For All things there is an end...

Well, I no longer live in Alaska and am in the middle of moving, house-sitting, and something called life.  I'm disappointed to be in limbo yet again, but figure it must be part of the big picture somehow.  Sure glad I can't see the future.... so glad God does.

Pray for our family and we'll pray for yours.  Pray for this nation and we'll pray for yours.  Pray because Jesus taught us too.  Pray without ceasing, yes, it's possible.  Give the sacrifices of thanksgiving, it's God' will for you in Christ Jesus. 

I've enjoyed blogging but feel like the season in my life for blogging is over.   Perhaps "Gingey" will join us for Christmas in Oregon and we'll be able to tell about it.  For now, have a wonderful Thanksgiving and Christmas everyone!

Enjoying the last days of Sunshine

So, we're settled in here on my Aunt and Uncle's farm in Oregon... enjoying the last of the sunshine for the season....

Peek-A-Boo

Swing on the Rope Anyone?

Silhouette Beauty

Oldest Brother holding littlest brother, enjoying the view...

Piggy Back riding is as fun as horseback!

Taking a pony ride with second cousins...

Stacking the harvest bounty...

What a nice seat this pumpkin makes...

Think I can catch you with my trike...



Or get ahead...

Better yet a ride on top of the horse..

Me go too....

Where are the Weeks going?

Hello All,

We know where the weeks go:  they pass us by with God's mercies new every morning...  I apologize for not connecting well with all, there's a lot going on but I plan to update everyone through this blog...  When we were driving through B.C. we stopped at a place called "The Log Barn."  It was so much fun and we met another Christian family while there and were mutually encouraged.

These dinosaurs were made from fiberglass and were so life-like.  The children and "Gingey" had so much fun until... we accidentally left Gingey behind in the jaws of a dinosaur... a Father was showing his young children and wife what was left behind, a gingerbread on the very brink of destruction.  I didn't want the little children to be upset so I ran up and snatched him away, explaining what we'd been up too.  Hopefully they don't have any nightmares.

Fireball getting acquainted...

Fireball having a seat on the elephants trunk

Or a dangle...

Run, Gingey, as fast as you can!

Snuggling with a Bear

Run, Dadddy and children, as fast as you can!

Not fast enough!

Wee, look at me!

Fireball showing us how he'd protect us all from the beast behind him...

Just a quick taste...

Ride the dragon anyone?

Gingey at Pioneer Ranch Camp

I am sorry that I haven't posted in such a long time... I joined facebook a few weeks ago so people could track us better on our trip.  In some ways, it is easier to post pictures, but I surely miss writing.  I hope to catch everyone back up to speed over the next few days.... Gingey is still with us and here are some photos of him enjoying Pioneer Ranch Camp a few weeks ago...

Saddling up with our oldest son...

Climbing with "Fireball"

Scaling the wall with ease...

Having a ride on top of horsey

Narrowly escaping...

Until rescued by our friend, "The Wrangler."

Almost became dinner....

Jumping on the tractor for his only way of escape...

This little guy is sure keeping everything light and full of smiles around here.  We're glad to have him with us and will continue to post his adventures in the days to come.

Can you hear me now?

Can you hear me now?

We had the greatest time with our dear friends who now work at Pioneer Ranch Camp in Alberta, Canada.  Here's one of them "getting a clear signal."  We never laugh so much as we do when we're around these long time friends originally from Sequim, WA.  They are also fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.  

 

Gingey's Adventures on the Alcan

Slipping through the border

Burwash landing

Watson Lake signpost forest,
Can you spot "Gingey"?

Hopping a board for a ride...

Pioneer Ranch Camp's moose head....

Gingey is a sneaky little bread, popping up in the most unexpected places...we only wish we had more time to write... alas, you'll have to hear more about his adventures in a children's book to come....

The Gingerbread Has Arrived

THE OFFICIAL BAKE ANNOUNCEMENT OF

The Alaskan Ginger Bread Being…

He smells so good...

Length:  10.5 inches

Weight:  a few ounces

Name:  Gingey Gerhardt

 Heralded by the first few snowflakes of the season, “Gingey” arrived fresh out of Grandma Lynn’s oven. 

He jumped right onto the oven door when we weren't looking...

Having spent weeks being formed in the imagination of our minds and hearts, he sprang into existence on our kitchen table. 

Snipping some pretty red ribbon...

Now it happened in this way….I raised my camera to capture the process of creation and my screen was dark and formless. 

The lens cap was still firmly snapped in place.

“Let there be light,” I shouted playfully.  And this is what I saw:

Yes, that's a square gingerbread in the background formed by none other than fireball himself

Other gingerbread’s were being made as well.  However we already had a plan and design for this particular gingerbread that lay in front of us.  It wasn’t because it was any better than the others or wasn’t equal.  I simply had a specific purpose in mind for it to fill. 

I traced around a large cookie cutter placed on the bottom of a cardboard box.  I picked up a pair of scissors and trimmed the edges.  My daughter became anxious about how much I was doing and wondered if I would remember my promise of allowing her to help.

I assured her, “Don’t worry, you can help. I need to do this part because the cardboard is difficult to turn and cut.  You may pick the buttons for his eyes,” I said. 

They were chosen.  My daughter began snipping bits of red ribbon for his mouth. 

