Dangerous Book For Boys

Every once in a while there comes along a book that is a must have. I think that this year's must have book is The Dangerous Book For Boys. This book is filled with great tips for boys on everything from tying knots to making batteries. It is also a book that deals with a lot of people, places, and things that boys should know. It discusses the presidents, wonders of the ancient world, and even gives a nice explanation of the 10 commandments. There are also some indoor rainy day things that boys can do, including some cool art projects.

These 'boys books' were quite popular in the 1920s-1950s but they have gone out of fashion. It seems that the popular things for boys to do no longer include adventure and intelligence. Boys are trained to watch TV, play video games, and when they are allowed to ride bikes and do fun things, they are required, by law, to be padded from head to toe 'for their own safety'. I hope that this book challenges parents to turn off the TV and PS3 (or whatever it is called) and to do something.

We have noticed that the book is found wherever books are sold. We have seen it at Barnes and Noble for 30% off, but the cheapest that we have found it is at Costco for $13.00. That is a good price for a great book full of colorful graphics. It even has a gold leafed cloth cover and marbleized book boards... in classic early 1900s fashion.

Get it.

Psalm Singers Are Always Cute

The Kids and their Cousins

I have been meaning to post these pictures for some time now. These were taken the week that we went to Pennsylvania to see my family and attend the Synod of the RPCNA. My mother likes to get pictures of all of her grandkids in matching clothes. We traditionally do it in front of her Clematis. It is a nice spot for pictures.
This is Owen with his cousin Wyatt. The 23rd is Wyatt's 3rd birthday. Happy birthday Wyatt.
Here is another one of the boys. I am sure that if these two lived in the same town.. or state, that they would be quite naughty together. The Lord is gracious.
Here is Anna and Hannah. When you look at the boys, you see Eshelman for sure. The girls look more like their mothers than the boys do.
Naughties again.
Here is all four of them. Next month there will be five of them- we will be home at Thanksgiving time so I am sure that there will be another picture then.
And... one for fun!

Happy Birthday Mrs. Pickering!

Happy Birthday Mrs. Pickering. We miss you very much!

COVFAMIKOI

The five Presbyterian Travelers headed out to Kentucky last week in search of a large number of Reformed Presbyterians. We knew that our destination was the great Blue Grass State of Kentucky and we knew that we had an 8 hour car ride ahead of us. We left Grand Rapids at 7:30am with a fine cup of Beaners to hold us over until lunch.

James Lanning was the co-pilot and about lunch time he decided that we needed to stop for some food. We stopped in Ohio or Indiana for lunch. There was a strip of fast food joints aligned around a corner that James thought we should take a picture of. The fast food area is on the corners of "Sharts-Central". I am still not sure why James thought that was important to note.

From there we headed across the appropriately named, Ohio river. This takes us over the Mason Dixon Line and we began to feel the cultural differences immediately. Notice the plethora of bumper stickers on this touring RV. The center-right sticker says Possum, the other white meat. Opossum is the spelling. You can read the rest for yourself.
Some say that you even begin to look different as you head south. I am not so sure.
When we got to COVFAMIKOI we all had a blast. There were classes for Anna and Owen as well as for us. Anna learned about the Lost sheep, coin, and sons. Owen learned that playing with other kids can be fun. We all tried to get online all week, but we could not until the last day. It took James (who has a degree in computer nerdology) to hook up the internet. Lydia was pleased to have a husband who was 'unplugged'.
We opened our room as the Starbucks room. We ground and brewed almost 2.5 pounds of French Roast over the week. We hosted many great visitors including the irenic Dr. Roy Blackwood. He told us great stories of church planting and being faithful to his call. We also had many LONG hours of discussion and reflection.
Here is Anna outside of our dorm building. She really had a great time, even though she was forced out of bed at 7:30 every morning. This is a huge change in our family.
James was COVFAMIKOI master. He pretty much met all 422 people that were in attendance. It has to be the really great hat- or is the fake Ray Bans?
The window treatments were something to be desired.
Here Owen and I enjoy a cup of Starbucks.
This was our room. We lined 3 mattresses along the floor for our family. (James had his own room as well the rest of the people that we met there.)
Pure class Lanning. Pure class.
This was not at Asbury College, but at some church along the highway on the way home. It is a giant icon of an English Jesus. Notice the church in the background is two stories. That gives an idea of how huge this thing is.
I thought that he was drowning and looking for help. Shawn thought that it was a touch-down Jesus that commemorated the correlation between pro-football and Sabbath breaking. Not sure which it was.

