AKGoodale

Biblical Community

2010-06-12T08:47:00.001-07:00

I apologize in advance if this entry turns into a rambling mess. I am thinking at the keyboard, so my thoughts my be very jumbled.
We have been studying and talking and reading and praying so much about Biblical community lately. There is a wealth of fascinating information out there. Churches that are "doing life together" and "living out their faith" and have myriads of books, articles, conferences, blogs, etc. about how they have done it. Some with the apparent attitude that if we want to do it right, we should do it like they do. Reminds me very much of an English teacher I had my junior year of high school. His philosophy was a "free thinking" exchange of ideas. I call it a pooling of ignorance. His class very unstructured and we were encouraged to make up our own minds, at least that was what he said. Come testing time, we were asked to write a paper about a subject he had been "discussing" for several weeks. I flunked it! Why? Because I wrote my paper on what I thought, and what the teacher wanted was for me to parrot back what he had been "discussing". So much for "free thinking" Anyway, the idea that to live in organic community with the people God has placed on our local church by the model God has given some other community of believers, seems incongruous. Organic, means a more natural, local and natural organism. The cells that make up me, although the same kind of cells that make up everybody else, have been uniquely arranged by God Himself to form Katie. If I try to rearrange the cells of my body to be someone else, I pervert the thing that God intended Katie to be. Likewise, the Body of Prince of Peace Assembly is unique to Prince of Peace Assembly. If I try to rearrange (program, position, or push) the members (cells), not referring to legal members, but to regular attenders, into the form of another Body, am I not perverting what God intended Prince of Peace to be? Yet still, we do carry the spiritual DNA, so to speak, of our "parents" or those who have gone before us, individually and collectively. I love the biblical analogy of the church as the body because I can relate much more easily to how one member must work in union with all the other members to function properly. But also because the body is a stunning example of uniqueness without losing any of the commonality.
For our local church to live in community with one another we must live daily by the Spirit of God. We must rely for every cell of our body to be energized, placed, and empowered by the Holy Spirit. This is not just some religious platitude that makes us sound like we know what we are talking about, or a way to Christianize a business model, but a real life, real deal, daily dependence for every breath we take, individually and corporately.
I personally must ask the Lord every day for the strength, wisdom and courage to care about the people in our church, and to care not only with my will and thoughts, but with my actions!
It is so easy for me to just tuck away inside the house and take care of my own business (with scriptural support to do so) and never take the effort to call or get in the car and go to someone's house. I have lately started thinking that not doing so is really a form of laziness. Sloth is one of the seven deadly sins, and I can see how sloth applied to our relationships is a deadly sin for the body. Repent, and ask the Father to empower with His Spirit to do and to be all He requires. The body obeying the head in everything.

Make new friends, but keep the old...

2010-02-15T23:41:00.000-08:00

Remember that old Girl Scout song "Make new friends, but keep the old, one is silver and the other gold."? I have had an awesome time at "making friends" the last couple months. I have met one of those people with whom I just "click". It is very interesting, that we both come from very different backgrounds, on opposite sides of the country, with different cultures, but we seem to understand each other at a level much deeper than you would imagine. I am so grateful for this new friend and hope that I can be as big a blessing to her as she has been to me.

Mountains and valleys

2010-02-04T08:49:00.000-08:00

I look out my window and see the stunning landscape of mountains, snow-capped and steep-sloped. Although breathtakingly beautiful to look at, they are trecherous to climb. I sometimes compare my life to these examples of the Creator's handiwork and realize my "ups and downs" are just as trecherous to navigate, and not nearly as beautiful. My most recent example was last week. Wednesday was an "Alexander and the terrible, horrible, no good, rotten day" just like the children's book. Not anything in particular going on, or maybe that was it, there was NOTHING in particular going on. I was wishing I could, like Moses of old, rise up in righteous indignation and shout "You stubborn and stiff-necked people, when will you see the Father for all His is". Realizing of course, that my neck is often one of the stiffest. Anyway, it was just one of those crawl-in-bed-and-hide-under-the-covers, kind of days. Discouragement seemed to sit right on my shoulder and whisper it's ugly little lies right in my ear. We made it through the day, limping and dragging ourselves to bed. Thursday, still feeling groggy from the battle of the day before, with whispers that were not as loud nor as frequent, became Thursday evening and our Beading, blabbing and Button blankets class. My friend Brenda had sent out a text message to her contact list before class started and we had 12 people show up! Several ladies that had never been before. Oh what an encouragement that was! I have so longed to see the ladies of our community gathered around the tables in the church building chatting and laughing and enjoying one another. My Father knew just what I needed to scale that mountain of discouragement. He is so good to me. Then, already feeling such encouragement, on Monday, at a wake of all places, Larry got the news of a gentleman, who has been coming to the church for a couple of months now, accepting the Lord at church a couple of weeks ago, and no one had told us! We have prayed so long and hard about a harvest here and finally we see the fruit of God's work here. This man asked the Lord to come into his life during our "prayer circle time" at church, and prayed out loud for himself. Talk about mountain top elation!

