Soccer 2011

Finally the soccer photos and video are here. Katie really enjoyed soccer this year and made some friends. The coach was great too. Last night's game was really cold though and I'm glad we're almost finished for the season!!!

End of the Season Tomatoes

Became tomato juice...

Treasures found...

Spent a lovely long weekend with my mum sorting through boxes of books, albums and old memories. It was amazing to see old family bibles, books and other items. I saw a Thiessen book which charts our family back to the 1700's and even has my name in it! It also was an opportunity to clear out items that we no longer use or need, or which do not bring joy.

One especially neat find connects to my recent visit with my aunt (my dad's sister) when I spent some time asking her questions about family history and my dad. One of her memories of their time in Russia after the communists took over is that they were not allowed to worship publicly. She remembered that their mom (my Oma) would read from a book of sermons to the family on Sundays. I think we found this book. It is a book of sermons, written in Gothic German and published in 1896 in Russia. Inside the book I found a postcard for my aunt (which I am sending her) written to her before her marriage but after they moved to Canada. It is so neat to find these connections to the past, even as we are launching into the future.

For me, the joy is in knowing of the faith my ancestors held, and in hopefulness that I am passing the legacy of faith in God on to my children and they to theirs, and on and on...

...this treasure of knowing God will bring abundant life and freedom to the generations that follow and possibly to others who might know God because of them.

"Come sail away, come sail away with me..."

Along the lovely Illinois River, we enjoyed a day of sailing and relaxation. Bret converted our canoe into a sailing vessel to try out the sport and (I think) because he wanted to see if he could do it. He has enjoyed some lovely summer and early fall sailing trips.

Katie and August don't mind getting in on the action and Schwarz is always glad for an excuse to get wet! We had a lovely time.

Unfortunately the winds did not cooperate for a return sail, so the captain and crew came back the hard way.

Home Again...

I guess that's enough for the "travels west" blogs...since returning home we've been busy with yard work, gardening, clean up from the trip, shopping and preparing for back to school routines...you get the picture. We camped (as we always do) for Labor Day weekend and Bret enjoyed sailing in his converted canoe. We relaxed and swam in the lake. We camped with friends and enjoyed fellowship, singing around the campfire, sharing devotionals and spiritual growth. Now we're settling back into fall routines. Canning is almost done and soon I'll be making soap again.

Travels West--Adventure Rocks!

We made friends with a bear and rustled up some cattle on the open range...

Then...we found some dinosaurs...well actually they found us--rather tasty! :-)

Travels West--Mount St. Helens

We travelled south to see the mountain that erupted in 1980. I remember hearing about it because we lived not so far away and could even see the dust cloud in the distance. It was kind of cool to finally go there and see it first hand. It was only captured in a few glimpses however, due to the heavy fog.

Hiking around along the mountain side in the National Parks. We remembered that bear and cougar live in these mountains and we were cautious to keep our eyes and ears open! Our junior rangers enjoyed the chance to explore the wilderness and see some unique views. We especially noticed the tall and wide and straight trees that grow in the western woods.