Abraham...

This is our youngest child and he's 14yo. He has 5 older brothers and 2 older sisters.  Spending all of his time with older siblings has made him more mature than most kids his age. He can't be rushed. But he can always be counted on to get the job done. He's kind and nonjudgmental.  He's never given me or his Dad a moment of angst. He admits to being socially awkward. Mostly because he's quiet. He loves to read- C.S. Lewis is his favorite at the moment, but he's read Harry Potter numerous times.  He's quick-witted. He's crazy smart. He learned to ride a two wheeler when he was only 2. He's a household favorite and to my knowledge no one has ever been fed up with him- and that's saying something when there are so many people living in such close quarters. For sure, he's an easy one to love.

Abe's Feast...

One thing I didn't mention is that Abe likes to play video games.  He likes to watch other people play video games. His theme for his feast was the video game "Destiny."  It just so happens to be my favorite, also.  Yes, I have a favorite video game.  A lot of his choices for the evening will mean nothing to you, but rest assured, it was nothing less than brilliant. He made paper "lanterns" out of white and red lunch bags- slitting holes in the bottoms and hanging then from twinkle lights. Strung them across the dining room so it looked like the "market."  He hung my Destiny quilt on one wall(Yes, I made a Destiny quilt.)He had tons of twinkle lights on the table, set with Destiny poster and a "Ghost."  He gave his guests fidget spinners because they are shaped like the "Destiny" symbol. He had Mountain Dew White Out (Vex milk) as his beverage. Chicken wings for his appetizer.  Fettuccine noodles with Alfredo sauce, roasted chicken and a green salad as his entree. All inspired from "The Farm."  Abe could eat his weight in salad.  For his dessert he had round cakes like the traveler.  Chocolate cake with butter cream filling, lemon pound cake and every one's favorite a fresh apple cake.  Every one had a wonderful time- we sat at the table for an hour and a half.  Not unusual for feast days, but special every time.

Bill used the last chapter of 1 Timothy as his basis for his talk.  He told the children that if it was the last thing they remember him saying, "[your name], guard your faith." That would be it. Guard your faith.  There's a battle going on and you need to be on alert to defend and guard your faith.

Three more feasts to go. Jacob and Mary, Bill's then mine. Stayed tuned.

Joe and Laurie- with Gabriel...

This is Joe and Laurie.  Joe is our oldest son and Laurie is his lovely wife.  I'll tackle describing them separately.  Joe is a rock.  Very cool and collected.  Very thoughtful. He's determined to do things the right way- whether it's making a baked potato or giving a Bible lesson. He has a wonderful smile. Great sense of humor. Too smart for his own good.  He's a problem solver.  He has single-handedly revamped our chore routine into a much more equitable situation.  In case you haven't guessed it, he's a new daddy.  He's flourishing in the role. He said, "You just never realize how much you can love another person, do you?" Laurie is a sweetheart.  She is also a very good mommy. She's made being a mommy and washing laundry a full time job and Gabriel couldn't be happier about that scenario.  She's also very smart.  Competitive in the realm of games. She's agreeable. Generous. Easy to share a space with.  They live with us in the guest quarters.  Joe keeps threatening to move out. Then I start crying and he relents.  They are such a blessing to all of us- I can't even tell you. They bring joy to everyone they know and are so very easy to love.

Dwarf feast...

Here's our sound track for the evening: 

Diggy diggy hole

You can listen to it as you're reading.  

What a total blast we all had!  Joe gave all of the guys a dwarf hat- complete with beards- kinda funny that all of the men seated at the table already have beards(except Abe, who is only 14y.)  Phil was shaking his head- sending the beard swaying from side to side and saying, "I'm livin' the dream!" The girls got helmet hats. These weren't "Hi-ho, hi-ho" kind of dwarves.  Think Tolkien. It certainly set a jolly mood.  They had black fabric hanging from the ceiling making the room look like a cave. The table clothes were earth toned with mushrooms on them- they grow in the ground.  And that was the recurring theme for the food. We had root beer and ginger ale to drink. The appetizer was stuffed mushrooms and french fries.  The main meal was baked potatoes- 'cause these also grow in the ground.  In case you think a baked potato isn't main dish fare, let me say, these were.  They were huge and you had your choice of toppings- butter, sour cream, bacon, and queso con carne. Most opted for all of the above.  Evabeth and I only had one potato and I'm pretty sure we're the only ones who cleaned our plates.  It was wonderful and everyone ate until they were as stuffed as those potatoes. Dessert was dirt cake- with gummy worms on top. They made enough to fill a turkey roaster.  Oh, it was wonderful.  


Bill read from 1 Timothy 5 About not trusting in riches but being rich in good works. Oh, we are all so rich.  Richly blessed.  Let's make sure we're using our physical and spiritual riches to glorify God. 

Bekah...

