Yesterday we bundled up and grabbed the dog and some friends and drove out to a historic area near us. As we drove up the dusty track to the top of the hill I was once again hit by the magnitude of what the settles of the "Wild West" endured and experienced. We had travelled the miles in a matter of moments but they would have taken weeks, facing life and death situations more readily than I was willing to fave the interstate traffic! Upon breaching the hillcrest we looked down over the valley towards the city of Boise and felt a little of the joy and the awe they may have felt. Surrounded by barren brush the sight of water and trees must surely have been overwhelming. The promise of rest, of replenishment and of another section of the journey being completed must surley have buffetted them as the wind seemed to buffet us standing where they once stood.

We walked a little of the trail, chatting, laughing, for recreation..they had walked the whole trail in search of freedom to raise their children and live their life as they would live it.

Sometimes in my life and in my shcooling I have these experiences.. the hillcrest times where I can see the reward, know a job is almost completed and look forward to a time of replenishment. Often I have the dry brush trecks where I press on because I know I am on the right trail.. I know..because I can see the dust, the tracks, the evidence of those who have trod this trail before.

Thank-you to all those who have gone before and an word of encourgement to those of us still traveling.. the sea of trees, the river of knowledge and life waits to refresh us, and looking towards the living water and trusting in the work HE did on the tree at Calvary we can know that this trail leads home.

It is snowing.

I love the sound of cheers and glee that errupt from the children's rooms when they look out of the window and see their world covered in a white blanket. Immeadiately plans are laid for forts, whole snow families and the clamor for sledding.

Yesterday the front yard was transformed into a snow fort. Huge balls stood  in line as the wall and, buckets of snow balls lay ready to fend of attacking hordes. Once the supply of snow was exhausted from our fromt yard, neighbors driveways were shovelled and the  snow transported back to a pile on our lawn.

The time spent outside pulling, pushing, hauling, building, sharing, working together and then executing the plan was impromtu, fun and educational. I leanrt to never only have one snowball in your hand when fighting multiple children. That snow is cold! That so much enjoyment can come from a job well done. And I learnt that a little red wagon and a snowshovel makes children, neighbors and fort architects supremely happy!..batteries not provided!!

We have some sand dunes locally. The winds pick up particles of sand and drop them onto the ever changing dunes. They are spectacular and fun.As we drove up today I noticed that some young people had walked over the mounds and left their names with their footprints. Even as we drove by the wind gusted and a little of their legacy disappeared.

It made me think of my name, written indeliably in the Lambs book of life. What a gift that is from a Father who loved me enough to send His Son for me. My mind shifted, like the sand to the never ending unchangebale nature of God and how that never changes no matter what my circumstances.

It was fun to race throught he dunes after dog and children, to conquer the heights of the dunes and come bounding down. What a gift to watch the boys tumbling over themselves as they rolled their bodies down the slope to end dizzy and laughing at the bottom, eyes full of sand, ears a veritable beach of their own and grins that reached to those sandy shores!

As we left several flocks of geese flew over and, as we watched, they too changed their formations, shifting, changing to the wind, allowing the weary leaders to drop back and become followers for a while. A beautiful and humbling sight, each working for the security of the flock. "That doesn't happen by chance" I commented to the children after the last V had flown over head. After a loud and vigerous improptu "Buddy Davis" sing along the thought sifted through my mind....may be I should have made them run up and down that BIG dune just one more time!!!

I have several..OK .. more than several..several several projects I need to finish, from sewing on a button to finishing knitting a sporan for my Scotsman.

I also have many I want to start and so many things I'd like to learn.

So this spot is for my project of the week update.

If you'd like to join with me and list your "to be finished by".. project I'll gladly pray for you while I work on mine.

May the fruits of our labors and the works of our hands be blessed and bring joy to our homes and those around us.

1) Sew the button on my skirt

2) Sew the buttons on a dress

3) Sew a button on a pair of  trousers

hmmmm seeing a trend there!! amybe I need to have a button day!

4) Finish a scarf I designed

5) Finish a dolls dress I designed

6) Finish PJ's for boys

HOW can I have SO mnay..SEW many projects unfinshed? I need to learn to follow throu......zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

edited to say..buttons..check

We have three pets in our home, my husbands dog: an old almost blind fully obstanate Bulldog, my sons dog: a Germador Labrashepherd  who is fully hyper and herding obsessed, and my daughters rabbit: who is .. um.. a rabbit.

These three creatures make our home quite entertaining. There was the time the half blind bulldog tracked down a smell he was interested in, to a shape sorting toy. Being a bulldog with very little brain he put his head into the toy and then found he couldn't get it out again. It really is quiteentertaining watching your dog walk round the house with a shape sorting toy on his head.

Watching our Germanshepherd labrador mix herd our bulldog around is also quite amusing, she tries to herd the children too and, if she ever manages it, I'm going to give her an extra doggie biscuit a day to bring them to me when called.

And then there is our rabbit.. um.. he hops.

I have often wondered WHY exactly we have these animals in our home. As a dear friend once said "I can't imagine paying money for an animal I can't eat " I'm sure they are teaching us something..if only to NOT stick your head in a shape sorting toy!  and I hope to share some of the other lessons they teach us along the way. After all Balam had his donkey! maybe the rabbit will teach me more of the wonder of God's grace..I'll have to pay more attention!!!

I knew, as soon as I saw it, which blog layout page I had to have: the one with tractor!! I have a husband with a dream to own a tractor just like this one, sometimes it is a dream, sometimes a longing but if we have slowed down to look at tractor lots once we have a million times! We even priced one once. The older the better it seems.

The tractor represents a different life, a time of looking at horrizons and being outside doing a hard days work. He works hard now but sometimes he can't turn round and see a field completed or a row straight, often he won't see any of the fruit from his labors but there will be an abundant harvest.

So at the end of a long day he comes home and orders one more farming magazine or searches for land for sale in Kentucky AND we slow down to look at tractor lots.

While, we may dream of open spaces and straight lines ploughed in dark soil, we are living our bigger dream, homeschooling our children, serving our community and country, loving our neighbors and watching the tender sproutings of a beautiful harvest in our children's lives.One day we may own a tractor but for now it is a symbol of all we still do here in suburbia.

Well it has been quite a trip trying to get in here. I managed to create a pretty looking blog but for a while all I could do was look at it. After singing the well known song "Just keep blogging blogging blogging, just keep blogging.." a hundered times to my self I finally rememebred my password and signed in.

So here it is..my first ever blog post and a testimony to my computer illiteracy.

I'd like to thank my blog mentor Kristy for gettig this up and running..her giggles, guffaws and general mirth at my entrance made the whole experience less traumatising.

Wendy

keep tuned for "Why a tractor?"