Sparkling Significance

so much to be thankful for!

2012-01-14T16:04:00.000-06:00

the sky

the chalkboard with words

the artist's work

the working man

the man with his new iPhone and his children

the toast with honey on it

putting the puzzle together

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Pictures at Mark and Esthers

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trying to wake up Ian

He finally woke up in his time and in his way!

Daddy making strange faces.

Daddy Comes Home

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with a surprise in the back!

Blue and Yellow

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All the brothers were home for Christmas!

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Ian with his Nisly "Frienshoft"

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Ian meets his uncles. :)

This one is for Judith. Esther is holding your marvelous fruit cake. Esther informed us all that we may only take one bite each.

more cousin pictures

2011-12-04T15:00:00.001-06:00

We went muddying on the way to the bulk food store. It was hilarious. (I'm really into black and white pictures.)

Nathan helping Rose Mary change her radiator.

Posing with the wild Pig that gurgled, snorted, and died right after we went through the creek.

Ian taking a nap on the kitchen table.

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We did many wild and fun things when Matt and Annie Jo (our dear cousins from the far off land of PA) were here.

My dear great-Aunt Sarah sent a can full of Betty Crocker icing along with them. Nathan was infatuated with the thought of opening it. He did finally did open it.

Going through mom's old pictures, and looking at all my blog reader's parents and grandparents. Well, I'm sure we saw some of you "freineschaft."

Making salsa.

It's a Grandma Thing

2011-12-01T20:30:00.001-06:00

Esther's mom was here, and she loved every minute of it!

Yep, we're quite infatuated with Ian!

2011-11-23T06:29:00.001-06:00

trying to figure out if Ian's eyes follow the toy.

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Last week, we got to chat to our hearts content over coffee, and yep, she's coming to visit me all the way in KANSAS this week!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We did a lot of this...

2011-11-18T07:19:00.003-06:00

DRIVING and driving and driving and more driving. and stopping to eat. stopping to buy gas. reading a book. talking. listening to music. thinking and thinking. sitting and sitting and sitting. driving through rush hour, not sure how we always managed to hit the cities at lunch hour or breakfast or seven o'clock. but we had fun, and I'm glad to be home. Though, my encounter with my car in Springfield wasn't all awesome. We had a flat tire, but we were gonna change it and then a fine gentlemen came a long and fixed it. No problem at all for him!

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CBS girls

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We came home in one piece, and we all feel big now.

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to sleep or not to sleep

2011-11-08T22:59:00.002-06:00

I had a total change of plans. I'm going to Pennsylvania this weekend, instead of the normal things like studying and sitting by our awesome fireplace drinking tea. I'm leaving in two hours. I feel like I'm full of some for caffeinated beverage, when in actuality, I'm not full of any Coke or Mountain Dew!

more baby pictures

2011-11-02T22:40:00.001-05:00

Ian is so tiny, and is he ever cute!

I can't get enough of the black and white pictures.

Mommy talking to baby.

Oh no, this is not fun anymore!

Mark and Esther's house has a whole new feel to it!

Red-Light Prayer Initiative | Exodus Cry

2011-11-02T21:37:00.003-05:00

Exodus Cry is challenging you to pray for the red light districts every time you stop at a stop light. For myself, I'm really excited about this. Instead of groaning that I have to wait at the light, I can fight and petition for these places. Folks, this is real. Read more about it here.

Football Tackle in the Den

2011-11-02T16:59:00.000-05:00

I'm going through our pictures from 2003. I found an amusing video. Mom is reading to Vj, Nathan, and I, but I'm videoing Nathan and Virgil enacting a slow motion football tackle. (click on it to see the video.)

I went walking with Melissa today.

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So we took the famous Orange Pig down to the creek when John and Rhoda were here. Sadly, we got stuck in the creek on our way back through and killed the motor, so dad had to come rescue us. It was actually pretty funny.

Hanging Out at Laverns

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Just like the good old days!

