Blizzard and Birthday

Yes, you read that right. Another blizzard. Well, I guess I should say "winter storm." We've gotten maybe 12 or so inches, and travel is not advised. There was some wind, but I don't think it was as bad as predicted. So, just when I was looking for green grass to start showing itself, snow completely covered the ground!! *sigh* Our area does NOT need any more moisture. As you all probably know, Fargo and the surrounding towns have had MAJOR, record breaking flooding in the last couple weeks. Several friends of ours have had to evacuate, but thankfully everyone's okay. Our house isn't in any danger, but please be praying for those in Fargo and in the surrounding areas. Pray that homes and people will be kept safe, and that many will draw closer to God through these trials.

Here are some pictures of this most recent snowstorm. This first one is of our county road. A little while after I took the picture, the snow plows came by. Since the weather isn't very cold, the snow on the ground was very heavy and wet.






Our front porch



Dad plowing our driveway




Lydia turned 11 on March 20th. We celebrated her birthday at home before the convention, and then we had a little "party" with some friends for her when we were there. Some of Lydia's talents and hobbies are: drawing (God really gave her a gift for that!!), collecting Littlest Pet Shop items, playing piano, violin and harp (she can play very well by ear!), and writing pen pals. We each get to choose a movie to watch for our birthday evening, and Lydia chose FIREPROOF. You can find out more about it at www.fireproofthemovie.com. So, here are some pictures of her birthday celebration at home.






Thank you Aunty Jan for the wonderful birthday gifts! :-)



Happy 11th Birthday LYDIA!!!!

Convention

Hello everybody! Whew . . . it's been a roller coaster ride around here! We left for the annual North Dakota Home School Convention last Wednesday, Lydia's birthday was Friday, we arrived home on Sunday, I got a cold on Tuesday, and right now many towns in our area are preparing for/experiencing major flooding (thankfully we don't live by a river so our house should be fine). There's so much to write about, but I suppose I should start by giving y'all a overview of our convention trip.

Like I said, we left on Wednesday, at 11:00am. Our van needed fixing, so we ended up switching vehicles with a friend. Dad and my younger siblings rode in that vehicle (which was pulling an extremely full trailer) while mom and I drove in the car behind. All of a sudden, we saw dad (who was ahead of us) pull over, so we quickly did the same. I was worried about what the problem was since earlier we had smelt a burning smell. When the kids got out they told us that smoke was filling the cabin, and dad said that a hole had burned in the floor on the driver's side. Thankfully nothing caught on fire. So . . . we had to dig our friend's number out of the back of the car, and they had to meet us in Fargo so we could switch back to our van!! While we were getting their number out, someone left an important box on the side of the highway, and we all completely forgot about it until we were waiting to meet our friends in Fargo!! So mom and I drove back to get it, and thankfully it was still there, unharmed (if you look closely in the picture below, you can see the white box by the side of the road). What an adventure to start our trip!! A big thank you to the R. family for going through all that trouble for us! :-)



We finally arrived in Jamestown that afternoon around 2:30. We settled into our hotel and then went out to eat with the Bartlett family. We had a fun evening jamming and visiting with them. (You can view the links to their blogs on the side of my blog)




Thursday was a very busy day. Mom, dad, Caleb and Daniel went over to the Civic Center to help set up while I stayed back. Then we had lunch and by 2:30 I went over to the Civic Center to set up my booth. I had two tables - one for my card business, my book, and harp CD (www.gloryandgrace.com), and the other was for some items a friend of mine crocheted, and for my mom's new modest wedding dress business (http://www.gloryandgrace.com/modestweddingdresses.htm). Daniel also had a table where he sold many items - rubber band guns, wooden toys, crossbows, bows, mini wooden swords and shields, and more! Daniel sold a LOT of his things!! I . . . sold hardly anything (but a big thank you goes to Mrs. S. for buying some cards from me - I promise I won't post that picture I took of you!). :-)






On Friday we got up early and went over to the Civic. The convention was now officially open, with many vendors, lots of workshops, and a keynote speaker - Mike Farris.






I walked around the vendor hall with friends, listened to George Escobar's workshop on filmmaking (you can visit his website at http://www.adventfilmgroup.com/Home.html)



That afternoon some friends and I prepared snacks (thanks for helping with that, everybody!) and that evening for supper we had pizza and cupcakes for Lydia's birthday (more on that in a future post). It was SO much fun getting together with friends - old and new!





Saturday was pretty much a repeat of Friday - a lot of different workshops, another great message by George Escobar, fun walking around the vendor hall, and again, my favorite part - visiting with friends! For lunch Maria U., Andrea S. and I had a very good time talking with Mr. Escobar about filmmaking - he gave us a lot of great tips on cameras, lighting, editing software and more! I was going to play a song for offertory with the U. girls, but Maria had had the flu the day before and wasn't sure if she would be strong enough to do it. So we asked The Bartlett Boys to do it instead, and they did a great job! You can view the movie of them playing at Jonathan's blog - http://www.jonathanjbartlett.blogspot.com/. Below is a picture of their latest CD.



