Beauty

Let the beauty of Jesus be seen in me,

All His wonders, compassion and purity;

Oh, Thou, the Spirit divine,

All my nature refine --

Let the beauty of Jesus be seen in me.

My October...

...has been busy!

Dear Friends!

I have finally returned, once again! Maybe I'll try and work on being a more steady blogger -- what do ya'll say? :P

Life has been full and busy, and very much incredible! My heart is overflowing, and I praise the Lord for the work He is faithful to continue, and one day to complete, in our lives!

These last several months have been hard, but very exciting as well. Many blessings, as well as trials, have been coming my way. But when the trials come, the Lord is faithful to bring me through them, as He has done for His children throughout the centuries. He is bringing me through the Refiner's Fire, as He is all of His sons and daughters!

I was blessed to be able to spend 15 days with the Herrlinger family at the beginning of the month. The Lord used that time in a big way in my life, teaching me lessons, encouraging, inspiring, and strengthening me. The Herrlinger's are such an amazing family -- their love for the Lord, their strength and stamina, their heart for others -- it's a huge blessing! And no, they're no more perfect than any one of us :) And they are not ashamed to admit that fact, and that is what is so refreshing!
Love you muchly, you guys!!! (((hugs)))

Here are a few pictures from my visit with them :)

Hiking trip at beautiful Hoffmann Hills in Menomonie, WI.

Friends <3

Allison at a moment of great exuberance! :)

Coffee and a movie make the miles pass quickly (right, Annie?? :)

Making supper at the Metz's.

It tasted great -- after it was cooked!! :P

Learning how to milk goats. :)

...And experiencing the beauty of new life!

Jamming!! :)

Adventures...

More jamming :)

Walking to the back pasture on my last day with them...

And taking pictures of each other! :) (Miss you, Andrea!)

LOVE you guys! :D

Thanks so much for everything! :)

(Photo credits: Andrea Herrlinger, and Laurissa Herrlinger :)

Encourage one another daily...

No comment :)

Sugar and spice and everything nice...

...that's what little nieces are made of.

Random photos

Okay, folks -- so I don't usually post random pictures. But, since someone was bugging me tonight to post something so that something comes up other than the quote-en-quote ugly picture of the snow...I searched quickly for a photo to post. Quickly. This is the first thing that proved acceptable in my search, and therefore that is what I chose.

There you have it, folks...my niece -- I mean my sister's doggie.

Do you see what I see?!

SNOW!!!

Pennsylvania trip

After a very blessed trip to Pittsburgh, PA (to pick Mom up)...
...we are all back, safe and sound. I'm sorry for not being in touch sooner -- we've been very, very busy the last couple weeks! I appreciate all of your prayers, everyone! (smile)

:: Brandi and I tackle Jacob ::

:: And I got to go to my precious Giant Eagle...(sorry, family joke I guess (grin)) ::

:: At Mummers' house, where we spent the night (after a straight-through 17-hour-drive!) ::

All in all, it was a very successful, blessed trip -- again, thank you for your prayers! (And if you would happen to think of my sister, Brandi, please continue to pray for her!)

It was so amazing to be back there in PA -- it brought back so many memories. Having been away from 'civilization', so to speak (if you'd visit the U.P. here, you'd know what I was talking about!), it was very different from what I've been used to for the last 3-1/2 years -- something I've missed. (Frankly, I'm not the rural, out-in-the-sticks-where-there's-hardly-a-lick-of-population type of girl. But that's where God has me for now, and I've come to accept it.)

So there you have it, folks -- a very brief outline of our trip to Pittsburgh! (smile)

Recent photos

The promised picture post

Before me, was them...

And then, a couple years later...

And a couple years later...

And a couple years later...

And a couple years later...

And a couple years later...

And a couple years later...

And a couple years later!

So there we are in a nutshell over the past 16 years.

And just for some added fun, I thought I'd share with you all a few home videos from the past couple years. Go ahead and laugh -- I sure did! (big grin)

The naughty 5th-grader squirms out of math. :)

Okay, so maybe this one was a bit corn-y...

And last but not least, my personal favorite. LOL! (I had such a serious look on my face!...and yes, that was a doll.)