Spreading the Good News

Tomorrow a journalist and her camera crew will be at our church during the service and lunch afterward. They're conducting a two-day interview of our pastor's family for a report on "Quiverfull families". It's an exciting yet challenging idea for all of us who may be included in her documentary. Please pray the Lord will be glorified in the final report. We don't think the crew members are Christians and we are fairly certain that this is a follow-up to the book, written by a feminist author, Kathyrn Joyce called Quiverfull.

The journalist, Jennifer London, found our pastor through Nancy Campbell, of Above Rubies ministry, who was also interviewed in Kathyrn Joyce's book. The book is very well written. Kathryn Joyce definitely did her homework. And of course she found some dirt on some folks who have large families and what she considers "scary" information about some of the teachings of some who promote "being fruitful and multiplying". We don't want to be defined by what is written in her book but there are many Bible verses and direct quotes from other parents that are God-honoring. So for the spreading of the Gospel to the unsaved, we are thankful! We hope that people who know the individual families will differentiate between true followers of Christ and those who have been worshipping man-made ideas.

Our family's testimony to the world is so important. People are really watching. Earlier this week at the YMCA pool a lady stopped by to tell me how beautiful our children are. She stammered and tried to find the words and finally said, "I mean they seem to be beautiful in here (pointing to her heart) too". She appologized for appearing to be staring at us and continued to praise the children. Wow! I thanked her profusely for taking the time to be an encouragment to me. What an unlikely situation. Today, the sweet lady who checked our groceries engaged Bob and me in conversation. Our children were in the van, but she had remembered a day, nearly two weeks ago, when they had all accompanied me in the store. I was shocked that she remembered us-the store had been very busy and she was not even our checker! The poor children had to wait for about twenty minutes for our huge grocery order to be scanned and baggedyet, today's checker commented on how patient and loving they had been to one another. (praise God, it must have been a really good day :) She asked if we homeschool and told us that she had been a teacher for years. She raved about our children and asked us to please bring them back into the store again! On both accounts, we were able to tell the children about what a great impression they had made on people by simply being Christ-like to one another! God uses the most unlikely circumstances to encourage us! He's so good! While we've been wondering how the media coverage of our pastor's family and our church will affect those who watch, God has been showering us with samples of some good impressions. What a blessing!

I must include that all feedback is not always so encouraging, but we try to turn even negative comments around. When Bob and I visited the YMCA pool alone today, the lady checking us in looked at our family's account and asked if we really have eight children. When we confirmed, she said, "I am one of seven. What were you thinking?" I said, "We were thinking how great they are!" And that was that! Bob said that was a good response, so I'll have to try to remember that one. : )

More sewing

We found fabric on clearance and Kendal made matching dresses for Joy and Mary. She also complete my new shirt. And I made a dress for Mary with a Lands' End clearance peasant shirt, yard sale fabric and clearance rack trim. Anna also has a new shirt made from yard sale fabric. We love sewing with bargain materials!!!

This week Kendal sewed a swimsuit cover up with some cotton gauze that I found on clearance. There's plenty left so we'll hopefully all get something new from it!

Sweeter as the days go by

There is a sweetness that comes into our marriage when my heart lightens, breastfeeding wanes, and good ole female hormones begin to normalize. My heart turns from the baby and back again to my boyfriend, of twenty-two years. We laugh more, agree more and snuggle more. It's a wonderful time of feeling grateful that we've weathered the tougher times! If I ever find that "magic bullet" that could bring on this season earlier after childbirth, I will package it and sell it, and call it the "marriage saver".

I praise God for a patient and loving husband. I thank God for friends who sustain me and point me back to God and his word during the slumps. It is a huge blessing to still be "in love" after all we've endured!

Feminine Shirts

Kendal has designed a pattern for the trendy, peasant shirts that have flooded the stores this spring. In twenty-four hours she made three beautiful shirts and coached me on enlarging her pattern so that I could have one for myself. We used fabric that had been saved from a skirt, left-over from a dress, and some purchased for one and two dollars. At this rate we'll all be dressed in beautiful shirts that are custom-made by Kendal.

Last week I bought two shirts of this style at the thrift store and was very disappointed when I tried them on at home, because neither one fit me. No worries now. Kendal's shirts are modest and made to fit!

Vacation in Floyd!

This past week we took a second trip to Floyd, Va. where our friends, the Hyltons, have a cabin. It started out rainy but we had a great time. We were meeting Grandma Brenda, Granddad Bill, Kelsey and the Hyltons there. On Friday, we ate breakfast at Mabry Mill, toured the Chateau Morrisette winery on the Blue Ridge Parkway, and the children fished with Granddad Bill in the lake. When the sun came out on Saturday we were able to boat, swim, fish and four-wheel.

This is our family with Darlene and Buck Hylton. They have been so generous with us. They are great fun to be with and they love our family! The two dogs belong to them, but our children treat them as their own when we visit.
Besides the four wheelers and the lake, our family, and Mr. Hylton, this photo includes the Hylton's daughter, Kristy, and her husband, Walt. They are expecting their first baby in July and we enjoyed sharing parenting advice and talking about pregnancy.

Grandma Brenda loves to ride too. This time she took Joy and Mary.

Sunday, on our beautiful drive home, we stopped to eat with Carrie and Brian in Richmond. They grilled a yummy dinner for us, again. :)

Then, we met friends at Busch Gardens at the "Mercy Me" concert. After a couple of songs, the children and dads enjoyed rides until closing.

This is our family and the Ward family (six boys, one girl, and one on the way) at Busch Gardens.

It was a fun-filled four days! We were blessed!

Isaac's 12th Birthday!

On May 29th Isaac turned twelve. He opened his presents in the morning before breakfast.

Kendal put together the Playmobile pirate ship while the boys examined all the neat parts.

Then we drove an hour to Hertford, NC to visit Ms. Ennis. We had been planning to help her with some yardwork for a couple of weeks. We arrived at noon and started moving dirt and plants around her house. It was midday and quite hot, so when everyone was tired we quit.

We changed into our swimsuits and drove further into her neighborhood to the boatramp on the river. That's where we had a snack lunch and swam until the late afternoon.

Ms. Ennis was sweet to feed Noah while I tried to organize lunch for the others.

Mary was all smiles in the warm river water.

Isaac's checking on his new watch to see if it is truly water resistant!

For his birthday dinner Isaac had requested that we tryout 360 Pizza in Great Bridge. So after baths at home, Daddy and Grandma Butler joined us for dinner out followed by Blizzards at Dairy Queen. Everything was delicious and lots of fun!

We had to wait a long time for our pizzas, so we had time for photos, chatting, drinking rootbeer and many bathroom trips.

Isaac with Grandma Butler near the restaurant.

Our family, minus Kelsey, who was at Grandma Brenda's house in southwest Virginia.

This year, Isaac has been mowing the grass, taking out all the trash daily and weekly for pick up. It's also his job to sweep the kitchen after meals. He loves to assist with all outdoor projects and is a great "gopher" when we need multiple trips to the garage for indoor projects. He has a great memory and is very enthusiastic to learn about new things. He truly adores his baby brother, Noah, and takes good care of him. His is probably the must fun babysitter that Noah knows!

We are looking forward to watching Isaac grow into a godly young man. We know God has a wonderful plan for Isaac's life and we are thankful that he is our son!