A few Pictures from Matt and Andrea's Wedding

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Ian Samuel Nisly

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On Sunday our family traveled home from Hutch and drove straight to hospital!

Mark came to the entrance and escorted us to Esther and Ian's room. Here we're waiting in anticipation in the elevator!

Baby's feet are pretty small in daddy's hands!

Mark showing off the hospital band that distinguishes him as baby's father.

Mom holding Ian for the first time.

Dad holding court.

One of the Least of These | Exodus Cry

2011-10-26T16:30:00.000-05:00

One of the Least of These | Exodus Cry

2011-10-23T23:06:00.000-05:00

I'm an aunt!

Monday Morning with the Nisly Females

2011-09-26T10:06:00.002-05:00

Rose Mary decided to buy a flash drive. She informed me just now that "That way I'll be able to write emails and blog posts at my house (which is Internetless), and than squawk them onto the computer."

We're planning a baby shower for our sister-in-law, and it is very amusing to listen to the random opinions. We have finally agreed on some good ideas. No need to hold your breath, Esther.

I just announced a very awesome thing to Rose Mary. My kit lens has been lost since the beginning of June. I prayed about it off and on, and meanwhile, I've been getting much better at shooting with my 50 mm lens. I went camping this weekend and guess what!? I opened a pocket in my bag that I hadn't opened for four months. There the lens was nestled so peacefully in the bag. Praise the Lord! YAY!

Mom wishes Rose Mary would go home! Mom wants to hang out wash, and she knows that if Rose Mary goes home, there will be no more squawkiness. Mom has disappeared now to hang out wash, just hoping we won't say anything too juicy.

2011-09-19T10:33:00.001-05:00

For people like Esther's mom and other family members, you'll definitely enjoy Dad's minute by minute posting on his tumblr blog. It's not unusual to see Dad with his phone taking pictures.

http://ylsinogewso.tumblr.com/

2011-09-19T10:29:00.003-05:00

For some reason, I'm all into the technically incorrect pictures right now. I had a ton of pictures to post, but I used up all my camera's battery. *horrors*

This crazy girl is joining the Nislys soon. :)

and you wonder why the Nislys like coffee?

Lifetime Photograph

2011-09-19T09:42:00.000-05:00

I could drool over this picture. It just oozes of Rose Mary.... sourdough pancakes... purse.... lists... a book shelve... kitchen table... cooking books.... beautiful light.... okay... so it's just a me picture taken of my sister!

Great Was the Company

2011-09-17T14:33:00.000-05:00

I am still alive, contrary to popular belief. I don't like making that statement, because back when Facebook took over blogs, people made this statement too. After a while, their blogs died altogether. I don't want my blog to die, so I'm writing a post.

I'm reading a book right now that is making me think. I haven't finished reading it yet, because for once, I actually used my head, turned off the light, and went to sleep. Otherwise, it would be read through and through by this time. It's the type of book I could read in one sitting. Maybe it's because I am a Beachy Amish girl that the book fascinates me so much. The book is written by Ira Wagler. It's called Growing up Amish.

I'm taking two classes this semester. Pathophysiology is pushing me out of my comfort zone. I actually have to think. I know that sounds horrible. Just sayin', its a whole lot easier to drink coffee, and listen to the rain than learn how a person gets diseases. The next best option is to drink coffee. Listen to the rain and study.

Something very happy happened this morning. I had just pushed my snooze at 520, when the phone rang. I was, of course, too groggy to get up and answer it, but my dad had enough sense to get the phone. It was the supervisor calling to tell me that I didn't have to go to work today. Well, I'm on call. I slept until 920. What bliss! :) Now, I need to hit the books again. I'm just glad for some time at home to think and recuperate.

