The Garrigan's

Summer work teams

2011-07-19T17:52:00.002-05:00

So a big part of what we do here at YWAM Montana is that David and I run a program called VWAP (Vacation with a purpose). We have church groups, youth groups, families, whoever wants to come and they spend a week with us. They do a lot of the manual labor things that keep this campus running. VWAP teams are an invaluable resource to our campus. A few of the things that the teams have done this summer are: paint the entire inside of the preschool, build a fence around the playground at the preschool, side the entire facilities building, landscape around the facility building, roof 2 houses, dig a french drain behind one of the buildings, side and build a porch on the front of the student center, tear down several old buildings on the base. This isn't even the whole list of what these teams did while they were here.
We also get the opportunity to introduce the groups to what YWAM does and to give them a bit broader view of missions. We had meetings at night with amazing times of worship and different speakers came and challenged them. One of my favorite memories from the summer was with one of the girls from a team from Pennsylvania. We were hanging out in the library on base. She picked up a book that was on display about Nepal. She walked up to me and had this overwhelmed look on her face. I asked her what was going on and she asked me why this book about Nepal was on display and what did I know about the country of Nepal.
I tried to explain to her that Nepal is one of our bases "target Nations". Where we meet with missionaries from Nepal, find out their needs, and then train and send teams from our base to meet those needs. She just starting tearing up. I asked her what was going on and then she told me that for several years she's felt like God was telling her to go to Nepal but she never knew how that would happen. I don't know what will come of it over the years, but I feel like a spark was lit in her, and that she was left here so excited about how God was going to get her to the country of Nepal.
So although all the physical work that gets done on the base is amazing, what really keeps David and I excited about the summer work teams is seeing young and old people getting excited about missions. There were kids who had never been out of their state and they come here and spend a week with people who have literally been all over the world. It's hard to put it into words, but we just feel so lucky to be a part of what goes on here during the summertime. I'm also really hoping that more teams will come summer.
here's a few pictures of the teams that came for the summer.

What i've been baking lately

2011-05-28T15:31:00.003-05:00

Finally an update

2011-05-28T15:01:00.004-05:00

Wow, I had no idea how long it's been since i've updated the blog. I guess saying time has gotten away from me is a bit of an understatement.
so, since the last update we've:
- had outreach teams go to and return from: India, Tailand, Costa Rica, Turkey, Mongolia, Nepal, Uraguay, Maylasia, and Cambodia. I think that's about it. And David took a group on guys on an outreach to Alabama. They had an amazing time working with good friends of ours ministry. They worked on building housing for nomadic people to come and reset and learn about the love of Jesus.
The school year is coming to a close, and summer is quickly approaching. We are hosting all of the summer work teams that come here to the YWAM base. These teams that come provide invaluable help for our ministry. they give of their time to come and do things like paint, deep clean the kitchen, re-roof houses, put up siding, help finish all the projects are trying to get completed. This summer we have over 400 people coming for the work weeks. It's exciting, and yet a little overwhelming.

I feel like I can't really put into words all that we've done over the past few months, so I'll try to sum it up in pictures.

What a week

2011-01-28T10:04:00.003-06:00

I saw this on the side of road while driving one day and just thought it was really neat looking. Not sure how they did it but I like it.

and Yes, she is sitting on our dog.
Wow, it's been crazy around our house. You know when you hear people tell stories of when their kids when little and you think that surely they've forgotten because that much stuff can't possible happen in that short amount of time. Well, apparently it can. We had quite possibly the most accidents that could have happened in one 24 hour period. Last Saturday David and I had a babysitter coming over so we could go on a date. It's been over 2 months and much needed. So i'm getting out of the shower and hear Luke scream a little. Didn't think much of it and then David comes in and calmly says, "uh, I think you need to look at this one." I go out and he has cut his head so badly that you can see his skull. So the babysitter shows up and we head with Luke to the ER for stitches.
So then Sunday was going fairly calm. Of course we went to Costco and I realized that Luke had snuck out of the house wearing heelies (shoes with wheels). I mean, really? fresh stitches in the head and he thinks it's a good idea to roll around all day. We got home and the boys were coming home from a friends house when Flint was running up the driveway with his hands in his pockets. You see where this is going? he fell and hit the concrete face first! ouch. Blood everywhere! he bit all the way through his lip. I had him up on the counter with ice and trying to see how bad it was, etc we decided it wasn't too bad and that he didn't need stitches. Then, Allie starts crying. She had climbed up on the coffee table, which is only 2 feet off the ground. And had fallen off using her arm to brace her. She cried/screamed for a good 30 minutes which is so unlike her. So...off to the ER yet again. turns out she broke her elbow. She's now sporting a very pretty hot pink cast.
Sometimes I feel like we just can't catch a break and then I realize that it's really just life. it's totally exhausting and humbling. Makes me realize each day that it's only by God's grace and mercy that I continue to be able to function. Last night I was thinking about how much I want to spare my kids from pain or cuts or broken bones and how sad it makes me when they hurt. And then it was that Aha moment, how God feels even more of that for us. It's just so comforting to me.
So it's been a week of laundry piling up, make shift meals and a lot of coffee. I'd like to think that surely next week will be calmer, but I know better. So I just ask God for more grace and mercy.

The madness continues

2010-11-01T13:43:00.002-05:00

We've now been gone from Montana for 5 weeks. Our stay here in Birmingham has been the longest that we've stayed in the same place during this trip. We've been here for 2 weeks straight now. To sum it up, I would say that this trip has been busy, crazy, exhausting, amazing, tiring, frustrating, encouraging and refreshing. funny how one trip can incorporate so many feelings. We've met with churches, small groups, youth groups, and individuals, sharing with them our vision and what God has called us to do working with young people.
It's been really good for David and I to have to explain to people what we do. we've had to step back and look at the past 2 years and see what God has done. It's been so encouraging to meet with people who know us and really support us in our ministry.
It's always bitter sweet for me to come "home". I used to call Birmingham home, but when we went to church last week someone welcomed me and asked if I was visiting for the first time. It took me by surprise since for so many years we were so involved. It struck me that maybe it wasn't home anymore. And yet me heart is still with the people who are there. To be with old friends, the kind that even though you haven't seen them in over a year, it's like you just pick up right where you left off. It's just beautiful. And yet when i'm away from Montana I just miss it. I miss the people, the joy that just abounds there.
We have had great times with friends and family and it will be very very hard to say goodbye in a week. But we are also ready to be back. Of course there are 3000 miles to be traveled in order to get back. So the packing must begin again, trying to figure out how in the world to fit all the "treats" that the grandparents have lavished on our children in our already over packed van. This week will probably be our busiest yet. we have dinners and meetings every night, and almost every day too. We did have a great time on Halloween with the family and a block party.

Our trip south

2010-10-16T20:48:00.002-05:00

We left Montana and headed east to Yellowstone for a few days of family fun camping. Then we headed down to CO to spend some time with great friends then it was a long 19 hour drive from CO to KY. The kids were amazing and we made it. From KY we headed to AL and had some car trouble. We were able to get a rental to drive to FL to see my family for the weekend. here's some pictures of our trip so far.

