Photo's from our trip to California

Here are some photo's from our recent trip to California.
We went to visit my Grandma. It was really wonderful to see her again.
We also went to the beach and Knots Berry Farm. It was a blast! :)

Me and my grandma

Us at the Berry Farm

Me and (ahem) my Mountain Dew. haha.

Dad and Boaz

It could appear that the girls in our family are happier than the boys. :D

My Aunt Joise and me (As you might be able to tell by our noses, we got into a cake fight - she started it. haha)

My little doll

I think this is a ground hog. Isn't it cute?! :)


Dad and Mom

One of my senior pictures. :)

(thanks Rae for all the help with editing! <3)

My Life As It Is Right Now...

BUSY. Yes, folks, that is (once again) the reason for not posting pretty much ever.
I'm trying to finish high school right now, and it's crazy. Me and geometry are *not* getting along very good right now. I'm slightly behind - but being a half-brained nut case that should be expected. :P :D

I took the college entrance test 2 weeks ago and passed, which means that I'll be taking CNA classes this summer, and hopefully going to college to get my RN in the fall.

Also, I'll probably start working a part time job in the next week or so. The Catholic Nursing home where I've been volunteering offered me a job. I just filled out my application today, and I can't wait to start. I've had so many opportunities to share the Gospel since I've been there. I keep praying that God will use me as a tool.

OH! Another *very* cool thing is that Dad said we'll be able to visit John Piper's church in MN sometime in the next couple weeks. Yay. I've wanted to visit there for over a year. Needless to say I'll be bring my camera, and this won't be the last you'll hear of this. :D
Most of you heard I didn't have my camera for three weeks, and now I have it back! Whoohoo!
My camera and I have a very special relationship, and needless to say I missed it very much!

Spring appears to be here - FINALLY! I took a lovely walk this evening. It was perfect. A beautiful sunset. One of my sweet-hearts was with me... It just made me think that God must have made those fabulous sunsets just so people like me could enjoy it. :)

Have any of you heard about my Sweetie? Well, here's the latest picture of the 2 of us! <3

Deeper Conference (part one)

Most of you know that I just got home from a trip to GA.  Many of my friends have asked me to share about our trip.  I will now attempt to do so.

I want to start out by telling everyone who wasn't at this conference that they really missed out. :D  (I love making people feel good.)

We had been planning on this trip for months - it was actually a miracle that I convinced Dad to go, but that's a whole other story. :D  So, I'll just share the story of out trip instead.

Wednesday the 15th was a busy day - we were leaving at 5 o'clock in the afternoon.  We did all our shopping and last minuet stuff and then jumped in the van to go pick up my friend Anna who came along with us. (lucky girl)

It was a straight 17 hour drive, which is a very exciting drive when you have 12 people in one van - especially when six of them are under 12. :P  Another problem with that many people is that it's nearly impossible to sleep.  A screaming one-year-old, and a bunch of tired kids doesn't make for a very restful experience.  But I'm used to that.

Dad drove the first nine hours; until like 2:00 am.  By then he was completely beat.  So, naturally, I was the available driver.  Which was great - but also somewhat of a new experience.  You see, I've never driven on anything bigger than a two lane freeway, and as soon as I got onto the interstate it was a six lane highway, and then it was pouring rain, there was construction, and it was 2 am.  I think the worst part was the 2 am thing.  I mean, I was tired.  Anyway, I guess I could go on about that all day, but I won't.  I drove six hours, till we were about 45 min from Atlanta and then Dad took over again. (thank the Lord for that, I was ready to crash. :P)  I was bummed out that I was driving when we went through the beautiful mountains of TN, I would have loved to take some pictures.  It was like 6 am, and the sky was pink.  It was amazing.

We got to the hotel and I was extremely tired.  But I had a dilemma.  I was sharing a room with John-Luke, Michael, and Esther.  None of which we in the mood for sleeping.  So I wasn't able to sleep either - that is till Dad got a message from God, I mean, he decided to take the kids out so I could sleep. :D

Finally.  I slept for about 3 hours, then got up and ate something. (yes, I actually felt like eating.) We had devotions and once again headed for bed.  I couldn't wait for the next day.  I was nearly bouncing up and down.  I was excited. :D  Ever had the "I'm so excited I can't even sleep" feeling?  Well, I nearly had that; but I was so tired I slept anyway. :)

I'll leave you all hanging there till next time.  I promise, next time I'll really talk about the Deeper conference.  Did I tell you it was great? :D  Yes, I will tell you more than that - next time.

Apple Picking! :)

APPLE PICKER'S REEL
(Larry Hanks)

Hey, ho, makes you feel so fine
Looking out across the orchard in the bright sunshine.

Hey, ho, you feel so free
Standing in the top of an apple tree.

Up in the morning before the sun
I don't get home until the day is done;

My pick-sack's heavy and my shoulder's sore
But I'll be back tomorrow to pick some more.