Either way, we had a great time there. It was very encouraging spiritually as well as challenging on many points. Shawn, James, and I got to watch Rev. Lanning be examined for a number of hours. We met a lot of great people and got to sing Psalms acapella with almost 500 hundred Covenanters. I cannot wait until next year when 2000 gather at Calvin for the RP International Conference.

We really got to witness God's faithfulness to the covenant of Grace as he has preserved this group of Reformed Presbyterians since the 1600s in Scotland. He reminded us of this on the way home.

COVFAMIKOI...say what?

My family, along with one other Presbyterian Traveler, James 'J Dub' Lanning, will be heading out to the Great Lakes-Gulf Coast Presbytery (RPCNA) family camp. The camp, according to the Mintues of the Young People's Work (1947), was begun in Indianapolis, Indiana in that year.

In 1949 the name COVFAMIKOI was given to indicate that it was COVenanters from Florida, Alabama, Michigan, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, and Illinois who were joining for mutual fellowship and encouragment. The meeting place then was Lake Wawasee, Indiana. Since then it has moved to Kentucky, which is central for the presbytery. The name does not show the seriousness of the 'killing times'... but it sure is fun to say! COVFAMIKOI!

If there is internet available, I will give daily updates on what is being taught and discussed.

*both LOUA as well as PT will have the same posts this week.

SO MUCH to Talk About!!

So much has happened in a week and I could post 10 different posts about it all. I will try for one. Our little Owen turned 2 a week ago. We were in PA visiting my family and they hosted a party for him. He wanted a "Thomas Train" cake, so my mother had one made for him. It was chocolatey good. It was fun watching him opening presents with his sister's "help".

We ate at a really great restaurant that was minutes from Lake Erie. It was in an old lighthouse and had really good steak. It is one of the best local restaurants that I have eaten at in a long time there. Anna wanted to show off her love for the Desert Fathers who were famous for their hours of meditations while standing on poles. She also said that she could not wait for her friend, Brian, to see the picture! I am not sure if I should worried about having a little female mystic on my hands- how is that a form of devotion? Standing on a pole for hours???
These next three are for my aunt Debbie: We travelled around all week with this juice box on top of the car and kept forgetting to take it off. Aunt Debbie wanted to see if it could make it back to Michigan, so we gave it a try... The first one is the juice in Cleveland, Ohio.
Toledo.
In Indiana, just before the Michigan border.
We lost it within a hundred feet of the Welcome to Michigan sign. Lydia and I gasped as if Sedgwick had jumped from the Mountaineer! We really hoped to get one on Union Avenue, but it just could not make it. Oh well.

Here is Marion, Anna, and Maggie at Paige and Bill's wedding. It will be interesting to see how Anna maintains a relationship with these two women as she grows. With Moey going to the land of Aqua Net and Moon Pies and Maggie living in Motown it changes things for our little girl. She loves these two SO much. Anna already has plans for writing Ms. Moes letters.

Here is Anna with the beautiful bride. Paige looked so lovely. I am very happy for her. She could not have found a greater man than Bill. He exemplifies the Lord Jesus in the way that he lives and interacts with others. He is quite well read too (which gives him extra Nate points). I am sure that the Lord will use them in great ways together.
Anna is not quite sure whether Paige is lawfully married though. I guess that in a 3 1/2 year-old head, a bride without a vale over her face is not really getting married. Anna informed Maggie, Lydia, and I today that she would have one over her hair and her eyes when she gets married!

We Are Going on A Bear Hunt...

