Zion National Park

Well, I was finally able to hook up with 'real' internet, so here is a glimpse of our time in Zion National Park. Most of these photos are walking in The Narrows. Thanks to Daniel and David for most of the photos below..

We first took a bus tour through the lower part of the canyon, to get to the Head. It was very informational!! 

One thing they mentioned on the bus was the cottonwood trees growing alongside the river, and that though the seeds are scattered in many directions, they only grow in the particular soil next to the river, because they need the water.

It reminded me of the parable Jesus told in Matthew 13:18-23 about the sower, and how the seed could only grow in the good ground, which is abundant with water. Thus, we also are like the cottonwood seeds. We can only grow as Christians when we root ourselves deeply in the soil of God's Word, with the Water of Life flowing through us.

My two gwapa kaayo (very beautiful) sisters.. :)

We hiked a mile or so through the river, which was fun and chilly... :) I love water!

I like mountains.

Don't you love the color?!

Okay, there are 2 photos that have been bugging me that I didn't post previously.... The first is the view of the gorgeous blood moon, courtesy of David, taken from our house the other week.

And, I never did post that photo of biking in France of our family...so rather than changing the post from back then, here it is now. :) We sure had fun! Boy, are we spoiled and blessed!!

"He also that receiveth seed among the thorns is he that hearth the Word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the Word, and he becometh unfruitful. But he that receiveth seed into the good ground is he that hearth the Word, and understandeth it; which also beareth fruit, and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty."

~ Matthew 13:22-23 ~

Coming Home

I can hardly believe the conference is over! What a refreshing, thought-provoking time of fellowship and learning! I am sure I will share more in times to come, but for now, I just wanted to share a few photos...

I had a group of 6 girls (since 2 didn't show up), and an assistant as well (which was a first). God does work in hearts in miraculous ways, and I believe He touched many young hearts through COMMIT!

It was so wonderful to spend time with 2 of my dear, dear sisters in Christ-Becky and Olivia as well....oh, what sweet fellowship you can share when you are rooted in the same foundation!! Miss you girls already!

I was part of this 'hat skit' for the girls, and Olivia let me borrow her amazing hat... (I want to find one just like it!)...so, I ended up wearing it for the rest of the day... Blue and Pearls are a lovely combination!

We are in Colorado Springs now, with another 2 days of travel, and an overnight stop in Billings before we are home.
I was much impressed my yesterday's rhemas...
"One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to enquire in His temple.
When Thou saidst, Seek ye My face; my heart said unto Thee, Thy face, LORD, will I seek.
Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and He shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD." Psalms 27:4, 8, 14

We serve an amazing God, amen?!

Camp and Thoughts on Prayer

Today was a good day.. We got into Big Sandy at 3am, and I got a few hours sleep before the Breakfast Hour...all important when you know the chance for protein consumption won't be available again until 1200. :) Thus, don't laugh when you read that I took a couple hours' nap after breakfast before heading to help with Registration.. :)

It was good...seeing old friends, and even making some new ones.. It is so fun...re-living the fond memories (and maybe crazy adventures) with them.

ALERT campus is huge, and I think I walked a minimum of 5 miles today..maybe more. The weather is nice...in the 80's and kinda humid.. Some people hate it..I have adjusted pretty well...and the stars! Oh..I love it!

The session tonight was very convicting... I love communing with my Jesus, and do so often throughout the day...however, one area God has been convicting me on is making a consolidated Prayer List & making a habit of carrying it with me and using it. Sure, I have prayer lists, but they're scattered, and often, I don't have them available for perusal.

Mr. Gibbs shared 4 Keys for Prayer Success:
1) You gotta pray - create a prayer list and ask specifically.
2) Pray earnestly and fervently.
3) You've gotta be clean (righteous, not just 'cleaner')
4) You gotta persist.

Quotes to Ponder:
"Every failure in a Christian's life is a prayer failure." -John R. Rice
"The most powerful thing in the universe, by invitation of God, is prayer."
"Fervency is the spirit of prayer."

James 5:16: "Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months. And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit."

Something else I was encouraged in today was through our Leaders' Meeting...
Not all those we serve through leadership are potential 'rocks' like Peter. Some are Andrews (who led Peter to Jesus), and their job is just as important! I want to be an Andrew.

God's goal for me is just to be His Channel...with my eyes, ears, mouth, heart, hands, and hugs. Praise God!

Daniel 12:3: "And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever."__

Looking Forward: I have very limited internet access, so all canyon and cavern pictures will be posted after we leave Camp...
We have the next 3 days of conference, and though I will be leading a group of around 9 girls? (ages 12-15), I am really looking forward to learning and engrafting more of God's principles into my life personally...

We (Rachel and I) do covet your prayers as we lead these young women (and men for David and Samuel)!