As I review the last week in my mind and heart, I pray that my "ups and downs" would be less pronounced. That my mountains would be leveled and my valleys raised up to make straight the way of the Lord. The dramatic dips and ascents are beautiful to look at in landscapes, but do not speak of the beauty of the Lord in a life lived for Him.

Winter Blahs

2010-01-28T01:14:00.000-08:00

Winter weather that is too cold to be out for long, but not cold enough for snow, is just a drag. I think we are all feeling a little cabin feverish around here. It has been very rainy and damp, but not quite cold enough for snow. Noah and I are waiting for a nice clear evening so we can go out star gazing. We found a cool website that just requires your zipcode and they give you a pretty clear picture of what you should be seeing in the nighttime sky. So, roll on clouds and give us a glimpse.

Our homeschool group had it's first Laboratory Science class last Saturday. Pam Fredericksen taught it. Science is a passion of hers, and she is such an excellent teacher! They completed three whole lessons at one time. It was so good to hear her talk about how God had created what they were talking about, which was an eyeball, in a perfect way. They dissected it while us moms sat in the other room. Thankfully, the preserving method did not use formaldehyde, which makes me gag, so I was able to sneak in and take a few pictures. Parents of public schooled children miss out on so much of this kind of thing. I am so thankful we have the opportunity to school our kids at home.

The homeschool group will also be doing a literature class that I will be teaching. I ordered the books this week, so hopefully we will get that started soon as well. We will be reading The Bronze Bow, a historical novel set in the time of Christ. I haven't decided how we will record what we have discussed yet. Our last foray into literature, A Wrinkle in Time, we made lapbooks. The kids seemed to enjoy that, so maybe another one. I'll keep praying on it.

I realized I didn't post our Rule #2 last week. It was "We love, honor and pray for one another" and we memorized Romans 12:10 "Love each other with genuine affection and take delight in honoring each other."

I think we probably could use another week of working on this one.

Laugh and the world laughs with you...

2010-01-21T02:30:00.000-08:00

Sometimes my kids are so funny! A few days ago, we were watching a Ken Davis DVD. Ken was telling a story about a car accident he and his wife had gotten into, as he explained "we hit a cow doing 70 mile per hour" TJ, who is the most serious kid I know, very deadpan says "wow, fast cow". I about split a seam laughing so hard.
Our family is one that likes to laugh alot. We laugh mostly at ourselves. Laughter does good, like a medicine, Solomon wrote in the book of proverbs. We should be some of the healthiest people around, because we sure like to laugh. What a wonderful way Creator God distinguishes us from the animals. Animals do not laugh, they do not detect irony, nor do they enjoy a good pun (I know because I've tried a few on our pet rabbit, she doesn't crack a smile). Animals are concerned with only one thing...survival. Man on the other hand has been created for something much higher. To bring glory to God and to ENJOY His presence forever. What higher calling can there possibly be?

2010-01-14T00:03:00.000-08:00

I had the awesome opportunity to practice the spiritual discipline of fasting today. I fasted and prayed for a friend who is going through a "dark night of the soul". Fasting has been one of the hardest disciplines for me to partake in on a regular basis. I am humbled at how the Lord meets me when I take the time to deny myself and focus on spending time with him.

My children get a kick out of "catching" me praying, as I usually go into the laundry room (the one place no one will follow me) and shut the door to pray. I can hear them tip-toe to the door to see if they can hear me or not. What a joy to know they will have a legacy of prayer. I have heard so many stories of men and women who can look back on their younger years and find peace in memories of mom and dad praying. I hope my children can look back and find joy in knowing we were lifting them up to the Throne of Grace.

