The Season

Here we are in Seattle enjoying the Season with Andy, Sarah (and her parents), Elijah, Clementine, and Nina. We brought the sun with us so today was out to the park. Nina is toddling and loves books (to chew), Elijah loves books too but legos are still the favorite. Clementine is learning quickly at school and has homework for the holidays! Kindergarten sure has changed.

Simple is Better

Barb has been reading me the complicated issues surrounding our complicated food processing. It seems we have sacrificed health for convenience. The conclusion seems to be, it takes longer to make your own food but it is much healthier for you. Simple is better. This should be a byword for followers of Jesus shouldn't it? Though not simple himself, our model lived a simple life. Born in a stable, without chariot or even donkey, without his own home, one garment, finding his food along the way, Jesus lived a life free from the cares that surround most of us. So when you feel overwhelmed with the complexity of your life, remind yourself  "simple is better" and look for ways to simplify with Jesus.

A Quiet Sunday

Not coming from a traditional church I am not familiar with the terms or the church calendar. Last year we had Christmas in Beirut and joined All Saints, an Anglican church with English speaking services. Pastor Nabil introduced us to the Advent Week schedule with the purpose of pointing us not only to Jesus' first coming, the birth and Incarnation, but to expect and pray for His second coming. Since this year we are prevented from celebrating in Beirut, we placed an advent wreath on the table with candles and have been following the schedule of Patriarchs week one, Prophets week two, John the Baptist week three, Mary the mother of Jesus week four, and Jesus Light of the World Christmas day.

Click on Advent for more information

Yesterday was a quiet Sunday after a Saturday with a wedding and decorating the church.

New Mini Album for the Grandies

Well it's still in progress, but we've put up a mini album called "Songs for the Grandies" on BandCamp. We are hoping to have 12 songs and have a story page with illustrations and coloring pages for each. These are scripture teaching songs for young ones, though not word for word. We trust these will be tools for parents and grandparents with the coming generations and generate some support for missions in the Middle East.

Click on "Songs for the Grandies" to go to the site.

If you enjoy these please tell a friend!

Thanksgiving in Progress

Artists at Work

Cranberry Bread

Famous Cranberry Sauce

Turkey in Progress

The temperature has dropped about 40 degrees since yesterday but we are warm and snug in Bryan and Michelle's new home cooking Turkey and listening to a message from the Lutheran Hour on gratitude. The girls have everything in hand with preparations finished last night and now doing everything at the proper moment. The ham is coming with J.C. and Teresa; David and Lily are bringing Cassava Cake; the pumpkin pie is finished. The men are waiting in excitement as the ladies are in control of the situation. Even the cat is excited!

What is happening in the Sticks?

Driving to Denton to visit Bryan and Michelle we took this picture of these mini burros about a mile from our house. We've been testing a 3G network for our home and I wanted to see what the signal strengths were like along the highway. So we are able to post this as we are moving. That's pretty good for the "sticks".

Let theThanks begin

This begins the week of Thanksgiving and we are determined not to let it slip by in the Christmas shopping frenzy. What better holiday do we have than Thanksgiving? Instituted by Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War, he called the nation to pause and give thanks and praise to God for His mercies, and ask for forgiveness for presumptuous (look that one up in the dictionary) sins. Click on Lincoln for the text. Click the side bar player for an original tune.

Barb says she is thankful for the deer we see almost daily, for the pansies on our deck, for the colors of Autumn that continue to surround us, for our children and grandchildren. Larry is thankful that all healing comes from Jesus (he has a very bad cold right now), for his faithful wife, for the amazing richness of friends we have in the East Texas area, and for his bike rides with Jesus. What are you thankful for?

In everything give thanks for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you