for all you bargain shoppers and swappers...

maybe i'm the last one to find out about this, but in case you don't know about it-- i was just introduced to the Freecycle Network... a local egroup you can sign up for to swap stuff with other people who are looking to get rid of the stuff. the only catch is that everything must be absolutely free... so if you have something to post, or are looking for something... it may be a good resource to tap into. there are almost 600 people on Sarnia's Freecycle and i plan on tapping into the Vancouver one. check out the site for your local one... and enjoy!

New Baby!

Congratulations Jesse, Tawyna and Jacob! Olivia was born August 28, 2006!!!
So so excited to meet our new lil niece soon!

Having a hay day in Alberta!!!

the lovely Bismarck, North Dakota...

just a quick update from the road...
we've stayed a night in Ludington, Michigan... taken the ferry across lake Michigan, stayed in St. Paul, Minnesota, and now stopped over at Bismarck for the night. i think this is one of the biggest cities in North Dakota, but Lydia and I took the driving tour of the entire city in about 5 minutes...

noah is doing SO well on the drive... we did a 6 hour day yesterday and he was quite content the whole time. so, as a reward, we allowed him to walk through the hotel in nothing but his underwear.



















(just kidding... we were actually on the way to the pool, which we all thoroughly enjoyed.)

and now it's off to Regina, Saskatchewan for the night...

busy bees!

just wanted to say sorry for the lack of content on our blog lately!
we have been busy, busy... and to my credit, i have been on dial up internet (yes it still exists) which makes downloading pictures a big commitment
... but, stay tuned.
we have great intentions of becoming faithful bloggers... pictures included... in the near future as we enter the world of high speed.
also... the run down of the next while
Aug. 21- on the road to...
Ludington, MI
St. Pauls, MN
Bismarck, ND
Regina, SK
Medicine Hat, AB
Calgary, AB (for 5 nights to see the Walkers!!!!!!! and friends)
Kamloops, BC
Sept 1 - arrive in vancouver!
we no longer have the cell (church phone) but email us to be in touch!

feeling the feather flow...

Although short lived, i did enjoy feeling out the mullet.... so much so i broke into a metalica ballad! (okay maybe not... but man would that have been fun).

Two years ago...

Celebratory Bookends
by Penn Kemp
August 21, 2004

My brother's son was born
days before my father died.

Before, thank heavens, because
grandfather/ child are so alike I
might have come to believe
in instant rebirth.

Twenty-one years later, this
same son is married
near the eye of Florida

hurricane, two days after
his other grandfather slipped
away.

Marriage followed by
funeral. But in the eyes
of this Christian family,

marriage followed by
heavenly marriage

where the grandfather
passes on home
is recieved as Bride

walking hand in hand
with his Lord, leaving
his widow behind.

So many forms of union.

Happy Anniversary Jonathan and Stephanie!
Remembering your warm hugs and love Grandpa!

only 3 weeks left

getting packed
having small anxiety attacks ;)
and longing to see the "big" trees...

Noah's new hat...

Answered Prayer

God has been so sweet and gentle with us. Every step we have put our worry before our faith, but He has been so good to bring us back and show us whats really going on!
Just for sake of praise I wanted to share some answered prayer... from the beginning of the journey continuing on to just yesterday...
1.) Clearly guided us to Vancouver, and to Regent College
2.) Provided me a job (4 months in advance)
3.) Provided us a place in family residence (when we were 6 months late applying)
4.) Provided an amazing family for both our kitty (August) and dog (Nala)
5.) Sold our house... and provided pretty much the exact amount of money from profit, for Aarons tuition for the next 2 years.
6.) Given us amazing affirmation from our family, friends and church.
and just yesterday
7.) Provided childcare for Noah (what a big relief)
8.) Worked out the details for my nursing lisence... which was looking grim for a few days!
-there are so many more... those are some of the biggies that came to mind.

Here is a little exert from a journal entry in early April, please don't critique my writing (ha ha)... just wanted to share part of the journey:

Darkness, confusion, lost
unable to get my barings
unable to see the small compass needle
that will lead me.
"Just go North", loses it's significance
when North is unseen.

But you take my hand,
entwine your fingers within mine,
and lead me gently.
Darkness remains, yet peace falls.
"I trust You", I say, not even knowing Your name
Am i trusting or lying?
unsure i just continue,
for the new peace feels warm and homelike.

... and your hands, so strong, so tender.
I want to look up and find your face in the darkness,
and ask... "what's next papa?"

here's one idea of how to fight gobal warming...

anyone up for re-routing the earth's orbit around the sun?
hmmm....

