The next few months January-February on the calendar were a whirlwind of busyness!
New Year's Eve we were invited to another party that the Cyprians threw (at one of the ladies in the church's home)!:D We played games for most of the evening until the new year rang in! Mr. and Mrs. Cyprian came up with some pretty challenging and hilarious games!:)
Mr. and Mrs. Cyprian...:)
Mrs. Quakenbush and her daughter warmly opened their home for the fun evening and it was a real treat to be able to go!
Playing some good old Dutch Blitz.....
The Cyprians setting up a game that involved, pasta noodles and no hands!;)
And we ended the evening by playing a few rounds of Apples-to Apples-the Bible Version!
New Year's Day dawned a lovely one and we were invited by Uncle Paul to visit his mountain for the day!:) The one requirement was that we were carrying a copy of the Word of God once we came onto the property line. We had a great time of exercise and adventure!
Resting a few minutes before hiking the last leg of the hike!
An epic shot before continuing the journey......
Taking a picture at the top.....;)
One with Ryan!:) The view from the top of the mountain was so lovely!
The sunset was a neat experience to see from the top before we started heading back down!
A few short days later, Joshua turned 11 years old!!;) In honor of the happy occasion, we drove out to Burro Canyon so the guys could go shooting!:) Josh was pretty excited here!
It's always nice to leave the city for the day and enjoy the quiet and scenery of the mountains!
While the guys shot, which we didn't get pictures of, the little ones entertained themselves with the pine cones, pine needles, and rocks. Here Evie was pretty proud of her smiley face!
After shooting all the ammo, Daddy took us all to the Dutch Store where we all got to pick a treat and share the "fellowship of food" on the benches outside!:) Simple things in life can be so much better together, rather than being alone and having the extravagant!
Back at home, Joshua got his cupcake cake and we enjoyed celebrating with him! So glad we have our Jo-Bo!! We love him very much! Happy 11th Birthday, Joshy!!:)
The following pictures are cute moments of our little girls! Matching jammies Daddy bought Evie and Hannah! They say, "Mommy's favorite Christmas Present!"
Some cute dollies in the crib.....;)
Daniel bought this wig for his puppet he used for the Bus ministry at church and one day we decided to try it on Evie!:)
Dad and the older guys drove up to Ironwood again for the Nehemiah Work Week, this year! They took David Spears, with them and enjoyed an eventful and productive week of hard work, and fun filled evenings!
A nice new sign......
The work started right away.......
A lovely sunset......
Enjoying dinner after a hard day's work!
The outside area of the Hacienda....
A quick selfie!
Davd and Ryan putting on skirting for a mobile home.....
Daniel and Isaiah setting concrete with Shad and Mr. Wayne-friends from the summer time!
Before the guys knew it, the week was over and they drove home early Saturday morning to make it in time for the Cyrpians Wedding Vow Renewal Ceremony at church!:D It was the first one we had ever witnessed and really enjoyed it as Mr. Cyprian kept things formal but fun loving with his good naturedness!;)
Our family was asked to help with clean-up after the reception....Ryan ran the sanitizer with Joe's help!
Meanwhile Isaiah and I washed while Daniel, Natey and Caytlin dried. We make a good team as siblings and it was neat to see how our past camp experiences gave us an edge on the whole experience!
The following Monday was Martin Luther King and my 23rd birthday! We had the opportunity to get some of us in at Knotts through some friends, and others a good discount! We invited our friends Anna and Andy Young to come with us. We had been told it would be very empty but that report wasn't correct at all. In fact it was so crowded we went on TWO rides the whole day we were there and spent most of it in lines but, we had a wonderful time just being together! Now that's real friendship...;)
We met the rest of the family for dinner at Chili's and to celebrate. We had a great time but missed having Anna as she had to tutor for the evening!
