Quick note...

We've been busy again! Yesterday I got 4 varieties of lettuce planted, kale and some carrots! Gideon and I got to go eat at Space Aliens last night! Gideon's friend picked him to go with him for his birthday meal. It was great food and fun and Tuesday nights happen to be when kids eat free, and on your birthday you get a free dessert and you get 10 tokens on Tuesday for the games. Today, we are trying to get school done before violin lessons and AWANA store night. Only this night and next and we are done! Caleb's 11th birthday is Friday so will pick up rest of his birthday meal tonight when I figure out what that meal will be!

Kevin texted Warren (sort of the head of the missions team) asking how it was going and was everyone healthy. He got reply back saying all was well. It is hard not to want to call and ask to talk to Jordan but we are letting her experience this without constant direction from us. The schedule says they will head back this way tomorrow. I'll probably call tonight to find out for sure what's happening.

Kevin is at the doctor's office right now getting his pin out. The finger ended up infected. Please pray it will heal properly.

Got to run! Wish I could stay home and take it easy but life calls me somewhere else.

Good morning Monday...

We are in the middle of a writing assignment for the boys and I have one boy who you have to fight, kicking and screaming nearly to get a few words out on the paper. He takes after his dad so much. (Kev isn't a book person although he wrote me some very nice letters when we were dating, it isn't his thing) The other boy takes after his older sister Jordan and writing is pleasurable for him.

The last we heard from Jordan was Saturday afternoon. I take "no news" to be "good news". Today, was written down on the schedule for them to visit a prison, street evangelism and construction projects.

We have begun planting as maybe most of you have too, if you garden. I have peas, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, beets and spinach in. It's a joke around here about Kev the junk collector. He is always bringing something home he found on a curb or bought dirt cheap at an auction and sometimes I think it is junk but sometimes it's useful. I guess it takes the right project to come along before you know if it is useful or not:) I bought peas that needed staking and sitting against my chicken coop all winter were these lattice pieces he got from a curbside. They had been used around a deck to enclose it. Well, they made the "perfect" fencing for the peas. It is even attractive! I can't wait to see those peas pop up. Last year, we tired of picking peas off the ground. I sure hope this make it easier to harvest.

They arrived...

Jordan texted us today around 4 p.m. and they had just eaten authentic Mexican fajitas and cactus and were headed to the place they were staying the week. She said she tried it all! She has been a picky eater in the past and she knows I would want her to at least taste new things! They will attend church tomorrow with this man named Kevin and then I suppose plan out their week! Exciting!

Another update...

The van situation was resolved with the fuel pump being replaced. They are now in Fort Worth, Texas heading to Waco for the night! They are a little behind schedule but are so glad things are going well. Keep praying for safety and the rest of the trip down there.

Pray...

Please pray for the team. As of 9:40 a.m. they were being towed by a truck. The van continues to have transmission problems. Pray that this will be resolved quickly and safely.

Update...

Jordan was in Kansas last night when I last talked to her. They were staying with a couple families somewhere outside of Wichita. Interestingly, a pastor that filled in at our church who also built Kim's (who is on the trip) house took a church there and was hosting the crew along with another member of his church. It sounds like they will stay somewhere in Texas tonight and head over to Mexico in the morning.

Please pray for the van they are driving. The transmission was running hot most of the day. Pray for it to make it to Mexico so they can unload. The van is pulling a trailer with a load of wood in it so that may be the problem. Pray for Jordan's cold. She's been having a sore throat and it is bothering her now. She's taking lots of garlic and Vit. C and drinking but it's no fun to have right now. Thank you!

And she's off...

Jordan is off and traveling on her trip to Mexico. We got up before 5 a.m. to drive her over to the church they were leaving from. The van was pretty well packed with stuff and they didn't have everyone yet! I'm having a hard time because I was so thorough in helping her pack and getting EVERYTHING she needed and we get to the church and she forgot her pillow. I feel like I forgot it because I didn't notice it! Funny thing is, another girl, Rachel forgot hers too. We called Kim (a mom going) and she was going to add a couple more to her stuff. Kim is going with her four kids. She went once before with one of her sons and was so moved by the experience that she wants everyone to go. There are nine children 18 years old and under and four adults going. Please pray for her and the team as they journey down there the next two days.

Other news: Kevin was supposed to get his pin out Tuesday but the doctors felt it would serve him better to leave it in for two more weeks. There was no sign of infection and it wasn't loose yet (an indication of readiness). They didn't want to hinder the progress being made. I said to Kev today that I can't imagine not being able to use both my hands fully. It must drive him mad sometimes!

