weekend!! More Photos

8/5/07 Ben Strikes Again!!! Tim’s old roommate never seems to announce his visits! He just randomly shows up. Well, true to form, we rounded the corner to meet some friends for breakfast Sunday morning and who do we see . . . Ben!!! We thoroughly enjoy hanging out with Ben, and it was so fun to have him in town, even if it was for just one day. Ben likes to think Cade Benjamin was named after him (he was named after my grandfather, but let’s just keep that a secret!), and it was fun for the two of them to be introduced Sunday! Tim and Ben were born just a day apart, and many people think they look and act a lot alike Feel free to stop by any time, Ben. We love your visits!!!!! More Photos

8/5/07 Baby Shower My cousin Annie and her husband Joe are expecting a baby at the end of September. Cade and I were able to join her at her baby shower, and as a new mom I had to be practical with my gift . . . diapers and wipes! You can never have enough!!!! More Photos

8/4/07 Visit from Mike, Carm and Kate Carmen and I were roommates our freshman year of college, and have continued to get together ever since. She and her husband, Mike, came down to visit Shannon and Susan . . . but, thankfully, we were privileged to hang out with them! They braved a morning at the fair, and then we joined them for a BBQ later that evening. It was great to have them in town! More Photos

8/1/07 – 8/4/07 The World’s Fair! I have so many childhood memories of fairs, and it was fun to introduce Tim to “my world” this week!!! Although he had to work during the pig and cattle show, he made it over for the sheep show one evening. He also joined me for a walk around the fairgrounds, sipped my all-time-favorite lemonade, met some of my schoolmates, endured the scorching August heat, ventured over to the demolition derby, and even spent the entire Saturday morning at the livestock sale. An after all of that . . . what did he have to say????? “I REALLY, honestly, enjoyed the fair!!” Hooray! Hopefully we can start building new family memories! More Photos