The Orange Pig Comes to Life Again

2011-08-21T21:43:00.000-05:00

This is just a snapshot of what we did tonight. Hopefully, there we'll be more pictures to come. Tonight, Dad and Nathan got the old Orange Pig up and running. We dragged mom off the computer, and Rose Mary came running from the house to go on a ride through the pasture. Nathan drove while Dad and Mom were precariously perched on a wheel and hubcap in the trunk. Rose Mary was grinning wildly in the back seat while I sat in the front seat guiding the procedures. HOWEVER, Mom was holding onto Dad for dear life, because she was afraid that either she would fall out, or half the roof would come down on her head. Notice the 2X4 holding the trunk open. Dad told Nathan to go faster, so that mom would keep needing to hold onto him. We made it through the great, open prairie. When we came to the ford, Dad and Mom wiggled themselves out, and Nathan, Rose Mary, and I had the ride of our lives! We drove full blast through the water in the little tin can.

Really, Stoltzfoos relatives, do you want some good ol' Kansas excitement? Well, come on, Annie Jo. Come one. Come all. Come to get blown away by a fancy ride through the great waters of the Labette Creek.

This picture is guaranteed to be a family favorite. The one that we'll keep going back to and hooting at with laughter.

2011-08-21T16:07:00.000-05:00

One day, I was hanging out with these fine ladies... our car gave out. :( Thankfully, the Lord sent an amazing gentleman along to help us in our distress!

It was very hot that day! My CBS friends will most definitely enjoy this picture of our one and only Esther drinking water out of two water bottles.

2011-08-21T16:02:00.000-05:00

If you drive by our church, you might see this. We have a huge box full of different sizes and shapes of material that the girls love to dress up in.

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Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small doesn’t serve the world. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others. ~Marianne Williamson

From WikiQuote.org

The amazing cloud that rolled in on Monday night

2011-08-10T16:59:00.001-05:00

This picture does not even do justice. It was stretched across the sky. All we could say is, "Wow!" On top of that it brought the rain!! Yay, for rain.

my hyper sister

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Brag on God

2011-08-03T05:55:00.000-05:00

There are many times, we want to shout our praises to the King, our Almighty God. We're so ecstatic with our Jesus that we can't hold still. Now you have an opportunity to share with the rest of the world! Check out this new website, called Brag on God that John Allen made.

Rest

2011-08-02T22:10:00.003-05:00

I just like it.

After Dinner Nap

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After dinner tea

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July 4th family party. (Sadly the wrong thing is in focus, but, you get the picture.)

My way of living with joy is

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giving dogs baths in the rain.

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"Greater is He than he that is in the world."

"I wanna see Jesus lifted high. A banner that flies across the sky. That all men may see the truth and know, he is the way to heaven. We wanna see. We wanna see. We wanna see Jesus lifted high. Step by step were moving forward. Little by little were taking ground. Every prayer a powerful weapon. Strongholds come tumbling down. and down. and down..."

“Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.” —Martin Luther King Jr.

2011-07-23T13:43:00.000-05:00

You know your brother's friends are here, and that he just woke up from a nap, when you hear random snatches of conversation from the den that are a little startling.

"We could go door to door [in Oswego] and offer to shoot any dogs or cats they want to get rid of.

We could borrow a big screen tv from someone. We could it hook it up to my car, and then we'd could show funny Youtube clips on main street.

We could drive up and down country roads until we saw a sqirrual. Then we'd shoot it. After we shot the squirrel, we could drive to mainstreet in Oswego, and sit on main street where we'd roast it.

We could make a trail of one dollar bills burning across main street."

Brother's friend suggests that there should be a filter for his ideas.

Framed

2011-07-21T12:34:00.000-05:00

Aren't these pictures cool??! Dad was resting against the table taking a nap, so I took pictures through the crook of his arm.

It makes me all excited to see what else I could do with natural frames.

Take it or Leave It

2011-07-13T16:44:00.000-05:00

Sometimes we have to make hard decisions.

A Moment in Time

2011-07-12T14:06:00.002-05:00

From Sparkling Significance

Simplicity

2011-07-12T13:03:00.002-05:00

From Sparkling Significance

2011-07-04T16:00:00.000-05:00

In which the youth group plays mini gulf, and afterwards some go, and eat ice cream in an unusual fashion. Sadly, there was some disputing about where to go for ice cream. I don't know why. Seriously, who wouldn't go to Braums for ice cream? Our dear friend Rachel suggested we buy boxes of ice cream and share them, so it was agreed upon.