Now, onto school for the day. Since I was up a bit earlier than normal I have the laundry hanging on the line, the dishes all washed and dried, breakfast planned, and time to write this out. Have a good day and thanks for checking in on our life!

Violin Recital...

Dad having fun, pretending he was the accompanist.

My two girls growing up way too fast.

We attended the church where the missions team is based out of that Jordan is going with. There was a prayer time during church for the whole team and a dinner afterwards so we could fellowship and talk about the agenda of the trip. After all that the girls had their recital at 3 p.m. at the same church so we spent the whole day there! Their church has a sign-up sheet for prayer so the team will be covered in prayer each day of the trip. The team leaves April 22nd and should return April 30th if anyone wants to join in prayer for the team.

Jordan has spent the morning organizing her packing and checking things off her list, washing things and planning. Kevin gets his pin out tomorrow so I'll have a chance to get anything she will still need which isn't looking like anything right now. I'm trying to organize snacks and drinks for her but she doesn't care for crackers and other processed snack stuff so it is challenging. I'll send a bag of apples along. We are off to plant some strawberries before they expire in my refrigerator.

Have a Good Day!

Here she is...

Life gets so hectic around here but I finally got these photos downloaded from my mom's camera onto a facebook page and then onto here so they look a bit small. Her friend Havi did her hair and it was fairy-princess-like. It was so pretty. It was a fun day for Jordan to have Havi stay the night and then do her hair and "make-up" (she wore make-up!) Just a little bit and it did look nice. She is a young lady now!

Jordan and I had a really good time shopping last night for things she will need for her trip to Mexico this Thursday! We ended up finding some good deals on clothes too and she got some much needed tennis shoes (hers were three years old and hand-me-downs from a friend), some new skirts that are versatile for anywhere (dressy or casual) and then some tops. We were able to find a few things at Saver's (like a thrift store and I had a 20 % off coupon). Her wardrobe got a good boost. I'm pretty sure that the amount we spent would have only gotten me three items when I was in high school (for some reason we didn't do thrift stores then) and Jordan got 12 items :) We were not going to buy her new clothes for a missions trip BUT she just gets forgotten when it comes to updating old clothes. She does not like to come to town. She is so indecisive and thinks everything costs too much and is sure she can get by without it. (which is probably true) Knowing you will be with other people for 10 days makes you look differently at certain things like jammies and things that you would only wear in front of your family.

I had fun coupon shopping! I used something like 35 coupons getting many items free!!! I got some water bottles for Jordan so cheap or free, flashlight for $2.47 after 2 coupons (target coupon plus a manufacturers), bath cleaning stuff (total was $1.72 for three bottles of scrubbing bubbles natural cleaner after 4 different coupons taking $7.25 off and then I get a $5 rebate back making me $3.28 ahead), 4 boxes of Ziploc bags free after two coupons were buy one get one free and another $5 rebate, making money on it again, free spaghetti after getting 2 cash back for buying the Ziploc bags, free shampoo, gum, cereal and water after coupons and cash back at CVS pharmacy, $7.99 lotion for $1.24 each after two coupons for each bottle, etc. I was on a high last night getting so much for so little. It made buying the clothes and shoes easier to do. I try to not buy anything without a coupon and not to buy it if it isn't also on sale. I got chicken legs for Isaac last night again $1 off each package making them $1 each so I don't just use the coupons on things I don't normally buy or only for cereal. It's a learning thing to figure out what you use and what would save you money and how to find it and how much stock up do you need in your pantry. I also got 5 boxes of Special K cereal and Special K granola for $0.59 a box by using coupons and getting a $5 Target card back for buying 5 boxes. Who would not want that for that price?!

change of plans...

I was going to add a picture of Jordan after her concert yesterday but this picture was waaaay too cute. I actually didn't have my camera at the concert so the best pictures are on my mom's camera which we have to borrow to get them downloaded onto our computer.

The concert was fabulous. We enjoyed the junior high concert and especially the Sr. High's William Tell Overture. All of my kids were riding horse and shooting guns during the song. It was so very good. I wish I could have a tape of the whole concert. We have a video camera but I don't know how to transfer the video over to a DVD. I am so challenged when it comes to electronics.

I'll post a picture of my gussied up Jordan when I get them. She borrowed a formal gown from a friend and the friend came along and did her hair and it was quite nice!

Wrong info...

I guess the K-mart double coupon deal is only for this week. I saw that on www.valleydealseekers.com and was so disappointed as I only got to take advantage of it one day this week.

