On the Road Again...

We have spent more time in the car in the last few weeks then we have in a long time. We headed north for a short vacation at the end of July. We started off our time by visiting family in Oostburg. We got to meet our new nephew Benjamin for the first time. It is an awesome and intimidating thing to think that in a few short months we will have a baby of our own. Benjamin is a good-natured and absolutely adorable little boy. We thoroughly enjoyed reconnecting with the rest of our nieces, nephews and family. The kids grow so fast!

From there, we continued north to the U.P. to visit more family. As we drove along Lake Michigan, we both agreed that we miss seeing all that beautiful blue water. The time spent in Michigan was both fun and relaxing. We enjoyed the awesome accommodations at Aunt Becky's and the tasty treats Aunt Lauri baked up just for us!

Next, we drove back to Oostburg for a few more days. We cooled off in Doug and Kris's pool, visited with some extended family, and just relaxed as we wound down our time in the great north.

As we headed back, we made a brief stop in Southern Illinois to catch up with more family. It worked out great to meet up with Jeff's older brother and see the rest of our nieces and nephews. They are such a great bunch of kids with many talents and abilities.

Driving the rest of the way home was bitter-sweet. It is hard to be so far away from loved ones and the time spent with them is always very precious and never long enough. We were glad to get back and sleep in our own bed...at least for a few nights.

One week later, we piled in the van with most of the kids here and headed off to camp. Shepherd of the Ozarks located in northern Arkansas is a beautiful camp and is provided for our kids at almost no cost. We were challenged in many ways during the week. We were challenged in our walk with Christ. We were challenged physically on the horses, high-ropes challenge coarse, and hike to Goat Cave. The weather also challenged us at it stayed in the upper 90s and lower 100s the entire week.

We are once again back home and look forward to sleeping in our own bed tonight. It has been a busy couple weeks and there will be several more before we get back into a routine. As we close this update we have a few prayer requests: Please pray for the upcoming trip to Colorado the boys will be heading on in just over a week. Pray for new staff to join the ranch. Pray for energy and stamina for Leigh Ann as the pregnancy continues and we near the end.