Family Time

Our first Memorial Day celebration with family in 5 years.  

So good to be together again.

A Very Berg (Lancette, Turner, Kahn, Paul) New Year

Every now and then we find ourselves in the middle of a story that just seems to fit.  This life often leaves me questioning whether I am in the right place, if I'm doing the right things, if I am listening closely enough to the leading of the Holy Spirit, if Jesus is truly in the midst of it all... and then pieces fall into place.

That's what happened this past year.  In July we made a trip to Moses Lake to photograph the wedding of a dear friend.  One of the young men in the wedding party sorta stole our hearts.  He was goofy but you could feel the love of God in him.  Come to find out he was from Montana too.  An hour and a half away from our home.  He was also homeschooled and loved his family beyond belief!  My girls are so much better at making friends than I am.  They had "friended" everyone on Facebook by the time we left Moses Lake so they could keep in touch.  

By August Minda had friended the entire Berg family (8 kids + mom & dad) and they were making plans to get together again.  2 of them made the trip to be with us during a garden party, and we didn't want them to leave.   Then 4 of the girls and their mimi came to be with us for a day of fun and photos.  Mimi and I got to talk and become friends - because Jesus was so apparent in her it was easy to be open and transparent. 

It was our turn to visit them.  We made the trip to Helena (a huge feat for us at this stage in our lives) over New Year's eve/day to meet the entire family and their closest friends, the Turners.  Our hearts and conversations were drawn to Jesus ~ His grace, His love, His power, His forgiveness ~ over and over. We spent New Year's eve around the fire, the dinner table, the kitchen counter, the "dance central" upper room, so aware of His presence.

The kids stayed at the Berg house ringing in the New Year with music and laughter and more conversations about Jesus.  (How much do I love that my 21, 19, & 17 year olds have found others just their ages and younger that want to talk God?!!)  James and I stayed with Nick and Sharon and rang in the New Year with snores and soft fluffy pillows.  :)

The next morning was more of the same.  Food, Jesus, communion, laughter - and relationship was firmly established.  Even for the skeptics (Neither John or James~ the dads~ were sure this weekend was going to be anything other than uncomfortable. They ended up more connected than the rest of us, I think.) 

There were tears when we left.  On both sides.

We Love these people.  How does that happen so quickly?  How do you go from barely meeting someone at a wedding to spending the weekend with their entire family and walking away as an extended part of that family?

My only answer is

Jesus.

We are in His story.  His narrative. 

He makes all the pieces come together, and we stand in wonder at it all.

 A new year rung in with new friends, some sick dance moves and a whole lot of laughter!

Thanks Remi, Mimi, Becky, John, Nick, Sharon, and, of course, Josh, Zac, Caiti, Abi, Aly, Milli, Sophi, Maddi, Josh T., Tamara, Leea and Nosh (Ryan)!! We loved every minute of our time with you.
A new tradition has begun!

Ohhhhhhhh Ya!

This years tree trimming video is edited and up on Youtube.  Be forewarned, it's 8 min.  We tried to cut it down but it was so much fun!  Turn your volume up so you don't miss the side comments!
The latest installment of Paul family merrymaking...  
(click)
Glad we had this night before the flu took my consciousness beyond oblivion for 6 straight days.  Also thankful to now be on the mend.

J's Bday Celebration

I'll still do my "Morning" post, but I wanted to commemorate J's 43rd birthday feast!  

God really blessed this man.  Living in a land locked state makes it next to impossible to get fresh, affordable seafood, let alone your favorite seafood on your special day of the year!

Costco had just received a shipment of Alaskan King Crab legs that morning that had been caught the day before.  I was waiting for the shoe to drop. There was no way, even at Costco, that they were going to be affordable.  Then the nice employee said the words $4.59#!!  He kindly showed me what 10# looked like and packaged them up for me to take home and BLOW MY HUSBAND'S SOCKS OFF!  It was his gift from all of us, along with a set of crackers and pickers to get the delectableness out of that crusty 'ole shell!  

We also had Salmon Fly Microbrew from Madison River, garlic butter, a grilled garlic artesianal loaf, and a spectacular green salad with his favorite blue cheese crumbles on the side - but J. only ate crab! :)

For dessert we headed to The Chocolate Moose for Wilcoxin's famous Montana Moose Moss cones.

