Free Books!

I was searching for some audio books for Nathaniel to listen to while we are traveling in the next few weeks. I had hoped to find some free resources, and I was thrilled when I found this great website! There are thousands of books for kids and adults and it seems pretty easy to download and legitimate. I look forward to listening to some good books in the near future!

And what was said to the rose...

I have been blessed by the colors and smells of Spring. It brings great joy to me to think of the way God makes all things new. I am struggling with selfish emotions and a dislike for disciplining my children. (Being a stay-at-home Mom is hard work!) But, I am often praying and singing out there in the garden. God is working on my sinful heart. I think the garden is a place of renewal, showing me God's ever faithful plan for my heart and for His creation. God is speaking to my innermost thoughts and bringing my sin and selfishness out into the light. So much like He does to the flowers - from seeds to plant to harvest.

It reminds of the song "Here is Our King" by David Crowder with these lyrics:
From wherever spring arrives to heal the ground, From where ever searching comes to look itself
And what was said to the rose to make it unfold, Was said to me, here in my chest
A trace of what we're looking for, so be quiet now, and wait

We've been enjoying the spring temperature climb over the last couple of weeks. We spend most of our days outside, even meals (yeah! less sweeping and mopping the kitchen). The boys love bikes and trikes and ride them all over the yard all day. We've been doing a lot of gardening. Nathaniel has been a cheerful helper with all things concerning dirt. He picked out the seeds for the beets from the grocery store, since he was curious about beets. He wrote his own label for them and planted in them in rows. He even made me a "special plant mixture" containing mud, sand, water, and random pieces of wood and rocks he's found in the yard. He stirred and stirred his mixture to get it just right for the "plants to be healthy" so he says...

Our garden in the back has mostly vegetables - carrots, peas, onions, tomatoes, Nathaniel's beets, lettuce of various kinds, basil, watercress, and parsley. I planted seeds of most plants, but a few lettuce and tomato seedlings. Today we harvested lettuce for our dinner salad! I gave Nathaniel a scissors and some directions, and he became the proud "harvester!" In the front, we have pots of herbs, shrubs, beautiful lilacs, 2 clematis (on my homemade trellis like this), and I have holes waiting to be filled with flowers (they are free to us from our army-self-help store) when they are available. The soil here is light and easy to dig. It seems pretty fertile, since there are plants and trees of all kinds sprouting everywhere around us. I am so thrilled! We are going to be gone for most of May and maybe in July...but I will try to enlist the help of my neighbor and a timer-sprinkler to keep things going. If you live nearby, please come over and enjoy the plants and eventually the harvest =)!

I've included pictures of our gardening process, from start to present state. I had to put up a little fence to keep Josiah from trampling the new little sprouts with his tricycle, but otherwise everything is pretty natural. I used branches and fishing line for the peas to climb; it looks a bit like a spider web, but I think it will be efficient. My hope is that the garden will be pretty minimal expense and minimalist in appearance, but maximum harvest and maximum display of God's creation!

Enjoy spring and be blessed. I am sure God is at work on your heart, too, so keep in touch.

...but you don't have to take my word for it!

I have just read two SUPER books. They are totally unrelated, and it took me a couple months to read them little by little, but both books are well-worth anyone's time.

The first one, Don't Make Me Count to Three by Ginger Plowman, was a great resource of ideas and scripture to help with Godly parenting. I love this lady and her truthful, insightful, love of God's word and love for children. I really think all parents and "pre-parents" should read this book!

The second one, I Dared to Call Him Father, by Bilquis Sheikh, is the autobiography of a Muslim woman who became a Christian, even at the risk of her life and her family's well-being. She is so amazing and in love with Jesus Christ. It was very encouraging, engaging, and pretty simple quick reading.

These books have been my companions and encouragement during a dry lonely spell in life here. Odd, I sound like I am on Reading Rainbow, come on now, everybody say it..."but you don't have to take my word for it!"

Prayer Requests for our Africa Trip!

Perhaps some of you have not even heard that we (all 4 of us) will be traveling to South Africa this May. For 1 week we will visit friends who we met while living in New England who are missionaries in the Johannesburg area and for 2 weeks we will be ministering and working in Capetown.

We have often wondered how come God continues to place South Africans on our life path. We are still pondering, but following along that path down to South Africa again with a group gathered from several churches here. I (Sara) went on a missions trip to Zambia in 1998; later Tom and I together traveled while Tom worked at a hospital in South Africa in 2004 and I volunteered with a local church ministry. We continue to befriend those lovely South Africans - at our churches, at our workplaces, and even here while stationed in Germany!

