Paris

Over the past few years, we have accrued a nice amount of frequent flyer miles and so we thought we would cash them in and take a little trip. We were able to book two free tickets as well as free lodging to Paris. It was only for a few days, but that was enough just to get away and enjoy one another and see some sights. Magdala and Annaliese graciously took care of the boys and Josie stayed with the Gollans. So, we took Justin and toured around the city, packing in as much as we could in 3 days. We saw the Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe, Notre Dame, Musee D'orsay, Sacre Couer, the Louvre and took a boat tour on the Seine River. But I think our favorite afternoon was spent at a beautiful park by our hotel where we just relaxed under a tree and played with Justin. We are thankful that we had the chance to get away together and see this beautiful city. Check out our picture link to see our photos...

No more babies...

Well, folks, we spoke too soon. No more babies. Our four little baby hamsters did not make it. We thought Alyona was acting strange and neglecting the little guys. And she actually ate them. Yuck! But as we have read, that is pretty commom for the first litter. Maybe she will have more in the future... Oh, and Anya is now named Sasha.

Those aren't apricots.

As you know we purchased 2 hamsters a month ago. I thought it would be fun to bring them home and surprise my kids...maybe even give them some responsibility. Well my kids named them after two girls in our little town, but have yet to clean the cage. I guess it just defaults to dad on a weekly basis. We have enjoyed them a lot but today we were in for a surprise. My wife called me in hysterics to say our hamster was having babies. At first she said she thought I had placed some apricots in the cage to be funny but after a closer look, they began to move. Well, we are a little surprised because we have (or are supposed to have) 2 females. Christy and I have been online looking up info about hamster babies. We now have four little additions to our family!

Survivor Ukraine

After 1 week of camping I have returned refreshed and pondering the events of my adventure. For those who may be unaware as to where I camped...I will explain. Take 120 students and teens, boat them all out to an island (on the Dnipro river), add mosquitos, games, camp fires, tents, Bible teaching and fellowship. Mix together. What do you get? Survivor Ukraine! Its all good though because no one gets voted off and we all come back home encouraged in the Lord. This year's theme was Love and Go. Love God (vertical), Love others (horizontal), then Go and spread the good news. It was a great camp!

I took my daughter Josie this year. She is 5 going on 12. She supplied endless entertainment and displayed her drama skills often. These were some comments made by Josie-Jo (made while in hysterics)...

"I don't want to go into the deep part of the water with my floaties on." Why Josie? "Because the fishies might bite my floaties and pop them and I will sink."

"I don't want to eat Rzhshiv's food, I only to eat want Kaharlyk's food."

She is quite a character, that is for sure! Next year we are thinking about taking the whole fam!!!

What's that smell?

Recently our family returned from a week long trip in Hungary. Upon entering our kitchen after the trip, we noticed a pungent odor that filled the room. Our search of smell led us to a package of milk that had broken and leaked all over the floor. It was in the cabinet above the fridge, so it left its trail down as gravity ran its course. Christy and I quickly pulled the fridge out and began cleaning. After the whole ordeal we thought we had solved the problem only to find the smell continued to flourish days later. I decided to do a more thorough cleaning and search for the problem. I discovered that the broken milk package left its "trail" down the back of the fridge and collected itself in a catch basin. It was a cesspool and pretty gross. After carefully removing and cleaning the catch basin...we now have a clean smelling kitchen. So...whats the point? Well, the Lord seems to minister to me a lot through the experiences of life. As I was cleaning this is what came to mind....

Everything the Lord created was good. He called it that because He created it in an environment where it was intended. But when sin entered the world, the environment was disrupted, and death came as a result. The refrigerator is a safe environment, the place where milk will stay fresh and good. But when it is removed from its intended place, it begins to sour and get disgusting over time. What is intended to be good turns gross. Its kind of like how our flesh fights against what God directs and commands. When we follow the flesh, we begin to justify our behavior and say its not so bad at first, but time reveals the extent of the problem. Going against God always stinks. It always leaves a "trail" as well. We may try and clean it up, but the real smell lies at the catch basin (the source). Its until the source is cleaned, (repentance and forgiveness) that the smell will go away. And we again realize, yes...God is always right, even when our flesh says otherwise.

