Thanks!

Thanks for all of the kind and thoughtful comments you left for us after the previous post. We sure appreciate all your prayers, and suggestions for things to look into related to Joy's health as well.

Yesterday we had the chance to squeeze some fresh apple cider from an antique cider press. Some of our friends from our sending church here in Oregon had us over to their place for an "educational field trip" for the kids. It was a lot of fun and tasted great!

Then the kids got to feed the fish in the pond. They were literally jumping out of the water all around the paddle boat.

After that little outing, Joy took off for a weekend retreat with some of her friends from the area. So that leaves me and the kids holding the fort down. We started on Friday night with a wonderful fall party at the cousin's house. Here's Grandma Hlavka w/ all the grand kids.

Heather had all kinds of fun and creative and tasty games and crafts for the kids. They had a blast! It's great to see the kids getting to know their cousins and grandparents a bit before we disappear for another nearly four years.

Today the kids and I went to the zoo. It was cold and rainy, a perfect day for the zoo. No one else was crazy enough to show up, so we pretty much had the place to ourselves. And the animals were all out and about enjoying the cool weather.

Well, that's what's going on here. Thanks again for all of your prayers and encouragement. We really appreciate you guys.