“It seems rather stiff; maybe we should use yarn instead?” I questioned. 

It was clear however, that she wanted to use her own bits of ribbon and I helped her glue them to his face.  I tried to talk her into a nose, but she was sure that the gingerbread did not have a need for one.  She was right; it looked funny, so we skipped the nose. 

I turned my back for a second and suddenly heard the snap of a permanent marker lid.  Every mother knows that warning sound… and the familiar smell of danger.

I said, “Waaaiiiit!”  With marker hovering, she said, “BUT he’s MY gingerbread and you said I could help decorate.”

“Yes, I did say that you could help decorate, but no, he doesn’t belong to you.  This gingerbread creation is something Mama thought up and I’m giving you the honor of helping me.” 

Together we decided where to draw the buttons and how many.  She happily drew them in place.

The gingerbread looked simple, well rounded and tasty.  Everything a good Alaskan gingerbread man should be…

Yet as soon as he was taken from the oven he wanted to do things his own way.  He leaped off the pan.  He ran and hid all around Grandma Lynn’s house.

He felt at home here...another oven above the stone fireplace

Grandma Lynn gently lifting him down from his precarious perch...

It wasn't long before we found him trying the handle of the old-fashioned fridge...

He leapt up to the window before we could catch him...

Running across a bench at the table...

He made a flying leap to what he thought was a safe place... getting back to his roots

 

Soon he escaped out the front door where he hitched a ride back home with us.  We had to stop for a load of water on the way home like many Alaskans do… here he is helping.

I'll help hold the hose...

Just like stopping for gas, except a whole lot cheaper

I’m sure this tasty gingerbread won’t last long.  We must catch him first.  We’ve already heard his little chant, “Run, Run as fast as you can, you can’t catch me, I’m headed down the Alcan!”

We’ll be following his adventures and posting his guest story on our blog for the next few weeks.  Stay tuned for more, “Adventures with Gingey….”

Handy Homeschooling Tips

Binders make great places to store art and school work...

 Earlier in August I had grand plans to start official school early.... I know because these photos were dated Aug. 5th.  Where did the time go?  And what is official school?  Perhaps I should just call it "work at the table time" because somehow that always feels official.  This year 2-year old sissy made her own binder because she wants to do "school" just like the big kids.

Indoor Recess gets creative...bowling with a giant package of paper towels...

Love all things "Melissa and Doug" brand..

 My Mother-in-Law sent a bunch of these sturdy plastic educational place mats up in a package this year and they are wonderful tools to use when teaching or reviewing numbers and skip counting.

End of the hallway "school" storage...

 Keeping all of your items clearly labeled really helps.  If you have toddlers in the house, put drawers up and out of reach.  Soooooo much less temptation and eaiser to put things back at eye level for older kids.

The central hub...

 So over the years I have found that keeping a whole lot of people working together is a full time job requiring management skills.  Other then trying to remember to laugh and smile more, a home management binder is a must.  I always have some sort of planner each year but this year I printed one off one for free at http://strangersandpilgrimsonearth.blogspot.com

I love having one binder to grab and go anywhere in the house and beyond and have everything at my fingertips.  I know, I should have a smart phone to do it all for me, but I'm a tactile learner and need to flip pages and write things with a real pencil and hear the sound.  It sounds like I'm getting something done other than just winning the "cleaner upper pick-up after everyone" award.

My Office in a Box

Did I blog about this already?  This has been so handy while living daily life with nursing baby, reading to little ones, putting out fires, etc.  I store my home management binder in here along with my Bible, a current book I'm reading, a magazine article, Thank-you cards to write, a blank notebook and pen, an advertisement or whatever is currently floating around and doesn't have a home... this could get dangerous.

So when I get a moment to nurse baby I grab one thing out of that basket to work on.  I always know that I have a place to store my planning calendar, ideas that pop into my head, Christmas list plans, things to write about, school goals for the kids, doctors and dentists numbers, etc.  It's just so handy and so small that it makes me feel that life is under control because it all fits into that tiny little box. 

So, the reality, of course is life is so huge and wonderful and amazing and scary all at the same time that I need to know it can all be put away and dealt with another time, perhaps tomorrow if it's getting to late, or the next hour after little ones are down for nap, or maybe in 20 min. after we go for a walk, or when I can think straight when other people are out for their walks.....

I posted a page here Overwhelmed Offices?  It's got a photo of our dry erase board and blank wall calendar.  Yes, I keep one calendar blank just so I can look at it and breathe....empty spaces make me feel like everything is going to be OK when life gets crazy.  I'm not sure why but I need to look at one nice calendar with nothing at all written in the squares.  It reminds me that life is wide open waiting to be filled and to be careful about what I fill it with.

I am trying to show how and not show off...this just works for me.  I try to glean from others and implement new ideas and strategies to running my home more efficiently.  Some days I feel like I've really got it together and other days.... WHAT AM I DOING? rings through my brain.

Then I remember I'm just walking the path God has set before me.  I don't walk alone.  When I rest in His peace I enjoy everything, even the business of being available to so many human souls at the same time.  When I fret and become impatient, I loose that joyfulness and become edgy and irritable.

Oh that I could stay teachable all my life... oh that my children would forever learn new things....and that through it all we could be tenderhearted, loving, and forgiving one another daily.