Standing On The Promises

I'm washing dishes in the bathtub and it is certainly not the most glorious calling. Right around the corner, a little boy is doing his business on the pot. I begin scrubbing crusted potatoes off a mammoth sized casserole pan as the little boy around the corner starts singing Somewhere Over the Rainbow. His three-year-old lisp and slightly off-key notes make me smile. I think I'll just sing along! Rejoice in simple pleasures; so often found in the mundane and unlovely circumstances of life! Emily Jo Promise! That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ.   In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,  Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory. Ephesians 1:12-14

This year my big little brother Myles and I got to go backpacking.    Blanche, a  dear friend of ours, does portions of the Oregon sector of the Pacific Crest Trail every year, and she graciously allowed us to tag along. Blanche's friend Brooke also was with us; she accompanies Blanche on these hikes. It was so amazing to hear both of their testimonies of the Lord's amazing and miraculous work in their lives.  And man, they have some seriously funny and incredible adventures together on their hikes!   Yes! We can do this thing!  L-R-Blanche, Brooke, me, Myles- Trail names: 73 (and still knuckling), not sure what Brooke's is, Chuckle, and Huckle! I'll let you figure out why Blanche's is "73". ;-) A brief snack break before hitting the trail again!  We used this pump filter to filter the gallons of water that we needed. None of us got sick so it was well worth the effort! Chuckle, taking a selfie! Myles ...

July is always a super fun month.  Of course, It kicks off with the fourth of July, which is the busiest day of the year at our coffee shop. Ericka, Daddy, Mama and I rushed around like chickens with our heads cut off! What a total blast.  All cousins! Our Uncle Eric and Aunt Meriwyn and their eight children visited family in Oregon for most of the month of July. It was such a pleasure to have them!  Leah and Ruth, so cute and fun!  I managed a meal at Camp Dwight this year. We served about 850 people a pancake and scrambled egg breakfast. Telling people what to do is just my thing so I was in my element! And it's always fun to boss Daddy around. ;-)  These guys prepared 850 fork and napkin rolls!  My "I got up at 4:45" look! These awesome people had the fun job of preparing the pancake mix.   With Drills! Blessings on whoever came up with that idea!  Mama dropped 'em... Daddy flip...

In June we wrapped up our season of transition/moving/relocating, and we moved into our house in Roseburg at last! We are all so thankful to know we will not have to uproot and move anytime soon.   We made a family trip to the coast and enjoyed the beautiful weather!   What a handsome couple!  Clancy caught this with his own two hands! (I believe he may have also used his shirt somehow to avoid getting pinched) Yes, I live with some very crazy people!  Daddy and Peter Adriana- "Can I get the mail, Mama?" Clancy and Myles have been working like crazy remodeling our house. Its looking good! (more to come on that subject) Ruth and Adriana love hunting frogs!   Love this goofy shot with our friends the Williams kids! June is also Mama's birthday month! I know that she would not appreciate it if I announced to the whole world how old she is, so I will refrain. (besides, I...