September Update

I can’t believe it’s the middle of September already! I apologize that this is the first letter since June! I really did not mean to take off for the summer – it just happened!

So, what’s been going on since June 30? Let me see. On July 2, my parents came to visit. It was very nice to see them, but, as always, not a long enough visit!

On July 9th, we took a trip to Sci-Quest (the science museum in Huntsville). They had a special display of space related things, and it was quite interesting.

Rachel has continued working on drawing, and is quite good! She drew this picture of an eagle as a birthday present for a friend’s son. I wish I had space to share all of her drawings! She does such an excellent job on them.

July 17th, we went with Robby to Huntsville to a customer’s. Since we did not want to just sit in the driveway (it was way too hot!) and we didn’t want to invade the customer’s house, we decided to drive around the neighborhood. We were delighted to find a nice little playground just a few blocks away. All of the children enjoyed playing on the swings and the climbing toy! Sarah went down the slide for the first time alone. She seemed to like it just fine!

I took advantage of the opportunity to get a picture of the kids all together. For reference, Bobby is 17, Rachel is 15, Timmy is 13, Nate is 10, John Luke is 4, and Sarah Ruth is 1. Sarah enjoyed swinging with Rachel as well as swinging by herself!

July 30th, we decided it was time to go camping! We haven’t been able to go yet this year, and our club membership says we can keep our campsite set up as long as we visit about every six months. We had stopped by earlier in the year just long enough to make sure it was all still there, but our six months were about up! Plus, twice now we have had trouble getting back up the hill from our site, so we were planning to go with just clothes and spend the night, then pack up everything and move out of that campsite.

When we got there, we found that a storm had brought down the tarp we had over everything, causing it to hold water and crush both the pavilion and the tent. Pieces of the pavilion went through the tent, making holes. We took down the pavilion and tarp and packed them up, leaving the tent for now to keep our spot. Since we have been blessed with a 15-passenger van, we no longer have trouble getting up the hill, so we are going to keep our spot.

Since our tent was messed up (and inhabited by a mouse), we decided not to stay there overnight. Instead, we got two adjoining motel rooms (because they wouldn’t allow us to have our family in one) and spent the night there.

August 8 – Sarah Ruth’s hair is finally long enough to put it in pony tails occasionally! She doesn’t like having her hair up, much, so she usually pulls out anything I put in it fairly quickly, but she left this for a little while. I try to keep a clip in her hair to keep it out of her eyes, but she pulls those out, too!

Speaking of hair – August 20, we decided to cut Rachel’s hair. She sent about 12 inches to Pantene Beautiful Lengths (a group that makes wigs out of hair for cancer patients and others who have lost theirs). She loves it at this length, and it looks very good on her!

As you know, in August, Robby & I celebrated our 19th anniversary. It’s amazing to realize it has been that long! At the beginning of September, we celebrated Robby’s 44th birthday. And next week, we will celebrate Rachel’s “Sweet Sixteen!“ There will be pictures of that in the next letter!

We have been blessed with neighbors who have small children. John Luke is loving being able to play with our neighbor’s daughter, who is about his age.

Bobby, Timmy, Nate, and Rachel have also been able to spend some time with a friend who lives out in the country. They’ve been meeting up with them several times a month.

We are also working on fixing up the house in preparation for an appraisal with hopes to refinance at a lower interest rate. My inlaws have helped tremendously, as have our friends. They have helped with everything from folding laundry to laying flooring to repairing walls to painting inside and out! We are very grateful for their kindness and helpfulness!

This is another of Rachel’s drawings. I am so impressed with her ability!

Well, I think that about catches us up! I apologize again for leaving so much time between updates. I will try to do better in the future! May God bless you and keep you.