We love him immensely.

Photo-a-day

It's that time again!  Tredways are sponsering the December Photo Project '09!  Just for the love of December!  Pop on over and check it out!  I'll be posting and linking here for the next 31 days!  WooHoo!  I love a challenge!

Thanksgiving Eve

Tomorrow is:

friendship. togetherness. laughter.

Piled plates. delighted taste buds. full bellies. toasts.

 giggles. music. grace renewed. thankfulness unleashed. memories gathered.

~ I await it with glorious anticipation! ~

16 Going on...

Our baby, Malinda, turns 16. The birthday girl requested Quiche for breakfast. The scent of bacon, Marco Polo cheese, basil and scallions filled the kitchen.

Happy, celebration Quiche!

Candles awaiting the big blow.

Wishing

And an anchor of love, loyalty and friendship.

All of which she already posseses and bestows with abundance.

Happy brithday beautiful girl. We love you.

The Tempest

Montana Shakespeare in the Park

BWN 2!

I got a call from Jen Thursday to let us know they were hosting the annual Black & White Night early this year so that we Pauls could attend!!! We LOVE this event (and we love the Murrays - works well that we get both!) Black and white food this year consisted of spicy cheesy potato soup, bean dip with black corn chips, quesadillas and sour cream, artichoke dip and white corn chips, crispy 3 cheese raviolis with black olive tapenade, venison jerky, oreos, coconut cuffins, Penny cookies, and white and dark chocolates. Also Cherry Dr. Pepper, rootbeer floats, coffee, & water. Scrumptious fare, I tell ya!!
We had a few more participants this year too. Attendees were Kate, Ryan, Tofer, James, Cassia, Seth, Mo, Jen, Deea, Don, Laura, River, Minda, Kara (& oat & barley).

There were some FABulous costumes this year! Tof as the Ninja, Kara's African head wrap, Ryan's godfather/pimp (?), Minda's netted leggings, Don's little snow cap... Just awesome!

We kicked off the festivites with a Little Rascals episode, then voted to watch Danny Kaye in The Court Jester! Hearing Kara laughing was THE BEST! So contageous!

Just a couple more photos to punctuate a great memory!!

What cool, cool cats we are! Ya, Baby!

The Living - Life Giving Word

"The Word became flesh and dwelt among us" - I woke with these words breaking through the dream-cobwebs of my sleepy mind this morning. Pictures of God speaking and visible words coming from His mouth becoming strings that began to be knit together in the darkness of a womb. The Word. Fleshed out. Actual living words. Words of promise and life and hope, spoken before time began were being encased in the flesh of baby. Breath of Heaven that gave life to Adam at the beginning now becoming that breath to give life in a new way each and every day til the end of time.

Every year it seems to impact me in a different manner. I know it is real. I know Truth. But in moments like this morning, when Holy Spirit overshadows me and hovers over the deep of my sleep, there is a new birth within - a sense that life will never look or feel the same.

Merry Christmas.

Times of Tradition - #5

Tradition #5: Christmas Dishes!

When J & I got married we had no money. I knew nothing about weddings, or gift registries, or what was traditional - I just wanted to be married! I found out years later that most people register for a certain pattern of China and friends and family order pieces for them to make up the sets.

Our cupboards were a literal menagerie of thrifted and hand-me-down items - nothing was specially picked or chosen carefully to suit our tastes.

When C. was two, I received a catalogue from Gorahm with wedding china and I began to dream. I knew that China was one of those things that was taken out on special occasions and passed down from generation to generation if it survived.

I love Christmas, and when I came across the Christmas China section in the catalogue I just knew that was what I would begin to buy. When I placed the first call (we didn't have internet back then) to buy a 4 piece place setting, it was just after the holidays and I was using gift $. The operator told me that the pattern I had chosen was on closeout and was marked down 75%! But that wasn't all. It had already been marked down 10% prior to Christmas, so it was a total markdown of 85%!! It was only the complete 20 piece settings that were marked down though. 5 four piece settings. Normal price was $250. At the markdown I was able to get 2 twenty piece sets for $75! God had totally blown away my hopes and blessed me beyond what I had ever dared dream of!

We have used them every Christmas since. They add another dimension of significance to our celebration. We love pulling them out of the box and setting the table for this one special day. We use them for breakfast, lunch, dinner and dessert! Then we lovingly pack them away again in anticipation for the next year.