We are finishing up Ancient Greece in our studies and moving on to Rome. I am so thankful for finding Sonlight. It really does everything I have tried to do over our homeschooling career. It gives me a solid spine of chronological (mostly) history that I can add and subtract from. Some of the readers have been more interesting than others, and some we have abandoned altogether, but overall, the literature choices have been wonderful. I wish I had known about it earlier in our homeschool experience, but Father God knew I would appreciate it more after trying it on my own, I guess.

We are also working the Apologia Science General Science book. The first unit has been quite a challenge, covering scientists and dates. We will have a unit test on Friday so we'll see how it goes. I know the kids are looking forward to something other than names and dates.

Today we began a family learning on The 21 Rules of This House. We are looking up Bible verses to back each rule and trying to memorize them. We hope to accomplish one a week. This weeks rule: We will obey God John 15:10 "If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love," what a wonderful promise!

Fresh Start

2010-01-05T18:33:00.000-08:00

Well, we made in through the holidays. December was a tough month for us. We battled the respiratory flu bug, twice. The snuffly, sneezy, fever-so-you-can rest medicine helped us sleep it off the first time. The second time, we megadosed ourselves on vitamin C and tried to keep away from other people.
I am so thankful to the Lord for the work He is doing in us. We both really have sensed a different feeling since returning from vacation back in August. Prior to vacation, we knew we planned to stay here for a good long time, but we didn't think anyone else believed it. After returning, the atmosphere in church and in the community seems to be much more accepting of us. Or maybe, it's just our perception of how others see us. I don't know if we will ever be able to figure that one out. I'm just glad to feel more a part of the community here. I really feel like "home".
We have switched our Sunday evening service to the afternoon. After AM service, we have a lunch together then, what I am calling, "Second Wave". We are using DVD curriculum for bible study. We just got finished with God is Closer Than You Think by John Ortberg. Very good series! Next week we will start Sacred Marriage by Gary Thomas. I hope even the single people from the church will stay for this important series. More and more I realize how much marriage is a reflection of Yeshua's great love for His Bride, the church. So many young people don't see any value in marriage at all. The fault for that should be placed at the feet of those of us who haven't reflected the goodness and blessing found in marriage. We have done such a poor job of showing how good it is to be married that is seems a whole generation is ready to dismiss an entire institution, not to mention a commandment of God. Lord forgive us! Give us the kind of marriages that reflect You!

The Sweet By and By written by Sara Evans with Rachel Hauk

2010-01-05T17:35:00.000-08:00

I am usually not drawn to books, especially novels, written by people who have gained their fame in other arenas. Sara Evans, a multi-platinum winning recording artist, may have changed my mind. Characters that are rich, real, and not involved in the music industry bring this story of a young woman with a bright future, but a dirty past, to life.
Jade is a young woman who seemingly has it all. A job she loves, her own business, a handsome, successful fiance. But just under the surface secrets from her past are keeping her at arms length from the One who can truly make her life complete.
I appreciated the role the pastor of the church the young couple plans to be married in conducts the pre-wedding meeting, not allowing the couple to gloss over some very important questions about their faith and the future.
I really wanted to dislike the character of Max's (the groom) mother. But even she had depth beyond the standard nosy-mother-in-law. As the truth is revealed, bit by bit, I could relate to her wanting to protect and defend her son.
This was a great first novel and should appeal to many of us who grew up on the fringes of the boomer generation.

4th of July`

2009-07-15T18:36:00.000-07:00

The 4th of July celebrations are a big community event here in Klawock. We have really enjoyed them and hope to make them our "family" holiday. We are thinking that even when the kids grow up and move out, hopefully they will come back home for the 4th of July. I would love to have Christmas be that, but with winter time travel what it is here, I think it is more realistic to plan for the summer time.
This year, we spent the 3rd of July with the baptist church in Craig watching the Craig fireworks at one of their members homes. We had a very nice time, and the weather was perfect for fireworks.
July 4th, the church had a truck in the parade. Madison Nickerson was the 4th of July queen this year, so we had the queen on our truck! Fun and games all afternoon at the school yard! We got home late afternoon and everybody was so tired and sunburned that we all crashed and missed the Klawock fireworks.
We have had such beautiful weather here this summer. Even lifetime residents are commenting on how much sun we have had.
(I will add some pictures to this post later)

