Next in line - Victoria is 3!

Victoria and her brother Sammy

A happy girl at Mt. Rushmore

Having fun with Grandpa

Trying out her new princess dress with Nathan

Enjoying her birthday breakfast



The birthday girl on her day



At the Columbia River Gorge on the day we arrived in Washington.



Well, before I share Nathan's birthday news...Victoria turned 3 on October 10th. She had been anxiously awaiting this day for some time. We had the privilege of having Grandpa here to celebrate. If you know Victoria, she is full of life and personality and always entertaining. She's a real cutie...and she can be a real handful. We hope to direct  her dynamic personality and charm into being a godly young lady who can be a blessing to many. She's a "people person" who is friendly to all. Her favorite things include babies (real and pretend), music, dressing up in anything from cowgirl to princess clothes, playing outside, coloring, being with friends, and going to church. She is definitely girly, but can keep up with the boys! The only things she requested on her birthday were brownies, cupcakes, and chocolate milk. She also got to have a birthday dinner with her family, including Grandpa, and a birthday lunch at McDonald's playplace. Children are a blessing and we enjoy celebrating special days with them!

Happy 5th Birthday Jeremiah!



Jeremiah trying out his new T-ball



A happy boy!

The girls enjoying the party 

Cake time!



This fed a crowd



Flashback to his 1st birthday - cutie

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1st Haircut

Since I am still trying to catch up, I wanted to backtrack a little and post Jeremiah's birthday before Victoria's.  Autumn is birthday season in our family and I can barely keep up. Jeremiah turned 5 on September 24th. I can't believe my chubby little baby boy is 5! He is our sweet youngest boy, sometimes called "the weeping prophet" at our house. Yes, he is sensitive, but can be equally cheerful and has a great sense of humor. He loves God, his church, and his family. He's a smart little guy with a love for numbers and books.  I enjoy taking him on errands with me because he is very cute and entertaining. Thankfully, he makes friends fast and loves it here in Washington. His best friends, according to him, are Bubba and Zachary B. and all the Houston Boys. He told me we should stay in this house forever. I said "Really?" LOL. He also said he misses Hayden B. and Tyler V. in Virginia. He loves sports and his favorite is baseball. We got a T-ball set and a baseball cake for him and had a cook-out with dear  friends, which he thoroughly enjoyed! We love you little buddy!

A Few Photos at the Creation Museum

This is a hilarious photo because I thought she would look so pretty in front of the flower pot.  A breeze began to blow and the plant was rustling and waving. She got scared, kept looking over her shoulder and thought the plant was trying to get her. Poor little baby!

Lovely Savannah

Victoria is always ready to pose!

The Creation Museum Botanical Gardens. They were quite extensive.

Cute Jeremiah

Checking out the Alligator Garr

This was our first stop - the Creation Museum. I would recommend everyone visit there if they are in the area of Ohio/Kentucky. They have a walk-thru from Creation to Christ. It was a blessing to visit. We saw Ken Hamm and Buddy Davis while we were there. It was all very God honoring.

Back in Business...Sort of

Our Family at the Creation Museum

The "scared" picture. Savannah and Jeremiah look terrified!

We now have internet, but I can't seem to find any free time to use it, lol. I THOUGHT I  was busy before we moved! I'm sure you all know that we are no longer on the road. We arrived safely with two vehicles that had no problems on the trip, Praise the Lord! While it wasn't too bad (except through Chicago), I am not anxious to follow another car all the way across the country again. Along the way, we visited the Creation Museum in Kentucky - a must see. Then we stayed in Sioux Falls, South Dakota - beautiful. Next was Mount Rushmore. This was our second visit there and I love the little town of Keystone, where we stayed. We were in Wyoming next and really enjoyed the cowboy of Cody, named after "Buffalo Bill" Cody. We ate lunch at the hotel he built and saw a rodeo at night. The next day we drove to Yellowstone's East entrance. The scenery between Cody and Yellowstone is beautiful, as is the scenery between Sheridan, WY and Cody. I could have stayed there for awhile. We had a quick trip (1 day) through Yellowstone, where we saw lots of wildlife and exited in Montana. Montana is absolutely beautiful as well. There are rivers everywhere. It is Russell's favorite state, after Alaska, I believe. Don't tell anyone, but he took many pictures while he was driving...I saw the evidence ha, ha.


We rolled into town on Sat. September 3rd, exhausted but intact. The next day the church had a welcome fellowship for us. Our household goods were a week late (September 12) so we used the extra time to paint, get curtains, and TRY to get organized. Many people here were a huge blessing in helping with the cleaning, painting, and watching children. We are now unpacked and somewhat organized. It is feeling more like home. There is always an adjustment period when we move. We have received a warm welcome and have done quite a bit of fellowshipping (over food and coffee, of course). It has been good to see old friends and meet new brothers and sisters. The children are adjusting very well and love the church and the scenery. Jeremiah turned five just over a week ago. He had the Houston family over to celebrate - fun for all and a party in itself! Noah has joined the Boy Scout troop that meets here and Nathan will join when he turns eleven later this month. They are a great God honoring group of young men. Savannah has joined the choir and is helping with a children's class. She has also started back to piano lessons and has resumed her high school studies. Sammy and Jeremiah love the woods around the house and all the friends at church. Victoria loves all the new faces and is getting her fair share of attention. Sophia is growing and standing on her own. Russell is getting settled in his new role and I'm sure will be a blessing to many. I am trying to get back into some sort of normal routine so I can manage everything. We do miss everyone back in Virginia and if you haven't heard from me, it is not because I haven't thought of you. We think of you all daily. It is simply because I have been swamped with all the logistics of relocation, especially at the beginning of a new school year. I don't necessarily follow the public school calendar, but I do need to stay caught up and not let education fall by the wayside. In fact, I need to go get a couple of the children back to lessons right now and Sophia is currently climbing the stairs. I hope my posts will not be too infrequent. I will have to post pictures later because I am out of time and my old computer is not letting me see the pics before I add them. God Bless you all!