We are moving!!

Okay, not us officially…we are moving our sight to blogspot instead. We have been having a lot of problems with wordpress lately, and since we can’t be bothered to keep trying to fix it, I just set up a new blog there instead. I am keeping this old one just to point people to the new one, and also because I don’t want someone using the name for something bad. So here is the new address:
http://stevejounderhiswings.blogspot.com/
Hopefully we will post a little more often now:)

Happy Birthday Joshua

Dan and Sarah’s dear little boy Joshua had his fourth birthday yesterday. We were so thankful that the Lord has given him 4 years so far since he was born with major heart problems. He has had 4 or 5 open heart surgeries already, and he is going in for another one on Tuesday. Please pray that God will guide the hands of the surgeons, and also that He would work miracles with that little heart. Also, please pray for Dan & Sarah, it is so hard when their is so much uncertainty. Thankfully, we have a God who knows our every need, and He is in control of all things.

Joshua is such a sweet little boy who just has so much spunk. A lot of the time you wouldn’t even know that their was something wrong with his heart.
In other news, we are still trying to sell our house. It has its ups and downs of course, but I can honestly say that we have also been strengthened by this trial, and it is definitely working in me a good work of patience (which most of you who know me well, know I need to learn). We did have an offer when it was for sale privately, but that didn’t go through for various reasons, so now we have an agent, and we are hoping that we will soon get an offer. Please keep us in your prayers for this.
The girls are all doing well, growing stronger and healthier every day. They have been getting along quite well, and will often play for hours without fighting……notice how I didn’t say always:) As for our sweet little boy, well, he just gets more sweet by the day. We all adore him and laugh at all his funny ways. He just brings so much joy to our lives. He will often play for an hour or two in the basement all by himself. He loves his daddy’s tools, which can be quite irritating when I see him trying to put the screwdriver into an electrical socket.
Here are a couple more pictures that I haven’t yet posted.

Don't they look alike?

Having fun with Ruthie and Mary!

Sweet little Faithie

Isaac getting into trouble

Fun times with Kristen!

Olden day poses

Funny Friends!

For Carrie:)

Someone has been bugging me to get back on the blog, and I have to admit it’s time we gave you all an update on the goings on here. We have now officially had our house on the market for almost 4 weeks now. Before that, we had 3 weeks of very late nights, and very busy days. In those 3 weeks we managed to open the hall ceiling up, install potlights, fix a rather large leak, drywall the ceiling, paint the entire front hall and up the stairs, redo almost the whole upstairs bathroom, jack up the garage roof, paint walls in the basement, put up dry wall in the basement, install carpet going upstairs and downstairs, get most of the upstairs trim and crown moulding done, get new windows put in, get the electrical panel changed, clean, clean and more cleaning, redo part of the kitchen ceiling where we had had a bit of leaking from all the snow this winter, paint that ceiling, and paint the sunroom ceiling, did I mention clean?? organize the whole basement and the garage, take care of children and work to make the money for all the work we had done!! Most nights we were up till around 12 or 1. Thankfully I could sleep in a little bit, but poor Steve had to be up at 5:15 and would usually stay at work till after 6. Needless to say, we were both very worn out by the end of it. We couldn’t have done it without a lot of help thats for sure. A huge thank you goes out to my handy brother John and his dear wife Denise. John felt so bad for us, he drove 2 hours one way 3 different times to help us out, Denise cleaned up after him, Steve’s mom and dad helped us sand the floor in the family room and steam clean the living carpet which was a huge help. My parents came and worked a whole Saturday from morning till 11 at night. My brothers and my dad cleaned out the whole basement and the garage, and my mom helped me get organized (I am so amazed by my parents energy), Dad also came the night before the first showing and planed down about 6 doors, and then helped me clean my whole kitchen. And then there was Matty who came I think 3 different times to help Steve with trim. He is amazing at the trim work, although maybe I shouldn’t mention that because everyone will be asking him to help out:) So after all that hard work, we put our house on the market privately. We have had quite a bit of interest, and have actually had a conditional offer. Unfortuntely, we just found out tonight that it has fallen through and we are back at square one (with a little more experience under our belt). Please pray that we would not become anxious. We are trying to remember and have a peace knowing that God is in control and He knows our future. It is easier to say that though, but I guess we are getting a good learning experience, and hopefully our faith will be strengthened by all of this. We will let you know if there is anything new to add in the near future, but for now, it is very busy trying to keep the house clean. Let me tell you, I always hope that someone doesn’t just come knocking on the door, hoping to come through then and there because usually it is a bit of a disaster:)
Please keep us in your prayers!!