A little about me...

I am five months old now and my life is such an adventure. I am experiencing new things every day. I am a happy baby and everyone says I have a cute smile. My sister and brothers like to play with me, but sometimes they get a little crazy. My mommy wants me to share about some of my first experiences...

~ I just got two teeth! With a little pain and a lot of drool!!!
~ I started crawling! I have places to go, people to see...
~ I started eating cereal! Yummy, yummy!
~ I am a world traveler! First to Ukraine, then a road trip to Hungary!
~ I swam in water! At the Blue Lakes and the pool at the Bible College...

That is just the beginning, folks! There is a whole world out there for me to explore. I'll keep you posted on my new adventures!!!

Love,
Justin

Our trip to Hungary

Well, we just made it back from our trip to Hungary, safe and sound. What a trip it was! First of all, we want to thank the McNamees for encouraging us to go because it was wonderful! Here's a rundown of our travels...

We started out our journey on Saturday morning and drove 8 hours to Ternopil. We took a look at the city, found some food and a checked in to a hotel. On Sunday, we drove through the Carpathian mountains, which were absolutely gorgeous, and stopped at a small village for the night at the home of Anya's friend, Vitalek. He and his family took us into the woods for a barbeque. The kids had a blast lighting sticks on fire and exploring the forest. The next day proved to be the most challenging as we crossed the border (which took 3 hours) and plotted out our own route to Vajta. Needless to say, we should have used the route offered by Mapquest. After another 8 hours of driving, we arrived at the Bible College, haggard and hungry.

The 5-day stay at the conference center was every bit worth the drive. The teaching was excellent and we especially enjoyed the sessions taught by our old pastor Tom Stipe. It was nice to hear worship in English led by Scott Cunningham, but the sounds of people singing in Ukrainian and Hungarian made it even more beautiful. There was a group of 40 from the Kiev church, so Ukraine was well represented. We also were surprised to meet up with some old friends of ours, Frank and Suzie Gonzalez. They were youth pastors at CC South Bay before moving to Poland a few years ago as missionaries. Most of our evenings after the teachings were spent hanging in the coffeeshop catching up with them.

Josie and Jaden had a great time in their classes, where the teachers took them through a VBS program that focused on Paul's missionary journeys. Josie was thrilled to be in class with her buddy, Gretchen Larson, and the two were inseparable. Jeremy had a little harder time attending his class, as he is going through the "I only want Mommy" phase. But after about 10 minutes each time, he was fine and he soon became a class favorite of the teachers, showing off his puzzle and alphabet skills. We were so impressed by the childcare and children's programs and were very thankful for the chance to listen to sermons and not have to worry about the kids.

Other highlights of the conference were the afternoons at the pool, the delicious coffee drinks and having quiet times in such beautiful surroundings. I personally was very encouraged by the women's sessions, where the Lord spoke to me about my need to sit at His feet. Intimacy is an area that is hard for me, but I am seeing how important it is in my life to be close to my Lord. What I do for Him or don't do for Him is not as important as my relationship with him.





After 5 days of encouragement and rest, we packed up and headed back to Ukraine. But first, we decided to go through Budapest to see the sights and spend the night. And equally important, go to IKEA. After loading up our van with furniture and other fun stuff, we walked around the town and ate dinner at Burger King. Budapest is truly a beautiful city. We stayed at an old castle made into a hotel called the Citadella. The hotel had a display of photographs of children in war, which was interesting, but quite graphic. Micah and I had a chance to stroll along the mountain outside of the hotel which overlooks the city. Very romantic!

The trip home was fairly uneventful. It was a long drive, but the scenery helped. We were very impressed by how well the kids did in the car throughout the trip. What a blessing it was to have three wonderful helpers, Michelle, Magdala and Anya. We were so happy to be home after 20 hours in the car. There was a little homecoming gift for us when we came home. We thought someone had left us some avacados in the kitchen, but soon realized they were moldy rolls that we had left out before we left. Oops... The aroma is still lingering. All in all, it was a great trip and we are planning to return next year!!! Check out more pictures from the trip on our Picasa web albums!