There was much debate about what the best kind of ice cream would be to buy. Votes were taken. Finally, everybody but one person was extremely happy. He was just semi happy. VJ ordered seven waters and one large fries, along with two boxes of ice cream. Then we all trooped back to a secluded corner.

The ice cream was fantastic, but the plastic spoons did little damage. Instead, one gave up the fight and broke. Using plastic spoons to dig into the ice cream was like a bird pecking away at an ice burg. To those of us who microwave ice cream at home, this was worth crying over. Thankfully, it was only one box of ice cream that had massive issues. Rachel, our hero by the end of the night, encouraged the desperate ones of the party, to take the hard hearted ice cream to the bathroom where it would be melted under hand dryers. Instantly, up hopped VJ (of course), Nathan with the camera, and Zachary to ooo and ahh. They came back one minute later saying, "There isn't a hand dryer!" Causing Virgil to go and buy two super cheap hamburgers. We ate the one. We each got at least a bite. *smirk* The other hamburger, well, we put it under the ice cream box to melt it!

Honestly, it got super soft. I didn't get a picture of when it was really soft, but here you get the general idea. A Braum's worker came by wiping tables. She looked at us out of the corner of her eye with the kind of look that said, They must have come from outer space! For a good, little while, our table was put out of commission, since figuratively speaking, we were rolling around on the floor laughing until the tears came. You know, I'd do it again.

2011-07-04T15:26:00.000-05:00

Jonas and Sue came to visit Jon and Joanne, so we them all over. We had a picnic inside since it was very windy outside. We even had s'mores!

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We went to Sonic to celebrate Danielle's birthday. Here we're waiting on the ice cream to appear. It was a blast to have Davys around again!

2011-07-02T09:39:00.002-05:00

just sayin' I miss this girl. she has gone off to the "big city."

The Occasional Post: I Wish I had Loved More

2011-06-29T16:23:00.003-05:00

I really like this blog: The Occasional Post. Today, I read an exceptional posted by LaRonda. Check it out!

2011-06-16T11:46:00.001-05:00

just in case you didn't know, I'm sprinting towards getting into the spring nursing program. Right now, I feel like I'm going through extreme torture taking two classes. I just got three hours of sleep last night because I was studying. I have to work for everything. Now, my older brother, it appears he just swaggered through nursing school. (Appearances can be deceiving.) Guess I'll have to talk to him. my one bro said, to a be a good thing for a person, he should cry himself to sleep every night.

Does anybody want a puppy? they are so adorable. they could melt the iciest heart you can imagine. eddy and stephanie got a puppy from us. The puppy slept with their son the first night. I know. I know. they charm.:)

it used to be that playing piano was torture. Now, it's therapeutic. I guess because I don't have to play for my teacher this summer, and when I do have time to play, it's a miracle.

now, I'm starting to sound like a grownup, but to all of you youngsters out there, this is for you. Read as much as you can. Play with the dogs as much as you can.
Pick gallons of flowers, and live a carefree life. Later on, you might want to read, but all you'll be allowed to read are text books where every sentence has a word that you'll have to look up in the dictionary (if you have time). Having said that, being carefree doesn't have to end when you're old. of course, I haven't experienced it.

something about the little joys of life that make me happy after "studying my brain off."

Credits go to my cousin Kevin for the first picture.

Meet Me in the Meadow

2011-06-14T11:36:00.000-05:00

Seriously, you'll should read this post from Meet Me in the Meadow.

Sometimes it's just hot, so we use methods to get cool, such as using ice from sonic.

2011-06-11T10:23:00.000-05:00

VJ's Home

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We're glad to have Virgil home. You can tell that he has a certain affect on us!

