Last Blog For a While

Well, this will be the last blog for a while. Tomorrow we are going back to the land of no internet, Grandview, WA and then next Monday we're leaving for OKLAHOMA!!! We're so very excited! We'll be traveling the week of Dec. 29th-Jan. 4th so please keep us in your prayers. We will be stopping in Bakersfield, CA to see Caleb's Granny hopefully Tuesday night and spending Wednesday with her. Then Thursday we will start our trek to the homeland. We hope to be there by late Friday/early Saturday depending on how well the traveling goes. But since we'll have the time zones against us (losing an hour every day) we're not sure how that will go. Especially since we'll have to buy food and everything before we get to the place we're staying in Oklahoma. But, we will be in church in Mustang, OK on the 4th, and we can't wait!

Our friends, Ron and Vicki Lehew, who mean a lot to us, have allowed us to use the trailer Ron purchased last year while we're in Oklahoma. It's right next to their current trailer so we'll have neighbors. We're so thankful to the Lord for providing a place of our own to live, we weren't sure where we were going to stay for the 2 weeks we'll be home. But God is always faithful and provides for us. We will be in Oklahoma until the 16th of January when we'll be leaving for New Mexico. We'll be at the Heartland Home Missions Conference, if anyone else will be there! I'm not sure how many of the meetings the kids and I will be able to attend, but I'm sure Caleb will be there for most, if not all, of them. Hope to see you there, maybe!

Thanks for reading and leaving comments. It's humbling to know that people care about what we're doing and how we're doing on the road. We're having fun, but we're ready to be home, even if just for a little bit!

SNOW!!!

Well, we've been in Washington for three months, and we've finally seen snow! We're in Auburn, WA which is just south of Seattle, and there's a light dusting of real snow here. Not tiny little ice balls, not white ice, but snow! I opened the window in our hotel Sunday morning and showed the kids and they absolutely freaked out! So we got dressed in our warmest church clothes and went to the van to go to church, and they were so excited to touch snow! I felt bad for my poor little Southern kids. Everytime we were outside and they saw snow, they HAD to walk in it and get it all over their feet. I thought about yelling at them to get out because their socks were going to get all wet, they would track snow into the van, etc. but I decided to let them have their fun. We're leaving Washington in 2 weeks (WHOO-HOO!!) and who knows when they'll see snow again! I'll try to take pictures today, if it doesn't melt by the time we go out.

New Friends and Wii!!

On Thursday, Dec. 4th, we drove to Oak Harbor, WA to spend the weekend with Bo and Kimberly McKenzie. Caleb knew Bo from Heartland and then some preacher's meetings, but I had never met either of them before. We had a great weekend and the best part was, they had a Wii! So we played that almost constantly. It is just fun to meet people and have an instant connection because of the Lord! The more Kimberly and I talked the more we realized we were the same person! So many things in our background and family life are similar, it's scary! We were both raised in Christian homes, our dads were both military, we both married plumbers and now we're both in full-time ministry! Plus we both have a love for shoes that reaches to every womWe also got to see Robin and Micheal Graves, and it was good to see them again. We went to Mrs. Graves' candy shop and got some delicious candy! They make all of their treats in their store and they're very fancy. http://www.cascadecandy.com/ Check out their website!!

We also had "girl time" on Saturday. I got a pedicure and the girls got their nails painted! They had so much fun.

Right now we're in Everett, Wa staying in a gorgeous Missions Apartment, and it's actually an apartment! We have it all to ourselves and we feel like we're in a castle! We haven't stayed anywhere by ourselves this large in a long time. We're counting down the days until we're back in Oklahoma and we're excited to see our friends and family again! Thanks for all of your prayers.

Lela's Birthday!!

On Monday, December 1st, Lela turned 3!! This was not an exciting bday for her because it means that she isn't 2 1/2 anymore! She loved telling people she was 2 1/2 and she always got a laugh. Telling people you're 3 just isn't as cute, apparently. But she's finally starting to come around and says she's 3 now. Caleb picked up an ice cream cake and made Lela's favorite meal, spaghetti and meatballs, for dinner. We had a good time with Josh and his family, ate lots of food, had good cake, and Lela got what she wanted, two movies! She got Monster, Inc. and 101 Dalmations. They're both now her favorite movies and would watch them constantly, if we let her. I have pictures, but they're on Rochelle's camera so I'll have to wait until I can get them on my camera!

Thanksgiving

We had a great Thanksgiving! We spent it with our friends, Chris and Tammie House who live in Hillsboro, OR. We were in Baker City, OR that Tuesday and enjoyed a Thanksgiving banquet with Elkhorn Baptist Church and the Looneys there. Then Wednesday we drove to Hillsboro (near Portland) and went to Corridor Baptist Church that night. The church there was very nice and gracious and got us a hotel room for the two nights we would be there! We were overwhelmed by their love, it was so kind of them. Then Thursday we spent the entire day with the Houses. Tammie wouldn't let me do anything, so I got to lay down on the couch all day and relax! The kids all got along and it was just a good day. I'm thankful for friends that will open their homes to us while we don't have a home!

Updates!

Wow, it's been a long time since I posted! I didn't realize how long until I checked the sight again. I'm worse at this than I am at sending out Thank You cards! And that's bad. So I'll try to do some short updates so it's not so long.

The week of Nov 17th-21st I was incredibly sick! The only things I could keep down were strawberry yogurt and Dr. Pepper! So, Wednesday we drove from Pasco, WA to North Bend, OR and I was so sick and tired that drive (8 hours) that when we got to North Bend, Caleb dropped me off at the ER. They completely misunderstood why I was there and treated me like someone with half a brain who didn't know that you get nauseous when you're pregnant. But I got an anti-nausea pill and a prescription out of the deal, so it wasn't so bad. Plus I got to hear the baby's (yes, just one baby!) heartbeat and I did find out I was dehydrated, just tired. They wouldn't check my iron, which I didn't understand, but since I'm always low when I'm pregnant, I'm pretty sure my iron was terribly low that week! But I've been getting it back up and feel better now.
The next day, since the nausea pill was 24 hours, we drove along the Oregon coast on Hwy 101 and had a great time! We stopped at the Sea Lion Caves and saw some cute sea lions swimming in the ocean. And then we stopped at a beach and even though it was absolutely freezing, we took off our socks and shoes and ran through the waves! It was so fun, and the kids had a blast. We have video of the kids and I in the waves, but I think we're missing a cord and I can't figure out how to upload the video to the computer! But once I figure it out, I will post it.