Saturday, December 8, 2012

Teenager #2!

Today is Bethany's 13th birthday!  We are now half and half at our house and I have to admit, teenagers are a BLAST!  We let Bethany pick our activities and food for the day.  It was so much fun.


We started with breakfast, mostly made by Caleb and Don.  Here they are chopping the ingredients for omelets.

The finished product - ham, cheese, green pepper, onion and mushroom omelets. We also had grapefruit, cinnamon rolls and raspberry smoothies! Very yummy!

Then off to the zoo.  We have gone to the zoo for MANY of Bethany's birthdays. It is one of her favorite places.  Today we went to an IMAX 3D movie called Flight of the Butterflies.  It was very good!

And as long as we are here . . . let's see another one!  We are waiting in line to see IMAX 3D movie number 2 which was something about "prehistoric sea animals".  It was filled with fiction and generated LOTS of discussion afterwards, but was somewhat impressive.  


On to the aquarium . . . a stop to see the penguins.


Me taking a picture of Bethany taking a picture of me!


Home for candles, singing and CAKE!  

Then Bethany wanted to play nerf guns in the basement!  


Now we getting ready to watch a movie to end our day!  We had planned on hamburgers for lunch but we were all still full from our huge breakfast!  We will have our "snack supper" of popcorn, cheese, summer sausage, crackers etc. with our movie. So much fun to celebrate another year in the life of one of our children.  Bethany is such a blessing to our family and is growing into such a lovely young lady.  


Wednesday, December 5, 2012

A Broken Glass

Accidents happen and things break.  We had one such incident this morning.

The boys are on dish duty today.  They were cleaning up breakfast.  The younger one was having a bad attitude and complaining about washing.  The older one was getting frustrated with the complaining and was voicing his own complaints.  The younger pushed two small glass tumblers together in his anger until they were stuck.  The older, stronger one pulled the two glasses apart in his anger and one of them chipped on the rim.  It was a small chip but rendered the glass too dangerous to use.  They called me into the room and proceeded to "tell on each other".

Oh, the joys of being with my children 24/7!  I was ready to shrug off the whole incident and walk out of the room.   Both boys had apologized to me for breaking the glass so I was moving on when the Lord spoke to my heart.  This was not about the broken glass.  "Ugh!  I am teaching ALL the time, can this please just be about the glass, Lord?"  Now who has the bad attitude???

I turned around and walked back to the boys and probed deeper.  I started to ask them the "why" questions and then asked them if apologizing to me actually resolved the issue.  We talked through it and they realized that they needed to apologize to each other.  They ended with a big "man" hug and smiles.  Then they turned to me and apologized again about the glass.  I smiled and said "No big deal.  I didn't care about that glass anyway!" which made them laugh!

It is true. I didn't care about the glass . . . but I do care about my boys' hearts.  If all I do is focus on the subjects of school and the chores that are assigned, I am missing the most important stuff.  This journey of homeschooling is tough but it is also a gift.  I am thankful everyday that I get to spend so much time with my kids.  I am thankful that there is no one that knows my kids better than me.  I am thankful that I get to teach to their hearts not just their minds.  I am thankful that I am there to help them resolve the little things that disrupt our day.  I am even more thankful that I am here when the big things explode!  I am thankful that they are receiving a foundation that is grounded on Jesus.  I am thankful that the Lord designed my family and has purposes and plans for us.  I love it when we can see things come together and connect.

The Lord called us into homeschooling about 12 years ago so that we could go and serve in Guatemala in 2013.  If we had not been obedient to His voice when Caleb was preschool age, our lives would look much different than they do now.  I find that so amazing!  He holds us in the palm of His hand.  And it isn't just my family.  He has great plans and purposes for you and your family too.  Don't miss the "most important stuff" wherever you are on your journey.  Watch for the heart issues, listen for the Lord's voice and seek Him and the plans that He has for you.

"For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. In those days when you pray, I will listen. If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me. I will be found by you,” says the Lord."  Jeremiah 29:11-14

Tuesday, November 13, 2012

The Baskets are HERE!!



I received an awesome package in the mail today!  Not only were there baskets (in 5 different sizes) but these very cute clutch-type purses.  The coolest part is that each of the items comes with a note about the woman that made them.  Some of them have lost their husbands to cancer or alcoholism, and some of them have lost their husbands to other women.  Either way, these ladies are left with no means to take care of their children.  Adonai is teaching them to make things that they can sell out of very accessible raw materials. 