2011-06-03T10:42:00.000-05:00

Seriously, sometimes I get very, very, VERY happy. Being with Sandra was one such time. I listened as fast as I could, and she talked as fast she could. :)

Dad and Nathan painted the barn roof at Eds

2011-06-03T10:41:00.000-05:00

These people are the reason I am the way I am.

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Cousin Time

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canning with the aunts

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Tea Party at the Weaver House

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wait. I forgot two collages that I made that I want to post.

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Last of all, my bro walking across the stage at Faith Builders!

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My cousin demonstrating how to cut the heads off of chickens. After which, my aunt Vina said she'll dream about butchering chickens that night. She isn't exactly the butchering chickens type.

2011-06-01T16:57:00.003-05:00

Some of you, will be just pretty happy to see a picture of Beth! Yeppers, we had a fantastic time together.

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my cousins spend many hours in this place. Nathan and I couldn't stay out of it either.

we had many good times in the barn.

2011-06-01T16:55:00.000-05:00

I got to spend one night with Lois. I had a smashing time with her. Although, I lost buckets of sleep. *surprise, surprise* Here Lois' mom, Ruth is reading a letter that my Uncle Harold sent to John Mark when he was at CBS many years ago. It was pretty funny.

i went tripping...

2011-06-01T16:52:00.000-05:00

...and on the way we had a flat tire, so I had fun with the camera while the men slaved.

driving along with flowers to encourage us.

2011-06-01T16:19:00.002-05:00

If you know of anybody that wants a puppy to liven up life, just holler!

2011-05-11T18:17:00.000-05:00

Life is short. Make it matter. Make it worth while. You never know what will turn up, but always trust God. Always believe.

I just found out that a nineteen-year-old girl I went to CBS with has MS. I don't have any answers to suffering, but I choose to trust, to believe in God. Please pray for Lynita.

Just because...

2011-04-30T15:06:00.000-05:00

Mendy is one amazing piano teacher. (not sure they get any better) This week I've been so stoked about playing piano. I feel like I'm finally making progress. I started on Canon in D this week! Does that ever make me excited!? Let us just say, that that song is probably my favorite classical piece.

and my mom should be bragged on... she is still plugging along learning how to play piano. She is a speedy learner and might catch up with me soon. aaah, scary.

2011-04-29T12:39:00.000-05:00

I got the random idea to put a poll on my blog, so if you'll would vote, I would greatly appreciate that!

2011-04-28T11:32:00.000-05:00

Working on the flower beds at Esther's house.

It's a Cousin Thing

2011-04-28T11:24:00.001-05:00

We had an awesome time with Vj and Arthur's kids. There is much pain in the fact that I probably won't see Arthurs for another year and a half! Just a few random snapshots of us hanging out together.

Here Nathan and Kevin are making sure the glasses have even amounts of power drink. They're the amazing frappes that Kevin has mastered in making. You have to pay him for the recipe, since he has it under lock and key on his iPad.

Virgil doing what he does best. Along that line, he made up a hysterical song a couple weeks ago that he sang for us when he was home. Seriously, it's so Virgil. You should ask him to play it for you, at least if you don't mind being scarred.

This picture. Well, you just wouldn't really understand it, unless you had been there feeling all the emotions of the previous argument. It involved a car and whether it was an convertible or not. Of course, Kevin got out his trusty iPhone to see who was right. First, however we had to drive by the car a second time because none of us were car savvy enough to know what kind of car it was.

my face shows the lateness of the hour.

Kathy, this is to prove that your daughter has been behaving herself. She is saying, "NO" to caffeine in this picture. When the cousins were around at that!

Yes, pleeeease!

Contrary to popular belief...

2011-04-28T11:14:00.001-05:00

...I still miss people from CBS even after a month of being gone.

These fabulous KS kids added a lot of sparkle to my life while I was there. The picture is missing a few very important people from KS. (Taken by Hans Mast, well, er, his camera)

My super amazing tournament team (Taken by Carolyn Kauffman)

We had lots of energy! :) (Taken by Hans Mast)

I miss Hannah, and I miss deep talks at CBS. (Taken by Frieda K.)

and sometimes I still mull around in my brain some of the discussions we had in class. (Taken by Carolyn Kauffman)

for Esther's mom mostly

2011-04-25T17:07:00.001-05:00

I thought you would enjoy seeing pictures of Mark and Esther's moving day. so here goes...

