MIA, or AWOL at least!

Well things have been super busy here lately. With the new church starting in a little over a week there's lots to be done. Also we have celebrated two birthdays within the past few weeks. Joshua is now 13, wow a teenager and Hannah is 11 now.Today we spent the day doing what Joshua wanted. He wanted to go into the old town and see the horse competition at the castle. It was a lot of fun and the kids we so excited to see all the horses.Town was rediculously crowded today. This is the week of "Summer in the town of Zrinskih". All week from morning to evening there is something planned for almost every hour of the day. From Old Timer car shows to acrobatic shows. Plays for the children and lest we forget, mass almost hourly. Yugoslavia was very famous for a few things, the Yugo car being one, and the Zastava being the other. Here's Cody (almsot 16) standing in front of a Zastava car. The Zastava is Serbia's claim to fame! Can you see how small it is?

Anyhow after the fun in town we took Joshua out to eat for his birthday and had a grand time. Happy 13th birthday Joshua, we love you!!

Church report: The platform is officially finished and guess what else Johnny and I made today?? A pulpit, a real one, it looks awesome. As soon as we finish staining it I'll post some pictures. What's so cool about finishing this is that neither of us have ever made anything out of wood. Pictures coming soon!

Anyhow, that's about the jest of it, been a bit busy preparing and celebrating. God sure is good and we're so honored to be even a small part of His big plan!

Have a wonderful Lord's Day!

Fun Market Finds

Thursday morning Hannah and I headed to Varaždin to check out the local used market. We met two ladies from our church and headed to sift through the junk.

Hannah spotted this cute little dollie and we had to get it. When I was very young, back in the 70s, ;0) I had a similar doll.
She came with this little craddle which we didn't really want but I guess he through it in as a bonus.
She has a two sided head. On one side she is asleep and she has pajamas that go with that side.
Then when you turn her around she is awake and she dresses in her little dress and bonnet.

Oh yea and I also found this little cross stitched photo. It was very old and discoloring a bit but so sweet. It's about 12" x 8" and ready to hang. The back shows that it's obviously very old.
We found this cute little cotton table clothe perfect for Hannah's bed side table.

As we were getting ready to leave I found another stash. This little lacey trim is 100% cotton and I think I paid 1.50 for 4 meters.
She also had this 2 inch lace also cotton and I got it really cheap too. I have no idea what to use it on but it's so sweet I couldn't resist. Maybe some decorative cotton pillow cases. Hmm.
Oh and look at this!! I found the Guetermann thread for 1 Kuna per spool, that's like .20 cents!!! Three of them are shiny embroidery thread. Great haul!
And they just keep coming! I found this little cross stitch, it's hasn't been loved every much but for a quarter I could't help myself.
Then I noticed some buttons lying in a bucket, looked like just a handful then the Gypsy lady said, you can have them all for 10 Kuna, I immediately said OK! most of them are dark browns, blacks, blues and mixed medal suit buttons but I'll gladly add them to my stash.
Lastly, it took us almost and hour to drive a 15 minuted drive. They were apparently having a demonstration by the farmers. There were about 50 tractors driving at walking speed on the main street between our town and Varazdin. There were policeman everywhere, it was ridiculous but when I think about paying 8 dollars a gallon on gas, I can see the frustration.

Neovisna Baptistička Crkva Pobjednici

We spent most of the day yesterday at the church building painting and cleaning and I took the opportunity to take some photos (for you Traci and Scott) they aren't the best but you can still see the rooms.

About chair rail level there was a bright yellow, 12" stripe, took for every to cover that one but it's gone!


This is the view to the front door, I love the woodwork. Also it steps down about 4 steps to the street so it gives it a nice entrance.
Just another view. The windows are great they are double paned and between the panes there is about 20" deep spaces, made I assume for displays, perfect for letting passer-bys know who we are.
And yes I was working, my kids took most of the photos and got this one of me scrubbing the paint off the floor. I think that took longer and the actual painting.
Even with the dark wood and beams it is still very light inside with the two windows in the main room.
The bathroom needs some work though. The tile needs to be changed and really there's a lot of cosmetic work to be done in there.
Off of the main room there is a small room that we intend on using for children, either a nursery or SS, which ever we need at the moment.
The SS room also has a door and window so it's nice and light.

Oh yea the view toward the bathroom and also the front of the room, where the platform will be. Johnny has been working on that and we'll soon cover it with some nice navy carpet. I think we are going to go with navy for the accent color with maybe a bit of creme and burgundy.

Anyhow, that's the future storefront home of Victors Independent Baptist Church, or in Croatian: Neovisna Baptistička Crkva Pobjednici.

We simply can't wait for our missionary partners to get here next year, we're praying for ya Holcomb family!

Fun Red Fabric

I went to to fabric store the other day looking for some material for a new dress for Hannah. I found this really nice red material with little swirls and loved it. I wasn't too sure how it would look as a dress but I had to have that fabric. I bought 3 meters and then went home. When I walked into our family/kitchen room I noticed that the color was the exact same as our cabinets.

