The Lockwood Family

January Weather and Fruitcake

2012-01-19T16:03:00.001-07:00

It is January, right?

The children have had a bit of spring fever lately.

It has been so hot! I think we've hit the upper 80's/lower 90's for several days.

It is still cool in the evenings/early mornings...40's and 50's so I'm still enjoying hot tea and champurrado for breakfast or before I get to bed.

But in the afternoon...

Well, it's been a bit difficult to get everyone to finish up school after lunch.

We get a good early start, everyone studies/works hard all morning, and then we have lunch around 12:30 pm. We all eat outside on the picnic tables and then nobody feels like going back inside to finish up.

Of course, we don't usually follow our feelings.

Unless Daddy happens to be home and turns on the sprinklers and grabs a basket ball.

If you can't beat them, join them. That's when I got out the ice cream. :)

We did finally finish all our studies that day...around 7 pm :-).

But it was sure fun!

Tell them to smile for a picture and you get this...

Tell them to act normal, and you get this...

Yep, I think I'm rubbing off on all of them! :)

Several people have either emailed or commented asking me for the recipe to the bread I posted a picture of recently. I make this bread several times a week and it always turns out perfect!

It calls for white flour and sugar, but I have made it with whole wheat flour, half and half, and also used honey instead of sugar before.

I currently only have 1 bread pan, and since I usually make 4 loaves at a time (double the recipe), I just shape them into loaves, score the top diagonally with a knife and put them on a couple cookie sheets.

You simply combine everything, knead it well (I just use my hands...I love kneading bread by hand!), let it rise, punch it down (I love that part too!), shape it into loaves, let it rise, and bake! Eat warm with butter! Mmmmmm!

I was going to take pictures of the process, but didn't get very far :) My hands got messy!
But I did take this shot.
There are only 3 reasons I can think of for which I will remove my wedding ring.
#1- If I am in the hospital and they make me.
#2- If I am making meatloaf and mixing the meat with my hands.
#3- When I knead dough.

Which brings me to fruit cake.

Did I ever mention that the top of our wedding cake was a fruit cake?

Really, it was!

Yes, Daniel and I have both been called a fruit cake a time or two :), but that's not the reason we had one on the top of our wedding cake.

It's because my hubby does not really like cake. But he LOVES fruit cake.

Yes, he has strange tastes, but I'm glad he picked me! ;)

We were told that you save the top of your wedding cake, freeze it, and then eat it on your one year anniversary.

So I had the lady who make our beautiful cake make the top out of fruit cake. She had to charge me an extra $25 dollars for that and while I don't know why anyone would pay so much money to make/eat such a thing as a fruit cake, I was (and still am) deeply in love with that man so I was happy to pay for it.

She wrapped the fruit cake with plastic wrap before she frosted it so it would be nice and fresh/frosting free for our anniversary.

I was 6 months pregnant with Timothy our first anniversary and Daniel took me overnight to the coast. And we brought our fruitcake.

And he ate a lot of it.

And I ate the frosting.

See, we make a perfect match!

I think that was the last fruit cake we had.

Until this week.

Daniel went to pick up the mail at our little post office.

He came home with this small but very heavy box sent to us from a church in Texas.

I opened it up and inside was a beautiful round tin from Collin Street Bakery.

I opened it up and inside was a fruitcake.

The nicest fruit cake I've ever seen! It was pretty.

I'm sure this church has no idea how much my hubby loves fruit cake.

It reminded me of just how much God loves us to send a fruit cake all the way down to Mexico.

Every day, when Daniel is studying, I serve him a cup of tea or milk and a nice slice of fruit cake.

And he doesn't even have to worry about me eating it. :)

Serving

2012-01-17T20:53:00.000-07:00

Sunday morning and evening services.

Wednesday evening prayer meeting.

Thursday Bible Studies.

Saturday morning visitation/soul winning

Saturday evening youth service.

Those are our weekly church activities.

And here is the calendar for all additional activities this year for the

Iglesia Bautista de Insurgentes.

Full. Exciting. Anticipating what the Lord will do this year.

There is so much joy in serving Jesus!!

This past Sunday, we added an additional service Sunday Morning.

We now have Sunday School hour as well as our regular morning and evening service.

Sunday is the Lord's Day and we love being with God's people, hearing preaching from His Word, fellowship, praying, teaching, learning, singing, praising our Lord together.

The day starts early as we get ready for the service, run bus routes, have our morning services, take people back home, clean up for the evening, often have someone over for lunch, and then a bit later, go back to the church to get ready for the evening service. We get home late, tired, and blessed. There is truly the deepest joy in serving Jesus!

Daniel has been preaching all year on faithfulness and everyone doing their part to serve.

Working together to reach our town for Christ.

Everyone is excited and just seeing them all serving together brings a smile to my face, often tears to my eyes, and a thankfulness to the Lord for all HE has done!

Brother Juan is teaching first hour Sunday morning now.

Here is a man who kicked Daniel out of his house when Daniel went to share the gospel with him a few years ago.

And he came to Christ! And he serves him faithfully with his sweet wife and four children along side him.

So many children come each week.

All week long they hear what is broadcast on the television.

What is taught in the public school.

What their friends tell them.

And once a week we get to teach them about Jesus Christ.

Once a week we get to teach them God's Word.

We get to teach them the truth!

It is the most beautiful few hours.

Hna. Lourdes and Hna. Rosa teach first hour.

Hna. Karla and I teach second hour.

And we pray for them all week long.

Some of the older ladies prepare a small snack between services.

Most of the children do not eat breakfast before they come.

Even 88 year old Hna. Juanita does her part to serve.

Meeting together in a building that is being loaned to us.

And using every room for the Lord!

I love our church!
Our family loves serving together!

There is nothing that brings more joy!

The Joys of Having an Older Brother

2012-01-17T12:49:00.001-07:00

Oh, and don't worry...according to them both, "This is fun!"

Only boys. :)

And the Winner is....

2012-01-16T21:31:00.000-07:00

This was sooooo fun!!

Not only did I get to share about the blessing Sweet Journey was to me,

I so enjoyed reading all your comments.

As I wrote each and every name out for the drawing, I re-read through the comments, thought of each person, and prayed for some of you, too.

I had some helpers :)

Daddy is teaching Bible classes at the church tonight, so after everyone was clean and ready for bed, we gathered in the family room for devotions.

I told the children we would do the drawing first.

I promised Elijah he could draw the name.

He was working on ironing my giant mountain of ironing this afternoon, so it was the least I could do :)

And the winner is.........

Jessica Curtis!!!

Jessica,

I have your name sitting on my desk so I won't forget!

Just email me (daniellockwoofamily (at) gmail.com) your mailing address and I'll get the book ordered for you!

I'm so happy to be able to do this and pray you'll be blessed!

The best news is that we can all have a Sweet Journey walking daily with our Savior!

His Word is so precious, time spent alone with Him through prayer, giving Him our every care, confessing our sin and knowing His mercy and forgiveness, praising Him, growing in the knowledge of His Word, seeing Him change our hearts and lives as we walk in obedience and faith! Day by day. It truly is the Sweetest Journey!

Sweet Journey

2012-01-13T18:24:00.003-07:00

*Wanting to share this book with one of you...see end of post!

Always wanting to do everything "just right", I have been putting off writing this post for too long. It's been bouncing around in my mind and heart and while I've imagined the perfect thinking/writing time (i.e. children all asleep or quietly occupied and not needing mommy (ha!), hot cup of something sweet by my side, well rested/clear mind....I have a wild imagination, huh? :) ), that time hasn't come. So I have 10 minutes.

Last month, I ordered Teri Maxwell's newest book Sweet Journey.

I was so blessed by this book that I have to share!

Mrs. Maxwell is a sweet, godly, Titus 2 lady and the Lord has given her such a burden and heart to teach and encourage other ladies. She gets many, many emails every week often from ladies with so many burdens. Fear. Discouragement. Worry. Overwhelmed. Disorganized. Angry. Unsure. Hurt. Lonely. Feelings of failure. Wanting to have a close relationship with the Lord and wanting to be loving wives to their husbands/ loving mothers to their children and just not knowing what to do. Sound familiar? My hand is raised.

Mrs. Maxwell understands those feelings. I've had those feelings and sometimes still do!

Through Sweet Journey, Mrs. Maxwell becomes like a personal mentor gently leading you

through God's Word to the path of victory, peace, and joy.

It is a very easy book to read! Perfect for a busy mother of 1, 2, 4, 7 or 12 children. But yet its truths run deep. Deep into your very heart. And it is an interactive book! Each chapter is full of verses with questions after each one and a blank space for you to write in your answer. You know, you remember so much more when you write it down! That's why I'm always making lists!!

This is what I loved so much about the book:

Each point Mrs. Maxwell makes, she gives Scripture to show that truth. Yes, the Lord has taught her so much and it has been through His Word!

The Scripture verses are written out throughout each chapter. You are welcome to look them up in your Bible if you'd like (I marked several of them in my Bible), but you can follow along in the book/answer the questions without having to have your Bible open. I know more times than not I've been reading while nursing a baby, holding a child..or two..., sitting in the car etc...

It is VERY practical! I learned sooo much and just applying what I've learned has brought already so many changes in my heart and daily life!

The cover is beautiful and feels really soft! My husband would probably say, "Jaynee, I can't believe you just wrote that". :) But you ladies know how special pretty things are and I loved the feel of the cover. It's the little things in life that brighten our days!

If you go to the link for the book and check out the table of contents, you can see what the book covers.

Time in the Word.

Prayer.

Scripture Memory.

So vital. So important. Yet often so neglected.

It seems now days one of the main topics I hear is health. Eating right. Exercise. Different diets. Etc...

How much time do we spend thinking about our spiritual health.

Just as physical food is vital to our body...daily, several times a day...man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceedeth from the mouth of God.

Too busy. Too tired. Too discouraged.

I'm too tired not to spend time with my Lord! (Isaiah 40:31)

I'm too busy to not give my day to Him and ask for His direction and rest in His plan.

I'm too discouraged when I live on my own without seeking Him first.

I'm still learning so much. And am soooo thankful to be encouraged in this vital area.

I would LOVE to share a copy of this book with one of you readers.

From the names of all who comment on this post, we will have a drawing and send a copy of Sweet Journey to the one chosen.

I sincerely wish I could give one to every one of you! But I can't. So I encourage the rest of you to get one!

Christmas and Today

2012-01-05T15:15:00.000-07:00

Christmas Morning

Well, it was really Christmas Eve morning because with Christmas being on a Sunday, we knew we'd have our day full with preparing for and enjoying our Sunday service and being with our church family.

By the way, I LOVE Christmas being on a Sunday. What better day than our Lord's Day to celebrate and remember our sweet Savior's birth!

The children didn't gripe at all about having our family Christmas celebration a day earlier. :-) Of course, being as it was my half birthday, I was all for making it a special day too.

Sooo up bright and early. Well, the children and I were. I'm not the sleeping in type of parent on Christmas morning and still think I get as excited as I did when I was 10. But my hubby is mature and wise and keeps us all in anticipation to when the day will begin. Really, it wasn't that late. I think we started around 8 am but when you've been up since 5am it feels like forever!

We started with a special breakfast of the yummiest coffee cake ever along with hot cups of maizena.

*Note for next year:

Make about half the food that I normally do as certain children will be sooo excited about opening gifts that they will not be hungry.

After breakfast, we cleaned up (fastest chores have ever been done) and gathered together in the family room.

I'd been reading the account of Jesus's birth from Matthew and Luke along with some of the OT prophecies throughout the week with the children, so even the younger ones had it fresh in their minds and were following along as Daddy read it out loud to us all.

Afterwards, we talked about that wondrous time and the children went on for quite a while asking Daddy Bible questions. He's always the best at answering them!

In years past, the children have memorized much of the account in Matthew and Luke each learning a certain part and reciting it out loud. We got this idea from here and loved it. This year, as we've just gotten home from being on furlough, we have been concentrating hard on school and didn't do all the things we normally do for Christmas. But we had a wonderful season as always and covered some of the most important things:

Reading and talking of Jesus Birth

Caroling

Christmas Service

Christmas Box Program

Christmas Crafts (Snowflakes and Carolers)

Christmas Cookies (Gingerbread and Sugar)

Christmas Meal

Learning new Christmas Carol

Giving gifts

Finally, it was time to open gifts. First, we had each child, oldest to youngest, give out the gifts that they had for each other and Mommy/Daddy. It's so sweet to see them save up and buy such thoughtful presents or if they don't have much money, to choose a toy or other item that is in good condition that they own and know another sibling would love to have and give it.

I got a new spatula, coffee mug, pot holder, sweet hand written notes, new pens, candy ( :-) ), and among other things, a note card titled "101 things to do besides drugs". :)

Then we had the gifts under the tree...Gifts from Grandparents, new Bibles/covers from Daddy/Mommy, and some extra special gifts made possible by a surprise gift from my Uncle and Aunt. Their faces said it all! :)

Of course, the rest of the afternoon was spent with them enjoying/playing with their gifts, Mommy making our Christmas meal, picking up wrapping paper that managed to spread to every room of the house, and responding to, "Mommy! Look at this!" about 100x, and Daddy assembling toys/games.

That evening, we were invited to Hno. Ninfa's house where many of the families of our church were and we ate a late night supper, the children played, had a pinata, and fellowshipped together.