The last load of stuff heading to Chetopa with Mo, the dog.

Unloading

The boss lady did a fine job that day.

getting food ready for the hungry crowd.

Dad fixing something electrical.

Oh no! a snow fight broke out!

You can't really see in this picture, but Mark and Christopher are having a wrestling match in the background which is extremely dangerous, since the last time they did that, Christopher's glasses were broken!

Found in my Inbox

2011-04-20T22:03:00.000-05:00

Ladies and Gentlemen, [written to my family]
I am proud to announce that the Nisly household has acquired a new puppy! He is a blue heeler and 6 weeks old. I got him from a man at work.
But, the most important thing is a name! Those of us that are at home are in the midst of the naming process. All day long, we have been working hard to find a name. And so, Fair Children, the polls are closing. We are within hours of finalizing a name. However, we are submitting to the family our tentative selection.

   Ladies and Gentlemen, we present, Little Maynard!

   ~Nathan
P.S. We will take other nominations if you would like to help us chose.

This and that and the other thing

2011-04-16T11:26:00.001-05:00

so the other day, I helped my dad do some plumbing under a house. let us just say, that was quite the experience. it was something i had never done before, and part of me, never wants to do it again. you see, i'm used to having the big open sky over me, but under the house, all i could see was the floor which was about one inch above my head. i got sore from crawling along under the house. i guess i'm not very fit.

here dad is shoveling away the dirt from the square cavity. thankfully, at this point i didn't realize that I would be slithering in through that tunnel. i thought I was only going to be going through the crawl space hole on the other side that was much larger. well, after i thought I had escaped from having to get to dirty or too claustrophobic in any tight spots, dad said, "Verda, do you think you would be brave enough to crawl in through the smaller crawl space?" *scream* The owner was out mowing lawn, and I didn't really feel like letting him watch me make a dunce out of myself. Thus, before I thought too much about what I was doing, I quickly slimed and slithered my way into the small gap. I did decide it wasn't as bad as I thought then to propel myself along by my elbows. some people would think I'm crazy to just have agreed to help my dad, but i believe in experiencing nearly every kind of adventure possible.

i even took my favorite dog along to work (we were at our neighbors). the first time he was not impressed about being dragged into the crawl space. However, the rest of the time, he jumped right on in without any hesitations. BTW, this is the bigger hole.

Other happenings...

Here are pictures from the sewing we had on Tuesday.

We had a blast and a half. Nothing like laughing with people who are hysterical. :):):) This girl can almost always get me started laughing out of control. It's scary.

Kathryn is holding a baby that is almost as big as her!

On to some pictures of home life...

Dad freely enjoying the fresh lettuce straight from the garden.

mom planting beans. planting garden has been a huge part of my recent life.

2011-04-09T14:54:00.000-05:00

It's good to be home. It's two weeks since I came home from CBS. I didn't realize it would only take two weeks to be infatuated with my homeland, but you know, I love it here. Well, that was short, but right now, I don't have anything else I feel like saying.

A picture of me with two girls that make home so much fun!

Zachary turns 16!

2011-04-04T08:45:00.000-05:00

We got to go to Zachary's birthday party last week. Speaking of which, we youth kids are delighted to have him come hang out with us now! He is going to add so much. Our youth group has grown to eleven people. :)

They had small, party firecrackers at the table that sent out streamers. Of course, my dear brother being a Nisly had to figure out how the firecracker worked, so he took it apart. In this picture, he has figured out the source of the explosion. Mom is horrified by the fact that she might be burned alive, and dad and Nathan are showing off their manhood by pulling it apart.

two more CBS pictures

2011-04-04T08:31:00.000-05:00

My amazing dorm is totally moving a bunk bed to make it three stories high, and just sayin', don't die laughing while moving heavy objects.

