HAPPY SECOND BIRTHDAY JOSHUA!

Cousins, Andrew and Stephanie at his party.

Getting ready to take the first bite!

He loves these blocks!

So excited about his new Elmo slippers!

Loves, loves, loves vacuums!!

Opening gifts!

"Hot, hot, hot" (He wouldn't have anything to do with the candle!)

Before it was lit!

Embarrassed as we sang "Happy Birthday."

With his gifts!

Yes, Joshua turned two years old on Sunday, November 22nd! Time seems to fly by the older I get, and it truly is hard to believe he is already two. His activity and progress definitely proves his age, but time, it just never stops! :0) I am so thankful God gave us Joshua at this time in our lives! We really need him and love him to pieces! He is a delightful and happy child all the time, and has brought so much joy and sunshine into our home! His arrival on Thanksgiving Day two years ago is a day I will never forget! I pray he comes to know Jesus at an early age and will serve Him all of His life! (By the way, the cake does look a little tacky ~ I didn't want to buy one, so I decided to "design" it myself. Well, needless to say, Elmo turned out okay, but the writing is horrible! The icing kept coming out uncontrollably fast, therefore a bit scribbly-looking! I knew Joshua wouldn't care, so .....)

Good News Pictures

Here are the pictures I promised. We had 21 children present for our second Good News service. We are so excited about how God has worked this out, and would appreciate your continued prayers.

MINISTRY OPPORTUNITIES AND HALLOWEEN

I'm a little late posting this, but better late than never! We dressed Joshua up for Halloween so he could get some "cannee". He wasn't able to visit many houses since it was Revival at our church, but he hit a few, and brought home his treasures! We always look forward to the evening the children come around to our house, because it gives us an opportunity to witness for Jesus. We hate just giving some candy and nothing else. For many years now we pass out a children's tract, or an invitation to a church-related children's activity. This year we passed out invitations to a Good News Club we were planning to start in a store-front building in the middle of our little town. The following week (last week) we did have our very first Good News Club and had sixteen neighborhood kids attend! We're excited about this opportunity that God has given us, and we're praying that many children's lives, as well as their families,will be changed because of it. Please pray for this ministry as you think of it.

In addition to the children' s ministry we've started, God has helped us go to a local Nursing Home every Sunday afternoon now for quite a few years ... at least three and maybe four or more. It is a joy to see the smile on the faces each week as we enter the Activity Room, trying to win them to Jesus, and bring encouragement into their lives. We also were asked to have a service in another Nursing Home, possibly once a month, in addition to the one where we already minister. We did have a service this past week there, and it was a real blessing to see a crowded room with family members present, as well as patients. We're praying about the future opportunity that has come our way at this Nursing Home.

I will try to post pictures in the near future from the Good News Club and possibly the Nursing Home. Once again, your prayers are much appreciated! We don't want to sit idly by and do nothing for God. Time is short and there are many souls to win.

More Fall Pictures

I was able to get more pictures with the other children today, except for Christianna, who is at college. I feel a part of us is missing without her, but these will have to do for now. Enjoy!

Park Adventure

This post is for my son, who keeps checking my blog and telling me I need something different! It is true that I need something different, but I often don't know what to write about. :o) Well, here are some new pictures from a little adventure James, Joshua, and I took today. It is beautiful outside, and I wanted to take advantage of it and go to a nearby park. We visited Heritage Park and had a wonderful time enjoying God's awesome creation. This is one of my favorite times of year, since it is cooler outside and the beauty of the outdoors is just gorgeous. The other children were not able to go along due to school work and other responsibilities. Hopefully I'll be able to get a few more pics with them before the beautiful scenery is gone for another year.

The Finished Product

Here it is! All 21 1/2 jars of tomatoes and 23 jars of salsa. Whew! Glad that job is over with. Wonder what will be next? Maybe apples ....

CANNING AND MORE CANNING!

I've been making salsa practically all day it seems. Someone from church gave us three five-gallon buckets of tomatoes. Hmmmm ... what to do with them. Yesterday, we canned two of the buckets which came out to be 21 1/2 jars. With the last bucket we planned to make SOME salsa and then can the rest for tomatoes. Well ... we kept chopping and dicing, and chopping and dicing, and then decided to make just one more batch .... then, oh yeah, we have a few more peppers left, we can probably make another batch to add to it. I'm FINALLY finished now, and it is simmering on the stove. The aroma is absolutely wonderful! We'll see how many jars we get of this. I'll have to post a picture of everything we've canned in the last couple of days. For now, though, here is a picture of the salsa I've slaved over all day today.

Family Reunion

From left to right: Donald Rish, Bonnie Baney, Charles Rish, Mary Corder, Weldon Rish, Chester Rish, Gilbert Rish

Here is a picture of all my dad's living brothers and sisters, except one, my Aunt Judy, who resides in Idaho. Dad and Mom went to a family reunion in Michigan a few weeks ago where this picture was taken. I haven't seen my aunts and uncles for many years, so it is refreshing to at least have a picture of them. There were twelve children born into Dad's family, with three of them dying at birth, and his oldest brother passing away a few years ago. I really wanted to go to this reunion, but our family had just traveled to this same part of Michigan for a short vacation. We really didn't feel like repeating the same trip again, especially with Joshua on board. :o) Maybe we can go next year if another reunion is planned.