Desert Overview

Well, the past 3 days have been incredible! What an amazing and incredibly creative and all-knowing God we serve!!
Before I go on, praise God, Christ is risen! Hallelujah!

My brothers took tons of photos over the past couple days, and I'm excited to share highlights in a near future post...however, at this time, please be content with the few photos I have on my phone...

Friday, we visited Zion National Park in Utah, which unfortunately, all photos will come later. Let me just say that it was amazing, including hiking a mile upriver through the river...it was awesome (cool ;P), and very memorable!

We then (after eating at TX Roadhouse, drove very late into the night to just outside the Grand Canyon, where we literally caught a few hours of sleep before meeting with our tour guide - Russ Miller of link text (Creation Ministries). highly, highly recommended!!

Wow, wow, wow! I loved Zion, but the Grand Canyon was especially impactful, because I learned SO much! (I hope to share more later).


We spent the night in Flagstaff, AZ, where we had dinner at Black Barts Steak House..a wonderful memory, most specific to the fact that their waiters sing musical (Broadway/Oldie) numbers accompanied by a very talented piano player, and they take requests! Among those played were two of our favorites...'Beauty and the Beast' and 'Somewhere Out There'.

Don't you love Samuel's artwork? We are in the Wild Southwest... :)

Black Bart's history..kinda interesting!

This morning, we attended the Miller's church for their Easter morning service, which was wonderful...
One of the most impactful things I heard was: "Today marks the beginning of a new year for Christianity..a new start, a new day, a new beginning." I am so grateful for God's redemptive love, forgiveness, and justice, and for His peace that surpasseth all understanding! Oh what joy I have to know that my purpose on earth is to glorify God and encourage all those He brings along my path!

Now, we are on the road, with Carlsbad Caverns in NM as our next stop...another late night, and more awesome adventures are sure to be in store before finishing off tomorrow by arriving in Big Sandy for the ATI conference tomorrow evening.

I love elephants, and this sticker on a diaper station caught my eye because of the distinctions between the daddy, mommy, and baby...specifically in their eyes and ears..

Psalms 20:5, 7-8: "We will rejoice in Thy Salvation, and in the name of our God we will set up our banners: the LORD fulfil all Thy petitions. Some trust in chariots, and some in horses: but we will remember the name of the LORD our God. They are brought down and fallen: but we are risen, and stand upright."

PS...just something to ponder: If vegetarians eat vegetables, what do humanitarians eat?

Roadtrip Life

You ever wonder what a road trip for a family of 11 looks like? Granted this one is pretty mellow with ages ranging from almost 23-9 (unlike those in the past), but we still manage to have fun... I jotted down some musings and amusings for smile's sake... (You know the longest word in the world is 'smiles', because there is a mile between the 2 "s's".

Dried coconut is the best!

Today's Favorite Quotes:
(Me to David): "What size of feet do you wear?"
(During roll call): "If you're not here, speak now or forever hold your peace." =D

(From one of Tom Harmon's sermons): "I take my Bible literally, laterally, horizontally, and vertically." (And I add, 'Lord help me live that!')
"If you don't have the spirit of God, you're dumber than a stick... Luke 48 : something"

Wisdom Learned:
Being short is awesome...just don't lock your legs...you don't pass out since you are sitting down...you just feel terrible. :)


Random Musings
By 1030, I already used the Silvadene from my medical kit...on a burn from one of the rest stop's popcorn maker, of all things! Who knew, right!? Little brothers have a way of finding those things.. :-)

David does not appreciate my fascination with his adams apple. (funny how we are all naturally protective of our throats!)
After telling him that I like having him as my seat mate because he is so low key (which is awesome because the back row of peanuts is anything but that...), ;P, we somehow started a short, but quiet competition on low-keyed voice notes... Did you know if a soprano goes low enough, she can sound like a mini weed eater!? =)

John 16:13-14: "Howbeit when He, the Spirit of Truth, is come, He will guide you into all Truth: for He shall not speak of Himself; but whatsoever He shall hear, that shall He speak: and He will shew you things to come. He shall glorify me: for He shall receive of Mine, and shall shew it unto you."

Jeremiah 6:16: "Thus saith the LORD, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls."

I'm just a poor wayfaring stranger and am loving it, because I have the most incredible King ever, and no matter what journey or path I am on in life, He is there every step of the way guiding me! Did you know He gives the best hugs ever? They surround you like a blanket, and His peace surpasses all understanding.

Psalms 23:2-4: "He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: He leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for His name's sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for Thou art with me; Thy rod and Thy staff they comfort me."

As you can see below, we have a full schedule of travel ahead of us...but to us, I suppose it is normal...nothing busier than any other day! :-)

Also, we are staying outside Salt Lake City tonight...the last time we drove through here was in 2001, where the smog was so bad we could only see a few hundred feet in front of us, and ended up causing my brother to have his life-threatening asthma attack which landed him in an induced-coma in the ICU for a week... yeah, things are looking up this time, praise God! :)

Looking Forward: We are visiting Zion National Park tomorrow..I am very much looking forward to it!

