7/31/2008 Fair Time! Fair time rolled around again, and it was fun to get my yearly dose of grease, pigs, and arena events! Cade brought added joy to our fair experience as everything was new and exciting. He loved the animals and enjoyed walking among the throng of people! More Photos

7/28/2008 Growing Up Cade continues to be such a joy in our life, and he is at a really fun stage! He is a lot of fun to be around and is usually the center of attention in our home . . . at Grandpa and Grandma's . . . and out on errands! Hopefully I'll shoot some video and get a post up sometime soon. More Photos

7/26/2008 The Flood is Over! As I drive to church, I can't help but notice things that "say", "The flood is over". Praise God!!! This humorous sign reads: Free Sandbags! More Photos

7/25/2008 A Shake for Two! One evening Tim, Cade and I didn't feel like cooking so we stoped by a local burger joint. Cade loved Tim's shake and was even more excited about what he found outside . . . More Photos

7/4/2008 Time for Neil's Fireworks Show!!! We enjoyed a wonderful 4th of July with Tim's sisters, Natalie and Leann, and their families!! We were able to spend the afternoon outside and were treated to a delicious supper cooked by Neil and Leann. Then we headed over to my parents' home for Neil's annual fireworks show. In my post last July 4th, I explained that Neil looks forward to this day all year! He has a facination with fireworks and has now become the head of our family's annual fireworks show! More Photos

6/26/2008 - 7/1/2008 Haiti Mission Trip My entire family recently traveled to Haiti with Ed and Jenny S. to help dedicate a few group homes built by Loving Shepherd Ministries (www.loving-shepherd.com). Although I have been exposed to poverty many times, it always seems to hit me afresh. It grips my heart and leaves lasting images in my memory to serve as a reminder of God's blessings. As I put this post together, each picture brought back so many memories of the sights, sounds, and smells of Haiti! Although God has not called Tim and I to full-time mission work in Haiti, he has definitely drawn our hearts to the need of His children in this destitute country. I would encourage everyone to visit Haiti once in your life, because you will surely leave the island with a heart more like Jesus! More Photos

June 2008 - Another 500 year flood!! In 1993, a "500 year flood" caused massive destruction all along the Mississippi. One of these great floods had also happened in 1973. Both times we lost the fight with the river, and many of our church families lost homes and land. When Tim and I moved back by the river, he never imagined he would live to see another flood. Well, he was wrong! Only 15 years after the last flood, another "500 year flood" came. They are currently revising their definitions of a "500 year flood"!!!  Earlier this spring the river rose a bit and caused some minor flooding.  That got Tim and I talking, and I pulled out the Flood of 1993 video.  Tim was amazed and couldn't imagine that volume of water or the effort needed to hold it back.  In June the water started to rise again, and when Tim and I were vacationing with our Lafayette group we received the call from Dad that the sandbagging efforts had begun.  We were amazed how high the water had risen just over the weekend we were gone. Over the next few weeks Tim learned first hand what it means to fight a flood.  He learned the definition of words like "dirty" boil, seepage, and crest and got to witness the overwhelming stream of volunteers from all over the United States.  It was a very hard decision to leave the flood fight and head to Haiti, but  you can be sure we wispered many prayers for the team at home!!!  Dad would call for daily updates, and we rejoiced every time we heard a good report.  I cannot tell you how many miracles we witnessed during our weeks of fighting the flood!!! I know God is always here, but His power and presence were very obvious during our fight against the river.  Our church body was such a great witness to the community!  People were amazed that hundreds of our church volunteers, many who knew no one directly, would drive or fly so many miles to help save our levee district.  What a living testimony!!  By God's grace, we were able to "win" the fight. I say this knowing so many of our brothers and sisters lost their homes and farm ground in Iowa.  They are just beginning the major clean-up effort, and I hope we are able to volunteer our time to lift them up in this great time of need!     More Photos

Parts of June & July 2008- V.B.S. We had a fantastic VBS this year, but our schedule was broken up by the flood. One night the kids studied The Great Flood, and the next night VBS was postponed because of our own flood!!! We used the Amazon Expidition curriculum, from Back to Genesis, which explores the 7 C's of History: Creation, Corruption (sin entering the world), Catastrophe (the flood), Confusion (the Tower of Babel), Christ, Cross, and Consummation (Christ's return). The students were able to learn how the Bible, science and history all relate! Six high school students helped us out with a nightly skit, and Elliot, the reporter, used my camera as a prop.  Thus . . . this is the only picture I have of the kids!  The rest are of the skit group!!  If there is a church that would like to use this curriculum for thier next VBS, please send me an e-mail.  I'd love to send you all of our posters, teacher's books, etc.! More Photos

6/13/2008 - 6/15/2008 Timbercreek Bed & Breakfast Once or twice a year we try to take a trip with our former Lafayette Bible study group, and this year we traveled to a wonderful Bed and Breakfast in the heart of Illinois. It was a great central location and we had the entire place to ourselves!!! In this picture: front- Tim & Amber, Grant & Cara, Mark & Angie, back- John & Andrea, Lon & Sarah, missing from the photo- Rustin & Amanda, Jeff & Gretchen. We feel totally at ease with this group, and it was so nice to spend a weekend reconnecting!! We played lots of games, talked, sang, laughed (we cried together too), and ate great food! We tried to come up with an official name for our group, but we were not succesful. We'll have to try again next time! Thanks for a great weekend of memories!!! More Photos