Things are back to "normal" now. :)

Little ones playing

and getting into things they shouldn't. :)

And back to school

Thankful for my Lord, my husband, my children, my church, friends and family...

Thankful to be just where the Lord wants me to be!

The Best year ever!

2012-01-02T22:06:00.001-07:00

My heart is full. Just seeing these pictures, I can't help but smile and give thanks to the Lord.

I can't begin to tell you what a blessing it was go give out the Christmas Boxes this year.

We didn't receive as many boxes this year as we have in previous years as due to our travels there was not as much time to organize everything. But the PERFECT amount arrived.

We received about 100+ boxes. As we thought and prayed over who to give the boxes to, the Lord laid certain children on our heart. We wanted to give a box to each of the children from the families in our church. We wanted to give a box to each of the children on our bus routes. We wanted to take boxes to the children out in the village of Jesus Maria where Daniel preaches. And more than anything, I told Daniel that I wanted to take boxes to the "grandmother's" house.

About 2 years ago, Daniel's brother Samuel was here working with us. He started a bus route where he would bring 20-30 children into church each week. One day, as he was out inviting children to church, he came upon a house with many children. He went to invite them to church and the grandmother came out angry and yelling at him. Samuel didn't speak much Spanish, but he understood that the grandma did not want the children going to church.

He later brought my husband to talk with that family. She yelled at my husband to in Spanish and her native dialect.

Last year, I took over that bus route. I pick up a little girl right in front of "the grandmother's" house. The grandmother wouldn't look at me or she'd scowl. She wouldn't wave. The lady who's daughter does come into church with me told me to not even try to talk to that family.

Every week, I drive by her house. There are children everywhere in that home. They are filthy. Ragged clothes. No shoes. Literally sitting in the mud with trash all around. And they are so precious. My heart goes out to them. I would love to bring them home, bathe them, dress them, comb their hair, love them, play with them, and tell them how much Jesus loves them. But as I saw them week after week, there was nothing I could do.

I began to pray. The Lord put it on my heart to make a big batch of homemade cinnamon rolls to bring to them before we left on furlough. They accepted them and thanked me. And the grandma began to wave when I waved to her. The other day, when I drove by, she saw me and waved before I even had a chance to wave to her.

She is on my heart and I continue to pray.

Last week, we delivered Christmas boxes to every one of those children. The first picture of that sweet boy up above is one of them. They let us come onto their property and we spent about 10 minutes with them. The children were so happy. I held the youngest of them. A 4 month old baby girl. She had a bad cough.

I told them that other Christians wanted to do something special for the children of our town for Christmas and sent the boxes to us to give to them.

The mom of 5 of the children told me,

"Please tell the people who sent these gifts thank you very much for remembering us."

And I thank you sooooo very much, too.

After we handed out the last of the boxes, it dawned on me that this year, ever box was given to a child with whom we are currently working. A child that comes to church with their parents or on our bus. A child that either I or my husband or one of the other men/ladies from our church visit each week. We are in their homes. We sit at their tables or in their yards. We tell them over and over again about the Savior Who gave Himself for them and loves them so very much.

I know there are a lot of pictures. But if you have the time, look at these children. Pray for them. Thank you for making their Christmas so very special in the name of Jesus.

5 year old Bullfrog!

2011-12-21T22:33:00.000-07:00

Nehemiah and his birthday bike.

Sunday, Nehemiah the bullfrog, turned 5. On one hand, I can't believe my only dark haired baby boy is already so big. On the other hand, a day with that boy can feel like a week. You can just see it in his eyes. He's always up to something. He's cute. Charming. And has been in trouble about half his life. The half that he's not sleeping. :) But I wouldn't trade him for anything! He makes me laugh, he's so thoughtful, a GREAT big brother to Eliseo and Samuel always looking out for them, he loves to snuggle, talks my ear off, and begins every sentence with, "Uh-huh...yeah...and one time..." Those big brown eyes, dimples in his cheek and chin, and that smile that lights up the room...yes, he melts mommy's heart. Good thing considering how much he gets into trouble! :)

Birthday Banner made by Mommy and the girls. :)

Nehemiah riding his new bike. Eliseo not letting any of that birthday cake/icecream go to waste :)

Benjamin, Eliseo, Susannah, and Noah ready for church Sunday morning.

My second baby! :)

My first baby :)

Yesterday, Daniel and I and our 4 youngest went down to La Paz to turn in more paperwork for my visa and do some Christmas shopping for the children. The oldest 8 stayed home to study and Hna. Meche came over to stay with them. We had so much fun! And got sooo tired! After almost 4 months in the USA, McDonalds was not my first choice for lunch, but with a 6,5,3, and 2 year old in the car squealing with excitement when the golden arches came into sight, well...I do like their french fries :) Daniel and I were sitting down watching them all play at the play place and I said, "I tell you, when Timothy, Elijah, Beka, and Ben were all this small, I think I had a lot more energy!" :)
It was tons of fun being with just the littlest crew for the day and we had fun spoiling them a bit.
Tonight, we went Christmas Caroling with our church. Tomorrow and Friday we get to give out the Christmas boxes! What a wonderful Savior! A reason to celebrate today and every day!

McD's in La Paz

Samuel LOVES slides!

Susannah lost her first tooth last week!

I told you we spoiled them a bit :)

Week before Christmas

2011-12-16T16:33:00.000-07:00

Yes, we are still here ! :) Long, busy and full but wonderful days passing so quickly.

We started school and have a bit of catching up to do but and are still very much enjoying just being home.

After getting settled back in and beginning our school year, I found that things just weren't running too smoothly. I took a couple days to list down all the "problems" and realized that we were lacking some organization in many areas! Sometimes I tend to get the cart ahead of the horse. When I things start falling apart or not getting done, it's usually one of two reasons. Either I haven't taken the time to organized/plan/instruct as I should or I'm not sticking to my plan/schedule.

So that is what I've been working on the past couple weeks. And things are going MUCH better!

I listed out all the areas, big or small, that needed attention. Anything from cleaning, to shopping, to ministry, to school, to projects. Then prioritized them (for example, getting my food preparation/shopping/menus in order takes priority over practicing my violin. It saves us time and money and the man and children in this house would much rather eat a good meal than listen to me serenade them on my violin any day! :) And if I want to make Christmas crafts and bake Christmas cookies with the children, I'd best do that before the 25th thus I haven't updated here much.)

We started with the basics. Getting up on time, going to bed on time, chores and school. Then each day, I have tried to tend to at least one more area on my list in order of priority. And especially make time for those things that fill our home with love and joy. Playing a games with the children, reading stories, keeping our home open to company, chatting, writing notes, etc...

So this week, while there is still much do work on, I made a menu and followed it, decorated with the children for Christmas, took time to write some letters, worked on chore training, organized the boys clothing with them, fine-tuned our school day, and printed up/framed some Scripture verses to help keep my heart/mind set on what is true!

Plans for the next couple weeks...

*Tonight we are having 2 families over for supper

*Sunday Nehemiah the Bullfrog turns 5!!

*Tuesday- going down to La Paz with my hubby to renew my visa and (shhhhhh....get Christmas gifts for the children). :)

*Wednesday- Christmas caroling with our church

*Thursday/Friday- passing out the Christmas boxes we received this year...we got about 100 of them!! Look for the Christmas Box post/pictures in the weeks ahead.

Saturday- Our Christmas Eve also known as my half birthday :) is like Christmas Day for the people here in Mexico. They begin celebrating in the evening and often stay up most of the night. That is when we go visit some of the families in our church, bring them some Christmas goodies and eat tamales, pozole, and drink champurado (a think chocolate drink). Yum!!!!!!

Sunday- Our special Christmas service, children's/teen choir singing, fellowship dinner

Monday- Hubby and 3 oldest going to youth conference for 3 days with some of the other young people/men/women from our church. I'll have a HUGE list of projects ready to tackle while they are away mainly just because I'll miss them soooooo much and it will not only get things done that I've been needing to, but it will make the time pass quickly. :)

Merry Christmas to all who read here! May Jesus fill your hearts and homes with His love, peace and joy each day!

He is so faithful and sooo good!

See below for pics from this week!! :)

Daddy brought home a treat the other day...big jars of peanut butter!! :)

Sunset a few nights ago- view from the side of our front yard.

Making Christmas Carolers

Working on snowflakes for the windows

I saw this idea on my friend Cindy's blog and loved it! We made 14 carolers....one for each of us! :)

This was the first year ever that I let the children decorate the tree all by themselves! More and more, it's not about being "perfect"...just seeing the fun they had making memories together makes it the most beautiful tree ever!

Gift from my hubby to me :) I had books everywhere...in totes, in cupboards, in baskets, and the two book shelves we had were breaking and full. He saw a special at shopko for bookshelves for half off and got me four of them and an additional one with doors to hold our games/dvd's!! :) I feel like we have our own little library!
When Daniel gets time, I want him to paint a verse on the wall above the shelves. Any suggestions for what verse?

The weather has finally become cool enough to bake without sweating! :) I love fresh bread! I was thinking 2 loaves for us and 2 to give away to friends/neighbors. Well, we did give 2 away, but we could have easily eaten all 4! Next time I think I'll make 6!

I'm not the most creative/artistic, but I want to start changing our dining room bulletin board every month to fit the season/theme.

These little guys are usually the first ones up. I let them stay in their jammies till after breakfast and usually the little ones will munch on Cheerios while Beka and I cook. :)

Not sure why these next two pics got put way down here, but I've got to start supper and don't have time to get them where they should be :)

First Day...

2011-12-01T21:43:00.000-07:00

...of December.

First day of school.

After a 3 month "field trip", :)

we are back to opening our text books,

working at our desks,

back to our daily schedule.

We've missed it!!

It's soooo good to be home!

Thanking the Lord tonight for another "school year".

Ten children from 10th grade down to Kindergarten and two pre-schoolers just to keep me from getting bored and keep me laughing and smiling all day.

Furlough was not too long

2011-11-28T17:23:00.000-07:00

For about a month or two, I'd been thinking, "Furlough is just too long." But as I've spent the past week reflecting over our time away and just soaking up being back home, I had to ask the Lord to forgive me for thinking that way. I know He planned our furlough just as we asked Him to and it wasn't too long. It was just right. Just what we needed. Just the right amount of time. Just where we needed to go. I learned so much. He opened my eyes and heart and helped me see how much I lack. And how much it is only Him. And I just feel so blessed.

It is soooooooo good to be home.

I was talking to my mom in law on the phone today. She asked if we did anything special for Thanksgiving. For the first time in our 16+ years of marriage, we didn't. Yet I don't know if I have ever had a Thanksgiving where I've felt so blessed.

I love holidays. After day after day of just "everyday" life, I've always looked forward to those special days. Something different. A break from the normal. Waking up to a special morning with great anticipation and excitement.

But this past week, I woke up to an entire week of special mornings. Those little everyday things have been the things for which I am most thankful. The things I look forward to. Things I've missed to much.

Waking up in my own bed.

With my husband right beside me.

And sometimes one, two or three little ones snuggled up all around.

The sound of my alarm clock.

My closet and dresser drawers.

My favorite spot to read my Bible and pray.

Hot coffee. Bringing a hot drink to my hubby.

Waving to my neighbor. Children waking up finding me in the kitchen cooking breakfast.

My own kitchen. My pots. My pans. My spatula with the melted handle.

Family Breakfast/Bible Time with Daddy around our own table.

Our church. Our friends. Knocks at my door. Welcoming others into our home.

Chores. Laundry. My clothes line full.

Washing my own dishes while watching little ones play out the window.

Hanging up pictures colored on my fridge.

School. Teaching. Learning.

Story before nap time. Walking barefoot down to the store.

Puppet shows. Children reading on the couch. Cars and Lincoln logs.

Laughter. Cries. Kisses. Hugs.

Pushing a child on the swing. Jumping on the trampoline.

The smell of pine-sol. The taste of homemade cookies.

Wiping a dirty face. A runny nose. Tying a shoe. Or 10.

Fixin' supper that I know my family will love. Ironing Daniel's shirts fresh off the line.

Giggles in the bath. Mopping water off the floor.

Picking up toys. Family Devotions in our family room.

Tucking my children in their own beds. With their own special song.

Hearing the girls giggle and watching the older ones read by their lamps.

Sitting at my own desk. Working on our schedule.

Hearing Daniel get home. Having him brush my hair.

Going to bed without 12 other people in the room. :)

It is so good to be home.

I am so blessed! I love the life God has give me. I love being home! It is all these everyday little things that bring me so much happiness. I love to serve the Lord by serving my family. I don't deserve any of this, but the Lord is so good and I am so very thankful.

It is sooooooooooooo good to be home!!!!

We are at the border...

2011-11-18T10:24:00.000-07:00

Going home!!! :) Sorry to not have updated sooner. I wanted to leave the Christmas box post up to make sure nobody who wanted to participate missed hearing about it.

We picked up the boxes last night! Thank you so much for those who gave! We'll be giving the boxes to the children before Christmas and share pictures of those precious smiles here.

We are getting ready to cross the border!! We delayed our departure date by a couple days because our little Samuel needed to have tubes put in his ears just like his big brother.

Home sweet home! I can't wait! It's been a wonderful furlough but we are all homesick for there truly is no place like home. God is so faithful and so good!!!!!