Summer newsletter

2010-08-26T23:57:00.000-05:00

Summer '10 Newsletter Mh

A busy summer ahead

2010-06-27T12:15:00.002-05:00

We've had a very busy few weeks, and it's just getting busier. We had the opportunity last thursday night to go to the graduation for the SBS students. (School of Biblical Studies). It was so encouraging to be there and watch 42 students, mostly in their early 20's who have spent the last 9 months diligently studying the Bible. They've read the entire Bible 5 times, and learned the Inductive way of studying the entire Bible. I was blown away sitting there seeing the passion that these young people have for the Word of God and I just felt overwhelmed with thankfulness that we get to be a part of it. These young people have learned the scripture in a way that will forever change them and they are changing the world. It's just so exciting to me.
We have sadly had to say goodbye to several dear friends this week who have left staff here. It's definitely the hardest part of being here, making friends, watching these young men and women grow up and then saying goodbye. But with that, is the excitement of new students and new staff. This weekend was the start to the summer programs. Summer of Dance, Summer of Music and sumer of Sports are under way. They will be here for 4 weeks and then go on outreach to Tawian for 3 weeks. We also have a DTS equip going on. Where DTS (discipleship training school) leaders from all over the world come here and get trained on how to deal with the students that come to their schools.
Our summer is packed full of exciting things. Here's what we have coming up. Please pray for the workers and families that will be coming throughout the summer to bless our ministry. They give their vacation to come and make our "base" a better facility.
Also, David has been asked to go for a week trip with the Summer Outdoor Adventure Program, to teach fly fishing and talk on servant leadership.
Here's a look at what our summer's going to look like:
July 4th-10th - VWAP (Vacation with a purpose) team from Washington is here
July 12-17th - David teaching the Outdoor Adventure program
July 18th - David's in a wedding in Idaho
July 19-23 - VWAP - Youth group from Florida is coming to work for the week
July 26th-Aug 4th- Mary's parents come for a visit
Aug. 2nd-6 - Another VWAP team
Aug-16-21- work team from Wash.
Aug. 23-27 - University of Nations is having the North Am. leadership conference here at YWAM Montana.

whew, that looks like alot once it's all down. we'll keep you posted and please be praying for students and work teams that come. For safety as they are working, and that they would be blessed as they invest into the ministry that goes on here in Montana.

the Stalcup's come to visit

2010-06-20T09:16:00.002-05:00

What an awesome ending to the school year. Barrett and Luke have finished 3rd and 1st grade and graduations are taking place this week on the base for School of Biblical Studies, Foundations of Community Development, School of Audio Engineering and School of Dance. We've also said goodbye to another Discipleship Training School that has left for outreach to Tailand and Maylasia.
But with saying so many goodbyes came some incredible joy. Some of our best friends, Parke, Jeff and their boys: Noah, David, Josh, Jacob and Seth traveled 2 1/2 days on the train to come for a visit. It's so sweet to have such dear friends here. And to watch 9 boys play and have fun together without arguing or fighting, well it's just amazing. We spent yesterday at Glacier which was a blast.
Here are a few pictures from the past week with the Stalcup's

Allie's turned 1

2010-05-27T13:24:00.001-05:00

The past month

2010-05-21T12:29:00.003-05:00

I just can't seem to stay on top of things these days. Life has seemed a little crazy this past month. It started with a bang when David worked so hard to move the laundry out of the tiny-sized kitchen and move it out to the garage. What an amazing feeling to have a pile of laundry stacked up next to where i'm chopping food. Wonderful! Although the day he spent in the attic caused his back to totally spas and he then spent the next 8 days on the floor of the living room, unable to get up. thankfully his back is better now. David also made a trip to Seattle to get building supplies for the base.
It's a bitter sweet feeling on the base this week. Outreach teams have returned and students will be leaving today for home. It's so awesome to hear the stories from their outreaches and to see the changes that have occured over the 2 months since they were here. it's always hard to say bye to the students and yet so exciting that they will be going home and sharing with others what they have learned.
We are on the home stretch for the boys finishing up school. we are all so looking forward to summer. The most exciting thing happening here this summer is that our dear friends John and Sam, along with their 4 girls are moving here! And not only are they moving here, but they're moving into the house next door! God is so good!!! I can hardly wait.
here's a few pictures from the past month

Easter Lenten garden

2010-04-05T22:27:00.002-05:00

We made a Lenten garden last week for Easter. I think really it should have been done for all of holy week, but i'm just glad we had by Easter weekend. We went on a little walk and collected moss, rocks, sticks and dirt. the boys enjoyed putting the moss it and Barrett got to nail the nails in the cross that Luke made. Peter and I made the tomb and Flint helped put the rock down. It was really fun to read the Easter story to them as we made the garden. We decided that the playmobil men would make good gaurds for the tomb.
Easter Morning, when the boys had woken up, I had moved the rock from the tomb and filled the tray with flowers. The gaurds had run off the side of the tray. That was part of our little Easter tradition, the making the Lenten garden.

Flint's song

2010-04-05T22:07:00.003-05:00

Here's a little clip of Flint singing who know's what.

I think we missed January

2010-02-11T13:22:00.003-06:00

I have no idea how a month can go by so fast. It seems like we were just having Barrett's birthday and now it's almost Valentine's day. Wow that happened fast. Here's a quick update on what's going on here:
- the fall DTS ( Dicipleship Training School) returned from outreaches. There were 85 students and staff who traveled in 4 teams to Egypt, Cambodia-Tailand, Costa Rica, and Cambodia. We were able to spend a night last week at our community meeting hearing about their trips. It's so amazing to see how God is working in these students and through them throughout the world. I love seeing how some of the students have changed after their outreach.
- The winter school is in full swing. There are 25 students in the winter DTS, and 12 in the School of Dance. The SBS (school of Biblical Studies) is going strong in the winter quarter. They've completed the new testament and have now started the Old Testament.
- We are able to have a little taste of home for a few months. One of our dear friend's daughter is here doing a DTS. it's really fun to have her here with us.
- We also had a visit from some other friends from home, John and Samanatha. John is helping with site development on the base, and really help with an overall plan for the base (as far as structures go: classrooms, dorms, houses, etc.). We had such a great time with them. We went skiing for a day for the first time with out kids. it was so much fun. It's just so great to have old friends come and see us. It's always encouraging to be able to share about what we're doing here and have our friends get to see the big picture.
- work has been continuing on "the slab". The building will be used for the facilities shop and auto shop and classrooms. We were talking to one of the staff who grew up here on the base. She was telling us that she remembers when she was about 12 and they spent the day on the base praying over it and asking God what the plan was for it. There was a work day on Saturday and it was great to see people from all departments and schools come out and work together in the snow to get the building done.

Samoa bars

2010-02-11T13:10:00.004-06:00

What do you do when you crave a girl scout cookie in Feb?
Make some samoa bars
I made these the other night, and they are amazing!
Here's the recipe:

preheat oven at 350
For cookie crust:
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup butter- softened
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 cups flour
1/4 tsp. salt
To make the crust: Cream butter and sugar til fluffy. Add egg and vanilla. Mix together. Add flour and salt.
Press into a 9x13 pan
Bake 20 minutes and cool completely

For the topping:
3 cup coconut
12 oz. chewy caramels
1/4 tsp. salt
3 tbsp. milk
10 oz. semi sweet choc. chips

toast coconut under broiler. It took about 7 minutes on low.
Unwrap caramels and melt in microwave. Add the salt and milk before melting them.
Add the coconut to melted caramel.
Spread caramel/coconut over cookie base
Let cool

When it's cool, drizzle with melted chocolate chips. I melted it in microwave, put it in ziploc, cut the tip and drizzled it over bars.

Enjoy!