These women live up in the mountains of Guatemala where there are an abundance of pine trees.  These baskets are made out of dried pine needles.  The little clutches are made from material that they use to make their "corte" or skirts.  None of the items are perfect - they are handmade by women who need a little "boost" in order to survive. 

This project is just in the infant stages so we would LOVE to give them a little headstart.  If you are interested in "pre-buying" any of these type of items, we will bring them back to the States when we return in February.  If you would like to see the items in person, please let me know!  As I look at the cute, little baskets and clutches, I am thinking of all of the fun things you could tuck inside to give as gifts.  Hmmm . . . maybe I don't want to share!!!

 
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Saturday, November 10, 2012

Guatemala

Our family is returning to Guatemala this January.  We have purchased our tickets and are making our plans.  We will be gone from January 12th through February 6th.  Our original intent was to take a team with us to Guatemala again this year, but the Lord has other plans for us.  Our heart is to provide another retreat for the workers at the Home of Life where we serve.  They really enjoyed getting away together last year and we wanted to bless them in this way again.  We are not sure that our family alone can manage the Home for 2 nights so we are really seeking the Lord for His guidance and direction.  We have a few options but are still working out the details.  More on this to come!

The other ministry that we serve with (Adonai International Ministries) has started a new project called the “Widows’ Project.”  They are training women in a poor village to make baskets as a way to provide for their families.  The ministry is buying their baskets and then selling them to earn the money back.  To read more about this project and the women that are involved, follow this link: http://rachaelslifepouredout.blogspot.com/.  

We would like to help facilitate the sale of these baskets.  If you are interested in “pre-buying” baskets, we will deliver them to you when we arrive home in February. The widows’ situations look desperate and hopeless, but, as a part of this project, they are learning about the God of hope. They are all alone as they try to raise their children and provide for their daily needs, but they are learning about the Lord who promises to never leave or forsake them. We are excited to see their lives change as they meet the One who holds them in the palm of His hand.

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Six Months

They call them "upsurges of grief".  Those times when you are suddenly and unexpectedly struck with overwhelming grief.  These upsurges are often triggered by memories, songs, events, people etc.

This happened to me the other day when I was driving the girls home from the orthodontist.  The CD player in the van was cycling through the CD's and suddenly a song started to play that overwhelmed me with grief.  The song is by Francesca Battistelli and is called "Angel by Your Side"


I can't say that everything's okay
'Cause I can see the tears you're crying
And I can't promise to take the pain away
But you can know I won't stop trying

I'll be the angel by your side
I will get you through the night
I'll be the strength you can't provide on your own

'Cause when you're down and out of time
And you think you've lost the fight
Let me be the angel, the angel by your side

I know it feels like you're running out of faith
'Cause it's so hard to keep believing, oh
But if I can bring the smile back to your face
For a moment you'll forget all about it, oh

I'll be the angel by your side
I will get you through the night
I'll be the strength you can't provide on your own

'Cause when you're down and out of time
And you think you've lost the fight
Let me be the angel, the angel by your side

'Cause this won't be the last time
You'll need a little hope
But I wanna be the first to let you know

I'll be the angel by your side
I will get you through the night
I'll be the strength you can't provide on your own

'Cause when you're down and out of time
And you think you've lost the fight
Let me be the angel, the angel by your side
Oh, let me be the angel, the angel by your side, oh
The angel by your side


As I would drive to the hospital at 4 am, I would pray for Dad and listen to this whole CD.  This song would make me weep.  Dad did not want to be in the hospital by himself so Jen and I would take turns just being there.  He would sleep better and be physically more comfortable if we were just there with him.  I would sit in the chair next to his bed with a flashlight and read my Bible or another book and pray over him.  He would periodically just open his eyes to see if I was there.  I wanted to help him "get through the night" and be his "strength".  Even now it makes my eyes fill.

This "upsurge of grief" happened at a not very convenient time (driving while sobbing can be dangerous!) and it certainly wasn't very much fun, but I am "supposed" to allow them to disrupt my day.  In fact, I am supposed to expect them and let them happen, at least according to one book on grieving.