Christmas Box Time!!

2011-11-01T22:42:00.000-07:00

Every year, for the past 4 years, we have been able through the generosity of so many to give a Christmas gift to many of the children in our town and some surrounding villages/ranchos. And it is that time again! Well, actually, time's almost over! Normally, we begin much earlier sharing about the Christmas Box program and giving a mailing address to send the boxes, but with all our travels and not being exactly sure about our departure date back to Mexico, we haven't posted it for this year until now! And there isn't much time at all! We apologize for not being able to post sooner, but for those of you who would still like to participate and can work quickly, we have the details! :) And for all those who work well under pressure, this might be perfect for you! Whether we get just a few boxes or many, each and every one will be placed into the hands of a Mexican boy or girl in our area and oh, the smiles and those precious faces that light up when they see their gift!!

We will be heading back across the border, Lord willing, in just under 2 weeks! So in order to ship your Christmas box(es) to a USA address, they need to arrive at the address for pick up by

November 14th.

The USA address is:

Daniel and Jaynee Lockwood

108000 Woodside Ave. Space 91

Santee, CA 92071

That means they have to be sent by this week or maybe by early next week. We will be leaving our home town on the 12th and plan on crossing the border into Mexico on the 14th. Our home is 800 miles south of the border, so we won't be able to return for any boxes that arrive late.

Anyone is always welcome to send a Christmas box at any time to our Mexico PO box. The postage is much more expensive that way, but there would be no time limit. It takes about 2 weeks for mail to get from the USA to Mexico. Even if a box arrived later than Christmas to our Mexico address, we'd be happy to give it to a child. :)

Our Mexico address is:

Daniel and Jaynee Lockwood

APDO 8

Col. Centro

Cd. Insurgentes, BCS

CP23700 MEXICO

Again, we are sorry there is so little notice this year. But we wanted to be sure to give an opportunity to all who are wanting and able to take part, to do so!

For those of you are are new here or do not know what the Christmas box program is all about, here are the details-

For the past four Christmas seasons, we have been able to bless a number of children in our town and the surrounding ranches with a special gift from many of you. What a joy it has been to not only give these children a shoe box or bag filled with wonderful treats, but by being a blessing in this way to their families, have an open door to share with them about the One who gave us the greatest gift of all!

This Christmas, we would again like to reach out to the families of our town by giving their children a Christmas Box. We want to not only show them the love of the Saviour through this tangible way, but go back and tell them the wonderous gospel that so many have still never heard.

Each time we have done this, it has been a tremendous blessing to the people. We've been able to hand out between 50 and 200 boxes each year! Every box that we receive is placed into the hands of a Mexican boy or girl. For many of them, it will be the only Christmas gift they will receive.

We will pass out whatever boxes we receive and the more the better! And we would love to have your help! It is truly more blessed to give than receive! If this is something in which you would like to have a part, here are some guidelines:

*Boxes should be shoebox size (you could either send a real shoebox or send a plastic container with a lid that is approximately the same size; the advantage of the plastic container is that the child/family can use it for something later)

*For Shipping Purposes, some people prefer to send a bag. Each year we handed out backpacks, paper gift bags (which were protected by being wrapped in plastic wrap so they wouldn't break open in shipping), and cloth hand bags as well. When we were up north, our girls were given some cloth hand bags for their birthdays that were purchased at the dollar store.

*Some years we had people send a large quantity of an item(s) to be handed out with or in addition to the boxes (we've received Spanish New Testaments, Spanish Christmas Coloring Books, Stuffed Animals, Blankets/quilts, hats). If you are interested in sending something like that, just email us and let us know! :)

*If you would like to specify "Christmas Box for a Boy" or "Christmas Box for a Girl", please mark that somewhere on the package. We will be handing them out to children of all ages, so variety is welcome!

Now for the fun part! Ideas of what to include in the boxes!If you are on a tight budget and would like to give, please know that anything will be appreciated. The children here do not have much at all and even small treats mean so much. If you have a dollar store or the like in your area, that would be a great place to go!

*Toys: a small stuffed animal, a ball, a yo-yo, whistle, picture book, a puzzle, a game, play dough, coloring book etc...

*School Supplies: pencils, pencil box, crayons, felt markers, stickers, notebook, erasers, pencil sharpener, glue etc...

*Toiletries: soap, toothbrush, toothpaste, comb or brush, wash cloth, floss, etc...

*Other: American Candy, scarf, a personal letter* or picture drawn for the child, comb or brush, toothbrush, craft, stickers, etc..

Here are things to NOT include:

*Chocolate or any other food that could melt, make a mess or spoil

*Medicine

*Items that could easily break

*Books or music (other than a note book or coloring book)

*Anything liquid that could spill (bubbles, shampoo, ect...)

*Anything that could be dangerous for a small child (marbles, sharp items ect...)

*Clothing other than maybe a scarf or hat as you don’t know what size the child is that will receive your box

If you have any further questions, feel free to email us (email address at the very bottom of the right side bar). Of course, we plan on taking lots of pictures of the children opening their boxes and will post some on the blog. Wouldn’t it be fun to see a picture of a child opening the box that YOU sent? :)

*Spanish phrases that you could include in a personal note if you would like:

Dios le bendiga– God Bless you

Jesus te ama– Jesus loves you

Feliz Navidad– Merry Christmas

Dios te ama– God loves you

Estoy orando por ti– I am praying for you

Con amor de - With love from

Joy Comes From Within :)

2011-10-29T22:59:00.000-06:00

The past week was hard. True, we were tired, the children were cranky, the days of driving were long, some physical ailments and we were all home sick. But the hardest part wasn’t caused by my circumstances but by my attitude. Unkind words, anger, selfishness, and a heart that was anything but submissive make for some miserable days. Daniel always says that no circumstance, no situation, no trial is so great that it can cause you to lose your joy for joy does not come from our outward circumstances but from within. Joy comes from the Lord. And the Lord NEVER changes! And I’m so thankful for Gods forgiveness.

Once I confessed my sin to the Lord, I felt so happy! And nothing had changed...other than me!

And today, after driving 770 miles yesterday, we are back in California! From coast to coast. Over 15,000 miles. And we are almost home. The Lord is so good!

We drove for days and days and He kept us safe.

He provided for our every need.

He gave us such sweet fellowship with so many dear families who love Him too.

Families provided so many meals for us. And our family can eat in one lunch what some families eat in a week!! And as we think of the love and sacrifice of those with whom we were blessed to stay, we are so very grateful.

Daniel and I learned more about each other. And I’m more thankful than ever for the man that the Lord has given me to be my husband. I love him sooooooo much!

We learned more about each one of our children. I love them soooo much!

We got to pick up supplies to meet some needs for our family/home/ministry in Mexico.

We saw so much of God’s creation and as great and intricate as everything was our eyes beheld, it is just a drop in the oceans compared to how great our God is!

We heard preaching that refreshed our souls.

We were impressed again and again and reminded of how children are a blessing. As our family went to each church and the children would sing and visit with the people, we saw it on their faces. And heard it over and over again. They loved the children.

All the hardships, sickness, miles, heat, cold, unknowns, being out of our home...it is such a small sacrifice compared to the joy the Lord gives us each day in just knowing Him!

There is so much for which to be thankful! I complain, I whine, I get discouraged, and get angry. And Daniel will try to encourage me and let me know that quite frankly, my attitude stinks! And of course, I KNOW that I am right! I feel that what he is saying isn’t fair or true. And I continue to be “right” and miserable!

And then the Lord usually brings His Word to my mind. “Humble thyself in the sight of the Lord.” “Every way of man is right in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the heart.” And once I admit that I am wrong and humble myself, confess my sin, repent, and get my heart right, I then see how very wrong I was and I’m so happy!! :) Funny how that works, huh? The Lord’s ways are so pure and true .

It’s been a wonderful 3 months. We are almost home. Wherever the Lord has us is the very best place to be!

Oh, and for those that have been asking about the Christmas Boxes for this year, we'll be posting about that early next week!!

Playing in the puddles after a rain in New York

Fun at the Kerschner Home

Pen Pals for years finally meet in person!

Beka and Gladys....Beka's first pen pal ever

Saying good-bye :(

Cinnamon and I have been friends for almost 15 years. I taught piano to her oldest son, Garrett, when he was 9 years old. :)

Miss Sarah sent us a Dairy Queen gift card :)

One morning, our hotel offered a restaurant breakfast for 2 people per room. We had 2 rooms, so we had 4 vouchers for free breakfast. The girls got up early and got ready to have a breakfast date with Daddy :)

We went out for Mexican food and were all sooooo homesick afterwards! :)

The Brompton Family took us for a ride on a cart pulled by oxen!

Fun on the ranch!

Prayer for Health

2011-10-14T07:06:00.000-06:00

I'm not sure how many stomach bugs we have had on this furlough. Four or five? Sometimes I'm not sure if it is the same bug or a different one or if it is from all the different food or water. Traveling, we are around many, many people and many new places. I think I've cleaned up more "sickies" the past 2 months than I have in the past 5 years...in the car, in a home, in a parking lot, at a hotel. Last night, I was up all night long as the 4 youngest took turns getting sick all night. Sooo thankful to be staying where there are 2 washers and dryers. Thankfully, they seem to be much better this morning. We have a long day of driving ahead of us and I think getting sick in the van is my least favorite place to clean. We are leaving NY today and heading to Michigan where Daniel is preaching Sunday.
I haven't mentioned this less than pleasant side of our travels much to anyone. But this morning I was thinking of how many people pray for us who read here. And so would you please pray for health for our family. I am so thankful that neither Daniel nor I have been sick and the Lord is so good to give strength each day even when the nights are long and there is little rest. What good times to pray those long night watches are!
Time to load up the trailer and head out. First stop...Walmart for more zip-lock bags (for sickies), diapers, and wipes. :-)

Furlough Update in 26 pictures :)

2011-10-12T10:29:00.000-06:00

Busy couple of weeks! But I want to update and not miss anything...but I have 12 children running around and a few loads of laundry to do before we leave for our next church this afternoon, so Daniel had a good idea....To just post some pictures with a few words beneath each and let them tell the story.

We spent the Sunday before last at Calvary Baptist Church in Mena, Arkansas. This church wasn't on our schedule, but the Lord had it scheduled for us. :) We loved staying with Billy and Dawn Lea and had such sweet fellowship.

Thought you might enjoy a look inside our trailer. Last furlough (2006) we had 9 children ages 8 and under. Daddy was a bit on his own with most of the loading/unloading. This furlough, we have lots of helpers!

One of the best parts of furlough is just being with Daddy!

I was snapping pics of the kiddos while the older boys were loading the trailer at our hotel.

Anytime we go anywhere, we walk in a line so we don't block traffic! :) Daddy always leads and Mommy follows everyone to make sure we don't lose anyone :)

This is a regular chore of traveling!

Last Thursday, we took the children to Washington D.C. on our way to New York. We got there late, but after 6:30 pm the parking is free and we walked for about 3 hours looking at the White House and the various monuments.

Noah lost his very first tooth! :)

We hit New York at the PERFECT time! Fall!!!! All the leaves are turning colors and of all the places I've ever traveled, I think Upstate New York is the most beautiful!

Mr. and Mrs. Adams took our family to watch apples get pressed to make Apple Cider!

Then we went back to their house and the children played around on their farm.

Sunday, my first baby turned 15!!!!!!!!! Happy Birthday, Timothy! After morning services, a man from church here offered to take Timothy for a ride on his motorcycle as a birthday treat. :)

Monday, we met the Audet Family who had come to see us from Vermont. We went to this beautiful park, visited, played and they treated us to pizza! Yum!

The children enjoyed skipping rocks!

The colors are just so beautiful! The Lord is so amazing!

Last night we drove a couple hours north to meet my dear friend Amy! They were having a mission's conference at their church that night, so we went with them. Of the 4 pictures that Amy and I took together, well, I'm not sure we should post them! :) ha! I was taking this picture of Abi and 3 of Amy's girls and Daniel jumped in :)

Tonight, Daniel is preaching in Bath, NY and Friday morning, we head to Michigan. Thank you so much for praying for our safety! I can't believe that we'll be back home in about a month!
Thank you for praying for my Daddee too. He's doing better today, but may have a long road of recovery. I can't wait to see him when we are back in CA the end of the month.

Time to get the church clothes out and ready for our trip this afternoon.
Thank you so much for all the encouragement and prayers as we've traveled.

Prayer for Jaynee's Dad

2011-10-11T06:56:00.000-06:00

Yesterday afternoon, I got a call from my sister. My dad had awoken Sunday morning not feeling well. He was dizzy and nauseous. A stomach bug had been going around, so they thought maybe that was what he had. Monday morning, his face was numb and he was unable to walk. They took him to the hospital where they determined he had suffered a major stroke.

Please pray for my Daddee today. Pray for my Mommee too. I know how hard it is to see your husband...the one who is always so big and strong and serving...now so weak and in a hospital bed. I know between my emergency last year and when Daniel was so very sick, it was far easier being on the patient side of things.

Thank you so much for praying. The Lord is so faithful and so good.

Journaling Furlough- Special Friends

2011-10-01T22:38:00.000-06:00

This was the week for being with friends!

