April 23rd Update

A more recent family picture

Evie, Justin and the Grandparents hiked with the dogs up Teepee Ridge in the snow

The view of the highway coming up to camp from the top of the ridge

Evie sits with Grandpa Steve at the top

It's officially breakup in our neck of the woods! While we are still having days when it snows, the sun is definitely winning in the long run, and the roads around camp are all mud and slush. The girls have had a blast playing in the puddles outside.
Our guest groups at Victory have subsided for the most part now, and the focus is turning to preparation for Outdoor Education camps that will be held next month, and being more and more ready for summer camp.
Justin's parents arrived for a visit this past week and we've also been kept busy with Justin's camp presentations. We spent last Saturday at Anchorage's Promise Kid's Day- a positive community event with 70 booths representing businesses, organizations and camps, and each one had an activity or game for children. There were an estimated 10-15,000 people who came through the Denaina Center in Anchorage where it was held, and we brought the girls. While Justin and the rest of the program team worked at our Victory booth, talking to people about camp, handing out brochures, and helping kids assemble a VBC headband craft, the grandparents and I walked around the center with the girls. It was a long day but hopefully a fruitful one for camp, and definitely a fun one for the girls!
We presented at Lazy Mountain Bible Church in Palmer this past Sunday, both for camp and to give a personal update on our ministry. We are hoping that these many appearances that have been made on Victory's behalf at churches and youth/children's events will draw campers and staff to come experience camp this summer, and learn about the awesome love of God.


Some ways you can pray for us right now:
-That the staff team that is being built for summer would be made of God-loving, servant-hearted, teachable people who will also be able to grow personally through their summer here
-That God would provide more college-age male counselors for the summer, as we still have a shortage
-That there would be safety at camp and on the lakes with all the snow & ice melting and making a bit of a mess
-That our family would remain God-focused through the last part of this exceptionally busy month

As always, thanks so much for your continued prayers and support! You all mean so much to us!

April 4th Update

Just over halfway through the pregnancy!

Easter egg fun at Grammie's house

Norah thought that the egg dye tablets were candy, and she was too quick for us. Good thing they're non-toxic!

Dyeing eggs with aunties and uncles!

The joy of finding an egg during the egg hunt!

Posing with their Easter baskets...or yawning

Norah finds an egg

Evie shows her finds

One of Evie's favorite things about visiting Grammie  & Papa is that her aunts doll her up. She loves it!

 We just returned from an 8-day trip to Kenai for Easter, and to North Star Bible Camp in Willow for a CCCA conference. We're glad to be home for a couple of days before hitting the road again, this time to Glennallen so Justin can present at Glennallen Community Chapel and Alaska Bible College on behalf of Victory.
We had a fun time in Kenai with family. The trip turned a little bit frightening when we experienced a health scare with my dad, but God is good and He did an amazing work, and I'm thankful to say my dad's doing much better now. We headed up to Willow very early Monday morning for a conference held with several other camps from around the state.
I hesitate to say it,  but breakup could actually be on the way for our part of Alaska! It has already begun in other areas and the patches of snowless ground outside are slowly growing bigger and bigger! I even saw several trees sprouting fuzzy buds as we drove around the state last week.
Camp has had a few issues lately with injured staff and damage to guest housing. We could use prayer as we are also shorthanded since a couple of the staff families are traveling to raise support this month. It's wonderful to see everyone step up and fill in where needed, but it definitely puts stress on staff and, in turn, staff families.

Some ways you can pray for us right now:
-That maintenance issues would be solved with some of the camp housing that was severely damaged due to water
-That Abigail, a member of the program team, would have quick healing after injuries from a snowmachining accident, and that a staff wife would have healing after being injured in a car accident
-For our family, that the issues with our housing would be resolved. Our pipes froze yet again while we were gone last week
-For a reminder during busy/stressful times that we are here working for the Lord and not for ourselves