Saturday evening and Sunday morning we had a fun time visiting some more with the Bartletts - jamming, playing games, and going out to Perkins for brunch! We made it home safely early Sunday afternoon. We are so thankful to God that everything well and that we were kept safe! A HUGE thank you also goes out to all the volunteers - we couldn't have had the convention without you! By the way, next year's convention will be in Fargo at the Holiday Inn - and I'm already looking forward to it! :-)

Blizzard!!

As I write this the winds are howling, it is dark outside, and the wind chill is probably -25F! It's another Midwest blizzard! I'm sure you southerners are laughing at us crazy people, wondering why on earth we live up here. :-) Well, let me tell you, a blizzard is better than an earthquake or hurricane any day! :-) It's so nice to feel cozy and warm while a 45 mile-an-hour wind is whipping the snow everywhere outside. And it seems like every time there's bad weather, dad has the day off!!

Anyway, here are some pictures I took this afternoon. Yes, I actually went outside! The boys and dad plowed and shoveled, and I spent some time with my German Shepherd, Mercy.








Dad just said the driveway is REALLY bad!! The drifts are packed down and at least knee high. The boys sure have their work cut out for them tomorrow!

We have been extremely busy lately - as you probably know, mom is the convention coordinator for the ND Home School Convention. We are counting down the days until we leave for Jamestown, ND (we leave next Wednesday)! Some of the highlights this year for me will be seeing friends and hearing George Escobar speak about filmmaking. We are staying in a hotel for four nights, so we will probably be ready to go home to our own beds on Sunday, but I'm sure we'll be disappointed that the convention is already over (it always goes by so fast)! We've been going to the ND Convention every year since I was 2 or 3, so this is an annual tradition for our family. In 2006 mom became the coordinator and she enjoys being able to work from home and save up money for family trips. So, that being said, I won't be writing on here for a little while. But in a few weeks I'll be sure to tell you all how the convention went, and to post some pictures!! Please pray for mom as she finishes preparing, for our family's health, and for the weather to be sunny and warm next week!

Random Quotes and Pictures

"They that can give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.” — Benjamin Franklin



“Truth is not determined by majority vote.” — Doug Gwyn



“The beauty of the second amendment is that it will not be needed until they try to take it.” — Thomas Jefferson



“Every man is guilty of all the good he didn’t do” — Voltaire



“For most Americans the Constitution had become a hazy document, cited like the Bible on ceremonial occasions but forgotten in the daily transactions of life.” — Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr. – (1888-1965)




An elder Cherokee Native American was teaching his grandchildren about life. He said to them, “A fight is going on inside me…It is a terrible fight, and it is between two wolves. One wolf represents fear, anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, pride and superiority. The other wolf stands for joy, peace, love, hope, sharing, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, friendship, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith. This same fight is going on inside of you and every other person too.”

They thought about it for a minute and then one child asked his grandfather, “Which wolf will win?” The old Cherokee simply replied…“The one I feed.” — Anonymous



“My friends, we live in the greatest nation in the history of the world. I hope you’ll join with me as we try to change it.” — Barack Obama



“Past the seeker as he prayed came the crippled and the beggar and the beaten. And seeing them…he cried, ‘Great God, how is it that a loving creator can see such things and yet do nothing about them?’...God said, ‘I did do something. I made you.’ “ — Sufi Teaching

Mom's Birthday

My dear mother turned 42 today (but doesn't she look younger!?). Some of the highlights of her day were: opening the presents she picked out herself, eating the meals she planned (but didn't cook - she had the day off), and taking a buttermilk bath ALONE, WITHOUT ANY UNWANTED INTERRUPTIONS (that in itself was a miracle!!). Here are her favorite things:

Food -- pizza
Activity -- reading, taking a hot bath, talking to friends
Fruit -- fresh pineapple
Restaurant -- Pizza Hut
Bible Character -- Ruth
Dessert -- cheesecake
Color-- blue
Music group -- The Bartlett Boys
Sport - football (specifically the Packers)
Snack - nuts
Place to stay - at a B&B with my hubby
Drink - cranberry juice
Vegetable - squash

This morning she was rather embarrassed to have her picture taken because she was in her robe and didn't have any make-up on. :-)



She was real stubborn.



Ah . . . there's her lovely face . . .



Lydia drew a beautiful handmade card for mom - doesn't she do a good job?



And here is mom after her bath, changed from her robe and wearing make-up. :-)



And here are some pictures of my best friend and I - from baby, to girl, to young lady. The last one was taken in 2006.





Happy birthday mom! We love you!

Sunday

Today we celebrated my mom's birthday (which is tomorrow) by going out to eat at the Golden Corral for brunch. Yum!! Afterwards we enjoyed going to a black powder show in town. Caleb especially liked looking at all the old-fashioned guns that were there. There were also people selling toys, furs, rendezvous clothing, jewelry and a lot more! Here are a few pictures from this afternoon:







That last one was of Ethan with "General Custer" (you'll have to excuse the smudge on Ethan's face - must have been on the camera!). Anyway, we had a good time, and we're looking forward to tomorrow!! :-)