This trip, we have been overwhelmed with the sweet hospitality and kindness of so many. Some we had never even met before. So much love, thoughtfulness and kindness in these different homes. How much I have learned in caring for those whom the Lord gives us the opportunity to have in our home!

Tuesday night, we were at the Burnett's home. We were suppose to be there Monday night, but after a delayed start, heavy traffic due to an accident, and a hot day requiring more than the normal amount of stops, we finally realized that we weren't going to make it. So we called their family and they were so understanding and offered to take us in the following day/night.

We played our instruments together and sang, the children played, we learned new games, read books, washed clothes (and dear Mrs. B even folded everything for me!), ate delicious food, and then stayed up between 2 am and 4 am (depending on who it was) talking and drinking coffee. :)

On Wednesday, we were with the Morris Family. I met Cindy almost 5 years ago when her little boy Joel was sick with cancer. The Lord took him home a short time later, but the testimony of his life and his family's faith and stand on God's Word through their darkest hour has reached and continues to touch hearts and lives everywhere. She has been a dear friend, encouragement and blessing to me even though we had never actually met. When I was in the hospital last year after losing our baby, Cindy and I chatted on the computer. I was so excited to finally meet her and 11 of her 13 children. They live on a farm with goats, chickens, dogs, cats, and lots of room to run around, ride bikes and play. We had bbq burgers/hotdogs, chips, and cookies/cake (yum!). We laughed and enjoyed singing and reading God's Word together before we went to bed.

Thursday, we were invited to go have lunch at the Duggar Family home. I think this is the first time we have been with a family larger than our own and it was SUPER fun! They asked us to stay the night and you can only imagine the children's joy. Their children are so much like ours, and they made quick friends! They played and played!

Their entire family is so sweet. On Friday, the older Duggar girls made lunch and watched all the children for a couple hours while Jim Bob and Michelle and Daniel and I went out on a double date! :) What a special treat! We are so thankful for the Duggar's testimony for the Lord Jesus Christ and the encouragement they give to families all over the world.

Memories and friends made this week that we'll treasure forever!

Friday night we arrived with the Lea family in Mena, AZ. After the church in KY canceled, we didn't know where we would be this Sunday. This week, the Lea family wrote us and said that their church was having a special outreach in their community on Saturday and an emphasis on mission's that Sunday. They had earlier invited us to stay in their guest quarters and told us that their pastor would love for Daniel to preach too if we were able.

We again thanked the Lord for directing our way and have so enjoyed getting to know this dear family and their church. And I'm up late again tonight doing what??? Laundry, of course! :)

Amidst all the driving, moving from place to place, unloading, loading, trying to keep the van clean, the clothes clean, the children clean and keeping track of everyone's shoes, this furlough has been far sweeter than I had ever imagined.

The Lord is so faithful and so good!

Good Bye, Texas.

2011-09-26T07:36:00.000-06:00

I've been blessed! Physically, the past few days were some of the most demanding, but spiritually, I've been fed. Broken again over my own sin. Filled with the sweet love that only comes from Jesus Christ.

So thankful for the hope we have in Him!

Thursday and Friday were spent in the home of the Benevides family. What a wonderful family! I think if we lived here, Kim would be one of my dearest friends. They spoiled us, loved us, and we just had such a refreshing time at their home.

We stayed up each night until 1 am talking about the Lord, His Word, and sharing our hearts.

We drank lots of coffee! :)

We laughed. We talked about hurts and our hearts. What I appreciated so much about this family was their humble, sweet spirit and desire to simply submit to and follow our Lord.

Sweet friendships. Thank you, Lord.

I have soooooooo loved Texas! Texas is where they bottle Dr. Pepper. I knew there was something special about this place. :) I'm sad that today is our last day here. :( But looking forward to continuing to go where the Lord takes us and asking Him to use us where ever we go. Can you believe that? God uses us! We are nothing and have nothing to give but our weak, broken lives and He uses us. When we are weak, then He is strong.

Pastor Vail took our family out to supper Saturday night at a buffet. I don't think most of our children have ever been to a place where there are so many choices and you can have all you want of any of them! :)

I was excited to show them one of my most useful talents....how to take those little bowls they give you for the soft serve icecream and create a tower of sweet deliciousness that rivals the empire state building. :)

My husband just looks at me and says, "Only my wife. " :)

Saturday night, Samuel was sick. And grumpy. And kept me up most of the night. Extra time to pray which was sweet.

The next day, he was still not 100%. Nehemiah was having tummy problems and we had to change his clothes once right before we were leaving the hotel to head to church. And then right before we were getting up to sing in the church. Thankfully, he felt okay and so while Daniel was preaching, Abi and I took the 3 youngest ones out to the van/trailer to rest.

Samuel slept almost the entire 3 hour drive to Houston that afternoon where Daniel preached that evening and woke up happy and feeling much better! We stopped at a gas station a couple miles from the church and the girls ran inside to comb their hair, Daniel changed and dressed Samuel and Eliseo, and I got all the other boys into their shirts, ties, and suits which we'd taken off before lunch so they wouldn't get dirty.

We jumped back into the van and arrived at the church with 1 minute to spare. Nothing like getting there early. The Spanish and English churches were together that night and Daniel preached his message in 2 languages. It's only the second time he's done that. He preaches a thought in English and then preaches it again in Spanish. Then back to English and then to Spanish. I don't think I could ever do that! The Lord has sure equipped him for the job he's called him to do. After the service, a man commented how he preaches so differently in each language. In English he is more mellow and still and in Spanish he is very animated and uses his hands.

The church let us stay in their lovely missions house here and brought over 8 pizzas for dinner. We finished off almost 6 of them. Yum! Two were dessert pizzas. I'd never heard of a dessert pizza before, but what a sweet idea! :)

We are heading to Oklahoma today and then to Arkansas later this week. We'll be seeing some very special friends and are so excited! We just love people so much!

Well, today is Susannah's 6th birthday. She's been up with me all morning, bless her heart! My baby girl is 6. I love her so much! Thanking the Lord for so many blessings this morning.

I thought it was cute how we took up most of the shoe holder at the play place :)

Thank you so much for having us, Benevides! We love and miss you all!

The Benevides and Lockwood Families. Four adults. Twenty children. :) Wonderful!

Journaling Furlough- More new friends (September 21)

2011-09-21T22:30:00.000-06:00

We spent the past 2 days with the Hughes family. Connie and I have been friends for years as we have emailed, encouraged, and prayed for each other through pregnancies, illnesses, trials and uncertainties. Besides knowing that the Lord Himself is with you and ever loving/caring for you, there is nothing more comforting than to know that a friend is lifting you up in prayer.

So when we found out we would be traveling through the Hughes neck of the woods and being ever grateful for a place to rest/stay as we travel, I wrote Connie and we’ve been anticipating being together for months!

Just like when we stayed with Daniel’s brother, there were 20 children ages 14 and under at the Hughes home this week. This time, the ratio was in favor of the girls as the Hughes have 7 daughters and one son. So with our 3 girls and 9 boys, it was an even split at 10 and 10. :)

It was such a blessing to be with them! The children were thrilled to make new friends again and spent hours playing, Daniel was able to get caught up on some important paperwork, and Connie was so sweet to feed our crew and hers while I did my best to help, keep tabs on all the children and their shoes. :)

We ended each evening singing and reading God’s Word together and we even got to go to their oldest daughter’s school this morning to share a little bit of what the Lord has called us to do and sing some songs in English and Spanish for the children there. The director was so kind to invite us to share and even provided a pizza lunch for everyone. :)

Tonight we went to Worth Baptist Church in Fort Worth, TX. What a wonderful, loving church! We were so blessed! Daniel wasn’t scheduled to preach anywhere tonight, so it was so special to have Daddy sit with us in the pew. Of course, I love to hear him preach, but every now and then, when we do get to ALL sit together as a family, I just love it, too. :) A sweet lady came up to me and told me that she has read our blog and prayed for us for years (Hi, Damara!) .

We’ve got a busy next week ahead. We’ll be with another dear family for a couple days tomorrow, Daniel will be preaching in Streetman, TX for the church’s 150 year anniversary on Sunday morning, and on Sunday evening, he’ll be preaching in Houston.

We have had a couple changes in our schedule. Last week, a couple churches (in KY and NC) had to cancel having us come, but the Lord opened the door for us to be in two new churches. Sunday evening, we’ll be with Central Baptist Church in Houston (the church of our mission agency, Central Missionary Clearinghouse :) ) and then the end of October we will be part of a mission’s conference in Salinas, CA.

Furlough is over half way over. :) We pray the Lord’s continued direction, protection, provision, and grace each day.

Journaling Furlough- September 19th

2011-09-19T07:18:00.002-06:00

You know, they say a picture is worth a thousand words. All our pictures from this furlough are still on my memory card. As we were driving the other day, I was looking through them. And I found myself smiling the entire time. What I do not have time or ability to write about...the stories, memories, feeling... those pictures say it all.

I’ve met so many young mothers (well, younger than I am...I’m still young, right? :) ), and with many have had the privilege and joy of sharing some time talking together. We’ve talked about very real feelings...tired or better exhausted, overwhelmed, survival mode, being joyful, doubts, fears. My encouragement to them:

Be not weary in well doing, for in due season ye shall reap if ye faint not!

The joy of the Lord is my strength.

Spend time each and every day with the Lord in His Word and prayer!! Make it your number one priority more necessary than your daily food.

Enjoy each day! Even those days...no, years...of feeling like you are just surviving...diapers, cleaning, discipline, playing, cooking, laundry, it never ends...have fun! Sing, laugh, tickle, love, do something or many things fun and even goofy each day to keep everyone smiling! :)

And something that one of my dear friends told me recently has rung so true through my thoughts ever since:

The days are long but the years are short.

It does go by so fast! A day in the van with 12 children driving feels like forever. But looking over pictures taken from just a year ago, and I can’t believe how much they’ve grown! Look at pictures from 3 years ago, and I get teary eyed remembering.

Oh, the Lord is so good! What a precious gift each day is that He gives! And today is going to be the best day ever. Just like yesterday was! :)

Friday afternoon, we arrived at the Millers house. And I think my children were contemplating letting Daddy and I finish furlough ourselves and letting them stay there a couple months :) What a wonderful, fun, sweet family who love the Lord and love each other. They have 7 children. They adopted one of their beautiful girls from China. They have one boy that is as full of energy and speed as my Nehemiah (which of course, made me very relaxed knowing that we wouldn’t scare them too much :) ), and just the most sweet 16 year old daughter who gave her entire afternoon and next morning to spend with all the children. They are getting ready to adopt 2 more dear boys from Africa here soon, too!

What did we do there? Well, we visited (until 2 am!), I got caught up on all my laundry (again!!), we ate, and then played...a go cart, trampoline, swings, toys, books, power wheels, horses, goats, chickens, ducks, dogs, a cow. It was so much fun!

My favorite part of furlough is being with people! Whether it is my family in the van or with a church or with dear friends in their home...we LOVE getting to know others better and hearing and seeing what the Lord has done or is doing in their lives.

Yesterday, Daniel spoke at Fundamental Baptist Church in Irving, TX. It is always so good to be in the house of the Lord each Sunday. I met a dear young lady ( hi Barrie!) who drove well over and hour to come meet us who is preparing to give her life to serve the Lord on the mission field too. We got to eat real Texas BBQ after the service. In the evening, Daniel wasn’t scheduled to speak, so we attended another Baptist church we found and a dear family there took us all out to McDonalds! The children enjoyed meeting their children and playing at the play place together. On the way home, we were in the most incredible thunder storm! After not really seeing any rain for over 2 years, this was VERY exciting! :)

And today, well, once everyone gets up and going, Daniel is going to fix the trailer, I’ll probably work on some more laundry, and then we are going to spend a couple more days/nights with another friend that I can’t wait to meet!

The Lord is so faithful and so good!

Journaling Furlough- Sept. 16

2011-09-16T07:32:00.002-06:00

Journaling Furlough- September 16, 2011

We love Texas! :) What a fun state! And everyone is so friendly :) It reminds me a bit of Mexico in that as I walk around our hotel or go into a store , the people I pass greet me. “Good morning!” “Hi! How are you doing?” I love it! :)

Yesterday was such a special day. We got to meet the 3 dear ladies that work at Central Missionary Clearinghouse. For about 8 years now, they have received and then given us our support each month. They do this for about 450 missionaries. I can’t imagine all the work that is involved, and we are just so very grateful for their labor of love for the Lord and those He’s called to serve Him. They were just as sweet in person as they are on the phone/email. We just loved being with them!

They took us all to lunch and we had such a wonderful time visiting with them and seeing the little office where they work each day. The office is in the parking lot of their church. What a love for missions their church has, too! We were able to attend the service there Wednesday night and meet Pastor Maddox who is the overseer of Central Missionary Clearinghouse as well. We thank the Lord for CMC as they have been such a blessing to our family/ministry for so many years!

After meeting the ladies for lunch, we had a fun family day yesterday. Going from house to house is so much fun, and we LOVE to visit. But sometimes we just need to have some time alone as a family. We took the children to a big sporting goods store per the boys request to look around. They had all sorts of animals and fish there. And a huge aquarium with big fish! :) They boys loved it! Okay, the girls did too :) And it was nice and air conditioned inside.

