Little Cabin in the Woods

We found a house!
Yes - a cute, adorable cabin in the woods.
It's a 3-bedroom, 2-bath home on an acre.
It has a wrap around porch, wood buring stove and a sun room!
And a nice backyard for the kids to play - with a sandbox too!
And the last tenants made a firepit in the corner of the lot, for a small bonfire! =)

It should be a great home to be in for a year.
(We're renting it, not buying yet)
We want to be out of town with some peace and quiet for awhile.
And it will bring just that.
It has lots of trees and a nice view of the mountains and valley.
We're really excited about our next year in this house!

We move in on Saturday ...
then the job search will begin.
So, keep praying for us - we're far from being settled.
At least, we're one step closer.

10 things I love about Flathead Valley, Montana

1) There are only 900,000 people in the entire state.

2) Ferns grow under pine trees.

3) Tamarack pine trees turn gold in the fall.

4) The crisp & clean pollution-free, fresh air.

5) The golden farmlands that butt right up to the mountains.

6) Christmas tree and cherry tree farms.

7) The sunsets! (I don't usually see too many sunrises!!)

8) No traffic jams or rush hours.

9) All the open space land and wildlife.

10) The slower pace of life that Montanans live.

Pictures at last!

I finally made it to City Brew. Nothing like a cup of coffee (a french press, that is), the laptop (with internet access) and a little Jack Johnson playing in the background.

I didn't post too many pictures of the scenery ...
but can do if you'd like to see some of Yellowstone and more of the Tetons.

It was a great trip. We are glad to be here in Montana. God has us in a new season and we're excited to see what He has in store for us.

My favorite pics - in Jackson, Wyoming

Camping and driving!

The Grand Tetons!

Rental house hunting

Today was mostly fun ... driving all over Kalispell and Whitefish looking for a place to live. We were "driving by" potential rental properties. Most of them were just that - "drive by's" - not many we wanted to see inside. I don't like the idea of signing a 12-month lease, although Steve seems to be ok with it. I'd rather find another home to buy in which we (Steve) could finish another basement.

We have truly become homeless! I think that instead of finding a place to live ... we'll just move around the valley. We can stay here in Big Fork for awhile, then move across the lake to Lakeside and stay with friends over there for awhile ... then maybe stay with someone in Kalispell for awhile. Who says we need a house anyhow?!?! Why not just be moochers / drifters for the winter? It'd save us alot of money anyhow. (Please don't think for a minute that I'm even half way serious!)

So stay tuned ... we're bound to figure something out sooner or later. Meanwhile, we're making some fun memories!!!

Still no pics!

Sorry!
Still no wireless connection.
No laptop...
which is where all my pics have taken up residence.
Bummer.

Happy 8th Anniversary to us!

Yesterday we celebrated our 8th anniversary.
It wasn't very romantic.
We had no "time to ourselves."
But it will be one of the most memorable!

We ate lunch at MacKenzie River Pizza Company - our favorite Montana Restaurant.
And of course, we ate the "bell ranch" pizza with a house salad.
A stop at Rocky Mountain Roasters for a cup of java.
Then spent the afternoon (7 hours) in the car driving to Kalispell,
with a dinner stop in Sealey Lake for hamburgers.

We will always remember this anniversary ...
the one on which we made a major transition in our lives.
The one on which we arrived in Kalispell to begin a new life.

My husband - deserving of praise.
He loves me.
He loves our kids.
He is making this move to Montana because he loves us.
He wants what is best for us, for our marriage, for our kids.
He wants to make a better life for us.
He's doing the best he knows how.

How can I ask for more?
I feel loved.
I feel protected.
I feel provided for.
My husband loves me well.

Happy anniversary to us!

Feelin' out of touch

No internet access ...
No time to read blogs ...
No time to post on my blog ...
No cell phone service ...
I guess that's what happens when one is camping in the mountains - oh well!

