Christmas Thoughts

It's hard to believe that Christmas is upon us once again. It is always a busy time of year with Christmas parties, concerts and shopping. I've been involved in our church's choir for the past year and sang in the "Child of Hope" cantata last Sunday, which was a beautiful representation of the Christmas story and the hope that He alone can bring to the world.

Daniel and I got home a little while ago from the Christmas Eve service and will open gifts this evening. Tomorrow we'll celebrate Christmas with our wonderful friends, the Bakers. We are so very grateful for the relationships we've made and the people that we can share holidays with. It definitely makes it easier to be away from family. Daniel, Makwa and I would like to wish you a very Merry Christmas!

Makwa Moments

The other night, Makwa was laying on the floor shivering. It was one of our first colder nights and we hadn't turned the heat on yet. Daniel and I covered him with a blanket and he quickly warmed up.


Daniel saw a dog couch in a magazine and insisted we get one for Makwa. His reasoning was that Makwa needed a warm, soft place to rest on instead of laying on the floor in the living room. So we ordered the couch. Makwa really likes his couch and we've now put it in the bedroom for him to sleep on at night. He's been sleeping much better since he started sleeping on his couch.

Berry Picking

Daniel and I went apple picking a few weekends ago for my birthday. A year and a half ago we found a great farm in Londonderry, NH and have gone there for our berries and apples ever since. It's only about 45 minutes from our house and it's a pretty drive north. The leaves have started changing and we enjoyed some of the fall colors along the way. We picked four pints of big, delicious raspberries and a 1/2 peck of apples. I think we ate as many raspberries as we picked! I made a batch of raspberry freezer jam to enjoy in the winter time and an apple crisp, which only lasted a couple of days. I thought I'd share some pictures of our trip to Sunnycrest Farm.

Makwa Moments

We've enjoyed taking Makwa for walks to the beach. It's a nice walk from our house to the park and Makwa likes to wade in the ocean water. He was a little confused on his first visit as he attempted to drink the water. He didn't like it so much and spit it back out! Here are a few photos of a couple of trips to Obear Park.

Makwa Moments

Meet Makwa

Daniel and I would like to introduce you to our newest family member! Makwa, whose name means "Bear" in Ojibwe (a Native American Language), is a six year old Boxer. Daniel's brother, Jonathan, and his wife, Rachel, adopted Makwa as a puppy from a shelter in Minneapolis. He had been rescued from an abusive home. They don't know much about his life before the shelter, except that he was kept in a small cage and it appears as though the cartilege in his right ear had been broken. Makwa is a very loyal and loveable dog. Jonathan, Rachel, and their daughter, Miriam, will be leaving for the mission field soon and are unable to take Makwa with them. They asked us if we would be willing to take him. Of course we said "yes"! Daniel and Makwa have been good buddies from the beginning and Makwa and I became fast friends. We are very excited that he's come to live with us!

Our Anniversary Weekend

Daniel and I spent our second anniversary in Burlington, VT. Daniel was scheduled to attend a training for work over our anniversary so it was easy to decide where to go. We've been to Burlington several times, but never had a chance to explore outside of the city. Since the training was a week and a half, we had a whole weekend to visit new places. On Saturday morning we drove across the islands of Lake Champlain. We stopped at a state park on North Hero Island, where we found a trail in the woods to hike. We continued up through the rest of the islands and made our way back to the mainland, just a few miles from the border with Quebec. We stopped at an ice cream stand along the road for a little treat before making our way back to Burlington.

We set out for a sunset cruise on Lake Champlain that evening. It was a 2 1/2 hour cruise on perfectly calm waters with views of the Adirondack Mountains. The sunset was spectacular! On Sunday morning, Daniel and I drove up into the mountains to visit the tourist town of Stowe. We wandered through the town and played a round of miniature golf. Daniel beat me by just a few strokes. We continued up the road to the base of Mt. Mansfield, which is the highest peak in Vermont. We rode a gondola up to the top of the mountain, where we were met with phenomenal views of the surrounding mountains and valley below. Daniel found a mountain trail that he wanted to climb, so we hiked up part of the rocky trail. It went all the way to the summit, but we didn't go that far. We returned to the base of the mountain in the gondola and took the scenic route through the mountains back to our hotel in Burlington. It was a fabulous weekend celebrating our anniversary.