After that, we went to a hotel and had the entire swimming pool to ourselves! The children got to swim for over 2 hours! Eliseo is a little fish himself! He has no fear and will get in over his head w/o any floaties and bob up and down laughing all the time. About gave me some grey hair watching him! But the big kids were great at taking turns staying with the 2 little ones. We had races across the pool and back and I taught them how to play Marco Polo. ;) What a fun night! We ended with dinner and then family singing/Bible time. Everyone got to bed early. Well, the children did. Mommy and Daddy had a paperwork/email/laundry party. Daniel bought us a couple of milkshakes for the party :).

Today, once everyone gets up (I think they are catching up on sleep a bit!), we will get ready and head to some dear friend’s home whom we’ve never met in person before!! They have lots of kiddos too and we can’t wait!

Oh, Wednesday afternoon, we were in San Antonio and took the children to see the Alamo! My boys love Davy Crockett and what a great history lesson this was! We are learning so much on this trip!

Getting out of the car one night after a long day of travel just to let the kids run :)

Journaling Furlough

2011-09-14T09:37:00.000-06:00

September 14, 2011– Tuesday Morning

We are on the road again traveling through New Mexico this morning on our way to Houston, TX. According to the GPS, we have 807 miles to go. I’m so thankful for our GPS. We’ve only had it for about a month. Daniel’s cousin, Tom, and his wife gave us theirs while we were with them in Arizona last month. We’d never used one before and Tom said he thought it would help us on our trip. We love it! I’m especially thankful for it because it does much better at giving directions than our former co-pilot did….me. I don’t even necessarily need to know the address to a church. I can just type in the city/state and look up the churches in that area and choose from a list the church that we need. No internet connection needed to look up a map/directions. What a benefit/time saver it has been for us!

We love road trips as a family. Even with all the work/busy schedule/hours it the car, they are so fun and we make so many memories together. I was thinking this morning of what a time of growth they are for us too. For me, the difficulties of the trip have caused me to be thankful, to see areas in which I struggle, and have given me so many opportunities to see the Lord work.

It’s been a time of stretching for me. I love being home. I love to have each of my days planned/scheduled and in order. Right now, normally, we would be well into our school year, our new yearly schedule printed and followed, and while we don’t know what tomorrow holds, unless the Lord brought something different along, I’d know what to expect each day.

I always need to grow in the area of flexibility. This trip has been and will continue to be good for me! Each day in a different place, in different homes, different schedules, asking the Lord all along the way to allow us to be a help, blessing and encouragement to all those we meet. I do miss my home. And if I ever thought that furlough=a time of rest, I think I’ve changed my mind! Ha! Of course, I think being tired for the next 10-15 years more or so is just part of my job. :) Well worth it and wouldn’t trade it for anything.

Being tired, in a car together for hours, throw in being hot at times or maybe not feeling too good...well, it let’s you see who you really are! I am thankful. So thankful for the work the Lord has done in my heart and so thankful that He who hath begun a good work in me will continue to perform it until the day of Jesus Christ!

And this morning, as I again asked the Lord for His grace and strength for today, I thought of the many things our time so far on this trip has given. Right now, as Daniel is driving and I’m typing, some of the children are singing new songs they’ve learned. How we love to sing! I’m remembering 3 weeks of nights in Uncle Joel’s living room hearing the 20 cousins sing their hearts out while Uncle Daniel/Uncle Joel/Timothy played guitar or I played piano. A giant tree fort built. The need to buy the children an address book to keep track of the names/addresses of the many new friends that they have met and with whom they want to keep in touch. The excitement on their faces when we opened a couple care packages some dear friends sent to us to make our trip extra special and help pass those long hours in the car. The exciting sights seen along the way. Hearing Daddy week after week preach and seeing not only His willingness to give His life for the gospel but to also see the Lord use Him in so many ways. And the BEST is yet to come! I say that often to the children. Not just referring to our trip (because I always tell them that this will be the greatest day ever). :) But as a Christian having being purchased by the blood of our Savior, we are His! And someday will be the BEST day ever for we will be with Him and forever and have a new body that does not struggle with sin. So each day, we ask the Lord to make us more like Him until we will be like Him for we shall see Him as He is. What a wonderful Lord and Savior!

It’s been a good trip. Yes, difficult at times but we know the Lord is with us, leading us, and our hearts have been blessed.

Add caption

Finally, an Update!!! :)

2011-09-09T11:41:00.003-06:00

Friday, September 9, 2011-

Yes, we are still here! And back on the road. Yesterday began our 7 week trip across the country after spending 3 wonderful weeks in our hometown area visiting family, friends, and sharing with our supporting churches there. I didn’t plan on neglecting my furlough journal for so long. We were staying at Daniel’s brother’s house. They don’t have very good internet, so I was hardly online. And even if they had the best connection ever, I don’t know I’d have been on my computer much more than I was. Four adults. Twenty children. 20! It was the best crazy fun ever! We were just a little bit busy :) Where do you sleep 20 children in a 1,300+ square foot house? Oh, that’s easy! The weather was just perfect for our oldest 7 boys and their oldest 3 boys to camp out back. So we had 10 out under the stars on the trampoline, our 3 girls and their 2 oldest girls slept in one bedroom, Daniel and I and our youngest 2 slept in another bedroom, and Joel/Deb and their littlest ones slept in their bedroom. We were all very cozy! :) Most of the time, it was just work...getting meals on, trying to wash/dry clothes for 24 people each day. Their poor dryer went out 2 days before we left. It has been suggested that maybe we overused it. Nah. :) But it was so fun being together and visiting throughout the day. I know this is one summer that the children will never forget! We are making the BEST memories!!

Well, I could write pages of all we did the past couple weeks, but due to time (hubby is loading up the trailer with the kiddos and we’re getting ready to pull out), I’ll just give a couple highlights.

My wallet got stolen. :( What an ordeal that was! I used my wallet Monday afternoon to buy some bread and a printed picture at Walmart. I was with my girls, went straight back home, finished making and serving dinner, and then grabbed my purse again as Daniel and I were going on a date night :) (thank you Deb and Joel!!). We went to do some shopping and while at the store, I noticed my wallet wasn’t in my purse. I didn’t think too much as I was sure it was in the van or back at the house. The next day I was planning on cleaning and going through all our things in preparation for our trip and I was sure it would turn up. When we didn’t find it, we called the stores where we had been to see if someone had found it and turned it in Nothing. So we called the bank. Someone had my wallet and had spent over $350 on my cards. :( I lost my driver’s license, Mexican visa, bank cards, and pictures. It took a good part of the day, but thankfully, we were able to work everything out at the bank and should get our money returned to us soon. I’m praying that now that my cards can’t be used, the thief will leave my wallet somewhere where an honest person will find it and get ahold of us.

I’d love to have back my Safeway Club card. :) Not that I ever go to Safeway. It’s just the first thing I ever applied for after I married Daniel. The week we returned from our honeymoon, I went down to Safeway to do our first grocery shopping and signed up for the card. When I was asked to sign my name on the back, I proudly wrote, “Mrs. Daniel Lockwood”. :) I’ve kept that card ever since . :)

Well, Daniel’s now ready to go, so I’ll just upload some pictures to give a few highlights of our time up north. Hopefully we’ll be able to update more frequently as we travel. If you've emailed us within the past couple weeks and haven't heard back, I'll try my best to get caught up with all of you soon. We’ll be on the road for 7 weeks! Daniel will be preaching at Heritage Baptist Church in Goodyear, AZ on Sunday. We plan on driving to San Diego tonight to stay with Daniel’s brother and arrive in AZ tomorrow. Again, we appreciate your prayers as we travel. Safety. That the van will run well. Health. Strength. Wisdom. Sweet spirits with much patience, love, and grace. And that the Lord will use us wherever we go to bring glory to Him!

He is so faithful and so good!!

Breakfast time :)

Chuck E Cheese With Grandma and Grandpa

Thank you Grandma and Grandpa! We sure love and miss you!!

We took all the children fishing down at the river one evening and that got a 3 1/2 lb. large mouth bass!

Daniel and Pastor Ryan (our pastor) :)

When they weren't working/doing chores/sleeping/eating, the boys spent most all their time building a tree fort! It was great!

It measured 20 ft. 5 inches high!
Daddy went up to the top. Mommy did not. :)

Home

2011-08-23T14:43:00.000-06:00

Eliseo's home, smiling, playing and even eating! He woke up from surgery screaming and ripped out his iv, but once the anesthetic wore off more and he got a couple popsicles, he calmed down. Once home, he's been back to his sweet, happy self. Thanking the Lord for bringing him through so well!

In Surgery Now

2011-08-23T08:54:00.000-06:00

Our little Eliseo was just taken into surgery.

Daniel and I are in the waiting room and expect to hear from the doctor within the next couple hours.

He was crying when we left him :(, but hopefully by now he's in sleeping.

Thank you so much for praying for him.

Journaling Furlough and Prayer for Eliseo

2011-08-22T17:53:00.000-06:00

We arrived in our home town, Redding, CA, safely this past Wednesday! And with so many family and friends to see, it's been non stop all day and late into the night most every day! :)

We are staying with Daniel's brother, Joel; he and his wife just had their 8th little one. So what do you get when you have 20 children ages 14 and under in one house? Lots of crazy fun!!!

On the way up to Redding, we stayed at my sister Julee's house and so enjoyed being with her as well as seeing my aunts, uncles, and cousins!

Since we are here in Redding for another 2 weeks before we take off across the country, we are taking care of some medical needs.

Eliseo (3 years old) will be having surgery early tomorrow morning to remove his tonsils and adenoids and getting tubes put into his ears.

We sure appreciate your prayers for him. This will be his second surgery. My sister says he's going to dread coming to the USA if he has to have surgery every time he comes! :)

Well, this was short, I know, but with 20 children running around...well, I'm sure you understand!! :)

Thank you all for praying for our family!

Feeding squirrels on the way to Aunt Julee's

Playing croquet at Uncle Ron's work

Aunt Julee!!!! :)

My sweet first cousin, Olivia, who is the same age as my Susannah!

How do you feed 20 children? You make lots of food and get a really long table!

Susannah and Cousin Ellie

Setting up our display at our home church

Journaling Furlough- August 12-14

2011-08-16T15:23:00.002-06:00

Family Picture 2011

August 12-

Daniel was finally able to replace the bearings in the trailer wheel. They kept giving him the wrong part, so it took a few extra trips to the auto parts store. The older boys worked with Daniel while the girls and younger ones stayed in the hotel until check out time. Then we all got into the van and shared some cold water and a soda while waiting. Finally, we were on our way.

About 3 months ago, a dear lady who reads our blog emailed me offering to open her home to us as a place to stay during our travels. We did need a place to stay between our Wednesday and Sunday appointments, and were so appreciative of this family’s offer. We had never met before, but after spending two days together, we didn’t want to leave. How wonderful it is to meet new friends!

Our family is more loud, and theirs more quiet. We have 9 boys and 3 girls. They have 6 girls and 2 boys. It was quite the mix! :) But, soooo much fun! The first night, they treated our entire family to a play at their local Lifehouse Christian Theater where their two oldest daughters were preforming. We’ve never been to a play before, so had no idea what to expect, but it was excellent! The redemptive message of the gospel was the highlight of it all, and we not only enjoyed it thoroughly, but our hearts were touched as well.

We enjoyed such delicious meals together and I told Mrs. Manson that I think we’re going to get worse gas mileage now since I think we all gained about 20 lbs. :-) We enjoyed participating in their families hymn learning time, Bible time, and spent hours visiting, playing games together, and the children swam. Daniel and Timothy pulled out the guitar a couple times and we all sang together, too.

Mr. Manson offered to take our family picture before we left! The last picture we had taken, Samuel had just gotten out of the NICU and now he’s a healthy, happy, active, determined little boy.

August 14-

We arrived at Western Avenue Baptist church about 6:00 pm Saturday evening. The church had bathrooms, showers, and plenty of space, and we had a wonderful night’s rest. Before each service, Daniel spends time alone with the Lord with an open heart as to what the Lord would have Him to share. The plan was for the family to sing and then for Daniel to share our slides and preach a message during the Sunday school hour and then share another song or two and give a quick report during the main church service before Pastor Ted gave the message.

As Pastor Ted put it, he had plan A, B, and C for that morning, and the Lord chose plan D. At the end of Sunday School, Pastor asked Daniel and I to both briefly share our testimonies of how we came to Christ. He asked if we’d be willing to share our testimonies in the main church service. Neither one of us can share what Christ did for us without tears and what a precious service it was! Three people accepted Christ that morning!!

What is most beautiful to me is how the Lord can take the sin, hurts, “garbage” of our lives and not only clean us and make us new, but use it all to bring honor and glory to His name! He uses all the things that we have to offer Him...broken pieces of our lives...and then uses it all where He calls us!

We visited Iglesia Bautista Fundamental “Getsemani” in Escondido, CA in the evening. As poor as my Spanish may be, I miss speaking it and more than anything, miss our church family back home. So it was a joy to spend an evening with this church.

We are heading to my sister’s home for a couple days in Morgan Hill, CA. Can’t wait to see our families!! :)

Noah's great smile :)

Drying off a bit with Daddy

Samuel loved this little slide

Listening to/Reading the Bible on DVD after breakfast

Getting ready to go on a walk around the neighborhood

New toys are always so fun!