I ask for your prayers- now as we prepare - and during the last 3 weeks of May while we are in South Africa. Since we did not need money donations we did not send out any letters, but we greatly desire your prayer support. These pictures I've collected are not mine, but are very reminiscent of our journeys to Africa. I hope that the images will stick in your mind and help to remind you of the great needs for prayer, some of which I have listed below:

1. for kindness and unity to flow from our group so as to be wonderful fragrance of Christ where ever we go together
2. for our little boys and for me, when they encounter new people, places, foods, and transitions. (There is a lady there who has volunteered to care for them while we are busy, but I am an anxious Mommy about putting my babies in someone else's care!)
3. for many to see and know Christ Jesus and become His children through our evangelism and outreach
4. for Tom & I to see and know if God wants to stay, live, or give support to South African ministry

Easter Preparations

I have been reading and praying and teaching Nathaniel about Easter and why we celebrate. There is so much other "stuff" - such as eggs, baskets, and bunnies - and it is fun and cute, too. I really want him to see and know the wondrous gift of God's son Jesus. Then we can do fun stuff, once the foundational parts of this awesome holiday are set in place. I continue to pray that the Lord will use my efforts and that his "head knowledge" will someday grow into "heart knowledge."

Anyhow, this is what we are doing. I have gathered some verses, little symbols, and plastic Easter eggs. For the 2 weeks prior to Easter, we are reading these verses and discussing the symbols that I have put in each egg. It is a lot like an advent calendar, but with eggs instead. It is still kind of work in progress - I am trying to find the right symbols and good verses to explain God's redeeming work on Easter. So far, we have been opening 1 egg each day and then I plan to hide them all on Easter (along with some candy-filled ones) and have the boys search to find them all. Hopefully the kids will be able to recount the story of God's work by looking through all the symbols again. I'd like to use these eggs year after year. If any other families want to share this idea or modify, please do so!

Egg #1:
Message -- Help your child understand why Jesus was called "the Lamb of God" (his role as the unblemished sacrifice)
Passages -- Ex. 12:21-24; John 1:29; 1 Cor. 5:7-8
Item-- a cotton ball or piece of wool

Egg #2:
Message -- Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey. The people waved palm branches. Act out the "parade" of Palm Sunday as a family. Have family members take turns putting themselves in the place of Jesus, receiving a royal welcome but knowing that the crowd's intentions would change in less than a week. Note: the word hosanna translates "save us, we beseech thee."
Passage -- Matthew 21:1-11
Item -- Piece of palm or other variety of leafy branch

Egg #3:
Message -- Mary poured expensive perfume on Jesus' feet.
Passage -- John 12:2-8
Item -- Small perfume sample or cloth with perfume or a piece of cotton with cologne on it

Egg #4:
Message -- Jesus shared the Last Supper with His disciples.
Passage -- Matthew 26:17-19
Item – a piece of Chex cereal or cracker

Egg #5:
Message -- Jesus gave the disciples at the Last Supper a new commandment, that they should love and serve one another. he showed them by washing their feet.
Passage: Look up John 13:34-35 to discover the "new commandment" Jesus gives.
Item – small piece of soap to represent the washing of His disciples' feet

Egg #6:
Message -- Judas betrayed Jesus for 30 pieces of silver. Talk about your child's experiences of betrayal or disappointment in friendships. Imagine Jesus' personal hurt at Judas's treachery and the subsequent desertion of Christ's closest allies.
Passage -- Matthew 26:1-16, 47-56, 27:3
Item -- 3 coins or plastic “silver” money


Egg #7:
Message -- Jesus carried His own cross.
Passage -- John 19:17
Item – small sticks in a cross form; or, a small plastic cross from a Christmas ornament or necklace.

Egg #8:
Message -- Soldiers placed a crown of thorns on Jesus' head.
Passage -- John 19:2
Item -- Small thorny branch, or a large thorn all by itself.

Egg #9:
Message -- Soldiers parted Jesus' garments and cast lots for His coat.
Passage -- John 19:23
Item -- Swatch of burlap and a nail. I’ve also seen miniature dice used for this one.

Egg #10:
Message -- Jesus was nailed to a cross and pierced in His side.
Passage -- John 19:18,37 & John 20:25-29
Item -- A nail

Egg #11:
Message -- They gave Jesus vinegar mixed with gall on a sponge to drink.
Passage -- Matthew 27:34
Item -- A small sponge

Egg #12:
Message -- Spices to prepare Jesus for burial. The name Good Friday probably evolved from the phrase "God's Friday." Talk about why the day Christ died is ultimately very good the best because we all need a Savior.

Passage -- John 19:40
Item -- 7 or 8 whole cloves, or other whole spices


Egg #13:
Message -- The stone covering Jesus' tomb was rolled away. Get a clearer idea of the miracle of the tomb rock rolling away by finding a large rock and trying to roll it yourselves. Note that only an act of God could put the guards to sleep and move such a big stone.