Barrett turns 9 !

2010-01-09T09:29:00.002-06:00

here are a few more Christmas pictures and Barrett's birthday. We had a lot of fun with a lot of boys. 14 total

Christmas '09

2009-12-25T15:45:00.002-06:00

FL trip and cutting the tree

2009-12-19T15:55:00.001-06:00

here's a few pictures from the beach in Florida. And from us cutting down our tree this morning. we had lots of family fun today.

Our newest addition to the family........

2009-12-18T23:38:00.002-06:00

She doesn't have a name yet, but here's our new little family member. She's just so cute. And the boys love her already.

winter is here

2009-12-04T07:55:00.003-06:00

Here are some pictures from the trim the tree party on the base this past week. We decorated cookies, made ornaments and just had a lot of fun.

Moving hotels

2009-11-29T22:13:00.001-06:00

here are some pictures of moving the hotels and the work that was done pouring foundations.

The bad, no, very bad haircut

2009-11-02T00:32:00.002-06:00

So we've been telling Peter that we're going to take him to get his haircut and he keeps freaking out saying he just wants David to cut it. Last time he had a haircut, David held his head and I held his body. It was not pretty! So I get the sissors and I'm getting ready then David gets the great idea that he can just cut a bowl cut with the clippers. As peters' twisting and squriming. David and I were laughing so hard we could hardly finish. And then I think I teared up a little when I saw just how bad it was. And the best part is the Peter thought it was great. I'm just thankful that hair grows. And thanks to the Garrigan gene's, it grows very quickly. I reminded myself that maybe there is something good about living where it's so cold--little boys wear hats all the time.

The search for a "church"

2009-10-25T18:45:00.003-05:00

We live here in a place where we are basically living out "church" as God created it. Meaning we live in true community, have daily worship/teachings, but we often feel the need to go to "real church". So this morning we decided we were up to the challenge. Every few weeks we decided to try another church from the list. So we get up and start the process, some of the conversation this morning was this: no, you can't wear those pants, they have too many holes in them; it's 25 degrees out, no you can't wear shorts; again, it's cold, no you can't wear a t-shirt, long sleeves please; you've been wearing that shirt since fri, no you can't wear it to church. Wew, so then I get Allie dressed. Oh my, I had no idea who complicated tights are. Do they go under the onesie or over? and then do you still put a diaper cover over the onesie which is over the tights? So, we're dressed and loaded up. Doing ok on time and we're off, hoping that maybe we'll like this church and the searching can be over. We're almost there and I hear grunting from Allie, this can't be good. Thankfully I threw a spare outfit. So now i'm in the back of the van with a baby that has pooped all over the tights, the onesie, the dress, oh my! So instead of looking really cute, she's now in an outfit with no feet and has no socks on, and it's still 25 degrees out.
We got situated and the boys were all being good, not so bad i'm thinking. Then it's time for communion, They start passing the plate with the little pieces of really bad tasting crackers and the little cups of juice. Our boys have never seen such a thing. They've only seen where you dip the bread in the glass, oh the excitement. It was at this point that David and I start wondering if we should abort the mission and escape before we cause a scene. Flint is so excited about the little cracker he could hardly stand it and Luke is wiggling around and i'm just thinking i'm about to get a lot of grape juice on me. Luke is convinced that they are little pieces of gum, not crackers. I kept saying, "sush, it's a cracker Luke, just wait". Well, he couldn't. he squeezed it as hard as he could, and yes it crumbled into a million pieces on his lap. It's finally time, Flint's trying so hard to dip the cracker in the little cup while somewhat dancing in the row. David and I each have several little cups in our hands and trying to contain the caous as much as possible. Ok, we made it. Oh no, wait, Allie has pooped yet again. So I take her to bathroom to find that now i've left the wipes in the van. We get back in the service and now Flint and Peter are done. Barrett and Luke have gone to Kid's church, which they informed us was "not fun at all". Allie's crying, Flint and Peter are antsy, and David and I are both outside in the hall with kids. I'm not sure why we do this to ourselves.
It makes me so appreciate our church at home, where we go and just feel comfortable. I so wish we could find that here. Maybe we'll muster the energy again to try again from the list. I think we've been really spoiled in a good way with an church that we really love, but it sure makes it hard for any other church to measure up.

Building remodel update

2009-10-25T09:24:00.000-05:00

Allie's 5 months old

2009-10-24T10:10:00.003-05:00

It's hard to believe she's been here for 5 months already. She's such a happy baby and such a joy to our family.

The building's going up

2009-10-22T22:03:00.000-05:00

The Bayshore Motel

2009-10-22T21:55:00.003-05:00

Exciting times at YWAM Montana

2009-10-22T15:44:00.002-05:00

I thought I would send out an update on all that's going on here. I feel very overwhelmed with excitement and hope that I'm able to put it into words. When ywam purchased the "base" in 1985 there was a foundation right in the center of the base. Since then it's been referred to as "the slab". There have probably been at least a hundred meetings about what to do with the slab. Last year, God really gave several people a long term vision of the base, which included turning the "slab" into a facilities/auto shop and then allowing other space to become a bigger student center, cafeteria, and auditorium. Well, one Monday work really began on the slab. There have been teams here over the past month or so helping with foundation work, but on Monday the walls started going up! The level of excitement around here is amazing. Everyone's so excited that it's really happening. God's vision for this place is one step closer.
There's another huge God story that has happened over the past few weeks. A local couple in Lakeside purchased some property down on the lake that was a hotel. They called YWAM and asked if they could donate the hotel to us! Crazy! We're always in a bind with housing and limited as to how many new staff we can take b/c there never seems to be enough housing. Well it gets even better, they have not only donated the hotel, but are also paying to have it moved here! On Nov. 5th the hotel will be moved from the property by the lake to our base. It has 12 one bedroom apts. What a blessing! David has been very busy to say the least. He's been meeting the power company and tree removal men because the building is so large that there are 14 huge trees to be taken down and the power lines will have to be lowered while the building is being moved.
It's really been just an awesome past few months here. It's funny cause when we first came on staff I thought it was great that David could use his skills to make the structures here better in order to have more students and really be apart of this mission that we both love so dearly. But as time goes on, i'm realizing that the "building of buildings" is so not the point of use being here. God keeps giving me some verses in Titus 2 about training young men to be disciplined and training young women to love their husbands and children, be pure, busy at home, and to be kind. I've had the chance to have one of the DTS students come to my house every afternoon from 3-5 for her work duties. Obviously it's so great to have some help with the laundry, dishes, kids, etc. but more importantly i've had the chance to see God change her heart over the past 6 weeks. This is why we are here! To see lives being changed.
I have a bible study starting this coming wed. with a group of 6 girls, 3 are married and 3 are single. we're going to cook together and spend 6 weeks learning about what a Titus 2 woman looks like. I'm really excited. It takes me out of my comfort zone to be teaching, but i'm so looking forward to it.
Well, so much for being a short update, but I really wanted to share the excitement. I'll be posting pictures tonight of the building.

Pictures of Dorm 2 renovations

2009-10-19T22:18:00.000-05:00

Montana night

2009-10-09T23:40:00.002-05:00

These aren't in the right order, but here's a few pictures of Flint from Montana night a couple of weeks ago. I thought it was so funny and cute to watch him with his sandwich.