New Friends
(Left to Right) Back Row: Brooke holding Dunlin, Autumn, Rebekah, Ivy
Front Row: Susannah, Sage, Abigail

Eating Brunch at Denny's

Samuel was far too interested in those pancakes to smile for a picture :)

Family Picture

2011-08-15T09:01:00.001-06:00

We have had the most wonderful week!! We haven't had internet much, but I've been journaling it all and will share as soon as I can. But for now, I had to share this! :) We stayed with the most dear family (Hi, Mansons!!! :-) ) and the father, who is an excellent photographer, offered to take a family picture for us. As we were looking through the ones he took, we found the "perfect" one...everyone looking right at the camera and 11 out of 12 children smiling :-) We'll probably get that one printed up large to hang on our wall. But then I saw this one. It isn't "perfect", but so many of the children's personalities are shining through and I just LOVE it!

Keep praying for us as we travel! The Lord has been SOOO good and our hearts are so full.

I'll share more soon.

Journaling Furlough- August 11th

2011-08-11T12:45:00.000-06:00

Thursday, August 11-

We made it here to Victorville, CA yesterday afternoon about 4 pm. We left AZ a little later than planned, but we didn't’ need to stop too much and arrived about the time we’d planned. The night before we left, I had all the children shower/bathe, and then put on their clean clothes for traveling the next day. Daniel, the older boys and I loaded the trailer/van that night and so when my alarm when off the next morning, all we had to do was change diapers, put on shoes/socks, and comb our hair. Rebekah and I ironed all our clothes we’d need for church and set them all aside, so when we arrived at the hotel, we just grabbed our toiletry bag and the church clothes, and everyone was able to freshen up and change without having to unload all the suitcases.

Pulling out of Regeneration Ministries in Arizona Wednesday morning

A dump truck inside of the back of a dump truck! :) The children loved this!

Real life shot. :) Everyone came into one hotel room so I could make sure they were all ready...hair combed, shoes on the right feet ect... We were getting ready to walk out when I snapped this shot. Eliseo was fussing and Josiah was making funny faces in the mirror :)

We had such a blessed time at Bible Baptist Church last night! It was so good to see some familiar faces as well as meet new friends. Timothy and Elijah are in charge of our display table. I need to remember to take a picture of it. The back drop has pictures of the people/ministry in Mexico and then on the table we have Mexican candy for daring ones to try, toys, our pet horned toad, and other things from our area. The boys enjoy answering questions and visiting with those who pass by. We hope to pick up our prayer cards this Saturday.

After service, some dear families, one of whom knew Daniel and I when we were really, really young, took us all out to supper. We laughed, talked, and stayed until the restaurant closed. We got a great night’s rest and the hotel had a delicious breakfast bar which we all enjoyed...coffee, juice, milk, cereal, yogurt, breads, eggs, waffles, fruit. And it ALWAYS tastes extra good when I don’t have to cook it :). I don’t know why, but even a peanut and butter sandwich tastes better to me when someone else makes it. Daniel thinks that’s strange, but it’s really true! :)

We are all packed up and ready to load up and head to a home of some new friends, but we are having a problem with another one of our trailer tires. Daniel loaned our trailer, a few months ago, to the high school in our town. They were taking a trip up the peninsula and back with some of their students and needed something to hold the luggage. On their way back home, they were in an accident and while they were so good to fix all the damage we knew of at the time, we found some more problems this trip. Thankfully, Daniel has been able to make the needed repairs thus far and we trust the Lord will help him this morning as well so we can be on our way soon.

Something that I had forgotten about when traveling is the sometimes difficulty of having personal quiet time with the Lord. Very late nights make it a bit harder to get up early. At home, if the little ones get up when I’m reading /praying, I can have them play in the play room or give them a snack in the kitchen while I finish. But in someone else’s home, I have to make sure they aren’t disturbing anyone or getting into every “new” thing they see. :) So I was asking the Lord this morning to help us to all do all we can to make that most important time a top priority. To not let the busy-ness of traveling take away from what is most needful. I need the Lord each and every day! I need to hear Him, give Him my cares, confess to Him my sins, and ask for His grace and strength. Just as today’s meals are not sufficient for tomorrow, that time with the Lord is needful each and every day!

Journaling Furlough- August 5-9

2011-08-09T22:47:00.001-06:00

August 5-

The past couple of days have been so fun, productive, tiring and relaxing all at the same time! The children continue to enjoy playing here on the property. The gym has been a big hit! Volleyball, basketball, ping--pong, foosball, scooters, pogo-stick, roller blades! Last night, we went up to Uncle Tommy and Aunt Cindy’s house and laughed, played, ate and talked waaayyy to late! Wednesday morning, we went into town and got groceries. All the things I’d forgotten about that I guess I can really live without, but what a treat! Otter Pops to help cool you off in the heat, corn dogs, bbq chips, pickles!!!, cheddar cheese, English muffins, grape jelly, and root beer. Yes, I got real food, too. :) And you know what the children were craving last night for supper? Tacos with beans, rice, and salsa. So that’s what we ate!

Daniel flew up with Tom and Pastor Murphy to Whiteriver to minister in the prison there yesterday. The children and I cleaned, organized luggage, washed clothes, wrote letters, practiced music and played. The sickies were on the mend and today everyone woke up feeling much better. I told them that today they had to take it easy so they don’t get a relapse. No running around just yet, so they’ve been up out of bed, eating at the table with everyone, and playing games/puzzles or reading inside where it’s nice and cool.

Eliseo and Cousin Grace

Born in Mexico and proud of it :-)

We enjoyed a couple thunder storms!

My Good Morning Bunch! :)

Daddy and Uncle Tommy enjoying good fellowship

Good thing I brought my hair cutting kit! :-)

Playing games with the cousins

August 9-

We’ve been here for a week and are getting ready to head out early tomorrow morning. I just finished making my list of things to do to get ready for our next leg of the trip. We’ve sure enjoyed our time here, had such good fellowship, and are leaving with full hearts, tummies :), and wonderful memories.

Uncle Tommy and Aunt Cindy bravely, sweetly and heroically watched ALL of our children today so Daniel and I got get a lunch/shopping date! Taco bell, Sonic Shakes and Wal-mart! It was so much fun just because we were together and after 16 years, we are still the best of friends!! :)

And now it’s almost 10 pm and we are planning to pull out of here tomorrow at 5 am. And this time we have to leave by then or we won’t make it to the church in Victorville, CA. Daniel’s working on our display and the older boys are up ready to help me load the trailer and finish up the ice cream that’s left in the freezer since we can’t take it with us. :)

Praying for safety tomorrow as we travel!

Just for Hna. Meche

2011-08-05T01:55:00.000-06:00

New Prayer Card

2011-08-04T16:00:00.000-06:00

We haven't had prayer cards printed up since Josiah (our seventh) was a baby. With furlough coming up this year, we knew we needed to get some more made. We hadn't had a family picture taken for over 2 years, and planned on getting a new one taken this summer.
Well, chicken pox sort of put an end to that plan. Nobody was overly excited to have a picture taken when their faces were covered with spots.
So we just had to use what we had. At least it has everyone in it! :)
Here's the preview they sent to us.
Hopefully we'll have our prayer cards in a couple weeks!

Journaling Furlough- August 2-3

2011-08-04T07:42:00.000-06:00

August 2 and 3-

Thursday– 6am

It is so nice to be parked in one place for a while. And what a great place to be here at Regeneration Ministries with Uncle Tom and Aunt Cindy! Everyone is right in their element! Daniel spends all day visiting with Uncle Tom, his cousin and lifetime friend, and accompanying him as he ministers on the Apache Reservation. Daniel, Tommy, and I went to school together as children. When Daniel and Tom were really young, before I’d met them, they use to say that when they grew up, Daniel was going to be a missionary and Tommy was going to be a pilot and fly him deep into the jungles to share the gospel with the people there. :) And while the Lord didn’t call them to work together, Daniel is a missionary and Tom got his pilot’s license and has used it in ministering to the people here. This morning, they leave to fly up into the reservation together!

The children are having so much fun! There is so much for them to do here and after being in the van most of the time for the past week, this has been such a treat! Plenty of space to run around, desert animals to catch just like at home, there is a gym on campus, a nursery at the church with fun toys, and yesterday, Uncle Tom and Daddy took them all down to the shooting range. I think I shot my first 22 rifle (with my Daddee’s help) before I was 2. I loved shooting with my dad and later with my hubby :) Of course, in Mexico, guns are illegal own, so most of our children haven’t shot anything other than a bb gun. They had so much fun! Before we left, we went over all the gun safety rules and made sure they understood that any disobedience or goofing around would result in them having to go back to the house with mommy. And they did great! Uncle Tom gave them all their own ear plugs. Everyone got a turn and some of them were really good at hitting the targets! After the little guys shot the 22 with Daddy, I took them back up to the house while the older ones got to stay a bit longer.

I have all I need here to do what I love to do...take care of my family! Washer/dryer, huge kitchen in which to make meals, and I’m just loving watching the children play and play with their cousins while I visit with Aunt Cindy. And there is internet here, so hopefully, I’ll get to catch up on my emails when the children are sleeping.

We still have some sickies. We are passing something around as when it comes to illness, my children are great at sharing with each other! :) But I’m so glad we are here and not in the van. They each have their own bed in which to rest and hopefully they’ll all be on the mend before we have to get back on the road early next week.

Journaling Furlough- August 1

2011-08-02T16:00:00.000-06:00

August 1, 2011– Monday Morning

We’re doing a bit better. Daniel wanted to leave around 7 am this morning. We pulled out at 8:24 am! Woo hoo! :) I think I have it figured out. Three Hours. That’s just the realistic time. It takes 3 hours to get it all done...my shower/dress, time with the Lord, getting everyone up, dressed, hair done, quiet times, pack-up, load-up, clean-up, breakfast. So if we want to leave at 7 am, I need to get up at 4 am. Hmmm….I guess that’s why we have left late every day! :) But 8:30 am isn’t bad at all! And I’m sure we’ll get a bit better at it all and maybe be able to cut our time down.

Since Daniel is the driver (because I’m way to scared to drive pulling the trailer), I try to let him sleep as long as he can since I don’t want him sleeping while driving. :) Of course, it’s a bit hard when we’re all together in a room or two to sleep once the crew is up and about.

As I’ve been posting from this journal to our blog, many have written asking about the reality of traveling so many miles with all the children. While some may be hopeful to hear a special system or formula to make it all work/run perfectly, I don’t have it. Honestly, it doesn’t run perfectly or smoothly, it is exhausting, plain hard work, and the same struggles we have at home (being kind, loving, and sharing) are still there just stuffed into a space the size of our van. We still have about 4-5 loads of laundry a day, the children still seem to want to eat every 2 hours, and there just isn’t a lot to do in a car, especially for those who take after their mommy and get car sick before the car even starts moving. Traveling in NV and AZ during August….it’s hot!! And then there is melt down time. It happens usually right before naps and then right before bedtime. It’s when anywhere from 1-8 children start crying all at once. Usually very serious issues. “Someone has their feet on my spot.” “He’s taking my pillow”. “My seatbelt is hurting me.” “I can’t lay down”. “I lost my granola bar”. It’s not just the children. Mommy cries sometimes too. And of course, there’s those time we get lost. Daniel drives. I’m the co-pilot. I have the map. And anyone who knows me would now start to laugh. I promise I do try my very best. Sometimes, by God’s grace, I do really well. And other times, well, that’s why we always try to get an early start.

Well, I don’t share all this to complain but to give a picture of some of the realities of traveling. But I’ve found that with any trial, great or small, there is double the blessing. All these difficulties give us so much opportunity to learn and grow. To forgive and apply those precious truths and commands in God’s Word. To truly have to get on our knees and ask for the Lord to do the work in our hearts. Patience, grace, love, joy, peace, and understanding. Those are always things I am asking Him to work in my children and I at home and what better way to learn those things than to have to practice them! It’s easy to show love when someone is loving and everything is going well. But it’s not possible when someone is not so loveable or grumpy. It’s not possible for us to do. But Christ is in us! And what a wonderful thing to be able to just die to self and let Him work what He wants to in our lives!

What do we do in the car together for hours? We love to sing! Sleep. Visit. Snacks. Travel games. Look out the window at the sights...that alone is a real treat as there is so much to see here compared to our little desert!

What about meals? Sandwiches. Dollar Menu with some snacks on the side (pretzels, fruit, chips, granola bars). Lots of water. And already some kind churches/families have provided at hot meal for us, too. And that’s no small sacrifice for which we are soooo grateful!

Laundry. Last night, the pastor’s wife gave me free reign of her beautiful machines and I knocked out almost every load we had! Praise the Lord! We just do laundry as often as we can, whenever we can, however we can, where ever we can. Sometimes, if we haven’t been able to wash for a while, the best option is to bit the bullet and find a laundry mat where we can just do 30 loads at once. My girls are great helps!!