We're in Bozeman, Montana now.
I still don't have internet access from my computer, so no pictures yet, sorry!

Our trip here was about what I expected.
The kids did relatively well.
We didn't get much sleep the first 2 nights.
We all slept great the last 3 nights.
We saw lots from the car ... and a few things from outside of the car.

**Rocky Mountain National Park was nothing more than a drive through.
- Set up camp, made dinner, went to bed, made breakfast, tore down camp, on the road again.
- Picnic lunch in the park ... just kept driving.

**Steamboat, Colorado was more of the same.
- Quick drive through the town, set up camp, made dinner, took showers (that was interesting), went to bed, made breakfast, tore down camp, on the road again.

**We had a couple of hours in Jackson, Wyoming.
- Hit the local coffee roaster, walked around town, even went into a couple of shops, ate lunch in a cute restaurant on the patio ...

**A bit more time in the Tetons.
- On to the camp site (only to find it was full), on to the next camp site, set up camp, took naps, walked down to the Jackson lake, drove to Jenny lake, went to bed, made breakfast, tore down camp, on the road again.

**Even more time in Yellowstone.
- To the camp site first, took much needed naps! Then to Old Faithful, which the kids hated ... as they both were in tears, crying, "Water coming to get me!"
- Good night sleep, nevermind the cold night!
- Had lots of fun seeing "inspiration point" and the "Grand Canyon" of Yellowstone. Spectacular!
- Saw some buffalo, elk and a few ducks.
- On the road again to Gardner ... Livingston ... and Bozeman.

Sleeping in the tent, eating outside, playing in the dirt and throwing rocks will be the better memories for the kids.

Although camping with 2 toddlers had it's trying moments, I would most definetely do it again. We had a good time.

Now here we are in Bozeman with our friends the Balians ... jumping on the trampoline and enjoying some sweet time with this family of 10 kids! We absolutely love our times here - and the kids do too.

Should be in Kalispell on Tuesday or Wednesday. Then, will hope to get internet access so you can enjoy some of the fun pics we took.

Until then, have a beautiful day!

On the road again ...

Our bags are packed, we're ready to go ...
to Montana we go.

First stop ... Estes Park and Rocky Mountain National Park.
Then on to Steamboat, Colorado
Jackson Hole, Wyoming and the Grand Tetons
Yellowstone National Park
Bozeman, Montana
and then Kalispell.

Follow us on our journey. We'll post pics and tell stories as often as we can find internet access! =)

Camping with the kids might be more of an adventure than we bargained for ... but we're looking forward to it nonetheless.

See you on the road.

A couple of great quotes

John Wesley once said: "Give me one hundred preachers who fear nothing but sin and desire nothing but God ... such alone will shake the gates of hell and set up the kingdom of heaven on earth."

Bonhoeffer writes: "A man who confesses his sins in the presence of a brother knows that he is no longer alone with himself; he experiences the presence of God in the reality of the other person. As long as I am by myself in the confession of my sins everything remains in the dark, but in the presence of a brother the sin has to be brought to light."

Life is just so messy!

Oh, my heart aches.
The tears, the pain, the frustration.
The fall of man - it's always before me.
No matter where I go or what I do,
I hurt people and they hurt me!
I sin against them and they sin against me.

Living in this fallen world is one of the most difficult things about the Christian life.
Learning to live Christ-like ... oh the challenge!
I say things I shouldn't say and hurt the people I love the most.

I can relate to Paul, when he wrote in Romans ...
"Did that which is good, then, bring death to me? By no means! It was sin, producing death in me through what is good, in order that sin might be shown to be sin, and through the commandment might become sinful beyond measure. For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am of the flesh, sold under sin. I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law that it is good. So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me.

So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? THANKS BE TO GOD THORUGH JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin."

Oh how I hate this tension.
All I can do is pray that God by His grace and mercy will forgive me every time I mess up ... as well as the people whom I hurt around me.
And I continue to pray that I will be conformed more and more into the image of His Son ... so that I do what is right and not let evil have its way.

