Yellowstone

Saturday our route took us through Yellowstone National Park. The weather wasn’t ideal…cool and rainy, but we still enjoyed it and it was still beautiful. We were on the way to a church, but we had a little time to spare to stop and take in some of the sights. We saw a lot of buffalo (or bison as they call them here) and several elk. We were really hoping to see a bear (not close up of course!). We also still have not seen any moose! There was one buffalo right in the middle of the road, so we stopped and pulled over to take a few pictures. He turned and headed right for our van, but then he just wandered on down the road, not worrying at all about the traffic he was stopping in both directions. Josiah said he was like a policeman because he was slowing down all the traffic.

We also saw Old Faithful! We were hoping not to have to wait to long to see it since the weather wasn’t too good and we didn’t want the kids to have to stand in the cold drizzle for very long. When we got to the visitor center it said it was scheduled to erupt at 12:34. We checked the time and it was 12:28. The boys we also very excited to get their National Park Passport stamped. That is a very big deal for them. Our friends Keith and Kami got those for the boys a few months ago, and they love it. We have had the chance to get them stamped three times now!

As we passed over the mountains on the east side of the park there was still a lot of snow on the ground, and a little bit falling. The roads were even slushy in a few places. It was a beautiful drive.

We arrived safely in Powell, WY on Saturday evening and had a meeting there on Sunday at the Heart Mountain Baptist Church. We had good services, and the people there are very kind. We enjoyed the time with them greatly.

We saw alot of buffalo

This is the one who was right next to us in the road

We saw alot of elk also

Here we are at Old Faithful

School is Out!

We have hit a milestone. Josiah has successfully completed K-4!! On Monday we finished up our last lessons, and put it away for the summer! Josiah did great, and he has learned alot. He now can write his numbers, count to 100 (and beyond), do a little addition (1+...), write all the lower-case letters in cursive, write some capital letters in cursive, write his name in cursive, and read one syllable words. He is also starting to sound out alot of other words and try to read books on his own. He has memorized 22 Bible verses this year. He did a great job and we are very proud of him. Jonathan has learned alot too just be listening to Josiah. Many times I will ask Josiah a question and Jonathan can give me the answer! He should have a good head start when he starts school. We are looking forward to K-5 next year!

Utah

We are in Utah for most of this week. It was a beautiful drive here from California. Today we took a drive through the Provo Canyon. We stopped and took a short hike to Bridal Veil Falls. The weather was great, so it was fun. We took the opportunity to use our new tri-pod and take some pictures of our family. This country has some beautiful places, and I feel so blessed to have the opportunity to get to see so much of it.

We had a great meeting yesterday at the Springville Baptist Church. Some friends from college are working in the church, so we have enjoyed visiting with them, and our kids have had a great time playing with their kids. Tonight we are staying the night with them, and Josiah is so excited he can't fall asleep for a nap.

Tomorrow we will be going north of Salt Lake City to stay in Ogden, UT for a few days.

Yesterday we finally had a chance to go to the beach. It had been kind of cool, but all of the sudden it turned warm, so we were able to go. It was a beautiful day and the beach was beautiful. It was alot of fun. Josiah and Jonathan built sand castles, and we all enjoyed walking in the water. Jeremy and I got a little sunburned, but we had a good time. We even saw some dolphins before we left. We have enjoyed our time in California, and tomorrow we begin our journey back toward the east.

To catch you up on the last few days....

We are really enjoying this break and being able to catch up on some work as well as do some relaxing! This weekend we finally had a cake for Judson. We were traveling on his birthday, so it wasn't a good time to do it. So Friday night we got a little cake for him, and let him open his presents. Unfortunately, he wasn't feeling really well, so he wasn't really interested in the cake too much. He did eat some of the frosting, but didn't really dig into it like he probably would have if he had been feeling better. He seems to have a little stomach bug, but I think he is on the mend now, and hopefully no one else will get it! We got him a toy cell phone, because he is always wanting to play with mine and Jeremy's. He loved it! But, he still likes ours better!

On Saturday Uncle Larry took us to the Ronald Reagan Presidential Museum and Library. That was so interesting. I could have spent all day there reading everything, but since we had the kids with us we had to keep moving and skim some of the information. The part of the museum they really enjoyed was Air Force One. They have the actual plane there that was used by the Reagans and other presidents until they replaced it with the one they use now. We were able to walk through the plane. They have it set up like it was when President Reagan used it. It was very interesting. If you are ever in the Los Angeles area, this is definitely a place I would recommend that you visit, especially if you enjoy history. Many of the displays were very touching, and it is one of those places that makes your American pride swell.

Happy Birthday to Judson....again!

Hello...anyone there?

A Fun Week

We have had an exciting week! On Monday we came back from Oceanside to Santa Clarita. On the way, we had some time to spare, so we decided to drive through Hollywood. There really isn't much to see there, and we weren't overly impressed, but then again Hollywood isn't really our thing. We did go down Hollywood Boulevard and see the "walk of fame" with the stars in the sidewalk. We also saw the Chinese Theater where there are footprints in the sidewalk of some of the famous people. Of course we had to find John Wayne, and we also recognized a few more.