Packing- Right now, everyone has their own personal suitcase/duffle bag. Daniel and I share (because we love each other and love to be together :) ). The oldest 2 girls share a huge suitcase. And I have the littlest three boys clothes all together in a big duffle bag. We’ve never done it this way before. Normally, I put one days worth of clothing into a suitcase or two. That way, we only have to pull out that suitcase(s) for the night rather than unloading everything. But we were so rushed for time with having just gotten back from family camp that it just worked out best for everyone to pack their own bag. But I’m hoping as soon as we have time (maybe this week!) to reorganize back to my original system. Everyone has their own blanket/pillow. We can sleep anywhere, really! And being so tired each night, even a floor feels sooo good. Everyone also has their own backpack with all their own personal, special belongings...Bibles, toys, notebooks, stuffed animals etc… Everyone is in charge of keeping their own area clean. Free of garbage, toys, paper, etc… Usually, I’ll say, “Okay, I’ve got a snack to pass out. As soon as your area is clean, you can have one. And they all hop right to it.

_____________________________________________________________

Today we spent most of the day broken down in Arizona. While it wasn’t something we would have chosen, the Lord allowed it, and therefore, we give thanks. The children did really well all things considering. After leaving the van at the shop, we walked over to Carl’s for lunch. Poor Josiah had woke up with a good fever and Nehemiah, Noah, and Samuel weren’t feeling too good either. I gave them some medicine and then we just sat in Carl’s Jr. for a while. Everyone colored and played games with notebook paper/pencils. Once the medicine had helped make the little guys feel better, we walked down a block or so to a local park. The one who didn’t feel good rested under a shade tree on a blanket and everyone had a couple hours to run around and play.

I found a huge stag beetle on the grass. I gave it to my boys and felt like a brave/good mommy for finding them such a treasure. Then one of my boys went up to where Rebekah/Abi and some other girls were playing and pretended to set the beetle on this little girl’s head to scare her. She got scared. And cried. And ran over to tell her mommy. Then I didn’t feel like such a good mommy then.

Well, we are on our way now again heading into Phoenix soon. There is an incredible lightening storm right now keeping everyone very entertained! Hoping to be in Fort Thomas by 12-1 am.

______________________________________________________

2:30 am- We arrived in Fort Thomas about an hour ago. What a long drive! But so thankful to be here safely! We are staying at Regeneration Ministries where Daniel’s cousin/life long friend and his wife serve in the ministry here. They gave us 4 rooms complete with enough beds for everyone, 2 bathrooms, a/c and the church kitchen to use. And a washer and dryer!!!! We feel so spoiled!

Daniel and Tom (his cousin) are up chatting away. The children are all tucked in bed sleeping soundly. Poor Josiah is still sick. :( He threw up 2x today...thankfully both times outside and not in the van. I made up a bed for him on the floor beside our bed just in case he needs me in the night and am praying he’ll feel better by tomorrow. Good night!

Broken Down in Arizona

2011-08-01T14:30:00.000-06:00

Praise the Lord we had just entered the first town in 70 miles. We had just driven into Kingman, AZ when the van made a horrible sound. One we'd heard before on a trip about a year back. We blew a spark plug.

We turned into the first gas station and right behind it was a auto-repair shop.

Praying they will be able to fix it quickly so we can be on our way. Right now, we are at Carl's Jr. Daddy got us all hamburgers and fresh, cold water! Mmmmm! It's so nice and cool in here with the a/c and I passed out paper/colored pencils to the children and I think we'll just sit here for a while. The mechanic said it would be a couple of hours once they were able to get the van it. It has to cool down first. There is a park around the block, so we may go there in a bit. We've got a couple little guys with fevers today, but I've got the Tylenol on me and a blanket so maybe they can rest under the shade of a tree.

Sometimes, you just feel like doing this! :-)

I told the children that the Lord could have kept our van running well the entire trip. That nothing can happen to us without the Lord allowing it. We are completely in His hands, always under His every loving care and watchful eye. He allowed this for a reason. Because He loves us and is so good! Yes, it is hard not to get discouraged or worry, so we continue to talk about all the blessings and wonderful things He has done today! We got to see Hoover Dam. What an amazing sight! He is so faithful and so good!

Journaling Furlough- July 30-31

2011-08-01T07:45:00.000-06:00

What a sweet night’s rest! Our room was so spacious and while I was planning on sleeping in, I was wide awake well before 6 am. Daniel and a few of the little ones got up not soon long afterwards and then we began the process of everyone getting showered and dressed. One bathroom and 14 people to share it. While I helped the younger ones find their clothes and get bathed, Daniel took groups of 3 or 4 at a time to go eat breakfast. We spent some time having our quiet times with the Lord and then Daniel practiced with the children as they sang a couple of songs that they’ve learned. We didn’t have to check out until Noon, so the children read while Daniel and I worked on paperwork/computer for a while. It took us about a half an hour to load our things back into the trailer, put I have a plan to cut that time down significantly. :) Now off to Walmart!

____________________________________________________________

Daniel and Timothy are inside Walmart paying for our purchase; the rest of us are buckled up all ready to head to Nevada. A funny thing happened while I was shopping. We try to get up to the states once or twice a year for supply shopping. Shoes, clothes, toiletries, etc… So much cheaper here in the states than down south, so when we make our bi-annual Walmart run, we leave with a full cart!

Daniel had dropped Beka and I off at the door to start shopping while he parked the van. We still have a 6 hour drive today and so were shopping quickly asking the Lord to help us find just what we needed for our trip. We’d spent just over an hour, had our cart full, and just had to head over to get some hair clips and we’d be finished. I’d put 2 wallets in the cart to surprise Timothy and Elijah and had decided to get Beka a purse too. As we passed the purses, I asked her to take a look and see if there was one she liked. We both had our back to our cart as we looked at purses. After settling on one she liked, we turned around to put it into our cart and our entire cart had disappeared! We walked all over looking and couldn’t find it! We checked at customer service but it wasn’t there either. Who would want a cart full of clothes and shoes for every size from 2T to 16?

I found Daniel and the other children hoping they’d played a joke on me and hidden it, but they hadn’t. Timothy and Elijah went back with Beka and I to search. After about 20 minutes, I was about to give up and was so disappointed as I knew there would be no time to re-shop and some of the items I’d found were the last in that size. Suddenly, I heard Timothy say, “Mommy! I found it!” Sure enough, a worker had seen the cart, didn’t know it was ours thinking it was left over from the unwanted dressing room items, and was putting things away. She was so sweet in helping me find what she’d put back as best as she could remember, and I was soooo thankful to find my cart!

Daniel treated us to our first meal at McDonalds! $1 double cheeseburgers! Yum!

On our way now to Boulder City.

_________________________________________________________

Sunday, July 31, 2011

We arrived here at Pastor Hampton’s home about 8:30 pm last night. Sometimes, I get nervous going into someone’s home with 12 tired/energetic/vocal children in tow. Will the home be filled with thousands of breakable trinkets each holding decades of sentimental value and memories? What will the bathroom look like after my 9 boys have used it and can I get in there to check it/clean it before our hosts enter in? Will the little ones cry during the night with wails loud enough to wake the entire neighborhood?

Well, lots of more good training/teaching opportunities! Pastor and his wife were so kind in opening their home to us. They had the best dog...spot! Big, black, energetic. Reminded us so much our our Licorice back at home. We slept like bricks Saturday night. It’s been such a long couple of weeks, and we’ve been

exhausted each night. What a wonderful feeling when your head finally hits the pillow and you such sweet sleep!

We had our first service yesterday. It was a small church, yet they have such a heart for missions! Daniel preached in all 3 services and we enjoyed a delicious meal together between the second and third service. American food is so rich! Timothy told me that at home, he can eat 2 or 3 plates of beans/rice/tortillas, but just one plate here filled him up! And, oh, the dessert! Sooooo yummy! I think every time we go up to the states for any amount of time, we come back a few pounds heavier! :-) I think I’ll gain weight alone just because there is Dr. Pepper here! The pastor’s wife surprised me and brought me a huge bottle of Dr. Pepper which I managed to finish in one afternoon !

Well, tomorrow we head to Arizona. Next time I write, I’ll share about how it is to travel in a van with 12 children, one husband, one wife, and a gazillion suitcases. :)

Journaling Furlough

2011-07-30T01:26:00.004-06:00

July 28-29, 2011-

Long day of driving! We left about 5 am Lockwood Time :-)...that translates to about 8:47 am real time. It took Daniel until around 3 am to get everything ready the night before, and so we thought it would be best if he got more than 2 hours of sleep before making such a long trip. He is the driver. And by God’s grace, He does very well!

We drove all day finally pulling over about 1:00 am to sleep for the night. The roads were torn up all over due to construction, so while we drove for over 15 hours, we only made it about 500 miles. The older boys camped out in the trailer and the rest of us found a spot on the van seats or floor, pulled out our pillows and blankets, and slept until around 6:00 am. We drove to the next town and I bought some juice and rolls for breakfast. Daniel slept for another hour while I fed everyone, had everyone wash hands/faces, comb hair, and straighten up the van a bit. While Daniel ate, we all had our quiet time in the van together and then took off to hopefully get to the border this afternoon.

Daniel was witnessing to a young woman while he ate. She is completely lost and nobody there is preaching God’s Word. As we left, she said to Daniel, “How will I ever come to know the truth. You are leaving and there is nobody here.” So much need!

____________________________________________________

10:00 am

Thanking the Lord for His protection once again. We are about 5 1/2 hours south of the border….about 20 miles from the next town. While passing a semi on the highway, Daniel noticed a tire on the trailer was wobbling significantly. The roads here have no shoulder and often it is difficult to find a place to pull over. Once off the road, he knelt down by the tire shocked at what he saw. The lug nuts had all come loose., cutting through completely or into the bolts and we had been within seconds of loosing the entire tire.

With 2 bolts broken completely off and most all the nuts stripped, there is no way to pull the trailer. Daniel and the boys are disconnecting it right now so we can drive the van into town and see if they have parts there

___________________________________________

So much for which to be thankful! Who knows how long those lug nuts had been loose like that. Yet the Lord kept us safe all day yesterday even late into the night as well as this morning. Daniel has just found the parts needed and is pounding away at the broken studs right now. The children are getting fussy as we sit here in the van waiting, but I’m so thankful that these crying little ones are safe and sound. We are near the Pacific coast and the weather is cool Such a blessing as we wait! The autoparts store just gave Daniel, Timothy, and Elijah free t-shirts. :-) This is such good experience for them as they help/watch Daniel work.

My computer battery is about dead. Hopefully, we’ll be heading back to the trailer soon.

_______________________________________________________

What a trip! We are only on day 2 and so much has happened! We finally got to the US border around 7:30 pm or so. The line was moving quickly and wasn’t too long. We were almost to the front when several US border patrol agents began running through the many lanes to one area. They suddenly ordered everyone in the area out of their cars, drew their guns and one of them began yelling. The border shut down and we watched as they continued shouting commands guns pointed in he direction of which they were shouting. Finally, after several minutes, three people, one by one, came out with their hands up and were taken away. The border re-opened, and we were back on our way.

As we crossed the border, the kiddos all cheered and then, we headed over to what is almost always our first and most requested food stop after arriving in the USA. Are you ready for this? Taco Bell! Really :) Of course, to us, it is a lot different than real Mexican food, but we just love it and mmmmmmm ...those bean burritos were sooo good!

After eating, we were looking forward to getting into our hotel after another very long day of driving. We were in our same clothes from the day before, hadn’t showered, and everyone was looking forward to cleaning up , having Bible time/sing time with Daddy, and getting to bed at a decent hour. But what we didn’t anticipate is that not only the hotel we usually stay in, but every hotel in the entire area had no vacancy! As we wandered from hotel to hotel, I thought of how there was no room in the inn when Mary was to give birth to Jesus.

We decided we’d start heading towards Nevada where the church is where we’ll be Sunday. After about 70 miles, we found a hotel with just one room, but it was a suite! Oh, the Lord takes such good care of us! And it cost us less that our normal hotel charges us! We were so thankful! The older 3 boys helped Daddy bring in all the blankets/pillows, I pulled out the hide a bed and set up bedding around the room and everyone fell right to sleep. We have a free breakfast and a late check out so we’ll sleep in, have everyone shower in the morning, and hopefully make a stop at Wal—mart before heading the rest of the way to Boulder City.

Good Night

Still Here

2011-07-27T08:45:00.000-06:00

While we wanted to leave this morning, it just wasn't possible, so the Lord still must want us here for today.

Within the past couple of days...

*A hot water pipe broke under the house

*Therefore, we have no running water in the house

*A couple of children have had a fever

*My washing machine stopped working (thankfully just as I was on my last load of camp laundry! Do you think maybe I overworked it a bit? :-) )

*Some situations came up in the church needing Daniel's time/attention

Often, when Daniel is about to go preach somewhere new, things like this happen.

We are always reminded of the spiritual battle we are in.

And remember that greater is He that is in us than he that is in the world!

Yesterday, after tearing up the floor in the laundry room, the leak was found! Praise the Lord!

Now on to the task of repairing it today. The position of the leak will make that task difficult and we are praying for the Lord's blessing in getting the job done quickly and efficiently.

When you have no running water in the house and a broken washing machine, children are particularly attracted to the large pile of mud sitting on the laundry room floor.

I am thankful that God has seen fit to work more patience in me!

Our family verse for this week is Philippians 2:14-

Do all things without murmurings and disputings.

No complaining. No arguing.

Asking the Lord to work that in our hearts!!

The rush right before a big trip especially when unexpected problems arise gives us many opportunities to die to ourselves and live unto Christ.

Thank you so much for praying for us!

Lord willing, we'll be pulling out about 5 am tomorrow morning.

