Action Shots!

I am sure that many of you were sitting on pins and needles after our last post! Ok, well, I was - kept checking facebook all day for more pictures of the first pour!  

Thanks to Katie Ann, we have some photos of the momentous event!

Katie shared these photos today - walls are going up!  They are calling this structure the 'team lodge'.  I am thinking that the word 'lodge' may bring something just slightly 'more' to mind than what this building will be! ;)  Regardless, it is exciting to see the walls take shape! 

The Lord is so faithful! He moved on the hearts of many people to make all of this come together! So amazing to think of the lives that were intersected as part of the preparation and planning.  May He be glorified in all that is built on this land! Thanks for joining us on this fun journey!

First Pour!

We are experiencing such a huge interest in teams going to Guatemala to help with the hospital! While this is so awesome, it is causing a slight problem with housing. We have made the decision to construct a very simple team building on the hospital grounds to handle the increase in visitors.

The team house is also giving us the opportunity to do a 'trial run' with pouring concrete. Trust me, the Fickers have poured LOTS of concrete; however, this will be the first from the 'cement factory'! 

Duane is getting ready for the pour by finishing the rough-in plumbing first.

A wider view of the simple housing structure.

Picture taken this morning of the hospital grounds - so beautiful!

Getting everything set-up!

Not sure what they will be using this for but it is coming out of the ministry compound gate and travelling down the road to the hospital property.

Thanks to Katie Ann for keeping us up-to-date on the progress.  I am hoping for some 'action' shots later today! hint, hint!

A Graduate!

We are really not traditional at all.  I guess that is pretty obvious! 

We have LOVED the flexibility of homeschooling our kids! We can tailor their academic studies to each of them individually.  

For Caleb, we began a program called CollegePlus when he was 15.  The essence of the program is dual-credit.  He finished up high school while earning college credits. Because of this program, there was not a huge dividing line between high school and college.  

We wanted to 'draw a line' as a way of formally saying that this season has been completed.  We did that last Friday night in an informal graduation ceremony. Family and a few friends joined us as we celebrated the completion of high school.  We borrowed a cap and gown to make it more official!

Don said a few words and told a few jokes!

I decided to take the opportunity to teach the crowd!  

After all, homeschooling is 24/7! ;)

We did make Caleb share a little bit and then Don called up all the graduates and asked them to line up alphabetically . . . it was a short line. We handed Caleb his diploma and marked his high school career as finished!  

We then spent some time in prayer over Caleb and all that the Lord has for him and his future.  It was my favorite part of the evening. We were so overwhelmed and blessed!

Prayer was followed by lots of hugs, presents and dessert!

Saturday, we invited our friends to celebrate with us at an open house!

Caleb displayed some of his favorite high school memories. 

I made him include his baby pictures!

We were so blessed by all of those that came!

I didn't realize how much the ceremony and open house would really 'end' this season for me.  I didn't ever plan to homeschool.  The Lord led us down this path about 13 years ago.  It has been one of the hardest but most rewarding things that I have ever done! 

One down - three to go!! ;)

Sharing

I was asked by my mom's church to speak at a Christmas brunch last Saturday. They asked me to speak about our upcoming move as well as the ministry there.  I brought my photographer, Bethany, with me; however, she told me that I was so interesting that she forgot to take pictures!! I am taking that as quite the compliment since she had heard all of the information and stories many times in the past!  She did get this picture of Mom and me after it was over. 

The next morning, their pastor was talking about the Christmas story and how 'dangerous' God is.  The Lord doesn't come in our nice, neat packages or into our clean stall at Christmas time.  He is in the messy and the uncomfortable.  He asked me to share just a few minutes of our story during that time as well.  

It was such an honor to share what the Lord is doing in our family at the church that I grew up in. Many of those attending have known me since I was little.  It is also awesome to see this church growing  with so many young families which means that there were many I didn't know. But everyone was so supportive and encouraging. 

It helps me to get my eyes back on the Lord and what He is doing when I am sharing. It brings back to mind all of the confirmations and peace that we have felt through this whole process.  Lately, the overwhelming task of getting rid of our 'stuff' has made it hard to see the big picture.  I am so thankful for the opportunity to testify to the Lord's faithfulness and goodness.  He is also 'dangerous' and not all that concerned about our comfort! Honestly, most days, I wouldn't have it any other way!