Snow Day!

It snowed in Hillsboro today!  It was the really good kind that you could make snowballs and snowmen out of, not the super dry, powdery stuff.  Aaron was a good dad and took the girls out twice to go sledding and play at the park covered in snow.  They had a blast!

Here's Aaron and the girls out in the courtyard of our complex (picture taken from our second story window).
First snowman!
Going down the slide.
That's why he's such a good dad, always a kid at heart.
Heading to the park. 

Croteau's in Oregon!

Aaron and Renee came up to Portland spend their anniversary/vacation with us!  We enjoyed seeing them and showing them some of our favorite places.  This is a picture from The Gorge, near Multnomah Falls.
Here we are in Seaside, an Oregon beach that most resembles a beach in California.
Here is Zoe trying to knock down Croteau!  Almost got him!
Aaron, Renee, and Croteau got to go to The Gorge on a day I couldn't get off.  They got to see The Vista House and a bunch of the falls.

Halloween

Zoe and Eve getting ready to go out Trick-or-Treating for the first time as members of the Gryffindor house (for all you Harry Potter fans, you know what I'm talking about).  This is the first time we haven't been a part of a church function or party in many years and it was really fun to get to experience something a little different.
The girls and cousin Ben.  He was the cutest pumpkin ever!

Pumpkin Patch

Eve and Garrett examing a pumpkin.

Here are some pictures from a trip to the pumpkin patch at Lakeview Farms in North Plains, OR with our friends, the Oster's and the Putz's. It's hard to believe we now have 6 kids among us (with 2 more on the way!) after beginning our friendships 8 years ago as newly married couples. It's been fun watching you all grow!

Exactly one week until a visit from Cali friends, Aaron and Renee! Can't wait to see you!

The Table and a little Evie

Hello! Thought I'd just squeak in a little Evie! This picture was taken at Sea World just before her first birthday. Sorry the format is weird, just thought I'd try something a little different this time. Also just wanted to provide a link to our new church that we are attending so you all can see what we are up to and where we have been worshipping. It is http://www.thetablepdx.com/. We are enjoying getting to know old friends again and getting acquainted with who we are living life outside of the bubble of full-time ministry. It has been an interesting journey, these last few months, a journey that is has had it's ups and downs but also completely eye opening and full of some pretty interesting revelations...more on that later. :) Aaron and I are doing Northwest Passage (I will post more on this later) and we are excited (scared sometimes!) about where God will take us through this year. Also, we are getting a home phone with unlimited long distance in the next few days! Let me know if you want the number and I will send it to you privately.

What was I thinking? :)

Okay, so I just finished my first week of full time work in over 4 and 1/2 years. I forgot what it was like to be on my feet for 8 hours straight (we can't sit down at work, except at lunch). I am enjoying learning a new craft and being a part of a team again. The ladies I work with are very nice and have been very helpful and patient with me as I learn the art of compounding. So far, I have learned how to make capsules, creams, gels, troches (which are dissolvable candy-like medications), and rapid dissolve tablets for humans and animals. These are medications that you cannot find in regular pharmacies because of their strengths or the forms they come in. It is very interesting work and I'm finding it to be easier and easier every day. I miss my kiddos and the flexible schedule we had while Aaron was in ministry. But I am grateful for the opportunity to work and help support my family. It is a blessing to have a job in today's economy.

Aaron has found work for the next few weeks! He will be working for a friend of ours doing some kind of demolition in Oregon City. He is currently helping his mom and dad demo their kitchen, so he's getting some good experience. :) He will be moving into the worship rotation at our church in the next few weeks and he is really excited about it. He has learned some new songs including "Everlasting God" (I cannot remember the name of the band who sings it) its really good.

Zoe's Back to School Night was Thursday. We met her teacher and saw her classroom and desk. Zoe is doing well, just a little talkative. Eve will start going to my mom's house all day now that Aaron has found work. Pray for my mom! Eve is very rambunctious and loud and I hope that my mom will be okay with that all day.

update...a good one :)

Hello! Sorry to my friends who prefer to hear news over the phone, but I just had to put this on the blog because it's such a huge answer to prayer. I start my job on Monday! I have been waiting and waiting and waiting for my pharmacy tech license to come in and it finally did yesterday! Thanks for all of your prayers over the last few months. Now it's Aaron's turn. He's signed up with a temp agency and submitted his resume to several businesses. We know that something great is coming just around the corner for him. :)

Some random pics for Tina!