Harvest Party and First snow

2009-10-09T23:37:00.002-05:00

We had our first snow yesterday. Time to get out the snow clothes and do the whole bundle, unbundle, repeat about a million times a day. Uugh. The boys did enjoy playing in the snow today. We had a harvest party on the base tonight which was a lot of fun. We played games and of course the kids ate way too much candy.

The snow is here

2009-10-09T07:58:00.002-05:00

Can it be? Is it really already snowing? As i'm sitting here by the wood stove watching David outside plowing the roads and walkways this early. I guess summer if officially gone. I'll post some snow pictures later today.
its been a busy time around here the campus is completely full. There are about 35 people from the Titus school leaving tom. for outreaches to Tailand, Cambodia, nepal, Ukraine and a few other places. DTS and SBS are in full swing. The base has been given a motel which is really exciting and the owners of it are actually going to pay to have it moved to here! God is so amazing. It will be 12 extra suites for housing couples. This is a huge blessing. Also, the new facilities/auto shop is underway being built. The foundation is ready and the building should start arriving in a few weeks.
The boys, and girl are doing great. Luke has a renewed love for school, thanks to a great teacher! And Barrett is doing great in school also. Peter is going to preschool on the base and is the only boy with 7 girls. And he loves it! Such a lady's man. Flint is making us and everyone around him laugh daily. His personality is like no-one elses. That little boy will do anything for a laugh. yesterday he was walking around outside with Bear claw slippers growling at people while wearing his spiderman shirt of course! And Allie is still the calmest, most content, easiest baby ever! Oh we are so blessed with your little ones. Barrett and Luke are getting so tall, their not so little anymore. I'll get some pictures up very soon. We're having a harvest party tonight which should be fun for the kids. Which reminds me that I starting making a flower costume for Allie and have yet to finish it. I should get sewing!

Fire in Lakeside

2009-09-30T14:35:00.002-05:00

Here are some pictures from this past weekend. We are in the clear now after quite a scare of a fire. It is a good reminder of what's really important when you quickly go through your house and put what's important in your car. It reminds me of how quickly we can get attached to "stuff" and yet when it comes down to choosing it's so easy to leave it all behind. I'm so thankful for all the firemen and women and volunteers who worked so hard to protect people and their property.

First Day of School

2009-08-31T15:09:00.002-05:00

End of summer camping trip

2009-08-31T14:57:00.003-05:00

David and Jeremy took Barrett Luke and Samuel camping this past weekend. They had a great time fishing and hanging out.

Where did the summer go?

2009-08-31T14:37:00.002-05:00

I just realized that's it's been a month since i've posted any pictures. We had a crazy August. My parents were here for the first week which was a lot of fun. We went up to big mountain and rode the ski lifts and rode on the new alpine slide. We also had a little adventure on water. We went out in a friends boat and a wind storm came up and it was quite the trip which ended in someone coming and picking us up at a different dock then we took off from.
David's granddad passed away August 7th, and so we loaded up in the car and drove 36 hours straight to Kentucky for the funeral. It was nice to see family and for them to meet Allie finally. We also decided to skip on down to B'ham to go to church on friday. Funny how after driving 36 hours, a 5 hour drive seems like nothing. I used to think it was such a chore to drive up there.
The trip was true to Garrigan style, after about 15 hours of driving the engine light came on, then after about 30 hours, i'm driving along chomping on some pita chips when I realize that i'm missing half of my tooth! So when we got to KY we got the car fixed and I spent David's b-day getting a new tooth. does a wife with a full set of teeth count as a b-day present? I guess it will this year. Once we got to b'ham we were ready to head home and the computer crashed, so we thought we should fix it while we were there, since we bought it from there. Long story short, someone was able to fix it and then we car fixed another 3 times.
So, we finally leave, towing a trailer with the beloved Amerigo in tow (the beautiful truck camper that was left there last summer). we made it almost to South Souix city, Iowa when the car messed up yet again. The boys liked my suburban now sounded like a hot rod. I personally was a little embarrased. So, we were able to get it fixed yet again, and then just drove the rest of the way to get home.
wew! it's nice to be home and try to get back into the swing of things. We arrived home on Sunday, and monday afternoon we started staff training for 3 days which was a blast. So that just about sums up the past month. Sadly, I don't think I took a single picture over the past month.

Peter's 4th Birthday

2009-08-01T21:46:00.000-05:00

A day on the boat

2009-07-30T12:11:00.000-05:00

A friend let us borrow their boat and we had such a blast.

Summer pictures

2009-07-30T12:09:00.001-05:00

A friend, Libby took some pictures down by the creek yesterday. They turned out great.

Trey's b-day

2009-07-30T12:07:00.000-05:00

We went a party across the street and some pictures

Summertime fun

2009-07-13T08:47:00.001-05:00

A New Mission at Lakeside Base | Flathead Beacon

2009-07-13T08:35:00.002-05:00

Here's an article that was in our local newspaper this past week. I think it sums up what we do here really well.

A New Mission at Lakeside Base | Flathead Beacon

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Dorm transformation

2009-07-09T10:13:00.002-05:00

4th of July

2009-07-09T10:05:00.001-05:00

God's faithfulness

2009-07-09T09:15:00.002-05:00

I thought I'd share a little story about how faithful God is. Even in the little things. A few weeks ago I went through the closets and packed up all the summer clothes that were too small for Flint. I took them over to another family's house to see if they could use them. She then told me that she's been worried, because they had no summer clothes at all for their little boy and she didn't know how she would get them. So I thought that it was really neat how God provides.
There is a couple who are here this week with this team from Washington, who was also here last summer. Well, the other day, her husband walked up with 3 trash bags full of clothes for our boys. In there, were all kinds of winter clothes to fit the boys this coming winter. It may not seem like a big deal, but when you're starting from scratch trying to get warm clothes for 5 kids, it's a big deal! There were ski pants, snow suits, 2 winter jackets and several sweat shirts all that will fit Barrett. What a huge blessing. And then, one more little thing. This past week it's been really warm here and we don't have air conditioning in our house. It hasn't been bad, but the past few nights peter and Flint have just slept in diapers and pull ups b/c I don't have any summer pjs for them. Since all of our added medical bills this past month, with Allie, and Luke's little ride in the ambulance that wasn't covered, pj's are the last thing on my list of things that I'm going to spend money on. Well, last night we got home from a meeting and there was another bag of clothes at the front door that someone had brought over and in it were several pairs of summer pj's that will fit Flint and Peter. I just think it's so amazing that God cares so much about the little things in life. Today, I'm praying for the resurection of the dishwasher. If God cares even about clothes, then surely He cares about dishwashers too.

A busy week in Lakeside

2009-07-06T23:34:00.002-05:00

I'll post pictures soon from a funfilled weekend. But I wanted to give an update cause there's lots going on this week. A work Team arrived from a church in Washington State this weekend. It's a program called VWAP (Vacation with a purpose) There are about 60 people total. Families come with their children and work for the entire week which really blesses the base in a huge way. There are a lot of skilled workers and just today they got almost all the windows set in the dorm. They are also ripping out the old heaters and painting and other interior and exterior work.
We have meetings Sun, Mon and wed. at night with worship time and a speaker will share. thurs night we're having a campfire in our backyard and making smores. It's fun to have the boys involved too. They have been playing with some of the kids who were here last summer also. It's a very busy, crazy week but we really enjoy getting to know the people and it's such a blessing to everyone who lives in the dorms that people would take their vacation time to make this place look better.