Singing one of our chorus songs, "Blessed Be Your Name," one last time at the Kauffmans. At first, I did not like the song because of the stress we were having learning it, but it turned out to be one of my favorite songs.

2011-04-01T11:21:00.000-05:00

As Sheila would say, "Look at the little ones." I have two pictures for you'll. Probably some of the most significant people to me at CBS (besides the fifty other awesome people).

Now what I want to write is, "This dorm was awesome," but everybody writes that. Instead, I'm going to write that my dorm was rockin'. The personalities are nearly busting out of this picture. Besides Lois. She looks way to sedate.

and this would be me and my other half. It is positively horrifying to realize that I had no idea she existed before CBS.

Home from CBS

2011-03-26T13:58:00.000-05:00

I'm home from CBS. I feel like I could sleep for days. I love being at home. I've been talking non-stop about CBS. I still haven't put everything away yet. I love being able to sit by the fire, and do nothing. I talked to Lois, one of my dormies, for an hour and twenty minutes last night instead of sleeping. I came home to a pregnant dog. My sister is gone. She's at Faith Builders. Can't wait until she comes home. Can't wait to see everybody again. One of my best friends is coming tonight which makes me happy. I'll post pictures once I found my camera cord in my piles of stuff. Lastly, I'm trying to get it into my head that CBS is not reality. Just sayin', I loved CBS Third Term 2011!

2011-02-10T11:13:00.000-06:00

A little, big story that happened yesterday and is still happening. I was sitting in a little chain store, ice cream shop in San Salvador, El Salvador licking an ice cream cone. Life is good. I don't feel rich with money but exceedingly rich with relationships. I have one of my favorite brothers beside me and one of my favorite guy cousins across from me. The one is telling the plot of a story he is writing, and the other one is listening intently. I am listening too, but I feel like I'm in a dream world. La Neveria, the open air, ice cream joint is right across from a bus stop. Buses stop and go constantly which makes for a lot of revving of the engine and loud noises from shifting. Vans which are converted into vehicles that carry massive amounts of people, stop with the bus driver's helper whistling loudly to get people's attention and yelling at the top of his lungs, he informs people where the “bus” is going. As I observe all this, I wonder if he has voice lessons or why in the world can he yell like this all day without croaking. Maybe at home he whispers to save his voice. People waiting for their bus just stand nonchalantly, and act like it's normal to have people yelling. They just ignore him. I'm amazed at how they just live their own lives, and don't talk to the people around them. (Note to self: I'm from the country, and when I go to town, I usually see five people I know.) They don't even give the bus driver or his helper any attention. After one minute of yelling, the bus driver's yeller jumps back on the bus, and it roars off with grey smoke shafting anybody who is behind the van. I come back to the conversation and hear my cousin saying that his story is set in 3012. Then, I notice that some people actually do want to ride the little buses, but only because it's apart of their daily activities. They start running for the bus before it stops, and then they take a flying leap, hopping onto the colorful bus before it roars off to its next destination. My mind is racing. Why doesn't anybody take a moment to stop, and look around? Do they think this is normal?

Beautiful People

I am fascinated by all the people. Mostly black haired people, some brown haired people. Mostly short people. School boys, business CEOS, secretaries, etc, but all are dressed up. None of them would even think of going out in public with their clothes inside out, wearing their pjs, or not combing their hair. My cousin says that the main character in his story has really amazing powers. His story is a fantasy. Suddenly, my life is shattered, and the story ends. A lady steps out of no where and asks for money. I couldn't understand what she was saying, but from her eyes I could see what she was asking for. Her clothes weren't quite normal either for these city people. To bide for more time, I asked Karlin, “What is she saying?” He said, “She wants money.” Without even thinking, I shook my head at her and said, “No.” The deal was that I had brought a dollar and a dime to pay for my ice cream cone, but than Karlin sweetly paid for me. I just had it laying out on the hard plastic table. Plus, I had a camera. I'm sure I was rich in her eyes. I am so sorry I said, “No.” I could have given her the dollar and the dime. I've been trained all my life to be wise with my money and not to give it any Joe Bloe off the street. Nevertheless, why didn't I ask God to show me what to do before I just said, “I'm not going to give any money?” I really feel like I should have given it her. It makes me sad.