Anyhow, if you remember in this post I took some sheer material I already had and made some sheers for the family room windows that line the whole east wall of our home.

Anyhow I used this red material for some curtains to line these windows, nothing spectacular just a shot of color and a finished look. It already feels so cozy in there and I love the red. I also made some matching pillow covers for the couch, I didn't use a pattern so I think it turned out pretty well. I wanted to do some piping for the edges but I didn't manage it. Oh have I told you how much joy I get out of making button holes? Tons of joy, I really love it!

Oh yea I also found a matching fabric in white and navy, like my couch, so I used it to make a table cover and since I didn't want to wash it daily like I usually have to do to table covers I decided to cover it with a thin plastic cover. Hey my kids are big but they are still pretty able mess makers, Johnny's not too bad either. I went ahead and made a runner to match and covered it all. I don't care so much for the plastic but at the moment I think it's very practical.
Anyhow, this is what I did with Hannah's dress material and you know what I think it was a good idea. I'm not so sure this would have made a nice dress, a bit swirly!

Well I Guess I Should! A Meme!

I don't usually do memes but today I will since I honored to be tagged by:


Thursday's Child
Rita at the Jungle Hut
Susan at ByGrace
Tammy at This Pilgrimage


And now...THE RULES...which I am sure to break at least one!
1) Link to the person who tagged me.
2) Mention the rules.
3) Tell six quirky yet boring, unspectacular details about myself.
4) Tag 6 other blogger´s by linking to them.
5) Go to each person’s blog and leave a comment that lets them know they've been tagged.


Okay here goes! 6 quirky yet unspectacular things about me.

1. I hate nude hose. I know that sounds weird, but it's true. I will wear them if I must but I don't prefer them.

2. My family always goes prematurely gray, I have more gray actually than I do brown hair. Praise the Lord for color!

3. I totally hate clutter. Not the kinda clutter that is around while working or even in an office or sewing room, but the kind of clutter that fills garages and attics. I can't stand to know there are things in boxes somewhere that someone isn't using. We have no boxes in attics or garages because I always end up giving the stuff away. Why should it sit in a box unused when someone could be using it?

4. I love the old Twilight Zone series. I have no idea why but I just do. I also like the One Step Beyond and the Outer Limits. I'm secretly very strange!

5. Up until 6th grade I was the toughest kid in school. No one picked on me and all the boys came to me for help when someone was bullying them. After 6th grade all the boys caught up to me in size and I learned to keep my mouth shut!

6. I have more family members (before marriage) in Heaven than I do on Earth. 2 sisters, my Daddy, and my Grands are all in Heaven. Leaving only Myself, Mom and Brother. Heaven's growing sweeter everyday!

Okay now I'm going to break that rule I was sure I would and not tag 6 people, but please feel free to do this meme and let us know what quirky little tidbits you have.

Praise the Lord!

Last year here in Croatia the government passed a law making Croatia a virtually closed country to missionaries. Our hearts dropped as we have waited 8 years for other missionaries to come to Croatia. We were exempt from the change in law since we have permanent residence but for any new missionaries it would be all but impossible to get into Croatia on a permanent basis. We have future partners on deputation now so this law was a major problem. They were busy raising money and we all had faith that our great God was going to change this law, with tears in my eyes I gladly report that the Croatian news channel reported that this law will be reversed this fall for sure!

God is so good! How blessed we are to serve such a gracious, loving, caring God. Praise His Name!!

Wow, Great Ideas!

Hey check out these great ideas I found around Blogville.

Over at And Everything Nice, Megan had this great idea for organizing kids and they're chores. I wish I had thought of this when my kids were younger, oh well, you can benefit from Megan's ingenuity. I may even make one of these jars for me, hey maybe I will.

Make sure to drop by Megan's place and let her know if you use her cool idea.

And check out these super cute boys shorts made from bandanas. Over at Blue Yonder there is a complete tutorial for making these cute summer shorts.

These seem like such a great idea for little ones running around the back yard.

Have a great weekend Y'all!

BIBLE FACTS:

• The Bible can be read aloud in 70 hours.
• There are 8,674 different Hebrew words in the Bible, 5,624 different Greek words, and 12,143 different English words in the King James Version.
• A number of verses in the Bible (KJV) contain all but 1 letter of the alphabet: Ezra 7:21 contains all but the letter j; Joshua 7:24, 1 Kings 1:9, 1 Chronicles 12:40, 2 Chronicles 36:10, Ezekiel 28:13, Daniel 4:37, and Haggai 1:1 contain all but q; 2 Kings 16:15 and 1 Chronicles 4:10 contain all but z; and Galatians 1:14 contains all but k.