Feeling very blessed with two of my special birthday gifts...;)
The following week, we decided to go on a family school field trip to the Creation Museum of Earth History and Science. Before going to the museum we stopped for a bruch at Chick Fil A.
Daddy treated us to Frosted Lemonades!:) During our meal we met a homeschool mom who was selling history storybooks with a Christian perspective, which was all the Lord's timing as we "happened" to be there the last time she would be selling those books at that specific location! God's timing is always best!
Matching, we enjoyed an eventful day in our school t-shirts!:)
We enjoyed a snack of gummie bears, homemade fudge, and Juice Squeeze before loading up in the van for the trip home!
We ladies had fun attending the baby shower for Mrs. Scott's 3rd baby with the ladies at church!:)
Evie and Laurali Scott...:)
Enjoying refreshments and fellowship after the gift and devotional time were over....
On the way way home we stopped by to visit the Frendls since we were in the area!
Letting Mamama meet little Hannah...
Always feel short when standing beside Mark
The month of February started with Jon and Ashlee's Wedding! We were very happy to see them get married and the ceremony was held at a private secluded garden overlooking beautiful scenery! While I was able to get pictures of the ceremony, the reception was very busy so I was able to borrow a few of the photographers shots! She did a good job!
The wedding party with Mr. and Mrs. Jon Kindred! Congratulations!!!:)
Another wonderful sign made by Daniel for the happy couple!
A picture with the lovely Mrs. Kindred! Congratulations to my dear friend, Ashlee!:)
The Saturday before Valentines Day Dad and Mom attended the Couples Refresher at church and had a good time!:)
Later that same evening, while everyone was in bed, some of us were decorating and preparing for another Michael John Family Restaurant Event! Caytlin and Natey stepped in to help me test the our "photo corner" for the day!:D
Valentines Morning was a Baby/Parent Dedication at church in which our whole family took part in! We matched for the special occasion, with new homemade jumpers for the ladies and new dress shirts for the men!:)
A picture with Pastor Thompson and Mrs. Thompson during the dedication....:)
Some of us young people hurried home a bit earlier than usual to prepare for the guests coming.....
To start off, the couples were seated for a short video presentation-the Father's Love Letter. The video link is below:
We also showed at request, one of our homemade "Spade Wonder" movies.......
Mr. and Mrs. Ash, dear friends from church, were first time guests for this event!:)
Daddy and Mommy....:) The guests of honor and inspiration for the restaurant!
Nathanael, our waiter seated them after the video presentation, and drinks were ordered.
After a light salad and some homemade sparkling apple cider served, the couples had a few games to play. One of them involved chocolate chips, a piece of paper, a blindfold, a partner and good ears!;) While the one spouse was blindfolded, the other one would direct the blindfolded spouse (using only his/her voice) how to create the picture of a cross using the chips,
You definfitely have to pay attention and know your spouses voice over the other voices talking! This game went really well and was thoroughly enjoyed by us "staff" watching, as well as the couples participating!:D
After a yummy meal, during which we left the couples have a break from pictures, we played another fun game. Here Evie joined her favorite friend at church!;)
How well could you draw a smiley face on top of your head??
Daddy concentrating hard......
All done, Mom decided to look at hers.....
To close the fun afternoon, we presented each couple with a heart of chocolates to share, a bag of homemade fudge for the men and a single red rose for the ladies! After that everyone sat on the couch and visited until evening service time.:)
Shortly after the busy Valentines weekend, we had a visit from one Dad's biological cousins, Jarod and his family, who were visiting! They had been in contact through facebook and were excited to finally meet face to face!
Elijah, Cousin Jarod's youngest son, enjoyed the slide!;)
A group picture of us siblings with Jarod, Heather, Kaleb, and Elijah....
One of the married couples and Hannah:)
Lego buddies.....Kaleb and Evie are around the same age!
Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,
And into His courts with praise.
Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.
For the Lord is good;
His mercy is everlasting,
And His truth endures to all generations.
Psalm 100:4-5
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