Indiana Trip

Just last night we got back from a trip to Indiana. We were there so that we could be at my grandparents' retirement party. All four of their children were there, and most of the grandchildren. It was a lot of fun!

This is the whole family minus my dad, my uncle David's wife, and her two sons.

My grandparents were given a gift from Shultz-Lewis, the children's home they've been working for for 20 years. They were houseparents, and my grandpa was the science teacher. My grandma also trained houseparents.

This one is too funny just because no one is doing what they're supposed to!

Here's one of me and my siblings, Karl and Sarah. I love this picture. That's just about the best smile we could get out of Karl.
Alrighty, here's a picture of us with our grandparents. : )

All of the grandkids. (Sarah looks SO pretty!!)

This is beautiful Judy with her handsome brothers Jed and Jeff. I was so glad to visit with them for a while. And I was especially happy to talk to Jed about highways. This kid knows every one that exists!!! He must like to study maps. :) (My mom is their first cousin, so that makes them my second cousins??) This is my favorite picture from the whole trip. We knew that my mom looks like her aunt Patty. But I don't think anyone realized just how much they look alike!! Another set of twins for you. This is me with my cousin Emily. People kept getting us confused.

The Fruits of Feminism

What feminists teach is nothing short of a lie. The most fulfilling thing a woman can accomplish is serving her family- either under her father's roof or that of her husband. Right now I want nothing more than to be the best daughter and sister that I can possibly be. Prayerfully, I hope to one day be blessed with a husband and children. But even if I never get married, I will always serve my family. And even though I know that's what I'm called to do- it is not a burden. It makes me happy. I say this not to brag, but because I wish more girls and women could know this joy. But our society is flooded with the feminist agenda. We need to rise up and show girls from a young age that God created them to love their homes and families, to be keepers at home, and to be under the authority of a Godly man (their husband or father).

When I read this article: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-1021293/index.html
(which I read on Stacy McDonald's blog, which can be found through http://www.familyreformation.com/ ), it made me miserable for this woman who was raised by a die-hard feminist who saw her one child as a tragic burden rather than as a joyous blessing. Through her experience she realized the joy of motherhood- but, not before she went through some huge tragedies. This woman's early life is a perfect example of the fruits of feminism. May we (girls and women) turn our hearts to our homes and families. May we seek to fulfill the glorious role that God has given to us.

I would like to end with a quote from Anna Sofia and Elizabeth Botkin's So Much More (a must read for any young woman, imo.).

" A real woman is a woman who recognizes that she has been exquisitely and perfectly created by a loving God for a unique purpose. Out of genuine gratitude, awe and a desire to please her Maker, a real woman joyfully embraces her femininity and submits every aspect of her identity- the attitudes and affections of her heart and mind, her appearance, her manners, her speech, her ambitions and her beliefs- to God's original and unique design for her as a woman. A real woman undersands that God designed femininity because masculinity was not enough in itself to represent God's image and glory. The differences between men and women glorify God, and downplaying these differences downplays God's glory. A real woman wants to bring glory to God by being a woman."

This Summer

Saturday I spent the day in Englewood at the Rebelution Conference! It was a fantastic day, and I think God really used it to bring people closer to Him. The message that Alex and Brett Harris are spreading is a great one that young people everywhere need to hear. It's already linked a couple times on my blog, but here's their site: http://www.therebelution.com/ Check it out! You will be blessed.

Anyway, it was a wonderful day for me. My dad, Sarah, Karl, and I went. We had a lot to discuss on the way home and we still haven't finished. : ) One of the highlights of the day for me was getting my Do Hard Things book signed by Alex, Brett, and Mr. Harris. I was so excited! It was also fun to get some Do Hard Things t-shirts, which I've been wanting for a while. I was also surprised that there was a pretty large book store- books that the Harris family recommends. We bought several of them. I've already finished Be The Change by Zach Hunter. Now I'm going to read What's the Difference: Manhood and Womanhood Defined According to the Bible by John Piper. I also picked up more copies of Do Hard Things to hand out to friends. Sarah and I just decided on Sunday that we'll do a book discussion group for this book throughout the summer- so I hope we can get a lot of people to read it and take part in the discussion.

