summer breeze

I should say this summer has gone by like a breeze. It has been so much fun spending the time with family, especially the kids, who have made this summer so enjoyable. I tried something new at the lake this year - wake surfing. It is like surfing right behind the boat - no straps, no lines - just the board, you and the wake. Jeremy of course picked it up the first time. But it was fun. Other highlights included building a cabin in the woods (not for us), camping, going to local events like the Darke County Fair and the Heritage Festival....and just doing things we love like having cookouts, campfires, and driving to my favorite ice cream joint for the best ice cream ever. All this while working and building our house. And homeschooling. What a blast!

Claire at the lake.

With my AZ cousins at our favorite pizza hangout.

Keeping warm on a cool morning.

Going for a hike. She found her own walking stick.

Elauna, Frederick and Claire after helping on the cabin.

At the Darke County Fair.

Happy kids.

Jeremy getting me ice cream at my favorite ice cream shop!

Elauna just before her tooth was filled....again.

Campfires and good company.

Camping with the kids.

habitat: local build

For July's ministry focus I am featuring Habitat for Humanity. Jeremy and I have worked with them for several years now in different capacities. After Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans, Jeremy led three teams of men down to rebuild homes near the Ninth Ward, over a period of three years. I helped organize and raise funds/supplies here, as it was a men's-only trip. The guys took all the supplies needed down with them. We even arranged for our favorite chef and her assistant to be there and feed the men daily. It really was amazing as they finished out several homes in the period of one week.

For those unfamiliar with Habitat for Humanity, it is a Christian organization that builds home for people in need, whether from natural disaster or a need for a new start. They state on their website that they have more than 1,500 local affiliates in the United States and more than 80 national organizations around the world. They have helped build or repair over 600,000 houses and serve more than 3 million people worldwide.

Our latest venture with Habitat is really special to us because our friend Stacy is in the process of getting her home built. We are really proud of her because she has dedicated many hours so she could start her build, as well as become a part of her local Circles group to actively move out of poverty. This home is an exciting change for her family.

Starting in the morning: no walls.

Two sides up. Doing prep work for the third wall.

Stacy's goal for this house: to run an air nailer. 

Mission Accomplished!

Building the final exterior wall before the rain hits.

Jeremy and Matt nailing the top plate.

Ralph, 85, was a pleasure to work with.

Ralph and Loraine have worked over 30 years with Habitat.

All four sides up.

This will be an ongoing project we are helping with this summer until it is complete. Again, we are very excited for Stacy and her family.

If you are interested in being involved with Habitat for Humanity, I recommend you start at the local level and get a taste for what they do. It is pretty amazing. They respond to natural crisis across the United States, so there is opportunity to get involved in the capacity as well. They always need hands to help with the work.

Visit their website at www.habitat.org

fishin' for fun

I always thought that getting to the hundredth blog post was going to take forever....and was some sort of milestone. Well, it's really no milestone....it is just another blip in the daily happenings of my life.

This past Sunday afternoon we had so much fun as the kids were learning how to fish. Uncle M had a great idea showing up at the pond with the kiddie pole and worms.  The fish were biting just about every time the hook hit the water with a big worm. That is some good fishing! The kids thought it was wonderful and they caught everything from little bluegill to small mouth bass. It was a trip watching the guys try to pull in the bass using a little kids rod. Uncle M caught a pretty decent sized bass and was reeling it in when it flipped out of the water and broke the line. Lost that one, but it was impressive with that little pink princess pole.

Fishing with Dad

Frederick's big catch.

Elauna fishing.

Miss O and her Dad.

Awesome Uncle M with the cute Miss O.

The famous pink pole.

Mimi and Miss A.

Papa and Miss O watching the action.

remodel: block and seal

It is amazing what progress you start to see when the block work goes in. The layout of the house started to take form. I really enjoyed watching our block layer - he made the hard work look easy, and his lines were straight and crisp. When the evening sun cast a shadow on the blocks, each line was as straight and clean as the last.

After block was was finished, we smoothed the crawl space area. Jeremy and Blake ran the tile around the interior edges, put plastic over, then Rock Chuckers spread pea gravel. Today, the boys brushed on the foundation sealer.

Remote control delivery of our blocks.

Always start with the corners.

Randy laying block.

Clearing away the excess.

Blake brushing it smooth.

Jeremy applying sealer.

manna: drive for the 100

Thank you for the ideas on who to support and feature during our June Drive for the 100. We were introduced to a new local ministry called Manna by our friend Vicki. Manna gathers food from companies like Panera Bread, Brethren's Home in Greenville, WalMart, Krogers, and the food pantry in Sidney and then creates meal packages for local people in need. Manna has volunteers that pack and deliver the meals - no one in turned down from receiving a meal. Manna, and organizer Donna Reed, work hard to make this ministry a reality. They are not funded by any one organization and depend on donations, grants, etc.

If you too wish to support this ministry, please email me directly and I will provide you with the information.

"For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink....whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me." Matthew 25:34, 40

cherry pie

A few years ago, Jeremy's stepmom, Barbara, gave him a dwarf cherry tree for his birthday. This year was the first full harvest, and we picked six pounds of cherries. The kids loved to help pick, because the lower branches were just at their height. They tasted a few, but the cherries were too tart to eat right off the tree. I spent an hour or so pitting them while the guys were pouring footers. I like to make at least one meal for any crew we have working, and I especially like to feed hard workers.

I knew a meal was out of the question right now, so I thought fresh cherries might work instead. I pitted and washed the cherries, added the ingredients, and put them in a large stock pot.....on the grill. The crew wasn't going to be around long enough to taste the cherry pie, so I took some of the warm cherry pie filling and poured it over vanilla bean ice cream. It was heavenly!!! Later that evening when the pie was finished, I shared it with my family; my dad even told me cherry pie was one of his dad's favorites. I love learning about family history....it always seems to happen while eating or working. How 'bout that!

Cooking cherries on the grill.

Cherries over ice cream.

Fresh from the oven.

Delicious!

Classic Cherry Pie

2 quarts cherries
2 cups sugar
2 Tablespoons butter
3/4 cup water
3 heaping Tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon almond flavoring
red food coloring (optional)
2 9-inch pie shells

Drain cherries and heat juice to boiling and add sugar and butter. Mix water and cornstarch; add to juice. Thicken. Add almond flavoring and food coloring. Put in pie shell and bake at 450 degrees for 35 to 45 minutes.

Note** I had to be adjust a little because I was cooking the whole batch of cherries at one time. This isn't hard to do if you keep the ratios the same. Typically, I would make a lattice top for the pie, but the full top with sugar sprinkled worked pretty well too.

remodel: a firm foundation

Things are moving right along here on the remodel. The Jamison crew has been here pouring footers and getting all the prep work done for the block layer. Jeremy spends most of the day in the excavator. He has some crazy hours lately, as he still has his other work to do on top of this remodel. He is our general contractor, because he can manage the entire scope of the project. (I think it is interesting, because I have my master's degree in project management, but he is the one who is really gifted in handling all the work.)

Starting the digging.

Claire bringing me a treasure: a corn cob.

Elauna & Frederick with new friend Brent.

Jamison crew. Great workers.

Further along. 

Pouring the cement. Blake, Robert, Roger, "Big Al".

Pouring base for garage walls.

One of Jeremy's first jobs was as foreman for his brother's cement company.

Apprentice.

Finding grade.

Jeremy clearing the grass off the garage soil.

Crawl-space with wall foundations around.