CBD Coupon Code – Christmas 2008

Okay, I’m not quite ready to start Christmas shopping yet, but that’s just around the corner. I need to order a few books for Club & remembered the CBD coupon code Focus on the Family is offering again. It ends up giving you almost free shipping – 10% off purchases of 35$ or more. The code is 251523FF & this offer ends December 24th, 2008. There are so many wonderful resources, it’s hard to pick just a few. Happy shopping!

Hiding God’s Word – The Joy Verse

This last month in Club we have been working on memorizing Philippians 4:4-7 as our JOY verse. Here’s a few helps we came up with to get it deep in our minds so God can let it’s roots grow deep in our hearts…

“Rejoice in the Lord always. Again, I will say, rejoice!”
- We sing a song about that. That helps us remember the start.
Next, stroke your hand like a little kitten…

“Let your gentleness”
- Remember us stroking our hands last year to help with “for I am gentle and lowly in heart & you shall find rest for your souls”? This is to remind you about gentleness, too. Be gentle petting that little kitty.

“Be known to all men.”
- Point to your head for known.

“The Lord is at hand.”
- Stick your hands out in front of you.
Next shake your head for no. Remember NOT to do the next thing…

“Be anxious for nothing”
- NOTHING!! We are not to be anxious. Period. Shake your head, wag your fingers, no, NO!

“But in everything, by prayer & supplication…”
- Put your hands in the praying position.

“and with thanksgiving”
- !! Don’t forget this part! Put your hands up & wiggle them in praise! Note: this doesn’t say”BY Thanksgiving” or “UNTIL Thanksgiving”! We had two little guys rub their tummies thinking all about that turkey coming up next month. WITH. It’s WITH thanksgiving (little t).

“let your requests be made known to God.”
- Point up to God to Whom you tell what you need.

“And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding”
- Say the first part kind of quickly, then say “all” really drawn out.

“will guard your hearts”
- Put both hands on your heart.

“and your minds”
- Put your hand to your head.

“through Christ Jesus.”
- It’s all because of Him. PTL!

Finally, Someone’s Asking

Go Barbara!!!

Happy Halloween

I don’t “do” halloween, but I thought this would be good to pass along in the spirit of spooky frights.

WARNING: extremely scary material!!

100 Days

In Korea, a big deal is made when a baby hits the 100 day mark. Today is Jack’s 100th day, so we got out the old camera to celebrate. The many faces of Jack…

Happy Baek-il, Little Guy. We’re glad you’re here!

13 Days And Counting

Did you hear Dr. Dobson’s interview with Gov. Palin? If not, listen here.

And a few 30 second spots worth checking out if you haven’t seen them…

Special thanks to Barbara for the heads up.

Camping Recap

Short but great trip. Highlights include:
- The awesome foliage!!!!
- Callie & Anders running into a skunk on the way to the bathroom as soon as we got to the campground. I wish I could capture her description of the look the skunk gave her. She squinted up her eyes & turned her head; cute! I asked if she was sure it was a skunk. “Mom, I saw his white stripe down his back!” Guess it was.
- The 25 or 30 deer we saw as we came up the lane to the camp site the first night. Beautiful! Apparently one was playing on the monkey bars at the playground when no one was looking.
- Sites G8 & G9 – perfect for families with kids. Close enough to the bathrooms without smelling or hearing them all night or having their blaring lights right in your eyes, yet close enough for the little ones to get there in the middle of the night. Water fountain & spicket right there, too. Plus, there were two playgrounds within sight, so the kids could go over & make friends & have fun while we set up & tore down. Being the two out of three tents I saw in the entire full campground, we had the run of the shower house. Nice perk!
- Duct tape (family joke).
- At Amish Country, we tracked down the man who made our hickory rockers & he directed us to the woman who can make new covers for us. We’ve needed new ones. That’s part of what this trip was about. It took all day to find her, but we got new covers ordered & took a cheese factory tour (complete with samples of cheese, fudge, & candy purchases) to boot.

- Spending time as a family & with our friends. It was great to just make some fun memories together!