Book Review

2009-06-01T23:43:00.001-07:00

This is my first review as a Book Review Blogger for Thomas Nelson Publishers. I was pleased to review the Word of Promise Next Generation New Testament on MP3. The all-star cast of this project is what originally drew me. Stars like Corbin Bleu, Emily Osment, Sean Astin and other favorites of my tweenagers read the International Children's Bible with full dramatization.
The dramatization, as well as, the enhanced sound effects really help bring the New Testament to life. Having listened to the dramatized version of the NIV with a more mature cast, I must say that for my personal enjoyment, I prefer the older cast. My tweens however, love to hear the voices they know and love from TV and movies.
The 23 hours of listening is a bit daunting for a one time sit through, but in short bursts is quite enjoyable. The enclosed 40 day listening program breaks it up into nice size portions. I don't think audio bibles will soon replace the paper and ink bible I turn to so frequently, but the next generation seems to be much more "audio" motivated. My tweens have been anxiously waiting my completion of this review, so they can have the MP3 cds for themselves.
The bonus "Behind the Scenes" DVD was a hit with this mom. Seeing the stars from HSM, Hannah Montana and Lord of the Rings boldly proclaim their faith in Jesus Christ was a real encouragement to our kids. Over 100 actors were involved in this project and their faith and love for Jesus shows in the work they have done.

Memorial Day Picnic

2009-05-30T23:36:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday we had our church service at the little league park in Craig and had a picnic afterwards. We had a great time! It rained and was a little chilly, but everyone seemed to really enjoy themselves. I'm sure Larry had a good message, but I must admit, watching the eagles fly overhead and all the boats on the water distracted me through most of it. We live in a truly amazing place. We had a good turnout and everytime we plan something, and people show up for it, I feel encouraged. The kids and "old guys" had a game of softball. The "old guys" won! I think the kids were really surprised. They didn't think the adults had it in them. Age and experience beat out youth and speed, I guess.

Mary and I have been having a good time crafting together. She helped me get some of the housework done today while the boys were at ball games, then she and I worked on various craft projects that we have been meaning to get to. The store has all their embroidery patterns on sale, so I think I'll pick a few different ones for some "hope chest" projects for Mary to work on. She is very interested in the idea of aprons right now, we found a cute site on line that sells all kinds of aprons. Maybe we'll make up a few, some for now, some for her hope chest. She is growing into a beautiful young lady, and I love to see her interest in the homemaker skills.

TJ and Noah are smack dab in the middle of the baseball season. Noah has gotten hits in the last two games. He walks in the door after the game with a real cheshire cat grin and says, very non-chalantly, "got another hit today" , but I can see the pride in his eyes. He loves baseball, and I love to see him involved in something he enjoys so much. TJ's level has only two teams, so the competition has been pretty fierce. So far, the games have had alternating winners, which I am really glad about. It would have made for a very dull season if one team had been blowing out the other one at every game.

We are finally getting the plans finalized for our trip back home this summer. Someone graciously gave us some companion tickets they had. The only problem with them is, they don't fly into Mich. So, we are working on how to get from Chicago to MI. I can't wait to see everyone.

Mother's Day

2009-05-26T21:10:00.001-07:00

Ok, I'm a little tardy in posting about Mother's Day, but c'mon I'm a busy mom....

Mother's Day has never been my favorite holiday. I think I picked up my disdain for the day from my mother. My dislike grew every year with the reading of Proverbs 31, as I never seem to "measure up". Then, my mom passed on, so it seemed my loss was highlighted. Whatever the reason, I have never liked the day.

This year was definately an exception, and I hope a new pattern. I think finally admitting that I didn't like the day, released me to just enjoy the day, without all the expectations I previously had.

We had a wonderful breakfast at church (the men did all the cooking and cleaning up after), I had the opportunity to speak during service (I really miss teaching on a regular basis), and then just a relaxed afternoon and evening with my family. The men did a great job with breakfast and we had alot of fun with the idea of them doing ALL the work. They had even put tablecloths and decorations on the tables. Very impressive.

I pray beginning some of these "new" traditions will help solidify the family feeling in our church.

I have noticed that people are sticking around later and later, chatting after service, which really warms our hearts. God has good plans for us and we anticipate His harvest.

Spring Fever

2009-03-17T00:38:00.000-07:00

We have been teasing the idea of Spring for a few weeks now, or should I say Spring has been teasing us. We had three weeks of glorious sunshine, the temps were still in the 30's, but the sun shone bright and clear. The end of last week and the weekend proved to be a confusion of snow, hail, rain, freezing rain, and a few bursts of sunshine. March truly "comes in like a lion" and I am hoping it "goes out like a lamb".