Once we made it home safely, I realized that it had been about 6 months since Dad died.  It seems so long yet so short of an amount of time.  I have a couple of Dad's sweatshirts that I wear.  I have realized that I miss his hugs most of all and wearing his sweatshirt is like having a hug (or as close as I can get).

I really do not enjoy this grieving process and tend to push the emotions aside, which it seems, is the wrong reaction!  At least according to the "experts".  I guess it is ok to just be sad sometimes.  Jesus wept too.

Wednesday, October 17, 2012

Hannah's Perfect Day!

Today is Hannah's 11th birthday.  She gets to plan the WHOLE day!  She decided that we should all get to sleep in - she only made it to 7 am.  Not sure if it was all the excitement or our random smoke alarm that kept going off!!  (Don did finally find a little spider making his home in one of the detectors in the basement - after a couple hours of random alarms!)  

She wanted crepes for breakfast! Caleb and Bethany did all the work and they turned out great!  We put 11 candles in one to start the celebration off right!!


Then on to the presents.  Yes, that is Christmas wrapping paper! 


"What do you want to do now, Hannah?"
Hmmm . . . Game #1


Game #2


She wanted lasagna for lunch!


After lunch she wanted to watch some cartoon Avengers episodes on youtube.  
(I read a book while the 5 of them watched 3 episodes!)


She picked out a "Fiddler on the Roof" cake. Never made this one before!  

We sang "Happy Birthday" to her and then cut the cake!

It was pretty good but really rich.  I guess this is what I would eat "if I were a rich man!"

Big Surprise! - Game #3

Finishing off the day with popcorn and a movie!

Hannah had a great day!  The only thing missing was a birthday call to "Little Red" from her Bumpa.  I don't know if she noticed, but I did.  



Friday, August 31, 2012

Time Flies!

Wow, it has been a while since we have posted anything, almost 2 months.  It makes me wonder where all of the time has gone!  July just flew.  Caleb spent many days detasseling and then football conditioning started.  It was hot so the other three spent lots of time in our backyard pool.

In August, we started up with school again.  We also had houseguests for a week - so much fun!  Caleb and Don went to an Appleseed Project event (think lots of shooting with some American history thrown in!).  Caleb has also started Driver's Ed.  Yikes!



Bethany continues with her horseback riding lessons.  


Here are the moms hanging out at football practice.  Our normal spot every Mon., Tues., and Fri. from July through October!  We watch the boys practice while the younger siblings play together.  Games will begin next week so life will even get busier, but it is fun for all of us!


This weekend we head up to Mom's for Labor Day.  We hope to fill up her house and her weekend!  Thanks for reading!  Have a great Labor Day!



Tuesday, July 3, 2012

Firsts

With all of my four children, "firsts" were something to look forward to and to celebrate. Their first smile, first words, first steps etc.  Currently, we are in this season where "firsts" are extremely hard and not really that much fun.  Our first Father's Day, our first trip to Arkansas and, soon, our first 4th of July.  My approach to dealing with all of these "firsts" has been to avoid and ignore as much as possible.  Really healthy, I know. It was hard to avoid our trip to Arkansas as I had to actually go with my family.

 Since I was young, my family has taken our "family vacation" to see my aunt, uncle and cousins.  My dad has a large family and many of them lived close enough to go visit just for the day.  If we wanted to see this brother we always had to travel and then we would stay with them for several days.  We have continued this tradition as Jen and I have built our own families.  Our large family of 12 would caravan down to Arkansas and then proceed to take over my aunt and uncle's home for several days.This year we were a family of 11.

One morning I found my mom, aunt and uncle outside.  They were drinking their coffee and talking.  My first thought as I walked out the door to greet them was "Where is Dad?".  Then reality hit and the emotions followed.  We are left with this big hole where my Dad is supposed to be and all of these "firsts" are making the hole very hard to ignore.

My dad loved this country.  He was in the army and was very loyal to all things "American". All labels were read to see where an item was made. He flew the stars and stripes in his yard.  We always went to the cemetery for the Memorial Day service just because it was important to him to honor the soldiers who have fought for our freedoms.  This also made the 4th of July something to celebrate.  He brought fireworks to my house for my kids before I was really ready to let them have fireworks.  They loved it!  All of these memories are great until we are again faced with the hole that is left.  We have decided that we need to not do the "normal" thing this year.  In fact, we proposed an entirely different option to the kids.  We used the money that we would have spent on fireworks to go see a movie and eat out this year.  The kids were just fine with that because they can see, and feel, the hole as well.