Allie in action

2009-06-28T11:16:00.001-05:00

For the Grandparents

Weekend fun

2009-06-28T11:12:00.001-05:00

Southern Yard Art

2009-06-23T20:35:00.003-05:00

What is Southern Yard Art? well, some parents spend money on fancy swing sets or playgrounds, but not us. Why bother when you can put the frame of an old jeep in yard and the boys think it's the greatest thing ever! Seriously, they play for hours on it.
We had quite the exciting Father's day around here. Luke was riding on the mini motorcycle and he came around a corner and when he tried to hit the brake, he hit the throttle instead which then hit the curb and sent him flying over the handle bars, in the air, did a flip and landed flat on his back in the neighbors yard. So, in Montana if there's an accident with a child and any type of motor vehicle, they automatically send the helicopter. much to Luke's disappointment he didn't get to ride in the helicopter, he just got to go in the ambulance.
But he's ok, just banged up and he did get 5 stitches in the chin. I'm sure it's just one of the many trips to the ER that we will make by the time the boys are grown.

boys will be boys

2009-06-18T11:01:00.003-05:00

WARNING: these videos may scare grandmothers!!!
ou neighbor Mark bought this at a yard sale this past weekend. The boys had some serious fun. Peter rode it too and while he was riding was yelling-- make it go faster!
barrett and David went on a trip to Billings and did some fly fishing. They feasted on sunny D, marshmallows and doritos. Barrett enjoyed the food more than the fishing.

More Allie pictures

2009-06-14T12:11:00.000-05:00

Flint turns 2

2009-06-12T15:57:00.003-05:00

We had a great party for Flint on Wed. There were 2 friends, and about 20 grown ups who wanted cupcakes! He had a blast with all his bubbles and new riding toys

Allie's 2 weeks

2009-06-12T15:28:00.003-05:00

Today was the last day of school for the boys. Summer is officially here! Last night, we went to bed at 10:30 and it still wasn't dark out. And when I got up this morning at 4:30... already light! The boys love it. They just play non-stop.
Allie went for her 2 week check up today. Here's the stats:
7 lbs. 4 oz
21" - 75th % go figure!
We did discover that she has a broken clavicle which is healing but is still just sad to think about her being in pain already.

A pink explosion!

2009-06-01T15:45:00.003-05:00

Our house has officially been taken over by pink ! From pink blankets, clothes, towels, passys, even socks and hats. who knew you could have so many pink things. The boys have enjoyed having a liitle sister to hold. Flint wants to hold her all the time. Her first week has been great. She is by far the easiest baby ever. We've yet to hear a really mad cry, not even when Flint tried to pick her up. And she's a great sleeper. Last night she slept from 11-4 and then til 7:45! that's better than some of the boys in this house. I think she's definitely a keeper. Mike and Dotty are here visiting and we are just enjoying the beautiful weather. the went to school in shorts today. Mike made the comment this morning that its too cold to be alive. Barrett laughed at him and said, "cold? this is hot!" I thought that was pretty funny.

Allie is here

2009-05-27T22:09:00.002-05:00

Here's some pictures of our new little girl. the boys are so excited about a sister, even though she wears pink. We're home and doing great.

Here are her stats:

born May 26th 1:35 pm
6lbs. 6oz.
20"

what we've been doing lately

2009-05-17T10:00:00.004-05:00

Still waiting!!!

2009-05-11T16:00:00.003-05:00

Just an update.... We still have no baby!! I know it's bound to happen sooner or later, but sooner would work better for me. The boys are getting excited, wondering if it's another brother, or the girl who will wear pink. we're still working on the whole name thing. Peter's still sticking by his favorite - chicken nugget. we'll see. Hopefully we'll work good under pressure.

The 4 seasons

2009-04-27T11:42:00.002-05:00

Apparently the weather here is very unpredictable. Yesterday the boys were out riding bikes in shorts and t-shirts and today their bikes are actually burried in the snow! I was up having my hourly bathroom trip and walked in the kitchen and took a double take. I couldn't believe how hard it was snowing. Barrett and I were scraping the snow off the car this morning before school, and it was falling faster then we were scraping. If this is spring, i'm so ready for summer.

Nesting begins

2009-04-20T21:10:00.002-05:00

We're at the 4 week count down and the nesting has begun. Only I can't figure out why it's called nesting, because although I want to get all these things done and in order, really I just want someone to do it all for me. I start out strong in the morning but by lunch i'm done and in need of help. My big project that I wanted done was to move the bunk beds into the other bedroom. The story of the bunk beds began when David built them in the dorm when we were going to move in the fall. Of course he can't just build free standing beds, these were custom, built into the walls, quite impressive. So he moved them into our house in Nov. and I was determined that they should go in the small room and then I'd put the other 3 (baby included) in the big room. I guess I was having a mental lapse when I thought that would be a good idea.
So saturday began with David taking down the bunk beds, yet again and moving them into the bigger room. He then patched all the holes left from the removal. Sunday he got up and started painting the baby's room. I had some paint in the closet and thought it would be great to paint a kakhi color, that way, if it's a girl, throw some pink in there, and if it's a boy, i'll finally get to use the cute lime and blue bedding I bought for Flint but never got to use. So the boys and I played outside enjoying the perfect weather, while David kindly slaved away at painting the room, his less the favorite thing to do. he was thrilled when after 2 coats of paint I walked in and realized that I had actually given him the wrong gallon, and instead of a nice kahki color, we now have a sage green room! He was delighted at the thought that there's good chance i'm going to want it re-painted in a few weeks. I think i'm going to have to bake a lot of blonde brownies for my penence for this one. i'm still not sure if I'm convinced that putting 4 boys in one room was a good idea either, but it's all i've got for now, so we'll see how it goes.

Easter Day

2009-04-17T20:39:00.002-05:00

We had a great trip to Birmingham. It was so good to see friends and family. We landed in Bozeman on Wed. to find snow everywhere. It was a little disappointing to say the least. Thankfully once we got west of the divide, it was sunny and warm and absolutely perfect weather. it's so good to be home again. The boys have been playing outside, finding toys that were buried in the snow for the past 4 months. Who needs christmas? just have snow covering the stuff that got left out and then you find them and it's so exciting.

Dyeing Easter Eggs

2009-04-17T20:15:00.002-05:00

We had this great idea to have all the kids dye easter eggs on Saturday. Dotty, Katie, Anne and I got the tables all covered in newspaper, we made all the day, and spent about 30 minutes getting it all ready. We put big paint shirts on everyone, and then, for about 10 minutes, maybe they dyed eggs. I guess it was fun while it lasted.

We had a great time on Easter. We went to church and saw all our friends, and then went back to Mike and Dotty's for lunch. The weather was absolutely perfect! the kids played outside all day and we all ate lunch outside and enjoyed the sunshine

BBQ, Sweet tea, and Sonic slushes

2009-04-08T13:46:00.005-05:00

Flint getting in touch with his feminine side on the princess bike and strawberry shortcake helmet.

Oh it's good to be in the south. We flew into B'ham last tues. night. We started the day at 4:30am, leaving Lakeside in the snow and driving 5 hours to Bozeman, MT, a 5 hour drive to the airport. The boys loved flying and did amazing on the plane. We've been in B'ham enjoying some nice weather and some good food. Luke turned 6 on Monday and we had a cold birthday party at the park. The boys have had so much fun playing with their cousins and friends.

Our bug scout, Luke found a dead snake that David had run over with the lawn mower. They were fighting over who got to play with it.