Changes

Time flies by and with it brings many changes. Our family will be undergoing many changes this year. To start, Steve’s employer, my uncle, bought a new shop and moved farther south. While it is great to finally have a shop of their own, it makes the drive for Steve that much longer. On a good night, it can be just over half an hour, but more often it seems like it is either 45 minutes to an hour. The other night when there was a snowstorm it was 2 hours and 15 minutes, which is really crazy. Anyways, we always knew that someday we would be moving, we just didn’t figure on it being this year. But, homeschooling is getting more and more difficult, and I was really struggling with doing it for another year, so after much prayer and getting advice, we also decided that next year the girls would be going to school. So, now we are desperately trying to get the house ready for selling and we want to sell and then buy this spring and summer. It is hard to think about leaving our house that we have put so much work into. We love the neighbourhood, and we love the house, and we hate the thought of moving back into a very busy city. Those are the downsides of moving, but on the upside, the kids need their daddy home more, we will be closer to church and our friends, and shopping will be closer….okay, that last one was just a joke:) We also really had to think that a house is just a possession. It is nice to have it cozy, but it isn’t much of a home if Steve is not there to be with us. So please pray for us, that God would open doors for us, and that we would not be stressed out about this move. We are so thankful that God has a plan for us, and that He will not leave us to fend for ourselves. I have to say that in some ways I will really miss homeschooling, but in other ways, I am really looking forward to having time to spend with my younger children. So, those are the new developments, we will keep you all informed with the latest happenings, Oh, and if you know of someone that wants to buy a house out here……well, we would accept a million dollars:)

I also have a few pictures from Allison’s party. We had 4 girls over, and it was a lot of fun. They had a treasure hunt, played musical pillows, played polly pockets and made cards.

Here are the guests with their cards they made.

Laura

Close up of her card

Maria

The other Maria

Ruthie

Kate - can you read what she wrote? To Me -From Me!!

And the birthday girl - Allison

We also have had a ton of snow. These pictures really don’t show how much we had.

Happy 9th Birthday, Allie!!

It is so hard to believe that Steve & I have been parents for 9 years already. The years just seem to be flying by. What joy Allie has brought to our lives, these past years. She is a typical oldest in a lot of ways, helpful, easygoing, patient and a very happy girl. We thank the Lord every day for our oldest daughter:)

It has been a crazy snowfilled winter this year. Our family has really enjoyed all the snow we have been getting. We think we have probably got the most snow since we have lived here. I had to walk out to the shed after one storm and the snow was over my knees, and that was just one storms worth!!

Here is Isaac starting to climb. He want’s to play air hockey:)

He is a real boy who loves banging and much to Steve’s delight, he loves hockey already. To Steve’s chagrin he loves the phone, especially turning it on when we don’t know about it (if you have tried calling and keep getting a busy signal, this could be the problem), or else picking it up and throwing it into the bathtub or toilet:(

In some sad but happy news, my mom’s mom, or my Oma has gone to be with the Lord after 94 years of life. She stayed at mom and dad’s house right up to the end and she received such loving care from my mom. What a wonderful thing it is to be a Christian, to have that hope of life after death. It was very striking, especially when the coffin was lowered, and all the great grand children were looking on. To someone who isn’t a Christian, it would all seem so final, but to us who believe, Oma is going to her real home. Even now, she is rejoicing with the saints and she has no more pain and sorrow. To see our Savior face to face, what a wonderful day that will be.

I didn’t get any good pictures of Oma, but if you visit John and Denise’s blog, she has a nice picture of Oma. The neat thing about the funeral was, I got to see cousins that I haven’t seen in years. I think one of my cousins I hadn’t seen for almost 20 years, which is really crazy. It was so neat to catch up with everyone and even meet some of my cousin’s children whom I had never even seen.

I think these are Oma’s 2 remaining sisters. Correct me if I am wrong:)

Mom can never stop helping!

Dear Uncle Dennis

Oma’s first great, great grandson, Jacob.

“O Death where is your sting? O hades, where is your victory? The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.”         1 Corinthians, 15:55-58

Kate’s birthday - and other things

Our dear Kaitlyn turned 7 a week and a half ago. What a joy she has been in our family. I remember when she was born, she was so different from Allison right from the start. She was a very easy baby which lulled me into thinking that she was going to be so easy from then on, well, it wasn’t to be so. When she turned 2, we were in for quite the surprise. Needless to say, she is a lot better since then, but we have certainly never had a quiet (and I mean quiet), moment from her. She is the type of kid who brings a lot of laughter to our family. She always has funny comments, and knows how to make us all laugh. She is a peacemaker…..usually, but she can also be a terrible tease. We love her dearly, and our family would not be the same without her.

We also enjoyed our family Christmas with Steve’s family. That was the same weekend we had a big storm and we ended up not having church on the Sunday. Steve’s parents slept over with Aunt Cora. We had a very nice time altogether.

Luke is almost a teenager now, and is becoming a part of the adult group. It is neat to see him growing up.

It’s was so nice to have Aunt Cora come.

The 4 siblings together. Rob is doing something, I don’t know what

We also had a new years eve party at our house with my some of my siblings. It was a lot of fun playing games and staying up late….1:00 or so. You know you are getting old when 1 sounds late The next day we had another huge snowstorm and church was cancelled again. Joh & Steph had planned to go with her family skating, but in the end the weather was to bad. That was fun for the kids, and they played outside together for a couple of hours.

As you can see, we got tons of snow.