I also want to mention that I was able to meet a great girl- Hillary. We both commented on the Rebelution blog that we would be at the Denver Conference, and she was able to spot my name tag in a crowd of over 1,000! It was so amazing to be able to put a face with a name on a blog comment, and to see one of the Rebelutionaries from the blog in real life.

I can't think of a better way that I could have jump started my summer. It really motivated me to use this summer (and all of my life) for God's glory.

Thursday I'm headed to Indiana to be at my grandparents' retirement party. This will be a lot of fun. My cousins, Abby and Emily, will be there. All of my mom's siblings will be there- I haven't seen some of them for years. It will be interesting. But please pray for a safe trip and a blessed visit.

What else this summer? At the end of July we're headed to Kamp Koinonia. This is something I can't wait for. : ) Other than that, life will be pretty much the same. I'll be trying to really make some head way with my Herbalist course. Still teaching Bible class. And making some plans for a few projects in the future (more on those at some later time...). I'll be working on my rat garden and hoping it does well, and just spending time with friends and family. It should be a really great summer.

Herbalist Yahoo Group

UPDATE: OK, ladies, while I'm very interested in being part of a group, I don't feel that I can give enough time to moderating it right now. But I will jump right into the group if someone else would like to start it. Just let me know!!!

Alright, Rebelution girls. :) There seems to be some interest in an herbalist yahoo group. I am already getting really excited about this!!!

So, I've never started one. But several of you have offered to help. I suppose I could start it up and then enlist the help of more experienced people? Does that sound OK? Also, any name ideas?

Here are some neat verses to start us out:

Gen 1:29 Then God said, "Behold, I have given you every herb yielding seed that is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree which has fruit yielding seed; it shall be food for you."

Ps 103:1-3 Bless the LORD, O my soul, And all that is within me, bless His holy name. Bless the LORD, O my soul, And forget none of His benefits; Who pardons all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases.

Gen 1:12 The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed after their kind, and trees bearing fruit with seed in them, after their kind; and God saw that it was good.

UPDATE: I'm headed to the Rebelution conference in a few minutes. After this weekend, things get crazy for me for about a week. When I get back from a trip, I plan to go ahead and start the group. So I hope it's not asking too much to wait. Thanks!!

A Prayer of Thanksgiving!

Wow, 2 blog posts in 1 day?! :P

Please say a prayer of thanks to God after reading this post. He truly is amazing.

http://www.coloradoforequalrights.com/

With this on the ballot, Colorado could soon be abortion free!!! I must admit that I have doubt that it will pass... Oh me of little faith. I need to work on my doubt, and give this to God. With Him all things are TRULY possible!!! I am very excited. This will be on the first ballot that I will ever get to vote on. And I get to be a small part of getting it passed.

The best way to learn ASL?

I hear this question a lot. I'm no expert in ASL. But in my experience, the #1 best way to learn is to be in a class or with a group of people. I think it's so much better to have other people to sign with...in fact, I think you really have to in order to remember the signs well (because you're actually seeing them) and sign correctly (because you either have a teacher who knows the signs already, or you can help eachother to sign correctly) To be honest, since I haven't been in a group or class for a few weeks, I see my signing getting rather sloppy. Time to set up a sign group!

Two of the best ASL websites you will ever visit are http://www.aslpro.com/ and http://www.lifeprint.com/ . Both of these are excellent and have their different strengths. ASLpro has a HUGE dictionary of signs and you can watch the person sign (not just a picture). But I've found that, because they're in a different area of the country, some of the signs are different from the signs used in my area (which, obviously, wouldn't be a problem if you live in that area :) ). Lifeprint is the site for ASL University. There are amazingly well put together FREE lessons. Lord willing, I will be teaching a class next school year using the ASL University curriculum.

So there you go! :) Have a great day!

Caspian!!!

We went to see Narnia today! Yay! The theatre was packed, as expected. But some of our friends were first in line so we got awesome seats!!! It was great! Especially since we went with a very Narnia-obsessed group. : ) Just check out how we're stylin' in our fur coats:

Erin, Christine, me, Sarah

Jordan, Nathan, Johnny, my bro Karl, and Isaac

Pics are courtesy of the Howes. I didn't take my camera. (enter head smacking smiley here) But there were quite a few in our group, many more than are in the pictures. It was a great day!