I know that the hard things we experience teach us lots of things.  One of the most important is how to empathize with others going through the same hard things.  God's word says:

 "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God."  2 Corinthians 1:3-4


It is going to be a long year of firsts but I know that the Lord is walking with us and has promised to be our comfort. My prayer is that the Lord would use all of these hard "firsts" to teach us how to comfort those around us.


Our Arkansas trip was very hard but we did have a very good time.  We brought home fresh peaches from a peach orchard, we played some games and our kids fished and fished and fished!  Here are a few pictures.


Samuel casting.


Fishing from the paddle boat.  It was also used as a taxi service when people wanted to get from one side of the pond to the other.  It was constantly in use.


Samuel and Julia fishing from the dock.

Bethany and Naomi's turn in the paddle boat.

Uncle Ronald's "large, black lawnmower" had to be carefully watched so it didn't "mow" Aunt Joyce's flowers!

Sunday, May 27, 2012

Canned Peaches

We did a lot of camping when I was young.  We had a pop-up camper for a while and then a small hard-sided pull-behind camper.  We had friends that we would camp with but sometimes we went just as a family.  The best part was around the campfire at night.  We would roast marshmallows (Mom loves her burnt black!) and Dad would tell stories.  Often we would find out information about his childhood that Mom had never heard before.  Dad's mom died when he was very young and life was tough for him.  He told us about a time when he jumped a fence and took some apples so he could eat an "apple sandwich".

What does all of this have to do with canned peaches?  Well, Dad LOVED canned peaches.  I have memories of him eating the slimy peaches with the really thick syrup from all seasons of my life.  He even asked for canned peaches when he was in the hospital.  But what I really remember about canned peaches were his stories about the "trail drive".

When we would camp (and other times as well) he would make up these big, elaborate stories about the trail drive.  He loved westerns and especially John Wayne.  He would insert himself into whatever information he learned from movies and then tell us these huge stories of life on the trail drive.  A necessity on the trail was canned peaches.  They would "pop open" a can and then leave them alongside the trail as markers for those that followed.  Jen and I believed these stories for a very, long time (or at least I did - Jen may deny it!).  We loved to hear about the adventures on the trail drive.  Opening a can of peaches would always begin another long tale of his adventures!

Don and I were in Menards on our date last week (I know, really exciting!).  I always have to go look up and down their food aisles because they often have some great clearance and sale items.  As I am perusing the aisles, I turn the corner and come face-to-face with a huge display of canned peaches.  Ugh!  The emotions and memories try to escape but I quickly push them down and continue walking.

These are the hardest times for me.  These little, unexpected moments of memories that cause a deep ache inside of me.  I long for the day when seeing a display of canned peaches causes me to smile because of the happy memories not leave me empty because I miss my Dad.

Mom is back at work and keeping herself busy but yesterday was a hard day for her.  Saturdays were their day.  If Dad had to deliver mail, she would get her stuff done in the morning, make him a sandwich for when he stopped home quick, and be ready for whatever plans they had when he was finished.  If he didn't have to work they would be off running errands or whatever.

Yesterday was Mom's first Saturday alone.  She has been here or we were there for the past few weeks. She is coming here later today but they are honoring Dad in church this morning because of Memorial Day and she didn't want to miss it.  I am so thankful for her circle of friends that have been inviting her to supper or bringing her food or just checking-in on her.  She received an invitation yesterday afternoon to spend the evening with friends which was just want she needed to make it through her tough day.  I told her about the peaches.  She had just had a conversation with a friend about how the memories will someday change from taking your breath away to making you smile.  We are both longing for that change but know that we have to walk through this tough stuff to get there.  

It has been four weeks since Dad left us for his new adventure in heaven.  I am assuming he is eating canned peaches and telling stories about the trail drive to whomever will listen!  Funny to be jealous of those who get to hear his stories now.

"I weep with sorrow; encourage me by your word."  Psalm 119:28


Thursday, May 24, 2012

The Wedding

As I said in my earlier post, the main reason for our Missouri trip was the wedding of our friend, Craig.  We met Craig in Guatemala.  He has served there off and on for several years.  When we were there on our 7-month trip, he was also living there.  He kind of took Caleb under his wing.  He was a vital part of the ministry there and we had really enjoyed getting to know him.  Around the time we returned to the States, he also returned to finish up his schooling.  We were very excited when we learned that he had met a girl, Kelly. 