Times of Tradition - #5

Tradition #5:
The Christmas Letter. I have friends who blog and they won't be sending a letter because they figure whoever reads their blog already knows what is going on in their lives. I probably could have done that this year. However, because this is a public blog again, there are certain issues and life stuff I don't go into on it - though I would love to spill my guts sometimes! Our letters are a little more personal usually. Not so much this year. I like to write. Not so much this year. I wrote and rewrote this letter 4 different times, 4 different ways, 4 different styles. I wanted to really let everyone know what we are going through, but who wants to read about flagellation at Christmas time? So I kept it to a list of events that we enjoyed and are thankful for.
We always include a photo of the kids with the letter - either photocopied on it or seperately. I have the originals for the past 15 years! Pretty soon the kids will be gone and ya'll will have to settle for a photo of us old codgers instead.
I'll post this years letter below, though you may want to wait for it's arrival in your mailbox. :o)

Paul Family 2008 To-do Lists
James
* Ski Brigder with Tofer until April.
* Witness MacGyver (aka Mark Foster) fix a snowmobile with branches after I run it into a tree.
* MC @ VBS @ YAA in the snow even though it’ll be June. “Ah Ha!”
* Take staff to U23D, get them to wear sunglasses and do “rock star” photos so I can create a poster.
* Hack, I mean, play in Young Life golf tournament with Dan Barnes, Don Murray, Scott Morales & Scott’s behemoth driver. “Everybody pretend to putt! Here comes the owner of the house I just hit.”
* Be interrogated for accreditation for 3 hours. Wax eloquent. Eat, drink & be merry for tomorrow we can drink no more wine.
* Welcome incoming MSU freshmen @ Catapalooza. Give them all a water bottle with the label you design as a “shout out” to Alliance Fellowship!
* Preach- twice, & lead worship, & transport everything to and from MSU, & don’t sleep the night previous.
* Continue meeting weekly with younger guys who seem to think I can help them. Always meet where you can get coffee.
* Meet often with older men because I need help. Always meet where you can get coffee.
* Drive to Moses Lake for Dad’s 68th birthday. 11 of us will be together for the first time in years – and Conner will drool for us non-stop.
* Culminate 2 year plan to have ‘Worship Without Borders’ conference with Tim & Maryl Smith. Make sure it’s after several days of long meetings & have little to no sleep so that you are in a dweeb state of mind - & still see God give fresh vision & life to the team.
* Present vision for home groups. Recruit vision team. Wisdom in the council of many.
Cassia
* Be 'Techew Cashwa' to the 3-5 year olds. …"So then David-" “Hey Techew, look at my new shoes!” “Yes. They’re very cool, but let’s learn about David, Ok?” Bring “delicious surprises”, just so I can hear Christopher Burcham’s passionate “Mmmmmm!”
* File FAFSA & apply to colleges. Because, I so enjoy filling my days with paperwork & answering the same question 50 times.
* Road trip with Mom to Crown College in Minnesota. *Note to self* Never say, “I’m at a ¼ tank, I’ll fill up at the next gas station,” when crossing North Dakota.”
* Be awarded $14000 in scholarships. & after realizing you still need $14000 more for a year at Crown, proceed to next item on list.
* Apply for jobs. At least a dozen. Have everyone who talks to you want to hire you, then make the decision to work at The Garage.
* Work.
* Never turn down an opportunity to love people. Take co-workers to coffee, call friends to arrange connection time, walk down the stairs nightly to tuck in Minda & Tofer…
* Work.
* Attend College/Career Retreat. Be refreshed. Fall in love with the Owens & the Hunters.
* Sing. Ok – good posture, right into the microphone, hands at sides, eyes open…
* Work.
* Paint room. “So, I’ve narrowed it down to these 50 colors, what do you think?”
Tofer
* Snowboard until April. Lose season pass so you have to go to the lodge each time & be issued one for the day.
* Snow blast Camp. Let Uber-Arm McLarge Huge win at arm wrestling & come home with one of the worst colds of your life - pass on to Mom.
* Become a drummer. “Hey, Tofer, can you play a bomp-bomp here?”
* Lead worship @ 30 hr. Famine. AKA sing-n-starve. Talk Minda into playing bass with me. “Krispy kremes, krispy kremes are what I long for. Krispy kremes are what I need…”
* Take the TSA…er..the ATS..er…whatever – that test for college.
* Teach myself Russian. Enjoy the looks on people’s faces when I tell them – in Russian – that I understand what they are saying.
* Get my permit. Just in time for the snow season. Ask, “Can I drive?” every time I get in the van. Be cute if it doesn’t work.
* Help little, old ladies have firewood for the winter.
* Counsel @ YAA for a week. With an additional 3 weeks of recovery.
* Play basketball. Every Thursday. All winter & spring.
* Begin insanely stupid cartoon blog. www.donkeypiratediaries.blogspot.com Don’t say I din’t warn you
* Become a music guru. Write, sing, play guitar, drum, play keys, dance, record, mix, drive my family insane replaying a loop repeatedly.
Minda
* Have Grama Judy teach me to knit. And someday to pearl.
* Babysit. “ Let’s pretend you respect me and do whatever I say! Ok?”
* Attend Archaeology Symposium. Be mistaken for an Egyptologist while explaining the value of scarabs to Papa.
* Play *gulp* bass *double gulp* in front of people.
* Raise $ for World Vision. Meet a bunch of cute, elderly people who sponsor me for the 30 hr. famine for $500.
* Sew doll clothes. Become extremely talented at rethreading the entire surger, and breaking needles.
* Work @ YAA. Wash 3000 dishes, yet somehow enjoy every minute!
* Get Karyn here and keep her as long as possible!!
* Take SAT. “Would you like a headache to go with those questions?”
* Shakespeare in the Park. “If you can look into the seeds of time & say which grain will grow, & which will not – Speak.” & tell me what play I saw.
* Begin wearing makeup. Hmmm…Wow…yah…wipe some of that blush off.
Deea
* Enter into final year of homeschooling. No more teacher, no more books. Especially no more calculus!
* Take Photos. Use all the newborn babies as your guinea pigs. All that sweetness captured on my hard drive!
* Mentor. You must be getting old if others are asking you life questions.
* Be available to your family. “You want to invite how many kids over for a sledding party?... o. k. … Let me make sure I have enough cocoa...”