Another snowy day

2009-03-10T10:38:00.002-05:00

We've had sick boys in our house for over a week now. Saturday was occupied by taking 3 of them to the dr. Luke, Peter and Flint were all sick. After a long weekend, and then Barrett not feeling well yesterday, I decided to just keep barrett and Luke home from school. but I think I was been played by my boys! By about 9:00 they were running down the hall playing, I'm thinking they weren't really sick. anyway, so today I got them up earlier then normal cause I wanted to send them on the bus so I didn't have to get Peter and Flint out since they both still have a fever and it's a brisk -19 this morning! So we get all ready, and the phone rings a few minutes before I send them out the door. Apparently school is cancelled due to the weather. Ahh! I just can't seem to catch a break! So, it's still snowing and I don't want to send the boys out when it's this cold, so another day of being cooped up in the house. Of course, it makes me so thankful that we're not in the camper. Just the thought of that depresses me a little. I'm hoping we're on the mend around here. I'm sure looking forward to our trip to the south. Last night at dinner Barrett out of the blue got real excited and said, "I sure know where the first place we're going to eat in B'ham is" I looked at him and he matter of factly said. "full moon!" So I guess that's where we'll go.

Barrett and look both lost another tooth sunday night. They were so excited, but somehow the tooth fairy didn't come??? I think she must not have wanted to get sick, or maybe there was too much snow? They were both very happy when they realized this morning that she finally came. I hope they don't realize that it's only at our house where it takes a few nights for the tooth fairy to actually arrive.

David's trip to Santa Fe, NM

2009-03-01T09:38:00.005-06:00

Here are a few pictures of the work that David did while in Santa Fe, NM. They were adding on to a house there, which serves as the YWAM base. The addition will serve as staff housing.

A Valentine's day to remember

2009-02-15T21:39:00.002-06:00

I was hoping for a nice peaceful Valentine's day. I had about 8 single girls over for dinner, since David was out of town, I figured we should do something fun. Well, I don't know why I think any day will be peaceful. First, back it up 2 days, Flint again with the fire. This time he put a coloring book in the fire and then pulled it out. So we now have a nice burn in the carpet the size of a coloring book. I called David crying and that's when I realized I was starting to wear down. So yesterday, I'm getting stuff ready and Barrett and Luke are in their room yelling. I go in to find that Flint has climbed their ladder all the way to the top and has his hands on the ceiling! So after several spankings he finally quite climbing. For toady anyway. Then they were all wrestling and Luke somehow did a back flip over the couch and hit his head on the coffee table. He hit it so hard that the table actually broke. Then we made it til bedtime, I sent Peter in to go to the bathroom. For some reason he was on top of the countertop and fell off head first. I still can't figure out how going to the bathroom involves needing to climb on top of the sink, but he now has a nice golf ball sized bruise on his forehead.
So we survived Valentine's Day. The boys spent about 5 hours sledding today which wore them out nicely and they were all sleeping peacefully be 7:30. Ahh, the joy of a quiet house.

What's in a name???

2009-02-12T09:57:00.003-06:00

I've been trying to think of baby names and as usual I've got nothing. Whenever we have picked a named we always look at the meaning and want it to be a strong name with a good meaning. Well, the name Flint means "to spark a fire". Sounded like a good, strong name. however, I never really wanted him to literally live up to the meaning of the name. But apparently he's going to. David's been in Santa Fe, NM this week, so i've been single momin it, which I don't know how single mom's do it. Anyway, the other day I started a fire in the wood stove and went to fill up the dishwasher, I look in the living room and realize that Flint has gone and found a stick that Barrett's been widdling and has stuck it in the fire and is now running around the living room with a torch! He hit the fleece blanket with it, which burned a nice size hole in the blanket and i'm yelling and frantically chasing him while he just looks at me with a look like, "what's the big deal?" oh my! So I recover from that and then yesterday, the boys had gotten home from school and one of them had gone to the bathroom. I can't understand why it's so hard for little boys to flush the toliet, or close the seat cover, or shut the bathroom door, but apparently it is. So I realize that Flint is in the bathroom, I run in to find him swirling gloves around in the toliet, which if full of human by-product. Again, I'm yelling and totally grossed out, trying not to throw up as I fish out poopy gloves. Flint has run out of the bathroom and into the living room. I come out, and realize that he's thrown yet another pair of gloves into the fire!! If we can somehow harness the love for gloves and fire into something good, then we're onto something, but for now, this little boy can just wear me down.
So, for this next little one, i'm looking for a name that means sweet angel that sits in the corner and reads books and doesn't provoke his/her mother to anger! If anyone has a name that means that, then by all means please share it with me. So the lesson for the week is making sure the meaning of the name is a good one. At least Flint is giving me lots of good stories to share.

Luke lost his first tooth

2009-02-07T21:50:00.003-06:00

So I gave the boys a bunch of carrots for the snowman that they were making, and I came outside and realized that Flint was just shoving them all in his mouth. Luke was so proud of his first lost tooth. Lately, Flint is found all over the house wearing my boots. he can hardly walk because they go up to his knees, but he doesn't care.

Here are some pictures from Welcome to Montana night. It was a lot of fun for the boys. They all dressed up in cowboy attire and we had some BBQ.

The boys had their first "snow day" on Friday. Except it didn't snow, just rain, which then turned to a thick sheet of ice on the roads. They were so excited to not have to go to school. I didn't have the heart to tell them that they'll have to make it up in the spring. They spent a few hours today sledding down a hill of ice/snow in our yard. Only problem was that there was no snow on the street, so they would go down the hill and land on the road. They just kept getting hurt. Apparently they thought that I was kidding when I said it doesn't work real well to sled on the asphalt.
David left today to go to Santa Fe, NM with a few guys from the base here. They are going to frame in a building which will be used for staff housing at the YWAM base down there. It's a 22 hour drive so they'll have a very long night and day tomorrow.
Every quarter when a new school comes we have International Night at our weekly community meeting. They've decided this time to have a US table and have asked me to make the food for it. So of course my plan is to make some sweet tea, fried okra and boiled peanuts. One slight problem: I can't find okra or raw peanuts. I called every natural food store within 30 miles. One guy actually asked me what I was going to do with raw peanuts with the shells. I told him I was going to boil them and then, no joke, he said, " and then what will you do with them?" Are you kidding me? he acted like I was a crazy person that I was going to eat peanuts after boiling them. It's a little sad if you ask me. These native montanaians have no idea what kind of good food they've been missing out on. The past week i've introduced 2 people to sweet tea. And they're both hooked now. My goal is to intoduce these westerners to some good southern food. I'm hoping to make some fried green tomatoes soon.

A busy week in Lakeside

2009-01-09T09:46:00.002-06:00

It's been a very quick, busy week here in Lakeside. The weather has warmed up a bit, which is nice except for the think layer of ice that covers everything. David and his crew have been busy to say the least to try to clear the ice off of roofs, sidewalks and streets. We welcomed a new DTS (Discipleship Training School) there are 27 new students from 8 nations. We had a big welcome morning on Monday to welcome them to the base. Tuesday, we took Barrett to a Mongolian Grill for his birthday dinner. He loved it, you can watch them cook your dinner in front of you. Wednesday was his birthday party at school. Everyone in the class made him a birthday card and we sent cupcakes for the class. Thursday was eventful, started with taking Flint to an Orthopedic hand specialist. His broken finger was not looking right, so they did x-rays and the dr. said he thought it was fine, still broken, but straight and they could see new bone growth. Then I had a dr. apt, we got to see baby ice cube on the ultrasound. we're happy to announce that we're having...... a healthy baby!!! We didn't find out, I think it's a boy, but of course at one point I thought we were looking at the face and it was really the kidneys, so i'm not banking on my predictions! I'm hoping for a calm weekend, I think the boys will go skiing and I may try to paint a wall or two and get rid of the white color that covers this house.