The wedding was held at Kelly's family's farm.  I loved this "doorway" to the ceremony.  The scripture across the top is "Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain." Psalm 127:1.  Very cool! 

These cute jars of flowers were hanging from the aisle chairs.  (We drank out of "Ball" canning jars at the reception as well.)

This is our friend, David.  He was the best man.  It was fun to see him and the few others that we knew at the wedding.  Our friend, Rachael, was also in the wedding.


Here are Kelly and Craig!  Such a cute couple.

The wedding pictures of the whole bridal party and the couple were taken between the wedding and the reception.  The guests were served "h'orderves" while we waited.  The sun was just setting as they finished up and then dinner was served.  Bethany took these shots while we were waiting.


We left at about 9 pm to drive back to KC.  Everyone was in bed by 1 am and then we were up and headed home by 9 am the next morning.  The kids had to be back for a choir concert in the afternoon.  It was a lot of driving but it was good to get away as a family and we were so glad we were able to share in Craig and Kelly's day.  May the Lord bless them and their marriage.

Missouri Trip

Last Thursday, our family left on a trip to Missouri.  We spent most of our time in Kansas City but the main reason we were going was for a wedding near St. Louis.  

We headed straight to the zoo when we arrived in KC.  We like the zoo there because everything is so spread out and the enclosures are more "wild-like".  We decided to take the tram to "Africa".


We did see a few different animals from the Omaha zoo.  This is a red river hog which we have in Omaha but we have never seen the babies close-up.  They look like striped gophers to us.  They were cute in an "ugly" sort of way.  They were fun to watch as they tried to get their mama to roll over!

The hippos were our favorite.  We stood and watch these two swim for a really long time.  They are absolutely huge.  The pictures don't do them justice.



After the zoo, we checked into our hotel and then met Don's brother and wife for supper.  It was a fun, long day!  On Friday, we spent much of the day at the hotel.  After our free breakfast, some of us ventured to the exercise room while most of us swam . . . and swam . . . and swam!  Then Don and I decided to surprise the kids with a movie - The Avengers in 3-D.  They were soooo excited (Don most of all!).  

On Saturday, we headed to St. Louis (after our free breakfast, of course!).  We are studying American history this year and are in the mid-1800's.  We discovered that Missouri was ranked third for number of battles during the Civil War.  We stopped in Lexington, MO to tour one battlefield and then headed to the capitol of Missouri, Jefferson City.  The capitol building was quite impressive.


Here are our kids with "Thomas Jefferson" in front of the capitol.  We specifically stopped at the capitol because they had a temporary Civil War exhibit.  It was very good and informative (lots of guns!)  Living in the "North", we found it very interesting to hear about the war from the "South" point-of-view.

From Jefferson City, we headed to the wedding.  I will continue that part of our trip in another post!

Saturday, May 12, 2012

A couple pictures


A few people posted pictures to the funeral home website.  Mom and I decided that we wanted to share them here as well. 

Mom doesn't remember why they were doing this is but they were at the clinic in Elk Point "messing" around.  Dad served on the clinic board for many years. 
 

My cousin Rodney shared this picture.  At ALL family reunions, the entire Kooiman clan could be found on the go-cart track at some point.  The most dangerous drivers were Dad and his brothers because "rubbing is racing". 
 Dad was a substitute mail carrier during his "retirement".  This is his little friend Cianna.  She would stand in the window and watch for "her friend Jim" and the mail.  The other day we stopped by their house and Mom noticed Cianna in the window watching.  It was a difficult moment for her.  The memories are so sweet yet they make our hearts ache. 

Thursday, May 10, 2012

The Remembrance Service


Dad's service yesterday was beautiful.  We are guessing that more than 300 people were there.  Everyone did a great job - Pastor Dave, the praise team, the ladies in the kitchen etc. etc. 

We had a great time of sharing memories and singing some of Dad's favorite songs.  We laughed and cried and did a lot of hugging! 

Once the service was over, everyone had to clear out so that tables could be set up for the lunch.  Here are couple pictures of everyone outside.



















Here is a picture of one of the tables once we were all back inside.
















We were so blessed by all of the friends and family that came.  Thank you all for your encouragement and support and prayers over the past 2 months.