2008 was a year of ‘good-byes’ for our family. Once again we dealt with the death of a dear friend who was our biggest emotional supporter and prayer warrior. A few months later our church made cutbacks. There is a hole in life when something is cut away & we have tremendously missed those we worked alongside. Hopes and dreams we held in a state of high hope have been deffered. Difficult as it has been, we are thankful that suffering is not the end. “I might weep, but still my faith rests in You.” “Weeping endures for the night, but joy comes with the morning!” A toast to 2009, “May it be The Morning!” Merry Christmas, & God bless us, every one!

Times of Tradition - #4

I'm posting this today because I made it and have the photos!

Tradition #4:

I don't know when (j's) Mom started doing this, but it fast became one of our very favorite things about Christmas. We went to J's parent's every year. All of our family was in town, so we would load up in our jammies and trek across the lake to Grama's house (actually the kids declared in Auntie Anna's house). Mom would put this in the oven as we gathered in the family room around the fire to open stockings and gifts. It bakes at a low heat for a long time and it is a perfect, tastey no-fuss meal for a busy morning - especially one where you want to enjoy family and not slave over the stove in the kitchen. We eat it with a special Cinnamon bread that was passed down from my side of the family, chilled pears and o.j. (or hot coffee for the adults!)

Here's the recipe if anyone wants to try it. :o)

Main Body:

8 slices of bread - chunked

2.5 cups milk

4 eggs

2# Jimmy Dean style sausage

2 cups grated cheese

cover bottom of 13x9 with bread chunks. beat together eggs and milk. brown sausage and drain. Spread sausage evenly over bread. pour egg mixture evenly over that. distribute cheese over that. Cover and refridgerate for at least 8 hours. (I made it today and will freeze it until Christmas Eve.)

Topping:

1 can cream soup (I use chicken, Mom uses mushroom)

1/2 c. milk

JUST BEFORE BAKING whisk together, pour evenly over casserole layers. Preheat oven to 300. cook uncovered for 1.5 hours. (I cover it with aluminum foil if it starts to get too brown).

That's all there is to it. If you ask my kids what one of their favorite parts of Christmas was, THIS would be their answer! Let me know if you try it!