Sometimes God answers prayers immediately. One night Kevin was praying and I added to pray for a sewing machine for the girls since Jordan has been sewing lately. (She does have a machine from a friend (thanks so much Jana) but it doesn't quite sew heavy duty things.) Anyway, the next day we got an email from my Uncle and Aunt in Montana asking if we wanted a serger. Jean is done with that and they are cleaning house of unnecessaries. I talked to Dale last night and he's sending it our way. What a blessing! I forgot to tell Uncle Dale that we had just prayed for something like that so if you read this, you were used of God. Thanks for the special gift.

Another answered prayer came Easter weekend. We have been contemplating the girls and I looking for some cleaning jobs for this summer and possibly beyond to earn some money and teach the girls the ins and outs of having your own business and how to manage it. The next day after discussing it again we were approached by someone asking if we knew anyone who cleaned houses in the area! Weird, huh? It looks like we can have the job. After working outside today, I don't see that any of us will have any time to have a job. I got my 250 strawberry plants today and I hope to make the garden just a little bigger again this year! Have a great weekend! We'll be cleaning up the yard some more.

Miscellaneous happenings...

Keeping on top of all correcting! Some Fridays I've spent hours correcting a week's worth of math and I really don't like that so I try to correct everything daily and have the kid's fix it.

Some coupon shopping. I got some cereal this week for 22 cents a box! I like having that on hand for mornings when I don't know what to fix (like this morning). Also, K-mart has double coupons now up to 5 a day per person. They will double up to $4 on a coupon. I had two different $1.50 off coupons for $3 off per item and I had a $2 coupon for a toothbrush that was $4 and it was free! I also got a free bottle of barbecue sauce with my $1 off coupon doubled to $2. It's an excellent deal with those high value coupons and also with their sales ads. Stores often have sales based on the coupons that are currently out there.

Sunmart stores have a limit of 2 boxes of cereal for 97 cents each plus a free reusable bag with each purchase of 2. I had $1.50 off coupons so I got mine for 22 cents a box and I notice they don't have them on coupons.com right now. It is for Kellogg's raisin bran, rice krispies, corn pops, apple jacks, corn flakes, and fruit loops. The raisin bran was gone, my first choice! I got rice krispies to make some One Cup Cookies with and my husband said, "mmm corn flakes are good with honey on them" so these are for him. I got Caleb's birthday cereal (Apple Jacks). Kids get to pick out any cereal they want for their birthday as it is usually the only time we let them have sugar cereal. I gave him only three choices since I had coupons for Apple Jacks plus they were on sale. I have never bought birthday cereal for 50 cents a box before! Most stores will let you go through 3 separate times. My friend Kim just brought 6 boxes and three reusable bags up to the register and said "I live out of town, can I just get them all now instead of going out to the car, coming back in, etc." and they let her.

Kevin had his stitches taken out on his finger Tuesday and the doctor thinks things look great! The pin will come out in two weeks. He's been waking up some nights having tried to bend his finger and it startles him.

I am hoping to get into the gardens this weekend and till areas for lettuce and clean out some more weedy areas. It was great last week to rake up stuff and burn it and see that fresh new look.

Happy Easter!

My beautiful children on a beautiful day.

Not much and then...

Not much going on but yet a whole lot! Kevin is doing just fine with his finger. The pin started to disappear and seemed to recede into his finger. The doctor said it won't go all the way in and not to worry and everything seems to be going according to schedule. Tuesday he'll get the stitches out in that finger. He took the ones in his pinkie finger out himself on Saturday but he doesn't plan to do these himself! :) Mr. Darcy in Pride and Prejudice said, "I shall overcome this." I feel like the same as my nerves are continually thinned out and tried.

Jordan's itinerary is set for her trip to Mexico. She is getting excited to do something so "daring". She is going with a local church with some friends of ours to just over the border into Mexico to bring supplies to a needy area. They are driving two large trailers of the stuff collected from the church and then they also purchase beans. Anyone can donate toys in good condition, shoes, clothes and other household items and money for purchasing beans. She leaves April 22nd. I have been bringing all kinds of things to the thrift store again and I could have saved the stuff for Mexico. Jordan heard blankets were a real need there, especially for the orphanages.

Jordan's last concert for symphony is coming soon, April 11th. They will be in formal dress and she borrowed a really nice dress from friends so I can't wait to see her in it with her hair all done. The friend may come do her hair that day and take pictures.

AWANA has 3 or 4 more times left. I always enjoy the winding down of activities and the gearing up for staying home and gardening. Take care and have a good weekend!