BIBLE STATISTICS:

• Number of books in the Bible: 66
• Chapters: 1,189
• Verses: 31,101
• Words: 783,137
• Letters: 3,566,480
• Number of promises given in the Bible: 1,260
• Commands: 6,468
• Predictions: over 8,000
• Fulfilled prophecy: 3,268 verses
• Unfulfilled prophecy: 3,140
• Number of questions: 3,294
• Longest name: Mahershalalhashbaz (Isaiah 8:1)
• Longest verse: Esther 8:9 (78 words)
• Shortest verse: John 11:35 (2 words: "Jesus wept").
• Middle books: Micah and Nahum
• Middle verse: Psalm 118:8
• Middle chapter: Psalm 117
• Shortest chapter: Psalm 117 (by number of words)
• Longest book: Psalms (150 chapters)
• Shortest book (by number of words): 3 John
• Longest chapter: Psalm 119 (176 verses)
• Number of times the word "God" appears: 3,358
• Number of times the word "Lord" appears: 7,736
• Number of different authors: 40
• Number of languages the Bible has been translated into: over 1,200

OLD TESTAMENT STATISTICS:

• Number of books: 39
• Chapters: 929
• Verses: 23,114
• Words: 602,585
• Letters: 2,278,100
• Middle book: Proverbs
• Middle chapter:
• Job 20
• Middle verses: 2 Chronicles 20:17,18
• Smallest book: Obadiah
• Shortest verse: 1 Chronicles 1:25
• Longest verse: Esther 8:9
• Longest chapter: Psalms 119
• Largest book: Psalms

NEW TESTAMENT STATISTICS:

• Number of books: 27
• Chapters: 260
• Verses: 7,957
• Words: 180,552
• Letters: 838,380
• Middle book: 2 Thessalonians
• Middle chapters: Romans 8, 9
• Middle verse: Acts 27:17
• Smallest book: 3 John
• Shortest verse: John 11:35
• Longest verse: Revelation 20:4
• Longest chapter: Luke 1
• Largest book: Luke

Special thanks to Amazing Bible Timeline for this wonderful information.

I typed this poem 7 years ago and taped it neatly in the front of my Bible. I love it and read it often.

God's Treasure

There is a treasure,
Rich beyond measure,
Offered to mortals today;
Some folks despise it,
Some criticize it,
Some would explain it away.

Some never read it,
Some never head it,
Some say "It's long had it's day";
Some people prize it,
And he who tried it,
Finds it's his comfort and stay.

God gave this treasure,
Rich beyond measure,
His Word, we call it today.
Let us believe it,
Gladly receive it,
Read, mark and learn to obey.

~A.M.N.

*originally posted June 26, 2006

July 5th, 2008, Just Stuff

Wow, it doesn't even seem like we should be half way finished with 2008 already, time really does fly! I don't know which it is, Time flies when your having fun or time is fun when your having flies either way, time really goes by fast.

We have several things going on right now that really demand alot of time.

We are starting a new church in a different town here in Croatia. We have rented the building, of which I may take a picture and post. Since rented buildings many times come with out light fixtures, toilets, sinks and so on, we are busy putting those in. We have a toilet and lights and soon we'll have a sink. The building is lovely, very European looking with big dark beams across a stark white ceiling. I'm looking forward to decorating it, gotta come up with a color scheme though and Johnny said it's my thing and he doesn't want to have to deal with it, so I have free license to do what I want. YEA!

Our first service will be the 3rd of August and then we will have meetings every Sunday morning and Thursday night. While working at the new work we'll still be attending meetings at the first church we planted. Johnny isn't the pastor any longer but he still teaches adult Sunday School so we need to be there for that and then we'll also be attending Wednesday night prayer meeting there. I know I'm rambling and my sentence structure stinks, but I'm in a hurry so bear with me!

Also we're looking at a possible move. We currently are having alot of problems with our Landlord and we're praying he will let us out of our contract. We'll see.

Onto something a bit more positive now, we have found a place at the river, very secluded and we got to take the kids last week. The water looks green but really it wasn't, it was very clean so clear that you could see the bottom even in the deeper water. It's a really good place, it takes about 20 minutes on dirt roads to find it and then a 4 minute walk to get to the water. We like it because no one goes there and we can be alone. If someone does come it's okay we can leave, we all swim in our clothes so that's good. Anyhow, here's a few pictures from that.

This river is great because it runs out of the Alps so the water is always running and very clean. There are also fish in the river, it's cool to swim with the fishies. We have snorkles so we can watch the fish.

Oh yea and I have had sewing fever lately. Now that I know how to follow a pattern, I'm hooked!! I bought several patterns while in the states and now I'm going to attempt them. I have this cute little skirt pattern that I'm going to make for Hannah but longer of course. :0)

Well the 4th rolled around here in Croatia without much toodoo about it, It always does. We can't wait for other missionaries to come so we can actually have someone to celebrate with. Anyhow, hope you all had a wonderful time celebrating our Independence day.