Celebrating 26 years and counting!

August 29th, 2007 was a very special day as our parents celebrated 26 years of marriage. Daddy took Mommy out to "New Seasons" for their anniversary.

By: Eden

Judah the Entomologist!

Hello!

Please be amazed by Judah's scientific mind and a praying mantis that Eden found in the back yard! A big round baby belly makes a great stomping place for a mantis!!

Summer Mathematics

Here is our recent math problem...... how much organic chicken food will we need to feed our 20 chickens in a year........... what will the cost be.... and will we save any money??

Farm Boys

Work while you work, play while you play.

That is the way to be cheerful all day.

All that you do, do with all your might.

Things done by halves are never done right.

One thing each time and that done well

is a very good rule as many can tell.

Moments are useless trifled away; so

work while you work and play while you play.

~M.A. Stodart

Summer Visits with our Friends

We have been so blessed to have so many special visitors this summer! Here are some pictures of our friends that spent time with us here on the family farm!

Sweet 16 and.... very sweet!

Greetings!

On August 8th we celebrated a very special day. It was the birthday of our eldest child... our daughter, Shiloh Ariel. Good natured and loving daughter that she is, we spent her birthday at the bookstore (a good birthday trip if one is an avid lover of books like she is)! Shiloh is a wonderful young lady! She can cook, sew, and make her own clothes. She is an active girl enjoying dancing, hiking, and swimming. Shiloh has had lots of time in the past year to study herbal medicine with her mother, child development with her baby brother, and "sibling psychology 101" (actually.... learning to get along with her brothers and sisters). We happily report that she is doing well in all of these good activities! Isn't that what home school is all about??!! Being the artistic girl that she is, Shiloh is studying both piano and violin. Here she is on her birthday playing her violin.

Ballet, Friends, & Bun Art!

My sisters, friends, and I all take from the best ballet teacher in the world: our Mother! We are very blessed to have a garage with a second story which is perfect for our ballet studio. This summer my friend Karina started our "Weekly Bun, Hair-do Contest". One Tuesday she walked into class with a paintbrush in her hair! My Mother thought it was a great idea and therefore challenged us all to have an easel in our hair for the next ballet class. Sure enough the next Tuesday Karina and I had easels in our hair (we talked together about it and discovered that the Masterpiece board game has an excellent small easel that works perfectly when you pin it into your hair). After that day the rest has become history! We love thinking up new styles and new ideas for each new week! Here are some of our pictures (we always remember to bring the camera along! :-)

Celebrating Purim~~All the Queen Esther's:

Melody Wells~~3-years-old

Cute little girls: Tabitha (10-years-old) & Eden (9-years-old) in thier class

The BIG girls: Bethany (13), Shiloh (15), & Karina (17)

Happy Saint Patrick's Day at Ballet:

Tabitha & Eden...Hmmm looks kind of fishy to me!

4-H + Evergreens + 2 clover leaves = A Green St. Patrick's Day

I'd like you to meet "The Laundry Girl"

LAUNDRY! Now doesn't that just conjure up thoughts of piles of dirty clothes complete with mud, food stains, animal gunk, and a host of other yucky stuff? Well, here at our house, we just happen to have the world's most very best and special "Resident Laundry Girl". Her name is Eden Laurel Strang and for those of you who know her... well, you know that she can do laundry like no other! Her current duties include washing the family laundry (a daunting task in and of itself) as well as her baby brother's cotton diapers. Here she is on her recent 9th birthday complete with her "Celtic Woman" doll cake!

Meet The Farm Hands!

Okay... so you leave the city life and jump head first into farm life. It quickly becomes very apparent that you will need some good workers.... "Good workers" are those who are bright eyed, bushy tailed, eager to please, faster than a speeding bullet and ready to do God's will! So, here they are..... "The Ebenezer Forest Farm" farm hands: Shiloh, Bethany, Jordan, Eden and Judah!

Violin Lessons

Shiloh and Bethany take violin lessons from Miss Elizabeth Knopp. Here they are after a great lesson in our dance/music studio. We are thankful for the WONDERFUL violin training that Miss Elizabeth gives us!!

Judah has surgery

Hello Everyone! Just a quick family update. This past week, Judah had surgery to correct some "Noonan Syndrome" affected areas on his adorable little body. We are blessed to report that his surgery was 100% effective and he is busy recuperating here at our home. The most important thing to report is that our God is so faithful even in the hard circumstances! "Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think.... unto Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus..." Ephesians 3:20-21