Eve and Aaron on the "bumpy cars."
Thumbs up! Or something like that! :)
Zoe and Aaron on the Tilt-a-Whirl.
Family shot on the dock.
The wave got us!

First day of school! First day of school!

Today was Zoe's first day of first grade at Lincoln Street Elementary School in Hillsboro, OR. Her teacher is Ms. Martinez. She already has a new friend, a little girl named Emma. She was beaming when I picked her up this afternoon saying that she had a great time and loves her teacher. As parents, Aaron and I are very excited about this school year for Zoe. Lincoln Street is a Beacon School, which means they place a huge emphasis on reading. The following better illustrates what a Beacon School is.

"Oregon’s Beacon Schools were selected on the basis of the progress they have made in demonstrating high quality implementation of effective reading practices and strong student outcomes. The purpose of the Beacon Schools is to provide models of successful schoolwide beginning reading programs. These schools will serve as demonstration sites for schools throughout the state to visit. Visitors will have the opportunity to observe research-based reading lessons, learn about providing multi-tiers of reading support, and listen in on discussions on utilizing data to inform instruction."

Beach Trip

We rented a Surrey for one hour on our last day in Seaside. The girls had a blast and we got a workout. :)
Zoe was trying to bury her feet in the sand.
Eve decided to blaze her own trail back to the boardwalk through the sand dunes. The problem was, those soft little blades of grass are actually really sharp and she was barefoot.
Here is Aaron teaching the girls how to jump over a wave.

Still here!

Hello my friends! I'm sorry I haven't added any new posts recently. We don't have internet at our house yet, so the only time I can get online is at my mom and dad's or at Aaron's mom and dad's. We are doing well, lots of things have happened since Aaron officially moved up here, about 2 weeks ago now. I will post pictures of our place and pictures of a beach trip we just took as a family. Zoe starts 1st grade in one week! Her new school is amazing! I am getting a job working in a compounding pharmacy, no more pill pushing. :) Compounding entails more detailed work, basically cooking medication into ointments, creams, etc. Should be interesting. I am so grateful for the opportunity to work and but a little nervous about what life will look like when I don't get to be with Eve all day. I think I will miss her! But such is life. Aaron is starting work tomorrow for a construction company that a friend of ours up here works for. Right now it'll be just a labor job, but it will turn into something like a foreman position. He still has his application in at REI and is doing a roof for his parents neighbor in the next few weeks. Just like Aaron to have several irons in the fire, but that is just who he is. On a side note, I just finished reading The Shack. I highly recommend it. I don't want to say too much, just read it. Sorry that this update is so disjointed! :) Hopefully we will have the ability to have internet at home soon so there can be more pictures and updates. Hope you are all well!

Madagascar Drum

Zoe, Eve, and Auntie Mary playing a really cool drum from Madagascar. It was given to Aaron by one of his youth from Fresno, Kyle Hayes, who went on a Teen Missions trip this summer to Madagascar for 8 weeks. The drum is a hit!

Aaron's Letter to NewLife

To My NewLife Family...

When I drove my little non-air-conditioned Toyota into Easton nearly three years ago, I remember asking myself — "Where are the mountains? I thought there were mountains? How will I survive?" Well, needless to say, in our time here my family and I thrived. It was because of your overwhelming love and support that we enjoyed our time here so much. You took such good care of all my ladies. The girls will always miss their NewLife peeps. And you allowed Margaret to rekindle the passion and joy that she once had in ministry.

You gave me incredible freedom and grace to lead you as Christ was leading my heart. I felt nothing but supported in my efforts here and that is essential for health in ministry. Even though we will be hundreds of miles away, we will still be worshiping with you in spirit and truth. Know that we see you as family, because that is what you became to us here, where we were apart from our own. You loved us, and we could never thank you enough.

Thanks for making a longhaired, tree-hugging, mountain climbing, sandal wearing, coffee drinking hippie from the Northwest feel welcome. I’ll miss you, NewLife.

-Aaron

Vampire Teeth

Zoe went to the dentist the other day and chose vampire teeth as her prize. Those of you who don't really know her might think this is strange, but for those of us who do know her, this is very Zoe.

A place to call home!