The famous Hollywood sign

Notice John Wayne's fist print on the left

Shirley Temple is one of my favorites - These are tiny handprints!

Then on Tuesday Uncle Larry and Aunt Rita took us to Disneyland! It was so much fun. We had a great time, and the boys loved it. I used to hear of people going to Disney for a week, and I thought they were crazy, but now I see how you could spend a week there. We didn't see even half of everything in one day. We were all worn out by the end of the day, but we had a blast. We are going to get Uncle Larry's pictures off his camera too, so we may have a few more, but here are some for now!

Josiah and Jonathan both loved the Teacups

Judson loved Disney......

.....but not enough to miss his naps!

We are the crowd down front waving!

Josiah got a little shy, so only Jonathan got his picture with Goofy.
This is a favorite of mine!

Last night we went to church at Lancaster Baptist Church (where West Coast Baptist College is). We enjoyed seeing the campus. I forgot to take pictures, but it is a beautiful campus. We didn't know it, but it was graduation day there, so things were very busy. It is only about forty-five minutes from here in Santa Clarita. We also ran into a family from Pennsylvania that we have stayed with, so we had a good visit with them.

Another praise....We heard from a pastor at church we visited a few months ago, and they have voted to take us on for support! Praise the Lord!

God has been so good to us, and we are thankful for all the blessings He sends our way.

Beautiful Southern California

We are at a mission conference in Oceanside, CA, and we are enjoying our time here very much. The pastor here was Jeremy's youth director in Tennessee when he was a senior in high school there, so he has enjoyed catching up and fellowshipping with him. He started this church about 10 years ago when he came here from Tennessee. The church now has a beautiful building, and about 500 people attending. The Lord is really blessing!

Dr. Don Sisk of BIMI is the conference speaker, and he preached a message this morning about investing in eternity. He preached from Matthew 6, and I was thinking alot about the verses, Matthew 6:25-34. Anyone who knows me well knows that I am a worrier. But these verses tell us that God takes care of the birds, and makes sure they have food, and we can know that He will take care of us, too. You never see the birds sitting around worrying about where there next meal will come from! God knows what we have need of, and He will take care of us. Our children don't worry about having clothes to wear or having enough to eat. They know that Mom and Dad will take care of them and get them what they need. I never remember wondering as child if my needs would be met. Just like a child we can rely on our Heavenly Father to give us everything we need. He takes care of His children! That was a good reminder for me, so I thought I would share that thought.

We will be traveling back up to Santa Clarita tomorrow. We are looking forward to having a little break from the road and spending some time as a family. Jeremy's uncle and aunt have a very special day planned for us next week. I'll let you know!! Don't you love suspense! : )

We have now seen the Pacific Ocean! That was a first for all of us. It seems bigger somehow than the Atlantic Ocean, but I don't really know why I say that. We haven't been on the beach, but just seen it from afar. We are hoping to take a day and go to the beach in the next week or so and I'll try to get some pictures.

Have a great day!

Happy Birthday!!!

One year ago today we rushed to the hospital just after midnight and Judson was born at 6:36 in the morning! Happy 1st birthday, Judson!!! The year has flown by. We started traveling on deputation when Judson was 5 weeks old, so he has grown up in the car seat much of the time. Judson is such a joy in our lives and we thank the Lord for him. He has been a smiley baby from early on, and he still has a pleasant and happy disposition (most of the time!). He just got his first two teeth in the last couple of weeks. He is not walking yet, but he is getting pretty good at cruising around holding on to things, so it probably won't be too much longer. We are traveling to a conference today, so we will probably wait until we are back here next week to celebrate, so I hope to have some messy cake pictures in the future!

Today is also another special person's birthday...my Mom! Happy birthday, Mom! Judson was a week overdue, and I guess he was just waiting to be born on Grandma's birthday. I wish I could be with Mom today, but that isn't possible this year. I am very thankful for my Mom. She has been an example of faithfulness to me, and I appreciate her very much. She is a listening ear, a helping hand, and my friend. Thank you Mom for all you do. I love you and I hope you have a great day today!

Funny Sayings

I thought I would share this story with you all because I found it quite humorous, and hope you will too! As you know, we spend alot of time in churches and services, and Josiah is one to pick up on things he hears and repeat them. The boys have been "playing" church lately (I guess they don't feel they are in church enough!) Anyway, we were driving down the road and the boys were in the back of the van having a church service. Josiah is almost always the pastor, and he usually invites Jonathan, the missionary, to come and give a testimony. They were in the middle of their song service, when Jeremy's cell phone rang. Without missing a beat, Josiah made the announcement, "Please make sure your cell phones are turned off or they are set on vibrate." He knows how to run a service!!

Here is the little preacher!


This was on Easter Sunday


Judson didn't really feel like getting his picture taken, so he looks a little sad