PS – I didn’t mention Roscoe Village because the actual village was a bit of a disappointment for me – not at all what I remembered. With the Apple Butter Stirring Festival in full swing, it was more like the Prairie Peddler than Ohio Village like I’d hoped. Glad now I didn’t get out to Prairie Peddler this year. I ran into a girl I used to babysit years ago (Sarah P.) which was a fun surprise. We did taste apple butter, watch how candles are made, eat ice cream, and heard fun music so all that was nice. There was a new instrument there that was really cool – the merimbula (not sure of the spelling). It’s a super easy way to add bass to your band. Why I didn’t take a picture of it, I do not know! But after a lengthy search, found a picture on line someone took of it last year…

What to Pack When Family Tent Camping

Some friends of ours asked us a while back to write out what a family needs to remember when tent camping. It’s so much easier to make that list when packing for a trip, & since we didn’t camp this summer, the list is a long time in coming. But better late than never, right? So here it is. A list of what a family needs to remember to pack for a fun tent camping experience…

tent (don’t forget the poles, tarp, stakes, and a mallet), mini broom & dust pan to sweep out tent.
for the fire: kindling, torch or matches, roasting sticks, chairs, s’more fixings! Don’t bring wood if you’re going out of your county. Buy your wood there.
bathing: soap, shampoo, etc. (in small bottles to save space), toothbrushes & paste, whatever other toiletries you use, contact stuff if you wear them, towels, flip flops for the shower, clothesline & pins for hanging wet towels & wet clothes, small container of laundry soap & dryer sheets if you’re camping for a week, any hair pretties for the gals, etc.
cooking/food: can opener, pans, stirring/serving spoons, hotplate, cans of gas for hotplate, spoons, forks, plates, bowls, cups, a sharp knife or army knife, small dish soap, baby wipes for wiping hands, paper towels, dishtowels, washcloth, bucket (like an ice cream pail to wash in), a pitcher to haul drinking water or mix up a powered drink in, formula, liners, & bottles if you have a baby along. (For what it’s worth: We’ve mostly camped with canned/boxed foods due to space an ice chest takes up. Obviously think through meals & pack all needed ingredients & an ice chest if needed.)
sleeping: pillows, sleeping bags, mats are wonderful!, Pull-Ups or diapers if you have young’uns.
clothes: depends on weather, but always bring along a jacket for each person no matter what time of year & sunglasses for the driver. Keith always has to have his visor, too, so any hats people might need.
Don’t ever pack clothes you want to keep nice – word of advice!
For the road: crayons, coloring books, journals, pens, camping books (bird books, ones on tracks, animals, plants, trees, etc.) trail mix, meat sticks, jerky, apples, cereal, etc. along with plastic cups with names marked on so you can pass the snacks back, etc.
Technology: cell phones, cords & adapters for, camera, CDs or iPod with Adventures In Odyssey or some such listening entertainment, atlas &/or mapquest directions for where you’re going if needed, campsite reservation information/proof.
Other odds & ends worth packing: trash bags, band-aids (Bring plenty just in case. They’re small.), pain killer (Ibuprofen) for adults & kids, q-tips, toothpicks, table &/or seat coverings, some cash, flashlight or lanterns, Bibles, scooters or bikes for the kids if you have room, guitar if someone plays, bug spray & sunscreen if it’s summer, playpen if you have a toddler (We got a Graco Pack ‘n Play Sport that is perfect for this kind of thing a few years back. I guess they discontinued it?! You can still get them on ebay, though.), front pack or back pack to hike with infant.

Just remember, if you forget something, part of the adventure is improvising. Using your creativity to “make do” without is half the fun of camping!

Autumn Camp Adventure

We’re headed out for a camping adventure this weekend with some friends. Looks to be high in the 60’s, low around 52 & 42 respectively those nights. A little chilly on Friday night, but otherwise perfect!! We’ve always had our family camp excursions in the summer with Keith being a teacher & all, but between Keith’s classes & the baby, we postponed it for a fall weekend this year. Autumn has always been my favorite time of year & if we weren’t teachers, this or last weekend would’ve been my pick for our wedding – peak fall colors.

Friday we’ll be poking around Amish Country & Saturday is Roscoe Village day. The older two don’t remember ever going to Amish country before & I’m the only one who’s been to Roscoe Village (they’re having their Apple Butter Stirring Festival this weekend) so there will be lots of fresh experiences for all.

The other couple are long time friends & missionaries to an undisclosed location home on furlough, so we’re also looking forward to catching up with them on what’s going on where they’ve been living & letting our kids build relationships with each other so they can be pen pals next year. Their grandpa is joining us (he also goes to our church) to help fill the hole of some much missed grandpa memories with the kids – ours having lost both a few years ago & theirs since they have been so far away. Anders & Ethan are the exact same age & cut from similar cloth so this should be rich.

Here’s to lots of great family memories!! Look for pictures posted to Flickr sometime next week.

Have You Seen This Guy?

SCL introduced me to this rapper (I don’t normally hang with the latest hip-hop scene) & I’ve got to say, it moved me to tears. I guess he’s moved up quickly in the pop charts. As he does, Satan will be targeting him, I’m sure. Would you pray with me for this young man, his wife, their soon coming baby, & the awesome ministry God has placed before him? There are so many broken lives in our culture! This guy’s spreading God’s love in his old “hood” in a new way. Listen in on part three…

If you have time, check out parts one & two as well.