The rich, stuck up American.

She left instantly. I don't know what I would've done had she kept asking for it. I admit that I'm not used to people asking for my money. It seems people ask me for money every time I go out here. I've said “no” every time. Why didn't I give it this time? I soon forgot about the incident, and we went home. This morning after having a lovely night of sleep, I just can't get it off my mind. My mind is really on this thing of helping poor people. About half a year ago, I read parts of “When Helping Hurts.” One of the stories I read was about a church group who went on a short term mission's trip to some village in South America. They built a church for the Christians there. About two years later, the Christians in the village wrote the mission trippers to come fix their church house, since the roof is leaking. The villagers were saying essentially, the church house is owned by the people from the states. They didn't feel responsible in anyway to a church in their own village. This is one reason why I have been turned off about giving money to people I know nothing about. I'm eighteen and every day I feel more naive and immature. I have a feeling that a person just can not sit me down, and lecture me about the poor people. I will have to grapple with it. Thus, ends my story about one little incident here, but one big life changing story. However, the story doesn't end. What does God have in store for you and me in helping the poor people?

Time--A Gift from God.

2011-02-09T19:20:00.000-06:00

^"13 Look here, you who say, 'Today or tomorrow we are going to a certain town and will stay there a year. We will do business there and make a profit.” ¹⁴ How do you know what your life will be like tomorrow? Your life is like the morning fog—it’s here a little while, then it’s gone. ¹⁵ What you ought to say is, “If the Lord wants us to, we will live and do this or that.' ¹⁶ Otherwise you are boasting about your own plans, and all such boasting is evil." James 4:13-15

So yeah, we're not in the states like we though we were going to be by now. I'm currently sitting in Arthur's living room! :) It was quite the change of plans. I read those verses today, and I was totally amused and happy at how practical and straight to the heart they were.

Karlin sweetly took Vj and I to an ice cream shop this afternoon. It was absolutely lovely. Since we have extra time here, I actually notice the moments as they go by. I never thought about time quite like this before. It's a a gift from God. I just dig the city. Right now we're having lovely cool breezes, (not as cold as home though. Esther says it's supposed to get as cold as -6 tonight!) There is something about the noise, and the massive amounts of people that make me smile and smile.

Some pictures just make me happy. If we would be doing as planned, we wouldn't have had this experience or this picture. (Karlin gets the credit for this picture.)

Coke

2011-02-06T15:20:00.001-06:00

Mom, I'm afraid I'm addicted to Coke now. Do you want to send your daughter away from home again?

Look, Mom, here is the guilty culprit. She has all sorts of reasons to drink it, and on top of all that, she says it's good for you even when you're sick!

2011-02-06T15:08:00.002-06:00

Washing sunday noon dishes also means getting the world's problems discussed.

2011-02-06T15:07:00.000-06:00

This is what lovely experience happens when a foreigner waves money at musicians.

2011-02-03T16:50:00.000-06:00

Sharon took us to an awesome fish restaurant close to where she lives. We got a random person to take a picture for us.

Now take a look at this second picture after we had downed one two liter of Coke. By the time we were done eating, four of us drank two two liters of Coke! Well, actually Sharon and I drank a reasonable amount of Coke, and Virgil and Kevin each had of over a liter for themselves. Lets just say that people were happy, happy, happy that night.

2011-02-03T15:19:00.000-06:00

2011-02-03T15:16:00.000-06:00

We're treated like royalty at Arthurs! Here is just an example of the amazing food they bring around for us.

I'm editing pictures and just having a very relaxing afternoon after having three very wild days where sleep was mas lacking. Tonight we go to the beach!! Yippy skippy!!

2011-02-03T11:41:00.000-06:00