For all our BLR friends

Troy had a rare opportunity today.  A dear friend offered to take him on a fly over of BLR.  I thought I'd share a few so our friends with camps down there can see it.  It's been under mandatory evacuation and we haven't see it in a couple weeks.  (Although I hear that as of tomorrow our section will become voluntary evacuation and we just need to show proof that we belong there.)  So here we go and don't forget that you can click on a picture and it will enlarge it:

This is the point where we use to go swimming.  On the part that dips in on the opposite side of the river you can usually see lots and lots of rocks that they put there to keep it from washing away...

Holly Pipe (2 away from ours.  Look toward the top of the photo, that's us.)

Happy town (this one's for Ms. Sarah and Mr. Harvey!)

Neva Bayou Self

Slingshot

Here's ours! 

A view of the river

Here's a link to our local news with video footage of Happy Town.

We are very thankful that it is much less than expected.  Our place is safe and dry.   Please pray for those who did get water in their homes and camps.  And while it has officially crested, there still may be some back flow that could cause flooding.  

Spring Nature Study

God seems to be bringing us insects, so that's what we've been doing for nature study.  We've had rolypolies, horseflies, some weird bug on my cucumbers and this odd assortment of critters:

a grapevine beetle:

tobacco hornworms (stripping the leaves off my poor tomato plant):

And our coolest find--a live cicada nymph!  Jacob found it climbing near the chicken coop and came running in with it.  We put it in our butterfly cage.  It immediately climbed up the side and hung out.  I (mistakenly) thought it would take a while.  Within about 45 minutes, I noticed it had already changed shape.  I gathered the children and we proceeded to watch the mature cicada emerge from the nymph.  Really neat (although a bit yucky looking at times)!  

These are in time order. Sorry, some are taken through the netting and didn't come out clear, but you can get a glimpse of the profile.

Definitely looks like something out of sci-fi movie! 

Never dull around here, always something to learn and explore.  

Dance class

Academy of Christian Arts is such a fun dance studio!  One of the last weeks of dance, they had a sleepover party.  The girls didn't go, but during the week they got to wear jammies to class and have lots of fun!  Here are some random shots of the giggly girls and their friends:

 (You've got to click on this one to enlarge it and see the giggly grins on the girls!)

I just love this group of girls.  So sweet and precious and tender hearted.  They're all moving up to the next class together.  I'm looking forward to them becoming closer friends.

Sunday Snapshot--Connor

My baby's growing up!  Look at this handsome young man.  He's definitely not a little boy anymore, atleast not in size, but he is in my heart.  He is starting his eighth grade.  He's an amazing student.  He's turning into such a wonderful gentleman--opening doors, not letting me carry heavy stuff, protecting me.... he's got a great daddy to learn from.  Unfortunately, like his mama, he does not care to have pictures taken so these were taken very quickly and with the promise that it wouldn't hurt, too much.

Me and my boy... sigh, he's bigger than I am now.

Don't you love the "hurry up and get this over" look?  

The boys were off to build a wall around their fort.  So fun to see them working together and creating stuff.  They have dug a--bunker?--in the back corner.  I've heard it's now about 4' deep.  He's all boy, loves hunting and shooting.  He's been practicing shooting his bow and dad says he's a natural.  We're hoping he'll get his first bow kill this fall.  He's still into war/military/weapons.  He's also getting into current events and likes to get into discussions about them.

We are so blessed to be your parents.  We love you, Connor!

Awards night for dance

The girls take dance at the Academy of Christian Arts.  The girls have finished their first year and were eager for me to sign them up for year 2!  They had their award night this week.  Here's a few photos from that night:

Here's most of their class minus 2.  (The two that are missing are also from China.  My girls just love that they get to hang out with other little girls from China!)

What a wonderful studio!  The owner and teachers are great with the girls.  I love the uplifting Christian music that they dance to, the praying during class,  the graceful and modest costumes...  If you're looking for a dance studio in this area, I HIGHLY recommend this one!  We love it!

The coming flood

Thought I'd do a quick before-flood post.  Unless God gives the Mississippi river states a miracle, it's looking like we will lose the house in Butte La Rose.  Talk about making you aware of God's knowledge and awesomeness.  We have been wanting to live out there.  In our humanness, we couldn't figure out why He wouldn't want us living there.  If we had gotten our way, we could be packing up and facing losing our first home.  We are fortunate ones.  I cannot fathom what others are facing right now.  There are so many that are going to lose their homes.  Please join me in praying for them.  They will need so much peace and comfort.  They will need Him.

This is what we were met with when we went to the house yesterday to check things out.  Never thought I'd see one of these:

Here is the water as of Sunday, May 8, 2011.  See that little tree in the water, normally the water is well past that (farther out).   The water is close to 18' right now.  The forecasts predict it to rise to 5'-10' above flood stage which is about 25'.  

  Here's a pic of our house as it is now... This is how I hope we'll remember it.  It was surely a place of refuge and peace, a place to refuel and reconnect, a place to focus on the awesomeness of our God and His creation.  

The kids and I are headed out there today and tomorrow to empty everything we can.  Then we'll have to get help to move furniture and appliances.  Pray for sanity!