Gone Fishing!

 

 

We are blessed at our new rental with trails through the woods and a fishing pond. The boys have already hosted quite a few fishing expeditions.. with our friends the Popes, the Kings, The Parsons, Nana and Papa. Here are a few pics from some recent fishing fun and special company.

 

 

Grant, Isaac and Ryan catch some trout

Autumn and the girls all head to the pond to see the boys' catch

Who made Amanda hold the fish? Ryan.. you *know* better than that! :-)

 

Gracie on the hike home

Gracie and Laura

Gracie helps her sister over a rough spot

 

 

Nana comes for a visit too!

 

The 'Little Ladies' are thrilled with Nana's stories and company

 

Papa and Grant

The boy in their element

 

Cousin Austin and Justin were able to come to our home during their trip from California.

 

Cousin Austin

 

 

 

Sweet Fellowship

 We have been so blessed to be invited into a little group of Believers here in Lewis County. These 2 families have been meeting as families for a few years now and have welcomed us with open arms into their little house gatherings. We have been so encouraged by their fire and zeal for the Lord which has recently caused a lot of changes for both families. It is amazing to hear how the Lord is moving them and changing them.. they want to be followers of Jesus.. not just with lip service but with their whole lives. They bring our family so much conviction, encouragement and joy and we are so blessed to be fellowshipping with them.

Little House in the Big Woods

Well, actually it is a double wide in the Big Woods! :-) We looked everywhere for a rental.. everything being $1,100 a month with a one year lease, first, last + deposit. We were so grateful to find a great older double wide out in the 'sticks' out toward Mt. Rainer for $600 per month! Yay! It means a longer commute for Grady on the days that he has to go to town to work.. but all in all it will end up allowing us to spend less and prayerfully save for BZ

We agreed to clean up after the last tenants which also lowered the first month's rent. The children are loving it.. a fishing pond on the property, being close to their favorite lake.. having property and woods to traipse around in.

The front of the rental

 

The back side

 

Trimming back the overgrown hedge

 

 

 

 

 

The former tenants left a lot of junk behind.. we agreed to gather it all together for a dump run

 

We salvaged this for Laura though..

 

Ashley works on the bathtub.. see the line? eeewww!

 

 

One thing we have noticed about this new house, being at a higher elavation, it gets CHILLY at night, even on warm and sunny days..

 

Yay! After 2 days of cleaning, we got it up to snuff and ready to move in!

We are so grateful for our little house in the BIG woods! We look forward to a few hikes and trips up to the mountain this summer. We are so blessed.. The Lord is so good to our family ♥

 

 

 

Happy Birthday Daddy!!!!

 

Ryan surprised us by setting up the gazebo to have a birthday lunch for daddy!

Even the little girls have a nice set up!

 

The next day our new neighbors came over for some fellowship and birthday cake

 

It was a concerted effort, making dad's favorite.. cherry cheesecake

 

Grant's favorite job

 

The finished product!

 

The biggest goes to daddy..

 

Happy Birthday to a wonderful Daddy and Husband!

 

Our new dear friends..♥

 

Fixin' to Move

The King family allowed us to rent their home from them at a lowered cost in exchange for doing a few fix-ups and minor repairs before being put on the market. The house is on the market now, the list is finished.. time to move again until our big move BACK to BZ, Lord willing in the fall!

Ryan gets to work tearing down the fort in the front yard!

He got it down in a manner of just a half hour!

 

Grady replaced the flooring in the dining room and kitchen..

 

 

The floor looked super nice after it was completed!

 

Outside, the younger children are doing some yard work!

 

Looks nice Grant!

 

Gracie gets a ride

 

Laura..' hmmm.. raking looks fun!'

 

What are they up to now? It appears that Grant has covered a box in yard clippings..

 

To make a bed for this over-worked 5 year old! ;)

 

And her baby of course!

 

Ok now that's creative... it's a grassmobile!

 

The Kings came up from their new home in Oregon for a few days in order to load up the rest of their things and help with the last minute clean up and prep for their house. Also, we had our last home fellowship meeting with the Kings and another family.

 

The King children give rides on their go-cart

 

Wheeee!

 

These guys have been friends for 7 years! Hard to imagine..

 

We got quite a bit nostalgic while cleaning up and packing to leave. We had made so many wonderful memories in that house with the King family..the beginning of our small fellowship 5 years ago with the Kings and the Gray family, picnics, parties, classes, sing-alongs, birthday celebrations, shared meals, work parties, Bible studies, prayer meetings.. the list goes on and on. Well, I suppose there are new memories to make and new fellowship to be enjoyed. But there will always be something extra sweet about the times spent here. With our very special friends.