1st day of school

Well, today marked the end of summer vacation and the beginning of school for Nicole the 4th grader and Jane the 2nd grade teacher. As customary, we took a picture of Nicole with her new teacher, Mrs. Wadsworth.

Both Nicole and Jane had a good day today and are ready to see what the rest of year brings.

Thanks for your prayers for us and for the ministry here.

Las Vegas vacation

We spent several days in Las Vegas on vacation this week and had a blast. We'll let our pictures speak for themselves in the three slide shows below.

Days 1 & 2 at Circus Circus:

Days 2 & 3, exploring other sights along Las Vegas Boulevard:

Day 4, Hoover Dam:

Besides the sightseeing, we also had plenty of opportunity to shop (Wal-Mart, teacher supply store, school clothes, etc.). Nicole was also delighted to get a new haircut.

Though it was a lot of fun to be gone, we're glad to be back at home with Callie the cat and Jake the dog (and to sleep in our own beds!).

Thanks for your prayers for us.

A New Direction

God has opened a door for Jane to teach at Pioche Elementary for the 2009-2010 school year while one of the teachers is on sabbatical leave. We rejoice in God's provision in this job and are excited to see how the year will unfold. Because teaching involves so much, we'll warn you now that the number of posts from this point on will most likely diminish. (Many of you are saying, "But, the posts are infrequent now!") We still need your prayers for the ministry here and would ask you to also pray for Jane, specifically, as she balances the responsibilities of this new job with church and family life.

If you're wondering about the CNA training Jane started, she's nearly done. She'll work three 12-hour shifts at the hospital in the days ahead and wait to take the certification test. Since we trust God was sovereign in Jane taking this class and knowing that she'd be hired to teach, it will be interesting to see what part this certification will play in the future.

Thanks for your prayers for us.

Life after VBS

Thanks for your prayers for our VBS June 15-20. The theme was LifeWay's Boomerang Express--It All Comes Back to Jesus. We ended the week with an Outback Carnival for kids and parents on Saturday evening, complete with a three-in-one bounce house, rock wall, and slide. If you're interested, check out the photo slide shows of the week on our church blog. Four college-aged missionaries serving in Las Vegas for the summer were here during the week to help us. One of the girls, Erika, stayed in our home for the week. We praise the Lord for their help.

Center row (from left to right): Mamie from Mississippi, Claire from Mississippi, Erika from Georgia, and Joy from West Virginia

The most important result of the week is that 11 boys and girls made professions of faith in Christ! As a follow-up, we will offer a new Christian's class for kids on the next two Mondays from 10 a.m. to noon. Please pray for these boys and girls and their families.

This week Jane began a certified nursing assistant (CNA) course at the hospital in our county. The course involves 60 class hours, 40 clinical hours, and three 12-hour shifts in the hospital before taking the state certification test. Incredibly, the course is free with the hospital even covering the cost of the test. The only cost to Jane is her time, the gas it takes to travel 30 minutes to the hospital (although she is carpooling with three others), and some scrubs (uniforms). We praise the Lord for this opportunity and are anxious to see how He will use this in our future.

We're making plans now to take a family vacation the first week of August. There's plenty to see and do in just three or four hours away and we'll keep you posted as the plans are finalized.

Thanks, again, for your prayers for the ministry here.

VBS

Vacation Bible School is this week at church. We are blessed to have the help of four summer missionaries this week in addition to the many in our body who are lovingly serving this week. We had 42 children today and hope to see this number grow each day! Pray for us this week and especially on Wednesday as Mitch shares the gospel with kids. If you're interested, we're posting daily pictures from VBS on our church blog (www.bereanbaptistpioche.blogspot.com).

Thanks for your continued prayers for us and the ministry here.

4-H Horsemanship

Nicole started her first day of 4-H Horsemanship at Camp Camelot at Amazon Ranch (a horse ranch in our area). Every morning until noon this week she gets the opportunity to learn about, care for, and ride horses. Here are a few pictures below:

In other news, sometimes you can bring back more than you take off when you go to the dump. Mitch found this basketball goal at our dump this weekend and was greeted with cheers from Jane and Nicole as he brought it home. If you're wondering, the rim and the base are broken and the net is torn. But after a new rim and net from Walmart and a 300 lb. rock from our yard to weigh the base down, it'll be as good as new! Add church kids (and their parents?) and it ought to be a lot of fun. Anybody up for a game of Horse? (Pun intended.)

Warm weather

Warm weather has come to the mountains (with temps in the 70s and 80s) and we've planted a small garden of lettuce, tomatoes, peppers, and onions. We fenced the garden with chicken wire to keep away any of the deer and rabbits that Jake the dog doesn't bark away.

Warm weather has encouraged the red hot pokers (pictured below) to bloom in our front yard along with Indian paintbrush and other wildflowers in the countryside around us.

Warm weather also means summer vacation is here. Nicole's last day of 3rd grade was Thursday, May 28. Dad & Mom went to school for an awards assembly that day and watched with joy as Nicole received awards for 4th quarter honor roll, "Terrific Tiger" achievement, and passing all the ones through twelves multiplication facts.

Warm weather means our county's 4-H program is getting underway. Nicole will soon participate in a 4-H horsemanship camp (and can hardly wait). She will also participate in a 4-H cooking club for kids her age. Jane and two other ladies will sponsor a 4-H cooking club for 5th/6th graders.

Warm weather also means activities are "heating up" at church. VBS is around the corner (June 15-20), a new middle school/high school youth group called "TLC" (Teens Living for Christ) will begin next week, and plans are underway for Sunday afternoon fellowships this summer at area parks.

Thank you for your continued prayers for us and for the ministry here.

We're still here!

It's been a long time since the last post. Here's a summary of what has kept us so busy the last few weeks:

Church life - Since the last post, five have joined the church. Four of those were as a result of baptisms on Easter Sunday. On that Sunday we knew several guests would be present and we prayed that the Lord would do a mighty work. One of those guests came to Bible study that next Wednesday to begin "Experiencing God" with us. On Friday of that week the woman accepted Christ and then made a public profession of faith the following Sunday! She will be baptized on Mother's Day. We praise the Lord for His work and are blessed and encouraged as a result. The next big event for the church is vacation Bible school, June 15-20. Please pray that the Lord will draw children and their families to Himself during this week.

Subbing - Jane has subbed eight times since our last update. While we're thankful for the extra income, it has been challenging to be busy with subbing and still keep up with other tasks. Since this is the last month of the 2008-09 school year, there shouldn't be too many more sub jobs before summer vacation.

School - Nicole's school held its annual music/art/science fair last month. Nicole exhibited a robot she and a classmate made, kids sang, and art was proudly displayed.

Softball - Nicole has joined girls' softball. This has kept us on the go with games on Mondays and practices on Tuesdays and Thursdays. (Would someone tell the photographer she can get closer and avoid the chain link look?)

Outdoor Work - The warmer weather has allowed us to reclaim the backyard from Jake the dog. We've reinstalled above ground irrigation pipes that he enjoyed playing with this winter. We'll soon reseed and fertilize. Jake is now assigned to the side yard, only to play in the backyard when we're outside with him. This will enable us to grow a small garden in the yard without the prying paws of a playful black lab.

We'll that's about it. We'll try not to wait so long before the next post. Thank you for your continued prayers. We love and miss you.