Off to Texas!

Well folks, we are off to TX! Woohooo! Grand Canyon, here we come! :-) Idaho, we shall be a-seein' ya in a few weeks, you beautifully RAINY State! ;-)

Can you tell I love road trips!?

Just wanted to share a Bible verse that I've been thinking on of late:
Psalms 16:11 - "Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in Thy presence is fulness of joy; at Thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore."

Life, Drills, and More

Besides my recording my life and adventures in the Philippines, I'm not sure I have blogged so fully or consistently until we went to Europe...thus, I hope you can excuse the last few weeks of silence as not only did I need the reprieve, but life has been so full I simply have not had much opportunity for any internet time!

Unfortunately, I don't have a lot of photos on hand to show the happenings of the last few weeks, but following my last post, I spent the weekend nannying 'my precious little family' of 4 amazing kids for the weekend, ages 8 - 22 months...that included loading them up and taking them to a music rehearsal with me, playing at the Kroc, and living life with them while trying to direct Esther (back home) via phone how to deliver Katydid's malpresenting goat kid!! It was amazing and crazy, but all's well that ends well!

This week also, I had the opportunity to babysit some other friends of mine (6 kids this time - 13 - 1.5) for a day. The thing I love about babysitting/nannying Christian families is that each time I glean new ideas, learn new things, and get to practice my patience, creativity, and love. The question keeps coming to my head, "Do I have the skills, character, and especially selflessness it takes to be a mom?" And I think my answer is, "Yes, by God's grace I shall!"

I've also been busy with my part-time job at my dad's financial firm, Bible Study, spending time with friends (many of whom I have been sorely neglecting in the last few months), spending time with my Jesus, working on the ranch, correcting and sewing a ewe up with a prolapsed uterus, and many other various activities...

One of which, I want to specifically highlight today.... Yesterday, I had the opportunity to volunteer as a 'victim' for the Coeur d'Alene Disaster Drill, which was a 2-day drill done with Kootenai Health practicing how the Medical system would work if say, there was a blizzard and roofs started caving in causing multiple injuries... How would triage work? How would Incident Command be set up, and would it work smoothly with the City Departments, citizens, hospitals, and Emergency Personnel?

Everyone agreed it went much smoother than last year's drill, though a few kinks are still being worked out.

Corn Syrup and Red Food dye makes excellent blood (however, it doesn't dry fast!) :)

It all started when Selah asked me to volunteer with her (as her Nurse grandma had asked her to help)... I *of course* said yes!! :) Medical anything--especially with the ER is AWESOME! This is my life! Arriving at 6:15am, we signed in and got all 'moulaged' for our parts. I was asked to act as a 'hysterical' 32 week pregnant, 20 y/o female, who hearing the ceiling cracking started running from the building, but fell on the ice and had a occipital laceration, broken wrist, hip and lower leg bruising and injuries, and was in possible premature labor. :)

Saran wrap makes an excellent wrap for holding your "baby" in and keeping shape

Grandma S., Selah, and I (baking soda makes great sheet rock dust)

 Grandma S. had a C-Spine injury causing paralysis from her waist down and minor contusions, and Selah had a fractured pelvis among other things.

I think the baby is wanting to come.... :)

Charcoal makes nice bruising, along with liquid foundation and red spray paint as needed.

I guess they picked the right person, as I had a whole bunch of people come up asking when I was due, if it was a boy or girl, and if it was my first... Some thought it was awesome that they were able to find a pregnant woman to fill a role! Goodness....it was so funny!

After we finished the drill and debrief, Selah and I met up with Luke (my dear cousin, and Selah's hubby ;D), and went out for coffee....well, actually, we walked...as we were... Oh the looks were priceless!!! I still looked all pregnant too...crazy, I know! You should have seen the faces when we walked into the coffee shop! It was priceless....and we acted completely oblivious. Of course we told those who asked. :)

One of these days, maybe this will be my reality... :)

I shall blog more as time allows...
Looking Forward, we are leaving for Texas to see the Grand Canyon and ultimately for a homeschool conference next week, where I will be teaching young women-ages 12-15 for the week. After that, one of my big priorities is working to downsize our alpaca herd and organizing my life, so if you don't hear from me much, just know that I'm busy working, serving, or something like that. :)

"As thou knowest not what is the way of the spirit, nor how the bones do grow in the womb of her that is with child: even so thou knowest not the works of God who maketh all.

In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thine hand: for thou knowest not whether shall prosper, either this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good."

~ Ecclesiastes 11:5-6 ~

"And that ye study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you; that ye may walk honestly toward them that are without, and that ye may have lack of nothing."

~ 1 Thessalonians 4:11-12 ~