Passage -- John 20:1
Item -- A small rock

Egg #14:
Message -- The napkin around Jesus' head was lying separately from His linen clothes. He was not there. He has risen!
Passage -- John 20:6-7
Item -- A scrap of linen-type fabric

Egg #15:
Message -- In Christ's death and resurrection we also become new creatures.
Passage: 2 Corinthians 5:17.
Item – small plastic butterflies or home-made with tissue paper

Ooops

I said we'd be here until summer 1010, I meant 2011! There's still time to visit!

Our House

We now live in a duplex in a residential neighborhood on our post. It is quite nice. The kitchen is very big and I am loving all the nooks to store stuff - it is like a dream of mine to someday have a "place for everything and everything in its place" and this is a step in the right direction! There are 4 bedrooms upstairs, a main floor dining and living area, and also a basement for laundry and storage.

There is a small yard. The kids love the outdoor space, and we can just go right out the back door and not have to go down 3 flights of stairs. Yesterday they were just covered in mud, since it has been raining here, and they were as happy as could be! We have our own washer and dryer, too, so mud is not too big of a problem. I didn't need more indoor space, as I don't know how to decorate and am rather predictable, but the yard and a future flower/vegetable garden thrills my heart.

Nathaniel made me a "mocha coffee" today (mud, in a small green bucket) and has been picking little flowering weeds for me. He has been very affectionate lately (and argumentative, we take the good with the bad). Finally, spring has arrived - breezy and fresh and it beckons us outside every day. Tom has been extended in our location until summer of 2011, so we'll enjoy all the seasons in this home. I've attached 2 pictures - enjoy - and come see us for yourself!

Grandpa Denny & Grandma Sue's Visit

For about 10 days, we enjoyed a visit from Tom's parents from March 7-17th. Here's a little overview of our days together, but there are lots more stories to tell and pictures to share! We enjoyed a few days here at the house, a game night, and driving to nearby castles in Heidelberg, Bensheim, and Heddesheim along the "Berg Strasse". We ate lots of good food (both out and about and at home). Nathaniel and Josiah enjoyed many stories and sing-alongs with Grandma.

We had the opportunity to host Tom's 1996 foreign exchange host family in our home for an afternoon of dining and getting to know one another. They live in Hamburg, but were down this way visiting relatives and we were overjoyed to have them stop by here, too! Finally the parents who had sent their young sons over the ocean to live with another family were joined to meet! There were lots of stories and sharing of photos.

We journeyed to the Alps in Bavaria for a couple days, too. While in Bavaria, we were all once again impressed by the marvelous mountains, the Alps are never disappointing, and Grandpa and Grandma were full of oohs and ahhhs! It was fun to sit in the hot-tub at the hotel at the foot of the Zugspitz with snowflakes falling on our noses and eyelashes. We tried some tasty local cheese and beer (made by Monks at the Ettal monastery). We visited the Mercedes Museum in Stuttgart. All the men and boys were giddy about the cars and trucks (J & N got to sit and play around in a garbage truck and bus!).

We enjoyed a wonderful 10 days together. We were blessed with joy and fellowship and great evening discussions.

Long Time, No Updates...

Sorry it has been awhile. We've moved! We are still at the same APO address, but a different German house address. Tom was selected to be promoted to Major (way to go!) and we had the opportunity to move to a bigger house that has a yard! We jumped on that chance and have been busy packing, moving, rearranging and so on. Now we are settled, but it took about a month for the phone company to hook our phone and internet. So we've been "webless" and (gasp!) we've survived to tell about it.

The boys have been busy digging and riding their little bikes and trikes all over the lawn. I am looking forward to the coming of spring and planting some flowers and vegetables in our space, too. Spring is slowing appearing in little places where bulbs are sprouting and it is encouraging.

Grandpa Denny and Grandma Sue made the big flight over the ocean and visited us here for the last 10 days. It was a wonderful time of talking and enjoying beauty here in Germany. The kids loved their visit and Josiah has asked me several times "Where Grandpa Denny? Where Daddy?" It is quiet today here; it feels kind of lonely to put away the extra bedding and eat the leftovers from our time together with such wonderful guests.

We really do enjoy visitors - so please come on over. We now have an extra bedroom and an extra bed!! Hooray!

Photos of our house and our European adventures with the Grandparents will soon follow. But I do have to get to work around here, too, and the kids are especially needy today. I suppose they are kind of let-down after all the attention and fun of the last weeks.

Josiah's Words

Our little Josiah is such a chatter box. As I sit here by the computer, he is finishing up his lunch at the table across the room. He's calling to me - "hey! I yahd you!" and "rrrrroar - rrrroar - I'm tiger, sheep, cow" (I guess he can't decide which), just now he said "brush teeth! brush teeth!" and made other less distinguishable sounds which he giggled about as he said them.