Noah, when asked what he wanted for his birthday, chose a trip off the rock with his dad. So, he and Larry took the ferry to Ketchikan for an overnight adventure. Not much to do in K town this time of year, but he did get to eat at McDonald's! For the first time in two years! They went Wal*Marting and just hung out.

We have been passing the sore throat, stuffy nose, fever crud from one of us to the other and I'm ready for it to be done! Poor Mary missed a whole week of her short volleyball season. She goes back to practice tomorrow and hopefully will get to play in the games this week.
TJ is shooting up like a weed! He daily challenges me to see who is taller! So far, I'm still in the lead, but I don't know how much longer that will last. He is sprouting quite a 'stache and shows me his lip whever he can.

We have had some new faces at church for the last few weeks, and that is encouraging. Larry has been preaching through the book of Ezra. The Lord is really teaching us some valuable things about the priorities of His house. I have also begun a study on the concept of exchange. Trading one thing for another. My primary scripture comes from Romans 1:23, 25 as Paul describes the trading of an immortal God for worthless images carved in the image of mortal man. The Lord has been speaking to me about the things, worthless things, in my life for which I have traded things of infinately more value. So, I will continue on the study and let the light of the Word illuminate the dark corners of my soul and with light, bring life.

2009-02-18T01:26:00.001-08:00

Wow! It has been a while since I posted..shame on me. We have been so busy getting the two older ones going on their new curriculum. They are loving it! TJ has really taken the initiative in his own education with this new software. He wants to finish the grade he is on and advance to the next grade as soon as possible. So far, they are maintaining all top grades and seem to be enjoying the work. They were working on base 10/base 5 math today. YIKES! It has been the first thing that I had to do some serious review on before I could try to explain it to them. I'm not sure we've got it yet. I'll have to google it and see if someone out there has a better explanation than I do.
The weather has been great. Cold, but clear. The drop in temperatures makes the snow on the ground (not very much left) really glisten. The sunshine is encouraging the kids to get outside some and they have been taking walks almost every day. We are expecting rain again by the end of the week, but we'll take all the sunshine we can get for now.
We had to buy a new dryer today. The old one just died. We had the repair guy in and the motor was just fried. Thankfully, the Lord has blessed the church financially so there was money to get what we needed. We are so blessed!
We begin leadership meetings with the board members and their wives tomorrow night. I really believe the Lord is wanting to raise these couples up and use them for His glory. We are entering this season with great anticipation.

2009-01-17T23:25:00.000-08:00

We have had such beautiful weather here this week. A couple of days of rain, but then lots of sunshine. The sun barely clears the tree tops across the street, it just skims along them all day until it reaches the other side. When sitting in the living room, we have to shut the blinds for part of the afternoon because it is so blindingly bright.

Friday, the kids and I went to Craig for our homeschool group. We stayed all afternoon and Larry joined us at the pizza place when he got off work. Then we had a CAP meeting in the evening and Mary and Noah walked down to the gym to roller skate. It was a beautiful day outside, so on the way I stopped and got some pictures of the kids outside showing their Michigan pride.

2009-01-09T13:50:00.000-08:00

The older two kids are now back to homeschooling. I am really enjoying having them around. We have joined the correspondence school and will take a couple of classes through them and our core subjects with the same curriculum Noah is using. The nice thing is the correspondence school provides computers and a technology class. I'm excited about them being computer literate! We have also started an intense family altar time, using John Piper's Blazing Center curriculum. We have 5 days of discussion and then on Day 6 there is a DVD to watch. We are also using the Christmas cards we received as our prayer list. We pick one card that we received each day and pray, as a family, for that family. I am really looking forward to what God will do in and through the Goodale family this year.

Traditions

2008-12-20T17:45:00.000-08:00

It seems like Christmas is the holiday in our family that has the most traditions attached to it. Some of our traditions come from things we did when I was a kid and some things we have added since we have had our own kids. One of the traditions that we started when the kids were little is this Christmas countdown calendar that my mom made for them. All the fabric stars button around the outside border of the wall hanging and each day the kids button one onto the tree. I thought for sure as they got older this would lose some of it's thrill, but even this year, they wake up in the morning and one of their first questions is "who's turn to add the star to the tree?"