Barrett turns 8

2009-01-04T10:33:00.002-06:00

We had a great birthday yesterday. We all went up to the ski slope, Flint and I hung out in the lounge, Flint ate everything he could possible find on the floor. Peter skied for the first time, which was quite the adventure for David as he took 3 boys by himself down the slope.
After a day of skiing, we made pizzas and had a bunch of people over for cake and ice cream.
It's crazy to think that Barrett is now 8. It seems like just the other day we were so thankful for a healthy baby and how things could have gone so different if the dr. hadn't been right there on the floor. He's such a blessing, his kind, gentle spirit humbles me. We had friends over the other night and she said that she hopes her little boy is as kind as Barrett when he grows. The way he takes care of his little brothers is amazing. He got his first pocket knife for his birthday, and we prob. should have included a first aid kit, but he sure loves it.

bathroom re-do

2009-01-04T10:26:00.003-06:00

here are some pictures of our bathroom before and after David's handy work. It's so nice to have a clean bathroom, getting rid of the moldy, 50 year old nasty stuff that was in there.

I think this is enough snow!

2009-01-02T14:57:00.001-06:00

So we've had a little bit of snow the past few days. Our poor little light up reindeer, his head is now under the snow. David, Barrett and Luke have found they're new favorite sport, snow skiing. There's a ski area about 10 miles up our road, and kids ski free which makes it even better. They've gone several times this week and all Barrett wants to do for his birthday is ski.

Christmas day

2008-12-28T17:12:00.000-06:00

Christmas cookie making

2008-12-28T15:58:00.003-06:00

Tha

2008-12-25T15:42:00.002-06:00

They Got Moves

2008-12-25T15:16:00.002-06:00

These boys love to dance!

2008-12-25T13:12:00.002-06:00

Artic Living

2008-12-16T20:50:00.004-06:00

I know i've said that's it's cold here, but I thought maybe I should really decribe it to give a better picture of what I now think cold is. Saturday was the first real snowy day, so the boys and I were so excited about going and playing in the snow. David was out plowing snow on the base, and so I began. 4 boys - it goes like this - thermals, long pants, long sleeve shirt, sweat shirt, 2 pairs of socks, snow pants, jacket, hat, gloves, scarf, and boots. total time from start to finish - 40 minutes!! we got outside and the first thing one of the boys (who's name will remain a secret) says: "mommy, I have to pee!" are you kidding me? It was like I was back in the episode of the Cosby's.
so, since Sat, the high temperature has been 0. That's right, you read that correctly, the high has been 0. sunday night actually hit -24. So I have learned that a sippy cup can actually freeze in your car while you're in Costco shopping. Storing stuff in the garage thinking it will serve as a fridge, not the best idea. Items frozen: one loaf of the bread, 2 gallons of milk, one large bunch of banannas, a bottle of lotion, and who knows what else at this point.
I thought that I could just pump gas w/out my gloves, I mean, it will only be a few minutes: well, my fingers actually started to get a little frost bitten in the time it took to put 15 gallons of gas in the car. Which, another new piece of info: gas can actually freeze in your car if there's less than 1/2 a tank. So, David and I finally broke down and bought us both snow boots this weekend, which are just ulgy, but I guess I just have to deal with it. All my fun pairs of clogs are just not going to cut it for the next few month. So that's what i've learned so far about what cold really is. It's painfully cold and I'm hoping that it warms up soon. People say that it rarely gets this cold for very long. It's even too cold to snow. I actually have been getting a headache walking from our house to the cafeteria b/c of the temp. It's a good thing the people are so great here to keep me enjoying it. But the lake is freezing and it's amazing. It looks all smoky b/c the water is warmer then the air, it's literally breathtaking. Hopefully we can go ice skate on the lake soon.

Christmas Programs and Snow

2008-12-13T14:44:00.004-06:00

it's snowing!!!!

2008-12-03T21:51:00.001-06:00

Thanksgiving

2008-12-03T21:44:00.002-06:00

house pictures take 2

2008-11-21T07:55:00.002-06:00

Moving Day!!!!

2008-11-21T07:51:00.002-06:00

We have finally moved into our new home!! We are so excited. We had a lot of help which made it go very fast. There was one sad part to the day, Flint bumped into a big trailer hitch extension which weighed about 50 lbs, and it fell and crushed his little finger. I took him to the doctor, and it did break it, and turns out he had an ear infection too. But it hasn't seemed to slow him down yet. ignore the mess in the pictures, I just wanted to get some pictures out of our house.

Our visit with the Seidels in CO

2008-11-18T17:01:00.003-06:00

We had a lot of fun seeing Chad, Erynn and Karstan for a few days. It's always a good time when we get to see them.

Some halloween pictures

2008-11-18T16:55:00.003-06:00

Here are a few pictures from Halloween, I know it's a little late, but better late then never. Why are there no pictures of Peter you ask? well, that's because he refused to dress up. He was wearing his lion costume running around the house, then right before we left, he decided he just wanted to be Peter. so that was that.

More pictures from GA

2008-10-13T12:44:00.002-05:00

Trip to GA

2008-10-13T12:31:00.000-05:00

Pumpkin Patch

2008-10-13T10:32:00.006-05:00

We've made it to the Southeast!!!

2008-09-29T18:06:00.002-05:00

After 4 long days of driving, we made it to Kentucky. I apparently forgot to pack the adapter to download pictures, so i'll have to get another one. We left Montana Monday around 1:00 and made it all of 4 hours. The next morning involved a trip to Urgent Care, 2 with ear infections, 1 asthma attack. We then endured through Wyoming, what a long, dark, not so exciting drive. we made it CO to spend the day with Chad and Erynn, what a treat.
From CO, we spent a very long day in the truck, til 2:30 am and made it past Kansas City. Wow!
So, we're in Kentucky, and leaving tom. for B'ham. We're so excited about seeing family and friends, although we're really missing the base and the people there. I'll hopfully post pictures soon.

Flint Frankenstein

2008-08-21T17:21:00.002-05:00

here's some footage of Flint walking all the way across the camper. Ok, so it's not really that far. He'll walk if you tease him with food.

See where we will be. YWAM Montana video

2008-08-18T09:09:00.000-05:00

Promo Video from YWAM Montana on Vimeo.

David turns 32!!!

2008-08-16T22:52:00.002-05:00

David's birthday was on Wednesday of this past week. It was work as usual, but I had gotten a babysitter so we could go out. Right before we were leaving, the cook came over and said that he had fixed dinner for us. so, we went to the cafeteria and they had set up a table for us with steak, baked potatoes, with all the fixin's, sweet tea, corn, salad, and bread. What a feast. It was a little embarrassing to be sitting and eating all this yummy food while everyone else was eating chicken sandwiches. Then, someone else gave us tickets to a Jeremy Camp concert at the Northwestern Fair. So we went and had a great time. It was my first trip to a fair. we were walking around looking at all the animals and there was a whole poultry barn. I thought they must be selling fried chicken in there, but no, they were showing chickens!! just for people to look at. It was a whole new experience for me. We ended the day with some good chocolate cake. We even had our first Huckleberry milkshake. It tasted a lot like blueberry to me, but people here are nutso about huckleberries.

