- visited two national parks (north cascades and mt. rainier)
- walk on many nature trails and saw many foxes, deers and chipmunks
- touched snow at top of mountain
- touched the beach on the pacific ocean
- picked shelfish, mussels, and clams and touched starfish and sea cucumbers
- camping on the pacific w/campfire for smores and hotdogs
- tourist stuff in seattle (i.e. space needle)
- visited tillamook cheese factory and had sample cheese and ice cream
- ate at my favorite sushi place twice and ate a LOT of sushi
- ate clam chowder at the famous mo’s on the beach
- played golf with my dad, mom (first time playing with her!), and brother-in-law
- took over 400 pics on my Nikon d40x
- sold my dad’s Nikon d40x for him on craigslist
- installed a window air conditioning unit for the upstairs
- fixed my grandfather’s computer and created an email address for him (he’s 91!)
- drove on two minivans over 600 miles each between two states
- watched kung fu panda with 6 kids

Whew! Can’t believe we did that much in 7 days … it was a blast. It will go down in the history books as a “money’s worth” vacation. It was great to spend time with grandparents, parents, sister’s family, and even family time for us. And if I ever forget, I can always look back at all the pics I took. Here’s some below:

Thank you, God, for your wonderful creation that we were able to enjoy. But, even more than the mountains and nature, thank you for creating the people in my life that I can enjoy life with. Praise You, God, for my family!

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Monday we are going to begin learning about simple machines. What I need from you is to help your child make a catapult for a large marshmallow launching competition. This is due May 30th. On that day we will hold our competition on the black top behind the school. I’ll let you know what time we decide later. It’s fun to watch so I hope you can come! You can search on the internet for ideas on your catapult. I went to Google and searched for images to get ideas. You can also do a plain google for instructions. PLEASE DONT FEEL LIKE YOU HAVE TO HAVE ANYTHING FANCY!!!!!! Just have fun making it with your child. I only ask that they aren’t huge. If your child can’t carry it to class by themselves then it is too big. HAVE FUN!!!

So, here’s our marshmallow catapult and even had to test it out!

You think we got a shot at winning??? I love my son’s pump fist at the end.

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We’re in the middle of a sermon series called “Influence” and it’s a series about being the salt and light. Each week, in the bulletin, everyone receives a different bookmark (2-3 different bookmarks for each week that people get randomly) with a bio of a person who have influenced the world for Christ. At the top of the bookmark is a black/white pic of the person of influence and below is a brief bio and how they made a difference. It’s cool because many are people that they’ve never heard of (i.e. George Washington Carver, Henrietta Mears), and yet they are inspiring stories of how God used them to influence the world. Well, this Sunday is the last week in the series, and they will receive their final bookmark. But this time, the picture on the top will be replaced by a mirror and the bio will say, “YOU are the light of the world, YOU are the salt of the earth.”

We hope that people will understand that they are all people who have been influenced by others as well as have the capacity to influence as salt and light. The bookmarks will hopefully be a reminder to SHAKE and SHINE and make a difference!

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Each of the main sessions had awesome openers. Check it out!

EDIT: Had to remove the videos. Check them out on their site.

For more North Point Production stuff, check out their blog.

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More pics coming …

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Jamie lost all feeling and movement from his upper-chest down to his legs. He had some arm movement but no hand dexterity. Here’s a video of his recovery which took several months.

Such an inspiration. It inspires me to press on and get up and run this race even when there are set backs. It inspires me to know that only God is the source of my strength and portion forever and I am completely resting on Him.

Jamie, thanks for the inspiration. God, thanks for the strength.

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Emily now

Thank you God for your faithfulness. As much as she has grown in front of our eyes, may she grow in stature, wisdom, favor with God and others.

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But as much as I wanted to play, my parents wanted me to focus on studies and wouldn’t let me play any sports. So, every chance I got, I would go to my backyard, and throw a tennis ball against the wall and make diving catches and acted like I was playing others. When I tell this to others now, they say, “don’t make me cry.” Such a sad story, a kid who loved the game so much and yet wasn’t able to play.

Well, Nathan is now just at the age to start playing tee ball. He randomly got a baseball glove this past Sunday from someone that we don’t even know. It was pretty new, so I showed him how to work in the glove, and he has been stretching and working on that glove almost everyday, every chance he gets.

Yesterday, on my way home from work, I bought him a baseball as well as a tee ball starter kit, with a bat and tee. We spent the morning practicing and he’s starting to whack that ball off that tee. He’s so ready. This morning, I didn’t see him in the living room, and he was in the playroom with the door closed. Usually, that’s not a good sign because he’s doing something that he shouldn’t be (i.e. playing with his Nintendo DS, etc.). When I called him out and asked him what he was doing, he told me that he was practicing his baseball, hitting off the tee. I almost cried at that moment. My son … living out my dream!

Yes, I will give him an option if he doesn’t like it … but he WILL like it! I’ll make him!

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Top 5 Reasons Why Kailey Should go to Mongolia:
1. World Exposure
2. Father and daughter bonding time
3. Missionary Kids (MK) encouragement
4. We miss and want to see her
5. Take a piece of home

As convincing and good those reasons were, I had my own top 5 reasons why she couldn’t go:
1. Money
2. Money
3. Money
4. Money
5. Money

EDIT: Ok, I got an email from Eliana a couple of days ago. Check it out!

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