Last night we started something that we hope will become a tradition. We had a family PJ party. Larry rented a few Christmas movies and bought some snacks and we all slept in the living room and watched movies. We had a great time. The kids all thanked us for doing it this morning. Being so far from family and giving up so many of our traditions made it important to start some new ones.

Lasagna on Christmas Eve is another favorite of the holidays. My mom always made lasagna for Christmas Eve and I use her same recipe. My sister and brother do the same.

We always read the story of the Nativity from Luke chpt 2 on Christmas eve before we go to bed. Larry and I began collecting Nativity sets several years ago and try to add to our collection every year. These are some of the ways we try to keep the true meaning of the holiday at the forefront.

Christmas Cheer

2008-12-13T22:44:00.000-08:00

Last night we went to dinner at the Darr's house. They are the pastor's of the Bible church here on the island. We had a great time. Larry and Brad are so much alike! We laughed alot and had some good "down" time with them. It is nice to be making friends with others in the same position we are. We are able to "let down" in a way we can't with others. Very nice people, and they have a son who is the same age as Noah. He was so excited to meet another PK that is his age. He has had a hard time making friends as we have no boys his age in the church and we haven't met any homeschoolers that age either.
Today the kids restacked all the wood (we finally had a good day for it, sunshine all day) then came in the house and crashed. They worked really hard and did a good job.
Mary and I went to a gingerbread making party for the Girl Scouts in the afternoon. It was good and sticky. Tomorrow is our church Christmas party. We have a potluck and a White Elephant gift exchange. We decorate the gifts in unusual ways and then play a game with them before we open them. TJ wrapped his totally in duct tape, even the bow. Mary made hers look like a cat, and Noah wrapped his in toilet paper. I had to nix the idea of using brown markers to decorate it...sheesh. We did this last year and hope to turn it into a tradition at the church.
Although we really miss our family and friends at this time of the year, we are trying to have traditions that the kids will remember for this time and place in our lives.

Harlem Ambassador Basketball Game

2008-12-04T10:33:00.000-08:00

Last night TJ and the CAP squad presented the colors (flag) at the Harlem Ambassadors game at Craig HS. I was so proud of them! They snapped to attention and marched in perfect formation. They have worked long and hard to get it right. I never would have guessed that learning to march together would take so much practice. It looks easy, but it has taken some serious practice. TJ carried the Alaskan state flag and he had to dip it during the National Anthem. He said his arms were really sore afterwards. This mom had a hard time keeping the tears of pride in check. The game was fun; Harlem Ambassadors against the Craig Alumni Dream Team. Of course, the Ambassadors beat them. Mary was chosen to sit on the Ambassadors bench in their cheering section, so she had a courtside seat. Lots of music, and lots of joking around. I am really grateful to the Lawton family who bought the tickets for us as a Christmas present.

Church work day

2008-11-28T21:58:00.000-08:00

We had a work day at the church today. I love getting projects completed. The old youth room had graffiti artwork on the walls that the former youth group had painted on it. We had one wall that a couple of the ladies from the church had painted a beautiful ocean mural on. We painted over the graffiti with a nice blue and it looks great. I hope to get the rest of the room put back together tomorrow while I'm there putting up the Christmas decorations. We plan to make that room a multi-purpose room. We have an air hockey table and a ping-pong table for in there, and there is a good video-sound system for showing movies.

Larry and the kids went out to a muskeg and cut down two trees today, one for the house and one for the church. Tomorrow we will decorate the church tree and the home tree if we have time. I usually like to put the decorations up the first weekend in December, but many of our church families will be out of town this holiday season, so we will get them up early.

Stikine Invitational

2008-11-22T23:09:00.000-08:00

TJ and Mary left Wednesday to go to Petersburg for the Stikine Invitational Basketball tournament. They left from Coffman Cove and took the jet ferry. Mary called yesterday and said the ride was really rough; she almost got sick. They will be taking the state ferry home and come through Ketchikan.

Rumor has it that the boys team won the tournament! Way to go Chieftains! I don't think the girls did as well, but I'm sure they played their hearts out.

It has been fun to watch them play this year. I didn't get to see any of the games last year becuase of my broken leg, so I have doubly enjoyed this year. TJ has imporved a great deal. He really enjoys the sport too. Mary likes playing, but her favorite is volleyball.