Jehovah-Rapha (pt. II)

sorry about the lack of action on our blog lately. we've been consumed with packing, worrying, obsessing, and downsizing over the past couple of weeks. we've been getting ready for our good old fashioned yard sale on the 15th, which means going through everything we own and deciding whether it's worthy to "keep", "store", or "sell". nevertheless... time moves on and we are a mere 6 weeks from our impending departure. wow.

in a previous post we asked you to pray for a little baby girl in our life with health concerns. it's my little niece, Peyton, who is one of the twins born to my sister in early March. Her brother, Jace, is doing great and packing on the pounds like a Nicholson can only do. Peyton has been eating well and gaining weight as well, but a few weeks ago my sister began to have a few developmental concerns with Peyton. Long story short, she was wondering if it would be Cerebral Palsy or some other neurological disorder. An MRI and several doctor's appointments later they discovered that it is Joubert Syndrome. The website does a better job of describing exactly what it is, so i'll step aside and quote directly from the FAQ page...

What is Joubert Syndrome?
Joubert Syndrome is a very rare genetic disorder in which there are congenital problems which fit into a recognizable pattern of features.

What are the characteristics of Joubert Syndrome?
The most typical features of Joubert Syndrome include:

Absence or underdevelopment of part of the brain called the cerebellum vermis which controls balance and coordination.
A malformed brain stem, which may cause an abnormal breathing pattern called episodic hypernea, in which babies pant, and may be followed by apnea (cessation of breathing).
Abnormal eye and tongue movements.
Decreased muscle tone. It can be marked in the neonatal period and in infancy.
Seizures (less typical).
How is Joubert Syndrome diagnosed with an MRI?
Please see the "Molar Tooth" MRI scan on the Diagnostic section.

How is Joubert Syndrome inherited?
Joubert Syndrome is inherited in an autosomal recessive manner. Both parents are carriers of the gene. Genetic testing is not currently available to detect this condition. Parents who have a child with Joubert Syndrome have a 1 in 4 chance of having another affected child in another pregnancy. Prenatal testing with a level 3 ultrasound may be possible.

What is the prognosis for Joubert Syndrome?
While global developmental delay is frequent, health and growth are usually not severely affected. Commonly there is a degree of mild or moderate retardation. Severe mental retardation is uncommon. There are a few cases of affected individuals with normal intelligence or learning abilities.

What is the treatment for Joubert Syndrome?
Infant stimulation, physical therapy, occupational therapy, and speech therapy are valuable. Somewhat less traditional therapies such as auditory training, sensory integration, horseback therapy and water therapy have also been found to be very beneficial. Infants with abnormal breathing should have apnea monitoring.

Needless to say this news has been crushing for our family, and devastating to my sister and brother-in-law. The effects of this disease can really range from a minor learning disability to physical and mental handicap. The Ultra Sound just revealed that her kidneys are perfectly normal, which is a huge answer to prayer. So at this point, it's just a bunch of tests, waiting, more waiting, and even more waiting to see how she develops. The good news is that some of their initial concern was based on the fact that Peyton wasn't smiling or laughing and she just did for the first time last week.

Lydia and I have bought a candle that is our reminder to pray for Peyton. We light it as we're praying and it serves as a visual reminder and tangible way that we can see our prayer time being logged on a candle burning down to nothing. (i think we got this idea from Phil and Ruth back in the fall when Todd died?)...

as a parent this stuff really causes you to step back, question, get angry, grieve, hope, pray, wait, and every other emotion under the sun.

will you send up a quick prayer for Peyton?

religious imagery in culture

for those of you who have enjoyed the group effort of whatsomeonesaw, a new project along the same lines has been started entitled religious imagery in culture. the title is pretty much self explanatory... check it out if you so desire.

a well earned week at the cottage...

dog vs. self

ever have one of these days?

Jehovah-Rapha (The Lord your Healer)

We have been overjoyed and filled with praise... for the physical healing He has done in our close friend. Amen! A cancerous tumor bigger than a football... gone!

Yet so saddened and worried for a little baby we love so very much! May You heal her too! May we be surprised at Your power again!

Please, please pray with us, for this little baby.