Yesterday we watched Noah and Seth so that Adam and Emily could go out for some dinner with friends. We had a great time with them. They are always so fun and adventurous. Very much 'boys boys'. We took them to Saint Joseph Seminary across the street to play ball in the field. When they were done kicking and running we decided to go on a Bear Hunt with some of our time together.
We began walking through the strip of woods that surrounds the acreage of the Seminary. We could see the street at all times, of course, but to the kids we were deep in the woods looking for bears. Seth and Noah 'climbed' a tree to see if they could see any signs of bears anywhere (we saw lots of signs of very large dogs)... no bear.
Anna and Owen decided to give it a try. They were not able to locate a bear either.
We continued to look and seek. We saw a lot of places where the neighborhood skunks and opossum live- but no bears.
Anna found a bright orange stick that she was able to poke and prod with in her search for wild-life.
Owen thought that he found a bear, but alas, it was just an old Jack Daniels bottle that had been heaved over the fence into the woods.
The woods got thick in some places. Lydia and I were not able to make it into some of the smaller areas, but with Owen at the charge, the kids were sure to find their way through.
Noah decided to take the lead for awhile and lead the kids towards the killing of a giant black bear.
There was no bear this time. I am sure that we will have plenty of time to go on other bear hunts. We walked back to our home and had some cookies that Emily made and some nice water to wash it down.
What a group of hunters!
* * * If you do not have the book that is linked above- our children LOVE it!

Birthday Wishes

I purchased a really great woven pith for Owen for his 2nd birthday. What little boy does not need a pith for exploration?

I was really happy with this pith and was very excited to have him wear it places. I was even considering getting myself one for gardening. Nothing says gardener like an adventurous pith!

But, the story goes, it seems as though a certain dog that was brought into this marriage does not like pith helmets. This dog prefers to eat non-food items despite his age. Owen still may be getting a pith for his birthday, but I will have to go buy a replacement- and keep it high enough to avoid being shred all over our second story floors.

Nothin' Says Fun...

Nothing says fun like letting your kids play with a room full of lead paint!

Have fun kids! I hear that if you get enough of that lead running through your blood then the trains will actually talk to you. Toot! Toot!

Wedgits

The Mother of All Jurries told Lydia about Wedgits as something that she uses for homeschooling. Lydia purchased a couple of sets and the children LOVE them! They have been playing with them for a couple of hours straight today. Get some.

On another note: Lydia had a doctor appointment for the baby. When she got home Anna asked her if the doctor took the baby out.

Congratulations Stuart Mark Birn

Congratulations to Stuart Mark Birn on his baptism yesterday. It is always a blessing to see children brought into the covenant of grace by the sign of baptism.

He was a trooper as well. We were telling Steve and Janna how Anna smiled as the water ran down her face, but Owen cried when Rev. Lanning was baptizing him. It seems as though he did not want to be a member of the church!

May Stuart grow up to love the Lord Jesus above all things and without compromise.

(Thanks e-Chuck for the stolen photo as well.)

Our Little Chicago Trip For Lydia's Birthday

We took a little trip to Chicago this week for Lydia's birthday. We had a great time visiting the Shedd as well as her family. Here is a little picture of the the skyline taken from the toll road leading into Chicago. I cannot believe that a city can charge $2.50 just to ride in on the quickest route to downtown. Amazing!

Here is the Sears tower. I have nothing more to say about that.
We got to the Shedd and went right to the dolphin show. It was not very exciting, but the kids thought that it was something fun. I cannot believe that someone would want to get paid money for teaching giant fish-like things to jump and look cute. Not my idea of a calling.
Here are the things flipping around in the oceanarium. Notice Lake Michigan right outside of the windows. I was more amazed with the number of tall ships that moved along the lake. I am also amazed that there are no notable cities on OUR side of Lake Michigan.
Here is the birthday girl with her two little ones.
Here is Anna and Owen looking at the Coral reef. There are some AMAZING fish in this area.
Here we posed in front of the super classy fountain that welcomes visitors from around the world to the Shedd. They call it 'the world's aquarium'.
We went to Lydia's parents house to meet them for dinner. We went to a Bohemian restaurant and I had Moravian duck. We had a great discussion about Jan Hus, the Reformer from Prague. He is still a national hero there.

When we left we took Peaches the family bird of 14 years. Our little friend Sydney B. has been saving her money for a bird and we knew that Peaches would be happy with her.

Some more notable things:

• Today is Lydia's birthday.
• We have not done much to celebrate.
• Justin and Marion are liars.
• Little Stuart is being baptized this Lord's Day.
• People keep asking Lydia if she is having twins and commenting on her ginormous belly.