So here it is! The Parkside Apartments, where we will be living for now. Our townhouse is middle right (if you click on the picture, you can see Zoe standing on the front step). It is very cute! I will take more photos once we are officially in, on the 15th. I didn't want to take any today because the current tenant is still living there. This is the same complex my sister lives in. Her apartment is on the left hand side of the lawn, but you can't see it because I couldn't pan out far enough.

Celebrate Hillsboro

On to face painting, except the girls wanted their paint to be on their hands. Zoe picked a pink butterfly and Eve picked a pink and blue snake. And then later came back for a yellow butterfly with red dots.

Here are the girls getting their finger casts. When I was a little girl, I used to get thumb casts at the fair, just like they are doing. That's my friend, Nyell, giving them their first finger casts.

Zoe got to climb the rock wall downtown in the free kid's area. She would have gotten a lot higher if her rock-climbing Daddy had been there telling her where to go next. Eve would have done it too but she was too young.

Eve Talking to Daddy and Goodbye

This is Eve on the phone with Aaron during our nightly talk. She's describing to him that she is watching Wipeout and that there are guys bouncing off big red balls and falling into the mud. Thank goodness for cell phones! Aaron and I are able to talk several times a day which makes the distance between us seem closer. We are ready to be a family again. :)

But I am praying that Aaron is able to enjoy his last week with our NewLife family. I know how he is feeling, as he is getting himself ready to say goodbye to you all. It's a combination of excitement for the future and sadness to say goodbye to the people we have grown to love. I still get a pit in my stomach when I think about driving away from church for the last time, leaving our home on Hopkins for the last time, and driving away from Easton for the last time, etc. In fact, I street viewed Google Earth the other day and took a tour around Easton. It brought back all the feelings, familiar smells, and memories of our time there. If you look at the house we lived in on Hopkins, you can even see our silver minivan in the driveway alongside Morgan's dead Ford Ranger. Haha! So all this to say, and to reiterate, we loved our time in California and we will always think of NewLife and Easton with great fondness. We will miss you all. Aaron has two more sundays left at NewLife. Please take care of him, love on him, and support him as he sets forth on a new journey. This time is sad and scary for us too. Thank you for all you have done, my friends, to encourage us and help mold us into who we are today. Thank you for everything.

Guinness Book of World Records Attempt!

Today we went to our Downtown area for the annual Celebrate Hillsboro festival. There were free health screenings, music, a 3 on 3 basketball competition, soccer, food booths, farmer's market, and more. Every year, they attempt to break a Guinness Book world record, this year, it was the number of people playing kazoos in one area. We had to get 5, 301 people particpating in order to break the record. The above pictures are Zoe and Eve, my sister and her boyfriend, Michael, my mom and dad, Eve and I , and the crowd playing Do-Re-Mi from the Sound of Music for 5 minutes. The little black dot at the top corner of the building is a photographer taking a picture of the crowd in order to show the number of people present (we had all signed up previously on paper too). About 10 minutes before the attempt, we were 300 people short, so hopefully enough people turned up at the last minute. We shall see.

Shout out to Muffin and Collin!

Hello Buddies! I miss you and wish I could come and play. How are things in Fresno? Are you learning how to swim Collin? Are you having fun playing with your Ariel doll Muffin? Well, anyways, I miss you and want you to know that you will always be in my heart. You were my first best friends! Be good to your mommies and daddies.

Love, Eve

Home

So this is our home away from Fresno, for the time being. This is the house that I grew up in, where my mom and dad are still living. The top photo doesn't do the house justice as the covered patio is filled with our belongings (you can see that I have had to store my treadmill outside, but it's sure nice to run when it's cool out). The upper window to the right is my sister's old room, where Aaron and I are staying. The second picture is the back yard where all the fruit is. There is an apple tree, back left and directly to the right in the photo is the cherry tree that's older than my dad. The bushes are raspberries. You can't see them, but there also is a plum tree and three grapevines. We have had fresh fruit every day since we've been here. The apples will be ready to eat in a month or so. The third photo is my parent's side yard. Notice the beautiful Japanese Maple in the lower part of the photo. Yes, so like I said, this is our home for the time being. We are looking into moving into a cute little townhouse about two blocks away from my folks and five blocks away from Zoe's school. Hopefully I will get to go in soon and do some measurements to see what furniture will fit. I will post photos when I get them.