Mark 1:40-42 Then a leper came to Him, imploring Him, kneeling down to Him and saying to Him, "If You are willing, You can make me clean." And Jesus, moved with compassion, put out His hand and touched him, and said to him, "I am willing; be cleansed." As soon as He had spoken, immediately the leprosy left him, and he was cleansed.

identifying with poverty

i've always wanted to do this, especially with our youth.
a christian author by the name of criag borlase... author of "God's Gravity: The Upside Down Life of Selfless Faith" (i've never read it but i'll plug it since i'm talking about him...) is setting out to live on $1 a day for a week. his reasoning for this is simply because 1 in 5 people in the world live on this much or less to sustain themelves. and 50,000 a day die of malnutrition. that wipes out Sarnia in a day and a half.

but i always thought this would be a great exercise for our youth and leaders, or our small group, or some type of community to really understand and identify with those who are experiencing the slow death of malnutrition and poverty.

you can check out his reasoning behind this "stunt" (his word) and track his blog throughout the week here...

it seems that great ideas are flowing now that i only have 2 months left to implement them in our youth ministry... maybe i'll try to squeeze this one in before i go. and maybe i'll ask you all to join us too.

all that said, i wouldn't even know where to begin.
and how do you choose between soap and food or toothpaste and transportation on a given day?

it's got me thinking anyway.
we'll see.

the ultimate prank

ok, i know.
it's juvenile.
but it's also funny.

check these videos out.
here and here.

a photo essay of our life...

yes, it's true. the house sold... papers signed, sticker up... sold.
the new owners take posession on August 28th but we'll be long gone by then!
we get our new place in Vancouver on September 1st, which means we'll be homeless for a week, living the life of the streets. just kidding... we're road-tripping west with a stop for a few days in calgary to see our new niece and nephew along with my sister, brother-in-law, and nephew.

with the sale of our home we've started putting things in boxes for storing or packing. it's a lot of stuff to go through and it's hard to know what to take and leave, but as you can see, some decisions are easier than others...

while going through our stuff we came across our own personal action figures that were bought for us a couple of years ago by a friend. she was in ikea and saw these in the children's section (and believe it or not they were even packaged together...)

lydia is back to work 2 days a week and doing a great job as a nurse!! she is in a different unit now as the hospital has had a lot of shuffling going on over the past year. she has already secured a job out west at the hospital across the street from Regent. way to go lyd!!

and of course, with all the work going on in our lives we have to make sure we find lots of time to play. we've been at the beach quite a bit as the weather has been great this past week...

and what good is the beach if you can't eat a little sand while you're there?

God's terrible grace.

i have wrestled with whether or not i should post this, but i guess i just need to get it off my chest...

when lydia works night i usually take the opportunity to watch about 3 or 4 tv shows at once, flipping back and forth between channels. one of the shows that unfortunately caught my attention was a special that was taking place on dateline where they were trying to catch internet predators by having people pretend to be young teenagers inviting these predators over to their house while their parents are away. when the men would arrive in the house they would quickly be met by the host of dateline who would sit them down and talk with them. the reactions of the men were mainly denial, and some quickly responded with an apology and a promise to never do this type of thing again. then men would leave the house and breath a sigh of relief, thinking, "wow, that was a close one", only to be tackled by about 6 cops, have their picture taken, and be sent to jail. this whole show was disturbing, but i had a sense of peace that justice was being served and that i was seeing these men get caught red handed. but then, at the end of the show the most horrific thing happened. the last predator they profiled was a 40 year old man who believed he was coming to meet a 14 year old boy. the man got out of his car and walk around to the other side and took his 5 year old son out of the back seat and proceeded to walk to the house while holding his son's hand. when the man went inside, the dateline host immediately explained what was going on, so as to not frighten the young boy, and the man was swarmed by cops while the boy was whisked away by a female cop to keep him from seeing what was happening to his poor excuse of a dad. i couldn't help but weep for this boy. i felt sick to my stomach. i turned off the tv. i just stopped and thought, "what the hell is wrong with this world?". it made me so sick.

obviously this bothered me deeply for the next while and when i was trying to fall asleep i couldn't get this guy out of my mind. then the good Christian thought of "well, Jesus died for Him too." came into my mind. it made me so angry. i was furious that God's grace wouldn't stop short of this man... seriously, i'm even ok with God forgiving murderers, thieves, and liars... but i have a short list of people that i think should be taken straight to an eternity of suffering rather than a few years in jail. yes-- we're all sinner, and yes-- i can even say that i'm no better than the murderer or the adulterer. but i would like to think that i'm better than a pedophile. i would like to think that i'm not the same as a rapist in God's eyes.

how is it that something so beautiful as God's grace can seem so terrible within a different context?

if you care to check out the story of Dateline catching predators, you can do it here.