Just Another Weekly Post

Nothing exciting to report today. Just thought I'd give a few updates for those who check every now and then to see what we're up to.

I went to PA for a quick trip last weekend. Had a few babies that were born in '09 that I had yet to meet. Sweet faces! Lots of good talking.

I got to see Tyler (see the sidebar on the right). What a delight and blessing to play the Wii with him! (just sad my kiddos didn't get to see him; he was asking for them) Keep praying for Tyler and his family...the road will be long.

I got sick the second part of my trip. Fever, chills, headache, ...ugh. Thankfully, I was prayed up and the flight home was easy. When I was still sick the next day, Joel took me to the dr. No flu. No strep. The dr said it was a sinus infection. So, I'm on meds. I'm on the mend. Then Rylee was sent home on Friday for a fever. No flu for her either (love her ped who got her in right away!). She's been resting and getting better.

I have my first parent-teacher conference tomorrow morning. I'm very excited! Rylee will have her school picture taken tomorrow, as well. And, tonight we're going to get our new second vehicle. We have a great peace about the car we've chosen. We took a step back (and spent another week looking things over) and think the deal we're getting is just about the best out there. We don't need to be spoiled with a second car; we were just given this great opportunity and think it's the right step. I'll have a picture of that soon.

And, pictures to come include: the fort that Daddy keeps improving (it's looking so cool!), an update on our kitchen (I never posted completed pictures), babies I got to visit (oh, they're so cute!!!), and maybe some other random stuff.

Hope this week's off to a good start for everyone we love!

Cute Kiddos, Ministry Update

I posted some cute pictures of Rylee a few weeks ago when she started kindergarten. (She's doing very well, by the way.)
But, I never posted many pictures of the other two kiddos in our crew. The other day we had some friends over to play and I took my camera out into our backyard. I snapped these two adorable pictures (among at least 2 dozen others, of course), but just thought these were too precious not to share.
I hope they bring you as much delight as they do me!

(you can click on a picture to see it larger in a separate window)

This blog is designed to share about our family as well as the ministry in which we serve. I thought I'd give you an update on what we're doing these days in ministry and some prayer requests.

Joel transitioned to a new department this summer and is busy expanding his knowledge. He went to a conference in California about two weeks ago and came back with new ideas and more understanding. His team of 3 within the Web department is called specifically "web marketing". Their job is to find new ways to share about the ministry via the web. Recently Joel created a Facebook page and they are looking at ways to share the ministry via this social network.

I have doubled my hours working in the office since the twins started preschool in September. It is such a blessing to finish tasks quicker and be around the staff more throughout the week. I serve in the Church Relations department, where we seek to establish relationship with churches to share the ministry and tell more people about our work in Asia. I'm also continuing to mentor a new staff person. What a delight to invest in someone else!

The entire family continues to enjoy Tuesday night prayer and monthly all-night prayer. We cannot begin to describe the growth we have seen in our entire family in the area of prayer. It is a great joy to hear one of our children say 'I have a boo boo' and to hear an immediate response from another one 'I will pray for you'. Our children are understanding that prayer is the most effective thing we can do. Awesome!

Our prayer requests:
--finances for a second car. we were given an older car and qualify for a state program to help us buy a second car. we are praying for wisdom as we look for the right vehicle and are continuing to ask God for the finances.
--grace as we continue to adjust to a new school year. our kids can struggle with being tired, especially Rylee as she gets used to no naps during weekdays (she was napping up until the day she started kindergarten!)
--that we will give up our rights to our own lives and surrender to the call God has placed on our lives, in every way possible.
--for health. we all seem to struggle with stuffy noses and headaches from time to time, especially as allergens increase. pray we will remain strong physically so we can stay strong in the battle.

Food, Food, Food...We Love to Eat!

I like to cook.

I like to try new recipes.

And, I love to share recipes, ideas, etc with others!
So, I started a blog just for my recipes and cooking. It's over here.

It's nothing fancy and never will be.

I plan to just add our favorite recipes to the blog as I can. I added three recipes today. They aren't in any particular order. But, I am labeling them so I can find them again. Once I get a ton of recipes in there, I plan to print the blog as a book...the Fletcher Family cookbook! Maybe I'll print copies so my kids will have them for when they are grown and leave home and want something Mama made. Gosh, that's crazy to think about...that's at least another 13 years away for Rylee!
I have some recipe posts here on my main blog. I'll be copying those over to the new food blog, too. And, I plan to add pictures to the food blog when I can. I have a folder in my iPhoto library titled "food pictures". How weird is that?

Just thought I'd let you know where you can find some of the stuff we're eating in the Fletcher home. Go check it out!