Noah and I have had a nice weekend together. We have rented some of the newer releases (Wall*e, Star Wars Clone Wars, and Kung Fu Panda) and enjoyed them all. We also baked some holiday cookies together (well, started together, I finished alone...). So, all in all we have had a very nice weekend. I am looking forward to us all being back together though, something just feels "off" when we are not all here.

Being Healthy

2008-10-31T21:53:00.000-07:00

Well, yesterday the Dr confirmed that I do have diabetes. My sugar levels are only slightly elevated right now, and we feel with a few lifestyle changes (not a big surprise) that I can get the numbers down and be able to stop taking the meds for it. I was a little disappointed at first, but I know there is no one to blame but myself. I praise the Lord we found out early enough that I can make the changes needed and hold off any worse prognosis. I get frustrated with myself that I have known this was a possibility and waited until now to get serious about doing anything about it. Weight loss and excercise are not only good for me, but the kind of lifestyle I want to model for the kids and hubby.

The smells of winter

2008-10-29T21:39:00.000-07:00

I love the woodstove in the winter. The smell of woodsmoke and the crackling of the fire are hearwarming as well as room warming. The cool crisp air is free from the fouler smells of decaying fish we have earlier in the fall and I think I can almost smell the snow in the air. The mountains are half covered in snow now. It seems everyday that white line creeps further down the slopes. Even the lower elevations are white frosted now and I know soon it will reach sea level. The snow falls straight down and is heavy and wet. In the dead of winter it will last for a couple of weeks, but these first few flakes will be washed away with the rain. I love to watch it pile up on the porch railings to see how high it will get before it blows over or the kids (who are destined to knock it off) get to it. We put studded tires on the car this year. That is the first time we have ever done that. All those Michigan winters we lived through without studs...but, everyone here says its the safest way to drive the winter roads. We will have to change them out again in April, but I guess that will be a sure sign spring in on the way.

Homeschooling

2008-10-21T17:00:00.000-07:00

This year to homeschool the youngest, we have chosen to use Switched On Schoolhouse. He seems to be enjoying it. As long as we get started right away in the morning, he works right along and gets his assignments done. If we delay getting started, I have to sit with him more and encourage him to complete all the assingments. I am amazed at how simple it is for the teacher. After spending years figuring out my own curriculum, I am now asking myself "Why didn't I do this sooner?" We are covering 5 subjects and still have time to add in extra things like typing practice and library reading. The subjects aren't covered as thoroughly as if I were doing a unit study on them, but thoroughly enough. Meanwhile, his typing has greatly improved and he is learning to take some of the responsibility for his own education.

www.aop.com

Civil Air Patrol

2008-10-20T18:01:00.000-07:00

TJ has been in Anchorage for the weekend with Civil Air Patrol. I am very impressed with this program. They have covered all the expenses of this trip, air fare, hotel, and meals for four days. I had never heard of CAP before, but they are the auxiliary of the Air Force. If TJ choses to continue in the program, through his high school years, and then goes into the military (Air Force or Coast Guard) he will go in as an E3. A significant pay raise. Meanwhile, he has some excellent opportunities to learn some leadership skills and make friends. It seems to really fit with his personality.

Ladies Bible Study

2008-10-13T20:05:00.000-07:00

Monday nights are Ladies Bible Study nights. We have just begun working through Becoming A Woman of Prayer by Cynthia Heald. I am excited to finally be leading a women's study again. The Lord is really leading into a season of intense prayer. He is laying the foundation now with good teaching in the bible study and on Sunday nights with the "When God's People Pray" series by Jim Cymbala. I look forward to what He has in store for us knowing that His plans are good.

Winter's coming

2008-10-08T14:34:00.000-07:00

I can see the snow on the mountain tops. We are all fighting off colds. Sure signs that Old Man Winter is on his way. The temps are still reasonably normal during the day, but we have to get the wood burner going at night. The maple tree in our front yard is getting red. Last year, a man stopped in our driveway to ask what kind of tree it was. Most leaves just stay green and drop off here, so the red maple really jumps out at you. I miss the glorious colors of Michigan in the fall. The drive up to Traverse City is one of the most breathtaking sights I have ever seen.
I am amazed at the number of gulls I have seen lately. I must have missed this last year, because I am constantly amazed at how many there are. In the early morning, standing on my front porch I can here the cacophony of their calls down on the water. I wonder if they are getting ready to go south or just finding lots to nibble on down at the mudflats?