Start at the bottom and you pick 'em from the ground
And you pick the tree clean all the way around;

Then you set up your ladder and you climb up high
And you're looking through the leaves at the clear blue sky.

Three-legged ladder, wobbly as ever
Reaching for an apple---whoa!---I almost fell.

Got a twenty-pound sack hanging 'round my neck
And there's three more apples that I can't quite get.

Hey, ho, makes you feel so down
Picking up windfalls, crawling on the ground.

Hey, ho, you feel so free
Standing in the top of an apple tree.

Hey, ho, you lose your mind
If you sing this song about a hundred times;

Hey, ho, you feel so free
Standing in the top of an apple tree.

Extremely Cute Kids! :)

Okay, I just had to post some pictures of these adorable little kids.

We had them over last Sunday and they just became my best friends...  I loved it! :)

Jayda (sorry, I honestly have no idea how to spell her name :P), Leah, and Sara

stop taking pictures of me - I have a stick :D j/k

aw, she was totally my little buddy

(okay, I had to get a picture with them, although I know it really wasn't  fair to throw me in with all these cuties! :D lol)

This little guy was SO funny!  He always looked so smart. :D

Honoring Parents...

This is a post written by my dear friend Laura Bulter.  It really blessed and challenged me, and my hope is that it will do the same for you!

Dear Reader,
I want to share with you something God has been teaching me over the past few months. Something I hope you will grasp sooner than I did. If you can grasp this principle while you are young, and learn to live by it, you will not only save yourself and those around you from much trouble; you will gain length of life, and many blessings. The principle is this: honor your parents.

Honoring your parents means a lot of different things in a lot of different situations. It means obeying them in the Lord. (Our parents are sinners, too, and to blindly follow an order when it is out of line with God is wrong.)Honoring your parents means trusting God to lead you through them. It means respecting them even though you think their ideas are old-fashioned and, well, crazy. It means doing what they ask you to do, - or not doing what they ask you not to do - with joy.

As hard as this is, it is completely worth it. Not only does God bless you when you obey him, but he has promised to bless you especially when you honor your parents! Ephesians 6:1-3 says, "Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right. Honour thy father and mother; which is the first commandment with promise; That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth." When you honestly seek to do what's right, even though it's hard, it will really draw you closer to God.

One of the blessings that comes from honoring your parents is peace. If you are trusting God to lead you through your parents, you have a lot less to worry about when it comes to what job you're going to get, what college you're going to, or whether or not you should date that really awesome guy/girl. I'm not saying that you don't have to make these decisions as well, but when you're submitting to your parents, you have their guidance, and God's blessings.

As you learn to honor and obey your parents you are cultivating a submissive spirit, and this is a major blessing! All throughout life we have to submit to those over us. The sooner we learn this, the better it is for us and those over us. If we're not struggling to submit we are free to put 100% of our efforts into the job they've appointed to us.

One final note - If you've given your life to Christ, honoring your parents is not something you can get around. Your Lord commands you to honor and obey them. If you want His blessings and guidance for your life you have to obey the rules he has clearly laid out for you. Ultimately,if you learn to abide by this principle, you'll find that God knew exactly what he was talking about when he put it in the ten commandments. Even when it seems tough and crazy to listen to your parents, and even if it seems like it doesn't affect your life, it does. God notices everything, and will bless your obedience to him.

My Blue-Eyed-Sweetheart!

I just had to post some pictures of Ben.  He really is a very cute little guy, and is getting more so every day! ;)  I know - I'm biased.  But you have to admit, he is cute!

I'm Posting! :D ;)

First I want to apologize to everyone for how terribly long it's been since the last time I posted.  Not to give an excuse, but I have been very busy! :D
As you all know, my sister Rachel left for China last May.  
There is always a lot of work to do in the summer, and since I only have one other sister who's 10, I don't have much help with cooking, cleaning, gardening, and the like.  Things like blogging, reading, and quilting have kind of taken a back seat in my life.
I will try to do better in the future! :D

We had a very wonderful 4th.  The kids all had a blast watching the fireworks, and dad bought them a trampoline, needless to say, kids love bouncing up and down. (yes, even in the house, it's nice to have some of that out side now! ;))

Here are some pictures of the fireworks and all! :D














I love this picture!  It's great the way they're all looking up! :D


                                     John-Luke

                me and Michael

                                          Gabe

Last Sunday we had a baptism service, (which are my very favorite) my brother Chris and three others got baptized.  It was really wonderful.  The whole picture of the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ is beautifully seen!



                   Mr. Mattews, Chris, and Dad



   Me. Ditmar, Mr. Mattews, Mrs. Ditmar, and Dad

                   Mr. Mattews, Kendal, and Dad

                          Mr. Mattews, Laren, and Dad

      They're all wet! :D LOL!


Anna and my little guy named Ben! :)