This is Bekah, our younger daughter- isn't she beautiful?  She's going to be 17 in just a couple weeks.  This picture is just so her.  She's coordinated her hair, the flowers in her hair, her shirt, her skirt. She's not prissy, she just likes pretty things and she's always had her own sense of style.  No way is she going somewhere without thinking about what she'll wear and how she'll do her hair.  It only takes her about 5 minutes, but she always looks put together.  She's practical.  She'll roll her eyes if she thinks you're being a drama queen. If some one is upset, she'll reason with them until they're smiling again. She only cries in the bathroom. She hates people seeing her cry. Occasionally, she'll cry on her Daddy's shoulder, but only if they're alone. If given the choice of going out or staying in, she'll most likely stay in.  She loves babies and children. She's a great artist.  She goes to bed early, so she can have some alone time- living in a house with 11 people can be exhausting for an introvert. She's very smart and quick.  She's decisive.  She's great at making people feel comfortable.  She's just a dear soul and so very easy to love.

Bekah's feast...

It's Spring!!  Well, maybe the snow outside doesn't agree with that statement, but in Bek's world, IT'S SPRING!!!  She decorated her table with vase after vase of spring flowers. (She bought an arm full of them at the dollar tree. As practical as ever, she said she'll decorate with them later, also, and use them in hair creations.) She used some paper from her huge roll and painted a Spring themed picture. Green tree, rolling hills and blue skies with a sun and puffy clouds. She taped this to cover the window. Bek gave each person their own pack of flower seeds- except, Bill who got watermelon.  She also gave us a 6 cell pack of potting soil.  I was kinda surprised at how much the kids enjoyed this gift- especially the boys.  I guess living in the middle of hundreds of acres of farmland might give you an appreciation for dirt- the guys were smelling it like perfume.  Talking about how much they missed gardening.  I'll remind them of this moment in July when they are so over hoeing. After all of our seeds were planted,  her meal started with two small pancakes on a small, flowered, dish and two little smokey links and a sliced and fanned out strawberry. I wish I could describe to you how special everyone felt that she had made their plates not only delicious but pretty.  That's Bek.  She had breakfast for dinner- scrambled eggs, kielbasa, sausage gravy and biscuits, fried potatoes and creamed tomatoes. Wow was everything good! I think almost everyone had seconds.  She had lemonade to drink. Her dessert was key lime pie. Amazing.  It was such a wonderful evening. 

Bill spoke from Ecclesiastes 3:1-8  A time to sow and a time to reap. A time for everything.

Bek's table

John...

This is John and he hates getting his picture taken. So I have my revenge and post all four of them.  He's 21 yo. He works for a commercial security company. He's very generous. Early every morning, before he leaves for work, he makes sure the fire is stoked and ready for the day.  He isn't even going to be there to enjoy the fruits of his labors. He likes getting up early.  Drinking his coffee and watching the sun rise. He can always be called on to stop by the store on his way home from work.  And he never lets me pay for anything. He loves his family. Especially the "Little Ones."  The ones that are younger than him. He is always wrangling them into a movie, a game. He doesn't really care what as long as they are doing it together.  He's very social, but he'll never admit to it.  He was born about 150 years too late.  He likes pioneering and survivalist pastimes. Yes, he's eaten frogs and snakes. And probably a few things he hasn't told his mom about. He's very creative. He's pretty hard to rile. His cousin just told him that he didn't like something John cooked- John didn't ask him for his opinion, mind you.  In my mind, I'm thinking that's pretty rude.  In John's mind, he's laughing at his cousin's ability to be either clueless that he's rude or shameless that he's rude.  Either scenario, John's amused. He's up to no good, but he sure is easy to love.


John's Feast...

John's theme was "Settlers of Catan."  It's a board game that he and his brothers and cousins play. I have never played it, but I got a pretty complete overview of the game.  He set the table with the game board and things that you need to collect to "settle" with- like wood, straw, bricks and coal. He even carved a giant play piece(the robber) as the center piece.  He had boards set up around the room depicting what cards you need to order what's on the menu. The cards were scattered on the table top. When you gave him your cards, he would serve you your dish. For appetizers, he had chocolate and peanut butter stuffed crescent rolls and jalapeno popper dip with crackers. Of course, all the food was slightly encoded. The crescent rolls were happy moon rolls.  The dip was white people and dip. John, John, John. Then he had Chuck Wagon Casserole (Toss Cart Casserole) and Farmer's Pie(Shepherd's dessert). Garlic crescent rolls.  Orange juice, or Capri Sun(Short pants sun). For dessert he had his chocolate peanut butter pie(A nut's anti depressant pie.) He had an assortment of gifts.  He usually gives gifts with his feast instead of Christmas gifts.  There were slippers and yarn. Knives and craft supplies.  And several boxed sets of games. Which have already been a big hit. We were stuffed to the brim- John insisted he make two casseroles of each. And yet, we didn't have as much leftover as I thought we would. It was a great feast.

Bill read 1 Peter 2:4-12  Aliens and strangers in this land.  We might be settling Catan, but we're trying not to get too comfy here.