God help me!

Definition of Blogger

I often get asked by my non-blogging friends, "what the heck is blogging?"

I found this on a fellow bloggers blog and think it perfectly describes us bloggers! =)

Blogger .n. Someone with nothing to say, writing for someone with nothing to do.

Being earthly - but not worldly

"Our task, our tension, our balancing act, is to live in the world and not be worldly. To participate in culture - the ways humans organize, the things they make, the possibilities they imagine - without succumbing to the worldly pride and greed that permeates these organizations, things and possibilities. We must be earthly without being worldly." - Nathan Bierma

Sometimes I don't even think I'm earthly. I feel very disconnected from the world - caught up in my Christian bubble world ... and submerged in my own family life. I do hope that this next season of life brings me to a place where I can better connect myself to this world in which we live.

Catching up with Steve

After a week away - hauling all of our earthly possessions to Montana - Steve is back again. I can't say he's home because we don't have a home right now. But he his back! It's always a happy reunion. The kids really missed him this time!

Since he got home Thursday night we have had a date afternoon - lunch and starbucks... Spent Saturday in CSpring visiting an old and dear friend... Had a date night Saturday night - dinner and Barnes & Noble... Hung out with the kids this morning and then spent the afternoon with an '04 Academy grad... and just got back from dinner with friends in Denver. Whew! We have been having tons of fun!

At last, I think we're feeling a bit more relaxed. Although we have no idea where we will live when we get to Kalispell or what Steve will do for work - we're trying to enjoy the down time we have right now. It's nice to have some "time off" to enjoy each other and do fun things with the kids. The stress will most likely set in once we set foot in Kalispell. Until then.. we're trying to ignore all the stress points. =)

Should be here for another week - 10 days. Then we will map out our trip to Montana, with plans to get to Kalispell the last week of August. We're enjoying this adventure we are on ... just waiting to see what God might have in store for us around the corner.

Heaven

I picked up Randy Alcorn's book "Heaven" awhile back. Besides the fact that it was far too long ... I just couldn't get through it. He was too wordy for me and tried too hard to portray himself as an expert on the subject.

On the other hand, I've been reading "Bringing Heaven Down to Earth" by Nathan L. K. Bierma. It is a great read. Our training director, Jay Lorenzen, said, "Stop! whatever you do, get this book." So, I did and have enjoyed every page.

Take Jay's advice and add it to your read list, if you haven't already.

Below is a quote from his book which I entitled "sin oozes."

Sin oozes

"Sin is not just a violation of God's moral order but also the disordered state of the human heart, human relationships and human society. This disorder is the context in which we all live. We live in a constant state of compound decay. Creation isn't marred here and there by distinct sinful acts; it is polluted, poisoned and pervaded by the stain of sin.

Sin spreads like grease on a napkin. Sin oozes, it creeps, it seeps. It functions as a virus. Wrongness embellishes wrongness; a minor lie breeds a major lie, an abusive father rears children who become abusive parents, a flirtatious joke becomes an adulterous affair. Sin feeds on itself, has a life of its own once it is unleashed. Our sin infects our children, their children, the whole world."

Nothing more to add... just ponder.

Belleview Park - Riding the Train

What a fun day! A short train ride, petting farm, a playground, lunch at Qdoba ... now sitting on the back porch, laptop on lap. Biggest bummer - daddy is in Montana and wasn't with us. Would have been more fun to have him with us. But grandma and Auntie Shawn made it an extra special day!

Petting Farm

Much like a first born girl, Shiloh just didn't want to get her hands dirty petting animals. But she was all too happyto play with the plastic ones.

Landon, on the other hand - a second born boy, had the time of his life ... petting goats, pigs, cows, chickens, ducks, and getting wet and dirty splashing in the water and playing w/ feed.