Just yesterday he started saying "I love you!" (sounds like I yahd you) and last week, "Bless you!" when I sneezed. He's very funny. He switches topics every few seconds. He knows he's funny, and he laughs at his own "jokes" every time he cracks one. He calls Nathaniel either "Nayo" or "bra-er" (brother). He recently started using 3-4 word statements, too. He loves to shout "let's go!" and "here you go!" He also loves to count - at random times, usually in ordered sets of three such as "2,3,4, chatter, chatter, 8,9,10!" And occasionally supplies the missing word in a song we're singing or in a bible verse we are learning with Nathaniel. It is clear that he listens all the time, by the way he inserts words at appropriate places.

I am amazed at how well he communicates and I appreciate this when I try to help him and he can express himself. He knows the word "no!" all too well, and has begun to talk back at me, too. Who taught him that?! I am pretty sure he would have learned it, and used it in rebellion, whether or not Nathaniel had modeled it for him.

Snow Fun

Our first winter here we only had a couple inches of snow the entire season. We are from the upper midwest of America - and we like snow! So, this winter we've had lots of snow. It is beautiful. It covers the dirt and graffiti on the playground. It makes everything quieter.

The boys love it! They play for as long as this Mamma can give her time and supervision. They enjoy playing on the playground in the snow - building piles and ravines to slide into and jump into. They enjoy pulling each other around on the sleds and catching snow flakes in their mouths, or at least attempting to do so. Josiah even initiated a belly-down-head-first method of plowing into a snow pile at the bottom of the slide and kept on sliding on the ground for a few more feet. Nathaniel thought it was such a good idea that they now repeat this on every slide we find, every time we are outside in the snow. By the way, don't you love our retro German sleds?

When I was growing up, my Dad would often comment on the beauty of the snow and how Jesus cleanses us from our sins and we can be white as snow. Isaiah 1:18 says “Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord:though your sins are like scarlet,they shall be as white as snow;though they are red like crimson,they shall become like wool.

Adventures in Europe

My family came to visit us for 8 days. It was great. We enjoyed many awesome sites in and around Germany. We were able to stay in someone else's home that could accommodate all 10 of us. Which sure was convenient! We visited the Speyer Christmas Market & Cathedral, Munich sites, Dachau concentration camp, Prague sites, Nuernberg castle & cathedrals, and the lovely Heidelberg castle. We even enjoyed cooking a few meals together, opening gifts, playing card games, and spent an evening in prayer together.

Josiah and Nathaniel enjoyed the attention, the wrestling and joking, Tom and I enjoyed the extra hands, and we all enjoyed lots of yummy food and drinks. Yes, Germany is a great place to host family. Something yummy is around every neighborhood corner!

God is so good. He provided safe travels for everyone, and He has blessed us with a God-honoring, Christ-following family, and He provided a great big house to live in temporarily. Please enjoy the photos of our European family adventures.

O Tannenbaum

We cut down a tree a couple weeks ago and decorated it together. Nathaniel and Josiah both have little (18 inch) fake trees setup in their room, too. Almost every morning Josiah exclaims "Tree!" as if he has never seen such an exciting sight before. He is a sweet little guy. The boys were soooo helpful with stretching (and trampling on) the lights while we prepared them to hang on the tree in our living room (maybe in the future their help will actually be helpful). When the lights were hung, Nathaniel really was a happy helper with the ornaments. It is wonderful to introduce them to the celebration of our savior who was born on Christmas (they don't remember Christmas ever happening before). Nathaniel requests that we sing Joy to the World over and over. He also has enjoyed listening to the Nutcracker and watching the ballet on a DVD (he dances his favorite moves with Mommy - I get to be Clara, the princess)!

England

Nathaniel and I went to England for a weekend. (Tom was unable to go because his passport is at the Indian Consulate waiting to be granted a visa to enter the country for his missions' trip in January). We enjoyed a Thanksgiving feast with friends who live in Cambridge, and a BIG day out on the town in London. We went to the National Museum, climbed monuments in Trafalgar Square, walked around to see the Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace, and Big Ben, then we went out to dinner (fish & chips & vinegar, of course), and to a Broadway showing of "Oliver." Nathaniel was a trooper, he seemed to enjoy it all (even the art museum), he claims to like vinegar on his french-fries now, and he even took a nap on our friend's back while touring the city. I was grateful for friends who were willing to carry, play with, and patiently talk with Nathaniel for the whole weekend. It was adventure like no other. The first tour pictures are Nathaniel's photographs and the next several are my photos. He has a different (shorter, somewhat odd) perspective of the sites of London! Enjoy (and come visit to see for yourself if you can)!!