puppy love

 We spent the past two weekends "up the mountain" celebrating Abba's feast days with our friends. Each visit I found myself on Toddler Duty while Arty's Filipino loves-to-cook grandma was focused in the kitchen. Yesterday, Simba and Sasha, two very gentle and patient sisters also were visiting. Arty loved on the dogs (literally) and the dogs were both affectionate and seemingly understanding of his often awkward attempts to interact with them.

40 nights and 40 days

Natale and I have been reading and rereading the story of Noah in a variety of versions from our large collection of children's bibles.  

Natale has practiced her reading skills while reading Noah's Big Boat from the Read-Aloud Bible Stories book.  

We counted 40 days marking a raindrop for each day on our calendar. We have listened to songs about Noah and watched Noah videos on YouTube. 

On Tuesday we measured 450 feet down our dirt road to get a feel of the size of the boat.  

On Wednesday Natale dictated her own retelling of Noah's story while I typed on the computer. We did some revising by reading a story of Noah after her retelling while she listened to see if there were details she hadn't included that would improve her story.  

After revising I unfurled a long sheet of paper and invited Natale to draw the ark. Natale drew the big boat while I printed and cut her story. Together we glued the words to her picture.  

After coloring the rainbow she drew Noah and his family along with some animals while I flipped through magazines and clipped more animals to fill the boat.

We've had a wonderful time with Noah but I believe I hear babbling in the distance.

ps

I sent a quick email to Julie this morning when I found a recipe I thought she would like. Natale was sitting on my lap as I typed and I invited her to write her own note to Julie. She wrote about the cupcake class she had taken. After she pushed the send button she remembered something else she wanted to tell Julie. We talked about PS and sent a second email and a picture...

der jole i frgot to tel you that i lost mi tooth. see mi pekshr  ?

natale

pickin' n grinnin'

 First you find a date tree 

and you shake it, shake it

Dates, Dates, Yum Yum Yum!

Then you take a towel and you 
wash them, wash them.

Dates, Dates, Yum Yum Yum!

 

Then you use your hands to sort them, sort them

Dates, Dates, Yum Yum Yum!

put them on a tray to dry them, dry them.

Dates, Dates, Yum Yum Yum!

it's a date

Last year we totally missed it....September came and went...and the date harvest happened without us. When I realized what had happened I made a big note on September 2013 so that our busy schedule didn't keep us from missing what was important. 

Last week when Jay and I looked at the calendar together it was obvious that if we were going to travel across the state and help with the harvest it had to happen right away. So, despite that fact that we had just returned from New Mexico on Tuesday morning, we packed up late Friday and headed out, this time traveling west for two and a half hours, towards Dateland. 

As always, Abba's timing was perfect. Our elderly friends, working together, had harvested 1 of the 16 trees that had been nurtured for harvesting.  Unlike years in the the past, they didn't have any full time guest living with them to help with the extra work during their most labor intensive time of the year. And they were down in numbers due to the death of one of their members this past spring and the increased dementia symptoms of another member of their "family".  And the extended forecast was looking like rain.

By the time we headed home there were 10 trees harvested, three tables full of dates waiting to be cleaned and sorted, several more boxes of dates  waiting in the wings, and about 30 trays of dates cleaned, sorted, and drying in the greenhouse. Our tried aching muscles and date stuffed bellies were blessed to be able to help our friends.

A bonus perk of helping our visit was enjoying the peaceful oasis of their beautiful property. The years of lives dedicated to living a holy lifestyle has resulted in a shalom saturated environment that leaves one feeling rested despite all the hard work.

This photo is for my sew-loving nieces....

wouldn't you love to have a sewing room like this?

road trip

Jay and I made a  last minute decision to take advantage of the three day weekend and road trip to the far side of New Mexico. As we drove east Tessa's family drove west from the gulf coast of Texas and we met up in Portales, New Mexico to walk and pray over the 55 acres that will be their new home.