 

 

December

Time flies by doesn’t it? I was just looking back at my last few posts and it seemed like we were just at the cottage and now it is almost Christmas.  So now I will attempt to fill you in on all the happenings around here. Good news first of all…….and no it isn’t that I am pregnant:) Joshua my nephews surgery went very well. He was in the hospital for quite sometime as he ended up getting an infection. Unfortunately the surgeons could not do the whole surgery that they wanted to, so he will have to have another surgery in a year. But what they did do has helped him a lot and when Sarah brought him in for a check up, the left ventricle was widening and starting to pump. So that is an answer to prayer. Another note worth mentioning is, a dear lady in our church who was like an Oma to us has gone to be with the Lord. Mrs. VanNoort was one of those ladies whose life touched everyone she met. Allison especially loved her and went to visit her quite a few times. Mrs. VanNoort taught her to knit and loved talking to her. She was still driving at the age of 92 which is so amazing. Having someone that you love die is hard but it makes heaven all the more real to us. It was so neat to be able to talk to the girls about heaven and that Mrs. VanNoort is there now praising the Lord. We sang this song at our ladies Bible study last night and it really was touching to me.

Jerusalem the Golden - Alexander Ewing

They stand, those halls of Zion, all jubilant with song and bright with many an angel and all the martyr throng. The Prince is ever in them, the daylight is serene; The pastures of the blessed are decked in glorious sheen.

There is the throne of David; and there, from care released, The song of them that triump, the shout of them that feast; And they who with their Leader have conquired in the fight, Forever and forever are clad in robes of white.

O sweet and blessed country , the home of God’s elect! O sweet and blessed country that eager hearts expect! Jesus in mercy bring us to that dear land of rest, Who are with God the Father and Spirit ever blest.

Picture taken by either Ralph or Sharon:)

We have been busy this year with homeschooling. Allison is now in grade 4, Kate in grade 2 and Mary-Beth is in kindergarten. It has been challenging to stay on top of everything and I sometime wonder how anybody can keep up with things in their house and homeschool. But I am determined to enjoy this year as it might be our last year before we send the girls to school. In other news, we also celebrated Faith’s third birthday in October. What a blessing she has been to our family. She was a terrible baby  until she was about 8 months old, but she has brought us so much joy since then. She is constantly smiling and laughing and is one of those kids who barely gives us any trouble. We are so thankful for her.

We also celebrated the first birthday of Isaac. It seems like just yesterday that we found out we were having a boy. We were so thrilled to be finally having a boy, and we are just as thrilled now to have one. He was a very fussy baby and is still now a mommy’s boy, but we just love him. He started trying to walk already at 9 months, but didn’t fully walk until 11 1/2 months. He is very different from any of our girls. He seems to really enjoy throwing things. I have caught him climbing up the stairs and throwing all sort of things down. He throws almost anything he can get his hands on, and seems to enjoy hearing the sound it makes. He also loves cars and trucks and even makes sounds while driving them. It is so neat to see how different God made boys and girls. After 4 girls we welcome anything boyish.

This is a truck I got out of the garbage and he loves it. Oh, and our camera is starting to have some problems, so all of our pictures are coming out foggy (part of why I haven’t been blogging lately)

Well, as we get ready to celebrate the birth of Jesus, we pray that you all would be strengthened and drawn into a closer fellowship with our Saviour, walking worthy of Him!

“And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discerment, that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, being filled with the fruits of righteousness which by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.”  Philippians 1:9-11

 

Prayer Item

Most of you who read this blog probably know about my sister Sarah and her husband Dan’s little boy Joshua. Well, tomorrow he is going in for another heart surgery. The good news is, it looks like he might get the double ventricle repair after all. I guess the doctors did all tests on him today, so I heard that is what they are going to try and do. So please keep him in your prayers (and Dan & Sarah), as this surgery has only been done a couple of times. What a blessed peace we can have knowing that God holds our every moments in his hands, and that he cares what happens and the pain we go through.

My Family

Here is the picture that Denise took of our family at the cottage. Although it is no longer current, Bethany has since had a little girl, and Stephanie is pregnant again. Oh well, that is how a big family is, always changing. We are so thankful for a godly heritage.

A Glorious Fall Day

Isn’t this weather just gorgeous?? The kids and I were feeling rather adventurous today, and we decided to go on a nice hike. There are some trails that are about 10 minutes drive from our house, and since we had never been there before, I thought it might be a nice place to hike…..and was it ever. It had a nice walking trail, which would have been great if I had brought the stroller…..I didn’t:) We are in the midst of studying different birds so it was great to be able to look and listen for them.  We were amazed at the beauty of God’s creation. The leaves were still a beautiful yellow and the sky was such a contrast in blue.  What a great God we serve.

“Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad: Let the sea roar, and all its fullness; Let the field be joyful, and all that is in it. Then all the trees of the woods will rejoice before the LORD. For He is coming, for He is coming to judge the earth. He shall judge the world with righteousness, and the peoples with His truth.” Psalm 96:11-13

 

Anyone want to come with us next time?