A Picnic!

Tim is gone for the weekend, so Holly, Carol and the kids and I headed to the big tree for a picnic! We had only been there when this guy decided to crash the party! So much for eating under the tree! We quickly scarfed the rest of our food standing up and then headed out on a hike!

Holly brought her new camera and took more pictures than me! I didn't think it was possible...but I am hoping she will teach me her skills soon!

This place is really amazing...it looks like it got covered by lava or something a long time ago! It's just a bunch of rippling rock that spreads out! The boys were mighty explorers and went off ahead to scope out the scene!

My Explorers and Heroes on top of the mountain!

Annie, not to be outdone, trying to join the boys! I love that she chose to wear a dress and big sandals for the excursion! Her hair flapped around her in a strangily mess! She is such a great girl! A perfect mix of adventure and climbing and cuteness!

Scaling the wall!

Ms. Carol with the adventurers...look at that landscape! I seriously wish I knew the story behind how it got to be this way!

Wild and tough!

Here you can throw sticks and rocks to your hearts content!

It's so fun to sit and watch them play!

They never seemed to tire!

Annie exhibiting her brute strength...

...long, skinny legs poking out under her dress and she cracks the stick in half!

The rock was sandstone...or something...and the boys were loving throwing it and watching it crumble...a display of their manliness!

Tough as always

they made many discoveries, including snail shells, many birds, a dead snake and lots of plants!

This thorny tree was really beautiful to me!

Holly spotted this tree and we all decided it was the burning bush!

Toby waiting for us to catch up!

Back at the tree for a few more games! Have I mentioned I LOVE this tree?? Thanks for a really fun afternoon Holly and Carol!

Becoming a Little Lady!

Yesterday was a big day for Lavine...she got her ears pierced! She is becoming a little lady...so she can show off her new gold earrings her aunt bought her. There is no Piercing Pagoda here, so you just go to your neighbor who has a needle, thread and alcohol!

Somebody holds her down and somebody else sticks the needle through her ear! OUCH! It takes a good 10 seconds to get the needle through! It's all a little gruesome!

Poor Lavine...I don't think she wanted to become a little lady! But our neighbor did a good job, all things considered.

Little grumpy lady with thread tied through her new earring holes. Zilan, her big sister, is a little sad because she doesn't even own a pair of gold earrings yet! Breaks my heart to see the comparison already beginning!

School on the road!

I love home schooling! Not only is it really fun, but it's flexible...well as flexible as this strongly-structured person can be! =) We had to go to the big city this week, so we took school along with us! Toby doing his math in the car! This kid is so impressive...he thinks in numbers!

We also learned about the dentist...we learned that it's a bit scary and dirty! not real sure that the instruments were clean or not! but supposedly none of us have cavities...although he said Tim has 3, 4 or 5! We are getting a second opinion! The good thing is that its apparently free to just get a check!

We learned about the eye doctor...

Toby is a pro at getting his eyes checked and looking straight into the machine! His vision is still the same! He got 2 new pairs of glasses and his eyes checked for less than $100.

Might as well celebrate with a little ice cream since they don't have cavities!!

A trip to the local cafe!

I posted a few pics of the cafe a month or so ago, but this time I got some better pictures in the daylight! Isn't this place amazing! Josh and Bevin are such stellar people! People are just naturally attracted to them and attracted to Jesus in them! I can't wait to see and hear all the changes this place brings about!

Doesn't this rival any Starbucks you know?

My kids, Bevin, and Hawar our language tutor!

Behind the counter...I may take a turn or two behind here!

Hawar and Bevin enjoying a drink together!

Hawar and I at a different table! We sat around and had a good talk about dreams and hopes for the future. I know its only the beginning of the talks these walls will echo with!

My Little Sicko!

A week or so ago, Jesse got really sick! Still not sure what he had! But he was sick for a week! He was in bed sick...which is RARE for my kids. He literally slept all day and when he wasn't asleep, he was moaning with fever, throwing up or having the Big D!

He had to be carried everywhere because he was so weak.

The only time he showed a glimmer of life is when Zilan would come home from school and play with him. He would watch Zilan play a game. He was too weak to even turn over the cards. But she would turn them over for him. He loves that girl and she was SO worried about him. She came over to check on him several times a day. She is such a treasure to us!

Don't you love the barf bucket??

But he is back to his sword-toting, boot-wearing, shirtless, ninja self! Although he did lose 5 pounds in the sickness...tipping the scales at about 30 pounds now!! I am pretty sure Toby was 30 pounds when he was 1!! We think he may have or had a parasite of some sort. Please pray for his complete healing!

The Joy of Packages!!

Yesterday we got a big box in the mail. Packages are SO exciting. This time we had to wait all day for Tim to bring it home to us. The suspense was built ALL day long. It was very exciting to open. Thanks to our awesome friends The Mathews and their friends from their home body...we received a box FULL of Fall goodies!

Their youngest daughter, Natalie, surprised us all and generously sacrificed and gave her beloved doll to Annie! This is Annie realizing it was Natalie's favorite doll.

They became instant best friends!

The boys digging through the loot!

Much to Toby's great delight was an Optimus Prime costume! He was so excited. I am not sure he has taken it off all day!

Jesse as Iron Man!

Inspecting the Fall Brownies...oooo looks tasty!

WHAT??? Lucky Charms?? YUM!!!

Annie also got a leotard...she is so excited to learn a few gymnastic stunts! She is sure this leotard will be the key to success! Thank you to our old friends and new friends in Tennessee for all the fun things! We loved all the special notes and treats and fall decorations. The costumes were a huge hit with the kids and all the school goodies! They will make our home school so much more colorful and FUN! Thank you so much for making us feel loved and special! We are treasuring every little thing...rationing out all the fall treats and we've already put up our decorations! We are honored by your generosity!

Rainbows and promises!

We got RAIN for the first time in 6 months. It was glorious. It dropped our temperature and completely changed the landscape. It was amazing. It was cloudy all day until sunset when suddenly the clouds lifted long enough to let the last rays streak across the mountains and create a GIANT rainbow. It was so stunning. Rainbows have always intrigued me, but this time was even better.

A few days ago Z had a dream about rainbows. When this rainbow came, it made a double rainbow and even it almost looked like the glimmer of a third sometimes. Of course my pictures cannot do it justice. But when she saw this rainbow she clapped her hand over her mouth and said, "This is just like my dream. now I believe that God really wants to speak to me." There is more to come...the story is being written.