There was a team from Pennsylvania here this past week and they got so much work done it was unreal. they finished building the pole barn, put siding on the dorm and student center, painted the dorm, and painted the student center. There's a team of 22 here this week from Washington state so they are starting on one of the other buildings tom. We are still trying to figure out how to fit our little family in 2 dorm rooms. We've yet to come up with a solution. I've been scraping paint in the bathroom. someone painted over the tile in there and it was peeling off and just ulgy, so I thought I needed another little project. I'll get some pictures up tom. but the olympics are just calling my name right now.

Glacier

2008-08-09T23:26:00.002-05:00

We went to Glacier Nat'l Park for the day. It's about an hour drive from where we are. What an amazing place. It was breathtaking. The water was so clear. There was still some snow on the ground which was fun. It was a little scary looking over the edge and realizing just how high up you are. But it was beautiful.

Peter's 3rd birthday

2008-08-05T11:39:00.001-05:00

weekend of fun

2008-07-28T17:06:00.001-05:00

I took the boys on Friday out to a horse event. It was at this beautiful place called Rebecca Farms. We had a lot of fun watching the horses and just running around.

On Saturday we went back up to Whitefish for the annual North West Fly fishing expo. David actually ran into a guy from the fly fishing shop in Birmingham, what are the chances of that?

Sunday was a great day. David kept all the boys all day and I just spent the day by myself exploring town. Usually after about an hour, i'm bored and ready to go back, but yesterday I didn't come home until right before dinner. It was much needed time by myself.

we ended the weekend with a nice little visit to the ER. After dinner Luke came and told us that something black came out of his ear and it was bleeding. Well, after a couple of hours of it bleeding we took him to the ER. it was crazy. The doctor thinks that there was so much wax built up that it attached to the ear canal and for some reason it came off causing the bleeding. He's better today and says he can hear better which is nice. We were so close to going a whole month without any dr's visits. oh well, maybe next month.

A weekend of fun

2008-07-28T16:58:00.001-05:00

Whitefish ski resort

2008-07-20T22:57:00.002-05:00

Yesterday, Saturday, we packed some lunches and headed north about 30 miles to Whitefish Ski Resort. It's alot like Highlands' of the South. Very swanky ski resort. But, in the summer you can ride the ski lift to the top and hike all over. It is breathtaking. You can see the Canadian Rockies on one side, Glacier National Park on one side, and the Flathead Valley (where we are). We ate lunch at the top and just wandered around. We had big plans to do the "wildflower hike" which is a 3 mile hike. But the boys were already tired and the first 1/2 mile was straight down hill, so we thought about it and decided that the 1/2 mile straight up hill was going to be ulgy at the end of the day. So we just hung out and enjoyed the views.

There was a lady there with a big newfoundland lab and Peter saw it and freaked out yelling, "get that gorilla face dog away from me!" it was pretty funny.

Meet Frankie

2008-07-15T15:53:00.003-05:00

This is Frankie - our newest family member, but only for 3 weeks. We are dog sitting for some friends while they're out of town. As you can see, David loves him some Frankie, yes, Frankie is licking David's ear. We just decided, we had so much space, why not take in a dog.

The other day the boys were running around down on the field and they came running up to me and Peter said, "I saw a grizzly deer!" and Luke said, "and it wasn't even in a cage!!" they were so excited. Peter now carries a stick around with him because apparently he's going to bam the grizzly deer when he sees it again. Luke thought he saw a mountain lion, but turns out when he ran up closer, it was just a man standing by the creek. I suppose we should go over the whole- if you see a mountain lion, run away, not towards the animal. There haven't been anymore grizzly deer spottings, but we're sure keeping our eyes for them.

Longing for BBQ

2008-07-11T11:23:00.002-05:00

So we've been here a month now, and that is by far the longest i've gone without eating BBQ in many years. We've been invited 3 different times now to different places for a bbq. Each time my first thought is sweet Jesus that sounds good. Each time, however, we arrive to find hamburgers, sausage, and this last time, chicken - not bbqed, just grilled. I don't get it, can't we get a pig around here? Where's the ribs, or pulled pork? So, I went to Costco on wed. and asked the butcher for a boston butt. He looked at me a little strange, and went and asked another butcher if they had boston butt. The other man came out and said he didn't know what a boston butt was. are you kidding me? are there no pigs around here? So I explained, you know, to make some pulled pork bbq. He said, oh, yeah, we have some pork shoulder you could use. Finally, we're getting somewhere. So it's been cooking since last night and this morning I was adding some sweet baby rays, which thank goodness I stocked up on before we came here and the boys were hovering over me like I had a pile of gold. Barrett actually told me that he was going to go to the playground because he just couldn't smell it any longer unless I would let him eat some.

So, we're having some friends from CO and CA over for dinner. I wanted to make a proper meal with some fried okra, but you can imagine, I can't find any. Our friends from CA didn't even know what okra is. We're definitely going to have to shed some southern comfort foods on these people. We haven't had one fried thing yet in the cafeteria. I think there would have been a riot by now if for one whole month there was no fried food. Well, that's my bbq story for the day. I sure hope it taste good.

4th of July fun.

2008-07-05T10:18:00.003-05:00

We went to a waterpark in town yesterday for the 4th. It was a blast. There were a lot of families from the base that went. The water was pretty cold, but the boys didn't seem to mind. After the waterpark, we came home and cooked out. Then, the boys, big boys included, did fireworks. It's a little strange to do fireworks when it's still light out. Barrett was still up at 11, when they did the "real" fireworks. So, he and I went outside to watch them. It was pretty cold, so we we're wrapped up in blankets. How funny is that? wearing a jacket on the 4th of July.

Peter definitely did not enjoy the fireworks. He freaked out and wore some little winter ear muffs the whole time. He kept calling them ear puffs.

Life in "the big sky"

2008-07-02T22:54:00.002-05:00

I have been so bad at taking pictures since we've been here. I know i'll regret it later. But I wanted to give a little update. We are doing great. The boys are all better, Flint actually slept through the night last night, yippee!! Barrett and Luke went with a friend today into town to go to the park, the library, and then the circus. They had such a great time. They thought the circus was so great. I guess they had the dirtbikes that ride in the big cage, Luke was fascinated by that. I'm a little afraid that I might find them trying to ride their bikes in such a contraption. I'm sure Barrett could build it, and Luke wouldn't think twice about riding his bike in it. We've made some friends that we've been hanging out with a good bit. David has a little project of putting a new clutch in the truck. There's a waterpark nearby that we're going to go to on the 4th, and then a barbeque here at the base. When they said they were having a bbq, Barrett and I were so excited, I've been craving some good old bbq since we left the south. And then, I realized that to them a bbq is just hot dogs and hamburgers, no brisket or pork. Barrett was totally confused by that. It's been record temperatures the past few days. I think the other day it was 99, but no humidity, I didn't even break a sweat. Flint is still not walking, but boy does he get so dirty. The playground is grass everywhere except under the swings, so of course, he just plays in the dirt. He has the funniest little personality. And Peter, well, we're trying the potty training thing. Not going so well yet, but I'm trying to stick it out. I mean, it's only been a day, but i'm ready to quit. That's about it from here. We're still enjoying it, and still welcome visitors anytime.