So thankful that the Lord loves and cares for us so much!

Family Camp, Farewells, Final Furlough Schedule

2011-07-26T11:13:00.001-06:00

The time is here! The time we've been anticipating and for which we've been preparing for months. Yet what a funny feeling. My heart feels torn between the joy of being able to see our family and friends up north and the sadness of leaving our "family"/friends here. :-(

The plan was/is to leave early tomorrow morning, but we may not be able to leave until Thursday morning. We were up well before dawn today working on our list of things to do before we can leave, and it just depends if we can get it all done today or not. With camp being the end of last week, there wasn't much we could do for furlough as we had so much to do in preparing for camp. We had our final service Sunday and then yesterday I washed and washed and washed and washed. Camp=Lots of Laundry.

Really, my part in getting ready is easy in comparison to what Daniel has to do. But we both prayed this morning that the Lord would prosper our work today and so far, things have come together quickly and well!

We had a sort of big thing come up which is why we might have to leave a day later. As I was washing clothes, I picked up a pile that I had sorted on the floor to throw into the machine and they were HOT. I soon realized the tile floor was hot...too hot to stand on. A hot water line has broken under the foundation of the house and that has to be repaired before we leave. That means a lot of pounding, breaking up cement, digging, and looking for that leak so it can be repaired. We are praying the Lord allows us to find the leak quickly and that it will be an easy repair.

Family camp was WONDERFUL! I did not want to leave. :( How sweet it was to spend those days with our church...we played, spent hours fellowshipping, met brother/sisters from other churches, heard convicting/encouraging messages, sang together, and so much more.

Our church came back so excited and blessed from the preaching and with even deeper friendships formed between so many. It was just the PERFECT thing with which to end our time here. When we first planned the dates for camp and then realized that we'd have furlough starting the next week, I was nervous and not too excited about all the work that would be involved with two big things like that back to back. But I asked the Lord to help me to just trust Him and now I'm sooooooo glad that we had camp just at this time!!

I'll post a few pictures here. Daniel posted many more on our ministry blog (www.lockwoodsministry.com).

Sunday night, I was prepared. So I thought. Being our last service here before we leave, I knew it would be an emotional service. And I wanted to be able to tell everyone goodbye without being too much of a "cry baby", so I'd mustered all I could to keep myself together.

It didn't work.

We all walked into church Sunday night together and there were tables and chairs and balloons and a big sign. All month, our church had been planning a farewell service/party for us. There were a lot of tears and hugs. As I was sitting playing the piano for the service, I thought of something. I don't even know exactly when it happened. When we first came to Mexico, I left my family and friends in the states and came here to serve the people here along side my husband. I saw the people as the ones to whom the Lord had called us to minister.

And I don't know when it changed. But now, they are not just the people that we've been called to serve. They are my dear family and friends. Their children are my children's best friends and are like my own children to me. I love them all so very much. And I honestly did not at all want to say good bye. It was hard!

Oh, I do miss those in the states. And so I can't wait to go and I can't wait to get back. All at the same time!!

We long for your prayers as we begin our travels. Pray for the Lord's protection, provision, and power as Daniel preaches.

We've had a few changes since we first posted our schedule, so here's an updated one for those who are interested. I posted a map just so you can get an idea of where all we'll be at a glance. Lots of miles!!!
The blue route/line isn't the exact route we'll take as we have many friends we'll be staying with/seeing as we travel from church to church, but this gives you an idea.
I listed the churches/dates below the map.

We'll update as often as we can!

The Lord is so faithful and so good!!!

View Larger Map

July 31- Pioneer Baptist Church in Boulder City, NV

August 7- Regeneration Baptist Church in Fort Thomas, AZ

August 10- Bible Baptist Church in Victorville, CA

August 14- Western Avenue Baptist Church in Brawley, CA

August 21- Millville Baptist Church in Millville, CA (Our Sending Church!! :-) )
August 28- Intermountain Baptist Church in Burney, CA
September 4- Mid Valley Baptist Church in Durham, CA
September 11- Heritage Baptist Church in Goodyear, AZ
September 15- Visiting our mission agency Central Missionary Clearinghouse in Houston, TX
September 18- Fundamental Baptist Church in Irving, TX
September 25- Caney Baptist Church in Streetman, TX
October 2- Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church in Smith Mills, KY
October 5- Harris Chapel Baptist Church in Hudson, NC
October 9- First Baptist Church in Cincinnatus, NY
October 12- Harvest Baptist Church in Bath, NY
October 16- Faith Baptist Church in Mattawan, MI
October 23- Elmwood Baptist Church in Brighton, CO
Visiting Friends in Wyoming :)
October 30- Grace Community Bible Church in Burney, CA
November 6- Heritage Baptist Church in Anderson, CA
November 13- First Baptist Church in West Sacramento, CA

After that, Lord willing, we'll be heading back HOME!

Nine Days

2011-07-18T13:09:00.001-06:00

Nine days. Three days of "normal" life, three days of family camp (yea!!!!), 1 last Sunday to be with our church here before we leave (I get a lump in my throat and watery eyes thinking about it), 2 days to wash the giant mountain of laundry that we'll have from camp and pack, pack, pack. Before we leave, I'll post a final schedule here of our travels. A few of our dates of changed, so I'll be sure to keep everyone updated.

My mind is overflowing with things that need to be done and I have lists all over my desk and am looking forward to checking a few more things off. I have had to go to the Lord many times just asking Him to calm my heart and help me to work faithfully at getting done what we need to yet not worrying. It is so easy for me to get so focused on a task that my words become short or I get irritated when I'm interrupted. And I want to keep in my heart and mind what is truly important and am asking the Lord to constantly remind me of that! And He is helping me!!! Isn't He so good?

Last night at church, Brother Benito shared several verses in His message and I've been meditating on them ever since. Primarily Romans chapter 8 and John 3:30. He must increase, but I must decrease. How often I seek my own pleasure or own glory. The Lord has shown this to me so very much since He saved me. In many ways, it is as if a veil has been lifted from my eyes and I see so many things differently and clearly. Some of them are painful and make me feel so ashamed. But then comes the grace and forgiveness of my Lord! And it becomes all the more precious!

This morning, I had a most humbling moment. In preparing for furlough, Daniel gave me the task of writing emails to those who have so graciously offered to open their homes to us in hospitality during our travels.

So with my calender open and notebook filled with names/emails/dates beside me, I've been taking time each day to contact each person. A couple weeks ago, I wrote to my dear friend, Connie, whom I've never met other than through writing, and gave her the dates that we would be in her area hoping that we would be able to get together/meet. She responded with such joy and enthusiasm readily opening her heart and home to our family. Then this morning, I got an email from her asking when we would be arriving. I thought it was a bit strange because we won't be there until late September and then as I looked back over my first email to her, a great wave of "Oh No!" fell upon me. You know when you do something really absent minded or embarrassing and you feel that warm sensation from head to toe and you get a big pit in your stomach? That's how I felt. I had given her the dates but forgot to mention the MONTH!!! It obviously sounded like we were going to be there this week.

Oh, I felt so badly thinking of the plans made and anticipation that always comes when expecting company. I wrote my dear friend right away and then called her. She was more than gracious and understanding and I'm looking forward more than ever to seeing her. When I sat down at the breakfast table with my hands covering my face and Daniel asked me what was wrong, it took me a moment tell him what I'd done. He and the children find amusement in these situations. Of course, I'd be amused too if I hadn't been the one to make the blunder!

Well, I am not looking forward to saying good bye to our dear friends here...My only consolation is that my hubby has a big tender heart too, so I won't be crying alone. Brother Benito and his wife have been such a blessing, getting to know the people, and serving all they can. We are so thankful the Lord brought them here to carry on His work. Daniel and Benito and a few of our boys drove for a couple of hours Saturday afternoon going rancho to rancho, town to town, just seeing the need. So many need to hear! Our desire is to get to all we can in our reach. Everyone needs to hear that they are lost and in need of a Saviour before it is too late.

I am looking forward to seeing family, friends and so many of you while we are in the states! Daniel and the boys are going to build a little display with pictures and different items from our area and Daniel's working on a slide show showing pictures of what the Lord has done these past 6 years and the areas for which we are so burdened. I love to tell the story of Jesus and what He has done for me and what He wants to do for all!

A few tidbits from home life:

Eliseo comes to me about 2-3 times a day, throws his arms around my neck then looks me in the eyes and says, "Happy Birthday, Mommy!" I've told him that it's no longer my birthday and he just keeps on telling me, so I just say, "Aw, thank you, Eliseo...I love you!"

We have a horned toad named Alexander living in Nehemiah's underwear drawer. He's been there for over a week and I just jump out of my skin when I am putting away clothes and forget that he's there. He eats 30 flies a day which are caught, killed and hand fed to him by the children.

Our little chicken disappeared last week. :-( We don't know if some stray dogs got into the yard or what, but he's nowhere to be found. Yesterday, Noah woke up and says, "Mommy, last night when I was sleeping, I heard the voice of the chicken." ha!

Oh, a couple of the families in our church had gone out to the beach for a couple of weeks to kill clam. Thursday after lunch, we rode out there to visit them. Killing clam is fun!! Timothy really got the hang of it. I killed about as many clam in 15 minutes as they kill in 20 seconds, but I finally figured it out. Brother Juan and his family were able to earn enough money during there time there to pay their way to family camp!! It's going to be so fun just to be with everyone and fellowship together one last time before we leave.

Friday, July 22, Daniel and I will have been married for 16 years. We've known each other for 29 years, been best friends for 20 years, and why he ever chose to give me His heart, I'll don't think I'll ever know, but I'm sooooooooooooooo glad that he did! When the Lord brought us together, He gave me EXACTLY what I needed! I am more proud today than ever to be called Daniel's wife and well, to be honest, it just keeps getting sweeter all the time!

Do you see the picture at the top of this page? We took that last night during church. This is the Insurgentes City Baptist Church. This was no special Sunday. There were only a few people there who have not yet come to know Christ Jesus. And still a few families who arrived late or were unable to make it. These are our Brothers and Sisters in Christ who we will spend eternity with!!!

When I see what the Lord has done, every trial, every tear, every struggle...it is more than worth it all! Praise the Lord for the GREAT things He has done!

Pox Free! :)

2011-07-09T22:01:00.016-06:00

The chicken pox are gone ... with only a few little healing scars remaining.

While I only actually missed 2 Sunday services, it seemed like I'd been gone for a month, and it was so good to go to prayer meeting on Wednesday!

So precious just to all sit together as a family. Well, Daddy was preaching...and it was such a good message!

Thank you so much to those who prayed for our family these past few weeks. One night, Samuel was so fussy. It was after midnight, and he still hadn't gone to sleep. He was itchy, achy and felt miserable. Some of his pox had gotten infected and he was on antibiotics. I'd brought him into our bedroom and he'd settle down for a few minutes then wake up crying.

Finally, I just got up and held him and walked around the room with him. He calmed down a bit resting on my shoulder as I walked around. As soon as I'd stop or try to put him down, he'd cry. So I walked. I thought of how nights like this use to get me so upset sometimes. Being so tired, I'd feel like crying myself and ask the Lord to please just let the child sleep. But as I walked, I thought that obviously the Lord wanted me to be awake that night. I don't know why. I thought maybe it was so I could pray. So as I paced the room, I prayed for Samuel, for my husband and children, and then many family/friends came to my mind and I prayed for them.

Finally, a little after 3 am, Samuel fell asleep. And so did I :)

A midst the chicken pox, our church mission's conference, and all the preparations for our upcoming furlough (we leave in 18 days!), our summer schedule hasn't gone exactly like I'd imagined. I think we've had a total of about 5 days where we've been able to follow it. But the Lord had different plans for us. And knowing His ways are always best, I'm so thankful for all we have been able to do and learn these past few weeks!

The children and I started a little baking business and sold cookies and cinnamon rolls around town to save up money for furlough.

We learned how to make donuts! Yum!!

We can get in and out of the van without killing each other!!!

The children learned some new chores.

We housed 22 wonderful people at our home during our mission's conference.

We've learned some new songs in harmony.

We've read books on our own and out loud together.

We've got some areas organized/cleaned. Of course, with 14 people living here, they haven't stayed completely cleaned/organized. But it's always such a good feeling to accomplish the task anyways!

Samuel about to enjoy a homemade doughnut!

Beka helping the younger ones with some phonics/writing.

I taught Elijah how to iron a shirt.

It wasn't his favorite thing I've ever taught him.

But I'm sure he'll appreciate it some day :)

Samuel was our last one to get the chicken pox, so while everyone else was on the mend, he was feeling pretty crumby. He loves to listen to someone read to him.

Fourth of July came and the Lord gave us a special treat...RAIN! It only lasted about 20 minutes, but it's so rare here and the children get so excited watching it fall and then playing out in the puddles afterwards.

We had banana splits and played :)

Twelve days until our annual church family camp and only eighteen days until we leave! So much to do!

We are getting so excited! So many emotions!

The joy of seeing family/friends that we haven't seen in so long.

The blessing of being able to share with and thank those people who have so faithfully prayed for us, our church, our town, and so generously given so we can do what the Lord has called us to do.

The excitement of seeing new places and meeting new friends.

Missing our friends/church family here already

Looking forward to going and looking forward to coming back all at the same time!